* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:00:03] OKAY, IT IS SIX O'CLOCK. UH, [I. Call to Order] WE WILL CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER FOR THE CITY OF SHORE DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION ON MONDAY, AUGUST 10TH. [II. Citizen's Comments] UH, CITIZENS COMMENTS, IT LOOKS LIKE WE HAVE FOLKS SIGNED IN FOR CITIZENS COMMENTS. YES, MA'AM. AND EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU CAN COME UP AND DO THREE MINUTES, OR YOU CAN HAVE A SPOKESMAN, HOWEVER, HOWEVER YOU WANNA DO IT. COME ON. HEY, I'M CLARK YARD, THE DIRECTOR OF, UH, CONSTRUCTION FOR EASY FIBER. JUST WANNA KIND OF LET YOU GUYS KNOW WE GOT OUR, OUR PLAN IS WE GOT ALL THE PERMITS BACK AND APPROVED. WE'RE REVIEWING OUR FINAL, UH, CONSTRUCTION DRAWINGS AND ENGINEERING STUFF. AND WE PLAN TO GET STARTED WITHIN THE NEXT WEEK. LET'S SEE IF YOU GUYS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS. IF NOT, THEY'RE NOT ABLE TO ASK QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. NO. OKAY. ALRIGHT. THANK YOU FOR COMING. BLAKE LIMBRICK, THE OPERATIONS MANAGER FOR SAM'S CONSTRUCTION. WE'LL BE DOING MOST OF THE CONSTRUCTION AREA FOR EASY FIBER. SO WE WANNA COME OUT, INTRODUCE OUR TEAM, UH, PUT SOME FACES TO NAMES, MAKE SURE THAT Y'ALL KNOW, YOU KNOW, CONTACT INFORMATION. IF ANYTHING COMES UP THROUGHOUT THE PROCESS, PLEASE DON'T HESITATE TO REACH OUT. THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. I THINK, I HONESTLY THINK THERE'S A GOOD CHANCE YOU'LL FIND CUSTOMERS. WE ALWAYS HAVE PEOPLE COMPLAINING ON SOCIAL MEDIA ABOUT CONNECTIVITY PROBLEMS AND THIS, THAT, AND THE OTHER. SO, THANK, THANK YOU FOR, THANK YOU FOR COMING TO SHORE. UH, NOW [III. Council Comment] WE ARE ON ITEM THREE. COUNCIL COMMENT. WE HAVE OUR COUNCIL LIAISON, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER OMAR PENA IS HERE. IF YOU'D LIKE TO GIVE US AN UPDATE. YES. EDCA BOARD. GLAD TO BE HERE. UM, I JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU GUYS AN UPDATE. I BELIEVE THE A SA, UH, PORTION OF THE EDCA, UH, FUNDING THAT YOU GUYS WERE REQUESTING TO BE, UH, REDUCED, UH, LOOKS LIKE IT DID MOVE THROUGH THE BUDGET. SO, UH, JUST WANTED TO COME BY AND LET Y'ALL KNOW THAT, UH, COUNSEL HAS APPROVED THAT BUDGET, UH, REQUEST. UM, ALSO WE'VE HAD, UH, GREAT, UH, MOVEMENTS WITH GETTING THE EDCA AND EDCB AND COUNCIL TOGETHER LAST WEEK. Y'ALL WERE THERE. AND, UH, I JUST WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT IT WAS A GREAT, UH, SESSION. WE HAD SOME GOOD DISCUSSIONS. UH, WE HAD A LOT OF, UM, LEARNING OF THE PROCESS. BUT I LOOK FORWARD TO OUR QUARTERLY MEETINGS, UH, TO GET MORE IN DEPTH ON COMMUNICATING WITH BOTH THE A AND THE B AND COUNCIL TO GET MORE ALIGNED. UH, AND WITH THAT, I THINK, UM, THE STRATEGIC PLAN KIND OF CAME UP ON THAT FRONT TOO. SO WE'LL BE LOOKING FORWARD TO, UH, INITIATING SOME OF THAT, UH, REQUESTS, UH, COMING THROUGH COUNCIL. BUT WITH THAT, I JUST WANT TO GIVE YOU GUYS THOSE UPDATES. AND, UH, THAT'S ALL I HAVE TODAY. THANK YOU COUNCIL MEMBER PENA. AND WE APPRECIATE YOUR SUPPORT AND YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THE WORK SESSION LAST WEEK. AND ALSO YOUR VOTE, UH, HELPING US WITH OUR A SA BURDEN. EXPENSE BURDEN. THANK YOU VERY, VERY MUCH. LOOK FORWARD TO FUTURE JOINT MEETINGS. OKAY. [Business - A] UNDER ITEM FOUR, BUSINESS CONSIDERATION AND POSSIBLE ACTION ON MINUTES OF THE CORPORATION FOR THE JULY 13TH, 2026 MEETING. IS THERE ANY, UM, DISCUSSION OR QUESTIONS OR ANYTHING ABOUT THE MINUTES, ANY CORRECTIONS OR ANYTHING? UM, I DID NOT, UH, HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR NOTES. I WOULD MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES AS WRITTEN. I SECOND. OKAY. UH, UM, I DON'T THINK I EVEN NEED TO ASK FOR ADDITIONAL COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS 'CAUSE IT'S . IT'S ONLY THE THREE OF US HERE TONIGHT. UH, SO I'LL JUST GO AHEAD AND ASK FOR A VOTE. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. AYE. ALL OPPOSED MINUTES ARE APPROVED. OKAY. [Business - B] ITEM FOUR B, CONSIDERATION AND ACTION ON FINANCIALS AND PAYABLES FOR THE CORPORATION FOR THE PERIOD ENDING JUNE 30TH, 2026. ALRIGHT, GOOD EVENING. OH, THAT'S LOUD. UM, GOOD EVENING EVERYBODY. UM, WE DO NOT HAVE THE, UM, JUNE REMITTANCES, BUT LAST MONTH'S SALES TAX COLLECTIONS, UM, FROM THE MAY 26 REMITTANCES, WERE UP 7.7%, UH, TOTALING $183,245 AND 36 CENTS. [00:05:01] AND EACH CORPORATION NOW SITS AT $1,526,966 AND 90 CENTS, WHICH IS A LITTLE OVER 66% OF OUR BUDGET FOR 67% OF THE YEAR COMPLETE. SO WE ARE DOING VERY WELL. DO WE, UH, SO SALES TAX, UH, ACTIVITY CAN BE DEPENDENT UPON SO MANY FACTORS. UM, BUT IT IS HALF OF THE, UH, PERCENTAGE OF INCREASE, UM, TO THE PRIOR MONTH. 14.4% FOR, I CAN'T GO BACKWARDS MAY, UM, AS OPPOSED TO 7.7% FOR JUNE. UM, IF YOU LOOK BACK AT FISCAL YEAR 20 24, 20 25, IT LOOKED LIKE THERE WAS AN INCREASE. I DIDN'T, IT DIDN'T LOOK LIKE WE HAD THE SAME KIND OF DROP OFF LAST YEAR AS WE DID THIS YEAR. DO WE KNOW IF THERE WERE ANY CONTRIBUTING FACTORS THAT WE WERE AWARE OF? OR IS IT, CAN WE JUST ATTRIBUTE IT TO SUMMER? UM, I DON'T THINK THERE WAS AS MUCH OF A DROP OFF LAST YEAR, BUT LAST YEAR'S, UM, WOULD'VE THAT HAVE BEEN THE MAY COLLECTIONS? OR EXCUSE ME, THE APRIL COLLECTIONS? UM, THIS YEAR'S INCREASED A LOT HIGHER THAN IT DID LAST YEAR. SO THE, JUST THE PERCENTAGE BETWEEN THE TWO LOOKS A LITTLE BIT OFF. OKAY. SO IT'S NOT SO MUCH AS A DROP, AS IT IS AN INCREASE OF THE PRIOR MONTH. CORRECT. WHICH WE'VE SEEN A FEW TIMES THIS YEAR WHERE WE'VE HAD EITHER DRASTIC, YOU KNOW, INCREASES LAST YEAR THAT MAKE IT LOOK WORSE THIS YEAR, OR IT'S GONE UP THIS YEAR IN, IN STRANGE MONTHS. UM, TYPICALLY IF YOU LOOK ON THE CHART, YOUR EVERY QUARTER, YOUR, YOUR THIRD MONTH, THAT'S YOUR, THAT'S YOUR BIG, UM, PAYOUTS. AND THAT'S WHEN WE COLLECT A LOT FROM THE ETJ. SO WE'LL SEE A BIG, BIG BOOST IN THERE. WELL, OH, GO AHEAD. OH, I WAS JUST GONNA ASK IF THERE WAS ANY OTHER QUESTIONS. UH, I DO NOT HAVE ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS. I WILL MOTION TO APPROVE THE, UH, PAYABLES OF 12,628 OR $12,600 AND 28 CENTS FOR THE PERIOD ENDING JUNE 30TH. I SECOND. MOTION. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. ANY OPPOSED? PASSES UNANIMOUSLY ONTO [Business - C] ITEM FOUR C, UPDATE ON EDC FUNDED CIP PROJECTS, HARRIS STREET, DOWNTOWN EAST SIDE DRAINAGE. AND Y'ALL ARE ALSO GONNA GIVE US AN UPDATE ON THE EDCB PROJECT FOR THE KATY RE LIFT STATION. THANK YOU. GOOD EVENING. I'LL START WITH, UH, HARRIS STREET. SO GOING THROUGH OUR CHART HERE WITH OUR NOTICE TO PROCEED ON JULY 6TH PUTS US AT ABOUT 10%, UH, CALENDAR TIME, AROUND 15% COMPLETED, UH, ACTUAL PROGRESS. SO, UH, SO FAR THE CONTRACTOR HAS TORN UP, UH, ALMOST THE ENTIRE ASPHALT ROADWAY BETWEEN FIFTH AND SECOND. UH, THEY'VE STOPPED JUST IN FRONT OF THE CHURCH FOR NOW. UH, THEY'RE WORKING ON INSTALLING THE PUMP STATION AT FIFTH AND AT FIFTH STREET NEAR THE POND, THE DETENTION POND. AND THEY'VE INSTALLED THREE TEMPORARY DRIVEWAYS ALONG THE WAY TO, UH, GIVE THE BUSINESSES AND RESIDENTS, UH, TEMPORARY ACCESS. SO, UH, THINGS WE HAVE COMING UP, UH, CONTINUING WITH THE STORM, THE, UH, STORM SEWER INSTALLATION, UH, AS WELL AS SOME WATERLINE, UH, WORK AS WELL. UH, I THINK YOU MENTIONED SOME, SOMEWHERE ALONG THE WAY THAT Y'ALL WERE GONNA REACH OUT AND TRY TO MEET AGAIN WITH THE METHODIST CHURCH LEADERSHIP. THEY'RE HAPPY WITH THE INGRESS EGRESS ACCESS THAT Y'ALL HAVE PROVIDED AT THIS POINT. YES. YES MA'AM. YEAH, WE, WE MET LAST WEEK ACTUALLY WITH PASTOR CANTWELL. OKAY. UH, KINDA WENT OVER A FEW THINGS, UM, WITH THIS PROJECT, YOU KNOW, UM, MAKING SURE THE CONGREGATION HAS ACCESS AT ALL TIMES TO PARKING. PARKING LOTS FROM THE PARKING LOT TO, YES, MA'AM. OKAY. VERY GOOD. THANK YOU. MM-HMM . THERE'S NO QUESTIONS ON HARRIS. I'LL MOVE ON TO FOURTH STREET. SO DOWNTOWN EAST SIDE DRAINAGE OR FOURTH STREET. AS OF NOW, [00:10:01] WE HAVE ABOUT 42% CALENDAR DAYS EXPENDED, UH, WITH ABOUT 60%, UH, ACTUAL PROGRESS COMPLETED. AND YOU CAN SEE THERE, WE'VE, WE'VE PAID OUT ABOUT 51%, UH, AS A PAYOUT FOR PAYOUT FOR, SORRY. UM, SO AS, AS FOR PROGRESS RIGHT NOW, THEY, UH, LAST WEEK PERFORMED A WATERLINE OFFSET AT THE WILSON AND FOURTH INTERSECTION TO ALLOW FOR STORM SEWER CONTINUATION. UH, THEY'VE NOW CONTINUED ON IN THAT LAST, I GUESS, THIRD PORTION OF THE PROJECT HEADING TOWARDS 3 59 WITH THE STORM SEWER. UM, SO WE'VE, UH, WE'VE REROUTED THE TRAFFIC TO, UH, THE SIMS INTERSECTION NOW. UM, WE, YEAH, SO MORE CONCRETE WORK NEAR THE, THE OUTFALL TOWARDS THE CREEK IS JUST ABOUT WRAPPED UP WITH THAT. SO THEY'RE MOVING RIGHT ALONG ABOUT TWO THIRDS OF THE OTHER WAY COMPLETE. SO WITH, UM, WITH EITHER HARRIS STREET OR THE FOURTH STREET CONSTRUCTION, WITH THE RAIN THAT WE'RE HAVING NOW, UM, IT'S GREAT THAT WE'RE WORKING AHEAD OF SCHEDULE. RIGHT. THAT'S PART OF WHAT THAT NOW THE RAIN CAN PUT US BACK, YOU KNOW, A COUPLE DAYS. BUT I GUESS IS, IS THIS WORK THAT CAN BASICALLY CONTINUE AS SOON AS THE RAIN STOPS? OR IS THIS WORK WHERE LIKE THE GROUND NEEDS TO LIKE, DRY OUT UP A LITTLE BIT BEFORE YOU CAN GET BACK TO WORKING WITH, WITH THE RAIN WE GOT TODAY THAT WE'RE NOT EXPECTED TO SEE MUCH, MUCH, UH, DELAY AT ALL. OKAY. ESPECIALLY WITH HOW DRY IT'S BEEN PAST FEW WEEKS. OKAY. YEAH. I WAS JUST CURIOUS. THANK YOU. MM-HMM . AND COLORADO STATE DOWNGRADED THEIR HURRICANE FORECAST, SO THAT'S GOOD FOR US, I THINK. KNOCK ON WOOD, IT WAS GOOD. KNOCK ON WOOD. YES. YEAH, WE'RE GONNA COME BACK AND BLAME YOU . IT'S ON RECORD. DON'T WANNA DO THAT. DON'T WANNA DO THAT. SURE. UM, AND I THINK I DID FORGET TO TOUCH ON HARRIS STREET. UH, YOU'LL SEE THE 0% COMPLETE. UH, WE HAVEN'T YET PROCESSED A PAY APP, SO WE'RE STILL YEAH. IF THERE'S NO MORE QUESTIONS ON FOURTH STREET, UH, I'LL TOUCH ON KATIE CHER LIFT STATION EXPANSION. SO AS YOU CAN SEE WITH OUR NTP OF JULY 15TH, WE'RE JUST AT ABOUT 5% COMPLETE, UH, CALENDAR DAYS WITH ABOUT 10% ACTUAL PROGRESS COMPLETED. THEY HAVE, FIRST STEP IN THIS PROJECT WAS TO INSTALL THE GRAVITY SEWER LINE FROM, UH, FIFTH AND WILSON NORTH TO SERVE THE PRIMROSE SCHOOL DAYCARE BUSINESS THAT HAS BEEN INSTALLED AND BACKFILLED AS OF TODAY. UM, SO THE BUILDING THAT'S GOING UP ON HUGGINS, IS THAT THE PRIMROSE DAYCARE OR IS IT YES. YEAH, IT IS. OKAY. IT'S PRETTY BIG TOO. YEAH, IT IS. I WAS THINKING THAT THE DAYCARE WAS CLOSER TO THE CORNER, BUT MAYBE THAT'S THE PARKING LOT PART OF IT. YEAH. AND THEN ANOTHER BIG THING ON, ON THIS PROJECT, UH, SOME ADDITIONAL SCOPE THAT WAS APPROVED AT LAST CITY COUNCIL LAST TUESDAY TO ADD IN SOME, UH, WATER LINE REPLACEMENT WORK FOR 16, A NEW 16 INCH WATER LINE ON 10 93 FROM SIMS TO HARE STREET. SO THAT WILL GREATLY HELP, UH, DOWNTOWN AS WELL AS CHAR JUNCTION DEL WEB AREAS FOR, FOR WATER PRESSURE. SO DOES THAT MEAN RIGHT NOW WHERE IT SAYS PROCESS CHANGE ORDERS, THAT NUMBER IS ZERO, THAT'S PROBABLY GONNA BE A BIGGER NUMBER NEXT MONTH, CORRECT? YES, MA'AM. OKAY. WHAT DID COUNSEL APPROVE? DO YOU REMEMBER? UH, I'LL CHECK. I'LL GO LOOK AT THE PACKET. , I'LL GO LOOK AT THE PACKET. TOO MANY THE NUMBERS IN OUR HEAD. YEAH, SORRY. I THINK IT WAS ABOUT 650. I, I MIGHT BE A LITTLE BIT OFF ON IT, BUT IT'S AROUND THAT, THAT, UM, THAT AMOUNT. AND I, I'M ONLY PA PAUSING BECAUSE IF [00:15:01] Y'ALL RECALL A COUPLE MONTHS BACK, WE DID TAKE THIS EXACT PROJECT TO COUNCIL TO DENY THE REQUEST. 'CAUSE THERE WAS, IT WAS MORE THAN DOUBLE THE PRICE OF OFFERS THAT WE GOT BACK. BUT BECAUSE OF THIS CONTRACTOR AND RIGHT WHERE HIS PROXIMITY TO THIS PROJECT, HE WAS VERY INTERESTED IN ADDING THIS TO A SCOPE WOULD BE, WHICH WOULD BE COMING OUT OF OUR EXCESS FUNDS FOR, UH, GENERAL FUND. SO WE'RE KEEPING THESE PROJECTS SEPARATE KNOWING THAT THERE'S, I MEAN WE DID MENTION TO Y'ALL WHAT WE'RE DOING WITH YOUR MONEY, SO WE WANTED KINDA GIVE, WELL, Y'ALL BUT EDC YEAH. WITH THE SAME MISSION. UM, BUT WE FOUND OPPORTUNITY TO BE ABLE TO USE OUR DOLLARS MORE OPTIMAL AND EFFICIENT. AND WHAT THE CONTRACTOR SAID HE CAN DO THE PRICE, UH, THE SAME PROJECT SCOPE AT HALF THE PRO, ACTUALLY LESS THAN HALF, ABOUT 45%. WE JUST FELT LIKE IT WAS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY AND HE COULD STILL DO IT WITHIN THE SAME TIMEFRAME. MM-HMM. SO IT JUST SEEMED LIKE A WIN-WIN OVERALL. AND I'M, YEP. 687. I WAS OFF BY 37,000 . THANK YOU. 6 87. THANK YOU. UM, JUST TO TELL Y'ALL KIND OF JUST AWARE, WE ARE DOING OUR BEST NOT JUST TO REPORT OUT TO Y'ALL WHERE OUR PROGRESS ARE AT. UM, WE'RE ACTUALLY DELAYING IT JUST A LITTLE BIT. SO OUR PROGRESS PROBABLY WOULD BE A LITTLE BIT FURTHER ALONG, BUT JUST BECAUSE WE'RE DELAYED A FEW WEEKS, THIS IS WHERE WE'RE AT. AND I THINK YOU CAN DEFINITELY START SEEING THAT WE'RE STARTING TO BUILD UP A TREND, NOT JUST WITH OUR CONTRACTORS, BUT HOW WE'RE DOING COMMUNICATIONS TO MAKE SURE THAT THESE PROJECTS STAY ON TASK AND JUST REALLY BEING EFFICIENT WHAT WE'RE DOING. NOT SAYING THAT WE DON'T HAVE HICCUPS 'CAUSE WE STILL DO, BUT OPEN COMMUNICATION I THINK IS A BENEFIT FOR THE CITY TO CONTINUE TO DO THE PROJECTS THAT WE NEED TO GET DONE. I AGREE. AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE TRANSPARENCY. APPRECIATE IT. THERE'S NO OTHER QUESTIONS. [Business - D] WE WILL GO ON TO BUSINESS ITEM FOUR D, DISCUSSION OF THE EDC BUSINESS RETENTION AND EXPANSION PROGRAM. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MA'AM. GOOD EVENING EVERYONE. SO IN YOUR PACKET, UM, YOU HAVE OUR BUSINESS RETENTION AND EXPANSION PROGRAM. UM, AND I'M JUST GONNA GO THROUGH, UM, GENERALLY THROUGH EACH STEP, KIND OF WHAT IT MEANS, WHY WE ARE FORMALIZING THIS PROCESS. UM, BUT ESSENTIALLY THIS WILL GIVE US A STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK FOR ENGAGING EXISTING BUSINESSES AND IDENTIFYING OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES. AND HELP US TO JUST STRENGTHEN THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY HERE WITHIN SHORE. AND SO ON PAGE 30 OF YOUR PACKET, THE FIRST PAGE OF THE PROGRAM, YOU'LL JUST SEE, UM, AGAIN, THE PURPOSE IS TO IDENTIFY ANY CONCERNS, IMPROVE OUR BUSINESS CLIMATE, AND WORK ON THOSE BARRIERS THAT EXIST AND ARE IMPACTING THE SURVIVAL OF OUR GROWTH AND GROWTH OF OUR LOCAL BUSINESSES. AND OF COURSE, ALL OF THIS HELPS US IN ATTRACTING NEW BUSINESSES BECAUSE THE FIRST THING THEY'RE GOING TO ASK, UM, WHEN WE'RE SHARING ABOUT WHY SHORE IS, WELL, WHAT RESOURCES ARE THERE FOR YOUR BUSINESSES WITHIN YOUR COMMUNITY CURRENTLY? UM, AND SO YOU HAVE SOME OBJECTIVES HERE FOR THE SHORT TERM AND THE LONG TERM AND THEN THE PROGRAM STRUCTURE. AND SO WE'LL ROLL THIS PROGRAM OUT. I THINK, UM, THE MOST IMPORTANT THING HERE IS WE SHARE WITH OUR COMMUNITY WHAT WE'RE DOING AND WHY WE'RE DOING IT. SO OUR FIRST STEP IS TO BRING THIS TO YOU ALL, GET YOUR FEEDBACK, UM, AND THEN BEGIN TO, UM, SHARE THAT IN MARKETING CHANNELS WITH AN OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE. UM, SO THAT THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY CAN, CAN BEGIN TO HEAR THAT, REACH OUT TO OUR CHAMBER OF, UH, FOR COMMERCE AND SHARE WITH THEM SO THAT THEY CAN ALSO, UM, HELP US CONNECT WITH THEIR MEMBERS AS WELL. AFTER THAT, WE WILL ESTABLISH A TEAM. SO WITH MYSELF AND HAYDEN TAKING THE LEAD, UM, YOUR SUPPORT CAN MAKE ALL THE DIFFERENCE HERE. AND, UH, WHILE WE ARE FORMALIZING THIS BY PUTTING THIS PROGRAM TOGETHER, CLEAR EXPECTATIONS AND KPIS, UM, THIS IS SOMETHING WE, WE'VE DONE AND WE'VE BEEN DOING, AND A LOT OF YOU ALREADY DO THIS. A LOT OF YOU ARE ARMED WITH OUR SMALL BUSINESS GRANT WITH CARDS, UM, AND INFORMATION. AND I KNOW I GET PHONE CALLS AND TEXT MESSAGES ALL THE TIME WHERE, HEY, I POPPED INTO MY FAVORITE RESTAURANT AND THE OWNER TOLD ME THEY'RE STRUGGLING WITH THIS, CAN YOU HELP? AND SO WE FOLLOW UP NOW, WE'LL HAVE A, A SYSTEM IN A WAY TO KEEP ALL THAT RECORDED. UM, AND OUR HOPE IS THAT IF YOU FELT LIKE YOU HAVEN'T BEEN EQUIPPED TO TAKE ON THAT ROLE, UM, WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY, NOW WE CAN COME ALONGSIDE YOU AND GIVE YOU THE TOOLS THAT YOU NEED. SO WHATEVER THAT LOOKS LIKE GOING FORWARD, PLEASE LET US KNOW WHAT WE CAN PROVIDE TO HELP YOU FEEL CONFIDENT THAT YOU KNOW, WHAT WE CAN DO FOR OUR LOCAL BUSINESSES. UM, SO THAT WILL TAKE FORM IN THE SHAPE OF, UH, BUSINESS VISITS. SO OBVIOUSLY TO BUILD THAT RELATIONSHIP, UM, AND FOR THEM TO HAVE THAT DIRECT LINE OF COMMUNICATION. OUR GOAL IS TO DO 20 TO 30 VISITS PER YEAR. AND SO THAT'LL START WITH THE INTRODUCTORY, UH, CONTACT HOPEFULLY IN PERSON [00:20:01] BY ONE OF US. UM, AFTER WE INTRODUCE OURSELVES, LET 'EM KNOW WHAT WE'RE DOING, WE WILL THEN SCHEDULE A FOLLOW UP MEETING WHERE WE CAN ACTUALLY BRING OUR SURVEY AND, UM, TALK WITH THEM THROUGH ANY OF THE ISSUES THEY MIGHT BE FACING. UM, I HAVE A QUESTION ON THIS. YES, MA'AM. YES, MA'AM. UM, AS FAR AS THE BUSINESS VI VISITS AND ESTABLISHING A TEAM, ARE YOU LOOKING AT THESE BUSINESS VISITS AS BEING MEMBERS OF THE BOARD GOING ALONG WITH YOU AND OR HAYDEN ON THESE VISITS TO START OUT WITH? OR HOW DO YOU SEE THAT? HOW DO YOU SEE THAT WORKING? YES, MA'AM. UM, I THINK WE ARE ALWAYS OPEN TO HAVING ONE OR TWO OF YOU JOIN US WHEN WE'RE GOING TO THAT FOLLOW UP VISIT. I THINK INITIALLY TO GET THE WORD OUT, UM, IN PERSON, I THINK I WOULD BE COMFORTABLE IF IT WAS ONE OF YOU SHARING ABOUT THE PROGRAM, GIVING THEM THE MATERIALS AND OUR CONTACT, AND THEN WE CAN FOLLOW UP WITH THEM ON SCHEDULE JUST FOR THE VOLUME OF IT. UM, BUT THAT'S KIND OF WHAT WE'RE THINKING. OKAY. SO FUTURE MEETINGS, WE'LL GET MORE DETAILS AND MAYBE SAY, HERE'S THE FIRST 20 OR 30 BUSINESSES AND, UH, ACTUALLY ASSIGN SOMEONE FROM THE A OR THE B BOARD TO, TO PUT A NAME BY EACH ONE OF THOSE. NOW. SO WHEN WE DO GET THAT LIST, THE FIRST 2030 BUSINESSES AND WHATNOT, ARE WE LIMITED TO THAT OR NO? BECAUSE SOME OF THE BUSINESS THAT, THAT WE'VE ALREADY FREQUENT SURE. MM-HMM . OKAY. YEAH. ESPECIALLY IF YOU ALREADY HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH THE BUSINESS AND YOU SAY, NOLAN, HAYDEN, I WOULD LOVE TO GO TALK TO THESE PEOPLE. THEY KNOW ME, THEY TRUST ME THAT THAT WORKS EVEN BETTER. THAT'S WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT, BUILDING THAT RELATIONSHIP. SO THEY KINDA GIMME THEIR COMPLAINTS ALREADY. , , YES. YOU MIGHT AS WELL GET YOUR BROWNING POINTS FOR IT. OKAY. AND HELP THEM FIND THAT SOLUTION. AND, UH, I HAD, I HAD ONE OTHER QUESTION CONCERNING THIS VERY FIRST PARAGRAPH. UNDER BUSINESS VIS VISITS, YOU, UH, SAY YOU'RE TARGETING NEW BUSINESS MAJOR EMPLOYERS, MAKES ALL KINDS OF SENSE. RETAIL, RESTAURANT SERVICE BASED. UM, I, FOR I FOR ONE AT OUR WORKSHOP LAST WEEK WAS, UH, SURPRISED TO HEAR THAT ACADIANA SOMETHING OR ANOTHER, I FORGET WHAT WHAT CAME AFTER ACADIANA, BUT THAT THEY WERE THE, UH, KIT FITTING LONGEST ESTABLISHED BUSINESS AND IT LOOKED LIKE PRIMARY JOBS. AND SO I'M LIKE, ARE YOU ALSO GONNA BE TALKING TO ASPEN ACADIANA, THOSE TYPES OF BUSINESSES THAT ARE PRIMARY JOBS HERE IN THE AREA? YES. I WILL NOTE ACADIANA DID JUST SELL THEIR PROPERTY. OH. SO WE WILL NOT BE TALKING TO ACADIANA THAT HAS BEEN IN THE WORKS FOR YEARS. SO THIS WAS NOT A SURPRISE TO US. UM, BUT YES, IDEALLY, ESPECIALLY FOR, FOR A BOARD, THOSE PRIMARY JOB BASED BUSINESSES, WHETHER THEY'RE HERE IN THE CITY LIMITS OR ET DAY TERRITORY. YEAH. UM, I THINK THAT'S, THAT WOULD BE A HUGE BENEFIT FOR US. THANK YOU. I INTERRUPTED PLEASE, . NO PROBLEM. OH, NO PROBLEM AT ALL. YEAH. PLEASE STOP ME AT ANY TIME IF THERE'S ANY OTHER QUESTIONS. UM, SO WE WILL VISIT, VISIT THEM, SCHEDULE THE FOLLOW UP, BRING A SURVEY THAT'S ATTACHED HERE, UM, IN THE PACKET. AND, UM, WHAT YOU SEE ATTACHED HERE IS JUST LIKE THE GENERAL SENTIMENT OF WHAT THE QUESTIONS WILL BE GEARED TOWARDS. I THINK WE ARE VERY COMFORTABLE WITH TAILORING IT TO WHERE WE'RE GOING TO ENSURE THAT WE'RE GETTING THE INFORMATION WE NEED FROM THEM. AND OF COURSE THEY MIGHT HAVE, YOU KNOW, CHALLENGES AND STRUGGLES THAT AREN'T CAPTURED BY THOSE QUESTIONS. SO WE'RE NOT GOING TO STRICTLY ADHERE TO THAT CONTENT, BUT WE JUST WANTED YOU TO KNOW THE, THE SPIRIT OF THE QUESTIONS AND KIND OF WHAT WE'LL BE LOOKING FOR. LET'S SEE. AND THEN OF COURSE WE, WE WANNA LEAVE THEM WITH A LITTLE SOMETHING. SO THAT'S JUST A TOKEN OF APPRECIATION THAT WILL BE SHARED WITH THEM. UM, AND THEN GATHERING AND RECORDING THAT INFORMATION, I THINK IS THE CRUCIAL PART. WE HEARD ABOUT THAT DURING OUR JOINT MEETING, UM, FROM ALICIA. YOU HAVE ALL THIS INFORMATION, BUT WE WANNA MAKE SURE WE'RE FOLLOWING UP AND WE'RE USING THAT TO INFORM THE PROGRAMS AND, AND THE THINGS THAT WE ARE WORKING ON TO ADDRESS THOSE CHALLENGES AND REMOVE THOSE BARRIERS FOR OUR BUSINESS OWNERS FOR. UM, SO WE WILL SEND THEM A THANK YOU CARD AGAIN BEING, UM, JUST VERY INTENTIONAL ABOUT CREATING THAT RELATIONSHIP AND MAINTAINING, UM, THAT OPEN LINE OF COMMUNICATION, MAKING SURE THAT THEY FEEL LIKE THE TIME THEY SPENT WITH US, UM, WAS VALUABLE TO THEM AND THAT WE'RE DOING SOMETHING WITH THAT INFORMATION. UM, ANY ADDITIONAL FOLLOW UPS WILL BE ADDRESSED WITH THE APPROPRIATE PARTIES. SO AGAIN, WE KIND OF HEARD ABOUT THAT DURING OUR JOINT MEETING. IF IT WAS AN ISSUE WITH PLANNING, IF IT WAS AN ISSUE WITH THEIR SUBMISSION OF A SMALL BUSINESS GRANT THAT WE MISSED OR JUST, YOU KNOW, EXAMPLES LIKE THAT MM-HMM . UM, WE DON'T WANNA JUST KEEP EVERYBODY INVOLVED IN, WE WANNA JUST TAKE 'EM DIRECTLY TO THAT PARTY AND MAKE SURE WE ARE EFFICIENT IN GETTING THAT [00:25:01] ISSUE ADDRESSED. UM, AFTER THE PROGRAM HAS BEEN ACTIVE FOR SIX MONTHS, WE'LL KIND OF GATHER ALL OF THAT INTO A REPORT AND SHARE THAT WITH YOU ALL. UM, AND AGAIN, LET THAT BE KIND OF OUR TEMPERATURE CHECK FOR WHAT KIND OF PROGRAMS DO WE NEED. THE PAST YEAR, WE'VE HEARD TIME AND TIME AGAIN, PEOPLE WANT TO DO THE ENTREPRENEUR RESOURCE FAIR. THEY FELT VERY SUPPORTED BY THE ADVISORS THERE. THEY WANTED TO HEAR FROM OTHER BUSINESS OWNERS IN, YOU KNOW, A PRESENTATION FORMAT. THEY WANTED TO GET THEIR FREE HEAD SHOTS. SO WE'RE BRINGING THAT BACK. OH, GOOD. SEPTEMBER 1ST. SO WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT THAT. SEPTEMBER 1ST IS A WEEKDAY OR WEEKEND? IT'S A TUESDAY MORNING. TUESDAY, OKAY. YES. FROM NINE TO NOON. UM, BUT REALLY THAT'S JUST IT LONG TERM. UM, IN ADDITION TO THOSE BUSINESS VISITS, WE WERE KIND OF THINKING THROUGH HOW DO WE GET PEOPLE TO KNOW, 'CAUSE HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU BEEN IN A ROOM AND YOU SAY, OH, I'M ALSO A VOLUNTEER BOARD MEMBER FOR THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION. AND THEY'RE LIKE, WHAT IS THAT? THAT'S JUST ANOTHER CITY DEPARTMENT. WHAT DO YOU DO? UM, SO JUST KIND OF TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE UNDERSTAND WHO WE ARE, THE RESOURCE THAT WE ARE. SO WE'RE THINKING OF NOW, WHEN WE GET THOSE CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY ISSUED, WE REACH OUT TO THAT OWN OWNER, THAT MANAGER IF THEY'RE NOT LOCAL, AND INVITE THEM TO COME AND GIVE PUBLIC COMMENT, INTRODUCE THEMSELVES TO YOU, TELL US ABOUT THEIR BUSINESS SO THAT THEY'RE IN FRONT OF YOU. AND WE'RE CONSTANTLY BUILDING THAT RELATIONSHIP. GREAT. NOW I SEE MY NAME IN THE FACEBOOK GROUPS MM-HMM . . YES. UM, AS A PROBLEM SOLVER. OH YES. HOPEFULLY. WELL, I I I LOVE THIS PROGRAM. YES. I, I THINK IT'S, I THINK YOU HAVE, UM, DEVELOPED A REALLY GOOD FRAMEWORK HERE AND I AM REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO THE SIX MONTH REPORT AFTER THIS GETS LAUNCHED. UM, AND I THINK, AGAIN, BASED ON THE WORKSHOP WE HAD LAST WEEK, I THINK ONE OF THE KEY QUESTIONS THAT WE NEED TO BE ASKING OURSELVES SIX MONTHS IN, UH, IS THIS DOABLE WITH TWO PEOPLE IN OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT? OR DO WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT MORE MANPOWER? AND POTENTIALLY ADDING A, ADDING A PERSON BECAUSE WHAT DID, WHAT DID SHE COME UP WITH 684 BUSINESSES OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT BASED ON SOME LIST SHE GOT FROM THE COMPTROLLER'S WEBSITE MM-HMM . AND TWO PEOPLE. YEAH. AND, AND IF WE DO 30 A YEAR, WHAT IS THAT? 20 YEARS IN TO COVER EVERYBODY AND, AND, AND MAYBE NOT AT MAYBE SOME, AND THAT'S NOT ACCOUNTING FOR ALL OF OUR HOME-BASED BUSINESSES. YEAH. WHICH I THINK SHOULD ALSO HAVE A VOICE. AND WE'VE WORKED VERY HARD TO ESTABLISH A PRESENCE AND COMMUNITY WITHIN THAT, WORKING FROM HOME TYPE OF SETUP. AND, AND IF THERE'S SOMETHING WE CAN DO THAT HELPS LAUNCH A HOME-BASED BUSINESS INTO A BRICK AND MORTAR, SOMETHING BIGGER MM-HMM . YOU KNOW, YES. WE SHOULD BE AWARE OF THAT AS WELL. BUT THAT, THAT'LL BE A KEY QUESTION, I THINK IS, IS IS THIS SOMETHING THAT WITH THE BOARD MEMBERS AND YOU GUYS, UH, IS THAT ENOUGH MANPOWER TO HANDLE IT? OR DO WE NEED TO LOOK TO THE FUTURE AND LOOK FOR ADDITIONAL HEADCOUNT IN THE DEPARTMENT TO SUSTAIN THIS AND GROW IT GOING FORWARD? MM-HMM . YES MA'AM. YEAH. I DON'T THINK IT'S A QUESTION. THEY NEED MORE PEOPLE, BUT I THINK THE FIRST SIX MONTHS WILL ESTABLISH THE FRAMEWORK AND, AND GIVE YOU GUYS THE VALIDITY TO SAY, LOOK, WE NEED TO HIRE FULL-TIME PEOPLE TO HELP EXECUTE THIS MOVING FORWARD. YES, SIR. YEAH. IT DEFINITELY CHANGES THINGS WHEN YOU CAN HAVE THE NUMBERS AND HOW MUCH TIME IT TAKES. YEAH. UM, AND I THINK WE ALL KNOW IF THOSE MEETINGS ARE GONNA BE VALUABLE, WE NEED TO BE FULLY PRESENT. AND IT MIGHT MEAN A FEW HOURS JUST, JUST FOR ONE BUSINESS. AND WE DEFINITELY DON'T WANNA START IT AND THEN STOP, LIKE RIGHT. AND YOU DON'T WANNA OFFER TO HELP AND THEN THINGS FALL THROUGH THE CRACKS AND NO ONE, NO ONE HEARS BACK FROM YOU AGAIN. EXACTLY. AS FAR AS WHAT WE ARE ABLE TO DO TO HELP. SO YEAH. GREAT PROGRAM. ABSOLUTELY. I HAD A FEW QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. YES, MA'AM. UH OH, . UM, SO KAY SORT OF ALREADY ASKED IT, BUT I JUST, UH, HAD THE NOTE ABOUT, UM, IF WE FELT THAT THIS WORK COULD BE ACHIEVED WITH THE CURRENT TEAM OR IF THERE WAS A NEED FOR ADDITIONAL STAFF. UM, AND I THINK YOU'RE RIGHT, THAT TAKE THOSE SIX MONTHS NUMBERS, WE'LL BE ABLE TO MAKE A VERY CLEAR BUSINESS CASE FOR, UM, UH, PROBABLY ADDING ANOTHER POSITION TO NEXT YEAR'S BUDGET, NEXT YEAR'S BUDGET , UM, 28. YEAH. UM, [00:30:03] SO I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THIS NOTE MEANT. WHAT DID YOU I WROTE IT , IT SAID TIMING TO INCLUDE CDC AND EDC MEETINGS. I DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT MEANT. ANYWAYS, I'LL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT ONE. UM, SO, UH, I DID ASK, UM, IS THIS FOR BRICK AND MORTAR BUSINESSES ONLY? IS THAT THE INTENTION TO, FOR AT LEAST THE FIRST 20 TO 30? THAT'S WHERE WE'LL BEGIN. THE SPREADSHEET THAT WE HAVE RIGHT NOW HAS A LITTLE OVER 260 BUSINESSES. BUT AGAIN, JUST BECAUSE OF TIME, WE'RE NOT ALWAYS ABLE TO JUST SIT THERE AND KEY IN, YOU KNOW, THINGS COME UP DAY TO DAY. RIGHT. UM, SO YES, I THINK WE WOULD JUST PROBABLY GRAB A MAP AND START, START COMBING IN FROM EITHER DIRECTION, MAYBE FROM BOTH DIRECTIONS. OKAY. UM, AND THEN GO FROM THERE. AND IT'S ALWAYS BEEN KIND OF A TWO FRONT BATTLE, IF YOU WILL, OR I DON'T KNOW, MISSION . UM, WITH THE HOME-BASED BUSINESSES, THEY KIND OF HAVE THEIR OWN CHANNELS AND NETWORKS AND LEADERSHIP WITHIN THE SECTORS. THEY, HOME HEALTHCARE HAS CERTAIN NETWORKING GROUPS AND FINANCIAL SERVICES HAS CERTAIN NETWORKING GROUPS. SO, UM, IN ADDITION TO JUST THE DAY TO DAY AND THE BRE VISITS, WE ALSO HAVE TO TAKE THE TIME TO ATTEND THOSE ALREADY ESTABLISHED GROUPS BECAUSE IT'S EASIER FOR US TO SHOW UP TO A GROUP WHERE I KNOW 15, 20 OF THEM ARE GATHERING THAN TO GO AND TRY TO FIND THEM INDIVIDUALLY. HAVE YOU HEARD THAT THERE'S AN AI GROUP THAT TRYING TO GET STARTED WITH A LITTLE NETWORKING GROUP TOGETHER? I MIGHT HAVE SEEN A FEW POSTS ON SOCIAL MEDIA ABOUT IT. OKAY. I'M JUST THINKING I DON'T, I DO NOT KNOW IF IT HAS LAUNCHED SUCCESSFULLY OR HOW MANY PEOPLE MIGHT BE PARTICIPATING, BUT I'M THINKING IF THEY EVER DO COME UP WITH SOMETHING, WHO KNOWS. YEAH. I THINK THEY'VE HAD A COUPLE MEETINGS. I WAS ALSO WONDERING IF WE COULD HAVE SOMEPLACE ON THE WEBSITE, BECAUSE AS THIS GROWS, IT MAY CREATE A WORD OF MOUTH TYPE SITUATION. AND SO BUSINESSES THAT WE DON'T, WE CAN'T REACH. WHAT IF THEY WANNA REGISTER THEIR COMPLAINTS OR PRAISES MM-HMM . IN ANOTHER WAY? LIKE DO WE HAVE ANYTHING SET UP FOR THAT? UH, NOT YET, BUT THAT'S A GREAT IDEA OF HAVING A FILLABLE FORM. AND WE CAN EASILY DO THAT ON OUR CURRENT WEBPAGE. CREATE A LANDING PAGE, PUT THIS ON THERE, AND THEN A FORM WHERE IF YOU ARE READY TO SCHEDULE YOUR MEETING TODAY MM-HMM . THEN THEY CAN GO AHEAD AND DO THAT. UM, I KNOW THAT I HAVE SENT OUT, I'VE USED CALENDLY WITH OUR BOARD MEMBERS TO JUST MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE HAVE ACCESS AND CAN QUICKLY BOOK WITHOUT HAVING TO GET ME ON THE PHONE. SO MAYBE WE CAN LOOK AT SOME KIND OF SCHEDULING, UM, TOOL LIKE THAT SO THAT THEY COME TO THE PAGE, TELL US WHAT THEY WANNA TALK ABOUT, AND THEY LEAVE THE PAGE WITH A MEETING IN THE BOOKS. YEAH. I THINK THAT'S A GOOD PLAN. WE HAVE THAT AT WORK. IT'S ACTUALLY, IT'S NOT GREAT BECAUSE THEN A MEETING SHOWS UP ON YOUR CALENDAR. YOU DIDN'T BOOK IT . YOU, YOU CAN PROGRAM IT TO JUST A WORD WARNING. YES. YOU CAN PROGRAM IT WHERE IT CAN'T POP UP MORE THAN LIKE 24 HOURS, FOUR HOURS BEFORE. YEAH. SO YOU'RE NOT, YOUR WHOLE DAY ISN'T THROWN OFF. YEAH. GOOD. YEAH. YOU CAN DO 48 72. YEAH. YEAH. 'CAUSE I DON'T DRIVE INTO THE OFFICE EVERY DAY, SO ALL OF A SUDDEN IT'S LIKE I HAVE TO BE DOWNTOWN IN 30 MINUTES. UM, SO I, I WAS GONNA ASK, SO I THINK I WOULD LIKE A LITTLE BIT MORE CLARITY ON JUST HOW WE FORMULA FORMALIZE THE COMMUNICATION THAT WE ARE ALREADY HAVING WITH BUSINESSES TO KIND TO BRING IT INTO A, UH, INVITATION TO MEET WITH YOU AND HAYDEN AND LEARN MORE ABOUT THE RESOURCES. SO, UM, JUST WHATEVER YOU CAN PUT TOGETHER, UM, I THINK THAT THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL FOR ME ON JUST SORT OF HOW TO TRANSITION THAT CASUAL CONVERSATION THAT I'M HAVING WITH THE BUSINESS OWNER INTO A, A FORMAL PART OF THE BRE. YES, MA'AM. YEAH. AND I'M HAPPY TO HOST, YOU KNOW, A PRESENTATION HERE AT OUR NEXT MEETING ON WHAT THAT COULD LOOK LIKE. EXCUSE ME. OR, UM, PUT TOGETHER JUST LIKE A ONE PAGE TALKING POINTS MM-HMM . AND THEN WHAT YOU HAND THEM QR AND CODE ON THERE, THE PURPOSE, UM, WHATEVER THOSE MATERIALS LOOK LIKE, I'LL COME UP WITH SOMETHING AND HAVE IT FOR YOU. UM, BUT IF THERE'S A SPECIFIC WAY THAT YOU PREFER THAT WORKS NATURALLY FOR YOU, THEN I'M HAPPY TO BLEND IT INTO THAT FORMAT. OKAY. IF YOU LIKE TO TEXT THEM AND JUST GRAB, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER THAT LOOKS LIKE. OKAY. YEAH. AND THEN, UH, MY, I THINK MY LAST QUESTION WAS JUST, YEAH. IF THERE'S 600 PLUS BUSINESSES IS HOW, HOW DO WE GET TO ALL OF THEM? UM, AND, AND WITHIN THAT, HOW DO WE PRIORITIZE WHO WE DO GET TO, UM, AS A GOVERNMENTAL BODY, WE HAVE TO BE EXTRA THOUGHTFUL ABOUT HOW WE MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE JUST, UM, YOU KNOW, HOW WE'RE PRIORITIZING THOSE BUSINESSES. SO IT MIGHT BE GOOD TO [00:35:01] HAVE, AND MAYBE NATALIE COULD HELP OR GIVE FEEDBACK IN JUST TERMS OF LIKE, HOW DO WE, DO WE, SHOULD WE HAVE SOMETHING WRITTEN UP ABOUT WHAT MIGHT MAKE A BUSINESS A PRIORITY? MM-HMM . I THINK FIRST ONE WOULD BE ASK FOR THE BUSINESSES THAT ARE ASKING FOR MEETINGS SHOULD ALWAYS GET TOP PRIORITY. UM, BUT THEN AFTER THAT, IF MAYBE THERE SHOULD BE A FEW OTHER CRITERIA THAT JUST HELP PROTECT US MM-HMM . AS WE LOOK AT HOW WE'RE SPENDING OUR RESOURCES. YEAH. WHO'S PAYING THE MOST TAX. YES MA'AM. . WELL JUST WANNA MAKE SURE WE CAN PUT THAT IN WRITING. YOU KNOW, I, I, I THOUGHT ABOUT THAT AND THEN I THOUGHT, WELL, OBVIOUSLY ONE OF THE TOP SALES TAX PAYERS IS HEB. AND THEY, WHEN, WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT HOW THEY PERFORM THROUGH A PANDEMIC, I'M NOT SURE PEOPLE CAN TEACH THEM MUCH OF ANYTHING OR HELP OR HELP 'EM VERY MUCH. I DON'T KNOW. BUT, BUT IF NOTHING ELSE, WE CAN TELL 'EM HOW GRATEFUL WE ARE AND HOW MUCH WE LOVE HAVING THEM IN OUR COMMUNITY AND HOW MUCH WE WOULD HAVE TO LOVE TO HAVE ONE MORE A SECOND ONE. A SECOND ONE. ABSOLUTELY. AND I FOUND OUT DURING THE HURRICANE THAT THEY PUT A, A, UM, GENERAT IN EVERY STORE SO THEY DON'T LOSE POWER. LIKE THAT'S GENIUS. YEAH. THEY HAVE. YEAH. THEY'RE PREPARED. THAT WAS, UH, AND, AND IT WASN'T HARVEY, THEY DID THAT WHEN I WAS STILL LIVING IN HOUSTON. WOW. MM-HMM . YEAH. YEAH. IN GRAD SCHOOL, OUR EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT CLASSES INCLUDED HE VS. EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT DIVISION BECAUSE THEY DO SUCH A GREAT JOB. YEAH. WELL, AND, AND YOU CAN PROBABLY ALSO, THANK YOU. THANK THEM FOR, UH, KEEPING A CHOKE HOLD ON CENTER POINT WITH THEIR RATE INCREASES, BECAUSE I THINK THEY ARE ONE OF THE PEOPLE THAT WENT AND COMPLAINED AT THE STATE LEVEL FOR, UH, TAKING DOWN THEIR CASH REGISTERS AND STUFF. MM-HMM . I WOULD LIKE TO POINT OUT ON PAGE 33 FOR THE TIMELINE, IT'S JUST A LITTLE OFF. WE HAD ALL THE INTENTION OF ROLLING THIS OUT LAST MONTH. UM, BUT IT LOOKS LIKE, WE'LL, WE'LL GET TO IT, UM, MAYBE SEPTEMBER. BUT WE'LL KEEP YOU ALL POSTED. COOL. VERY GOOD. GREAT PROGRAM. GREAT PLAN. YEAH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. UH, IF WE'RE READY TO GO [Business - E] ON, THE NEXT THING IS THE REVIEW OF THE BOARD'S COMMITTEE AND COMMISSIONS CODE OF CONDUCT . YES, MA'AM. UM, SO THIS WAS JUST PLACED ON HERE, UM, TO GIVE YOU AN OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW AND JUST TO SEE IF YOU HAD ANY QUESTIONS. THIS, UM, WAS SENT OUT BY THE CITY SECRETARY AND IT, UH, DOES REQUIRE YOUR ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND A SIGNATURE TO BE RETURNED TO THE CITY, CITY SECRETARY'S FILE. UM, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR ANY CLARIFICATION YOU WOULD LIKE ON THE DOCUMENT ITSELF? I DO, UM, THE SECTION TWO COMMUNICATION PROTOCOLS WITH CITY STAFF ELECTED OFFICIALS. AND I, I PROBABLY SHOULD HAVE BEEN MORE PREPARED FOR THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING WHEN THIS CAME UP. 'CAUSE I COULD HAVE DONE CITIZENS COMMENTS AT THE CITY COUNCIL MEETING IF I HAD LOOKED AT THE PACKET, UM, BEFORE GOING TO THE MEETING. BUT, UH, THE QUESTION I HAD, UH, IT'S THIS LAST BULLET UNDER SECTION TWO, AVOID, AVOID LOBBYING INDIVIDUAL COUNCIL MEMBERS, RECOGNI. AND I, I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND THE PART OF IT WHERE IT SAYS, RECOGNIZE POLICY AUTHORITY, REST WITH CITY COUNCIL AS A BODY RESPECT FINAL COUNCIL DECISIONS. THAT MAKES PERFECT SENSE TO ME. WHAT I DID NOT UNDERSTAND WHEN IT SAYS AVOID LOBBYING INDIVIDUAL COUNCIL MEMBERS, THAT SOUNDS TO ME PERILOUSLY CLOSE TO SAYING YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO TALK TO 'EM OR COMMUNICATE TO THEM. AND I'M LIKE, WHAT IS THEIR DEFINITION OF LOBBYING? BECAUSE I THINK PRETTY MUCH ANY AND ALL THE EDC MEMBERS FROM TIME TO TIME HAVE EITHER SENT EMAILS OR CALLED UP A COUNCIL MEMBER OR MORE THAN ONE HERE, THERE AND Y ON AN ISSUE THAT WAS NEAR AND DEAR TO US, UM, WHETHER IT WAS EDC RELATED OR OTHERWISE. AND I, I, I JUST DID NOT UNDERSTAND THAT. AND YOU KNOW, PART OF THIS TOO IS I KNOW THAT THEY GO TO THE STATE LEGISLATURE THEMSELVES AND WANNA BE ABLE TO KEEP THAT COMMUNICATION OPEN WITH THE NEXT BODY ON TOP OF THEM. SO, UM, I DON'T KNOW IF, IF, IF THEY CAN REPHRASE THIS 'CAUSE THEY ALREADY VOTED [00:40:01] ON IT, BUT CERTAINLY SOME KIND OF COMMUNICATION TO CLARIFY THAT WOULD BE MOST APPRECIATED. YES. I, AND I DID, UH, GIVE, UH, OUR ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER A CALL JUST TO TRY AND FIGURE OUT WHAT THE THOUGHT PROCESS WAS BEHIND THAT. AND IT, IT SEEMS TO BE THAT OBVIOUSLY THEY WANT THE, THE BOARDS TO BE IN COMMUNICATION WITH COUNCIL AND EVEN APPROACH THEM WITH IDEAS AND TOPICS THAT ARE IMPORTANT TO THE BOARD, EVEN AS INDIVIDUAL BOARD MEMBERS. I THINK THE, THE PURPOSE IN INCLUDING IT IN THERE WAS TO NOT INUNDATE CITY COUNCIL CONSISTENTLY OVER AND OVER AGAIN, UM, WHEN IT'S NOT BEING EFFECTIVE. UM, THAT'S, THAT'S KIND OF WHERE WE THINK IT WAS COMING FROM. . UM, BUT I DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE, WELL, IT JUST SEEMED AT, AT THE JOINT MEETING LAST WEEK, THE BIGGEST EVIDENCE I SAW THAT WE DO NEED TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT IS THE LACK OF COMMUNICATION. RIGHT. AND JUST A MISUNDERSTANDING WITH SO MANY AGENDAS THAT WERE VOTED DOWN, YOU KNOW, AND, AND THEN WITH CLARIFICATION IT WAS LIKE, OH, WE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THAT, WE DIDN'T KNOW. SO I'M GLAD OMAR NOW COMES AND WE CAN KIND OF, IF THERE'S QUESTION, KIND OF CLARIFY WHAT IT WOULD VOTE, BUT EVEN IF NOT, TO LIMIT US TO THE ABILITY TO BE ABLE TO CALL SOMEBODY UP AND SAY, HEY, BEFORE YOU GUYS WROTE THIS DOWN HERE, HERE'S WHY WE NEED THIS. MM-HMM . SO I THINK WHAT KAY'S TRYING TO SAY, SHE DON'T WANT THAT TAKEN AWAY. CORRECT. YEAH. NO, AND I DON'T THINK, THINK YOU'RE, YOU'RE CORRECT. . YES. . YEAH. AND I, I DON'T THINK AS STAFF OR UM, CITY LEADERSHIP THAT THAT WAS THE INTENTION. I THINK THE PHRASING IN OF IT, UM, MAY COME ACROSS THAT WAY. UM, BUT I, I THINK THERE STILL NEEDS TO BE COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE BOARDS AND COUNCIL OBVIOUSLY. AND WE WILL SHARE YOUR, UM, CONCERN WITH CITY SECRETARY'S OFFICE AND THE CITY MANAGER AND JUST KIND OF VERIFY WHAT EXACTLY ARE THE DOS AND DON'TS. BUT YES, I WOULD SAY ONE OF THE GREATEST THINGS WE LEARNED FROM LAST WEEK IS WE WANNA KEEP THOSE CHANNELS OPEN. WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? AND WHAT ARE THEY ENCOURAGING? UM, IS THAT METHOD OF COMMUNICATION? WE'LL FIGURE THAT OUT AND MAKE SURE WE'RE WORKING THROUGH THOSE CHANNELS. IF, IF, I WOULD FEEL A WHOLE LOT BETTER ABOUT SIGNING THIS WITH ADDITIONAL CLARIFICATION ON THAT. 'CAUSE 'CAUSE THIS, I MEAN, THE WAY I READ IT, IT'S LIKE YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO TALK TO 'EM OUR EMAIL OR TEXT MESSAGE OR, AND I, I DON'T KNOW, MAYBE I TEXT OCCASIONALLY, BUT MOSTLY, MOSTLY I TRY TO, MOSTLY I TRY TO SEND THE MOST CIVIL AND POLITE EMAILS I POSSIBLY CAN. SO WE'LL FOLLOW UP. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. YES, MA'AM. AND THEN, I MEAN, IN A WAY WE'RE ALL WITH, I KNOW NATALIE'S NOT HERE, BUT ISN'T BECAUSE WE'RE A PART OF THE, UM, LIKE THE PUBLIC MEETINGS ACT WHERE RIGHT. SO I SUBJECT TO THE OPEN MEETINGS ACT. RIGHT. SO I CAN'T, I HAVE TO BE, OR I SHOULD BE CAUTIOUS ABOUT GOING AND HAVING A CONVERSATION WITH COUNCIL MEMBER PENA AND COUNCIL MEMBER JOHNSON AND COUNCIL MEMBER MILLER, BECAUSE NOW I'VE JUST CREATED A POTENTIAL DAISY CHAIN WALKING FORUM. YEAH. SO I'VE TAKEN MY PUBLIC MEETINGS CERTIFICATION AND I'M AWARE OF THAT AND I WOULD BE ABIDING BY THAT. SO DEFINITELY IN TERMS OF LOVE, I WOULD, I HAVE, THERE'S TIMES THAT I'VE BEEN LIKE, OH, I ALSO WANT TO REACH TIME. I'M LIKE, OH, NOPE. YOU KNOW WHAT? I'VE ALREADY TALKED TO TWO, I'M GOOD. YOU KNOW, TYPE OF THING. IF I WASN'T PERSUASIVE ENOUGH, THEN I SHOULD HAVE DONE A BETTER JOB BEING PERSUASIVE. SO I THINK, I DO THINK THAT, UM, BECAUSE WE HAVE GONE THROUGH THAT TRAINING AND WE ARE BEHOLDEN TO OURSELVES AS WELL, IT MAKES SENSE TO CLARIFY THAT PHRASING A LITTLE BIT. I'M JUST GONNA TELL COUNCILMAN PENLEY, HE CAN, HE KNOW HOW TO CLARIFY IT. HE KNOW HOW TO GET THE MESSAGE ACROSS. ALRIGHT. I WILL BRING THIS UP. WE'LL, WE'LL GET SOME, UH, LEFT VAGUE. ANYTHING, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ON THAT ITEM? NO. GOOD CATCH. OKAY. WE ARE UP TO, UH, ITEM AGENDA, [Business - F] ITEM FOUR F EXECUTIVE SESSION. PURSUANT TO SECTION 5 51 0.0 72 OF THE TEXAS OPEN MEETINGS ACT, WE WANT TO DISCUSS THE PURCHASE EXCHANGE LEASE OR VALUE OF REAL PROPERTY AND 5 51 0.087 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EDC OWNED PROPERTY 30,603 FM 10 93 AND 30,619 FM 10 93 FULL TEXAS 7 7 441 AND DOWNTOWN PARKING STRUCTURE. DO I HAVE A MOTION TO ADJOURN INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION? I MOTION WE ADJOURN FOR EXECUTIVE SESSION. I'LL SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. AYE. WE WILL [00:45:01] A ADJOURN INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION AT 6:45 PM OKAY. WE WILL RESUME OUR REGULAR MEETING AT 7:06 PM UH, IS THERE [Business - G] ANY ACTION TO BE TAKEN FROM THE EXECUTIVE SESSION? NO. ACTION. OKAY. MOVING ON. ITEM FIVE, RECURRING [Recurring Items - A] ITEMS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT REPORT. YES, MA'AM. YOU HAD ASKED FOR THE NUMBER OF NEW BUSINESSES. SO WE HAVE A LIST FOR THIS PAST QUARTER, APRIL THROUGH JUNE. THERE WERE FIVE IN THE CITY LIMITS. WHAT IS THAT? NOT WHAT I SAID. OH YES. QUARTER THREE. UM, CHANCE A BA MOUNTAIN MIKE'S PIZZA. AND YOU'LL KNOW THAT'S BEEN HERE. THEY HAD A CHANGE IN OWNERSHIP. UM, OUR CVS BERKELEY EYE CENTER AND STELLAR ORTHODONTIC ORTHODONTICS. AND, UM, IN THE ETJ WE HAD NAILS OF AMERICA AND POSTAL PLUS. UM, AND ALSO, JUST FOR YOU TO KNOW, THE CERTIFICATES OF OCCUPANCY THAT ARE ISSUED ARE ALSO INCLUDED IN THE CITY MANAGER NEWSLETTER THAT GOES OUT, UM, MONTHLY OR YEAH. ON A MONTHLY BASIS. SO THAT'S ALWAYS SHARED ON OUR SOCIAL MEDIA. UM, I THINK THAT IS A NEW ADDITION. FAIRLY RECENT. I GONNA SAY I DON'T REMEMBER SEEING IT BEFORE. I'M LIKE, MAN, I'M NOT READING THAT. WELL, I THINK IT'S UNDER THE PLANNING SECTION. YES, IT IS UNDER THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT SECTION. OKAY. UM, BUT I'LL BE FORWARDING IT AND I'LL PROBABLY INCLUDE IT IN, UH, WRITTEN AS A SUB BULLET POINT SO YOU CAN ACTUALLY SEE THEM IN HERE AS WELL. BUT I JUST GRABBED THE LIST THAT I ALWAYS TRY TO PAY SPECIAL ATTENTION TO HOW MANY BANDIT SIGNS ARE CONFISCATED. BUT I'LL, I'LL LOOK FOR THE COS FROM NOW ON. ALL RIGHT. UM, ITEM TWO, BLUE DOT CRM AND BUSINESS, UH, DATABASE. SO WE ON, UM, THE 17TH THIS PAST MONTH SENT ALL OF OUR MATERIALS OVER TO BLUE DOT. WE'VE RECENTLY ENGAGED THEM TO HAVE, UH, OUR CRM SYSTEM WHERE WE CAN TRACK THE FEATURES THAT WE HAVE, THAT THE SYSTEM HAS, WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT. UM, IT'LL JUST REALLY ALLOW US TO TRACK ALL THE WORK THAT WE'VE BEEN DOING, UM, AND BE ABLE TO REPORT THAT TO YOU ALL OUTSIDE OF THE CRM. IT WILL ALSO ALLOW US TO HAVE A FRONT FACING BUSINESS DATABASE WITHIN OUR WEBSITE. SO AS WE BEGIN THE, THESE BRE VISITS, WE'RE VERY MUCH LOOKING FORWARD TO BEING ABLE TO TELL BUSINESSES. YOU CAN UPLOAD YOUR OWN PROFILE INFORMATION AT IT THERE, AND THEN WE CAN SORT, UM, IT'S NATIONAL PIZZA MONTH, IT'S NATIONAL PIZZA DAY. WHAT ARE ALL THE PIZZA PLACES? HERE'S A PIZZA GUIDE, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER THAT LOOKS LIKE. WHERE CAN I GET WINE? WHAT IT'S NATIONAL MARGARITA DAY, WHATEVER. IT'S TIME TO DO YOUR TAXES. WHO ALL CAN SERVE YOU WITHIN THE CITY OF WILSHIRE, KEEP YOUR BUSINESS LOCAL. UM, ALL THOSE KINDS OF THINGS, UM, CAN NOW BE VISIBLE AND SORTED, UM, FOR OUR COMMUNITY TO ENGAGE WITH. MM-HMM . UM, AND Y'ALL HAVE HEARD ME SAY THIS. I I NEVER WANNA WALK INTO A BUSINESS AND SAY, WHAT'S YOUR PROBLEM? HOW CAN I HELP YOU? AND THEN HAVE NO WAY OF HELPING THEM. MM-HMM . SO ALREADY SAYING, HEY, HERE'S A NEW FEATURE ON OUR WEBSITE AND HERE'S HOW IT CAN HELP YOU. UM, I THINK WE'RE VERY MUCH LOOKING FORWARD TO IMPLEMENTING THAT. SO WE SHOULD GET A CALL FROM THEM WITHIN THE NEXT WEEK OR SO AND THEN BEGIN OUR LAUNCH OF, OF, UM, THE SYSTEM. ARE THERE OTHER CITIES AROUND HERE THAT USE BLUE DOT OR, I, I MEAN, I HAVEN'T HEARD OF IT. I, THE LAST TIME WE DID THIS, IT WAS SALESFORCE AND I HAD HEARD OF SALESFORCE, BUT I'M JUST NOT FAMILIAR WITH BLUE DOT. SO BLUE DOT, UM, I DON'T KNOW. I'M SURE WE HAVE NEIGHBORS THAT DO, BUT BLUE.IS SPECIFICALLY AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CRM. SO WHERE SALESFORCE, WE REALLY HAD TO DESIGNED BY AN ECONOMIC MOLDED IN A WAY THAT KIND OF WORKED FOR US. THIS IS MADE FROM THE GROUND UP TO BE USED FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. OKAY. IS IT BASED IN THE, IS IT A COMPANY BASED IN TEXAS OR IS IT NATIONAL OR? I, I'LL LOOK IT UP. WE CAN GET YOU THAT ANSWER. I'LL, I'LL, I'LL GOOGLE IT WHEN I GET HOME. I WAS TRYING TO SEARCH WHAT EXAMPLES THEY SENT ME 'CAUSE THEY HAD, UM, BUT KELSEY, UM, OUR A CM HAS A BACKGROUND IN PLANNING AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND SHE'S ALSO USED THIS, UM, IN PREVIOUS COMMUNITIES SHE'S WORKED WITH. AND SHE HAD SOME VERY POSITIVE THINGS TO SAY ABOUT HER EXPERIENCE WITH THE SYSTEM. AND SO COMING FROM SOMEONE WHO'S DONE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, IF THEY'VE USED IT AND IT'S WORKED WELL, WE USUALLY TAKE THAT . YEAH. AND I ALSO, KELSEY MADE IT VERY CLEAR EVERY TIME SHE HAD MENTIONED THEM WAS, I'M NOT TRYING TO PUSH YOU GUYS TO USE THEM, I JUST LIKE THEM. SO CHECK 'EM OUT AND SEE IF YOU, IF YOU LIKE IT. AND, UM, AFTER A DEMO, WE, WE REALLY ENJOYED THE, THE PRODUCT ITSELF AND [00:50:01] ESPECIALLY THE BUSINESS DATABASE, I THINK WILL BE SUPER USEFUL FOR US. UM, WE'VE TRIED TO DO THINGS LIKE THAT IN THE PAST, PARTNERING WITH GIS AND, AND PLANNING TO KIND OF MAKE THOSE MAPS, UM, AND HIGHLIGHT WHAT BUSINESS TYPES WE HAVE. BUT THIS IS A MUCH MORE SEAMLESS OPTION THAT I THINK NOT ONLY WILL HELP US, BUT HELP GIS AND IN PLANNING AS WELL. OKAY. MUCH SO. COOL. ALL RIGHT. I'LL MOVE TO ITEM THREE, THE FULL STREET ENTREPRENEUR RESOURCE FAIR. SO AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, THAT IS SCHEDULED FOR SEPTEMBER 1ST. IT'S A TUESDAY FROM 9:00 AM TO NOON. SO FROM UM, NINE TO 11, WE WILL HAVE ADVISORS LINED UP AROUND THE ROOM LIKE WE HAD IN PAST YEARS. WE WILL HAVE A PHOTOGRAPHER THERE DOING, UM, HEAD SHOTS FOR ANYBODY THAT COMES THROUGH FREE OF CHARGE. THE ENTIRE THING IS FREE TO ATTEND. UM, THIS YEAR WE OPTED TO DO ONE PRESENTATION WITH A PANEL OF BUSINESS OWNERS, UM, INSTEAD OF HOW WE DID IT IN PREVIOUS YEARS, WHICH WAS JUST A PRESENTATION EVERY, UM, COUPLE HOURS. SO THE PANEL WILL BE MADE UP OF DENISE EOV, OWNER OF WA TAILS, UM, CARLOS MORA, HE IS AN ATTORNEY, UM, VERY ACTIVE WITH THE LOCAL CHAMBER FOR COMMERCE AND EXTENSIVE EXPERIENCE IN, UM, INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS. SO WE TRY TO JUST BRING ABOUT DIFFERENT, UM, PERSPECTIVES. AND THEN WE INVITED, UM, DANIEL YU AS WELL. UM, HE IS A LEADER IN, UM, THE ASIAN COMMUNITY BUSINESS COMMUNITY. AND HE, UM, HAS EXTENSIVE EXPERIENCE WITH FRANCHISES. UM, YOU MIGHT HAVE MET HIM RECENTLY. UM, SO WE'RE EXCITED TO HAVE HIM PARTICIPATE. AND THEN, UM, SUSAN LEDAR, SHE IS THE OWNER, OH, GROWLER OF THE GROWLER SPOT. SO WE TRIED TO BLEND, UM, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN HERE FOR YEARS AND YEARS AND GONE THROUGH THE CHALLENGE OF COVID AND UM, YOU KNOW, SEEING ALL OF THAT. AND THEN PEOPLE THAT HAVE JOINED THE COMMUNITY RECENTLY AS WELL. UM, SO WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT CONVERSATION AND JUST GLEANING SOME WISDOM FROM THEM, UM, AS WELL AS ADVISING SESSIONS FOR THE BUSINESSES. AND THEY'RE ALL ENTREPRENEURS. YES, YES. YEAH, IT'S REALLY FUNNY. BE I HESITATE ALL THE TIME TO SAY WHAT THEY'RE ALIGNED WITH BECAUSE THEY ACTUALLY HAVE SO MANY DIFFERENT THINGS THAT THEY'RE EXPERTS ON AND JUST REALLY GREAT. UM, THERE'S REALLY GREAT RESOURCES, I THINK, FOR OUR COMMUNITY. MM-HMM . ALL RIGHT. SO THAT'S THE RESOURCE FAIR. AND THEN ITEM FOUR, OUR ENTREPRENEUR WORKSHOPS. UM, SO WE DID HAVE ONE OF THESE IN APRIL. IT'S A THREE PART SERIES, BUT YOU'RE ABLE TO ATTEND ANY OR ALL IT DOESN'T BUILD ON EACH OTHER. UM, THE NEXT ONES WILL BE ON SEPTEMBER 12TH AND OCTOBER 17TH. THIS, SO WE WILL BE SHARING THOSE. THIS IS NOT THE FRANCHISE THING, IT'S SEPARATE AND APART FROM THE FRANCHISE THING? YES, MA'AM. OKAY. THAT'S RIGHT. INSTITUTE. IT WAS A PARTNERSHIP WITH FOUNDER INSTITUTE. WE HOST USUALLY ON SATURDAYS AT IRENE STERN. COOL. DO WE KNOW WHAT THE, IS, IS THERE SPECIFIC TOPICS YET FOR THOSE? UM, GENERALLY THERE'S KIND OF SOME SUBCATEGORIES AND WHAT WE DO IS WHEN PEOPLE REGISTER, THEY FILL OUT A SURVEY THAT TELLS US WHERE IN THE BUSINESS CYCLE THEY ARE. AND SO WE WILL THEN TAILOR THE AMOUNT OF TIME SPENT ON THAT, YOU KNOW, ON THAT TOPIC TO BEST FIT THE ATTENDEES FOR THAT SESSION. THE GROUP THAT'S COMING? YES, MA'AM. OKAY. BUT IT'S FOR ALL STAGES. IT'S FROM SOMEONE, YOU KNOW, FROM IDEATION TO, UM, ACTUALLY LAUNCHING, EXPANDING ALL, ALL OF IT. YEAH. UM, I WANNA MAKE A COMMENT ABOUT THREE AND FOUR COMBINED. UM, SO I AM REALLY EXCITED ABOUT BOTH OF THOSE, UH, ACTIVITIES OCCURRING. I HAVE ALREADY HAD ONE LOCAL BUSINESS OWNER THAT REACHED OUT TO ME THAT SAID THAT THEY CAN'T ATTEND THE RESOURCE FAIR, BUT BASICALLY BECAUSE IT'S A WEEKDAY MM-HMM . UM, AND I KIND OF SIT BACK TO HIM, I WAS LIKE, WELL, BUT WE ALSO DO HAVE EVENTS ON THE WEEKENDS. LIKE WE SPREAD THEM AROUND. MM-HMM . THANK YOU. . WE TRY OUR BEST TO DO EVENING DURING THE WEEK, WEEKENDS AND THEN DURING THE WEEK, DURING THE DAY AS SO. WELL, YEAH. UM, NO, I DEFINITELY, UH, I, I UNDERSTAND THAT, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE, ESPECIALLY ENTREPRENEURS CAN OFTEN, YOU KNOW, ALREADY HAVE A FULL-TIME JOB, ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY'RE TRYING TO GET STARTED. AND SO, UM, DURING THE DAY CAN BE DIFFICULT. UM, BUT I, SO I, I DO APPRECIATE THAT WE HAVE THINGS ON DAY, DAYTIME, EVENINGS AND WEEKENDS. UM, AND, BUT I THINK MAYBE, UH, JUST OUR NEXT TIME AROUND THAT WE DO ENTREPRENEURIAL RESOURCE FAIR. LET'S JUST FLAG THAT FOR A SATURDAY, UM, FOR, YOU KNOW, NEXT. WE DID LAST ONE SIX MONTHS AGO, I THINK. ROSIE. [00:55:01] YEAH. SO, UM, SO YEAH. SO THAT'S JUST A, A GOOD CALL OUT. UM, YEAH. THANK YOU. WE REALLY APPRECIATE THAT FEEDBACK. 'CAUSE ULTIMATELY THAT'S WHO WE WANNA SERVE. UM, IN THE FUTURE, PLEASE ALWAYS FEEL FREE TO CONNECT THEM WITH US, GIVE THEM OUR EMAIL, OUR PHONE NUMBER. THE PEOPLE THAT ARE FACILITATING THESE WORKSHOPS ARE EXTREMELY, EXTREMELY PASSIONATE ABOUT HELPING SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS AND THEY ARE WILLING TO VIRTUALLY REDO THE WHOLE TRAINING. THEY'RE ALWAYS READY TO PROVIDE THE MATERIALS AND WE CAN SIT WITH THEM AND RECAP WHAT WAS SHARED THERE, UM, AND INTRODUCE THEM TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE NOT MISSING OUT ON THAT RESOURCE AND THAT CONNECTION. MM-HMM . BUT I KNOW IT'S, IT'S DIFFERENT WHEN YOU GET TO BE THERE AND FEEL THE ENERGY OF THE GROUP. YEAH. SO I DEFINITELY HEAR YOU. ALL RIGHT. THERE'S NO OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ON THAT. I'LL MOVE ON TO THE LAST ITEM FIVE, FULL FOLEY. SO, UM, WE ARE STARTING TO SHARE THE VENDOR CALL OUTS AND ALL OF THAT ON OUR SOCIAL MEDIA THAT IS SCHEDULED FOR OCTOBER 10TH FROM FOUR TO 8:00 PM SO MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR THAT EVENT AND IT'LL BE HERE AT CITY HALL IN THE PARKING LOT. LOTS GOING ON. LOTS OF GOOD THINGS GOING ON. OKAY. UH, FIVE [Recurring Items - B] B FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS. DOES ANYBODY HAVE FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS TO ADD TO THE LIST? UM, ANELLE ALREADY HAS LISTED STRATEGIC PLAN, DISCUSSION, UH, PARKING STRUCTURE, NEXT STEPS. DOES ANYONE HAVE ANYTHING TO ADD TO THAT? UM, I DID WANNA ADD IF, UH, SO LAST WEEKEND THE GROWLER SPOT HAD THEIR 12TH ANNIVERSARY. UM, SOME OF THESE THINGS I CATCH 'CAUSE I'M ON FACEBOOK A LOT. UM, BUT I THINK IT WOULD BE NICE IF WE, AS WE FORMALIZE SOME OF THIS DATA WE'RE GETTING FROM LOCAL BUSINESS OWNERS, IF WE AS ON THE BOARD COULD GET ANNOUNCEMENTS OR NOTIFICATIONS WHENEVER BUSINESSES ARE HAVING THOSE ANNIVERSARIES, EVEN IF THAT BUSINESS DIDN'T FORMALLY RECOGNIZE THEIR ANNIVERSARY. IF I THINK IF AN FOR AN E-D-C-E-D-C MEMBER TO WALK INTO THE BUSINESS AND THEN, AND, AND BE ABLE TO LIKE, JUST AS SOMEONE BUYING DINNER OR SOMETHING, ALSO BE LIKE, HEY, CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR TWO YEAR ANNIVERSARY OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. LIKE THAT BUSINESS WOULD PROBABLY KIND OF BE BOWLED OVER, YOU KNOW, THAT, THAT THE EDCS AND YOU KNOW, THEY'RE PAYING ATTENTION LIKE THAT. SO I THINK THAT COULD BE A FUN WAY TO, UM, TO REALLY SUPPORT BUSINESSES AND TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN HAVE A, A PRESENCE AS MUCH AS WE CAN, UM, TO SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESSES. UM, AND MAYBE SOMETHING THAT THE BLUE DOT THING CAN HELP WITH OR YES. YES. PERFECT. THAT'S WHAT I WAS SAYING, LIKE AS WE, AS WE GET ALL THAT DATA INTO A SYSTEM THAT CAN PULL THAT, THAT'LL MAKE THAT LESS TEDIOUS OF WORK ON Y'ALL TO PULL THAT TOGETHER. YEAH. IT NEEDS TO BE VERY ORGANIZED BECAUSE I USED TO BE VERY, UM, ACTIVE WITH SAYING HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO EVERYBODY ON MY FACEBOOK PAGE, AND ONCE I HAD SURGERY, SO I WASN'T ON FACEBOOK FOR A DAY. OH WOW. AND THREE PEOPLE INBOXED ME SAID, YOU DIDN'T WISH ME HAPPY BIRTHDAY . SO IF YOU START SOMETHING, YOU HAVE TO BE CONSISTENT WITH IT. AND SO WE, IT HAS TO BE VERY ORGANIZED BECAUSE WE DON'T WANT TO UPSET BUSINESSES BECAUSE THEY, WELL, BUSINESSES TALK TOO. SO IF THEY HEAR YOU CONGRATULATE THEIR NEIGHBOR BUT NOT THEM ABSOLUTELY. IT MEANS SOMETHING. YES, WE CAN DEFINITELY, ONCE WE GET ALL THAT INFORMATION, SEND IT OUT. AND I DO TRY, IF I COME ACROSS IT TO SHARE, I KNOW CULVER'S JUST CELEBRATED FOUR YEARS, SO WE SHARED THAT TANA RECENTLY CELEBRATED AN ANNIVERSARY. UM, BUT IN ADDITION TO THAT, YOU KIND OF REMINDED ME FOR OUR ROPE CUTTINGS AS WELL MM-HMM . WHEN WE'RE HAVING THOSE NEW BUSINESSES, THEIR ROPE CUTTINGS ARE WONDERFUL TIMES. SO, SO MANY TIMES THEY'LL HAVE THAT SPREAD OF, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER THEY'RE SERVING, IF IT'S A RESTAURANT OR YOU KNOW, DEMOS OF THE SERVICES THEY'RE GIVING. I KNOW STRETCH LAB JUST OPENED. SO KIND OF SHARING ALL THAT. YEAH. UM, I THINK WILL BE HELPFUL BECAUSE WHEN WE, WHEN WE DO GET THE LIST, LIKE WE NEED TO HAVE IT LIKE ASSIGNED TO SOMEONE. 'CAUSE I DON'T WANNA SAY, WELL I THINK BONNIE'S GONNA DO IT THEN. WELL I THOUGHT CARLOS WAS GONNA DO IT. NOW WE MISS SOMEBODY. SO, YOU KNOW, JUST, I TAKE EVERY PLACE THAT SERVES MARGARITAS, NOTED. SO MAYBE WE CAN TALK, UM, IN THE FUTURE JUST COMMUNICATION GOING FORWARD BETWEEN STAFF AND BOARD. MM-HMM . AND WHAT ARE THINGS THAT YOU WANNA HEAR FROM US REGULARLY IN ADDITION TO, UM, NEW BUSINESSES? UM, THE OTHER, THE OTHER THING, AND I DON'T, WELL HONESTLY, I'M REAL EXCITED 'CAUSE I [01:00:01] THINK YOU'LL PROBABLY HAVE AN UPDATE FOR US ON THE BUSINESS RETENTION PROGRAM NEXT MONTH. SO THAT PROBABLY GOES WITHOUT SAYING, BUT ALSO AS, AS A RESULT OF THE WORKSHOP LAST WEEK. UM, AND THIS, THIS COULD TAKE A, TAKE A WHILE BEFORE IT COMES UP. 'CAUSE I'M SURE THERE IS SOME UPFRONT WORK THAT HAS TO GO INTO IT. BUT I TOOK VERY SERIOUSLY THE CRITICISM THAT, UM, THE CONSULTANT GAVE US ABOUT OUR WEBSITE NEEDING TO BE ITS OWN PAGE. AND, AND THAT'S, WE'VE DISCUSSED. YES. YEAH. THAT'S, THAT'S PROBABLY SOME WORK TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO DO THAT. AND ALTHOUGH HOPEFULLY MOST OF THE CONTENT CAN JUST COME OVER, BUT, UM, YEAH, WE NEED TO GET, APPARENTLY WE NEED TO GET THAT FIXED IN THE WORST WAY POSSIBLE ACCORDING TO THE CONSULTANT. YES. SURE. WE'LL, WE'LL ADD THAT ON THERE. AND IN THE MEANTIME, IF YOU WOULD GO AT AUDIT OUR WEBSITE, . OKAY. SEE WHAT, WHAT YOU CAN FIND AND WHAT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE ON THERE. YEAH. AND YOU HAVE TO HIT THE THING WHERE IT SAYS, JUMP TO THE SUB PAGE. 'CAUSE OTHERWISE ALL YOU GET IS, YOU KNOW, LIKE SHE SAID, SHE DIDN'T, SHE DIDN'T SEE THAT AND SO SHE DIDN'T, YOU KNOW. YEAH. I THINK ONE OF THE, SHE MISSED 95% OF IT. YEAH. I THINK ONE OF THE BIGGEST PROBLEMS WAS JUST TRYING TO FIND IT, YOU KNOW, BUT WITH OUR OWN WEBSITE, THAT'S ANOTHER PLACE WE CAN RECOGNIZE BUSINESS AS WELL. WELL, WE'LL ADD THAT TO THE LIST. ANY OTHER, UM, AGENDA ITEMS YOU'D LIKE TO SEE? THAT WAS ALL I HAD. UM, I THINK MY ONLY THING WAS JUST, AND I'M SURE YOU GUYS ARE WORKING THROUGH THE DETAILS, BUT, UH, JUST WHENEVER WE CAN DO ONE OF THOSE COMBINED STRATEGY SESSIONS, I, YES, I DO HESITATE A LITTLE BIT AT QUARTERLY JUST BECAUSE WE ARE ALL INCREDIBLY BUSY. MM-HMM . I KNOW COUNCIL'S MEETING BASICALLY TWICE A MONTH AT THIS POINT. SO, BUT I THINK AT LEAST ONCE EVERY SIX MONTHS MAKES SENSE. YEAH. UM, AND, UH, AND, AND PROBABLY BEFORE THE END OF THE YEAR. YES MA'AM. SO, WELL, THANK YOU. THE END OF THE YEAR GETS SO DOGGONE HECTIC. I'M OKAY WITH JANUARY TO TELL YOU THE TRUTH, BUT WHATEVER, IT'S NOT GONNA BE UP TO US. IT'S GONNA BE CITY COUNCIL PROBABLY CALLING THE SHOTS ON WHEN IT'LL BE, AND IF IT HAPPENS BEFORE TWO YEARS GO BY, I'LL BE THRILLED. , UH, WE ARE, I THINK WE ARE DOWN TO, [Recurring Items - C] UH, RECURRING ITEM FIVE C ANNOUNCEMENTS. DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS, UH, TO ANYBODY OF THE PUBLIC WHO IS IN ATTENDANCE OR MIGHT BE WATCHING? I BELIEVE, AND I DO NOT HAVE THE DATE, BUT EITHER END OF AUGUST OR EARLY SEPTEMBER IS THE LAST DAY TO REGISTER TO VOTE. OH. UM, VOTING'S A GOOD ONE IS VERY IMPORTANT. IT IS THE NUMBER ONE WAY IN WHICH WE AS AMERICANS PARTICIPATE IN OUR SYSTEM AND MAKE SURE THAT OUR VOICES ARE HEARD. SO IF ANYONE IS NOT CURRENTLY REGISTERED TO VOTE, PLEASE ENSURE THAT YOU ARE REGISTERED TO VOTE. WE DO NOT HAVE, I DON'T BELIEVE WE HAVE A CITY BUSINESS COMING UP ON THE NOVEMBER ELECTION, BUT THAT DOES NOT MEAN THAT YOU CANNOT GET OUT AND VOTE AND EVEN IF YOU'RE REGISTERED, BUT IF YOU CHANGED ADDRESSES RECENTLY, UPDATE YOUR ADDRESS, THAT MAKES IT EASIER ON ALL THE ELECTION WORKERS, LESS FORMS TO FILL OUT. GREAT. ANNOUNCEMENT. UH, WE ARE DOWN TO ITEM SIX. IS THERE A MOTION TO ADJOURN? MOTION? I MOTION TO ADJOURN. SECOND 7:25 PM OKAY. YOU MOTION? YOU CAN DO A SECOND. OKAY. CARLOS, I, SECOND. SECOND, SORRY. OKAY. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. AYE, WE ARE ADJOURNED AT 7:25 PM THANK YOU SO VERY, VERY MUCH. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.