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>> COURAGE: GOOD AFTERNOON, EVERYBODY. WELCOME TO MEETING OF THE TRANSPORTATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE MEETING TODAY.
IT'S ABOUT 1:34. WE'LL GO AHEAD AND BEGIN OUR MEETING.
COULD WE HAVE ROLL CALL, PLEASE.
>> CLERK: CHAIR, WE HAVE A QUORUM. >> COURAGE: THE FIRST ORDER OF BUSINESS IS APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM APRIL 14TH FOR THE LAST TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE MEETING. DID ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR ANY CHANGES TO THE MINUTES AND WOULD ANYONE LIKE TO MOVE THE APPROVAL.
>> MOVE TO APPROVE. >> SECOND. >> COURAGE: IT'S AND MOVED AND APPROVED FOR THE MINUTES OF APRIL 14TH. ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.
I MAKE THAT CORRECTION, APRIL 16TH. PARDON MY -- OKAY.
ANY OPPOSED? HEARING NONE, THE MINUTES OF APRIL 16TH HAVE BEEN APPROVED. WE HAVE TWO MEETING OBJECTIVES TODAY TO TALK ABOUT, AND THE FIRST -- BOTH OF THEM ARE BRIEFINGS WITH POSSIBLE ACTION.
AND MADAM CLERK, WOULD YOU GO AHEAD AND READ THE FIRST ITEM, NUMBER 2.
>> CLERK: ITEM NUMBER 2 IS A BRIEFING BY VIA METH TRANSIT ON THE ADVANCED
RAPID TRANSIT PROGRAM. >> COURAGE: ACTUALLY WE DO HAVE THREE SPEAKERS WHO DECIDED TO SPEAK ON ITEM 3 SO WE MIGHT AS WELL GO AHEAD AND HEAR THEM AT THIS TIME AND THEN WE'LL GO BACK TO ITEM 2. ANY OBJECTIONS FROM ANY OF THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS? OKAY. THANK YOU.
LET'S GO AHEAD AND BEGIN. JOEY POLLACK, AGAIN, ADDRESSING ITEM 3, AND
THAT'S A BRIEFING ON COMPLETE STREETS POLICY. >> GOOD AFTERNOON, CHAIRMAN COURAGE AND MEMBERS OF THE TRANSPORTATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE.
I'M EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF ACTIVATE THE SAN ANTONIO STREETS COALITION IS A DIVERSE GROUP OF LOCAL LEADERS AND NATIONAL COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS SUCH AS THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION, AARP, DISABILITY SA, BROOKS, WEST CARE FOUNDATION, AI SAN ANTONIO AND MORE.
ALL UNITED IN SUPPORT FOR AN UPDATED COMPLETE STREETS POLICY FOR ALL SAN ANTONIANS. COMPLETE STREETS IS NOT ABOUT ANY ONE PROJECT OR ELEMENTS OF THE PROJECTS. COMPLETE STREETS IS AN APPROACH FOR PLANNING, DESIGNING AND BUILDING STREETS THAT ENABLED SAFE ACCESS FOR ALL USERS INCLUDING PEDESTRIANS, BICYCLISTS, MOTORISTS AND TRANSIT RIDERS OF ALL AGES AND ABILITIES, ALSO EMPHASIZING THE NEEDS OF THOSE WHO HAVE EXPERIENCED SYSTEMIC UNDER INVESTMENTS OR THOSE WHO HAVE NEEDS NOT MET BY -- PEOPLE WHO DO NOT HAVE ACCESS TO VEHICLES AND BLACK AND NATIVE HISPANIC COMMUNITIES.
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF UPDATING OUR SAN ANTONIO COMPLETE STREETS POLICY IS AMISS.
THEY ARE ARTERIES OF OUR COMMUNITY. ENHANCING SAFETY, SPURRING ECONOMIC GROWTH AND PROMOTING HEALTHY LIFESTYLES.
IN A CITY AS VIBRANT AND DIVERSE AS SAN ANTONIO, IT'S CRUCIAL THAT OUR STREETS CATER TO EVERY RESIDENT'S NEED REGARDLESS OF AGE, ABILITY OR TRANSPORTATION MODE. THE COMPLETE POLICY WAS ADOPTED IN 2011 AND WAS A GOOD START FOR OUR CITY TO EMBRACING THE COMPLETE STREETS APPROACH.
OVER 12 YEARS LATER, WE ARE IN NEED OF AN UPDATED POLICY TO MEET CURRENT, NATIONAL AND LOCAL STANDARDS FOR WHAT A STRONG AND COMPLETE STREETS POLICY SHOULD INCLUDE. SUCH AS CRUCIAL ELEMENTS AROUND PRIORITIZING VULNERABLE ROAD USERS, BETTER COORDINATION AND ESTABLISHING A COMMUNITY PLAN. WE ARE EXCITED TO SEE THE CURRENT DRAFT WITH THE INCLUSION OF THESE ELEMENTS AND WITH STRONGER LOCAL EMPHASIS AREAS SUCH AS SUSTAIN ABILITY. WE FIRMLY SUPPORT THIS POLICY WHICH MEETS CURRENT NATIONAL STANDARDS. WE APPRECIATE THE PROFESSIONALISM AND DEDICATION OF THE CITY'S TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENTS WHICH HAS BEEN UNMATCHED THROUGHOUT THIS PROCESS. WE APPLAUD THE EFFORTS THIS TEAM HAS UNDERTAKEN FROM POLICY DEVELOPMENT TO EXTENSIVE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
THIS IS MORE THAN A POLICY UPDATE. IT'S A COMMITMENT TO MORE SAFER AND MORE INCLUSIVE VIBRANT SAN ANTONIO. WE WOULD LIKE TO EXPRESS APPRECIATION. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND CONSIDERATION.
>> COURAGE: THANK YOU, MR. POLL. COUNCILWOMAN, DID YOU HAVE A QUESTION?
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NEXT SPEAKER IS LAURIE DAY. >> HELLO, I'M LAURIE DAY. I'M THE PROGRAM DIRECTOR FOR DISABILITY SA. I THANK YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK IN SUPPORT OF THE COMPLETE STREETS POLICY. DISABILITY SA WORKS TO ENGAGE PEOPLE WITH DISABILITY THROUGH BUILDING CONNECTIONS, EXCHANGING INFORMATION AND STRAIGHTENING OUR DISABILITY COMMUNITY AT THE PLANNING TABLE. AS THE CITY EGGS PROSECUTORS WAYS TO ENHANCE OUR POLICY TO BENEFIT ALL USERS, WE ARE DELIGHTED TO HAVE PARTICIPATED IN THIS POLICY.
THE POLICY INCLUDE DELIBERATE EFFORTS TO CONSIDER THE NEEDS OF DISABLED AND FOCUSING ON YOUTH, SAFETY AND HEALTH. WE COMMEND THE TEAM FOR NOT ONLY LISTENING TO OUR FEEDBACK BUT ALSO FOR INIMPLEMENTING STRATEGIES AND INCORPORATING DISABILITY FRIENDLY LANGUAGE. DISABILITY SA OFFICIALLY SUPPORTS THE DOCUMENT PRESENTED TODAY. OUR INVOLVEMENT IN THE DISCUSSION HAS SHOWN US SIGNIFICANT EFFORTS PUT IN GATHERING COMMUNITY FEEDBACK AND REEVALUATING HOW OUR STREETS AND SIDEWALKS CAN PROMOTE INCLUSIVE AND SAFE TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS BEYOND JUST MOTOR VEHICLE OPERATORS IN OUR COMMUNITY.
WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO PROCEED WITH A DECISIVE VOTE LATER THIS SUMMER.
WE'VE ALL INVESTED OUR TIME AND EXPERIENCE MAKING THIS A POLICY OUR CITY CAN BE PROUD
OF. >> COURAGE: THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER ISHMAEL
HERRERA. >> GOOD AFTERNOON. THANK YOU FOR GIVING US THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TO YOU TODAY. MY NAME IS ISHMAEL HERRERA WITH AARP TEXAS, PART OF THE COMPLETE STREETS COALITION AND THE COMPLETE STREETS STAKEHOLDER GROUP. AARP SUPPORTED THE ORIGINAL ORDINANCE IN 2011 AND IS NOW SUPPORTING A STRONGER, MORE COMPREHENSIVE POLICY TO ADDRESS THE TRANSPORTATION NEEDS OF SAN ANTONIANS OF ALL AGES. I'M HERE TO ENCOURAGE YOU TO THINK OF THE MORE THAN 400,000 OLDER ADULTS IN SAN ANTONIO WHEN CONSIDERING THIS POLICY. AS OUR COUNTRY AND OUR COMMUNITY'S POPULATION AGES, IT'S CRUCIAL TO ADDRESS THE UNIQUE TRANSPORTATION NEEDS OF OLDER ADULTS.
OLDER ADULTS KNOW THE PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES SUCH AS WALKING, BIKING CAN IMPROVE THEIR MENTAL AND PHYSICAL HEALTH. NEW RESEARCH KEEPS ADDING TO THE LIST OF BENEFITS. PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IMPROVES SLEEP, REDUCES ANXIETY AND BLOOD PRESSURE. IT REDUCES THE RISK OF DEMENTIA, HEART DISEASE, STROKE, TYPE 2 DIABETES AND ABLE TO DIFFERENT TYPES OF CANCER.
IT ALSO IMPROVES BONE HEALTH AND BALANCE AND COORDINATION.
BUILDING INFRASTRUCTURE WITH ALTERNATIVE TRANSPORTATION IN MIND LIKE WALKING, BIKE AND TRANSIT, CREATES A SAFE SPACE FOR OLDER ADULTS AND YOUNG PEDESTRIANS.
SAFE STREETS FOR A PERSON IN A WHEELCHAIR OR WALKER ARE ALSO SAFE FOR A PARENT WITH STROLLER. COMPLETE STREETS ALSO SUPPORTS AGING IN PLACE.
AARP AND SURVEY FOUND MOST OLDER ADULTS WANT TO AGE IN PLACE IN THEIR HOMES AND COMMUNITIES. SAFE AND ACCESSIBLE STREETS SUPPORT THEIR INDEPENDENCE AND THEIR ACCESS TO ESSENTIAL SERVICES. FOR MANY OLDER ADULTS WALKING OPENS OPPORTUNITIES FOR SOCIALIZATION AND INTERACT WITH OTHERS, THUS HELPING THEM AVOID THE NEGATIVE IMPACT OF SEVERE SOCIAL ISOLATION.
HOWEVER, TOO MANY COMMUNITIES ARE ONLY -- ONLY ACCESSIBLE VIA CAR LEAVING MANY OLDER ADULTS UNABLE TO ACCESS THE RESOURCES THEY NEED INCLUDING HEALTH CARE AND GROCERIES. A STRONG, IMPLEMENTAL COMPLETE STREETS POLICY SUPPORTS OLDER ADULTS AND THEIR FAMILY'S ABILITY TO BE PHYSICALLY ACTIVE AND ACCESS GROSS RAY STORES, HEALTH CARE FACILITIES AND SOCIAL AND RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES.
LASTLY, STREET DESIGN THAT KEEPS PEDESTRIANS AND CYCLISTS AND OTHERS IN MIND COULD SAVE LIVES. OLDER ADULTS ARE OVER REPRESENTED IN PEDESTRIAN FATALITIES CAUSED BY VEHICLES. I HOPE YOU WILL KEEP OLDER
ADULTS IN MIND WHEN CONSIDERING YOUR POLICIES. >> COURAGE: THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I'M GOING TO ASK THE COUNCIL COMMITTEE MEMBERS, SINCE WE'VE JUST HEARD THREE PEOPLE SPEAK ABOUT ITEM 3 AND IT IS ON OUR AGENDA, I'M GOING TO SWITCH AROUND AND LET'S ADDRESS ITEM 3 FIRST AND THEN I'LL ASK OUR FRIENDS FROM VIA TO JUST STAND BY. SO CAT, WILL YOU GO AHEAD
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AND LEAD US IN A PRESENTATION. WOULD YOU READ THE ITEMNUMBER, PLEASE. >> CLERK: A BELIEVING ON THE 2011 COMPLETE STREETS
POLICY UPDATE. >> COURAGE: THANK YOU. >> GOOD AFTERNOON, COUNCIL.
CAT HERNANDEZ, DIRECTOR FOR OUR CITY'S TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT AND WE'RE EXCITED TO SHARE OUR PROGRESS ON THE UPDATE FOR OUR COMPLETE STREETS POLICY.
SO WHAT WE'LL COVER IS AN OVERVIEW OF WHAT A COMPLETE STREETS APPROACH IS TO OUR INFRASTRUCTURE. WHY DO WE HAVE THE NEED FOR THE UPDATE TO THE POLICY AND WHAT ARE WE IMPROVING WITH OUR UPDATES? HOW WAS THIS DRIVEN WITH STAKEHOLDER INPUT FROM OUR COMMUNITY. THE POLICIES IS ABOUT LOOKING THROUGH A LENS OF MAKING STREETS SAFER AND MORE ACCESSIBLE AND THAT ACCOMMODATES NEEDS FOR MORE MODES OF TRAVEL. NOT ALL STREETS WILL HAVE EVERY ELEMENT. IT DEPENDS ON CONTEXT. THINK OF IT AS A NETWORK WHERE IF YOU START OFF IN A NEIGHBORHOOD, MAYBE YOU DON'T HAVE SIDEWALKS BECAUSE MAYBE IT'S MORE RURAL. AS YOU GET TO THE NEXT STREET, MAYBE IT HAS SIDEWALKS, MAYBE NEXT STREET HAS SIDEWALKS AND STREET LIGHTS.
AS YOU PROCEED, MORE AND MORE ELEMENTS OF THAT COMPLETE STREETS IS ADDED TO THE INFRASTRUCTURE SO NOW YOU HAVE THE COMPLETE STREETS NETWORK.
THESE ARE A COUPLE OF EXAMPLES THAT PROVIDE THAT INFRASTRUCTURE USING THE LENS OF THE COMPLETE STREETS POLICY. ON THE TOP LEFT WE HAVE A BROOKS PLAZA WHERE IT DOES SHOW A SHARED USE PATH ALONG THE VIA BUS LINE.
WE HAVE A NEW WAY HAVE A STREET, OTHER MULTIPLE MODES OF USE ALONG NEW WAY HAVE A STREET. SANTA ROSA STREET, THIS SHOWS THE DESIGN WHERE IT INCORPORATES A PARKING PROTECTED BIKE LANE ALONG WITH BUFFER AREAS SO THE BIKISTS ARE PROTECTED BETWEEN THE TRAVEL LANES, A PARKING LANE AND THE SIDEWALKS. AND, OF COURSE, CALLAGHAN ROAD WHICH WAS ALSO DEVELOPED THROUGH THE COMPLETE STREET LENS WHERE ON ONE SIDE OF THE ROAD IT HAS A SHARED USE PATH. SO OUR 20211 COMPLETE STREETS POLICY WAS ADOPTED AS A COMPONENT OF THE CITY'S MASTER PLAN. AT THAT TIME IT INCLUDED FIVE COMPONENTS OF THE PLAN THAT ACTUALLY FITS AND WAS AWARDED A GOLD MEDAL THERE CITY HEALTH. CITY HEALTH IS AN ORGANIZATION THAT AWARDS MEDALS THROUGH THE QUALITY OF LIFE AND THESE FIVE COMPONENTS MET THOSE STANDARDS SO WAS AWARDED THAT GOLD MEDAL. AS WE'VE DONE OUR RESEARCH TO DETERMINE WHY THE NEED FOR UPDATE, AS IT WAS BACK IN 2011, SMART GROWTH AMERICA LOOKED AT A LOT OF POLICY FRAMEWORKS DONE THROUGHOUT THE NATION.
AND SOME OF THESE ELEMENTS WERE MISSING IN OUR 2011 WHICH MEANT OUR GOLD MEDAL FELL OFF THE RADAR. WE NEED TO UPDATE IT TO GET TO THAT GOLD STANDARD AS WELL. AS WE ARE IMPROVING OUR POLICY, WE IDENTIFIED WHAT ARE THE NEEDS THAT WE NEED TO INCLUDE, WHAT ARE P COMPONENTS WE NEED TO INCLUDE IN THE POLICY. IT INCLUDES PERFORMANCE MEASURES, COORDINATION WITH THE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES, DESIGN UPDATES, HOW DO YOU CHOOSE WHAT THOSE PROJECTS ARE THAT ARE GOING TO GET FUNDED AND ALSO LOOKS AT PRIORITIZING THROUGH THE LENS OF EQUITY. IN ORDER TO UPDATE THE POLICY, WE MADE SURE THAT OUR COMMITTEE WAS INCLUSIVE INCLUDING THE DEPARTMENTS AND ORGANIZATIONS THAT ORIGINALLY WERE ON THE STAKEHOLDER COMMITTEE BACK IN 2011.
SO THIS SLIDE HAS A NUMBER OF DEPARTMENTS THAT WERE INVOLVED IN THAT COMPLETE STREETS POLICY OF OUTSIDE ORGANIZATIONS THAT WERE A PART OF THIS PROCESS TOO AND HAD A SEAT AT THE STAKEHOLDER COMMITTEE TABLE. AS YOU HEARD TODAY, THERE WAS A COUPLE OF THEM THAT TESTIFIED TO THAT. THE STAKEHOLDERS MET THREE TIMES TO REVIEW THE DOCUMENT AND PROVIDE THEIR INPUT. ONCE IN JANUARY, ONCE IN FEBRUARY AND ONCE IN MARCH. AND WE WERE -- WE ALSO HAD THIS ON SA SPEAK UP AS WELL.
THE PROPOSED SECTIONS IN THE POLICY THAT THE STAKEHOLDER TACKLED INCLUDED TEN AREAS.
VISION AND INTENT INTEREST CREATING AN EQUITABLE NETWORK AND COMMITMENT TO PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE. FOCUSING ON DIVERSE USERS INCLUDED INVESTING IN UNDER SERVED COMMUNITIES, SERVING MOST VULNERABLE ROAD USERS AND ADDRESSING INEQUITIES.
JURISDICTION MEANS WE HAVE THAT COLLABORATION WITH DEPARTMENTS, OTHER ORGANIZATIONS AND UPDATE THE POLICIES AND CODE TO ALIGN WITH THIS POLICY.
WE HAVE ALSO IDENTIFIED A TECHNICAL REVIEW TASK FORCE TO BE FORMED IN ORDER TO LEAD THE COORDINATION AND IMPLEMENTATION, AS WELL AS A STANDING COMMITTEE TO ENSURE
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OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY. ALL PROJECTS AND PHASES MEANS USING IT TO INFORM DECISION-MAKING THAT IS -- THAT INCLUDES A FORMALIZED REVIEW PROCESS WITH A CHECKLIST. DESIGN AGAIN IS ABOUT USE TECHNICAL BEST AND LATEST DESIGN STANDARDS TO MAXIMIZE FLEXIBILITY AND INNOVATION.LAND USE CONTEXT AND SENSITIVITY MEANS NOT LOOKING AT IT AS A ONE SIZE FITS ALL APPROACH. YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU COMPLEMENT YOUR LAND USE POLICIES AND ZONING ORDINANCES WITH THE TYPES OF TRANSIT THAT YOU WANT.
IMPLEMENTATION STEPS MEANS CREATING THAT PROCESS AND CHECKLIST TO ENSURE IMPLEMENTATION IS DONE WITH THAT TECHNICAL REVIEW TASK FORCE MADE OF THE MULTIPLE STAKEHOLDERS. PERFORMANCE MEASURES ALLOW US TO TRACK TO SEE HOW WE ARE MOVING THAT NEEDLE AS WELL AS PROVIDING AN ANNUAL REPORT ON OUR PROGRESS.
PROJECT SELECTION CRITERIA, CRITERIA THAT PRIORITIZES THE PROJECTS THAT LOOK AT CONNECTIVITY AND NUMBER OF CRASHES. AND LASTLY MAKING SURE WE HAVE CLEAR AND ACCOUNTABLE EXCEPTIONS OR EXCEPTIONS THAT IDENTIFY -- THAT WERE IDENTIFIED IN ORDER THAT WE HAVE THAT REVIEW PROCESS AND IT'S TRANSPARENT.
SO OUR OUTREACH FOR THIS INCLUDED, AGAIN AS I MENTIONED, THE SA SPEAK UP PAGE WHERE WE INCLUDED THE POLICY DRAFT SO PEOPLE COULD WATCH IT LIVE AS THE STAKEHOLDERS WERE PROVIDING INPUT. THERE WAS ALSO A SURVEY THAT WAS ONLINE ASKING PEOPLE FOR INPUT AND THEIR INPUT ON UPDATING THAT POLICY.
AS WELL AS RECEIVING COMMENTS ON THE DRAFT POLICY SINCE IT WAS SHARED ONLINE.
WE ALSO RECEIVED LETTERS OF SUPPORT -- OR LETTER OF SUPPORT FROM THE COMPLETE STREETS COALITION WHICH INCLUDES A NUMBER OF ORGANIZATION.
WE ALSO HAD A LOT OF SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS AND FLYERS. WE HAD MANY OUTREACH EVENTS IN ORDER TO MAKE SURE WE WERE PROVIDING INFORMATION TO OUR COMMUNITY AND RESIDENTS THAT WANTED TO HEAR ABOUT THE COMPLETE STREETS APPROACH.
WE INITIALLY STARTED WITH AN A ARP MEMBER MEETING BACK IN OCTOBER.
WE HAD A TOWN HALL IN DECEMBER WITH 43 ATTENDEES. WE HAD A VIRTUAL PUBLIC MEETING IN APRIL WITH 39 ATTENDEES. WE ALSO ASCENDED SICK LOW VIA. WE'VE ALSO DONE SOME POP-UP EVENTS AND TABLING OPPORTUNITIES IN APRIL. ANETHENE WE ALSO PARTICIPATED IN THE SAFE KIDS DAY IN MAY. LASTLY, WE HAD A TOWN HALL WITH A STATE OF THE BIKE COMMUNITY LAST WEEK WHERE WE HAD 75 ATTENDEES WHERE WE PRESENTED OUR DOCUMENT.
OUR ADOPTION PROCESS IS SHOWN HERE. WE WENT TO PLANNING COMMISSION TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE LAST WEEK BACK ON MAY 13TH AND THEY RECOMMENDED APPROVAL AS AMENDED. AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, THE COMPLETE STREETS POLICY WHEN IT WAS ADOPTED IN 2011 WAS ADOPTED AS A COMPONENT OF THE CITY'S MASTER PLAN. WE WILL BE PRESENTING THIS TO PLANNING COMMISSION ON JUNE 12 OF THIS FOR THEIR CONSIDERATION AND THAT WILL BE FORMED TO CITY COUNCIL FOR CONSIDERATION IN AUGUST. OUR COMPLETE STREETS POLICIES INCLUDES TWO PHASES. PHASE ONE IS ABOUT THE POLICY UPDATE.
OPENING TO GET TO COUNCIL BY AUGUST FOR THAT UPDATE TO THE CITY'S MASTER PLAN.
IN FALL AND IN 2025 WE WILL START THAT IMPLEMENTATION EFFORT WITH THE CREATION OF THE TECHNICAL REVIEW TASK FORCE. IN ORDER TO START CHECKING ON OF THE CHECKLIST THAT IS ALSO INCORPORATED INTO THIS POLICY DOCUMENT.
WE WILL ALSO HAVE A REVIEW OF THE UDC TO MAKE SURE WE ARE ALIGNING SOME OF OUR STANDARDS THAT APPLY TO DEVELOPMENT TO MAKE SURE THEY ARE ALIGNED WITH COMPLETE STREETS. AGAIN, FOCUSING ON THAT IMPLEMENTATION TO MAKE SURE WE ARE MOVING THROUGH THAT IMPLEMENTATION PLAN PROPOSED IN THE DOCUMENT.
WITH THAT, I'LL TAKE ANY QUESTIONS. >> COURAGE: THANK YOU.
I'LL OPEN IT UP FOR ANY QUESTIONS BY ANY MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE.
I THINK THE COUNCILWOMAN HAD ASKED EARLIER AND I'LL MAKE SURE I GET TO EVERYBODY.
>> HAVRDA: THANK YOU, CHAIR. THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION. I ALSO WANT TO THANK THE INDIVIDUALS THAT CAME TO SPEAK TODAY. I THINK IT'S EXCITING THAT AARP AND DISABILITY SA, ALL ORGANIZATIONS I VERY MUCH RESPECT ARE IN SUPPORT OF THIS.
I'M GOING TO GET YOU INVOLVED IN THE RAIL CONVERSATION PRETTY QUICK, BUT I ALSO WANT TO GIVE A SHUT-OUT TO A LOT OF THE OTHER ORGANIZATIONS PEOPLE MIGHT NOT HAD THOUGHT ABOUT. OUR NPO, WHICH I CHAIR, I'M GRATEFUL WE'RE SUPPORTING THAT. SAWS, TXDOT, ULI REAL ESTATE COUNCIL, TEXAS NATURE CONSERVANCY, ALL ARE IMPACTFUL ORGANIZATIONS AND I'M THANKFUL THEY ARE SUPPORTIVE. I'M GOING TO STATE WHAT YOU HAVE STATED, IT'S LONG PAST TIME WE'RE REEVALUATING COMPLETE STREETS POLICY. A LOT CAN CHANGE IN 13
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YEARS. A LOT IN THIS CITY CAN CHANGE IN SIX MONTHS TO A YEAR WITH ALL OUR GROWTH SO OUR TRANSPORTATION POLICY SHOULD KEEP UP WITH THE CHANGES AND I THANK YOU FOR SPEARHEADING THIS. IT'S ESPECIALLY TRUE WHEN TALKING ABOUT ALL THE RAPID GROWTH IN OUR CITY. A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS.I THINK SLIDE 6, I'M CURIOUS IF YOU CAN TELL US WHAT ARE THE POLICY FRAMEWORK -- YOU MENTIONED SOME OF THESE WERE ALREADY THERE, WHAT IS NEW ON THIS?
>> SLIDE 7 -- SLIDE 6 IS ACTUALLY SMART GROWTH AMERICA'S REVIEW AND FRAMEWORK THE CHECKLIST THEY BELIEVE ARE GOOD, SUCCESSFUL POLICIES.
OUT OF THAT WE DETERMINED THAT SOME OF THOSE THINGS IN OUR 2011 POLICY WE ALREADY HAVE AND WE HAVE ADDRESSED, WE JUST NEED TO MAKE THEM A LITTLE MORE ROBUST AND THAT'S THOSE FIVE THINGS OUR CURRENT POLICY CONTAINS. THE NEEDS IDENTIFIED ON THIS SLIDE WERE THE COMPONENTS MISSING FROM OUR 2011 POLICY.
THAT WAY WE MAKE SURE WE ARE ALIGNED WITH SMART GROWTH AND CITY REVIEW OF COMPLETE
STREETS POLICY. >> HAVRDA: CAN YOU TALK ABOUT SPECIFICALLY HOW THIS POLICY IS GOING TO INCORPORATE THE GROWTH THAT'S HAPPENING? HOW IS IT GOING TO BE FLEXIBLE ENOUGH TO TAKE ALL THE GROWTH INTO
CONSIDERATION? >> THERE'S TWO COMPONENTS, ONE IS THE INTERNAL COMPONENT WHEREAS PUBLIC WORKS DOES THEIR INFRASTRUCTURE POLICY, THEY LOOK AT IT THROUGH A LENS TO DETERMINE WHAT ARE THE COMPONENTS THAT NEED TO BE ADDED TO INFRASTRUCTURE AS WE ARE REBUILDING, RENOVATING OR MAINTAINING SOME OF OUR ROADS OR SIDEWALKS. THE SECOND IS THE PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT SIDE. THE PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT SIDE FOLLOWS THE RULES AND CODES AND STANDARDS IN THE UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT CODE. AND IN THAT UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT CODE UNDER ARTICLE 5 IS STREET STANDARDS.
WE WANT TO MAKE SURE IN PHASE 2 WE ARE LOOKING AT ARTICLE 5 AND MAKING SURE WHAT IS CURRENTLY ON THE BOOKS IS ALIGNED WITH POLICY.
IS IT IMPLEMENTING WHAT THIS POLICY IS ASKING FOR AND WHERE DO WE NEED TO MAKE THOSE TWEAKS. WITH PHASE 2 WITH THE TASK FORCE AND STAKEHOLDER INPUT, WE RADIO ALL THE STANDARDS, PACKAGE THEM UP, PRETTY RED BOW AND COMMIT THEM THROUGH
THE NORMAL AMENDMENT CYCLE. >> HAVRDA: WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT TRANSIT ORIENTED GOALS. HOW DO THESE TWO POLICIES OR PLANS DOVE-TAIL?
>> ACTUALLY WHEN I WAS TALKING ABOUT LAND USE CONTEXT AND SENSITIVITY, THAT IS THE LENS RELATED TO TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT.
THE POLICY ACTUALLY HAS REFERENCE TO MAKE SURE WE ARE KEEPING THAT AS A GOAL AS WELL IN MAKING SURE WHEN WE ARE LOOKING AT COMPLETE STREETS WE ARE MAKING SURE
WE'RE ALEANING WITH MASS TRANSIT NEEDS. >> HAVRDA: THANKS YOU.
THE LAST THING, HOW ARE YOU GOING TO DECIDE WHICH STREET COMES FIRST.
WHAT'S THE CRITERIA? >> THAT'S THE PROJECT SELECTION CRITERIA.
IN PHASE 2 WE'LL LOOK AT WHAT IS THAT CRITERIA AND DEVELOP IT THROUGH THAT INPUT WITH THE STAKEHOLDER AND THAT TECHNICAL REVIEW TASK FORCE.
AGAIN, WHAT WE'VE DONE SIMILARLY WITH THE BUDGET PROCESS IS LOOKING AT IT THROUGH THE EQUITY LENS AND PRIORITIZING THOSE PROJECTS FOR FUNDING.
>> HAVRDA: IS THERE GOING TO BE ANY PUBLIC INPUT ON THIS?
>> YES, THERE IS. ABSOLUTELY. >> HAVRDA: GREAT.
THANK YOU. THOSE ARE MY QUESTIONS. I JUST HAVE A STATEMENT REAL QUICK. I THINK OUR SPEAKERS EACH MENTIONED IT TODAY, I KNOW JOEY DID, BUT THE FACT THIS CITY IS LOOKING AT THIS, THAT WE'RE FOCUSED ON IT.
AS COUNCILMEMBERS, I THINK WE WOULD ALSO LIKE TO KNOW IF THERE IS ANY CONFLICTING POLICIES IN OTHER AREAS THAT COULD SUPPORT YOU OR IF THERE'S ANY GAPS LET US KNOW. I WAS IN HOUSTON LAST WEEK AND THEIR MAYOR SPOKE AND HE --T HE TORE UP A $2 MILLION BIKE AND PEDESTRIAN PROJECT. I'M SURE YOU KNOW ABOUT THAT, BECAUSE HE DIDN'T LIKE IT AND IT WAS NOT THAT OLD. IT WAS SUCH A WASTE AND SO DISCOURAGING TO HEAR THAT. MY FIRST THOUGHT IN MY HEAD THAT WOULD NEVER HAPPEN IN SAN ANTONIO. BUT IT COULD HAPPEN HERE AND THANKFULLY WE HAVE LEADERSHIP THROUGHOUT THE CITY THAT DOESN'T WANT THAT TO HAPPEN AND WE HAVE ADVOCACY GROUPS AND CITY STAFF. I'M GRAD IT'S NOT HAPPENING
HERE. THANK YOU, CHAIR. >> COURAGE: THANK YOU,
COUNCILWOMAN. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
I THINK THIS IS REALLY EXCITING AND ALSO THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO CAME TO SPEAK. I THINK THIS IS REALLY EXCITING TO SEE -- SEE THIS IMPLEMENTED OR TO SEE THIS PROCESS PLAY OUT AND THE UPDATE OF THE COMPLETE STREETS PLAN. I'M SORRY, I'M -- I'M NOT ALL HERE RIGHT NOW.
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I'D LIKE TO GO TO SLIDE 4. WHAT I WAS GOING TO SAY WHEN I LOST MY TRAIN OF THOUGHT IS THAT SOMETIMES I WISH THAT THE PEOPLE WHO ARE PLANNING OUR CITY DECADES AGO WERE KEEPING THINGS LIKE THIS IN MIND AND THAT CLEARLY IS NOT THE CASE SO WE'RE HAVING TO DO A LOT OF CATCH-UP WORK AND HAVING TO IMPROVE, REALLY CHANGE AND REDESIGN SO MANY OF OUR CITY STREETS. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT MAKES THE PICTURE ON THE BOTTOM LEFT LOOK SO APPEALING IS LARGELY THE LANDSCAPING.AND SO I'M THINKING ABOUT PARTS OF TOWN LIKE IN MY DISTRICT ON THE EAST SIDE WHERE WHEN WE GET STREET DESIGN -- WHEN WE GET NEW STREET DESIGNS AND RECONSTRUCTION AND REORIENT THEM, SOMETIMES THAT'S THE PIECE MISSING.
WE ADD BULB-OUTS AND CONCRETE BARRIERS AND IT'S JUST CONCRETE ON TOP OF CONCRETE AND IT SORT OF EXACERBATES THE URBAN HEAT ISLAND EFFECT OR DOES NOTHING TO MITIGATE THE HARMFUL EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND HEAT ISLANDS.
WHAT I WOULD HOPE IS THAT WE'RE BEING EQUITABLE IN NOT ONLY THE QUANTITY OF THE WORK THAT'S TAKING PLACE, BECAUSE IT'S IMPORTANT THAT EVERY AREA OF THE DISTRICT -- OF THE CITY THAT HAS HIGH NEED RECEIVES THEIR FAIR SHARE OF IMPROVEMENTS, IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT THAT THE QUALITY IS EQUITABLE AS WELL.
AND SO WE DON'T DO LESS IN THE EAST, SOUTH OR WEST SIDE JUST BECAUSE IT'S HISTORICALLY GOTTEN LESS. WE WANT TO GET THE MOST OUT OF EVERY SINGLE PROJECT.
I THINK THAT'S GOING TO BE VERY IMPORTANT. I DO HAVE A QUESTION JUST ABOUT THE FLOW OF THINGS BECAUSE THE NEXT STEP IS GOING TO BE GOING TO THE
PLANNING COMMISSION. >> THAT'S CORRECT, YES. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: SO WHAT I'M WONDERING IS WOULD A MOTION TO SEND THIS TO AN A SESSION PENDING APPROVAL OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION BE APPROPRIATE FOR, SAY, JUNE 20TH?
ATTORNEY'S OFFICE. >> COURAGE: COULD YOU REPEAT THAT.
>> YOU ARE TRYING TO CHANGE THE TIMING OF WHAT WE'RE DOING, YOU WANT IT TO HAPPEN
SOONER, IS THAT THE QUESTION? >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: YES.
>> I THINK THAT BECAUSE OF WHEN PLANNING COMMISSION HAPPENS AND WHEN THE LAST COUNCIL MEETING HAPPENS, I DON'T THINK THERE'S ENOUGH TIME TO PULL IT OFF.
THAT'S THE ISSUE. TECHNICALLY WE POST THE -- BY THE TIME WE FORGOT WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN AT PLANNING COMMISSION, THE LAST AGENDA OF THE YEAR WILL HAVE BEEN POSTED. I THINK THAT'S WHAT YOU ARTICULATED.
>> THERE'S PUBLICATION REQUIREMENT IN THE "EXPRESS NEWS" BECAUSE IT'S A COMPONENT OF THE MASTER PLAN. HAVE TO MAKE SURE WE KEEP
THAT TIME LINE. >> WE CAN DOUBLE-CHECK TO SEE BUT THAT'S THE REASON
FOR THE AUGUST. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: A A MOTION IS NECESSARY OR IF
PLANNING COMMISSION WILL SEND IT -- >> IT WILL ALSO INCLUDE THE TIME LINE, BUT THE RECOMMENDATION IS WHETHER OR NOT THEY APPROVE OR DENY.
THEN OUR SCHEDULE WILL BE GOING TO AUGUST 1ST. THEY DON'T HAVE TO RECOMMEND APPROVAL THAT IT MOVE FORWARD, WE JUST NEED A RECOMMENDATION FROM THEM.
>> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: DO WE NEED TO MAKE A MOTION TO SEND IT TO A SESSION?
ACTION. >> I THINK WE'RE ON THAT PATH.
I DON'T KNOW THAT YOU NECESSARILY NEED A MOTION TODAY.
>> HOW ABOUT IF YOU GIVE US A MOTION TODAY BASED ON PLANNING COMMISSION APPROVAL THAT WE HEAD TO A SESSION IN AUGUST. DOES THAT SOUND GOOD?
>> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: SO MOVED. >> COURAGE: WE HAVE A MOTION AND SECOND TO MAKE SURE THIS MOVES TO COUNCIL IN AUGUST AFTER IT GOES
THROUGH PLANNING SESSION. ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT? >>
>> COURAGE: WE'LL GET TO IT. ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.
BUT WE STILL CAN HAVE OTHER QUESTIONS AND OTHER DISCUSSIONS.
>> COURAGE: WE'LL HOLD OFF ON A VOTE, BUT WE HAVE A MOTION PENDING.
DO YOU HAVE ANY FURTHER COMMENTS? >> NO.
>> COURAGE: BOTH COUNCIL WOMEN HAVE ASKED -- >> GAVITO: THANKS FOR THIS PRESENTATION AND ALSO THANK YOU ACTIVATE SA AND AARP FOR Y'ALL'S STRONG SUPPORT.
I REALLY WANT TO THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME PUTTING INTO THIS.
IN THE ADOPTED COMPLETE STREETS POLICY, WE HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING THAT COMPLETE STREETS SHOULD BE ACCOMMODATING ALL USERS OF THE STREETS WHETHER THEY ARE DRIVING, WALKING, BIKING AND REGARDLESS OF AGE OR DISABILITY.
[00:30:01]
I CAN THINK OF A FEW AREAS IN 7 WHERE COMPLETE STREETS MAKE SENSE AND WOULD HELP MOBILIZE SMALL BUSINESSES AND ACCESS TO AMENITIES. A FEW YEARS AGO CINCINNATI ROAD NEAR ST. MARY'S UNIVERSITY WAS PART OF A PILOT INITIATIVE CALLED SHARE THE STREET. THE PILOT WAS MET WITH A LOT OF SUPPORT FROM THE NEIGHBORS AND THE BIKING COMMUNITY BECAUSE THEY BASICALLY HAD A LOCKED-OFF STREET TO RIDE IN. -- BLOCKED-OFF STREET. I RAN IT.WHAT'S THIS AND STUFF. IT'S NOT EVERY DAY YOU GET TO RUN DOWN THE MIDDLE OF CINCINNATI.
BIKERS RIGHT AWAY AND SHARING THE STREET. WE ALSO HEARD CONCERNS ABOUT THE SPEED AT WHICH VEHICLES ARE TRAVELING IN THE RESIDENTIAL AREAS.
SO SINCE THE SHARE THE STREET PILOT, HOW HAVE BEST PRACTICES FROM THAT PILOT CHANGEED SOME OF THE COMPLETE STREETS POLICY? DID WE LEARN ANYTHING FROM
THAT? >> SO IT HAPPENED RIGHT BEFORE I GOT THERE, BUT YES.
SO A LOT OF WHAT WE HEARD IS ACTUALLY GOING TO BE INCORPORATED IN BOTH THIS POLICY UPDATE AS WELL AS OUR BIKE NETWORK PLAN BECAUSE THAT'S PART OF THE FEEDBACK.
FOR EXAMPLE, AT THE TOWN HALL LAST WEEK, WE HAD INPUT FROM SOME OF THE ATTENDEES ABOUT WHAT YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT, THE LACK OF RESPECT TO THE BICYCLISTS.
ALSO MAYBE PUSHING THEM OFF THE ROAD, NOT SHARING THE ROAD RESPECTFULLY.
A LOT OF THAT WAS WHAT CAN S. PD DO, WHAT CAN WE DO WITH OUR LAWS IN ORDER TO CHANGE THAT LENS SO WE AREN'T LOOKING AT THEM AS MOVING VIOLATIONS, WITH HE HAVE TO SEE THEM IN ACTION, BUT WHAT CAN BE DONE AFTERWARDS.
IF YOU HAVE PROOF, PICTURES, THE LICENSE PLATE, THINGS LIKE THAT.
SO THERE IS SOME LEARNING EXPERIENCES THAT WERE INCORPORATED INTO THIS POLICY. AGAIN, ALSO AS WE'RE LOOKING AT THE INFRASTRUCTURE, MAKING SURE THAT OUR PAVEMENT MARKINGS, WHERE WE WANT TO PUT SAFE INTERSECTIONS, MAYBE EVEN WHERE WE HAVE MID-BLOCK CROSSWALKS WHERE IT IS IMMEDIATE DETECTION FOR THOSE PEDESTRIANS, AND INCREASED SIGNAGE.
THERE'S A LOT OF OPPORTUNITIES. WE'RE ALSO INCORPORATING THAT INTO OUR VISION ZERO STRATEGY, THE ACTION PLAN THAT WE'RE UPDATING WHICH
WE'LL BE BRINGING TO YOU NEXT MONTH. >> GAVITO: THANK YOU FOR THAT. YEAH, I DEFINITELY DON'T THINK THAT RELYING ON SAPD TO HELP WITH ENFORCEMENT IS GOING TO BE HELPFUL AT ALL. I KNOW AS A RUNNER I'VE BEEN RUN OFF THE ROAD SEVERAL TIMES AND IF I WAS WAITING FOR A POLICE OFFICER, IT'S LIKE IT'S NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN. NOT SAYING ANYTHING NEGATIVE ABOUT OUR POLICE, IT'S JUST CATCHING THEM IN THE ACT IS RIDICULOUS.
IT'S NOT AN EXPECTATION THAT WE SHOULD HAVE. I DEFINITELY THINK THE WAY AROUND THAT IS THROUGH INFRASTRUCTURE AND PROPER MARKINGS AND JUST HAVING CYCLISTS AND RUNNERS FEEL SAFE IN INFRASTRUCTURE. SORRY.
IN INFRASTRUCTURE THAT THEY HAVE, YOU KNOW, AND BLOCKED. ONE OF THE THINGS WHEN YOU WERE SHOWING A COMPLETE STREET ON SLIDE 4, I WAS PARTICULARLY INTERESTED IN CALLAGHAN AND INSPIRATION, I DEFINITELY ECHO COUNCILMEMBER MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ'S CONCERN IS THAT ON THE CONCEPTS WE SEE A LOT OF TREES AND LANDSCAPE, BUT WE DON'T NECESSARILY SEE THAT HERE. I WAS ACTUALLY TEXTING WITH THE TEAM BECAUSE I DON'T SEE HOW CALLAGHAN AND INSPIRATION IS A COMPLETE STREET. YES, WE DO HAVE LARGE SIDEWALKS, BUT A CHUNK OF IT IS TAKEN AWAY BY UTILITY POLES AND THERE'S NO MARKINGS.
HOW IS THAT A COMPLETE STREET? >> SO THE COMPLETE STREET MEANS THEY'VE TAKEN INTO CONTEXT WHAT THEY CAN DO FIRST WITH THE AVAILABLE RIGHT-OF-WAY. THOSE THAT ARE USING IT. SO AGAIN, A LARGER SHARED USE TO ACCOMMODATE FOR THE UTILITY POLES IS THAT'S ON THIS.
-- IS WHAT'S ON THIS. IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE THE BOTTOM LEFT.
IT'S NOT EVERY ELEMENT CAN BE ON EVERY STREET AND YOU UTILIZE THE RIGHT-OF-WAY THE BEST WAY YOU KNOW HOW. ONE OF THE THINGS WE HAVE TO BALANCE IN THIS PROCESS AS WELL AS WITH OUR INITIATIVES LIKE TOD IS HOW YOU BALANCE THE OVERHEAD POWER LINES AND PLACE STREET TREES. IT'S THE SAME TYPE OF PUZZLE THAT HAPPENS IN PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT. HOW CAN YOU -- HOW CAN YOU ADD STREET TREES WHEN YOU HAVE THAT UTILITY UNDERNEATH. IT'S HARD TO DO THAT.
THERE'S A BIT OF A BALANCE AS THEY ARE LOOKING AT INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS.
BUT THE GOAL IS GET TO AS MANY ELEMENTS AS YOU CAN THAT IS BENEFICIAL FOR THAT
ROAD. >> GAVITO: BUT IS THERE A REASON WHY THERE'S NO MARKINGS FOR CYCLISTS AND RUNNERS ON THE LARGER PART OF THE SIDEWALK?
[00:35:01]
>> THERE IS IN COME ON UP. >> THIS IS ONE OF OUR SENIOR PLANNERS.
>> HI, IT'S A PLEASURE. JUST A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF CALLAGHAN ROAD, I REALLY LIKE THIS ONE, INTERESTING WHAT PUBLIC WORKS DID WITH IT.
THEY HAD A REALLY LIMITED ROAD WHICH WAS CAUSING A LOT OF ISSUES AND THEY DEAL WITH THAT 5-FOOT EASEMENT FOR THE UTILITIES. ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE ROAD IN THAT PICTURE, THERE ARE SIGNAGE FOR SHARED-USE PATH AND IT'S 11-FOOT SHARED USE, AND THEN THERE'S THE EXTRA 5-FOOT SO THERE'S ALSO THAT BUFFER.
LIKE CAT SAID, THERE ARE SOME LIMITATIONS WITH TREES, WITH THE EXTRA UTILITIES, BUT IT DOES HAVE SIGNAGE AND IT'S 11-FOOT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE BUFFER.
>> COURAGE: ANURIA MEANS RIGHT-OF-WAY. >> YES.
>> GAVITO: WHAT ARE WE DOING WITH CPS TO GET THESE POLES UNDERGROUND?
>> THIS IS ONE OF THE ISSUES THAT HAD BEEN BROUGHT UP THROUGH THE REMOVING BARRIERS TASK FORCE UNDER THE HOUSING COMMISSION AS WELL AS THAT TECHNICAL WORKING GROUP. THIS IS ONE OF THOSE DISCUSSION POINTS.
WE'RE STARTING THAT CONVERSATION WITH THEM TO SEE WHAT CAN WE DO ALONG THESE TWO CORRIDORS THAT WE HAVE RIGHT NOW THAT WE'RE IDENTIFYING FOR TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT TO SEE HOW WE CAN MOVE THAT NEEDLE. AND THEN HOPEFULLY START APPROACHING IT CITYWIDE. BUT WE STILL HAVE TO HAVE THOSE INITIAL CONVERSATIONS.
>> GAVITO: I WOULD JUST LIKE TO REITERATE, COUNCILMEMBER CABELLO HAVRDA 'S POINT TO YOU IF THERE'S ANY OTHER POLICIES OR ISSUES THAT ARE HINDERING PROGRESS ON THIS, THIS IS WHERE I THINK INSTEAD OF Y'ALL HAVING DISCUSSIONS ABOUT IT, Y'ALL LET US KNOW AND SAY THIS IS A PROBLEM AND WE NEED TO SEE THAT UTILITY POLES ON SOME OF THESE STREETS BE UNDERGROUND AND THEN WE CAN PUSH.
YOU KNOW, SO DEFINITELY ESCALATE AND USE US AS NEEDED BECAUSE WE WANT TO BE PARTNERS IN THIS. THIS IS SOMETHING WE HEAR ABOUT FROM ALL OF OUR RESIDENTS ALL OVER THE CITY. SO HOWEVER WE CAN PUSH AND ACTIVATE, WE WILL.
WE WANT TO BE PARTNERS. >> COURAGE: COUNCILWOMAN, YOUR TIME HAS EXPIRED.
IF WOULD LIKE TO COME AGAIN -- >> GAVITO: ACTUALLY THAT WAS IT. ON THE PRIORITY OF THE STREETS, WE'RE DEFINITELY INTERESTED IN THAT AS WELL. THANK YOU. THANKS, CHAIR.
>> COURAGE: THANK YOU. COUNCILMEMBER KAUR. >> KAUR: THANKS, CHAIR.
I WAS JUST READING THE UPDATED POLICY BECAUSE I UNDERSTAND THAT THE UPDATED
POLICY IS ON SA SPEAK UP, CORRECT? >> CORRECT.
>> KAUR: I FELT LIKE THE ONLY REAL INFORMATION THAT WE GOT ON THE UPDATE WAS THAT ONE SLIDE ON SLIDE -- CAN YOU JUST GIVE ME SOME HIGH LEVEL LIKE FOR THE POLICY FRAMEWORK? WHAT ARE SOME OF THE BIG CHANGES, BESIDES SELECTION, I'LL GO BACK AND READ IT, BUT CAN YOU GIVE ME A FEW HIGH-LEVEL THINGS YOU THINK ARE IMPORTANT THAT YOU ARE GETTING FEEDBACK ON NOW? WE GOT 300 SIGNATURES, BUT THAT WAS SIGNATURES SAYING WE NEED AN UPDATE. IT WASN'T SIGNATURES ON THE
ACTUAL POLICY. >> AT THE TIME SICK LOW VIA OCCURRED, THAT DOCUMENT WAS ALREADY LIFE. IT WAS AN OPPORTUNITY TO GO TO SA SPEAK UP AND SEE WHAT WAS THERE AND ADD SUPPORT IN SUPPORT OF CHANGES. THIS SLIDE TALKED ABOUT THE THINGS WE HAD IN THE CURRENT POLICY THAT WERE WORKING. WE JUST ADDED TO IT.
AND THE NEEDS WE NEEDED TO INCLUDE WHICH WERE THESE SECTIONS AS WELL.
THIS SLIDE I WENT OVER, AGAIN, IT WAS SOME OF THE THINGS I WOULD PROBABLY HIGHLIGHT AGAIN IS THE COMPLETE STREETS FOCUSES ON THESE DIVERSE USERS TO MAKE SURE WE'RE PROVIDE OR ADVERTISING -- PRIORITIZING VULNERABLE USERS.
COORDINATING WITH OUTSIDE AGENCIES AS WELL. LOOKING AT ALL PROJECTS AND PHASES SO WE CAN MAKE SURE WE HAVE AN INFORMED DECISION-MAKING PROCESS.
WE NEED TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE A FORMALIZED REVIEW PROCESS FOR OUR ROADS OR STREETS AND ARE THAT CHECKLIST. IS IT MEETING COMPONENTS OF THE COMPLETE STREETS AND HOW. THE PLAINTIFF POLICY DID NOT HAVE PERFORMANCE MEASURES, HOW ARE WE TRACKING TO MAKE SURE WE'RE IMPLEMENTING THIS POLICY.
AGAIN THAT PROJECT SELECTION CRITERIA WHICH WE'LL GO THROUGH IN THE NEXT PHASE, WE CAN MAKE SURE WE'RE PRIORITIZING THE RIGHT PROJECTS FOR THE RIGHT
REASON FOR THE RIGHT FUNDING. >> KAUR: GOT IT.
I DIDN'T REALIZE THE POLICY WAS UPDATED. I HAVEN'T HAD A CHANCE TO REVIEW IT, BUT I'M LOOKING AT SOME OF THESE CRITERIA AND SEEMS LIKE THE RECOMMENDED PERFORMANCE MEASURES ARE STRONG. ARE THOSE GOING TO BE RANKED
ON A SCALE FOR PROJECT SELECTION? >> SO THE PROJECT SELECTION CRITERIA, THAT CRITERIA WILL BE DEVELOPED IN PHASE 2. SO RIGHT NOW AGAIN IT'S JUST
[00:40:04]
UPDATING THE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES FOR THE POLICY WHAT WE WANT TO SEE.HOW WE ARE LOOKING AT THESE PROJECTS THROUGH THE LENS OF COMPLETE STREETS.
THE PERFORMANCE MEASURES, THIS IS A DRAFT TO HELP US DETERMINE WHETHER IT'S THROUGH SURVEYS, ARE WE MOVING THAT NEEDLE. AND AGAIN, THEY ARE ADAPTABLE. THIS IS JUST A GOOD START. BUT HOWEVER WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE MEASURING THAT PROGRESS, WE WILL MAKE SURE THAT WE BUILD THOSE MEASURES TO MEASURE THAT PROGRESS. AND AGAIN, THAT CRITERIA, THAT WILL BE DEVELOPED IN
PHASE 2. >> KAUR: AND SO -- OKAY. SO FOR RIGHT NOW IT'S JUST
THESE HIGH-LEVEL GOALS THAT ARE BEING UPDATED. >> CORRECT.
AGAIN, THAT WAY WE HAVE SOMETHING IN PLACE AND AS WE BIG INTO IT, START MEASURING DO WE NEED TO ADD PERFORMANCE MEASURES WE'LL ADD TO THAT.
>> KAUR: SEEMS LIKE THE STAKEHOLDERS WHO CAME IN ARE GREAT SPOKESPEOPLE FOR US AND THEY HAVE ALREADY BEEN ENGAGED IN PROVIDING INPUT, BUT FIGURING OUT WAYS TO HELP THEM SHARE THE MESSAGE I THINK IS WONDERFUL BECAUSE THEY HAVE BUY-IN AND BELIEF AND SUPPORT IN THE COMMUNITY. I'M EXCITED ABOUT THIS.
I WAS A LITTLE CONFUSED ABOUT THE PHASES AND THE TIME LINES, BUT I APPRECIATE THE WORK YOU ALL ARE DOING. IT'S IMPORTANT TO MAKE SURE OUR POLICIES AREN'T 15 YEARS OLD A LOT OF THINGS CHANGE AND I'VE BEEN SAYING THIS A LOT, BUT WE LOVE TO SEE SOME QUICK-BUILD ASPECTS TO THE POLICY ESPECIALLY WHEN THINKING ABOUT BIKE LANES AND WHAT COUNCILWOMAN HAVRDA SAID ABOUT BUILDING A STREET AND TEARING IT UP.
WE HAD AN INCIDENT HAPPEN LIKE THAT HERE. IT WASN'T BUILDING A STREET, BUT ANYTHING WE CAN DO TO TEST AND MICK SURE -- MAKING SURE THE PEOPLE WANT WHAT
WE'RE BUILDING IS IMPORTANT. THANK YOU. >> COURAGE: COUNCILMAN,
YOU WANTED TO COMMENT AGAIN? >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: I WAS LOOKING FOR THE CCR THE THREE OF US HAD FILED TOGETHER, COUNCILMEMBER COURAGE AND COUNCILMEMBER CABELLO HAVRDA ABOUT BURYING LINES. I DON'T KNOW THAT ANYTHING EVER CAME OF -- I DON'T KNOW THAT WE GOT A BRIEFING ON THE CCR ITSELF.
BUT THE REASON I BRING THAT UP IS BECAUSE IT GETS BACK TO THE ISSUE WE'RE NOT ABLE TO HAVE TREES IN CERTAIN AREAS BECAUSE OF THE OVERHEAD POWER LINES AND THAT DISPARITY EXISTS IN OLDER HOUSING STOCK WHICH IS PREDOMINANTLY IN THE INNERCITY WHICH MEANS WE WON'T BE ABLE TO HAVE THE TREES IN THE INNERCITY WHERE WE NEED THEM THE MOST. I THINK IT'S A WORTHWHILE REVISIT OF THAT AND I THINK AT THE ROOT OF THE REQUEST WAS WHENEVER WE HAVE A MAJOR RECONSTRUCTION PROJECT, EVALUATE HOW MUCH ADDITIONAL WOULD IT COST TO BURY THE LINES AS PART OF THE PROJECT. I'M HAPPY TO HEAR THAT SAID FROM A NEW COUNCIL PERSON AND I THINK IT'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO REVISIT THAT AND I WOULD LOVE FOR Y'ALL'S INPUT AND THOUGHTS ON THAT. BUT JUST A PING. THANK YOU.
>> COURAGE: COUNCILMEMBER CABELLO HAVRDA, DO YOU WANT TO MAKE ANOTHER COMMENT?
>> HAVRDA: I WANT TO ASK COUNCILWOMAN, YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT BROADWAY?
WHAT ROAD WERE YOU TALKING ABOUT. >> SOUTH FLORES.
>> HAVRDA: THAT WAS THE ONE IN 2014? >> YES.
>> HAVRDA: IT JUST CAME TO MY ATTENTION. BECAUSE I READ THE ARTICLE.
THANK YOU FOR BRINGING THAT UP, COUNCILWOMAN DR. KAUR. BECAUSE I SAID I WOULD NEVER THINK THAT WOULD HAPPEN HERE, BUT IT HAPPENED HERE IN 2014, TEN YEARS AGO.
WHICH I GUESS WAS JUST A COUPLE YEARS AFTER THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THIS ORIGINAL PLAN. SO MY QUESTION IS HOW -- HOW ARE WE -- IS THERE ANYTHING IN THIS PLAN OF HOW TO PREVENT THAT FROM HAPPENING AGAIN? LIKE SPENDING IN THAT CASE A MILLION DOLLARS AND THEN THEM TEARING UP -- I UNDERSTAND THERE WAS A LOT OF THINGS INVOLVED. IT WAS A PUBLIC SAFETY ISSUE VERSUS -- IT WAS MADE TO BE A PUBLIC SAFETY ISSUE VERSUS BIKE.
BUT WHAT ARE WE DOING TO PREVENT THAT? >> THE POLICY TALKS ABOUT THE DEVELOPMENT OF A COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PLAN TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE ENGAGING BOTH SIDES AS WE'RE PUTTING IN INFRASTRUCTURE, AND DOING THAT BEFORE IT GETS PAST THE PRE-DESIGN FACE BECAUSE WE WANT TO BE SURE WE'RE GETTING THEIR INPUT AND CONTINUING TO HAVE THAT ENGAGEMENT UP UNTIL THE POINT OF CONSTRUCTION.
>> HAVRDA: FOR EVERY COMPLETE STREET PROJECT THAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN? THAT'S THE ONLY WAY I CAN SEE PREVENTING SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
>> OBVIOUSLY YOUR TYPICAL MAINTENANCE WON'T HAVE THAT TYPE OF ENGAGEMENT, BUT WHEN
[00:45:02]
YOU ARE TALKING REDESIGNING, YOU ARE GOING TO WANT THAT ENGAGEMENT BECAUSE YOU ARETALKING ABOUT A CHANGE OF TRAVEL BEHAVIOR. >> HAVRDA: THANK YOU.
THANK YOU, CHAIR. >> COURAGE: I'LL JUST ADD A FEW OBSERVATIONS.
I THINK ALL OF US RECOGNIZED THAT PRETTY MUCH ANYWHERE INSIDE LOOP 410 EXCEPT FOR A FEW ARTERIES THE STREETS ARE RELATIVELY SMALL. IT'S REALLY CHALLENGING TO TRY AND MAKE THEM SO-CALLED COMPLETE STREETS. I'VE RUN INTO EVEN SOME AREAS IN MY DISTRICT WHERE WE WANTED TO GO AHEAD AND PUT IN A SIDEWALK NEXT TO A NEIGHBORHOOD AND THEY SAID WE DON'T WANT SIDEWALKS BECAUSE WE HAVE OUR TREES OR PLANTS OR WE HAVE OUR MAILBOXES. SO WHEN IT COMES TO REDESIGNING A STREET AND UNDERSTANDING THE RIGHT-OF-WAY LIMITATIONS AND THE SIZES OF THE STREETS, I THINK OUR ATTENTION CAN BE FOCUSED ON SOME OF THOSE THAT ARE PROBABLY MORE LIKELY TO BE CANDIDATES FOR ADDING MORE MODALITY TO THE STREETS. YOU KNOW, LIKE FREDERICKSBURG ROAD OR CALLAGHAN OR, YOU KNOW, STREETS LIKE THAT OR CULEBRA.
THEY'VE GOT A LOT OF WIDTH AND THERE'S A LOT OF MOBILITY THAT GOES THERE.
AND MAYBE AS COUNCILMEMBERS WE CAN SUGGEST AREAS THAT WE KNOW IN OUR DISTRICT THAT WE THINK MAY FALL INTO THE LIKELIHOOD OF BEING ABLE TO CARRY MORE OF THOSE ADDITIONAL FEATURES AND SEE IF THAT CAN'T BE PART OF THE ONGOING PROCESS.
A LOT OF TIMES PUBLIC WORKS WILL TELL US THIS STREET CAN DO THIS AND THIS STREET CAN DO THAT, BUT I THINK IF WE ASK AND WE NAME SOME OF THE STREETS WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE MORE DONE TO, THAT WOULD BE GOOD. I'LL NEVER FORGET THE FACT THAT EVEN BIKE RIDERS, 90% OF THEM DRIVE A CAR. AND THIS IS STILL THE KIND OF CITY, MOST PEOPLE WANT TO BE ABLE TO GET WHERE THEY WANT TO GO WHEN THEY WANT TO GO IN THEIR AUTOMOBILE. SO IT'S ALWAYS CHALLENGING TO ASK FOR SOME OF THE CHANGES THAT WE WANT, PARTICULARLY, YOU KNOW, IN OLDER AREAS.
FOR EXAMPLE, IF YOU ARE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND START WIDENING A STREET FOR TRAFFIC TO FLOW WITH BIKE LANES, WHAT ABOUT ALL THE PEOPLE WHO PARK ON THE STREETS TOO? NOW YOU RUN INTO OTHER CHALLENGES, PEOPLE SAYING I'VE ALWAYS PARKED IN FRONT OF MY HOUSE. I DON'T KNOW HOW YOU ARE GOING TO HANDLE ALL OF THIS, BUT I THINK YOU HAVE A GOOD PLAN LAID OUT.
I KNOW YOU HAVE A TECHNICAL ADVISORY GROUP THAT'S GOING TO BE LOOKING AT THIS, BUT THEN YOU'RE ALSO TALKING ABOUT A PERMANENT TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE TO OVERSEE THE ONGOING WORK AS IT CONTINUES. AND NEITHER OF THOSE HAVE BEEN FORMED YET, BUT I PRESUME WE'LL BE HEARING MORE ABOUT THE FORMATION OF THAT SO WE CAN RECOMMEND PEOPLE FROM OUR COMMUNITIES TO BE ON THOSE.
>> LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT INPUT. >> COURAGE: OKAY, I THINK
COUNCILWOMAN KAUR HAS ONE MORE COMMENT. >> KAUR: I WAS MESSING
AROUND WITH THE SA SPEAK UP WEBSITE, TELL ME THE -- >> THE FEEDBACK, THIS IS PHASE 1, THE POLICY UPDATE, MAKING SURE WE UPDATE OUR GOALS AND OBJECTIVES TO GET TO THAT GOLD MEDAL STANDARD. THE FEEDBACK WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SEE IN A COMPLETE STREETS POLICY, ARE YOU FOR COMPLETE STREETS UPDATE. WHEN WE HAD THE TOWN HALLS, WHEN WE HAD THE MEETINGS, WHEN WE HAD POP-UPS, WE PRESENTED WHAT WE WERE DOING, WE PRESENTED THE CHANGE IN THE TWO AND THEN GOT THAT FEEDBACK ABOUT WHAT DO THEY WANT TO SEE, WHAT IS THEIR LENS OF COMPLETE STREETS, WHAT ARE THEIR CONCERNS. THAT WAS A LOT OF THE FEEDBACK AND MAKING SURE WE ARE ADDRESSING THOSE VULNERABLE ROAD USERS THAT ARE, AGAIN, THE DIFFERENT
USERS OF THE ROAD. >> KAUR: GOT IT. I WASN'T SURE BECAUSE THE PETITION IS REALLY JUST ARE YOU IN SUPPORT OF US UPDATING THE POLICY SO I WASN'T SURE ARE WE GETTING THESE SIGNATURES BECAUSE WE COULDN'T UPDATE IF WE DIDN'T
HAVE UP SUPPORT OR AWARENESS. >> SO THEY CAN SEE WHAT THE
POLICY DOCUMENT WAS, THE BEFORE AND AFTER. >> KAUR: I GUESS I'LL PROVIDE MORE DETAILED FEEDBACK ON THE QUESTIONS ON THE SURVEY, BUT LIKE IT SAYS DOWNLOAD A COPY OF OUR PETITION AND HELP US COLLECT FEEDBACK BUT WE'RE NOT REALLY GETTING ANY FEEDBACK BESIDES WHETHER WE WANT TO UPDATE THE SURVEY.
IT'S LIKE THINK ABOUT A STREET OUTSIDE YOUR HOME, WHAT'S MISS BEING, WHAT COULD BE BETTER TO ACHIEVE A COMPLETE STREET, BUT IT DOESN'T GIVE YOU THE OPPORTUNITY TO SAY WHAT COULD BE BETTER.
THE SURVEY TO MAKE SURE WE'RE GETTING THE FEEDBACK THAT WE WANTED.
>> OKAY. >> KAUR: THANKS, CHAIR. >> COURAGE: ANY IF YOU ARE QUESTIONS ON THIS? IF NOT, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
[00:50:02]
WE LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING MORE AND I KNOW IT'S GOING THROUGH THE PLANNING COMMISSION. I DON'T KNOW IF WE NEED ANY ACTION OR SHOULD WE MAKE A MOTION -- WE HAVE A MOTION ON THE FLOOR, THAT'S RIGHT, AND THAT WOULD BE TO HAVETHIS COME BACK AFTER THE PLANNING COMMISSION. >>
>> CLERK: THE MOTION WAS TO REFER TO A SESSION IN AUGUST AFTER APPROVAL BY THE
PLANNING COMMISSION. >> COURAGE: IT'S BEEN MOVED AND SECONDED.
ANY QUESTIONS? HEARING NONE, ALL IN FAVOR SAY AYE.
ANY OPPOSED? OKAY. IT WILL BE MOVED FORWARD.
>> THANK YOU. >> COURAGE: THANK YOU, CAT.
I WANT TO THANK OUR FRIENDS FROM VIA FOR BEING SO PATIENT.
NOW WE'LL GO AHEAD AND HEAR FROM VIA. WOULD YOU READ THE CAPTION,
MADAM CLERK. >> CLERK: A BRIEFING BY VIA METROPOLITAN TRANSIT ON
THE ADVANCED RAPID TRANSIT PROGRAM. >> THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING VIA HERE. THIS IS GOING TO BE A BRIEF UPDATE ON OUR ADVANCED RAPID TRANSIT PROGRAM. ART IS A HIGH QUALITY MODERN PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM THAT IS DESIGNED TO MOVE MORE PEOPLE FASTER AND FARTHER.
SO THAT'S A SUMMARY. IT ALSO IMPROVES SAFETY FOR ALL DRIVERS, PEDESTRIANS AND BICYCLISTS AND IT PROVIDES ACCESS TO [INAUDIBLE] FOR ALL CITIZENS ALONG THE CORRIDOR. I'M GOING TO START WITH GREEN LINE AND THEN GO TO SILVER LINE. SO JUST BRIEF DETAILS ON THE GREEN LINE, IT'S ABOUT 1107 MILES OF CORRIDOR CONNECTING AIRPORT THROUGH SAN~PEDRO THROUGH DOWNTOWN AT STEVES AVENUE. IT HAS TEN-MINUTE WEEK-DAY SERVICE AND THE ENDS OF THE LINES ARE CONNECTING TO THE AIRPORT THROUGH OUR EXPRESS LINE FROM AIRPORT TO STONE OAK AND ON THE SOUTH THAT CONTINUES TO BROOKS TRANSIT CENTER.
THE COST -- COST IS ESTIMATED AT $446.3 MILLION AND EXPENDITURES 60% OF THAT WE EXPECT FROM CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT GRANT PROGRAM FROM FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
THAT GRANT PROGRAM HAS SPECIFIC MILESTONES THAT OUR PROJECT HAS TO REACH.
THE FIRST ONE IS PROJECT DEVELOPMENT AND TYPICALLY PROJECT DEVELOPMENT IS 30% DESIGN. LAST DECEMBER WE REACHED THAT MILESTONE AND DURING ONCE WE ENTERED ENGINEERING IN DECEMBER, WE GOT OUR SECOND RECOMMENDATION FOR $109.7 MILLION FOR FY 25 FUNDING AND OUR FEDERAL SHARE NOW IS LOCKED AT 267.8 MILLION. WHAT IT MEANS FOR PROJECT, IF THE COST GOES ABOVE 446.3 MILLION, WE HAVE TO COME UP WITH THAT MONEY LOCALLY.
THE FEDERAL SHARE IS FIXED NOW. OUR NEXT MILESTONE IS REACHING AND SIGNING FULL FUNDING GRANT AGREEMENT AT END OF THIS CALENDAR YEAR.
AND ONCE WE SIGN THAT GRANT AGREEMENT, WE CAN START WITH CONSTRUCTION.
AND TARGETING OPENING DATE FOR THIS SERVICE IS AUGUST OF 2027.
SO WE ALSO REACHED UNDER THE SMILE -- UNDER THE MILESTONE WILL BE REMAINING WITH US THROUGH PROJECT CLOSEOUT. THAT'S PARSON'S TRANSPORTATION GROUP. WE ALSO AWARRED CONTRACT FOR [INAUDIBLE] AT RISK.
THEY STARTED WORKING ON PRE-CONSTRUCTION SERVICES. WE ALSO HAVE GULF FINLEY AND WE ARE SOON GOING TO OUR BOARD TO PROCURE [INAUDIBLE].
SO THEY ARE MILESTONE OUR FULL-FUNDING GRANT AGREEMENT. THERE ARE OTHER THINGS WE ARE ALSO WORKING ON. THOSE ARE CRITICAL FOR SUCCESS OF THIS PROJECT.
THAT IS THIRD-PARTY AGREEMENT. YOU ALL HAVE HELPED US GET OUR FIRST AGREEMENT COMPLETED LAST JUNE. WE ARE WORKING ON THE SECOND AGREEMENT ON OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE SIDE AS WE FINISH THE DESIGN MILESTONES, WE'LL GATHER MORE INFORMATION INPUT FOR THAT AGREEMENT AND THEN WE
[00:55:03]
ARE ALSO IN DISCUSSIONS WITH SAN ANTONIO WATER SYSTEMS, CPS ENERGY AND AT&T FOR UTILITY LOCATION AND SMALLER AREAS THAT ALONG OUR CORRIDOR.THEN WE HAVE BEEN WORKING ON COMMUNITY CONVERSATION AND OUTREACH, AND SINCE JANUARY -- THIS IS A SUMMARY WE HAD 559 EVENTS, 105 PROJECT OFFICE VISITS FOR ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT PROJECT OFFICES ON SAN~PEDRO, AND WE HAD TOUCHED OVER 1,000 INDIVIDUALS AND WE HAD 25 ENGAGEMENT ALONG THE CORRIDOR.
ANOTHER THING IS GOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS, ELECTED AND APPOINTED OFFICIAL MEETINGS, OVER 20 MEETINGS TOUCHING 149 INDIVIDUALS.
THEN COMMUNITY CONVERSATIONS ARE ALSO CONTINUING WITH VARIOUS NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATIONS AND EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTES AND OTHER MEMBERS OF ORGANIZATION THAT ARE INTERESTED ARE ALONG THE CORRIDOR. AND THIS SLIDE SHOWS GREEN LINE, SILVER LINE, I'LL COME TO THAT. UPCOMING ACTIVITY, WE HAVE STARTED UPDATING OUR MATERIALS REFLECT CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITIES FOR -- DURING CONSTRUCTION SO WE ARE WORKING ON THAT. WE ARE ALSO TRAINING OUR STAFF AND STAKEHOLDERS TO DELIVER U MESSAGING. WE ARE CONNECTING ABOUT THE NEXT PHASE OF THE PROJECT WITH RESIDENTS AND BUSINESSES ALONG THE CORRIDOR. AND ALSO UPDATING LONG-TERM ENGAGEMENT ROAD MAP TO INCLUDE BASED ON FEEDBACK WE HAVE ACCEPTED. ANOTHER MILESTONE -- RECEIVED. LAST WEEK COUNCIL TO KEEP SA MOVING MET.
IT IS A 21 MEMBER VOLUNTEER GROUP REPRESENTING DIVERSE COMMUNITIES' INTEREST AND INTEREST ACROSS SAN ANTONIO REGION. AND THE EXPECTATION IS THEY WILL FACILITATE COMMUNITY SUPPORT, CHAMPIONING PUBLIC TRANSIT.
THERE ARE MULTIPLE PROJECTS ONGOING WITH VIA. AND THEN BUILDING MOMENTUM TO LEVERAGE EXPERTISE AND GROW NETWORK FOR SUPPORT OF OUR PROJECTS.
GREEN LINE SCHEDULE, THIS IS THE LAST SLIDE, I BELIEVE, ON THE GREEN LINE.
THE SCHEDULE HAS NOT CHANGED. WE HAVE BEEN MEETING OUR MILESTONES WITH FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. THIS IS -- SINCE WE ARE GETTING 60% OF FUNDING FROM FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, IT'S A VERY PRESCRIPTIVE PROCESS.
AND WE ARE IN THE EARLY 2024 AND WORKING DILIGENTLY ON FINAL DESIGN AND GETTING AGREEMENT, AND ONCE THAT IS DONE EARLY NEXT YEAR, 2025, WE EXPECT TO START CONSTRUCTION AND THEN TARGET OPENING DATE AGAIN IS AUGUST OF 2027.
THAT'S ON GREEN LINE. NOW I'M PROCEEDING TO SILVER LINE.
SILVER LINE IS EAST-WEST STARTING FROM FROST BANK CENTER ON EAST SIDE HOUSTON STREET, COMMERCE, MARKET, BUENA VISTA, COMPLETE THROUGH DOWNTOWN AND GOING TO WEST SIDE TO GENERAL MCMULLEN. IT'S ABOUT 7.3 MILES.
18 NEW STATIONS. THE COST OF THIS PROJECT -- WE ARE VERY EARLY IN DESIGN HERE, ABOUT 10%, SO THIS COST IS AT THAT LEVEL. 289.2 MILLION.
WE ARE EXPECTING ABOUT 143, PLUS OUR MINUS, FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
THE SERVICE HERE WILL CONTINUE TO OUR EASTSIDE MOBILITY HUB, TRANSIT CENTER WHICH IS IN DESIGN CURRENTLY, AND ON THE WEST SIDE IT WILL CONTINUE TOWARD EXISTING TRANSIT CENTER. THE AMENITIES ARE GOING TO BE THE SAME, THE OFF-BOARD FARE COLLECTION SYSTEM, DEDICATED LANES, TRANSIT PRIORITY, VERY SIMILAR TO THE GREEN LINE, BUT CONTEXTUALIZE FOR THE COMMUNITIES AND RIGHT-OF-WAY THAT EXISTS ON THIS CORRIDOR. THIS PROJECT IS ALSO IN CIG GRANTS, BUT THIS IS SMALL STARTS. THE DIFFERENCE IS THE PROJECT DEVELOPMENT INCLUDES 30% DESIGN PLUS ENGINEERING. SO IT'S A SINGLE STRETCH.
A THE -- THE MILESTONE IS -- THAT IS EXPECTED TO BE IN JANUARY 2027.
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WE HAVE ACHIEVED TWO THINGS. WE GOT EARLY $8.1 MILLION GRANTS FOR PROJECT DEVELOPMENT FROM FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO WORK ON THIS PROJECT IN FY24, AND THEN THIS YEAR WE ARE RECOMMENDED FOR 134.7 MILLION. SO THERE IS A RECOMMENDATION FOR FEDERAL FUNDS, ALL OF THE FEDERAL FUNDS WE HAVE ASKED.NOW WE NEED LOCAL COMMITMENT OF 100.5 MILLION TO LEVERAGE THAT FEDERAL FUND.
IN THE MEANTIME, WE ARE IN THE PROJECT DEVELOPMENT AND WE ARE CONTINUING THE ENGINEERING AND ENVIRONMENTAL WORK THAT THE FUNDING THAT CITY HAS GIVEN US LAST TWO YEARS THROUGH YOUR BUDGET PROCESS AND VIA'S OWN FUNDING.
SO THAT WORK IS ONGOING. WE HAVE ONGOING COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
THERE ARE A FEW SLIDES I'LL BE GOING THROUGH, BUT WE ARE ALSO WORKING ON EARLY ENGINEERING, ABOUT 10, 15%. WE ARE DOING SOME SURVEYS ALONG THE CORRIDOR AND WE HAVE STARTED ACTIVITIES FOR RED FLAG ANALYSIS AND BASED ON THE FEEDBACK AND CONVERSATIONS WE HAD, WE'LL BE DEVELOPING OUR ENGINEERING TO REFLECT MORE INFORMATION. ON THE SILVER LINE THROUGH 53 EVENTS AND MEETINGS, WE HAVE TOUCHED OVER 2200 INDIVIDUALS. ORGANIZATIONS SUCH AS HISTORIC WESTSIDE RESIDENTS ASSOCIATION, SAN ANTONIO MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, HISPANIC CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, UTSA AND VARIOUS ORGANIZATION, DIGNOWITY HILL. THERE IS A VARIETY OF DIVERSE ORGANIZATIONS THAT WE HAVE BEEN GOING, GIVING INFORMATION, LISTENING TO THEM AND BRINGING THE FEEDBACK TO US AS WE MOVE FORWARD WITH OUR PROJECT. ANOTHER MATRIX SAYS BRIEFING FOR ELECTED AND APPOINTED OFFICIALS, ABOUT 20 MEETINGS AND 149 INDIVIDUALS.
AND THERE WAS ONE LARGE GROUP MEETING EVENT AND THEN 13 ATTENDEES.
A THEME FROM COMMENTS, GENERAL SUPPORT FOR PROPOSED PROJECT.
THERE IS A REQUEST FOR MORE FREQUENT SERVICE IN THE CORRIDOR OR IN THE AREA.
THERE IS A REQUEST FOR BICYCLE FACILITIES, PARKING AND AMENITIES AT STATIONS AND/OR BUSES. AND CONCERNS ABOUT SAFETY AND SECURITY NEAR THE PROPOSED STATIONS. AND THEN THERE IS A PUBLIC COMMENT, IT'S JUST HIGHLIGHTED. I HOPE WE'LL SEE FURTHER EXPANSION OF THIS SYSTEM IN OTHER PARTS OF TOWN. SO PEOPLE WERE VERY EXCITED. OTHER ACTIVITIES, ONGOING ACTIVITIES, DREAM WEEK IS MAY 29TH. IF YOU HAVE TIME, YOU CAN COME. IT'S 6:00 TO 8:00 P.M. WE HAVE STARTED DISCUSSION WITH CITY OF SAN ANTONIO STAFF ON THE ILA, INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT.
AND THEN WE HAVE STARTED REVIEWING SOME ELEMENTS OF THE CORRIDOR ON SILVER LINE ALONG WITH THE GREEN LINE. AND THEN PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT LIBRARY LINK WILL BE LIVE, AND THEN WE HAVE STARTED SELECTING -- LOOKING FOR PROJECT OFFICE LOCATION ALONG THE CORRIDOR. SO THIS IS SIMILAR SLIDE YOU HAVE SEEN ON THE GREEN LINE, HIGHLIGHTING DIG ANY -- DIGNOWITY HILL. THEN WE GO TO EACH ASSOCIATION AND THEN PRESENT INFORMATION AND THEN SEEK INFORMATION.
PROJECT SCHEDULE IS STEADY. THIS PROJECT IS ABOUT TWO YEARS BEHIND GREEN LINE, AND WE ARE IN THE PROJECT DEVELOPMENT PHASE AND WE'LL CONTINUE TO WORK TOWARDS A MILESTONE FOR TARGET OPENING DATE OF AUGUST OF 2029. I THINK THAT'S THE BRIEF
UPDATE, SO HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. >> COURAGE: OKAY.
COUNCILMAN, YOU HAD A QUESTION YOU WOULD LIKE TO BRING UP?
>> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: THANK YOU. MY QUESTION IS GOING TO BE
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ABOUT CAPACITY AND THEN I'LL HAVE ANOTHER ONE ABOUT THE FUNDING.SO IN HOUSTON THEIR METRO RAIL CAN MOVE HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE EVERY 10 TO 15 MINUTES DOWNTOWN AND THROUGH THE CITY. SO I'M WONDERING FOR US LARGER SCALE EVENTS AT THE FROST BANK CENTER WHETHER TRAFFIC IS ATROCIOUS, WHAT
IS GOING TO BE OUR CAPACITY? >> SO A SYSTEM LIKE BRT CAN HANDLE ABOUT VEHICLES EVERY THREE MINUTES. OUR SERVICE IS PROPOSED TEN MINUTES.
FOR ANY SPECIAL EVENTS, WE CAN ADD MORE VEHICLES TO THIS SYSTEM TO CARRY MORE PEOPLE. THE GOOD THING IS WE ARE AT EARLY STAGE AND WE ARE IN DISCUSSION WITH FROST CENTER AND BEXAR COUNTY AND CITY OF SAN ANTONIO SO THAT WHEN WE ARE PLANNING THE ROUTE, WE CAN ANTICIPATE THE VOLUME AND DESIGN, STAGING AREA, NOT ONLY AT FROST CENTER BUT CLOSER TO SUNSET STATION BECAUSE THERE ARE TWO EVENT AREA THAT WE CAN HAVE. SO WE HAVE ABILITY TO CARRY GOOD NUMBER OF PEOPLE [INAUDIBLE] AND THAT'S WHAT WE ARE TRYING TO DO, HOW DO WE MANAGE SPECIAL EVENTS,
ESPECIALLY ON SILVER LINE. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: DO WE KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE CAN FIT
IN ONE VEHICLE? >> ON ONE VEHICLE IT'S 55 FOLKS PLUS STANDINGS.
I CAN GET YOU THE DETAIL, EXACT NUMBER. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: THANK YOU. I'M GLAD YOU ARE ALREADY THINKING ABOUT THAT AND IN CONVERSATION WITH THE ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE GOING TO BE -- FROST BANK CENTER AND ALAMODOME. I GUESS I'M WONDERING HOW WILL YOU BE WORKING WITH TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT IN THAT AREA BECAUSE I'M IMAGINING THE COUNTY PUTS OUT THE CONES AND THAT IN ITSELF IS ITS OWN PROBLEM AND BARRIER AND I'M WONDERING IF THAT CAN CONTINUE IF WE NEED THESE BUSES TO MOVE EFFICIENTLY.
>> I THINK THAT IS A CHALLENGE AND OPPORTUNITY FOR FROST BANK TO LEVERAGE THE BUS SERVICE BECAUSE CURRENTLY WE HAVE SPECIAL EVENTS AND REGULAR ROUTES, BUT WITH THIS TEN-MINUTE SERVICE AND ADDING MORE SPECIAL EVENT VEHICLES, THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE MORE -- MORE PEOPLE ON VEHICLES AND THEN LOOK AT THE TRAFFIC PLAN FROM THE AUTOMOBILE, SINGLE-OCCUPANCY PERSPECTIVE.
SO THE ADDITIONS ARE GOING TO HELP US COME UP WITH A PLAN BECAUSE WE NEED A PLAN FOR OPERATIONS ON SPECIAL EVENTS AND NON-SPECIAL EVENTS BECAUSE OF THE
REVERSIBLE LANES THAT ARE THERE TODAY. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: I'M GLAD TO HEAR THAT'S ALL TOP OF MIND. THERE WAS A SLIDE THAT MENTIONED $105.000000 WAS NEEDED IN LOCAL FUNDS. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU?
>> WE ARE MEETING BEXAR COUNTY, WE ARE MEETING CITY OF SAN ANTONIO TO BRIDGE THE GAP. AND I THINK JOHN MAY HAVE MORE INFORMATION ON THAT.
>> THE DISCUSSIONS -- ACTUALLY WITH THE COUNTY AND CURRENTLY BOTH LEGAL DEPARTMENTS FROM VIA AND THE COUNTY ARE PUTTING THE PAPER TOGETHER TO GET THAT
$105 MILLION GAP ADDRESSED. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: SO IT WILL ALL COME FROM THE
COUNTY? >> YES, SIR. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: OKAY.
THEN ALL IS GOOD. THANK YOU. >> COURAGE: THANK YOU, COUNCILMAN. COUNCILMEMBER CABELLO HAVRDA.
>> HAVRDA: THANK YOU, CHAIR. STILL LAUGHING.
SORRY. SO THANK YOU, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
I LOOK FORWARD TO THESE PROGRESS REPORTS. I KNOW WE GET THEM PRETTY FREQUENTLY AND I'M GRATEFUL FOR THAT. THERE'S A COUPLE OF REASONS.
ONE IS I FIRMLY BELIEVE AND I THINK MOST SAN ANTONIANS BELIEVE THIS IS GOING TO BE TRANSFORMATIVE FOR OUR CITY AND THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING OF THE TRANSFORMATION THAT HOPEFULLY SOME DAY WE'RE ABLE TO EXTEND THEM FARTHER OUT INTO THE CITY. SECONDLY, IT'S IMPORTANT THIS COMMITTEE AND THE ENTIRE COUNCIL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO DISCUSS THE PROJECT AND TO GIVE OUR FEEDBACK WITH THE PEOPLE MAKING IT HAPPEN, AND THANK YOU FOR ALL OF YOU FOR YOUR HARD WORK. I DO HAVE JUST A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS.
YOU MAY RECALL SEVERAL MONTHS AGO A COUPLE OF LADIES CAME AND SPOKE WITH US. THEY WERE PUBLIC COMMENT. I RECALL ONE OF THEM SPOKE ONLY SPANISH AND THEY WERE VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THE IMPACT OF THESE LINES TO THEIR NEIGHBORHOODS AND IMPORTANTLY THEIR OWN BUS ROUTES, THE BUS ROUTES THAT THEY USE. SO I WAS GLAD TO SEE THE ENGAGEMENT.
WE CAN ALWAYS DO MORE, BUT I'M CURIOUS, SO TWO QUESTIONS.
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HAVE YOU BEEN ABLE TO SPECIFICALLY REACH OUT TO THEM, THOSE TWO LADIES ANDTALK WITH THEM? >> I NEED TO ASK -- >>
>> I DON'T RECALL. >> I KNOW ONE OF THEM, LETECIA, SHE'S A MEMBER OF OUR TRANSIT ORIENTED TASK FORCE. THE OTHER WOMAN, SHE KNOWS
HER, BUT LETTY IS ON OUR TASK FORCE. >> AND I THINK SOME OF THEM ALSO CAME TO WEST SIDE COMMITTEE MEETING. WHERE WE ADDRESSED SOME OF
THE ISSUES. >> HAVRDA: WELL DONE. I APPRECIATE THAT.
I DIDN'T MEAN TO PUT YOU ON THE SPOT ABOUT IT, BUT I WOULD.
>> SO WHAT IS THE FEEDBACK YOU'RE RECEIVING FROM THESE GROUPS?
>> ONE MAJOR FEEDBACK THAT WE SUMMED UP HERE IS NEEDING MORE FREQUENT SERVICE, TO OUR COMMITTEE, NOT ONLY THIS CORRIDOR, THAT'S ONE. THE SECOND SES SUGGESTION IS LOG AT OUR RIGHT OFWAYS, ESPECIALLY ON SILVER LINES, SINCE EARLY STAGE, WE'RE RECOMMENDING LANES, SO WE'RE VERY COGNIZANT OF THAT. ONE OTHER FEEDBACK, LIKE BICYCLE COMMUNITY, HAVING THE ABILITY TO PARK YOUR BICYCLES AND GET ON VEHICLE, AND I THINK THE CONCURRENT WORK THAT THE CITY IS DOING ON THE BICYCLE MASTER PLAN IS GOING TO HELP US ALSO FOR THAT.
OVERALL, BEING INFORMED AND BEING TRANSPARENT IS THE ASK. THAT'S WHAT I HEAR WHENEVER I TALK TO PEOPLE, AND JUST ONGOING ENGAGEMENT, GIVING THEM INFORMATION AS WE GO THROUGH VARIOUS PROJECTS IS GOING TO BE HELPFUL. THE SILVER LINE IS ALSO GOING TO -- BOTH PROJECTS ARE ALSO GOING TO WORK WITH THE OTHER INITIATIVE, BETTER BUS PLAN, SO WE ALSO SOMETIMES HEAR COMMENTS RELATED TO OUR OTHER BUS SYSTEM AND BUS ROUTES. THAT'S WHAT I CAN THINK ON TOP OF MY MIND.
>> OKAY. THANK YOU. THAT'S VERY HELPFUL.
KEEP IT UP. ENGAGEMENT IS DIFFICULT. YOU HAVE TO GO WHERE PEOPLE ON, THEY'RE NOT GOING TO COME TO YOU. THEY'RE BUSY, HAVE LIVES AND CHILDREN AND ALL OF THAT, SO I APPRECIATE THAT YOU'RE GOING INTO THE NEIGHBORHOODS, GOING INTO WHERE THEY'RE WORKING AND HAVING THOSE CONVERSATIONS.
I'M VERY ENCOURAGED TO KNOW YOU SPOKE TO THOSE TWO LADIES.
THEY WERE A WHILE BACK, BUT WE REMEMBER THEM, IT WAS A VERY IMPACTFUL STATEMENT THEY MADE, AND EVERYBODY IN THIS ROOM IS ABOUT SERVING COMMUNITY, SO WE HAVE TO ALWAYS ALLOW THAT SPACE TO LEAD WITH THEIR INPUT IN MIND, AND I SAID I'M PUMPED ABOUT THIS. I APPRECIATE ALL YA'LL'S WORK.
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, CHAIR. >> COURAGE: THANK YOU, COUNCILWOMAN ALDERETE
GAVITO. >> ALDERETE GAVITO: THANK YOU, CHAIR, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION, IT'S SO NICE TO SEE VIA FAMILY HERE. I'M ALSO EXTREMELY EXCITED ABOUT THE GREEN AND SILVER LINES. I ACTUALLY HAD A COUPLE QUESTIONS REGARDING THE FINANCING. SO ON SLIDE 4, IT WAS SAYING, YOU KNOW, THAT THE FEDERAL SHARE LOCK IS 267.8 MILLION.
>> YES. >> ALDERETE GAVITO: SO ARE THOSE COMMITTED TO US AND IF WE MEET PARAMETERS THEN WE GET THAT FUNDING? DO WE HAVE TO APPLY?
WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? >> THANK YOU.
SO THE BIG FEDERAL -- SO THIS IS A COMPETITIVE GRANT PROGRAM.
SO WE GO THROUGH A VERY EXHAUSTIVE APPLICATION ON SEVERAL CRITERIAS, WHICH INCLUDE NOT ONLY FINANCIAL CAPACITY, MANAGEMENT CAPACITY, TECHNICAL CAPACITY, AND DEMOGRAPHICS LINE USAGE, IT'S ALMOST LIKE A POINT SYSTEM, AND WE HAVE TO SCORE MEDIUM HIGH IN ORDER TO BE EVEN RECOMMENDED FOR A BUD BUDGET. AT 30% SUBMITTAL, WHICH IS 30% DESIGN, CLEARANCE, AND MEETING ALL OF THESE CRITERIAS, FEDERAL GOVERNMENT LOOKS AT -- ASSESSES THE PROJECT, AND IF IT IS A MEDIUM/HIGH, THEY ARE GOING TO, AT THAT POINT, TELL US -- WE ASK FOR
[01:15:02]
60%, THEY'RE GOING TO GIVE US THE FULL 60%, BUT PORTION HALF.OUR PROJECT, NOT ONLY SCORED WELL BECAUSE OF DEMOGRAPHICS AND NEED IN OUR COMMUNITY, THEY HAVE GIVEN US OUR FULL ASK, WHICH IS 267.8 MILLION, WHICH IS RECOMMENDED. THAT DOESN'T MEAN I HAVE THAT MONEY TODAY.
>> ALDERETE GAVITO: RIGHT. >> I HAVE TO STILL COMPLETE THE FEDERAL PROCESS REQUIREMENT TO ACHIEVE THAT FULL FUNDING GRANT AGREEMENT, WHICH IS A LEGAL DOCUMENT WHICH DESCRIBED THE SCHOOL, BUDGET, AND SCHEDULE, AND THEY WILL DO ONE MORE REVIEW IF I CAN SAY ALL OF OUR WORK LATER IN THIS YEAR BEFORE WE ACHIEVE THAT. ONCE THAT AGREEMENT IS SIGNED, WE WILL BE ABLE TO DRAW DOWN THAT FUNDING, BUT UNTIL THAT AGREEMENT IS SIGNED WHILE THE BUDGET IS RECOMMENDED, IT IS NOT
OURS. >> ALDERETE GAVITO: YEAH. >> IN A SIMPLE LANGUAGE,
UNTIL WE MEET ALL THE REQUIREMENTS. >> ALDERETE GAVITO: OKAY.
AND THEN THAT CHECK FOR THE REST OF THE REMAINDER OF THE FEDERAL SHARE WILL HAPPEN LATER ON THIS YEAR? IS THAT WHAT YOU SAID?
>> SO OUR TARGET IS TO MEET FULL FUNDING GRANT AGREEMENT IN SEPTEMBER, AND WE'RE WORKING VERY HARD BECAUSE OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGE THAT MAY HAPPEN, AND THEN AT THAT TIME WE WILL ALSO NEGOTIATE DRAWDOWN SCHEDULE BECAUSE THIS IS 60%, AND THERE IS A 40% THAT IS COMING FROM SOMEWHERE ELSE. SO AT THE TIME OF THAT, WE HAVE TO GIVE THEM DRAWDOWN SCHEDULE FOR CONSTRUCTION AND VARIOUS
ACTIVITIES, AND THEN WE CAN GET THAT FUNDING. >> ALDERETE GAVITO: JEWS TO BE CLEAR, SO THAT'S DECEMBER OF THIS YEAR, SO ALL OF OUR FEDERAL FUNDS SHOULD BE LOCKED IN BEFORE THIS YEAR BEFORE ANY PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT.
>> ONLY GREEN LINE WE CAN LOCK IN, WE CANNOT LOCK IN SILVER LINE.
>> ALDERETE GAVITO: OKAY. THANK YOU, THAT CLARIFICATION WAS HELPFUL. SO GOING TO SILVER LINE FINANCING.
THANK YOU, CRAB COUNCILMAN MCKEE RODRIGUEZ TO ACKNOWLEDGING THE COUNTY'S PORTION IN IT. BUT WHAT OTHER FEDERAL FUNDS WILL BE PENDING
FOR THE SILVER LINE? >> SO WE ARE GOING TO DRAW DOWN 8.1 MILLION FOR PROJECT WE CAN ONLY DRAW DOWN $134 MILLION AT -- IN JANUARY AND THEN BE FINISHED PROJECT BUT TO MAKE THAT AGREEMENT, WE NEED TO SHOW THAT 100.5 MILLION ARE COMMITTED AND LABELED FOR US, NOT IN BANK, BUT COMMITTED, AND WE HAVE FINISHED ENGINEERING, WE HAVE FINISHED ENVIRONMENTAL, AND WE HAVE DONE ENOUGH PROPERTY ASSESSMENT -- WHAT WE NEED, AND, AGAIN, WE WILL GET EVALUATED PROBABLY TWICE BEFORE JANUARY 2027, AND AT THAT POINT, WHATEVER ADMINISTRATION IS THERE, THAT'S THE
ADMINISTRATION WE HAVE TO WORK WITH. >> ALDERETE GAVITO: YEAH, WHICH IS CONCERNING JUST BECAUSE, I MEAN, WE DON'T KNOW WHAT WILL HAPPEN.
SO YOU SAID -- AND I'M SORRY BECAUSE YOU WERE SAYING JANUARY, AND WE CAN TALK OFFLINE, I MEAN, I KNOW I CAN CONTACT YA'LL, I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE SECURING AS MUCH OF THE FEDERAL FUNDING AS POSSIBLE NOW BEFORE THERE'S ANY CHANGE IN -- ANY SHIFT IN THIS
DIRECTION, SO THAT'S ALL, THANK YOU, CHAIR. >> COURAGE: THANK YOU,
COUNCILWOMAN. COUNCILWOMAN KAUR. >> KAUR: THANKS, CHAIR.
THANKS FOR THE PRESENTATION. I KNOW WE JUST SPOKE -- I THINK IT WAS YESTERDAY, BUT JUST A COUPLE THINGS.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WAS ON SLIDE 6 THAT I HADN'T THOUGHT ABOUT PREVIOUSLY WAS THE UTILITY RELOCATION, AND GIVING THAT ON THERE GAVE ME A LITTLE BIT OF HEART PAL PAATIONS, SO CAN YOU JUST TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT -- IT DID TO YOU TOO, JOHN, I'M SURE.
CAN YOU TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW FAR WE ARE ON THIS, HOW MUCH WORK WE HAVE TO DO WITH UTILITY RELOCATION, AND I KNOW WE'RE ONLY 30% OF THE DESIGN IN, BUT TELL ME WHAT THAT'S GOING TO MEAN FOR RESIDENTS.
>> UTILITY RELOCATION IS NOT ON THE ENTIRE CORRIDOR, SO THAT'S ONE THING TO THE MEMBER. UTILITY RELOCATION IS HAPPENING A COUPLE OF OTHER PLACES. THEIR STATIONS ARE GOING TO BE LOCATED, AND THEN
[01:20:01]
THERE ARE STATION TO PUT THE STATION -- IMPROVE A SIDEWALK ON -- TO PROVIDE ACCESS TO THE STATION. SO IT'S VERY LIMITED BY THE SCHOOL. YES, WE HAVE BEEN DISCUSSING UTILITIES FOR A WHILE, ALMOST TWO YEARS. WE HAVE BEEN WORKING WITH THEM, LOOKING AT CONFLICT, AND LOOKING AT WHAT WE NEED TO DO AND HOW WE PHASE THOSE AND WHAT IS OUR FALLBACK SITUATION.SO ALL OF THOSE. IT IS A RISK THAT WE HAVE IDENTIFIED, AND
WE'LL CONTINUE TO WORK TO MITIGATE THAT. >> KAUR: YEAH.
OKAY. ONE, I APPRECIATE BEING BRIEFED ON THIS SO FREQUENTLY AND ALL THE UPDATES THAT WE CAN MAKE SURE WE'RE THINKING -- I -- YOUR OFFICE CAN MAKE SURE WE'RE THINKING OF THESE THINGS AS WE GET QUESTIONS FOR THEM, AND I THINK THINGS LIKE THAT WILL BE IMPORTANT FOR PUBLIC TO KNOW IN THE ENGAGEMENT SESSIONS WE HAVE, IS THERE GOING TO BE UTILITY RELOCATION, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR THE SPECIFIC CORRIDOR, AND JUST ECHOING PUBLICALLY THE THINGS WE TALKED ABOUT YESTERDAY, HAVING BUSINESS TOWN HALES TOGETHER, BUSINESS MEETINGS TOGETHER, AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE PROVIDING PEOPLE WITH VISUAL EXPERIENCES OF WHAT THIS FEELS LIKE SO IT FEELS TANGIBLE TO COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
REACHING OUT TO FOLKS. I KNOW YOU'RE DOING ALL OF THESE THINGS, BUT I WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE ECHOING THE IMPORTANCE OF THAT, AND I KNOW WE'LL SIT DOWN AND TALK ABOUT DESIGN A LITTLE BIT MORE AND HAVE SOME MORE NUANCED CONVERSATIONS ABOUT THAT.
BUT I THINK THE MORE PEOPLE THAT CAN REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT THIS MEANS AND TALKING ABOUT IT MORE, THE MORE WE'LL BE ABLE TO GET SUPPORT IN MIND. BECAUSE I REMEMBER THE FIRST TIME YA'LL BRIEFED ME ON THIS -- THIS IS LIKE A YEAR AND A HALF AGO NOW, AND YOU TOLD ME ABOUT THE AMOUNT OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT THAT HAD BEEN DONE, AND I WAS IMPRESSED, AND THEN I THINK EVERY TIME I GO TO ANY NEIGHBORHOOD MEETING, THERE'S STILL 101 QUESTIONS. SO NOT SAYING YOU GUYS HAVEN'T BEEN DOING A LOT, BUT THERE'S A LOT MORE TO BE DONE STILL, AND I KNOW WE HAVE TIME TO DO IT, BUT I WANT TO MAKE SURE WE DON'T SAY, OH, WE HAVE PLENTY OF TIME AND PUT IT OFF AND NOT PRIORITIZING THE SCHEDULING OF THOSE THINGS AND MAKING THEM IMPORTANT.
I KNOW YOU SELECTED YOUR CMAR TO WE'RE EXCITED TO WORK WITH THEM TO GET THIS DESIGN DONE. SO, AGAIN, EXCITED ABOUT THE GREEN LINE AND ALL YOU'RE DOING AND HAPPY TO BE OF SUPPORT. THANKS FOR THE
PRESENTATION. THANKS, CHAIR. >> COURAGE: THANK YOU.
A COUPLE QUESTIONS I HAVE. ONE IS RELATED TO THE SIZE OF THE BUSES. I HEARD THE COUNCILMAN ASK HOW MANY PEOPLE CAN YOU MOVE, AND I TOO HAVE SEEN FACILITIES WHERE THEY HAVE MU MULTIPLE BUSES JOINED TOGETHER AND THEY COULD MOVE 100, 150 PEOPLE SOMEWHERE, AND YET WE JUST SAID WE'LL MOVE 50 OR 55 PEOPLE. ONCE THESE LINES ARE PUT IN PLACE, I THINK WE'LL NEED A LOT MORE THAN THAT.
SO WHAT ARE THE PLANS FOR HAVING SOME OF THESE EXPANDED BUSES THAT LOOK LIKE TWO OF THEM TOGETHER WITH AN ACCORDION IN THE MIDDLE
OR SOMETHING. >> SO THE BUSES THAT WE ARE CURRENTLY PURCHASING, THEY ARE SINGLE ARTICLE VEHICLES. OUR SERVICE IS TEN MINUTES, SO FROM OPERATIONAL PERSPECTIVE, BEFORE YOU GO TO TRY OUT A PARTICULAR VEHICLE, WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO GO FROM 10 MINUTE TO 7 MINUTES TO 5 MINUTES TO 3 MINUTES TO MOVE PEOPLE THROUGH THE CORRIDOR.
THE KEY IS FREQUENTLY. SO BY ADDING MORE FREQUENCY, YOU CAN ALSO CARRY MORE CAPACITY. THE AGENCIES THAT USE ARTICULATED VEHICLES THAT TYPICALLY IN LATIN AMERICA, NOT ONLY ARE THEY TRIARTICULATED, THE FREQUENCY IS THREE TO FIVE MINUTES, SO THEY HAVE THE VOLUME BECAUSE OF THE DENSITIES AND KINDS OF CITIES. SO OUR CORRIDOR IS DESIGNED TO DOUBLE THE CAPACITY OR TRIPLE THE CAPACITY AS NEEDED.
SO IT WILL LOST LONG TERM. >> COURAGE: OKAY.
ALSO, I'VE SEEN THAT THERE'S SOME ELECTRIC BUSES BEING DEVELOPED.
ARE WE LOOKING AT THAT AS ONE OF THE NEW SYSTEMS WE MIGHT BE
BRINGING IN? >> SO WE ARE CURRENTLY GOING FORWARD WITH CNG VEHICLES, LESSONS LEARNED FROM OUR VISITS TO OTHER AGENCY AND ALSO OUR OWN EXPERIENCES BECAUSE ELECTRIC VEHICLES THAT ARE AVAILABLE TODAY NEED CHARGING MIDPOINT, SO OUR GOAL IS WHENEVER ELECTRIC BUS CAN JUST GO OUT AND RUN ALL THE ROUTE AND COME BACK AND WE CAN CHARGE, AT THAT POINT WE CAN CONSIDER ELECTRIC VEHICLES.
BUT CURRENTLY, CNG, VIA HAS INVESTED IN CNG, AND OUR EMISSIONS ARE
[01:25:06]
REDUCED FROM GOING TO CNG. WE'RE CONTINUING THAT.TYPICAL LIFE OF BUS IS 12 TO 15 YEARS, SO AT THE TIME OF REPLACEMENT, WE ARE ABLE TO CHANGE FROM CNG OR ELECTRIC OR WHATEVER OTHER
TECHNOLOGY IS AVAILABLE AT THAT POINT. >> COURAGE: OKAY.
ALSO, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE ADDITIONAL FUNDING, WHAT CONSIDERATION ARE WE GIVING TO THE SALES TAX THAT VIA WILL BE RECEIVING IN ABOUT TWO YEARS? RIGHT NOW, FOR EXAMPLE, THAT 1.8% SALES TAX BRINGS IN -- OR ESTIMATED TO BRING IN $200 MILLION OVER FOUR YEARS FOR READY TO WORK, WHICH IS AN INCREASE ON WHAT THEY WERE ORIGINALLY LOOKING AT. SO TWO YEARS FROM NOW WHEN YOU START GETTING THAT MONEY, IT MAY BE $250 MILLION OVER A 4-YEAR PERIOD OR WHATEVER. SO WHY ISN'T THAT MONEY BEING ALLOCATED TOWARD FUNDING THE INCREASES TO DO THE WORK RATHER THAN GOING TO THE CITY OR THE
COUNTY FOR MORE MONEY? >> SO THE MONEY -- WE KEPT THE SAME MOVING FRAMEWORK AND WENT TO THE WATERS WITHOUT PLAN. THE MONEY THAT WE ARE GETTING IS ALSO SPONSORING THE LOCAL SHARE, SOME OF THE LOCAL SHARE THAT WE ARE GOING TO -- 20% OF THE GREEN LINE AND SOME OF THE OTHER SHARE THAT WE HAVE, I THINK 42 MILLION, PLUS OR MINUS, FOR SILVER LINE. BUT WE NEED FUNDING TO UPGRADE TO THESE TWO LINES. THAT MONEY IS ALSO GOING TO THE SECOND FACILITY, THE OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE FACILITY AND ALSO EXPANSION OF OUR EXISTING BUILDING AND SOME OF THE SERVICES. SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT COMPREHENSIVE VIA NEEDS AND THE PLAN, THAT MONEY IS ALREADY SPOKEN FOR TO DO ALL THE OTHERS BECAUSE THESE ARE CAPITAL PROJECTS, BUT WE ALSO HAVE OPERATIONAL NEEDS FOR OUR EXISTING BUS SERVICE.
SO YOU WANT TO ENSURE THAT WE ARE NOT ONLY FUNDING TWO PROJECTS, WE
ARE LOOKING AT THE ENTIRE SERVICE AREA. >> COURAGE: RIGHT.
AND I THINK I'D LIKE TO SEE THAT BROKEN DOWN IN ANTICIPATION OF HOW THAT MONEY WILL BE SPENT AND HOW IT'S GOING TO BE ALLOCATED IN THE FUTURE JUST SO I CAN REASSURE MYSELF. BUT OTHER THAN THAT, I DON'T HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS. ANY OTHER COUNCILMEMBER? OKAY. HEARING NONE, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
WE CERTAINLY WISH YOU THE BEST OF SUCCESS. >> THANK YOU.
>> COURAGE: SO I THINK THAT CONCLUDES OUR MEETING. THERE'S NOTHING ELSE ON OUR AGENDA. OH, I WILL MENTION THAT I AM ANTICIPATING IN THE JUNE AGENDA THAT WE'LL BE ADDRESSING THE HO HORSE-DRAWN CARRIAGE ISSUE, I WOULD ASK ANY OF YOU, IF YOU DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH, YOU KNOW, BE PREPARED TO HEAR A PRESENTATION ABOUT THAT AT OUR JUNE MEETING.
THANK YOU. WE'RE ADJOURNED.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.