Commission on Veterans Affairs Regular Meeting of the Commission on Veterans Affairs - 4815 Mueller Blvd., Room 1125, Austin, TX 78723

4815 Mueller Blvd., Room 1125, Austin, TX 78723 — original pdf

COMMISSION ON VETERAN AFFAIRS WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2022, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM Austin Energy Mueller Building 4815 Mueller Blvd., Training Room 1125 Austin, TX 78723 CURRENT BOARD MEMBERS: Manuel Jimenez (Chair) Sabino Renteria (3) Adrenne Mendoza (Vice) Vanessa Fuentes (2) Alfred Bingham – Natasha Harper-Madison (1) Maria Brown-Spence – Mayor Steve Adler Jose Carrasco – Greg Casar (4) Charles W. Cupp – Mackenzie Kelly (6) CALL TO ORDER CITIZEN COMMUNICATION: GENERAL AGENDA Elisabeth Collura-Rosenberg – Kathie Tovo (9) Jason Denny – Ann Kitchen (5) Thomas Just – Paige Ellis (8) Kevin Lenau – Allison Alter (10) Pete Salazar – Leslie Pool (7) Speakers who register will be allowed a three-minute allotment to address their concerns regarding items not posted on the agenda. 1) APPROVAL OF MINUTES a) Discussion and possible action regarding approval of the minutes from the Commission on Veterans Affairs regular meeting on January 19, 2022. 2) OLD BUSINESS a) Discussion and possible action regarding Commission Working Groups and the Commission’s 2021-22 goals. (Sponsors: Pete Salazar, Manuel Jimenez) i. Create and fund a Veterans Office ii. Identifying any veteran encampments and number of homeless veterans located in the City of Austin iii. Organize a task force to work with other commissions to organize a Veterans Festival b) Discussion and possible action on a recommendation to correct or revert the park name “Veterans Pocket Park” to read “Veterans Park.” (Sponsors: Manuel Jimenez. Jason Denny) c) Presentation by Edwin Marty, Food Policy Manager, City of Austin Office of Sustainability, followed by discussion and possible action on the food planning process and emergency operations. (Sponsors: Manuel Jimenez, Pete Salazar) 3) NEW BUSINESS None None 4) STAFF UPDATES FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS NOTE: Next meeting is Wednesday, March 16, 2022 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 requiring Sign Language Interpreters or alternative formats, please give notice at least 2 days (48 Hours) before the meeting date. Please call Jonathan Babiak, Office of Civil Rights, at 512-974-3203 or jonathan.babiak@austintexas.gov for additional information; TTY users route through Relay Texas at 711. For more information on the Veterans Commission, please contact Jonathan Babiak at 512-974- 3203 or visit http://www.austintexas.gov/content/commission-veterans-affairs-1

Approved Minutes — original pdf

COMMISSION ON VETERANS AFFAIRS MINUTES The Commission on Veterans Affairs convened in a Regular Meeting on February 16, 2022 at the City of Austin, Austin Energy Mueller Building 4815 Mueller Blvd., Training Room 1125 Austin, TX 78723. Chair Manuel Jimenez called the Board Meeting to order at 7:01 PM. Board Members in Attendance: REGULAR MEETING February 16, 2022 Manuel Jimenez - Chair Adrenne Mendoza-Luna Vice Chair Alfred Bingham Maria Brown-Spence Jose Carrasco Pete A. Salazar Staff in Attendance: Sherisa Davis-Larry, Administrator, Office of Civil Rights (OCR); Jonathan Babiak, Business Process Consultant, OCR; Flynn Lee, Investigator, OCR CITIZEN COMMUNICATION: GENERAL None 1) APPROVAL OF MINUTES Chair Jimenez asked the Commission members to review the minutes from the regular called meeting on January 19, 2022. Commissioner Bingham made a motion to approve the meeting minutes, Commissioner Salazar second. Motion passed on a vote of 6-0 with Chair Jimenez, Vice Chair Mendoza-Luna, and Commissioners Bingham, Brown-Spence, Carrasco, and Salazar in favor. 2) OLD BUSINESS a) Discussion and possible action regarding Commission Working Groups and the Commission’s 2021-22 goals. (Sponsors: Pete Salazar, Manuel Jimenez) i. Create and fund a Veterans Office ii. Identifying any veteran encampments and number of homeless veterans located in the City of Austin iii. Organize a task force to work with other commissions to organize a Veterans Festival The Commission discussed this item. The Commission took no action on this item. b) Discussion and possible action on a recommendation to correct or revert the park name “Veterans Pocket Park” to read “Veterans Park.” (Sponsors: Manuel Jimenez, Jason Denny) The Commission discussed this item. The Commission took no action on this item. COMMISSION ON VETERAN AFFAIRS MEETING MINUTES c) Presentation by Edwin Marty, Food Policy Manager, City of Austin Office of Sustainability, followed by discussion and possible action on the food planning process and emergency operations. (Sponsors: Manuel Jimenez, Pete Salazar) The presenter was unavailable. The Commission took no action on this item. The Commission agreed to return this item to a future agenda. 3) NEW BUSINESS 4) STAFF UPDATES None None FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ADJOURN: Chair Jimenez adjourned the meeting at 7:46 PM on unanimous consent.