ECONOMIC PROSPERITY COMMISSION SPECIAL CALLED MEETING MINUTES Monday, June 24, 2024 The Economic Prosperity Commission convened in a SPECIAL CALLED meeting on Monday, June 24, 2024, at 301 W. 2nd Street, Room 1101, Austin, Texas. Chair Michael Nahas called the Economic Prosperity Commission Meeting to order at 12:02 p.m. • Board Members/Commissioners in Attendance in Person: Luis Osta Lugo (8), Michael Nahas (4), Rodrigo Cantu (5) • Board Members/Commissioners in Attendance Remotely: Aaron Gonzales (9), Amy Noel (7), Raquel Valdez Sanchez (3), Christina Ponder (1), Kelsey Hitchingham (10) • Absent: Laura Dixon (Mayor) • Vacancy: District 2, District 6 PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL Tom Hedrick, Member of Early Matters Greater Austin: Affordable Childcare Now coalition efforts. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Economic Prosperity Commission Regular Meeting on May 15, 2024. The minutes from the meeting of May 15, 2024, were approved on Vice Chair Osta Lugo’s motion, Commissioner Valdez Sanchez’ second on an 8-0 vote. Commissioner Dixon was absent. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 2. Discuss and vote on goals for the next year and the creation of working groups to achieve those goals. Each working group will have a temporary project or assignment, a list of members, and an expected deadline for its proposed recommendation. The motion to approve the goal of focusing on the City of Austin Economic Development Department (EDD), specifically the Global Business Expansion, Redevelopment, and Small Business divisions within EDD, was approved on Vice Chair Osta Lugo’s motion, Commissioner Cantu’s second on an 8-0 vote. Commissioner Dixon was absent. 1 The motion to table the creation of working groups until the next meeting was approved on Vice Chair Osta Lugo’s motion, Commissioner Hitchingham’s second on an 8-0 vote. Commissioner Dixon was absent. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS • None Chair Nahas adjourned the meeting at 12:59 p.m. without objection. ********** These minutes were approved at the DATE meeting on BOARD MEMBER’s motion, BOARD MEMBER second on a (vote count) vote. 2
Regular Called Meeting of the Economic Prosperity Commission Wednesday, July 17, 2024, 6:30pm City Hall, Boards & Commissions Room 1101 301 W. 2nd Street Austin, Texas Some members of the Economic Prosperity Commission may be participating by videoconference. Audio is recorded. Public comment will be allowed in-person or remotely via telephone. Speakers may only register to speak on an item once either in-person or remotely and will be allowed up to three minutes to provide their comments. Registration no later than noon the day before the meeting is required for remote participation by telephone. To register to speak remotely, call or email Cesar Garza and Stephanie Calderon at the Economic Development Department: cesar.garza@austintexas.gov and stephanie.calderon@austintexas.gov or 512-974-8055 (Cesar Garza). CURRENT BOARD MEMBERS/COMMISSIONERS: • Laura Dixon, Mayor (Watson) • Christiana Ponder, District 1 (Harper- Madison) • Vacant, District 2 (Fuentes) • Raquel Valdez Sanchez, District 3 • Michael Nahas, Chair, District 4 (Velasquez) (Vela) • Rodrigo Cantu, District 5 (R. Alter) AGENDA • Amy Rister, District 6 (Kelly) • Amy Noel, District 7 (Pool) • Luis Osta Lugo, Vice Chair, District 8 • Aaron Gonzales, District 9 (Qadri) • Kelsey Hitchingham, District 10 (A. (Ellis) Alter) CALL TO ORDER PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL The first 10 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. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Economic Prosperity Commission Special Called Meeting on June 24, 2024. 3. 4. 5. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 2. Discuss and approve the creation, membership, and timeline of the Global Business Expansion working group. Discuss and approve the creation, membership, and timeline of the Redevelopment working group. Discuss and approve the creation, membership, and timeline of the Small Business working group. Discuss and approve a recommendation to Austin City Council to provide the EPC and other Boards and Commissions a message board, similar to the City Council Message Board, as allowed by Section 551.006 of the Texas Open Meetings Act. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ADJOURNMENT The City of Austin is committed to compliance with the American 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 …
BOARD/COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION Economic Prosperity Commission Recommendation Number: 20240717-005: Message Board for Use by Boards and Commissions WHEREAS, the City Council Message Board is running on software whose last major update was in 2007, the time before smartphones. The software is named “phpBB”, where “BB” stands for “bulletin board”, a technology from the era of dial-up modems. WHEREAS, Austin is known as a technology city. We are home to chip manufacturers like IBM, NXP, AMD, and Samsung. WHEREAS, Austin has a significant presence of technology companies such as Apple, Google, Dell, and Meta and Indeed. WHEREAS, Austin is home to the University of Texas at Austin, one of the top technology universities in the world. WHEREAS, Technology is part of Austin’s brand and our city’s government should be using the most modern applications available. WHEREAS, the city council message boards of Port Aransas and Amarillo are using WordPress, a newer software than Austin’s. WHEREAS, there is a new generation of collaboration software based on instant messaging and designed with smartphones in mind. This includes such proprietary apps such as Slack and Discord, as well as open-source alternatives like Zulip and Matrix. This innovative technology is being used by the boards of for-profit and nonprofit organizations to communicate and collaborate. WHEREAS, our Mayor, Kirk Watson, when in the Texas Senate, authored and championed changes to the Texas Open Meetings Act. The addition of Section 551.006 to the Texas Government Code permits government bodies to use online real-time communication that is visible to the public. Thus enabling the Austin City Council Message Board which now has thousands of posts and millions of views. WHEREAS, the City of Austin’s Boards and Commissions play an important role in city government. They are vital in adjudication, monitoring rights, monitoring the environment, and oversight of critical industries. They improve Austin by cherishing amenities, fostering the arts, and providing expert advice to City Council and serve as the inclusive interface for communities that are often overlooked by the government. WHEREAS, the City of Austin’s Boards and Commissions do not have message boards and, therefore, still suffer under the restrictive provisions of the Texas Open Meetings Act prior to the addition of Section 551.006 by then Senator Kirk Watson. THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Economic Prosperity Commission recommends the City of Austin: 1. Research and implement modern technology solutions for the current City Council Message Board. 2. Develop …
BOARD/COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION Economic Prosperity Commission Recommendation Number: 20240717-005: Message Board for Use by Boards and Commissions WHEREAS, the City Council Message Board is running on software whose last major update was in 2007, the time before smartphones. The software is named “phpBB”, where “BB” stands for “bulletin board”, a technology from the era of dial-up modems. WHEREAS, Austin is known as a technology city. We are home to leading hardware companies like IBM, NXP, AMD, and Samsung. WHEREAS, Austin has a significant presence of technology companies such as Apple, Google, Dell, and Meta and Indeed. WHEREAS, Austin is home to the University of Texas at Austin, one of the top technology universities in the world. WHEREAS, Technology is part of Austin’s brand and our city’s government should be using the most modern applications available. WHEREAS, the city council message boards of Port Aransas and Amarillo are using WordPress, a newer software than Austin’s. WHEREAS, there is a new generation of collaboration software based on instant messaging and designed with smartphones in mind. This includes such proprietary apps such as Slack and Discord, as well as open-source alternatives like Zulip and Matrix. This innovative technology is being used by the boards of for-profit and nonprofit organizations to communicate and collaborate. WHEREAS, our Mayor, Kirk Watson, when in the Texas Senate, authored and championed changes to the Texas Open Meetings Act. The addition of Section 551.006 to the Texas Government Code permits government bodies to use online real-time communication that is visible to the public. Thus enabling the Austin City Council Message Board which now has thousands of posts and millions of views. WHEREAS, the City of Austin’s Boards and Commissions play an important role in city government. They are vital in adjudication, monitoring rights, monitoring the environment, and oversight of critical industries. They improve Austin by cherishing amenities, fostering the arts, and providing expert advice to City Council and serve as the inclusive interface for communities that are often overlooked by the government. WHEREAS, the City of Austin’s Boards and Commissions do not have message boards and, therefore, still suffer under the restrictive provisions of the Texas Open Meetings Act prior to the addition of Section 551.006 by then Senator Kirk Watson. THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Economic Prosperity Commission recommends the City of Austin: 1. Research and implement modern technology solutions for the current City Council Message Board. 2. …
1. ECONOMIC PROSPERITY COMMISSION REGULAR CALLED MEETING MINUTES Wednesday, July 17, 2024 The Economic Prosperity Commission convened in a REGULAR CALLED meeting on Wednesday, July 17, 2024, at 301 W. 2nd Street, Room 1101, Austin, Texas. Chair Michael Nahas called the Economic Prosperity Commission Meeting to order at 6:35 p.m. • Board Members/Commissioners in Attendance in Person: Aaron Gonzales (9), Michael Nahas (4), Raquel Valdez Sanchez (3), Rodrigo Cantu (5), Amy Rister (6) • Board Members/Commissioners in Attendance Remotely: Luis Osta Lugo (8), Kelsey Hitchingham (10) • Absent: Amy Noel (7), Laura Dixon (Mayor), Christiana Ponder (1) • Vacancy: District 2 PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL None present. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Approve the minutes of the Economic Prosperity Commission Special Called Meeting on June 24, 2024. The minutes from the meeting of June 24, 2024, were approved on Commissioner Hitchingham’s motion, Vice Chair Osta Lugo’s second on a 7-0 vote. Commissioners Noel, Dixon, and Ponder were absent. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 2. Discuss and approve the creation, membership, and timeline of the Global Business Expansion working group. The motion to approve the creation of the Global Business Expansion working group with Commissioners Rister (group chair), Nahas, and Hitchingham, as well as with a deadline of September 2024 for an initial report, was approved on Chair Nahas’ motion, Commissioner Rister’s second on a 7-0 vote. Commissioners Noel, Dixon, and Ponder were absent. 1 3. 4. 5. Discuss and approve the creation, membership, and timeline of the Redevelopment working group. The motion to approve the Redevelopment working group with Commissioners Osta Lugo (group chair) and Cantu, as well as with a deadline of September 2024 for an initial report, was approved on Chair Nahas’ motion, Commissioner Valdez Sanchez’s second on a 7-0 vote. Commissioners Noel, Dixon, and Ponder were absent. Discuss and approve the creation, membership, and timeline of the Small Business working group. The motion to approve the Small Business working group with Commissioners Valdez Sanchez (group chair) and Gonzales, as well as with a deadline of September 2024 for an initial report, was approved on Chair Nahas’ motion, Commissioner Gonzales’s second on a 7-0 vote. Commissioners Noel, Dixon, and Ponder were absent. Discuss and approve a recommendation to Austin City Council to provide the EPC and other Boards and Commissions a message board, similar to the City Council Message Board, as allowed by Section 551.006 of the Texas Open Meetings Act. The …
