September 16, 2024 Work Session Notes
Whenever I'm with you, I'm at home
I’m happy to be back in town after getting to celebrate my son’s 3rd birthday and my dad’s 70th birthday this weekend with my family on a trip to New Braunfels.
I hope you were able to join me before I left on September 6 at a ribbon cutting for the exterior renovations of the North Garland Branch Library. If you haven’t had a chance to see the change, I encourage you to drive by and visit as soon as you are able. The difference is amazing, and I hope it turns into more patrons visiting and using our library.
Also, I hope you were able to come the South Garland Branch Library September 8 and creat your piece for the community art project to be installed at the Central Library. Check out this recap video below. I’m glad my daughter and son were able to join me, and I’m sure what the mayor said in the video will come true with them.
Now on to the commentary. As always, my comments are in bold italics.
PUBLIC COMMENTS ON WORK SESSION ITEMS
CONSIDER THE CONSENT AGENDA
WRITTEN BRIEFINGS
1. Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Selective Traffic Enforcement Program (STEP) 2025 Comprehensive Grant
Council is requested to consider a resolution authorizing the City Manager to accept the State of Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Selective Traffic Enforcement Program (STEP) Grant for FY 2024-25 in the amount of $120,573.76. Unless directed otherwise, this item will be placed on the October 8, 2024Regular Meeting.
Annually we authorize the City Manager to accept a grant from TxDOT for enhanced enforcement of traffic laws during the next year. The grant this year is for $120,573.76, an increase of 5.7% over the $113,989.53 we received last year. The State funds will be used to supplement our police traffic enforcement budget.
2. Council Consideration of CDBG-CV Reallocation of Funding
Council is requested to consider reallocating unspent CDBG-CV (CARES Act) funds from the completed project to support the expansion of the Council-approved James Park Project. Unless directed otherwise, this item will be placed on the October 8, 2024 Regular Meeting.
CARES Act funding was granted to the City in 2020 to respond and mitigate the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The funds could be applied to a variety of uses including workforce training at Dallas College. At the end of the two-year contract, only $16,461 has been spent. This item will reallocate the remaining $233,539 towards the James Park project which meets the funding requirements for “preventing, preparing for, and responding to future COVID-19 risks.” The project which would install a new kids playground is “shovel ready” and will spend the funds by the June 2, 2026 deadline.
Per the 2020 Parks Master Plan, future improvements for James Park include items from the following list in the short and medium term:
(Snip from page 204 of the Parks Master Plan https://www.garlandtx.gov/DocumentCenter/View/7738/Garland-PRCAD-MP-REDUCED?bidId=)
3. Renewal of Interlocal Agreement between Garland Health Department and Parkland Health & Hospital System Council is requested to consider authorizing the City Manager or his designee to execute a renewal of the Interlocal Agreement between the City of Garland and Dallas County Hospital District dba Parkland Health & Hospital System to provide social work services, thus fulfilling Texas Department of State Health Services contract requirements. Unless directed otherwise, this item will be placed on the October 8, 2024 Regular Meeting.
The City of Garland provides social work services to its residents through an interlocal agreement with Parkland Hospital using CARES Act funding. This item authorizes the agreement for another six months until the funding runs out on March 31, 2025.
4. Interlocal Agreement between City of Garland and DART for the South Garland Transit Center Council is requested to consider approving an Interlocal Agreement (ILA) between the City of Garland and Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) for a future Transit-Oriented Development at the South Garland Transit Center. Unless directed otherwise, this item will be placed on the October 8, 2024 Regular Meeting.
This item authorizes the City of Garland to purchase approximately six acres of surplus parking area at the South Garland Transit Center. There are currently 603 parking spaces of which only about 30 are used daily. The City will purchase the six acres for fair market value and in return, seek to acquire three acres for use as a new DART Transit Center. The City of Garland will pay all costs associated with replacing the current DART Transit Center at the new location.
VERBAL BRIEFINGS
Council may ask for discussion, further information, or give direction to staff on an item posted as a verbal briefing.
5. Gatewood Drainage Study Update
The Engineering Department is providing the City Council with an update on the results of the Gatewood Drainage Study.
Councilmember Williams requested an update on the results of the Gatewood Drainage Study. The Gatewood neighborhood consists of approximately 151 acres and is located south of Broadway Blvd. and just north of I-30 in South Garland. You can see the study areas in the image below:
The results of the study show that in an 100-year rainfall event, Oates Road is inundated by approximately 0.8 feet of water while Duck Creek Drive is overtopped by approximately 2.2 feet of water.
This can be mitigated by upsizing the existing reinforced box culverts (RCBs) in Collingwood Drive to two 8’ wide by 5’ tall reinforced box culverts. (Think two huge drainage structures wide enough to drive a compact sports car through.) Also, additional lines in the area would be upsized as well at a cost of $6.35M.
The question on these projects always come down to whether the investment is worth it to mitigate the risk. As a civil engineer, I always look at whether heath and safety is compromised first, then consider property damages in determining whether a mitigation expense is worth the cost.
I value your input as the affected area looks to be largely undeveloped floodplain. During the hearing, I will ask whether there has been recorded flood damages of structures that would necessitate such an expense to upgrade the storm system in this area.
6. Home Improvement Incentive Program - 2024 Report
Neighborhood Vitality will give an update on the Home Improvement Incentive Program (HIIP).
The Home Improvement Incentive Program provides an incentive for homeowners to make improvements to their residences for qualifying improvements. The incentive provides a cash rebate for 50% of the cost of a minimum $1,000 qualified improvement of a single family detached home. The property must not be a rental home and must be at least 30 years old and cannot exceed a total DCAD value of the median appraised value for the single-family detached homes in Garland.
During the current fiscal year, 98 applications have been approved for a total of $388,156 worth of improvements. The average rebate has been for $5,467 with the most common improvement being window replacements. You can see a map of the most recent improvements indicated by a blue dot on the map below.
(Map of current and past HIIP projects)
7. 2019 Bond Program - Status Update
Staff will provide an update on progress to date in implementing the 2019 Bond Program.
The 2019 Bond Program is in Year 5 of implementation with several projects including HolfordRoad (PGBT to City Limits), Holford Recreation Center and Neighborhood Aquatics Facility, Fire Station 6, Central Library, and West Garland Library scheduled for completion within the next six months. To date, approximately 70% of projects have been completed with 30% in progress.
(Rendering of the future Fire Station #1)
(Aerial photo of Holford Recreation Center progress)
8. 2025 Bond Study Committee Report
City Council will receive an update from staff and the Bond Study Committee Chair regarding discussions and progress of the 2025 Bond Study Committee.
Following up on the previous item, the 2025 Bond Study Committee will report on their progress to date. Since our last update, the committee has discussed projects within the Harbor Point, Medical District, and TIF #1 areas. TIF #1 includes areas around downtown and extends west to the Forest-Jupiter DART station.
(TIF #1 is shown outlined in blue. TIF #2 is in green, and TIF #3 is in red. Snip taken from https://maps.garlandtx.gov/cogmap/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=60082ccdc7bf42f29d2bf42e83be98b9)
9. Fire Recovery Fee Schedule Proposal
Council is requested to consider accepting an addition to the fee schedule relating to the partial cost recovery for certain vehicular collisions, vehicle fires, hazardous standbys, and special rescues as well as ordinance changes for hazardous material incidents and Charity Care Policy. Unless directed otherwise, this item will be placed on the October 8, 2024 Regular Meeting.
During our budget approval process, Fire Chief Mark Lee proposed modifying fees for responding to certain incidents. We performed a cost comparison with surrounding cities and found that we are much lower or did not charge a fee at all. The costs are associated with clean up materials to contain fuels or other liquids that leak from vehicle collisions.
10. Amend Council Policies By Consensus to Grant City Manager Spending Authority Related to Insurance Coverage
Discuss and consider by consensus an amendment to Council policies that authorizes the City Manager to bind insurance coverage on behalf of the City in an amount not to exceed 10 percent of the amount adopted as a part of the annual budget.
11. Intragovernmental Affairs Committee Update and Discussion of Action Items
Councilmember B.J. Williams, Chair of the Intragovernmental Affairs Committee, with the assistance of staff, will present Council with a committee report and recommendations on items related thereto.
Chairman Williams will be discussing a Resolution of Support for DART services which was discussed in the Intragovernmental Affairs Committee. You may have heard me quoted on KERA radio in an interview or seen me quoted in the following article espousing my support for public transportation in Garland:
I would like to hear your feedback on DART and their services they provide for the citizens and workers of Garland.
12. Transportation Infrastructure and Mobility Committee Report
Councilmember Chris Ott, Chair of the Transportation Infrastructure and Mobility Committee, will report on Neighborhood Speed Limits.
Chairman Ott will report on another item I asked to be discussed in committee, namely reducing the speed limit of residential roads to 25 MPH. Currently state law dictates that unless otherwise posted, prima facie speed limits are 30 MPH on residential roads. This means that without signage indicated a slower speed, you can assume a 30 MPH speed limit.
It all comes down to a simple physics momentum equation. The faster a driver travels, the longer it takes a 4,000 lb SUV to stop, and the greater energy that is transferred during a collision.
According to ProPublica research, about 25% of pedestrian collisions are fatal at 32 miles per hour. When the speed is down to 23 MPH, very near what I am advocating for, the fatality rate drops significantly to 10%. Fatality rates are even higher when elderly or disabled pedestrians are involved.
There is already president for this change as cities such as Boston, New York, and parts of Chicago have adopted 25 MPH limits in its residential areas.
13. Texas Municipal League (TML) Newly Elected Officials' Orientation Report
Councilmember Kris Beard will report back to the City Council and Mayor on the Texas Municipal League (TML) Newly Elected Officials' Orientation.
I am always interested to hear what fellow councilmembers have to say when they return from a conference, especially when done in a timely manner.
According to the TML Newly Elected Officials agenda (https://newlyelectedofficials.org/programs-2/round-rock-program/) topics discussed include parliamentary procedure, the fundamentals of city regulation, and an interesting session entitled “Governing Ethically: Understanding Your Influence.”
CONSIDER APPOINTMENTS TO BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
Terms are usually staggered whereby at least half of the membership has previous experience. Members are appointed based on qualifications.
14. Citywide Appointment
April Smith - Animal Services Committee, Educational Representative
15. Citywide Appointment
David Fuentes- Animal Services Advisory Committee, Shelter Operations Coordinator
16. Citywide Appointment
Deana Siegler- Animal Services Advisory Committee, Non-Profit Animal Welfare Official
17. Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Lucht
Catherine Haedge - Environmental and Community Advisory Board
ANNOUNCE FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS
EXECUTIVE SESSION
1. FY 2024 3rd Quarter Risk Oversight Committee briefing concerning GP&L and competitive matters of a public power utility related to risk management information and strategies (551.086) and attorney/client matters concerning privileged and unprivileged client information related to the same (551.071).
2. Economic development matters related to commercial or financial information that the City has received from one or more business prospects that the City seeks to have locate, stay, or expand in or near the vicinity of East Centerville Road and South Country Club Road and with which the City is conducting economic development negotiations; including a possible offer of a financial or other incentive to a business
prospect to relocate a proposed development to that vicinity within the City (551.087); and attorney/client matters concerning privileged and unprivileged client information related to the same (551.071).
3. The purchase of real property in the vicinity of State Hwy 190 and Holford Road (551.072) andAttorney/client matters concerning privileged and unprivileged client information related to the same (551.071).
Since we discussed the Home Improvement Incentive Program, I want to play a great sing-along and whistle-along tune from Edward Sharp and the Magnetic Zeros named “Home.” I included this song on my wedding mix-tape that I gave away to guests as a party favor. I’m happy to let you know what other songs I included if you ask!
And why not enjoy a mini-concert from Edward Sharp and gang at the Tiny Desk from NPR?
Great report sir! I'm glad someone here in Garland is advocating against funding cuts for DART. Cars are expensive to purchase and maintain which can be out of reach for the less fortunate. Public transport is the best and most affordable alternative compared to Uber which is expensive in the long run.
Also, I agree we should lower the speed limit to 25 mph. It's better to have safety rather than tragedy.