* 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. [00:00:02] THERE YOU GO. [ CITY OF BAYTOWN NOTICE OF MEETING CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2025 5:30 P.M. COUNCIL CHAMBER, CITY HALL 2401 MARKET STREET, BAYTOWN, TEXAS 77520 AGENDA CALL TO ORDER AND ANNOUNCEMENT OF QUORUM ] I NOW CALLED TO ORDER THE CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION ON THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23RD, 2025 IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBER. AN ANNOUNCEMENT OF QUORUM AT 5:32 PM WE'RE GONNA START OFF WITH CITIZEN COMMENT. DID ANYONE SIGN UP TO SPEAK? YOU MAKE IT. SHE'S ALREADY JUST ONE SECOND. SHE'S NOT A GOOD START. , WE'RE GOOD. MOVING ON TO THERE BEING NO ONE DESIRING TO SPEAK. THIS CONCLUDES THE CITIZEN COMMENT PORTION OF THE AGENDA. WE ARE GOING TO RECEIVE [a. Receive a presentation regarding the City of Baytown's new performance dashboard.] A PRESENTATION REGARDING THE CITY OF BAY TOWN'S NEW PERFORMANCE DASHBOARD DASHBOARD. MS. SABRINA MARTIN, HOW ARE YOU TODAY? I'M DOING GOOD. HOW ARE YOU? PRETTY GOOD. I'M EXCITED TO SHARE IT WITH YOU ALL. OUR PERFORMANCE DASHBOARD. IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME IN THE MAKING, SO I WOULD NOT BE TRUE TO MYSELF IF WE DID NOT START OFF WITH A LITTLE BIT OF ENGAGEMENT. NO WORRIES. WE'RE NOT GETTING UP AND MOVING AROUND OR, OR INTERACTING WITH THE STICKY WALL. NOTHING LIKE THAT. ANNIE TAYLOR SWIFT, CAN WE, I DID CONSIDER PUTTING TAYLOR SWIFT REFERENCES IN THIS, BUT I DECLINED FOR THE GROUP. YOU'RE ALL WELCOME. THANK YOU. UH, IN FRONT OF YOU. I WOULD'VE BEEN FINE. I WOULD'VE BEEN FINE WITH IT ALSO. THANK YOU FOR THAT. I MEAN, SHAKE IT OFF, RIGHT? OH, OKAY. WHY IS THAT THE ONLY SONG WE ALL KNOW? IT'S OKAY. I'LL GET YOU SOME GOOD ONES. MEANT, I MEANT, I MEANT THE AUDIENCE. I JUST PUT THE AUDIENCE IN FRONT OF ME. DON'T PUT WORDS IN MY MOUTH. ALL RIGHT, NOW YOU THREW ME OFF MY GAME. ALL I'M, ALL I HEAR IS TAYLOR SWEAT IN MY HEAD. I KNOW. ME TOO. OKAY. RE MY TEARS ON MY GUITAR. EVERYTHING'S LIKE COMING BACK. OH, LORD. HAVE MERCY. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. RESET NUMBERS IN FRONT OF YOU. ANY IDEAS WHAT THEY REPRESENT IN OUR ORGANIZATION? YOU CAN CALL THEM OUT. WHAT WAS THE QUESTION? THE NUMBERS. THE NUMBERS IN FRONT OF YOU. WHAT NUMBERS? LIKE WHAT DO THEY REPRESENT IN OUR ORGANIZATION? EMPLOYEES. EMPLOYEES. OKAY. IT'S A GOOD GUESS. THE NUMBER OF POTHOLES FIXED ON A YEARLY BASIS YEAR BY YEAR. DIVING INTO THOSE METRICS. OKAY. YES. ANY OTHER GUESSES? UM, I'M SEEING SOME, NOT SURE. OKAY. DON'T WORRY. I WILL TELL YOU WHAT THEY ARE IN JUST A MINUTE. I WANT TO FIRST TALK ABOUT OUR JOURNEY TO TODAY AND KIND OF CELEBRATE AND RECOGNIZE THE WORK THAT BROUGHT US HERE. SO WHEN JAY BECAME CITY MANAGER IN 23, HE CAME TO THE LEADERSHIP TEAM WITH A BIG OLD SPREADSHEET READY TO BE FILLED WITH, UH, DATA. HE HAS A HUGE PASSION FOR KPIS. UH, THAT WASN'T EXACTLY WHAT WE AS AN ORGANIZATION HAD READY FOR HIM THOUGH. SO THIS BEGAN WHAT STAFF'S BEEN CALLING THAT MESSY MIDDLE FOR US. SO AS AN ORGANIZATION, WE WEREN'T REALLY COLLECTING THE NUMBERS IN A COHESIVE OR ENCOMPASSING WAY BEFORE. THERE WERE SOME DEPARTMENTS THAT HAD A LOT OF METRICS, VERY METRIC HEAVY LOOKING AT YOU POLICE, UH, BUT THERE WERE OTHERS THAT WEREN'T REALLY SURE HOW YOU PUT A NUMBER ON LIKE A SHARED EXPERIENCE LIKE PARKS PARK AND TOURISM, TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW DO YOU, HOW DO YOU PUT NUMBERS TO THIS? WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? UM, SO THIS BEGAN THE WORK OF IDENTIFYING WHAT ARE OUR CORE SERVICES AND PROGRAMS, AND THEN HOW DO WE START WIDGE? HOW DO WE START COUNTING THOSE WIDGETS OR THE THINGS THAT WE DO? SO WE SPENT MUCH OF 24 KIND OF TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE'RE GONNA TRACK THOSE AND FIGURING OUT HOW TO TRACK THEM AND BUILDING THE INFRASTRUCTURE IN PLACE SO THAT WE COULD CONTINUE MONITORING THEM ON A MONTH TO MONTH BASIS. SO ALL OF THAT TO SAY WE HAD TO GET ALL OF THAT DATA AND FIGURE OUT A NEW SOFTWARE AND HOW TO PUT IT ALL IN THERE TOGETHER. SO THROUGH THIS PROCESS, THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE MET WITH EACH DEPARTMENT ONE-ON-ONE TO KIND OF HONE AND REFINE WHAT ARE YOUR PROGRAMS AND SERVICES? HOW ARE YOU MEASURING THEM? WHAT ARE, WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO IN THE FUTURE WITH THEM? HOW ARE WE GONNA MONITOR THEM WHILE ALSO MAKING CHANGES TO OUR BUDGET AND OUR SERVICE DELIVERY? AND THEN, YOU KNOW, HANDLING OPERATIONS OF OUR DEPARTMENTS. SO IT'S TAKEN US ABOUT TWO YEARS TO GET HERE. UM, AND IT WASN'T JUST ABOUT HAVING METRICS FROM OTHER INDUSTRIES OR WHAT OUR ORGANIZATIONS SAY OUR METRICS SHOULD BE, BUT WHAT DO THESE METRICS ACTUALLY MEAN FOR BAYTOWN AND HOW CAN WE USE THEM IN A MEANINGFUL WAY? SO 2025 HAS BEEN THAT LIKE YEAR OF CULTURE SHIFT FOR US. AS WE CREATED THIS DASHBOARD, UM, WE BEGAN COUNTING THE PIECES AND ANALYZE [00:05:01] THEM TO HELP US TELL OUR STORY OF HOW WELL WE'RE PROVIDING SERVICES TO OUR COMMUNITY. UM, THIS IS A WAY OF LAYING OUT ALL OF THE DIFFERENT CORE SERVICES AND PUTTING THEM ALL IN ONE PLACE. I WILL SAY I WANTED TO GET LIKE CONFETTI AND LIKE DO A CONFETTI CANNON RIGHT NOW AND THEN PLAY SOME TAYLOR SWIFT. SO THIS IS WHERE IT WAS GONNA BE IN THE PRESENTATION, BUT I DID . UH, BUT I DO WANNA TALK ABOUT OUR BIG WINS. SO WORKLOADS AND TRENDS. THE DEPARTMENT DASHBOARDS HELP DIRECTORS MONITOR THESE WORKLOADS AND TRENDS. AND AT OUR QUARTERLY REVIEWS, THEY'RE HOW OUR DEPARTMENTS SHARE OUT WHAT THEY'RE SEEING HAPPENING WITH THE REST OF THE ORGANIZATION. THIS HELPS WITH BUDGET FORECASTING, MEASURING SUCCESS, AND BEING TRANSPARENT ABOUT THE DIFFERENT SERVICES AND PROGRAMS THAT WE PROVIDE. IT'S ALSO GREATLY INCREASED OUR CROSS DEPARTMENTAL CONVERSATIONS. AND I DON'T SAY THIS AS IN A, OH, WE WEREN'T REALLY TALKING TO EACH OTHER, THAT SORT OF THING. THIS HAS FORCED US TO OPEN WINDOWS IN OUR SILOS AND IN OUR LANES AND START HAVING BETTER CONVERSATIONS ABOUT THE WORK THAT WE DO AND HOW THEY OVERLAP. SO IT'S HELPED US BUILD CONNECTIONS AND THEN BETTER COLLABORATIONS AND SERVICES TO OUR COMMUNITY. NOW, OUR DATA-DRIVEN DECISION MAKING, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT I AM EXCITED ABOUT BECAUSE WE'VE IDENTIFIED THE DATA AND WE'VE TALKED ABOUT IT AND WE'RE STARTED ANALYZING IT. AND NOW WE HAVE SOMETHING THAT WE CAN START USING AT OUR DIRECTOR RETREATS, AT OUR COUNCIL RETREATS AND IN THE BUDGET PROCESS TO HELP US MAKE MORE DATA, DATA-DRIVEN DECISIONS. UM, WE WILL USE THIS AS OUR GUIDING CONVERSATION MOVING FORWARD IN OUR BIG BUDGET PLANNING MEETINGS. AND THE LAST ONE IS TRANSPARENCY. LIKE I SAID BEFORE, THIS IS THE FIRST TIME BAYTOWN HAS DONE SOMETHING LIKE THIS. WE USED TO HAVE A SCORECARD, BUT IT WASN'T AS ALL ENCOMPASSING INTO LIKE OUR DAILY PROGRAMS AND SERVICES THAT WE PROVIDED. AND SO WE'RE EXCITED TO SHOWCASE THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING AND HOW WE'RE DOING IT, AS WELL AS ACKNOWLEDGING THAT THERE ARE GROW POINTS WITH EVERYTHING THAT WE DO. AND THIS IS A WAY TO SHOW OUR COMMUNITY THAT WE RECOGNIZE THEM AND HOW WE'RE WORKING WITH THEM. SO THAT BEING SAID, WE'RE COMING BACK TO THE NUMBERS AND I WANNA WALK YOU THROUGH WHAT WE'RE ABOUT TO DO. SO NUMBERS CAN MEAN ANYTHING UNTIL YOU START IDENTIFYING WHAT THEY ARE, WHY THEY'RE IMPORTANT, AND HOW THEY APPLY TO OUR ORGANIZATION. SO I'M GONNA WALK YOU THROUGH OUR THREE NUMBERS AND KIND OF TELL YOU HOW WE BUILT OUR DASHBOARD, UH, THAT WE'RE JUST DISPLAYING TO THE PUBLIC. SO 992, THAT WAS, I THINK, SARAH, I THINK YOU MAY HAVE GOTTEN IT CORRECT. THAT IS OUR TOTAL STAFF ROSTER. NOW, IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE, YOU KNOW, KNOW HOW MANY WE HAVE ON OUR STAFF, BUT IT'S NOT JUST THE TOTAL ROSTER AND HOW MANY WE HAVE HIGHER IN OR LEAVING IN A MONTH, BUT IT'S THAT TURNOVER RATE THAT TELLS US IF WE'RE RETAINING STAFF AND INDICATES IF WE'RE AN EMPLOYER OF CHOICE, IF OUR TURNOVER RATE IS EXTREMELY HIGH, WHY ARE PEOPLE LEAVING? WHERE ARE THEY GOING? WHAT'S GOING ON IN OUR ORGANIZATION? WHAT MIGHT WE NEED TO CHANGE? OR IF IT'S MEETING THE NATION'S AVERAGE OR INDUSTRY STANDARD, THEN WE'RE ON TRACK. WE'RE DOING A GOOD JOB. UM, THIS IS SOME OF THE CONVERSATIONS WE HAVE AROUND JUST THIS ONE NUMBER. OUR NEXT NUMBER YOU'LL SEE IS 180. I DON'T THINK THAT WE GOT THIS ONE, BUT THIS IS THE NUMBER OF DOGS THAT THE ANIMA SHELTER TOOK IN JUST LAST MONTH. THESE ARE NEW DOGS THAT COME IN AS STRAY, AND AS TONY WILL TELL YOU, IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT THE NUMBER OF DOGS THAT WE TAKE IN, BUT THE OPEN KENNEL SPACE THAT TELLS US IF WE CAN EVEN INTAKE ANIMALS TO PROTECT RESIDENTS FROM THE STRAY DOGS THAT WE GET CALLS OVER. SO TAKING THAT LEAP A LITTLE BIT FURTHER AND SEEING IT'S NOT JUST COUNTING THE NUMBER OF THINGS WE HAVE, BUT WHAT DOES IT ACTUALLY MEAN TO OUR OPERATIONS? IT'S KIND OF THAT MINDSET, MIND SHIFT AND CULTURE SHIFT THAT WE'VE DONE AS AN ORGANIZATION. AND THE LAST ONE. ANY LAST GUESSES? THIS IS A BIG ONE. NOT SURE. OKAY. NUMBER OF CALLS WE GET THAT'S REALLY CLOSE. THIS IS ACTUALLY THE NUMBER OF BETTER BAYTOWN TICKETS SUBMITTED IN JUST THE LAST QUARTER. SO WHILE QUANTITY ALONE SHOWS THE WORKLOAD THAT OUR DEPARTMENTS ARE TAKING IN FROM THESE TICKETS, IT'S IMPORTANT TO GO A LITTLE BIT FURTHER AND ANALYZE THE CLOSE RATE OF THESE TICKETS. LIKE, HOW RESPONSIVE ARE WE ACTUALLY BEING TO OUR COMMUNITY? HOW, UM, HOW ARE WE CLOSING THE LOOP AND WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? AND SO THAT'S WHAT WE'RE DOING WITH THE PERFORMANCE DASHBOARD. WE'RE TAKING OUR WIDGETS AND WE'RE COUNTING THEM. WE'RE ANALYZING THEM AND TELLING THE STORY OF WHAT OUR DEPARTMENTS ARE DOING. SO ON THE WEBSITE, YOU ARE GONNA SEE A, A SEVERAL DIFFERENT METRICS THAT ALIGN WITH OUR CORE SERVICES. UM, THEY ARE UPDATED ON A MONTHLY BASIS OR QUARTERLY BASIS, DEPENDING ON THE NUMBERS. UM, BUT THERE WILL BE A MONTHLY NARRATIVE FROM THE DIRECTOR OVER THAT METRIC THAT TELLS THE STORY [00:10:01] A LITTLE BIT MORE. SO STORYTELLING IS A FOCUS FOR THE DIRECTORS THIS NEXT YEAR SO THAT WE CAN TELL OUR STORY TO OUR RESIDENTS A LITTLE BIT FURTHER. AND IT'S NOT JUST TELLING OUR STORY THROUGH THE PERFORMANCE DASHBOARD, BUT ALSO ENHANCING THE BE ON VOICE THAT GOES OUT AND, YOU KNOW, TELLING OUR STORY THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA AS WELL. UM, ON A LARGER SCALE, YOU'LL SEE KIND OF LIKE THESE OVERALL GOALS THAT WILL COME WITH A MONTHLY, UH, NARRATIVE UPDATE FROM JAY. THAT KIND OF TELLS YOU I'M LOOKING AT THE TREND OF THIS OVERALL SECTION AND THIS IS WHAT I'M SEEING AND WHAT I'M LOOKING AT FROM THE CMOS LEVEL. UM, BEFORE I WALK YOU THROUGH THE WEBSITE AND KINDA SHOW YOU SOME EXAMPLES, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR ME? NO. OKAY. I'M GONNA COME BACK TO THIS WALKING THROUGH. I WANT TO CHECK, UM, I TELL YOU ABOUT THE NEXT STEPS BEFORE I SWITCH TO THE WEBSITE. SO AT OUR UPCOMING DIRECTORS RETREAT, WE'RE REALLY IDENTIFYING IDENTIFYING TARGETS AND BENCHMARKS FOR OUR METRICS. SO I KIND OF TALKED ABOUT THERE'S INDUSTRY STANDARDS, THERE ARE GOALS THERE, UM, OTHER COMPARATIVE CITIES THAT WE MIGHT BE BENCHMARKING OFF OF, BUT WE WANNA ENSURE THAT OUR CITY, UM, KEEPS IMPROVING AND MEETING THE GOALS THAT WE SET IN PLACE. SO WE'RE GONNA BE WORKING ON TAKING THESE METRICS THAT WE HAVE AND FIGURING OUT WHAT OUR COMPARATIVE TARGET OR BENCHMARK IS, AND UPDATING THIS ON A QUARTERLY BASIS ON HOW WELL WE'RE MEETING OUR GOALS OR THE TARGET. UM, SO THAT'S OUR TARGETS AND BENCHMARKS IN 2026. WE'RE ALSO HOPING AND SHOULD LAUNCH OUR STRATEGIC PRIORITIES DASHBOARD. THIS PULLS IN SOME OF THE WORK THAT OUR DEPARTMENTS ARE DOING TO MOVE THE STRATEGIC PLAN FORWARD, BUT ALSO PROJECTS OR PROGRAMS THAT THEY'RE DOING THAT ARE STRATEGIC IN NATURE AS PART OF THEIR OPERATION. SO HELP WITH BOTH OF THE STORYTELLING ON THAT FRONT. UM, THIS WORK THAT THEY'RE DOING IS NOT NECESSARILY ON A DAY-TO-DAY OPERATIONS, BUT MORE FOCUSED ON THE NEXT FIVE TO 10 YEARS AND THE WORK WE'RE DOING TO MOVE THE CITY FORWARD STRATEGICALLY. SO THE ONLY OTHER THING I WANNA ADD, OUR DASHBOARD, BOTH OF THEM ARE NOT STATIC. THEY'RE SOMETHING THAT WE'RE GOING TO KEEP IMPROVING UPON, YOU KNOW, MONTHLY, QUARTERLY, AND KEEP IT GROWING. IT'S SOMETHING THAT'S A CORE PART OF OUR MEETINGS AND OUR CONVERSATIONS. SO YOU WILL SEE MOVEMENT ON IT. AND SHOULD YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, BE HAPPY TO REACH OUT TO US AND, AND ANSWER ANYTHING THAT YOU HAVE. UM, WITH THAT, I'M READY TO SHOW YOU ALL THE DASHBOARD. DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING FOR ME? NO. OKAY. SO OUR PERFORMANCE DASHBOARD IS HOUSED UNDER OUR ACCESS WEB, UH, WEBPAGE ON BASED ON.ORG. IT'S LOCATED UNDER PERFORMANCE DASHBOARD. NOT GONNA LIE, I PANICKED FOR ABOUT FIVE SECONDS WHEN IT DID NOT LOAD JUST NOW . UH, BUT IT IS LIVE. SO, UH, YOU'LL SEE FOUR CATEGORIES, SERVICE, DELIVERY, CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE, EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE, AND COMPLIANCE. SO THESE ARE FOUR CATEGORIES WHERE WE TOOK ALL OF THE DEPARTMENT'S CORE SERVICE AND PROGRAMS AND KIND OF GROUPED THEM THE BEST THAT WE COULD. NOT EVERYTHING IS REPRESENTED YET, BUT AS I SAID, IT'S CONTINUOUSLY UH, IMPROVING. SO I WANNA START WITH SERVICE DELIVERY. AND AS YOU GO DOWN, YOU'LL SEE THESE ARE DIFFERENT GOALS THAT WE HAVE AS AN ORGANIZATION. AND I'M GONNA START WITH, UH, SAFE COMMUNITY. SO HERE YOU'LL SEE AN OVERALL UPDATE THAT CAME FROM JAY REGARDING ALL OF THE DIFFERENT PROGRAMS AND SERVICES THAT WE HAVE THAT ARE HELPING, UH, KEEP OUR COMMUNITY SAFE. AND AS YOU DIVE A LITTLE BIT FURTHER, SINCE I PICKED ON PD EARLIER, I'M GONNA PICK ON THEM AGAIN. UH, THIS UPDATE WILL HAVE COME FROM CHIEF AND WE'LL TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THE MONTH TO MONTH WORK THAT HIS DEPARTMENTS ARE DOING. SO THAT'S KIND OF THE BREAKDOWN WITHIN THE WEBSITE. AND THEN YOU'LL HAVE THE DIFFERENT, UM, METRICS THAT ARE BEING UPDATED IN THE GRAPHS UNDERNEATH THAT. UM, THAT WAS ONE. COMPLIANCE IS ANOTHER SECTION THAT WE'RE EXCITED TO KIND OF DIVE A LITTLE BIT FURTHER INTO. RIGHT NOW WE JUST HAVE, UM, HOW DO PS RIGHT NOW WE JUST HAVE A FEW THINGS AS WE FIGURE OUT HOW TO PUT IT INTO THE SYSTEM. UH, BUT LIKE I SAID, YOU HAVE COMPLIANCE, MAINTAIN COMPLIANCE WITH LAWS, AND THEN PS AND SO THIS IS WHERE, UM, OUR CITY CLERK WILL PUT IN HER LATEST UPDATE REGARDING, UH, PIR COMPLIANCE AS WELL AS KEEP HER, UH, DASHBOARD UP TO DATE. SO, UH, IN THE LAST YEAR WE HAVE HAD OVER A THOUSAND PS, WHICH IS JUST THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE, RIGHT? I BELIEVE, UH, DOESN'T INCLUDE A COUPLE OF THE OTHER DEPARTMENTS. SO THAT IS THE DASHBOARD. THAT IS ALL I HAVE TO SHOW YOU TONIGHT. I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU HAVE ON IT. WHEN IT COMES TO PRIS, DO ALL PIRS GO THROUGH CITY CLERK AND THEN THEY'RE ISSUED OUT TO WHATEVER DEPARTMENT IS NEEDED? [00:15:01] I'M LET END. SO THERE IS, THERE IS IT, IT DISTRIBUTES THROUGH. UM, SO YOU CAN GO ON, I'M SORRY, FORGIVE ME. SO YOU CAN GO ONLINE TO, UM, OPEN GOVERNMENT.COM AND FILL THAT OUT. AND ONCE YOU DO THAT, YOU CAN THEN SELECT WHERE YOU WANT THAT PUBLIC INFORMATION REQUEST TO GO. SO IT IS BROKEN DOWN EITHER BY PD OR COURTS OR THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE BASED UPON THE NATURE OF THAT, UM, REQUEST. SO IT WAS BASICALLY THREE, THREE SECTIONS THAT IT CAN FALL UNDER. CORRECT. OKAY, GOOD DEAL. QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? I'LL JUST MAKE A COMMENT. UM, THANK YOU FOR, TO, TO YOU AND ALL OF THE STAFF THAT'S PUT IN ALL THE WORK ON THIS. UM, YOU KNOW, WE, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS FOR A COUPLE YEARS, LIKE YOU SAID, AND WE, WE, WE KNOW IT'S, IT'S BEEN IN THE WORKS. A LOT OF WORK WENT INTO THIS. AND SO, I MEAN, I, I'LL JUST SAY I'M EXCITED TO DIG INTO IT A BIT, KIND OF, YOU KNOW, CRUISE THROUGH THE WEBSITE AND, AND CHECK IT OUT. I'M SURE I'LL PROBABLY HAVE SOME QUESTIONS AFTER I SPEND SOME TIME IN IT, BUT LOOKING FORWARD TO, TO, TO LOOKING AT THIS AND, AND HAPPY TO HAVE THIS TO SHARE WITH CITIZENS. SO THANK YOU. OF COURSE. SABRINA, WOULD YOU MIND, UM, TALKING ABOUT HOW A LOT OF THIS INFO FEEDS UP OR IT'S AGGREGATED INTO DIFFERENT SECTIONS AND THERE'S, IT IS A FULL MOUNTAIN? YES, I CAN. SO AT THE TOP OF SAID MOUNTAIN IS THESE FOUR CATEGORIES, UH, SERVICE DELIVERY, CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE, EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE, AND COMPLIANCE. THOSE ARE THE TOP FOUR. AS YOU FEED DOWN A LITTLE BIT FURTHER, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE ABOUT 16 GOALS THAT GO ACROSS THE DIFFERENT, UM, SECTIONS. SO HERE ARE A FEW OF THEM THAT RECOGNIZES SAFE COMMUNITY, UH, MAINTAIN QUALITY INFRASTRUCTURE PRACTICE, ALL OF THOSE. UM, SO YOU'LL SEE THE STATUS BAR ON THE RIGHT. THOSE STATUSES ARE DRAWN UP FROM THE WORK THAT THE DIRECTORS PUT IN ON THE BASE LEVEL. SO, UM, UNDERNEATH HERE YOU HAVE, UH, LIKE CRIME RATE. UH, SO THIS IS WHAT CHIEF PUTS IN AT THE BASE LEVEL THAT BUILDS UP WITH THE OTHER DEPARTMENT'S WORK. SO FIRE DAMAGE, CARDIAC ARREST, ARRIVAL RATES, RESPONSE TIMES, MOSQUITO CONTROL, ALL OF THESE FEED UP TO GIVE US A KIND OF GREEN, YELLOW OR RED STATUS, UM, AT THAT GOAL LEVEL, WHICH FEEDS UP TO THE SERVICE DELIVERY LEVEL OVER HERE ON THE RIGHT AS WELL. SO THAT'S KIND OF HOW THEY BUILD. UM, YOU WILL SEE DIFFERENT COLORS. THAT'S A GOOD POINT JAY, THANK YOU FOR REMINDING ME. YOU'LL SEE DIFFERENT COLORS ON TRACK, SOME DISRUPTION AND MAJOR DISRUPTION ON TRACK MEANS THE SERVICE IS GOING WELL, WE'RE DOING WHAT WE SAY WE'RE GONNA DO AND EVERYTHING'S GOING WELL. UH, SOME DISRUPTION, MAYBE SOME OTHER THINGS CAME INTO PLAY AND WE ARE SET BACK A LITTLE BIT OR WE'VE HAD TO CHANGE SERVICES OR SOMETHING HAS HAPPENED THAT, UH, IS LETTING EVERYONE ELSE KNOW THAT THIS IS GONNA HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF A EFFECT, UH, MAJOR DISRUPTION. THIS HAS STOPPED, WE'RE NOT ABLE TO DO THIS. YOU KNOW, THIS PERSON'S NO LONGER HERE. LIKE THOSE BIGGER THINGS, UM, THAT KIND OF ALERT US TO SOMETHING'S GOING DIFFERENT. SO, UM, YOU'LL SEE THOSE STATUS INDICATORS CHANGE ON A MONTH TO MONTH BASIS AS DEPARTMENTS ARE PUTTING IN MORE INFORMATION. YES, YOU BEAT ME. I DID. UH, THANK Y'ALL. UM, AS WELL. I WAS NOTICING ON SOME OF THEM IT, IT SAYS SOME DISRUPTION AND YOU SHOWED WHERE THAT WAS. BUT IS EVERY SINGLE GOAL ASSIGNED, UM, A NUMERICAL NUMBER? UM, NO. THAT'S WHAT WE'RE WORKING ON WITH THE TARGETS. YEAH, WE'RE WORKING TOWARDS THAT WITH THE TARGETS. OKAY. SO, UM, OUR HOPE I'M GOING TO USE, I THINK FIRE DAMAGE IS A GOOD ONE WITH ROOM OF ORIGIN. THEY ALREADY HAVE A TARGET. SO THE FIRE DEPARTMENT'S GOAL IS THAT 50, MORE THAN 50% OF THE FIRES ARE CONTAINED TO THE ROOM OF ORIGIN. AND SO THOSE, IF WE WERE NOT MEETING THAT TARGET, IF FIRE WAS UNDER 50%, THEN THEIR ON TRACK WOULD CHANGE PROBABLY TO YELLOW. IF IT WAS MAYBE 25%, YOU MAY SEE RED. LIKE THAT'S, WE WE'RE HAVING MAJOR ISSUES. SO THAT'S HOW YOU'LL KIND OF SEE THE NUMBERS AFFECT THE COLORS. SO ONE OF WHERE I'M GOING WITH THIS, THIS IS VERY INTERESTING TO ME. SO WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT WHEN, WHEN Y'ALL DECIDE HOW THE, THE, THE GOAL IS GONNA BE, I GET MY FIRST QUESTION IS THIS, ARE THESE GOALS SET YEARLY? MM-HMM . ARE THEY QUARTERLY? WE, WE SET WITH THE CITY COUNCIL. SO THE, THE MANAGER AND THE CITY COUNCIL WILL WORK TOGETHER TO MAKE SURE THAT Y'ALL AGREE WITH THESE TARGETS IF YOU DON'T AGREE WITH THESE TARGETS. AND WE TALK ABOUT THE PHILOSOPHY OF WHAT YOU'RE TRYING TO REACH AND IF IT'S ACHIEVABLE OR NOT, AND THEN Y'ALL WOULD AGREE TO THESE TARGETS WHEN IT'S ALL SAID, WE'RE JUST GETTING WHAT WE BELIEVE ARE ACCEPTABLE BASELINES AT THIS POINT TO BE ABLE TO START CONVERSATIONS IN THE FUTURE. THAT'S WHAT I WAS, I WAS WANTING TO KNOW WHO'S SETTING [00:20:01] THE GOALS BECAUSE COUNCIL WILL, BECAUSE YOU CAN, IF A DEPARTMENT IS SETTING THEIR OWN GOALS, THAT'S WHY I WAS WANTING TO KNOW WHO, WHO IS AT THE TOP OF YOUR MOUNTAIN HELPING DRIVE WHAT THE GOAL IS FOR THE CITY. MM-HMM . SO THAT MAKES MORE SENSE. 'CAUSE IT, YOU CAN, UM, YOU CAN SET A GOAL THAT YOU KNOW IS OBTAINABLE MM-HMM . YEAH. RIGHT. DEPENDING ON WHAT IT IS. IF IT'S SOMETHING LIKE POTHOLES AND WE SET IT A SPECIFIC NUMBER, BUT, UM, IF IT'S, UM, SOMETHING MORE OBSERVABLE WHEN YOU START GETTING INTO TOURISM AND THINGS LIKE THAT OR, OR THE, UM, THE ENVIRONMENT, IT'S SOMETHING THAT MAYBE COULD BE MORE OF, UM, DRIVEN BY REVIEWS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. MM-HMM . UM, I WAS TRYING TO THINK OF SOMETHING LIKE MOSQUITO CONTROL. I WAS JUST, I WRITTEN YES. THINGS LIKE THIS. YEAH. MM-HMM . UM, SO YOU CAN, YOU CAN TRACK NUMBERS WITH THAT BECAUSE YOU KNOW, WHEN THEY GO OUT AND HOW MUCH, UM, CHEMICALS ARE USED AND STUFF LIKE THAT. BUT YOU MAYBE WOULD GET NEGATIVE FEEDBACK FROM ONE COMMUNITY VERSUS ANOTHER. RIGHT. BUT IT MAKES MORE SENSE NOW THAT I KNOW. THANK YOU. WHO'S SETTING THE GOAL, MIKE? A COUPLE OF THE, UH, LINES SAID GRAY. YEAH. WHAT'S GRAY MEAN? I KNOW WHAT MAROON, YELLOW AND GREEN. YES. GRAY MEANS I ADDED SOMETHING IN TODAY AND THAT DIRECTOR HASN'T HAD TIME TO PUT STUFF IN THERE JUST YET. OKAY. SO IT MEANS IT'S, UH, STATUS IS PENDING BUT IT WON'T BE GRAY FOR LONG, I PROMISE. OKAY. I KNOW WHAT I DON'T KNOW WHICH ONE'S BACK. UM, , FORGIVE MY CHART THIS TODAY, I APOLOGIZE. BUT, UM, I KNOW THIS IS HAVE, THIS HAS BEEN ACTUALLY A POINT OF INTEREST EVEN AS MAYOR AND I WE'RE ON COUNCIL AND TRYING TO DEFINE, UM, WHAT TRANSPARENCY MEANS FOR US AS WELL AS WHAT TRANSPARENCY MEANS TO OUR CONSTITUENTS. AND THIS MAY STILL BE DIFFERENT, THEY MAY STILL BE, YOU KNOW, WANTING TO HAVE MORE AND I THINK THAT'S OKAY. BUT AS YOU'VE MENTIONED, THIS IS A BASELINE. AND AS WE PROGRESS THROUGH, THROUGH THIS AND SEE, OKAY, MAYBE THIS, THIS GOAL DIDN'T REALLY QUITE WORK OR, AND THE CONVERSATIONS THAT WE'LL HAVE WITH THE CITY MANAGER, BUT I THINK THIS IS AN EXCELLENT PRODUCT ACTUALLY. AND, AND HAVING THIS FIRST AND FOREMOST OUT INTO THE PUBLIC SO THEY THEMSELVES CAN GO IN THERE, UM, AND START, TAKE A LOOK AT THAT. AND, UM, I LIKE SEEING THE, THE CRIME NUMBERS GO DOWN. UM, AND UM, 'CAUSE I KNOW THAT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S COME UP, UM, IN MY AREA. AND SO, UM, I THINK YOU HAVE DONE AN AMAZING JOB AND CAN'T WAIT TO START DIGGING DEEP, JUST AS COUNCILMAN POWELL SAID. SO THANK Y'ALL SO MUCH. I I DID HAVE ONE MORE THING. THANK YOU. UM, DO WE HAVE A WAY OR PLAN YET ON HOW WE ARE GOING TO MAKE SURE THE PUBLIC KNOWS THAT IT'S NOT A STATIC SITE AND THAT IT'S LIVE AND THAT IT'S CHANGING? YES. I THINK PUBLIC AFFAIRS HAS A COMMUNICATION PLAN IN PLACE WHERE THEY'LL START MESSAGING TO THE PUBLIC. AND AS WE DO BIG QUARTERLY UPDATES, WE'LL KEEP THAT MESSAGING GOING. OKAY. AND THEN WITH, WITH THINGS AS SPECIFIC AS, UM, CRIME DATA, IS THERE AN AREA ON THE SITE THAT IS GOING TO HAVE THE CITATIONS FOR WHERE, I SHOULDN'T USE THE WORD CITATIONS 'CAUSE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT POLICE, BUT REFERENCE, WHERE ARE THEY GONNA REFERENCE YEAH. UM, WHERE THEY'RE GOING TO REFERENCE WHERE THEY'RE GETTING THEIR NUMBERS FROM? SO FOR EXAMPLE, IN, IN, AND POLICE IS JUST AN EASY WAY SORRY, SORRY. CHIEF. UM, YOU, YOU'VE MENTIONED BEFORE, YOU HAVE LOTS OF DATABASES THAT YOU PULL FROM SOMES, INTERNAL, SOMES, EXTERNAL. I'M, I'M ALREADY THINKING OF WAYS I'M ALREADY THINKING OF, OF, OF QUESTIONS FROM THE COMMUNITY THAT'S GONNA COME IN. LIKE, OH LOOK, THE CITY OF BAYTOWN SAYING THE CRIME REPORTS, UH, THE, THE, THE MURDER IS GOING DOWN 3%. IF WE DON'T HAVE A REFERENCE OR A SITE OF WHERE THOSE NUMBERS CAME FROM, THEN THERE WILL BE PEOPLE THAT SAY, WELL, THEY'RE JUST PUTTING THE NUMBERS WHERE THEY WANT 'EM. BECAUSE THERE'S LOTS OF WEBSITES. I I WAS AT A A COMMUNITY EVENT RECENTLY AND THERE WAS A VERY SPECIFIC WEBSITE, CRIME GRADE.ORG THAT WAS USED TO TALK ABOUT SOME OF OUR CRIME. MM-HMM . AND I WENT AND LOOKED AND IT DIDN'T MATCH UP WITH ANYTHING THAT WAS SAID. AND SO, AND THEN, AND THEN I GOOGLED SOME MORE AND IT SAID IT WASN'T, IT WASN'T A, UM, VERY RELIABLE RESOURCE. AND SO I JUST THINK SPECIFICALLY THOSE KIND OF NUMBERS THAT PEOPLE WERE EXTREMELY INTERESTED IN, WE'RE PROBABLY GONNA WANNA CITE WHERE THAT CAME FROM. MM-HMM . GOT IT. VALID CONCERN. YEP. I'VE GOT THAT DOWN. WE'LL DEFINITELY EXPLORE WAYS TO SHOW WHERE OUR SOURCES ARE. OKAY. THANK YOU. I HAVE A FEW THINGS, IF YOU DON'T MIND. WELL, I WANTED TO SAY A COUPLE THINGS. GO AHEAD. UM, YOU WERE GOING DOWN A PATH I WAS MAKING NOTES ABOUT I HAD MOSQUITO CONTROL HERE. AND IF WE'RE GONNA GET SOME CITIZEN INPUT ON HOW THEY FEEL ABOUT THAT, AND NOT JUST US, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE, AND I GUESS THAT WOULD FALL ON US, BUT IF THERE'S A TOOL WHERE THEY CAN GO IN FOR LIKE MOSQUITO CONTROL, I WOULD EVEN SAY CRIME, JUST TO SEE HOW THEY FEEL. MM-HMM . THE NUMBERS WILL SHOW ONE THING, [00:25:01] BUT IT'S MORE ABOUT PERCEPTION AND HOW PEOPLE FEEL. CHIEF, I'VE ACTUALLY HEARD YOU SAY, UM, THE RATE CAN BE DOWN, BUT IF YOU DRIVE THROUGH AND SEE PEOPLE PUTTING BARS ON THEIR WINDOW WINDOWS, THEY'RE NOT FEELING SAFE. MAYBE WE NEED TO LOOK AT A, UM, HOW A, A DIFFERENT WAY OF APPROACHING THAT MM-HMM . UM, SO REALLY LIKE WHAT Y'ALL DID, LIKE I SAID, THIS IS SOMETHING WE'VE BEEN LOOKING AT ASKING FOR, FOR A LONG TIME. AND TO SAY THAT IT TOOK SOME YEARS IS A GOOD THING, MEANING THAT TIME AND EFFORT WAS SPENT TO GET IT RIGHT. AND I'M, THE SUGGESTIONS WE'RE ASKING FOR IS JUST LITTLE THINGS TO IMPROVE UPON THE GREAT JOB THAT YOU'VE ALREADY, THAT YOU ALL HAVE ALREADY DONE. BUT JUST FOR ME, I WOULD JUST LIKE TO SEE, I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW IF THERE ARE WAYS WE COULD GET CITIZEN INPUT ON HOW THEY FEEL ABOUT THINGS. AND EVEN IF WE HAD A BAR FOR TRANSPARENCY TO SEE HOW, UM, IF WE WOULD DO A SURVEY EVERY THREE MONTHS JUST TO SEE IF WE'RE MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION WHEN IT COMES TO THAT. UM, I, I THINK THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL. I THINK THE CITIZENS WOULD REALLY APPRECIATE BEING ABLE TO GIVE THEIR INPUT TO SEE HOW WE WOULD REACT TO IT. MR. MAYOR? YES, SIR. YEAH, I JUST WANT TO KIND OF PIGGYBACK ON EXACTLY WHAT THE MAYORS SAY. UH, LIKE A SURVEY FOR EVERY CATEGORY MM-HMM . IN DEPARTMENT WOULD BE GOOD TO KIND OF, TO TO BRIDGE THAT GAP TO SEE IF THE NUMBERS REFLECT THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE SATISFACTION. SO YEAH, THAT'S A GOOD POINT. THAT IS DEFINITELY SOMETHING WE IDENTIFIED GOING THROUGH THE PROCESS IS THAT WE LACK THAT DATA. SO AS WE MOVE FORWARD, I, I KNOW THERE'S ALREADY SOME THINGS IN MOTION TO TRY AND ADDRESS THAT AND YOU'LL SEE IT IN THE PROGRESS AND THE NEXT STEPS YOU'LL SEE LIKE, HEY, WE'RE LACKING A BASELINE ON WHAT OUR RESIDENTS THINK ABOUT THIS. SO WE, OUR NEXT STEPS ARE TO DEFINE THAT SURVEY AND GET THAT OUT. AND HEARING THAT IS, IS WONDERFUL. YOU ALL ARE ALREADY AHEAD OF WHAT WE'RE ASKING. YES, MA'AM. AND I KNOW WE'RE PROBABLY DIVING INTO SOME OF THE CONVERSATIONS THAT WE'LL HAVE WITH OUR CITY MANAGER, BUT I THINK EVEN, UM, HYPERLINKS TO THE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS, ESPECIALLY AS WE'RE SHOWING DATA AND WHERE THEY CAN HYPERLINK BACK TO THE DEPARTMENT, SEE WHAT, WHAT THEY'RE, WHAT THEY'RE DOING. AND MAYBE EVEN INSTEAD OF, I FEEL, AND AGAIN, I'M OPEN TO THE CONVERSATION, BUT I THINK JUST ONE OVERALL FEEDBACK SECTION WITH MAYBE A DROPDOWN TO THE DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS INSTEAD OF HAVING A FEEDBACK TO EVERY SINGLE DEPARTMENT. UM, BUT AGAIN, THAT'S JUST A SUGGESTION THAT EXCELLENT. ANYONE ELSE? OH, I'M SORRY. I MEAN, I DID HAVE SOMETHING THERE, BUT, UH, Y'ALL ACTUALLY HIT ON BOTH THINGS THAT I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT . SO THE, UH, THE NEXT STEPS THAT SABRINA HIT THAT ALREADY, UH, ON THE, THAT IS ONE THING THAT WE DID, AS SABRINA SAID, WE DID NOTICE THAT THROUGH THIS PROCESS. AND IT IS ONE OF OUR RETREAT TOPICS THAT WE'LL BRING TO Y'ALL IN PREPARING FOR THE, UH, FY 27 BUDGET, UH, THAT WE DO NEED TO TALK ABOUT, UH, CITIZEN SURVEYS AND HAVE THAT AS AN ONGOING PIECE OF OUR BUDGET PROCESS. MM-HMM . UH, THE NEXT THING I WAS GONNA ASK SABRINA, UH, TO MRS. UH, MS. ALVARADO'S POINT, WILL THE CITIZENS OR COUNSEL SEE THE DEPARTMENTAL DATA, UH, BASED ON HOW THIS IS CURRENTLY BUILT OUT? THEY WILL SEE PIECES OF THE DEPARTMENT DASHBOARDS AS THEY ARE IN PLACE NOW. EACH, UH, SQUARE BOX OR VISUAL THAT YOU SEE PULLS UP FROM A DEPARTMENT'S DASHBOARD. AND AS WE UPDATE THE DASHBOARD, LIKE THE OVERALL PERFORMANCE DASHBOARD, OUR PLAN IS TO HAVE INDIVIDUAL LINKS TO THE DEPARTMENTS SO THAT, UH, YOU ALL, AND OUR, OUR COMMUNITY CAN DIVE A LITTLE DEEPER INTO THIS, BUT THERE'S ALL OF THEIR WIDGETS ARE MUCH MORE IN DEPTH THAN WHAT PEOPLE ARE SEEING HERE JUST BECAUSE IT'S MEANT, MEANT FOR DEPARTMENTAL OPERATIONS AND NOT, UH, NECESSARILY HOW IT TIES INTO GOALS BECAUSE SOME OF 'EM JUST AGGREGATE INTO THESE THAT ARE ON HERE MM-HMM . AND IT'S ANOTHER WAY FOR DEPARTMENTS TO KIND OF LOOK AT THE WORK THAT THEY'RE DOING AND MAKE PLANS FOR IT. SO IT IS A LITTLE OVERWHELMING AT FIRST, ESPECIALLY, I'M GONNA GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO JOEY AND HIS HR TEAM. YOU OPEN THEIR DASHBOARD AND YOU'RE LIKE, OH MY GOODNESS, JAY JUST TOTALLY GEEKED OUT OVER ALL THE KPIS AND ALL THE DATA AND THE TRENDS AND EVERYTHING. AND AS WE ROLL THIS OUT TO THE PUBLIC, UH, I WOULD, I WOULD LIKE FOR THIS TO BE DIGESTED AND AS WE DIVE DEEPER, HAVE THAT AVAILABLE TO EVERYBODY. SO YOU SHOULD SEE THAT COMING SOON. BE GREAT. COOL. SOUNDS GOOD. IS THAT IT? GOOD. THANK YOU. THANK YOU'ALL. OKAY. TWO [b. Discussion regarding updates to the Unified Land Development Code.] B HAS BEEN PULLED. SO WE'RE [c. Discuss the process for the Municipal Court Judge position.] GONNA GO TO C DISCUSS THE PROCESS FOR THE MUNICIPAL COURT JUDGE POSITION. MR. REYNOLDS. YES, MAYOR AND COUNSEL. UM, AS PART OF THE DISCUSSION TODAY, WE BROUGHT THREE TALKING POINTS FOR THE CITY COUNCIL TO CONSIDER TO [00:30:01] FIND A POSITION, PROCESS, OPTIONS FOR APPOINTMENT AND QUESTIONS, INFORMATION TO BRING BACK TO STAFF. AND THAT IS ALL THAT I HAVE FOR THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL AT THIS POINT. OKAY. SO WHEN YOU SAY DEFINE THE POSITION. YES, SIR. SO, UM, MAYOR AND COUNCIL HAVE TWO EMPLOYEES. UH, YOU HAVE THE CITY MANAGER AND THE JUDGE. UH, I DO NOT BELIEVE THE CITY COUNCIL HAS, HAS WORKED ON HIRING A JUDGE IN 21 YEARS AT THIS POINT. SO IT IS, IT IS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT THAN HOW THE CITY MANAGER IS DEFINE THE CHARTER, DEFINES WHAT THE JUDGE IS AND THE CHARTER DEFINES WHAT THE CITY MANAGER IS. AT THE SAME TIME, UM, THERE ARE PIECES THAT Y'ALL NEED TO TALK ABOUT BECAUSE THE LAST TIME THIS HAS SHIFTED, IT WAS NOT A QUARTER OF RECORD THE LAST TIME THE CITY COUNCIL HIRED A JUDGE. IT IS NOT A QUARTER, A QUARTER OF RECORD. AND THERE ARE OTHER PIECES THAT I THINK IT WOULD BE APPROPRIATE FOR ME TO PROBABLY STEP OUT OF MAYOR BECAUSE, UM, IT IS ANOTHER ONE OF COUNCIL'S EMPLOYEES MM-HMM . AND THEN AT SOME POINT Y'ALL HAVE JUST OPEN DISCUSSIONS ABOUT THESE THREE THINGS AND THEN MAYBE SPEAK TO THE ATTORNEY, UM, OR IF Y'ALL WANT STAFF'S FEEDBACK, LIKE GET THAT TOGETHER TO ASK FOR STAFF'S FEEDBACK. BUT IT, I THINK IT'D BE APPROPRIATE FOR ME TO STEP OUT AT THIS POINT. OKAY. I AGREE. GOOD DEAL. YEAH, I, UH, I ASKED FOR THIS TO BE PLACED ON THE AGENDA, UM, JUST 'CAUSE I KNOW, BECAUSE YOU KNOW, JANUARY'S GONNA BE HERE BEFORE YOU KNOW IT, AND WE, WE DON'T HAVE, UM, AS MANY MEETINGS THROUGH THE HOLIDAYS, SO JUST DIDN'T WANT IT TO, TO SNEAK UP ON US, YOU KNOW, UM, JUDGE ESCALANTE ANNOUNCED HER RETIREMENT. I THINK WE GAVE IT SOME TIME. WE'RE VERY APPRECIATIVE OF HER YEARS OF SERVICE. UM, BUT WE'VE GOTTA START DISCUSSING, YOU KNOW, WHO'S GONNA FEEL THAT, WHO'S GONNA FILL THAT POSITION. SO, UM, I WOULD LIKE TO, I, I MEAN MY RECOMMENDATION WOULD BE, UM, THAT WE DO, UH, JUST FORM AN AD HOC TO LOOK INTO, UM, HOW HAVE OTHER CITIES FILL THIS, THIS TYPE OF ROLE. 'CAUSE, BECAUSE LIKE JASON SAID, I MEAN, WE HAVEN'T MADE A HIRE LIKE THIS IN OVER 20 YEARS. UM, SO I, I WOULDN'T KNOW WHERE TO BEGIN. UM, AND JUST WITH HOLIDAYS AND WHATNOT, WE'RE LIMITED ON MEETINGS, I THINK. I THINK WE NEED TO GET MOVING. UM, AND PROBABLY THE QUICKEST WAY IS TO JUST FORM AN AD HOC. WE DON'T HAVE TO GET THE ENTIRE BODY HERE TO DISCUSS THESE THINGS. AND I WOULD, I WOULD JUST WANT THEM TO KIND OF LOOK AT HOW OTHER CITIES HAVE HANDLED THIS. UM, AND WE HAD AN AD HOC WHEN WE, WHEN WE HIRED THE CITY MANAGER ROLE. I MEAN, THEY, THEY LOOKED AT PROCESS, THEY, THEY ENDED THE AD HOC, ENDED UP INTERVIEWING A FEW DIFFERENT RECRUITERS AND SELECT, SELECT MAKING A RECOMMENDATION TO COUNCIL FOR THAT. UM, AND SO THAT, THAT'S THE TYPE OF THINGS I THINK I WOULD, I WOULD WANT THE AD HOC TO DO IS TO JUST KIND OF DEFINE A PROCESS. YOU KNOW, IF THEY WANNA MAKE A RECOMMENDATION FOR A RECRUITER, SELECT THAT AND THEN BRING A RECOMMENDATION BACK TO COUNSEL AS A WHOLE, UM, SO WE CAN GET MOVING. EXCELLENT. UM, I'M GONNA ASK THAT STAFF, UM, NEXT TIME GET SOME INFORMATION ON THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE COURT BEING A COURT OF RECORD AND NOT A COURT OF RECORD SO WE CAN HAVE A GOOD UNDERSTANDING OF THAT. UM, I THINK THAT'S GONNA PLAY A BIG ROLE IN HOW WE MOVE FORWARD. UH, FROM, I'VE HAD DISCUSSIONS, I'VE ACTUALLY GONE DOWN AND, AND HAD DISCUSSIONS WITH MS. ESCALANTE ABOUT THAT. I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY OTHERS HAVE. AND I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE IMPORTANT FOR US TO KNOW AS FAR AS THE PROCESS. I'VE ASKED QUESTIONS TO SOME OF THE INDIVIDUALS THAT WERE HERE THE LAST TIME IT WAS DONE. UM, I DON'T THINK WE HAVE ANYONE ON COUNCIL THAT WAS A PART OF THAT PROCESS. MIKE, YOU WERE, I WAS A STAFF. HE WAS A STAFF MEMBER. AND, AND AGAIN, THE TRANSITION OF THE COURT, UM, WAS BASICALLY A COURT OF NOT A COURT OF RECORD. AND THEN AFTER JULIE WAS JUDGED FOR SEVERAL YEARS, WE TRANSITIONED TO A COURT OF RECORD. AND THERE ARE DIFFERENT REQUIREMENTS. YES, IT IS. THE COURT HAS HELD TO A HIGHER STANDARD MM-HMM . UH, FOR APPEALS AND SO FORTH. BUT, UH, AND, AND THAT'S WHAT MAKES, AND I AGREE WITH MY COLLEAGUE, UH, THAT THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT MAKES THIS PROCESS SO IMPORTANT BECAUSE THE CITY HAS REALLY NEVER GONE OUT AND HIRED A MUNICIPAL COURT JUDGE FOR OUR COURT OF RECORD. MM-HMM . WE HAD ONE THAT GREW THROUGH THE PROCESS. JULIE WAS PROSECUTOR FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS. MM-HMM . THEN BECAME JUDGE OF A NON COURT OF RECORD AND THEN GREW THE COURT TO THE POINT IT BECAME A COURT OF RECORD BASED ON VOLUME AND EVERYTHING ELSE. AND THEN SHE HAD GROWN WITH THAT AND DEVELOPED THE COURT AS IS TODAY. SO JUDGE ESCALANTE GREW UP IN THE COURT, UH, AND I'VE KNOWN HER A LONG TIME. UM, BUT TO GO OUT AND HIRE SOMEBODY TO STEP IN NOW IS [00:35:01] GONNA BE A VERY IMPORTANT PROCESS FOR US TO DO, TO MAKE SURE WE GET IT RIGHT. UM, I UNDERSTAND WE'VE GOT ASSOCIATE JUDGES AND SO FORTH, BUT THEY JUST KIND OF FILL IN THE GAPS. WHOEVER WE'D SELECT AS OUR JUDGE, THAT'S GONNA BE, IT IS GONNA BE IN CHARGE OF OUR COURT. AND, AND THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT FOR US TO GET A, GET A HANDLE ON. AND I AGREE WITH THE AD HOC 'CAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF QUESTIONS, A LOT OF STUFF THAT WE, THAT A THREE PERSON COMMITTEE COULD SIFT THROUGH PRETTY QUICKLY AND THEN BRING BACK TO THIS BODY TO ANSWER QUESTIONS AND MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS. UM, BUT YEAH, THIS, IT'S, IT'S GONNA BE VERY IMPORTANT AND A LITTLE BIT CHALLENGING FOR US. I UNDERSTAND THAT, YOU KNOW, JULIE'S RETIRING IN JANUARY, WE COULD PROBABLY EXTEND PAST THAT WITH THE ASSOCIATE JUDGES, BUT WE CAN'T LET IT DIS LINGER. YEAH. 'CAUSE IT, IT IS SO IMPORTANT THAT COURT MAINTAIN ITS, ITS CONTINUITY, CREDIBILITY, IF YOU WILL. MM-HMM . UM, AND IF WE START DIS LANGUISHING AND WAVERING AND IT WON'T BE LONG, IT WILL BE BACKLOGGED BIG TIME. YEAH. YES MA'AM. YEAH. I APPRECIATE EVERYONE'S INPUT SO FAR. I, I, I THINK THAT MOVING FORWARD, JUST BECAUSE OF HOW THIS ALL EVOLVED IN THE CITY OF BAYTOWN, IT'S GONNA BE REALLY IMPORTANT THAT WE, UM, SET THE BAR, NO PUN INTENDED FOR HOW THIS IS GONNA LOOK FOR THE NEXT FEW GENERATIONS, UM, IN BAYTOWN. AND ALSO, I, I I WANNA AGREE, I ALMOST THINK A JUDGE SETS, UM, SOMEWHAT OF THE TEMPERATURE OF THE TOWN BECAUSE WHETHER YOU LIVE HERE, OWN BUSINESSES HERE, DRIVE THROUGH HERE, YOU MAY OR MAY NOT HAVE AN EXPERIENCE WITH OUR COURT SYSTEM. AND SO, UM, AS COUNSEL, I, I THINK THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS THAT, THAT WE'RE GONNA BE TASKED WITH. SO DEFINITELY NEEDS TO BE DONE, UM, CORRECTLY AND WITH A LOT OF THOUGHT. UM, BUT QUICKLY, SO WHEN IT COME, GO AHEAD. UH, SORRY ABOUT THAT. YEAH, I WAS JUST GONNA KIND OF PIGGYBACK A LITTLE BIT ON MIKE'S THERE THAT, YOU KNOW, WE KIND OF SAW THE SIMILAR ASPECT OF THE BOND KIND OF SL SNUCK UP ON US ON THAT REAL QUICK, TRYING TO GET A COMMITTEE TOGETHER AND JUST REALLY DIDN'T GET A LOT OF TIME. SO THIS IS SOMETHING THAT IT'S GONNA SNEAK UP ON US QUICK AND NEXT THING WE KNOW WE'RE LIKE, OH, WE ONLY HAD TWO MEETINGS AND IT'S ALREADY JANUARY. MM. YEAH. AND WE, IT, IT'S SOMETHING WE, WE REALLY NEED TO KIND OF GET DEFINED AND WHAT, HOW WE'RE GONNA DO THIS, HOW WE'RE DOING THIS PROCESS. 'CAUSE WE, THERE'S STAFF THERE THAT NEEDS TO KNOW WHAT THEIR DIRECTION'S GONNA BE, HOW THEIR LEADERSHIP'S GONNA GO. WE'RE ALSO, IT, IT REALLY IS GONNA AFFECT A LOT OF PEOPLE IN, IN THE CITY OF BAYTOWN IN OUR COURTROOM TO GET THAT, GET THAT MOVING AS QUICKLY AS WE CAN AND GET SOMEONE IN THAT POSITION, UH, THAT'S GONNA CONTINUE WITH WHAT JULIE'S ALREADY BUILT. AND SO I I, I KIND OF AGREE THAT AD HOC WOULD BE THE FASTEST WAY TO DO THAT AND GET THAT DONE QUICKER, QUICKEST WAY TO, UH, TO GET US MOVING FORWARD WITH THIS POSITION. SO IN, IN ESTABLISHING A AD HOC COMMITTEE, DID YOU WANNA SAY SOMETHING? I JUST, YEAH, I, I KIND OF LIKE THE IDEA, JUST, JUST LETTING Y'ALL KNOW, JUST KIND OF REALLY ANTICIPATING A TIMELINE, YOU KNOW, HOW SOON DO WE GET STARTED? I MEAN, TIMES OF THE ESSENCE. WELL, I WAS GONNA SUGGEST WE CAN DISCUSS, WE HAVE A, WE HAVE SOME TIME NOW. UM, AS FAR AS A HAT AD HOC COMMITTEE, UM, WE'RE LOOKING AT PROBABLY THREE PEOPLE. MM-HMM . UM, I'M GONNA SAY NOW I WOULD LIKE TO BE A PART OF THAT COMMITTEE BECAUSE I'LL PROBABLY, OUT OF EVERYONE UP HERE, I'LL PROBABLY VISIT WITH THE JUDGE MORE THAN ANYONE ELSE, UM, AND HAVE A GOOD UNDERSTANDING. UM, SO I, MAY I INTERJECT? YES, MA'AM. OKAY. UH, I THINK IT, IT SHOULD BE COUNSEL, HONESTLY, AND, AND, UM, NOT AGAINST YOU MM-HMM . BEING ON THERE, BUT I WAS ACTUALLY THINKING OF MIKE BECAUSE OF HIS HISTORY, UH, TO MAKE SURE THAT HE IS ONE OF THE REPRESENTATIVES. BUT I THINK IT SHOULD FALL UNDER COUNSEL TO BE WHOEVER ELSE YOU CHOOSE. BUT I, I KNOW I WOULD WANT MIKE TO BE IN THERE YEAH. JUST BECAUSE OF HIS HISTORY, BUT WHOEVER ELSE YOU CHOOSE TO BE A PART OF IT, I, I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT WOULD BE YOUR DECISION, INCLUDING APPOINTING MIGHT OBVIOUSLY WOULD BE. YEAH. AND, AND THE REASON THEY'RE GONNA HAVE TO HAVE TIME TO DO THE RESEARCH MM-HMM . AND I KNOW MOST PEOPLE UP HERE HAVE JOBS THAT 40 HOURS A WEEK. UM, WHEN WE DID, WHO WAS ON THE AD HOC COMMITTEE FOR THE CITY MANAGER? WAS IT LAURA? I WAS MANAGER AND, AND WHO ELSE? I I, WE WERE TALKING ABOUT HER. I WAS TRYING TO RECALL WHO THE OTHER TWO, I DON'T, I THOUGHT IT WAS BRANDON. I THOUGHT IT WAS YOU, BRANDON AND CHRIS PRESLEY. THAT'S WHO IT WAS. NO, BRANDON WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN THE MAYOR'S RARELY THERE. MAYOR'S NOT ON AD HOC COMMITTEES. THINK I WAS GONNA ASK ABOUT THAT. I THINK THE MAYOR WAS YOU, BRANDON, YOU, CHRIS, AND THE MAYOR. NO, IT WASN'T, I'M TRYING GO BACK AND IT WASN'T YOU. I DON'T, IT WASN'T MIKE. I, I DON'T FEEL THAT IT WAS THE MAYOR, BUT WE CAN DISCUSS THAT LATER. BUT, UM, I, I PERSONALLY FEEL IT NEEDS TO BE SOMEONE FROM COUNCIL. UM, BUT, AND I AGREE WITH MY COLLEAGUE, DEFENSE MAYOR. YEAH. TRYING TO, AND I'LL [00:40:01] JUST BE BLUNT TO TAKE SOME OF THE POLITICAL SHARP EDGES OFF OF IT. MM-HMM . IT WOULD BE BEST FOR YOU TO NOT BE ON THAT COMMITTEE. WE CAN BRING STUFF AND OBVIOUSLY GIVE US DIRECTION AND, AND HAVE ADDITIONAL INPUT. BUT I, I THINK THE POLITICAL SHADOW WOULD BE THERE IF YOU WERE ON THE COMMITTEE. NO, NO. THAT'S NOT FAIR TO YOU. BUT I THINK THAT'S THE REALITY WE WOULD BE LOOKING AT. NOW THIS IS WHAT I'M GONNA ASK JUST FOR UNDERSTANDING DEFINE POLITICAL SHADOW, BECAUSE I BELIEVE ALL OF US WOULD HAVE IT. I THINK THERE WOULD, THERE WOULD BE PEOPLE, INDIVIDUALS OUT THERE THAT WOULD SAY THAT YOU HAD UNDUE INFLUENCE AND THAT'S UNFAIR TO, THAT IS UNFAIR. I, YOU, I CAN SEE THAT. 'CAUSE DON'T THINK YOU WOULD DO THAT. YEAH. I'VE WORKED WITH YOU AS A COUNCIL MEMBER AND NOW AS MAYOR, I DON'T THINK THAT'S THE CASE. YEAH. BUT THERE WOULD BE, OH YEAH. THAT WOULD JUST BE FOOD FOR FODDER PER SE. WELL, WHO, WHOEVER IT IS. AND I WILL TAKE MYSELF OUT OF IT. BUT I WILL SAY THIS, I WOULD MOST DEFINITELY MAKE SURE YOU AND WHOEVER THE OTHER TWO ARE HAVE THE TIME TO SPEND ON THIS. YEAH. UM, THERE'S GONNA BE A LOT OF RESEARCH. UM, I WOULD IMAGINE IT'S GONNA TAKE MORE THAN TWO OR THREE MEETINGS AND ELECTIONS ARE COMING UP, HOLIDAYS ARE COMING UP. WE NEED TO BE SURE THAT THE TIME, IF, IF YOU'RE SELECTED, YOU'RE GONNA BE COMMITTED TO TAKING THE TIME AND PUTTING IN THE EFFORT SO THAT WE CAN GET THIS RIGHT. THAT, THAT, THAT'S GONNA BE MY ONLY CONCERN. AND, AND I'LL ADD INTO THAT, I WOULD ALSO, NO OFFENSE TO MY COLLEAGUE DISQUALIFY THE MAYOR PRO TEMP FOR THE SAME REASONS THAT YEAH. THAT TO PREVENT ANY IMPLICATION OF UNDUE PRESSURES. OKAY. UM, I, AGAIN, I GO BACK TO, I WAS CHAIR OF THE CIP COMMITTEE AND I WORKED WELL WITH SARAH AND, AND I THINK SHE WOULD BE A GREAT ADDITION. AND ACTUALLY I WOULD ENCOURAGE HER TO BE CHAIR. NOW YOU WANT ME ON A COMMITTEE? , I WAS GONNA USE THAT MOMENT. I'M BEING SERIOUS. WE WORKED WELL TOGETHER. WE DIDN'T ALWAYS AGREE ON ISSUES, BUT WE WERE ABLE TO TALK THEM OUT. SO, AND SHE'S PART OF THE WORKING SIDE THAT YOU HAVE CONCERNS OVER. YOU KNOW, I'M PRETTY MUCH RETIRED. I CAN PRETTY MUCH MAKE JUST ABOUT ANY MEETING, BUT SO LEAVING UP TO SOMEBODY THAT'S WORKING TO SAY HOW MANY, I JUST DON'T WANNA DO THE PAPERWORK EITHER. SHE'S SCHOOL BREAKS, BREAKS SCHOOL. THAT IS TRUE. YOU DO HAVE A LOT OF BREAKS ON THERE. WELL, MAYOR, I JUST WANTED, BECAUSE YOU'RE CONCERNED OVER TIME, I, IF Y'ALL DECIDE THAT I WILL MAKE THE TIME FOR SOMETHING THAT IMPORTANT. OKAY. I I I WILL, I WILL DO WHATEVER I HAVE TO DO. UM, THANK YOU MIKE. NO, WELL WE WORK WELL TOGETHER EVEN ON CONTENTIOUS ISSUES BETWEEN US AND THAT'S, AND THAT'S GONNA BE PART OF THIS AS WELL. YEAH. YES SIR. SO I, I THINK THAT'S, THAT WOULD BE GOOD. BUT I, I, UM, BECAUSE I KNOW Y'ALL WANT THIS DONE BY JANUARY AND THERE ARE SEVERAL HOLIDAYS COMING UP, BUT UH, MY SCHEDULE RIGHT NOW IS, IS UM, IT ACTUALLY HAS SOME, SOME LEEWAY WITH IT. OKAY. EXCELLENT. SO THERE'S TWO. WE NEED ONE MORE. ANYONE WOULD NOT. I'LL VOLUNTEER TO DO IT. YOU VOLUNTEER. YOU'RE NOT BEING VOLUNTEERED. NO. VOLUNTEER. I'LL VOLUNTEER. I WOULD, I WOULD, UH, I MEAN OBVIOUSLY I WOULD GO BECAUSE WE'RE, THIS IS, THIS IS ON THE, UH, YOU KNOW, IT'S IN OUR MAIN AGENDA. SO WE'RE ACTUALLY, WE'RE ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL. WELL, WE'RE ACTUALLY HAVE TO, I THINK WE NEED TO GO WITH SOMEBODY WHO'S NOT ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL GONNA BE, IF IF ME AND YOU'RE SENDING THIS ONE OUT FOR POLITICAL SHADOW, I DE I'LL NOT BOTHER MYSELF. I COULD DECEIVE RHETORIC. SAME, THE SAME REASON I WOULD SAY I AGREE. ONE AND THREE ACTIVE CAMPAIGN. SAME REASON. SO IT REALLY LEAVES, IT LEAVES THREE. I'M OKAY WITH THAT. IT GOES BACK, THIS NEEDS TO BE A VERY STABLE COMMITTEE TO GET THIS DONE. RIGHT. AND, YOU KNOW, CAN WE USE THAT TERM WITH JAMES, I MEAN, AS STABLE AS POSSIBLE. STABLE MICHAEL, THE LAST TIME. OKAY. WE GOT IT FIXED. SO JAMES, WILL YOU HAVE THE TIME? UH, YEAH, I'LL HAVE IT. YEAH. MY, SO MY WORK SCHEDULE IS, WE, WE WORK PRETTY, PRETTY WELL AROUND MY SCHEDULE. MY COMPANY WORKS REALLY WELL AROUND MY SCHEDULE AND WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE. SO IT'S NOT GONNA BE A PROBLEM . OKAY. BUT WE CAN, WE CAN I WORK FROM HOME AND THE AGENDA ITEMS AND GO FROM THERE. BUT YEAH. BUT AGAIN, I WOULD, I WOULD RECOMMEND SARAH TAKE THE LEAD. THIS ONE, GIVE HER SOME EXPOSURES. CHEER. YEAH. YEAH. I AGREE. I AGREE. JUST KIDDING. NOT FIRED AND FIRED. MANY OF PEOPLE PUBLIC. I'M JUST KIDDING. WE'RE NOT LOOKING TO FIRE NO ONE. NO, I FINALLY DON'T FEEL EXCLUDED. I'VE GONE THROUGH A LOT OF, ALRIGHT, SO, UM, AND YOU'VE BEEN GOING THROUGH THE WHOLE SUPERINTENDENT, SO I GUESS THIS IS SOMETHING WE'LL FINISH OVER AND THE AGENDA, IT'S ON THE AGENDA. I JUST WANTED TO GO AHEAD AND DISCUSS IT HERE AND YEAH, THAT'S GOOD. AND I'LL SAY, JULIE, A GOOD HEADS UP THAT HE'S GONNA GET TO KNOW US VERY WELL. AND I WILL SAY THIS, UM, JOE, WE, I MENTIONED HAVING THE TIME, I MENTIONED HAVING THE TIME AND BEING IN AN [00:45:01] ELECTION. SO, UM MM-HMM. I DO APPRECIATE YOU ALL, EVEN THOUGH YOU WANTED TO DO IT. I WOULD'VE LOVE TO DO IT, BUT I, THIS IS, THIS IS, BUT JUST THIS IS BIGGER THAN THAT. JUST THINKING ABOUT THAT NEXT 20 YEARS, 30 YEARS. AND MIKE, THANK YOU FOR YOUR WISDOM AND, AND WATCHING OUT FOR OUR, THE POLITICAL CAPITAL AND UM, AND JUST LOOKING OUT FOR US. YEAH. AND AGAIN, I NO NEGATIVE REFERENCE TO EITHER ONE OF YOU. I JUST THINK THE POLITICAL CROWD OUT THERE WOULD JUST EAT THAT. UH, YEAH. YEAH. IT'S A GOOD DEAL. ALRIGHT, SO HAVE HERE, SO WHEN, WHEN WOULD Y'ALL, WHEN WOULD THIS AD HOC COMMITTEE CONVENE? TOMORROW? WELL TALK TO THE, WELL, WE HAVE TO DO THE APPOINTMENT FIRST. WE STILL HAVE TO, WE GOT APPOINT POINT AND THEN WE CAN HAVE, DISCUSS, DISCUSS DISCUSSIONS THEY SAID RIGHT AFTER THE COUNCIL MEETING. . SO HAVING, HAVING EXHAUSTED EVERYTHING ON THIS MEETING, I NOW ADJOURNED AT 6:17 PM. * 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.