12-11-2014 Approved MinutesNortheast Partnership for Economic Development
Olympia Hills Golf and Conference Center
12900 Mount Olympus, Universal City, TX 78148
MINUTES OF MEETING
Thursday, December, 11, 2014 —11:30 a.m.
1. Call to Order and Establish a Quorum
Mayor Jackson called the meeting to order at 12:00 P.M., and a quorum was present.
Mayor Mary Dennis had prepared a proxy for a designated representative for the
Northeast Partnership Meeting to Councilmember Ed Cimics.
2. Welcome and Introductions
Mayor Jackson had all attendees stand and introduce themselves.
3. Approval of the Minutes of the November 6, 2014 Mayor's Workshop meeting.
Councilmember Ed Cimics made a motion seconded by Mayor Al Suarez to approve
the minutes of the workshop meeting of November 6, 2014. Motion Passed.
4. Approval of Minutes of the regular meeting of November 13, 2014.
Mayor Tom Daly made a motion seconded by Mayor John Williams to approve the
minutes of the regular meeting of November 13, 2014. Motion Passed.
5. Approval of Treasurer's Report for November 2014.
Mayor Tom Daly made a motion seconded by Councilmember Ed Cimics to approve
the Treasurer's report for November 2014. Motion Passed.
6. Information Items.
A. Report from Randolph Metrocom Chamber of Commerce.
Pat O'Brien stated they had a great luncheon on Tuesday for Christmas. Their
gala was two weeks before and he thanked all the sponsors. To access their
schedule go to your Tri County Chamber app on your phone. You can promote
your events through this event and it will populate everybody's apps.
B. Report from Schertz Chamber of Commerce.
Mayor Jackson recognized Schertz Chamber President Maggie Titterington who
stated they were able to give $15,000 worth of scholarship funds to Steele and
Clemens High Schools at their last chamber luncheon. Their Health and
Wholeness Fair will be held on January 31, 2015. If anyone wants to take part,
contact the chamber. There are only 5 booths left. Their first luncheon in January
will also be the annual meeting where they will introduce 3 new programs, as well
as results of their member survey. The City of Selma is still seeking runners for
their 5k run on January 17th. This Saturday Cibolo will host their first holiday
parade; it starts at 10:00 a.m.
C. Report from Economic Development Committee.
Jordan stated they had a wrap up of the year with a few presentations of some
projects and programs coming up in the New Year. They were not able to
elect a new chairperson yet. They will meet in January and after that in every
other month of the year.
D. Report from Randolph Air Power Community Council (RAPCO).
There are some services missing from the base that they are looking at now.
An example is that they can't do movies on base anymore because the movie
systems updated their formats. They are trying to try to get this and other
services back on base next year to help the families that live there.
E. Report on Bicycle Mobility Advisory Committee.
No report.
F. Report from Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO).
Mayor Daly stated they met last Monday. A lot of new members on board
think some things need to change soon but it will take some time.
7. New Business
1. Presentation by Mr. Jeff Judson regarding Transportation Policy, How to
solve traffic congestion, the role of transit, and new Land use plans under
consideration in San Antonio that could Impact us.
Mr. Judson stated since 2003, he has been a public policy consultant. Any
time any of our local, state, or federal dollars are going to some really
expensive transit projects in downtown San Antonio, it comes at the expense
of road expansion in areas such as this, the suburbs, where sprawl takes place.
Sprawl is a bad word. There are a lot of things happening regarding stopping
`urban sprawl'. It will push more growth into your communities.
The American Dream is about owning your own home and we have some of
the best housing in the world. However, thanks to smart growth planning,
housing is much more expensive in some areas that applied these regulations.
Most small businesses have been started by people who took out an equity
loan on their homes. So this is a very important part of the American dream.
He told the story about Henry Ford, his assembly line process of building
affordable cars, and the lifestyle change(s) this created for a lot of American
people. He also spoke about planning and zoning changes, such as middle
class housing developments that came with covenants and restrictions
designed to keep the middle class out, as they were not affordable for the
working people. Soon, entire cities were zoned, confining certain people to
specific limited areas. He explained the term "growth management'.
Acquisition of additional areas is done for managing and controlling growth,
not accommodating it. He gave examples of high housing and land prices in
London, Hawaii, and California. Oregon is the capital of zoning and transit.
Developers will typically tear down a home and build four skinny homes in its
place or high rise density structures. He continued by providing some slides
and examples of recent building in the San Antonio area.
2. Discussion regarding 2015 Legislative Bill Proposals.
No updates today.
8. Establish a Date and Time of Next Meeting — January 8, 2015
December Door Prizes — City of Schertz
*Winners:
Councilmember Ed Cimics, Live Oak
Gilbert Pulova, Alamo Colleges
Maggie Titterington, Schertz Chamber of Commerce
Jeff Judson, Guest Speaker
Mayor Al Suarez, Converse
January Door Prizes — City of Selma
9. Items of Interest by Members.
Mayor Daley wanted to thank the City of Schertz who partnered up with the City
of Selma in support of their `Wounded Warriors' program. There were also
representatives from Cibolo there and he thanked them too.
Challenge from the City of Converse - -- think about finding a needy child that you
can assist in having a nice Christmas.
Mayor Jackson asked everyone to keep Mayor Andrew Dalton in your prayer who
is hoping to come home next week.
One more drawing: Nancy Cain, Garden Ridge
10. Adjournment.
Mayor Jackson adjourned the meeting at 12:50 p.m. A motion was made by
Councilmember Ed Cimics to adjourn the meeting; it was seconded by Mayor Al
Suarez. Motion passed.
PASSED AND APPROVED on January 8, 2015.
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Mayor Lisa Jackson, NEP Vice -Chair