[00:00:24]
          >> WONDERFUL. WE'LL KICK OFF WITH THE APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM 
          THE EWCD MEETING ON FEBRUARY 25. I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION. >> MOTION MADE. 
          >> SECOND. >> ALL IN FAVOR PLEASE SAY AYE? ANY OPPOSED? ANY ABSTENTIONS? MOTION CARRIES. 
          WE'LL START WITH ITEM NUMBER 2 -- DO WE HAVE PUBLIC COMMENT? 
          >> THERE'S NOBODY SIGNED UP. >> ITEM NUMBER 2 IS GREATER SAME SEX REGIONAL ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP 2025 OPERATIONS PLAN AND FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT ATTRACTION PLAN. 
          IT'S ALL YOURS. >> FANTASTIC. CHAIR WOMAN, COUNCIL MEMBERS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE TODAY AND PRESENT ON THE 2025 PROGRAM OF WORK FOR GREATER SATX. WE RECOGNIZE WE ARE TOWARDS THE END OF MARCH IN PRESENTING INFORMATION OUT BUT LOOKING FORWARD TO YOUR FEEDBACK THROUGHOUT THE CONVERSATION TODAY. I ALSO WANT TO SAY A QUICK THANK YOU TO THE STAFF HERE, THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STAFF, THEY'RE FANTASTIC PARTNERS AND WE'VE WORKED VERY CLOSELY ON THIS PLAN TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE WORKING TOGETHER ON OUR SHARED GOALS AND OBJECTIVES. ADDITIONALLY WE HAVE A FEW OF THE GREATER SATX TEAM MEMBERS THAT ARE HERE OR IN ROUTE TO BEING HERE, SO AS WE GET INTO THIS, IF YOU HAVE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS, I MAY REFERENCE THEM FOR THEIR QUICK RESPONSE. AND LAST, BUT NOT LEAST, BEFORE WE MOVE INTO THE PRESENTATION, I JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU. WE ARE SO GRATEFUL FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO PARTNER WITH YOU ALL ON BRINGING TO LIFE A VISION FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND PROSPERITY FOR SAN ANTONIO AND WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT THE WORK THAT WE GET TO DO TOGETHER TO MOVE THE NEEDLE FOR OUR COMMUNITY. 
          SO WITH THAT I'LL BEGIN. 
          THE FOREFRONT OF THE WORLD'S LEADING ECONOMIES, AND WE ARE WORKING SPECIFICALLY WITHIN OUR ORGANIZATION TO DRIVE THE COMPONENT OF THAT VISION, WHICH IS FOCUSED ON JOBS. JOBS IS OUR MISSION. WE ARE WORKING TO DRIVE JOB CREATION IN SAN ANTONIO THROUGH NEW OR EXPANDING PROJECTS AND BUSINESSES THAT ARE ULTIMATELY PROVIDING ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY AND ECONOMIC MOBILITY FOR SAN ANTONIO RESIDENTS. WE'RE EXCITED THIS YEAR AS AN ORGANIZATION AT GREATER SATX AND FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE SAN ANTONIO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FOUNDATION, TO BE CELEBRATING 50 YEARS AS AN ORGANIZATION. SO WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT THIS WORK THAT WE'VE BEEN DOING FOR A LONG TIME, BUT ALSO IN A LOT OF WAYS, WE ARE VERY MUCH LIKE A START-UP ORGANIZATION. AS YOU KNOW, WE REBRANDED TO GREATER SATX AS AN ORGANIZATION JUST A COUPLE OF YEARS BACK, AND WE LAUNCHED A BRAND NEW STRATEGY. AND OF COURSE WE LAUNCHED THAT IN JANUARY OF 2020 AND THEN THE WORLD CHANGED, AND WE HAD TO PAUSE AUDIO] AND HELPING WITHSTAND THAT PERIOD OF DIFFICULTY. AND THEN WE WERE ABLE TO GET THE STRATEGY TRULY LAUNCHED IN 21. SO OUR STRATEGY IS QUITE SIMPLE. WE BELIEVE THAT IF WE INVEST IN OUR PEOPLE AND IN OUR PLACE, THAT JOB CREATING INVESTMENTS WILL FOLLOW. WE HAVE SET OUT SOME VERY BIG, AMBITIOUS GOALS OF DRIVING IMPACT INTO OUR REGIONAL ECONOMY OF $55 BILLION OVER THIS FIVE-YEAR WORRIED, PERIOD, RESUG IN NEW JOBS, 5 BILLION IN INVESTMENT AND 25,000 NEW TARGET DEGREES AND CERTIFICATIONS. 
          OF COURSE, ALL OF THAT IS INTENDED TO DRIVE ECONOMIC MOBILITY. 
          IF YOU LOOK AT OUR 2021 THROUGH 2025 STRATEGIC INITIATIVES, WE HAVE OUTLINED THOSE AREAS THAT SPECIFICALLY DRIVE THOSE PILLARS OF FOCUS. 
          WE HAVE IDENTIFIED 10 TARGETED INITIATIVES TO DRIVE RESULTS AND WE ARE WORKING AS A REGION, RIGHT, NOT JUST AS GREATER SATX, BUT AS A REGION AND AS A COMMUNITY, TO DRIVE RESULTS ACROSS EACH OF THESE AREAS OF FOCUS. 
          THIS IS, OF COURSE, OUR STRATEGIC PLAN, BUT IT TRULY IS A REGIONAL EFFORT. 
          I'VE ADDED THIS SLIDE IN FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT DOWNLOADED THE PRESENTATION AHEAD OF TODAY'S MEETING, PLEASE NOTE I HAVE A HANDOUT COPY OF THIS IF THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL FOR YOU, BUT I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT OUR REGIONAL ECONOMIC 
          [00:05:05]
DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY IS WORKING. IF YOU LOOK AT THE NUMBERS, EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT IN SAN ANTONIO HAS RISEN 6.4% OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS. 
          THAT IS THE FASTEST AMONGST OUR PEER SET THAT WE BENCHMARK OURSELVES AGAINST EVERY SINGLE YEAR, SO WE ARE SEEING A DIFFERENCE ON EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT. 
          THAT IS LEADING US TO WAGE GROWTH. WE WERE THE TOP TEXAS MARKET FOR WAGE GROWTH IN 2024, WHICH IS LEADING TO ECONOMIC CAPACITY WITHIN THE FAMILIES HERE IN OUR REGION. WE ARE ALSO THE NUMBER 3 U.S. MARKET FOR JOB CREATION IN 2024 AND THE NUMBER ONE TEXAS MARKET FOR JOB CREATION IN 2024. 
          THIS IS A BIG DEAL. THESE AREN'T THE NUMBERS THAT WE'RE USED TO SEEING AND WE'RE SO EXCITED THAT WE ARE SEEING THOSE NUMBERS HERE TODAY. 
          AND THAT MEANS WE'RE SITTING AT A RELATIVELY LOW UNEMPLOYMENT RATE, 6.4%. 
          WE ARE SEEING AROUND THIS OPPORTUNITY WITH JOB CREATION AND QUALITY OF LIFE HERE IN SAN ANTONIO WE ARE THE NUMBER ONE MARKET NOW FOR POPULATION GROWTH YEAR OVER YEAR FROM 2023 TO 2024. WE HAVE SEEN THE AIRPORT CAPACITY INCREASE, UP FOUR PERCENT FROM 2023 WITH RECORD-BREAKING TRAVEL ANNOUNCEMENTS YEAR AFTER YEAR. AND PRICE WATER HOUSE HOUSE COOPERS ANNOUNCED WE WERE THE NUMBER ONE INVESTMENT FOR CONSIDERATION FOR INVESTORS. 
          I SAY ALL THAT BECAUSE IT IS WORKING. OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY IS STRONG, THE FOUNDATIONS ARE STRONG AND WE ARE NOW SEEING THE RESULTS IN OUR PIPELINE. OUR PIPELINE HAS TRANSFORMED TREMENDOUSLY IN TERMS OF HIGHER QUALITY DEAL FLOW. WE HAVE PROJECTS THAT ARE WORTH BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN CAPITAL INVESTMENT, SEVERAL OF WHICH WILL BE COMING BEFORE THIS BODY NOT TOO LONG FROM NOW. WE HAVE SIGNIFICANT JOB CREATION OPPORTUNITIES. 
          WE HAVE MORE THAN 100RFIS THAT ARE SITTING OPEN TODAY FOR COMPANY PROJECTS WHERE WE ARE AWAITING RESULTS AND FEEDBACK ON NEXT STEPS FOR PROJECTS. 
          AND OUR LEAD CONVERSIONS HAVE ACCELERATED. WE LAUNCHED A LEAD GENERATION STRATEGY JUST OVER TWO AND A HALF YEARS AGO AND LAST YEAR WE BEGAN TO SEE THOSE -- THE LEADS TURN INTO ACTIVE PROJECTS AND WE SAW MORE THAN 50 OF THOSE CONVERT LAST YEAR AND WE'RE WELL ON TRACK FOR THAT THIS YEAR. 
          SO THAT TELLS ME NOT ONLY IS THE FOUNDATION STRONG, THE ECONOMY IS STRONG, WE ARE WORKING ON THE RIGHT THINGS AS AN ORGANIZATION AND AS A BROADER COMMUNITY FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TO MOVE THE NEEDLE. SO LET'S LOOK SPECIFICALLY AT OUR FIVE-YEAR PLAN GOALS AS AN ORGANIZATION FOR GREATER SATX. 
          AS I MENTIONED, WE'VE REALLY BUILT THE FOUNDATION FOR SUCCESS AND YOU'RE SEEING THAT HERE IN THE NUMBERS. IN THE LEFT-HAND COLUMN YOU SEE THAT WE HAVE EXCEEDED SEVERAL OF THOSE TOP GOALS THAT WE SET OUT IN 2021. WE HAVE EXCEEDED THE CAPITAL INVESTMENT GOAL THAT WE SET OF $5 BILLION, WE'RE SITTING AT $6.6 BILLION TODAY. 
          WE ACHIEVED MORE THAN 25,000, WHICH WAS OUR GOAL, IN STUDENT WORK-BASED LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES. SO 33,800 STUDENTS WENT THROUGH THE GREATER SATX'S AND SA'S WORK-BASED LEARNING INITIATIVES, AND WE SET A TARGET OF A HIGH WAGE, WHICH WAS DEFINED AS $50,000 PER YEAR, TO BRING IN ALL OF THE JOBS THAT WE'RE SUPPORTING NEED TO HIT THAT TARGET. AND WE CAN CONFIDENTLY SAY TODAY THAT THAT IN FACT IS TRUE. SO AGAIN, WORKING ON THE RIGHT KINDS OF DEALS. 
          WE'RE MAKING PROGRESS ON BRAND EQUITY AS A COMMUNITY AMONGST INDIVIDUALS AROUND THE WORLD. I MENTIONED ALREADY THAT WE CONVERTED SEVERAL OF OUR LEADS SO THIS IS OUR PROACTIVE MORE LAST YEAR AND HAVE CONVERTED TO ACTIVE PROJECTS FOR US. 
          AND WE HAVE SEEN SIX AIR SERVICE DEVELOPMENT ROUTES THAT WE SET OUT AS A COMMUNITY TO TARGET COME THROUGH TO FRUITION. OUR FOCUS GOALS FOR THIS YEAR, FOR CLOSING OUT OUR FIVE-YEAR STRATEGY IS AROUND CLOSING PROJECTS ONE, DEALS, RIGHT? WE'RE SITTING RIGHT UNDER 17,000 NEW INDUSTRY JOBS 
          [00:10:04]
THAT HAVE BEEN CREATED IN THE LAST FOUR YEARS AND OUR PIPELINE IS INCREDIBLY STRONG AND I WILL SAY, FRANKLY, THIS IS THE BEST I'VE FELT STARTING ANY YEAR IN TERMS OF WHAT WE'RE SEEING IN ACTIVITY IN THE PIPELINE, HOSTING AND THE OPPORTUNITIES IN THE SIZE AND SCALE OF THE DEALS THAT WE'RE SUPPORTING TODAY. 
          AND WE ARE ALSO FOCUSED ON CONNECTING WITH OUR LOCAL BUSINESSES TO CONTINUE TO HELP THEM GROW AND EXPAND AND MEET THEIR NEEDS HERE LOCALLY THROUGH OUR OUTREACH EFFORTS. THOSE ARE OUR TOP TWO FOCUS HERE'S FOR THIS YEAR AHEAD. 
          LOOKING AT OUR GUIDE HOUSE, WHICH WAS A 1,000 PERSON OFFICE DEAL, THE LARGEST OFFICE WE'LL WE'VE SEEN IN THE COUNTRY REALLY IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS AND REALLY SINCE PRE-COVID. AND THAT HAS BEEN -- AND THEY SELECTED US WITHOUT GOING THROUGH THE INCENTIVE'S PROCESS BECAUSE THEY FELT REALLY STRONGLY THAT WE COULD DELIVER ON THE WORKFORCE THAT THEY NEED. THAT TO ME IS THE GREATEST WIN AND VOTE OF CONFIDENCE THAT WE COULD GET. ADDITIONALLY LAST YEAR WE SAW SOME EXCITING NEWS FROM TOYOTA, JCB HAS CONTINUED TO EXPAND AND DEVELOP THEIR FOOTPRINT, INTERNATIONAL, AND I'M THRILLED TO SAY THAT LAST YEAR WE HAD A WIN IN EVERY SINGLE COUNCIL DISTRICT, WHICH AGAIN TREMENDOUS WIN IN MY OPINION. SO TODAY WE'RE GOING TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE SPECIFICS OF OUR WORK PLAN THIS YEAR. WHEN WE LOOK AT TARGET INDUSTRIES THIS SLIDE NEEDS -- WE NEED TO UPDATE, MY APOLOGIES, BUT OUR TARGET INDUSTRY SECTORS THAT OUR REGION AND OUR TEAM IS FOCUSED ON DEVELOPING ARE TECHNOLOGY AND SPECIFICALLY CYBERSECURITY, BIOSCIENCES, FINANCIAL AND PROFESSIONAL SERVICES, AEROSPACE AND DEFENSE AND ADVANCED MANUFACTURING. 
          AND ACROSS ALL SECTORS, OF COURSE, WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING AT HEADQUARTER OPPORTUNITIES FOR RECRUITMENT, SUPPORTING THE GROWTH OF OUR MILITARY MISSIONS, RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT AND COMMERCIALIZATION OPPORTUNITIES. SO WITHIN THE JOBS PILLAR, CLOSE DEALS IS WHAT I MENTIONED IS OUR FIRST PRIORITY IN THE YEAR AHEAD. SO HOW DO WE MAKE SURE AND WHAT ARE WE DOING TO SUPPORT THAT TREMENDOUS EFFORT? WE HAVE BUILT OUR TRAVEL CALENDAR AROUND BEING ABLE TO PIVOT AND BE AGILE GETTING IN FRONT OF PROJECTS WHEN THE TIME IS RIGHT AND WE HAVE ALLOCATED SIGNIFICANT RESOURCES AND BUDGET TOWARDS PROJECT MANAGEMENT EXPERTISE WITHIN THE TEAM. 
          WE ARE ALSO WORKING REALLY HARD TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR MESSAGING AND ASSET MAPPING, THE INFORMATION THAT WE KNOW ABOUT OUR TARGET INDUSTRIES IS AS STRONG AS IT'S EVER BEEN SO THAT WE'RE BEST TELLING THAT STORY IN A LANGUAGE THAT COMPANIES LISTEN THESE INDUSTRIES CAN UNDERSTAND. THEN WE CONTINUE TO LEAN IN ON GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT. WHEN YOU LOOK AT STATISTICS THERE HAVE BEEN FEWER DOMESTIC MOVES IN RECENT YEARS FROM AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PERSPECTIVE AND YOU'RE SEEING GREATER NUMBERS OF INTERNATIONAL FIRMS ENTERING THE U.S. 
          MARKET. THIS YEAR THINGS ARE SHIFTING A BIT AND THERE ARE ANNOUNCEMENTS COMING BOTH FROM DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL COMPANIES, BUT FROM WHAT WE'RE SEEING IN OUR PIPELINE, WHICH SITS ANYWHERE FROM 40 TO 60 PERCENT AT ANY GIVEN TIME OF THE PIPELINE IS SITTING AROUND GLOBAL OPPORTUNITIES. 
          SO WE WILL CONTINUE TO LEAN IN IN OUR CONTRACTS IN OUR TARGET MARKETS, WHICH ARE JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA. WITHIN EUROPE WE FOCUS ON GERMANY, THE UK AND THIS YEAR WE'RE TESTING THE WATER WITH FRANCE, CANADA. AND WHEN WE TALK ABOUT MEXICO SPECIFICALLY WE ARE SUPPORTING LOCAL BUSINESSES THAT ARE LOOKING TO EXPORT AND DEVELOP IN MEXICO. ON THE BUSINESS RETENTION ELEMENT OF OUR WORK, OUR SECOND TOP PRIORITY AS I MENTIONED FOR THE YEAR, WE ARE -- I WANT TO TAKE A STEP BACK. I THINK A LOT OF TIMES WE SPEND A LOT OF ENERGY FOCUSED ON THE NUMBER OF MEETINGS THAT WE HAVE WITH COMPANIES. 
          AND I'D LIKE TO ENCOURAGE US ALL TO BE THINKING ABOUT THIS MORE BROADLY. 
          WHEN WE LOOK AT OUR PROGRAM OF WORK, WE THINK ABOUT EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. THAT TO ME IS THE NUMBER ONE THING WE CAN DO TO SUPPORT COMPANIES GROWING HERE WITHIN THE REGION. WE THINK ABOUT AIR SERVICE DEVELOPMENT, MAKING SURE THE BUSINESSES THAT ARE HERE CAN GET WHERE THEY NEED TO BE TO SERVICE THEIR CUSTOMERS AND GROW THEIR BUSINESS BASE. WE LOOK AT EXPORT. 
          HOW DO WE SUPPORT COMPANIES IN SELLING THEIR PRODUCT OUTSIDE OF THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, THUS BRINGING DOLLARS BACK HOME TO GROW THE LOCAL ECONOMY HERE IN 
          [00:15:03]
THE REGION. AND WE CAN THINK A LOT ABOUT CAPACITY BUILDING FOR SMALL AND MINORITY, WOMEN-OWNED BUSINESSES. EXPORT HAS BEEN OUR PRIMARY FOCUS WHEN WE THINK ABOUT THAT CAPACITY BUILDING AND LEANING IN, BUT BROADLY GLOBAL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT. SO THOSE ARE THE AREAS WHEN WE THINK ABOUT BUSINESS RETENTION AND GROWTH, HOW WE'RE FOCUSING, WITH THE ULTIMATE GOAL OF SEEING THOSE COMPANIES EXPAND AND CREATE MORE JOBS. AS YOU ALL KNOW, WE ARE A REGIONAL ORGANIZATION AS OF OUR IT 2020 STRATEGIC PLAN AND THIS YEAR WE ARE FOCUSED ON THAT FURTHER ALIGNMENT AS AN ORGANIZATION, AS A REGIONAL ENTITY. 
          WE ARE LOOKING AT THE END OF THIS YEAR AND HAVE SEEN APPROVAL FROM OUR EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE TO MOVE TO A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT FUNDING MODEL THAT WILL ALLOW US TO CHARGE THE SAME RATE FOR EACH OF THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS THAT ARE PART OF OUR REGION. THIS WILL ALLOW FOR THAT EQUITABLE ACCESS AND WITH YOU ALL THAT WILL ALLOW YOU TO CONFIDENTLY SAY YOU ARE NOT PAYING FOR JOBS THAT LAND OUTSIDE OF THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO. ADDITIONALLY WITHIN OUR REGIONAL STRATEGY WE ARE VERY FOCUSED ON SITE READINESS AND MAKING SURE AND SOLVING THE GAP ON EXISTING SITES THAT CAN MEET THE NEEDS OF OUR CORPORATE CUSTOMERS. WE HAVE A LIMITED NUMBER OF SITES TODAY AND IF THOSE THAT HAVE SHORTLISTED PROJECTS IN THE LAST COUPLE OF MONTHS COME THROUGH TO FRUITION, WE'RE GOING TO BE REALLY SHORT OF READY SITES AND WE'RE GOING TO NEED TO BE ABLE TO RESPOND AS A COMMUNITY TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE AVAILABLE LAND THAT CAN MEET THE UTILITIES' NEEDS OF THESE FAST-MOVING CLIENTS. ON OUR PLACE PILLAR, WE CATEGORIZE ALL OF OUR BROAD PLACE-BASED MARKETING WORK UNDER THIS EFFORT. 
          WE BUILT IN THE LAST FEW YEARS A LIFE WORKS GREATER CAMPAIGN THAT IS TARGETING GENERAL AWARENESS FOR INDIVIDUALS OUTSIDE OF SAN ANTONIO. 
          SO MOST OF YOU WON'T HAVE SEEN OUR MESSAGING AND OUR ADS BECAUSE THIS ISN'T THE TARGET AUDIENCE, RIGHT, WE'RE FOCUSED ON FOLKS OUTSIDE OF SAN ANTONIO. 
          THE GOAL IS GENERAL AWARENESS AND TALENT RECRUITMENT. 
          THIS YEAR WE'RE GOING TO BE PRIORITIZING INDUSTRY MESSAGING AND ALIGNMENT AS I MENTIONED BEFORE IN OUR KEY TARGET MARKETS FOR THOSE INDUSTRIES. 
          ON THE PR SIDE YOU WILL CONTINUE TO SEE US WORK TO PLACE ADS IN NATIONAL PUBLICATIONS SUCH AS FORBES, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, FORTUNE, ET CETERA, ET CETERA. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AS I ALWAYS SAY IS A TEAM SPORT. 
          WE ARE ONE SATX AND SO THAT TOP LINE THERE, STAKEHOLDER AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, IS ONE OF THE MOST CRUCIAL THINGS THAT WE DO EVERY SINGLE DAY ACROSS EVERY PILLAR OF WORK, WHICH IS MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE STRONG ENGAGEMENT AND REPRESENTATION ACROSS THE COMMUNITY SO THAT WE CAN ACHIEVE THESE BROADER GOALS. 
          AND I ALREADY MENTIONED SIGNIFICANT WINS IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS ON AIR SERVICE DEVELOPMENT, BUT WE WILL CONTINUE TO PUSH FOR ADDITIONAL SERVICE BOTH INTERNATIONALLY AND DOMESTICALLY. AND LAST BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST IS OUR PEOPLE PILLAR OF WORK. THIS IS WHERE WE REALLY -- THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD, RIGHT? WE ARE ALIGNING THE NEEDS OF BUSINESSES WITH THE EDUCATIONAL AND WORKFORCE SUPPLIERS IN OUR COMMUNITY. 
          AND WE ARE DOING SO THIS YEAR BY LARGELY FOCUSING AGAIN WITHIN THOSE TARGET INDUSTRY SECTORS AND MAKING SURE THAT THE INSTITUTIONS IN OUR REGION ARE PUTTING OUT THE BEST TALENT POSSIBLE. WE ARE ALSO FOCUSED ON MAKING SURE THAT THOSE WORK-BASED LEARNING PROGRAMS ALIGN WITH THE NEEDS OF OUR EMPLOYERS AND THAT WE ARE RETAINING THAT TALENT THAT IS COMING OUT OF OUR AREA COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES. ON THE TALENT AND RETENTION SIDE, WE ARE PARTNERING VERY CLOSELY WITH THOSE UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES TO MAKE SURE WE ARE MEETING THE BROADER EDUCATION GOALS, MAKING SURE THAT THE STUDENTS WHO ARE GRADUATING ARE GOING TO BE WELL PREPARED TO NOT JUST MEET THE JOBS OF TODAY, BUT IN THE YEARS AHEAD. SO WITH THAT, I I KNOW WE WILL NOW SPEAK TO THE SPECIFICS OF OUR CONTRACT WITH THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO AND I BELIEVE ALFRED WILL 
          SPEAK TO THAT AND I'M HERE FOR QUESTIONS. >> THANK YOU. 
          [00:20:06]
ALFRED BREWER, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR WITH ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT. 
          OUR WORK PLAN IS PART OF A PAY FOR PERFORMANCE AGREEMENT. 
          WE RENEWED THIS AGREEMENT IN 2024. THIS YEAR IS THE SECOND YEAR, IT'S THE FIRST OF TWO ONE-YEAR RENEWALS. WE HAVE TWO COMPONENTS OF THE AGREEMENT, THE RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION, WHICH IS A RECRUITMENT SCORECARD WITH THE VALUE OF UP TO $635,000, AND THEN OUR FDI ATTRACTION PLAN THAT WE INTRODUCED LAST YEAR, WHICH IS AN EFFORT TO AEXTRACT AND RECRUIT 14 INVESTMENT TO SAN ANTONIO. EACH YEAR WE SET GOALS BASED ON STRATEGY AND THE IMPACT TO SAN ANTONIO'S STRATEGIC INITIATIVES AND INDUSTRIES. THIS YEAR WE'VE SET THE NEW GOALS ACCORDINGLY BASED ON CONVERSATION WITH GREATER SATX, AND AS YOU CAN SEE WE HAVE MONEY TIED TO CERTAIN METRICS, AND THIS YEAR GREATER SATX HAS EARNED $483,483 OUT OF THE TOTAL 635. AS FOR FDI, THIS IS ON A REIMBURSEMENT BASIS SO THIS APPLIES TO CONSULTANTS IN-COUNTRY THAT WE GREATER CONTRACTS WITH AND TO PROVIDE FDI, FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT, LEAD GENERATION AND SUPPORT IN THOSE MARKETS. AND THAT IS A TOTAL OF UP TO 
          $194,250. AND ANY QUESTIONS? >> PELÁEZ: THANK YOU VERY MUCH. WE'LL GO AROUND THE HORN. COUNCILWOMAN VIAGRAN. 
          >> VIAGRAN: THANK YOU. SO I DO HAVE QUESTIONS, BUT DID WE PROJECT FOR THE SLOWDOWN THAT THIS CURRENT ADMINISTRATION -- IN TERMS OF JOB CREATION? DO WE HAVE ANY OF THAT DATA YET OR ARE WE STILL IN A HOLD PATTERN FOR THAT? 
          >> SO GREAT QUESTION. WE'RE ALWAYS TRYING TO PROJECT OUT, BUT WE SET A GOAL FIVE YEARS AGO THAT WE ARE WORKING TO ACHIEVE, AND SO WE HAVE SET THAT GOAL. 
          OUR EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE DID ALLOW US TO SCALE BACK SLIGHTLY FROM THE ORIGINAL PROJECTED GOAL. JUST HONESTLY, IT'S MORE RELATED TO IMPACTS OF COVID, THE OFFICE MARKET, THOSE FACTORS THAT LED US TO TODAY. 
          WHEN I TALK ABOUT OUR PIPELINE TODAY I FEEL MORE CONFIDENT ABOUT IT TODAY THAN I DID EVEN LAST YEAR WHEN I STOOD HERE AT THIS PODIUM. 
          AGAIN, BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN DOING THE HARD WORK TO BUILD THAT PIPELINE. 
          AND THE CURRENT ENVIRONMENT, WHAT WE'RE ACTUALLY SEEING IS LOTS OF INTEREST FROM COMPANIES GLOBALLY TRYING TO LOOK AT OPPORTUNITIES HERE IN THE MARKET. 
          THEY ARE SLOW TO MAKE DECISIONS HERE AT THE START OF THE YEAR, BUT AGAIN, WE'RE FEELING VERY CONFIDENT ABOUT THE DIRECTION OF THE PIPELINE. 
          VEE VEE. >> VIAGRAN:. WE HAD THE WORLD ORGANIZATION OF HERITAGE ORGANIZATIONS HERE LAST WEEK AND I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT IMPRESSED ME WHEN I WAS TALKING TO THEM IS EVERYBODY HAS KIND OF A -- A STEREOTYPE OF TEXANS AND HOW WE DO BUSINESS AND WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO GET WHEN THEY COME HERE, AND THAT THEY WERE, I THINK, WITHOUT SAYING IT, PLEASANTLY SURPRISED THAT WE DIDN'T MEET THOSE STEREOTYPES. 
          AND I THINK THAT'S GOING TO BE KEY AS WE CONTINUE TO TRY AND NAVIGATE GLOBALLY THAT YOU GET OUT THERE AND THAT YOU KEEP US POSTED AS SOON AS WE SEE ANY SLOWDOWN OR RESISTANCE BECAUSE, AGAIN, TWO WEEKS AGO I WAS IN DC FOR NATIONAL LEAGUE OF CITIES AND I WAS TELLING THE WOMEN AT OUR LUNCHEON, I WAS LIKE COME TO SAN ANTONIO FOR THE CONFERENCE AND THEY'RE LIKE, I'M NOT GOING TO TEXAS. 
          AND IT HURT MY FEELINGS, BUT ALL I COULD SAY WAS WELL, JUST COME TO SAN ANTONIO. 
          AND I THINK THAT THERE IS GOING TO BE THAT SENTIMENT THAT WE KIND OF NEED TO WORK THROUGH, AND THE MINUTE WE SEE IT'S GOING TO BE HARDER OR MORE EXPENSIVE TO CONVINCE THEM, LETTING US KNOW, LETTING US KNOW HOW WE CAN HELP BECAUSE WE DID SET THESE GOALS FIVE YEARS AGO. AND UNDER THE EXPECTATION I KNEW THE ADMINISTRATION COULD CHANGE, WE ALL DID, WE JUST DIDN'T KNOW IT WOULD CHANGE LIKE THIS. 
          AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT IS DISCONCERNING ABOUT ALL OF THIS. 
          SO THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION. I WANT TO SEE US GROW AND I KNOW THERE'S A LONG -- THERE ARE OTHER FACTORS BECAUSE WE CAN TALK ABOUT PEOPLE NOT 
          [00:25:05]
GOING INTO THE OFFICE OR THE TELECOMMUTING. I HAVE OFFICE SPACE, AGAIN, AND YOU WERE THERE WHE WE DID THE GROUNDBREAKING FOR WATER'S EDGE, AND HOW WE NEED TO FILL IT AND HOW WE NEED TO ADJUST THE EXPECTATIONS OF BUILDERS OF OFFICE SPACES IN TERMS OF HOW WE MODIFY FOR THIS NEW WORKING ENVIRONMENT POST-PANDEMIC, BUT THEN ALSO FOR THIS NEW PHASE IN TERMS OF GLOBALLY THEY MAY NOT BRING AS -- THEY MAY NOT NEED AS BIG OF A C SUITE AS WE ANTICIPATED BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT SENDING AS MANY PEOPLE TO COME AND HEADQUARTER HERE. 
          SO THANKS FOR THE PRESENTATION. I THINK THAT'S JUST ONE OF THE THINGS IS I SAW THE NEW JOBS, THE PROJECTED CAPITAL, BUT I'M WONDERING HOW THOSE NUMBERS ARE REALLY GOING TO PAN OUT AS WE SEE THERE. AND IF WE COULD GET AN UPDATE BECAUSE WE ARE IN MONTH 3, BUT IF WE COULD GET AN UPDATE AT MONTH 6 OR 8 TO SEE HOW WE'RE REALLY MOVING ON THIS, I WOULD APPRECIATE IT. 
          AND IT DOESN'T HAVE TO COME TO THIS COMMITTEE. IT COULD JUST BE A ONE ON ONE WITH COUNCIL MEMBERS OR A COUPLE OF US, BUT I THINK THAT THAT'S IMPORTANT. 
          THANK YOU. THANK YOU, CHAIR. >> PELÁEZ: THANK YOU. 
          THE COUNCILWOMAN FROM THE FOURTH DISTRICT. >> GARCIA: THANK YOU, CHAIR. THANK YOU SO MUCH, SARA, FOR THE PRESENTATION AND CONGRATULATIONS ON THE JOB CREATION. OF THOSE 16,700 JOBS IN THE 6.6 BILLION, DO WE HAVE LIKE A COMPARISON SET WITH LIKE WHAT DALLAS AND HOUSTON IS GOING? I GUESS I WOULD EVEN INCLUDE FORT WORTH IN THERE, DALLAS-FORT WORTH I GUESS IS COMBINED. WOULD YOU BE ABLE TO SHARE 
          THAT WITH US? >> SURE. I'D BE HAPPY TO FOLLOW UP 
          WITH THAT. >> GARCIA: NO. I'M JUST INTERESTED IN A LITTLE BIT OF THAT. AND ALSO TO COUNCILWOMAN VIAGRAN'S POINT, WITH THE INTERNATIONAL DELEGATIONS THAT WE HAVE HOSTED HERE, I THINK WE FOCUS A LOT ON OUR CULTURE AND THAT'S KIND OF HOW WE SELL WHEN WE GO OUT IS IT'S SAN ANTONIO. 
          SO JUST KIND OF AS A REMINDER THAT IF YOU ALL ARE OUT THERE ALSO PROMOTING GROUPS ALSO, HOW ARE YOU ALL ADDRESSING WATER INFRASTRUCTURE AND ELECTRICITY NEEDS? AND I KNOW THAT THERE'S A LOT OF DATA CENTERS IN AND AROUND SAN ANTONIO, BUT THE THREE PILLARS OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FOR THE STATE ARE NOT ONLY WORKFORCE, BUT THEY ALSO INCLUDE ELECTRICITY, RELIABILITY ON ELECTRICITY AND THEN WATER SUPPLY, BUT WE HAVEN'T REALLY INVESTED IN IT. 
          AND SO I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW DOES GREATER SATX GO AND MAKE IT A BIG DEAL BECAUSE WE COULD RUN OUT OF WATER IF WE CONTINUE THE PATH THAT WE'RE ON. 
          >> ABSOLUTELY. SO OUR JOB IS TO BRING THE DATA TO ITS POLICYMAKERS AND THE DECISION MAKERS THAT ARE WORKING ON THESE CHALLENGING ISSUES. 
          AND TRY TO SUPPORT OUR PARTNERS AND MOVING THE NEEDLE THERE. 
          AS WE TALK ABOUT READY SITES, THAT IS CRUCIAL. THAT IS THE KEY ELEMENT THAT CAN BE MISSING. TYPICALLY WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT A READY SITE. 
          AND THAT LONG-TERM VISIONING AROUND HOW WE CONTINUE TO BRING WATER AND POWER AND GET -- IN CREATIVE WAYS TO MANAGE THOSE PROCESSES ARE GOING TO BE CRITICAL FOR US. 
          SO WE'RE CERTAINLY AT THE TABLE IN THOSE DISCUSSIONS, BRINGING THE DATA, LOOKING FOR THOSE CREATIVE SOLUTIONS. WE INVITE THOSE HARD DISCUSSIONS THAT WE NEED TO HAVE AS A COMMUNITY ON DO WE NEED TO BE PRIORITIZING, HOW DO WE THINK ABOUT THESE LARGE POWER USERS OR LARGE WATER USERS AND HOW DO WE SUPPORT THEM EFFECTIVELY. AND SO WE'RE HAVING THOSE DISCUSSIONS ON A REGULAR BASIS WITH COMPANIES AND THE STAKEHOLDERS. I DON'T HAVE A DIRECT ANSWER FOR YOU TODAY ON HOW WE SOLVE THOSE ISSUES, BUT THEY'RE ON OUR MIND. 
          >> GARCIA: NO, OF COURSE. I'M GLAD YOU'RE THINKING OF NOTIFICATION BECAUSE I THINK THAT PEOPLE KIND OF FORGET THAT ELEMENT AND THEY'RE KIND OF BEING STUCK ON WHAT DO WE HAVE NOW, WHAT IS INFRASTRUCTURE? CAN WE GET MORE MODEL ON FROM WHAT THE CURRENT MODELS THAT EXIST AND NOT INNOVATION. 
          I WAS ASKING BECAUSE AS WE HOPE TO FACILITATE SOME ADDITIONAL SUPPLY CHAIN OR EVEN WHEN WE THINK ABOUT NEAR-SHORING AND INVITING THE PARTNERS AND REALLY USING I-35 CORRIDOR AND SOUTH TEXAS IN GENERAL, ARE WE REALLY PREPARED TO HAVE COMPANIES THAT USE THAT AMOUNT OF WATER, RIGHT? AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT WORRIES ME MOST ABOUT WHEN WE HAVE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT JOB CREATION AND BRINGING COMPANIES, IT'S THAT AT THE FOREFRONT IN MY OPINION SHOULD ALSO BE THE OTHER TWO 
          [00:30:05]
PILLARS THE ELECTRICITY AND THE WATER. SO THANK YOU FOR BEING ENGAGED IN TALKING TO THE POLICYMAKERS BECAUSE I THINK WE NEED TO FOCUS A LITTLE BIT MORE ON THAT. I'M ALSO CURIOUS TO LEARN ABOUT THE PER CAPITA FUNDING MODEL FOR 2026 FOR PUBLIC SECRETARIER PARTNERS -- PUBLIC SECTOR PARTNERS. 
          WHAT WAS THE REASON WE MADE THAT SHIFT? >> AS AN ORGANIZATION WE HEARD LOUD AND CLEAR FROM THIS BODY THE CONCERN THAT THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO IS BUYING IN SIGNIFICANTLY GREATER THAN OUR REGIONAL PARTNERS AND ON THE FLIP SIDE OUR REGIONAL PARTNERS NOT ALWAYS FEELING LIKE THEY'RE THE EQUAL PARTNER AT THE TABLE. SO FROM MY LENS THAT DECISION POINT COMES FROM IDENTIFYING A WAY TO FIND THAT EQUITABLE REPRESENTATION AMONGST OUR INVESTORS AND GETTING THAT MORE EQUALIZED ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION. 
          SO THE RATE WOULD BE FLAT, RIGHT, FOR EACH COMMUNITY AND THEN BASED ON YOUR 
          POPULATION IS HOW THAT STRUCTURE WORKS. >> GARCIA: GOT IT. 
          NOW, I SAW THAT THERE'S A SHIFT ALSO FROM TALENT ATTRACTION TO INDUSTRY ALIGNMENT. SO CAN YOU HELP ME UNDERSTAND THAT DECISION A 
          LITTLE BIT MORE? >> SURE. THE TALENT ATTRACTION AND THE GENERAL AWARENESS CAMPAIGN DOESN'T GO AWAY. I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO 
          MENTION THAT. >> SO IT'S BOTH. IT'S NOT EITHER OR. 
          >> IT'S BOTH. WE ARE PRIORITIZING SOME OF THE DOLLARS THAT WERE TRADITIONALLY ALLOCATED TOWARDS TALENT AND GENERAL AWARENESS TOWARDS INDUSTRY ON SO WE'RE GETTING IN FRONT OF OUR GENERAL PARTNERS MORE. 
          >> GARCIA: I APPRECIATE THAT. HOW MANY PEOPLE DO YOU HAVE 
          ON YOUR SITE THAT ACTUALLY WORK ON SITE READINESS? >> GREAT QUESTION. 
          I HAVE ABOUT 10 PEOPLE ON MY TEAM. OF THAT WE HAVE FOLKS THAT ARE SUPPORTING THIRD-PARTY IN A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT WAYS, BUT TO BE DIRECT, WE 
          DON'T HAVE ANYBODY SOLELY DEDICATED TO SITE READINESS. >> GARCIA: GOT IT. 
          I THINK IF WE CONTINUE TO FOCUS ON INVESTING, MAYBE WE SHOULD TRY TO HELP YOU OUT AND GET SOME EXTRA PEOPLE THERE. I APPRECIATE YOU ALL WORKING WITH READY TO WORK, OF COURSE, AND WITH THE FUTURE READY PLAN THAT BEXAR COUNTY HAS AS WELL. AND I WANTED TO GIVE YOU A SHOUT-OUT FOR WORKING WITH THE HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS AS WE'RE LOOKING FOR THOSE IN-DEMAND FEELS AND WE'LL HEAR ABOUT THAT MORE HERE IN A LITTLE BIT WITH ADRIAN. 
          I WANTED TO SAY THANK YOU FOR THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING. 
          I HAVE SOME MINOR LITTLE QUESTIONS, BUT I THINK I CAN CATCH YOU OFFLINE ON THOSE. 
          THANK YOU. THANK YOU, CHAIR. >> THANK YOU. 
          >> PELÁEZ: COUNCILMAN. >> WHYTE: THANKS, CHAIR. WE'RE INVESTING A LOT OF MONEY IN GREATER SATX SO WHAT I LOOK FOR IS THE DIRECT CORRELATION BETWEEN THE MONEY WE'RE INVESTING AND WHAT IS ACTUALLY BEING PRODUCED. 
          SO THE FIRST THING I GUESS I WOULD LOOK AT HERE IS THE AGREEMENT WITH THE CITY, THE AGREEMENT RESULTS AND PROPOSED TARGETS, AND THE TARGET FOR HIGH WAGE JOBS WAS 80% AND WE ONLY GOT TO 47%. AND THEN THE JOBS, YOU KNOW, GREATER THAN THE MEDIAN WAGES, WE WERE LOOKING FOR 100% AND WE ONLY GOT TO 68%. 
          >> MAY I SPEAK TO THAT? >> I WOULD LOVE YOU TO SPEAK TO THAT. 
          >> THANK YOU. WHEN YOU LOOK AT THOSE NUMBERS, WE CLASSIFIED THE WAGE INFORMATION IN A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT WAYS. THIS PARTICULAR LINE ITEM IS LOOKING AT THE NUMBER OF JOBS THAT ARE DIRECTLY REPORTED TO OUR ORGANIZATION AND THE OUTCOME OF THE WAGES OF THOSE JOBS. AND SO IF A COMPANY IS NOT REQUIRED TO SUBMIT INFORMATION BECAUSE, FOR EXAMPLE, THEY'RE SUBMITTING INCENTIVES APPLICATION OR OTHER DIRECT INFORMATION TO OUR ORGANIZATION, THAT NUMBER GETS A GIANT ZERO NEXT TO IT. AND THAT ZERO BRINGS DOWN THE OVERALL AVERAGE. WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE JOBS WHEN WE CALCULATE BASED ON THE INDUSTRY CODE, SO THIS IS VERY TECHNICAL, I'M SORRY, BUT WHEN YOU CALCULATE BASED ON THE INDUSTRY CODE, WE LOOK AT WHAT WOULD BE THE EXPECTED WAGE OF THAT PROJECT IN ORDER TO COMPETE FOR TALENT IN SAN ANTONIO. 
          AND EVERY SINGLE ONE OF OUR JOBS HIT AT 100% OF THAT GOAL WHEN YOU DO IT BASED ON THAT MEASURE. SO THIS IS A TECHNICAL ISSUE RATHER THAN A PERFORMANCE 
          ISSUE. >> WHYTE: OKAY. OKAY. 
          LET ME ASK YOU ABOUT THIS. I WAS READING AN ARTICLE, IT WAS IN THE "AUSTIN 
          [00:35:04]
AMERICAN-STATESMAN" ACTUALLY FROM EARLIER THIS YEAR REGARDING STEM JOBS, RIGHT? AND HOW THOSE ARE GROWING AND, OF COURSE, THEY ARE HIGHER PAYING JOBS USUALLY. 
          THEY TOOK A LOOK AT -- THEY TOOK A LOOK AT ALL THE CITIES NATIONWIDE AND THEN OF COURSE LOOKED AT JUST TEXAS. AND SAN ANTONIO IS WAY, WAY, WAY DOWN THE LIST. EL PASO, DALLAS, HOUSTON, AUSTIN, OF COURSE, ALL AHEAD OF SAN ANTONIO. WHAT CAN WE DO OR WHAT IS SATX ACTIVELY DOING TO TRY 
          TO ATTRACT MORE JOBS IN THESE FIELDS? >> WELL, THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION. IT'S A CRITICAL QUESTION AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE FIVE-YEAR STRATEGY, THE ENTIRE EMPHASIS BEHIND THAT STRATEGY WAS MAKING SURE WE'RE BRINGING THOSE QUALITY JOBS TO SAN ANTONIO. SO WHAT WE HAVE DONE TO EFFECTIVELY BEGIN MOVING THAT NEEDLE IS WORKING AHEAD OF THE DECISION CYCLE. 
          SO TODAY WHEN A SITE LOCATION CONSULTANT CALLS US AND THEY HAVE A -- OR A COMPANY CALLS US DIRECTLY, THEY HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF WHO WE ARE. 
          THEY'VE SEEN THE DATA AND THE DATA IS SHOWING LOWER EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT RATES THAN OTHER MAJOR MARKETS IN THE U.S., FOR EXAMPLE. SO AUTOMATICALLY THEY'RE SAYING OKAY, THERE'S NOT ENOUGH TALENTS IN THESE FIELDS BECAUSE WE'RE NOT SEEING IT IN THE NUMBERS TODAY. OUR STRATEGY IS TO WORK AHEAD OF THAT AND TO GO DIRECTLY TO COMPANIES AND OF COURSE LIGHT LOCATIONS AND OTHERS, BUT DIRECT TO COMPANY TO TELL OUR STORY ONE TO ONE WITH ARE IT'S NOT SOLELY BASED ON A YES OR NO FIELD ON AN EXCEL SPREADSHEET WHERE WE'RE ABLE TO TALK ABOUT THE MOMENTUM, WE'RE ABLE TO TALK ABOUT THE 6.4 IMPROVEMENT OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS IN EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT. WE'RE ABLE TO SHOW THAT WE'RE INVESTING IN THE AIRPORT AND IN FIVE YEARS WE SHOULD HAVE 17 NEW GATES OPERATING ADDITIONAL FLIGHTS AND THAT WILL SUPPORT THEIR GROWTH OUT OF THIS MARKET. 
          SO EVERYTHING THAT WE HAVE DONE HAS BEEN TO MOVE THE MODEL TOWARDS BEING ABLE TO ATTRACT AND WIN THOSE JOBS. ON OUR TARGETING SIDE, OUR TARGETING EFFORTS ARE GOING -- THOSE LEAD CONVERSION NUMBERS I MENTIONED, 61 COMPANIES CONVERTED FROM A COMPANY THAT OUR TEAM SOURCED DIRECTLY, HAD A CONVERSATION WITH AND ULTIMATELY WERE ABLE TO CONVERT THEM TO AN ACTIVE PROJECT. 
          WE WON'T NECESSARILY WIN THE DEAL, RIGHT? AN ACTIVE PROJECT MEANS THEY HAVE A JOBS REQUIREMENT, THEY HAVE A CAPITAL INVESTMENT REQUIREMENT. 
          SO THAT IS THE PART OF THIS CHART THAT IS MOST IMPORTANT TO ME WHEN I LOOK AT THOSE NUMBERS IS HOW ARE WE DOING ON THOSE CONVERSIONS AND ON THE LEAD PURSUITS GENERATED. 
          IS OUR TEAM IDENTIFYING THE COMPANIES THAT WE WANT TO CHASE? ARE WE CHASING THEM? AND THEN ARE THEY CONVERTING INTO ACTIVE DEALS BECAUSE THE VAST MAJORITY OF THOSE FALL WITHIN THOSE STEM CATEGORIES. 
          >> WHYTE: AND AM I READING THIS RIGHT? IT LOOKS LIKE 600, ALMOST $700 MILLION INVESTED IN THIS EFFORT IN 2024? I'M LOOKING AT DOMESTIC 
          CAPITAL INVESTMENT, FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT. >> THESE ARE PROJECT ANNOUNCEMENTS, YES. SO THAT'S CORRECT. WE HAD 800 -- I CAN'T DO THE MATH RIGHT HERE AT THE PODIUM. THIS IS DIRECT FOR SAN ANTONIO. MORE BROADLY WE EXCEEDED A BILLION DOLLARS IN CAPITAL 
          INVESTMENT ATTRACTED LAST YEAR FOR THE REGION. >> WHYTE: OKAY. 
          LISTEN, I'M -- I DISAGREE WITH A LITTLE BIT OF WHAT WAS SAID ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE TABLE, AND WHEN YOU SAID THERE'S A BUNCH OF INTEREST AND YOU'RE SEEING IT NOW AND IT'S PICKING UP, THAT MAKES SENSE TO ME BECAUSE I SENSE OPTIMISM, AND FROM WHAT I HEAR IN THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY, NOT JUST HERE IN TEXAS, BUT FROM FRIENDS AROUND THE COUNTRY, OPTIMISM THAT THE U.S. ECONOMY IS SOARING, I THINK WE'RE IN STORE FOR SOME GREAT YEARS. AND EVERYBODY THAT I KNOW WANTS TO COME DO BUSINESS IN TEXAS BECAUSE THERE IS NO BETTER PLACE TO DO BUSINESS IN AMERICA THAN RIGHT HERE IN TEXAS. I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE TIE -- I DON'T KNOW HOW WE DO IT, BUT WE NEED TO TIE FUTURE CITY FUNDING NOT JUST ON ACTIVITY METRICS, BUT WHAT YOU'RE MENTIONING, ON ACTUAL DELIVERY OF GOOD PAYING JOBS HERE FOR SAN ANTONIANS. AND SO A LOT OF WHAT WAS 
          [00:40:07]
PRESENTED UP HERE LOOKS GOOD, BUT IT'S A LITTLE HARD FOR ME TO DISCERN HOW MUCH IMPACT GREATER SATX IS ACTUALLY HAVING ON THE NUMBERS THAT WE'RE SEEING. 
          SO I DO WANT TO CONTINUE THIS CONVERSATION PERHAPS OFFLINE, BUT CERTAINLY MORE WITH MY COUNCIL COLLEAGUES MOVING FORWARD. THANKS, CHAIR. 
          >> THANK YOU. >> GARCIA: THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION AND I APPRECIATE THE CLARIFICATION ON THE TECHNICAL PIECE REGARDING THE HIGH WAGE JOBS AND THE JOBS WITH THE MEDIAN WAGE. BECAUSE LOOKING AT THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO AGREEMENT I'M PLEASED TO SEE LISTED THAT YOU DO EXCEED EXPECTATIONS FOR INVESTMENTS AND LEAD PURSUITS AND CONVERTING TO ACTIVE PROJECTS. 
          HOWEVER, WHEN I LOOK AT THE COMPONENT ON HIGH WAGE JOBS, IF I'M JUST READING THIS SCORECARD WITHOUT THE CONTEXT OF THE TECHNICAL ISSUE, IT APPEARS THAT ONLY ONE OUT OF THREE OF THESE JOBS DID NOT PAY A MEDIAN WAGE, WHICH IS CONCERNING. 
          AND I APPRECIATE THE EXPLANATION, BUT I'M CURIOUS, ALEX, IF THERE'S A WAY THAT WE CAN TRACK BECAUSE I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE COUNT OF HOW MANY HIGH WAGE JOBS THAT WE ARE CREATING AND I UNDERSTAND THE TECHNICAL ISSUE, BUT I NEED TO SEE THE INFORMATION IN TERMS OF FEELING CONFIDENT AND MAKING A DECISION TO FULLY SUPPORT AN ITEM. AND THIS WOULD APPLY TO ANY 
          CITY A SESSION ITEM. >> YEAH. I THINK LIKE WAS MENTIONED, THE CHALLENGE FOR US IS WHEN THE COMPANY IS NOT REQUIRED TO REPORT THAT INFORMATION. 
          IF WE ARE SUPPORTING THAT PROJECT IN ANY WAY, MEANING IF WE'RE GIVING THEM ANY KIND OF INCENTIVE, WE CAN REQUIRE THEM TO GIVE US THAT INFORMATION. 
          BUT IF THEY'RE NOT RECEIVING THAT, THEN IT'S -- THEY DON'T HAVE TO SHARE THAT. 
          SO FROM OUR PERSPECTIVE, WE'VE LOOKED AT INDUSTRY DATA IN THE PAST TO KIND OF SAY A LOT OF OUR JOBS ARE FOCUS UNDERSTAND THIS FIELD OR IN THIS FIELD AND ON AVERAGE THOSE WAGES ARE X AND Y. SO WE CAN DO THAT KIND OF ANALYSIS, BUT TO ACTUALLY PUT LIKE A ONE FOR ONE, UNLESS WE GIVE THEM IN AUDIO], THEY DON'T HAVE THAT SHARE THAT INFORMATION WITH US. 
          >> OKAY. THANK YOU FOR THAT. IN TERMS OF THE WAGES THAT ARE BEING PROVIDED BY THESE INDUSTRIES, WOULD YOU BE ABLE TO SHARE WHICH INDUSTRY IS PAYING THE HIGHEST WAGE AND WHAT THAT SCALE LOOKS LIKE IN TERMS OF TECH, CYBER, BIOSCIENCE, FINANCIAL SERVICES, WHO IS PAYING THE HIGHEST BEIGE AND WHO IS PAYING THE LOWEST IN COMPARED TO OUR EXPECTATIONS? 
          >> THIS IS A GENERALITY, OF COURSE, AND TOP OF HEAD WITHOUT HAVING THE NUMBERS IN FRONT OF ME, I WOULD SAY THAT CYBERSECURITY AND TECHNOLOGY JOBS WOULD BE LIKELY AT THE TOP OF THAT CHART. LIFE SCIENCES, DEPENDING ON WHAT THE FUNCTION OF THE JOB IS, WOULD ALSO BE VERY HIGH ON THE CHART. 
          FINANCIAL AND PROFESSIONAL SERVICES WOULD BE UP THERE. TYPICALLY, AGAIN, DEPENDING ON THE JOB, BUT A LOT OF THOSE JOBS ARE CLOSE TO 100,000 A YEAR IN TERMS OF SALARY. AND THEN MANUFACTURING, AGAIN, DEPENDING ON THE TYPE OF FIELD, THEY WILL TYPICALLY PAY AT ABOUT THAT COUNTY AVERAGE WAGE. 
          >> THANK YOU. AND IF YOU COULD PROVIDE THAT DATA THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL. I WOULD LIKE TO LOOK INTO THE DETAILS BECAUSE I THINK, AS IT RUNS PARALLEL TO MANY OF THE ITEMS WE'RE DISCUSSING TODAY, BUT IN TERMS OF READY TO WORK, RIGHT, ENSURING THAT WE'RE STEERING FOLKS TOWARDS PROGRAMS THAT WE KNOW ARE PAYING THE HIGHEST WAGE AND OF COURSE WHERE THESE INDUSTRIES ARE LOOKING FOR SKILLED LABOR. IN TERMS OF THE AUDIO] I'M GRATEFUL TO SEE THE VOTE FOR OUR SKILLED CONSTRUCTION TRADES COLLABORATIVELY IN THAT PIECE. OUR OFFICE IS WORKING ALONGSIDE MIKE, I'LL GOING TO SAY, GIVE YOU CREDIT, IN ENSURING THAT WE'RE TEEING UP OUR FOLKS WITH APPRENTICE SHIPS TO GET CERTIFICATIONS THAT ARE CERTIFIED THROUGH THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR TO MAKE SURE WE'RE PAYING THE HIGH PAYING UNION JOBS. 
          SO EAGER TO SEE THAT PIECE ON THE PRESENTATION. THOSE ARE ALL MY COMMENTS AND IF YOU COULD SEND OVER THAT DATA, I'D APPRECIATE IT. 
          THANK YOU. THANKS, CHAIR. >> PELÁEZ: THANK YOU, EVERYBODY. WE HAVE A TEAM OF REALLY, REALLY SMART PEOPLE OVER AT GREATER SATX AND I THINK THE PARTNERSHIP WITH THE TEAM OF VERY SMART PEOPLE HERE IN OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEVELOPMENT AND EQUALLY SMART PEOPLE OVER AT THE COUNTY I THINK HAS BROUGHT SOME VERY SIGNIFICANT WINS. THERE'S -- NOT TO GET POLITICAL, BUT COUNCILWOMAN ROCHA GARCIA AND I ARE ATTENDING 10 DEBATES A DAY WHERE PEOPLE ARE LITERALLY SAYING WE'RE LOSING JOBS, COMPANIES ARE MOVING OUT OF HERE, THEY DON'T WANT TO BE HERE AND ALL THAT. AND THAT'S BETRAYED BY THE FACTS, RIGHT. 16,700 JOBS OVER THE LAST FOUR YEARS OF THE 
          [00:45:05]
$6.6 BILLION CAPX IS LITERALLY JOB CREATION. NOW, THE QUESTION IS ARE WE LOSING MORE JOBS THAN WE'RE BRINGING IN? WHAT'S THE ANSWER? 
          >> IN 2024 DATA WE WERE THE NUMBER ONE JOB CREATION MARKET IN TEXAS AND THE 
          NUMBER THREE JOB CREATION MARKET IN THE UNITED STATES. >> PELÁEZ: YEAH. 
          >> NOW, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE DATA THERE HAS BEEN A SLOWDOWN AND WE ARE EXCELLING IN OUR FOUNDATIONAL INDUSTRIES. AND SO THAT MEANS WE NEED TO LEAN IN ON THE STRATEGY TO CREATE THESE HIGH OPINION PAYING JOBS. 
          >> PELÁEZ: SO ONE OF THE THINGS -- I'VE BEEN DOING THIS NOW FOR 23 YEARS, RIGHT, WHEN STARTED OVER AT BROOKS. ONE OF THE THINGS I LEARNED BACK THEN IS THAT THERE IS IS JUST A NATURAL INEFFICIENCY THAT COMES WITH THE BUSINESS THAT YOU'VE DECIDED TO BE IN, SARA, RIGHT, WHICH IS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEVELOPMENT ATTRACTION. AND THAT INEFFICIENCY IS THE SAME INEFFICIENCIES FACED BY PEOPLE TRYING TO SELL PROPS AND SERVICES. 
          YOURS IS A SALES DEPARTMENT SO YOU CAN FORECAST, BUT THERE ARE THINGS OUT OF YOUR CONTROL. AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT IS OUT OF YOUR CONTROL IS THE INTRASTATE AND INTERREGIONAL COMPETITION FOR THE SAME LEADS THAT YOU GUYS ARE CHASING, RIGHT, AND SO YOU GUYS ARE OUT THERE AND HERE WE ARE GREATER SATX TRYING TO LAND JOBS FOR SAN ANTONIO, BUT THEN YOU'VE GOT SEGUIN OUT THERE KNOCKING ON THE SAME DOORS. YOU'VE GOT BUDA, YOU'VE GOT KYLE. 
          EVERY OTHER CITY OUT THERE IS TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH. 
          AND IT'S A REALLY FIERCE BEAUTY CONTEST, RIGHT, AND SOMETIMES WE WIN AND SOMETIMES WE LOSE IT. AND I THINK WHAT IS LOST IS THAT THE REGION IS WHERE THESE JOBS ARE COMING, RIGHT, NOT JUST WITHIN THE MUNICIPAL BOUNDARIES. 
          AND TO THAT I'M WONDERING WHAT IS IT? IF YOU HAD TO RANK THE THING THAT IS MOST ATTRACTIVE TO COMPANIES COMING TO THE REGION, WHAT IS IT? IS IT QUALITY OF LIFE? IS IT LOW TAXATION? IS IT THE AVAILABLE 
          WORKFORCE? WHAT IS NUMBER ONE? >> SO NUMBER ONE I WOULD SAY FOR MOST COMPANIES, THEY'RE GOING TO START WITH THE STATE LEVEL, RIGHT? THEY'RE GOING TO LOOK AT THE STATE BUSINESS CLIMATE AND TEXAS IS GOING TO ELEVATE TO ONE OF THE TOP MARKETS ALMOST IMMEDIATELY. ONCE THAT HAPPENS, THEN THEY START LOOKING ACROSS CITIES AND THEY'RE LOOKING FOR CULTURAL FIT, THEY'RE LOOKING FOR TALENT FIRST AND FOREMOST. AND TALENT IS GOING TO BE THE KEY DRIVER FOR ANY DECISION. IF THEY DO NOT BELIEVE THEY CAN FIND THE RIGHT WORKFORCE THEY WILL NOT INVEST IN THAT COMMUNITY. 
          MOST COMPANIES WILL NOT. THERE ARE EXCEPTIONS BUT THEN WE HEAR ABOUT THE CHALLENGES THAT THEY'RE FACING IN THE NEWS EVERYDAY FOR YEARS AHEAD. 
          TALENT IS GOING TO BE NUMBER ONE AND THEN I WOULD SAY SPEED AND EASE OF DOING BUSINESS, HOW QUICKLY CAN THEY WORK AND MANAGE THROUGH THE PROCESS TO GET THEIR PRODUCT AND SERVICE, YOU KNOW, UP AND RUNNING AND OPERATING WITHIN THE COMMUNITY. THOSE ARE GOING TO BE YOUR TOP THREE. 
          >> PELÁEZ: SO I'M CONCERNED THAT YOUR ANSWER DOESN'T MATCH WHAT I'VE BEEN READING, YOU KNOW, FROM DIFFERENT JOURNALS. I'M NOT SAYING YOU'RE WRONG, I'M JUST SAYING MAYBE IT'S JUST DIFFERENT HERE, RIGHT? BUT YOU AND I READ THE SAME PAPERS, RIGHT, AND THEY'RE SAYING THAT THE OLD PRE-COVID TOOLS IN OUR TOOLBOX ISN'T WHAT'S ATTRACTING BUSINESSES IN THIS NEW ECONOMY. 
          IT'S CITIES THAT ARE GOING ALL IN ON QUALITY OF LIFE ARE THE ONES THAT ARE ATTRACTING THE BUSINESSES BECAUSE YOU THROW YOUR WEIGHT BEHIND GREAT SCHOOLS, GREAT PARKS, GREAT HOSPITAL SYSTEMS AND THEN THESE BUSINESSES SAY THAT'S WHERE I WANT MY PEOPLE TO LIVE, WORK, PLAY AND THRIVE, RIGHT? 
          SQUARE THAT CIRCLE FOR ME. >> WE ACTUALLY ARE SAYING THE SAME THING BECAUSE THE NUMBER ONE ISSUE THAT A COMPANY IS LOOKING FOR IS TALENT AND WHAT DOES TALENT MEAN? THAT'S A HUMAN BEING THAT'S CHOOSING WHERE THEY WANT TO LIVE AND RAISE THEIR FAMILY AND WHERE THEY WANT TO WORK. SO AT THE END OF THE DAY I 
          THINK WE ARE SAYING THE SAME THING, SIR. >> PELÁEZ: OKAY. 
          AND MARK WHYTE, YOU'RE GOING TO COME IN AFTER ADRIAN IN A BUT HE'S GOING TO FALL OUT OF HIS CHAIR WHEN HE HEARS THAT MOST OF THE STUDIES ARE SHOWING THAT TAXATION IS THE LAST THING TO ATTRACT A LOT OF THESE COMPANIES AND A LOT OF THE CITIES ALL OVER THE NATION WHERE THERE ARE HIGHER TACKS ARE MORE SUCCESSFUL THAN EVEN US SOMETIMES BECAUSE THEY'RE FOCUSING MORE ON TALENT AND QUALITY OF LIFE. 
          I DON'T KNOW IF THEY'RE RIGHT OR WRONG, BUT I'M GOING TO SEND IT TO HIM SO 
          [00:50:02]
          HIS HEAD WITH EXPLODE. [LAUGHTER]. >> DEPENDS ON THE TYPE OF 
          INVESTMENT, SIR. >> PELÁEZ: COUNCILWOMAN. >> GARCIA: THANK YOU, CHAIR. I JUST WANTED TO CLARIFY I WAS TALKING ABOUT INTERNATIONAL AND THEY WERE JUST OVERWHELMED BY THE WELCOME BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T THINK THAT THEY WERE GOING TO BE RECEIVED THE WAY THAT THEY WERE RECEIVED. 
          YOU AND I WERE AT THE TABLE AND THEY WERE HAVING THAT DISCUSSION, SO JUST TO CLARIFY, I APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT'S BEING DONE TO FOCUS IN ON THE NEAR-SHORING, ET CETERA, BUT WHAT I WANTED TO CLARIFY WAS THAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT WE HEAR IT FROM DIFFERENT INTERNATIONAL FOLKS. I HEARD IT LAST -- A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO IN THE UK. SO ANYWAY, SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU, CHAIR. 
          >> THANK YOU. >> WHYTE: JUST QUICKLY, HE ASKED YOU WHAT'S BEST. 
          WHAT'S OUR BIGGEST HURDLE? YOU LISTED WHAT THEY LOOK FOR, RIGHT, TALENT AND SPEED OF DOING BUSINESS. AND I WOULD TELL YOU THE FIRST THING YOU SAID THAT TEXAS JUMPS TO THE TOP OF THE LIST WHEN PEOPLE -- WHEN COMPANIES -- THAT'S BECAUSE OF OUR TAXATION POLICIES, SO I DO LOOK FORWARD TO READING THAT ARTICLE, COUNCILMAN. 
          BUT WHAT'S OUR BIGGEST CHALLENGE? WHY DO PEOPLE CHOOSE TO GO 
          SOMEWHERE ELSE RATHER THAN HERE? >> TALENT. 
          >> WHYTE: OKAY. >> I THINK WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO LEAN IN ON EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT FOR OUR COMMUNITY. WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO LEAN IN TO WORKFORCE TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT. WITHOUT THOSE FACTORS, WE 
          WILL NOT CONTINUE WINNING PROJECTS. >> WHYTE: AND LET ME ASK YOU THIS QUICKLY. DO THESE OTHER COMPANIES, WHEN THEY'RE LOOKING TO DECIDE WHETHER TO COME TO SAN ANTONIO, DO THEY WATCH OUR CITY GOVERNMENT TO SEE 
          WHAT KIND OF THINGS WE'RE FOCUSED ON UP ON THE DAIS? >> YES, SIR. 
          >> WHYTE: THEY DO? I THOUGHT SO. THANKS, MAYOR -- MAYOR, WHOA. THANK YOU, CHAIR! [LAUGHTER]. 
          WOO!  SORRY, ADRIANA!  AND SORRY TO THE OTHER 26 PEOPLE OUT THERE. 
          >> PELÁEZ: THE MINUTES WILL SO REFLECT. [LAUGHTER]. 
          COUNCILWOMAN VIAGRAN. >> VIAGRAN: SARA, WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT, IT IS THAT OUR RESIDENTS ARE NOT GETTING PAST HIGH SCHOOL, ISN'T THAT 
          CORRECT? >> YES. AND I THINK WHAT WE ARE FOCUSED ON ARE THAT THE JOBS ARE CHANGING SO RAPIDLY THAT WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR WORKFORCE IS -- HAS THE OPPORTUNITY TO COMPETE FOR THOSE JOBS. 
          >> VIAGRAN: I THINK THAT THE CITY COUNCIL THAT FOCUSES ON OUR SCHOOL DISTRICTS, OUR CURRENT SCHOOL DISTRICTS, ALAMO PROMISE, MAKING SURE THAT OUR STATE UNIVERSITIES AND OUR PRIVATE UNIVERSITIES ARE TAKEN CARE OF, SHOWS A COUNCIL THAT CARES ABOUT THEIR TALENT AND WANTS TO SEE THEM INCREASE AND TO INCLUDE THE READY TO WORK PROGRAM. SO I THINK THAT THAT'S WHAT THEY SEE. I THINK WHAT HAPPENS IS THEY ALSO SEE THE NAYSAYERS ON THE COUNCIL THAT ARE NOT FOR EDUCATION FOR ALL OF OUR POPULATION. 
          SO I THINK WHEN WE TALK ABOUT TALENT AND YOU TALK ABOUT THE EDUCATION THAT THAT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE PARENTS WHO ARE TRYING, BUT THAT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE COUNCIL TO CONTINUE TO WORK AND PRIORITIZE THINGS LIKE PRE-K FOR SA. SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR CLARIFYING 
          THAT. >> THANK YOU. SO 33.8000 STUDENT 
          WORK-BASED LEARNING. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN AGAIN? >> THAT MEANS 33,000 STUDENTS HAVE GONE THROUGH WORK-BASED LEARNING PROGRAMS THAT SA WORKS HAS PUT ON, SO 
          INTERNSHIPS, OUR ALAMO FELLOWS, ET CETERA. >> PELÁEZ: AND LASTLY, 200BRE VISITS WAS THE GOAL. 178 WAS WHAT WE HIT. WHAT'S KEEPING US FROM 
          HITTING 200? >> I BELIEVE LAST YEAR WAS A CAPACITY ISSUE IN TERMS OF STAFF AND PRIORITIZING. BUT I THINK WE ARE -- WE'VE SOLVED FOR THAT THIS YEAR IN TERMS OF HOW WE HAVE POSITIONED OUR TEAM AND THE GOALS FOR MOVING THAT AND 
          ADVANCING THAT EFFECTIVELY. >> PELÁEZ: THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          GOOD JOB, ALFRED. GOOD JOB. THANKS, GUYS. 
          OUR NEXT PRESENTATION -- WHO IS UP NEXT? >> AFTERNOON, CHAIR, COUNCIL MEMBERS, THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT TODAY ON THE READY TO WORK ON-THE-JOB TRAINING AND INCUMBENT WORKER TRAINING PROGRAMS. READY TO WORK CURRENTLY OFFERS TUITION SUPPORT AND WRAPAROUND SERVICES FOR 
          [00:55:05]
ELIGIBLE SERVICES TO ATTEND COURSES AND APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS APPROVED BY 76 COLLEGE AND TRAINING PROVIDERS. THROUGH EXPANDING TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES TO EMPLOYERS READY WORK CAN SHORTEN THE WORK BETWEEN ROLES AND CREATING IN OPPORTUNITIES FOR WORKERS WITH INCREASED JOB RETENTION FOR EMPLOYERS. 
          WORK-BASED LEARNING PROGRAMS ARE A WIN-WIN. EMPLOYERS IMPROVE BUSINESS OUTCOMES AND WORKERS CAN EARN WHILE THEY LEARN. SO OUR ON-THE-JOB TRAINING AND INCUMBENT-WORKER TRAINING SUMMARY, THERE ARE 77 EMPLOYERS FOR A TOTAL OF 105 CONTRACTS WORTH $5.9 MILLION TO SERVE 2,532 WORKERS. 
          ON-THE-JOB TRAINING AND INCUMBENT WORKER TRAINING BY THE NUMBERS, OJT, THERE ARE 28 SMALL BUSINESSES THAT WE'LL BE RECOMMENDING FOR AWARD THROUGH THE CONTRACT THAT WILL BE GOING BEFORE A SESSION NEXT MONTH. TOTAL PARTICIPANTS TO BE SERVED BY SMALL BUSINESSES, 279 FOR A TOTAL OF 1.43 MILLION AND AVERAGE COST PER PARTICIPANT FOR ON-THE-JOB TRAINING, LARGE BUSINESS AWARD 16, GREATER THAN 100 EMPLOYEES, TOTAL SERVED, 1100 WORKERS, TOTAL AWARD, 1.47 MILLION AT AN AVERAGE PRICE PER PARTICIPANT OF $13,036. FOR THE INCUMBENT WORKER TRAINING, 40 SMALL BUSINESSES WILL BE AWARDED TO 471 PARTICIPANTS. 
          THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF THE AWARD, 1.52 MILLION. AVERAGE COST PER TRAINING $234 AND FOR THE LARGE BUSINESSES THERE'S 21 TO SERVE 682 INDIVIDUALS, $1.55 MILLION, ABOUT 2274 PER EMPLOYEE TRAINED. SO ON-THE-JOB TRAINING OVERVIEW, CAPPED AT $100,000 PER EMPLOYER, $10,000 PER WORKER BUT THE AVERAGES ARE MUCH LOWER THAN THAT, EARNING AT LEAST $20 AN HOUR. 
          $2,400 OVERALL, WHICH IS A GREAT RETURN ON INVESTMENT FOR OUR EMPLOYERS, A GREAT RETURN ON INVESTMENTS FOR OUR PARTICIPANTS BECAUSE IN ORDER TO SECURE ANY OF THESE DOLLARS YOU HAVE TO HIRE A READY TO WORK PARTICIPANT EXITING THEIR EDUCATION AND TRAINING PROGRAM THROUGH READY TO WORK. SO THIS SHOULD HELP OUR PARTNERS TO INCREASE THEIR PLACEMENTS BECAUSE AGAIN, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE TOTAL NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS THING HUNDRED 79 JOB PLACEMENTS THAT THE CITY HAS INVESTED IN HELPING OUR ANTICIPATE PAS THROUGH THIS 2.9 MILLION IN FUNDING. 
          THERE ARE 44 EMPLOYERS WHO WILL BE RECOMMENDED FOR AWARDS, REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS WILL BE UNDER THIS PROGRAM, COMPANIES SEEKING TO IMPROVE THROUGH THE CITY'S INVESTMENT. I'M NOT GOING TO NAME ALL OF THE EMPLOYEES LISTED HERE. VIA, TIGER, JCB, NAMES YOU'LL RECOGNIZE, BB HOLT, STANDARD ARROW, GUIDE HOUSE. I KNOW SARA JUST MENTIONED 1,000 JOBS COMING HERE, THEY'RE A GREAT PARTNER WITH READY TO WORK PARTICIPATING IN THE JOB TRAINING INITIATIVE. JOHN DADY RESTAURANT GROUP, THE NON-PROFIT SPACE, ST ENGINEERING, TEJAS CONSTRUCTION, SO FORTH AND SO ON THROUGHOUT THE LIST. 
          THEREFORE INCUMBENT WORKER TRAINING CAPPED AT $100,000 PER EMPLOYER, $5,000 PER WORKER EARNING AT LEAST $20 PER HOUR, $2,672 FOR INCUMBENT WORKER TRAINING, 3,000 AND STRANGE ON THE INCUMBENT WORKER TRAINING PROGRAM. 
          SO THE CITY REIMBURSED THE EMPLOYERS FOR UPSCALING THEIR EXISTING WORKERS. 
          WHY IT'S IMPORTANT IS THEY EARN MORE SKILLS, MAKE MORE MONEY TO CIRCULATE THROUGH THE ECONOMY AND CREATE ADDITIONAL ROLES FOR PARTICIPANTS TO ROLL INTO WHICH IS OUR DESIRE. 1153 WORKERS WILL BE UP SKILLED THROUGH THIS INVESTMENT THROUGH 61 EMPLOYERS. AGAIN, SOME OF THE NAMES HERE OF THOSE INDIVIDUALS, YOU SEE TOYOTA MOTOR MANUFACTURING, TEJAS, J AND R, ATLAS, BB HOLT, LANCER, METHODIST HEALTH CARE SYSTEM, THE BOEING COMPANY, CONTRACTORS AND SO FORTH AND SO ON. AGAIN, PRIMARILY SMALL BUSINESSES ON THE LIST OF INDIVIDUALS UP SKILLING THEIR EXISTING EMPLOYEES. 
          OUR RECOMMENDATION TO COUNCIL IS FUNDING TO SUPPORT THE CONTRACTS BE AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SAN ANTONIO READY TO WORK FUND AND WE RECOMMEND FULL COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OF A TEMPLATE AGREEMENT TO ENITTER INTO PROFESSIONAL SERVICES CONTRACT WITH 77 EMPLOYERS, 105 CONTRACTS IN TOTAL TO IMPLEMENT READY TO WORK ON-THE-JOB TRAINING AND INCUMBENT WORKER TRAINING PROGRAMS. 
          THANK YOU VERY MUCH. >> PELÁEZ: THANK YOU. COUNCILMAN WHYTE, QUESTIONS, 
          COMMENTS? >> THANK YOU, CHAIR. LOOK, I'M ALL FOR WORKER 
          [01:00:04]
DEVELOPMENT. OBVIOUSLY I'M ABOUT FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY, RESULTS DRIVEN GOVERNMENT. I JUST HAVE CONCERNS HERE STILL WITH THIS PROGRAM AND WHETHER OR NOT OUR CITIZENS ARE GETTING OUR BANG FOR OUR BUCK HERE. 
          WHAT I SEE, AND TELL ME IF I AM LOOKING AT THE NUMBERS INCORRECTLY, BUT THIS PRESENTATION SHOWS $5.9 MILLION IN AWARDS ACROSS 77 EMPLOYERS OVER 
          ABOUT 2500 WORKERS, IS THAT RIGHT? >> THAT IS CORRECT. 
          >> WHYTE: SO IT LOOKS LIKE THE AVERAGE COST PER PARTICIPANT RANGES FROM 
          SOMEWHERE BETWEEN $2,100 TO OVER $5,000, RIGHT? >> [INAUDIBLE]. 
          >> WHYTE: WHAT I DON'T SEE HERE IS MUCH IN THE WAY OF INFORMATION ABOUT JOB RETENTION, WAGE GROWTH, CAREER ADVANCEMENT. IT LOOKS A LOT TO ME LIKE WE'VE GOT THIS -- FOR LACK OF A BETTER TERM, IT'S A BUREAUCRATIC SYSTEM OF WAGE REIMBURSEMENT AND PROFESSIONAL SERVICE CONTRACTS WITH NOT A LOT OF DATA ON HOW THE PARTICIPANTS OF THE PROGRAM ARE GAINING SORT OF ECONOMIC AND JOB INDEPENDENCE AND LONG-TERM EMPLOYMENT SECURITY. I MEAN, DO YOU DISAGREE WITH 
          ME, I'M ASSUMING? >> I WOULD DISAGREE. FIRST POINT, ON-THE-JOB TRAINING. SO THESE ARE 1500-PLUS NEW HIRES, GRADUATES FROM THE READY TO WORK PROGRAM, THAT ARE GETTING JOBS, PAYING A MINIMUM OF $20 AN HOUR. 
          SO 1500 JOBS AT $20 AN HOUR ARE THE DIRECT RESULT OF THE INVESTMENT IN ON-THE-JOB TRAINING. FOR THE INCUMBENT WORKER TRAINING, THE DIRECT INVESTMENT OF THOSE EMPLOYEES THAT ARE ALREADY WORKING IN THESE SAN ANTONIO COMPANIES FOR THEM TO ALLOW THOSE BUSINESSES TO ACHIEVE THEIR BUSINESS OUTCOMES AND ENSURES THAT THOSE INDIVIDUALS ARE EQUIPPED WITH SKILLS THAT THAT COMPANY NEEDS IN ORDER FOR THEM TO MORE LIKELY BE RETAINED BY THAT COMPANY, THAT IS GOING TO BE TRACKED BY EACH OF THOSE COMPANIES FOR ONE YEAR POST DELIVERY 
          OF THOSE EDUCATION AND TRAINING SERVICES. >> WHYTE: YOU'VE BEEN 
          HEADING UP THIS PROGRAM FOR HOW LONG? >> THREE AND A HALF YEARS. 
          >> WHYTE: THREE AND A HALF YEARS. ARE WE WHERE YOU THOUGHT WE 
          WOULD BE WHEN YOU STARTED? >> I THINK THE PACE THAT READY TO WORK HAS OPERATED IN HAS NOT BEEN WHERE ANY OF US WANTED TO BE, INCLUDING MYSELF. 
          >> WHYTE: OKAY. AND I APPRECIATE THAT DIRECTNESS. 
          SO AGAIN, IN -- IT PROBABLY WAS LAST YEAR OR WHENEVER THE LAST TIME YOU WERE HERE, I ASKED YOU A SIMILAR QUESTIONS. WHAT DO YOU THINK HAS BEEN THE BIGGEST IMPEDIMENT TO MOVING AT THE PACE THAT YOU WERE EXPECTING? 
          >> I THINK THAT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO DO IN READY TO WORK IS WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT, NUMBER ONE, WE'RE MEETING THE NEEDS OF EMPLOYERS, BECAUSE THE MORE WE CAN SHOW THAT WE'RE HITTING THOSE OUTCOMES THAT THE EMPLOYERS ARE LOOKING FOR, THE MORE EXCITEMENT AND ENERGY THAT THERE WILL BE AROUND THE PROGRAM, AND THIS ON-THE-JOB TRAINING AND INCUMBENT WORKER TRAINING PROGRAM, HAS STRUCK THE RIGHT CORD WITH THEM. THEY WANT TO BE INVOLVED IN A PROCESS. THEM TO BE INVOLVED IN THE FRONT END OF THE PROCESS WITH THEIR PARTNERS AS THEY GO THROUGH THE TRAINING PROGRAMS. WE HAVE PHENOL NATIONAL INITIATIVES, THE COHORT TRAINING MODELS THAT CAN CUSTOMIZE TRAINING PEOPLE WILL GO INTO, CUSTOMIZE IT FOR PEOPLE TO GO THROUGH. 
          SO THE PROGRAM IS A CRITICAL PART OF ENSURING THAT THE EMPLOYERS ARE GETTING THE TALENT THEY'RE LOOKING FOR TO CREATE THE RIGHT TYPE OF ENERGY AROUND THE WORK AND 
          THAT WILL INCREASE THE PACE. >> WHYTE: AND THIS WAS A SHIFT IN STRATEGY THAT TOOK 
          PLACE AT SOME POINT, WASN'T IT? >> IT WAS ALWAYS PART OF THE PLAN, BUT WE INITIALLY WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE COULD SHORE UP THE TRADITIONAL READY TO WORK SO WE COULD ENSURE PEOPLE WHO WERE LONG-TERM UNEMPLOYED, UNDEREMPLOYED HAD ACCESS TO THE TRAINING DOLLARS AND GET THE WRAPAROUND SUPPORTS THEY NEEDED AND ESTABLISH THAT PROCESS FIRST WITH THEIR PARTNERS. 
          NOW THAT THAT FOUNDATION HAS BEEN ESTABLISHED, THE NEXT STEP IN THE PROCESS WAS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE EMPLOYERS, AGAIN, PARTICIPATING IN THE PROCESS IN THE BIGGER WAY, ON-THE-JOB TRAINING, INCUMBENT WORKER TRAINING, 
          HAS NOW BEEN IMPLEMENTED TO MAKE SURE IT HAPPENS. >> WHYTE: IT CONCERNS ME, PUT THE LIST OF EMPLOYERS UP THERE. IT'S A LOT OF BIG BUSINESSES AND BIG CORPORATIONS, AND WHAT I HEAR ABOUT PEOPLE IS WHY ARE WE GIVING THESE 
          PEOPLE COMPANIES MONEY TO TRAIN THESE FOLKS? >> I HEAR YOU. 
          THEY'RE VITALLY IMPORTANT. IF YOU LOOK AT THE RATIO OF COSTS GOING TO THE LARGER EMPLOYERS GREATER THAN 100 THAN THE SMALLER EMPLOYEES, WE NEED THEM BOTH, BUT THE 
          [01:05:01]
LARGERS ONES HAVE MUCH MORE SKILLS IN JOBS THEY CAN OFFER TO THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS, PARTICULARLY IN ON-THE-JOB TRAINING SPACE. IF WE CAN HELP OUR EMPLOYERS TO SEE READY TO WORK FOR THE FIRST SOURCE FOR TALENT, THAT WILL HELP OUR PARTICIPANTS, THAT WILL HELP THE PROGRAM AND GENERATE VOLUME THAT WE NEED FOR THE VACANCIES FOR OUR READY TO WORK PARTICIPANTS TO WALK INTO. 
          WE HEARD COUNCIL LOUD AND CLEAR, WE PARTNERED TO HELP GET THE WORD OUT TO OUR SMALL BUSINESSES AND AS FAR AS NUMBER OF COMPANIES, FAR MORE SMALL BUSINESSES THAT ARE PARTICIPATING IN THIS INCUMBENT WORKER TRAINING, ON-THE-JOB TRAINING, THAN THE SMALL SMALL BUSINESSES, A SMALLER NUMBER OF JOBS THEY NEED THE SUPPORT TO MAKE SURE THE WORKERS ARE TRAINED AND CAN HIRE THE WORKERS OUT OF THE READY TO WORK PROGRAM. THAT BAR IS HIGHER TO MEET AT $20 AN HOUR. 
          EVERY PERSON ON OJT AND READY TO WORK AND THAT EMPLOYER IS BENEFITING, THEY HAVE TO START AT $20 AN HOUR. WHICH IS MORE CHALLENGING FOR SMALL BUSINESSES BUT THEY'RE STEPPING UP TO THE PLATE IN LARGE NUMBERS, AND IT WON'T ONLY CONTINUE TO HELP OUR COMMUNITY 35 AS WAGES GO UP. 
          >> WHYTE: ONE LAST QUESTION, WHEN I ASKED YOU THE QUESTION LAST YEAR YOU TOLD ME THE SAME THING, YOU TOLD ME WE WEREN'T GETTING FOLKS READY FOR THE JOBS THAT THE EMPLOYERS HAD AVAILABLE AND AT THAT TIME WHEN WE WERE LOOKING AT YOUR BUDGET YOU WANTED TO FUND AN ADDITIONAL COUPLE OF -- I FORGOT WHAT YOU CALLED THEM, 
          PROGRAM MANAGERS OR -- HAS THAT HELPED? >> ABSOLUTELY IT HAS. 
          I THINK THAT OUR BERGINMENT TEAM LED BY JILL MORGAN, HAS BEEN VERY INSTRUMENTAL IN HELPING TO SHAPE THIS WAY OF THINKING ABOUT EMPLOYERS, HELPING THEM TO ENGAGE IN THE COHORT MODEL WHERE THEY'RE SELECTING THE TRAINING PROGRAM, HELPING TO PRESCREEN APPLICANTS, HELPING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'VE GOT THE INFORMATION THAT WE NEED AS FAR AS WHAT THOSE VICTIM VACANCIES REQUIRE. 
          AND THE SEEDS OF THAT WORK ARE NOW BEING PLANTED, WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH OUR PARTNERS TO HELP THEM UNDERSTAND AND HAVE STRONGER RELATIONSHIP WITH THE EMPLOYERS WHO WANT TO PARTICIPATE IN THE PROCESS WILL HAVE HUGE BENEFITS DOWN THE ROAD. THE ON ON-THE-JOB TRAINING DOLLARS THAT THE CITY HAS INVESTED IN IS HELPING TO ACCELERATE THAT WORK PARTICULARLY IN THE AREA OF APPRENTICESHIP WE HAVE SEVERAL COMPANIES LOOKING TO GROW THOSE PROGRAMS THROUGH 
          THIS INVESTMENT. >> WHYTE: OKAY. AND DO WE THINK -- SORRY, I LIED ABOUT LAST QUESTION. DO WE THINK THAT IN THE COMING YEARS WE'LL START TO GET MORE DATA ABOUT -- I WOULD ASSUME ABOUT JOB RETENTION AND HOW THE FOLKS 
          THAT ARE GETTING PLACED ARE LASTING IN THESE JOBS? >> ABSOLUTELY. 
          BY THAT POINT IN TIME OUR CURRENT DATA WILL INCREASE AS FAR AS RETENTION GOES AND I WILL MAKE THIS STATEMENT REGARDING RETENTION THAT WAS A TOPIC OF CONVERSATION LAST TIME. RETENTION IS A TWO-WAY STREET. 
          AS INDIVIDUALS GET MORE SKILLS, WHICH IS OUR DESIRE FOR THEM TO INCREASE THEIR SKILL SET. THEY HAVE MORE OPTIONS THE MORE SKILLS AND EDUCATION THEY GET. SOME WILL SEEK TO STAY WITH THAT EMPLOYER WHO INVESTED WITH THEM. OTHERWISE WILL FIND HIGHER PAYING OPPORTUNITIES THROUGHOUT THE CITY AND IF THAT INDIVIDUAL CHOOSES TO DO SO WE TIP OUR HAT TO THEM 
          AND WE'RE THANKFUL. >> WHYTE: THANKS, CHAIR. >> PELÁEZ: COUNCILWOMAN 
          CASTILLO. >> CASTILLO: THANK YOU, MIKE, FOR THE PRESENTATION. 
          I SHARE SIMILAR SENTIMENTS ON WHAT COUNCILMAN WHYTE LAID OUT. 
          FOR BOTH PROGRAMS ARE WE TRACKING -- I UNDERSTAND AS YOU JUST MENTIONED WE'RE STILL COLLECTING DATA, BUT I AM INTERESTED TO SEE HOW MANY OF THESE EMPLOYERS ARE OFFERING A SECOND CHANCE TO AN INDIVIDUAL WHO MAY HAVE SOMETHING ON 
          >> IT'S A VERY GOOD QUESTION. IT VARIES ACROSS THE BOARD. VERY FEW OF THEM WILL COME OUT AND SAY NO, WE DON'T HIRE PEOPLE WHO HAVE ANYTHING ON THEIR RECORD BECAUSE THEIR HR DEPARTMENTS LOOK AT EACH INDIVIDUAL ON A CASE BY CASE BASIS. 
          WITH THAT BEING SAID, WE WERE DILIGENT WITH OUR EMPLOYERS TO HELP THEM UNDERSTAND WHAT A HUGE NEED THAT IS IN THE SAN ANTONIO COMMUNITY AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE PROVIDING THE RIGHT TOOLS IN THE TOOLBOX TO BE ABLE TO ASSESS AND UNDERSTAND THE VALUE THAT THESE EMPLOYEES CAN ADD TO THEIR COMPANIES. WE TRY TO HIGHLIGHT CHAMPIONS THAT ARE HIRING SECOND CHANCE INDIVIDUALS SO THEY CAN SEE IT'S A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE IN THE WORKPLACE TO HIRE SOMEBODY THAT MAY HAVE A BLEMISH ON THEIR RECORD BECAUSE THEY ARE PRODUCING PHENOMENAL OUTCOMES 
          FOR THOSE BUSINESSES. >> CASTILLO: I APPRECIATE THAT. I UNDERSTAND THERE ARE DIFFERENT WORK FORCE TRAINING PROGRAMS THAT INDIVIDUALS CAN GO THROUGH BUT SEEING THAT WHAT'S BEING OFFERED HERE IS A $20 MINIMUM WAGE, I WANT TO ENSURE THAT OPPORTUNITY IS AVAILABLE TO FOLKS WHO HAVE PAID THEIR DUES AND ARE NOW TRYING TO GET BACK ON TRACK AND HAVE OPPORTUNITY TO GET THE SAME OPPORTUNITY AS ANYONE ELSE. I WANT TO ENSURE THAT AS WE CONTINUE TO ANALYZE DATA, POTENTIALLY RECALIBRATE, HOW CAN WE POTENTIALLY IF THERE IS A POINT SYSTEM IN WHICH WE HAVE SO MANY EMPLOYERS WANTING TO PARTICIPATE, THAT WE CAN THEN PRIORITIZE BASED OFF OF THOSE WHO ARE PROVIDING MORE OPPORTUNITY TO SAN ANTONIANS AND IN TERMS WITH VIA, FOR EXAMPLE, IT'S GREAT TO SEE THEY HAVE OVER 500 TRAINEES. 
          [01:10:06]
DO WE KNOW WITH THE LAST ROUND OF PARTICIPATION, DID THEY RETAIN THOSE EMPLOYEES THAT THEY HIRED? I UNDERSTAND THIS WILL BE FOR THE NEW ROUND, CORRECT? 
          >> CORRECT. >> CASTILLO: DO WE KNOW IN TERMS OF VIA, FOR EXAMPLE, IF THEY RETAINED THEIR PARTICIPANTS? AGAIN, I UNDERSTAND THERE'S OPPORTUNITY THE APPLICANT CAN ALWAYS GO SOMEWHERE ELSE OR THINGS HAPPEN, THEY MOVE OUT OF SAN ANTONIO, WHATEVER THE CASE MAY BE. BUT DO WE KNOW HOW MANY EMPLOYERS ARE BEING RETAINED? 
          >> THIS IS VIA'S FIRST ROUND. THEY DIDN'T PARTICIPATE IN THE LAST ROUND. 
          THIS IS THEIR FIRST FORAY. THEY ARE GOING ALL INTO IT. WE ARE ABOUT NINE MONTHS INTO AN 18-MONTH AGREEMENT WITH THAT FIRST ROUND OF GROUPS AND WE WILL HAVE THAT DATA REPORT BACK TO COUNCIL VERY SOON. BUT AGAIN, THE RETENTION PIECE IS A LONG-TERM. 
          >> CASTILLO: I'M CURIOUS AS WELL, ARE THEY GOING TO BE BUS DRIVERS, MECHANICS, WHERE EXACTLY ARE THESE FOLKS BEING TRAINED AND PLACED? BECAUSE I UNDERSTAND AUDIO] I WANT TO ENSURE WE ARE NOT JUST SUBSIDIZING THEM TO USE CONTRACT LABOR VERSUS BRINGING FOLKS ONBOARD FULL-TIME WITH THE SAME BENEFITS, PAY. LASTLY, IN TERMS OF THE FOLKS THAT WE ARE GOING TO BE CONTRACTING WITH, ARE THERE ANY STIPULATIONS IN WHICH THEY CAN ONLY HAVE EMPLOYEES THAT LIVE WITHIN CITY OF SAN ANTONIO LIMITS OR RIGHT NOW, IF YOU LIVE 
          IN THE COUNTY, CAN THEY HIRE COUNTY RESIDENTS? >> FIRST QUESTION, HAVE TO BE W2 EMPLOYEES FOR VIA. THEY CAN'T BE CONTRACTORS. THEY HAVE TO BE W2 EMPLOYEES WITH BENEFITS. AND ANOTHER STIPULATION, THEY HAVE TO BE READY TO WORK PARTICIPANTS. MEANING THEY HAVE TO LIVE IN THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO UNLESS THEY ARE MILITARY, THEY CAN LIVE ANYWHERE IN BEXAR COUNTY. FOR INCUMBENT WORKERS, THE AWARD IS BASED UPON THE LOCATION OF THE BUSINESS AND THAT BUSINESS IS LOCATED INSIDE OF THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO LASTLY, IN TERMS OF OUTREACH TO GET FOLKS TO PARTICIPATE WITH THIS ROUND, CAN YOU WALK ME THROUGH WHAT THAT OUTREACH LOOKED LIKE? WAS IT SENDING OUT CONTACTS TO FOLKS THAT THE CITY TYPICALLY CONTRACTS WITH? WHAT DID THAT LOOK LIKE? 
          >> TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR THE FUNDING, YOU HAVE TO BE A PLEDGED EMPLOYER FOR SAN ANTONIO READY TO WORK. WE USED OUR PLEDGED EMPLOYER LIST AND SENT OUT INVITATIONS ON SOCIAL MEDIA FOR EMPLOYERS WHO WERE NOT PLEDGED EMPLOYERS TO TAKE THE PLEDGE. 
          IF THEY TOOK THAT PLEDGE, WE WORKED TO RECRUIT SMALL BUSINESSES, WE DID PRESENTATIONS TO THEM AS WELL TO ENSURE THE WORD GOT OUT TO OUR SMALL BUSINESSES. 
          THIS WERE SEVERAL SESSIONS HELD TO ENSURE THE SMALL BUSINESSES UNDERSTOOD WHAT THE PROGRAM WAS. 
          WE THE INFORMATION SESSIONS ONLINE, WEBINAR, AS WELL AS IN PERSON TO ENSURE THE REACH WAS 
          AS FAR AS WE COULD GET TO IN THE COMMUNITY. >> CASTILLO: LASTLY, I WAS SURPRISED NOT TO SEE CPS ENERGY. I KNOW THEY ARE A PLEDGED EMPLOYER. 
          MY UNDERSTANDING IS THEY ARE ABOUT TO HAVE A LARGE COHORT OF FOLKS RETIRE. 
          I SEE OPPORTUNITY FOR THEM TO ATTRACT, TRAIN AND RETAIN TALENT. 
          THOSE ARE ALL MY COMMENTS. THANK YOU, CHAIR. >> THANK YOU. 
          >> VIAGRAN: I LOOK FORWARD TO MOVING THIS FORWARD. THE COUNCILWOMAN ANSWERED MOST OF MY QUESTIONS REGARDING VIA. I APPRECIATE THAT. THAT WAS MY CONCERN, TOO. 
          I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING THIS WORK, MIKE. I THANK YOU FOR PIVOTING AS YOU HAVE OR MOVING A LITTLE FASTER THAN WE EXPECTED. I THINK SOME OF THE THINGS WE LEARNED ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU HAVE A CITY LIKE OURS WHERE THERE WAS RED LINING, WHERE THERE WAS GENERATIONAL KIND OF JUST POVERTY AND PUTTING PEOPLE IN THEIR PLACE OR TREATING PEOPLE AS SECOND CLASS, WHICH HAPPENED HERE IN SAN ANTONIO, THAT TRYING TO BRING A WORK FORCE IN AND CREATING A MIDDLE CLASS THAT WAS OUTSIDE OF THE MILITARY, BECAUSE MILITARY WAS OUR -- CREATED A LARGE HISPANIC MIDDLE CLASS BACK IN THE DAY, I THINK IT WAS REALLY INTERESTING ON SOME OF THE THINGS WE HAD TO OVERCOME AND OUR PARTNERS HAD TO OVERCOME AS THEY WERE GETTING PEOPLE TO BE EXCITED ABOUT THIS AND TO APPLY FOR THE JOBS. I THINK WE DO NEED TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION OUR EMPLOYERS. I THINK WE HAVE TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION OUR WORKFORCE AND THE MIXED MESSAGES THEY HAVE GOTTEN OVER THE YEARS FROM THIS CITY, FROM ITS LEADERSHIP, ABOUT THEIR VALUE AND THEIR IMPORTANCE, AND I THINK RIGHT NOW, WHAT WE HAVE IS WE WANT TO SEE THAT $20 AN HOUR, WE WANT THEM TO STAY IN SAN ANTONIO, BUT WE UNDERSTAND THAT THERE MIGHT BE BIGGER, BETTER THINGS FOR THEM IN OTHER LOCATIONS. SO I'M PLEASED TO SEE TOYOTA, 
          [01:15:05]
BUT AGAIN, SOME OF THESE MANUFACTURING JOBS THAT ARE PARTICIPATING IN THIS ON-THE-JOB TRAINING AND INCUMBENT WORKER TRAINING PILOT PROGRAM, THEY WILL BE COMPETING WITH JCB AND INTERNATIONAL FOR SOME EMPLOYERS, SO I'M THANKFUL THAT YOU CONSIDER THAT BUT I WANT US TO SEE IF WE CAN TRACK, MAYBE IF THEY DO ON-THE-JOB TRAINING WITH TOYOTA AND THEN MAKE THAT MOVE TO INTERNATIONAL OR JCB AS THEY TAKE OFF AND THEY START TO HIRE. BECAUSE I THINK WE ARE GOING TO SEE THAT HAPPEN. I HAVE SEEN THAT ALREADY BETWEEN INTERNATIONAL AND TOYOTA, SPECIFICALLY IN THE PAINT DEPARTMENT THAT PEOPLE GO BACK AND FORTH. 
          SO I WANT TO MAKE SURE WE KEEP TRACK, BECAUSE I REALLY DO WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE ARE FEELING LIKE -- THAT SAN ANTONIO IS WHERE THEY CAN STAY AND THAT THEY CAN SEE A CAREER PATH FORWARD IN THIS PROCESS. SO THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION. 
          THAT'S ALL I HAVE. THANK YOU. >> ROCHA GARCIA: THANK YOU, CHAIR. THANK YOU SO MUCH, MIKE. I WANTED TO SHARE A STORY THAT'S KIND OF RELATED TO THE PRESENTATION WE HAD EARLIER AND HOW IT TIES IN TO ATTRACTING COMPANIES. THE MOMENT THAT I MET THE CEO OF JCB, I STARTED TALKING TO HIM ABOUT READY TO WORK. I TALKED TO HIM ABOUT THE HOUSING BOND. 
          IT WAS INTERESTING BECAUSE HE'S A VERY QUIET MAN. HE DOESN'T SAY A LOT. 
          AND I TOLD HIM OUR COMMUNITY INVESTS IN ONE ANOTHER. LIKE WE SUPPORT ONE ANOTHER. 
          WE HAVE THIS PRE-K FOR SA PROGRAM, WE HAVE THE READY TO WORK PROGRAM. 
          WE HAVE THE HOUSING BOND THAT'S DEVELOPING WORKFORCE HOUSING. HE STARTED TALKING AND AS A MATTER OF FACT, AFTER THE MEETING, ERIC WALSH FOLLOWED ME OUT, HE'S LIKE COUNCILWOMAN, WE HAVE NEVER HEARD HIM TALK THAT MUCH. IT WAS INCREDIBLE, BECAUSE HE WAS EXCITED ABOUT IT. HE WAS EXCITED THAT WE INVEST IN ONE ANOTHER. 
          AND THEN A FEW DAYS LATER, WE GOT THE WORD THAT THEY WERE GOING TO COME TO SAN ANTONIO, OVER SAVANNAH. SO CONGRATULATIONS, MIKE RAMSEY. IT'S MOVING SLOW, IT'S NOT WHERE WE WANTED IT TO BE, BUT IT'S MOVING THE NEEDLE. I WOULD LOVE TO SEE A YEAR OVER YEAR PROGRESS ON HOW WE ARE HELPING ADJUST THE SALARY LEVELS AND INCREASE IN SALARY LEVELS. 
          I KNOW THE DISTRICT THAT HAS BENEFITED THE MOST SINCE THE INCEPTION, IT USED TO BE DISTRICT 2, COULD BE WRONG, I'M JUST KIND OF GO THROUGH WHAT I SEE, IT HAPPENS TO BE THEY ARE WOMEN. SO I WOULD LOVE TO AGAIN, I FORGOT TO MENTION THAT EARLIER WHILE SARAH WAS HERE, BUT I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU COULD HELP ALSO WITH THOSE NUMBERS, THAT WE ALWAYS TELL THE STORY OF PROGRAMS LIKE READY TO WORK AND PROGRAMS LIKE PRE-K FOR SA AND EVERYTHING THAT WE DO AS A COMMUNITY, THE WRAP-AROUND. SO WITH THAT SAID, I'M OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THE OUTCOMES. HOWEVER, I FEEL LIKE I WAS TALKING ABOUT ON THE JOB TRAINING THAT, PROBABLY FOUR YEARS AGO. I WAS HOPING THAT WE WOULD HAVE MORE MONEY FOR ON-THE-JOB TRAINING. I FEEL LIKE FINALLY, AT LEAST WE'RE MOVING ALONG. 
          BUT HERE'S THE NEXT ONE I'M REALLY WORRIED ABOUT. THAT'S THE AMOUNT OF RESTAURANTS THAT KEEP CLOSING. WE ARE A CITY OF GASTRONOMY. IF THE CULTURE IS FOOD, WE FOCUS ON THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY, THAT WE STILL HAVEN'T KIND OF BRIDGED THE GAP THERE IN TERMS OF WHAT WE'RE DOING FOR THAT INDUSTRY. IN A LITTLE BIT, WE ARE HEARING ABOUT THAT, WE ARE ADDING IN OR FOCUSING ON THOSE KEY AREAS AND CHANGING IT BUT CAN YOU HELP ME MAYBE UNDERSTAND HOW OR WHEN WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO START LOOKING AT THAT A LITTLE BIT FURTHER? 
          >> HOSPITALITY IS ALREADY A TARGET INDUSTRY WITHIN READY TO WORK. 
          WE HAVE SEVERAL OCCUPATIONS, INCLUDING CHEFS, THAT ARE ON THE TARGET OCCUPATION LIST THAT WE SUPPORT THAT INDUSTRY THROUGH. WE ARE WORKING VERY DILIGENTLY FROM A MARKETING PERSPECTIVE TO ENSURE THAT THAT INDUSTRY IS LOOKED AT AS A VITAL PART OF THE SAN ANTONIO COMMUNITY. 
          WE HAVE HAD MANY OF OUR LOCAL RESTAURANTEURS COME IN, LOOK FOR THOSE IN LOCAL MEDIA VERY SOON. 
          WE ARE HAPPY TO SEE A COUPLE RESTAURANTS ON THE LIST FOR WORKER TRAINING, ON-THE-JOB TRAINING. THE ISSUE WE HAVE, OF COURSE, IS ALWAYS WAGES, BECAUSE WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE INDIVIDUALS PURSUING THOSE CAREER PATHWAYS ARE ON TRACK TO GET A FAMILY-SUSTAINING JOB. WE WILL CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THEM TO ENSURE THE PROFESSION OF RESTAURANT WORKERS ARE HIGHLIGHTED AND PUT ON A PINNACLE IN SAN ANTONIO. 
          >> ROCHA GARCIA: DO WE PARTNER WITH THE CIA YET? >> WE DO NOT. 
          >> ROCHA GARCIA: I KNOW THEY ARE TRYING TO CREATE THOSE CAREERS, SO ANYWAY, JUST KIND OF AGAIN, I 
          [01:20:08]
HAD NEVER ASKED ABOUT THE CULINARY INSTITUTE. THEN I APPRECIATE THAT THERE IS A MIX OF BUSINESSES LIKE YOU SAID IN HERE. I WOULD LOVE TO EVENTUALLY SEE HOW WE ARE GOING TO MEASURE THE IMPACT ON THOSE, IN PARTICULAR. COUNCILMAN CASTILLO AND COUNCILMAN VIAGRAN ASKED ABOUT VIA. THAT WAS ONE OF MY QUESTIONS, BECAUSE I HAD HEARD THAT THEIR RETENTION RATE WASN'T THAT GREAT. 
          SO I WAS JUST WONDERING ABOUT THAT. ALSO, DO WE HAVE ANY OF THE 
          EMPLOYERS HERE TODAY? >> NO. NO, MA'AM. 
          >> ROCHA GARCIA: IF I COULD JUST SEE THE TURNOVER RATES FOR THE COMPANIES WITH MORE THAN 50 ON-THE-JOB TRAINING POSITIONS, THAT WOULD BE GOOD. I WOULD LOVE TO SEE WHERE WE ARE LIKE WITH THE AGREEMENT. AGAIN, THE RETENTION IS CRITICAL TO US. 
          THEN ALSO, DO WE HAVE REVENUE AMOUNTS FOR EACH OF THE EMPLOYERS THAT ARE LISTED IN 
          REGARDS TO OJT AND IWT? >> AS FAR AS HOW MUCH EACH EMPLOYER WILL BE RECOMMENDED FOR? YES, MA'AM, WE CAN GET THAT TO YOU. 
          >> ROCHA GARCIA: GOOD. I ALSO WANTED TO SEE IF THERE WAS OTHER FACTORS, THE QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS COMPONENT. I FEEL WE DO A GREAT JOB WITH QUANTITATIVE BUT I DON'T FEEL WE DO ENOUGH WITH QUALITATIVE. ARE PEOPLE LEAVING BECAUSE THEY ARE SEEKING JUST BETTER WAGES OR IS IT BECAUSE THEY COULDN'T FIND HOUSING IN THAT PARTICULAR AREA? THE OTHER DAY I GAVE AN EXAMPLE OF A WOMAN WHO TRAVELS 35 MINUTES BECAUSE SHE CAN'T FIND HOUSING IN THE AREA WHERE SHE WORKS. SO AS WE TRY TO IMPROVE THEIR LIVES, WE ALSO HAVE TO FOCUS ON THAT COMPONENT OF IT. THEN -- WELL, ACTUALLY, THE ONLY OTHER THING IS OPPORTUNITIES FOR MORE SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS. I APPRECIATE THE LIST, YOU HAD A GOOD LIST OF SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS THAT ARE APPLYING FOR OJT AND IWT. BUT WHAT IS IT THAT THEY HAVE TO MEET TO BE ON THE PROGRAM? WHAT DO THEY HAVE TO DO? TELL ME ABOUT THE ELIGIBILITY 
          PROCESS. >> READY TO WORK PLEDGE IS IMPORTANT, NUMBER ONE. 
          THEY HAVE TO BE LOCATED WITHIN CITY LIMITS. THEY HAVE TO BE IN THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO PROPER. AND HIRING AT AT LEAST $20 AN HOUR FOR THE ON-THE-JOB TRAINING FROM THE READY TO WORK PROGRAM, PARTICIPANTS THAT HAVE GRADUATED FROM THE PROGRAM. 
          THOSE ARE THE REQUIREMENTS TO BE ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE THE FUNDING. >> ROCHA GARCIA: GOT IT. 
          THANK YOU. >> PELAEZ: MIKE, THANKS. I KNOW THAT TWO THINGS CAN BE TRUE AT ONCE. WE CANNOT BE EXACTLY WHERE WE WANT TO BE BUT ALSO, WE CAN ALSO BE MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. I THINK THAT'S WHERE WE ARE RIGHT NOW. I DID WANT TO ASK YOU ABOUT RESTAURANTS BECAUSE THEY HAVE BEEN ON MY MIND, TOO, COUNCILWOMAN. CONSIDERING THAT A RAEESTAURANT FAILURE RATE IN THE FIRST YEAR IS BETWEEN 17% AND 20% AND BY THE TIME THEY'RE DONE I THINK WITH THE THIRD OR FOURTH YEAR, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT 65% TO 70% FAILURE RATE. 
          HOW DO YOU ACCOUNT FOR THAT WHEN YOU ARE DEALING WITH RESTAURANTS? I MEAN, I UNDERSTAND WE ARE TRYING TO CREATE JOBS AND TRAIN PEOPLE WITH PORTABLE SKILLS BUT IF THEIR EMPLOYERS ARE MORE LIKELY THAN NOT TO SHUTTER, HOW DO YOU BAKE THAT IN? 
          >> IT'S VERY CHALLENGING. YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT ABOUT THE FAILURE RATES OF BUSINESSES. 
          ONE OF THE THINGS WE LIKE TO LOOK AT IS LONGEVITY, HOW LONG HAS THAT RESTAURANT BEEN AROUND IS A BETTER PREDICTOR THEY WILL BE AROUND IF THEY MAKE IT PAST THE FIRST YEAR, THEY ARE LIKELY TO STAY OPEN BEYOND THAT. ALSO, THE INDUSTRY WITHIN ITSELF HERE IN SAN ANTONIO, AS THE COUNCILWOMAN STATED, THAT INDUSTRY HAS DEFINITELY BEEN A BIG PART OF OUR LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT HERE IN OUR COMMUNITY. WHAT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE IS THAT IF THERE IS A NEED FOR THAT SKILL SET ACROSS THE BOARD, WHETHER THAT EMPLOYER SPECIFIC RESTAURANT IS OPEN OR NOT, THOSE SKILLS CAN TRANSFER TO A DIFFERENT EMPLOYER. 
          WANT STABILITY AND GROWTH WITHIN THAT ONE ORGANIZATION. BUT IT PRESENTS A CHALLENGE THAT WE ARE HOPEFUL THERE'S ENOUGH VOLUME AS FAR AS NUMBER OF RESTAURANTS TO ABSORB THAT 
          TALENT ONCE IT'S IN THE MARKETPLACE. >> PELAEZ: -- THRESHOLD FOR 
          RECEIVING OJT OR THE OTHER FUNDS? >> AT LEAST ONE YEAR. 
          IN BUSINESS. >> PELAEZ: OKAY. I'M TROUBLED BY THAT. 
          ONE YEAR, LIKE I SAID, IT'S 17% TO 20% BUT IT'S IN YEARS THREE, FOUR AND FIVE WHERE THEY ARE ALMOST GUARANTEED TO FAIL. SO I'M WONDERING WHETHER OR NOT THERE'S -- WE SHOULD BE MORE PRUDENT WITH THE YEARS IN EXISTENCE. ANYWAY, WE CAN TALK ABOUT THAT OFFLINE. THANK YOU, MIKE. I APPRECIATE IT. 
          OKAY. THIS IS A VOTE, RIGHT? BECAUSE WE ARE SENDING THIS ON TO FULL COUNCIL. DO I HEAR A MOTION TO APPROVE? WE GOT COMPETING MOTIONS AND SECONDS. COUNCILWOMAN VIAGRAN WITH THE MOTION. 
          [01:25:04]
          >> ROCHA GARCIA: SECOND. >> PELAEZ: ALL IN FAVOR,AYE. ALL OPPOSED? ANYONE WANTS TO ABSTAIN? YOU GHT. WE HAVE GOT ONE ABSTENTION. 
          EVERYBODY ELSE IS AN AYE. >> THERE IS ONE THING I WOULD LIKE TO ADD ABOUT THIS SPECIFIC ITEM. WE NOTED THE FOLLOW-UP ITEMS AND WILL MAKE SURE TO GET THAT INFORMATION BACK OUT TO THE COMMITTEE PRIOR TO A SESSION. HOWEVER, AT A SESSION, BECAUSE WE ARE TALKING ABOUT OVER 100 CONTRACTS, WITH THE AGENDA ITEM, YOU ARE GOING TO SEE THE TEMPLATE CONTRACTS. WE ARE LIKELY NOT GOING TO BE EXECUTING AND ATTACHING ALL 105 CONTRACTS. I JUST WANTED TO BRING THAT TO EVERYBODY'S AWARENESS. 
          >> PELAEZ: OKAY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. WHAT'S NEXT? WE HAVE WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS. 
          QUICK PRESENTATION ON OUR NEXT FOUR-YEAR ANNUAL PLAN. WE ARE REQUIRED BY LAW TO PROVIDE OUR LOCAL PLAN AND IT'S OUR STRATEGIC PLAN OUTLINING ESSENTIALLY THE DYNAMICS AS WELL AS THE CHANGES IN THE LABOR FO FORCE. 
          WE OUTLINE SOME STRATEGIES ASSOCIATED WITH HOW WE ARE WORKING CLOSELY WITH EMPLOYERS IN THE INDUSTRIES THAT CONTINUE TO SHOW PROMISE WITHIN THE REGION. 
          AND ALSO DEMONSTRATING HOW WE ARE ACTUALLY ALIGNING BOTH THE IN-DEMAND INDUSTRIES AND OCCUPATIONS WITH A NUMBER OF STRATEGIC PLANS BOTH LOCALLY AS WELL AS WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE STATE. SOME OF THE COMPONENTS OUTLINED IN THE LOCAL PLAN, OF COURSE WE DO HAVE A COPY OF THAT, IT'S PRETTY EXTENSIVE, INCLUDE ECONOMIC AND WORKFORCE ANALYSIS, EMPLOYMENT SERVICES, TRAINING PROGRAMS, WORKFORCE INVESTMENT INITIATIVES AND OTHERS. 
          SOME OF THE STUFF WE DO IS OBVIOUSLY VERY PROGRAMATIC. IT'S OUTLINED IN EITHER THE WORKFORCE INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY ACT OR OTHER LEGISLATION THAT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS PASSED. THERE ARE OTHER TYPES OF INITIATIVES SUCH AS THE TEACHEREXTERNSHIP PROGRAM WHERE WE HAD OVER 700 TEACHERS PARTICIPATE IN THAT, THAT ARE ACTUALLY AN EXTENSION OF OUR SERVICES AND WHAT WE PROVIDE. OTHER THINGS LIKE THE WORKFORCE ACADEMY OR SUMMER LEARN AND EARN PROGRAM, THOSE ARE OUTLINED AS PART OF THE SUMMER WORKFORCE INITIATIVES THAT ARE OUTLINED IN THE PLAN. WE STARTED THIS PROCESS OF SOLICITING FEEDBACK FROM THE 13 COMMUNITIES AS FAR BACK AS JULY. THE INTENT HERE IS TO START TO HAVE A DISCUSSION WITH EACH OF THE STAKEHOLDERS. AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, 13 COUNTIES, 14 CHIEF ELECTED OFFICIALS, 27 BOARD MEMBERS, VERY DIVERSE ECONOMIES, IT WAS IMPORTANT FOR US TO ENSURE THAT WE WERE DOING THE BEST POSSIBLE JOB TO TRY TO GET AS MUCH FEEDBACK AS POSSIBLE ON WHAT THE PRIORITIES SHOULD BE. AROUND DECEMBER, WE DROPPED THE FIRST PLAN AND POSTED IT FOR PUBLIC COMMENT. AFTER THAT, WE HELD A NUMBER OF LISTENING SESSIONS, INCLUDING A LISTENING SESSION WITH AREA JUDGES AGAIN TO SOLICIT SOME FEEDBACK ABOUT WHAT THEIR PRIORITIES SHOULD BE, OUTLINED IN THE PLAN. 
          HERE ARE SOME OF THE FOLKS WE HEARD FROM, INCLUDING BUSINESS PARTNERS, SCHOOL DISTRICTS, CHAMBERS, EMPLOYERS, ASSOCIATIONS, AND THE STRATEGIES UP ABOVE ARE INCLUDING ONE-ON-ONE SESSIONS, LISTENING SESSIONS AND OTHERS. SOME OF THAT CAME INTO FRUITION IN TERMS OF THE FEEDBACK THAT WILL SHOW UP IN THE RESULTS ON SUBSEQUENT SLIDES. 
          PART OF THE EFFORTS THAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO HERE, AND I THINK YOU JUST HEARD ABOUT, FOR EXAMPLE, ONE OF THE MAJOR PARTNERS ASSOCIATED WITH ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FOR BEXAR COUNTY AND THE REGION WITH GREATER SATX IS THE ALIGNMENT OF HOW WHAT ULTIMATELY OUR GOALS ARE. SO PART OF THIS INCLUDES OUR TARGET AVERAGE WAGE, SO WHEN WE HAD THE 2020 PLAN THAT WAS APPROVED, OR 2021, A NUMBER OF YEARS AGO, THAT TARGET AVERAGE WAGE WAS $15 AN HOUR. WE WERE WORKING WITH SIX CLUSTERS AND SO ON, AND 62 TARGETED DEMAND OCCUPATIONS. THE TIME THAT WE UPDATED THE PLAN IN 2022, THAT INCREASED TO $17 AN HOUR, TARGET DEMAND OCCUPATIONS WAS REDUCED TO 57. SO WHAT WE'RE PROPOSING FOR THE 2025-2028 IS $19 AN HOUR. STILL WORKING WITH EIGHT INDUSTRY SECTORS AND 16 IN-DEMAND INDUSTRIES. HOWEVER, THE TARGET DEMAND OCCUPATIONS HAVE INCREASED FROM 57 TO 74. THAT IS IN LARGE PART TO THE FEEDBACK THAT OCCURRED FROM 
          [01:30:02]
EMPLOYERS AND ASSOCIATIONS AND ALL THE STAKEHOLDERS THAT WE HEARD FROM. 
          SO HERE ARE THE SIX CLUSTERS, MUCH LIKE WHAT WAS JUST OUTLINED IN GREATER SATX. 
          THIS IS A LITTLE MORE EXPANSIVE, THOUGH. BECAUSE OF THE 13 COMMUNITIES. 
          IF YOU LOOK AT, FOR EXAMPLE, SOME OF OUR SOUTHERN COMMUNITIES LIKE MCMULLEN, WILSON, THOSE ARE COUNTIES THAT HAVE A STRONG PRESENCE OF OIL AND GAS. MAY NOT NECESSARILY BE THE SAME WHEN YOU LOOK AT OUR HILL COUNTRY COUNTIES OR COUNTIES TOWARDS THE WEST, SO WHAT THESE INDUSTRIES REPRESENT IS AS BEST AS POSSIBLE, THE ALIGNMENT OF WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THOSE LOCAL COMMUNITIES TO BE ABLE TO, OF COURSE, HAVE WORKFORCE ALIGN WITH THOSE, AND BE ABLE TO DEMONSTRATE SUPPORT FOR CONTI CONTINUING TO SUPPORT THOSE INDUSTRY CLUSTERS. AR AEROSPACE MANUFACTURING ARE PRETTY SIMILAR. PART OF WHAT WE WENT THROUGH IN TERMS OF DEVELOPING A LOCAL PLAN IS TO SEE WHERE WE COULD HAVE ALIGNMENT WITH KEY STAKEHOLDERS AND KEY PARTNERS THROUGHOUT THE REGION. THIS NEXT SLIDE WILL REPRESENT THE OCCUPATIONS. 
          I THINK EARLIER, THERE WAS SOME DISCUSSION AND QUESTIONS REGARDING THE PREVIOUS PRESENTATIONS ABOUT WHAT TYPES OF OCCUPATIONS ARE WE LOOKING TO FILL. 
          SOME OF THIS COMES FROM DATA ANALYSIS THAT WE HAVE DONE IN REGARDS TO OUR RESOURCES THROUGH DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND OTHER SOURCES TO DEMONSTRATE WHERE WE ARE GOING TO HAVE HIGH GROWTH, HIGH DEMAND AND HIGH WAGE OCCUPATIONS. WHAT YOU'LL FIND IN EACH OF THESE CLUSTERS IS ACTUALLY A DIVERSE SET OF OCCUPATIONS THAT SOME OF THEM MAY BE ENTRY LEVEL POSITIONS THAT WOULD REQUIRE LITTLE TO NO SORT OF WORK EXPERIENCE AND MAYBE SOME LEVEL OF SKILL SET ASSOCIATED WITH GETTING INTO THAT SECTOR, BUT OTHERS LIKE FOR EXAMPLE, HERE AT THE TOP OF THIS LIST INCLUDES INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERS, THAT'S PROBABLY GOING TO BE AN INCUMBENT WORKER TYPE OF POSITION THAT'S GOING TO REQUIRE A DEGREE. 
          SO PART OF THE OVERALL EFFORT IS TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE PROVIDING DIVERSE STRATEGIES ASSOCIATED WITH HOW WE ARE MEETING EMPLOYER AND INDUSTRY NEEDS FOR THE WHOLE REGION. 
          IN THE ACTUAL LOCAL PLAN TOWARDS THE TAIL END OF IT, YOU WILL SEE THESE OCCUPATIONS AS WELL THAT WILL GIVE MORE DETAIL IN TERMS OF THE NUMBER OF JOBS THAT EXIST TODAY, WHAT THE JOB GROWTH IS ANTICIPATED FOR APPROXIMATELY THE NEXT TEN YEARS, AND WHAT THE EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS ARE AS WELL AS THE PAY ASSOCIATED WITH THAT. I KNOW THERE WAS SOME CONVERSATION ABOUT THAT EARLIER. SOME OF THESE OCCUPATIONS ARE LONG-STANDING ONES SO WHEN WE LOOK AT, FOR EXAMPLE, HEALTH CARE, REGISTERED NURSES CONTINUES TO BE A HUGE NEED NOT ONLY IN THIS REGION BUT ALSO IN TEXAS AND ACROSS THE COUNTRY. THOSE WILL CONTINUE TO BE ONES THAT WE CONTINUE SUPPORT BUT THERE ARE OTHER NEW OCCUPATIONS THAT HAVE BEEN ADDED THAT AGAIN, WAS EITHER PART OF THE RESEARCH OR PART OF THE FEEDBACK THAT WE HEARD FROM THE EMPLOYERS OR THE STAKEHOLDERS THAT WE HEARD FROM. IT CYBERSECURITY, SOME OF YOU WERE WITH US AT THE GRAND OPENING OF OUR LATEST CENTER AT THE PORT SAN ANTONIO SO AGAIN, THIS DEMONSTRATES HOW WE ARE UTILIZING OUR INFRASTRUCTURE AND INVESTMENTS TO ALIGN WHAT'S HAPPENING, FOR EXAMPLE, IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND CYBERSECURITY. SO PART OF HAVING A LOCATION THERE AND INVESTING INTO THESE TYPES OF OCCUPATIONS ARE TO DIRECTLY SUPPORT WHAT STAKEHOLDERS LIKE PORT SAN ANTONIO ARE ALREADY DOING WITH THE CREATION OF THOUSANDS OF JOBS. UNDER CONSTRUCTION UTILITIES, THIS CONTINUES TO BE A MAJOR PRIORITY FOR THE REGION. WHAT WAS LARGELY, FOR EXAMPLE, CONSTRUCTION BOOMING FOR BEXAR CO COUNTY, THAT HAS BEEN EXPANDED NOW TO SURROUNDING COUNTIES SO YOU LOOK AT MEDINA, GUADELOUPE AND SOME OF THE OTHER COUNTIES, YOU SEE HUGE AMOUNTS OF CONSTRUCTION, BOTH UTILITY CONSTRUCTION AS WELL AS HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION. 
          THE CITY OF COURSE HERE, MAKING MAJOR INVESTMENTS INTO THINGS LIKE AIRPORTS AND THOSE TYPES OF THINGS, SO IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO OF COURSE SUPPORT THESE TYPES OF OCCUPATIONS AS WE MOVE FORWARD. THIS ALSO, YOU KNOW, LOCAL PLAN ALLOWS US TO AS A BOARD AND AS A REGION TO BE ABLE TO HAVE SOME NORTH STAR ASSOCIATED WITH WHERE WE ARE LOOKING TO MAKE OUR INVESTMENT. FOR EXAMPLE, WE SECURED A $10 MILLION DEPARTMENT OF LABOR GRANT TO DIRECTLY SUPPORT THESE OCCUPATIONS AND DIRECTLY SUPPORT THESE INDUSTRIES. 
          [01:35:03]
SO THIS LOCAL PLAN IS IMPORTANT FOR US TO FOCUS OUR EFFORTS ON WHERE WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE SECURING ADDITIONAL RESOURCES AND WHERE WE'RE INVESTING OUR MONEY AND TIME. 
          OIL AND GAS WAREHOUSING TRANSPORTATION AND OTHERS, SOME OF THESE AGAIN ARE ONGOING OCCUPATIONS THAT HAVE BEEN IN THE PLAN FOR SOME TIME. BUT DEFINITELY AS I MENTIONED, SOME OF OUR COUNTIES DO HAVE A STRONG PRESENCE OF OIL AND GAS, WAREHOUSING AND TRANSPORTATION, IF YOU DRIVE DOWN I-35, YOU WILL SEE THE STRONG NEED FOR THOSE TYPES OF OCCUPATIONS TO FILL THOSE JOBS THAT ARE BEING CREATED. EDUCATION AND HOSPITALITY, WE DID INCLUDE HOSPITALITY AS AN INDUSTRY THIS TIME AROUND. SOME OF THE OCCUPATIONS DO INCLUDE FOOD SERVICE MANAGERS, BUT WE ALSO INCLUDED SOME NEW ONES LIKE MEETING CONVENTION AND EVENT PLANNERS AND ALSO, WE HEARD LOUDLY FROM THE EDUCATION SECTOR AS WELL AS THE CHILD CARE SECTOR ABOUT ADDING PRESCHOOL TEACHERS AS WELL AS CHILD CARE WORKERS TO THESE OCCUPATIONS. 
          WHILE THESE ARE ON THE LOWER-PAYING SIDE OF THE OCCUPATIONS, WE FELT IT WAS NECESSARY TO BE ABLE TO CONTINUE TO SUPPORT THOSE BECAUSE OF THE EFFECT THEY HAVE ON THE OVERALL WORK FORCE. IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO HAVE CHILD CARE WORKERS FEEDING INTO OUR CHILD CARE PROVIDERS, YOU KNOW. WE MAKE AN INVESTMENT IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, ABOUT $120 MILLION, THAT SUPPORTS KIDS DAILY IN THE BASIS OF CHILD CARE. IT'S ABOUT SUPPORTING CHILD CARE PROVIDERS AS SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS TO CONTINUE TO PROVIDE CHILD CARE OPPORTUNITIES THROUGHOUT SAN ANTONIO AND THE REGION. IN TERMS OF NEXT STEPS, WE HAVE HAD SOME INITIAL APPROVALS. 
          I APPRECIATE COUNCILMAN PELAEZ AND COUNCILWOMAN ROCHA GARCIA. THEY APPROVED THIS PLAN ON MARCH 7TH. THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS APPROVED IT LAST WEEK. 
          BEXAR COUNTY, WE JUST HAD APPROVAL EARLIER THIS MORNING. OF COURSE, I THINK WE ARE PRESENTING HERE AND LATER IN APRIL FOR THE CITY, THE AREA JUDGES, WE HAVE A PRESENTATION WITH HOPEFULLY APPROVAL TOMORROW. UPON COMPLETION OF ALL THOSE APPROVALS, WE WOULD THEN SUBMIT THIS PLAN TO TEXAS WORKFORCE COMMISSION. 
          AT THIS POINT I WILL ENTERTAIN ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE. >> PELAEZ: THANK YOU. 
          COUNCILMAN WHYTE? >> WHYTE: JUST BRIEFLY, A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. 
          BEYOND COMPLIANCE WITH TWC REQUIREMENTS, HOW ARE WE GOING TO MEASURE SUCCESUSS FOR SOME O 
          THESE GOALS? >> YEAH, SURE. SOME OF THAT IS ABOUT LOOKING AT THE RETURN ON INVESTMENT. SO FOR EXAMPLE, WE LOOK AT THE INVESTMENT THAT WE MAKE INTO CHILD CARE. SO FOR THE $120 MILLION INVESTMENT, WE HAVE ABOUT 14,000 KIDS ON A DAILY BASIS IN CHILD CARE, IT'S ABOUT 8,000 OR SO FAMILIES THAT ARE ACTUALLY BENEFITING FROM THE BENEFIT OF THAT SUBSIDY. OF THOSE THAT ARE RECEIVING THE BENEFIT, DEPENDING ON WHEN WE TAKE THE NUMBERS, IT COULD BE AS MUCH AS $20 MILLION TO $25 MILLION ON A MONTHLY BASIS SO IF YOU AGGREGATE THE 12 MONTHS TO THE 20ER OR $25 MILLION, $120 MILLION INVESTMENT YIELDS YOU ABOUT A $200 MILLION PLUS RETURN. 
          SO THAT'S ONE EXAMPLE WHAT WE'RE DOING. WE ARE DEMONSTRATING HOW WE ARE USING OUR INVESTMENTS TO HAVE A RETURN. BUT ALSO ABOUT WHAT WE'RE DOING IN REGARDS TO FULFILLING THE NEEDS OF EMPLOYERS IN THE INDUSTRY. 
          SO PART OF WHAT WE'RE DOING IN REGARDS TO THESE INDUSTRY CLUSTERS IS DEMONSTRATING WHAT WE'RE DOING IN REGARDS TO MEETING EMPLOYER NEEDS. THAT COULD BE EVERYTHING FROM SORT OF HOSTING HIRING FAIRS TO BRINGING JOB SEEKERS TO THOSE HIRING FAIRS TO PLACEMENTS INTO THOSE INDUSTRIES, TO TRAINING INTO THOSE INDUSTRIES. SO IT'S A COMBINATION OF A NUMBER OF THINGS WE'RE DOING TO TRY TO TRACK ULTIMATELY THE VALUE PROPOSITION WE'RE 
          PROVIDING TO THE REGION. >> WHYTE: AND ON THE FUNDING, IF WE'RE NOT MEETING THESE GOALS BY 
          '26 OR '27, IS THERE A MECHANISM TO PAUSE OR REDIRECT FUNDING? >> YEAH, SO WE LIVE IN A VERY HIGHLY REGULATED ENVIRONMENT SO LARGELY, THE DOLLARS THAT ARE COMING TO US ARE FEDERAL PASS-THROUGH DOLLARS THAT ARE COMING THROUGH DEPARTMENT OF LABOR OR HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES. FOR EXAMPLE, CHILD CARE DOLLARS COME THROUGH HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES. TEXAS MODEL FOR WORKFORCE USES CHILD CARE AS BOTH AN EDUCATION 
          [01:40:01]
AND WORKFORCE STRATEGY. REASON I MENTION ALL OF THAT IS THAT THERE'S A LOT OF AUDIO] IN TERMS OF COMPLIANCE AND REGULATION AND PERFORMANCE. IF WE DON'T MEET THOSE METRICS, THEN THOSE AGENCIES ARE LARGELY TEXAS WORKFORCE COMMISSION WILL SAY DE-OBLIGATE FUNDING OR WOULD LOOK AT PUTTING US ON EITHER A TAP OR CAP, A PLAN TO IMPROVE PERFORMANCE. 
          >> WHYTE: LAST QUESTION. FEEDBACK FROM EMPLOYERS OR THE CHAMBERS, DID ANY OF THAT HELP 
          SHAPE THE PLAN? >> YEAH. WE DEFINITELY ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR BETTER INPUT AND A LOT MORE IN TERMS OF SORT OF ALIGNMENT. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WAS INTERESTING EARLIER TODAY ABOUT WHAT WAS PRESENTED THROUGH THE GREATER SATX PLAN IS WHAT THEY ANNOUNCED IN REGARD TO SORT OF WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH ALL OF THEIR LEADS. 
          BETTER ALIGNMENT THERE WOULD BE ACTUALLY HELPFUL FOR US BECAUSE PART OF WHAT WE'RE DOING IS YES, WE ARE DOING RESEARCH AND DOING SOME ONE-ON-ONE FEEDBACK, BUT I'M GOING SORT OF LOCAL WISDOM IS KEY TO ENSURING THAT AT THE TIME THAT YOU ALL ARE, FOR EXAMPLE, EXECUTING INCENTIVE AGREEMENTS TO BRING MAJOR EMPLOYERS TO THE TABLE THAT WORKFORCE IS VERY CLOSELY ALIGNED WITH THAT. SOME OF THAT TYPE OF INFORMATION AND FEEDBACK TO US COULD BE KEY FOR US TO ENSURING THAT WE ARE ALIGNING OUR EFFORTS VERY STRATEGICALLY. 
          >> CASTILLO: THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION. I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO. I KNOW MATT, WHO SITS ON THE BOARD, IS KEEPING US UP TO DATE. 
          I REALLY VALUE THE CONSTRUCTION COMPONENT. I KNOW HE'S WORKING WITH SAM, HE'S DOING PARTNERSHIPS WITH SAM HOUSTON HIGH SCHOOL IN AN APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM AND WORKING WITH STUDENTS TO GET CERTIFICATIONS BUT ALSO MEET THE NEEDS OF THE COMMUNITY. 
          THERE WAS A NEWS STORY THAT HIGHLIGHTED THEM PROVIDING, THEY ARE MAKING BEDS FOR KIDS IN NEED AND THERE IS A LOT OF OPPORTUNITY TO HELP MEET SOME OF THE CONSTITUENT SERVICES NEEDS WITHIN THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THESE APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS AND THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY IN PARTICULAR. AND WE JUST REALLY VALUE THAT PARTNERSHIP AND I JUST APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT YOU DO. THANK YOU. 
          >> THANK YOU, COUNCILWOMAN. GREAT EXAMPLE. >> ROCHA GARCIA: THANK YOU, CHAIR. THANK YOU FOR ALL OF THE INFORMATION. 
          I FEEL LIKE I HAVE SEEN IT. I DO HAVE A QUESTION. BY THE WAY, I LOVE THAT YOU PUT UP THE TIMELINE AS WELL SO THAT PEOPLE COULD SEE HOW MUCH I GUESS FEEDBACK YOU WERE ABLE TO GET. THE HEALTH CARE, I HAVE SEEN A LOT OF HEALTH CARE JOBS HAPPENING AND IT SEEMS LIKE EVEN MORE THAN MONTHLY. I'M APPRECIATIVE OF ALL OF THE FOCUS ON HEALTH CARE AND THAT CONTINUED FOCUS. I FEEL LIKE THERE'S A NEED FOR MARKETING STILL TOWARDS THOSE POSITIONS. I DON'T THINK THAT PEOPLE REALIZE HOW IN DEMAND THOSE ARE. BUT I HAVE BEEN SEEING IT, WE NEED MORE OF THIS, WE NEED MORE OF THAT. ANYWAY, I APPRECIATE THAT. I HAVE A QUESTION OF THE INCLUSION OF OIL AND GAS. RECENTLY THERE WAS AN ARTICLE IN THE "NEW YORK TIMES" THAT TALKED ABOUT HOW EVEN THOUGH THE INDUSTRY WAS INCREASING THERE WAS LESS PEOPLE ACTUALLY WORKING. SO I WOULD VENTURE TO GUESS THAT IT'S BECAUSE OF THE ROBOTICS AND A NUMBER OF THINGS. BUT GIVEN THAT, ARE WE GIVING A FALSE IMPRESSION THAT MAYBE THERE'S MORE JOBS THAN THERE ARE AVAILABLE? TELL ME ABOUT OUR DECISION AGAIN 
          TO INCLUDE THAT. >> YEAH, SURE. YOU KNOW, TWO THINGS HAPPENED WHEN WE GOT HIT WITH THE PANDEMIC. IT WAS MARCH OF 2020 WHEN THINGS SHUT DOWN AND SO FOR THIS REGION, WE HAD TWO CRISES. WE HAD THE CRISIS ASSOCIATED WITH WHAT WAS GOING ON WITH THE PANDEMIC AND WE SAW MAJOR JOB LOSSES THERE. 
          WE ALSO, YOU KNOW, MANY PEOPLE DON'T REMEMBER THAT THE PRICE OF OIL ACTUALLY DROPPED SIGNIFICANTLY TO THE POINT WHERE ACTUALLY, FOLKS WERE SITTING ON TONS OF OIL AND COULDN'T GET RID OF IT. THE PRICE OF OIL ACTUALLY HAD GONE LESS THAN $1 -- I MEAN, LESS THAN THE DOLLAR OR LESS THAN ZERO. SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT TRANSPIRED AS PART OF THAT IS ADVANCEMENTS IN TECHNOLOGY. AND SO WHERE YOU WOULD HAVE HAD A CREW POTENTIALLY WORKING ON AFRACKSITE, THERE COULD POTENTIALLY BE 20 OR 25 PEOPLE BECAUSE OF ADVANCEMENTS IN TECHNOLOGY, THOSE CREWS ARE NOW SMALLER, PROBABLY FIVE TO 10 FOLKS. WHAT HAPPENS IN THAT,S THERE ARE TWO THINGS HAPPENING. 
          [01:45:02]
ONE IS IT RELATES TO SUPPORTING LOCAL ECONOMIC PRIORITIES FOR THOSE COMMUNITIES. 
          KEEP IN MIND THAT KEEPING 13 COUNTY JUDGES AND THE MAYOR OF SAN ANTONIO HAPPY AND 27 BOARD MEMBERS IS A PRETTY BIG CHALLENGE. SO WHEN WE HAVE FOLKS, OIL AND GAS, WHILE YOU KNOW, THERE MAY BE LESS JOB GROWTH, THE ECONOMIC IMPACT TO THOSE COMMUNITIES IS PRETTY SIGNIFICANT. PART OF THE OTHER ISSUE THAT HAPPENS IS UNDERSTANDING AND TAKING THE APPROACH THAT WHAT MAY BE SKILLS THAT ARE DEVELOPED TO, FOR EXAMPLE, OPERATE A FRACKING MACHINE COULD ALSO BE APPLICABLE TO MANUFACTURING OR OTHER TYPES OF JOBS WITHIN THE REGION. SO THAT'S SORT OF STRIKING THAT BALANCE. 
          SO IN UNDERSTANDING THAT FOLKS COULD POTENTIALLY GO FROM ONE INDUSTRY TO ANOTHER. 
          IF AS SORT OF THE ECONOMY CONTINUES TO SORT OF EBB AND FLOW. 
          FOLKS WHO WERE WORKING, FOR EXAMPLE, IN OIL AND GAS WHEN THAT HIT HAPPENED, MOVED TO ACTUALLY GO WORK IN SOUTHWEST RESEARCH OR SPACEX BECAUSE THEY WERE WELDERS SO THEIR SKILLS WERE TRANSFERABLE TO GO INTO THOSE OTHER OCCUPATIONS AND INDUSTRIES. 
          >> ROCHA GARCIA: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THAT. I SIT ON, AND I KEEP FORGETTING THE JUDGES, IT'S NOT JUST SAN ANTONIO. THANK YOU FOR THAT. 
          I WAS LIKE OH, YEAH. I APPRECIATE THE FOCUS ON HOSPITALITY THAT YOU ALL ADDED IN THERE. THEN THE OTHER ONE, COUNCILMAN PELAEZ OR CHAIR PELAEZ SAID IT EARLIER, HE AND I HAD BEEN SITTING IN A LOT OF TOWN HALLS AND ONE THING THAT WE KEEP HEARING IS THAT THERE NEEDS TO BE AN INCREASED FOCUS ON THE INCLUSION OF CHILD CARE WORKERS IN OUR WORKFORCE. BUT WE ARE DOING IT AND I CAN'T WAIT UNTIL APRIL 17TH WHEN THIS PASSES TO SAY HEY, LOOK, WE HAVE ACTUALLY BEEN DOING THE RESEARCH FOR THIS. 
          SO I'M APPRECIATIVE THAT WE ARE LOOKING AT THE CHILD CARE CRISIS. 
          ANOTHER THING I POINTED OUT TO CHAIR PELAEZ LAST GO-AROUND, I VAGUELY MENTIONED EARLIER, BUT IT'S ELDER CARE AND DISABILITY CARE. I THINK THAT IT'S IMPORTANT TO THINK ABOUT THE WORKING FAMILIES AND HOW THEY ARE DOING AND I'M WONDERING HOW WE'RE FACTORING 
          THAT INTO THE HEALTH CARE SECTOR. >> YEAH. 
          I THINK THAT PROBABLY SOME OF THE OCCUPATIONS THAT WE HAVE OUTLINED IN THERE ARE ALSO OCCUPATIONS THAT COULD HELP IN EITHER LIKE HOME CARE AND THOSE TYPES OF SITUATIONS. THE GOOD THING ABOUT WHAT WE DO FAIRLY SUCCESSFUL IS INTRODUCE FOLKS INTO INDUSTRIES AS A MEANS TO BE ABLE TO HOPEFULLY HAVE A CAREER PATHWAY. PEOPLE USED TO TALK ABOUT CAREER LADDERS AND NOW THEY SAY KIND OF IT'S MORE CAREER LATTICES WHICH IS KIND OF LIKE YOU MAY GO A LITTLE FORWARD, GO LEFT, GO RIGHT, THOSE TYPE OF THINGS. BUT I THINK SURPRISED TO SAY THAT WHEN WE LOOK AT WHERE WE'RE PUTTING FOLKS INTO, IN OUR LARGER INVESTMENTS, HEALTH CARE IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST ONES. 
          WE LOOK AT OUR METRICS AND WHERE WE'RE MAKING INVESTMENTS, HEALTH CARE ALWAYS RISES TO THE TOP. 
          I THINK WE ARE PROBABLY MAKING SOME STRIDES IN REGARDS TO THAT. THE OTHER THING I WAS GOING TO MENTION IN REGARD TS TO CHILD CARE, I APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENTS THERE, DEFINITELY WE WANT TO DEMONSTRATE OUR SUPPORT THERE. WE OBVIOUSLY MAKE AN INVESTMENT THERE FROM THE SUBSIDIES AND WHAT WE MAKE INTO FAMILIES, BUT ALSO, I WOULD ENCOURAGE THE COUNCIL AND AS I TALK TO ELECTED OFFICIALS THAT CHILD CARE SHOULD BE AN ECONOMIC PRIORITY JUST AS WELL. 
          SO AS YOU'RE CONSIDERING LEADS OR THOSE TYPES OF THINGS IN TERMS OF BRINGING WHETHER IT'S 1,000 JOBS, CONVERSATION OF CHILD CARE NEEDS TO BE AT THE FOREFRONT BECAUSE IF NOT, YOU WILL BE LIMITING FOLKS WHO OTHERWISE ARE LOCAL FOLKS THAT POTENTIALLY HAVE ACCESS OR COULD 
          HAVE ACCESS TO THOSE JOBS. >> ROCHA GARCIA: YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. 
          I THINK THAT AS WE HAVE AN AGING POPULATION, I THINK AT LEAST A FEW OF US IN THIS ROOM, WE ARE ON THE OPPOSITE END OR SOME OF US MIGHT BE IN THE SANDWICH GENERATION. 
          SO I THINK THAT'S WHY I CONTINUE TO REINFORCE THE CARE GIVERS AND CARE TAKERS. 
          LAST WEEK WE HAD A CONVERSATION, I DON'T REMEMBER WHAT IT WAS, I THINK ABOUT DELEGATE AGENCIES, AND I ASKED IN PARTICULAR AND SOMEBODY MENTIONED GUARDIANS. NOT TALKING ABOUT GUARDIANS, NOT TALKING ABOUT PEOPLE WHO COULD MAKE FINANCIAL, I'M TALKING ABOUT PEOPLE WHO COULD PHYSICALLY BE THERE, WHO ARE TRAINED TO HELP THE PERSON IN THE HOME JUST LIKE A CHILD CARE 
          [01:50:01]
WORKER IS TRAINED TO HELP TEACH A KID. SO ANYWAY, I THINK MAYBE WE COULD HAVE THAT DISCUSSION AGAIN. I'M JUST CONCERNED WITH THE GROWING AND AGING POPULATION WITH DEMENTIA BEING MORE PREVALENT IN OUR COMMUNITY, IT BECOMES EVEN MORE DIFFICULT. JUST SOMETHING TO CONSIDER FOR NEXT GO-ROUND. 
          I APPRECIATE YOUR TIME. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU, CHAIR. 
          >> PELAEZ: COUNCILWOMAN VIAGRAN. >> VIAGRAN: THANK YOU. DO YOU HAVE NUMBERS FOR WHAT WE WOULD NEED, ESPECIALLY ON LIKE WHAT EMPLOYERS ARE LOOKING FOR? HOW MANY INDIVIDUALS DO WE NEED IN SOME OF THESE SECTORS? I SEE THE HEALTH CARE OCCUPATIONS AND THAT ONE IS VERY -- YOU KNOW, AS WE LOOK AT THE CENTER FOR HEALTH EQUITY IN SOUTH TEXAS, WHERE DO WE NEED THE NURSES? OUR RURAL COMMUNITIES, ESPECIALLY TALKING ABOUT THE JUDGES, WHAT DO WE NEED, HOW, YOU KNOW, WHERE DO WE START? DO WE START IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, DO WE START IN MIDDLE SCHOOL TALKING ABOUT THESE PROFESSIONS AS SOMETHING THAT THEY CAN DO. THE OTHER THING IS I KNOW THAT ALAMO COMMUNITY COLLEGE AND OTHER UNIVERSITIES ARE WORKING WITH OUR PARTNERS TO KIND OF BRING PEOPLE OVER. 
          WITH THAT PROFESSION AND THE EDUCATIONAL PROFESSIONS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT, IF WE COULD KIND OF GET THAT NUMBER. AND THE OTHER ONE I'M REALLY INTERESTED IN IS THE COURT REPORTING BECAUSE I HEAR FROM, AND COUNCIL MEMBER PELAEZ CAN PROBABLY SPEAK TO THIS, TOO, I HEAR FROM THE BEXAR COUNTY JUDGES THAT THEY ARE ALWAYS SAYING THE BACKLOG IS COMING IN PART BECAUSE THEY CAN'T GET THE TRANSCRIPTS. WHAT CAN WE DO TO KIND OF TALK ABOUT THAT AS A PROFESSION AND MOVE PEOPLE IN THAT DIRECTION AND GET THEM KIND OF LIKE WE TALKED WITH READY TO WORK, THAT CONFIDENCE THAT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT THEY CAN DO AND EXCEL FOR. THESE ARE SOME OF THE THINGS I WOULD LIKE TO SEE. 
          MAYBE IF WE AS A COUNCIL ARE MORE TARGETED IN OUR COMMUNITIES TO KIND OF PUT THAT FORWARD, THAT THERE'S OPPORTUNITIES THERE, THAT THE YOUNGER GENERATION AND THOSE LOOKING FOR A SECOND CAREER. I STILL HAVE SOME VERY YOUNG-ISH RETIREES, ACTUALLY CITY EMPLOYEES, TOO, THAT RETIRE AND THEY ARE STILL IN THEIR 50S THAT COULD GO ON AND DO OTHER THINGS. 
          IF WE COULD KIND OF LET PEOPLE KNOW WHAT'S OUT THERE, WHAT EMPLOYERS ARE LOOKING FOR, I THINK THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL, TOO. BUT THAT'S ALL, IF WE CAN JUST 
          GET THAT INFORMATION, I WOULD APPRECIATE THAT. >> YEAH, THANK YOU FOR THE COMMENTS. I WOULD POINT YOU TO IN THE LOCAL PLAN, PAGE 154 TO 156 THAT OUTLINES WHAT OUR RESEARCH HAS BEEN IN TERMS OF THOSE SIX CLUSTERS AND THE OCCUPATIONS THAT WE'RE SUPPORTING BECAUSE IT DEMONSTRATES THE NUMBER OF JOBS TODAY, THE JOB GROWTH FOR THE FUTURE, WHAT ARE THE EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS AND WHAT ARE SALARY. 
          WE TRY TO DO THIS BY PROMOTING THAT ON A NUMBER OF FRONTS SO EVEN FOR OUR CHILD CARE CENTERS, SOME BASIC INFORMATION. WE DO THAT IN K THROUGH 12. WE HAVE THE CTE PROGRAMS, WE HAVE CAREER EXPLORATION, WE DO TEACHER EXTERNSHIPS, TEACHING TEACHERS TO APPLY THEIR CURRICULUM AND OF COURSE WE HELP OUT ADULTS. CERTAINLY ALWAYS LOOKING FOR NEW OPPORTUNITIES TO GET THE WORD OUT. I THINK COUNCIL MEMBER ROCHA GARCIA JUST MENTIONED ABOUT MARKETING EFFORTS. THE WHAT WE SEE IN THE DATA IS THEY HAVE NO EARTHLY IDEA WHAT ACTUALLY EXISTS OUT THERE. THAT'S A HUGE PROBLEM. 
          BUT THAT'S EVERYBODY'S PROBLEM. CERTAINLY I THINK IF WE CONTINUE TO WORK TOGETHER TO GET THE WORD 
          OUT, THAT WOULD BE VERY HELPFUL. >> VIAGRAN: THANK YOU, CHAIR. >> PELAEZ: I HAVE BEEN SPENDING TIME RECENTLY WITH THE PROPERTY MANAGEMNT INDUSTRY. AS SAN ANTONIO GROWS, THEIR INDUSTRY IS LOOKING TO HIRE MORE AND MORE PEOPLE. DO YOU TALK TO THEM? 
          >> SO WE HAVE HAD DISCUSSIONS, FOR EXAMPLE, WITH THE NEED FOR HVAC TECHS AND MAINTENANCE FOLKS, FOR EXAMPLE, FOR LARGE APARTMENT COMPLEXES AND THOSE THINGS. 
          WE HAVE HAD SOME DISCUSSIONS IN THE PAST. SOME OF THAT MAY BE REFLECTED IN SOME OF THE DATA HERE. BUT I DON'T THINK WE HAVE HAD SORT OF A VERY ROBUST SORT OF 
          INITIATIVE TO ADDRESS SOME OF THAT. >> PELAEZ: I'M NOT SURE TO WHAT EXTENT THEY ARE GOING TO NEED PEOPLE BUT EVERY TIME I TALK TO EM TH THEM, WE NEED PEOPLE, BECAUSE THERE ARE MORE COMMERCIAL STRIP CENTERS AND MALLS AND HOSPITALS 
          [01:55:01]
AND APARTMENTS. THOSE ARE GOOD-PAYING JOBS AND THEY REQUIRE A CERTAIN SKILL SET. AND THE SKILLS THEY CAN DEVELOP ON THE JOB ARE VERY PORTABLE. 
          AS WE WERE TALKING, AND LOOKING AT THESE LISTS, THESE INDUSTRY LISTS, IT OCCURS TO ME THAT THERE WAS A TIME WHERE BECOMING A PUNCH CARD OPERATOR FOR THE BIG COMPUTER SYSTEMS AT UNIVERSITIES OR A TELEGRAPH OPERATOR OR A SWITCHBOARD OPERATOR WAS A SOUGHT-AFTER JOB AND WAS VERY COMPETITIVE AND TECHNOLOGY REPLACES THEM. SAME WITH TYPISTS AND WORD PROCESSORS. THOSE USED TO BE GREAT JOBS, AND DATA ENTRY CLERKS. 
          THEY WERE REPLACED BY TECHNOLOGY. TODAY, DELIVERY DRIVERS ARE GETTING REPLACED BY TECHNOLOGY. ACCOUNTANTS, BOOKKEEPERS, STOCK TRADERS, CASHIERS, EVEN POSTAL WORKERS ARE GETTING REPLACED. TRAVEL AGENTS NO LONGER EXIST. GOOD LUCK FINDING A TRAVEL AGENT. SO I'M LOOKING AT THIS LIST AND MY TAKE-AWAY IS THAT I'M REFRESHED -- NOT REFRESHED, I'M OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THIS LIST BECAUSE IT SEEMS LIKE THESE ARE FUTURE-PROOF. A LOT OF THEM ARE HANDS-ON, A LOT OF THEM AREN'T GOING TO BE REPLACED BY AI. A LOT OF THEM ARE IMPOSSIBLE TO SHIP OUT TO EASTERN EUROPE OR CHINA. I LIKE IT. BUT THERE ARE SOME THAT JUMP OUT AT ME THAT JUST WON'T BE AROUND. AND THOSE FOLKS WORRY ME. SO I DON'T KNOW HOW YOU SOLVE FOR THAT. AS TECHNOLOGY ADVANCES, PEOPLE JUST GET REPLACED. 
          THERE USED TO BE BANK CASHIERS, NOW THERE'S ATMS, NOW YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE -- YOU GO TO AN ATM. 
          I HAVEN'T USED CASH IN A LONG TIME, EITHER. HOW DO YOU SOLVE FOR THIS? 
          >> SO I THINK PART OF THAT IS ABOUT EQUIPPING FOLKS WITH TRANSFERABLE SKILLS AS BEST AS YOU POSSIBLY CAN. THE OTHER IS THAT REGARDLESS OF WHAT INDUSTRY YOU'RE IN, JUST 
          LIKE YOU'RE AN ATTORNEY, LAWS CHANGE AND -- >> PELAEZ: ALMOST ON A DAILY 
          BASIS. >> YOU ARE HAVING TO CONSISTENTLY LEARN AND RELEARN. 
          SO THAT'S THE SOCIETY AND THAT'S THE WORLD WE LIVE IN. WHATEVER YOU LEARN TODAY, YOU POTENTIALLY, IT'S GOING TO BE OBSOLETE, YOU KNOW, NEXT YEAR OR OTHERS SO THAT'S PART OF THE CULTURE ASSOCIATED WITH CONSISTENT LEARNING. I WANT TO GO BACK TO YOUR POINT ABOUT SORT OF THE PROPERTY MANAGEMENT. I'M ALWAYS DON'T KNOW IF I HAVE SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS BUT I THINK COUNCIL MEMBER CASTILLO HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD EARLIER ABOUT TALKING ABOUT HOW, FOR EXAMPLE, ONE OF OUR BOARD MEMBERS WHO IS A UNION MEMBER WHO IS WORKING CLOSELY WITH A SCHOOL DISTRICT TO ADDRESS A COUPLE OF THINGS. 
          ONE IS TRAINING AND SKILL SET ASSOCIATED WITH CONSTRUCTION BUT TYING THAT TO A REAL COMMUNITY NEED. THAT'S GENIUS. WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT PROPERTY MANAGEMENT, YOU ALL HAVE A HOUSING BOND AND YOU ARE MAKING INVESTMENTS INTO AND I THINK THERE WAS SOMETHING MAYBE THIS WEEK THAT WAS ANNOUNCED ABOUT A NEW APARTMENT COMPLEX, THOSE TYPE OF THINGS. INTERSECTING THAT WITH WORKFORCE COULD BE KEY IN TERMS OF SORT OF ENSURING THAT YOU'RE MEETING MULTIPLE SORT OF NEEDS. SAME THING ON THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SIDE, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT CHILD CARE, THOSE TYPES OF THINGS. 
          I THINK COUNCIL MEMBER CASTILLO'S POINT IS REALLY, REALLY KEY. 
          NOT SURE IT RESOLVES THE QUESTION THAT YOU ASKED IN TERMS OF HAVING FUTURE-PROOF, BUT I THINK FROM THE PERSPECTIVE THAT WORKFORCE IS AN EQUAL SYSTEM AND THERE ARE MULTITUDE OF NEEDS AND THERE'S NOT ONE AGENCY OR ONE PROGRAM OR ONE AGENT OR ONE THING THAT'S GOING TO SOLVE ALL OF THAT. IT'S A COMBINATION OF ALL OF THESE THINGS THAT ARE WORKING HOPEFULLY IN SYNC. THE MORE OPPORTUNITIES THAT WE CAN FIND INTERSECTIONS BETWEEN HOUSING AND WORKFORCE OR A CTE PROGRAM AND WORKFORCE, THAT REALLY DOES INCREASE THE OPPORTUNITIES FOR PEOPLE TO HAVE SOMETHING THAT THEY CAN RELY ON. THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF KIDS THAT WILL BE GRADUATING AT THE END OF MAY THAT WILL NOT NECESSARILY KNOW WHAT THEIR NEXT STEP IS. 
          THAT'S A REAL TRAGEDY BECAUSE WE ARE LOSING A GOOD PORTION OF THAT WORKFORCE THAT ULTIMATELY 
          COULD BE INTO THE LABOR FORCE. >> PELAEZ: THANKS FOR COMING. APPRECIATE IT. 
          THIS IS JUST FOR A BRIEFING. WE DO HAVE TO TAKE ONE VOTE WE DIDN'T TAKE AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MEETING. THE GREATER S&ATX WAS AN UPDATE. WE NEED TO SEND THAT TO A SESSION. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE SAY AYE. 
          [02:00:01]
UNANIMOUS. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, I THINK WE'RE ADJOURNED. 
          >> TRYING TO GET TO THE MEMO REAL QUICKLY. I THINK THIS ONE ALSO WE WERE SEEKING ACTION. BECAUSE IT WILL BE GOING TO A SESSION. 
          IT HAS TO GET APPROVED. >> PELAEZ: THE LOCAL PLAN HAS TO BE APPROVED. 
          >> YES. THE LOCAL PLAN HAS TO BE APPROVED BY COUNCIL BEFORE HE CAN SUBMIT IT TO TWC AND THEN GREATER SATX. WE JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE 
          GOOD WITH SENDING IT FORWARD TO A SESSION. >> PELAEZ: THEN ON THIS THIRD ITEM -- ALL THOSE IN FAVOR PLEASE SAY AYE. THAT WAS UNANIMOUS, TOO. 
          WE ARE A
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.