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TIME IS 2:04 PM ON SEPTEMBER 5TH, 2023.
WE'LL CALL OUR BUDGET SESSION TO ORDER.
MADAM CLERK, COULD YOU READ THE ROLE? COUNCIL MEMBER COR PRESENT? COUNCIL MEMBER MCKEE RODRIGUEZ.
PRESENT, COUNCIL MEMBER VERAN.
COUNCIL MEMBER RETE GATO HERE.
COUNCIL MEMBER COURAGE PRESENT.
COUNCIL MEMBER WHITE MAYOR BERG.
[ ITEMS ]
TWO DEPARTMENTS WE'RE GONNA HEAR FROM TODAY, SO I'LL TURN IT RIGHT OVER TO CITY MANAGER, ERIC WALSH.GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
WE'LL START OFF WITH LIBRARY AND THEN TRANSITION TO PLANNING.
UM, IN ADDITION TO ROMERO, UM, THE CHAIR OF THE LIBRARY BOARD IS HERE, PAUL STALL, AND HE WILL, UH, ALSO PRESENT A PORTION TO THE, UH, COUNCIL.
LET'S SEE IF I CAN GET STARTED HERE.
GOOD AFTERNOON, UH, MAYOR, MEMBERS OF COUNCIL.
I'M RAMIRO SALAZAR, DIRECTOR OF THE SAN ANTONIO PUBLIC LIBRARY.
UH, THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE WITH YOU THE PROPOSED, UH, BUDGET FOR THE LIBRARY DEPARTMENT.
BUT BEFORE I DO THAT, I WOULD LIKE TO RECOGNIZE OUR TEAM.
UM, ERIC ALREADY RECOGNIZED OUR, UH, BOARD CHAIR.
HE WILL BE MAKING REMARKS AT THE END OF MY PRESENTATION.
UM, TO MY REAR HERE, WE HAVE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, UH, KATHY DONLIN, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, DALE MCNEIL, UH, ASSISTANT TO DIRECTOR JESSICA ZITA.
AND WE HAVE OUR DEPARTMENT OF FISCAL ADMINISTRATOR, GABBY RAUSER.
AND SCOTT WILLIAMS, WHO'S HEAD OF OUR COMMUNICATIONS TEAM IS ALSO HERE WITH US.
I ALSO WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE OUR ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, DAVID, UH, MCCAREY.
HE'S WORKED VERY CLOSELY WITH THE LIBRARY TEAM TO GET US TO THIS POINT.
I'LL START WITH THE FIRST SLIDE.
SO, UH, I'M GONNA TAKE SOME, A BRIEF MOMENT TO SHARE WITH YOU SOMETHING ABOUT THE LIBRARY SYSTEM, YOUR LIBRARY SYSTEM, AND I'LL DO A REVIEW OF THE PROPOSED LIBRARY BUDGET.
SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS IN THE BUDGET WILL BE SHARED WITH YOU.
AND THEN I'LL BE TALKING A LITTLE MORE ABOUT THE INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT, A LITTLE MORE THAN PERHAPS THE OTHER ITEMS OF THE BUDGET.
AND THEN WE'LL HAVE, AGAIN, REMARKS AND A MESSAGE FROM THE LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES PRESENTED TO YOU BY PAUL STA STAHL LIBRARY BOARD CHAIR.
SO THE SAN ANTONIO PUBLIC LIBRARY, IT'S A VALUABLE SERVICE ASSET TO THE COMMUNITY.
UH, WE KNOW THAT FROM VARIOUS MEASURES, UH, THE LIBRARY HAS BEEN RANKED AT, AT THE TOP, TYPED AT THE TOP IN TERMS OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION.
UH, IN THE LAST COMMUNITY SURVEY CONDUCTED BY THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, WHICH GAUGE IT GAUGES NOT ONLY THE SATISFACTION OF THE PEOPLE FOR THE SERVICE THAT WE PROVIDE, BUT ALSO FOR ME, IT'S AN APPROVAL RATING.
WE TIED WITH, UH, FIRE AND E M S IN TERMS OF VALUE OF THE, THE, THE SERVICE THAT WE PROVIDE.
UM, THE, THE IMPORTANT ROLE THAT LIBRARY SYSTEM, UH, PROVIDES IN, IN THE CITY IS ONE, WE SUPPORT EDUCATION BY PROVIDING RESOURCES AND PROGRAMS TO OUR STUDENTS.
UH, AND I MAY HIGHLIGHT THAT, UM, GIVEN THAT SOME SCHOOL LIBRARIES ARE CLOSING AND SOME SCHOOL LIBRARIANS ARE GOING AWAY, UH, THE PUBLIC LIBRARY BECOMES EVEN MORE IMPORTANT.
UH, WE PROVIDE ACCESS TO NOT ONLY PRINT, BUT DIGITAL RESOURCES, SPACES FOR STUDY, UH, SPACES FOR COLLABORATION, ACCESS TO ONLINE HOMEWORK ASSISTANCE IS ANOTHER, UH, SERVICE THAT WE PROVIDE THAT'S VALUABLE TO THE STUDENTS.
OF COURSE, WE PROVIDE OTHER SERVICES TO ADVANCE DIGITAL INCLUSION, UH, TO PROVIDE SERVICES TO DIFFERENT AGE GROUPS, FROM CHILDREN TO TEENS, TO ADULTS, TO SENIORS.
SO VALUABLE SERVICES THROUGH THROUGHOUT THE LIBRARY SYSTEM.
AND THAT'S PART OF THE VALUE OF THE SAN ANTONIO PUBLIC LIBRARY SYSTEM, UH, TO THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
I'LL TALK MORE ABOUT THOSE, SOME OF THOSE SERVICES IN A FEW MINUTES.
THERE ARE THREE KEY PERFORMANCE MEASURES THAT WE TAKE.
THE OTHERS IS HOURS OF TECHNOLOGY AND NUMBER OF VISITS TO OUR LOCATIONS.
AND NOW DURING COVID, AS YOU UNDERSTAND, IT HAD AN IMPACT ON OUR USAGE.
SO YOU CAN SEE THAT GRAPHICALLY.
UH, THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT WE'RE THE, THE, THE USE IS TRENDING UP.
THE METRICS ARE TRENDING UP, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF NUMBER OF VISITS.
NOW, OVER 3 MILLION PEOPLE ARE VISITING THE LIBRARY, AND WE'RE STILL TRENDING UP.
UH, BUT NOT, WE'RE NOT WHERE WE WANNA BE IN TERMS OF VISITS.
AND PART OF IT IS THE BEHAVIORS OF OUR USERS ARE CHANGING.
AND AS THOSE BEHAVIOR BEHAVIORS CHANGE, UH, THE
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LIBRARY TEAM IS ADAPTING AND PIVOTING TO, UH, CONTINUE TO PROVIDE RESPONSIVE SERVICE TO THE COMMUNITY.BUT I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THAT, THAT POINT.
I INDICATED TO YOU ONE OF THE IMPORTANT ROLES THE, THE LIBRARY SYSTEM PROVIDES IS ENGAGING THE COMMUNITY AT ALL AGE LEVELS.
AND SO FROM THE VERY YOUNG, WE PROVIDE, UM, SERVICES TO PARENTS THAT ARE TEACHING AND, UH, WORKING TO TEACH THEIR PARENTS HOW TO READ.
BECAUSE ADVANCING LITERACY IS ANOTHER KEY ROLE THAT THE LIBRARY SYSTEM, UH, PROVIDES.
WE WANT TO, UH, CREATE A LITTERED COMMUNITY SO THAT, UH, MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY ARE MORE, UH, COMPETITIVE AND PRODUCTIVE AND BEING MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY.
SO, ADVANCING LITERACY IS ONE WAY.
EARLY LITERACY IS THE WAY WE, WE, THE LIBRARY DOES THAT.
OUR LITTLE RED WAGON IS AN OUTREACH PROGRAM THAT GOES TO THROUGH, UH, DIFFERENT SCHOOLS THROUGHOUT THE COMMUNITY AS WELL AS, UH, CHILDCARE CENTERS TO HELP, UH, THOSE THAT CARE FOR CHILDREN, HOW TO EFFECTIVELY TEACH THE CHILDREN TO READ.
UM, I TALKED ABOUT SERVICES TO CHILDREN PROGRAMS THAT WE OFFER IN ALL OF OUR LIBRARY LOCATIONS TO ENGAGE CHILDREN WITH THEIR PARENTS AS WELL.
NOW, I MENTIONED SERVICES TO TEENAGERS.
THAT'S IN A VERY, A VERY IMPORTANT GROUP.
TEENAGERS NEED A SPECIAL SPACE, UH, THAT THEY CAN CALL THEIR SPACE WITHIN THE LIBRARY.
WE'VE CREATED SPACES IN PRACTICALLY ALL OF OUR LIBRARY LOCATION LOCATIONS.
AS WE CONTINUE TO RENOVATE, UH, OUR BRANCHES, WE'RE FOCUSING ON THOSE SPACES, UH, FOR CHILDREN'S, FOR TEENS TO CREATE, AGAIN, SPACES THAT WILL INSPIRE LEARNING, UH, THAT WILL PROVIDE A SPACE FOR COLLABORATIVE LEARNING AND, AND INTERACTION.
OF COURSE, UH, ADULT SERVICES TO ADULTS IS, UH, UH, SERVICE THAT WE CONTINUE TO PROVIDE.
ONE OF THE FOCUS AR AREA, UH, THIS PAST YEAR WAS A FOCUS ON SERVICES TO SENIORS.
WE UNDERSTAND SENIORS ALSO NEED OPPORTUNITIES FOR COLLABORATION, FOR INTERACTION, UH, FOR, TO ADDRESS THE DIGITAL INCLUSION, TO HELP 'EM HOW TO USE IPADS, HOW TO ACCESS THE COMPUTER, HOW TO NAVIGATE THE IN INTERNET.
THOSE ARE KEY, UH, UM, LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES FOR SENIORS.
SO WE'VE REALLY FOCUSED ON, UH, ALSO SERVICES TO SENIORS.
THE PROPOSED LIBRARY BUDGET IN FY 2024 IS, UH, ALMOST A 10% INCREASE FROM THE CURRENT BUDGET.
SO WE'RE GONNA GO FROM $49.1 MILLION TO 50 MILLION TO OVER $50 MILLION, $53.5 MILLION IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET.
I'LL GET INTO THE DETAILS IN THE NEXT SLIDE.
UH, BEFORE I DO THAT, I DO WANT TO RECOGNIZE AND ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THERE'S AN INCREASED FUNDING IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET TO, UH, EXPAND OUR ENHANCED LIBRARY CARD INITIATIVE.
UH, IT'S SIMILAR TO A IT, AND IT FUNCTIONS THE SAME AS ANY LIBRARY CARD, EXCEPT THAT IT HAS SOME ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.
IT PROVIDES THE BIRTH DATE OF THE INDIVIDUAL, THE, THE ADDRESS AND A PICTURE.
AND THIS IS AN OPT-IN KIND OF LIBRARY CARD FOR THOSE INDIVIDUALS THAT MAY HAVE A NEED FOR THIS KIND OF CARD THAT PROVIDES THAT INFORMATION TO HELP ACCESS SERVICES.
THIS CARD IS, IS, HAS BEEN MADE AVAILABLE FOR THEM.
THE ENHANCEMENT IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET WILL ALLOW US TO OFFER THIS CARD IN ALL LIBRARY LOCATIONS IN 29 LOCATIONS.
UM, INDIVIDUALS CAN COME TO THOSE THIS LOCATIONS AND APPLY FOR AN ENHANCED LIBRARY CARD.
A PICTURE WILL BE TAKEN, UH, THAT INFORMATION WILL BE SENT TO THE CENTRAL LIBRARY.
THE CARD WILL BE MAILED TO THE INDIVIDUAL.
UM, I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THAT.
ANOTHER, UH, KEY, UH, ADDITION IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET IS $125,000 TO, UH, SUPPLEMENT THE COLLECTION AT THE LAS PALMAS BRANCH LIBRARY.
UH, THAT BRANCH LIBRARY IS UNDER RENOVATION.
WE EXPECT THE PROJECT TO BE COMPLETED, UH, LATE SPRING, MAYBE EARLY SUMMER, AS WE REOPEN THE BRANCH LIBRARY.
AND THIS IS SOMETHING WE LEARNED WHEN WE REOPENED MEMORIAL BRANCH LIBRARY, WHEN WE REOPENED THE TREELESS AFTER RENOVATIONS RENOVATION PROJECTS.
UM, SO WE REOPENED THE BRANCH LIBRARIES WITH BRAND NEW FURNITURE, CARPETING, AND SO ON.
BUT THE COLLECTIONS WERE THE OLD COLLECTIONS THAT WERE THERE.
SO WE FELT THAT AS PART OF REOPENING A RENOVATED LIBRARY, WE NEEDED TO RE ALSO REFRESH THE COLLECTION.
AND THIS INITIATIVE WILL ALLOW FOR THAT.
THE PROPOSED BUDGET INCLUDES, UH, $1 MILLION TO REPLACE COMPUTERS.
I MENTIONED EARLIER, DIGITAL INCLUSION IS AN IMPORTANT AND KEY ROLE THE LIBRARY PLAYS.
SO HAVING FUNCTIONAL AND UP-TO-DATE COMPUTERS, UH, THAT ARE RESPONSIVE, IT'S IMPORTANT TO FACILITATE, UH, DIGITAL INCLUSION.
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THE PROPOSED BUDGET ALSO PROVIDES $5.7 MILLION IN ADDITION TO THE $21 MILLION IN THE 2022 BOND PROGRAM TO ADDRESS FACILITY IMPROVEMENT.OUT OF ALL THIS LOCA, THIS LOCATION, WE HAVE EIGHT, FIVE OF THEM ARE H V A C RE, UH, REPLACEMENT.
AS YOU KNOW, LIBRARIES PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE AS COOLING SITES AND AS WARMING SITES.
SO IT'S IMPORTANT THAT OUR AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEMS ARE RELIABLE AND, UH, SUSTAINABLE.
SO WE'RE REPLACING FIVE IN TWO BRANCH LIBRARIES, THE SIMS BRANCH LIBRARY.
UH, WE'RE ALSO DOING H V A C WORK, BUT WE ALSO DO AN EXTENSIVE WORK WITH, UH, THE FOUNDATION HAS, UH, EXPERIENCED SOME PROBLEMS, OR WE INVEST IN SIGNIFICANT DOLLARS TO REPAIR THAT.
THE JOHN AGRO BRANCH LIBRARY WILL ALSO RECEIVE SOME, UH, FOUNDATION WORK OR WORK TO THE BUILDINGS FOUNDATION, LEMME PUT IT THAT WAY.
UH, THE OTHER IMPROVEMENTS THAT WE WILL BE ABLE TO ACCO ACCOMPLISH WITH THE ADDED RESOURCES IS TO REFRESH, UH, THE INTERIORS OF OUR LIBRARIES.
IT'S IMPORTANT FOR THE LIBRARY SYSTEM TO PROVIDE, UM, WELCOMING ENVIRONMENTS, UH, ENVIRONMENTS THAT ARE REFRESHED, THAT HAS NEW CARPETING, HAS, UH, UH, FURNITURE THAT HAVE, THAT'S FUNCTIONAL.
UH, SO AGAIN, IT'S IMPORTANT TO PROVIDE THOSE KIND OF ENVIRONMENTS.
AND THE FUNDS THAT ARE BEING PROVIDED, UH, WILL ALLOW US TO DO THAT.
SO I WANNA SPEND A LITTLE TIME EXPLAINING TO YOU WHERE WE ARE WITH THE INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT.
FOR ALMOST 90 YEARS, THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO HAS HAD A, UM, AN AGREEMENT WITH BAYER COUNTY TO EXTEND LIBRARY SERVICES TO COUNTY RESIDENTS, NON-CITY, COUNTY RESIDENTS.
UH, OF COURSE, THAT AGREEMENT HAS BEEN, UH, RENEGOTIATED MANY TIMES.
AS THE CITY HAS GROWN, THE COUNTY HAS GROWN.
AS THE LIBRARY SYSTEM HAS GROWN, UH, THAT AGREEMENT HAS ALSO CHANGED.
UH, THE CURRENT AGREEMENT IS SCHEDULED TO EXPIRE THE END OF THIS MONTH.
WITHOUT THE AGREEMENT, OF COURSE, WE'LL NOT BE ABLE TO, UH, PROVIDE SERVICES.
HOWEVER, UH, ON THURSDAY, THIS THURSDAY, YOU WILL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO ACT ON, UH, ON AN EXTENSION OF THE CURRENT AGREEMENT, UH, FOR ANOTHER YEAR.
IT'S SO, SO WHERE WE ARE WITH THIS PARTICULAR INITIATIVE, WE REACHED OUT TO THE COUNTY EARLY THIS YEAR, UH, TO GAUGE THEIR INTEREST IN CONTINUING, UH, FOR THE CITY TO CONTINUE TO OFFER SERVICES TO COUNTY RESIDENTS WHO LIVE OUTSIDE THE CITY.
UH, WE, OUR GOAL IN TERMS OF THE CITY'S GOAL IS TO ALIGN THE PAYMENT OF THE CITY TO, I MEAN, OF THE COUNTY, RATHER, THE ALIGN THE PAYMENT FROM THE COUNTY TO THE CITY WITH USAGE, CURRENTLY USAGE BY COUNTY RESIDENTS WHO LIVE OUTSIDE.
THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO IS 26% OF OUR CIRCULATION.
THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S USAGE THAT WE CAN GAUGE THAT'S TANGIBLE.
SO 26%, UM, IS A SIGNIFICANT USAGE BY COUNTY RESIDENTS.
SO WE BELIEVE THAT, UH, THE COUNTY'S PAYMENT NEEDS TO BE ALIGNED WITH USAGE.
RIGHT NOW, WE'RE SUBSIDIZING THIS SERVICE TO THE COUNTY.
THE FEE, THE CURRENT FEE'S, $2.6 MILLION FROM THE COUNTY TO THE CITY.
NOW, IF YOU'RE WE'RE TO TAKE USAGE AND APPLY IT TO OUR CURRENT BUDGET, UH, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT $12 MILLION FOR THE COUNTIES, FROM MY PERSPECTIVE, UH, APPROPRIATE PAYMENT TO THE CITY, UH, IF YOU LOOK AT, ON A PER CAPITA BASIS, IN OTHER WORDS, DOLLARS THAT THE CITY INVEST IN THE LIBRARY SYSTEM, IT WOULD LOOK AT, ON A PER CAPITA BASIS, THE COUNTY'S PAYMENT WOULD BE ABOUT $18 MILLION.
SO, BY ANY MEASURE, FROM MY PERSPECTIVE, WE'RE SUBSIDIZING THE SERVICE TO THE COUNTY.
SO PART OF OUR GOAL IN EXTENDING THE CURRENT AGREEMENT IS TO GIVE BOTH PARTIES ENOUGH TIME TO NEGOTIATE A LONGER TERM AGREEMENT, AND ONE THAT IS ALIGNED WITH USAGE.
SO, UH, WITH THE APPROVAL OF THE INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT THIS THURSDAY, IF YOU APPROVE IT, AND THE COUNTY APPROVING ALSO THE, THE AGREEMENT WE HAVE ALREADY FORWARDED TO THE COUNTY, WE WILL BE ABLE TO SIT TOGETHER BOTH PARTIES AND TALK ABOUT HOW WE CAN MAKE THIS HAPPEN.
UH, SO I HAVE ARTICULATED OUR GOALS GOING FORWARD, UM, AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE GOING TO BE WORKING, UH, TOWARDS AS WE START NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE COUNTY.
BY THE WAY, UM, WHEN WE STARTED THE CONVERSATIONS RECENTLY, WELL, EARLIER THIS YEAR WITH THE COUNTY, UH, THE COUNTY REQUESTED ADDITIONAL TIME TO NEGOTIATE THE LONG, LONGER TERM AGREEMENT.
AND, UH, WE AGREED AND WE, UH, SAID WE CAN DO THAT, PROVIDED THAT, THAT, UM, THERE'S A GOOD FAITH EFFORTS IN BOTH PARTIES, UM, ON THE COUNTY SIDE WHERE YOU HAD WANTED TO GET THE COUNTY BACK TO THE BASELINE OF $3.8 MILLION.
THAT'S THE LAST TIME THE COUNTY PAID ON THE,
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OR THE USAGE HAD SOME FORMULA.UH, THE COUNTY DID NOT AGREE THAT TO, THAT THEY DID COME BACK WITH A COUNTY MEASURE, UH, OR COUNTER OFFER, RATHER OF 3 MILLION, WHICH HAS BEEN PROPOSED NOW AS PART OF OUR INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT.
IN THE INTEREST OF TIME, IN THE INTEREST OF CONTINUING SERVICES AND, AND AVOIDING DISRUPTION OF SERVICES TO COUNTY RESIDENTS WHO LIVE OUTSIDE THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, UH, WE AGREED TO THE $3 MILLION.
SO THAT WOULD ADD US ABOUT 600, 616,000, UH, NO, LET'S SEE, NO, 416,000 ABOVE THE CURRENT FEE.
THAT 416,000 HAS BEEN ADDED TO THE BOOK BUDGET, TO THE LIBRARY'S MATERIAL WILL BE ADDED AS PART OF THE, SO THAT TAKES ME TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
SO, THE CITY MANAGER'S PROPOSING TO USE THAT INCREMENT OF 416,000 AS PART OF THIS AGREEMENT TO EXTEND THE, THE, THE INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT FOR ONE MORE YEAR FOR BOTH PARTIES TO NEGOTIATE A LONGER TERM AGREEMENT.
UM, THE CITY MANAGER, AGAIN, HAS ALLOCATED, HAS, IS PROPOSING TO ALLOCATE THOSE DOLLARS TO THE LIBRARY'S BOOK BUDGET, WHICH WILL INCREASE THE LIBRARY'S BOOK BUDGET TO A LITTLE OVER $7 MILLION.
UH, WHICH WILL GIVE US AN OPPORTUNITY, OPPORTUNITY TO BE MORE RESPONSIVE TO THE DEMANDS OF THE COMMUNITY, UM, TO BE ABLE TO SHORTEN THE WAIT TIME FOR, UH, NEW AND POPULAR MATERIALS.
UH, SO WE'RE, WE'RE HAPPY AND THANKFUL, THANKFUL THAT THE CITY MANAGER IS, UH, PROPOSING, UH, THE ALLOCATION OF THESE ADDITIONAL FUNDS TO THE BOOK BUDGET.
LAST BUT NOT LEAST AS IT RELATES TO THE LIBRARY DEPARTMENT.
UM, I MENTIONED EARLIER IN THE LAST, UH, CITYWIDE SURVEY, THE LIBRARY CAME UP AT THE TOP IN TERMS OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION.
AND I JUST WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE AND APPLAUD, UH, THE LIBRARY TEAM, THE STAFF THROUGHOUT THE LIBRARY SYSTEM WHO ARE EXTREMELY PASSIONATE AND DEVOTED TO PUBLIC SERVICES.
THEY'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS SATISFACTION RATING.
SO I WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE THEM PUBLICLY, ACKNOWLEDGE THEM, AND THANK THEM FOR THEIR COMMITMENT TO PUBLIC SERVICE.
AND WITH THAT, THAT COMPLETES MY PART OF THE PRESENTATION.
AND THIS, AT THIS TIME, I WILL INVITE OUR BOARD CHAIR, PAUL STALL, TO BRING REMARKS FROM THE, FROM THE LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES.
WE MISSED THE, WE MISSED THE APPLAUSE, KILA, BUT THANK YOU TO OUR LIBRARY STAFF.
I'M CHUCKLING AT THE SELFIE, UH, PICTURE THAT THEY GOT UP THERE,
I WAS, I WAS, THAT WAS A GREAT DAY OF THE REOPENING OF THE, THE CENTRAL LIBRARY.
UM, IT'S, IT'S FAR TOO RARE FOR ME TO GET A CHANCE TO SPEAK IN FRONT OF YOU.
SO I, I, I'M, I'M VERY, UH, THANKFUL FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY.
UM, UM, AS THE CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF SAN ANTONIO PUBLIC LIBRARY, I'M JUST VERY PROUD, UH, OF THE WORK THAT, THAT, UH, THAT OUR GOVERNING BODY DOES.
UM, YOU KNOW, WE ARE UNIQUE IN THE CITY AMONG BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS, UH, HAVING BEEN ESTABLISHED VIA THE CITY CHARTER.
WE TAKE, UM, I MEAN, WE'RE KEENLY AWARE OF THE RESPONSIBILITY, UH, THAT WE HAVE AS CITY OFFICIALS TO HELP GUIDE OUR LIBRARY SYSTEM AND TO, UH, TO MAKE SURE WE STAY FOCUSED ON OUR MISSION.
UM, SO I MEAN, RAMIRO, YOU KNOW, RAMIRO HIT, HIT THE HIGH POINTS.
UM, I MEAN, WE'RE VERY, UH, GRATEFUL, UH, FOR THE SERVICE AREAS AND THE IMPROVEMENTS, UM, THAT ARE BEING CONSIDERED, UH, FOR THIS NEXT YEAR'S BUDGET.
UM, I'M, I'M INCREDIBLY PROUD AS, UH, AS IS, UH, THE REST OF THE BOARD AT THE WORK THAT, THAT OUR LIBRARY STAFF DOES.
UM, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE, IT'S NOT JUST, YOU KNOW, WHAT THEY DO IS NOT JUST A JOB TO THEM, IT'S A CALLING.
UM, I THINK THE PREVIOUS SLIDE ON THE 94%, UH, UH, APPROVAL RATING, UH, FROM THE CITIZENS, I MEAN, SHOWS THAT, UH, THAT THEY'RE GOING ABOVE AND BEYOND.
SO ANY, ANY ADDITIONAL, UH, BUDGET THAT WE RECEIVE, UH, THIS YEAR IS JUST GONNA HELP THEM TO CONTINUE, UH, TO PROVIDE THAT MISSION AND TO FURTHER THAT MISSION.
AND WHAT I'M MOST PROUD OF, I THINK, IS HOW WE ARE APPROACHING THE SERVICES THAT THE LIBRARY PROVIDES TO THE COMMUNITY IN SUCH A BROAD APPROACH.
YOU KNOW, UH, UM, UH, IT'S A VERY, IT'S A VERY, UM, UM, HOLISTIC, UH, VIEW OF OUR, OF OUR WHOLE CITY IN THAT THERE ARE TARGETED PROGRAMS, TARGETED, UM, TAR TARGETED EVENTS THAT WE HAVE FOR SUCH A WIDE SEGMENT OF THAT POPULATION.
UM, I, I, I HEAR SO OFTEN FROM, FROM, UH, FROM PEOPLE, UM, AS I'M TALKING TO THEM, THAT, THAT, YOU KNOW, THEIR GRANDMOTHER GOES TO THE LIBRARY AS MANY TIMES I'M EXPECTING THEM TO SAY, WELL, I LOVE TAKING MY, MY CHILD FOR THE READING TIME.
BUT THAT I'M HEARING SO MUCH OF, OF THE OLDER POPULATION.
UM, I'M ALSO HEARING A LOT ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF, OF OUR, OF OUR COMPUTERS THAT WE'RE PROVIDING.
UM, I HAVE, I HAVE A FEW GENTLEMEN THAT I MENTOR, AND AS THEY CONTINUE TO LOOK FOR EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES, THEY GO TO THE LIBRARY TO FILL OUT THAT APPLICATION.
THEY DON'T HAVE COMPUTERS AT HOME.
IT'S JUST INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT.
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THAT, THAT ITEM FOR REFRESHING THOSE, THOSE, UM, THOSE COMPUTERS TO, TO, TO KEEP, UH, THAT TECHNOLOGY FRESH FOR, FOR OUR PATRONS IS INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT.SO I JUST WANNA THANK YOU FOR THE, UH, FOR THE IMPORTANT INCREASES, UH, THAT YOU WERE CONSIDERING.
UM, CERTAINLY FOR TAKING CARE OF THE CITY EMPLOYEES.
LIKE I SAID, OUR, OUR, UH, OUR STAFF ARE, THEY'RE THE JEWELS OF THE SYSTEM.
UM, AND FOR HELPING TO, UH, FOCUS THE WHOLE QUALITY OF LIFE OF SAN ANTONIO AROUND, UM, AROUND LIBRARIES AND LITERACIES.
AND WE'RE ALL HERE, I BELIEVE WE'RE ALL HERE CHAMPIONS FOR LITERACY.
UM, AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO LOOK TOO FAR IN THE, IN THE NEWS, UH, TO SEE THAT, UH, IT'S A CHALLENGING TIME FOR LIBRARIES NATIONWIDE.
SO, UM, YOUR SOLIDARITY, YOUR SUPPORT IS, UH, MEANS THE WORLD TO US, AND I APPRECIATE YOUR TIME TODAY.
GOOD AFTERNOON, MR. MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL.
THE NEXT BRIEFING IS ON THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT'S BUDGET, WITH AN EMPHASIS ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CITY'S COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.
I'LL FIRST REVIEW WITH YOU THE 2024 PLANNING DEPARTMENT OF BUDGET.
I'LL FOLLOW THAT WITH A PROGRAM CHANGE, UH, WHICH IS ESSENTIALLY THE DEPARTMENT IMPROVEMENT THAT ADDS FUNDS TO CONTINUE THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CITY'S COMPREHENSIVE PLAN ESSAY TOMORROW.
UH, I'LL THEN REVIEW THE PHASES OF WORK TO FOLLOW FISCAL YEAR 2024.
THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT CURRENTLY INCLUDES 24 FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES, MOST OF WHICH ARE IN THREE DIVISIONS.
THE CITYWIDE PLANNING DIVISION, THE REGIONAL PLANNING DIVISION, AND THE ZONING DIVISION.
THE DEPARTMENT IS FOCUSED ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CITY'S COMPREHENSIVE PLAN, WHICH IS TITLED ESSAY TOMORROW.
THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN IS THE ADOPTED LONG-TERM GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT POLICY THAT IS THE DEPARTMENT'S NORTH STAR.
AS WE SEEK STRONG PARTNERSHIPS TO WORK TOWARD IMPLEMENTING THE PLAN'S VISION FOR SAN ANTONIO'S GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT, THE CITYWIDE PLANNING DIVISION COLLABORATES WITH THE COMMUNITY TO DEVELOP MORE LOCALIZED PLANS THAT GUIDE DECISIONS ON GROWTH POLICY AND MANY OF THE CITY'S INVESTMENTS TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE TRULY IMPACTING QUALITY OF LIFE.
SOME POLICY ELEMENTS ON WHICH THE DIVISION WORKS, UH, WITH THE COMMUNITY ARE RELATED TO LAND USE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, HOUSING, MOBIL, AND MOBILITY.
THE REGIONAL PLANNING DIVISION WORKS ON INITIATIVES THAT ARE WIDE RANGING AND TOUCH MANY PARTS OF THE COMMUNITY AND THE COUNTY, SUCH AS CORRIDOR PLANS, ANNEXATION, SPECIAL DISTRICT EVALUATION, AND PARTNERSHIPS WITH OTHER CITIES AND OTHER ENTITIES.
A MAJOR INITIATIVE THAT WAS RECENTLY ADOPTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL AND WILL GUIDE THE DIVISION'S WORK MOVING FORWARD IS THE ANNEXATION AND GROWTH MANAGEMENT POLICY.
AND FINALLY, THE ZONING DIVISION WORKS TO ADDRESS ZONING INCONSISTENCIES THAT MAY OCCUR AS THE RESULT OF ADOPTING AN UPDATED FUTURE LAND USE PLAN.
ALREADY, THIS DIVISION HAS REZONED SEVERAL SQUARE MILES OF, OF PROPERTY IN SUCH AREAS AS BROOKS AND THE MIDTOWN AREA NORTH OF DOWNTOWN.
ON THIS SLIDE IS A PROPOSED FISCAL YEAR 2024 DEPARTMENT BUDGET OF $5.9 MILLION.
THIS IN THIS AMOUNT IS AN INCREASE FROM THE FISCAL YEAR 2023, ACTUAL BUDGET OF 4.2.
THE DIFFERENCE IS IN ORDER TO CONTINUE WITH THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ESSAY TOMORROW, BY FUNDING THE NEXT PHASE OF SIX PLANS IN THE COMMUNITY, I'LL DISCUSS THE NEXT PHASE OF THESE PLANS IN THE COMING SLIDES AS IT RELATES TO THE CITY'S COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.
SA TOMORROW IS ACTUALLY COMPRISED OF THREE ADOPTED CITY PLANS, ALL OF WHICH WERE ADOPTED IN 2016.
THE THREE PLANS ARE THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN OF THE CITY, THE MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION PLAN, AND THE SUSTAINABILITY PLAN.
ALL OF THESE PLANS WORK TO PROACTIVELY ADDRESS THE FORECASTED GROWTH OF 1.1 MILLION PEOPLE IN BAYER COUNTY BY THE YEAR 2040.
THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT IS CONTINUING IMPLEMENTATION OF THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN THROUGH THE DEVELOPMENT OF SUB AREA CORRIDOR REVITALIZATION PLANS, AS WELL AS UPDATING GROWTH POLICIES AND MANAGING THE CITY'S INITIATED REZONING CASES.
THE SA TOMORROW SUB AREA GEOGRAPHIES INCLUDE 13 REGIONAL CENTERS, WHICH WERE IDENTIFIED AS EXISTING OR EMERGING HUBS OF EMPLOYMENT AND ACTIVITY, AND 17 COMMUNITY AREAS THAT ENCOMPASS THE BALANCE OF THE CITY.
THE 30 SUB AREA PLANS ARE BEING DEVELOPED USING CONSISTENT METHODS AND LANGUAGE THAT WILL RESULT IN THE FIRST CITYWIDE FUTURE LAND USE MAP.
THE SUB AREA PLANNING PROCESS IS A MULTI-PHASED MULTI-YEAR WORK PLAN.
EACH PHASE INCLUDES SIX PLANS WITH APPROXIMATELY 24 MONTHS OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND PLAN DEVELOPMENT.
THIS PROCESS BEGAN IN 2017 AND IS EXPECTED TO BE COMPLETE IN APPROXIMATELY 2028.
THE DEPARTMENT STREAMLINED THE LAND USE CATEGORIES USED BY THE CITY.
THESE CATEGORIES ARE NOW BEING APPLIED IN ALL OF THE SUB AREA PLANS MOVING FORWARD, CREATING A LEVEL OF CONSISTENCY.
CITYWIDE SUB AREA PLANS ARE DEVELOPED AROUND A PLANNING FRAMEWORK THAT ADDRESSES THE TOPICS ON THE
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SCREEN.FRAMEWORK RECOMMENDATIONS ARE SUMMARIZED INTO A PLAN FRAMEWORK MAP, AND EXPANDED UPON THROUGH EXISTING CONDITIONS, ANALYSES, RECOMMENDATIONS, AND SPECIFIC STRATEGIES.
THE IMAGE SHOWN HERE IN, IN THIS FRAMEWORK MAP IS FROM THE SOUTHEAST AREA COMMUNITY PLAN SUB AREA PLANS ALSO INCLUDE VISION AND GOALS, NEIGHBORHOOD PROFILES AND PRIORITIES AND IMPLEMENTATION SECTIONS, AS WELL AS MAPS AND GRAPHICS.
FOR EACH OF THE FRAMEWORK ELEMENTS.
PLANS ARE DEVELOPED THROUGH A RANGE OF PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT ACTIVITIES, INCLUDING INITIAL OUTREACH, PLANNING TEAMS, COMMUNITY-WIDE MEETINGS, ONGOING OUTREACH, FOCUS GROUPS, COMMUNITY AND INTERCEPT EVENTS, MEDIA AND ONLINE RESOURCES, AND DISTRIBUTION LISTS AND PROJECT WEBSITES.
THIS SLIDE IS A HIGH LEVEL GRAPHIC THAT IS INTENDED TO PROVIDE A SYNOPSIS OF ALL THE STAGES OF THE PLANNING PROCESS.
AS YOU CAN SEE, THIS EFFORT IS ROBUST AND INCLUDES A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE PROCESS.
FOR EXAMPLE, FOR PHASE THREE, THE DEPARTMENT SENT OUT A TOTAL OF OVER 100,000 NOTICES FOR COMMUNITY MEETINGS ACROSS ALL OF THE PLAN AREAS IN THAT PHASE.
ADDITIONALLY, WE HAVE ADDED A SURVEY TO THE GREATER AIRPORT AREA PLAN, WHICH WAS SENT OUT TO APPROXIMATELY 42,000 ADDRESSES.
PHASE PHASES ONE, TWO, AND THREE PLANS ARE EXPECTED TO BE PRESENTED FOR CITY COUNCIL CONSIDERATION THROUGHOUT FOUR.
AT THE BEGINNING OF THE ESSAY TOMORROW PLANNING PROCESS, THE COUNCIL DIRECTED THAT THE REGIONAL CENTER PLANS BE PRIORITIZED FOR ADOPTION.
GIVEN THAT DIRECTION, ALL REGIONAL CENTER PLANS WILL BE BROUGHT FORTH FOR ADOPTION BY THE END OF THIS COMING FISCAL YEAR.
THE PLANNING PROCESS FOR PHASES FOUR AND FIVE WILL KICK OFF IN FY 2024 AND 26 4 AND 26 RESPECTIVELY.
ON THE SCREEN, YOU CAN SEE THE PHASE ONE PLANS WITH ONLY WEST SIDE CONTINUING, UH, TO BE AN ONGOING PLAN, BUT THAT PLAN TOO WILL BE BROUGHT FORWARD FOR CONSIDERATION.
THIS COMING FISCAL YEAR FOUR PLANS HAVE BEEN ADOPTED THUS FAR FOR THE SECOND PHASE OF THE SA TOMORROW IMPLEMENTATION.
THE EAST SIDE PLAN AND THE TEXAS A AND M PLAN ARE TWO PLANS THAT REQUIRED ADDITIONAL COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND WILL ALSO BE BROUGHT FORTH.
IN PROCESS IS ALSO THE THIRD PHASE OF PLANS, WHICH YOU CAN SEE ON THE SCREEN.
ALL OF THESE PLANS ARE CURRENTLY ON TRACK TO BE CONSIDERED FOR THE COUNCIL, UH, THIS COMING FISCAL YEAR.
ON THE MAP, YOU CAN SEE THE LOCATIONS OF ALL THREE, UH, PHASE THREE PLANS.
THE PLANS IN BLUE ARE THE REGIONAL CENTER PLANS THAT ARE REMAINING TO BE ADOPTED.
AND THE PLANS IN ORANGE OR THE LIGHT ORANGE ARE THE COMMUNITY AREA PLANS.
AND THE PROGRAM IMPROVEMENT IS FOR THE PHASE FOUR PLANS THAT ARE CURRENTLY ON THE SCREEN.
THE REQUEST WILL FUND THE CONSULTANT SUPPORT FOR THE DEPARTMENT, AS WELL AS THE DEPARTMENT'S RELATED EXPENSES TO THE PLANNING PROCESS, WHICH INCLUDES RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS, ONGOING PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT PROJECT WEBSITES, AS WELL AS PLAN DRAFTING REVISIONS.
PHASE FOUR SUB AREA PLANS STRETCH FROM THE NORTHWEST TO THE NORTHEAST SIDES OF TOWN.
WHILE ADDITIONALLY, WE WILL COMMENCE WORKING ON THE SOUTHWEST COMMUNITY PLAN AREA.
ADOPTION OF PHASE FOUR PLANS IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN IN F Y 2026, AND THE PLANNING PROCESS FOR PHASE FIVE WILL KICK OFF IN FISCAL YEAR 2026.
AND WE'LL INCLUDE THE PLANS THAT ARE LABELED ON THE SCREEN.
AND WITH THAT, MR. MAYOR, THAT CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION, AND I'M HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS.
UH, THANK YOU VERY MUCH, RUDY.
UH, UH, PAUL AS WELL AS RAMIRO FOR THE PRESENTATIONS.
RUDY, YOU CAN JUST HAVE A COUPLE QUICK QUESTIONS FOR YOU.
UM, AND I, I APPRECIATE YOU, UM, GIVING US A KIND OF BIRD'S EYE VIEW OF THE TIMELINE OF THE, THE COMMUNITY PLANS.
SO WHEN THIS PROCESS STARTED, UH, WITH RESPECT TO THE COMMUNITY PLANNING PROCESS, WE WERE STILL LOOKING AT, UH, NINE URBAN NODES AROUND SAN ANTONIO THAT, UH, FUNCTION AT LIVE WORK PLAY CENTERS OF ACTIVITY.
UH, WE HAD FOUR EMERGING, UH, NODES.
WHERE DO WE STAND WITH THAT NOW? ARE ANY OF THE NODES THAT WE IDENTIFIED AS EMERGING NOW BECOMING, UM, BONAFIDE, UH, CENTERS OF ACTIVITY? YES, SIR.
I THINK THAT WE'RE ACTUALLY SEEING A LOT OF GROWTH IN MANY OF THE EMERGING CENTERS, PARTICULARLY.
WE'RE SEEING THAT IN BROOKS, UH, WITH QUITE A BIT OF, OF, UM, OF JOB ACTIVITY IN THE AREA.
AS WE MOVE FORWARD, UM, TO THE FOLLOWING FISCAL YEAR, WE'RE GONNA ACTUALLY BE DOING A, AN INTERNAL ANALYSIS TO DETERMINE, UH, THE IMPACT OF, OF SA TOMORROW, THE GROWTH THAT WE'RE SEEING, JUST TO ENSURE THAT ALL OF THOSE JOB NUMBERS AND HOUSING NUMBERS ARE ON TRACK.
UM, HAVING SAID THAT, IT'S A, IT'S A SLOW MOVING TARGET, SO IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'LL PROBABLY SEE A LITTLE BIT OF, OF GROWTH MOVING.
BUT I THINK THAT OVER TIME WE'RE GONNA FIND THAT, FROM WHAT WE CAN TELL, THE, THE CENSUS PROJECTIONS
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ARE SHOWING THAT THERE PROBABLY MAY EVEN BE MORE GROWTH, UH, WITHIN THE COUNTY, AT LEAST THAN WHAT WE INITIALLY PROJECTED.BUT WITHIN THE REGIONAL CENTERS, WE'RE STARTING TO SEE QUITE A BIT OF GROWTH IN THOSE AREAS.
AND SO THE REASON WHY I ASK THAT IS THAT, THAT THAT KNOWLEDGE AND THAT DATA SHOULD HELP INFORM THE INVESTMENTS WE'RE MAKING IN TERMS OF INFRASTRUCTURE.
AND CERTAINLY THAT WAS THE INTENT AT THE BEGINNING.
UH, AND THAT SHOULD BE THE INTENT MOVING FORWARD.
BUT I WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT, UH, WE, WE GOT A, UH, A REMINDER OF THAT AND, AND I GUESS TO THE EXTENT THAT, UH, WE MAKE DECISIONS ON ZONING AND PLANNING.
I KNOW WE HAVE THE GROWTH MANAGEMENT DISCUSSION COMING UP, WHICH IS IMPORTANT, BUT IT WOULD BE REALLY HELPFUL IF WE REMINDED OURSELVES, UM, AND MORE BROADLY REMINDING THE COMMUNITY THAT WE ACTUALLY GOT TOGETHER AS A COMMUNITY, UH, IN 2016 AND CREATED A ROADMAP FOR GROWTH, NOT JUST IN TERMS OF LAND USE, BUT ALSO SUSTAINABILITY, UH, MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION.
AND WE SHOULD BE CONNECTING THOSE DOTS.
SO WE'RE NOT FLYING BLIND HERE IN TERMS OF THE DECISIONS THAT WE MAKE, THE INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENTS, ET CETERA.
WE'VE ACTUALLY GOT A ROADMAP FOR IT, AND IT ALIGNS WITH WHAT THE COMMUNITY'S EXPECTATIONS HAVE BEEN.
UH, OF COURSE, WE, WE ALWAYS NEED TO DOUBLE BACK AND MAKE SURE HOW WE'RE DOING.
BUT, UM, AND, AND SO MY ASK, I GUESS, IS LET'S FIGURE OUT A WAY THAT WE CAN HIGHLIGHT WHAT THE PLAN SAYS, UH, AT APPROPRIATE TIMES WHEN WE'RE MAKING DECISIONS THAT WOULD BE IMPACTFUL TO THE PLAN, WHETHER THAT'S ZONING AND PLANNING, WHETHER THAT'S, UM, YOU KNOW, APPROVAL OF A CONTRACT FOR PARTICULAR INFRASTRUCTURE, WHETHER THAT'S INFORMING OUR BOND DISCUSSIONS THAT WILL, YOU KNOW, COMMENCE AT SOME POINT.
UH, BUT, BUT I THINK THAT REMINDING OURSELVES THAT WE DO HAVE, WE'RE NOT, WE'RE NOT AIMLESS HERE.
WE DO HAVE A MAP OF HOW WE WANT TO CONDUCT OURSELVES WITH REGARD TO THOSE KINDS OF INVESTMENTS AND DECISIONS.
AND WE'LL, WE ARE DOING MUCH OF THAT, AND WE CAN REPORT THAT OUT.
HOW ARE WE BIRD'S EYE VIEW ON THE TIMELINE OVERALL OF THE, ALL OF THE DIFFERENT COMMUNITY PLANS COMING TOGETHER FOR COMPREHENSIVE PLAN? ARE WE, ARE WE ON TRACK? ARE WE ON TARGET? 'CAUSE I KNEW THIS WAS ALMOST A DECADE LONG PROCESS TO GET TO COMPLETION.
ACTUALLY, THIS UPCOMING FISCAL YEAR IS GONNA BE A PRETTY AGGRESSIVE TIMELINE.
UM, BUT IT'S ONE THAT WE'VE COMMITTED TO MEETING.
UM, WE WILL BE MOVING FORWARD TO, UH, ADOPT THOSE PLANS THAT, UH, WERE DELAYED BECAUSE OF EITHER COVID RELATED ISSUES, UM, OR BECAUSE OF THE NEED FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, THAT BEING TEXAS A AND M EAST SIDE AND WEST SIDE, UH, THIS COMING FISCAL YEAR.
ADDITIONALLY, ALL PHASE THREE PLANS ARE TARGETED TO ALSO BE BROUGHT FORTH, UH, IN THIS UPCOMING FISCAL YEAR AS WELL.
I FEEL LIKE WE'RE ALL KIDS WHEN THIS STARTED.
AND HERE WE ARE FULL GROWN ADULTS.
UM, RAMIRO, UH, JUST A COUPLE QUESTIONS.
ARE WE TRACKING THE USE? UH, I, I UNDERSTAND WE'RE DOING A PRETTY SIGNIFICANT, UH, CHANGEOVER EQUIPMENT FOR COMPUTERS.
ARE WE TRACKING THE USE OF THOSE COMPUTERS AND WHAT THEY'RE BEING USED FOR? I MEAN, THE IDEAL IS THAT PEOPLE ARE DOING HOMEWORK, THEY'RE APPLYING FOR JOBS OR BEING ACCESS TO HELP WITH ECONOMIC MOBILITY, OR YES, WE DO.
WE, WE DO, UH, MEASURE THE COM COMPUTER USE AS WELL AS WIFI USE, BY THE WAY.
AND WHAT, WHAT IS THAT DATA TELLING US? LEMME LOOK AT MY NUMBERS, BUT IT'S, UH, CONTINUES TO GROW.
I REPORTED EARLIER, IF I MAY, UM, THAT OUR VISITOR COUNT IS STILL NOT WHERE WE WANT IT TO BE COMING OUT OF THE, UH, COVID.
SO WE'RE SEEING MORE DIGITAL USE, UH, AS WELL, WHICH INCLUDES ONLY WIFI USE AND USE OF OUR COMPUTER.
DO I HAVE THAT, OR IF THIS IS, IS SOMETHING THAT NEEDS TO COME TO A AFTER SESSION REPORT, THAT'S FINE TOO.
WE'LL, DO WE, WE HAVE AN ACTUAL NUMBER OF, UH, USAGE, BUT WE DO, UH, GAUGE.
WE DO GAUGE, UH, THE USAGE OF, UH, COMPUTER USE AS WELL AS WIFI USE.
WELL, YOU KNOW, ASSUMING THAT, THAT IT IS, UH, MY, I GUESS MY QUESTION WOULD BE, ARE THERE PROGRAMS OR SOFTWARE THAT PEOPLE WOULDN'T NECESSARILY HAVE ACCESS TO THAT WOULD HELP THEM WITH THOSE FUNCTIONS THAT WE CAN PROVIDE AS A SERVICE TO OUR COMMUNITY THROUGH THE LIBRARY, UM, YOU KNOW, APPS THAT REQUIRE SUBSCRIPTIONS THAT CAN HELP WITH JOB SEARCHES, THINGS LIKE THAT.
ARE WE PROVIDING THOSE SORTS OF TOOLS? AND ARE THERE ANY THAT WE AREN'T THAT WE COULD? UH, YES.
YES, MAYOR, WE, I HAVE THE NUMBER THAT YOU ASKED FOR.
SO 1.8 MILLION IN TERMS OF COMPUTER USE, HOURS OF WIFI AND COMPUTER USE.
UH, I DON'T HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS FOR YOU, RAMI.
I JUST, UH, COMPLIMENTS TO YOUR TEAM, TO THE BOARD, UH, TO THE FOUNDATION.
IT'S A TEAM EFFORT TO KEEP OUR LIBRARIES
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OPERATING WELL.I DO LIKE, UH, THE FACT THAT THEY'RE BEING UTILIZED FOR A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT, UH, PURPOSES IN OUR COMMUNITY AS COMMUNITY CENTERS.
SOME OF THEM ARE OPERATING AS MUSEUM SPACES, WHICH ARE GREAT, UH, EXHIBIT SPACES FOR OUR COMMUNITY.
UH, WE TALK ABOUT HOW THE LIBRARY IS, IS A PLACE WHERE WE CAN SORT OF SEE WHERE OUR COMMUNITY IS HEADED.
UH, SO THAT'S ALL WELL AND GOOD.
I DO WANT TO SAY, UH, THANK YOU TO OUR TEAM, BUT ALSO TO THE COUNTY TO BE, UH, WILLING TO HAVE A, AN ENGAGING CONVERSATION ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY OF OUR LIBRARY SERVICES.
I MEAN, I, FROM A TAXPAYER'S PERSPECTIVE, UH, I DON'T THINK ANYBODY REALLY CARES WHETHER IT'S THE CITY OR THE COUNTY.
THEY JUST EXPECT GREAT QUALITY LIBRARY SERVICES.
AND SO THE GOAL SHOULD BE HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT IT'S SUSTAINABLE AND THAT IT'S MOVING FORWARD, UH, AND DEVELOPING AND BEING INVESTED IN THE WAY A MEMBER OF THE COMMUNITY EXPECTS.
UH, WE ALL KNOW THAT THERE'S A NUMBER OF CITY SERVICES THAT ARE PAID FOR THROUGH CITY REVENUES.
AND SO, UH, TO THE EXTENT THAT WE CAN CREATE A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE, IT'S GONNA TAKE SOME TIME.
UH, BUT I DO APPRECIATE THE COUNTY BEING WILLING TO SIT DOWN AND TALK ABOUT HOW WE CAN PHASE THAT STRUCTURE AND 'CAUSE CLEARLY IT'S NOT RIGHT NOW, UH, BUT IT NEEDS TO BE.
AND, AND, UH, DEVELOPING A PLAN FOR THAT IS GONNA TAKE SOME COLLABORATION.
UH, BUT I DO APPRECIATE EVERYBODY WILLING TO SIT DOWN AND HAVE A SOBER LOOK AT THIS, BECAUSE WE DO HAVE, UH, ONE OF THE GREAT LIBRARY SYSTEMS OF THE COUNTRY WANT TO KEEP IT THAT WAY AND CONTINUE TO DELIVER SERVICES EVEN TO, UH, THE OUTER EDGES, UH, OUTSIDE OF OUR JURISDICTION WHERE THEY ARE EXPECTED AND APPRECIATED.
UH, WE'LL GO TO COUNCIL DISCUSSION NOW WITH COUNCIL MEMBER GRONO.
AND RUDY, I'M GONNA START WITH THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT.
I, UH, I AGREE WITH THE MAYOR.
I THINK WE NEED TO, UM, STICK WITH THE PLAN THAT WE DO HAVE A PLAN MOVING FORWARD THAT WE NEED TO, UH, CONTINUE WITH THE SOUND AND SKILLED PLANNING THAT WE'VE BEEN DOING.
BUT MY QUESTION IS, DO WHEN WE SEE THE, UM, THE WAR IN UKRAINE, THE SUPPLY CHAIN ISSUES, DO WE LOOK AT PIVOTING AND MAYBE LOOK AT, OKAY, THIS WAS PART PHASE, THIS WAS PART ONE OF THE PLAN, BUT MAYBE WE NEED TO MOVE THIS FORWARD? DO WE HAVE, UH, LIKE OPTION BS IN OUR, IN OUR SA TOMORROW PLAN? UM, AS WE DEVELOP THE PLANS MOVING FORWARD, WE MAKE EVERY EFFORT TO WORK WITH THE COMMUNITY TO MAKE IT AS FLEXIBLE AS POSSIBLE.
SO IT ISN'T SO PRESCRIPTIVE AS SAYING THAT X INFRASTRUCTURE, X PIECE OF INFRASTRUCTURE WILL COST THIS AND THAT WE NEED TO BUDGET FORWARD RIGHT AWAY.
IT'S, IT'S AN ONGOING CONVERSATION WITH THE COUNCIL.
SO WE HAVEN'T NECESSARILY MADE A PRESCRIPTIVE PLAN THAT MAKES IT DIFFICULT FOR US TO PIVOT IF WE NEED TO, BECAUSE I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE, BUT THAT WE KEEP STILL MOVING IN THE SAME DIRECTIONS WITH THE AREAS THAT WE LOOK AT.
AND THAT WE ALSO UNDERSTAND THAT, THAT IF SOMETHING NEEDS TO ADJUST, THAT WE HAVE THAT FLEXIBILITY THERE.
UM, THE OTHER KIND OF QUESTION I HAVE FOR YOU IS THE DIGITAL DIVIDE.
HAS THIS, HAS THIS BECOME KIND OF AN IDENTIFYING POINT? I KNOW WHEN Y'ALL GO INTO PLANNING, YOU LOOK AT POINTS AND YOU'RE LIKE, UH, AND WE HAVE, RUDY AND I HAVE LOTS OF CONVERSATIONS.
SO WE KNOW THIS, WE LOOK AT THE SOUTH SIDE AND WE'RE LIKE, ABSOLUTELY NO INFRASTRUCTURE OR ONLY, UM, ONLY ELECTRICAL, NO, NO SEWER LINES.
ARE WE LOOKING AT THAT AND GOING, OKAY, NO DIGITAL ONLY WIFI AS WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THE PLANS MM-HMM.
WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH THE OFFICE OF INNOVATION TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE SYNCED BETWEEN THE TWO DIFFERENT AREAS, YOU KNOW, THAT THEY HAVE THE, THE INNOVATION NODE WITHIN BROOKS AND SO FORTH.
UM, SO WE HAVE TALKED ABOUT EXTENDING MANY OF THOSE SERVICES INTO THOSE AREAS.
WHEN IT COMES TO COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'VE FOUND MOVING FORWARD FROM PHASE ONE OF IMPLEMENTING SA TOMORROW WAS THAT THERE IS THAT DIGITAL DIVIDE THAT WE WANT TO ENSURE ISN'T INHIBITING PEOPLE FROM PARTICIPATING IN THE PROCESS.
SO THAT'S WHY WE DID PIVOT, AND WE DECIDED THAT NOT ONLY ARE WE GONNA BE DOING ONLINE ENGAGEMENT, BUT THAT WE'RE ALSO GONNA BE SENDING OUT NOTICES TO EVERY ADDRESS WITHIN A PLAN AREA.
SO THAT'S HELPED A LOT IN TERMS OF GETTING COMMUNITY INPUT, UH, IN, IN ALL OF OUR DIFFERENT AREAS.
AND THAT, THAT'S IT FOR, FOR, UH, FOR ME ON THE PLANNING.
I JUST THINK AS WE MOVE FORWARD, WE UNDER, WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND HOW IMPORTANT DIGITAL IS, AND WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE IDENTIFYING THE BARRIERS THAT IT CAUSES, NOT ONLY IN GETTING PEOPLE TO PARTICIPATE, BUT ALSO IN PLANNING IN PARTICULAR.
UM, RAMIRO LOTS OF QUESTIONS ABOUT THE ENHANCED, UM, LIBRARY CARD.
SO THIS IS GOING TO BE FOR SAN ANTO, SAN ANTONIO RESIDENTS, CORRECT.
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ANY USER WITHIN THE COUNTY.SO THAT, THAT I THINK IS THE CELL FOR THE COUNTY IS LIKE, THIS IS WHY YOU WANT, WE NEED TO COME TO AN AGREEMENT, UH, BECAUSE WE'RE OFFERING THIS EXTRA SERVICE, WHICH I THINK IF WE COULD, I I WOULD JUST ROLL IT OUT TO MY SAN ANTONIO EMPLOYEES FIRST UNTIL WE GET A DEAL WITH THE COUNTY.
UM, THE OTHER THING IS I HAVE TWO SCHOOL DISTRICTS, EAST CENTRAL AND SOUTH SIDE THAT SIT WITHIN THE CITY AND THE COUNTY, WHICH IS EXTRA MOTIVATION.
AND I THINK, I THINK IF WE ARE GONNA DO A TASK FORCE OR A COMMITTEE, I WOULD LOVE TO BE ON THAT WITH THE COUNTY BECAUSE I THINK I COULD CONVINCE THEM HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO REACH AN AGREEMENT AND A PARTNERSHIP SOONER RATHER THAN LATER.
AND I THINK THAT THEY ARE WILLING TO WORK.
WE JUST NEED TO, TO BE KIND OF SALESPEOPLE FOR ALL THE, THE OFFERINGS THAT OUR, OUR LIBRARIES OFFER.
BECAUSE I'VE GOT EAST CENTRAL, I'VE GOT SOUTH SIDE, AND I KNOW WHEN THE, THOSE, WHEN THEY'RE IN TOWN, UH, IF THEY'RE COMING FROM OUTSIDE OF SAN ANTONIO, EAST CENTRAL AND SOUTH SIDE, AND THEY'RE USING A LIBRARY, EITHER MISSION OR RELIST, THAT THEIR, THEIR ANTICIPATION IS TO HAVE ACCESS TO EVERYTHING.
AND I DON'T WANT THAT TO, TO STOP.
I'M, I'M REALLY EXCITED FOR THE SAN ENHANCED LIBRARY CARD.
I THINK, UH, WE NEED TO LOOK AT SEEING HOW THIS WILL GROW IN TERMS OF BUDGET.
I THINK EVEN IF YOU DO HAVE A DRIVER'S LICENSE, YOU, YOU PROBABLY WANNA OPT IN FOR THIS BECAUSE IT JUST HELPS WITH, WITH IDENTIFICATION PER PROCESS.
AND I, I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH OUR UTILITIES AND OTHER PARTNERS TO GET THEM TO RECOGNIZE IT.
UM, MY OTHER QUESTION IS, ARE WE LOOKING AT, UM, 'CAUSE I KNOW, AND THIS IS KIND OF, I KNOW THAT WE'RE NOT CHARGING PEOPLE LATE FEES, WHICH I APPRECIATE BECAUSE I DON'T ALWAYS TURN IN MY STUFF ON, ON TIME.
BUT AS, AS WE MOVE TO STREAMING, AND THEN THE LIBRARY USED TO HAVE LIKE REALLY GOOD, LIKE OLD TIME VIDEOS THAT YOU COULD ONLY FIND AT THE LIBRARY.
AND NOW I'VE NOTICED THAT SOMETIMES PEOPLE AREN'T RETURNING THEM.
ARE, ARE WE NOT CHARGING PEOPLE IF THEY, THEY TAKE THE, THE VIDEOS OR LOSE THE VIDEOS OR THE CD PLAYERS THAT YOU CANNOT PAY IF THEY LOSE THE ITEMS? IF I MAY, UH, IF AN ITEM IS LOST, WE DO, UM, REQUIRE THE, UH, PATRON TO PAY FOR THE LOST ITEM.
UH, IF IT'S A LATE FEE, OR IF IT'S, IF THE USER DOES NOT RETURN THE ITEM ON, ON TIME.
UM, RIGHT NOW WE'RE NOT CHARGING FINES, BUT WE, CAUSE WE HAVE EXPRESS COLLECTIONS, WHICH IS A FIVE DAY, UH, LOAN PERIOD, WE'RE A LITTLE MORE AGGRESSIVE REMINDING PEOPLE IT, IT'S TIME TO RETURN THAT ITEM, UH, BACK TO THE LIBRARY SO OTHERS CAN USE IT.
I, I'M, I'M AWARE OF YOUR, YEAH.
YOUR REMINDERS FOR THE EXPRESS COLLECTION, BUT I THINK, UM, NO, I, I THINK THESE ARE THE OTHER THINGS, THE GREAT THINGS THAT THE LIBRARY OFFERS THAT WE NEED TO BE PROMOTING THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN ALL OVER THE, UH, ALL OVER THE TE STATE AND THAT THE COUNTY NEEDS TO BUY INTO, UM, THE UPGRADE TO THE EQUIPMENT AND THE, UM, SELECTION OF LIBRARIES FOR IMPROVEMENTS.
UM, HOW, HOW IS THAT DONE? IS THAT DONE THROUGH THE BOARD OR IS THAT DONE THROUGH, UM, JUST USERS KIND OF ASKING FOR IT? NO, WE HAVE A SYSTEM TO RATE THE CONDITIONS OF EACH LIBRARY FACILITY.
AND BASED ON THE RATINGS, WE PROVIDE A SCHEDULE OF WHAT NEED, WHAT BUILDINGS NEED TO GO FIRST, SECOND, THIRD, AND FOURTH.
AND IT'S AN ONGOING PROCESS, UH, WITH OVER 2 MILLION VISITORS, UH, THROUGHOUT, THROUGHOUT OUR LIBRARY SYSTEM.
THERE'S A LOT OF WEAR AND TEAR.
SO THAT, THAT PROCESS THAT WE HAVE IN PLACE TO IDENTIFY LIBRARIES THAT NEED THEIR ROOF REPLACED OR THE THEIR H V A C H V A C OR CARPETING, UH, JUST TO REFRESH THE, REFRESH THE INTERIOR WITH NEW FURNITURE, UH, THAT'S, THAT'S A, A STRATEGIC APPROACH.
AND, AND THE REASON I ASK IS 'CAUSE REUS, WHICH HAS JUST BEEN UPGRADED AND I LOVE, AND, AND THE, UH, CHILDREN'S SECTION IS, IS AMAZING, BUT I STILL, I, I ALWAYS THINK IF I COULD GET A LITTLE MORE DONE OR A LITTLE, YOU KNOW, LIKE NEW FURNITURE OR POSSIBLY A NEW LOOK, OF COURSE, I'D ALWAYS, I ALWAYS WANNA DO ADVOCATE FOR MY LIBRARIES, BUT THANK YOU FOR THAT.
UM, THE LAST THING IS I, IN THE BOOK WITH THE GRANT SUMMARY, UH, THE FRIENDS OF THE SA PUBLIC LIBRARY DONATIONS AND THE, UM, SA PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION DONATIONS, UM, I SEE THE PROPOSED
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FOR, UM, THE FISCAL YEAR 2024, WHICH I THINK IS AMAZING, AND I APPRECIATE HOW THEY GIVE, BUT DO WE GET, UH, DO WE GET TO SEE WHAT THEY'VE BEEN GIVING OVER THE YEARS AND HOW MAYBE THE PANDEMIC HAS IMPACTED THEIR EFFORTS TO RAISE FUNDS? WE CAN PROVIDE THAT INFORMATION IF YOU COULD, JUST BECAUSE I KNOW THAT THEY'RE WORKING REALLY HARD AND, UM, ESPECIALLY THE FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY, THEY'RE VERY ACTIVE IN, IN MY AREA WITH, UM, A MCQUE LIST AND MISSION.I JUST, I WANNA MAKE SURE THEY'RE NOT GETTING DISCOURAGED BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT ABLE TO DONATE WHAT THEY USED TO IN THE PAST, OR HOW WE CAN BE PART OF, OF HELPING THAT.
RIGHT NOW IT SAYS ZERO FOR CITY MATCH, BUT YOU KNOW, I'M, YOU KNOW, IF WE EVER HAVE A SUMMER WHERE IT'S REALLY HOT AND WE GET EXTRA C P S FUNDS, I'M, I, I WOULD BE WILLING TO MATCH FUNDS FOR THE LIBRARY FOR SURE.
THANK YOU AMI, PAUL AND RUDY FOR THE PRESENTATIONS.
UH, THAT'S REALLY EXCITING TO SEE A 94%, UH, APPROVAL RATING.
UM, SO, UH, I WANNA COMMEND YOU AND YOUR TEAM FOR THAT WORK.
I KNOW THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT.
UH, AND TO SEE THAT IT'S UP THERE WITH FIRE.
MY CONSTITUENTS LOVE THEIR FIREFIGHTERS, AND I KNOW THEY LOVE THEIR LIBRARIES AS WELL.
SO IT'S GREAT TO SEE THAT REFLECTED IN THE NUMBERS.
UH, I THINK PAUL HIT ON A REALLY IMPORTANT POINT, RIGHT? UH, FOR EXAMPLE, SS E I S G HAS CUT ROUGHLY 28 LIBRARIANS, UH, AND THAT'S ONE SCHOOL DISTRICT.
AND WHEN WE LOOK AT THE TREND OVER IN HOUSTON, THEY'VE CUT ALL AND HAVE TURNED THEM INTO DISCIPLINARY CENTERS.
UH, AND RIGHT NOW, RIGHT? THE LIBRARIANS THAT WE DO HAVE ARE VERY VALUABLE IN ASSETS, NOT JUST TO, UM, THE OPERATIONS OF THE CITY, BUT THE OVERALL HEALTH OF THE CITY, RIGHT? WHEN WE LOOK AT WHAT OUR SCHOOL DISTRICTS ARE DOING.
UM, SO I'M REALLY PLEASED TO SEE THE CONTINUED SUPPORT AND ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FOR OUR LIBRARIANS.
UH, I'M INTERESTED TO SEE, RIGHT, IF THE USAGE IS GOING TO GO UP, UH, GIVEN THE, THE CUT FOR OUR LIBRARY.
AND, UM, BUT VERY MUCH NEEDED AND VITAL SERVICES THAT ARE BEING OFFERED.
I'M GRATEFUL FOR THE TEAM AND ALWAYS GRATEFUL THAT OUR FIELD OFFICES IS, IS IN A LIBRARY.
UH, 'CAUSE I COULD ALWAYS JUST PUT MY BOOKS ON HOLD AND THEN LIKE BEFORE THE LIBRARY CLOSES, CHECK 'EM OUT AND THEN HAVE MY BOOKS, AND THEN OF COURSE, RETURN THEM LATE.
BUT, UH, JUST, I WANTED TO THANK YOU ALL FOR THAT.
REALLY PLEASED TO SEE THE ENHANCED LIBRARY CARD AS WELL AS FOR, UM, THE INITIATIVE AND ENSURING THAT THEY'RE QUALITY CARDS, RIGHT? I KNOW SA STANDS AND TEXAS ORGANIZING PROJECT HAD, UH, MET WITH THE CITY.
SO I'M GRATEFUL THAT THE CITY WAS RESPONSIVE TO, UM, THOSE REQUESTS TO MAKE THEM MORE QUALITY CARDS.
I THINK THE MORE INDIVIDUALS THAT HAVE A WAY TO IDENTIFY THEMSELVES, THE BETTER IT IS FOR THEIR OVERALL CITY.
UM, ONE THING THAT I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT WAS, UH, REPLENISHING THE BOOK SUPPLY OF ALMAS.
AND I UNDERSTAND ULTIMATELY, RIGHT, THIS IS GOING TO BE CIRCULATED TO ALL LIBRARIES, UM, EVENTUALLY, UM, BUT I KNOW THIS IS SOMETHING THAT THE FRIENDS OF MEMORIAL LIBRARY AND THE FRIENDS OF LASAL MAS LIBRARY, AND NOW THE FRIENDS OF MEMORIAL UHON LIBRARY HAVE BEEN REQUESTING.
SO GRATEFUL TO SEE THAT YOU ALL, UH, WILL BE PROVIDING ADDITIONAL FUNDING TO ORDER SOME NEW BOOKS.
I HAVE SOME RECOMMENDATIONS,
WE'RE OPEN TO RECOMMENDATIONS.
UH, BUT I THINK ANOTHER THING WORTH HIGHLIGHTING, RIGHT, IS, AND, AND I UNDERSTAND THIS IS A BUDGET CONVERSATION, BUT THE TEXT SHARE CARD, RIGHT.
AND THE ROLE THAT THAT PLAYS MM-HMM.
UM, SO JUST OVERALL, WANNA BE SURE I HIGHLIGHT THE GREAT WORK THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING AND CONTINUE TO DO AND HOW VITAL IT IS MOVING FORWARD.
GIVEN, UH, THE STATE OF THE STATE, UM, I HAD ONE QUESTION ON THE TRENDS, AND I KNOW YOU MENTIONED THAT IT LIKELY HAS TO DO WITH JUST CONSUMER BEHAVIOR.
UM, FOR EXAMPLE, WITH THE NUMBER OF VISITS, DO WE THINK THAT MAY BE BECAUSE OF APPS LIKE LIBBY, WHERE WE CAN CHECK OUT BOOKS DIGITALLY? UH, WHAT DO, WHY DO Y'ALL THINK THAT THAT IS PART OF THE, THE EXPLANATION THAT, UH, IN OUR ASSESSMENT, UH, FOLKS HAVE, UH, ARE TURNING MORE TO DIGITAL CONTENT MM-HMM.
SO, SO WE'RE HOPEFUL THAT, UH, VISITOR USAGE OR VISITOR COUNT WILL INCREASE, BUT WE ALSO NEED TO FIGURE OUT AND UNDERSTAND WHY IT'S HAPPENING, AND SO THAT WE CAN RESPOND APPROPRIATELY.
AND IT'S VERY INTERESTING TO SEE THE DEMAND, RIGHT? FOR EXAMPLE, THERE'S ONE BOOK I WANTED TO CHECK OUT, AND THEY'RE ALREADY LIKE EIGHT HOLDS.
AND THEN I SAW THERE WAS A DIGITAL COPY AND THERE'S LIKE 40 HOLDS, AND I'M LIKE, WOW.
BUT JUST TO SEE THE LINE OF INDIVIDUALS FOR A PHYSICAL COPY AND A DIGITAL COPY WERE VERY HIGH.
UM, SO IT'S GREAT TO SEE THAT FOLKS ARE, UM, READING
[00:50:01]
THOSE ARE ALL MY COMMENTS, RAMIRO.AND RUDY, UH, I, I, I WANTED TO THANK YOU AND YOUR TEAM AS WELL.
THE WEST SIDE PLAN IS SET TO BE, UM, COMPLETE BY THIS YEAR, AND I WANTED TO TAKE AN OPPORTUNITY TO THANK CHRIS RYERSON ABOUT FOUR OR FIVE YEARS AGO I STARTED PARTICIPATING IN THE WEST SIDE PLANNING MEETINGS, AND HE'S BEEN, UH, GREAT AT FACILITATING THOSE COMMUNITY MEETINGS.
AND I WILL SAY I WAS A BIT, UM, DIFFICULT, UH, BACK IN MY DAY DURING THOSE PLANNING MEETINGS.
I JUST WANTED TO THANK HIM FOR HIS WORK, UH, AND, AND GRATEFUL TO SEE THAT MOVING FORWARD AS WELL AS TO FORCE, UM, FACILITATING THE LARGE AREA REZONING, UH, CONVERSATIONS.
AND I'VE OBSERVED YOUR TEAM EXECUTE THE PLAN AND, AND MOVE FORWARD WITH, UH, REALLY MEANINGFUL COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
SO JUST THANK YOU TO YOU AND YOUR TEAM.
AND I'LL EXTEND THAT TO CHRIS.
UM, REALLY QUICK FOR THE LIBRARY.
UM, Y'ALL'S, UH, SATISFACTION LEVEL SPEAKS VOLUME, SO, AND I KNOW THAT THAT WAS NO EASY FEAT, SO THANKS FOR ALL THE WORK THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING THERE.
I HAD A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS REGARDING THE, UH, DIGITAL INCLUSION EFFORTS THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING.
SO, UM, ONE KIND OF PIGGYBACKING OFF OF COUNCILWOMAN CASTILLO'S QUESTION, SO WITH THE NUMBER OF VISITS GOING DOWN, BUT THE, THE APP USAGE GOING UP, CAN WE START TRACKING THAT APP USAGE? 'CAUSE IT MIGHT JUST, YES, WE DID TRACK THAT USAGE YEAH.
BECAUSE I DO THINK IT MIGHT SPEAK TO THE TREND THAT WE'RE SEEING JUST WHAT THE NUMBER OF VISITS GOING DOWN.
UM, WHAT, WHEN YOU WERE SAYING THAT Y'ALL DO PROVIDE DIGITAL INCLUSION HELP, WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? SO IF I'M A RESIDENT COMING INTO MOREY MAVERICK LIBRARY, MAYBE I'M A SENIOR AND I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO EMAIL.
CAN YOU WALK ME THROUGH THAT? SO, SO THIS IS THE ROLE THE LIBRARY PLAYS IN ADVANCING DIGITAL INCLUSION.
AND IF AN INDIVIDUAL COMES INTO THE LIBRARY AND NEEDS HELP TO EVEN TURN ON THE COMPUTER SURE.
UH, TWO, WE PROVIDE ACCESS TO WIFI SIGNAL, NOT ONLY WITHIN THE BUILDING, BUT OUT IN THE PARKING LOT.
SO WHEN THE LIBRARY'S CLOSED AND PEOPLE NEED ACCESS TO THE INTERNET OR WIFI, THEY COME AND PARK IN THE PARKING LOT AND USE THE, UH, THE, THE COMPUTER, UH, THE WIFI SIGNAL RATHER.
UH, THEN WE ALSO PROVIDE, UH, S SEVERAL PROGRAMS. WE HAVE A PROGRAM WHERE WE'RE LENDING IPADS TO SENIORS.
THAT'S ANOTHER WAY OF, OF ADVANCING DIGITAL INCLUSION.
SO WE PLAY A ROLE, UM, NOT THE ONLY ROLE, BUT THAT'S HOW, THAT'S HOW THE LIBRARY CONTRIBUTES TO ADVANCING DIGITAL INCLUSION AND TRYING TO BRIDGE THE DIGITAL DIVIDE.
THAT'S, THOSE ARE SOME OF THE WAYS YEAH.
SO WHEN SOMEONE COMES IN AND ASKS THE QUESTION, Y'ALL ALMOST PLAY THE ROLE OF LIKE A DIGITAL NAVIGATOR AND HELPING THEM, HEY, TURN ON THE COMPUTER, HERE'S HOW YOU CHECK THE EMAIL, OR THAT KIND OF STUFF.
AND I, I'M SURE JUST WITH PAST EXPERIENCE, THAT THAT TAKES UP A LOT OF TIME.
IS IT VERY EXTENSIVE ON THE STAFF'S TIME, OR IS THAT SOMEBODY ON NEED HELP? IT'S PART OF THE, IN THE PASSION AND COMMITMENT THAT STAFF, UH, THEY RESPOND AND REACT TO WHATEVER THE NEEDS OF THE USER.
UH, WHETHER AGAIN, IT'S, UH, TURNING ON THE COMPUTER USING THE MILES ACCESS, ACCESSING THE INTERNET MM-HMM.
UH, IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE HAVE NOW SEVEN, WHAT WE CALL LEARN AT SAPP, LEARN AT THE SAN ANTONIO PUBLIC LIBRARY.
UM, THOSE CENTERS ALSO PROVIDE SOME ASSISTANCE IN THE AREA OF, UH, DIGITAL INCLUSION.
AND THAT WAS ACTUALLY GONNA BE MY NEXT QUESTION, BECAUSE IF THIS IS A SERVICE THAT THE LIBRARIES PROVIDE, I MEAN, IS THAT SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD WANNA POTENTIALLY PUSH OUT IN OUR COUNCIL NEWSLETTERS? LIKE, HEY, IF YOU NEED HELP ACCESSING THIS, I MEAN, IS THAT A SERVICE THAT Y'ALL WANNA ABSOLUTELY.
WE WE'RE ALL ABOUT PROMOTING OUR, WE'RE, UH, SERVICES AND INVITING PEOPLE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF OUR SERVICES AND ANY ASSISTANCE THAT YOU OR ANY OTHER COUNCIL MEMBER CAN PROVIDE IN OUR EFFORTS, AND WE PARTNER WITH MANY OF YOU.
NO, WE'LL, WE'LL PROBABLY TAKE YOU UP ON THAT.
UM, THE LIBRARY, DO ALL LIBRARIES STILL HAVE IT WHERE YOU CAN ACCESS WIFI IN THE PARKING LOTS? YES.
AND THEN, UM, I DID HAVE A QUESTION.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE HAD BEEN MADE AWARE OF IS THAT IF PEOPLE ARE USING, UH, THE LIBRARY'S INTERNET ACCESS IT TIMES OUT AFTER A CERTAIN TIME.
IS THAT CORRECT? 30 MINUTES AN HOUR OR SOMETHING? UH, YES.
THE REASON FOR THAT IS JUST BECAUSE IF MAYBE THERE'S
[00:55:01]
A COLLEGE STUDENT NEEDED TO TAKE A COLLEGE INTERVIEW, WE WOULDN'T WANNA TIME OUT DURING THE INTERVIEW, BUT I THINK IF WE'RE MAKING THEM AWARE OF, HEY, IT'S A TWO HOUR LIMIT, THEN THEY SHOULD, THEY CAN PLAN ACCORDINGLY.WE DO MAKE EXCEPTIONS IN ANY RARE CASES WHERE THE DEMAND MAY NOT BE THAT HIGH AT THAT PARTICULAR TIME.
UH, WE MAY EXTEND, UH, THE USAGE IF THE PATRON REQUEST AND, AND THERE IS A, A REASON FOR IT, WE MAY MAKE THAT EXCEPTION.
AND, AND, UM, I MEAN, I KNOW THAT THE DIGITAL DIVIDE ISN'T AS SIGNIFICANT IN DISTRICT SEVEN AS IT IS IN OTHER DISTRICTS, BUT, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, IF I'M JUST THINKING IF THERE'S A COLLEGE STUDENT NEEDING TO DO YES.
AN APPLICANT, YOU KNOW, NEEDING TO DO AN INTERVIEW, WE'D WANNA PROVIDE THE RESOURCES FOR THEM.
SO, UM, THAT'S, THAT'S ALL THE QUESTIONS, BUT THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOU AND ALL YOUR TEAMS' WORK.
UH, RUDY, I HAD A FEW, UM, QUESTIONS.
FIRST OFF, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE WORK THAT Y'ALL DO FOR NOT ONLY ON THE SA TOMORROW PLAN, BUT ALSO ON THE REGIONAL QUARTER PLAN.
UM, I KNOW THAT Y'ALL ARE HELPING US REGARDING BANDERA ROAD, AND IT'S JUST BEEN BROUGHT TO OUR ATTENTION HOW MUCH OF A CRITICAL CORRIDOR THIS IS.
I, SO I WANTED TO TELL Y'ALL THANK Y'ALL FOR WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE OFFICE OF DISTRICT SEVEN, SO THAT WAY WE CAN BRING THE INFORMATION OUT TO THE COMMUNITY.
I KNOW THAT WE DO HAVE SOME PLANS AFTER BUDGET TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE LETTING OUR RESIDENTS KNOW THE STATUS OF THAT PROJECT, BECAUSE THAT IS ONE OF THE TOP THINGS ON THEIR MIND.
BUT NOT A QUESTION MORE, JUST TO COMMENT THAT.
WE'LL, WE'LL BE BEST FRIENDS AFTER BUDGET.
UM, RAMIRO, THANK YOU BOTH TO RAMIRO AND, AND RUDY FOR THE PRESENTATION ON THE, UM, RAMIRO ON THE LIBRARY ON THAT SLIDE FOUR.
I THINK A LOT OF US HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT IT BECAUSE IF WE JUST LOOK AT IT, IT DOESN'T SEEM TO JIVE.
UM, BUT, AND I THINK I HEARD HERE THIS MORNING THAT YOU'RE, YOU ARE KEEPING TRACK OF DIGITAL USE YES.
SO, UM, IS THERE A WAY TO SHOW US THAT, UH, AFTER TODAY, THE METRICS, JUST SO WE CAN SEE THE METRICS YEAH.
UH, LET ME, UH, CONFIRM WITH, UH, MY TEAM.
JUST, I, I THINK IT WOULD BE ANOTHER, ANOTHER BLOCK OF THIS CHART WOULD BE USEFUL TO SEE.
WE'RE ALL ABOUT COLLECTING METRICS.
SO YES, WE HAVE THAT INFORMATION.
AND MY CONCERN IS THAT, AND YOU LOOK AT THIS, UH, JUST, YOU KNOW, KIND OF AN IN THE SLIDE BY ITSELF, SOMEBODY MIGHT SAY THAT THE PHYSICAL LIBRARIES MAY ARE NOT, UM, THAT THEY MAY BE GOING AWAY.
RIGHT? WE MIGHT NOT NEED THEM ANYMORE.
WHEREAS IN REALITY, IF YOU GO TO ANY LIBRARY IN THIS CITY, YOU'RE GONNA SEE A TON OF KIDS.
UM, YOU KNOW, G AND W IS THE LIBRARY I USED WHEN I WAS A KID AND ACTUALLY FOREST HILLS.
BUT, UM, THE WAY G AND W HAS GROWN OVER THE YEARS, AND THERE'S JUST, OH, IT'S ALWAYS FULL OF, OF CHILDREN THAT ARE EN ENGAGING WITH, UM, NOT JUST THE MATERIAL, BUT OTHER PEOPLE, OTHER, THERE'S A WHOLE, LIKE, KIDS AREA.
AND, UH, ANYWAY, IT'S JUST, THEY'RE VERY MUCH USED.
AND SO I, THIS NUMBER, THESE, THE NUMBER OF VISITS JUST CONCERNS ME THAT SOMEBODY COULD TAKE THIS AWAY AND MAKE SOMETHING INTO THIS, THAT IT'S NOT, IT'S INTERESTING WE SHOW THE GO AHEAD.
IT'S INTERESTING, I WAS HAVING THIS CONVERSATION WITH STAFF IS WHAT IS, WHAT DOES THIS TELL US? MM-HMM.
UM, SO THE BEHAVIOR, THERE'S SOME BEHAVIOR CHANGES AND WE'RE ADAPTING.
UM, I THINK THIS NUMBER'S GOING TO INCREASE.
I MEAN, WE HAVE OVER 3 MILLION PEOPLE, VISITORS, MM-HMM.
I THINK IT'S GOING TO INCREASE, BUT YEAH, IT, IT CREATES SOME INTERESTING QUESTIONS.
I JUST WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE THAT.
AND, AND ALSO, UH, I DON'T KNOW IF WE'RE TRACKING THIS, BUT PEOPLE THAT MAYBE COME TO THE LIBRARY THAT DON'T CHECK OUT A BOOK OR, OR USE, MAYBE THEY JUST USE THE MATERIALS THERE.
ARE WE KEEPING TRACK OF THOSE FOLKS TOO? I MEAN, WE'RE USING IT AS COOLING CENTERS.
WE KEEP TRACK OF PEOPLE AS SOON AS THEY WALK IN.
AND I THINK, UM, TO YOUR POINT, PAUL, AND THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE, UM, SEEING OLDER PEOPLE USING THE LIBRARY, UM, AND THERE'S OTHER REASONS WHY THEY MAYBE GO TO THE LIBRARY.
AS I MENTIONED, WE USE 'EM FOR COOLING CENTERS AND, UM, DIFFERENT, DIFFERENT PURPOSES, A LIBRARY.
SO I JUST WANNA BE CLEAR THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE, EVEN THOUGH IT LOOKS LIKE THE NUMBER OF PHYSICAL VISITS ARE GOING DOWN, OUR LIBRARIES ARE VERY MUCH IN DEMAND AND IN USE, AND WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR IT.
I, I DO HAVE, UM, ANOTHER QUESTION ABOUT NAVIGATING THE SURGE OF, UM, THE INCREASING BAND BOOKS.
HAS THAT AFFECTED US AS AT ALL WE'RE FORTUNATE? NO.
AND THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU, UH, WHO ARE EARLIER THIS YEAR AS THE RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF AGAINST BANNING MM-HMM.
[01:00:01]
UM, WE'VE HAD A FEW CHALLENGES THROUGH THE PROCESS THAT WE HAVE IN PLACE.WE RESPONDED ACCORDINGLY AND THAT IT, IT WENT AWAY.
WELL, LET'S HOPE IT STAYS THAT WAY.
AND WHATEVER WE CAN DO TO SUPPORT YOU.
UM, I'M ALSO GLAD TO SEE THE EXPANSION OF THE ENHANCED LIBRARY CARDS.
I THINK A NUMBER OF US HAVE MENTIONED THAT IT'S REALLY, I THINK, A, A GAME CHANGER FOR A LOT OF FOLKS.
UM, AND THANKS TO TOP FOR THEIR ADVOCACY FOR THIS IMPORTANT PROGRAM AS WELL.
CAN YOU TELL ME HOW LONG IT MIGHT TAKE FOR THAT EXPANSION TO BE UP AND RUNNING? WE THINK BY THE START OF THE CALENDAR YEAR, UH, WE NEED TO, UH, PROVIDE THE INFRASTRUCTURE BY THE, THE CAMERAS TO TAKE PICTURES IN EACH LOCATION, AND THEN SOME ADDITIONAL EQUIPMENT.
SO WE WERE TALKING ABOUT IT THAT EARLIER.
SO WE, WE FEEL COMFORTABLE BY THE START OF THE CALENDAR YEAR IF THE BUDGET'S APPROVED AS PROPOSED.
SO A ANY LIBRARY YOU CAN, YOU CAN PICK UP AT ANY OF OUR CENTRAL, ALL 29 LOCATIONS.
WE HAVE 30 LOCATIONS WITH A PRESENCE THAT WE HAVE AT THE BRISCOE, THE PORTAL, UH, SO THAT IT'S, IT WON'T BE AVAILABLE THERE FOR VARIOUS REASONS.
SO ALL 20 OTHER 29 LOCATIONS, CENTRAL LIBRARY, 28 BRANCHES.
UM, THE, THE FOUR, THE, THE PHASE FOUR PLANS, WILL THOSE ALL, WHAT'S THE TIMING OF? ARE THEY ALL AT THE SAME TIME? ARE THEY, ARE THEY STAGGERED? UM, THE PHASE FOUR PLANS THAT YOU SEE ON THE SCREEN ARE, UH, PROJECTED TO ALL GO TO THE, THE COUNCIL FOR CONSIDERATION ON THE ON IN 2026.
AND THEY WOULD BE STAGGERED LEADING UP TO 2026.
DEPENDING ON WHEN THEY STARTED.
THEY WON'T, THEY'RE NOT, WELL, THEY DON'T ALL EXACTLY START RIGHT.
THEY DON'T START AT EXACTLY THE SAME TIME JUST SO THAT WE'RE NOT OVERWHELMING THE COMMUNITY WITH, YOU KNOW, MULTIPLE DIFFERENT PLANNING EFFORTS AT THE SAME TIME.
SOMETIMES YOU HAVE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATIONS THAT PARTICIPATE IN MULTIPLE EFFORTS.
SO IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO STAGGER THE BEGINNING AND END OF THE PROCESS.
AND GOING OVER, I'M JUST GONNA USE SLIDE EIGHT AS AN EXAMPLE, BUT YOU COULD USE EIGHT OR NINE.
UM, WHAT DOES, CAN YOU EXPLAIN WHAT, WHAT EXACTLY DOES ADOPTED MEAN? THIS MEANS THE PLAN IS ADOPTED.
SO THAT MEANS THAT THE PLAN IS ADOPTED.
WE PUT THE DATE IN THE SCREEN.
SO THAT MEANS THAT, THAT THAT PARTICULAR PLAN HAS GONE TO THE COUNCIL AND HAS BEEN APPROVED, UH, VERSUS THE ONES THAT ARE IN PROGRESS THAT YOU SEE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SCREEN, UH, SHOWS WHEN WE PROJECTED, IT'LL BE GOING TO THE COUNCIL FOR CONSIDERATION.
BUT AT THE TOP OF THAT SLIDE, YOU HAVE IN PROCESS, THAT'S THE SAME THING AS IN PROGRESS, RIGHT? YES.
COUNCIL MEMBER KEO HDA, COUNCIL MEMBER MCKEE RODRIGUEZ.
AND THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
UM, I DO HAVE TO EXPRESS GREAT DISAPPOINTMENT, UH, BECAUSE YOU DIDN'T BRING SMARTY THE MASCOT HERE WITH YOU TODAY.
OUR, OUR LIBRARIES ARE, UM, AN INCREDIBLE RESOURCE, UH, FOR OUR COMMUNITY THAT WE OFTEN TAKE FOR GRANTED.
UM, THEY'RE SOME OF THE LAST TRULY, UH, TRULY PUBLIC GOODS AVAILABLE TO ALL.
AND, UM, WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR THE MANY, MANY, MANY INCREDIBLE SAFE SPACES AND OPPORTUNITIES THAT LIBRARIANS AND STAFF BRING TO OUR COMMUNITIES.
UM, BY MAKING ALL RESOURCES EQUALLY AVAILABLE TO ALL, UH, MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY, REGARDLESS OF CLASS, UH, NEIGHBORHOOD OR BACKGROUND.
UH, THE LIBRARY LEVELS, THE PLAYING FIELD QUITE A BIT.
UM, BUT WE'RE ALSO, AS COUNCILWOMAN, UH, KABE AVR HAD MENTIONED, WE'RE CURRENTLY FACING A VERY SCARY POLITICAL MOMENT WHERE MANY BOOKS ARE BEING BANNED.
AND, UM, IN NO TIME IN HISTORY HAVE THE GOOD GUYS BEEN THE ONE TO BAN PUBLIC ACCESS TO INFORMATION AND KNOWLEDGE.
AND SO, UM, I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE, UH, COUNCILMAN SANDOVAL, WHO AS CHAIR OF THE CHECK COMMITTEE, WAS, UH, LEADING THE EFFORT TO, UH, THE RIGHT TO READ.
UM, LIBRARIES ARE A SPACE TO PRESERVE AND LEARN FROM OUR PAST, ENJOY THE PRESENT WITH A GOOD BOOK, UM, OR DREAM AND IMAGINE THE FUTURE.
AND SO LOOKING AT ALL THE LIBRARIES THAT ARE GONNA BE RECEIVING, UH, RENOVATIONS OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS, UM, IT'S SUPER EXCITING.
AND, YOU KNOW, SCHAFFER AND MOLLY PRUITT ARE IN SOLID CONDITION.
UH, BUT I AM SUPER EXCITED TO BEGIN THE PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT ON THE EXPANSION OF OUR CARVER LIBRARY.
I KNOW YOU'RE EXCITED TOO, AND I KNOW, UH, THE FRIENDS OF THE CARVER LIBRARY ARE ALSO VERY EXCITED.
UM, I DO WANT TO ASK, WHERE IS THE MERCH? MR. SALAZAR?
YEAH, I, I HEARD YOU AND, AND WE TALKED ABOUT IT.
THERE'S A MEMBER OF MY STAFF WHO IS
UM, I'LL ALSO EXPRESS EXCITEMENT FOR THE ENHANCED LIBRARY CARD.
I DO WANNA START OUT BY THANKING, UH, COMMUNITY ADVOCATES LIKE SA STANDS AND TEXAS ORGANIZING PROJECT FOR THEIR DILIGENT WORK, UM, TO ENSURE THESE ENHANCED LIBRARY CARDS ARE AVAILABLE AT EVERY LOCATION.
UM, I DO WANT TO KNOW IF WE'VE CREATED A POLICY OR DIRECTIVE FOR APPLICABLE CITY DEPARTMENTS TO USE THE CARD AS A VALID FORM
[01:05:01]
OF I D I IMAGINE IT'S ALL DEPARTMENTS AND ALL MORE SPECIFICALLY NAMED THE MUNICIPAL COURTS.UM, IS THAT SOMETHING THAT'S ALREADY BEEN ESTABLISHED, MR. CITY MANAGER OR WELL BEYOND, UM, THE GENERAL MANUAL, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
UM, I DON'T THINK WE'VE EXTENDED IT, UM, ELSEWHERE.
I'M, I'M TRYING TO THINK WHERE ELSE WHERE WE WOULD APPLY IT TO.
WE'VE GOTTA SHOW AN ID TO GET INTO THE BUILDING SOMETIMES, BUT NO, WE CAN, WE CAN, UH, WE CAN TALK ABOUT THAT.
I HAD
UM, WHEN YOU GO TO A DROP OFF LOCATION AND YOU REQUIRE AN ID.
THAT'S, THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS WE SAID WE'D FOLLOW UP ON.
'CAUSE I DON'T THINK WE REALLY THOUGHT ABOUT IT BEYOND THE LIBRARY AND AS A POLICE ID, POTENTIAL POLICE ID, BUT WE CAN, WE, WE NEED TO GIVE THAT SOME THOUGHT.
AND I, UM, I WOULD LIKE IF MAYBE WE AS A COUNCIL COULD HAVE A CONVERSATION.
I IMAGINE THE PURPOSE OF THE ENHANCED LIBRARY CARD FROM ALL OF THOSE OF US WHO ADVOCATED AT THE GOAL SETTING SESSION WAS SO THAT INDIVIDUALS WHO MAY NOT HAVE ACCESS TO OTHER FORMS OF ID WOULD BE ABLE TO ACCESS ANY AND ALL CITY SERVICES.
AND SO, SO LONG AS THEY HAVE A SAN ANTONIO ADDRESS, RIGHT.
UM, THAT WOULD BE, I THINK, I THINK THAT REMAINS THE GOAL.
WELL, AND, AND, AND I'M, I'M REMEMBERING ALSO, WE DID HAVE SOME CONVERSATION.
WE'RE NOT SURE WE COULD USE IT AT THE, AT THE, UH, BRUSH SITE, UH, DROP-OFFS, BECAUSE YOU'D BE A CITY OF SAN ANTONIO RESIDENT.
AND SO IF THIS TAR IS AVAILABLE TO ALL LIBRARY USERS IN THE COUNTY, UM, THEY'RE NOT ELIGIBLE FOR DROP OFF, UH, AT OUR BRUSH SITES.
SO WE'D HAVE TO THINK THROUGH THAT, UM, AND, UH, AND MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE APPLYING IT WHERE, WHERE, UM, SAN ANTONIO SERVICES ARE PROVIDED TO RESIDENTS CHALLENGE THAT.
AND I THINK THE EASY FIX IS IF THEY HAVE A SAN ANTONIO ADDRESS AS IT SHOWS ON THAT PICTURE RIGHT THERE.
IF THEY HAVE A, NO, THAT'S NOT ALWAYS THE CASE, COUNCILMAN.
WELL, IF IT HAS A COUNTY ADDRESS, THEN YOU CAN HAVE A, YOU, YOU CAN HAVE A, YOU CAN LIVE IN THE COUNTY, UM, OR IN SOME OF THE SMALLER MUNICIPALITIES AND HAVE A SAN ANTONIO ADDRESS.
SO NOW, IF WE JUST GAVE IT TO CITY OF SAN ANTONIO RESIDENCE, AND NOT TO ALL LIBRARY USERS, I THINK IT'S SIMPLER.
I DO THINK IT'S SIMPLER THAN THAT.
I THINK WE CAN, LET'S TALK ABOUT THAT.
UM, THAT'S, THAT'S ALL FOR THE LIBRARIES, UM, FOR PLANNING.
I REALLY DON'T HAVE TOO MUCH OTHER THAN I GUESS, UM, SOMETHING I WOULD LIKE TO SEE.
AND ONE OF THE CHALLENGES IS THAT, THAT I FACE, AND I THINK MOST OFTEN IS WITH, UH, ZONING.
AND WHEN COMMUNITY PLANS OR OTHER, YOU KNOW, UH, DOCUMENTS ARE REFERENCED, UH, CITY STAFF WILL MAKE A RECOMMENDATION AND, UM, OTHERS WILL MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS.
AND SOMETIMES IT'S, YOU KNOW, THIS AREA OF THE, THIS AREA OF THE DISTRICT, YOU KNOW, REALLY WANTS, UH, COMMERCIAL AND CITY STAFF WILL THEN SAY, WELL, YOU KNOW, A GAS STATION FITS WITHIN THAT USE, AND SO LET'S GO AHEAD AND RECOMMEND IT, EVEN THOUGH IT DOESN'T FIT IN WITH THE INTENTION OF, UH, THE PLANNING PROCESS THAT RESIDENTS WENT THROUGH.
AND SO, I, I GUESS I WONDER HOW, I GUESS I WONDER HOW WE CAN BEST CONVEY THE INTENT OF THE MASTER PLAN WHEN WE GO THROUGH THESE CITY PROCESSES LIKE ZONING, FOR EXAMPLE.
SO THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT, UM, IS RESPONSIBLE FOR REZONING PROPERTY IN CONFORMANCE WITH A NEWLY ADOPTED REGIONAL CENTER OR COMMUNITY PLAN.
UM, IF AN APPLICANT WERE TO COME IN, LET'S SAY AN APPLICANT WHO OWNS A PIECE OF PROPERTY AND WANTS TO REZONE ON THEIR OWN, THEN THEY WOULD GO TO THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT, SUBMIT THEIR APPLICATION, AND GO THROUGH A REVIEW THAT ULTIMATELY WOULD, WOULD COME TO THE COUNCIL FOR CONSIDERATION.
UM, FROM THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT'S PERSPECTIVE, THAT, THAT IS OUR, OUR GUIDING DOCUMENT.
WE'RE, UH, YOU KNOW, AND I KNOW THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES RUNS VERY SIMILARLY.
WE'RE GONNA REVIEW THE DOCUMENT.
WE'RE GONNA DETERMINE BASED ON THE TEXT AND THE MAP, WHAT COULD BE MOST APPROPRIATE AT A PARTICULAR LOCATION, THE RECOMMENDATIONS AND THE PLAN, THE TYPE OF SURROUNDING USES THAT ARE THERE CURRENTLY, BUT COULD BE THERE IN THE FUTURE AND, AND REALLY MAKE THE BEST PROFESSIONAL JUDGMENT THAT WE CAN.
UM, BUT HAVING SAID THAT, THE, THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT DOES BRING FORWARD LARGER REZONING CASES WHERE WE'RE GONNA TAKE, TAKE ALL OF THAT INFORMATION THAT WENT THROUGH THE PLANNING PROCESS, WHICH I THINK IS, IS A BENEFIT TO, TO THE CITY AND TO THE COUNCIL, THAT THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT DEVELOPED THE PLAN.
AND THEN NOW WE'RE MAKING RECOMMENDATIONS TO UPDATE THE ZONING.
SO, UM, MOVING FORWARD THOUGH, WE, WE WORK WITH THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT, UH, UH, OFTEN ALMOST WEEKLY ON REZONING CASES.
AND, AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO LOOK AT OUR PROCESS AND, AND, AND TRY TO PROVIDE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT YOU FEEL ARE MEANINGFUL.
OTHER THAN THAT, I THINK, I THINK WE'RE GOOD.
COUNCIL MEMBER MCKEE RODRIGUEZ, COUNCIL MEMBER ROCHE GARCIA.
AND THANK YOU TO, UM, RAMIRO AND NINO TO ALL YOUR AND
[01:10:01]
RUDY NINO AND ALL YOUR STAFF.UM, I, I APPRECIATE THE EFFORTS, UM, THAT YOU ALL MAKE TO, TO MAKE SURE THAT DISTRICT FOUR IS ALWAYS AWARE.
SO I ALWAYS GET, UH, REGULAR UPDATES FROM JESSICA AND, AND YOUR TEAMS ARE BOTH JUST INCREDIBLE.
UM, I ALSO WANNA ACKNOWLEDGE, UH, PAUL AHO, I'M, I'M VERY HAPPY YOU GOT TO PRESENT TODAY.
UM, PAUL, UH, LOOKING FORWARD TO THE KATRINA BALL THAT'S COMING UP AS WELL AND HELPING YOU ALL RAISE SOME FUNDS.
UM, I'M, I'M IMPRESSED WITH THE CIRCULATION NUMBERS.
I KNOW WE HAD HAD A LARGE DIP IN NUMBERS, UM, BECAUSE OF THE PANDEMIC, BUT I'M, I'M GLAD THAT THAT WE'RE UP AND THAT THE, UM, THE LIBRARY HOURS ARE, ARE FULL AND ARE IN FULL EFFECT.
UM, I ALSO SEE THAT THE TECHNOLOGY USE HAS INCREASED.
AND I'M WONDERING IF WE COULD, UM, TRACK, DO WE HAVE LIKE A REGULAR, UH, GROUP OF USERS? LIKE CAN YOU TRACK WHO YOUR REGULARS ARE, WHO ARE USING THE, UH, FOR INSTANCE, COMPUTERS THE MOST? AND IF SO, CAN WE HAVE A BREAKDOWN BY DISTRICT? SO WE TRACK USAGE, BUT WE DO NOT TRACK FOR CONFIDENTIALITY.
UM, REASONS, INDIVIDUAL USAGE.
I'M JUST TRYING TO SAY LIKE WHAT, UM, LIBRARIES, AND I THINK THAT THIS WOULD BE HELPFUL ALSO WITH OUR OFFICE OF INNOVATION.
AND I WAS HAVING A MEETING LAST WEEK, UM, WITH BRIAN DILLARD.
AND BY THE WAY, WHEN IS YOUR BUDGET PRESENTATION? I DON'T THINK I'VE SEEN THE INNOVATION ONE.
UM, BUT SO ONE OF THE, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT, WE WERE TALKING TO COMPUTE COMPUTE DOT, AND SO I KNOW THAT YOU ALL ARE, UM, I GUESS GETTING READY TO, UH, DISCARD SOME COMPUTERS.
AND I'M JUST WONDERING, LIKE, HOW OFTEN DOES THAT HAPPEN? WHERE DO THEY GO? UM, WHO, WHO RE WHO GIVES US THOSE? WELL, UH, THAT PROCESS IS HANDLED BY, IT IS OKAY.
I DON'T KNOW IF OUR TEAM OKAY.
GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
SO WE HAVE A REPLACEMENT CYCLE FOR COMPUTERS.
IS, UH, EVERY FIVE YEARS WE, WE REPLACE THEM.
AND, UH, ONCE THEY GO OUT OF THE REPLACEMENT CYCLE, I T S D WILL DISPOSE OF THEM.
UH, I CAN TELL YOU EXACTLY WHAT THE PROCESS IS IN TERMS OF DISPOSITION, BUT THAT IS MANAGED BY I T S D.
UM, SO BRIAN DILLARD AND I MET WITH COMP COMPUTE DUCT LAST WEEK.
AND SO THEY'RE DOING WONDERFUL THINGS, UM, IN HOUSTON RECYCLING PRETTY MUCH, UH, COMPUTERS AND ALLOWING FAMILIES THAT NEED THEM TO USE THEM.
AND SO THEY UPDATE THEM WITH THE LATEST SOFTWARE, ET CETERA.
AND I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THE CITY WAS DOING, AND I'M SURE THAT'S ON BRIAN'S PLATE ALREADY, BUT WHEN YOU PRESENTED THAT SLIDE, UM, I IMMEDIATELY SENT IT TO BRIAN DILLARD.
AND I WAS LIKE, HEY, THERE'S 424 COMPUTERS HERE, SO, UM, THAT ARE COMING ONLINE.
SO, SO I APPRECIATE THAT, THAT THERE'S THEN SOME SORT OF PLAN, I'M ASSUMING WITH IT.
AND SO, AND I GUESS I'LL JUST WAIT AND, AND ASK MY QUESTIONS OF, UM, BRIAN DILLARD TOMORROW.
UM, BUT I THINK THAT WOULD BE A PERFECT OPPORTUNITY, RIGHT.
BECAUSE OUR, OUR FAMILIES NEED THOSE.
AND THEN, UM, THE SEMIS LIBRARY, I KNOW IT'S DISTRICT 10, CAN YOU REMIND ME WHEN THAT WAS OPEN? UM, 2005.
SO HOW DO, SO I GUESS THE, THE REASON THAT I'M ASKING IS LIKE, HOW DO YOU ALL DECIDE, UM, WHICH FACILITIES NEED MOST HELP? LIKE AS FAR AS, UH, LIKE DO YOU HAVE LIKE A RUNNING LIST OR IS THAT KEPT BY THE ES? NO, WE HAVE A PROCESS, A RANKING PROCESS.
SO WE RATE EACH FACILITY BASED ON DIFFERENT THINGS, THE LIFECYCLE OF THE H V A C SYSTEM.
LIFECYCLE OF THE ROOF, UH, WONDERFUL.
WHAT KIND OF USAGE DOES IT IMPACTS? UH, FLOORING, FURNITURE, CAR CARPET, RATHER.
UM, AND WE USE ALL THAT INFORMATION TO THEN RANK, UH, THE BUILDINGS.
WHICH ONES DO WE NEED TO PROPOSE, LIKE EIGHT DURING THE BUDGET PROCESS FOR? AND, UH, AND WE HAVE QUITE A FEW THIS YEAR.
WHICH ONE IS THE NEWEST ONE IN SAN ANTONIO? UM, I WANTED TO SAY SHAFER.
SO I WAS STILL THINKING ABOUT SIMS BECAUSE THAT'S THE FIRST BRANCH OH, SIM THAT WE, I OPENED WHEN I FIRST ARRIVED HERE.
THIS IS THE LATEST RENOVATION.
MEMORIAL MEMORIAL'S THE LATEST.
AND FOREST HILLS, WE KIND OF OPENED IT, OPENED THEM WITHIN WEEKS.
UM, AND THEN I WANNA THANK YOU WITH YOUR, UH, GETTY ECLIPSE READY WITH THE SAN ANTONIO PUBLIC LIBRARY CAMPAIGN.
THAT WAS THE CUTEST MASCOT IDEA.
Y'ALL PUT SMARTY, UH, GLASSES, UM, UH, THE ECLIPSE GLASSES ON SMARTY.
AND SO THANK YOU FOR HAVING YOUR LIBRARIANS ALSO READY AND PREPARED WITH, UM, THE GLASSES.
I THINK I'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT IT FOR LIKE TWO YEARS, AND IT'S FINALLY COMING DOWN THE LINE, UM, FOR, UH, THE ANNULAR SOLAR AND THEN OF COURSE THE TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE, UM, IN APRIL.
UM, ALSO, I'M, I'M HAPPY THAT YOU ALL HAVE THE DIFFERENT PROGRAMMING.
[01:15:01]
ALL HAVE LIKE, THE JUNETEENTH AND THE HOLOCAUST AND THE DIFFERENT AREAS.AND I WAS WONDERING IF YOU GET ADDITIONAL, I KNOW COUNCILWOMAN CASTILLO JUST MENTIONED FOR INSTANCE, THAT SHE HAS SOME IDEAS, RIGHT? FOR A COLLECTION, UH, OR FOR, FOR, TO ADD TO YOUR COLLECTION.
DO YOU HAVE THOSE AVAILABLE ALSO IN DIFFERENT LANGUAGES? 'CAUSE I KNOW, UM, THERE'S BOOKS AND I'VE BEEN MAKING IT A POINT THAT EVERY TIME THAT I, I GET A CHILDREN'S BOOK, I GET LIKE THE BILINGUAL BOOK AS WELL, BECAUSE I WANNA BE ABLE TO READ BOTH IN ENGLISH AND IN SPANISH.
DO YOU ALL DO THAT FOR IF I'M UNDERSTANDING THE QUESTION OR LET ME RESPOND THIS WAY AND, AND LET ME KNOW IF I ANSWERED YOUR QUESTION.
FIRST OF ALL, WE HAVE A PROGRAM, IF WE DON'T, UM, HAVE A PARTICULAR BOOK MM-HMM.
UM, IN TERMS OF SPANISH LANGUAGE AND BILINGUAL BOOKS, THAT'S PART OF OUR, WHAT WE CALL COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES.
GOT, AND I WAS, DID I ANSWER YOUR QUESTION? YEAH.
UM, BUT I WAS TALKING ABOUT LIKE ALSO IN GENERAL, LIKE IN EVERYTHING, LIKE, SO IF YOU ALL BUY, LIKE, IS THERE, OR DO WE MAKE SURE THAT THERE'S SUBTITLES AND DIFFERENT LANGUAGES? LIKE FOR INSTANCE, IF THERE'S VIDEOS, ET CETERA, LIKE THAT THERE'S LANGUAGE ACCESS PRETTY MUCH IS WHAT I'M SAYING TO EVERYTHING THAT YOU BUY IN YOUR COLLECTION.
SO, AND LET ME ASK YOU WHY, WHY I'M SAYING THAT.
SO THE MAYOR AND I, UM, WERE INTRODUCED TO THIS AWESOME BRAILLE COLLECTION OF BOOKS, RIGHT? AND SO IN A LIBRARY THAT YOU'VE PREVIOUS, PREVIOUSLY VISITED, UM, AND SO, UM, THEY ALSO HAD, BY THE WAY, A REALLY CUTE CHECKOUT FOR KIDS.
AND SO EVERYTHING WAS LIKE MINIATURE SIZE AND IT, THEY CAN, YOU KNOW, SCAN THEIR OWN BOOKS, ET CETERA.
AND SO, AND IT, IT MADE ME REALIZE THAT I DON'T KNOW IF WE HAVE THAT, THAT SAME ABILITY IN ALL OF OUR LIBRARIES OR IF THERE'S A PLAN TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE X PERCENTAGE AVAILABLE, UM, TO, TO, TO PEOPLE WHO MAYBE SPEAK A DIFFERENT LANGUAGE OR LIKE, IN THAT CASE, IN BRAILLE, FOR INSTANCE.
THAT, UM, SO I CAN ANSWER THAT RIGHT NOW.
I KNOW WE'RE, WE, OUR GOAL IS TO PROVIDE MULTIPLE LANGUAGES, PRIMARILY SPANISH, 'CAUSE IT'S, UH, WITH THE PREDOMINANT SECOND LANGUAGE.
UM, BUT YES, BUT WE'LL, I'LL LOOK INTO THAT BEING MORE INTENTIONAL IN THE, IN THOSE, IN THAT EFFORT.
AND SO, UM, AND, AND I'LL SHARE, UH, SOME, SOME OF THE, LIKE, THE PICTURES OF THAT LIBRARY, BUT, UH, DID I, APPARENTLY YOU WENT WITH THE LIBRARY OPEN, AND SO, UM, BUT I'LL, I'LL FOLLOW UP WITH YOU ON LIKE, BUT I WAS EXCITED ABOUT SOME OF THE OPPORTUNITIES THAT I THINK THAT JUST LEARNING FROM, FROM VISITING.
SO, UM, THANK YOU RAMIRO, THAT'S ALL FOR YOU.
AND THEN I'LL CONTINUE WITH RUDY.
AND SO, UM, RUDY IN PHASE FOUR, UH, THE SOUTHWEST COMMUNITY AREA PLAN, UM, IS GONNA BEGIN.
AND I'M, I'M HAPPY ABOUT IT, BUT I'M WONDERING HOW OLDER PLANS LIKE THE, THERE WAS A KELLY OR SOUTH SAN PUEBLO COMMUNITY PLAN THAT WAS, UM, I THINK IT HAPPENED IN 2010.
AND SO I'M WONDERING HOW DO YOU INCORPORATE THAT? BECAUSE I'M JUST WORRIED THAT SOME OF MY RESIDENTS STILL ASK ME ABOUT IT.
RIGHT? AND SO, AND I'M JUST WORRIED, LIKE, HOW DO WE KEEP UP WITH THAT? HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT ALL OF THAT FEEDBACK SINCE 2010, I KNOW THINGS CHANGE, RIGHT? BUT, SO HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT WE STILL KEEP, MAYBE IT'S THE INTENT OF WHAT THE COMMUNITY SAID BACK THEN IS STILL INTACT IN 2023, FOR INSTANCE.
SO WHAT WE DO IS PART OF THE SUB AREA PLANNING PROCESS IS WE ALSO, UM, BRING TOGETHER ALL OF THE DIFFERENT PLANS THAT EXISTED PRIOR TO THE START OF THIS ONE.
SO, UH, THERE ARE A NUMBER OF NEIGHBORHOOD, UH, CORRIDOR, COMMUNITY SECTOR.
THERE'S A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT PLANS THAT, THAT MAY HAVE EXISTED PRIOR, IN THIS CASE, THE, THE QUINTANA PLAN.
SO WE WILL, UH, BRING ALL OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATIONS, YOU KNOW, TO MEETINGS.
WE'LL INVITE THEM, WE'LL, WE'LL BRING IN ALL OF THOSE DIFFERENT PLANS AND MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS THAT ESSENTIALLY FOR THOSE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATIONS WOULD HOPEFULLY UPDATE ACTUALLY THAT PLAN.
SO WHAT WILL COME OUT OF THE PROCESS IS ACTUALLY A NEIGHBORHOOD PROFILE AND PRIORITY FOR EVERY NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION OR EVERY NEIGHBORHOOD AREA.
AND IT WILL INCORPORATE ALL OF THE DIFFERENT RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THOSE PLANS.
AND THROUGH, THROUGH THOSE PUBLIC ENGAGEMENTS, WE'RE GOING TO MAKE EVERY ATTEMPT TO, NUMBER ONE, SEE WHAT IS STILL RELEVANT IN THOSE PLANS, BECAUSE THERE MAY HAVE BEEN SOME IDEAS THAT HAVE ALREADY BEEN IMPLEMENTED.
'CAUSE I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE DON'T THINK THAT THEY WERE NEVER LISTENED TO.
UM, BUT ON THAT RESPECT, ERIC, I'M WONDERING IF WE COULD PUT TOGETHER LIKE A ONE STOP WEBPAGE WITH ALL OF OUR PLANS, RIGHT? LIKE WE CAN CALL IT, I DON'T KNOW, ESSAY VISION OR SOMETHING.
RIGHT? AND SO JUST A ONE-STOP SHOP WHERE I WANNA SEE LIKE, EVERYTHING GOING ON
[01:20:01]
RIGHT IN, IN THE COMMUNITY, MAYBE IF THERE'S DASHBOARDS, RIGHT? YOU KNOW, THAT, THAT WE HAVE AVAILABILITY TO, TO ACCESS THAT.BUT THAT WOULD INCLUDE LIKE PLANTS, ET CETERA.
THANK YOU SO MUCH, COUNCILWOMAN.
UM, EVERY AT LEAST LAND U COMMUNITY PLAN, LAND USE PLAN, THE PLAN IS ON THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT, DEPARTMENT, OH, I'M TALKING ABOUT LIKE ONE PAGE, BUT LIKE, CLIMATE ACTION ADAPTATION, LIKE EVERY PLAN THAT WE HAVE, LIKE, WHERE CAN I GO FOR PLANNING? MM-HMM.
AND SO, OR LIKE IF I'M FROM SOMEWHERE ELSE, I'M PLANNING TO RELOCATE SOMEWHERE, I'LL LOOK UP SAN ANTONIO.
BUT, AND, AND KEEP IN MIND THAT WE, WE ALSO HAVE FOUND, UH, YOU KNOW, THE MULTIMODAL PLAN, THE SUSTAINABILITY PLAN, THE CLIMATE ADAPTATION PLAN, ALL OF ALL OF THOSE ARE, ARE ALSO PLANS THAT WE HAVE LINKED TO OUR WEBSITE AS WELL.
COUNCIL MEMBER ROCHE GARCIA, COUNCIL MEMBER COURAGE.
UM, I'LL GO AHEAD AND, AND TALK TO RAMIRO A LITTLE BIT MORE.
I, I THINK YOU DO A GREAT JOB.
I LOVE OUR LIBRARIES IN DISTRICT NINE, AND I KNOW THEY'RE VERY WELL USED.
I HAVE A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS, THOUGH.
UH, DO ALL LIBRARIES OPERATE IN THE SAME HOURLY OR DAILY SCHEDULE? THE SAME SCHEDULE? YES.
SO EVERY DAY, SAME HOURS, ALL THE LIBRARIES.
'CAUSE PEOPLE HAD ASKED, AND I WASN'T ALWAYS SURE, UM, WE TALKED ABOUT WORKING WITH THE COUNTY TO GET THEM TO HELP, UH, SUPPORT THE USAGE OF COUNTY PEOPLE.
AND, UH, I SAW THE NUMBER, AND WE'RE GONNA BE ASKING 'EM FOR 400 AND SOMETHING THOUSAND IN ADDITIONAL.
UH, BUT DO WE ALSO LOOK AT THE NUMBER OF CITY, UH, RESIDENTS WHO USE THE COUNTY SYSTEM, UH, FOR THEIR DIGITAL LIBRARY? AND ARE THEY BILLING US FOR THAT? UH, WE KNOW OF THE USAGE BY CITY RESIDENTS, BUT THEY'RE ALSO COUNTY RESIDENTS.
SO THEY'RE ALREADY CONTRIBUTING TO THAT.
UM, SOMETHING THAT I'VE REALLY THOUGHT WE SHOULD BE LOOKING AT FOR OUR LIBRARY IS SOME KIND OF A, A MESSAGE MARQUEE IN FRONT OF EVERY LIBRARY SO THAT PEOPLE KNOW THE DIFFERENT KINDS OF ACTIVITIES OR EVENTS OR, OR SPECIAL OPPORTUNITIES AT THOSE LIBRARIES.
WHAT WOULD IT TAKE TO GO AHEAD AND, AND PUT THOSE AT EVERY LIBRARY? UM, FIRST OF ALL, LET ME RESPOND THIS WAY.
OBVIOUSLY IT TAKES MONEY, RESOURCES TO DO THAT.
UH, BUT WE ARE, AS WE'RE RE RENOVATING AND WE HAVE SOME PROJECTS, UH, PERHAPS WE MIGHT HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY, WE ARE INCORPORATING THOSE KI KIND OF MONUMENT SIGNS WITH THE DIGIT SIGN.
UH, MEMORIAL HAS ONE LAS PALMAS PLAN FOR ONE, UM, CARVER'S PLAN FOR ANOTHER ONE.
UH, THE RESOURCES, UH, COUNCILMAN COULD I PAY FOR 'EM TO GO INTO LIBRARIES OF MY DISTRICT THROUGH MY FUNDING? UM,
WELL, THAT'S ALL I WANTED TO KNOW.
WELL, I GUESS MAYBE WAS PART OF THE FOLLOW UP.
WE'LL DO A, A ROUGH ESTIMATION.
PROBABLY EVERY LIBRARY'S GONNA BE A LITTLE, LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT, BUT A ROUGH ORDER OF MAGNITUDE.
LET'S GO AHEAD AND TALK TO ABOUT, UH, PLANNING.
UM, WE STARTED THIS OFFER 2017.
ACTUALLY, THE, THE ORIGINAL IDEA CAME EVEN BEFORE THAT, BUT WE, WE KICKED IT OFF AT 2017.
AND WHAT YEAR DID YOU SAY WE PROJECTED TO COMPLETE EVERYTHING AND HAVE THE COUNCIL FINALLY APPROVE IT ALL.
UM, THE FINAL ROUND OF PLANS ARE PROJECTED TO BE BROUGHT FORTH TO THE CITY IN ABOUT 2028.
SO THAT'S, THAT'S AN 11 YEAR PROCESS.
UM, AND OF COURSE, WHEN WE STARTED DOING THAT PROCESS, WE HADN'T GONE THROUGH, UH, YOU KNOW, WINTER STORM ERIE, OR WE HADN'T GONE THROUGH A PANDEMIC WITH C O V I D.
UH, AND SO BY THE TIME WE GET THIS, THE VERY FIRST PLANS ARE GONNA BE 10 OR 11 YEARS OLD, UH, OR EIGHT OR NINE YEARS OLD.
UM, AND, YOU KNOW, I'M, I'VE BEEN CONCERNED BECAUSE I'M HEARING FROM SOME PEOPLE IN MY DISTRICT, THEY'RE SAYING, DO WE STILL HAVE A CITY MASTER PLAN? I MEAN, WE HAVE NOT REALLY PUBLISHED IT OR, OR TRIED TO PROMOTE WHAT WE'VE ALREADY APPROVED AND TO CONTINUE TO LET PEOPLE KNOW THIS IS A BIG PLAN FOR THE FUTURE OF THIS CITY THAT PEOPLE NEED TO BE MORE AWARE OF.
NOW, I KNOW IN MY DISTRICT RIGHT NOW, WE'VE GOT THE AIRPORT, UH, PLAN GOING THROUGH AND STONE OAK PLAN, BUT SOMETIMES ONLY SEE 30, 40, 50 PEOPLE SHOW UP.
I GOT 150,000 PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN DISTRICT NINE.
SO I'M WONDERING WHAT WE'RE REALLY DOING TO REMIND
[01:25:01]
PEOPLE OF WHAT WE'VE STARTED, WHERE WE ARE, WHERE WE NEED TO GO TO COMPLETE THIS, AND WHAT IS THE ULTIMATE GOAL OF ALL OF THIS.AND I DON'T THINK IF PEOPLE UNDERSTAND THAT VERY WELL THAT THE PLAN MAY NOT HAVE MUCH OF A SIGNIFICANCE IN THE COMMUNITY.
UH, THERE'S ANOTHER CONCERN I'VE HAD.
YOU KNOW, I'VE SAT ON THE PLANNING COMMISSION FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS, SO I'VE SEEN PEOPLE COME TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION WANTING TO GO AHEAD AND DEVELOP PROPERTY.
AND SOMETIMES THESE, UH, PROPERTY OWNERS, DEVELOPERS, BUILDERS, ARE COMING TO DEVELOP PROPERTY.
AND THEIR IDEA IS DIFFERENT THAN WHAT WAS ALREADY APPROVED IN THE LAND USE PLAN BY THE COMMUNITY.
AND I WONDER WHY WOULD SOMEBODY BUY A PIECE OF LAND WITH X LAND USE APPROVED FOR IT? AND, AND THEN THEY WANNA GO AHEAD AND DEVELOP A Y PLAN ON THERE.
AND I'M WONDERING, HOW MUCH ARE WE ENSURING ANYONE WHO WANTS TO DEVELOP THAT, HEY, THERE'S ALREADY A PLAN HERE, AND A COMMUNITY IS LOOKING FOR THE PLAN TO BE DEVELOPED THE WAY IT IS, NOT THE WAY YOU WANNA DEVELOP THAT PIECE OF PROPERTY.
WHAT DOES YOUR DEPARTMENT DO TO CONTINUE TO EDUCATE, UH, THE BASIC ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY ABOUT WHAT THESE LAND PLANS ARE TRYING AND FOCUS THEIR ATTENTION ON WHERE THAT PROPERTY COULD BETTER BE DEVELOPED FOR THAT PARTICULAR KIND OF LAND USE? SURE.
NO, WE, WE DO, WE HAVE, WE MEET WITH THE REAL ESTATE COUNCIL SOMEWHAT FREQUENTLY.
UH, WE MEET WITH PROPERTY OWNERS, I MEAN, YOU KNOW, ON A MONTHLY BASIS THAT MAY HAVE A DIFFERENT INTEREST IN A PIECE OF PROPERTY.
AND THE FIRST, UH, THE FIRST THING THAT WE'RE GONNA LAY OUT FOR THEM IS THIS IS WHAT THE CITY'S ADOPTED PLAN IS.
UM, KEEPING IN MIND, OF COURSE, THAT WE ARE TRYING TO PROVIDE AS MUCH, YOU KNOW, CUSTOMER SERVICE INFORMATION AS WE CAN.
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN POTENTIALLY CHANGING IT, THESE ARE SOME OF THE STEPS THAT YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO TAKE AND ULTIMATELY TAKE IT TO THE CITY COUNCIL.
UM, BUT, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT, THAT IS, YOU KNOW, IT IS THE RIGHT IN TEXAS FOR THEM TO BE ABLE TO, YOU KNOW, A PROPERTY OWNER TO PROPOSE THE ZONING CHANGE OR A LAND USE UPDATE.
AND WE'LL PROVIDE THE BEST PROFESSIONAL RECOMMENDATION POSSIBLE, UH, ALWAYS STARTING WITH WHAT IS THE ADOPTED FUTURE LAND USE SURE.
AND THEN WE, YOU KNOW, WE MAIL NOTICES TO PROPERTY OWNERS WITHIN 200 FEET.
WE MAKE AN EFFORT TO REACH OUT TO NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATIONS AND SO FORTH, UH, SO THAT YOU HAVE ACCESS TO THAT FEEDBACK.
UM, SO WE MAKE EVERY EFFORT TO TRY TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE IS AWARE OF WHAT THE COMMUNITY'S INTENTIONS ARE FOR A PARTICULAR AREA, AND PROVIDE THAT TO THE COUNCIL AS PART OF OUR ANALYSIS.
I KNOW THAT'S NOT YOUR RESPONSIBILITY WHEN IT COMES TO THE PLANNING AND ZONING THAT REALLY GOES THROUGH D S D MM-HMM.
BUT, UM, I JUST WONDER IF, IF WE CAN'T DO MORE TO BETTER EDUCATE, UH, THE PROPERTY DEVELOPERS GOING FORWARD ABOUT WHAT WE'VE ALREADY APPROVED, WHAT THE COMMUNITY'S EXPECTATIONS ARE.
AND AT THE SAME TIME, UH, I FEEL LIKE BOTH THE PLANNING AND ZONING COMMITTEE NEED TO BE BETTER REPRESENTATIVE OF WHAT THE COMMUNITY IS EXPECTING TO BE DEVELOPED AND NOT WHAT THE BUILDERS AND DEVELOPERS ARE EXPECTING TO BE DEVELOPED.
FOR EXAMPLE, THE, UH, THE, THE COMMUNITY HAS REALLY NO INPUT INTO THE PLANNING COMMISSION.
'CAUSE ACCORDING TO THE CITY CHARTER, THAT'S ALL LAID OUT BY CERTAIN QUALIFICATIONS BASED ON YOUR EXPERIENCE IN BUILDING AND DEVELOPING AND ENGINEERING AND ET CETERA.
UH, AND, AND I THINK THAT DOESN'T HELP THE COMMUNITY GET THE KIND OF REPRESENTATION OR MAYBE THE RESULTS IT MIGHT EXPECT THE WAY THAT ONE'S LAID OUT.
NOW, THE ZONING COMMISSION IS DIFFERENT.
IT IS SET UP, UH, BY COUNCIL DISTRICT.
SO I'M JUST ADVOCATING, I THINK, FOR MAKING SURE THAT THERE IS BETTER COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT IN THE PLAN, GOING IN THE PLAN GOING FORWARD, AND THAT THE BUILDING DEVELOPING ECONOMIC COMMUNITY UNDERSTANDS WHAT THE COMMUNITY'S EXPECTATIONS ARE AS WE CONTINUE TO GO THROUGH THIS PLAN AND NOT JUST WHAT THEIR ECONOMIC EXPECTATIONS ARE.
SO I DON'T KNOW HOW TO RESOLVE THAT, BUT I THINK IT'S SOMETHING THAT, YOU KNOW, WE NEED TO PAY MORE ATTENTION TO.
AND AGAIN, I THINK WE REALLY NEED TO MAKE SURE THE COMMUNITY KNOWS WHERE OUR SA TOMORROW PLAN IS, WHERE IT'S GOING, AND HOW THEY NEED TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IT'S GOING TO RESULT IN LONG TERM.
UH, SO I JUST WANTED TO SHARE THOSE THOUGHTS WITH YOU FROM MY EXPERIENCE.
AND, AND COUNCILMAN, UM, WE WILL HAPPILY STRATEGIZE INTERNALLY ABOUT HOW WE CAN CONTINUE TO OUTREACH RELATED TO THE, TO THE PLAN AND, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT KIND OF, WHAT OUR TARGET ARE, WHAT OUR METRICS ARE MOVING FORWARD, UM, AS IT RELATES TO THE, THE WORK THAT THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT DOES RELATED TO ZONING.
UH, ONCE WE ADOPT A FUTURE LAND USE PLAN AND MAP, ONE
[01:30:01]
OF THE FIRST THINGS THAT WE'RE GONNA DO IS WE'RE GONNA START THE EVALUATION OF ZONING.BECAUSE I THINK THAT PART OF THE, PART OF THE LONG-TERM CONSTERNATION, I THINK IN THE COMMUNITY HAS BEEN YOU ADOPT A PLAN.
YOU DON'T NECESSARILY FOLLOW UP THAT FUTURE LAND USE MAP, BUT THE ZONING EFFORT THAT INCLUDES A COMMUNITY SO THAT YOU CAN MAKE SURE THAT THE EXPECTATIONS THAT WERE LAID OUT WITHIN THAT PAST YEAR OR TWO ARE ULTIMATELY BEING LAID OUT IN THE GROUND.
UH, THAT IS WHAT OUR DEPARTMENT IS ACTUALLY WORKING ON RIGHT NOW.
AND SO, UM, I THINK THAT WHILE IT WILL REMOVE BARRIERS TO APPROPRIATE DEVELOPMENT IN SOME AREAS, IT MAY IN SOME INSTANCES, LAY A FOUNDATION FOR A DIFFERENT TYPE OF DEVELOPMENT PATTERN IN, IN OTHERS.
SO, UM, WHEN THOSE, WHEN WE START THOSE EFFORTS, WE ALWAYS REACH OUT TO THE COUNCIL OFFICE SO THAT YOU ALL ARE AWARE OF THE TYPE OF WORK THAT WE'RE MOVING FORWARD WITH.
DO YOU HAVE A MARKETING BUDGET? WE DO.
THE, THE COUNCIL HAS, HAS PROVIDED SOME, WELL, I HOPE YOU SPEND IT ALL ON CONTINUING TO EDUCATE THE POPULATION ABOUT THE MASTER PLAN.
WHILE YOU'RE, UH, I'LL JUST START, START WITH WITH PLANNING.
SO HAVING BEEN ON THE ZONING COMMISSION, I CAN, I CAN TELL YOU THAT, UM, A LOT OF TIME IT IS BECAUSE THESE PLANS ARE SO OUTDATED AND, AND, AND A CASE WOULD COME BEFORE THE ZONING COMMISSION AND, AND SOMEBODY WOULD SAY, OH, THIS ISN'T IN CONFORMANCE WITH THE PLAN.
BUT YOU WOULD LOOK AT THE SURROUNDING AREA AND SAY, WELL, THIS PROPOSED USE LOOKS LIKE IT FITS IN THIS AREA TO ME, AND THEN LAND USE PRINCIPLES TAKE OVER AND, AND IT WOULD GET APPROVED.
THE OTHER THING THAT HAPPENS, OF COURSE, IS WHEN YOU DON'T HAVE SOPHISTICATED, UM, OR EXPERIENCED DEVELOPERS THAT ARE INVOLVED, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE JUST AN INDIVIDUAL OUT THERE WHO'S BUYING AN INVESTMENT PROPERTY, UH, THEY DON'T LOOK INTO SOMETHING LIKE WHAT THE LAND USE PLAN IS OR, OR WHAT IT'S BEEN DESIGNATED FOR IN THE FUTURE.
AND SO THAT'S WHERE THERE'S A LOT OF THE PUSH AND PULL, UM, AT LEAST WHAT I SAW DURING ZONING, UM, JUST TELL YOU THAT WE'RE, UH, OBVIOUSLY SUPPORTIVE AND, AND, AND REALLY CELEBRATE THE EFFORTS, UM, BY THE SA WITH THE SA TOMORROW PLAN, WITH RESPECT TO WHAT'S GONNA GO ON IN THE, UH, NORTHEAST, UH, PART OF THE CITY.
AND SO, UM, WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT.
UM, ONE QUESTION ON, UM, LOOKING AT THE, UH, THE PROPOSED BUDGET, AND THEN, I APOLOGIZE IF I MISSED THIS, BUT IT LOOKS LIKE THERE'S ABOUT A MILLION AND A HALF BUCKS, UM, IN HERE MORE THAN LAST YEAR FOR CONTRACTUAL SERVICES.
WHAT, WHAT WAS THAT FOR? EXCUSE ME.
THAT IS THE, UH, CONSULTING COSTS FOR THE PHASE FOUR OF THE SA TOMORROW PLAN.
THE CONS CONSULT, IT'S ABOUT $1.4 MILLION THAT WE'VE, THAT WE'RE ADDING THROUGH THIS BUDGET.
UM, LIBRARIES, UM, WELL, ROMERO, UM, AGAIN, CONGRATS ON ALL OF YOUR WORK.
UH, HAPPY TO SEE, OF COURSE, SIMS LIBRARY GETTING SOME, UH, MUCH NEEDED, UM, IMPROVEMENTS THERE.
UM, THIS ENHANCED LIBRARY CARD.
UM, DID I HEAR CORRECTLY THAT THERE'S BEEN NO NEW LOCATIONS OR BUSINESSES THAT HAVE BEEN, UM, DESIGNATED THAT WILL ALLOW THE LIBRARY CARD TO BE USED AS ID NO, NO, NO, NO.
YOU SAID BUSINESSES COUNCILMAN, LIKE PRIVATE BUSINESSES? YEAH.
OTHER THAN OTHER PUBLIC LOCATIONS, I SHOULD HAVE SAID, OTHER THAN THE LIBRARY, IT IS IN THE GENERAL MANUAL AS ONE OF THE, UH, A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT ACCEPTABLE FORMS OF ID THAT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT WILL RECOGNIZE.
AND, UM, THERE'S GONNA BE A CERTAIN NUMBER OF ADDITIONAL USERS, I GUESS, THAT ARE GONNA HAVE, UH, ACCESS TO THE EXPANDED LIBRARY CARD.
ANY INDIVIDUAL, ANY USER WILL HAVE ACCESS.
UH, IF THERE'S THE NEED BY A PARTICULAR USER TO HAVE A LIBRARY CARD THAT HAS YOUR PICTURE AS THE, YOUR ADDRESS AND YOUR BIRTHDATE, THEY CAN OPT FOR THAT.
UM, SO IT'S AN OPT-IN KIND OF, UH, IT'S AN OPTION.
AGAIN, THE USER WILL HAVE NOW THAT CARD CAN HELP, UH, A USER POTENTIALLY, UH, ACCESS CERTAIN SERVICES WHERE THEY, UH, SUCH A CARD IS NEEDED.
AND, AND WHAT WAS REALLY THE PURPOSE BEHIND THIS, THIS ENHANCED LIBRARY CARD? THE REASONS FOR IT.
THERE ARE CERTAIN POPULATIONS IN THE CITY THAT WOULD BENEFIT OF HAVING A CARD THAT COULD VERIFY THEIR ADDRESS AND THEIR BIRTHDATE, UH, ALONG WITH A PHOTO.
[01:35:01]
UM, SO IT WOULD FACILITATE ACCESS TO CERTAIN SERVICES BY HAVING SUCH A CARD.AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, WHEN WE STARTED THIS, I DON'T KNOW, GOSH, THREE AND A HALF YEARS AGO, UM, THE LIBRARY WAS IN THE PROCESS OF UPDATING AND PROCURING A NEW SYSTEM, UH, AT THE LIBRARY SYSTEM.
SO THOSE THINGS HAPPEN AT THE SAME TIME.
THAT'S WHAT GAVE US THE CAPABILITY TO BE ABLE TO EXPAND.
'CAUSE WE DID NOT HAVE THAT CAPABILITY UNDER YOUR OLD SYSTEM.
UM, MOVING TO THE ISSUE WITH THE COUNTY, FOR HOW LONG HAS THE COUNTY BEEN INVESTING IN, IN, IN OUR LIBRARIES IN THE CITY LIBRARIES? DO WE KNOW? WELL, THEY'VE BEEN PAYING THE FEE FOR THE SERVICE THAT WE PROVIDE FOR CLOSE TO 90 YEARS.
SO, AND, AND THIS ISSUE THAT, THAT WE'VE GOT NOW, UM, WE'RE JUST NEGOTIATING WITH THEM OVER WHO, WHO'S, HOW MUCH THEY'RE ACTUALLY GONNA GONNA PITCH IN.
UH, THE EXTENSION THAT WILL COME TO COUNCIL ON THURSDAY, ONE YEAR EXTENSION, UH, TO ALLOW THE LIBRARY TO EXTEND SERVICES FOR ONE YEAR WILL ALLOW, WILL BUY US SOME TIME TO WORK WITH THE COUNTY TO, UH, OUR GOAL IS FOR THE COUNTY TO PAY THE, A FEE TO THE CITY FOR THE SERVICE THAT WE PROVIDE THAT'S ALIGNED WITH COUNTY USAGE, COUNTY OUTTA CITY USAGE, WHICH CURRENTLY IS AT 26% BASED ON CIRCULATION.
THAT'S A USAGE THAT WE CAN CAPTURE.
UH, IT'S TANGIBLE, IF I CAN USE THAT WORD.
AND SO WE'RE, WE'RE TRYING TO GET THEM UP TO THE 26%.
WELL, THE GOAL IS TO ALIGN THEIR FEE WITH USAGE.
UM, SO YEAH, IF YOU ASK ME, YEAH, THAT WOULD BE MY GOAL IS TO GET THEM TO, TO THAT NUMBER AND COUNCILMAN SOME OF THE CONVERSATIONS THAT RAMIRO AND THE STAFF HAVE HAD WITH THE COUNTY OVER THE LAST, UH, FIVE OR SIX MONTHS, UM, A LITTLE BIT LONGER, IS LET'S PUT TOGETHER A LONG-TERM AGREEMENT THAT ALLOWS THEM TIME TO GET UP TO THAT AMOUNT.
WE DON'T THINK, I MEAN, AS MUCH AS I WOULD LOVE, I DON'T THINK IT'S REALISTIC TO HAVE THAT TURNAROUND IN A 12 MONTH CYCLE.
SO LET'S PUT TOGETHER A LONG-TERM AGREEMENT AND, AND SET A PLAN WITH A SCALE THAT GETS US THERE OVER A SPECIFIC AMOUNT OF TIME.
UM, I GUESS 14,000 NEW ITEMS WE'RE GONNA BE BUYING FOR THE LIBRARIES.
UM, WHO, WHO DETERMINES WHAT'S BOUGHT? WE HAVE PROFESSIONAL LIBRARIANS, UH, THAT ARE DESIGNATED TO DO WHAT WE CALL COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT, WHO ARE STRATEGIC IN TERMS OF WHAT ITEMS WE BUY BASED ON, UH, EXPECTED DEMAND, EXPECTED USE.
UM, SO IT'S, IT'S A TEAM OF LIBRARIANS AND, UH, THAT, THAT GO THROUGH A PROCESS AND USE VARIOUS TOOLS TO ASSESS WHAT ITEMS, UH, WILL BE PURCHASED TO, AGAIN, TO RESPOND TO DEMAND.
AND, AND THEY'RE LIBRARIANS THAT ARE ACTUALLY WORKING AT EACH OF OUR LIBRARIES.
UH, THEY'RE LIBRARIANS THAT ARE HEADQUARTERED OR STAFFED AT THE CENTRAL LIBRARY, BUT WE HAVE A PROCESS TO OBTAIN FEEDBACK FROM ALL THE AREAS OF THE CITY THAT WE PROVIDE FROM OUR BRANCHES.
UH, THEY KNOW THE COMMUNITIES BETTER.
UH, SO WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND WHAT'S BEEN REQUESTED, WHAT KIND OF GUIDANCE, WHAT KIND OF TOPICS, UM, WHETHER IT'S JUVENILE MATERIAL, ADULT MATERIALS, AND SO ON.
SO ALL THAT INFORMATION IS GATHERED SO THAT WE CAN MAKE STRATEGIC AND RESPONSIVE DECISIONS IN TERMS OF WHAT ITEMS, UH, WE PURCHASE TO GET THE MOST BANG FOR THE BUCK.
SO IT'S BASED IN LARGE PART ON DEMAND FROM THE COMMUNITY, THE MAN AND EX? UH, YES.
COUNCILMAN W UH, COUNCILMAN DR.
UH, I'LL START WITH YOU, RAMIRO, SINCE YOU WERE ALREADY STA SORRY.
UM, FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR EVERYTHING THAT YOU DO WITH THE LIBRARY.
I THINK I ECHO EVERYONE ELSE'S SENTIMENTS HERE, THAT THIS IS AN INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT ASSET, PARTICULARLY AS YOU MENTIONED IN THE COMMUNITY THAT WE'RE LIVING IN RIGHT NOW, AND THE ENVIRONMENT THAT WE'RE LIVING IN.
SO, WITHIN THAT VEIN OF QUESTIONING, AS SOME FOLKS HAVE ALREADY ASKED, UM, I KNOW THE COUNCIL LAST YEAR HAD ACTUALLY, AND, UM, MAYOR PROTE MENTIONED THE, UH, ORDINANCE THAT YOU ALL PASSED LAST YEAR FOR THE FREEDOM TO READ ACT.
HOW DO YOU GUYS TRACKING DATA IN TERMS OF WHAT YOU'RE ABLE TO DO IN SUPPORT OF THAT ORDINANCE? ALRIGHT, SO THERE'S A COMMITMENT FOR FREEDOM TO ACCESS, FREEDOM TO READ.
AND THE, THE RESOLUTION THAT WAS PASSED BY COUNCIL IS ANOTHER TOOL THAT WE USE, BUT WE HAVE A PROCESS NOW.
I INDICATED EARLIER THAT WE'RE VERY FORTUNATE.
WE'VE HAD VERY FEW REQUESTS FOR WHAT WE CALL REQUESTS FOR RECONSIDERATION FOR AN IN, IN AN INDIVIDUAL
[01:40:01]
MAY HAVE SOME OBJECTION TO A PARTICULAR BOOK OR ITEM THAT WE MAY HAVE IN A COLLECTION.SO THAT PERSON HAS AN OPPORTUNITY TO ASK FOR LIBRARY ADMINISTRATION TO RECONSIDER THAT ITEM.
UH, IF IT'S IN THE JUVENILE, MAYBE THEY MIGHT SAY IT BELONGS IN THE ADULT.
SO THAT'S THE TOOL WE, WE HAVE.
AND WE HAVE PROFESSIONAL LIBRARIANS LOOK AT REVIEWS, LOOK AT LIBRARIES, UH, BEST PRACTICES, OTHER PEER LIBRARIES, UH, AND THEN MAKE A DECISION WHETHER WE KEEP THAT ITEM.
SO AGAIN, WE HAVEN'T HAD, UH, A LOT OF, UH, REQUESTS FOR RECONSIDERATION.
SO THAT THAT'S A PROCESS WE USE.
I'M NOT SURE I ANSWERED YOUR QUESTION.
I GUESS MY, MY PUSH WOULD BE FOR US TO THINK ABOUT LIKE, LOOKING AT THE BLISS OF BOOKS THAT WE'VE BEEN, THAT HAVE BEEN BANNED BY THE STATE, AND HOW MANY OF THEM ARE WE OFFERING AND HOW WE CAN GIVE THAT INFORMATION TO OUR SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND TEACHERS THAT WANNA BE ABLE TO USE THOSE BOOKS BUT DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO THEM SO THAT WE CAN EDUCATE, ALLOW FAMILIES TO MAKE THE CHOICE AS, AS A LIBRARY SYSTEM, IF YOU STILL WANT ACCESS TO THESE BOOKS, WE HAVE THEM.
UM, AND THEN ON THE LINES OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, I KNOW WE, YOU ARE ALL OFFERING A LOT.
AND I SOME OF THE, THAT SLIDE WHERE IT SHOWS THE DECREASE IN USERSHIP IS JARRING.
'CAUSE YOU WONDER WHY THAT IS, RIGHT? MM-HMM.
SO SOMETIMES WE JUST DON'T KNOW ALL OF THE ASSETS THAT WE HAVE AT THE LIBRARY SYSTEM.
SO TWO THINGS THAT I WANNA KNOW IF WE'VE CONSIDERED IS, ONE, WOULD EXTENDING HOURS ACTUALLY AFFECT USERSHIP IN TERMS OF ACCESSIBILITY? AND TWO, DO WE OFFER TRANSPORTATION SERVICES FOR FAMILIES TO GET TO THE LIBRARY? WE DO NOT OFFER TRANSPORTATION SERVICES TO FAMILIES.
UH, BUT YOUR YOUR OTHER POINT, UH, YES, THAT'S SOMETHING WE SHOULD LOOK GOING FORWARD.
OURS COLLECTIONS PROGRAMS. UM, SO WE REALLY WANNA UNDERSTAND OUR ONE METRIC VISITOR COUNT.
WHY IS IT NOT TRENDING LIKE THE OTHER TWO? SO YES, BECAUSE I KNOW WHEN WE HAD THAT SITUATION LAST WEEK, WE EXTENDED OUR HOURS TILL NINE.
AND I DON'T KNOW IF THAT IMPACTED OR HOW MANY FOLKS STAY, BUT I KNOW SOME FAMILIES, PARTICULARLY IN OUR COMMUNITIES ARE, YOU KNOW, OUT LATER, THEY DON'T EAT DINNER TILL LATER.
SO IT MIGHT BE AN INTERESTING, UH, UM, EVEN IN THE MORNINGS, LIKE SOMETIMES, I REMEMBER THE ONE TIME I WAS TRYING TO GO TO THE CENTRAL LIBRARY DIDN'T OPEN UNTIL NOON.
SO JUST THINKING ABOUT LIKE HOW WE CAN CAPTURE DIFFERENT KINDS OF USERSHIP.
AND WE'RE ABOUT READY TO WRAP UP A STRATEGIC PLAN.
AND, UH, WE BELIEVE THAT STRATEGIC PLAN WILL INFORM INTO WHAT, WHAT, WHAT DO WE NEED TO DO ABOUT HOURS? DO WE NEED TO RESTRUCTURE HOURS? REEVALUATE.
UH, RIGHT NOW WITH A PREVIOUS QUESTION, THEY'RE BASICALLY STANDARDIZED THROUGHOUT THE LIBRARY SYSTEM.
AND I MEANT THE SAME PAGE, OR NOT LIBRARY, NOT THE CENTRAL LIBRARY.
WHICH ALSO MAKES ME THINK, DO WE HAVE AN ANALYSIS OF LIKE USERSHIP OR, UM, RESULTS OF EACH LIBRARIAN, HOW IT'S BEST BEING UTILIZED, MAYBE WE NEED TO TRANSFORM.
OR JUST IS THAT GONNA COME IN THE STRATEGIC PLAN THAT YOU JUST MENTIONED? YES.
UM, AND THEN THE LAST QUESTION I HAD FOR YOU, I READ THIS ARTICLE, UM, OR IT'S ACTUALLY SHARED TO ME, BUT IN UNIVERSAL CITY THEY RENT OUT WIFI MODEMS. AND I KNOW COUNCIL MEMBER GTTA BROUGHT UP THE DIGITAL INCLUSION, AND THAT'S A PASSION THAT WE, THAT SHE'S BEEN LEADING.
BUT IS THERE A WAY FOR US TO RENT OUT LIKE THE WIFI MODEMS FOR FAMILIES THAT DON'T HAVE ACCESS? NO HOTSPOTS, YES.
SO WE LOOKED AT THAT, UH, A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO.
WE INTRODUCED A PILOT AND I, THE DECISION WAS NOT SUSTAINABLE COST AND USAGE.
UH, SO FROM OUR PERSPECTIVE, UH, WE DIDN'T CONTINUE THAT, UH, THAT PARTICULAR PROGRAM.
BUT WE CAN REVISIT THAT IS AGAIN, THE STRATEGIC PLAN'S GOING TO INFORM US IN MANY WAYS.
AND THAT'S, THAT, THAT'S ANOTHER SERVICE THAT PERHAPS WE NEED TO RETHINK.
YEAH, IT WOULD JUST BE INTERESTING TO SEE.
'CAUSE MAYBE THAT'S THE ONE THING THAT BRINGS SOMEONE IN AND THEY GET ACCESS TO ALL THE OTHER RESOURCES, WHATEVER IT MAY BE.
OR MAYBE THERE'S A REALLY LIKE HIGH BAR OR SOMETHING JUST SO THAT IT'S A SERVICE THAT'S BEING OFFERED.
UM, AND THEN I DID HAVE ONE MORE THING.
I KNOW WHEN WE MET, I MENTIONED TO YOU ABOUT THE I L A ONE THING.
AS A, A DIGITAL LIBRARY USER MM-HMM.
AND IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S A LOT OF OVERLAP.
I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO ENCOURAGE YOU AND THE COUNTY TO, AS YOU'RE TALKING THROUGH THE I L A, SEE IF WE CAN FIGURE OUT SOME KIND OF LANES OF PURCHASE, RIGHT? YOU'RE MAYBE THE $415,000 IS A PILOT FOR IT.
UM, WHERE THERE'S SOME KIND OF ANALYSIS THAT'S DONE AROUND WHAT ARE THE BOOKS THAT THE, THE COUNTY DOESN'T HAVE THAT WE DON'T HAVE, THAT WE CAN OFFER SOMETHING THAT'S A SERVICE THAT'S NOT DUPLICATIVE? 'CAUSE YES, OUR COUNTY MEMBER, OUR OUR RESIDENTS OF OF, OF COSA PAY FOR BOTH TAXES, BUT WE DON'T WANNA PAY FOR TAXES FOR THE SAME THING.
IF YOU HAVE THE BOOK AND THEY HAVE THE BOOK.
SO, UH, ANYWHO, I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU ALL DURING THE ILIGHT TO MAYBE CONSIDER THE 415 AS A PILOT FOR HOW WE CAN CREATE LANES OF PURCHASING FOR BOOKS.
SO, UM, INTERESTINGLY, I WAS LOOKING, SO FIRST OF ALL, I JUST HAVE A, I KNOW, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER COURAGE WAS LIKE, PUT ALL THE MARKETING
[01:45:01]
MONEY ON COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND I, UH, CAN AGREE AND SUPPORT THAT BECAUSE AT THE END OF THE DAY, THE, THE FOLKS THAT ACTUALLY COUNCIL MEMBER WHITE GET MENTIONED, GET LEFT OUT OF THIS CONVERSATION, ARE THE PEOPLE THAT ARE YOUNGER, UH, INVESTORS THAT MAY NOT BE, HAVE DONE THIS BEFORE.IT'S NOT THE BIG GUYS THAT ARE GONNA NOT KNOW WHAT THE LAND USE IS, RIGHT? MM-HMM.
SO IF WE REALLY WANNA ENCOURAGE DIVERSITY IN THE PEOPLE THAT ARE ABLE TO BUILD GENERATIONAL WEALTH IN THE CITY, WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE KNOWS ABOUT THE SYSTEMS. UM, BUT THE SECOND THING I WAS GONNA SAY WAS THE WEBSITE IS INCREDIBLY DIFFICULT TO NAVIGATE.
IT'S BECAUSE THERE'S SO MANY DIFFERENT PLANS AND YOU HAVE TO, EACH PLAN TAKES YOU TO KIND OF, ITS LIKE OWN AREA AND IT DOESN'T OPEN WHEN YOU CLICK ON IT, IT DOESN'T OPEN IN A NEW PAGE.
SO LIKE A SUPER SMALL CHANGE WOULD BE JUST TO HAVE IT OPEN IN A NEW PAGE SO YOU COULD GO, ALWAYS GO BACK HOME.
ANYWHO, I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S A WAY TO HAVE LIKE DIFFERENT, UH, MARKETING FOR EACH OF THE, UH, AREAS.
SOMETHING I GOT, I GET LOST IN THAT WEBSITE AND I'M COUNCIL, UH, WE COMPLETELY, UH, UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE, WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT.
WE'VE ACTUALLY GONE THROUGH AN INTERNAL PROCESS TO DO A REVIEW AND GREAT.
YOU'RE GONNA BE, YOU'RE GONNA PROBABLY BE SEEING SOME CHANGES OVER THE NEXT YEAR.
AS IT RELATES TO, THAT'LL BE AWESOME.
UM, IT'S JUST BECAUSE IT'S SO MUCH CONTENT, IT'S HARD TO ORGANIZE.
SO A COUPLE OF JUST QUESTIONS ON THE MIDTOWN PLAN.
I KNOW YOU GUYS ARE DOING THAT PLAN, UM, COMING UP IN 2024.
UM, THE MIDTOWN PLAN IS ONE THAT ACTUALLY WAS ADOPTED IN PHASE OH, IT WAS ADOPTED UNDER PHASE ONE.
OH, I DIDN'T, I SAW THE DOWNTOWN.
I THOUGHT THE MIDTOWN RIGHT THERE.
SO DOWNTOWN IS THE MIDDLE BLUE, NORTH CENTRAL.
AND SO WHAT YOU'RE GONNA SEE IN PHASE FOUR IS THE NORTH CENTRAL, THE, THAT NEAR NORTH AREA AND NEAR NORTHWEST.
SO YOU'RE, THERE'S A NUMBER OF PLANS THAT TOUCH THAT DISCIP, YOU'RE LOOKING.
JUST CURIOUS, IS THERE A REASON WHY SAN PEDRO SPRINGS PARK WAS LIKE NOT IN THE MIDTOWN PLAN? SAN PEDRO SPRINGS PARK? YEAH.
THE LINE GOES JUST RIGHT UNDER IT.
I BELIEVE THAT THE, AND, AND THAT IT'S LOCATED IN THE NORTH CENTRAL PLAN IS, IS THAT YOUR QUESTION? YEAH.
AND, AND WE CAN GO BACK AND WE CAN LOOK THROUGH THE, THROUGH THE, THE DOCUMENTATION THAT WE HAVE.
I KNOW THAT WHEN WE LAID OUT THE VARIOUS PHASES OF THESE PLAN EFFORTS, WE DID A, A REALLY BROAD COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT EFFORT THAT IDENTIFIED REALLY WHERE THOSE AREAS ARE.
AND WHAT WE TRIED TO DO WAS TO ENSURE THAT WHEN WE IDENTIFIED A, A SPECIFIC PLAN AREA THAT WE DIDN'T BISECT NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION LINES.
THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT WAS VERY, THAT, THAT, YOU KNOW, WAS REALLY HIT HOME QUITE A BIT.
AND SO IF THE, A NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION LINE HIT RIGHT THERE, EVEN IF WE WERE GONNA BE LOOKING AT A, AT TRYING TO TAKE MAYBE A PARK IN HOLISTICALLY, UM, WE CITED WITH ENSURING THAT WE DIDN'T DIVIDE A NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION.
THAT MIGHT BE IT THEN, BECAUSE THAT, THE OTHER SIDE OF THAT IS ALTAVISTA.
UM, AND SO A QUESTION ABOUT, AND I THINK THIS WAS ASKED ABOUT LIKE HOW WE'RE USING THIS IN TERMS OF METRICS WHEN WE'RE MAKING DECISIONS, RIGHT? AND, AND COUNCIL MEMBER
YOU GUYS OBVIOUSLY IF SOME, IF A ZONING CHANGE HAS TO GO THROUGH A LAND USE, THEY GO THROUGH PLANNING COMMISSION MM-HMM.
BUT WE'RE AT I GUESS ASKING FROM ON, ON THE FRONT END FROM CITY STAFF IF THERE'S A WAY TO HAVE MORE CONNECTION THERE.
SO I JUST WANTED TO ECHO THAT POINT.
THAT'S WHAT I, AT LEAST I UNDERSTOOD FROM THERE.
AND THEN TWO, EVEN WHEN WE'RE MAKING, UH, CHANGES OR POLICY THAT WE REFERENCE, THIS IS A PART OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN AS ALIGNED TO SA TOMORROW.
SO FOR EXAMPLE, IN THE MIDTOWN PLAN, ONE OF THE GOALS IS TO INCREASE TRANSIT OPTIONS MM-HMM.
AND SO ANYTIME THAT WE HAVE A RESOLUTION THAT'S COMING IN FOR US TO LIKE INCREASE, SAY FOR EXAMPLE, VIA ART FUNDING, RIGHT? LIKE THAT WE'RE REMINDING FOLKS THIS IS A PART OF THE PLAN THAT WAS DECIDED ON BY THE COMMUNITY.
AND IF YOU ALL CAN HELP SUPPORT WHAT THAT CONNECTION THINK, THAT WOULD BE REALLY HELPFUL.
NO, THAT, THAT, THOSE ARE ALL GREAT POINTS AND WE'LL, WE'LL WORK THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE TO AWESOME.
COUNCILMAN COR, COUNCILMAN ELAS.
AND, AND THANKS TO, UM, RAMIRO AND YOUR TEAM FOR EVERYTHING THAT YOU DO, YOU GUYS NEVER CEASED TO IMPRESS.
UM, YOU GUYS ARE THE UNSUNG HEROES OF SAN ANTONIO.
OFTENTIMES, YOU'RE ON THE FRONTLINE IN WAYS THAT NONE OF YOU EVER REALLY EXPECTED TO BE ON THE FRONT LINES.
AND YOU KNOW, I DO KNOW THAT THE LIBRARY IS FREQUENTLY UTILIZED BY, UH, PEOPLE THAT, UH, DON'T HAVE HOMES, RIGHT? AND, UH, YOU KNOW, THEY GO TO THE LIBRARY TO GET SOME, SOME REST FROM THE HOT SUN AND FROM, UH, SOMETIMES FOR A DRINK OF WATER AND USE THE TOILET.
AND, UH, IT'S A LITTLE OASIS OF AIR CONDITIONING AND IT'S A PEACEFUL PLACE FOR THEM TO, TO RELAX.
AND YOU GUYS, UM, ALWAYS TREAT THEM WITH DIGNITY AND RESPECT.
I'VE OBSERVED THAT, UH, AT BOTH CODY AND AT IGO.
AND I'M, I'M, I'M VERY GRATEFUL THAT YOU GUYS DO THAT.
THE, UH, AS FOR PLANNING, YOU KNOW, IT'S LESS OF A QUESTION, UH, AND MORE JUST OF AN OBSERVATION AND, AND LIKE TO HEAR YOUR, YOUR THOUGHTS ON
[01:50:01]
IT.I, YOU KNOW, ANDY SEGOVIA WAS CREATED IN A TEST TUBE AT GENERAL MOTORS, AND I WAS CREATED IN ONE AT TOYOTA.
AND, UH, YOU KNOW, OVER THERE, WHAT THEY TEACH THE LAWYERS IS, UM, STOP THINKING LIKE A LAWYER, START THINKING LIKE AN ENGINEER, RIGHT? AND, UM, WE, WE, UM, GO THROUGH THIS TRAINING WHERE THEY TEACH YOU SOME VERY BASIC SORT OF SIX SIGMA, UM, YOU KNOW, PROBLEM SOLVING AND, UH, YOU KNOW, ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS FOR PROBLEMS. AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT ANDY, I DON DUNNO, IF YOU REMEMBER THE, THE TRAINING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, P D C A, UH, CYCLES, RIGHT? SO PLAN, DO, CHECK, ACT, RIGHT? SO FOR ANY STRATEGY, ANY, ANY PLAN, YOU, YOU, UH, OR ANY, YOU KNOW, ANY UH, IDEA THAT YOU WANT TO IMPLEMENT, YOU PLAN IT, YOU DO IT, YOU CHECK WHETHER YOU DID IT RIGHT, WHETHER IT'S WORKING, AND THEN YOU ACT BASED ON WHAT YOU LEARNED.
DO YOU REMEMBER THAT ANDY A, A COUNCILMAN? I HAVE TO ADMIT THAT ONE OF THE FEW THINGS I'VE EVER FAILED IS SIX SIGMA TRAINING.
SO WE, UH, WE, UM, YOU KNOW, AND I, I'VE BEEN THINKING A LOT ABOUT ESSAY TOMORROW, RIGHT? AND WHETHER OR NOT WE'VE BEEN FAITHFUL TO THE PLAN, RIGHT? UM, AND IF WE HAVE, WHETHER OR NOT WE'VE BEEN TOO FAITHFUL TO THE PLAN.
UM, AND, AND BY THAT I MEAN, YOU KNOW, WHEN WAS THIS CREATED? 2016.
THE, THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN WAS ADOPTED IN 2016.
AND SO IF YOU LOOK AT, AND, AND WHILE YOU WERE TALKING, I WAS LOOKING AT THE DIFFERENT PRIORITIES.
AND IT OCCURS TO ME THAT SOME OF THESE PRIORITIES DON'T MATCH UP WITH THE SURVEY RESULTS THAT WE RECEIVED RECENTLY FROM, FROM THE COMMUNITY WHERE HOMELESSNESS WAS NUMBER ONE.
RIGHT? I'LL TELL YOU, PRE COVID, AND WE HAD THIS CONVERSATION TODAY AT A TOWN HALL WITH MY, WITH MY CONSTITUENTS PRE COVID, EVERYBODY AGREES, RIGHT? NUMBER ONE WAS PLANNING AND INFRASTRUCTURE, RIGHT? BECAUSE THERE WAS, I MEAN, EVERY SINGLE CO COUNCIL PERSON, THE ONLY THING WE HEARD ABOUT WAS TRAFFIC, TRAFFIC, TRAFFIC AND THE GROWTH.
AND, YOU KNOW, THE, THE NATURE OF MY NEIGHBORHOODS ARE CHANGING WHEN WE GO OUT.
NOW, I, YOU KNOW, I, I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S TRUE FOR ALL MY COUNCIL MEMBERS, BUT I HAVE A FEELING IT, IT PROBABLY IS.
AND THAT IS, WE HEAR A LOT ABOUT HOMELESSNESS IN A WAY THAT WE'D NEVER HEARD ABOUT IT BEFORE, RIGHT? WE HEAR ABOUT SAFETY AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN A WAY WE'D NEVER HEARD ABOUT IT BEFORE.
AND I'M WONDERING WHETHER OR NOT, YOU KNOW, IT'S A, THIS IS A MOMENT FOR US TO GO BACK AND REEVALUATE WHETHER OR NOT THE PRIORITIES OF 2016 APPLY TO THE REAL PRIORITIES THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, THE PUBLIC WANTS US TO FOCUS ON TODAY.
AND THE REASON I MENTION THAT IS 'CAUSE I THINK THERE'S NO DEBATE, RIGHT? THAT 'CAUSE PLANET EARTH IS COMPLETELY DIFFERENT THAN IT WAS PRE COVID, RIGHT? AND, UH, EVERYTHING THAT WE DO, UM, THAT WE DID BACK IN 2016 HAS BEEN UPENDED, RIGHT? AND A WHOLE BUNCH OF PROBLEMS WERE REVEALED TO US JUST BY VIRTUE OF COVID STOPPING, YOU KNOW, THE, UH, THE SPIN OF THE EARTH, RIGHT? AND MAKING US REALLY TAKE A CLOSE LOOK AT WHAT WAS BROKEN AND WHAT'S WRONG.
AND SO, ERIC, YOU KNOW, I, I DON'T KNOW WHETHER OR NOT, AND, AND I'D LIKE TO HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS, WHETHER OR NOT THIS IS, THERE'S AN OFF RAMP FOR ESSAY 2020, SO NOT, I SAY 2020, SORRY, THE ESSAY TOMORROW WAS EVEN SAY 2020, RIGHT? AND, UH, I MEAN, AN OFF RAMP WHERE WE CAN REEVALUATE WHETHER OR NOT THE PRIORITIES THAT WE'RE PUSHING AND CHA, YOU KNOW, AND THE GOALS THAT WE'RE CHASING ARE THE RIGHT POST COVID GOALS THAT WE'RE CHASING.
AND, UM, YOU KNOW, I I, I WAS WRITING IT DOWN, YOU KNOW, ARE THERE, UH, WE'VE, WHETHER WE'VE WE'RE FACING NEW CHALLENGES THAT WE DIDN'T FACE BEFORE, RIGHT? WHETHER THERE'S NEW RESOURCE RESOURCES OUT THERE THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE BEFORE, WHETHER THERE'S NEW NEEDS THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE BEFORE, WHETHER THERE'S NEW PUBLIC EXPECTATIONS THAT WE DIDN'T FACE BEFORE, WHETHER THERE'S, UM, YOU KNOW, NEW SOCIETAL PRESSURES, NEW TECHNOLOGY AVAILABLE TO US, RIGHT? MM-HMM.
UM, AND SO I'M, UH, WHETHER OR NOT THE PUBLIC POLICY LANDSCAPE OUT THERE IS, HAS CHANGED IN A WAY THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, SHOULD LEAD US TO MAYBE AN ADJUSTMENT.
SO, I, I THINK YOU'RE PICKING UP WHAT I'M LAYING DOWN.
WHAT DO YOU, WHAT DO YOU THINK? WELL, COUNCILMAN, I THINK YOU, I THINK YOU RAISED A GOOD POINT.
I, I MEAN, UM, THE SA TOMORROW PLAN WAS A, UM, WAS AN ATTEMPT AS COUNCILMAN COURAGE WAS LAYING OUT TO HAVE THE COMMUNITY ENGAGED IN THOSE REGIONAL CENTERS.
YOU, YOU'LL RECALL, WE TALKED ABOUT USING THE REGIONAL CENTERS AS A GUIDE, AS ONE OF A COUPLE OF GUIDES DURING THE BOND PROGRAM IN FOCUSING INVESTMENTS.
BUT, UH, WHEN IT COMES TO DE DETERMINING WHERE IS THE NEED CITYWIDE, UM, WE WERE ABLE TO MAKE INVESTMENTS IN THOSE AREAS THAT WERE DONE.
BUT, BUT PROBABLY NOT AS MANY AS, UM, WE ORIGINALLY RECOMMENDED.
I, I THINK IT'S PROBABLY ALSO, I'VE HEARD THREE COUNCIL MEMBERS THIS AFTERNOON TALK ABOUT THE EDUCATING OR, OR MAKING SURE THAT THE PUBLIC UNDERSTANDS WHY WE'RE DOING, WE'RE GOING THROUGH THIS COUNCILMAN WHITE, THAT $1.4 MILLION IN CONSULTANT FOR, UM, THAT THOSE ARE, THOSE ARE DOLLARS THAT WE CUT DURING THE COVID YEARS.
'CAUSE WE JUST STOPPED DOING THIS STUFF.
SO WE'VE BEEN SLOWLY, UH, PUTTING THAT
[01:55:01]
BACK IN ORDER TO FINISH THE PLAN.YOU KNOW, THE HOMELESS STRATEGIC PLAN, THE SHIP, THE EVEN FIRE ACCREDITATION, UM, THE, UM, A C SS PLAN, UM, ALL THESE DEPARTMENTAL PLANS WE HAVE, THEY ALL FIT TOGETHER.
AND IT MAY BE WORTH, ONCE WE GET DONE WITH BUDGET, HAVING, UM, KIND OF A HIGHER LEVEL CONVERSATION ABOUT ENSURING THAT THEY DO FIT TOGETHER.
BECAUSE YOU'RE RIGHT, PRIORITIES HAVE CHANGED, BUT I DON'T THINK THAT, THAT, THAT WOULD REALLY, UM, CAUSED THE AIRPORT AREA OR BROOKS OR TEXAS A AND M NOT TO BE A REGIONAL CENTER OF HOUSING, EMPLOYMENT, TRANSPORTATION, AND INFRASTRUCTURE NEED.
UH, BUT CONNECTING THOSE DOTS MAY BE A WORTHWHILE CONVERSATION.
I, I THOUGHT I HAD IT HERE, UH, TWO WORK SESSIONS AGO.
I WROTE DOWN ON A PIECE OF PAPER ALL OF THE STRATEGIC PLANS THAT WE HAVE BY DEPARTMENT AND, AND, UM, I THINK IT'S WORTH KIND OF REVISITING HOW THEY'RE ALL MESHED BECAUSE THEY'RE GUIDES FOR THE THINGS THAT YOU GUYS DEAL WITH OR DEBATE OR DETERMINE FROM A POLICY STANDPOINT.
AND THEY'RE, AND THEY'RE THE SAME THINGS THAT WE'RE USING ON AN OPERATIONAL STANDPOINT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE DOING WHAT WE NEED TO DO.
SO LARGER CONVERSATION, BUT I THINK, I THINK IT ENCOMPASSES A LOT OF WHAT SEVERAL COUNCIL MEMBERS HAVE SAID.
I MEAN, THIS IS JUST, UH, AN OBSERVATION, RIGHT? THAT, UM, AS I WAS FLIPPING THROUGH THE PAGES AND JUST GLANCING OVER WHAT THE PLAN SAYS, YOU KNOW, THERE'S, THERE'S OBVIOUSLY THERE'S GOALS, THEN THERE'S INDICATORS AS TO WHETHER OR NOT WE'RE MEETING THOSE GOALS.
AND, YOU KNOW, I WONDER WHETHER OR NOT THOSE INDICATORS WOULD EVEN BE ON THE LIST IN 2023 MM-HMM.
RIGHT? UM, AND TO THE EXTENT THAT, YOU KNOW, HOMELESSNESS IS MENTIONED, I MEAN, WE MENTIONED DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN THERE.
WE'RE MENTIONING LITERACY, WE'RE MENTIONING HEALTH OUTCOMES.
IT'S PRACTICALLY SILENT, RIGHT? UM, ON THE ISSUE OF HOMELESSNESS.
UM, AND MAYBE, MAYBE IT'S OKAY.
MAYBE THAT'S, WE'RE, WE'RE OKAY WITH THAT, RIGHT? AND MAYBE WE'RE NOT, BUT I, I DO THINK IT'S, IT'S A HEALTHY EXERCISE TO GO THROUGH THAT P D C A CYCLE, RIGHT? AND, UM, AND SEE WHETHER OR NOT AN ADJUSTMENT MIGHT BE NECESSARY.
UM, YOU KNOW, THE OTHER, THE OTHER THING TOO IS, AND IF WE WERE, I ALSO THINK IT'D BE A HEALTHY EXERCISE MAYBE TO RECONVENE A GROUP OF COMMUNITY, YOU KNOW, UH, OPINION LEADERS AND, YOU KNOW, COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO ARE ORIGINALLY INVOLVED IN THIS, JUST TO CHECK WITH THEM AND SAYING, HEY, IS IS, UH, IS THE ESSAY TOMORROW PLAN STILL THE PLAN YOU GUYS WANT US TO FOLLOW? RIGHT? IS THIS STILL THE ROADMAP? ARE WE STILL ALL HEADING IN THE SAME DIRECTION? IT'S, IT'S OKAY TO, TO, YOU KNOW, CHANGE OUR MINDS AND MAKE ADJUSTMENTS.
AND SO, UM, I DON'T, I I DON'T KNOW HOW TO, HOW TO TAKE THE NEXT STEPS IN THIS CONVERSATION OTHER THAN JUST SORT OF MENTIONING IT OUT HERE, BUT IS SOMETHING LIKE THAT BUILT INTO WHAT YOUR DEPARTMENT'S DOING? SURE.
WHAT WE TALKED ABOUT WAS EVERY FIVE YEARS DOING AN EVALUATION TO DETERMINE ARE THE GOALS AND POLICIES BEING MET ARE, ARE, IS THERE AN EVALUATION THAT'S OCCURRING? WE PAUSED A LITTLE BIT OF THAT BECAUSE COVID REALLY DELAYED THE IMPLEMENTATION ULTIMATELY OF, OF, OF THE COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING.
AND WHAT WE REALLY WANTED TO DO WAS GET THROUGH A NUMBER OF THESE REGIONAL CENTER AND COMMUNITY PLANS BEFORE WE TRY TO TAKE THAT STEP BACK AND REEVALUATE.
BECAUSE I, I THINK FROM, FROM THE, THE BROADER SENSE, THE BASIC PREMISE OF S A M R WAS THE FACT THAT WE SAW THAT THERE WAS GONNA BE A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF GROWTH WITHIN BEXAR COUNTY, 1.1 MILLION PEOPLE IN BEXAR COUNTY ADDITIONAL BY THE YEAR 2040.
AND BASED ON THE NUMBERS THAT WE'RE SEEING, THAT IS, THAT IS STILL THE CASE.
AND SOME PROJECTIONS EVEN SHOW MAYBE EVEN MORE.
AND SO THE PLANNING EFFORTS THAT WERE UNDERTAKEN THROUGH ESSAY TOMORROW WERE SPECIFICALLY RELATED TO TRYING TO STICK TO THE NUTS AND BOLTS OF WHAT CITY PLANNING IS, WHICH IS ADDRESSING LAND USE, THE CONNECTION TO TRANSPORTATION, HOUSING, AND, AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
AND SO WE TRIED AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE TO ENSURE THAT THE PLAN KIND OF STAYED IN ITS OWN LANE, THAT WE WEREN'T TRYING TO CREATE A LAND USE PLAN, THAT THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT REALLY COULDN'T IMPLEMENT THAT IT'S REALLY THE JOB AND RESPONSIBILITY OF SOME OTHER FOLKS TO PARTICIPATE IN THAT PROCESS AND, AND TO LEAD THOSE EFFORTS.
UM, SECONDARILY, THERE'S ALSO THAT OBLIGATION ON THE CITY'S PART TO HAVE A FUTURE LAND USE MAP.
AND, AND TODAY THE CITY STILL DOESN'T HAVE A FUTURE LAND USE MAP IN TOTALITY.
AND IN ORDER FOR US TO, IN, UH, TO UTILIZE ZONING AS THE KEY METHOD OF, OF GROWTH MANAGEMENT, WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ACTUALLY HAVE THAT, THAT FINAL LAND USE MAP FOR THE COMMUNITY.
UM, I KNOW THE MAYOR WOULD PROBABLY LIKE TO GIVE SOME CLOSING REMARKS, UM, BUT I WILL ASK, UH, ERIC, UM, IN REGARDS TO THE, UM, CITY SERVICES THAT WOULD BE AVAILABLE THROUGH THE, UM, ENHANCED LIBRARY CARD, I KNOW YOU HAD MENTIONED THAT THERE ARE COUNTY, COUNTY RESIDENTS WHO HAVE SAN ANTONIO ADDRESSES.
IS THERE A WAY THAT WE COULD INDICATE WHETHER OR NOT SOMEONE IS A CITY OF SAN ANTONIO RESIDENT ON THE LIBRARY CARD? AND THEN HOW ARE WE CURRENTLY IDENTIFYING THAT IF SOMEONE PRESENTS
[02:00:01]
A DRIVER'S LICENSE, ARE WE THOROUGHLY READING THE ID CARD AND SEEING IF THEY HAVE A SAN ANTONIO ADDRESS, WHETHER OR NOT THEY'RE, ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT AT THE BRUSH SITES? MM-HMM.WE'LL, WE'LL DO SOME MORE THOUGHT ABOUT THAT, COUNCILMAN.
I, I THINK, YOU KNOW, UM, THERE'S PROBABLY A NUMBER OF DEPARTMENTS THAT NEED TO BE PART OF THAT CONVERSATION, BUT, UM, WE'LL DO THAT ONCE WE GET THROUGH, WE GET THROUGH BUDGET.
I'LL GO AHEAD AND CALL THE MEETING ADJOURNED AT FOUR OH FOUR.