the United States and the state of Texas let's pray almighty God I come to you today to pray blessing over my city my elected officials and this special historic meeting bless mayor Parker and the council members Florence crane Bivens Williams Nettles Beck and Blaylock bless their continued service bless their families and their homes and surround them with wise counsel May these civil servants also humbly and boldly call upon you for wisdom to lead this great City just as Solomon requested wisdom to lead his Nation May these officials be given wise proactive decision making based upon the Timeless principles of God's word may they Rise Above The Fray to accomplish what God requires for King Solomon stated where right living people bless the city it flourishes so may Unity Prevail in Fort Worth as we continue working together to build a stronger Community for scripture says no city divided against itself will last or continue to stand so may we be marked by Harmony compassion and peace not ever falling into the deceptive traps that have torn the fabric of many other large cities today I also play Pray special blessing upon Charles and Charlie larsdorf as well as Macy Hill as they officially begin their service today also bless Leonard Firestone as he concludes his service to our wonderful City God bless everyone in this chamber today God bless our houses of worship God bless our business Community God bless our homes God bless our families and may God bless Fort Worth Holy Spirit you're welcome in this place in Jesus name amen amen pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all of the Texas one thing I pledge allegiance to the Texas one State under God next on the agenda is the certification of the official returns uh by the city secretary mayor and City Council Members you have received the certification of the tabulations that the official election returns from tarent Denton and Parker counties for the general election held on Saturday May 6 2023 for the purpose of electing a mayor and 10 city council District members for the respective single member districts of the city of Fort Worth Texas with a certified cumulative returns for such election the results of the election are as follows mayor Parker total number of votes 30 499. Allison Kennedy total votes 2299. Jennifer Castillo total votes 5351. Adrian Devine Smith total votes 1955. Kenneth Bowens Jr total votes thirty three thousand eight hundred fifteen District Two Carlos Flores total number of votes 1146 District 3 Michael D crane total votes five thousand five thousand excuse me 5506. District 4 Teresa Ramirez 1767. Charlie Lauer's door total votes 2647 District 5 Gina Bivens total votes 2365. Bob Willoughby total votes 651. McKinley Jackson total votes 584 District 6. Tonya Carter total votes 478 Italia De La Cruz total votes 1676 Jared Williams total votes 2915 District 7. Caleb Beckham total vote 623 Jason Ellis total votes 1741 Macy Hill total votes 3728 District 8 Chris Nettles total votes 1651 District 9. Chris Reed total votes 187 Elizabeth and Beck 3428 Pamela a Boggess total votes 2279. Jason Lee Pena total votes 479. district 10 Brandon Robert Jones total votes 1885 Ellen Blaylock three thousand total votes three thousand seven hundred and ninety one District 11. Rick Herring total votes one thousand 16 Tara Maldonado Wilson total votes 517 Ricardo avitia total votes 180 Jeanette Martinez one total votes 1082 Christopher Johnson total votes 186. as a result of the election the following persons are hereby declared elected mayor Maddie Parker city council member district 2 Carlos Flores city council member district 3 Michael D crane city council member of District 4 Charlie lowersdorf city council member district 5 Gina M Bivins city council member district 6 Jared Williams city council member district 7 Macy Hill city council member district 8 Chris Nettles city council member district 9 Elizabeth M Beck city council member district 10 Ellen Blaylock as a result of the election the following individuals will participate in a runoff on June 16th 20 excuse me June 10th 2023. city council District 11 Rick Herring with a total of 34.08 percent of the vote and Jeanette Martinez with a total of 36.30 of the vote the next action for the council is to adopt the resolution number 54 57 34-05-2023 canvassing the returns declaring the results of the general election held on May 6 2023. council members you've received the returns of the May 6 general election and a copy of the resolution canvassing the returns please show approval of the resolution by a show of hands for the record the canvassing resolution a show of hands the canvassing resolution is approved without objection next will be the swearing in Council we're going to stay here at the diocese and just stand make it a little bit easier wonderful would you please raise your right hand and repeat after me all right state your name you solemnly swear or affirm that I will Faithfully execute the duties of the office of and state your office City of Fort Worth of the state of Texas and we'll share the best of my ability preserve protect and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States and if this state so oh my God congratulations [Applause] Mary so I'm going to give certificates to election for each of the returning council members they already have them on their Dice and I'm going to come down correctly I'm talking out loud here and give to Charles and Macy's at correct Ron yes ma'am okay great if Miss Mr Lawrence dorf and Mr Hill can come down please foreign okay the swearing in of uh Charles lowersdorf will be done by his wife Amanda lauersdorf ma'am you can speak into the microphone right there Charles Lauer's door or firm you solemnly swear that I will Faithfully execute the duties that I will Faithfully execute the duties of the office council member district four of the office of council member district four City of Fort Worth of the State of Texas city of Fort Worth in the state of Texas and will to the best of my ability preserve and will to the best of my abilities preserve protect and defend protect and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States the Constitution and laws of the United States and of this state so help me God another state so help me God congratulations [Applause] councilmember lowersdorf you belong in here [Music] go ahead swearing in of um councilmember Macy hill by her husband James Hill please repeat after me I state your name I'm Macy Hill do you solemnly swear or affirm I do solemnly swear that I will Faithfully execute the duties of the office of council member district 7. City of Fort Worth of the state of Texas and I will to the best of my ability to preserve protect and defend preserve protect the Constitution and laws of the United States institution and laws of the United States of this state of this state so help me God help me God congratulations awesome [Applause] what'd I do wrong oh well I think we're gonna yes so now my script's abandoned I'm kidding I'm much better off script so at this point is the exciting piece of the ceremony that each the council members both those re-elected and newly elected will have a moment to address Their audience and importantly those family members that are here tonight to celebrate alongside them so thank you for taking the moment we are cognizant there are lots of children in the audience mine has already bailed to go back behind us here um so we but each of us want to take the time to to say thank you and with excitement share with you our vision for the next two years serving this wonderful City to get us started I will turn to our new council member Charlie laersdorf to start us off from council member district four and then for those that have been re-elected Council I'll just start down the diocese with councilman Flores after councilmember Hill has spoken go ahead Charlie now thanks for putting me on the hot spot first I appreciate that mayor if I set up here to thank everyone who helped me get where I am right now honestly we would be here all night so I'll keep this part short first uh thank those in District Four who put their faith and confidence in me to put me here uh it means a lot to have their trust and confidence now don't take that lightly secondly uh my family who's out there right now including my wife my kids and my sisters out there and nephews and nieces but honestly now I'm about to give up and I I know full well what I'm about to give up and that's a lot of time for not just district four but the city of Fort Worth as well um I I feel the weight on my shoulders and I'm proud to carry that weight but that time I could not give up if it was not for them because ultimately the time has to come from somewhere right and that time's going to come from them so you know one of the keys to go into this is going to be time management and making sure that one the the time I do spend with them I spend well um and being no stranger to deployments and being time away from family but you know yes being closer here in Fort Worth um again having their support my name would have never admit on the ballot so thank you guys for uh for for allowing me the opportunity to do this kids whether you liked it or not but thank you for that earlier uh I I talked to a reporter and I'm sure it's not going to be the the last time either but uh he asked what I was feeling at the moment and I said honestly a lot when I got kids back home trying to get ready right now so I'm dealing with that uh but really the the I guess the biggest feeling was uh a feeling of being humbled right you start to feel that uh you know that that weight on your shoulders and of course as a marine I'm no no stranger to having that weight on my back and shoulders in fact you can ask my doctor and my back surgeon they'll tell you all about the weight and what it's done but I tell you what it's a humbling feeling knowing that there's you know nearly 100 000 people of a district that are going to be looking up to me to to make effective change and it's not something I take lightly so it is one thing I'm looking forward to do over the next two years is working with the rest of my Council here uh and the mayor in the course of City staff and services who make this whole machine run from day to day working with them to move forward you know in the right direction on the right path which I believe it already is so I'm under No Illusion that it's going to be uh rainbows and um you know Fairy songs third time I'm sure there will be some uh some some heated discussions and some some good discussions but uh nonetheless uh you know I do plan to bring Civility and respect to those discussions so to the rest of council I'd look forward to working with you mayor I look forward to working with you and of course City staff everything you do every single day to make our jobs easier I'm looking forward to continue to work with you as well so thank you so much thank you Charlie congratulations [Applause] councilmember Hill um good evening I'm honored to be here tonight with my newest deemed city council members and fellow residents of Fort Worth and I want to thank my family especially to you James thank you so much for everything and George and Charlie y'all are the reason that I'm here this evening I Want to Build a Better Fort Worth and leave it better when I leave um I stand before you I'm humbled and grateful for the trust and the confidence you've placed in me as your city council member and representing you in District Seven and first and foremost I want to express my deepest appreciation to everyone that participated in the election um together we have shown that democracy thrives in Fort Worth and I'm so grateful for that as I step into this role as your city council member I'm very aware of the challenges we face as a city from infrastructure to Public Safety to property tax rates Economic Development education our work is definitely cut out for us however I firmly believe that together that we can solve the biggest issues and through any continued collaboration unity and dedication we can overcome any obstacle and make the city better and leave it better than we found it as your city councilwoman I have two promises I promise that I'll work tirelessly to ensure that every voice is heard every neighborhood thrives and every individual has equal opportunities to succeed I will not lose sight of these issues and the priorities that you have elected me to represent I promise to always Foster an environment of transparency accountability honesty where the concerns and the aspirations of every resident are valued and addressed my door will always be open and I will be your biggest advocate Fort Worth is a Vibrant Community rich in diversity opportunity and it is my duty to ensure that every voice is heard every idea considered in every decision is made with the utmost of thoughtfulness I want to reiterate my gratitude for this tremendous opportunity to be your city council member I urge you to stay connected with me in my office to continue to actively share ideas and concerns as we build a more prosperous Community for generations to come I also want to acknowledge those who came before me including councilman Firestone who's here thank you so much Leonard for everything that you've done and the path that you have forged and thank you to the his predecessor Dennis shingleton who's been a wonderful mentor to me as well um your leadership and love for the city I promise to continue that leadership and the servant leadership that you've shown in District Seven the hard work starts now and I'm excited to hit the ground running thank you so much [Applause] councilmember Flores thank you mayor most of the campaigns are over for those of us taking the oath of office tonight it's time to set course for the next two years since 2017 I've had the pleasure to serving as council member for District Two delivering measurable results and progress in areas of Public Safety tax rate reduction infrastructure Economic Development and neighborhood revitalization and I'm very excited for what the future has in store in District 2 we're on an upper trajectory the cities in great shape thanks to the stewardship of this Council and the great advice that we get from our staff members every day Public Safety Public Services indeed a sacrifice but it is borne by family as well to my wife Isabelle who's here in the audience with my daughter Sophia and my son Ivan my heartfelt thanks and gratitude for supporting me and making it possible to serve as city council member for you know for this duration I know it's hard you know for you to make that sacrifice I'm not alone in that I'm not there as often as I should be for my family and that hurts me but I know I'm working for a greater purpose here and I know you realize that in your heart of hearts but I want each of you to know that I love you deeply to Myra Camacho my district director I want to thank you for meeting the challenges and demands of our district you know you've risen to task you know on the jobs while balancing the needs of your growing family you're an extension of the district 2 office and you do that with professionalism and a helpful and courteous manner and please continue to forgive my texts that occur at two and three in the morning telling you what we should do the next day I won't stop doing that as I accept the oath of office for a fourth term I reaffirm my solemn commitment to work with the mayor council staff business and neighborhood stakeholders for the betterment of our city and the communities we represent and I will continue to do so with the servant's heart to those stepping into this arena for the first time congratulations and welcome aboard and to those returning to the arena wish you continued success and congratulations thank you to the residents of District 2 and our city it is my honor and privilege to serve you [Applause] councilmember crane hey thank you mayor for those that were here two years ago mayor Pro 10th Bivens Carlos Flores I promise and staff it will not be as long as two years ago uh Joanna just rolled her eyes I can't promise I won't get emotional though so that's that's part of the deal but um thank you again thanks everybody I want to First recognize the power of God I know I would not be sitting here without his constant constant source of quiet guidance over the last two years that gave me peace and Solace I want to say thank you to the residents of District three I've been honored and privileged and humbled to represent represent you over the last two years I appreciate your thousands of phone calls emails text messages I appreciate the times you've attended neighborhood meetings or stopped me at the grocery store or while pumping gas or having dinner or just walking the neighborhoods these interactions are important to me and why I believe local government is where it really matters so these are where things get done you want your trash picked up which admittedly for a few neighborhoods has been a challenge this year you want uh you want your your water to come out of your faucet your straights to be drivable without being jolted around in your car sensible Economic Development balancing neighborhood interest this quality of life Investments which make cities run basic human daily life happens here at the city level and I'm committed to continue to achieve those things on your behalf The District Attorney office will continue to focus on the core tenets of communication Public Safety being fiscally responsible with your taxpayer dollars balancing neighborhood interest advocating for investment in our aging infrastructure new roads and streets supporting our small businesses and entrepreneurial Enterprises and being Forward Thinking on Mobility as we manage the Region's insatiable growth I'll keep asking the questions and solving the problems on your behalf you deserve nothing less I want to do a special shout out to former District director Katie weary who's not here tonight who kept the trains running for the first two the first term and Danelle Mason and Jack Carvalho who are here who keep them running they're they are a true extension of District three and and have to deal with all my craziness all day long so I appreciate that I want to do a special welcome to New council member the Lauren's door I'm going to get that lowersdorf so will the public we'll get it council member Hill thank you all and I look forward to working with you on priorities in in your District and to all my colleagues it's been a crazy two years we've been called robots we've been called inhumane we've been called four letter words spewed from with hatred and disgust by keyboard Warriors but as many times as we've been called that I can tell you from personal experience in multiples I've been told thank you for your service thank you for giving your time to the city thank you and even when I haven't been outwardly told I know internally the satisfaction personally the decisions we have made and how they have changed many lives in our city for the better so I just want you my colleagues to know that I'm in this with you I see you we live in a polarized World a nation increasingly here and increasingly here at the local level however I will continue to dismiss the negative and allow the positive to shine know what is doing the work that you are all doing on a daily basis to understand the issues I will dismiss the false claims from those who do not have the Compassion or capacity to fully comprehend the demands of this job because I believe this job with governing isn't about getting likes or tweets or social media wins is actually about producing and making a difference in the lives of others my commitment is to continue to work with you my colleagues on behalf of all the residents of your district and this city as a whole we might not we might not entirely solve the great ideological clashes of our day but we will give most people reason to believe that government can address their concerns no matter who they are what they look like or what they believe this is how we can begin to end the vitriol of today which threatens to destroy us and restore the politics of compromise and collaboration which made us who we are as a nation we will not always agree but I believe we can work together civilly treating each other with respect and we can move mountains so uh today would have been my grandmother's 103rd birthday uh yeah uh and if she would be around to see all the great things that we're doing Oroville blue crane was her name Ainsley blue is her namesake she was born in Gordon Texas just down the road 13 brothers and sisters she lived through the Great Depression World War II had a crazy husband much like my wife does raised two boys here in Fort Worth she never went to college but she valued education working to ensure that her her family couldn't her sons could she worked at Alcon and though she never ran the company she was a force and a presence in the CEO's office she could smile and make you feel so welcomed but the second you were out of line probably like most of everybody else's grandmothers she would be quick to correct and redirect but I know she did this all out of love she did out the appreciative appreciation of knowing what was best for our family to succeed and that meant working together that means being respectful of differing opinions empathy and understanding we didn't come from much but she taught us not to fault or be jealous of those who did he taught us that even though we did we may not have much it was our duty and responsibility to help those who did not she taught me that there were all that we were all the same in God's eyes and he didn't make mistakes to me she was and is Fort Worth somewhat not afraid to work hard to achieve to have empathy and compassion for others willing to lend a hand when needed and sometimes challenging Authority and having the grit and gravitas to back it up because this was her city the city she loved this is our city all of ours we must continue to have those hard conversations explore possibilities and listen really listen to each other communicating collaborating and understanding perspectives and understanding others perspectives is the only way we can achieve and succeed and move forward that is my commitment to you because I know that is what the residents of Fort Worth all of the residents expect and deserve a level of transparency and communication lastly has already been pointed out none of us do this alone it takes a solid Village around us to ensure all the things we must accomplish on a daily basis actually get done I could not do this without the leavens for my family and the understanding my business partner will Northern while uh he's not here tonight he and his wife have had their third child and they're in intensive care still Lyndon Murray was born a couple of days ago so I'm proud of them but to my wife Joanna thank you my apologies for the late nights The Madness of the schedule the scrambling sometimes to ensure the girls are covered in the constant presence of this position whether that's physically or the space I let it occupy in my mind when we were together your beautiful wife mother and friend you absorbed all with Grace and style and you ground me and keep it real in so many ways I in the city are blessed to have you thank you Michaela or Kaylee as you prefer to be called now in your teenage years Mackenzie and Ainsley you young ladies are quite simply amazing the last years I know have been tough on you as I've drugged you to Neighborhood events and meetings thank you for doing with a smile shaking hands and taking The Unwanted attention and stripe I appreciate you loaning me to the city for a short time I hope you know it is because of you that I take the time away from dinners and games helping with homework tucking into bed Ainsley since you teenagers won't let me do that anymore and those things that parents do for their children My Hope Is that what what little I'm able to accomplish during my tenure on Council leaves the city a better place for you and your contemporaries again thank you and congratulations to my colleagues thank you to the residents of District three for allowing me another two years to be your voice here at City Hall I'm humble and honored and continue to serve you in the residents of Fort Worth thank you [Applause] mayor Tim Bivens good evening and thank you thanks to all of you for being here and Michael you're not the only one who knows the power of God and thank you for bringing that name to this space shortly after winning reelection this song just stayed in my head and I've told my mom and Sam and other friends but had it not been for the Lord on my side where would I be and it just stayed with me for days and there's nobody in my house but me but that song just kept ringing and so I'm thankful to God Almighty you know for being here with only two years remaining in this office it is very important to talk about what's ahead I'll have you know I'm a board member of the National League of cities which means I put Fort Worth on a national level Everywhere I Go I don't go as often as the mayor does but whenever I go she knows I have on my boots and I'm talking about Fort Worth I went to a conference probably in 2014 I believe it was and cities we're talking about land banking so that they could reserve space and build things like grocery stores housing what have you I came back very excited about well we could do that in Fort Worth Sandy's laughing because she knows where I'm going with this I got a lukewarm reception after all I was still very new on the council but if you read the paper recently for those of you who can still afford to buy the paper the star Telegraph did report about land banking city is going to be doing that and so just know I will be pushing City staff to use the concept of land banking to build help build grocery stores throughout every growth every desert food desert in this city I think we need that but I'm going to need some votes to help support that so I'll be trying to be friends with all these people up here so that we can resolve that issue and I did talk to somebody on staff who said yeah we could do it for that too we need to use land banking to help ease some of the burdens that we have development continues to come our way but in District Five we are very cautious on how we proceed or haven't you all heard we're the ones who say no to everything but that's not true we say yes occasionally we like to say yes to what we have planned for citizens who live in residential areas should not be subjected to the disruption of their lives because out of town developers out of state developers think they can do what's best for us and so what we do in District Five is get educated and try to get those developers educated on what we want to see coming our way that's why I did a major Council initiated resulting several years ago to protect neighborhoods while preserving commercial corridors and not having industrial uses on top of our homes James raise your hand neighborhood President John T white there was there and witnessed that and to date we are still on track for what our resulting set out to accomplish now while we do want a thriving City we don't want one that takes away our old growth trees most developers know when it comes to trees being cut in District Five they just come watch the newbies come to me about how many trees they're going to have to take out the last visit came from Dr Harden and one guy said I just came to see if you were going to bend to this new guy because he knew the answer was going to be no we have our principles in District Five and I'm very proud to represent this District we're very close to seeing the East Fort Worth stop for text rail open at Trinity Boulevard and loop 820. if you've heard that there's concrete crushing going on there that's not true whoever said it didn't know they were lying but they were that's a train stop that's coming there it's going to open doors and avenues for development retail a lot of options coming our way at Trinity and 8 20. I want to thank City staff for working with developer Ken Newell Trinity Metro Michael Morris of the Council of government and especially Michael and Chris who serve on Trinity Metro for keeping that real on track that being how we get into a fruition we must work with all independent school districts that touch the city of Fort Worth there are a number of them and because this mayor brought in and and stuck to a daytime meeting what I'd like to see is us invite school districts from all around to come watch how government works because that daytime meeting can be used as a field trip I've gotten support from three trustees already that being Toby Jackson of course that being Quentin Phillips of course and Wallace Bridges we want them to see how government works but also tell us how they think it should work everything is not about just what we do everything perfect and so I look forward to that many of you were very very concerned when you heard me say I was going to be leaving office well I got talked in the saying but you got more nervous because you heard Sandy was leaving everybody knows Sandy bro is my secret weapon as the people all over call her well Sandy has decided she'll hang around look look that's District Five right there so you hang around a little bit longer Sandy please wave your head and you guys let me tell you how I got Sandy when I first came into office you know I struggled and I tried to get some help as best I could and so an opening came and I asked Sandy if she'd come to work and you know she said no she was just gonna go retire well I knew that I could call Brenda silcox and she could get Sandy to do anything I wanted as long as I took care of the Chuck silcox animal shelter and so that's how we got Sandy in District Five and so Jeremy Smith raise your hand please dermis who is building that development at style cup and Berry can tell you how important Sandy is where's tarchy White historic Harbor Heights can tell you how important Sandy is Jerry Barton Jim Rutherford there's Paul raise your hands please you guys know and because of Sandy Lisa was able to buy a tax foreclosed property and so Sam and it's going to hang around but just for zoning guys okay who will be taking her place is a stop six resident whose name is where's Joshua Joshua Rivers Joshua comes to me directly from District six but with the blessing of the district 6 council member and so Sandy is going to take off and just see if he's still here when she comes back for for about a week and we we will continue to support the citizens of District Five now we have a unique need in District Five we lost about probably 25 neighborhood associations primarily in the inner city area and so I hired Garcia Sunshine Johnson please wave your hand while you're going live I know she's doing that we brought on Sunshine so that she could help bring those neighborhoods back because if you have people who are uninformed and unengaged you've got some people who are going to be not very happy and so I want to thank joycia for already bringing back Carver Heights East they were deactivated in 2019 and she's been on the job for less than six months and they're already back into being active and Sandy will do educating on Zoning for them is it this weekend next weekend okay so that that's what's happening in five but let me tell you about coming back here I have learned so much from these yeah I call them the new people I still call them new people but these new people on the council new people can point you into different directions they can tell you how to use something like canva they they can tell you what a what a QR code is and so it was real funny I'm the oldest one here but I'm the first one to get a QR code on my card and I've showed all these new people I said I got a QR card y'all don't well then someone asked well do you know where it goes I went oh I really don't know but luckily it went where it was supposed to go but I think it's time to make sure I leave but knowing that you're in good hands and so you've got me two more years to kick around and just know most people know most people know I kick back and oh yeah but I'm just I'm very proud to represent District Five I really am so thank you all for those of you who supported me for those of you who didn't I'm your council person too whatever you need we're going to make sure it gets it done as long as it's legal and so with that but I do know some folk who know some folk you know but uh I gotta say hello and welcome to these two new council members I know how to pronounce the name Macy that's easy did I do it right okay but now we're gonna have to work on this for a minute and I've told him I'll call him council member L until he works works it through for me for those of you who are here with me tonight please just wave at me and say hi thank y'all y'all take care have a wonderful evening and I didn't talk as long as Michael did I'm done [Applause] councilmember Williams thank you mayor good evening everyone um first I'm deeply humbled and grateful for another opportunity to serve I'm encouraged by the progress we've made and committed to continuing the important work that's before us first things first I'm internally grateful to God the God I serve my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who has called me to love him and to love each of you my neighbors to my wife and my best friend all in one Socia thank you for whoo it happens thank you for walking with me every step of the way on this journey your support and your wise counsel have always been a compass for me and not only Have You Been instrumental to this work uh you've done that while masterfully entering motherhood and extending a whole hell of a lot of Grace to me as I enter into fatherhood the long days and the late nights the constant meetings and disruptions are family routine and all of that you remind me day in and day out of the power of love and grace and for that I'm so much better our new baby daughter Janelle will be able to look back at these moments and have proof points that she can do all things through Christ I'm so proud to share in the joy of raising her with you and I'm committed every day to making significant contributions through our service together that will Forge a bright future for her generation here in Fort Worth and across the globe um to my dad who's not here tonight doing Pastor duties I'm immensely grateful for the many life lessons that he and my mom who is no longer with us taught me over the years especially teaching me the power of faith uh through both where and indeed um they constantly have been a Living testament to the scripture Romans 18 31 which reminds us if God is with us who can be against us thank you for planting seeds of faith and nurturing and confidence that we are indeed more than conquerors to the challenges that we face I'm also incredibly proud to be able to serve and to have earned another term this definitely would not have been possible without the support of my District Six neighbors my team Josh and davia and Kendall who is living the High Life quote unquote in DC I don't know about that on Capitol Hill and also my family thank you all so much for the all of the moments behind the moment that helped make sure that we're delivering for our district and for our city um three years ago I set out on this journey to serve the district I grew up in and as a council member because like many of you I recognize it a pivotal moment we were in amidst the pandemic deep social tensions and a vulnerable local economy and I like many of you especially those type A folks I chose to do something about it since we first made history on June 5th 2021 I've been laser focused on delivering on the most pressing issues facing our district and our city together we attracted millions of dollars in private investment for commercial development such as Medical Offices Child Care Centers restaurants and yes a grocery store we Champion important Investments to improve neighborhood safety like investing in the one second collaborative to address and prevent youth gun violence we expanded Parks Trail connections and Open Spaces across the district but what's most important is that we prioritize the voices of our constituents on decisions large and small and so as I enter another term I will continue to work alongside you my neighbors on the issues that matter most to the future of our district in our city and I believe that together we will continue to prioritize those things like strengthen in our local economy improving safety across our neighborhoods and investing and enhancing our city services and infrastructure and most of all we will continue to prioritize your voice and we'll continue to work on important projects like revitalizing and ultimate some of our corridors and I'm working to try good jobs small business opportunities and quality commercial uses that our district 6 residents depend on across the district and we'll continue to work to create multiple Pathways to high quality housing and Home Ownership across the district we will continue to advocate for bold Investments to improve Transportation safety reducing high-speed traffic reckless driving speed racing and other dangerous driving behaviors in our district and we'll work continuously to reduce youth gun violence through initiatives like the one second collaborative we'll ensure First Response services are tailored to meet the growing demands of our growing city and our diverse City and we'll work to ensure deeper and wider neighborhood participation on all of the city all of the decisions we face as a city I believe we must deliver on these and other tangible actions to ensure that prosperity and security reaches every corner and every neighborhood across our city I'm confident that as we stand together tonight we stand with more in common than with what divides us and yes we still have important challenges to solve ahead and we can we must and we will do just that you know we are destined to compete and I've always I would argue been destined to compete on the global stage as a world-class City how well we compete has always been and always be linked to how well we care for even the least Among Us in our neighborhoods we all have a role to play and together we will emerge as a better city tomorrow by the collective contributions we make today so let's get to work I also want to say a special congratulations to my two newest colleagues this work is definitely a marathon and a Sprint all-in-one and I look forward to continuing to work with both of you and this entire Council and mayor to continue to work on delivering the things that make a huge difference for our residents and so with that thank you all and may God continue to bless you our neighborhoods in the city of Fort Worth thank you [Applause] Nettles thank you mayor for this opportunity I want to say this before I start out um I uh we will send the email and asked to do uh two to three minutes and I email Whitney and I said Whitney I'm for sure I'm not gonna do three minutes but no other council member said anything but each one of them went over three four five minutes so I just want they use me sometime to say things and they come under the rug so I need them to start speaking up all right so now let me start that was an extra 30 seconds and I'm probably gonna be starting all of them um so first I want to thank God and who is ahead of my life for this opportunity uh my family uh if they can I have a beautiful family someone asked to understand family and friends that are here if you can real quick staying so that the people can see my beautiful daughter wife children sister sister-in-law mother friend relatives and so thank you guys for being here um it has been a fast two years but we have made great progress in these two years I can contest this job has its highs and it has its lows it has its ups and his Downs good days and not so good days but every single day represent the city of Fort Worth I can tell you that it has been truly worth it there have been times that I went home heavy hearted and there are times I went home very excited about what we have done on Council um I'm one vote and so things that we have moved forward in this Council has taken at least five to six votes to get a processed and so I think all of my colleagues and for supporting initiatives throughout District throughout the city of Fort Worth I also want to take time and thank our city staff our city staff uh had a whirlwind two years ago you had six new people that had all these crazy ideas and wanted things done fastly and quickly and staff got things done so thank you staff for all the work that you do because the reality is without you we can't get some of the work done uh you guys work tirelessly uh you listen to us murmur and complain and you still do the work so thank you uh all of you I also want to thank these uh gentlemen these officers who protect us every single day in and out these Chambers up and down these hallways so thank you for your due diligence and making sure that we're safe and we're here on site I want to appreciate you for that it has been an honor to run for re-election unopposed and for some of you it may be a big deal for some it may not the last time this seat was unopposed was in 2009 and 2011. so many people around this city around the district expected uh me to have an opponent just go around I came in this seat I came hot I came fire I came throwing blows and punches but the city but District 8 understood what we wanted to do in in the Southeast quarter we felt like that there was a lot of things that would not have that was not done at the West Side the 35 was a defining factor of what happens from the west and the East and I can tell you today we have made great changes to the east side of Fort Worth and it's through this city staff it's through the leadership of the council District eight it's through my staff Sally and Jazz who are on staff and it's through the mayor being so nice and gracious with working with a consensus we have been able to do great things um people didn't know what people was going to receive of my politics um but I am grateful to say that District 8 settled on Nettles and so for that I say thank you um I've been telling people that you know in the old washing machines uh those that I know a lot of y'all have the new ones but some that still have the old ones that has the middle piece the rod in the middle of the stick that it turns around for those who don't know that's called agitator and you can put all kind of bleach soap water detergent on dirty clothes but unless you have an agitator that turns no matter what that causes the things that are on the shirt to come out even when they don't want to come out that causes pain to so you can only imagine that's right I just want to be clean but it got to go through the pain in the acne and I consider myself as an agitator on this city council it's challenging the process challenging us as council members challenging the city staff getting to how can we get to a yes how can we get to an approve how can we make this city great and so that's what I believe God sent me here to be I believe that's what the city of District 8 uh sent me in here to be is to be that agitator and it's not always good days here on this Council but it is worth the while while I'm here um I use my time and resources when I didn't have an opponent this last go-around to help two of my colleagues who were facing major challenges um and I used to walk up and down this hallway because the reality is as Gina says she wants to try to get two votes um we all want to get to that yes and there have been colleagues that on this that has been bagging me from day one and you know I don't get emotion I probably won't get emotional but I do want to say um to uh my friend councilman back who had some challenges this time in this race and she came in she said friend I think I'm in trouble and I said whatever you need You Can Count On Me and we work together Jerry Williams and I am just grateful that these two are back on council with me uh I'm grateful that the city of Fort Worth District 9 and District Six voted them back in but not just them all this Council because we have all worked together and the list goes on and on so first I want to say to all my council members and mayor that I respect and I honor the work that you do on Council never think that they're a day to go by that I don't like you or don't appreciate you so thank you for all that you do and I want to say that publicly in front of everybody because I don't want to be no mixed emotions or whatever all right I love you guys and to my new councilman's the same um in 2021 we all had ideas goals thoughts and plans but today I can contest that we now have results uh there are certain things that we promised that I promise um one was to support homeless communities uh with long-term Solutions and I have been able to approve two permanent supportive housings in our district for chronically homeless for 72 units all uh in District a pressure our city to invest in healthy development along the east side of I-35 we fought to approve for the city to invest 13 million dollars on Evans and Rosedale Development that is a big deal for district that is a big deal for south side and the Morningside who have seen poverty eat away at them every single day in a size uh enter I'm sorry um incentivize major grocery stores changed to come and open in District eight and we understand in order for that to happen we need rooftops and so over the last two years I brought over 3 000 rooftops to the city of Fort Worth to District a and not just regular root talk but affordable housing we must continue to provide affordable housing all over this District that everybody can have a place to lay their head and comfortable and feel safe we brought honor to a Tatiana Jefferson's Name by renaming Hillside Community Center at the Tatiana Carr Jefferson Community Center at Hillside we improved city services with police and fire with response time we prove uh police major budget we supported uh fire increasing our budget to a million dollars to support un staff of fire departments this Council has supported each and every council member has supported Public Safety and for that we say thank you to our public service continue to do your work continue to make sure that our city is safe we have done great things in the last two years we have come a long way but we still have a long way to go and some of the things that we're going to be focused on in the next two years is attracting more economic development in District 8 education by partnering with our school board this city council has never had a joint partnership meeting with two elected bodies coming together to figure out our educational system and I'm grateful to work with mayor who believes in education believes in education across the board we don't care what school you go to how you get your education we just want to make sure that you are educated if we are going to be a stronger City we must be a smarter City to continue to advocate for black contractors to get work through the city of Fort Worth projects in Tarrant County and the list goes on uh to find some type of media ground to figure out we can have some type of police oversight uh finding ways to support our young people bringing in grocery stores and tank entertainment Building Bridges and working alongside each council member we live in a different forward we live in a greater forward and in this next notes I have dot dot dot preach but I did speak because I put that in my preaching notes where I get to just say whatever I want to say and stop reading my notes that's the part where I take it to cross hanging up bring them back um last Sunday um I preached the message uh this past Sunday from Romans 8 and 38 Romans 8 and 31 and said what shall we then say to these things if God be for us who can be against us and the title of the message was God is for us and I believe God is for this city I believe God is for this nation I believe God is for this Council and so it is my promise to the citizens to this Council to do everything within my power that God gives me to do to represent you with Integrity with decency and be that voice and be that Advocate I appreciate all the calls that I get in and out of the district I said something two years ago I said I don't care what district you live in what city you live in or what neighborhood you live in common office and they've done that but we have great leaders here so you can also call them um um and so um I think I'm finished I think I was shorter than Michael and Gina uh thank you I think I was uh but let the record show it is subtle District 8 has reelected Chris Nettles God bless you [Applause] remember back please going to follow rules tonight and be under three minutes so I think that should be of note uh I really want to thank Fort Worth in District 9 for giving me the privilege to continue to serve you as your councilwoman I am honored to have this opportunity and I am truly humbled to be sitting here at this diocese with these leaders to my daughters out there in the audience thank you so much for your sacrifice you give up a lot so that I can do this job and that does not go unnoticed by me some benefits are you don't have to eat as much as my cooking so there are some trade-offs there I want to thank my staff who held held it down for District 9 every day and make sure that we are um responsive to our constituents needs I want to thank my volunteers who knocked countless doors you made countless phone calls and you believed in this Mission you believed in Integrity you believed in honesty and you believed in good governance it's a privilege for me to get to work with these passionate dedicated city employees every day at all departments and at all levels you were there when Fort Worth needs your help in the middle of the night when our roads are flooded when our children need a place to go after school when there's an emergency on our hands when our neighbors need housing thank you so much for everything that you have done to help not just District 9 but the city of Fort Worth be successful in these last two years it's our job as Leaders to set the stage and to make sure the right rules are in place to make sure the right issues are before us and to make sure that the right discussions are engaged two years ago when I asked myself this question what makes Fort Worth grade the answer then as it is now and is I think it will always be is our people the folks who live here who work here and invest here are what make this community great it's our neighborhoods that provide a strong sense of place that keep Fort Worth moving into the future good government is grounded in good policy good government requires good leaders looking to develop Solutions and not just sound bites and you have my word that I will continue to be that leader here on Council it takes discipline it takes teamwork and it takes sacrifice it takes courage to stand up for what you believe in and I truly believe that it is courage that will push the city forward you have my word to continue to be your Cree courageous leader here on this Council not for just District 9 but the entire city I'm up for the challenge and I know everybody on this diocese as well and I don't I don't have to ask you to join me because you've already been there to my fellow council members I look forward to working with you over the next two years I look forward to seeing you at that work session table into our spirited debates to asking those probing questions of each other and of our city staff to make sure that we are grounded in good policy and that we are doing what is best for this community and I thank you all so very much I love this job and I love this city and I am very grateful that you have given me the opportunity to continue to serve you and I think that was the shortest councilmember Blaylock thank you mayor so first and foremost I want to thank God for providing for my family and my life and presenting with this opportunity I want to thank my family without the support I wouldn't be here today I want to especially I think my wife Mindy who's been behind me my biggest supporter my biggest friend and Advocate from the beginning and my daughter's Taryn and Brenna who make my life complete I love you um I want to really thank my friends my neighbors and voters for standing during my side during these back-to-back campaigns it was really different for me I guess I get the distinction of being the first council member to serve in two different council districts in the city of Fort Worth it's a it's been a an interesting interesting Journey uh at times I've felt like I've had you know the 157 000 residents of existing or now prior D4 and then 100 plus thousand residents in new d10 all calling me at once so uh so thank you Charlie pass some stuff on to you I really want to thank the constituents of District Four uh you know their incredible Support over the last year and for understanding that we're all in this together and we're working so hard to make our city better I've really enjoyed supporting you I've enjoyed working with you I've kept my words to you and I've tried to do right I want to thank my current well now former constituents in the end District Five and District 11. and those who remain in this District Four if y'all ever need me you've got my unwavering support you know redistricting through us all in many different directions but the goals of making our communities better Remains the Same my heart is vested and then if you need me just don't hesitate to ask I'll help you for district 10 for those that came with me to new district 10 and for those who join us from current Council District Seven thank you for voting your confidence in me I thank you for electing me to my first full term I'm honored to be your voice at City Hall advocating for our community our new District presents a great opportunity to focus strategically on the issues that matter most and that's our roads and congestion our property taxes and our Public Safety I'm excited to continue working hard for the families in North Fort Worth and I'm here to serve you I want to say thank you to mayor and Council you know I came in last year in a special election y'all mentioned how crazy things were for y'all in 2011 when there was so much new when I got here y'all are already running at 90 miles an hour and I just want to thank each and every one of you for your grace and your support and your help getting me up to speed I want to thank my district director Tara Holt who makes everything possible she is amazing and fantastic I want to thank the rest of City management I want to thank mayor and Council staff for all your support over these times you do so much for residents every day and and it shows and it makes our city better and for the assistant city managers they would cook and the rest of the city employees Elder Yeomans work every day making our city better thank you you know my focus will continue to be on making our neighborhoods better on making our city better on working with my counterparts across the aisle including Macy and Charlie now to do great things to to make Fort Worth the best city it can be and I just wanna just acknowledge that we've done so much great over the past year and council did before I got here as well and I look forward to all that we'll do together as we move forward I'm honored to be able to continue to serve and thank you thank you I'll close us out thank you for enduring for this hour I think it's really important to get to hear from Council Members what they've accomplished and again what their vision is for the next two years um first I do have to thank my family my sweet husband who is stuck in Austin finishing a legislative session a 12 year old who's playing basketball for a select basketball team a six-year-old who's now apparently the technician in the back running cable so if it goes out you'll know exactly what is happening and to my sweet mom who we call Cha-Cha at home who really is the anchor for our family to allow me to serve in this capacity which is very special and so to gray to Laney to Cheney to David I love you all this is a very this is a full context sport of being in politics and this has been a gauntlet not just for the two-year serving but also to get us to this place to run for election and each of us can attest this sacrifice is significant and sometimes we get the benefit of all the good because we get the accolades we get to be at the fun event or get thanked in the grocery store for what we're doing and it's our husband our wives that are at home usually trying to hold down the fort and make it all happen so I think you feel that from this dice that we really appreciate and love these jobs but that the sacrifice is significant and I think we've done an excellent job in the last two years showing what the juggle is like being vulnerable at times Elizabeth and I've talked about that many times being working moms and and owning how hard that can be but at the same time trying to be a good example for the rest of our community and every other industry that seems to recognize that a little bit better than in politics and and of course thank you to the citizens of Fort Worth giving me the incredible opportunity to continue to serve as your mayor the fact the past two years has been a roller coaster ride in all the right ways and I look forward to the next two and we're making history tonight we now have a total of 10 city council council districts in the city of Fort Worth a few first Macy Hill is the first woman to serve as a council member from District Seven so congratulations to Macy [Applause] already told us he's the first council member to serve in two different districts we'll get that straight eventually Alan but thank you for sticking with us and council member Gina Bivens our mayor Pro tem is officially the longest serving for city council member in our history council member Gina we are all very proud to serve alongside you each of us have been tapped on the shoulder at least once twice three times and we've gotten out of line or when you needed her advice or stewardship at this Council thank you for being our Dean and we're excited to serve with you for another two years for sure um congratulations to our newest council members councilmember Hill and councilmember larsdorf welcome and congratulations I think I told Charlie when we met I think really you'll be the first active reserve marine or any active duty capacity for a military member on this dice we are so proud to serve with you any moment that you're called to serve our Armed Forces across the world we're proud to have you in holding down the fort here in District Four so thank you for taking another Public Service role and serving the Forest City Council welcome and to my fellow council members that I've served with the past two years um I love each of you deeply I appreciate your leadership I appreciate your sacrifice and I look forward to helping you complete all the many priorities that you have in your districts and for the citizens of Fort Worth and we're all only one vote right same for mayor same for Council it takes a consensus on this dice to do the hard things for our communities and while sometimes you may not see the messiness on this dice I promise you there's a lot of push and pull that happens even outside of public View and to make sure we're making the right decisions for this community thank you for continuing to serve and signing up for another two years serving this awesome City we live in I believe strongly that Fort Worth is moving in a positive direction and we look forward to continue the work with Council to stay focused on the right priorities to make our city stronger and safer I'm committed to Leading this Council the same way I've done for the last two years to build consensus to communicate what our vision is where our priorities are and to be excellent stewards of your tax dollars they are your tax dollars and making sure that you have a good return on investment for every decision we make every vote that we make here at City Hall this is a community and what it takes to see our city Thrive is working together and we all are committed to serving the residents in every zip code across the city of Fort Worth it's already been said but I think it's important you hear it from your mayor thank you to our city manager our city manager our acms all of our city employees for the incredibly hard work that you do every single day across Fort Worth you are our unsung heroes truly and we sacrifice but people know it you sacrifice even more greatly oftentimes and you're juggling just the same things you may not sit at this diet so just know that we appreciate you and and you have done a lot in the last two years just to meet the needs of a new Council a new mayor and more exciting things to come I know each of you share in that excitement so thank you for the work that you're doing um to my staff Whitney and Brittany both Brittany's Maria Tanisha Joanna and then Bethany thank you I couldn't do this without you I think poor Maria's babysitting Laney right now on the back hallway something she probably didn't sign up for um but this is a this is an incredible effort to be able to serve alongside me um I have an amazing team that are so intelligent and devoted to this work I know each of us can attest to that in each of your District directors and we may get a lot of the accolades but I promise you it's the staff behind us that are really helping us do this work so thank you so much when I ran the first time I promised to attack problems and not people and I think that mentality really has to carry through that will continue our momentum as a community with an emphasis on all the things we know maintain a high quality of life for every single resident across the city that means high quality focus on Public Safety Mobility infrastructure our parks and outdoor space libraries community centers all the things you bear with me I'll go through a speed dating list of the things to come and maybe the things we've already started very soon we'll move into a new city hall we're investing over 100 million dollars in the Will Rogers Coliseum we have two brand new five-star hotels opening in the next six months in the cultural District we're deploying a 560 million dollar Bond we've added as promised to additional council members we have the second building of Tarleton under construction we have the caval place Redevelopment we have the lvt revitalization I know Michael crane visited Tarrant County today to announce another big partnership thank you to councilmember Crane we have new police and fire stations opening across the city of Fort Worth we have the southeast connector led by TxDOT over two billion dollars of construction right here in the city of Fort Worth just today we announced a partnership at DFW International Airport and American Airlines a 5 billion dollar investment at the second busiest airport in the entire world an airport that is now competing to be first first in that Contender across the world will soon have 100 million visitors in that airport which is truly phenomenal yeah and I'm not done we're also going to kick off and open do a groundbreaking for the Texas A M Fort Worth Campus which is incredibly exciting the convention center groundbreaking for phase one historic Investments this Council has committed to in permanent Supportive Housing over 25 million dollars we've seen a 13 reduction in violent crime and climbing downward we've launched an effort to focus on infant maternal mortality across Tarrant County you've each helped me launch the mayor's Workforce education initiative where next year we have a goal to focus on 10 increases in Workforce credentials and degrees for our high school students in all 12 school districts across the city or Fort Worth we're working closely with Trinity Metro North Central Texas council of governments on the East Lancaster Corridor which I know is a continued project importance to both Council District 5 and Council District 8. we see the textral expansion that is happening in expansion into the middle into the Medical District and transformational investments will come in our parks and Open Spaces I could go on but all of you are ready to go home but I think you understand now is the moment in Fort Worth for all the right reasons there is so much potential across the city it's what keeps me up at night and it's what wakes me up in the morning motivated to serve our amazing City when I ran two and a half years ago my retired preacher father and I had a long conversation and dad said this and you've all heard me say this on this dice that Esther 414 tells us you were born for such a time as this and we all remember Esther's heroism to save her people the Jewish people from Death an incredible intervention of heroism that she took on and I think for each of us serving on this diocese it is our time to serve our community in this season with leadership with leadership comes sacrifice and struggle loneliness but also joy and fulfillment and purpose I look forward to serving for the next two years with my friends here on this diocese and with the almost 1 million people that call for Texas Home God bless each of you and thank you for celebrating continued success across our city thank you [Applause] concludes our meeting correct okay with that Council we are meeting adjourned we're gonna take pictures don't go we're gonna take pictures