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[1. 20-4897 Staff presentation of the FY 2021 Proposed Budget focusing on, but not limited to, the following City Departments or Initiatives: [Erik Walsh, City Manager Scott Huizenga, Director, Management and Budget] A. Animal Care Services]
IS 2:04 PM ON THIS, UH, SECOND DAY OF SEPTEMBER, 2020.UM, GO AHEAD AND OPEN OUR CITY COUNCIL B SESSION.
UH, MADAM CLERK, IF YOU CAN READ THE ROLE.
ALRIGHT, UH, WE HAVE TWO ITEMS ON OUR AGENDA TODAY FOR BRIEFING.
UM, AND SO I'LL GO AHEAD AND TURN IT OVER TO THE CITY MANAGER, ERIC WALSH.
AND, AND AS A REMINDER, AGAIN, PLEASE USE YOUR RAISE HAND, UH, BUTTON IF YOU'D LIKE TO QUEUE UP FOR DISCUSSION.
UH, WE HAVE, UH, TWO PRESENTATIONS THIS AFTERNOON, UH, A C S FOLLOWED BY DEVELOPMENT SERVICES.
SO HEBER AND MIKE SHANNON AND THEIR TEAMS WILL BE HERE TO, UH, PRESENT THEIR PROPOSED BUDGET.
UM, SO WITH THAT, I'M GONNA, HEBERT'S GONNA START OFF FOR US.
GOOD MORNING OR GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND, AND CITY COUNCIL.
AS ERIC SAID, MY NAME IS HEBER RINN.
I'M THE DIRECTOR OF ANIMAL CARE SERVICES.
AS REQUESTED, I'LL BE SHARING WITH YOU AN UPDATE ON OUR DEPARTMENT'S RESPONSE TO C OVID 19, AS WELL AS A FEW OF THE HIGHLIGHTS ASSOCIATED WITH OUR 2021 PROPOSED BUDGET.
SO ON SATURDAY, MARCH 21ST, AFTER PROMOTING A START OF A MAJOR ADOPTION EVENT, ANIMAL CARE SERVICES OPENED ITS DOOR TO A LARGE CONGREGATION OF POTENTIAL ADOPTERS WHO WERE STANDING OUTSIDE OF OUR FACILITY WAITING FOR US TO OPEN.
THROUGHOUT THE EVENT, WE SAW GROUPS OF PEOPLE MOVING AROUND THE FACILITY IN A SPAGHETTI LIKE PATTERN WITH FREQUENT STOPS TO INTERACT WITH OUR ANIMALS STAFF, AS WELL AS WITH OTHER VISITORS.
UH, THIS IMAGE OF REPEATED CLOSE INTERACTIONS BETWEEN CUSTOMERS AND WITH STAFF WAS NOT ONLY AN UNCOMMON OCCURRENCE DURING AN ADVERTISED ADOPTION EVENT, BUT UNDER NORMAL SITUATIONS WAS A REASON TO CELEBRATE.
HOWEVER, IN LIGHT OF THE RECENT PANDEMIC AT THAT TIME, WE QUICKLY REALIZED THAT THE CONTINUATION OF THIS BEHAVIOR NOW CREATED AN UNACCEPTABLE SAFETY RISK THAT NEEDED TO BE CHANGED IMMEDIATELY.
AS AN ESSENTIAL OPERATING DEPARTMENT THAT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CARE OF OVER 500 PETS, AS WELL AS THE MANAGEMENT OF ANIMAL RELATED ISSUES IN THE COMMUNITY, WE KNEW THAT A C S S DID NOT HAVE THE OPTION TO TEMPORARILY CLOSE OR TO ASK STAFF TO WORK FROM HOME.
INSTEAD, IT BECAME OBVIOUS THAT A C S NEEDED TO QUICKLY REINVENT THE WAY WE PROVIDED SERVICES, FOR EXAMPLE, WHILE ADOPTING, WHILE ADOPTING EVENTS CONTINUED TO BE A PRIORITY AND A NECESSARY LIFESAVING TOOL FOR A C S, THE ABILITY TO CREATE A SAFE ENVIRONMENT FOR THE PREVIOUSLY EXPECTED LARGE CROWDS WOULD NO LONGER BE POSSIBLE ANYTIME SOON, NOT KNOWING MUCH ABOUT C OVID 19 AT THE TIME, A C S MOVED QUICKLY TO MAKE OPERATIONAL MODIFICATIONS AND TO DEVELOP MULTIPLE CONTINGENCY PLANS THAT WOULD PREPARE US FOR ANY POSSIBLE PERCEIVED OUTCOME.
THIS INCLUDE DEVELOPING WORST CASE SCENARIO PLANS THAT WOULD CLOSE THE SHELTER TO THE PUBLIC, STOP RESPONDING TO CERTAIN SERVICE REQUESTS, AND EVEN DISCONTINUE OUR BASIC OPERATIONS.
IF OUR WORKFORCE EVER DECLINED AS LOW AS 20% OF OUR STAFF.
FORTUNATELY, NONE OF THESE PLANS WERE IMPLEMENTED.
WHILE ANIMAL CARE SERVICES CURRENTLY IS EXPERIENCING ABOUT A 20% REDUCTION IN THE NUMBER OF SERVICE REQUESTS WE ARE RECEIVING FROM SAN ANTONIO RESIDENTS, A C SS NEVER STOPPED RESPONDING.
IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT AT NO POINT IN TIME THIS YEAR DID WE NOT ANSWER A SERVICE REQUEST OR DECIDE NOT TO IMPOUND AN ANIMAL SIMPLY BECAUSE OF C OVID 19.
IN FACT, IN MOST CASES, OUR OFFICERS WERE ABLE TO PROVIDE QUICKER RESPONSE COMPARED TO THE CALLS THAT CAME IN PRIOR, UH, PRIOR TO THE PANDEMIC.
NOW, DESPITE NOT BEING PUT INTO, INTO ACTION, THE DEVELOPMENT OF OUR CONTINGENCY PLANS SPEAK TO THE CHARACTER OF THE STAFF OF A C S AND HOW DEEPLY THEY BELIEVE IN OUR MISSION.
EVEN AT THE HEIGHT OF UNCERTAINTY AND FEAR, EVERY CONVERSATION ABOUT WHAT NEEDED TO CHANGE BEGAN AND ENDED WITH HOW CAN WE SAFELY SAVE AS MANY LIVES AS POSSIBLE? C OVID 19 PRESENTED A C S WITH COUNTLESS LOGISTICAL CHALLENGES, BUT THE DRIVING FORCE BEHIND SOLVING EACH
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ONE WAS TO BE SAFE AND TO CONTINUE TO PROVIDE OUR ESSENTIAL, ESSENTIALLY IMPORTANT SERVICES TO THE ANIMALS AND THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS WHO NEEDED OUR, OUR HELP THE MOST.NOW, SINCE MARCH A C S HAS IMPLEMENTED SEVERAL MEASURES TO KEEP STAFF AND RESIDENTS SAFE, ONE OF THE MOST IMPACTFUL CHANGES HAS BEEN SWITCHING TO AN APPOINTMENT-BASED SYSTEM FOR ACCESSING OUR SERVICE.
UH, LITERALLY OVERNIGHT, A C S STAFF WORKED TIRELESSLY TO DISCOVER AND IMPLEMENT THIS CHANGE.
NOW, WHILE OUR CAMPUS IS CLOSED FOR WALK-INS, WE HAVE ESTABLISHED A PROCESS FOR THOSE WHO DO SHOW UP TO ENTER OUR CAMPUS, TO GIVE THEM THE ABILITY TO ENTER AS SOON AS AN OPEN SLOT BECOMES AVAILABLE.
WE ALSO INSTALLED SIGNAGE, DETAILING, MASKS AND DISTANCE REQUIREMENTS IMPROVED THE TRAFFIC FLOW THROUGH THE BUILDINGS AND BEGAN CURBSIDE PICKUP AND ADOPT FOR ADOPTED AND FOSTERED ANIMALS.
EACH OF THESE CHANGES, UH, HAVE HELPED REDUCE THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT NEED TO BE ON OUR CAMPUS AT ANY GIVEN TIME, WHILE REDUCING THE NEED FOR DIRECT, WHILE ALSO REDUCING THE NEED FOR DIRECT INTERACTIONS BETWEEN WITH VISITORS.
NOW, IN RESPONSE TO C OVID 19, WE MODIFIED THE HOURS.
NOW WE WERE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC TO PROVIDE BETTER CUSTOMER SER SERVICE.
WE UTILIZED THE EXTRA SPACE IN OUR ANNEX BUILDING AND CONVERTED IT TO A CENTRALIZED WELCOME CENTER.
AFTER CONS, UH, CONSULTATION WITH THE STATE, WE ALSO ALLOWED NON-PUBLIC THREATENING BIKE CASES, UH, THAT NORMALLY WERE IMPOUNDED AND BROUGHT TO OUR CAMPUS TO BE TEMPORARILY CARRIED OUT TO TEMPORARILY CARRY OUT THEIR STATE MANDATED QUARANTINE AT HOME.
AS, AS WE CREATED A NEW WAY FOR OUR OFFICERS AND OUR VETERINARIANS TO PROVIDE REMOTE SUPERVISION OF THOSE CASES.
NOW MOVING FORWARD, A C S IS PLANNING TO STICK WITH SEVERAL OF THESE CHANGES PERMANENTLY, INCLUDING THE SCHEDULED APPOINTMENTS, MODIFIED HOURS OF OPERATION, CURBSIDE PICKUP AND ANIMALS, AND THE CHANGES WE ARE UTILIZING AT HOW WE ARE UTILIZING SOME OF OUR BUILDINGS.
NOW, THE STATE OF, AT THE START OF THE PANDEMIC, MY COMMITMENT TO STAFF WAS TO MAKE A C SS THE SAFEST PLACE SOMEONE COULD BE OUTSIDE OF THEIR OWN HOME.
MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE OVER THE LAST SIX MONTHS, I AM MOST PROUD OF THE FACT THAT DESPITE REMAINING OPEN FOR BUSINESS EVERY DAY SINCE THE START OF C OVID 19 CONTRACT CONTACT TRACING HAS REVEALED THAT NOT A SINGLE CASE OR AN EMPLOYEE, UH, OR A MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC CONTRACTED C OVID 19 WHILE ON A C S CAMPUS.
MOVING INTO NEXT YEAR, KEEPING THIS ACCOMPLISHMENT, UH, INTACT, WILL CONTINUE TO BE ONE OF MY TEAM'S MOST IMPORTANT PRIORITIES.
NOW, I HAVE, I'VE SPOKEN WITH EACH OF YOU ABOUT, UH, BEFORE ABOUT HOW CLOSELY OUR SUCCESS IS TIED TO THE CURRENT EFFORT OF THE COMMUNITY THAT WE SERVE.
I TRULY BELIEVE THAT THE CURRENT SUCCESS OF A C S WILL NEVER BE DUE TO ITS PAST PERFORMANCE, BUT BY WHAT WE AS A COMMUNITY ARE DOING TODAY, AND WHAT WE AS A COMMUNITY PLAN TO DO TOMORROW.
AS PROUD AS I AM OF WHAT A C SS HAS ACCOMPLISHED, MY APPRECIATION FOR THE MANY COMMUNITY PARTNERS HAS GROWN DURING THE COVID CRISIS, FROM THE MANY NON-PROFIT RESCUE GROUPS WHO CONTINUE TO PULL ANIMALS AND DESPITE DEVELOP OR WHILE DEVELOPING THEIR OWN PLANS, UH, TO, TO THE FREE AND LOW COST SPAY, NEU, UH, SPAY AND NEUTER CLINICS WHO ALSO WORKED TIRELESSLY TO REINVENT THEIR PRACTICES IN ORDER TO PROVIDE ESSENTIAL SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITY.
UH, THE EFFORTS OF OUR PARTNERS HAVE BEEN EVA INVALUABLE.
NOW, SAN ANTONIO RESIDENTS HAS ALL, HAS ALSO STEPPED UP IN A HUGE WAY.
UH, IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE MAYOR ISSUED THE FIRST SET OF STAY AT HOME WORK SAFE ORDERS A C S ISSUED A CALL TO ACTION FOR NEW FOSTER PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS.
THE RESPONSE WAS INSPIRATIONAL.
UH, 129 PETS ENTERED THE FOSTER PROGRAM IN MARCH ALONE, WHICH WAS NOT ONLY A RECORD FOR THAT MONTH, BUT WAS NEARLY 60% MORE THAN WHAT WAS NORMALLY EXPECTED.
IN MARCH AND APRIL ALONE, WE ADDED OVER 270 NEW FOSTER APPLICANT OR PARTICIPANTS.
HISTORICALLY, WE RECEIVED ABOUT 20 OR 30 NEW PARTICIPANTS EACH MONTH.
THE COMMUNITY'S RESPONSE WAS SO POSITIVE THAT THERE WERE EVEN TIMES OVER THE PAST FEW MONTHS WHEN WE RECEIVED MORE FOSTER AND ADOPTION APPLICATIONS THAN THE NUMBER OF PETS WE HAD ON OUR CAMPUS.
NOW, ADDITIONALLY, WHILE A C S HAS ALWAYS ENCOURAGED RESIDENTS TO FIND LOST PETS, TO CONTINUE HOUSING THEM IN THEIR, UH, HOUSING THEM WHILE WE SEEK PLACEMENT, INSTEAD OF IMMEDIATELY BRINGING 'EM TO THEIR SHELTER, THE PERCENTAGE OF RESIDENTS WHO AGREED TO PROVIDE THIS VALUABLE SERVICE CONTINUE TO BE OF GREAT VALUE.
THIS INCREDIBLY GENEROUS ACT, SAVE SPACE AT THE SHELTER, WHILE PROVIDING PETS THE VA VALUABLE SOCIALIZATION THAT AND ALLOWED A C S TO WORK WITH THE RESIDENTS TO FIND PERMANENT PLACEMENT.
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THERE HAS BEEN SO MUCH INTEREST IN FOSTERING, FOSTERING, ADOPTING, AND RESCUING ANIMALS THAT FOR THE FIRST TIME IN IN OUR FACILITY HISTORY, UH, SINCE THE FACILITY WAS BUILT IN 2007, AN ENTIRE KENNEL BUILDING SAT VACANT FOR A FEW FOR A FEW DAYS.AND WHILE I RECOGNIZE THAT THIS WAS DUE IN PART TO OUR DECREASED INTAKE, IF IT WERE NOT FOR THE GOOD NATURE OF SAN ANTONIO RESIDENTS AND PARTNERS, THE NUMBER OF PETS FINDING PLACEMENT DURING COVID WOULD HAVE SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED.
WHILE RESPONDING TO C OVID 19 HAS BEEN CHALLENGING AND STRESSFUL, SEEING THE COMMUNITY RESPOND THE WAY THAT THEY HAVE HAS KEPT US ALL AT A C S GOING STRONG.
UH, SAN ANTONIO IS TRULY A COMPASSIONATE CITY THAT UNDERSTANDS THE IMPORTANT ROLE THAT PETS PLAY.
A C S'S LIVE RELEASE RATE FOR THE ENTIRE FISCAL YEAR 2020, UH, YEAR IS EXPECTED TO STAND NEARLY 2090 2%, WHICH WILL BE THE HIGHEST ANNUAL LIVE RELEASE RATE IN SAN ANTONIO HISTORY.
KEEPING IN TOUCH WITH OUR COMMUNITY HAS LOOKED A LOT DIFFERENT DURING THE PANDEMIC, WITHOUT THE ABILITY TO GIVE PRESENTATIONS TO SCHOOLS OR ATTEND IN-PERSON EVENT, OUR EDUCATION OUTREACH TEAM QUICKLY PIVOTED BY CREATING AND EMBRACING A COMPLETELY DIGITAL STRATEGY DESIGNED TO SUPPORT EXISTING PET OWNERS, ADVERTISED THE SERVICES WE HAVE AVAILABLE AND BUILD A SENSE OF COMMUNITY ONLINE.
THIS IS INCLUDE MAKING SURE THAT RESIDENTS CONTINUE TO KNOW HOW TO ACCESS OUR SERVICE SERVICES BY CALLING 3 1 1 TO REPORT ANIMAL RELATED ISSUES BY CALLING A C S AT 2 0 7 4 PETS, OR VISITING OUR ONLINE, OUR WEBSITE TO SCHEDULE APPOINTMENTS IN ORDER TO PAY FEES, RECLAIM THEIR PETS, SURRENDER A PET, FOSTER, OR TO ADOPT.
ONE OF THE WAYS THE EDUCATION TEAM EXECUTED THIS SHIFT IN RESOURCES IS BY HIGHLIGHTING OUR TWO AMAZING TRAINERS WITH IN-PERSON DOG TRAINING CLASSES CANCELED FOR A FEW MONTHS, THE EDUCATION TEAM WORKED WITH THE TRAINERS TO HO TO HOST PET TRAINING QUESTION AND A ANSWER SESSIONS ON FACEBOOK LIVE.
THESE SESSIONS HAVE BEEN INCREDIBLY POPULAR WITH OVER 35,000 VIEWS SO FAR.
ADDITIONALLY, A C S HAS RECEIVED A LOT OF POSITIVE FEEDBACK ABOUT THE TRAINER TAKEOVER OCCURRING EACH WEEK ON INSTAGRAM.
DURING EACH SESSION, THE TRAINER RECORDS A SERIES OF SHORT VIDEOS DOCUMENTING ONE OF THE DOGS ON OUR CAMPUS.
THE VIDEOS START WITH A SELECTION OF A, OF A SCARED OR SEEMINGLY AGGRESSIVE DOG IN THE KENNEL, AND HOW THROUGH A SINGLE DAY'S WORK, THE TRAINERS ARE ABLE TO GAIN THE DOG'S TRUST SAFELY EXPOSE THE DOGS TO NEW EXPERIMENT EXPERIENCES AND HOW THEY END THE DAY ON FRIENDLY TERMS. AND THESE VIDEOS NOT ONLY SHARE HELPFUL DOG TRAINING TIPS IN AN ENTERTAINING WAY, THEY SHOW THAT WITH A LITTLE BIT OF WORK AND LOVE, OUR SHELTER IS FULL OF THE DIAMONDS IN THE ROUGH WAITING TO FIND THEIR FOREVER HOMES.
ANOTHER POINT OF EMPHASIS HAS BEEN COMMUNICATING CHANGES MADE TO OUR SPAY AND NEUTER PROGRAM.
A C S IS REQUIRED BY THE STATE OF TEXAS TO ENSURE THAT ANY PET WE RELEASED FROM OUR CARE IS SPAYED AND NEUTERED WITH VERY LIMITED EXCEPTIONS BECAUSE OF THE CLOSE, UH, QUARTERS THAT OUR CLINIC STAFF OPERATE WITHIN.
IT TOOK US A FEW MONTHS TO CREATE A SAFE WAY FOR THESE SURGERIES TO RESERVE RESUME ON SITE.
WHILE WE ARE NOW COMPETE, COMPLETING ALL REQUIRED SURGERIES ON SITE FOR A FEW MONTHS THIS SUMMER, WE DID, WE DID ALLOW ANIMALS TO LEAVE OUR CAMPUS UNSTERILIZED, BUT WE ENSURE THAT THEY SIGN A STERILIZATION AGREEMENT AND PROVIDE THEM WITH VOUCHERS FOR FREE PROGRAM OR FOR FREE SERVICES, UH, REDEEMABLE AT OUR PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS.
OF THE 2200 VOUCHERS WE ISSUED, WE ARE WELL ON OUR WAY TO COMPLETING THE SURGERIES WITH NEARLY HALF BEING REDEEMED.
SO, SO FAR NOW, DESPITE THE PROG PROGRESS WE HAVE MADE ON GETTING THROUGH THE VOUCHERS OVERALL, THE NUMBER OF SPAY NEU NEUTER SURGERIES COMPLETED THIS FISCAL YEAR BY A C SS.
AND OUR PARTNERS ARE DOWN DUE TO C OVID 19, LIKE A C SS.
SEVERAL OF OUR PARTNER FACILITIES TEMPORARILY SHUT DOWN THEIR OPERATIONS DUE TO SAFETY CONCERNS, WHILE OTHERS OPERATED AT A REDUCED VOLUME.
AND THIS REDUCTION IS IN LINE WITH MOST OF OUR OTHER PERFORMANCE METRICS AND THOSE EXPERIENCED BY OTHER CITIES.
THE NUMBER OF CALLS FOR SERVICE, UH, SERVICES WE HAVE RECEIVED IS 21% LOWER THAN NORMAL THIS SUMMER, WHICH HAS LED TO A REDUCED NUMBER OF IMPOUNDS AND A REDUCED NUMBER OF PETS AVAILABLE FOR PLACEMENT.
WE ARE CONSERVATIVELY EXPECTING THAT THESE PERFORMANCE TRENDS, UH, TO EXTEND INTO THE FIRST FISCAL PART OF NEXT YEAR, BUT WE
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WILL BE PREPARED WHEN THEY INCREASE.WHILE WE CURRENTLY EXPECT OUR PERFORMANCE ME METRICS TO REMAIN SUPPRESSED, I WANT TO EMPHASIZE THAT THE PROPOSED BUDGET, UH, DOES NOT INCLUDE ANY REDUCTIONS FOR SPAY OR SERVICES.
UH, CAN WE ADVANCE THIS BY 12? IT IS IMPORTANT, UH, IF EMPOWERMENTS INCREASE AND OUR PARTNERS, UH, RESUME NORMAL SPAY, UH, PERFORMANCE LEVELS, THE $16.1 MILLION PROPOSED BUDGET THAT, UH, FOR A C S WILL ALLOW US TO SUPPORT THOSE SERVICES.
ADDITIONALLY, OUR BUDGET INCLUDES A COST NEUTRAL CONVERSION OF 11 TEMPORARY POSITIONS WITHIN A C S INTO FULL-TIME, UH, COSA EMPLOYEE POSITIONS.
AND I LOOK FORWARD TO BRINGING THESE INDIVIDUALS ONTO OUR TEAM IN A MORE PERMANENT CAPACITY AS WE MOVE INTO NEXT FISCAL YEAR.
EQUITY WILL ALSO REMAIN A FOCUS OF OUR DEPARTMENT.
TWO AREAS I WOULD LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT INCLUDE THE CONTINUING OUR PRACTICE OF OFFERING REDUCED ANIMAL RECLAIM FEES AND PAYMENT PLANS TO THOSE RESIDENTS WHO ARE EXPERIENCING ECONOMIC CHALLENGES BY NATURE OF THE WORK THAT WE DO, MOST OF OUR ATTENTION IS ALREADY FOCUSED IN THE HISTORICALLY UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES.
HOWEVER, I WILL CONTINUE TO WORK WITH MY STAFF TO GROW THEIR UNDERSTANDING OF THE PRIORITY THE CITY'S MADE REGARDING EQUITY.
WE WILL WORK TO ENSURE THAT THE MOST VULNERABLE POPULATION RECEIVE THE SERVICES THAT THEY NEED AND DESERVE.
WE WILL CONTINUE TO STRENGTHEN OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH ORGANIZATIONS LIKE THE BATTERED WOMEN'S SHELTER AND HAVEN FOR HOPE, WHERE A C S PROVIDES TEMPORARY HOUSING FOR THE PET OF THE INDIVIDUAL SEEKING A BETTER FUTURE, ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING THE C OVID 19 PANDEMIC.
WE FEEL THAT THESE PRACTICES ARE MORE IMPORTANT NOW THAN EVER.
I'D LIKE TO CONCLUDE MY PRESENTATION BY TELLING YOU OF A CASE FROM EARLIER THIS YEAR THAT REALLY, UH, EXEMPLIFIES THE DIFFERENT LIFE THAT, UH, AT THE SHELTER DURING C OVID 19 AND THE HARD WORK BEING PERFORMED BY A C S STAFF DURING ANY GIVEN YEAR, A C S WILL PROCESS APPROXIMATELY 120 CRUELTY CASES WITH PETS IMPOUNDED FROM THESE CASES, TYPICALLY BEING HOUSED AT THE SHELTER ANYWHERE FROM 10 TO 30 DAYS, WHILE THEIR CASE MAKES ITS WAY THROUGH THE COURT SYSTEM.
HOWEVER, BECAUSE OF THE PANDEMIC, ONE OF THESE CASES WAS HELD UP FOR A MONTH, FOUR MONTHS.
THAT MEANT 12 DOGS, 16 CHICKENS, TWO FERRETS, ONE CAT, ONE PARROTT, AND ONE DUCK.
ALL FROM ONE HOUSE REMAINED IN THE CARE OF A C S FOR OVER SIX MONTHS.
FORTUNATELY, MOST OF THESE ANIMALS', HEALTHCARE NEEDS WERE MANAGEABLE, BUT WITHOUT THE ABILITY TO MOVE THEM ONTO THEIR FOREVER HOME, WE WERE REQUIRED TO PROVIDE LONG-TERM CARE THAT SUR SURPASSED THE ABILITY OF OUR FACILITY.
EACH OF OUR TEAMS STEPPED UP TO THE CHALLENGE.
SEVEN OF THE DOGS WERE FOSTERED BY A C S STAFF MEMBERS WHO WERE GENEROUS ENOUGH TO OPEN UP THEIR OWN HOMES.
ONE OF THE DOGS RECEIVED A FOUR MONTH, UH, OF MEDICAL CARE IN OUR CLINIC BEFORE, UH, BEING FOSTERED BY THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE PETCO FOUNDATION.
THREE OF THE OTHER ANIMALS STAYED ON CAMPUS QUICKLY BECOMING STAFF FAVORITE, FOR EXAMPLE, AS SHOWN IN THIS SLIDE, ALICE THE CAT, TOOK UP RESIDENCY IN THE ADMINISTRATION BUILDING EVERY DAY.
SHE WOULD MAKE HER ROUNDS GOING FROM OFFICE TO OFFICE TO SAY HELLO AND OCCASIONALLY STEALING TOYS AND AND ANIMAL COSTUMES.
HELEN, THE PARROTT, LIVED IN THE BREAK ROOM OF THE FIELD BUILDING.
AT FIRST, SHE WAS QUIET AND WITHDRAWN, BUT AFTER A LOT OF LOVE TREATS AND TRIPS AROUND THE OFFICE, UH, SHE BECAME LOUDER THAN WHAT WE BARGAINED FOR.
SHE BECAME, UH, KNOWN FOR DANCING WHENEVER MUSIC WAS PLAYED.
AND IF LEFT ALONE WOULD YELL HELP OVER AND OVER UNTIL SOMEBODY WOULD COME TO VISIT HER.
MS. PIGGY, A 60 POUND BULLDOG ENTERED THE SHELTER SCARED AND AGGRESSIVE, BUT AFTER DAILY TRIPS TO THE PLAY YARDS AND WALK AROUND CAMPUS, SHE GREW TO LOVE HER NEW HOME.
HER FAVORITE PERSON BECAME COLIN, ONE OF OUR SHELTER ATTENDANTS.
WE KNEW HE WAS HER FAVORITE BECAUSE WE'VE NEVER SEEN A BULLDOG THAT LARGE HOP ON ALL FOUR FEET BEFORE.
BUT EVERY TIME THAT COLIN CAME AROUND, THAT'S WHAT SHE DID.
THANKS TO THE CARING TOUCH OF OUR A C S STAFF MEMBERS, ALL 33 ANIMALS FROM THIS ONE CASE WERE SUCCESSFULLY PLACED AND HAVE LEFT OUR SHELTER IN THEIR FOREVER HOME.
WHILE I HOPE THAT OUR TEAM AND OUR CITY WILL NEVER AGAIN BE REQUIRED TO DEAL WITH ANOTHER PANDEMIC LIKE C OVID 19, I HAVE BEEN TRULY TOUCHED BY THE COMPASSION A C S STAFF AND THE COMMUNITY HAVE SHOWN REPEATEDLY OVER THE PAST FEW MONTHS, AND LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUING OUR QUEST TO HELP STRENGTHEN THE SAME SENSE OF COMPASSION WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY.
UH, AS OF A WEEK AGO, THAT WOULD'VE CONCLUDED MY PRESENTATION.
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HOWEVER, BECAUSE OF THE RECENT EXTREME WEATHER IN THE GULF AND THE RESULTING EVACUEES FLEEING TO SAN ANTONIO, A C S WAS AGAIN, ASKED TO PIVOT OUR FOCUS AND ASSIST WITH THE CITY'S HURRICANE RESPONSE.OVER THE LAST 10 DAYS, A C S HAS STAFFED, HAVE PROVIDED SERVICE TO THREE NEW LOCATIONS, AN ANIMAL INTAKE OUTPOST AT GIMLER ROAD, AND TWO SHELTER BUILDINGS ON OUR CAMPUS.
AS OF YESTERDAY, A C S HAS PROVIDED THE EMERGENCY HOUSING FOR OVER 115 PETS OF THE EVACUEES.
AND AFTER MANAGING THROUGH C OVID 19 ALL SUMMER, I CANNOT TELL YOU HOW PROUD I AM OF MY TEAM'S COMMITMENT TO PROVIDE 24 7 STAFFING AT THESE LOCATIONS, AS WELL AS THEIR COMMITMENT TO THEIR, TO THEIR COMMUNITY, AND TO THE COMMITMENT TO THE ANIMALS AND THEIR CARE.
SO WITH THAT, UH, WITH A FINAL UPDATE, I NOW CONCLUDE MY PRESENTATION, AND I'LL TURN IT OVER TO MICHAEL SHANNON FOR HIS PRESENTATION.
UH, GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.
UM, I'M MIKE SHANNON, DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT SERVICES.
AND, UH, I'M GONNA TALK, UM, ABOUT, UH, DEVELOPMENT SERVICES AND WHAT WE HAVE BEEN GOING THROUGH THIS PAST YEAR, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, UH, WHAT'S, UH, PLANNED FOR F Y 2021.
UH, I, I JUST START BY SAYING, YOU KNOW, HEBREW I, I, NEVERMIND FOLLOWING YOU.
UM, BUT IT'S REALLY TOUGH TO FOLLOW ALICE, THE CAT, HELEN, THE PARROT, AND MISS, UH, MR. PIGGY, THE FOUR-LEGGED HOPPING 60 POUND BULLDOG.
SO MAYOR AND COUNSEL, I'LL DO MY BEST TO FOLLOW THAT.
AND, UH, WE'LL JUST JUMP RIGHT INTO IT.
SO, UH, THIS IS JUST, THIS SLIDE RIGHT HERE IS JUST A, AN OVERVIEW OF DEVELOPMENT SERVICES.
AND I'D JUST LIKE TO START HERE TO REMIND EVERYONE, UH, DEVELOPMENT SERVICES HAS AN ENTERPRISE FUND FOR OUR DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITY.
UH, SO FOR ALL THE CONSTRUCTION AND THE PERMITTING, UH, THAT WE DO, UH, THAT'S ABOUT TWO THIRDS OF OUR DEPARTMENT.
UH, THE OTHER THIRD IS OUR CODE ENFORCEMENT, UH, SERVICES, WHICH IS, UM, UH, FUNDED BY THE GENERAL FUND, AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT THAT.
UH, BUT THEY'RE, UH, AS MY EXECUTIVE TEAM, I MEAN, TOMAZ, TERRY KENEN AND MELISSA RAMIREZ.
UH, A LOT OF YOU HAVE WORKED WITH THEM, UH, LEADING EACH OF THE DIVISIONS, BUT I JUST KIND OF WANTED TO REMIND YOU OF, UH, THE DIFFERENT THINGS THAT WE DO HERE IN DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, UH, FROM PERMIT ZONING, UM, INSPECTIONS AND CODE ENFORCEMENT.
SO, OUR PROPOSED BUDGET FOR F Y 21, UH, IS A LITTLE BIT LESS THAN LAST YEAR.
UH, ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THIS SLIDE IS OUR DEVELOPMENT SERVICES FUND.
SO, UH, THAT'S OUR ENTERPRISE FUND.
UH, YOU'VE HEARD A LOT ABOUT THAT OVER THE YEARS, AND I THINK, UM, UH, THE LAST SEVERAL MONTHS.
BUT, UH, AS WITH THE ECONOMY, OUR ENTERPRISE FUND, OUR DEVELOPMENT FUND, UH, EXPANDS AND CONTRACTS.
AND OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS, UH, IT HAS BEEN GROWING ALONG WITH, UH, THE CONSTRUCTION THAT YOU'VE SEEN ALL THROUGHOUT OUR CITY.
UM, WELL, WE'RE IN A RECESSION AND WE'RE STARTING TO SEE THAT, UH, WITH OUR PERMIT ACTIVITIES SLOWING DOWN AND, UH, IN OUR CONVERSATIONS, UM, WITH OUR DEVELOPERS AND OUR CUSTOMERS, OUR HOME BUILDERS, UH, COMMERCIAL CONTRACTORS, ET CETERA, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE ALL PREDICTING AND PROJECTING THAT, UH, THE PERMIT ACTIVITY WILL SLOW DOWN.
UH, IT'S STARTING TO DO THAT A LITTLE BIT, AND WE EXPECT THAT OVER THE NEXT YEAR.
SO, UH, WE BELIEVE THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, OUR REVENUE AND OUR, UH, DEVELOPMENT SERVICES FUND WILL, WILL GO DOWN A LITTLE BIT.
UM, YOU SEE IN THIS SLIDE, ABOUT $2.4 MILLION CHANGE, UH, FROM LAST YEAR.
IT HAPPENED, UH, 12 YEARS AGO WHEN WE WERE IN THE RECESSION, UH, WITH THE HOUSING BUBBLE.
UH, AND AGAIN, BUT WE EXPAND AND CONTRACT, AND I'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT AND HOW WE'RE GONNA MITIGATE THAT MOVING FORWARD.
UH, NO, THERE'S NO CHANGE, UH, NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGE TO OUR, UH, CODE ENFORCEMENT, UH, SERVICES GENERAL FUND.
UH, THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF DISCUSSION ABOUT OUR GENERAL FUND, UM, OVER THE PAST SEVERAL MONTHS BY THE CITY MANAGER, UH, AND, AND MARIA.
UH, BUT, UH, YOU KNOW, WE, WE WILL MAINTAIN THE 150 CODE OFFICERS AND GRAFFITI STAFF, UH, THAT COMPRISE OUR CODE, UH, CODE OPERATIONS, UH, MOVING FORWARD.
SO, LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR DEVELOPMENT SERVICES PERMIT ACTIVITIES.
SO, AS I JUST INDICATED, UM, THAT THIS SLIDE SHOWS, UH, THE BLUE, UH, THE BLUE LINE REPRESENTS COMMERCIAL PERMITTING ACTIVITY THAT HAS BEEN FAIRLY STEADY, UH, OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS.
UH, BUT IT'S STARTING, UH, ALREADY STARTING TO, UM, DECREASE THE LAST SEVERAL MONTHS.
UH, AND WE BELIEVE THIS FISCAL YEAR, WE'LL FINISH OUT, UM, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF PERMITS, SEVERAL PERMITS, UH, LOWER THAN THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS, A BIG DIP, UH, NOW, RESIDENTIAL OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS HAS REALLY, UM, INCREASED, ALTHOUGH IT'S STARTING TO COME BACK DOWN TO THIS RECESSION.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S DIFFERENT THIS, THIS TIME AROUND IN THIS RECESSION THAT WE'RE HEARING AND
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STARTING TO SEE IS THE DECLINE IN COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY IS GOING TO BE, AND ALREADY IS SHARPER, UH, THAN IT WAS 12 YEARS AGO.THE HOUSING CRISIS OF 2007, 2008, UM, SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE, UH, A MUCH SHARPER DECREASE IN RESIDENTIAL.
UH, WHEREAS COMMERCIAL HELD ON, UM, YOU KNOW, A LITTLE BIT BETTER, UH, WE BELIEVE THAT'S GONNA BE A LITTLE REVERSED, UH, GOING INTO FISCAL YEAR 2021.
SO WE DO, UH, WE'RE ARE PROJECTING, UH, AGAIN, THAT REVENUE LOSS IN F Y 21, UH, OF ABOUT $3 MILLION, UH, TO OUR, UM, TO OUR FUND.
SO, AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, UH, THE ENTERPRISE FUND IS DESIGNED TO EXPAND AND CONTRACT, UH, CONTRACT ALONG WITH THE, UH, DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITY, THE ECONOMY.
UM, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS WE'VE WORKED HARD WITH, UH, THE CITY MANAGER, UH, AND OUR TEAM WAS TO ENSURE THAT, UH, WE MAINTAINED, UH, ALL OF THE GOALS, UH, THAT THE ENTIRE, UH, THE CITY HAD, WHICH IS, UM, YOU KNOW, NO LAYOFFS.
UH, SO WE, WE PLAN, UH, TO MITIGATE THE REVENUE LOSS BY HOLDING VACANT POSITIONS.
UM, ANY POSITIONS THAT BECOME VACANT, IF THE ACTIVITY STAYS, UH, STAYS LOW AGAIN, UH, WILL FREEZE THOSE AS THEY BECOME VACANT.
WE WILL HAVE TO TIGHTEN OUR BELT.
WE HAVE SOME OPERATIONAL EXPENSES, UH, THAT WE ARE CUTTING, UH, TO ENSURE THAT WE MEET IT.
AND THEN OUR ENTERPRISE FUND ALSO HAS A RESERVE.
SO VERY SIMILAR TO THE OVERALL CITY, UH, CITY FUNDING.
UH, RIGHT NOW IT'S AT ABOUT A THREE MONTH, UH, THREE MONTH, UM, EMERGENCY FUND, UH, WE CALL IT.
UH, WE'RE GONNA PROBABLY EAT INTO THAT BY ABOUT A MONTH.
SO, UH, WE'LL STILL MAINTAIN A HEALTHY, UH, RESERVE FUND, UH, LIKE WE SHOULD, UH, BEST WE SHOULD, UH, BEST PRACTICES, UH, BUT WE'LL EAT INTO THAT A LITTLE BIT, UH, THROUGH THE NEXT YEAR.
SO I'LL JUST HIGHLIGHT A FEW OF THE MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENTS.
SO, AS HE MENTIONED, UH, WITH A C S DEVELOPMENT SERVICES HAS BEEN OPEN FOR BUSINESS, UH, THROUGH THIS, UH, PANDEMIC AND WILL CONTINUE, YOU KNOW, CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITY.
UM, YOU KNOW, EVER SINCE THIS STARTED, HAS BEEN DEEMED AN ESSENTIAL SERVICE, UH, THROUGHOUT THE STATE, THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY, REALLY.
UM, AND WE HAD TO STAY OPEN FOR BUSINESS.
WE DID HAVE TO MAKE SOME SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO OUR ONE STOP BUILDING.
UH, WHILE WE STILL, UH, UH, GOT ALL THE PERMITS, WE ACCEPTED ALL THE PERMIT APPLICATIONS.
UM, MANY STILL, UH, WERE, WERE DROPPED OFF AT OUR BUILDING.
UH, WE CHANGED THE ONE-STOP LOBBY, WE CLOSED THAT, BUT WE OFFERED A, A DROP-OFF PICKUP SERVICE, UH, LIKE MANY OF THE BUSINESSES IN TOWN.
BUT IT WAS IMPORTANT TO WORK WITH OUR DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY, OUR BIG BUSINESSES, OUR SMALL BUSINESSES, TO ENSURE THAT WE COULD KEEP THOSE PERMITS COMING IN AND OUT, UH, TO KEEP THEM IN BUSINESS AND THOSE PROJECTS MOVING FORWARD.
UH, AND WE'RE ABLE TO DO THAT, AND WE'RE STILL DOING THAT TODAY.
UH, WE'LL CONTINUE TO DO THAT THROUGH THE RETURN TO WORK PLAN, UM, THAT THE CITY HAS LAID OUT AND, UH, UH, IN CONSTANT PARTNERSHIP WITH OUR CUSTOMERS, UH, AND THOSE, THOSE RESIDENTS THAT WE SERVE.
ANOTHER BIG, UH, EFFORT FOR US THIS YEAR, UH, SINCE REALLY MARCH, WAS, UH, ENFORCEMENT OF THE EMERGENCY DECLARATION ORDERS.
SO, MAYOR, UH, YOU AND, AND, UM, YOU KNOW, THE GOVERNOR WITH ALL THESE EMERGENCY DECLARATION ORDERS HAS BEEN A BIG NEED TO, UH, RESPOND TO CALLS FOR, UH, THOSE, UH, INDIVIDUALS OR BUSINESSES THAT WEREN'T FOLLOWING THEM.
AND THOSE HAVE BEEN EVER CHANGING.
BUT, BUT SINCE, UH, THE MARCH WHEN, WHEN ALL THIS WAS REALLY STARTING, UH, WE'VE RESPONDED WITH THE HELP OF, UH, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, A HEALTH DEPARTMENT, UM, AND, AND, AND PARKING ENFORCEMENT.
WE'VE ACTUALLY RESPONDED TO OVER 12,000 CALLS.
AND, UM, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF WARNINGS.
WE HAVE HAD TO ISSUE SOME CITATIONS, OF COURSE.
SO, UH, BUT IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE HELP PEOPLE IN OUR COMMUNITY AND OUR BUSINESSES, UH, YOU KNOW, MAINTAIN THE SOCIAL DISTANCING, DO WHAT THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO WEAR, THEIR MASKS, UH, AND, AND, AND, AND FOLLOW THOSE ORDERS.
BUT THAT'S BEEN A BIG LIFT FOR US THIS YEAR, AS A COUPLE OF OUR CODE OFFICERS IN THIS PICTURE ARE PART OF THAT TEAM.
UH, AND THAT'S BEEN REAL, UH, IMPRESSIVE HOW THEY'VE BEEN ABLE TO WORK, UH, WORK THROUGH THAT.
AS WE'RE DOING TODAY, WE'RE HAVING A VIRTUAL, OH, KEEP STANDING UP.
UM, SO AS WE'RE DOING TODAY, I'LL JUST, UH, TALK ABOUT OUR VIRTUAL BOARDS AND COMMISSION MEETINGS.
SO, WHILE WE PAUSED OUR PLANNING COMMISSION AND ZONING COMMISSION FOR ABOUT A MONTH, UH, WE VERY QUICKLY RAMPED UP AND WE ACTUALLY DO VIRTUAL BOARDS AND COMMISSION MEETINGS, JUST LIKE WE'RE DOING TODAY.
UH, WE'RE ABLE TO HEAR ZONING CASES, HEAR BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT CASES, PLANNING COMMISSION, BUILDING STANDARDS BOARDS, ET CETERA.
UM, SO THAT WAS A BIG CHANGE FOR US.
BUT I'M REAL PROUD OF MY TEAM, UH, WITH THE HELP OF OUR, UH, YOU KNOW, GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS AND OUR AV TEAM MEMBERS HERE TO MAKE THAT, UH, WORK FOR OUR COMMUNITY.
UH, OF COURSE, WE'VE DONE A LOT OF TELECOMMUTING FOR OUR STAFF THAT, THAT CAN DO THAT.
UH, WE'VE ALSO HAD TO CHANGE A LITTLE BIT OF THE WAY WE DO BUSINESS, WHICH WE, WE'VE, UH, WE'VE DONE WHAT WE CALL REMOTE VIDEO INSPECTION.
SO IF YOU NEED AN INSPECTION DONE AT YOUR HOUSE
[00:30:01]
OR EVEN ON A COMMERCIAL PROPERTY, UH, WE'VE BEEN USING TECHNOLOGY, WHETHER IT BE FACETIME, SKYPE, UH, GOOGLE DUO, SOME OTHER PLATFORMS, UH, TO ENSURE, UH, SOCIAL DISTANCING, SAFETY OF, UH, THE CUSTOMER, OUR STAFF.UH, BUT WE'RE ACTUALLY DOING ABOUT 15% OF OUR INSPECTIONS THROUGH THIS.
THAT'S NEW FOR US THIS YEAR, BUT WE WERE KIND OF FORCED INTO IT.
UH, BUT IT'S A GREAT USE AND WE'LL LIKELY CONTINUE THAT MOVING FORWARD JUST THROUGH THE EFFICIENCIES THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO, TO, TO GO WITH.
AND THEN LASTLY, I JUST WANNA HIGHLIGHT, UH, ONE OF THE KEY ITEMS THAT WE IDENTIFIED, UH, VERY EARLY ON FOR CODE ENFORCEMENT WAS WE HAVE CODE VIOLATIONS STILL IN THE CITY.
UH, BUT WE HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT ARE A LOT MORE WORRIED ABOUT HIGHER PRIORITY ISSUES, UH, WHETHER IT BE THE HEALTH CRISIS, FINANCIAL CRISIS, MAY, MAYBE LOSS OF JOBS, LOSS OF INCOME.
SO WE, UH, IN APRIL STARTED WHAT WE CALL AN EDUCATIONAL PHASE FOR CODE ENFORCEMENT.
UH, WE JUST HAVE TO GIVE PEOPLE MORE TIME TO COME INTO COMPLIANCE.
AND IT'S NOT THAT WE'RE NOT DOING CODE ENFORCEMENT, BUT INSTEAD OF STARTING OFF WITH A NOTICE OR A CITATION, UH, WE KNEW WE HAD TO GIVE THEM MORE TIME TO JUST EDUCATE.
AND WE REALLY WANTED TO BALANCE AND JUST LET THEM KNOW, HEY, YOU HAVE A CODE VIOLATION HERE, BUT TAKE YOUR TIME.
UH, WE'LL, WE'LL COME BACK, YOU KNOW, IN 30 TO 60 DAYS, UH, AND THEN WE'LL WORK WITH YOU ON GETTING COMPLIANCE.
AND THAT'S BEEN REALLY SUCCESSFUL.
UM, NOW THERE'S BEEN SOME, YOU KNOW, HIGH PRIORITY, YOU KNOW, ISSUES, BIG SAFETY ISSUES WE HAD TO ADDRESS RIGHT AWAY.
UH, AND WE ALSO HAD SOME REPEAT VIOLATORS, UH, THAT WE HAD TO WORK WITH RIGHT AWAY.
BUT FOR THE MOST PART, THIS WAS AN IMPORTANT PART OF OUR, UH, CODE ENFORCEMENT, UH, POLICY THIS YEAR.
UH, NOW WE CAN GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE.
SO, A FEW OTHER ITEMS I JUST WANNA HIGHLIGHT THIS YEAR.
SO, UH, WE ARE COMING ON, UH, UP ON THE END OF OUR BILL SA PROJECT.
UH, SO, UH, I THINK YOU ALL HAVE HEARD ME TALK ABOUT THIS.
UH, FOR THE PAST FIVE YEARS, WE, WE'VE BEEN WORKING TO TRANSITION ALL OF OUR DEVELOPMENT SERVICES FUNCTIONS INTO A SOLE, UH, ADDRESS BASED, UH, PERMITTING AND ZONING AND CODE ENFORCEMENT SYSTEM.
UH, WE HAVE ONE PHASE OF IT ALREADY LIVE, WHICH IS OUR LAND DEVELOPMENT ZONING PIECE.
UH, BUT AT THE END OF THIS MONTH, AND THEN AT THE, UH, THANKSGIVING TIME, WE'LL GO LIVE WITH THE REST OF OUR BUSINESS.
SO WE'RE REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THAT BECAUSE THAT WILL TRANSITION ALL OF OUR FUNCTIONS FOR OUR CUSTOMERS AND RES RESIDENTS TO BE ABLE TO HANDLE E-BUSINESS.
SO OUR ARCHITECTS AND ENGINEERS DO BUSINESS WITH US, UH, CAN SUBMIT THEIR PLANS ELECTRONICALLY, DON'T COME TO OUR BUILDING ANYMORE, JUST UPLOAD 'EM, UH, INTO THE SYSTEM.
AND WE DO ALL THESE ELECTRONIC REVIEWS.
UH, WE WILL STILL BE ABLE TO HANDLE SMALL BUSINESS PAPER PLANS THAT WE WILL ENTER INTO OUR E SYSTEM, UH, FOR OUR CUSTOMERS THAT NEED THAT HELP.
SO, UH, WE'LL HAVE THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS, AND, UH, WE'LL ALSO HELP OUR CODE ENFORCEMENT, UH, BE ABLE TO INTERACT WITH OUR, UH, HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATIONS MORE EFFECTIVELY AT A 24 7, UH, SYSTEM.
SO, REAL EXCITED ABOUT THAT, THAT WE'RE REALLY AT THE END OF THAT.
AND THAT'S, UH, LAUNCHING HERE IN THE NEXT COUPLE MONTHS.
UH, TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE NEXT ITEM, WHICH IS OUR STRIKE TEAM.
UH, I, I STOOD, I STOOD BEFORE YOU IN FRONT OF YOU IN THE SAME ROOM, UH, LAST YEAR WHEN WE WERE DOING THIS ALL IN PERSON.
AND I SAID, WE HAVE A PROBLEM IN SAN ANTONIO.
AND THAT PROBLEM IS THAT WE HAVE SO MANY PEOPLE, UH, DOING A LOT OF WORK WITHOUT PERMITS, THAT WE WERE JUST FINDING SO MUCH UNSAFE RENOVATION CONSTRUCTION.
UH, WE IDENTIFIED THAT WE CREATED THIS NEW STRIKE TEAM, A TEAM OF INSPECTORS THAT ARE JUST GOING OUT, LOOKING, LOOKING FOR THAT, RESPONDING FOR THAT, AND, UH, AND THEN HELPING THOSE, THOSE CUSTOMERS, THOSE BUSINESSES BACK INTO COMPLIANCE.
WE'VE ACTUALLY HAD OVER 3,100 VIOLATIONS CORRECTED THROUGH THIS TEAM.
AND WHEN I SAY VIOLATIONS, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT NATURAL GAS, ELECTRICITY, STRUCTURAL ISSUES FOR PEOPLE EITHER IN THEIR EXISTING HOMES OR PEOPLE THAT ARE ABOUT TO BUY A HOME.
UH, SO THAT'S BEEN A REAL SUCCESSFUL PROGRAM, VERY IMPORTANT TO US.
UH, WE DID, UH, PRIOR TO THE COVID, UH, DO A COUPLE OF CODE UPDATES.
I THINK YOU REMEMBER THOSE, THE BABY CHANGING STATION ORDINANCE, UH, THAT WAS INITIATED THROUGH COUNCILMAN AYAS.
UH, SOME CHANGES TO THE MULTIFAMILY, UH, ZONING, EXTRA SINGLE FAMILY HOMES, UH, THAT COUNCILMAN TREVINO ASKED US TO TAKE A LOOK AT.
UM, SO WE GOT THAT DONE ALL BEFORE, UH, THE MARCH.
SO, WE'VE BEEN TRACKING OUR PERFORMANCE LIKE WE ALWAYS DO.
UH, WE'VE BEEN WORKING THROUGH THIS COVID, UH, AGAIN, THAT WE WERE REAL, UH, VERY BUSY, UH, BEFORE COVID IN TERMS OF PERMIT APPLICATIONS, UH, ZONING AND PLOTTING APPLICATIONS.
UH, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO HIT OUR METRICS, UH, IN TERMS OF INSPECTIONS AND PLAN REVIEW, MAKING SURE THAT WE REVIEW AND INSPECT ON TIME.
AND VERY QUICKLY, UH, WE DID STRUGGLE WITH THE, OUR PLAT TECHNICAL REVIEW, UH, THIS PAST YEAR, UH, IN 2019.
WE HAD SOME OLD PLATTS THAT WE REALLY STRUGGLED WITH, UH, WORKING WITH OUR DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY.
WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO CORRECT THAT.
UH, THOSE NUMBERS ARE ACTUALLY BACK ON TRACK.
AND SO I, I, I FULLY EXPECT AN F Y 21, UH, TO HIT OUR MARK OF 20 DAYS.
UH, AGAIN, CODE ENFORCEMENT LIST THERE.
[00:35:01]
UH, WE'RE HITTING ALL OF OUR METRICS THERE EXCEPT FOR THE COMPLIANCE RATE AND I'LL, AND THE ONE THAT SAYS 45 DAY COMPLIANCE RATE.UH, WHEN WE PUT THAT METRIC FOR 90% OF OUR, UH, CASES, UH, TO GET COMPLIANCE IN 45 DAY, WE DID NOT HIT THAT THIS YEAR.
AND THAT'S BECAUSE OF THE ADDITIONAL TIME WE'RE GIVING RESIDENTS.
UH, WHEN WE IDENTIFY A CODE VIOLATION, WE WANNA WORK WITH THEM, UH, BECAUSE THEY HAVE OTHER STRESS FACTORS THAT, THAT ARE MORE IMPORTANT.
UH, SO THAT BALANCE HAS BROUGHT US UNDER THE NUMBER, BUT I THINK THAT WAS THE RIGHT THING TO DO.
UH, WE'LL WORK, UH, IN, IN F Y 21, AGAIN, BALANCING THE NEEDS OF OUR COMMUNITY AND CODE COMPLIANCE ON THAT ISSUE.
UH, BUT THAT'S BEEN A, UH, THAT'S BEEN ONE THAT, UH, THAT DIDN'T HIT THE NUMBERS THIS, THIS YEAR.
UH, THE NEXT PRO, THE NEXT ONE, I JUST HIGHLIGHT A FEW.
UM, JUST HIGHLIGHT A FEW OF THE, THE LARGER CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS THAT YOU ALL SEE.
SOME OF THEM ARE COMING TO AN END.
SOME OF THEM ARE JUST STARTING, UH, THE CREDIT HUMAN PROJECT.
UH, GREAT PROJECT HERE, UH, JUST, UH, DOWNTOWN, UH, SOME HERITAGE APARTMENTS NOT TOO FAR FROM CITY HALL.
UH, SOME HIGH-RISE HOTELS, UH, THAT ARE FINISHING UP, UH, THE CAVENDER BUILDING WAS THAT, THAT WOOD FRAME, TIMBER BUILDING ON BROADWAY.
SO, UH, WHILE PERMIT ACTIVITY, UH, WILL SLOW DOWN, IT DOESN'T STOP HERE IN SAN ANTONIO.
UH, WE, WE, WE DO, UH, WE DO EXPECT, AND THESE WILL CONTINUE, AND OUR JOB WILL BE TO FACILITATE THOSE MAJOR PROJECTS, UH, TO SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION.
SO, ONE OF THE OTHER ITEMS, UH, LIKE EVERY DEPARTMENT, WE'VE GONE THROUGH THE BUDGET EQUITY TOOL.
THIS IS AN EXCELLENT PROCESS, WORKING WITH Z AND HER TEAM OVER IN THE EQUITY OFFICE, UH, YOU KNOW, HIGHLIGHTING SOME OF THE THINGS WE'VE ALREADY BEEN DOING, THOSE FREE CONSULTATION SERVICES, IT'S CRITICAL AS, EVEN AS AN ENTERPRISE FUND.
UH, THERE IS A, THERE ARE A LOT OF FEES THAT WE, WE'VE PROVIDE OUR SERVICES.
UM, WE, WE CHARGE FOR OUR SERVICES, BUT THERE'S MANY PEOPLE THAT NEED THAT, JUST NEED SOME FREE CONSULTATION.
WE'VE DONE OVER 6,000, UH, CONSULTATIONS THIS YEAR FOR FREE.
WE EVEN DO IT, UH, THAT THE LOBBY, OUR BILL, OUR, OUR BUILDING IS CLOSED.
WE DO A LOT OF, UH, PHONE AND, UH, VIDEO CONSULTATION STILL.
WE'RE ACTUALLY GONNA BE, UH, DOING OUR DEPARTMENT EQUITY ASSESSMENT, UH, WITH Z AND HER TEAM.
UH, THAT'S A HOLISTIC, UH, LOOK AT OUR DEPARTMENT TO ENSURE THAT WE, UH, LOOK AT EVERY POSSIBILITY TO KEEP IMPROVING EQUITY, UH, SERVICE DELIVERY, EQUITABLE SERVICE DELIVERY, UM, WHETHER IT BE EXPLORING, YOU KNOW, PERMITTING FEES AND INCENTIVIZING AFFORDABLE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT.
WE THINK THERE'S, UH, SOME IMPROVEMENTS WE CAN MAKE THERE.
AND, AND ALSO, HOW DO WE ENSURE THAT OUR ABATEMENT SYSTEM, UH, CONTINUES TO GET IN, INTO THE HANDS, OR TO HELP THOSE, UH, WITH THE MOST NEEDS, WHETHER IT BE LOW INCOME PROPERTY OWNERS, UH, ET CETERA.
SO THAT'S GONNA BE AN IMPORTANT STEP FOR US IN THE, IN THE NEXT YEAR.
SO, OUR GOALS, UH, I'LL JUST SUMMARIZE BY SAYING OUR GOALS FOR NEXT YEAR.
UH, ON THE NEXT SLIDE I TALKED ABOUT, WE'RE GONNA COMPLETE OUR BUILD S SA PROJECT, THE FIVE YEAR PROJECT.
UM, AND, UH, REALLY JUST GONNA CHANGE THE WAY WE'RE ABLE TO PROVIDE SERVICE TO OUR CUSTOMERS, IMPROVE IT.
UM, AND, UH, THE, THE NEXT ITEM I HAVE THERE, UH, ONE PERMIT FEE CHANGE I'D LIKE TO TALK ABOUT.
IT'S ACTUALLY NOT A FEE INCREASE OR A FEE DECREASE.
UM, BUT OUR COMMERCIAL TRADE PERMITS, THOSE ARE THE MECHANICAL, ELECTRICAL, PLUMBING PERMITS ASSOCIATED WITH COMMERCIAL PROJECTS RIGHT NOW.
AND, AND, UH, WE HAVE FOR A LONG TIME, WE CHARGE THOSE BASED ON, UH, HOW MANY FIXTURES YOU PUT IN YOUR, YOUR BUILDING, HOW MANY, HOW MANY TOILETS, HOW MANY ELECTRICAL DEVICES, LIGHTS, UH, OUTLETS, ET CETERA.
UH, THAT'S REALLY NOT A BEST PRACTICE.
UH, EVEN AN AUDIT FINDING FROM YEARS AGO, UH, FELT THAT WE SHOULD CHANGE THAT TO A SQUARE FOOTAGE BASE OR OCCUPANCY GROUP, OUR BUILDING TYPE, UH, BASED APPROACH LIKE SOME OTHER CITIES.
SO WE'VE BEEN WORKING FOR THE PAST YEAR WITH OUR DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY TO ENSURE THAT WE CHANGE THE WAY WE CHARGE OUR FEES.
BUT IT'S A REVENUE NEUTRAL CHANGE.
IT'S NOT A FEE INCREASE OR FEE DECREASE.
UH, SO WE'LL BE LAUNCHING THAT WHEN WE GO LIVE WITH THE NEW, UH, SOFTWARE.
UH, LATER IN NOVEMBER, WE'LL BE MONITORING THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION, A LOT OF DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, UH, ITEMS, WHETHER IT BE THE TREE PRESERVATION ORDINANCE, SHORT TERM RENTALS, OR IT COULD BE ANYTHING COMING UP IN THE NEXT LEGISLATIVE SE SESSION.
WE, WE, WE CERTAINLY MONITOR AND PARTICIPATE IN THAT.
I TALKED ABOUT THE BUDGET EQUITY TOOL THAT WE'RE GONNA BE WORKING, UH, WITH THE OFFICE OF EQUITY.
AND THEN LASTLY, KIND OF A WILD CARD OR A QUESTION MARK.
UH, THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE THE YEAR WE UPDATED ALL OF OUR CODES, RIGHT? I SAID, I, I, I TALKED TO YOU A YEAR AGO TALKING ABOUT THE UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT CODE, OUR BUILDING AND FIRE CODES, ELECTRICAL CODES, AND OUR SIGN CODE.
WE WERE GONNA LOOK AT THOSE AND UPDATE THEM ALL THIS YEAR APPROPRIATELY.
UM, WE BELIEVE THAT SOMETIME NEXT YEAR, PROBABLY LATER NEXT YEAR, UH, MAYBE EVEN AFTER THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION, WE'LL HAVE SOME BANDWIDTH.
IT'LL BE, UH, YOU KNOW, THE HEALTH, UH, THE HEALTH
[00:40:01]
ISSUE WILL BE, UH, HOPEFULLY BEHIND US.UH, AND WE'LL BE ABLE TO HAVE SOME MEANINGFUL, APPROPRIATE DISCUSSION WITH OUR STAKEHOLDERS AND COMMUNITY ON, ON HOW TO UPDATE OUR CODES, UH, APPROPRIATELY.
SO, UH, I, I HAVE THAT ON THE LIST, BUT, UH, WE'LL SEE WHEN, UH, WHEN THAT'S APPROPRIATE TO, UH, START THAT UP.
UH, WITH THAT, THAT, UH, CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION.
I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.
UM, YOUR PRESENTATION WASN'T PERFECT, BUT YOU DID A FINE JOB COMING AFTER ALEX
UM, WE'LL GO STRAIGHT INTO DISCUSSION NOW.
UH, WE'LL START WITH COUNCIL MEMBER TREVINO.
UM, MAYBE NOT AS PERFECT AS THE 18 ONE SEASON WITH THE PATS, BUT CLOSE.
UH, I'M GONNA START, I'M GONNA START WITH, WITH, UH, WITH, WITH YOU, UH, MIKE.
UH, I REALLY APPRECIATE, UH, EVERYTHING THAT, THAT YOU DO EVERY DAY.
UM, I WANNA SPECIFICALLY THANK, UH, AMIN DEMAS, UH, FOR HIS EFFORTS WITH, UH, BUSINESS OPERATORS AS, UH, THEY ARE, THEY, THEY WERE SEEKING ADVICE THROUGH THE, UH, EMERGENCY ORDER COMPLIANCE.
UH, HE WAS VERY HELPFUL, AND I JUST WANNA PUBLICLY THANK HIM.
UM, I ALSO WANT TO THANK, UH, ALL YOUR TEAM FOR WHAT, UH, FOR WHAT YOU'RE DOING AS YOU, UH, EXPLAINED WITH REGARD TO THE, UH, LARGE AREA REZONING.
UH, THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT TO, TO DISTRICT ONE AND TO A LOT OF, UH, OUR AREAS.
AND I, I THINK THE INNER CITY IS, IS, UH, SEEING A LOT, PICKING UP A LOT OF CUES, UH, REGARDING THAT.
UM, I DO WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UH, SOME, SOME OF THE THINGS YOU TOUCHED ON.
AND WITH REGARD TO THE PANDEMIC.
UM, YOU KNOW, THE, ONE OF THE, THE BIGGEST CONCERNS WE HAVE, UH, IF YOU RECALL, MANY YEARS AGO, UM, ONE OF THE VERY FIRST MEETINGS I HAD WHEN I STEPPED INTO THIS ROLE IN 2014 WAS WITH YOU AND ROD SANCHEZ REGARDING THE BUILDING STANDARDS BOARD AND DEMOLITIONS.
AND, AND, AND WHAT WAS IMPORTANT THEN IS STILL IMPORTANT TODAY, WHICH IS, YOU KNOW, TIME FOR PEOPLE TO, TO ADDRESS, UH, SOME OF THE ISSUES, UH, VIOLATIONS, UH, CONCERNS THAT, THAT ARE BROUGHT UP BY, BY, UH, DEVELOPMENT SERVICES AND IN THAT CASE BUILDING STANDARD BOARD.
UM, SO, YOU KNOW, I, I WANNA TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UH, SOME OF THE ISSUES THAT, UH, I'M HEARING ABOUT SPEC SPECIFICALLY AROUND THE CLUSTER OF CITATIONS IN, IN BEACON HILL.
UH, THEY HAVE RECEIVED, UH, WE HAVE RECEIVED, UH, A LOT OF INFORMATION OR, OR FEEDBACK REGARDING, UM, SEVERAL, SEVERAL CODE VIOLATIONS.
AND OF COURSE, THE, THE, THE TIME THAT, THAT IT TAKES TO, TO GET THOSE, UM, YOU KNOW, UP TO A STANDARD.
AND SO, UH, I GUESS THE, THE, THE QUESTION, AND, AND THE REQUEST I HAVE IS THAT, UH, I'D LIKE TO DISCUSS, UM, SORT OF A, A, A DEGREE IN WHICH WE PRIORITIZE SOME OF THOSE, THOSE, UH, CODE CITATIONS.
SO THAT, UH, THOSE THAT ARE, I, I WOULD, I WOULD SAY, UH, NOT LIFE SAFETY ISSUES, UH, CAN, CAN GET MORE TIME.
UH, PEOPLE ARE EXPERIENCING A VERY DIFFICULT TIME AND, UH, YOU KNOW, THE, THE NEIGHBORHOOD, UH, AND ITS RESIDENTS, UH, YOU KNOW, REALLY FELT TARGETED.
UH, THEY FEEL, UH, VERY, ESPECIALLY THE VULNERABLE RESIDENTS, UH, DURING THIS PANDEMIC FOR, FOR SOME OF THESE ISSUES.
AND, UH, YOU KNOW, I I THINK THAT THEY, YOU KNOW, WHAT THEY'D LIKE TO HEAR IS THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT WE'RE, WE'RE GONNA WORK WITH THEM.
THEY WANT TO HEAR THAT THE CODE WILL NOT GO AFTER SOME OF THESE RESIDENTS, ESPECIALLY FOR ISSUES THAT ARE NOT IMMEDIATELY RELATED TO HEALTH AND SAFETY, UH, OF A RESIDENT OR, OR EVEN THE SURROUNDING COMMUNITY.
AND, YOU KNOW, I WANNA JUST THANK THAT COMMUNITY.
UM, LIKE MANY, THEY REALLY COME OUT AND TRY TO SUPPORT THEIR NEIGHBORS.
UH, YOU KNOW, IN FACT, YOU KNOW, I THINK REQUESTING A LITTLE BIT OF, A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME IS IT, IT REALLY HELPS THEM TO RESPOND TO, UH, UH, HELPING THEIR NEIGHBORS.
UM, AND, UH, YOU KNOW, I, I, I GUESS I WOULD ASK THAT, YOU KNOW, WE CAN MAYBE EVEN HAVE A, A, A DISCUSSION AFTERWARDS ABOUT WHAT THAT APPROPRIATE AMOUNT OF TIME IS.
I THINK, UH, YOU KNOW, THE FACT THAT WE'RE STILL IN THE MIDDLE OF THIS PANDEMIC, UH, 30 DAYS IS REALLY NOT QUITE ENOUGH.
AND, AND IF WE COULD, UH, EXTEND IT, UH, TO SOMETHING CLOSER TO SIX MONTHS, UM, AGAIN, FOR NON-HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES, I THINK, UH, THAT'S APPROPRIATE.
SO, UH, AGAIN, THE, THE COMMUNITY WOULD REALLY LIKE TO, TO HEAR THAT.
UH, UH, AND THEN I, I WOULD ALSO ASK THAT WE TAKE A, A LOOK AT DEMOLITIONS AS WELL.
I THINK WE'RE STILL SORT OF PURSUING A LOT OF, UM, DEMOLITIONS
[00:45:01]
THROUGH THE BUILDING STANDARDS BOARD.UH, AGAIN, I WOULD ASK THAT WE, WE, UH, TAKE A CLOSE HARD LOOK AT, AT SOME OF THESE.
UH, IF, IF THEY DO NOT REQUIRE, UH, LIFE SAFETY, UH, CONCERNS, THEN, THEN MAYBE THEY, THEY, UH, CAN HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE TIME.
AND WE ALREADY PROVIDE THAT LEVEL OF, UH, OF, UH, OF TIME FOR, FOR THOSE THAT QUALIFY UNDER THE RULES THAT WE ADOPTED, UH, BACK IN 2015 WITH RE, UH, WITH THE, THE BUILDING STANDARDS BOARD.
UM, SO, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU.
UH, UH, I HAVE, UH, I, I'VE BECOME FRIENDS WITH A LOT OF THE, THE, THE STAFF THERE AT, UH, DEVELOPMENT SERVICES AND, UH, YOU KNOW, WANT TO THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU'RE DOING, UH, DURING THIS PANDEMIC.
I KNOW IT'S, IT'S A DIFFICULT TIME, UH, BUT I, YOU KNOW, THESE ARE THE CONCERNS THAT I THINK, UH, UH, WE ALL WANNA, WE WANT, WE ALL WANT TO, UH, WORK TOGETHER ON, AND NEIGHBORHOODS WOULD LIKE TO, UH, HAVE US ADDRESS.
AND, UH, LASTLY, JUST WANNA THANK ALL, ALL OF DISTRICT ONE, UH, UH, CODE OFFICERS, AND FOR ALL THAT THEY'RE DOING.
UH, WE'RE WORKING COLLABORATIVELY, UH, IN SO MANY WAYS, UH, ESPECIALLY NOW WITH THIS, UH, HOMELESS OUTREACH PROGRAM.
UH, YOU KNOW, IT'S, IT'S GONNA TAKE ALL OF US WORKING TOGETHER.
UM, SO I'LL JUST, UH, UH, LEAVE IT AT THAT.
AND, UH, SAY AGAIN, MIKE, I APPRECIATE, UH, ALL YOUR HELP AND SUPPORT AND YOUR RESPONSIVENESS.
UM, DID YOU WANNA SAY ANYTHING? WELL, I'LL JUST JUMP IN.
I, I, I WHOLEHEARTEDLY AGREE WITH YOU, COUNCILMAN.
AND, AND, AND AS I MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, THE, THE, THE POLICY THAT WE PUT IN PLACE, THAT EDUCATION POLICY, UH, WAS ALL ABOUT GIVING RESIDENTS MORE TIME.
UM, AND, AND AGAIN, THAT, WHEN I SAY 30 DAYS, THAT WAS THE INITIAL AUTOMATIC GIVE.
UM, I'LL CERTAINLY, WE WE'RE VERY FAMILIAR WITH BEACON HILL.
WE, WE MEET WITH THEM AND TALK WITH THEM REGULARLY.
UH, I'D, I'D BE HAPPY TO SIT DOWN AND TALK SOME SPECIFICS ON, ON THAT GROUP OF, UH, OF, UH, EITHER NOTICES OR, OR VIOLATIONS THAT ARE OUT THERE.
BUT, BUT I THINK, YOU KNOW, THE IDEA IS WE, WE HAVE BEEN PRIORITIZING, UH, AND REALLY DEPRIORITIZING BY GIVING MORE TIME FOR THOSE NON-SIGNIFICANT LIFE SAFETY ISSUES.
UH, BUT, BUT I, SO IN CONCEPT, I TOTALLY AGREE.
AND, AND, AND TO YOUR POINT, IF THERE'S MORE THAT WE CAN DO, I'D BE HAPPY TO SIT WITH YOU AND ANY OF YOUR COLLEAGUES ABOUT HOW TO DO THAT.
AND AGAIN, THE, THE STA THE, THE BUILDING STANDARDS BOARD EXAMPLE IS A GOOD ONE, UH, BECAUSE YOU ALSO, UH, WE ONLY GAVE 30 DAYS FOR PEOPLE TO RESPOND ON THAT ONE AS WELL.
UH, MIGUEL CAZA, WHICH WAS ALSO IN, IN BEACON HILL.
UM, AND, AND YOU RE YOU REMEMBER THAT I REQUESTED NINE MONTHS, UH, WHICH IS NOW WITHIN OUR CODE.
UH, SO, SO THANK YOU FOR THAT.
THANKS AGAIN, UH, MIKE, AND, UH, WE'LL WATCH THE TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS THIS YEAR.
UM, HEBREW, I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR, UM, UH, YOUR PRESENTATION.
UH, AGAIN, I WANT TO, UH, ALSO THANK, UH, OUR, OUR A C S COMMISSIONER, CYNTHIA COX.
UH, SHE BROUGHT SOME SUGGESTIONS FORWARD AND, AND GLAD TO SEE, UH, Y'ALL DOING THINGS LIKE THE, THE VIDEO AND, AND THE PICS.
UH, THIS IS A REALLY A GREAT DEVELOPMENT, AND I, AND I KNOW CYNTHIA COX WILL BE VERY, VERY HAPPY TO, TO, TO HEAR THAT.
I WANT TO THANK OUR, UH, DISTRICT ONE A C S DEDICATED OFFICER, ALAN, UH, BEES FOR HIS WORK.
UH, HE'S, HE IS REALLY, UH, BEEN A GREAT ADDITION TO DISTRICT JUAN.
UH, I, I UNDERSTAND HIS SCHEDULE HAS CHANGED NOW FOR FRIDAY, SATURDAY, SUNDAY, AND MONDAY.
UH, SO IS, IS THIS, IS THIS PART OF A PLAN, UH, THAT'S, YOU KNOW, CITYWIDE IN TERMS OF YOU BEING MORE AVAILABLE, UH, OR ACCESSIBLE FOR, FOR RESIDENTS THROUGHOUT OUR, OUR, OUR CITY? SO, COUNCILMAN IN GENERAL, IF A RESIDENT NEEDS OUR SERVICE, UH, WE WILL MAKE SURE, UH, THAT THAT SERVICE IS BEING PROVIDED, UH, IN REGARDS TO THE DISTRICT OFFICER'S SCHEDULE, UH, THAT GETS CHANGED.
THAT CAN BE CHANGED BASED UPON THE DEMAND FOR AWARE, WHEN, WHEN WE'RE RECEIVING THE DEMAND FOR THEIR PARTICULAR SERVICES, UH, SUCH AS MEETINGS OR ACTIVITIES OR EVENTS.
WELL, SO I JUST, I, I BRING THAT TO LIGHT BECAUSE, UH, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'VE, WE'VE APPRECIATED IS, IS, IS VISITING OUR FIELD OFFICE AND CONNECTION BACK TO THIS DISTRICT OFFICE.
SO, UH, DO WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT.
I, I, I THINK THAT THAT HELPS US AS WE'RE HEARING THINGS FROM THE DIFFERENT NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATIONS, UH, TO BE ABLE TO, UH, WORK WITH AAN.
UH, I THINK, UH, THE, THE FRIDAY, UH, AND MONDAY, UH, TIMEFRAMES, UH, STILL WORK OUT ALSO.
UM, WE WE'RE WORKING, WE HAVE, UH, HELPED TO DEVELOP A, AN OUTREACH PROGRAM FOR HOMELESS.
AND ONE OF THE, ONE OF THE KEY COMPONENTS IN THAT OUTREACH EFFORT IS UNDERSTANDING THAT MANY HOMELESS, UH, HAVE PETS.
AND, UH, WE KNOW THAT HUMANE SOCIETY HAS BEEN VERY HELPFUL, UH, IN THAT EFFORT TO, TO HELP SHELTER PETS, UH, WHENEVER, UH, A HOMELESS INDIVIDUAL
[00:50:01]
IS SEEKING SOME HELP AND, AND SERVICES.SO, UH, I'D LIKE TO MAYBE TALK SOME MORE ABOUT WHAT CAN A C S DO TO, TO HELP IN THIS EFFORT AS WE'RE GROWING OUR OUTREACH PROGRAM TO GO CITYWIDE.
UH, MAYBE THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY, UH, FOR A C S TO, TO HELP IN THIS EFFORT, UH, IN A SIMILAR WAY.
COUNCILMAN, I KNOW THAT RIGHT NOW WE ARE WORKING WITH, UH, HUMAN SERVICES.
WE ARE WORKING WITH SOME OF THE OTHER, UH, ORGANIZATIONS ON THE HOMELESS.
UH, WHEN WE, WHEN WE GO OUT THERE AND PROVIDE THAT SERVICE, UH, WE DO PROVIDE SOME OF OUR SPACE, UH, FOR THOSE INDIVIDUALS THAT NEED TEMPORARY HOUSING.
UM, NOW GRANTED, OUR SPACE IS LIMITED, WHICH IS WHERE WE WILL REACH OUT OUR, OUR RESCUE PARTNER TO BE ABLE TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE, BUT WE'LL CONTINUE TO MAKE THAT A PRIORITY.
AND, AND MAYBE YOU CAN PROVIDE SOME DATA OF, OF HOW MUCH THAT'S, THAT'S GOING TO BE REQUESTED OR NEEDED, BECAUSE THAT CAN HELP US IN TERMS OF WHAT RESOURCES WE CAN ALLOCATE TO YOU.
COUNCIL MEMBER, VIN, COUNCIL MEMBER, FOLLOWED BY COUNCIL MEMBER.
MY QUESTION IS FOR, I, HE, UM, JEFF, WILL YOU PLEASE SUMMARIZE THE FINDINGS FROM SPEAKUP SA REGARDING ANIMAL CARE SERVICES.
UM, I'M PARTICULARLY INTERESTED IF, IF YOU FEEL LIKE WE'RE REFLECTING THOSE RESULTS IN THIS BUDGET.
LIKE ARE YOU REFERRING TO THE RECENT, UH, SPEAK UP, OR WHICH ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT FOR THE BUDGET? THE, THE BUDGET SPECIFICALLY COUNCILWOMAN, LET ME LOOK THAT UP REAL QUICK.
I DON'T BELIEVE ANIMAL CARE WAS IN THE FIRST, UH, UH, FIVE OR SIX RESPONSES, BUT IF YOU'LL GIVE ME A MINUTE, I'LL PULL THEM UP AND OKAY.
AND PUT IT IN THE CHAT IF WE'VE MOVED ON IN THE CONVERSATION.
MEANWHILE, UM, WELL, AND IT, IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE SPECIFIC TO THE BUDGET, BUT, UM, MAYBE JUST PEOPLE'S GENERAL THOUGHTS ON ANIMAL CARE SERVICES AND THOUGHTS, IF YOU FEEL LIKE WE'RE REFLECTING THOSE VALUES IN THE BUDGET.
SO YOU WANNA COME BACK TO ME, MAYOR, I'M, I'M OKAY WITH THAT.
UH, COUNCILWOMAN, THIS IS, UH, MARIA VIAGRA GOMEZ, UH, BASED ON THE COMMUNITY SURVEY PRIORITIES, ANIMAL CARE SERVICES WAS NUMBER EIGHT OF THE TOP 10, UM, PRIORITIES OF THE COMMUNITY.
AND, UH, I GUESS JEFF, WE'LL GO MORE IN DEPTH ON THAT JUST TO SEE IF WE'RE REFLECTING, UH, WHAT, WHAT PEOPLE ARE, ARE COMMUNICATING ABOUT A C SS COUNCILMAN? THE, UH, YEAH, I WAS GONNA SAY THE SAME THING AS MARIA WAS THE THIRD TO THE LAST OF THE 10 OPTIONS WE OFFERED THERE.
THERE ISN'T A LOT MORE DETAIL, UH, IN THE ACTUAL QUESTIONS WE ASKED IN THE RANKINGS, BUT THERE ARE OPEN-ENDED COMMENTS THAT WE, UM, JUST DISTRIBUTED YESTERDAY, I BELIEVE.
UM, AND SO YOU CAN, YOU CAN LOOK AT THOSE AND WHAT THE OPEN-ENDED COMMENTS ARE.
AND I, AND I'M HAPPY TO GO BACK AND LOOK AT THOSE AND SHARE THOSE AFTERWARDS.
THAT'LL TAKE A LITTLE MORE TIME 'CAUSE WE PRESENTED JUST THE RAW ANSWERS FROM EVERYBODY IN OUR REPORT TO YOU.
COUNCIL MEMBER CAB HDA, COUNCIL MEMBER VERAN, FOLLOWED BY COUNCIL MEMBER ROCHE GARCIA.
UH, THANKS HEBER FOR THE PRESENTATION.
AND, UH, ERIC, I'M GLAD WE WERE ABLE TO PUSH THIS FORWARD TO HAVE THIS CONVERSATION, UM, AND TO SEE ALL THE GREAT WORK AND, AND I'M CONTINUALLY IMPRESSED AND, UH, MOVED WITH OUR CITY STAFF AND HOW THEY ARE CONSTANTLY REINVENTING AND JUST THE LOVE THAT THEY HAVE AND THE TEAM THAT THEY HAVE FOR THIS ORGANIZATION.
SO WELL DONE TO, UH, TO THE CITY STAFF AND TO THE A C S OFFICE, UH, OFFICERS.
UM, SO YOU HAVE AN INCREASE OF ABOUT A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS IN YOUR BUDGET THIS YEAR, HEBER, WHERE IS THIS, UH, THAT BUMP GOING TOWARDS? SO THE, THE MAIN CHANGE, THERE ARE A COUPLE OF, UM, CONTRACTS THAT HAVE INCREASED THEIR EXPENSE JUST SLIGHTLY THAT WE NEED TO PLAN FOR.
UM, AND THEN JUST THEN THE CHANGES THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH, UH, THEY'RE BASICALLY JUST CHANGES ASSOCIATED WITH SMALL CONTRACTS THAT ARE BEING UPDATED.
UH, THAT'S REALLY THE ONLY CHANGE.
SO THE FUNDING THEN TO MAKE THOSE TEMPORARY EMPLOYEES PERMANENT TO THE EMPLOYEES THAT'S ALREADY BUILT IN.
SO OUR BUDGET, OUR BUDGET DOES INCLUDE THE HIRING AND, UH, THE HIRING OF THOSE POSITIONS.
AND I, I WANNA KNOW THE, THE STATUS OF THE MICRO CHIPPING.
SO WITH THE SURGERIES HAVING BEEN HAVING GONE DOWN, WHAT ABOUT 8,000 LESS
[00:55:01]
THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT.UM, WHAT ABOUT THE MICROCHIPS? I, I SAW THAT YOU'RE PLANNING 5,000 LESS, BUT IS THAT THE SAME, PUTTING A MICROCHIP IN YOUR ANIMAL IF THEY'RE BEING ADOPTED IS NOT AS INTRUSIVE AS A, AS A SURGERY? UH, IT IS.
THE INTRUSIVENESS IS NOT NECESSARILY THE CONCERN.
IT'S THE CLOSE PROXIMITY, UH, THAT WE, THAT MULTIPLE PEOPLE NEED TO GET TO.
SO IN ORDER TO SAFELY, UH, PLACE IN A MICROCHIP WHILE, UH, IT DOES REQUIRE MULTIPLE PEOPLE TO BE REALLY CLOSE, UH, IN PROXIMITY.
AND SO THAT'S WHERE THE CONCERN, SO, OKAY.
SO IF WE SEE, UM, MAYBE, DEAR LORD THAT WE'RE, WE'RE BETTER WITH THIS PANDEMIC, SOME, UM, STUFF HAPPENS AND WE CAN INCREASE THE SURGERIES OR THE MICROCHIPS BECAUSE WE'RE ABLE TO, TO FUNCTION BETTER.
WE HAVE THE BUDGET IN ORDER TO INCREASE EVEN GOING OVER THE 15,000 BUDGETED.
IS THAT, UH, FOR THE F Y 21 BUDGET? IS THAT CORRECT? THAT IS CORRECT, YES.
AND YOUR ANIMAL CARE SERVICES OFFICERS, UM, WELL LET ME, LET ME GO INTO ONE QUESTION.
I THINK THIS IS OVERALL, AND THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT.
PHONE NUMBER TWO ZERO SEVEN PETS.
I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE.
ONE THING THAT I WOULD LIKE TO, UM, TALK ABOUT IS, ERIC, HOW WE CAN AND, AND HEBER AND MAYBE YOUR TEAM, HOW CAN WE UTILIZE MORE CREATIVE PUBLIC SAFETY WAYS TO UTILIZE OUR A C S OFFICERS IN MORE OF AN EMERGENCY WAY THAN PEOPLE CALLING SS A P D FOR, UM, DOGS, ET CETERA.
AND IF THERE'S A WAY THAT WE CAN LOOK CREATIVELY AND SEE IS THERE A SYSTEM THAT WE CAN BUILD UP TO HAVE, UM, ON-CALL A C S OFFICERS FOR 24 7 OR LONGER TIME PERIODS SO THEY CAN SERVE IN THAT CAPACITY? IF THERE'S VIOLENT DOGS, IF THERE'S SOMETHING THAT, UM, PEOPLE NEED TO REMOVE THE ANIMALS RIGHT AWAY, I'D LOVE TO SEE SOME OPTIONS, UH, THAT WAY.
YEAH, COUNCILWOMAN, I'LL, I'LL JUST SAY THAT, THAT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE, WE, WE NEED TO LOOK AT.
BUT I, I THINK IT'S A BALANCE BECAUSE WE HAD AN INCIDENT HERE ABOUT TWO WEEKS AGO MM-HMM.
SO IT, IT'S A BALANCE, I THINK.
DEPENDING ON PROBABLY A LOT OF FACTORS.
UM, AND, AND PROBABLY WE NEED SOMETHING WE NEED TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT AND MAKE SURE THAT HEBREW AND, AND THE STAFF OUT THERE AT A C S WHO, WHO WERE KIND OF ON THE FRONT LINE, KNOW THAT THERE ARE PROBABLY SITUATIONS WHERE THEY, IT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO HAVE A POLICE OFFICER.
I, I DON'T WANNA PUT ALL, I DON'T WANNA PUT EMPLOYEES IN A POSITION WHERE THEY'RE GETTING THE BRUNT OF IT.
AND SO LET'S THINK OF JUST CREATIVE WAYS AND WHAT WE CAN DO, UM, IF IT'S TRAINING ON THE FRONT END OR THE BACK END.
AND THEN THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION OF THE HURRICANES AND, UM, OF WHAT YOU ALL HAVE BEEN DOING, UH, AND HOW ANIMAL CARE SERVICES AND ALL OF OUR PARTNERS ALSO STEP UP WHEN SOMETHING LIKE THAT HAPPENS.
UM, SO WITH OUR, UM, A C S OFFICERS, THEY'RE ALL WORKING STILL, ESPECIALLY IF THEY'RE DESIGNATED TO CERTAIN DISTRICTS.
OUR SPECIFIED A C S OFFICERS ARE STILL RESPONDING.
CORRECT? YOU JUST MUTED YOURSELF.
YOU WERE ON MUTE, YOU WERE UNMUTED.
UH, THE, THE, UH, THE RESOURCES THAT WE ARE UTILIZING TO FUND AND TO CARE FOR THE, UH, THE EMERGENCY SHELTER IS OVERTIME.
UH, WE HAVE NOT PULLED ANYTHING AWAY FROM OUR NORMAL, UH, DAY-TO-DAY REQUIRED SERVICE.
AND OF COURSE, I NEED TO THANK MR. GEORGE GARCIA, OUR ANIMAL CARE ADVISORY MEMBER, WHO IS A VERY THOROUGH AND DILIGENT AND LOVES OF SERVING OUR COMMUNITY.
AND ERIC, I WOULD REQUEST ANOTHER UPDATE FROM ANIMAL CARE SERVICES SOMETIME WHEN WE CAN MEET ALTOGETHER IN PERSON.
SO HEBERT CAN BRING PUPPIES TO OUR COMMITTEE MEETING AND WE CAN HAVE THEM THERE.
ERIC, I, I WAS GONNA SAY HEBREW WOULD PROBABLY GO DROP 'EM OFF AT YOUR LOCATIONS IF HE, YOU GOT A CHANCE TO SPELL IT.
YOU'RE NOT GONNA LET US RETURN THEM.
UM, NEXT, LET'S GO TO, UH, UH, MY SHANNON.
HOW ARE YOU? UH, FOR D SS D I, FIRST AND FOREMOST, I WOULD LIKE, CAN
[01:00:01]
YOU PUT UP SLIDE NUMBER TWO PLEASE? UM, IF WE CAN PUT UP SLIDE NUMBER TWO.I DON'T KNOW, IS THAT PICTURE RIGHT THERE? IF IT'S NOT ON SALE FOR STOCK PHOTO, YOU NEED TO HAVE THAT UP FOR ONLINE, FOR STOCK PHOTO, BECAUSE THAT, THAT IS ONE FANTASTIC LOOKING PHOTO.
I, I HAVE A GOOD LOOKING TEAM, SO I'LL, UH, I, I KNOW THEY'RE LISTENING AND, UH, WE'LL SEND YOU OVER A SIGNED COPY, UH, ALONG WITH THAT PUPPY FROM HEBER.
UM, I DO WANT TO KNOW, IS THERE A CURRENT BACKLOG AT MUNICIPAL COURT, UH, DUE TO COVID IN REGARDS TO CODE ENFORCEMENT CASES THAT ARE OUTSTANDING OR PENDING? AND WHAT IS THE TIMELINE THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT FOR THAT? WELL, THE, THE SHORT ANSWER IS YES.
UH, UM, AS, AS, UH, AS YOU KNOW, THE, THE COURTS WERE CLOSED FOR, UH, A COUPLE OF MONTHS.
UH, BUT, BUT, UH, THAT WAS ALSO ONE OF THE REASONS THAT, UH, IT WAS REAL IMPORTANT FOR US TO UTILIZE THAT TIME ON CODE ENFORCEMENT TYPE CASES.
UH, YOU KNOW, COUNCILMAN TREVINO MENTIONED IT, AND I, AND I MENTIONED IN MY PRESENTATION, WHICH WAS EDUCATING PEOPLE RATHER THAN GIVING THEM A NOTICE AND STARTING THE FORMAL PROCESS.
UH, BUT YES, IT HAS BEEN, UM, THERE IS A BACKLOG.
UH, WE'RE WORKING THROUGH THOSE.
WE WE'RE MEETING, UM, YOU KNOW, WITH THE COURT, FRED AND HIS TEAM, UH, THEY'RE DOING A LOT OF ZOOM, UH, MEETINGS, AND THOSE ARE ALL TYPES OF CASES.
THOSE ARE ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS, MUNICIPAL COURT HEARINGS, UH, UH, THE CRIMINAL CASES.
UM, SO WE'RE WORKING THROUGH THOSE.
I DON'T HAVE IT, UH, RIGHT NOW IN TERMS OF THE ACTUAL BACKLOG, BUT IT DID SLOW A LOT OF THOSE DOWN, UH, JUST BECAUSE THEY WEREN'T, THEY WEREN'T BEING ADDRESS.
IF YOU COULD GET THAT TO ME PLEASE.
AND THEN, UH, SPECIFICALLY WHEN IT COMES TO, UH, IF THERE WERE ANY CASES THAT ARE STILL BACKLOGGED THAT WERE EVEN PRIOR TO THE SHUTDOWN AND PRIOR TO THE PANDEMIC, I JUST WANT TO KNOW, UH, THAT, AND THEN I ALSO WANT TO, TO FIND OUT ABOUT JUST WHAT IS OUR, UM, I'LL PROBABLY HAVE TO CHECK BACK IN, UH, COME BACK.
BUT I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT A DEDICATED UNIT WITHIN CODE THAT RESPONDS TO CALLS.
UM, WHEN IT COMES TO SHOPPING CARTS OR, OR NO, IT'S LIKE, DO WE HAVE A CURRENT PROCEDURE TO REPORT AND HAVE STAFF RESPOND TO REMOVING ABANDONED SHOPPING CARTS FROM PUBLIC RIGHT OF WAYS? WE SEE 'EM A LOT IN OUR BUS STOPS, BUT WE ALSO SEE THEM FALL INTO OUR RIVERS AND C CREEKS SPECIFICALLY IN DISTRICT THREE.
SO, UM, FOR THE REMAINDER, WHAT IS OUR PROCESS OR PROCEDURE WHEN THAT HAPPENS? UH, SO THE, THE GENERAL PROCESS IS LIKE ANY TRASH AND DEBRIS, WITH A LITTLE CAVEAT BEING, IF WE KNOW IT'S A TARGET, AN H E B A WALMART, A HOME DEPOT, UH, WE ARE CONTACTING THAT STORE THAT'S CLOSE AND SAYING, HEY, LOOK, WE HAVE THESE CARTS.
UH, WE'D LIKE YOU TO COME AND GET 'EM.
WE'RE GONNA THROW 'EM AWAY IF, IF WE GET, IF WE GET 'EM, UH, AND TRY TO WORK WITH THEM TO CONTROL IT, BUT IT'S, IT'S NOT AS FORMAL.
UM, AND OTHER THAN THAT, BUT, UH, SOME BUSINESSES ARE REAL GOOD ABOUT RESPONDING TO THAT AND KEEPING CONTROL OF THEM AND OTHERS ARE NOT.
SO WE SEE THAT SAME CHALLENGE THAT YOU HAVE AND THAT YOU'VE SEEN.
UM, ERIC, I THINK I'M GONNA WANNA START TO TALK ABOUT THAT AND TO MY COLLEAGUES ABOUT POLICY-WISE WHEN IT COMES TO THAT.
UM, I'LL PROBABLY CHIME BACK IN THERE.
COUNCIL MEMBER VIE, AND COUNCIL MEMBER ROCHE GARCIA.
AND THANK YOU HEBER AND MIKE, A GREAT PRESENTATION.
AND, UM, I, I WANNA, UM, ESPECIALLY THANK, UH, RITA
AND SHE GAVE ME A GREAT UPDATE LAST WEEK ABOUT THIS.
UM, AND, AND, UH, SHE SAW, SHE ANSWERED A LOT OF MY QUESTIONS.
I WAS VERY PROUD, ESPECIALLY THAT YOU ALL WERE VERY INNOVATIVE IN TURNING, UM, THE A C S WELCOME CENTER, UH, OR THE ANNEX BUILDING INTO A WELCOME CENTER.
SO, UM, YOU WITH THE SOCIAL DISTANCING THAT WE HAVE TO TAKE TO ACCOUNT FOR, I THOUGHT THAT IT WAS VERY, UM, GOOD THAT YOU ALL, UH, TOOK THE INITIATIVE AND DID THAT EARLY ON.
AND THEN ALSO, UM, THE CURBSIDE PICKUP IDEA, RIGHT, FOR THE ADOPTION OF PETS WAS, WAS REALLY COOL.
UM, SO THANK YOU, HUBERT, TO YOU AND YOUR TEAM FOR BEING SO INNOVATIVE.
AND I KNOW THAT MY STAFF MET WITH YOU EARLIER TODAY, AND WE'RE GOING TO BE WORKING ON A TOWN HALL AND A VIRTUAL ADOPTION EVENT AS WELL.
SO I'M LOOKING FORWARD, UM, TO THAT CONVERSATION.
I ALSO WANTED TO, UM, CONGRATULATE YOU.
IT, IT LOOKS LIKE, UM, ON YOUR, UH, LIVE RELEASE RETURN TO OWNERS, YOU, UM, ARE ESTIMATING, UH, ALMOST AT
[01:05:01]
A OF A THOUSAND OVER.AND SO, UM, THAT WAS REALLY, REALLY NEAT.
HELP ME UNDERSTAND, ON PAGE 3 25 OF THE BUDGET, THAT'S WHERE I'M LOOKING AT THESE NUMBERS.
THERE'S AN ADDITIONAL, UM, UH, LET'S SEE.
THERE'S AN, THERE'S SOME, UH, POSITION 11 ADDITIONAL POSITIONS.
CAN YOU HELP ME UNDERSTAND WHERE THOSE WILL BE? YEAH, COUNCILMAN, AS OF RIGHT NOW, WE HAVE ABOUT 11 TEMPORARY POSITIONS THAT WE ARE FUNDING, UH, THAT WE HAVE BEEN FUNDING IN THE PAST.
WE ARE TAKING THOSE 11 TEMPORARY POSITIONS AND CONVERGING THEM INTO FULL-TIME POSITIONS.
I, I COULDN'T, I THINK I WANNA SAY SOMEBODY TOLD ME THAT, BUT I JUST, UM, WANTED TO DOUBLE CHECK IN.
THAT'S ACTUALLY IT FOR YOUR PART, SO I DON'T HAVE, UH, TOO MANY MORE QUESTIONS.
AGAIN, RITA DID A GREAT JOB BRIEFING ME, UM, A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO.
SO THANK YOU ALL FOR, FOR, FOR YOUR HARD WORK.
AND THEN MICHAEL, SHANNON, SHANNON, UH, AND THANK YOU, UM, ALSO, UM, MIKE FOR, UH, FOR, UH, WORKING, I, I LIKE THE CONCEPT OF STRIKE TEAMS THAT YOU HAVE.
AND SO I WOULD BE IN AGREEMENT WITH COUNCILMAN, UM, AND TRINO AND, AND, AND TRYING TO SEE HOW WE COULD BE A LITTLE BIT MORE FLEXIBLE EVEN, UM, THROUGHOUT THE, THE, THE REST OF, OF THE SITUATION THAT WE HAVEN'T HAD WITH COVID.
UM, I DO WANT TO TAKE INTO, UH, INTO ACCOUNT, THERE IS A, UM, THERE IS, UH, SOME MOVEMENT, UM, THAT WILL PROBABLY GOING BE, BE GOING FORTH, UM, TO THE STATE LEGISLATURES ABOUT ADULT CHANGING STATIONS.
AND SO, UM, I REPRESENT THE CITY ON, ON ACOG, AND, AND I KNOW THAT, UM, ACOG WAS EVEN, UH, LOOKING AT, AT SEEING HOW WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO HELP ADVANCE THAT.
SO JUST WANTED TO PUT IT OUT THERE.
UM, MIKE, SHANNON, THAT THERE'S SOME, SOME ADDITIONAL, UM, TALK ABOUT ADULT CHANGING STATIONS AND THE NEED FOR THAT.
SO JUST F Y I AS YOU PLAN FOR FUTURE YEARS, JUST, JUST THAT I, I'D BUILD IT IN IF YOU HADN'T HEARD ABOUT IT JUST YET.
AND THEN MY QUESTION FOR YOU IS ON THE AUTHORIZED POSITION.
SO ON PAGE 2 79 OF THE BUDGET, YOU ALL EXPLAIN THAT THERE'S GONNA BE SIX POSITIONS THAT ARE GOING TO BE TRANSFERRED OVER TO THE TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT AND THE PUBLIC PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT.
THERE'S, UM, SO IT LOOKS LIKE WE'RE LOSING NINE POSITIONS IN YOUR DEPARTMENT, BUT WE'RE ADDING THREE.
CAN YOU HELP ME UNDERSTAND WHERE THOSE THREE ADDITIONAL WILL BE GOING? THE, THE, THE THREE ADDITIONAL POSITIONS THAT ARE COMING INTO DEVELOPMENT SERVICES ARE PART OF, UH, WHEN TRANSPORTATION CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS SPLIT INTO PUBLIC WORKS AND THE SOON TO BE CREATED TRANSPORTATION.
UH, THEY HAD A TEAM OF, ACTUALLY FOUR, ONE WAS ALREADY PAID FOR OUT OF THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES FUND.
UH, THE OTHER THREE, THEY ACTUALLY DO DEVELOPMENT TRAFFIC REVIEWS.
UH, SO WHEN A NEW DEVELOPMENT IS PLANNED, WHETHER IT'S A LARGE SUBDIVISION REGIONAL SHOPPING CENTER, OR SMALL, UH, THERE ARE TRAFFIC REVIEWS, TRAFFIC IMPACT ANALYSIS.
SO, UH, SO IN FEBRUARY, RIGHT BEFORE THE COVID, UH, THAT TEAM WAS PHYSICALLY BROUGHT INTO OUR, ACTUALLY, THEY, THEY WERE ALREADY HOUSED IN OUR BUILDING, UM, BUT THEY WERE PART OF DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, AND THEN THEY'LL BE MOVED INTO THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES FUND.
UH, IT MAKES A LOT OF SENSE BECAUSE THAT'S THE WORK THEY'RE DOING.
UH, AND THE PERMIT FEES FOR THOSE PROJECTS SHOULD PAY FOR THEIR, UH, THEIR, THEIR, UH, THEIR SALARIES.
CAN YOU ALSO, UM, EXPLAIN TO ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE, THE APPROACH, AND WE'RE LOOKING AT CODE OFFICERS, AND I KNOW THAT WE HAD A MEETING IN, IN WITH YOU AND, AND HOW, UH, THIS RELATES TO DISTRICT FOUR, AND YOU WERE EXPLAINING THAT SOME OF THE CODE OFFICERS WERE, UM, PERFORMING, UM, I, I WOULD CALL IT OTHER DUTIES AS ASSIGNED, BUT THEY WERE FOCUSED ON MAYBE COVID, UM, UH, CODE, IF YOU WILL, VIOLATIONS OR, UM, YOU KNOW, GOING AND, AND, AND, AND, AND LOOKING AT RESTAURANTS, ET CETERA.
CAN YOU MAYBE TELL ME WHEN, UM, OR HOW THE OTHER OFFICERS, I KNOW THAT THERE WAS A CHANGE, FOR INSTANCE, IN MY DISTRICT, I THINK THERE WAS A, A CHANGE AND FOUR POSITIONS HAD TO BE DEDICATED TO THAT.
INSTEAD OF DOING YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD, UH, YOUR DAILY NEIGHBORHOOD, HOW ARE YOU CONTINUING TO BE PROACTIVE INSTEAD OF REACTIVE TO SOME OF THE CODE ISSUES IN OUR NEIGHBORHOODS? UH, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION.
AND AGAIN, IT'S, IT'S, UM, IT'S THAT BALANCE THAT WE'VE BEEN, UH, I THINK A LOT OF US, NOT ONLY DEVELOPMENT SERVICES AND CODE ENFORCEMENT, THAT BALANCE OF THE CURRENT PRIORITY OF THE COVID RESPONSE MM-HMM.
UH, AND, AND WHAT THAT MEANS IS THAT'S A LITTLE UNDER HALF OF OUR, UH, SIGNED CODE CODE OFFICERS THROUGHOUT THE CITY.
NOW, WE'RE NOT AT THAT POINT RIGHT NOW, UH, BUT WE DO HAVE ABOUT 20 OF OUR CODE OFFICERS THAT ARE MOSTLY FOCUSED ON ENFORCING THE EMERGENCY DECLARATION ORDERS FOR THE COVID.
UH, THAT HAS CERTAINLY PULLED AWAY FROM SOME OF OUR TEAMS. WE HAVE SOME TEAMS, UH, NO MATTER WHAT DISTRICT OR WHAT NEIGHBORHOOD, SOME OF THOSE HAVE BEEN PULLED.
SO, UH, THERE IS SOME, UH, SOME, SOME TEAM MEMBERS THAT THEIR AREA'S GOT A LITTLE LARGER.
UH, BUT WE ARE TRACKING, YOU SAW IN ONE OF MY SLIDES,
[01:10:01]
WE, ONE OF OUR MAJOR GOALS, UH, NOT JUST COMPLIANCE RATE, BUT IT'S PROACTIVITY, IT'S CRITICAL FOR US TO BE AS PROACTIVE AS POSSIBLE, UH, IDENTIFYING VIOLATIONS.BUT THEN ONCE WE DO THAT, UH, IT, WE, WE HAVE TO GIVE THEM ENOUGH TIME.
WE'VE GOT A LOT OF CONVERSATIONS WITH, WITH A LOT OF OUR RESIDENTS ABOUT WHAT IS IMPORTANT, WHAT'S NOT.
UH, SO IT REALLY IS THAT BALANCE.
AND WE DON'T WANT TO JUST SAY, STOP CODE ENFORCEMENT, WE'RE NOT GONNA DO THAT.
WE HAVEN'T DONE THAT, BUT WE CLEARLY HAVE THAT PRIORITY OF, UM, YOU'VE SEEN SOME OF THOSE BAD SITUATIONS WHEN THE EMERGENCY ORDERS ARE NOT ADHERED TO.
SO IT'S, IT IS CERTAINLY A BALANCE.
UH, WE CERTAINLY HOPE TO GET BEHIND US TO GET BACK TO A MORE FULL, UH, SET OF CODE ENFORCEMENT IN EVERY TEAM.
UH, BUT WE'LL KEEP, UH, WORKING ON IT AS WE'VE DISCUSSED IN THE PAST AND THEY'RE DOING NOW.
AND, AND MIKE, AND I'LL, I'LL BE SPECIFIC.
I WAS LOOKING, UM, UM, MAYBE SPECIFICALLY FOR, UH, DUMPING.
SO IT, IT LOOKS LIKE, I DON'T KNOW IF IT MIGHT BE BECAUSE THERE'S, UM, PEOPLE THAT, THAT ARE HOME AND, AND HAVE, UH, ACCESS TO, TO REPORT, OR THEY, THEY'VE SEEN AN INCREASE IN, IN A LOT OF ILLEGAL DUMPING.
AND SO HELP ME, UM, PACKAGE, UH, A MESSAGE TO THEM SAYING THAT THERE'S, UM, CODE, UH, O OFFICERS THAT ARE, THAT ARE STILL OUT THERE, ARE LOOKING AT THIS, AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, HOW TO PREVENT IT.
BECAUSE I KNOW THAT WE GET, UM, SOLID WASTE INVOLVED IN, IN CLEANUP AS WELL.
AND THEN THE NEXT WEEK IT'S, IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S HAPPENING AGAINST.
SO WHAT ARE WE DOING PROACTIVELY TO KIND OF ADDRESS THESE, THESE REPEATING ISSUES EVEN DURING THIS TIME WHERE WE'RE ALREADY SO TAXED? UH, AS FAR AS, UH, STAFFING POWER GOES, WELL, WE'RE, WE'RE STILL ENFORCING THE ILLEGAL DUMPING ORDINANCE.
AND, AND, YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY WORKING WITH DAVID NEWMAN AND HIS TEAM, UH, THEY'RE A GREAT PARTNER, MAKING SURE THINGS GET CLEANED UP AS QUICKLY AS WE CAN, ESPECIALLY IF IT'S ON PUBLIC RIGHT OF WAY.
UH, WE ALSO HAVE TO ENFORCE TO PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNERS BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO FIND A WAY, UH, TO HELP DETERRENT ON THEIR PRIVATE PROPERTY.
BUT SOMETIMES THAT'S A CHALLENGE BECAUSE THEY'RE THE VICTIM AS WELL.
UH, SO WE'RE OUT THERE, UH, FINDING IT, GETTING IT CLEANED UP.
UH, IT'S A VERY CHALLENGING, IT IS LIKE GRAFFITI WHERE IT'S HARD TO CATCH IT IN THE ACT AND THEN, AND THEN, UH, UH, AND THEN PROSECUTE THOSE VIOLATORS.
UH, BUT THE OTHER THING IS EDUCATING, UH, OUR COMMUNITY THAT THERE'S A LOT OF FREE SERVICES, UH, TO DUMP, UH, APPROPRIATELY.
AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, DAVID MCCAREY, DAVID NEWMAN HAVE EXPANDED THOSE SITES, UH, THROUGHOUT OUR CITY AND OFFERED SO MANY, UH, FREE AND INEXPENSIVE WAYS TO DO IT.
UH, SO IT'S, IT'S REALLY NOT AN EASY SOLUTION, BUT WE ARE OUT ENFORCING, WE ARE OUT CLEANING IT UP.
UH, CERTAINLY I KNOW WHEN WE SPOKE A LITTLE BIT AGO, UH, A FEW WEEKS AGO, UH, YOU HAD A CHALLENGING AREA, UH, THAT, THAT WE HAD SOME ATTENTION ON.
WE'RE GONNA GIVE IT SOME MORE ATTENTION.
UH, BUT ILLEGAL DUMPING IS ONE OF THE TOUGHER ONES, BUT WE'RE STILL OUT THERE DOING IT.
UM, MIKE, AND THEN MY OTHER QUESTION WAS REALLY ON GOALS.
AND ON PAGE 2 77, YOU, YOU BROUGHT THIS UP A WHILE AGO, GRAFFITI.
SO OUR, UH, 2020 TARGET, UM, FOR NUMBER OF GRAFFITI ABATED WAS 50,000.
UM, BUT OUR TARGET FOR NEXT YEAR IS 40,000, SO IT GOES DOWN BY 10,000.
CAN YOU MAYBE EXPLAIN WHAT THE REASONING WAS TO BRING THAT GOAL DOWN BY 10,000? SURE.
WELL, AT THE TIME, UH, WHEN WE WERE PUTTING THAT BUDGET DOCUMENT TOGETHER, UM, WE WERE, UH, CERTAINLY, UH, WE HAD FOUR, I THINK FOUR VACANCIES IN OUR GRAFFITI TEAM, UH, THAT WE KNEW THOSE WERE FROZEN.
UH, OUR, EACH ONE OF OUR GRAFFITI, UH, ABATEMENT TEAM MEMBERS, THEY DO A GREAT JOB, UH, YOU KNOW, FINDING GRAFFITI, RESPONDING TO GRAFFITI AND CLEANING IT UP, WHETHER IT BE PAINTING OVER IT, POWER WASHING, ET CETERA.
UH, BUT WE KNEW THAT, UH, YOU KNOW, ALMOST A QUARTER OF THE TEAM WOULD BE DOWN, UH, DUE TO THE PROS POSITION.
HOWEVER, I, I WILL TELL YOU, UH, YOU KNOW, FORTUNATE THAT, YOU KNOW, WE, WE'VE ACTUALLY ABSORBED A FEW OF THE, UH, POSITIONS.
UH, I THINK WE'VE GOT FOUR, UH, NEW TEAM MEMBERS THROUGH THE HOT FUND.
UH, THEY'RE GONNA BE WITH US FOR ABOUT A YEAR.
I THINK YOU GUYS WERE BRIEFED ON THAT A LITTLE BIT.
SO, UH, WE ACTUALLY EXPECT TO BE A LITTLE BIT CLOSER TO THAT 50,000 AS LONG, AS LONG AS WE CAN MAINTAIN THOSE, UH, THOSE NEW STAFF MEMBERS WE'RE EXCITED TO HAVE THEM.
UH, SO, UH, YOU KNOW, IT MIGHT BE THAT WE HIT THAT 50,000 AGAIN, AND NOW THAT WE'RE CLOSER TO FULLY STAFFED.
COUNCIL MEMBER R GARCIA, COUNCIL MEMBER COURAGE, FOLLOWED BY COUNCIL MEMBER ANDREW SULLIVAN.
UH, LEMME START OFF WITH HEBER.
UH, HEBER, UH, WAS REALLY IMPRESSED TO SEE HOW THE, UM, EDUCATIONAL OUTREACH THAT, UH, YOUR DEPARTMENT'S DOING TO TRY AND KEEP PEOPLE INFORMED ABOUT, UH, THEIR PETS AND THE SAFETY, TAKING CARE OF THEM DURING THIS TIME, AND ASKING FOR MORE PEOPLE TO COME AND, UH, YOU KNOW, BE FOSTERS.
UH, BUT I'M JUST WONDERING, YOU KNOW, THERE'S STILL A LOT OF PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO DON'T HAVE DIGITAL ACCESS, UH, AND THEY, WE THAT WE MAY NOT BE REACHING.
ARE THERE ANY OTHER AVENUES THAT, UH, YOUR DEPARTMENT'S USING
[01:15:01]
TO TALK WITH PEOPLE ABOUT THEIR PETS DURING THIS TIME? YES, COUNCILMAN PARTICULARLY, UH, THIS YEAR AS WELL AS NEXT YEAR, WE DO HAVE, UM, MARKETING FUNDING THAT WE'LL BE UTILIZING TO HELP PROVIDE SOME OF THAT EDUCATION THERE ON SITE, UM, AS THE, AS INDIVIDUALS ARE WALKING THE COMMUNITY, UM, WHETHER IT BE THROUGH RADIO, WHETHER IT BE THROUGH BILLBOARDS OR OTHER MECHANISMS, UM, WE DO CONTINUE TO WORK WITH SOME OF OUR PARTNERS WHO ARE PROVIDING SITES, AND THEN WE ARE STILL CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THE SCHOOLS, BUT JUST IN DIFFERENT WAYS.UH, SO YES, WE, WE ARE AWARE THAT THERE IS A POPULATION THAT MAY NOT HAVE THAT, THAT STILL NEEDS TO BE THAT INFORMATION.
NOW, KEEP IN MIND THAT I ALSO VIEW EVERY SINGLE ONE OF MY OFFICERS AS A FORM OF EDUCATING AND ENGAGING.
AND SO THAT MEANS THAT THE OFFICERS, AS THEY'RE WORKING IN THE COMMUNITY, THEY SHOULD ALSO BE HAVING THOSE CRUCIAL CONVERSATIONS WITH THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO BE ABLE TO MAKE SOME CHANGES IN, UH, BEHAVIOR.
THEY'RE STAYING WITH THEIR PETS, AND THE PETS ARE PROBABLY STAYING HOME WITH THEM, AS OPPOSED TO GETTING OUT AND WANDERING AROUND, WHICH IS ALWAYS, YOU KNOW, PART OF THE PROBLEM WE HAVE TO DEAL WITH.
AND AS MUCH AS WE CAN CONTINUE TO, I GUESS, CONGRATULATE PET OWNERS AND ENCOURAGE PET OWNERS, EVEN IF THEY'RE GONNA BE HEADING BACK TO WORK OR KIDS BACK TO SCHOOL, TO TRY AND MAINTAIN THAT CONTROL OVER THEIR PET, AND, UH, LET THEM KNOW THE VALUE IT HAS TO OUR CITY WHEN THEY DO THAT.
UH, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT'LL BE MAYBE A LONG LASTING IMPRESSION ON SO MANY OF THE PEOPLE WHO ARE SO CLOSER TO THEIR PETS NOW, THEY MAY, THEY MAY HAVE BEEN OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS.
SO I WOULD JUST ENCOURAGE YOU TO KEEP ON, UH, TRYING TO DELIVER THAT MESSAGE.
AND, UH, YOU KNOW, AS MUCH AS WE CAN ENCOURAGE PEOPLE AND SHOW THEM OUR APPRECIATION FOR THEM TAKING SUCH GOOD CARE OF THEIR PETS, YOU KNOW, AT THIS TIME WHILE THEY'RE ALL TOGETHER.
AND I JUST WANTED TO MENTION THAT.
OKAY, MIKE, UH, I HAD A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS FOR YOU.
YOU RELYING ON PART OF YOUR RESERVES TO HELP YOU, UH, MAKE YOUR BUDGET THIS TIME.
AND I THINK YOU SAID YOU HAD ABOUT THREE MONTH RESERVE AND THAT YOU'RE GOING TO USE ABOUT ONE MONTH OF IT.
CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT THOSE RESERVE FUNDS ARE? HOW MUCH IS IN THERE, AND WHAT'S A THIRD OF THAT, OR ONE MONTH OF THAT? ABSOLUTELY, COUNCILMAN.
SO, UM, AS, AS WE, WHEN WE CREATED THE ENTERPRISE FUND, UM, BACK IN APPROXIMATELY 2007, IT WAS CRITICAL TO, TO ENSURE WE HAD A RESERVE FUND, UH, DUE TO THE UPS AND DOWNS.
SO RIGHT NOW, UH, WE PROJECT ABOUT A $7.3 MILLION RESERVE, UH, WHICH IS ESSENTIALLY ABOUT THREE MONTHS WORTH OF OUR OPERATING EXPENSES.
UH, AND THAT'S, UH, I THINK IN LINE WITH SOME BEST PRACTICES.
UH, WE BELIEVE WE'LL TAKE ABOUT 2 MILLION OF THAT IF OUR PROJECTIONS, UH, PERMIT AND REVENUE, UH, ARE CORRECT.
AND
UH, BUT, UH, BUT TAKING ABOUT A THIRD OF THAT WOULD BE 2 MILLION, PUTTING THAT BACK INTO MY OPERATIONS, UM, SHOULD ENDORSE PERMIT, HOW MUCH DO YOU USUALLY HAVE ON AN AVERAGE YEAR OVER THE LAST THREE OR FOUR YEARS, GO INTO THAT RESERVE ACCOUNT AT THE END OF THE YEAR? IT, IT ACTUALLY STAYS FAIRLY STEADY.
WE TRY TO KEEP IT AT APPROXIMATELY THAT, UH, YOU KNOW, THAT SEVEN TO $8 MILLION RANGE BECAUSE THAT'S OUR GENERAL THREE MONTHS.
UH, THE REST OF IT, IF YOU REMEMBER LAST YEAR, THE REST OF ANY ADDITIONAL MONEY WE, WE TEND TO PUT INTO, UH, HIRING ADDITIONAL STAFF.
UH, LIKE LAST YEAR AT THIS TIME, WE WERE REQUESTING 14 ADDITIONAL STAFF, WHICH WERE PERMIT, UH, REVIEWERS, INSPECTORS TO KEEP WITH ADDITIONAL STAFF.
THAT'S, OF COURSE NOT THE CASE, BUT NOT TO BUILD UP THAT FUND MORE THAN THE TYPICAL, UH, BEST PRACTICE REPAIR OF APPROXIMATELY THREE MONTHS.
BUT IS, DO YOU USUALLY HAVE LEFTOVER A MILLION, 2 MILLION A YEAR TO HELP ACCUMULATE THAT? UH, WE, WE GENERALLY DON'T, BECAUSE LIKE I SAID, OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS, IT'S MAINTAINED AROUND THAT $7 MILLION, SEVEN AND A HALF MILLION DOLLARS RANGE THAT ADDITIONAL MONEY IS USED TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL SERVICES.
FOR EXAMPLE, NOT JUST LAST YEAR, BUT THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS WE'VE ADDED STAFF BECAUSE WE HAD TO KEEP UP WITH THE PERMIT ACTIVITY.
UM, I HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION, AND IT JUST CAUSED ME PAUSE WHEN I HEARD YOU SAY THIS.
HOW ACCURATE CAN YOUR REMOTE VIDEO INSPECTIONS BE? UH, I MEAN, I'LL GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE.
UH, I THOUGHT IT WAS GOING ALONG GREAT.
AND THEN, UH, THREE QUARTERS WAY THROUGH THE HOUSE, WE REALIZED THEY WERE BUILDING IT WRONG.
THEY WERE PUTTING THE ROOM IN THE WRONG AREA.
[01:20:01]
NOW, I WENT OUT AND LOOKED AT IT SEVERAL TIMES.OF COURSE, I'M NOT AN EXPERT, BUT, YOU KNOW, FROM, FROM A A CAMERA, HOW WELL CAN YOU INSPECT ELECTRIC WORK, PLUMBING WORK, CARPENTRY WORK? UH, YOU KNOW, I'M JUST A LITTLE LEERY THAT THAT'S AN EASIER WAY OR THE, THE BEST WAY FOR US TO DO INSPECTIONS.
AND ACTUALLY, THAT'S A SIMILAR QUESTION THAT I HAD WHEN WE STARTED THE PROGRAM.
UH, COUNCILMAN, UH, THIS IS ACTUALLY SOMETHING THAT'S HAPPENING, UH, THROUGHOUT THE NATION NOW.
UH, AND IT STARTED BEFORE EVEN COVID.
WE ACTUALLY, UH, WE STARTED TALKING ABOUT IT, UM, IN OCTOBER OR IN NOVEMBER LAST YEAR ABOUT HOW WE SHOULD TRY IT.
UH, BUT, BUT I WILL TELL YOU IT'S VERY ACCURATE, UH, THE TECHNOLOGY THAT NOT ONLY WE HAVE, WHICH IS A SMARTPHONE, A TABLET, UH, ALONG WITH ALL THE CONTRACTORS, AND REMEMBER, IT'S ABOUT 15% OF OUR INSPECTIONS.
AND MOST OF THE INSPECTIONS WE ARE DOING ARE ACTUALLY EITHER THE RE-INSPECTION WHERE THEY'VE JUST CORRECTED A FEW THINGS THAT WE'VE IDENTIFIED ON THE FIRST INSPECTION WHERE WE HAD TO FAIL IT, OR IT'S A VERY SIMPLE WATER HEATER REPLACEMENT, UH, OR CUP
WE'RE NOT DOING, WE'RE NOT DOING HIGH RISE HOTELS.
WE'RE NOT DOING, UH, EVEN BRAND NEW HOMES, COMPLETE BRAND NEW HOMES.
IT'S CONSISTENT WITH THE INDUSTRY NOW, UH, BUT IT, IT'S
SO WHAT I HEAR YOU SAYING, IT ISN'T STANDARD FOR EVERYTHING.
IT'S USED MOSTLY FOR FOLLOW-UP INSPECTIONS ARE VERY EASILY SPECIALIZED TYPE OF INSPECTIONS.
BUT IT'S ABOUT 150 INSPECTIONS A DAY THAT WE DO.
UH, WE GOT ABOUT A THOUSAND INSPECTIONS A DAY, UH, BUT WE'RE ABLE TO DO THOSE EFFICIENTLY.
WELL, I THINK THAT THAT ANSWERS MY QUESTION.
COUNCIL MEMBER COURAGE, COUNCIL MEMBER ANDREW SULLIVAN, FOLLOWED BY COUNCIL MEMBER GONZALEZ.
UM, THANK YOU MAYOR, AND THANK YOU HEBERT.
WHEN IT COMES TO, UM, THE NUMBERS OF CALLS AND THE PICKUPS AND, UM, THE DIFFERENT ANIMALS THAT ARE, UM, ACTUALLY CAPTURED WITHIN THESE CALLS, IS THERE A WAY THAT WE CAN GET A BREAKDOWN OF DISTRICT SPECIFIC NUMBERS, UM, AND LOCATIONS ON, UH, THE CALLS THAT WE'VE HAD? YEAH, SO WE CAN PROVIDE YOU A BREAKDOWN, UH, PER DISTRICT AS FOR THE NUMBER OF SERVICE REQUESTS, UM, AND WHAT TYPE OF SERVICE REQUESTS, UH, BY CATEGORY.
SO I CAN PROVIDE THAT FOR YOU WITHOUT A PROBLEM.
AND DO YOU KNOW IF, UM, THERE HAVE BEEN ANY, UH, SUITES OF RANDOM DOGS THAT HAVE NOT BEEN CALLED IN, BUT JUST AS WE'RE GOING THROUGH, UM, THIS PANDEMIC, HAS THERE BEEN ANY RANDOM JUST COMPLETE DISTRICT SUITES? SO YES.
WE, WE ARE CONTINUING TO PROVIDE SWEEP SERVICES.
UH, WHAT WE GENERALLY DO WILL LOOK AT WHERE THE CALLS ARE COMING IN, IDENTIFY THE PLACES WHERE WE ARE SEEING A LOT OF STRAY DOGS, AND THEN ASSIGN SOME OF OUR OFFICERS TO DO PROACTIVE WORK IN THAT AREA.
SO THAT, THAT HAS BEEN HAPPENING, UM, PRIOR TO THE COVID PANDEMIC, AND IT CONTINUES TO HAPPEN, UH, EVEN NOW.
AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE WORK YOU'RE DOING.
UM, WE KNOW THAT THAT WAS ONE OF THE THINGS WE WERE HEARING, UM, WHEN THE PANDEMIC FIRST STARTED WITHIN THE DISTRICT, WAS THAT THERE WAS, UM, DOGS JUST RUNNING ABOUT EVERYWHERE.
UM, AND THEN NOT BEING ABLE TO PROVIDE A SPECIFIC LOCATION, BECAUSE OF COURSE, DOGS, UM, TEND TO ROAM.
AND SO, UM, HOW ARE WE TACKLING THAT ISSUE, UM, WHEN A PERSON KNOWS THAT THESE DOGS ARE OUT THERE ROAMING, BUT THEY HAVE NO SPECIFIC LOCATION, HOW CAN THEY TRULY GET SERVICES, UM, TO HELP THEM TO, UM, HAVE THESE ANIMALS PICKED UP? SO COUNCILWOMAN, MOST OF THESE PETS THAT ARE ROAMING FREE OF RESTRAINT ARE OWNED PETS.
THEY'RE NOT STRAIGHT, WHICH MEANS THAT, UH, THESE ARE USUALLY PETS THAT ARE STAYING AROUND IN THE AREA.
UH, FROM MY EXPERIENCE, UH, IT IS TRUE THAT WE MAY NOT BE, IF WE SHOW UP, WE MAY NOT BE ABLE TO FIND IT AT THAT PARTICULAR POINT OF TIME.
BUT IF THERE IS A RESIDENT WHO WE CAN WORK WITH, UH, OR A, A COMMUNITY THAT WE ARE ABLE TO WORK WITH TO, UH, IDENTIFY THE PATTERNS, WE ARE OFTENTIMES ABLE TO FIND THESE PETS, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, IDENTIFY THE PET OWNERS AND HAVE THE CRITICAL CONVERSATIONS WITH THE PET OWNERS.
AND SO, I KNOW THAT WE DO HAVE COUNCIL, WE HAVE A, UH, OFFICER THAT WORKS WITH YOUR DISTRICT AND IN YOUR DISTRICT, UM, THAT PROVIDES A LOT OF THOSE SERVICES THAT REALLY KNOWS YOUR COMMUNITY BETTER THAN ANYBODY ELSE.
AND, AND WE KNOW THAT AMY IS DOING THE BEST JOB,
[01:25:01]
UH, SHE CAN WITH ALL OF OUR PACKS OF DOGS THAT WE HAVE ROAMING.UM, I KNOW, UM, DURING COVID, WE ALSO HAD A CALL FOR AN ALLIGATOR.
IS, IS THAT CORRECT? YEAH, I CAN'T REMEMBER THE DETAILS, BUT I DO RECALL THERE WAS ONE CALL FOR AN ALLIGATOR WHERE WE, WE DID PROVIDE SOME ASSISTANCE ON THAT ONE.
WE, WE REACHED OUT TO, I THINK, WILDLIFE RESCUE WHO ALSO HELPED.
'CAUSE I WAS JUST GONNA ASK WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THAT, THAT GATOR, WHERE DID HE GO TO? OR, UM, WHERE DO WE, DO WE SEND THEM TO A SPECIFIC LOCATION WHEN WE GET THOSE CALLS? HOW, HOW DOES THAT WORK? SO IF I RECALL CORRECTLY ON THAT PARTICULAR CASE, UH, WE DID HAVE A, UH, WILDLIFE RESCUE OR ANOTHER ORGANIZATION THAT HAD THAT SKILLSET TO BE ABLE TO CARE FOR AND TO BE ABLE TO RELOCATE THAT ALLIGATOR TO A SAFER LOCATION.
UH, IN SOME CASES, WE DO TEMPORARILY BRING IT BACK TO A C SS, WHERE WE HAVE, UM, TEMPORARY HOUSING THAT WE CAN CREATE FOR, FOR THEM, AT LEAST THE SMALLER ALLIGATORS, UH, UNTIL WE CAN FIND, UM, A MORE, UH, MORE, A BETTER PLACE TO BE ABLE TO, A SAFER PLACE TO PUT THAT.
WELL, THANK YOU SARAH, FOR EVER FRIENDS.
WE REALLY APPRECIATE THE WORK THAT A C SS IS DOING.
UM, MIKE, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR CONTINUOUSLY ANSWERING OUR EMAILS AND OUR CALLS FROM OUR DISTRICT, UH, RESIDENTS THAT HAVE CONCERNS.
I KNOW THAT YOU HAVE CONTINUOUSLY HELPED WITH ONE AREA THAT HAS BEEN A BURDEN OVER BY THE FALSE PARK WITH CONTINUOUS DUMPING, AND SO WE THANK YOU FOR THAT WORK.
UM, THE QUESTIONS THAT I HAVE FOR YOU ARE IN RELATION TO THE U D C CHANGE AMENDMENTS.
UM, ARE WE STILL ACCEPTING THOSE CHANGE AMENDMENT REQUESTS OR, UM, HAS THAT BEEN CLOSED FOR NOW? UH, WELL, WE, WE ACTUALLY ARE STILL ACCEPTING THEM.
UM, WE, WE, WE HAVEN'T RECEIVED ANY BECAUSE WE'VE TOLD EVERYBODY THAT THEY'RE ON PAUSE.
BUT, UH, IF ANYBODY WANTS TO SUBMIT ANY, UH, AND I THINK SOME DID, EVEN WHEN WE ANNOUNCED THE PAUSE, UH, WE STILL HAVE VERY FEW.
BUT, UM, IF ANYBODY HAS AN IDEA SO THAT WHEN WE DO GET STARTED, MY TEAM AND I WILL ACCEPT THAT.
UH, WE'RE ALSO, UH, FIELDING CALLS ABOUT POTENTIAL, UH, U D C AMENDMENTS.
MANY TIMES, UM, A RESIDENT OR A BUSINESS MAY NOT KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THEY WANT, UM, HOW TO, HOW TO CHANGE IT, BUT THEY KNOW WHAT THEY WANT TO CHANGE.
UM, SO WE'LL HELP 'EM, YOU KNOW, GET THAT IN THE SYSTEM.
AND, UM, UNDER THE C D B G REDUCTION, UM, FROM THREE TO ONE ARE, UH, THREE, THREE TO TWO, EXCUSE ME.
UM, DO WE KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO THAT ONE POSITION, UM, THAT'S BEING LOST? UM, IS THAT PERSON JUST GONE, OR WHAT, WHAT'S HAPPENING THERE? NO, THE, THE, THE C D B G FUNDING, UH, EACH YEAR, YOU KNOW, WE'VE HAD THREE POSITIONS.
UH, WE'VE ACTUALLY HAD A VACANCY ON THAT FOR QUITE SOME TIME.
UH, WHILE, UH, IT'S A CRITICAL POSITION, UH, IT'S A LITTLE BIT HARDER TO KEEP BECAUSE IT IS, UM, UH, UH, IT IS GRANT FUNDED.
UH, BUT IN CONVERSATIONS, UH, WITH NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSING SERVICES DEPARTMENTS, UH, MAYBE UTILIZING SOME OF THOSE FUNDS, UH, TO, UH, MAYBE REPAIR SOME MORE HOMES.
IF WE HAVE A VACANCY TIED UP HERE THAT'S NOT REALLY BEING USED, UH, UH, EFFICIENTLY AND EFFECTIVELY, UH, MAYBE THERE'S SOME BETTER USE.
SO WE AGREED THAT THAT WOULD PROBABLY A BETTER USE THIS YEAR TO TRY, UH, TO TRY TO GIVE SOME OF THAT MONEY TO DO SOME REPAIR WORK ON SOME OF THOSE HOMES THAT NEED IT, UH, TO KEEP THEM OUT OF CODE ENFORCEMENT, A LITTLE BIT MORE PROACTIVE WAY TO DO IT.
UH, SO WE'RE GONNA, UH, TRY THAT, UH, THIS YEAR.
UM, AND WE THINK IT'LL BE EFFECTIVE.
AND MY LAST QUESTION THAT I HAVE FOR YOU, MIKE, UM, IN RELATION TO PERMITS, I KNOW SOME OF THE RESIDENTIAL PERMITS HAVE BEEN PUT ON HOLD, UM, AS WE WENT THROUGH THE PANDEMIC, HAVE WE PICKED BACK UP PANDEMIC? HAVE WE PICKED BACK UP DOING THOSE RESIDENTIAL PERMITS AS OF YET? WELL, WELL, NONE OF THE, NONE OF THE RESIDENTIAL PERMITS WERE EVER PUT ON HOLD.
WE WERE ALWAYS ACCEPTING, UH, THE RESIDENTIAL PERMITS.
UM, AS I MENTIONED, UH, WHEN WE CLOSED OUR BUILDING TO THE PUBLIC AND JUST DID, UH, DROP OFF PICKUP, UH, IT DID CAUSE, UH, SOME CHALLENGES IN THOSE FIRST COUPLE OF WEEKS, UH, WITH EITHER HOMEOWNERS OR SMALL BUSINESS CONTRACTORS THAT WERE USED TO JUST WALKING INTO OUR BUILDING, TALKING WITH ONE OF OUR TEAM MEMBERS, FILLING IT OUT RIGHT THERE.
UH, SO THERE WAS SOME GROWING PAINS THAT FIRST COUPLE OF WEEKS AND INTO THAT FIRST MONTH.
UH, BUT WE ARE UP AND RUNNING.
WE DO HAVE THOSE CONSULTATIONS I'VE TALKED ABOUT WHERE YOU CAN TALK TO SOMEONE ON THE PHONE, THEY CAN HELP YOU WALK, UH, YOU KNOW, IF YOU WANT TO BUILD A DECK ON YOUR HOUSE OR JUST RENOVATE SOMETHING, OR IF YOU'RE A SMALL BUSINESS, IF THAT'S YOUR JOB.
UH, WE SPEND A LOT OF TIME BECAUSE WE WANT THEM IN HERE SO THEY CAN GET TO WORK, UH, AND, AND PROVIDE FOR THEIR STAFF OR TO GET THEIR RENOVATION JOB DONE ON THEIR HOME.
WELL, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL OF
[01:30:01]
YOUR WORK.THANK YOU FOR CONTINUOUSLY, UM, ASSISTING OUR RESIDENTS OF DISTRICT TWO AS THEY CONTINUE TO SIT IN THEIR CONCERNS.
AND, UM, WE'RE JUST LOOKING FORWARD TO, TO SEEING EVERYTHING DEVELOPED IN A, IN A MORE PROGRESSIVE MANNER.
COUNCIL MEMBER ANDREW SULLIVAN, COUNCIL MEMBER GONZALEZ, FOLLOWED BY COUNCIL MEMBER LIA.
UM, ANNA, THANKS FOR THE PRESENTATION.
I LIKE COUNCILWOMAN
UM, YOU GUYS, UH, ALWAYS MADE THAT ENTERTAINING, UM, WHEN WE DID THE ANIMAL CARE SERVICES, UH, PRESENTATION.
UM, ALSO, UH, I FEEL LIKE WE'VE COME A LONG WAY IN DEVELOP, IN ANIMAL CARE SERVICES.
I THINK OF ALL THE DEPARTMENTS, UM, IS WHERE I'VE SEEN THE MOST TRANSFORMATION IS IN ANIMAL CARE SERVICES.
UH, WHEN I FIRST GOT ONTO THE COUNCIL IN 2008, I'M SORRY, 2013, UM, MY COLLEAGUES WILL RECALL ME SAYING THAT I, UM, HAD FOSTERED, UH, 33, UH, DOGS, UH, AND MOVED THEM ONTO, UM, HOMES.
AND THEN, YOU KNOW, ONCE THE CHILDREN CAME, I, I COULDN'T REALLY DO THAT ANYMORE.
UH, AND THEN ONE OF THE DOGS I FOSTERED ENDED UP, UH, BEING A LITTLE BIT AGGRESSIVE, SO WE ENDED UP KEEPING HER OURSELVES.
UH, BUT WHAT WE'VE HAD, UM, I KNOW, UH, AT LEAST ONE OFFICER ADDED, UH, TO, UH, EACH COUNCIL DISTRICT, DO WE HAVE TWO NOW IN DISTRICT FIVE? I FELT LIKE OVER THE YEARS I HEARD THAT WE HAD ADDED ANOTHER EBERT.
DO WE STILL HAVE JUST ONE OR DO WE HAVE TWO? SO THERE'S ONE THAT'S SPECIFICALLY ASSIGNED TO, TO WORK IN THE AREA AROUND YOUR DISTRICT AND THE, THE HIGH NEED AREAS.
UH, THAT BEING SAID, UH, WE DID ADD, UH, IN THE PAST BUDGET, WE DID ADD POSITIONS TO ENHANCE ACROSS THE CITY, UH, THE SERVICE LEVEL, LEVEL.
SO I KNOW THAT I THINK SINCE THEN, WE'VE ADDED OFFICERS TO OTHER DISTRICTS AS WELL.
UM, AND, YOU KNOW, WE HAD, UM, I MEAN, I USED TO WALK HOME FROM WORK, UH, AND I WOULD PICK UP PUPPIES LIKE IN THE STREET.
THERE WERE, UM, THAT WAS HOW PREVALENT THE ANIMALS WERE, BUT THAT'S CHANGED A LOT.
UH, BUT IT STILL SEEMS TO BE ONE OF THE HIGHER COMPLAINTS, UM, IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD, IS THAT WE HAVE A LOT OF LOOSE DOGS.
AND SO, UM, WE HAD, UH, STARTED A PROGRAM A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO THAT WOULD HELP, UM, UH, HOMEOWNERS LIKE REPAIR A FENCE OR DO SOME TRAINING TO KEEP THE DOGS FROM RUNNING.
I, TRUE CONFESSIONS COUNCIL MEMBERS.
I ALSO HAVE THAT SAME DOG THAT'S KIND OF, UH, AGGRESSIVE THAT WE KEPT, SHE GETS OUT
UM, AND IT'S, YOU KNOW, OF COURSE, TERRIBLY EMBARRASSING WHEN, UH, MY DOG IS RUNNING OUT.
BUT WHAT, WHAT HAPPENED? DO WE STILL HAVE THOSE PROGRAM? WELL, I MEAN, UH, PERHAPS WITH COVID IT'S HARDER, BUT DO WE STILL HAVE FUNDING AVAILABLE FOR THOSE PROGRAMS TO, UM, HELP HONE OWNERS WITH TRAINING AND ALSO TO REPAIR FENCES AND THAT SORT OF THING? YEAH, COUNCILMAN, WE, WE WORK WITH THE COURTS TO BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY THE NEEDS, AND THEN THERE ARE SOME FUNDS THAT ARE AVAILABLE AS WE WORK WITH THE COURTS TO BE ABLE TO REDIRECT, TO ASSIST THOSE, THOSE INDIVIDUALS THAT MAY NOT, UM, HAVE THE RESOURCES, UM, TO BE ABLE TO HELP THEM TO KEEP THEIR PETS ON THEIR PROPERTY AND TO DO THE THINGS THAT ARE REQUIRED.
UH, AS A RESPONSIBLE PET OWNER, I THINK IT WAS A GRANT MAYBE FROM PETCO, UM, OR SOMETHING WHERE, OR MAYBE ANOTHER ORGANIZATION THAT WENT OUT AND REPAIRED FENCES AND STUFF LIKE THAT.
I THINK WHAT, UH, THAT IS CORRECT.
WE'VE ALSO HAD SOME GRANTS WHERE WE'VE GONE OUT AND WE'VE WORKED WITH THE PETCO FOUNDATION, PETSMARTS, UH, FOUNDATION TO BE ABLE TO PROVIDE, UM, FUNDING TO BE ABLE TO HELP SUPPORT THOSE.
UH, WE'RE, ARE WE STILL DOING THE TRAINING? WELL, NOT, I MEAN, THE, I KNOW IN COVID WE CAN'T, BUT WERE WE, PRIOR TO COVID STILL DOING TRAINING? UH, YES.
WE ARE PROVIDING, UH, WE DID PRIOR TO, AND WE ARE PROVIDING, UH, TRAINING FOR OWNED PETS.
UH, RIGHT NOW WE ARE DOING IT DIGITALLY.
MAKING AVAILABLE FOR PEOPLE TO BE ABLE TO, OR ONCE A WEEK WE HAVE A, UH, A PET TRAINER KIND OF OPPORTUNITY WHERE PEOPLE CAN ASK QUESTIONS, UM, AND JUST BE ABLE TO HAVE A DISCUSSION ABOUT HOW THEY CAN SOCIALIZE PETS.
UM, SO WE ARE STILL CONTINUING TO DO THAT, BUT JUST THROUGH A DIFFERENT, UH, RESOURCE.
WELL, I, I THINK THOSE ARE ALL IMPORTANT AND, AND REALLY BIG TRANSFORMATIONS THAT I KNOW I'VE, YEAH.
I'VE SEEN AND I HAVE APPRECIATED, UH, IN ANIMAL CARE SERVICES.
I KNOW SINCE I'VE BEEN ON THE COUNCIL, WE'VE ADDED AT LEAST $5 MILLION TO ANIMAL CARE SERVICES BUDGET, UH, OVER THE YEARS.
AND, UM, I THINK Y'ALL HAVE DONE
[01:35:01]
AN INCREDIBLE JOB WITH THAT, UM, FUNDING, UM, UH, ESPECIALLY, UM, AS IT RELATES TO MORE COMMUNITY EDUCATION IN SPAY NEUTER.THAT WAS A BIG ONE, UM, THAT I, I HAVE TO ADMIT, I DIDN'T FEEL CONFIDENT WOULD, UM, WORK.
AND IT LOOKS LIKE IT HAS BEEN INCREDIBLE, UM, IN, IN, UH, UH, REDUCING THE NUMBER OF, OF PETS, UM, THAT ARE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
SO THANK YOU FOR ALL THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE, UH, OVER THERE, UH, WITH ANIMAL CARE AND ESPECIALLY TO, UH, THE TEAM IN DISTRICT FIVE.
UM, THAT'S, THAT, UH, IS OUT IN THE COMMUNITY EVERY DAY.
AND MY ANIMAL CARE SERVICES APPOINTEE, WHO I KNOW THAT IF WE WERE LIVE, AND SHE MAY BE ON THE CALL SOMEWHERE LISTENING AT, UH, KAREN SPEAR.
SHE ALWAYS CAME, UM, TO, UH, CITY HALL WHENEVER WE DISCUSSED ANIMAL CARE SERVICES.
SO KAREN, I HOPE YOU'RE DOING WELL.
HAVEN'T SEEN YOU IN PERSON IN A LONG TIME.
UM, SO THE OTHER, UH, THING I JUST, I WANTED TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT DEVELOPMENT SERVICES.
UM, SO, YOU KNOW, MIKE, WE IN, UH, I'M, I'M COMMUNICATING WITH MY STAFF.
I KNOW THAT THERE ARE, UH, THERE CONTINUES TO BE A HIGH NUMBER OF DEMOLITIONS IN DISTRICT FIVE, YOU KNOW, AND IN FACT, IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THAT IN THIS MONTH'S MEETING FOR, UM, UH, THE BUSINESS STANDARDS BOARD, WE HAVE EIGHT POTENTIAL DEMOLITIONS, UM, COMING UP BEFORE COMMITTEE.
AND SO I, IT IS AN ISSUE THAT I FEEL LIKE WE HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO RESOLVE, UM, IN ALL THESE YEARS, IS A HIGH NUMBER OF DEMOLITIONS, AND ESPECIALLY AS WE'RE ADDRESSING AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND THE NEED FOR, UH, HOUSING.
UM, IS THERE ANY POLICY CHANGES THAT WE COULD DO THAT WOULD HELP REDUCE THE NUMBER OF DEMOLITIONS, UH, IN THE DISTRICT? WELL, UM, COUNCILWOMAN, I THINK IT'S A, IT IS, AGAIN, IT'S A CHALLENGE.
UM, YOU KNOW, AS YOU KNOW, DEMOLITION IS, IS ALWAYS THE LAST RESORT, RIGHT? AND, AND EVEN BY CODE, IT'S REQUIRED, UH, THAT WE GO THROUGH A VERY LENGTHY PROCESS, UH, AND MAKE SURE THAT THERE'S, UH, NO OTHER, UH, WAY TO ABATE THE HAZARD.
UH, CERTAINLY DISTRICT FIVE, YOU'RE RIGHT, IT HAS THE MOST, UH, NUMBER OF, UH, BUILDING STANDARDS, BOARDS CASES, UH, THAT DEAL WITH DEMOLITION.
UM, UH, IT'S ABOUT A, ABOUT A THIRD, LITTLE UNDER A THIRD OF THE OVERALL CASES.
UH, CERTAINLY DISTRICTS ONE AND TWO, UH, HAVE A LITTLE BIT HIGHER NUMBER AS WELL.
UH, THAT'S NOT, UH, THAT'S, THAT'S NOT UNCOMMON FOR, FOR SOME OF THE OLDER HOUSING STOCKS THAT ARE, THAT ARE, UH, YOU KNOW, UNOCCUPIED.
UM, WE'VE HAD SOME CONVERSATIONS WITH NOT ONLY YOUR STAFF, BUT MANY OF THE, THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS, UH, TO SEE IF THERE'S A WAY AND, AND HAVE STARTED TO, UH, SEE IF THERE'S A WAY TO GET THOSE HOMES.
UM, THE UNOCCUPIED, UH, THERE ARE A FEW THAT ARE OCCUPIED WHEN IT'S OCCUPIED.
UH, WE WORK WITH E H S, UM, MELODY AND HER TEAM, UH, TO GET HELP, UH, FOR THOSE PEOPLE, UH, THAT NEED IT.
UH, AND ALSO TO CONNECT THEM WITH NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSING SERVICES THAT HAVE, UH, FUNDING PROGRAMS LIKE OWNER OCCUPIED REHABS OR, OR UNDER ONE ROOF ROOF PROGRAM TO SEE IF THOSE CAN HELP.
AND SOMETIMES THOSE ARE SUCCESSFUL, UH, BUT THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT NEED.
UH, BUT AFTER A YEAR OR TWO OF TRYING TO GET IT, UM, YOU KNOW, REPAIRED, IF THERE IS NONE, UH, THEN, UH, MANY TIMES DEMOLITION IS THE LAST RESORT AND HAS TO HAPPEN.
UH, AGAIN, OF ALL THE CODE CASES THAT WE WORK ON, UH, WE DO ABOUT 70 TO 80 DEMOLITIONS A YEAR, UH, OUT OF THE THOUSANDS OF CODE CASES WE WORK ON.
SO, AGAIN, IT'S, IT'S NOT THAT MANY, BUT TO YOUR POINT, UM, IT IS SOMETHING WE, WE WORK WITH, UH, AND, AND TRY TO FIND NEW SOLUTIONS, BUT, UH, THERE IS A BIG DEMAND THERE.
UH, SO, YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY WE CAN, UH, UM, YOU KNOW, I'LL BE WORKING ALSO.
UM, I MEAN, ERIC, A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, YOU KNOW, WE TALKED ABOUT AT LEAST, UM, CONCENTRATING ON SOME OF THE HISTORIC, UM, HOMES BECAUSE THERE ARE, OR, OR BUILDINGS.
UM, I HAD QUITE A FEW HISTORIC, UH, BUILDINGS IN THE COMMUNITY THAT, UH, WERE IN A TERRIBLE STATE OF DISREPAIR.
AND I SUSPECT, UM, WERE THEY NOT HISTORIC, WOULD PROBABLY BE DEMOLISHED.
AND WE TALKED ABOUT, UM, UH, PERHAPS IN, UM, TRYING TO REDEVELOP THOSE AND TURN THEM INTO, UM, HOUSING, MAYBE TRANSITIONAL HOUSING OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
UM, AND, AND WE HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN.
I HOPE I CAN GET THAT DONE IN, IN, UH, BEFORE THE END OF MY TERM, UH, BECAUSE, UM, THOSE, I MEAN, IT'S BEEN A COUPLE OF YEARS NOW AND WE HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO ADDRESS THE, THOSE, UH, ESPECIALLY THE HISTORIC HOMES.
UM, AND SO, YOU KNOW, I, I, I BELIEVE THAT WE STILL HAVE A LOT OF ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT, UH, IN THIS REGARD.
UM, ESPECIALLY AS WE'RE, AS WE'RE MAKING AFFORDABLE HOUSING A PRIORITY, ESPECIALLY AS WE ARE, YOU KNOW, TELLING OUR COMMUNITIES
[01:40:01]
THAT THEY HAVE TO STAY HOME.UM, WE'VE GOT TO GIVE THEM, UH, SOME OTHER OPTIONS, UM, UH, IN THE EVENT THAT, THAT WE HAVE TO GO THROUGH SECOND WAVE OR SOMETHING, UH, OF COVID AND WE GET ORDERS TO STAY HOME, UH, WE'VE GOTTA FIND, UM, UH, SOME SORT OF SOLUTION TO THIS.
SO I'LL LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH THE WHOLE TEAM TO CREATE, UH, SOME, UM, INITIATIVES THAT, UM, YOU REALLY ADDRESS MULTIPLE THINGS, YOU KNOW, OF THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING CRISIS THAT, UH, MANY PEOPLE ARE EXPERIENCING, RESTORING SOME OLD HISTORIC HOMES, UH, AND ALSO SAVING THEM FROM DEMOLITION.
UH, SO, UH, YOU KNOW, WE'LL CONTINUE TO, TO, TO WORK ON THIS.
UH, HEBER, I'M, I'M LOOKING AT, UH, SLIDE NUMBER 11 OF YOUR PRESENTATION, THE PERFORMANCE METRICS.
UM, YOU'RE, YOU'RE GONNA GET MY SUPPORT FOR THE PROPOSED BUDGET, AND I, I, I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT.
I, I RECENTLY READ THAT, UM, LEADERSHIP MEANS TELLING PEOPLE WHERE YOU'VE BEEN, WHERE YOU ARE AND WHERE YOU'RE GOING.
AND I THINK THAT WE'RE CLEARLY GOING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.
I, I DO THINK IT'S A MISTAKE, HOWEVER, TO JUST LIMIT US TO THE, YOU KNOW, UH, FOR, UH, TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT ANIMAL SERVICES IS DOING A GOOD JOB, WHICH I THINK IT IS.
UH, I THINK IT'S A LITTLE UNFAIR FOR EV FOR YOU GUYS, UH, TO LIMIT IT JUST TO A, HEY, LET'S LOOK AT FY 2019 AND FY 2020 FOR THESE METRICS.
'CAUSE, YOU KNOW, WHILE Y'ALL HAVE BEEN TALKING, I, I'M SITTING HERE REMEMBERING WHEN I GOT TO SAN ANTONIO IN 1992 TO GO TO COLLEGE HERE IN 92, THERE WERE A BUNCH OF HORRIBLE ARTICLES IN THE NEWS THAT I REMEMBER, UM, ABOUT ANIMAL CARE SERVICES.
AND YOU KNOW, HOW ABYSMAL A JOB WE WERE DOING WAY BACK THEN.
UM, AND SO WHILE WE WERE JUST TALKING RIGHT NOW, UH, I, I WENT BACK AND I, I LOOKED, AND IT'S, IT'S PRETTY SIMPLE.
IN 2012, I FOUND AN ARTICLE THAT SAYS, ANIMAL CARE SERVICES REACHES A NEW MILESTONE.
AND THE BYLINE IS ANIMAL CARE SERVICES MOVED CLOSER TO THE CITY'S NO KILL GOAL BY POSTING A 67% LIVE RELEASE RATE.
AND THEN THE WHOLE ARTICLE GOES ON TO CONGRATULATE OURSELVES FOR HITTING 90 FOR, FOR HITTING A 67% RELEASE RATE.
I MEAN, TODAY, IT'S WORTH NOTING WE'RE, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS IT, 91.8 KEEPER? IS THAT RIGHT? THAT'S CORRECT, YEAH.
THAT'S AN AMAZING, YOU KNOW, INCREASE IN RELEASE RATE.
UM, AND THEN I WENT BACK TO 2005 ARTICLE, AND, YOU KNOW, IT WAS, UH, A BUNCH OF INTERVIEWS OF, OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS CONGRATULATING THEMSELVES BECAUSE THE CITY, UH, WAS FINALLY GONNA STOP EUTHANIZING ANIMALS BY WAY OF CARBON DIOXIDE GASSING.
AND THEN WE WERE FINALLY GONNA START BEING MORE HUMANE AND USING INJECTIONS.
UM, AND THEN I WENT BACK ALL THE WAY TO 1992, AND THIS IS WHAT I FOUND, UM, A 1992 EXPRESS NEWS ARTICLE THAT SAYS THE CITY'S ANIMAL CONTROL DIVISION HAS BEEN IMPOUNDING 45,000 STRAY DOGS AND CATS ANNUALLY.
AND IT WAS FINDING HOMES BREED RESCUERS OR PRIVATE SHELTERS TO TAKE 4,000 OF THEM LEAVING 41,000 OF THESE ANIMALS TO BE DESTROYED IN A GAS CHAMBER.
AND THEN, UH, AND LATER ON THE ARTICLE, IT SAYS THAT THE CHAIRWOMAN OF THE AL ANIMAL ADVISORY COMMISSION SAID THAT SAN ANTONIO, WITH ONE OF THE NATION'S HIGHEST ANIMAL EUTHANASIA RATES PER CAPITAL, SHOULD ALSO CONSIDER A SPAY AND NEUTER PROGRAM.
WE DIDN'T EVEN HAVE A SPAY AND NEUTER PROGRAM BACK THEN.
AND THIS IS THE QUOTE, AND I THINK THIS IS AN AMAZING QUOTE.
SHE SAYS, SAN ANTONIO WILL NEVER BE A NO KILL CITY IN OUR LIFETIME.
SAN ANTONIO WILL HAVE TO MAKE SOME DRASTIC SOCIETAL CHANGES TO EMBRACE HAVING PETS SPAYED OR NEUTERED.
AND SO I'M LOOKING AT, YOU KNOW, UH, YOUR SLIDE NUMBER 11, SPAY AND NEUTER SURGERIES, UH, FOR 2020, YOU'RE GONNA BE HITTING 34,000.
AND ON TOP OF THAT 15,000 MICROCHIPS FOR THIS YEAR, UH, PETS ADOPTED OUT, PETS, RESCUED PETS RETURNED TO THEIR OWNERS, AND THEN A LIVE RELEASE RATE OF 91.8.
I, I THINK YOU GUYS ARE WORTH EVERY PENNY WE'RE SPENDING ON YOU.
AND AGAIN, I, I THINK IT'S UNFAIR TO YOU, HEBER, THAT WE DON'T HELP SAN ANTONIO GO DOWN MEMORY LANE ALL THE WAY BACK TO 1992 MORE OFTEN TO SHOW THEM THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, THERE REALLY IS DIVIDENDS PAID OFF WHEN YOU INVEST AND ADEQUATELY FUND A DEPARTMENT.
SO, ERIC, UM, I DON'T KNOW TO WHAT EXTENT YOU'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL OF THIS, UH, BUT, YOU KNOW, FEEL FREE AND YOU AND YOUR STAFF TO TAKE A VICTORY LAP.
THIS IS A, A, A, A REALLY, REALLY SPECIAL MOMENT FOR ME, UH, AS MY TIME AS A CITY COUNCIL MEMBER TO HIGHLIGHT THIS ENORMOUS SUCCESS YOU HAVE.
[01:45:01]
THANKS, MAYOR.COUNCIL MEMBER LIAS, COUNCIL MEMBER PERRY.
UM, HEBERT, UM, KIND OF ECHOING, MAYBE NOT ALL OF COUNCILMAN S'S COMMENTS, BUT, UH, GREAT JOB AND, AND WITH YOUR ORGANIZATION DOING, UH, FANTASTIC JOB AND, AND, AND, UH, CONTROLLING AND, UM, SAVING, SAVING ANIMALS' LIVES.
I DON'T REALLY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR YOU, BUT, UH, UH, THANKS AGAIN FOR, FOR YOUR PRESENTATION.
UM, MIKE, I DO HAVE SOME QUESTIONS FOR YOU THOUGH.
UM, I, FIRST OF ALL, I WANNA, UH, GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO AMIN TOMAS.
UH, HE'S BEEN VERY, VERY HELPFUL AND, AND HAS REALLY HELPED DISTRICT 10 OUT A LOT OF DIFFERENT WAYS.
AND, UH, YOUR WHOLE STAFF OVER THERE IS A GREAT TEAM.
AND YES, I STILL REMEMBER A LOT OF THEM FROM MY DAYS AS A CHAIRMAN OF THE BUILDING STANDARDS BOARD.
AND THAT I REALLY, REALLY ENJOYED THAT JOB AS WELL.
BUT, UH, HAVING SAID THAT, UM, CAN YOU GO TO THE SLIDE THAT SHOWS THE DECREASE IN THE NUMBER OF BUILDING PERMITS? UM, THAT'S, UM, THAT'S SOME PRETTY, PRETTY STEEP DROPS IN WHAT WE'RE PREDICTING OR, UH, AND HAPPENING FOR 21, BOTH IN 20 AND 21.
NOW, IF YOU CAN GO TO THE, UH, UM, GOSH, THAT'S THE THIRD, THIRD OF A DROP ON THE, UH, ESPECIALLY ON THE COMMERCIAL MM-HMM.
BUT NOW IF YOU CAN GO TO YOUR SLIDE THAT HAS A BUDGET.
UM, I GUESS HOW, AND IT GOES TO MY QUESTION ABOUT THE TEMPORARY POSITIONS ALSO MOVING INTO PERMANENT, YOU WERE SAYING THIS IS AN ENTERPRISE FUND AND IT GETS BIGGER AND REDUCES BY THE ACTIVITY OUT THERE, BUT I REALLY DON'T SEE A, A LARGER, OR TO ME, UH, A SUBSTANTIAL REDUCTION ON THAT SIDE OF THE HOUSE, OF THE, UH, PRIMARILY THE PERMIT PROCESS, YOU KNOW, HAVING A THIRD LESS PERMITS ON BOTH SIDES OF THE HOUSE.
WHAT DID, WHAT DOES THAT, HOW DOES THAT REFLECT IN THIS BUDGET? WELL, CERTAINLY COUNCILMAN.
SO LET ME JUST TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE CURRENT YEAR, FISCAL YEAR OF 2020, AND MAYBE WE CAN GO BACK TO ANOTHER SLIDE.
UH, IT IS A TALE OF A TALE OF TWO HALVES, RIGHT? UH, IN THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF OUR FISCAL YEAR, WE WERE ACTUALLY TRENDING TO BE WELL ABOVE AGAIN, THAT, THAT, THOSE LINES, UH, COMMERCIAL WAS A, A LITTLE BIT UNDER THE 3,500 PROJECTION, BUT RESIDENTIAL WAS STRONG.
NOW, UH, THE AUGUST NUMBERS WERE, WE'RE ACTUALLY FINALIZING THOSE.
THOSE MIGHT ACTUALLY BE A LITTLE BIT BETTER THAN WHAT'S SHOWN HERE.
UM, BUT CLEARLY IT'S ON ITS WAY DOWN.
UH, I THINK WHEN WE, ON THE, I THINK IT WAS THE NEXT SLIDE, UM, WE TALKED ABOUT HOW WE'RE MITIGATING IT.
THERE'S 37 POSITIONS THAT WE'RE FREEZING.
UH, SO THAT'S, THAT'S OVER, THAT'S OVER 10%.
UM, OF THE DEVELOPMENT SERVICES STAFF, WE HAVE 304 POSITIONS.
UH, SO NORMALLY WE WOULD FUND THOSE AND PAY FOR THOSE.
SO THAT RIGHT THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT CHUNK.
UH, BUT WHAT WE ARE NOT DOING IS WE'RE NOT, UM, CHOPPING THOSE OFF THE BOOK BOOKS, RIGHT? WE FREEZE 'EM, WE DON'T PAY FOR 'EM.
BUT IF AND WHEN, UH, NOT, NOT IF, BUT WHEN, UH, THE PERMITS RECOVER AND START TRENDING CONSISTENTLY UPWARDS.
AND, AND WITH OUR DISCUSSIONS WITH THE REAL ESTATE COUNCIL, UH, THE LARGE COMMERCIAL CONTRACTORS, UH, THE HOME BUILDERS, UH, THOSE ARE THE ONES THAT WE TALK TO ON A WEEK TO WEEK BASIS, BASIS, SOMETIMES MORE THAN, YOU KNOW, I'M TALKING TO THEM MORE THAN ONCE A WEEK.
UH, WE'RE ALL DOING THE SAME THING, TRYING TO PREDICT WHEN THEY'RE, AND THEN BE AS FLEXIBLE AS WE CAN.
SO WHEN THAT PERMIT ACTIVITY AND REVENUE COMES BACK UP, I WILL UNFREEZE A POSITION OR MORE POSITIONS, UH, TO, TO MEET THAT DEMAND.
BUT, BUT TO BE TO, BUT TO BE CERTAIN, UM, WE ARE TAKING THOSE 37 PHYSICIANS AS WELL AS SOME OPERATIONAL EXPENSES, UH, THAT WE'RE REDUCING.
WE'RE TAKING 2 MILLION OUT OF MY, THE EMERGENCY FUND OR, OR THE RESERVE FUND THAT I SAID, ALL OF THAT IS AN ATTEMPT TO SHRINK, UH, MY EXPENSES AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, BECAUSE THE ACTIVITY IS GOING DOWN, AND THAT'S THE WAY IT SHOULD WORK.
AGAIN, THE LAST COUPLE YEARS I'VE BEEN EXPANDING.
I'VE BEEN ASKING FOR MORE POSITIONS BECAUSE THE REVENUE IS GROWING,
[01:50:01]
AND I NEEDED TO KEEP UP WITH THAT DEMAND.UH, SO I'D BE HAPPY TO TALK MORE ABOUT IT, BUT I, I DO SEE THAT WE'RE ACTUALLY HOLDING ON TO, UH, AND, AND NOT LOSING 37 POSITIONS, BUT WE'RE NOT HIRING THOSE, UH, THEY'RE FROZEN, AND WE EXPECT THEM TO BE FROZEN, UH, THROUGH AT LEAST F Y 21.
HOPEFULLY BY THE END OF THAT, WE'LL BE BACK COMING UP, UH, WITH OUR PERMITS, BUT IF LONGER, THEN WE'LL, WE'LL GO INTO FY 22.
BUT THAT'S OUR PLAN FOR RIGHT NOW.
SO YOU'RE SAYING BY SUPPLEMENTING YOUR, YOUR BUDGET WITH THE RESERVE, YOU'RE NOT SHOWING THE, THE MAGNITUDE OF THE BUDGET DECREASE BECAUSE YOU'RE NOT REHIRING ALL THOSE POSITIONS? I, I, I THINK, I THINK, YES.
I'M, I'M SAYING THAT BECAUSE AGAIN, THE, THE, THE, THE IDEA OF A RESERVE OR AN EMERGENCY FUND IS TO DIP INTO IT, UH, TO MITIGATE, UH, THE, THE, THE, THE PERMIT ACTIVITY GOING DOWN.
UH, WE'RE NOT, WE'RE NOT TAKING ALL OF OUR RESERVES, UH, BUT IT CERTAINLY IS IMPORTANT AND, AND OUR PLAN MOVING FORWARD, UH, IF WE BELIEVE, WHICH WE DO THAT PERMIT ACTIVITY ESTIMATES, UH, BASED ON ALL THOSE CONVERSATIONS WE HAVE WITH OUR DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY, UH, WE BELIEVE IT WILL GO DOWN.
SO WE'RE GONNA FREEZE POSITIONS, WHICH IS A LARGE CHUNK OF SAVINGS, AS WELL AS, UH, TAP INTO MY, UH, RESERVE.
I THINK COUNCILMAN KERRIDGE ASKED ME A FEW QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT.
UH, AND THAT, THAT ADDITIONAL $2 MILLION, WE'LL STILL HAVE A SMALL RESERVE, BUT, YOU KNOW, WHEN I SAY RESERVE, I THINK OF IT AS EMERGENCY FUND.
AND FOR ME, IN MY WORLD AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, THE NEXT YEAR IS AN EMERGENCY, AND WE DON'T WANNA LAY PEOPLE OFF.
I WILL HOLD ONTO VACANCIES, AND I WILL DIFFER INTO MY RESERVES A LITTLE BIT.
YEAH, I, YEAH, I, I'M JUST LOOKING AT YOUR TOTAL NUMBERS ON THE BUDGET.
IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE MUCH OF A DECREASE BASED ON THE DECREASE IN NUMBER OF PERMITS AND YOUR WORKLOAD THERE.
SO, UH, YEAH, MAYBE WE CAN, UH, TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT.
GOT THE, UH, THE CODE, YOU KNOW, OUR, OUR BUILDING CODE REVISION.
DO WE HAVE, DO WE HAVE ALL THE COMMENTS IN FOR THOSE REVISIONS, AND IT'S JUST A MATTER OF THEN STARTING TO GO THROUGH THOSE AND PUTTING THAT TOGETHER? OR ARE WE GONNA START FROM THE BEGINNING AGAIN? UM, IT'S, IT'S MORE OF THE LATTER, SIR.
I MEAN, UM, IF YOU REMEMBER, UH, WE WERE, WE, WE WERE TALKING, UH, TO GET GEARED UP FOR THE U D C UPDATE PROCESS AND EVEN THE BUILDING AND, AND ELECTRICAL CODES AND STUFF LIKE THAT.
WE WERE TALKING ABOUT GETTING THAT UPDATED, UH, OR STARTED REALLY MAY 1ST BECAUSE THAT WAS THE DEADLINE, BUT WE ACTUALLY PRESSED PAUSE IN APRIL, UH, FOR THE PROCESS BASED ON COVID.
AND THAT WAS THE APPROPRIATE DECISION.
UH, THAT WAS A GOOD DIRECTION.
I THINK OUR, OUR NEIGHBORHOODS, OUR, OUR DEVELOPERS WANTED THAT, UH, BECAUSE IT WASN'T THE RIGHT TIME, UH, AND WE COULDN'T DO IT PROPERLY.
SO WE ONLY HAVE, I THINK, ON OUR WEBSITE, UH, THREE OR FOUR PROPOSALS THAT CAME IN BEFORE WE PRESS PAUSE.
USUALLY WE HAVE A COUPLE OF HUNDRED OR HUNDREDS OF PROPOSALS, SO WE KNOW MOST PEOPLE SUBMIT 'EM THAT LAST WEEK.
SO WE BELIEVE WE'RE GONNA BE STARTING FROM SCRATCH.
SO WHEN WE'RE READY, WE'LL HAVE THAT CONVERSATION WITH YOU, THE COUNCIL, THE MAYOR, ERIC, UH, CERTAINLY OUR CUSTOMERS AND OUR COMMUNITY.
WHEN IS IT THE RIGHT TIME, UH, TO START THIS STUFF AGAIN? BUT IT REALLY, IT REALLY IS STARTING FROM STARTING FROM SCRATCH.
WELL, YEAH, I LOOK FORWARD TO SOME MORE CONVERSATIONS ABOUT THE, THE IMPACT OF THE BUDGET WORKFLOW ALSO.
UH, FIRST OF ALL, I WANTED TO THANK HEBER AND MIKE FOR A GREAT PRESENTATION.
UM, AS ALWAYS, UM, I, UH, I DO HAVE JUST, UH, SOME SPECIFIC QUESTIONS.
UH, AND, AND COUNCILWOMAN VRAN BROUGHT THIS UP, UM, REGARDING, UH, SOME OF THE CALLS THAT HAVE GONE TO PD OVER THE PAST, UH, FEW YEARS, INCLUDING, UM, UH, A C S CALLS AND POSSIBLY SOME THINGS THAT COULD BE HANDLED FROM CODE COMPLIANCE.
ERIC, I THINK YOU SAID SOMETHING ABOUT, UH, HOW SOMETIMES THOSE CALLS ARE, ARE DANGEROUS, AND IT'S IMPORTANT TO HAVE AN OFFICER THERE.
UH, BUT I ANTICIPATE THAT WILL BE PART OF THE CALL REVIEW, UH, THAT YOU CONDUCT THIS YEAR.
AND, UM, I THINK, I THINK SOMETHING'S WRONG WITH MY INTERNET OVER HERE BECAUSE EVERYONE'S GOT A LITTLE, UH, ORANGE TRIANGLE AND THERE ARE NO PICTURES
[01:55:01]
EXCEPT FOR BRAD PITT.AND, UH, I SEE, I SEE NANNY IS, IS THERE, UM, SO, UH, CAN YOU REMIND ME AGAIN WHY WE'RE DOING THAT OVER THE COURSE OF A FULL YEAR, AS OPPOSED TO MAYBE HAVING SOMETHING PREPARED FOR THE MIDYEAR, UH, REVIEW.
OR MAYBE WE COULD GET AN UPDATE ON THAT IN THE, IN THE MIDYEAR, UH, BUDGET REVIEW.
I, I'M SORRY, MIKE, A LITTLE CONFUSED.
I'M TALKING ABOUT THE, THE REVIEW OF PD CALLS TO KNOW WHAT CAN BE, UH, DISTRIBUTED, UH, IF POSSIBLE TO CODE COMPLIANCE OR A C S YEAH, THAT, THAT'S, THAT'LL BE DONE BY, BY OUR, OUR TARGET RIGHT NOW IS BY THE MIDYEAR, BY APRIL NEXT YEAR, 2021.
UM, THE, UH, THE OTHER QUESTIONS, UH, I HAVE ACTUALLY JUST A COMMENT REGARDING CODE AND, UM, MIKE, I KNOW YOU'RE GIVING PEOPLE MORE, MORE TIME TO WORK ON THAT, TO WORK ON THEIR VIOLATIONS.
I I STILL THINK IT MIGHT BE STRESSFUL EVEN JUST TO GET THAT NOTIFICATION.
UM, SO I, I DO, UH, CONCUR WITH COUNCILMAN TREVINO ABOUT, UH, NEEDING A, A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME TO DO THAT.
AND, UH, SAME THING WITH C S B, UM, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE BEING, UH, HAVING, HAVING HOMES, BEING ORDERED FOR DEMOLITIONS DURING THIS TIME IS, UH, IS PROBABLY NOT A, NOT A GOOD IDEA, AND I'D WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE EXHAUSTING, UH, ALL OTHER OPTIONS, UH, BEFORE WE DO THAT.
AND THEN LASTLY, I HAD A COMMENT ABOUT, UM, THE, THE CODE REVISIONS.
I KNOW, UH, COUNCILMAN PERRY ASKED ABOUT THAT, AND MIKE, YOU SAID, WE BASICALLY START FROM, FROM THE BEGINNING, UH, ON THAT.
AND, UH, I'M SORRY IF I LOOK CONFUSED BECAUSE NOBODY IS ON MY SCREEN
SO I FEEL LIKE I'M TALKING TO MYSELF HERE.
UM, MIKE, WHERE ARE YOU? OH, OKAY.
MY, MY INTERNET FIELD OFFICE IS, IS NOT WORKING.
UM, I JUST, I IT SAYS MS. OH, I'M HERE.
UM, SO I RECALL, UM, GETTING A BRIEFING BEFORE CORONAVIRUS ABOUT THE H D R C, UH, RECOMMENDED CHANGES TO THE, UM, TO THE U D C.
AND THOSE, TO ME SEEMED, UM, FAIRLY REASONABLE.
THEY WERE MOSTLY ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGES TO, UM, TO REDISTRIBUTE THE WORKLOAD A LITTLE BIT.
AND I'M JUST WONDERING WHAT SORT OF BURDEN IS THAT PLACING ON YOU RIGHT NOW, ON YOUR, ON THE TEAM RIGHT NOW BY NOT BEING ABLE TO MAKE THOSE PARTICULAR CHANGES, THE ONES THAT HAVE TO DO WITH H D R C?
I THINK WITH, WITH SOME OF THOSE, UH, UH, COUNCILWOMAN IN DEALING, YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY SHANNON, UH, MILLER AND I, AND OUR TEAMS WORK CLOSELY ON A LOT OF THAT.
UH, CERTAINLY SHE WAS PLANNED TO BE PART OF THE UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT CODE UPDATE PROCESS, AND WHEN WE PUT EVERYTHING ON PAUSE, THAT WAS THE REAL, I THINK THAT WAS AN APPROPRIATE DECISION AND STILL IS, UM, ANY, ANY CODE CHANGE REALLY NEEDS GOOD QUALITY, UH, COMMUNITY INPUT.
UH, I'D BE HAPPY TO GET BACK WITH SHANNON AND, AND MAYBE PROVIDE A LITTLE BIT MORE GUIDANCE TO YOU AND, AND THE COUNCIL, UH, ABOUT WHERE THOSE WERE AND HOW CLOSE THEY WERE TO, UM, MAYBE BEING FINALIZED WITH, WITH, WITH THE STAKEHOLDERS AND, AND THE COMMUNITY.
UH, I DON'T HAVE THAT OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD, BUT, UM, BUT I THINK RIGHT NOW WITH EVERYTHING WE'RE DOING, UM, MAINTAINING, YOU KNOW, THE, THE, THE COVID RESPONSE, MAINTAINING OUR NORMAL BUSINESS OPERATIONS, UH, I THINK OPENING UP THE U D C PROCESS RIGHT NOW WOULD BE A CHALLENGE E EVEN FOR SOME OF THE EASIER CHANGES.
BUT I'D BE, I'D BE HAPPY TO HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH YOU, AND I'D BRING, YOU KNOW, I'D HAVE TO BRING SHANNON IN, UH, FOR THAT AS WELL.
UM, BECAUSE I KNOW SHE, SHE KNOWS ALL THE DETAILS ABOUT THE A C R C CHANGES.
I, YOU KNOW, I WOULD JUST, I WOULD JUST ADD, I, I, I DON'T, FROM A STAFF PERSPECTIVE, I THINK WE COULD CERTAINLY DO IT.
UH, THE CONCERN WOULD BE, YOU KNOW, WHAT WOULD THE NEIGHBORHOOD SAY AND, AND WHAT WOULD OTHER STAKEHOLDERS SAY ABOUT HAVING VIRTUAL MEETINGS AS WE DISCUSSED THOSE AMENDMENTS.
UH, TO ME, I THINK THAT WOULD BE THE TRUE CHALLENGE IS, IS HOW DO WE INVOLVE THE COMMUNITY IN, IN THOSE DISCUSSIONS.
I, UM, YEAH, IT WAS A CONVERSATION, UH, BECAUSE IT WOULD REALLY ONLY APPLY TO THE HISTORIC NEIGHBORHOODS AND, UH, THAT'S A, A DEFINED AMOUNT RIGHT, WITHIN, UH, THAT DEFINED GEOGRAPHIC AREA WITH, WITHIN THE CITY.
UM, SO LOOKING FORWARD TO, TO THAT CONVERSATION.
[02:00:01]
AND, UM, AND LASTLY, I JUST WANTED TO POSE, UH, SOMETHING FOR MY, MY COLLEAGUES.UM, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE, UH, A COUPLE OF OTHER APPOINTEES, UM, OR WE'RE GOING TO HAVE ANOTHER ONE ANYWAY, UH, OUR CLERK AND OUR MUNICIPAL COURT JUDGE, AND AT THIS POINT, THEY'RE NOT SCHEDULED, UH, I DON'T BELIEVE TO GIVE, UM, BUDGET OVERVIEWS FOR THEIR DEPARTMENTS.
UM, AND I WOULD, UM, I KNOW I CAN'T MAKE A MOTION
I BELIEVE THEY SHOULD PROBABLY HAVE A, HAVE THEIR MOMENT, UH, TO PRESENT THEIR WORK AND WHAT THEY, THEY PLAN TO DO IN THE, IN THE COMING FISCAL YEAR.
UM, AND, UH, I'M GONNA OFFER ONE OTHER QUESTION ON, UH, ON BEHALF OF COUNCIL MEMBER GRO.
'CAUSE WE DO HAVE A, UH, AN EXECUTIVE SESSION.
UM, AND THAT IS, UH, WE'D LIKE TO GET A LIST OR WE'D LIKE TO GET THE NUMBER OF EUTHANIZED PETS AND ANIMALS PICKED UP BY SOLID WASTE.
UM, OBVIOUSLY, UH, ONE OF THE CHALLENGES OF THIS ENTIRE OPERATION IS ENCOURAGING RESPONSIBLE PET OWNERSHIP.
AND SO WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE KNOW, UH, WE NEED ANIMALS TO BE KEPT ON, ON A LEASH OR IN, IN THEIR HOMES.
AND SO THAT WILL HELP US, UH, HE THAT KIND OF DATA AND GET THAT TO US.
SO MAYOR, I DO HAVE THAT DATA RIGHT NOW, IF, IF YOU WOULD LIKE THAT.
UH, IF THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT THE EUTHANASIA, UH, I'LL SPEAK IN TERMS OF WHAT WE EXPECT TO END THE YEAR IN 2020 OR FISCAL YEAR 2021.
IN TERMS OF EUTHANASIA IN ALL, WE ARE LOOKING AT, UH, ROUGHLY AROUND ABOUT 900, UH, BY THE END OF THE YEAR.
UM, WE HAVE ABOUT 900 WHERE 300 OF THOSE IS ASSOCIATED WITH THE CAPACITY.
THE OTHERS ARE DUE TO HEALTH OR BEHAVIORAL RELATED ISSUES.
UH, IN REGARDS TO DEAD ANIMAL PICKUP, WE ARE LOOKING AT, UH, JUST SHY UNDER 20,000, UH, WHICH IF YOU RECALL, BOTH OF THOSE NUMBERS ARE CONTINUALLY TO GO DOWN EVERY SINGLE YEAR, AT LEAST SINCE I'VE BEEN, UM, HERE AT A C S ABOUT NINE YEARS AGO.
SO WHEN I STARTED ON THE DEAD ANIMAL PICKUPS, WE WERE LOOKING AT 30 TO 40,000 A YEAR, AND NOW WE'RE DOWN TO 20,000.
SO, UH, WE STILL HAVE A LONG WAYS TO GO, BUT WE ARE HEADING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.
YEAH, CERTAINLY ARE, AND, AND GOOD WORK TO YOU AND YOUR DEPARTMENT.
UH, AND, YOU KNOW, I JOINED, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER PLIE AND, AND RECOGNIZING THAT THE PROGRESS, CERTAINLY WE'VE GOT WORK TO DO, BUT, UH, THOSE, UH, OF US HAVE IN RESIDENCE IN SAN ANTONIO FOR ANY TIME, KNOW HOW FAR WE'VE GONE, HOW FAR WE'VE COME, UH, WITH REGARD TO, TO ANIMAL CARE.
AND THAT'S BEEN A COMBINATION OF THE WORK OF THE CITY, BUT ALSO, UH, RESPONSIBLE PET OWNERS.
UM, SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR ALL THAT.
[Executive Session]
HAVE AN EXECUTIVE SESSION.THE TIME IS NOW, UM, 4:07 PM ON WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2ND, 2020.
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO WILL THEN MEET AN EXECUTIVE SESSION TO CONSULT WITH THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE PURSUANT TO TEXAS GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 5 5 1 0 7 1 AND DELIBERATE THE DISCUSS OR DISCUSS THE FOLLOWING ITEMS, ECONOMIC DEVELOP NEGOTIATIONS PURSUANT TO SECTION 5 5 1 0 8 7, THE PURCHASE EXCHANGE LEASE FOR VALUE OF REAL PROPERTY PURSUANT TO SECTION 5 5 7 2 AND CONSULTATION WITH THE CITY ATTORNEY PURSUANT TO SECTION 5 1 7 FOR LEGAL ISSUES RELATED TO COLLECTIVE BARGAINING LITIGATION AGAINST THE CITY AND C OVID 19 PREPAREDNESS.
UH, YOU ALL HAVE RECEIVED, UH, THE LINK, UH, FROM JOHN IC, UH, FOR THE EXECUTIVE SESSION.
UH, WE WON'T TAKE A BREAK SINCE WE DO HAVE A PUBLIC HEARING ON THE BACK END OF THIS AS WELL.
ALL RIGHT, THE TIME IS NOW, UH, 4:34 PM ON THIS THURSDAY, OR EXCUSE ME, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2ND, 2020.
CITY COUNCIL IS RECONVENED FROM ITS EXECUTIVE SESSION.
UH, ITEMS NOT, UH, DISCUSSED, UH, IN THE EXECUTIVE SESSION WILL BE CARRIED FORWARD FOR TOMORROW ON OUR THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 3RD SESSION.
UH, SO THE TIME IS NOW 4:35 PM ON THIS THURSDAY, EXCUSE ME, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2ND, 2020, AND OUR MEETING IS NOW ADJOURNED.
OUR B SESSION IS NOW ADJOURNED.