* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [District 2 Update with Council Member Deborah Morris] [00:00:02] HI, I'M DEBRA MORRIS CITY COUNCIL WOMAN FOR DISTRICT TWO. AND THIS IS OUR 2021. HI, I'M DEBRA MORRIS CITY COUNCIL WOMAN FOR DISTRICT TWO. AND THIS IS OUR 20 21 20 22 DISTRICT TWO UPDATE. I'M VERY EXCITED ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING IN OUR DISTRICT. AND THEN I WANTED TO START WITH A POWERPOINT PRESENTATION AND GIVE YOU AN OVERVIEW OF EVERYTHING THAT'S GOING ON AND IT WILL BE GOING ON IN THIS COMING YEAR. ALL RIGHT. SO FIRST OF ALL, FOR ANYONE WHO IS NOT FAMILIAR, WHERE IS DISTRICT TWO LOCATED? WE ARE LOCATED IN THE VERY HEART OF GARLAND. YOU CAN STAY THERE WITH THE TASTEFUL HEART. UM, DISTRICT TWO INCLUDES OUR, THE CORE OF OUR DOWNTOWN, UM, OUR HISTORIC DOWNTOWN AND A, A LARGE AND SPRAWLING AREA THAT GOES ALL THE WAY TO THE EAST, TO OUR CITY LIMITS AND ENDS TO THE WEST ALONG GARLAND AVENUE. SO HERE WE GO. SOME OF THE THINGS COMING UP IN THIS NEXT YEAR OUT IN EFFECT, STARTING WITHIN DAYS, OUR DOWNTOWN SQUARE REDESIGN, UM, CONSTRUCTION IS ACTUALLY ABOUT TO BEGIN ON THE EXCITING REDEVELOPMENT OF OUR HISTORIC DOWNTOWN AND THE 14 BLOCKS GOING OUT FROM THE SQUARE. UM, IT IS ESTIMATED THAT THIS WILL TAKE 18 TO 20 MONTHS TO COMPLETE, AND THE TRANSFORMATION IS GOING TO BE AMAZING. YOU SEE SOME OF THE PICTURES HERE ABOUT, UM, WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT. UH, THIS WILL MAKE OUR HISTORIC DOWNTOWN MUCH MORE PEDESTRIAN FRIENDLY. UM, THIS WILL ADD MORE HANDICAP PARKING SPACES. THIS WILL ACTIVELY PROMOTE MORE INTERACTION BETWEEN PEOPLE VISITING OUR DOWNTOWN. UM, JUST TO TALK YOU QUICKLY THROUGH THE ACTUAL SQUARE ITSELF AND SOME OF THE THINGS YOU CAN EXPECT TO STAY THERE ON THE SOUTHEAST CORNER, THERE WILL BE A LARGE PERFORMANCE PLAZA. UM, THAT'S IN FRONT OF THE RECREATIONAL AND EVENT LAWN. UM, WE WILL HAVE A COVERED STAGE THERE THAT WILL BE ERECTED TEMPORARILY FOR LARGE EVENTS. WE'RE NOT LEAVING IT THERE PERMANENTLY BECAUSE IT WOULD BLOCK THE VIEW COMING INTO THE SQUARE. WE DON'T WANT TO LEAVE A VISUAL BLOCKER THERE. UM, SO WE WILL BRING IT IN, SET IT UP FOR LARGE EVENTS, TAKE IT DOWN IN THE NORTHWEST CORNER. UM, AND I'LL SEE IF MY CURSOR CAN SHOW THIS OVER HERE. YOU CAN SEE THIS COLORFUL, UM, PAVILION COVER THAT WILL BE PERMANENT, AND THAT WILL BE FOR IMPROMPTU SMALLER EVENTS, UH, AND SPECIAL PROGRAMS. SO THAT WILL BE THERE ALL THE TIME WILL BE SHADY AND BEAUTIFUL AND GIVE PLENTY OF SPACE FOR PEOPLE TO COME IN AND DO THEIR OWN PROGRAMMING. UM, THE SOUTHWEST CORNER, WHICH WOULD BE UP HERE. UM, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A TREE HOUSE AND YOU CAN SEE I'M GOING TO LIVE, MOVE OVER HERE. YOU CAN SEE RIGHT HERE, THIS IS ACTUALLY NOT A TREE. IT'S A, IT'S A METAL TREE. UM, SO IT'S AN ARTISTIC SCULPTURE WITH, WITH WINDING STAIRS THAT GOES UP AND IT GIVES YOU AN OVERLOOK OVER THE WHOLE DOWNTOWN IN THE SQUARE. UM, THAT WILL BE RIGHT NEXT TO AN IMAGINATIVE PLAY AREA FOR THE CHILDREN THAT WILL INCLUDE A WATER FEATURE. UM, SO THIS WILL BE SOMETHING WE'RE ALL LOOKING FORWARD TO AND, UM, THROUGHOUT THE SQUARE, AND YOU CAN SEE SOME OF IT HERE, THERE WILL BE A WIDE ILLUMINATED, PROMINENT, WINDING THROUGH THE SQUARE. SO THIS WILL BE PLENTY OF ROOM FOR VENDORS TO SET UP FOR PEOPLE TO WALK. UM, AND YOU CAN SEE RIGHT HERE AT THE BOTTOM, RIGHT? THIS WILL BE AN ARTISTIC FEATURE OVER AT THE CORNER OF THE GATEWAY CORNER. UM, IT'LL BE, UH, ARTISTICALLY ILLUMINATED AT NIGHT AND EVEN DURING THE DAY, IT'S GOING TO BE QUITE BEAUTIFUL. SO THE DOWNTOWN REDEVELOPMENT IS DESIGNED TO HONOR THE PAST AND TO ALSO BE LOOKING FORWARD TO THE FUTURE. SO MOVING ON HERE, UM, STRANGE, WE GO STRAIGHT FROM THIS ARTISTIC DOWNTOWN TO STREETS, WHICH IS, UM, YOU KNOW, GENERALLY LESS INTERESTING TO PEOPLE UNLESS YOU LIVE ON ONE OF THE STREETS THAT NEEDS TO BE RECONSTRUCTED. I AM VERY HAPPY TO SAY THAT. UM, WE'VE ALREADY SEEN A LOT OF PROGRESS IN DISTRICT TWO, AND WE'RE GOING TO SEE A LOT MORE COMING UP, UM, AND IN THE NEXT YEAR. SO IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS, YOU'RE, IF YOU LIVE IN DISTRICT TWO, YOU WILL BE HAVING A MUCH MORE BEAUTIFUL DRIVING EXPERIENCE COMING UP. I'M NOT GONNA READ ALL THESE STREETS. THE ONES IN BOLD ARE THE STREETS THAT ARE ACTUALLY ON THE SCHEDULE, EITHER UNDERWAY OR THEY ARE SCHEDULED TO BE DONE IN 2022 STRAIGHT RECONSTRUCTIONS. JUST THE, YOU KNOW, THIS IS A COMPLETE [00:05:01] REMOVAL AND TEAR OUT OF THE EXISTING STREET, WHICH IS USUALLY A FAILED STRAIGHT AND A REPLACEMENT WITH A BRAND NEW CONCRETE, STRAIGHT BRAND NEW CURVES, BRAND NEW DRIVEWAY APRONS, WHICH ARE THE CONNECTORS BETWEEN DRIVEWAYS AND THE STREET. AND HERE'S THE REALLY GREAT PART BRAND NEW SIDEWALKS. NONE OF THIS HAS ANY CHARGE TO THE RESIDENTS. UM, EACH OF THE RECONSTRUCTIONS TAKE ABOUT EIGHT WEEKS TO BE DONE AND IT'S MESSY WHILE IT'S HAPPENING. BUT WHEN IT'S DONE, YOU HAVE A BRAND NEW STREET, A BRAND NEW BLOCK WITH BEAUTIFUL SIDEWALKS. IT IS TRANSFORMATIVE FOR NEIGHBORHOODS. ALL RIGHT, HERE'S ANOTHER BIG, WOW FACTOR. GARLAND'S NEW ANIMAL SHELTER. AND WE'RE LOOKING AT HAVING THIS OPEN BY MARCH 20, 22 OR APRIL. UM, THERE ARE ALWAYS THINGS RIGHT AT THE END THAT THAT CAN DELAY BY A FEW WEEKS, BUT IT'S COMING ALONG WELL. THIS IS OVER OFF HIGHWAY 66, AND YOU CAN SEE OUR, OUR MODEL, A DOG AND CAT. THEY LOOK VERY EXCITED. WE'RE ALL VERY EXCITED ABOUT IT. UM, THIS WILL BE ABOUT 23,000 SQUARE FEET, AND THAT'S ABOUT 70% LARGER THAN THE CURRENT SHELTER. UM, I'M GONNA MOVE HERE. THE, UM, WILL BE A CAPABLE OF HOUSING AROUND 200 DOGS, WHICH IS TWICE THE CAPACITY OF THE CURRENT SHELTER AND A HUNDRED CATS, WHICH IS THREE TIMES THE CURRENT SHELTER, PLUS ALL THE EXOTIC PETS. UH, WE, WE HAVE, UM, EVERYTHING FROM, UH, BIG HORNS SHAPED TO CHICKENS, TO BOA CONSTRICTORS, UH, TO REPTILES OF VARIOUS TIMES THEY GOT, UM, UM, IGUANAS. UH, WE HAVE A LOT OF WONDERFUL THINGS THERE AND YOU CAN READ HERE QUICKLY, THE SHELTER AMENITIES THAT ARE COMING. UM, WE ARE ALL VERY EXCITED. WE'LL HAVE A HUGE RIBBON CUTTING CEREMONY FOR THAT CENTRAL LIBRARY. THIS IS ALSO LOCATED NEAR DOWNTOWN. WE'RE GETTING READY TO START THE RENOVATION ON CENTRAL LIBRARY. IT'LL TAKE ABOUT 12 MONTHS. SO THE LIBRARY WILL BE CLOSED DURING THAT 12 MONTHS, BUT WE WILL BE RELOCATING A LOT OF THE SERVICES FOR THE LIBRARY NEARBY AND OTHER SERVICES AND PROGRAMMING WILL TAKE PLACE AT THE OTHER BRANCH LIBRARIES, GARLAND SENIOR ACTIVITY CENTER. ANOTHER ONE LOCATED IN NEAR DOWNTOWN CONSTRUCTION IS ACTUALLY GETTING READY TO START AND WILL BE, IS ESTIMATED TO BE DONE NEXT YEAR. AND AGAIN, I WON'T READ ALL THIS, BUT IT'S GETTING A, A LOT OF, UM, NEEDED UPDATES. UM, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE EXCITED ABOUT THE FITNESS AREA IS GOING TO BE, UM, EXPANDED, WHICH HAVING BEEN IN THAT FITNESS AREA, I HAVE TO SAY IT NEEDS TO BE EXPANDED. UM, SO WE'RE ALL LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT. WE ARE, UM, TEMPORARILY MOVING A LOT OF THE PROGRAMMING OVER TO GAIL FIELDS RECREATION CENTER WITH SOME AFTERNOON THINGS HAPPENING, OUR KORVER SENIOR CENTER. OKAY. HERE'S ANOTHER BIG CHANGE COMING UP REDISTRICTING. NOW, THE WAY WE DID IT, INSTEAD OF DOING IT THE WAY THE STATE AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAD BEEN DOING, WE JUST DID IT EASY. UM, WE, WE HAD SEVERAL OPTIONS PRESENTED TO US BY OUR EXCELLENT STAFF AND WE CHOSE THE ONE THAT LOOKED MY SENSIBLE. SO HOW DOES THIS AFFECT DISTRICT TWO? IF YOU LOOK AT THE GRAPHIC HERE, YOU'LL SEE THE TWO AREAS THAT HAVE MINUSES ON THEM ARE AREAS THAT ARE BEING DISTRACTED AWAY FROM DISTRICT TWO. SO ONE TO THE BOTTOM IS MOVING INTO DISTRICT FIVE. THE ONE OFF TO THE WEST IS MOVING INTO DISTRICT EIGHT. UM, THE AREAS WITH PLUSES ARE BEING ADDED TO DISTRICT TWO. SO BASICALLY OUR BORDERS ARE GOING TO BE ARTERIALS INSTEAD OF IN MANY CASES, CREEKS. UM, I HAVE HAD A LOT OF YOU, UM, BE CONFUSED THAT WE HAVE DIAGONAL MEANDERING BOUNDARIES, UM, THAT RUN ALONG CREEKS INSTEAD OF ALONG STREETS. THIS REDISTRICTING CORRECTS THAT, UM, CITY COUNCIL SELECTED THIS MAP. SO THAT INCREASES OUR POPULATION IN DISTRICT TWO TO 32,632 PEOPLE. AND IT ALSO ADDS THREE PARKS INSIDE OUR BOUNDARIES FOR A TOTAL NOW OF 15 DISTRICT TWO PARKS COVERING 476 ACRES. AND IF YOU DIDN'T KNOW THAT WE HAD THAT MANY PARTS JUST IN THE DISTRICT, UM, WE ARE A VERY, UM, WE HAVE A LOT OF ACREAGE OF PARTS IN THE CITY OF CARLIN. SO THESE NEW DISTRICT BOUNDARIES WILL TAKE OFFICIAL EFFECT ON JANUARY 1ST, 2022. ALL RIGHT. SO SPEAKING OF PARKS, UM, AND THIS IS JUST DISTRICT TWO PARKS ARE BEING IMPROVED ALL ACROSS THE CITY, BUT HERE IN DISTRICT TWO, WE ADD SOME AMAZING IMPROVEMENTS COMING. SO WE HAVE NEW PLAYGROUNDS. TWO OF THEM JUST GOT FINISHED. UM, ONE IS AT BLUE HOUSE PARK AND ONE IS AT DOUGLAS PARK. WE'RE HAVING ONE OF THE CITY'S FIRST THREE SPLASH PADS COMING IN TO EMBRY PARK. UM, WE'RE HAVING ALL KINDS OF NEW LIGHTING AND SHADE STRUCTURES [00:10:01] GOING IN NEW BATHROOMS AND CONCESSION STANDS, NEW WALKING TRAILS. AND IN TWO REALLY BIG CHANGES THAT ARE COMING UP, UH, LUPOFF PARK, WHICH IS ONE OF OUR OLDER PARKS IN THIS IN THE DISTRICT, UM, HAS BEEN IN NEED OF MAJOR UPGRADES FOR MANY YEARS, AND NOW THEY'RE GETTING THEM. SO COUNCIL JUST APPROVED $4.4 MILLION TO BRING HUFF PARK BACK TO LIFE WITH A LOT OF BEAUTIFUL NEW AMENITIES. AND I'M VERY EXCITED ABOUT THAT ALSO, UH, TUCKER BELL TENNIS CENTER. THIS IS OVER OFF OF HIGHWAY 66 ACROSS THE STREET FROM THE ANIMAL SHELTER. UM, THIS IS ONE OF THE PARTS COMING INTO DISTRICT TWO. THIS HAS BEEN AN UNDEVELOPED PARK ALL THESE YEARS, AND IT IS NOW GOING TO BE DEVELOPED LEFT. SO COUNCIL HAD ALREADY PUT ASIDE SEVERAL MILLION DOLLARS TOWARDS STARTING SOME OF THE, UM, INFRASTRUCTURE. WE JUST PUT ANOTHER APPROVED, ANOTHER $8.3 MILLION TO GET IT STARTED. SO THE FIRST PHASE, THIS IS GOING TO BE A TENNIS CENTER WITH, UM, A DOZEN, UH, INITIALLY IN THE FIRST PHASE, A DOZEN, UM, TENNIS COURTS AND A LOT OF OTHER WONDERFUL AMENITIES. AND YOU SHOULD BE SEEING THAT STARTING IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS, BECAUSE PART OF THIS IS FUNDED WITH OUR PROFESSIONS. SO THAT IS A VERY QUICK FLY OVER THE DISTRICT. BUT ONE OF THE THINGS I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE, YOU KNOW, HERE IN DISTRICT TWO, WE ARE EXPERIENCING AND ARE CONTINUING TO EXPERIENCE A RECORD NUMBER, UH, STRAIGHT REPAIRS AND REPLACEMENTS. UM, THIS COMING YEAR, WE'RE LOOKING AT 10 FULL STREET RECONSTRUCTIONS, UM, INCLUDING NEW SIDEWALKS COMING TO THE DISTRICT PLUS MANY OVERLAYS, WHICH GIVE, UM, A NEIGHBORHOOD RESIDENTIAL STREET, A NICE SMOOTH DRIVE FOR A LONG TIME. WE'RE ALSO HAVING A RECORD NUMBER OF PARK IMPROVEMENTS AND NEW PART DEVELOPMENT. UM, IN THIS, WE'RE ALSO GETTING A BUNCH OF NEW WALKING TRAILS IN THE DISTRICT, WHICH IS ONE HAS BEEN ONE OF GARLAND CITIZENS, MOST REQUESTED AMENITIES. UH, WE'RE GETTING NEW TRAILS, A COMPLETE NEW WALKING TRAIL AROUND CENTRAL PARK, COMPLETE NEW WALKING TRAIL AROUND LOU HUFF PARK. WE'RE GETTING NEW, UM, WALKING TRAILS THAT WILL CONNECT CENTRAL PARK DOWN WITH RECODE AND PARK. UM, AND THIS IS GOING ON ALL OVER THE CITY, BUT THOSE ARE THE ONES DIRECTLY IMPACTING OUR DISTRICT. AND WE ARE ALSO HAVING THE ONES IN 50 YEARS, TRANSFORMATION OF OUR HISTORIC DOWNTOWN, UM, MAKING IT PEDESTRIAN FRIENDLY AND REFLECTING GARLAND'S VIBRANT RESIDENTS AND VISITORS IN THE AMENITIES THAT ARE GOING IN THERE. THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A MORE EXCITING TIME TO LIVE, WORK AND PLAY IN THE CITY OF GARLAND OR TO BE A PART OF DISTRICT TWO. THANK YOU. HI, I'M DEBRA MORRIS CITY COUNCIL WOMAN FOR DISTRICT TWO, AND THIS IS OUR 20 21 20 22 DISTRICT TWO UPDATE. I'M VERY EXCITED ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING IN OUR DISTRICT. AND I WANTED TO START WITH A POWERPOINT PRESENTATION AND GIVE YOU AN OVERVIEW OF EVERYTHING THAT'S GOING ON AND IT WILL BE GOING ON IN THIS COMING YEAR. ALL RIGHT. SO FIRST OF ALL, FOR ANYONE WHO IS NOT FAMILIAR, WHERE IS DISTRICT TWO LOCATED? WE ARE LOCATED IN THE VERY HEART OF GARLAND. YOU CAN STAY THERE WITH THE TASTEFUL HEART. UM, DISTRICT TWO INCLUDES OUR, THE CORE OF OUR DOWNTOWN, UM, OUR HISTORIC DOWNTOWN AND A, A LARGE AND SPRAWLING AREA THAT GOES ALL THE WAY TO THE EAST, TO OUR CITY LIMITS AND ENDS TO THE WEST ALONG GARLAND AVENUE. SO HERE GO SOME OF THE THINGS COMING UP IN THIS NEXT YEAR OUT IN EFFECT STARTING WITHIN DAYS, OUR DOWNTOWN SQUARE REDESIGN, UM, CONSTRUCTION [00:15:01] IS ACTUALLY ABOUT TO BEGIN ON THE EXCITING REDEVELOPMENT OF OUR HISTORIC DOWNTOWN AND THE 14 BLOCKS GOING OUT FROM THE SQUARE. UM, IT IS ESTIMATED THAT THIS WILL TAKE 18 TO 20 MONTHS TO COMPLETE, AND THE TRANSFORMATION IS GOING TO BE AMAZING. YOU SEE SOME OF THE PICTURES HERE ABOUT, UM, WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT. UH, THIS WILL MAKE OUR HISTORIC DOWNTOWN MUCH MORE PEDESTRIAN FRIENDLY. UM, THIS WILL ADD MORE HANDICAP PARKING SPACES. THIS WILL ACTIVELY PROMOTE MORE INTERACTION BETWEEN PEOPLE VISITING OUR DOWNTOWN. UM, JUST TO TALK YOU QUICKLY THROUGH THE ACTUAL SQUARE ITSELF AND SOME OF THE THINGS YOU CAN EXPECT TO STAY THERE ON THE SOUTHEAST CORNER, THERE WILL BE A LARGE PERFORMANCE PLAZA. UM, THAT'S IN FRONT OF THE RECREATIONAL AND EVENT LAWN. UM, WE WILL HAVE A COVERED STAGE THERE THAT WILL BE ERECTED TEMPORARILY FOR LARGE EVENTS. WE'RE NOT LEAVING IT THERE PERMANENTLY BECAUSE IT WOULD BLOCK THE VIEW COMING INTO THE SQUARE. WE DON'T WANT TO LEAVE A VISUAL BLOCKER THERE. UM, SO WE WILL BRING IT IN, SET IT UP FOR LARGE EVENTS, TAKE IT DOWN IN THE NORTHWEST CORNER. UM, AND I'LL SEE IF MY CURSOR CAN SHOW THIS OVER HERE. YOU CAN SEE THIS COLORFUL, UM, PAVILION COVER THAT WILL BE PERMANENT, AND THAT WILL BE FOR IMPROMPTU SMALLER EVENTS, UH, AND SPECIAL PROGRAMS. SO THAT WILL BE THERE ALL THE TIME. IT'LL BE SHADY AND BEAUTIFUL AND GIVE PLENTY OF SPACE FOR PEOPLE TO COME IN AND DO THEIR OWN PROGRAMMING. UM, THE SOUTHWEST CORNER, WHICH WOULD BE UP HERE. UM, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A TREE HOUSE AND YOU CAN SEE I'M GOING TO LIVE, MOVE OVER HERE. YOU CAN SEE RIGHT HERE, THIS IS ACTUALLY NOT A TREE. IT'S A, IT'S A METAL TREE. UM, SO IT'S, UH, ARTISTIC SCULPTURE WITH, WITH WINDING STAIRS THAT GOES UP AND IT GIVES YOU AN OVERLOOK OVER THE WHOLE DOWNTOWN IN THE SQUARE. UM, THAT WILL BE RIGHT NEXT TO AN IMAGINATIVE PLAY AREA FOR THE CHILDREN THAT WILL INCLUDE A WATER FEATURE. UM, SO THIS WILL BE SOMETHING WE'RE ALL LOOKING FORWARD TO AND, UM, THROUGHOUT THE SQUARE, AND YOU CAN SEE SOME OF IT HERE, THERE WILL BE A WIDE ILLUMINATED, PROMINENT, WINDING THROUGH THE SQUARE. SO THIS WILL BE PLENTY OF ROOM FOR VENDORS TO SET UP FOR PEOPLE TO WALK. UM, AND YOU CAN SEE RIGHT HERE AT THE BOTTOM, RIGHT? THIS WILL BE AN ARTISTIC FEATURE OVER AT THE CORNER, THE GATEWAY CORNER. UM, IT'LL BE, UH, ARTISTICALLY ILLUMINATED AT NIGHT. AND EVEN DURING THE DAY, IT'S GOING TO BE QUITE BEAUTIFUL. SO THE DOWNTOWN REDEVELOPMENT IS DESIGNED TO HONOR THE PAST AND TO ALSO BE LOOKING FORWARD TO THE FUTURE. SO MOVING ON HERE, UM, STRENGTHS, WE GO STRAIGHT FROM THIS ARTISTIC DOWNTOWN TO STREETS, WHICH IS, UM, YOU KNOW, GENERALLY LESS INTERESTING TO PEOPLE UNLESS YOU LIVE ON ONE OF THE STREETS THAT NEEDS TO BE RECONSTRUCTED. I AM VERY HAPPY TO SAY THAT. UM, WE'VE ALREADY SEEN A LOT OF PROGRESS IN DISTRICT TWO, AND WE'RE GOING TO SEE A LOT MORE COMING UP, UM, AND IN THE NEXT YEAR. SO IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS, YOU'RE, IF YOU LIVE IN DISTRICT TWO, YOU WILL BE HAVING A MUCH MORE BEAUTIFUL DRIVING EXPERIENCE COMING UP. I'M NOT GONNA READ ALL THESE STREETS. THE ONES IN BOLD ARE THE STREETS THAT ARE ACTUALLY ON THE SCHEDULE, EITHER UNDERWAY OR THEY ARE SCHEDULED TO BE DONE IN 2022 STRAIGHT RECONSTRUCTIONS. JUST THE, YOU KNOW, THIS IS A COMPLETE REMOVAL AND TEAR OUT OF THE EXISTING STREET, WHICH IS USUALLY A FAILED STRAIGHT AND A REPLACEMENT WITH A BRAND NEW CONCRETE, STRAIGHT BRAND NEW CURBS, BRAND NEW DRIVEWAY APRONS, WHICH ARE THE CONNECTORS BETWEEN DRIVEWAYS AND THE STREET. AND HERE'S THE REALLY GREAT PART BRAND NEW SIDEWALKS. NONE OF THIS HAS ANY CHARGE TO THE RESIDENTS. UM, EACH OF THE RECONSTRUCTIONS TAKE ABOUT EIGHT WEEKS TO BE DONE AND IT'S MESSY WHILE IT'S HAPPENING. BUT WHEN IT'S DONE, YOU HAVE A BRAND NEW STREET, A BRAND NEW BLOCK WITH BEAUTIFUL SIDEWALKS. IT IS TRANSFORMATIVE FOR NEIGHBORHOODS. ALL RIGHT, HERE'S ANOTHER BIG, WOW FACTOR, GARLAND'S NEW ANIMAL SHELTER. AND WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT HAVING THIS OPEN BY MARCH 20, 22 OR APRIL, UM, THERE ARE ALWAYS THINGS RIGHT AT THE END THAT THAT CAN DELAY BY A FEW WEEKS, BUT IT'S COMING ALONG WELL. THIS IS OVER OFF HIGHWAY 66, AND YOU CAN SEE OUR, OUR MODEL, A DOG AND CAT. THEY LOOK VERY EXCITED. WE'RE ALL VERY EXCITED ABOUT IT. UM, THIS WILL BE ABOUT 23,000 SQUARE FEET, AND THAT'S ABOUT 70% LARGER THAN THE CURRENT SHELTER. UM, WANT TO MOVE HERE? THE, UM, WE'LL BE CAPABLE OF HOUSING AROUND 200 DOGS, WHICH IS TWICE THE CAPACITY OF THE CURRENT SHELTER AND A HUNDRED CATS, WHICH IS THREE TIMES THE CURRENT SHELTER, PLUS ALL THE EXOTIC PETS. UH, WE, WE HAVE, UM, EVERYTHING FROM, UH, BIG [00:20:01] HORNS SHAPED TO CHICKENS, TO BOA CONSTRICTORS, UH, TO REPTILES OF VARIOUS TIMES THEY GOT, UM, UM, IGUANAS. UH, WE HAVE A LOT OF WONDERFUL THINGS THERE AND YOU CAN READ HERE QUICKLY, THE SHELTER AMENITIES THAT ARE COMING. UM, WE'RE ALL VERY EXCITED. WE'LL HAVE A HUGE RIBBON CUTTING CEREMONY FOR THAT CENTRAL LIBRARY. THIS IS ALSO LOCATED NEAR DOWNTOWN. WE ARE GETTING READY TO START THE RENOVATION ON CENTRAL LIBRARY. IT'LL TAKE ABOUT 12 MONTHS OF THE LIBRARY WILL BE CLOSED DURING THAT 12 MONTHS, BUT WE WILL BE RELOCATING A LOT OF THE, UM, SERVICES FOR THE LIBRARY NEARBY AND OTHER SERVICES AND PROGRAMMING WILL TAKE PLACE AT THE OTHER BRANCH LIBRARIES, GARLAND SENIOR ACTIVITY CENTER. ANOTHER ONE LOCATED IN NEAR DOWNTOWN CONSTRUCTION IS ACTUALLY GETTING READY TO START AND WILL BE, IS ESTIMATED TO BE DONE NEXT YEAR. AND AGAIN, I WON'T READ ALL THIS, BUT IT'S GETTING A, A LOT OF, UM, NEEDED UPDATES. UM, AND ONE OF THE THINGS, UM, THAT, THAT WE'RE EXCITED ABOUT THE FITNESS AREAS GOING TO BE, UM, EXPANDED, WHICH HAVING BEEN IN THAT FITNESS AREA, I HAVE TO SAY IT NEEDS TO BE EXPANDED. UM, SO WE'RE ALL LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT. WE ARE TEMPORARILY MOVING A LOT OF THE PROGRAMMING OVER TO GAIL FIELDS RECREATION CENTER WITH SOME AFTERNOON THINGS HAPPENING, OUR PARTNER SENIOR CENTER. OKAY, HERE'S ANOTHER BIG CHANGE COMING UP REDISTRICTING. NOW, THE WAY WE DID IT, INSTEAD OF DOING IT THE WAY THE STATE AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAD BEEN DOING, WE JUST DID IT EASY. UM, WE, WE HAD SEVERAL OPTIONS PRESENTED TO US BY OUR EXCELLENT STAFF AND WE CHOSE THE ONE THAT LOOKED MOST SENSIBLE. SO HOW DOES THIS AFFECT DISTRICT TWO? IF YOU LOOK AT THE GRAPHIC HERE, YOU'LL SEE THE TWO AREAS THAT HAVE MINUSES ON THEM ARE AREAS THAT ARE BEING DISTRACTED AWAY FROM DISTRICT TWO. SO ONE TO THE BOTTOM IS MOVING INTO DISTRICT FIVE. THE ONE OFF TO THE WEST IS MOVING INTO DISTRICT EIGHT. UM, THE AREAS WITH PLUSES ARE BEING ADDED TO DISTRICT TWO. SO BASICALLY OUR BORDERS ARE GOING TO BE ARTERIALS INSTEAD OF IN MANY CASES, CREEKS. UM, I HAVE HAD A LOT OF YOU, UM, BE CONFUSED THAT WE HAVE DIAGONAL MEANDERING BOUNDARIES, UM, THAT RUN ALONG CREEKS INSTEAD OF ALONG STREETS, THIS REDISTRICT AND CORRECTS THAT, UM, CITY COUNCIL SELECTED THIS MAP. SO THAT INCREASES OUR POPULATION AND DISTRICT TWO TO 32,632 PEOPLE. AND IT ALSO ADDS THREE PARKS INSIDE OUR BOUNDARIES FOR A TOTAL NOW OF 15 DISTRICT TWO PARKS COVERING 476 ACRES. AND IF YOU DIDN'T KNOW THAT WE HAD THAT MANY PARTS JUST IN THE DISTRICT, UM, WE ARE A VERY, UM, WE HAVE A LOT OF ACREAGE OF PARTS IN THE CITY OF CARLIN. SO THESE NEW DISTRICT BOUNDARIES WILL TAKE OFFICIAL EFFECT ON JANUARY 1ST, 2022. ALL RIGHT. SO SPEAKING OF PARKS, UM, AND THIS IS JUST DISTRICT TWO PARKS ARE BEING IMPROVED ALL ACROSS THE CITY, BUT HERE IN DISTRICT TWO, WE HAVE SOME AMAZING IMPROVEMENTS COMING. SO WE HAVE NEW PLAYGROUNDS. TWO OF THEM JUST GOT FINISHED. UM, ONE IS AT LOU HALL PARK, AND ONE IS IT DOUGLAS PARK. WE'RE HAVING ONE OF THE CITY'S FIRST THREE SPLASH PADS COMING IN TO EMBRY PARK. UM, WE'RE HAVING ALL KINDS OF NEW LIGHTING AND SHADE STRUCTURES GOING IN NEW BATHROOMS AND CONCESSION STANDS, NEW WALKING TRAILS. AND IN TWO REALLY BIG CHANGES THAT ARE COMING UP, UH, LOU PUFF PARK, WHICH IS ONE OF OUR OLDER PARTS IN THIS END, THE DISTRICT, UM, HAS BEEN IN NEED OF MAJOR UPGRADES FOR MANY YEARS, AND NOW THEY'RE GETTING THEM. SO COUNCIL JUST APPROVED $4.4 MILLION TO BRING HUFF PARK BACK TO LIFE WITH A LOT OF BEAUTIFUL NEW AMENITIES. AND I'M VERY EXCITED ABOUT THAT ALSO, UH, TUCKER BELL TENNIS CENTER. THIS IS OVER OFF OF HIGHWAY 66 ACROSS THE STREET FROM THE ANIMAL SHELTER. UM, THIS IS ONE OF THE PARTS COMING INTO DISTRICT TWO. THIS HAS BEEN AN UNDEVELOPED PARK ALL THESE YEARS, AND IT IS NOW GOING TO BE DEVELOPED LEFT. SO COUNCIL HAD ALREADY PUT ASIDE SEVERAL MILLION DOLLARS TOWARDS STARTING SOME OF THE, UM, INFRASTRUCTURE. WE JUST PUT ANOTHER APPROVED, ANOTHER $8.3 MILLION TO GET IT STARTED. SO THE FIRST PHASE, THIS IS GOING TO BE A TENNIS CENTER WITH, UM, A DOZEN, UH, INITIALLY IN THE FIRST PHASE, UH, A DOZEN, UM, TENNIS COURTS AND A LOT OF OTHER WONDERFUL AMENITIES. AND YOU SHOULD BE SEEING THAT STARTING IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS, BECAUSE PART OF THIS IS FUNDED WITH OUR FUNDS. SO THAT IS A VERY QUICK FLY OVER THE DISTRICT. BUT ONE OF THE THINGS I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE, YOU KNOW, HERE [00:25:01] IN DISTRICT TWO, WE ARE EXPERIENCING AND ARE CONTINUING TO EXPERIENCE A RECORD NUMBER, UH, STRAIGHT REPAIRS AND REPLACEMENTS. UM, THIS COMING YEAR, WE'RE LOOKING AT 10 FULL STREET RECONSTRUCTIONS, UM, INCLUDING NEW SIDEWALKS COMING TO THE DISTRICT PLUS MANY OVERLAYS, WHICH GIVE, UM, UH, NEIGHBORHOOD RESIDENTIAL STREET, A NICE SMOOTH DRIVE FOR A LONG TIME. WE'RE ALSO HAVING A RECORD NUMBER OF PARK IMPROVEMENTS AND NEW PART DEVELOPMENT. UM, IN THIS, WE'RE ALSO GETTING A BUNCH OF NEW WALKING TRAILS IN THE DISTRICT, WHICH IS WHAT HAS BEEN ONE OF GARLAND CITIZENS, MOST REQUESTED AMENITIES. UH, WE'RE GETTING NEW TRAILS, A COMPLETE NEW WALKING TRAIL AROUND CENTRAL PARK, COMPLETE NEW WALKING TRAIL AROUND LOO HUFF PARK. WE'RE GETTING NEW, UM, WALKING TRAILS THAT WILL CONNECT CENTRAL PARK DOWN WITH RECODE AND PARK. UM, AND THIS IS GOING ON ALL OVER THE CITY, BUT THOSE ARE THE ONES DIRECTLY IMPACTING OUR DISTRICT. AND WE ARE ALSO HAVING THE ONES IN 50 YEARS, TRANSFORMATION OF OUR HISTORIC DOWNTOWN, UM, MAKING IT PEDESTRIAN FRIENDLY AND REFLECTING. GARLAND'S VIBRANT RESIDENTS AND VISITORS IN THE AMENITIES THAT ARE GOING IN THERE. THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A MORE EXCITING TIME TO LIVE, WORK AND PLAY IN THE CITY OF GARLAND OR TO BE A PART OF DISTRICT TWO. THANK YOU. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.