That's fair. That's fair. >> But um she brings it to us whenever we request Good morning everybody. Thank you sir. Okay. Ready? One, two, three. Thank you. >> I'm so sorry. How are you? Thank you. Look, these are all students from high school. All of them. Welcome. You guys are going to convention, right? And where are you going? Where's your conference? You're going Well, good morning everyone and welcome to city council chambers. Uh, Miss Pry, I think we're ready to get started. >> Yes, sir. Good morning everyone. Welcome to the presentation of the mayor's proclamations. We begin this morning with a pledge of allegiance led by Delva High School at the invitation of city representative Lemon. We have Leonardo Gomez, Cindy Hernandez, Eva Ariel, Jaden Himenez, and Rosio Miranda. That brings us to the mayor's proclamations. For those of you receiving a proclamation this morning, your group will have up to four minutes collectively to speak at the podium. The first proclamation is National El Paso Marathon Runners Day. >> Represent Canelis. Thank you, mayor. Uh, the marathon folks can come on up. Proclamation, city of El Paso, Texas. Whereas the El Paso Runners Foundation was established in 2006 and has served as a venue to promulgate physical activity, health, and fitness among the El Paso community. And whereas the El Paso Runners Foundation uh mission is to organize a first class marathon that promotes health and fitness in the community, brings tourism to the region of El Paso, and provides support to local and national nonprofit organizations. And whereas the Michelob Ultra El Paso Marathon, an annual event held since 2007, is a Boston Marathon qualifier and a highlight for the El Paso running community and beyond, attracting thousands of participants from across the United States and other countries. And whereas the 2026 Michallob Ultra El Paso Marathon, Rise Federal Credit Union half marathon, spine and rehab specialists 5K run and walk will be held on February 20. uh February 22nd, 2026 following the Carefree Homes Kids Dash held on February 21st, 2026. And whereas this year's El Paso Marathon route begins and ends at historic Sanhasinto Plaza in downtown El Paso with runners taking a scenic loop course through central El Paso going as far east as Wedgewood Drive. Now therefore, be it proclaimed by the mayor and council of the city of El Paso that February 2020, February 22, 2026 shall be known as El Paso Marathon Runners Day. Signed by Honorable Mayor Renard Johnson. >> Welcome. It's an old joke, but I'll say it again. We'll be brief because we got to run. Mayor and esteemed council members, it's with profound gratitude and we extend our appreciation for your unwavering support of the El Paso Marathon Marathon over the past two decades. It's hard to believe that it's been 20 years, but u the gray hair attests to that fact. Your consistent partnership has been instrumental in transforming this event from its modest beginnings with approximately 900 participants into the s significant community pillar it is today. now attracting nearly 7,000 athletes. >> So from its inception, the El Paso Marathon has been dedicated to a triparet mission, fostering health and wellness within our community, stimul stimulating local tourism by drawing participants to our vibrant city, and providing substantial financial support to local nonprofit organizations. This mission continues to drive our efforts and define our success. The event's growing prestige is evident in its expanding reach with athletes from 46 states. Wow. >> And uh this year we've got uh eight different countries represented. We're also proud to note that the engagement of over 190 participating teams underscores the collaborative spirit of the marathon. To date, our collective endeavors have enabled us to donate close to $450,000 to various local charities. The El Paso Marathon represents far more than a single athletic competition. It's a par power powerful demonstration of community, unity, and collective action toward a greater good. Such an ambit ambitious undertaking would not be achievable without the steadfast backing of the city, the generous contributions of our sponsors, and the tireless dedication of over 300 volunteers who contribute their time and effort throughout race weekend. We particularly wish to acknowledge, and I've got two of them here, the exceptional commitment of our ambassadors. The dedicated group of two 20 individuals has worked diligently for months, actively recruiting participants and passionately advocating for the event. Their efforts alone have inspired over 600 people to register. On behalf of the entire El Paso Runners Foundation, our generous sponsors, LNF distributors, Ryes Federal Credit Union, Michelobra, Spine and Rehab Specialist, Visit El Paso, Sarah Fresh. Thank you once again, ma mayor and council, for your invaluable support. We look forward to seeing you on race day or at least at the kids dash. So, thank you once again. >> Thank you guys so much. >> Well, well, like you, I'm gonna keep my remarks brief because I know you guys have to run. So, um, thank you guys for putting on this event for the past 20 years and this is a significant event for the the city of El Paso and you touched on it and we know that it takes a big team to pull this off and it includes all the volunteers you talked about all the sponsors. So, we want to thank them. Thank them as well. And again, you guys are doing more than just a race. You're contributing back to this economy. $450,000 you just mentioned to local charities. So, thank you guys for what you're doing. And I have one quick question. Um, when does the uh race start and what can you give us a little bit more on the event, when it is, the times? >> Well, race weekend starts out with Saturday. We'll be at the El Paso Convention Center for the Sarah Health and Fitness Expo, which of course is open to everybody. We expect at least 7,000 people to to pass through the hall. Last year we had 6,000. So, that starts on Saturday. There'll be 9 to 6. And again, the public is welcome to come and and uh check out all of our vendors. And then Saturday morning, Sunday morning, our first race, the marathon will start at 7 a.m. from San Hisinto. And then the marath the half marathon will start at 7:20 and then the 5K will start at 7:30. >> Okay. Well, maybe I'll see you at the the 7:30. >> 7:30. >> Thank you guys so much and congratulations. Yeah, congratulations. There's Thank you so much. >> All right, let's go ahead and do Thank you. That brings us to the next proclamation. And this is Amigo Men 50th birthday celebration. >> Representative Fiero. >> Thank you, Mayor. You know, just for the record, mayor, everybody on this side is arm wrestling to read this proclamation. So, >> Mayor, as they're walking up, have you ever seen Jose Garcia and the Amigle Man in the same room? >> Never. >> Now, we know he's not the Omegle Man. There we go. Thank you, Mayor. Proclamation City of El Paso. Whereas Amigo Man stands as an iconic symbol of official mascot for the city of El Paso, serving five decades as a friendly ambassador and reflects the warmth, hospitality, cultural pride of the Sun City. Whereas first introduced in 1976 through the vision of former tourism director Jean Stalin and illustrated by Clive Cochran, a respected graphic designer professor at the University of Texas El Paso who created workshaped generations of designers. Amigo Man was created and represents a spirit and character of El Paso since been becoming a lasting and recognized figure. Whereas through the years, Amigo man's familiar appearance has evolved, featuring changes generations, yet his friendly smile, sunny disposition, and welcoming presence has remained constant. Whereas known for his distinctive red cowboy boots, there they are. Uh his blue sombrero, Amigle Man has become a familiar and celebrating presence at conventions festivals community gatherings, and bringing residents and visitors together. in celebration of El Paso's culture and heritage. Whereas over the past 50 years, Amigo Man has contributed to the promotion of tourism, community pride, civic engagement, and help shape positive and welcoming impressions of El Paso for generations of visitors. Whereas now, therefore, be it proclaimed by the mayor and council, the city of El Paso, recognizing the MIGO man's 50th birthday, as well as honoring his enduring contributions to the culture, tourism efforts, community, spirits of the of the region. So, let it be known that February 16th, 2026 be known as Amigo Man Day, signed by the Honorable Mayor Renard Johnson. Oh, we should sing now. >> Good morning. >> Good morning, mayor, city council. Thank you for having us here. Um, Amigo man would come up and say a few words, but he's a man of very few words, almost none. Uh, but it's a great This is so great to uh celebrate America's friendliest city, the Amigo Man, America's best amigo. Um, but I'm going to really turn this over to Amigo Man's work wife. uh Brooke Brooke Underwood. They've they're not she's not 50, but they've worked together a very long time. So, Brooke, >> good morning, Brooke. >> Good morning. Thank you for having us. Uh honorable mayor, members of council, thank you for the opportunity to recognize everyone's best friend. I'd like to take a moment to recognize members of his security detail and fan club. Uh Mr. Dr. Jose Garcia, C uh president and CEO, Veronica Castro, director of tourism development and strategic alliances. Denia Bandis, military liaison and destination experience coordinator. Elizabeth Torres, area destination experience manager, Jessica Beltran over here as Paparazzi, uh social media coordinator, and then Paulina Garcia, marketing content specialist. Uh today, Destination El Paso is proud to honor the 50th anniversary of the Amigo Man, El Paso's sunniest ambassador and a symbol of our community's welcoming spirit. Amigo Man was officially created on February 16th, 1976. And for nearly five decades, he has represented friendship, hospitality, and pride in the Sun City. He was originally illustrated by Clive Cochran, a graphic design professor at UTEP, whose work helped bring this joyful character to life. From greeting visitors and appearing at community events, Amigo Man has become a beloved icon recognized for generations. To celebrate this milestone, Destination El Paso will host a 50th birthday celebration, Boscl on February 19th at the downtown El Paso Visitor Information Center. The event is open to the media and the entire community and will include a a commemorative statue reveal, birthday cake, photo opportunities, and more. In addition to February 19th, Destination El Paso has a lineup of more special events planned throughout Amigo Man's birthday month, continuing uh with the rest of the year and giving the community even more opportunities to celebrate this milestone. This celebration is not just about a mascot. It's about honoring El Paso's spirit of friendship and the people who make this city feel like home. We're grateful to the city of El Paso for recognizing the Amigo man and his legacy and for helping us celebrate 50 years of smiles, sunshine, and community pride. Thank you. >> Represent Pierro. >> Thank you, Mayor. And thank you all for everything you do for our community. Mayor, I wanted to bring something ironic. Something else that's ironic. Amigo Man and Jose almost share the exact same birthday. So, happy birthday, Jose. >> Thank you so much. >> 15. Uh, Brooke also almost shares Amigo Man's birthday and she's almost 40. >> Yes. >> Wow. >> Well, congratulations and and Amigle Man, congratulations on Amigle Man day and you're one of the most recognizable sports and community symbols in in our in our region. Uh, you're often called the friendliest mascot in college football, but I must admit, as mayor, uh, I'm a little jealous of you. The Omegle Man has always been welcoming thousands of visitors longer than most of us have been alive, and no one ever complains about his speeches. So, thank you for your smile uh and most importantly your raise of hope. Thank you. >> You know, mayor, um we can all learn a little something from Amigo Man, especially myself, because he also never puts his foot in his mouth. Ah. Look like ours. And the next proclamation is El Paso Mission Trail Association Founders Day. >> Representative Lemon. Good morning. This is a proclamation. City of El Paso. It's a little bit long, so we're gonna shorten it up just a little bit. It's really long. Mayor, look. Mayor, look. >> It's in the back as well. No, but I'll read fast. Whereas the El Paso Mission Trail Association is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting, protecting, and preserving historic sites in the Mission Valley and along the El Paso Camino Real Dearra Adventro National Historic Trail while fostering education heritage tourism and community engagement for current and future generations. And whereas the organization was originally incorporated in 1986 under the name Historic El Paso Corporation with a mission to advance historic preservation in the city and county of El Paso to promote public awareness of regional history and to serve as a coordinating body for organizations committed to preserving the cultural history of the El Paso area. And whereas in 1986, historian Sheldon Hall chartered what would become the El Paso Mission Trail Association, establishing a 9-mile historic corridor connecting the Isleta Mission, founded in 1682. The Sakoro mission established in 1691 and the Precidio Chapel of San Elisario built in 1877 on the site of an earlier Spanish precidio. And whereas for four decades, the El Paso Mission Trail Association has worked in collaboration with volunteers, partner organizations, and public agencies to preserve these historic structures, celebrate the diverse and multicultural history of the Mission Valley, and support the arts, education, and economic vitality of the region. And whereas the association once organized the reenactment of the first Thanksgiving of the Southwest and has expanded and strengthened its programming through stewardship of the Mission Valley Visitors Center, offering art and historic exhibits, educational programming, volunteer-led operations, and community building activities that welcome residents and visitors alike. And whereas the El Paso Mission Trail Association continues to partner with the National Park Service, the Texas Historical Commission, local school districts, cultural organizations, and like-minded institutions to facilitate educational tours, promote heritage tourism, and ensure awareness of the region's rich and diverse history. And whereas the El Paso Mission Trail Association is sustained by dedicated volunteers and community leaders who share a deep love for the Mission Valley and a commitment to preserving its history, ensuring that the stories, traditions, and landmarks of the region remain accessible and meaningful to future generations. And whereas the El Paso Mission Trail Association will celebrate Founders Day on February 28th, 2026. commemorating 40 years of service to the El Paso community and honoring the vision, leadership, and collective effort that have shaped the association since its founding. Now, therefore, be it proclaimed by the mayor and council of the city of El Paso that February 17, 2026 shall be known as Mission Trail Association Founders Day, signed by the Honorable Mayor Renard Johnson. Congratulations. >> Good morning. >> So, thank you everybody. My name is Priscilla Vosquez. I'm the vice president of educational development for the El Paso Mission Trail Association. And so, for 40 years now, the El Paso Mission Trail Association has been dedicated to promoting and preserving the historic trail corridor that that encompasses Isla, Sakoro, Sanario, and the rest of El Camino, Lierra, Alenro National Historic Trail. Over the years, we have actively promoted the rich and unique history of this area that spans back centuries through tours, historical presentation exhibits events public art, a specialty license plate program, partnerships with entities such as Visit El Paso, and much more. Founded in February 18 18, I'm kidding. 1986, I'm sorry, by Sheldon Hall. Our commitment has never wavered in educating not only tourists, but also local residents and students about some of the oldest historic sites that we have in the region. It's always fulfilling to educate individuals that had no idea of the history that we have in our own backyard. That's why we aspire to educate fourth and seventh grade students since they learn about Texas history as part of their curriculum. And we don't just cover the Spanish influences in our tours, but we also offer the indigenous p perspectives that continue to shape our community. As a nonprofit, the money we generate from tours, donations, and membership dues goes back to the community in the form of educational programming and free community initiatives. All of this is accomplished through an all volunteer force, which consists of dedicated individuals that are passionate about local history. up here with me. I have some of those dedicated individuals that will introduce themselves um and talk about our celebration at the end of this month. >> Good morning. >> Good morning. My name is Lydia Almeida. I'm the president of the El Paso Mission Trail Association and it is a great honor to be here uh Mayor Johnson and thank you so much for having us and and doing the proclamation for us. Uh, I would like to extend a special thank you to our representative Si Lily Lemon because she has helped us and very generously because we're working on getting a a mural set up on Alamita and Sarraosa. So, she has been there for us and we appreciate her unwavering support. At the same time, we would like to invite you all to come and take a tour with us and we'd be more than glad to go ahead and have you all uh come up here, come to our uh main office. We're located in Islleta at 9065 Alama and we'd be more than happy and honored to have a tour for you all. So, thank you so much. And then I introduce you to Hana. >> Thank you. Good morning. >> Good morning. My name is Hana Romo. I'm the vice president of office operations and special events. So, I'm actually the one that's inviting all of you to come to our 40th anniversary celebration, which will be February 28th from 11 to 4:00. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> We're quick. >> That was it. >> All right. Well, no. Well, good morning again you guys and thank you for all that you're doing um with preserving and protecting our historic sites there in the missions. Also, you guys are that nine mile uh historic corridor is vital for tourism and economic development in the region with tourists coming from all around the world to see the mission. So again, thank you for all the volunteers that make this happen and and we know there's countless hours and congratulations on 40 years and thank you so much. Congratulations And the next proclamation is Black Children's Book Week. How are you, >> Representative Nino? >> Thank you, Mayor. And I apologize if my voice goes off and on. I've been getting over a cold. So, if we could have the honores for Black Children's Week come up. Okay. So, proclamation for the city of El Paso, Texas. Whereas the city of El Paso, Texas, is a vibrant and welcoming community committing to fostering diversity, inclusion, and celebration of all cultures. And whereas Back Children's Book Week 2026 is a global initiative organized by Black Baby Books that promotes black representation in children's literature and media and will be celebrated from February 22nd through February 28th, 2026. And whereas turn the page start the adventure story fest will take place on Saturday February 28th 2026 at Esparansa Costa Moreno Library in district 5 in El Paso providing a joyful opportunity for families to celebrate storytelling, creativity and transformative power of reading. And whereas this story fest will invite children and families to explore enchanting tales and new adventures through storytelling, literacy activities, a puppet show, and hands-on opportunities for discovery. And whereas the event offers a meaningful opportunity for children and families to engage with literature that reflects diverse lived experiences while encouraging lifelong love for reading. Now therefore, be it proclaimed by the mayor and the council of the city of El Paso, encouraging all residents to participate in this enriching and inspiring celebration of stories that connect us all. Let us honor the legacy and contributions of black authors and illustrators and support the continued growth and visibility of black children's literature. February 22nd through February 28, 2026 shall be known as Turn the Page, Start the Adventure, Black Children's Book Week Story Fest, signed by the Honorable Mayor Renard Johnson. >> Good morning. >> Good morning, Mayor Johnson, city council members, and the beloved community members. Happy Black History Month, everybody. Okay. Happy Black History Month. I'm Taffany Hopper and I'm so thrilled to be here as the proud owner of the only blackowned bookstore celebrating Black Children's Book Week. The Turn the Page, Start the Adventure Story Fest is not just a celebration. It is a call to action. We are here to embrace diversity and literature and to ensure that every child can see themselves reflected in the pages of books they read. By doing so, we nurture empathy, understanding, and a sense of belonging in our young readers. According to the data from the Texas Education Agency, in 2025, 53% of Texas students in grades 3 through eight achieved grade level standards in reading and language arts. While this statistic is encouraging, it is clear that we must strive for greater success. Our goal is for all students to not only meet but exceed expectations. Stories are powerful. They transport us to new worlds. Now, before I conclude my remarks, I want to thank the El Paso Libraries, my partners and my collaborators, Megan Gmerson, who will come up next, Carla and Chance Brown, the Khaled Foundation, and our outstanding readers, Dr. Erica Edwards, Command Sergeant Carlos Walker, and Evelyn Perez, and also our city manager, Dion Mack, who will help to give out our free books. We also have another event on this Friday night at Daruring, the L Bre Library um trivia night from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. But this day um promises an action-packed filled with reading, learning, crafts, and a multitude of giveaways with five delightful mascots. However, um this mascot won't be there. I don't know. Maybe not. Okay. So, during Black Children's Book Week week week, let's celebrate the magic on every page as we unlock the limitless potential within every child. Remember, black history is an essential chapter in everyone's story book. Black history is everyone's history. I'm going to turn it over to Megan. >> Good morning. >> Good morning. My name is Megan Jimmerson and I'm born and raised here in El Paso and I'm a graduate of El Paso public schools. Today I have the privilege of serving the same community that fostered my education as an educator. Now I am an early childhood educator teaching kids a precious gift, literacy, which is a foundational skill to student success. Literacy does more than teach children how to read. It builds critical thinking, problem solving, and the ability to analyze information on top of building well-rounded, compassionate human beings. When students engage with diverse books that reflect their identities and experiences, they are more likely to see themselves as readers. That connection fosters a love of reading and helps develop cognitive and social skills students need to succeed in school, the workforce, and engaged members of our community. Because of my passion for literacy and early childhood education, I've built a learning program called Sunhive Micros where we foster and celebrate literacy. And I will pass it over to Miss Carla. >> Good morning. >> Good morning. I'm Carla Brown, loan officer, member of the Women's Council of Realtors, chairperson for the housing committee for the El Paso branch, NAACP, retired Army officer, wife, mother, and more importantly, an El Paso resident. I would like to sincerely thank Mayor Johnson and Councilman Nino for this proclamation. Your recognition means more than words can express. This acknowledgement affirms that black stories, black businesses, black children matter in our city. It sends a clear message that literacy, representation, and opportunity belongs to everyone. When our children see themselves reflected in books, in leadership, and in spaces of celebration, it strengthens their confidence and expands their imagination. And when the city publicly supports this vision, it helps build a more inclusive and informed comm uh community. And when non-black children attend, they gain empathy, cultural awareness, and a broader world view. This strengthens the entire community. A proclamation from the city elevates that work from this event to a community milestone. Thank you for standing with us, for valuing representation, and for the recognition of this importance, creating space where every child can see their potential on pages. We deeply and are we are deeply grateful. Thank you. God bless you. represent Nino >> would like the rest like to introduce themselves briefly. >> I know we have some city staff from our libraries as well. >> I'm Amy Camp. I'm the assistant director of the El Paso Public Library. >> I'm Molly Walter. I'm the branch manager at the Esparanzo Costa Marino Library. >> I'm Patricia Arnandez. I'm the manager at the Doris Vandor Library. >> And I would like to recognize my um mother-in-law in the back, Anna RmIrez. Go ahead. She's an retired teacher from uh Jefferson High School. >> Perfect. >> No. Well, I'm looking forward to celebrating with you all on February 28th at Espanol Library. Um and Tiffany, thank you for serving our country and for your service as well. So, thank you. >> Yeah. and Tiffany and and everyone, congratulations. This is this is awesome and it looks, you know, when we put this partnership together what we can do. But I want to thank you for doing this because we know that uh the earlier we get kids to start to read, it helps with their critical thinking and helps make them better decision makers as they get older. So, uh big congratulations. We're looking forward to the Black Children's Book Week and StoryFest and it's going to be an incredible week. And again, congratulations to all that made this happen. Congratulations, guys. And the final proclamation is El Paso Heart Safe School Awareness Day. >> Representative Roachcha. Thank you, mayor. So, we have the honores moving forward. Welcome. Proclamation City of El Paso, Texas. Whereas sudden cardiac arrest in children is a rare event with devastating outcomes for families and anyone witnessing an event. And whereas the incidence of sudden cardiac arrest in children in the US is over 23,000 events per year, an estimated 1 to2 cases per 100,000 children. And whereas cardiac defibrillation with an automated external defibrillator, AED, by school nurses, staff, and/or bystanders witnessing sudden cardiac arrest greatly improves the chances of survival of affected children. And whereas school nurses within region 19 have partnered with project atom through El Paso Children's Hospital to certify every school as heartsafe school to give the best chance of survival should a sudden cardiac arrest happen on school grounds in El Paso. And whereas through the collaboration of school nurses and project atom, region 19 education service center is the first region to adopt a standardized cardiac emergency response plan in the state of Texas and the nation. And whereas by having AEDs accessible, trained personnel, and regularly practicing readiness in every school, our children, teachers, and staff at schools will be safer and will have greater chances of survival should a cardiac emergency event happen on school grounds. Now therefore, be it proclaimed by the mayor and council of the city of El Paso in recognition of the invaluable contributions of school nurses of region 19 ESC to keep students, teachers, and staff safe in case of an emergency cardiac event at schools. February 17th, 2026 shall be known as El Paso Heart Safe School Awareness Day, signed by the Honorable Mayor Renard Johnson. >> Good morning. >> Good morning, Mayor Council. This is a great day. And sudden cardiac death, as we heard, is a rare but devastating event. and every minute counts. And I would like to recognize the vocation, love, and professionalism of all the school nurses that we have here in El Paso. This is admirable and this is a a great time to recognize them and also thank Adam Program, El Paso Children's Hospital, and all school officials that we have with us for all that support. And I have the school nurses here. >> Good morning. >> Good morning. Good morning, Mayor Johnson, members of city council, uh, Dr. Okaransa, project atom partners, district leaders, colleagues, and honored guests. My name is Sylvia Bel Montes. I'm the director of health services with Isla ISD and the uh chair of the Southwest School Nurse Administrator Alliance. Uh, on behalf of our school district and health service teams across El Paso, thank you for this meaning meaningful recognition. We are deeply honored by today's proclamation declaring declaring February 17th as El Paso Hards Safe School Awareness Day. This recognition represents far more than a document or a designation. It represents a shared commitment to preparedness, to prevention, and most importantly to saving lives. In collaboration with the lead nurses from our local independent school districts, our medical director Dr. Okaransa and project Adam team. We worked together to create the first standardized cardiac emergency response plan in the state of Texas. This was truly a team effort grounded in evidence-based practice and driven by one clear goal, ensuring that every school is prepared to respond quickly and effectively to a cardiac emergency. Sudden cardiac arrest does not wait for the right time or the right place. It can happen to anyone, any age without warning. Schools are where our children learn, grow, and thrive. And they must also be places where they where safety and readiness are non-negotiable. The implementation of a standardized cardiac emergency response plan ensures that our staff are trained, roles are clearly defined, AEDs are accessible, and precious minutes are not lost in confusion during an emergency. These plans save lives, and today's recognition reinforces that this work matters. We are especially grateful to project atom for their partnership expertise and unw unwavering commitment to helping schools become hearts safe schools. Their guidance has been instrumental in strengthening our systems and empowering our campuses. I will also like to acknowledge to the school nurses and health professionals who are on the front lines every day. Their leadership, dedication, and advocacy are the foundation to this work. This achievement belongs to them as well. Mayor Johnson, thank you for your leadership and for using the city's platform to elevate the importance of heart safety in our schools. By declaring El Paso Hearts Safe School Awareness Day, you are helping raise awareness, inspire action, and set a standard for communities across Texas. We pro we are proud of this milestone, but we also recognize that this is not the end of the journey. We remain committed to continuous training, collaboration, and improvement as well as we work forward ensuring that every day is a heart-safe school. Thank you again for this honor and for standing with us in protecting the health and wellbeing of our students, staff, and community. Thank you. Well, thank you guys for protecting our students, teachers, and staff from sudden cardiac arrest. And I was actually shocked to learn that there was over 23,000 events that occur almost uh every year. How do how does someone become AED certified? Is there a class that we can take? >> It's actually part of the CPR training as well. So, anytime you take a CPR course, it should be integrated as part of the course. >> Okay. Very good. And again, thank you guys for all that you do. I know there's a big crowd here, but we would still love to have them walk up and introduce themselves. >> Good morning. >> Good morning. I'm Normma Luna. I'm the director of health services for El Paso Independent School District. >> Good morning. I'm Elizabeth Ramirez. I'm the district health coordinator for Fabins Independent School District. >> Morning. >> Good morning. I'm Jennifer Krera. I am the district coordinator for Canot ISD. >> Good morning. My name is Miss Olen and I'm the district lead nurse for Selisario Independent School District. >> Good morning. Aidalia Valdez, the lead nurse for Clint ISD and the school nurse for Ricard Strada Middle School, which is the first hearts safe school in El Paso. >> Wow. >> Juliana Tarango, district nurse manager for Sakoro ISD. >> Good morning. My name is Lori Armenes. I'm the district nurse for Anthony ISD and also the middle and high school nurse. Hi, good morning. My name is Vanessa Brown and I'm a regional nurse for the Education Service Center region 19. >> Hi, I'm Jaylin Saparo. I'm the program coordinator for Project Atom El Paso and also work with El Paso Children's Hospital. >> Good morning. >> Good morning. I'm Jeff Schuster. Uh I'm the CMO at El Paso Children's, also a pediatric cardiologist. This is important. >> Thank you. Good morning everyone. Melissa Rodriguez, the vice president of strategic initiatives for the El Paso Children's Hospital. >> Good morning. Dr. Monica Reyes. I'm executive director of student support services for Ko ISD. Thank you all. >> Good morning. My name is Darlene Pacheco. I'm the director of business development for El Paso Children's Hospital. >> Good morning. Sad Rocha, physician relations manager at El Paso Children's Hospital. >> Good morning. Yes, Lar Ortega, manager of school engagement for El Paso Children's Hospital. >> Good morning. I'm Rene Chavez, chief human resource officer with the Clinton Independent School District. >> Good morning. >> Good morning. Juan Martinez, superintendent for Clinti. Did we get everybody? >> Okay, come on. Yeah. >> Good morning. >> Hi. Good morning. I'm Dominique Saparo. I'm a student ambassador for Project Edom and I work with um El Paso Children's Hospital as a volunteer. >> Good morning, Buenos Diaz. >> My name is Roelio Segoia. I'm the famous ISD superintendent. Good morning, mayor and council. My name is Francis Yepus. I work with the Sleta School District. I'm the emergency manager. >> Well, Dr. O and everyone, I think we did it. All right. Congratulations you. Yeah, congratulations you guys on El Paso Hard Safe School Awareness uh day. Congratulations everyone. I give it to the right. >> Okay. Good morning, Miss Fry. I think we're ready. >> Yes, sir. Good morning. This is a meeting of the El Paso City Council for Tuesday, February 17th, 2026. Mayor Johnson is present and presiding in council chambers along with Mayor Prom Chavez, Representative Aedo, Representative Boy Tjo, Representative Nino, Alternate Mayor Prom Fiero, Representative Lemon, and Representative Canales. It is 10:01 a.m. Will everyone please silence their electronic devices so as not to disturb the meeting and rise for the invocation delivered by El Paso Police Chaplain Joe Marada. >> And good morning. If you'd like to receive the invocation today, we ask that you would just bow your heads as we pray together. We begin these proceedings today with thankfulness and appreciation for all those that are willing to serve our community in elected, appointed or volunteer capacities. Today we ask for your guidance for all those that represent and work on behalf of the people of this community. Grant our city officials the wisdom and understanding as they make decisions decisions on how best to serve the residents of our shared city and our surrounding area. Help us El Paso to be a community that, as your word teaches us, to learn how to serve one another. Today, throughout the city of El Paso, there are innumerable needs. And we ask that these many needs would be met. Many will be met through government services such as through the city, others through community organizations, religious organizations, family, friends, and just the kindness of a neighbor. Help us to be residents that recognize and do our part in making our community a safer and a better place to live. Continue to bless the work of all the organizations and the individuals, some of which were honored here earlier today in the proclamations that with many other groups and people that they make our community better. We ask that you always bless and protect our first respond responders and their families. In your name we pray. Amen. Representative Lemon. >> Thank you, Mayor. Um, thank you for the invocation that we had. And it's it's it's sad that today, Mayor, um, we should take a moment to honor the life of our incredible historical icon, the Reverend Jesse Jackson, who passed away today. And just wonder if we could have a moment of silence and his honest Thank you. >> Thank you, mayor. It it um I all I'm a keeper of quotes, so every time I see something that I think resonates, I write them. And I have one that I kept for a long long time, and it was keep hope alive. And I'm sure that throughout the ages and throughout the years of um social work that he did, he always kept the hope alive. But something that was really powerful and he said, "If your course, if your cause is right and your fist is tight, you will make it." >> So hang on to those fists. >> Thank you, Mayor. >> Very good, >> Miss Bryant. Mayor, that brings us to the public comment on agenda items. We don't have anyone signed up for reg for consent items, but we do have uh several people signed up at 10 to speak on item 13. >> Okay. >> And item 13 is discussion and action authorizing the city manager to develop within 60 days a proposed data center policy framework for the city of El Paso. This morning, speaking at 10, we have Jonathan Zion. >> Okay. followed by Diana Ramirez. >> Good morning. >> Good morning. You have three minutes. >> Good morning, Mayor Council. Thank you for having me. I wanted to let you know if you're not aware, I'm sure you are. There is a data center in Iowa that used 1 billion gallons of water in a single year. My name is Jonathan Zion. I'm a software engineer who specializes in artificial intelligence. I'm the founder of Peak. We're an engineering firm that believes in positive social impact. I'm also co-founder of El Paso Trash Mob. We're a volunteer group who picks up litter in our community. As a software engineer, I do want to state that I am opposed to the data center here in our city. I know today's not about stopping the data center. It's about mitigating damage. So, I went ahead and I conducted some research on current data centers and found some of their failure points. I generated or generated and wrote a 24page document uh that I did supply to the city clerk. It essentially just measures their failures. Uh with those failures, what I did was I suggested I have a list of six mandates that I would strongly like to see being utilized as part of the plan once I'm sure you're going to vote yes to approve today. Today I'm going to just talk about two of those mandates I'd like to see just because of time. The one is no evaporative water. We are already being misled by Meta and I can tell because they said they're using a closed loop water system which sounds efficient. However, they're not telling us that there's different variations based on the fact that they're requesting 1.5 million gallons of water tells me it's strongly inferred that they're using an internal closed loop system. That system relies on water towers that use evaporative cooling to cool down those same systems they say that saves water. There's a place called Story uh County in Nevada. It's one of Google's largest data centers. It's also one of their most efficient. And the reason is because they're using a full closed loop system. This has saved them 90% 90% of their water. They're supposed to utilize 1.8 million gallons. Instead, they use 200,000. That's because they're being transparent and efficient. This is what you see when there's proper mandates by the city. The second point I'd like to tell you would be to have a citizen overview or citizen watch. I'm asking on the board or excuse me for the council to create a board of citizens who have technical knowledge, environmental knowledge, who has access to the actual statistics and usage from the met uh the metadata center and they should have privileges to be able to veto any future expansions of the data center and to further enact clawbacks to reduce some of the incentives we promised them if they can't fulfill our mandates. This is what I wanted to say today. I hope you take a look at my 24 page and my six mandates that I wrote for you. I hope that you consider that in part of your planning. Once again, my name is Jonathan Zion and thank you for your time. >> Thank you, Jonathan. >> The next speaker is Diana Ramirez. >> Diana Ramirez. Sugatur followed by Vanessa Almada J Mana. >> Good morning. You have >> good morning. >> Good morning. Uh good morning. My name is Sa Boricker and I'm here to speak not only in favor of the data center policy framework and the 60-day pause on data center development, but also to urge further restriction on data center development after the 60-day pause due to the harm that they pose to the people, the infrastructure, and the environment of El Paso and the Paso region. As have been as have been seen across the US, data centers create unsustainable demand on water, electric, and gas resources with little to no reciprocal benefit to the people of the cities that they're in. While this framework does set out important restrictions and considerations for limiting the inevitable negative impacts of data centers, it does not go far enough in setting concrete and truly safe limits for the development of future data centers and the resource consumption of current data centers. In particular, the water supply to the north region is already at risk with the drying up of the Rio Grande forcing us to use more and more of our limited groundwater supply. Given that our current usage of the Waco and Messia Bson is already at a sustainable limit, that means that we will inevitably be facing water shortages here in Elbaso, even without any data centers. So with the metadata center expected to be using around 700,000 gallons of water per day, if not more, you Jonathan. Um adding even one more data center will bring us that much quicker to the day that El Paso runs out of water. Therefore, for the sake of ourselves, our children, and the future of El Paso, I urge the council to not only adopt the framework and the 60-day pause, but also to use that time to introduce policy prohibiting the further development of data centers anywhere in the city of El Paso. Thank you very much. Thank you, >> Vanessa Almada. >> Followed by Jay Mana, Anna Valtier. >> Good morning. You have three minutes. >> Good morning. >> Good morning and thank you for your time today. My name is Vanessa Alm and I'm a resident of district 1. I'm here to comment on agenda item 13 to support the data policy the data center policy framework for the city of El Paso that prioritizes community well-being over corporate profits. Although my family go history goes back generations in Huarees. I was born and raised in Seattle. There I fell in love with the endless pine trees, snowtop mountains and the Pacific Ocean. I spent every summer here in the Chihuahuan desert however visiting my family and I'm now lucky to say I've been a resident of El Paso for almost two years here. Here I also fall for the Franklin cicieras and especially the sunsets that overlook them. I realize that our desert ecosystem is resilient and full of life just like the people that inhabit the great basela region. I aim to do my part to protect it and the natural resources it has blessed my generations of my family with. As a graduate student at UTIP, I have spent the last year studying environmental organizations in El Paso and Huarees and the state of bational environmental cooperation between these sister cities. Not a single engineer, environmentalist, organizer, or professional I've spoken with in either city has reflected optimism about the future of our water. We are already fighting a losing battle in trying to keep up the demand for water between two major metropolises, and any unnecessary stressors to our limited water supply should be seriously questioned. Across the country, the hydraulic and energy demands of AI denators have been made clear. I do not support allowing companies worth billions of dollars to use hundreds of thousands of gallons of water and enough energy to power more than half the city's home just in a day of normal output. As a young person in this city, I recognize the need for an expansion of opportunities for young professionals in El Paso. But this is not it. As a border city, we have often been guinea pigs for controversial security tactics or economic agreements that go on to be implemented in the interior of the country or to shape international negotiations. This time things are different. There are thousands of data centers in other parts of the country and the world and thus thousands of examples for us to learn from to comprehend the stress data centers bring to natural natural resources and the many false promises they entail. Meta had promised to build towards renewable energy and yet is already planning to build a new natural gas plant to meet its energy demands. I do not trust the corporate benefactors of data centers with the task of sustainable growth. But I do hope I can trust you, our elected officials, with the future of this city, with my future. I believe in growth and professional development for El Pasoans. But if we cannot grow responsibly, maybe we should not grow at all. My generation inherited a legacy of environmental degradation. But I refuse to keep passing these issues on until there is nothing left. Thank you. >> Thank you, >> J. Mania, >> Representative Fo, >> followed by Anna Valtier, Jazelle Fosso. Good morning. >> Good morning. Uh my name is Jay Mana. I am an organizer with the Manet People's Project. Um and I am also an organizer with the Texas Easement Action Alliance, um a statewide organization that focuses on protecting land owners and communities from imminent domain and industrial expansion. Through my work, I have traveled all around the state and I have seen firsthand what happens in communities who are represented by weak local governments who offer corporations tax breaks to come in and pollute everything around them, steal resources, and ruin entire ecosystems, all in the name of progress and jobs. I have met families who are suffering because of this. I've been in communities where the water is so polluted that everyone has rashes constantly. I've seen boil water and shut off notices on people's phones for 30 plus days in a row. I met people who are stockpiling cases of plastic water bottles to bathe with because the tap water is so toxic. I have talked with parents who have told me as they sobbed that they are hopeless and scared for their children's future. My wife and mother-in-law received cancer diagnoses within two years of each other um after living for over a decade in the shadows of the Isarko plant. I have a seven-year-old daughter and we live in Clint. Right now, what I am seeing is eerily similar to what I have seen elsewhere. industry is running rampant with zero regard to local resources or communities. I grew up surrounded by pecan trees, cotton, alalfa, and even corn. Now all I see is warehouses and El Paso electric substations carving up the countryside. I have water rights where I live. 5 years ago, I would get eight or nine watering days. Now I'm lucky if I get three. By the actions today, I know that you all are just as concerned as me, and I hope that this marks the beginning of us being able to work together in the future. Thank you. >> Thank you, Anna Balier. followed by Jazelle Fosso, Jose Gaston Barriia. >> Good morning. >> Um, good morning majors and city council members. My name is Anna and I'm here to speak in favor of it 13 associated with the AI data centers urging the council to protect El Paso water health and sustainability. First, I want to thank council members Cynthia Boyjo and Josh Seo for placing this item in the agenda. A 60 days pause in the creation for this data center. But if we want to lead to a more meaningful action, we need more than just a pause, not a return to business after the 60 days are over. A single 100 megawatt data center can use half million gallons of water daily, roughly the same as 6,500 household. Larger facilities can consume millions of gallons daily, much of it tied to electricity generation, which accounts for about 75% of data cent's total water use. This is especially dangerous in light city like El Paso, where we desert people, water is our most precious source. We receive less than nine inches of rain per year and rely on the Rio Grand for only six to eight weeks in the summer at much. Just last month in January 2026, over a 100,000 residents in northeast and central El Paso were affected. Entire neighborhoods were placed under a multi-day world water advisory. And that crisis happened without a massive industrial water consumement added to a system. We need to stop pretender our infrastructure can handle this additional strain. Yet this data centers seek 247 access to drinking quality water through our publiclyowned utility. While we residents are constantly asked to conserve, this is not equitable. It is also concerning that the city continues to offer 380 property tax incentives to data centers like Meta, shifting infrastructure cost onto the public while putting our water at risk. And on top of that, yesterday Congresswoman Escobarata noted that the proposed center would use natural gas power that will add air pollution and further water consumption. Economic development shouldn't sacrifice our more essential resource. Water is not replaceable and once it's gone, no matter AI or technology can bring it back. I urge the city council not only to vote yes on 1913, but to end the agreement with MEA. to stop incentivizing water intensive data centers and use the city's influence or over EP water to protect residents and not comparation. Thank you. >> Thank you, >> Jazelle Fragoso followed by Jose Caston Bara. >> Good morning. >> Hello. Good morning everyone. I'm Jazelle Preoso and I'm speaking as an electrical and computer engineer graduate from UT regarding these data centers um that I want to come into our city. So, you know, I'm currently working with AI integrations and regulations within the industry. And this is a a way to integrate it with human society in conjunction. And as an entrepreneur with the vision to create technology that benefits our world, there's no need for this technology to display humans. You know, that is what we're talking about, humans. But facilitate the construction of a better future that works with our ecological resources in a beneficial and synergistic manner. That is why I stand before you to speak on item 13 regarding the integration of metadat data centers in our region. So, you know, we're asking the city to stop offering these incentives um for these data centers and the 380 agreement with Meta and use its influence over the publicly owned water utility to stop them from signing an agreement with Meta or any data center that promises continuous access to our drinking water 247 and to continue intervening in the El Paso Electric's application for a power plant that will serve the Meta data center and will run on natural gas and again water guzzling and air pollution air polluting fossil fuels. You know, this is such a we're at a such a critical moment and we need to stand before it. You know, this is where we as a human society are going to dictate our future and you know, I I have the background knowledge to implore you and to come before you and you know and we are seeing it today in the United States. These billionaires do not care about these communities and they are further destroying our natural resources and frankly it's exhausting to see that data centers and AI is being chosen over humanity. We won't have humanity. We won't have humans if this keeps getting you know out of hand if there's no regulation being place put in place. So it really you know come to individuals that you know are know about these things and as my other fellow members in the community has spoken before you it has destroyed so many other you know natural resources and there's so much scarcity already here. So why would you allow that to be further imploded for something that should be utilized to benefit and solve the problems that we are already facing to have a better vision in the world. you know AI is to be able to work in conjunction with humans not to replace us you know so that's really my message today and you know we should not be allowing um these AI data centers to take away um water from humans you know it's water is from humans it's not for AI it's not for robots it's not for machinery it's not for circuits we are here and this is our world and we must protect it so I leave you with that message >> thank you >> Jose Caston Bara followed by Lucas Sto. >> Uh, Mayor Johnson, council members, I'm Jose Gaston. I follow support item uh 13 the proposed post on the new data center policy. Our current of our current approach is an identity crisis. We preach inclusion and hire El Paso first which are Democratic ideas while our economic policy act like industrial Republicans prioritizing corporate subsidy and resource extraction over local talent and the environment. The disconnect is clear in labor promises versus reality and resource consumption. Workforce reality. The construction phase creates only temporal local jobs. Once operational, the high paying specialized engineering roles by pass forcing our best youth to the students to leave. We are left with a lower tier support roles. We import the best jobs and export our best minds. Result reality. A factory in the desert. Data centers are resource intensive factories. Unsustainable in our environment. A water c water crisis crisis in a desert already under in a desert already under the rest. We invite industries demanding million of gallons for cooling, risking our aquifers, energy strain. Our sal electrical grid struggles in summer. Yet we invite users demanding immense 247 power. Increased resident cost. High demand users destrain infrastructure eventually driving up oper operating and rate cost for residents. We cannot claim to be pro- environment while inviting the world's largest resource hawks to a drought zone. Use this pause not to draft a new policy but to decide who we fundamentally are. Are we a city protecting its waters and retaining its graduates or a resource colony for big tech? Right now, we are failing to be both. Thank you, >> Lucasto, >> followed by Diana Ramirez. >> Good morning. >> Good morning. My name is Lucas Sto. I'm 17 years old and I'm a high school student. I'm here to um represent the youth of El Paso and um I am against AI data centers completely and I'm concerned about the environmental impact these centers will have on El Paso and I'm urging city council to vote yes on action three and to end the 380 agreement with me. Thank you. >> Thank you >> Diana Ramirez followed by Maria Garcia. >> Good morning. >> Good morning Mayor and council. My name is Diana Ramirez. I'm with the Central Neighborhood Association and I'm on a set People's Project. Um, a lot of folks here have asked have made great comments and we're all on the same page, but I just have one question. How did we get here? How did we get so bamboozled by these billionaire companies that were having to fight for our own water, our own energy? I just don't understand how what happened with the last council that that we're here. If you all I if I guess the folks who were on the on the council at that time, if these companies go from town to town bamboozling us, let's figure out what happened. Let's figure out how are these billionaire companies coming into our communities and extracting our publiclyowned water. Let's talk to the PSB. What kind of pressure can we put on the PSB to prevent this from happening? Let's learn from our mistakes. It's okay. I think the the majority of the country still doesn't know. We don't know how to deal with these new industries because they're new, right? So, it's okay to say, "Hey, we didn't know this was going to happen. They changed the contract on us. They said they would use solar and then they don't." Like, it's okay to recognize all those things. We just need for you to protect us. the public, your voters, not billionaires from out of town coming in to extract our resources. So, thank you uh representatives aso entrejo for putting this item on the agenda. Thank you for adding the a legal review because it's very important for us to understand how we got here so we can prevent it and fix it if we can. Thank you so much. Thank you, >> Maria Garcia. >> Good morning. >> Good morning. Good morning, counselors. More than 10 years ago, I sat in these very chambers every week as a journalist covering this governmental body. I covered many history-making decisions in this city council and sometimes I spoke to city council members who years after a vote came to regret their decisions. I am here today as a private citizen to tell you that I believe you will regret your vote if you allow data centers in El Paso. Because make no mistake, this is a legacy definfining moment for each of you as policymakers and as leaders of our community. Our grandchildren, our history, our community will always remember how you voted on this issue. And in this crucial moment, this is a moment that will strongly define your legacy because this will be one of the most consequential decisions that you will make that will impact future generations for good or for our detriment. The reason for that is that nearly every single community in which a data center has been erected now faces challenges with water access. from northern Virginia to Mesa, Arizona to Newton County, Georgia to Joliet, Illinois, and many more. This is not speculation. This is fact. You may cite that Ma Meta has said it will recycle water, but the company has already broken at least one promise switching from solar panels to natural gas. And regardless of whether the water is recycled, data centers put an immense amount of pressure on local water systems, leading to higher cost for residents and most importantly and alarmingly an existential threat to our communities. The United Nations has declared a water bankruptcy, meaning the world is running out of drinking water. What you do today is an existential decision. So I ask you today, will you show the world that in El Paso we care for each other? We put people over global corporations. Here we look out for one another. Meet this moment with conviction, with courage, with care for your people. In the future, what will draw people to communities will be their abundance of resources, including water. That's what will make El Paso special. That at a time when local governments were succumbing to pressures from the metas of the world, you did not. You resisted powerful forces and you stood with your community and with our right to clean water. >> Thank you. >> Thank you. The next speaker is Angel Ouyoa. Angel Oua, star six, if you're in the queue. Angel Ouyoa, star six, please, if you're in the queue. I don't see his phone number in the queue. We'll go to Arbor Guthrie, star six, please, to unmute your telephone. Arbor Guthrie, star six, please. To unmute your telephone. I don't see that phone number in the queue either. Wesley Lawrence, star six, please. >> Wesley Lawrence, star six, please. Good morning. You have three minutes. >> Hello. Can you hear me? >> Yes. >> Yes. >> Good morning, council. Um, and Mayor Johnson, um, pleasure to be with you here this morning. Uh, sorry I couldn't be here in person, unfortunately. I had to go to work today. Um but I did just want to take some time just to talk to you um a little bit about item 13 and why I'm supporting it. You know, we are seeing a resurgence of data centers coming to places all across the great state of Texas. Um many of which um are slowly but surely being dwindled down uh due to opposition from communities across the state. We know that in El Paso that our people are tired of the constant increases in our utility rates. Um, and those are only going to get much worse when we approve this data center and once it gets fully built. We know that Meta is lying about their closed loop system. We know the damages um that these data centers bring to our communities. Things such as destroying infrastructure, destroying people's appliances, uh increasing cancer rates in communities where these data centers are being built. Those are things we cannot afford here in El Paso. So, I just have a couple of asks for you. uh to Mayor Johnston. Um I am asking that you work with the county commissioners and the county judge uh to look into moving El Paso into um the fourth stage of a water restriction similar to what they just did in Hayes County to stop their data center. Um I want to be clear, I don't think we should be talking about continuing this data center. We should be having talks on breaking this contract at whatever cost that is going to incur. um because at the end of the day we cannot just just magically get water back. I'm also ask offering asking you to stop offering uh incentives um to these data centers or any corporation or business that uses massive amounts of waters. You know, my grandmother, God bless her soul, um had to do a lot of budgeting and one of those was her water bill. You know, her having to make these massive restrictions on her daily lifestyle just to be able to afford her water bill is something that corporations should also have to do. I also ask that you end the 380 agreement with Meta and really ensure that we take a microscopic look at these 380 agreements, making sure that they work for workingclass families and not the billionaires, not the millionaires, and not these oligarchs that have bought most of council. Um, we know that working-class families, through no fault of their own, are being left behind by the mistakes that our city has made currently and in the past. I also want you to use your influence over the publicly owned water utility, the PSB, to stop them from signing an agreement with Meta or any data center that promises continuous access to our drinking water uh 24/7. Again, we have a water restriction here in El Paso. We need up that to at least stage four so we can really have a conversation about conserving water um and just also just continue intervening in El Paso Electric's application for a power plant. We know that through no fault of our own that we are going to be dealt the damage by these massive polluters. So we need a city council that is willing to stand up for the people um like they haven't done in the past. Just thank you for this item and thank you uh for the time you have today and >> thank you Mr. Lawrence. Item passes and I hope they have se >> The next speaker is Cynthia Marenes. Cynthia Marenes star six please to unmute your telephone. Cynthia Marenes, star six, please. Your microphone is still on mute. Miss Marenes, star six, please to unmute. You're still on mute, Miss Manetz. We'll move on to Philip Sullivan. If you're in the queue, star six, please. Philip Sullivan, star six, please. Destiny Garcia, star six, please. Destiny Garcia, star six, please. You're still on mute. We'll try Cynthia Marentes. Star six Six please. >> Hello. Can you hear me? >> Yes. Uh, go ahead, Miss Garcia. >> Hi. Okay. Thank you. Um, when our elected officials and other city leaders made agreements to allow data centers in our hometown, they failed us. I don't think you guys are malentioned, intentionally trying to screw us over. I know that at the time these agreements were made, you weren't fully aware of the consequences of these decisions. So, I give you that benefit of the doubt. But towns across the nation are now warning us of the irreversible damage their homes are facing. Despite what these corporations claim, we know that these data centers are depleting towns of their water. Water, the most essential um thing for life. We know that these towns are seeing skyrocketing electricity cla uh electric rates and that their hometowns are being are seeing uh increases in pollution and other environmental damages. We know that the jobs that that they claim to bring are going to be shortterm and and we also know that um that these companies are getting tax uh tax breaks. So what are we getting from this deal? I beg you, please put an end to this. do everything in your power to to do what is right for the people of our city. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Cynthia Davila, Star Six, please. Cynthia Davila. Star six Six, please. You're still on mute, Miss Davilla. Star six please. We'll try Cynthia Marentes, star six, please. Cynthia Marenes, star six. >> Go ahead. >> Good morning. >> Good morning. Can you hear me? >> Yes. >> Good morning, Mayor Johnson, council members, and guests. My name is Cynthia. >> I'm currently a graduate research assistant at UT Austin focusing on environmental communication and a longtime resident of ENASO. I would like to address item 13, which I urge you to vote yes on, but treading carefully and critically with future 380 agreements. As you move forward with drafting your policy, I want to offer my comments, which I believe are generative to this process to ensure that this policy not only reflects what are the city's development priorities, but how these will be accomplished. Ultimately, you should be equipped to be able to answer basic questions that are often not clearly communicated to the public or that they can understand, such as how would the data center work? What information does it store? Who has access to this data? And separately, how is it shared with others? For what purposes would it be using water? How many millions of gallons of water will it draw? And from what sources? How would the close proximity of other data centers such as the 1400 acre project Jupiter in Dona County impact shared water resources? What is the environmental impact to the community? Does the center have a mitigation plan for potential pollution, waste, etc. What tax base and economic benefit will it bring to the city? What investment is the city eliciting from these tech corporations besides jobs that are created? What capital will remain in the city? Are there other technologies that the city can pursue that do not use significant amounts of water and energy? And what sanctions can the city legally enforce if these tech corporations fail to adhere to this policy? Most importantly, this policy acknowledges that you may be accepting a degree of extraction of our natural resources and an ecological impact to our border community, which despite claims to sustainability and promises of green infrastructure, you may not be able to yet fully comprehend. I leave you with these two research findings as you deliberate this matter. Data center cooling system e deficiency are impacted by geographic and climatic variations. Methods that work in some sites may not work in others. And number two, research varies on savings of energy and water consumption using different methods with one study saying that performance is affected by such things as weather. Thank you for your time and thank you for listening. >> Thank you. Go ahead, Miss Davila. Cynthia Davila, your microphone is ready. >> Oh, yes. Can you hear me? >> Yes. >> All right. My name is Cynthia Davila and I'm calling to support item 13 and ask city council to then stop data center operations in our city. Data centers have already proven they are energy guzzlers to include resources like water and electricity. A Bloomberg article showed how electricity bills went up for residents who weren't even near a data center because of wholesale electricity costs increasing due to power usage by data centers. Microsoft Stargate campus in Abalene, Texas used 463 million gallons of water in two years with projections hitting 400 billion by 2030. Residents were told to take shorter showers and limit lawn watering while the data center was left unregulated. Most of the cooling water they use evaporates, which means it is not being recycled. If we do not force data centers to find a way to operate sustainably, they will have no incentive to challenge themselves to do things in a way that protects people and not their bottom line. Texas as a whole is already strained with water resources. So, this is not the time to be giving what little water we have here in the desert to machines over human life. The state already forgets about us due to our distance from the capital. So, please don't make it easier for them to neglect resource issues we brought upon ourselves by allowing data centers to operate here. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Thank you, council. I've called everyone that signed up to speak at 10. That brings us We'll now move to call to the public. >> Okay. >> And on call to the public, the El Paso City Council is a local government body charged with serving the citizens and the meetings must be focused on the meeting at charge. The city council meetings are public meetings under the Texas Open Meetings Act. Public comment is an accommodation and not a requirement of city council. All persons in attendance are expected to display civility and decorum that is respectful to other persons without the use of insulting profane threatening or abusive language. Public comment will not be used for personal attacks, nor may any member of the public use this form for political statements or campaigning. Please note that during call to the public, the city council may not deliberate or decide any subject that is not on the agenda. However, council may propose that a topic brought forth be posted on a future agenda. Please note that during call to the public, the city council may not deliberate or decide any subject that is not on the agenda. This morning, we have 15 people signed up to speak. The first person is Claudia Contra Siller. Miss Siller's topic is all our animals should be protected from cruelty. She will be followed by Josie Kum. >> Good morning. >> Hello. Good morning. Um here uh two weeks ago I stated that I saw two persons trapping our pigeons. They need hunting license to be trapping our pigeons. I have uh some screenshots. Can I use the monitor please? Also I want to read what the main trapper of El Paso is posting in Onexor. Uh I asked what are you what are they used for? He says uh pigeons can are taken outside of Texas to other states. I don't ask to where or for what. Some say for training hunting dogs. Others say to release them at freerange chicken farms. Uh some joke around saying maybe they use them for chicken nuggets or restaurants. If a person that is trapping 1,200 pigeons every two weeks and he's saying that this is happening to the birds, if he's joking, there needs to be an investigation. I contacted the National Pigeon Association and here's an email. >> It we need the Elmo, please. >> They say that they do not support this and for him to take down the logo from Nexor. This person has the logo on Nexor with the National Pigeon Association using his platform only to trap our pigeons. He gets 1,200 every two weeks. I'm going to show another picture. This is a trailer full of pigeons that he posted and it's a public platform. That's why I'm using it. We as Mexicans feed the pigeons. We don't kill them. I understand that people want to take care of their of their buildings and there is ways to do it. This person is stating that nothing works only to trap them and kill them. You know, so trapping 1,200 pigeons every two weeks is not normal. This is messing up our ecosystem. Other birds need to prey on and they need to feed. Also, I want to show another uh screenshot. I'm sorry. If people are trapping our pigeons, they need the hunting license. The police needs to start asking, "Why are they trapping our pigeons? Why are they going to our parks? You can see the nets here. I just asked them what what do you do with them?" So, there's many. There's not only one, there's several. And please uh advocate for our birds. We need them in the ecosystem. They eat the insects and it's our culture. Even our our flag has a bird. And what kind of world do we live in if we don't want birds in the sky? Please uh listen to our main wildlife rescue. She's here. Thank you. >> Thank you, >> Chelsea Cara. followed by Rahul Casteda Bullet, Barbara Valencia. Good morning, Miss Karen. >> Good morning. >> Good morning, Miss Karen. >> Nice to address you all again. Uh we have pigeons are not protected birds. They're some of some of the birds and mammals are not protected, but the torture of unprotected animals or birds is another category. It's a legal category and we have a Texas penal code 42.092 also called locos law applies to non-lifetock animals. So any animals any animals that exist are should not be tortured. The moment a person captures a bird it falls under this penal code. And you can write that down and look it up. 42.092. It states that torturing an animal defined as causing unjustifiable pain or suffering is a state jail felony. A state hunting license is required as Claudia stated to hunt or take them. I don't know if any of these trappers have that state license, but that is one thing that we need to see from them is a state hunting license that comes from Texas Parks and Wildlife, not from me. capturing pigeons and stuffing them in a cage on wheels as she showed you the picture is totally it's totally unsufferable. They don't they take a take a good look at the trailer cages holding hundreds of pigeons every trip that they take. They may not be protected, but the animal cruelty law still applies. This method of capturing is torturous. They are squish squashed in there like sardines and they can't move. They can't flap their wings. They can't hardly even breathe. Removing any adult birds that are sitting on nets on nests of immature birds automatically uh kills those birds. They have they have no way of surviving without their parents. So, you're not only taking the parents, you're also killing the babies. But it's not a quick death. It's a prolonged death. They suffer from starvation, from hypothermia. Babies are very adult, very uh they're very delicate, and they need to be protected by those parents. Descrating the pigeon population with will lessen the food that other wildlife need for survival, such as the hawks, the owls, the falcons, the fox, the coyotes. They all depend on wildlife to eat and they are taking away one of the best food nourishment from other wildlife by trapping these pigeons and killing them. They are killing them. Our ecosystem and balance of nature is totally out of whack. U wildlife is disappearing at an alarming rate. In the last 54 years, listen to these numbers. In the last 544 years, we have lost 73% of all wildlife. That's that's how long my boys have been alive. 53 54 years. During their lifetime, we have lost 73% of all wildlife. That's scary. >> Thank you, Miss Karen. >> Thank you, Miss >> Out of Time already. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Raul Casta Bullet followed by Barbara Valencia, Ron Ko, Renee Coral, Chris. Good morning. >> Good morning. >> Good morning, mayor and city council and my fellow El Pasos. >> I'm not here demanding anything because I hate when people demand that. That is so uh childish. I'm here because I have questions for you all. I I I like I like pigeons. I like the birds. I grew up in this hometown. They've been here from since when I grew up in the 50s and 60s. And what I would like to ask is, are you, city council mayor, are you authorizing for the pigeons to be captured? What's the mission? And what's the goal? That's that that that's what I want to ask because we need to educate our people and say, "Look, we're trying to get rid of uh the pigeons from downtown. We're authorizing it, but we need to be transparent about doing this." And that's all I come to do is ask because I I don't believe in demanding anything. Okay? So, I will just leave you with one last thing. If you want to find out what really happened with our closure, as an aviator, I'd be more than happy to share that with you at another time, whenever you want. But we're here. I just want to know why our pigeons are leaving. Are you authorizing that? Is that a mission on your part? And what's the goal? Thank you very much for your time. >> Thank you. >> The next speaker is Barbara Valencia. Miss Valencia's topic is propaganda has no place in animal welfare. Good morning. >> Good morning everybody. >> Good morning. >> H good morning. Um, calling animal services community returned owner program a success is misleading. Between the years 2022 and 2024 because 2025 numbers have not been released. 8,755 animals entered the program. Only 1,957 were returned to their owners while 6,798 remain missing or unaccounted for. With 7 p8% of the animals becoming lost within this program, this is far from being a successful program as claimed. That's propaganda. Boasting about the community education program, claiming it offers robust spayneuter education. Yet, in the past 30 days, 99% of male dogs brought into animal services are not neutered, reflecting the reality of the larger scale of unneutered dogs out in our community. This raises doubts about whether the so-called robust program is actually effective or is it that education alone is pointless without the necessary tools for success. The program lacks essential resources and claiming success when evidence shows otherwise. That's propaganda. One of the biggest complaints from community members is backyard breeding. Two key measures to combat this are requiring litter permits and stopping the illegal sales of puppies. In 2025, only 109 citations were issued for not having a litter permit and just 39 for illegally selling puppies. That's for the entire year. Backyard breeding goes unchecked and puppies are being sold in Walmart parking lots and on social media, all in violation of the city ordinance. It's basically a free-for-all with very few be few being held accountable under a self-proclaimed successful non- enforcement policy. Claiming a non-inforcement policy as a s as a success while adding more animals to our pet overpopulation. That's propaganda. FYI, just four litter permits were issued by the city and animal services in 2025. Just four. referencing local rescues and advocates as detractors, enemies, and agitators because they dare to disagree with or question misinformation coming from a city council representative. This has driven away supporters and donors from the very rescues the city depends on to help manage animal services shelter population. With less funding and backing, these rescues can't take animals out of the shelter, thus leaving the animals stuck in the kennels at the shelter for longer periods, sometimes indefinitely. Vilifying local rescues and advocates. That's propaganda. A city council representative has truly mastered the art of propaganda and his role on the animal advisory committee gives him free reign to spread it without restraint. Propaganda has no place in animal welfare. Thank you. Next speaker is Ron Ko. Mr. Ko's topic is exercising his constitutional rights to the rescue 1983 animal services. He will be followed by Renee Coral, Chris Bles, Rosa Escorsa, Lordes Polar. >> I too will the Elmo for Mr. Cole. >> You're gonna place pictures on the >> Good morning. Morning. >> How are we doing today? it. We need the Elmo, please. >> Yes, sir. >> Okay. Tuesday, we're here again. Um, El Paso Animal Services Shelter Advisory Committee, ASAC. they're supposed to be doing promoting animal health, welfare, and the safety and while supporting a 90% greater live release rate. Okay, so here we sit. We already discussed a few things. Since the implement implementation of the HOS sheltering plan, we have left 50,815 strays running loose in the streets of El Paso. This information comes from El Paso Animal Services shelter reports. So, I'm giving you factual information with the proof of what's happening. I'd like to know how you consider that health, welfare, and safety of these strays. I'd like somebody to answer where they are and and come up with proof. Not best friends and Austin Pets Alive propaganda. We already know Austin pets alive and best friends and their host plan is doing this disaster across the country. So now we sit with the state of Texas is now offering $13 million to promote spay and neuters in the state of Texas because of the stray crisis. We have a stray crisis because cities and counties across the state of Texas were ignorant enough to implement the hos sheltering plan. You leave unaltered strays running loose. They end up running in packs. They end up attacking people. There's more disease. There's more puppies. And we are not fixing the problem. We need once again to go back to our original plan which actually promoted a no kill deal and we were close until it got taken out. folks, you you know, I I I don't understand. We keep coming up here with facts and figures and because somebody's a friend or somebody's relative, you know, we're not getting this fixed. So, my problem is is if we're after all these years of having these conversations and we're not getting it fixed, then we have the wrong people making the decisions. Period. We have people hiring people with no qualifications and no clue. We have people that are making the decisions that shouldn't be. We got an ASAC committee that does not take care of 50,815 animals because the hos plant doesn't care about the ones left on the street. If you read their propaganda, it only says the animals in the shelter. This is now your fault. And we're tired. We're tired of animals paying the price. This is an example of a waste of money that shouldn't be because the money has been set aside to actually accomplish good for the city of El Paso. We have plenty of room for shelters, for dogs, and we're not doing anything. You have the budget to put people in place. And what have you done? You couldn't even keep people in place at the shelter we have now. Whose fault is that? A year and a half ago, I told you about the toxic work. Well, other people, and they did nothing. I told them about the problem with the dealing with people. They did nothing. >> Thank you, Mr. Ko. You've reached the three minutes. The next speaker is Renee Coral. Mr. Gorald's topic is animal welfare. He will be be followed by Chris Phelis. Good morning. >> Good morning, Reneie. >> Good morning. So, I have seen some disturbing photos on Next Door app showing these hundreds of trapped pigeons in cages. And it's my understanding that there is an individual that is operating in the city of El Paso, trapping these pigeons and then selling them to unknown individuals or other businesses for profit and disposal that may be considered animal cruelty. Even though pigeons are not a protected species, the trapping of these pigeons for profit without oversight from this city of the El Paso or proper permits may be unlawful. Feral pigeons, like all wildlife, play an important role in their ecosystem. As opportunistic feeders, they help maintain a balance of consuming a variety of seeds, grains, and food scraps. Their feeding habits can assist in seed dispersal, helping other plant species, and maintain biodiversity in urban environments where native wildlife may be scarce. Additionally, pigeons serve as prey for various predators, including hawks and falcons, contributing to the food chain and ecosystem. Now, some people may consider feral pigeons as pest, but feral pigeons are far more mere than pest. They are resilient, adaptable, and valuable members of our urban ecosystems. Pigeons deserve our respect and thoughtful consideration. My ask is that you, Mayor Johnson, and members of city council, take a look into this individual's practices to make sure he is not breaking any city ordinance or any other laws. Um, with that said, I've also noticed that the loose dog and straight dog situation has not improved. It's it seems to be getting worse and I'm I'm trying to figure out why. I travel all over all over the country. I don't see this problem in other cities in other bigger cities. Why is it that we cannot get a handle on this situation? Why is it that we have allowed this situation to go unchecked for so many years now? I know all of you know that the majority of people care deeply about dogs running loose. Not just animal lovers, but joggers, they don't feel safe. It's not just an animal situation, an animal advocate situation. It's a safety situation. Why? Why? Why can't we get a handle on this situation? What is it that you all need to do to get a handle on the situation? We are better than this. We can do better. And for those of you that just are tired of hearing it, I'm tired of coming here. I got better things to do, but I come here because it's important. Because I love the city and we're better than that. Please do something. >> The next speaker is Chris Bles. Chris Bles. Rosa Escorsa. Rosa Escorsa. Lesar Les for's topic is uh issues at 7001 Kasaloma Circle with security, trash, suspicious people coming and going from the home. Okay. So, Sandra Olivas, her topic is discussion of ongoing neighbor related concerns at 7001 Kasaloma affecting safety, noise, and neighborhood quality of life. >> Good morning, Mayor Johnson. Good morning. And city council members. Um, >> my name is Sandra and I live near 7001 Kasaloma. And with me today are six of my neighbors. And the reason I'm here is because the situation at that home has become an ongoing safety, sanitation, and quality of life concern for our neighborhood. I work from home and I take my dogs for walks four to five times a day. And so I walk near the property and I'm a witness to a lot of what's going on and I am the one that has to call the police and codes. In July 2024, my dog Mickey was mauled in front of me. He was killed by a loose dog. That's just one of the problems because if I was to go over all the situations that I've witnessed, I would need more than 3 minutes. But some of the examples are um individuals coming into my driveway, my backyard. I have video of that. Have provided it to the police. Residents from that property um coming to my house uh telling me that they have guns. Um earlier this month I observed several young men taking guns out of their pockets, throwing them into cars. Um I see people dropping what appears to be a drug package in the mailbox. Numerous men jumping the backyard of that house. They have broken my neighbor's windows. There is no water. I witnessed the man pulling out the electrical meter from the wall or breaking it. There's no water. or no gas. Animals are in the backyard. I've called animal control many times. On November of last year, the home was raided by numerous law enforcement canines with ARs and many people were arrested. After my dog was mauled and killed, I continued to walk my other dogs because I don't have any other choice. I work from home. I have had other dogs that come from that house attacking my dog after that. I have witnessed fights in front of that house. I have witnessed people camping in front of the house. Lose dogs roaming the streets. I have provided video, photos, evidence to the police department. Grocery carts were left in the middle of the street are still being left in the middle of the street. At one time for almost an entire year, the RV that they had, there was sewage leaking out. Um there's trash from the property blowing into the neighborhoods. I attempted to speak to the people that live there and I was just met with profanity and screaming. So, we are here to beg for help. We have resort sourced to this because we don't know what else to do. This has been going on for two years and we are here to respectfully ask Mr. Mayor, the council members to review the situation at this address. Please review the situation. and ensure that city ordinances are being followed, that the animals that are there are being taken care of. >> Thank you, ma'am. >> Thank you. >> The next speaker is Selinda Cruz. >> Celinda Cruz. Her topic is a need for city medical entomologist. >> Good morning. >> Good morning. I have things for you, but they're not as nice as you leave them in. >> Good morning, honorable mayor and council members. I speak to you today as an El Pasoan concerned about the city's ability to monitor and address public health concerns resulting from the interactions between insects, other animals, humans, and the environment. These interactions can have negative effect on the negative effects on the health of El Paso. Simply, insects can impact the health of animals and humans. Transmission of disease from insects to an animal or human is not that straightforward. For example, the environment plays a role. Urbanization has created the need for water reservoirs. Water reservoirs that do not drain and create a breeding site for mosquitoes can result in an increase in the circulation of West Nile virus and thus an increase in human cases. A second example is when construction destroys the natural habitat of kissing bugs. These kissing bugs disperse and this can put them in contact with humans and increase the risk of transmission of shagus disease, a debilitating disease for which there is no cure. In a recent UTEP study, all the kissing bugs collected in the Franklin Ma mountains tested positive for the parasites that cause shagus disease. To my knowledge, the city of El Paso has no medical entomologist position in city government. A city the size of El Paso, almost 700,000 people, should have an entomologist to lead vector control in their efforts to minimize vectorbor disease threats by one tracking vector population and thus disease disease threats over time. Coordinating with animal services to monitor for vectorbor disease in the domestic and feral animal populations. and three to monitor environmental conditions that may increase the incidence of vectorbor diseases and propose actions to mitigate those threats. The entomologist could proactively coordinate with the city of El Paso public health, the Texas Department of State Health Services Veterinarian and Zunosis Control, the state entomologist, the Texas Department of State Health Services Laboratory for Zenotic Viology Group, the Department of State Health Services, Office of Border Public Health, Universities, other border municipalities and counterparts in Suades. Other large Texas cities have these positions. Establishment of this position for El Paso is long overdue. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> And I The next speaker is Patricia Osman. Miss Osman's topic is sexual assault and sexual exploitation in our communities including LGBTQIA. >> Strange M. Rocher isn't here. So, I sent you all some email and um I think everybody has well some of you who actually get on social media have seen FitFam seen that that goes in uh hangs out in District One, Miss Travis Street Corners, little mask, little BDSM whip. I ask, is it fine that children are driving in their cars with their parents and have to ask their parents, what's that person doing? Should should a parent have to ask answer the question what a is? I would hope not. Miss Rochi mentioned it to her over the phone. She thought it was funny. Oh, the dancer. No, it's not a dancer. We have We have had Mr. Firo, Mr. Caneles and as will know that I've brought this up before. We've had a BDSM group working out pro it's a prostitution group working out of El Paso for a while now for a bit thanks to not local law enforcement. They kind of went under the under the radar for a bit but back up. same person who is associated social media as being a counselor for the Rainbow Center. I've got those screenshots to prove it. And I did reach out to the Rainbow Center. They were aware of it. Yet, it's not valid credentials this person has. It's the same thing that the National Center for Sexual Exploitation puts out that the porn industry uses and sex workers use. You get online, pay a little money, and you can print out this little certificate so that if the cops show up, you could pretend you're something you're not. This is the thing is that the sexual assaults that are happening at the detention center, people's privates getting crushed and everything else, if you don't think that's associated has any connection with this, then you're lying to yourselves and you're lying to the community. But quite frankly, something needs to be done because one, the that's that's still against the law. obscinity yet PD went over there didn't do anything should have arrested him didn't and that the prostitution that's online and being promoted in porn you also against the law in Texas you can't be producing and distributing that in the state of Texas yet it's happening out of El Paso so do something thank you Miss Osman the next speaker is Jose Gaston Barriia He will be followed by Elizabeth Crawford. Mr. Barria's topic is a return on investment. >> Good morning. >> Good morning, Mr. Mayor. Good morning, council. >> Mayor Johnson, council members. My name is Jose Gaston. I'm here to address the communication failures highlighted by the southern FAA air airspace shutdown last week. Mayor, you rightly stated that El Paso deserve better communication and more respect. Noting that a midnight shutdown notification end your life. I agree with your frustration. You are absolutely correct. However, I want to I want to to draw attention to a p to a perspective rooted in the training this city provide itself providing me. Thanks to those city sponsorship many years ago, I completed advanced training with ICS 300 and 400 advanced incident command. In those coursers, you told me that the core principle of safety is unified command, requiring information to flew to flow seamlessly between agencies before a crisis. What I observe in the recent failures, the major water outage, communication breakdown, and now the FAA airspace issue is a direct violation of the protocol this city trained me to uphold. Frankly, if I manage an incident the way that the past two weeks has been handled, I will have failed the course that you sponsor. We're seeing a dangerous pattern on leadership operating in silos. My request to this council is urgent and specific. Use the essential training you already pay for. I urge you to formally reestablish an stand a standing joint information center that mandates leation from the city, the county and our federal partners. We need a robust system to guarantee that when the next pipe burst or the next airspace airspace issues arise, the city, county, and state speak in one unified voice from the very first minute. The frustration you experienced last Wednesday is shared by the entire public. Let's commit to the standard of unified command that you yourself taught us. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Final speaker is Elizabeth Crawford. Miss Crawford, star six, please to unmute your telephone. And her topic is abolition and abortion. Good morning, Miss Crawford. >> Thank you. Good morning. Thank you. Um, I' I'd like to start with an acronym, G R Ace Ce, grace, God's riches at Christ's expense. Ephesians chapter 2:es 8 and N. For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It's the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. Grace, many of us are familiar with the song Amazing Grace. It was written by John Newton, a former slave trader, a wicked man whom God mercifully saved and transformed. John Newton became close friends with William Wilburforce, a British Parliament member who is a Christian that God used mightily for the abolishment of the transatlantic straight transatlantic slave trade in England. We uh as pro-lifers are crying out to God to abolish abortion in our nation as he miraculously abolished the wicked transatlantic slave trade in the 1800s if he would have mercy and bring to an end the practice of abortion in our nation. As a white person, I often find myself stuck in circles where I hear racist comments about Hispanic and/or black Americans, about immigrants. When we stand on the sidewalk to save babies from abortion, we hear racist comments from two groups. Some of those groups are are the passers by. It's um the one center where I I've often served in New Jersey is an affluent community. Um some of the comments come from the the passers by there. also from the CHO pro-choice uh clinic escorts as they call themselves. This is where the brazen race racist comments do come from when we're on the sidewalk. Comments about welfare babies, about people who can't support these kids, so you abort them. It's wicked racism. It's the highest form of racism. Um and it's it's based on demographic, economics, etc. We're told in God's word, therefore, if any man be in Christ, he's a new creature. Old things are passed away. Behold, all things are become new. We as pro-lifeers long that God would do a mighty work and one day abolish abortion in our nation to make it un unthinkable, as was done with the transatlantic slave trace. one of my favorite um pieces that was penned um by someone who's quite obscure um a missionary um last century in Africa discovered what a a pastor in Zimbabwe had penned um he was very soon after that martyed. Um it's a beautiful piece fellowship of the unashamed an African martyr's prayer. um just a a beautiful piece and and as we think this month of um Black History Month, this is probably one of my favorite pieces, probably my favorite piece of literature um that that is written u by someone who's black. I'm part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have holy spirit power. My past is redeemed. My present makes sense. My future's secure. I'm finished with low living. >> Thank you, Miss Crawford. You've reached the three minutes, ma'am. Thank you. >> Thank you, ma'am. That concludes call to the public council. Per the rules of order, no use of personal cellular devices nor personal communication should take place on the deas while the meeting is in session. Once you obtain the floor from the mayor, you will have up to 10 minutes for debate and may speak twice per debatable motion. Please speak into the microphone and refrain from side conversations at the day as well while the meeting is in session. If you're joining through teams, please make sure your microphones are muted to reduce any background noise. That brings us to the consent agenda. All matters listed under the consent agenda will be considered by city council to be routine and will be enacted by one motion unless separate discussion is requested by council members. Prior to the vote, members of the audience may ask questions regarding items on the consent agenda. When the vote has been taken if an item has not been called out for separate discussion, the item has been approved. Council may however reconsider any item at any time during the meeting. Mayor Potim. >> Thank you, Miss Prine. I make a motion to approve the consent agenda with the following revisions. Page nine, item 26, postpone two weeks per capital improvement. >> Okay, we have a motion. Is there a second? >> Okay, Miss Brian. >> There's a motion made by Mayor Proim Chavez, seconded by Representative Lemon, and this is to approve the cassette agenda as revised. On that motion, call for the vote. and the voting session and that motion passes unanimously. Representative Maldonado Rochan not present. We now turn to page number four. This is the introduction of ordinances. These are items seven and eight. >> Motion to approve. >> Second. >> Okay, we have a motion in a second. Miss Brian, >> there's a motion made by Mayor Prom Chavez, second by alternate mayor prom to introduce the ordinances. These are items seven and eight on that motion. Call for the vote and the voting session. That motion passes unanimously. Representative Maldonado Rochan not present. We now turn to page number five to the public hearings. Item number nine is a public hearing of an ordinance authorizing the conveyance of real property owned by the city of El Paso to JC G Ventures LLC for the purchase price of $51,000. Such property described as portion of lots 1819 block 6 Alamemeda acre city of El Paso, El Paso County, Texas. >> Mr. Fine. Can we take 9, 10, and 11 together? >> Yes, sir. Item 10 is a public hearing of an ordinance authorizing the conveyance of real property owned by the city of El Paso to Juan Martinez for the purchase price of $49,000. The real property described as portions of lots 8, 9, and 10, block 3, Lancaster edition, unit 3 in city of El Paso, El Paso County, Texas. Item 11 is an a public hearing of an ordinance authorizing the conveyance of real property owned by the city of El Paso to Tourist Day Ventures LLC for the purchase price of $25,000. Such property described as portion of track 9B block 36 is led a grant also known as portion of tract one spur edition in addition to the city of El Paso, El Paso County, Texas. >> Move to approve. >> Okay, there's a motion to approve items 9 through 11. Mary Lou. >> Good morning, mayor and council. Mary Louis Vidosa with the real estate division for the record. Okay. This first presentation is for a property sale agreement on Auburn and Delta P285972. This property was brought before council in September of 2025. City council vetted the surplus property and approved its listing. It was listed in accordance with the Texas Local Government Code section 253014. And the property was marketed via a broker and listed for 30 days on that multilisting service. The property size is.16 acres zoned R4 residential. It was listed on October the 8th, 2025. The proposed buyer is JCG A LLC. The appraised value on that property was $47,000. The purchase price is 51,000 plus closing cost. We received one offer and we recommend selling the property to the highest offer. >> Questions? >> Was that all three? >> That's the first one. You want to take the next one? >> Yes, please. Okay. Okay, this next one is a property sale agreement on ths and Elgen property identification number 280871. This property was also brought before council in September of 2025. Council vetted this as surplus property and approved the listing. It was listed in accordance with the Texas Local Government Code section 253.014. The property was marketed via a broker and it was listed for at least 30 days on that multiple listing service. The size of the property is 0.21 acres. It's zoned R4 residential. Was listed in September of 2025. The proposed buyer is Juan Martinez. The appraised value is $49,000. The purchase price is 49,000 plus closing costs. We received one offer and we recommend selling the property to the highest offer. Okay. and the last item is a property sale agreement for Penddale and Roseway property identification number 68379. This was also brought before council in May of 2025 where the property was vetted in as surplus in it was listed in accordance with the Texas local government code section 253.014. The property was marketed via a broker and listed for at least 30 days. The property is 1.39 acres in size. It is zoned R4 residential C1 commercial special contract and apartment mobile home special contract. The property was listed in on June 6th of 2025. The proposed buyer is Tourist Day Ventures LLC. The appraised value of the property is $23,000. It was uh the apprais appraisal was done in August of 2025. The purchase price is $25,000 plus closing cost. We received two offers on this property and we recommend selling the property to the highest offer. >> All right. Thank you. Any questions for Mary Lou on items number nine, 10 or 11? >> Representative Leon. >> Mayor, I do. Mary Lou, by any chance I know it's very early. Um, what on item 11? What the plans are for that property? >> I can get that information for you, repres. Thank you very much. >> Of course. >> Okay. Any other questions for Mary Lou on items 9 through 11? All right. Miss Pry, >> there was a motion made by Representative Lemon, seconded by Mayor Prom Chavez to adopt the ordinances on items 9, 10, and 11. On that motion, call for the vote and the voting session. And that motion passes unanimously. Representative Maldonado Rocha not present. >> Okay, let's take item number 12. Item 12 is a public hearing of an ordinance authorizing the city manager to execute a tax resale deed conveying all right title and interest and real property described as a portion of lot 18 block 13A Logan Heights edition to the city of El Paso El Paso County, Texas to Ombberto Loausano in accordance with section 34.05H of the Texas Tax Code. >> Okay. Is there a motion to approve this item? >> Approve. >> Okay. There's no presentation, is there? >> No. Okay. Any questions for staff on item number 12? >> Okay, Miss Bryan, >> there was a motion made by Representative Aso, seconded by Representative Lemon, and this is to adopt the ordinance on item 12. There's no public comment on that motion. Call for the vote and the voting session. The motion passes unanimously. Representative Maldonado Rocha not present. Okay, let's take item number 13. >> Item 13 is discussion and action authorizing the city manager to develop within 60 days a proposed data center policy framework for the city of El Paso. The framework shall prioritize community engagement, utility providers, local, state, and regional government in implementation considerations. Evaluate long-term impacts on infrastructure and utilities during development of the framework. City negotiations or development discussions related to new data center projects shall be paused. Further direct the city attorney to conduct a legal analysis of all current 380 agreements with data centers. This item was placed by representatives TJO and ASO. >> Okay. Representative Tjo. >> Thank you, mayor. I have a prepared a motion for action to consider and I've emailed this to Miss Prime. Uh the change on this is uh right after the 380 agreements. Do I read the whole thing, Miss P? >> Miss Pry, do we need a motion on >> She needs to make a motion to approve. >> Okay. >> Miss Tjo, you need to read the >> I motion to approve. >> You need to read the motion as you would like it to. >> Okay. >> Please. >> Got it. >> Discussion and action authorizing the city manager to develop a 60-day uh to develop within 60 days the proposed data center poly policy framework for the city of El Paso. The framework shall prioritize community engagement, utility providers, local, state, and regional governments for implementation considerations, evaluate long-term impacts on infrastructure and utilities during development of the framework, city negotiations, or development discussions related to the new data center projects shall be paused. further direct the city attorney to conduct legal analysis of all current 380 agreements with data centers to identify best practices, lessons learned, and opportunities to develop a new framework. And so the only change on this is right after 380 agreements includes with data centers to identify best practices, lessons learned, and opportunities to develop a new framework. So, a motion motion to approve. Is that right? >> Okay. There's a motion and a second. Okay. >> Okay. Thank you. And this was emailed to Miss Prime. So, you all have that information. >> I just sent it to Council. >> Thank you so much. So, I I brought this uh item forward along with Representative ADO because it is both needed and necessary to have this discussion to carefully consider the direction of data center development in El Paso. Before bringing this item forward, I met with members of the community, business community, residents, activists to gain a holistic perspective of opportunities, concerns, and the broader implications of this industry. Through these conversations, it became clear that there were some misunderstandings and misconceptions on multiple sites. And so that's why I felt it was important to bring this forward to hear from residents, businesses, and including Meta directly. Mayor, I have invited Rep uh a representative from Meta to speak. She accepted and is present online and has signed up to speak. And so when it's appropriate, I respectfully ask that you uh give her a few minutes to speak. Again, it's so important that we have this open dialogue with all so that we can all have a better understanding. Public opposition on data centers is increasing. There are real concerns regarding water consumption, power generation, air quality, and the potential impact on utility rates. These concerns require thoughtful consideration and careful analysis supported by data and long-term forecasting. We also have to take a look at the bigger picture policy uh the bigger policy picture. State leadership has advanced a vision of Texas as a national leader in the data center development and recent state legislation has narrowed the scope of what local government can regulate. The city and county operate within within state and federal law and utilities cannot refuse service to lawful customers. However, cities and counties retain authority over land use, zoning, infrastructure coordination, and development conditions tied to supply, demand, and public interest. That authority carries responsibility. Those scales of complexity of data center development requires coordinated leadership. Effective governments in this space requires collaboration along with the city, county, utilities, regional partners, and business community and our residents to plan accordingly. My position on data centers is neutral. I am not opposed to data centers, nor am I fully supportive of unlimited expansion. I support economic development because it drives growth and opportunity for our community. At the same time, we must be thoughtful in attracting business that aligns with El Paso's long-term interests and sustainability. This item being proposed is not about making changes to any existing contracts or agreements. Existing agreements are binding contracts that cannot be unilaterally altered. And with respect to meta, the project went un uh underwent thorough a thorough review process by prior council and city before uh it was approved. The city approached this project through a thorough review process and Meta has engaged as a collaborative and constructive partner. And to date, they have engaged collaborative with collaboratively with the city and my office to evaluate water restoration initiatives in the northeast and other areas of El Paso. The company has expressed an intention to restore more water than it consumes, reflecting a commitment of long-term stability. I mean uh long-term stewardship and sustainability in the consideration of additional data center development. This item includes a temporary pause on a new and pend on any new and pending negotiations to allow for a coordinated process to develop framework and regulatory guidelines. To be clear, this would not be a moratorum. It is a to a temporary pause to develop framework. The framework would would include an examination of how incentives are structured, how performance matrix are evaluated, and how corporate responsibility responsibility aligns with long-term community sustainability. Incentives should be considered as well as infrastructure capacity, fiscal impact and regional resource planning. It's important that the framework is adopted and balanced. If it becomes overly restrictive or unclear, development could simply move outside the city. then the city would not benefit from tax revenue but share but share on the resources that we use like our water and our power and it would still affect the outcome of El Paso. That would not serve El Paso well. I ask for your support in advancing this item. The responsibility before us is not whether growth will occur but how it will occur. By adopting this measure, we can ensure we move forward with a clear and balanced framework, welcoming responsible investment, remaining competitive while safeguarding our resources. Thank you. >> Representative uh Fiero. >> Thank you, Mayor. Mayor, first and foremost, there's no one up here who's against saving resources in our community or and keeping our community this beautiful uh city that we have. Um whereas I I agree with some of U Representative Threjo's amendments to to the motion, I think it's important for us to also take in account that your leadership and the leadership of Betsy Keller in the county uh by allowing us to partner with them, hence saving tax dollars um using the resources that we have with with you and Miss Mack and her staff becoming members of that of that committee. again saving um tax dollars for our community, not dup duplicating services, and then coming back to this body with what the findings are of the committee. Um I plan on making a motion or make a motion that we we postpone or delete this item until after that committee has come back with its u results and and shared with this council. And at that point, uh, Representative Thjo and and Representative um um Josh, I'm sorry, Dr. um can can decide whether they want to put their mo their motion back in play. So I I miss Bri, I make a motion that we delete this item until Miss Mack uh and and our legal council um Miss Neman are able to after participating in the county's um um in the county's u uh committee to come back with us with recommendations and then and then we can fine-tune them for for the city. >> Okay. Is there a second on this amendment? >> Second for discussion. >> Okay. And and before we move on on on the amendment, so I I think we're all trying to get to the the same place and that is a data center framework. And I I want the council to know that when I heard that the county was looking at hiring a consultant to look at best practices for data centers during one of our monthly meetings. So, we have a monthly meeting where I meet with the county along with the uh the county administrator and the city manager and I asked if they would be uh able to incorporate the city into the best practices and they agreed that they would work with our city manager and staff to to do this. I know it is important to have a collaborative on best practices guidelines with the county so we can all be on the same page as a region. The collaborative will address infrastructure, resource strain, environmental impacts, and long-term community costs. So, by aligning our efforts, the city and the county can better minimize unintended negative impacts and create a more coordinated approach to development that benefits both our jurisdictions and the community as a whole. Miss Mack just received something in writing on Wednesday. So, a council who wasn't able to come to council, she just got it on Wednesday, February the 11th from the county. And it outlined a concept of the working relationship between the city and the county. I think we need to give our city manager uh the time to continue what has already been started. In addition, our city's attorney's office has already been proactive in reaching out to other communities to gain information on governance around data centers. I think we need to give them more time to bring us a comprehensive city and county plan so that we don't make decisions at the city that push data centers into the county and the county doesn't make decisions that push data centers into the city. So that's what Representative Fierro was was was mentioning in his amendment. A lot of the work that is mentioned in item number 13 has already been taking place at the city and county level again with our city manager, our city attorney, and the county administrator and the county judge to make sure we're we're approaching this from a community and not just in silo or in in isolation. So that is what the amendment was and on the amendment is there any further discussion representative >> and mayor it wouldn't be an amendment if he's making a motion to delete it would just be a separate motion alto together just to delete the item. Okay. So, there was a motion and a second. >> That's correct. >> Yeah. For discussion. Okay. >> Call for the vote. >> Okay. So, the motion was made by alternate mayor promp seconded by repres >> Lemon to delete. >> A motion to delete an item is not a debatable motion. >> The the vote is supposed to happen immediately. >> Okay. Go ahead. Representative F. >> Mayor, then my deletion. Can we postpone it? I would like to make an um a correction in my in my motion to postpone it until after Miss Mack and um Miss Neman and the mayor's committee can come back and and update us. >> 60 days. >> Well, it was just it would just be to delete. >> Okay. Well, so was right to delete. >> So, Miss Prime, he his motion cannot in instruct the city staff to come back in a period of time. >> That would be a separate motion if he wants to if he wants to amend the motion. >> Okay. He can amend the motion on the floor that was made by Representative Boyjo if that's to amend or he can just make a separate motion just to delete the item. >> Okay. >> Mayor, the problem with with amending for putting a timeline on it is is I'd like to give um the city manager and her team and whoever you or whomever you appoint from council enough time for that committee to finish before they come back and give us a report. So wouldn't couldn't we delete it until the report has been completed and at that time put it on as agenda item. >> You can just delete it with the understanding that they would bring it forward at a later time. >> So do you want me to call >> indefinitely? >> Yeah. Call for the vote to postpone. >> Yep. Call for the vote on represent. >> Okay. So the motion was made and this is it has the same meaning to delete or postpone indefinitely. Indefinitely means to delete. I mean it has the same meaning and Robert's rules the correct term is postpone indefinitely. >> Go ask a question >> on that motion. >> Miss Frank one second represent. >> But in either motion we don't have the ability for discussion. That's what I second. I I second it specifically and stated I second the motion for discussion purposes. >> It can be de the postpone indefinitely or delete can be debated. >> It can. >> Yes, >> it can. C right. >> Yes. Okay. >> Yes. >> Thank you. Thank you, Mr. >> Okay. Representative, >> that's what we were doing at the >> Yeah, I was pretty sure it could be um debated >> or just discussed. I I wanted to say that I did not want to support deleting this because I think there's more to discuss and I'm actually going to offer an amendment if this continues on giving direction with the county and I'm prepared to do that but I understand that we're talking about the deletion right now but I just wanted to state that for the record. >> Okay. Representative Limon. >> Okay. Okay. Okay. Represent canales. >> Okay. >> Representative Trey. >> Number four. >> Yeah. Number four. >> Thank you, mayor. So, this item is already asking for what they're working on, but it does cover more areas, you know, and it goes into the backup. If you look at the backup, it covers more. I think it's more in depth on what is being asked and I think it's really something that should be considered because if if it is something that they're already working with the with the county and then uh Representative Aido is is going to uh is wanting to bring an amendment to include that. I think it covers the whole aspect of it. So, I'm asking if if we could just continue this conversation so that we can hear the full aspect of what's being asked for and if the decision is later to go along with what what you all are proposing, I'm fine with that as well. But I just want to make sure that the the conversation continues. Thank you. >> Okay. Okay. Represent canals. >> Thank you, Mayor. Yeah. If a lot of the work is already taking place, then I don't see the problem with proceeding with some direction to continue that work with some additional specific parameters or areas of focus like working with the county, for example. >> Thank you. >> All right, Miss Bryan, can you figure this out on the amendments? >> So, the motion on the floor right now is to delete or postpone indefinitely. >> Okay. >> And that takes precedence over the main motion. >> Okay. Call for the vote. >> On that motion, call for the vote. in the voting session and the motion fails. Two to six. Representatives Fier Lemon voting I. The remainder of council voting A. That motion fails. >> Okay. Now we're back on the main motion. Correct. >> Okay. Representative. >> Okay. Repres. >> Thank you, mayor. I just kind of want to thank everyone for making time to come sign up for public comment whether at 10:00 a.m. or for the item. This has been a a topic that I have not been able to escape anywhere that I go, whether it's community meetings and we're talking about streets and then we end up talking about data centers and there's there's a lot of um heartburn with this. And I think for me, I like to listen to constituents. I've seen it from all spectrums of of the political spectrum, just all sides of it, which in in this um polarizing world that we have, I feel like this is something that the community is really uniting. But at the same time, I've done a lot of conversations with people in the business community, other local elected officials, other governments, uh, just to kind of understand what is happening, what everybody is seeing, what kind of perspectives they they are offering on this. And so what I see in this item is the city giving the direction that the city manager and the city attorney don't have. There's been a lot of great information that they have proactively given to us, but this council has not given them any sort of direction on what to do with this. Um, I'm not sure if they have been receiving things from the community on this and they're responding as it is as it's coming in, but what's important here is is the direction. And so what I want to offer is an amendment to really strengthen that direction so we know where we're going. I had a great conversation with Betsy Keller, the the chief administrator at the county of El Paso yesterday and she shared that Miss Mack and her have had good conversations about this. There's that committee that's formed that the mayor was talking about and they are looking to get a consultant on this topic. And what makes this important is that we have a lot of people pulling us in many different directions. But what I think the consultant can do is give us that independent review that will give us an understanding of how this is going to affect our utilities, how this is going to affect our community in the long run. And as they're kind of figuring that out in the next few weeks, they still don't have a cost associated. But at the same time, what Miss Mack can do is continue engaging with the mayor in those conversations and then have an understanding of what is happening with those costs as they come in. And then at that time, Miss Mack can have that authority depending on how much it costs to engage in it or she could come back to city council. So, what I'm offering as an amendment is in the first sentence of the item where it ends with city of El Paso instead instead of ending with a period there, it would say with El Paso County to share cost in hiring a consultant that will analyze the impacts of data centers and other developments that may have potentially large demands on our resources. So, um I move to make that amendment. Sorry, I forgot to say move before Okay. Is is there a second? >> Okay. >> And I'll send you the language, Miss Frank. So, when everybody receives the language, it it's the area in red that would be added. >> Who has a second? I'm sorry, I didn't hear. >> Represent trail. Did you get that, Miss Frank? >> I did. I got it in Teams. >> Okay. >> I'm pasting it to an email. And you're you're just adding the font in red, correct? >> Yes, it's it's in red. And that would be to the first sentence which gives direction to formally work with the county and Miss Keller said that they would love to have that formalized and was very supportive of this motion. >> Okay. I just sent it to council. >> Miss Beck, I don't know if you wanted to speak to what you've been doing with the county. You're okay. >> Yeah. On the amendment. Are we done? Representative. Okay. Any questions on the amendment? Representative uh Fier. >> Thank you, Mayor. Mayor, it's my understanding had we allowed you to put your agenda item for next next meeting, this would be the discussion that we would be having as a as a council as a whole and as a whole be able to form the direction, the guidelines and and maybe not even have to like representative um just committed ourselves to paying half of the the the consulting fees. I don't remember that was any part of of Betsy communicating that to to you and um I just think that this is I still stand by my motion. I think this is premature. We should have allowed you to put your agenda item on and you to work out the details instead of us doing this on the fly up here um at at the moment and we wouldn't have committed the council to monies to the county. >> Okay. Representative um Roachcha, >> the amendment. Yes, >> I'm gonna speak on the amendment really quick and and I I do feel that there needs to be the framework that needs to be built in at this time. I don't know if anybody tuned in yesterday to uh to Robert Cortinez's um presentation on the five-year outlook for the city of El Paso or if you tuned in to FOAC on Thursday of last week when we talked about the debt service rate that we're at. Basically, as to sum it up, he told us that we cannot take on additional expenses at this time without coming back and talking about what the tradeoff is. And I know that part of what what uh Mayor Johnson was going to do was to work and and really allow and and if you heard the the meeting that the county had back in January, Miss Keller was very forthcoming and she says that this will take a very specialized type of consultant to come in because just the commissioners like ourselves are not the experts in this. I also want to say that part of what the gatekeeping process already is that maybe many of you have not maybe you know maybe you don't know is that the city works very closely with Borderlex Alliance. They are the gatekeepers for all of any type of economic development that comes through and do a lot of the upfront work that the that you're asking the city to already do. Ours comes with a price tag. We need to give the county the opportunity to bring in the city and to be able to to do that or we need to understand from reposedo and repo what are you willing to trade off because this is going to be costly to sit and miss Mack I know we haven't spoken specifically about about this. I don't know if Repjo or rep Asav spoke to you individually uh or if they spoke to Miss Ms. Neman as to what it would cost. >> This is the first I'm hearing about the consulting services. I have not had that conversation with Miss Keller either. I'm just back and forth with my team right now. We just believe in terms of what it would take for us to bring that online and if you're really talking about the community engagement and the level that I think that council would expect if you're bringing a consultant on, we're thinking that that's going to take 18 months to two years. So, I just want to make sure that as we're adopting, you know, we're talking about an iterative report back to get that data and information together so we can tell you what that would look like. I do not believe that we will be bringing more back a framework within 60 days as stated. >> Thank you, Miss Mack. And and just to add to it, you know, sitting on the financial oversight committee, we have to look at every single penny that is that is spent. Rep. Basedo, you're the former chairman for that for that particular um for that committee. And so it it's it's our responsibility to make sure that I heard a from everyone today. But when it comes to what the price tag is on that, we need we need to know. Everything that's laid out here on the amendment shows that it there's cost to it. What is that cost? We don't know what the cost is on the consultant, but there's also cost that goes into what staff is going to take. If there's any outreach, that's going to require overtime. So, all of this requires cost at some point that we need to tally up. We're on the hook now for for this for this shared price of the consultant. So, thank you, mayor. >> Any further discussion on the amendment? So I I I agree with Representative Roachcha and I I think you know as a body needs to make the decision on spending the resources for the taxpayers and again at the end of the day we all want to get to the same place but you have to work with the county. I mean we we are the city and there is the county for those of you and I know you know this there is other data centers proposed in the county. So if we work collectively, we can make sure that we protect the resources as the entire region. And we had already had these discussions ongoing. Uh and again, Miss Mack just received something last Wednesday and and I think we should have let that work a little bit longer so we could be more prepared in messaging out to the community on what we were doing and and the direction we were going. So what I was saying earlier is that I think they need more time. I can tell you that our city attorney's office has reached out to other communities that have data centers to see what the best practices are with ordinances so we could protect El Paso. So that is the type of work that's been ongoing and you know we we need to make sure that whatever we do as a community that we're protecting uh El Paso. that that is first and foremost, but at the same time, we're in El Paso County, so we got to do it collectively and make sure that we get it done uh right. So, I don't disagree with uh Representative Roachcha or Representative Fier on their comments. So, this is on the amendment. Okay. Representative, >> one last comment. You know, mayor, I have to question, and this is for Miss Neman and and Mrs. um Mack. Can a council member make a commitment, a financial commitment on a project, on an issue and bring it to to council, one council member by themselves? >> Representative the one member of council doesn't bind the body. uh all financial decisions regarding budgetary uh movement is done by the whole or by budget resolution. >> Okay. >> Mayor, my understanding is this wouldn't even be valid to vote on because we have somebody already commit to spending the the city's resources. So, we should go back to the original motion of just postponing this until the committee can come back with and allow you, Miss Mack, to negotiate. hopefully for less than than what's already been committed um to move us forward. >> But we have >> in and >> Okay. Well, we'll we'll go we'll come back. We'll come back. Representative Tel. >> Thank you, Mayor. I'm trying to understand h what what what is being proposed here originally is different than what's being asked because within within the uh the line item it says to uh to work with local county state regional so it's not just county it's everyone who has an interest in El Paso the city the county and of course with regional you know talk speak with our our regional. We're looking at this as a whole region. I think by just having this conversation about the county, we're missing other entities. I think that this proposal that I originally brought covers all entities including the county and having that conversation and planning in addition with the county. What I what I'm including on here is, you know, speaking to the business community and to our residents. So, you know, that's why I think it's important that we look at this. It's not to go against anything that's being asked uh uh mayor that you're bringing forth. I'm just saying let's look at a broader scope of what's what's what we should be looking at. >> And and I think the disconnect is the work is already ongoing. It's it's already in process and and this is is is maybe different from the work that's being performed with our county partner because there's there's work being done. So now we're proposing some work here at the city that Miss Mack and her staff are ultimately going to have to carry to the county. That's the difference. We have to determine which direction we want to go in. Do we want to let the city staff, the city manager, and our city attorney continue to gather information and bring it back to the body as a whole at some point or do we want to change the direction and go go this direction and that's up to the to the body here? That's where we're at. >> Thank you. >> Sure. Sure. Representative Nino. >> Thank you, Mayor. And just for, you know, the benefit of the public, I'm going to read the letter that the county sent over to Miss Mack if that's okay. It says, "Good evening, Miss Mack. As we can >> give the date of that, too, please." It >> says, "Wednesday, February 11th, 7:39 p.m. Good evening, Miss Mack. As we have recently discussed, as development interest in data centers and other high resource demand projects continues to grow, the county would like to explore working collaboratively with the city to establish shared best practices guides. Our goal would be to be proactive, address infrastructure, resource strain, environmental impacts, and long-term community costs while ensuring responsible economic growth. By aligning our efforts, I believe we could better minimize unintended negative impacts and create a more coordinated approach to development that benefits both our jurisdiction and the community as a whole. It would also streamline navigating these standards for businesses. The process would begin with an internal working team and may involve the use of a consultant to help develop the guidelines to for that our entities would consider for adop that our entities could consider for adoption. If the city is interested in participating, please identify the appropriate staff members and we could coordinate as we begin this process. We appreciate your consideration for this partnership and look forward to partnering up with you on this important effort. I just felt it was important to read that uh so that you know we all are aware of what the county shared with us um whenever this important decision it's an important and it's a a valid concern amongst all of us and our a lot of our community members but um I thought it was important to just read that mayor >> thank you >> represent Trey >> thank you I have a question so I I am confused so it's my understanding that in order for the city and staff and and Miss Mack to work on something they need a directive from the c from the council. Is there a directive here to ask them to do that? Should that be a motion? >> Yeah. So, right now that said, what was the last line of your statement there? If you're willing to what? >> From the county. says, "Um, if the city is interested in participating, could you please identify the appropriate staff members we should coordinate with as we begin the process? We appreciate your consideration for this partnership and look forward to partnering up with you on this important effort." >> Okay. And so, have they've already been have you already been working with the county? >> Yes. So, we've we've spoken to the county. We really consider this an extension of our climate work, >> you know. So I when we start to talk about a consultant I really would like us to figure out where our resources are. You know I would bring the climate team that's a team of three. We're bringing our strategic and legislative affairs people who working on policy. So we have a lot of staff internally who I think have you know some specializations in some of these areas get together with the county come together with some framing and then really understand where we think we need additional resource. We also want to make sure that we have alignment between what we see as our ability and our regulator regulatory authority locally to ensure that anything that we're developing is something that really can be impactful. We really don't want something that's going to sit on the shelf. We don't want something that doesn't allow for both the city and the county to have um the ability to feel that they can have some teeth in some type of policy that can move us forward. And so in some ways I think the wording is kind of like you know putting some suspenders on us in terms of the things that we want to get done and we would probably end up coming back to you anyway with some type of guideline in terms of how we believe that we could approach this um under our legal framework with the assistance of our of our uh attorney. Okay. >> Thank you. Miss Mack, you know, when we had conversations, I had asked if you were working with the county in in putting together something and you had mentioned that you that you were not. So that's why I'm confused. >> I responded to Miss Keller. So we had um we had informal conversations about this for about a month and a half. I think we spoke the same week that the item came to um their um commissioner's court. And at that time she uh uh said she was going to actually meet with each one of them to make sure she had clear direction on the work that was going to happen. And then we had a meeting on Tuesday in person and she sent uh the request formally on Wednesday and I named the staff people and gave her you know the folks who will be working on it. So I think she has clearer direction on what was going to happen on her side and what our responsibility and what our joint work would be. >> Okay. So my question is the the motion on the table right now is to direct what's what's the direction? Miss Yeah, Miss Miss Pry, you but but before we get there, we're still talking, I believe, on the amendment. Miss uh Neman, I I know that you're still gathering information from other and this just is happening as we're going, but I believe you are looking at other contracts and ordinances and other communities to help put guard rails around what we need to do here in El Pa or you just are barely getting some of this. >> So, so it's very preliminary work, mayor. um just in terms of what other cities specifically in Arizona have been doing and I asked for copies of two contracts out of the city of MSA that have a agreements or 380 or some sort of agreements with Google and Facebook. However, we wouldn't recommend making any ordinance amendments until we see what the work that Miss M and the county are doing in terms of what that looks like before we recommend any um ordinance changes. >> Okay. >> And again, we all we're all trying to get to the same place here. Represent. >> So, I I just needed to clarify. I as a council member did not commit to a county administrator that we're going to commit money to this. Like that's why it's part of the motion to see if the body wanted to do that. I'll give you another example. A few months ago, we all voted unanimously to hire a consultant for the purchasing department and no one was asking how much that was going to cost. Everybody approved it because we needed it. And so I thought that if the county is doing a lot of this work, Miss Mack has not been given direction, Miss Neman has not been given direction, then why not join the county in sharing costs for this? That's the intent. The county does not have a number yet. And if this council thought that that money was too much and we wanted Miss Mack to come back and tell us that she can do that, but I don't want to be working parallel to the county. We should be working in tandem with them and more collaboration between the city and the county should be happening. So I thought out of fairness, it would be good to share costs with them. And so that's what this is is putting forth. The council can say no. The council could say yes. But I just didn't want words to be put in my mouth on this just because that's not what the intent was. But at the same time, I think that Miss Neman, um I'm not sure where you started doing the preliminary work to look at Arizona, which is great, but are you doing preliminary work just because you've been getting things in your office or what what was the intent there? is my my knowledge is that you're not going to do a deep dive. You or Miss Mack will not do a deep dive without any council direction. >> Correct. There there has been no deep dive. The mayor has been discussing having conversations and he mentioned the city of Messa, Arizona. I have a list of ordinances. That's it. >> But if you got more direction then you would do a deeper dive. Correct. >> So So rewriting ordinances is not a is not an insignificant task. It takes a substantial amount of city resources to rewrite ordinances and this traditionally requires stakeholder input. So I I would not undertake rewriting ordinances until we get further direction on what those ordinances should look like and what the framework looks like and what other communities have done. So it's that's a long ways away in terms of the work that I've done at this point. It's simply gathering a few ordinances and getting a summary of what they look like. >> Correct. Thank you. Okay, Miss Prine, I think we are on this amendment. If you can read this one back where we're at. >> Yes. So, the amendment is to insert the words, and this is after the first sentence, to insert the words with El Paso County to share costs in hiring a consultant that will analyze the impacts of data centers and other developments that may have potentially large demands on our resources. >> Okay. Call for the vote on this one. on the amendment. Call for the vote and the voting session and the motion fails. 62 representatives as Canales voting I. The remainder of council voting nay. The motion fails. >> Okay. Now we're back on the main motion. Miss Fry, >> that's correct. There is there another amendment, Miss? >> No. >> Okay. >> Now, that was the amendment from Representative Ato. Is there another There's no more amendments. >> There's no amendment. >> So, we're on We're on the main original motion as stated by Representative. >> Okay. Representative Limon. >> Represent Limon. >> Thank you, Mayor. We gave our ace away. I I I I don't understand what we just did, but we we really gave potentially funding away. Well, we we could have well, we did give it because it's out there in public. We voted no. When we I attended the El Paso water utilities meeting at the Mission Valley uh regional command center, the question of data centers was brought up and an interesting comment made by John Belaloo and he said there's a lot of data centers in our area. So they're not just huge, they're not met, but there's a lot of them in the city already and in the county. This item is critical. It's vital. It's super important and we need to take action. I like the idea of the collaboration with the county, but if we're going to have to wait and determine whether there's going to be funding or no funding, whether we have to do whatever it is that we need to do, I think we have capable people within our city. And I think that Miss Mack, Miss Neman, and our staff are able to do these evaluations and get us going. We cannot continue to sustain a business that's going to come into our community with lowpaying jobs. When we only focus on construction, those are limited. and then those go away. Sustained highpaying jobs is not what we're seeing. It's not, you know, we can see it over and over. This is a service industry. I am I am just putting a lot of faith and a lot of trust, mayor, in the work that you and Miss Mack are going to do. Um I'm worried about 60 days and I worry about other data centers coming into the city without any proper controls. Um what what happened with with with Meta um we weren't here so we it's not on our shoulders but we need to get on the right track. We need to make sure that if another one comes in of that capacity that we put the the strength, the guard rails, um the infrastructure that this community today made loud and clear to us. So that's my concern, my proposal. Thank you, Mayor. >> Representative Canales. >> Thank you, Mayor. Um I first have a question. The language uh discusses that first amendment. The language in that first amendment discusses uh let me see negotiations or development discussions related to new data center projects. Um that would be uh held for 60 days. Do are there any ongoing negotiations or development discussions related to new data center projects that we're aware of? >> I'm not aware of any in particular. Okay. So, it would be essentially a cessation for 60 days of entering into any kind of new conversation like that, but there are none that are ongoing that would be put on hold >> that would be impacted in that time frame. Nothing that I'm aware of. >> Okay. Um yeah, I mean I I thank you representatives and for putting this on the agenda. I think um sorry, thank you to Representative Ato and and Borreco for putting this on the agenda. I think it makes a lot of sense to have our own staff looking into this. Clearly, we're hearing a lot of that work is already is already happening. Um and so, uh formalizing that direction is very important. Uh we want our staff to be working at the direction of council. Uh, and so I I think we want that that work that's already being done to continue um and to produce a work product that we can use. And that's what this item directs. Um, frankly, I I was very very surprised when I saw El Paso Electric's filing for for their certificate of convenience and necessity for a natural gas plant to serve uh the the meta development. That to me runs so contrary to what the company represented about their project uh to the people of El Paso in in 2023 and since and it really runs contrary to the goals that we laid out in our climate action plan that we've adopted since. Um and really it gives me great pause. It makes me uh question what else might change from what was represented to to El Paso in 2023. So, I think when the next data center uh project pops up in El Paso, and inevitably it will, we need to be prepared to respond to it. And I think we need a better evaluation framework. We need a stronger regulatory framework and directing our staff to continue their work on that on that preparation is what we're considering today. To me, that's a no-brainer. Um, and again, they're already working on it. Uh, I hope that we can give them the direction to formalize that work. Thank you Mayor. >> Representative Fier. >> Thank you, Mayor. Um, I I need clarification on this vote. If we vote it down, this my understanding is this will allow you to put your agenda item. uh maybe have some some numbers to back it up and then for us to be able to come prepared to give um concise um direction to the city manager. >> Is that correct? >> Yeah. So, what this will do, it will give our city manager time to work with the county to develop some of the the work that they've already started working on. >> This agenda item, >> the not this one, >> right? to allow you to bring one next council meeting and post it. Okay. >> Yeah. >> When we have time. Yes, we we would do that. So there there's work already being what he's asking is the work that's being done at the county that the letter that you read. Once Miss Mack says that she wants to go in that direction with her staff, they will develop and bring back to council something we can take action on because this just this just happened on Wednesday, February the 11th. That's why we're getting the information as we're getting it. We can make the decision today on this item and it would primarily be the city and then the amendments have been the county and go that direction, but we got to make sure we're communicating on both sides. Representative Chavez. >> Thank you, Mayor. I um well, I have a a few comments and and questions as well for Miss Mack and Miss Neman. Um, I I I believe that having a a data center policy framework would be beneficial to the community. Um, and it's important that we think of things very thoroughly before making decisions, especially when it comes to the utilization of resources and protecting those for for our constituents is our responsibility and I take that responsibility um at heart. Um, I have uh just a few questions on the agenda item itself because I I think I just need a little bit more clarity. Um, I I'm a little bit concerned with some of the wording on it and I just I I need more clarity either from Representative Tjo possibly. Um, I think Miss Mack just said that there are no new data center projects uh right now currently in place. We have no applications through the city of El Paso. >> Okay. So, I guess my first question would be if Representative Theo could ask why why why is it important to put a pause on this or why did you add that to the agenda item? >> What is the reasoning? I was not I wasn't aware if there was a any pending negotiations and so that pause is there so that we have the time to make sure we have the framework in place moving forward and 60 days I thought you know would that be sufficient to give them the opportunity to put that together >> okay and because we we are collaborating with the county and I think it's important that we do that uh so that we don't work in in a silo and that we look at the region as a whole. Um I don't know if if 60 days is going to be sufficient time for us to come up with the framework if we're working alongside the county. Um and so that sentence in itself um concerns me only because we just we just established that data centers are interested in coming to our region. Some are coming to Fort Bliss. Some are coming to Santa Teresa, the the area that abuts my district, district one on the west side. Um, and so I just think that we need to understand that if we pause a negotiation, they could very well establish themselves outside of the city limits. And the only reason why this concerns me is because if we pause a negotiation as a city and they establish themselves outside of city limits, they're still going to tap into our resources, but then we don't have a seat at the table to make this negotiation productively for our community. And that concerns me because then it's like a lose-lose situation for the city. We don't get any economic benefit from it and they're still going to be using our resources. And so I just would not like for us to be ousted in those conversations. And that is why that sentence concerns me only because I'm not sure that within 60 days we're going to complete the framework. So that's the first concern I have. Um and thank you for clarifying it. Um representative, the next question I have is regarding the the last sentence. um because I think we established and I you you commented it right now in your comments which I thought were very well well put together. I appreciate those comments. Um you you commented that we are not talking about the meta agreement at this time because that as we have already discussed was something that occurred prior to us coming on council many of us coming on council. So, um, when it says a legal analysis of all current 380 agreements, I'm not sure what the purpose is for that. Um, I don't know if you could maybe speak on that a little bit. Yeah, I I think the the clarity that was added was to kind of look at those to understand the best practices and kind of use all of that legal analysis for any future development that might happen in terms of data centers. I think that's why there was more added in the amendment earlier or not the amendment but I'm sorry but um the actual main motion to provide that clarity >> and and the reason why that concerns me a little bit only because it makes people believe that we're going to open up an agreement that's already established that's already set and and given giving them an a hope or a misunderstanding that somehow that that agreement is going to change and I know that because we receive received some emails from from the community assuming that maybe that's what the discussion was about today. And so I just want to be very clear that I don't believe that that's the intention behind that or that that's even at on the table today. So that language concerns me uh as well. Um again, establishing the framework is extremely important. I agree with the mayor. you know, we're all on the same page in trying to get to a better place for our community to ensure that we are uh representing our constituents and our natural resources are protected at the same time, but that we're also being very thoughtful in our economic development strategy because it is about a strategy. It is about bringing opportunity for our community in a way that benefits us in the long term. and and there is there is opportunity out there and again this is more than a framework. It's a strategy I think on how we move forward with all of these things. So I I like the idea of of us as a council giving clear direction to the city manager and the city attorney. I like the idea of working with the county. I like the idea of uh community engagement, utility providers, other language in this uh agenda item and I'm not trying to make things very complicated, but I would like to offer an amendment just from what we just discussed. I I would like to propose to strike uh Miss Prime the sentence during development of the framework, city negotiations or development discussions related to new data center projects shall be paused. I'd like to strike that language again to give us the opportunity to be at the table in case this framework cannot come back in 60 days for whatever reason. And um I would also like to strike the word uh current when it says further direct the city attorney to conduct a legal analysis of and then strike the words all and current. uh just just to make sure that she can she can do a legal analysis of of 380 agreements in general on data centers uh maybe here or maybe in other places to ensure that going forward she can bring us whatever proposal she uh she and her team uh think is is best practices as as we move forward with this. So that is my amendment. Um, and I I appreciate I appreciate everything that you have mentioned today, Representative. Thank you. >> Right. >> There's a motion in the second discussion on the amendment to strike the language. >> All right, Miss Bryant. So the the motion was made by Mayor Potim Chavez, seconded by Representative Nino, and this is to strike the words to amend the motion to strike the words during development of the framework, city negotiations or development discussions related to a new data center project shall be paused and to also strike the words all current. Is that correct? Yes. >> One more time, Miss Brian. I'm trying to track this with you. >> Okay, this is on the motion that Representative Tjo made and this is on the second part of the motion to strike the first sentence that reads during development of the framework city negotiations or development discussions related to new data center projects shall be paused. It's to strike the first sentence of the second part of the motion. Okay. And then where it continues and it says further direct the city attorney to conduct a legal analysis of and this is to strike the words all current. Okay. Does everyone have it? >> You don't have that represent Bro. Okay. >> And I don't have it. I don't have it. I'm just reading from from what Mayor Bertim Chavez said. I don't have it in writing. >> She's going to send it to you. >> Okay. Okay. Does everyone have it now? >> I am working on it. Okay, council. I sent you the motion with the with the amendment highlighted or stricken out. I if you can see the the language is it's to strike out those words during development of the framework city negotiations or development discussions related to new data center projects shall be paused striking out that sentence and then on the following sentence to strike out the words all current. >> Yep. Representative uh Nino. >> Thank you mayor. And again this is an extremely important topic. Um, it's a valid topic and it's something that's not just impacting El Paso, it's impacting cities, counties, and state across as we're trying to figure out in real time how to deal with this new industry. Right? Data centers are complex. They touch utilities, land use, water energy infrastructure capacity and long-term economic strategy. And this is not a single department conversation. It's multi-layered and involves so many stakeholders. And you know, we heard it from the city manager that about 60 days might not be something that's feasible. So I want to make an amendment to the amendment to strike off to develop and then remove within 60 days and say to developed a proposed data center policy framework for the city of El Paso that it gives it ample time to again coordinate work with the county, work with the different departments, work with different community stakeholders to be able to identify these best practices that essentially I feel are important for all of us. Um, so that would be my motion to the amendment to remove the 60 days. Thank you, mayor. >> Okay. Okay. Did you get that, Miss Bry? >> No. >> Okay. >> And he's he's he wants to also include >> to strike out 60 days >> to remove the 60 days. to develop within 60 days to >> to remove within 60 days. >> All right. So, as we're confused, I'm sure the public is confused and everyone sitting in the audience. Is there any way to to read this back to where we >> mayor? I would I would ask that you would take representative mayor Travis's amendment first. >> Okay. and just read that so we we're everyone that can't see it is clear what we're >> Okay. So, Representative uh Chavez's amendment is to strike out the words is to strike out the words on the second part of the motion to strike out where it says during development of the framework, city negotiations or development discussions related to new data center projects shall be paused. is to strike out that sentence and also to strike out the words all current where it relates to 380 agreements to strike out all current. >> All right. And Miss Brian, I know it's it's a lot to ask, but can you read it with the the revisions of what we're going to be voting on what the amendment would look like striking that out? >> Yeah. the full language >> the lang the full language with the spoken >> if if the amendment were to were to pass the motion would read to authorize the city manager to develop within 60 days a proposed data center policy framework for the city of El Paso the framework shall prioritize community engagement utility providers local state and regional government in implementation considerations evaluate long-term impacts on infrastructure and utilities Please further direct the city attorney to conduct a legal analysis of 380 agreements with data centers to identify best practices, lessons learned, and opportunities to develop a new framework. >> Okay. Representative Chavez, was that your amendment? That was your amendment. Okay. >> Right. Okay. on the amendment. Call for the vote. Mayor, there's a time in the voting session. And the motion passes 5 to four. Representatives Chavez, Rocha, Tjo, Nino, the mayor voting I. Representatives Aso, Fiero, Lemon, Canales voting a. The motion passes with the mayor breaking the tie. Okay, let's take the um the next amendment. >> The next amendment was made by >> represed by representative thjo. And this is this is to strike out the words within 60 days. Is that correct? And this is to strike out the words within 60 days. >> Correct >> on that amendment. Call for the vote in the voting session. That motion passes 6 to2. Representatives Lemon Canal is voting nay. The remainder of council voting I. The motion carries. >> Okay. Are we back on the main motion? >> That's correct. Okay. Any further discussion on the main motion? What What does the main motion look like now, Miss Bryant? >> It reads to authorize the city manager to develop a proposed data center policy framework for the city of El Paso. The framework shall prioritize community engagement, utility providers, local, state, and regional government in implementation considerations, evaluate long-term impacts on infrastructure and utilities, further direct the city attorney to conduct a legal analysis of 380 agreements with data centers to identify best practices, lessons learned, and opportunities to develop a new framework. >> Okay. Representative um Rocha. >> Thank you, Mayor. Uh so so question on this because um going back to the main motion there's in the backup there's data center policy framework components to this. So once this is passed do all those components go into that into effect as well. >> So historically representative the backup on the agenda is determined by the member of council who posts it. So I would recommend that you discuss that amongst yourselves >> in terms of what the purpose of the backup is intended to do for the item. >> Thank you. Uh so so with that, the reason that I bring it up is because there are some some uh great pieces in this. However, there's already these pieces are already being done. Uh especially item number one, which is intergovernmental and utility coordination. Uh it says here collaboration with El Paso County electric, water, gas, and other utility providers as well as local and regional governmental partners to assess infrastructure capacity, long-term demand and system impacts. Um I know that uh I see John Bella in the in the audience. He works with Borderlex Alliance. They already do this for um for both the county and the city. The first call, if I'm not mistaken, goes to utilities, which is uh water and electric and gas and anybody else that's identified in that piece um to be able to to say, you know, can we sustain it, can we not? However, I do want to make make um note that Borderlex not only provides this this service, they also um have turned away a lot of data data centers, data centers that none of us know about because they stopped at the gate at Borderlex. And so I don't know if it's if it's okay, mayor, if we can have uh John Bella speak a little to what that means or >> I'll have to take him during public comment because we've got a number of members. >> Yeah, you're right. Sorry, sir. >> And then um the workforce and economic opportunity as well is my understanding that's already in place and and I don't know if you can confirm that Miss Mack or or Miss Neman, but I believe that that's already in place. uh the higher El Paso first provision if I'm not mistaken. Uh then the this is why I ask if if once we add this piece to it uh it it actually does not it does not include from what I'm reading Border Plex Alliance that already does that work. So I'm I guess my question is to to um Repjo or Rep. Acavedo as to what um the intention on this was and if you had a conversation with what Border Plex already does. >> Yeah. Represent trail. >> Thank you, mayor. So the intention of this policy framework, the components of it is we don't have anything in place right now. >> Well, as far as just item one, just item one, >> right? But I'm answering to the whole because you know you're you're questioning all all of it. uh some of it actually and so do we have something formal in place that has given direction to staff to look at these items. So there is components of you know the 360 where we have workforce uh possibility in there where there's uh uh collaboration with other entities each each 380 agreement is individual and separate. So is there a framework policy framework complete policy framework that includes all these components and is there's direction that's giving formal direction that's giving the city uh to city staff to Miss Mack to put this together? Can we add to it? Yes. Can there be some adjustments? Yes. But is there anything in place currently for that? Well, and I think the the item that I have issue with is number one specifically because there is already a memorandum of understanding and my understanding is with with Border Plex Alliance that does this already and so I don't know if you can speak to that or we do business with I I don't know how else to frame it, Miss Mack. >> I don't have the agreement in front of me now. >> Okay. But there is an agreement that exists to my to my knowledge. Um, and I know Mr. Bella could probably speak to that a little bit later, but it's more specifically on on whether Borderlex Alliance has shared what they do on their end and as far as gatekeeping because they have a framework that exists already um as to what data centers are allowed and what aren't. >> Thank you, Mayor. Uh yes, you know, I've been talking to to John Barela and and they are working very actively on on making sure that they're bringing in good business and and you know, there's there's a lot of trust between Borderlex Alliance and the city, but I go back to is there a formal something formal written in regards to data center? That's the question. you know, do we have the framework in line with those entities that we're making these decisions with? Is there something formal in writing? And that's the intention of this. >> Thank you, Mayor. >> Representative Ver. >> Thank you, Mayor. And and I'm going to go to where I started from the very beginning. I think we should allow you to post your agenda item two weeks from now. the next board, the the next council meeting for all of us to be able to put our input, answer the questions. I mean, Representative Rocha just brought up some good points that that I think it seems like were overlooked when the when this this motion was put together with all good intentions, but I think we have resources that we haven't touched on yet. I we're leaving out the most important part is partnering up, saving money, and and joining and coming up with a policy like you said that's not in a silo, but it's a it's a countywide policy. Representative Chavez brought up a great point. We can come up with the toughest policy out there and they'll just move outside this the county limits or city limits and they're still using our resources. I again, mayor, I hate to harp on this, but I just really believe that we should postpone this item, wait until the the your agenda item is on there and we can all have input and and have uh the resources that out there take advantage of them. >> Okay. >> Representalis. >> Thank you, Mayor. Um, Miss Prime, there's no part of the the main motion currently on the table that discusses adoption of the components document that was included in the backup. Correct. >> That's not included in the language. >> It's not It's not on the >> I mean, members of council when they post an item can post whatever they'd like in the backup. I've posted items with uh news articles in the backup or other information that the council can read and consider. But in this, you know, in in the case where we're formally adopting a document, the motion typically says that. The language on the agenda typically says that. It doesn't say that in this case. So I I read that as you know the the thinking of the members who put this on the agenda but I don't think that is incorporated into the direction that the council's giving. It's you know the the language of the motion is the language of the motion. Um I I I don't disagree with some of the concerns raised about what's written in that document, but that's not what we're being asked to adopt today. Okay. >> Thank you, Mayor. >> Okay, Miss Brian, we have public comment on this item. >> Yes, mayor. We'll begin with Mary Woodruff. Mary Woodruff. >> She's coming. >> Followed by Miguel Escto. Holly Davis, Saul. Gonzalez, Selena Galisia, Josh Simmons. >> Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon. Um, thank you for for allowing me to speak with council and mayor. I appreciate um your support and all the increases. Um I'm from district one and I'm here to speak uh in behalf of Los Deui as well as Sentospanas. There's a couple of things that the previous speakers did not mention and uh one of those is the Meta is a partner is the parent company of you know all the ones of messenger, Instagram what's up and etc. and they're deeply um involved in um obtaining um personal information, gathering data, uh the AI systems um and those systems uh often powered by massive data centers and uh recently well they've been involved in in uh recent um lawsuit allegations of um copyright um books and things to feed the AI um and they do this without permission or compensation to the artist. Uh transparency must be required not negotiated behind NDAs. Um non non-disclosure agreements. Uh that's their MO. Um further there's a proposed KOSA which is uh the kids online safety act uh that recognizes that uh platforms should take responsibility um to protect our minors from exploitation uh addictive designs and mental health harm. Uh privacy and safety settings should be a default not a not an afterthought. Further um children, our children and grandchildren are watching. Economic development should never come at the expense of a senior choosing between medication or keeping warm at night or a child navigating an online environment without safeguards. do not become complicit to such unethical, dangerous and irresponsible practices. Um, we are stewards of our natural resources and and public trust. Uh, growth must be responsible, transparent, and above all equitable. Um, do not allow today's actions or inactions uh rob us from our future. >> I urge you to protect our residents, our resources, protect our children, and demand full accountability before moving forward. >> Thank you. >> The next speaker is Miguel Escto. >> Miguel Escotto followed by Saul Gonzalez. Good afternoon. >> Hello, mayor and council. >> Good afternoon. >> My name is Miguel Escto. I am a >> lifelong El Pasoan, homeowner in district 2 and I'm a part of two organizations which I think can be very very helpful in the crisis that you are in right now. Right now you're where you're sitting. I don't envy your position. You're in a bad place. You don't have power and your opponent, your negotiating opponent is a multi-billion dollar company that lies to you as as has been established already. So, you're in a tough spot and I'm part of two organizations that can help you in where you're at. First is Amanet People's Project. We have been campaigning for years on clean air, clean water. Data centers harm both of those. We have been doing info sessions all throughout the city and as you I'm sure already know people are enraged. Um, Miss Leone, you were mentioning how a lot of this has to do with what happened previously and it's not on your shoulders. That's why I don't envy being in your position. Unfortunately, that will be your legacy. It's being constructed right now. People don't care what happened two years ago. People care about what you can do right now. And there is a lot of action that we can do and there's a lot of ways that we can work together as a community because you're on actually on our side, not in the side of Meta or Border Plex Alliance. Second is oil field witness. Oil field witness has years of conducting oil and gas emission research in the Peran Basin oil fields. Certified thermographer Sharon Wilson has been documenting emissions from the oil and gas industry for years, including in gas plants, which this would lead to. I want to leave you all with three important questions. You should be asking this of yourself every night before you go to sleep. Number one, is this normal? Is this a normal data center? No, it's not. There are data centers that power uh the internet on in this building, but this is not a normal data center. This wants to use up to one gigawatt of power. It wants to emit more emissions than all the greenhouse gas emissions of El Paso combined. Is this normal? The answer is no. Really simple. Number two, what is going to be my legacy? What's going to be my legacy? Because right now what we want from you is initiative and strength that was being showed today by repave and repo. Initiative and strength and leadership not excuses. The third question am I a good negotiator? Do I have the team that I need to negotiate this fight? And the answer is simply right now you don't have the team you need. You have to build that team. >> Do you have reached the three minutes? So I I hope to be in contact >> is Saul Gonzalez. >> Saul Gonzalez followed by Selena Galisia. >> Good afternoon. You have three minutes. >> Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon. >> Uh my name is Gonzalez and I'm an organizer with San Esparansa. Uh as many of you know uh we met with you with the exception of the mayor. We met with all of you. Uh we created a guide outlining our concerns with this data center. Uh so if the anyone from the public would like to to read it uh it's on Sanes Baransa 915. Uh so after reviewing the proposed and existing contracts with the city, the county and El Paso water. We're deeply concerned about the gap between the verbal promises MEA has made and what is actually written in those contracts. In a region where residents are already being asked to conserve more, pay more, and do more with less, it makes no sense to invite an industry whose business's model depends on guaranteed 247 resources consumption. No amount of incentives, safeguards, or promises changes the fund the fund fundamental reality that data centers are incompatible with long-term water system sustainability in a desert community. Today, I'm asking you to vote yes on item 13 and to take the following actions. Stop offering incentives through 380 agreements to data centers and the 380 agreements with Meta. Use your influence over our publiclyowned water utility, El Paso Water, to ensure no agreement is signed with Meta or any other data center that guarantees continuous 24 access to our drink drinking water. Continue intervening in El Paso Electric's application for natural gas power plant intended to serve the metadata center, a project that would consume significant amounts of water and increase air pollution. And we understand that the need of economic development and the desire to attract large companies to help shift the burden off residents, but economic growth must align with our community values and practices that includes water conservation in a desert region. Please vote yes on item 13. Cancel the 380 agreement with MEA and say no to more data centers in the desert. Thank you. >> Thank you. Next speaker is Selena Galisia. Selena Galysia, Josh Simmons, followed by Veronica Carvajal, Patricia Osmond, Jerry Curta. >> Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon. Uh, good afternoon, Mayor Johnson. uh city council, distinguished city staff. My name is Joshua Simmons. Um I'm a resident and homeowner in district 5. Um an electrical engineer with experience in system and controls, renewable energy and sustainability and also a software developer and former adviser for the city of El Paso through REAC. Uh I'm going to share some unpopular opinions, you know, some first amendment stuff, but this is a difficult spot for me. Um, do I want a data center locally? Yes. Uh, did I ever think it would be meta? No. I'd like to have been a local entrepreneur. Uh, do I want uh said data center to be powered solely by unclean methane uh gas fire generation? No. Do I want such an installment to consume a precious resource such as our water? No. I would rather have it powered by a clean renewable energy means. I seriously think Meta can afford it. uh this is where they can innovate a solution that is unique to our region. Um and this is something I've pursued and uh this is also something that was discussed extensively when RIA was in place. Um so this is a framework that I do support with all the parameters and criteria that everyone has outlined. Uh this is an opportunity for innovation and I support the voices that press for the renewable energy means uh over the unclean natural gas fire generation. I do want uh opportunities uh here in El Paso that counter the brain drain. Um not every job an engineer an engineer seeks is in a is a constructionbased gig in aerospace or a security clearance level defense contractor job. I dream too. Don't get me wrong. I have want I've waited for over a decade for a renewable energy sector to establish a foothold in El Paso. And with the uh current political culture, that doesn't seem to be possible. I fear that it will only be delayed for another 10 or 20 years. Um, I'm almost 40. I cannot wait any longer to claim my prosperity and I welcome this installment of network processing. I spent nearly a decade advocating for this community. With the endangerment fi uh findings now repealed, it is a uh certain relative public advisories have now been dissolved. This issue was spoken about many times and uh many of these framework options could have been hashed out with experts um that you know you will obviously need to consult. How does El Paso incentivize innovation and development that attracts R&D and other worthwhile jobs, career paths that stimulate the need to retain such skilled talent towards sustainability and towards prosperity. I applaud the continued efforts of the community to organize for a cause. Everyone wants a job that is safe, secure, and fair. And with the rise of AI, such things are variable. For instance, the technology uh investment will allow other growth for advanced manufacturing and feed our growing lust for more data and processing. It is my fear that if this opportunity is passed over, we will not see something this significant come to our uh availability for the next 10 to 20 years. There are better solutions. They exist uh but they are not on this table today. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> The next speaker is Veronica Carvajal. followed by Patricia Osmond. >> Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon, Mayor Council Veronica Carvajal. And I'm asking you to vote yes on item 13. Thank you, Representatives Boyjo and ADO for sponsoring this item. Disappointed with the previous amendments. Um I am a constituent of district 2. I'm also an attorney and I'm here as an organizer with San Brando Esparansa Coalition which is made up of nine working-class neighborhoods. Data centers need three things: land, water, and energy. Like all polluters and businesses that are built on extraction, they will follow the path of least resistance. We are asking you to resist the temptation to trade our scarce uh water resources, our already compromised air quality, and our future utility rates for um some property taxes and a few jobs. At every turn, you as the city of El Paso have the opportunity to not only reject incentives, but to prevent the proliferation of data centers in our desert. Um this is because the city owns the water. We own the public utility that provides water not only to the city but to wholesale customers in the county and Fort Bliss where these centers are coming up. The PSB runs EP water which also owns much of our land. The PSB board members are appointed by you and the mayor sits on the PSB. In regards to Meta, the PSB sold our land to Meta for the data center. The PSB sold or will sell our land to Meta for the El Paso electric power plant that will run on natural gas. And the PSB has a draft contract with Meta that exposes us El Pasoans to legal liability if we are not able to provide continuous uninterrupted um water and I quote from the draft contract. Um so um EP water has agreed to provide continuous water for the operation of Meta's data center quote as to induce META to acquire the property and develop the project on the property and reliance on such availability and reservation. End quote. This is on page two of the contract that's in draft form. As was proven on January 11th, um El Paso Water cannot keep that promise to us much less to Meta. But unlike us, Meta will sue. So the question is, are you willing to expose us to future liability? Um, as it is, um, what we're asking that you please use your influence over the PSB to not sign the agreement with Meta. They can be another customer like everyone else, but we don't need to make that assurance to them. That assurance will put us in serious legal troubles down the road. Um, as it is, the city is having to spend our money to intervene in the El Paso Electric CCN case for the new power plant next to the data center. And if you have looked at that application, that plant will be our responsibility, us the rateayers, after five years. We want to co-create with you. Um please um regain our trust and let us be a part of future um plans, frameworks, um and limitations on these terrible data centers. Thank you. Thank you. >> The next speaker is Patricia Osmond. You know what? As a parent, I wouldn't make a decision that would leave me watching my children or grandchildren slowly die in front of me. But it seems people in this room have no problem with that. I'm just curious who are we going to blame? Are we going to blame everybody on the dis? Do we also blame the mayor because he's also sits on the board of the PSB and he knows what the NDA is? Do we blame John Bella, John Belaloo, Carla Neman, our city attorney who worked on the contracts? Who should our children and our grandchildren blame for the community and the ancestry that is being killed? That's what's happening. And for what? For a billionaire who is in the Epstein files. Y'all are selling out the community for the Epstein class. But you know what? You also leave a on the side of the road, so I guess that's expected. And then we have Mr. Roacha. You know what this is? I'm sitting there and I'm thinking, do I smell sellout? Is this just gaslighting? Kick the can down the road because the groundbreaking already happened. It is ridiculous. I sit here and it's it's beyond beyond political theater. It's puppet theater. And honestly, the public can already see the strings, people. You know, other cities in Texas have said no to data centers regardless of the state in Abbott's agenda. It's happened, but apparently you don't know that. Data centers, the gas, it pollutes communities. It drives down property values. Apparently, you're not talking about that. maybe 20 employees at a data center after it's done and the workers unless you're doing this contract so you give jobs because you know hire El Paso to hunt and foster so that you get more in your uh you know some some of us have what 70 grand in our discretionary fund with Chavez what is the point because killing our community and killing our grandchildren seems to be the point here so I just like to Oh, do we just take photos of everybody in the room so our kids leave them for our kids so that they know who killed them? >> The next speaker is Jerry Kika. Jerry Kika. He will be followed by John Bella. >> Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon, honorable mayor and council. It was this morning I was going over this and actually I was going to say to you I like the ordinance or the the item the way you wrote it. Um I'm still a little confused on the uh on the amendments. What uh I thought when I read this was that it applied to meta. I was not aware that meta is a done deal and this does not apply to meta. So, this applies to future data centers that may come here. I don't know what it is about data centers in deserts. I was just down at the water in the desert conference last week in Alpine, very well attended and everybody's talking about this. We have we live in a desert and it's getting hotter and why are data centers interested in deserts where water is a scarce resource. Begin to think in terms of our bio region and how we're all connected by water and certainly and and how water runs through everything. So why are we putting it in producing top pop pop-up ads because that's basically what meta is doing. We're going to be the popup ad center of the universe here and it's going to be powered by water we don't have to give. I would ask that as you further consider this, a project of that size, it seems to me, would require an environmental impact statement, you probably wouldn't have to follow NEPA guidelines because it's not a federal project, which is good because it means you can apply your own criteria uh to what is environmentally acceptable and environmentally sustainable. I'm concerned about things like, of course, its impact on groundwater, uh, but also radio frequency shielding. This thing's going to put out a lot of radio waves. I I presume they have it shielded, uh, but if I lived in a neighborhood, I would be a little bit concerned about that. Also, the life cycle of the plant. How long is this thing going to last? And when you tear it down, what are you going to do with it? It's full of toxic materials. Semiconductors are toxic waste. They do have gold in them. The very interested in that. But um it's going to be very toxic. The other thing is putting a power plant there. Again, another reason to consider making this an environmental impact statement. There's so many things here. I'm glad you're taking this up. As far as I'm concerned, you're good or the first time, but we'll see how the your amendments play out with it. Thank you for hearing. >> Thank you. >> The next speaker is John Bella. Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon, mayor, members of council. Pleasure to be here. Thank you. I uh strangely going to say there's a lot of agreement uh even from the people who are uh against meta but unfortunately there's a lot of misinformation a lot of misunderstanding about this project and what uh will happen what we seek here is balance I think they seek balance we all want jobs we all want highpaying jobs benefits and this project delivers those promises. What we're trying to do here is establish these high-paying jobs but also a high-tech AI ecosystem and we've already delivered on that in just four short months after this official announcement. consider. Yeah, there's a 100 meta jobs, but there's going to be 4 to 600 contractors highly paid to take care of the servers that are there. 1,800 semi-permanent construction jobs. And that ecosystem is starting to grow. Faith Technologies, which just located here, 400 jobs, $85,000. We win when we went to Taiwan to recruit them. again, part of that AI e ecosystem. 500 jobs, $75,000 average salaries. So, it's not just meta that we're talking about. We're talking about an AI once in a generation possibility here. And we either get on that bang bandwagon or let other communities do it. And let's talk about the environment for a minute. I think it's important to point out once again four months ago what Meta committed to. Let's start with water. Meta will be a net water giver, not a net water taker. It committed to 200% two times the water that they will use. And by the way, they're not going to be a top 10 water user in the community. >> Excuse me. The members of the public, please make sure you maintain decorum. What's described are lies are the misrepresentations that were made earlier. But let me say this, the line is crossed and I'd like to reclaim at least 15 seconds of my time if I might because of the dis disruptions. But what I would like to emphasize is the revenue that's becoming to not only the city and the county, but Meta never once asked to abate its education uh commitments in terms of taxes. Not once, nor to UMC. And there will be tens of millions of dollars coming to the education system here and also to things that are very very important to healthcare as these people mentioned. So I urge you to consider very strongly and not cross the line. >> Thank you sir. You've reached the three minutes. >> Thank you. >> The next speaker is Holly Davis. Holly Davis you're in the queue. Star six please to unmute your telephone. Good afternoon. You have three minutes. >> Honorable mayor and city council. My name is Holly Davies and I'm the community development manager for Meta. Thank you for welcoming Meta to your community last year when we announced our El Paso data center. This AI optimized data center represents over a $ 1.5 billion investment in El Paso and will support all our technologies and services including AI workloads and will have the ability to scale up to 1 gawatt. As a core value and differentiator for Meta, we are committed to maximizing positive community impact, especially in water and energy stewardship and are proud to bring this commitment to El Paso. The El Paso data center is designed to minimize the need for water resources. That's why we plan to use a closed loop liquid cooled system in this data center that will use zero water for a majority of the year. Our water stewardship program is centered around protecting our water resources and meeting our companywide goal to become water positive in 2030 where we will restore more water to local waterheds than our data centers consume. In El Paso, we will restore 200% of our water use beginning with our partnerships alongside Dig Deep and the Texas Water Action Collaborative. And we have more to share in the future. From the inception of our data center, we have been committed to working closely with El Paso Electric. Through this partnership, we support and pay for new clean energy through the city approved green tariffs and collaborate on selecting energy projects that support our clean energy objectives. Additionally, we partner with El Paso Electric to responsibly meet our energy needs, paying the full cost for the energy used by our data centers so other customers aren't negatively impacted. Meta will fund hundreds of millions of dollars in new energy infrastructure investments and will also fund an on-site natural gas facility to support our data cent's power needs until adequate grid infrastructure is built. Meta is paying the full cost of this resource while it serves only us and will continue to pay our full share once it is connected to the grid. So rateayers aren't paying any of our share of costs. We design our data centers for efficiency and we're proud that we have that our data center's electricity use will be matched with 100% clean and renewable energy and be built to achieve lead gold certification. The construction of our data center will support more than 1,800 jobs for skilled trades, including over 50 local companies already hired. Once operational, we'll support over 100 jobs working together to run one of the most advanced data centers in the world. This fall, we will launch our metadata center community action grants program in El Paso. These grants are available to public schools and eligible nonprofits that address community needs by supporting steam education, using technology for community benefit and enabling strong, sustainable communities. We're also empowering local small businesses through our free digital skills training programs and helping small businesses leverage AI tools. Additionally, we support impactful local workforce development programs to provide hands-on immersive experience for students and skilled traits. In closing, we sincerely thank you for your dedication and service to the residents of El Paso, and we look forward to contributing as an active business member of your community. >> Thank you, Miss Davis. >> The next speaker is Elizabeth Plata. Elizabeth Platt, if you're in the queue, star six, please to unmute your telephone. Elizabeth Plata, star six. We'll move on to Pawina Abberto, star six please. Pina Abberto, Star Six, I see you in the queue. Pina Abberto, star six will unmute your telephone. Good afternoon. You have three minutes. >> All right. Thank you. Um, sorry. Okay. Um, I apologize that I cannot be here today. I am currently 600 miles away at university. Um, but I am calling because I I love our gorgeous sun cities, which is why I'm calling to support item 13. Um, this month the United Nations deemed the world to gain a water bank, I'm so sorry, bankruptcy. Um, this means that we are in debt when it comes to water. We have overextracted groundwater to the point that it'll be difficult for water systems to ever return to their historical baseline. In a time of water bankruptcy, I'm sorry. Clean water belongs to the people and not machines. Generative AI has no real benefit. If you allow the AI center to be built, you are writing away our future. And for what? Just so kids can cheat on their homework, so that people online can make misinformation or that so creeps can generate inappropriate photos of women and children. Is any of that worse our water supply? Water is the basis of life, and I shouldn't have to debate whether I should start a family because I'm scared for my non-existent child to be the victim of a doomed planet. For the sake of future generations, please do not be the villain of a children's book and instead be the hero. Put your people and yourself before profit. The best thing I think you can do today is approve item 13 and postpone the construction of the center. But the best thing I think you can do for El Paso is ban meadow from our city. Thank you for listening. >> The next speaker is Ulyses Cordova. Ulyses Cordova, star six, if you're in the queue. >> Yes. Good afternoon. You have three minutes. >> Hi. I it to me it's very clear um that so many of the people that have talked today in the public have been voicing um very strong feelings over like being against uh these data centers and the only voices that have been for it have been the meta representative and uh the borderlex owner who is uh now that representative Rocha has like stated that they have a stake in this Um, but the people of El Paso don't have a stake in this. And we vote you. We we vote you into office to uh back us up um in situations like this where we could easily be taken advantage of by big corporate entities um for our natural resources and for what we have here. And it's very clear to me uh who on this board is siding with this and who is um already kind of has their m their minds made up for this. Um, and to me it's it's very distressing um that I have voted for for somebody that that seems to be not in favor for what I want in my city. I'm I've lived here all my life and it's heartbreaking to see this. And anyways, I've heard so many other opinions that have said things much better than I have and I just want to say thank you for your time. That's it for me. >> Thank you. The next speaker is Philip Sullivan. Philip Sullivan. >> Hello. Yes, my name is Philip Sullivan. Thank you guys for hearing me. I wanted to uh say uh that I really appreciate everything that everyone's brought forward from the community. Um I want to applaud and commend a lot of people. They've you have a lot of very serious qualified people here. um you know a lot of ecologists, scientists, people that are very qualified to speak on this subject. And just as the the last speaker just said, I haven't heard anyone that is for this situation except for the representatives of meta people that are going to come forward and it's in their interest in some way financially. Um I want to I want to say that there was someone earlier who said that you know how how have we come to this position that we got bamboozled and this is actually nothing that's new with our federal government. This kind of is very historically uh documented. The the the federal government is always going to protect these companies because these companies represent the domestic growth of the United States. Uh companies like Meta and Google and Amazon. They're they are going to defend them over our local uh community every time. It's it's been shown every single time. Uh there was a lawsuit in 1899. It was between the United States government and the Rio Grand Dam and irrigation company. Um there was there was language in this lawsuit that said that they did not want the the Rio Grand to be damned because it was going to impede all the um the traffic along the Rio Grand. It was going to kill the Rio Grand basically. And no one alive today has ever seen what the Rio Grand should like look like, what this valley should look like. I come from uh fifth irrigation uh fifth generation uh cotton farmers and alphaalfpha farmers here in the upper valley and I for 40 years I've watched this valley get decimated. I've watched the cottonwoods die. I've watched so much happen in this valley. It's it's horrible. It's terrible to watch the good farmland get used up for projects like this for, you know, terrible housing communities that are overpriced, that are built like garbage. They when they're not up to code, these things slide and you're ruining good farmland. You guys, the water is crucial, is absolutely crucial in this situation. This is going to be the most important item that's ever going to come up for your guys terms. All most of you, probably all of you, you guys need to be careful. Take your time with this. Meta does not care about El Paso. They might be offering you guys all this stuff. The federal government always promises all this stuff. They're going to back Meta. They're going to back the corporations because the corporations own the federal government. They've lobbyed their way in. This has happened for decades, decades. You guys were not blind to this. In 1905, the act for the Rio Grand project was passed and you've reached the three minutes. >> Thank you. The next speaker Teresa Celig, you've reached the three minutes sir. >> Look at how elephant be is going, >> sir. You've reached the three minutes. >> Look at how it's going. They promised us not work out well. >> Teresa Celic, star six, please. Teresa Celig, I see you in the Q star six. Good afternoon. You have three minutes. >> Can you hear me? >> Yes. >> Okay. Um, so my name is Teresa Celig. I'm a systems engineer. Um, I have worked in environmental in the past and this is a very near and dear project to my heart. Um, so El Paso is a desert is a desert region with already scarce water resources and it does not need and cannot afford to incorporate data centers with existing water forecast models at our disposal. Water is every generation's inheritance and should be scrutinized closely before giving out giving out of town investors and or bigname companies access to one of our most precious resources or even tax kickbacks. Data centers require water at every operational turn to cool the digital brain of artificial intelligence which Meta has already incorporated into its search engines on Instagram and Facebook which it's the parent of the parent company of. I would encourage every city council member to read existing research found on open practice specifically a research paper titled AI's burst AI's heat and AI's ways which highlights how indirect verse direct water um should be studied with utmost scrutiny. Research found that indirect water use, which is off-site water used by power plants to generate the electric the electricity data consumed, accounted for 80% or more of total data center water footprint. So, you need to look at indirect versus direct uh water usage. And El Paso should require that anyone tapping tapping into our water, anyone requiring that wells be drilled or even ones that have access to wells be transparent about their true energy consumption, their water usage and carbon footprints, the single greatest barrier to governance. El Paso needs to prioritize counting water on the same level as counting pennies on the dollar. trying to recruit companies to set up shop in El Paso in the name of job creation should not come at the expense of present and future residents access to clean water, clean air, or increasing out-ofpocket cost to consumers. I am asking the city of El Paso um and you guys already kind of went through this with about the 60-day deliverable. My recommendation was to uh add more time for research in the event that time is needed for the city manager to conduct thorough research and create a thorough framework that goes beyond minimum requirements outlined in the data center policy framework components. Research deliverables should be provided on a periodic basis to show progress to deliver quality product so that we as El Pasoans remain informed. And please stop offering 380 agreements to data centers and the 380 agreement with MA and require environmental impact studies as environmental as a preliminary step in anyone looking to establish business in El Paso and tap into the three minutes. Thank you. The final speaker is Amanda Garcia. Amanda Garcia, star six, if you're in the queue. Amanda Garcia, I don't see her phone number in the queue. That concludes public comment on >> Okay. Is there any more comments on item number 13? >> Okay, Miss Bryan. >> Okay. Oh, repres Represent. >> So, I I do have a question and I'm trying to understand. So, I I we've got all these amendments. We've cleared that up. And the question that I have is what is the difference between what is left and what you proposed? Representative Fiero, please. >> Representative F. Thank you, Representative Leone. What what I proposed was would allow us the mayor to put an agenda item on to to have the discussion. It would go from now to that that next council meeting for us to come out with specific input, specific ideas, specific uh research that we want input into the agenda item. So, it's one consents agenda item. It would include the county and their participation. It would include u Miss Neim's legal work, Miss Max's teamwork. It would it would help us put gel all these ideas together to come up with the best plan to keep El Paso safe and to to keep our water and energy for our consumers. So would would it be correct for me to say that in two weeks we would have an item an agenda item that that Miss Mack and Miss Neman would bring us a template, a skeleton, a beginning process, not all the pieces filled in because all the pieces cannot be filled out in two weeks, but a skeleton a template, a process. And and I'm wondering, is that a doable item for you all? Just a template, just a guide. >> Yes. >> Okay. I want to I want to make sure though we've um outlined uh utility providers, local, state, regional government and community engagement. >> But to me that is going to be the critical piece, the community engagement. We have heard from numerous um very qualified people that have come forth at all levels from citizens of our community, constituents to everyone else that's here. And so what and I'm going to that's what I would like to see that that's what I would like to um to see that we come back in two weeks with a template with a guide and that you lightly pencil in or put together how all of these different components are going to come and that perhaps at that time you'd be able will say, um, we can touch base. We can touch base with people within two, three weeks. We won't have a finished product right away. But it isn't until you get into a meeting until you set up the goals, the objectives, the timeline, then we would have a finished product, say later on down the line. And so, where are we now? Are we going now? We're going to vote for the agenda item as presented. If it fails, then we would come back with a motion, which would be that motion and critical the inclusion of community engagement. >> Correct. >> Thank you, Mayor. >> Representative Trey, >> thank you. I I I'm still confused as to how this is any different that's already here. What's different than what's already being laid out here? If the if the the concern is that the uh city manager and city attorney come back in two weeks, we can add that to this language. But I don't see a difference. >> I I think what you and again what we're hearing is and I think Mr. Sullivan put it perfectly. We got to get this right. We we have to get this right and we shouldn't be rushing for the the the framework that is going to affect the entire community. I don't disagree with a lot of the speakers. The community has to be involved in in in the process. And right now we're doing this in a vacuum to where we need to listen to the community. We need to listen to the stakeholders. Figure out what the long-term impacts are on our community, the costs. There's a lot more to it than I think what we're discussing here. And again, it we I always go back to the El Paso community and making sure that we're listening to to what they want. But I think this gives us time to work together to, you know, with the county to align our efforts to better minimize the unintended consequences. I don't think this is well thought out enough that we're we're doing that yet. So, I think what what I'm hearing on one side and and on the other is I think it needs to be very well thought out. I don't think we should rush this. I think we need to get it right and I think we need to involve the community to make sure we get it right because this is coming at us like a freight train. This this is this is a lot. But we cannot do this in a vacuum. We're making these decisions without community input, county input, and other stakeholder input. >> Yeah, >> thank you, mayor. That's exactly what this item is asking for. >> That's exactly what this item is asking for. It's it's asking that we prioritize community engagement. >> Yeah. I think what but even this community the gentleman got up here and said because of all the amendments. So that tells you the document wasn't well thought out. We're still making changes on the fly. >> Right. >> So I mean if if if we knew what the document said, we wouldn't be we've been on this one item for the last two three hours >> because because it wasn't well thought out enough. If we take our time, we can get this right. >> Yeah. And I and I think what we'll do is when we come back as a group, everyone will have buyin at this point. But represent then we'll come back. >> Yeah. I I think that this has naturally kind of played out with um amendments and stuff based on where everybody kind of stands on the issue. >> But I still think that there there's a lot here that can move the direction forward. What I'm getting a little confused on though, just wanted to get clarification because earlier um I believe representative Fiero said that mayor you were bringing something in two weeks and then now Miss Max said that she can bring something in two weeks. So what what is going on there? So what what Representative Fiero is talking about is giving us the time to work with the county to bring something back to council that should work as a framework getting the county's input as well. But is that something you're going to bring or Miss M? >> I certainly can bring it or I'll work with Miss Mack to bring it. >> Okay, that gives me a little bit of clarity. I I think overall there's still like I'll reiterate, I think there's still a lot here that I do >> that can give direction, right? And and um >> one thing that I've learned being at the city for a little over two years now is that the city manager and city attorney are not going to do anything without direction. And at least the what this would do here is give direction and probably inform the conversations that need to happen with the county um with Miss Mack, Miss Neman kind of looking at what they're doing with their consultant. Um there's there's a committee that's formed that I think you're part of Mayor Miss Mack is part of it. So I feel like that has some action and then if there is more that is happening in two weeks then we could add to it. I don't think it it hurts to add to it because then in two weeks I feel that we'll get into amendments on this and amendments on that because something is missing and we're going to play it all out and at least we got somewhere today after various amendments were proposed and then whatever is left over we could propose as amendments next time or just have more of a framework for what the actual motion would be next time. But I think this is a great first, second, third step and then we could further that discussion in two weeks. >> Okay. Representative Fier. >> Thank you, Mayor. Mayor, this this um is a great starting point, but Representative was correct. We we need to we need to get Miss Lemon's amendment hope when we if we get to that point to bring focus and clarity to this so that when we come back in two weeks and whenever whenever that time is that gives us enough time to get some community input to get our input then we can really hone down on what we really want and what the committee wants for the growth of our our community. >> Okay. >> All right, Miss Prime. We um we're going to go ahead and call for the vote on this one. >> Yes, sir. So, the motion was made by Representative Bertjo, seconded by Representative Asdo, and it reads as amended to authorize the city manager to develop a proposed data center policy framework for the city of El Paso. The framework shall prioritize community engagement, utility providers, local, state, and regional government in implementation considerations. evaluate long-term impacts on infrastructure and utilities. Further direct the city attorney to conduct a legal analysis of 380 agreements with data centers to identify best practices, lessons learned, and opportunities to develop a new framework. On that motion, call for the vote. End the voting session. And that motion passes 5 to three. Representatives Chavez Aso Maldonado Rocha Trejo Canales voting I. Representatives Nino Pierro Lemon voting. >> Okay. >> The motion carries. >> Okay. >> Represent Lemon. >> Mayor, I'd like to make a motion that we recess for one hour. >> That works. Is there a second? >> There's a motion in a second to recess the city council meeting. All in favor? >> Anyone opposed? and the city council. >> Actually, mayor, before I'm sorry, I pull it back. I reconsideration. >> I just have an announcement. >> Okay, >> mayor. Um there's a notification uh Representative Boretjo. Um El Paso water is going to temporarily shut off water in northeast El Paso tomorrow from 10 to 4. That will impact 300 homes. No reason given why they're shutting down. and that that topic is not posted for discussion. There was a second motion and a second to recess the meeting for one hour. >> Yes. >> All in favor? >> Anyone opposed? The meeting is at recess at 1:36 p.m. and we'll reconvene in 1 hour. >> And thank you to the public for coming out today. Okay. Okay, Miss Prime, we're ready. >> Is there a motion to reconvene? >> Second. >> There's a motion and a second to reconvene the city council meeting. All in favor? >> Anyone opposed? The meeting is back in session at 2:38 p.m. >> Okay, Miss Brian, let's take item number 14 please. >> Yes, sir. Item 14 is discussion and action to direct the city manager to evaluate and implement improvements to pothole repair practices, including drop and go, hot mix, and permanent repair methods, establish criteria for addressing streets with repeated failures, and strengthen inspection practices for utility related roadway work. The city manager shall return to city council within 30 days with data, cost comparisons, and recommend process changes, including actions to be incorporated into the city's upcoming strategic plan without increasing the existing pothole repair budget and for consideration as part of the next fiscy year budget. This item was submitted by representatives for Tjo and Aso. >> Okay. Is there a motion to approve? >> Okay, represent Tjo. Thank you, mayor. I have a presentation if it can bring it up. >> This uh discussion and action item is being brought forward by Representative ADO and I as an opportunity to review one of the most visible and pressing concerns our community experiences daily. Potholes affect safety, traffic flow, mobility, quality of life, and overall neighborhood perception. They can also create uh challenges for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians. This item directs our city manager to evaluate repair process and practices and return with data and recommended recommendations to improve methods, including strengthening inspection practices after utility work. And so I ask my my colleagues to please support this item because if improvements are identified, it can increase the durability and efficiency of repairs while staying within our existing budget. That will benefit our community tremendously. If the review confirms that we're already operating at peak efficiency, then that clarity is equally valuable. I want to start by, you know, thanking uh Randy Garcia. he the director for streets and maintenance and his team and Miss Mack for their attentiveness and and their ongoing commitment to these concerns. Uh when we receive calls for potholes, uh the streets and maintenance department responds within days to take care of the repair. Uh and and Randy and I have done some drivealongs in my district and had have had various discussions on this ongoing issue. This item aligns with our strategic goal number seven to enhance and sustain El Paso's infrastructure network and the subgoal to promote a visual image of El Paso. And so there's some images that I want to share. Um first there's a video and if if we can bring the video up um I just wanted to share that as a as a visual more than anything. These these repairs were made within a few weeks apart from each other. And as I mentioned and this is a visual as we take into consideration what are the possibilities of how we might be able to improve. Uh if we can go to slide two please. This image shows multiple surf patches in the same area. The repair may have been addressed for as an immediate to take care of an immediate hazard, but collectively they create an uneven driving surface. Corners and intersections like this are high stress areas due to breaking and turning movements. In areas like this uh that receive repeated temporary patches, could deterioration accelerate the potential and and uh potentially impact the overall safety as it continues to deteriorate? It's my understanding that water infiltration in in areas like this where there's multiple patchwork can lead to additional pavement failure. Uh and that's why after heavy rain or a freeze like we experienced recently, we see more potholes. So when traffic passes over this compromised area, does this contribute to more damage? And does you know the possibility of of more damage and wider and deeper deeper holes? Um does that does that cause that to happen because there's multiple patches and the opportunity for water to come in? Slide three please. So this is uh this is the same street and what I'm what I'm showing here is a computerenerated full full patch repair and the idea here that is you know if we can look at instead of addressing individual potholes separately would it make sense to repair the sections extending across the affected area? repairs may require more material. I'm aware of that as in addition to labor, but it may reduce the repeated visits because as I mentioned in the other one, the the what is the ex what is the lifespan of those potholes that are repaired individually like that and then the water seeping through. So does it make sense to have a large patch like that to protect the area and also it improves the image the visual image of that neighborhood. Slide forward please. This um this slide show this one shows a different intersection and I took this picture probably six six or seven weeks ago. It was before the freeze and you see different methods here. So there was a drop and go method that was used along with multiple patchwork and at this intersection when we went to look at it the gravel was already loose from the from the patch and go and the street was was cracking uh between the patches and then the the stressed area was expanding and creating more potholes. And so this area has received multiple repairs over time. And the questions that that I have on on these type of situations is when when is the drop and go method used? And I understand like you know when there's a wa when there's a rain or a freeze and we want to get to the potholes immediately, the the drop and go I I don't know if I'm saying that correctly. The drop and go. Am I using the correct terminology? >> Cold mix. >> Cold mix. Okay. So, is the cold mix method um when is it appropriate beyond when we're trying to do quick repairs? Because in this area, it was used and it was it was not there was no revisit after that. So, that's just a question. It's okay. I mean, we're I'm not asking for answers. These are just questions that I'm bringing up to see if there's possibilities for improvement in the process. Um, is there a defined followup that will trigger an escalation to go into now a more durable repair like the uh what is it called? Hot mix. Is that a different one? Is that is that a different terminology? When you go in there and you do the patch and it's a square. What would that be called? >> No. Okay. We'll use it hot mix. Um, and then how often do the crew return in this area? And so in my conversation with Randy, you know, we talked about this and he said, well, you know, depending, of course, depending on rain or snow, uh, they could be back in in six weeks, they can be back in six months. And so the question here is how often do they return to these repeated areas? And then what's the cumulative cost of these visits? labor, material, resources, what are the indirect costs for repeated failure and the impact to residents? And you know, our our city vehicles use these streets and they're also impacted. So, our residents are impacted, our city fleet, our emergency vehicles. Now, we're looking at a compounded effect of how this is affecting our community and our city as a whole. And so, you know, I returned to this area recently and much of that where you see like the S shape, that was much of that was was gone and that was what was used previously. It was washed away. Again, that's why, you know, this item was brought up to request data and cost comparisons to understand the life cycle, cost, and performance of repeated interventions versus targeted in-depth repair. Next slide, please. And so again, this is a a computerenerated image of the same street and and what a full death repair would be. I may be using the wrong terminology, but that's why I'm using visual visuals here. Uh, and this this patch repair is extending curb to curb of the affected area. The street this particular street is not listed for resurfacing or reconstruction within the next two years. And so my thought process is if we can do something like this in an area that's highly distressed, how much longer can we maintain that area until it is scheduled for resurfacing? And then again, it, you know, it reduces the the cost of having to keep going back to that area. Uh when Randy and I visited this location, I asked about the full depth uh full depth repair approach and if it would make sense to look at some type of bridge strategy to stabilize the repeated fail failure area. And as you can see, this also improves the appearance within the neighborhood. With these types of repairs throughout the city, it may reduce the number of potholes being repaired, but over time, this approach could reduce the total number of repeat visits in the area and deliver longer lasting results. Is the uh is the goal to fill as many potholes as as possible or is it to create fewer potholes overall in the future? Next slide, please. And these are additional streets in our district that are not scheduled for resurfacing or reconstruction. And I'm sure every representative sitting here today can identify some similar streets in our districts. Um, and I understand funding is limited and maintaining infrastructure is a significant challenge. And I want to make clear that this is not about increasing spending. It's about processes and determining whether a more strategic maintenance practice can help us stretch our dollars further to ensure responsible stewardship. And I understand infrastructure is part of that conversation that we're having going uh we're having next week in our strategic planning discussions. Strategic planning sits future priorities. This item focuses on maintenance practices and performance in our current situation in our current budget. Next slide, please. In some cases, roadway deterioration is accelerated by utility cuts and trench work performed by thirdparty providers like uh electric, water, telecommunic telecommunication, internet providers. This item also proposes a review of structured inspection protocols for utility related work to ensure that it's in compliance with city uh city standards. Next slide, please. And that's the that's the end of the presentation. I just want to go back and reread the item and ask my colleagues to support this disc uh discussion and action to direct the city manager to evaluate and implement improvements to pothole repair practices, including drop and go, hot mix, permanent repair methods. establish criteria for addressing streets with repeated failures and strengthen expect inspection practices for utility related roadway work. The city manager shall return within 30 days. And I don't know if that's giving you enough time, Miss Mac, you can let me know if you know if that's not enough time and we can adjust that. Um I might I thought maybe you might already have a lot of that data with within you know the the records. Uh, and so it's to return within 30 days of with data, cost comparisons, and recommended process changes, including actions to be incorporated into the city's upcoming strategic plan. Again, this is without increasing existing pothole repair budget and to be taken into consideration for next year's fiscal budget. Thank you. >> Okay, Representative Canales. >> Thank you, Mayor. Um, look, I think it's very clear that people in El Paso were concerned about potholes. Um, I I've seen a tremendous improvement in the time that I've been here at city hall over the last nine or so years. Tremendous improvement in process. uh switching to the the different geographic areas that get focused on has been a tremendous help in uh helping uh streets of maintenance to turn these pothole patching and pothole repairs over much quicker. Uh I know as soon as we get a complaint in our office, we submit it and it's I I know that time to repair is typically less than five days. It's very often next day. Um, and so I I know that like p people see a patch and they think that a patch isn't the solution. Um, but in many ways patching potholes and stopping the deterioration of street of roadway surface does solve a large problem. Um, it prevents the the street from it prevents seepage into the under layers of the street. It prevents uh the the problem from getting bigger. And I just I I've seen so much concerted effort from Streets of Maintenance to get better about the way that they address potholes. I don't know what they're going to change in 30 days that's going to suddenly create this this miraculous turnaround. I mean, I'm looking at that kind of full street patch and that's got to be at least 10, maybe 20 times more material than the the material put down for the patches at that same location. I know it doesn't It looks nicer. >> Y, >> but I don't know that it works better. >> That's resurfacing. So, >> Exactly. Exactly. So, I I just I worry that if that's what we're asking Streets of Maintenance to do, like these become capital projects. This isn't just p patching a pothole anymore. This is a large resurfacing project. Um, this council's had well hasn't really had has had the very preliminary conversations about additional funding for streets and revenue sources that could fund that. Um, I know it wasn't a conversation the council wanted to have a couple of months ago uh when when there was an item deleted from the agenda to talk about additional funding for streets uh in the form of a transportation user fee. It it's something that we definitely can discuss through our budget process and um I definitely think there's conversation to be had for our strategic plan and how we think about streets. Um, but I I just I don't totally understand what the product of this kind of direction will be if we're saying come back in 30 days to tell us how pothole patching can be done differently. Like I I just I see the continuous work from the department to do that kind of evaluation. They switched for example in the in the immediate days following the the freeze and um you know the the snowstorm that we had recently they switched to um some some alternative methods to get potholes patched quickly and then they can go back and fill those. Um, I think that's great responsiveness to what uh really represented an increase, a pretty large increase in in potholes, both reported and and observed throughout the city. Um, I've just seen the department be responsive to the the need as it's changed over the years and really really hugely increase their output and what they're able to uh what they're able to address. Um, again, I I don't want to say like I oppose trying to trying to have continuous improvement in the way that potholes are patched. I just already see that continuous improvement happening all the time. Um, and I, you know, in speaking with with uh Randy and uh the folks at Street Streets of Maintenance, like they're this is something they work on all the time. Um, and so I I don't know where I land on this. I I I question though the the necessity for this kind of direction a week before we have our strategic planning conversation. um outside of the development of of a budget um outside of conversations about additional funding I I don't know what the benefit would be here. Thank you, Mayor. >> Represent. >> Thank you, Mayor. And you know, I I think the the intent that I see behind the item is how we could be a little bit more proactive. I to have the same experience. My staff actually loves getting pothole requests because they are usually patched up within the next day. And that's people calling our office and kind of saying this potholes happening. We put it in and it's done the next day. But more of a what is this look like across the city? How can we be more proactive? How can we look at this as a cost benefit and get this information right before we're going into budget in terms of when we're having that conversation during the budget, we already have this information and it shows us well we're if you really want to go down this road, you're going to have to invest another few million dollars in in here to to get to that level. But at the same time, looking at this process, I feel that a lot of what we do at the city, no matter what department, can sometimes be reactive. And I think this can initiate um a better process to know, you know, there's there's a storm that's coming. How are we preparing for it? And kind of putting those processes into place and and so the the other thing and a lot of it is reactive because of staffing issues, right? It's not something that we're wanting to do, but we don't have, for example, code enforcement can't be going around and finding things. We rely on people reporting it because we don't have sufficient staff to be able to do that in terms of just driving around. So I I think this gives us uh a really nice overview of how things are being implemented where there's room for growth and if there is that room for growth, if there's cost associated something for us to consider looking at and then um having that conversation in a in longer form during the budget. So at least that's my perspective on it. >> Okay. Represent Pier. >> Thank you, Mayor. Uh, you know, first and foremost, I I need to from the bottom of my heart thank Streets and Maintenance. They do a job that's amazing. Just recently during this the snow storm or episode we had with the rain and storm on a Sunday, the middle of of the snow, they were out there driving around filling potholes. On Monday, when we had a delay to get to work because there was so much fog, they were out there filling potholes. Last week, I saw a a truck. Are you okay, M? Okay, good. Um, last week I saw a truck and there was one individual in the truck filling potholes. I can tell you that me personally, I think any pothole is a priority. And and somewhere I saw some data that the this is prior to the storm, the street and maintenance was doing almost 3,100 potholes a month. and and for us to to um try and give them direction on how to make it prettier. I can tell you as long as that potholes gone, that's what's important to me. U you know, one of the things that we we need to remember as a as a group is that how poor our street conditions are as a whole. And and that's nobody's fault. It's not anybody on this council. It's not anybody sitting on the over there, Miss Mack or or Miss Neman's vault. It's a situation that that has happened because we were trying to be frugal with our tax dollars and it's a situation that that Representative Gonales brought up a good point. At some point, we're going to seriously have to look at some sort of alternative funding, not a way to be more critical in how streets and maintenance are spending their their people hours uh in the field. You know, we just again, mayor, I just feel that um the streets are just in bad. They're in failing conditions and the sooner that we repair the pothole, it's safer. it's less expensive for um the citizens who are losing tires, etc., etc. So, I I would hate for us to do anything that's going to delay um repairing um potholes immediately. I believe Representative and and Canales both mentioned that when there is a pothole and it's reported, it's addressed immediately. And I know that when I first got here, they would say we address potholes within uh 4 days. I don't think we've ever had a pothole that we've we've um known about or or or brought to somebody's attention that hasn't been addressed in the the latest 48 hours. So, I I think this is a safety concern for our community and and we need to focus on on um thanking them and and making sure that we're they're allowed to do their job. >> Thank you, Mayor. >> Thank you, Representative Lemon. >> Thank you, Mayor. I know that um and I know m mayor you mentioned that during the campaign potholes was one of the key elements. I will tell you that in district 7 that really hasn't been that high. Um sink holes are more important in my district right now than anywhere else. But uh not not the pothole issue. But I have a question Mack. I'm wondering um because it it says here strengthen inspection practices for utility related road work roadway work. When a utility cuts into a street, is there still a requirement that they need to patch it completely to a certain um level? >> Correct. So they go through a permitting process. You might recall we did that review a couple years ago. We have a certain number of inspectors um that are in place. I think we actually just finished an audit looking at that whole inspection process. Um so yes, that's being taken care of and we are paying attention to that. You might recall a couple years ago we had a lot of steel plates everywhere. >> Yes. >> And we were really working on that um to make sure that people were getting in more quickly to get those repaired for the community as well because that was really damaging people's cars as well. >> Very good. Thank you. So that's already taken care of. Okay. Thank you very much. >> Representative Canelis. >> Thank you, Mayor. Um there's just there's one more thing that I wanted to point out and that it's not this isn't just directing an evaluation. It says to evaluate and implement improvements to pothole practices. And so I I just I want to be careful with what we direct the city manager to do this. It's a conversation that has to happen tied to budget. Um, and again, I I know um, and I have promised I'm not trying to pick on anyone. Like Representative Tjo said, it's not about increasing spending, but making these changes would absolutely increase spending. And I think we have to have that conversation together with the money conversation, and it's hard to have it now divorced from that. >> Thanks, Mayor. >> Thank you, Representative Trjo. >> Thank you, Mayor. Just wanted to uh go back and answer some of the questions that were that were shared here. Uh it's it's not about making the the the street prettier. It's about durability. You know, making those pot hair repairs more durable and longerlasting so that there's not repeated visits. If you know the the pictures that I showed there in regards to the utility work, the the last photo there, that was utility work that was not completed completely. And so when does the inspection process come in and how does it continue to affect the street? Uh it it's about reducing repeat visits and making it more durable. I'm not trying to overstep any any any in any way the operational uh requirements for for the city or for Miss Mack. is looking into seeing if there's a possibility to do that within the within the budget. Not um slowing down the repair process or anything like that. Like I mentioned in my in my presentation, if there's an opportunity to do that, that's great. If you're already working at the at at the best capacity, that's great as well. But it is something that needs to be addressed because it is a concern and that's why it was brought to the table. Thank you. >> Thank you. Representative Brocha. >> Thank you, Mayor. Miss Mack, real quick, uh the utility, meaning I guess El Paso Water for the most part is the one that digs in. Uh I guess uh Texas Gas and El Paso Electric, they all use Texot standardization on their on their um would you happen to know that? So our when they're applying for the permit, the standards for which should be util um we they should be utilizing to repair it is included in the discussion um when they're getting their permits. So that's pretty clear in terms of what's expected. >> Okay. Thank you. And and while I do understand that potholes are are an issue, I do understand that here it does say to implement. So that is making a change. Absolutely making a change. not just open for discussion and looking for an item and going and and doing a cost analysis. This is saying go do that and then implement it. That's very different from just a discussion and action piece. The second piece that I have um that that comes to mind is that we have the strategy plan already. This specifically states on here that this is these are to be incorporated into the city's upcoming strategic plan. I don't know if I know for a fact that infrastructure is included in it. That looked like a resurfacing uh type of project, not a pothole repair. So, that would be under the infrastructure, Miss Mack. >> It would. How would that work? >> Yes, it would be under infrastructure. And I think one of the things I don't want to get lost in the message is I I appreciate the representative showing some pictures because many of the streets that she is showing require reconstruction. Okay, >> they're beyond the level of repair, but we'd still do the potholes because it becomes a safety issue. >> And so you don't even have enough asphalt level left around it to even patch. The first pictures that she showed that's um Eisenhower Eisenhower Eisenhower >> and that just came into our inventory and so that was a housing authorities property. um we found the deed and so that came into our inventory, you know, maybe four months ago. And so you've got 30 years of neglect there that now is going to be added to our cost and expense to take care of. And so when we think about this, you cannot patch your way to a new street, >> you know. So we if we're not talking about how do we get to resurfacing and how do we get to reconstruction dollars, patching and pothole repair, it's not meant you know, to give you a new street. And so what our team is doing is ensuring that they're getting out there as quickly as possible. We spend about $96,000 a month. They're doing 3100, you know, potholes. Um, you know, really trying to make sure they're being very efficient in their time, um, in their quadrant repair, but as you saw in the photos, there's so much need in the city. We have 300 plus miles in poor condition. So, I know that each one of you could show me something in your district that looks like this. I just don't want the message to get lost that potholes is going to be the solution to the problem that we're facing when it comes to what we need to do with our streets. >> Thank you, Miss Mac. And then the the last part, it says here that without increasing the existing pothole repair budget, but if it's a resurfacing project, then it will most likely increase the overall budget. However, in the same sentence, it says and for consideration as part of the next fiscal year budget. So, either it doesn't increase or it increases and it's part of the next fiscal budget. Do you know what I mean? It can't to me the way that it reads can't be both. You can't not have increase in it. But what I saw and what you shared did show an increase because that now turns into a resurfacing project and that is an increase in what is currently in our plan today. And then that would be consideration to be added into the fiscy year budget. But that's also part of the strategy plan that's already included in what we've been briefed on and what will take place next Monday and Tuesday. So I I'm not able to support this item today. uh the way that it's written, I think that the infrastructure piece is being cared for in the strategic plan under the infrastructure and for correct me if I'm wrong, Miss Matt, infrastructure was the number one survey reason that everybody in every district has included as top priority >> streets. >> Thank you, ma'am. >> Okay, Miss Prime, uh we have public comment on this item. >> Yes, sir. We have Miss Osmond. hate to do it, but I agree with Mr. Canalio. Um, this is the thing is, you know, Miss Trea, I wish you were here two weeks ago because there was a great presentation uh streets gave. There was two huge contracts they went through. Oh, like I mean 35 million. There was some clapping going on for that one. And I understand because I live in district two and I ride my bike over here to district one. Uh I go out to district 4. Um yeah, it it's not safe just to ride your bike. It's not even safe. So much less, you know, a car and your alignment going off. I understand that. Um, the only thing is that when I'm looking at this and I I was I I watched I looked at the presentation and I signed up to speak on it two weeks ago. So, it would have been nice that your questions could have been answered by the professionals who were here two weeks ago. Um, but I just had the water utility do my whole street. It took months. Okay. They did the pipes, but even to lay down the street, they tried at a city coun at a city meeting saying that they had done that in December. They had finished on the street in December. They just this last week resurfaced the street and only like that block because the Jason Street that they also messed up uh is still lift. It's still in waiting. So, I mean, at best with this, I don't think it's something y'all necessarily need to vote on. Maybe you just need to call streets and maintenance and find out what what is their schedule because I know I saw the presentation that they do they do check with the utilities and you just had a street apparently just blow up. There's water everywhere and you know 300 houses going to be out with water. That is that is a water company issue. And yeah, that is going to end up harming more streets every time one of the the water man breaks. And I understand you want you want it really nice and level. I would wish that they just the potholes they level. Sometimes they don't. That's a little uneven, but I think that's something that streets can work with the utilities with and it doesn't need to be voted on as much as you just ask those two like what their procedures are with each other. Um because I know I've personally been witnessing what's going on. Either way um >> yeah, more need to be done, but what was it like over 50 million? There was two comments. >> Thank you, Miss Husman. Okay, Mr. Bryan, call for the vote, please. >> Yes, sir. The motion was made by Representative Orjo, seconded by Representative Aso to direct the city manager to evaluate and implement improvements to pothole repair practices, including drop and go, hot mix, and permanent repair methods, establish criteria for addressing streets with repeated failures, and strengthen inspection practices for utility related roadway work. The city manager shall return to city council within 30 days with data, cost comparisons, and recommended process changes, including actions to be incorporated into the city's upcoming strategic plan without increasing the existing pothole repair budget and for consideration as part of the next fiscal year budget. On that motion, call for the vote and the voting session. And the motion fails two to six. Representative Zojo voting I. The remainder of council voting A. The motion fails. >> Okay. Um let's take item number 15. >> Item 15 is discussion and action to direct the city manager and city attorney to begin the process for a November 2026 city charter amendment special election. Conduct public outreach and seek outside counsel if needed. Further discussion and action on activating the city of El Paso ad hoc charter advisory committee for the purpose of a city charter amendment special election to be held in November 2026. This item was submitted by representatives ADO and Borjo. >> Okay. Represent. Is there a motion to approve? >> Uh move to approve. >> Okay. >> Okay. Represented. >> Thank you mayor. Um, you know, a few months ago, I received what's in the backup, which is a timeline and deadline for a potential charter election for November. And so, as I was kind of sitting through with this, I initially thought that this was going to be a conversation that we was going to be brought to council for us to have. And then about a month ago, I realized that we were expected to put this on the agenda as council members if we wanted to have the conversation. And so I I had just been thinking through this, you know, I I haven't been here when there's been a charter election and I thought it would be a healthy discussion to have this conversation um and hear where everybody lands on it to see if we wanted to do a charter election. There's not saying that um I'm saying that um you know just die hard on this more I think it's healthy to revisit our charter every so often. I have a few ideas of of what um could be there. I think the community might have some ideas if we moved in this direction and you know I know there are costs associated with it um in any election and I don't know um if off the top of your head Miss Mack if you could answer since there is a an election that's happening at the state level would the cost be less to do a citywide election because there everybody's the the state elections happening No, it would cost us 1.2 million. >> Oh, you have numbers. Okay. >> Yeah, it would cost us 1.2 million on a low range, 1.6 on the high. >> Um there's about 800,000 that would be associated with um just the additional cost to be able to do a citywide election. >> Okay. >> And then you might recall from some of our other items when we brought things forward um like the last election, we do some public communications um campaigns and some mailers and things that are related to that. So the total cost for those two elements would be about 1.2 >> and they would be out of this budget and the next budget. >> Uh we would need uh some of the public educ uh education money coming out of this budget and the first payment for the election would be due September 4th. >> So that would be in the new fiscal year. >> So it would straddle both. >> Okay. >> Okay. >> Miss Mac, say that again. It would straddle both. You said okay. I wasn't sure. in order for us to have everything ready in terms of mailers and all the other pieces to be able to be ready for the election because we usually try to get everything out before um early voting happens. We would likely have those contracts in place. >> Okay. >> And we would likely, you know, need to make sure that we are we're signing off on those in the the pri this fiscal year. >> Okay. And maybe ballpark on how much it would be for this fiscal year. >> Um I'm looking at 300,000. 300,000 for this fiscal year and then the rest would go into fiscal year 27. >> Correct. >> Okay. I appreciate you having the that math. Um so yeah, I I think overall it's it's a living document. It you know there are issues that get presented with a living document and sometimes we need to go in and fix them. I know that um in talking to Miss Neman, Miss Mack, they don't have anything that they were pushing on the staff side, but I have had communic um conversations with the community that they've kind of said maybe look at the charter here. There's ideas that I have. I know there was probably ideas that were left over from the last charter election in 2023. So, I just wanted to give us that opportunity to have that discussion today. That's why this item's here. >> Okay. Represent Fier. >> Thank you, Mayor. Um, Representative, I totally agree with you that that we're hearing from the committee also that there's issues that we could should address on the charter and then let that the community vote on. I I totally would be opposed to spending um any of the monies out of cycle, especially since whether it's in this budget cycle or next budget cycle, we're talking about 1.2 to$ 1.6 million. It's still it's that's still 1.2.6 million. So it it's going to come out from the same bucket or we're going to have to cut something next budget cycle. When when we come to when traditionally we have the the charter we address charter amendments is during citywide u elections and and when well when the mayor's up and there's it it's all right. Okay. So, but it's because we we also budget for it, right? Even if we're going to do it or not, >> there's already >> Yeah, >> we had we had almost I think a year of planning. We had started that well in advance of discussion happened I think right as folks had gotten elected prior and >> those are my questions. Now, I can't bring those up. The last the last charter election happened in May and it was off cycle because we had had to postpone it because of COVID. So, so the the charter amendments would have taken place in November but for COVID which we it was impossible to do that at that time and then they were pushed back until May of two years ago when we had the last charter amendment. So, traditionally, historically, we try to have them land on a city-wide election, which is when the mayoral election takes place and budget for those um amendments take place at that point. >> Okay. Though, and also the timeline, I mean, we just the timeline is so so close, but again, I mean, I would be opposed to us spending again the 1.2 or$ 1.6 $6 million whether it be one budget or two budget sessions. But um thank you for bringing this up so we can at least know where we stand. Representative. >> Okay. Representative Canales >> ditto. Thank you. Mayor D. >> Represent D. >> Okay, you guys are catching me off guard here. Representative Trey. >> Thank you, Mayor. Uh so a quick question on on this. If we're looking at the next uh cycle memorial um may mayoral election, when should we be having these conversations? Like how how early so we can make sure that's planned in ahead? >> The timeline that I think representative was referring to, I think I provided to you back in September. And our recommendation is that you start a year prior to the proposed election to give the council an opportunity to put together your thought process. And just also remember that under the state law, you're not required to call a commission. The work can be done directly by staff and the city council, which will make things faster in terms of of getting those items proposed and approved by the council. Historically, the council has asked for commissions to be formed to allow it to do the work, but it's it's either or. >> Okay. And how how long is the process to put together the commissions? >> So, in years past, when we start a year in advance, it gives um the council, the city manager and our office an opportunity to work on what the items are going to look like. And then after those items are proposed, the council agrees to whatever list of items you want to consider the the the council then directs for a commission to be called and then the commission is um appointed. So that process from just getting a list and the commission can take about three months and then you all direct the commission if you want to use a commission to meet regularly. But then we also have to have public outreach which is a whole another set of meetings after the agenda is completed and the language is proposed. And then as Miss Mack explained, there's also additional printing of materials and then all of the public messaging that goes out to educate the public on what is being proposed as amendments. That's why we need an entire year and then also if it's a November election, you will have to call the election in August to put the item on the ballot. So that's why we need I would propose that you start in September, October of the prior year in order to make sure that you're finalized and ready to go with the language by August. >> Okay. Thank you, >> Representative Chavez. >> Thank you, Mayor. And thank you, Miss Mack, for clarifying and Miss Neman. But just out of curiosity, because I really just want to know, um, so this November, half of us will be on the ballot. So, do we does the city contribute half of that towards the election process or how do we determine what our or what we have to pay? How is it determined? >> So, I can let Miss Prime speak to it, but I think that we're looking at about 800,000 for the four. Miss Prime. >> Yes, that's correct. we share this this November, even though there's state constitutional amendments, the state will not share in the costs. Largely the the election is paid by the city and the county and any smaller entities that are going to be having an election this November. At this point, we don't know which other entities are having an election in November. So, the the cost will be shared between the county and the city. The county will provide us an estimate around July August and then we have to pay 75% of the estimate 60 days before the election which would be September 4th. >> But that's different when there's a mayorial race because it's >> falls with the presidential election. So then the costs are lower to the city. >> Okay. So even though we're all voting for governor this cycle, that doesn't mean that we pay or contribute towards that, >> right? the state will not cover any of the expenses. >> Okay, I think I understand better. Thank you, okay, for that clarifying. >> Representative Roachcha, >> thank you, mayor. And and just to reiterate, ditto ditto ditto on on on uh my colleagues over there. and and when we were briefed on on the process and the length of time that it took to bring this to council to um we I know I had conversations with one other colleague as to the timeline of how that looks and wanting to be very thoughtful on one the cost of it of things and two being able to make actual change. While I appreciate that this was brought to council today for discussion, I also feel that it was a little bit rushed into into forcing the um the discussion and creating a committee that things have to be done between now and and August. And so um with that said, you know, I I one I can't support it because of the cost of of the item, but two, it also needs to be very thoughtful in approach in my in my opinion on how or what we are going to bring to change, what charter amendments are we going to be talking about so that we can have those discussions very thoughtfully and very completely. And so with that, um, that's what I wanted to share. >> Okay. Represent Canales. >> Thank you, mayor. Just one quick comment and that's, you know, hearing the discussion about the the cost of elections. There's there's a lot of talk always about unfunded mandates from the state. And this is a perfect example. The state does not cover the costs for its own elections. It puts that on the counties and ultimately the cities as well to pay for the cost of statewide elections. Uh so we have to pay for our own elections plus the state's elections and uh it's just something that the state of Texas has decided to impose as an unfunded mandate on on all the localities within the state. So just wanted to put that up as an example. Thank you, Mayor. >> Thank you, Representative. >> Uh Miss Pre, just really quick, you said it's probably about $800,000 for the four city council seats that are up on the ballot in November. Is is that amount just for those seats? And if we were to do a charter election, it would still be 1.2. >> It would be more because right now you're only going out for half of the city. So if you do the entire city, that costs >> But it wouldn't like I guess what I'm trying to say is that $800,000 is half of 1.6 million. So would the charter election be another $800,000 to get to the 1.6 or just be an additional 1.6? >> It would be another 800,000 to get to the 1.6. >> Okay. >> So I got to the 1.6. by adding the the cost of the election at 800,000 and the outreach. >> Okay. Okay. So, it's that's kind of half. So, just double it to get there. Okay, that makes sense. >> Okay. Represent Lumont, >> Miss Neman. Um, I do believe a long long time ago the charter election, there were several items that the city attorney um put on there to clean up the charter. I don't know if you remember that. Do you anticipate some of those actions also coming to play when we do have a charter amendment? >> I'd have to go back and look at our list, ma'am. We have a like a an ongoing list of things. So, I'm sure that there's items that um have been kind of carryover that we would need to address. Yes. >> Okay. Okay. Thank you. So, that would be something that could be forthcoming. And I did want to say that I think having the commission appointed by each city representative is vital uh for the input of charter amendment items. Thank you. >> Okay. Mr. We have public comment on this item. >> Yes, we have Miss Husband and Representative Aso. We would also uh incur additional publication costs too because the the wording on the amendments would be rather lengthy. So those add up when we go out to publish in the newspaper. >> Can I get my team? We need the Elmo please. It's dark. what it is. It's a photo of our last district 2 representative who aso took over because she gave up her seat to run for another office who is now with by the way um Halprin works with Joshua who happens to be the husband of Alejandra Anela. That photo is Miss Anelo proof that she is part of the El Paso Del Norte Foundation. We were promised. Some of you weren't here, but it was a big old deal. And I know because Lisa had to pull it off the agenda when I spoke and I called everybody out on it about the issues that were going on with the hiring of the city manager and we were promised residents were that it was a huge to-do made the news everything right. We were promised that the city manager cancelling a city manager position would be on a ch on the charter, but we had to wait two years. So what I see is a power play by the back of the house again to keep their power in reign and the in the citizens shafted again because the next mayoral race won't be till what 27 28 >> 29. Wow. So, at least three years, we're going to be lied to and stuck with a city manager that residents wanted to get rid of. We were promised would be on a city charter amendment and we could vote on it. So, why is it that the back of the house didn't bring it up to you all last year? save themselves because it is Miss Mack conveniently that also pushed for pas delorte. So, I'm wondering how many of you all also want that that next step. The city that the charter the charter we were promised residents were promised that the city manager position would be on the next we had to wait two years and it would be up. And yet, nobody brought it up. And now it's too late. And our city manager and city attorney is saying, "Oh, no. It's it's not >> reach to three minutes. Miss >> Os represent Lemon. Go ahead. >> I It bothers me to hear things like this publicly. Um I had a conversation with Miss Neman early on because I was one that was very interested in having a charter turn amendment election and and she took the time to pull this information and when she said 1.2 2 to 1.9 million. Boom. That was it. We don't have the money to do this. And quite frankly, I'm not sure I'm not sure what citizens were promised, but I can assure you that I, as a citizen at the time, never heard or participated in anything that would indicate the removal of Mrs. Mack as her as her as our city manager. I support her. I value the work that she does and it hurts me to hear people speak like that in public. >> Thank you. Thank you, Representative. Miss Prank, call for the vote. >> Yes, sir. The motion was made by representative Asdo, seconded by representative or Trejo to direct the city manager and city attorney to begin the process for a November 2026 city charter amendment special election, conduct public outreach, and seek outside counsel if needed and further discussion action on activating the city of El Paso Adart charter advisory committee for the purpose of a city charter amendment election to be held November 2026. on that motion. Call for the vote in the voting session. And that motion fails two to six. Representatives Tjo voting I. The remainder of council voting nay. The motion fails. >> Okay, let's take item number 16, please. Item 16 is discussion and action on the award of solicitation 2026-0191 citywide pavement markings 2025 to Pavement Markings LLC DBA PMI Pavement Markings LLC for a total estimated amount of 6,82,000 including an option term as indicated on the agenda. >> Is there a motion >> a motion to approve a little bit? >> Okay. Does anyone want to see the the presentation? Okay. All right. There's a motion in a second, Miss Prime, to approve item number 16. We have public comment. >> Yes, we have Miss Osmond. >> Okay. >> I'm just curious, are these pavement markings for the new streets that are going to be laid down from that 35 million? And I believe there's another $20 million contract that happened two weeks ago. Is that what this is part of? in the paving doesn't have any markings. I'm just curious or is it going to be like some of the bike lanes like the same bike lanes down Pedras that were marked at one point and now are just kind of blacked over. I'm I'm curious because we we keep saying we don't have any money and yet you keep putting out these other little pet projects but there's no real explanation. Okay. What where are these pave these markings going to be? Which streets? Just curious. >> Okay, Miss Ryan, there was a motion in a second. Please call for the vote. >> Yes, the motion was made by Representative Lemon, seconded by Representative Fiero, and this is to award the solicitation on item 16. On that motion, call for the vote and the voting session. And that motion passes unanimously. >> Okay, let's take item number 17. >> Item 17 is discussion and action on a resolution to adopt the city of El Paso state legislative agenda and legislative session update for the 90th Texas legislative session. >> Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon. >> There's a motion and a second. All right, let's see the presentation. Good afternoon, Mayor Council. Cesar Ortiz, strategic and legislative affairs. Today's presentation uh is going to be a quick walkthrough of the city's 90th state legislation uh legislative agenda and the priorities that will guide our work at the state capital. Uh none of this is new to council. Uh this has been seen and councils in the past has approved similar agendas in past session cycles. Uh what's different this time is the timing. Uh we're getting out in front of it about a year early so we have clear direction uh can stay aligned with our state delegation and key partners can start building out policy items, funding requests and our advocacy plan uh before uh bill filing and committee activity really starts to pick up overview. So this is a council requested action. I will be share I will share brief points on strategic and legislative affairs. I'm going to summarize the agenda implementation actions. Uh then I will cover our guiding principles. Uh the lead the uh and then I'm going to go over some leading u city priorities and the appendences uh that support the agenda. So this is a uh council requested action. Uh we are uh requesting a council to take action on a resolution to adopt the state legislative agenda for the regular session of the 90th Texas legislature. So this agenda uh lays out the priorities that will guide the city of El Paso's work at the state capital. Uh it gives clear direction to the strategic and legislative affairs department, our our other departments and our lobbyists on how we develop legislation, participate in committees, respond to bills as they move along the session and pursue uh state resources for the city. This is how SLE puts the agenda into action. We work closely with the mayor, council, and departments to identify priority issues. Uh keep everyone updated in real uh time, make sure we coordinate with our state delegation and key committees where decisions get made. Uh we track and monitor both legislation and administrative actions. uh flag anything that could affect city authority or resources and coordinate uh recommended city positions and comments through our city attorney's office. Uh we pursue state funding and programs that support uh council priorities like infrastructure, public safety, and regional economic development. We will work with the Texas Municipal League and regional, border, and international partners uh so we can stay aligned and strengthen El Paso's impact during the 90th session. These guiding principles keep our advocacy focused and consistent. Uh we are protecting the city's financial resources, defending local authority by pushing back on broad preeemption and unfunded mandates and positioning El Paso competitively for state funding and programs. Uh we are also leaning into strong partnerships with our state delegation, the El Paso County, regional entities, once again the Texas Municipal League and our border and international partners. So the next three slides I will touch on some of the pri the priorities in the agenda. Uh these priorities in the agenda focus on securing fair state investment in transportation, ports of entry and core utilities. Uh we are pushing for equitable road, transit and airport funding. Uh stronger tools to deliver port infrastructure and approvals and funding for water, wastewater, storm water and drought and flood mitigation along with broadband fiber and cyber security. We're also protecting the city's role in utility rate cases right and right-of-way fee authority. Uh these priorities in the agenda focus on strengthening public safety and emergency response with more support for police and fire staffing equipment and facilities. We also want uh to expand mental and behavioral health and crisis response so so our first responders are not the default system. Uh we we want to support border community emergency and humanitarian needs with better compatibility and protect public confidence and trust in our public safety institutions. So these priorities in the agenda are about protecting local control while expanding housing and economic opportunity. Uh we are defending the city's tools to plan and manage growth. uh strengthening uh state support for advanced manufacturing and other key industries and small business and expanding resources for affordable housing anti-displacement homelessness response and fair housing access. Uh we are also supporting Fort Bliss mission readiness and protecting city installation partnerships uh from state interference. Now we're moving along to the appendices. So this slide summarizes the major phases of the regular session and how the city engages throughout. We begin with pre-filing and relationship work. We then shift into committee hearings and budget development. As deadlines approach, we focus on priority items, amendments, and fiscal impacts uh with the city's office of the controller with Margarita and her staff. After session, we will uh stay engaged during implementation rule making uh to protect city interests and uh ensure departments are prepared for new requirements. We will maintain a centralized tracker for bills and administration uh administrative uh actions that affect city authority, finances and operations. Uh we will flag priority items and coordinate department input and review with the city attorney's office and the office of the controller before positions are taken. uh keep council and leadership updated on deadlines and high impact activity and support departments after session with implementation, compliance timelines, uh fiscal impacts and any rule making. So now we are we are also working with city leadership to identify funding solutions for the I10 deck plaza. We are coordinating with economic development and international bridges uh for the writer request for the Isleta Zaragosa port of entry. We are also coordinating with economic development and El Paso International Airport for the advanced manufacturing district writer request. SLE staff submitted recommendations on two Senate interim charges focused on statewide water supply and data center demand and on directing the Texas Water Development Board to strengthen forecasting and planning integration. Uh these recommendations were submitted to the office of uh Senator Blanco on February the 9th, 2026. So this section is an example of how city staff is working on data centers policy as mentioned earlier by our city manager. We are moving forward with council's direction. Our proposed legislation. So we have two proposed legislations uh that uh we want uh to modernize project financing zones for border municipalities including eligibility improvements and a boundary solution. >> Oh thank you. >> So this once again this is a council requested action. So, we are requesting council to take action on a resolution to adopt this the state legislative agenda for the regular session of the 90th Texas Legislature. >> All right. Representative uh Vier. >> Thank you, Mayor. Mayor, this is the third year that I've sat on on council and I've heard um work with this department and each and every year that department gets more and more detailed. uh I don't want to use the word better but more and more detailed and and this is what makes your department so effective in Austin. Um this presentation today at this timeline is what other cities like Austin and Dallas and Houston do to prepare their delegation which is much bigger than ours um to be successful. But with these tools that this department is giving our delegation, which I'm sure are going to be very very thankful for you doing this is going to make them and us more successful. Um, and I just wanted to bring that to to your attention and to thank you for that. The last thing, Mayor, who's that young lady that you were walking in the halls with? >> Oh, that's that's my my wonderful wife. >> Well, welcome. Thank you so much. >> You're welcome. >> She's in the corner. represent Nino. >> Thank you, Mayor. And I also want to thank Mr. Ortiz Omar, the entire team, Miss Max team. Um, what's great about this is that you all are coming very early and I know that we'll be receiving updates throughout the year and also it's a living document. You know, there's always going to be opportunity for us to advocate specifically because we might not know what legislation might come forward, but overall it's a living document. Um, you know, for the members of the public, I would recommend for you all to look at the actual document on page 12 and 13. You'll get to see the work from our state strategic and legislative affairs team um from drafting an actual bill that's going to be proposed at the state uh legislature. So, I want to thank you guys for all your work. Um, it's exciting to see you guys really draft this and make it a reality. So, thank you for all your work and looking forward to continuing working with you all. I know that I've shared a couple of priorities of mine as well from including, you know, supporting other organizations. I know Paso Water has its own legislative affairs uh or legislative agenda and I know that they've mentioned how they want to advocate where they could uh help, you know, with affordability. So, I know that I brought that up, but um I'm looking forward to continue working with you all for this next year. And thank you for all your work. >> Thank you, Representative N. Representative Lemon. >> Thank you, Mayor. This is a great document and I know it's a draft, but this is a great great document and and thank you for spending the time in my office going through this. Um, you appeared a little bit nervous. Is this by any chance your first presentation to council? >> That is correct, Representative Lemon. This is my first You did a great job. Thank you. >> Just an absolutely great job. And I really appreciate the opportunity to know you all so much better. You know, we walk in the hall. Hello, Cesar. Hello. And and things like that. But when I spent some time with you last Friday morning, it it was really nice to see how you all operate. Everybody's got everybody's back. It's a team. It's a unity. It was such a neat neat place to be. And so I also had a chance to look at all your photographs on your wall and congratulations on receiving your master's degree. >> And I know your wife is next on the list. Your son is already completed and your wife is next. >> These are the great great stories of city hall and and I want to thank you. Great presentation. >> Gracias. >> Thank you very much, >> Represental. Thank you, mayor. Uh yeah, I'll say some of the same things in that this is uh such an improvement from this process, you know, many many uh sessions ago where uh the city had priorities, but it wasn't done proactively in this way. Um and to have this this early in it feels like the last session just ended. So to have an already defined uh playbook here that you all have put together is really really helpful um in thinking through how the how you know as we build up to the cycle how how the city will advocate for certain issues that um you know are are ultimately very beneficial to us. Uh and so uh thank you to the whole team and to yourself for for all the work and getting this put together. I know when we talked about this before um I asked some questions just about the timeline because we are adopting this so early. Um I wanted to make sure that we will have other touch points with this document to make sure that as uh things evolve and change over the next year and a half and then as bills are filed uh we'll have the opportunity to react with potential amendments to this document. Is that correct? >> That is correct. Okay. Yeah, because I think that's very important. Um, as much as being proactive is really really excellent, we we want to make sure we have the flexibility to be reactive as well as we see what gets filed. Um, and you know, to potentially support or oppose specific legislation from the state. And then um you know I uh to anyone who's really paid attention it'll I'll sound like a broken record a little bit but I'm very interested and I we I talked about this and I owe you some information but in homestead preservation reinvestment zones um is I've been talking about it since before I got elected and so uh we've gone several cycles without any movement there. It's something that I'd like to explore. Again, this came so early that I didn't even uh get to really bring it up this time before the document was developed. So, it's it's something that we can have further conversations about, but um just wanted to put that on the radar for council. It's um it's essentially tiff funding for uh for housing in a way that state law allows, but it's very bracketed. It's basically only for Austin. >> Um something something to look at expanding for El Paso potentially. So, thank you again for all the work and congratulations on the first presentation. You did great and we'll see many many more, I'm sure, because uh there's a lot of work to do before the next session. So, thank you. >> Thank you, >> Representative Chavez. >> Thank you, Mayor. And and thank you, Mr. Ortiz, for your presentation. I think you did great today. Um very happy to know that you are a constituent >> and the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. >> Thank you. So, I will make sure to to pass that along to your family. >> Thank you. >> Um, I'm very happy to see this come forward. I know that we had a a really good discussion in our briefing in my office and I know that um this time around we'll probably have a lot more opportunity to leverage our strengths both on the city staff side and council side to see how we can gain more support for these items. um and see how much how many wins we can bring back to our community, right? Because that's the end goal here. So, I look forward to having more of those conversations with you and the team. So, congratulations. Thank you. >> Thank you. Thank you very much. >> And Cesar, a great presentation. >> Thank you. >> And and anyone that's been through session, I mean, when I got here last year, it was all hands on deck and >> between Ian and you guys coming in with 911s and fires, but we got through it. So, it's good to see you this far out ahead of it. Uh which is really, really good. and the comprehensive plan that you get you and the team have put together and we're looking forward to as council and and the mayor's office working on this leg legislative agenda. So, congratulations. And I got to tell you, I'm a little jealous of all the extra pins you got there. And the minor pen, the the El Paso pen, the Texas pen, you're you're loaded. I have to represent mayor my alma mater >> veterans militaries affairs >> the city of El Paso the state and our 915 our climate and sustainability our our 915 tree >> that's fantastic fantastic and you did a great job >> thank you mayor thank you very much >> we have a motion and a second prime please call for the vote >> yes the motion was made by representative Timonado seconded by alternate mayor prompo to approve the resolution adopting the legislative agenda on that motion call for the vote >> end the voting session and that motion passes unanimously. >> Congratulations. Yeah. >> Thank you, Mayor Council. Yeah. >> All right. Let's take item number uh 18, Miss Bryant. 18 is discussion and action to approve a resolution that 2026 through 2036 public art master plan for the city of El Paso is adopted as a primary guideline to be utilized in all public art programs. >> Is good afternoon mayor and council for the record Ben Fe managing director. We're excited today to be able to bring two items forward for the public art plan. The first is for the 10-year master plan that will be guiding decision makingaking priorities and processes for the program over the next 10 years. It's fitting it because 2026 is actually the 20th anniversary of the program and we're excited about the opportunity to look back and see what we've done well, what we can tighten up and thinking about the future for the program itself. Before I bring our consultant up to go ahead and dig deeper into the findings, I did want to take the opportunity to thank you all uh for your assistance with this process. You were all were very generous with your time, your staff's time to be able to sit down and let us know what uh your priorities were. And you were also really great about making sure your constituents uh heard about every single opportunity that they would have to be able to provide input. So, this plan is really a product of of your assistance as well. So, thank you so much. >> Got it. >> At this time, I'd like to be uh bring up Meredith McKinley from VIA Consulting uh who has been working on the plan. >> And Ben, just so you know, we're going to take items 18 and 19 together. Miss Frank. >> Yes. Item 19 is discussion and action to approve a resolution that the 2026 public art plan be adopted and that the city manager designate is authorized to enter into contracts and amendments to contracts to carry out the public art plan as described in exhibit A of the resolution. >> All right. And we're going to have public comment on both. Okay. All right. Thank you, Ben. >> Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon. Good afternoon, council mayor. Um, thank you for this opportunity to share with you the public art master plan update. Um, it's been an honor to return to El Paso. We worked on the previous public art master plan along with our colleagues Todd Breie and uh Carrie Doyle who's here with me today. Um, and to really see how much the program has accomplished since 2014 and to work with you all uh the city to shape the program's future. Um, today I'm just going to take a few minutes. I got to remember to do my slide. Oh, slides. Here we go. um to give a brief overview of the planning process and to highlight some of the key recommendations in the plan. Uh this document updates the current public art master plan that was approved by council in 2014. The public art program has accomplished a tremendous amount in this period with 65 new public art commissions, several of which have received national recognition. This update has provided MCAD with the opportunity to reflect and set a path for the next decade. um with a review of the goals, vision, and direction for the public art program based on um community and stakeholder input, addressing any needed updates to policies, guidelines, and processes related to the public art program, and to um allow for a look at the opportunities and how they align um with other city goals and to look for partnership opportunities. Um uh a key step in this process was seeking input from the community. Um we had several ways that we engaged and solicited input and many thoughtful conversations with a range of community members from people who were close to the program to people who were just learning about it for the first time. We met with council with you all uh council district reps. We spoke with city staff with artists and other stakeholders who've been involved in the commissioning of artwork to get specific feedback on the public art process. a few things that we learned. Um, one, there's really strong support for the public art program and a desire for art that captures the uniqueness of El Paso, its people, its history, its culture, and its environment. There's also interest in broader engagement with public art. Residents want to learn more about the collection and participate in the public art process. Um, there's also an interest in continuing to support local artists, including an appreciation for the Allied Artist program and interest in expanding professional development opportunities. We found there are opportunities to broad broaden the program's reach, recognizing there are parts of the city that the program has not yet reached and where there's a strong interest in public art. Um, we found there's already a lot of uh private sector interest in public art with developers and private property owners in El Paso incorporating art into their developments and reaching out to MCAD for advice and support in their efforts. And finally, there's also a need to diversify funding opportunities. As bond funded projects become fewer, the public art program may need to look to diversify the ways that new public art projects and programs are resourced. Now, I'd like to highlight a few of the key elements in the plan, starting with the big picture, the mission, vision, and goals for the public art program. What we learned through the engagement, interviews, and research, is that the public art program is on the right track and that the mission for the public art program, what it does, remains essentially the same. It develops and maintains a collection of public art, supports public art and private development, engages people in that art collection, and helps people and helps support the public art environment. And by that I mean the artists, curators, fabricators installers arts institutions and organizations, schools and universities, and private partners that are involved in the public art process. The vision and goals for public art also receive positive feedback from the community with most people feeling that they were relevant, but could use some updating um for clarity purposes. The vision addresses the impact that public art will have in El Paso. El Paso's public art program gives voice to the city's creative spirit, and it accomplishes this through projects and programs that highlight local identity, increase arts access, nurture artistic development, and create meaningful places. The plan outlines key implementation tools for the public art program. The annual public art plan is an existing tool that allows the program to take a comprehensive look at the projects in process and the new projects to commence in the coming year. That plan is approved by the public art committee, MCAB, and UW all city council. And you're going to be hearing that uh presentation next. While many of the new public art projects are commissioned as part of capital projects, the program has the ability to pull funds should a capital project not be suited for public art. The plan outlines project identification principles to guide what projects go in the annual plan. An important idea discussed in the plan is that of what we call retrofit projects. Retrofits, the term we use when the public art program commisss an art um for an existing facility and not in conjunction with a capital improvement project. Retrofits can be accomplished using poolled percent for art funds and can bring art into facilities that have not had recent capital investments or or that predate the public art program. Finally, focus plans are a tool that the program can use to plan for public art for largecale facilities such as a convention center or systems like the park systems or even specific parts of the city. The plan uh update outlines strategies for future public art projects and makes recommendations for the art purchase program. The update outlines 10 opportunity areas for public art. These are types of facilities and infrastructure that can be found throughout the city and are in places that the city should focus an investment in public art. For each opportunity area, the plan update provides goals for public art, criteria for prioritizing opportunities and suggested resources and other special considerations. Some of these key strategies include for parks, trail heads, skate parks, and community facilities, the program should work with the parks and recck department to create an implementationoriented public art focus plan that identifies priority locations, site integration strategies, project types, and funding mechanisms. There should be a focus on existing parks and facilities and parts of the city that don't currently have public art. Libraries should continue to be a priority location for public art in conjunction with capital improvement projects as well as for retrofit projects. The public art program can also partner with libraries as locations for community engagement and artist outreach activities and to provide the public with information about works in the collection. Public art should continue to be commissioned at public safety facilities that have significant public use and should be cited to maximize visibility by the public as well as public safety staff. The program should seek locations for public art that are important nodes in the citywide roaded transportation networks and have a high volume of use. Um that but also that would require minimal site preparation investment. Um and also prioritizing communities that do not already have public art. The airport has been building a collection of public art and um uh the recommendation here is that the program should consider partnering with the airport to develop also a public art focus plan that would offer a roadmap uh for matching airport resources to opportunities not only for permanent commissions but also for temporary installations and uh exhibitions that are managed by the airport. The program should continue to grow its collection of public art in downtown, which I had the privilege of walking around and enjoying last night. Um, recognizing its high level of visibility to residents and visitors while balancing the need to bring art to other parts of the city. Public art should be included in the planning of the proposed convention center expansion and the redevelopment of Union Plaza. the art purchase program which you're also able to enjoy in this building launched in 2013 and they uh through the art purchase program um the city acquires two and threedimensional works of art from artists living within a 100 miles of El Paso with over 200 works on display in city offices and public buildings. This collection provides rotating exhibitions while while supporting local artists financially and professionally. Uh the update recommends enhancing uh the program by using guest curators and juries, introducing thematic calls, increasing acquisition frequency, creating public exhibitions of new works, and developing an online gallery to increase visibility. Supporting the public art ecosystem and engaging people in the public art collection were both important elements of the vision and goals for the public art program. The public art program already has successfully engaged local artists interested in building a public art career and has tools that can be built upon. The allied artist program which provides mentorship opportunities local artists can be strengthened and expanded on. The public art program can look to community partners that are already developing professional development opportunities to develop opportunities focused on public art related topics. Um, one of the things that we learned through our engagement is that many artists in El Paso have done their first public art projects through an MCAD grant. Given that interest, MCAD could be intentional about developing grants specifically for artists interested in public art. And many people express an interest in a simple directory of resources that include that include everything from best practices to fabrication resources. The job of a public art program isn't done once the art is installed. Um, there are core tools the program already uses to inform people about the works in the collection, such as labels, the website, and social media. One of the things we were delighted to learn through our engagement was how many educators are already using public art projects as a teaching tool in the classroom, which can be built and expanded upon. And with a strong tradition of muralism in El Paso, a registry specifically focused on murals can help people seek out this work. El Paso has strong opportunities to expand public art through private development. The master plan update recommends a multi-pronged approach. As a first step, the city can adopt a public art and private development policy affirming the value of public art and and identifying priority areas such as neighborhood centers, regional corridors, urban centers, downtown and economic development areas. There are then options for encouraging or incentivizing public art and private development that the city can uh investigate, including developing approaches to public art in areas where the city is already encouraging economic development. Um the city could consider a developer fee modeled after the park dedication fee. Through the land development ordinance, the city could consider density bonuses for projects including public art, allowing public arts to fulfill certain urban design requirements, including public art as amenity option and development standards. And then providing tools like artist registries, process guides, sample contracts, and economic casemaking to encourage voluntary inclusion of public art. And finally, public art to created to create uh created to fulfill requirements or receive public benefits should undergo city oversight. The master plan offers guidance on funding and staffing for the program's future. The percent for art ordinance will remain the primary funding source for public art, dedicating 2% of net proceeds from revenue bonds and certificates of obligation to public art. But as new bond issuances moderate, the program should diversify funding through strategic pooling of funds from less visible capital projects to support higher impact locations. Partnerships with city departments as successfully demonstrated with Sun Metro, the airport envir and environmental services to commission public art and then working with private developers. The program's current staffing level should be maintained to handle workload variations and specialized needs. The program should hire consultants, contractors, or temporary employees for tasks like curation, collection management, audience outreach, or artist professional development. Enhanced collaboration with other MCAD staff and external partners can expand capacity for engagement and education. Finally, the plan um updates the public art program guidelines. Uh most importantly, it clarifies artist selection panel composition consistent with city ordinance. Provides a streamline artist selection um and acquisition processes with visual flowcharts. Um revises the accession policy to allow staff to resite uh non-sight specific work without the public art committee or MCAB approval while maintaining pack and MCAB oversight of sight specific works. It also adds definitions including the P public art purchase program collection and public art focus plans and expands the role of the pack to nominate uh their chair and co-chair. And I realize those are a little out of order. Sorry about that. Any questions? >> Representative Lemon. >> Thank you, Mary. Not necessarily a question, but a a comment. And Ben, I'm glad you're you've moved up. On page 27, you have at the bottom of the page uh tools for building and connecting with audiences. And it's the mural registry. And so we discussed that in my office in district 7 has already begun the process of identifying public art and murals so that we can develop a brochure that we can share with all of our neighbors at our neighborhood meetings because this is so important. We just can't keep it hidden. more and more people need to know about all the features that we have in our district. So, thank you very much for including and I we're already working. >> Thank you, >> Representative Chaveis. >> Thank you, mayor, and thank you for the presentation. Thank you, Ben, for all that you do. I know that we have an upcoming meeting and I was happy to see that a few of the things that we're going to talk about are included in here. So, I'm looking forward to that opportunity to create more spaces that have art in my district. So, I appreciate it. Thank you. All right, let's take item 19. >> Good afternoon. Miriam Garcia, public art program manager. I have a presentation that I'll be going over. >> T, can you pull up the presentation for the 2026 public art plan? It's a different presentation. >> It's item 199. >> Yes. I've never done the combined ones before. Sorry. Thank you. it. It's also part of the backup. It is pulling it up from the back of just be couple seconds. While we're waiting, uh just we can go ahead and start some of the preliminary parts of this presentation. Uh by ordinance, we are required to bring forward to the council on an annual uh basis an update on where the program is uh what we've accomplished over the last year. We use that as an opportunity to also seek permission from the council for any contracts or projects that will be initiated in that calendar year. Uh that saves us and you from having agendas clogged multiple times. We take the whole year uh forward. And so that's what we'll be presenting today. Go ahead. Yeah. Go ahead and start with that. There we go. >> Oh, there. Perfect. So, it's the 2026 public art plan. Okay. So, the city of El Paso public art program was established in 2006. To date, we have completed 95 projects. We have worked with 206 local artists, sorry, 72% being local. We have the allied artist program with 24 apprenticeships and five of them have their own commissions. We have the art purchase program with 200 artworks with from 104 local artists. We have impacted over 180 local businesses. We have been received 15 awards and been published in 18 publications. Here is a list of the projects recently completed and then the projects that we have near completion and then I'll be going over um slides with pictures and renderings of them. So we have El Paso by Ray King at the Paso Norte roundabout for district 8. This is a progress um image for the rust bust bronze bust for Chief Allen. It will be at the Chief Allen headquarters. This is also a rendering for taking flight together by David Franklin for the Richard Ecastro East Sports Complex for District 5. And this is a progress photo of the mighty EPFD by artist Renevarez at the fire station 38 for district 5. This is a rendering and a picture of the progress for El Paso's golden light, a celebration of EPFD's history by Bradham Studios at the fire department special operations division for district 8. And this is a digital rendering um for a mural that will be also painted at the same location by artist Bakoli. Right here we have the list of three projects we're seeking approval for to initiate. The three projects will be located at the El Paso International Airport. It will be the EPIA concourse A1 art installation, the EPIA sterile area art installation, and the EPIA boarding bridges murals. These are all funded by U EPIA funds. We're also seeking approval for the following changes to the existing projects. We had the previous fire department training, police and fire department training academy and the police headquarters. that will be combined into the safety complex for a million $250,000 and then some of that funding will be allocated $800,000 to the site amenities and infrastructure and then we have a change for the alibabilities playground from invitational competition to direct select. Next we have a list of the projects that we have currently in progress. There's 20 projects. If you can go into the next slide. It's a continuation of the list of the projects in progress. Then more and then we'll be going through some renderings of the ones that we have with selected artists right now. This is 50 stars and one Lost Star by Cliff Garden Studio at the East Regional Park. The beast for the phase 2 roundabout memorial. the one previous. Then next, this one is Native Blooms by Artist Reed Madden Designs at the Resler Extension Project for District One. >> And next we have Wild Horses by Michael Stuts at the EPIA Terminal Landscape Improvements for District 2. This year, we're also funding a workshop, a two-day workshop next weekend for local artists. It's called the Artist Income Express. It's being uh done by the Mid American Arts Alliance. It's just a workshop where we're helping local artists to learn how to apply for grants, how to do their projects, how to read contracts. So, it's just a two-day workshop. And then again, we're requesting action uh for approval for the 2026 public art plan. >> Absolutely gorgeous. >> Thank you. Uh >> Miss Prime, we have public comment on this these two items. >> Yes, sir. We have Miss Osmond. >> Okay. So guys, we have deprogrammed quite a bit this year already. Lights at parks where families and kids get to go play, be outside, run around, get healthy. Keep saying that there's a deficit. I did watch that presentation from uh Cortina's yesterday. We're struggling for money on other on actual mainstay projects. And yet y'all are fine. You you won't defund the the vanity projects, the art projects. It's like you all are fine spending money for the elite class. But for the necessities, we're really struggling. That pretty only stays pretty for so long. The murals, they start to fade and then there's more money later. And I'm going to tell you, it's not that I'm against art. I have a very eclectic background. And I actually have my art all around the world. many pieces. Japan Germany Australia. One of my kids sells her art. So, it's not that I'm opposed to it, but what I can't what what I can't understand is the disconnect here. We're talking about bonds for art. We're talking about a convention center expansion that I don't hear that that's actually been brought up here, but for some reason the art presentation has it. It's kind of strange. There there's there is you know what that mythical math going on that Gina's always comes up with, right? There's that there money for vanity projects, but we're struggling. We're going to have to cut something here, cut something there to fix the streets or or maintain other things. We can't even have kids going to a swimming pool because we don't have the money for that. But we sure have the money for your vanity projects. I mean the Mac MexicanAmerican cultural to people are over there t taking yoga classes. It's an insult to anybody who's really Hispanic. And yeah, although I don't look at I'm just generations. This is what happens to somebody that's been here for generations. This is ridiculous. >> Miss Prank call for the vote, please. >> Yes, sir. The motion was made by Representative Lemon, seconded by alternate mayor prompier to approve the resolutions on 18 and 19, adopting the plans on that motion. Call for the vote and the voting session and the motion passes unanimously. >> All right, let's take item number 20, please. Item 20 is discussion and action on the resolution that the city manager or designate be authorized to sign a golf course operation and concession agreement between the city of El Paso and EP Golf Co LLC to provide a private concessionire to run the golf course for public use to provide the successful operation improved efficiency and greatest benefit to the cit citizens of the city of El Paso located at the premises at 1510 Hawkins Boulevard. Okay, there's a motion to second. >> Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon. Lisa Garcia, real estate manager with the airport. I will be presenting um it if you can bring up the presentation. Okay. Okay. And I will be presenting the new golf course operation and concession agreement for Lonear Golf Club, one of the two golf courses owned by the city on airport property. Um, a little bit of a background on the current agreement. So, the original um, golf course agreement was actually executed back in the 1980s, 1985. Um, and throughout the years, it has been amended and assigned multiple times. Back in August of 2022, the city council approved the seventh amendment and assignment of the contract to EP GF Co, which is our current concessionaire. Now, um the current concessionaire's agreement initial term will be expiring by the end of March of this year with a final option term that will be expiring in 2035. an EP golf co or concessionaire um requested a new long-term agreement in anticipation of making um capital investments in the golf course and and the pro and the facilities. And I do um want to point out that the concessionire is not um required under the current agreement to make any um capital improvements in the golf course. These improvements that they're proposing um are really a reflection of the concessionire's vision to run a better operation and to attract more people into the golf course. I'm sorry I'm going backwards. Okay. Um, so these proposed investments by the concessioner um together with some investments by the airport are really meant to extend and um expand, I'm sorry, and modernize the facility, which really hasn't been um renovated since the 80s. um address aging and outdated equipment, add new revenue generating uses, including a new putting golf course, and proactively plan for the replacement of critical Gulf infrastructure and components such as water wells, water um irrigation systems, lake and lakes. Now, these improvements are not only expected to enhance the overall quality of the property, but also to make additional revenue to the airport. As far as the terms for the new agreement, um the initial term is 30 years and they do have two 10-year options to extend. Both of these option are contingent upon more required capital um investments from the concessionaire. As far as rental fees and before I dive into um the numbers, I just briefly wanted to explain how the airport charges rental fees um in these types of agreements. So we do um um we calculate the rent based on a minimal annual guarantee and then also a percentage rent. And so the concessionire ends up paying whichever amount is higher. Um so for minimal annual guarantee the um through December of this year it would be 166,969 and then it goes up to $191,000 beginning in January of next year. As for future years, the um minimum annual guarantee becomes $191,000 or 80% of the previous year's percentage rent. As far as percentage rents, we do get 10 to 15% of their gross revenues. So, gross sales in different categories. Um, so we get 10% for their for their food and beverage revenues, 15% for their beer, wine, and al alcoholic beverages and 12% for pudding golf course, green fees, memberships, driving range fees, golf cart rentals, and golf equipment rentals. And then we also get 10% for their pro shop sales. So, as I mentioned before, the concessioner will end up paying whichever amount is higher, either the minimal annual guarantee or um the percentage rent. And so, how it works out is um the concessionire pays that 112 um annual MAG per month. And then by the end of the year, the airport does a reconciliation of their gross receipts, their gross sales. And by that time, if we determine that the the percentage rent exceeds the MAC, then the concessioner pays us um that difference. And just to give you an idea, um last year for 2025, the concessioner paid the airport $336,000 in revenues. For 2024, they paid the airport $312,000 for revenues. And so although their MAG was about 166,000, they ended up paying um double the amount because they're running such a efficient um and successful operation. And in this slide, I do have here a comparison of um the new agreement as comparing it to the old agreement. Um, so as far as required improvements from the concessionaire, the the current um agreement does not require the concessionire to make any um capital improvements in the golf course nor the property. For this new agreement, we have negotiated um with the concessionire and they will be making $1.3 million investment into designing and constructing a 31,000 square feet putting golf course and an outdoor um dining area to serve that golf course. They will also be um constructing a clubhouse expansion um and the airport will be reimbursing them up to $478,000 through rent credits. Now, as far as responsibility for critical infrastructure um on the current agreement, the airport is responsible for repairs, maintenance, and replacements of major um golf course infrastructure. water wells, the irrigation systems, the um the lakes. For this new agreement, um we have shifted that responsibility to the concessionire. So, they will be responsible now for maintaining and um repairing those big ticket items. Um as far as replacement reserve, replacement reserve account, um the current agreement does not have any replacement and reserve accounts. For this new agreement, um the concessioner has to fund a dedicated replacement and reserve account for the future replacement of major um infrastructure in the future. And so throughout the term of the agreement, they will be um funding up to $5.3 million um on that fund. And for percentage rent, um we have negotiated three additional revenue categories um that the airport will be getting revenues from. So, we now will be getting 10% of their pro shop gross sales, 12% of the pudding golf course fees, and 12% of um golf equipment rentals. In this slide, you can see some images. Um the first image is a um kind of like a mood board of how the pudding golf course is going to look. Um second image there, um you do have a kitchen and the dining area. So, this is going to be what we call a clubhouse expansion. is going to be an additional kitchen, an additional dining area that will serve that um Pudding Golf Course. And then the third image, you can see the Pudding Golf Course um overlaying um right in front of that white building. That white building is um that clubhouse expansion. And they're also um modernizing the current um kitchen and dining area. So we will now have two different dining areas. As far as the benefits to the city, um this agreement does increase us our non-eronautical revenue, which is really key to strengthen the airport's self- sustainability. Um the airport by generating more non-eronautical revenue, we're really able to um offer competitive rates to the airlines that are operating from El Paso International Airport, but also it really helps us when we're actively recruiting more airlines to come in and serve our community. And it does um this agreement also preserves the long-term value of a city asset. So the golf course again it it is owned by the city. Um with this agreement, we're making sure that we are actually reinvesting or investing in our asset and modernizing it. And it reduces maintenance risk and long-term costs associ. So it really protects the airport from unexpected expenses by shifting that um big ticket item responsibility to the concession air. And last but not least, it enhances the quality of life and com as this um golf course is a community amenity. So, we're very excited about um especially the the pudding golf course because we know that's going to bring um other types of customers. It's going to bring more firsttime um golf players, more children, more families. Um, and I do, um, before I end my presentation, I do want to really thank our concessioners. They're really our business partners. They have done, um, just a great job running the golf course these past three years that they have been operating it. Um, they're really fascinating job. They really, um, own the they don't own the golf course, but um, they treat it like if they own it. Um, they're always always looking at ways on how to, you know, make it better. And the requested action is to authorize the city manager or designate to sign the golf course operation and concession agreement between the city of El Paso as Lesour and EP Golf Co as LEI. >> And this is the end of my presentation. >> Thank you Roachcha. >> Thank you mayor. Thank you Larissa. Great job. I have to say I probably eat at the golf course about once a week. Uh and I've I've had several community meetings there. It is like walking into uh the 60s when you walk in. But it is it is so familiar because it has not changed in all these years. While I'm a little sad that that nostalgia is going away, right, with with the renovations, I understand that we need to move forward. the the neighborhood associations that are right around there in Sil Vista have been waiting for this project to come and the whole community, the golf community in general is really looking forward in anticipation for what this concessionire is going to do. And so congratulations to to really negotiating a a great contract and having a great partner in concess concessionire to be able to accomplish that. Great job. Thank you, >> represent Fo. >> Thank you, Mayor. Congratulations. Like Representative uh Roachcha said, this is a a win-win for the community. First, you all thought out of the box, made opportunities for them to make some profit, but for the city and the airport to make really good profits and and I'm looking forward to the uh restaurant getting better. Not better, more room. More room. That's what I meant. That's what I meant. I'm sorry. It's a It's a del. You can tell by my waistline. and it's a delicious restaurant, but so it's out going to outdo um paint uh not Butterfield hands down with these improvements. So, thank you for for the thinking outside the box. >> Thank you, >> represent Nino. >> Thank you, mayor, and congrats to Lisa and the entire team. This is your first presentation right? >> Yes. >> Congrats. You did great. >> Thank you. Um, I want to also thank staff for, you know, thinking through with this. I know that I had a lot of questions when I got briefed. Um, but it's going to generate additional sales tax revenue for the city. But I think one of the key things that stood out for me was that currently the airport is responsible for the major repairs, replacement of water well, water pumps, and irrigation system. And essentially this will turn over that responsibility over to the concessionaire and it's going to provide cost savings to the state of El Paso. So thank you for going through with, you know, analyzing that and and being, you know, fiscally responsible for the taxpayers. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> All right, Lissa, you're going to probably need Tony on these questions, but I love Taco Tuesday over there like everyone else does, but I do have some questions. >> Okay, >> I do have some questions. And again, I I'm I love the renovations. I love everything that that has taken place, but 50 years is a long time. Okay? I assure you, I will not be around in in 50 years. So, 30-year with two tenure options. My questions are on page 20 of the agreement, the termination portion of this, it talks about if they are current, they have a 90-day out. The only way it believes the city can get out is is if they're in default and I don't see our out. I'm just trying to see where the city's out is in this agreement. You might want to pass. >> Yeah. >> Good afternoon, Mayor Council. Uh Ignasio Thoso, city attorney's office. Um you were referencing page 20, which thankfully Lissa had up for me. Um, so we do typically only have the ability to get out in an event of default. However, one of the things that um, Lissa didn't really like necessarily hammer home on this is that the length of time on this agreement is largely contingent on their expenditure throughout. So even if they stayed current on rent, they don't automatically get to exercise their options to extend the term unless they have made capital expenditures that will justify having extended the term for the additional terms. So we will have opportunities before the entirety of the agreement is passed to um determine that they are not falling in compliance with what we want from them and still not allow them to exercise those options. So they don't just automatically get it forever as long as they're meeting their their rent payments. >> Okay. So it's tied to some type of capex improvement. >> Yes. And um I don't know the exact page numbers off the top of my head because it's been a while since I looked at this. >> Yeah. Only only because when I looked at it and again you the city attorney's office they had the 90-day out you know if they're current and then we were only able to get out I guess from what you're >> right under an event of default typically. Yes. >> Okay. Um that being said, um like I said, there are in order to exercise their option terms to extend past their initial term, they have to make very specific uh capital expenditures, >> okay, >> and investments into the golf course in order to be allowed to even have that option available to them. >> Okay, very good. >> See, Lissa, I told you, very good presentation. All right. There was a motion and a second, I believe. Miss Bryan. >> Yes. The motion was made by Representative Maldonado Rocha, seconded by Representative Lemon to approve the resolution >> on item 20. On that motion, call for the vote and the voting session. And that motion passes unanimously. Okay, Miss Brian, let's take item number 21, please. Item 21 is discussion and action on a resolution by city council approving and adopting the advanced manufacturing incentive policy AMD policy pursuant to the city's authority under chapter 380 of the Texas local government code and which shall supersede and replace El Paso makes innovation factory incentive and lease policy if policy except as to those agreements funded with American Rescue Plan Act ARPA or other federal funds that remain in effect. The AMD policy includes a $1.2 million allocation from the Texas Economic Development Fund to support the defense ready readiness incentive. >> Representative Procha. >> Okay. There's a motion in a second. Okay. Can we see the presentation? This is this is a good one. >> Yes, sir. Uh, good afternoon. Jessica Cordova from economic and international development department. So, this presentation covers the proposed advanced manufacturing incentive policy and requests a 1.2 2 million allocation from the TED fund to support a new incentive. It's called the Dibs Readiness Incentive. So, the vision is to reinvent El Paso's historical roots in manufacturing into high growth industries that create higher wages, long-term economic mobility, and our unique advantage is due to our proximity to national defense and aerospace assets. The goal is to ensure that El Paso manufacturers have the opportunity to participate in these supply chains. So within the fast the past five years, El Paso has been awarded over $60 million in federal funding to support manufacturing and that's through the bill to scale grant, the Build Back Better regional challenge grant, ARPA dollars, and community project funding from Congresswoman Escobar's office. This policy builds on those investments by focusing on supplier readiness and competitiveness. So our strategic approach includes these three pillars business attraction, workforce development and incubation services. So today we're going to focus on the business attraction portion. So that involves creating flexible and competitive incentive policies that emphasize workforce development along with emp um providing necessary infrastructure like at the innovation factory and the advanced manufacturing district. This approach reduces the initial cost related for a business's relocation or expansion. Workforce development um efforts include UTEP's internship program at the innovation factory and training programs to upskill the current workforce. Incubation services intend to get manufacturers ready to compete for defense contracts. So who do we who do we serve? This is a visual representation of the manufacturing industry in El Paso. All of which qualify to be part of the innovation network for manufacturers. So we conduct site visits to these manufacturers to gauge their defense readiness levels, their capabilities and to identify their individual business needs. Businesses are then connected to the necessary resources to help them meet those needs. So the services that are included for free and no cost to manufacturers is assistance with quality management certifications, guidance on ITAR and CMMC compliance, workforce training, the development of capability statements, and manufacturers also receive support in identifying potential customers in aerospace and defense markets. The city currently has an open request for proposals to hire the consultants that will continue offering these services um again at no cost. The goal is to have 150 manufacturers ready to bid on defense contracts by May of 27. So, uh, some of the largest barriers that manufacturers face in obtaining their certifications is time and lack of funding. And to address this barrier, we have created a Dibs readiness incentive, which will offer manufacturers up to $12,500 for those who reach defense industrialbased readiness level six. To qualify, manufacturers must be members of the innovation network, must sign up with SAM.gov, obtain a cage code, but most importantly, obtain those certifications. They also have to bid on at least one defense contract within a certain time frame. And the program is capped at $1.2 million or the first 150 manufacturers. So, if they get their certifications by March 31st of 2027, they can receive a $10,000 incentive. And if they receive it by the end of the year, they get that bonus of 2500. So while defense readiness is essential, manufacturers also need a suitable environment to grow. So this is where we get to the advanced manufacturing district at the airport, um, which is a designated industrial area that must align with FAA regulations while supporting high impact manufacturers. This district prioritizes companies that demonstrate job creation, capital investment, and active participation in aerospace, defense, and advanced manufacturing. And because demand is likely to exceed supply, we're applying a discipline selection process. So applicants will be evaluated using a transparent datadriven scoring criteria focused on economic impact. criteria include defense readiness, wage levels, job creation, supply chain impact, scalability, and financial stability. This ensures that incentives are directed to companies that will deliver the greatest impact for El Paso. Uh applicants who are selected will qualify for the following financial incentives. So, this here is our financial incentive toolkit. So, that includes lease subsidies, tax rebates, building fee rebates, and skills training grants. So uh it's essential that we formalize this leasing uh subsidies to match the advanced manufacturing district framework. We also need to implement a more aggressive approach through the skills development grant which directly addresses the demand for workforce training. So this approach is crucial to reducing the employment wage gap relative to the national average and it helps us meet our grant metric of creating 500 jobs. So, this brings us to our requested action request to approve and adopt the advanced manufacturing incentive policy and the $1.2 million allocation from the TED fund for the Dibs readiness incentives. U pending approval of this policy, businesses interested in applying can go to our website to apply for space at the AMD or the defense readiness incentive. Any questions? >> Very good. Representative Rocha. >> Thank you, Mayor. And thank you, Jessica. You did outstanding today. >> Thank you. Uh I just want to say that you know in in having conversations over the last I don't know 14 months or so with airport and going into view the innovation factory you can really see the the plan that the advanced manufacturing district is going to have and the impact it's going to have as it does already. That innovation factory has put El Paso on the international map for a lot of the the work that is going on there and I really look forward to seeing all those 150 spaces just quickly go out of the way and just get awarded right away. I'm sure it's going to be very competitive. I'm really looking forward to seeing what what uh what comes when once um you know hopefully it's approved today. Thank you. >> Thank you so much >> represent. Thank you mayor. Congratulations. This is great. It's a great plan. Um, I need to ask you in regards to the 150 goal. >> Yes. >> By 2026, >> 2027. >> 2027. >> Is it look like you're on track? >> So, it is a big ask and we have a lot of hard work to do and I'm really hoping that this incentive will get the businesses to where they need to decide in order to participate. I think that's the biggest hurdle. And so, um, we've identified that access to capital is one of the largest needs in the small and medium manufacturers and helping small businesses is one of our key initiatives in in our department in our city. And so, this incentive will really help them make the deciding factor in order to to get there. >> This is a great opportunity for our community, like the mayor says, to become business friendly or business ready. And so, thank you for all the work you're doing. >> Thank you for your support, >> Representative Chavez. >> Thank you, mayor. Thank you for the presentation. And I was also equally excited to to learn about this and and I'm looking forward to to seeing all of these companies benefit from from these incentives. Um I know that currently we have already a few companies, right? Yes, ma'am. From 34. Yes, I believe. Okay. So, I was wondering if maybe we could come back quarterly to get an update on on how we're progressing in in incentivizing these companies and how they're doing and tracking a little bit of that data just because I know that we always like to go back to our communities and and talk about the great things that we're doing and so we don't wait a long long time before we have an update to give to others. >> Yes. Would an email be okay or do you want it publicly? Um, well, I think we could maybe fit it into a work session, you know, just to get an update on on this since it's such a big part of our economic development policy and and the way we're moving in a direction as a city. You know, I know that there are others like UTEP that have also been partners. >> Yeah. Focusing on these types of initiatives. So maybe even in a work session so the public can know about it. Okay. >> Would be great. >> Thank you. >> Thank you. >> And Jessica, I wish this would have been around when I started my company. >> Yes, sir. I just thought of it. >> Yeah. I mean I am ISIL 90001 and AS9100 uh REDD certified and ITARS and I'm going through the painful process of CMMC as we speak and >> it's not easy, >> right? >> So you helping companies achieve these these certifications is going to be a big deal for for our community. And I would encourage companies that want to work with you guys to to go through this program. It gets you ready for aerospace. to get you ready to to be a manufacturer in these industries, composits and everything else that it comes with. So, um I applaud you guys for doing it and I think there's a lot of companies here that can benefit from this. So, congratulations. >> Thank you so much for your support there. >> All right. Uh any further questions for Jessica? >> All right, Miss Bry. >> There is public comment. >> Oh, yeah. There's public comment. That's right. that 1.5 is coming down of the TED fund, right? And if correct me if I'm not wrong, Garina, but I think the TED fund was uh part of that $80 million that El Paso received from the sale of El Paso Electric. Correct. All right. And I get a bit a bit more than a tenth of that went to uh the meta project. Apparently there is what according to last week's agenda there was about 30 million obligated. So we have about 50 million. And this is going pretty quick. So, how much longer is the TED fund going to going to last? I mean, it would have been nice if we hadn't given that 12.5 million away, but um it just makes me wonder because it seems that capital improvement really relying on that TED fund. And as we all heard Robert say, that that TED fund's not going to be around for very long. So what happens afterwards? Mind you also aerospace partners with Fort Bliss, they were really great partners when they shut down the airport, right? Really great communications. So apparently not great partners. People really haven't asked why it is that the DoD Fort Bliss handed DHS, Border Patrol, a militaryra piece of equipment to shoot up into the sky. Still haven't gotten those answers, but great partnership. You know what else aerospace and all of this does when you partner with Fort Bliss? Because honestly, Brack was the worst thing to happen to El Paso is it makes us higher on the list to get hit by a missile. And if you don't understand, we do have nuclear missiles on Fort Bliss. We do, but we just keep going higher up as the target. Either way, hopefully you'll partner a bit better with the city later. >> Miss Brian, call for the vote, please. >> Yes, the motion was made by Representative Lemon, seconded by alternate mayor promp to approve the resolution on item 21. On that motion, call for the vote. in the voting session and that motion passes unanimously. Representative Gonales not present. >> Okay, let's take item number 22, please. Item 22 is discussion and action on a resolution that the city manager or designate be authorized to sign the second amendment to the standard form of agreement between the city of El Paso and Jordan Foster Construction LLC design builder for the project known as 2024-0272R advanced manufacturing district to accept and incorporate the design builder guaranteed maximum price proposal for the project in the amount of 26,154,391. The amendment allows 464 calendar days for a substantial completion of the work with an additional 30 calendar days for final completion. >> Okay. Is there a motion to approve? >> Okay. Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon. Victoria Ree. I'm the capital improvements program administrator with the airport and I'll be presenting the award of the GMP. >> Okay. >> If it can pull up there we go. So the airport we fall under goal one of the city strategic strategic plan. cultivate an environment conducive to strong economic development. We grow the core business of air transportation and expand our airport development. So this project does fall within airport property. We have a total project budget of $31.7 million. 25 million is coming from the EDA grant and the 20% match is coming from airport enterprise funds. And today's request would be to award 26.1 million for the GMP. Just to give a little overview of this project. So originally the grant application ask was for $50 million and that was to cover the extension of infrastructure to do site development construct 250,000 square feet of cold shell buildings as well as expanding the innovation factory. And just as a note the airport has completed the expansion from approximately 30,000 square feet to 53,000 square feet all with enterprise fun with airport funds. Um once the award was the grant was awarded it was for 25 million so half of the ask and at the time the city elected to move forward with the original scope. We wanted to pursue additional funding opportunities and we also wanted the chance to develop our construction documents to obtain marketbased cost and that's where it brings us today with our GMP. So these next two slides we wanted to highlight everything associated with the scope of work our key elements. Um, so this table summarizes everything that's in the scope of work. Everything that's in green will be constructed under the GMP and everything else in white is master applied master plan via the design. So we're going to receive 100% design with this package. So all of it will be designed out and the green elements will be constructed. It includes infrastructure and amenities as well as the building programs themselves. And because we did have some adjustments to the construction uh piece, the formal construction scope adjustment was submitted to the EDA and on February 3rd, we received approval from the EDA to proceed with the adjusted scope. So the GMP scope of workforce construction, like I mentioned, 50,000 square feet of warm shell building, 10,000 square feet will be a finished administrative space for offices, training, and conference rooms. 40,000 square feet will be shell space for future tenant improvements. and those shell spaces will have HVAC systems installed. Here's an overview of the floor plan. On the lefthand side is a 10,000 square feet of finished space that includes movein ready offices, a shared reservable conference, training room, and a conference rooms and the remaining will be the 40,000 ft of uh warm shell space. And this helps future tenants because those spaces already accounted for on the 10,000 buildout. So they don't have to account for that on their tenant buildout space as well. Um so this approach does deliver workforce training and tenant support functions. To continue with the scope, we will be uh constructing access roadways with curbon gutter. We'll have sidewalks, drainage improvements, a security checkpoint, our parking areas with striping and signage, a perimeter security fencing and gates, landscape and irrigation and illumination. And these are renderings from our architect that is our building A. Um we have our guard check that will secure the site. And in the rear of the facility, we have uh door dock doors that will help facilitate shipping and receiving operations for our tenants. >> Okay. So, today's request for action is to award uh the GMP to Dorm Foster Construction in the amount of $26.1 million. >> Representative Brocha. >> Thank you, Mayor. And thank you so much for for the presentation today. uh when we talked about it, I thought, you know, how how is this going to work when you have all these tenants and then you have just a few little spaces for the for the um conference rooms and training areas. Yes. >> But understanding that that's currently what's already in place at the innovation factory and so those companies are very well you aware of what those uh kind of limitations are and I liked it because it maximizes the actual space of the the work. So, for those companies that are going to come in. So, um, so really great job on on the renderings. It looks like a beautiful building. Looking forward to finally breaking ground on it at some point. >> We're excited about that. That's coming. It's May the 6 is our ground. Thank you so much. Yes, I heard. Thank you for the date. >> And so, really looking forward to it. It's it's a great ad in that space on airport property. Um, that's going to really add to to just that global reach touch. So, thank you all. Thank you. >> Very good. Any other questions on this particular item number 22? >> All right, Miss Brian. >> We have public comment from Miss Osmond. >> And you got to love it when uh the hunts get another contract, right? We know who holds the strings. I mind you, I really love Gail. Beautiful woman. Shines. just sweet as can be. I'm just curious. Uh the dog park, there's uh about 150,000 for a dog park. Is that for their security dog? Like like what what tenants wait is is that what what do we expect to be there? Is that for security dogs? What why is the dog park within the plans? I'm just curious. I mean, maybe not everybody reads the entire scope of work, but I did. Nobody was curious why there's dog park in this whole place. Do we have a dog park here? City Hall, just in case somebody comes with their service animal. Is that what it's for? Nobody knows. All right. Wonder if that's just fluff and there's not really going to be a dog park. >> Mr. Brian, call for the vote, please. >> Yes, sir. The motion was made by Representative Malonado Rocha, seconded by Representative Lemon, and to this is to approve the resolution on item 22. On that motion, call for the vote and the voting session. And that motion passes unanimously. Okay, Miss Brian, let's take item number 23 please. >> Item 23 is discussion and action on a resolution to authorize a city manager to sign a chapter 380 economic development program agreement between the city of El Paso and H&N Property Holdings LLC in support of an infill development project located at 911 TA Street. >> Is there a motion to approve? Move to approve. >> Second. >> Okay. Good afternoon. >> Hi, good afternoon. Jessica Torres, Economic and International Development. Uh this presentation covers a proposed infill uh chapter 380 agreement. Okay. The chapter 380 infill incentive program is a locationbased incentive designed to encourage the redevelopment of vacant or underutilized properties. The program supports commercial and multi-unit housing project that meet the design criteria and it does require a minimum investment of $50,000. Available incentives includes the scaled property tax rebate for either five years or 10 years, construction fee waiverss of up to $10,000, and a 1% sales tax rebate on the construction materials. Okay. The project location, it is located at 911 TAC uh located in the Sigundo Bario area. And these are the images of the current condition. Um this will be uh able to activate the underutilized property and it does align with the redevelopment goals. Project summary, the applicant is HNN property holdings. Again, the location address is 911 TAC. They do have an investment of 322,20 with 42 cents. It is located in district number eight. And the project will develop a quadruplex featuring two-bedroom apartments, residential units, helping to expand the local housing options. for the proposed incentive package. The total proposed incentive package is of 30,000 $5554.54. It does include a 10-year incremental property tax rebate, the construction material sales tax rebate of 1,610, and then the permit fee rebates up to five of I'm sorry, $5,000. Okay. Over the 10-year period, the project is projected to generate over 122,000 in new property tax revenue for the local entities, which those include the city, the county, uh, UMC, uh, EPCC, and the El Paso Independent School District. The staff recommends the approval of the chapter 380 infill program as the project meets the adopted infill policy and the advances the redevelopment objectives. Okay, >> any questions? >> Yeah, Miss Bryant, we have public comment on item 23. >> That's correct. We have Miss Osman. >> I actually do read the whole agenda. Uh, Ganales, your district partio is historic district. Do you know if this property is within that historic district? This is not within the Sonario Historic District. >> She just said it was Sundo. That's why I'm asking. And the documents said Seo. So not part of any historic district. That's what I was checking on because a lot of things, a lot of developers go into some of the historic districts, make changes, and then they're brought forth in front of the historic commission, and then they ha they're tagged with like $60,000 of changes they have to make because they didn't go through the historic district. So, I was just verifying that that's not going to happen in this case because um Capital Improvement doesn't always do their work right. As we can tell, when I did their homework for the Union Depot amphitheater where they didn't have any of the documentations, full property rights, never checked with Union Pacific. So, I always like to check their homework. So, as long as it's not in historic district, they should be good. >> Jessica, do you mind coming back up? >> Representative Chavez. >> Thank you, Mayor. Um, I have just a couple of questions because I'm interested in in in this subject because of something else that I'm working on that I will bring forward to you, Karina. But um in terms of infill for housing for apartments or whatnot, um do we do we have a lot of those currently 380 agreements for for these types of developments? >> Yes. Go ahead. >> She pulled it for me, but I wanted to make sure. Karina Brascalo with Economic and International Development. Um so there's two different approaches, right? We've talked about the downtown housing program pilot. So there's that existing 380 for the popular building. Uh, in terms of infill, we are running, we have, is this nine? >> Nine active agreements. Um, it is, and I've said this before on record many times, it's one of our more underutilized programs. Um, and so we get probably a handful of these applications throughout the year. So, three, I'm going to say we're averaging probably under 10 a year and then, uh, only a small number of those come forward to council. Um, this is the infill. The transit oriented development incentive policies are part of a larger conversation about redevelopment about the housing. So the work that the housing assessment, the housing plan, the CFT is working on lining those up so that we don't kind of overlap and duplicate efforts. Um and that is part of a subscope of work on the comprehensive plan uh run in vision paso running out of that group. >> Okay. And I think it's a good project overall and I'm just trying to to uh gather my thoughts and I'll speak again more about it with you at a future date. But do we um like are these 380 agreements tied to uh the number of units that are rented out? Do we >> track that internally? >> We do track that. So we track um the minimum investment. If there are units included, we do that. Um so we do have tracking on all of those. The infill program much like the transit oriented development and our other redevelopment programs are locationbased. So um there are minimum investment requirements. There are still those performant me performance metrics in terms of you know applying for your taxes, getting the rebates um you know finishing the work in a certain time frame, but the approach on those policies is by virtue of the location they're in. We've said that infield development, bringing in that sprawl, investing and reinvesting in specific locations within the city is a critical economic development need. And so that's where that kind of need comes from. >> Okay. >> Yeah. >> So maybe maybe we'll have a little bit more of a discussion on what you're tracking and >> and some ideas that can bounce off of you. It's I know it's kind of you have to do a several clickthroughs but we do um keep active maps of all of our 380s including the types and so their current status uh the investment made to date if there are any unit counts or any employment counts associated with those agreements those are all on an interactive map on our website as well. >> Thanks Karina. >> Thank you. >> Any other questions? >> Okay Miss Bryant. >> Yes. The motion was made by Representative Canal, seconded by Representative Lemon to approve the resolution on item 23. On that motion, call for the vote and the voting session. And that motion passes unanimously. >> Okay, let's take item number 24. Item 24 is discussion and action on the results of the accounts receivable program second follow-up audit A2025-10. >> Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon. Excuse me, mayor and council. My name is Miguel Montiel with the internal audit department. We'll be discussing the second follow-up for the accounts receivable program audit that we conducted. Uh this audit was this audit report was uh discussed and approved to forward to council uh during the January 15th uh financial oversight and audit committee meeting. Okay, start with a little bit of background. Uh the city of El Paso's uh the city of El Paso utilizes uh what's called the decentralized accounts receivable model. Uh pretty much what it states what pretty much what it is that is there are two components to this process. One is the office of the controller who is responsible for uh creating uh the conser receivable policy that establishes a framework and guidance for the administration and collection of the AR function. And then the second component are the departments. The departments are the ones responsible for actually uh executing the actual accounts receivable you know billing uh sending out bills maintaining their accounts receivable. uh they're responsible for maintaining and developing uh their own written receivable procedures if they're different from from the OTC's policy. Uh but they still have to abide by the city of El Paso's account receiving policy. The objective of this followup uh was to ensure uh that corrective action was taken by the office of the controller uh to address recommendations to the three uh audit findings we identified in the original audit report uh dated August 11th, 2022. Uh the original report is posted on the city's web page. Okay. Okay. So, our scope for the second follow-up audit was limited to the three findings uh in the original audit report and we looked at the current processes and operations for fiscal years 2025 and 2026. Okay. So, this is the original finding from uh back from 2022 from August 11th. uh back then the account receivable policy uh lacks lacked specific guidance for city departments in the following areas and it's those seven areas there just I'll go through them really quick defining which accounts receivable transactions needed to be recorded in the soft uh AR module uh training requirements for staff that process accounts receivable transactions excuse me how to record and invoice uh and post accounts receivable payments uh the steps to set up accounts receivable payment plans for rental of city facilities uh reconciling AR payments posted inoft to the invoices issued and then how to correct errors for uh accounts receivable payments that are applied to an incorrect peopleoft accounts and then just reporting the accounts receivable information to OTC. So currently based on our second followup office of the uh controller has updated the city of El Paso accounts receivable policy and created uh training course in EP learners uh to address the following. So now uh now the ensuring the policy ensures that customer invoices contain clear identifying information. Uh the policy establishes that the accounts receivable information that must be provided to OTC by each city department. Uh provides uh guidance on how to reconcile payments posted in soft and provides guidance on how what to follow uh when a payment is posted in incorrectly. We're going to follow up here. the finding current finding. This is the second component. This is the department uh uh level component. Uh departments should uh continue to define which services and activities need to be recorded in the soft accounts receivable module. Uh they should establish procedures on how to set payment plans for the rental of city facilities and department still uh should continue uh procedures on how to uh correctly record invoice and post uh payments in the accounts receivable. We'll go move to the second finding. This is second original finding from August of 2022. So back then uh the city of Paso council civil policy lack guidance for pass through account management that address the following items. Those are those items there. Uh currently based on our second followup, the city council receivable policy dated November 2024 was updated to incorporate the internal audit recommendations for the collection and account management of past two accounts. Uh in addition, OTC has established a training course in EP learners uh for departments for staff to ensure that city personnel who would perform accounts receivable functions are familiar with the updated policy requirements. Now we'll go to finding number three. This is the original finding. Uh back then a review of seven departments identified that six departments were not following the city of El Paso's accounts receivable policy dated 2020 for the recording, invoicing, posting and reconciliation of receivables. Uh departments had several issues uh you know as you can see the bulleted points there. Uh three out of seven departments uh did not consistently record and track all their available activities in people in the peopleoft AR module. uh two out of the seven departments were not invoicing customers within 30 days from the date the service uh as required by the policy. Uh one of the seven departments had a payment for a receivable posted to an incorrect account uh which resulted in that receivable becoming delinquent because it wasn't posted to correct account. And then five out of the seven departments uh reviewed conducted uh they conducted monthly AR reconcilations but only one of the five uh provided uh monthly AR report to office of the controller. That was back then current observation uh office of the controller has updated the seal paso accounts receivable policy and created a training uh course to address the following. So now they have steps uh for staff to identify incorrect posting u and to who to contact uh how to fix you know how to fix the issue and and to apply the credit correctly to the correct account. Uh now there's processes for conducting monthly AR uh reconciliations. uh these the remaining excuse me the department component is uh the remaining responsibilities at the department level uh based on the accounts receivable policy departments decide uh the proper implementation uh based on the department's operations and needs because every department has different needs and requirements on the accounts receivable but uh they should record and track all billable activities in the soft AR module and ensure customers are invoiced within 30 days of the service So our conclusion of our second followup is office of controller met the objectives uh in the following areas. Uh they provide specific billing guidance to city departments provide guidance over the collection and account management the past two accounts and establish a training course uh for the updated council zeal policy uh dated in November 2024 that departments can use to uh bill everything correctly and then conclusion. We still uh continue here. Uh they uh this is part of the second uh like I mentioned earlier this is part of the department component uh that continues to include uh departments you know define which services and activities uh need to be recorded in the soft AR module. Uh departments provide procedures on how to correctly record invoice and post payments in the accounts receivable uh module inoft. uh the recording and tracking of billable activities in the module and then delegating responsibility to departments to ensure departments are invoicing customers within 30 days from the day of service or goods provided. >> Excuse me. So our requested action is to accept the results of the second follow-up audit. >> Motion to approve. >> Okay. Well, thank you. There's a motion in a second. Uh thank you for the followup on this audit. >> Appreciate that. Uh Miss Prime, we have public comment. >> Yes, we have Miss Osmond. Some of you know that I'm always going to speak on an audit issue. For those of you that are new and don't understand all the issues that happen with audits and, you know, money that was illused, I'm here to speak because Mr. Fiero still hasn't taken care of the issue and figured out why it is Gloria Kran after over 25 years was her and her sister had been making cash payments on a roof loan over 25 years ago and then suddenly told they didn't show any payments. No audit was done to find out what happened there. I don't see it mentioned here. Although Karon was supposed to look into it, but you know, he had issues after he looked into other fraud pertaining to previous council members and other people in this room. There's still a woman who will call me crying. She's been here crying in front of you, Mr. Johnson, asking for assistance. So, apparently the audit process still isn't fine. Somebody's covering up for somebody who stole money for over 20 years. Well, one of Fiero's constituents has to suffer and cry and still worry herself because the city pressured her into signing a new contract. his husband, I think you're getting off topic. >> No, this is all audit. This is all audit, >> but it's not specific to this report. >> Okay. >> So, why isn't that in this report? >> Well, why is it not none of that caught here? She was here this year. Gadon was supposed to investigate it. Apparently, his office, the audit office on accounts receivable. This is an accounts receivable. They're making payments to the city. Nobody seems to care when money goes missing. But a constituent just an elderly constituent is the one that has to suffer because the audit report, y'all say, "Good job." And they'll say, "Hey, good question." So scripted is so so sadly scripted every time a report is given in here without any true concern for the constituents and the residents and the citizens that get harmed by the practices of the people that work for the city. >> Mr. Bryan, call for the vote, please. >> Yes. The motion was made by Mayor Prom Chavez, seconded by Representative Nino. And this is to accept the results of the audit on item 24. On that motion, call for the vote and the voting session. And that motion passes unanimously. >> All right. Thank you. Uh let's take item number 25. Item 25 is discussion and action on a resolution that the city manager or designate be authorized to affffectuate a budget transfer of 159,19855 from 2020 capital funding plan project savings to downtown bicycle improvements phase one. >> Was there a motion to approve? >> Move to approve. >> Second. >> Okay. Good afternoon. >> Good afternoon Sasha Donski, Office of Management and Budget. We have a short. >> You're taller, Sasha. There you go. >> Good afternoon. >> There we go. Okay. >> Sasha Donoski, Office of Management and Budget. So, we have a short presentation. Uh Wen is going to deliver the presentation for this. >> Okay. >> Good afternoon, Wriguez with Capital Improvements. it. Thank you. >> So, as Sasha mentioned, this is a budget transfer to support the downtown bicycle improvements uh phase one project, specifically some reservicing on Virginia Street. Virginia Street is part of the downtown bike improvements. The pavement condition, however, on Virginia Street uh is in very poor condition. The PCI is somewhere between 20 and 30 depending on which block you look at. So, prior to us installing the trip the striping that's part of the federally funded project, um we want to go ahead and resurface the street. The total uh length is about 900 feet, approximately 4,500 square feet to resurface. Um again this is just resurfacing not a complete re reconstruction just to support the future striping on the project. Total estimated cost of the resurfacing uh and this will be done using uh one of the city's on call contracts uh is about $159,19855. And this is using project savings from one of our other downtown active transportation projects uh with leftover 2020 certificates of obligation. Construction time should be about two months. Again, this will happen prior to uh finishing that striping as associated with the downtown bike project. And we don't uh foresee any impacts to businesses along the street. Here's a map of the limits of the resurfacing. You can see here it's three blocks of Virginia Street. U doesn't include intersections. For the most part, those were complete uh in recent years. Some pictures of the existing pavement quality. So requested action is for approval of the budget transfer. >> Representative Lemon. >> Yes, Mayor. Thank you. Walking. This is this is not new money. This is money that was already as a part of the 2020 capital funding >> plan. >> Correct. >> Correct. Correct. >> So this is not new money. No, ma'am. >> And this was already included in our budget for this year. There's not new money coming in that we're having to find. >> Correct. I don't know about budget for this year. Um Robert might help with that. These cos were issued quite some time ago. So this is cash on hand. >> Okay. >> Sash Sasha is part of all year's fund budget. >> Very good. >> So it's already budget. >> I just wanted to anticipate a question or a comment. Thank you. >> Representative Chavez. >> Thank you mayor. Um and I had had a similar question as Miss Lemon and I had um asked capital improvements only because it is through a CO and we did do some deprogramming on other COs. So I was just trying to understand which cos were getting deprogrammed which CO we were moving forward with and they were able to provide me with a list of those. So maybe if you're interested you could request that list as well. Miss Limum. Thank you. Uh, Miss Prime, we have public comment on this item. >> Yes, we have Miss Osmond. >> Yeah, he is tall. I'm just short. So, canales are uh bike lanes to nowhere. 2.5 mil for bike lanes to nowhere. A little island of bike lanes downtown. an additional 160,000 here just for that portion. So I'm curious, do the bike lanes go on El Paso Drive by chance? >> Okay. So because I'm just curious whose properties are they really serving? Are are y'all just trying to prep downtown so that you hit the residents because of the deck plaza you keep pushing for Paso del Norte? I'm curious why it is. You're doing you're doing an island an additional after because this is additional over the 2.5 million for these island of bike lanes. I don't know if they go past Miss Neman's property or her husband's property on El Paso Street. Who knows? But we will cut everything else and we'll do again bike lanes to serve who can't get down here. Streets to get down here are really bad. I know. So are you just prepping downtown for the deck plaza for the Htons fosters? I I am because it's now for the citizens. This is an additional 160 over 2.5 million for island of bike lanes which quite frankly the reason why people didn't want a stadium downtown over what we already have is that these bike lanes quite frankly are going to make the downtown traffic even worse. That was one of the complaints when they brought that proposal Mr. You should remember on the Union Depot amphitheater. The traffic's going to be bad. You don't think that this is going to bottleneck traffic downtown, too? Like it is so illconceived. M maybe check out Greenville's Greenway and that in South Carolina. Really nice. Gorgeous. I I really love when those things are done right. But this this smells and it's not good. How many month how how many how much more are your bike lanes to nowhere going to cost the citizens? Mr. Canelis. >> Mr. Brian, call for the vote, please. >> Yes, sir. The motion was made by Representative Canales, seconded by Representative Lemon to approve the resolution on item 25. On that motion, call for the vote. in the voting session and that motion passes unanimously. >> Okay, council. Item 26 was postponed. We have one more additional item, then we have executive session. Item 27, please. >> Item 27 is discussion and action to approve a resolution to submit an application to a $50,000 Texas&M forest service grant program with a one with a $21,000 cash and $29,000 in kind match from the city. >> Is there a motion? All right. All right. >> Good evening. >> You're You're the last one. >> I'm the last one. >> Yeah, you got it. >> Uh good evening, mayor and council. Uh my name is Dora Ernnandez. I'm with strategic and legislative affairs with the uh sustainability, climate, sustainability, and energy division. >> I'm presenting on the uh 2026 Texas&M forestry service community forestry grants. Uh this item aligns with strategic goal eight to nurture and promote healthy sustainable communities. The community forestry grants are awarded and funded by Texas&M forestry ser forest service um and they're aided with USDA funding. We plan to apply for the community resilience resiliency grant category which focuses on enhancing El Paso's uh adaptability and resilience. Um the grant award is $50,000 and requires a $50,000 match. Um our awardees will be informed of award in May and there's a year timeline um which uh takes us through to May 2027. If awarded, the city of El Paso's climate sustainability and energy team will have program oversight with the support of our parks department. San Brando Espiransa will partner with us without for outreach uh community outreach and UTEP and El Paso Water with support with community education. To summarize, the project budget is $100,000 with half of that coming from the grant. 21,000 as a Whoops, sorry about that. I'm getting to the slide. um pro uh let's see coming from 21 uh $21,000 grant as a local match and 29,000 as a local inind match. This would support the planting of 250 trees with four workshops over four planting events. Um it would also support eight to uh to eight ambassadors trained with one climate fellow supporting one UTEP intern and it would increase our urban canopy in the region. Um residential eligibility would require them to be within the city limits, have a low tree equity score and to sign a stewardship commitment. Our ask today is that council approve the submission of this grant proposal and sign the agreement if awarded. >> Representative Leon. >> Thank you, mayor. Thank you, Dor. These are trees that are going to be planted in residential in residences, people that are going to apply for these. >> Yes, sir. >> Um, how many trees can a resident apply for? >> Two. >> Two. Um, must they be owners of the property? >> Correct. >> Not renters. >> Not renters. >> Okay. >> And then so you're going to have a variety of groups that are going to assist with the actual planting of the trees. Yes. >> Or are the residents Okay. You are. >> Okay. Um, did you involve the master gardener program in this grant application or thought about it? Um, >> I'm just thinking they're a really good um outreach and a great source that would probably be really interested in helping out in the planting process as part of the service hours that need to be completed by the master gardener interns. >> That's just a thought. >> No, it's a great idea. >> Just for a thought and uh we continue to reach our goal of 77 for seven 77 trees planted in our district. So, I'm going to be real interested in ensuring that our constituents apply for this project. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mayor >> Representative Nino. >> Thank you, Mayor. And thank you, Lora, for all your hard work. I know uh a lot of residents have shared that they want more trees, more canopy all around El Paso. Um you mentioned that this going to be in residential homes. Is this going to be in the city right away or is this going to be in other spaces for for these residents? It'll be on the property, residential property. >> Great. Uh, another question I have um in regards of the eligibility where it says low tree equity. I know we've had this conversation before where the website for the US tree equity score half of the dis district 5 doesn't exist because that is a you know aged map. Um, have we revisited that conversation in regards of, you know, if someone in district 5 who lives in the area that's not within that map wants to apply, but again, they don't show up on this tree equity score map, I want to ensure that we're accessible to them. Um, so it doesn't discourage future residents from applying for this program because again, half that my district doesn't show up because it's fairly a new district and that is an aged district. So, it's something that I would really like to request for us to look into when it comes to determining the low tree equity scores. Okay. Thank you. Thank you, Mayor. >> Okay. And Miss Prime, we have public comment on this item, too. >> Yes, we have Miss Osmond. Since most of you weren't here, when the last grant for trees went through, uh it was given to Echo El Paso, you know, the application and so forth. Um, in regards to the trees and residents, Miss Leman, I don't know if they'll clarify this or not, but when you read previously through all the paperwork, so many residents on a block had to apply together. It wasn't just one sole resident that could apply for these trees. Is that still the case where or just one resident on a block is fine or do you still have to apply with more on your block? >> So just one sole resident on a block can apply. Excellent. Uh I do know the group that's you know uh in fact that is Carbahal's group that's going to help them out and Josh was, you know, hanging out with him too. Last time what happened was when Josh was handed it to to him. He used to come in complaining all the time about the climbing zor. Y'all remember her? Oh, some of you weren't here. Nicole Fini. But then after he got that grant in on these trees, never complained again. I just hope that this isn't that same type of scenario again. Um because I have sat here for years watching some really odd deals go down and then afterwards some of y'all up there even clapped. Some of them clapped. It's always inappropriate. Although YouTube doesn't catch it right. Either way, I'm glad that single people can apply for these trees. Miss Silig that uh called in as far as the data center, I know who she is. She would attend those meetings with the climate zar and always complain, hey, is there something we could do so that s seniors aren't cementing everything over? Maybe plant some trees. So, now that there's not a cap where so many residents have to, I'm glad she'll she'll get to know this and um maybe offer to help other people in her neighborhood, my neighborhood, uh plant some trees. Thank you, >> Miss Bryan. Call for the vote, please. >> Yes. The motion was made by alternate mayor promos, seconded by representative or mayor prom chavez. And this is to approve the resolution. On that motion, call for the vote. >> Representative Nino. >> Thank you. And the voting session. And that motion passes unanimously. We do have the addition to the agenda. Is there a motion to retire into executive session? >> Second. >> There's a motion. and a second to retire into executive session. All in favor? Anyone opposed? and the city council of city of El Paso may return to executive session pursuant to section 3.5A of the El Paso city charter in the Texas government code chapter 551 subchapter D to discuss executive session item one legal advice regarding the notice to airmen number 6/2233 regarding a temporary flight restriction issued on Tuesday February 10th 2026 and council is going into executive session under 551.071 071 consultation with attorney. It is 5:38 p.m. Okay, miss. Well, we got to wait for pro Is is there is there a motion to come out of executive session? >> There's a motion and a second to come out of executive session. All in favor? >> I. >> Anyone opposed? The meeting is back in session at 6:14 p.m. Alternate Mayor Pro Tim, we're on Executive session item one. Is there a motion? >> No action. Thank you. >> Is there a motion to adjurnn? >> Meeting for Tuesday, February 17, 2026 adjourned at 6:15 p.m. Thank you, council.