Feb 01, 2022 City Council

OKAY,

[00:00:01]

GOOD MORNING.

[I. INVOCATION, PLEDGE & ROLL CALL]

FEBRUARY 1ST, UH, 2022 THAT, UH, ACTUALLY ON PAPER BEGAN AT NINE 30 IS NOW 9 41.

WE WERE BEGINNING TO SEE THE COUNCIL MEETING AND WE WILL CONDUCT THIS REGULAR MEETING, UH, ON TODAY, FEBRUARY 1ST, UH, BY TELEPHONIC AND VIDEO CONFERENCE, UH, MEDIUMS IN ORDER TO, UH, ALLOW PERSONS TO ATTEND A CORUM AT THE CITY HALL.

UH, WE WILL BE PHYSICALLY PRESENT HERE IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBERS ON THE FIFTH FLOOR AND THE PUBLIC MAY PARTICIPATE IN THE MEETING BY, UH, DIALING 8 7 7 8 5 3 5 2 4 7 OR 8 8 8 7 8 8 0 0 9 9.

UH, THE MEETING CODE FOR TODAY IS 8 1 1 2 9 2 8 2 8 6 3.

AND THE PASS CODE IS 4 5 7 2 8 4.

AND, UH, WE ARE ALSO REMAINING AND BEING IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT.

UH, THOSE REQUIRING SPECIAL ACCOMMODATIONS MAY CALL THE CITY SECRETARY'S OFFICE 24 HOURS PRIOR TO THE MEETING TO REQUEST THOSE ACCOMMODATIONS.

THE NUMBER TO CALL IS (409) 983-8115.

AND THOSE ACCOMMODATIONS WILL BE PROVIDED FOR YOU.

WE WILL BEGIN OUR MEETING WITH THE INVOCATION AND THE PLEDGE, UH, COUNCILMAN JONES.

WOULD YOU BE SO KIND AS TO GIVE US THE NOTIFICATION OKAY.

OUT FARTHER AND OUR GOD.

HI.

EXCELLENT.

EXCELLENT.

IS THAT NAME AND ALL WE WILL ASK THEM TO ALWAYS HAVE ALL POWERS IN YOUR HAND, PLEASE, SIR, HAMMERSTEIN, ACTUALLY A BREATH.

THIS COUNSELOR, DAVID, MY FATHER BLESS THESE CITIZENS.

THESE THAT PEOPLE BUILD UP WHEN WE ARE WEAK, TRINET'S UP WITH TORN DOWN.

THEY'RE GOING TO STILL HAVE MUCH.

THEY HAVE TO BE THE PEOPLE WHO LOOK UPON THESE LADS IN TROUBLE, DAYS.

THESE IN ALL BLESSING AFTER THE DAUGHTER, SON JESUS' NAME, WE PRAY.

AMEN.

AMEN.

YOU ALL IN UNISON DECIDING THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE.

I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION.

SO THE SECRETARY, WOULD YOU BE SO KIND AS TO ESTABLISH DECORUM FORUMS, MAYOR BARTEE, MAYOR PRO TEM, FRANK PRESENT COUNCIL MEMBER HOMES HERE.

COUNCIL MEMBER JONES, COUNCIL MEMBER CAIN LAW COUNCIL MEMBER MARK'S COUNCIL MEMBER.

MOSES.

DO YOU HAVE A QUORUM MAINE? THANK YOU, CITY SECRETARY PROCLAMATIONS.

I DON'T HAVE ANY, UH, BEFORE ME, UH, BEYOND ANY, OKAY.

TO THAT LITTLE PROCLAMATIONS, WE NOW MOVE TO SPEAKERS.

WE HAVE MR. KERAS PROVOST PREBUILT, EXCUSE ME.

OR WE GOT AN HISTORIC HOME RESTORATION OF A COTTAGE BUILT IN 1910 LOCATED AT 25, 25 FOURTH STREET.

IF YOU ARE PRESENT MR. PROVOST, THEY COME FORWARD.

MR. .

MR. .

OKAY.

I GATHER HE ISN'T IN ATTENDANCE.

NEXT.

WE HAVE MR. CLARENCE F MITCHELL REGARDING, UH, ECOTOURISM AND ENTERPRISE ZONE TAX CREDIT.

MR. CLARENCE MITCHELL, MR. CLARENCE MITCHELL.

I GATHER MR. MITCHELL IS IN ATTENDANCE EITHER.

[III.A.3. James Thornton Regarding The Community Of Port Arthur]

I'M MR. JAMES THORNTON REGARDING THE COMMUNITY OF PORT ARTHUR.

YOU MAY APPROACH MR. THORNE AND, UH, STATE YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS AND YOU HAVE FIVE MINUTES.

GOOD MORNING, EVERYONE.

HAPPY TUESDAY TO YOU.

MY NAME IS JAMES THORTON.

UM, I LIVE HERE IN PORT ARTHUR IN THE LAKE ARTHUR SUBDIVISION STREET CALLED ROLLING ROCK.

UH, ADDRESS IS ACTUALLY 44 16 ROLLING ROCK.

UM, I WANT TO AT LEAST COME AND, UH, ADDRESS THE COUNCIL, MARY YOURSELF AS WELL IN THE CITY, UM, TO LET YOU KNOW EXACTLY HOW I GOT HERE.

I'M FROM LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.

UH, MY WIFE IS IN THE OIL INDUSTRY, UM, SUPPORTING HER, UM, NOT SOMETHING THAT MOST MEN WOULD DO, BUT I DIDN'T HAVE A PROBLEM WITH UP AND MOVING AND LETTING HER DO HER THING THAT SHE DOES.

UM, BUT WHAT I WANTED TO DO WAS

[00:05:01]

UM, WHEN YOU OLIN INDUSTRY, UM, RELOCATE YOU, THEY GIVE YOU A PACKAGE, THEY PUT YOU IN A PROGRAM, UM, YOU ARE ASSIGNED A REALTOR.

UM, SO WHEN WE GOT HERE, WE HAD FIVE DAYS TO FIND A HOME.

UH, THIS REALTOR PROCEEDED TO SHOW US EVERYWHERE ON THE OUTSKIRTS FROM BEAUMONT TO GROW THE NEATER LINDE, UH, SOMEPLACE CALLED CHINA, UM, WHICH WAS WAY TOO FAR FROM ME.

UH, HOWEVER, UM, IN OUR HEARTS, WE KEPT SAYING WE WANTED TO MOVE TO PORT ARTHUR.

THIS LADY CONTINUOUSLY TOLD US NOT TO MOVE TO PORT ARTHUR, AND SHE GAVE US REASONS FOR SCHOOLING.

UH, SHE GAVE US THE REASONS FOR, UH, CRIME.

SHE EVEN SAID THAT YOU WON'T EVEN GET YOUR MONEY BACK ON YOUR HOUSE IF YOU DO SO.

AND I TELL YOU THIS, BECAUSE WE ARE JUST THE ONE IN THIS RELOCATION PROGRAM THAT THESE REFINERIES HAVE.

AND SO IF IT'S JUST ONE THAT'S COMING TO YOU TELLING YOU ABOUT THIS, THERE ARE PROBABLY THOUSANDS THAT HAVE THE SAME STORY AS I DO.

AND THERE'S SOMEONE OUT THERE THAT'S TELLING A DIFFERENT NARRATIVE ABOUT PORT ARTHUR, UM, SINCE WE'VE BEEN HERE.

WELL, WE HAVE FOUND OUT THAT, UH, PORT ARTHUR HAS SOME OF THE NICEST PEOPLE WE'VE EVER MET, UM, IN ALL WALKS OF LIFE, IN EVERY SHADE, YOU KNOW, ON MY STREET, WE'VE GOT EVERY NATIONALITY THAT THERE IS, AND WE ALL GET ALONG JUST FINE.

UM, I WAS SURPRISED, UM, APPEARING SUCH TO THE THINGS BECAUSE THAT WAS NOT OUR EXPERIENCE BEING HERE IN PORT ARTHUR.

UM, MY BACKGROUND IS I'M A BUILDER.

I DEAL WITH MIDDLE INCOME HOUSING, TYPICALLY 30 OR MORE HOUSES AT A TIME.

UH, I BUILD NIGHTCLUBS OR ENTERTAINMENT BEING USED IN RESTAURANTS.

THAT'S MY BACKGROUND.

UM, AS I'VE HAD A CHANCE TO LOOK AT THE CITY, I'VE RECOGNIZED THAT YOU GUYS HAVE A LOT OF POTENTIAL HERE FOR GROWTH.

UM, WHAT I SEE IN PORT ARTHUR IS BEAUTIFUL.

AND I JUST WANT TO TELL YOU THIS BECAUSE I BELIEVE PORT ARTHUR COULD PROBABLY LEAD IN SOME OF THE MOST INNOVATIVE HOMES IN TEXAS.

I THINK THAT YOU HAVE ROOM TO HAVE SOME OF THE MOST ESTABLISHED RESTAURANTS BECAUSE OF THE DIVERSITY THAT'S HERE.

I BELIEVE THAT YOU CAN, IN FACT, EVEN WITH THE SCHOOL SYSTEMS, AS PEOPLE TELL YOUR NARRATIVE A DIFFERENT WAY THAT YOU DO HAVE SCHOOL SYSTEMS AND YOU DO HAVE A SCHOOL, UM, THAT IN FACT LOOKS BETTER THAN ANY SCHOOL IN A HUNDRED MILE RADIUS.

I WILL SAY THAT PORT ARTHUR HAS THE BEST LOOKING HIGH SCHOOL AND MIDDLE SCHOOLS THAT I'VE EVER SEEN.

BUT I THINK WE NEED TO SAY IT A DIFFERENT WAY.

I'D LIKE YOU TO SAY IT A DIFFERENT WAY.

YOU KNOW, MY VISIONS FOR PORT ARTHUR, IF ANYBODY WOULD WANT TO HEAR IT, WE HAVE TO TALK ABOUT HOW BEAUTIFUL WE ARE.

WE DO.

IN FACT, HAVE THE NICEST PEOPLE HERE.

WE DO HAVE SOME OF THE NICEST HOMES HERE.

WE DO HAVE A BEAUTIFUL SCHOOL.

THE GREAT THING ABOUT THAT SCHOOL IS ACTUALLY IT'S MASCOT BECAUSE IT'S CALLED TITANS INCORRECT.

ALWAYS COURAGE HONOR, ALWAYS DO ONE.

THAT'S THE DEALT.

BUT IF WE SAY IT A DIFFERENT WAY, WE CAN RAISE THOSE TITANS.

CAUSE LOT OF THOSE TIGHTENED JUST LIKE ME SAYING BACKGROUND.

IF WE SAY IT A DIFFERENT WAY, THE PEOPLE MAY GET INVOLVED.

IF WE SAY IT A DIFFERENT WAY, WE MIGHT EVEN HONOR OUR REFINERY FAMILIES.

BUT IF WE SAY IT A DIFFERENT WAY, THAT ALLOWS US TO TELL THE DIFFERENT NARRATIVE.

IT ALLOWS US TO BE THE ONE WHO TELLS WHAT PORT ROUTE THREE IS.

AND NOT SOME OTHER PERSON, NOT SOME NEWS CHANNEL, NOT SOMEBODY SAYING THAT OUR SCHOOLS ARE A CERTAIN WAY, BUT WE HAVE TO BE THE ONES TO TELL THE NARRATIVE, IF YOU'LL ALLOW ME, OR IF THIS IS SOMETHING THAT'S INTERESTING AND YOU WANT TO DO GIVE ME A CALL.

I WOULD LOVE TO WORK WITH EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU OR INDIVIDUALLY, BUT THIS IS WHAT I SEE REPORT, OR I THINK THIS HAS BEEN MY EXPERIENCE COMING TO PORT ARTHUR AND I JUST WANTED AND FELT THAT IT WAS NECESSARY,

[00:10:02]

THAT'S NOT TRUE.

THE DEVIL IS A LIE.

UH, AGAIN, MY NAME IS JAMES THORTON.

UM, I WANT TO THANK EACH ONE OF YOU FOR ALLOWING ME THE TIME.

I WANT TO SAY HAPPY TUESDAY TO YOU.

AND IT IS FIRST DAY OF BLACK HISTORY MONTH AS WELL, MY FAVORITE MONTH.

AND THANK YOU.

ALL RIGHT.

THANK YOU, MS. THORNTON, ANY REMARKS FROM THE THORN, FROM THE COUNCIL ONE? YES.

MR. THORTON, THANK YOU FOR THAT INSPIRING SPEECH ABOUT PORT ARTHUR.

UM, I THINK THAT IT, IT CERTAINLY IGNITED ME AS YOU WERE SPEAKING ABOUT IF WE CHANGE THE NARRATIVE AND SAY THOSE POSITIVE THINGS THAT WE TO, I FELT IT, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU STARTED SAYING WE ARE, UM, W WE, WE ARE THE BEST THAT WE CAN BE THE BEST OR, UM, WE ARE THIS WEEK AND WE ARE, WE JUST HAVE TO BE AGAIN TO SPEAK THOSE, THOSE THINGS INTO EXISTENCE.

SO I REALLY APPRECIATE, WE NEEDED THAT LITTLE, WE NEEDED THAT SPEECH, UH, TODAY TO GET US IN THE RIGHT MINDSET.

SO I'VE BEEN IN PORT ARTHUR SINCE KINDERGARTEN, AND I LOVE PORT ARTHUR.

AND SOMETIMES WE CAN FORGET AND START TO SEE THE NEGATIVE AND FALL INTO A TRAP.

BUT THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR COMING HERE FOR WHAT AND EXPRESSING WHAT YOU'VE DEALT WITH COMING INTO OUR CITY WITH A CERTAIN REALTOR.

I HOPE THAT I DON'T, I WOULDN'T KNOW HOW TO CHANGE THAT NARRATIVE BECAUSE WE DON'T KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE INDIVIDUALLY THEY TOUCH, BUT THANK YOU FOR AT LEAST GIVING US SOME INSPIRATION THIS MORNING.

THANK YOU, MS. MOSES.

HEY, THANK YOU, MR. THORTON IS, YOU KNOW, WE'VE MET A COUPLE OF TIMES AND, UH, I KNOW YOUR PASSION, EVEN THOUGH YOU'RE NOT FROM PORT ARTHUR, BUT, UH, I THINK YOU ABSOLUTELY CORRECT WHEN YOU STATED, UH, UH, WE'RE LETTING SOMEONE ELSE TELL OUR STORY.

AND THAT'S SO MANY TIMES OFTEN THAT THAT HAPPENS HERE IN PORT ARTHUR, BUT I TOTALLY AGREE WITH YOU.

WE NEED TO START WRITING OUR OWN STORY AND ALSO, UH, UM, BEING THE PERSON THAT CONTROLS OUR STORIES IN THE CITY LIMITS.

UM, I KNOW YOU, I KNOW THAT YOU HAVE A POSITIVE VIEW OF PORT ARTHUR AND I DO.

I LOVE PORT ARTHUR AS WELL, BUT WE NEED TO CONTINUE DOING THIS.

WE NEED TO START PUTTING ALL THE GOOD THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING AND TO HAVE SOME OF THOSE GUYS THAT'S OUT THERE, UH, WHEN INDIVIDUALS WANTS TO MOVE TO PORT ARTHUR AND TELLING THEM THAT, YOU KNOW, PROFIT IS NOT THE PLACE TO BE, UH, THEY'RE, THEY'RE MISSING SOMETHING, THEY'RE MISSING SOMETHING.

SO I TOTALLY AGREE WITH YOU.

THANK YOU FOR COMING BEFORE US THIS MORNING AND EXPRESSING YOUR KIND WORDS ABOUT THIS GREAT CITY AND CONTINUE.

I'LL BE LOVED TO WORK WITH YOU WHEN WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY.

OKAY.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU, COUNCILWOMAN HOME.

UM, MR. THORNTON, OF COURSE.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR VERY KIND WORDS.

WE'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO MEET.

YOU HAVE A LOVELY WIFE WHO HAS JOINED OUR CITY, OUR COMMUNITY, ONE OF OUR REFINERIES, UM, AND YOU ALL TOOK A CHANCE, UM, MOVING TO PORT ARTHUR, AND I'M SO GLAD THAT YOUR EXPERIENCE HAS BEEN, WHAT HAS IT'S BEEN, AND I APPRECIATE YOU SAYING THAT WE HAVE A STORY TO TELL ABOUT OUR OWN CITIES.

I THINK AS EACH OF US SIT HERE, WE ARE, UM, PORT ARTHUR RUNS AND WE, WE DO HAVE A STORY TO TELL, BUT IT MEANS SO MUCH FOR SOMEONE WHO IS NOT A PORT ARTHUR TO COME INTO OUR COMMUNITY HERE.

I SEE OUR STORY AND ABLE TO SHARE THAT WITH US.

IT WOULD BE A DELIGHT TO WORK WITH YOU ON, UH, SOME OF THE THINGS YOU'VE TALKED ABOUT, AND WE CERTAINLY APPRECIATE YOU AND YOUR WIFE FOR COMING TO OUR GREAT CITY OF PORT ARTHUR AND FINDING THAT IT IS WHAT WE ALL SIT HERE AND SAY IT IS.

THANK YOU, MR. THORNTON.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

OKAY.

AND AGAIN, THANK YOU, MR. NORTON, AND WE APPRECIATE YOU AND YOU ARE, YOU'RE NOT AS SPOKEN AND I APPRECIATE THE POSITIVITY YOU DELIVERED TO US ON THIS MORNING.

IT'S ALWAYS GOOD TO SEE YOU IN GOOD HEALTH AND IN THE SPIRIT AS WELL.

MR. BARTEE.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU.

OKAY,

[III.A.4. Theron Tate Regarding The Potential Disannexation Of Land Located Near Brai Drive]

GOOD MORNING.

MY NAME'S THERON TIGHT, 89, 37 FIFTH STREET IN BEAUMONT.

IT'S WHERE I RESIDE.

UM, I'M HERE TO DIE BASICALLY TO, UH, JUST BRING LIGHT TO THE TH THE, THE ANNEXATION THAT WE'VE RE REQUESTED.

UH, I'VE MET AND SPOKE WITH THE CITY MANAGER SEVERAL TIMES ABOUT IT.

AND OUR LAST MEETING INCLUDED THE CITY ATTORNEY AND A HOST OF OTHER CITY MANAGERS, UH, FIRE MARSHALL, UH, UH, YOU'RE JUST MAP PLANNING PEOPLE.

ANYWAY.

IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S A CONSENSUS

[00:15:01]

AND THE MAIN REASON I'M HERE TODAY IS TO, TO, TO SHED SOME LIGHT ON THE URGENCY OF IT.

AND THE REASON THAT WE'RE ASKING FOR AN IMMEDIATE CONSIDERATION, UH, WE'VE GOT A LACK OF UTILITIES THERE AND A LACK OF ADEQUATE WATER SUPPLY THERE THAT HAS OUR HANDS TIED, AND WE'RE UNABLE TO COMPLY WITH CERTAIN CITY, UH, REQUIREMENTS.

AND WE'VE MADE ALL THIS AWARE TO, TO, TO, UH, THE CITY MANAGER, UH, AND THE ATTORNEY AND THE CITY CITY ATTORNEY.

AND TO MY KNOWLEDGE, THEY'RE ALL IN FAVOR OF MOVING FORWARD.

AND I HOPE THAT THE COUNCIL, WHEN THEY'RE MADE AWARE OF THIS ALSO HAVE THE SAME OPINION TO MOVE IMMEDIATELY FORWARD WITH THE DNX CITATION.

UM, WE'RE BASICALLY IN A SITUATION WHERE WE'RE TRAPPED AND HAVE BEEN SINCE SEPTEMBER OF LAST YEAR, UH, WITH A HAULTAIN BUSINESS AND A HAULTAIN SOME REVENUE OUT THERE BECAUSE OF THE SITUATION.

UH, UH, THAT'S REALLY ALL I HAVE TO SAY WITHOUT JUST GOING INTO A HOST OF OTHER DETAILS THAT I'M SURE YOU GUYS WILL BE MADE AWARE OF, UH, FROM, FROM, FROM THE CITY MANAGER.

AND, UH, I THINK THE CITY ATTORNEY HAS BEEN BROUGHT UP TO SPEED ON THE SITUATION, UH, AND ANY SUPPORT WE CAN GET TO COMPLETE THE PROCESS WOULD SURE BE APPRECIATED.

OKAY.

UH, MR. UH, JAKE, DR.

KENALOG.

YEAH, I ONE TO AXA, I DON'T KNOW IF THIS, A VAL, MAYBE YOU CAN HELP ME UNDERSTAND THIS PARTICULAR SITUATION.

UH, ARE WE IN, ARE WE CONTINUE DOING THE PROCESS OR WHERE ARE WE AT WITH THIS PARTICULAR PROCESS THAT IS CAUSING US A STOP, A HALT, UH, TO GIVE THEM, YEAH, WELL, FIRST OF ALL, THERE'S SOME PREREQUISITES.

I HAVE A FOLDER THAT HAS BEEN PRESENTED TO YOU ALL, UH, THAT GIVES YOU AN EXAMPLE OF A DIS ANNEXATION.

ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WAS BROUGHT TO MY ATTENTION A LITTLE WHILE BACK THAT THERE WAS A CONCERN ABOUT THAT THE PROPERTY HAD BEEN ANNEXED IN 2008, AND THEN I CAN ALSO WRITE YOU UP SOMETHING MORE DETAILED, BUT BASICALLY THE PROPERTY WAS A BUSINESS AND THEY WERE SUBJECT TO AN INDUSTRIAL DISTRICT AGREEMENT, NOT, NOT WHEN YOU WERE UNDER OWNERSHIP, BUT, UH, IT WAS SUBJECT TO AN INDUSTRIAL DISTRICT AGREEMENT THAT THEY DETERMINED WOULD NOT BE RENEWED.

SO IN 2008, THE CITY AND THE, UH, PRIOR BUSINESS, UH, DECIDED TO ANNEX THE PROPERTY INTO THE CITY BECAUSE THEY DID NOT WANT TO CONTINUE HAVING AN INDUSTRIAL DISTRICT AGREEMENT.

SO THE PROPERTY HAS BEEN IN THE CITY LIMITS SINCE 2008.

UH, THERE'S BEEN SOME CONCERN, I GUESS, ABOUT WHEN IT WAS PURCHASED THAT THERE, THEY HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO LOCATE WHERE IT WAS FILED.

WE DO HAVE THE RECORDS WHERE IT WENT BEFORE COUNCIL AND EVERYTHING HERE AT CITY HALL TOOK PLACE, BUT THEY DO NOT HAVE A RECORD OF IT WITH THE COUNTY CLERK.

SO AS A RESULT, UM, WE DID SOME RESEARCH AND DETERMINED THAT PROBABLY THE BEST WAY TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THE, UH, PROPERTY OWNER AT THIS POINT WOULD BE TO CONSIDER THIS ANNEXATION FROM THE MEETING THAT WE HAD.

I HAVE GIVEN YOU ALL IS ALSO A SAMPLE OF THE LAST TIME WE DESIGNED THE NEXT PROPERTY.

ALL OF THE PROPERTY OWNERS THAT ARE ADJACENT TO THE PROPERTY WOULD HAVE TO GIVE US SOMETHING AGREEING TO IT.

AND I KNOW THERE'S PROBABLY ANOTHER PROPERTY OWNER AND TWO OF US, TWO OF US.

OKAY.

SO ONCE WE, UH, UPON RECEIPT OF THE, UH, SOMETHING IN WRITING FROM BOTH, AND IT'S BASICALLY, WE DEFINITELY HAVE SOMETHING FROM YOU, BUT SOMETHING SIGNED BY THE OTHER PROPERTY OWNER GIVING PERMISSION THAT THEY DON'T HAVE ANY OBJECTION TO IT.

THEN IT WOULD BE UP TO THE COUNCIL TO DETERMINE IF THIS ANNEXATION IS PROPER.

AND I GAVE THE SAMPLE RESOLUTION, UH, TO YOU AND YOUR FOLDER OF WHAT WE WOULD USE, BUT WE WOULD NEED THE PERMISSION OF THE PROPERTY OWNER AND A MAP, UH, SHOWING THAT AND THE ACREAGE.

AND I THINK WE'RE, WE'RE PRETTY CLOSE TO WORKING WITH, UH, GIS AND GETTING IT DONE.

UM, NORMALLY, UH, UH, VOTERS CAN PETITION FOR THIS ANNEXATION, BUT AT THIS TIME THESE ARE BUSINESSES AND NOT VOTERS.

SO WE'LL BE UP TO THE COUNCIL.

SO I HAVE EVERYTHING READY AND UPON RECEIPT OF THAT MAP AND THE, UH, WRITTEN, UH, AGREEMENT OF THE OTHER PROPERTY OWNER, THEN WE CAN PROBABLY PROCEED AT THE NEXT COUNCIL MEETING.

IF, IF ALL THOSE PLATE, THOSE THINGS ARE IN PLACE.

AND I HAVE THE SAMPLE OF, I THINK IT WAS 2018, IS WHAT I GAVE YOU THE LAST TIME WE DID SAY ANNEX CAUSE FOR A BUSINESS IS DIFFERENT, UH, FOR A PROPERTY OWNER.

IT'S, IT'S A DIFFERENT REQUIREMENT THAN FOR A VOTER BECAUSE THE LAW PUTS THAT IN THE HANDS OF THE VOTERS.

SO SINCE IT'S NOT A VOTER REQUESTING IT ONCE THAT MAP IS, UH, SUBMITTED TO US, AND I THINK YOU ALL ARE WORKING WITH THE COMPANY RIGHT NOW.

THANK YOU.

ALL RIGHT.

IT BEEN CO IT'S COMPLETED AND TO MY KNOWLEDGE, UH, IS ALREADY IN, IN THE CITY'S POSSESSION.

OKAY.

UH, IF THEY CAN GET THAT INTO MY POSSESSION AND IF COUNSEL, I'M GOING TO GIVE THEM A LITTLE MORE DETAILED, BUT IF COUNSEL IS FINE WITH IT, BUT ON THE COUNSEL'S MOTION, THEN THEY CAN BEGIN THE PROCESS.

AND I HAVE EVERYTHING READY FOR THAT PROCESS TO BEGIN, OR THAT'S REALLY ALL I HAVE TO SAY OTHER THAN A THANK YOU TO ALL THESE GUYS INVOLVED IN THE CITY ATTORNEY FOR

[00:20:01]

YES.

OH YEAH.

MR. TATE MENTIONED SOMETHING, YOU SAID YOU'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS.

UM, WHAT, WHAT TIMEFRAME DID YOU SAY YOU STARTED WITH THIS? WELL, IT KIND OF JUST LIKE THE CITY ATTORNEY SAID IN SEPTEMBER OF LAST YEAR, I THINK IS WHEN IT CAME, THE SITUATION CAME TO LIGHT WITH PORT AUTHOR.

UH, AT THAT TIME IT WAS PROPERLY FILED WITH THE COUNTY.

AND AFTER THAT DATE, WE, WE, UH, I GUESS YOU COULD SAY WE WERE MANDATED BY THE CITY TO FALL UNDER ANOTHER SET OF ROLES BECAUSE WE WERE INSIDE THE CITY LIMITS WITHOUT THE ABILITY TO COMPLY, BECAUSE THE MAIN ISSUE IS THE LACK OF, OF, OKAY, SO SEPTEMBER YOU, YOU REPORTED THIS WAS AN ISSUE, UM, AND YOU CAME GENERAL COMMUNICATION BACK AND FORTH.

AND WHEN WERE YOU GIVEN THE INSTRUCTIONS BASICALLY TO, UH, WHAT YOU NEEDED TO DO WITH THE OTHER OWNERS TO GET THEIR SIGNATURE AND BRING FORWARD? I'M SORRY.

WHEN WERE YOU GIVEN THE INSTRUCTIONS TO BRING FORTH WHAT THE OTHER OWNERS NEEDED? TRUST CITY ATTORNEY? OH, YOU TOLD THAT JUST SINCE OUR LAST MEETING, WHICH WAS THURSDAY WEEK AGO, WE ALL MET.

AND I THINK SINCE THEN, THERE'S BEEN MENTIONED OF THAT, OF THE SURVEY THAT WAS NEEDED.

THAT'S BEEN COMPLETED.

THAT'S DONE.

AND, AND A LETTER FROM, FROM WHICH REALLY IS JUST TO PROPERTY OWNERS.

RIGHT.

SO I PLAN ON HAVING THAT DONE, BUT YOU WOULD TELL HIM ABOUT THE LETTER LAST THURSDAY FOR THE TWO OWNERS, UH, ACTUALLY ACTUALLY FORMERLY KNOWING THAT WE NEEDED TO GIVE YOU A LETTER.

I LEARNED THAT YESTERDAY, BUT I'M GOING TO WORK ON THAT TODAY.

I'M GOING TO GET IT DONE TODAY.

OKAY.

I WOULD LIKE IF THERE'S ANYTHING ELSE WE NEED, I WANT TO TRY TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

I'D LIKE TO MAKE AN ORDER CLARIFICATION TO CLARIFY WHEN THEY WERE INFORMED THAT THIS PROPERTY WAS IN THE CITY LIMITS, THEN THE COMPANY ATTEMPTED TO WORK WITH THE CITY OFFICIALS TO MEET THE CITY GUIDELINES OF WHAT NEEDED TO BE DONE AS PART OF THE CITY.

AND DURING THAT TIMEFRAME AND WORKING WITH THE FIRE MARSHALL AND THE CITY MANAGER, THEY REALIZED IT WOULD BE TOO CUMBERSOME TO COMPLY WITH WHAT THE CITY WOULD NEED FOR YOU TO BE IN THE CITY.

SO IN RECENT TIMES IT WAS DETERMINED THAT IT WOULD BE BETTER TO DIS ANNEX.

AND MY FIRST MEETING WITH YOU, ALL I BELIEVE WAS LAST THURSDAY.

AND I'VE GIVEN YOU A SAMPLE.

SO BETWEEN IT JUST WANTED TO CLARIFY THE COUNCIL THAT BETWEEN SEPTEMBER AND NOW THEY WERE TRYING TO COMPLY WITH WHAT WOULD BE NEEDED OF THEM AT, AND IT'S IF THEY WERE TO REMAIN IN THE CITY, BUT AFTER THEM DOING AN ASSESSMENT, THEY FELT THAT IT WOULD BE BETTER TO DNX.

AND WE MET ON THURSDAY.

SO THAT'S JUST TO CLARIFY, THANK YOU.

ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? NOT YET.

I'M TRYING TO SEE I'M A FORMULATE THIS, UH, SO FROM SEPTEMBER, WHO WERE YOU IN CONTACT WITH, FROM THE CITY, I GUESS, EARLY IN SEPTEMBER, THE FIRE MARSHALL CONTACTED US.

UH, AND TO MY KNOWLEDGE, HE LEARNED AT THE SAME TIME THAT WE LEARNED THAT WE WERE IN THE CITY.

OKAY.

SO THAT PLACE SOME, I GUESS YOU'D SAY RESPONSIBILITIES ON HIM TO IMPOSE, YOU KNOW, CITY GUIDELINES AS FAR AS HIS COMPLIANCE.

AND OF COURSE MAINLY FIREWATER IS, IS THERE CONCERN THAT IT WON'T BE ABLE TO PUT OUT A FIRE? RIGHT.

OKAY.

UH, SO I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW IF THAT ANSWERS YOUR QUESTION, BUT WE GOT, I THINK YOU'VE GOTTEN A BETTER DIRECTION.

SO I GUESS YOU CAN BE WORKING WITH OUR LEGAL TEAM TO FIGURE OUT, UH, YOUR NEXT STEP.

SO I JUST, W I JUST WANT TO GET CLARIFICATION ABOUT THAT THAT'S COMING FROM MASA, HOW THE STORY WAY I SEE IT, I MEAN, OKAY.

OKAY.

ALL RIGHT.

THANK YOU.

YEAH.

ANY OTHER QUESTIONS MORE THAN WELCOME TO, OKAY.

THANK YOU, SIR.

THANK YOU.

OKAY.

UH, WE'LL NOW MOVE TO, UH, PRESENTATIONS, UH, SECTION ROMAN NUMERAL THREE

[III.B.1. A Presentation By City Attorney, Val Tizeno and Attorney Gunnar Seaquist Of Bickerstaff Heath Delgado Acosta, LLP Regarding The 2020 Census Redistricting Process]

UM, YEAH, WE ALL HAVE OUR OWN MIX.

SO I'LL USE MY MIC.

UM, JUST VERY BRIEFLY, WE'RE HERE TODAY ON SOMETHING THAT WE'VE TALKED ABOUT, UH, FOR A LONG TIME, I'M ACTUALLY KIND OF EXCITED ABOUT IT, UH, BECAUSE I'VE BEEN IN, I WAS IN BALD IN THE PREVIOUS, UM, REDISTRICTING PROCESS, AND WE'VE BEEN TALKING A WHILE ABOUT HOW WE WOULD HAVE TO DO THIS AS YOU KNOW,

[00:25:01]

UM, SOMETHING I THINK A LOT OF CITIZENS HAVE EVEN CONTACTED AND WERE INTERESTED IN.

IT'S A REALLY GOOD PROCESS.

UH, SO WE'LL BE TALKING ABOUT THE PROCESS OF REDISTRICTING TODAY.

WE'LL TALK ABOUT GUIDELINES AND CRITERIA, AND THEN WE'LL SET FORTH THE TIMEFRAMES, UH, AT A LATER TIME OF HOW WE WILL, UH, YOU KNOW, GO THROUGH THAT PROCESS.

UM, YOU'VE BEEN WORKED WITH HIM BEFORE, THIS IS ATTORNEY GUNNER.

SCIQUEST, UH, WHO'S BEEN CONSULTING WITH US ON THIS EFFORT AND HE, WE'RE HAPPY TO HAVE HIM HERE TODAY FROM AUSTIN, AND HE'S DONE A GREAT DEAL OF WORK, AND HE'S GOING TO OUTLINE THE PROCESS.

AND AGAIN, THIS WAS PROBABLY ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS THAT A CITY DOES EVERY 10 YEARS.

UM, AND HE'LL TELL YOU, AS WE WERE EXCITED THAT WE DID MEET OUR CENSUS, UH, GOAL, AND, UH, WE HAVE A FEW MORE PEOPLE HERE, UH, BUT WE DIDN'T LOSE POPULATION.

AND NOW WE'RE TALKING ABOUT WHAT THOSE CHANGES ARE AND JUST LAYING OUT JUST THE VERY FIRST, UH, GROUNDWORK ON THAT.

SO, UH, THANK YOU FOR COMING AND, UH, GUNNER SCIQUEST WILL TAKE OVER THE PRESENTATION.

THANK YOU.

UH, GOOD MORNING COUNCIL MEMBERS, MR. MAYOR, UH, PLEASURE TO BE WITH YOU AND TO SEE YOU ALL THIS MORNING.

UM, I AM GOING TO SEQUENCE HERE WITH THE FARM OF BICKERSTAFF HEATH.

AND AS BOWEL MENTIONED, THE PLAN FOR THIS MORNING IS JUST TO GIVE YOU AN INITIAL ASSESSMENT OF WHAT THE GUIDELINES WILL BE TAKING INTO ACCOUNT WITH YOU AS THE COUNCIL DRAWS, UH, OR REBALANCES THE SINGLE MEMBER CITY COUNCIL DISTRICTS, WHAT THE PROCEDURAL STEPS WILL LOOK LIKE FOR THAT, UH, THE TIMEFRAME FOR GETTING THOSE DONE.

AND THEN I'LL JUST GIVE YOU A GENERAL OVERVIEW OF WHAT THE 27TH, 2020 CENSUS NUMBERS SHOWED US, SO THAT YOU'LL HAVE SOME IDEA, UH, WHAT THE PROCESS, UH, OR WHAT YOU'LL BE TRYING TO ACHIEVE AS WE GO THROUGH THIS PROCESS.

UH, I HAVE A POWERPOINT HERE.

UM, IT'S PROBABLY LONGER THAN IT NEEDS TO BE, BUT I'LL TRY TO MOVE THROUGH IT QUICKLY, UH, AND COVER THE PERTINENT POINTS IF WE CAN, UM, LOOK AT THE NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

OKAY.

AS WE GO THROUGH REDISTRICTING, UH, THE, THERE, THESE ARE BASICALLY THE LEGAL STANDARDS THAT WE APPLY AND THE FIRST IS, UH, THE ONE PERSON, ONE VOTE REQUIREMENT.

AND THIS COMES OUT OF THE EQUAL PROTECTION AMENDMENT, UH, TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION.

AND WHAT IT REQUIRES IS THAT EACH OF THE SINGLE MEMBER DISTRICTS BE ROUGHLY EQUAL, UH, IN TOTAL POPULATION.

UM, AS WE GO THROUGH THAT THOUGH, WE ALSO HAVE TO MAKE SURE ANY PLANS THAT ARE DRAWN ALSO COMPLY WITH THE FEDERAL VOTING RIGHTS ACT IN PARTICULAR.

THERE ARE KIND OF TWO, TWO AREAS OF THAT.

WE LOOK AT THE FIRST IS, UH, WHAT'S KNOWN AS SECTION TWO IS A NON-DISCRIMINATION PROVISION.

AND IT BASICALLY MEANS THAT ANY MAP THAT IS ULTIMATELY ADOPTED CANNOT HAVE EITHER THE INTENT OR THE EFFECT OF DISCRIMINATING AGAINST PROTECTED MINORITY OR LANGUAGE, CLASS VOTERS.

UM, THERE IS ALSO A LINE OF CASES OUT OF THE UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT KNOWN AS THE SHAW VERSUS RENO, UH, CASES, WHICH ARE KIND OF THE OPPOSITE SIDE, UH, TO THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT, WHICH SAY, UM, IT LIMITS THE USE OF THE CONSIDERATION OF RACE AS A FACTOR IN REDISTRICTING.

UM, AND I'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT IN A MOMENT.

AND THEN, UM, YOU'VE PROBABLY HEARD, UH, DISCUSSIONS OF THE CASE SHELBY COUNTY, SHELBY COUNTY VERSUS HOLDER.

UM, THERE USED TO BE FOR ANYONE WHO MIGHT'VE BEEN INVOLVED IN THIS PROCESS A DECADE AGO, A PRE-CLEARANCE REQUIREMENT UNDER THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT, UM, THAT WAS KNOWN AS SECTION FIVE.

UM, THAT REQUIREMENT NO LONGER APPLIES.

UM, THERE, WE DON'T HAVE TO ADOPT DISTRICTS AND THEN SEND THEM OFF TO WASHINGTON DC FOR PRE-CLEARANCE ANYMORE.

UM, BUT WE STILL USE SECTION FIVE, UH, AND THE GUIDANCE UNDER IT AS A DIAGNOSTIC TOOL, WE, WE STILL MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE FOLLOWING THOSE PRINCIPLES, EVEN THOUGH WE DON'T NEED TO PRE-CLEAR ANYMORE.

UH, NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE, WHEN WE ARE TALKING ABOUT JUST A QUICK DISCUSSION OF THE ONE PERSON, ONE VOTE REQUIREMENT, UM, AGAIN, IT'S ROUGHLY EQUAL, UH, POPULATION BETWEEN THE SINGLE MEMBER DISTRICTS, UH, JUST THE WAY PEOPLE ARE SITUATED GEOGRAPHICALLY.

IT MAKES IT IMPOSSIBLE TO GET THEM EXACTLY EQUAL MOST OF THE TIME.

UH, AND SO WHAT WE DO IS THE COURTS HAVE TOLD US THAT ACCEPTABLE DEVIANCE IS, UH, OR D DEVIATION, EXCUSE ME, IS A 10% OVERALL.

AND SO WHAT WE DO IS WE WILL LOOK AT WHICHEVER UNDER THE NEW PLAN, WE LOOK AT WHICH SINGLE MEMBER DISTRICT HAS THE HIGHEST POPULATION.

AND THEN WE LOOK AT THE ONE THAT HAS THE LEAST POPULATION, AND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THOSE TWO CANNOT EXCEED 10%.

UH, IF WE LOOK AT THE NEXT

[00:30:01]

THESE ARE FOR HYPOTHETICAL COUNCIL DISTRICTS HERE.

YOU CAN SEE, UH, MOST POPULOUS IS 10%, UM, ABOVE THE IDEAL DISTRICT SIZE.

THE LEAST POPULOUS IS 20% BELOW.

IF YOU ADD THOSE TWO TOGETHER, YOU GET 30%, THAT WOULD BE YOUR TOTAL MAXIMUM DEVIATION IN THIS CASE.

WELL, IN EXCESS OF THE 10%.

SO IN THIS HYPOTHETICAL, UH, WE WOULD HAVE TO REDISTRICT.

I CAN LOOK AT THE NEXT SLIDE, JUST A QUICK DISCUSSION AS YOU LOOK THROUGH THE MATERIALS.

AND AS WE GO THROUGH THIS PROCESS, YOU'LL HEAR DIFFERENT MEASUREMENTS OF POPULATION.

UM, WHEN WE ARE LOOKING AT BALANCING FOR PURPOSES OF THE ONE PERSON, ONE VOTE REQUIREMENT, WE ARE ALWAYS LOOKING AT TOTAL POPULATION.

SO THAT'S WHAT WE WILL BE LOOKING AT.

WE DON'T TAKE INTO ACCOUNT, UH, VOTING AGE, CITIZEN, VOTER, CITIZENS, STATUS, ANYTHING LIKE THAT WHEN WE ARE ANALYZING COMPLIANCE WITH THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT, THAT'S WHEN WE WANT TO LOOK SPECIFICALLY AT VOTERS.

AND SO THAT'S WHEN YOU'LL HEAR ME TALK SOMETIMES AS WE GO THROUGH THE PROCESS ABOUT VOTING AGE POPULATION, OR MAYBE CITIZEN VOTING AGE POPULATION, IF IT COMES UP.

UM, SO THOSE ARE REALLY THE DISTINCTIONS, BUT WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT JUST GETTING THE BALANCE, WE'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING AT THOSE TOTAL POPULATION NUMBERS.

UH, NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE, JUST A QUICK DISCUSSION OF SECTION TWO, AS WE GO THROUGH, UH, AS I MENTIONED, SECTION TWO IS A NON-DISCRIMINATION PROVISION.

AND TYPICALLY WHAT THAT MEANS IS, UH, WHEN YOU HEAR SECTION TO DISCUSS, YOU HEAR A DISCUSSION OF, UH, VOTER DILUTION.

AND SO SECTION TWO IS INTENDED TO PREVENT, UH, THE DILUTION OF MINORITY VOTING POWER, UH, INTELLECTUAL DISTRICTS, AND TWO WAYS THAT THAT TYPICALLY OCCURS AND THAT WE WATCH FOR UNDER SECTION TWO IS EITHER, UH, OVERPACKING, UM, PROTECTED POPULATIONS INTO A SINGLE DISTRICT TO DILUTE THEIR, UH, OPPORTUNITY TO VOTE IN THE OTHER DISTRICTS OR DIVIDING, UH, COHESIVE, CONCENTRATED POPULATIONS AMONG DIFFERENCE, UH, EXCUSE ME, AMONG DISTRICTS TO LIMIT VOTING POWER AND ONE OF THE OTHER.

UM, SO THOSE ARE JUST SOME TERMS AND WHAT WE WILL BE LOOKING AT.

UH, NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE, AS I MENTIONED, UH, SHAW VERSUS RENO BASICALLY JUST SAYS, UM, LIMITS THE ABILITY TO CONSIDER RACE.

AND BASICALLY WHAT THAT MEANS IS TO THE EXTENT IN A REDISTRICTING PROCESS, WHERE YOU LOOK AT RACE OR ETHNICITY, IT IS ONLY TO ENSURE THAT YOU ARE COMPLYING WITH THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT, UH, AND NOT HAVING THAT DISCRIMINATORY EFFECT.

OTHERWISE WE DON'T USE IT AS A CRA AS A CRITERIA OR, OR CONSIDERATION IN THE REDISTRICTING PROCESS.

UH, NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

AND THEN SECTION FIVE, AGAIN, THIS IS NOT A LEGAL REQUIREMENT PER SE, BUT IT'S STILL A GOOD GUIDELINE.

UM, THE OLD STANDARD UNDER SECTION FIVE WAS RETROGRESSION AND RETROGRESSION JUST MEANS THAT YOU'RE NOT TAKING A STEP BACK IN TERMS OF YOUR PROTECTED MINORITY REPRESENTATION.

SO, UM, IN PRE-CLEARANCE, IF YOU HAD A, PRIOR TO REDISTRICTING A MAJORITY MINORITY DISTRICT, AND AS A RESULT OF REDISTRICTING, YOU ARE GOING TO REDUCE THAT BELOW THAT LEVEL.

OFTENTIMES THAT WOULD GET REJECTED AS RETROGRESSIVE, UH, THROUGH THE PRE-CLEARANCE PROCESS.

AGAIN, HERE, WE DON'T HAVE TO DO THAT, BUT WE ALSO WILL STILL MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE NOT DRAWING ANYTHING.

UM, THAT TURNS OUT TO BE RETROGRESSIVE IN A WAY THAT WOULD VIOLATE THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT.

OKAY.

UM, NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

SO, UM, IN ORDER TO GOVERN THIS PROCESS AND TO GIVE SOME OBJECTIVE STANDARDS THAT THE COUNCIL CAN FOLLOW AS IT DRAWS, UM, IT SINGLE MEMBER DISTRICTS, UM, WE PRESENT FOR THE COUNCILS ADOPTION AND CONSIDERATION, AND THEY'RE ON THE CONSENT AGENDA, I BELIEVE TODAY, UM, CRITERIA FOR REDISTRICTING AND, AND THESE ARE REALLY JUST SORT OF THE RULES THAT WE LOOK TO.

AND THE FIRST IS, IS THAT WHEN YOU'RE DRAWING DISTRICTS, UM, AND IN TERMS OF SETTING THE BOUNDARIES OF DISTRICTS, WE USE IDENTICAL IDENTIFIABLE BOUNDARIES THAT HAS MAJOR ROADWAYS, UM, GEOGRAPHIC FEATURES SUCH AS RIVERS, CHANNELS, THINGS LIKE THAT, SO THAT, UM, YOU HAVE A GOOD BORDER THAT YOU CAN DRAW FOR YOUR DISTRICT, THAT PEOPLE ARE FAMILIAR WITH AND CAN RECOGNIZE.

AND SO IT DOESN'T, UH, IT'S NOT A NEBULOUS TYPE BOUNDARY.

UM, WE ALSO MAINTAIN COMMUNITIES OF INTERESTS AND NEIGHBORHOODS, AND OBVIOUSLY THAT'S SOMETHING THAT, THAT YOU ALL CAN BRING YOUR LOCAL KNOWLEDGE, UM, AND CONSTITUENCY INTERACTIONS TO BEAR ON, YOU KNOW, WHERE THE COMMUNITIES OF INTEREST IN LOCAL NEIGHBORHOODS THAT YOU WANT TO KEEP TOGETHER AND DISTRICTS ARE HERE IN THE CITY OF PORT ARTHUR.

UM, SO THAT'LL BE SOMETHING THAT THE COUNCIL IS ABLE TO CONSIDER.

WE USE WHOLE VOTING PRECINCTS IF POSSIBLE.

UH, THOSE ARE THE COUNTY'S ELECTION PRECINCTS.

THE, THE BENEFIT THERE IS, UM, IF YOU ULTIMATELY END UP SPLITTING A VOTING PRECINCT AND YOU CAN HAVE VOTERS IN ONE PRECINCT IN ONE VOTING ELECTION PRECINCT VOTING IN TWO DIFFERENT COUNCIL ELECTIONS,

[00:35:01]

SO WE TRY TO, AS MUCH AS WE CAN, IT'S NOT ALWAYS POSSIBLE GIVEN POPULATION DISTRIBUTION, UH, OR SOME OF THE OTHER FACTORS HERE, UH, USE THOSE VOTING COUNTY VOTING ELECTION PRECINCTS, UH, TO KEEP THOSE IN LINE.

UH, WE ALSO, UH, BASE PLANS ON THE EXISTING DISTRICTS, WHICH IS TO SAY, WHEN YOU GO THROUGH THE REDISTRICTING PROCESS, YOU DON'T BASICALLY SCRAP THE OLD MAP AND START OVER FROM SCRATCH.

IT'S, IT'S USUALLY A PROCESS OF MAKING SMALL CHANGES TO BRING THE EXISTING DISTRICTS BACK INTO BALANCE SO THAT IT'S NOT DISRUPTIVE EITHER FOR THE COUNCIL MEMBERS OR THE, IN THE CITY AGAIN, UH, ADOPTING DISTRICTS OF RELATIVELY EQUAL SIZE.

UM, WE DRAW DISTRICTS THAT ARE COMPACT AND CONTIGUOUS, UH, TRY TO AVOID ODDLY SHAPED DISTRICTS.

UM, THERE'S A LITTLE BIT JUST BECAUSE OF THE GEOGRAPHY HERE AND THE WAY THE CITY RUNS.

YOU'RE GOING TO SEE A LITTLE BIT, UH, IN TERMS OF SOME DIFFERENT SHAPE DISTRICTS THAN YOU MIGHT OTHERWISE, BUT THAT'S MORE A CONSEQUENCE OF, OF HOW THE CITY IS LAID OUT THAN IT IS ANYTHING ABOUT THE WAY WE WOULD BE DRAWING DISTRICTS.

UM, WE KEEP EXISTING INCUMBENTS INTO THEIR DISTRICTS.

SOMETIMES YOU HEAR ABOUT A REDISTRICTING PROCESS THAT WILL DRAW A SITTING MEMBER OUT OF THEIR DISTRICT, UM, SO THAT THEY CAN'T RUN FOR THAT SEAT.

AGAIN, THEY GET PAIRED WITH SOMEBODY ELSE HAVE TO RUN FOR ANOTHER DISTRICT.

UM, AS A CRITERIA WE TYPICALLY RECOMMEND NOT DOING THAT.

UM, THE CONSTITUENTS, YOU ALL WORK VERY HARD TO GET TO YOUR POSITIONS AND TO LEARN YOUR POSITIONS AND YOUR CONSTITUENTS ALSO CONSTITUENTS DO A LOT OF WORK, BUILDING THEIR TRUST AND RELATIONSHIPS WITH EACH OF YOU.

AND SO WE LIKED FOR THIS PROCESS TO RESPECT THAT RELATIONSHIP, UH, AND NOT, UH, PAIR OR DRAW OUT, UM, EXISTING INCUMBENTS FROM THEIR DISTRICTS.

AND FINALLY NARROWLY TAILORING THE PLAN TO COMPLY WITH THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT.

UM, AS IT SITS RIGHT NOW, UH, EACH OF THE CITY COUNCIL DISTRICTS UNDER THE 2020 CENSUS, UH, HAVE A MAJORITY MINORITY.

SO I DON'T ANTICIPATE ANY PARTICULAR VOTING RIGHTS ISSUES AS WE GO THROUGH THIS PROCESS, BUT IT IS SOMETHING THAT WE'LL BE KEEPING AN EYE ON.

UH, NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

SO THIS IS THE STEP-BY-STEP PROCESS AND IT'S FLEXIBLE.

SO WE CAN ADD STEPS, UH, AS WE NEED TO, TO MAKE SURE EVERYONE IS COMFORTABLE WITH THE PROCESS AND FEEL LIKE THEY HAVE THE INPUT, UH, AND THAT THE PUBLIC HAS THE INPUT THAT THE COUNCIL FEELS IS NECESSARY.

UM, BUT WHAT WE START WITH IS THE INITIAL ASSESSMENT, WHICH IS WHAT WE'RE HERE DOING THIS MORNING, UH, ALONG WITH THE ADOPTION OF PLAN CRITERIA THAT WE JUST DISCUSSED, AS WELL AS SOME GUIDELINES FOR PUBLIC PARTICIPATION, WHICH ARE ALSO BEFORE THE COUNCIL TODAY.

UM, THOSE GUIDELINES BASICALLY JUST SET A TEMPLATE, UH, FOR CONSISTENCY, SO THAT WHEN WE HAVE PUBLIC INPUT AND IN PARTICULAR, IF INDIVIDUALS OR GROUPS IN THE COMMUNITY WANT TO SUBMIT THEIR OWN ALTERNATIVE AS A PLAN, THAT WE HAVE SOME STANDARDS THAT EVERYBODY SUBMITS SO THAT ALL THE PLANS CAN BE COMPARED IN AN APPLES TO APPLES COMPARISON.

UM, ONCE WE HAVE THAT ADOPTED, WE'RE GOING TO GO BACK AND WE ARE GOING TO PREPARE, UH, SOME ILLUSTRATIVE PLANS FOR YOU ALL.

AND THOSE ARE JUST EXAMPLES.

THEY ARE SAMPLES OF HOW YOU CAN GET THE DISTRICTS BACK INTO BALANCE, MAKING SOME CERTAIN CHANGES THEY ARE, YOU KNOW, AT THE END OF THE DAY, HOPEFULLY ONE OF THE THINGS I'LL MAKE VERY CLEAR IS THAT IS IT'S A COUNCIL, NOT OUR LAW FIRM THAT DRAWS THE PLANS.

SO WE'LL GIVE YOU SOME SAMPLES, WE'LL GIVE YOU THE NUMBERS, WE'LL SHOW YOU HOW IT WORKS, BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, WHATEVER COMES OUT AS A FINAL PLAN IS GOING TO BE YOUR WORK PRODUCT AND SOMETHING THAT YOU ALL HAVE DRAWN FOR THE COMMUNITY, AND THAT YOU'RE SATISFIED, BUT TO HELP YOU DO THAT, WE PREPARE ILLUSTRATIVE PLANS AND WE'LL PUT TOGETHER THREE OR FOUR GOOD PLANS FOR YOU TO LOOK AT.

SO YOU CAN SEE WHAT THE VARIOUS OPTIONS LOOK LIKE, UH, AND HAVE SOME IDEAS ABOUT HOW YOU CAN ACCOMPLISH THIS, UH, IN A WAY THAT THAT IS SATISFACTORY TO EVERYBODY, BUT WE WILL BRING THOSE TO OUR NEXT, UH, DRAWING MEETING.

AND AT THAT MEETING, WE'LL GIVE YOU THE PLANS AND I'LL ALSO HAVE MY GIS DRAWER.

UM, ON THE SCREEN HERE WITH THE SOFTWARE PULLED UP AND WITH OUR GIS SOFTWARE, WE CAN MAKE CHANGES TO THE MAPS.

UH, WE CAN START WITH ANY, ANY OF THE SAMPLES WE GIVE YOU, UH, OR EVEN FROM THE CURRENT DISTRICTS.

AND WE CAN JUST GO IN AND START DRAWING AND WE CAN MAKE CHANGES IN REAL TIME.

AND AS SOON AS YOU MAKE A CHANGE, ALL OF THE POPULATION TABLES WILL UPDATE IMMEDIATELY.

AND SO YOU'LL KNOW, OKAY, WHAT DOES THIS CHANGE DO IN TERMS OF, UH, DEMOGRAPHIC CHANGE, POPULATION SHIFT.

AND SO REALLY IT BECOMES AN ACTIVITY THAT WE CAN ALL DO HERE TOGETHER TO DRAW AND GET TO A PLAN THAT THE COUNCIL IS HAPPY WITH.

UM, AND WE CAN HAVE A COUPLE OF THOSE DRAWING SESSIONS, OR IT MAY BE JUST ONE.

IT JUST DEPENDS ON WHAT IT TAKES TO GET ONE THAT EVERYONE IS HAPPY WITH, OR A COUPLE OF ALTERNATIVES THAT YOU ALL WANT TO PUT OUT TO THE PUBLIC FOR THEIR INPUT.

AND SO THAT'S THE NEXT STEP.

UH, ONCE THE COUNCIL HAS SOME PLANS THAT IT IS HAPPY WITH, WE HELP THE CITY PUBLICIZE THOSE BOTH THROUGH THE WEBSITE AND THROUGH OTHER APOE APPROPRIATE PUBLICATION MEANS.

AND THEN WE'LL HAVE, AFTER THAT, A PUBLIC

[00:40:01]

UH, AND THEN THAT WILL GIVE THE COUNCIL AN OPPORTUNITY TO CONSIDER THOSE, UH, WE'LL, WE'LL HAVE A SECOND DRAWING SESSION AND MAKE ANY FURTHER CHANGES IF NECESSARY.

AND THEN HOPEFULLY AFTER THAT POINT, UM, WE'LL BE ABLE TO MOVE TOWARDS A FINAL ADOPTION.

AND OF COURSE AT THAT POINT, THERE WOULD BE A FINAL OPPORTUNITY FOR PUBLIC INPUT AND COMMENT AS WELL.

UH, AND THEN YOU CAN GET THE PLAN ADOPTED AFTER THAT.

UM, WE WILL ASSIST THE CITY, UH, IN UPDATING THE COUNTY WITH ITS NEW PLAN AND GETTING THAT LOADED INTO THEIR SYSTEM SO THAT YOU GUYS, UH, CAN HAVE SEAMLESS HOPEFULLY, UH, ELECTIONS AND FACILITATE AN EASY ELECTION PROCESS.

SO, UM, THAT IS SORT OF THE, THE GENERAL PROCESS.

AGAIN, UH, IF THE COUNCIL WANTS, WE CAN ADD DRAWING SESSIONS, WE CAN ADD PUBLIC MEETINGS, THOSE THINGS WERE AVAILABLE, BUT THIS IS THE STANDARD PROCESS THAT WE USE.

NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.

AND SO THIS WOULD BE A SCHEDULE, OBVIOUSLY WE'RE HERE, UM, AND WE'LL BE WORKING WITH THE CITY COUNCIL'S OFFICE TO BUILD OUT THE RE EXCUSE ME, THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, UH, TO BUILD OUT THE REST OF THE SCHEDULE.

NEXT SLIDE, PLEASE.

OKAY.

UM, JUST A RUN DOWN OF THE CURRENT DATA FROM THE 20, 20 CENSUS, AND NEXT SLIDE, THIS SHOULD BE FAMILIAR TO EVERYONE.

THIS IS THE CURRENT, UH, SINGLE MEMBER DISTRICTS OF THE CITY.

UM, WHAT WE REFER TO AS WE GO THROUGH THIS PROCESS AS THE BENCHMARK DISTRICTS, UM, 1, 2, 3, AND FOUR.

I KNOW THE COLORING IS A LITTLE DIFFICULT TO SEE THERE.

UM, BUT THIS IS WHAT THE DISTRICTS CURRENTLY LOOK LIKE, AND THIS IS WHAT WE'LL BE WORKING ON WHEN WE START TO MODIFY.

AND THEN IF YOU WILL, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO SKIP THROUGH A FEW SLIDES, CAUSE IT'S JUST THE INDIVIDUAL DISTRICTS.

OKAY.

AND THIS IS, UM, THIS IS OUR INITIAL ASSESSMENT, UH, WHEN IT COMES TO TOTAL POPULATION.

AND SO THIS IS REALLY WHAT IS DRIVING, UM, THE REDISTRICTING, UH, AS WE GO FORWARD, UM, AS YOU LOOK AT THE CURRENT NUMBERS AS REFLECTED FROM THE 2020 CENSUS, WHAT YOU SEE IS, UH, THE TOTAL POPULATION IS 55,740, UH, FOR THE CITY OF PORT ARTHUR.

UM, THAT WOULD GIVE US IF YOU WERE TO DIVIDE THAT EQUALLY, YOU WOULD BE LOOKING FOR AN IDEAL POPULATION SIZE IN EACH DISTRICT OF ROUGHLY 13,935 PEOPLE.