>> MAYOR JONES: GOOD AFTERNOON. THE TIME IS NOW 2:01 P.M. ON WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 26, 2026. AND THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO BUDGET WORK SESSION IS CALLED TO ORDER. MADAM CLERK, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL. >> CLERK: MAYOR, WE HAVE QUORUM. >> MAYOR JONES: GREAT. THANKS, MADAM CLERK. TODAY WE'LL BE REVIEWING THE FOLLOWING DEPARTMENT'S CONVENTION AND SPORTS FACILITIES, VISIT SAN ANTONIO ARTS AND CULTURE AS WELL AS THE AIRPORT. MARIA, OVER TO YOU. >> VILLAGOMEZ: THANK YOU, MAYOR. GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL. AS YOU MENTIONED, MAYOR, WE HAVE FOUR PRESENTATIONS TODAY. I WOULD RECOMMEND WE TAKE THEM ALL TOGETHER AS A GROUP AND THEN OPEN IT UP FOR QUESTIONS. SO YOU'RE GOOD WITH THAT, WE'LL START WITH OUR CONVENTION AND SPORTS FACILITIES, AND OUR DIRECTOR PATRICIA WILL START THE PRESENTATION. >> GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL. ONCE AGAIN, I'M PATRICIA CANTOR, I'M THE DIRECTOR OF CONVENTION AND SPORTS FACILITY DEPARTMENT. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. AS I PRESENT MY DEPARTMENT'S FY '27 PROPOSED BUDGET. TODAY I WILL COVER THE HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX FUND, OUR DEPARTMENT'S FACILITIES AND PROPOSED BUDGET. CONTRACT COMPLIANCE AND MONITORING ENHANCEMENTS FOR OUR DEPARTMENT, MAJOR CAPITAL PLANNING FOR THE CONVENTION CENTER AND ALAMODOME AS WELL AS CONTRACT EXTENSIONS EXTENSIONS FOR VISIT SAN ANTONIO, THE TOURISM PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT AND WOLFF STADIUM. THIS FIRST SLIDE SHOWS THE CURRENT HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX RATE IN SAN ANTONIO OF 17%. THIS TAX BREAKS DOWN INTO THREE PARTS, 6% GOES TO THE STATE, 2% TO BEXAR COUNTY, AND 9% GOES TO THE CITY. OF THE CITY'S PORTION, 2% PAYS FOR CAPITAL PROJECTS AND DEBT SERVICE AT THE CONVENTION CENTER. THE REMAINING 7% SUPPORTS ELIGIBLE TOURISM RELATED ACTIVITIES AND CONTRIBUTES 15% TO THE ARTS AND CULTURE DEPARTMENT, 15% TO HISTORY AND PRESENTATION, 35% TO VISIT SAN ANTONIO, AND UP TO 35% TO SUPPORT OUR CONVENTION FACILITIES. THIS IS ABOUT A 20% INCREASE SINCE 2018. OUR FISCAL '26 COLLECTIONS LOOK SLIGHTLY HIGHER ONLY BECAUSE THEY INCLUDE ABOUT 2 MILLION IN BACK TAXES. WITH THAT FUNDING CONTEXT THIS NEXT SLIDE SHOWS THE FACILITIES UNDER OUR DIRECTION. WE OVERSEE THE OPERATIONS OF THE HENRY B. GONZALEZ CONVENTION CENTER, THE ALAMODOME AND THE CARVER CENTER. WE ALSO MANAGE THE LEASES FOR NELSON WOLFF STADIUM AND TOYOTA FIELD. THESE FACILITIES ARE MORE THAN JUST VENUES, THEY ARE MAJOR ECONOMIC DRIVERS FOR SAN ANTONIO'S 23.4 BILLION TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY. FOR EXAMPLE, THE 2025 MEN'S FINAL FOUR HAD AN ECONOMIC -- ESTIMATED ECONOMIC IMPACT OF OVER $440 MILLION. THANKS IN PART TO OUR GREAT CONVENTION CENTER, THE U.S. NEWS AND WORLD REPORT ALSO NAMED SAN ANTONIO AS THE NINTH BEST CONFERENCE CITY IN THE NATION THIS YEAR. NEXT MONTH THE ALAMODOME WILL HOST FIVE MAJOR CONCERTS WITH PROJECTED ATTENDANCE WITH OVER 195,000 FANS. WE CALL THIS OUR SEPTEMBER TO REMEMBER. BECAUSE APPROXIMATELY 75,000 FANS WILL TRAVEL FROM OUTSIDE THE AREA, THEY WILL FILL THOUSANDS OF HOTEL ROOMS AND GENERATE SIGNIFICANT
VISITOR SPENDING. SINCE 2020, THE FACILITIES HAVE SHARED 10% OF TICKET COMMISSIONS WITH THE ARTS AND CULTURE DEPARTMENT. THIS HAS PROVIDED OVER 2 MILLION IN GRANTS FOR LOCAL ARTISTS. TURNING NOW TO THE PROPOSED BUDGET, THE TOTAL FUNDING ACROSS ALL FUNDS IS $84.6 MILLION. HERE IS HOW WE INVEST THAT MONEY. 64MILLION, OR THREE-QUARTERS OF THE BUDGET FUNDS DAILY OPERATIONS AT THE ALAMODOME AND THE CONVENTION CENTER. 2.9MILLION GOES TO VISIT SAN ANTONIO TO HELP WIN NEW CONVENTION BUSINESS. 1.5 FROM THE GENERAL FUND AND 700,000 IN SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS SUPPORTS THE CARVER CENTER. 2.7MILLION IS FOR PARTICIPATION IN THE STATE REIMBURSEMENT PROGRAM, AND 12.8 MILLION WILL FUND CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS AT BOTH THE ALAMODOME AND THE CONVENTION CENTER. THE FY '27 PROPOSED BUDGET INCLUDES 353 POSITIONS WITH 264 EMPLOYEES AT THE CONVENTION CENTER, 75 AT THE ALAMODOME AND 14 AT THE CARVER CENTER. THIS NEXT SLIDE SHOWS HOW OUR OPERATING MODEL HAS EVOLVED OVER THE YEARS. SINCE 2018, REVENUES HAVE GROWN BY $18.8 MILLION OR 57% BECAUSE WE ARE BOOKING BIGGER, MORE IMPACTFUL EVENTS AT BOTH FACILITIES. IN 2018, THE ALAMODOME HOSTED 121 EVENT DATES, BUT VERY FEW, ONLY ABOUT FIVE -- ONLY FIVE WERE MAJOR MARQUEE EVENT DAYS. NEXT YEAR THE ALAMODOME WILL HOST 112 EVENT DAYS, WITH 12 EVENT DAYS, THAT'S MORE THAN DOUBLE -- 12 EVENT DAYS ARE DEDICATED FOR MAJOR MARQUEE EVENTS. THAT'S MORE THAN DOUBLE THAN IN 2018. THE CONVENTION CENTER ALSO SHOWS SIMILAR GROWTH, JUMPING FROM 39 LARGE EVENTS -- THE STAFF, FACILITY, MAINTENANCE AND SERVICE CONTRACTS AS WELL AS UTILITY HAVE INCREASED BY OVER 40% OVER THE LAST 10 YEARS, OUR FACILITIES ARE PAYING MORE FOR THEIR OWN OPERATION. THIS YEAR NEEDING A FUNDING TRANSFER FROM HOTEL TAXES IS 12.3 MILLION. THIS IS LOWER THAN IN 2018, WHICH SHOWS WE ARE BEING MORE SELF-SUFFICIENT. TO OFFSET RISING COST, WE'RE PROPOSING TWO MAJOR PROGRAM CHANGES, WE ARE ADDING 1.8 MILLION IN NEW OR ADJUSTED VENUE FEES. MANY OF OUR FEES HAVE NOT CHANGED IN 10 YEARS. WE ALSO CHECKED COMPETING CITIES TO ENSURE OUR NEW RATES MATCH INDUSTRY STANDARDS. THIS INCLUDES 724,000 IN INCREASED ALAMODOME PARKING AND TICKET FEE ADJUSTMENTS TO OFFSET POLICE TRAFFIC CONTROL COSTS, BRINGING THE TOTAL SUPPORT FOR SAPD TRAFFIC TO 2 MILLION NEXT FISCAL YEAR. OTHER REVENUE ENHANCEMENTS ARE TIED TO NEW OR ADJUSTED FEES AT THE CONVENTION CENTER. BESIDES THESE REVENUE ENHANCEMENTS, WE ARE ALSO CUTTING 600,000 IN CONTRACTED CLEANING SERVICES AT THE CONVENTION CENTER. OUR IN-HOUSE STAFF WILL HANDLE DAILY WORK AND WE WILL USE OUTSIDE HELP ONLY WHEN NEEDED. ALONGSIDE THESE FINANCIAL CHANGES, WE ARE STRENGTHENING OUR CONTRACT OVERSIGHT. THE PROPOSED BUDGET ADDS ONE STAFF POSITION FOR CONTRACT MONITORING FUNCTIONS TO OVERSEE OUR 80 PLUS DEPARTMENTAL AGREEMENTS. WE HAVE ALSO REEVALUATED ALL OF OUR CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION PLANS AND INSURANCE CERTIFICATES, RETRAINED MONITORING STAFF AND BOOSTED COMMUNICATIONS WITH OUR CONTRACTORS. THESE STEPS ADDRESS RECENT AUDIT FINDINGS, WHILE ESTABLISHING STRONGER CONTROLS TO REDUCE FUTURE RISK AND IMPROVE OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY. OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS, WE HAVE BEEN PREPARING FOR THE LONG-TERM NEEDS OF OUR FACILITIES. AT THIS TIME, WE ARE FINALIZING THE FACILITY ASSESSMENT OF THE ALAMODOME AND THE CONVENTION CENTER EXPANSION STUDIES. WE WILL PRESENT FULL DETAILS OF THESE REPORTS DURING A B SESSION BRIEFING IN LATE OCTOBER. FOR NOW, 8.1 MILLION IS SET ASIDE IN FISCAL YEAR '27, AND 6.1 MILLION IN
FISCAL YEAR '28 FOR CRITICAL MAINTENANCE AT THE ALAMODOME. NOW, THE CONVENTION CENTER PRESENTS A DIFFERENT CHALLENGE IT IS OPERATING AT MAXIMUM CAPACITY, LIMITING OUR ABILITY TO ACCOMMODATE ADDITIONAL MEETINGS AND CONVENTIONS. COMPETING CITIES LIKE AUSTIN, HOUSTON, DALLAS, FORT WORTH, ARE SPENDING OVER $7 BILLION TO UPGRADE THEIR FACILITIES. COMPETITION FOR GROUP BUSINESS IS INTENSIFYING AND FOR GOOD REASON, BECAUSE THESE VISITORS SPEND MORE AND STAY LONGER. THEY ALSO KEEP OUR HOTELS FULL WHEN LEISURE TRAVEL SLOWS DOWN. MARIO VASS WITH VISIT SAN ANTONIO WILL SPEAK SHORTLY ABOUT THE CONVENTION CENTER TRANSFORMATIONS ACROSS THE COUNTRY THAT ARE ALREADY IMPACTING OUR FUTURE BOOKINGS. NOW, SUPPORTING THAT LONG-TERM COMPETITIVENESS, ALSO DEPENDS ON STRONG DESTINATION SALES AND MARKETING PARTNERSHIPS. THEREFORE, AS PART OF THE BUDGET ADOPTION, WE ARE RECOMMENDING A 10-YEAR CONTRACT EXTENSION WITH VISIT SAN ANTONIO AND A 10-YEAR CONTRACT RENEWAL FOR THE TOURISM PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT. THESE TWO -- RECOMMENDING EXERCISING THE THIRD AND FINAL FIVE-YEAR EXTENSION OF WOLFF STADIUM -- OF THE WOLFF STADIUM AGREEMENT WITH THE MISSIONS BASEBALL CLUB. THIS CONTRACT ALLOWS FOR AN EARLY EXIT ONCE THEIR NEW STADIUM IS READY. AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR BRENDA HICK-SORENSON WILL SHARE AN UPDATE ON THE FUTURE MASTER PLAN FOR WOLFF STADIUM DURING HER WORK SESSION NEXT MONTH. MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL, THIS CONCLUDES MY PRESENTATION. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME, BUT BEFORE I TURN IT OVER TO KRYSTAL JONES TO PRESENT HER BUDGET, I WANT TO TAKE JUST A SHORT TIME TO THANK MY STAFF. THANK YOU TO ALL OF MY STAFF, THE ONES THAT ARE HERE, THE ONES BACK AT THE OFFICE. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT, THANK YOU FOR THE LONG HOURS PREPARING THIS BUDGET. I APPRECIATE ALL OF YOU. THANK YOU, AND NOW TO CRYSTAL. . >> GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL. MY NAME IS KRYSTAL JONES, I'M THE DIRECTOR OF THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO DEPARTMENTS OF ARTS AND CULTURE HERE TO TALK ABOUT OUR PROPOSED FISCAL YEAR 2027 BUDGET. I WILL PROVIDE A DEPARTMENT OVERVIEW, THE FISCAL YEAR 2027 PROPOSED BUDGET, THE IMPACT THAT WE'VE HAD IN 2026, AND THE IMPACT THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO MAKE IN FISCAL YEAR 2027. WHAT I LOVE ABOUT PRESENTING WITH THE DEPARTMENTS HERE TODAY IS THAT WE ARE THE WELCOME MAT, AND IF YOU'RE IN THE FILM WORLD, THE RED CARPET TO OUR CITY. WE SHOWCASE THE STORIES OF OUR HISTORY, OUR PRESENT AND WE ALSO BUILD OUR FUTURE, AND BEFORE I MOVE TO THE NEXT SLIDE, I WANT TO JUST SET THE TONE AND STHOA YOU HOW THE DEPARTMENT OF ARTSND AND CULTURE TELLS THAT STORY AND IS BUILDING THE FUTURE, SO WE'LL SEE A VIDEO NOW. >> OUR STORY IS MORE THAN WORDS SPOKEN, MORE THAN WORDS READ, MORE THAN WORDS. OUR STORY IS SEEN, FELT, WITNESSED. OUR STORY IS DISPLAYED ON STREETS AND SIDEWALKS, WALLS AND WINDOWS. THE SAN ANTONIO AIR BECOMES CANVAS, AND AUDITORIUM WHERE OUR STORY IS SHOWN AND HEARD. OUR STORY IS TOLD BY SCULPTORS AND MUIRALISTS, METAL SMITHS AND PRINTMAKERSES, DESIGNERS IN EVERY MEDIUM IMAGINABLE. OUR STORY IS A MOSAIC. STORY. AND AS MY PRESENTATION GOES, WE'LL SHOW HOW WE ALIGN VERY WELL WITH VISIT SAN ANTONIO AND OUR VERY CLOSE PARTNERSHIP. I'M ACTUALLY ON THE BOARD OF VISIT SAN ANTONIO, WHERE WE ARE SHARING THIS
COLLATERAL, THIS MARKETING WITH THEM. AND THIS LIVES ON THEIR WEBSITE AND WE HAVE SOME SCREENSHOTS OF THAT AND THEY'VE USED IT ON THEIR SOCIAL MEDIA AS WELL. IT'S NOT JUST CREATING IT FOR OUR DEPARTMENT TO PRESENT TO THE COMMUNITY, IT'S ALSO USING TO ATTRACT VISITATION. OUR DEPARTMENT OVERVIEW, WE HAVE FOUR MAIN DIVISIONS, WE HAVE OUR GRANTS MANAGEMENT DIVISION WHICH I WILL GO INTO -- AUDIO] -- THAT'S ACCESSIBLE TO RESIDENTS AND VISITORS IN OUR COMMUNITY. WE HAVE OUR CULTURAL EVENTS AND EXHIBITS TEAM, WE HAVE TWO CITY-OWNED GALLERIES THAT WE MANAGE, AND WE ALSO, AS YOU SAW OUR POET LAUREATE EDDIE VEGA, WE MANAGE THE POET LAUREATE PROGRAM. WE HAVE PUBLIC ART WHICH I'LL GO INTO MORE DEPTH ABOUT THE NUMBER OF PROJECTS THAT OUR TEAM ARE WORKING ON ACROSS THE ENTIRE CITY IN EACH OF YOUR DISTRICTS AND WE HAVE OUR MARKETING FILM AND MUSIC TEAM. REALLY I HAVE A HIGHLIGHT ON THE FILM COMMISSIONS WORK THIS YEAR, BECAUSE IT WAS A BIG YEAR FOR FILM IN SAN ANTONIO, THANKS TO THE ACTIONS THAT YOU'VE TAKEN FOR OUR LOCAL FILM INCENTIVE. LOOKING AT THE '27 PROPOSED BUDGET, THIS PIE CHART REALLY SHOWS HOW OUR 13 -- I'M SORRY, OUR $14.2 MILLION BUDGET IS SPLIT ACROSS ALL OF THESE FUNCTIONS, THESE CORE FUNCTIONS THAT WE HANDLE HERE FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF ARTS AND CULTURE. AGAIN, 62% ARE GOING TO OUR CORE GRANTS PROGRAM AND DIRECTLY OUT TO ARTISTS, TO NONPROFITS, TO CREATE THAT PROGRAMMING THAT'S ACCESSIBLE TO OUR COMMUNITY. AND THAT DRIVES VISITATION. WE ALSO HAVE $500,000 FOR PUBLIC ART MAINTENANCE THAT WE WILL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT IN THIS PRESENTATION. AND WE HAVE 24 POSITIONS THAT ARE FUNDED THROUGH THIS -- THIS BUDGET ALLOCATION. SO SOME OF THE REAL IMPACTS THAT WE HAVE WITH GRANTS, I HAVE JUST A COUPLE OF TESTIMONIALS HERE, BUT I REALLY WANTED TO SHOW THAT WE HAVE A 360 PROGRAM WHEN IT COMES TO PRESENCE, ARTISTS IN OUR COMMUNITY WHO ARE RESIDENTS, AND VISITORS. SO REALLY LOOKING AT THE ACCESSIBILITY THAT OUR NONPROFITS ARE PROVIDING OUR COMMUNITY THROUGH ACCESS FOR YOUTH TO EXPERIENCE HIGH-QUALITY ARTS AND CULTURAL PROGRAMMING LIKE THE OPERA, PROVIDING OVER 1500 INDIVIDUALS FREE PROGRAMS, THOSE ARE STUDENTS, TEACHERS, VETERANS, INDIVIDUALS THAT ARE ON A WIC AND SNAP, JUST PROVIDING THAT ACCESS TO OUR COMMUNITY. WE HAVE ARTIST IMPACT, I HAVE MORE INFORMATION, OF COURSE, ON OUR ARTIST GRANTS, BUT THIS IS ALSO DEVELOPING OUR YOUTH THROUGH NONPROFIT PROGRAMMING. IT'S REALLY FINDING PEOPLE'S VOICES, OUR STUDENT'S VOICES THAT ARE GOING TO HELP THEM IN THE PROFESSIONAL DAYS, SO THAT THEY FEEL CONFIDENT IN THEMSELVES AND CONFIDENT TO PRESENT WHEN THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT -- WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE FUTURE WORKFORCE OF SAN ANTONIO, WHETHER THEY GO IN THE ARTS OR NOT. THEN WE ALSO HAVE VISITOR IMPACT. AS YOU'LL SEE FROM JUST ONE VISITOR WHO CAME TO THE PLAYHOUSE TO EXPERIENCE A PERFORMANCE, THEY ALSO ENDED UP AT OUR SAN ANTONIO FILM FESTIVAL, AND SPENT ABOUT $1,000 MORE ON THAT TRIP THAT THEY MADE FROM AUSTIN, AGAIN, WORKING WITH VISIT SAN ANTONIO BECAUSE WE KNOW THE DRIVE MARKET IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR VISITATION HERE FROM AUSTIN, DALLAS, HOUSTON. AGAIN, REACHING THOSE VISITORS AS THEY COME AND EXPERIENCE ARTS PROGRAM. THE REAL IMPACT FOR FILM, AGAIN, WITH YOUR ACTION TO HAVE A FILM INCENTIVE OF 14% THAT MATCHES WELL WITH THE STATE INCENTIVE, WE NOW HAVE 10 INCENTIVIZED PROJECTS OF 782 DAYS OF FILMING IN OUR CITY. THAT'S WHERE FILM PRODUCTIONS ARE LISTING THE AMOUNT OF DAY WITH THEIR PERMITS LISTING THE AMOUNT OF DAYS THEY'LL BE IN OUR COMMUNITY. WE'VE HAD 862 PAID POSITIONS THAT ARE ESTIMATED TO BE CREATED FOR THESE FILM INCENTIVE PROJECTS, EVERYTHING THAT IS BEING FILMED, WE DO AUDIT AFTER THE PROJECT IS COMPLETE TO MAKE SURE THEY MET THIS METRICS BEFORE THEY GET THEIR REBATE. SO WE MAKE SURE THAT THEY COMPLETED THE PROJECT, THAT THEY HIRED WHO THEY SAID THEY WERE GOING TO HIRE, AND THAT THEY FILMED WHERE THEY SAID THEY WERE GOING TO FILM. SEVEN OUT OF THOSE 10 PROJECTS QUALIFY FOR OUR 2% INCENTIVE BECAUSE THEY ARE HIRING ABOVE AND BEYOND THE NUMBER OF VETERANS NEEDED TO QUALIFY FOR INCENTIVE. AND THEN WE HAVE ESTIMATED RIGHT NOW THROUGH THESE PROJECTS -- TO HAVE SPENT DIRECTLY IN OUR COMMUNITY $21.03 FOR EVERY DOLLAR GRANTS, SO, AGAIN, THIS IS A HUGE ECONOMIC DRIVER, AND ACKNOWLEDGING WHY THE STATE WAS SO INTERESTED IN GETTING INTO THE INCENTIVE GAME WHEN IT COMES TO FILM. AND WE HAD OUR EIGHTH YEAR ON MOVIEMAKER'S BEST PLACE TO WORK AS A FILMMAKER, LOOKING FOR THAT NINTH. NOW GETTING INTO 2027, WE WILL BE IN YEAR 3 OF THE THREE-YEAR FUNDING
PROGRAM FOR ARTS FUNDING. SO THIS IS LOOKING AT 7.2 MILLION FOR OUR NONPROFITS THAT ARE -- OPERATIONAL FUNDING, AND ALSO NONPROFITS WHO ARE GETTING UP TO 20% OF THEIR EVENTS PAID FOR THROUGH THIS GRANT PROGRAM. SO, AGAIN, THE OPERATIONAL GRANTEES, WE HAVE 41 GRANTEES IN THIS PROGRAM. THEY WILL BE GETTING 4.9 MILLION. THEY'RE SAN ANTONIO BASED, THEY HAVE THREE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE IN ARTS PROGRAMMING. THEY HAVE -- THEIR GRANT IS BASED ON A TOTAL OPERATING EXPENSE, SO THE LARGER THEIR OPERATING EXPENSE, THE SMALLER PERCENTAGE OF A GRANT THEY RECEIVE, AND IT'S A GRADUATED SCALE TO REALLY LOOK AT EQUITY THROUGH OUR COMMUNITY. THERN AS YOU REMEMBER, WE HAVE THE CULTURAL HERITAGE GRANTEES, 2.2 MILLION GOING TO 10 ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE SMALL AND MID SIZED, COMMUNITY ROOTED THAT, ARE WORKING TO PRESERVE, PROMOTE AND REVITALIZE DISTINCT CULTURAL HERITAGE AND WE HAVE A CLOSE PARTNERSHIP ALWAYS WITH VISIT SAN ANTONIO TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE NONPROFITS AND ALL NONPROFITS ARE HIGHLIGHTED, BUT SPECIFICALLY THOSE TO SHOW THE DISTINCT CULTURAL HERITAGE WE HAVE HERE IN SAN ANTONIO. AND THEN THERE ARE NONPROFITS THAT ARE DOING ARTISTIC EVENTS THAT ARE GETTING ABOUT $150,000. AGAIN, PRODUCING AN ARTS AND CULTURAL EVENT IS A COMPETITIVE PROCESS AND THE MAX AWARD IS 20% TO CREATE THOSE PROGRAMS. LATER THIS YEAR, I WILL BE BRINGING THE NEW THREE-YEAR FUNDING CYCLES AND ARTS ARTS FUNDING GUIDELINES FOR YOUR REVIEW AND APPROVAL, SO WE LOOK FORWARD TO TALKING TO YOU ABOUT THE NEXT THREE YEARS OF FUNDING THE ARTS. ARTISTS GRANTEES, WE HAVE $262,000 ALLOCATED FOR 30 SAN ANTONIO-BASED ARTISTS TO CREATE PROGRAMS. AGAIN, OPEN AND ACCESSIBLE TO RESIDENTS AND VISITORS, AND THIS HAS BEEN A GAME-CHANGER FOR OUR ARTIST COMMUNITY. YOU SEE THAT NOAH PETERSON, THAT'S A DISTRICT THREE ARTIST, HE PREMIERED HIS PROJECT IN DISTRICT ONE, HE HAS SENT HIS CD THAT HE CREATED TO HUNDREDS OF RADIOSTATIONS, HE'S HAD LIVE ON-AIR INTERVIEWS AND OUTER MARKET RADIO STATIONS, AGAIN, SHOWCASING HOW TOURISM BENEFITS FROM THE ARTS AND ARTS BENEFITS FROM TOURISM. SO THESE ARE 30 SAN ANTONIO-BASED ASHTISTS THAT WILL RECEIVE $7,500 OR $15,000. IT'S COMPETITIVE PROCESS THAT'S REVIEWED BY AN INDEPENDENT PANEL OF EXPERTS AND THE PROJECTS MUST BE PRESENTED IN SAN ANTONIO. PUBLIC ART, OUR TEAM HAS BEEN VERY BUSY WITH OVER 60 PUBLIC ART PROJECTS IN PROCESS. THIS IS THROUGH OUR 1.5% FOR PUBLIC ART ORDINANCE, AS WELL AS THE 1.5% ALSO APPLIES TO TIRZ PROJECTS, BUT ALSO THERE HAVE BEEN PROJECTS THAT HAVE BEEN ADVOCATED FOR FOR TIRZ. SO THE COVER SLIDE THAT I HAD ON THE BUDGET PRESENTATION, LOOKING AT THE NOLAN STREET MURAL WAS A TIRZ PROJECT, FUNDED FROM THE EAST SIDE TIRZ. WE WILL HAVE 20 INSTALLATIONS AND DEDICATIONS THIS YEAR. THIS IS REALLY DRIVEN BY THE 2022 BOND. THESE PROJECTS ARE COMPLETING AND WE HAVE, AGAIN, PROJECTS IN EVERY DISTRICT THAT WILL BE COMPLETED. WE HAVE 21 PUBLIC ART PROJECTS AS PART OF THE AIRPORT EXPANSION. AGAIN, INVESTING IN THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE AND SHOWING THE WELCOME MAT OF SAN ANTONIO THROUGH LOCAL ARTISTS AND THEIR WORK TO CREATE PLACE MAKING, AND THEN WE ALSO HAVE NINE ART AS SHADE PROJECTS. SO, AGAIN, LOOKING AT PUBLIC ART AS INFRASTRUCTURE AND SAFETY AS WE LOOK AT THE URBAN HEAT ISLAND EFFECT AND PARTNERING WITH OUR DEPARTMENTS THAT FOCUS ON THAT WORK, SO THAT WE CAN PROVIDE SHADE THROUGH ART. WE DO HAVE 26 MAINTENANCE PROJECTS ANTICIPATED FOR THE FISCAL YEAR '27. THOSE ARE PLANNED MAINTENANCE PROJECTS. WE HAVE A THREE-YEAR MAINTENANCE CYCLE AND PROGRAM THAT WE KNOW WHICH PROJECTS ARE IN NEED. WE HAVE PROJECTS THAT ARE OVER 20 YEARS OLD BECAUSE WE DO HAVE A 30 -- WE HAVE 30-YEAR PROJECTS, BECAUSE WE HIT 30 YEARS THIS YEAR, BUT WE DO HAVE SOME PROJECTS THAT JUST NEED TO BE MAINTAINED. YOU'LL SEE HERE THE FISH BY DONALD LIPSKI IS IN VISIT SAN ANTONIO'S VISITOR GUIDE THAT. IS A PHOTO FROM THEIR VISITOR'S GUIDE. THEY USE THAT PHOTO QUITE OFTEN TO SELL THE CULTURAL EXPERIENCE IN SAN ANTONIO AND SAN ANTONIO AS A WHOLE. YOU SEE ON THE LEFT SIDE, THEY REALLY NEEDED SOME WORK. WE MAKE SURE THAT WE MAINTAIN THOSE PIECES THAT ARE SEEN BY MILLIONS OF VISITORS THAT COME ESPECIALLY TO THAT MUSEUM REACH TO SEE THE GREAT RIVERWALK EXPERIENCE BUT THE PUBLIC ART THAT'S THERE. I ALSO WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THAT WE ARE WORKING WITH ARTISTS. AGAIN, WE ARE FOCUSED ON LOCAL ARTISTS AND NOT EXCLUSIVELY, BUT REALLY FOCUSING ON THE TALENT THAT WE HAVE HERE. SO ALL OF THESE PROJECTS HAVE LOCAL ARTISTS. AND YOU'LL SEE THAT ANGELA WEDDLE, THIS IS NOT JUST A BEAUTIFICATION OF OUR CITY, IT'S INVESTMENT IN OUR ARTISTS AND OUR PEOPLE. ANGELA WAS ABLE, WITH A PUBLIC ART PROJECT, TO GET MANY MORE EXHIBITIONS. SHE IS NOW TEACHING AND SHE HAS -- SHE'S A MULTIPLE DISABLED ARTIST
WHO NEVER THOUGHT THIS WAS IN HER FUTURE, AND NOW IT IS. AND HER FAMILY WANTED THE SAME THING THAT ALL OF OUR FAMILIES WANT FOR US, TO BE ABLE TO SUCCEED, TO LIVE INDEPENDENTLY, AND SHE'S ABLE TO DO THAT BECAUSE OF A PUBLIC ART PROJECT. END THE STORY, WE REALLY WANTED TO JUST RECAP WHAT WE PLAN TO DO THIS YEAR. AND IT'S ENHANCING OUR QUALITY OF LIFE HERE IN SAN ANTONIO THROUGH CULTURAL IMPACT. IT'S PROVIDING THESE GRANTS TO NONPROFITS TO PROVIDE THOUSANDS OF EVENTS THAT ARE AVAILABLE TO 2.1 MILLION ATTENDEES, BOTH VISITORS AND RESIDENTS. IT'S LOOKING AT SUPPORTING AT LEAST 6500 JOBS, THAT'S A NEW METRIC AS YOU'LL SEE IN THE PERFORMANCE MEASURES WE'RE GOING TO BE TRACKING ABOUT NONPROFITS ABOUT HOW MANY FOLKS THEY'RE PROVIDING JOBS FOR, AND WE KNOW THIS IS A $5.2 BILLION INDUSTRY THAT EMPLOYS 24,000 PEOPLE IN OUR COMMUNITY, SO OUR NONPROFIT WORK AND OUR ARTIST WORK ARE A PART OF THAT ECONOMIC IMPACT. AND THEN CONTINUE TO INVEST IN OUR ARTISTS BY INCLUDING THEM IN OUR PUBLIC ART PROGRAM, OUR ARTIST GRANTS, PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, DRIVING THAT ECONOMIC AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT THROUGH FILM, AND LEVERAGING OUR CLOSE PARTNERSHIPS WITH ENTITIES LIKE THE CONVENTION AND SPORTS FACILITIES, VISIT SAN ANTONIO AND THE AIRPORT TO SHARE SAN ANTONIO'S STORY. AND FINALLY, I DO WANT TO THANK 23 -- 24 WITH OUR FISCAL ADMINISTRATOR, THAT I GET TO WORK WITH, INDIVIDUALS THAT I GET TO WORK WITH EVERY DAY WHO ARE COMMITTED TO THIS WORK. I KNOW YOU'VE MET THEM THROUGH YOUR INDIVIDUAL COUNCIL DISTRICTS, THROUGH PUBLIC ART PROGRAMS, FILM, THROUGH OUR GRANTS MANAGEMENT. I WANT TO THANK THEM, BECAUSE THEY MAKE THIS WORK SO MUCH MORE MEANINGFUL, NOT ONLY TO OUR COMMUNITY, BUT THEY MAKE IT EASY TO DO WHEN YOU HAVE SUCH PASSIONATE AND COMMITTED PEOPLE TO OUR COMMITTEE. SO I WANT TO THANK THEM AND I WANT TO THANK OUR LEADERSHIP TEAM WHOSE BEHIND ME FOR THEIR WORK. AND WITH THAT, I'LL PASS IT ON TO MY COLLEAGUE MARIO VASS WITH VISIT SAN ANTONIO. >> GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR JONES, MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL AND CITY LEADERSHIP. IT IS AN HONOR TO BE HERE TODAY. AS I PRESENT VISIT SAN ANTONIO'S 2027 STRATEGIC PLAN AND PROPOSED BUDGET ON BEHALF OF VISIT SAN ANTONIO, OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS, OUR BOARD CHAIR LAURA SMENFY AND KOSK OUR CORE MANAGEMENT TEAM. VISIT SAN ANTONIO IS PROUD TO LEAD THE CITY'S LEISURE TRAVEL, CONVENTION MEETINGS AND HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY. TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY CONSIST OF BROAD RANGE OF BOTH PROFESSIONAL AND SERVICE-RELATED BUSINESSES FROM TRANSPORTATION TO LODGING, RESTAURANTS, TO LOCAL ART TIS SANS AS KRYSTAL POINTED OUT AND OF COURSE ENTERTAINMENT. OUR INDUSTRY STRUCTURE POSITIONS AS AS ONE OF THE CITY'S TOP FOUR ECONOMIC DRIVERS. VISIT SAN ANTONIO IS ALSO AN ENTITY THAT CULTIVATES AND ADVOCATES FOR TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY, WHICH IS ONE OF THE TOP EMPLOYMENT AND TAX-GENERATING ENTITIES IN THE CITY. MUCH OF THE DATA WE PRESENT TO YOU COMES FROM OUR 2024 HOSPITALITY ECONOMIC IMPACT REPORT COMMISSIONED BY VISIT SAN ANTONIO IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE SAN ANTONIO HOTEL AND LODGING ASSOCIATION, AS WELL AS THE SAN ANTONIO VISITORS ALLIANCE. IT IS AN INDEPENDENT STUDY BY ECONOMIC AND RESEARCH PROFESSORS FROM TRINITY UNIVERSITY. THE 2025 REPORT IS SCHEDULED TO BE RELEASED THIS NOVEMBER. HOWEVER, WE WERE ABLE TO OBTAIN THE 2025 VISITATION OF 40.3 MILLION, WHICH HIGHLIGHTS CONTINUED STEADY GROWTH YEAR OVER YEAR. AS OUR OVERALL VISITATION INCREASES, SO DOES OUR INTERNATIONAL SEGMENT. 2025 INTERNATIONAL VISITATIONS SURPASSED ITS PREPANDEMIC NUMBERS WITH AN ALL-TIME HIGH OF 2.51 MILLION VISITORS. DECLINE IN INTERNATIONAL VISITATION, THAT WAS NOT THE CASE FORV FOR VISIT SAN ANTONIO. TEAM STRATEGICALLY TARGETED THE MEDSCO MARKET TO DRIVE AWARENESS VISITATION. MEDIA AND INFLUENCER SITE VISITS TO SAN ANTONIO, AS WELL AS TRADE EVENTS AND CO-OP MARKET CAMPAIGNS WITH MAJOR TRAVEL DRIVERS. THESE ALONG WITH DIRECT AIR SERVICE TO KEY MEXICAN CITIES MADE A POSITIVE IMPACT TO OUR MEXICO SOURCE MARKET. REGIONAL VISITATION CONTINUES TO BE OUR STRONGEST SEGMENT MAKING
UP 78% OF OUR TOTAL DOMESTIC TRAVEL. THOUGH ECONOMIC HEADWINDS AND FLUCTUATING GAS PRICES HAVE IMPACTED TRAVELERS, SAN ANTONIO REMAINS A STEADY TOP TRAVEL CHOICE FOR OUR DRIVE MARKETS. AS ONE OF SAN ANTONIO'S TOP ECONOMIC DRIVERS, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY PLAY A CRITICAL ROLE IN THE STRENGTH AND STABILITY OF OUR LOCAL ECONOMY. IT IS AN INDUSTRY SHAPED BY PRIVATE AND PUBLIC ECONOMIC INVESTMENT THAT PRODUCES MEASURABLE RETURNS FOR SAN ANTONIO AND ITS RESIDENTS. THIS SLIDE HIGHLIGHTS THOSE RETURNS. IN 2024, TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY GENERATED A RECORD $23.4 BILLION IN TOTAL ECONOMIC IMPACT TO THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO. THAT'S AN 8.8 INCREASE OVER THE PREVIOUS YEAR. THE ECONOMIC IMPACT ALSO GENERATED 284 MILLION IN CITY TAX REVENUES PROVIDING AN IMPORTANT SOURCE OFFE OF FUNDING FOR THE CITY'S GENERAL FUND. THIS SUPPORTS THE INVESTMENTS THAT RESIDENTS RELY ON E EVERY DAY FROM PUBLIC SAFETY AND INTO OTHER BASIC MUNICIPAL SERVICES. SIMPLY, THE IMPACT OF TOURISM EXTENDS THROUGHOUT THE SAN ANTONIO COMMUNITY. WHEN VISITORS STAY IN OUR HOTELS, DINE AT OUR RESTAURANT, SHOP IN OUR BUSINESSES, ATTEND CONVENTIONS AND EXPERIENCE OUR ATTRACTIONS, THAT SPENDING CIRCULATES THROUGHOUT OUR LOCAL ECONOMY AND GENERATES REVENUE THAT ULTIMATELY BENEFITS SAN ANTONIO'S RESIDENTS. VISIT SAN ANTONIO'S PRIMARY FOCUS IS TO SELL AND MARKET THE CITY AS A DESTINATION EVERYONE WANTS TO VISIT, EXPLORE AND, OF COURSE, EXPERIENCE. IN 2025, 1.9 BILLION WAS DIRECTLY GENERATED BY VISIT SAN ANTONIO SELLING, MARKETING AND PR EFFORTS. EFFORTS CONTRIBUTING TO THIS RETURN ON INVESTMENT INCLUDE A RECORD-BREAKING YEAR FOR DESTINATION SALES. EVENTS AND SECURED 74 CITYWIDES. THESE ACHIEVEMENTS ARE THE MOST IN THE ORGANIZATION'S HISTORY AND SHOWCASE THE GRIT AND DETERMINATION OF VISIT SAN ANTONIO. THE COMMUNICATION'S TEAM SECURED 1200 MEDIA STORIES GENERATING OVER 30 MILLION IN EARNED MEDIA VALUE FOR OUR CITY. ON THE MARKETING SIDE, DOMESTIC CAMPAIGNS GENERATED 214 MILLION ENGAGEMENTS DRIVING 2.1 MILLION TRIPS WITH OVER A BILLION DOLLARS IN ECONOMIC IMPACT FOR OUR DESTINATION. TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY WORKERS DON'T SIMPLY WORK IN TOURISM, THEY BELIEVE IN THE POWER OF TOURISM AND IN THE POUR POWER OF THE CITY'S STORY. IN 2024, THE INDUSTRY SUPPORTED OVER 150,000 JOBS FOR A 3.7% INCREASE COMPARED TO 2019. THAT MEANS APPROXIMATELY ONE IN EVERY EIGHT EMPLOYED SAN ANTONIANS WORKS IN TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY-RELATED INDUSTRY. THESE JOBS SPAN FROM -- FAR BEYOND HOTELS AND RESTAURANTS, THEY SUPPLY EMPLOYMENT ACROSS RETAIL, TRANSPORTATION, ATTRACTIONS, ARTS AND CULTURE AND OTHER BUSINESSES THAT SERVE VISITORS AND RESIDENTS ALIKE. THE STEADY RECOVERING GROWTH IN THE EMPLOYMENT -- THE TOURISM INDUSTRY IS WHERE MANY PROFESSIONALS GET THEIR START. LEARNING VALUABLE SOFT SKILLS WHICH HELP THEM FLOURISH IN STRONG, LIFELONG CAREERS. IT'S A STORY OF MANY OF OUR HOTEL GMS, SALES MANAGERS, AS WELL AS MINE. TO FOSTER THAT PIPELINE OF FUTURE TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY LEADERS, VISIT SAN ANTONIO ESTABLISHED THE SAN ANTONIO HOSPITALITY FOUNDATION, A 501(C)3 NONPROFIT DEDICATED TO EDUCATION AND OPPORTUNITY. THE FOUNDATION IS SUPPORTED THROUGH THE FUNDRAISING EFFORTS OF THE RIVERWALK ROYALTY COURT AND PROVIDES ENDOWED SCHOLARSHIPS FOR STUDENTS AT ST. PHILLIP'S COLLEGE AND UTSA WHO ARE PURSUING CAREERS IN OUR INDUSTRY. LAST YEAR THE COURT FUNDRAISED RECORD BREAKING $150,000 AND A TOTAL OF FIVE STUDENTS WERE AWARDS SCHOLARSHIPS. SAN ANTONIO IS A CITY CERTAINLY DEFINED BY CULTURE, HISTORY AND HERITAGE. THE LOCAL CREATIVE COMMUNITY IS THE KEEPERS AND STORYTELLERS OF WHAT MAKES SAN ANTONIO UNMISTAKABLY UNIQUE. THEREFORE, WHEN WE BRING VISITORS TO SAN ANTONIO, WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO PUT OUR LOCAL CREATIVE TALENT AT THE CENTER OF THEIR EXPERIENCE, THUS CREATING MEANINGFUL ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES
FOR THE PEOPLE WHO MAKE OUR CULTURE COME ALIVE. WORKING CLOSELY WITH SAN ANTONIO CREATIVES, VISIT SAN ANTONIO COORDINATED MORE THAN 100 CONTRACTS WITH LOCAL ARTISANS, MUSICIANS AND ENTERTAINERS. WE ALSO CONNECTED OUR LOCAL CREATIVE TALENT WITH THE MEETINGS AND CONVENTIONS INDUSTRY WITH MORE THAN 650 BUSINESS REFERRALS AS WELL. ADDITIONALLY, OUR TEAM PRODUCES FREE RIVERWALK COMMUNITY PROGRAMMING ATTRACTING NEARLY 1.8 MILLION ATTENDEES THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, ALL WHICH PROVIDES A FREE FEATURE FOR ALL TO ENJOY. IN MAY 2025, AN ORGANIZATION-WIDE REFOE US ALLOWED THE VISIT SAN ANTONIO TEAM TO DO WHAT IT DOES BEST, INCREASE SAN ANTONIO'S HOTEL OCCUPANCY AND SALES TAX REVENUES BY PUTTING HEADS IN BEDS, INCREASING FOOT TRAFFIC TO OUR SMALL BUSINESSES, AND CULTIVATING MEANINGFUL CONNECTIONS. THAT MIDYEAR SHIFT GAVE THE PUSH NEEDED THAT LED DESTINATION SALES TO THEIR RECORD-BREAKING YEAR, IT ALSO LED TO STRONGER RELATIONSHIPS AND IMPACTFUL COLLABORATIONS. IN FACT, WE CONTINUE TO BENEFIT FROM THOSE EFFORTS TODAY. RECENT WINS INCLUDES LEADING SPRING BREAK WEEK AMONG OUR TEXAS COMP SET, AND TOPPING FOURTH OF JULY AS THE NUMBER ONE TRAVEL DESTINATION IN THE STATE. THE LATTER ALLOWED US TO PRODUCE ONE OF THE MOST SUCCESSFUL SUMMERS WE'VE SEEN IN YEARS, AND CERTAINLY SINCE THE PANDEMIC. FOR 2027, WE'LL CONTINUE OUR EFFORTS TO ACCOMPLISH THE FOLLOWING: BOLSTERING OUR MEETINGS AND CONVENTION SPACE WHILE DELIVERING EXCEPTIONAL CONFERENCES, STRENGTHENING MEMBER ENGAGEMENT AND VISIBILITY THROUGH TARGETED MARKETING, GROWING KEY LEISURE MARKETS AND INCREASING SAN ANTONIO'S AWARENESS IN KEY INTERNATIONAL MARKETS. AND LASTLY, CREATING INTERESTING STORY ANGLES THAT SPARK TRAVEL URGENCY AND ELEVATE OUR STORY WITH FRESH TOOLS AND STRATEGIES THAT CONNECT MORE DEEPLY AND SUPPORT PARTNERS ACROSS THE CITY. DURING THIS PRESENTATION, I'VE COVERED THE SUCCESS OF OUR SALES TEAM AND HOW STRONG THEY PERFORM, FILLING FUTURE DATE, MAINTAINING A HEALTHY BOOKING PACE AND EVEN PERFORMING AT OR ABOVE HISTORICAL BENCHMARKS, BUT WITH SUCCESS COMES CHALLENGES. IN FACT -- LONG-STANDING CLIENTS. AS ATTENDEES GROW -- OR AT ATTENDANCE GROWS, WE FACE A REAL RISK OF LOSING THESE CONVENTIONS TO OTHER CITIES THAT CAN ACCOMMODATE THEIR NEEDS. AS SEEN ON THE CONVENTION SALES PACE OUTLOOK ON THE SCREEN, WE'RE DOING QUITE WELL THROUGH 2030, WE'RE HOLDING OUR OWN AGAINST THE TEXAS COMP SET. IT'S IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THESE BOOKINGS INCLUDE SEVERAL GROUPS THAT HAVE RELOCATED FROM TEXAS CONVENTION CENTERS CURRENTLY UNDER CONSTRUCTION. SOME OF THOSE GROUPS HAVE BOOKED FOR MULTIPLE YEARS, WHICH WE SEE MORE OF AS GROUPS BOOK EVENTS THREE TO 10 YEARS OUT INTO THE FUTURE. HOWEVER, ON THE SAME SLIDE, ONCE A CONVENTION CENTERS IN AUSTIN, HOUSTON AND DALLAS ARE COMPLETE, SAN ANTONIO WILL NOW COMPETE AGAINST REIMAGINED AND INNOVATIVE FACILITIES. THERE'S AN IMPORTANT STORY BEHIND THESE NUMBERS. THE REALITY IS CLEAR: WE ARE REACHING THE LIMITS OF OUR CURRENT SPACE. I CANNOT STRESS ENOUGH THAT TO REMAIN COMPETITIVE AND PROTECT THE ECONOMIC IMPACT THAT CONVENTIONS BRING TO OUR HOTELS, SMALL BUSINESSES AND LOCAL WORKFORCE, EXPANDING THE CONVENTION CENTER IS NOT OPTIONAL. IT IS NECESSARY. ILL IS IMPOR IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT VISIT SAN ANTONIO IS THE ONLY OCCUPANCY RECEIVING HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX THAT ACTIVELY PROMOTES SALES. SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE CITY'S GENERAL FUND BY PUTTING HEADS IN BEDS, SHOWCASING THE CITY'S ARTISTS, CULTURE AND CULINARY SCENE WHILE SUPPORTING OUR SMALL BUSINESSES. VISIT SAN ANTONIO'S ANNUAL STRATEGIC PLANNING, GOAL-SETTING AND BUDGET ARE DEVELOPED IN CONJUNCTION WITH AND APPROVED BY OUR GOVERNING BOARD OF DIRECTORS. THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS CONSISTS OF CITY OFFICIALS AND STAFF, AS WELL AS HOSPITALITY LEADERS AND COMMUNITY STAKEHOLDERS. WE DRAW FROM A DIVERSE AND DEEP COMMUNITY POOL OF BOARD MEMBERS THROUGH VARIOUS ADVISORY COMMITTEES DEALING WITH FINANCES, ARTS AND CULTURE, CULINARY AND RIVERWALK OPS, JUST TO NAME A FEW. EACH BOARD AND ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBER PLAYS A ROLE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF VISIT SAN ANTONIO'S PRIORITIES AND GOALS AND ASSURES THEY'RE IMPACTFUL TO OUR COMMUNITY. AS WE CONTINUE TO WELCOME VISITORS AND SHARE THE UNIQUE SPIRIT OF OUR HOME, IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THAT EVERY VISITOR PLAYS A ROLE IN BUILDING A STRONGER AND MORE VIBRANT SAN ANTONIO FOR ALL.
THANK YOU, AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME THIS AFTERNOON. I'D ALSO BE REMISS IF I DIDN'T THANK THE CORE LEADERSHIP TEAM OF VISIT SAN ANTONIO, WHO'S BEHIND ME. I'VE SAID IT BEFORE, THEY'RE THE BEST IN THE BUSINESS, BUT ALSO THE 86 STAFF THAT WE HAVE AT VISIT SAN ANTONIO THAT MAKE ALL THESE NUMBERS HAPPEN AND MAKE THE MAGIC WORK. SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. >> GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL. GOOD TO BE WITH YOU HERE TODAY. MY NAME'S JESUS SAENZ, DIRECTOR OF AIRPORTS FOR THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO. I'M GOING TO COVER QUITE A BIT OF INFORMATION, THEY'VE GOT ME ON A TIME CLOCK, SO I'M GOING TO BE GOING PRETTY FAST. TO START, WE'LL GO OVER THE BUDGET, OVER THE FINANCIALS. I'LL GIVE YOU HIGH-LEVEL OVERVIEW OF ALL OF OUR REVENUE AND O & M EXPENSES. WE'LL TRANSITION INTO AIR SERVICE DEVELOPMENT, WHICH IS MOST IMPORTANT THING WE DO. THE AIRPORT IS THE ECONOMIC ENGINE TO THE CITY AND WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO GROW AIR SERVICE, AND I'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE IMPACT OF THE INDUSTRY AND WHERE WE'RE AT. ON THE CAPITAL SIDE, WE'VE GOT $2.6 BILLION THAT WE'RE MOVING. GOT A GREAT VIDEO TO SHOW YOU. I'LL GIVE YOU KNOW AN UPDATE ON EVERYTHING WE'RE DOING WITH THE CIP PROGRAM. AT OUR CORE IS OUR PEOPLE, AND THE PRODUCT THAT WE DELIVER TO THE PASSENGERS THAT COME IN AND OUT OF THE AIRPORT, SO I'M GOING TO COVER A COUPLE OF ITEMS ON SOME PASSENGER EXPERIENCE, ITEMS THAT WE'VE PUT TOGETHER THAT ARE IMPORTANT TO THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO. AND THEN LASTLY, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE WE DOING GOING FORWARD? WE HAVE TO HAVE A STRATEGY ON HOW WE DO THAT, AND I'LL TALK ABOUT A COUPLE OF THOSE ELEMENTS THAT ARE IMPORTANT FOR US AS WE LOOK AT NOT JUST WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE 2027 BUDGET, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, WHAT'S HAPPENING AS WE GET CLOSER AND CLOSER TO THE OPENING OF THE NEW TERMINAL. SO ON OUR 2027 PROPOSED BUDGET, 222 MILLION, WHICH IS UP FROM THE PREVIOUS YEAR AT 185. I BELIEVE THAT'S 17% INCREASE. THE BIG FOCUS ON THAT IS ON AIRLINE AND NONAIRLINE REVENUE, WE CALL IT ARROW NOT CALL AND NONAERONAWT CALL REVENUES. CONTRIBUTIONS ON COST RECOVERY OF WHAT WE'RE DOING THROUGH THE AIRLINE LEASE AGREEMENT -- BLESS YOU -- WITH ALL OF OUR CARRIERS. SO STRONG COMMITMENT FROM ALL OF OUR CARRIERS, WE'VE GOT A 10-YEAR PLUS FIVE YEAR, A TOTAL OF 15-YEAR AGREEMENT WITH OUR CARRIERS TO CONTINUE TO OPERATE AT OUR AIRPORT. ON THE NONREVENUE SIGNS IS THE 109.8 IS PROPOSED FOR 2027, THAT'S UP FROM 94. A LOT OF THAT IS FOR WHAT WE'RE DOING IN PARKING, THE INCREASED NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT WE HAVE IN THE PARKING, AND THEN MORE IMPORTANTLY, THE TRANSFORMATION OF THE 19 PARCELS ON CONCESSIONS THAT IS REALLY ATTRIBUTED TO A GROWTH OF A TOTALLY DIFFERENT PRODUCT THAT'S AVAILABLE TO OUR PASSENGERS. I ENCOURAGE YOU, WHETHER YOU GO TO A OR B, YOU'LL SEE SO MANY DIFFERENT TRANSFORMATIONS. THAT TOTAL REVENUE IS UP 9% AT 105 MILLION. OUR OPERATING TEXAS IS PRETTY FLAT AT 107. CAME MIDYEAR, WE WERE AT 110. WE REDUCED THAT TO ABOUT 103, SO WE'RE ABOUT A 3% INCREASE IF WE LOOK AT OUR ADJUSTED ADOPTION BUDGET FROM 103 TO 107 FOR A 3% INCREASE. THE DEBT SERVICE, WE'RE PAYING OFF MORE. WE PAID OFF 26 MILLION LAST YEAR, WE'RE PAYING OFF 32 MILLION THIS YEAR FOR A TOTAL OPERATING EXPENSE OF 139. AND THE BIGGEST PIECE TO THAT IS WE'RE PUTTING MORE MONEY INTO OUR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT FUND. SO 46 MILLION GOING BACK INTO OUR CIF, BASED ON OUR O & M EXPENSES AND OUR REVENUES. IT TAKES US TO OUR OVERALL AIRPORT FUNDS AT, YOU KNOW, 185 MILLION. 16.3 IS CFC CHARGE, THAT'S EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS IN THE CONRAC THAT'S PREDOMINANTLY FLAT YEAR OVER YEAR. I'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHY THAT IS WITH THE EMPLOYMENTS AS WELL, AND THEN THE PASSENGER FACILITY CHARGE IS AT 20 MILLION. THAT PUTS US AT THAT 222 MILLION. WE'RE DELIVERING THE BUDGET, SAME NUMBER OF PERSONNEL, THE PEOPLE THAT WE HAVE HAVE DONE AN INCREDIBLE JOB AS EACH OF US -- WE CAN'T DO ANYTHING WITHOUT OUR PEOPLE. THEY'VE DONE AN INCREDIBLE JOB FOR THE AIRPORT. I CAN'T THANK THEM ENOUGH, AND WE'RE DOING IT WITH THE SAME NUMBER AS WE CONTINUE TO MOVE FORWARD AND PREPARE FOR THE FUTURE. FROM THE CAPITAL PROGRAM,
WE'LL BE SPENDING 859 MILLION. IN 2026, I BELIEVE OUR TOTAL NUMBER WAS 648 IS WHAT WE HAD. SO THAT PUTS US AT 859 AS WE CLOSE OUT THE TDP, AND I'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHERE THAT'S AT HERE SHORTLY. THE MOST IMPORTANT THING WE'RE FOCUSING ON IS IN THE NEXT 22 MONTHS, WE'RE GOING TO OPEN THE NEW TERMINAL. AND THAT IS INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT TO THIS CITY, SO MANY PEOPLE TEXT ME WHEN THEY'RE FLYING OR WHEN THEY'RE TRAVELING AND THEY GO THROUGH TERMINAL B AND THEY'RE LIKE, THAT IS MOVING. YOU GUYS ARE NOT PLAYING AROUND. AND AS I MENTIONED, THE CREDIT GOES TO THE PEOPLE AND THE WORK THAT THEY'RE DOING. WE STILL HAVE TO GET READY. I TELL YOU THAT, IF YOU PUT TERMINAL A AND TERMINAL B TOGETHER, THAT'S APPROXIMATELY A LITTLE OVER 700,000 SQUARE FEET. WHEN TERMINAL C OPENS, IT'S 850,000 SQUARE FEET. WE ARE MORE THAN DOUBLING OUR FOOTPRINT AT THE TERMINAL. SO WE'VE GOT TO BE PREPARED FOR THAT AS WELL. WE HAVE A FIRST FLIGHT TEAM THAT WE'VE ESTABLISHED, IT'S BEING LED BY RYAN ROCHA, OUR ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, AND DEBBIE DREW WHO SITS ON THE CAPITAL SIDE FOR US. THEY'RE WORKING IN UNISON TO FOCUS AND GET READY WITH NINE DIFFERENT TEAM MEMBERS FOR EVERYTHING SO THAT WHEN TERMINAL C OPENS, IT'S TO PERFECTION. I CAN GO ON ABOUT DETAILS THAT ARE NECESSARY, I WON'T BELABOR THAT, BUT I WILL TELL YOU WE'VE GOT TO WORK CLOSELY. WE'RE TRANSITIONING TO FIS, WE'RE PUTTING 12 NEW LANES, WE HAVE TO WORK WITH TSA, AND THERE'S A WHOLE NEW APRON OUT THERE, 18 GATES, SO WE'RE WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE FAA A AS WELL. ALL OF THOSE REQUIRE FEDERALLY REGULATED EFFORTS, SO THERE'S SO MANY PLANS WE HAVE TO PUT INTO PLACE. ONE OF THE BIGGEST ONES IS OBVIOUSLY ADDING ADDITIONAL POLICE PERSONNEL TO MAKE SURE WE'RE PREPARED FOR THAT FUTURE AS WE MOVE FORWARD OF THE OPENING OF TERMINAL C. AND WE ARE PUTTING IN FOR A COPS GRANT IN COLLABORATION WITH THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO AND THE AIRPORT WORKING IN COLLABORATION TOGETHER WITH -- AUDIO] -- AS WE MOVE FORWARD, WE'RE PUTTING IN THE BRAND-NEW PARKING GARAGE, WHICH IS APPROXIMATELY 2500 SPACES. THAT IS A SEVEN-STORY GARAGE. THE ENTIRE LOWER LEVEL WILL BE FOCUS FOR GROUND TRANSPORTATION CENTER. THE COST OF THAT PARKING GARAGE IS 132 MILLION, SO WE'RE INITIATING THESE REVENUE CHANGES, HAVE NOT MADE SOME CHANGES TO A NUMBER OF OUR COMMERCIAL ACTIVITIES ON THE LAND SIDE OF THE OPERATIONS, SO ON THE GROUND TRANSPORTATION FEES, WE'RE MOVING UP. ALL OF THOSE ARE BENCHMARKED WITH OTHER TEXAS AIRPORTS, AND WE ARE IN ALIGNMENT, IF NOT BELOW, OF WHAT OTHER TEXAS AIRPORTS ARE CHARGING FOR THE SIMILAR SERVICES. SO FOR THE TNCS, WHICH IS UBERS AND LYFTS, GOING FROM 250 TO FIVE, 150 TO FIVE, LIMOS 1.25 TO FIVE, THE CHARTERS, $3 TO FIVE AND THE TAXIS WILL REMAIN THE SAME. THEY'RE LESS THAN 2% OF OUR ACTIVITY. SO WE'RE NOT NECESSARILY ASKING THEM FOR ANYTHING MORE. THE PARKING RATES TODAY ON THE LONG-TERM IS 16, GOES TO 20. SHORT-TERM, WE ARE ASKING FROM 29 TO 30, JUST $1 MORE. AND THEN ON THE VALET, WHICH, YOU KNOW, I TELL THE STORY ALL THE TIME WHEN WE STARTED VALET, PEOPLE THOUGHT I WAS CRAZY, WE WERE GOING -- WE ASKED FOR 40 SPACES. IN PEAK PERIODS WE PARK CLOSE TO 800 CARS IN VALET. SO WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO MOVE IN THAT MARKET. PEOPLE TRAVEL FROM EVERYWHERE AND SOME PEOPLE JUST WANT THAT SERVICE SO WE'VE GOT TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT WE ACCOMMODATE TO THAT. THE LAST INCREMENTAL TIME ADJUSTMENT IS JUST THE AMOUNT OF TIME BASED ON THE HOURS THAT YOU'RE THERE, SO WE HAVE DIFFERENT INTERVALS. I WON'T GO INTO ALL THAT INTO SPECIFICITY, BUT IT YIELDS US AN ADDITIONAL 10 MILLION IN 2027 IN THE PROPOSED BUDGET. AIR SERVICE CONTINUES TO BE ONE OF THE LARGEST FOE KITION CUSSES THAT WE HAVE AS IT RELATES TO WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THE INDUSTRY. I'M JUST GOING TO BE REALLY DIRECT ABOUT IT. WE'VE HAD A NUMBER OF SOCIOECONOMIC IMPACTS, WE HAD THREE GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWNS THAT WE'VE HAD TO DEAL WITH, SO THEEN PLAINMENTS THROUGH JULY OF '25 THIS YEAR ARE ABOUT 5% DOWN FROM 2025 TO 2026. WE HAVE A REDUCTION OF APPROXIMATELY 5%. WE CONTINUE TO WORK ON ALL OF OUR EFFORTS, THE EXIT OF SPIRIT WHICH WAS IN SOME MONTHS 12% OF OUR ENTIRE MARKET SHARE, WE FOCUSED REALLY HARD WITH THE OTHER CARRIERS TO ENSURE THAT WE PICK UP SOME OF THAT SERVICE --
THAT WE LOST ON OUR TOTAL NUMBER OF 47 DESTINATIONS AND WE'VE LOST OKLAHOMA CITY AS WELL. IF NOT, WE WOULD BE AT A TOTAL OF 50 NONSTOP DESTINATIONS THIS YEAR. WE CONTINUE TO WORK ON MANY TARGETED MARKETS AS WE GO FORWARD. THE TRANSATLANTIC PIECE IS IMPORTANT TO US. WE ARE NONSTOP WORKING ON THAT EFFORT TO ENSURE THAT WE REESTABLISH TRANSATLANTIC SERVICE. THE SERVICE THAT WE HAVE INTO MEXICO, WE CONTINUE TO REMAIN AND BE THE LARGEST SERVING MEDIUM HUB INTO MEXICO FROM THE UNITED STATES AND WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO BE VERY BULLISH ON THAT, AS WE CONNECT SAN ANTONIO INTO ALL PARTS OF MEXICO. SOME OF THE TARGET MARKETS WE'RE LOOKING AT AS WE TALK TO A NUMBER OF CARRIERS, I WAS ON THE PHONE WITH ONE EARLIER THIS WEEK, SACRAMENTO IS A TARGETED MARKET, PORTLAND, THE VALLEY IS CONTINUOUSLY COMING UP FOR US TO CONNECT THE VALLEY TO SAN ANTONIO, AND THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING TO CARRIERS ABOUT HERE OVER THE LAST SEVERAL MONTHS, SO WE'RE STARTING TO PUT A LOT OF DATA POINTS TOGETHER TO DEMONSTRATE THAT THAT IS NECESSARY. PITTSBURGH AND, OF COURSE, AS WE TALK ABOUT MEXICO -- CANCUN, THOSE ARE THINGS THAT WE'RE FOCUSING ON. I'LL BE GOING ON A TRIP HERE SHORTLY TO PANAMA TO CONTINUE TO TALK TO COPA AIRLINES AND THE CONNECTIVITY OF SAN ANTONIO INTO NOT ONLY JUST CENTRAL AMERICA, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY INTO SOUTH AMERICA AS WE CONTINUE TO FOCUS ON THEM. SO THOSE ARE SOME OF THE MAIN POINTS OF EVERYTHING WE'RE DOING ON THE AIR SERVICE PIECE. THIS IS AN AIR SERVICE CHART THAT SHOWS YOU THE NUMBER OF ENPLANEMENTS AS WE CONTINUE TO MOVE FORWARD. WE'RE PROJECTED TO BE 2.8% ABOVE 2026. THAT WILL TAKE US TO 2.5 AS YOU LOOK AT '24, WE HAD HIT LOWER. IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO GET BACK INTO THE AREA WITH SOME OF THE DOWNTURNS THAT WE'VE HAD TO EXPERIENCE. I WILL TELL YOU BRINGING ON BREEZE HAS BEEN AN INCREDIBLE HELP AND WE'VE BEEN IN CONVERSATIONS ABOUT ADDITIONAL SERVICES THAT THEY CAN ADD FOR, YOU KNOW, THE ULTRALOW COST CARRIER MARKET WITH THE EXIT OF SPIRIT. TORONTO WAS SERVICED WITH AIR CANADA HAS BEEN INCREDIBLE. THE MARKET HAS BEEN 85, 88% GOING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN SAN ANTONIO AND TORONTO. AND I WILL TELL YOU, A LARGE PORTION OF THAT, I DON'T HAVE THE NUMBER OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD, BUT I'LL PROVIDE IT TO YOU, IS SAN ANTONIANS GOING TO EUROPE VIA TORONTO, THE WAY THE BIRD FLIES. SO THEY GO THAT WAY, CONNECT VIA FOR RON TO, AND THEN GO ON TO -- TORONTO AND GO TO WHATEVER EUROPE PEEN DESTINATION THEY WANT TO IS WHAT WE'VE SEEN. WE EXPECTED THAT TO HAPPEN AS WE BROUGHT THAT UP. . GOOD NEWS ON THE CIP AND THE TDP, WE'RE ON SCOPE, SCHEDULE AND ON BUDGET. THAT'S A 1.69, $1.7 BILLION PROGRAM. WE'RE 26% AND WE HAVE 74% OF THE CONSTRUCTION REMAINING. IF YOU COULD KEY THAT VIDEO FOR ME, SO I CAN GIVE A LITTLE BIT OF TEXT ON -- WE'LL SHOW YOU THE VIDEO OF ALL THE CONSTRUCTION. IT'S GOING TO START IN THE PARKING GARAGE, SO YOU'RE GOING TO SEE A BIG HOLE AND YOU'RE GOING TO SAY WHAT IS THAT? THAT IS ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE AIRPORT, THAT'S RIGHT HERE. THIS STARTS THE ENTIRE EFFORT OF ALL THE PARKING GARAGE, THE 2500 SPACES THAT WE JUST DISCUSSED, IT'S GOING TO GO ADJACENT THERE TO THE TERMINAL COMPLEX, SO YOU SEE THE BIG HOLE. THAT BIG HOLE WILL REACH AND CONTINUE THIS WAY. THAT WAS THE -- THIS IS THE VIDEO OF JULY. THIS IS ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE COMPLEX, AS YOU SEE EVERYTHING HERE, EVERYTHING THAT YOU SEE ON THAT RIGHT SIDE OF THE PICTURE THERE IS ALL OF THE TICKETING AREA. SO AS YOU CONTINUE TO MOVE FORWARD AND THE VIDEO CONTINUES TO GO, YOU SEE THE CURRENT WALL STARTING TO GO UP, ALL OF THE FOUNDATION IS IN. WE PUT IN ABOUT 620 DIFFERENT -- 620 TOTAL PYLONS, WE HAVE A FEW LEFT AS WE CONNECT INTO TERMINAL B. BUT AS YOU CAN SEE, ALL THE CURTAIN WALL IS STARTING TO GO IN AND THE ROOF IS ALREADY IN IN MANY AREAS. YOU CAN CONTINUE ON. YOU CAN CONTINUE ON WITH THE VIDEO. THAT'S IT. IT CUT OFF. IT'S A BIG VIDEO. WE WERE TRYING TO SEND THE FILE. BUT JUST WANTED TO SHOW YOU THE CONSTRUCTION THAT'S ONGOING. OPEN UP THE INVITATION WHENEVER YOU WANT TO GO WALK AND LOOK AT IT, WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO COME LOOK AT IT. I WILL SHARE WITH YOU, BY THE END OF DECEMBER WE WILL CLOSE THE ENTIRE FACILITY AND WE'RE GOING TO TURN ON THE HVAC, SO WE'RE MOVING RATHER QUICKLY.
AND READY FOR ALL THE INTERIOR FINISHES AS WE GO INTO 2027. SO WE'LL SPEND A YEAR DOING THAT. ADDITIONALLY ON THE CAPITAL PROGRAM, WE WORK TOWARDS EVERYTHING WE'RE -- AUDIO] -- TO DRAINAGE. FOR THIS YEAR, WE COMPLETED 13 RIGHT, 31 LEFT, SO THAT WAS A NECESSARY IMPROVEMENT. WE CHANGED OUT 184 PANELS ON 13 RIGHT, 31 LEFT, WHICH IS OUR WORK HORSE OF EVERYTHING WHEN YOU LAND AND DEPART OUT OF SAN ANTONIO. THE MAJORITY OF THOSE OPERATIONS, 80, 90% OF THOSE OPERATIONS HAPPEN ON 13 RIGHT, 31 LEFT. IT'S ONE OF THE OLDEST AIRFIELDS IN THE ENTIRE COUNTRY, SO WE NEEDED TO DO SOME ADJUSTMENTS TO THAT. WE DID THAT IN JANUARY AND FEBRUARY. I CAN'T SAY ENOUGH ABOUT THE TEAM THAT DID THE WORK TO GET IT DONE IN 60 DAYS. 184 TOTAL PANELS THAT WE SWITCHED OUT. AND WE DELIVERED THAT UNDER CONSTRUCTION MANAGER AT RISK PROJECT AND WE WERE UNDERBUDGET WHEN WE DELIVERED IT. AND HAVE A COUPLE OF LITTLE SMALL THINGS TO FINISH UP, BUT FOR THE MOST PART, WE'VE COMPLETED THAT. I SHARE THAT WITH YOU BECAUSE WE ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF AN ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT, A STUDY THAT'S BEING DONE BY THE FAA ON WHAT IS THE LONG-TERM PLANS FOR THE AIRFIELD OF SAN ANTONIO, SO THAT'S A BIG FOCUS FOR US. AS I TRANSITION OVER TO THE BIG AIRPORT IN THE SOUTH AND THE MUNICIPAL AND ALL THAT'S HAPPENING THERE, SUPER EXCITED ABOUT DISCUSSIONS WE'RE HAVING WITH THE SOUTH TEXAS CHAMBER, WITH BROOKS ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF EVERYTHING THAT'S HAPPENING ON THE SOUTH SIDE AND I WILL TELL YOU, WE'RE GOING TO BE INCREDIBLY BULLISH, YOU KNOW THAT WE'VE SPENT SOME TIME IN D.C. TALKING WITH A NUMBER OF THE OFFICIALS, INSIDE THE FAA, ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF WHAT IS CALLED ADVANCED AIR MOBILITY AND URBAN AIR MOBILITY WITH AMY TULLS AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE PREPARED FOR THAT WITH STINSON AND ALL THAT WE'RE DOING THERE AT STINSON. SO AS WE PREPARE FOR THAT, NOT ONLY IS IT IMPORTANT THAT WE LOOK AT WHETHER IT'S MANUFACTURING, REPAIR, MAINTENANCE, OVERHAUL OF WHAT CAN HAPPEN AT STINSON, WE HAVE 78 ACRES THERE AVAILABLE FOR US TO BE ABLE TO DO THINGS. SO COLLECTIVELY, WE'RE ALL WORKING TOGETHER TO DEFINE WHERE IS THE BEST MOVE. SAM AND JEFFREY TRIP ARE WORKING TOGETHER AND STARTING TO ESTABLISH A COMPLETE STRATEGIC PLAN ON HOW WE FOCUS ON EVERYTHING WE'RE GOING TO DO AT STINSON TO MAKE IT AN EBTULL HUB HERE IN SAN ANTONIO. WE'VE DONE A LOT OF PROJECTS TO PREPARE OURSELVES TO GET STINSON READY FOR WHAT WE'RE DOING. WE WANTED TO TURN IT INTO A REVENUE-PRODUCING OPPORTUNITY AS WELL AND CREATE MORE JOBS AT STINSON AS WE MOVE FORWARD AND THE WORK THAT WE DO THERE. A LOT OF WORK, I WON'T GO THROUGH EACH ONE OF THOSE PROJECTS, BUT EVERYTHING IS ASSOCIATED TO PREPARE THE AIRFIELD SO WE CAN BE EFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE OF WHAT WE'RE DOING, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY SAFE IS WHAT WE'VE BEEN FOCUSING ON. THERE'S A MASTER PLAN FOR STINSON, THERE'S FOUR DIFFERENT ALTERNATIVES, WE CAN SHIFT AND FLEX ANY DIRECTION WE WANT TO SHIFT, BUT THAT'S WHERE WE'RE GOING WITH STINSON. AS WE LOOK AT THE YEAR IN 2027, I'D BE REMISS IF I DIDN'T TELL YOU WE'VE HAD A GOOD YEAR IN '26. ENPLANEMENTS ARE WHAT THEY ARE, WE CAN'T CHANGE THAT, THE ECONOMIC DOWNTURN, THE THREE GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWNS IMPACTED US, WE TOOK THAT FROM THANKSGIVING ALL THE WAY THROUGH SPRING BREAK. SOME OF OUR BIGGEST PEAK PERIODS, SO THAT HURT OUR OVERALL NUMBER. NONETHELESS, IN TERMINAL C AND ENABLING PROJECTS, WE'RE CONTINUING TO MOVE FORWARD. AND I'M SUPER HAPPY TO TELL YOU THE WORK THAT THE TEAM HAS DONE. YOU KNOW, IF YOU LOOK AT THROUGH 2020 TO PRESENT, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO GET 320 MILLION IN GRANTS FOR THE WORK THAT WE'RE DOING. AND THAT SPEAKS VOLUMES TO THE WORK AND THE RELATIONSHIPS WE'VE BUILT WITH THE FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION AND THE WORK THAT WE CONTINUE TO DO. WE'LL HAVE ADDITIONAL WORK TO BE DONE ON THE AIRFIELD, WE'VE GOT THE PARKING GARAGE, THE ROADWAYF I'M GOING TO BE INCREDIBLY TRANSPARENT ABOUT WHEN YOU PICK UP AND DROP OFF IN THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS, ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE COMPLETION -- BUILD OUT THE FRONT SIDE OF THE TERMINAL, SO I JUST EMPHASIZE THAT TERMINAL C IS GETTING CLOSE TO OPENING, AND WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO DO A LOT OF ROADWAY WORK. THAT'S FOUR LANES THAT WILL GO TO SIX. WE'RE ABOUT TO START ALL OF THAT WORK AS WE MOVE FORWARD. ON THE AIR SERVICE SIDE, THERE'S BEEN SOME CHANGES AND SOME OPPORTUNITIES FOR INCENTIVES. WE'LL BE BRINGING THAT TO YOU HERE SHORTLY AS IT RELATES TO OUR ABILITY TO INCENTIVIZE CARRIERS TO WANT TO TRAVEL AND PROVIDE SERVICE INTO SAN ANTONIO. SO WE CONTINUE TO WORK ON THAT PIECE. AND THEN THE LAST PIECE I'LL TELL YOU IS THE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE IS INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT TO US IN EVERYTHING THAT WE'VE DONE. I'VE TALKED ABOUT THE CONCESSIONS AND WHAT WE
DID THERE AND EVERYTHING THAT WAS TRANSFORMED IN TERMINAL A AND B. OVER THE NEXT FOUR TO FIVE MONTHS AND EARLY IN FEBRUARY, WE'RE GOING TO BRING TO YOU AND MAKE DECISIONS ON THE SOLICITATION FOR THE CONCESSIONS WHICH IS CLOSE TO 35,000 SQUARE FEET IN TERMINAL C. SO A WHOLE NOTHER EFFORT THAT WE'LL BE STARTING HERE IN SEPTEMBER TO PREPARE OURSELVES TO BRING FOR YOUR APPROVAL SOME TIME IN EARLY FEBRUARY, LATE JANUARY. WE'RE POSITIONED AND BUILT FOR GROWTH, AS EVERYONE HAS SAID BEFORE ME. IT IS ABOUT THE PEOPLE, IT'S ABOUT THE TEAM GETTING THE JOB DONE. THEY'VE DONE AN INCREDIBLE JOB, WE CONTINUE TO PROVIDE AN INCREDIBLE LEVEL OF GOOD SERVICE. OUR PRODUCT IS SOLID IN WHAT WE DO. WE'RE NOT PERFECT, BUT WE'RE PRETTY DOGGONE CLOSE TO IT IN WHAT WE DO, SO WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO FOCUS ON THE PASSENGER EXPERIENCE. WE STARTED TO LOOK AT WHAT WE WANTED TO DO BETWEEN NOW AND THE END OF 2028 WHEN WE OPEN THE NEW TERMINAL, AND WE CAME UP WITH 189 DIFFERENT ACTIVITIES AND INITIATIVES. WE SCALED THAT DOWN TO 52. IF YOU LOOK AT YOUR BUDGET BOOK ON PAGE 335, IT GIVES YOU OUR PERFORMANCE METRICS. WE'RE FOCUSED ON THE DATA, LOOKING AT OUR NUMBERS AND ENSURING WE'RE HITTING THOSE NUMBERS. AND EACH OF THOSE ELEMENTS WILL BE FRAMED UP IN EVERYTHING THAT WE DO IN THE BUDGETARY P PROCESS AND THE WAY WE'RE DELIVERING THE SERVICE THAT WE DELIVER, SO WHETHER WE'RE MODERN NICING THE WAY WE'RE DOING CAPITALISM, I COULD TALK TO YOU THE CAPITAL PROJECTS ON HOW WE'RE DOING THAT, WHETHER IT'S A DIGITAL TWIN OR VIRTUAL REALITY OR AI, WE'RE ALL IN IT AND THE TEAM IS REALLY, REALLY ENGULFED IN DOING A GREAT JOB. THE INNOVATION PIECE CONTINUES TO GROW, WE'VE GOT CASSIE SLATER WHO'S WORKING ON THAT FOR US, AND SHE'S BEEN DOING A GREAT JOB ON THE STRATEGY IN PUTTING ALL OF THOSE EFFORTS TOGETHER. WE DON'T EVER LOSE THE FOCUS OF BEING CUSTOMER-FOCUSED IN WHAT WE DO. WE'RE HERE, WE'RE CITY STEWARDS, AND WE'RE HERE TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT WHEN PEOPLE TRAVEL, THEY GET THE BEST TRAVEL EXPERIENCE THAT THEY GET WHEN THEY GO THROUGH OUR AIRPORT. WE'LL CONTINUE TO FOCUS ON WHAT WE'RE DOING, AND NOW I'LL END THE SAME WAY AS OTHERS, I DON'T DEAL WITHOUT THE 487 PEOPLE THAT HELP ME EVERY DAY TO GET THE JOB DONE. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU. MARIA, BEFORE WE TURN IT OVER TO COUNCIL DISCUSSION, WOULD YOU LIKE TO SAY ANYTHING? >> VILLAGOMEZ: NO, MAYOR. WE'RE READY TO TAKE QUESTIONS. >> MAYOR JONES: OKAY. GREAT. THANK YOU TO EVERYONE THAT TOOK TYKE TO CREATE THE PRESENTATIONS AND FOR ALL THE VERY HELPFUL INFORMATION. COUNCILMEMBER KAUR IS RECOGNIZED. >> KAUR: THANK YOU, MAYOR. AND THANK YOU ALL FOR THE PRESENTATIONS. I'M GOING TO HAVE TO TAKE BACK MY COMMENTS YESTERDAY, BECAUSE I WAS GOING TO BE LIKE, OH, THESE ARE SO MANY OF MY FAVORITE DEPARTMENTS AND I GOT -- ART WAS MAKING A LOT OF FUN OF ME YESTERDAY BECAUSE I CALLED -- AUDIO] -- MY FAVORITE DEPARTMENT. SO I TAKE BACK MY COMMENT BECAUSE I LOVE ALL OF THE WORK THAT YOU ALL DO, TOO. THEY'RE ALL MY FAVORITES. OH, THEY'RE MY FAVORITE DEPARTMENT. BUT PARTICULARLY WITH YOU ALL, I JUST CAN'T HELP HOW ENTANGLED -- AND THE SUCCESS OF ONE REALLY INFLUENCES THE SUCCESS OF ALL OF Y'ALL, SO I KNOW YOU ALL WORK VERY COLLABORATIVELY. I'VE GOTTEN A CHANCE TO EXPERIENCE THAT FOR THE LAST THREE TO FOUR YEARS AND REALLY APPRECIATE HOW COLLABORATIVELY YOU WORK. AND GETTING TO SEE THE GROWTH THAT'S HAPPENING. SO THAT'S THE PURPLE LINING. BUT THE QUESTION ON HOT TAXES, SO FROM TO DECREASE SLIGHTLY FOR FISCAL YEAR 2027, AND SO IT'S JUST A SLIGHT DECREASE, BUT CAN ANYONE PROVIDE A LITTLE BIT OF COLOR AS TO WHY THAT IS? >> SO A COUPLE OF THINGS. WE HAD -- AUDIO] -- $2.7 MILLION IN -- LIKE ONE-TIME PAYMENT FROM BACK TAXES THAT ARE OWED, SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT -- IF YOU TAKE THAT OUT, OUR GROWTH IS ABOUT 1.1%. SO BECAUSE THERE'S -- WE'RE NOT ANTICIPATING A LOT OF SHIFT IN EITHER THE LEISURE TRAVEL OR BUSINESS TRAVEL, WE'RE KEEPING THAT RELATIVELY FLAT, SO OUR OCCUPANCY RATES AND OUR AVERAGE DAILY RATES ARE PRETTY FLAT COMPARED TO 2026. >> KAUR: GOT IT. AND DOES THAT EXPLAIN IF YOU GO TO SLIDE 13 WHY THERE -- IT ACTUALLY SHOWS AN INCREASE -- OH, THIS IS NOT IT. IT'S THE BACKUP SLIDE ON MINE THAT SHOWS THE -- IT'S THE LAST SLIDE WITH THE 10-YEAR HISTORY OF APPROPRIATIONS. >> VILLAGOMEZ: SLIDE 14, SORRY.
>> KAUR: SO ON HERE, IT SHOWS A SLIGHT INCREASE IN THE HOT TRANSFER FROM '26 TO '27, IS THAT BECAUSE YOU ARE EXPECTING A 1.1% INCREASE BUT IT WAS JUST NOT CALCULATED THAT ON PAGE 4. >> TATE: NO, SO THIS IS A FUNCTION OF THEIR CONVENTION CENTER AND ALAMODOME EXPENSES ARE INCREASING JUST A LITTLE. THEY'RE INCREASING, SO WE'RE TRANSFERRING MORE FROM OUR HOTEL OCCUPANCY TAX. >> KAUR: OH, GOT IT. AND DO WE KEEP OUR GENERAL FUND AMOUNT THE SAME JUST BY PRINCIPLE, OR WHAT'S, LIKE, THE REASON FOR -- >> TATE: SO THIS PAYS FOR THE CARVER. >> KAUR: OKAY. >> KATE: IT DEPENDS ON THE CARVER'S EXPENSES, AND THAT'S HOW MUCH WE TRANSFER IN. >> KAUR: AND WE CAN'T USE HOT TAX FOR CARVER? >> TATE: CORRECT. >> KAUR: THANK YOU FOR THAT CLARIFICATION. MY CHARGE WAS GOING TO BE FOR YOU TO INCREASE THAT, THESE ARE CONSERVATIVE NUMBERS, THEY'RE BUILT BY THE FINANCIAL TEAM, WHICH WE WANT. WE WANT TO BE CONSERVATIVE AND DON'T BE OVERLY AGGRESSIVE. WE'RE EVENING OUT AND DOING BETTER THAN WE THOUGHT, BUT AT THE SAME TILE, I WILL CHARGE YOU GUYS WITH SEEING HOW WE CAN GET MORE FOLKS HERE AND HEADS IN BEDS AS YOU LIKE TO SAY, MARIO. I JUST HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT CONVENTION CENTER AND ALAMODOME. CAN YOU -- DO YOU GUYS GO BACK AND LOOK AT, LIKE, THE SUCCESS OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF EVENTS, LIKE X CONCERT BROUGHT THIS PERCENTAGE OF REGIONAL TRAVELERS VERSUS X CONCERT BROUGHT THIS PERCENT OF INTERNATIONAL TRAVELERS VERSUS LOCAL. >> WE DO. THE AVERAGE DISTRIBUTION OF TICKETS SOLD FOR THE LAST SEVERAL CONCERTS THAT WE'VE HELD, ABOUT 25% OF THE TICKETS ARE PURCHASED WITHIN BEXAR COUNTY. ABOUT 35% ARE PURCHASED OUTSIDE OF THE COUNTY BUT WITHIN THE STATE, AND THEN THE REST, 40%, ARE PURCHASED OUTSIDE OF THE STATE AND INTERNATIONALLY. >> KAUR: I'M SURE THAT FLUCTUATES BASED ON THE CONCERTS. SO WHAT I WAS CURIOUS WITH, EVEN IF YOU JUST HAVE LIKE -- DARE I SAY IT AGAIN, A SPREADSHEET OF ALL THE CONCERTS THAT HAVE OCCURRED, I WOULD JUST BE CURIOUS TO SEE HOW WE'RE STRATEGIZING WHICH CONCERTS WE GO AFTER. FOR EXAMPLE, I KNOW WE GO AFTER A LOT OF OUR BILINGUAL INDIVIDUALS LIKE THAT WE HAVE COMING UP BECAUSE THEY SING IN SPANISH, WE HAVE A BIG LATINO COMMUNITY, SO I'M JUST CURIOUS TO SEE, LIKE, HOW THAT CHANGES. SO IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING LIKE THAT, THAT COULD BE SHARED, I WOULD BE INTERESTED IN IT. >> OKAY. YOU'D BE SURPRISED. IT'S THE -- IT CHANGES A BIT, MAYBE 2 OR 3 PERCENTAGE POINTS, BUT IT'S THE SAME. >> KAUR: REALLY? OH. OKAY. I THOUGHT THERE WOULD BE A LOT OF VARIATION, SO... >> THERE IS NOT. >> KAUR: INTERESTING. THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT. THE THING THAT I WANTED TO SHOUT OUT, OF COURSE, I WANT TO SHOUT OUT ARTS AND CULTURE. KRYSTAL ALWAYS DOES AN AMAZING JOB. WE'VE GOTTEN TO DO THREE PROJECTS, THESE AMAZING SCULPTURES AT MARKET SQUARE, I GOT TO BE PART OF THE SCORING AND IT WAS SO HARD SO IT'S REALLY COOL TO SEE HOW THAT WORKS OUT. YOUR TEAM IS AMAZING. WE'RE ALSO DOING A NEW WALKWAY AT KENWOOD COMMUNITY CENTER THAT'S GOING TO BE DONE AND WE GOT THE RESULTS FROM THE SURVEY THERE. IT'S SO INTERESTING TO HEAR HOW FOLKS -- WHAT FOLKS THINK IN THESE SURVEYS BECAUSE THEY ARE VERY RAW IN THEIR EMOTIONS. AND THEN WE'RE DOING ONE FOR THE PRIDE DISTRICT, RIGHT NOW WE'RE DOING AN ART SURVEY TO DO SOME MURALS AND IT'S BEEN A PLEASURE WORKING WITH YOU GUYS. I REMEMBER WHEN I FIRST ASKED A COUPLE YEARS AGO, WHY DOES THIS TAKE SO LONG? I NOW UNDERSTAND WHY IT TAKES SO LONG. BUT MY QUESTION FOR ARTS IS, THEY GET A PORTION OF OUR BOND FUNDING SET ASIDE FOR PROJECTS AND THEN WE GET TO DO ARTS PROJECTS ALONG THOSE CORRIDORS BECAUSE THAT'S A FUNCTION OF OUR BOND S THERE A WAY TO INCORPORATE SOMETHING LIKE THAT WHERE WE WOULD PUT IT IN OUR BOND BUT IT WOULD BE RELATED TO OUR IMP PROJECTS? LIKE IS THERE A WAY TO TIE THAT SAME FEATURE THAT WE DO FOR BONDS TO OUR IMP? COUNCILWOMAN, WE COULD HAVE THAT DISCUSSION WHEN WE DO THE PUBLIC WORKS BUDGET. I WOULD SAY THAT THAT WOULD REDUCE THE ALLOCATIONS TO STREET PROJECTS. >> KAUR: YEAH. >> VILLAGOMEZ: HOWEVER, THE COUNCIL COULD HAVE THAT DISCUSSION TO ADD THAT COMPONENT TO THOSE MAINTENANCE PROJECTS. >> KAUR: I WAS THINKING ABOUT IT IN THE BOND, LIKE WE SAY X PERCENTAGE FOR, YOU KNOW, PROJECT -- CAPITAL PROJECTS AND I WALLEDND TO SEE IF WE COULD EXPAND THAT TO CAPITAL OR IMP PROJECTS. JUST EXPAND OUR ABILITY TO CHOOSE WHERE WE'RE DOING PROJECTS. TO TELL YOU THE TRUTH, TO HAVE MORE OPPORTUNITIES TO DO PROJECTS. >> VILLAGOMEZ: UNDERSTOOD. WE'LL EXPLORE THAT. >> KAUR: THANK YOU. AND THEN FORV FOR VISIT SAN ANTONIO, CAN YOU GIVE ME A REALLY QUICK SYNOPSIS, 31 TO 33, I KNOW WE'RE LESS COMPETITIVE. DO YOU GUYS HAVE AN ANALYSIS ALREADY DONE ABOUT HOW THAT'S GOING TO IMPACT THE CITY'S FINANCIALS? >> NOT THE FINANCIALS. HAVEN'T DRAWN A DIRECT CORRELATION TO IT YET, BUT AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THE BOOKING PACE, COMPARED TO OUR BEST BOOKING YEARS, POST THE CONVENTION CENTER TRANSFORMATION IN 2016, IT DROPS OFF PRETTY DRAMATICALLY. >> KAUR: YEAH. I'D LIKE TO SEE WHAT THAT FINANCIAL IMPACT LOOKS LIKE, SO THAT WE CAN START -- AS WE CONTINUE TO HAVE DISCUSSIONS ABOUT THE PFZ, WE FIGURE OUT HOW TO BALANCE BOTH THE
CONVENTION CENTER AND THE ALAMODOME AND HOW THAT WORKS OUT. SO WOULD LOVE TO SEE WHAT THAT FINANCIAL IMPACT LOOKS LIKE. >> WILL DO. WE'LL WORK WITH THE CITY. >> KAUR: YEAH. AND ALSO A BETTER TIMELINE, LIKE I KNOW I HAVE A ROUGH TIMELINE OF WHEN THE OTHER THREE BIG CITIES CONVENTION CENTERS GO BACK ON AND WHEN THEY'RE OFF AND ON, BUT IF YOU COULD JUST SEND THAT TO ME. >> WE CAN SEND THAT. IT SEEMS TO BE A WORK IN PROGRESS. THEY WERE TALKING ABOUT OPENING UP ENTWINE, LIKE AUSTIN, NOW IT'S '30. DALLAS IS EXPERIENCING SOME OF THE SAME ISSUES AS WELL. >> KAUR: WELL, THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL TO US, ACTUALLY. >> IT IS IN TERMS OF RELOCATION OF GROUPS OR AT LEAST THE RELOCATION OF POTENTIAL OF GROUPS. >> KAUR: THANK YOU. SLOW DOWN, Y'ALL. THANKS, MARIO. I'D LIKE TO SEE THAT SO WE CAN BETTER UNDERSTAND THE IMPACT IN FUTURE YEARS SINCE WE KEEP TALKING ABOUT THE LONG-TERM DEFICIT. AND THE LAST THING THAT -- JUSTINA, WERE YOU GOING TO SAY SOMETHING REAL QUICK? OKAY. THE LAST THING THAT I JUST HAVE IS FOR AIRPORT, GREAT WORK. I LOVE SEEING THE NEW CONCESSIONS COME ONLINE. IT'S BEEN REALLY WONDERFUL TO SEE ALL OF THE NEW VENDORS AND IT JUST REALLY MAKES A SPACE THAT NOTHING ELSE CHANGED BUT THAT LITTLE BOX, BUT YET THE WHOLE TERMINAL TRANSPARENTLY -- I'VE ONLY BEEN IN B, BUT HAS COMPLETELY REFRESHED. SO SUPER EXCITED ABOUT THE WORK YOU'R YOU'RE DOING THERE AND CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THAT COME BACK IN THE SPRING. JESUS, HOW MANY YEARS HAVE YOU NOW BEEN WITH THE AIRPORT? SIX. SO YOU'VE DONE A LOT OF WORK IN SIX YEARS, SIR, BUT KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK AND THANK YOU ALL TO THE TEAMS THAT ARE HERE SUPPORTING. WE APPRECIATE YOU ALL. WE KNOW IT'S THE DIRECTOR THAT GETS THE ACCOLADES, BUT YOU ALL ARE REALLY THE ONES THAT ARE THE FIRE BEHIND THE INDIVIDUAL LEADERS THERE, SO THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR HARD WORK. THANKS, MAYOR. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU. COUNCILMEMBER WHYTE, PLEASE. >> WHYTE: HOW DID I DRAW GOING AFTER SUKH WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ARTS. DON'T KNOW HOW THAT HAPPENED. THANK YOU ALL FOR THE PRESENTATIONS. STARTING WITH ARTS, YOU KNOW, I -- I HEAR IT ALL THE TIME FROM PEOPLE IN THE COMMUNITY, YOU'RE AGAINST THE ARTS OR WHATEVER IT IS. YOU DON'T WANT TO GIVE MORE MONEY. AND HONESTLY, NOTHING COULD BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH. I APPRECIATE EVERYBODY WHO CONTRIBUTES TO THE ARTS AND CULTURE HERE IN SAN ANTONIO, AND IT SHOULD BE SUPPORTED TO THE EXTENT THAT WE CAN. I JUST -- I DO BELIEVE THAT WHEN WE'RE -- WE HAVE TO PICK AND CHOOSE, BECAUSE WE HAVE A LOT OF CORE NEEDS, AND ESPECIALLY IN A BUDGET YEAR LIKE THIS WHERE MONEY IS SO TIGHT, WE HAVE TO MAKE THE TOUGH DECISIONS. ONE OF THE AREAS THAT I'M HAPPY TO SEE THAT WE'RE INVESTING IS, OF COURSE, IN FILM. I THINK WE HAVE A HUGE OPPORTUNITY THERE WITH THE FILM INDUSTRY TO MAKE -- TO MAKE SAN ANTONIO REALLY A HUB FOR MORE FILM PRODUCTION. THIS $500,000 FOR ART MAINTENANCE IS, AGAIN, IN THE BUDGET, RIGHT? >> VILLAGOMEZ: YES. >> WHYTE: YOU KNOW, AGAIN, I'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS, THIS WILL BE, I THINK, THE THIRD YEAR I'M TALKING ABOUT IT. THAT'S -- YEAR, AND IN THIS YEAR'S BUDGET, WE'RE ELIMINATING FUNDING FOR 30 NEW RADAR FEEDBACK TRAFFIC SIGNS AND 30 FLASHING STOP SIGNS FOR A TOTAL COST OF $500,000 IN SAVINGS. SO TO ME, YOU KNOW, I LOOK AT THE $500,000 TO MAINTAIN SEVERAL PIECES OF ART AND SAY, WOULDN'T THIS MONEY BE BETTER SPENT OVER THERE? SO I GUESS MY QUESTION IS FROM A LEGAL PERSPECTIVE, COULD THE HOT MONEY BE USED FOR THIS ART MAINTENANCE RATHER THAN THE GENERAL FUND? >> VILLAGOMEZ: THE SHORT ANSWER IS YES, COUNCILMAN, AND WE HAVE INCLUDED IN THE ARTS BUDGET, THERE'S A COMPONENT DEDICATED TO MAINTENANCE. A FEW YEARS BACK WE HAD A DISCUSSION WITH THE COUNCIL ABOUT THE NEED TO MAINTAIN THOSE PIECES OF ART THAT WE HAVE IN THE COMMUNITY AND THROUGH THAT DISCUSSION, WE ALLOCATED HALF A MILLION DOLLARS FROM THE GENERAL FUND TO AUGMENT THE MAINTENANCE THAT IS INCLUDED IN THE ARTS FUND. >> WHYTE: RIGHT. BUT THIS 500 THAT'S STILL IN THE GENERAL FUND COULD BE MOVED TO THE HOT? >> VILLAGOMEZ: SO THERE'S NO CAPACITY IN THE ARTS FUND FOR US TO INCORPORATE THAT. WE WOULD HAVE TO MAKE OTHER ADJUSTMENTS TO THAT BUDGET TO BE ABLE TO DO WHAT YOU DESCRIBED. >> WHYTE: YEAH. AND TO ME, LOOKING AT SOMETHING LIKE THAT MAKE --
THESE RADAR FEEDBACK SIGNS AND FLASHING STOP SIGNS AND INSTEAD, YOU KNOW, GIVING IT TO THIS ART MAINTENANCE PROGRAM. SO, AGAIN, I THINK THIS $500,000 IS SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD LOOK AT, WHETHER THAT'S THE APPROPRIATE WAY TO SPEND THAT MONEY. WITH RESPECT TO VSA, THANK YOU, GUYS, FOR ALL THE WORK THAT YOU DO, BRINGING PEOPLE TO SAN ANTONIO TO ENJOY OUR CITY IS A HUGE PART OF HOW SO MANY FOLKS IN SAN ANTONIO MAKE A LIVING. IT'S A PART OF REVENUE THAT WE GENERATE FOR THIS CITY THAT WE CAN GO AND DO ALL THESE OTHER THINGS FOR -- WITH. MY QUESTION IS, I'M LOOKING AT THE HOT TAX PERCENTAGES HERE, AND IT APPEARS TO ME THAT IF I'M RIGHT, 35% OF THAT MONEY GOES TO YOU GUYS. >> UP TO 35%. >> WHYTE: AND IF I LOOK AT OTHER CITIES, LIKE I'M LOOKING AT AUSTIN, WHICH I THINK IS 16% AND I LOOK AT DALLAS, WHICH IS 25%, WHY -- WHY THE EXTRA MONEY YOU THINK WE NEED HERE AS OPPOSED TO WHAT THOSE CITIES ARE DOING? I DON'T EVEN KNOW IF YOU'VE LOOKED AT THAT. >> I HAVEN'T LOOKED AT IT. I HAVE A GENERAL IDEA OF WHAT THOSE BUDGETS ARE. EACH ONE HAS ITS OWN ANOMALIES AND NUANCES BASED ON HOW IT'S FUNDED AND BASED ON WHAT THE NEED OF THE DESTINATION IS. BEING THAT IT'S THE FOURTH LARGEST ECONOMIC DRIVER FOR THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, THAT INVESTMENT IS CRITICAL TO NOT ONLY THE HOT, BUT SALES TAX AND THE SUCCESS OF THE CITY AS A WHOLE. WHY? I THINK THE SLIDE THAT I SHARED WITH YOU ABOUT THE 1.9 BILLION THAT WE COULD DRAW A DEMONSTRABLE LINE TO VISIT SAN ANTONIO, SO FOR EVERY DOLLAR THAT'S GIVEN TO VISIT SAN ANTONIO, THERE'S A $35 RETURN ON INVESTMENT I THINK THAT'S A PRETTY GOOD INVESTMENT. >> WHYTE: I APPRECIATE THAT SLIDE AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU AND I AND JUSTIN, OF COURSE, HAVE TALKED ABOUT. BECAUSE, AGAIN, THIRD OR FOURTH YEAR TALKING ABOUT VSA AND WHAT I'VE ALWAYS WONDERED IS HOW MANY PEOPLE WOULD JUST BE DRIVING HERE ANYWAYS WITH OR WITHOUT THE EFFORTS OF YOUR ORGANIZATION. AND I BELIEVE YOU TOLD ME THAT'S ACTUALLY A CONSERVATIVE FIGURE. >> IT IS. >> WHYTE: THAT YOU PUT IN THERE, BUT YOU GUYS REALLY CAN TRACK YOUR EFFORTS TO THE MAJORITY OF PEOPLE THAT END UP HERE. >> 100%. YEAH, SO EVERYTHING THAT YOU HAVE IN THERE IS -- IT DOESN'T TAKE INTO ACCOUNT TELEVISION, RADIO, -- AUDIO] -- TO AHEAD IN A BED ISN'T IN THAT FORMULA THAT WE GAVE YOU. SO IT TAKES INTO ACCOUNT SALES PRODUCTION FOR THAT GIVEN YEAR, PLUS THE EARNED MEDIA AND ATTRIBUTABLE VISITORS TO THE MARKETING EFFORTS THAT WE KNOW ARE COMING BECAUSE OF DEVICE ID TO YOUR CELL PHONE AND THEN YOU SUBTRACT OUT THE INVESTMENT AND DIVIDE BY THE INVESTMENT, AND THAT'S WHERE YOU GET THE 1 TO 45. >> WHYTE: AND CAN YOU REMIND EVERYONE HERE, I THINK WHEN YOU TOOK THIS POSITION, YOU -- YOU HAD A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE ON WHERE WE SHOULD MARKET TO BRING FOLKS TO SAN ANTONIO. CAN YOU REMIND US OF THAT SMALL CHANGE THAT YOU MADE? >> ABSOLUTELY. WE KNEW WHAT WE WERE DEALING WITH OVER THE -- SINCE COVID, BY THE WAY, SINCE -- POSTPANDEMIC, WAS THE VOLATILITY OF THE LEISURE TRAVELER, WHO, AS WE'VE SEEN, IS VERY SUSCEPTIBLE TO ECONOMIC CONDITIONS, RIGHT? NOT ONLY ECONOMIC CONDITIONS, BUT WEATHER CONDITIONS. IF IT'S RAINING OUT, HEY, YOU CANCEL ON YOUR PHONE, I'M NOT COMING TO SAN ANTONIO, YOU CANCEL YOUR ROOM AND YOU'RE DONE WITH IT. SO WE KNEW THE BEST PATH TO TRY TO REGULATE THOSE EBBS AND FLOWS OF THE LEISURE VISITOR IS THROUGH GROUP. WE NEED MORE GROUP BUSINESS. IF YOU GET MORE GROUP BUSINESS ON THE BOOKS, IT GIVES YOU A FIGHTING CHANCE. IT ALSO ALLOWS YOU OR THE HOTELS TO DRIVE A HIGHER AVERAGE DAILY RATE, WHERE YOU SEE THE INCREASE IN THE HOT TAX COLLECTIONS THAT HAS BEEN TALKED ABOUT. THAT FOCUSED ON JUST SIMPLY FISHING WHERE THE FISH ARE. WE'RE VERY FORTUNATE IN SAN ANTONIO TO HAVE 45 MILLION TEXANS IN OUR BACKYARD THAT CALL SAN ANTONIO THEIR SECOND
HOME, AND TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT ORIGINAL DRIVE MARKET, ESPECIALLY DURING THESE ECONOMIC TIMES WHERE A FLIGHT COSTS SO MUCH. >> WHYTE: AND SO IT'S FAIR TO SAY THAT YOU SORT OF NARROWED -- >> THE FOCUS. >> WHYTE: -- THE FOCUS ON WHO WE WERE LOOKING AT. >> THAT IS. INTERNATIONAL FISHING WHERE THE FISH ARE, YOU HEARD ME TALK ABOUT IT. YES, WE WANT TO KEEP AN EYE ON EMERGING MARKETS, SUCH AS CHINA, INDIA, THOSE -- BUT IN THE BIG SCHEME OF THINGS WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT 2.6 MILLION INTERNATIONAL VISITORS AND 2.4 ARE COMING FROM MEXICO, HOW DO WE GET MORE -- HOW DO WE CAPITALIZE ON THE INVESTMENT INTO THESE ADDITIONAL FLIGHTS, THE 11 ADDITIONAL FLIGHTS FROM MEXICO THROUGH VIVA AEROBUS, HOW DO WE APPR -- >> WHYTE: I BRING THAT UP JUST BECAUSE I THINK THAT WAS SMART. I REALLY BELIEVE IT CAN BE INSTRUCTIVE. SORT OF WHAT YOU'VE DONE THERE, I THINK WE COULD DO HERE A LITTLE BIT. NARROWING THE FOCUS AND REALLY IDENTIFYING WHERE WE'RE GOING TO HAVE OUR BIGGEST RETURN ON INVESTMENT. SO -- IN MAKING SURE THAT WE GET THAT DONE AND EXPANDED SO WE CAN CONTINUE TO DRIVE THOSE GROUPS THAT YOU TALKED ABOUT TO SAN ANTONIO. >> THANK YOU. >> WHYTE: FINALLY, FOR THE AIRPORT, JESUS, AMAZING WORK FROM THE PROGRESS ON TERMINAL C TO THE BROADER CAPITAL PROGRAM, TO MORE NONSTOP DESTINATIONS AND EVERY DAY IMPROVEMENTS TO THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE. YOU KNOW, IT'S REALLY CLEAR, I THINK, THAT YOUR TEAM IS LOOKING AHEAD. AND, YOU KNOW, BUILDING THE FUTURE OF SAN ANTONIO, SO THE DEDICATION FROM ALL OF YOUR STAFF, IT DOESN'T GO UNNOTICED AND I THINK YOUR BUDGET HERE REFLECTS REALLY A THOUGHTFUL FORWARD LOOKING APPROACH THAT I KNOW CITY COUNCIL APPRECIATES. SO THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR WORK. THANKS, MAYOR. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU. COUNCILMEMBER MEZA GONZALEZ, PLEASE. >> GONZALEZ: THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATIONS. I THINK THESE FOUR DEPARTMENTS ARE THE ENGINE OF OUR VISITOR ECONOMY AND HELP US TREMENDOUSLY WITH ONE OF OUR GREATEST SOURCES OF REVENUE, WHICH IS OUR SALES TAX. SO THANK YOU, EVERYONE, FOR YOUR PRESENTATIONS TODAY. JUST A FEW QUESTIONS. I'LL START WITH THE CONVENTION CENTER AND SPORTS FACILITIES, EXCUSE ME, I'M SUPPORTIVE OF THE PROPOSED FEE CHANGES THAT YOU DISCUSSED AND I LOOK FORWARD TO THE CONVERSATIONS DOWN THE ROAD ON THE IMPROVEMENTS TO THE CONVENTION CENTER AND THE ALAMODOME. JUST A QUICK QUESTION ON SLIDE 9 ON -- I THINK IT'S THE REEVALUATION OF ALL CONTRACT ADMINISTRATIVE PLANS, WHAT -- I GUESS WHAT RESULTED FROM THAT R REEVALUATION? >> VO SOME OF THE NEW THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING, WE'VE DONE COMPREHENSIVE REVIEWS OF, YOU KNOW, ALL OF OUR CAPITAL ADMINISTRATION PLANS. WE'VE ALSO REVIEWED ALL OF OUR CERTIFICATES OF INSURANCE, WE'VE BOOSTED, YOU KNOW, COMMUNICATION WITH ALL OF OUR CONTRACTORS. YOU KNOW, AS FAR AS THE INVOICES, WE ALSO -- ALL OF THE MANAGERS, WE'VE CREATED A FORM WHERE THEY HAVE, YOU KNOW, SIGNATURE APPROVAL OF ALL OF THE STAFF, CONTRACTED STAFF THAT HAS WORKED. SO THERE'S NUMEROUS THINGS THAT WE'VE DONE TO STRENGTHEN THOSE PROCESSES. >> GONZALEZ: IS THERE A COST SAVING ASSOCIATED WITH ANY OF THAT? >> NO. IT'S JUST BASICALLY REINFORCING AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE AVOIDING ANY FUTURE RISKS AND IMPROVING JUST OUR OPERATION. >> GONZALEZ: OKAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THAT'S ALL MY QUESTIONS FOR CONVENTION CENTER. FOR ARTS AND CULTURE, I HAD A QUESTION ON SLIDE 7, THE ARTS FUNDING GRANTS, ARE THEY ALL ON THE SAME YEAR -- OR SAME THREE-YEAR FUNDING CYCLE IN IS THERE A REASON FOR THAT? NOT STAGGERED OR -- >> YES. THESE ARE ALL ON THE SAME THREE-YEAR FUNDING CYCLE. AND IT IS IN THE INTEREST OF SUSTAINABILITY. SO IT'S REALLY MAKING SURE THAT THEY'RE ALL APPLYING AT THE BEGINNING OF THE THREE-YEAR CYCLE AND THEY CAN BUDGET FORWARD AND THEY CAN LOOK AT A THREE-YEAR BUDGET CYCLE KNOWING THAT IF THE FUNDING IS AVAILABLE IN HOT, THEY CAN ANTICIPATE WHAT THESE ORGANIZATIONS ARE GOING TO GET FOR THE NEXT THREE YEARS. SO IT'S REALLY A SUSTAINABLE MODEL LOOKING AT OPERATIONAL FUNDING. >> GONZALEZ: AND ARE THEY ALL COMPETITIVE OR, YOU KNOW, KIND OF LIKE THE DELEGATE AGENCIES, THERE'S A FEW THAT ARE NOT JUST BECAUSE THEY'RE THE ONLY ONES WITH THAT CAPACITY, SO -- >> YEAH, SO OUR OPERATIONAL GRANTEES ARE NOT COMPETITIVE. THEY HAVE TO MEET BASIC ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS, AND SO THEY HAVE TO BE FOCUSED ON ARTS AND CULTURAL PROGRAMMING YEAR-ROUND. THEY HAVE TO HAVE A BOARD OF DIRECTORS, OF COURSE. THEY HAVE TO HAVE A PERSON ON STAFF, A PAID ADMINISTRATOR FOR THE
GRANT. BUT IT'S REALLY LOOKING AT NONPROFITS THAT ARE FOCUSED ON ARTS AND CULTURE FROM A YEAR-ROUND PERSPECTIVE. ANY ADDITIONAL INCENTIVES TO BUILD, NOT JUST TO FILM HERE IN SAN ANTONIO. >> SO THERE IS A STATE MEDIA PRODUCTION DEVELOPMENT ZONE, AND IT'S A TAX REBATE -- OR TAX EXEMPTION ON NEW BUILDS OR RENOVATIONS OF MILL M STUDIOS. IT'S OFFERED AT THE STATE LEVEL. WE HAVE HAD SEVERAL CONVERSATIONS WITH INTERESTED PARTIES WHO ARE INTERESTED IN PURSUING THAT MEDIA PRODUCTION DEVELOPMENT ZONE. IT HAS TO BE APPLIED FOR BY A PRODUCTION COMPANY IN CONCERT WITH A MUNICIPALITY, SO WE'RE CERTAINLY TALKING TO SEVERAL ENTITIES WHO ARE INTERESTED IN PURSUING THAT, AND WE ARE CERTAINLY INTERESTED IN THAT AS WELL. SO THAT IS THE AVAILABLE INCENTIVE, IF YOU WILL, FOR PRODUCTION STUDIO SPACE. >> GONZALEZ: ARE THERE OTHER CITIES IN TEXAS KIND OF -- >> THERE ARE -- >> GONZALEZ: FURTHER ALONG. >> YEAH, FORT WORTH HAS A MEDIA PRODUCTION DEVELOPMENT ZONE. I CAN GET A FULL LIST. FORT WORTH, I BELIEVE DAMS, HOUSTON AND AUSTIN -- COUPLE OF OTHER CITIES NEWLY IN THAT ZONE. WE CAN GET YOU A LIST OF WHAT THOSE CITIES ARE. >> GONZALEZ: OKAY. >> CERTAINLY THAT WOULD BE THE NEXT STEP IN DEVELOPING OUR FILM INDUSTRY. >> GONZALEZ: AND THE 862 FOLKS I THINK THAT YOU SAID WERE EMPLOYED, ARE THEY LOCAL EMPLOYMENT OR HOW DOES THAT WORK? >> YES. THAT'S LOCAL POSITIONS CREATED THROUGH THIS FILM INCENTIVE. OF COURSE, A FILM INCENTIVE CAN BE FOR A PERIOD OF FILMING FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS TO A COUPLE OF MONTHS, DEPENDING ON THE LENGTH OF THE PROGRAM, WHETHER IT'S A TV OR FEATURE FILM. AND THESE ARE JOBS RANGING FROM EXTRAS ON A PROJECT ALL THE WAY TO PRODUCERS, DIRECTORS. SO IT'S KIND OF A FULL SPECTRUM OF THE FILM INDUSTRY, WE DO HAVE A REQUIREMENT FOR HIRING AT LEAST 10% LOCALS. THESE FILM PRODUCTIONS HAVE WENT ABOVE AND BEYOND THAT FOR BOTH CAST AND CREW. >> GONZALEZ: THANK YOU. OKAY. I KNOW WHEN WE THINK ABOUT ARTS AND CULTURE, WE THINK ABOUT DOWNTOWN SO MUCH, BUT MEDICAL CENTER IS IN DISTRICT EIGHT AND WE HAVE ABOUT 50,000 CARS THAT GO IN AND OUT OF THE MEDICAL CENTER EVERY SINGLE DAY, SO WHEN YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT ART AND TOURISM, JUST REMEMBER DISTRICT EIGHT, BECAUSE WE'VE GOT -- I MEAN, THIS -- I WOULD SAY NEXT TO DOWNTOWN OR EVEN MIDTOWN, THE MEDICAL CENTER IN ITSELF IS THE HIGHEST VOLUME OF FOLKS AND TRAFFIC IN THE CITY. AND SO IN REGARDS TO VISIT SAN ANTONIO, I WAS ACTUALLY THIS MORNING AT FIESTA TEXAS, BECAUSE WE HAVE TOURISM IN DISTRICT EIGHT FOR THE GROUND BREAKING OF A NEW ROLLER COASTER. SO FIESTA TEXAS HAS ABOUT A MILLION VISITORS A YEAR THAT COME THROUGH FIESTA TEXAS AND WE KNOW THAT WHEN THEY STOP THERE, THEY DON'T GO HOME AFTER. THEY'LL STAY THE WEEKEND AND VISIT OTHER ATTRACTIONS. AND SO REALLY PROUD TO SUPPORT ALL THE EFFORTS THAT WE'RE MAKING IN THAT SPACE. AND SO I WANTED -- I THINK THERE WAS -- ON SLIDE 6, THERE'S A HOSPITALITY SCHOLARSHIP, CORRECT, AT ST. PHILLIP'S COLLEGE AND UTSA. >> YES. >> GONZALEZ: WHO -- WHERE'S THE FUNDING FOR THOSE PROGRAMS COMING FROM? EXPWROO SO THE FUNDRAISER IS THROUGH OUR RIVERWALK ROYALTY THAT IS NOMINATED THROUGH THE FIESTA TIME PERIOD. THEY FUNDRAISE, THEY HAD A RECORD-BREAKING FUNDRAISING YEAR OF $150,000. THIS YEAR THEY -- WE AWARDED FIVE -- OR THE SCHOOLS ACTUALLY DID, UTSA AND ST. PHILLIP'S AWARDS 5 SCHOLARSHIPS. IT'S MEANT TO BE SELF-FUNDING. IT'S SCHOLARSHIPS AROUND $2,500 AND THEN WE CONTINUE TO ADD TO THAT. WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT -- WE HAVE A VERY PASSIONATE ROYALTY COURT, SO THE ALUMNI WHO ARE NO LONGER ACTIVE ROYALTY WANT TO CONTINUE THEIR FUNDRAISING EFFORTS, SO THEY'RE LOOKING TO CONTINUE THOSE EFFORTS AS WE GET -- HEAD INTO FISCAL YEAR '27, SO SHOULD BE ABLE TO BUILD ON THAT AS WELL. >> GONZALEZ: AWESOME. THAT'S GREAT. ON SLIDE 9 REGARDING THE KOIVE CONVENTION CENTER BOOKING PACE, DO YOU HAVE A FINANCIAL ESTIMATE OF WHAT THAT LAG COULD COST FROM 2031 TO '33. '33. >> WE CAN GET THAT. WE KNOW THE NUMBER OBVIOUSLY THIS IS ASSOCIATED WITH ROOM NIGHTS SO WE CAN CERTAINLY GET THAT TO YOU. I DON'T HAVE IT RIGHT NOW. >> GONZALEZ: AND I GUESS THE MITIGATION IN SUPPORTING THAT OR TO CLOSE THAT GAP, THAT LAG, WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? >> SO IT'S ABOUT THAT CONVENTION CENTER EXPANSION. AS WE TALKED ABOUT, YOU SEE THE IMPACT NOT ONLY ON THE SCREEN, BUT IT'S JUST THERE'S NEW COMPETITION OPENED UP IN THE MARKETPLACE. I'LL GIVE YOU A VERY QUICK EXAMPLE. ONE OF THOSE TEXAS HIGH SCHOOL COACHES
ASSOCIATION MEETS EVERY JULY, 18,000 COACHES DESCEND ON THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, ALONG WITH THEIR FAMILIES, BY THE WAY, NOR THREE OR FOUR DAYS HERE IN THE CITY. THEY WERE WITH US EVERY TWO YEARS, THEN ONE YEAR OFF, IN HOUSTON. TWO YEARS, ONE, FOREVER. FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER IN 2032 AND BEYOND, THEY WILL BE LOOKING TO TAKE THEIR CONFERENCE TO AUSTIN. YOU KNOW, SHINY, NEW CONVENTION CENTER THAT SOMEONE ON THEIR BOARD OF DIRECTORS SAID, HEY, WE SHOULD CONSIDER. SO THAT'S WHAT WE'RE UP AGAINST. YEAH. >> GONZALEZ: OKAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH. AND JUST A QUICK QUESTION FOR THE AIRPORT, THE PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE AIRPORT PARKING RATES, WILL THOSE AFFECT INDIVIDUALS ENROLLED IN THE DISABLED VETERAN AND MILITARY PLATES PARKING PROGRAM AT ALL? SAENSAENZ S >> THE IMPACT FOR THE SURFACE LOTS WILL BE ZERO AND THE IMPACT FOR THE GARAGE WILL BE SIMILAR AS THEY GET A 50% -- PARKING GARAGES BUT THE SURFACE LOT WHICH IS WHERE THEY HAVE 30 DAYS OF FREE PARKING, IT WILL NOT IMPACT. >> GONZALEZ: OKAY. AND I WOULD NOT BE SPEAKING FOR MY RESIDENTS IF I DID NOT JUST MENTION ON THE -- AND I LOOKED IT UP BEFORE I ASKED, SO ON THE DISABLED VETERAN AND PARKING PLATE APPLICATION, IF WE CAN JUST AT THE TOP OF THAT EXPLAIN OR HAVE A LIST OF WHAT FOLKS WILL NEED TO APPLY, SO THEIR DRIVER'S LICENSE, THEIR VEHICLE REGISTRATION, THEIR LICENSE PLATE, ALL OF THAT AT THE TOP SO FOLKS KNOW AND AREN'T HAVING TO RUN TO THEIR CAR AND WRITE IT DOWN. I'VE HEARD THAT A NUMBER OF TIME FROM RESIDENTS, MORE THAN I EXPECTED ACTUALLY. THIS HAPPENS AT HOA MEETING, BUT JUST SOMETHING IF WE CAN LOOK INTO ON THE APPLICATION PAGE AND EVEN ON THE LANDING PAGE, JUST SOMETHING AT THE TOP TO SHOW FOLKS WHAT THEY NEED BEFORE THEY START THAT APPLICATION. >> SAENZ: VERY GOOD. GREAT SUGGESTION. THANK YOU, COUNCILWOMAN GONZALES GONZALEZ THANK YOU. THOSE ARE ALL MY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU. COUNCILMEMBER ALDARETE GAVITO, PLEASE. >> GAVITO: THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL OF Y'ALL'S PRESENTATIONS AND ALL THE PREWORK AND PREP THAT WENT INTO IT. THEY WERE REALLY GREAT AND HELPFUL. I JUST HAVE A COUPLE OF SUPER QUICK QUESTIONS. ON THE CONVENTION AND SPORTS FACILITIES, YOU KNOW, WE DO HEAR A COUPLE OF FEEDBACK FROM RESIDENTS ABOUT THE HIGH COST OF PARKING DOWNTOWN AND PARKING AT THE ALAMODOME SO HOW ARE WE WORKING VIA TO SHUTTLE MORE FOLKS IN FOR THESE EVENTS? >> WE DO THAT. FOR EVERY S SINGLE EVENT OR MAJOR EVENT THAT WE DO WHERE THEY PROVIDE PARK AND RIDE TO, WE TRY TO DO A LOT OF MARKETING TO LET RESIDENTS KNOW THAT THEY CAN TAKE VIA, IT'S ONLY $1.30 EACH WAY. SO WE DO A LOT. OUR PUBLIC RELI RELATIONS STAFF GOES ON NEWS STATIONS, TV STATIONS, YOU KNOW, WE PUT A LOT OF MESSAGING OUT THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA AND OTHER THINGS TO TRY TO PROMOTE THAT, TO GET PEOPLE TO RIDE. >> GAVITO: YEAH. AND I KNOW MANY OF US HAVE E-MAIL NEWSLETTERS, SO I THINK EVEN PROMOTING WITH US AND OUR OUTREACH TO RESIDENTS WOULD BE HELPFUL, JUST BECAUSE A LOT OF PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, WANT TO TAKE OTHER OPTOPTIONS, THEY JUST DON'T KNOW ABOUT IT. SO I WOULD OFFER THAT. WE SEND OUR E-MAIL EVERY WEDNESDAY AT 8:00 A.M. PEOPLE HAVE COME TO RELY ON THAT AS A SOURCE OF INFORMATION, SO WE'LL BE HAPPY TO SHARE IT THERE AS WELL. WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO THE CONVENTION CENTER FEASIBILITY STUDY. AND, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY THINGS ARE LOOKING GOOD FOR NOW BUT WE HAVE TO STAY COMPETITIVE. WE KNOW THAT WE HAVE TO STAY COMPETITIVE. SO THANK YOU FOR ALL THE WORK Y'ALL ARE DOING. IT WAS A COUPLE MONTHS A GO I WAS IN AUSTIN AND WALKING PAST THE CONSTRUCTION OF THEIR NEW CONVENTION CENTER. SO YOU KNOW THEY'RE PUTTING EVERYTHING IN ON THAT. AND SO WE -- WE -- THANK YOU FOR Y'ALL'S EFFORTS IN MAKING SURE THAT WE DON'T FALL BEHIND IS REALLY MY MESSAGE. >> YOU'RE WELCOME. >> GAVITO: FOR ARTS AND CULTURE, KRYSTAL, THANK YOU SO MUCH. I'M GLAD YOU NOTED THAT THAT VIDEO IS BEING SHARED SOMEWHERE ELSE BECAUSE IT'S A BEAUTIFUL VIDEO, IT'S A GREAT VIDEO AND I WOULD HATE IT IF IT WAS JUST USED INTERNALLY. SO THANKS SO MUCH THAT IT'S BEING SHARED ON THE VISIT SAN ANTONIO WEBSITE AND HOWEVER MORE WE CAN SHARE IT, I THINK THE MORE THE BETTER. I WAS LOOKING AT SOME OF THE NONPROFITS THAT ART TS AND CULTURE DO PARTNER WITH. WHAT IS -- WHAT IS -- I DIDN'T LOOK AT SPECIFICS, BUT IS THERE STRATEGY ON SOME OF THE NONPROFITS THAT YOU ALL ARE FUNDING AND SOME THAT ARE DELEGATE AGENCY ARE FUNDING? BECAUSE I THINK THERE WAS A COUPLE OF OVERLAP ON SOME OF THEM. >> THE NONPROFITS THAT WE PARTNER WITH THROUGH OUR GRANT PROGRAM, THEY ARE BEING FUNDED OPERATIONAL FUNDS, MAJORITY, EXCEPT FOR OUR EVENTS GRANTS, TO PROVIDE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC PROGRAMMING FOR RESIDENTS AND VISITORS. THE DELEGATE AGENCIES ACTUALLY HAVE A
SERVICE -- SERVICE AS I UNDERSTAND IT, THE YOUTH SERVICE. SO THIS IS REALLY PROVIDING CULTURAL PROGRAMMING FOR ALL. >> GAVITO: BUT SOME OF THESE NONPROFITS ARE GETTING FUNDS FROM OUR GENERAL FUND, FROM OUR DELEGATE AGENCY FUNDS AND FROM YOU ALL AS WELL. I THINK THERE WAS A FEW WITH OVERLAP. COUNCILWOMAN, YES, I SEE ONE. AND AS KRYSTAL MENTIONED, THE COMPETITIVE PROCESS FOR THE DELEGATE AGENCIES UNDER HUMAN SERVICES, A COMPONENT IS TO PROCURE SERVICES PARTICULAR FOR OUR SENIOR CENTERS WHICH IS DIFFERENT THAN WHAT THE REQUIREMENTS ARE FOR THE ARTS GRANTS. SO IT'S NOT FOR A DUPLICATION OF SERVICES, IT'S FOR A DIFFERENT SERVICE. BUT TO YOUR POINT, THERE'S A COUPLE OF AGENCIES THAT ARE ON BOTH. >> GAVITO: RIGHT? SO I'M NOT SAYING THAT WE SHOULDN'T FUND IT, BUT I DO THINK THAT, AGAIN, JUST AS WE'RE ADVOCATING FOR US TO BE STRATEGIC ON OUR NONPROFIT GIVING WITH US, THE COUNTY AND OUR PHILANTHROPIC DONORS, WE ALSO HAVE TO BE STRATEGIC WITHIN OUR CITY BUDGET. YOU KNOW, AND IF A NONPROFIT IS GETTING SOME FROM OUR DELEGATE AGENCY FUNDS, DOES IT MAKE SENSE TO GET FROM THESE FUNDS, TOO. AND IT MAY MAKE SENSE, WE JUST HAVE TO ASK THE QUESTION. SO THOSE ARE THE ONLY THINGS I WANTED TO NOTE THERE. I THINK COUNCILWOMAN COUNCILMAN WHYTE ASKED -- I HAD THE SAME THOUGHT IS IT POSSIBLE TO TRANSFER THE $500,000 FROM THE GENERAL FUND TO THE ARTS AND CULTURE FUND TO USE THE HOT TAX TO FREE UP SOME GENERAL FUND DOLLARS, SO DEFINITELY INTERESTED IN THAT, TOO. FORVIS IT SAN ANTONIO, MARIO, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE GREAT PRESENTATION. CONGRATS ON ACHIEVING THE RECORD INTERNATIONAL VISITATION. WHERE ARE THE INTERNATIONAL FOLKS VISITING FROM, DO WE KNOW THAT? >> YES. IT'S MEXICO. THE VAST MAJORITY, 2.3 OUT OF THE 2.6 IS MEXICO. FOLLOWED BY CANADA, ABOUT -- A LITTLE SHORT OF 50,000, THEN THE UK AND THEN IT JUST KIND OF FALLS OFF INTO SOME SINGLE-DIGIT NUMBERS FROM THERE. >> GAVITO: OKAY. GOT IT. SOUNDS GOOD. THAT'S HELPFUL. YEAH, AND I AGREE, WE HAVE TO CONTINUE LEVERAGING OUR ONLINE PRESENCE IN BUILDING OUR TOURISM UP BECAUSE IT IS SUCH AN ECONOMIC DRIVER FOR OUR COMMUNITY, SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOU AND YOUR ENTIRE TEAM'S HARD WORK. Y'ALL DO A PHENOMENAL JOB. ONE OF THE WAYS -- BECAUSE I THINK COUNCILWOMAN VIAGRAN -- WHO SITS ON THE VISIT SAN ANTONIO, BOARD, RIGHT? >> BOTH, YEP. >> GAVITO: AWESOME. I WAS JUST CURIOUS ON THE WAY THAT YOU ALL HAVE YOUR EYES AND EARS -- CURIOUS ON THE WAY THAT WE AS COUNCIL RECEIVE FEEDBACK ON WHAT YOU ARE SEEING THAT OTHER CITIES ARE DOING THAT WE SHOULD IMPLEMENT HERE. I DON'T KNOW, MAYBE WE RELY ON YOU ALL FOR THAT, BUT I JUST WANTED US TO MAKE SURE THAT ANY BEST PRACTICES OR OPPORTUNITIES THAT Y'ALL ARE SEEING SOMEWHERE ELSE, THAT COUNCIL HAS AT LEAST AN AWARENESS. WE MAY NOT BE ABLE TO CHANGE THINGS OVERNIGHT, BUT, YOU KNOW, IT WOULD BE INTERESTING TO SEE AND KNOW WHAT OTHER CITIES ARE DOING SO WE CAN LOOK AT THAT AS WELL. >> ABSOLUTELY. THROUGH THANKFULLY WE DO HAVE TWO SEATED FROM OUR CITY COUNCIL ON OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS WHICH IS HELPFUL F WITH THAT PROCESS, AND OUR EXPANDED BOARD, ABOUT 46 BOIRD MEMBERS ALSO FUNNEL INTO OUR WORKING COMMITTEES ARE ALSO ON THE ROAD AND TRAVELING. BUT ABSOLUTELY, ANY FEEDBACK THAT WE WOULD PROCURE THROUGH THOSE TRAVELS WE'LL CERTAINLY SHARE. >> GAVITO: YEAH. YOU KNOW, AND I WOULD DEFINITELY JUST WANT ALL OF US TO KIND OF KEEP ON TOP OF IT, TOO, BECAUSE I THINK VISIT SAN ANTONIO DOES SUCH AN AMAZING JOB. AND, AGAIN, Y'ALL'S EYES AND EARS ARE -- THANK YOU, JESUS, FOR STAYING ON TIME AND WITHIN BUDGET. I, TOO, THANK YOU, COUNCILWOMAN, FOR RAISING THE VETERAN PARKING CONCERNS, BECAUSE WE'VE HEARD SOME FEEDBACK FROM SOME VETERANS IN DISTRICT 7 STOPPED AT WOODLAWN LAKE AND THEY WERE NOT HAPPY WITH THE PROGRAM, SO I DON'T HAVE ANY -- I THINK HE SENT US SOME -- AN E-MAIL WITH SOME ACTIONABLE FEEDBACK. WE'LL BE SURE TO SHARE THERE, BUT ANY WAYANY WAY THAT WE CAN SIMPLIFY THE PROCESS FOR OUR VETERANS SO THEY CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT PARKING, THE BETTER. EXCITED FOR TERMINAL C AND ALL THAT'S TO COME WITH THAT, AND REALLY, THOSE ARE ALL MY COMMENTS. THANK YOU. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU. COUNCILMEMBER CASTILLO, PLEASE? >> CASTILLO: I THANK Y'ALL FOR THE PRESENTATIONS.
I HAD A QUESTION FOR CONVENTION AND SPORTS FACILITIES, WITH THE REDUCTIONS, THERE'S CONTRACTED SUPPLEMENTAL CLEANING THAT'S BEING REDUCED FROM I BELIEVE 38 TO 4. CAN YOU HELP ME UNDERSTAND THAT DRASTIC CHANGE. AND WALK ME THROUGH WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IN THE CASE THAT THERE WAS AN ADDITIONAL EVENT. >> SO, YES, REDUCTION OF 600,000. AND THE REASON WE'RE PROPOSING THAT IS BECAUSE IN PAST YEARS, WE HAD THAT FUNDING BECAUSE WE WEREN'T FULLY STAFFED. NOW THAT WE'RE FULLY STAFFED, WE'RE ABLE TO CUT BACK ON THAT CONTRACT. AGAIN, IF OUR STAFFING REDUCES, WE HAVE SOME VACANT POSITIONS, WE ALWAYS HAVE THE ABILITY TO GO BACK AND SUPPLEMENT OUR -- YOU KNOW, STAFF CURRENT STAFF WITH A CONTRACT. >> CASTILLO: THAT'S HELPFUL. AND THEN I THINK THIS WAS ASKED, ON SLIDE 9, FOR EXAMPLE, FOR THE ONE POSITION FOR CONTRACT MONITOR TION CAN YOU GIVE A COUPLE OF EXAMPLES WHAT TYPE OF CONTRACTS AND HAVE WE SEEN AN INCREASE IN CONTRACTS AND THAT'S WHY WE'RE SEEING A REQUEST FOR AN ADDITIONAL POSITION? >> YES. WE HAVE, LIKE I SAID DURING THE PRESENTATION, 80 PLUS CONTRACTS THAT WE HAVE TO MONITOR. WE CURRENTLY HAVE A STAFF ABOUT FOUR THAT MONITORS THOSE CONTRACTS, SO, AGAIN, VERY APPRECIATIVE THAT THAT'S ONE OF THE ADDITIONS OR PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE BUDGET, ADDING TO HAVE MORE OVERSIGHT OVER THESE CONTRACTS. BASICALLY 19 HIGH-PROFILE CONTRACTS FROM, YOU KNOW, THE CLEANING AND CONVERSION CONTRACT TO THE GUEST SERVICES AND SECURITY CONTRACT TO OUR CATERING CONTRACTS AT BOTH FACILITIES, THE RK ONE AT THE CONVENTION CENTER, THE SAVOR ONE AT THE ALAMODOME AND OTHER MAJOR ONES. >> CASTILLO: GREAT. THANK YOU FOR THAT. LOOKING AT SLIDE 10 AND SEEING FOR THE ROOF REPAIRS, THAT LINE MADE ME THINK OF COUNCILMAN PELAEZ, BECAUSE I KNOW HE WOULD ALWAYS ASK, ARE WE GOING TO CHECK INTO OUR INSURANCE TO SEE IF THAT CAN BE COVERED, SO I'M ASSUMING THAT'S SOMETHING Y'ALL ARE GOING TO DO AND HOPEFULLY THERE WOULDN'T BE THAT 1 MILLION ASSOCIATED WITH THE ROOF REPAIRS. I SAW THAT ITEM -- >> IT'S AN OVER 30--YEAR-OLD BUILDING SO WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, YOU KNOW, REPLACING AND DOING SOME ROOF REPAIRS TO A 30-YEAR-OLD ROOF. >> CASTILLO: GREAT. THANK YOU SO MUCH, I APPRECIATE THAT. I DID WANT TO MOVE OVER ON TO ARTS AND CULTURE. I DON'T HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, MORE COMMENTS. JUST WANT TO THANK THE ARTS DEPARTMENT FOR ALL THAT DAY DO. THIS IS SOMETHING THAT DISTRICT FIVE RESIDENTS CONTINUE TO ASK THAT WE HAVE CONVERSATIONS ON HOW CAN WE INCREASE THE CAPACITY AND FUNDING, PARTICULARLY THROUGH THE HOT TAX, TO CONTINUE TO SUPPORT LOCAL ARTS AND ARTISTS. I KNOW WE ARE IN POSITION IN WHICH WE'RE TRYING TO TIGHTEN OUR BELT, BUT I JUST WANT TO INSURE THAT, YOU KNOW, BASED UPON THE REQUESTS OF D5 RESIDENTS THAT I'M GOING TO CONTINUE TO STRESS THAT WE FIND WAYS TO CONTINUE TO SUPPORT LOCAL ARTS. I DID WANT TO JUST BRIEFLY RUN THROUGH SOME OF THE INFORMATION THAT WE HEARD AT OUR ARTS ROUND TABLE, SOME OF THE EXPECTATIONS THAT WE HEARD FROM LOCAL ARTISTS WAS -- CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, BUT WHAT WE HEARD IS THEIR EXPECTATIONS AND OPPORTUNITY TO CREATE IS OFFERED AT A HIGHER SCALE TO LOCAL ARTISTS, AND THEN, OF COURSE, ENSURING THAT THERE IS THAT MAINTENANCE FUND TO ENSURE THAT AS WE MARKET THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO AS THE HOSPITALITY CITY, THAT WE HAVE THE RESOURCES TO MAINTAIN ART ALL THROUGHOUT THE CITY. IN ADDITION TO THAT, WHAT WE HEARD AS WELL WAS THE IMPORTANCE OF TRANSPORTATION TO AND FROM, WHETHER IT'S THE CONVENTION CENTER, TO CONCERTS DOWNTOWN, AND/OR TO SOME OF THE ARTS DISTRICTS IN OUR COMMUNITIES, SO JUST WANTED TO HIGHLIGHT THAT COMPONENT, HOW THEY EMPHASIZE THE NEED FOR US TO HAVE MORE COORDINATED TRANSPORTATION MEASURES IN OUR COMMUNITY. AND, OF COURSE, HIGHLIGHTING MANY OF THE NONPROFITS THAT ARE DOING THE WORK IN TERMS OF CULTURAL ART SPECIFICALLY WITHIN DISTRICT FIVE, JUST -- I WOULD BE REMISS IF I DIDN'T HIGHLIGHT THE VALUE OF SAN ANTONIO CULTURAL ARTS, ESPARANZA PEACE AND JUSTICE CENTER, SO MANY OTHERS. I DID WANT TO BE SURE TO BRING TO THE FOREFRONT A LETTER THAT WE DID RECEIVE FROM A COALITION OF LOCAL ARTIST THAT'S HAVE HIGHLIGHTED THE VALUE OF THE LITERARY ARTS. WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE SAN ANTONIO BOOK FESTIVAL, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ARTISTS, POETS, CURATORS WHO ARE COMING ALL THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES TO HOST HERE IN SAN ANTONIO BUT ARE ALSO GOING INTO OUR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS AND INTRODUCING OUR YOUTH TO, ONE, AN ARTIST, AND THEN, OF COURSE, LITERACY. AGAIN, WE KNOW THAT OUR LIBRARIANS IN PARTICULAR IN THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO WITH OUR ISDS HAVE BEEN REDUCED AND/OR ZEROED OUT, AND I THINK ABOUT RODRIGUEZ ELEMENTARY SCHOOL IN DISTRICT FIVE WHERE OUR PTA MET WITH OUR OFFICE TO SAY OUR KIDS DON'T HAVE A LIBRARIAN ANYMORE. AND THAT'S WHY THEY
SUPPORT THE LAS PALMAS VALUE AND THE VALUE OF OUR PUBLIC LIBRARIANS WITHIN THE PUBLIC SYSTEM ARE INVALUABLE ALL THAT TO CONNECT THE DOT IN TERMS OF THE LITERARY ARTS AND WHAT THEY DO AND THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE SAN ANTONIO BOOK FESTIVAL. I COULD GO ON AND ON ABOUT PUBLIC ART. AS WE SEE MORE IN OUR COMMUNITY, IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE HEAR THAT THERE'S A DESIRE TO SEE MORE OF. I THINK, YOU KNOW, FROM MY COLLEAGUES THAT TEND TO BE -- ASK FOR THAT IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD, AND JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT, YOU KNOW, THESE ARE JOBS AND WE KNOW THE ARTS HAS A BILLION DOLLARS IMPACT IN THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO AND WHEN WE TALK ABOUT MAINTENANCE OF SCULPTURES, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT WORKFORCE, RIGHT? WHAT WAS HIGHLIGHTEDDED IN THE PRESENTATION THAT I FOUND MUCH VALUE IN WAS THE STORY OF THE INDIVIDUAL WHO WAS ABLE TO MOVE OUT OF PUBLIC HOUSING BECAUSE OF THE OPPORTUNITY THAT AN ARTS GRANT PROVIDED TO THEM. MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THAT INDIVIDUAL ALSO GOT CONNECTED TO READY TO WORK AND RECEIVED CERTIFICATION, SO JUST LIKE WHAT A BEAUTIFUL SUCCESS STORY OF THE ARTS CONNECTION, CREATIVITY, AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. I DID WANT TO PIVOT NOW OVER TO THE SAN ANTONIO AIRPORT. I DON'T HAVE MANY QUESTIONS, BUT JUST WANTED TO THANK JESUS AND YOUR TEAM. YOU ALL GIVE SUCH ROBUST PRESENTATIONS, SO MANY OF MY QUESTIONS ARE ANSWERED AND THEN, OF COURSE, MY COLLEAGUES ASK REALLY GREAT QUESTIONS AS WELL. BUT JUST WANT TO THANK YOU ALL. ONE POINT FOR CONSIDERATION AND YOU ALL ALREADY MAY BE WORKING ON THIS, I REALLY APPRECIATED THE POINT THAT YOU MADE THAT, HEY, IN THE NEXT FEW MONTHS WE MAY SEE SOME CONGESTION BECAUSE OF LANE REDUCTIONS, I'M CURIOUS -- IF Y'ALL DON'T ALREADY HAVE ONE IN THE WORKS A COMMS PLAN THROUGH TVSA TO SAY SOMETHING YOU MAY WANT TO GET TO THE AIRPORT X AMOUNT OF MINUTES AND OUR HOURS EARLY JUST TO REDUCE ANY TRAFFIC OR CONGESTION AS WE PREPARE FOR THE TERMINAL OPENING. >> SAENZ: THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. THE FIRST FLIGHT THAT WE'RE ESTABLISHING HAS NINE DIFFERENT GROUPS THAT ARE WORKING. ONE OF THOSE GROUPS IS SPECIFIC TO JUST COMMUNICATION, SO -- THAT'S TVSA, ALL OF OUR PASSENGERS, OUR WEBSITE, SOCIAL MEDIA. IT'S GOING TO BE A LITTLE BIT OF A DISRUPTION FOR EVERYONE AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE'RE STARTING TO COMMUNICATE THAT WITH EVERYONE. >> CASTILLO: THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE THAT, JESUS. DID WANT TO SHIFT BACK TO VISIT SA TO A LARGER CONVERSATION, RIGHT? I'M THINKING ABOUT YESTERDAY'S PRESENTATION IN TERMS OF SHORT-TERM RENTALS AND THE FEE INCREASES THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE EXPLORING THERE. AND MY UNDERSTANDING WITH THE TPID IN PARTICULAR, THERE'S 100-ROOM THRESHOLD, AND I'M CURIOUS IF WE'RE SEEING THE IMPACT IN TERMS OF JUST HOTEL OCCUPANCY DOWNTOWN BECAUSE OF SHORT-TERM RENTALS RIGHT, WE KNOW THAT IMPACTS JUST OVERALL OUR HOUSING STOCK FOR OUR RESIDENTS THAT ARE LOOKING FOR A LONG-TERM RENTAL, BUT ALSO, RIGHT, HOTEL ROOM OCCUPANCY. SO I'M CURIOUS IF THERE'S VALUE IN HAVING A CONVERSATION ABOUT POTENTIALLY REVISITING THAT 100-ROOM HOTEL THRESHOLD AND HOW CAN WE POTENTIALLY HAVE THE TPID FEE POTENTIALLY TIED TO SHORT-TERM RENTALS TYPE 2. AGAIN, IF WE'RE SEEING THAT IMPACT TO THE HOT TAX, HOTEL OCCUPANCY, MAYBE WE SHOULD BE HAVING THE CONVERSATION ABOUT TAGGING THAT ON TO POTENTIALLY SHORT-TERM RENTALS. >> YEAH. SO HISTORICALLY -- I SHOULDN'T SAY HISTORICALLY, THROUGHOUT THE STATE OF TEXAS FOR THE MOST PART, THAT HUNDRED ROOMS OR GREATER IS KIND OF THE THRESHOLD FROM A REVENUE COLLECTIONS STANDPOINT, I THINK ALSO JUST FROM MANAGING THAT TPID, BUT YOU'RE RIGHT, COUNCILWOMAN, THE IMPACT OF SHORT-TERM RENTALS ON OUR TOTAL LODGING DEMAND IS MATERIAL AND WHY THERE'S BEEN DISCUSSIONS ABOUT IT. WE'VE SEEN -- BACK IN 2019, THERE WAS ABOUT 400,000 ROOM NIGHTS SHORT-TERM DEMAND ASSOCIATED WITH AIRBNB, VRBO, ANY SHORT-TERM RENTALS. AS WE CONCLUDED 2025, IT WAS 1.1 MILLION. SO THERE IS AN IMPACT. BUT I THINK AT THE END OF THE DAY, IT'S STILL LODGING IN SAN ANTONIO, WHICH IS THE GOOD NEWS, AND JUST SOME GROUPS ARE MORE SUSCEPTIBLE TO THE USE OF SHORT-TERM RENTALS, ASSOCIATIONS TYPICALLY, IF YOU'RE TRAVELING WITH YOUR FAMILY, ARE CONSIDERED TO USE A SHORT-TERM RENTAL, BUT A CORPORATE GROUP, YOU KNOW, THAT'S ON EXPENSE REPORT IS MOST LIKELY STAYING IN A HOTEL. BUT I'LL DEFER THE QUESTION ABOUT SHORT-TERM RENTALS AND TPID. >> CASTILLO: THANK YOU. COUNCILWOMAN, I DON'T HAVE AN ANSWER RIGHT NOW, BUT WE WILL EXPLORE IT AND INCLUDE IT IN THE FOLLOW-UP MEMO. >> CASTILLO: THANK YOU, MARIA. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU. COUNCILMEMBER VIAGRAN, PLEASE? >> VIAGRAN: THANK YOU. THANK YOU, ALL, FOR THE PRESENTATION. I'LL START WITH JESUS AND THE AIRPORT. YOU DON'T HAVE TO GET UP. YOU ALREADY KNOW WHAT I'M GOING TO SAY. AS WE TALK ABOUT DRIVE MARKET, WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE RIO GRANDE VALLEY. I CANNOT STRESS THE IMPORTANCE THERE IN
MAKING SURE WE GET THEM THERE. AND I KNOW YOU'RE DOING THAT ALREADY, SO I JUST WANT TO STRESS THAT. WE'VE GOT NEIGHBORS TO THE SOUTH THAT ARE COMING UP PRETTY REGULARLY TO SAN ANTONIO FOR BUSINESS AND WE NEED TO TAKE CARE OF THEM. BUT OTHER THAN THAT, AS WE TALKED ABOUT WHERE WE GO, I WAS COUNTING AND I'VE DONE, LIKE -- OF OUR 47 DESTINATIONS, I'VE PROBABLY BEEN TO, LIKE, 27 OF THEM. SO I NEED TO MAKE SURE I GET ALL THOSE THERE. AND THEN THAT'S THE OTHER SUGGESTION I HAVE IS WE TALK ABOUT IF WE SEE ANYTHING -- I KNOW COUNCILWOMAN SPEARS HAS DONE IT BEFORE AND I ASKED MY COMMITTEE MEMBERS ON EWDC IF THEY GO ON A TRIP, TO KIND OF SHARE WHAT THEY SAW AND GIVE US KIND OF HIGHLIGHTS, AND THEN IF I HEAR SOMETHING WHERE I'M LIKE, OH, MISYMISTY SAID SHE SAW THIS IN TAIWAN, CAN WE DO THAT HERE? THE ANSWER'S PROBABLY NO FROM MARIO. NO, I'M KIDDING, IT'S NOT NO ALL THE TIME. BUT I THINK SHARING WHAT WE SEE, SHARING WHAT TRANSLATES, I DO THAT ALL THE TIME FROM SPAIN IN TERMS OF WHAT WE SEE THERE THAT WE COULD POSSIBLY DO HERE. SO JUST WANTS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE CONTINUE THERE. BUT THANK YOU, JESUS, FOR THAT PRESENTATION. I WILL BE WEARY -- AIRPORT TRAVEL IS -- IS VERY ANXIOUS FOR MANY PEOPLE, INCLUDING MYSELF, SO I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE GET THAT MESSAGE OUT THERE. IN TERMS OF VISIT SAN ANTONIO, MARIO AND TEAM, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR CONTINUING TO WORK HARD. I -- THERE IS -- I KNOW MY DOLLAR GOES VERY FAR WITH YOUR TEAM, AND THE REASON WE LEFT THE CITY AND BECAME -- WE WENT FROM CBC TO VISIT SAN ANTONIO BECAUSE WE COULD MOVE FASTER AND MORE FOR THAT DOLLAR. SO QUESTIONS MAY ARISE ABOUT WHY 35%, WELL, I DON'T HAVE THE AMI THAT DALLAS HAS AND I DON'T HAVE THE DALLAS COWBOYS THERE THAT IS A TEAM WHERE PEOPLE TRAVEL INTERNATIONAL. SO I BET YOU THEY HAVE MORE HOT TAX HERE, AND THEY'RE AUTOMOBILE TO USE THE STATE'S ENTERTAINMENT FUNDS. AND SO IS HOUSTON, BECAUSE I WAS THERE WITH THAT MAYOR, AND HE JUST BRAGGED ON HOW HE DID THAT. SO I THINK AS WE LOOK FOR OPPORTUNITIES, WE SEE WHERE THE FUNDS CAN COME BACK BECAUSE THAT 6% THAT WE'RE SENDING TO THE STATE, WE WANT TO MAKE SURE AT LEAST HALF, IF NOT MORE, GETS BACK TO SAN ANTONIO. SO I APPRECIATE YOUR EFFORTS THERE. AND I DO THINK, YES, CONVENTIONS ARE GOING TO GO TO AUSTIN FOR A LITTLE WHILE, AND HOUSTON, MAYBE EVEN DALLAS, BUT THEY'RE GOING TO COME BACK TO SAN ANTONIO, BECAUSE PEOPLE JUST LIKE OUR VIBE HERE. CONVENTION AND SPORTS FACILITIES, THANK YOU, PATRICIA, FOR YOUR EFFORTS AND YOUR WORK. I THINK WHEN WE LOOK AT CONCERTS, AND YOU KNOW WHICH CONCERT I AM SO SAD WE DIDN'T GET, AND I THINK WE COULD HAVE GOTTEN HER HERE, IS TAYLOR SWIFT, BUT IT'S THAT -- THOSE ARTISTS THAT CAN DO MULTIPLE NIGHTS, THOSE ARTISTS -- KNOW HE'S NOT TOURING IN THE UNITED STATES RIGHT NOW, BUT BAD BUNNY'S CONCERT IS STILL ONE THAT I WILL REMEMBER IN TERMS OF HOW -- WE JUST HAD PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER COME THERE. SO I THINK CONCERTS ARE KEY. THE OTHER THING I'M ASKING FOR, BUT THEY'RE NOT HERE, IS UTSA WIN A LOT MORE GAMES BECAUSE THAT GETS MORE PEOPLE DOWNTOWN ALSO. SO I THINK THAT AS WE MOVE FORWARD THERE, I THINK WE'RE GOING TO HAVE OPPORTUNITIES. AND THE OTHER OPPORTUNITY WE HAVE IS TO REALLY SEE LOCAL BUSINESSES AND LOCAL MARKETS START TO GROW HERE IN SAN ANTONIO, ESPECIALLY WITH SECURITY AND CONVENTION CENTER JANITORIAL SERVICES AND THINGS LIKE THAT. IF WE COULD IF WE COULD GET MORE PEOPLE LOCAL BASED IN THAT AND GET MORE CREDENTIALS, I THINK WE'LL SEE MORE COMPETITIVENESS FOR BIDS AND RFPS AS WE GET THOSE BIGGER GROUPS IN. THANK YOU FOR MANAGING THAT BUDGET AND DOING THAT HERE. I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING WHAT YOU CAN BRING. THE LAST ONE I WANT TO TALK ABOUT -- AND I'M NOT GOING TO TAKE TOO MUCH TIME BECAUSE YOU'VE HEARD ME SAY THIS BEFORE. IN TERMS OF ARTS AND CULTURE. THE REASON I PUSHED FOR HALF A MILLION DOLLARS OF ARTS AND CULTURE IN THE GENERAL FUND -- BECAUSE THE GENERAL FUND COMMUNICATES THE CITY'S COMMITMENT TO WHO WE ARE AS A CITY. AND TO COMMIT TO ARTS AND CULTURE IS NECESSARY IN THE GENERAL FUND. TO COMMUNICATE TO THE ARTS COMMUNITY, TO COMMUNICATE TO THE REST OF THE STATE, TO COMMUNICATE NATIONALLY THAT WE CARE ABOUT ARTS. THAT IT'S NOT A NICE TO HAVE, IT IS A NEED TO HAVE. IT IS A MUST HAVE. IF WE ARE NOT GOING TO HAVE PEOPLE FROM OUTSIDE COME AND TELL THE SAN ANTONIO STORY.
AND THAT IS WHY, IF WE ARE GOING TO DO PUBLIC ART PIECES, IF THEY ARE GOING TO BE FROM THE SMALL -- I CALL THEM SMALL -- FLOWERS OR TO HUGE PIECES THAT SIT ALONG THE RIVER WALK, WE NEED TO MAINTAIN THEM AND WE NEED TO MAINTAIN THEM THROUGH OUR GENERAL FUND. BECAUSE THEY ARE OURS. THEY ARE THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO'S AND WE ARE COMMITTED THAT THIS IS IMPORTANT WITH US. TO US. AND THAT IS WHY I BELIEVE THAT WE NEED THAT GENERAL FUND AND THAT MAINTENANCE. YES, IT WOULD BE NICE. WE'RE ALWAYS GOING TO NEED ANOTHER STREET SIGN OR TRAFFIC LIGHT OR POTHOLE REFILLED. SOME OF THESE ARTWORKS ARE ART PIECES THAT WERE DONE DECADES AGO. WE WANT TO MAINTAIN THINGS DONE DURING HEMISFAIR, AS WE LOOK AT HEMISFAIR AND THE TILE WORK THERE. I AM NOT GOING TO MOVE ON THAT. I THINK THAT NEEDS TO STAY. IF WE NEED TO BRING UP THE SAN ANTONIO BOOK FESTIVAL, I WILL BRING UP THE SAN ANTONIO BOOK FESTIVAL. IT SHOULD BE GETTING TWO SOURCES BECAUSE THEY PROVIDE THE FESTIVAL FOR FREE TO THE CITY -- AND THEY UTILIZE VOLUNTEERS, MOST OF IT, TO WORK THAT FESTIVAL. AND THEN THEY PROVIDE PROGRAMMING INTO THE SCHOOLS. IN A CITY THAT STRUGGLES WITH DYSLEXIA AND DIAGNOSING IT, WE NEED TO LET THE COMMUNITY KNOW FROM OUR GENERAL FUND THAT WE CARE ABOUT READING AND WE CARE ABOUT OUR LIBRARIES. SO THAT IS WHAT I WANT US TO UNDERSTAND. WHEN WE TALK ABOUT -- I HAVE SAID THIS BEFORE. WHEN WE GIVE TO ARTS AND CULTURE, WE ARE TALKING ABOUT THE CITY OF SAN ANTONIO. A STORY THAT FOR GENERATIONS OTHER PEOPLE WANTED TO TELL. AND I JUST FEEL LIKE ONCE THE WOMEN AND THE BROWN PEOPLE AND THE PEOPLE WHO DIDN'T HAVE A VOICE START TELLING THEIR STORY, ALL OF A SUDDEN IT'S NOT NECESSARY ANYMORE. WE DON'T NEED TO FUND IT ANYMORE. AND I JUST DON'T THINK THAT THAT'S WHO WE ARE. I THINK WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO COMMIT. AND THAT'S WHY -- THANK YOU, KRYSTAL FOR ALL THE WORK YOU HAVE DONE, FOR EVERYTHING YOU'RE GOING TO BRING FORWARD. I THINK WE NEED TO KEEP THAT HALF A MILLION IN THE GENERAL FUND. I THINK WE NEED TO SEE WAYS WE CAN FUND THE SAN ANTONIO BOOK FESTIVAL THROUGH ARTS AND CULTURE, WHICH I KNOW THEY GIVE A PERCENTAGE. THROUGH DEVELOPMENT SERVICES. BECAUSE THIS IS HOW WE SEND A MESSAGE TO THE COMMUNITY THAT THESE THINGS ARE IMPORTANT TO US. I APPRECIATED YOUR EFFORTS. I APPRECIATE THAT SPORTS FACILITIES AND -- I CAN FUND ARTS AND CULTURE AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION. WE DIDN'T EVEN HEAR FROM THEM AND THERE'S A LOT TO PRESERVE . WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO HAVE OUR ARTS COMMUNITY, WHICH IS ONE OF THE REASONS I SUPPORT VISIT SAN ANTONIO SO MUCH BECAUSE IT IS HOT TAXES THAT FUNDS OUR ARTS AND CULTURE. THANK YOU, MAYOR. AND I LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING MORE OF THIS BUDGET SESSION. >> MAYOR JONES: GREAT. THANK YOU. COUNCILWOMAN SPEARS, PLEASE. >> SPEARS: THANKS, MAYOR. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATIONS. TOURISM IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT FOR SAN ANTONIO. WE KNOW THAT. AND HAS A CLEAR RETURN FOR TAXPAYERS AND IT DOES STRENGTHEN OUR LOCAL ECONOMY. I GUESS I THINK I WANT TO START WITH THE AIRPORT. MY FAVORITE, IN DISTRICT 9, THE GEM OF OUR CITY. SO PROUD OF YOU FOR BEING ON TIME, ON SCOPE, AND ON BUDGET. I HAD ONE QUESTION. DO YOU HAVE ANY VACANT POSITIONS OF THE 487 THAT YOU'RE WANTING FOR '27, FOR THE BUDGET? >> SAENZ: WE DO HAVE VACANT POSITIONS. IT'S APPROXIMATELY 80. SOME ARE IN OUR POLICE AND SOME ARE IN OUR AIRPORT. >> SPEARS: OKAY. DO YOU WANT TO TALK AT ALL ABOUT THE GRANT FUNDING FOR THE TRAFFIC CONTROL TOWER AND WHAT THAT MEANS? >> SAENZ: CERTAINLY. SO OBVIOUSLY THE SECRETARY WAS HERE. CAME PRETTY QUICKLY TO ANNOUNCE THAT WE WILL BE DOING ADDITIONAL WORK. WE'VE BEEN INVITED TO SEVEN MEETINGS TO WORK WITH THE FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION ABOUT MODERNIZING THE ENTIRE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL TOWER HERE IN SAN ANTONIO.
WE'RE ONE OF THE FEW SELECTED CITIES THAT WILL BE GETTING UP TO $30 MILLION TO MODERNIZE EVERYTHING THAT WE'RE DOING WITH OUR AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL TOWER. SO THAT HELPS US IN OUR EFFICIENCY, OUR SAFETY, AND THE MOVEMENT OF AIRCRAFT. >> SPEARS: DO YOU THINK IT WILL HELP AS WE ARE SEEKING MORE DIRECT FLIGHTS AS WELL? >> SAENZ: ABSOLUTELY. AS WE LOOK AT WHAT WE CALL LOAD FACTOR AND OUR ABILITY TO HAVE LINE OF SIGHT, WHETHER WE GO VIRTUAL OR WHETHER WE GO WITH ANOTHER CAB, TO BE DETERMINED. WE'RE EXCITED ABOUT THE MODERNIZATION OF THE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL TOWER AND EVERYTHING ASSOCIATED WITH IT. >> SPEARS: SHAMELESS PLUG. THE RED RAIDERS NEED SOME DIRECT FLIGHTS TO LUBBOCK. JUST LETTING YOU KNOW. >> SAENZ: VERY GOOD. >> SPEARS: THANK YOU . CONVENTION AND SPORTS FACILITIES. I AGREE SO MUCH WITH WHAT COUNCILWOMAN VIAGRAN WAS SAYING. THE CONCERTS ARE VERY IMPORTANT. JUST MY EXPERIENCE IN FLYING TOO -- OH, I MEANT TO MENTION THIS ABOUT THE AIRPORT. IS THAT THE COMPLAINTS ABOUT DFW DELAYS ARE HUGE AND I CAN ALWAYS SAY FLYING OUT OF SAN ANTONIO, WE DON'T HAVE THAT. BUT TO PIGGYBACK ON THAT -- I THINK I'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS BEFORE. THE FARMING INDUSTRY FROM CANADA COMES HERE EVERY YEAR FOR SOME GRASS SEEDS. AND THEY WANT A GOOD CONCERT TO GO TO. AND THEY LIKE COUNTRY. I'M JUST SAYING, WE SHOULD BE THINKING A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT -- CATERING TO SOME OF THESE CONVENTIONS THAT COME HERE AND THEIR WRAPAROUND EXPERIENCES AND WHAT WE CAN DO AT THE ALAMODOME TO CATER TO THAT. I KNOW Y'ALL ARE WORKING TOGETHER CLOSELY IN THAT WAY BUT JUST A DIVERSE GROUP OF DIFFERENT KINDS OF CONCERTS I THINK IS REALLY, REALLY IMPORTANT. HAVE WE EVER LOOKED AT AN OUTSIDE CONSULTANT FOR THAT? IS THERE A COST SAVINGS IN DOING THAT? >> REALLY, MOST OF THE CONCERTS ARE BROUGHT BY TWO MAJOR PROMOTERS. LIVE NATION AND AEG. WE ALREADY HAVE RELATIONSHIPS WITH THOSE . THERE'S OTHER -- I MEAN, WE HAVE ALSO RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER SMALLER PROMOTERS BUT THEY'RE LIMITED. AND, LIKE I SAID, WE ALREADY --E BUSINESS COMES FROM THOSE TWO MAJOR PROMOTERS. >> SPEARS: I'M INTERESTED IN UNDERSTANDING THAT A LITTLE BIT MORE. OKAY. SHOULD WE BE CONCERNED THAT THE DECLINING EVENT DAYS ARE GOING TO MAKE IT HARDER FOR OUR CONVENTION CENTER TO GENERATE ENOUGH REVENUE TO COVER THE COSTS? >> NO. BECAUSE AGAIN -- WE STRUGGLE WITH THAT, WITH THAT PERFORMANCE MEASURE BECAUSE IT REALLY DOESN'T TELL THE STORY. TELL OUR SUCCESS AND HOW WE'RE PERFORMING. REALLY, THE FOCUS AND THE GOAL IS TO BOOK BIGGER, MORE IMPACTFUL EVENTS. BECAUSE AT THE END OF THE DAY, THAT'S WHAT'S GOING TO GENERATE THE ECONOMIC IMPACT AND BENEFIT THE OVERALL COMMUNITY. >> SPEARS: DO YOU HAVE EXAMPLES OF HOW OUR FEES COMPARE TO OUR PEER CITIES, IF WE GO WITH THE INCREASES? >> YES. WE LOOKED AT THAT. THEY ALIGN. THE PARKING RATES ALIGNED AS WELL AS THE VENUE FEES. THEY'RE IN ALIGNMENT. >> SPEARS: OKAY. BECAUSE THAT IS ONE OF THE CONCERNS I HEAR ABOUT WHY A LOT OF OUR LOCALS DON'T COME DOWNTOWN IS THE PARKING. AND THAT IT'S MORE THAN THEIR NIGHT OUT AT THE RESTAURANT. OR MORE THAN THEIR TICKETS TO AN EVENT. THAT'S SOMETHING THAT THE LOCALS ARE TALKING ABOUT. MY RESIDENTS ARE TALKING ABOUT. >> IN THAT CASE, LIKE COUNCILWOMAN ALDERETE GAVITO MENTIONED, WE ARE TRYING, YOU KNOW, TO GET PEOPLE TO DO THE VIA PARK AND RIDE. AGAIN, $1.30. IT GETS NOW TO THE FRONT DOOR AT THE ALAMODOME AND GETS YOU BACK OUT, YOU KNOW, QUICKLY. IT DOES, YOU KNOW, TRANSPORT ATTENDEES AFTER AN HOUR AFTER THE CONCERT IS OVER. SO IT STARTS ABOUT THREE HOURS USUALLY BEFORE THE CONCERT. THEY CAN COME DOWN EARLY. AND IT ENDS ABOUT AN HOUR AFTER THOSE CONCERTS OR MAJOR EVENTS END. >> SPEARS: SO WHEN I'VE ASKED FOR THAT AT THE STONE OAK ONE, THEY HAVE TO BASE IT OFF OF WHERE THE TICKETS ARE BEING SOLD AS TO WHETHER OR NOT THEY'LL DO IT.
EVEN OPERATE IT. >> YES. WE TRY TO WORK WITH THEM AND WE TRY TO PROVIDE THAT DATA, LETTING THEM KNOW. USUALLY THEY DO, THEY UTILIZE THE ONE AT CROSSROADS MALL. THEY USE THE ONE AT BROOKS . IF THEY SEE THAT THE NUMBER OF TICKETS, THERE'S MORE COMING FROM A CERTAIN AREA OF TOWN, THEY WILL ADD THE PARK AND RIDE STATIONS. >> SPEARS: OKAY. THANK YOU. ARTS AND CULTURE. I WOULD SUPPORT COUNCILMAN WHYTE'S SUGGESTION TO MOVE THE MAINTENANCE -- ART MAINTENANCE TO THE HOT. IT'S JUST HARD WHEN I'M NEEDING A LOT OF TRAFFIC-CALMING MEASURES. MY CONSTITUENTS ARE NOT ON THE SAME PAGE WITH THE ARTS AND CULTURE. IN FACT, I HEAR A LOT ABOUT HOW WE ARE ROLLING ART PROJECTS INTO OUR BOND PROJECTS WHEN WE PUT IN A ROUNDABOUT, IT WAS $500,000 AND IT WASN'T EVEN A LOCAL ARTIST. THE ARTIST WAS PAID BEFORE SEEING THE ARTWORK THEY CREATED. AND IT JUST SEEMED LIKE A BACKWARD PROCESS FOR ALL OF THEM. AND I AGREE WITH COUNCILWOMAN ALDERETE GAVITO ABOUT WE NEED TO LOOK AT ANY OVERLAP WITH THE DELEGATE AGENCIES. THIS IS NOT A POPULAR SPENDING AREA IN DISTRICT 9. I APPRECIATE ARTS AND CULTURE. I UNDERSTAND BUT WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT THINGS -- CORE SERVICES AND CORE FUNCTIONS FOR OUR CITY, IT'S HARD FOR ME TO JUSTIFY IT WHEN THERE ARE FATALITIES BECAUSE OF TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS OUT IN STONE OAK. AND ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY'RE DOING A BOND PROJECT, ABOUT TO DO ANOTHER BOND PROJECT RIPPING UP THE ROAD AGAIN AND TH ART IS GOING TO HAVE TO BE MOVED. I'M STRUGGLING WITH ART, IS ALL I HAVE TO SAY. FOR SURE. VISIT SAN ANTONIO. BIG FAN. BIG FAN. I APPRECIATE ALL THE HARD WORK YOU'RE DOING. WERE YOU REFERRING WITH THE ROYALTY COURT -- CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT THE OPERATIONAL FUNCTIONS OF THE HOSPITALITY FUND FOUNDATION, THE SAN ANTONIO HOSPITAL FUND FOUNDATION. >> IN TERMS OF THE SCHOLARSHIP, THE PROCESS? >> SPEARS: IS THAT WHAT IT IS? >> IT IS. WE HAVE OUR EXECUTIVE WHO SITS AS THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, OF WHICH COUNCILWOMAN VIAGRAN SITS ON, FOR THAT FOUNDATION. TO DETERMINE THE GOALS AS WELL AS LOOKING AT THE FINANCIALS, AS WE DO WITH ALL OUR REPORTING. WHETHER IT BE TPID OR VISIT SAN ANTONIO. AND THEN ULTIMATELY IN TERMS OF ALLOCATIONS AND THE DESIRE TO HAVE THE FUND REPOPULATED, FOR LACK OF A BETTER WAY OF SAYING IT. THAT'S WHERE WE HAVE DETERMINED CURRENTLY THAT FIVE SCHOLARSHIPS HAVE BEEN GIVEN OUT AT THE DETERMINATION BY ST. PHILIPS AND UTSA AT THAT $2500 RANGE. YEAH. >> SPEARS: YOU MENTIONED BEING BEHIND PACE AND LOSING GROUPS. CAN YOU GIVE ME AN EXAMPLE OF THAT -- OF VISITORS TO DALLAS AND AUSTIN IN 2030. DO YOU HAVE AN EXAMPLE? >> I WILL GO BACK TO THE TEXAS HIGH SCHOOL COACHES THAT, FOR THE FIRST TIME, IS HEADING TO AUSTIN. MY HOPE IS THEY DON'T FIT. ON PAPER, IT LOOKS LIKE THEY FIT. WITH THE DOUBLING OF THAT CONVENTION CENTERS. I'M PRETTY CLOSE TO THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR. THEY WERE LOOKING TO TAKE SIX YEARS BUT THROUGH RELATIONSHIPS AND WITH THE CITY BEING AS SPECIAL AS IT IS GROUP THAT HAS LEFT SAN ANTONIO. WE ARE STILL SHARING. WE HAVE THEM BOOKED OUT IN THE FUTURE BUT WE ARE NOW SHARING WITH AUSTIN FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER. >> SPEARS: THANKS FOR ALL YOUR HARD WORK. I REALLY APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU. COUNCILMAN MUNGIA, PLEASE. >> MUNGIA: ON THAT NOTE, MARIO, MAYBE IT'S TOO WEIRD FOR THEM AND THEY WILL COME BACK HERE. LET ME SEE IF I CAN DO THIS IN FIVE MINUTES. FOR ARTS, KRYSTAL, FIRST, CONGRATULATIONS. I SAW THAT AWARD YOU GOT, THE RECOGNITION. YOU'RE DOING A GREAT JOB
OVER THERE. BY THE WAY, THAT WAS A FANTASTIC VIDEO. THAT WAS BEAUTIFUL. WELL DONE ON THAT. WHEN IT COMES TO MAINTENANCE, I THINK IT IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT BECAUSE WHAT I HEAR FROM RESIDENTS IS WHY ARE BUT GOING TO DO SOMETHING AND JUST LEAVE IT AND NEVER TOUCH IT? IF WE DO ARTWORK, WE HAVE TO DO MAINTENANCE. I THINK MAYBE AS THE HOT TAX GROWS OVER TIME, TRYING TO SIPHON SOME OFF TO START MAINTENANCE I THINK WOULD BE A GOOD PLAN GOING FORWARD TO HELP WITH THE GENERAL FUND ISSUE. BUT WE CERTAINLY NEED THAT. NOT SURE IF THERE'S ANY MAINTENANCE PLANS OR THERE HAVE BEEN ON OUR FAVORITE ZARZAMORA SCULPTURE BUT IT MIGHT NEED A LITTLE TOUCHING UP. I'M NOT SURE WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE BUT WE CAN GET WITH YOU LATER ABOUT THAT. YOU KNOW, WHEN IT COMES TO NEW ART, I THINK MURALS AND FUNCTIONAL ART ARE THE MOST WIDELY ACCEPTED FORMS OF ART PIECES IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR. I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS ABOUT SCULPTURES THAT PEOPLE HAVE DIFFERENT ATTITUDES FOR. ESPECIALLY IN MY DISTRICT, THINGS THAT CAN BE MORE FUNCTIONAL. I KNOW ON A SOUTH SIDE TRAIL WE'RE LOOKING TO MAKE IT A FUNCTIONAL ART PIECE, LIKE A GAZEBO OR A SHADE STRUCTURE. I THINK THE COMMUNITY WAS VERY INTERESTED IN THAT. I THINK Y'ALL HAVE DONE A LOT TO INCLUDE THE COMMUNITY OF THE SURROUNDING AREA IN THE SELECTION PROCESS AND KIND OF WHAT THEIR VISION IS. SO THAT HAPPENED IN THE SOUTH SAN/QUINTANA AREA. I APPRECIATE THAT BECAUSE THEY HAVE OWNERSHIP NOW AND I CAN POINT TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD PRESIDENT AND SAY THEY ARE THE ONES WHO WANTED THAT WHEN THEIR NEIGHBORS CALL TO COMPLAIN. I THINK Y'ALL HAVE DONE FANTASTIC WORK ON THAT ALSO. WHEN IT COMES TO THE CONVENTION CENTER, GREAT JOB. I MEAN, IT WAS -- IT'S DESIGNED FOR A FOOTBALL FIELD. IT WAS A BASKETBALL STADIUM AND NOW IT'S A MUSIC VENUE. AND IT'S THE GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING. I SAW SEPTEMBER'S LINEUP. THOSE ARE SOME REALLY NICE NATIONAL, GLOBAL ARTISTS THERE THAT ARE AN ATTRACTION FOR SO MANY FOLKS. SO I THINK THAT IS REALLY GREAT. VSA, MARIO AND JUSTIN, Y'ALL ARE FANTASTIC. EVERY IDEA THAT COMES UP ABOUT TOURISM GETS PITCHED TO Y'ALL AND Y'ALL HAVE TO FIGURE IT OUT. I APPRECIATE Y'ALL WORKING WITH SO MANY OTHER ARTISTS, ESPECIALLY WITH THE WEST SIDE ARTS COALITION. THEY HAVE TALKED TO YOU ABOUT INCLUDING THEM ON THINGS . Y'ALL HAVE BEEN VERY INCLUSIVE, MORE THAN MAYBE WAS THE CASE IN THE PAST. GOOD JOB ON THAT. AIRPORT. JESUS, I LOVE YOUR MOTO. NO EXCUSES. YOU'RE DOING YOUR THING AND MAKING IT HAPPEN. IT'S A SHINING EXAMPLE. I WAS AT YOUR PRESENTATION WHEN YOU GAVE THE TALK TO SOME OF THE SURROUNDING CITIES AND SUBURBS. IT WAS SO INTERESTING TO HEAR THAT SO MANY FOLKS FROM AROUND US USE THE AIRPORT. SO I THINK FOR EVERY SAN ANTONIO RESIDENT THAT FEELS LIKE THEY NEED TO GO TO AUSTIN TO FLY OUT, THERE'S PROBABLY TEN FOLKS THAT COME TO SAN ANTONIO. THAT'S THE THING WITH THE AIRPORT, VSA, AND THE CONVENTION CENTER, IT'S SO MUCH OF A REGIONAL IMPACT. SO MANY PEOPLE FLOCK TO SAN ANTONIO TO SEE ARTISTS AT THE CONVENTION CENTER. Y'ALL HAVE THE DATA TO SHOW THAT, THAT THERE'S SO MANY PEOPLE FROM THE OUTSIDE. WE SUPPORT A REGIONAL AREA AND I THINK WE HAVE TO REMIND OURSELVES OF THAT. US AND TRAVIS COUNTY, WE'RE THE LARGEST COUNTIES IN ALL THIS MILES AND MILES OF LAND IN TEXAS. AND PEOPLE FLOCK TO US FOR THESE THINGS. AND SO I THINK THAT THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT FOR US TO NOTE THAT AND TO SHOW THAT WE HAVE SUCH A REGIONAL IMPACT ON THAT. BUT VERY EXCITED ABOUT THE AIRPORT. I ALWAYS HAVE A POSITIVE EXPERIENCE THERE. AND THE BEST THING ARE THE VOLUNTEERS THAT GO WITH THE YELLOW VEST. PEOPLE WHO VISIT ME FROM OUT OF TOWN ARE ALWAYS COMMENTING ON THAT PIECE. VERY, VERY GOOD TO SEE THAT. AND SO I'M ALSO VERY INTERESTED IN THE POSSIBLE FLIGHTS YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT TO THE VALLEY. SO MANY PEOPLE FROM SAN ANTONIO HAVE A CONNECTION TO THE VALLEY, HAVE FAMILY FROM THERE. AND THAT'S SUCH AN INTERESTING THING TO WORK ON. NEVER REALLY HAD THOUGHT OF THAT IDEA, BUT ESPECIALLY AS WE TALK ABOUT OUR PLACE IN THE SOUTH TEXAS TRIANGLE AND OUR CONNECTOR BETWEEN SOUTH TEXAS AND REALLY MEXICO TO THE REST OF TEXAS AND THE REST OF THE COUNTRY, I THINK WE'RE WELL POSITIONED TO HAVE THE BEST ACTS COME TO THE CONVENTION CENTER. THE BEST FLIGHTS. THE BEST TOURISM FOLKS. YES, EVEN THE BEST ART AND VIDEO STUFF. THANK YOU ALL. APPRECIATE IT. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU. COUNCILMEMBER GALVAN, PLEASE. >> GALVAN: THANK YOU, MAYOR. THANK YOU TO ALL THE DEPARTMENTS THAT PRESENTED TODAY AND FOR ALL THE WORK Y'ALL DO EVERY DAY TO MAKE OUR CITY FEEL AUTHENTIC, TO BE AUTHENTIC AND TO BEST REPRESENT OUR CULTURE AND COMMUNITY THAT WE CAN HIGHLIGHT TO SO MANY PEOPLE, WHETHER IT'S OURSELVES, TO OUR NEARBY NEIGHBORS OR OUR
NEIGHBORS ACROSS THE WORLD. THANK YOU FOR ALL THE WORK YOU DO TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN. I DON'T HAVE TOO MANY QUESTIONS. I JUST WANTED TO GIVE SOME SHOUT OUTS. ECHOING COUNCILMEMBER MUNGIA'S ABOUT THE CONCERT LINEUP WE'RE SEEING IN SEPTEMBER. ALL OF MY MIDDLE SCHOOL FRIENDS ARE EXCITED FOR THE PIERCE THE VEIL. THANK YOU FOR SECURING INCREDIBLE LINEUPS LATER THIS SUMMER . IT'S BEEN A FUN CONVERSATION WITH EVERYBODY I HAVEN'T TALKED TO IN TEN YEARS. BEYOND THAT, OF COURSE THE AIRPORT, ALWAYS INCREDIBLE WORK, JESUS. GRATEFUL FOR YOU ALLOWING ME AND MY TEAM TO GO OUT THERE. IT WAS AN EXCITING TIME TO EXPERIENCE THAT, TO SEE ALL THE WORK BEING DONE AND THE EARLY STAGES OF IT, AND TO KNOW THAT IT'S BEING DELIVERED IN SUCH A GREAT WAY. VERY RESPONSIBLE PATHWAY FORWARD WITH THAT ONE TOO. ARTS AND VISIT SAN ANTONIO DOING INCREDIBLE WORK TO SHOWCASE THOSE THINGS ABOUT US, WITHOUT MAKING IT FEEL LIKE A TOURIST TRAP. I THINK THAT'S AN IMPORTANT THING FOR ALL OF OUR RESIDENTS, EVEN FOLKS IN DISTRICT 6 WHO EVERY NOW AND AGAIN VISIT DOWNTOWN AND SAY I FELT SOMETHING WAS STRONGER TODAY. IT'S ALL THE THINGS Y'ALL ARE PUTTING INTO THAT. I DID HAVE ONE QUESTION ON THE HOT TAX. ON THE ALLOCATION ITSELF, WHAT PROGRAMS OR SERVICES ARE FUNDED BY THE HISTORY AND PRESERVATION ALLOCATION? I KNOW IT GOES TO THE GENERAL FUND IN SOME WAYS, BUT APPRECIATE SOME MORE DETAILS. I SAW ON THE FINANCIAL FORECAST IT HAS THE RIVER WALK, LA VILLITA, A COUPLE OF THINGS. CAN YOU SHARE ABOUT THAT? >> SURE. SO IT SUPPORTS -- WITHIN THE GENERAL FUND WE HAVE SEVERAL HISTORY AND PRESERVATION EXPENSES. IT INCLUDES OUR RIVER WALK MAINTENANCE, LA VILLITA, GOVERNOR'S PALACE. IT SHOWS MORE EXPENSES THAN WHAT IT PAYS FOR BUT THAT'S WHAT THAT HISTORY AND PRESERVATION FUNDS. >> GALVAN: ARE YOU ABLE TO GIVE US A BIT MORE DETAIL ON THOSE IN A FOLLOW-UP? I'M LOOKING AT THE BUDGET AND I SEE TRANSFERS ON THE OPERATION AND IT DOESN'T ADD UP TO $12 MILLION. I WANT TO MAKE SURE I SEE WHAT ELSE IT'S GOING TO. THIS IS A DIFFERENT DEPARTMENT NOT HERE TODAY BUT THE OHP OFFICE, I'M THINKING ABOUT OF COURSE THE REDUCTIONS THERE AND JUST A LITTLE BIT NERVOUS ABOUT THE CULTURAL HERITAGE DISTRICTS PULLED BACK. IS THERE ANY WAY TO SUPPORT THAT STILL? JUST WANTED TO SEE WHAT THAT COST WOULD BE. >> TATE: WE CAN PROVIDE YOU THE DETAILED LIST. >> GALVAN: THANK YOU SO MUCH. THOSE ARE ALL MY QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS. THANK YOU TO ALL THE TEAMS. THANK YOU, MAYOR. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU. COUNCILMAN MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ, PLEASE. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: THANK YOU, MAYOR. THANK YOU ALL FOR THE PRESENTATIONS TODAY. I'LL BE RELATIVELY BRIEF AND THE REASON WHY IS I THINK A LOT OF US ARE FOCUSED ON THE GENERAL FUND AND THE DEFICIT AND AREAS TO REALLY HAVE AN IMPACT THERE. SO CITY OF SAN ANTONIO, ZERO DOLLARS FROM THE GENERAL FUND. IS THAT ACCURATE? >> VILLAGOMEZ: THAT IS CORRECT. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: AND THE AIRPORT, ZERO DOLLARS AS WELL FROM THE GENERAL FUND? >> VILLAGOMEZ: CORRECT. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: FOR ARTS AND CULTURE, THAT'S HALF A MILLION DOLLARS TO THE GENERAL FUND AND THAT'S MAINTENANCE? >> VILLAGOMEZ: YES. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: OKAY. AND THEN CONVENTION AND SPORTS, $1.5 MILLION IN THE GENERAL FUND. THAT ONE GOES TO THE CARVER CENTER? >> VILLAGOMEZ: THAT IS CORRECT. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: REAL QUICK, BECAUSE I'M LOOKING AT THE DOCUMENT. IT LOOKS LIKE A TRANSFER. IT'S A WEIRD THING THAT'S HAPPENING. CAN YOU EXPLAIN WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE $1.5 MILLION TO CARVER? >> VILLAGOMEZ: SURE. SO JUST TO GIVE SOME CONTEXT. SEVERAL YEARS AGO THE CARVER USED TO BE IN THE GENERAL FUND. AS WE CONSOLIDATED THAT TO BE MANAGED BY THE CONVENTION SPORTS AND FACILITIES, BECAUSE OF THE PROGRAMMING THAT THEY OFFER. SO WE TRANSFER FUNDS FROM THE GENERAL FUND TO THE CONVENTION, SPORTS, AND ENTERTAINMENT FUND TO SUPPORT THE CARVER CENTER. THAT'S HOW THAT TRANSFER WORKS. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: GOTCHA. DO, DO, DO, DO, DO. I DON'T HAVE A WHOLE LOT OF QUESTIONS THERE. ONE FOR ARTS AND CULTURE. LOVE ALL THE WORK THAT EVERYBODY DOES. I WILL GO BACK TO THE AIRPORT REAL QUICK. SO I WAS JUST LEAVING OMAHA, NEBRASKA. MY HUSBAND IS STARTING PHARMACY SCHOOL AND WE WENT OUT FOR HIS ORIENTATION AND WHITE COAT CEREMONY AND WHATNOT. AND WE DECIDED THAT WE WERE GOING TO FLY BACK. WE ORIGINALLY DROVE OVER AND 17 HOURS WITH A BABY IN A CAR IS A LOT. WE DECIDED WE WERE GOING TO BOOK A FLIGHT BACK TO SAN ANTONIO. WE HAD A CONNECTING FLIGHT IN DENVER, BECAUSE THERE'S NO DIRECT FLIGHTS. WHAT ENDED UP HAPPENING IS WE WERE LIKE, OH, IT'S GOING TO BE A COOL SIX, SEVEN HOURS ON A PLANE. THERE'S GOING TO BE A QUICK LEFTOVER. WE CAN DO IT. ALL I NEED IS A BACKPACK WITH SOME DIAPERS, CLOTHES, AND FOOD FOR SARAI. NOTHING ELSE. JUST THAT BACKPACK, MY BABY AND ME. WHAT ENDED UP HAPPENING WAS THERE WAS A DELAY THAT WAS MAYBE ONE HOUR AT FIRST. AND IT REDUCED THE LAYOVER A
LITTLE BIT. WE WERE LIKE, OKAY, COOL. I GET ON TO THE PLANE AND THEY ANNOUNCE THAT IT'S GOING TO BE ANOTHER 30 MINUTES, ANOTHER HOUR. THE DELAYS KEEP HAPPENING. SO THEY LEAVE THE GATE AND I SAY, HEY, COULD WE PLEASE -- WE'RE LIKE, HEY, WE'RE GOING TO BE STUCK HERE FOR A WHILE. CAN WE PLEASE GET OFF, BECAUSE I WOULD RATHER DRIVE BACK WITH MY HUSBAND TOMORROW RATHER THAN END UP MISSING MY CONNECTING FLIGHT. THEY SAY NO AND WE'RE STUCK THERE ON THE GROUND FOR AN HOUR. BABY IS ASLEEP. ONCE WE TAKE OFF, THE BABY IS CRYING. AND SHE ENDS UP CALMING DOWN. SHE'S A GREAT BABY. BUT WE GET TO DENVER AND IT IS JUST RIGHT AFTER THE FLIGHT TAKES OFF TO SAN ANTONIO. AND SO THAT WAS THE LAST FLIGHT TO SAN ANTONIO. SO WE WERE STUCK OVERNIGHT IN DENVER. HAD TO NEGOTIATE A HOTEL STAY AND WHATNOT. SO FROM THAT TIME UNTIL -- THEY ORIGINALLY TRIED TO PUT ME ON A 1:00 P.M. FLIGHT THE NEXT DAY. WOULDN'T HAVE WORKED. ENDED UP GETTING ME AND MY DAUGHTER AT 9:35 THE NEXT DAY. ONE SHOULD NEVER TRAVEL WITH JUST A BACKPACK AND THEIR BABY. [LAUGHTER] BUT ALSO IT JUST SPEAKS TO HOW INCONVENIENT SOME OF THESE LAYOVERS CAN BE AND AS MANY DIRECT FLIGHTS AS WE CAN GET, WHETHER IT'S FLIGHTS TO EUROPE OR IT'S FLIGHTS TO OMAHA OR OTHER STATES, OTHER CITIES AND STATES ACROSS THE COUNTRY, WE NEED AS MANY AS POSSIBLE, BECAUSE THAT WAS A HORRIFIC EXPERIENCE AND IT'S NOT THE ONLY EXPERIENCE OF ITS KIND, FROM SO MANY. I HAVEN'T GOTTEN TO TELL THAT STORY SO I FIGURED TODAY WOULD BE THE DAY. FOR ARTS AND CULTURE, I JUST HAVE ONE SMALL REQUEST. I WAS GOING THROUGH THE PUBLIC ART DASHBOARD AND THE MAP. AND IT DOES NOT INCLUDE THREE BIG THINGS THAT I THINK IT SHOULD. ONE IS HEELEY MURPHY PARK. THE SECOND IS THE EAST SIDE HEIRLOOMS ON NOLAN ACROSS THE STREET FROM NEON DRIVE . THAT ONE ISN'T DISPLAYED. AND I THINK IT'S BEAUTIFUL. IT WAS ONE OF THE SLIDES ON THE PRESENTATION. AND THEN THE LAST ONE IS THE TWO ART PIECES ABOVE THE NORTH NEW BRAUNFELS BRIDGE THAT WE FUNDED AND COMPLETED IN 2025. THOSE ARE REQUESTS. PERFECT. AND THEN CAN YOU OTHERWISE EXPLAIN THE HALF A MILLION DOLLARS FOR MAINTENANCE? WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE AND WHY DO YOU THINK IT'S NECESSARY? >> COUNCILMAN, THREE FISCAL YEARS AGO WHEN WE WERE WORKING ON THE 2022 BOND, WE WERE GOING OUT TO DO SIGNIFICANT COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT TO FIGURE OUT WHERE THE COMMUNITY WANTED TO SEE PUBLIC ART. AND WE HEARD THE COMMUNITY SAY WHY WOULD WE WANT NEW PUBLIC ART BECAUSE YOU CAN'T TAKE CARE OF WHAT WE HAVE. THAT WAS THE CONVERSATION COUNCIL HAD AT THE TIME. THAT SECURED THE $500,000 AT THAT TIME. WE ARE WORKING OFF OF A THREE-YEAR MAINTENANCE PLAN. WE HAVE OVER 800 PIECES IN OUR COLLECTION AND THESE ARE LARGE STRUCTURAL PIECES, MANY OF THEM, THAT ARE POTENTIALLY 30 YEARS-PLUS OLD. THAT IS THE WHY THE MONEY EXISTS. WE DO HAVE THAT THREE-YEAR MAINTENANCE PLAN THAT WE WORK OFF OF AND WE'RE CONTINUALLY ADDING PIECES AS WE'RE GOING TO ASSESS THEM. THE PIECE IN COUNCILMAN MUNGIA'S IS ON THE '28 PLAN, SO WE'RE AWARE OF THAT NEED. WE ALSO HAVE JUST ABOUT $25,000 OF THAT MONEY FOR RESPONSIVE PROJECTS. BECAUSE WE DO GET 311 CALLS ABOUT WHETHER IT'S AN ACCIDENT WHERE WE'VE HAD, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING HAPPEN WITH A PIECE OR UNFORTUNATELY IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA ON THE TORCH, THERE HAVE BEEN GRAFFITI ISSUES. WE HAVE RESPONSIVE MAINTENANCE WHERE THE COMMUNITY IS CALLING AND SAYING THIS REALLY NEEDS ATTENTION . >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: THE WORK OF THE ARTS DEPARTMENT IS PREVENTIVE IN NATURE. WHEN YOU'RE WORKING WITH ARTISTS, WHAT ARE SOME REQUESTS YOU HAVE FOR THEM TO ENSURE THAT'S AS EASY AS POSSIBLE? >> WHEN WE WORK WITH ARTISTS, WE HAVE A MAINTENANCE PLAN THAT THE ARTIST WHO WORKS ON THE PIECE ORIGINALLY PREPARES, ALONG WITH THEIR CONTRACT. IT'S A CONTRACT REQUIREMENT. SO IF WE GET DOWN THE LINE AND THAT ARTIST UNFORTUNATELY PASSES AWAY, WE KNOW EXACTLY HOW THEY WOULD HAVE MAINTAINED THE PIECE AND HOW IT NEEDS TO BE FIXED. WE ALSO REQUIRE ANTI-GRAFFITI ON ARTWORK. THIS IS SCULPTURES AND MURALS. IT'S A REALLY QUICK AND EFFICIENT WAY TO CLEAN UP GRAFFITI WHEN IT UNFORTUNATELY DOES HAPPEN. THAT ANTI-GRAFFITI IS REALLY MINIMAL TO COME OFF. WE WORK WITH THE ARTIST TO HAVE A MAINTENANCE PLAN
ATTACHED TO THE RECORD OF THAT ARTWORK. AND SO OUR TEAM, WHEN WE'RE LONG GONE, WILL KNOW HOW TO MAINTAIN THE PIECE FOR THE FUTURE. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: WHO MAINTAINS THE WORK? IS IT SOMETHING WE CONTRACT OUT? >> WE FIRST WORK WITH THE ARTIST. IF THE ARTIST IS STILL LIVING, WE WORK WITH THE ARTIST TO CONNECT THEM TO SAY, HEY, WE'RE GOING TO BE DOING THE MAINTENANCE PIECE. BUT WE DO HAVE OUR PREQUALIFIED LIST OF PUBLIC ARTISTS AND SUPPORT SERVICES, WHICH INCLUDE CONSERVATIONIST AND MAINTENANCE COMPANIES THAT ARE WELL VERSED IN MAINTAINING PUBLIC ART. SO IT DEPENDS ON THE PROJECT. EACH PROJECT IS UNIQUE. WE HAVE GLASS PIECES. WE HAVE SCULPTURES. WE HAVE STEEL. WE HAVE MURALS. SO IT DEPENDS ON THE PIECE BUT WE DO WORK WITH CONSERVATION EXPERTS, MAINTENANCE EXPERTS. AND SOMETIMES THOSE EXPERTS ARE THE ARTISTS THEMSELVES. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: FOR SURE. I GUESS WHAT I'M THINKING IS WHEN YOU LOOK AT $500,000 FOR 26 PIECES OF ART, THAT WORKS OUT TO WHAT I THINK IS ABOUT $19,000 A PIECE ON AVERAGE. THIS ISN'T JUST LET'S GO TO HOME DEPOT AND GRAB SOME PAINT AND SLAP IT ON IT. IT'S TECHNICAL AND IT'S PRECISE AND IT REQUIRES SPECIALIZED MATERIALS AND LABOR, RIGHT? >> YES. IT'S STRUCTURAL. AS YOU SAW WITH THE FISH EXAMPLE, THOSE PIECES NEEDED STRUCTURAL WORK SO IT IS WORKING WITH ENGINEERS. IT'S WORKING WITH EVEN FABRICATORS. WHAT WE'RE ALSO DOING WITH PIECES THAT WERE BUILT 20, 30 YEARS, WE'RE USING TODAY'S TECHNOLOGY SO WE'RE SECURING IT FAR INTO THE FUTURE SO THE PIECES LAST LONGER. SO WE'RE LOOKING AT USING TODAY'S TECHNOLOGY. AN EXAMPLE WOULD HAVE BEEN LAST YEAR WE WORKED ON BILL FITSGIVENS PIECE. THE LIGHTING WENT OUT. THOSE LIGHTING FIXTURES, WE DON'T SELL THEM ANYMORE SO WE PURCHASED LIGHTING FIXTURES THAT ARE IN TODAY'S TECHNOLOGY AND WILL LAST LONGER. >> MCKEE-RODRIGUEZ: I KNOW THAT IF I WERE TO GO TO MY SENIOR CENTER AND START ASKING A BUNCH OF PEOPLE, HEY, DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH MONEY WE'RE SPENDING ON ART MAINTENANCE, IT'S HARD TO CONCEPTUAL WHAT IT GETS YOU. I WOULD START THERE. I'M WONDERING AS WELL -- WE ALL AGREE THAT PUBLIC ART IS IMPORTANT AND IT'S A NEED IN OUR CITY AND IT TELLS OUR CITY'S STORY. IT'S GREAT FOR TOURISM, ALL OF THAT. IF WE WERE TO NOT MAINTAIN OUR ART, WHAT WOULD IT SAY ABOUT OUR CITY IF WE HAD GRAFFITI ALL OVER OUR SCULPTURES DOWNTOWN, IF MURALS WERE BEING VANDALIZED AND WE WEREN'T DOING ANYTHING ABOUT IT, I IMAGINE IT WOULD TELL A PRETTY BAD STORY. I HEAR THAT SOME OF MY COLLEAGUES WANT TO HAVE THOSE FUNDS REMOVED FROM THE GENERAL FUND AND FUNDED THROUGH THE HOT TAX. IF WE WERE TO DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT, THERE WOULD STILL HAVE TO BE SOME MOVEMENT AROUND WITHIN THAT BUDGET. SO IT'S A FUN GAME THAT WE'RE ALL GOING TO BE PLAYING. THANK YOU, KRYSTAL. THANK YOU, MAYOR. >> MAYOR JONES: WOULD ANY OF MY COLLEAGUES LIKE TO SPEAK ON THE SECOND ROUND? OKAY. THANK YOU. JESUS, JUST A COUPLE OF CLARIFYING QUESTIONS FOR YOU, PLEASE. TERMINAL C. CAN YOU GIVE US AN ASSESSMENT. ARE WE STILL -- WE'RE STILL THE ONLY MID-TIER AIRPORT IN THE TOP TEN LARGEST CITIES? >> SAENZ: THAT IS CORRECT. >> MAYOR JONES: HOWEVER HOW FAR ARE WE FROM BEING IN THE TOP TIER? >> SAENZ: APPROXIMATELY 3.5 MILLION ENPLANEMENTS. >> MAYOR JONES: IF WE WOULD HAVE HIT THE TARGET OF 11.3 MILLION, WE STILL WOULD HAVE BEEN SHORT. >> SAENZ: THAT IS CORRECT. >> MAYOR JONES: 13 MILLION IS THE GOAL WE NEED IN ORDER TO GET TO TOP TIER. IS THAT RIGHT? >> SAENZ: 13.5 TO 14 MILLION. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU. HOW DO YOU THINK THE TERMINAL C, WHILE IT IS ADDITIONAL CAPACITY, HOW SHOULD WE THINK ABOUT THAT ALLOWING US TO GET CLOSER TO THAT? YES, IT ALLOWS FOR MORE FLIGHTS BUT ENPLANEMENTS IS POTENTIALLY A DIFFERENT THING. HOW CAN WE THINK ABOUT THAT AND POTENTIALLY BE OF HELP AS WE TRY TO APPROACH THAT TIER? >> SAENZ: I THINK THE BIGGEST FACTOR IS THE ABILITY TO UTILIZE THE GATES MORE EFFICIENTLY. TO UTILIZE THE GATES MORE EFFICIENTLY. FOR EXAMPLE, WE'RE ADDING 18 GATES INTO TERMINAL C AND ALL 18 GATES WILL HAVE TWO COMMON USE BUT THE OTHER 16 ARE ALREADY SPOKEN FOR. IN 2024, WE STARTED THE CONVERSATION WITH ALL THE CARRIERS THROUGH A LETTER OF INTEREST. STATING HOW MANY GATES ARE YOU GOING TO NEED IN 2028. THERE WILL BE SOME ORGANIC GROWTH THAT BEGINS TO OCCUR. WE CAN CERTAINLY GET YOU THE PLANNING DOCUMENTS THAT OUTLINE WHEN WE ANTICIPATE HITTING THE 14 MILLION NUMBER TO GET US INTO A LARGE-HUB CATEGORY. >> MAYOR JONES: WHAT'S THE
SPOILER ALERT? WHAT DO YOU THINK THAT IS? I SAY THAT BECAUSE ALSO IN THE BACK OF MY MIND IS ALSO TRAVELING. YOU HEAR A LOT ABOUT THE COMPETITION IN AUSTIN AND WHAT THEY'VE DONE WITH THEIR AIRPORT AND HOW THAT IMPACTS OUR RIDERSHIP. HELP US UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, ONE, WE WANT TO GET THERE. TWO, HOW SHOULD WE THINK ABOUT WHAT AUSTIN IS DOING AND WHAT MIGHT WE LEARN FROM THAT IN OUR OWN EFFORTS? >> SAENZ: THE SHORT ANSWER IS, MAYOR, IS FLY SAN ANTONIO. WE HAVE A LEAKAGE STUDY THAT WE CAN SHARE WITH YOU THAT GOES BACK TO 2018. WE'RE HAVING ANOTHER LEAKAGE STUDY PERFORMED. BUT APPROXIMATELY 7% TO 10% OF SAN ANTONIANS DRIVE TO AUSTIN TO FLY. >> MAYOR JONES: 7 TO 10%. >> SAENZ: IN THE 2018 STUDY. WE'RE DOING A NEW LEAKAGE STUDY AND WE'LL BE ABLE TO GIVE YOU A FIRMER NUMBER IN THE NEXT SIX MONTHS. WE ARE VERY FOCUSED ON THAT. I THINK, TO THE OTHER COUNCIL MEMBERS' COMMENTS WITH REGARDS TO THE NONSTOP DESTINATIONS IS VERY IMPORTANT AND CRITICAL THAT WE CONTINUE TO CONNECT INTO THE TARGETED MARKETS WE WANT TO GET INTO. SO THAT'S A BIG FACTOR. AND THEN THE LAST FACTOR I SHARE WITH YOU IS THE BUSINESS FACTOR. THE NUMBER OF BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES WHERE BUSINESSES ARE ESTABLISHED IN AUSTIN AND FLYING FOR BUSINESS CLASS INTO DIFFERENT NONSTOP DESTINATIONS. IT IS DALLAS AND THEN HOUSTON AND THEN AUSTIN. AND WE ARE GOING TO BE THE NEXT ONE. THAT IS WHY WE ARE MOVING FORWARD WITH THE PLANNING DOCUMENTS THROUGH THE MASTER PLAN TO BE PREPARED FOR TERMINAL C. WE ANTICIPATE A 5 TO 8% ORGANIC GROWTH JUST BY THE EXPANSION OF THE GATES THAT WE HAVE AND WHAT WE'RE DOING. THAT'S ANOTHER 500 TO 800,000 ENPLANEMENTS WE EXPECT TO INCREASE JUST AS WE OFFER THE ADDITIONAL GATES. WE HAVE AMERICAN AND UNITED THAT ARE UTILIZING THREE GROUND LOAD FACILITY GATES BECAUSE THEY WANT TO BE ABLE TO EXPAND. IT IS THE AVAILABILITY OF GATES AND THAT'S AS BEST AS I CAN GIVE IT TO YOU NOW. >> MAYOR JONES: CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THE INCENTIVE PROGRAM? YOU MENTIONED IT JUST BRIEFLY BUT IS THAT ALSO TIED SPECIFICALLY TO THE -- I THINK YOU MENTIONED FOUR AREAS. SACRAMENTO, PORTLAND, THE VALLEY, AND PITTSBURGH. IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE TARGETING? >> THAT INTERNATIONAL AND NOW FAA -- HISTORICALLY WE HAVE ONLY BEEN ABLE TO PROVIDE INCENTIVES FOR TWO YEARS. AND NOW WE CAN DO THAT FOR THREE YEARS. SO WE HAVE TO LOOK AT HOW WE CAN MATCH THAT. WE'RE DRAFTING A PLAN AS WE SPEAK RIGHT NOW. AND WE WILL BE SHARING THAT WITH YOU ALL SHORTLY AND LOOKING AT THOSE TARGETED MARKETS. OBVIOUSLY, WE WORK CLOSELY WITH VSA. WE HAVE A CONSULTANT THAT WORKS WITH US IN PREPARING THOSE DOCUMENTS TO LOOK AT MARKETS. WE LOOK AT PASSENGERS DEPARTING EACH WAY. THE NUMBER ONE-TARGETED MARKET IS GETTING INTO EUROPE. 300 PASSENGERS START THEIR JOURNEY IN SAN ANTONIO EVERY DAY. 300 PASSENGERS START THEIR JOURNEY IN EUROPE EVERY DAY WANTING TO COME TO SAN ANTONIO. THAT'S AN AIRPLANE AND A HALF. SO THE SOONER WE CAN PROVIDE THAT SERVICE, THE SOONER WE CAN START TO FILL THOSE AIRCRAFT UP. THAT'S WHY WE WORK VERY HARD ON THE TRANSATLANTIC SERVICE. THAT'S ONE. THE SECOND ONE WOULD BE, YOU KNOW, GETTING INTO SOUTH AMERICA AND CENTRAL AMERICA. THAT'S A BIG FACTOR AS WELL. WE SAW THAT WITH EVERYTHING WE DO WITH SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO. SPIRIT WAS OVERSELLING THEIR FLIGHTS SO PEOPLE HAD TO CATCH FLIGHTS WITH OTHER CARRIERS. WE KNOW THAT THE MARKET IS THERE. IT'S REALLY TRYING TO GET THAT. I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT I SHARE WITH YOU AS WELL, MAYOR, THAT IT'S NOT JUST US. THE CARRIERS, YOU HAVE HIGH FUEL COSTS. YOU HAVE PLANES THAT HAVEN'T BEEN CERTIFIED AND THAT HAVEN'T MOVED. AND THE AVAILABILITY OF AIRCRAFT PLAYS A FACTOR INTO WHERE THE CARRIERS MAKE DECISIONS ON WHERE THEY WANT THEIR AIRCRAFT TO GO. THEY'RE GOING TO GO CHASE THE OPPORTUNITIES THAT HAVE THE MOST PDUS OF WANTING TO GO INTO THOSE CITIES. BASED ON WHERE WE STACK, THAT'S WHERE WE'RE TRYING TO GET IN TO LEVERAGE AND POSITION OURSELVES THROUGH THE INCENTIVE PROGRAM. WE WANT TO MAKE THAT ATTRACTIVE TO THE CARRIERS. I WANT TO GO TO SAN ANTONIO. >> MAYOR JONES: I WAS TALKING TO MAYOR JOHNSON OUT OF DALLAS AND HE WAS TALKING ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF THE CARGO FREIGHT AND HOW THAT CONTRIBUTES TO THEIR BOTTOM LINE. CAN YOU GIVE US A SENSE OF HOW THAT CONTRIBUTES TO OUR BOTTOM LINE AND IF WE EXPECT GROWTH IN THAT AREA? >> SAENZ: THAT TOO IS DOWN. WE'RE APPROXIMATELY 20% DOWN YEAR OVER YEAR ON CARGO. SO AS THINGS HAVE NOT BEEN MOVING THE WAY THEY'VE BEEN
NORMALLY MOVING, THERE'S A REDUCTION. CARGO IS DOWN AS WELL. THE MORE PASSENGERS YOU PUT ON AIRCRAFT, THE MORE CARGO. AS WE LOOK AT THE BUSINESSES AND THE SECTORS THAT WE CHASE AND HOW WE LOOK AT THAT, THAT'S AN INCREDIBLY LARGE FACTOR AS WELL. WE HAVE SEEN INCREASES IN EVERYTHING THAT'S HAPPENING WITH UPS, FEDEX, AND DHL. THEY'RE MOVING SOME CARGO BUT THE CARGO THAT GOES IN THE BELLY OF THE AIRCRAFT IS REDUCED. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. 13.5, 14 MILLION. WE'LL KEEP IT. PATRICIA, PLEASE. I WANT TO MAKE SURE I UNDERSTOOD THE POINT. WHEN YOU SAID OUR CONVENTION CENTER IS AT CAPACITY. WHEN WE LOOK AT THE CONVENTION CENTER EXHIBIT HALL OCCUPANCY IT'S 75%. AND IT LOOKS LIKE WHEN WE'RE GOING FROM NUMBER OF EVENTS, WE'RE GOING FROM 275 TO 232. HELP US UNDERSTAND HOW WE CAN UNDERSTAND THAT WE'RE AT CAPACITY BUT WE'RE ONLY AT 75% OCCUPANCY. >> REALLY, 75% OCCUPANCY IS PRACTICAL MAXIMUM CAPACITY. MOST OF THE OTHER DATES THAT ARE LEFT ARE USUALLY AROUND -- NOT ENOUGH TO BOOK A CONVENTION OR AROUND HOLIDAYS. AND SO REALLY ONCE YOU GET TO ABOUT 75, THAT'S THE MAXIMUM. >> MAYOR JONES: OPERATIONAL MAXIMUM. >> CORRECT. >> MAYOR JONES: AND 75% IS TIED TO 232? >> YES. >> MAYOR JONES: OKAY. SO 275, WHICH WAS THE TARGET, WOULD HAVE GOTTEN YOU -- WHAT IS THAT, 90% THEN? >> NO. WE STRUGGLE, LIKE I SAID, WITH THIS PERFORMANCE MEASURE. BECAUSE AN EVENT -- YOU KNOW, ONE EVENT IS NOT THE SAME AS ANOTHER EVENT. SOME EVENTS, YOU KNOW, MIGHT HAVE MORE MOVE IN, MORE MOVE OUT. AND SO REALLY THEY DON'T CORRELATE. IT JUST DEPENDS ON THE TYPE OF EVENTS WE HAVE ON THAT PARTICULAR YEAR. AND THE OCCUPANCY RELATED TO THAT. >> MAYOR JONES: CAN YOU GIVE US A SENSE OF WHAT SOME OF THE CAPITAL PROJECTS ARE. YOU SAID $12.8 MILLION WORTH OF CAPITAL PROJECTS. >> SO I BELIEVE SLIDE 10 INCLUDES THE ONE FOR THE ALAMODOME. SLIDE 10. 8.1 MILLION IN FISCAL YEAR '27. THE MAJORITY OF THAT IS TO BEGIN A PROJECT. IT'S THE RETROFITTING OF OUR BUILDING MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AT THE ALAMODOME. THAT CONTROLS HVAC, LIGHTING, CONTROLS FIRE SUPPRESSION EQUIPMENT. WE HAVE UPDATING OR MAINTAINING OUR HVAC AND LIGHTING AT THE ALAMODOME. THERE'S WI-FI REPLACEMENT. THERE'S ALSO SOME CONCESSIONAIRE IMPROVEMENTS AND REPLACEMENT OF ARENA BOXES. >> MAYOR JONES: THAT'S HELPFUL. THAT COMES TO 14.2 AND THIS ONE SAID 12.8 SO I DIDN'T WANT TO ASSUME THOSE WERE THE SAME THINGS. >> THIS IS '27 AND '28 FOR ALAMODOME IMPROVEMENTS. THE 12.8, THERE'S ABOUT $4 MILLION IN IMPROVEMENTS TO THE CONVENTION CENTER IN FISCAL YEAR '27. AND THE 8.1 PLUS THAT $4 MILLION IS THE $12.8 MILLION. MOST OF THE $4 MILLION AT THE CONVENTION CENTER INCLUDES -- WE'RE GOING TO BEGIN REPLACING OUR CARPET IN THE FACILITY. >> MAYOR JONES: OKAY. THANK YOU. THAT $4 MILLION FOR THE CONVENTION CENTER, THAT COMES FROM THE 2%? >> THAT COMES -- NO. THAT COMES FROM -- YEAH. IT COMES FROM THE 2%. >> VILLAGOMEZ: NO. JUST A CORRECTION. IT COMES FROM THE 7%. SO ONCE WE HAVE ALL OF OUR EXPENDITURES COVERED, WE SET ASIDE FUNDING FOR CAPITAL. THE 2% IS DEDICATED JUST TO THE EXPANSION AND PAY FOR DEBT RELATED TO THE EXPANSION. >> MAYOR JONES: NONE OF THAT 2% CAN BE USED ON THESE PROJECTS THAT SHE'S DESCRIBING? ON THE SLIDE IT SAYS 2% FUNDS CONVENTION CENTER EXPANSION DEBT AND FUTURE PROJECTS. >> VILLAGOMEZ: I WILL FOLLOW UP WITH YOU, MAYOR, ON THAT QUESTION. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU. TOUGH TIMES. WE GOT TO FIND EVERY PENNY HERE. ARE WE -- IT'S YOUR OFFICE THAT OVERSEES ALL OF THE LEASE AGREEMENTS. IS THAT RIGHT? >> THAT'S CORRECT, MAYOR. >> MAYOR JONES: AND WE'RE CURRENT ON ALL THE LEASE PAYMENTS? IS THAT CORRECT? >> THAT IS CORRECT. >> MAYOR JONES: TOYOTA AND WOLFF STADIUM, ALL OF THAT? THANK YOU. ON THE CONVENTION CENTER
EVENTS, 50 LESS EVENTS THAN WHAT WE WERE ANTICIPATING OR WHAT OUR TARGET WAS IN FY26. CAN YOU HELP US UNDERSTAND WHY THAT IS OR -- I MEAN, 50 SEEMS SIGNIFICANT. WELCOME UNDERSTANDING WHY IT'S SO DIFFERENT THAN THE TARGET THAT WE HAD. >> YES. THE TARGET WAS BASED -- THERE'S SOME EVENTS THAT ARE SHORT-TERM BOOKINGS DURING THE YEAR. AND WE ANTICIPATED THOSE SHORT-TERM BOOKINGS TO MATERIALIZE. WHAT WE'RE SEEING IS THAT THOSE SMALLER, LOCAL REGIONAL EVENTS THAT ARE SHORT-TERM BUSINESS ARE NOT MATERIALIZING. THAT'S THE REASON WHY THE TARGET FOR '27, WE LOWERED IT TO 232. >> MAYOR JONES: IS THAT A NORMAL CANCELLATION RATE OR IS THIS JUST THE ECONOMY? >> IT'S PROBABLY THE ECONOMY THAT'S HAVING AN IMPACT. IF WE GO BACK AND LOOK AT FIGURES, YOU KNOW, PRE-COVID AS WELL AS IN '23, '24, THERE'S THAT SHORT-TERM BUSINESS WAS HIGHER. WE'RE JUST NOT SEEING IT NOW. >> MAYOR JONES: THAT'S ALSO CONTRIBUTING THEN TO WHY WE'RE SEEING THE 14% DECREASE IN THE AVERAGE TOTAL NUMBER OF ROOM NIGHTS DUE TO THE CONVENTION CENTER? >> THE ROOM NIGHTS, THE ESTIMATE FOR '26, THE 440,000. THAT'S RELATED MORE TO THE FACT THAT -- >> MAYOR JONES: WELL, THE TARGET FOR '26 WAS 525,000 AND NOW THE ESTIMATE IS 440,000. >> YES. THE ESTIMATE IS DUE TO THE FACT THAT IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF THIS FISCAL YEAR SOME OF THESE MEDICAL EVENTS JUST DID NOT PRODUCE THE PRODUCTION WASN'T THERE. THEY WERE IMPACTED BY THINGS SUCH AS, YOU KNOW, FUNDING CUTS, IMMIGRATION POLICIES, AS WELL AS TARIFFS. AND THERE WAS ALSO ONE -- >> MAYOR JONES: YOU SAID TARIFFS? >> UH-HUH. YES, MA'AM. >> MAYOR JONES: SORRY. I CUT YOU OFF. GO AHEAD. >> THERE WAS ALSO A WEATHER-RELATED EVENT THAT IMPACTED ANOTHER EVENT IN JANUARY. >> MAYOR JONES: OKAY. THE AVERAGE NIGHT ROOMS GENERATED BY THE CONVENTION CENTER, IS THERE A REASON YOU DON'T ALSO DO THAT FOR THE ALAMODOME SO WE CAN REALLY KIND OF, YOU KNOW, COMPARE APPLES TO APPLES? >> AND YOU'RE REFERRING TO THE REVENUE FOR RENTABLE SQUARE FOOT FOR THE CONVENTION CENTER? WE DO THE REVENUE PER ATTENDEE AT THE ALAMODOME. >> MAYOR JONES: YOU DO AVERAGE NIGHTS GENERATED AT THE CONVENTION CENTER. I WAS WONDERING WHY YOU DIDN'T ALSO DO THAT FOR A ALAMODOME. >> THAT'S A GOOD POINT. WE CAN DEFINITELY START WORKING ON SOMETHING LIKE THAT. IT'S A LITTLE BIT HARDER TO COME UP WITH BECAUSE THAT PARTICULAR PERFORMANCE MEASURE, THE HOTEL ROOMS, THOSE ARE CONTRACTED ROOMS THAT AN EVENT, A GROUP WILL CONTRACT WITH THE HOTELS. WE KNOW WE HAVE SOME CONTRACTS, WHEREAS THE ALAMODOME IT'S DIFFERENT. IT'S LEISURE TRAVEL. THERE'S NOT A ROOM BLOCK ASSOCIATED WITH THAT. >> MAYOR JONES: I SEE. THAT'S HELPFUL CONTEXT BUT TO THE EXTENT YOU ARE ABLE TO HELP US UNDERSTAND THE NIGHTS ASSOCIATED WITH THAT -- BECAUSE WHEN WE'RE TRYING TO UNDERSTAND THE ROI FOR EACH OF THESE THINGS, IF YOU CAN HELP US CONTEXTUALIZE THAT, THAT WOULD BE VERY HELPFUL. >> YES, MA'AM. >> MAYOR JONES: I'M NOT SURE IF THIS IS FOR YOU OR MARIO. THE PRESENT PRESENTATION THAT WL RECEIVE TO EXTEND THE TEN-YEAR CONTRACT, WE'LL RECEIVE THAT WHEN? >> WE DID A B SESSION BRIEFING LAST APRIL ON THAT. >> MAYOR JONES: OKAY. IN LIGHT OF -- WE MIGHT NEED SOMETHING A LITTLE MORE TIMELY. JUST GIVEN THE CHANGES IN YOUR OWN NUMBERS BUT WE SHOULD HAVE ANOTHER DISCUSSION ON THAT. AS WELL AS UNDERSTANDING WHAT SOME OF THE OTHER OPTIONS MIGHT BE. TEN-YEAR EXTENSION. A SMALLER TIME-FRAME, FOR EXAMPLE. LOOK FORWARD TO MORE INFORMATION ON THAT BEFORE WE TAKE ACTION. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. >> YES, MA'AM. >> MAYOR JONES: VISIT SAN ANTONIO. MARIO, PLEASE. I APPRECIATE THE SPECIFICATION, THE NUMBER OF
EVENTS YOU ALL GENERATE AT THE CONVENTION CENTER VERSUS --. WHAT IS HELPFUL THOUGH IS FOR US UNDERSTANDING ROI. IF YOU'RE GOING TO TAKE THE TIME TO BREAK OUT WHAT ROOM NIGHTS OR THAT METRIC, IT WOULD BE REALLY HELPFUL IF YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT A HIGHER ROI BASED ON THE TYPES OF EVENTS YOU BRING IN. IF IT'S A VISIT SAN ANTONIO EVENT, WE'RE LIKELY GOING TO SEE 1.5 X OR 2 X OR WHAT SOMEBODY ORGANICALLY SAW ON A SPURS GAME AND SAID WE WANT TO GO TO SAN ANTONIO. REALLY HELPING US UNDERSTAND THE ROI GIVEN YOUR BUDGET IS IMPORTANT. I MEAN, JUST FOR CONTEXT, DO FOLKS STAY LONGER FOR A VISIT SAN ANTONIO EVENT VERSUS FOR A NON-VISIT SAN ANTONIO EVENT IN OUR COMMUNITY? >> THEY DO. JUST BACK TO THE QUESTION YOU ASKED ABOUT THE CONVENTION CENTER, ROOM NIGHTS ASSOCIATED WITH VISIT SAN ANTONIO BEING DOWN WAS EVERYTHING PATRICIA MENTIONED. THE MEDICAL GROUPS WE HAD FROM OCTOBER THROUGH DECEMBER OF FISCAL YEAR '26, YOU WOULD HAVE NORMALLY BEEN SET UP FOR MAJOR SUCCESS. BUT DUE TO FUNDING ISSUES, SPECIFICALLY AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL, RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT GOT CUT. SOME DEI GROUPS WERE IN THERE AS WELL. THAT BUDGET -- >> MAYOR JONES: WHAT GROUPS? >> DEI RELATED. >> MAYOR JONES: DEI? >> ORGANIZATIONS. >> MAYOR JONES: WHICH ONES? >> IT WOULD BE AN INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION THAT HAD INTERNATIONAL VISITATION ASSOCIATED WITH IT. I COULD GET YOU THE EXACT NAME OF IT. >> MAYOR JONES: WE'RE NOT ASSOCIATING INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL WITH DEI, ARE WE? >> NO. THE ACTUAL GROUP THAT WAS IN QUESTION HAD DEI FOCUS FOR ITS CONTENT. THAT PARTICULAR GROUP HAD ITS FUNDING CUT AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL. >> MAYOR JONES: WHAT'S AN EXAMPLE SO WE'RE NOT TALKING AROUND IT? >> INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF -- I WOULD ACTUALLY HAVE TO GET YOU THE EXACT NAME OF IT. BUT THOSE MEDICAL GROUPS I MENTIONED, ALONG WITH THAT DEI. >> MAYOR JONES: SO AN INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL GROUP THAT WAS GOING TO COME INTO OUR COMMUNITY FOR A CONVENTION, BECAUSE THEY HAD THEIR FUNDING CUT BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FOR DEI-RELATED CIRCUMSTANCES, AS YOU UNDERSTAND IT, THEY CANCELED COMING INTO OUR COMMUNITY? >> NO. SO LET ME SLOW DOWN. I MIGHT BE BRINGING THIS ALL TOGETHER IN ONE. YOU HAD MEDICAL GROUPS IN AND OF THEMSELVES THAT DUE TO THE ECONOMY, DUE TO FEDERAL FUNDING CUTS ASSOCIATED WITH STUDENTS, RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT, WHATEVER IT MAY BE, GRANTS. THAT DID NOT PICK UP. TYPICALLY THOSE MEDICAL GROUPS WOULD PICK UP SOMEWHERE BETWEEN 80 TO 90% OF THE ROOM BLOCKS. THEY STAY LONGER. THEY SPEND MORE. THEY PICKED UP ABOUT 50% OF THOSE ROOM BLOCKS. MADE A MATERIAL IMPACT ON THE ROOM NIGHTS THAT YOU WERE ASKING PATRICIA ABOUT EARLIER. IN ADDITION TO THERE WAS A DEI GROUP THAT HAD A DEI FOCUS -- ACTUALLY IN THE NAME. I APOLOGIZE. I DON'T KNOW THE NAME BUT I'M GET THAT FOR YOU. THAT WAS ALSO IMPACTED BY FEDERAL GRANTS THAT WERE CUT. THAT ONE, IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN, ACTUALLY CANCELED DUE TO LACK OF FUNDING, PERIOD. THAT WAS COMPOUNDED BY THE ICE STORM THAT IMPACTED A TEXAS ASSOCIATION GROUP THAT DIDN'T PICK UP. THE ONLY OTHER THING I WOULD ADD TO THAT ROOM NIGHT CONVERSATION IS WHAT IS BEING TRACKED RIGHT NOW FROM THE CONVENTION CENTER. , OUR HOTEL STAYS. ABOUT 10% OF OUR HOTEL STAYS HAS RELODGED INTO SHORT-TERM RENTALS. SO IT DOESN'T INCLUDE THAT AS WELL. SO THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION REGARDING THOSE ROOM NIGHTS. >> MAYOR JONES: OKAY. I DO WELCOME UNDERSTANDING THE -- BECAUSE AGAIN OUR ECONOMY IS QUITE RELIANT ON TOURISM AND IF THERE ARE GROUPS -- AND WE'RE A WELCOMING AND INCLUSIVE COMMUNITY. IT WOULD BE UNFORTUNATE THAT AS YOU DESCRIBE, DEI GROUPS THAT LOST FEDERAL FUNDING, WERE NOT ABLE TO COME INTO OUR COMMUNITY AND SPEND MONEY IN OUR COMMUNITY. THAT'S UNFORTUNATE. WE WOULD WANT TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE SO WE CAN ADEQUATELY CAPTURE THE IMPACTS OF SOME OF THESE POLICIES. >> YES, MA'AM. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU. AS PART OF YOUR STRATEGIC PLAN, ONE OF THE THINGS I THINK WOULD BE HELPFUL IS A SPECIFIC FOCUS ON ENSURING THAT VISITORS SPEND TIME IN OTHER PARTS OF THE CITY. CERTAINLY, TRAVELING TO FIESTA TEXAS IS ONE THING I UNDERSTAND. OR TRAVELING TO SEA WORLD, I GET IT. BUT ENSURING THERE'S KIND OF
A DIVERSITY OF EXPERIENCES THROUGHOUT OUR CITY WOULD BE IMPORTANT SO THEY'RE SPENDING THOSE DOLLARS IN THOSE AREAS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. I WOULD ASK FOR YOU TO UNDERTAKE THAT SO THEY CAN SEE ALL THE WONDERFUL THINGS THAT ARE POSSIBLE IN OUR CITY. CAN YOU TALK ABOUT YOUR EFFORTS -- THIS MAY BE PATRICIA. BUT YOUR EFFORTS WITH LEAGUE OF MEXICO. THE SOCCER LEAGUE. >> YEAH. WE WORK WITH SAN ANTONIO SPORTS IN TERMS OF GETTING SPORTING EVENTS HERE. SPECIFIC TO VIVA MEXICO. I WOULD HAVE TO GET BACK TO YOU ON WHAT THOSE EFFORTS WOULD BE IN GREATER DETAIL. >> MAYOR JONES: I WOULD WELCOME UNDERSTANDING THAT. I WENT TO -- JUST HAPPENED TO BE DOWNTOWN AND THAT WAS ONE OF THE NAMES. IT WAS WONDERFUL. IT WAS KIND OF LIKE THE ENERGY WAS ALMOST LIKE A SPURS GAME. WE KNOW THOSE ARE WELL ATTENDED AND GREAT OPPORTUNITIES FOR PEOPLE TO ALSO COME INTO OUR COMMUNITY THAT MIGHT NOT BE IN SAN ANTONIO BUT ARE IN THE SURROUNDING AREAS AND WOULD COME TO ENJOY THOSE FESTIVITIES. I WOULD WELCOME UNDERSTANDING WHAT WE'RE DOING TO CAPTURE THAT WORK. >> ONE OF THE THINGS MOVING FORWARD -- >> MAYOR JONES: ONE SECOND. HOLD ON. COUNCILWOMAN, IS THERE SOMEBODY BACK THERE? WE HAVE LOST QUORUM. LET'S SEE IF THERE'S SOMEBODY THAT'S BACK THERE. THANK YOU. WE'LL RECESS FOR TEN MINUTES. THANK YOU. >> MAYOR JONES: ALL RIGHT. WE ARE BACK FROM RECESS. WHERE DID MARIO GO? I JUST SAW MARIO. I'LL GO TO ARTS AND CULTURE AND COME BACK TO MARIO. KRYSTAL, THANKS. WE'VE GOT A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE, UNFORTUNATELY IN THE ARTS AND CULTURE PROGRAM FOR 2026 FROM 18,000 TO OUR TARGET OF 15,500. CAN YOU HELP US UNDERSTAND WHY THAT IS? >> SOME YEARS FLUCTUATE WHEN IT COMES TO PROGRAMMING. IF YOU CAN IMAGINE EXHIBITS HAVE SOMETIMES 50 ARTISTS AND SOMETIMES EXHIBITS HAVE ONE OR TWO. SOMETIMES THERE'S DIFFERENT SEASONS FOR PARTICULAR PROGRAMS THAT ARE FOUR YEARS FOR NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS. ALSO LOOKING AT WHAT'S BEEN DONE IN THE PAST AND WE WORK TO PROJECT THIS BASED ON WHAT THEIR ACTUALS WILL BE IN TERMS OF LOOKING AT SPLITTING THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE FISCAL YEAR '25 ACTUALS AND THE '26 ESTIMATES. SO THAT'S HOW WE CAME UP WITH THE ESTIMATE WAS LOOKING AT WHAT THEY'RE DOING, LOOKING AT PROGRAMMATIC PLANS AND THEN BEING -- HAVING A REALISTIC ESTIMATE FOR '27. >> MAYOR JONES: THANK YOU FOR THAT. 3,000 FEWER ARTS AND CULTURE EVENTS WERE NOTICEABLE AS WELL AS THEN THE 5,000 DECREASE IN THE NUMBER OF ARTISTS SHOWCASED. OKAY. CAN YOU HELP US UNDERSTAND, JUST IN GENERAL HOW DO YOU DETERMINE WHAT ARTS, CULTURE, TOURIST THINGS ARE FOUNDED FROM THE HOT VERSUS FUNDED FROM THE GENERAL FUND? >> WE'RE LOOKING AT OUR HOT PROGRAMMING THAT'S FOCUSED ON ARTS AND CULTURAL PROGRAMMING. THAT IS AVAILABLE YEAR ROUND. WE'RE LOOKING AT THOSE ARTS AND CULTURE PROGRAMMING ALSO AVAILABLE TO RESIDENTS AND VISITORS. AND THEY HAVE AN ARTS AND CULTURAL MISSION. IT IS OPEN, WHEN IT COMES TO APPLICATION PROCESS, OF ANYONE WHO IS DOING THAT. WORK CAN APPLY FOR THIS FUNDING. AND THAT'S HOW IT'S DETERMINED. IT REALLY JUST SETS A CLEAR CRITERIA FOR HOTEL OCCUPANCY
DOLLARS FOR ARTS AND CULTURE ORGANIZATIONS THAT PROVIDE PROGRAMMING FOR RESIDENTS AND VISITORS. THAT'S HOW WE DEVELOP OUR GUIDELINES. >> VILLAGOMEZ: MAYOR, WE CAN ADD IN THE MEMO THE STATE REQUIREMENT ON THE HOT TAX. HOW IT'S ALLOCATED TO ARTS AND CULTURE. OF COURSE IN THE GENERAL FUND, WE DON'T HAVE THOSE RESTRICTIONS. SO WE'LL INCLUDE THAT IN THE FOLLOW-UP MEMO SO YOU CAN SEE THE DIFFERENCE OR THE RESTRICTIONS THAT WE HAVE FROM STATE LAW ON HOW TO UTILIZE THOSE DOLLARS. >> MAYOR JONES: THAT'S HELPFUL. THANKS, MARIA. I WANTED TO UNDERSTAND BECAUSE WHEN YOU LOOK AT SOME OF THE ENTITIES THAT DO GREAT WORK, THAT WE FUND VIA OUTSIDE CONTRACT AGENCIES. IT SEEMS LIKE THEY QUALIFY FOR HOT. SO A COUPLE OF THESE. FOR EXAMPLE, THE DIEZ Y SEIS COMMISSION, WOULD THEY QUALIFY FOR HOT? >> IT DEPENDS ON THEIR PARTICULAR MISSION. IT MIGHT BE AN EVENT FUND IN TERMS OF THE GRANT FUNDING THAT WE PROVIDE. BECAUSE A LOT OF THE ORGANIZATIONS AREN'T PROVIDING ARTS AND CULTURAL PROGRAMMING, THAT'S NOT THEIR CORE. THE COMMISSION IS MADE UP OF DIFFERENT ENTITIES. LULAC WE HAVE A COUPLE OF OTHERS LIKE -- IT JUST ESCAPED ME. THE MEXICAN CONSULATE. THAT'S WHAT THE DIEZ Y SEIS COMMISSION IS SUPPORTING AS A WHOLE. SO THE INDIVIDUAL ORGANIZATION IN TERMS OF DIEZ Y SEIS COULD POTENTIALLY APPLY FOR THE GRANT. >> MAYOR JONES: DREAM VOICE THAT PRODUCES DREAM WEEK. THAT COULD BE FUNDED OUT OF THE HOT? >> THEY COULD APPLY AND BE EVALUATED, BASED ON THE CRITERIA. >> MAYOR JONES: SAME THING WITH THE BOOK FESTIVAL. YOU COULD GIVE THEM 150K ON TOP OF THE 90 THAT THEY ALREADY RECEIVE FROM THE HOT. >> OUR QUALIFICATIONS FOR OUR GRANTS ARE BASED ON THEIR OPERATING EXPENSES. SO THEY ALREADY ARE GETTING FUNDING FROM THE HOT TAX. >> MAYOR JONES: THE 150 WE GIVE THEM OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND, IF THAT COULD BE COVERED OUT OF THE HOT. >> NOT THROUGH OUR GRANT GUIDELINES. SO THE ADDITIONAL $150,000 WOULD BE MORE THAN WHAT THEY QUALIFY FOR FOR OUR GRANT PROGRAM. >> MAYOR JONES: OKAY. >> THEY COULD APPLY AND WOULD HAVE TO BE EVALUATED BASED ON ELIGIBILITY. >> MAYOR JONES: IT'S A MILLION BUCKS. OKAY. THAT'S VERY HELPFUL. I THINK SIMILARLY, AS HAS BEEN ALLUDED HERE AND AS I HAVE BEEN DOING FOR SEVERAL WEEKS NOW, IS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE FREE UP SOME THIS GENERAL FUND MONEY. AS WELL AS I VERY MUCH SUPPORT THE ARTS AND I THINK IT'S A TREASURE ALL THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE. I'M THANKFUL THAT WE'RE SO GENEROUS WITH THEM. BUT I THINK THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE SURE, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT RAISING PEOPLE'S PROPERTY TAXES, THAT WE ARE BEING AS JUDICIOUS WITH ANY GENERAL FUND MONEY. AND SO WHEN I LOOK AT SOME OF THE ENTITIES THAT I JUST LISTED OFF HERE, THAT'S ABOUT $1.9 MILLION. WHEN WE LOOK AT SOME OF THE ARTS FUNDING, WHICH AGAIN THANKFUL THAT WE'VE GOT GREAT GROUPS LIKE SAN ANTONIO MUSEUM OF ART. I WAS A LITTLE BIT SURPRISED TO SEE THAT THEY RECEIVED $410,000 FROM THE HOT. >> IT'S BASED ON OUR FUNDING CRITERIA WITH OUR PERCENTAGE OF THEIR OPERATING EXPENSES. IT'S A PART OF THEIR FUNDING CRITERIA. >> MAYOR JONES: OKAY. WHEN WE LOOK AT -- I GUESS ALSO JUST FOR THOSE THAT APPRECIATE OUR INVESTMENT IN THE ARTS, ALSO ARE FOCUSED ON ENSURING THAT AS MANY OF OUR RESIDENTS HAVE ACCESS TO THESE ENTITIES AS POSSIBLE. WHAT ARE SOME OF THE CONVERSATIONS WE HAVE WITH THOSE ENTITIES AROUND ACCESSIBILITY? WHEN I LOOKED AT -- LET ME JUST -- I'LL LET YOU ANSWER THAT QUESTION. >> SO WHAT WE WORK WITH ARE NONPROFITS. WE DID AN ANALYSIS. WE LOOK AT IF THEY DO PROVIDE FREE PROGRAMMING AND ALL OF THE ORGANIZATIONS THAT WE FUND DO PROVIDE SOME LEVEL OF FREE PROGRAMMING. SOME 100%. SOME 50%. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, JUST VARIES BETWEEN WHAT THEY'RE OFFERING. WE ALSO LOOKED AT DISCOUNTS AND COMPED TICKETS THAT ARE AVAILABLE TO CERTAIN DEMOGRAPHICS, INCLUDING VETERANS, SENIORS, EDUCATORS, STUDENTS, FAMILIES RECEIVING WIC AND SNAP. SO WE HAVE THAT ANALYSIS AS WELL. AND EVERY SINGLE ORGANIZATION THAT IS CURRENTLY FUNDED PROVIDES SOME LEVEL OF DISCOUNT OR COMP TICKETS TO THOSE DEMOGRAPHICS. THOSE ARE JUST SOME OF THE CONVERSATIONS WE HAVE HAD SO FAR ABOUT ACCESS IN OUR COMMUNITY. >> MAYOR JONES: OKAY. I'D WELCOME US HAVING A BROADER CONVERSATION ABOUT
HOW WE NEGOTIATE AS PART OF THESE PROGRAMS. I MEAN, I JUST DID A QUICK REVIEW, JUST BECAUSE I WAS CURIOUS. BUT SAN ANTONIO MUSEUM OF ART RECEIVES $410,000 FROM US. AND THEY HAVE A GRAND TOTAL OF 14 HOURS A MONTH OF FREE HOURS. TWO HOURS ON SUNDAY FROM 10:00 TO 12:00 WHEN MOST PEOPLE ARE AT MASS. AND A COUPLE OF HOURS ON TUESDAY. AND THAT'S ONE SUNDAY A MONTH. I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT -- PROPERTY TAXES FUND THIS STUFF. AGAIN, APPRECIATE THE MUSEUMS AND ALL OF THESE THINGS BUT WE REALLY WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR RESIDENTS CAN ACTUALLY ACCESS THESE THINGS, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE TICKET FEES THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH EVEN GETTING TO THESE ENTITIES IF THEY CAN'T MAKE ONE OF THE 14 FREE HOURS A MONTH THAT THE MUSEUM OFFERS. I THINK IN GENERAL I ECHO SOME OF THE COMMENTS OF MY COLLEAGUES AS WELL IN TERMS OF MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE SUPPORTING AS MANY LOCAL ARTISTS AS POSSIBLE. I WOULD APPRECIATE -- WHEN I LOOKED AT HOW MUCH WE FUND FOR THE ARTIST GRANTS, $262,000, THAT'S -- WE GIVE, THERE'S AT LEAST TEN OR SO ORGANIZATIONS THAT RECEIVE MORE THAN THAT. AND WHEN THINKING ABOUT SUPPORTING OUR LOCAL ARTISTS AND THE GREAT WORK THAT THEY DO ALL THROUGHOUT THE CITY, THAT'S A NUMBER THAT'S ONLY 30 ARTISTS BUT THAT'S A NUMBER THAT I THINK WE CAN SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASE. HOW DID YOU ARRIVE AT 262,000 FOR THE ARTIST GRANTS? >> IT'S TRULY WHAT'S AVAILABLE IN THE HOT OCCUPANCY TAX. WE LOOK AT THE BUDGET. WE LOOK AT WHAT THE ARTS FUNDING GUIDELINES PROVIDE. AND THEN WE USE THE REST TO DO PROGRAMMATIC. OUR ARTIST GRANTS ARE IN EXISTENCE BUT A RELATIVELY NEW PROGRAM IN COMPARISON TO THE GUIDELINES THAT FUND OUR ORGANIZATIONS. >> MAYOR JONES: COULD IT BE THAT WE COULD LOOK AT MAYBE A DIFFERENT DISTRIBUTION OF SOME OF THE MONEY? WHEN I LOOK AT THESE THINGS -- I MEAN, THERE'S 11 ENTITIES THAT RECEIVE OVER $200,000. AND SOME OF THESE HAVE A LOT OF ASSETS THEMSELVES SO I WONDER HOW MUCH OUR CONTRIBUTION TO THEIR OPERATING BUDGET IS NECESSARY VERSUS, YOU KNOW, INVESTING IN SOME OF THESE LOCAL ARTISTS THAT WE REALLY WANT TO ENCOURAGE AND SUPPORT. I MEAN, SAN ANTONIO MUSEUM OF ART, THEY HAVE $90 MILLION IN ASSETS. THE WITTE MUSEUM HAS $82 MILLION IN TOTAL ASSETS. THE DOSEUM HAS $50 MILLION IN ASSETS. THESE ARE ORGANIZATIONS THAT PROVIDE A WONDERFUL SERVICE TO OUR COMMUNITY. I THINK WHEN WE'RE THINKING ABOUT OUR LIMITED HOT TAX, WE WANT TO SPREAD THAT AS EVENLY AS POSSIBLE. AND CERTAINLY TO THOSE WHO DON'T HAVE OTHER SOURCES OF INCOME. ESPECIALLY IF WE CAN ACTUALLY THEN USE SOME OF THAT -- FREE UP SOME OF THE MONEY IN THE GENERAL FUND AS WE FUND THESE THINGS. THAT WOULD CERTAINLY BE MY PREFERENCE HERE. BUT I WELCOME YOUR FEEDBACK ON THOSE THINGS. WHEN I DID JUST AGAIN QUICK MATH, WHEN I LOOKED AT SOME OF THE OUTSIDE AGENCIES I DESCRIBED THAT HAD SOME ARTS FLAVOR TO THEM, THAT'S $1.9 MILLION. IF YOU LOOKED AT JUST THE ORGANIZATIONS, THERE'S 11 OF THEM THAT RECEIVE OVER $200,000. IF YOU REDUCED THEIR MONEY BY A THIRD, THAT COVERS THOSE OUTSIDE AGENCIES, WHICH THEN FREES UP THE $1.9 MILLION IN THE GENERAL FUND THAT WE CAN UTILIZE ELSEWHERE. GRATEFUL THAT WE HAVE THE HOT TAX. I THINK THERE'S SOME WORK TO BE DONE IN TERMS OF THE DISTRIBUTION OF SOME OF THOSE THINGS IN THE INTEREST OF EQUITY AND FAIRNESS ACROSS OUR COMMUNITY HERE. I MAY HAVE AN AMENDMENT ABOUT HOW WE UTILIZE SOME OF THOSE MONIES TO DO EXACTLY WHAT MY COLLEAGUE, COUNCILMAN WHYTE MENTIONED WHICH IS COVERING DOWN ON THESE ENTITIES BUT ENSURING WE'RE INVESTING IN CORE SERVICES. OKAY. THANK YOU AGAIN TO EVERYBODY FOR THE HARD WORK AND THE PRESENTATIONS AND LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUED DISCUSSIONS. THE TIME IS 5:10. THIS MEETING