AFRICAN AMERICAN RESOURCE ADVISORY COMMISSION MEETING April 2, 2024, at 5:30 pm. City of Austin Permitting and Development Center 6310 Wilhelmina Delco Dr. Room 1401/1402 Austin, Texas 78752 Some African American Resource Advisory Commission members may participate in a video conference. Public comment will be allowed in person or remotely via telephone. Speakers may only register to speak on an item once, in person or remotely, and will be allowed up to three minutes to provide their comments. Registration by telephone for remote participation is required by noon the day before the meeting. Call or email Florinda Bryant at 512.974.2715 florinda.bryant@austintexas.gov to register to speak remotely. CURRENT BOARD MEMBERS/COMMISSIONERS: Elaina Fowler, Chair (District 10) Daryl Horton, (Appointee) Mueni Rudd (District 2) Dr. Chiquita Eugene (District 5) Serita Fontanesi (District 7) Joi Harden (District 9) Greg Smith (ARA Appointee) Cherelle Vanbrakle, Vice Chair (District 4) Dewi Smith (District 1) Anthony Jackson (District 3) Vacant (District 6) Antonio Ross (District 8) Vacant (AAUL Appointee) Nelson Linder (NAACP Appointee) Roger Davis (GABC Appointee) MEETING AGENDA CALL TO ORDER PUBLIC COMMUNICATION APPROVAL OF MINUTES Meeting on February 6, 2024. DISCUSSION ITEMS The first ten speakers signed up before the meeting being called to order will each be allowed a three-minute allotment to address their concerns regarding items not posted on the agenda. 1. Approve the minutes of the African American Resource Advisory Commission Regular 2. Presentation of “The State of Black Austin – Black Paper 2024” by Meme Styles and Chas 3. Presentation on potential Austin Texas Poet Laureate Program by KB Brookline 4. Presentation of the needs of the Bethany Cemetery Organization/Cemetery for FY25 by Sue Moore Spears. 5. Presentation from Chase Wright, on Hungry Hill for 2024-2025 budget requests. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 6. Approve African American Resource Advisory Budget Recommendations to Council FY25Approved Strategic Planning Retreat and Effectiveness next steps. WORKING GROUPS/COMMITTEE UPDATES 7. Strategic Planning Workgroup - updates from the last workgroup meeting on the strategic plan related to their assignment (Strategic Planning Workgroup Members: Commissioners Dewi Smith, Serita Fontanesi, Elaina Fowler, and Mueni Rudd). FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ADJOURNMENT: The City of Austin is committed to compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Reasonable modifications and equal access to communications will be provided upon request. Meeting locations are planned with wheelchair access. If you require sign language interpreters or alternative formats, please give notice at least two days (48 hours) …
Zenobia C. Joseph - Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits race discrimination! April 2, 2024 African-American Resource Advisory Commission Meeting Light Rail terminates in Central Austin—Hyde Park/38th Street “There is not, now, and never will be, negroes for neighbors in Hyde Park” Source: HydeParker Magazine (Hernandez, Sep2022) Action Item 6: FY 25. AARAC Budget Recommendations1 Title VI Disparate Impact Hyde Park whites UT-Austin 30th St. Frequent 7: $2M homes Shelters/construction Urban Transportation Commission March 28, 2024 Budget: Bike Safety 2 Northeast Black man/bike Nov. 3, 2017 Austin Chronicle CapMetro: “every policy has certain casualties . . . North/ Northeast.” Route 392 === FY 2025 Budget Recommendation: $22.9M Safe Streets & Roads for All Prioritize 392 neighborhood lights 2K apartment units need shelters! Safe Routes to Schools Yager/Tech Ridge Blvd. Title VI Disparate Impact: Close midblock stops (Chinatown: 405 riders; Metro Park) 2009: North Lamar 20-Month Study: 70% of pedestrian deaths occur midblock! March 6, 2024 Capital Metro will leave North Lamar midblock stops open. March 28, 2024 Vision Zero Update: Blacks = 7% of population: 17% deaths Budget Ask: $0 to $250K Save Lives: Close North Lamar midblock stops NOW! 3 FALSEHOOD–FHWA Sponsor: 2019 North Lamar to Parmer Sidewalks Complete! 405 Daily Riders/*Minorities risk their lives crossing North Lamar midblock—37,500 daily vehicles (COA, 2021 Hearing)! February 26, 2024: $60M McKalla Soccer Stop Opened, 70% Rail Riders = White vs. North Lamar “funding constraints” . . . ATP: “19.3 people doing Marketing . . . That’s excessive! That’s $4.7M.” ~Then-Finance Member Tony Elkins September 21, 2022 July 27, 2020 Project Connect Meeting. Dessau to ACC-Highland: 55-74% Minority ($4.7M Samsung-Apple MetroRapid eliminated!) 4 FY 2025 Budget: $ave Lives = $0 (Close Chinatown midblock stop; move to CVS-Braker/North Lamar; reactivate #1-Kramer) Install 801/1 CVS Shelter Parmer Station Model 5
About Hungry Hill Foundation We are a 2½ year old nonprofit from East Austin. We opened a resource center at 1189 Springdale in June 2022. Our annual budget is $750,000. We are a rare Black-lead non-profit, staffed completely by people with lived-in experience. Chase Wright, our executive director, has been in East Austin his entire life and was profoundly impacted by the economic and law-enforcement policies that impoverish East Austin. Despite accolades, our results were achieved with minimal support from the City of Austin and the philanthropic community because of the classic chicken/egg problem -- they can’t fund you without a track record of spending money well and you can’t build that track record without spending money. Workforce Development • Hungry Hill Foundation’s core mission is supportive employment. • We run a sophisticated multi-tier program that addresses the unique barriers for people who are unhoused or exiting incarceration at every step on their journey. • Our system leverages group dynamics to enable people to overcome the individual challenges that prevent them from being employable. • Target Outcomes: • Employment in jobs paying a living wage funded by private employers. • Sufficient income to pay less than 30% of wages on rent. • Resolution/Continued Treatment of root causes of homelessness. Impact Highlights – June 2022 to Present Employment Over 500 people came through our doors seeking employment, far more than we are funded for. We’ve provided 20+ hours of work opportunity to over 300. 60% of our labor costs is to people who are unhoused or at-risk. 2022 -- $100K, 2023 -- $310K, 2024 – $50K Nutritional Support 70 people served out of a single food truck @ 5 days per week. 700 meals (breakfast/lunch) per week; 2,800 per month; 200K since start Parks to Housing Selected Services Originally, there were around 60 people living in Givens and Springdale Parks. We helped move 20 people to apartments and 30 to city shelters. Only 5 people living in the parks currently. Removed 3,000 pounds of trash from two parks plus encampments. Take our Tour of Givens Park – dramatic differences from past. Partner: PARD 8,400 hours of Community-based public safety. Average 175 hours/week for a year. Visible reduction in crime reported to APD in areas we work. Partner: Life Anew and Jail to Jobs 5,700 hours of health-related outreach and social work (4 FTE for nine months) Complicated outcome story leading to …
African American Resource Advisory Commission (AARAC) MEETING MINUTES April 2, 2024 African American Resource Advisory Commission REGULAR MEETING MINUTES The African American Resource Advisory Commission convened a REGULAR meeting on TUESDAY, April 2, 2024, at 5:30 P.M. CST in the CITY OF AUSTIN PERMITTING AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER, 6310 Wilhelmina Delco Dr. Austin, Texas 78752 #1401/1402. Commissioners in Attendance: Elaina Fowler, Chair (District 10) Dewi Smith (District 1) Commissioners in Attendance Remotely: Mueni Rudd (District 2) Serita Fontanesi (District 7) Nelson Linder (NAACP Appointee) Staff in Attendance: Alejandra Mireles, Community Services Program Coordinator, Equity Office Justin Parsons, Equity Officer, Economic Development Greg Smith (ARA Appointee) Joi Harden (District 9) Anthony Davis (ARA Appointee) Cherelle Vanbrakle, Vice Chair (District 4) AGENDA CALL TO ORDER Chair Elaina Fowler called the African American Resource Advisory Commission meeting to order at 5:06 p.m. PUBLIC COMMUNICATION The first ten speakers signed up prior to the meeting being called to order will each be allowed a three-minute allotment to address their concerns regarding items not posted on the agenda. Zenobia Joseph – Cap Metro Concerns Tyra Clark, Change Grief – Program update & Invitation 1 African American Resource Advisory Commission (AARAC) MEETING MINUTES April 2, 2024 Meme Styles, Measure & Chas Moore, Austin Justice Coalition -State of Black Austin Tyra Clark, Change Grief – Program update & Invitation KB Brookins, Poet – Advocacy for Texas State Poet Laureate Sue Spears, BCA President – Budget support request for Bethany Cemetary Association APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the African American Resource Advisory Commission Special Call Meeting on March 19h, 2024. The minutes were not approved and needed to be approved on the May 7th agenda. DISCUSSION ITEMS Presentation of “The State of Black Austin – Black Paper 2024” by Meme Styles and Chas Moore See backup for presentation. Presentation on potential Austin Texas Poet Laureate Program by KB Brookline See backup for presentation. Presentation of the needs of the Bethany Cemetery Organization/Cemetery for FY25 by Sue Spears. See backup for presentation Presentation from Chase Wright on Hungry Hill for 2024-2025 budget requests (Did not present) DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 6. Approve African American Resource Advisory Budget Recommendations to Council FY25. Record of the vote: Unanimous on an 8/0 vote. Commissioner D. Smith reclused herself from the Millenium recommendation. 2. 3. 4. 5. 2 African American Resource Advisory Commission (AARAC) MEETING MINUTES April 2, 2024 FUTURE AGENDA …
African American Resource Advisory Commission FY 25 Budget Recommendations Elaina Fowler, Chair (District 10) Charelle Vanbrakle, Vice Chair (District 4) Budget Recommendation #1 Austin Public Library Black Literature Expansion: $1.5M Justification: The current political climate has had a detrimental impact on youth who seek to connect with and learn from their cultural heritage through literature. This issue is particularly evident in the realm of African American authors and their works, which shed light on the struggles and experiences of African American communities. Public libraries are an integral part of our society, nurturing the minds of future generations. As Public Schools continue to reclaim their library autonomy it is vital Austin Public libraries expand their catalog to educate and inspire all individuals through the power of cultural reading. Public libraries serve as a vital resource for African American communities, offering summer reading programs and access to culturally specific literature and media. Therefore, the insufficient amount of African American literature in Austin Public Libraries would be a disservice to African Americans residing within the city limits and to all who have the curiosity to embrace diversity and learn from their stories. Investing in culturally significant African American literature would be a positive step for the Austin Public Library system, reinforcing Austin's commitment to inclusivity and diversity by addressing challenging topics such as institutional racism and implicit bias. It is essential for the City of Austin to increase the budget of the Austin Public Library beyond the zero-based budget to support a meaningful investment in African American literature within the library's collection. This investment would not only benefit the African American community but also underscore Austin's dedication to embracing diversity and promoting equitable access to valuable literary resources. Budget Recommendation # 2 Hungry Hill Foundation: $750,000 concurrent 3 year funding Justification: In Austin, the African American population comprises only 7% of the total population, yet African Americans represent a significant portion, 36%, of those who are experiencing homelessness in the city. The historical context of segregation in Austin, as laid out in the 1928 Master Plan, has perpetuated inequalities and disparities that continue to affect the African American community today. The deliberate segregation and unequal allocation of resources to create a "negro district" have had lasting residential impacts that are still evident. It is crucial for the City of Austin to prioritize equitable access to opportunities for all residents, regardless of their race. …
