[1. Open Meeting.]
[00:00:08]
TODAY IS TUESDAY, JANUARY 6TH AND THE TIME IS NOW 6 P.M. AND THIS IS THE BRIEFING WORKSHOP OF THE LEANDER CITY COUNCIL. CITY SECRETARY CRABTREE, WILL YOU PLEASE CALL ROLL? COUNCIL MEMBER STEPHEN CHANG. PRESENT COUNCIL MEMBER MICHAEL HERRERA. HERE, COUNCIL MEMBER TONY BLAIR.
PRESENT. MAYOR PRO TEM NICOLE THOMPSON, PRESENT. COUNCIL MEMBER ANDREW NODDING HERE.
COUNCIL MEMBER BECKY ROSS HERE. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. QUORUM IS PRESENT AND THE CITY COUNCIL IS
[3. Convene into Executive Session pursuant to:
]
[ Reconvene into open session to take action as deemed appropriate in the City Council's discretion regarding:
]
ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? ANY OPPOSED? OKAY. MOTION CARRIES. ITEM TWO. ACQUISITION OF PROPERTY FOR THE SAN GABRIEL PARKWAY EAST. PHASE 36.46. COUNCIL MEMBER ROSS, DO YOU HAVE A MOTION TO AUTHORIZE THE ACQUISITION OF PROPERTY LOCATED IN THE L.B. JOHNSON SURVEY? ABSTRACT NUMBER 350 AND TALBERT CHAMBERS SURVEY ABSTRACT 125 AND WILLIAMSON COUNTY LAND OR TEXAS AS DISCUSSED IN EXECUTIVE SESSION. I'LL SECOND THAT MOTION. ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? NONE OPPOSED. THE MOTION CARRIES. ITEM THREE. CHAPTER 380. AGREEMENT. THIRD ADDENDUM BY. IN BETWEEN CITY OF LEANDER AND TITAN. LEANDER LAND INVESTORS, LLC. COUNCIL MEMBER ROSS, DO YOU HAVE A MOTION? NO ACTION. AND FOR CHAPTER 380 AGREEMENT FOR A PROJECT EDA DASH 25 008 COUNCIL MEMBER ROSS, DO YOU HAVE A MOTION? NO ACTION.
ALL RIGHT. THE TIME IS NOW. 647. WE'LL ADJOURN THE BRIEFING WORKSHOP LIKE FIREWORKS,
[4. Open Meeting, Invocation and Pledges of Allegiance.]
I THOUGHT. TODAY IS TUESDAY, JANUARY 26TH. THE TIME IS 7 P.M. WHAT IS IT? OH THANK YOU, I APPRECIATE. TODAY IS TUESDAY, JANUARY 6TH, 2026 AND THE TIME IS NOW 7:01 P.M. AND THIS IS THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE LEANDER CITY COUNCIL. PASTOR WENDELL HOLMES WILL PROVIDE THE INVOCATION. PLEASE REMAIN STANDING FOLLOWING THE INVOCATION FOR THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. COME ON. FORWARD.[00:05:10]
HAPPY NEW YEAR, Y'ALL. LOOKING GOOD. Y'ALL LOOKING GOOD. AMEN. GOD IS GOOD TO US. THE JUST SHALL LIVE BY FAITH. OUR FAITH IS FOUND IN THE LIFE AND THE DEATH, THE RESURRECTION AND THE RETURN OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS. HE IS THE CHRIST. LET US PRAY. GRACIOUS HEAVENLY FATHER, FATHER OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR, JESUS, WHO IS THE CHRIST AND FATHER, GOD, THE HOLY SPIRIT, WHO LIVES IN US, ON US AND UPON US. WE THANK YOU AND HONOR YOU TODAY FOR CROSSING US OVER INTO THE YEAR 2026. YOU ARE TIMELESS AS YOUR WORD SAYS, YOU ARE THE SAME YESTERDAY, TODAY AND FOREVER. WE ARE EARTHLY AND ETERNALLY GRATEFUL FOR WHO YOU ARE IN OUR LIVES. WE THANK YOU FOR THIS COUNCIL WHO'S PROVIDED GOOD POLICY. WE'RE THANKFUL FOR THE CHIEF OF POLICE, MINTON FOR GOOD PROTECTION, FOR CHIEF WUSTERHAUSEN, FOR GOOD PRESERVATION. AND WE'RE ALSO THANKFUL FOR LORD, THE PEOPLE THAT YOU HAVE IN THIS GATHERED PLACE. WE ASK FOR CONTINUED GUIDANCE AND WISDOM FOR THIS YEAR AS WE FACE THE UNKNOWN. BUT YET YOU ARE FAITHFUL. WE THANK YOU, DEAR LORD, FOR THE PAST YEAR THAT YOU'VE BROUGHT US THROUGH. WE'VE BEEN TESTED AND WE'VE HAD TRIUMPH. WE'VE HAD SOME UPS AND WE'VE HAD SOME DOWNS. BUT YET, GOD, YOU HAVE BEEN FAITHFUL UNTO US IN SPITE OF US AND DESPITE OF US. WE ASK DEAR GOD, FOR FORGIVENESS OF SINS TODAY, THAT YOU WILL WASH US AND CLEANSE US FROM ALL UNRIGHTEOUSNESS, CLEAR OUR MINDS, CLEAN OUR HEARTS, COMMIT OUR HANDS TO YOUR SERVICE, TO THE SERVICE OF THE PEOPLE AND THIS COMMUNITY, IN THIS CITY, IN THIS COUNTY. WE PRAY, OH GOD, THAT YOUR GLORY WOULD SET UPON THIS PLACE AND UPON THIS COUNCIL FOR THIS COMING YEAR. AND WE KNOW THAT WE HAVE ELECTIONS COMING UP. WE ASK, OH GOD, THAT WE WOULD VOTE WISELY AND THAT WE WOULD VOTE CIVILLY.WE THANK YOU FOR THE PRIVILEGE TO BE EVEN TO PARTICIPATE IN VOTING. DEAR GOD, WE ASK OH GOD THAT YOU WILL CROWN THE HEADS AND WISDOM OF THOSE WHO ARE ENGAGED IN ACTIVITIES OF THE CITIES, FROM BOARDS TO PLAYGROUNDS TO BUSINESSES, TO JOBS, TO EVEN JUST PICKING UP THE TRASH TO GOD, WE THANK YOU FOR A COMMUNITY, DEAR LORD HAS THAT HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED NATIONALLY AND STATEWIDE. WE HELP AND PRAY, OH GOD, THAT WE HOPE TO CONTINUE TO BUILD AND MAKE A DIFFERENCE. LET YOUR LIGHT SO SHINE, THAT MEN MAY GLORIFY YOU, AND THAT YOU MAY BE HONORED, THAT MEN MAY SEE YOUR GOOD WORKS AND GLORIFY YOU TO THE FATHER WHICH IS IN HEAVEN. WE ASK THESE THINGS IN THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, AND IN THE NAME OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS, HE IS THE CHRIST, AND ALL THAT BELIEVED SAID, AMEN, AMEN, AMEN, AMEN, AMEN.
NOW FOR THE PLEDGE. PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS. ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. HONOR THE TEXAS FLAG. PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE TEXAS. ONE UNDER GOD, ONE AND INDIVISIBLE. ALRIGHT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, PASTOR HOLMES. WE'LL MOVE ON TO ITEM FIVE. CITY SECRETARY CRABTREE, WILL YOU PLEASE CALL ROLL? COUNCIL MEMBER STEVEN CHANG, PRESENT COUNCIL MEMBER MICHAEL HERRERA HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER NATALIE BLAIR, PRESENT. MAYOR PRO TEM NICOLE THOMPSON, PRESENT. COUNCIL MEMBER ANDREW NORDIN HERE. COUNCIL MEMBER
[6. Ceremonial Oath of Office to newly elected Councilmember Place 3.
[Following the oath of office, there will be a brief reception in the foyer.]]
[00:10:10]
AND THEY TELL ME WHAT YOU RAISE YOUR RIGHT HAND. I MAKE TONY BLAIR, I MAKE TONY BLAIR SOLEMNLY SWEAR, SOLEMNLY SWEAR OR AFFIRM OR AFFIRM THAT I WILL FAITHFULLY EXECUTE THE DUTIES, THAT I WILL FAITHFULLY EXECUTE THE DUTIES OF THE OFFICE OF THE CITY OF LEANDER. OF THE OFFICE OF THE CITY OF LEANDER. CITY COUNCIL PLACE THREE. CITY COUNCIL.PLACE THREE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS, OF THE STATE OF TEXAS. AND WILL TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY AND WILL TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY, PRESERVE, PRESERVE, PROTECT, PROTECT AND DEFEND AND DEFEND THE CONSTITUTION, THE CONSTITUTION AND LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES AND LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES, AND OF THIS STATE AND OF THIS STATE. SO HELP ME GOD. SO HELP ME GOD.
AT THIS TIME, WE'LL HEAR FROM COUNCILWOMAN TONY BLAIR. THANK YOU SO MUCH, MARTIN THOMPSON. TONIGHT WE ARE UNITED BY MANY OF MY FAMILY MEMBERS, FRIENDS, LEADERS, NEIGHBORS AND SUPPORTERS. THANK YOU FOR COMING TO SHARE IN THIS HONORARY OCCASION WITH ME. I WOULD LIKE TO SINCERELY THANK THE CITIZENS OF LEANDER FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SERVE AND STEWARD THIS GREAT CITY. I DON'T TAKE IT FOR GRANTED THE OPPORTUNITY, NOR THE DEPTH OF RESPONSIBILITY. YOU'VE ENTRUSTED IT TO ME, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUING TO CONNECT WITH YOU ALL AS WE MAKE PROGRESS IN SHAPING THE FUTURE OF LEANDER. WE, OUR COMMUNITY.
TO THE COUNCIL MEMBERS SEATED HERE TODAY AND IN THE FUTURE, THE MANY CITY OF LEANDER STAFF MEMBERS, FIRST RESPONDERS, BUSINESS AND COMMUNITY LEADERS INVESTED DAILY. I LOOK FORWARD TO UPHOLDING THIS GREAT WORK BESTOWED UPON US, AND I PRAY THAT WE ARE GUIDED TO WORK TOGETHER FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE CITIZENS OF LEANDER. WITHIN EACH AND EVERY DECISION WE MAKE, BECAUSE THEY ARE MY HEART. I WANT TO THANK MY WONDERFUL, LOVING HUSBAND JOSHUA, AND THREE SONS, JOSIAH, NOAH, AND JONAH. THE STRENGTH OF ANY GREAT LEADER BEGINS AT HOME. I LOOK FORWARD TO SHOWING AND SHARING THIS JOURNEY WITH YOU, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, BEING AN EXAMPLE OF KNOWING THAT WITH THE POWER OF PRAYER AND GOD'S PURPOSE WORKING IN YOUR LIFE, YOU CAN ACCOMPLISH JUST WHAT YOU WERE CREATED TO BE ON THIS EARTH. IN CLOSING, I THANK YOU ALL. MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND MAY GOD BLESS THE CITY OF LEANDER. AND WE BEFORE WE HEAD OUT FOR THE RECEPTION, I ALSO WANT TO GIVE COUNCIL AN OPPORTUNITY TO SAY THEIR WELCOMES TO YOU ON THE DAIS, AND WE'LL START WITH PLACE ONE. YOU KNOW, I FEEL LIKE I'VE GOTTEN A CHANCE TO KNOW YOU TELL ME A BIT OVER THE LAST YEAR, YOU KNOW, THROUGH OUR RACE IN MAY AND THEN ALSO OVER THE LAST FEW MONTHS. AND I JUST WANTED TO SAY THAT I'VE HAD THE CHANCE TO OBSERVE, REALLY, YOUR SERVANT'S HEART AND WILLINGNESS TO SERVE YOUR COMMUNITY. AND I WISH YOU THE BEST. AND I LOOK FORWARD TO SERVING WITH YOU. EXCELLENT PLACE TO CAN YOU TELL ME? I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU AND LEARNING MORE ABOUT YOU, AND JUST LEARNING HOW YOUR MIND WORKS AND HOW YOU GO THROUGH THINGS. AND I APPRECIATE YOUR. YOU ALWAYS HAVE A SMILE, YOU'RE ALWAYS PLEASANT, AND IT'S ALL THE TIME THAT I'VE KNOWN YOU OVER THE LAST YEAR AND A HALF OR SO. I'VE ALWAYS FELT THAT WAY. THANK YOU. EXCELLENT. PLEASE. FIVE. SO I TOO HAVE HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY GET TO KNOW EL PASO, AS I FONDLY CALL HER. WE BOTH FROM THE 915. SO, YOU KNOW, WE GOT SOME WE GOT SOME THINGS COOKING HERE IN LEANDER. IT WAS A GREAT PLEASURE TO RUN ALONGSIDE WITH YOU BACK IN MAY, AND THEN TO SEE YOU STEP UP AND TAKE AN ADDITIONAL OPPORTUNITY TO PUT YOURSELF ON COUNCIL, WHICH I FELT IS A PLACE THAT YOU SHOULD BE. SO I'M REALLY THRILLED AT THE FACT THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO, YOU KNOW, GET SOMEONE OF
[00:15:03]
YOUR, YOUR, YOUR PASSION ON THIS COUNCIL TO COMPLIMENT THE PASSION OF, OF OUR COMPETITORS PREVIOUSLY. I THINK IT'S A GREAT COMBINATION. I THINK IT'S GOING TO LEAD TO A TREMENDOUS COLLABORATIVE ENVIRONMENT, AND I'M DEFINITELY EXCITED TO BE WORKING ALONGSIDE NOT ONLY YOU, BUT THE REMAINING MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL. AT THIS POINT. I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THE FUTURE, SO WELCOME ABOARD. EXCELLENT PLACES. I'VE ENJOYED GETTING TO KNOW YOU OVER THE LAST FEW MONTHS, AND I'M REALLY EXCITED FOR WHAT WE CAN GET GOING TOGETHER. SO WE JUST GOT TO MOVE FORWARD AND KEEP THE CITY ROLLING. EXCELLENT. AND WE HAVE KNOWN EACH OTHER OVER SOME YEARS IN THE SIMILAR CIRCLES, MAYBE NOT KNOWN EACH OTHER VERY CLOSELY UNTIL THE LAST FEW YEARS. SO I'M HONORED TO WORK NEXT TO YOU AND EXCITED FOR YOUR TENURE HERE ON COUNCIL AND ALL THAT YOU BRING. SO WELCOME. AND IF YOU NEED ANYTHING FROM ME, LET ME KNOW. I'M HAPPY TO PROVIDE IT. WELL, WE WILL RELEASE FOR A RECEPTION UNTIL 725. PLEASE BE BACK IN BY CAN YT ME? I GOT I GOT IT, I GOT IT REAL QUICK. ALL RIGHT. AS WE GET STARTED BACK, IF WE HAVE ANY ELECTED OFFICIALS THAT ARE STILL HERE, WE WANT TO RECOGNIZE YOU. IF YOU WANT TO STAND AND WE'LL BE RECOGNIZED AT THIS TIME. I KNOW WE HAD SOME EARLIER, AND THEY MAY HAVE[7. Public comments on items not listed in the agenda.
Public comments on items listed in the agenda will be heard at the time each item is discussed.
[All comments are limited to no more than 3 minutes (6 minutes if translation is needed) per individual.]]
THIS IS ME SPEAKING. MY NAME IS MARCIA BECK AND I LIVE AT 1013. BURGESS. IS YOUR MIC ON? I CAN'T HEAR YOU. NO, BUT THEY SAY, PUT ME IN FRONT OF A MIC AND I'LL SHUT UP. BUT THERE WE GO. OH, THERE WE GO. OKAY. MY NAME IS MARCIA BECK AND I LIVE AT 1013 BURGESS DRIVE, AND I'VE BEEN HERE 20 YEARS. SO A LOT OF YOU KNOW ME AND HAVE SEEN ME IN MANY DIFFERENT CAPACITIES. I OWN A BUSINESS IN TOWN, SO. AND ALSO I VOLUNTEER WHEREVER I CAN. BUT TODAY I'M GOING TO TALK ABOUT BLUE SANTA, AND IT FEELS REALLY WEIRD TO BE TALKING ABOUT CHRISTMAS WHEN IT'S 80 DEGREES OUT THERE. SO RECENTLY WE FORMED A BOARD OF DIRECTORS FOR BLUE SANTA, MADE UP OF SPECIFIC ENTITIES SO WE COULD CONNECT EVERYONE. AND IT'S ONE OF THEM IS LEANDER CITIZENS POLICE ACADEMY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION, THE LEANDER CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, THE LEANDER LAW ENFORCEMENT ASSOCIATION, THE COMMAND STAFF AT LEANDER POLICE DEPARTMENT, CLERGY THAT WAS REPRESENTED BY JOE BOB ELLISON, LEANDER ISD, AND THE CITY OF LEANDER. AND I'M HERE TO THANK THE CITY OF LEANDER AND EVERYBODY. THERE'S A MILLION OF YOU OUT THERE. WE HAD AN EXTREMELY SUCCESSFUL SEASON. WE HAD OVER 90 VOLUNTEERS, BUT 70 SHOWED UP THE DAY OF DISTRIBUTION, INCLUDING OUR MAYOR PRO TEM. AND ALL OF YOU HAVE BEEN INSTRUMENTAL, AND KENT'S ON OUR BOARD AND IT'S JUST AMAZING. IT REALLY WARMS MY HEART. AND I'M HERE AS AN INDIVIDUAL, NOT FOR MY ORGANIZATION, BUT I'M HERE AS AN INDIVIDUAL. JUST SAYING THAT IT REALLY WARMS MY HEART. AND THE FACT THAT WE HAD A BUILDING THAT FIVE UNITS WERE DONATED BY THE OWNER OF THE BUILDING AND ALL OF OUR VOLUNTEERS, WE SERVED 1100 CHILDREN, MAYBE EVEN MORE, BECAUSE THERE WERE SOME THAT SLIPPED THROUGH, AND WE SERVED 500 FAMILIES IN LEANDER. AND THAT'S SUPER IMPORTANT TO ME. AND AS I'M THINKING, WE ARE MOVING ON LIKE WE HAVE MLK, THAT WE THINK OF THE DREAM THAT MARTIN LUTHER KING DREAMED. I HAVE MY DREAM FOR LEANDER, AND THIS WAS PART OF IT, AND I WOULD LOVE TO SEE IT GO ON AND ON. AND THE SUPPORT OF THE CITY AND ALL THE OTHER ENTITIES THAT I MENTIONED, ALL OF THE POLICE OFFICERS AND EVERYONE, EVERYONE THAT PARTICIPATED JUST MADE IT FEEL VERY WARM. EVEN PEOPLE COMMENTED. WHO WERE PARTICIPANTS, WHO WERE THE RECIPIENTS. AND AGAIN, I WANT TO SAY THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU AND THANKS FOR BEING THERE. AND NEXT YEAR IT'LL BE BIGGER AND BETTER. UNFORTUNATELY, I HOPE THAT WE GET PUT OUT OF BUSINESS. THAT MEANS THAT THE CHILDREN DON'T NEED US, BUT THERE WILL ALWAYS BE SOMEONE THAT NEEDS US, AND WE'RE VERY FORTUNATE TO HAVE BUSINESS PEOPLE AND COMMUNITY PEOPLE, EVERYBODY HELPING US TO DO THIS. THANK YOU, THANK YOU. WE WILL MOVE TO ITEM EIGHT, RECOGNITION OF SPECIAL GUESTS AND VISITORS AND
[8. Recognitions/Proclamations/Visitors.
]
[00:20:11]
PROCLAMATIONS. ITEM ONE WAS A PROCLAMATION RECOGNIZING MLK JUNIOR MARCH AND CELEBRATION ON JANUARY 19TH. IT'S BEEN MOVED TO THE JANUARY 15TH MEETING, AND ITEM TWO IS A CERTIFICATE OF RECOGNITION RECOGNIZING LEANDER HIGH SCHOOL BAND SIXTH PLACE FINISH IN STATE. SO WE WOULD ASK YOU ALL TO COME TO THE FRONT. AND I WILL READ THIS CERTIFICATE OF COMMENDATION, AND THEN WE'LL COME DOWN AND TAKE A PICTURE. AND IF THERE'S ANYONE FROM YOUR GROUP THAT HAS COMMENTS, THEY'LL BE WELCOME TO MAKE THOSE. LET IT BE KNOWN THAT LEANDER HIGH SCHOOL BAND IS RECOGNIZED BY THE MAYOR PRO TEM AND THE CITY COUNCIL OF LEANDER, TEXAS FOR EARNING SIXTH PLACE AT THE 2025 UIL STATE MARCHING BAND COMPETITION. YOUR COMMITMENT TO HARD WORK, TEAMWORK, AND ARTISTIC PERFORMANCE HAS BROUGHT GREAT PRIDE TO LEANDER.CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL INVOLVED FOR THE COUNTLESS HOURS OF REHEARSAL, UNWAVERING DETERMINATION AND SUPPORT, AND PASSION FOR EXCELLENCE. THIS CERTIFICATE IS ISSUED IN RECOGNITION THEREOF ON THIS DAY, JANUARY 6TH, 2026. THANK YOU GUYS. IS THERE ANYBODY FROM YOUR GROUP THAT WOULD LIKE TO SHARE COMMENTS ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE? YOU DON'T HAVE TO, BUT IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO, YOU'RE WELCOME TO. NO. OKAY. I DON'T WANT TO PUT YOU ON THE SPOT. OKAY. WE'RE GOING TO COME DOWN AND TAKE A PICTURE WITH YOU. I JUST WOULD LIKE TO SAY IF WE CAN GET YOU TO COME TO THE MIC SO WE ALL CAN HEAR YOU. YEAH, I WAS PLANNING TO SAY NOTHING ONLY BUT TO THANK YOU GUYS FOR BRINGING THEM HERE AND RECOGNIZING ALL THE HARD WORK OF THE STUDENTS. ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. I ALSO WANT TO THANK THE COMMUNITY OF LEANDER. AS MOST PEOPLE KNOW, THIS IS SUCH A DESTINATION FOR WHAT WE DO HERE IN FINE ARTS, AND I'M JUST SO PROUD TO BE A LITTLE PART OF IT. AND SO PROUD OF THESE STUDENTS AND ALL THE PARENTS AND VOLUNTEERS THAT HELP US. SO THANK EVERYBODY FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY. THANK YOU. YES.
OKAY. AND. AND OKAY. MAN. NO FRENCH WORDS. WHAT IS GOING ON HERE? HOW'S THE FRENCH HORN GIRL? SO SERIOUS. LIKE SO. OKAY, SO YOU GET TOGETHER WITH. YEAH, WE NEED TO. YEAH, WE NEED TO.
YEAH. I'LL COME TO THE FRONT AND WE'LL GET ON. OKAY? YEP. THANKS. OKAY. AWESOME. THANK YOU ALL. SO MUCH. BETTER NOW MARCHING. OUT. THERE YOU GO. THANK YOU. THINK I'M MAKING THINGS UP? OH. THANK YOU.
I JUST SAY AS A MEMBER. YES, I'D LIKE THE STATEMENTS OF THE PUBLIC AND PEOPLE KNOW WHY. THE WHY? ALRIGHT. WE GAVE THEM A FEW MOMENTS TO TO LEAVE THERE.
[ CONSENT AGENDA: ACTION]
WE'RE GOING TO MOVE TO OUR CONSENT AGENDA. COUNCIL WILL CONSIDER CONSENT ITEM NINE THROUGH 20. AND THERE WAS A CORRECTION TO THE VOTE ON ITEM 33. IT WAS 5 TO 1 WITH COUNCIL MEMBER HERRERA OPPOSING. SO WE'RE GOING TO APPROVE THAT AS AMENDED. WHAT WE TALKED ABOUT TODAY. SO COUNCIL THIS IS AN ACTION ITEM I'LL MAKE THE MOTION SECOND. ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR. NONE OPPOSED. THE ITEM CARRIES. THANK YOU.[21. Conduct a Public Hearing on a proposed amendment to the existing Contract for Solid Waste Disposal and Collection Services between the City of Leander and Al Clawson Disposal, Inc., effective August 6, 2020, which is an exclusive contract for provision of Solid Waste collection and disposal services within the City, as well as other services providing to extend the term of the contract for three (3) years to January 31, 2029.
]
[00:25:07]
AND NOW WE'LL MOVE INTO OUR PUBLIC HEARING WITH ITEM 21. WE'LL CONDUCT A PUBLIC HEARING ON THE PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO THE EXISTING CONTRACT FOR SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL AND COLLECTION SERVICES BETWEEN THE CITY OF LEANDER AND AL CLAWSON DISPOSAL, INC, EFFECTIVE AUGUST 6TH, 2020, WHICH IS AN EXCLUSIVE CONTRACT FOR PROVISION OF SOLID WASTE COLLECTION AND DISPOSAL SERVICES WITHIN THE CITY, AS WELL AS OTHER SERVICES PROVIDING TO EXTEND THE TERM OF THE CONTRACT FOR THREE YEARS TO JANUARY 31ST, 2029. ASSISTANT TO THE CITY MANAGER. WELCOME.HAPPY NEW YEAR MAYOR PRO TEM AND COUNCIL. HAPPY NEW YEAR. ALL RIGHT, LET'S TALK SOME MORE TRASH. BACK IN DECEMBER, WE HELD A WORKSHOP WITH Y'ALL AND WENT THROUGH THE CURRENT SERVICES WE CURRENTLY HAVE WITH CLAWSON FOR SOLID WASTE SERVICES. AND FROM THERE, STAFF PROVIDED RECOMMENDATION FOR THREE YEAR EXTENSION WITH THE CONTRACT. AND THE PURPOSE OF THAT IS TO REALLY FOCUS ON GARNERING RESIDENT FEEDBACK AND BUSINESS FEEDBACK THIS YEAR, AND REALLY HONE IN ON WHAT TYPE OF SERVICES RIGHT NOW, PEOPLE FEEL ABOUT, AND THEN ALSO SEE WHAT OTHER SERVICES WE MAY WANT TO CONSIDER IN THE FUTURE, AND ALSO TAKE THE TIME TO COMPARE OURSELVES WITH OTHER OTHER CITIES IN THE AREA AREA, AND THEN OTHER CITIES THAT WE MAY GROW TO BECOME LIKE SIMILAR. AND SO WITH THAT, THIS IS THE PUBLIC HEARING. AND WE DO HAVE TANYA CLAWSON HERE. AND SO WITH THAT, I'LL LEAVE IT TO THE PUBLIC HEARING. WE'RE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS AFTERWARDS. IS SHE HERE TO MAKE A PRESENTATION OR NO? OKAY. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. THE PUBLIC HEARING IS NOW OPEN AND I'LL CALL ON WITH SUBMITTED CARDS.
WE DO HAVE ONE PERSON THAT HAS SIGNED UP TO SPEAK. YEAH. JAY HOWARD, IF YOU WOULD COME FORWARD, YOU CAN GIVE YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS AND YOU'LL HAVE. THREE MINUTES, I GUESS. YEAH.
JAY HOWARD, I'M WITH TEXAS DISPOSAL SYSTEMS AT 12 200 CARL ROAD IN CREEDMOOR. FIRST OF ALL, MAYOR, COUNCIL, CITY MANAGER. I APPRECIATE Y'ALL GIVING ME A FEW MINUTES OF YOUR TIME TONIGHT. TDS IS A LOCAL, FAMILY OWNED, SOLID WASTE AND RECYCLING SERVICES COMPANY.
BEEN IN BUSINESS FOR 49 YEARS THIS MONTH. WHILE WE'RE A REGIONAL COMPANY, WE HAVE DEVELOPED A NATIONWIDE REPUTATION FOR OUR INNOVATION IN THE IN THE WORLD OF RECYCLING AND LANDFILL DIVERSION, WE DO BUSINESS WITH WITH MANY OTHER MUNICIPALITIES WITHIN THE GREATER AUSTIN AREA, MOST OF THOSE FOR DECADES, AND THEY STAY WITH US FOR THE LEVEL OF SERVICE THEY GET AND AND OUR ABILITY TO HELP THEM INNOVATE AND EXPAND THEIR RECYCLING AND DIVERSION WITHIN THEIR COMMUNITY. WE ALSO WORK WITH A LOT OF INDUSTRIAL CUSTOMERS. WE WERE AT THE WILLIAMSON COUNTY GROWTH SUMMIT A WEEK BEFORE CHRISTMAS, AND IT'S JUST INCREDIBLE THE AMOUNT OF DEVELOPMENT THAT'S ON THE SLATE FOR THE NEXT 5 TO 10 YEARS IN THIS AREA. WE'VE BEEN PARTNERING WITH COMPANIES THAT HAVE BEEN MOVING THEIR OPERATIONS TO THIS AREA FOR QUITE A LONG TIME. WE DO BUSINESS WITH SAMSUNG, WITH YETI, WITH TESLA. COMPANIES LIKE THIS THAT HAVE VERY LOFTY SUSTAINABILITY AND DIVERSION GOALS, AND WE'RE ABLE TO HELP. WE'RE ABLE TO PARTNERSHIP OR PARTNER WITH THEM TO HELP THEM MEET THOSE GOALS. Q2 STADIUM, THE HOME OF AUSTIN FC THE YEAR BEFORE LAST, WE WERE ABLE TO HELP THEM BECOME CERTIFIED AS THE FIRST ZERO WASTE SOCCER STADIUM ON THE PLANET. WE HAVE AN EXTRAORDINARY SCHOOL SYSTEM PROGRAM. IT'S CALLED TDS ECO ACADEMY. WE LAST YEAR FROM THE GREEN BUILDING COUNCIL OF THE UNITED STATES, RECEIVED AN AWARD FOR THE BEST RECYCLING PROGRAM FOR SCHOOL SYSTEMS IN THE COUNTRY. AS A MATTER OF FACT, LEANDER ISD, THE YEAR BEFORE LAST DID AN RFP, SELECTED OUR COMPANY TO BE THEIR DISTRICT'S SOLID WASTE SERVICE PROVIDER, AND THEY CITED OUR ECO ACADEMY PROGRAM AS ONE OF THE MAIN REASONS. AND THEY WERE LOOKING FOR A COMPANY THAT COULD PROVIDE, YOU KNOW, MORE STEADY, RELIABLE SERVICES.
UNFORTUNATELY, THEY LEARNED THAT THAT THEY WERE UNDER THE CITY OF LEANDER CONTRACT FOR THE THE CAMPUSES WITHIN THE CITY LIMITS. SO THEY WEREN'T ACTUALLY ABLE TO MAKE THAT TRANSITION AT THAT TIME. BUT ALL OF THIS TO SAY, THERE'S A LOT THAT'S CHANGED IN THE INDUSTRY. IT'S NOT JUST TRASH PICKUP AT THE CURB LIKE IT WAS 25, 30 YEARS AGO. THE LAST TIME THERE WAS AN RFP IN LEANDER. SO OUR ASK IS THAT AS YOU'RE CONSIDERING A RENEWAL OF THE EXISTING CONTRACT, THAT YOU WOULD ALSO CONSIDER OPENING THIS UP TO A COMPETITIVE BID PROCESS, WHERE OTHER COMPANIES WITHIN THE MARKET CAN KIND OF SHARE THE VALUE THAT THEY COULD
[00:30:03]
PROVIDE. THE CITY, AS YOU GROW, CONTINUE TO GROW. SO THAT'S MY ASK. I APPRECIATE YOUR TIME VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. Y'ALL TAKE CARE. WE DON'T HAVE ANYBODY ELSE THAT'S SIGNED UP TO GIVE A COMMENT ON THIS ITEM. SO THE PUBLIC HEARING IS NOW CLOSED, AND WE'LL DISCUSS AND CONSIDER ACTION ON THE FIRST READING OF THE ORDINANCE AMENDING THE EXISTING SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL AND COLLECTION SERVICES BETWEEN CITY OF LEANDER AND AL CLAWSON DISPOSAL INC, AS DESCRIBED ABOVE ON THE POSTED AGENDA COUNCIL. DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT OR ANY DISCUSSION POINTS? PLACE ONE. NO. OKAY. PLEASE DO. I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS IS AS WE AS WE GO TO LOOK AT APPROVING THIS, I'D LIKE TO SEE US LOOK AT ADDING ADDITIONAL SERVICES, MAYBE EVEN SOME PAY AS YOU GO SERVICES. LIKE MAYBE LIKE, YOU KNOW, I KNOW I BROUGHT UP ELECTRONIC DISPOSAL STUFF LIKE THAT. IF THERE WERE SOME WAY THAT WE COULD INDIVIDUALLY GO TO THEM AND DO STUFF OR HAVE COLLECTION DATES LIKE THAT WHERE WE PAY FOR IT INSTEAD OF THE CITY PAYING FOR IT OR THINGS LIKE THAT. I THINK ANOTHER ITEM WOULD BE GETTING RID OF PAINT, THINGS LIKE THAT. I THINK, YOU KNOW, ANOTHER THING WOULD BE, IS AS WE KIND OF GO THROUGH THIS THING IS KIND OF THIS NEXT THREE YEARS IS KIND OF OPEN IT UP AND SEE IF WE CAN BUILD INTO IT WHAT WE'RE GOING TO ASK FOR GOING FORWARD. SO NOT WAIT THREE YEARS TO KIND OF DEVELOP WHAT THE SERVICE LOOKS LIKE, BUT LOOK AT DEVELOPING IT WHILE WE'RE IN THE EXTENSION. SO THAT'S JUST ONE OF THE THINGS I WOULD LIKE TO SEE IF WHEN WE APPROVE THIS, JUST TO CLARIFY, TO SEE THAT FOR THE NEXT ROUND, NOT NECESSARILY FOR A CHANGE TO THIS PARTICULAR CONTRACT. WELL, I THINK THAT WHAT I'M SAYING IS, IS THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GOING TO NEED TO IF WE VOTE TO EXTEND THIS. WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE IS IN THE EXTENSION, I WOULD LIKE US TO WORK ON THE CONTRACT IN THE EXTENSION. I DON'T WANT TO WAIT THREE YEARS TO DECIDE THAT WE CAN HAVE A SECOND PICKUP FOR RECYCLING, A SECOND PICKUP FOR WHATEVER OR ALL THESE OTHER THINGS WE WANT. OKAY. THANK YOU. PLACE THREE. I CONCUR WITH COUNCILMAN HERRERA THAT, YOU KNOW, WE JUST WE SHOULD CONSIDER PRIOR TO THE EXTENSION OF THE AGREEMENT, I'M LOOKING AT SOME ADDITIONAL WAYS BY WHICH WE CAN SUPPORT INNOVATIVE TRASH PICKUP, PLEASE. FIVE. GOING BACK TO OUR FIRST WORKSHOP ON THIS, I THINK SOME OF THE CONVERSATION POINTS THAT WE'RE BRINGING UP THIS EVENING, WHILE I CONCUR WITH THE CONCERNS, WE DID COVER THAT, AND I THINK THE INITIAL INTENT OF THIS EXTENSION WAS TO ENSURE THAT THE CURRENT SERVICES DO NOT DISSIPATE OR HAVE ANY RADICAL CHANGES. FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE, IF I RECALL CORRECTLY, AND I AND I'M GOING BY MEMORY, I THINK THERE WAS SOME DISCUSSION OF SOME ADDITIONAL. ATTRIBUTES TO THE NEW CONTRACT. BUT WHEN I'M READING WHAT WE HAVE HERE, IT'S ESSENTIALLY PROPOSED RENEWAL OF EXTENDING THE CURRENT CONTRACT FOR THREE YEARS. SPECIFICALLY, SAY DOES NOT CHANGE ANY OF THE OTHER EXISTING TERMS AND SERVICES. SO DID WE DID WE NOT DO ANY OF THAT OR AM I MISREMEMBERING? SO IN DISCUSSIONS AT THE LAST WORKSHOP, THE PURPOSE OF THIS AMENDMENT IS TO TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE CONTINUING THE EXTENSION OF THE CONTRACT UNDER EXISTING SERVICES, WE CAN BRING BACK A SECOND AMENDMENT WITH THE SERVICES. AND THAT'S ACTUALLY COMMON TO IN OTHER CITIES THAT HAVE CHANGES TO RATES AND CHANGES TO SERVICES EACH YEAR. SO FOR SAY, PURPOSES OF THIS, SINCE IT'S EXPIRING AT THE END OF THE MONTH AND WE HAVE THE MEETING NEXT WEEK, WE MAKE SURE THAT WE CONTINUE THE SERVICES. AND THEN I HAVE HAD A MEETING WITH TANYA CLAWSON AND HER TEAM AS WELL, ABOUT THE THINGS THAT Y'ALL DISCUSSED UP HERE AT THE LAST WORKSHOP. AND SO I THINK THEY'RE OPEN TO IDEAS. AND SO I THINK WE CAN TAKE THIS TIME TO, TO KIND OF LOOK AT WHAT CAN WE BRING BACK FOR, YOU KNOW, CHANGES IN SERVICE AS WELL. SO WE JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE WE GET THE CURRENT SERVICES GOING, AND WE CAN BRING BACK AN AMENDMENT SPECIFICALLY FOR THE SERVICES. OKAY. THANK YOU FOR THE CLARIFICATION. BUT WE DO WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE UNDERSTANDING OF OUR CONSTITUENTS ARE THAT THIS IS AN EXTENSION OF THE EXISTING CONTRACT, PRIMARILY DUE TO THE FACT THAT IT ENDS ON THE 26TH OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT OF THIS MONTH. RIGHT? YEAH. SO THAT'S WHERE THAT'S THE FIRST STEP.AND THEN AGAIN, SOME OF THE OTHER THINGS THAT MY CONTEMPORARIES HAVE DISCUSSED THIS EVENING, I THINK WE'LL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO BRING THAT BACK UP AND AND DISCUSS FURTHER. SO THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. PLEASE, PLEASE. SIX I'M SORRY. WELL, I'M GOING BACK TO WHAT YOU WERE SAYING. IS THAT THE THE REASON FOR THIS IS TO GIVE US THE OPPORTUNITY TO MEET WITH THE COMMUNITY AND GET THE FEEDBACK OF WHAT? AND NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT WHAT OUR FOLKS WANT IN THE CITY, AND SO THAT WE CAN EVALUATE THAT. BECAUSE A LOT OF THESE THINGS DO HAVE A COST ASSOCIATED WITH THEM THAT DOES GET PASSED ALONG TO THE CONSUMER, TOO. SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE GETTING THOSE THINGS. AND AND AS THE CITY MANAGER SAID AT OUR LAST MEETING, THIS THREE YEAR EXTENSION ALLOWS US TO PROPERLY VET ALL THESE THINGS. SO I THIS
[00:35:06]
MAKES TOTAL SENSE. EXCELLENT. I HAVE A QUESTION FOR YOU. WHILE IT'S A THREE YEAR EXTENSION, IF THERE ARE CHANGES THAT WE WANT TO SEE, WHEN DID YOU THINK WE'LL HAVE ENOUGH INFORMATION FROM THE COMMUNITY TO BE ABLE TO IMPLEMENT THAT AND ADD AN ADDENDUM? YEAH, I THINK ONCE WE GET PAST THIS, WE CAN WORK INTERNALLY WITH STAFF AND LOOK AT THE CURRENT SERVICES OFFERING, LOOK AT WHAT THINGS ARE OUT THERE IN THE REGION AND OTHER GROWING COMMUNITIES AS WELL, AND ACTUALLY PUT TOGETHER A SURVEY. AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE WORK THROUGH THAT SURVEY WITH COUNCIL AS WELL, MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE GETTING FEEDBACK THAT MEETS THE RESIDENTS NEEDS, BUT ALSO THE BUSINESS NEEDS. WE'RE SEEING THAT HUGE SHIFT IN COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT, ESPECIALLY WITH BIG BOX RETAILERS, SMALL BUSINESSES COMING IN. SO WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO PUT A FEEDBACK WHERE WE'RE GOING TO GARNER SOME MEANINGFUL INFORMATION. SO THE INTENT IS TO DO IT THIS YEAR. I WOULD, YOU KNOW, HOPE WE CAN THROW SOMETHING OUT MAYBE BY THIS SUMMER. BUT IF WE CAN TAKE SOME TIME TO PLAN THAT OUT.EXCELLENT. THANK YOU. WELL, I WILL MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE SECOND. ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? ALL RIGHT. THE VOTE IS UNANIMOUS. THANK YOU. WE'LL
[22. Conduct a Public Hearing on an Ordinance granting a franchise to Google Fiber Texas, LLC, described as a non-exclusive franchise to install, maintain, operate, and control fiber optic infrastructure network in public right-of-way of the city of Leander, Texas.
]
THANK YOU. THE PUBLIC HEARING IS NOW OPEN. WE DIDN'T HAVE ANYBODY THAT SIGNED UP TO SPEAK ON THIS PARTICULAR ITEM. THEREFORE, THE PUBLIC HEARING IS CLOSED AND WE'LL DISCUSS AND CONSIDER ACTION ON THE FIRST READING OF THE ORDINANCE GRANTING A FRANCHISE TO GOOGLE FIBER TEXAS, LLC, AS DESCRIBED IN THE ABOVE POSTED AGENDA COUNCIL. DO Y'ALL HAVE ANY CONCERNS, ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU NEED TO RAISE? I'LL START WITH PLACE ONE. SO THIS WAS THE MICRO TRENCHING ORDINANCE THAT WE DISCUSSED EARLIER THIS SUMMER. IS THAT CORRECT? YES.
YEP. SO WE ADOPTED THOSE REQUIREMENTS. AND WITH THAT THIS ALLOWS, YOU KNOW, GOOGLE FIBER TO GO IN AND ACTUALLY MICRO TRENCH I GUESS I JUST HAVE ONE QUESTION WHICH IS FOR OUR GOOGLE FIBER, WHICH IS DO YOU HAVE ANY CONCERNS WITH THE REVISED JOHN MICHAEL WITH GOOGLE FIBER? THANK YOU. GOOD EVENING, COUNCIL JOHN MICHAEL CORTEZ WITH FIBER. AS FAR AS THE ADOPTED MICRO TRENCHING STANDARDS, WE DON'T HAVE ANY SERIOUS ISSUES WITH THAT. THERE ARE A FEW AREAS WHERE IT DEVIATES SLIGHTLY FROM WHAT OUR STANDARD DEPLOYMENT TOOLKIT IS THROUGHOUT CENTRAL TEXAS, BUT WE'VE GONE BACK ON OUR SIDE AND FIGURED OUT A WAY TO MAKE WE THINK WE CAN MAKE IT WORK, SO WE'RE EAGER AND ANXIOUS TO START WORKING WITH YOUR TEAM ON PERMITTING AND START BRINGING MORE AND BETTER INTERNET CHOICES TO TO RESIDENTS AND SMALL BUSINESSES HERE. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. PLEASE, STEVE. SURE. SO I KNOW BEFORE THE COUNCIL, WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT YOUR GUYS'S PLAN ARE, HOW LONG THE BUILD OUT WOULD TAKE AND ALL THAT AND HOW HOW YOU KIND OF CONDUCT BUSINESS AND HOW YOU GO ABOUT IT. I THINK IT'D BE GREAT IF YOU COULD SHARE THAT WITH THE CITY HERE. WELL, ONCE WE GET STARTED AGAIN, WORKING WITH THE CITY ON ON PERMITTING, WE'LL THEN START TO AS WE GET A SENSE OF THE VELOCITY OF OF THE PERMITTING, WE CAN THEN START TO SCHEDULE CONSTRUCTION RESOURCES TO BE ABLE TO START BUILDING IN NEIGHBORHOODS AND CONNECTING FOLKS WITH OUR FIBER
[00:40:05]
DISTRIBUTION NETWORK TO, TO GET THE INTERNET TO THE NEIGHBORHOODS WHERE IT GETS DISTRIBUTED. SO WE ARE HOPEFUL TO ACTUALLY START, POTENTIALLY, DEPENDING ON HOW PERMITTING GOES LATER THIS YEAR, WE MOVE PRETTY QUICKLY. WE ARE, AGAIN, A LITTLE BIT LIMITED HERE WITH HOW MUCH WE CAN TAKE ON AT ONE TIME BECAUSE OF THE LIMITATION ON THE NUMBER OF PERMITS THAT IS IN THE ORDINANCE. AGAIN, WE CAN MAKE IT WORK. BUT JUST AS AN EXAMPLE, WE STARTED IN THE CITY OF ROUND ROCK, A CITY OF SOMEWHAT COMPARABLE SIZE AND GEOLOGY. WE STARTED THERE IN THE FALL OF 2023. AS OF THE END OF THIS, THIS PAST YEAR, WE'RE PRETTY MUCH DONE. THERE'S A FEW AREAS WHERE WE'RE BLOCKED BY SOME PUBLIC WORKS PROJECTS, BUT WE'VE BUILT LIKE 90% PLUS OF THE CITY, SO WE MOVE PRETTY QUICKLY. AND SO BUT AGAIN, WE'LL WE'LL WORK HAND IN HAND WITH THE CITY STAFF BECAUSE WE DON'T WANT TO OVERWHELM THINGS LIKE PERMITTING AND INSPECTION RESOURCES. SO WE'LL WE'LL WORK TOGETHER ON THAT. OKAY. PLEASE DO. I DON'T HAVE ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS AT THIS TIME. PLEASE FLAG. SO THIS PARTICULAR AGREEMENT, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO OUTLINE THE FACT THAT IT IS A NON-EXCLUSIVE FRANCHISING. SO WITH REGARDS TO THAT, JUST TO REFRESH PEOPLE AND I THINK I'M REMEMBERING THIS CORRECTLY, BUT CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, GOOGLE FIBER HAS IDENTIFIED AREAS IN THE CITY WHERE THERE'S EITHER NO SERVICE OR NO OPTIONS, AND THAT IS HOW YOU'RE PRIORITIZING YOUR PERMITTING. FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE, I THINK I MIGHT BE MISREMEMBERING THAT. THAT'S ONE FACTOR WE ALSO NEED TO LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, WHERE ACCESS TO OUR WE'LL HAVE TO BUILD LIKELY A FIBER HUT SOMEWHERE IN THE COMMUNITY. SO IT'S ALSO GOING TO BE, YOU KNOW, WE TEND TO START NEAR WHERE THAT KIND OF CENTRAL OFFICE IS. WE DON'T HAVE TO. BUT THAT'S GENERALLY ONE FACTOR. WE ALSO LOOK AT THE PRESENCE OF OTHER PROVIDERS IN THE AREA. ALSO, AS I KIND OF ALLUDED TO, WE'RE ALSO GOING TO BE WORKING CLOSELY WITH YOUR CITY STAFF ON WHERE DO YOU HAVE PUBLIC WORKS PROJECTS? IF YOU'RE DOING A FULL DEPTH RECONSTRUCTION ON SOME STREETS, WE'LL PROBABLY JUST STAY OUT OF THE WAY FOR A LITTLE WHILE OR WAIT TILL YOUR TOWARDS THE END. WE'D LOVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO TRY TO GET IN THERE BEFORE YOU COVER EVERYTHING UP. YOU KNOW THAT'S GREAT FOR EVERYBODY WHEN THAT OPPORTUNITY, WHEN WE CAN AVAIL OURSELVES OF THAT OPPORTUNITY. SO THERE'S A NUMBER OF FACTORS THAT DETERMINE KIND OF WHERE WE START IN THE SEQUENCE. BUT GENERALLY WE TEND TO START WHEREVER OUR OUR CENTRAL OFFICE WILL BE LOCATED TO SERVE THIS PART OF THE COMMUNITY. AND AT THIS POINT, HAVE YOU IDENTIFIED WHERE THAT MIGHT BE? I BELIEVE WE HAVE AT A HIGH LEVEL. OKAY, BUT I DON'T THINK IT'S FINALIZED YET. OKAY. FAIR ENOUGH, FAIR ENOUGH. THANK YOU. SIX. ALL RIGHT. WELL, THANK YOU. I'M GLAD THAT EVEN THOUGH EVERY ITEM IN THE AGREEMENT IS NOT EXACTLY THE WAY Y'ALL HAVE OPERATED BEFORE, THEY WERE ABLE TO MAKE SOME HEADWAY AND GET THIS DONE AND GIVE OUR RESIDENTS AND BUSINESSES MORE OPTIONS. SO I'M GLAD TO SEE THAT I WILL MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE. I'LL SECOND. ALL RIGHT.WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? ALL RIGHT. MOTION CARRIES. THANK YOU,
[23. Discuss and consider action on the Second Reading of an Ordinance regarding Special Use Case Z-24-0122 regarding a Special Use Permit to allow for a Mobile Food Establishment Park on one (1) parcel of land 0.54 acres ± in size, more particularly described as Williamson Central Appraisal District Parcel R035495; and being located at 703 Crystal Falls Parkway, Leander, Williamson County, Texas.]
THANK YOU. NOW WE'LL MOVE INTO OUR REGULAR AGENDA WITH ITEM 23. DISCUSS AND CONSIDER ACTION ON THE SECOND READING OF AN ORDINANCE REGARDING SPECIAL USE CASE Z DASH 24 0122 REGARDING SPECIAL USE PERMIT TO ALLOW FOR A MOBILE FOOD ESTABLISHMENT PARK ON ONE PARCEL OF LAND 0.54 ACRES PLUS OR MINUS IN SIZE IS STATED ON THE POSTED AGENDA. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT SERVICES, GRIFFIN, WELCOME AND HAPPY NEW YEAR. HAPPY NEW YEAR. SO THIS IS THE SECOND READING OF AN ORDINANCE FOR 703 CRYSTAL FALLS PARKWAY FOOD TRUCK. THIS ITEM IS ON THE REGULAR AGENDA BECAUSE THE VOTE WAS NOT UNANIMOUS LAST WEEK OR LAST MEETING, AND I'LL BE GLAD TO ANSWER ANY. YEAH, LAST YEAR WHEN WE TALKED ABOUT THIS, AND I'LL BE GLAD TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU COUNCIL. DO Y'ALL HAVE ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS FROM LAST TIME OKAY. ALL RIGHT. WELL I WILL GO AHEAD AND MAKE THE MOTION TO APPROVE. ARE YOU READY? I'LL SECOND THAT. ALL RIGHT. WE HAVE A MOTION IN A SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? ALL RIGHT. IT IS 4 TO 2 TO OPPOSING IS COUNCIL MEMBER HERRERA MARCEL. SAME AS LAST TIME. YEAH.[24. Discuss a proposed rail grade separation project at the railroad crossing of Crystal Falls Parkway and US 183 for submitting the City of Leander Detailed Application to the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Off-System Rail Grade Separation State Fund Program.]
THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. WE'LL MOVE TO ITEM 24, DISCUSS A PROPOSED RAIL GRADE SEPARATION PROJECT AT THE RAIL RAILROAD CROSSING OF CRYSTAL FALLS PARKWAY IN US 183 FOR SUBMITTING THE CITY OF LEANDER DETAILED APPLICATION TO THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION. OFF SYSTEM RAIL GRADE SEPARATION. STATE FUND PROGRAM. ASSISTANT TO THE CITY MANAGER. SARAH. WELCOME BACK. IT'S LIKE MY NIGHT. IT IS. ALRIGHT, LET'S TALK SAFETY. I HAVE A TREND GOING HERE WITH LET'S TALK A HINT ARE GETTING READY FOR NEXT WEEK I[00:45:03]
APPRECIATE YOU. YEAH. AND SO AS I BEGIN MY INTRO, I WANTED TO SHOW A VIDEO THAT OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT TOOK THE WEEK BEFORE CHRISTMAS. AND THIS IS AT THE INTERSECTION OF CRYSTAL FALLS AND US 183 WHERE THE RAILROAD CROSSING IS. SO AS THE VIDEO PROGRESSES AND THIS IS TAKEN IN THE MORNING, THEY ALSO TAKEN FOOTAGE IN THE EVENING AS WELL DURING PEAK HOURS. AND SO I'LL LET THAT ROLL AND THEN YOU'LL START TO SEE EVERYTHING KIND OF FORMULATE AT THAT INTERSECTION.SO JUST SOME CONTEXT BEHIND THIS GRANT PROGRAM. LAST YEAR DURING THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION, SENATE BILL 1555 WAS PROPOSED, AND IT REALLY CAME OUT OF THE HOUSTON AREA FROM SENATOR ALVARADO. AND THAT WAS BECAUSE THERE WAS A CHILD WHO WAS KILLED AT A RAILROAD CROSSING.
THAT BILL WAS PUSHED THROUGH, AND IT WENT THROUGH BOTH HOUSES AND WAS PASSED BY THE LEGISLATURE WITH $250 MILLION THAT WOULD BE AVAILABLE TO COMMUNITIES. WE AS A CITY WERE ADVOCATING TO MAKE SURE THAT WE WERE ALSO INCLUDED IN THE OUR LEGIBILITY. AND SO I'VE HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH THE SENATOR'S OFFICE AND EVERYBODY WHO WAS PART OF THE TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE TO REALLY BUILD THIS PROGRAM. AND WE ALSO, WHEN THE BILL PASSED THROUGH AND WENT TO TXDOT FOR CONSIDERATION, MAYOR PRO TEM AND I ACTUALLY ATTENDED THE TECH STOCK COMMISSION HEARING AS WELL TO REALLY ADVOCATE FOR LEANNE AND MAKE SURE THAT THEY THEY THEY KNEW THAT WE WERE WE WANTED TO BE INCLUDED IN THE ELIGIBILITY PROCESS. AND SO THE PROGRAM OPENS UP IN THE FALL, AND IT STARTED WITH A PRELIMINARY APPLICATION, WHICH WAS A VERY CONCEPTUAL, HIGH LEVEL KIND OF PROPOSED PROJECT FOR COMMUNITIES TO PRESENT. AND SO WE SUBMITTED THAT PRELIMINARY APPLICATION, AND WE WERE APPROVED TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE DETAILED APPLICATION, WHICH IS WHAT WE HAVE BEEN WORKING ON IN A VERY SHORT TIME TURNAROUND, TURNAROUND TIME. AND SO THE STATE IS VERY MOVING VERY QUICKLY TO GET THESE FUNDS OUT TO CITIES, YOU KNOW, TO MAKE SURE THAT ALL THE FUNDS ARE DISBURSED. AND SO WITH THAT, AS YOU CAN SEE HERE IN THE VIDEO, YOU'LL SOMETIMES YOU'LL SEE THE RAILROAD CROSSING COME, BUT YOU'LL SEE ALL THAT TRAFFIC COMING ON BOTH NORTH AND SOUTH AND EAST AND WEST, AND IT REALLY BUILDS UP. AND, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE CONVERSATIONS WE'VE HAD DURING THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION AND WITH TXDOT IS THE AMOUNT OF VEHICLE TRAFFIC THAT COMES AT THIS INTERSECTION. AND LOOKING AT TEXT DATA TO AT HEREAWAY AND 2243, THIS INTERSECTION, CRYSTAL FALLS, IS THE MOST HIGH VEHICLE TRAFFIC BASED ON TXDOT DATA AS WELL. SO WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WHATEVER PROJECT WAS SELECTED FOR THIS WAS GOING TO MEET THOSE TXDOT. YOU KNOW, I WOULD SAY. I WOULD SAY TEXDOT DATA THAT THEY'RE LOOKING FOR IN TERMS OF THE LEVEL OF CONGESTION VEHICLES GOING THROUGH. AND SO WE HAVE WORKED ON A PRELIMINARY CONCEPT WITH SOME VISUAL RENDERINGS, AND WE HAVE WORKED WITH KIMLEY-HORN FOR THAT. AND I HAVE LANCE BALLARD HERE WHO WILL GIVE A PRESENTATION AND DISCUSS THE DESIGN ELEMENTS AND TECHNICAL DETAILS FOR THE PROJECT. THANK YOU. OKAY. GOOD EVENING. WHILE WE GET SET UP, IT'S GOOD TO BE BACK IN FRONT OF YOU. I WAS HERE ABOUT A YEAR AGO DISCUSSING THE US 183 CORRIDOR STUDY, WHICH WAS PART OF THE INCEPTION OF SOME OF THIS PROJECT. SO I'M GOING TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE PROJECT ORIGIN. KENT ALREADY DISCUSS THE GRANT OPPORTUNITY, BUT I'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE SCHEDULE AND WHY WE'RE HERE IN FRONT OF YOU TODAY. TALK ABOUT GRADE SEPARATIONS, WHAT THIS MEANS, WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE, SOME OPTIONS FOR THIS INTERSECTION, AND WHAT WE'RE PROPOSING FOR THE PRELIMINARY DESIGN AND WHERE WE GO FROM HERE. SO LIKE I SAID, ROUGHLY ONE YEAR AGO, WE FINALIZED THE US 183 CORRIDOR STUDY THAT RECOMMENDED A NUMBER OF PROJECTS. AMONG THOSE WERE THREE GRADE SEPARATIONS ALONG THE CORRIDOR THROUGH LEANDER. THE FIRST AND HIGHEST PRIORITY WAS CRYSTAL FALLS. BECAUSE OF THE TRAFFIC VOLUME AND NEED AND DELAY THAT EVERYONE EXPERIENCES THERE TO IMPROVE THAT TRAFFIC DELAY AND IMPROVE SAFETY. A GRADE SEPARATION REALLY JUST SEPARATES TWO FACILITIES.
TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES COULD BE A RAILROAD, COULD BE A ROAD, COULD BE A FOOTPATH FROM EACH OTHER BY CHANGING THEIR ELEVATION, CHANGING THEIR GRADE. THAT IMPROVES TRAFFIC OPERATIONS WHEN YOU SEPARATE THOSE, RIGHT. BECAUSE THERE'S LESS CONFLICTING MOVEMENTS, MORE PEOPLE GET TO TRAVEL AT THE SAME TIME, IT'S MORE EFFICIENT. IT ALSO IMPROVES SAFETY BY REMOVING THOSE CONFLICT POINTS. THIS IS JUST AN EXAMPLE OF AN URBAN GRADE SEPARATION THAT YOU MIGHT SEE IN A SIMILAR CONTEXT. THIS ONE ACTUALLY SEPARATES BOTH THE
[00:50:03]
ROADWAY AND THE RAILROAD TOGETHER. AND SO AS YOU SEE IN THE VIDEO, AS WE'VE ANALYZED THE 183 STUDY, THERE'S A LOT OF DELAY AT THAT INTERSECTION DUE TO CAPACITY AND JUST THE GEOMETRY OF THE INTERSECTION, THE VOLUME DEMANDS, BUT ALSO THE RAILROAD INTERRUPTIONS, AS YOU SEE WHEN THEY COME THROUGH, THE GATES COME DOWN AND TRAFFIC HAS TO PAUSE FOR A NUMBER OF SECONDS. AND DURING THE PM PEAK TRAFFIC CAN'T REALLY AFFORD THAT. AND SO IT BUILDS QUEUING AND DELAYS. SO WE ANTICIPATE THAT THIS WOULD REALLY A GRADE SEPARATION WOULD REALLY BENEFIT AND IMPROVE TRAFFIC. IT WOULD ALLOW FOR NEW TURN LANES AT THE INTERSECTION AND A NEW SHARED USE PATH AS WELL, WHICH YOU'LL SEE AS WE GO THROUGH THE RENDERINGS. ALSO, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO STOP AND ASK A QUESTION ALONG THE WAY. THAT WAY THEY DON'T JUST PILE UP AT THE END.WE DID TRAFFIC ANALYSIS AS PART OF THE 183 CORRIDOR STUDY, AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT THIS, I BELIEVE THIS IS 2030 HORIZON VOLUMES. IF YOU DON'T MAKE ANY IMPROVEMENTS, YOU'RE LOOKING AT SIGNIFICANT DELAYS DURING THE MORNING AND PM PEAK HOURS. AND SO JUST LOOKING AT THE TURN LANE IMPROVEMENTS THAT WOULD BE ABLE TO BE MADE IF YOU SEPARATED THE RAILROAD AND WERE ABLE TO WIDEN THE INTERSECTION AND JUST ADD A FEW TURN LANES THERE, OVER 100 SECONDS OF DELAY IN EACH PEAK PERIOD. AND THIS DOESN'T EVEN ACCOUNT FOR THE TRAIN DISRUPTIONS THAT WOULD BE REMOVED. SO CLOSE TO $12 MILLION IN ANNUAL DELAY SAVINGS. KENT TALKED ABOUT SENATE BILL 1555. WE DID THE PRELIMINARY APPLICATION WAS SELECTED TO GO ON TO THE DETAILED STAGE. WE'RE IN THAT NOW. IT IS DUE TO THE 19TH. WE HAVE PRETTY MUCH EVERYTHING WE NEED TO FINALIZE THAT GRANT APPLICATION MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK AHEAD OF THAT DEADLINE. DO YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION ON HOW MANY ENTITIES WERE SELECTED THAT COULD APPLY A LITTLE BIT? I KNOW THAT OVER I THINK I HAVE, OH YEAH, OVER $2.5 BILLION OF REQUESTS WERE THERE. I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY WERE SELECTED. YOU MIGHT KNOW. NO, I DID PARTICIPATE IN THE CALL WITH TXDOT. I MEAN, THERE WERE QUITE A BIT OF COMMUNITIES RANGING ALL OVER FROM LARGE CITIES TO EVEN SMALLER CITIES, AND IT IS OPEN UP TO NOT JUST CITIES ITSELF TO. BUT IT COULD BE, YOU KNOW, ACTUAL, YOU KNOW, OTHER KIND OF GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES, OKAY, OUT THERE. SO THANK YOU.
THEY ANTICIPATE AWARDING AT THE END OF FEBRUARY, EARLY MARCH. SO FAIRLY QUICK TURNAROUND UNTIL, YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE SELECTED, AS KENT MENTIONED, HAVE BEEN COORDINATING PARTICULARLY WITH TXDOT HAD REACHED OUT, AS HE MENTIONED, BEEN COORDINATING WITH CAPITAL METRO AS WELL. WE HAVE A COUPLE REPRESENTATIVES HERE IN SUPPORT OF THE PROJECT TONIGHT. TWO WE ALSO KIMLEY-HORN WE'VE BEEN DEVELOPING PRELIMINARY PLANS, AS WE MENTIONED, AND THEN JILL FINNEY WITH LANGFORD COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT SERVICES HAVE BEEN HELPING GATHER EVERYONE TOGETHER AND WORK WITH TO DEVELOP AND SUBMIT THE GRANT APPLICATION. AND IT'S BEEN A GREAT PROJECT MANAGER ON THE CITY SIDE AS WELL. SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT GRADE SEPARATIONS AT THIS INTERSECTION, WHAT OPTIONS DO YOU HAVE? WHAT'S GOING OVER, WHAT'S GOING UNDER? WHAT COULD IT LOOK LIKE? I'LL GO AHEAD AND SPOIL IT FOR YOU AND TELL YOU THAT THE MOST FEASIBLE OPTION, THE ONE THAT WE'RE MOVING FORWARD WITH, IS ELEVATING THE RAILWAY OVER CRYSTAL FALLS.
I'LL TALK ABOUT WHY THAT IS AND A FEW OF THE OTHER ALTERNATIVES AND SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT THERE ARE WITH EACH OF THEM. SO THE FIRST ONE WE'LL TALK ABOUT THE ELEVATED RAIL. THEN WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT WHAT IF YOU WERE TO DEPRESS CRYSTAL FALLS AND GO UNDERNEATH THE RAIL AND 183 OR, YOU KNOW, IT STARTS TO BEG THE QUESTION, WELL, WHAT IF YOU JUST RAISE THE RAILROAD A LITTLE BIT AND LOWER THE ROADWAY A LITTLE BIT? DOES THAT MAKE IT EASIER? SO WE'LL TALK ABOUT THAT AS WELL. SO ELEVATING THE RAIL. LET'S TALK ABOUT PROS REALLY SHOULD SAY LIMITED TO MINIMAL RIGHT OF WAY IMPACTS INSTEAD OF ZERO. NOT GOING TO BE REALLY IMPACTS TO BUYING LARGE TRACTS OF LAND. IF ANYTHING IT'S JUST A FEW FEET HERE FOR A TURN LANE, MAYBE INTO LANDSCAPE BUFFERS AND A SHARED USE PATH, THAT SORT OF THING. YOU'LL SEE WHAT THAT FOOTPRINT CAN LOOK LIKE WITH THE CONCEPTUAL DESIGN SOON. TAKES THE RAILWAY INTERACTION AWAY, IMPROVING SAFETY. AND IT'S THE MOST FEASIBLE IN TERMS OF HIGH LEVEL COST AND CONSTRUCTABILITY CONSIDERATIONS. IT DOESN'T SEPARATE THE TWO ROADWAYS. THERE WOULD STILL BE AN INTERSECTION OF US 183 AND CRYSTAL FALLS PARKWAY, BUT YOU CAN VASTLY IMPROVE THAT INTERSECTION. AS A PART OF THIS PROJECT. YOU WOULD HAVE AN AERIAL STRUCTURE UP IN THE AIR, SO YOU WILL HAVE VIEW IMPACTS THERE, AND YOU WILL NEED TO BUILD A TEMPORARY RAIL CROSSING TO DURING CONSTRUCTION. CAN YOU TALK ABOUT IS THERE ANY IMPACT WITH THE ELEVATED TWO BUSINESSES THERE BECAUSE THAT'S A COMMERCIAL AREA. IS THERE ANY OTHER ALL OF THE RAILWAY
[00:55:03]
STRUCTURES SHOULD BE WITHIN THE EXISTING RIGHT OF WAY. OKAY. SO THERE SHOULDN'T BE ANY LAND IMPACTS ON EITHER SIDE OF THE RAILROAD. AND I'LL HIGHLIGHT IN THE CONCEPT WHERE THERE MIGHT BE MINIMAL TURN LANE IMPACTS OF RIGHT OF WAY AT NEAR THE INTERSECTION. THANK YOU. IF YOU THINK ABOUT DEPRESSING CRYSTAL FALLS UNDERNEATH THE RAILWAY AND US 183, YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE PROBABLY THE BEST LEVEL OF SERVICE BECAUSE YOU'RE TAKING AWAY THAT CONFLICTING POINT AND THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF SAFETY, BUT YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE MAJOR MODIFICATIONS NEEDED AT THAT INTERSECTION TO ACCOMMODATE THAT. I'LL SHOW WHAT THAT COULD LOOK LIKE. SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS TO ADJACENT PROPERTIES, HIGH COST TO PURCHASE THOSE. AND IT'S ALSO JUST CHALLENGING TO CONSTRUCT BECAUSE YOU WANT TO MAINTAIN TRAFFIC ALONG US. 183 WHILE YOU'RE TRYING TO GO UNDER IT, WE NEED TO MAINTAIN RAIL TRAFFIC AS WELL THE WHOLE TIME. SO THIS IS JUST A SUPERIMPOSED IMAGE ON TOP OF CRYSTAL FALLS FOOTPRINT. THIS IS A FAIRLY TIGHT URBAN INTERCHANGE. THAT GRADE SEPARATES THIS ROADWAY AND THE RAILWAY FROM THE CROSSING STREET. THIS IS ACTUALLY, I BELIEVE IN COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS. THIS IS ABOUT AS TIGHT AS YOU SEE THEM IN TERMS OF SMALL FOOTPRINT. IF I WERE TO TAKE THAT AND THEN JUST MAKE IT A LITTLE BIT MORE TRANSPARENT, YOU START TO SEE THAT YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE MAJOR IMPACTS TO ADJACENT PROPERTIES, ESPECIALLY ON THE CORNERS, TRYING TO MAKE THE CONNECTIONS FROM ONE ROADWAY TO ANOTHER.IT'S ALSO NOT FEASIBLE TO CONNECT 183 ON THE EAST SIDE OF THE RAILROAD TRACK, BECAUSE ANY CONNECTION POINT WOULD HAVE TO EITHER GO UNDER OR ACROSS THE RAILWAY AS WELL. SO REALLY YOUR ONLY OPTION WOULD BE TO THE WEST, AND YOU'RE LOOKING AT, I BELIEVE THIS IS A BANK HERE AND A GAS STATION. SOMEHOW YOU HAVE TO MAKE SOME SORT OF CONNECTIONS TO THOSE OTHER ROADWAYS. AND SO IT'S EXTREMELY CHALLENGING. SO YOU START TO THINK ABOUT THAT ELEVATED RAIL OPTION INSTEAD. AND IT DIDN'T IMPACT THE HOMES RIGHT THERE TOO. YES POTENTIALLY. SO YOU SAY OKAY, WHAT IF WE DO A LITTLE BIT OF BOTH. YOU REALLY KIND OF END UP GETTING THE WORST OF BOTH WORLDS. YOU DO GET THE BENEFITS OF THAT GRADE SEPARATION, BUT ALSO GET THE MAJORITY OF THE COST FROM BOTH, BECAUSE I'M NOW BOTH ALSO TRYING TO DOUBLE TUNNEL AND ALSO TRY TO BUILD A LITTLE BIT OF A BRIDGE WITH THE SAME TYPES OF RIGHT OF WAY IMPACTS THAT YOU SEE WITH OPTION TWO. WITH OTHER OTHER FACTORS AND CONSIDERATIONS FOR THESE OPTIONS. VISIBILITY AND NOISE SCREENING FOR THE ELEVATED RAIL YOU'LL SEE IN THE CONCEPT. THE PLAN IS TO CONSTRUCT THE STRUCTURE TO THE WESTERN SIDE, THE SIDE CLOSEST TO US 183, WHILE THE TEMPORARY RAIL IS MOVED TO THE RIGHT. SO THE STRUCTURE, ACTUALLY THE RAIL WILL ACTUALLY BE MOVED A LITTLE BIT FURTHER WEST, AWAY FROM THE HOMES IN THE SOUTHEAST QUADRANT OF THAT INTERSECTION, AND ALSO PROVIDE NEW OPTIONS FOR SCREENING SOME SORT OF SOUND PROOFING, POTENTIALLY. A LOT OF THAT GETS DECIDED DURING FURTHER PRELIMINARY AND DESIGN ENGINEERING ALONG THE WAY, AND ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES FOR THE SOUND AND EVERYTHING LIKE THAT.
SO YOU COULD HAVE SOME SORT OF WALL OR ORGANIC SCREENING TO HELP MITIGATE THOSE CHALLENGES.
AND THEN PEDESTRIAN ACCOMMODATIONS, ALL THE OPTIONS THAT WE TALKED ABOUT WOULD ACCOMMODATE PEDESTRIANS AND SHARED USE PATHS. SEPARATING THE TWO ROADWAYS AT DIFFERENT LEVELS MAKES IT A LITTLE MORE COMPLICATED FOR PEDESTRIANS, CYCLISTS, PEOPLE ON FOOT ALONG SHARED USE PATHS TO CONNECT THEM BECAUSE THEY'RE ON DIFFERENT GRADES. SO YOU GOT TO INTRODUCE RAMPS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. SO KEEPING THE PEDESTRIANS AT GRADE ACTUALLY SIMPLIFIES THEIR PATH. SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT IT JUST AT A HIGH LEVEL FEASIBILITY, THE ELEVATED RAILWAY IS REALLY THE OPTION THAT WE THEY'VE THE CITY IDENTIFIED WITH CAPMETRO. WE'VE EVALUATED AS WELL. AND THAT'S THE ONE THAT WE'RE GOING TO MOVE FORWARD WITH, PRIMARILY BECAUSE YOU STILL GET GREAT TRAFFIC IMPROVEMENT, SAFETY IMPROVEMENT WITH LOW PROPERTY IMPACTS. AND IT'S THE MOST EASILY CONSTRUCTED. WAS THE COST BETWEEN ALL THREE CONSIDERED? YES, AT A HIGH LEVEL. WE DIDN'T DO A DETAILED COST BREAKDOWN OF EACH OF THEM.
WHAT REALLY IMPACTS TWO AND THREE IS THE COST OF RIGHT OF WAY AND PURCHASING BUSINESSES IN EACH OF THOSE QUADRANTS. YOU. SO LET'S TALK ABOUT COST. OVERALL COSTS 103 MILLION.
LET'S BREAK DOWN WHAT'S IN THERE. SO CONSTRUCTION IS ROUGHLY $56 MILLION OF THAT.
THE ENGINEERING UTILITY UTILITY RELOCATION AND RIGHT OF WAY IS ROUGHLY 7 MILLION. I'LL MOVE ON TO THE THE CAPMETRO COSTS FOR SAFETY AND INSPECTION, MAKING SURE IT'S GOING TO DO EXACTLY
[01:00:03]
WHAT IT NEEDS TO FOR THEIR OPERATIONS. 7 MILLION TEXDOT ADMINISTRATION OF THE PROGRAM IS A 15% STANDARD. THAT'S ROUGHLY 8 MILLION OF THAT COST. THEY RECOMMEND A 30% CONTINGENCY FROM FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION. SO THAT'S $24 MILLION. AND THEN WHEN YOU ESCALATE, THERE'S ESCALATION BUILT INTO ALL OF THAT. THAT ADDS UP TO ROUND NUMBERS. ABOUT 102 MILLION. WE GET 103. WHEN YOU DO THE DETAILED ESTIMATE. BUT TIME ESCALATION IS ROUGHLY $15 MILLION OF OF THAT. WE ANTICIPATE THIS BEING DELIVERED IN 2031, 20, 32 SORT OF TIME FRAME. I TALK ABOUT SCHEDULE IN A MINUTE. WE'VE HEARD THAT THE POTENTIAL GRANT AWARD IS UP TO $40 MILLION FROM SENATE BILL 1555, WITH A LOCAL MATCH OF 10%, UP TO 10%, I BELIEVE. AND THEN THEY'RE WE'RE CONSIDERING YOU CAN CONSIDER ADDITIONAL SOURCES OF FUNDING FOR THE REST AS WELL. SO THERE'S OTHER GRANTS THAT WE'VE HELPED IDENTIFY. WE CAN PROVIDE A LIST OF WILL BE PROVIDING TO KENT AND THE TEAM. SOME OF THOSE WE IDENTIFIED IN THE US 183 CORRIDOR STUDY. BUT WE'LL GO AHEAD AND PROVIDE THAT LIST TO YOU AS WELL. FEDERAL RAIL RAILROAD CROSSING ELIMINATION GRANTS. US DOT BUILD FEDERAL HIGHWAY RAIL HIGHWAY CROSSING PROGRAM. THERE'S SOME CAMPO TACIT THERE'S A NUMBER OF THEM. SO THERE'S OTHER OPTIONS TO QUESTION ON THE MATCH. YES. SO IS THAT 10% OF THE TOTAL PROJECT OR 10% OF THE GRANT? 10% OF THE GRANT, YES. OKAY. SO 4 MILLION. CORRECT. YEAH. FOUR TO GET 40. OKAY. SO LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT IT. THIS IS THE PROPOSED ROADWAY LAYOUT. I WILL HIGHLIGHT A FEW THINGS AND KIND OF EXPLAIN WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING AT HERE. NORTH IS TO THE NORTH SIDE OF THE PAGE. THIS IS US 183. THIS IS THE PROPOSED RAILWAY STRUCTURE WITHIN THE EXISTING RAIL RIGHT OF WAY. CRYSTAL FALLS IS RUNNING EAST AND WEST ALONG HERE. YOU SEE GREEN IS ESSENTIALLY MEDIAN. SO WHERE THERE'S NEW CURB LINES AND ON BOTH SIDES YOU'LL NOTICE THAT IT'S SIGNIFICANTLY WIDER HERE BECAUSE WE'VE GONE FROM THREE LANES TO FIVE. SO TWO LEFT TURN LANES, TWO THROUGH LANES AND A RIGHT TURN LANE. AND THAT'S WHERE A LOT OF BENEFIT COMES FROM THAT IMPROVEMENT. AND SO THAT'S WHERE YOU SEE ALSO KIND OF ON ONE SIDE OR THE OTHER. YOU'RE GOING TO WIDEN A LITTLE BIT. SO WE'RE KIND OF INTO SOME OF THE LANDSCAPING MAYBE ON ONE SIDE OR OTHER OF THE STREET. AND THAT ALL CAN BE FINALIZED IN THE FUTURE. THE PINK IS PINK OR PURPLE MAGENTA, WHAT HAVE YOU IS THE SHARED USE PATH THAT RUNS ALONG THE NORTHERN EDGE OF CRYSTAL FALLS PARKWAY AND UNDERNEATH THE RAILWAY BRIDGE STRUCTURE. THERE'S NO PEDESTRIAN ACCOMMODATIONS ON THE STRUCTURE ITSELF. YOU WANT TO KEEP PEDESTRIANS AND TRAINS AWAY FROM EACH OTHER. THIS SHOWS THE EXTENT OF THE BRIDGE STRUCTURE. SO IT'S NORTH OF COUNTY GLEN WHERE IT STARTS, PROCEEDS NORTHWARD TO THE RIGHT, ALONG THE PAGE, UP AND OVER. CRYSTAL FALLS BACK DOWN. YOU'RE NOW GOING, YOU KNOW, KIND OF UPGRADE UPHILL HERE SO IT'S EASIER TO GET BACK DOWN TO GRADE. SO THE BRIDGE IS A LITTLE SHORTER ON THE NORTHERN SIDE AND IT TERMINATES AND GETS BACK TO EXISTING GRADE PRIOR TO THE CURRENT GRADE CROSSING FOR THE CHURCH SOUTH OF SUNNY. AND SO IT REALLY CAN BE BUILT AND CREATED WITHOUT IMPACTING ANY OTHER POTENTIAL STRUCTURES. IF YOU WERE TO DO THE SAME THING AT SOME OF THE OTHER CROSSINGS, THESE REALLY ARE KIND OF IN EXCLUSIVE FOOTPRINTS AND DOESN'T NECESSARILY BE. ONE CAN NEED TO BE ONE CONTINUOUS STRUCTURE. SO THIS IS A LITTLE GIF IMAGE THAT WILL CYCLE BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN THE EXISTING AND EXISTING VIEW, AND A PROPOSED VIEW OF WHAT IT COULD LOOK LIKE. SO YOU'LL NOTICE THE GRADE OR SORRY THE GATES GO AWAY. YOU WIDEN TO PROVIDE TWO ADDITIONAL LANES IN A SHARED USE PATH UNDERNEATH THE BRIDGE STRUCTURE AND ACROSS US. 183 I'LL GO AHEAD AND EXTEND JUST TO THE STILL IMAGE, SO YOU'LL SEE THE THE RAILWAY STRUCTURE WIDE ENOUGH TO ACCOMMODATE DOUBLE TRACKING SO TRAINS CAN PASS IN BOTH DIRECTIONS AT THE SAME TIME. THE THE TWO LEFT TURN LANES TWO THRUS AND A RIGHT. THE SHARED USE PATH ALONG THE EDGE OF THAT TO THE NORTH WITH NEW CROSSINGS, NEW SIGNAL IZATION AS WELL. TO ACCOMMODATE THOSE TRAFFIC IMPROVEMENTS, I'LL JUST CYCLE THROUGH A COUPLE OF VIEWS WHILE ENTERTAINING ANY QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE RIGHT NOW. SO I HAD A QUESTION. SO YES, ON THE DESIGN YOU HAVE PIERS, WHY WOULDN'T WE DO BERMS? THE EARTHWORK AND SLOPES AND THINGS THAT YOU WOULD NEED TO MAKE THIS AN EARTHEN STRUCTURE ENDS UP BEING MORE WORK, MORE CONSTRUCTION, MORE DOLLARS AND MORE IMPACTS. DON'T KNOW THAT[01:05:06]
YOU CAN GET THAT HIGH WITHIN THE RIGHT OF WAY. AND SO WE DO WORK TO TRY TO MINIMIZE THE LENGTH OF THE BRIDGE STRUCTURE, BECAUSE IT IS ONE OF THE MOST COSTLY ITEMS WITHIN THE CONSTRUCTION COSTS. AND SO WE'RE KIND OF WE'RE NEAR THE MAXIMUM SLOPES THAT THE RAIL WILL ALLOW FOR TRAINS TO PASS. AND SO WE TRY TO WE GO EARTHEN FOR A GOOD WAYS UNTIL IT MAKES MORE SENSE FROM AN ENGINEERING STANDPOINT TO THEN TURN INTO STRUCTURE INSTEAD. AND SO YOU MENTIONED WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TWO. WE'D HAVE TWO RAILS. YES SIR. AND AND SO THEY WOULD START WITH THE, WITH THE GRADE GOING UP THE GRADE AND DOWN THE GRADE. OR WOULD THEY BE JUST ON THE BRIDGE. WHERE WOULD THAT THE TWO RAILS COME IN. SURE. SO ESSENTIALLY YOU'D HAVE TWO RAILS SIDE BY SIDE FOR EACH OTHER SO THAT YOU CAN HAVE TRAINS PASSING ALONG THE WAY.THERE'S PLANS FOR THIS TO BE DOUBLE TRACKED. THE WHOLE LENGTH OF THIS RAIL CORRIDOR.
SO THAT WOULD ALIGN WITH THAT. SO THEY WOULD RUN PARALLEL TO EACH OTHER ALONG THE STRUCTURE.
IF THAT ANSWERS YOUR QUESTION. AND I GUESS THE OTHER QUESTION WOULD BE IS THAT, YOU KNOW, THE RAIL HAS TO MEET ALL THE STANDARDS OF ALL TRAINS THAT GO ON IT, NOT JUST THE LITTLE TRAIN THAT COMES. CORRECT. YES, FREIGHT TRAVELS ALONG THIS. IT'S OWNED BY CAPMETRO, BUT UNION PACIFIC FREIGHT DOES USE THIS CORRIDOR QUITE FREQUENTLY, AS YOU KNOW. AND SO ONE OF THE BENEFITS IS WHEN A FREIGHT TRAIN COMES THROUGH AND IT MIGHT TAKE TEN MINUTES. CRYSTAL FALLS IS NOT AT A STANDSTILL FOR TEN MINUTES. WHILE THAT IS HAPPENING LONGER OR LONGER. YES.
AS YOU AS YOU KNOW AS YOU KNOW, HERE'S A LITTLE BIT CLOSER VIEW. I THINK WE HAVE 1 OR 2 MORE JUST SO THAT YOU CAN SEE IT. THESE ARE ALSO INCLUDED IN THE PACKET AND WE'LL HAVE THEM ON DISPLAY TOMORROW AT THE PUBLIC MEETING. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. SO LET'S TALK SCHEDULE LIKE WE SAID ANTICIPATED AWARD EARLY PART OF THIS YEAR. IF YOU'RE LOOKING AT PRELIMINARY DESIGN AND NEPA THAT'S THE ENVIRONMENTAL DOCUMENT FOR IT. IF YOU ASSUME A CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION COULD BE ABOUT A YEAR, IF A HIGHER LEVEL ENVIRONMENTAL DOCUMENT IS NEEDED, IT COULD BE MORE LIKE TWO. TAKING 30% DESIGN TO FINAL DESIGN COULD TAKE A YEAR AND A HALF CONSTRUCTION ROUGHLY THREE YEARS. YOU'RE STARTING TO LOOK AT 2032 SORT OF TIME FRAME. AND WE WILL BE PROVIDING A MORE DETAIL, A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAILED SCHEDULE FOR THE APPLICATION ITSELF. AS I MENTIONED, PUBLIC MEETING TOMORROW IN THIS ROOM FROM 6 TO 7. WE WILL BE HERE ALSO WITH SOME REPRESENTATIVES FROM CAPITAL METRO, AND APPLICATION IS DUE. THE 19TH AND AWARD WILL BE DETERMINED AT THE END OF FEBRUARY. VERY GOOD. THANK YOU.
WE'LL GO DOWN THE LINE AND I'LL ACTUALLY START WITH PLAY SIX AND SEE IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ABOUT THE ITEM. NO QUESTIONS. I GUESS MY COMMENT WOULD BE, I THINK THIS IS A COMBINATION OF A WHOLE LOT OF ENTITIES HAVING TO COME TOGETHER TO TRY TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN. YOU KNOW, OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH CAPMETRO CITY STAFF, THE FACT THAT THE STATE IS WILLING TO GRANT MONEY TO BE ABLE TO DO THIS BECAUSE LEANDER ON ITS OWN, WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH THIS AT ALL. SO I APPRECIATE ALL THE EFFORTS GOING TOGETHER TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CAN PRESENT THE BEST APPLICATION WE CAN, IN THE HOPES THAT WE CAN GET THIS FUNDED. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. SLIDE. SO WE ASKED EARLIER, I BELIEVE HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE IN CONTENTION FOR THE BIDDING PROCESS. THERE'S STILL A POTENTIAL REGARDLESS OF WHAT WE DO AND PUT TOGETHER THIS PROPOSAL AND GET IT OUT. WE WOULD NOT GET THE GRANT. IS THAT A FAIR STATEMENT? CORRECT. GOOD. YEAH. 250 MILLION WILL ONLY GO SO FAR. AND AS I MENTIONED, HOUSTON WAS ONE OF THE CITIES THERE SENATOR WAS REALLY ADVOCATING FOR BECAUSE OF THAT INCIDENT. AND SO I SUSPECT THEY'RE GOING TO GET THAT FULL 40 MILLION AMOUNT.
AND THEN I KNOW THERE'S SOME OTHER CITIES WHO FACE SIMILAR ISSUES TOO. SO THERE IS A POSSIBILITY THAT WE MAY NOT GET THIS GRANT. BUT AS LANCE MENTIONED, THERE ARE OTHER FEDERAL GRANT OPPORTUNITIES COMING OUT. AND, YOU KNOW, TODD AND I HAD A CHANCE TO VISIT WITH CONGRESSMAN CARTER LAST MONTH, AND WE TOLD THEM ABOUT THE PROJECT. AND SO AND I KNOW WE'LL BE GOING TO D.C. SOON, AND WE'LL BE MEETING WITH THE CONGRESSMAN, YOU KNOW, TO TALK ABOUT OTHER GRANT OPPORTUNITIES OUT THERE. AND SO I THINK, YOU KNOW, IF THERE'S SUPPORT FROM THE COUNCIL, CONTINUE MOVING FORWARD. YOU KNOW, WE DEFINITELY HAVE THOSE FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES. SO WITH THE FULL FUNDING AVAILABLE, THE FULL AMOUNT IS 250 MILLION. CORRECT.
AND I'M ASSUMING BASED ON WHAT I'M SEEING HERE, THAT EACH OF THE GRANTS WOULD PROBABLY BE AROUND 40 MILLION. IS THAT A FAIR ASSUMPTION ON MY PART? I WOULD SAY A LOT OF THE BIG
[01:10:01]
PROJECTS, THE BIG MAGNITUDE PROJECTS, ESPECIALLY FROM HOUSTON AND OTHER MAJOR CITIES, THEY I HAVE WHEN I SPOKE TO TXDOT, YOU KNOW, THEY DIDN'T INDICATE THE AWARD ANY AMOUNT BETWEEN THERE AS WELL. AND SO EVEN IF IT'S JUST TO GET FUNDING TO START THAT PRELIMINARY DESIGN TO FINAL DESIGN PHASE, I MEAN THAT THAT REALLY COMES A LONG WAY. AND THAT DOES SHOW TO WHEN YOU GO AFTER OTHER FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES THAT THE THE PROJECT READINESS, LIKE WE HAVE A FINAL DESIGN READY TO GO. SO IT DOES HELP PIECE THOSE PORTIONS TOGETHER. OKAY. AND THEN FROM A FROM AN ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT, MAKING THE ASSUMPTION THAT THIS IS AN ALREADY EXISTING RAILWAY, I DON'T SEE ANY LONG TERM OR OVERALL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS THAT ARE NOT ALREADY THERE AND HAVE NOT ALREADY BEEN VETTED.I'VE HEARD SOME COMMUNITY CONCERNS ABOUT THE ENGINEERING PROCESS IN BUILDING THIS OUT, AND WHAT THE IMPACTS WOULD BE TO THOSE AREAS WHERE YOU START THE ELEVATION AND WHERE THE ELEVATION ENDS. SO AGAIN, JUST SHARING THAT FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE, I DON'T KNOW ENOUGH ABOUT THIS YET TO GO ANY FURTHER IN THAT COMMENTARY. I DO BELIEVE THIS IS, YOU KNOW, DIRECTIONALLY THE CORRECT DIRECTION TO BE GOING WITH THIS TYPE OF SOLUTION. I'D LOVE TO SEE IF WE IF WE'RE ABLE TO SECURE THIS, WHAT OPPORTUNITIES THAT PRESENTS FOR US TO BE ABLE TO ADDRESS THE HERO 183 CROSSOVER AS WELL. I'M I'M BOLSTERED A LITTLE BIT IN MY IN MY, YOU KNOW, HOPEFULNESS IN THE SENSE THAT YOU'RE DEGRADE FROM THE ELEVATED IS MUCH SHORTER. SO THAT COULD POTENTIALLY BE A SOLUTION FOR US AT HERO BECAUSE WE, WE HAVE TO GET DOWN TO THE STATION. SO I MEAN, THOSE ARE SOME CONCERNS FOR THE LONG TERM. BUT I LOVE THE FACT THAT WE'RE STARTING WITH THIS PROJECT AND I, I DEFINITELY SUPPORT IT. I CERTAINLY HOPE THAT WE GET AT LEAST THAT INITIAL 40 MILLION CONSIDERATION, BECAUSE I THINK THAT GETS US GOING. SO THANK YOU FOR THE INFORMATION TODAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. AND I WAS JUST GOING TO SAY I'M GLAD THAT WE'RE GETTING THIS DONE. IT'S BEEN A PROCESS FROM GOING TO THE TEXDOT HEARING AND MAKING COMMENTS TO BEING INVITED TO APPLY FOR A GRANT AND THEN BEING SELECTED. AND NOW WE STILL HAVE MORE PROCESS. WE STILL MAY NOT BE SELECTED, BUT IF SOMEHOW WE ARE, THAT WOULD BE GREAT TO START THAT PROCESS FOR ADDITIONAL GRANTS IF WE CAN HAVE DESIGN ALREADY READY TO GO. SO I'M GLAD TO SEE THIS COME FORWARD. PLACE THREE. YES. ALSO, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE HARD WORK ON ON THIS PROJECT AND THE CROSS COLLABORATION. I THINK MY MY QUESTION WOULD BE IT RELATED TO THE TOWN HALL OR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE HAVING ON THIS PROJECT? IS THERE SOME WILLINGNESS TO TAKE THE FEEDBACK FROM THE COMMUNITY RELATED TO THIS PROJECT AND SOMEHOW INTEGRATE IT INTO FUTURE PLANS IF THE GRANT IS AWARDED? YEAH. SO A BIG PART OF THIS GRANT IS COMMUNITY INPUT. AND THAT'S WHY WE'RE ALSO DOING A COMMUNITY SURVEY. SO THAT'S OUT THERE. SO IF YOU HAVEN'T TAKEN THE SURVEY PLEASE DO BECAUSE WE DEFINITELY WANT YOUR FEEDBACK. AND WE ARE COLLECTING THAT AND REALLY MAKING SURE THAT WE INCORPORATE THAT FEEDBACK INTO OUR APPLICATION. AND LIKE I SAID, THIS REALLY IS THE TIMING OF IT IS VERY SHORT. AND THAT'S NOT ON PURPOSE TO REALLY GET FUNDS OUT TO COMMUNITIES. AND SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, IF WE GET APPROVED FOR THIS GRANT, YOU KNOW, A FUNDING AGREEMENT WOULD COME TO COUNCIL, RIGHT, FOR YOU ALL TO CONSIDER ACCEPTING THE FUNDS AND THE AND THE LOCAL MATCH. AND FROM THERE, YOU KNOW, WHEN THE PROJECT IS A GO, THAT WHOLE PRELIMINARY DESIGN TO FINAL DESIGN PHASE. THAT'S A GREAT PART WHERE WE HAVE THAT COMMUNITY INPUT INCLUDED. SO WE'LL HAVE KIND OF THE INITIAL GATHERING, AND THEN WE COULD REALLY EXPAND ON THAT WHEN WE ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, HOPE FINGERS CROSSED WE DO GET GRANT MONEY. SO AND I THINK MY OTHER QUESTION IS JUST OUTLINING THE GAP TO GOAL OF 103 MILLION. SO I KNOW THIS THIS REQUEST IS FOR 40 MILLION. HAS THERE BEEN SOME DETAILED DISCUSSION AROUND OTHER ALLOCATIONS OUTSIDE OF THE 4 MILLION THAT WOULD BE REQUIRED FROM US? YEAH. SO LIKE I MENTIONED, I'VE ALREADY PICKED UP OUR FEDERAL REPS ABOUT FEDERAL FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES. AND I KNOW THE NATIONAL LEAGUE OF CITIES, ONE OF THEIR PRIORITIES IN ADVOCATING THIS YEAR FOR FUNDING IS TO PUSH FOR RAILROAD FUNDING AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL. AND SO LANCE TOUCHED ON A FEW OF THEM, AND I KNOW THERE'S A LOT MORE, POSSIBLY EVEN PRIVATE GRANTS OUT THERE TO HELP FUND BITS AND PIECES. AND SO NOW THAT WE HAVE A GRANTS ADMINISTRATOR, YOU KNOW, I HAVE SOMEBODY TO WORK WITH TO REALLY IDENTIFY THESE TYPES OF FUNDING OUT THERE AND REALLY ADVOCATE. AND SO I THINK THIS IS GOING TO BE A REALLY CRUCIAL YEAR AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE ENGAGED WITH OUR STATE LEGISLATURE AND OUR FEDERAL REPS. AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, IN MY CONVERSATIONS AND EXPLAINING THIS PROJECT TO THEM, I THINK WE HAVE THE SUPPORT THERE, ESPECIALLY, YOU KNOW, WHEN TOM AND I MET WITH CONGRESSMAN CARTER'S CHIEF OF STAFF FROM DC VISITING, HE KNEW ABOUT LEANDER. HE KNEW THAT LEANDER WAS GOING
[01:15:05]
TO BE THE BIGGEST CITY OUTSIDE OF AUSTIN. AND SO WE HAVE THAT SUPPORT THERE TO REALLY HELP US, YOU KNOW, WITH THIS FUNDING OPPORTUNITY FOR THIS TYPE OF PROJECT AND OTHER ONES AS WELL.SO THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. PLACE TO I DON'T GO ANYWHERE KENT. SO IF WE GOT THE GRANT HOW FAST DO WE HAVE TO USE THE MONEY. SO LIKE IT'S YOU KNOW, YOU USE IT OR LOSE IT LIKE IS YOU HAVE TO YOU HAVE TO INITIATE THE PROJECT WITHIN TWO YEARS. THREE YEARS. WHAT'S THE REQUIREMENT ON THIS? I KNOW THE PROJECT PROGRAM. WHEN THE WHEN TEXDOT ADOPTED THE RULES. THE FUNDING IS FOR TWO YEARS. SO I IMAGINE WE WOULD HAVE TO AT LEAST GET STARTED ON THE DESIGN PIECE WITHIN THAT TWO YEARS. AND LIKE I SAID, THAT 40 MILLION, YOU KNOW, WE'LL BE ABLE TO IDENTIFY, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE THE WHAT ARE THE STEPS WE TAKE, YOU KNOW, TO THE WORK THAT WE CAN ACCOMPLISH WITH THAT AND ACTUALLY GIVES US TIME TO WITHIN THIS YEAR TO IDENTIFY THE OTHER FEDERAL FUNDING PIECES THAT COULD HELP, YOU KNOW, OKAY. SO THEN, YOU KNOW, ONE CONCERN IS, IS THAT, YOU KNOW, BY CAPMETRO IS NOT THE ONLY TRAIN THAT GOES THROUGH THERE. AND THERE'S A LOT OF ANGST OVER, GIVEN OUR SALES TAX, ALL THESE OTHER THINGS. AND, AND THIS SEEMS LIKE THIS IS LIKE SOLIDIFYING THAT RELATIONSHIP AND THE TRAIN'S NEVER GOING TO GO ANYWHERE KIND OF THING LIKE THAT RELATIONSHIP. AND SO CAN YOU SPEAK TO WHETHER Y WHETHER WE HAVE CAPMETRO OR NOT? THIS IS STILL SOMETHING THAT'S IMPORTANT TO THE CITY. YEAH.
SURE, SURE. SO CAPMETRO OWNS THAT RAIL. AND EVEN IF TRANSIT SERVICE WEREN'T IN PLACE, THEY WOULD STILL BE UTILIZING THAT ASSET THAT THEY HAVE WITH A FREIGHT RAIL IS OUR UNDERSTANDING. WE DO HAVE A COUPLE OF REPRESENTATIVES HERE. I DON'T KNOW IF THEY WANT TO SPEAK TO IT, BUT THAT IS OUR UNDERSTANDING WE HAVE IN OUR PRIOR CONVERSATIONS. RIGHT. AND SO THE TRAFFIC IS GOING TO GET BACKED UP REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THAT TRAIN IS THERE. THERE'LL BE OTHER TRAINS THERE RIGHT NOW, WHETHER I DON'T KNOW HOW FREQUENTLY THAT RAIL IS USED FOR THAT. I WILL ALSO SAY THAT YOUR THE VIDEO YOU SHOWED, I DON'T THINK IT ACTUALLY SHOWS HOW EXASPERATING THAT SECTION CAN BE. AND IT'S NOT JUST THE CRYSTAL FALLS PART, IT'S ALSO THE NORTH SOUTH PART, YOU KNOW? CORRECT. IF YOU'RE COMING THERE WHEN THE TRAINS ARE COMING ABOUT 4:00 OR SOMETHING, YOU'RE BACK IN ALMOST ALL THE WAY UP, BACK UP TO CEDAR PARK, AND THEN YOU'RE SITTING THERE AND THAT AND THAT JUST KIND OF STACKS EVERYTHING KIND OF GOING UP. SO I THINK HAVING ALL THOSE ADDITIONAL TURN LANES, MAKING THE LEFT TURNS, THE RIGHT TURNS FREES UP THINGS. I THINK IT'S I THINK IT'S A GOOD DESIGN. I THINK THAT IT'S A NECESSITY. I THINK THE, YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE ONLY GOING TO GET ONE BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT WE HAVE TO KIND OF LOOK AT THIS, WE MIGHT WE NEVER MAY GET THE OTHER ONES. YOU KNOW, 2243 WILL STILL BE THE WAY IT IS. SUNNY WILL STILL BE THE WAY IT IS SUNNY. YEAH. AND HERO WAY WILL STILL BE THE WAY IT IS. AND IF CAPMETRO EXTENDS THEIR SERVICE OUT TO BURN IT AT SOME POINT, WHICH MAY HAPPEN, OR LIBERTY HILL OR WHATEVER, THEN WE'LL HAVE ANOTHER ISSUE RIGHT UP THERE WHERE 183 CROSSES AGAIN AND ALL THAT. AND SO I THINK THAT I THINK THIS IS A GOOD PROJECT. I THINK IT'S IT'S A WISE PROJECT. I THINK IT'S GOOD FOR THE CITY. IT SETS US UP FOR THE FUTURE. AND I THINK IT'S I THINK WE CAN OVERCOME ALL THE CONCERNS RELATED TO NOISE AND THIS AND THAT. AND I WILL SAY THAT CAPMETRO TRAINS ARE VERY QUIET. THEY SILENTLY GO BY. AND SO I'M NOT REALLY CONCERNED ABOUT THAT, BUT I THINK IT OVERALL IT WOULD HELP US A LOT. AND I THINK THAT IF WE DON'T DO IT, IF WE DON'T DO SOMETHING RELATIVELY SOON OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT AND TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS OPPORTUNITY THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE SITTING HERE GOING, WHAT WERE WE THINKING? SO I APPRECIATE YOU GUYS HARD WORK ON THIS. THANK YOU. PLAY SWAN. WELL, WHAT CAN BE SAID THAT MY COLLEAGUES HAVE NOT ALREADY SAID. SO I WANT TO THANK THEM ALL FOR THEIR THEIR THOUGHTFUL INPUT. AGAIN JUST WANT TO REITERATE THAT THIS THIS PROJECT IS ONE THAT IS IS SORELY NEEDED. OUR CITY IS GROWING EXPONENTIALLY, OUR TRAFFIC IS GROWING, OUR POPULATION IS GROWING. AND ANYONE WHO'S EVER BEEN ON CRYSTAL FALLS AND THE 183 CORRIDOR KNOWS THAT THERE'S MASSIVE BACKUPS UP AND DOWN IN EVERY DIRECTION. AND THAT'S NOT ONLY A COST TO OUR CITY IN TERMS OF TIME, WHICH HAS BEEN SOMETIMES AS LONG AS 10 TO 20 MINUTES WHEN I'VE DRIVEN PAST THERE. IT'S ALSO A COST TO OUR COMMUNITY IN TERMS OF GETTING PLACES. IT AFFECTS OUR BUSINESSES, IT AFFECTS COMMERCE. SO I WANT US TO THINK ABOUT THIS PROJECT, NOT JUST WITH THE EXPLICIT COST THAT'S LISTED HERE, BUT ALSO IN SOME OF THESE PASS THROUGH COSTS THAT AFFECT OUR COMMUNITY. YOU KNOW, THIS PROJECT IS APPROXIMATELY $100 MILLION. THERE'S A $40 MILLION POSSIBILITY WITH THE TXDOT GRANT, WHICH LEAVES US WITH A BALANCE OF ABOUT 60 MILLION. AND I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT I'VE GOT THIS NUMBER DOWN CORRECTLY. I'M GOING TO ASK OUR CITY MANAGER HERE, BUT THAT'S ABOUT WHAT THAT'S ABOUT. TWO AND CHANGE A YEAR OVER A 30 YEAR BREAKDOWN. IS THAT RIGHT? TODD TWO IF YOU WERE TO FINANCE 60 MILLION OVER A 30 YEAR TERM. YEAH, YOU'RE REALLY LOOKING AT A DEBT SERVICE OBLIGATION THAT'S GOING TO BE CLOSE TO A 3.8 MILLION A YEAR, AND THE ADDITIONAL 40 MILLION OR 36
[01:20:06]
MILLION COVERED WOULD BE AN ADDITIONAL 2.4 MILLION. IF YOU RECOVER THAT AS THE CITY.GOTCHA. WELL, I'M JUST I'M IN SUPPORT OF THIS PROJECT AND I THINK WE SHOULD PRESS FORWARD WITH IT. THANK YOU. EXCELLENT. ANY OTHER LAST MINUTE QUESTIONS? COMMENTS. OTHERWISE THIS IS AN ACTION ITEM. I'LL MAKE THE MOTION. TO. IT'S IT'S NOT. BUT I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE TO CLARIFY THAT COUNCIL I WE ALL SUPPORT THE PROJECT. AND THEN ALSO THE 10% MATCH WE WOULD ALL BE GOOD WITH THAT. YES. YES. YOU ALSO WANT OUR PREFERENCE AS FAR AS THE OPTIONS. OR ARE WE GOING WITH OPTION ONE? THE ELEVATED? I THINK THE ELEVATED IS THE ONLY OPTION. YEAH I GUESS ONE CLARIFICATION. SO WHATEVER DESIGN YOU COME AND YOU TAKE TO THEM, YOU DON'T YOU'RE NOT NECESSARILY WEDDED TO THAT. EXACTLY. YOU GET TO COME BACK AND USE IT. YOU HAVE TO BE CLOSE TO IT OR CORRECT. YEAH. YEAH. I THINK THAT'S REALLY GIVES THEM AN IDEA OF WHAT THE PROJECT LOOKS LIKE AND WHAT ARE THE ELEMENTS OF THE PROJECT. AND AS PART OF THE THE COST THAT TXDOT LOOKS FOR IS THE DESIGN PIECE. SO WE'D COME BACK AND DO MORE AND PROBABLY EVALUATE THE FEASIBILITY TO APOLOGIES. PRO TEM, I DO HAVE ONE THING THAT I WANT TO KIND OF I MEANT I WROTE IT DOWN, I FORGOT TO BRING IT UP WITH THIS ELEVATED SECTION. WHAT IMPACTS ARE MADE TO OR MODIFICATIONS WOULD OCCUR TO SIGNALIZATION THERE AT 183 AND CRYSTAL FALLS.
SURE. AND WOULD THAT BE INCLUDED IN THIS OVERALL PROJECT COST? YES. YOU WOULD ESSENTIALLY PROBABLY REBUILD THAT TRAFFIC SIGNAL AND THAT COST WAS INCLUDED. IF YOU LOOK AT SOME OF THE VISUALIZATIONS, YOU CAN SEE, YOU KNOW, YOU'LL HAVE TO MOVE SOME OF THE SIGNAL POLES TO ACCOMMODATE THE NEW LANES. YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO USE SOME OF THE EXISTING POLES TO REDUCE COSTS, BUT YOU WOULD ALSO NEED TO MAKE SURE ALL OF THE SIGNALS ARE VISIBLE UNDER THE BRIDGE STRUCTURE, ALL THAT SORT OF THING. SO ALL OF THAT WAS ACCOUNTED FOR IN THE COST.
OKAY. THANK YOU. SO YOU HAVE WHAT YOU NEED OKAY. WE'RE GOOD TO GO AND WE WILL MOVE TO ITEM
[25. Council Member Closing Statements.]
25. COUNCIL MEMBER CLOSING COMMENTS. WE'LL START WITH PLACE ONE. GOOD NIGHT PLEASE TWO GOOD NIGHT. WHOA. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. PLACE THREE. IN HONOR OF DOCTOR MARTIN LUTHER KING, I WILL LEAVE A QUOTE. THE TIME IS ALWAYS RIGHT TO DO WHAT IS RIGHT. VERY NICE. GOOD EVENING.PLEASE. FIVE. OKAY, SO THIS ONE WAS. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT PERSONALLY, AS A HUMAN BEING AND AN AMERICAN CITIZEN THAT DISTURBS ME IS THE FACT THAT WE HAVE SUCH A CONVENIENCE, SHORT MEMORY HERE IN THE US. IT CAN PROVE TO BE ADVANTAGEOUS IN CERTAIN INSTANCES, BUT IN OTHER INSTANCES IT'S NOT SO MUCH. SO I WAS INTERESTED IN FINDING OUT WHAT HAPPENED IN JANUARY 6TH IN THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. AND WHAT CAUGHT MY ATTENTION WAS IN 1941, US PRESIDENT FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT DELIVERED HIS FOUR FREEDOMS SPEECH. AND IN THAT SPEECH HE WAS SPEAKING TO THE WORLD. AND WHAT HE WAS SAYING IS THAT EVERY INDIVIDUAL HAS FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND WORSHIP, AND EVERY INDIVIDUAL HAS FREEDOM FROM WANT AND FEAR. AND I THINK IT'S VERY POIGNANT THAT THAT ACTUALLY OCCURRED ON JANUARY 6TH AND WE HAVE FORGOTTEN IT. SO WE NEED TO REMEMBER THAT. AND A LITTLE LESS SERIOUS NOTE, THE BEATLES IN 1968, THEIR ALBUM THE MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR WENT TO NUMBER ONE AND STAYED NUMBER ONE FOR EIGHT WEEKS. IT HAPPENS TO BE ONE OF MY VERY, VERY FAVORITE ALBUMS. AND SO WITH THAT, I WISH YOU GOOD NIGHT. WILL YOU BE SINGING A LITTLE BIT FOR US? YOU KNOW, I HAVE TO GO BACK TO LOOK AT THE ACTUAL SONGBOOK, BUT SURE, WHY NOT? WE'LL SAVE IT FOR NEXT TIME.
WE'LL SAVE IT FOR NEXT TIME. PLAY SIX. BUT ON A LIGHTER NOTE, TODAY IS EPIPHANY OR ALL SAINTS DAY, WHICH, IF YOU'RE FROM MY HOME STATE OF LOUISIANA, BEGINS CARNIVAL SEASON, WHICH ENDS ON MARDI GRAS DAY, WHICH IS FEBRUARY 17TH. SO HAPPY MARDI GRAS, EVERYONE! AND AS A PSA FOR ALL MY TEXAS FRIENDS, HEB DOES MANY THINGS WELL, BUT A KING CAKE? IT DOES NOT. SO IF YOU WANT ONE, OH MY. GO TO AN ORIGINAL SOURCE. WE WILL BE PATIENTLY WAITING FOR OUR KING CAKE FROM YOU THIS YEAR, SO THANK YOU. ALRIGHT, WELL TONIGHT DINNER WAS FROM HARDIN'S AND LEANDER AND WE TRY TO SUPPORT LOCAL EVERY DAY IN EVERY WAY THAT WE CAN, AND WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO DO THE SAME THING. SO WHEN YOU GET READY TO EAT HER SHOP, MAKE SURE YOU CHOOSE A LEANDER BUSINESS TO DO THAT. AND WE HAVE LOTS OF OPTIONS THAT HAVE OPENED UP FROM ESTANCIA TO TEXAS ROADHOUSE, TO ALL KINDS OF THINGS THAT ARE GETTING READY TO OPEN UP. SO PLEASE SPEND YOUR MONEY LOCALLY IN LEANDER. AND THEN WE DO HAVE AN EVENT COMING UP ON THE 13TH. IT'S OUR LET'S TALK SERIES, AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT SIGNALS AND WATER
[01:25:04]
AND ROADS. SO IF YOU WANT TO GET MORE INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT THE CITY IS DOING AROUND THOSE THINGS, IT IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. IT IS AN HOUR AND WE HOPE THAT YOU WILL COME OUT.INFORMATION IS ON THE CITY'S WEBSITE ABOUT THAT, AND YOU DO NOT HAVE TO RSVP AHEAD OF TIME UNLESS YOU CHOOSE TO, BUT EVERYONE IS WELCOME TO COME OUT AND PARTICIPATE WITHIN THAT.
AND WE WANT TO SAY AGAIN, WELCOME TO COUNCIL MEMBER BLAIR. WE'RE HAPPY TO HAVE YOU ON THE DAIS WITH US. AND WITH THAT, IT IS
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.