* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. I STARTED FROM [00:00:01] OFFICE. [CC Briefings 08192025] OKAY. OKAY. OKAY. I'M GLAD Y'ALL ARE HAVING FUN, BUT IT'S TIME TO GET STARTED. UH, I'LL CALL MEETING TO ORDER. AND COME ON. LISA, IT LOOKS LIKE YOU'RE FIRST. YES, SIR. HI. YES, SIR. GOOD EVENING OR GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL STAFF. UM, JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU A BRIEF UPDATE ON A CHANGE THAT WAS MADE DURING THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION REGARDING THE OPEN MEETINGS ACT. WE HAVE THE EXPERTS IN THE HOUSE THIS EVENING WHO ARE PROBABLY GONNA GIVE YOU A RUNDOWN ON, ON A LOT OF THINGS, BUT I WANTED TO 0.1 IMPORTANT THING OUT TO YOU, AND THAT'S HOW WE ARE NOW REQUIRED TO POST MEETING NOTICES. I KNOW MOST OF YOU'RE USED TO THE 72 HOUR, UM, POSTING NOW, UM, WITH HB 1522 WE'RE REQUIRED TO POST THOSE NOTICES THREE BUSINESS DAYS, UH, BEFORE THE SCHEDULED DATE OF THE MEETING. SO BASICALLY FOR COUNCIL, UH, FOR A COUNCIL MEETING ON TUESDAY. WE ARE POSTING BY 8:00 AM ON THE WEDNESDAY OF THE PRIOR WEEK. SO THAT'S A WHOLE WEEK AHEAD OF TIME. UM, SO YOU WILL SEE THOSE EMAIL COMING OUT FROM ME AND MY STAFF A LITTLE EARLIER, AND THAT GOES FOR ALL OF YOUR COMMITTEES AS WELL. UM, AND SO BEFORE YOU AND ON THE SCREEN, UM, FOR THOSE OF US WHO CAN'T REALLY SEE THE SCREEN TOO WELL, I'VE PUT PRINTED COPIES FOR YOU AT YOUR, UH, PLACE THERE, BUT THAT GIVES YOU, UM, KIND OF AN IDEA OF WHEN WE'RE POSTING FOR EACH ONE OF THOSE MEETINGS. AND I JUST WANTED TO MAKE YOU AWARE OF THAT, MONA. YES, SIR. TUESDAY NIGHT BEFORE YOU GO HOME. YES, SIR. SO WE'RE POSTING BY 5:00 PM ON THE TUESDAY, NOT THE 8:00 AM ON THE WEDNESDAY BY 8:00 AM BUT YOU'RE GOING DO IT THIRD TUESDAY NIGHT? THAT'S CORRECT. THAT'S CORRECT. STAFF, Y'ALL ARE CHANGE BUREAU SCHEDULE. ONE OF Y'ALL MEET MONDAY, ONE MONDAY AT NINE FOR YOUR DIRECTORS TO COME UP BEFORE DO WHAT? THURSDAY. BEFORE THE THURSDAY. THE THURSDAY BEFORE. OKAY. AND YOU'LL GIVE US A DRAFT THE THURSDAY BEFORE. WHY WE DO THAT? I'M NOT SURE. THE DRAFT OF THE COUNCIL MEETING? UH, YES, WE WILL. YES. WE WILL BE GETTING THAT DRAFT OUT A WEEK AND A HALF BEFORE THE COUNCIL MEETING, CORRECT? NOT A WEDNESDAY BEFORE THE, YES, AFTER OUR AGENDA REVIEW MEETING. YOU DO RECEIVE THAT DRAFT. THAT'D BE THIS THURSDAY FOR THE NEXT MEETING. YES, SIR. WE'VE, WE'VE SENT OUT, UM, A DRAFT TO STAFF ON MONDAY OF THIS WEEK. UM, WELL, IT'S JUST WHATEVER. YEP. DON'T MIND PLAYING THE GAMES. AS LONG AS WE KNOW THE RULES, IT'LL CHANGE ACCORDINGLY. YES, SIR. SO WE'VE MADE THOSE ADJUSTMENTS, JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW THAT. UM, AND THEN JUST TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT, UM, HOLIDAYS DO NOT COUNT AS BUSINESS DAYS, SO THAT PUSHES OUR DAYS BACK A DAY BACK. OUR DAYS BACK A A DAY. UM, SO WE ARE PLANNING FOR THAT. UM, ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT? WELL, THE NEXT LABOR DAY WILL BE BEFORE THE NEXT OH YEAH. YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO POST TONIGHT. NEXT KIND OF FEELS THAT WAY. YES, SIR. HOW COME YOU'RE DOING IT ON WEDNESDAY? I'M SORRY, THREE BUSINESS DAYS. MONDAY'S A BUSINESS DAY, ISN'T IT? SO IT'S FULL BUSINESS DAYS. YES, SIR. SO IF OUR MEETING IS ON TUESDAY, IT HAS TO BE A FULL BUSINESS DAY. SO THAT WOULD BE THREE FULL DAYS BEFORE TUESDAY COUNT, CORRECT. TUESDAY DOES NOT COUNT THURSDAY. SO MONDAY, FRIDAY, THURSDAY, THURSDAY, FRIDAY. SO YOU COULD POST WEDNESDAY SOUNDS LIKE. SO IT'S MONDAY, FRIDAY. FRIDAY, THURSDAY. THURSDAY, YES. COULDN'T YOU POST WEDNESDAY NIGHT IF WE, I'M SORRY, YES. IF WE DIDN'T HAVE THAT HOLIDAY. YES, YOU COULD POST WEDNESDAY NIGHT. SO WILL YOU BE POSTING WEDNESDAY NIGHT IF THERE'S NO HOLIDAY? IF THERE'S NO HOLIDAY, WE CAN GO TO WEDNESDAY NIGHT. BUT THE WEEKS WHERE YOU HAVE A MONDAY, THAT IS A HOLIDAY THURSDAY. WE UNDERSTAND THAT. OKAY. BUT INSTEAD OF TUESDAY NIGHT, ON A REGULAR WEEK WITH NO HOLIDAYS, IT APPEARS Y'ALL COULD POST WEDNESDAY, WE COULD POST. WHAT ARE Y'ALL GOING TO DO? I'M SORRY. WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO WITH NO POSTING? ARE YOU GONNA POST ON WEDNESDAYS WHEN THERE'S NO HOLIDAY? YES. WE'LL TAKE CARE OF POSTING, UM, BY THE DEADLINE, RIGHT? YES, SIR. SO SOMETIMES WE MAY EVEN POST EARLY IF IT'S READY TO GO. I UNDERSTAND. YES, SIR. WEDNESDAY, MAYOR COUNCIL, THIS PUTS CONSIDERABLY MORE PRESSURE ON STAFF TO BRING ITEMS TO YOU BECAUSE OF THE PREP PREPARATION THAT IS REQUIRED OF IT AND THE REVIEW PROCESS THAT BEGINS WITH OUR LEGAL DEPARTMENT. SO AS WE'RE GETTING STARTED INTO THIS, YOU'LL PROBABLY HAVE A LITTLE BIT SMALLER AGENDA, AND THEN IT'LL JUST BE ROUTINE. THEN IT'LL BECOME ROUTINE AND IT'LL GO BACK TO THE NORMAL. IT'LL BE NORMAL. YES. [00:05:01] I DON'T MIND HAVING A LIKE, AGENDA. MIKE MIGHT BE A COUPLE. ALRIGHT, IF NO MORE QUESTIONS, THEN WE'LL INVITE THE REALLY IMPORTANT PEOPLE UP. TEXAS MONTHLY PARTNERSHIP. THAT'S PROBABLY NOT WHO YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT. . THAT'S WHO I'M JUST SAYING. TEXAS MONTHLY. I THINK SHE WAS. THANKS A LOT ABOUT SNAPPER AND BRANDON, BUT . GOOD AFTERNOON COUNSEL. CLAUDIA GUAY, MARKETING DIRECTOR. WE'RE HERE TO PROVIDE A, UH, AN UPDATE ON OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH TEXAS MONTHLY. UM, WE HOPE TO BE ABLE TO SHOW YOU THE VALUE THAT YOU ARE GETTING ON YOUR INVESTMENT ON THE ADVERTISING AND EVENT SIDE. I'M HERE WITH A FEW OF, UM, PEOPLE TODAY, TEXAS MONTHLY REPRESENTATIVES ARE HERE. WE'VE GOT JOHN WARE WHEN SUNDAY LEE, UH, FRANK LIRIO, IF I PRONOUNCE THAT RIGHT. THEY'RE HERE, UM, SUPPORTING US. AND WE'LL BE AVAILABLE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS AFTER A FEW SLIDES. UH, WE ALSO HAVE OUR AGENCY OF RECORD, UM, REPRESENTATIVE JOHN, UM, BIDER. AND SO OF COURSE WE HAVE A COUPLE OF YOUR FAVORITE PEOPLE HERE, UH, , SARAH, THE DELIC, AND, UM, ZANE KING. SO WITH THAT, UH, LET'S SEE. LET'S START REAL QUICK. JUST A QUICK REMINDER. THE PURPOSE OF THIS PARTNERSHIP WAS TO, UM, BRING AWARENESS, AWARENESS TO OUR CITY, UH, OF ALL THE GREAT THINGS THAT GRAND PRAIRIE HAS TO OFFER TO THOSE THAT ARE OUTSIDE OF THE CITY LIMITS, RIGHT? WE WANTED TO GET CLOSER TO THAT GOAL OF, UH, BECOMING A TOP DESTINATION. SO AS A REMINDER, OUR FUNDING SOURCE FOR THIS IS, UH, THE HOTEL MOTEL TAX FUNDS AND THE EPIC FUNDS, NOT NECESSARILY THE GENERAL FUND. SO THAT'S, UH, IMPORTANT. AN IMPORTANT POINT TO TO NOTE YOU SEE HERE IS A BREAKDOWN OF OUR DOLLARS, UH, THAT HAVE BEEN INVESTED IN THIS PARTNERSHIP FROM FY 24. I BELIEVE THAT'S JULY THROUGH. UM, WE STILL HAVE PENDING A COUPLE MORE, UH, FISCAL YEAR PENDING, YOU SEE THE CONTRACT PRICE VERSUS THE RACK RATE PRICE. AND WHAT I WANT TO POINT OUT IS THE 28% SAVINGS, UH, THAT WE ACQUIRED AS A RESULT OF THOSE UPFRONT NEGOTIATIONS WITH, UH, TEXAS MONTHLY. NOW, THIS SLIDE IS NOT MEANT FOR YOU TO READ, UH, LINE BY LINE, BUT IT IS A SNAPSHOT OF A COMPREHENSIVE LIST OF DELIVERABLES THAT WE ARE GETTING FROM, UH, TEXAS MONTHLY. WE'LL GO INTO MORE DETAIL WITH THOSE, BUT I DO DO WANNA POINT OUT THAT FOR FISCAL YEAR 24 AND 25, THEY HAVE DELIVERED THE A HUNDRED PERCENT OF WHAT WAS UH, PROMISED. AND HERE IN THE NEXT, UH, FEW SLIDES, MY COLLEAGUE, UH, SARAH WILL WALK YOU THROUGH OUR MARKETING FUNNEL, AND THAT IS GOING TO SHOW YOU HOW THOSE ADVERTISING, UM, HOW ADVERTISING IMPACTS THE DECISION MAKING AND HOW THAT TRANSLATES INTO DOLLARS SPENT HERE IN OUR CITY. CLAUDIA? YES, SIR. ONE QUICK QUESTION. WHAT FESTIVAL DID WE HAVE THIS YEAR THAT WE'RE NOT HAVING NEXT YEAR? UH, ON FOR FY 26 YOU MEAN? YES, MA'AM. UH, ALL OF THEM. WHAT IT SAYS, POSSESS THREE THIS TIME. THREE FOR FISCAL YEAR 26 AND FOUR FOR FISCAL YEAR 25, BECAUSE THAT'S THE FIRST YEAR WE DID THAT AT EPIC CENTRAL TCR. WE DID THE JOINT, THE, THE T THE JOINT TCR EVENT. OH, OKAY. AND THEN WE MOVED TCR TO DOWNTOWN. OKAY. SO TCR HAPPENED TWICE IN THE CONTRACT FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS. KIMBERLY, YOU'RE ABLE TO READ THAT . OKAY, GOOD. OKAY. WELL, THE FOUR YEAR PARTNERSHIP, . OKAY, WELL, HERE'S SARAH. SO IF YOU WERE TO HAVE READ AND ADDED UP ALL OF THOSE DELIVERABLES IN THE SLIDE PREVIOUS, YOU WOULD'VE COUNTED MORE THAN 6,300 WAYS OF PUTTING OUR MESSAGE OUT TO A TEXAS MONTHLY AUDIENCE THAT WE WOULD NOT HAVE HAD CONTACT WITH WITHOUT THIS PARTNERSHIP. SO THE MARKETING FUNNEL IS A FANCY WAY OF, UM, TALKING ABOUT THE VISITOR JOURNEY. AND THIS IS REALLY, YOU, YOU'LL PROBABLY BE ABLE TO RELATE TO THIS, UM, WITH YOUR OWN TRAVELING. WHEN YOU START PLANNING YOUR FAMILY VACATIONS IS DATA SHOWS OVER 80% OF TRAVELERS. UM, LOOK, START LOOKING AT DESTINATION ADS DURING THAT TIME TO START FIGURING OUT WHERE YOU WANNA GO AND WHAT YOU WANNA DO WHEN YOU GET THERE. AND SO WITH THAT PREVIOUS SLIDE, THE OVER 6,000 WAYS OF PUTTING OUR, UM, BRAND OUT THERE TO A TEXAS MONTHLY AUDIENCE, WE WERE ABLE TO PRODUCE, UM, 116.7 MILLION IMPRESSIONS. AND ALL THAT MEANS IS WE PUT OUT OUR MEDIA IN [00:10:01] ALL THE DIFFERENT WAYS WHERE PEOPLE WOULD SEE IT. SO WHAT'S MORE IMPORTANT IS THE NEXT FEW SLIDES. THIS IS REALLY WHERE WE START TRACKING. SO FOR THE, UH, THE VISITOR JOURNEY, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE AWARENESS. WE WANT TO PUT OUR MESSAGE OUT THERE IN AS MANY DIFFERENT WAYS, WHETHER IT'S PRINT, DIGITAL, TV, WHATEVER THE CASE MAY BE FOR PEOPLE TO SEE IT. AND THEN WE START BEING ABLE TO TRACK THEM. SO THIS IS, UM, TAKING A LOOK AT NEW USERS THAT CAME TO OUR WEBSITE. SO WE HAD OVER 660,000 NEW USERS THAT CAME TO VISIT GRAND PRAIRIE AND EPIC CENTRAL AS A RESULT OF THIS CAMPAIGN. THIS NEXT SLIDE TALKS ABOUT, UM, FOOT TRAFFIC. SO WE'VE, WE'VE MADE THEM AWARE OF GRAND PRAIRIE. WE'VE, WE'VE INTRODUCED THEM TO GRAND PRAIRIE. THEY HAVE TAKEN IT UPON THEMSELVES TO COME TO OUR WEBSITES AND DO A LITTLE EXTRA RESEARCH AND CONSIDERATION. NOW WE'RE TRACKING VISITATION. SO THIS IS SHOWING FOOT TRAFFIC, UM, TO EPIC CENTRAL. AND YOU WILL SEE THAT THERE'S AN INCREASE FROM YEAR OVER YEAR OF 9%, UM, TRACKING. NOW WE'VE, THIS IS ONLY SHOWING PLACER FOOT TRAFFIC FROM OCTOBER TO MAY. AND I'LL GET TO WHY WE DID IT FOR THAT TIMELINE. SO IT'S GONNA BE INCREASINGLY HIGHER THAN THAT BECAUSE OCTOBER TO MAY DOESN'T INCLUDE OUR SUMMER TRAVEL, UM, AUDIENCE. AND THEN THIS IS SHOWING THE INCREASE IN OVERALL TRAVELER SALES TAX. SO JUST TO RECAP ON THE VISITOR JOURNEY, WE'VE, WE'VE SHOWED THEM OUR BRAND. WE'VE MADE 'EM AWARE, THEY'VE SEEN IT 116 MILLION TIMES. THEY'VE TAKEN IT UPON THEMSELVES TO COME TO OUR WEBSITE TO DO SOME FURTHER RESEARCH. THEY'VE SHOWN UP AT EPIC CENTRAL, WE'VE TRACKED THEM THROUGH CELL PHONE DATA. UM, AND THEY, NOW WE KNOW THAT THEY'RE SPENDING MONEY BECAUSE THERE'S AN INCREASE IN OUR SALES TAX REVENUE. SO NOT ONLY DID THEY COME TO EPIC CENTRAL, BUT NOW THEY'RE SPENDING MONEY IN OUR CITY. YES. SO THAT'S WHY THIS SHOWS, UM, THE 7% INCREASE FOR WE NORMALLY WOULD, WOULD RECEIVE. YES. SO THIS IS SHOWING NOW FISCAL 25 ISN'T, UM, A HUNDRED PERCENT COMPLETE YET 24 SHOWING WE HAVE 6% INCREASE IN SALES TAX REVENUE. YES. YES. AND THIS IS ONLY FROM TRAVELER VISIT VISITORS. SO THIS IS NON-RESIDENTS, NON-COMMUNITY. THIS IS PEOPLE COMING FROM OUTSIDE TWO GRAND PRAIRIE DURING THOSE MONTHS OF OCTOBER TO MAY SPENDING MONEY IN OUR CITY. AND THEN THIS IS, UM, THEY'RE AGAIN TRACKING. YOU KNOW, WE'RE TRACKING WEBSITE, WE'RE TRACKING FOOT TRAFFIC, WE'RE TRACKING RETAIL SALES, WE'RE TRACKING HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX. 'CAUSE NOW WE WANNA KNOW THROUGH THE VISITOR JOURNEY, THEY'VE DONE ALL THE STEPS, BUT ARE THEY STAYING THE NIGHT? AND OUR HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX HAS INCREASED THE REVENUE, UM, 13%. SO THEY ABSOLUTELY ARE STAYING IN GRAND PRAIRIE. NOW, THIS ISN'T SPECIFICALLY FOR THE EPIC HOTELS, BUT THIS IS GRAND PRAIRIE HOTELS OVERALL, WHICH IT'S ALL HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX. SO IT'S ALL GOOD NEWS. AND THEN THIS IS THE PART OF THE VISITOR JOURNEY THAT WE HOPE THEY JUST KEEP U-TURN AND U-TURN AND KEEP SPINNING. AND THIS IS THE LOYALTY PART. SO WE'VE MADE 'EM AWARE OF GRAND PRAIRIE. THEY'VE RESEARCHED, THEY'VE, THEY CAME, THEY SAW, THEY SPENT MONEY, THEY SPENT THE NIGHT. AND NOW THIS IS SHOWING THAT WE OVERALL ARE INCREASING THE AVERAGE LENGTH OF NIGHT STAYS FROM THESE CITIES. AND I KNOW IT'S TINY THERE, BUT, UM, JUST SOME OF THE CITIES THAT ARE COMING TO GRAND PRAIRIE ARE HOUSTON, OKLAHOMA CITY, SAN ANTONIO, TULSA, LUBBOCK, ODESSA, LITTLE ROCK, AMARILLO, DENVER, ATLANTA. AND THE TWO HIGHLIGHTED ARE LA AND NEW YORK. AND WHY THOSE ARE HIGHLIGHTED IS BECAUSE MORE THAN 50%, 54% OF TEXAS MONTHLY VISITORS THAT GO TO THEIR WEBSITE ARE FROM OUTSIDE OF TEXAS, WHICH IS GREAT. IT'S ATTRACTING A VISITING AUDIENCE. THE, THE REASON THAT LA AND NEW YORK ARE HIGHLIGHTED IS BECAUSE TEXAS IS THEIR HIGHER HIGHEST READERSHIP FOR TEXAS MONTHLY. THE SECOND AND THIRD IS LA AND NEW YORK. AND THE REASON THAT THIS IS IMPORTANT AND, AND IS A DIRECT RELATION TO THIS TEXAS MONTHLY PARTNERSHIP IS BECAUSE AS TOURISM, WE DON'T NECESSARILY DO A WHOLE LOT OF, UH, ADVERTISING TO LA AND NEW YORK. WE'RE MORE THE DRIVE MARKET. WE'RE, WE'RE HOUSTON, WE'RE OKLAHOMA CITY, WE'RE LOUISIANA. YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE THAT OVERNIGHT DRIVE MARKET IS WHERE WE GO HEAVY IN ADVERTISING. BUT WITH THIS TEXAS MONTHLY PARTNERSHIP, IT WAS ABLE, WE WERE ABLE TO REACH AN AUDIENCE THAT WE WOULD NOT HAVE HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO REACH. AND THAT'S WHY YOU'RE SHOWING THE BIGGEST GROWTH AT 22 AND 29% IN THOSE TWO CITIES. SO LET'S TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT TYPE OF ADVERTISEMENT ARE WE GETTING FROM THIS PARTNERSHIP? HERE YOU'LL SEE A, UH, [00:15:01] THE ADVERTISEMENT WE'RE RECEIVING, UH, FOR PRINT, IT'S A FULL PAGE AD ON THE LEFT, AND THEN A SPREAD ON THE RIGHT TIMES, 14 TIMES THAT HAS GIVEN US A TOTAL OF 35 MILLION IMPRESSIONS. AND WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? 35 MILLION TIMES AN AD HAS BEEN POTENTIALLY SEEN BY, UH, THEIR READERSHIP. IN ADDITION, WE'RE RECEIVING OTHER PLACEMENTS WITHIN THE MAGAZINE, SUCH AS THEIR TRAVEL GUIDE. AND AGAIN, THE MORE THEY SEE, THE MORE LIKELY THEY'LL COME AND VISIT. HERE. YOU'LL SEE AN EXAMPLE OF THE DIGITAL COVERAGE WE'RE OBTAINING THAT, UM, IS, UH, TEXAS MONTHLY IS REPORTING THAT 1 MILLION CUSTOMERS ARE ACTUALLY, UH, RECEIVING, PROVIDING ENGAGEMENT FROM OUR, UM, UH, ADVERTISEMENT ENGAGEMENT MEANS A HUN ONE, UH, MILLION LIKES, SHARES, WATCH AND COMMENTED. AND, UH, THE NEAT PART ABOUT THIS, UH, STAT IS THAT MORE THAN HALF ARE ACTUALLY, UH, COMING FROM OUTSIDE OUR MARKET. SO AGAIN, WE'RE REACHING THAT, UM, MARKET OUTSIDE OF OUR CITY. HERE'S A NEAT INTERACTIVE EXAMPLE OF, UH, ONE OF THE DELIVERABLES WE'RE RECEIVING THAT HAS A $50,000 VALUE. ON THE RIGHT SIDE IS AN INTERACTIVE MAP WHERE VIEWERS CAN GO CLICK THROUGH AND EXPLORE OUR CITY. THEY WORK, UM, TEXAS MONTHLY WORK WITH VISIT GRAND PRAIRIE TO HIGHLIGHT SOME OF THE, UM, INTERESTING, UH, DESTINATIONS OUR CITY HAS TO OFFER. BUT MORE THAN JUST FESTIVALS, WE'RE ALSO PROMOTING OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GROWTH. WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO ATTRACT CORPORATIONS. WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO ATTRACT, UH, NEW RESIDENTS, UM, AS MUCH AS WE CAN. AND AGAIN, GET OUR BRAND OUT. ON THE BROADCAST SIDE, WE'VE GOT A TEXAS COUNTRY REPORTER SHOW. UH, WE, WE ARE REACHING THROUGH THIS PARTNERSHIP, 26 TEXAS MARKETS AND, UM, WHICH EQUATES TO MILLIONS, UH, SEEING OUR ADS. AND AGAIN, THIS HELPS WITH OUR BRAND RECOGNITION. SOME OF YOU GUYS, UH, RECOGNIZE JB UM, IN THAT SHOT. JB IS A NEW PHASE, AND ALONG WITH THE NEW FORMAT, UM, TEXAS MONTHLY IS TELLING US THEY HAVE RECEIVED A 10% INCREASE IN VIEWERSHIP. AND SO WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR US? UM, JB HAS BEEN, UH, HIS POPULARITY HAS, UH, HAS BEEN INCREDIBLE. AND HE'S BEEN PROVIDING A LOT OF, UH, CONTENT, WHAT WE CALL ORGANIC CONTENT ONLINE, WHICH ADDS TO OUR CREDIBILITY, UH, AS FAR AS OUR BRAND. AND THEN HERE, NOT ONLY ARE WE RECEIVING BENEFITS FROM THIS PARTNERSHIP, BUT YOU SEE OUR LOCAL BUSINESSES ARE ALSO GETTING, UH, NOTICED THROUGH. HERE'S THE SNEAK PEEK GUYS. THERE'S, UM, UH, TWO SEGMENTS THAT ARE COMING UP IN OCTOBER, IN NOVEMBER, UH, HIGHLIGHTING ARTISTS JOAQUIN SOTO, AN ENTREPRENEUR, UH, JOE VALLA IN AN UPCOMING TEXAS COUNTRY REPORTER EPISODE. SO AGAIN, UM, THAT INVEST, THAT'S AN INVESTMENT IN OUR LOCAL BUSINESSES, WHICH IS, I BELIEVE ONE OF YOUR GOALS. WE ARE THE ONLY NORTH TEXAS CITY THAT GETS TO CO-HOST THESE, UH, SIGNATURE EVENTS. AND THESE ARE MORE THAN EXCITING EVENTS. UM, THIS, THESE HAVE AN STAMP OF APPROVAL FROM SEASONED EDITORS, UH, WHO AGAIN, PROVIDE CREDIBILITY AND HAVE MANY, MANY FOLLOWERS, UM, THAT ARE READING ABOUT OUR GREAT CITY. SPEAKING OF EVENTS, SAME'S GONNA GO THROUGH SOME OF THE EVENTS THAT HAVE HAPPENED SO FAR. THANK YOU CLAUDIA. SO WITH THE INVESTMENT THAT WE MADE, THIS IS THE OPPORTUNITY TO CELEBRATE IT. THIS IS THE OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY HIGHLIGHT WHAT THIS CITY CAN DO. TCR FEST, YOU KNOW, THE VERY FIRST YEAR THAT WE HAVE IT IN ITS OWN NEW LOCATION, YOU GET ABOUT 5,000 PEOPLE WITH THE LONG-TERM GOAL OF ABOUT 20 TO 25,000. THAT'S EASILY ACHIEVABLE, WHERE YOU'VE GOT A LOT OF EXCITING THINGS THAT ARE COMING INTO, UH, PLACE WITH ALIGNING THIS WITH SOME OF THE CITY ACTIVITIES. THEN TACO FEST, TACO FEST IS THE PREMIER EVENT. IT'S THE ONE THAT YOU WANT TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH. IT'S WHENEVER PEOPLE THINK OF TEXAS, YOU WANT THEM TO THINK OF GRAND PRAIRIE. AND THIS IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT TACO FEST DOES. YOU KNOW, THIS IS ALWAYS GOING TO BE A EXCLUSIVE EVENT. THIS IS ALWAYS GOING TO BE A HIGHLY SOUGHT AFTER EVENT WITH ABOUT A ONE AND A HALF, UH, WELL, 1500 ATTENDEES, THEN THE BARBECUE FAMILY REUNION. THIS IS NEW. THIS IS FUN. THIS IS EXCITING. THIS IS A CALLBACK FROM, UH, LOCATIONS THAT HAVE BEEN ON THE LIST PREVIOUSLY. SO THIS IS GOING TO BE [00:20:01] SOMETHING, ONCE AGAIN, IS GOING TO HAVE A GREAT INTEREST. AND WHAT IT DOES IS, WHATEVER YOU THINK OF TEXAS, YOU THINK OF GRAND PRAIRIE. OKAY, THANK YOU ZANE. SO, UM, IN RECAP, THESE ARE THE BENEFITS THAT THE CITY IS RECEIVING FROM, UM, THIS PARTNERSHIP. TEXAS MONTHLY'S, UH, 10% INCREASE IN REACH AT NO EXTRA COST. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? SO SINCE WE, THEY HAVE A NEW FORMAT IN, UM, JV AS A NEW PHASER INCREASE IN READERSHIP AND VIEWERSHIP, WE'RE BENEFITING FROM THAT BECAUSE WE, UH, LOCKED IN THAT PRICE UPFRONT IN 2024. AND SO IN ADDITION TO THAT, WE HAVE AS, AS ALONG WITH THOSE UPFRONT NEGOTIATIONS, WE'RE RECEIVING A 28% MEDIA SAVINGS, UH, WITHIN THAT CONTRACT COMPARED TO THE RACK RATE. AND THEN ALSO THAT EXTRA 913,000 PROMOTIONAL SUPPORT THAT THEY ARE INVESTING TO PROMOTE THEIR EVENTS. SO WE'RE GETTING NOTICE PEOPLE ARE VISITING, UM, AND WE NEED TO STAY COMPETITIVE. UM, AT THIS TIME I'D LIKE TO INVITE OUR PARTNERS TO COME UP, UH, THIS CONCLUDES OUR SLIDES, OUR PRESENTATION, BUT THEY WOULD LIKE TO, UM, MAYBE SAY HELLO AND OR ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE. WELL, THANK YOU. UM, HELLO. IT WAS GOOD TO SEE YOU GUYS. GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN. UM, WE JUST WANTED TO SAY THANK YOU. UM, MY NAME IS JOE WEIR. I'M THE CHIEF REVENUE OFFICER, UM, AT TEXAS MONTHLY. AND, UH, WE ARE INCREDIBLY THANKFUL FOR YOUR PARTNERSHIP. WE HAD A GREAT YEAR. I, I HOPE BY LOOKING AT SOME OF THE NUMBERS, I'M EXCITED. I WAS TALKING TO, UM, THE TEAM ABOUT REALLY LOOKING AT SOME OF THE GROWTH. UM, WE ARE EXCITED TO SEE THAT PLAY OUT, UM, FOR YOUR CITY. UM, AND, UM, I'M HERE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS, UH, BUT JUST WANTED TO SAY ON BEHALF OF TEXAS MONTHLY, THANK YOU SO MUCH. ANYBODY GOT ANYTHING FOR THE MRR STAFF? I KNOW THERE'S SOME FUN HERE. WE GOT A LOT OF THINGS COMING UP. I'M NOT SURE IF THIS IS, UH, A QUESTION FOR YOU ALL OR OUR MARKETING TEAM, BUT ONCE UH, YOU GUYS IDENTIFY THAT SOMEONE HAS SEEN, UM, THE TEXAS MONTHLY PROMOTIONS, HOW ARE WE DETERMINING THAT THAT, UH, VIEWING OF WHATEVER THAT PROMO WAS LED TO THE IN-PERSON VISIT? SO IT'S JUST THROUGH TRACKING AND WITH, UM, WITH GOOGLE, WITH GA FOUR, WE'RE ABLE TO THEN ON THE BACK END, SEE IF THEY CLICKED ON A DIGITAL AD, WE CAN SHOW WHERE THEY CAME, YOU KNOW, HOW THEY GOT TO OUR WEBSITE. NOW IF IT'S A PRINT AD, IT, IT'S A LITTLE HARDER TO DO THAT, BUT WE DO, UM, PUT QR CODES ON OUR ADS, SO WE'RE ABLE TO TRACK THAT WAY. AND THEN ONCE THEY'RE IN MARKET, IT'S CELL PHONE DATA AND THEN IT'S RETARGETING. THANK YOU. MM-HMM . YEAH. MY QUESTION KIND OF DEALS WITH THAT. UM, LOVE THE EVENTS I ATTENDED. THE TOP EVENTS I THOUGHT WAS REALLY COOL. UM, WE SPENT A LOT OF MONEY ON MARKETING JUST IN-HOUSE OR WHAT OTHER, UH, ENTITIES. HOW DO WE KNOW WHENEVER SOMEONE WATCHES ONE OF THE ADS ON HULU OR NETFLIX OR WHATEVER, HOW DO WE KNOW THAT THAT'S NOT FROM US SPENDING MONEY ON A DIFFERENT MARKETING SOURCE THAN NORTH THAT TEXAS MOTHER REPORT REPORTERS DOING? HOW DO WE DIFFERENTIATE? SO THE GOOD THING, I'LL ANSWER THIS AND THEN, SO THE GOOD THING ABOUT TEXAS MONTHLY, IT'S REACHING AN AUDIENCE THAT WE WOULDN'T NORMALLY HAVE ACCESS TO. THE ONLY WAY YOU REACH A TEXAS MONTHLY AUDIENCE IS GO THROUGH TEXAS MONTHLY BECAUSE WHAT WE'RE BUYING IS TEXAS MONTHLY DIGITAL ADVERTISING OR PRINT ADVERTISING OR TV ADVERTISING. IT'S NOT GOOGLE ADS. IT'S NOT, YOU KNOW, LIKE WE TOURISM AND, YOU KNOW, EPIC CENTRAL AND JOHN CAN PROBABLY SPEAK ON THIS TOO, IT'S, UM, IT'S REACHING AN AUDIENCE THAT WE WOULDN'T HAVE ACCESS TO OTHERWISE COMPLIMENTS WHAT WE WOULD BE HAVE INHOUSE. MM-HMM . I DON'T SEE HOW WE CAN TRACK WHAT YOU'RE ASKING. 'CAUSE MANY PEOPLE THAT COME HERE HAVE SEEN IT ON BOTH. THAT'S PROBABLY TRUE. I MEAN, IT'S JUST, IT JUST ADVERTISING IS THE DOLLAR AMOUNTS THAT THEY'RE, THAT WE'RE SHOWING THAT WE'VE SEEN THE INCREASE ON THE DOLLARS THAT ARE BEING SPENT IN THE CITY. HOW ARE WE KNOWING WHERE THAT'S COMING FROM? LIKE WHAT DO PEOPLE SEE THAT BROUGHT THEM HERE TO MAKE THEM STAY AT A HOTEL IN GRAND PRAIRIE? WHETHER IT MAY BE BOTH, EITHER IT MAY BE THAT YOU INVITED THEM. YEAH. THE ONLY WAY WE CAN, THE ONLY WAY WE CAN TRACK THAT KURT HAD A FAMILY REUNION HERE THAT WEEK AND THE SALES WENT QUADRUPLE. WELL, I CAN SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, WE SAW A HUGE INCREASE IN LOYALTY LENGTH OF STAYS BY LA AND NEW YORK. AND I CAN TELL YOU FROM TOURISM, WE, WE CAN'T AFFORD TO ADVERTISE IN LA AND NEW YORK. WE'RE NOT ADVERTISING IN LA AND NEW YORK. AND SO WE'RE REACHING AN AUDIENCE THAT WE DIDN'T HAVE ACCESS TO. WE COULDN'T AFFORD TO DO SO. AND IT, WE HAVE THE DATA SHOWING THAT NOT ONLY ARE THEY COMING HERE, THEY'RE STAYING HERE AND THEY'RE STAYING FOR SEVERAL NIGHTS. WELL, WE'RE MAKING SOME ASSUMPTIONS AND THEY'RE PROBABLY ACCURATE ASSUMPTIONS THAT THAT'S A MARKET WE HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO REACH IN THE PAST. AND SINCE THEY'RE COMING HERE [00:25:01] NOW, A BUNCH OF 'EM ARE ATTRIBUTED TO TEXAS MONTHLY, WHICH IT SHOULD BE. UH, BUT IT'S EXTREMELY DIFFICULT TO PINPOINT, I'M HERE BECAUSE I SAW THAT AD ON TEXAS MONTHLY. UM, IT IS, BUT THE OVERALL, IF YOU LOOK AT ANY ADVERTISING ANYBODY HAS TO DO, YOU JUST HAVE TO SPEND A CERTAIN PERCENTAGE OF MONEY ADVERTISING PERIOD. UM, IT'S VERY COMPETITIVE. AND THE GOOD THING ABOUT DIGITAL VERSUS, UM, PRINT OR LIKE BILLBOARDS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, LIKE THERE'S SO MUCH DATA THAT THEY CAN GIVE YOU ON THE BACK END. AND UNLESS YOU'RE CLICKING THAT LITTLE TOGGLE ON YOUR CELL PHONE NOT TO BE TRACKED, UM, WE CAN, YOU KNOW, WE'RE PROVIDED LOTS OF INFORMATION TO HELP TELL THE STORY OF AND SHOW THE INCREASE. AND IT'S, IT'S REAL NUMBERS, IT'S REAL DOLLARS, IT'S REAL INCREASE IN OVERNIGHT STAYS AND STUFF. YEAH. BOTTOM LINE IS, UH, WE USED TO NOT HAVE THINGS WE WANTED TO PROMOTE. WE HAD NO, YOU KNOW, NOW WE DO, UH, I'M VISITED WITH PEOPLE THAT ARE HERE. UH, WELL THE GUYS THAT MOVED HERE FROM THE BAHAMAS TO BE THE VP OF UH, PO UH, PALACE POKER, HE STAY IN AT EPIC CENTRAL JUST BECAUSE IT'S THERE AND HE CAN WALK TO EAT AND THINGS LIKE THAT. WHICH YEARS AGO WE DIDN'T EVEN HAVE THAT TO PUBLICIZE, FOUND THAT I DIDN'T ASK HIM HOW HE FOUND OUT ABOUT IT. UH, HAMILTON MAY HAVE TOLD THEM I, WE HAD THINGS THAT WE NEEDED PROMOTE NOW THAT WE USED TO NEVER PROMOTE. AND WE SEE OTHER CITIES DO IT. OKLAHOMA PROMOTES A LOT DOWN HERE. MISSOURI DOES. I LIKE TO, I WANNA GO TO MISSOURI BECAUSE OF THAT. SOMEBODY MADE CAW. I'D LOVE TO GO TO THAT LAKE IN MISSOURI. YEP. Y'ALL HAVE SEEN THEM. WELL AND WHAT'S YOUR MO NO, THAT'S A GOOD, THAT'S A REALLY NEAT 'CAUSE THAT'S THE, THAT'S MISSOURI MO SO THAT'S A REALLY NEAT CATCHPHRASE. SO BILLY, WE HAVE A COUPLE MORE QUESTIONS. UM, SO FOR TEXAS MONTHLY, NOW THAT YOU GUYS HAVE DONE A COUPLE OF EVENTS, UH, DO YOU HAVE ANY DIFFERENT IDEAS OR WAYS THAT YOU PLAN TO TWEAK BASED ON HOSTING AT OUR VENUES? YEAH, IT'S A GREAT QUESTION. UM, SO OUR TEAM HAS BEEN WORKING WITH ZANG, UM, AS WE PLAN OUT THE NEXT ROUND OF EVENTS. SO WE LEARNED A LOT THROUGH TACO FEST THAT LEADS INTO BARBECUE. AND IF I COULD SAY ANYTHING ABOUT BARBECUE, THAT IS, THAT'S OUR FRANCHISE THAT'S BEEN AROUND FOR, YOU KNOW, 20 PLUS YEARS. SO TACO IS A NEWER FRANCHISE. UM, SO WE TAKE EVERYTHING, WE TAKE THE VENUE, UM, THE MUSIC, THE SETUP, AND WE ROLL THAT FORWARD INTO NEXT YEAR. SO, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU LOOK AT OUR PROGRAMS OR OUR EVENTS, THEY BUILD EVERY SINGLE YEAR. UM, WE JUST HAVE GROWTH ALL ACROSS, UM, OUR VENUES UNTIL WE SELL OUT BECAUSE THERE ARE CAPS OF WHAT WE DO, ESPECIALLY FOR LIKE A TACO AND A BARBECUE. THEY'LL HAVE A CAP, UM, BECAUSE IT'S A TICKETED EVENT. AND I ASSUME ZANE ARE, ARE, IS YOUR TEAM INVOLVED IN A DEBRIEF WITH THEM AFTER THESE EVENTS? YES MA'AM. I BET YOU'RE ON TOP OF IT. YES, MA'AM. WE, UH, WE MEET WITH THEM ON A BIWEEKLY BASIS LEADING UP TO THE EVENTS AND THEN WE DO RECAPS, UH, INTERNALLY. AND THEN, UH, YEAH, AND THEN ANYTIME YOU HAVE FEEDBACK THOUGH, PLEASE GIVE IT TO ME 'CAUSE I PASS IT ALONG TO THEIR, TO TEAM, UH, ALMOST DAILY. SO THANK YOU. TAKE A COUPLE MORE, MR. GO. LET'S JUST START HERE WITH COUNCIL JOHNSON. COUNCILOR RAS, YOU GUYS HAVE DONE TWO EPISODES, ONE, YOU KNOW, FOR ENTREPRENEUR IN THE ARTS. ARE YOU PLAYING OUT ON TRYING TO SEE IF YOU DO AN EPISODE ON THE CULTURE OF GRAND PRAIRIE? WHAT MAKES GRAND PRAIRIE UNIQUE SO PEOPLE COME DOWN? YEAH, SO THEY'RE A GREAT QUESTION. SO, UM, OUR, UM, THROUGH TCR SPECIFICALLY, 'CAUSE THAT'S WHEN THOSE, UM, PROGRAMS WILL AIR, YOU KNOW, OUR FOCUS WITH TCR IS TO TELL THE STORY ABOUT THE STATE OF TEXAS. UM, AND SO OUR EDITORIAL TEAM CHARTS THE PATH OF WHERE THEY SEE THINGS. AND SO QUITE, QUITE CERTAINLY WE CAN LOOK AT ABOUT THE, THE GROWTH IN THE AREAS OF CITIES, THE, THE GROWTH WITHIN THE STATE OF TEXAS. AND I THINK ALL THROUGHOUT THOSE STORIES WE WEAVE IN DIFFERENT CITIES AND PARTNERSHIPS THAT WE HAVE FOR SURE. SO WHAT'S YOUR VENDORS? DO YOU HAVE SET VENDORS THAT COME TO YOUR DIFFERENT EVENTS OR ARE YOU OPEN TO LOCAL VENDORS AND SMALL BUSINESSES? YEAH, SO WE ARE CERTAINLY OPEN TO, UM, LOCAL BUSINESSES. SO AS AN EXAMPLE AT, UM, TCR FEST, IKEA, WHICH IS A NATIONAL BRAND, BUT THEY REACHED OUT TO US AND LIKE WE WANT TO BE AT THE EVENT. AND SO THAT DECISION WAS MADE AT A LOCAL LEVEL AS A GREAT EXAMPLE. SO WE ABSOLUTELY DO THAT. WE PROVIDE OPPORTUNITY AT A MARKETPLACE [00:30:01] LEVEL FOR OUR VENDORS TO COME IN. LOCALS WE WANTED IT TO BE A REFLECTION OF THE CITY AND ALSO A REFLECTION OF THE BRAND IN TERMS OF THAT EVENT, WHETHER IT'S TACO OR TCR, ET CETERA. OKAY. SO I KNOW OUR KID IS NOT A SMALL BUSINESS, BUT THE OTHER SMALLER YEAH. OPPORTUNITIES. YEAH, AND I THINK, AND YOU SAW EVEN AT AT TCR AND, AND TO A DEGREE, EVEN AT, AT TACO FEST, AND YOU'LL SEE IT AT BARBECUE, YOU'LL SEE, UM, DIFFERENT LEVELS. YOU'LL SEE LARGER BRANDS THAT WE'RE BRINGING IN LIKE A TITO'S OR EVEN AN IKEA, EVEN THOUGH IT WAS LOCAL. BUT THEN YOU'LL ALSO SEE A LOT, I MEAN I BOUGHT A BUNCH OF JELLY, UM, YOU KNOW, 'CAUSE IT, IT GOES WELL RIGHT HERE, UM, YOU KNOW, AT TCR FEST. AND THAT WAS FROM, THAT WAS FROM A LOCAL VENDOR. YEAH, PASTOR LOPEZ, JUST, UM, TALKING ABOUT TCRI, I KNOW THAT'S A LITTLE BIT, IT'S, IT'S FREE, RIGHT? IT'S NOT TICKETED. YOU SEE A LOT MORE FAMILIES. ONE THING THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT JUST KEEP IN MIND, I MEAN WHATEVER ADDITIONAL THINGS YOU COULD DO TO ATTRACT YOUNGER AUDIENCE LIKE KIDS AND STUFF, EITHER HAVE SOME OF THE ISD PERFORMANCE THROUGHOUT THE DAY TO FILL IN THE GAP, INCLUDING SETS OR HAVE, UM, LONG GAMES OR HAVE SOME TYPE OF FACE PAINTING OR WHATEVER. I THINK THAT WOULD PROBABLY HELP Y'ALL. 'CAUSE I THINK, UM, YOUR OTHER SIGNATURE EVENTS, I MEAN THERE'S TICKETED ITEMS AND IT'S PROBABLY CERTAIN TAX BRACKET THAT WE'RE TRYING TO TARGET, BUT THIS OTHER EVENT, I THINK YOU REALLY COULD OPEN IT UP AS YOU GROW THAT EVENT JUST INCORPORATING MORE, UM, THINGS FOR THE KIDS TO DO. 'CAUSE THEN FAMILIES WILL STAY OUT THERE LONGER AS WELL. YEAH. AND THAT'S GREAT FEEDBACK. UM, AND, UM, I THINK WE'LL YEAH, AND THEN YOU MAY HAVE MORE OF THAT. WELL, COUNCIL MEMBER, HE'S QUESTION THAT WAS, THAT WAS ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS WE DID WITH FEEDBACK. AND SO T THEY'VE ALREADY MADE, UH, PLANS FOR A KIDS' AREA FOR A KID ZONE THAT, UH, NEXT YEAR WITH ARTS AND CRAFTS JUST, AND THIS IS SOMETHING THAT TCRS NEVER REALLY HAD PREVIOUSLY, BUT BASED OFF FEEDBACK, THEY'VE ALREADY MADE PLANS FOR THAT FOR NEXT YEAR. SO YES, SIR. YEAH, JUST PERFORMANCES TOO. I MEAN, ABSOLUTELY. I MEAN, YEAH, I THINK, UH, WHAT HE'S GETTING AT WITH THE SCHOOL DISTRICT PART BECAUSE, UM, KIDS PROGRAMMING MAY OR MAY NOT INVOLVE THE SCHOOL DISTRICT. IT'S, WELL, ONCE AGAIN, IT'S EDITORIAL CONTENT WITH TCR. SO WE ABSOLUTELY MAKE SUGGESTIONS AND I INTRODUCE THEM TO A LOT OF DIFFERENT GROUPS. I MEAN, WE, WE, THEY CAME TO, UH, JB WENT AND SAW THE UKULELE CLUB FOR THE LIBRARY, GO DO THEIR CONCERTS ON THE JAMBOX. SO WE'VE EXPOSED HIM TO A LOT OF DIFFERENT THINGS, BUT HE ULTIMATELY MAKES THE DECISION, OF COURSE, AS THE EDITOR OF TCR OF WHAT HE PUTS ON THERE. BUT I, BUT WE WILL ABSOLUTELY CONTINUE TO ASK AND THAT'S HOW, I MEAN, THAT'S ULTIMATELY WHAT, HOW THOSE TWO EPISODES CAME ABOUT IS WE TOOK HIM TO PROBABLY 15, 20 DIFFERENT LOCATIONS ALL AROUND THE CITY. AND FROM THAT, THAT'S WHAT HE LIFTED AND SAID HE WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT. UM, AND I WAS JUST GONNA SAY, WHAT, WHAT THE SCHOOL DISTRICT, THE ONLY REASON I MENTIONED THAT I THINK, UH, MAJORITY OF THE AUDIENCE AT T STAR WAS FROM OUT OF GRAND PRAIRIE, RIGHT? YES, MA'AM. WHICH WE LOVE THAT. BUT I KNOW SOMETIMES GETTING THOSE PARENTS HOOKED, UM, IN THERE WHEN THEY, THEY'RE GETTING PROMOTIONS TO THE SCHOOL WILL GET TO THE, THE GRAND PRAIRIE AUDIENCE THERE AS WELL. ABSO ABSOLUTELY. ANYBODY ELSE? SO JUST TO PIG BACK ON WHAT YOU SAID, AND I NOTICED THAT TOO, A LOT OF THE, UM, VISITATION WAS FROM OUT OF AGAIN, WHICH IS GREAT, THIS NEW REVENUE FOR US, BUT WHAT ARE WE DOING AS FAR AS MARKETING TO ENSURE THAT OUR RESIDENTS ARE INVOLVED OR HAVE ACCESS TO THE INFORMATION ON THAT ARE COMING FOR? YEAH. AS A RESULT OF THAT FEEDBACK, WE ADDED, UH, TEXAS MONTHLY INCORPORATED ADDITIONAL LOCAL ADVERTISING DOLLARS ON THE DIGITAL SIDE, I BELIEVE. AND THEN ON OUR END, WE'RE PUSHING MORE, UH, PR LOCALLY TO MAKE THOSE, UH, AWARE OF THE EVENTS THAT ARE COMING UP. AND THEN WHICH EVENT WAS THE ONE THAT YOU PROMOTED IN FRISCO? CAN'T REMEMBER. IT WAS TACO FEST TACO. IT WAS THE TACO FEST TACO AND WE'RE DOING THE SAME NEXT WEEK FOR BARBECUE. SO WE SAW A GOOD TURNOUT FROM THAT LOCAL POPUP. SO WE'RE TRYING TO CREATE, GET A LITTLE MORE CREATIVE, GET A LITTLE MORE, UM, GRASSROOTS SO THAT WE CAN MAKE EVERYONE AWARE OF, ESPECIALLY OF THE FREE EVENTS. ANYTHING ELSE? AND THEN ONE LAST QUESTION. I DID GET SOME INQUIRIES FROM SOME VENDORS. UM, SOME OF THEM MAY HANDMADE THINGS. I KNOW IT NEEDS TO BE ONE BRAND, OBVIOUSLY, FOR THEM TO PARTICIPATE IN ANY WAY. UM, BUT I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW, UH, HOW TO GET THEM IN TOUCH. AND I THINK AT THAT TIME I WAS TOLD THAT YOU GUYS WERE AT CAPACITY FOR YOUR VENDORS. IS THERE A SIGNUP SHEET WHERE PEOPLE CAN, UM, PITCH TO YOU GUYS IF THEY WANT TO HAVE A TENT AND SHOW WHAT THEY'RE MAKING? UH, YEAH, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. WE DO AN OPEN, UH, SO WE OPEN IT UP. WE, THEY GO THROUGH AN APPLICATION PROCESS SO WE CAN UNDERSTAND THEIR PRODUCT, WHAT THEY'RE SELLING, THEIR CAPACITY TO SERVICE THE CROWDS THAT WE HAVE. AND THEN THE TEAM GOES THROUGH AND, AND MATCHES [00:35:01] KIND OF THE MAKEUP OF WHAT THE EVENT IS WITH THE MARKETPLACE AND THE VENDORS THAT WE BRING IN. AND HOW EARLY, UH, DOES THAT OPEN UP? UM, IT USUALLY OPENS UP ABOUT TWO MONTHS, UM, BEFORE THE EVENT, TWO AND A HALF MONTHS. AND, AND FOR BOTH EVENTS, WE, WE TAPPED OUT, WE SOLD OUT IN TERMS OF WE HAVE SPACE LIMITATIONS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. AND, AND FOR TCR SPECIFICALLY, WE OPEN UP THE FARMER'S MARKET FOR THOSE VENDORS THAT AREN'T SELECTED TO BE A PART OF THE FESTIVAL, WE OPEN UP THE FARMER'S MARKET FOR ALL OF OUR LOCAL BUSINESSES TO BE A PART AS WELL. GREAT. ANYBODY ELSE? THANK YOU. THANK YOU GUYS. ALRIGHT, SNAPPER AND BRANDON, THERE'S NOTHING BETTER THAN FOLLOWING THE IMPORTANT PEOPLE. SO APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO, TO BE HERE. I'M BRANDON AIAN, SNAPPER CARR FOCUSED ADVOCACY MAYOR, MR. MANAGER, MEMBERS OF COUNCIL, THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE. UH, UNDERSTAND THAT YOU HAVE AN EXECUTIVE SESSION AND THEN A COUNCIL MEETING AFTER THIS. SO WE WANNA MOVE, UM, WITH A LOT OF SPEED THROUGH THE PRESENTATION. FOR THOSE OF YOU THAT HAVE, HAVE, UM, BEEN AROUND IN PRIOR SESSIONS, YOU'VE HEARD ME SAY, YOU KNOW, TRYING TO REVIEW THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION QUICKLY AS LIKE SAYING, LET'S SPEED READ THROUGH THE BIBLE FROM GENESIS TO EXODUS AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE. AND WE COULD SPEND AN HOUR ON ANY ONE GIVEN BILL OR, UH, CERTAINLY SOME OF THEM. SO SNAPPER AND I AND OUR FIRM ARE ALWAYS AVAILABLE TO VISIT WITH YOU, UH, PRIVATELY, OFFLINE, COME BACK, UH, ANY NUMBER OF THINGS. UM, KURT SEITZ AND OUR NEWEST MEMBER, CLINT MCGEE, UH, SEND THEIR REGARDS. UM, SNAPPER AND I HAVE HAD THE, THE PLEASURE OF REPRESENTING THIS CITY NOW FOR 20 SO YEARS. UM, IT'S STARTING TO MAKE ME FEEL OLD, UM, BUT IT'S BEEN A, IT'S BEEN A REAL, UM, UH, WONDERFUL PARTNERSHIP AND, AND WE, UH, UH, ARE HONORED TO WORK FOR Y'ALL. OF COURSE, NO, UM, REVIEW OF THE LEGISLATIVE SESSION IS ACCURATE OR COMPLETE WITHOUT RECOGNIZING THE HARD WORK OF THE MEMBERS, THE LEGISLATURE THAT REPRESENTS YOU. UH, AS WE'VE TALKED ABOUT BEFORE HERE IN THIS ROOM, GRAND PRAIRIE IS A VERY UNIQUE CITY IN THAT IT'S REPRESENTED BY, UH, A, A VERY LARGE NUMBER OF, UH, UH, MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATURE. THREE IN THE SENATE, SENATOR BIRDWELL, SENATOR JOHNSON AND SENATOR WEST. AND THEN IN YOUR THE HOUSE, YOU HAVE FIVE HOUSE MEMBERS, REPRESENTATIVES, BNI DAVIS, YVONNE DAVIS, UH, JESSICA GONZALEZ, AND, UH, LONGTIME GRAND PRAIRIE RESIDENT AND REPRESENTATIVE CHRIS TURNER. UH, HERE ON THIS SLIDE, AND I'VE SHOWED YOU THIS SLIDE BEFORE, PRIOR TO SESSION, YOU SEE HOW YOUR DELEGATION BREAKS DOWN. OF COURSE, AS YOU KNOW, BETTER THAN ANYBODY, YOUR CITY STRADDLES TWO COUNTIES, UH, AND, UM, THE HOUSE, THE, THE SEATS DON'T STRADDLE THE COUNTIES AND THE SENATE. THEY DO. SO YOU SEE, FOR EXAMPLE, SENATOR WEST THERE HAS BOTH THE TARRANT COUNTY AND THE DALLAS COUNTY PORTION. SO HE REPRESENTS ABOUT 80% OF THE CITY, THUS BEING THE SENATOR. UH, OF, OF THE THREE THAT THAT REPRESENTS THE MAJORITY OF YOU, JUST LIKE, UH, REPRESENTATIVES, GONZALEZ AND TURNER REPRESENT THE MAJORITY OF THE CITY NOT TO, UH, DIMINISH THE ROLES OF ANYBODY ON THIS, UM, ON, IN THIS DELEGATION, BECAUSE THEY'RE ALL EXTREMELY, UH, RECEPTIVE TO YOUR NEEDS AND WE APPRECIATE ALL OF THEM. UH, TALKING ABOUT HOW THE LEGISLATURE WAS MADE UP. THIS SESSION IS ALWAYS IMPORTANT BECAUSE IT'S THE BACKDROP FOR REALLY ALL THE DECISIONS IN THE SENATE. YOU SEE A VERY RED, UH, REPUBLICAN SENATE 20 TO 11 IN AN RD BREAKDOWN, THREE FRESHMEN, WHICH IS A FAIRLY HIGH NUMBER, UH, IN THE HOUSE, AN 88 62 HOUSE, WHICH HAS KIND OF BEEN ABOUT AVERAGE. BUT WE STARTED THIS SESSION WITH A SPEAKER'S RACE AS SPEAKER PHELAN. THE PRIOR SPEAKER, UH, ANNOUNCED HE WOULD NOT SEEK REELECTION TO THE SPEAKERS POST, UH, GENTLEMAN, UM, OUT OF LUBBOCK, DUSTIN BURROUGHS, UH, THREW HIS NAME IN THE HAT. AND EVENTUALLY, UH, AFTER SEVERAL BALLOTS AGAINST, UH, REPRESENTATIVE DAVID COOK HERE LOCALLY FROM MAN, THE MANSFIELD AREA WON THAT RACE, 88 55. INTERESTINGLY, AS YOU SEE THERE, THOSE 88 YES VOTES, UH, BROKE DOWN BETWEEN A REPUBLICAN, DEMOCRAT SORT OF COALITION, IF YOU WILL. AND THE MAJORITY OF THOSE, AS YOU CAN SEE, WERE DEMOCRATS. UM, IT WAS A HISTORIC MOMENT. THEN LATER WHEN, [00:40:01] UH, SPEAKER BOROUGHS ANNOUNCED THAT FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, THERE WOULD NOT BE MEMBERS OF THE MINORITY PARTY, UH, THAT WOULD SHARE A COMMITTEE. SO FOR THE FIRST TIME, WE HAD NO DEMOCRATIC CHAIRS OR, OR MINORITY PARTY CHAIRS, OR REALLY, YOU KNOW, THIS PREDATES THE REPUBLICAN DOMINANCE OF, OF TEXAS POLITICS. IT WAS THE SAME THING WHEN DEMOCRATS RAN THE HOUSE. THERE WERE REPUBLICAN CHAIRMAN I KNOW, BECAUSE I WORKED FOR ONE A LONG, LONG TIME AGO. UM, IN THE BIG PICTURE, YOU SEE, UH, 9,000 PLUS BILLS FILED, UH, HISTORIC HIGH NUMBER. CAN'T STRESS THAT ENOUGH. THE VOLUME IN THE LEGISLATURE HAS BECOME TRULY INSANE. WHEN SNAPPER AND I, UH, WERE YOUNG AND HE DIDN'T HAVE GRAY IN HIS BEARD, UH, WE WERE LOOKING AT LEGISLATIVE SESSIONS WHERE WE HAD 6,000, 7,000 BILLS. SO WE'VE, YOU KNOW, SPIKED TREMENDOUSLY. 2,500 BILLS AFFECTING CITIES. GENERALLY SPEAKING, YOU KNOW, ABOUT 25% OF THOSE BILLS FILED. YOU'VE HEARD ME SAY THIS BEFORE, YOU'LL HEAR ME SAY THIS AGAIN. CITIES ARE MORE AFFECTED BY THE LEGISLATURE THAN ANYTHING UNDER THE SUN. THERE IS NO CLOSE SECOND PLACE. IF YOU WONDER WHY YOU NEED TO BE INVOLVED IN THE LEGISLATIVE PROCESS, IT'S BECAUSE THE LEGISLATURE AFFECTS YOU MORE THAN IT AFFECTS ANY SINGLE THING. UH, ABOUT 1200 PLUS BILLS PASSED, THAT'S TYPICAL ISH, A LITTLE HIGH, BUT YOU CAN ALMOST SET YOUR CLOCK BY THE FACT THAT ABOUT A THOUSAND TO 1200 BILLS WILL PASS EVERY SESSION. UH, AND ABOUT 260 PLUS OF THOSE, AGAIN, ABOUT 24, 25 ISH PERCENT PASSED DIRECTLY AFFECTING CITIES. YOU SEE, GOVERNOR ABBOTT ANNOUNCES AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS SESSION, AS IS TYPICAL FOR ANY GOVERNOR, WHAT WOULD CALL WHAT ARE SOMETIMES REFERRED TO AS EMERGENCY ITEMS, UH, IE HIS AGENDA, SEVEN ITEMS, SCHOOL CHOICE SLASH VOUCHERS, PROPERTY TAX RELIEF, WATER INFRASTRUCTURE, TEACHER PAY RAISE, CAREER TRAINING, BAIL REFORM, AND THIS THING CALLED A CYBER COMMAND. YOU SEE ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE OF THE TABLE THERE, THE RESULTS, UH, ALL SEVEN ITEMS PASSED. UH, AND WE CAN GO THROUGH THOSE. UM, BUT I'M GONNA JUST SPEED PAST IT IN, IN, UH, RESPECT OF YOUR TIME, BUT HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTION. AND BY THE WAY, INTERRUPT ME AT ANY POINT DURING THIS AND, AND ASK QUESTIONS. THIS ISN'T A SAVIOR. QUESTIONS TO THE END KIND OF THING. UH, LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR PATRICK HAS STARTED A, A TRADITION OF ANNOUNCING HIS QUOTE PRIORITIES AS WELL. KIND OF DOES LIKE A TOP 40 NOW. UH, IT'S HARD TO TRACK. IT REALLY DOES. TRULY 40. UM, AND, AND IT'S IT'S A LOT. YEAH. UM, AND YOU SEE HERE, KIND OF IN THE TOP 20. AND HE WAS INCREDIBLY EFFECTIVE THIS SESSION IN GETTING, UH, QUOTE, UH, THE, THE SENATE PRIORITIES OR THE PATRICK PRIORITIES. YOU SEE SB THREE, THE BANNING THC IN TEXAS, IT WAS PASSED, BUT VETOED. UH, YOU SEE, THEN, YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING ELSE PASSED, PASSED, PASSED. YOU GET DOWN TO SENATE BILL 19, WHICH IS A BILL NEAR AND DEAR TO ALL OF OUR HEARTS BECAUSE IT SAYS, YOU, THE CITY OF GRAND PRAIRIE CANNOT JOIN TML IF THEY HAVE A, YOU KNOW, LOBBYIST, UH, WHICH THEY DO. AND YOU CANNOT HIRE CONSULTANTS OR, UM, ASSISTANTS SUCH AS FOCUSED ADVOCACY, WHICH YOU DO. UH, THAT BILL, UH, DIED IN THE HOUSE. WE'LL TALK MORE ABOUT THAT LATER. YOU SEE HERE TWO QUOTES FROM THE LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR AND SPEAKER BOROUGHS, UH, BOTH OF WHICH BASICALLY, YOU KNOW, SAY WE HAD THIS REALLY GREAT RELATIONSHIP AND WE HAD A REALLY, REALLY CONSERVATIVE SESSION. AND IT WAS AWESOME. AND ALL OF THAT IS INTERESTING GIVEN THE FACT THAT THEN THE GOVERNOR CALLED US BACK FOR A SPECIAL SESSION, UH, WHICH I THINK CAUGHT A A LOT OF PEOPLE A LITTLE BIT BY SURPRISE. SO GETTING DOWN INTO THE WEEDS HERE, YOU ADOPTED YOUR LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES AND AGENDA. YOU DIDN'T HAVE ANYTHING THAT YOU WERE PROACTIVELY AS YOU RECALL. YOU DIDN'T HAVE ANYTHING PROACTIVELY THAT YOU WERE TRYING TO PASS THIS SESSION. YOU JUST TOOK A SORT OF, WE'RE GONNA SUPPORT LEGISLATION AND OPPOSE LEGISLATION, HOUSING, FINANCE, CORPORATIONS. THE ETJ GROUP HOMES ARE THREE THINGS THAT WE, WE, UH, HAD SOME REAL SUCCESS ON. UH, GROUP HOMES THANKS TO REPRESENTATIVE CHRIS TURNER, HOUSE BILL 25 10 WAS PASSED. UH, YOU SEE, I'M KIND OF JUMPING AROUND THE SLIDE HERE, UH, BUT YOU SEE THAT YOU HAD SOME KEY WITNESSES FROM GRAND PRAIRIE GO DOWN AND TESTIFY, APPRECIATE, UH, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT'S HELP WITH THAT BILL. UH, BUT REPRESENTATIVE TURNER WAS ABLE TO GET A BILL PASSED THAT, UM, UH, CREATED A PENALTY FOR UNLICENSED, [00:45:01] UH, GROUP HOME ACTIVITY. UH, WITH APOLOGIES. WE'RE GONNA MOVE ON TO HOUSING FINANCE CORPORATIONS, AND I SAY APOLOGIES, MEANING I, UH, I DID NOT PUT AN S ON REPRESENTATIVE GATE'S, UH, LAST NAME. SO THE HONORABLE REPRESENTATIVE GATES PASSED HOUSE BILL 21, UH, THAT SNAPPER'S GONNA VISIT WITH YOU ABOUT VERY, VERY QUICKLY. THANK YOU. AND AGAIN, MY NAME'S SNAPPER CARR AND PARTNER AND GENERAL COUNSEL, AND ALSO THANK YOU MAYOR AND COUNCIL. WE'VE, WE'VE ENJOYED THIS LONG-TERM RELATIONSHIP WITH Y'ALL. THIS, UH, HB 21 WAS OBVIOUSLY A PRIORITY SUPPORT ITEM FOR Y'ALL. IT'S, AS YOU ALSO ARE WELL AWARE, IT HAD VERY SIGNIFICANT FISCAL IMPLICATIONS OF NOT STOPPING THIS PRACTICE. UH, THIS CITY AND OTHERS IN, IN THE DFW AREA, UH, REALLY TOOK THE, THE BRUNT OF, OF THIS PRACTICE, OF, OF THIS LOOPHOLE BEING EXPLOITED TO TAKE OFF, UH, EXISTING MULTIFAMILY FROM YOUR TAX ROLLS WITH NO CONSENT OR INPUT FROM YOU ALL IN THE NAME OF, OF A, OF A HOUSING AFFORDABILITY STOCK, OFTEN SPONSORED AS Y'ALL KNOW, THIS PRACTICE BY, BY ENTITIES FAR AWAY FROM, FROM, UH, GRAND PRAIRIE, TEXAS, UH, SOUTH TEXAS AND SOME OF THE COUNTIES THERE BEING SOME OF THE, THE ENTITIES THAT FIRST, UM, AGREED TO THIS PRACTICE. UM, THIS IS A PRIME EXAMPLE, BY THE WAY. AND WHAT WE WILL, LIKE BRANDON SAID, GO QUICKLY. WE DID GET SUCCESS, BUT IT'S A PRIME EXAMPLE OF EVEN WHEN THERE IS SUPPORT FOR THINGS IN THE LEGISLATIVE PROCESS 'CAUSE OF THE DYNAMICS THAT ARE THERE, IT CAN BE HARD TO GET EVEN GOOD THINGS THAT ARE AGREED UPON THROUGH, THERE WERE A COUPLE OF COMPETING BILLS ON THIS TOPIC. AND SO IT ACTUALLY, EVEN THOUGH IT GOT GOING VERY FAST, IT WAS ONE OF THE FIRST HEARINGS WE HAD, HAD VERY GOOD CITY SUPPORT FROM AROUND THE STATE. UM, A LOT OF GOOD TESTIMONY AND SOME COMMITTED AUTHORS AND THE CHAIRMAN, HOWEVER, THEY WERE AT ODDS ON HOW TO FIX THIS ITEM. AND SO IT LANGUISHED FOR A BIT IN THE HOUSE IN PARTICULAR. AND, UH, WE DIDN'T GET IT, UH, ALL THE WAY ACROSS THE GOAL LINE UNTIL IN MAY, BUT IT ULTIMATELY DID, AND IT, I'LL BE HONEST, IT SET AT THE GOVERNOR'S DESK FOR A LITTLE LONGER THAN FOLKS WERE PROBABLY COMFORTABLE WITH BEFORE IT WAS SIGNED TO, TO ULTIMATELY IN THE PRACTICE BECAUSE IT WAS, DID HAVE IMMEDIATE EFFECT. UM, THIS BILL DID REQUIRE SOME NEGOTIATING. THERE WAS A BIG PRESENCE ON THE OTHER SIDE, UH, THAT THAT CAME FORWARD. THIS BILL ALSO MADE REFORMS TO WHAT I WILL CALL THE HFC PRACTICES THAT REALLY WEREN'T THE GENESIS OF IT. IT, IT ADDED SOME SAFEGUARDS. AND SO THERE WERE SOME HFCS THAT WERE OPERATING WITHIN THEIR, THEIR JURISDICTION THAT ALSO HAD QUESTION. SO THAT, THAT WAS SOME OF THE DYNAMICS. BUT ULTIMATELY, THE GOOD NEWS ABOUT THIS IS IT STOPS THIS PROCESS. UH, THERE'S STILL LITIGATION GOING ON ABOUT THE VALIDITY OF, OF THIS PROCESS PRIOR TO THE ENACTMENT OF THIS. BUT THIS WAS A REAL CLEAR CLOSURE OF THAT LOOPHOLE AND ONE THAT SHOULD PROTECT THE FINANCIAL, UH, WELLBEING OF, OF YOUR CITIZENS AND, AND THOSE TAXPAYERS FROM SEEING THIS SORT OF REMOVAL, UH, FROM THE TAX ROLLS. VERY, VERY POSITIVE BILL FOR US. YEAH, IT, IT REALLY WAS A GOOD WIN FOR CITIES ACROSS THE, THE STATE, INCLUDING YOURS. AND THEN, UH, HOUSE BILL 25 12 BY REPRESENTATIVE GARRIN HAD TO DO WITH ETJ REGULATION. YOU SEE, THE FIRST COUPLE OF BULLET POINTS TALKS ABOUT SOME, UM, AMENDMENTS TO THAT ETJ RELEASE PROCESS. BUT THAT THIRD BULLET POINT IS WHAT YOU CARE ABOUT. AND THAT IS A BULLET THAT IS A PROVISION OF THE BILL THAT IS GOING TO EXEMPT THE GRAND PRAIRIE, UH, FROM THE ETJ RELEASE PROCESS IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES. AND YOU SEE, THERE ARE THE THREE AREAS THAT ARE SUBJECT TO DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENTS, AREAS IN A PLATTED OR UN PLATTED, LOT OF LESS THAN 12 ACRES, OR WITHIN A PLATTED SUBDIVISION OF 25 OR MORE LOTS IF THE AREA IS A SINGLE LOT THAT WAS A BRACKET, UH, UH, APPROACH THAT CAPTURED PRIMARILY, REALLY JUST TWO CITIES. FORT WORTH AND GRAND PRAIRIE REPRESENTATIVE YVONNE DAVIS, UH, HAD A LOT TO DO WITH HELPING, UH, ENSURE THAT BILL'S PASSAGE. SO YOU, YOU AS A CITY NOW HAVE A TOOL TO USE IF YOU CARE TO IN THAT ETJ RELEASE, UH, PROCESS. UH, IT WAS A CHALLENGING CITY AS AS CHALLENGING SESSION, EXCUSE ME. IT WAS A CHALLENGING SESSION AS IT HAS BEEN NOW FOR A WHILE FOR CITIES, UH, IN THE LEGISLATIVE PROCESS. THAT SAID, WE, WE DID, UH, HAVE SUCCESS ALONG WITH OTHER, YOU KNOW, CITIES HELPING AND TML, UH, IN, IN PREVENTING A LOT OF BAD BILLS FROM PASSING, UH, IN PARTICULAR, UH, SOME ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BILLS. THERE WAS A THREE 80 AGREEMENT LIMITATION BILL, UH, THAT DID NOT PASS. AND VERY IN VERY, UH, UH, IMPORTANT TO YOUR CITY WAS A HOTEL PROJECT LIMITATION BILL THAT WOULD'VE PREVENTED YOU [00:50:01] FROM CONTINUING TO UTILIZE THE TOOL THAT WE HAVE USED SUCCESSFULLY TO BUILD THE EPIC. UH, AND, AND FORTUNATELY WE WERE ABLE TO STOP THAT BILL. UH, THERE WAS, UH, SOME LOCAL PRE, UH, UH, SUPER PREEMPTION BILL. UH, IT'S KIND OF SIMILAR TO THE DEATH STAR, UM, UH, UH, AN ACCESSORY DWELLING UNIT BY RIGHT BILL, UH, THAT WAS VERY PROBLEMATIC FOR A LOT OF CITIES. UH, AND A, A BILL THAT WOULD'VE, UH, OPENED UP FIREARMS AT PUBLIC VENUES ON THE FINANCE, UH, I'M SORRY, GO AHEAD, COUNCIL MEMBER. YES, SIR. SO, CURRENTLY STATE LAW ALLOWS CITIES TO ALLOW ADUS OR THE CITY HAS TO APPROVE THE CORRECT, CORRECT, YES. Y YES. COUNCIL MEMBER, UH, THE, THE, THESE BILLS. AND WE'VE NARROWLY DEFEATED AND, AND, AND NOT ALL CITIES OPPOSE THIS, BUT TH THIS IS A PREEMPTION OF THAT CONSENT. AND IT WOULD SAY BY, RIGHT, YOU HAVE TO ALLOW, UH, THESE, UM, TH UH, REGARDLESS O OF OF YOUR LOCAL, UH, ORDINANCES, IT, IT WOULD PREEMPT. AND, AND THAT HAS PRIMARILY BEEN DRIVEN IN THE NAME OF, OF HOUSING AFFORDABILITY STOCK. UH, ALTHOUGH I WOULD SAY THAT WE HAD A MORE VOCAL DISCUSSION THIS, THIS SESSION ABOUT, UH, THE FACT THAT, THAT THIS MIGHT IMPACT UTILITY WATER WASTEWATER AND PUBLIC SAFETY AND, AND FIRE RESPONSE IN PARTICULAR, UH, A LOT MORE DISCUSSION. BUT, UM, JUST WHILE I'M HERE AND SO WE CAN KEEP THE FLOW OF THIS, THESE BILLS THAT DID NOT PASS, THEN WHY WE TAKE A LITTLE BIT OF TIME ON THAT IS IT CONSUMES CONSIDERABLE MUNICIPAL, LOCAL GOVERNMENT RESOURCES TO DEAL WITH THESE. THESE ARE THE HIGH PRIORITY BILLS THAT THE LEGISLATURE HAS FOCUSED ON. AND ONE THING THAT WAS UNIQUE ABOUT THIS SESSION IS THAT IN ANY, OUR 30 YEARS OF WORKING AROUND THE BUILDING AND, AND MANY, SEVERAL DECADES WITH CITIES NOW, WE USUALLY HAVE TWO TO THREE THAT WE'LL SAY ARE REALLY TOP LEVEL ONE A THINGS ARE GONNA CHANGE YOUR OPERATIONS OR HAVE PRETTY SIGNIFICANT FISCAL IMPACTS ON YOU SOMEHOW. UH, MAYBE TWO OR THREE OF THOSE. WE PROBABLY HAD 10 TO 15 OF THOSE THIS TIME AROUND. UM, A COUPLE OF THE BILLS HERE THAT WE WERE GETTING TO. AND THEN THE HB 23, WHICH WAS A BILL THAT, THAT PASSED, THAT WAS ALL BUT A DEREGULATION OF LOCAL BUSINESS. IT ALLOWED FOR YOUR DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY IN THAT BILL TO SELECT THEIR OWN INSPECTORS TO AND SELECT THEIR OWN, UH, PLAN, REVIEW PEOPLE, AND TO JUST SUBMIT THAT TO THE CITY SAYING IT'S, IT'S IN COMPLIANCE. DID THE ADU BILL MAKE IT TO THE FLOOR OR IT DIED IN THE COMMITTEE? IT, UH, PASSED OUT OF THE SENATE AND IT DIED IN THE HOUSE. AND, AND WE HAD PREVIOUSLY BEAT THAT THE SESSION BEFORE BY A TWO VOTE MARGIN ON, ON A RECONSIDERATION AFTER IT PASSED THE FIRST TIME. SO IT'S, IT'S BEEN SOMETHING THAT'S BEEN VERY, VERY SIGNIFICANT. ALL THESE ITEMS THAT YOU SEE THAT WE'VE DISCUSSED WILL BE BACK DURING THE COURSE OF NEXT SESSION IN SOME FORM OR FASHION, IF NOT THE EXACT FORMAT. YEAH. SENATE BILL 6 73, THAT A DU BILL, IT ACTUALLY MADE IT OUT OF HOUSE COMMITTEE AND WAS PLACED ON THE CALENDAR AT THE END, AT THE VERY END, BUT DIED ON THE CALENDAR. UM, AND, AND SNAPPER'S, RIGHT? YOU KNOW, I'LL GO BACK ONE MORE TIME. THAT THIRD PARTY REVIEW, YOU, YOU SEE THE BILL NUMBER THERE, HOUSE BILL 23, THAT IS A SPEAKER PRIORITY BILL. THAT IS A LOW BILL NUMBER FOR A REASON. THAT WAS A PRIORITY BILL TO GET PASSED, DID NOT PASS HOUSE BILL 19 PRIORITY BILL TO GET PASSED. WOULD'VE LIMITED, UH, CITY'S USE OF DEBT INSTRUMENTS, COS AND TAX ANTICIPATION NOTES IN PARTICULAR. ANOTHER BIG BILL THAT WE'RE NOW PROBABLY GONNA REVISIT TO SOME DEGREE IN SPECIAL SESSION POTENTIALLY, BUT CERTAINLY NEXT SESSION, UH, FIVE YEAR BLACKOUT ON CERTIFICATES OF OBLIGATIONS AND TAX AND PARTICIPATION NOTES DID NOT PASS. AND THEN A, UH, UTILITY RELOCATION, UH, BILL THAT WOULD'VE SHIFTED IT FROM, UH, THE UTILITIES PAY TO CITIES PAY, UH, DID NOT PASS. UH, ANOTHER, UH, KIND OF GROWING POPULAR ITEM THAT WE'RE GOING TO, YOU'RE GONNA, I PROMISE, SEE MORE OF IN FUTURE SESSIONS AND, AND PROBABLY IF I WAS TO PREDICT, WOULD EVENTUALLY BECOME LAW. UH, NOVEMBER BOND ELECTIONS ONLY, UH, MAY CITY COUNCIL DATES ELIMINATED FORCING, UH, COUNCIL ELECTIONS TO NOVEMBER. UH, BOTH THOSE BILLS DIED, UH, BUT THEY'VE BECOME PERENNIAL, UH, FAVORITES. SO THAT'S A QUICK RUNDOWN OF SOME OF THE BILLS THAT DID NOT PASS. WE'RE GONNA RAPIDLY RUN OUT OF TIME HERE, AND MEGAN IS GONNA GET MAD AT ME, AND I DON'T LIKE TO MAKE MEGAN MAD, SO I'M GONNA, I'M GONNA MOVE VERY QUICKLY. BUT, UH, THE, UH, SEVERAL PREEMPTION BILLS A HANDFUL OF PREEMPTION BILLS THAT PASS, I THINK MOST IMPORTANTLY AMONGST THEM IS SENATE BILL 1202 THAT ALLOWS THIRD PARTY INSPECTIONS FOR RESIDENTIAL ENERGY BACKUP SYSTEMS. SO THAT IS NOW AUTHORIZED BY LAW. LAND USE WAS REALLY, [00:55:01] YOU KNOW, THE, THE AREA WHERE CITIES WERE THE MOST CHALLENGED AND WHERE WE CONTINUE TO SORT OF HAVE THIS ONSLAUGHT OF, OF BILLS THAT THAT CHALLENGED MUNICIPALITIES, UH, TINY LOT BILL, UH, SENATE BILL 15, AGAIN, PRIORITY BILL THERE WITHOUT LOW BILL NUMBER, TINY LOT BILL PASSED. UH, IT WAS EXTREMELY LIMITED IN TERMS OF WHAT IT APPLIES TO. UH, AND SO IN THAT REGARD, HOPEFULLY IT WASN'T AS BAD AS IT COULD HAVE BEEN. UM, YOU, YOU SEE, UH, SENATE BILL 1883 AS AN IMPACT FEE ADOPTION REFORM BILL, IF YOU WILL, PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO THAT. UH, THERE WAS A DIS ANNEXATION BILL, UH, THAT HAD THIS GOOFY BRACKET THAT YOU HAVE TO BE ADJACENT TO A NAVI NAVIGABLE SAY THAT FIVE TIMES FAST WATERWAY. UM, AND THE PROPERTY HAS TO BE NOT CONNECTED TO A WATER SYSTEM. IT'S GONNA BE INTERESTING TO SEE HOW THAT GETS INTERPRETED, YOU KNOW, THROUGH LEGAL PROCESSES AND OTHERWISE, JUST ON EIGHT 40. YEAH, PLEASE, REAL QUICK, SENATE BILL EIGHT 40 I KNOW IS ONE THAT'S GENERATED A LOT OF DISCUSSION AS WELL. IT WAS ONE OF THOSE THAT SOMETIMES THE NARRATIVE IN THE LEGISLATURE, UH, OVERRIDES WHAT THE ACTUAL LANGUAGE IN THE BILL DOES THAT THAT BILL WAS SOLD, UH, TO, TO THE COMMITTEES IN THE HEARING, IF YOU WILL, ON THE NARRATIVE. AND THE MEMBERS AT LARGE ON THIS, IS TO ALLOW FOR OFFICE TOWERS TO BE CONVERTED TO, UM, RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES. AND, UH, FOR ALL OF THE TOWERS THAT ARE NOW EMPTY POST COVID, UM, THIS IS A VERY BENEFICIAL BILL FOR, FOR MULTI-FAMILY DEVELOPERS. UH, AND, AND TOOK AWAY A LOT OF, UH, VOICES IN CERTAIN COMMUNITIES 'CAUSE IT'S BRACKETED TO ALLOW THAT COMMUNITY INPUT. AND BY THE END, I WILL TELL YOU, THE PEOPLE THAT, THAT WERE PRESSING THIS BILL UNDERSTOOD THAT. BUT BECAUSE THERE WERE SOME CITIES THAT WERE NEUTRAL ON IT, EVEN SOME THAT LARGE CITIES IN THIS REGION THAT WERE SUPPORTIVE OF IT, UM, WE ENDED UP WHERE WE DID ON THAT. I THINK IT WILL ULTIMATELY BE REVISITED, BUT IT'S, IT'S A SIGNIFICANT BILL AND, AND IT'S PART OF WHAT BRANDON SAID. WE SAW ALL SESSION. UM, I'M GONNA MOVE THROUGH THESE. YOU'VE GOT A, AS WAS TALKED ABOUT EARLIER NOW, A THREE DAY POSTING RULE NOW, UH, THAT Y'ALL DISCUSSED A MOMENT AGO, YOU'VE NOW GOT SOME REQUIREMENT ON YOUR BALLOTS TO, IF, IF THEY'RE ON YOUR BOND BALLOTS TO STATE THIS IS A TAX INCREASE ON THE BALLOT, YOUR ATTORNEYS WILL GO OVER THAT WITH YOU AS WELL. UH, WRAPPING UP, WE ARE NOW IN SPECIAL SESSION SEASON. UM, AGAIN, I THINK MUCH TO TO, TO THE SURPRISE, WE HAD A SPECIAL SESSION, THE FIRST ONE THAT CONCLUDED ON FRIDAY AND SIMULTANEOUSLY A SECOND SPECIAL SESSION THAT THE GOVERNOR CALLED, UH, THAT NOW WILL, UH, HAVE 30 DAYS CLOCK ON, WHICH MEANS IT WOULD END SEPTEMBER 13TH. THE WORD ON THE STREET IS THAT THEY ARE GONNA TRY TO WRAP THIS SESSION UP NEXT WEEK, UH, BEFORE THE LABOR DAY HOLIDAY. NO GUARANTEES ON THAT. UH, WE'LL SEE IF, IF THAT WORD AND, AND OUR INTELLIGENCE ON THAT IS, IS ACCURATE OR NOT. UM, AND WE'LL TALK MORE ABOUT SPECIAL SESSION HERE ON THE NEXT SLIDE. AND THEN, THEN, THEN LASTLY, UH, KEEP IN MIND YOU'VE GOT A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT, UH, COMING UP IN, IN NOVEMBER, AND WE'VE GOT AN APPENDIX IN THIS PRESENTATION THAT SHOWS ALL THE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS THAT WILL BE ON THE BALLOT. SO HERE ARE THE NINE PLUS ON THE NEXT SLIDE, THE OTHER NINE. SO 18 ITEMS THAT GOVERNOR ABBOTT HAS PUT ON THE SPECIAL SESSION AGENDA. I PUT IN RED SOME OF THE ONES THAT HAVE MUNICIPAL IMPACT. THE, UM, TRAGIC FLOODING SITUATION DOWN IN THE HILL COUNTRY, UH, AROUND AND NEAR WHERE SNAPPER AND I LIVE, UH, IS CERTAINLY, UM, AT THE, YOU KNOW, FOREFRONT OF, OF THE LEGISLATIVE SPECIAL SESSION. SEVERAL ITEMS RELATED TO THAT THAT CITIES WILL BE INTERESTED IN, YOU SEE THERE. ITEM NUMBER SIX, THE PROPERTY TAX, UH, CUT. UH, I THINK WHAT WE'RE SEEING THERE IS A PUSH FROM THE LEGISLATURE. TAKE YOUR 3.5 CAP THAT YOU CURRENTLY HAVE ON THE PROPERTY TAX RATE AND TO LOWER THAT 2.5. UH, AND SO THAT BILL IS GOING TO BE, UH, DEBATED HERE IN THE COMING DAY, HOURS AND DAYS, AND PROBABLY, UM, IT'S ALREADY PASSED THE SENATE AND IS NOW IN THE HOUSE. YOU SEE ITEM NUMBER 10 AGAIN, WE TOLD YOU WE'D COME BACK AND TALK MORE ABOUT THAT BANNING CITIES FROM BEING A PART OF TML AND HAVING, UH, RESOURCES IN AUSTIN LIKE US. UH, AND THEN ITEM NUMBER 15, OF COURSE, REALLY IS THE, IS SORT OF THE, THE REAL THING PUSHING THIS LEGISLATIVE [01:00:01] SESSION. AND THAT'S THAT CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING BILL. UH, HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. I DO WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE INCREDIBLY, UH, HARD WORK, UH, THAT, UH, BOTH YOUR STAFF PUT IN THIS ENTIRE SESSION. AND IVANA IN PARTICULAR, IT WAS A REAL PLEASURE WORKING WITH HER, AND Y'ALL MADE A, A TREMENDOUS, UH, HIRE IN DECISION AND BRINGING HER ON BOARD. SHE'S, SHE'S, UH, VERY WELL RESPECTED IN THE, IN THE BUILDING DOWN THERE. AND, UM, WE'VE ENJOYED THE, THE, OUR FIRST SESSION WITH HER. UM, AS I MENTIONED, THERE'S THE BALLOT LANGUAGE, UH, APPENDIX AT THE END OF THIS, AND HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTION. MEGAN. I'M FOUR MINUTES OVER TIME. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE Y'ALL GOT A LOT OF WORK TO DO IN SPECIAL SESSION. UH, AGENDA REVIEW ION COUNCIL, WE HAVE ITEMS SIX TO 41 ON THE AGENDA OR SENATE AGENDA. ITEM NUMBER 11 IS GONNA BE REMOVED IN CONSIDERATION WITHOUT COUNCIL ACTION. DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ON ANY OF, WE'RE MOVING IT FOR BECAUSE, UH, VOTE NO. WE'RE NOT VOTING ON THE STATE. WE REMOVE ANY QUESTIONS. WE'RE GOING TO, UH, MAYOR COUNCIL ON THE ITEM NUMBER, ITEM NUMBER SEVEN, WE'RE GOING TO TAKE THAT ONE AND RATHER THAN HAVE IT AT 5%, INCREASE A RATE INCREASE ABOUT TO 5% A RATE INCREASE UP TO TWO. SO MAKE CHANGE IN MOTION. YES. CHANGE THEN I'LL TAKE IT OFF. TAKE IT OFF. TAKE OFF. THAT'LL BE, THAT'LL BE, NO, NOT TAKE INDIVIDUAL CONSIDERATION. UM, FOR ITEM 51 AND 52, IF I CAN MAKE THAT MOTION FOR THE, WE'RE STILL WAITING FOR HIM TO GET BACK. MAKE THAT MOTION. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? YEAH, I HAVE SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT ITEMS 26 AND 27 THAT MEGAN IS TRYING TO GET ME THE ANSWERS TO. WHEN I SEE THOSE ANSWERS, I MAY WANNA PULL SURE. IN YOUR EMAIL, TONY, YOU TAKE THE TIME TO LOOK AT IT AND YOU DO, YOU TELL US BEFORE WE GO OUT, BUT YOU WANNA PULL RIGHT NOW, WE'LL LEAVE IT ON YOU. GOOD. ALL RIGHT. THE CITY COUNCIL MAY CONDUCT A CLOSED SECTION PURSUANT CHAPTER 5 5, 1, SUB CHAPTER D OF GOVERNMENT CODE BTCA TO DISCUSS ANY OF THE FOLLOWING SECTION I ONE, SECTION 5 5 1 0 7 1. CONSULTATION WITH ATTORNEY CASE NUMBER DC DASH 25 DASH TEN FOUR EIGHTY THREE. WHITNEY KING VERSUS CITY OF GRANBURY, KPM SERVE INC. DBA VINE GROUP OF A BC VALE, 298 JDC DALLAS COUNTY, CITY CODE ORDINANCES, CHAPTER 26, ARTICLE TWO AND THREE, WATER WASTE WATER RATES. ITEM FIVE, SECTION 5 5 1 1 IS 0 8 7 DELIBERATIONS REGARDING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT NEGOTIATIONS. LET'S GO GET, WHERE'S OUR FOOD? WHERE'S THE, WHERE'S THE FOOD? IN THE BRICK. IN THE BACK, IN THE BREAK ROOM. GO. GO GET OUR FOOD IN THE BREAK ROOM AND THEN WE'LL TAKE IT TO THE UNIT IN OUR EXECUTIVE. YOU COURT. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.