Item 5: Draft Recommendation — original pdf

Backup

LGBTQIA+ QUALITY OF LIFE COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION Recommendation to Designate the Guadalupe Fire Station as the Future Site of the Austin LGBTQIA+ Cultural Center and Advance a Funded Implementation Plan WHEREAS, the City of Austin is committed to creating an inclusive and equitable community in which LGBTQIA+ residents have access to safe, welcoming, accessible, and affirming spaces, services, cultural programming, and opportunities for community connection; and WHEREAS, the City of Austin’s LGBTQIA+ Quality of Life Study identified the establishment of a dedicated LGBTQIA+ community and cultural center as one of its principal recommendations and found a continuing need for safe spaces, community resources, advocacy, social connection, and cultural enrichment for Austin’s diverse LGBTQIA+ population; and WHEREAS, for nearly a decade, the LGBTQIA+ Quality of Life Commission, community advocates, nonprofit organizations, cultural leaders, service providers, and residents have worked to advance the creation of Austin’s first permanent and dedicated LGBTQIA+ Cultural Center; and WHEREAS, public town halls, surveys, constituent input, community leaders, the LGBTQIA+ Cultural Center Task Force, and the Quality of Life Study have consistently identified the need for a centrally located and transit-accessible center offering flexible gathering spaces, cultural and artistic programming, health and wellness outreach, community services, educational opportunities, non-bar social activities, and intergenerational programming; and WHEREAS, on August 14, 2024, the Austin City Council adopted Resolution No. 20240814-022 directing the City Manager to conduct a feasibility study addressing potential sites, funding strategies, and a development timeline for an LGBTQIA+ Cultural Center; and WHEREAS, the City subsequently appropriated funding for the feasibility study and established a LGBTQIA+ Cultural Center Task Force to provide community guidance, review potential sites, develop site-selection criteria, prioritize facility and program needs, and evaluate ownership, management, funding, and implementation options; and WHEREAS, the resulting Austin LGBTQIA+ Cultural Center Feasibility Study represents approximately 12 months of research, benchmarking, architectural analysis, community input, Task Force deliberation, site evaluation, and collaboration among the City of Austin, the LGBTQIA+ Quality of Life Commission, the Task Force, community stakeholders, Hayat Brown, and McKinney York Architects; and WHEREAS, after considering the feasibility study, the work and recommendations of the Task Force, the Quality of Life Study, public engagement, surveys, community and constituent input, and the continuing work of the Cultural Center Working Group, the LGBTQIA+ Quality of Life Commission has determined that the Guadalupe Fire Station provides the best available path forward for establishing Austin’s first permanent LGBTQIA+ Cultural Center; and WHEREAS, the Guadalupe Fire Station, located at 3002 Guadalupe Street, is centrally located, accessible by multiple modes of transportation, publicly owned, historically and architecturally distinctive, and capable of providing the future center with an independent civic identity and a meaningful degree of operational autonomy; and WHEREAS, because the Guadalupe Fire Station is City-owned, its use for the Cultural Center could avoid the substantial acquisition costs associated with privately owned property and could provide greater long-term stability and protection from displacement caused by Austin’s real estate market; and WHEREAS, the architectural test fit prepared during the feasibility study demonstrates that the Guadalupe Fire Station can accommodate the study’s full Core Program and selected Priority B spaces, including large and medium multipurpose rooms, a lobby and lounge, administrative offices, meeting and support spaces, a kitchen or café, a food pantry, a drop-in space, and flexible space capable of supporting health and community outreach; and WHEREAS, preliminary and likely bare minimum, planning-level opinion-of-probable-cost estimates place the Core and Priority B interior program at approximately $2.2 million to $3.3 million, including interior renovation, furniture, fixtures, equipment, hazardous-material contingencies, and architectural and engineering services; these estimates are preliminary and will require further design, engineering, and site assessment before a final project budget can be established, do not include ongoing operational and programmatic funding, and may increase as the project is more fully developed to address exterior improvements, accessibility, utilities, infrastructure, historic preservation, security, and other building needs; and WHEREAS, the Austin Fire Department’s Arson Unit currently occupies the Guadalupe Fire Station and is anticipated to relocate as other public-safety facilities become available, making it necessary for the City to designate the property now, coordinate the relocation process, protect the site from conflicting future uses, and begin planning well before the building is vacated; and WHEREAS, the feasibility study recommends a phased approach in which the City and community first secure and establish a functional core facility and subsequently expand programming, services, amenities, and satellite opportunities as governance, fundraising, partnerships, and operational capacity develop; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the LGBTQIA+ Quality of Life Commission strongly recommends that the Austin City Council formally designate and reserve the Guadalupe Fire Station, located at 3002 Guadalupe Street, as the future site of the Austin LGBTQIA+ Cultural Center, contingent upon the successful relocation of the Austin Fire Department’s Arson Unit; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Commission recommends that City Council direct the City Manager to take the administrative and real-estate actions necessary to preserve the Guadalupe Fire Station for this public purpose and to refrain from selling, disposing of, assigning, or committing the property to a conflicting long-term use while planning for the Cultural Center is underway; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Commission recommends that City Council direct the City Manager to coordinate the building’s transition with the Austin Fire Department, Financial Services Department, Building Services Department, Real Estate Services, Economic Development Department, Equity and Inclusion Office, Historic Preservation Office, and other appropriate departments so that the Arson Unit’s relocation and the Cultural Center’s development may proceed through a coordinated schedule; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the City should immediately begin predevelopment work for the Guadalupe Fire Station, including: • A structural and building-condition assessment; • Mechanical, electrical, plumbing, utility, and infrastructure assessments; • Environmental, asbestos, lead-paint, and hazardous-material testing; • Historic-preservation review; • Accessibility and building-code analysis, including the installation of an elevator and accessible entrances and restrooms; • Security and public-access planning; • Preliminary architectural and engineering design; • Community-informed interior and exterior design; • A refined project schedule; and • An updated probable cost estimate that includes appropriate contingencies and previously excluded exterior and infrastructure improvements; and • Exploration of early-phase operational and programmatic funding needs and potential funding sources; and • BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the initial design and development plan should, at minimum, implement the Core Program and as many Priority B spaces as reasonably feasible, while preserving flexibility for future expansion, partnerships, off-site programming, and satellite facilities as the Center’s capacity and services grow; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Commission recommends that City Council direct the City Manager to return to City Council within 180 days of Council action with a phased implementation and funding plan that identifies: 1. Immediate planning and design funding; 2. Estimated renovation and capital-improvement costs; 3. Potential funding through the Capital Improvement Program, future bond programs, certificates of obligation, grants, philanthropic contributions, corporate sponsorships, and other public or private sources; 4. A proposed timeline connected to the relocation of the Arson Unit; 5. Potential interim programming or temporary-space options; 6. A process for selecting or establishing the entity that will operate the Cultural Center; and 7. A proposed long-term lease, operating agreement, or other structure that protects the Center’s continuity, public accessibility, community mission, and operational autonomy; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that planning, design, and implementation shall be conducted in meaningful collaboration with the LGBTQIA+ Quality of Life Commission, members of the LGBTQIA+ Cultural Center Task Force, community organizations, cultural and service providers, LGBTQIA+ residents, and any implementation committee or governing organization subsequently established for the Center; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the public-engagement process should intentionally include transgender and nonbinary residents, LGBTQIA+ people of color, youth, older adults, people with disabilities, people in recovery, people experiencing housing or economic instability, veterans, families, immigrants, and other communities that have historically faced barriers to participation and access; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that designation of the Guadalupe Fire Station should not delay interim cultural programming, community events, pop-up activities, coalition building, fundraising, or the pursuit of temporary or shared space while the permanent facility is being prepared; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Commission recommends that City Council direct the City to should provide the LGBTQIA+ Quality of Life Commission and City Council with regular public progress reports regarding site preservation, departmental coordination, design, funding, the relocation schedule, community engagement, and anticipated occupancy; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the LGBTQIA+ Quality of Life Commission strongly urges the Austin City Council to move beyond feasibility and formally commit to the planning, funding, renovation, and establishment of the Guadalupe Fire Station as a permanent and enduring home for Austin’s LGBTQIA+ community.