All right, we'll call the meeting to order. Please stand for the pledge of 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. All right, good evening and welcome everyone. I maybe you all knew that Dan Ball was going to be here today and decided back the chambers just to get a glimpse of Dan Ball. So anyway, welcome. Uh we got some great stuff to do tonight. So some of it is actually very
fun and well I should say all of it is very fun. Um first out of the gate we have to do an oath of office because Obama Obala is returning to council for the third ward. So Tom Danker will do the oath and please do it in one breath please. All in one. All in one. Yeah. No
no pauses. Good luck Obama. Read it straight through and then he can repeat it. I'll read this all through and then you raise your right hand. Repeat after me. I Obama Obama I Obala Obala have been appointed to the office have been appointed to the office of council member third ward of council member of
third w city of Austin of s city of Austin do swear and I will support the constitution do swear I will support the constitution of the United States and state of Minnesota of the United States and state of Minnesota and I will faithfully discharge the duties of my office I will faithfully discharge the
duty of my office to the best of my judgment and ability to the best of my judgment and ability Congratulations. [Applause]
Thank you, Tom. And welcome back, Obala. Uh, next on the agenda, the roll call. Tom, please take the roll call. Mayor King, present. Council member Large Austin, present. Council member Baskin present. Osma present. Ellie
present. Oawa present. Present. Waller present. Have a quorum. Your honor. Thank you Tom. Item number one is a motion for the adoption of the agenda with one addition. So moved. A second. All in favor? Opposed. Motion carries. On to
number two. Item number two is a motion approving our minutes from our May 19th and May 28th meetings of 2025. So moved. Second. All in favor? I opposed. Motion carries. Uh item number three under recognitions and awards. We have a couple. The first one out of the gate is
Chaplain Victor Ordonz. Uh letter of commendation. Sergeant Osborne is going to present and say a few words on behalf of Chaplain Ordonz. Welcome Daniel. Good evening everyone. Before I begin,
I got a loud voice. I can probably Good evening everyone. Before I begin, I want to start by thanking you for this opportunity to speak in front of council. Um, our department is here tonight to recognize Chaplain Victor Ordonz for his dedication to our officers and our community. Victor has
been an integral part of our chaplain program and is actually one of the founding members. Throughout his time with the police department, Victor has responded to several calls for service. He's responded to to several critical incidents, participated in ride alongs.
He's assisted officers and their families, attended different community events, and served the public diligently. Some of these calls for service can be extremely difficult, such as death notifications. This usually involves getting in touch with the next akin and
letting them know that their loved one has passed. Victor provides emotional and in some cases spiritual support to those who need it in what is quite possibly the worst day of their life. Victor is known around the office for his infectious laugh, his motivating
attitude, and his ability to help anyone in their time of need. Victor can light up a room and raise the mood just by being present during our roll calls before our officers begin their shifts. Also, it doesn't hurt when he brings in his fresh cinnamon rolls at his
wife. They're an office favorite and everybody really enjoys them. Aside from being a chaplain, Victor is a dedicated family man. He's a husband, a father, a pastor, a local school bus driver, and is considered a friend to many. Victor
is a model citizen and an exceptional chaplain. I'd like to share a quick story with everyone that epitomizes Victor's strength of character. We had a death in the community roughly a year ago. Typically, when this occurs, we will contact a chaplain to come in and
assist the family. This allows our officers to focus on the call for service while we're still able to provide the adequate comfort and care for the grieving family, which comes with the assistant of our chaplain. During this particular event,
Victor responded to assist a grieving adult son who had just lost his mother. Victor immediately went to work to console the man during his time of need and assess the situation. Through this, Victor learned that the man had lived alone with his mother and
that the family of the guy actually lived out of state. Over the next few days, Victor would follow up with the man to check on his well-being, even bringing him food to make sure that he was eating properly. During one visit, Victor became concerned for the well-being of
the man and quickly contacted our lead chaplain. Lead chaplain and Victor worked together and decided to contact our department. so we could do a welfare check on this individual. We completed one that was discovered that the man was doing just about as well as you expected in
circumstances he did and he already had family in route to kind of take care of. We were able to document the concern and notify the proper resources so we can follow up with him to make sure that everything went well for him. After all this, I was told about
how grateful the man was regarding Victor's service and kindness and that he was positively impacted by Victor's compassion. We are saddened to see Victor leave our program and he will be greatly missed. However, we know that he is going to do great things in his new
position and that they're going to be very lucky to have him. Victor, thank you for your service to our department and our community.
[Applause] It's Victor, thank you for your service. I know I understand you know this the salt and life is relatively new to APD and as a founding member, thank you for getting
it going. Uh just take a look around at who's here to support you, all these officers. So that has got to be very meaningful for what you've done, how you've touched their lives and others. So appreciate what you've done uh for the city of Austin and for APD. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
So I got one last thing before I step away. I would like to take a moment to introduce our new chaplain to you today that fills that void. Um that's going to be Pastor Dan Melky. He's back here in the back to the right. Um, you may remember Pastor Danis. He was recognized before the council and awarded accommodation from our department last
year for his assistance during a critical incident. Um, oddly enough, he helped us in providing pastoral assistance during that call and uh was instrumental in in making sure that everything ended with a safe outcome.
Um, Pastor Dan, welcome to the team. We look forward to working together. Thank you. Thank you, Sergeant Osborne and Pastor Milky. Understand you got some big shoes to fill, not only in in what you do for the uh Salt and Wife and the officers, but sounds like breakfast or some kind of snack food would be
appreciated. Good. Thank you. Uh thank everybody for your support and showing up here. And in the in the theme of good people doing good things, we continue on with something that's really remarkable. Mary Hagen is here and I know her husband and her daughter are here as well. I learned that Mary was uh is an Austin resident uh goes to her and
she'll tell her story. She's not nervous. She's going to come up here and tell her story. Um goes to a flag football tournament in Seagull, Minnesota and ends up hearing the cries of a mother with a one-year-old or less young young boy in distress and not breathing. So Mary brings Mary brings
the little boy back to life. So I think if anything's worthy of the key to the city, it's saving life. So Mary, if you want to come and and do maybe you want to talk on our behalf. I don't know. But please both come forward and tell us your story a little bit. [Applause]
Hello. Hi there. Welcome. um three weeks ago went to our grandson's flag football game and as we were sitting there someone came from behind and hollered and was wondering if um they needed help. There was a baby not breathing and
no pulse. So, I ran over there and um performed CPR and a first responder showed up shortly thereafter, five minutes maybe, something like that. And um then he was able to feel a pulse and um six, seven
police, sheriff cars all came because we were a little bit out in the country. So, everyone was coming and um eventually ambulance showed up and thankfully the baby was in mom's arms by the time um the ambulance got there and
I was very fortunate to find out the following week. I got to see the baby and I got to talk with the mom a little bit and the baby's doing pretty well. Had a few issues going on but for the most part and they were at the game again so it was very nice to see them
there. Excellent. Thank you. Stay right there. So, as an Austin rescul [Applause] That's just beautiful. We're going to keep going with some good good stuff. We
have some presentations, but uh thank you all. If you do want to filter out, that's great. But we have some present uh item number four is a presentation by KSMQ first and then Discover Austin second. So Laura, you want to go first? Welcome. Thank you so much, Mayor King, council
members, city staff, and guests. My name is Laura Archbold and I'm the station manager for KSMQ Public Television. And I just have to personally say um the first two uh items on the agenda
couldn't have been timed perfectly. Um because these are exceptional stories. Um and so I'm grateful that uh this is elevated here in this context. Um as well as uh the importance of local storytelling as well. we've been able to
tell Salt and Light Partners story on KSMQ and know the good work that George and his team um and uh personally I come from a law enforcement family in the city of St. Paul. So um I know how uh tremendously important that role is and
so I'm just grateful for that acknowledgement um uh for those important stories. So, I'm here simply um to say thank you um to the city of Austin um that has provided uh visionary leadership for public television um not
only for this community but the region that we serve. So since 1972 this community had visionary uh foundation to to begin public television. Um, and for over 50 years, KSMQ has delivered highquality,
educational, and culturally enriching content across southern Minnesota and northeast Iowa. Today, uh, we are more than a media outlet. We are a trusted civic partner, and our mission is to inspire, discover, foster connection to
help our region be better informed. And the broadcast center that is in downtown Austin serves as a beacon for community engagement and local production where we're trying to get the word out even more of how we want to be open for the community to utilize the broadcast
center. In 2024, the station was selected for the prestigious digital transformation program that's led by CPB and the Pointer Institute, strengthening our ability to evolve with viewer needs and grow our reach and our mission as a
result. And so this happens one story at a time. This happens with stories like Salt and Light Partners. Right now, we're currently in heavy production for our off 90 season number 16. With our content, we've already shared stories
with homesteading in Austin, the Beatles themed golf course in Montgomery, Albert Lee Lake aboard the Pelican Breeze, and behind the scenes look at the Shells Brewery in New. Coming up soon will be the important feature on uh E. Andrew
Wood. He's the son of the pioneering Mayo Clinic researcher Dr. Earl Wood whose groundbreaking research um created the the guit that was very in instrumental um in World War II. These are the kind of stories that KSMQ tells
and public media has the opportunity to dive deeper into the run times. Um we have short documentaries that are coming up focusing on immigration, the success stories um in our local communities. We have two features from Austin, Winona,
and St. Charles. Um, and we will have community screenings uh before it airs on our station. And then we have a veteran veterans documentary coming out partnering with Minnesota Assistance for Council for Veterans, MACV. The film
explores community-led solutions for veteran homelessness, spotlighting recent progresses in Rochester, but knowing that this is really a national beacon and other organizations across the country reach out to MACV to understand uh what's possible when a
community works together. These are the stories that KSMQ wants to continue to focus on and share wider. So, we're at a transforming moment when it comes to public media. um our industry, it's changing fast. Uh media as a whole, but
certainly public media is. And so we're embracing a mission-based content strategy that ensures KSMQ meets people where they're where they are. That means TV, mobile, uh as well as broadcast. Um and it should be free and accessible.
And so your support is critically important. And we are grateful for that foundation. And we're just here simply to say thank you. Um, and we're proud to call uh Austin home. And on behalf of our team, thank you to the city of Austin, its residents for your ongoing
support in your investment that uh makes us uh reliable and forward uh looking to be a leader when it comes to public media in our state. Thank you very much. Thank you, Laura. I know I had the occasion to go and and meet uh Senator
Clolobashar came to your facility a month ago or so maybe you know if you want to talk about that with what was that all about or why would she show up in case Thank you. This uh uh this is a very important bipartisan topic. It really is and uh we hope to have more
visits uh state and nationally uh through our station because again um it's state-of-the-art. it's ready to go and that that has to do with the vision um that was here and public private combination and so we were grateful we
had 48 hour notice for Senator Clolobachar to come visit very proud of our team of of 11 pulling things together and and she just wanted a tour she was planned to stay for a half an hour she stayed an hour um which meant
she was very engaged wanting to understand our operations and and Again, uh we are only 28% PBS. So 72% of what we uh c we share um on all of those
platforms can and should be more local. Uh we purchase content and so um the the goal is to create content that can go wider that others can purchase as well. So we have a tremendous opportunity. We were grateful for her visit and we
anticipate more legislative visits. Excellent. Very good. Thank you, Laura, for your presentation. I appreciate it. Thanks very much. Thank you. Thank you. All right, Nancy. Hi. Discover Austin update. Myself and Krispy Bacon are coming up to
talk. Anybody want to volunteer to to model Krispy before we get going? Uh Holly just got her hair done, so no. Oh, okay. Okay. The did too, so no for him, too. Oh, okay. Anybody else? Anybody? Typical first council meeting. I'm not sure if you remember that. There we go.
It should be like a hazing for the first day. Yeah. Little hazing. Wonderful. Well, thanks for giving me the opportunity to give you an update. Again, it's an annual thing that I enjoy doing. So, I think all of you got the annual report in your packet. So, I'm going to run through that really quick and then give you some updates on what
we've been working on. So, on the first page, you will see crispy bacon is our new mascot for this is 2024 and it got used quite often. We went out to the Chicago Adventure and Travel Show. We were welcome to come back anytime, just not with the mascot because we were
slowing down traffic in the alleys in in the little rows where people were meeting people because they would stop and take pictures. So, um, new for 2025, you will see the personalized Austin hat. So, before it kind of had the tassel for graduation and so now it's personalized and actually has Austin,
Minnesota on it. So, that is the upgrade for 2025. Um, we continued with a lot of different events in Austin for 2024, including the beer, bacon, and beignet event. it's become an annual event um at Packer Arena. Um we had over 300 people and this year we had over 20 different
breweries attend as well. So um we continue that success with that program and plan to do it again in April of 2026. Um the 3D Minnesota sculpture was also new to Austin in 2024 and you can see there's a lot of people that have been taking pictures of that and so
we've enjoyed seeing people um enjoy that. A lot of events and I'll kind of run through just a couple of them. the American Junior Golf Association. 2024 was the second time that it was in our community and it will continue for 2025. You can kind of see that economic impact
there. Um within the two years or between the two years, it's been over 730,000 just in our Austin community. So, we're looking forward to 2025. And you can see all of the social media that coverage that it gets as
well. We'll continue on with some of the other groups. fittest on Turf. The first time event was on June of 2024. That will continue and happen in 2025 as well. The Gopher State Baseball Tournament of Champions um last year we had uh 57,000 economic impact for them
because not a single one of their players stayed in our community due to not having enough lodging. However, in 2025, they have room blocks already set up. So, we anticipate that economic impact to go a lot greater. The Model A car club was here in October of 2024.
This weekend we are actually welcoming the Gold Wings and then later in the year we are actually welcoming the Ozemobile Club as well. So um wheels are really a thing in Austin that people enjoy coming here for. So also the Minnesota Disabled Veterans were there, the Minnesota Department of
Transportation, newspaper association, creative retailers, flood plants. So you can see it's a really wide range of industries and diverse topics that come to Austin to host their meetings and events. We still continue with our traditional marketing. You'll see the billboards.
We've got different things in magazines, food magazines, and so we continue to promote in all different areas. Another new thing that we started in 2024 was a podcast. Um there was some changes at our local radio station and so we um helped the right here right now
podcast start. And you'll see when the annual report came out that there was over 5600 downloads and I actually checked this morning and we're over 6,500 downloads right now. So it continues to grow every month. Was that because Stephen was on it? Did we see a
spike there or absolutely I believe so. Next month it'll triple. Who's the speaker next month? Anybody know? Um visitor guide is still our our number one marketing piece as far as that goes. You'll see how it's distributed. 20,000
were displayed, 1,300 were mailed, over 3,000 welcome bags were made, and I put a copy of the 2025 visitor guide in front of you. Um, in 2024, we kind of did a foil so that the Austin popped. And in 2025, we did a die cut so you can kind of have that 3D with the Austin
name on there. Stay tuned for 2026 because we already have plans for what 2026 will be. So, we're super excited about that. um tour and travel. The numbers keep growing for that. So, that's always exciting to see. If you were downtown about 3:00 today, you saw a bus get stuck in construction. And so,
we keep welcoming them and finding out ways to to get around town. Um in 2024, 97 groups came. Um that's a 9% increase year-over-year. Um on those buses, there was over 3,300 travelers from those following states. And then, as you know,
we're funded with lodging tax. And so we had over 182,000 182,000 lodging tax that we used to keep our operations going. Um the next page is just the Minnesota stats. Um their latest greatest numbers were from 2023. In
Minnesota, there's over 80 million visitors that come in 2023. Uh 14 billion visitors in spending, 180,000 jobs were generated, and 2.3 billion in state and local taxes were generated. So um and then there's more information
that kind of supply or uh supports those numbers. On the back page you will see our board of directors. Couple familiar faces and so we thank them greatly for their participation and knowledge that they bring to our board meetings every month. Um going into 2025 or some of
them it has already happened in 25. Um this weekend we are hosting a new event at the Mau County Fairgrounds. It is the grillin and chilling event. And so there are 15 backyard barbecuers that'll be um making some horell ribs and then people
can actually purchase some tickets to try those ribs. Um it's a new event and we have an incredible judge. I think mayor's going to be there to judge some of those ribs and then you can also do people's choice as well. Um the playing cards, some of you I kind of put them sporadically throughout up there. Those
are um one of a kind playing cards for Austin. Um you will see each card is different. Um some of them are sponsored, some of them have trivia, and so um we're using them for a couple different ways. We can take them to trade shows and people can kind of build their itinerary just by kind of drawing a different card. And so it's been a
great marketing piece for us. And then a lot of the local residents happen to like them. So we're actually selling them, too. They went out for graduation presents. We've already had some little ladies get them for Christmas presents for their kids that aren't there. So, um, so it's been a great thing for us on that as well. Um, also with you are some
Mad Libs. Um, so we always do a be a tourist in your own hometown challenge. And so this year we did a Mad Libs challenge. So, I encourage you to take the Mad Libs game, go meet up with some friends or family, colleagues, and ask
them to have the name or to do the verbs, the adjectives, the restaurant, the cuisine, the relative, the retail shop. Just ask them just to name first thing that comes off the top of their head. Fill it in. Don't cheat. And when it's all filled in, then read the story
to them. And you will find out that it gets to be quite funny. We have a lot of breakfast that happen at Bella Victoria's. We've had a lot of shopping for blue Mother's Day gifts at Taco John's. And so, as you read it, it gets to be quite funny. If you fill that out
and you come back to our office, you will get one of these beautiful Austin shirts. And so, we've had quite a few of them come back to our office already. Um, forks. Most of you have probably seen the Forks in downtown Austin. And so that's kind of a fun thing that we do. It's a conversation
starter for a lot of the visitors. Um it has a lot of resemblance to Austin, whether it's Hormel, whether it's hometown food security, whether it's arts because it was a sculpture that was made from the students at Austin Public Schools. So there's a lot of ways that connect to that forks. Almost done. Almost done. So um
airlines, we actually put Austin in the air this year. Um and so we have a 30 secondond commercial on all inbound flights from American Airlines. And so you have a screen where you can choose to watch video. It's a 30- secondond video. If you watch it to its entirety, it'll kick you to our website and then
they get free internet and we get promoted. So it kind of is a win-win for us. And so that campaign will actually go through till the end of June of 2025. So and then we decided to try the film industry one more time. Um the state of Minnesota has actually hired some people
to be in the film industry and so they are trying to do film ready communities. So, our board got together and put together a committee to fill that out and complete it. And our first documentary will actually be filmed in July of this year. And so, we'll see how that goes. So, it brings awareness to
our community. The film or documentary is actually nothing to do with the Austin community, but it'll have the Austin backdrop. So, it'll be kind of fun to promote in a different way. So, that's what I got for you today. Very good. Well done, Nancy. You I hazard a guess. Have you been here 10 or years or
better? 12. How long have you been the executive director? Almost 13. 13. And I tell you, you hit the ground running and your level of engagement with uh the innovation you provide at that office is outstanding. Every time I think you've outdone yourself, the next year you've done something even better. So that's
our goal. Appreciate what you're doing to bring folks into city of Austin. I did have a conversation with our Austerald writer back there, Eric Johnson. He was unaware of the newspaper association was here. I had to scoop him on that. [Laughter]
Maybe you excluded him on purpose. I get it. Yeah, there we go. There we go. Well, thank thank you, Nancy. Any questions or comments? Um, I just wanted a a quick question. So, your year-over-year numbers are looking good and seeing some really good increases. Do you know what to attribute that to?
Is that a strategy you'll be able to keep pursuing in future years? Do you need any support to keep growing? Um, so yeah. So CO was terrible for us and we're growing back from some of that. Um some of our hotels have gone through some renovations that didn't quite go as they had planned and so we're trying to work through some of those as well. But
we do anticipate that the overall occupancy people are traveling more which is good for us. So we're just on a positive trend and you expect next year to be good numbers better better again. That's our goal. But if any of you have any friends, family, you're in any associations and
want to bring those groups to Austin, let us know. We'll definitely take more. Greg, do you have something? Uh, any chance we get the Martin County pig in a wrestling match? Are you going to be crispy? Uh, don't know about Crispy and I will get the Martin County pig here.
That will be city administrator and city administrator, right? Nobody would know. They'll be they'll be undisclosed, but good. There we go. I did actually go over to the pig races a couple weeks ago and they Yeah, we took pictures with Marty the the pig. That's great. Well done. Well, thanks for what you do, Nancy. I appreciate the update. Great
work, Nancy. All right. On to item number five. A motion for the consent agenda, please. So moved. Second. All in favor? I opposed. Motion carries. Uh boy. Okay. Moving on to item number six. Under
petitions and requests. We have a resolution approving the request for employee engagement training with Dave Unmocked and Laura Kersner. Craig. Thank you, mayor, members. We had Dave Unmock and Laura Kersner at our last work session uh on an employee engagement matter that we'll bring forward. Looking
for council approval. Happy to answer any questions that you have. Thank you, Craig. Council, any questions for Mr. Chair clerk? Move to approve. Second, Tom. Council member Baskin. Hi. OMA. I Ellie.
I Oala. Hi. Fisher. Hi. Waller. Hi. Council member at large Austin I. Resolution passes 70 your honor. Thank you Tom. Item number seven is a resolution approving an agreement for advanced construction with mindot Stephen. So as part of the Oakland
Avenue 1 avenue project we received multiple federal grants spread out over different years. We have three we have two grants in 2025 one federal grant in 27 and one federal grant in 2028. So this agreement allows for MDOT to be the
fiscal agent to allow them to those federal dollars to come into mind and allows us, you know, our construction schedule uh is 2025 through 2027. So this allows us to advance construct and receive those dollars toward
construction. Um there's different term some some key points of the agreement. It's a five-year term. We expect our project to be completed within five years. So that works. Uh federal grants will cover up to 80% of eligible costs. We knew that going in. That's not a change. Uh single audit will be required
as as part of these federal grants. And then um there's there's other items located in section 7 that are included in standard specification requirements that we've already included in our in our construction documents. So we would
request council approval of this agreement with Mandot to allow them to be the fiscal agent for advanced construction. Very good. Thank you, Stephen. Uh council, any questions for Mr. Lang. Otherwise, looking for resolution. So moved. Second, Tom.
Council member Baskin. Imma. I. Nelly. I. Obala. I. Fisher. Hi. Waller. I. Council member at large Austin. I. Resolution passes 70, your honor. Thank you. Item number eight's a resolution approving an agreement for the airport fuel system replacement.
Stephen, last year we bid out a project to replace the fueling system that is still on track. There's lots of equipment um that needs to be uh produced as part of this project. So, this is um it's about a year-long delay
or or wait time in getting started on the construction which will be con started started here after the 4th of July. But as part of that uh the FAA came back to us and said that we need a spill prevention plan. Uh brought back we brought to you previously a proposal
from to develop that plan. This is the grant behind it that will cover 70% of the cost. So, we would recommend approval of this grant with Mandot to cover 70% of the spill prevention plan in the amount of this grant will cover
$4,970 of the total $7,100 uh cost to develop that spill plan. Thank you, Stephen. Council, any questions on this item? Otherwise, looking for resolution. So, moved. Second.
Council member Baskin. I Bosma I Ellien I Obala I council member Waller I council member at large Austin I resolution passes 70 your honor it very good thank you Tom maybe council member post wants to introduce this item number nine
expanding Dusty's Bar and Lounge liquor license to the alley area free so we are in the process of updating the information for Dusty's Bar and Lounge um they expanded the their liquor license for including the outdoor
alley/p patio area to the east of that building. Uh we required um different obligations by the city. Um they've done all those obligations. They necessary insurance. They signed a lease agreement. So we are
requesting that coun council authorize and approve that expedition. Very good. Thank you, Brie. Council, any questions on this one? Nope. We're glad that we're able to do it. It's awesome. It' be great. Great use of that alley. Looking for resolution. Wasn't before the issue on the gates somehow opening a bunch of
sidewalk. Bri, you want to expand on that? Gates got to be opened. When they're not in use at their expense, they put the gates up. Correct. Um, fire chief McCoy went out and inspected the gates. They were in compliance. So, if it's not in use, they
would be able to be opened. And when they are utilizing the patio, then they're they close. put on the hinge so that they can go um people can exit quickly out of the area and Steven didn't have any issues with the gates.
So, very good. Thank you. Uh did we ask resolution? Move to approve. Second, Tom. Council member Baskin I. Oma I. Kelly I. Obala I. Fisher. Hi. Waller I. Council
member Large Austin I. Resolution passes 70. Very good. Thanks, Tom. Under item number 10 is a resolution accepting these donations. $1,000 from Thad and Wendy Cusk for the bike club and $1,000 from Bita Schindler also for the bike club. We appreciate the their financial support and need a motion to approve
those donations. So moved. Second. Done. Council member Baskin I. Oman. I Obama. I Fisher. Hi. Waller. Hi. Council member at large Austin I. Resolution
passes 70. Thank you. Item number 11 is granting the planning and zoning department the power to contract for the removal of junk and or legally stored vehicles at the following locations. 11A address is 5115th Avenue Northwest. The allwelling property. Need a motion? So
moved. Second. All in favor? I opposed. Motion carries. 11B. The address 8018th Avenue Southeast. The Milan property. So moved. Second. All in favor? I I opposed. Motion carries. On to citizens addressing the council. Is anyone in the
audience wishing to speak with council on items that weren't on the agenda? All right. Thanks for coming. Hearing none. Uh on to reports and recommendations. Craig. Uh with the legislative session still chugging to the end hopefully here. Uh kind of a
whimper on the tax bill from what we've been able to find out. Only item that they changed kind of emblematic of the session. They changed the tax on cannabis from 10% to 15 and then uh shut out local uh government 20% of those
proceeds. I don't know of any reduction to LGA local option sales tax seems to have gone un uh addressed. So in some ways that's good. Um otherwise we're continuing to watch the legislative session as it
comes to a close. And Julie Kleinfelter has Thank you Julie. Yes. Good evening. I just wanted to make sure everyone remembers that today summer reading started at the Austin Public Library. The Monster Mash Summer Bash is well underway. We have lots of things going
on this summer. And today at 3:00, if you missed it, there was a film party out on the grass and wreck maybe afternoon later cuz I'm not sure the grass is going to survive. But it was a lot of fun. The kids were having a great time. So come on out June 2nd today
through August 2nd. The kids can come out and sign up for summer reading and come on in and get a book or see what else we've got going on. Lots of fun things at the library. And you can check all that out at a mn. Very good. Foam party. Interesting. It
it got the Josie seal of approval, but yeah. Uh but then it was we have to go home and take a bath right now, which wasn't necessarily on the schedule. So, good work. Yeah. trying. I I wasn't too sure how much parents were going to like getting their kids back in
the car, back in the kids, too. It's all about the kids. Thanks, Julie. All right. Well, on to city council members. Becky, anything? Jason? Uh, three quick things. One is welcome to Abala. Um, officially on the
council. Um, and again, thanks to the great candidates who applied for the position. I mean, we had just overwhelming number of really, really qualified people. Um, number two, congratulations to the recent graduates, um, Austin High School, Pachelli, all the local schools. And number three, congratulations to new grandpa Steven
Lang on the birth of his first granddaughter, Meredith Chain. Great. Congrats. Thanks, Jason. Baskin daughter's going to be up for babysitting in a few years. They've already volunteered. All right. All right. Goes around comes around with that. Yep. Uh, couple of things. Uh, the
this year's H Riverland House, uh, is going up for sale. that's been completed. Um, so anyone interested in seeing that can contact Ron Felman and his agency for a showing. Um, also congrats to Steven on the birth of his granddaughter. That's exciting. Uh,
Wednesday, uh, Fourth Avenue Fest is taking place downtown, um, by the library, by the pool, all all sorts of fun things are happening. There's going to be music, food trucks, lots going on. Uh, so we will see you in the evening on Wednesday.
Uh, and then last, as as Craig mentioned, just honestly, I'm really disappointed. Uh, we're starting our budget discussion tonight at the work session, and we still don't have a budget from our legislators. Um, and you know, we open meeting laws require all
of us when we meet and talk about budget stuff to do it in public so everybody can see what we're talking about. They're doing it behind closed doors. So, I want to encourage the House, the Senate, and the Governor to sit in a room and pass a budget so the rest of us can do our job. Please. Thank you. Well
said, Posty. Thank you, Jeff. Uh, nothing, your honor. Laura, uh, Mike took my information about Fourth Avenue Fest. Uh, so I'll just underline the weather is going to be beautiful. Um, 4 to 7, come out and see us. Uh, June is Pride Month, so I want to say, um, uh,
said my greetings to all the LGBTQIA taxpayers and residents of Austin. They're part of our community, and I appreciate that. And then uh today was the opening day for the municipal pool. Um we will be open um many days of
the summer but closed on Fridays because of life guard shortage. So if you're interested in a job as a lifeguard or know somebody who might be um we could we could have more pool hours. We just really need the staffing. So thanks.
That's good. Thanks Laurela. Well I don't have much to say uh your honor. Thank you again everyone and uh council members for uh giving me this opportunity. I also want to thanks um all the candidate those who have applied you know we have seen um the momentum
how everyone is so energized to come and apply and um give the service. So thank you for all of you um there will be more opportunity to come ahead. So looking forward to see the involvement in uh not only on the council but on different committee. So again thank you. I was
going to say some few word because I have some family member I drove from the Twin City and all of them. So, but uh I just want to say thank you. It's good to be back and um and jump right away into the budget. So, I'm super excited for it. I'm super excited. Good for you.
Thanks, Abalo Paul. All right. I've said enough and I can't say any more than you guys have. Uh thank you for the It was a great meeting today. We we honored some great folks and Stephen again congratulations as being grandpa. So with that, I need to read the June anniversaries. This can't be true. Greg
and I talked about it, but it must be. Trish Whiteman, human resources, 25 years. That's crazy talk. Kim Hansen, finance, 18 years. John White, park and wreck and forestry, nine years. Steven Schmidt, wastewater treatment plant, nine years. Megan Evenson, library,
eight years. Sally Olsen, library, three years. Dwayne Nats, park and wreck and forestry, three years. Ryan Hansen of the PD for two years. And Chad Peterson, wastewater treatment, two years. Thanks to all those folks doing good work out there making the city shine. With that, looking for a motion to adjourn to our
Monday, June 16th meeting. I move to adjourn. Second. All in favor? I opposed. We are journal 5minute break until the work session.