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>> MAYOR JONES: THE TIME IS NOW 2:17 P.M. ON WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2026, AND THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO B SESSION IS CALLED TO ORDER.
SPECIAL SESSION IS CALLED TO ORDER. MADAME CLERK, PLEASE CALL ROLL.
>> CLERK: MAYOR, WE HAVE QUORUM. >> MAYOR JONES: THANKS, MADAME CLERK. THIS MEETING WILL INCLUDE A BRIEFING ON THE GREATER:SATX REGIONAL ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP 2026 PLAN AND AGREEMENT.
LET ME PROVID SOME REMARKS BEFORE I HAVE TO LEAVE HERE SHORTLY AND TURN IT OVER TO COUNCILMAN MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ. THIS IS, I THINK, ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS THAT WE HAVE TO DO. I KNOW WE HAVE -- AS WE ARE ALSO LOOKING AT THE CHANGES IN THE FEDERAL ENVIRONMENT, THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY, I THINK AS EVIDENCED BY THE TAIWANESE DELEGATION BUT ALSO OTHER COUNTRIES LOOKING AT THE IMPORTANCE OF MAKING SURE THIS IS A REALLY ROBUST CAPABILITY, WHICH IS WHY WE ARE HAVING THEM BRIEF THEIR PLAN TO US HERE IN LIGHT OF THE MAJOR INVESTMENT THAT THE CITY MAKES INTO THIS.
AND ENSURING WE HAVE A REALLY STRONG ROI. AGAIN, AS WE TAKE EACH OF THESE TOPICS NOT IN SILOS BUT IN THE AGGREGATE. OBVIOUSLY, THE GREATER:SATX TEAM WORKS QUITE CLOSELY WITH ALEX LOPEZ TO HELP US UNDERSTAND AND ENSURE THAT THE RETURN ON INVESTMENT FOR THESE INCENTIVE PACKAGES IS EXACTLY AS STRONG AS THEY CAN POSSIBLY BE IN LIGHT OF OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE THINGS THAT WE ARE NOT GOING TO INVEST IN AS A RESULT OF THOSE FOREGONE PROPERTY TAXES, FOR EXAMPLE.
I WANT TO THANK THE GREATER:SATX TEAM. THEY'VE GIVEN ME A COUPLE OF PRE-BRIEFS ON THIS AND SO AS WE LOOK AT MAKING SURE THAT THIS IS A RESOURCE THAT BEST SERVES THE CITY, GREATER:SATX SERVES OTHER COMMUNITIES, MUNICIPALITIES AS PART OF THEIR EFFORTS. BUT OBVIOUSLY WE REALLY CARE ABOUT SAN ANTONIO ONLY AND WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR ROI IS THE STRONGEST IT CAN BE.
I APPRECIATE THE UPDATES TO THE PRESENTATION AS WELL THAT IF YOU HAVEN'T HAD THE OPPORTUNITY, I WOULD ENCOURAGE MY COLLEAGUES TO READ IN FULL THE TARLETON REPORT, WHICH IS THE REPORT THAT GOES OVER HOW WELL THIS HAS WORKED OVER THE YEARS AND WHERE WE ARE STILL LAGGING WHEN IT COMES TO OUR PEER CITIES ON SOME OF THESE THINGS. IN PARTICULAR, THE ONE THAT STICKS OUT TO ME IS WAGE GROWTH. SO, AGAIN, WHEN WE LOOK AT THE INCENTIVE PACKAGES AND THE ROI, WE HAVE TO SEE THE LONG-TERM MOVEMENT ON THOSE AND WAGE GROWTH IS SOMETHING THAT I KNOW WE ALL CARE ABOUT BECAUSE IF WE DON'T HAVE THAT, WE THEN LOOK AT THE MONIES WE HAVE TO PUT INTO THESE ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS, WHETHER IT'S CPS OR SAWS OR ANYTHING ELSE. SO ENSURING THAT OUR EFFORTS ARE TIED TO ENSURING WE ARE BEST SUPPORTING FAMILIES AND WE BEST DO THAT BY ADVOCATING FOR GOOD WAGES FOR THEM AND THEIR FAMILIES. OKAY. ERIK, I'LL TURN IT OVER TO
YOU FOR COMMENTS. >> WALSH: THANK YOU, MAYOR.
SO, YES. I WANT TO THANK SARAH BECAUSE WE HAD TO ADJUST THIS DATE A COUPLE OF TIMES. BUT WE WANTED TO HAVE SARAH COME IN AND COVER THE
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ORGANIZATION, WHAT THEY'VE ACCOMPLISHED OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS AND WHERE THEIR SCOPE AND FOCUS IS GOING FORWARD. YOU'LL HEAR ABOUT THAT IN THE PRESENTATION. IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT FOR YOU QUESTIONS BECAUSE IN ABOUT TWO WEEKS WE'LL BRING FORWARD OUR ANNUAL CONTRACT WITH GREATER:SATX. IT'S OUR FUNDING CONTRACT FOR OUR PORTION.BRENDA WILL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT. AND WE WORK VERY WELL WITH GREATER:SATX. THEY'RE AN IMPORTANT PARTNER, AS THE MAYOR SAID, IN MAKING SURE THAT FROM AN EXPANSION OF EXISTING COMPANIES AND THE RECRUITMENT OF OTHER INDUSTRIES, KEY INDUSTRIES, THAT WE CONTINUE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF SAN ANTONIO'S POSITION. AND SO I'M GOING TO HAND IT OVER TO BRENDA. BRENDA IS GOING TO DO SOME OPENING COMMENTS AND PRESENTATION ON THE PROPOSED CONTRACT. AND THEN SARAH WILL
CONCLUDE. >> GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
BRENDA HICKS-SORENSEN, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR.
JOINING ME PRESENTING IS SARAH RUSH, PRESIDENT AND CEO OF GREATER:SATX.
TOGETHER WE WILL PROVIDE MORE INFORMATION ABOUT OUR PARTNERSHIP AND THE IMPACTS IT HAS HAD ON SAN ANTONIO AND THE REGION . THIS RELATIONSHIP IS FOCUSED ON A FEW OF THE AREAS THAT WE ADDRESS WITHIN THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT, SPECIFICALLY THE CORPORATE RECRUITMENT EFFORTS, BOTH DOMESTICALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY, AS WELL AS SUPPORTING EXISTING JOB CREATORS WITH SERVICES, ADVOCACY, AND SUPPORT. SO THEY CONTINUE TO GROW AND CALL SAN ANTONIO HOME.
WHILE GREATER:SATX CELEBRATED THEIR 50TH ANNIVERSARY IN 2025, THE PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN GREATER BEXAR COUNTY AND SAN ANTONIO WAS ESTABLISHED IN 2010. AS GREATER CONTINUED TO EXPAND THEIR SCOPE, THEY ALSO EXPANDED THAT PARTNERSHIP. IN 2021 EXPANDED TO 14 REGIONAL PARTNERS WITH THE LAUNCH OF THEIR ALL-IN STRATEGY.
AT THAT TIME THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO SHIFTED TO A PERFORMANCE-BASED CONTRACT.
I WILL TOUCH UPON THAT CONTRACT CONCLUSION AS WELL AS THE PROPOSED 2026 CONTRACT. HERE YOU WILL SEE A FEW YEARS OF HISTORICAL PERFORMANCE AS WELL AS THE PROJECTED 2025 RESULTS, WHICH ARE PENDING FINAL VALIDATION. THERE ARE SEVERAL ITEMS GREATER DIRECTLY CONTROLS SUCH AS LEAD PURSUITS AND LEADS CONVERTED TO ACTIVE PROJECTS.
OF THOSE ITEMS, GREATER HAS MET OR EXCEEDED THEIR TARGETS.
THERE ARE OTHER FACTORS SUCH AS JOB CREATION CAPITAL INVESTMENT.
THOSE RESULTS WERE NOT AS ANTICIPATED AND SARAH WILL PROVIDE MORE INSIGHT INTO THE FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH THOSE RESULTS. YOU WILL ALSO NOTE HERE THAT IN 2024 WE PIVOTED OUR FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT OR FDI STRATEGY AND BEGAN PARTNERING WITH GREATER FOR AN IN-COUNTRY LEAD GENERATION EFFORTS.
THE 2025 ACTUAL HAS BEEN UPDATED SINCE THE DRAFT PRESENTATION WAS PROVIDED AND IT WAS UPDATED TO REFLECT THE ANTICIPATED $95,447 SPEND ON ACTIVITIES LAST YEAR. ALL NUMBERS ARE PENDING FINAL VALIDATION.
IN LATE 2024, THE GREATER:SATX EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE APPROVED A SHIFT IN THEIR FUNDING MODEL TO INCREASE MINIMUM INVESTMENT TO $10,000 FROM COMMUNITIES AND OVERALL MOVE TO A 35-CENT PER CAPITA RATE BASED UPON THE 2020 CENSUS FIGURES. THE NEXT SLIDE HIGHLIGHTS THE ANTICIPATED PUBLIC SECTOR INVESTMENTS AS A RESULT BUT I WOULD LIKE TO OUTLINE WHAT THAT MEANS FOR OUR 2026 PROPOSED AGREEMENT. THE GENERAL SERVICES AGREEMENT PORTION OF THE AGREEMENT DECREASES FROM A MAXIMUM POTENTIAL OF $635,000 TO A MAXIMUM POTENTIAL OF $510,000. THAT $510,000 IS BASED ON THE PER CAPITA MODEL.
BUT INSTEAD OF SHIFTING ENTIRELY TO THE PER CAPITA, WE ARE PROPOSING 70% OR THE $357,000 YOU SEE HERE TO BE PAID IN THREE QUARTERLY INASINSTALLMENTS TO SUPPORT THE WORK DONE TO ACHIEVE THOSE LONGER-TERM RESULTS. THE REMAINING REMAINS PERFORMANCE BASED WHICH WILL BE THE FINAL PAYMENT AND PAID AT A RATE OF $500 FOR EVERY JOB ANTICIPATED TO BE CREATED WITH WAGES AT OR ABOVE $100,000 ANNUALLY.
THE FDI ATTRACTION PLAN IS PROPOSED TO INCREASE BY 55,000 TO ACCOMMODATE OUR ACCOUNT FOR THE JAPAN-LEAD GENERATION EFFORTS. THE FDI PORTION CONTINUES TO
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BE REIMBURSED ON ACTUAL COSTS INCURRED FOR APPROVED ACTIVITIES.THE TOTAL INVESTMENT IS PROPOSED AT $759,250, REPRESENTING A POSSIBLE MINIMUM DECREASE OF $70,000 IN 2026 FROM 2025. SARAH WILL BE PROVIDING MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THEIR ANTICIPATED FIVE-YEAR IMPACTS FROM THEIR MOMENTUM 2030 STRATEGY. BUT THE 2026 COSA IMPACTS REPRESENT ONE YEAR OF THOSE ANTICIPATED IMPACTS SPECIFIC TO SAN ANTONIO. HERE IS THAT QUICK SNAPSHOT OF THE OVERALL IMPACT OF THE PER CAPITA MODEL FOR ALL INVESTOR COMMUNITIES.
THERE'S 14 PARTNER COMMUNITIES. GREATER HAS CONFIRMED THAT ALL COMMUNITIES HAVE PAID OR ARE EXPECTED AT THESE INVESTMENT LEVELS.
I WILL NOW TURN IT OVER TO SARAH FOR THE REMINDER OF THE PRESENTATION.
THANK YOU. >> GOOD AFTERNOON, COUNCIL MEMBERS.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE WITH YOU.
I HOPE YOU'LL BE KIND BECAUSE YOU CAN SEE I HAVE AN INJURY ON MY SHOULDER, SO THANK YOU IN ADVANCE FOR THAT. REALLY THRILLED TO BE HERE WITH YOU AND HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE MORE ABOUT OUR MOMENTUM 2030 STRATEGY AND THE WAYS THAT WE WILL PARTNER OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS TO DRIVE ECONOMIC MOBILITY AND PROSPERITY FOR OUR REGION. WE ARE STARTING A LITTLE BIT IN THE WEEDS WITH THIS PRESENTATION AS WE WANTED TO BEGIN WITH OUR CONTRACT DETAILS. AND SO WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE THAT HERE BY LOOKING SPECIFICALLY AT HOW OUR ORGANIZATION IS FUNDED. AND THE TRAJECTORY OF WHAT THAT FUNDING CYCLE WILL LOOK LIKE OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS.
AS YOU CAN SEE HERE, WE'RE WELL POSITIONED AS AN ORGANIZATION THROUGH OUR PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTOR PARTNERSHIPS TO BE ABLE TO OFFER THE SERVICES THAT YOU WILL HEAR ABOUT TODAY AT NO COST TO OUR CLIENTS. WE THINK THAT THAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT. WE KNOW THAT THAT IS CRITICAL IN HOW THIS BUSINESS OPERATES AROUND THE UNITED STATES. AND SO WE NEED TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE THE CORRECT FUNDING STREAMS TO MANAGE THAT. YOU'LL SEE THAT WE'RE SUPPORTED PRIMARILY DIRECTLY BY THE PRIVATE SECTOR THROUGH OUR C-6 FUNDING AGREEMENTS. THAT MAKES UP 58%. BUT THERE ARE BUCKETS WITHIN THESE OTHER CATEGORIES THAT ARE ALSO PRIVATE SECTOR INVESTORS, PARTICULARLY ON THE GRANT SIDE AND IN MARKETING AGREEMENTS. AND SO OVERALL, OUR MAKEUP TODAY IS 70% PRIVATE SECTOR. 30% PUBLIC SECTOR. THAT DIFFERENTIATION IS IMPORTANT. THE PRIVATE SECTOR HAS LEANED IN AND SAID HOW IMPORTANT THIS MISSION IS AND WE'RE GRATEFUL THAT ARE. AS WE MOVE INTO THIS YEAR, WE HAVE BUDGETED CONSERVATIVELY AS WE ARE BEGINNING A NEW CAMPAIGN FOR OUR WORK. AND SO WE ARE LOOKING AT A PROJECTED REVENUE THIS YEAR OF $7.87 MILLION. BUT WE ARE WORKING TOWARDS A COMMITMENT OF $9 MILLION FROM OUR INVESTORS BY THE END OF THIS YEAR AND WORKING OUR WAY UP TO AN 11.5 OR $12 MILLION A YEAR FUNDING STREAM. AND JUST TO PUT THAT INTO CONTEXT, WHEN YOU LOOK AT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATIONS IN OUR PEER SET, I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THE DALLAS REGION SITS AT $16.1 MILLION.
DENVER SITS AT 12.2. JACKSONVILLE SITS AT $10 MILLION AND PHOENIX SITS AT $9 MILLION. I BELIEVE SAN ANTONIO DESERVES THE VERY BEST IN TERMS OF REPRESENTATION. AS I KNOW YOU DO. LOOKING FORWARD AT OUR PLANNED EXPENSES, YOU KNOW, THE WORK THAT WE DO IS VERY STAFF-HEAVY AND STAFF-FOCUSED. BECAUSE WE ARE IN THE CUSTOMER SERVICE BUSINESS OF PROVIDING DIRECT SERVICES TO COMPANIES AS THEY ARE CONSIDERING EITHER EXPANSIONS OR NEW FACILITIES IN THE REGION. AND I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT QUICKLY WE HAVE QUITE A FEW OF OUR TEAM MEMBERS HERE TODAY THAT ARE EXCITED TO GET TO SEE HERE AND ENJOY THE WORK THAT WE DO TOGETHER.
WHEN WE ARE LOOKING AT THIS YEAR AHEAD, WE ARE WORKING TOWARDS A STAFF OF 31 INDIVIDUALS. AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE AVERAGES THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES OF OUR PEER ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATIONS, THE TYPICAL STAFF SIZE IS 35. AND SO WE ARE CONFIDENT THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO ACHIEVE THAT AS WE REACH OUR NEW FUNDRAISING GOALS. I THINK MORE IMPORTANTLY HERE ON THIS SLIDE IS TO RECOGNIZE THAT AT LEAST 75% OF OUR EXPENDITURES GO DIRECTLY TO OUR SERVICE DELIVERY EFFORTS AND ENGAGING WITH OUR CLIENTS AND MARKETING THIS REGION TO COMPANIES NOT ONLY ENGAGING LOCALLY BUT THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES AND GLOBALLY. BRENDA MENTIONED THAT OUR RESULTS IN 2025 WERE NOT
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WHERE WE WERE HOPING THEY WOULD BE. AND I THINK THAT UNFORTUNATELY WHEN WE LOOK AT LAST YEAR, THERE WERE A LOT OF UNCERTAINTIES THAT REALLY INHIBITED BUSINESSES' ABILITY TO MAKE DECISIONS. THEY WERE UNABLE TO PREDICT, FOR EXAMPLE, THE COST OF BUILDING A NEW FACILITY BECAUSE ALL OF A SUDDEN THERE WERE TARIFFS THEY NEEDED TO CONSIDER. THEY DIDN'T UNDERSTAND THOSE FULL IMPLICATIONS. THEY ALSO WERE HAVING A HARD TIME PROJECTING WHAT IT WOULD COST TO BE ABLE TO BUILD PRODUCTS IF THEY WERE IN THE MANUFACTURING SECTOR.IN BUSINESS, UNCERTAINTY EQUALS OFTENTIMES EQUALS THE END OF A PROJECT. AS WE WERE STARTING OUT AT THE BEGINNING OF LAST YEAR, WE WERE CONFIDENT WE WOULD BE ANNOUNCING ABOUT 7500 JOBS LAST YEAR. WE HAD THEM AT THE FINISH LINE AND FELT REALLY, REALLY GOOD. UNFORTUNATELY, THAT DID NOT HAPPEN.
WE, HOWEVER, CONTINUE TO BE IN ONGOING CONVERSATIONS WITH AND SUPPORTING THESE BUSINESSES THAT WERE LOOKING AT MAKING THOSE DECISIONS. AND WE ARE SEEING, YOU KNOW, THIS WASN'T JUST IN SAN ANTONIO. I THINK THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO MENTION IT WASN'T JUST SAN ANTONIO. IT WASN'T JUST TEXAS.
THIS WAS A TREND THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE UNITED STATES. AND LOOKING AT THE SOUTHERN UNITED STATES, IN PARTICULAR, LAST YEAR WAS THE WORST YEAR IN OVER 30 YEARS FOR CORPORATE LOCATION ANNOUNCEMENTS. SO, AGAIN, THIS WAS NOT JUST US. AS WE LOOK AT THE TAILWINDS, HOWEVER, THAT ARE COMING UP AND INFLUENCING CORPORATE DECISIONS NOW, WE LOOK SPECIFICALLY AT THE DEFENSE SECTOR. THERE IS AN INCREASED SPENDING HAPPENING RIGHT NOW IN THE DEFENSE INDUSTRY AND THAT IS DRIVING A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF CORPORATE ACTIVITY TODAY AND WE ARE EXTREMELY WELL POSITIONED AND THAT IS SHOWING UP WELL IN OUR TIMELINE. LIFE SCIENCES IS ALSO RESHORING, AS IS THE SEMI CONDUCTOR INDUSTRY AND OTHER MANUFACTURING FACILITIES.
I LIKE TO CALL NATIONAL SECURITY-ORIENTED MANUFACTURING.
THINKING ABOUT THINGS LIKE OUR ELECTRIC GRID AND TRANSFORMERS.
THOSE ELEMENTS THAT WE REALLY NEED TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE CONFIDENCE WILL SERVE THIS COMMUNITY IN THE LONG RUN. ALL OF THESE PROJECTS ARE CERTAINLY SHOWING UP IN OUR PIPELINE AND WE ARE FEELING CONFIDENT ABOUT THE DIRECTION OF THOSE INDUSTRIES HERE IN SAN ANTONIO.
IT'S ALSO A REALLY GREAT CONVERGENCE OF INVESTMENT THAT IS HAPPENING HERE IN THIS REGION RIGHT NOW. WE ARE INVESTING IN OURSELVES IN UNPRECEDENTED WAYS AND IT IS GOING TO SHOW UP IN OUR RESULTS. WHEN YOU THINK SPECIFICALLY ABOUT WHAT IS HAPPENING WITH ALAMO COLLEGES' NEARLY $1 BILLION BOND PROGRAM.
U.T. SAN ANTONIO'S MERGER, THE WORK YOU ALL HAVE COMMITTED TO WITH READY TO WORK, ALAMO PROMISE, ALL OF THESE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS ARE GOING TO LEAD FOR TRANSFORMATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES HERE WITHIN THE REGION.
BUT WE'RE ALSO SEEING THAT LEVEL OF INVESTMENT WITHIN OUR INFRASTRUCTURE.
AND WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO INVEST IN OUR INFRASTRUCTURE AS WE WANT TO EFFECTIVELY MANAGE THE GROWTH THAT IS COMING OUR WAY. I THINK ONE OTHER BRIEF HEADWIND THAT I THINK -- IT COULD BE A HEADWIND, IT COULD BE A TAILWIND -- IS THINKING ABOUT AI. RIGHT NOW THE TECH ARENA IS CHANGING EXTREMELY RAPIDLY.
THAT'S INFLUENCING A LOT OF DIFFERENT PROGRAMS AND PROJECT OPPORTUNITIES AND WE CERTAINLY SEE THAT BOTH IN THE PIPELINE BUT ALSO AS A CHALLENGE THAT OUR LOCAL BUSINESSES ARE TRYING TO LEARN TO NAVIGATE AS THEY'RE THINKING ABOUT UPSKILLING THEIR OWN WORKFORCE. SO JUST QUICKLY, I WANTED TO SPEAK TO WHAT DOES A TYPICAL LEAD CYCLE LOOK LIKE FOR OUR ORGANIZATION AND WHAT ARE THE WAYS THAT WE ARE ENGAGING WITH COMPANIES THROUGHOUT THE LIFE CYCLE OF THAT RELATIONSHIP.
SO FIRST AND FOREMOST, OUR JOB IS TO MAKE SURE THE BRAND OF SAN ANTONIO IS KNOWN TO COMPANIES AROUND THE WORLD. THAT THEY'RE THINKING ABOUT SAN ANTONIO AS A POTENTIAL BUSINESS INVESTMENT DESTINATION AND NOT JUST THE CITY THEY WANT TO COME TO FOR TOURISM AND A GREAT TIME.
WE WANT THAT TOO BUT WE WANT THEM THINKING ABOUT US AS A BUSINESS DESTINATION.
SO THAT MARKETING AND WHAT WE CALL TOP OF THE FUNNEL LEAD GENERATION IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO OUR OVERALL WORK. AND MAKING SURE THAT COMPANIES ARE GETTING THE RIGHT INFORMATION, ACTIONABLE INSIGHTS, AND QUALITY CUSTOMER SERVICE SO THAT THEY CAN MAKE THESE DECISIONS QUICKLY AND EASILY. OUR LEAD GENERATION CYCLE, YOU KNOW, WE REALLY BEGAN RAMPING UP IN 2022 AND 2023 AND HAVE ADDED MORE THAN 2,000 LEADS DURING THE LAST
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FEW YEARS TO OUR PIPELINE. SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT A LEAD, THAT IS ENGAGEMENT WITH MARKETING TO, CONNECTING WITH COMPANIES AT THAT TOP LEVEL AND TRYING TO CONVERT THEM INTO A CONVERSATION WHERE THEY'RE WILLING TO HEAR MORE.THEY'RE ENGAGING WITH US. WE ARE SEEING WITHIN THAT CYCLE AT THE GENERATION LEVEL, THAT'S GOING TO BE A LONG-TERM RELATIONSHIP. I LIKE TO TALK ABOUT THE TEXAS STOCK EXCHANGE IS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF THIS . AS YOU ALL KNOW, I WORKED IN THE DALLAS MARKET BEFORE MOVING HERE TO SAN ANTONIO. AND IN 2012 AND 2013, WE WERE VISITING STOCKS EXCHANGES IN NEW YORK AND CHICAGO AND TALKING WITH THEM ABOUT THE TEXAS MARKET AS A DESTINATION FOR THOSE BUSINESSES, EITHER TO RELOCATE OR OTHERWISE. AND JUST THIS PAST YEAR, WE WERE ABLE TO SEE THAT WHAT HAPPENED IN DALLAS WITH THE TEXAS STOCK EXCHANGE, WHICH IS GOING TO BENEFIT ALL OF TEXAS. MY POINT IS REALLY JUST TO SHOWCASE THAT THESE RELATIONSHIPS TAKE TIME AND WE'RE PLANTING SEEDS AT THAT EARLY GENERATION CYCLE LEVEL. ON THE QUALIFICATION SIDE, THIS IS WHERE WE HAVE AN ACTIVE PROJECT -- AND I'LL GIVE YOU A DEFINITION ON THAT IN JUST A MOMENT.
BUT THIS IS WHERE WE HAVE AN ACTIVE PROJECT, WHICH IS A COMPANY READY TO START MAKING AN INVESTMENT. THEY'VE PUT A DOLLAR AMOUNT TO THAT PROJECT AND THEY'VE IDENTIFIED WHAT THAT EMPLOYMENT CYCLE NEEDS TO LOOK LIKE.
AND WE'RE RESPONDING TO THE OPPORTUNITY AND SHOWCASING SITES HERE WITHIN THE REGION. WE SUBMITTED, LAST YEAR, 76 REQUESTS FOR INFORMATION, WHICH WAS UP 55% FROM 2024. SO OUR EFFORTS AT THAT LEAD GENERATION STAGE IS REALLY STARTING TO SHOW RESULTS IN THAT QUALIFICATION STAGE. ON THE CONVERSION POINT, THIS IS WHERE THAT ACTIVE PROJECT HAS TAKEN A LOOK AT THE INITIAL DATA AND INFORMATION THAT WE PROVIDE IN THE QUALIFICATION STEP AND THEY ARE NOW IN THE PROCESS OF WHAT WE LIKE TO SAY KICKING DIRT HERE IN SAN ANTONIO.
THEY'VE GOT THEIR FEET ON THE GROUND, THEY'RE COMING IN FOR SITE VISITS.
THEY'RE LEARNING MORE ABOUT THE REGION SO THEY CAN MAKE THEIR ULTIMATE DECISION.
LAST YEAR WE HOSTED 51 SITE VISITS, WHICH WAS UP 8.5%. AT ANY GIVEN TIME, OUR TEAM IS WORKING ANYWHERE FROM 40 TO 60 PROJECTS IN THIS STAGE OF COMPANIES THAT ARE WORKING THROUGH THEIR PROCESS. AND THEN LAST BUT NOT LEAST, THE ENGAGEMENT SECTOR. I LIKE TO CALL THIS THE SERVICE AFTER THE SALE CATEGORY. THIS IS ONCE A COMPANY HAS CHOSEN TO LOCATE HERE IN SAN ANTONIO, WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE GOING TO BE SUCCESSFUL THROUGH ACTIVE RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT, HELPING THEM IDENTIFY PROBLEMS AND SOLVE FOR THOSE PROBLEMS. WHEN YOU LOOK AT LAST YEAR, WE ACTUALLY HAD ALMOST 200 UNIQUE INDIVIDUAL VISITS WITH COMPANIES THAT RESULTED IN OVER 200 BRG ASSISTS.
SO REALLY GREAT ENGAGEMENT THERE. AND THIS IS A CYCLE.
EVENTUALLY THAT COMPANY IS GOING TO LOOK TO CONTINUE GROWING HERE AND AUDIO]. I MENTIONED JUST A DEFINITION AROUND WHAT A PROJECT LOOKS LIKE FOR OUR REGION. AND I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT TYPICALLY WHEN WE'RE IDENTIFYING A PROJECT THAT OUR TEAM IS GOING TO SUPPORT, WE'RE USUALLY TALKING AROUND 50 EMPLOYEES AS A MINIMUM.
AND USUALLY ABOUT $10 MILLION IN NEW CAPITAL INVESTMENT.
WE'RE FOCUSED ON SOME KEY INDUSTRIES. ADVANCED MANUFACTURING, OF COURSE, HAS COME SUCH A LONG WAY IN THIS COMMUNITY AND WE ARE SO WELL KNOWN FOR THAT NOW NATIONALLY. BUT WE'RE ALSO FOCUSED ON IDENTIFYING THOSE CORPORATE HEADQUARTER OPPORTUNITIES, LIFE SCIENCES, AEROSPACE, AND DEFENSE, CYBERSECURITY, AND NEW TECHNOLOGY OPPORTUNITIES, AS THAT INDUSTRY EVOLVES.
IMPORTANTLY, OUR TEAM SPENDS A DECENT AMOUNT OF TIME THINKING ABOUT HOW DO WE SUPPORT A PARTICULAR PROJECT SO THAT WE CAN EFFECTIVELY ALLOCATE OUR RESOURCES.
AND WE DO THAT AND WE GIVE IT A LITERAL BUDGET THAT OUR TEAM USES TO HELP SUPPORT A COMPANY THROUGH THIS PROCESS AND ALLOWS US TO BE VERY DISCIPLINED IN HOW WE ARE PRIORITIZING THOSE HIGH-IMPACT PROJECTS. SO WE LIKE TO TRACK -- AND WE DO TRACK -- EVERY YEAR OUR COMPETITIVENESS AGAINST OUR NINE PEERS THAT YOU SEE IDENTIFIED HERE AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS SCREEN. WE ARE FOCUSED ON MAKING SURE WE'RE MOVING THE NEEDLE ACROSS THESE MAJOR SECTORS. THE WORK WE DO DOESN'T ALWAYS DIRECTLY IMPACT WHERE YOU SEE THESE NEEDLES MOVING BUT IT CERTAINLY INFLUENCES IT, AND WE DO THAT TOGETHER AS A COMMUNITY. SUPER PROUD OF THE
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PERFORMANCE THAT WE'VE SEEN LOOKING SPECIFICALLY AT OUR JOB AREA, REALLY GROWING CAREER PATHWAYS FOR RESIDENTS OF OUR ONE-YEAR MARKER FIVE YEARS AGO SAT AT NO. 8 AGAINST OUR PEER SET. TODAY WE ARE RANKED AT NO. 4.THE SAME IS TRUE AT PROJECT ACTIVITY. SO THE NUMBER OF PROJECTS THAT WE HAD ANNOUNCED FIVE YEARS AGO SAT AT EIGHT AND IT HAS NOW SINCE MOVED UP TO NO. 4. SO GREAT MOMENTUM THERE. WORKFORCE IS CERTAINLY ONE OF THE MOST, IF NOT THE MOST CRITICAL ELEMENT THAT WE NEED TO FOCUS ON AS A COMMUNITY. SO WE REMAIN COMPETITIVE. I THINK THIS IS INDICATIVE THAT WE ARE DOING THE RIGHT THINGS AS A COMMUNITY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE HERE.
IF YOU LOOK AT OUR EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT RATE CHANGE, WE HAVE GONE FROM 10 FIVE YEARS AGO TO NO. 2. AND OUR POVERTY RATE CHANGE WENT FROM 10 TO NO. 2.
WE'RE GOING TO RIGHT THINGS. YOU'LL SEE IN A MOMENT, THOUGH, THAT UNFORTUNATELY WE'RE STILL RANKED NO. 10 IN NUMBER OF EDUCATIONAL -- OF RESIDENTS WITH EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT GREATER THAN AN ASSOCIATE'S DEGREE OR HIGHER.
AND WE'RE STILL SITTING AT NO. 10 ON THAT POVERTY RATE OVERALL.
SO, AGAIN, WE STILL HAVE A LOT OF WORK TO DO AND WE NEED TO STAY FOCUSED ON THAT. THESE ARE JUST THE QUICK DASHBOARDS SO THAT YOU CAN GET A SENSE FOR HOW WE RANK AND COMPARE TO OUR PEER METROS IN EACH OF THESE CATEGORIES THAT WE'VE IDENTIFIED. WE HAVE A DEEP DIVE ON EACH OF THESE SLIDES THAT WE'RE HAPPY TO GO THROUGH WITH YOU, BUT WANTED YOU TO SEE THE FULL DATA. YOU CAN SEE WHERE WE'RE DOING WELL AND WHERE WE HAVE OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT AND NEED TO CONTINUE TO LEAN IN.
SO THIS IS OUR JOBS COMPETITIVE DASHBOARD. OVERALL WE MOVED FROM NINTH TO SEVENTH WITHIN THE JOBS CATEGORY. ON THE PEOPLE CATEGORY, WE MOVED FROM TENTH TO FOURTH, OVERALL. AND ON THE PLACE CATEGORY, WE MOVED FROM NINTH TO EIGHTH. SO, AGAIN, SOME WORK CUT OUT FOR US OVERALL AS WE CONTINUE THE WORK OF OUR COMPREHENSIVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY. I WANTED TO ALSO HIGHLIGHT QUICKLY ACROSS SOME OF OUR TARGET SECTORS, THE MOVEMENT THAT WE SAW. THIS DATA IS LOOKING A LITTLE BIT MORE BROADLY. IT'S NOT JUST THE PEER SET BUT YOU'RE SEEING THE 50 LARGEST METROS IN THE COUNTRY AND HOW DO WE STACK UP AGAINST THOSE IN OUR TARGET INDUSTRY SECTORS. WE HAD SOME SIGNIFICANT MOVEMENT OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS AND I'M ESPECIALLY PROUD OF THE WORK IN ADVANCED MANUFACTURING WHERE WE MOVED FROM 20TH UP TO SECOND AMONGST ALL OF THE TOP 50 METROS.
IN THE LIFE SCIENCES AND HEALTH SECTOR, WE SAW MOVEMENT FROM 47TH UP TO 19TH. AND IN CYBERSECURITY AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, WE WENT FROM 39TH UP TO 25TH. WE DIDN'T SEE THE KIND OF MOMENTUM THAT WE WANTED TO SEE IN A COUPLE OF CATEGORIES AND THAT'S WHERE YOU'RE GOING TO SEE A VERY INTENTIONAL EFFORT IN OUR NEW STRATEGY TO LEAN IN.
AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE'RE COMPETING. ALL OF THE OTHER COMMUNITIES IN THE COUNTRY ARE DOING A LOT OF THE SAME THINGS WE'RE DOING TO POSITION THEIR COMMUNITY BEST, AND WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO DO THAT. JUST A QUICK SNAPSHOT OF THE RESULTS OVER OUR LAST FIVE-YEAR STRATEGY, KNOWN AS THE ALL-IN STRATEGY.
WHEN WE WORK TOGETHER AND WE ALIGN OUR INVESTMENTS WE SEE MUCH GREATER IMPACT, AND THESE RESULTS SHOW THAT. REGIONALLY, YOU'LL SEE WE LANDED 118 MAJOR PROJECTS.
OF THOSE, 99 WERE LOCATED WITHIN THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
THOSE PROJECTS ARE INVESTING $7 BILLION AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO INVESTMENT SPECIFICALLY, IT WAS $5 BILLION. THE JOBS CREATED SAT JUST UNDER 19,000. IN THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, IT WAS 13,000.
AND WHAT I'M ESPECIALLY PROUD OF IS THAT AVERAGE WAGE NUMBER OF EXCEEDING $80,000 PER JOB. THAT WAS ANNOUNCED OVER THIS LAST FIVE-YEAR PERIOD.
OVERALL, THAT LED TO A $29 BILLION ECONOMIC IMPACT FOR OUR REGION.
WE DID A VERY GENERAL ECONOMIC IMPACT NUMBER HERE FOR THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO.
UNFORTUNATELY, OUR NUMBER JUST GETS US TO BEXAR COUNTY.
BEAR WITH US, IT'S NOT PERFECT, BUT ESSENTIALLY A $16 BILLION ECONOMIC IMPACT FOR THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO. AND WE DID THE MATH AND THOUGHT IT WAS SO OUTRAGEOUS
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WE SHOULDN'T PUT IT ON THE SCREEN. BUT WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE INVESTMENT COMING FROM THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS, SAT JUST UNDER $3 MILLION. AND THAT RETURN ON INVESTMENT, AGAIN SIMPLE MATH, WAS 5,525 X THE INVESTMENT YOU ALL MADE IN OUR ORGANIZATION.FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU FOR THAT INVESTMENT AND WE'RE REALLY PROUD OF THOSE RESULTS. SO KEY LESSONS FROM THE ALL-IN STRATEGY THAT WE ARE REALLY FOCUSED ON PULLING INTO OUR NEW STRATEGY IS A COUPLE OF THINGS.
OBVIOUSLY, THE LARGEST PROJECTS HAVE THE GREATEST IMPACTS.
THAT MAKES A LOT OF SENSE, RIGHT? BUT WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO BALANCE SOME OF THOSE BIGGER PROJECT OPPORTUNITIES WITH OTHER GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES, MAKING SURE WE ARE BEING THOUGHTFUL ABOUT HOW WE'RE ALLOCATING OUR RESOURCES ACCORDINGLY. JCB IS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF THIS.
THEY HAVE ALREADY ANNOUNCED THAT THEY'RE DOUBLING THE SIZE OF THEIR FACILITY AND THE INVESTMENTS AROUND THAT. THEY'RE LEVERAGING LOCAL COMPANIES TO BUILD OUT THEIR FACILITIES AND THEY ARE INVESTING IN SIGNIFICANT WAYS IN OUR LOCAL PHILANTHROPIC EFFORTS WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY. THEY HAVE DONE SOME INCREDIBLE THINGS ALREADY AS A NEW MEMBER OF THE COMMUNITY.
THE SECOND POINT IS OUR GROWTH DEPENDS ON TALENT. WE CANNOT COMPETE IF WE DON'T HAVE THE RIGHT WORKFORCE HERE THAT IS TRAINED AND SKILLED AND READY TO DELIVER. THAT'S ALSO FLEXIBLE AND LEARNING AS UP SKILLING IS GOING TO BE REQUIRED WITH ALL OF THESE CHANGES IN TECHNOLOGY THAT ARE COMING OUR WAY. REALLY FOCUSING ON OUR TALENT MARKET IS CRUCIAL.
AND THE LAST POINT IS THAT SPEED WINS DEALS. WHEN WE MOVE FAST AND WE MOVE SMART, WE'RE GOING TO BE IN A POSITION TO WIN. UNFORTUNATELY, WE'RE ABLE TO POINT TO SEVEN DIFFERENT PROJECTS THAT WE DIDN'T WIN OVER THIS LAST FIVE-YEAR PERIOD BECAUSE WE JUST WERE NOT ABLE TO PULL THE SITE READINESS TOGETHER QUICKLY ENOUGH. WE WEREN'T ABLE TO RESPOND QUICKLY ENOUGH FROM AN OVERALL INCENTIVES PERSPECTIVE OR OTHER DECISIONS LIKE THAT.
ESSENTIALLY, OUR MISSION HAS NOT CHANGED. FOR 50 YEARS NOW WE HAVE EXISTED TO DIVERSIFY THIS REGION'S ECONOMY AND IN DOING SO WE FOCUS ON DRIVING THE LOCATION AND EXPANSION OF QUALITY EMPLOYERS. ALWAYS WITH THE LENS TOWARDS ECONOMIC MOBILITY AND PROSPERITY. WHAT WE HAVE DONE HERE IS FURTHER CLARIFY OUR ROLE IN THESE SECTORS. SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE LEADING THE EFFORTS WHERE OUR EXPERTISE IS REQUIRED.
ACCELERATING JOB GROWTH. THAT'S OUR CORE FOCUS. OUR CORE MISSION.
WE'RE GOING TO BE SUPPORTING IN THOSE AREAS WHERE OUR PARTNERS ARE BEST POSITIONED TO LEAD. WORKFORCE AND QUALITY OF PLACE DEVELOPMENT, WE'RE GOING TO BE THERE TO SUPPORT BUT IT'S NOT NECESSARILY OUR PLACE TO LEAD.
AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE LAYERED IN AN AREA OF FOCUS TO INFLUENCE WHERE ALIGNMENT AND MOMENTUM MATTER MOST. THE THINGS THAT ARE GOING TO EMPOWER OUR MODERN ECONOMY.
ESSENTIALLY, WE'RE WORKING TO MAXIMIZE THE IMPACT OF OUR WORK AND THE REGION'S GROWTH. SO WHAT IS CHANGING? WE'RE SHARPENING OUR FOCUS TO INCREASE OUR IMPACT. WE'RE PRIORITIZING SECTORS WITH SIGNIFICANT WAGE, WITH SCALE, AND GROWTH POTENTIAL. WE'RE SHIFTING OUR WORKFORCE STRATEGY TOWARDS GRADUATE RETENTION AND DIRECT CAREER CONNECTIVITY. WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE GRADUATING THE CAREER-READY STUDENTS AND KEEP THEM HERE IN SAN ANTONIO.
WE'RE FOCUSED ON TURNING DATA INTO ACTIONABLE INTELLIGENCE AND NOT SIMPLY ALLOWING THAT GREAT WORK THAT'S BEING DONE ONLY TO GO TO OUR CLIENTS THAT ARE CONSIDERING LOCATION DECISIONS. WE WANT TO TURN THAT INTO INFORMATION THAT DRIVES OUR REGIONAL ECONOMY AND THE DISCUSSIONS WE NEED TO BE HAVING TO MAKE SURE WE'RE SUCCESSFUL, NOT JUST TODAY BUT 50 YEARS FROM NOW.
AND WE'RE GETTING REALLY SERIOUS ABOUT OUR WORK ON SITE READINESS AND INFRASTRUCTURE. WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO MEET THOSE AGGRESSIVE DEAL TIMELINES IF WE WANT TO BE COMPETITIVE. ESSENTIALLY, OUR CHANGES ARE ABOUT WINNING IN A MORE COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT. WHAT'S CONTINUING.
OUR TARGETED CORPORATE RECRUITMENT EFFORTS, OBVIOUSLY WITH A FOCUS ON THOSE PROJECTS THAT DELIVER MORE JOBS THAT ALIGN ON OUR HIGH-WAGE THRESHOLDS WHEN POSSIBLE, AND FOCUSING ON THOSE CORE INDUSTRIES THAT WE DEFINED BEFORE.
[00:35:02]
DEEPENING OUR PARTNERSHIPS, REGIONALLY AND WITH OUR PARTNERS HERE AT THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO. MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE WORKING TOGETHER, THAT WE'RE ALL MOVING TOGETHER IN THE SAME DIRECTION TO DRIVE IMPACT.AND LOOKING AT OUR MEGA REGION MORE BROADLY, WHICH WE CONSIDER IN ENGAGING IN PARTNERING WITH AUSTIN, BECAUSE OUR REGION IS GROWING INTO ONE.
THAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN AT SOME POINT. BUT ALSO THINKING ABOUT THE CONNECTIVITY AND RELATIONSHIPS THAT WE HAVE INTO MEXICO.
THE WORKFORCE READINESS EFFORTS ARE GOING TO CONTINUE.
THESE TALENT PATHWAYS AND MAKING SURE THAT FOLKS ARE ABLE TO GET INTO QUALITY JOBS ARE ABSOLUTELY CRUCIAL. AND SUPPORTING SAN ANTONIO AIRPORT.
ONE OF THE AREAS THAT YOU SAW ME MENTION IS A FOCUS ON HEADQUARTERS RECRUITMENT.
WE HAVE GOT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE AN AIRPORT THAT DELIVERS AS MANY DIRECT FLIGHTS AS POSSIBLE, IF WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO WIN WITH CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS.
SO WHAT ARE OUR GOALS AS WE LOOK OUT OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS AND WHAT ARE THOSE ANTICIPATED RESULTS THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE WORKING TOWARDS? SO 125 PROJECTS GENERATING 20,000 DIRECT JOBS WITH AN AVERAGE WAGE OF $100,000 PER YEAR. AIMING FOR $5 BILLION IN CAPITAL INVESTMENTS.
AND SOME OF YOU KNOW WE HAVE SOME FANTASTIC YOUTH WE GET 25,000 STUDENTS THROUGH THOSE WORK-BASED LEARNING PROGRAMS AND CONNECTED DIRECTLY TO COMPANIES. THE REGIONAL IMPACT OF ALL OF THAT YOU CAN SEE BELOW. I THINK ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT GOALS ON THIS CHART IS THAT EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT GOAL. WE KNOW THAT WE GET CUT FROM PROJECTS BEFORE WE EVEN KNOW ABOUT IT BECAUSE OUR EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT LEVEL ISN'T WHERE IT NEEDS TO BE. AND SO AS WE CONTINUE AS A COMMUNITY TO LEAN IN ON THAT, WORKING TOWARDS A 45% EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT RATE IS A BIG GOAL FOR US AND ONE YOU'LL SEE A LOT. MOMENTUM 2030 IS INTENDED TO BUILD ON WHAT WORKS.
WE LIKE TO SAY IT'S EVOLUTIONARY NOT REVOLUTIONARY.
IT'S ALLOWING US TO SHARPEN OUR FOCUS AND BUILD ON WHAT HAS BEEN WORKING AND, YOU KNOW, AS WE THINK ABOUT DIVERSIFYING OUR CORPORATE BASE AND OUR ECONOMY, WE ALSO ARE ADDRESSING LONG STANDING GAPS IN EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT AND MOVING THE NEEDLE ON OUR HIGH-POVERTY RARATES . IT TAKES TIME.
THESE ARE NOT THINGS THAT GET INVOLVED IN YEAR ONE OR EVEN IN THE FIRST YEAR OF A REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY. IT REQUIRES, AND FRANKLY DEMANDS OF US THAT WE HAVE A COHESIVE AND HOLISTIC LENS ON OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY. WHEN OUR COMMUNITY IS ALL PULLING TOGETHER IN THE SAME DIRECTION, WE'RE GOING TO SEE THAT NEEDLE MOVE. SO WITH THAT, I'M SUPER GRATEFUL FOR THE PARTNERSHIP THAT WE HAVE WITH EACH OF YOU, WITH THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO. IT'S A LONGSTANDING PARTNERSHIP AND WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND WE'RE GRATEFUL FOR YOUR
SUPPORT. >> KAUR: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION, SARAH.
ERIK, DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING ADDITIONAL YOU WANTED TO ADD?
>> WALSH: THE ONLY THING I WAS GOING TO ADD IS YOU'LL PROBABLY NOTICE AS SARAH WENT THROUGH THE PRESENTATION, THERE'S A LOT OF OVERLAP WITH PRIORITIES OF THE COUNCIL. OUR OWN POLICIES LATER ON THIS YEAR.
WE'VE GOT TO REFRESH OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ORDINANCES.
SO IT'S A PROCESS WE GO THROUGH. AS WE GO THROUGH THAT PROCESS, CLOSE COORDINATION WITH GREATER:SATX IS KEY. YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THINK IS, AS WE LOOK BACK -- AND SARAH AND THE REST OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE HAD A BOARD MEETING YESTERDAY TO REALLY KIND OF LOOK AT THE LAST FIVE YEARS. AND THERE HAVE BEEN, AS SHE POINTED OUT, MAJOR IMPROVEMENT FROM A REGIONAL STANDPOINT IN A LOT OF AREAS.
BUT THERE ARE SOME AREAS THAT ARE STILL LAGGING THAT WE SHOULD STAY FOCUSED ON.
SHE DIDN'T GO INTO A LOT OF DETAIL ABOUT THIS ISSUE BUT AS PART OF THE LAYING OUT THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, IT IS WHAT IS GREATER:SATX'S FUNDRAISING PLAN AROUND GETTING MORE PRIVATE SECTOR INVOLVEMENT ENGAGED AND MORE DOLLARS.
AND AS YOU SAW IN THE PRESENTATION, THE RETURN ON INVESTMENT FROM THE LAST FIVE YEARS, JUST FROM THE CITY'S CONTRIBUTION, IS SIGNIFICANT.
SO THAT EFFORT I THINK AS WE GO THROUGH OUR OWN PLANNING WITH YOU ALL, WE'LL NEED TO CONTINUE TO EVALUATE HOW WE INVEST IN THOSE THINGS TO GET THE RESULTS THAT I KNOW
ALL Y'ALL WANT. THANKS, COUNCILWOMAN. >> KAUR: THANKS, ERIK.
[00:40:01]
WE'LL GO AHEAD AND START -- THANK YOU ALSO, BRENDA, FOR THE BEGINNING PART OF THE PRESENTATION. WE'LL START OFF WITH COUNCIL DISCUSSION.COUNCILWOMAN ALDERETE GAVITO. >> GAVITO: THANK YOU, MAYOR PRO TEM. THANK YOU, BRENDA FOR THE BEGINNING PART OF THE PRESENTATION. THANK YOU, SARAH. THANKS FOR BEING HERE.
I KNOW THAT GREATER:SATX HAS SUCH STRONG LEADERSHIP WITH YOU.
I SEE RANDY AND Y'ALL'S TEAM. Y'ALL HAVE PUT TOGETHER A KILLER TEAM. I THINK WHAT'S IMPORTANT AND WHAT I WANTED TO GET ACROSS IS WHAT WE AS A CITY INVEST IN SENDS A SIGNAL WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO US.
TO ME IT'S CRITICAL WE INVEST IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
FOR ME AN INVESTMENT IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS AN INVESTMENT IN JOBS, WHICH IS AN INVESTMENT IN OUR COMMUNITY, WHICH IS AN INVESTMENT IN OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUR RESIDENTS. SO WHEN I THINK ABOUT US MANAGING AN OVER $4 BILLION BUDGET, WE ALLOCATE FUNDS FOR A LOT OF THINGS.
NONPROFITS AND 40-SOMETHING MILLION IN HOMELESSNESS. SO I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO THINK ABOUT WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO INCENTIVIZE WITH OUR BUDGET.
AND WE ALWAYS, ALL OF US, ARE CONSTANTLY TALKING ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, RIGHT, AND THE IMPORTANCE OF INVESTING IN OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUR RESIDENTS. AND SO TO ME THE WORK Y'ALL ARE DOING IS WHERE THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE CRITICALLY-IMPORTANT WORK THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING. I WANTED TO SHARE THAT PERSPECTIVE WITH MY COLLEAGUES BECAUSE, AGAIN, WE TALK ABOUT IT IN DIFFERENT WAYS BUT WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IS THE WORK THAT Y'ALL ARE DEEPLY INVOLVED WITH DAY IN AND DAY OUT. AND SO Y'ALL ARE JUST EXTREMELY IMPORTANT PARTNERS FOR US. I ALSO THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO HIGHLIGHT THE WORK GREATER:SATX HAS DONE THAT HAS TURNED INTO HELPING SOME OF OUR NONPROFITS.
WE ALL KNOW THAT -- YOU KNOW, WE HAVE SOME FUN DISCUSSIONS ABOUT HOW WE HELP NONPROFITS. BUT YOU ALL HAVE SINGLE-HANDEDLY RECRUITED SOME COMPANIES HERE THAT ARE DOING MAJOR INVESTMENTS INTO SOME OF OUR NONPROFITS.
I KNOW JCB INFORMS IN UNITED UND WAY OF BEXAR COUNTY. THEY HAVE A PARTNERSHIP WITH HARLANDALE. ACCENTURE HAS AN APPRENTICESHIP.
TOYOTA PARTNERS WITH SAISD. WE TALK ABOUT HOW SOMETIMES OUR NONPROFITS CAN GET OTHER SOURCES OF FUNDING. YOU ALL AND THE WORK Y'ALL ARE DOING IS DIRECTLY CONTRIBUTING TO THAT. THANK YOU FOR THAT. BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, IT IS IMPORTANT TO KEEP THESE NONPROFITS AFLOAT. THEY ARE DOING SO MUCH IMPORTANT WORK BUT IT CAN'T ALWAYS BE ON THE CITY DIME. WE NEED THESE OTHER PLAYERS IN OUR ECOSYSTEM TO HELP US ON SLIDE 14, SITE SELECTION, BRENDA, THIS MIGHT BE MORE OF A QUESTION FOR YOU -- OH, THERE YOU ARE. WHAT WORK -- OR ARE WE WORKING WITH OHP, THE OFFICE OF HISTORIC PRESERVATION, ON -- ON, UM, LOOKING AT OUR VACANT BUILDINGS AND SEEING, LIKE, HEY, IF A POTENTIAL COMPANY IS COMING -- WANTS TO RELOCATE HERE, ARE WE LOOKING AT -- ARE THEY LOOKING AT SOME OF THE VACANT BUILDINGS THEY COULD BE USING BECAUSE I KNOW THAT VACANT PROPERTIES ARE A PROBLEM IN ALL OF OUR DISTRICTS AND I JUST SEE THAT AS A WAY THAT WE CAN KILL TWO BIRDS WITH ONE STONE. I DON'T WANT TO KILL BIRDS,.
>> UNDERSTOOD. SO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, WE WORK CLOSELY WITH A NUMBER OF DEPARTMENTS, INCLUDING OHPN, AND A VARIETY OF PROGRAMS, INCLUDING LEGACY BUSINESSES AND SO FORTH.
WE DO PARTICULARLY MORE ON THE REVITALIZE SA QUARTER PROGRAM AND THAT'S WHERE WE TEND TO ENGAGE WITH MORE SO WITH SOME OF THOSE KIND OF SMALLER PROPERTIES, MORE HISTORIC PROPERTIES. YOU KNOW, THERE'S A NUMBER OF CORPORATE REAL ESTATE EXECUTIVES AND INDIVIDUALS THAT WE BOTH WORK WITH WHEN LOOKING AT SOME OF THOSE LARGER PROJECTS.
AND SO DEPENDING UPON THE SPECIFIC CONVERSATIONS WE'LL CERTAINLY LOOP IN O.H.P. AND THE
VARIOUS PARTNERS, THAT'S ALL I CAN THINK THAT WE LOOP THEM IN. >> GAVITO: OKAY, AND I AM JUST STRESSING THAT BECAUSE I THINK THAT IT'S IMPORTANT TOO. YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THAT, UM, LIKE OUR -- OUR PARTNERS THAT LOOK AT AFFORDABLE HOUSING -- THEY HAVE A VERY GOOD -- THEY HAVE A VERY GOOD LANDSCAPE OF WHAT VACANT BUILDINGS ARE AND WHERE THEY COULD POTENTIALLY RENOVATE FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING. I WISH THAT WE'D HAVE THAT SAME LENS FOR OUR EMPLOYERS COMING HERE. BECAUSE WE HAVE VACANT BUILDINGS SMALL, BUT ALSO MASSIVE IN OUR COMMUNITIES THAT ARE JUST REALLY DETERIORATING OUR NEIGHBORHOODS SO WE'D LOVE TO SEE THAT COME TO LIFE, NOT ONLY WITH AFFORDABLE HOUSING OPPORTUNITIES BUT WITH JOB OPPORTUNITIES AS WELL.
SO I WANTED TO JUST LEAVE THAT WITH YOU ALL. AND ON THE ALL IN STRATEGY -- I
[00:45:04]
DON'T KNOW WHAT SLIDE THAT WAS -- UM, ON NUMBER 3, WE -- WHEN WE MOVE FAST AND SMART, WE KNOW THAT. AND YOU'RE MENTIONING DELAYS THAT COST OPPORTUNITIES.YOU KNOW, HOWEVER WE CAN BE PARTNERS IN THAT, UM, HOWEVER THE COUNCIL CAN BE PARTNERS IN REMOVING BARRIERS SO THAT WAY THAT WE'RE NOT LOSING OPPORTUNITIES BECAUSE OF DELAYS AND AT LEAST COUNT ME IN TO HELP. AND I CAN'T SPEAK FOR MY COLLEAGUES BUT WE'RE ALL ONE TEAM. AND SO I THINK THAT WE NEED TO ACT AS A TEAM AND SO IF THERE'S WAYS THAT WE CAN HELP EXPEDITE THINGS ON OUR END AND THEN COUNT US IN. I KNOW THAT ONE OF THE ITEMS THAT WE DISCUSSED IN THE PRE-BRIEFING ON THIS WAS, UM, DISCUSSION ON THIS. AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID MENTION AND I WANTED TO SHARE IS THAT WHEN WE'RE THINKING OF POTENTIAL DATA CENTERS COMING IN OUR COMMUNITY, WE COULD ALSO TAKE A STEP AND THINK ABOUT THOUGHTFUL PLACEMENT AND SAYING, OKAY, IF THEY CAN BE SUPPORTING A COMMUNITY WITH POTENTIAL INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS THAT MIGHT BE A WIN-WIN FOR EVERYONE. SO I JUST WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THAT.
AND THEN ALSO TOO, WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT INVESTING IN OUR WORKFORCE, THERE'S OBVIOUSLY A LOT OF MOVING PIECES THERE, BUT, YOU KNOW, UM, EARLIER THIS WEEK WE WERE SIGNING LINEAR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS UP FOR FREE BUS PASSES. TO ME THIS ALL LEADS TO A STRONGER WORKFORCE. WE KNOW THAT HIGHER GRADUATION RATES EQUAL A STRONGER WORKFORCE FOR SAN ANTONIO DOWN THE ROAD. AND WE PLAN TO SEE IT IN A SMALL WAY NOW BUT WE KNOW THAT IT WILL BEAR FRUIT IN THE LONG TERM. BUT, REALLY, AGAIN, I WANT TO JUST THANK SARAH AND THE TEAM FOR ALL OF THE WONDERFUL WORK THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING. Y'ALL ARE IMPORTANT PARTNERS AND WE CAN'T DO A LOT OF WHAT WE SAY WE WANT TO DO WITHOUT YOU ALL AND SO, UM, YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHY I JUST FEEL THAT WE -- WE NEED TO INVEST ACCORDINGLY, THAT'S ALL OF MY COMMENTS, THANK YOU,
MAYOR PRO TEM. >> COUNCILMAN VIAGRAN. >> VIAGRAN: THANK YOU, MAYOR, AND THANK YOU, SARAH, FOR THE REPORT, I'M FULLY AWARE AND SERVING ON THE COMMITTEE FOR THE LAST FOUR YEARS OF THE WORK AND EFFORTS THAT YOU HAVE PUT FORWARD AND THAT THE TEAM HAS PUT FORWARD HISTORICALLY TO MOVE THIS CITY FORWARD. WE ALL KNOW HOW WE GOT HERE, AND I THINK THAT IT WAS 50 YEARS THAT Y'ALL JUST CELEBRATED, CORRECT? AND WE ALL KNOW THAT, UM, THAT BEFORE THAT -- AFTER -- THE REASON THAT WE'VE GOT HEMISPHERE IS BECAUSE THE CITY WAS A LITTLE CONSERVATIVE IN HOW THEY INVESTED AND THEY MOVED FORWARD AND IT TOOK VERY BOLD STROKES AND BOLD STROKES THAT RELOCATED PEOPLE DOWN IN H HEMISPHERE TO T US STARTED ON THIS PATHWAY. BUT I THINK THAT AS THE YEARS HAVE GONE ON WE HAVE BEEN VERY THOUGHTFUL ABOUT IT AND AS I SIT HERE WITH A NEW COUNCIL AND NEW COUNCILMEMBERS, WHAT I WANT TO STRESS IS THAT WHILE WE HAVE THE LARGER CITY AGENDA THAT OUR CITY MANAGER AND HIS TEAM TAKE FORWARD, IS THAT IF WHAT WE WANT TO SEE IS SOMETHING SPECIFIC WITHIN OUR DISTRICTS, WE NEED TO SET UP THOSE MEETINGS WITH BRENDA AND SARAH AND HER TEAM TO DO THAT.
AND I AM PROUD TO SAY THAT MY PREDECESSOR, AND I HAVE CONTINUED THAT, AND I SEE LEO GÓMEZ IN THE AUDIENCES. AND BECAUSE OF THAT WE HAVE SEEN GROWTH COME.
SO THAT WE'RE SITTING WITH WATER EDGE, AND TURN KEY READY FOR THOSE BUSINESSES THAT WE'RE TRYING TO ATTRACT. AND SO I'M REALLY, UM, HAPPY THAT WE SEE THIS ADJUSTMENT.
WE UNDERSTAND -- I UNDERSTAND THAT SOME OF THOSE -- THOSE TAIL WINDS AND HEAD WINDS WERE A RESULT OF THE NATIONAL TRENDS, BUT I DO THINK THAT AS WE TRANSITION COUNCIL INTO THIS NEW ERA, THAT WE NEED TO BE MINDFUL IF WE'RE GOING TO MAKE THIS SUCCESSFUL, THAT WE NEED TO START GETTING INVOLVED, WE CANNOT JUST SIT AND WAIT FOR A CITY MANAGERS TEAM TO DIRECT THAT. WE HAVE TO KIND OF DIRECT THAT WITHIN.
AND SO I LOOK FORWARD AND AS THE COUNCILWOMAN BROUGHT UP THE DATA CENTERS, UM, COUNCILWOMAN, WE ARE WORKING ON THAT AND I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH COUNCILMAN GALVAN AND COUNCILMAN SPEARS AND COUNCILMAN MUNGIA TO BRING KIND OF THE STAKEHOLDERS TOGETHER, BECAUSE I THINK THAT PUBLIC AND PRIVATE IS GOING TO BE KEY AND LEARNING FROM WHAT WE DID IN DISTRICT 6 AND WHAT WE CAN DO BETTER IN DIFFERENT DISTRICTS IS GOING TO BE KEY IN UNDERSTANDING THAT DISTRICT 9 IS WHERE A LOT OF THESE BUSINESSES ARE GOING TO HEADQUARTER OUT OF, BECAUSE IT'S TURN KEY READY WITH OFFICE SPACE, IS THAT HOW DO WE DO THAT. SO, UM, I LOOK FORWARD TO HAVING
[00:50:03]
THOSE WIDER DISCUSSIONS AND THE COLLABORATIONS WITHIN, UM, THE COUNCIL, AND I KNOW THAT AS WE LOOK AT THE RECRUITING COMPANIES AND LOCATING THEM, THAT THEY'RE NOT JUST LOOKING FOR, UM -- WHILE THEY'RE LOOKING FOR THE SPACE AND THE EASE, THEY ARE LOOKING FOR THE INFRASTRUCTURE AND THEY'RE LOOKING FOR THE -- THE CORPORATE CULTURE THAT THEY'RE BRINGING IN.AND IS THIS -- IS THIS AN ENVIRONMENT THAT PEOPLE FEEL THEY CAN -- THEY SPEND THEIR WEEKENDS HERE. AND THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THINK THAT AS WE MOVE FORWARD IN SAN ANTONIO, EVERYTHING IS RELATED WITH OUR VIA CONVERSATION YESTERDAY AND DO THEY FEEL THEY CAN LIVE DOWNTOWN AND GET ON THE BUS AND HEAD TO ANOTHER PART OF TOWN AND ENJOY THEMSELVES? BECAUSE WE DON'T WANT THEM TO WORK MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY IN SAN ANTONIO AND THEN WEEKENDS HEAD OUT TO AUSTIN OR TO HOUSTON FOR THE THEATRE OR FOR A SPORTING EVENT OR THINGS LIKE THAT. SO I'M EXCITED TO SEE ALL OF YOU THAT ARE HERE. RANDY IS HERE, AND WE KNOW WHAT THEY'RE DOING DOWNTOWN.
DOWNTOWN WITH THE BASEBALL FIELD WHERE WE LOOK TO GROW AND MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE -- COMPANIES WANT TO COME. AND THAT THEIR EMPLOYEES HAVE SOMETHING TO DO. SO AS WE MOVE FORWARD, I THINK THAT, UM, SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT I HAVE IS, AS WE MOVE FORWARD, SARAH IN THIS PROCESS, AND WE MOVE -- WE TRY TO MOVE ON THE RANKS, WHAT ARE SOME OTHER THINGS DO YOU THINK THAT WE AS A CITY CAN DO? IS IT MORE OF US CREATING POLICY? AND INCENTIVES? OR -- AND THIS IS KIND OF A GUIDED QUESTION -- IS IT MORE OF US CELEBRATING WHAT WE'RE DOING WELL RIGHT NOW IN THE CITY? SO IF YOU COULD ANSWER IT, BECAUSE YOU KNOW WHAT MY ANSWER
IS, BUT I'D LIKE TO HEAR FROM YOU. >> THANK YOU, COUNCILWOMAN.
I AGREE, I ACTUALLY THINK THAT THIS AUDIENCE -- OBVIOUSLY YOU ALL HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO ADDRESS CHALLENGES THAT OUR COMMUNITY IS FACING. BUT I ALSO THINK THAT A BIG RESPONSIBILITY IS TO BE OUR BIGGEST CHAMPIONS. THIS COMMUNITY HAS SO MUCH GOING FOR IT. AND WE ARE AT AN INFLECTION POINT WHERE WE ARE LITERALLY STARTING TO TAKE OFF. AND THE GROWTH THAT IS COMING IS NOT GOING TO SLOW DOWN.
AND SO WE NEED TO BE REALLY BE THOUGHTFUL ABOUT THE GROWTH, AND WE NEED TO DO THAT TOGETHER.
BUT I THINK THAT CHAMPIONING THIS CITY IS REALLY THE MOST CRITICAL ROLE.
AND THEN THE SECOND POINT I WOULD SAY IS JUST LET'S MAKE IT AS EASY AS POSSIBLE TO DO BUSINESS. IF WE MAKE IT EASY THEY'LL CHOOSE SAN ANTONIO.
WE HAVE SUCH AN INCREDIBLE CULTURE AND SUCH AN INCREDIBLE TALENT BASE AND, AGAIN, SO MUCH GOING FOR US AND WE HAVE SITES AND BUILDINGS AND HAVE IT ALL. AND SO LET'S MAKE IT EASY AND
THEY'LL CHOOSE -- THEY'LL CHOOSE SAN ANTONIO. >> VIAGRAN: THANK YOU.
AND I'M NOT SURE THAT YOU WERE THERE YESTERDAY AND MY STAFF WAS AND THE MAYOR THERE WAS FOR A BIT WITH THE DELEGATION COMING FROM JAPAN THAT ARE BUILDING THEIR HEADQUARTERS.
I THINK THAT ONE THING THAT RESONATED WITH ME -- BECAUSE MY SISTER WAS THERE AND MY STAFF WAS THERE -- IS THAT THEY WANTED TO SHARE THE CULTURE WITH THE COMMUNITY.
AND AS WE CONTINUE TO SHOW THAT WE VALUE THE CULTURE WE'LL HAVE BUSINESSES THAT APPRECIATE THAT.
SO MY CHALLENGE TO YOU, COUNCILMEMBERS, IS TO REALLY FIND THAT ONE THING IN THE COMMUNITY THAT STANDS OUT AND WHAT WILL HELP US TO ATTRACT BUSINESSES.
THANK YOU, MAYOR. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU, COUNCILWOMAN.
COUNCILMAN GALVAN. >> GALVAN: THANK YOU, MAYOR AND THANK YOU TO SARAH AND BRENDA AND THE WHOLE TEAM WHO IS HERE TODAY. I WOULD LIKE TO POINT OUT THAT IT WAS NOT ME WHO POINTED IT OUT AT FIRST, SO GET THAT OUT OF THE WAY.
JUST KIDDING. FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU FOR THE BRIEFING -- WAS IT THIS WEEK? GOODNESS, WHAT A WEEK. WHILE I APPRECIATE THE CONVERSATION THAT WE HAD THERE AND SOME OF THE INITIAL QUESTIONS THAT WE GOT TO ANSWER ALREADY.
AND A COUPLE OF QUICK THINGS TO MENTION, I APPRECIATE THE FOCUS ON EDUCATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE ALL-IN STRATEGY AND SOMETHING THAT WE TALKED ABOUT A WHOLE LOT DURING OUR BRIEFING. WHEN I TALK ABOUT EDUCATION AND THE IMPORTANCE WITHIN THE CITY, RIGHT? AND A LOT OF FOLKS WILL SAY IT'S NOT FOR THE CITY TO WORRY ABOUT.
AND TALKED ABOUT THE RESIDENTIAL VIEW WHERE IF SOMEONE IS LOOKING FOR A PLACE TO LIVE HERE IN OUR CITY AND THEY WANT TO LIVE HERE THERE'S A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT THINGS THEY THINK ABOUT.
IIT IS -- CAN I AFFORD THIS PLACE? AND IT SAFE? IS DO THEY HAVE GOOD SCHOOLS TO SEND MY KIDS TO? AND THAT'S WHAT I CONTINUE TO HEAR, RIGHT, HOW WE GET THAT TALENT POPULATION THAT WE NEED HERE.
ONE OF THE QUESTIONS THAT I WANTED TO ASK WITH THAT WAS, UM, BASED ON THE STRATEGIES -- I THINK THAT IT WAS STRATEGY TWO --
[00:55:05]
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE PARTNERS. IS THERE ANY -- IS THERE ANY VALUE IN CONVENING [INDISCERNIBLE] THE K-12 KIND OF VIEW?>> THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. AND THE ANSWER IS, YES, CERTAINLY.
AND I THINK THAT AS WE THINK ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITIES AND THAT IS A BIG AREA, YOU KNOW, TODAY WE TYPICALLY ENGAGE WITH AND ROMAN AND JOSH AND SCOTT WHO ARE HERE LED THIS WORK.
WE TYPICALLY ENGAGE WITH THE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS THAT ARE LOOKING TO CONNECT WITH CAREER OPPORTUNITIES AND THAT'S CRITICAL. BUT AS WE THINK ABOUT HOW TECHNOLOGY IS CHANGING AND WHAT'S REQUIRED OF OUR WORKFORCE TODAY, THAT THE EARLIER WE CAN EXPOSE STUDENTS TO OPPORTUNITIES SO THEY CAN IMAGINE WHAT THEY MIGHT WANT TO BE WHEN THEY GROW UP -- THE BETTER. AND SO THE SHORT ANSWER IS, YES, I THINK THAT THERE ARE CERTAINLY
OPPORTUNITY THERE IS AND WE'RE HAPPY TO EXPLORE THAT. >> AND I'M A BIT BIAS.
AND THE NORTH SIDE IS IN MY DISTRICT AND SO I THINK ABOUT THE CTE PROGRAM AND THE MAGNET SCHOOLS AS WELL. AND A LOT IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOLS THAT ARE FOCUSING ON TARGET INDUSTRIES. AND TRYING TO IDENTIFY WAYS TO CONTINUE TO BUILD WITH THEM AND BUILD UP THAT PIPELINE BEFORE THEY GET TO EVEN COLLEGE, RIGHT? AND I LOVE THE FELLOWS PROGRAM BUT IF WE COULD GET ANY EARLIER, THAT'S GREAT. SO I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT.
THANK YOU. I WANTED TO ALSO ASK -- IS THERE ANY WAY THAT WE COULD GET A BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE JOBS -- OR ALL OF THE JOBS THROUGH GREATER SATX BUT BASED ON THE COUNCIL DISTRICT AND THE IMPACT IN DIFFERENT AREAS AND THE DIFFERENT PARTS OF OUR CITY?
>> ABSOLUTELY. WE HAVE THAT INFORMATION, AND HAPPY TO FOLLOW UP WITH THAT.
>> GALVAN: GREAT. AND -- I'M SORRY -- YOU ARE GOO. [LAUGHTER] I WANTED TO ALSO SEE IF WE COULD SEE ANY TRENDS IN LOCAL HIRING, VERSUS RELOCATIONS AS WELL AND I THINK IT'S GOOD TO CAPTURE THAT DATA, NOT ONLY WHO WE ARE HIRE BEING LOCALLY BUT PEOPLE MOVING HERE WITH THE IMPACT THAT YOU GUYS HAVE. AND THE JOB TITLES.
WHAT ARE THE MAJOR INDUSTRIES GROWING AND THE SPECIFIC TITLES, AND WE SEE THESE INDUSTRIES DOING REALLY WELL WITH READY-TO-WORK TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES BUT MAYBE NOT THE SPECIFIC TITLES. SO TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE TARGETING OUR INVESTMENTS TO HERE AT THE CITY LEVEL TO CONTINUE TO BUILD THAT PIPELINE WITH YOU ALL.
AND ON THE NOTE OF READY-TO-WORK, IS THERE ANY DIETA CONNECTING TO INVESTMENTS LIKE THAT OR INVESTMENTS IN V.I.A. OR THE SAN ANTONIO MERGER THAT ARE PUSHING THIS KIND OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT HERE OR PUSHING ANY BUSINESSES TO COME HERE AND TO LOOK AT US
DIFFERENTLY IN A POSITIVE WAY? >> IF I UNDERSTAND THE QUESTION CORRECTLY -- ABSOLUTELY.
EVERY INVESTMENT THAT WE MAKE AS A COMMUNITY, REGARDLESS WHERE THAT COMES FROM, WILL HELP TO BETTER POSITION US. SO THE SHORT ANSWER IS YES AND THE LONG ANSWER IS THAT WE COULD
DIG IN WITH YOU AND FIND SPECIFIC EXAMPLESFUL. >> GALVAN: THAT WOULD BE GREAT.
I APPRECIATE THAT. AND SOMETHING I ASKED IN THE ECONOMIC WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE IS ON A DIFFERENT SIMILAR ABOUT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS ASKING ABOUT OUR SISTER CITIES AND HOW WE'RE UTILIZING THEM AND WHAT ARE THE PARTNERS THAT WE ARE SEEING?
>> THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION. SPECIFICALLY WITH OUR SISTER CITIES AND OUR FRIENDSHIP CITIES, A LOT OF THAT AS YOU KNOW IS REALLY AROUND THE RELATIONSHIPS.
BUT THOSE RELATIONSHIPS ARE REALLY FOCUSED IN ON HOW WE DRIVE INVESTMENT IN OUR COMMUNITY. TOYOTA IS ALWAYS THE ONE THAT IS HIGHLIGHTED THE MOST, BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, CI IN EVERYONE CO THAN VIAGRAN MENTIONED YESTERDAY, GOING BACK TO 2019 WHEN A DELEGATION WENT TO JAPAN AND NURTURING THAT RELATIONSHIP. IT WAS HIGHLIGHTED DURING THE PRESENTATION, THEY DON'T HAPPEN OVERNIGHT. SO A LOT OF WHAT WE DO WITH THE SISTER CITIES PROGRAM IS, AGAIN, NOT JUST ON THAT -- THAT PROTOCOL AND THE DIPLOMATIC
ASPECTS BUT REALLY FOCUSING IN ON INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES. >> GALVAN: GREAT.
I WOULD LOVE TO SEE DATA THAT SHOWS THE TREND LINE WITH THE SISTER CITIES AND THE WORK OF
THE GREATER CITIES ARE DOING. >> WE'LL FOLLOW UP. >> GALVAN: THANK YOU.
AND OUR LAST QUESTIONS ARE AROUND DATA CENTERS, BUT WITH THE NEW TECH KIND OF ENCOMPASSES
THE DATA CENTERS AND A.I., WHAT DOES IT FULLY LOOK AT? >> WHEN I THINK ABOUT DATA CENTERS SPECIFICALLY, I THINK ABOUT THEM AS A NECESSARY INFRASTRUCTURE.
AND IF WE WANT TO GROW OUR TECH INDUSTRY AND UNTIL QUANTUM COMPUTING TAKES OVER AND WE NO LONGER NEED TO STORE DATA, WE'RE GOING TO BE IN A POSITION WHERE WE HAVE TO STORE DATA.
EVERY ONE OF US HAS A CELL PHONE WITH MORE INFORMATION THAN WE'VE EVER HAD BEFORE.
AND EVERY ONE OF US HAVE -- AND I DON'T KNOW ABOUT Y'ALL, BUT I LOVE MY A.I. FRIEND.
IT'S MY FAVORITE, RIGHT? VERY GOOD, VERY GOOD IF YOU DON'T KNOW CLAUDE.
AND I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT EVERY ONE OF US ARE USING THESE TOOLS AND THEY'RE HELPING US.
[01:00:04]
THEY'RE EVOLVING OUR REGION AND EVOLVING OUR ECONOMY AND EVOLVING THE WORLD ESSENTIALLY RIGHT NOW. SO DATA CENTERS ARE A VERY IMPORTANT INFRASTRUCTURE.AND I THINK THAT WE NEED TO BE SUPER THOUGHTFUL ABOUT HOW AND WHERE WE'RE SUPPORTING THE GROWTH OF DATA CENTERS SO THAT WE'RE LEVERAGING THOSE OPPORTUNITIES AS A COMMUNITY TO BUILD OUT -- YOU KNOW, WE'RE BUILDING TREMENDOUS INFRASTRUCTURE TO POWER THESE FACILITIES. AND SO CAN WE LEVERAGE THAT INFRASTRUCTURE THAT'S BEING BUILT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE OPENING OPPORTUNITIES FOR OTHER KINDS OF INVESTMENT, AND IN PARTICULAR -- I AM MOST FOCUSED ON JOB CREATING INVESTMENTS, RIGHT? AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE DRIVING THOSE JOB CREATING OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY. SO THE ANSWER IS THAT WE HAVE TO HAVE DATA CENTERS AND LET'S DO SO THOUGHTFULLY WHERE WE'RE PARTNERING WITH THEM AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE LEVERAGING THAT
AS A COMMUNITY. >> GALVAN: YEAH -- NO, THAT'S HELPFUL AND IT WILL GO, RIGHTFULLY SO, WITH THE CCR THAT WE PUT FORWARD AND THE CONVERSATIONS THAT WE HAVE WITH THE REST OF THE COUNCIL. AND SOME THINGS THAT I WANTED TO TO FOCUS IN WITH THAT KIND OF INVESTMENT AND RECRUITING IS ANY WAYS -- WITH YOUR POINT TO THE JOB RECRUITING EFFORT, TO MAKE SURE THAT FOLKS ARE HIRED LOCAL AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE AND THE FOLKS WHO WORK IN THOSE FACILITIES AND THE LOCATION AS WELL, TRACKING THAT DATA, IF THERE'S NOT REMOTE WORK AND WE ATTRACT PEOPLE TO BE HERE IN SAN ANTONIO. AND EVEN ANY KIND OF -- OF COURSE, IT LOOKS AT HOW THE COMPANIES THEMSELVES ARE LOOKING AT ADDRESSING THEIR ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS SO THAT WE KNOW ALREADY UPFRONT, OKAY, THEY'RE NOT GOING TO USE THIS KIND OF WATER IN THIS WAY ANYMORE AND THEY'LL USE THIS POWER ON-SITE, OR WHATEVER IT MAY BE. AND I THINK THAT UNDERSTANDING THAT WILL HELP NOT ONLY US AND OUR LARGER REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, BUT ALSO OUR COMMUNITY'S PERCEPTION WHAT THIS ALL MEANS, WHAT THIS NEW INDUSTRY LOOKS LIKE. ESPECIALLY WITHIN ENTIRE TECH, AND A.I. TOO, AND HOW IT'S IMPACTING JOBS LOCALLY AND HOW IS IT A TAIL WIND, VERSUS A HEAD WIND AND IS THE REAL THING TO GET INTO IT AND DOING THAT WITH PARTNERS THAT WANT TO COME HERE IS CRUCIAL TO ALL OF THAT. THANK YOU FOR THAT. AND I THINK THAT IS ALL OF MY
QUESTIONS. THANK YOU, MAYOR PRO TEM. >> MAYOR PRO TEM, TO REMIND THE COUNCIL, B SESSION ON MARCH 4TH, IN PARTICULAR CPS AND SAWS WILL BE THERE TO TALK ABOUT DATA
CENTERS. >> THANK YOU, ERIC AND THANK YOU COUNCILMEMBER.
COUNCILMEMBER GONZALEZ. >> GONZALEZ: THANK YOU, MAYOR PRO TEM AND THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION. I WANTED TO START ON SLIDE 5 -- AS IF -- AS IF NOBODY HAS EVER HEARD ABOUT AN EDF OR GREATER SATX. CAN YOU JUST KIND OF EXPLAIN MORE ABOUT WHAT THAT REGIONAL PARTNERSHIP LOOKS LIKE? BECAUSE WE'RE TECHNICALLY COMPETING WITH I'M ASSUMING SOME OF THESE CITIES. SO CAN YOU JUST KIND OF EXPAND
MORE ON HOW YOU CREATE THAT WALL IF THERE'S A WALL EVER? >> ABSOLUTELY.
I THINK THAT IS SUCH AN IMPORTANT QUESTION. REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS ESSENTIALLY THE NORM WITHIN THE UNITED STATES TODAY. AND HERE'S WHY.
IF YOU THINK ABOUT NEW BRAUNFELS AND GOMEDINA AND CIBOLO, RIGHT, THEY HAVE -- I'M JUST PICKING CITIES, BY THE WAY, VERY DIFFERENT ASSETS AND FOCUS AREAS AND THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO HAS ITS OWN FOCUS AREAS, RIGHT. AND SO REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ALLOWS US TO BRING THAT COMPREHENSIVE STORY TO OUR CLIENTS. AT THE END OF THE DAY THE CLIENT, TO BE FRANK, DOESN'T CARE ABOUT THE CITY BOUNDARIES. THEY'RE NOT THINKING ABOUT WHAT CITY THEY'RE IN. AND THEY'RE LOOKING AT THE SITE, THE TALENT AROUND THAT SITE AND HOW EASILY CAN THEY ACCESS WHAT THEY NEED AND IS THAT GOING TO MAKE SENSE FROM A LOGISTICS OR OTHER CONSIDERATION. SO THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT CITY BOUNDARIES.
AND OF COURSE YOU ALL HAVE TO CARE ABOUT CITY BOUNDARIES VERY, VERY MUCH.
AN OPPORTUNITY IN HAND, THEN YOU ARE ALL COMPETING FOR IT, RIGHT AND WE MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE OPEN WITH OUR PARTNERS, OUR REGIONAL PARTNERSHIP IS VERY UNIQUE IN THAT WE DO SHARE WITH EACH OTHER ON A REGULAR BASIS WHAT ARE THE DEALS THAT WE'RE ALL WORKING ON TOGETHER.
AND I'VE ACTUALLY NEVER SEEN COMMUNITIES PARTNER IN QUITE THAT WAY.
THERE'S A WILLING BUSINESS HEREO SHARE INFORMATION AND LEARNINGS MORE SO THAN ANYWHERE ELSE THAT I HAVE BEEN. SO IT'S VERY COLLABORATIVE. AND ALSO EVERYBODY HAS TO COMPETE, RIGHT? AND SO WE LIKE TO SAY THAT WE PARTNER EVERYWHERE THAT WE CAN
AND WE COMPETE WHEN WE HAVE TO. >> GONZALEZ: THANK YOU. AS FAR AS YOUR TARGET INDUSTRIES, WE HAD THIS CONVERSATION EARLIER, BUT YOUR LIFE SCIENCES AND YOUR
[01:05:01]
BIOSCIENCES, CORRECT? ARE THOSE TARGET INDUSTRIES -- THE $10 MILLION NEW CAPITAL INVESTMENT, DOES THAT LEAVE OUT ANY MID-SIZED COMPANIES OR HOW DID Y'ALL GET TO THAT $10MILLION? >> SURE. YOU KNOW, THERE ARE GOING TO BE EXCEPTIONS TO THAT $10 MILLION INVESTMENT. YOU THINK ABOUT AN OFFICE PROJECT, FOR EXAMPLE, WHERE MAYBE THEY'RE ONLY DOING -- YOU KNOW, THEY ARE BUILDING OUT A SPACE A LITTLE BIT AND MAYBE IT'S A MILLION DOLLARS BUT IT'S THE KIND OF PROJECT THAT WE WANT TO SEE IN THE COMMUNITY. TYPICALLY THE $10 MILLION THRESHOLD FOR US IS MORE AROUND INDUSTRIAL PROJECTS, GIVEN THE SCALE OF THOSE OPERATIONS. AND SO WE'RE ALWAYS WEIGHING IT, RIGHT, AND WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT EVERY OPPORTUNITY, BUT IF IT'S A TARGET SECTOR AND THEY
HIT $9 MILLION IN INVESTMENT, WE'RE GOING TO STILL SUPPORT IT. >> GONZALEZ: ALL RIGHT.
AND ON SLIDE -- THESE ARE SMALL SLIDES -- 11 -- I THINK WE CAN TALK ABOUT A GREATER SATX BUT THAT EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT IS REALLY KEY, RIGHT, AND I THINK THAT SAN ANTONIO IS SO UNIQUE IN THAT WE'VE REALLY TRULY INVESTED IN WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT FROM CRADLE TO ADULT, RIGHT? BUT THERE'S THAT GAP. WE HAVE READY-TO-WORK BUT THAT GAP BETWEEN PRE-K AND ALAMO PROMISE, I THINK THAT THERE'S A LOT OF OPPORTUNITY THERE AND HOW DO WE CATCH KIDS SOONER THAN LATER -- IN HIGH SCHOOL. SO I KNOW THAT -- I'VE TALKED TO RAMITA BEFORE BUT I'M JUST A HUGE BELIEVER IN WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, AND SOONER THAN LATER -- ESPECIALLY WITH -- WITH WHAT SA WORKS IS DOING. AND SO HOWEVER WE CAN MAX NICE E THOSE EFFORTS IS IMPORTANT.
SO I THINK THAT COUNCILMEMBER GALVAN ASKED THIS QUESTION BUT I'LL ASK IT AGAIN ABOUT WHAT IS THE WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING WITH ISDS CURRENTLY? IS THERE WORK BEING DONE?
I DON'T KNOW IF YOU CAN ANSWER THAT. >> SURE, IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO
COME ON UP. >> GOOD AFTERNOON. YES, ABSOLUTELY.
SO COUNCILMAN GALVAN, I LIKE TO SAY THAT OUR TEAM HAS CTE DIRECTORS ON SPEED DIAL FOR ALL 19 SCHOOL DISTRICTS. THAT REALLY HAS BEEN THE CORE OF WHAT SA WORKS WAS ESTABLISHED TO DO -- WORK-BASED LEARNING AND FOCUSING PRECISELY IN THE MIDDLE TO HIGH SCHOOL -- CRITICAL YEARS. SO WE CAN BE MUCH MORE PREVENTATIVE AND ENSURE THAT THESE YOUTH HAVE A CLEAR PATH AND HANDOFF DIRECT TO COLLEGE AND DIRECT TO WORK IN M MANY CAS TOO WHERE WE HAVE SEEN SOME OF THAT WORK. SO OUR HIGH SCHOOL INTERNSHIP PROGRAM HAS REALLY BEEN ONE OF OUR STELLAR PROGRAMS. IT IS ACROSS ALL 19 -- I HAVE TO EMPHASIZE 19 SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND THAT'S A LOT OF COORDINATION THAT HAPPENS.
THE TEAM, UNDER JOSHUA SCOTT, IS GOING TO HOST A CITY-WIDE JOB SHADOW THAT WE TYPICALLY HAVE AROUND 2500 HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS. WE WORK SO CLOSELY WITH OUR SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO PROVIDE THE LOGISTICS BEHIND THAT, NOT ONLY IN TERMS OF BUSING BUT THEN THE STAFFING. OF COURSE, OUR EMPLOYERS WHO ACTUALLY HOST THE STUDENTS.
SO THAT'S ONE COMPONENT. BUT, CERTAINLY, THE PAID HIGH SCHOOL INTERN SHSHIP COMPONENT S LED EMPLOYERS TO LOOK AT TALENT EARLY AND INVESTING AND CREATING AWARENESS AND INTEREST IN CAREER PATHWAYS THAT PERHAPS OTHERWISE THEY WOULD HAVE NOT KNOWN ABOUT. AND WHAT'S THE DIRECT PATHWAY THERE. AND SO THERE'S THAT REAL CONNECTIVITY THERE THAT WE HAVE BEEN PROVIDING. SO I DO HAVE TO SAY THAT WE PARTNER VERY CLOSELY AND PARTNER CLOSELY WITH THE FUTURE READY BEXAR COUNTY, A PARTNERSHIP TEAM AND THEY'RE WORKING HOLISTICALLY IN THAT IMPACT MODEL. AND THE COMMUNITIES AND SCHOOL AND THE CITY EDUCATION PARTNERS.
SO I THINK THAT IS WHERE THE BIG IMPACT HAPPENS -- IT'S IN OUR COLLABORATION.
THERE'S A VERY SMALL WORKFORCE TEAM SO WE LEVERAGE A LOT OF THOSE NON-PROFITS THAT HAVE BIGGER TEAMS DIRECTLY INSIDE OF THE SCHOOLS WHERE WE NEED THE SUPPORT.
>> GONZALEZ: GREAT, THANK YOU SO MUCH. AND I ALSO -- I APPRECIATE THE -- WHERE WAS IT -- ON SLIDE, UM -- I NEED GLASSES -- 14 I BELIEVE.
JOBS AS WE WANT, BUT WE NEED THAT TALENT TO FILL THE ROOM, RIGHT? AND SO WHATEVER WE CAN DO TO BE HELPFUL AND TO PROMOTE THAT, COUNT ME IN.
CAN YOU KIND OF EXPAND A LITTLE BIT ON THE SITE SELECTION? IS THAT INTERNALLY?
OR DO YOU BRING IN CONSULTANTS FOR THAT, OR HOW DOES THAT WORK? >> THE SITE SELECTION PROCESS
OVERALL? >> GONZALEZ: YEAH. BECAUSE I KNOW THAT A LOT OF
THESE COMPANIES HAVE THEIR OWN SITE SELECTION TEAM AS WELL. >> UM-HMM, CORRECT.
SO THE SITE SELECTION PROCESS, UM, YOU KNOW, A COMPANY CAN GO A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT WAYS.
SOMETIMES THEY'LL DO IT ON THEIR OWN AND WE'LL HAVE A CONVERSATION DIRECTLY WITH THE COMPANY AND SUPPORT THEM THROUGH THE ANALYSIS STAGE. A LOT OF INFORMATION AND DATA.
WE'LL TAKE THEM AND SHOW THEM BUILDINGS. WE'LL SERVE IN A VARIETY OF
[01:10:01]
DIFFERENT WAYS AS THEY'RE GOING THROUGH THE PROCESS. A LOT OF THE LARGEST COMPANIES TYPICALLY WORK WITH SITE SELECTORS. AND THEY ARE PAID CONSULTANTS THAT DO AND MANAGE THAT PROCESS MORE FOR A COMPANY. THE SITE SELECTORS, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A LOT LESS INFLUENCE ON THE DATA THAT THEY'RE PUTTING IN FRONT OF A COMPANY.AND SO A SITE SELECTOR IS EVALUATING LET'S CALL IT 25 TO 75 DIFFERENT CONSIDERATIONS THAT A COMPANY MIGHT HAVE FOR WHAT'S DRIVING THEIR LOCATION DECISION. AND THEIR GOAL IS TO CUT AS MANY COMMUNITIES AS QUICKLY AS THEY CAN. BECAUSE THAT'S A LOT OF WORK, FRANKLY, AND THEY DON'T WANT TO TAKE THEIR CLIENT TO 15, 20, 50 DIFFERENT CITIES.
AND SO OUR JOB IS TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE SITE SELECTORS ARE AWARE OF WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE LOCALLY AND WE'RE EDUCATING THEM, AND MARKETING TO THEM ALL OF THE TIME.
AND THEN SERVING AS THAT INTERMEDIARY FOR OUR COMMUNITY WITH THE SITE SELECTOR ON BEHALF
OF THE COMPANY. >> GONZALEZ: OKAY, THANK YOU. AND ONE LAST JUST A COMMENT, I GUESS, OR A QUESTION. WHEN WE WERE TALKING ABOUT THE SPORTS AND ENTERTAINMENT DISTRICT, THE PHILADELPHIA STUDY OBVIOUSLY CAME UP A LOT OF TIME AND ON THE COVER PAGE OF THAT STUDY IT SHOWED THE LOCAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND THEIR LOCAL ETF PARTICIPATED IN THAT STUDY. AND I WAS HOPING THAT IN A PERFECT WORLD THAT OUR EDF WOULD HAVE A PEER REVIEW TO THAT STUDY, SO I DON'T KNOW IF THAT IS SOMETHING THAT YOU HAVE TALKED ABOUT FOR FUTURE PROJECTS OR DEVELOPMENT, BUT IF THAT'S EVEN SOMETHING THAT YOU HAVE ROOM TO DO -- BUT, UM, I WOULD LIKE TO JUST HEAR MORE ABOUT THAT.
>> SURE, SURE. AS PART OF THIS STRATEGY, WE ARE LOOKING AT BUILDING OUT OUR RESEARCH AND DATA FUNCTIONS SIGNIFICANTLY TO BE BETTER POSITIONED TO BE ABLE TO TAKE THAT INFORMATION AND BRING THAT TO THE BROADER DISCUSSION ON THESE BIG TOPICS.
SO WE DO A LOT OF THAT INFORMATION IN HOUSE ALREADY, BUT LET'S TAKE IT BEYOND SIMPLY OUR CLIENTS VIEWING THAT INFORMATION AND LET OTHERS WITHIN THE COMMUNITY TO SEE THAT
AND TO DRIVE THE BIGGER CONVERSATIONS. >> GONZALEZ: ALL RIGHT, THANK
YOU SO MUCH. THAT'S ALL. >> THANK YOU, COUNCILMAN.
COUNCILMAN SPEARS. >> SPEARS: THANK YOU, MAYOR PRO TEM, AND THANK YOU, BRENDA AND SARAH -- GREAT, GREAT PRESENTATION. I LOVE TO TALK ABOUT ECONOMIC AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. I AM VERY HONORED TO BE ON THE COMMITTEE WITH MY FELLOW COUNCILMEMBERS AND THIS IS A TOP THREE PILLAR FOR ME, BECAUSE, QUITE FRANKLY, I DON'T WANT MY KIDS TO MOVE AWAY. I WANT THEM TO HAVE GOOD JOBS HERE.
I LOVE LIVING HERE AND I'VE HAD GREAT OPPORTUNITY HERE, AND THIS IS THE PATH FORWARD FOR IT TO CONTINUE TO BE THE BEST PLACE TO LIVE IN SAN ANTONIO. ALTHOUGH I'M NOT SURE HOW MUCH WE WANT TO REALLY SHARE THAT WITH EVERYONE. SO I JUST WANTED TO ASK A FEW QUESTIONS. ON THE MOMENTUM 2030, IS THAT FAIRLY FLEXIBLE BASED ON RESULTS TO PIVOT TO WHATEVER IT IS THAT WE SEE THAT WE NEED TO DO MORE INVESTMENT IN OR SHIFT?
>> CERTAINLY. SO THINKING ABOUT THE MOMENTUM 2030 STRATEGY, THIS IS OUR SECOND FIVE-YEAR REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY. AND THE INTENT OFTS THAT YOU WANT TO SEE. AND THE WORLD IS CHANGING FAST AROUND US.
SO IN OUR PRIOR STRATEGY, WE ACTUALLY DID A MIDPOINT CHECK-IN WHERE WE EVALUATED WERE WE WORKING ON THE RIGHT THINGS, WERE WE SEEING THE RESULTS THAT WE WANTED, AND THEN COURSE CORRECTING IN AREAS THAT WE WEREN'T SEEING THE RESULTS OR THE INTEND THE PURPOSE DIDN'T REALLY MAKE SENSE AS IT DID WHEN IT WAS INITIALLY DRAFTED. SO THAT WILL BE PART OF OUR
PROCESS WITH THIS FIVE-YEAR PLAN AS WELL. >> SPEARS: OKAY, THAT'S GOOD.
I LIKE THAT. BECAUSE I AGREE THAT IT IS MOVING VERY FAST, AND, UM, I COMPLETELY AGREE THAT WE NEED TO BE ABLE TO JUMP ON EVERY OPPORTUNITY AS FAST AS POSSIBLE, WHETHER -- WHATEVER THE OBSTACLE IS, AND WE JUST NEED TO BE READY.
AND SAN ANTONIO HAS UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY THAT NOBODY ELSE HAS.
AND SO I'M EXCITED TO SEE THAT MOVING FORWARD. LET ME ASK THIS TOO.
SO HOW DO WE SUPPORT OUR LOCAL SMALLER BUSINESSES -- BECAUSE THAT'S A HUGE PART OF OUR ECONOMY -- THAT MAYBE ARE MOVING RAPIDLY TOWARDS BEING MID-SIZED AND KIND OF MEETING THOSE THRESHOLDS? ARE WE ABLE TO TRACK THAT? OR DO WE NEED TO REACH OUT?
IS THIS SOMETHING THAT WE NEED TO PUSH THROUGH OUR DISTRICTS? >> ABSOLUTELY.
WE WOULD LOVE TO SUPPORT THAT. AND THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT HAS A NUMBER OF PROGRAMS. IN FACT, WE JUST PRESENTED TO EWDC AND WE'LL ROLL OUT THE GRANTS AGAIN, THAT WAS A PILOT IN 2023, TARGETING THOSE -- AGAIN, THOSE GROWTH COMPANIES -- THE SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH -- SMALL BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER.
[01:15:02]
SO, AGAIN, A LOT OF THOSE COMPANIES WITH THAT NINE, 10 EMPLOYEES -- BUT REALLY LOOKING TO GROW AND, AGAIN, IT'S ALWAYS OUR HOPE THAT THEY BECOME THOSE MID-SIZED COMPANIES AND WHO KNOWS -- EVEN THOSE NEXT LARGE CORPORATIONS. SO THERE'S ALSO -- WE TEND TO -- WE MENTIONED THE BUSINESS RETENTION AND GROWTH PROGRAM JUST BRIEFLY.BUT WE COLLABORATE ON THAT. AND SO A ■LOT OFOUR BRG VISITS AND, AGAIN, OUR TARGET FOR 2026 IS 750 VISITS BETWEEN ALL OF OUR PARTNERS, INCLUDING GREATER SATX.
AND A LOT OF WHAT WE TARGET ARE THE MID-SIZED COMPANIES IN OUR TARGET INDUSTRIES TO, AGAIN, TO
HOW DO WE CONTINUE TO HELP THEM TO GROW. >> SPEARS: I LOVE TO HEAR THAT.
I HAVE A FEW CONSTITUENTS ALREADY TALKING ABOUT -- THEY REALLY JUST NEED SOMETHING TO HELP THEM TO GROW THEIR MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY. JUST A SMIDGE.
IT DOESN'T SEEM LIKE A HUGE ASK. AND IT WOULD HELP MANY -- MANY OF THE BUSINESSES LOCALLY.
SO THEY HAVE SOME REALLY GOOD IDEAS SO I'M GLAD TO HEAR THAT WE HAVE SOMETHING IN PLACE THAT CAN PUSH THEM TOWARDS IN THAT WAY. LET ME ASK THIS TOO.
WOULD IT CHANGE OUR STRATEGY, OR HOW WOULD IT CHANGE OUR STRATEGY IF WE WERE LOOKING AT TALENT DEVELOPMENT AS OUR MAIN DRIVER FOR ECONOMIC GROWTH, VERSUS SUPPORTING -- SUPPORT FUNCTION
OF RECRUITMENT? >> HMM. THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION.
I THINK THAT THE CRITICAL ELEMENT OF OUR STRATEGY TODAY -- THERE ARE PIECES OF IT THAT WE SUPPORT. AND I THINK THAT WHEN WE SAY "SUPPORT" IN THIS SENSE WE'RE REALLY TALKING ABOUT -- YOU KNOW, WE DON'T HAVE THE DIRECT CONTROL OVER THE OUTCOMES, RIGHT? AND SO, UM, A LOT OF WHAT WE DO IS SERVING AS THAT BRIDGE AND THAT INTERMEDIARY BETWEEN IN SOME CASES THE STUDENT AT THE HIGH SCHOOL LEVEL AND THE EMPLOYER. OR MAKING SURE THAT THE EMPLOYER VOICE IS BEING AMPLIFIED WITH OUR COMMUNITY COLLEGES AND WITH OUR UNIVERSITIES, WITH THE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT ECOSYSTEM.
BECAUSE SO MUCH OF THAT WORK IS SHEER INFLUENCE, IT'S A DIFFERENT KIND OF MEASURE FOR US. SO I THINK, YOU KNOW, I ANSWERED THE QUESTION -- THAT I ACTUALLY THINK THAT IT IS A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF OUR STRATEGY AND IT'S VERY CRITICAL TO THE WORK THAT WE ARE DOING. AND I -- I AM SORRY IF I DOWNPLAYED THAT IN MY COMMENTS
TODAY. >> SPEARS: NO, I THINK THAT I JUST, UM... FOR ME, I MEAN, WE REALLY ARE ALL TALKING ABOUT HOW EDUCATION AND OUR WORKFORCE IS KEY, BUT, YEAH, WE'VE GOT TO BE MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE PITTING THE TARGETED PLAYERS OR THE TARGETED BUSINESSES AND THE INDUSTRIES THAT WE WANT HERE. IT'S SORT OF LIKE A TUG AND PULL, RIGHT?
YOU KIND OF KEEP GOING TOGETHER IN TANDEM, RIGHT? >> THAT'S RIGHT, THAT'S
ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. >> SPEARS: OKAY. WELL, FULLY SUBMIT AUDIO] JUMP IN THE DEEP END APPROACH, BECAUSE THE FIRST ONE OUT THE GATE THERE IS GOING TO WIN. AND I WANT IT TO BE US. AND I THINK THAT WE CAN, UM -- THERE'S SO MUCH OPPORTUNITY HERE. I'M NOT GOING TO PRETEND THAT I KNOW MUCH ABOUT A.I., BECAUSE I DON'T, BUT I DO KNOW THAT IS WHERE WE'RE HEADED AND I APPRECIATE THAT Y'ALL ARE LOOKING AT THAT CLOSELY AND HOW WE CAN EXPEDITE THOSE -- THOSE EFFORTS TO GET OUR WORKFORCE READY. AND I DO WANT TO HELP IN ANY WAY POSSIBLE. REAL QUICKLY, ON SLIDE 17, SHOUT OUT -- LOVE THE EMPHASIS ON THE AIRPORT. TOTALLY AGREE ANYTHING THAT WE CAN DO TO HELP WITH MORE DIRECT FLIGHTS -- I MEAN, COMPLETELY AGREE. I DON'T THINK THAT ANYONE COMPLETELY UNDERSTANDS THE IMPACT THAT THE AIRPORT REALLY DOES HAVE.
SO I'M GLAD THAT WE'RE MOVING ON IT AND COMPLETELY AGREE THERE. AND SO I THINK THAT ALL KNOW WHERE I'M GOING NEXT. VETERANS. HOW ARE WE GOING TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE MOVING INTO GOOD CIVILIAN JOBS? I'M THINKING MOSTLY FOR -- IT SEEMS LIKE NATURAL AREAS THAT WOULD BE CYBER OR DEFENSE -- MEDICINE, TECHNOLOGY.
MOVING INTO CIVILIAN JOBS. AND ON THE OTHER END OF THAT, I NOTICED TOO ON SLIDE 18, TALKING ABOUT THE YOUTH AND THEIR EDUCATION, BUT, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE FAMILIES WHEN THEY MOVE HERE LOSE SOME OF THEIR ABILITY TO ATTAIN JOBS FOR MULTITUDES OF REASONS AND I FEEL THAT IS A LOST OPPORTUNITY. THEY'RE SUPER TALENTED AND CREDENTIALED AND MAYBE IT DOESN'T TRAVEL WITH THEM. HOW CAN WE GRAB AND EMPLOY THEM, ONE -- WHICH MAKES THEIR LIFE BETTER, BUT ALSO GRAB THAT TALENT FOR US? AND WE KNOW THAT A LOT OF VETERANS STAY HERE BECAUSE IT'S SUCH A GREAT PLACE TO BE. AND I'M REALLY INTERESTED IN HOW WE SERVE OUR MILITARY, SERVE OUR ACTIVE DUTY AND OUR VETERANS AND OUR RESERVE DUTY AND THEIR FAMILIES. AND I SEE THAT AS A MISSING GAP. AND HOW WE CAN SERVE THEM, GIVE
[01:20:04]
THEM THE EDUCATION THAT THEY NEED. AND MAYBE ENCOURAGING OUREMPLOYERS TO REALLY TO FOCUS ON THEM AS WELL. >> IT'S A GREAT THOUGHT AND WE'D LOVE TO EXPLORE THAT FURTHER WITH YOU. I KNOW THAT THERE ARE SOME FANTASTIC PROGRAMS THAT ARE ONGOING AND WE HAVE AMAZING EMPLOYERS WHO HELPED TO BRIDGE THAT AND I THINK OF USAA AND OTHERS BUT I'D LOVE TO EXPLORE THAT FURTHER WITH YOU.
>> SPEARS: ME TOO. BUT REALLY EXCITED ABOUT WHAT YOU HAVE PRESENTED TODAY AND THANK YOU SO MUCH. I DO THINK THAT THIS IS A HUGE RETURN ON INVESTMENT.
I KNOW THAT SAN ANTONIO IS THE BEST PLACE. WE'RE SO HAPPY TO HAVE YOU AND JUST REALLY ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT WHERE WE'RE GOING. SO THANK YOU FOR THE
PRESENTATION. THANK YOU, MAYOR PRO TEM. >> THANK YOU, COUNCILWOMAN,
COUNCILWOMAN CAST EELO. >> CASTILLO: I WOULD LIKE TO VOTE ON THE POINT, RIGHT, ENSURING WHETHER YOU'RE A VETERAN, OR SOMEONE WHO IS A RECENT GRADUATE -- WAGES AND BENEFITS THAT COME ALONG WITH MANY OF THESE INDUSTRIES THAT Y'ALL HAVE ATTRACTED TO THE CITY. CAN YOU HELP ME TO UNDERSTAND, UM, WHAT IS GREATER "SATURDAY
NSATX' SDEFINITION OF A HIGH WA? >> IT'S A LITTLE BIT OF A MOVING TARGET AND WE HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT IT IN A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT WAYS AS AN ORGANIZATION. AND HERE'S WHY.
WHEN I THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE THIS EXTREME FOCUS AS A COMMUNITY ON WAGE LEVELS.
AND WE NEED TO, RIGHT? WE NEED TO SEE THE WAGES TO GO UP FOR OUR RESIDENTS.
I DON'T WANT TO ALSO INADVERTENTLY LEAVE BEHIND ELEMENTS OF OUR POPULATION OF FOLKS THAT DON'T HAVE THE SKILL SETS TO TAKE THOSE HIGHER WAGE JOBS.
SO WE THINK ABOUT IT IN A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT WAYS. WE THINK ABOUT THE, UM, ARE WE AT OR ABOVE THAT MEDIAN INCOME LEVEL AS A KIND OF FIRST GATE, IF YOU WILL, ON A HIGHWAY TO A .
AND IN OUR DEFINITION OF THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING THIS YEAR -- OR THE NEXT FIVE-YEAR PERIOD -- WE'RE FOCUSED ON THOSE JOBS THAT ARE GREATER THAN $100,000 AS A HIGH WAGE, PARTICULARLY WITHIN THOSE CORE SECTORS. OBVIOUSLY, FOR MANUFACTURING, WE MAY NEED TO THINK ABOUT THAT SLIGHTLY DIFFERENTLY. WE MAY NEED TO THINK ABOUT OVERTIME, RIGHT, AND THE BENEFITS AND THE PROGRAMS THAT EMPLOYERS ARE OFFERING.
SO IT'S A NUANCED ANSWER, AS EVERYTHING SEEMS TO BE IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, BUT I THINK THAT, UM, I DO THINK THAT'S WHERE WE'RE SITTING TODAY.
>> I APPRECIATE THAT BECAUSE 100,000 IS THE GOAL BUT THERE'S $50,000 AS THE WAGE AND I WANT TO JUST UNDERSTAND HOW WE COULD CONTINUE TO INCREASE THAT $50,000 WAGE TO AT LEAST MEET THE CHAPTER 312 AGREEMENT WHICH IS ROUGHLY $59,000. BECAUSE THESE ARE GREAT INDUSTRIES AND I UNDERSTAND THAT, RIGHT, DEPENDING ON THE TRAINING CREDENTIALS, RIGHT, AND THE ENTRY WAGE. I THINK IS ALSO PART OF THE CONVERSATION TOO, RIGHT, WITH MANY INDUSTRIES THAT WE'RE ATTRACTING, WHAT ARE THE EXPECTATIONS WITH CONTRACT LABOR THAT TYPICALLY PAYS LESS AND OFFERS NO BENEFITS. SO SOMETHING THEY WOULD LIKE TO SEE IN TERMS OF THESE AGREEMENTS, ARE WE TRACKING WHAT PERCENTAGE OF THE JOBS CREATED ARE CONTRACT LABOR, AND WHAT ARE THOSE WAGES? AND I THINK THAT IT COULD HELP TO US UNDERSTAND JUST THE LAY OF THE LAND AS WE'RE NEGOTIATING AND THEN ATTRACTING BUSINESSES.
BUT ALSO WHERE ARE WE HAVING THE GREATEST IMPACT. AND I WOULD LIKE TO ALSO TO RECEIVE THE REPORT THAT COUNCILMAN GALVAN REQUESTED IN TERMS OF INDUSTRIES ACROSS THE CITY AND WHAT ARE THE WAGES AND THE INDUSTRIES THAT GREATER SATX HAS INVESTED IN AND ATTRACTED TO THE CITY. AND ALSO, RIGHT GOING BACK TO THE POINT THAT WE ARE MILITARY CITY U.S.A. AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WHEN FOLKS ARE GETTING OUT, THEY HAVE OPPORTUNITY TO HIGH-WAGE JOBS. SO THAT'S A PRIORITY FOR US. BUT, LASTLY, I DID WANT TO THANK YOU ALL AND STAFF AND YOU ARE WORKING TO IDENTIFY TWO TWO OR THREE SCHOOLS IN DISTRICT 5 TO HAVE PAID PARTNERSHIPS AND INDUSTRIES WITHIN OUR DISTRICTS. SO PLEASED TO HEAR THAT.
PRIORITIZING IN-FILL AND READAPTIVE REUSE WITHIN DISTRICT 5.
SO THANK YOU FOR THAT AND I APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU, MAYOR PRO TEM.
>> THANK YOU. COUNCILMEMBER MUNGIA. >> MUNGIA: THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION AND I KNOW THAT WE GOT OFF TO A LATER START TODAY BUT I'M GLAD THAT Y'ALL WERE HERE FOR THE EARLIER DISCUSSION BECAUSE IT TIES INTO SLIDE 8 THAT IS ONE OF THE HEADWINDS WHICH IS IMMIGRATION RESTRICTIONS. AND SO I THINK THAT IS JUST, UM, IT'S VERY IMPORTANT FOR US TO HEAR THAT IS A BARRIER TO YOUR ABILITY TO ATTRACT BUSINESSES TO AMERICA AS WELL AS TARGET INDUSTRIESES. AND SO I WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT.
AND I APPRECIATE IT, AND I SAW ON SLIDE 13, THE INVESTMENT THAT IS THE LARGEST RETURN INVESTMENT
[01:25:05]
THAT WE GET FROM ANYBODY THAT WE WORK WITH AND THAT IS REALLY AMAZING.Y'ALL DO FANTASTIC WORK THAT THE CITY COULD NEVER DO ON OUR OWN TO ATTRACT THESE BUSINESSES.
AND DISTRICT 4 HAVE BENEFITED AND WE HAVE JCB AND OTHER GREAT MANUFACTURING FACILITIES IN OUR DISTRICT. AND SO THAT'S REALLY BENEFICIAL TO US AND THE COMMUNITY.
AND I KNOW THAT YOU HAD A SLIDE ABOUT SORT OF THE, UM, THE TOP INDUSTRIES THAT WE WERE RECRUITING, BUT, YOU KNOW, WE HAD A REALLY GOOD CONVERSATION ABOUT WE WERE DOING REALLY WELL WITH ADVANCED MANUFACTURING, BUT WE ALSO WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ATTRACTING GREATER CYBER TECHNOLOGIES, ESPECIALLY WITH HEALTHCARE LIFE SCIENCES. SO WHEN WE TALKED ABOUT THIS -- AND I WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THIS PUBLICLY -- WE WANT TO BE REAL SPENCETIVE TO SPOON FEEDING SCHOOLS AND INDUSTRIES THAT WE WANT THEM TO HAVE, VERSUS WHAT KIDS WANT TO DO.
AND I THINK THAT IS A REAL DELICATE BALANCE, RIGHT? AND OF COURSE THERE ARE SOME JOBS HERE THAT PEOPLE ARE GETTING THAT IS LIFE CHANGING FOR THEM, NO DOUBT ABOUT IT.
BUT I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WHEN WE SET UP THESE INFRASTRUCTURE WITH OUR LOCAL COLLEGES AND OUR SCHOOLS AND WE'RE GOING TO THE SCHOOLS AND TELLING THEM, YOU KNOW, THESE ARE THE JOBS THAT WE WANT YOU TO TRAIN FOR OR TO GET, YOU KNOW, DOWN THE LINE -- UM, THAT IT'S ALSO SOMETHING THAT THEY WANT. AND I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WHEN WE TARGET THOSE SCHOOLS THAT WE'RE BEING INTENTIONAL, THAT IT'S NOT JUST CERTAIN PARTS OF TOWN THAT WE'RE GOING AND TELLING THEM THAT YOU NEED TO DO THESE TYPES OF JOBS. OR, YOU KNOW, ENCOURAGING THEM TO THINK BROADER, RIGHT? AS WE SPOKE, WE HAVE A HUGE HEALTHCARE GAP ON THE SOUTHSIDE AND IT'S MY BELIEF THAT THE MORE THAT WE GET HIGH SCHOOL KIDS AND EVEN YOUNG PEOPLE INTO HEALTHCARE THAT THEY'RE GOING TO REINVEST IN THEIR OWN COMMUNITIES WHICH IS WHAT WE WANT TO SEE. SO I THINK IS REALLY BENEFICIAL. AND I ALSO THINK THAT, UM -- I'M ALSO INTERESTED IN THAT REPORT SO MAYBE YOU COULD SEND IT TO EVERYBODY, RIGHT, ABOUT THE DIFFERENT THINGS COMING OUT -- THE WAGES. THAT'S ANOTHER THING TOO, TOO, IT'S NOT A SET NUMBER AND IT'S ALSO THE LONG-TERM SUCCESS. SO, YES, GOING FROM $13, $14 AN HOUR JOB TO $25 IS GOING TO BE LIFE CHANGING FOR SURE, BUT WHAT IS THAT JOB GOING TO BE IN 10 YEARS, RIGHT? ARE THESE GOING TO BE OBABSOLUTE OR UPWARD MOBILITY MANAGEMENT FOR THESE FOLK? I HAVE BEEN IN THE MANUFACTURING PLANT AND SEEN THE LINES AND I KNOW THAT COMPANIES ARE DOING REALLY GREAT WORK TO TRY TO MITIGATE THE PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES AND THE LONG TERM EFFECTS, BUT, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE'RE DOING THE SAME THING OVER AND OVER FOR 10, 15, 20 YEARS, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS THAT LONG-TERM EFFECT ON THEM.
AND SO I WORRY ABOUT THAT, RIGHT. IF THEY GET INJURED ON THE JOB, WHAT IS THEIR RECOURSE, RIGHT? IF ANY OF US GET INJURED UP HERE WE CAN STILL BE HERE, RIGHT, AND BE ON TV OR ON CAMERA. BUT OTHER FOLKS DON'T HAVE THAT PRIVILEGE AND THAT LIBERTY.
SO I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT IS BEING CONSIDERED ALSO. BUT, NO, I THINK THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING FANTASTIC WORK. AND I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING ALL THAT YOU DO.
I KNOW THAT YOU HAVE SOME GREAT PARTNERS HERE AND I'LL ALSO JUST SAY THAT SOME OF THE NON-PROFITS THAT WE HELP TO FUND ARE HELPING KIDS FINISH SCHOOL. AND SO OUR ABILITY AS A CITY TO INVEST IN THAT IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR YOU ALL, RIGHT? BECAUSE WE TALKED ABOUT THEY'RE NOT GOING TO COME HERE IF THEY SEE DATA THAT SUGGESTS THAT WE HAVE LOW GRADUATION RATES.
WE HAVE A LOT OF SCHOOLS -- ESPECIALLY IN MY COMMUNITY -- THAT ARE UNDER-PERFORMING WITH READING LEVEL IN THIRD GRADE. WE HAVE REAL LACK OF HEALTHCARE -- A REAL LACK OF CHILDCARE IN OUR COMMUNITY. AND THAT ALL AFFECTS YOUR ABILITY TO GET FOLKS HERE.
AND AS DOES, I'M SURE THAT HOMELESS SITUATION IN OUR CITY, RIGHT ACROSS THE COUNTRY, BUT OUR CONTINUED INVESTMENT THERE I THINK THAT IS IMPORTANT IN ADDITION TO WHAT Y'ALL ARE DOING. AND I WOULD RECOMMEND SENDING IT TO YOU TO FIX AND HAVING OTHER CORPORATIONS TO PAY INTO THAT I THINK IS NOT THE SOLUTION. BUT CONTINUED INVESTMENT FROM US AND WE WANT TO ALWAYS HEAR FROM YOU ALL WHAT THE CONCERNS ARE, RIGHT? BECAUSE EVERYONE UP HERE WANTS HIGH PROFILE JOBS AND WE WANT FORTUNE 500 COMPANIES TO RELOCATE HERE, BUT YOU NEED TO BE VERY, VERY HONEST WITH US IF THE GRADUATION RATES ARE NOT WHAT THEY ARE. AND YOUR COLLEGE RATES ARE NOT WHAT THEY ARE.
AND YOUR HOMELESS POPULATION IS NOT WHERE IT SHOULD BE, AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE NEED TO HEAR FROM THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY ALSO. SO I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR CANDOR AND HONEY AND YOUR FOLLOW-UP E-MAIL TO ME. AND SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR ALL OF YOUR WORK. I APPRECIATE. IT.
>> THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER. THANK YOU SO MUCH, SARAH, FOR YOUR PRESENTATION TODAY.
AND COUNCILMEMBER GALVAN TURNED WHEN HE SAW THE DASHBOARD COME UP AND WE HAVE OUR PET FAVORITES AND MINE IS OBVIOUSLY DASHBOARDS. SO I LOVED -- I MEAN, I DO
[01:30:01]
REALLY LOVE THE DASHBOARD. AND Y'ALL ALSO KNOW THAT I LOVE COMPETITION.AND THE DASHBOARDS GIVE US A GOOD BIT OF COMPETITION TO BE ABLE TO SEE WHERE WE ARE IN RELATION TO OTHER CITIES. SO ONE THING THAT I DID ASK FOR THOUGH IS THE NUMBERS, BECAUSE WHILE RANKING MATTERS I THINK THAT IT ALSO MATTERS TO SEE HOW MUCH THAT GROWTH LOOKS LIKE SO I KNOW THAT YOU WILL FOLLOW UP WITH THAT AND WE'RE HOPING TO LOOK AT THAT SOON.
PARTICULARLY ON SOME OF THE JOBS AND THE PEOPLE COMPONENT. THOSE ARE THE TWO ONES THAT WE DIDN'T GET TO SEE AS MUCH AS WE HAD HOPED. WE DID SEE SOME BUT I THINK THERE'S A LOT MORE WORK TO DO WHICH IS EVIDENT BASED ON THE STRATEGY THAT YOU HAVE OUTLINED MOVING FORWARD. I DID WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THE PLACE DASHBOARD AND MOST IMPORTANTLY THE THING THAT SO MANY OF US HAVE BEEN WORKING FOR, WHICH IS MULTIFAMILY AFFORDABLE HOUSING. AND I THINK THAT WHAT MAINLY GOES TO SHOW -- I THINK THAT THE COUNCIL MAN ALDERETE GAVITO WENT TO THIS, THAT YOU CAN SEE CHANGE.
SO THIS COUNCIL PRIOR TO ME GETTING HERE INVESTED IN AFFORDABLE HOUSING WITH THE $150 MILLION BOND IN 2022, AND BEFORE THAT WITH THE RESTRUCTURING OF THE HOUSING TRUST AND HOW IT WAS PLAYING IN THE SECTOR. AND THE HOUSING TRUST NOW HAS DONE SO MUCH INCREDIBLE WORK AND THAT IS A HUGE PORTION TO WHY WE SEE THAT MULTIFAMILY AFFORDABLE HOUSING GROWTH IN THAT RANK.
SO THE MORE THAT WE INVEST IN THINGS THAT WE CARE ABOUT, THE MORE THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO SEE.
IN THAT PLACE COMPONENT -- IT'S A LITTLE BIT EASIER TO TRACK GROWTH, BECAUSE YOU CAN KIND OF PUT DOLLARS TOWARDS IT AND IT'S LIKE BUILDINGS, RIGHT? AND IT'S EASY TO PUT MONEY INTO A BUILDING AND HARDER TO PUT MONEY INTO EDUCATION AND IT TAKES TIME TO YOUR POINT TO SEE SOME OF THOSE CHANGES OCCUR. BUT WE DO AGREE ON SOME THINGS WITH THE NON-STOP -- WITH THE AIRPORT BEING REALLY IMPORTANT, RIGHT? AND WE KNOW HOW MUCH FOLKS NEED TO BE ABLE TO ACCESS -- ESPECIALLY IF WE'RE GETTING -- TRYING TO GET FOLKS FROM DIFFERENT COUNTRIES TO BE ABLE TO TRAVEL TO US QUICKLY. WE HAVE TO BE ABLE TO DO MORE WITH THE NON-STOP DESTINATIONS AND I KNOW THAT JESUS AND THE TEAMS ARE WORKING DILIGENTLY AT THE AIRPORT. AND I ACTUALLY ASKED IN OUR BRIEFING -- A LOT OF WHAT I'LL SHARE IS WHAT WE TALKED ABOUT IN OUR CONVERSATION OVER THIS WEEK, LIKE, WE GOT A LOT OF LEARNINGS FROM CONDOR, RIGHT AND SOMETIMES WHAT I LEARNED FROM OUR CONVERSATION WITH SARAH IS THAT I THINK WE CAN ALL ALSO LEARN MORE FROM OUR MISTAKES. AND THERE'S ALWAYS SOMETHING THAT WE -- IF WE TRY SOMETHING AND IT DOESN'T WORK, LET'S MAKE SURE THAT WE SAY IT LOUDLY.
I THAN WE DON'T ALWAYS LIKE TO SAY OUR MISTAKES LOUDLY, BUT AT LEAST COME BACK TO US IN EXEC AND MAYBE NOT A FULL-ON PUBLIC BRIEFING. BUT AT LEAST WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO COME BACK TO EXEC AND DO MORE "THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED." BECAUSE YOU MENTIONED, SARAH, THERE WERE SEVEN DEALS THAT WE DID, AND I DIDN'T REALIZE THAT LAST YEAR.
AND I REMEMBER THE LAST ONE THAT WE GOT BRIEFED ON AND, QUITE FRANKLY, I DIDN'T REALIZE THE DIRECTION THAT WAS GOING TO GO IN WHEN WE WERE BRIEFED ON. IT SO TO YOUR POINT, COUNCILWOMAN, WE DO HAVE A ROLE TO PLAY. AND I THINK IF WE GET COMMUNICATE AND TO WORK WITH YOU ALL AHEAD OF TIME, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO SEE OUR PRIORITIES SO ONCE YOU HAVE WORKED A DEAL FOR THREE MONTHS IT FEELS SO FRUSTRATING TO NOT BE ABLE TO GO TO CLOSE IT. SO I FEEL IF YOU ENGAGE US ON THE FRONT END MORE, AND KNOW, OKAY, THIS IS PROBABLY A NON-STARTER AND WE SHOULDN'T GO DOWN THAT LINE -- IT WOULD HELP US. AND COUNCIL WOMAN JUST TAKES IT AND I REALLY APPRECIATE IT BUT FOR THE REST OF US YOU ARE SEEING UP HERE FOLKS THAT WANT TO BE ENGAGED IN THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CONVERSATION. SO LET US BE YOUR CHAMPIONS AND LET US TO SIT AT THE TABLE WITH YOU AS YOU'RE TALKING TO FOLKS. YOU GUYS DID INVITE ME TO DO THAT WHEN WE HAD OUR ONE INDIAN COMPANY EXPLORING AND I TRADE TO WOW THEM WITH MY HINDI-SPEAKING ABILITY.
[LAUGHTER] SO JUST CONTINUE TO USE US. AND THAT'S -- I READ YOUR STRATEGY FOR YOUR MOMENTUM 2030. AND I LIKED THAT IT WASN'T A 100 PAGE DOCUMENT SO I COULD ACTUALLY READ THROUGH IT. BUT GOAL THREE IS RELATIONSHIPS, RIGHT? AND I DIDN'T SEE NECESSARILY THE CITY COUNCIL IDENTIFIED AS ONE. SO I THINK COULD BE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR US TO BE A STRONGER PARTNER. AND I KNOW THAT YOU AND BRENDA HAVE THAT DALLAS CONNECTION BUT YOU COULD ALSO USE US TOO WHENEVER YOU NEED IT.
AS FAR AS THE "TAKES TIME AND PROGRESS," I WOULD LOVE TO SEE MORE OF WHAT ARE THOSE INDICATORS. SO YOU MENTIONED IN OUR ONE ONONE THAT YOU ARE WORKING ON LEADS AND HOW MUCH TIME IT TAKES FOR A LEAD TO GROW AND WHAT THAT METRIC LOOKS LIKE.
IF WE COULD GET MORE PROGRESS MEASURES THROUGHOUT, EVEN JUST QUARTERLY OR WHATEVER YOU SEND TO YOUR BOARD. I KNOW THAT I GET THE TRADITIONAL, LIKE, YOUR REPORT THAT GOES OUT TO EVERYONE. BUT IF THERE'S SOMETHING THAT YOU COULD TAILOR THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL FOR COUNCIL AND I THINK WE WOULD APPRECIATE SEEING METRICS LIKE THAT.
[01:35:01]
AND THEN ECONOMIC INCENTIVES -- ERIK BROUGHT THIS UP AND OUR POLICIES UP.AND I HEARD SOME IDEAS. SO COUNCILMAN, SOME OF MY COLLEAGUES HAVE MENTIONED THE NON-PROFIT SUPPORT. DO WE SAY -- YOU CAN'T NECESSARILY SAY HOW MUCH TO GIVE
TO BE A GOOD COMMUNITY PARTNER IN OUR INCENTIVE DEALS? >> IT'S IN OUR ASPECT?
>> HOW MUCH DO THEY HAVE TO GIVE? >> WELL, IT DEPENDS, RIGHT? IT DEPENDS. BUT I'M JUMPING AHEAD OF BRENDA BUT THAT'S ON OUR SIDE OF THE TABLE TO DEAL WITH AND NOT SARAH'S. BUT I THINK WHERE SARAH AND TSX CAN HELP IS IN THAT RECRUITMENT PHASE AND BEING ABLE TO EXPLAIN THE EXPECTATIONS AND THE LANDSCAPE, THE ENVIRONMENT, UM, AND THE GIVING CULTURE THAT MANY OF THE MAJOR EMPLOYERS AND THE
BUSINESSES HAVE. >> I WILL QUICKLY ADD WHEN WE DO OUR DUE DILIGENCE ON THE COMPANIES, WE DO LOOK AT THEIR KIND OF CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP, IF YOU WILL, AS KIND OF OUR BROAD EXPLANATION AND OUR KIND OF REVIEW. AND THEN WE DO A LOT OF TIMES AND WORKING IN TANDEM WITH THE GREATER SATX TEAM AND TRY TO STEER THEM TO THOSE GREAT OPPORTUNITIES THAT ARE
>> KAUR: IT WOULD BE INTERESTING TO SEE WHAT TYPE OF ORGANIZATION THAT WE'RE -- FOR LACK OF BAD ANALOGIES TODAY, GETTING IN BED WITH, RIGHT? WE WANT TO SEE, UM, WHAT EXACTLY THEIR HISTORY IS, AND INCORPORATE GIVING -- AND CORPORATE GIVES IS SUCH A HUGE PIECE, BECAUSE WE HAVE SUCH GOOD COMPANIES HERE THAT GIVE BACK IN SUCH GREAT AMOUNTS.
BUT ALSO ALL OF THE NON-PROFITS ARE TAPPING INTO THE SAME ONES. SO THE MORE THAT WE CAN GET THERE -- NOT TO THE COUNCILMAN'S POINT AND NOT THAT WE CAN'T GIVE TO THE CITY BECAUSE IT'S A COLLABORATION. THE OTHER THING THAT I WANTED TO ADD AND I TOLD YOU GUYS THIS -- I WAS VISITING THEIR EARLY CHILDCARE FACILITY ON THE SOUTHSIDE THAT IT'S IN PARTNERSHIP WITH HOLT AND A PORTION OF THEIR KIDS GO THERE. IF YOU'RE IN EDUCATION, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT REALLY HELPS FROM EARLY ONSET IS IF YOU'RE DOING DIVERSE LEARNING EXPERIENCES WHERE KIDS FROM ALL OVER ARE GETTING TO LEARN FROM EACH OTHER AND GETTING TO BUILD THAT SOCIAL CAPITAL. THINK ABOUT THAT KID THAT IS LIVING ACROSS STREET TO GET TO GO TO THE KID WHO IS WORKING IN HOLT. AND THAT IS SOMETHING THAT NO MONEY CAN BUY. SO I -- AS MUCH AS WE CAN, I WOULD LOVE TO CREATE AN OFFICIAL POLICY THAT CREATES CHILDCARE AND IN PARTNERSHIP WITH OUR COMPANIES COMING IN.
RATHER THAT IS PRE-K LISTED AND I KNOW THAT IS SOMETHING YOU DO A GREAT JOB OF SIMILARLY SAYING THAT WE HAVE THIS AWESOME PROGRAM. BUT IT'S A TOP RATED ONE IN THE WHOLE COUNTRY. SO I THINK WE SHOULD CREATE AN OFFICIAL POLICY THAT SAYS THAT THIS IS WHAT WE CAN PROVIDE YOU FOR YOUR EMPLOYEES, SHOULD YOU CHOOSE TO MOVE.
AND I AM SURPRISED THAT THE COUNCILMAN DIDN'T MENTION IT BECAUSE HE ALWAYS TALKS ABOUT PORT -- YOU DID? OH, MAN, I MISSED IT. DARN IT.
SORRY. BUT THEY HAVE, LIKE, BIG GOAL THERE IS TOO.
AND I THINK THAT BROOKS IS WORKING ON IT TOO. SO WE -- I THINK THAT THE COMMUNITY IS SEEING HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO START EARLY, LIKE, IF MARK WAS HERE, HE'D SAY THAT EARLY MATTER MATTERS -- AT DOES. AND YOU HAVE ALL OF THE C.T.
COORDINATORS ON SPEED DIAL. I WISH IT WASN'T 19, WHAT WOULD IT BE LIKE IF IT WAS EVEN 10? I THINK THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD ALL AS A COMMUNITY EVENTUALLY HAVE TO THINK ABOUT.
BECAUSE IT IS -- IT MAKES IT VERY DIFFICULT. AND SO THIS IS WHERE I'LL END WITH AND JUST SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT. I KNOW THAT RANDY IS HERE AND OTHER BOARD MEMBERS. THE BOARD ARE ROCK STARS AND I ABSOLUTELY THINK THAT EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM IS INCREDIBLE. AND I WONDER WHAT IT WOULD LOOK LIKE -- I KNOW THAT YOU GUYS HAVE A BIG GIVE, AT LEAST I THINK THAT IT IS.
BUT I WONDER WHAT IT WOULD LOOK LIKE -- AND I MENTIONED THIS IN OUR ONE-ON-ONE TO DIVERSIFY THE BOARD JUST A LITTLE BIT. AND THINK ABOUT WHO FROM THE K-12CTE SPACE WOULD BE A GREAT ADD ON AND YOU HAVE REALLY GREAT LEADERS THERE. BUT WHO COULD PROVIDE VOICE INTO THAT TALENT PERSPECTIVE? WE TALKED ABOUT OUR UNHOUSED COMMUNITY A BIT AND WHO MIGHT BE A GOOD ADVOCATE FROM THAT SPACE SO THAT WE CAN -- THEY CAN SPEAK TO THAT IF THE BUSINESSES ARE COMING. SO JUST THINKING ABOUT IF THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY AND IF IT'S NOT AT THE BOARD LEVEL AND MAYBE IT'S AN ADVISORY BOARD THAT IS SHOWN ON THE WEBSITE.
AND THAT HAS REAL VOICE INTO, UM, THE CHANGES THAT YOU ARE ALL MAKING.
ANYWAYS, I REALLY ENJOYED OUR TIME. I KNOW THAT YOU SPENT A LOT OF TIME BRIEFING EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US. AND I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THAT. I KNOW THAT IT'S, LIKE, YOU'RE REPEATING THE SAME CONVERSATION A LOT OF TIMES. I THINK THAT I STARTED OFF THE MEETING LIKE YOU DON'T HAVE TO
[01:40:03]
GIVE ME THE WHOLE PRESENTATION IF YOU'RE GIVING IT TO ME ON THURSDAY BUT I WANT TO JUST LET YOU KNOW THAT IT'S VALUED. IF YOU ARE MODERATING THE PANEL, YOU DON'T GET TIMED.ALL RIGHT, DOES ANYONE HAVE ANYTHING TO ADD? ERIK?
>> JUST A COUPLE OF ISSUES. SO WHEN SARAH SAYS SEVEN DEALS, UM, SHE -- HER OCEAN IS VAST.
RIGHT? AND THOSE BOATS DON'T LAND ON YOUR SHORES UNTIL THEY GET CLOSER. SO SOME OF THEM YOU WILL NEVER HEAR ABOUT.
SOME OF THEM FOR A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT REASONS. SO I DON'T WANT YOU TO THINK THAT -- THAT YOU CAN ONLY REMEMBER ONE. IT'S PROBABLY BECAUSE THERE WAS ONLY ONE FOR OTHER REASONS THINGS HAPPEN. AND, SECONDLY, CONDOR WASN'T A MISTAKE, COUNCILWOMAN, AND CONDOR WAS A HUGE SUCCESS AS WE WERE ABLE TO DETERMINE THAT THERE WERE AT LEAST 290 PEOPLE FLYING EITHER WAY. AND WE IMPROVED THE MARKET.
WHAT HAPPENED WITH CONDOR, AND I THINK THAT THIS HAPPENED BEFORE THE NEW COUNCIL WAS SEATED AND SO I THINK THAT IT'S A GOOD TIME TO EXPLAIN AGAIN. CONDOR WERE IN A LEGAL BATTLE IN GERMANY. AND THE GERMAN COURTS SIDED WITH LUTHANZA AND THEY HAD TO PULL OUT OF SIX CITIES BECAUSE OF CODE ISSUES. AND WE ARE USING THAT DATA RIGHT NOW TO MAKE PITCHES TO OTHER EUROPEAN AIRLINES. AND WE HAVE THE DATA IN OUR HAND. AND THEN, THIRD, YOU KNOW, THE NON-PROFITS, THE CULTURE OF GIVING, UM, THE -- THE OTHER ASPECTS OF WHAT Y'ALL TALKED ABOUT -- THOSE ARE REALLY KEY FOR OUR PORTION OF THE WORK THAT WE NEED TO DO LATER ON IN THE YEAR.
BUT IT'S A THREADING OF THE NEEDLE IN A SENSE, RIGHT? BECAUSE YOU HEARD WHAT SARAH SAID. IT IS ABOUT SPEED TO MARKET. AND SO THE MORE ORNAMENTS THAT WE HANG ON THE TREE AND THE MORE LIKELY IT IS TO LEAP. LEAN. SO THAT IS SOMETHING THAT IS A CONSTANT IN TERMS OF THE ETHEENGAGEMENT BETWEEN BRENDA AD SARAH, BUT I THINK THAT IT IS IMPORTANT FOR SARAH TO HEAR THE BIGGER ISSUES THAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT TODAY, BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT UNLIKE THE SAME THINGS THAT ARE DISCUSSED AT EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING WHEN WE MEET PERIODICALLY. AND LAST THING -- AND I SHOULD HAVE SAID THIS AT THE BEGINNING -- A LOT OF THE COMPARATOR CITIES THAT YOU SAW UP ON THE PRESENTATION -- THE PART THAT IS NOT SAID IN SARAH'S PRESENTATION, BUT IT IS REALLY OUR PRIMARY JOB, ARE ALL OF THE OTHER THINGS THAT YOU ALL DO, RIGHT? THE PUBLIC SAFETY, THE INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT, AND THE QUALITY OF LIFE, THE NEIGHBORHOODS -- ALL OF THOSE AFFECT THOSE MEASURES WHICH ENHANCE HER ABILITY TO SELL SAN ANTONIO.
SO WHILE WE HAVE MULTIPLE FRONTS THAT WE WORK ON AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IS ONE OF THEM.
ALL OF THE OTHER STUFF THAT WE DO IS REALLY KEY TO MAKE SURE THAT SAN ANTONIO LOOKS REALLY GOOD TO THAT COMPANY THAT WANTS TO EXPAND AND MOVE HERE. AND WE DIDN'T REALLY TALK A LOT ABOUT IT, BUT IT'S ALL OF THE OTHER STUFF THAT WE DO THAT IS REALLY CRITICAL AND IMPORTANT
FOR SARAH. SO, THANK YOUS, COUNCILWOMAN. >> KAUR: JUST TO SAY ONE LAST THING. THE ONE THING THAT WE DO AND I DIDN'T CALL IT OUT IS THE AVERAGE TRAVEL TIME TO WORK. AND THAT DROPPED FROM 2 TO 7 OR 8, WERE YOU GOING TO SAY
SOMETHING ABOUT THAT, SARAH, REAL QUICK? >> TO ME -- TO ME THAT IS ACTUALLY NOT A MEASURE THAT WE NEED TO WORRY AS MUCH ABOUT RIGHT NOW.
BECAUSE THAT MEANS THAT WE HAVE A LOT OF CONSTRUCTION GOING ON OUR ROADS.
[LAUGHTER] WHICH IS A GOOD THING IF YEAR WE GOING TO MANAGE OUR GROWTH IN
THE LONG TERM. >> THAT'S A GOOD WAY OF SAYING IT.
[LAUGHTER] ALL RIGHT. >> KAUR: I DIDN'T KNOW THAT THERE WAS CONSTRUCTION. DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE ANYTHING TO ADD? THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. AND THE TIME IS 4:02 P.M. AND SPECIAL SESSION IS ADJOURNED.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.