[WORK SESSION - 6:30 P.M.] [00:00:06] ALL RIGHT. WE ARE READY FOR OUR GRANTS AND FEDERAL FUNDING UPDATES. GOOD EVENING, MAYOR AND COMMISSIONERS. MY NAME IS CARA SCHARER. I SERVE AS ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER OF PUBLIC WORKS. THIS EVENING I'M HERE TOGETHER WITH MY COLLEAGUE DAVID NIFONG, ENERGY AND SUSTAINABILITY MANAGER, SARA HOLMES, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR FOR OUR PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT, AND WE ARE HERE PRESENTING A WORK SESSION ABOUT GRANTS AND FEDERAL FUNDING UPDATES. WE ARE GOING TO REVIEW THE GRANTS AND FEDERAL FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES THAT HAVE BEEN AWARDED, APPLIED FOR AND WERE TRACKING, AND I RECOMMEND, WHEN WE'RE ON THE SPECIFIC ITEM OF QUESTION OF THAT OF THE SPECIFIC TOPIC, ASK YOUR RELATED QUESTIONS FOR THAT ITEM AT THAT TIME VERSUS THE END, BECAUSE THERE'S SO MANY. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. SO DON'T WAIT. CORRECT. WE CAN, OF COURSE, ANSWER YOUR QUESTION. MORE OF A CONVERSATION? YES, I DON'T KNOW, AND I DID ASK THE CITY MANAGER IF WE COULD HAVE THIS INFORMATION SENT TO US ELECTRONICALLY, AND I WAS JUST GOING TO ASK, IS THIS THE SAME VERSION THAT WAS SENT TO ME THIS AFTERNOON? IT SHOULD BE OKAY. YEAH, I'LL GO AHEAD AND SEND THAT NOW. OH, OKAY. GREAT. THANK YOU. OKAY, SO STARTING WITH THE GRANTS THAT HAVE BEEN AWARDED, I'VE MENTIONED THIS AT AT LEAST ONE COMMISSION MEETING BEFORE, BUT WE WERE LUCKY TO BE AWARDED THE ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND CONSERVATION BLOCK GRANT BY THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY AS A REFRESHER, THIS WILL FUND MUNICIPAL AND RESIDENTIAL ENERGY EFFICIENCY, WEATHERIZATION AND ELECTRIFICATION CAMPAIGN. SO THAT BREAKDOWN OF HOW THAT FUNDING WILL BE SPENT IS THERE TO THE RIGHT OF THAT $400,000, 140 WILL BE USED FOR THE MUNICIPAL PROJECTS, APPROXIMATELY 160,000 FOR THE COMMUNITY ENERGY FUND, WHICH YOU ALL REMEMBER WAS ESTABLISHED IN THIS FISCAL YEAR BUDGET DID A BRIEF WORK SESSION ABOUT THAT EARLIER THIS FALL AND WILL AND PLANNING TO BRING BACK THE FINAL UTILIZATION POLICY TO YOU ALL FOR ADOPTION IN JANUARY OR FEBRUARY OF NEXT YEAR THEN FINALLY THE CAMPAIGN ADMINISTRATOR AT $100,000, WHICH WILL HELP ACTUALLY GET THE REBATES AND ALL THE OTHER FUNDING, WHETHER IT'S LOCAL UTILITY OR FEDERAL REBATES AVAILABLE IN THE COMMUNITY, ACTUALLY SPENT AND UTILIZED SO WE'RE EXPECTING A FINAL AGREEMENT IN MARCH OF NEXT YEAR AND THEN THAT CAMPAIGN SHOULD LAST APPROXIMATELY 21 MONTHS. HOW CUMBERSOME IS A REPORTING LIKE JUST IN GENERAL? I'M CURIOUS. I HEAR A LOT ABOUT FEDERAL GOVERNMENT REPORTING REQUIREMENTS BEING INCREDIBLY CUMBERSOME. SO THANKFULLY I WAS JUST ON THE PHONE OR JUST ON A CALL WITH DOE LAST WEEK OR SO AND THEY SAID THAT THEY ARE CHANGING THIS GRANT TO BE ONE PERFORMANCE PERIOD. SO WE'RE GOING TO, I THINK, BE DOING FOUR QUARTERLY REPORTS ESSENTIALLY, AND THEN ONE REPORT AT THE END STILL WAITING TO SEE EXACTLY WHAT INFORMATION THEY'RE GOING TO BE EXPECTING IN EACH OF THOSE REPORTS. THAT'S INFORMATION STILL TO BE DETERMINED, BUT HOPEFULLY SHOULD NOT BE TOO CUMBERSOME BUT WITH ANY FEDERAL GRANTS, THERE ARE GOING TO BE REQUIREMENTS THAT WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO FULFILL NOTE THERE AT THE BOTTOM. SO AS A RECIPIENT OF THIS GRANT, WE ARE ELIGIBLE TO APPLY TO HOST A DOE COMMUNITY ENERGY FELLOW. SO THAT WOULD BE ANOTHER FELLOWSHIP OPPORTUNITY THAT WOULD SUPPLEMENT STAFF AND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THIS GRANT STILL WAITING TO SEE IF WE'RE GOING TO APPLY FOR THAT BY OURSELVES OR IN COLLABORATION WITH DEKALB COUNTY, SINCE THEY ARE ALSO RECEIVING EECBG FUNDING AS A FORMULA GRANT RECIPIENT TO BE DETERMINED AND ALSO EXCITING GET TO GO TO THE BETTER BUILDING SUMMIT IN WASHINGTON, DC IN APRIL AS PART OF THIS FUNDING OPPORTUNITY. MR. NIFONG, IF I JUST TO GET CLARIFICATION, THIS HAS BEEN AWARDED IF YOU THIS IS--THIS HAS BEEN AWARDED. WE'RE IN THE AWARD NEGOTIATION PHASE RIGHT NOW. SO ESSENTIALLY DOE IS ASKING THAT WE REVISE A FEW DOCUMENTS, ONE BASED ON THE FUNDING AMOUNT THAT THEY ACTUALLY AWARDED VERSUS WHAT WE REQUESTED. OKAY UPDATE OUR COMMUNITY BENEFITS PLAN, ETC. AND THEN ONCE THAT HAS BEEN FULLY VETTED BY A DOE AND WE GET THE GO AHEAD, WE'LL SIGN A GRANT AGREEMENT, AND THEN WE WILL BE ABLE TO START IN MARCH, AND JUST QUICKLY, DID THIS REQUIRE ANY FACILITATION OR ADVOCACY BY OUR US REPRESENTATIVES? NOT TO MY. OKAY. OKAY. [00:05:02] SO I WOULD LIKE TO ASK ALSO ABOUT THE COMMUNITY ENERGY FELLOW. IS IT POSSIBLE THAT WE COULD GET OUR OWN, OR DO WE KNOW THAT THEY'RE GOING TO ASK US TO BE COLLABORATION? FROM THE FORMULA FUNDING, AND THEN THE COMPETITIVE GRANT OPPORTUNITY FOR EECBG. I BELIEVE THERE ARE APPROXIMATELY A THOUSAND JURISDICTIONS IN THE COUNTRY THAT WILL BE RECEIVING EECBG FUNDING AT SOME POINT OVER THE BIPARTISAN INFRASTRUCTURE LAW'S LIFETIME BELIEVE THE COMMUNITY ENERGY FELLOW WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR 20 TO 25 COMMUNITIES SO OUR LIKE OUR CHANCES OF HOSTING A FELLOW ARE GREATLY INCREASED IF WE APPLY WITH DEKALB COUNTY. I WOULD SAY THAT'S THE CASE. YEAH. ALL RIGHT, SO THE SECOND THROUGH THE US DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND THE US FOREST SERVICE IS THE URBAN AND COMMUNITY FORESTRY GRANT THIS IS $100,000 TO SUPPORT THE CREATION OF THE DOWNTOWN DECATUR CANOPY MANAGEMENT AND RESILIENCE PLAN OVERALL GOAL IS GUIDING THE PROTECTION, ENHANCEMENT AND EXPANSION OF OUR DOWNTOWN CORE URBAN TREE CANOPY SOME ACTIVITIES THAT WILL BE INCLUDED IN THIS SCOPE IS THE COMPLETION OF AN INVENTORY AND HEALTH ASSESSMENT OF TREES IN THE DOWNTOWN THAT THE CITY OWNS OR IN THE RIGHT OF WAY DEVELOPING A TREE PLANTING AND URBAN GREENING STRATEGY AND REALLY ESSENTIALLY A CANOPY SUCCESSION PLAN FOR THOSE TREES THAT ARE REACHING THE END OF THEIR NATURAL LIFE CYCLES. AGAIN, THIS IS ONE WHERE WE REQUESTED 150,000 AND WERE AWARDED 100 AND SO WE MAY HAVE TO CHANGE THE FINAL SCOPE OF WHAT THIS PLAN WILL ENTAIL BUT WE ARE WAITING FOR SOME FURTHER INFORMATION FROM THE ARBOR DAY FOUNDATION. SO THEY'RE ACTING AS THE PASS THROUGH PARTNER FOR SOME REASON, USDA DECIDED TO DIRECTLY ALLOCATE SOME FUNDING AND THEN ALLOCATE SOME LEVELS OF FUNDING TO THESE NATIONAL PASS THROUGH. PASS THROUGH PARTNERS ACROSS THE COUNTRY THAT ARE THEN SUB AWARDING TO JURISDICTIONS, AND SO WE ARE IN THE LATTER SITUATION. SO AGAIN DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHEN WE'LL HAVE AN AGREEMENT BUT HOPING TO START SOMETIME IN SPRING OF 2024, AND THIS IS THE MOST RECENT ONE THAT I THINK HAS COME THROUGH OUR INBOXES. SO THIS IS THE TREES ACROSS GEORGIA GRANT. THIS IS ALSO BEING FUNDED THROUGH THE URBAN AND COMMUNITY COMMUNITY FORESTRY GRANT PROGRAM, BUT THIS FUNDING WAS ALLOCATED TO GEORGIA FORESTRY COMMISSION AND WE APPLIED DIRECTLY TO THEM, AND SO THIS IS $30,000, WHICH WAS THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT THAT WE COULD REQUEST TO SUPPORT A STORM MITIGATION PLAN. SO REALLY THIS IS GOING TO HELP DEVELOP AN RFP THAT WE WILL PUT OUT TO ESTABLISH STANDING CONTRACTS FOR BOTH DEBRIS MANAGEMENT AND DEBRIS STAGING. THOSE ARE TWO CRITICAL ACTIVITIES. ONE, TO GET, YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING FUNCTIONING AND BACK TO NORMAL AGAIN, BUT ALSO IF WE ARE EVER IN A FEDERALLY DECLARED DISASTER AND WE WANT TO BE REIMBURSED FOR THE ACTIVITIES THAT WE UNDERGO TO CLEAN UP AFTER THAT STORM, WE HAVE TO FOLLOW SOME PRETTY STRICT PROTOCOLS AND SO THIS WILL SET US UP TO, TO DO THAT IN THAT CASE SO AGAIN. NEED TO REVISIT MY INBOX. I JUST GOT ONE THIS AROUND 5:00 THIS AFTERNOON WITH SOME DOCUMENTS THAT WE NEED TO FILL OUT TO GET THIS MOVING, BUT AGAIN, HOPING TO START THIS ONE IN SPRING OF 2024, AND THIS ONE SHOULD BE SHORTER APPROXIMATELY 4 TO 6 MONTHS OF A TIME PERIOD AND THEN ALSO, IF YOU ALL REMEMBER, WE HAVE BEEN AWARDED TWO AWARDS THROUGH CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING, ALSO CALLED COMMUNITY UM PROJECT FUNDING. THE FIRST IS FOR A SOLAR ARRAY AND BATTERY STORAGE SYSTEM AT THE DECATUR REC CENTER AND THEN THE SECOND IS A CLEAN ENERGY PROJECT AT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT. THE FIRST ONE WAS SECURED BY CONGRESSWOMAN NIKEMA WILLIAMS'S OFFICE AT THE $750,000 AMOUNT OF FUNDING WE ARE STILL CURRENTLY WORKING WITH DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT TO FINALIZE THAT GRANT AGREEMENT. SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW STAGE, AND SO CARA AND I HAVE STARTED A CONVERSATION WITH SOME ON-CALL CONTRACTS TO GET THEIR INPUT, MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE YOU KNOW, MAKING THE RIGHT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT DECLARATION, AND THEN WE'LL SEND THAT TO HUD AND THEN GET THAT MOVING HOPING FOR TO HAVE THAT AGREEMENT IN SPRING 2024 AND THEN GET STARTED SHORTLY AFTER THAT. SECOND, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT PROJECT AT $500,000 THIS ONE IS BEING ADMINISTERED BY US DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY AND ARE STILL WAITING SOME FURTHER [00:10:03] INFORMATION FROM THEM TO GET THAT ONE MOVING. WHAT DOES THAT ONE DO? SO WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO FINALIZE, I THINK, WHAT THAT $500,000 WILL GO TO. WE HAVE A LOT OF DIFFERENT OPTIONS THAT COULD ALSO BE A SOLAR ARRAY AND BATTERY STORAGE SYSTEM. THAT COULD BE SOME FURTHER ENERGY EFFICIENCY IMPROVEMENTS IN THE BUILDING THAT EVEN COULD SUPPORT SOME EV CHARGING INFRASTRUCTURE DOWN THE LINE. I BELIEVE OUR FUNDING REQUEST WAS OPEN ENOUGH. THAT WOULD GIVE US THOSE OPTIONS DEPENDING ON KIND OF WHAT WE'RE DOING IN THESE COMING MONTHS THAT WILL IMPACT THAT SO GOING BACK TO THE EECBG FUNDING ONE OF THE BUILDINGS THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO DO THOSE ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROJECTS IN IS THE POLICE DEPARTMENT. SO THAT WILL COVER SOME ITEMS BUT STILL TO BE DETERMINED EXACTLY WHAT THAT WILL COVER AND WE'LL BE PROVIDING AN UPDATE ONCE WE FINALIZE THAT. ALL RIGHT. THIS IS OUR SAFE STREETS FOR ALL ACTION PLAN WITH US, DOT, WHERE WE WILL BE CREATING A SAFETY ACTION PLAN FOCUSED ON REDUCING AND ELIMINATING SEVERE INJURY AND FATALITY CRASHES ON ALL ROADWAYS WITHIN THE CITY THE RFP WAS POSTED TODAY. WE ANTICIPATE GOING THROUGH THE RFP PROCESS TO HAVE A FIRM YOU KNOW, ON BOARD WITH A NOTICE TO PROCEED AS EARLY AS THE END OF MARCH. WITH THESE DATES HERE. THE SCOPE OF WORK INCLUDES A LOT OF DATA COLLECTION EXISTING CONDITIONS ANALYSIS, PUBLIC AND STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT AND EQUITY ANALYSIS AND ASSESSMENT OF CURRENT POLICIES AND PLANS, AND THEN IDENTIFICATION OF PROJECTS AND STRATEGIES TO IMPLEMENT A SYSTEM FOR MEASURING PROGRESS. KEY DATES TO BE AWARE OF. SO WE APPLIED FOR THIS GRANT IN SEPTEMBER OF 2022 AND WERE AWARDED THE END OF JANUARY OF THIS YEAR. WE ARE UNDER AGREEMENT WITH FHWA THEY'LL BE PROVIDING 200,000 FOR A 50,000 MATCH AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO GETTING THIS ONE STARTED. WHAT WAS FHWA? THE FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION. [CHUCKLING] YES. YES? SO IT'S GOOD WE HAVE THIS, BUT WE WE'VE HAD A LOT OF CONVERSATIONS ABOUT SAFE STREETS, SO I ASSUME WE OUGHT TO DO SOME STUFF EVEN WHILE THIS IS HAPPENING. YES. OKAY. SO DURING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THIS PLAN, IF THINGS ARE IDENTIFIED AS YOU KNOW, NEEDING TO BE APPROVED, WE DO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO COMPLETE PROJECTS IN PARALLEL TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PLAN. WE DON'T HAVE TO WAIT FOR IT TO BE ADOPTED BY THE COMMISSION IN ORDER TO TAKE ACTION. HAVE A FOLLOW UP ON THIS, TOO. HOW DO WE ALIGN THIS WITH THE COMMUNITY TRANSPORTATION PLAN FROM 2018? WHAT WILL THAT PROCESS LOOK LIKE? I THINK THIS ACTUALLY BUILDS OFF THE COMMUNITY TRANSPORTATION PLAN IN THAT THE CTP IDENTIFIES YOU KNOW, THE COMMUNITY TRANSPORTATION PLAN IDENTIFIES, YOU KNOW, VISIONS ASKING FOR A VISION ZERO POLICY AND DEVELOPMENT OF SUCH A PLAN AND IT WAS THE COMMUNITY TRANSPORTATION PLAN AND THAT CALL THAT WAS PART OF THE APPLICATION FOR YOU KNOW, THAT HELPED US ACQUIRE THIS GRANT OR GET THE GRANT AWARDED. OKAY. THANKS. OKAY. I'M HOPING MY SLIDES AREN'T OUT OF ORDER, BUT THEY I MIGHT DO SOME FUMBLING BACK AND FORTH. SO IN NOVEMBER OF 2022, HUGH SAXON, GREG WHITE AND MYSELF SUBMITTED THIS GRANT OPPORTUNITY IN LESS THAN 48 HOURS IT IS GOVERNOR KEMP'S INITIATIVE IMPROVING NEIGHBORHOOD OUTCOMES IN DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACTED COMMUNITIES THE GRANT WAS FOR THE EBSTER PARK ACTIVITY AREA THAT'S LOCATED BETWEEN THE FIELD AND THE POOL, AND YOU'LL SEE THE PRELIMINARY DESIGN IN A SECOND THIS PROJECT AIMS TO ENHANCE THE FACILITIES, ADDRESS THE MAINTENANCE REQUIREMENTS, AND IMPROVE SAFETY IN THE SPECIFIC SECTION OF THE PARK INPUT FROM PARK USERS GATHERED FROM PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT SESSIONS WILL HELP GUIDE THE DECISIONS ON THE RESTROOM FACILITIES, THE OPEN ACCESSIBILITY OF [00:15:02] THE RAMP, ADEQUATE SAFE LIGHTING, AND THEN THE NEW AMENITIES IDENTIFIED DURING THESE PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT SESSIONS YOU'VE HEARD ME SAY THAT UPON SUBMISSION, WE HAD TO SUBMIT A PRELIMINARY DESIGN AND BUDGET AS A REQUIREMENT AT THIS TIME PEREZ PLANNING AND DESIGN WAS STILL UNDER CONTRACT FOR OUR MASTER PLAN. SO THEY TOOK ON THAT ADDITIONAL TASK FOR US AND DESIGN THE PRELIMINARY DESIGN AND THE BUDGET BASED ON FEEDBACK THAT THEY WERE RECEIVING THROUGH THE MASTER PLAN. SO THEY WANTED TO ENSURE THAT THERE WAS SOME ALIGNMENT HAPPENING WITH THE LAYOUT THAT THEY WERE PROPOSING I ALSO THINK IT'S WORTH MENTIONING IN THE PARKS AND RECREATION MASTER PLAN THIS WEBSTER PARK AREA WAS RANKED NUMBER TWO FOR PRIORITIZED PROJECTS SO WE ARE WELL, ON OUR WAY OF ACHIEVING THE FIRST TWO IN THIS BUCKET WE'RE DOING ARROWS, RIGHT. THERE WE GO. SO IN MAY OF 2023, WE WERE AWARDED THE $2,088,803.75 FOR THIS PROJECT DUE TO THE DELAYS EXPERIENCED BY THE OFFICE OF PLANNING AND BUDGET, YOU MIGHT HEAR ME CALL IT OPB WE SAW APPROVAL TO CONTINUE COLLABORATION WITH PEREZ PLANNING FOR THE PLANNING SERVICES PART OF THIS PROJECT THE GRANT. THE REQUEST WAS GRANTED WITH WRITTEN APPROVAL AND THEN RIGHT NOW, ON THE SCREEN, YOU CAN SEE THIS PRELIMINARY DESIGN THE EBSTER PARK FIELD IS GOING TO BE ON YOUR BOTTOM RIGHT HAND CORNER WHAT THEY WERE PROPOSING, AND AGAIN, THIS COULD CHANGE BASED OFF OF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT IS THE RAMP THAT IS THERE NOW WILL BE TAKEN DOWN AND IT WILL BE MORE OPEN AIR. RIGHT NOW, THERE IS PROBABLY ABOUT WE'LL SAY 10 TO 20 FOOT WALLS SURROUNDING IT SO WE WANT TO MAKE THAT SAFER FOR THE USERS AND THEN POTENTIALLY THEY PROPOSED ALL WHEELS PARK, WHETHER IT BE SKATE PARK AND THEN A PAVILION IN THE CENTER AND A BASKETBALL COURT, AND, SARA, TO BE CLEAR IT WAS A REQUIREMENT OF THE GRANT THAT WE SUBMITTED THE PRELIMINARY PLAN, ALTHOUGH WE ALSO STRESSED, YES, IN OUR PROPOSAL THAT WE WOULD I MEAN, THE PROJECT WASN'T GOING TO BE DEVELOPED UNTIL WE HAD AMPLE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, CORRECT? YES, MA'AM. YEAH. ISN'T THERE A BASKETBALL COURT THERE ALREADY? THERE IS. THERE'S A BASKETBALL COURT PAVILION AND A PLAYGROUND. OKAY. ARE YOU ASKING IF THIS DUPLICATES THAT OR. NO, NO, I THINK IT'S THERE IN THAT SPOT BEFORE. YEAH. SO AGAIN I MEAN YEAH, IT WAS STRESSED THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE ENTIRE PRIOR APPLICATION THAT THIS MAY CHANGE BASED ON COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT. WE WANTED TO BE SURE THAT IT WAS CLEAR TO THEM, WHEN WILL WE START THE ENGAGEMENT COMPONENT. SO I WOULD SAY RIGHT NOW IT'S GOING TO BE ABOUT AN 18 MONTH PROCESS I WOULD SAY WE'RE IN THAT ONE MONTH WHERE WE'RE TRYING TO FINALIZE THE AGREEMENT AND EXECUTE IT. I'VE BEEN WORKING WITH MR. DOWNS THIS WEEK AND SPOKE WITH HIM THIS AFTERNOON THAT HE SHOULD HAVE HIS REVISION PORT PORTION OF IT COMPLETE BY THIS WEEK FOR US TO THEN SEND TO CITY MANAGER FOR EXECUTION ONCE THAT HAPPENS, AND THIS IS WHAT MR. PEREZ HAS BEEN WAITING FOR, HE CAN GO TO THE SUBCONTRACTORS AND ORGANIZE THAT FIRST ENGAGEMENT SESSION, WHICH IS GOING TO BE MORE SITE SURVEY, INTERNAL COLLABORATION AMONGST PUBLIC WORK OFFICIALS, OUR DEPARTMENT HUGH AND DAVID AND ANGELA, TO MAKE SURE WE ARE MARRYING THE EBSTER FIELD PROJECT AND THIS PROJECT TOGETHER AND MAKING SURE WE'RE COVERING ALL BASES AND ONE MORE QUESTION ABOUT THE ENGAGEMENT COMPONENT, BECAUSE I KNOW THAT THERE'S A VAST POPULATION THAT CAN BE UNREACHABLE. WILL WE GO? WHAT PLANS OR WHAT STEPS WILL WE TAKE TO MAKE SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, WE DON'T GET THE PICKLEBALLERS VERSUS THE BASKETBALLERS? YEAH, I HEAR YOU, AND NOT TO THROW SHADE AT PICKLEBALLERS. I'M JUST MAKING SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, THE GRANT COVERS THE INTENT OF WHAT IT WAS SUPPOSED TO COVER, AND IT COVERS THE AFFECTED GROUP OF PEOPLE THAT IS SUPPOSED TO HAVE TO COVER. SO DURING THE MASTER PLANNING SERVICES, ONE OF ONE OF OUR STRONGEST POINTS THAT WE WHEN [00:20:04] WE WERE COLLABORATING WITH PEREZ PLANNING IS THAT IF WE AREN'T RECEIVING A DIVERSE ENGAGEMENT POPULATION, THAT WE NEED TO TAKE IT TO THE PEOPLE. SO KNOWING, MR. PEREZ, THAT WE WILL ENSURE THAT HAPPENS AGAIN I KNOW THAT WITH IT AS A TEEN ACTIVITY AREA, WE'RE ALREADY LOOKING AT COLLABORATING WITH THE SCHOOL. WE HAVE A A DECATUR HIGH SCHOOL INTERN THAT'S HELPING AT WEBSTER. WE WANT TO GET HIM ENGAGED IN THE PROJECT AND REACHING OUT TO HIS CLASSMATES. OKAY. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? LET ME JUST PIGGYBACK ON THAT. I MEAN, YOUR CLOSEST RESIDENTIAL POPULATION IS THE DHA FOLKS. SO JUST I THINK THAT'S WHAT TONY WAS GETTING AT. YES, YES. MAYOR PRO TEM POWERS. OKAY, AND I DO REMEMBER THAT THERE WAS AN THERE WAS A, AN ENGAGEMENT SESSION AT DHA AND UTILIZED SOME OF THE AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS TO BRING SOME OF THE KIDS IN WHO BROUGHT THEIR PARENTS, AND THEY HAD THE DOTS AND AN ICE CREAM TRUCK. RIGHT? YES. RIGHT. OKAY. SO ANOTHER GRANT THAT WE HAVE RECEIVED TWICE IS A BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUT OF SCHOOL TIME OPPORTUNITIES CALLED THE BOOST GRANT. THIS IS A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE GEORGIA STATEWIDE AFTER SCHOOL NETWORK AND THE GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, AND THEN THOSE TWO ENTITIES THEN PARTNER WITH THE GEORGIA RECREATION AND PARKS ASSOCIATION TO ADMINISTER THIS GRANT TO PARK AND RECREATION AGENCIES STATEWIDE, AND SO OF MAY OF 2023, WE SUBMITTED OUR FIRST APPLICATION FOR THE SUMMERTIME, WHERE WE RECEIVED $75,000, AND THEN AGAIN FOR THE SCHOOL YEAR, WE RECEIVED $150,000, AND THAT THOSE TWO, BOTH GRANTS, HAVE BEEN FULLY DISPERSED TO US AND SHOULD BE LIVING IN THE GRANT FUND BUDGET. SO WE DO HAVE SOME SMALL GRANTS THAT YOU'LL HEAR ME TALK ABOUT. WE WERE RECENTLY AWARDED THIS ONE. MISS MISS STACY GREEN, OUR ATHLETIC SUPERVISOR, AND MYSELF PARTNERED TO SUBMIT THIS GRANT FOR THE ATLANTA HAWKS PARTNERSHIP WITH GEORGIA RECREATION AND PARKS ASSOCIATION. IT'S A SMALL GRANT OF $2,380. HOWEVER, THIS AMOUNT IS GOING TO OFFSET THE COST FOR SCHOLARSHIPS FOR OUR YOUTH BASKETBALL PROGRAM, AND THAT [INAUDIBLE] SHOULD BE LIVING IN OUR GREAT FUND BUDGET CURRENTLY AS WELL. ALL RIGHT, THAT'S MUCH NEEDED. THAT PROGRAM HAS JUST EXPLODED, RIGHT? IT HAS. WE CAP OUT AROUND 880 KIDS. I MEAN, I THINK IT WAS 60, YOU KNOW, ABOUT SIX YEARS AGO WHEN MY SON WAS PLAYING, AND SO IT'S DOUBLED. YES. 880 KIDS. YES. WE HAD TO PUT A CAP ON IT. HOW MANY DID YOU SAY? 880. OH, I MISSED THAT. SO CAN I ASK ONE QUICK QUESTION? GO BACK TO THE I GUESS THE BOOST GRANTS. SO AND THAT AND WE GOT FUNDING FOR THIS SUMMER AND THEN THIS SCHOOL YEAR, IS THAT CORRECT. SO WHEN THAT FUNDING GOES AWAY, HOW WHAT IS GOING TO LIKE BE AVAILABLE TO PROVIDE THAT LEVEL OF SUPPORT? THAT IS A GOOD QUESTION BECAUSE THIS FUNDING WILL GO AWAY EVENTUALLY, AND WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT IT MEANS I WILL BE SCOURING THE INTERNET FOR MORE OPPORTUNITIES. I KNOW OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR WITH GRPA IS VERY DILIGENT IN LOOKING FOR FUTURE PARTNERSHIPS TO HELP US OFFSET SOME OF OUR COSTS. OKAY. THANK YOU. SO MOVING ON TO GRANTS THAT WE HAVE RECENTLY SUBMITTED AND ARE AWAITING FURTHER NOTIFICATION ON. SO THE FIRST THIS ONE WAS SUBMITTED IN EARLY NOVEMBER IS THE ENERGY FUTURES GRANT, ALSO FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY. SO THIS WAS A JOINT APPLICATION WITH THE CITY OF CITY OF ATLANTA, CITY OF SAVANNAH, AND THEN THE STRATEGIC ENERGY INSTITUTE AT GEORGIA TECH. THE GOAL HERE IS DEVELOPING SOME DEPLOYMENT READY BLUEPRINTS FOR THREE CLEAN ENERGY INNOVATIONS THAT ARE NECESSARY FOR US TO MEET OUR COLLECTIVE CLEAN ENERGY GOALS, AND THEN THESE ARE ALSO DESIGNED TO SUPPORT ENGAGEMENT IN 20 IN THE 2025 GEORGIA POWER IRP AND RATE CASE [00:25:08] CYCLES. AS YOU HEARD ME EXPLAIN AT A RECENT COMMISSION MEETING, WE WERE EXPECTING THAT TO BE THE NEXT CYCLE, AND SO WE'RE REALLY GEARING UP FOR THAT ONE BUT I THINK TO SOME EXTENT, UM. YOU KNOW, THE I THINK THE DEVELOPMENT OF THIS APPLICATION IS ALSO GOING TO HELP US IN OUR ENGAGEMENT IN GEORGIA. POWERS 2023 IRP UPDATE SO WE REQUESTED THE MAXIMUM $500,000 FOR A PLANNING GRANT THAT WILL, IF AWARDED UM, SUPPORT A PROJECT OVER APPROXIMATELY ONE YEAR SO WE'RE EXPECTING A NOTICE OF AWARD FOR THAT ONE IN JANUARY OF 2024 THE SECOND THAT WAS SUBMITTED THIS FALL IS A MUCH LARGER GRANT, AS YOU WILL SEE, THIS IS THIS ONE WAS $250 MILLION, BUT AGAIN WAS A JOINT APPLICATION WITH A NONPROFIT PARTNER THAT SERVED AS THE LEAD APPLICANT, WHICH IS CAPITAL GOOD FUND INCORPORATED CITY OF ATLANTA AND CITY OF SAVANNAH. SO THE GOAL HERE FROM EPA IS TO SUPPORT THE ADOPTION OF SOLAR AND LOW TO MODERATE INCOME HOUSEHOLDS. SO THIS $250 MILLION, IF AWARDED, WOULD SERVE APPROXIMATELY 34,000 LOW INCOME HOUSEHOLDS AND PROVIDE THEM ACCESS TO SOLAR AND COST SAVINGS FROM SOLAR ACROSS THE STATE. SO AGAIN THERE IS A WE DEVELOPED A MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT TO SUBMIT THIS GRANT THAT ALLOCATED ONE FUNDING LEVEL FOR THE THREE COALITION MEMBERS. SO ATLANTA, SAVANNAH AND DECATUR, AND THEN THERE'S ALSO FUNDING AVAILABLE FOR COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE STATE. WE KNOW THAT WITH A LOT OF THESE REALLY LARGE PROGRAMS LOCAL GOVERNMENTS DON'T HAVE THE CAPACITY TO APPLY FOR THEM AND OFTEN DON'T HAVE THE CAPACITY TO ACCESS THEM, AND SO OUR APPLICATION WANTED TO REALLY MAKE ROOM FOR THOSE COMMUNITIES TO LEARN ALONGSIDE US AND THEN ACCESS THE FUNDING WHEN IT MAKES SENSE FOR THEM SO THERE ARE FOUR PROGRAMS THAT WE WOULD BE SUPPORTED THROUGH THIS ONE, A SINGLE FAMILY LEASING PROGRAM ONE, A FREE DIRECT INSTALL PROGRAM WHAT WE'RE CALLING A COMMUNITY BENEFIT PROGRAM AS YOU MAY OR MAY NOT KNOW, ONLY A UTILITY IN GEORGIA CAN OFFER A TRUE COMMUNITY SOLAR PROGRAM AND SO WHAT A COMMUNITY BENEFIT PROGRAM WOULD DO WOULD BE TO INSTALL THESE SYSTEMS ON HOUSES OF WORSHIP AND COMMUNITY CENTERS AND YOU KNOW, LOW INCOME HOUSING AGENCIES, ETC., AND THEN AS THEY RECEIVE THOSE COST SAVINGS THAT THE SYSTEM WOULD GENERATE, THEY'RE ABLE TO TURN THAT INTO NEW PROGRAMS, EXPANDED PROGRAMS, ETC., FOR THE POPULATIONS THAT THEY SERVE AND THEN FINALLY, A UTILITY LED COMMUNITY SOLAR PROGRAM WITH THAT UTILITY TO BE DETERMINED, BUT LIKELY AN EMC OR OTHER SMALL. YES? FIRST, THANKS FOR EXPLAINING THAT. I WAS CURIOUS WHAT THAT BENEFIT COULD HAPPEN. THE PREVIOUS SLIDE, THERE'S SOMETHING CALLED THE MICRO GRID TARIFF. WHAT'S THAT? SO A MICRO GRID TARIFF WOULD ESSENTIALLY BE A NEW RATE OPTION THAT WE WOULD DEVELOP ALONGSIDE GEORGIA POWER TO ADEQUATELY COMPENSATE HOUSEHOLDS, BUSINESSES, SCHOOLS, ETC. TO INSTALL KIND OF DISTRIBUTED ENERGY SYSTEMS AND ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEMS ON SITE WE KNOW THAT MICRO GRIDS CAN PROVIDE A REALLY BIG BENEFIT TO THE GRID AS A WHOLE ONE FROM LIMITING THE NEED FOR ADDITIONAL TRANSMISSION LINES, ETC. THAT ARE REALLY COSTLY AND HAVE TO BE PAID BACK BY THE RATEPAYERS, AND THEN IN TIMES OF HIGH DEMAND LIKE, WINTER MORNING OR SUMMER AFTERNOON THOSE SYSTEMS CAN BE UTILIZED TO LOWER THE PEAK DEMAND AND IMPROVE GRID RESILIENCY AND LIMIT THE RATE OF BLACKOUTS AND BROWNOUTS, ETC., AND SO WHAT A MICRO GRID TARIFF WOULD BE DOING IS FINDING A MECHANISM TO ADEQUATELY COMPENSATE THOSE HOUSEHOLDS AND BUSINESSES, ETC., THAT ADOPT THOSE TECHNOLOGIES, IF THAT IF THAT MAKES SENSE, OR FINDING A WAY TO INCENTIVIZE NEW HOUSEHOLDS TO DO THAT SO IT WOULD BE, YOU KNOW, A HOUSEHOLD THAT WANTS TO GET A TESLA POWERWALL OR SOMETHING INSTALLED ON THEIR HOME, BEING ABLE TO PAY THAT ON THEIR UTILITY BILL OVER TIME RATHER THAN PAYING FOR THAT FULL COST UPFRONT. THESE ARE, IT WOULD CERTAINLY BE NOVEL HERE IN THE STATE OF GEORGIA, BUT THERE ARE OTHER UTILITIES IN OTHER STATES THAT HAVE ADOPTED THESE TARIFFS, AND SO LEARNING FROM [00:30:06] THEM AND THEN BRINGING THAT TO GEORGIA AND A REALLY GEORGIA SPECIFIC SITUATION, AND SO THAT'S WHY WE'RE REALLY FOCUSED ON DEPLOYMENT READY BLUEPRINTS. THAT ONE LOOK AT OUR LEGAL ENVIRONMENT, OUR REGULATORY ENVIRONMENT, OUR BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT WORKFORCE, ETC., AND FINDING WHAT CAN ACTUALLY WORK HERE RATHER THAN JUST RECOMMENDING SOMETHING THAT WAS DONE IN VERMONT THAT THE COMMISSIONERS MIGHT NOT BE REALLY RECEPTIVE TO NOW . SO AGAIN, SOLAR FOR ALL. EXPECTING AN AWARD, A NOTICE OF AWARD DATE IN MARCH OF 2024, AND THEN AN ACTUAL AWARD DATE IN JULY OF NEXT YEAR, AND THEN THAT'S A PERFORMANCE PERIOD OF FIVE YEARS TO MY KNOWLEDGE, THERE WERE TWO SUBMISSIONS FOR THIS GRANT FROM THE IN THE STATE OF GEORGIA. ONE WAS OUR COALITION, AND THE SECOND WAS THE GEORGIA ENVIRONMENTAL FINANCE AUTHORITY. SO IF WE ARE NOT SUCCESSFUL, THIS FUNDING WILL STILL BE COMING TO THE STATE IN SOME FORM AND WILL STILL BE TRYING TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT IF THAT'S THE CASE, IF THEY ARE AWARDED. DAVID, IS IT LIMITED TO ONE AWARD PER STATE? IT IS LIMITED TO ONE AWARD PER STATE OR TERRITORY. SO I HAVE ONE MORE QUICK QUESTION. SO THIS DOES THE AGREEMENT INDICATE WHAT THE AMOUNT OF FUNDING TO EACH ENTITY WOULD BE OR SO. YES. DO WE KNOW I MEAN, WHAT DID WE ASK FOR, I MEAN? SO I KNOW FOR WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT, THERE WOULD BE APPROXIMATELY $250,000 AVAILABLE TO THE CITY OVER THE COURSE OF THAT FIVE YEAR PERIOD TO USE BUT WE DON'T HAVE TO USE ALL OF THAT FUNDING AND THEN THE OTHER PIECES. I CAN GET THOSE DOLLAR AMOUNTS TO YOU, BUT ESSENTIALLY IT WAS. WE BROKE UP THE $250 MILLION INTO SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES, AND THEN WITHIN THOSE ACTIVITY BUCKETS, APPROXIMATELY 40% RESERVE WAS RESERVED FOR THE UM COALITION MEMBERS, AND THEN THAT 40% WAS BROKEN UP BASED ON POPULATION. SO ATLANTA WILL BE GETTING THE LARGEST AWARD FOR EACH OF THESE, AND THEN SAVANNAH AND THEN DECATUR PROPORTIONAL TO OUR POPULATION AND REALLY PROPORTIONAL TO OUR NEED I THINK SO. OKAY ALL RIGHT. THANKS. OKAY, SO THIS IS ANOTHER SMALL GRANT OPPORTUNITY WITH FOOD WELL ALLIANCE. THE OAKHURST RECREATION CENTER STAFF SUBMITTED THIS GARDEN IMPROVEMENT GRANT THIS YOU CAN SEE THE PICTURES ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE OF THE SCREEN WHEN WE ACQUIRED THIS BUILDING IN THIS, WE HAD NO IDEA THAT THERE WAS THIS COMMUNITY GARDEN BECAUSE IT WAS SO OVERGROWN THERE ARE 12 SPACES THAT CAN BE ACCOMMODATED THE GRANT IS $1,500, AND IT WOULD HELP WITH THE RENOVATION OF THE WOOD REPAIRS IN THE GARDENS INFRASTRUCTURE AND PULLING OUT EVERYTHING THAT'S ROTTEN AND WORN. AGAIN, THIS CAN ACCOMMODATE ABOUT 12 GARDENERS, AND WE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT MIDDLE OF JANUARY IF WE ARE AWARDED THE GRANT. SO I KNOW WE APPLIED FOR FOOD. WELL, ALLIANCE GRANT MAYBE 3 OR 4 YEARS AGO WAS FOR LEGACY. IS THAT SO? WE APPLIED TWICE FOR THEIR CITY AGRICULTURE PLAN. RIGHT. IT WAS A MUCH LARGER, MUCH, MUCH LARGER, MUCH MORE INVOLVED WE'RE NOT SUCCESSFUL. IT JUST SEEMED LIKE THE AND IT WAS BRIEFLY CONSIDERED, I THINK, TO REAPPLY THIS YEAR, BUT BASED ON THE POPULATIONS THAT THEY WERE AWARDING THOSE GRANTS TO, IT DID NOT SEEM LIKE DECATUR WAS KIND OF FITTING WITH THAT BUT HAPPY TO REVISIT THAT IN THE FUTURE IF THAT MAKES SENSE NO, I MEAN, THIS IS GREAT THAT WE'LL MAYBE GET SOMETHING FUNDED AT A LEVEL THAT WILL MAYBE IT'LL GET OUR FOOT IN THE DOOR. I LIKE HOW YOU CAN SIT AND WATCH THINGS GROW. RIGHT THERE. VERY CLOSE. IF YOU'VE EVER BEEN OUT THERE, IT'S GREAT. ALL RIGHT. THESE ARE GRANTS THAT ARE UPCOMING THAT WE ARE STRATEGIZING FOR. SO ONE NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY WITH US DOT THAT IS OUT NOW IS THE RAISE GRANT OR REBUILDING AMERICAN INFRASTRUCTURE WITH SUSTAINABILITY AND EQUITY. WE APPLIED FOR A RAISE PLANNING GRANT IN 2023 THE FEEDBACK WAS THAT THIS WAS CONSIDERED A PROJECT [00:35:04] OF MERIT WITH I BELIEVE SIX OUT OF SEVEN AREAS THAT SCORED HIGH AND IN THE, I GUESS. INTERVIEW WITH THE. US DOT TO GET FEEDBACK ON YOUR GRANT. THEY ENCOURAGED US TO REAPPLY IN ORDER TO DO SO. IT'S DUE THE END OF FEBRUARY IN 2024. SO WE ARE FIRST MEETING WITH GDOT'S DISTRICT SEVEN TO DISCUSS THE OPPORTUNITY AND THEN AGAIN WITH ARC IN EARLY JANUARY AND WILL PREPARE THE APPLICATION AND ACQUIRE LETTERS OF SUPPORT ACCORDINGLY. CAN YOU REMIND US WHAT WAS IN THAT GRANT, THE ORIGINAL GRANT APPLICATION? YES, TO SCOTT BOULEVARD? YES. SO THIS RAISE GRANT WAS FOR PLANNING PEDESTRIAN IMPROVEMENTS ALONG THE CITY LIMIT FOR SCOTT BOULEVARD WITHIN THE ENTIRE CITY LIMITS. WELL YES. HAVE WE CONSIDERED A MULTI-JURISDICTIONAL GRANT AND PERHAPS WORKING WITH DEKALB COUNTY ON THIS TOO. YES. SO, DEKALB PROVIDED A LETTER OF SUPPORT AND CITY OF ATLANTA, YOU KNOW, ISN'T FAR AWAY, AND THIS CONNECTS EVERYBODY. WE HAVE REACHED OUT, PARTICULARLY AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND COMMUNITIES I DON'T HAVE THE GRANT NAME AT THE TOP OF MY HEAD AND HAVEN'T YET, BUT THAT'S PART OF CONNECTING WITH ARC AND TO STRATEGIZE FOR THAT PARTNERSHIP. SO LAST YEAR IT LOOKED LIKE CITY OF DECATUR WITH LETTERS OF SUPPORT FROM OUR NEIGHBORS. YOU KNOW, IT MIGHT LOOK DIFFERENT THIS TIME. MY QUESTION WAS, I GUESS BOUNCING OFF OF THAT, WHICH IS HOW COULD IS THERE SOMETHING WE CAN DO TO SUPPORT THIS OR US CONNECTING WITH THE NEIGHBORHOODS TO SUPPORT THIS, OR DOES IT ALL STAY AN OFFICIAL LEVEL, LIKE YOU SAID, LETTERS OF SUPPORT FROM OUR NEIGHBORING JURISDICTIONS? OR IS THERE SOME QUALITATIVE ACTION THAT HELPS WITH THIS PUSH IT OVER THE TOP? THAT'S A REALLY GREAT QUESTION. I DON'T HAVE AN ANSWER FOR THAT AT THIS TIME IN THE SENSE IN OUR, YOU KNOW, FEEDBACK. IT WAS LIKE WE MADE IT TO THE LAST ROUND AND ALL WE WERE MISSING WAS A SENATOR TO WALKING INTO THE ROOM, YOU KNOW SO I GUESS WE'D ALL SAY LET US KNOW, RIGHT? YEAH. I THINK THAT MEETING WITH DISTRICT SEVEN WILL BE IMPORTANT TO CONFIRM, YOU KNOW, ALIGNMENT ON THE PROPOSED CROSS SECTION. THIS PREVIOUS GRANT, YOU KNOW, REALLY WENT CURB TO OUTSIDE, YOU KNOW, FOCUSING ON THE PEDESTRIAN FACILITIES WE'LL SEE WHAT GDOT IS INTERESTED IN POTENTIALLY DOING TO MAYBE SOME ALTERNATE CROSS SECTIONS TO CONSIDER FOR SAFETY ALONG THE CORRIDOR IS ONE DISCUSSION, AND AGAIN, THAT INSIGHT FROM ARC RELATIVE TO THE PARTNERSHIPS, I GUESS ONE LAST QUICK COMMENT IS THAT A SIGNIFICANT PORTION, AND I'D BE INTERESTED TO KNOW WHAT PERCENT OF SCOTT IS OF SCHOOL ZONE IS OF OUR WHOLE SCOTT THAT'S IN OUR CITY. THAT COULD BE AN INTERESTING NUMBER. YES, BUT THAT IF THERE WAS A LETTER OF SUPPORT FROM THE SCHOOL SYSTEM, YES, COULD BE HELPFUL. I THINK I WILL DEFINITELY REACH OUT TO CITY SCHOOLS OF DECATUR SUPERINTENDENT. IF IT WAS 20% OF SCOTT BOULEVARD IS A SCHOOL ZONE OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. I MEAN, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT, AND THAT'S I'D SAY A SIGNIFICANT PART OF THE REASON WHY WE WOULD LIKE TO DO THIS. ONE OTHER DIFFERENTIATOR FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY RELATIVE TO THE RAISE GRANT IS THIS LOCATION IS IDENTIFIED AS BEING WITHIN AN AREA OF PERSISTENT POVERTY, WHICH IS WHY THIS IS YOU KNOW, BASED ON THE LAST CENSUS DATA. SO THIS IS WHY THAT OPPORTUNITY MAYBE IS MORE ATTRACTIVE OR MAKES US MORE COMPETITIVE THAN, SAY, OUR, YOU KNOW, SOUTH MCDONOUGH, OAK VIEW TROLLEY LINE TRAIL. OKAY. THANK YOU. OKAY, AND WE WILL ABSOLUTELY GET SENATOR'S SUPPORT FOR. YES, THEY PROVIDED SENATOR OSSOFF PROVIDED A LETTER OF SUPPORT LAST TIME, AND WE WILL DO THAT AND MORE. OKAY. YES. ALL RIGHT. THIS IS THE GEORGIA EPD'S 319 H GRANT, IT'S A NON NON POINT SOURCE GRANT OPPORTUNITY. OKAY, SO THIS IS A PROJECT THAT WE HAVE DESIGNED IT'S AT HURON AND CHAMPLAIN INTERSECTION. THIS, OKAY, SO EPD HAD FUNDING LEFTOVER FROM THEIR 319 H GRANT [00:40:06] OPPORTUNITY. SO WE REACHED OUT TO EPD TO REQUEST FUNDING AS PART OF THE 319 ON A NON-COMPETITIVE PROCESS THAT WOULD FUND POTENTIALLY 60% OF THE CONSTRUCTION OF THIS PROJECT SO THE ISSUE IS THAT IT'S TAKING A WHILE TO FIND OUT IF THIS PROJECT WOULD BE SELECTED. SO WE'VE MET WITH EPD IT IS A GOOD CANDIDATE FOR A NEIGHBORHOOD DEMONSTRATION PROJECT. IT'S WITHIN SOUTH FORK PEACHTREE CREEK, WHICH IS NOT AN IMPAIRED SEGMENT WITHIN THE CITY LIMITS, BUT IS FURTHER DOWNSTREAM SO IT IS A COMPETITIVE WE ARE COMPETITIVE. WE'RE MEETING NEXT WEEK TO DISCUSS FURTHER WITH EPD AND ANSWER SOME QUESTIONS TO AGAIN SEE IF THIS IS A GOOD OPPORTUNITY FOR US IT IS AN OPTION I THINK WE WON'T KNOW FOR 6 TO 12 MONTHS. SO IT'S LED TO THE DELAY OF THIS PROCEEDING TO CONSTRUCTION BUT ALSO IT COULD LOOK LIKE $250,000 TO GO TOWARD THIS TRAFFIC CALMING PROJECT. THAT IS ALSO A NATURE BASED SOLUTION. SO THAT'S THE, I GUESS, ONE THING ABOUT THE 319 GRANTS TYPICALLY THESE GRANTS ARE IDENTIFIED IN A WATERSHED IMPROVEMENT PLAN. RIGHT NOW, THE CITY OF DECATUR DOES NOT HAVE WATERSHED IMPROVEMENT PLANS, BUT IT IS SOMETHING TO CONSIDER A LOT OF TIMES THE 319 HAVE NOT BEEN ATTRACTIVE. THERE IS A LOT OF ADMINISTRATIVE WORK IN ORDER TO AND REPORTING ASSOCIATED WITH THIS GRANT. HOWEVER, IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THAT IN 2024, EPD WILL BE LIFTING THE $400,000 CAP, WHICH MIGHT BE MAKE THIS GRANT MORE ATTRACTIVE, BUT AGAIN, IT HAS TO THE PROJECTS SUBMITTED HAVE TO BE IDENTIFIED IN A WATERSHED IMPROVEMENT PLAN THAT INCLUDES THE NINE KEY ELEMENTS, I THINK, LISTED BY THE EPA. SO, WOULD WE PROCEED WITH THIS PROJECT IF WE DON'T GET THAT? BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, SO THIS IS LIKE TWO DIFFERENT THINGS. THIS IS SO HERE ON THAT CHAMPLAIN IS, YOU KNOW, AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THE NON-COMPETITIVE PROCESS BECAUSE THERE'S MONEY LEFT OVER IF WE WANT TO ENTER THE COMPETITIVE PROCESS YOU KNOW IT WASN'T AS ATTRACTIVE PRIOR. MAYBE IF THEY LIFT THE LIMIT UM IT MIGHT BE WORTH STRATEGIZING FOR, BUT THAT'S KIND OF THE DIFFERENT FACTORS I GUESS IN TERMS OF THIS THE WATERSHED IMPROVEMENT PLAN THAT WOULD BE NECESSARY FOR THE COMPETITIVE PROCESS. YES, EXACTLY. WE COULD APPLY FOR THE NON COMPETITIVE, AND IF WE DON'T GET THAT, WE COULD PROCEED WITH CONSTRUCTION JUST AS WE WERE. IT'S JUST A MATTER OF IT'S DELAYED TO FIND OUT, BUT IT SEEMS WORTH WAITING FOR BECAUSE THAT IS A LARGE SUM OF MONEY. CAN YOU CLARIFY IF WE HAVE APPLIED ALREADY TO THE NON COMPETITIVE AND WE'RE WAITING TO HEAR? WE ARE IN CONVERSATIONS WITH EPD TO HEAR IF IT'S A GOOD FIT PRIOR TO GOING THROUGH THE EFFORT AND THE FUNDING OF COMPLETING THE APPLICATION. YEP. TURNING IT OFF. THANK YOU SO THE NEXT ONE IS THE CLIMATE POLLUTION REDUCTION GRANT. SO YOU ALL MAY BE AWARE THAT CURRENTLY THE ATLANTA REGIONAL COMMISSION IS COMPLETING THE PRELIMINARY OR PRIORITY CLIMATE ACTION PLAN FOR THE ATLANTA METRO, GEORGIA EPD IS COMPLETING THE PLAN FOR THE REST OF THE STATE AND THE GOAL HERE IS TO IDENTIFY PRIORITY HIGH IMPACT ESSENTIALLY SHOVEL READY EMISSION REDUCTION PROJECTS IN THE STATE OF GEORGIA AND ACROSS THE COUNTRY, AND THEN MEASURES THAT ARE IDENTIFIED IN THOSE PLANS CAN BE APPLIED FOR THROUGH THE COMPETITIVE IMPLEMENTATION GRANT FUNDING OPPORTUNITY THAT SUBMISSION DEADLINE IS MARCH 1ST OR THE PCAP SUBMISSION DEADLINE IS MARCH 1ST. THE IMPLEMENTATION GRANT SUBMISSION DEADLINE IS APRIL 1ST OF NEXT YEAR THERE'S APPROXIMATELY $4.3 BILLION AVAILABLE FOR THIS PROGRAM ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND TRIBES AND TERRITORIES BUT THEY ARE ANTICIPATING AWARDING 1 TO 2 PROJECTS PER STATE THE MINIMUM AMOUNT [00:45:05] OF FEDERAL FUNDING FOR EACH PROJECT IS $2 MILLION, BUT THAT COULD GO AS HIGH AS $500 MILLION SO AGAIN, THIS IS A LIKELY WOULD LIKELY BE A COALITION APPLICATION, AND SO CONVERSATIONS HAVE BEGUN WITH ATLANTA, SAVANNAH ATHENS, DEKALB, ETC., ABOUT A POTENTIAL COALITION APPLICATION, ASSUMING THAT WE CAN ALL KIND OF DECIDE ON ONE PRIORITY THE OTHER KIND OF COMPLICATING FACTOR IS WAITING TO HEAR IF THE ATLANTA REGIONAL COMMISSION OR GEORGIA EPD IS ANTICIPATING SUBMITTING AN APPLICATION AS A LEAD APPLICANT, THAT WOULD CERTAINLY, I THINK, BE THE EASIEST SOLUTION FOR IT TO GET THIS FUNDING TO THE STATE OF GEORGIA, BUT HAVE NOT YET HEARD ABOUT THEIR INTENTIONS FOR THE PROGRAM, AND THAT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE, BECAUSE THERE CAN ONLY BE ONE KIND OF PROJECT OF EACH TYPE AWARDED IN THE SAME GEOGRAPHIC AREA. SO SAY ARC DECIDES TO APPLY FOR A STATEWIDE ENERGY OR A METRO WIDE ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM. THE CITY AND ATLANTA AND SAVANNAH OR DEKALB, ETC. COULD NOT ALSO APPLY FOR THE SAME MEASURE. OR WE COULD APPLY, BUT ONLY ONE IS GOING TO GET FUNDED, AND SO REALLY CRITICAL TO HEAR EXACTLY WHAT THEIR PLANS ARE BEFORE WE MAKE A DECISION ABOUT MOVING FORWARD, BUT THIS IS ANOTHER POT OF FUNDING THAT IS AVAILABLE THAT COULD HELP SUPPORT BOTH IMPLEMENTATION OF THE CLEAN ENERGY PLAN, BUT ALSO THE COMMUNITY TRANSPORTATION PLAN, THE DOWNTOWN MASTER PLAN, THE STRATEGIC PLAN, ETC.. SO OUR TRACKING INFORMATION ON THIS ONE, JUST TO BE CLEAR, THE DEADLINE IS APRIL 1ST OF NEXT YEAR, APRIL 1ST. SO WE WOULD WE WOULD NEED TO KNOW WHO THAT LEAD AGENCY IS GOING TO BE. YEAH. VERY SOON. FROM THE MOST RECENT WEBINAR WITH ARC, THEY SAID THAT THEY WOULD MAKE A DECISION BY THE 15TH OF THIS MONTH. SO THAT WAS LAST FRIDAY, HAVE NOT GOTTEN ANY FURTHER INFORMATION REGARDING THAT DECISION. SO WE'LL CONTINUE TO REACH OUT, WORK THROUGH EXISTING NETWORKS TO DETERMINE WHERE THAT IS AND IF WE NEED TO, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, MOBILIZE WITH OUR OTHER PARTNERS TO GET AN APPLICATION SUBMITTED. I DO KNOW THAT ARC IS REALLY INTERESTED IN TRYING TO BRING SOME OF THESE FUNDS TO THE ATLANTA REGION AND HAS, I KNOW, REACHED OUT AND YOU ALL HAVE SUBMITTED INFORMATION TO THEM, PARTICIPATED IN THE WEBINARS AND SO BUT I KNOW IT'S IMPORTANT TO KNOW, LIKE, WHO'S TAKING THE LEAD AND WHAT THAT'S GOING TO GOING TO LOOK LIKE. SO BUT THANK YOU ALL FOR PARTICIPATING, AND SINCE THE MAYOR OF ATLANTA IS THE NEW CHAIR OF THE BOARD, HE MIGHT, YOU KNOW THERE MIGHT BE SOME MOVEMENT TO HAVE ARC BE THAT LEAD RATHER THAN TRYING TO PUT TOGETHER THE SEPARATE COALITIONS. SO THAT'S JUST PURE SPECULATION ON MY PART. SO, BUT IT'S AN EXCITING OPPORTUNITY. YES AND THE NEXT ONE IS THE BUILDING RESILIENT INFRASTRUCTURE AND COMMUNITIES, OR BRIC GRANT. THIS ONE IS ADMINISTERED BY THE FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY TO SUPPORT HAZARD MITIGATION PROJECTS . YES, AS YOU CAN SEE, THIS OPPORTUNITY IS A TEAM SPORT SO WE'RE CURRENTLY STRATEGIZING FOR THIS ONE WE'VE MET WITH BRIC SUBJECT MATTER EXPERT TO KIND OF GAIN INSIGHT OF WHAT THIS PROCESS LOOKS LIKE. WHAT WE HEARD WAS A NEXT STEP WOULD BE MEETING WITH OUR DEKALB EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY LEAD TO TALK THROUGH WHAT PROJECTS WOULD BE MOST COMPETITIVE FOR THIS PROCESS. WHEN YOU'RE THINKING OF BRICK, IT WOULD NEED TO BE A VERY LARGE SCALE INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT WE HAVE THREE OPPORTUNITIES TOP OF MIND, AND THIS IS MORE ABOUT HEARING, YOU KNOW, WHAT PROJECT THEY THINK WOULD BE MOST COMPETITIVE, AND JUST ONE OTHER DETAIL FOR THE ACTUAL KIND OF IMPLEMENTATION PROJECTS. THOSE NEED TO BE AT A CERTAIN, I THINK, ESSENTIALLY 30% DESIGN. SO SIMILAR TO THE GRANT OPPORTUNITY THAT SARAH WAS TALKING ABOUT EARLIER, WE NEED TO HAVE AN IDEA OF WHAT THE PROJECT LOOKS LIKE BEFORE WE SUBMIT TO FUND THE PROJECT, WHICH WHICH DOES MAKE SENSE, BUT AT THIS POINT, IT DOES NOT SEEM LIKE WE'RE GOING TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT FOR THE 2024 APPLICATION CYCLE, AND SO REALLY, I THINK OUR GOAL IS TO ONE MEET WITH FEMA IDENTIFY A PRIORITY PROJECT FOR THE PROGRAM AND THEN SPEND 2024 GETTING TO THAT 30% DESIGN [00:50:03] SO THAT WE CAN MEET THE 2025 APPLICATION CYCLE. THIS IS A FAIRLY CONSISTENT POT OF FUNDING SO IT WILL BE THERE, AND WE DON'T NEED TO RUSH THIS ONE. EXACTLY, AND IT'S BASICALLY FEMA'S ATTEMPT AT, YOU KNOW, SHIFTING AWAY FROM REACTIVE DISASTER SPENDING TOWARD YOU KNOW, FORWARD THINKING, INNOVATIVE INVESTMENT IN INFRASTRUCTURE TO PREVENT THOSE HAZARD THAT OCCUR. MS. SCHARER, COULD YOU ELABORATE A LITTLE BIT ON WHAT OUR DISASTERS, NATURAL HAZARDS. I KNOW OF NATURAL DISASTERS, BUT THEN YOU. THIS IS SPLITTING THEM UP. I'M WONDERING, DOES DISASTER INCLUDE A PANDEMIC? DOES IT INCLUDE, GUN VIOLENCE DOES INCLUDE. I DON'T KNOW, I'M JUST WONDERING WHAT [INAUDIBLE]. WHAT'S THAT? RAIL CAR? WELL, OF COURSE, RAIL CAR WAS ON MY MIND TOO. YEAH. SO TO MY KNOWLEDGE, NO, IT DOES NOT INCLUDE THOSE. IT IS REALLY FOCUSING ON NATURALLY OCCURRING, BUT ALSO EXACERBATED BY CLIMATE CHANGE DISASTERS. SO EXTREME HEAT WOULD BE CONSIDERED A DISASTER THAT WE COULD MITIGATE THROUGH A PROJECT LIKE THIS, AND THEN THE OTHER ONE THAT IS MOST PRESSING HERE IN DECATUR IS FLOODING, AND SO IN AN IDEAL WORLD, WE WOULD IDENTIFY A PROJECT THAT COULD TACKLE BOTH OF THOSE AT THE SAME TIME WHILE ALSO PROVIDING ADDITIONAL PEDESTRIAN FACILITIES AND PLACEMAKING, ETC.. SO REALLY TRYING TO DO A LOT WITH THIS PROGRAM SO NATURAL BACKSLASH ECOLOGICAL. WELL THAT'S HELPFUL. OKAY. YES. THEY'RE LOOKING FOR NATURE BASED SOLUTIONS WITH CLIMATE RESILIENCY OKAY. THANK YOU. OKAY. THESE ARE TWO OTHER THINGS THAT WE'RE TRACKING. WE HAVE ARC'S TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM WHERE BASICALLY YOU WORK TOGETHER WITH YOUR METROPOLITAN PLANNING ORGANIZATION. FOR US, IT'S ARC TO IDENTIFY HIGH PRIORITY PROJECTS WITHIN THE METROPOLITAN TRANSPORTATION PLAN THIS ONE IS AN OPPORTUNITY I'M AWARE OF, BUT LESS FAMILIAR WITH THE NUANCES. SO, YOU KNOW, UPON COMMENCEMENT OF OUR ON CALL PROPOSALS, WILL BE CONNECTING WITH SOME OF THE OUR ON CALL SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS TO STRATEGIZE TO IDENTIFY PRIORITIES TO HAVE IN OUR UM IN THE TIP. ANOTHER ONE THAT'S WORTH MENTIONING IS ONE WE'RE VERY FAMILIAR WITH IS GDOT'S LMIG GRANT, OR OUR LOCAL MAINTENANCE AND IMPROVEMENT GRANT. THIS IS WHAT YOU SEE OUR ANNUAL PAVING CONTRACT BE ALIGNED WITH. ALTHOUGH WE HAVE NO PROBLEM MEETING THE MATCH FOR THESE BECAUSE WE OFTEN INVEST SEVERAL MILLION DOLLARS IN REPAVING AND SIDEWALK IMPROVEMENTS ALONG CORRIDORS EACH YEAR. LAST YEAR WE RECEIVED $215,000 RELATED TO THIS LMIG GRANT, WHICH IS BASED ON THE TOTAL CENTERLINE ROAD MILES FOR EACH LOCAL ROAD WITHIN THIS SYSTEM, AS WELL AS OUR TOTAL POPULATION. SO IS THAT FUNDED BY THE GAS TAX? UNSURE. GREAT QUESTION. YEAH. SO WHICH BECAUSE I KNOW I'VE HEARD SOMETIMES THAT FUNDING MAY GO DOWN AS GAS TAX REVENUES GO DOWN, BUT HYPOTHETICALLY, THE GOVERNOR WERE TO SPEND THE GAS TAX FOR MONTHS ON END. HYPOTHETICALLY? HYPOTHETICALLY, RIGHT. YEAH. TWO MORE SLIDES, TWO MORE, TWO MORE. SO I WON'T SPEND TOO LONG ON THIS SLIDE BECAUSE YOU'VE HEARD ME MENTION THE BOOST GRANT BEFORE. WE'RE GOING THROUGH A SECOND ROUND FOR THE SUMMER GRANT PROGRAM, AND WE ARE GOING TO OR I WILL HAVE THAT GRANT SUBMITTED BY JANUARY 5TH ASKING FOR $225,000. WE SHOULD KNOW HOW MUCH WE'VE BEEN AWARDED BY THE SPRING, MARCH, OR APRIL THE NEXT ONE WE HAVE OUR EYES ON AND WE HAVE CARA CAPTAIN BILLY WOODWARD AND MYSELF HAVE MET TO BEGIN DISCUSSIONS, AND THE FEASIBILITY OF THIS. THIS IS THROUGH GOVERNOR'S OFFICE OF HIGHWAY SAFETY FOR INNOVATIVE GRANTS SO THIS IS A FEDERALLY FUNDED GRANT FROM THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION UNDER THE FIXING AMERICA'S SURFACE TRANSPORTATION ACT, AND THE NEW BIPARTISAN INFRASTRUCTURE LAW IS TO PROMOTE DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF INNOVATIVE, INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS TO ADDRESS ROADWAY [00:55:08] SAFETY PROBLEMS RELATED TO ALCOHOL IMPAIRED DRIVING, PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLE SAFETY, MOTORCYCLE SAFETY, AND MANY OTHER DIFFERENT AVENUES. WE ARE LOOKING AT THIS THROUGH THE LENS OF PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLE SAFETY AND HOW IT COULD SUPPORT THREE STRATEGIC ACTION ITEMS, BECOMING A GOLD LEVEL, BICYCLE FRIENDLY COMMUNITY, MAINTAINING THE GOLD LEVEL WALK FRIENDLY COMMUNITY STATUS, AND PROMOTING SAFETY TRAINING FOR DRIVERS AND CYCLISTS THE GOAL FRIENDLY AND BIKE FRIENDLY APPLICATIONS AND DESIGNATIONS ARE HEAVY ON THE EDUCATION COMPONENT SO WE THAT'S PRIMARILY WHY WE'RE LOOKING AT THIS GRANT TO LOOK AND SEE HOW THIS COULD HELP US IMPLEMENT PROGRAMS IN OUR REC CENTERS, IN OUR SCHOOL SYSTEMS, AND FOR THE COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE. YES. THANK YOU. I DIDN'T HEAR YOU MENTION EDUCATION OF PEDESTRIANS, AND OR I'D BE INTERESTED TO KNOW IF THERE COULD BE EQUIPMENT PROVIDED, LIKE A SAFETY VEST FOR ANYONE WHO WANTED LIGHTS OR SAFETY VESTS. I DO NOT HAVE THAT ANSWER FOR YOU, BUT I CAN CIRCLE BACK AROUND. IT'D BE NEAT IF THAT PART OF THE EDUCATION PIECE THAT ALSO INCLUDED PEDESTRIANS WAS PARTICULARLY IF IT BOLSTERED SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL. ABSOLUTELY. OH I'LL GET I WILL CIRCLE BACK AROUND TO YOU. APPRECIATE IT. ALL RIGHT. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THAT WAS GREAT. THANK YOU. SO WE WILL TAKE ABOUT A FIVE MINUTE BREAK AND START OUR CITY COMMISSION MEETING. [I. Call to Order by Mayor.] GOOD EVENING. I'D LIKE TO CALL TO ORDER THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE DECATUR CITY COMMISSION FOR MONDAY, DECEMBER THE 18TH. COMMISSIONERS, YOU HAVE IN FRONT OF YOU MINUTES FROM BOTH THE REGULAR MEETING OF NOVEMBER 27TH AND THE REGULAR MEETING OF DECEMBER 4TH, [II. Approval of the Minutes.] 2023. ARE THERE ANY ADDITIONS OR CORRECTIONS? MOVE APPROVAL. I HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. AYE. OPPOSED? THE CHAIR VOTES I, AND THE MINUTES ARE APPROVED I WOULD LIKE TO TAKE JUST A MINUTE TO MAKE A SLIGHT ADJUSTMENT TO [IV. Presentations.] THE AGENDA. I'D LIKE TO DO THE PRESENTATIONS FIRST AND THEN THE PROCLAMATION. SO WE'RE JUST GOING TO FLIP FLOP THOSE THIS EVENING. I WANTED TO RECOGNIZE FIRST THE FAMILY FOR THAT IS THE WINNER OF THE 2023 DECORATE DECATUR HOLIDAY CONTEST. SO JACKIE MOORE. HELLO. GOOD EVENING. I'M JACKIE MOORE, SPECIAL EVENTS COORDINATOR FOR THE CITY OF DECATUR, AND TONIGHT, I'M HERE TO ANNOUNCE THE 2023 DECORATE DECATUR HOLIDAY CONTEST WINNERS. THE WINNERS ARE THE [INAUDIBLE] FAMILY, AND THEY'RE HERE TONIGHT JOINING US IF YOU WANT TO JOIN US UP HERE AND THEY LIVE AT 647 SYCAMORE DRIVE. ALL RIGHT. WELL WELCOME, AND PLEASE COME FORWARD, AND WE'RE, I HAVE A LYRIC TO PRESENT AS A PART OF THIS, AND WE APPRECIATE MS. MOORE ALWAYS MAKING IT MORE FUN TO MAKE THESE PRESENTATIONS. SO IN DESCRIBING THE WINNERS' HOME AT FOUR 647 SYCAMORE DRIVE IN DECATUR'S HEART, A HOME SO BRIGHT A WINNER IN THE HOLIDAY NIGHT. TWO STORIES TALL, ADORNED JUST RIGHT WITH CHRISTMAS MAGIC PURE DELIGHT. WHITE LIGHTS DANCE ON EAVE SO HIGH A DAZZLING GLOW. LIGHTS UP THE NIGHT SKY. CLASSIC DÉCOR A JOYFUL SIGHT IN DECORATE DECATUR'S FESTIVE LIGHT. A PORCH THAT WHISPERS HOLIDAY CHEER A SANCTUARY FOR THOSE NEAR WINNER OF THE CONTEST. GRACE THIS DECATUR HOME A FESTIVE EMBRACE. SO, CONGRATULATIONS, AND AS IT IS OUR PRACTICE, WE WILL PRESENT YOU WITH THE COMMISSIONER'S CUP. HOLIDAY CUP AND YOUR NAME, I THINK HAS HAS BEEN ADDED AND WE'LL KEEP IT FOR A YEAR AND THEN WE'LL GET IT BACK FROM YOU AND I WILL COME DOWN AND MAKE THE PRESENTATION AND I THINK WE'LL TAKE A PICTURE. SO ALL RIGHT, SO WE SHOULD START PUTTING MARSHMALLOWS AND COCOA IN [CHUCKLING] STANLEY CUP. [01:00:05] CHUG IT. CONGRATULATIONS. THANK YOU SO MUCH. IF YOU WANT TO TURN AROUND THAT WAY. [INAUDIBLE] THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. I BELIEVE [INAUDIBLE]. I BELIEVE THE SIGNS ARE IN THE YARDS. IS THAT CORRECT? SO I ALSO WANT TO RECOGNIZE TWO OUTSTANDING [INAUDIBLE] HOMES, 501 WESTCHESTER DRIVE AND 241 FAULKNER DRIVE. SO CONGRATULATIONS, AND WE REALLY APPRECIATE EVERYONE GETTING IN THE SPIRIT OF THE HOLIDAYS. SO THANK YOU. [III. Proclamation.] ALL RIGHT NEXT I HAVE A PROCLAMATION THAT I'D LIKE TO PRESENT, AND OH, WELL, SORRY. THE CO-RESPONDER SERVICE FROM DEKALB COMMUNITY SERVICE BOARD. SO CHIEF RICHARDS. HEY. GOOD EVENING, I'M SCOTT RICHARDS. I'M THE POLICE CHIEF. THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING US AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE. AS YOU REMEMBER, IN AUGUST OF THIS YEAR, WE SIGNED AN MOU WITH DEKALB COMMUNITY SERVICE BOARD TO REESTABLISH A CO-RESPONDER PROGRAM WITH THE POLICE DEPARTMENT I'M GLAD TO SAY, IN OCTOBER OF THIS YEAR OUR CO-RESPONDER, IVAN FIGUERERO, CAME TO WORK WITH US, AND HE'S BEEN WORKING WITH US FOR ABOUT THREE MONTHS AS OUR CO-RESPONDER. HE'S GOT SOME INFORMATION THAT HE WANTS TO PRESENT TO YOU ALL AND TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT HE'S BEEN DOING WHILE HE'S BEEN HERE. SO I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO IVAN. THANKS, AND I'M SO VERY HAPPY THAT HE PRONOUNCED MY NAME PERFECTLY. SO GOOD EVENING AND THANK YOU AGAIN FOR HAVING ME HERE TONIGHT. I WANT TO KEEP THIS JUST SHORT FOR BREVITY'S SAKE. SO I DID PROVIDE SOME PACKETS FOR YOU TO FLIP OVER AND REVIEW AT YOUR OWN LEISURE AS FAR AS MY ROLE AS A CO-RESPONDER BACK WHEN THERE WAS A STATE RUN INSTITUTIONAL MODEL WHERE THERE WAS THE BIG STATE HOSPITAL AND FOLKS WOULD GET SENT FOR TREATMENT WHILE THEY WOULD, AND THAT'S NO LONGER THE MODEL THAT WE OPERATE WITH THESE DAYS. IT'S MORE OF A COMMUNITY BASED MODEL, MEANING PEOPLE NO LONGER GO FAR, FAR AWAY TO GET HELP. NOW WE HAVE PEOPLE LINKING FOLKS TO SERVICE IN THEIR OWN COMMUNITY SO PEOPLE DON'T HAVE TO GO TOO FAR FROM HOME TO GET THE HELP THAT THEY NEED, AND WELL, AS YOUR CO-RESPONDER FOR THE CITY OF DECATUR, I WORK WITH THE POLICE OFFICERS. SO FOLKS WHO MEET CRITERIA FOR MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES AND ALSO EXPERIENCING ACUTE MOMENTS OF CRISIS CAN BE DIVERTED FROM JAIL AND IDEALLY CONNECTED TO SERVICES IN THEIR LOCAL AREA THIS WAY WE ALLEVIATE ANY STRESS IN THE JAIL SYSTEMS, AND THAT WAY, PEOPLE WHO WOULD BE BETTER SERVED IN THE COMMUNITY JUST DON'T HAVE TO GO THROUGH THAT EXPERIENCE. RIGHT. MORE HUMANE APPROACH, I THINK IDEALLY, WE LINK FOLKS UP TO SERVICE PROVIDERS WHO ARE ACCESSIBLE TO THEM IN THEIR AREA SO THEY DON'T HAVE TO GO VERY FAR TO GET SERVICES. OH, SORRY. THANK YOU FOR THAT UM, SO I PLAY A DUAL ROLE SO ONE ROLE IS AS THE CO-RESPONDER RESPONDING TO 9-1-1 MENTAL HEALTH EMERGENCY CALLS AND I'LL ALSO RESPOND TO FOLLOW UP CALLS WHENEVER AN OFFICER ARRIVES ON A SCENE AND I AM NOT THERE WITH THEM. THEN I'LL FOLLOW UP WITH THEM THE NEXT 48 HOURS OR SO. THESE CALLS DO INCLUDE SUICIDE THREATS, SUICIDE ATTEMPTS, THINGS LIKE THAT AND LATELY I'VE ALSO BEEN ENGAGING THE INDIGENT POPULATION ALONG WITH DOING MY FOLLOW UP DUTIES AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENTS WHERE I COME OUT AND, YOU KNOW, GO TO THE LIBRARY OR MEET WITH SOME MORE CITY STAFFERS TO WELL, INTRODUCE MYSELF AND, YOU KNOW, LET FOLKS KNOW THE SERVICES THAT WE PROVIDE AT THE DEKALB COMMUNITY SERVICE BOARD ON WEDNESDAY. NOW, I RECENTLY GOT TO THE STATE AND LEARNED THAT THERE'S THIS COMPANY THAT HAS A REALLY GOOD REPUTATION SERVING INDIGENT POPULATION, AND I JUST SO HAPPEN, BY COINCIDENCE, TO LINK UP WITH THEM. NOW, I WASN'T SURE WHETHER OR NOT THE CITY OF DECATUR WAS FAMILIAR WITH THE DEKALB COMMUNITY SERVICE BOARD'S REPUTATION AT SERVING AND PROVIDING INDIGENT CARE, BUT THAT JUST HAPPENS TO BE THE CASE. SO I'D LIKE TO LEVERAGE SOME OF THIS TIME TO PERHAPS INVITE YOU TO HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH THE AGENCY'S LEADERSHIP TO SEE HOW WE CAN GROW THAT RELATIONSHIP, AND AS FAR AS SERVICES THAT WE OFFER INCLUDE, BUT NOT LIMITED TO BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES, YOU'RE ALREADY RECEIVING SOME CRISIS [01:05:07] SERVICES AND SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER SERVICES AND CHILD AND ADOLESCENT SERVICES. NOW, I DO ALSO SERVE AS A CASE MANAGER. HOWEVER MY POSITION IS MEANT TO BE SHORT-TERM. I MEET A PERSON AFTER HAVING AN ACUTE CRISIS SITUATION. THE GOAL IS TO LINK THEM, HELP COORDINATE THEIR CARE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, BUT ONCE THEY'RE ENGAGED IN TREATMENT, I'M OUT OF THE PICTURE TO FACILITATE THE INTRODUCTION. THAT'S MY PRIMARY FUNCTION, BUT THERE'S NOT ENOUGH TIME THERE TO DEVELOP THE RAPPORT NEEDED IN ORDER TO HELP PEOPLE DEVELOP OR LEARN WHAT THEY NEED AS FAR AS NAVIGATING SYSTEMS OF CARE GO. SO I'D JUST LIKE TO REITERATE THAT AS FAR AS OUTPATIENT SERVICES ARE CONCERNED, AN ONGOING RELATIONSHIP WITH THE SERVICE PROVIDER IS KEY. YOU KNOW IT'S JUST NOT FEASIBLE TO DEVELOP THE RAPPORT NEEDED FOR A PERSON TO OPEN UP AND FINALLY LET THEMSELVES BE HELD WITHIN A 48 HOUR OR ONE WEEK PERIOD AND THAT'S WHERE I HOPE THAT YOU KNOW, THE RELATIONSHIP WITH CITY OF DECATUR AND DEKALB COMMUNITY SERVICE BOARD CAN DEVELOP A LITTLE FURTHER FOR AN OUTPATIENT CASE MANAGER PROGRAM FOR I GUESS, WORKING TOWARDS A MORE LONGER LASTING CHANGE, AND THAT SAID THANK YOU AGAIN FOR HAVING ME HERE THIS EVENING, AND I APPRECIATE YOUR TIME. I'M OPEN TO QUESTIONS IF ANYONE HAS. YEAH. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS, COMMISSIONER DUSENBURY? I'VE GOT A COUPLE QUESTIONS SO WHAT POPULATION DOES THE DEKALB COMMUNITY SERVICES BOARD SUPPORT GENERALLY? WELL, WE DON'T LIMIT OURSELVES TO ANY ONE PARTICULAR POPULATION. SO IF WE'RE TALKING LOW INCOME, WE DO SERVE FOLKS LOW INCOME, BUT BECAUSE THE TREATMENT IS NOT SPECIFIC, OR PEOPLE WHO HAVE THESE NEEDS ARE NOT SPECIFIC TO ANY PARTICULAR DEMOGRAPHIC SPECIFICALLY WILL SERVE ANYONE WHO WANTS TO COME, BUT WE DO SPECIALIZE WITH LOW INCOME AND INDIGENT POPULATIONS. IN PARTICULAR, WE DO SPECIALIZE IN THOSE POPULATIONS. GOT IT, AND THEN IS THERE ANYTHING THAT I'M JUST CURIOUS, LIKE IN TERMS OF THE SUPPORT YOU NEED TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN YOUR ROLE HERE WITH DECATUR, IS THERE ANYTHING YOU'RE FEELING COULD BE HELPFUL? YOU'VE ONLY BEEN HERE A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME, SO YOU MAY ANSWER THAT QUESTION, BUT. WELL, I FEEL LIKE THANKS TO THE SUPPORT THAT I'VE HAD FROM CHIEF RICHARDS AND THE FOLKS AT THE PD THEY'VE BEEN JUST SHOWING ME AROUND TOWN AND INTRODUCING ME TO FOLKS, AND IT'S BEEN A VERY PERSONABLE EXPERIENCE, SO I REALLY CAN'T THINK OF ANYTHING THAT I WOULD NEED. I FEEL LIKE I HAVE WHAT I NEED, BUT IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO MANAGE EXPECTATIONS FOR WHAT A CO-RESPONDER IS CAPABLE AND RESPONSIBLE OF DOING. IT'S NOT INTENDED TO BE A LONG TERM CASE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM, AND A PERSON WHO, LET'S SAY IS UNHOUSED REQUIRES LONG TERM CASE MANAGEMENT SERVICES. SO GO AHEAD. SO DO YOU ARE YOU ABLE TO CONNECT WITH SOME OF THOSE PROVIDERS FOR THAT LONG, LONGER TERM FOR THE UNHOUSED, FOR EXAMPLE, FOR ADDITIONAL AS THE CO RESPONDER MAKING, YOU KNOW, GAINING THAT TRUST AND HAVING CONVERSATIONS IN TERMS OF THAT NEXT STEP WHAT DO YOU SEE IS MISSING OR ARE YOU IN TOUCH WITH THE AGENCIES THAT CAN THEN PROVIDE HOUSING OR ADDITIONAL FOLLOW UP? YES, AND I HAVE. OKAY IT'S DIFFICULT TO TRACK MEMBERS OF THE INDIGENT POPULATION OFTENTIMES, THEY'RE RELUCTANT TO PROVIDE A WORKING CELL PHONE NUMBER IF THEY HAVE ONE. THERE ARE SERVICES IN TOWN WHERE I'VE HELPED PEOPLE OBTAIN THOSE, WHICH IS JUST A FIRST STEP TO LINKING THEM TO THE COORDINATED CARE PROGRAM AND COORDINATED ENTRY PROGRAM TO HELP THEM FIND HOUSING. SO I CAN THINK OF ABOUT A HANDFUL OF FOLKS WHO I'VE LINKED TO SERVICES, AND I HAVEN'T SEEN THEM SINCE. I REALLY HOPE THAT MEANS THAT THEY HAVE TAKEN THE COORDINATED ENTRY ROUTE AND ARE NO LONGER UNHOUSED FOR THE FOLKS WHO, YOU KNOW, DON'T FIT THE UNHOUSED POPULATION, I'VE ALSO HELPED LINK FOLKS WHO ARE HOUSED AND IN NEED OF SERVICES, AND THEY'VE BEGUN IN OUR CONTINUING OUTPATIENT SERVICES AT THIS TIME. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER WALSH. HI. GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN. THANKS FOR BEING HERE TONIGHT. I HAVE TWO QUESTIONS IN THE BRIEF THAT YOU GAVE US, WHICH IS GREAT. THERE'S A MAP AND I'M JUST GETTING CLARIFICATION. I THINK I KNOW THE ANSWER. THERE'S THREE OPPORTUNITIES OR FACILITIES THAT ARE CLOSE, AND I THINK THEY'RE RIGHT NEAR US. THE DEKALB REGIONAL CRISIS CENTER, THE ADDICTION CLINIC, AND THE WINN WAY CENTER. NONE OF THOSE ARE IN OUR CITY LIMITS, RIGHT? THAT'S CORRECT. OKAY. THEY'RE JUST OUTSIDE THE CITY LIMIT. OKAY, BUT YOU WOULD AVAIL YOURSELF OF THOSE FACILITIES TO CONNECT PEOPLE YOU'D MEET HERE THROUGH YOUR ROLE. [01:10:06] YOU STILL WOULD GO OUT TO ANY OF THESE HIGHLIGHTED IN DEKALB COUNTY, POTENTIALLY RIGHT TO CONNECT PEOPLE OR HOW WOULD THAT I DON'T LIMIT MYSELF TO THE DEKALB COMMUNITY SERVICE BOARD LOCATION. OKAY. OKAY. I DO USE THOSE FOR FOLKS WHO PERHAPS COULD NOT AFFORD BECAUSE SOMETIMES THERE'S A COST BARRIER TO SERVICES, RIGHT. SO I DO USE THE COMMUNITY SERVICE BOARD'S RESOURCES IN THOSE CASES, BUT I ALSO LINK PEOPLE TO EMORY HOSPITAL AND OTHER LOCAL AGENCIES, FOR EXAMPLE. OKAY. GOT IT. THAT'S HELPFUL, AND THEN YOU MENTIONED CASE MANAGEMENT, AND I KNOW IT'S KIND OF FLUID BECAUSE YOU'RE A SHORT-TERM BRIDGE TO A LONGER TERM CASE MANAGEMENT, BUT AT A GIVEN TIME OR MAYBE NOW CAN YOU SAY HOW MANY CASES YOU'RE MANAGING AT THIS TIME? I'M ACTIVELY ENGAGING FIVE. OKAY. FIVE PEOPLE WHO HAVE AGREED TO MEET WITH ME REGULARLY SO THAT I CAN HELP COORDINATE THEIR TREATMENT. THAT'S NOT INCLUDING THE FOLKS WHO I'VE LINKED, AND I'M NO LONGER IN THE PICTURE FOR SURE, BECAUSE IT'S I'M A REALTOR, SO I'LL HAVE SO MANY TRANSACTIONS, AND THEN YOU DO ONE AND YOU MOVE ON. SO IT'S YOU'RE GOING THROUGH THOSE AND THE PERSON GOES ON TO THE NEXT PART OF THEIR CASE MANAGEMENT POTENTIALLY. EXACTLY, AND ALSO WE DON'T WANT TO OVERWHELM THE PERSON WITH SERVICE PROVIDERS AND THE COMMUNITY SERVICE BOARD, AS WELL AS OTHER SERVICE PROVIDERS, ALREADY OFFER CASE MANAGEMENT ON A LONG-STANDING BASIS IF THEY GO REGISTER FOR THE SERVICE. HOW MANY CASES DO YOU THINK YOU COULD HANDLE AT ONE TIME AS A CO-RESPONDER? I NEED TO FOLLOW UP WITH THE PERSON WITHIN 30 DAYS AFTER THE ACUTE MOMENT OF CRISIS. SO THAT COULD BE ANYWHERE BETWEEN, I'D SAY 50 TO THE LOW 20 OR 15 TO THE LOW 20S. OKAY. OKAY. GOOD TO KNOW. WELL, WE HOPE YOU STAY BUSY IN A PRODUCTIVE WAY SO THAT WE'RE ALL ALL BETTER OFF. THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU DO. I'M HAPPY TO SERVE. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. WELCOME, AND I'LL JUST ADD I WOULD ANTICIPATE THAT AT SOME POINT LATER NEXT YEAR, WE WOULD HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE IVAN COME BACK AND MAYBE EVEN SOME OTHER FOLKS, REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE COMMUNITY SERVICE BOARD TO TALK ABOUT THE ADDITIONAL SERVICES THAT ARE OFFERED. I THINK JUST WE'RE VERY MUCH JUST NOW LEARNING, YOU KNOW, THE VARIETY OF SERVICES PROVIDED BY THE COMMUNITY SERVICES BOARD, AND JUST TO BE CLEAR, WHILE IT'S CALLED THE DEKALB COMMUNITY SERVICE BOARD, IT'S NOT A CREATURE OF THE COUNTY. COMMUNITY SERVICE BOARDS ARE [INAUDIBLE] OF THE STATE. SO THE I THINK THE NAME CAN BE A LITTLE CONFUSING SOMETIMES, BUT THE SERVICE AREA IS PREDOMINANTLY DEKALB COUNTY. WOULD THAT BE A WORK SESSION? YES, EXACTLY. THAT WOULD BE THAT WOULD BE MY INTENT. OKAY. THANK YOU AGAIN FOR BEING HERE. SO NOW I'LL PRESENT A PROCLAMATION, AND I THINK I'M GOING TO ASK LINDA HARRIS IF YOU WOULD COME FORWARD, PLEASE. [CHUCKLING] [INAUDIBLE] RIGHT WE JUST WEREN'T GOING TO LET YOU GO AWAY WITHOUT A LITTLE BIT MORE OF RECOGNIZING LINDA HARRIS. GET YOUR TISSUE. YEAH, RIGHT. I KNOW, I WASN'T PREPARED, SO. IT'S HARD TO SNEAK THINGS BY YOU, BUT WE MANAGED IN THIS CASE. SO WHEREAS WE WISH TO EXPRESS SPECIAL RECOGNITION TO LINDA HARRIS UPON HER RETIREMENT AS ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER AND TO HONOR HER DISTINGUISHED 35 YEAR CAREER WITH THE CITY OF DECATUR, AND WHEREAS, LINDA BEGAN HER CAREER IN 1988 WITH THE DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY AFTER GRADUATING FROM AGNES SCOTT COLLEGE, AND WHEREAS, LINDA'S CREATIVITY, PASSION AND INNOVATION HAVE MADE LONG LASTING IMPACTS ON THE DECATUR COMMUNITY, AND WHEREAS, LINDA WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR MANY FIRSTS IN THE CITY, INCLUDING DECATUR 101, THE CITY'S WEBSITE, THE DECATUR FOCUS, AND THE DECATUR TOURISM BUREAU, AND WHEREAS, LINDA TRANSFORMED THE CITY'S APPROACH TO COMMUNICATIONS AND INSTILLED IN US THE POWER OF STORY. WHEREAS LINDA HAS EXEMPLIFIED TRUE SERVANT LEADERSHIP THROUGH HER CARE FOR THE COMMUNITY AND CONTINUED MENTORSHIP AND COACHING OF CITY EMPLOYEES, AND WHEREAS, THROUGH INCLUSIVE CIVIC ENGAGEMENT AND UNIQUE COMMUNITY WIDE EVENTS, LINDA IS LEAVING THE CITY GREATER AND BETTER THAN SHE FOUND IT, AND WHEREAS THE CITY OF DECATUR WISHES TO CONVEY ITS SINCERE APPRECIATION TO LINDA HARRIS FOR HER LEADERSHIP AND DEDICATION TO EXEMPLARY COMMUNITY SERVICE DURING HER PUBLIC SERVICE CAREER. NOW, THEREFORE, I, PATTI GARRETT, MAYOR OF THE CITY OF DECATUR. THE CITY OF HOMES, SCHOOLS AND PLACES OF WORSHIP DO HEREBY PROCLAIM MONDAY, DECEMBER 18TH AS LINDA HARRIS DAY. [01:15:06] WOOHOO! WE URGE ALL CITIZENS TO CELEBRATE SO. HAS A FEW THINGS TO HONOR YOU. OH MY GOODNESS. OH, WOW. WE HAD TO MAKE YOUR LAST CITY COMMISSION MEETING MEMORABLE, AND AND COMMISSIONER MEYER IS A LITTLE UNDER THE WEATHER BUT I KNOW SHE IS ALSO WISHING YOU WELL, SO WE'LL. COMMISSIONER POWELL IS, AND I WOULD LIKE TO PRESENT YOU. HOW MANY OF THOSE HAVE YOU? [INAUDIBLE] OH THANK YOU. OH MY GOODNESS. THANK YOU. OH, WOW. SO BUT WE APPRECIATE YOU SO HAPPY YOU GOT TO BE AT THE DAIS WITH US ONE TIME BEFORE YOUR TENURE ENDED AND VERY MUCH WISH YOU WELL. YOU'RE WELCOME TO COME BACK AND SIT IN THE MEETING. OKAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU. SO WE APPRECIATE YOU. ALL RIGHT, SHE'S GOTTA TURN AROUND FOR A PICTURE. I HAVE TO TURN AROUND. SO LET'S GET THE WHOLE COMMISSION. [INAUDIBLE] THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH. OH, WELL. HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND WE'LL WE'LL SEE A HAPPY HOLIDAY. RETREAT JUST WON'T BE THE SAME WITHOUT YOU. I KNOW IT. OH THANK YOU, THANK YOU. THAT'S HARD TO CARRY EVERYTHING. THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH. [INAUDIBLE] OH, OKAY. I WONDERED IF IT WAS I THINK I THOUGHT THERE WERE. SO I THINK WE HAVE SOME OTHER SPECIAL GUESTS THIS EVENING, AND I'M GOING TO ASK THE MAYOR PRO TEM TO INTRODUCE SOME OF THE YOUTH COUNCIL MEMBERS WHO ARE HERE FOR OUR LAST MEETING IN 2023. THANKS, MAYOR. WITH US TONIGHT, I HAVE FLORA BURDETTE, HENRY CASEY, GRETA [INAUDIBLE], AND THEO JACKSON, SOME OF MY ESTEEMED MEMBERS OF THE YOUTH COUNCIL, AND YOU DON'T GET TO GET OFF LIGHTLY. YOU GET TO COME UP FRONT AND SAY HELLO TO AMERICA, AND PLEASE, JUST BRIEFLY NAME WHERE YOU GO TO SCHOOL, AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO SAY WHY YOU'RE HERE, RIGHT? YEAH. HI. MY NAME IS GRETA [INAUDIBLE], AND I'M A SENIOR AT DECATUR HIGH SCHOOL. HI, I'M FLORA BURDETTE, AND I'M A SENIOR AT DECATUR HIGH SCHOOL. HI, MY NAME IS HENRY CASEY AND I'M A JUNIOR AT PAIDEIA. HI, I'M THEO JACKSON, AND I'M A SENIOR AT DECATUR HIGH SCHOOL. ALL RIGHT. WELCOME. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. SO LET'S GIVE THEM A ROUND OF APPLAUSE. WE KNOW HOW MUCH THE YOUTH COUNCIL CONTRIBUTES AND WE ARE SELECTIVE IN MAKING THE SELECTIONS, AND WE ALSO THEY, THEY DO A LOT AS A PART OF THE YOUTH COUNCIL, AND WE APPRECIATE THEIR INPUT AS WELL AS THEIR WILLINGNESS TO WORK AND HELP US WITH EVENTS AND BRING FORWARD THEIR IDEAS. SO THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE. SO NEXT WE HAVE AN ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE LICENSE. [V. Alcoholic Beverage License.] SO I BELIEVE THAT IS YOU, MISS ARNOLD. YES. THANK YOU. MAYOR. COMMISSIONERS WE HAVE A RECOMMENDATION FOR APPROVAL FOR AN ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE. LICENSE FOR RETAIL SALE, FOR CONSUMPTION ON PREMISES OF BEER, WINE AND SPIRITUOUS LIQUORS, AND THIS IS FOR HO HEAN RHEE, FOR WHAT'S KNOWN AS GREEN GINGER. AT 265 PONCE DE LEON PLACE AND THE. OH, HELLO. YOU MUST. YOU MUST BE HERE FOR GREEN GINGER I'M GUESSING AND THE WHAT PRECIPITATED THE NEED FOR THIS RECOMMENDATION IS A A NEW OWNER, AND AND YOU'RE MORE THAN WELCOME TO INTRODUCE YOURSELF. YEAH. PLEASE DO. HOW ARE YOU? MY NAME IS HO HEAN RHEE. I COME FROM THE CARROLLTON, GEORGIA IT'S MY FRIEND LIVING IN THE DECATUR, AND HE SHOWED ME THE [INAUDIBLE] DECATUR. I LOVE THE DECATUR BECAUSE IN CARROLLTON, I JUST LIVE OVER THERE 20 YEARS, AND I HAVE A JAPANESE RESTAURANT, AND AT THE WING PLACE. I HAVE EXPERIENCED IN 40 YEARS EXPERIENCE IN A JAPANESE RESTAURANT. [01:20:01] SO I LIKE DECATUR AND I LOVE THE SYSTEM, THE GREEN GINGER. YEAH, THEY WANTED TO. I THINK EVERYBODY TO FAMILY, THE CUSTOMER DOESN'T MATTER. IT'S EVERYBODY, THE FAMILY STYLE I LOVE THAT. YEAH, IT'S EVERYBODY IS GOOD FOR ME EVERYBODY WELCOME TO DECATUR. I SAY THANK YOU TO DECATUR PERSONALLY. YEAH. THANK YOU. WELCOME. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, THANK YOU. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS FOR MISS ARNOLD? I HAVE ONE MORE QUESTION. I JUST TOOK THE LAST THREE WEEKS AGO. I DIDN'T KNOW, AND I JUST CONTRACTED MY LAWYER, AND MY LAWYER [INAUDIBLE] AND AN OWNER PROPERTY OWNER, AND ME AND THE LAWYER, WE HAVE THE CONTRACT AND ALCOHOL AND THE MANAGEMENT TO BE SIGNED, AND I WAS THE LAST TIME THE STATE THE MANAGER COME CAME TO MY PLACE. HE SAID, AND IT'S NOT ON YOUR NAME SO I CANNOT SELL THE ALCOHOL. SO I STOPPED THE ALCOHOL THREE WEEKS AGO AND I DIDN'T KNOW, AND MY LAWYER SAID, YOU CAN'T 90 DAY HAVE THE CHANCE, END OF DECEMBER. SO BEFORE YOU HAVE THE OWN ALCOHOL LICENSE EVERYTHING IS OKAY, AND IF THE MARSHAL SAID, NO, IT'S IN THE WRONG WAY. SO STOP THE SALE OF THE ALCOHOL THREE WEEKS AGO I'M THE RIGHT NOW. SO I JUST SAID WE DID THE ALCOHOL LICENSE FOR THE 2024, AND I WOULD 1ST JANUARY AND CAN I THE SALE THE APPROVE THE ALCOHOL LICENSE HERE AFTER DATE. I CANNOT SELL THE ALCOHOL LICENSE ALCOHOL. ALCOHOL. I THINK IF YOU COULD TALK WITH MISS THREADGILL, SHE'S GOING TO RAISE HER HAND AFTER AFTER THE BODY TAKES A VOTE, THEN YOU ALL CAN HAVE A CONVERSATION OFFLINE. SHE CAN HELP YOU WITH THAT. THANK YOU. YEAH. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, SO DO I HEAR A MOTION TO APPROVE AN ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE LICENSE FOR THE RETAIL SALE FOR CONSUMPTION ON PREMISES OF BEER, WINE AND SPIRITUOUS LIQUORS TO HO HEAN RHEE FOR THE OISHI ASIAN FUSION RESTAURANT DOING BUSINESS AS GREEN GINGER. DO I HAVE A HEAR A MOTION TO THAT EFFECT? SO MOVED. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED THE CHAIR VOTES I AND THE MOTION PASSES. SO, AND MISS THREADGILL IS GOING TO ANSWER THE QUESTIONS. SO NEXT WE WILL TAKE PUBLIC COMMENT ON AGENDA ACTION ITEMS. [VI. Public Comment on Agenda Action Items.] WE HAVE SEVERAL ON OUR AGENDA THIS EVENING WE HAVE APPROVALS FOR THE SOUTH HOUSING VILLAGE PHASE ONE. WE HAVE OUR FISCAL YEAR 2022-23 AMENDED BUDGET. WE HAVE THE ATHLETIC FIELD LIGHTING AT WEBSTER, THE DOWNTOWN STREET TREE MAINTENANCE PROGRAM, THE GEORGIA SAFE SIDEWALKS AGREEMENT, THE PAVEMENT AND SIDEWALK ASSESSMENT CONTRACT, AND THE ON CALL PROFESSIONAL DESIGN AND ENGINEERING SERVICES AGREEMENTS. SO IF THERE IS ANYONE HERE WHO WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A COMMENT ABOUT ANY OF THE AGENDA ACTION ITEMS, NOW IS THE TIME TO PLEASE COME FORWARD AND STATE YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS. THANK YOU. HELLO. KEN ROSE, 710 SOUTH MCDONOUGH STREET. FIRST, THANK YOU FOR THE WORK THAT YOU DO AND IT'S A PRIVILEGE TO BE HERE. I JUST WANT TO SAY THAT THE SIDEWALK AGREEMENT FOR GRINDING SIDEWALKS IS SUPER IMPORTANT AND THANK YOU ALL FOR DOING THAT. IT'S A PART OF SUPPORTING A CITY THAT ALLOWS AN EIGHT YEAR OLD TO WALK ACROSS TOWN WITH THEIR 80 YEAR OLD GRANDPARENT. SO IT WAS ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS I NOTICED WHEN I MOVED TO DECATUR, MOST CITIES IN GEORGIA DON'T DO THIS, AND IT'S SUPER IMPORTANT BECAUSE THEY CREATE TRIPPING HAZARDS WITHOUT HAVING THE GRINDING. THE ONLY THING I WAS JUST GOING TO NOTE IN THE EXECUTION OF THE ACTUAL MAINTENANCE IS WHEN THEY ARE GRINDING SIDEWALKS, TRYING TO AVOID CONTINUING A TRIPPING HAZARD. SO BASICALLY, SOMETIMES YOU'LL SEE THE GRIND AT A CURVE KIND OF LIKE THIS VERSUS A RAMP, AND IF THEY JUST GRIND AT A CURVE, YOU'RE REALLY NOT COMPLETELY SOLVING THE TRIPPING HAZARD. SO IN TERMS OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE GRINDING, IT'S PROBABLY WORTH GETTING OUT THERE AND TAKING A LOOK AND MAKING SURE THAT THEY'RE DOING IT IN A WAY THAT DOES PREVENT THE TRIPPING HAZARD, BUT GREAT WORK. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. HAVE A GREAT NIGHT. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU ARE THERE OTHERS? OKAY. GOOD EVENING, SANDRA [INAUDIBLE], 211 MISSIONARY DRIVE. [01:25:05] DEAR MAYOR, DEAR MAYOR PRO TEM, DEAR COMMISSIONERS I'M HERE ON BEHALF OF CALM DECATUR, AND SINCE THERE WAS NO DOESN'T LOOK LIKE THERE'S ANY OPPOSING VIEWPOINTS, I'LL KEEP IT VERY BRIEF. WE ALSO WELCOME THE WORK TO IMPROVE THE SIDEWALKS, AND WE THINK THE CITY STAFF HAS DONE A GREAT JOB IN SELECTING THE PORTION OF WORK IN AN EQUITABLE MANNER. WE HAVE ALSO SEEN THAT THE SELECTED CONTRACTOR HAS DONE GOOD WORK. THE ONLY THING WE COULD ASK FOR IS THAT MORE FUNDS ARE ALLOCATED, BUT THAT'S NOT TODAY'S TOPIC. SO I'LL WAIT FOR ANOTHER TIME WITH THAT WE JUST, AS YOU KNOW, ON THE SIDEWALK, EVEN A SMALL STEP OR WHOLE CAN BE A BIG OBSTACLE FOR PEOPLE WITH STROLLERS OR LIMITED MOBILITY, LIKE WHEELCHAIRS, USERS OR THE ELDERLY, AND THAT SAID, WE ARE IN SUPPORT OF THE AGREEMENT, AND NOW I HAVE ON ANOTHER BUSINESS DECISION. I JUST CONTINUE ON THAT ONE, I ASSUME. SO FOR THE THE CONTRACT WITH IMS, I FORGOT WHAT THE ACTUAL TITLE IS, BUT YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN. THE PAVEMENT AND SIDEWALK ASSESSMENT CONTRACT. EXCUSE ME. WE, SORRY. WE WELCOME THAT THE CITY EXPLICITLY SERVICE THE SIDEWALKS ALONG WITH THE PAVEMENT AND HOPE THAT SUFFICIENT CAPITAL FUNDS WILL BE ALLOCATED IN THE FUTURE YEARS TO ADDRESS THE DOCUMENTED ISSUES BEFORE THAT DATA THEN BECOMES LESS USEFUL WITH THE PASSING OF TIME. AS CALM DECATUR, WE WANT TO ADVOCATE FOR TRAFFIC SAFETY ON A DATA DRIVEN AND SCIENTIFIC BASIS. WITH THAT IN MIND, WE HUMBLY ASK THAT THE RESULTING DATA WILL BE SHARED WITH US AND OF COURSE, OTHER ADVOCATES, SIMILAR ORGANIZATIONS. SO ON THE BETTER DATA THAT WE HAVE, THE BETTER WE CAN ADVOCATE IN A MEANINGFUL AND IN A COOPERATIVE WAY, AND I'M QUITE CONVINCED THAT CAN BE DONE IN A WAY THAT ONLY RESULTS IN NOMINAL OR ZERO COST. I DID HAVE A DISCUSSION WITH DAVE ABOUT THAT, AND I DON'T HAVE ENOUGH INFORMATION RIGHT NOW TO MAKE LIKE A SPECIFIC REQUEST OR SOMETHING, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO ASK THE CITY COMMISSION TO SUPPORT OUR REQUEST IN SPIRIT AND SUPPORT THE SHARING OF DATA IN A FEASIBLE MANNER WITH GROUPS LIKE US, AND I WANT TO THANK CITY STAFF IN ADVANCE FOR ALWAYS BEING SO EASY TO WORK WITH, AND YES, IN THAT SENSE, ALSO WE SUPPORT THE ENTERING THAT CONTRACT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ARE THERE OTHERS WHO WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A COMMENT ON ANY AGENDA ACTION ITEM? SEEING NONE. WE'LL OPEN IT UP TO THOSE WHO ARE JOINING US ONLINE, AND IF THERE'S ANYONE WHO WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A COMMENT ABOUT AN AGENDA ACTION ITEM. ALL RIGHT. WE WILL ASK MISS ROARK TO UNMUTE YOU, AND IF YOU CAN PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS AND PLEASE MAKE YOUR COMMENT. HI. GOOD EVENING. JAMES [INAUDIBLE], 308 DRIFTWOOD TERRACE JUST WANTED TO, ADD MY SUPPORT TO THE SIDEWALK REPAIR AGREEMENT I'M A WHEELCHAIR USER, AND I LIVE IN DECATUR. I USE THE SIDEWALKS REGULARLY WHEN I CAN AND WHEN I CAN, I HAVE TO GO ON THE STREET I MADE SOME REPORTS ON SEECLICKFIX, SOME OF WHICH ARE OUTSTANDING FOR MORE THAN TWO YEARS. SO I WOULD ALSO URGE, IN ADDITION TO THE WORK WHICH WHEN THE WORK'S BEEN DONE, IT'S BEEN DONE REALLY WELL, I HAVE TO SAY IF THERE COULD JUST BE MAYBE SOME BETTER COMMUNICATION AND SOME ESTIMATES ON THE TIMELINE THAT IT WOULD TAKE TO DO SOME OF THE REPAIRS THAT PEOPLE ARE REQUESTING. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. SO ANYONE ELSE? SEEING NONE. [VII.A. Approvals for South Housing Village Phase I.] WE'LL CLOSE THE PUBLIC COMMENT PORTION OF THE MEETING FOR AGENDA ACTION ITEMS, AND WE WILL LOOK AT THE APPROVALS FOR THE SOUTH HOUSING VILLAGE PHASE ONE, MISS ARNOLD. YES. THANK YOU. MAYOR. COMMISSIONERS YOU HAVE BEFORE YOU A REQUEST FOR ACTUALLY TWO TWO APPROVALS, AND THIS IS RELATED TO THE SOUTH HOUSING VILLAGE AT DECATUR LEGACY PARK AS YOU KNOW, WE ARE WE'RE WORKING TOWARDS A CLOSING OR THE HOUSING AUTHORITY ACTUALLY IS WORKING TOWARDS CLOSING ON THE FINANCING FOR THE FIRST PHASE OF THE SOUTH HOUSING VILLAGE AND IT LOOKS LIKE AT THIS POINT THEY ARE ON TRACK FOR A JANUARY CLOSING AND THERE'S STILL JUST A FEW A FEW FINAL DOCUMENTS THAT NEED TO BE APPROVED BY THIS BODY. ONE OF THOSE IS A MEMORANDUM OF OF AGREEMENT WITH THE STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICER, ALSO KNOWN AS THE SHPO AND THEN WE'RE ALSO ASKING YOU TO RATIFY A CERTAIN DOLLAR AMOUNT IN IN THE SECOND AMENDMENT TO THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT [01:30:02] THAT WE HAVE BETWEEN THE CITY AND THE HOUSING AUTHORITY, AND FIRST, I'LL JUST TALK ABOUT THE MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT, THE MOA. SO THE FINANCING OF THE SOUTH HOUSING VILLAGE INVOLVES LOW INCOME HOUSING TAX CREDITS, AND THAT DOES SUBJECT THE PROPERTY TO WHAT'S KNOWN AS A SECTION 106 REVIEW UNDER THE NATIONAL HISTORIC PRESERVATION ACT, AND THAT DOES REQUIRE FEDERAL AGENCIES AND THEIR APPLICANTS TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE EFFECTS OF THEIR UNDERTAKINGS OR THE THE EFFECTS OF THESE PROJECTS ON ANY HISTORIC PROPERTIES IN THE AREA, AND AS A RESULT OF THE REVIEW THAT'S BEEN CONDUCTED, THE SHPO AND THAT'S WITH THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION DIVISION AT THE GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY AFFAIRS, SHPO, THE DECATUR HOUSING AUTHORITY, AND DEKALB COUNTY. THEY'VE ACTUALLY ENTERED INTO THIS MOA, AND THAT IDENTIFIES THE MEASURES THAT WILL BE TAKEN, MEASURES THAT WILL BE TAKING TAKEN BY THE HOUSING AUTHORITY TO MINIMIZE THE IMPACT OF THE PROJECT ON THE SURROUNDING HISTORIC RESOURCES, AND FOR EXAMPLE, AS YOU'LL SEE IN THE MOA THE HOUSING AUTHORITY WILL CREATE A PHOTOGRAPHIC ARCHIVAL RECORD OF OF PARTS OF LEGACY PARK OR PARTS OF THE CAMPUS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE GUIDELINES OF THIS THIS MOA. I MENTIONED THAT THESE THREE PARTIES IS THE SHPO IS THE HOUSING AUTHORITY IN DEKALB COUNTY, AND THEY ARE THE FEDERAL REGULATIONS DO ALLOW OTHER PARTIES TO BE INVITED, TO CONCUR WITH THE MOA. SO WE ARE BEING ASKED TO BE A CONCURRING PARTY AND OUR INVOLVEMENT DOES NOT IMPACT THE THE EXECUTION OF THIS AGREEMENT. HOWEVER, THIS DOES WITH OUR INVOLVEMENT ONE, WE'VE HAD INVOLVEMENT IN THE, THE CONTENT AND OF THE MOA, AND WE'RE ALSO JUST SAYING THAT WE ENDORSE THIS ACTION. WE SUPPORT THIS, AND IT IS MY RECOMMENDATION THAT THE CITY COMMISSION AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER TO SIGN THIS MOA AS A CONCURRING PARTY SO BEFORE I MOVE ON TO THE NEXT ITEM, I'LL ASK IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS RECOMMENDATION OR THE PROCESS OR THE CONTENTS OF THIS MOA. YOU ASKED US TO CONCUR. THE HOUSING AUTHORITY. DECATUR HOUSING AUTHORITY THEY INVITED US TO PARTICIPATE AS A CONCURRING PARTY, AND THEY ALSO DID INVITE US TO PARTICIPATE IN DRAFTING SOME OF THE LANGUAGE WITHIN THE MOA. SO I WILL SAY THAT WE'VE BEEN HEAVILY WE'VE THE CITY HAS BEEN HEAVILY INVOLVED ALONG WITH OUR CITY ATTORNEY IN DEVELOPING THE LANGUAGE IN THIS MOA, AND SO I KNOW THAT WE'LL BE REMOVING CERTAIN BUILDINGS IN THE, ON THE SITE, AND I THINK BEYOND THAT, I MEAN, THIS IS NOT PREVENT US FROM DOING STUFF THAT IT ABSOLUTELY DOES NOT PREVENT US FROM TAKING FROM TAKING ANY ACTION ON THE FULL CAMPUS AT LEGACY PARK AND WE DID; WE WORKED CAREFULLY TO ENSURE THAT THE SCOPE OF THE MOA AND ANY LIMITATIONS IS LIMITED TO THE PROJECT SITE AND NOT BEYOND THE REST OF THE PROPERTY AND I HAD ASKED THE CITY MANAGER ABOUT LIKE WHAT SORT OF TRIGGERS THIS? AND I THINK IT IS TRIGGERED BY THE [INAUDIBLE] AND THAT THE COUNTY WAS INVOLVED BECAUSE THEY PERFORM THE ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS FOR HUD, AND SO THE COUNTY IS ACTING AS AN ARM OF HUD, AS AN ARM OF HUD. SO THAT'S HOW I GUESS IT WAS IN ORDER TO GET THE [INAUDIBLE] FUNDING, THIS WAS A PIECE OF WHAT WAS REQUIRED TO DO THIS REVIEW AND I DO WANT TO RECOGNIZE ANGELA THREADGILL WHO IS OUR PLANNING AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR. SHE ALSO HAD A HAND IN HELPING US IN REVIEWING AND DRAFTING THE MOA. SO SHE'S MUCH MORE FAMILIAR WITH THE STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICER. THIS HAS BEEN IT'S BEEN A LEARNING EXPERIENCE FOR ME THIS WORLD OF SHPO AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION, BUT BUT ANGELA BROUGHT HER EXPERTISE TO THE TABLE AS WELL, BUT ALSO ASK, WHY IS IT AN MOA INSTEAD OF AN MOU? AND IT'S BECAUSE THAT'S THE LANGUAGE THAT DCA USES. SO BEING CONSISTENT WITH WITH WHAT THEY'RE ASKING FOR. [01:35:03] SO OTHER QUESTIONS A QUICK QUESTION. THE WHOLE PROPERTY IS DESIGNATED AS AN HISTORIC. IT HAS AN HISTORIC DESIGNATION DOES IT NOT. I'LL LET MISS THREADGILL COULD SPEAK TO THAT WHICH I UNDERSTOOD EARLY ON IN THE MASTER PLANNING DID NOT PROHIBIT US FROM PER COMMISSIONER DUSENBURY'S QUESTION DOES NOT PROHIBIT US FROM REMOVING ANY STRUCTURES OR DOING THOSE THINGS UNDER OUR PURVIEW. CORRECT. SO WHAT WE KNOW IS THE UNITED METHODIST CHILDREN'S HOME IS ELIGIBLE FOR LISTING ON THE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES, BUT THE FORMAL METHOD OF GOING ABOUT DOING THAT HAS NOT TAKEN PLACE YET. OKAY. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. OTHER QUESTIONS? DO I HEAR A MOTION TO AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER TO SIGN A MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE DECATUR HOUSING AUTHORITY, DEKALB COUNTY, AND THE GEORGIA STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICER AS A CONCURRING PARTY FOR THIS AGREEMENT IN SUPPORT OF WHAT THE HOUSING AUTHORITY IS DOING TO DOCUMENT HISTORIC SIGNIFICANCE. SO MOVE. ALL RIGHT. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. MOTION HAS BEEN MADE AND SECONDED. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED? THE CHAIR VOTES AYE AND THE MOTION IS ADOPTED. NEXT, ONE MORE ITEM HERE. YOU ALL MAY RECALL FROM YOUR NOVEMBER 6TH MEETING THAT THERE WERE SEVERAL DOCUMENTS THAT YOU REVIEWED AND APPROVED ALSO RELATED TO THE SOUTH HOUSING VILLAGE. ONE OF THOSE WAS THE SECOND AMENDMENT TO THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY AND THE HOUSING AUTHORITY, AND AT THAT TIME, THE DOCUMENT WAS MISSING A DOLLAR AMOUNT, AND THAT WAS A DOLLAR AMOUNT RELATED TO, IT WAS A IT WAS GOING TO BE OR IS A CAP ON THE AMOUNT THAT THE CITY WOULD REIMBURSE THE HOUSING AUTHORITY FOR CAPITAL EXPENDITURES EXPENDITURES MADE BY THE HOUSING AUTHORITY IF THE SECTION 5.1 OR 5.1.C IF THAT WAS IF THAT PART OF THE AGREEMENT WAS ACTIVATED BY THE HOUSING AUTHORITY, AND SO WE SAID WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT NUMBER IS AND WE DIDN'T WANT TO MAKE THAT UP, AND THE HOUSING AUTHORITY WASN'T PREPARED TO GIVE US THAT NUMBER. THIS WAS IN THE IN THE EVENT THAT THE HOUSING AUTHORITY REQUESTS, WE REQUEST AN EXTENSION OF THE GROUND LEASE AND THE CITY CHOOSES NOT TO EXTEND THE GROUND LEASE, AND THE HOUSING AUTHORITY CHOOSES TO TERMINATE THE GROUND LEASE. AT THAT POINT, WE'RE SAYING THAT THE CITY WOULD HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO REIMBURSE THE HOUSING AUTHORITY FOR SOME AMOUNT OF CAPITAL EXPENDITURES AND THE HOUSING AUTHORITY PROVIDED US WITH DATA FROM A THIRD PARTY AND ROUGHLY IT WORKED OUT TO BE ABOUT $20,600 PER UNIT, FOR THIS FIRST PHASE I WILL SAY, AS I TALKED TO THE MAYOR EARLIER TODAY I HAD DONE SOME CURSORY RESEARCH EVEN PRIOR TO RECEIVING THIS NUMBER, AND THIS THE RECOMMENDATION WITH THE DATA FROM THE HOUSING AUTHORITY IS CONSISTENT WITH WHAT I FOUND ALSO DATA FROM HUD BEING ONE AND THEN ALSO FROM A LOCAL CONSULTING FIRM, AND SO THAT WORKS OUT TO BE $1,360,539 AND THAT WOULD BE THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT, AND THAT WOULD BE IF THE, IF THE HOUSING AUTHORITY TRIGGERS THIS PART OF THE AGREEMENT IN YEAR. I THINK IT COULD BE FROM YEAR, FROM 2038 ALL THE WAY UP TO 2054. IT WOULD BE THAT SAME DOLLAR AMOUNT ANY TIME WITHIN THAT RANGE. SO HOPEFULLY I'VE COMMUNICATED THAT CLEARLY THAT WE'RE, WE'VE FILLED IN THAT NUMBER AND WE'RE ASKING THE CITY COMMISSION TO RATIFY THAT NUMBER. I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU FOR YOUR DILIGENCE IN DOING THIS AND SAY, I'M VERY COMFORTABLE WITH THAT NUMBER, AND I'M ASSUMING THIS IS THE FINAL DOCUMENT THAT WE ARE AWARE OF IN ORDER TO FOR THE HOUSING AUTHORITY TO MOVE FORWARD . AS FAR AS I KNOW, BUT I WOULD SAY AS ALSO AS FAR AS CLOSINGS GO, I WOULD NOT BE SURPRISED IF THERE WAS [01:40:01] SOMETHING THAT THE LENDER OR ATTORNEY SAYS IS NEEDED, BUT AT THIS POINT, TO THE BEST OF MY KNOWLEDGE THESE ARE THE LAST LOOSE ENDS THAT HAVE BEEN REQUESTED OF US. TO GET US TO CLOSING. I CONCUR. THANK YOU FOR YOUR DILIGENCE AND AND WORKING FOR US TO GET TO THIS PLACE AND APPRECIATE THE HOUSING AUTHORITY AND GETTING US THE NUMBER IN A TIMELY FASHION. SO, YEAH, IT'S BEEN A HEAVY LIFT, BUT IT'S, I THINK THE END RESULT WILL BE WORTH IT AS WE'VE ALL EXPERIENCED, I MEAN, WE READ ABOUT IT EVERY DAY ABOUT HOUSING AFFORDABILITY AND METRO ATLANTA SPECIFICALLY. IT'S JUST OUT OF CONTROL, AND THIS IS OUR LITTLE WAY TO AT LEAST START WE GET A START AND MAYBE WE JUST BUILD ON IT IN EACH AND EVERY TIME WE CAN. SO THANK YOU, CITY MANAGER AND ALL THOSE THAT HAVE BEEN A PART OF THIS VERY LENGTHY DISCUSSION. SO GLAD TO SEE FINISH LINE BREAKING GROUND SOON. IF I COULD JUST ADD I MEAN, I THINK IT SHOWS THE LEVEL OF DETAIL TO WHICH YOU HAD TO GO. WE ALL HAD TO GO TO EVEN PROJECT CERTAIN SCENARIOS THAT MAY OR WOULD LIKELY NOT HAPPEN, P OTENTIALLY, BUT WE'VE ACCOUNTED FOR IT. WE HAVE A PLAN AND IT ALLOWS THE DEAL TO MOVE FORWARD. CERTAINLY ANTICIPATE THAT FOLKS 20, 30 YEARS DOWN THE ROAD WHEN WE'RE NOT HERE, PERHAPS THEY'LL APPRECIATE THE ATTENTION TO DETAIL BY THIS BODY. ALL RIGHT, THERE ARE NO FURTHER QUESTIONS. DO I HEAR A MOTION TO RATIFY THE NOT TO EXCEED AMOUNT OF $1,360,539 IN SECTION 5.1.C(2)B(II)(B) OF THE SECOND AMENDMENT TO THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY AND THE DECATUR HOUSING AUTHORITY RELATED TO THE PAYMENT FOR CAPITAL EXPENSES. SO MOVED. IS THERE A SECOND SECOND MOTION HAS BEEN MADE AND SECONDED ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED? THE CHAIR VOTES AYE AND THE MOTION PASSES, SO THANK YOU. NEXT WE'LL LOOK AT THE AMENDED BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2022-23. [VII.B. Fiscal Year 2022-2023 Amended Budget.] MISS ROARK. GOOD EVENING. WE WERE SO CLOSE LAST TIME. WE GOT ALL THE OTHER FUNDS TAKEN CARE OF, BUT THERE ARE STILL SOME SLIGHT ADJUSTMENTS TO THE GENERAL FUND. SO THAT'S WHY I'M BEFORE YOU AGAIN TONIGHT. SO REQUESTING AN AMENDMENT AN ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION R-23-XX TO AMEND THE GENERAL FUND FOR FISCAL YEAR 22-23 TO REFLECT CHANGES IN EXPENDITURES. SINCE THE REVISED BUDGET WAS ADOPTED ON JUNE 20TH, 2023. THE CHANGES ARE BASED ON OUR MOST CURRENT VERSION OF THE DRAFT AUDIT, AND THIS RESOLUTION INCORPORATES THOSE CHANGES, AND THIS IS A PROCESS THAT FORMALIZES THE CLEANUP OF FISCAL YEAR-END BUDGETS IN A MANNER THAT'S CONSISTENT WITH STATE LAW, AND AS I SAID LAST TIME, THAT YOU WILL SEE THE AUDIT IN LATE JANUARY, EARLY FEBRUARY, AND THESE NUMBERS WILL BE IN THAT REPORT, THAT THE AUDIT WILL BE SUBMITTED BY THE END OF THIS THIS YEAR IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE STATE LAW. I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. SO I HAVE JUST A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. IT LOOKS LIKE THAT THERE WERE SOME THINGS THAT MAYBE HAD ORIGINALLY BEEN IN THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENT AND CED THAT GOT MOVED TO ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES. THAT IS CORRECT? OKAY. IT WAS JUST A MATTER OF THE ACCOUNTING AS TO WHERE THOSE EXPENSES WE BUDGET DIFFERENTLY THAN THE DIVISIONS IN THE BUDGET ARE DIFFERENT THAN THE WAY THE ACCOUNTANTS AND THE AUDITORS SEE THINGS. SO THERE'S SOME IT'S JUST A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. SO SOMETIMES WHEN WE'RE DOING THIS PART IT GOT A LITTLE CONFUSING. SO WE HAD TO MOVE ABOUT $45,000 AMONGST THOSE ITEMS TO GET US TO A ZERO SUM GAME AND TO COVER ALL OVERAGES. I KNOW THERE WERE A COUPLE OF THEM ACTUALLY, THE POLICE AND FIRE DEPARTMENT, WHICH AREN'T HIGHLIGHTED IN YELLOW, BUT ALSO CHANGED SOME TOO. OKAY, I SEE IT. YEAH. THANK YOU. THEY BOTH WENT DOWN. [INAUDIBLE] SHIFT THAT THE MAYOR. RIGHT. BASICALLY MONEY FROM THOSE WENT TO THE ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES DEPARTMENT TO COVER THAT OVERAGE. [01:45:03] ARE THERE ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS? ALL RIGHT DO I HEAR A MOTION TO ADOPT RESOLUTION R-23-XX AMENDING THE GENERAL FUND BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2022-2023? SO MOVED. SECOND. MOTION HAS BEEN MADE AND SECONDED. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED? THE CHAIR VOTES AYE AND THE MOTION IS ADOPTED. THE RESOLUTION IS ADOPTED. SEE THE ATHLETIC FIELD LIGHTING AT EBSTER. [VII.C. Athletic Field Lighting at Ebster Field.] DID YOU BRING ANY PROPS TONIGHT? [CHUCKLING] NOT TONIGHT, BUT, THE, SO THIS IS A FOLLOW ON TO THE APPROVAL OF THE DESIGN BUILD, SERVICES AGREEMENT. YOU APPROVED IN NOVEMBER THAT'S FOR THE DESIGN AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE ATHLETIC FIELD AT EBSTER, CONVERTING IT TO A SYNTHETIC TURF FIELD. THIS IS A, AN AGREEMENT WITH MUSCO LIGHTING, WHICH WILL PROVIDE ATHLETIC FIELD LIGHTING FOR THE FIELD. AND THE AMOUNT OF $215,000, $40,000 TO GEORGIA POWER TO PROVIDE SERVICE TO THE FOR THE LIGHTS. AND THEN A CONTINGENCY OF, $25,000 FOR I THINK WE'LL PROBABLY USE, NEED TO EMPLOY AN ENGINEER. I MEAN, NOT AN ENGINEER, AN ELECTRICIAN TO HELP HOOK UP EVERYTHING AND FOR A TOTAL BUDGET OF $280,000, THIS IS A, SORT OF THE, CRITICAL PATH, REALLY DOES FOLLOW THE LIGHTING. IT HAS TO BE, THERE'S AN 8 TO 12 WEEK, LEAD TIME IN PURCHASING IT. IT IT SHOULD BE INSTALLED BEFORE THE WORK IS DONE ON THE FIELD. OTHERWISE, YOU'RE GOING TO BE TEARING UP, GRADING AND, TURF THAT YOU'VE INSTALLED, AND SO WE'RE RECOMMENDING APPROVAL OF THAT THE AND HOPE TO GET IT, GET IT GOING AND HAVE IT DONE BY THE END OF THE SPRING. THIS IS SIMILAR TO, IT'S SIMILAR TO THE LIGHTING THAT, WE'VE, ARE GOING TO BE USING AT LEGACY PARK. IT'S A, HIGH QUALITY LIGHTING AS A KIND OF A COMPACT LIGHTING DESIGN FOCUSES ON THE FIELD VERY LITTLE SPILLOVER, BEYOND THE BOUNDARIES OF THE FIELD. AGAIN, YOU'LL SEE THE LIGHTING, BUT IT WON'T BE ILLUMINATING YOU, IF YOU'RE NOT ACTUALLY ON THE FIELD. YES, MA'AM. QUESTION, PLEASE. ARE THEY SMART? CAN THEY BE TURNED ON AND OFF FROM REMOTELY? THEY? YES, THEY CAN BE PROGRAMED. THE OWNERS WILL HAVE THE ABILITY TO PROGRAM THEM FROM A LAPTOP, DESKTOP AND AN APP THAT LET'S SAY YOU'RE MANAGING THE FIELD. YOU'LL BE ABLE TO ACTUALLY CONTROL THE LIGHTING, WITH THE APP, BUT I MEAN, AGAIN, WE'LL NEED TO SET A A POLICY, I THINK ABOUT HOW LATE, ACTIVITIES WILL BE, ALLOWED ON THE, ON THE FIELD, BUT AGAIN, ONCE THAT'S DONE, IT CAN BE PROGRAMED REMOTELY, CONTROLLED REMOTELY AND IT'S A GOOD PRODUCT. I WAS JUST GOING TO COMMENT. I THINK WE SHOULD DO SOMETHING SPECIAL TO INAUGURATE THE FIELD WHEN IT'S DONE. MAYBE A RIBBON CUTTING OR A LITTLE FIELD DAY. SOMETHING TO ACTIVATE AND GET FOLKS TO COME TRY IT OUT WOULD BE REALLY EXCITING. LIGHT SHOW. [CHUCKLING] RIGHT, EXACTLY. ALL RIGHT. YES, SIR. COUPLE QUESTIONS. I REMEMBER IN YOUR PRESENTATION YOU TALKED BECAUSE WE HAVE THE DECATUR HOUSING AUTHORITY RIGHT THERE. RIGHT, AND WE'VE ALREADY HAD SOME CONVERSATIONS WITH THEM ABOUT THIS, AND I THOUGHT I REMEMBER LIKE 10:00 OR SOMETHING. I WAS THINKING NINE. THAT WOULD BE THE KIND OF MY THINKING, BUT I'VE ASKED, TO ADDRESS OR AT LEAST MEET WITH THE [INAUDIBLE] TERRACE HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION, IN THE JUST THE NEXT, WELL NEXT YEAR, EARLY NEXT YEAR TO DESCRIBE WHAT WE'RE DOING AND GET ANY FEEDBACK THEY HAVE. OKAY, AND AS I RECALL, THESE ARE DARK SKYLIGHTS? THESE ARE QUALIFIED DARK SKY. THEY WOULD BUT TO BE ACTUALLY REGISTERED OR YOU'D NEED A THIRD PARTY CERTIFICATION CERTIFIED I GUESS IF THEY'RE CERTIFIED. SO JUST A QUESTION TO BE WHETHER WE WOULD WANT TO PAY THE EXTRA TO HAVE THEM AND THAT'S LOOK AT INSTALLATION AND BEG YOUR PARDON? THAT'S LIKE LOOKING AT HOW THEY'RE INSTALLED AND JUST THAT THEY'RE CONFORMED TO WHAT THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO BE DOING. RIGHT. I THINK THEY'RE DESIGNED THAT WAY, AND AGAIN, THEY'RE JUST ASSURED THE SO LIKE, LEED CERTIFICATION, SOMETHING LIKE THAT AS A THIRD PARTY, ALL THE GREEN [01:50:09] BUILDING CODES REQUIRE THIRD PARTY CERTIFICATION SIMILAR TO THAT. YEAH, I'M NOT ADVOCATING WE SPEND MONEY ON THAT. YES, SIR. ALL RIGHT. OTHER QUESTIONS. DO I HEAR A MOTION TO APPROVE A PROJECT BUDGET IN THE AMOUNT OF $280,000? APPROVAL OF AN AGREEMENT WITH MUSCO SPORTS LIGHTING IN THE AMOUNT OF $215,000, AND APPROVAL OF AN AGREEMENT WITH GEORGIA POWER IN THE AMOUNT OF $40,000 FOR ATHLETIC FIELD LIGHTING AT WEBSTER FIELD. SO MOVED. SECOND. SECOND MOTION'S BEEN MADE AND SECONDED. OTHER QUESTIONS. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. AYE. OPPOSED? THE CHAIR VOTES AYE AND THE LIGHTING PROJECT IS APPROVED. SO THE DOWNTOWN STREET TREE MAINTENANCE PROGRAM. [VII.D. Downtown Street Tree Maintenance Program.] WE DO THIS ANNUALLY. WE HAVE A PROGRAM TO MAINTAIN THE STREET TREES THAT HAVE BEEN INSTALLED, EITHER BY THE CITY OR PRIVATE, PROPERTY OWNERS AS PART OF OUR STREETSCAPE PROGRAM IS ABOUT A 420 OF THEM. WE TRY TO GET THREE QUOTES THIS YEAR. WE GOT TWO, ONE OF WHICH WAS FROM ARBORGUARD, WHICH IS THE LOW QUOTE, AND THEY'VE PROVIDED THEY'VE ACTUALLY PROVIDED THE SERVICE, FOR ABOUT 25 YEARS, SINCE, REALLY SINCE OUR FIRST, STREETSCAPE PROGRAM IN THE MID 90S THE SO WE'RE RECOMMENDING APPROVAL OF AN AGREEMENT WITH ARBORGUARD FOR THE ANNUAL TREE MAINTENANCE THIS YEAR AND THE AMOUNT OF $33,120. THE PEACH TREE ARBORISTS, APPARENTLY THEY GOT A QUOTE FROM THEM LATE ON FRIDAY. IT WAS, WELL BEYOND THE SCOPE WE HAD ASKED TO THEM TO BID ON. SO, THAT IS WHY THEY ARE SO HIGH. THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE, SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THE SERVICES THAT WE'RE GOING TO PROVIDE. YES, MA'AM. OTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY, DO I HEAR A MOTION TO APPROVE AN AGREEMENT WITH ARBORGUARD TREE SPECIALIST IN THE AMOUNT OF $33,120 FOR MAINTENANCE OF STREET TREES IN DOWNTOWN DECATUR? SO MOVE. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. OTHER DISCUSSION. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED THE CHAIR VOTES. AYE, AND THE MOTION PASSES. THANK YOU, THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. THE PAVEMENT AND SIDEWALK ASSESSMENT CONTRACT. SAFE SIDEWALK AGREEMENT. [VII.E. Georgia Safe Sidewalks Agreement.] OH, SORRY, SKIPPED THE SAFE SIDEWALKS AGREEMENT. [INAUDIBLE]. GOOD EVENING. MY NAME IS CARA SHARER. I SERVE AS ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER OF PUBLIC WORKS. I'M HERE TONIGHT TO RECOMMEND APPROVAL OF AN AGREEMENT WITH GEORGIA SAFE SIDEWALKS. IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $53,000 FOR REPAIRS TO SIDEWALKS. FUNDS FOR THE CONTRACT ARE AVAILABLE IN THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS FUND. THE CITY HAS PREVIOUSLY EMPLOYED GEORGIA SAFE SIDEWALKS TO REPAIR VERTICAL SEPARATIONS BETWEEN SIDEWALK PANELS. GEORGIA SAFE SIDEWALKS UTILIZES A PATENTED PROCESS AND EQUIPMENT TO REPAIR SIDEWALKS, AND IS THE SOLE SOURCE PROVIDER IN GEORGIA FOR THIS TECHNOLOGY. THE PROCESS CUTS THE SIDEWALK TO A SMOOTH SLOPE, UTILIZES A DUST COLLECTION SYSTEM, AND PROVIDES GPS POINTS THAT CAN BE INTEGRATED INTO OUR MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR DATABASE FOR GIS ANALYSIS AND DOCUMENTATION. STAFF HAS IDENTIFIED THE NEXT PHASE OF SIDEWALK REPAIRS AS SHOWN. THEY ARE GENEVA STREET FROM CHURCH STREET TO CHAMPLAIN STREET. LUCERNE STREET FROM CHAMPLAIN STREET TO LUCERNE STREET. PONCE DE LEON PLACE FROM CLAREMONT AVENUE TO SWANTON WAY. NORTH MCDONOUGH, FROM DECATUR SQUARE TO WEST HOWARD AVENUE. LEYDEN STREET FROM THIRD AVENUE TO MEADE ROAD AND FELD AVENUE FROM WEST COLLEGE AVENUE TO FAIR PARK LANE. IF APPROVED OR TO SAY SIDEWALKS WILL NEED APPROXIMATELY EIGHT DAYS TO COMPLETE THE WORK, WEATHER PERMITTING. IT'S TENTATIVELY SCHEDULED TO BEGIN IN MARCH OF 2024, AND AGAIN, FUNDS FOR THIS WORK ARE WITHIN THE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUNDS IT IS NOTED REGARDING THE COMMENT TO WHEN THE WORK IS COMPLETED, REVIEW THAT SLOPES ARE MAINTAINED AS OPPOSED TO ROUNDING IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THAT THE TECHNOLOGY HAS GOTTEN BETTER OVER TIME, WHICH HAS HELPED, BUT THAT DID HAVE THERE ARE OCCURRENCES WHERE THAT HAPPENS, AND IT'S NOTED, AND WE CAN FOLLOW UP ACCORDINGLY. [01:55:04] ANY QUESTIONS? YOU ANSWERED MY QUESTIONS. [CHUCKLING] I'VE GOT ONE. SO I KNOW THERE WAS A COMMENT TONIGHT ABOUT INCREASING THAT BUDGET NOT TO LIKE TO SEE IF WE COULD GET A LITTLE MORE BANG FOR THE BUCK AND ADD SOME MORE BECAUSE THERE'S ALWAYS A SIDEWALK THAT NEEDS TO BE MAINTAINED AND WHAT'S THE SORT OF THE APPETITE FOR INCREASING THE BUDGET FOR THIS? I WOULD DEFER TO HOW THE PROCESS, HOW IT'S DETERMINED THAT THIS IS WHAT'S NEEDED, BECAUSE I DO THINK THERE COULD BE SOME FLEXIBILITY ON THE BUDGET SIDE. YES. I THINK THAT LENDS ITSELF TO OUR NEXT BUDGET ITEM RELATIVE TO THE PAVEMENT AND SIDEWALK ASSESSMENT AND HOW WE CAN PROGRAM THAT WORK IN THE FUTURE AGAIN, BASED ON COMMENTS RECEIVED FROM A DATA DRIVEN PERSPECTIVE BASED ON THE DATA WE COLLECT THIS UPCOMING SPRING. SO WE COULD ANTICIPATE THAT ONCE WE HAVE THE PAVING AND SIDEWALK ASSESSMENT DATA, THEN THAT WOULD POSSIBLY RESULT IN LARGER PROJECTS BEING FUNDED AT ONE TIME. YES. ONE THING TO BE AWARE IS GEORGIA SAFE SIDEWALKS IS SPECIFIC TO A SEPARATIONS THAT ARE TWO INCHES OR LESS. SO IN ORDER TO MAKE AN ENTIRE CORRIDOR ADA ACCESSIBLE, IT'S A COMBINATION OF WORKING WITH GEORGIA SAFE SIDEWALKS, OUR STREETS CREW, AND A CONTRACTOR FOR DIFFERENT OCCASIONS RELATIVE TO WHEN TREE ROOTS UPEND SLABS OR ADA RAMPS NEED IMPROVING. SO IT IS LOTS OF DIFFERENT MOVING PARTS TO MAKE OUR SIDEWALKS HOW WE WANT THEM TO BE. YES. SO ONE THING I'VE NOTICED WITH THE SIDEWALKS IS OFTENTIMES LIKE GRASS OR BUSHES AND STUFF WILL START INFRINGING UPON THE SIDEWALK, TOO AND SO WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE THAT WHEN GEORGIA SAFE SIDEWALK IS TARGETING THIS, THAT WE ALSO DO OUTREACH TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND SAY, BASICALLY, YOU GET YOUR BUSH OFF OUR SIDEWALK I JUST ENCOURAGE YOU TO KIND OF MAYBE LOOK AT THAT AND DO IT IN THOSE BITESIZE PIECES. I WAS ACTUALLY WALKING SOME OF THESE STREETS OVER THE WEEKEND AND NOTICED THAT. YES, IT'S PART OF GEORGIA SAFE SIDEWALKS REVIEW TO CREATE THE PROPOSAL, THEY WALK THE SIDEWALK AND COMMUNICATE WHAT THEY CAN ADDRESS AND THE OUTSTANDING ITEMS OF WHICH THEY CANNOT. THERE ARE A COUPLE OF VEGETATION OVERGROWTH IDENTIFIED. WE CAN USE THAT INFORMATION TO ADDRESS ACCORDINGLY, WHETHER IT'S A CODE ENFORCEMENT CONCERN OR WHETHER IT'S UM SOMETHING THAT IS ON CITY PROPERTY AND THE CITY WOULD NEED TO CLEAR THE SIDEWALK. SO IF IT ERODES ONTO THE SIDEWALK, THAT'S OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO DO IT. IT DEPENDS ON THE PROPERTY. THERE IS AN ORDINANCE WHERE EACH PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR MAINTAINING THE AREA IN FRONT OF THEIR HOMES, ALL THE WAY TO THE CURB. THAT COMMENT, PLEASE. I THINK THERE'S ANOTHER DIMENSION TO THIS THAT IS INTERESTING TO ME ABOUT FREQUENCY OF USAGE BY THE PEDESTRIANS. SO TO MARRY UP YOU CAN HAVE A NOT GREAT AREA, BUT IF IT'S NOT USED AS FREQUENTLY, I WOULD THINK IT WOULD BE A PRIORITIZATION QUESTION THAT MIGHT MOVE TO A SECOND TIER. SO HOW DO WE CAPTURE I MEAN, I WOULD THINK SEECLICKFIX OR SOMETHING LIKE IT. THAT IS A GREAT INPUT MODEL. YES. WHERE USERS ARE SAYING THIS IS A TOUGH LIKE THAT SHOULD A REPORTING TO US THAT WHERE THE PAIN POINTS ARE. SURE. I THINK WHAT THIS LOOKS LIKE IS ACTUALLY THROUGH OUR SAFE STREETS FOR ALL ACTION PLAN, WHICH THE RFP IS POSTED TODAY AND AVAILABLE ONLINE FOR REVIEW WHERE WE WILL COLLECT THIS PAVEMENT AND SIDEWALK ASSESSMENT DATA AND PROVIDE IT TO THE CONSULTANT THROUGH OUR SAFE STREETS FOR ALL ACTION PLAN. WHO CAN THEN DO ALL OUR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT OUTREACH. THAT PLAN WILL INVOLVE OUR SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL, SAFE ROUTES TO PARKS, AND HOW WE PRIORITIZE AND IMPROVE EVERYTHING COMPREHENSIVELY TOGETHER. GREAT ANSWER. THANK YOU. I WOULD CONCUR WITH, COMMISSIONER DUSENBURY. I HAD THAT WRITTEN DOWN TO TALK ABOUT IN THE NEXT ITEM, BUT I DO FEEL LIKE THAT THERE ARE THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY, AS WE'RE DOING THE OVERALL ASSESSMENT TO SEE WHERE THERE ARE BUSHES THAT, THAT PROTRUDE INTO THE SIDEWALK, FORCING PEOPLE [02:00:02] ALMOST OUT INTO THE STREET AND ESPECIALLY ON CORNERS, BEING ABLE TO SEE AROUND WHETHER YOU'RE WALKING, DRIVING, BIKING, IF YOU HAVE TO PULL OUT INTO THE INTERSECTION TO GET GOOD VIEWS IT'S A HAZARD ON A LOT OF DIFFERENT LEVELS, AND HOW DO WE MAYBE AS WE'RE DOING THIS ASSESSMENT, TRY TO NOTE THOSE KINDS OF THINGS AS, AS WELL BECAUSE I THINK THERE ARE I KNOW COMMISSIONER DUSENBURY AND I'VE WALKED DOWNTOWN AND IDENTIFIED SOME AND I WALK IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD AND, AND THERE ARE SOME SIGNIFICANT ISSUES JUST MAKING THE SIDEWALKS EVEN IF THE SIDEWALK IS IN GOOD SHAPE, IF IT'S NOT PASSABLE BECAUSE OF VEGETATION OR SOME OF IT'S GRASS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, BUT SOME OF IT IS PROPERTY OWNERS' BUSHES GET BIGGER AND ARE NOT TRIMMED BACK PROPERLY. SO THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. SO ARE THERE FURTHER QUESTIONS FOR THE GEORGIA SAFE SIDEWALKS AGREEMENT? I JUST OBSERVED. WE ASKED A LOT OF QUESTIONS, BUT WE'RE REALLY HAPPY WE'RE DOING THIS, RIGHT? YES, SURE. YEAH SO DO I HEAR A MOTION TO APPROVE AN AGREEMENT WITH GEORGIA SAFE SIDEWALKS IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $53,000 FOR SIDEWALK MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR. SO MOVED. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND? FURTHER DISCUSSION. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED? CHAIR VOTES I AND THE MOTION PASSES. SO, MISS SCHARER. [VII.F. Pavement and Sidewalk Assessment Contract.] ALL RIGHT. I'M HERE TO ESTABLISH A PROJECT BUDGET OF $60,000, AND RECOMMEND AWARD OF A CONTRACT TO IMS INFRASTRUCTURE MANAGEMENT SERVICES IN THE AMOUNT OF $50,475 FOR CONDUCTING A COMPREHENSIVE ASSESSMENT OF APPROXIMATELY 60 CENTERLINE MILES OF RESIDENTIAL STREETS IN A SINGLE PASS AND 82 MILES OF SIDEWALKS. DELIVERABLES INCLUDE A PAVEMENT CONDITION INDEX, SCORING FOR ALL ROAD PAVEMENT SEGMENTS, AND SIDEWALK CONDITION INDEX FOR ALL COLLECTED SIDEWALK SEGMENTS AND RAMPS. SO WHAT THIS WORK IS GOING TO LOOK LIKE REGARDING THE PAVEMENT SURVEY IS A TWO PERSON FIELD CREW WOULD COLLECT BOTH OUTWARD FACING AND DOWNWARD FACING PAVEMENT IMAGERY USING A VEHICLE OR A VAN EQUIPPED WITH 3D PAVEMENT IMAGING TECHNOLOGY IT'S CALLED LCMS2 IT RELIES ON TWO DOWNWARD FACING HIGH RESOLUTION 3D CAMERAS, COMBINED WITH TWO 3D CAMERAS THAT CAPTURE CONTINUOUS DOWNWARD IMAGERY FOR MORE THAN A STANDARD WEIGHT, LANE WIDTH. SO IT'S OUTWARDS AS WELL AS DOWNWARDS ON THE VAN. THE THE ISSUES IDENTIFIED IN THE PAVEMENT SURFACE INCLUDE DISTRESSES SUCH AS LOAD CRACKING, BLOCK CRACKING, RUTTING, RAVELING, REFLECTIVE CRACKING, LOSS OF SECTION LEADING, EDGE DISTRESSED AND PATCHED AREAS, AS WELL AS RIGHT OF WAY IMAGERY WILL BE COLLECTED ON A SEGMENT BY SEGMENT BASIS WITH EACH DISTRESS BEING CAPTURED BY TYPE, EXTENT AND SEVERITY AND THEN ORGANIZED INTO A SPREADSHEET OR JUST ORGANIZED FOR DATA DELIVERED TO THE CITY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR TESTING MATERIALS OR ASTM STANDARDS AND EACH STREET PAVEMENT CONDITION WOULD BE RANKED. ADDITIONALLY, THE SIDEWALK SURVEY WOULD LOOK LIKE WHAT THIS FIRM CALLS THEIR SIDEWALK SURFACE TESTER. IT LOOKS VERY COMPARABLE TO A GOLF CART WHICH WOULD BE DRIVING EACH LINEAR MILE OF SIDEWALK AND PROVIDING DETAILED DATA TO DETERMINE IF THE SIDEWALKS ARE COMPLIANT WITH LOCAL STANDARDS, AND THEN PROVIDING A 0 TO 100 SCORING OR A PAVEMENT CONDITION INDEX USED FOR ASSESSING THE SIDEWALK SEGMENTS. PROPOSALS WERE REQUESTED FROM SEVERAL CONTRACTORS. TWO WERE RECEIVED, ONE FROM ESP ASSOCIATES INCORPORATED IN ANOTHER FROM IMS INFRASTRUCTURE MANAGEMENT SERVICES. COSTS WERE COMPARABLE. THE METHODOLOGY REGARDING THE PAVEMENT ASSESSMENT WERE COMPARABLE, THE METHODOLOGY AND TECHNOLOGY. [02:05:05] HOWEVER, IMS CAPABILITIES RELATIVE TO THE SIDEWALK INVENTORY WERE SUPERIOR, WHICH LED TO THIS RECOMMENDATION. UPON EXECUTION OF THE CONTRACTOR, THE CITY AND THE CONTRACTOR WOULD WORK TOGETHER REGARDING THE ROAD AND SIDEWALK CENTERLINE INFORMATION. IT'S ALL BASED ON GIS, SO GETTING THAT RIGHT IS IMPORTANT, WHICH WE HAVE. THE DATA WAS SHARED TO GENERATE THESE PROPOSALS THE ASSESSMENT WOULD TAKE PLACE NO EARLIER THAN MID FEBRUARY TO MINIMIZE DATA DISCREPANCIES DUE TO THE CURRENT LEAF COVERAGE. SO YOU KNOW, THESE CAMERAS CANNOT NECESSARILY TELL THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A LEAF AND A BIG DIVOT. SO WE DON'T WANT TO MISCODE THE DATA BECAUSE OF THE NUMBER OF THE VOLUME OF LEAVES ON THE ROAD WHEN LEAVES ARE ALONG THE CURB LINE, THEY CAN'T SEE ALL THE WAY TO THE EDGE OF THE PAVEMENT. SO THE TIME OF YEAR THAT THE ASSESSMENT IS DONE IS IMPORTANT. ADDITIONALLY, PRIOR TO THE ASSESSMENT THE SCHEDULE INFORMATION WILL BE COMMUNICATED TO THE COMMUNITY TO DISCOURAGE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE ON STREET PARKING TO ALSO INCREASE ACCURACY FUNDS ARE AVAILABLE IN THE FY 2324 CAPITAL PROJECT BUDGET TO COVER THE COST OF THE PROJECT. THE PROJECT BUDGET OF $60,000 IS RECOMMENDED TO COVER CONTINGENCIES AND FIELD CONDITIONS DISCOVERED DURING THE PROCESS. I THINK ONE NOTE RELATIVE TO THE THE REQUEST TO SHARE THE DATA ABSOLUTELY. I AGREE SO MORE THAN JUST THE SIDEWALK AND PAVEMENT ASSESSMENT DATA. THIS CITY IS WORKING TO MEET TOGETHER WITH AGNES SCOTT COLLEGE, OUR ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY, ENERGY AND SUSTAINABILITY DIRECTOR, AND OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH ARCGIS OR ESRI TO DISCUSS THE OPPORTUNITY OF A DATA HUB AND HOW TO SHARE BOTH THIS INFORMATION AS WELL AS OTHERS TO REPORT OUT TO POTENTIALLY LOOK LIKE, UM LIKE A DASHBOARD ON THE WEBSITE. SOMETHING WE ARE EXPLORING BECAUSE WE HAVE THE DATA. IT'S JUST A COUPLE PIECES ON THE BACK END TO CONNECT AND THEN SHARE. RIGHT. IT WAS A REALLY THOROUGH EXPLANATION. THANK YOU. YEAH, I HAVE ONE. I HAVE ONE MORE NUANCE TO SHARE SO IN ORDER FOR OUR LMIG GRANT, WE NEED TO REPORT TO GDOT THE ROADS SELECTED FOR REPAVING BY FEBRUARY 1ST. SO WE WILL ABSOLUTELY DO THAT, AND THEN ALSO, WHEN WE RECEIVE THIS DATA, I ANTICIPATE THAT IT'S POSSIBLE THAT THE RECOMMENDED ROADS FEBRUARY 1ST COULD CHANGE BASED ON THE DATA RECEIVED FROM THIS PROCESS, AND IT'S JUST A CHICKEN EGG SCENARIO. QUESTIONS? QUICK QUESTION THIS YEAR HOW IMPORTANT IS THE ON STREET PARKING TO THE ACCURACY? LIKE, I KNOW IT SAYS WE'LL ASK FOLKS TO MOVE, BUT THEY'RE NOT IN THE HABIT OF DOING THAT. LIKE [INAUDIBLE] REGULAR STREET SWEEPING FOR A WHILE EITHER, AND JUST HAD FOLKS ON A, LIKE A ALMOST A TRASH CYCLE. YES. SO I'M WONDERING HOW WE'LL GET THAT DONE. I DON'T THINK IT RUINS IT. IT JUST BECOMES, I THINK IT WILL READ THE DATA AND WHEN IT HITS A CAR, I THINK AT SOME POINT IT WILL KNOW THAT AND START TO JUST INTERPRET BASED ON THE DATA ALREADY COLLECTED. SO THIS DATA WILL BE COLLECTED AND THEN IT WILL BE REVIEWED BY PAVEMENT ENGINEERS TO THEN KIND OF CATEGORIZE ALL THE DIFFERENT ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH IT, AND THEN ASSOCIATE A RANKING WITH IT. SO I DON'T THINK IT MAKES OR BREAKS IT IT'S JUST A NUANCE TO SHARE THAT. YEAH. I MEAN, IF IT MAKES IT BETTER, I MEAN, THAT IS ONE WAY WE CAN HELP, AND WE'VE BEEN COLLABORATING WITH YOU ON SOME OTHER THINGS THAT I'M MORE THAN HAPPY TO HELP THE NEIGHBORHOOD FIND OUT ABOUT IT SO JUST ROPE US IN AS NEEDED. [02:10:01] SURE. I THINK WHEN THEY DRIVE AROUND AND DO THIS WORK, IT'LL TAKE ABOUT TWO DAYS. SO IT'S NOT LIKE A LONG WINDOW ONE TWO DAYS FOR THE WHOLE THING. YES, IT'S WEATHER DEPENDENT THOUGH. YOU DON'T WANT TO DO IT RIGHT AFTER A RAIN OR THE 2019 PAVEMENT ASSESSMENT WAS DONE IN A DIFFERENT METHOD. IT DIDN'T INVOLVE CAMERAS. IT WAS MORE SO DRIVING AND IDENTIFYING A SPECIFIC SECTION OF ROAD TO THEN USE GDOT'S PACES METHOD TO LOOK AT A EXAMPLE SEGMENT OF THE ROAD TO THEN CHARACTERIZE THE CORRIDOR. SO THIS IS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. IT'S A LITTLE MORE ADVANCED AND DATA DRIVEN, AND ALSO VERY COMMON NOW VERSUS A FEW YEARS AGO. ALL RIGHT. THANKS. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. SOUNDS LIKE WE'RE GOING TO GET A LOT OF DATA, A LOT OF BANG FOR THE BUCK WITH THIS, FOR SURE. ALL RIGHT DO I HEAR A MOTION TO ESTABLISH A PROJECT BUDGET OF $60,000 AND AWARD OF CONTRACT TO IMS INFRASTRUCTURE MANAGEMENT SERVICES IN THE AMOUNT OF $50,475 FOR A PAVEMENT AND SIDEWALK ASSESSMENT. SO MOVED. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED THE CHAIR VOTES I AND THE MOTION PASSES. SO THANK YOU. I THINK YOU MAY HAVE ONE MORE FOR US. ALL RIGHT. I'M HERE TO RECOMMEND AWARD OF AGREEMENTS FOR ON CALL PROFESSIONAL DESIGN AND ENGINEERING SERVICES TO SIX FIRMS. [VII.G. On-Call Professional Design and Engineering Services Agreements.] THEY ARE A&S ENGINEERING, AECOM TECHNICAL SERVICES, ATKINSREALIS USA, HDR ENGINEERING, JACOBS ENGINEERING GROUP AND TOOLE DESIGN GROUP. ON CALL SERVICES PROVIDE AS NEEDED SUPPORT FOR SPECIFIC PROJECTS. NO FEES ARE PAID EXCEPT FOR THE SERVICES DELIVERED. THE RECOMMENDED FIRMS INCLUDE TEAMS WITH SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS FOR A VARIETY OF DESIGN AND ENGINEERING SERVICES. THE AGREEMENT WILL BE FOR ONE YEAR AND RENEWED ANNUALLY. NON-RENEWAL CAN OCCUR IF THE CITY OR THE FIRM PROVIDES 60 DAYS NOTICE AHEAD OF THE RENEWAL. THESE FIRMS HAVE DEMONSTRATED THROUGH A COMPETITIVE SELECTION PROCESS THAT THEY POSSESS THE STAFF AND EXPERIENCE TO PROVIDE THE FOLLOWING SERVICES. GRANT APPLICATION SUPPORT CITY WIDE MASTER PLANNING. PROJECT FEASIBILITY ASSESSMENTS. PEDESTRIAN AND CYCLE FACILITY DESIGNS. TRANSPORTATION FACILITY DESIGNS. TRAFFIC CALMING AND TACTICAL URBANISM FACILITY DESIGNS. DRAINAGE FACILITY DESIGN INCLUSIVE OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE AND COMPLIANCE REPORTING SERVICES SUCH AS OUR MS4 PERMIT. CITY STAFF HAS USED TWO FIRMS FOR ON CALL DESIGN AND ENGINEERING SERVICES RELATED TO SIDEWALKS, TRAFFIC CALMING, TRAFFIC STUDIES, PEDESTRIAN CROSSINGS, STORM WATER INFRASTRUCTURE, AND SIMILAR IMPROVEMENTS SUCH SINCE 2018. INCREASING THE NUMBER OF FIRMS WILL ENHANCE THE CITY'S DESIGN CAPACITY AND PROVIDE ACCESS TO FIRMS WITH MORE DIVERSE RANGE OF BACKGROUNDS AND SPECIALTIES. FEES FOR NECESSARY DESIGN AND ENGINEERING SERVICES WILL BE INCLUDED IN THE BUDGET FOR EACH PROJECT. THE RFP FOR THESE SERVICES WAS PUBLICLY ADVERTISED AND PROPOSALS WERE RECEIVED FROM 15 FIRMS. AFTER REVIEWING EACH PROPOSAL, A STAFF SELECTION COMMITTEE INTERVIEWED A SHORTLIST OF EIGHT FIRMS AND WE SELECTED SIX AS THE BEST FIRM SUITED FOR THIS WORK. ARE THERE QUESTIONS? IT'S NICE TO KNOW THAT THESE HAVE BEEN VETTED IN ORDER TO MAKE THE WORK MAYBE HAPPEN A LITTLE QUICKER AND A LITTLE MORE SMOOTHLY. ALL RIGHT. DO I HEAR A MOTION TO AWARD AGREEMENTS FOR ON CALL PROFESSIONAL DESIGN AND ENGINEERING SERVICES TO A&S ENGINEERING, AECOM TECHNICAL SERVICES, ATKINSREALIS USA, HDR ENGINEERING, JACOBS ENGINEERING GROUP AND TOOLE DESIGN GROUP. SO MOVED. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED? THE CHAIR VOTES I AND THE MOTION PASSES. SO WE'LL NOW OPEN THE MEETING UP. THANK YOU, MS. SCHARER FOR REQUESTS AND PETITIONS. SO IF THERE'S ANYONE WHO WOULD LIKE TO COME FORWARD IN OUR MEETING WITH A COMMENT, A REQUEST OR A PETITION, THIS IS THE LAST TIME WE'LL BE TAKING PUBLIC COMMENT FOR FOR THIS MEETING AND FOR 2023. [02:15:04] SO THERE'S ANYONE HERE PLEASE COME FORWARD AND MAKE YOUR COMMENT. ALL RIGHT. SEEING NONE, WE'LL OPEN IT UP TO THOSE WHO HAVE JOINED US ON ZOOM. IF THERE IS ANYONE WHO WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A COMMENT, IF YOU WILL RAISE YOUR VIRTUAL HAND OR WE CAN UNMUTE YOU AND LISTEN TO YOUR COMMENT AND ASK YOU TO STATE YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS. ALL RIGHT. I DON'T SEE ANYONE. SO WE'LL CLOSE THE REQUEST AND PETITIONS PORTION OF THE MEETING, AND I'LL READ THE ZONING BOARD [IX. Reports and Other Business.] OF APPEALS AGENDA. THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS, IT WAS AN ADD ON. YEAH. SO IT, I THINK WE CAN I THINK IT WAS ON AN UPDATED VERSION, BUT I DON'T KNOW THAT WE ALL DOWNLOADED IT, SO I'LL READ IT FOR EVERYONE'S BENEFIT. SO THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS WILL MEET ON MONDAY, JANUARY THE 8TH IN THIS ROOM AT 7:30 P.M.. UNDER OLD BUSINESS, DEREK BIGHAM, PROPERTY OWNER, HAS APPLIED FOR A VARIANCE FROM SETBACK REQUIREMENTS FOR THE PROPERTY LOCATED AT 102 FIFTH AVENUE AND UNDER NEW BUSINESS. CATHERINE BROOKMEYER, PROPERTY OWNER, HAS APPLIED FOR A VARIANCE FROM STREAM BUFFER REQUIREMENTS FOR THE PROPERTY LOCATED AT 202 GARDEN LANE AND UNDER REPORTS AND OTHER BUSINESS, THERE WILL BE THE INTRODUCTION OF A NEW PLANNER. NAHUM [INAUDIBLE]? SO WE ALSO LOOK FORWARD TO MEETING THE NEW PLANNER REMEMBER THAT THESE ITEMS DON'T COME BEFORE THE CITY COMMISSION. IF THERE'S ANYONE WHO WOULD LIKE TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS PUBLIC PROCESS, WE INVITE YOU TO ATTEND THE MEETING OR TO SEND YOUR COMMENTS ON THESE ITEMS TO AILEEN DE LA TORRE, WHO STAFFS THE MEETING. SO AGAIN, THESE ARE DECIDED BY THE PLANNING BY THE ZONING BOARD OF APPEALS AND CAN ONLY BE APPEALED IN SUPERIOR COURT. SO THAT MEETING AGAIN IS ON JANUARY THE 8TH. THE PLANNING COMMISSION WILL MEET ON JANUARY THE 9TH AND UNDER NEW BUSINESS [INAUDIBLE] CIVIL DESIGN APPLICANT, SAINT THOMAS MORE, CATHOLIC CHURCH PROPERTY OWNER, HAS REQUESTED AN AMENDMENT TO A PREVIOUSLY APPROVED COMPREHENSIVE SITE DEVELOPMENT PLAN TO CONSTRUCT NEW CLASSROOM AND WORSHIP BUILDINGS FOR THE EXISTING CHURCH AND PRIVATE SCHOOL LOCATED AT 618 WEST PONCE DE LEON AVENUE THOSE DO COME BEFORE THE CITY COMMISSION AT OUR CITY COMMISSION MEETING. THAT WILL BE THE ONE FOLLOWING THE PLANNING COMMISSION, AND WILL COME WITH A RECOMMENDATION FROM THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND OTHER BUSINESS. THEY WILL ELECT A CHAIR AND THE VICE CHAIR, AND I WILL CERTAINLY TAKE THE OPPORTUNITY TO THANK THE CHAIR AND THE VICE CHAIR WHO ARE WHO ARE LEAVING THE PLANNING COMMISSION THE VICE CHAIR WAS MIKE TRAVIS, AND HE HAS MOVED OUT OF THE CITY, AND I BELIEVE HAS NOT BEEN ON THE PLANNING COMMISSION FOR MAYBE THE LAST FEW MEETINGS, AND THEN HAROLD BUCKLEY, WHO CHAIRED THE PLANNING COMMISSION FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS AND SERVED FOR SEVEN, NINE YEARS ON THE PLANNING COMMISSION. SO WE DEFINITELY OWE HIM OUR GRATITUDE AND APPRECIATION FOR SERVICE TO THE CITY AND TO THE CITY COMMISSION ON THE PLANNING COMMISSION. SO, AND WITH THAT, I'LL SEE IF MISS ARNOLD HAS ANY ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. THANK YOU, MAYOR. I'M LOOKING TO SEE IF ANYONE STAFF HAS ANYTHING. ALL RIGHT, SINCE WE ARE AT THE LAST MEETING OF THE YEAR. I DON'T THINK I'VE DONE THIS BEFORE, BUT I JUST HAVE A LIST THAT I KEEP OF THINGS THAT WE'VE ACHIEVED OVER THE YEAR, AND I WOULD LIKE JUST TO, IF YOU WILL, HUMOR ME. I'M JUST GOING TO TAKE A MINUTE OR TWO AND RECOGNIZE SOME OF THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS, AND ONE I WANT TO RECOGNIZE BY DOING THIS, REALLY RECOGNIZE THE WORK OF THE AMAZING STAFF THAT WE HAVE, MANY OF WHOM ARE IN THIS ROOM, BUT SO MANY MORE THAT ARE NOT IN THIS ROOM, BUT THEY'RE THE ONES THAT ARE GETTING THESE THINGS DONE [02:20:02] AND ALSO RECOGNIZING NONE OF THAT COULD BE ACHIEVED WITHOUT THE FOUR PLUS ONE, THE FIVE, THE FIVE MEMBERS OF THE CITY COMMISSION THAT CONTINUE TO SUPPORT SUPPORT AND ALSO I THINK, HELP PUSH US TO BE MORE, TO BE BETTER AND TO REALLY FOCUS ON WHY WE'RE ALL HERE TO PROVIDE, HIGH QUALITY SERVICES TO THE PEOPLE THAT LIVE HERE AND ALSO PEOPLE THAT VISIT HERE AND HAVE BUSINESSES HERE BUT JUST CONTINUING TO PUSH TO BE TO BE BETTER AND BETTER. SO I'M JUST GOING TO RUN THROUGH THIS IS REALLY, I GUESS MY LIST, AND I BET EVERYONE IN THIS ROOM WOULD HAVE A DIFFERENT LIST SO I APOLOGIZE IN ADVANCE FOR WHAT IS LEFT OFF BUT CERTAINLY THIS IS A PRETTY IMPRESSIVE LIST. THE CITY WAS NOW A TWO TIME ALL-AMERICA CITY WINNER. WE'VE MERGED OUR TWO DIVISIONS INTO WE HAVE A NEW DECATUR PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT. TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF WORK WENT INTO THAT THE CHILD FRIENDLY CITIES INITIATIVE. WE JUST WERE AWARDED THE CANDIDATE CITY STATUS EARLIER THIS MONTH, THE CITY COMMISSION ADOPTED THE PARKS AND REC MASTER PLAN RECREATOR. WE HAD THE RIBBON CUTTING IN MARCH WITH OUR INCLUSIVE PLAYGROUND AT LEGACY PARK, AND THAT WAS A COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT FUNDED PROJECT. THE TOWN CENTER PLAN 2.0 WAS ADOPTED IN JUNE OF THIS YEAR. WE HAD THE GROUNDBREAKING FOR THE COTTAGE COURT PILOT PROJECT, OAK COTTAGE COURT, WHICH IS VERY, VERY CLOSE TO BEING COMPLETE. WE HAD A COUPLE OF NEW EVENTS UP ON THE SQUARE. THE INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL AS WELL AS THE BEACON HILL CONCERT UP ON THE SQUARE, THE SOLAR PANELS WERE COMPLETED AT PUBLIC WORKS THE FIRST PHASE, FIRST PHASE OF THE SOUTH COLUMBIA MULTI MULTI-USE PATH TO NOW THEY'RE SAYING TWO PHASES. WE WERE DECLARED A TREE CITY OF THE WORLD. THE TRACK AND FIELD, THE CONTRACTOR FOR THE TRACK AND FIELD AT LEGACY PARK WAS SELECTED AT YOUR LAST MEETING. WE HIRED OUR EQUITY AND ENGAGEMENT DIRECTOR A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF PROGRESS AT THE SOUTH HOUSING VILLAGE AGAIN, WITH THE CLOSING ON THE FIRST PHASE RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER. THE HOMESTEAD EXEMPTIONS, NEW HOMESTEAD EXEMPTIONS, EXPANDED HOMESTEAD EXEMPTIONS. WE GOT THOSE THROUGH THE STATE LEGISLATURE AS WELL AS APPROVAL BY A LOCAL REFERENDUM. THE STRATEGIC PLAN DASHBOARD WAS LAUNCHED IN APRIL OF THIS YEAR. THE SCHOOL ZONE CAMERAS WERE APPROVED AND THE WORK IS UNDERWAY TO GET THOSE INSTALLED IN FIVE OF OUR SCHOOL ZONES. HOW CAN WE FORGET THE MISSING MIDDLE POLICY THAT WAS ADOPTED AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS YEAR? LET'S SEE--EARLY ONE MORNING. YEAH. IT SEEMS LIKE JUST LAST YEAR. I WON'T KEEP US THAT WAY THE FIRE DEPARTMENT STARTED THE NURSE NAVIGATION PROGRAM, AND I HAD A NUMBER OF THE GRANTS LISTED HERE, AND YOU HEARD ABOUT THOSE IN THE WORK SESSION, WHICH WAS QUITE PHENOMENAL THE AGE FRIENDLY CITY COMMUNITY ACTION PLAN WAS ADOPTED IN AUGUST OF THIS YEAR. OH, THE SPLOST TWO WAS ALSO APPROVED BY THE VOTERS. SO ANOTHER SIX YEARS OF SPLOST THE POLICE CO-RESPONDER PROGRAM WITH THE DEKALB CSB. THAT IS UNDERWAY. THE POLICE DEPARTMENT RECEIVED STATE CERTIFICATION AGAIN. THAT'S 20 YEARS RUNNING. THE FIRE DEPARTMENT DISTRIBUTED OVER 300 UNITS OF NARCAN, AND THAT'S WITH AN [INAUDIBLE] OPIOID--I CAN NEVER SAY IT--THE SETTLEMENT. LET'S SEE, THE PARKS AND REC WAS AWARDED AGENCY OF THE YEAR IN 2023 THERE'S APPROVAL HAS BEEN GRANTED. OUR FIRST, FIRST EARLY APPROVALS FOR ANOTHER HOTEL IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA, THE NORTHWOOD RAVEN PROJECT OVER ON EAST COLLEGE. EAST COLLEGE THEY'VE STARTED CLEARLY HAVE RECEIVED THEIR LAND DISTURBANCE PERMIT, AND THAT WORK IS UNDERWAY WE ARE. WE'VE STARTED OUR PARTICIPATION WITH GMA CERTIFIED CITY OF DIVERSITY, EQUITY, INCLUSION AND BELONGING. SOCCER IN THE STREETS OPENED AT THE EAST LAKE MARTA STATION. WE HOSTED A DELEGATION FROM JAPAN. THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT DELEGATION, AND THERE ARE A NUMBER OF NEW POSITIONS OR POSITIONS THAT HAVE BEEN FILLED [02:25:02] AND THIS IS WHERE I KNOW I WILL MISS SOME REALLY IMPORTANT POSITIONS, BUT WE HIRED AN URBAN NATURALIST WE'VE HIRED A NEW LIFELONG COMMUNITY MANAGER. THE PLANNER JUST STARTED. WE HAVE A PLANNING AND ZONING MANAGER THAT WILL BE COMING ON BOARD IN JANUARY, AND OPERATIONS ANALYST IN THE CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE COMING ON BOARD IN JANUARY. WE HAVE A NEW ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, A NEW DEPUTY CITY MANAGER, A COUPLE OF NEW COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATORS, AND AGAIN, I KNOW I'M LEAVING OUT SO MANY OTHER POSITIONS BUT THOSE ARE SOME, SOME SOME KEY POSITIONS, AND THEN LAST BUT NOT LEAST WE CELEBRATED OUR BICENTENNIAL, AND SO MUCH WENT INTO THAT PROJECT. WE'VE NOT ONLY DID WE TALK ABOUT IT THE WHOLE YEAR, I MEAN, THERE WERE ACTIVITIES THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE YEAR WE NOW HAVE T-SHIRTS. THANK YOU ZOE FOR SPORTING THAT. WE HAVE SO MUCH THAT WE'VE DONE TO COMMEMORATE THE BICENTENNIAL, AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE THE 200 STORIES PROJECT THAT WILL CONTINUE INTO THE FUTURE AND SO I'M JUST REALLY PROUD OF THE, THE WORK THAT STAFF HAVE DONE AND REALLY JUST APPRECIATE THE SUPPORT OF THE CITY COMMISSION AND EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THESE ACTIVITIES SO, SO THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME A FEW MINUTES JUST TO BRAG A LITTLE BIT ON WHAT WE'VE ACHIEVED OVER THE PAST YEAR AND JUST GIVING US A MOMENT TO CELEBRATE BEFORE WE DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN IN 2024. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. THAT'S A REMARKABLE LIST. SO THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT AND BRINGING BACK ALL OF THOSE ACCOMPLISHMENTS, AND I THINK WE OWE THE STAFF AND THE CITY MANAGER AND I THINK OURSELVES SOME THE EXACTLY THE F OR GETTING A LOT OF IMPORTANT WORK DONE. SO WITH THAT COMMISSIONER DUSENBURY. THANK YOU, MADAM MAYOR. FIRST OF ALL, I JUST WANT TO AGAIN, THANK YOU, LINDA, FOR ALL YOUR SERVICE. YOU WILL BE MISSED. I'M SURE EVERY ONE OF US WILL SAY THAT SECOND OF ALL, I REALLY ENJOYED MEETING MR. FIGUEROA, OUR NEW CO-RESPONDER. I'M REALLY INTERESTED IN SEEING HOW THAT EVOLVES AND LEARNING MORE ABOUT THAT PROGRAM. THIRD. THANK YOU, MISS ARNOLD FOR THAT LIST. I WAS LIKE, OH MY GOD, DO I HAVE TO COME UP WITH MY LIST? SO I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THAT. THAT WAS VERY IMPRESSIVE AND THEN JUST RECOGNIZING YOU SAID, MADAM MAYOR, IF WE START ALL OVER AGAIN AND DO IT AGAIN NEXT YEAR, I THINK THAT IS IMPORTANT. JUST THAT WE CONTINUE TO LISTEN, WE CONTINUE TO UNDERSTAND THAT THERE IS WORK TO BE DONE AND WE'RE HERE, WE'RE ACCESSIBLE, WE'RE DOING OUR BEST. WE HAVE A REALLY GOOD STAFF TO DO IT AND THAT WE RECOGNIZE THOUGH, THAT SOMEBODY'S WORK IS NEVER DONE. SO I GUESS THE CITY COMMISSION'S WORK IS NEVER DONE SO WE CONTINUE TO STRIVE TO DO BETTER, BUT THAT WAS A REALLY IMPRESSIVE LIST, AND I'M PROUD TO HAVE BEEN A PART OF IT. SO AND THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS. I WISH EVERYBODY A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY SEASON, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU GUYS NEXT YEAR, IF NOT BEFORE THEN. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER WALSH. THANK YOU. I JUST GOT A SHOT OF ADRENALINE BECAUSE IT'S ONE SOONER THAN I USUALLY GO. [CHUCKLING] I USUALLY GET I GET ONE MORE PERSON FOR ME TO PREPARE WHAT I WANT TO SAY. SO, THE WORK SESSION ABOUT THE GRANTS WAS SO IMPRESSIVE, AND IT MAKES ME THINK THAT'S REALLY THE FUEL AND THE CATALYST TO SOME DEGREE TO OF WHAT WILL CREATE THE LIST NEXT YEAR. SO I'M REALLY EXCITED FOR THAT AND THANK YOU FOR SUMMARIZING IN A REALLY DETAILED FASHION. THIS YEAR IS A BLUR IN THAT SENSE. LIKE, I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT ALL HAPPENED IN THE LAST 12 MONTHS, BUT THEN NOW WE HAVE A CHANCE WITH THE CAPACITY BUILDING THAT YOU'VE BEEN WORKING ON TO UNDERPIN GRANTS, A SOLID BUDGET WITH THE NEXT LIST THAT THE STAFF WILL ELABORATE AND VALUE THE WORK AND PATIENCE AND, PROFESSIONALISM THAT YOU ALWAYS BRING TO THE JOB. I'D SAY THAT TO EVERYONE THAT I WOULD GET TO MEET ON STAFF AND LUCKILY, I MEAN, THIS FALL WAS WONDERFUL. I GOT TO MEET A LOT OF FOLKS ON THANKSGIVING THE POLICE PARTIES, PUBLIC SAFETY, THE 200 CELEBRATION EVENTS I THOUGHT REALLY BROUGHT US ALL A LOT CLOSER. SO HOPEFULLY EVERYONE'S FEELING TOGETHER SUPPORTED AND SEEING WHERE WE FIT INTO T HE BIG PICTURE. THAT'S REALLY THE FUN PART. I THINK ABOUT ALL OF THIS, AND THEN THAT SEGUES ME TO THE 200 CELEBRATION, WHICH I THOUGHT WAS A BLAST. IT WAS KIND OF THIS BREATHLESS WEEKEND OF TRYING TO BE PART OF EVERYTHING WE COULD, AND I KNOW THERE'S HILARIOUS PICTURES. I WAS THINKING, LIKE, IN 50 YEARS, LOOKING AT US, WONDERING WHAT WE'RE REALLY DRESSED AS AND WHY AND WHAT WE'RE DOING DRESSED AS A [LAUGHTER] [02:30:01] DISCO THEME, AND IT WAS FUN AND I REALLY ENJOYED THAT, BUT THAT'S ALL TO SAY AGAIN, THAT WAS REALLY GREAT COMMUNITY BUILDING AND ITS OWN KIND OF FOR A WEEKEND. AGAIN, A REMINDER OF WHAT A GREAT PLACE THIS IS FOR US TO LIVE, AND AT THE FRIDAY NIGHT EVENT THAT SOME OF US ATTENDED, THERE WAS A PANEL AND LINDA HARRIS WAS ON THE PANEL, AND, RENAE FACILITATED IT, AND I THOUGHT A REALLY NEAT QUESTION WAS TO ASK THE FOLKS WHO THEN EVERYONE HAD LIVED HERE SOME TIME, LIKE MAYOR PRO TEM POWERS MOST SEVERE LIFE. REALLY BUT THE ANSWERS WERE REALLY REVEALING, AND IT MADE ME THINK I WANTED TO SHARE. FOR ME, IT WAS THE QUESTION WAS, WHERE'S A PLACE IN DECATUR THAT'S REALLY SPECIAL TO YOU OR MEMORABLE OR JUST IS THAT PROFOUND PLACE OF EXPERIENCE? AND IT DIDN'T TAKE ME TOO LONG BECAUSE I'M A TRANSPLANT, AND I MOVED TO ATLANTA IN 99 AND DECATUR IN 2005, BUT I VERY MUCH CONSIDER IT HOME, AND I REALLY JUST THOUGHT ABOUT THIS ROOM, AND I REMEMBER DUCKING IN HERE ONCE DURING THE PANDEMIC TO DO SOMETHING AND PEEKING MY HEAD IN, AND I ALMOST STARTED TO CRY BECAUSE WE HADN'T BEEN IN HERE FOR A WHILE, AND IT WAS A STRANGE EMOTION. I THOUGHT, WHY WOULD THIS EMPTY ROOM MAKE ME BECOME OVERCOME WITH EMOTION? BUT I KNEW HOW POWERFUL IT IS IN THE MOST COMMUNAL SENSE, AND I WAS LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK IN THE ROOM, AND WE HAVE BEEN FOR SOME TIME, AND THAT'S WHAT HELPS US DO THAT, MAKE MAKE A LIST LIKE THAT. SO FOR THAT, THAT'S IT FOR ME BEING IN THIS ROOM AND NOW I ALWAYS HAVE TO DO THE MATH. SIX YEARS, ABOUT 23 MEETINGS A YEAR IS 138 MEETINGS, AND SO THAT ADDS UP AND MORE MEETINGS FOR FOR BOTH OF YOU TOO. SO, WE'RE ALL GETTING THERE TOGETHER, AND IT'S A JOURNEY MEETING BY MEETING. SO THANKS FOR LETTING ME SHARE THAT HERE AT THE END OF THE YEAR AND LAST ABOUT MISS HARRIS. I HAD THE I WAS JUST THE SHEER LUCK OF DOING DECATUR 101 IN 2012 AND IT WAS A BLAST AND YOU MADE IT SO I WENT WITH A FRIEND, BUT MADE FRIENDS, AND THAT WAS REALLY FOR ME. WHAT OPENED UP ALL MY POSSIBILITY TO EXPERIENCE DECATUR IN A NEW WAY AND TO HAVE CIVIC PRIDE TO LEARN HOW CITIES RUN, TO LEARN HISTORY ABOUT WHERE I WAS LIVING, AND WE CAN BEGIN TO VALUE WHAT THAT HISTORY IS AND BE PART OF IT, AND IT OPENED UP MY UNDERSTANDING AND OTHER PEOPLE IN THE ROOM OF WHERE WE COULD VOLUNTEER, AND THEN I JUMPED ON THE ACTIVE LIVING BOARD, WHICH I LOVED, AND HERE I AM NOW, BUT SO THAT ALONE, THAT'S JUST THE TINIEST SLICE OF WHAT YOU'VE CREATED, AND WE TALKED ABOUT IT AT YOUR AT YOUR RETIREMENT GATHERING, BUT THANK YOU FOR THAT. I MEAN, YOUR IMPACT ACROSS ALL THE PEOPLE WHO'VE DONE THAT SINCE ITS INCEPTION IS ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL THINGS YOU'VE DONE AND ARE GIVING TO THE CITY IS EMPOWERING EACH PERSON TO KNOW HOW THEIR CITY WORKS, WHERE THEY ARE SITUATED, WHAT ITS HISTORY CAN BE, AND HOW THEY CAN IMPACT FUTURE OF THE CITY TOO. SO I WILL MISS YOU AT RETREAT VERY MUCH. IT WON'T BE THE SAME, AND BECAUSE YOUR ABILITY TO CRY SPONTANEOUSLY, ALTHOUGH WE LAUGH AND IT'S FUNNY, IT'S A SUPERPOWER IN THAT IT LETS EVERYONE'S GUARD DOWN AND THEN WE KNOW IT'S OKAY TO SHARE WHATEVER WE'RE FEELING. IT TRULY IS THAT ICEBREAKER THAT IS ALWAYS THERE. WHEN YOU FEEL IT, YOU SHOW IT, AND THEN I THINK WE KNOW WE CAN BE VULNERABLE AND WE ARE SAFE TO MAKE OURSELVES. SO I VERY MUCH APPRECIATE THAT I'VE HAD THAT WITH YOUR YOU'VE PROVIDED THAT FOR ME SINCE, SINCE I JOINED THE COMMISSION, AND IT'S ONE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS ABOUT YOU TOO. SO I WANT A T-SHIRT FOR YOU THAT SAYS, "IMMA CRY, Y'ALL" [CHUCKLING] OR A MUG OR SOMETHING. I THINK WE'RE GOING TO WORK ON THAT, BUT THANKS AGAIN. SORRY FOR THE LENGTHY COMMENTS. I WISH EVERYONE A REALLY FUN, SAFE, HEALTHY, HAPPY, PROSPEROUS HOLIDAY AND SEE YOU IN THE NEW YEAR. THANK YOU, PRO TEM. I'LL BE VERY BRIEF IN MY COMMENTS. YOU GUYS HAVE HAD GREAT COMMENTS. I MISS OUR COLLEAGUE, COMMISSIONER MEYER. I WISH HER A SPEEDY RECOVERY AND I HOPE SHE'LL JOIN US ON JANUARY 2ND AS THE THREE OF US WILL BE SWORN IN AGAIN, AND I THINK THAT'S ONE THING THAT I THINK IS MISSED ON THAT LIST THAT IT SPEAKS TO THE VOLUME OF THE WORK WE DO THAT I CAN'T RECALL A TIME IN MY TIME IN THE CITY WHERE THREE CITY COMMISSIONERS ALL RAN UNOPPOSED. SO I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S THE WORK THAT WE DO OR THE AMOUNT OF WORK THAT WE DO, BUT IT'S A JOB THAT I THINK WE DO WELL. A COUPLE OF THINGS I THINK YOU LEFT OFF THE LIST. WE DIDN'T TALK ABOUT THE CHURCH STREET CYCLE TRACK AND OUR COMMITMENT TO MAKING SURE THAT WE KNOW THAT [02:35:01] AUTOMOBILES AREN'T THE ONLY FORM OF TRANSPORTATION. WE JUST HAVE TO MAKE THEM ALL PLAY TOGETHER WELL AND SHARE THE ROAD, AND I THINK WE'VE, YOU KNOW, COMMITTED TO DOING THAT OVER THE YEARS. I ALSO THINK THAT WE'VE REALLY MADE A STRONG COMMITMENT TO ADDRESSING THE MISSING MIDDLE, AND THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING CRISIS HERE IN THE CITY OF DECATUR. I THINK THOSE ARE TWO THINGS THAT ABSOLUTELY FOR ME, I KNOW. HAVE MOVED THE NEEDLE. I ALSO WANT TO SIT AND SORT OF REFLECT AND THANK ALL OF OUR SPOUSES BECAUSE. THE AMOUNT OF TIME THAT WE SPEND HERE IS TIME THAT WE SPEND APART FROM OUR FAMILIES, AND SO IT'S A COMMITMENT FOR EVERYONE IN THIS ROOM, WHETHER YOU CAME TO SPEAK OR YOU SERVE OR YOU WORK OR YOU REPORT. I MEAN, IT'S A HUGE COMMITMENT TO BE A PUBLIC SERVANT, AND I THINK OUR SPOUSES AND OUR SIGNIFICANT OTHERS AND OUR CHILDREN SORT OF ALL BEAR THAT PRICE. SO IN THIS THIS HOLIDAY SEASON, I WANT TO MAKE SURE WE RECOGNIZE THEM FOR THE WORK THAT THEY DO BEHIND THE SCENES, BECAUSE THAT WORK NEVER GETS NOTICED, AND I'M NOT SAYING IT BECAUSE MY SPOUSE IS OUT IN THE HALL--BUT MAYBE YOU ARE--BUT MAYBE I AM. [CHUCKLING] I JUST THINK IT'S IMPORTANT. LASTLY, LINDA HARRIS, AS I SAID AT YOUR RETIREMENT PARTY, I HONESTLY DON'T KNOW WITHOUT THE WORK THAT YOU'VE PUT IN, IF OUR FAMILY WOULD STILL BE HERE BECAUSE THIS CITY HAS TRANSFORMED AND CONTINUES TO TRANSFORM ITSELF YOU. YOU MADE IT COOL TO TALK ABOUT DECATUR, AND YOU MADE IT COOL TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAD THOSE HARD CONVERSATIONS, BUT DID IT IN A WAY THAT IT'S VERY RESPECTFUL. YEAH. YOU BROUGHT US THE FOCUS. I MEAN, YOU BROUGHT US ALL SORTS OF THINGS THAT WE NEVER KNEW WE NEEDED, AND IT WILL NEVER BE THE SAME. YOU'LL NEVER BE REPLACED. YOU'LL ALWAYS BE LOVED, AND WHEN WE HAVE A LITTLE CELEBRATION ON JANUARY 4TH TO MARK OUR NEW RETREAT. WE WILL FONDLY THINK OF YOU AND THINK OF ALL THE THINGS THAT YOU DO AND HAVE DONE, AND THE WAYS YOU'VE INFLUENCED EACH AND EVERY ONE IN THIS ROOM FOR THE LAST 35 YEARS BECAUSE NO ONE'S DONE IT BETTER. THANK YOU, LINDA. SO JUST A COUPLE OF THINGS I WILL. IN RESPONSE TO MR. [INAUDIBLE], HE DID ASK ABOUT COMMUNICATION AND LETTING PEOPLE KNOW WHEN THINGS WERE HAPPENING. I DO KNOW THAT I BELIEVE THERE IS SOMEONE WORKING THROUGH THE SEECLICKFIX AND GOING AND CLEANING UP SOME OF THOSE THINGS, AND I BELIEVE THAT MS. SCHARER HAS ALSO HAD SOME CONVERSATIONS WITH, MR. [INAUDIBLE] ABOUT SOME OF HIS SPECIFIC THINGS. SO I APPLAUD YOU AND THANK, PUBLIC WORKS FOR WORKING THROUGH THOSE AND RESPONDING AND CLEANING THEM UP SO THAT IT'S A LITTLE EASIER TO FIGURE OUT WHAT HAS BEEN DONE AND WHAT HASN'T BEEN DONE. SO I ALSO ONE THING THAT SEVERAL PEOPLE HAVE MENTIONED IS THAT OUR NEXT MEETING IS JANUARY THE 2ND, WHICH IS A TUESDAY. SO WE'LL HAVE TWO TUESDAY MEETINGS IN JANUARY, AND THAT RETREAT IS THURSDAY, JANUARY 4TH AND FIFTH I ALSO JUST WANTED TO MENTION THAT ONE OF OUR LONG TERME NEIGHBORS AND FRIENDS, MISS LOUISE JACKSON, WHO LIVED IN OAKHURST I THINK ABOUT 50 YEARS PASSED AWAY LAST WEEK. I WENT TO HER SERVICE TODAY. THERE WAS A LONG, THERE WAS A LARGE GROUP OF HER NEIGHBORS THAT LIVED IN OAKHURST THAT WERE THERE IN CELEBRATION OF HER LIFE, AND SHE WAS ACTIVE IN THE OAKHURST NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION. SHE LOVED THE MLK PROJECT, ALWAYS CALLED TO MAKE SURE HER YARD WAS ON THE LIST YOU COULD NEVER SAY NO TO MISS JACKSON, AND SHE HAD THE BEST SMILE AND A DEEP THROATED LAUGH THAT REALLY LIT UP A ROOM. SO IN THE LAST 4 OR 5 YEARS, DUE TO HER HEALTH, SHE HAD MOVED INTO AN ASSISTED LIVING FACILITY, BUT THAT LITTLE CORNER OF OAK VIEW AND FOURTH AVENUE, ACROSS FROM WHERE SHE HAD HER HOME FOR MANY YEARS IS THE OAKHURST OR IS THE, JACKSON GARDEN AND SHE WAS INSTRUMENTAL WITH SALLY WYLDE AND REALLY PLANTING THE SEEDS FOR THE OAKHURST COMMUNITY GARDEN AND WHAT HAS NOW GROWN INTO THE WILD CENTER, AND BY HAVING WORKING WITH KIDS THAT WERE TRAMPLING THROUGH HER YARD AND TRAMPLING HER [02:40:08] GARDEN AND SAID, LET'S GIVE THEM, LET'S GIVE THEM APPRECIATION OF THINGS THAT GROW AND HOW TO TAKE CARE OF THEM. SO JUST WANTED TO EXPRESS MY PERSONAL APPRECIATION AND REALLY AFFECTION AND LOVE FOR MISS JACKSON AND WHAT SHE MEANT TO, TO THIS COMMUNITY. SHE SAW A LOT OF CHANGES HAPPENING IN HER NEIGHBORHOOD AS SHE WAS A LONG-TERM RESIDENT, BUT EMBRACED THEM ALL, EMBRACED HER NEIGHBORS, AND IF YOU WANT TO KNOW AND SHE WAS SHE WAS SHARP UNTIL THE END. SHE WAS 87 YEARS OLD AND KNEW EVERYTHING THAT WAS GOING ON AROUND HER, AND I WOULD ALWAYS TAKE HER A FOCUS BECAUSE SHE WANTED TO KNOW WHAT WAS HAPPENING IN DECATUR, AND SHE SAID WHEN SHE MOVED, SHE SAID, I HATE TO LEAVE MY NEIGHBORHOOD. I CAN'T BELIEVE I CAN'T VOTE IN THE CITY OF DECATUR ANYMORE. SO SHE WAS IN AN ACTIVE PERSON AND APPRECIATED HER VERY MUCH SO I ALSO REALLY ENJOYED THE WORK SESSION. IT'S AMAZING TO SEE ALL OF THAT PUT TOGETHER, AND I HAD TALKED TO THE CITY MANAGER ABOUT. I KNOW WE HAVE A LOT OF GRANTS OUT THERE, WE'VE GOTTEN A LOT OF GRANTS AND WE'RE LOOKING AT SOME MORE. IT'D BE REALLY NICE TO HAVE IT ALL IN ONE PACKAGE AND IT TOOK US A FULL HOUR TO GET THROUGH ALL OF THAT, AND I'M EXCITED ABOUT THE ONES WE HAVE AND THE ONES THAT WE'RE WAITING ON, AND I KNOW THEY TAKE A LOT OF STAFF TIME. SO MANY THANKS TO THE MULTIPLE STAFF FOLKS THAT HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN THAT, AND SO AND A BIG THANK YOU TO LINDA HARRIS. I'VE KNOWN LINDA I TOOK DECATUR 101 MAYBE IN 2003 OR 4 AND EXPERIENCED JOHN RANDALL'S BROWNIES EARLY ON THAT'S REALLY WHAT PIQUED MY INTEREST IN, WELL, THE BROWNIES, BUT ALSO THE CLASS AND BECOMING INVOLVED IN THE CITY OF DECATUR WORKED WITH LINDA ON THE HOLIDAY TOUR OF HOMES, AND I THINK SHE I CAN THINK ABOUT ONE WORD THAT MIGHT DESCRIBE HER IS SHE'S A GIVER OF HER TIME, HER TALENTS, HER ABILITIES, HER ENCOURAGEMENT, AND WE WILL ALL MISS THAT, BUT REALLY THINK ABOUT HOW FORTUNATE WE ARE TO HAVE EXPERIENCED THAT WITH YOU AND WISH YOU WELL, AND AS I SAID EARLIER, SHE STARTED OUT ANSWERING THE PHONE FOR THE CITY OF DECATUR AND I SAID, I'M SURE WE CAN FIND THAT JOB FOR YOU NOW BUT I THINK SHE IS, UH GOING TO ENJOY A WELL-DESERVED RETIREMENT, BUT WE ALSO KNOW SHE'LL STILL BE AROUND IN THE CITY OF DECATUR. SO A HEARTFELT THANK YOU, AND UNLESS THERE IS ANY FURTHER BUSINESS, THIS MEETING IS ADJOURNED AT 9:20, AND WE'LL SEE YOU IN THE NEW YEAR. THANK YOU. HAPPY MARY. YEAH. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.