[ CITY OF BAYTOWN NOTICE OF MEETING CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION THURSDAY, APRIL 23, 2026 4:30 P.M. COUNCIL CHAMBER, CITY HALL 2401 MARKET STREET, BAYTOWN, TEXAS 77520 AGENDA CALL TO ORDER AND ANNOUNCEMENT OF QUORUM ]
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I NOW CALLED, ORDERED THE CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION ON THURSDAY, APRIL 23RD, 2026 AT 4:30 PM IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBER.
AN ANNOUNCEMENT OF QUORUM AT 4:35 PM I'M GONNA START OFF WITH CITIZEN COMMENT.
DO WE HAVE ANYONE SIGNED UP TO SPEAK? THERE BEING NO ONE TO
[a. Discuss the Fiscal Year 2027 budget.]
SPEAK? WE'RE MOVING ON TO TWO A.WE'RE GONNA DISCUSS THE PHYSICAL YEAR 2027 BUDGET.
MR. REYNOLDS, GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNSEL.
THANK Y'ALL FOR JOINING US FOR A TWO AND A HALF HOUR PRESENTATION ON THE BUDGET.
SO, UM,
WE, WE DO HAVE SOMEWHAT OF A, UH, JAM PACK WORK, UH, SESSION FOR, FOR Y'ALL TODAY.
AND WE ARE LOOKING FOR ENGAGEMENT AND, UH, SOME OF IT WILL JUST BE KIND OF GOING OVER THINGS, BUT, UH, THERE WILL BE SOME PIECES THAT WE'RE HOPING Y'ALL ASK QUESTIONS ON AND, UH, KIND OF HELP PROVIDE SOME DIRECTION FOR THE OVERALL BUDGET.
AND SO, GETTING ALL THIS STARTED, I WANT TO TALK ABOUT HOW THE EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP TEAM, UM, WE MEET MONTHLY TO MONITOR SPENDING.
AND IT'S BEEN, IT'S BEEN A RIDE OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS, UH, GETTING EVERYTHING GOING AND WORKING THROUGH ALL THOSE CHANGES THAT THE CITY HAS UNDERGONE WITH THE, THE LAST FEW BUDGETS.
WE'VE COME TO REALIZE THAT WE ARE RUNNING A VERY LEAN, UH, OPERATIONAL ENVIRONMENT AT THIS POINT.
UH, WE CONTINUE THOUGH TO FIND, UH, DIFFERENT AND BETTER WAYS, UH, TO DIVE DEEPER INTO OUR FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY.
AND WE'RE PROUD OF THE WORK THAT ALL OF US HAVE DONE TO GET HERE TODAY.
I ALSO WANNA MENTION THAT COUNSEL HAS BEEN PART OF THIS PROCESS.
UH, YOU HAVE, UH, PROVIDED THE NEEDED DIRECTION ON SERVICE DELIVERY CHANGES AND PRIORITIES ALONG WITH WHERE OUR TAX RATE SHOULD BE OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS.
AND SO, AS YOU KNOW, WHEN WE GO INTO THE BUDGET CONVERSATIONS, WE USE OUR BUDGET FORMULA.
AND THIS IS TO STAY CONSISTENT, UM, FOR THE COUNCIL MEMBERS, FOR THE COMMUNITY, FOR STAFF.
SO WE'RE ALL SPEAKING THE SAME LANGUAGE, AND WE KNOW WHERE OUR FOCUS POINTS ARE TODAY.
WE'RE GONNA LOOK AT SOME OF OUR EXPENSES.
ONE THING THAT WE DO KNOW IS THAT FY 27 COLA IS GONNA BE 4.25%.
UH, THAT'S BASED ON THE NEGOTIATION AGREEMENTS WITH, UM, OUR EMPLOYEE UNITS THAT WE HAVE.
AND THAT SPREADS ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION THAT IS ROUGHLY EQUIVALENT TO $4.25 MILLION.
OKAY? AND THEN, UH, WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT HOMELESS INTERVENTION AND, UH, THE PD TEAM IS GONNA GO THROUGH A PRETTY LENGTHY CONVERSATION ABOUT HOW THAT'S A COLLABORATION ACROSS MULTIPLE DEPARTMENTS.
AND THEN YOU MAY ASK, WHAT ABOUT OTHER PIECES OF THE PIE, UH, THAT GO TO THE BUDGET AND FIT UNDER THE EXPENSE CATEGORY? WELL, WE HAVE SEPARATE MEETINGS SCHEDULED FOR THAT, AND WE WILL LOOK AT THOSE IN JUNE.
UH, JUNE 26TH IS THE NEXT BUDGET MEETING THAT WE HAVE SCHEDULED TO GO OVER THE OTHER, UH, OPERATING EXPENSES THAT Y'ALL WILL GIVE DIRECTION ON, UH, AS WE MEET WITH THE DIRECTORS IN MAY BEFORE WE GET READY FOR, TO PRESENTING TO THE CITY COUNCIL.
BUT I'D LIKE TO START WITH THE TAX RATE.
I ACTUALLY WANNA START WITH THE FUN BALANCE.
THE FUND BALANCE IS A QUIRKY LITTLE PIECE IN OUR FORMULA, OKAY? WE START WITH THE FUN BALANCE AND THE EQUATION EQUATES TO WHAT THE FUN BALANCE IS AT THE END OF THE YEAR, RIGHT? SO IT IS, IT HAS A, A BOOK IN EFFECT FOR THIS EQUATION.
IT'S IMPORTANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT THE COUNCIL'S POLICY CONSIDERATION IS THAT WE NEED TO GET TO 90 DAYS IN OUR RESERVES.
THAT WAS THE DIRECTION THAT THIS COUNCIL GAVE, UH, THE TEAM, UH, TO START WORKING OUR MONEY TOWARDS HAVING 90 DAYS OF RESERVE.
AND I'D LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT THAT WE'VE DONE A REALLY GOOD JOB, UH, PREPARING THIS.
YOU KNOW, WHEN WE STARTED THIS ABOUT THREE YEARS AGO, I, I BELIEVE OUR RESERVE WAS AROUND 60 DAYS.
AND, UM, WE MADE SOME DECISIONS IN THE PAST TO SPEND THAT DOWN TO REDUCE THE DEBT THAT WOULD BE ISSUED.
AND THAT'S, THAT IS A DECISION WE NEED TO STAND BY.
THAT IT, IT, IT HAD AN IMPACT AND WE'RE ADJUSTING FOR THAT IMPACT.
IT'S, AND THAT IMPACT IS NEITHER GOOD NOR BAD.
THAT WAS THE DECISION COUNCIL MADE WITH THE INFORMATION IN FRONT OF YOU.
AND WE JUST, IT HAD A, A, AN EFFECT, AND IT TOOK US A MINUTE TO GET BACK TO THE 90 DAYS.
UM, UM, I'M HAPPY TO SAY THAT WE ARE PROJECTED TO BE AT 102 DAYS.
SO THIS, STARTING THIS EQUATION,
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WE HAVE MET YOUR POLICY GOAL TO START THE OVERALL FUND BALANCE CONVERSATION.AND THAT MEANS THAT WE DO HAVE EXTRA MONEY EXTRA, OKAY? AND, UH, I'M USING AIR QUOTES MATT EXTRA.
IT'S JUST THAT THE TEAM HAS DONE A HECK OF A JOB CONTROLLING EXPENSES.
UM, WE HAVE WORKED WITH YOU, WE'VE WORKED WITH CITIZENS ON LOOKING AT SERVICE DELIVERY CHANGES, AND WE'VE MODIFIED THE BUDGETS OVER THE YEARS TO, TO BUILD THIS RESERVE BACK UP.
AND ANY MONEY THAT WAS, THAT WAS NOT SPENT WAS SAVED INTENTIONALLY BY Y'ALL'S DIRECTION TO HELP BUILD THIS BACK UP.
AND WE'RE LOOKING GOOD, AND WE NEED TO CELEBRATE THAT WE'VE DONE A GOOD JOB AND REALLY GOT TO 102 DAYS.
IF I LOOK AT THE END OF THE EQUATION, AND I'LL COME BACK TO THIS, OKAY? BUT YOU NEED TO KNOW THIS FOR THE REST OF THE CONVERSATION TODAY.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE END OF THE EQUATION, AND WE WORK WITH THE END IN MIND, THE INTENT IS STILL TO BE AT 90 DAYS.
OKAY? AND SO WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT THE EQUATION, I WANNA DO REVENUE MINUS EXPENSES.
WE STILL HAVE 90 DAYS IN RESERVE, BUT YOU HAVE OTHER POLICY CONSIDERATIONS IN FRONT OF YOU THAT HAVE TO BE LOOKED AT.
IF I WANT TO SPEND DOWN THE 102 DAYS TO 90 DAYS, THAT'S ROUGHLY $5 MILLION THAT CAN BE USED FOR SOME KIND OF CAPITAL PROJECT.
IF WE WANT TO SPEND DOWN THE 75 DAYS, THAT'S ROUGHLY $10 MILLION THAT CAN BE USED ON A CAPITAL PROJECT.
THE MONEY AND RESERVES IS NOT MEANT FOR ONGOING MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION.
IT IS MEANT FOR ONE-TIME EXPENSES AND ONE-TIME EXPENSES ONLY.
UH, BECAUSE YOU DON'T WANT TO ACT LIKE YOU HAVE THIS MONEY, UH, FOREVER AT, AT THIS POINT, BECAUSE IF YOU PUT IT INTO ONGOING MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS, YOU WILL HAVE TO FIND IT AGAIN NEXT YEAR.
SO RIGHT NOW, WHAT I'M GOING TO LET Y'ALL KNOW IS THAT WE ARE BUILDING THE BUDGET WITH SPENDING THE $5 MILLION DOWN TO THE 90 DAYS.
WE ARE NOT GOING BELOW 90 DAYS.
SO THE BUDGET IS CURRENTLY BEING BUILT WITH SPENDING THAT $5 MILLION ON A CIP PROJECT, OKAY? ON A CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT THAT THE CIP COMMITTEE IS LOOKING AT IN AN EFFORT TO REDUCE FUTURE DEBT, JUST LIKE WE DID BEFORE.
THAT WAS THE DIRECTION THAT WE KIND OF TALKED ABOUT AT THE RETREAT AND OVERALL BUDGET CONVERSATIONS THAT WE'VE HAD OVER THE YEARS.
IF Y'ALL WANT TO SPEND DOWN TO 75 DAYS AND SPEND THE 10 MILLION, WE WILL HAVE A FUTURE CONVERSATION AND Y'ALL CAN GIVE FURTHER DIRECTION.
JUST KNOW THAT IT DOESN'T IMPACT THE ACTUAL BUILDING OF THE BUDGET AT THIS POINT, BECAUSE THAT WILL GO TO A CAPITAL PROJECT.
I'LL PAUSE THERE IN CASE THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS ON THAT RIGHT NOW.
SO THE TAX RATE, THE TAX RATE IS ONE OF OUR BIGGEST CONVERSATIONS.
AND, UM, AS WE'VE REDUCED OUR TAX RATE FROM 83 CENTS TO 69 8 0 3, UM, THAT'S HAD AN IMPACT ON THE REVENUE THAT'S COMING IN ROUGHLY WITH THOSE DECREASES IN THE TAX RATE WE HAVE, WE ARE SEEING ABOUT ONE AND A HALF TO $2 MILLION, UM, A YEAR IN EXTRA REVENUE COMING ONLINE.
EVEN, UH, AS WE REDUCED THE TAX RATE, IF YOU REMEMBER FROM THE, THE OVERALL EQUATION, WE'RE GROWING BY 4.25 REGARDLESS NEXT YEAR.
OKAY? WE KNOW THAT THAT'S BUILT INTO THE EQUATION.
4.25 MILLION IS GOING ON JUST TO ADDRESS COLA ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION.
SO THE POLICY CONSIDERATIONS THAT Y'ALL, THAT ARE IN FRONT OF YOU, OR DO WE DO NO NEW REVENUE? DO WE DO VOTER APPROVAL RATE? DO WE STABILIZE THE TAX RATE AND KEEP IT AT 69 8 0 3? THAT IS THE CURRENT, UH, DIRECTION THAT, THAT IS, THAT HAS BEEN GIVEN TO ME IS STABILIZE AT 69 8 0 3.
BUT I DON'T WANT TO MOVE FURTHER UNLESS I GET MORE INPUT ON THAT, AND I'LL COME BACK TO THAT IN A SECOND.
AND THEN WE HAVE TO START TALKING ABOUT WHAT DOES THE INS PORTION OF THE TAX RATE, AND THAT'S THE DEBT PORTION OF THE TAX RATE MEAN.
SO BEFORE WE LOOK AT POLICY CONSIDERATIONS, I WANT TO MAKE IT CLEAR THE IMPACTS OF CHANGING THE TAX RATE FOR EVERY CENT THAT WE LOWER THE TAX RATE, IT REDUCES IDA REVENUE BY $980,000.
TO KEEP IT SIMPLE, IT REDUCES OUR REVENUE BY $1 MILLION IN 2028, AND WE'LL GO OVER IT IN THE NEXT SLIDE.
THERE IS A, THERE IS A PROJECTED 5 CENT DECREASE IN THE DEBT PORTION OF THE TAX RATE.
THAT WILL BE A LOSS OF $5 MILLION TO THE GENERAL FUND REVENUE.
AND THAT'LL BE A CONVERSATION THAT WE WILL HAVE TO CONSIDER OR CONTINUE, UH, BEYOND TODAY AS WELL.
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ADDITION TO THAT, IF WE HIT 68 CENTS AS A TAX RATE, WE'RE, REMEMBER WE'RE CURRENTLY AT 69.IF WE ARE AT 68 CENTS AS A TAX RATE, IT GIVES ALL THE APPLICANTS OR ALL THE PARTIES INVOLVED WITH TWO TWELVES THE ABILITY TO RENEGOTIATE THEIR CONTRACT.
SO THEY HAVE THAT BUILT INTO THE CONTRACT THAT THEY CAN COME RENEGOTIATE IF THEY HIT 68 CENTS.
THE REASON BEING IS ONCE WE GET AT 68 CENTS, THEY START PAYING MORE THAN THEY SHOULD BE ON THE TAX RATE, HOW THE TAX RATE IS ESTABLISHED.
AND SO THAT FLOOR WAS ESTABLISHED THROUGH THE CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS.
AND SO WHAT THAT WOULD MOST LIKELY DO IS ONCE THEY RENEGOTIATE, WE WOULD THEN START LOSING ADDITIONAL MONEY ON TOP OF THE LOWERING OF THE TAX RATE, $1 MILLION THAT GOES WITH THE 1 CENT, UH, PROJECTION AS WELL.
IF THAT WERE TO HAPPEN, WE WILL HAVE SERIOUS CONVERSATIONS ABOUT SERVICE DELIVERY, HOW WE WANT TO RECAPTURE THE REVENUE, EITHER THAT THROUGH FEES, UH, INCREASING FEES THAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE, OR IMPLEMENTING NEW FEES ACROSS THE ORGANIZATION.
SO AS WE LOOK AT WHAT'S HAPPENED OVER THE YEAR, THERE ARE TWO PORTIONS OF THIS TAX RATE HERE.
YOU CAN SEE THAT THE TAX RATE FROM 2021 DOWN TO 2026, UM, WHERE AM I AT? THE BOTTOM PORTION OF THAT IS THE M AND O TAX RATE.
THE BLUE PORTION IS THE M AND O TAX RATE, THAT'S THE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION.
THE GRAY PORTION ON TOP IS THE PORTION OF THE TAX RATE THAT'S BEEN USED FOR DEBT.
SO WE'VE BEEN RUNNING OFF OF OUR M AND O, UH, AND IT'S BEEN DEPLETED OVER THE YEARS.
SO EACH YEAR AS WE CONTINUE TO GROW IN EXPENSES, WE ARE FINDING WAYS TO RUN OFF A LOWER M AND O PORTION OF OUR TAX RATE THAT'S ACTUALLY BELOW, UH, IN SOME INSTANCES THE NO NEW REVENUE PORTION OF THE M AND O OR BELOW THE, UH, VOTER APPROVAL RATE, M AND O PORTION OF THE, UH, OF THE TAX RATE.
AND IF WE CONTINUE DOWN THIS PATH, WE'RE NOT SEEING THE BENEFIT OF THE IDA, UM, WHICH HAS BEEN THE BACKBONE OF OUR FINANCES IN THE PAST.
IDA'S HAVE PAID FOR ALL, ALL PUBLIC SAFETY.
NOW, THE PUBLIC SAFETY COSTS ARE MORE THAN THE IDA'S, UH, REVENUE.
AND THAT IS BECAUSE WE'VE CONTINUED TO LOWER THE TAX RATE ALL OF THESE YEARS.
UM, THE IMPACT OF THAT IS THAT YOU NOW HAVE THE GENERAL FUND SUPPLEMENTING FOR WHAT WE'VE LOST IN THE IDAS AT THIS PORTION.
AND, UM, THIS IS PUTTING AN UNDUE PRESSURE ON THE HOMEOWNERS INSTEAD OF SPREADING IT ACROSS HOW, UH, HISTORICALLY OUR FINANCES HAVE BEEN BUILT IN THE CITY OF BAYTOWN.
AND I WANNA MAKE IT CLEAR VERY, I I DON'T WANNA BE MISCONSTRUED HERE.
THE PORTION OF PUBLIC SAFETY EXPENSE GROWTH IS NOT DUE TO PUBLIC SAFETY, OKAY? PUBLIC SAFETY HAS BEEN GROWING AT THE SAME AS THE REST OF THE CITY.
SO IT'S NOT JUST LIKE THIS EXTRA COST THAT HAS BEEN HAPPENING WITH PUBLIC SAFETY.
THEY HAVE BEEN GROWING IN LINE WITH ALL THE OTHER COSTS WITHIN THE CITY OF BAYTOWN.
AND SO THIS HAS TO DO WITH A MATHEMATICAL PIECE OF HOW THE TAX RATE WORKS WITH OUR IDAS.
AND THAT'S THE, THAT'S THE IMPACT THAT I WANT TO KIND OF ADDRESS WITH Y'ALL.
UM, SO THE FUN PIECE HERE IS I GET THE DRAW.
SO THE TEAM FIGURED OUT A WAY THAT I CAN DRAW ON HERE.
LIKE IT'S A, A, A CHALKBOARD OR SOMETHING.
SO I'M, I'M VERY HAPPY WITH THAT.
SO IF I LOOK AT THE TAX RATE OVER THE YEARS, UH, WE DIDN'T TALK ABOUT THIS, I NEED TO BE HEARD, ALRIGHT? IF WE LOOK AT THE TAX RATE OVER THE YEARS, AND WE SAW THE PREVIOUS CHART, OOPS, WE SAW THE PREVIOUS CHART THAT WAS 21 THROUGH 26.
AND IF I MOVE NOW WHAT THE TAX RATE LOOKS LIKE GOING FORWARD, AND I DO 26, 27, 28, 29, AND 30, AND WE HAVE OUR MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION, AND WE HAVE OUR DEBT.
I'M JUST GONNA CALL IT DEED TO KEEP IT SIMPLE.
OKAY? OUR MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION FOR FOUR, FOR 2026 IS 42 CENTS.
OUR DEBT PORTION OF THE TAX RATE IS 27 CENTS, ROUGHLY 69 CENTS.
THAT WILL STAY RELATIVELY THE SAME FOR 27 BASED ON YOUR PREVIOUS DIRECTION OF KEEP OF STABILIZING.
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SO WE WILL KEEP THAT THE SAME 69 CENTS IN 2028.WE HAVE A SUBSTANTIAL PORTION OF OUR DEBT ROLL OFF TO THE TUNE OF 5 CENTS.
THE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION WILL STAY RELATIVELY THE SAME.
THE INTENT IS NOT TO BUILD MORE EXPENSES IN THE MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION TO STABILIZE THE TAX RATE, RIGHT? THAT'S NOT THE INTENT.
THAT JUST MEANS YOU'RE GROWING, YOU'RE GROWING OPERATIONS WITHOUT LIKE A STRATEGIC DIRECTION OF GROWING THE OPERATIONS IF YOU JUST KEEP IT HIGHER.
SO THAT AUTOMATICALLY LOWERS OUR TAX RATE.
SORRY, IT'S HARD TO DRAW ON HERE Y'ALL, BUT IT'S NICE THAT I HAVE IT.
AND WHAT'S THE DECREASE IN REVENUE FOR THE CITY AT THAT POINT? 5 MILLION.
IN ADDITION TO THAT, THE VERY NEXT YEAR, THE TAX RATE DROPS, GOODNESS GRACIOUS, THE TAX RATE DROPS, UM, ANOTHER TWO PENNIES.
THAT'S AN ADDITIONAL $2 MILLION THAT'S LOST IN REVENUE.
THAT TAKES THE TAX RATE DOWN TO 62 CENTS.
SO THAT'S ANOTHER, UH, SORRY, 21, SORRY.
61 CENTS, THAT SHOULD BE ZERO.
THAT'S ONE 1 MILLION MORE DOLLARS THAT'S LOST.
SO THE POINT OF ALL THAT IS TO UNDERSTAND WHAT'S IN FRONT OF US, AND WE DON'T HAVE TO SOLVE THAT TODAY, OKAY? BUT WE DO NEED TO BE PREPARED FOR WHAT'S AHEAD ON HOW WE'RE TRYING TO GROW AND WHEN WE'RE TRYING TO GROW WITH OUR TAX RATE.
WE ALSO NEED TO REMEMBER THAT THE 42 IS GONNA STAY STABLE ON THE M AND O PORTION OF THE TAX RATE, WHICH MEANS THAT WE ARE, THAT WE ARE PLANNING ON GROWING VERY LITTLE FOR MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION AT THAT POINT.
IF WE'RE STABILIZING AT 69 8 0 3, AT SOME POINT WE WILL HAVE TO HAVE A CONVERSATION ABOUT HOW TO ADDRESS THE LOWERING PORTION OF THE DEBT.
SOME OF THE PIECES THAT THE POLICY CONSIDERATIONS THAT COUNSEL WILL HAVE TO LOOK AT IS, DO WE ISSUE MORE DEBT? DO WE USE THE EXTRA 5 CENTS OR WHATEVER THAT THAT'S GONNA FALL OFF? YOU CAN USE THAT TO PAY FOR WATER AND SEWER PORTION OF DEBT THAT STABILIZES IT.
IF YOU CAN DO IT YEAR BY YEAR.
UM, YOU CAN SAY, INSTEAD OF GROWING THE DEBT, I WANT TO GROW M AND O.
DO YOU HAVE THAT CONSIDERATION? AND MANY, MANY OTHER OPTIONS.
BUT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT'S GONNA HAVE TO BE LOOKED AT FOR, UH, OR THE FINANCE COMMITTEE'S GONNA HAVE TO WORK WITH STAFF ON, ON MAKING RECOMMENDATIONS IN PREPARATION FOR YOUR NEXT RETREAT.
THIS WILL BE ONE OF THE LARGEST TOPICS FOR YOUR NEXT RETREAT IN PREPARATION FOR THE FY 28 BUDGET, BECAUSE THERE ARE BIG DECISIONS THAT HAVE TO BE MADE.
ONE OF THE FIRST ONES THAT'S IN FRONT OF YOU IS THE BOND, UM, THE GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND.
AS YOU KNOW, AT THE LAST MEETING I TALKED ABOUT WHAT DIRECTION WE, WE NEED DIRECTION ON WHAT WE WANT TO DO WITH THE GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND.
IT WAS OUR ORIGINAL INTENT TO ISSUE DEBT AROUND, OH, EXCUSE ME, NOVEMBER OF 2028.
OKAY? THAT WAS OUR ORIGINAL INTENT.
THE REASON BEING IS, AS WE DISCUSSED WITH COUNSEL, WE WANT CITIZENS TO SEE WORK BEING DONE.
WE WANT CITIZENS TO SEE IT BEING COMPLETED, UH, BEFORE WE GO AND ASK FOR ADDITIONAL MONEY FOR DEBT.
IF WE DO THAT, AND YOU LOOK WHAT'S ON THE BOARD RIGHT NOW, WE'VE ALREADY LOST THE 5 CENTS AT THAT POINT BECAUSE WE CAN'T BUILD A BUDGET ASSUMING THAT THE GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND IS GONNA PASS.
OKAY? AND SO THE FEEDBACK THAT HAS COME FROM OUR, UH, BOND ANALYSIS GROUP IS THAT, UM, AS I SAID LAST MEETING, THE BREAKDOWN OF ALL REGISTER VOTERS IN THE CITY OF BAYTOWN DEMONSTRATE MANY TAN TANGIBLE ADVANTAGES SUCH AS A MORE THAN SIX POINT ADVANTAGE FOR FEMALE VOTERS.
AN ELECTORATE THAT HAS WEIGHTED HEAVILY TOWARDS CENTRIST TO LIBERAL PHILOSOPHICAL BELIEFS, MAJORITY VOTERS, AGE 49 AND YOUNGER, AND REGISTERED VOTERS WHO ARE PRIMARILY ETH ETHNICALLY DIVERSE.
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THAT IS THE STATISTICAL DATA THAT CAME BACK FROM THE, UM, THE BOND ANALYSIS GROUP ON WHEN IT WOULD BE A GOOD TIME TO ISSUE DEBT, UH, AND GO BACK FOR A GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND.IT'S GOOD TO UNDERSTAND THE DEMOGRAPHICS OF THAT SO THAT YOU KNOW WHO YOU'RE TARGETING THE CONVERSATIONS WITH, UH, AROUND THE COMMUNITY.
AN INTERESTING THING THAT POPPED UP THROUGH THIS PROCESS THAT I WOULD LIKE TO READ Y'ALL.
IT SAYS IN NOVEMBER OF 2025, WHEN WE DID OUR BOND ELECTION, ONLY 31% OF TOTAL MUNICIPAL BONDS OFFERED IN TEXAS WERE ADOPTED BY VOTERS.
ONLY 31% ACROSS THE ENTIRE STATE OF TEXAS IN NOVEMBER WERE PASSED BY FAR THE LOWEST INDIVIDUAL ELECTION IN THE PAST 10 YEARS.
AND A DRAMATIC DIP IN FAILURE RATE, EVEN FOR CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT ELECTION STANDARDS.
AND SO WHAT THEY SAY AT THAT POINT IS, WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT, WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO GO OUT FOR A GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND, IT WOULD BE, UH, THE NOVEMBER MIDTERM AT A 91% BOND PASSAGE RATE, THE NOVEMBER PRESIDENTIAL, WHICH IS 85%, AND THE MAY LOCAL GOVERNMENT, WHICH IS 82% PASSAGE RATE.
SO THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS BASED ON THE DATA, THE DETAIL, UH, AND I'LL, I WILL SEND YOU THE REPORT FROM A STATISTICAL VOTER DEMOGRAPHIC AND OVERALL TIMING STANDPOINT, THE CITY OF BAYTOWN SHOULD MOST CLOSELY CONSIDER EITHER NOVEMBER OF 2026 OR MAY OF 2027 FOR THEIR NEXT MUNICIPAL BOND ELECTION, FOR DIFFERENT REASONS, EITHER PRESENTS OPTIMAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR BAYTOWN TO PASS A BOND PACKAGE.
I WOULD ARGUE THAT NOVEMBER, 2026 IS WAY TOO SOON.
WE HAVEN'T EVEN ISSUED THE DEBT FROM THE LAST ELECTION.
WE ARE IN THE PROCESS OF THAT RIGHT NOW.
YOU WON'T SEE ANYTHING HAPPENING BY NOVEMBER OF 2026, BUT IT'S THE HIGHEST PERCENTAGE RATE THAT YOU ARE LOOKING FOR, FOR A POSSIBLE BOND TO PASS IN THE CITY OF BAYTOWN.
ACCORDING TO THE STATISTICAL DATA.
WHAT WAS THE PERCENTAGE FOR 91% FOR NOVEMBER, 2026? IS THAT A NATURAL STATISTIC OR, UH, THAT'S STATE, THAT'S FOR TEXAS 82%, 85% FOR NOVEMBER PRESIDENTIAL, 82% FOR MAY LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
THAT'S NOT A, WELL, THAT'S, YEAH, IT GOES ON IN HERE TO TALK ABOUT THE 31%.
YOU CAN'T IGNORE THE FACT THAT ONLY 31% PASSED IN NOVEMBER OF, OR NOVEMBER, 2025, MEANING THAT THE DATA'S ONLY AS GOOD AS THE HISTORICAL TRENDS THAT HAVE BEEN IN PLAY IN THE PAST.
AND SO IF THERE'S A SHIFT IN THINKING VOTER THINKING, WE NEED TO CALCULATE THAT THOSE PERCENTAGES PRESENTED TO YOU COULD BE LOWER REGARDLESS, BECAUSE THERE'S A, A IDEOLOGICAL SHIFT IN THINKING ON BOND PASSAGE.
SO THE QUESTION TO YOU AND AN OPEN DISCUSSION IS, IS MAY, 2027 SOMETHING THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO CONSIDER, OR DO WE WANT TO STAY ON TARGET WITH NOVEMBER OF 2028? WELL, I THINK THE COST, I'M SORRY, WHAT IS THE COST? UM, CONTRACT FOR ELECTIONS IN MAY.
I, I BEL ANGIE, I BELIEVE IT'S 300,000 FOR AN ELECTION, ROUGHLY 300,000 THAT WE WOULD LOOK FOR NO MATTER WHAT TIME OF YEAR.
IT'S, SO WE PAY, WE ALREADY BUDGET 300,000 FOR THE NOVEMBER ELECTION IF WE WANTED TO RUN A SEPARATE ELECT.
'CAUSE WE HAVE TO STILL DO NOVEMBER.
BUT IF WE WANTED TO DO MAY, WE WOULD BUDGET AN ADDITIONAL 300,000 FOR THE MAY ELECTION AS WELL FOR 2027.
THAT WOULD BE 600,000 FOR ELECTION PURPOSES.
JUST, UH, IN, IN THAT PHYSICAL BUDGET.
UM, THAT STANDARD PROJECTED DATA IS GOOD, BUT WHAT I'M CONCERNED ABOUT IS LIKE ANY DATA, THERE'S GONNA BE REALLY HIGH NUMBERS IN SOME AREAS AND REALLY LOW NUMBERS IN OTHER AREAS.
SO WHEN YOU WERE READING OUT THE DEMOGRAPHICS OF THE BEST TIME, THOSE DEMOGRAPHICS AND THOSE PEOPLE DON'T MATCH ANYTHING IN OUR AREA TO WHO'S VOTING HERE? THAT'S THE, THAT'S THE TRICKY PART.
THOSE, THOSE, THAT DATA ACTUALLY REPRESENTS BAYTOWN.
IT DOESN'T REPRESENT WHO VOTES.
AND SO THAT'S WHAT I WAS GONNA SAY.
I CAN'T MAKE A DECISION UNTIL I GO DO MORE RESEARCH BECAUSE I'M, I'M GLAD YOU PRESENTED THAT MM-HMM
BUT FOR ME, I NEED TO SEE WHAT THE TRENDS AND AND PROJECTIONS WERE JUST IN OUR AREA.
NOT THIS IS SPECIFICALLY FOR BAYTOWN, BUT YOU GAVE THAT, I GAVE DATA.
I GAVE DATA ACROSS, BUT, UH, IS THOMAS BACK HERE? BUT
[00:25:01]
THE PROJECTION TRENDS ARE BASED OFF OF STATE RIGHT OFF OF, I DON'T WANNA MISSTATE THIS.UM, THOMAS WAS PUTTING ALL THIS TOGETHER.
YOU'RE ASKING QUESTIONS THAT ARE ABOVE MY PAY GRADE ALONG RIGHT.
ALONG WITH WHAT YOU'RE SAYING.
MY COMMENTS WERE GOING TO BE, I'M NOT READY TO MAKE A DECISION ON THIS RIGHT NOW.
I WOULD NEED MORE INFORMATION AND TO DO MORE RESEARCH JUST SO THAT WE CAN SAY WE'RE GONNA MAKE THE BEST DECISION.
THE OTHER THING I'M GONNA ASK, CAN WE PUT THIS IN THE CHART? BECAUSE THAT 19 LOOKS LIKE A 79.
AND, UH, 19, I MEAN, IT'LL EVENTUALLY BE CLEANED UP.
SO THAT FOR THE FUTURE, WE, WE CAN ACTUALLY HAVE IT SO THAT WE CAN LOOK AT THIS, UM, AND KNOW WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT.
BUT YEAH, TOM, AS TOM WAS GONNA SPEAK, WELL, MAYOR, OH, YES SIR.
WE'RE, WE'RE BASING ALL THIS ON, IF WE GO OUT FOR A GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND, THAT'S CORRECT MM-HMM
WE HAVE SOME, WE KNOW WE HAVE SOME MAJOR, MAJOR EXPENSES COMING UP WITH SSO MM-HMM
AND SOME OTHER STUFF THAT, UH, IS TOO CRITICAL TO TO, TO PUT ON A GENERAL ELECTION BOND.
SO WE'RE LOOKING AT COS WITH THE COS IF WE CAME UP AND SAID WE'RE GONNA ISSUE A CO FOR, AND I'M, I'M BEING TARGETED TO, TO ESSENTIAL CITY SERVICES ISSUES HERE FOR LIKE SSO OR FOR STORM WATER, WE COULD GO FORWARD WITH A CO AND I KNOW WE HAVE ISSUES WITH CERTIFICATE OF OBLIGATIONS, BUT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE CAN HASH OUT UP HERE.
BUT IF WE ASSUME THAT DEBT THAT WE COULD ABSORB THAT 5 MILLION IN A CO DEBT.
SO, SO WE COULD STEP FORWARD AND TAKE A BITE TO ENSURE THAT THAT DEBT STAYS LEVEL.
YEAH, I WOULDN'T, I WOULDN'T SUPPORT GOING OVER THAT.
BUT THAT DEBT STAYS LEVEL FOR THE 28 PERIOD TO SUPPORT THE UPCOMING EXPENSES THAT WE HAVE FOR THE SSO THAT, THAT WE'RE, WE'RE GONNA BE IN DIRE STRAITS ON.
BECAUSE WE'VE HAD THE DISCUSSIONS.
HOW CAN WE PAY FOR IT? HOW CAN WE PAY FOR IT? MM-HMM
HERE, HERE'S A WAY THAT, THAT WE CAN REACH OUT AND COVER AN ESSENTIAL EXPENDITURE.
WE'RE GONNA SPEND THE MONEY WHETHER WE GET CO OR WHATEVER.
AND THAT ALLOWS US MORE TIME TO DO A BETTER PREPARED GENERAL OBLIGATION GEO BOND TO BE DONE IN 28, OR I THINK RUSSIAN TO MAY OF, OF 27.
WE'RE GONNA GET THE SAME PUSHBACK WE GOT ON THE LAST GEO.
AND I AGREE WITH GOING OUT FOR GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS, BUT WE NEED TO HAVE IT WHERE IT'S 18 MONTHS IN ADVANCE.
AND IN MY OPINION, SO THE CO WOULD COVER THAT $5 MILLION.
AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT, THAT WE DESPERATELY NEED TO START DOING IS FOCUSING ON THE SSO.
I KNOW PUBLIC WORKS IS WORKING AS STRONG THAT THERE'S ONLY SO MUCH MONEY.
SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WOULD CARRY US, HAVE A WELL FORMULATED GO BOND TO GO FORWARD IN 28 AND THEN MOVE FORWARD FROM THERE.
I THINK IS MUCH MORE TACTICAL.
AND, AND I UNDERSTAND WE'LL HAVE LOTS OF DISCUSSIONS ON CERTIFICATE OF OBLIGATION EFFORTS.
BUT THAT IS A CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE ISSUE AND, AND NOT A WANT, THAT'S AN ABSOLUTE NEED THAT WE'RE GONNA BE IMPACTED ON NO MATTER WHAT OCCURS.
SO THAT'S, THAT'S KIND OF MY PERSPECTIVE OF THAT.
THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT I DISCUSSED.
I'M GONNA GET YOU WITH JASON YESTERDAY.
UM, WAS THAT YESTERDAY? YES, SIR.
ABOUT CERTIFICATE COS THING FOR THINGS THAT WE NEED, WATER, SEWER, I WOULD EVEN SAY SOME ROWS THAT NEED TO BE DONE WITH TCEQ AND THE EPA ARE FIXING THE HAMMER US ON THAT.
SO THAT'S MONEY WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO SPEND.
WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO SPEND ONE WAY OR THE OTHER THAT'S RIGHT.
SECURES IT AND KEEPS OUR, KEEPS EVERYTHING LEVEL.
YOU KNOW, OUR M AND O AND OUR DEBT INS KEEPS IT LEVEL SO WE DON'T START LOSING MONEY.
UH, I AGREE WITH THE CONCEPT AND, AND THE DIRECTION THAT WE NEED TO HOLD STEADY WITH THE TAX RATE.
WELL, WHY CAN'T, WHY DOESN'T THE CITY SUBSIDIZE WATER? WHY DOESN'T CITY SUBSIDIZE TRASH PICKUP ANYMORE? IT'S BECAUSE WE'VE LOWERED THE TAX RATE.
YOU KNOW, 13 CENTS OR SO OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS THAT MONEY'S JUST NOT THERE.
IF WE HOLD STEADY, SOME OF THAT MONEY CAN START COMING BACK AND WE CAN START THOSE SUPPLEMENTS AGAIN TO HELP BRING SOME OF THOSE COSTS BACK DOWN.
OUR CITIZENS ARE STARTING TO REALIZE WE'RE AT THAT TIPPING POINT, AND YOU'VE MADE IT VERY CLEAR WE'RE AT THAT TIPPING POINT.
SO ANYTHING REDUCED BENEFITS INDUSTRY, AND I'M NOT OPPOSED TO INDUSTRY, BUT IT BENEFITS THEM AT A SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER RATE OR IMPACT THAN OUR CITIZENS.
SO IF WE COULD START HOLDING THAT LINE AND START PUSHING SOME OF THAT BACK TO ASSIST OUR CITIZENS, THAT'S GREAT.
BUT I THINK LOOKING AT THE POSSIBILITY OF A CO FOR THE SSO OR STORM DRAINAGE ISSUES, I WOULD SUPPORT IF WE GET INTO, WELL LET'S PICK SOME EXTRA STREETS TO DO.
[00:30:01]
I'M NOT GOING, I'M NOT SAYING THAT'S A GENERAL OBLIGATION ISSUE.NO, BUT I'M NOT, I WOULD NEVER SAY EXTRA STREETS.
IF SOMETHING HAPPENS AND IT NEEDS TO BE DONE.
THAT'S WHAT THEY, THEY'RE FOR.
WE HAVE A BRIDGE FAILURE OR SOMETHING THAT'S GOTTA BE DONE.
BUT, BUT I THINK WE NEED TO LOOK AT IT FROM AN SSO OR STORMWATER PERSPECTIVE FOR THE COS TO, TO PUSH TO HOLD THAT STEADY.
THAT, THAT'S JUST COUNCIL FRANCO.
WELL, MY COLLEAGUE OVER HERE SAID A LOT OF IT BEING KNOW CIP WITH 'EM FOR SO LONG.
THAT'S KIND OF HAVING VERY SIMILAR THOUGHTS.
I MEAN THAT, THAT'S THE THING WE, I THINK WE SOLVED WITH THIS LAST BOND.
WE, WE, I KNOW WE WERE, WE WERE REALLY HAMMERING, HEY, WE, WE, IT WAS TOO SOON.
WE GAVE OUR, WE GAVE OUR BOND COMMITTEE FIVE MONTHS TO PUT IT TOGETHER.
THEY NEED A LITTLE MORE TIME THAN THAT TO GET IT OUT TO THE PUBLIC TO GET MORE WORD OUT TO THE PUBLIC.
I MEAN THE MORE TIME THEY HAVE, THE BETTER THEY CAN TO SELL IT.
AND I KIND OF AGREE A LITTLE BIT ON SOME OF THE DEBT, BUT I MEAN, YOU SAID THE, THE, ALSO THE M AND O BUDGET CAN, CAN WE ABSORB SOME OF THE WATER STORM INTO THE M AND O BUDGET AND INCREASE THAT ALSO? SO IT, YES, COUNCIL CAN INCREASE THE M AND O BUDGET.
UM, JUST KNOW ONCE YOU INCREASE IT, YOU'RE PROBABLY ADDING ADDITIONAL SERVICES AND IF YOU EVER WANNA DECREASE IT, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO PROBABLY TAKE AWAY THOSE SERVICES.
SO THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING I WOULD JUST KNOW THAT GOING INTO THE PRO INTO THE PROCESS OF DOING THAT.
UM, I HAD THOUGHT OF THAT, BUT I, I APPRECIATE THAT.
AND SO I PERSONALLY DON'T FEEL THAT 27 IS, UH, I THINK IT'S ENOUGH TIME, UM, IF WE DO, BUT I DON'T KNOW IF I'M WILLING TO DO IT FOR 300,000
UM, BE BECAUSE THAT, THAT IS A LOT SINCE WE'RE GONNA DO ANOTHER 300,000 THIS NOVEMBER, UM, TO CONTRACT, UM, UH, I FEEL THAT AS WE'RE GOING INTO COS UM, THAT'S TOTALLY OUR DECISION, BUT IT'S HAVING US UNDERSTAND MM-HMM
AND, YOU KNOW, WHAT HURT US BEFORE WAS THE WHOLE NEEDS VERSUS WANTS.
WE UP HERE SITTING ON THIS DIOCESE, DETERMINE THOSE NEEDS FOR THE COMMUNITY IF WE'RE GONNA GO OUT FOR A CO.
AND SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE, WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND AND, AND WE IDENTIFY THOSE CRITICAL PROJECTS AND JUST GET 'EM GOING.
UM, BUT, UH, WHAT I WOULD WANNA SEE, UM, IF WE'RE LOOKING AT PUSHING, UM, THE, THE GOS FOR 28 IS, I KNOW THERE WERE SOME PROJECTS UNDER THE, THE, UM, THE GO THAT WE REALLY WANTED TO GET DONE AND THAT SOME OF 'EM WERE RECONSTRUCTIONS AND, AND ALL OF THAT, SOME OF THE STREETS.
SO I'D LIKE TO SEE WHERE THE, UM, PCI INDEX FALLS AND SOME OF THOSE STREETS THAT MAY BE NEED, NEED, MAY NEED TO BE PUSHED OUT OR, UM, ANY OF LIKE THE FIRE, UH, FIRE, UM, HOUSES OR ANYTHING ELSE THAT WE NEEDED TO DO THAT IS NOT GOING TO BE ADDRESSED EARLIER THAN 28.
WELL, REALLY 29 BECAUSE WE GO OUT IN MAY.
AND THEN WE MAY NOT GET THE MONEY UNTIL 29.
WE WON'T HAVE THE MONEY UNTIL FY 30.
SO IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT WOULD NEED TO BE DONE SOONER, THEN I'D LIKE TO KIND OF HAVE A LIST OF THAT AS WELL.
WE, WE WILL, UM, FOR THE PUBLIC'S PURPOSE, UM, THE ORIGINAL PLAN WAS NOVEMBER 28TH.
THAT WAS THE ORIGINAL PLAN THAT WE'VE ALL DISCUSSED IN THE PAST, UH, AROUND SSO AND OTHER NEEDS.
IT'S JUST, WE NEEDED TO BRING THE DATA THAT, THAT WAS PRESENTED TO US, TO Y'ALL TO SEE IF YOU WANT TO CONSIDER A DA DIRECTION CHANGE OR NOT.
AND JUST FOR CLARITY, FOR THE, FOR THE CITIZENS, THIS HAS BEEN AN ONGOING CONVERSATION, UH, WITH ALL OF US AND WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO BEST DO THIS, UH, TO BEST HANDLE THAT TO YOUR QUESTION SPECIFICALLY.
UH, MS. ALVARADO, UH, THIS WILL COME TO THE FINANCE COMMITTEE.
AND THE FINANCE COMMITTEE WILL WORK WITH STAFF ON MAKING RECOMMENDATIONS MM-HMM
AND THEN THE CIP COMMITTEE WILL START LOOKING AT IF THERE'S ANY CASH, HOW CAN WE START ADDRESSING SOME OF THOSE, THOSE, UH, STREETS AS, AS THEY GET CATEGORIZED.
SO THAT IS SET UP FOR GOING INTO FY 27.
WE WILL BRING THAT TO Y'ALL AS A CONSIDERATION POINT.
AND AS WE WORK ON THE BUDGET, I KNOW, UM, CHIEF AND HIS TEAM HAD SOME PUBLIC SAFETY, UM, ITEMS THAT THEY WANTED TO DO FOR THE FUTURE IN TERMS OF THE DIFFERENT EVENTS THAT WE'RE HOSTING AND TO BETTER IMPROVE, UM, UH, PUBLIC SAFETY, NOT JUST FOR THOSE EVENTS, BUT AS A WHOLE.
UM, AND SO IF ANY OF THOSE ITEMS HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED OR THINGS THAT YOU WANNA LOOK AT, UM, I THINK THAT WOULD BE IMPORTANT FOR US TO SEE.
AND I KNOW THAT'S USUALLY A PART OF THE OVERALL BUDGET, UM, BUT THAT WILL ALSO DETERMINE WHAT WE'RE, WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO AS WELL.
I JUST WANNA PIGGYBACK ON WHAT BOTH MY COLLEAGUES SAID.
[00:35:01]
GOING FOR CO BONDS, I THINK THAT'S PRUDENT.I DON'T LIKE THE TERM OF, UM, NEEDS OF OUR WANTS, BUT PRIORITIES EVEN WHEN ADDRESSING OUR STREET ISSUES.
SO I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE, THE, YOU KNOW, THE PSI ON SOME OF THOSE ROADS AND IDENTIFY SOME OF THOSE STREETS THAT ARE PAST LIFE AND CRITICAL CONDITION.
AND EVEN EVEN CONSIDER THOSE FOR, FOR SEAL BONDS AS WELL.
OF, UM, IN THE STUDY, DID YOU KNOW, I KNOW WE GO BACK TO THE STUDY, DID THEY MENTION NOVEMBERS OF ODD YEARS? I KNOW YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT MIDTERM AND PRESIDENT, IT HIGHLY SUGGESTS THAT YOU DO NOT DO NOVEMBER OF ODD YEARS.
SO NO, NOVEMBER 27 IS THE LOWEST, UH, PASS RATE THAT WAS PRESENTED.
SO BASICALLY WE DID OUR LAST JOB BOND THE WRONG TIME.
WELL, THAT'S WHY I WAS SAYING WE SHOULD PUSH IT BACK TO ME OF THIS YEAR.
WE WOULD'VE HAD A BETTER CHANCE TO PASS MAY THIS YEAR TRYING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE GET RIGHT.
SO MS. ALVARADO, YOU WERE SAYING THAT YOU WOULD RATHER DO IT IN NOVEMBER AND NOT MAY.
SO WE WOULDN'T HAVE TO SPEND THE EXTRA 300.
WELL, THAT'S A TOTAL OF 600,000 THAT WE'RE YEAH, THAT'S WHAT I'M SAYING.
NOVEMBER, IF WE'RE GONNA DO IT NOVEMBER 27TH, ANY THAT WOULD, WHY WOULD WE WAIT THE 28TH? WE CAN DO IT 27.
SO I MEAN, IF I'VE GOT DIRECTION FROM Y'ALL ON THAT.
UM, JUST TO CLARIFY, MRS. GRAHAM, YOU HAD A QUESTION ON THE ELECTORATE.
UH, THOMAS IS LETTING ME KNOW THAT THIS DOES SAY CITY OF BAYTOWN, THE ELECTORATE, UH, AND VOTER HISTORY.
THE DATA, THE PASSAGE RATE WAS STATEWIDE.
THE 31% FAILING ACROSS THE STATE IS STATEWIDE.
THE DATA THAT I GAVE ON THE, UM, MORE THAN A SIX POINT ADVANTAGE FOR FEMALE VOTERS AND ELECTOR THAT IS WEIGHTED HEAVILY TOWARDS CENTRIST TO LIBERAL PHILOSOPHICAL BELIEFS.
MAJORITY VOTERS AGE 49 AND YOUNGER, AND REGISTERED VOTERS WHO ARE PRIMARILY ETHNICALLY DIVERSE.
THAT IS BAYTOWN SPECIFIC ELECTORATE.
SO THE 82 AND 85% WERE STATEWIDE? NO, THAT WAS BAYTOWN.
OH, THE PASSAGE, THE SPECIFIC DEMOGRAPHIC BREAKDOWN IS BAYTOWN SPECIFIC.
THE DEMOGRAPHIC IS JUST THE, THEY'RE JUST SAYING WHAT IT WOULD TAKE TO PASS IT, AND THEN YOU TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THE STATEWIDE PASSAGE OR FAILURE RATES.
SO DID IT GIVE, DOES IT GIVE A THOUGHT HERE OR DOES NOT? IT SAYS NOVEMBER 27 IS 73% PASSAGE RATE.
UM, I KNOW AT ONE POINT, UH, WE MANAGED OUR OWN ELECTIONS MM-HMM
UM, AND WHAT DO WE KNOW WHAT THE COST WAS FOR THAT? I KNOW THE LAST TIME WE DID IT, LETTI WAS HERE.
UM, SO IF WE DID A MAY ELECTION WHERE THERE'S USUALLY ONLY THE GEO BOND PROBABLY THAT WE'RE THINKING ABOUT, WHAT WOULD IT TAKE TO HAVE IN-HOUSE? A LOT.
BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE OUR OWN EQUIPMENT.
AND THEN DEPENDING UPON IF IT'S AN EVEN OR ODD YEAR AS WELL, WE MAY NOT EVEN BE ABLE TO EVEN RENT OR LEASE, UM, THE COUNTY'S EQUIPMENT.
'CAUSE YOU, YOU'RE PARTNER WITH EVERYBODY BEING, BEING A USED TO BE A JUDGE FOR ELECTIONS.
YOU'RE, YOU'RE USING EVERYBODY ELSE'S.
EVERYBODY'S PAYING IN TO MAKE IT.
IT'D BE A LOT MORE COSTLY ON THAT PART.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS CONCERNING THIS? OKAY.
SO I, I DO WANT Y'ALL TO KNOW THAT AS WE'VE CONTINUED TO BUILD THE BUDGET, UH, WE WILL ADJUST FEES AS WE'VE DISCUSSED OVER THE YEARS THAT COUNCIL'S GIVEN A DIRECTION ON, UH, BEING COST RECOVERY MODELS FOR, UH, A MAJORITY OF OUR FEES.
WE'VE ADJUSTED SOME AND WE'LL ADJUST SOME TONIGHT AT THE COUNCIL MEETING.
BUT THIS WILL BE AN ONGOING PRACTICE THAT WE ARE DOING JUST TO KEEP THE FEES UP WITH THE COST IN THE CITY.
AS WE MOVE ON, UH, WE'RE GONNA GO ON TO HOMELESS INTERVENTION AND I WILL INVITE, UH, CHIEF STRINGER UP HERE TO KICK THIS CONVERSATION OFF.
FIRST OF ALL, WE'D LIKE TO THANK YOU FOR THE CONTINUED SUPPORT OF YOUR BAYTOWN POLICE DEPARTMENT.
COUNCIL'S IDENTIFIED HOMELESSNESS AND QUALITY OF LIFE ISSUES AS SERIOUS CONCERNS FOR THE CITY OF BAYTOWN.
WE AGREE AND WE APPRECIATE YOUR INTEREST IN HEARING HOW YOU CAN FURTHER SUPPORT OUR EFFORTS.
[00:40:03]
STARTING WITH A CURRENT STATE OF AFFAIRS.THE BAYTOWN POLICE DEPARTMENT HAS ZERO RESOURCES THAT ARE CURRENTLY ALLOCATED SPECIFICALLY FOR AND SOLELY TO ADDRESS HOMELESS INTERVENTION.
UH, THE BAYTOWN POLICE DEPARTMENT HAS ONE FULL-TIME DARE OFFICER WHO SPEARHEADS OUR HOMELESS INTERVENTION EFFORTS ONE DAY A WEEK.
AND THEN THROUGHOUT THE WEEK, IN HIS SPARE TIME, OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT SPEAKS WITH AND DEBRIEFS INDIVIDUALS THAT WE ENCOUNTER ON THESE HOMELESS INDIVIDUAL ON THESE, ON THESE HOMELESS INTERVENTION CALLS.
OUR OFFICERS HAVE LEARNED THAT NINE OUT OF 10 PEOPLE THAT WE SPEAK TO ARE NOT RESIDENTS OR CITIZENS OF BAYTOWN.
THEY'RE NOT ORIGINALLY FROM THE CITY OF BAYTOWN.
THESE INDIVIDUALS SAY THAT THEY COME TO THEIR AREA, COME TO OUR AREA BECAUSE OF A LACK OF PERCEIVED, UH, ACCOUNTABILITY THROUGH OUR COURT SYSTEM AND THE WAY THAT THEY'RE TREATED IN BAYTOWN AND ALLOWED TO OPERATE.
WE'VE SPOKEN WITH OTHER AGENCIES WHO DELIBERATELY BRING THEM TO OUR AREA OR INDIRECTLY PUSH THEM INTO OUR AREA.
AND THEY'VE CONFIRMED THIS SENTIMENT AS WELL AMONGST THE HOMELESS POPULATION THAT, UH, THAT, THAT WE DO ENCOUNTER.
I'D ALSO LIKE TO, UH, LIKE TO ADD, WE UNDERSTAND THAT HOMELESSNESS IS NOT A CRIME.
BEING WITHOUT A HOME AND WITHOUT SHELTER IS NOT A CRIMINAL ACTIVITY.
HOWEVER, SOME OF THE ACTIVITIES THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THE PEOPLE WHO WHO ARE HOMELESS ARE CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES, TRESPASSING ON PRIVATE PROPERTY, THEFT, HARASSMENT, ASSAULT, AND YES, EVEN NARCOTICS USE.
THESE ARE ALL THINGS THAT OUR POLICE OFFICERS ENCOUNTER ON A DAILY BASIS.
WE ALSO HAVE TO CONSIDER UPCOMING EVENTS THAT MIGHT IMPACT THE, UH, DISPERSION, UH, OF, OF HOMELESSNESS ACROSS THE, THE AREA.
THINGS LIKE FIFA THAT'S COMING.
AND WE'VE ALREADY BEGUN TO SEE SOME OF THE EFFECTS OF THAT.
AND THIS IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE WE'RE ACTUALLY BEGINNING TO SEE THE BROKEN WINDOWS THEORY PLAY OUT BEFORE OUR EYES.
AND I KNOW YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH WHAT BROKEN WINDOWS IS.
IN A NUTSHELL, VISIBLE DISORDER ATTRACTS ADDITIONAL DISORDER.
IT CREATES AN ENVIRONMENT THAT IS SUITABLE FOR CRIME, CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR, AND THAT BASE LEVEL CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR CAN CONTRIBUTE TO OUR VIOLENT CRIME RATE.
WHEN PROPERTY IS LEFT IN DISARRAY AND UNATTENDED, THIS DETERS INVESTMENT INTO OUR COMMUNITY, WE BEGIN TO SEE HOMELESS ENCAMPMENTS POP UP THESE PRESENT SIGNIFICANT HEALTH RELATED ISSUES.
AND IT'S DUE TO A LACK OF HYGIENE, LACK OF SANITATION, AND AGAIN, DRUG USE THAT WE SEE IN THESE HOMELESS ENCAMPMENTS.
HOMELESS ENCAMPMENTS IN THE CITY OF BAYTOWN HAVE BEEN FOUND WITH BOOBY TRAPS AS RECENTLY AS THE LAST MONTH, AND A HOMELESS ENCAMPMENT THAT WAS CLEARED OUT AT NORTH MAINE AND I 10, OUR OFFICERS HAVE ALSO ENCOUNTERED WEAPONS CACHES AND INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE ARMED HIDING FROM THEM DURING THESE INTERVENTIONS AND THESE CAMP CLEANUPS.
AND REMEMBER THAT THESE CAMP CLEANUPS INVOLVE MORE THAN ARMED POLICE OFFICERS.
IT INVOLVES OUR PARTNERS ACROSS THE CITY FROM THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT, PARKS AND RECREATION.
IF OUR CITIZENS, REGARDLESS OF WHAT OUR CRIME NUMBERS TELL US, IF THEY DON'T FEEL SAFE, THAT LEADS TO A POORER QUALITY OF LIFE.
THAT POORER QUALITY OF LIFE MEANS THAT THERE'S A LACK OF DESIRE TO LIVE HERE IN THE CITY OF BAYTOWN TO WORK, TO PLAY, AND TO SPEND MONEY HERE.
PROPERTY AND BUSINESS OWNERS ARE VICTIMIZED WHEN THEIR PROPERTY IS DAMAGED AND DESTROYED.
AGAIN, WE DON'T HAVE RESOURCES THAT ARE SOLELY COMMITTED TO THIS, BUT WE HAVE, WE HAVE HAD AN IMPACT ON IT.
AND JUST A MINUTE, I'M GONNA TURN THIS PRESENTATION OVER, EXCUSE ME, TO ASSISTANT CHIEF KROLL, WHO UNTIL RECENTLY WAS THE, WAS THE UNIT COMMANDER OVER OUR CRIME PREVENTION UNIT.
HE WORKED VERY CLOSELY WITH THE OFFICER WHO SPEARHEADS THIS FOR US AND WHO LEADS THE WAY.
HE HAS MORE DETAILED INFORMATION ON BOTH THE CURRENT STATE, THE DESIRED FUTURE STATE, OUR CURRENT RESOURCES, LACK OF RESOURCES, AND WHAT WE BELIEVE WE NEED TO MAKE AN IMPACT FOR YOU AND FOR THE CITIZENS OF BAYTOWN THAT WE ALL SERVE.
CHIEF KROLL MAYOR COUNCIL, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME TO BUILD ON WHAT CHIEF STRINGER SAID.
UM, I'D LIKE TO PRESENT SOME REAL WORLD EXAMPLES OF WHAT WE'RE SEEING ACROSS THE CITY.
AND THEN I ALSO HAVE REPRESENTATIVES HERE FROM THE DEPARTMENT AS WELL AS THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT
[00:45:01]
AND PARKS AND REC, IF THERE ARE DETAILED QUESTIONS AFTER THE, THE PRESENTATION.SO FOR EXAMPLE, UM, WE HAVE STARTED WHEN WE GO OUT ON OUR HOMELESS, UH, INTERVENTION CALLS, DOCUMENTING WHAT WE ARE FINDING THROUGH VIDEO AND PHOTOGRAPHIC EVIDENCE.
UM, THIS IS SPREAD ACROSS THE CITY.
UM, THE PICTURES HERE ON THIS SLIDE, AND I UNDERSTAND, UH, THAT MAY BE A LITTLE DIFFICULT TO SEE, BUT SHOWS DIFFERENT EXAMPLES.
UH, 1400 GARTH ROAD ALONG BAYWAY DRIVE.
AND THEN 6,002 EAST FREEWAY IS THE OLD U-HAUL RENTAL FACILITY AT NORTH MAIN INTERSTATE 10.
UM, THERE'S A PICTURE BOTH OF, UH, ONE OF THE PUNGY STICKS WE FOUND OUT IN THE, THE WOODED AREA, AS WELL AS WHAT HAPPENED WHEN AN INDIVIDUAL RETURNED BACK AFTER WE CLEARED THE ENCAMPMENT, AND HE SET IT ON FIRE, UH, WHICH WAS A STORAGE BUILDING IN THE BACK.
SO IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THIS IS A CITYWIDE ISSUE.
UM, WE STARTED TRACKING, UH, HOMELESS INTERVENTION CALLS, UH, ABOUT A YEAR AGO.
AND YOU'LL SEE THIS IS BROKEN DOWN BY CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT, UM, FROM THE TIME PERIOD OF APRIL 1ST, 2025 TO MARCH 31ST, 2026.
ALL OF THE DIFFERENT CALLS FOR SERVICE THAT, UH, DEAL WITH HOMELESS INDIVIDUALS IN THE CITY OF BAYTOWN.
UM, YOU'LL NOTICE THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT CONCENTRATION ALONG THE GARTH ROAD BUSINESS CORRIDOR FROM WEST BAKER ROAD ALL THE WAY UP TO INTERSTATE 10.
IT ALSO FOLLOWS ALONG NORTH ALEXANDER DRIVE, AND THEN KIND OF EVERYWHERE IN BETWEEN.
UM, THESE CALLS FOR SERVICE ENCOMPASS EVERYTHING FROM WHAT WE ACTUALLY CALL HOMELESS INTERVENTION TO CALLS SUCH AS SUSPICIOUS PERSONS, BURGLARIES, THEFTS, INTOXICATED PERSONS, WELFARE CONCERNS, ANYTHING OF THE, LIKE.
YOU'LL SEE HERE, AGAIN, PICTURES, UH, ONE FROM EACH COUNCIL DISTRICT.
IT SHOWS YOU DIFFERENT ENCAMPMENTS THAT WE HAVE FOUND.
UM, 6,002 BAYWAY AGAIN IS NORTH MAIN INTERSTATE 10, UH, 10,300.
EAST FREEWAY IS AT 1 46 AND I 10, UH, ALONG TWO OF THE MAIN CORRIDORS THAT COME INTO OUR CITY, ALONG THE INTERSTATE CORRIDOR THERE.
IT'S BOTH TRADITIONAL HOMELESS ENCAMPMENTS AS WELL AS TRANSIENT, UH, LIVING IN VEHICLES, SETTING UP IN PARKING LOTS.
UM, ALONG BAYWAY DRIVE, WE ENCOUNTERED A MULTI ACRE ENCAMPMENT THAT HAD MULTIPLE, UH, TENTS AND, UH, TEMPORARY BUILDINGS SET UP ALONG WITH A, UH, MAKESHIFT FIRING RANGE AND SOME OTHER WEAPONS CACHETS.
WHEN WE WENT THROUGH AND CLEARED THAT OUT.
AND THAT INVOLVED MULTIPLE PROPERTY OWNERS, INCLUDING THE CITY OF BAYTOWN, EXXON MOBIL, AND THE WATER AUTHORITY.
THESE HOMELESS INCIDENTS ARE ON THE RISE.
UH, THEY'RE PROJECTED TO TOP 1100 CALLS THIS YEAR ALONE.
AND IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THIS PROJECTED INCREASE DOES NOT ACCOUNT FOR FIFA IN THE WORLD CUP.
UH, CHIEF STRINGER ALLUDED TO IT EARLIER, BUT WE HAVE SPOKEN WITH BOTH, UH, HOMELESS INDIVIDUALS AS WELL AS AREA LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES WHO HAVE TOLD US THEY ARE BRINGING PEOPLE OUT TO THE EAST SIDE OF HARRIS COUNTY, PUSHING THEM OUT OF THE DOWNTOWN AREA AROUND WHERE ALL THE, UH, THE FESTIVITIES AND EVENTS WILL BE TAKING PLACE.
WE'VE SEEN THIS BEFORE DURING OTHER MAJOR, UH, WORLDWIDE SPORTING EVENTS.
UH, AND WE KNOW THAT THEY COMMONLY DROP OFF ALONG THE INTERSTATE.
AND BUCKY'S, FOR EXAMPLE, IS A VERY COMMON DROP OFF POINT THAT WE RUN INTO.
ALONG THOSE LINES, CHIEF STRINGER NOTED, WE DO HAVE ONE OFFICER WHO WORKS PART-TIME.
HE'S SITTING THERE TRYING TO HIDE, UH, ONE DAY A WEEK.
HE'S ONE OF OUR CRIME PREVENTION OFFICERS WHO KIND OF SPEARHEADS IT FOR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND COORDINATES NOT JUST INTERNALLY WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT, BUT WITH OTHER CITY DEPARTMENTS AS WELL.
UM, OUR MAN HOURS ARE GOING UP AND THAT DOES NOT ACCOUNT FOR FIFA AND THESE OTHER EVENTS, IT'S JUST THE NORMAL COURSE OF BUSINESS.
THIS OFFICER, AGAIN, DEDICATES HIS TIME TO IT AS WELL AS OUR PATROL OFFICERS AND OTHER INDIVIDUALS.
UH, AND AS THESE CALLS INCREASE, THE MAN HOURS WE'RE DEDICATING TO IT INCREASES, WHICH IN TURN PULLS AWAY FROM THE SERVICES THAT WE ALREADY PROVIDE.
SO, MOVING FORWARD, WHAT DOES THIS LOOK LIKE FOR BOTH THE DEPARTMENT AND THE CITY? SO, IT'S IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND THAT WHEN WE DEAL WITH HOMELESS INTERVENTION CALLS, OUR FIRST COURSE OF ACTION IS TO TRY AND PROVIDE, UH, TRY AND PROVIDE, UH, ASSISTANCE AND REFERRAL SERVICES TO THESE INDIVIDUALS.
AND SO IF THEY NEED ASSISTANCE, EITHER TRANSPORTATION TO A FACILITY THAT'S WILLING TO INTAKE THEM, IF IT IS REFERRAL TO MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES OR OTHER COUNTY SERVICES LIKE OBTAINING IDENTIFICATION OR WHATNOT, WE DO THOSE THINGS.
WE HAVE A QR CODE ON THE BACK OF A BUSINESS CARD THAT WE HAND OUT TO THESE INDIVIDUALS.
[00:50:01]
OF THE PEOPLE THAT WE DEAL WITH HAVE SOME TYPE OF MOBILE DEVICE.THEY HAVE A CELL PHONE OF SOME TYPE.
UM, AND SO THEY CAN, THROUGH OUR WEBSITE, GET REFERRALS AND LINKS TO THESE OTHER SERVICES THAT, THAT ARE OUT THERE, TYPICALLY THROUGH NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS.
UH, BUT ENTITIES LIKE HARRIS HEALTH AS WELL CAN PROVIDE CERTAIN TYPES OF, OF HEALTHCARE BASED AND MENTAL HEALTH BASED SERVICES TO THEM.
SO WE TRY THAT FIRST, BUT WE CANNOT FORCE THEM TO TAKE ASSISTANCE.
WE CANNOT REQUIRE THEM TO ACCEPT ASSISTANCE.
AND SO IF THAT FAILS, WHAT DO WE DO? THERE HAS TO BE AN ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURE IN PLACE.
AND SO WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? IT MEANS IF THEY ARE, UH, TRESPASSING ON PROPERTY, IF THEY ARE DESTROYING PROPERTY, IF THEY'RE COMMITTING CRIMINAL ACTS, WE HAVE TO ADDRESS THAT IN SOME WAY.
UH, BECAUSE NOT ONLY DO WE HAVE A DUTY TO THEM TO TRY AND PROVIDE FOR THEIR WELFARE, WE HAVE A DUTY TO THE CITIZENS OF BAYTOWN.
WE HAVE TO PROVIDE FOR THEIR PUBLIC SAFETY AS WELL.
AND WE HAVE TO FIND THAT BALANCE.
SO THIS IS GONNA REQUIRE NOT JUST A SHORT TERM SOLUTION THAT I'LL DISCUSS, BUT LONG TERM COORDINATED PLANNING, UH, INTERNALLY WITHIN THE CITY, WITHIN PARTNERS IN THE COMMUNITY, AND THEN YOU WITH COUNCIL, UH, TO GET DIRECTION ON WHAT WE NEED TO DO.
SO IN THE SHORT TERM, ON THE POLICE DEPARTMENT SIDE, WE'RE ASKING FOR AN IMMEDIATE INJECTION OF $200,000 IN OVERTIME FUNDING, AS WELL AS $105,000 FOR A CAPITAL ITEM PURCHASE FOR A VEHICLE.
NOW, THIS OVERTIME FUNDING WILL BE USED SPECIFICALLY FOR A DATA-DRIVEN APPROACH THROUGH A TARGETED OVERTIME ENFORCEMENT EFFORT, DEDICATING OFFICERS USING ANALYTICAL TRENDS THAT OUR CRIME ANALYST HAS, HAS PUT TOGETHER WHERE WE CAN PUT OUR OFFICERS TO HAVE THE GREATEST IMPACT ACROSS THE CITY.
UM, IN ADDITION TO THAT, THE VEHICLE WILL BE USED TO PROVIDE FOR SPECIALIZED EQUIPMENT IN THE NEEDS.
THEY, IN THE EVENT THEY HAVE TO GO OFF ROAD, UH, ATTEMPT TO MITIGATE SOME OF THESE ENCAMPMENTS, HAUL EQUIPMENT, THINGS ALONG THOSE LINES, WORKING WITH THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT AS WELL AS PARKS AND REC.
WE'VE ALSO IDENTIFIED SOME NEEDS BECAUSE WHEN WE, AS THE POLICE DEPARTMENT GO OUT AND WE TRY AND INTERVENE IN AN ENCAMPMENT AND WE TRY AND ABATE IT IN SOME WAY, WE HAVE TO RELY ON THE CLEAN TEAM TO HELP CLEAN THAT AREA OUT.
AND THAT IS NOT SOMETHING THEY'RE CURRENTLY BUDGETING FOR.
ENCAMPMENTS CAN COST FROM $1,500 ON UP PER LOCATION TO CLEAN.
AND RIGHT NOW THE CLEAN TEAM HAS ONE TEAM OF TWO PEOPLE THAT GO OUT AND CLEAN THESE ENCAMPMENTS ALONG WITH A, UH, A PARKS AND OR A, UH, HEALTH DEPARTMENT EMPLOYEE THAT COORDINATES A SYSTEM OF VOLUNTEERS THAT ASSIST IN THESE CLEANUPS.
AND SO THEY'RE ASKING FOR AN APPROVAL OF AN ADDITIONAL TWO PERSON CLEAN TEAM, UH, AT APPROXIMATELY $125,000 ALONG WITH THE ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT, AND THEN AN ADDITIONAL 35 TO $50,000 FOR THE UNBUDGETED ABATEMENT AND DISPOSAL COSTS FOR ALL OF THE THINGS THAT THEY HAVE CLEANED.
AND YOU'LL SEE A SLIDE IN JUST A MINUTE THAT SHOWS AN EXAMPLE OF, OF WHAT THEY'RE ENCOUNTERING.
IN ADDITION TO THAT PARKS AND REC, UM, THEY'RE ASKING FOR AN INJECTION OF $2,300 FOR SUPERVISOR OVERTIME.
WHAT THAT INCLUDES IS, UH, PARKS AND REC PERSONNEL GOING OUT WHEN PARKS CLOSE TO CONDUCT PATROLS OF PARK AREAS TO ENSURE THAT THE PARKS ARE CLOSED AND LOCKED UP, THE BUILDINGS ARE SECURED AND THERE'S NO DAMAGE.
UM, THEY'RE ALSO ASKING FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDING IN THE AMOUNT OF $94,000 THAT WOULD ACCOUNT FOR A MOBILE CAMERA TOWER, AS WELL AS, UH, SOLAR SECURITY LIGHTING FOR AREAS THAT AREN'T CURRENTLY LIGHTED.
THIS IS SIMPLY THE FIRST PART OF A LONG-TERM MULTI-PHASE APPROACH FOR HOW WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO DEAL WITH THIS.
YOU'LL SEE HERE, UH, WITH CLEAN TEAM ASSISTANCE, IT'S IMPORTANT NOTE THAT THE CLEAN TEAM, ESPECIALLY ON PRIVATE PROPERTY, OPERATES UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
WE HAVE TO HAVE THE LEGAL ABILITY TO BE ON THAT PROPERTY.
AND THAT TYPICALLY WORKS, UH, BY US OBTAINING PERMISSION FROM THE RELEVANT PROPERTY OWNERS.
OR IF IT'S CITY OWNED PROPERTY, OBVIOUSLY WE ADDRESS IT THAT WAY, BUT EVERYTHING THAT WE FIND IN THESE ENCAMPMENTS, THEY'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR CLEANING OUT AND IT'S GOTTA BE HAULED OFF AND DISPOSED OF SOMEWHERE.
AND THAT REQUIRES A COORDINATED EFFORT BETWEEN THE EMPLOYEES AND VOLUNTEERS TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN.
AND THE AMOUNT OF, OF EQUIPMENT AND, AND BELONGINGS AND PROPERTY AND JUNK THAT WE WE RUN INTO IS JUST GREATLY INCREASING AS TIME GOES ON.
SO, SOME POINTS TO CONSIDER THE PERCEPTION OF CRIME IS REALLY JUST AS IMPORTANT AS CRIME ITSELF.
I CAN STAND UP HERE ALL DAY LONG AND TALK ABOUT TRENDS AND PROJECTIONS AND WHAT WE ARE ENCOUNTERING ON THE STREET FROM A STATISTICAL PERSPECTIVE.
BUT IF CITIZENS FEEL UNSAFE, THAT IS GONNA AFFECT HOW THEY WORK THROUGHOUT THE CITY OF BAYTOWN.
WHETHER THEY'RE DECIDING TO LIVE HERE, TO PLAY HERE, TO WORK HERE,
[00:55:01]
TO SPEND THEIR MONEY HERE.AND SO WE HAVE TO DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO FIND THAT BALANCE AND PROVIDE THOSE SERVICES TO HELP PROJECT PUBLIC SAFETY TO THEM.
WE'VE SAID IT BEFORE A COUPLE OF TIMES NOW, AND IT'S IMPORTANT THAT BOTH YOU, UH, AS COUNSEL AND THE PUBLIC UNDERSTAND THAT WE ARE EMPATHETIC TO THE IN INDIVIDUALS THAT WE ENCOUNTER, BUT WE CANNOT FORCE THEM TO TAKE HELP.
AND SO IF WE RUN INTO THAT, THEN WE HAVE TO ADDRESS IT IN SOME WAY.
IT'S NOT FROM A A, A POSITION OF MALICE.
IT'S NOT FROM ILL WILL TOWARDS PEOPLE WHO ARE IN THIS SITUATION, BUT IT'S OUT OF A DUTY TO PUBLIC SAFETY AND THE PEOPLE THAT WE REPRESENT.
OUR DEPARTMENTAL MISSION INVOLVES US BECOMING THE SAFEST CITY IN HARRIS COUNTY.
BECAUSE OF THAT, WE HAVE TO ADDRESS THESE ISSUES, NOT JUST AS IT STANDS NOW, BUT AS WE ENCOUNTER THEM IN THE FUTURE.
AND WE HAVE TO JUMP ON THEM EARLY.
WE ARE KIND OF BEHIND THE EIGHT BALL IN HOW WE'VE, WE'VE DEALT WITH THIS IN THE PAST FOR A VARIETY OF REASONS.
UM, A LOT OF WHICH ARE OUT OF OUR CONTROL AS A CITY.
AND SO WE REALLY HAVE TO TAKE SOME CONCRETE STEPS MOVING FORWARD TO TRY AND CURB THIS BEFORE IT GETS ANY WORSE.
SO WITH THAT BEING SAID, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME.
I'M ABSOLUTELY WILLING TO STAND FOR QUESTIONS AS WELL AS THE OTHER REPRESENTATIVES WE HAVE HERE.
UM, FROM WHAT I'VE HEARD YOU ALL, WERE IN CONTACT WITH THE OTHER ENTITIES THAT ARE DROPPING PEOPLE OFF HERE.
IS THAT OTHER CITIES? YES, SIR.
AND ARE THEY USING THEIR POLICE OFFICERS TO DROP THESE INDIVIDUALS OFF HERE? SOME OF THEM, SOME OF IT COMES THROUGH, UH, PUBLIC TRANSIT WHERE THEY'RE PROVIDED, UM, VOUCHER BUS VOUCHERS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
SO YES, A VARIETY OF WAYS THEY GET HERE.
SO HAVE WE SP HAVE YOU ALL SPOKE WITH THOSE OTHER DEPARTMENTS AND ASKED THEM NOT TO DO THAT? WE HAVE AND THEY CONTINUE TO DO THAT.
AND, AND SO WE HAVE A NETWORK THAT WE DEAL WITH THAT INVOLVES, UH, THE, THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY, UH, INDUSTRIAL PARTNERS, YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES, AND WE SHARE THIS INFORMATION, WE DISCUSS THESE THINGS.
AND SO IF WE GET THIS INFORMATION FROM, SAY, SOME OF THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY THAT THIS IS HAPPENING, ABSOLUTELY.
WE REACH OUT AND TRY AND ADDRESS IT WHEN WE RUN INTO THE OFFICERS MM-HMM
UH, OF OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES.
WE ABSOLUTELY EXPRESS THAT THIS IS NOT THE THING TO DO, BUT WE DON'T REALLY HAVE ANY CONTROL OVER THAT.
WE CAN EXPRESS THE DISPLEASURE, WE CAN TALK TO THE CHIEFS OF THE OTHER AGENCIES AND EXPRESS THAT, BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE DON'T HAVE LEGAL RECOURSE TO TRY AND PREVENT THAT.
NOW MY OTHER QUESTION WAS HOW I SAW THAT WE WERE TRACKING THESE NUMBERS BACK TO 2022.
DO WE HAVE, UM, ANY INFORMATION GOING FARTHER BACK THAN 2022? AND THE REASON I'M ASKING THAT QUESTION, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE WHAT THOSE NUMBERS LOOK LIKE DURING THE YEARS.
THERE WAS A SUPER BOWL IN HOUSTON BECAUSE WE JUST HAD ONE HERE RECENTLY.
AND WHAT WERE, WHAT IS THE ACTUAL NUMBER FOR THE CALL FOR THE INCIDENTS IN 2026? WE HAVE THE PROJECTION HERE, BUT WHAT, WHERE ARE WE AT RIGHT NOW? WHERE ARE WE AT RIGHT NOW? UM, I DO NOT HAVE THE 2026 NUMBER.
AND YES, WE CAN GO BACK AND PULL THE HISTORICAL DATA SO I CAN, I CAN PUT THAT TOGETHER AND PROVIDE IT TO Y'ALL.
AND I'M GOING, I HAVE A LOT, BUT I'M GONNA MAKE THIS MY LAST QUESTION TO GIVE MY COLLEAGUES AN OPPORTUNITY.
THE 200,000 BUDGET, $200,000 BUDGET FOR OVERTIME BEING HOMELESS IS NOT ILLEGAL.
WHAT WILL THESE OFFICERS BE DOING WITH THIS OVERTIME IF WE'RE NOT ARRESTING PEOPLE, BRINGING THEM IN A VARIETY OF THINGS.
AND I'M VERY, VERY GLAD YOU ASKED YOU.
DO YOU WANNA SPEAK TO IT OR THANK YOU.
I'LL, WELL, I'M ASKING BECAUSE I WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW WHAT THEY'LL BE DOING.
SO THIS WILL PROBABLY BE A TWO PART ANSWER.
UH, NUMBER ONE, I'D LIKE PEOPLE TO CONSIDER THAT, UH, $200,000 ROUGHLY COVERS THE EXPENSE OF ONE AND A HALF POLICE OFFICERS AFTER WE PAY SALARY AND BENEFITS.
AND WHEN WE HIRE NEW POLICE OFFICER, IT'S THE REASON WE'RE NOT ASKING FOR ADDITIONAL STAFF.
WE'RE TRYING TO BE REALISTIC AND WE WANNA BE EFFECTIVE WITH THE MONEY AS PART OF STEWARDSHIP IS WE CAN IMMEDIATELY PUT THOSE OFFICERS ON THE STREET AND GET A RETURN ON OUR INVESTMENT.
UH, WHEN WE HIRE A POLICE OFFICER, IT GENERALLY TAKES 18 TO 24 MONTHS BEFORE THEY'RE OUT THERE ON THE ROAD ACTUALLY SERVING AND PROTECTING BY THEMSELVES AND ANSWERING CALLS FOR SERVICE.
THERE'S ORIENTATION TIME, THERE'S ACADEMY TIME, AND THEN THERE'S FIELD TRAINING TIME.
SO YOU'VE GOT QUITE A, A, A DELAY BEFORE THEY'RE OUT THERE DOING THIS, JUST LIKE WE'VE BEEN DOING WITH, UH, HOTSPOT FOCUSED, UH, ENFORCEMENT.
[01:00:01]
PUTTING OFFICERS BASED ON DATA WHERE THEY NEED TO BE ON THE DAYS THEY NEED TO BE AT THE TIMES OF THE DAYS THAT THEY NEED TO BE.AND OUR, OUR CRIME ANA ANALYSIS ANALYST AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST, UH, HAS DONE A FANTASTIC JOB OF PUTTING US THERE.
AND HE IS ALSO BEEN ABLE TO DEVELOP THAT FOR OUR HOMELESS INTERVENTION PROGRAM AS WELL.
SO THAT'S THE REASON WE'RE DOING, UH, WE'RE ASKING FOR THIS, UH, $200,000.
AND, AND YOU'RE RIGHT, WE'RE NOT ALWAYS ARRESTING PEOPLE.
IF WE CAN GET THEM HELP, WE WOULD RATHER SOLVE THE PROBLEM.
THE IDEA BEHIND PROBLEM SOLVING POLICING IS WE SOLVE THAT PROBLEM.
WE DON'T HAVE TO DEAL WITH THAT PERSON.
AGAIN, IT'S THE SAME, SAME THING WITH THE ENVIRONMENT, ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECT OF THIS.
IF WE GET THE ENVIRONMENT CLEANED UP, THEN WE MAKE THE ENVIRONMENT MORE HOSPITABLE FOR THE TYPE OF CITY THAT WE WANNA LIVE, WORK, AND PLAY IN.
HOWEVER, SOMETIMES WE HAVE TO TAKE PEOPLE TO JAIL.
AND UNFORTUNATELY ON THE, THE HOMELESS, UH, INTERVENTION CALLS THAT I'VE ASSISTED WITH THE ENCAMPMENT THAT, THAT I ASSISTED WITH, AND BY THE WAY, ONE OF THOSE ENCAMPMENTS WHERE IT SHOWED THE, UH, THE TRAILER MM-HMM
THAT WAS THE FOURTH TRAILER THAT WAS FILLED UP FROM THAT ONE PARTICULAR SITE.
BUT WE HAD SUBJECTS WITH, WITH WARRANTS OUT FOR THEIR ARREST THAT WERE IN THAT ENCAMPMENT.
SO THOSE ARE THINGS THAT WE SEE ON A REGULAR BASIS.
A LOT OF TIMES IT DOES END UP IN A, IN AN ENFORCEMENT ACTION, IT ENDS UP IN THEM EITHER GOING TO THE BAYTOWN CITY JAIL, OR THERE MAY BE A FELONY WHERE THEY'RE TRANSFERRED OVER TO HARRIS COUNTY JAIL.
UH, CHIEF, YOU WANNA FOLLOW UP ON THAT? I'M SURE YOU HAVE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FROM YOUR EXPERIENCE.
SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT OVERTIME AND, AND PROJECT AND WHAT WE WOULD DO, THERE'S A COUPLE OF THINGS.
WHEN WE LOOK AT THIS MAP, YOU'LL SEE ALL THE DIFFERENT LITTLE DOTS THAT REFERENCE THE AREAS WHERE WE HAVE ENCOUNTERED FOLKS.
OUR CRIME ANALYST HAS PUT TOGETHER PROJECTIONS THAT SHOW THE DATES AND TIMES, TIMEFRAMES THAT ARE MOST COMMON TO THESE TYPES OF ENCOUNTERS.
SO WHAT WE WOULD INTEND TO DO IS UTILIZE A, A TEAM OF OFFICERS, UM, AND I WON'T GO INTO OPERATIONAL SPECIFICS MM-HMM
BUT UTILIZE A TEAM OF OFFICERS TO ADDRESS THESE ISSUES IN A WAY THAT DOES NOT IMPACT OUR PATROL DIVISION.
SO WE'RE NOT HAVING TO PULL OFFICERS OUT OF THE ZONES WHERE THEY'RE ACTIVELY WORKING.
UM, WHETHER THAT MEANS THEY RIDE IN A, A, A TWO MAN UNIT, OR SOMETHING ALONG THOSE LINES.
UH, IT ALLOWS THEM TO GO OUT AND, UH, ENFORCE LAW AND ORDINANCE AS IT, YOU KNOW, THEY OBSERVE VIOLATIONS.
IT ALLOWS THEM TO GO OUT AND CONTACT INDIVIDUALS, TALK TO 'EM, OFFER ASSISTANCE, UH, TRY AND PROVIDE SERVICES.
IT ALLOWS THEM TO GO OUT AND LOCATE AND IDENTIFY ENCAMPMENTS USING A, A VARIETY OF TOOLS.
UM, WE HAVE ROUGHLY 42 SQUARE MILES OF CITY, I BELIEVE, OF LAND.
UM, THESE ENCAMPMENTS ARE IN A LOT OF DIFFERENT PLACES.
AND SO WE ARE GOING TO TRY AND IDENTIFY THE LOCATIONS WHERE PEOPLE ARE SETTING UP, SHOP, SPEAK WITH 'EM AGAIN, PROVIDE THEM THE, THE REFERRALS AND RESOURCES, UH, THAT WE CAN, AND THEN ABATE IT.
IF NOT, IT ALSO IS GOING TO INVOLVE A LOT OF COORDINATION WITH OTHER CITY DEPARTMENTS AND NGOS, THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY.
SO THERE'S GONNA BE, UH, TIME SPENT PATROLLING PARKING LOTS AND WALKING THROUGH BUSINESSES AND MEETING WITH PEOPLE.
UM, IN ADDITION TO JUST THE ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITY, THE MONIES WILL ALLOW US TO DO THIS MULTIPLE DAYS A WEEK RATHER THAN JUST A, EVERY NOW AND AGAIN TYPE THING.
SO THREE TO FOUR DAYS A WEEK INITIALLY, UH, DURING BLOCKS OF TIME.
SO THERE'S A VARIETY OF WAYS THAT WE'RE GONNA PUT THIS TO USE.
UH, AND WE ARE GONNA USE A DATA DRIVEN APPROACH TO DO IT THROUGH OUR ANALYST.
WE'RE GONNA GET MS. GRAHAM THEN.
WE'LL START, WE'LL START ONE TO THE SIDE.
FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU BOTH FOR COMING AND PRESENTING ALL THAT DATA.
UM, I DO WANNA MENTION THAT ALMOST FOUR YEARS AGO, I, THIS IS SOMETHING I'M VERY PASSIONATE ABOUT BECAUSE I HAVE WATCHED, UM, SAFETY ISSUES AND THE DEGRADATION OF PUBLIC PROPERTY, UM, PARTICULARLY IN DISTRICT TWO BECAUSE IT'S WHERE, WHERE I AM SPEND MOST OF MY TIME AND IN DISTRICT THREE.
SO I APPRECIATE YOU PRESENTING THE DATA.
IT'S GONNA TAKE ME A MINUTE TO GO THROUGH ALL OF THIS, BUT ONE THING THAT I WANTED TO START WITH THAT HAS NOT BEEN MENTIONED, UM, TWO YEARS AGO I SPOKE TO CHIEF ABOUT EDUCATING BUSINESS OWNERS.
AND SO THAT WASN'T MENTIONED WHEN Y'ALL TALKED ABOUT OVERTIME.
I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THAT BE PART OF THE PLAN.
UM, I HAVE HAD NUMEROUS CONVERSATIONS SPECIFICALLY WITH MCDONALD'S RIGHT HERE AT THE CORNER OF GARTH AND, UM, DECKER.
UH, THE LIST COULD GO ON AND ON, BUT THE BUSINESS OWNERS DON'T REALIZE THAT THEY'RE ALLOWED TO ASK PEOPLE TO LEAVE THEIR PROPERTY.
UM, AND WHETHER THIS IS TRUE OR FALSE, I CAN TELL YOU THAT
[01:05:01]
YOU SAID PERCEPTION CAN ALSO BE IMPORTANT TO THE SITUATION.UM, FOR WHATEVER REASON, BUSINESS OWNERS HAVE TOLD ME THAT THE PERCEPTION IS WHEN THEY DO CALL, THAT THEY DON'T FEEL LIKE THEY'RE ACTUALLY GETTING HELP WITH THE ISSUE, THAT IT'S REPETITIVE.
UM, AND, AND THERE COULD BE MANY REASONS WHY THAT'S TAKING PLACE, PLACE.
SO I WOULD LIKE THAT TO BE PART, UM, OF, IF THIS GETS APPROVED BY COUNSEL, THE, THE OVERTIME THAT YOU TARGET EDUCATING BUSINESS OWNERS, WHAT THEIR RIGHTS ARE, UM, AND THAT WE MAY BE DRIVE THAT CULTURE.
UM, ALSO, IF THIS IS APPROVED, I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT THERE'S UPDATES SPECIFICALLY FROM THE POLICE DEPARTMENT ABOUT HOW THAT THOSE FUNDS ARE USED AND HOW IT'S MADE A POSITIVE IMPACT.
I JUST WANNA BE VERY DIRECT WITH THAT.
UM, AND THEN THE OTHER THING IS EDUCATING THE PEOPLE THAT ARE OUT THERE.
IT'S IMPORTANT FOR ME TO, TO REPEAT THAT.
WE KNOW HOMELESSNESS IS NOT A CRIME, BUT I ALSO THINK THAT PEOPLE SHOULD HELP PEOPLE.
AND SO I REALLY DON'T THINK THAT IT SHOULD BE, UM, THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT, THE, THIS MUNICIPALITY HELPING WITH THE HOMELESSNESS.
BUT I DO THINK THAT WE SHOULD ENCOURAGE CHURCHES AND OTHER ENTITIES TO DO THAT.
BUT THAT BEING SAID, I AM ALSO WELL AWARE IN MY OWN DISTRICT OF PEOPLE THAT ARE HELPING AND NOT REALIZING, HELPING THE HOMELESS POPULATION, NOT REALIZING THEY'RE ACTUALLY BREAKING THE LAW WHEN THEY'RE DOING THAT, WHICH WILL BRING ME TO THIS.
WE HAVE GROUPS OF PEOPLE, AND I KNOW YOU'RE AWARE, THAT ARE DROPPING OFF TENTS.
THEY'RE, UM, DROPPING OFF BIG, UM, FOOD, FOOD ITEM BAGS.
UM, JUST RECENTLY IN BICENTENNIAL PARK, THERE WAS ACTUALLY AN ENTIRE BARBECUE CAMPSITE, UM, IN THE AREA.
AND WE'VE GOT PICTURES OF THAT AVAILABLE.
UM, I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE EDUCATING THE HELPERS, THE ONES THAT ARE OUT THERE WANTING TO HELP THOSE THAT ARE IN NEED THAT, THAT ARE CHOOSING.
UM, SOME, SOME ARE CHOOSING THE HOMELESS LIFESTYLE.
I LIKE THE FACT YOU MENTIONED THE BROKEN WINDOWS THEORY.
I THINK THAT IF WE DON'T FOCUS ON, UM, THE SMALL THINGS THAT THEY DO TURN INTO BIGGER THINGS.
AND I THINK THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENED HERE, MAYOR.
UH, I, I NOTICED A, A I DIDN'T REALLY NEED THE DATA TO KNOW THAT I SAW A VERY BIG TREND, UM, EXPONENTIAL, EXPONENTIAL TREND ON OUR SIDE OF TOWN ABOUT FIVE YEARS AGO.
UM, I PERSONALLY THOUGHT THAT IT WAS TIED TO THE METRO BUS LINE BECAUSE I'VE HAD LOTS OF CONVERSATIONS WITH PEOPLE, UM, THAT ARE HOMELESS.
ONE OF THEM IS EVEN IN MY OWN FAMILY, AND THEY HAVE TOLD ME NUMEROUS TIMES THAT PEOPLE THAT CHOOSE HOMELESS HOME CHOOSE IT.
PEOPLE THAT ARE CHOOSING HOMELESSNESS LONG TERM, UM, IN INNER CITY HOUSTON, THEY COME HERE BECAUSE IT'S LIKE A VACATION AND IT, LET ME NOT USE THAT WORD, BUT THERE'S, WE'RE MORE LENIENT, WE ALLOW MORE THINGS HERE.
THEY CAN GET AWAY WITH MORE THINGS.
THAT, THAT WAS THE PERCEPTION THAT I WAS TOLD.
UM, WE HAVE A STRUCTURE AT GOOSE CREEK PARK THAT USED TO HAVE RESTROOMS THAT WERE OPEN FOR PEOPLE THAT WERE USING THE PARK.
IT WAS AN AMENITY THAT TAX DOLLARS PAID FOR, HASN'T BEEN OPEN IN YEARS.
THE MAIN REASON THAT IT WAS CLOSED WAS IT WAS TOO HARD TO, UH, FOR STAFF TO KEEP PEOPLE OUT OF THOSE RESTROOMS THAT WERE LIVING THERE.
IN THE PAST THREE YEARS AT JENKINS PARK, EARLY IN THE MORNING, THERE WAS A CALL, A MAN THAT WAS HOMELESS, WAS IN THE RESTROOM, COMPLETELY NAKED NEXT TO THE LIVING IN THERE.
I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED, BUT, UM, A A MOTHER HAPPENED TO CHECK THE RESTROOM BEFORE ALLOWING HER CHILD TO USE IT.
THESE ARE THINGS THAT THE PUBLIC NEED TO KNOW ABOUT.
UM, I'M WORRIED ABOUT BIG EVENTS THAT ARE GONNA GO ON IN HOUSTON, AND I DON'T, AND, UM, I WILL TELL YOU THAT IT, IT'S ALSO THE CULTURE.
IT'S THE CULTURE OF, OF MANY LAW ENFORCEMENT TO TAKE THINGS THAT ARE ISSUES OR PROBLEMS AND, UH, TIED TO THE TRANSIENT POPULATION AND DROP THEM OFF IN BUFFER ZONES.
UM, I DON'T KNOW IF Y'ALL KNOW ABOUT THE HISTORY OF SKID ROW.
UM, I DON'T WANT BAYTOWN TO BE A BUFFER ZONE AND A SKID ROW FOR OTHER COMMUNITIES.
I THINK THAT WE HAVE TO HAVE VERY CLEAR ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURES FOR THE LAW ENFORCEMENT, FOR THE HEALTH TEAM.
AND I HOPE THAT THIS COUNCIL WILL SET THOSE, BUT IN A COMPASSIONATE WAY, UM, SO THAT WE DON'T END UP WITH AN EVEN BIGGER ISSUE THAT HAS HAPPENED IN OTHER PLACES LIKE SKID ROW.
I HAVE A, A COUPLE OF COMMENTS AND, AND QUESTIONS.
AND SO I, I COMPLETELY HEAR WHAT YOU'RE SAYING AND I 100% AGREE.
SO THANK YOU ALL FOR, FOR COMING AND THE PRESENTATION, THIS IS NOT SOMETHING NEW.
UM, HOMELESSNESS, UH, UNFORTUNATELY, IT, IT, IT IS A
[01:10:01]
GLOBAL EPIDEMIC.AND, BUT WHATEVER SMALL THING THAT WE CAN DO TO CHANGE THAT, IT'LL HERE IN BAYTOWN.
UM, I, I'M A HUNDRED PERCENT, UM, SUPPORTIVE.
AND SO I'M WONDERING IF TO MAXIMIZE, UM, THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING HERE, BECAUSE I NOTICED THE NUMBERS WERE VERY LOW IN DISTRICT FIVE, BUT I'M ASSUMING, YOU KNOW, DISTRICT FIVE IS SPLIT BETWEEN HARRIS AND CHAMBER AS WELL.
IF WE HAVE ANY NUMBERS THAT MAYBE WERE ON THE CHAMBERS COUNTY SIDE THAT MAY ADD TO IT.
UM, OR ARE YOU JUST GATHERING WHATEVER THE BAYTOWN POPULATION IS? YEAH.
THAT THE NUMBERS ARE REFLECTIVE OF JUST THE CITY OF BAYTOWN.
WE DON'T DIFFERENTIATE BY COUNTY, AND I DO NOT KNOW IF THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE, THE CONSTABLE'S OFFICE IN HARRIS COUNTY OR IF THE CHAMBERS COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE ARE EVEN TRACKING THIS AS A, AS AN ISSUE.
THE SOURCE FOR ALL THESE DATA SETS COME FROM OUR, OUR CAD SYSTEM.
AND SO I'M WONDERING IF THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO POSSIBLY PARTNER, UM, WITH OUR NEIGHBORS TO DO KIND OF A, A GREATER OUTREACH, UH, BECAUSE I KNOW THAT THERE ARE SOME IN HIGHLANDS, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, THERE'LL BE SOME IN, IN CHAMBERS COUNTY.
AND SO WHAT WE CAN DO TO PARTNER TO KIND OF PROTECT OUR AREA, UM, BECAUSE I AGREE WITH THE BUFFER ZONE.
UM, I WAS TALKING, UM, TO JASON DURING OUR ONE-ON-ONE ABOUT, UM, I DUNNO IF YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH THE FOUR 19 EMANCIPATION, UM, IS LET'S START SENDING THEM THERE, YOU KNOW, AND I DON'T KNOW HOW WE CAN GET THAT, BUT FOR FOUR 19 EMANCIPATION, FOR THOSE THAT ARE NOT FAMILIAR IS SUPPOSED TO, IT'S NOT A, UM, HOMELESS SHELTER WHERE THEY LIVE.
IT'S WHERE THEY GET TREATMENT AND HOPEFULLY SET, UM, UM, OUT BACK INTO THE WORLD, UM, AND POSSIBLY INTO HOUSING, ET CETERA.
UM, BUT I THINK THAT'S MAYBE SOMETHING THAT MAYBE WE WANT, WE MAY NEED TO LOOK AT.
I KNOW IT'S EITHER THE CONSTABLES OR THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE WHO HAS THE HOT TEAM, THE HOMELESS OUTREACH TEAM, SHERIFF DEPART.
AND SO I KNOW THAT WE'VE WORKED WITH THEM.
AND SO I WANNA JUST CONTINUE TO CAPITALIZE ON THAT.
AND IF MY NUMBERS ARE CORRECT, OH, WAIT A MINUTE BEFORE I GET TO THE NUMBERS PART, UM, WHEN YOU CLEAN UP THE ENCAMPMENTS THAT, THAT YOU ARE AWARE OF AND, YOU KNOW, YOU GET 'EM ALL CLEANED UP, DO WE HAVE ANY TRENDS OR, OR, UM, UH, NUMBERS ON HOW MANY COME BACK AFTER YOU'VE DONE ALL OF THE CLEANUP? OR DO MO MOST OF THEM KIND OF STAY AWAY? SO WE HAVEN'T TRACKED SPECIFIC NUMBERS RELATED TO LIKE A REOCCUPATION.
UM, THE ONE EXAMPLE I CAN DISCUSS AGAIN IS THAT U-HAUL AREA, NORTH MAIN AND I 10, WHERE, UM, AFTER THE PERSON WAS RELEASED FROM CUSTODY, THERE WAS MYSTERIOUSLY A FIRE THAT STARTED IN THE, THE, UH, OUTBUILDING IN THE BACK.
AND SO WE KNOW THAT FOLKS DO GO BACK, UH, BUT WE JUST DON'T TRACK SPECIFIC TRENDS.
AND I'M NOT SURE IF, UH, CLEAN TEAM OR HEALTH DEPARTMENT MM-HMM
GOES AND, AND DOES FOLLOW UP AS WELL ON AREAS.
AND THEN WE CAN START TRACKING THAT KIND OF STUFF.
AND WE'VE ACTUALLY DISCUSSED THAT, THAT WE'RE GONNA BEGIN MAPPING THESE AREAS MM-HMM
YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE IS WE HAVE, UH, UH, PRETTY, PRETTY ROBUST DRONE CAPACITY MM-HMM
SO WE CAN DO AERIAL FLYOVERS TO SEE WHETHER OR NOT THEY, THEY'VE, THEY'VE BEEN REOCCUPIED.
UM, AND IF THEY'RE NOT COMING BACK THEN GREAT JOB.
UM, AND THEN IF MY NUMBERS ARE CORRECT, UM, WITH ALL OF THE, THE AMOUNTS GIVEN TO US, THAT WOULD TOTAL ABOUT, UM, 976,300 TOTAL BUDGET.
FIVE 80 IS THE NUMBER THAT FIVE 80 ROUNDING UP.
AND SO THAT WOULD BE THE TOTAL AMOUNT THAT WE'RE NEEDING.
AND NOW WHEN YOU SAY IMMEDIATELY, THAT'S EVEN BEFORE WE GET TO 27 BUDGET.
SO THAT'S SOMETHING YOU NEED LIKE RIGHT NOW AND WE, WE COULD ABSOLUTELY USE IT RIGHT NOW TO START THE OVERTIME OKAY.
CHIEF, WE, WE HAD THIS DISCUSSION AT, AT, AT MY DISTRICT MEETING, AND WE'VE HAD SOME OTHER DISCUSSIONS.
UM, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT BASICALLY IS ASKING FOR 305,000 IMMEDIATE.
UM, WE JUST TALKED ABOUT WE HAVE A $5 MILLION SURPLUS AND FUND BALANCE.
SO I, YOU KNOW, I'M, I, I THINK SHORT TERM TO GET US TO THE END OF THE FISCAL YEAR THAT THAT'S DOABLE.
THEY NEED ANOTHER A HUNDRED AND, WHAT IS IT, 175,000 TO THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT FOR CLEANUP PURPOSES AND SO FORTH AND SO
[01:15:01]
ON.I, I THINK THAT'S AGAIN, SHORT TERM TO GET US TO THE END OF THE FISCAL YEAR TO SEE IF, IF IT'S MAKING AN IMPACT OR NOT, POTENTIALLY BUILD INTO THE BUDGET.
I'M, I'M LEERY ABOUT USING FUND BALANCE FUNDS FOR ONGOING, AGAIN, YOU, YOU GET CAUGHT UP IN A HURRY, BUT SHORT TERM TO SEE IF WE CAN HAVE AN IMPACT, I THINK THAT'S, WELL, MONEY WELL SPENT.
THAT'S WHY I WANTED TO SEE DAVID.
THE, THE PARKS DEPARTMENT HAVEN'T HEARD ABOUT SPECIFIC PARKS.
IT, YOU KNOW, THERE'S BEEN A COUPLE INSTANCES AT GENERAL PARKS, BUT THAT'S PART OF THEIR OVERALL PLAN IS TO GET A APPROPRIATE SECURITY AND TOWERS AND STUFF AT THE PARKS.
SO I'M ONE OF THOSE, THAT'S MORE OF A LONG TERM.
SO LET'S LOOK AT THAT FROM A BUDGET STANDPOINT, UM, FOR A LONG TERM ISSUE.
UH, BUT SHORT TERM TO GET PD OFF THE GROUND AND GET THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT CLEANING IT UP, I, I THINK THAT'S, THAT'S, THAT'S ABOUT 480,000.
UM, I THINK THAT'S, THAT'S WELL AND GOOD.
I AGREE WITH MY COLLEAGUES THAT PHYSICISTS NEED TO BE EDUCATED AS FAR AS WHAT THEY CAN AND CAN'T DO.
I'M ONE OF THOSE, I I SEE GROCERY CARTS OR, OR THE METAL CARTS ALL OVER TOWN.
THEY'RE BECOME TRANSPORTATION WAGONS.
THOSE THINGS ARE 250 TO $400 A PIECE.
AND, AND IF WE CAN GET THE BUSINESSES TO START SAYING, WE'LL, STAND BY THE THEFT OF THAT PRODUCT OR THAT PROPERTY THAT GIVES PROBABLE CAUSE TO STOP AND VISIT AND START GETTING THAT BACK.
WE JUST NEED TO BE MORE PROGRESSIVE THAT KROGER'S OR HEB OR, OR THE DOLLAR GENERAL'S BASKETS AREN'T FREE AND, AND YOU CAN'T JUST TAKE 'EM OFF PROPERTY.
UM, THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT'S JUST, THAT'S WHAT WE SEE.
AND, AND WE HAVE SEEN AN INCREASE.
I HAVE NO DOUBT YOU GET MORE CALLS UP AND DOWN GARTH ROAD THAN YOU DO OVER IN OUR AREA ALEXANDER, UH, BECAUSE OF THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY ITSELF.
BUT, UH, I THINK WE NEED TO HAVE MORE EDUCATION ALONG THE ALEXANDER ROUTE AS WELL.
UM, I'VE SEEN AN INCREASE IN FOLKS, CHIEF AND I HAVE HAD THAT DISCUSSION.
I AGREE WHOLEHEARTEDLY WITH THE CHIEF'S PERSPECTIVE OF SOMETIMES IT'S JUST ENCOURAGE THEM THAT THERE ARE SAFER PLACES TO BE, UH, BECAUSE THEY'RE IN DANGER AS WELL AT TIMES.
SO I, I APPRECIATE THE APPROACH.
UM, BUT AS FAR AS A SHORT TERM INFUSION INTO BOTH, UH, PD AND, AND HEALTH TO, TO JUMP ON THIS AND GET IT MOVING, I, I THINK THE FUND BALANCE IS A READY, RELIABLE SOURCE FOR THAT.
AND THEN LOOK AT LONG-TERM ISSUES LIKE MORE SECURITY AT THE PARKS, UM, CELL CAMERA, CELL TOWERS OR WHATEVER I'D, I'D WANNA SEE WHAT PARKS THEY'RE, THEY'RE TRYING TO ADDRESS.
I MEAN, JENKINS HAS GOT ISSUES, ROSALYN'S GOT ISSUES, UNIT DAD'S GOT ISSUES.
I MEAN, SO THE A HUNDRED THOUSAND BUCKS ISN'T GONNA ADDRESS THAT TO ALL THE PARKS.
SO I, I THINK THAT'S A LONG TERM ISSUE WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT IN BUDGET.
SO WHEN CLIFF BRINGS IT FORWARD, PART OF THE PARKS PLAN HAS BEEN TO DO THAT OVER YEARS, AND IT'S ALWAYS BEEN ONE OF THOSE, UH, NOT THIS YEAR.
WELL, I THINK THIS YEAR IN THE BUDGET DISCUSSIONS HAVE CLIFF BRINGS THAT FORWARD, THEN WE NEED TO ADDRESS IT FROM A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE THAT IT'S ADDRESSING OTHER ISSUES AS WELL.
SO WE CAN SUPPORT THAT FROM A LONG TERM STANDPOINT.
SO THAT'S, THAT'S KIND OF MY OPINION WHERE I AM.
I, I THINK, I THINK THE FUND BALANCE IS A GOOD INFUSION POINT FOR SHORT TERM ACTIVITIES, AND THEN THE BUDGET PROCESS AS A WHOLE FOR CONTINUING OR LONG TERM, UM, WOULD BE A GOOD IMPACT.
UM, I'LL GO TO SOME CLARITY ON THAT.
UM, THE 105,000 FOR THE INTERVENTION VEHICLE, UH, DEFINITELY USE FUND BALANCE FOR THAT.
THE OVERTIME FOR THE REMAINDER PORTION OF 26 ABSOLUTELY CAN USE FUND FUND BALANCE FOR THAT.
NOT WORRIED ABOUT THOSE TWO THINGS.
THE ASK THOUGH IS A CONTINUATION FOR AN ADDITIONAL 200,000 FOR FY 27, IF I'M SAYING THIS CORRECTLY.
200,000 EXTRA DOLLARS FOR OVERTIME AND FOR NEXT YEAR.
SO THAT'S AN ONGOING MAINTENANCE OPERATION EXPENSE OF $200,000 THAT WOULD GO TO MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION.
AND THEN FOR PARK OR FOR HEALTH, THAT'S, I'M JUST GONNA SAY, I'M GONNA SAY ONE 50.
UH, THE ONE 50 INCLUDES TWO NEW PERSONNEL AND ADDITIONAL MONEY FOR PIECES.
SO THE ASK FOR THOSE TWO ITEMS FOR HOMELESS TO CONTINUE FOR THE FY 27 BUDGET WOULD BE AN ONGOING MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION PIECE.
WE CAN COVER A PORTION OF THAT THIS YEAR, LIKE THE HEALTH, UH, DISPOSAL COSTS THAT CAN BE COVERED WITH FUND BALANCE THIS YEAR.
UM, EVERYTHING YOU SAID, LIKE FOR THIS FOR 26, I CAN USE FUND BALANCE TO COVER THOSE PIECES.
IF WE'RE GONNA ADD NEW EMPLOYEES WE AND ADDRESS AN ONGOING HOMELESS INTERVENTION PROCESS, WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT A BARE MINIMUM, THE ASK AT THIS POINT IS 350 TO 400,000.
THAT'S 200,000 IN OVERTIME FOR THE PD TO RUN
[01:20:01]
A HOMELESS, UH, PROGRAM OR PROJECT.AND THEN TWO NEW EMPLOYEES WITH THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT AND THE EXTRA COST, WHICH IS, UH, 150,000 FOR BOTH OF THOSE ITEMS. SO IT WOULD ADD 350,000 TO THE FY 27 BUDGET.
ALSO, I HAVE WRITTEN HERE 20 2300 IN OVERTIME FOR PARKS THAT MR. LESSER WAS SAYING, IF WE WANT TO DO THAT, DO WE WANT TO ADDRESS THAT AS A SEPARATE BUDGET ITEM FOR WITH PARKS DEPARTMENT? YEAH, I UNDERSTAND THAT.
BUT THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT THEY SAID THAT THEY NEEDED NOW TO ADDRESS.
AND I SEE HIM SHAKING HIS HEAD YES.
WE NEED TO GO AHEAD AND INCLUDE THAT.
I THAT'S, THAT CAN, I CAN HANDLE $2,000 IN THE 26 BUDGET.
AND WHAT ABOUT THE 94,000 FOR THE CAMERA? THAT'S A, THAT'S A DECISION THAT Y'ALL WILL NEED TO GIVE DIRECTION ON IF WE WANNA SPEND THE FIVE, THE, THE RESERVE BALANCE ON THE CAMERAS.
UM, I GUESS WOULD THIS BE CLIFF OR IT CLIFF IS HERE FOR Y'ALL BEFORE ANY MONEY IS, IS MADE ON ANY DECISIONS ARE MADE ON MONEY.
I JUST WANTED TO BE CLEAR ON WHERE I STAND ON THIS.
I, I WANNA, BECAUSE THIS IS A LOT OF MONEY AND I DO THINK THAT IT'S, I THINK THESE TYPES OF INTERVENTIONS ARE NEEDED.
BUT I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT STAFF KNOWS.
I WOULD, I PERSONALLY WOULD EXPECT A REPORT BACK ON HOW THESE FUNDS YES.
DIRECTLY IMPACTED HOMELESSNESS.
I WANNA MAKE SURE THAT THIS ISN'T LIKE AN UMBRELLA JUST TRYING TO GET MORE MONEY INTO THE DEPARTMENT AND, AND NO DISRESPECT, BUT I BELIEVE HOMELESSNESS IS AN ISSUE AND I WANT TO FUND THE NEEDS THAT YOU'RE SAYING ARE THERE.
BUT I, I WANT ACCOUNTABILITY THAT THESE FUNDS ARE DIRECTLY IMPACTING THIS ISSUE.
I WAS GONNA ASK THE SAME THING.
MAYBE A REPORT BACK IN THREE TO SIX MONTHS SO THAT WE CAN SEE IF SOMETHING IS WELL, AND HE'S SAYING, I DON'T KNOW, THAT'S ENOUGH.
IF WE AGREE THAT THIS IS GOING, I DON'T KNOW, ABOUT THREE TO SIX MONTHS EITHER, BUT WHERE, WHERE RIGHT NOW YOU'RE DISCUSSING, UM, WHETHER THIS IS GONNA BE A YEARLY BUDGET AND WHETHER WE'RE NEEDING NOW NO MATTER WHAT, THIS IS A LOT OF MONEY MM-HMM
AND SO IT NEEDS TO BE USED FOR WHAT HAS BEEN PRESENTED TODAY.
AND THAT'S WHY I SAID SHORT TERM YES.
TO GET TO THE END OF THE FISCAL YEAR, AND THEN IF THEY WANT MONIES FOR NEXT YEAR, WE NEED TO, OR CONTINUING LONG TERM, THAT'S GOTTA BE A BUDGETARY PROCESS THAT IF WE DON'T SEE RESULTS BY TIME, AUGUST OR SO WHEN WE'RE APPROVING THE BUDGET, YOU'RE NOT GONNA GET THAT 200,000 AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
IF WE SEE GREAT RESULTS, WE'RE GONNA APPROVE THAT.
BUT I, I THINK JUST FOR THE SHORT TERM SURGE, AND, AND I DIDN'T CATCH, I WAS THINKING IT WAS SHORT TERM SURGE FOR OVERTIME FOR THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT STAFF, SIR, IT'S TWO EXTRA PEOPLE.
I, I DON'T, I'M NOT SURE IF I'M WOULD WANT TO HAVE A SHORT TERM ADD TWO EXTRA PEOPLE TO THE BUDGET, BUT IF, IF THEY CAN HAVE SOME OVERTIME FOR THAT MM-HMM
SAME AS PD, LET'S, LET'S SEE IF A SURGE IS GONNA HELP.
IF IT DOES, THEN WE CAN TALK ABOUT LONG-TERM BUDGETARY AS WE MOVE FORWARD.
IF WE GET TO AUGUST WHEN WE'RE GETTING READY TO APPROVE THIS BUDGET AND, AND THE NUMBERS ARE STILL HIGH AND WE'RE, AND WE'RE NOT SEEING ANY POSITIVES, THEN IT'S LIKE, YEAH, I'M, I'M NOT GONNA BE SUPPORTIVE OF THAT.
WE NEED TO FIND SOMETHING ELSE.
LET'S FIND SOMETHING ELSE TO DO.
BUT FOR SHORT TERM SURGE, I'M GET YOU OVERTIME FOR THEM, THE VEHICLE FOR THEM.
AND THEN OVERTIME FOR HEALTH AND, AND, AND PAY FOR GETTING RID OF THE MATERIALS.
YES, I AGREE WITH YOU A HUNDRED PERCENT.
THIS, THE MOBILE CAMERA AND LIGHTING.
WHAT WOULD THAT BE? IS THAT NEEDED NOW OR IS THAT LATER? WHAT WOULD IT BE USED FOR? UM, THE, UH, SO, SO PARKS AND REC IS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT FROM LIKE, ENCAMPMENTS ALL OVER TOWN AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
AND WHAT WE DO IS WE SEND OUR EMPLOYEES THROUGH AFTER HOURS, LIKE YOU, LIKE CHIEF WAS SAYING, UH, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE HAVE ISSUES.
AND SO, UH, WE HAVE CARETAKERS IN THE PARKS EVERY DAY, AND WHEN THEY SEE, UH, ITEMS LIKE SHOPPING CARTS OR BAGS OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, WE STRATEGICALLY GO BY, UH, AFTER HOURS AND WE RUN OFF ANYBODY IN THE PARK.
NOT JUST HOMELESS PEOPLE, BUT ANYBODY THAT'S AT THE PARK AFTER HOURS, WE ASK 'EM TO LEAVE.
UM, THE, UH, THE CAMERAS SPECIFICALLY ARE A, UH, IT'S A FOUR CAMERA UNIT ON A TOWER.
WE USE THEM, UH, YOU MIGHT HAVE SEEN IT AT TOWN SQUARE FOR A LONG TIME.
TOWN SQUARE HAD A LOT OF ISSUES, UH, FOR A LONG TIME WITH, UH, KIDS TAKING ROCKS OUT OF THE LANDSCAPING BEDS, THROWING 'EM INTO, UM, AREA BUSINESSES, THINGS LIKE THAT.
UH, WE WORKED WITH IT FOR YEARS IN ORDER TO FIND A, A APPROVED VENDOR, UH, THAT THEY SUPPORTED.
UH, AND SO WE IMPLEMENTED A CAMERA SYSTEM OUT THERE.
UH, THE CAMERA SYSTEM ITSELF IS, IS MONITORED.
UH, WE PAY A ADDITIONAL MONITORING FEE TO HAVE A THIRD PARTY COMPANY MONITOR IT.
WE SET THE HOURS WHERE PEOPLE CAN'T, YOU KNOW, IT CAN'T BE DETECTED.
IT'LL SEND A WARNING TO TELL 'EM TO LEAVE THE AREA, LEAVE THE PARK.
IF THEY DON'T LEAVE, IT CALLS DISPATCH DIRECTLY AND IT DISPATCHES, UM,
[01:25:01]
PEOPLE OUT THERE.UH, SO YOUR DATA POINTS COULD BE THAT, UH, WE GET A REPORT EVERY MONTH OF HOW MANY TIMES IT WAS ACTIVATED, HOW MANY TIMES IT WAS CALLED OUT FOR THE POLICE AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
UM, BUT THAT, UM, TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, WE WOULDN'T PUT IT IN ONE PARK IN PARTICULAR.
THE POINT IS THAT IT'S MOBILE.
AND SO WHEN WE DO HAVE ENCAMPMENTS OR WE DO HAVE ISSUES, WE CAN MOVE IT STRATEGICALLY TO ADDRESS THOSE.
UM, THE ONES AT TOWN SQUARE WORKED SO EFFECTIVELY THAT WE WERE ABLE TO APPROVE, UH, CAMERA SYSTEM AT TOWN SQUARE THAT'S THERE PERMANENTLY NOW, WHICH HAS REALLY HELPED, UH, TOWN SQUARE ALTOGETHER.
UH, SO THIS WOULD JUST BE TO ADD AN INVENTORY.
SO WE'D HAVE TWO OF 'EM INSTEAD OF JUST ONE.
UH, THE, UH, THE POLE, THE POLE LIGHTS, UH, THAT IS MORE, THAT IS ONLY FOR, UM, SOLAR LIGHTS.
UH, A LOT OF TIMES WE HAVE ISSUES WITH SOME OF OUR PARKS THAT DON'T HAVE INFRASTRUCTURE FOR POWER.
AND RATHER THAN PULLING POWER AND, AND DEVOTING A TON AMOUNT OF MONEY TO IT, WE ARE EASILY, UH, ABLE TO PUT A, UH, POLE, UH, WITH A FOOTER AND A SOLAR LIGHT IN.
AND WE DO THAT INTERNALLY WITH, UH, WITH THE INTERNAL STAFF.
THAT SAVES A QUITE A BIT OF MONEY.
UH, MS. ALVARADO, YOU MIGHT REMEMBER THAT, UH, A QUEST YOU HAD AT NC FOOT PARK BEHIND, UM, UH, SSO COVE.
WE WERE ABLE TO, TO PUT OUT LIGHTS, AND WE WERE ABLE TO DO THAT QUICKLY BECAUSE WE HAD THOSE INVENTORY.
WE NO LONGER HAVE THOSE IN INVENTORY.
SO IF WE HAVE ANOTHER HOMELESS ENCAMPMENT OR A HOMELESS ISSUE AT ANOTHER PARK, WE DON'T HAVE, I MEAN, WE COULD PURCHASE THINGS AND, AND WAIT FOR 'EM TO COME.
THE POINT OF THIS WAS TO HAVE THE THINGS READY ON THE GROUND, SO WHEN WE HAVE AN ISSUE, WE COULD WE'LL BE ABLE TO ADDRESS 'EM.
WELL, LET'S QUESTION ABOUT THAT.
UM, I REALLY APPRECIATE EVERYTHING YOU KIND OF BROUGHT HERE BEFORE, AND IT, IT, IT HAS BECOME AN ISSUE.
AND I KNOW CHIEF AND AND JASON ARE PROBABLY TIRED OF ME CALLING HIM ALMOST EVERY OTHER DAY ABOUT A HOMELESS PERSON OR SOMEONE YELLING AT ONE OF SOMEBODY IN THE BUSINESSES, BECAUSE I'M GONNA BE HONEST, DISTRICT FOUR GETS 24% OF THE CALLS.
DISTRICT THREE GETS 27% OF THE CALLS, WHERE OVER 51% OF THE, IT COMES OUTTA TWO DISTRICTS.
AND ONE OF THE MAJOR ISSUES YOU HAVE IS, IS THAT PEOPLE COME TO THE HOSPITAL, THEY GET DISMISSED OF THE HOSPITAL AND THEY STAY IN THE AREA OF THE HOSPITAL.
AND THOSE ARE PEOPLE THAT ARE COMING FROM EAST HARRIS COUNTY BECAUSE THERE IS NO EAST HARRIS COUNTY HOSPITALS.
AND YOUR CHAMBERS COUNTY ISSUE.
YEAH, WE'D WORK, WE DO WORK WITH CHAMBERS COUNTY.
THEY SEND THEM HERE, MOUNT BELLEVUE, CHAMBERS COUNTY, SEND 'EM TO BAYTOWN.
THEY DO NOT WANT 'EM OVER THERE.
THEY'RE NOT GONNA, THEY, THEY WORK WITH US EVERY DAY AND SEND 'EM RIGHT BACK.
THEY'RE JUST A HUNDRED PERCENT HONEST ON WHAT'S HAPPENING OVER THERE.
UM, AND FOR ME, YOU KNOW, THIS, THERE'S, AS A FATHER OF TWO DAUGHTERS, AND I KNOW A LOT OF THESE YOUNG GIRLS, UH, THAT BEING MY DAUGHTERS BEING THEIR AGE GROUP, AND A LOT OF THESE TEENAGERS THAT ARE NOW SENIORS AND THAT ARE WORKING AT A LOT OF THESE FAST FOOD RESTAURANTS IN THIS AREA, AND I GET CALLS FROM THEIR PARENTS THAT THEY'RE SCARED, HEY, WHAT CAN YOU DO? MY DAUGHTER WENT AND TOOK OUT THE GARBAGE LAST NIGHT AND THERE'S HOMELESS GUYS BEHIND THEM.
THEY'RE TERRIBLE BEHIND MCDONALD'S, BEHIND THE CHICK, BEHIND THE CHICKEN SALAD CHICK.
THEY'RE, THEY'RE HANGING OUT THERE AND THERE'S YOUNG GIRLS THAT ARE GOING OUT AND TAKING OUT TO DOING STUFF.
IT IS NOT A, IT, I, I DON'T WANT TO GET THAT CALL.
SO THIS IS PRICELESS FOR ME TO, TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE GIRLS ARE PROTECTED AND THAT OUR CITIZENS ARE PROTECTED.
WORKING AROUND AND TALKING TO MUCH, A LOT OF THE BUSINESSES, AGAIN, I TALKED TO 'EM JUST LIKE YOU DID.
THEY DIDN'T KNOW THAT THEY, THAT THEY WERE THE ONES THAT HAD TO, TO CALL THE POLICE OR THAT THEY WERE THE ONES THAT THEY COULD RUN OUT THE HOMELESS.
IT'S, IT'S GETTING THEM ASSISTANCE.
AND I, AND I APPRECIATE THE COMPASSION YOU HAVE FOR THESE, FOR THEM.
UH, THEY'RE IN SITUATIONS THAT SOME OF THEM WE KNOW THAT ARE, THAT ARE, WE SEE A LOT OF FORMER MILITARY THAT ARE DEALING WITH A LOT OF POST, A LOT OF PTS.
WE ALSO SEE A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT THIS IS JUST THE LIFESTYLE THEY'RE GONNA LIVE.
UM, AND WITH, WITH THESE EVENTS COMING TO THE, TO, TO HARRIS COUNTY, WE'RE GONNA SEE AN INCREASE.
AND I KIND OF DID A QUICK MATH.
IT, YOU'RE PROBABLY SITTING AT ABOUT 350, 350 CALLS.
YOU'RE GETTING ABOUT THREE AND A HALF CALLS A DAY ON HOMELESS.
YOU PROBABLY, YOU'RE AT 111 DAYS.
FIGURED YOU'D PUT THIS TOGETHER ABOUT SIX DAYS AGO.
SO YOU'RE PROBABLY SETTING ABOUT 350 CALLS FOR THE YEAR SO FAR JUST ON HOMELESS.
AND IT'S GONNA CONTINUE TO INCREASE.
UM, IT, IT'S GETTING, IT'S, IT'S HURTING OUR BUSINESSES.
IT'S HURTING PEOPLE WANTING TO COME TO DO BUSINESS HERE.
AND, AND AGAIN, YOU CAN'T PUT A PRICE ON ON, ON WHAT'S HAPPENING IN, IN THE AREA.
WE WANNA WORK WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTS.
I I WOULD BE MORE INTERESTED IN THIS BUYING A BUS TO JUST TURN 'EM AROUND AND GO RIGHT BACK INTO HOUSTON WITH THEM.
BUT I, I UNDERSTAND THE POLICIES THAT THEY'RE DOING WITH IT.
UH, THIS IS, THIS IS AN ISSUE THAT NEEDS TO BE, WE NEED TO GET A QUICK SOLUTION TO IT.
UM, SO CLIFF
[01:30:01]
POSSIBLY, UM, THAT COULD BE AN OPTION TO MOVE THE LIGHTS THAT YOU PLACE THERE SOMEWHERE ELSE.THERE IS PERMANENT INFRASTRUCTURE THOUGH, WITH THE FOOTING.
UH, SO I MEAN, IT WOULD BE A DUMP
BUT, UM, THEY'RE, THEY'RE ACTUALLY DOING IT EXTREMELY WELL WHERE THEY ARE.
AND IT ALSO HELPS POLICE TOO, WITH THE SIGHT LINES AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
AS A NORMAL PATROL, THEY'LL BE ABLE TO SEE INTO AREAS WHERE THEY COULDN'T SEE NOW.
YEAH, NO, I HAD A LOT, A LOT OF POSITIVE FEEDBACK MM-HMM
ABOUT THE, THE LIGHTS THAT WERE ADDED.
SO THAT'S, THAT WAS JUST A QUESTION THAT I HAD FOR YOU.
AND THEN IF WE'RE LOOKING AT WHATEVER AMOUNT WE AGREE ON, I KNOW WE'RE NOT MAKING A DECISION RIGHT NOW BECAUSE THIS IS A WORK SESSION, UM, AND WHATEVER AMOUNT WE AGREE ON, AND IF WE'RE LOOKING AT THE SHORT TERM INFUSION TO GET US THROUGH THE END OF THE, THE FISCAL YEAR THAT'S RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER.
AND SO IS THREE TO FOUR MONTHS REALLY VIABLE FOR US TO TEST WHETHER THIS PILOT IS GONNA WORK?
THAT'S ACTUALLY THE QUESTION THAT I'VE WANTED TO TALK TO Y'ALL ABOUT.
AND IF YOU, I'LL WAIT FOR ALL THE QUESTIONS, BUT I WILL ADDRESS THAT.
THAT, THAT STATEMENT, THAT WAS A QUESTION THAT I HAD BECAUSE I WANT Y'ALL TO BE SUCCESSFUL.
WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT THIS IS SUCCESSFUL AND FOR IT TO BE MEASURED WITHIN THE NEXT THREE TO FOUR MONTHS.
I, I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S GONNA BE FEASIBLE, JUST ME, BUT, OKAY.
WELL, FIRST I WANNA SAY IT FEELS LIKE ALL Y'ALL HAVE BEEN WALKING AROUND IN MY HEAD TODAY AND WRITING OFF, CHEATING OFF MY PAPERS, SO,
BUT I WANT TO SAY THANK YOU CHIEF, AND THANK THANK YOU MR. CROW, AND CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR NEW PROMOTION.
UM, WELL PUT TOGETHER, UH, UH, PRESENTATION.
UH, I WAS REALLY ALARMED TO SEE DISTRICT THREE'S NUMBERS BEING THE HIGHEST IN THE CITY.
SO I AM CERTAINLY FOR, UM, IMPLEMENTING THIS PROGRAM, UH, TO MS. ALVARADO'S POINT IS, UH, I, SHE KIND OF ANSWERED THE QUESTION WITH PROGRESS REPORTS COMING UP IN AUGUST TO WHERE, YOU KNOW, Y'ALL ARE KIND OF WORKING AGAINST FIFA WORLD CUP.
AND WOULD THOSE NUMBERS SPEAK KIND OF SKEWED BY THE TIME WE GET TO AUGUST TO, WOULD THAT, WOULD THAT BE ACCURATE? SO, UH, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE PROBABLY AN EXTENDED PERIOD, YOU KNOW, I'LL CALL IT A PILOT PERIOD, FOR LACK OF A BETTER WORD, WHERE THOSE NUMBERS AND THAT PROGRESS REPORT COULD BE PRESENTED A LITTLE FURTHER OUT.
BUT I'M SURE JASON'S GONNA COVER THAT.
WHAT I, YOU KNOW, COVERED WHAT I SAID.
WE'VE SAT IN VERY A LOT OF, UM, LISTENING SESSIONS WHERE PEOPLE OVER THE LAST TWO, THREE YEARS HAVE, UM, EXPRESSED THE CONCERNS WITH THE HOMELESS IN OUR, IN OUR CITY.
AND I'M REALLY, REALLY PLEASED THAT YOU GUYS HEARD THAT AND, AND PRESENTED, UH, UH, UH, AN OPTION, A SOLUTION TO THIS GROWING PROBLEM, UH, THAT DOESN'T SEEM TO, UH, HAVE THE EASIEST SOLUTIONS.
UM, IT'S ONE OF THE REASONS WE CREATED THE HOMELESS INTERVENTION CALL TYPE IN OUR CAD SYSTEM SO THAT WE COULD BEGIN GIVING YOU METRICS.
UH, YOU SEE THAT MONTHLY ON YOUR INVISIO DASHBOARD.
UH, THAT'D BE ONE OF THE METRICS THAT WE GIVE, UH, WITH OUR, WITH OUR HOTSPOT ENFORCEMENT AND OUR TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENTS.
THAT'S, THAT'S FOCUSED IN PARTICULAR AREAS BASED ON DATA, UH, OFFICERS REPORT METRICS AND CONTACTS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
SO THAT'S WHAT I WAS JUST TALKING TO ASSISTANT CHIEF DORIS ABOUT, AS WELL AS ASSISTANT CHIEF KROLL, UH, BEING ABLE TO GIVE ADDITIONAL NUMBERS AND ADDITIONAL DATA THAT SHOULDN'T BE A PROBLEM ON THIS.
UM, BUT, BUT WHILE WE'RE HERE, I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO, UH, TAKE THE OPPORTUNITY TO, TO THANK OFFICER TOMMY KING FOR WHAT HE'S DONE.
HE HAS ACTUALLY BEGUN THE EDUCATIONAL PHASE THAT, THAT YOU ALL REQUESTED.
AND, AND PART OF THAT EDUCATION IS MAKING CONTACT WITH BUSINESS OWNERS, PROPERTY MANAGERS, AND LETTING THEM KNOW THAT IT IS, IT IS WITHIN THEIR RIGHT TO FILL OUT TRESPASSING AFFIDAVITS.
NOW, ONCE WE GET THOSE FILLED OUT, OUR OFFICERS CAN GO, AND AS LONG AS IT'S ON FILE, AND CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, GUYS, AS LONG AS IT'S ON FILE AND IT'S STILL CURRENT, WE CAN TAKE ACTION ON BEHALF OF THAT PROPERTY OWNER.
AND, AND AGAIN, FOR SOMEONE WHOSE PRIMARY JOB IS IN ANOTHER AREA, HE REALLY GOES ABOVE AND BEYOND TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR, OUR PROPERTY OWNERS ARE EDUCATED.
AND YES, THAT WOULD ABSOLUTELY BE A PART OF WHAT WE WOULD BE DOING BECAUSE THAT'S THE PROBLEM SOLVING PART OF WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT ENFORCEMENT, IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, IS THE, IS THE LAST STAGE OF IT.
IF WE CAN SOLVE THE PROBLEM SO THAT IT'S NOT A PROBLEM IN THE FIRST PLACE, YOU KNOW, I'VE SAID THIS BEFORE ABOUT OUR, OUR VIOLENT CRIME RATE AND, AND OUR CRIME RATE IN GENERAL.
[01:35:01]
IF WE COULD GET TO THE POINT WHERE OUR TRUE MEASURE OF SUCCESS WASN'T HOW MANY ARRESTS WE MADE OR HOW MANY CITATIONS WE WROTE, BUT BECAUSE WE WERE PROACTIVE, WE WERE EDUCATING, WE WERE SOLVING PROBLEMS, AND WE WERE BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS IN OUR COMMUNITY, OUR TRUE MEASURE OF SUCCESS IS HOW MANY TIMES WE NEVER HAVE TO DO THAT IN THE FIRST PLACE.AND THE PERCEPTION OF CITIZENS ON SAFETY, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR, IS THAT WE GET INFORMATION FROM OUR CITIZENS.
THE QUALITY OF LIFE HAS IMPROVED.
SO WE, WE, WE'VE HEARD WHAT YOU'VE SAID AND, AND I DON'T SEE, UH, A PROBLEM WITH, WITH ANY OF THOSE REQUESTS, UH, BEING DOABLE, CHIEF.
AND I ALSO JUST WANNA JUST SAY TOO, THAT, YOU KNOW, THIS IS KIND OF A, A FOUNDATIONAL, IN MY OPINION, ONE OF THOSE UNSPOKEN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PIECES BECAUSE BUSINESSES, THEY, THEY CONSIDER WHEN THEY COME TO SIT TO A CITY, THE AMOUNT OF SECURITY THEY'LL NEED, THE MEASURES, THE OVERHEAD COSTS, UH, OF OPENING AND, AND RUNNING A BUSINESS IN THE CITY.
SO, YOU KNOW, THIS IS A VERY HIGHLY FOUND FOUNDATIONAL PIECE THAT A LOT OF TIMES GET OVERLOOKED WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
I, I SIT ON A, A COMMITTEE WITH THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION AND CHIEFS OF POLICE, AND WE RECENTLY HAD OUR MID-YEAR, UH, COMMITTEE MEETING, UH, UP IN GRAPEVINE, WHICH IS GREAT 'CAUSE I COULD DRIVE INSTEAD OF PEOPLE WHO WERE ON MY, MY PARTICULAR COMMITTEE, LIKE FROM FRANCE THAT HAD TO FLY IN FOR A WEEKEND.
BUT SPEAKING TO ALL OF THEM, THEY ALL HAVE THE SAME ISSUES.
AND, AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT THEY DISCUSSED, IS A POLICE DEPARTMENT SHOULD NEVER BE A REVENUE GENERATING PART OF A MUNICIPALITY, BUT OUR CONTRIBUTION IS TO CREATE AN ENVIRONMENT THAT IS ATTRACTIVE TO PEOPLE WHO WANT TO DEVELOP HOMES AND BUSINESSES IN THAT CITY.
THAT'S OUR MEASURE OF SUCCESS, IS A LAW AS A POLICE SERVICE.
ON, ON, ON THE CITY'S GROWTH, UM, ON THE CAD SYSTEM.
IS THERE A WAY FOR YOU TO, UM, SHOW US WHEN Y'ALL GO OUT TO A HOMELESS CALL, IF THERE'S, AND WHAT TYPE OF CRIME IS INVOLVED OR IF THERE IS A CRIME INVOLVED? UH, SO CAN I, CAN I JUMP IN THERE ON, BEFORE WE GET TO THAT AND THERE, THERE, THERE'S A LOT OF PIECES AND I HAVE SOME REALLY HARD QUESTIONS BEFORE WE JUMP INTO ALL THAT OTHER STUFF.
THE MS. ALVARADO AND, AND MRS. GRAHAM, TO, TO YOUR EXACT QUESTION RIGHT NOW, THERE'S NO WAY TO MEASURE SUCCESS FOR THIS, RIGHT? AND SO SETTING UP A PH OR A, UM, A PILOT PROGRAM FOR THIS, THE, THE SUCCESS IS SOMETHING THAT WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO SEE THROUGH THE PROCESS OF THE PILOT PROGRAM.
RIGHT NOW THEY'RE TRACKING THEIR, THEIR INTERVENTIONS AND THEY'RE TRACKING THE CALLS THAT THEY GET.
THE SUCCESS IS WHAT THEY'RE SHOWING YOU THAT WE'RE CLEANING UP THE CAMPS.
AND SO IF THAT CONTINUES, IS THAT SUCCESSFUL TO YOU THAT THEY'RE CONTINUING TO CLEAN UP THE CAMPS? I DON'T KNOW.
WE HAVEN'T HAD LIKE A IN-DEPTH CONVERSATION ON THAT.
THE QUESTION IN FRONT OF YOU ABOUT THIS IS MORE OF A PHILOSOPHICAL POLICY PIECE FOR YOU.
DO YOU BELIEVE IN HOME HOMELESS INTERVENTION? AND IF YOU BELIEVE IN HOMELESS INTERVENTION, DO YOU WANT TO PUT MONEY TOWARDS GETTING SOMETHING GOING ON THAT I BELIEVE IN HOMELESS INTERVENTION, BUT I'M, I'M GONNA GO BACK AND SAY WE CAN, WE CAN, WE CAN LOOK AT SOME SUCCESS ONCE WE START GETTING NUMBERS ON, IF PEOPLE ARE RETURNING MM-HMM
THEN WE'LL KNOW IF PEOPLE AREN'T RETURNING.
IT IS WORKING BECAUSE HAVING AN OFFICE, HAVING THE, THE EXTRA MANPOWER, UM, DEDICATED TO THIS.
WE DON'T HAVE ANYBODY DEDICATED TO THIS RIGHT NOW.
AND I BELIEVE IF WE GET SOME PEOPLE DEDICATED TO IT, WE'LL START TO SEE A DECLINE ON SOME OF THESE CALLS BECAUSE THEY'LL STOP, THEY'LL EITHER, IF THEY'RE DROPPED OFF HERE, THEY'LL TRY TO FIND SOMEWHERE ELSE TO BE RIGHT.
AND IF THERE'S SOMETHING WE CAN DO TO TALK TO OTHER ELECTED OFFICIALS IN OTHER CITIES MM-HMM
ESPECIALLY ABOUT THEM BRINGING PEOPLE TO OUR CITY, I'M ACTUALLY OFFENDED BY THAT.
UM, START HAVING SOME CONVERSATIONS ABOUT IT.
AND IF WE CAN BRING THEM BACK.
BUT, BUT, BUT, BUT I DO THINK THAT THERE'S A, I ASK A QUESTION AND I, I, A, A LEVEL, A LEVEL, I, I DO THINK THAT WE CAN ACTUALLY SEE SOME MEASURABLES WHERE IF WE GET THESE OFFICERS ON THE GROUND, THE, THE CLEAN TEAM, UH, MAYBE WHAT PARKS IS ASKING FOR, I BELIEVE THAT THEY ASKED FOR THESE THINGS SO THAT THEY, SO THAT WE WOULD HAVE SOME SUCCESS.
AND PEOPLE NOT COMING HERE, IF THEY'RE DROPPED OFF HERE, THEY'RE GONNA MOVE ALONG, ESPECIALLY WITH THE INCIDENT CALLS.
I THINK IF THE INCIDENT CALLS DROP, PEOPLE ARE GONNA BE AFRAID TO DO WHATEVER THEY'VE BEEN DOING.
MAYBE THAT INDIVIDUAL DOESN'T GO BACK AND SET THAT BUILDING ON FIRE BECAUSE HE KNOWS THAT THERE'S SOMEBODY WATCHING HIM.
THERE'S A CAMERA OUT THERE, THERE MAY BE SOME LIGHTS, BUT YOU'RE NOT JUST GONNA BE FREE TO GO AROUND BECAUSE THERE'S
[01:40:01]
NOBODY HERE.UM, AND WE ALLOW THESE THINGS TO HAPPEN.
BASED OFF OF WHAT YOU SAID, YOU SAID THAT PEOPLE SAID THAT IT'S SOME THINGS ALLOWED HERE THAT AREN'T ALLOWED IN ANY OTHER CITY.
RIGHT? Y YES, BUT I, YOU, HE ASKED IF OUR PHILOSOPHICAL, UM, THOUGHTS ARE INTERVENTION, I, I WANT TO BE EVEN MORE CLEAR THAN THAT.
I WOULD WANT INTERVENTION TO COME FROM CHURCHES.
THAT, THAT'S WHAT I WANT, IS WHAT CAN WE DO AS A CITY TO DETER BAYTOWN FROM BEING A DESTINATION FOR PEOPLE THAT ARE TRANSIENTS AND COMMITTING CRIMES.
SO WHAT I WANT SPECIFICALLY, AND I'M NOT SETTING A TIMELINE.
I WANNA BE VERY CLEAR ABOUT THAT RIGHT NOW MM-HMM
SAY I WANT TO KNOW WHO REPEAT OFFENDERS ARE OF BREAK OF BREAKING OUR LAWS MM-HMM
THAT ARE TIED TO HOMELESSNESS.
WHO ARE YOU REPETITIVELY FINDING CAMPING IN AREAS THAT DON'T ALLOW CAMPS? MM-HMM
WHO ARE YOU REPEATEDLY FINDING IN PARKING LOTS LIVING THAT YOU HAVE ASKED TO LEAVE BEFORE AND OR DOING DRUGS AND OR MAKING, UM, FAKE, I'VE SEEN FAKE KNIVES AND GUNS MYSELF.
SOME, SOME REALLY INTERESTING THINGS.
SO FOR ME, I DO THINK THERE IS A WAY TOGETHER, VERY SPECIFIC.
IN FACT, I KNOW THEY ALREADY DO BECAUSE AT ONE OF THE PELLY NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION MEETINGS, OFFICER KING CAME AND PRESENTED THAT.
SO I, FOR ME, I WANT DETERRENCE.
THAT'S MY, THAT'S SARAH GRAHAM'S MA'AMS PHILOSOPHY.
I CAN'T SPEAK FOR EVERYBODY UP HERE.
AND THE DATA THAT I WANT IN WHATEVER TIMELINE Y'ALL THINK IS MAKES SENSE IS I WANNA SEE, UM, HOMELESSNESS SLASH TRANSIENT TIED TO ACTUAL CRIME.
AND ARE THOSE NUMBERS TRENDING DOWN? MM-HMM
IF, IF Y'ALL DON'T MIND, I'M, I'M TRYING TO ANSWER ALL THOSE THINGS IF I, AS WE WORK THROUGH THIS.
MY, MY POINT OF SAYING LIKE, THEY CAN GET EVERYTHING THAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR, BUT IT'S A PHILOSOPHY ON TRYING TO MOVE FORWARD WITH A NEW PROGRAM.
THIS IS SOMETHING BECAUSE IT'S NOT DEFINED.
MAYOR, YOU HAVE GOOD POINTS, MRS. GRAHAM, YOU HAVE GOOD POINTS.
Y'ALL HAVE GOOD POINTS ON DEFINING SUCCESS, BUT RIGHT NOW WE'RE NOT TRYING TO DEFINE SUCCESS TODAY.
THAT'S SOMETHING THAT IS GONNA TAKE TIME.
AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT I WOULD RECOMMEND THAT YOU HAVE A, A COMMITTEE, AN AD HOC COMMITTEE FROM THIS GROUP THAT WORKS WITH STAFF AND DEFINES WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE AND GETS UPDATES, GETS THOSE REGULAR UPDATES.
AND SO THOSE ARE TALKING POINTS THAT YOU GO THROUGH AND IT'S BUILT OUT OVER TIME.
BUT THE BIGGEST QUESTION THAT WE NEED TO ASK OR ANSWER BEFORE WE EVEN MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS IS, WHEN I STARTED THE BUDGET CONVERSATION TODAY, I SAID THAT WE'VE MADE A LOT OF CHANGES OVER TIME.
WE'RE RUNNING A VERY LEAN BUDGET OPERATION AT THIS POINT.
THE BUDGET THAT'S BEING BUILT FOR FY 27 IS A ZERO BASED BUDGET.
WE HAVE $4.25 MILLION THAT'S BEING ADDED FOR THE COST OF LIVING ALLOWANCE.
THAT'S, THAT'S, THAT'S GOING INTO THE FY 27 BUDGET ALREADY.
WHAT THAT MEANT FOR THE DIRECTORS AS THEY'RE BUILDING THEIR FY 27 BUDGET IS THEY ARE ABSORBING ALL OF THE COST INCREASES THAT THEY HAVE MM-HMM
WITHIN THEIR CURRENT BUDGET THAT THEY HAVE TODAY ALREADY.
SO THERE'S NO GROWTH IN THEIR BUDGETS.
I SAY ALL THAT TO SAY THIS, WHEN YOU ADD $350,000 TO THE BUDGET FOR FY 27, IS IT THE INTENT TO RAISE TAXES TO OFFSET THAT 350,000 OR IS IT THE INTENT OF THE COUNCIL TO CHANGE SERVICE DELIVERY TO ABSORB THAT 350,000? THAT'S THE QUESTION I NEED TO ASK FIRST BEFORE WE MAKE A DECISION ON MOVING FORWARD WITH 350,000.
GO AHEAD AND, AND I'LL JUMP IN THERE, JAY.
SHORT TERM, THE COST, THE 200,000 FOR OVERTIME MM-HMM
THE VEHICLE, I WOULD SAY OVERTIME INSTEAD OF A WHOLE NEW CLEAN TEAM.
'CAUSE I DON'T THINK THEY'RE DOING CLEANUPS EVERY DAY.
UN UNLESS I DON'T, THEY ONLY HAVE TWO PEOPLE FOR THE ENTIRE CITY.
SO, SO THE CLEANUPS ARE SCHEDULED AND THEY COULD BE ON OVERTIME.
SO I'M RELUCTANT TO JUST ADD STAFF UNLESS THEY'RE GONNA BE BUSY WITH IT, ADD STAFF BASED ON HOMELESS ISSUES.
UNLESS THEY'RE GONNA BE BUSY EVERY DAY DOING THAT.
SO IN OTHER WORDS, I'M NOT GONNA GET CAUGHT INTO LET'S ADD MORE STAFF AND THEY CAN DO MORE MM-HMM
OF OTHER THINGS PLUS THIS, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS RIGHT NOW.
SO OVERTIME, OR INCREASE THEIR DISPOSAL COST.
'CAUSE IT'S NOT CHEAP TO GET RID OF THAT.
BUT, BUT ALSO IF WE WANT TO FUND IT AGAIN THROUGH A FUND BALANCE FOR 27 BUDGET, IT, IT'S STILL AN ONGOING I I GOT IT.
BUT THE, BUT IF WE GO THROUGH ALL THE WAY TO THE END OF 2027 MM-HMM
BUDGET, YEAR 27, 28, BUDGET YEAR, AND WE'RE NOT SEEING ANYTHING, THEN WE CAN AGAIN GO BACK AND
[01:45:01]
SAY, YOU KNOW, WE PUMPED MONEY INTO IT.AND, AND KNOWING THAT ONCE YOU GET MORE INVOLVED, THE CALLS ARE PROBABLY GONNA GO UP.
THEY'RE GONNA GO BECAUSE YOU'RE ACTIVE.
BUT THEN THE, IT, AGAIN, I UNDERSTAND YOUR CONCERN THAT IT IS SHORT, FOUR OR FIVE MONTHS IS PROBABLY NOT ENOUGH TIME.
BUT FOUR OR FIVE MONTHS PLUS A YEAR, THAT WOULD PROBABLY ENOUGH TIME TO SEE INCREASE, A PEAK PLATEAU OUT, THEN SOMETHING START COMING DOWN.
WE'D HAVE TO FIGURE OUT WHAT SUCCESS MEANS TO US AS, AS A GENERAL BOARD.
SO, SO YES, I UNDERSTAND IT'S A ZERO SUM BUDGET AND, AND THIS WOULD BE A GROWTH PROGRAM.
THAT'S WHY I'M RELUCTANT TO SAY LET'S ADD TWO PEOPLE.
UM, BUT AS FAR AS COMPENSATING FOR OVERTIME DISPOSAL COSTS, SOME HARD EQUIPMENT THAT I DIDN'T REALLY REALIZE THAT THE CAMERA ISSUE YOU WAS TALKING ABOUT WAS A MOBILE UNIT YOU COULD TAKE AND PUT A DIFFERENT LOCATIONS.
AGAIN, THAT'S, THAT'S A ONE TIME EXPENSE.
THE, THE CAPITAL ITEMS I CAN ADDRESS FOR THE FUND BALANCE.
THAT'S, THAT'S NOT AN ISSUE FOR ME.
UM, BUT, BUT I THINK TO KICK IT OFF AND TO GET THIS THING GOING AS A NEW PROGRAM, POTENTIALLY LOOK AT IT, IF THERE'S A POSSIBILITY THROUGH THE FINANCE GURUS TO FUND THE INITIAL SURGE AND TO FUND THE POLICE PARTY AND EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING WE CAN EXPENSE EVERYTHING TO A LINE ITEM THAT'S STRICTLY ON A HOMELESS.
THAT'S, AND YES, BUT THE FUND OUTTA THE FUND BALANCE TO CARRY SO THAT THERE'S NOT A DIRECT IMPACT ON THE GENERAL FUND.
RESO HAVE TO FIGURE, SHE'S LOOKING AT ME LIKE, YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME.
BUT, BUT TO, TO FUND IT THAT WAY, BUT TO MOVE FORWARD, WE'VE GOT TO DO SOMETHING.
IT'S STARTING TO BE OVERWHELMING.
THE ISSUE OF IT'S NOT GONNA GET, YOU KNOW, KIDS AT THE RESTAURANTS AND WORKING WITH RESTAURANTS, UM, ON, ON, AGAIN, A PERSONAL BASIS.
UH, MY DAUGHTER-IN-LAW WON'T GO SHOPPING AT, AT, UH, WARD AND, AND, UM, ALEXANDER AFTER DARK.
AND IT'S, IT'S JUST BECAUSE NOT THAT ANYBODY'S BEEN OVER AGGRESSIVE OR WHATEVER, THEY'RE JUST THERE.
IT'S AN UNCOMFORTABLE ENVIRONMENT.
AND, AND AGAIN, YOU LOOK AT UP THE CORRIDOR BETWEEN DISTRICT TWO AND, AND, AND DISTRICT SIX, THERE'S A LOT OF ACTIVITY THERE.
AND, AND WE NEED TO QUELL THAT.
AND, AND AGAIN, IT'S NOT A CRIME TO BE HOMELESS, BUT IF THEY'RE COMMITTING CRIMES, WE NEED TO ADDRESS THAT.
SO WHAT I'M HEARING IS TO, TO SUMMARIZE EVERYTHING FROM TODAY, BUILDING THE BUDGET 69 8 0 3.
IT'S STABILIZING AT THE CURRENT RATE THAT IT IS.
WE'RE KEEP, WE'RE WORKING AT A 90 DAY BALANCE AT THE END OF THE DAY.
UH, WHICH MEANS THAT WE WILL MOST LIKELY USE THE $5 MILLION FOR CAPITAL POSSIBLE FOR THIS HOMELESS PROGRAM.
UM, WHICH WOULD START, UH, GOING AFTER ASSETS TODAY.
UH, THE, AND THE TWO ASSETS INCLUDE THE HOMELESS INTERVENTION VEHICLE AND THE CAMERA TOWER AND SOLAR LIGHTS FOR THE PARKS DEPARTMENT.
UM, RESERVES FOR USE RESERVES WERE POSSIBLE FOR THE ADDITIONAL OVERTIME AND THE, FOR THE PD AND LOOKING AT OVERTIME FOR OVERTIME AND DISPOSAL COSTS FOR THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT AT THIS POINT.
FOR FY 26, I'M TALKING ABOUT FY 26 RIGHT NOW, USING THE RESERVES TO ADJUST FOR THAT AS WE PLAN FOR FY 27, KEEP THIS PROGRAM IN PLACE, BUT USE THE RESERVES AS A ONE TIME FUNDING MECHANISM FOR POSSIBLY IDENTIFYING A SPECIAL LINE ITEM THAT SAYS THIS IS A SPECIAL PROGRAM, IT HAS THIS AMOUNT OF MONEY AND THIS AMOUNT OF MONEY IS USED FOR PD OVERTIME, HEALTH OVERTIME, AND POSSIBLY PARKS, UH, UH, FOR, FOR HOMELESS PROGRAM ONLY.
I DON'T WANNA, HOMELESS INTERVENTION WAS WHAT IT'S CALLED ON THE SLIDE.
THAT'S WHY WE, I WAS JUST SAYING HOMELESS INTERVENTION, BUT I, I GET YOUR POINT ON THAT AS WELL.
AND THEN OVER THIS NEXT YEAR AND A HALF OF THE PROGRAM, WORK WITH COUNCIL TO DEVELOP METRICS THAT DEFINE SUCCESS OR NOT.
SO WE CAN BETTER DETERMINE FOR FY 28 IF WE WANT TO BUDGET TO CONTINUE IT.
BUT IS THERE A WAY THAT THEY COULD JUST EVEN THROUGH EMAIL OR SOMETHING, GIVE US AN UPDATE OF WHAT'S GOING ON PRIOR TO 18 MONTHS? OH, I, I, I WOULD EXPECT TO UPDATE Y'ALL PROBABLY QUARTERLY IF Y'ALL WANNA DO THE AD HOC COMMITTEE.
Y'ALL WOULD WORK WITH STAFF, LIKE A FINANCE COMMITTEE.
I DON'T THINK WE NEED AN AD HOC COMMITTEE.
YOU CAN JUST GIVE US UPDATES THROUGH EMAIL OR WE CAN SET A TIME DURING THE COUNCIL MEETING EVERY SO MANY MONTHS TO RECEIVE OKAY.
[01:50:01]
REPORT? DO Y'ALL WANT STAFF TO DEFINE SUCCESS THEN? OR DO YOU, DOES COUNCIL WANT TO NO, NO.I, I WAS ACTUALLY GONNA SAY, I, I DO THINK THAT WE NEED TO DEF I, I WROTE THAT DOWN AND YOU WERE CORRECT ABOUT THAT.
I, I THINK WE DO NEED TO DEFINE AS A GROUP OR AS AN AD HOC WHAT SUCCESS MEANS, BECAUSE EVEN WHEN I WAS VOICING WHAT I THOUGHT IT WAS, I COULD TELL THAT, UM, THERE'S PROBABLY OTHER DEFINITIONS OF THAT UP HERE.
UM, SO I DID AGREE FOR AD HOC TO DEFINE THE SUCCESS, BUT I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE WE WERE GETTING REPORTS DIRECTLY RELATED TO THIS INCREASE IN THE, IN THE BUDGET TEMPORARILY, EVEN IF IT'S JUST THROUGH EMAIL.
BUT, BUT I AGREE WITH EVERYTHING ELSE YOU SAID.
WE CAN DISCUSS THAT AS A GROUP.
I, I JUST DON'T THINK WE NEED AN AD HOC TO COME UP WITH THOSE MEASURES.
WE CAN DISCUSS THAT A SEPARATE WORK SESSION TO GO OVER THAT SESSION.
WE'RE GONNA HAVE SOME RETREATS BETWEEN NOW AND THEN.
I THINK WE'LL HAVE A NEXT, ANOTHER ONE NOW.
MAYOR, IS BPAC STILL MEETING? HMM.
I HAVEN'T REALLY HEARD ANYTHING FROM BPAC.
JOHN, WOULD YOU, YOU STILL MEETING, IS THIS SOMETHING THAT Y'ALL CAN WORK WITH BPAC ON? THAT'S NOT A BAD IDEA.
UM, I REALLY SUPPOSE THAT WOULD BE, BE UP TO BPAC TO SEE IF THIS SOMETHING THEY WANT TO ENTERTAIN.
WE, WE, WE WOULD LOVE TO WORK WITH, WITH ANYBODY ON THIS.
AND UH, YOU KNOW, PART OF IT IS AN EDUCATION ON, AGAIN, WHAT IS SUCCESS, UH, REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS OF WHAT WE CAN DO BECAUSE THIS PROBLEM DIDN'T HAPPEN OVERNIGHT.
UH, WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON IT SINCE I CAME HERE.
IF YOU'VE NOTICED THERE'S BEEN A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN STREET LEVEL, STREET CORNER, PANHANDLING, UH, DOOR, THE PAN PANHANDLING HAS GONE DOWN.
CHIEF, UH, CHIEF DORIS LIKES TO JOKE THAT EVERY SATURDAY MORNING, UH, WHEN MY PHONE WENT OFF, HIS WIFE WOULD ASK IF IT WAS ME CALLING ABOUT PANHANDLER AT, UH, AT I 10 NORTH MAINE, UH, GARTH OR JOHN MARTIN.
UH, SO THAT WAS KIND OF OUR, OUR VERY, VERY FIRST, UH, ISSUES.
AND, AND THAT'S PROBABLY A MEASURE OF SUCCESS TOO, IS WE JUST DON'T SEE THAT AS OFTEN.
UM, BUT I THINK WE NEED TO BE REALISTIC ABOUT THAT TOO.
UH, BECAUSE REALLY WHAT THEY ARE, THEY'RE AN ADVISORY COMMITTEE, RIGHT? THEY'RE A CONDUIT OF INFORMATION BETWEEN THE, THE PUBLIC AND THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
AND WE'RE PROBABLY, WE'RE PROBABLY BETTER OFF.
WE'RE NOT ASKING 'EM TO MAKE POLICY DECISION.
WE'RE PROBABLY BETTER OFF GOING WITH THE CITY MANAGER'S SUGGESTION, UH, OF WORKING WITH COUNCIL.
AND MS. HALL GETTING YOUR DIRECTION, GETTING YOUR INPUT TO DEFINE SUCCESS, NOT THE DEPARTMENT OR MM-HMM
IT'S ASKING FOR THE BUDGET INCREASE AND, AND, AND OUR PEOPLE, UH, ARE, ARE, ARE REALLY WELL TRAINED AND EDUCATED AND, AND THEY CAN GIVE YOU SOME REALLY GOOD IDEAS OF WHAT MEASURES OF SUCCESS, A PRACTICAL, REALISTIC SUCCESS, UH, FOR THIS MONEY IS, AS WELL AS WHAT IT MIGHT MEAN FOR OUR COMMUNITY.
AND, AND I FEEL, UM, YOUR OFFICERS, INCLUDING YOURSELF, UH, ARE THE ONES OUT THERE, UM, ON THE STREETS AND THEY'RE THE ONES THAT ARE ENCOUNTERING.
SO YES, I THINK IT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO, TO SEE, UM, THE SUCCESS MEASURES THEY FEEL, UM, WOULD BE NEEDED.
UM, AND WE CAN GATHER TO SEE WHAT THAT MAY LOOK LIKE FOR US.
SO WE CAN KIND OF TAKE SNIPPETS OF BOTH BECAUSE, AND YOU CAN SEE, UH, SOME, SOME MONTHLY INDICATORS AS WELL WITH THE INVISIO DASHBOARD.
BECAUSE WE DO HAVE THAT HOMELESS INTERVENTION.
AND, AND FOR US, HOMELESS INTERVENTION IS ANYTHING FROM TRYING TO GET SOMEBODY HELP TO TAKING ENFORCEMENT ACTION AND MAKING AN ARREST OR ISSUING A CITATION.
BUT THAT'S ALSO GONNA BE INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT, IS THAT WE HAVE JUDICIAL SUPPORT WHEN WE DO THE JOB.
UH, WHEN THE PROBABLE CAUSE EXIST THAT, THAT IT'S NOT SIMPLY DISMISSED.
AND AS WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS, I, I, I THINK SARAH HAD A GREAT POINT IN TERMS OF THE DIFFERENCE INTERVENTION DETERRENCE.
AND, UM, I, I FEEL THAT WE MAY NEED TO HAVE A GATHERING OF OUR CHURCHES AND OTHER NONPROFITS THAT SERVE OUR HOMELESS TO KIND OF LIKE WILLIAMS, LOOK, THIS IS WHAT'S COMING.
UH, IT'S GONNA HAPPEN
UM, AND SO WE DEFINITELY NEED TO WORK TOGETHER ON THAT.
I, I DON'T WANT TO DO A DISSERVICE TO THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT.
UM, I KNOW WE TALKED KIND OF LIKE HOW SOME OF THE, THE REQUESTS TO GO IN AND IF, IF Y'ALL WILL ALLOW US FOR SEAN TO KIND OF GIVE AN OVERVIEW OF HOW THE SETUP WOULD BE, HOW IT WORKS NOW.
AND SO YOU CAN HEAR FROM THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT AS WELL.
UM, PART OF THE, PART OF THE ISSUE WITH THE OVERTIME REQUEST, AND THANK YOU FOR ADVOCATING FOR THAT.
UM, HAVING THE OVERTIME BUDGET AVAILABLE IS NOT GOING TO MAKE A REAL SIGNIFICANT IMMEDIATE IMPACT.
[01:55:01]
PERSON TEAM THAT DOES THIS MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY, AND WE HAVE SUCH A STRONG WORKING RELATIONSHIP WITH THE PD FOLKS THAT WE ARE ABLE TO COORDINATE THOSE CLEANUP EFFORTS DURING BUSINESS HOURS, DURING DAYLIGHT HOURS.SO ADDING THOSE FUNDS FOR OVERTIME, UM, POTENTIALLY AFTER HOURS OR ON THE WEEKENDS, IS GOING TO NOT PRESENT AS MANY OPPORTUNITIES FOR SUCCESS INTERNALLY, UM, WITH THIS COLLABORATION.
SO WE'RE GOING TO NEED TO LOOK AT THAT STRATEGICALLY AND FIGURE OUT WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE.
UM, I HAVE TWO PEOPLE WITH A TRUCK THAT OPERATE, UM, PRIMARILY TO DO THESE CLEANUPS.
AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE A COMMUNITY SERVICE CREW, THE COMMUNITY SERVICE CREW.
UM, WE HAVE VERY STRICT, UM, CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS WITH THE COUNTY ON HOW WE CAN USE THOSE FOLKS.
UM, AND WE OPERATE UNDER THE PDS AUTHORITY TO DO THAT.
UM, THOSE COULD RANGE ANYWHERE FROM ZERO PEOPLE A DAY TO 12, 15 PEOPLE A DAY, DEPENDING ON HOW MANY FOLKS SHOW UP TO VOLUNTEER THAT DAY.
SO THAT IS NOT A GUARANTEED LABOR POOL AND I WOULD HATE TO MAKE A COMMITMENT TO YOU OR TO THE CITIZENS THAT WE'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO PROVIDE THIS LEVEL OF SERVICE AND THEN HAVE TWO GUYS IN A TRUCK SHOW UP.
SO WHILE I'M VERY APPRECIATIVE OF THE OVERTIME OFFER, IT DOESN'T REALLY DO ANYTHING FOR THE HEALTH STAFF IMMEDIATELY IN REFERENCE TO THIS, THIS IMMEDIATE IMPACT THAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR.
UM, SO IF WE WERE ABLE TO, UM, GET TWO NEW STAFF MEMBERS, WOULD YOU, CAN YOU GIVE US AN IDEA OF WHAT YOU ENVISIONED THEIR SCHEDULE LOOKING LIKE AND HOW THAT WOULD COINCIDE WITH THIS MISSION? YES, MA'AM.
SO THEY'RE GONNA, THEY'RE GONNA OPERATE ON THE SAME EXACT MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY SCHEDULE THAT OUR CLEAN TEAM CURRENTLY WORKS ON.
AND TO MR. LESTER'S POINT, I CANNOT GUARANTEE THAT WE ARE GOING TO BE SPENDING 40 HOURS A WEEK DOING HOMELESS RELATED INTERVENTION PIECES.
THAT IS A VERY VALID POINT AND I WOULD HATE TO, UH, PRESENT THAT TO THIS BODY IN THAT REQUEST.
HOWEVER, I HAVE TO HAVE THOSE JOBS FILLED IN ORDER TO EVEN BEGIN TO MEET THIS NEED.
AND TO CHIEF KRALL'S POINT, THIS IS JUST PHASE ONE OF THE PROGRAM.
IF WE'RE GOING TO HAVE SOME LONG-TERM SUCCESS, THERE HAVE TO BE BODIES TO ADDRESS THIS, UM, THAT COMES AT A COST.
AND SO I APPRECIATE THE, THE INPUT AND THE GUIDANCE ON, ON WHAT WE WANT TO DO.
AND, UM, WE WILL LOOK AT THIS FROM EVERY POSSIBLE ANGLE TO GET SOME SUCCESS FOR YOU.
WHAT ABOUT PART-TIME? THAT'S EVEN WORSE.
MY QUESTION IS, OVER THE LAST, SINCE APRIL OF 25 TO NOW, HOW MANY CLEANUPS HAVE YOU DONE? HMM.
WE HAVE DONE, UH, 33 SIGNIFICANT SITE CLEANUPS.
UM, AND WHEN I SAY SIGNIFICANT, I MEAN THE, AS FAR AS THE SLIDES ARE, ARE, ARE SHOWING, UM, THAT DOES NOT COUNT.
THE, THE NUMEROUS CALLS THAT WE GET DAILY TO DO SPOT CLEANUPS, THOSE ARE GONNA BE THE SMALLER PIECES WHERE SOMEBODY'S HANGING OUT AT A BUS STOP OR WE'VE GOT TRASH IN FRONT OF KROGER'S OR THINGS Y'ALL CLEAN UP THE BUS STOPS.
BUT WE CAN ADDRESS THOSE THINGS AS THEY COME THROUGH THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
SO TWO, SO 33 IN ONE YEAR YEAR MEANS TWO TO THREE A MONTH, TWO TO THREE LARGE CLEANUPS A MONTH.
TWO, TWO FULL STAFF WITH THE PERCEPTION THAT IT'S GONNA BE DEDICATED TO THE HOMELESS DETERRENT IS, IS NOT REASONABLE.
I, I'LL TELL YOU, IF THEY PUT IT IN THEIR BUDGET THAT THEY COULD SHOW THAT THERE'S A NEED FOR THIS USING THIS AN ADDITIONAL TEAM FOR ADDITIONAL CLEANUPS ACROSS THE CITY.
IF YOU NEED IT FOR SOMETHING ELSE, THAT'S OKAY.
BUT THAT'S, YOU KNOW, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT SHORT TERM VERSUS LONG TERM.
I DIDN'T WANT TO HAVE THE PERCEPTION OUT THERE THAT OKAY, WE'RE GONNA GIVE THEM TWO MEMBERS OF A CLEAN TEAM SPECIFICALLY FOR THIS ISSUE.
WE'RE FOUR DAYS A WEEK ON AN AVERAGE.
THEY'RE NOT DOING HOMELESS STUFF, THEY'RE DOING OTHER THINGS.
IF THERE'S A NEED AND THEY CAN JUSTIFY THAT NEED AS WELL AS THIS, THAT'S A GOOD ARGUMENT FOR A CONTINUATION OF THE, OR EXPANSION OF THE PROGRAMMER BUDGET.
I JUST, I'M JUST FOCUSED ON TRYING TO GET THE IMMEDIATE RESOURCES OUT THERE TO GET THIS THING KICKED OFF AND THEN HAVING A LINE ITEM FOR NEXT YEAR TO MAKE SURE THAT IT, WE FUND IT AT LEAST FOR A YEAR AND A HALF.
AND THEN AGAIN, WE GET INTO NEXT YEAR'S DISCUSSIONS.
THIS TIME OF YEAR FROM NOW WE'RE NOT SEEING ANYTHING OR IT'S JUST GETTING WORSE AND WORSE AND WORSE.
WE MAY NEED, NEED TO CHANGE TACTICS OR TO
[02:00:01]
HAVE THAT DISCUSSION.SO, BUT AGAIN, IF, IF THEY BRING FORWARD, IF C MAJOR BRINGS FORWARD AS FAR AS THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT EXPANSION, IT'S STAFF BECAUSE THERE'S 80% GROWTH OF JUST GENERAL TRASH CLEANUP AND THEN THEY'RE HANDLING THE PD STUFF FOR HOMELESS DIVERSION.
BUT I JUST KNEW THAT ADDING TWO PEOPLE JUST FOR THE HOMELESS ISSUE IS WAY OVERKILL.
I THINK THERE'S A NEED FOR Y'ALL TO HAVE MORE THAN TWO PEOPLE JUST, JUST BASED OFF THE CONVERSATION TODAY.
I JUST DON'T WANT IT TO BE THE, WHAT HE SAID.
I'M, I'M GONNA REITERATE THAT, THE PERCEPTION.
BUT, UM, I THINK I CAN GET BEHIND AND SUPPORT YOU GETTING TWO NEW PEOPLE BECAUSE I THINK OUR CITY'S GROWING, UM, CLEANUP IN GENERAL IS GROWING AND, UM, SOMETIMES THE, THE BURDEN THAT YOU'RE TRYING TO CAPTURE WITH ONLY TWO PEOPLE THEN GOES OVER TO OTHER DEPARTMENTS AND THEY'RE HAVING TO, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE TO SUPPORT ONE ANOTHER IN ANY AREAS THAT YOU CAN.
SO, UM, AS LONG AS WE'RE NOT, UH, BLURRING LINES AND SAYING THAT IT'S JUST FOR HOMELESSNESS, I ACTUALLY THINK THAT IF YOU NEED TWO NEW EMPLOYEES, I MEAN, OPERATING WITH JUST TWO IS EXTREMELY SMALL FOR A CITY OUR SIZE, THERE'S THE, THERE'S THE MISSION CREEK BECAUSE THE MISSION CREEK.
HE JUST SAID, ALRIGHT, WE'RE, WE'RE, WE'RE AT A LEAN AND MEAN SITUATION.
AND THIS WAS, AND NOW EVERY DEPARTMENT HAS CRITICAL NEEDS.
THIS WAS PART OF THE SERVICE DELIVERY CHANGES THAT WE MADE IN THE PAST.
DID Y'ALL HAVE SIX AND GO DOWN TO TWO OR FOUR AND GO DOWN 2, 4, 4 DOWN TO TWO? THAT'S WHAT I THOUGHT.
WITH THE CLEAN TEAM AND ALL THAT.
SO IF, IF WE ARE NOW SEEING THAT THIS COULD IMPACT ANOTHER ISSUE SUCH AS HOMELESSNESS AND WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO ADD BACK TO PEOPLE, I COULD SEE THIS AS A POSITIVE THING.
I'M JUST, 'CAUSE I KNOW A WORKABLE THING.
SEVERAL OTHER DEPARTMENTS ARE AT THE LEAN AND MEAN STAGE AND MM-HMM
AND THEY HAVE VALUABLE ARGUMENTS AS WELL.
PART OF, PART OF PART OF THIS UH, PART OF THIS REQUEST IS US GEARING UP TO WORK TOGETHER TO MEET THE COMMUNITY NEED.
UM, AGAIN, WE HAVE TO, UH, I WANT TO BE SUPER TRANSPARENT IN THE FACT THAT WE ARE NOT GOING TO BE, THAT IT'S NOT 100% TOTAL ALLOCATION.
I CAN GUARANTEE YOU THAT THEY'RE, THE WORKLOAD IS, IS THERE TO, UM, TO JUSTIFY THOSE FUNDS.
ALRIGHT, WELL, CAN I ASK WHERE WE ENDED
AND THERE'S A NEED IN SEVERAL AREAS.
SO FOR ME, I'M OKAY WITH YOU AND I'M OKAY WITH IT.
SO, SO THAT'S 500, 350,000 THAT'S ADDED TO THE BUDGET.
AND THAT THOSE WILL BE, I THOUGHT IT WAS FIVE 80.
FIVE 80 WAS THE ORIGINAL REQUEST.
UM, THAT INCLUDED 200,000, 1 25 FOR TWO PERSONNEL.
IT'S 200,000 FOR PD 105 FOR A VEHICLE.
THEN YOU HAD 1 25 FOR TWO PERSONNEL, THEN YOU HAD 35 TO 50,000 FOR DISPOSABLE FEE OR DISPOSABLE FEES, ABATEMENTS.
AND THEN YOU HAD 2300 FOR THE OVERTIME AND THEN YOU HAD 94,000 FOR THE CAMERA TOWER AND LIGHTS.
SO SOME OF THAT I WILL TAKE CARE OF WITH THE RESERVE FUND FOR THE CAPITAL PROJECTS.
BUT THE 200,000 IN ONGOING OVERTIME, UH, NOT TALKING 26 FOR 27 AS PART OF CONTINUATION 200,000, THEN 125,000 FOR TWO PERSONNEL, AND THEN MAYBE ADDITIONAL 25 TO 35,000 FOR THE DISPOSAL THAT WE'RE AT THREE 50.
AT THAT POINT, THE, THE TOWER AND THE, UM, THE TOWER AND THE VEHICLE ARE TAKEN CARE OF FROM RESERVE FEES AT THIS POINT.
WHAT I HAVE MAYOR COUNSEL, HAVING EXHAUSTED EVERYTHING ON THIS AGENDA, I NOW ADJOURN THIS MEETING AT 6 38.
WE WILL RETURN BACK HERE AT 6 48 6 40.