--------- VERY GOOD MORNING. FOR THE RECORD, MY NAME IS GABRIELA COLETTA ZAPATA DISTRICT ONE CITY COUNCILOR AND I'M THE CHAIR OF THE BOSTON CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE, RESILIENCY AND PARKS. TODAY IS APRIL 7TH, 2025.
THE EXACT TIME IS 10:08 A.M. THIS HEARING IS BEING RECORDED . IT IS ALSO BEING LIVE STREAMED AT BOSTON.COM FOR ITS LAST DASH COUNTER DASH TV AND BROADCAST ON XFINITY CHANNEL
EIGHT RCN CHANNEL 82 AND FIREHOUSE CHANNEL 964. WRITTEN COMMENTS MAY BE SENT TO THE COMMITTEE EMAIL AT TCC DOT EPP AT BOSTON DOT GOV AND WILL BE MADE A PART OF THE RECORD AND AVAILABLE TO ALL
COUNCILORS. PUBLIC TESTIMONY WILL BE TAKEN AT THE END OF THIS HEARING. INDIVIDUALS WILL BE CALLED ON IN THE ORDER IN WHICH THEY SIGNED UP AND WILL HAVE 2 MINUTES TO TESTIFY. IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN
TESTIFYING IN PERSON PLEASE ADD YOUR NAME TO THE SIGN UP SHEET NEAR THE ENTRANCE OF THE CHAMBER. IF YOU'RE LOOKING TO TESTIFY VIRTUALLY PLEASE EMAIL OUR CENTRAL STAFF LIAISON LIAISON
SHANE PACK AT SC NICO C AT BOSTON DARKO FOR THE LINK IN YOUR NAME WILL BE ADDED TO THE LIST. TODAY'S HEARING IS ON A COUPLE OF DOCKETS AND I'LL READ THROUGH THEM FULLY.
DOCKET 0292 MESSAGE AN ORDER AUTHORIZING THE CITY OF BOSTON TO ACCEPT AND EXPAND THE AMOUNT OF $150,000 AWARDED BY THE DONOR GROUP TO BE ADMINISTERED BY THE PARKS AND RECREATION
DEPARTMENT. THE GRANT WILL FUND THE MAINTENANCE OF THE BOSTON CITY COUNCIL ANIMAL SHELTER AND ASSISTANCE WITH MEDICAL CARE FOR SICK OR INJURED ANIMALS WHOSE OWNERS ARE BOSTON
RESIDENTS THROUGH DONATIONS IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $50,000. THE MATTER WAS SPONSORED BY MAYOR MICHELLE WU AND REFERRED TO THIS COMMITTEE ON JANUARY
29TH 2025. DOCKET 0395A MESSAGE IN ORDER AUTHORIZING THE CITY OF BOSTON TO ACCEPT AND EXPAND THE AMOUNT OF $800,000 IN THE FORM OF A
GRANT FOR THE USE CFC PROGRAM AWARDED BY THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE PASS THROUGH THE CORPSE NETWORK THE COURT NETWORK TO BE ADMINISTERED BY THE OFFICE OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT.
THE GRANT WILL FUND THE HISTORIC WORKFORCE INVESTMENT OF BOOSTING THE CITY'S TREE COVER IN VARIOUS NEIGHBORHOODS . DOCKET 0399 MESSAGE AN ORDER
AUTHORIZING THE CITY OF BOSTON TO ACCEPT AND EXPEND THE AMOUNT OF $449,710 IN THE FORM OF A GRANT GRANT FOR THE BOSTON MVP ACTION GRANT AWARDED BY THE MASSACHUSETTS EXECUTIVE OFFICE
OF ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS TO BE ADMINISTERED BY THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT. THE GRANT WILL FUND BUILDING A DATABASE AND MAP OF CURRENT AND PROJECTED FLOODING IMPACTS.
FOCUSED PRIMARILY ON STORMWATER AND RIVERINE FLOODING, THESE MATTERS WERE SPONSORED BY MAYOR MICHELLE WU AND WERE REFERRED TO THE COMMITTEE ON FEBRUARY FIFTH, 2025. TODAY I AM JOINED BY MY
COLLEAGUES IN ORDER OF ARRIVAL COUNCILOR AARON MURPHY AND I ALSO HAVE LETTERS OF ABSENCE FROM COUNCIL'S PREPARED AND ORAL. TODAY WE ARE JOINED BY OUR PANELISTS FROM THE
ADMINISTRATION STEVE BICKERTON WHO WE WILL START WITH FOR DOCKET 0290292. STEVE IS THE DEPUTY COMMISSIONER OF THE BOSTON PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT. WE ALSO HAVE JODY SUGARMAN
ROSEN DEPUTY CHIEF OFFICE OF LABOR COMPLIANCE AND WORKER PROTECTIONS. WE HAVE RACHEL LUNA WHO IS THE INTERIM DIRECTOR OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE AT THE CITY OF BOSTON. AND WOULD YOU MIND SAYING YOUR NAME AND INTRODUCE YOUR TITLE,
SIR, PLEASE. CHIEF OF STAFF FOR THE WORKER EMPOWERMENT CABINET OFFICE OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. JOSEPH LEE, CHIEF OF STAFF. OKAY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR BEING
HERE. I WILL START WITH STEVE IF YOU HAVE ANY OPENING REMARKS OR COMMENTS ABOUT THIS PARTICULAR GRANT AGAIN, THIS IS GOING TO
HELP WITH MEDICAL CARE FOR SICK AND INJURED ANIMALS OF THE BOSTON ANIMAL SHELTER. SO ANYTHING ELSE YOU WANTED TO ELABORATE OR EXPAND ON? SURE. THIS IS AN ANNUAL AND YOU WILL ACCEPT AN EXPENSE THAT WE DO
EVERY YEAR. SEVERAL YEARS AGO WE ESTABLISHED A FUND WITHIN THE TREASURY DEPARTMENT THAT ALLOWS THE CITY ANIMAL SHELTER TO ACCEPT DONATIONS FROM CONSTITUENTS, FROM BUSINESSES,
ETC. AND IT'S 100% OF THE FUNDS RAISED GO TO THE CARE OF ANIMALS WITHIN THE CITY SHELTER AND ALSO THE PURCHASE OF THINGS LIKE TOYS AND TREATS
AND THINGS LIKE THAT IN THE SHELTER. PREVIOUSLY THE SHELTER HAD NO VEHICLE BY WHICH TO ACCEPT DONATIONS. WE ACCEPT ABOUT $50,000 A YEAR IN DONATIONS. THERE ARE NO ADMINISTRATIVE
COSTS TO THE FUND. 100% OF EVERY DOLLAR RAISED GOES TO THE CARE OF ANIMALS UNDER THE CARE OF THE CITY. I CAN SHARE A GOOD NEWS STORY ABOUT THIS FUND.
VERY RECENTLY WE HAD THREE THREE DOGS IN OUR SHELTER THAT WERE VERY SICK WITH PARVOVIRUS WHICH IS A SET OF 60 TO 70% OF THE TIME A DEADLY DISEASE
THAT USUALLY AFFECTS PUPPIES. WE WERE ABLE TO ACCESS THIS FUND AND THROUGH A PARTNERSHIP WITH ANGEL MEMORIAL AND USE OF THE FUND ALL THREE DOGS I'M
VERY HAPPY TO SAY SURVIVED AND TWO ARE TO HAVE BEEN ADOPTED AND ONE IS UP FOR ADOPTION. SO THIS IS PURE GOOD THIS FUND. SO WE HOPE FOR A FAVORABLE OUTCOME. THANK YOU. EXCELLENT. YEAH.
YOU HAVE NO PUSHBACK FROM ME ON THIS GRANT AT ALL. I WANT TO BE SURE TO GO TO CUSTOMER IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS. YEAH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU STEVE FOR BEING HERE
AND GLAD THAT WE DID SET UP THAT TREASURY FUND SO YOU CAN ACCEPT DONATIONS. ALWAYS HAPPY WHEN WE CAN BUY OUR DOGS TREATS. I GUESS MY ONLY QUESTION IS HOW
WE LOOKING ON THE CAPITAL PLANNING AND GETTING A BETTER SPACE FOR OUR ANIMALS AND OUR WORKERS AT THE ANIMAL CONTROL DEPARTMENT I CAN SHARE SOME GOOD NEWS ON THAT FRONT. WE WE ARE ABOUT TO UNDERTAKE A
PRETTY BIG PROJECT AT THE EXISTING ANIMAL SHELTER TO REPLACE OUR HANGING IN THE AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM. IT'S BEEN ON ITS LAST LEGS FOR FOR A LITTLE WHILE NOW SO THIS SUMMER WE WE PLAN TO GO THROUGH
THE PROCESS. WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF GAMING OUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO PHASE THE PROJECT SO TO HAVE AS MINIMAL IMPACT AS IS MINIMAL IMPACT AS POSSIBLE ON THE STAFF
AND THE ANIMALS IN THE SHELTER WHILE THE PROJECT IS ONGOING. BUT BY NEXT WINTER WE SHOULD HAVE A A NEW HEATING SYSTEM IN PLACE. SO WE'RE VERY GRATEFUL TO THE ADMINISTRATION FOR SUPPORTING THAT. OKAY, THANK YOU AND THANK YOU
FOR SUPPORTING THAT WITH SOMEWHAT A SMALL DEPARTMENT BUT OBVIOUSLY WE COULD EXPAND ON IT IF WE HAD THE FUNDS RIGHT KNOWING THAT ALL SUPPORT WE CAN GIVE THEM SO THANK YOU.
NO OTHER QUESTIONS. THANK YOU, COUNSELOR MURPHY, WE'VE BEEN JOINED BY COUNCILOR FITZGERALD. ARE YOU READY TO ASK SOME QUESTIONS OR WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO GO TO MY FIRST FOR DOCKET 0292? YEAH.
WHY DON'T YOU GO FIRST, PLEASE AND THANK YOU. OKAY, GREAT. I'M CURIOUS TO KNOW HOW MANY WHAT WE SPENT LAST YEAR AND IF THERE WAS ANY SURPLUS FUNDS. SO WE WE OPERATED BASICALLY AS
A REVOLVING FUND SO WE DO WE DO PRETTY MUCH SPEND EVERY DOLLAR THAT COMES IN. SO WE WE TREAT THIS AS KIND OF THE THE FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE BEFORE WE START ACCESSING OUR OPERATING FUNDS.
WE DO TAP OUT THIS FUND AS WELL AS OUR OPERATING FUNDS EACH YEAR. I'M SORRY. SO LAST YEAR I BELIEVE WE TOOK IN A LITTLE OVER 40,000 INTO THE INTO THIS FUND.
IT HAS A MAX OF 50 AND WE SPEND EVERY DIME OF IT. AND ABOUT HOW MANY ANIMALS WOULD YOU SAY THAT YOU CARED FOR DO YOU HAVE THAT ON A YEAR TO YEAR BASIS? IT'S BETWEEN SIX AND 700 PER YEAR. WOW.
SOME ARE WITH US FOR A FEW HOURS BECAUSE THEY'RE YOU KNOW, THEY YOU KNOW, RUN AWAY FROM HOME. THEY GET LOST. SOME ARE WITH US FOR SEVERAL WEEKS OR MONTHS AT A TIME DEPENDING ON THE SITUATION.
WE WE HOLD THE ANIMALS FOR FOLKS THAT ARE INCARCERATED, FOLKS THAT ARE HAVE BEEN EVICTED OR LOSE THEIR HOUSING WE SEVERAL YEARS AGO WE HAD TWO DOGS WITH US FOR ALMOST TWO YEARS BECAUSE THEY WERE PART
OF AN ESTATE DISPUTE AND THEN THE COURT ASSIGNED THE CITY TO CARE FOR THE ANIMALS SO RANGES FROM LIKE I SAID A FEW HOURS TO A VERY LONG TIME AND THAT WAS ACTUALLY MY NEXT QUESTION BECAUSE I WAS CONFUSED AS PART
OF THE TITLE ON THIS GRANT IT SAYS WHOSE OWNERS ARE BOSTON RESIDENTS? AND SO I WAS WONDERING HOW THAT MIGHT WORK AND HOW FOLKS FIND OUT ABOUT IT. BUT IT REALLY HAS TO BE THESE KIND OF CIRCUMSTANCES FOR FOLKS TO ACCESS THIS MONEY TO HELP
WITH THEIR SICK OR INJURED. CORRECT. OKAY. THAT'S IT FOR ME AGAIN, I LOOK FORWARD TO VOTING IN FAVOR OF THIS AND I APPRECIATE YOU BEING HERE. COUNCILOR FITZGERALD. IS THAT ENOUGH TIME FOR YOU?
OKAY. I'VE GOT BEFORE. THANK YOU, JIM. THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE. GOOD TO SEE YOU. SORRY FOR MY TARDINESS AT THE MOMENT SPEAKING WHAT WOULD YOU SAY WOULD BE THE AVERAGE GRANT
AMOUNT LIKE YOU SAID SIX OR £700? I'M THINKING $50,000. BUT IS THAT DO DO WE KNOW IS THERE LIKE AN AVERAGE AMOUNT ON YOU KNOW, SOME ARE OBVIOUSLY HIGHER, SOME ARE QUICKER, LOWER
DEPENDING ON STATE BUT I DO NOT YOU AN AVERAGE SURE SO THIS THIS YEAR WE WE HAPPEN TO GET A LOT OF SMALL DOLLAR DONATIONS IN THE RANGE OF LIKE 50 TO $100 BECAUSE SEVERAL MONTHS AGO THE BOSTON GLOBE RAN A STORY ON THE
SHELTER HIGHLIGHTING THE STAFF AND THE GOOD WORK THAT GOES ON THERE AND AS A RESULT OF THAT WE HAD I WOULDN'T SAY THEY POURED IN BUT WE HAD A GOOD AMOUNT OF 50 TO $100 DONATIONS COMING FROM THAT. WE ALSO DO AN EFFORT EACH YEAR
WITH THE HELP OF THE MAYOR'S OFFICE WE ARE USUALLY ABLE TO SECURE TWO CHARITY MARATHON BIBS AND WE ESSENTIALLY AUCTION THOSE OFF TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER FOLKS THAT WILL RAISE MONEY FOR
THE SHELTER AND MAKE A DONATION TO US SO THOSE THOSE ARE THE BIG CHUNKS. THOSE ARE DONATIONS FROM THOSE INDIVIDUALS THAT BRING IN SOMEWHERE BETWEEN FIVE AND
10,000 PER RUNNER. SO SO THOSE ARE THOSE ARE THE TWO BIG ONES. OTHER THAN THAT, MOST OF OUR DONATIONS ARE LIKE I SAID SMALL DOLLAR UNDER UNDER $300. YEAH.
THANK YOU. WHAT PUTS THE LIMIT AT $50,000 BECAUSE YOU SAID THAT'S FOR THE ENTIRE PROGRAM RIGHT? THAT'S FOR THE NONPROFIT SIDE OF THE PROGRAM. SO THAT'S THAT'S TYPICALLY THE
LIMIT THAT WE THAT WE'VE NEEDED. WE HAVEN'T EXCEEDED THAT YET. IT'S A SMALL FUND AND IN THE EVENT THAT WE HAD A DONOR THAT WANTED TO COME IN AND YOU KNOW, BLOW THAT OUT OF THE WATER, WE'D CERTAINLY BE HAPPY I'D BE
THRILLED TO COME BACK HERE AND ASK THE COUNCIL TO, YOU KNOW, RAISE THAT LIMIT CERTAINLY SO IT SAYS THROUGH DONATIONS IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $50,000 IS THAT PER DONOR?
THAT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THAT THAT GOT THE BIGGEST DONATION THAT WE WOULD ACCEPT IS 49,999. THE ANNUAL AMOUNT IS 150,000. GOTCHA.
NOW THIS IS GREAT. YOU KNOW, SAME QUESTIONS THAT JARED COLLETTE IS ABOUT TO HEAR ABOUT. HOW DO YOU HOW DO YOU MAKE SURE PEOPLE ARE AWARE OF THIS PROGRAM? BUT IF WE CAN DO ANYTHING TO HELP THAT BE HAPPY TOO BUT
HAPPY TO LOOK FORWARD GOING FORWARD. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, JEFF. THANK YOU. COUNCILOR FITZGERALD, I THINK STEVE, YOU ARE GOOD TO GO. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
I APPRECIATE YOU BEING HERE. WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE NEXT DOCKET ON 0395 WHICH IS THE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. SO I BELIEVE THE OFFICE OF JUST
WANT TO GET IT RIGHT LABOR COMPLIANCE WORK REDUCTIONS THIS IS FOR YOU IF YOU'D LIKE TO EXPAND ON ANYTHING ABOUT THE GRANT WHAT IT'S USED FOR AND HOW IT'S ADMINISTERED PLEASE FEEL FREE.
THANK YOU COUNSELOR FOR GIVING US THE OPPORTUNITY TO COME BEFORE YOU TODAY TO REQUEST THE AUTHORIZATION OF THE TO EXTEND FOR 800,000 FOR THE URBAN AND COMMUNITY FOREST GRANT THROUGH
THE USDA PASS THROUGH THE COURT NETWORK TO THE OFFICE OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT JUST TO GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND SO THE GRANT FUNDS WE'LL BE WORKING MAINLY WITH OUR POWER CORPS GROUP. SO THIS IS A TEN MONTH GREEN
INDUSTRY WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM PROVIDING YOUNG ADULTS BETWEEN 18 AND 30 TRAINING CAREER READINESS CONNECTIONS TO EMPLOYERS WITHIN THE GREEN INDUSTRY SPACE. THIS IS A LEARNING TO EARN
MODEL SO THEY ARE GIVEN A STIPEND AS THEY GO THROUGH THIS TEN MONTH TRAINING PROGRAM THE FIRST OF FOUR MONTHS OF THIS TRAINING PROGRAM IS KIND OF A
SKILLS READINESS WORKSHOP MAKING SURE THEY UNDERSTAND RESUME BUILDING HOW TO INTERVIEW YOU KNOW THE IMPORTANCE AS SIMPLE AS THINGS IS SHOWING UP ON TIME AND BEING
AWARE OF WHAT IT REQUIRES TO WORK A FULL TIME JOB WITH US AND THEN THE FINAL SIX MONTHS IS ACTUAL TRACK TRAINING. SO THEY ARE GOING OUT WORKING
WITH DIFFERENT COMMUNITY MEMBERS, WORKING WITH DIFFERENT EMPLOYERS, CLIMBING UP IN TREES, IDENTIFYING INVASIVE SPECIES, THINGS LIKE THAT.
THIS IS ALSO CITYWIDE THIS GRANT TO HELP WITH THE TREE CANOPY. WE DID A KICK OFF LAST YEAR WITH SENATOR MARKEY WHO WAS A BIG PROPONENT OF US OBTAINING THIS. SO WE ARE JUST LOOKING TO
CONTINUE THAT GREAT WORK AND MAKE SURE THAT BOSTON HAS GREEN SPACE BUT ALSO A GREEN SPACE THAT IS COVERED THAT WILL IMPROVE AIR QUALITY AND OTHER THINGS. AND I PASS OFF TO MY COLLEAGUE
JODY CAN TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE SUCCESSES THE POWER HAS HAD OVER THE LAST. THANKS JOE. SO THANK YOU COUNCILORS FOR BEING HERE TODAY. I GET TO SAY SOME OF THE GREAT THINGS THAT POWER CORPS WE
ACTUALLY JUST GRADUATED A COHORT LAST WEEK 22 YOUNG PEOPLE GRADUATED. THEY JOINED 105 OTHER PEOPLE WHO'VE GRADUATED FROM THE PROGRAM AND AS JOSEPH SAID,
THEY START WITH FOUNDATIONS AND THEN MOVE INTO AN INDUSTRY TRACK, ONE OF WHICH IS CALLED URBAN FORESTRY AND IN THAT TRACK THEY LEARN HOW THEY STUDY OUR BOROUGH CULTURE INCLUDING
TOPICS LIKE SOILS, URBAN TREE STRESSORS AND PRUNING TECHNIQUES AND LEARN HOW TO OPERATE POWER TOOLS LIKE CHAINSAWS AND WOOD CHIPPERS AND THEN THEY APPLY THE THE SKILLS THAT THEY GAIN TO HELP WITH
PROJECTS THAT ARE LARGELY DEFINED THROUGH THE CITY'S URBAN FOREST PLAN AND THE COHORT WHO JUST GRADUATED DIDN'T JUST GAIN SKILLS, CREDENTIALS AND EVEN COLLEGE
CREDITS BUT THEY PLANTED 43 TREES THROUGHOUT THE CITY OF BOSTON, PRUNED 58 TREES, REMOVED 248 BAGS OF INVASIVE MATERIALS AND 77% OF THE
GRADUATING CLASS THAT JUST GRADUATED LAST WEEK ALREADY HAVE FAMILY SUSTAINING JOBS LINED UP. SO WE ARE VERY EXCITED ABOUT
THE IMPACT IN THIS COHORT THAT JUST GRADUATED WAS THE FIRST EVER TEN MONTH THE PROGRAM HAD BEEN SIX MONTHS BUT THIS IS THE FIRST TEN MONTH COHORT WE ARE ACTUALLY RECRUITING NOW FOR THE
NEXT COHORT WHICH WILL START IN MAY AND WOULD LOVE COUNSELORS SUPPORT AND GETTING THE WORD OUT ABOUT THIS GREAT PROGRAM. GREAT THANK YOU. I ABSOLUTELY ADORE THE POWERPOINT PROGRAM. I ACTUALLY TOLD A LOT OF THEM THAT WE NEED MORE
ENVIRONMENTALIST TO RUN FOR OFFICE AND SO I HAD ADVOCATED THAT THEY GET INVOLVED IN THE POLICY AND ADVOCACY SPACE. SO THAT'S JUST ONE ADDITIONAL LAYER ON TOP OF THE MANY SKILLS THAT THEY GET IN THIS PROGRAM AND CONGRATULATIONS TO THAT
COHORT THAT GRADUATED ON FRIDAY. I'LL GO TO COUNCILOR FITZGERALD FOR ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE. SURE. WHEN WE TALK ABOUT INVESTMENT OF BOOSTING CITIES, TREE COVER AND VARIOUS
NEIGHBORHOODS, IS THERE ANY THAT ARE I MEAN IS THERE A PRIORITY LIST OF WHERE WE'RE LOOKING AT AND IF SO, WHAT IS THAT AT THE MOMENT? SO I WOULDN'T SAY PRIORITY LIST PER SE COUNCILOR BUT WE HAVE
BEEN HITTING A LOT OF THE SOUTHERN NEIGHBORHOODS SO WE DID THE KICK OFF IN FRANKLIN PARK SO FRANKLIN PARK HIGH, HYDE PARK, JAMAICA PLAIN THAT HAS KIND OF ROXBURY THAT HAS BEEN THE FOCUS AREAS THUS FAR.
WE JUST RECEIVED THE GRANT IN JULY SO IT'S STILL IN ITS VERY EARLY INFANCY DAYS IN TERMS OF THE IMPACT BUT WE DO THOSE ARE THE NEIGHBORHOODS SO THE SOUTHERN NEIGHBORHOODS HAVE BEEN THE FIRST AND THEN WE ARE
EXPANDING OUT OVER THE NEXT THREE YEARS WHICH IS THE LENGTH OF THE GRANT TO COVER ENTIRE THERE IS A BOSTON BUT WE ARE FOLLOWING AS JODY MENTIONED THE CITIES URBAN FOREST PLAN IN
TERMS OF THAT ORDERING OF NEIGHBORHOODS. WHEN YOU SAY URBAN FOREST PLAN IS THAT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE CLEANUPS THAT WE DO IN THE TREES THAT WE PLANT ARE THEY IN
MORE TRADITIONALLY FORESTED AREAS OR LIKE LIKE THE ARBORETUM AND OTHER PLACES OR IS THERE ALSO LIKE CAN YOU DO THIS ALONG YOU KNOW, MAIN URBAN STREETS AND PLANTING TREES AND
THINGS LIKE THAT AS WELL SO IT ISN'T FOCUSED ON THE ARBOR. THERE ARE PARTS OF IT I REMEMBER A LOT OF IT IS AS YOU MENTIONED AROUND THE MAIN STREETS IT'S ON THE BACKSIDE OF OUR FRANKLIN PARK WHERE A LOT OF OPEN GREEN SPACE BUT NOT
A LOT OF SHADED OPEN GREEN SPACE. THERE'S ALSO YOU KNOW IT'S ALSO PRUNING TREES AND MAKING SURE THAT WE DON'T HAVE OVERGROWTH INTO OTHER TREES SO IT IS SPREAD OUT NOT JUST TO FORESTED
AREAS BUT WE ARE LOOKING AT NEIGHBORHOODS THAT HISTORICALLY HAVEN'T HAD GREAT TREE CANOPY COVERAGE AND HOW DO WE INCREASE THAT? SO IT IS IT IS JUST BEYOND FORESTED AREAS.
I WOULD JUST ALWAYS AS I AS I DO MAKE MY CONTINUED PITCH IF YOU'VE EVER WALKED IN THE DORCHESTER DAY PARADE DOWN DODD AV ON A HOT DAY YOU WOULD KNOW
THAT IT WOULD BE GREAT TO HAVE GOT OUT LINED WITH TREES FOR MULTIPLE REASONS BUT IF NOT FOR JUST THAT ALONE I THINK IT'D BE WORTH IT. SO I HOPE THAT THAT'S WHY I WAS
ASKING BETWEEN YOU KNOW, FIELDS AND MAIN STREETS BECAUSE I'D LOVE TO SEE A FOCUS ON DODD AB AS WELL BUT THANK YOU. THAT'S ALL THE QUESTIONS. APPRECIATE IT. AS CHAIR OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE ACCOUNTABILITY AND
PARKS COMMITTEE, I COSIGNED MY COLLEAGUES REQUESTS FOR MORE TREES TO BE PLANTED ON DUNLAP AND ON MERIDIAN STREET IN BENNINGTON THREE IN SARATOGA SPRINGS, BOSTON. BUT THAT'S A DIFFERENT STORY.
A FEW TECHNICAL QUESTIONS. SO IS THIS THE FIRST TIME THAT WE'RE GETTING THIS GRANT OR IS THIS RECURRING? THIS IS THE FIRST TIME WE'VE RECEIVED THIS GRANT. WE'RE NOT WORRIED ABOUT UPGRADE LIKE WE HAVE RECEIVED OTHER GRANTS FROM THE U.S. FORESTRY
SERVICE BUT THIS IS THE FIRST ONE FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. OKAY. AND WE'RE NOT WORRIED ABOUT THIS GETTING RESCINDED BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. FUNNY YOU MENTION THAT UNFORTUNATELY ON FRIDAY WE DID
GET A LETTER FROM THE TCN. WHAT'S THAT? THE CORD NETWORK STATING THAT THERE IS WARNING US THAT THERE IS A POSSIBILITY OF A RECESSION AS EFFECTIVE AS OF APRIL 2ND.
WE ARE STILL CONDUCTING WITH THE MEMBERS OF THE THE CORD NETWORK TO UNDERSTAND IS IT JUST BOSTON'S PORTION OR DID THEY ACTUALLY LOSE COMPLETE FEDERAL FUNDING? YOU KNOW, THROUGH SOME BASIC
RESEARCH WE NOTICED THAT THERE WERE SIMILAR PROGRAMS GETTING REDUCED. SO THE ARBOR DAY FOUNDATION FOR ONE WHO DOESN'T GIVE BOSTON
DIRECTLY AS A CITY BUT DOES WORK WITH A PARTNER FOX CALLED SPEAK FOR THE TREES DID LOSE THEIR FEDERAL FUNDING BECAUSE OF THE WORK THEY WERE DOING WAS WORDED TO SAY LOW INCOME
NEIGHBORHOODS WHICH AS WE KNOW IS A TRIGGER WORD FOR THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. BUT WE ARE STILL DOING OUR DUE DILIGENCE CONNECTING WITH OUR COHORT, OUR PARTNERS OVER AT
THE CORE NETWORK TO BETTER UNDERSTAND. SO AS OF THIS MOMENT WE ARE WORKING WE WOULD LIKE TO GET ACCEPT THE EXPENSES THAT WAY WE CAN GET REIMBURSED FOR WHAT WORK HAS ALREADY BEEN DONE AND
ALSO IN CASE THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT DECIDES TO REINSTATE THE GRANT IF THAT'S WHAT WE LEARN THAT WE DON'T HAVE TO COME BACK AND DO ANOTHER HEARING DELAYING THE PROCESS.
SO IF WE ARE WE WOULD STILL LIKE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH IT JUST IN CASE. BY THE MIRACLE OF MIRACLES THEY WAKE UP AND COME TO THEIR SENSES.
OKAY, THAT'S INCREDIBLY FRUSTRATING AND I'M SORRY THAT YOU HAVE TO DEAL WITH THAT JUST THINKING ABOUT IS BOSTON AS AN ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE COMMUNITY WE HAVE TO BREATHE AND JET FUEL FROM AIRPLANES AND OUR TREE CANOPY LITERALLY SAVES US AND OUR AND OUR HEALTH.
SO THAT'S REALLY FRUSTRATING. SO I'M SORRY THAT YOU'RE DEALING WITH THIS AND I HOPE IT DOESN'T GET TO THAT POINT. I HAD ASKED THAT QUESTION FULLY ANTICIPATING THAT YOU WOULD SAY NO, WE'RE GOING TO BE FINE BUT PLEASE JUST LET US KNOW AND
KEEP US UPDATED IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT WE CAN DO. SO I GUESS WHAT IS THE IMPACT NOW MY MY QUESTIONS ARE HAVE CHANGED A LITTLE BIT IN THE EVENT THAT THIS IS RESCINDED. I WAS GOING TO ASK WHERE WHAT
PORTION OF THIS IS GOING TO STIPENDS IF I GOT THAT CORRECT THEN WHAT PORTION OF IT IS GOING INTO EXPANDING THE TREE CANOPY AND IF THEY'RE CONNECTED I'M SORRY I THEY ARE CONNECTED.
YEAH I THINK WE'D HAVE TO I DON'T KNOW THAT WE KNOW THE BUDGET BREAKDOWN AT THIS MOMENT AND WE'RE STILL GIVEN WE GOT NOTICE LATE FRIDAY AFTERNOON WE'RE STILL SORT OF ASSESSING
BUT THE GRANT WAS COVERING BOTH I BELIEVE THE THE MATERIALS AS WELL AS THE STIPENDS. FORTUNATELY POWERCOR HAS OTHER FUNDING SOURCES SO AND WE'RE
CONTINUING TO ALWAYS LOOK FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDING SOURCES AT THE STATE LEVEL TO PREVENT THIS THIS ISSUE AGAIN. BUT BUT WE'RE STILL DOING DUE DILIGENCE TO UNDERSTAND THE REAL IMPACT WE DON'T HAVE ANY
NUMBERS OF SO THE HUMAN IMPACT I GUESS SO MANY FOLKS WILL WOULD WE NOT BE ABLE TO HIRE IF WE LOSE THIS? SO THE ORIGINAL TRACT WAS 40 OVER THREE YEARS BECAUSE AS
COUNCILORS, YOU KNOW WHO IS VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE POWERFUL PROGRAM THEY HAVE A BUILDING OPS WHICH IS THE FOR OUR COOLING AND THEN THEY HAVE THIS URBAN FORESTRY TRACK. SO WHILE WE DO RECRUIT ABOUT 60
OR SO STUDENTS OVER THE COURSE OF THE TEN MONTH PROGRAM, SOME GRADUATE EARLY GET JOBS EARLY AND THEN WE THEY SPLIT DOWN THE TRACK. SO WE'RE LOOKING AT FOR YOU OVER THE THREE YEARS OF THE LIFETIME OF THE GRANT.
BUT AS JODY MENTIONED, WE DO HAVE OTHER FUNDING THAT IS KIND OF FOCUSED IN THIS AREA AND ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR MORE FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES WHILE THIS IS
POTENTIALLY A HUGE BLOW, THE DOLLAR AMOUNT OVER THE THREE YEARS IS SOMETHING THAT WE COULD POTENTIALLY ROLL INTO OTHER GRANTS TO KIND OF SUPPLEMENT OR TO MAKE UP I SHOULD SAY THE DIFFERENCE
POTENTIALLY LOST HERE AND A LOT OF THE MONEY IS DIRECTED TO OUR COHORTS AS A STIPEND BECAUSE WITHOUT THEM WE CAN'T DO THAT. YOU CAN'T IF YOU WORK AT THE
END OF THE DAY. SO I WOULD I DON'T KNOW WE DON'T KNOW THE PERCENTAGES BUT A MAJORITY WOULD BE GOING TOWARDS STIPENDS AND THEN EQUIPMENT AND THEN ALSO BRINGING IN TRAINERS TO MAKE
SURE THAT THEY'RE DOING THE WORK CORRECTLY. OKAY. WELL THIS IS AN ESSENTIAL PROGRAM NOW IN THE CITY OF BOSTON TO TRY TO BUILD UP OUR PIPELINE OF TALENT. SO I WOULD HOPE THAT IT IS IT'S
SUSTAINED THROUGH PREDICTABLE AND STABLE FUNDING. SO JUST PLEASE LET US KNOW. I THINK THAT'S IT FOR ME. OKAY. I YOU BOTH ARE GOOD TO GO. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING
HERE. I LOOK FORWARD TO VOTING YES ON THIS AND THEN ELEVATING THE URGENCY OF GETTING THIS THROUGH AS WELL. SO LET'S JUST KEEP IN TOUCH ON ON ALL THE POINTS THAT WE TALKED ABOUT. THANK YOU, COUNSELOR.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR WORK. OKAY. NEXT UP WE HAVE DOCKET 0399 AND WE HAVE THE INTERIM DIRECTOR. RACHEL, IT'S NICE TO MEET YOU
AND I HAVEN'T MET EACH OTHER BEFORE. HELLO. NICE TO MEET YOU. CONGRATULATIONS ON BECOMING THE INTERIM DIRECTOR. THANK YOU. IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT YOU'D LIKE TO TALK ABOUT ABOUT THE
ALMOST $500,000 FOR A FUND ESTABLISHING A DATABASE, I BELIEVE YOU HAVE A PRESENTATION. DO YOU HAVE THE DOES IT FLICKER IT OVER THERE? YES. YOU MIGHT WANT TO GRAB THAT AND
THEN YOU WOULD BE DIRECTING IT TO I KNOW, I KNOW IT'S ANNOYING BUT IT'S THAT ONE IT'S THAT COMPUTER RIGHT THERE BEHIND YOU. OH, OKAY. YES. OKAY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. AND THANK YOU FOR HAVING MEJIA.
SO YES, WE ARE CONDUCTING A FLOOD MAPPING AND GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE PLANNING STUDY SO THERE WE GO SOME BACKGROUND INFORMATION.
WHAT IS STORMWATER? STORMWATER IS GENERATED WHEN RAIN FALLS ON IMPERVIOUS DEVICES LIKE ROADS, ROOFS, DRIVEWAYS AND SIDEWALKS AND
RUNS OFF RATHER THAN ABSORBING INTO THE GROUND AND WE HAVE CATCH BASINS IN OUR ROADWAYS THAT CAPTURE THAT STORMWATER AND CONVEY IT TO OUR WATER BODIES. SO OUR PROJECT OVERVIEW IS TO
BUILD THIS FLOODING DATABASE WHERE WE SEE THIS INLAND STORMWATER FLOODING AND SO WE'LL BE COLLECTING DATA AND DESIGNING THIS DATABASE AND DISPLAYING IT ON OUR WEBSITE
FROM THE CROWDSOURCED DATA AND THEN FROM THAT DATA WE WILL PRIORITIZE AND SELECT AREAS TO DESIGN SOME GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE THAT WILL HELP ALLEVIATE THIS FLOODING THAT
WE'RE OBSERVING AND WE WILL GO THROUGH CONCEPT DESIGNS AND ENGAGE IN THE COMMUNITY TO GET THEIR FEEDBACK SO IT'LL BE A REAL YEAH ENGAGE PROCESS COLLABORATIVE PROCESS WITH THE
COMMUNITY. OUR OTHER PARTNERS IN THIS ARE THE WATERSHED ASSOCIATIONS CHARLES RIVER WATERSHED AND DEPOSIT RIVER WATERSHED AND MYSTIC AND SO WHY KRUG'S WHY
CROWDSOURCE FLOOD IMPACT? WE'LL BE ABLE TO GET REAL TIME REPORTS AND ACCESS LOCAL HISTORICAL KNOWLEDGE SO PEOPLE WHO ARE WHO ARE VERY USED TO
SEEING FLOODING IN CERTAIN AREAS THAT YOU KNOW THE CITY MIGHT NOT BE FULLY AWARE OF IT'S GREAT TO GET THAT INPUT FROM THEM AS WE CAN'T GO OUT AND COLLECT ALL THAT DATA
OURSELVES AND THIS DEFINITELY HELPS ENGAGE THE RESIDENTS, STUDENTS, COMMUTERS AND ENGAGE THEM IN FLOOD PLANNING SO THESE
NEXT COUPLE OF SLIDES ARE OUR SNAPSHOTS FROM OUR SURVEY IS IN EIGHT LANGUAGES SO YOU CAN SELECT THAT AT THE TOP. THE RESIDENT CAN PROVIDE THEIR EMAIL ADDRESS.
THEY DON'T HAVE TO BUT IF THEY WANT TO STAY UP TO DATE ON THE PROGRESS OF THIS PROJECT WE'D LOVE TO HAVE THEIR INFORMATION AND KEEP THEM UPDATED AND THEN
WE HAVE THEIR OBSERVATIONS SO THEY WOULD PIN THEIR LOCATION THE DATE OF THE THEIR
OBSERVATION AND SELECT THESE CRITERIA WHAT THEY'VE SEEN AND THEN WE'VE ASKED THEM, YOU KNOW, IS THE WATER FLOWING OR
IS IT STILL WHAT DO YOU THINK HAS CAUSED THE FLOODING? HOW OFTEN DOES IT FLOOD AND AND WHAT FLOODED IN THIS LOCATION
KEEP GOING THROUGH AND THEN HOW DOES IT DIRECTLY IMPACT YOU? AND SO THAT THAT IS THE THE KEY HERE YOU KNOW IF WE SEE SIDEWALKS FLOODING WE WANT TO
REALLY ALLEVIATE THOSE BECAUSE WE DON'T WANT TO HINDER PEOPLE'S COMMUTE OR WHERE THEY'RE TRYING TO GO OR THINGS OF THAT NATURE AND THESE ARE SOME EXAMPLES THAT WE'VE RECEIVED. SO THE RESIDENTS DO SUBMIT
PHOTOS SO THIS IS ALSO VERY HELPFUL AND THEN THIS IS KIND OF THE BACK END OF THE DATA. THESE ARE THE OBSERVATIONS WE'VE RECEIVED SO FAR ABOUT 117
OBSERVATIONS AS OF FRIDAY AND THEN I HAVE SOME SLIDES ABOUT GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE. SO THESE ARE WHAT WE WOULD DESIGN AND INSTALL TO HELP ALLEVIATE THESE THIS FLOODING.
SO WE WOULD USE PLANT SOILS AND OTHER NATURAL MATERIALS THAT MIMIC AND RESTORE THE NATURAL WATER CYCLE AND INFILTRATE IT BACK TO THE GROUND USING BIO
RETENTION RAIN GARDENS, TREE PITS, CONSTRUCTING WETLANDS OR GREEN ROOFS. AND THEN HERE ARE JUST A COUPLE EXAMPLES THAT WE ALREADY HAVE IN THE CITY NEW ENGLAND HAVE IN
DORCHESTER ARE THE RAFAEL HERNANDEZ SCHOOL IN ROXBURY AND HARAMBEE PARK IN DORCHESTER AND THEN THIS IS A CONTACT IN OUR CONTACT INFORMATION.
CHARLES RIVER WATERSHED IS LEADING THE CHARGE FOR THE WATERSHED ASSOCIATIONS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. I'LL GO TO COUNCILOR FITZGERALD FIRST FOR QUESTIONS. I JUST WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT
WE'VE BEEN JOINED BY COUNCILOR FITZGERALD LIKE COUNCILOR FOR A COUNCILOR. WHAT DID I JUST SAY? COUNCILOR FLYNN APOLOGIZE. GO AHEAD.
IT'S A COMPLIMENT EITHER WAY FOR BOTH OF US TO BE CONFUSED. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, CHAIR AND THANK YOU SO MUCH AND CONGRATULATIONS AS WELL. THANK YOU. THAT'S FANTASTIC.
WHEN I THINK ABOUT FLOODING, OBVIOUSLY IN DISTRICT THREE WE HAVE A LOT OF ISSUES RIGHT AT THE BEING ALONG THE COAST SEVEN PLUS MILES OF COASTLINE AS WELL
AS JUST RAINWATER BUILDUP AND RUNOFF. A LOT OF THE AREAS OVERLAP WITH OTHER AUTHORITIES, JURISDICTIONS, STATE, ETC. THAT
COULD BE THE TEA, COULD BE MASSDOT COULD BE DCR AT LEAST IN MY DISTRICT THAT'S WHERE A LOT OF THE FLOODING OCCURS. HOW IS THE WORK BEEN AND HOW IS THIS THIS MAPPING AND GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE PLANNING GOING
BECAUSE I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF RESILIENCE PROJECTS GOING ON RESILIENCY PROJECTS GOING ON IN DISTRICT THREE WITH THESE PLACES THAT ARE FLOODING AND ARE YOU DOVETAILING WITH THOSE
OR AND HOW IS THAT WORKING? YES, SO WE'RE WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE OFFICE OF CLIMATE RESILIENCE AS THEY FOCUS MORE ON THAT COASTAL. SO WE'RE LETTING THEM KNOW WHEN WE ARE SEEING WHERE THE DATA IS SHOWING MORE OF THAT COASTAL
FLOODING CONCERNS. WE ARE ALSO SHARING OUR DATA WITH BOS WATER AND SEWER SO THEY CAN COME OUT AND CLEAN THAT CATCH BASINS IF IT'S CAUSED BY CLOGGED CATCH BASIN AND THEN WE DO PLAN ON SHARING
OUR DATA WITH DCR LIKE YOU MENTIONED AND OTHER MTA OTHER AUTHORITIES AND TRYING TO COLLABORATE WITH THEM ON IMPROVEMENTS IN THOSE AREAS. GREAT.
THAT'S WHAT WE WOULD HOPE TO HEAR AND THAT IT WOULD TAKE A COMBINATION OF EFFORTS AND MAKING SURE WE'RE ALL WORKING FROM THE SAME NUMBERS AND SAME AREAS WITH THE SAME EXPECTATIONS AND THAT'S
FANTASTIC AND SO LOOK FORWARD TO FIGURING THIS OUT AND MAYBE GO FOR IT. BUT THAT WAS REALLY MY ONLY QUESTION. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, COUNCILOR FLYNN.
THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR AND I WANT TO APOLOGIZE TO YOU, MADAM CHAIR AND TO THE PANEL AND TO MY COLLEAGUES FOR FOR BEING LATE THIS MORNING. I HAD A PREVIOUS ENGAGEMENT ENGAGEMENT. BUT I DO WANT TO I DO WANT TO
APOLOGIZE. I DO KNOW WE DISCUSSED SEVERAL GRANTS THAT I SUPPORT ALL OF THEM AND I DID MY RESEARCH
OVER THE WEEKEND AND I DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS BUT JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU TO THE ADMINISTRATION FOR BEING HERE FOR THE IMPORTANT WORK
THAT YOU ARE DOING. I TOOK NOTICE OF A COUPLE. I'LL JUST HIGHLIGHT THEM. MY WIFE AND I ARE OWNER OF A
SMALL SMALL RESCUE DOG THAT WE LOVE. WE'VE HAD THE DOG FOR 12 YEARS AND YOU KNOW DOGS ARE REALLY
PART OF THE FAMILY AND I KNOW THIS GRANT FOR $150,000 WILL HELP SICK OR INJURED ANIMALS WHOSE OWNERS ARE BOSTON RESIDENTS.
SO I KNOW THAT WILL THAT WILL GO A LONG WAY ESPECIALLY TO FAMILIES, SENIORS IN NEED THAT REALLY NEED THAT TYPE OF SUPPORT.
BUT AS I SAID, DOGS, DOGS OR CATS OR ANY OTHER ANIMAL ARE PART OF THE FAMILY AND THEY PROVIDE A TREMENDOUS THEY PROVIDE SO MUCH TO TO A FAMILY
ESPECIALLY ESPECIALLY DURING DIFFICULT TIMES. I ALSO WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT THE SECOND AWARD FOR TREE CANOPY IN VARIOUS NEIGHBORHOODS
HISTORIC WORK FOR WORKFORCE INVESTMENT BOOSTING CITY TREE COVER IN VARIOUS NEIGHBORHOODS AND IMPORTANT PROGRAM AS WELL AND THEN FINALLY FLOODING WHICH
IMPACTS CERTAINLY MY NEIGHBORHOOD IN SOUTH BUT ALSO MY DISTRICT AS WELL. I REPRESENT A VERY SMALL PORTION OF THE WOLF DISTRICT BUT I REPRESENT THE FORT POINT
NEIGHBORHOOD, THE SOUTH BOSTON WATERFRONT BUT ALSO PARTS OF ALL OF SOUTH BOSTON FLOODING FROM THE OCEAN ON COLUMBIA
ROAD, MARINE ROAD OR FARRAGUT ROAD. AND AS COUNCILOR FITZGERALD MENTIONED, IT'S ABOUT WORKING WITH CITY, STATE AND FEDERAL PARTNERS.
SOME OF IT MIGHT BE FEDERAL PROPERTY. SOME OF THEM MIGHT BE STATE PARK PROPERTY. BUT WHAT'S IMPORTANT IS THERE'S A GOOD WORKING RELATIONSHIP AND RESPECT BETWEEN OF US WORKING
TOGETHER TO ADDRESS THESE CRITICAL ISSUES. SO I DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS BUT JUST WANTED ONE TO SAY THANK YOU TO YOU MADAM CHAIR AND ALSO TO THE THE PANEL
FOR FOR THE IMPORTANT WORK THEY'RE DOING. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, COUNCILOR FLYNN, I NOTICE THAT THE MARY ELLEN WALSH GREENWAY GREEN WAS NOT
INCLUDED BUT THAT IS ONE OF THE THE INCREDIBLE DEMONSTRATIONS OF WHAT IS POSSIBLE. YOU ARE VERY STRATEGIC ABOUT TAKING IN RAINWATER, MAKING SPACES PERMEABLE.
SO I JUST WANT TO SHUT OUT YOUR FOLKS AND THE MARIAN WALSH GREENWAY BOARD AND VOLUNTEER CORPS FOR THEIR WORK. I HAVE A FEW TECHNICAL QUESTIONS JUST ABOUT THE ABOUT
THE GROUND. IT'S OKAY IF YOU DON'T KNOW THEM. SO WE HAD MENTIONED AND THAT THE WATERSHED ASSOCIATIONS WOULD BE LEADING THE CHARGE ARE THEY ARE THEY CONTRACTED OUT FORMALLY OR ARE THEY JUST
HELPING WITH THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT TO LET FOLKS KNOW THAT THIS IS TAKING PLACE THEIR CONTRACT OUT? BUT YES, THEY'RE THEY'RE DOING MOST OF THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT. WE ARE AS WELL. BUT THEY THEY'RE PICKING UP THE BULK OF THAT.
OKAY. AND ARE WE CONTRACTING OUT WITH IN A TECHNOLOGY COMPANY TO PHYSICALLY BUILD OUT THE DATABASE? YES. THAT'S WESTON IN SAMSON. OKAY, GREAT. EXCELLENT. IT'S THERE.
YEAH, I THINK THAT'S A FOR ME I'M JUST REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THIS. I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT THEY COULD HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO LET THE CITY KNOW THAT THIS IS HAPPENING IN THEIR
NEIGHBORHOODS. I THINK THAT THIS IS PAST DUE BUT THERE'S NO TIME LIKE THE PRESENT TO GET THIS DONE. SO I'M REALLY GRATEFUL THAT WE'RE ABLE TO GET THIS OFF THE GROUND AND MOVE IT FORWARD.
IS THERE ANY OTHER ADDITIONAL WORK THAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN ON THE BACK END OR HAS IT ALREADY BEEN BUILT OUT AND IT'S ALREADY BEEN BUILT OUT AND THEN WE WILL LOOK INTO ANALYZING AND
COLLECTING MORE DATA. IT'LL BE OPEN FOR EVER TO COLLECT DATA THOUGH THERE WILL BE A PERIOD OF A POINT IN TIME WHERE WE KIND OF PAUSE AND WE SAY OKAY LET'S START LOOKING AT SOME PLACES FOR CONCEPTUAL
DESIGN BECAUSE PLEASE SHARE WITH YOUR CONSTITUENTS WE LOVE MORE FEEDBACK WE'LL DO FOR SURE AND I LOVE THE FACT THAT IT'S ALREADY IN EIGHT LANGUAGES AND I APOLOGIZE. I HAVE ONE LAST QUESTION.
YES, THE INSTALLATION PART OF IT IS IS THE PHYSICAL DESIGN AND THE INSTALLATION ALSO CAPTURED WITHIN THIS GRANT YOU PAY FOR DESIGN INSTALLATION DESIGNS INCLUDED INSTALLATION
IS NOT DO WE HAVE ANY IDEA WHERE THAT MONEY IS GOING TO COME FROM? IS THAT FROM THE CAPITAL BUDGET MOVING FORWARD AND WHAT THE TIMELINE IS ON THAT? YEAH, WE WOULD NEED TO REQUEST THAT FROM THE CAPITAL BUDGET SO FOR NEXT FISCAL YEAR WE WOULD
WE WOULD PUT IN OUR REQUEST FOR EACH OF THOSE DESIGNS. OKAY. SORRY. ONE LAST QUESTION. YEAH, SORRY. HOW WOULD WE PRIORITIZE WHAT IS GETTING BUILT OUT FIRST?
IS THAT GOING TO JUST BE BASED ON THE DATA? IS THAT A WAIT AND SEE? YEAH, BASED ON THE DATA AND WHERE WE'RE OBSERVING MOST OF THE FLOODING AND ALSO THE I
I FORGOT TO MENTION 311 CASES ARE BEING INVOLVED IN THE DATA AS WELL. SO YEAH I THINK WE'RE JUST WE'RE PRIORITIZING WHERE WE SEE IT THE MOST WE'RE AND I PROMISE
THAT'S IT FOR MY QUESTIONS THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR WORK I LOOK IN INTO YOU AND I CONNECTING YEAH JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING THAT'S GOING ON IN MY DISTRICT AND YEAH JUST REALLY FORWARD TO THAT DEFINITELY SO GOOD THANK YOU
FOR HAVING ME I THINK WITH WITH THAT WE DON'T HAVE ANY PUBLIC TESTIMONY. OKAY WELL I LOOK FORWARD TO RECOMMENDING THAT THESE BE PUT FORTH TOWARDS THE BODY FOR
PASSAGE AND WITH THAT THIS HEARING ON DOCKETS 202920395 AND 0399 IS ADJOURNED. THANK YOU Part: 2
MY NAME IS BRIAN. WE'RE OUR DISTRICT FOR CITY COUNCILOR AND I'M THE CHAIR OF THE BOSTON CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS. TODAY'S APRIL SEVEN, 2025.
IT IS 2:02 P.M. IN ACCORDANCE WITH CHAPTER TWO OF THE ACTS OF 2025 MODIFYING CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS OF THE OPEN MEETING LAW AND RELIEVING PUBLIC BODIES OF CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS INCLUDING THE
REQUIREMENT THAT PUBLIC BODIES CONDUCT AS MEETINGS IN A PUBLIC PLACE THAT IS OPEN AND PHYSICALLY ACCESSIBLE TO THE PUBLIC. THE CITY COUNCIL WILL BE CONDUCTING THIS HEARING VIRTUALLY VIA ZOOM.
THIS HEARING IS BEING RECORDED AND IS ALSO BEING LIVE STREAMED AT BOSTON DARK OF BACKSLASH CITY DAS CASTLE DASH TV AND BROADCAST ON EXCHANGE CHANNEL
EIGHT AKA AND RCN, CHANNEL A2 AND FIRESIDE CHANNEL 964. WRITTEN COMMENTS MAY BE SENT TO THE COMMITTEE EMAIL AT SEXY W M
AT BOSTON.COM WILL BE MADE PART OF THE RECORD AND AVAILABLE TO ALL COUNCILORS. PUBLIC TESTIMONY WOULD BE TAKEN AT THE END OF THIS HEARING. INDIVIDUALS BE CALLED ON IN THE ORDER IN WHICH THEY SIGNED UP WILL HAVE 2 MINUTES TO TESTIFY.
IF YOU WISH TO SIGN UP FOR PUBLIC TESTIMONY YOU HAVE NOT DONE SO PLEASE EMAIL OUR ESSENTIAL STAFF LIAISON LIAISON
CHRIS MISSION AT K A R I AS HMACH0 YOU AJ AND AB BOSTON THAT GO FOR THE ZOOM LINK YOUR NAME WILL BE ADDED TO THE LIST. TODAY'S HEARING IS ON THE
FOLLOWING THREE DOCKETS DOCKET NUMBER 0590 MESSAGE IN ORDER AUTHORIZING THE ISSUANCE OF REFUND IN BONDS AND THE PRINCIPAL AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $350 MILLION.
DOCKET NUMBER 0724. MESSAGE IN ORDER AUTHORIZING THE COLLECTOR TREASURER TO ENTER INTO A CONTRACT UNDER THE PROVISIONS A GENERAL LAW CHAPTER 44 SECTION 553 F AND
BUY IN BETWEEN THE CITY OF BOSTON AND CITIZENS FOR THE PROVISION OF BANKING SERVICES DOCKET NUMBER 0725. MESSAGE IN ORDER AUTHORIZING THE COLLECTOR TREASURER TO
ENTER INTO A CONTRACT UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF GENERAL LAW CHAPTER 44 SECTION 53 F BY BETWEEN THE CITY OF BOSTON AND JPMORGAN CHASE BANK AND AND AT A FOR THE PROVISION OF BANKING
SERVICES. THESE MATTERS WAS SPONSORED BY MAYOR MICHELLE WU AND REFERRED TO THE COMMITTEE ON MARCH FIVE, 2025 CONDUCTING NUMBER 0590 AND APRIL 2ND OF 2025 FOR NUMBER
072420725. TODAY I'M JOINED BY MY CAST COLLEAGUES IN ORDER TO ARRIVAL COUNCIL PRESIDENT LOUIJEUNE IN COUNCILOR FLYNN. NOW LET'S INTRODUCE TODAY'S PANEL PANELISTS TESTIFYING ON
BEHALF OF THE ADMINISTRATION. WE HAVE THE CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICE OFFICER FOR THE CITY OF BOSTON, BOSTON ASH ASHLEY GARTENBERG AND PRESS ASSISTANT FOR COLLECT TREASURER FOR THE CITY OF BOSTON TREASURY
DEPARTMENT JACKIE BRADLEY. OH NOW GIVE THE FLOOR TO THE ADMINISTRATION. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. GOOD AFTERNOON. COUNCILORS ASHLEY ASHCROFT MURDERED CHIEF FINANCIAL
OFFICER. I'M JOINED TODAY BY DEREK BRADLEY, OUR FIRST ASSISTANT COLLECTOR TREASURER IN OUR TREASURY DIVISION. AS YOU MENTIONED, WE'RE HERE TODAY TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT TWO VERY IMPORTANT DOCKETS OF FIVE
NINE REGARDING REFUNDING BONDS AND 07240725 REGARDING OUR BANKING SERVICES CONTRACT. I WILL GIVE A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF ALL FIVE NINE NOW AND THEN
TURN IT OVER TO JERRICA TO TALK THROUGH THE OTHER TWO DOCKETS. SO WE'RE HERE TODAY REQUESTING AUTHORIZATION OF UP TO $350 MILLION TO REFINANCE SOME
OF OUR EXISTING DEBT. THE CITY REFUND BONDS WHERE THERE IS A PROVEN FINANCIAL BENEFIT AND SO WE ARE REQUESTING AUTHORIZATION FROM YOU ALL TO BE ABLE TO ISSUE
BONDS REFUNDING BONDS UP TO 350 MILLION. THIS IS A SMART FINANCIAL THING THAT THE CITY HAS DONE IN THE PAST RECENTLY. THE CITY ISSUED 91 AND A HALF
MILLION DOLLARS OF REFUNDING BONDS IN DECEMBER 2020 RESULTING IN SAVINGS OF $10.5 MILLION IN DEBT SERVICE THROUGH FISCAL YEAR 34.
WE ARE PLANNING TO DO A GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND ISSUE IN MID-MAY AND WOULD LIKE TO TIME THAT ISSUANCE WITH A REFUNDING OPPORTUNITY.
WE WILL KNOW AS WE GET CLOSER TO THAT DATE SORT OF HOW MUCH WE PLAN TO REISSUE SORT OF WHAT MAKES SENSE AND WHAT'S ADVANTAGEOUS TO US AND WE LIKE
TO DO THEM AT THE SAME TIME BECAUSE IT SAVES US MONEY ON THE COST OF ISSUANCE. SO WE REQUEST TIMELY PASSAGE OF THIS DOCKET TO ALLOW US TO LEVERAGE THAT TIMELINE. CURRENTLY WE HAVE $200 MILLION
OF EXISTING AUTHORIZATION SO THIS WOULD ADD AN ADDITIONAL 350 MILLION TO THAT GIVING US A TOTAL OF $550 MILLION IN AUTHORIZATION. AND JUST TO BE CLEAR, THIS IS
NOT A NEW BOND ISSUANCE. IT'S JUST ALLOWING US TO BUYBACK EXISTING DEBT AND REFINANCE IT AT A LOWER RATE. AND LIKE I SAID, THIS IS A GREAT FINANCIAL OPPORTUNITY AND
ULTIMATELY SAVES THE CITY MONEY OVER TIME. SO WITH THAT I WILL TURN IT OVER TO DERICA TO SPEAK BRIEFLY ABOUT THE TWO BANKING SERVICES CONTRACTS INTERNATIONALLY.
GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE. AS ASHLEY SAID 0724 AND 0725 OR AFTER REQUESTING IT APPROVAL OF THE BANKING SERVICES
CONTRACTS. THIS IS AN RFP THAT WE PUT OUT EVERY THREE YEARS FOR BANKING SERVICES. IT'S STANDARD SERVICES LIKE CHECKING ACCOUNT SAVINGS ACCOUNTS, INVESTMENT ACCOUNTS,
THOSE TYPES OF THINGS AND THERE'S SEVERAL SERVICES THAT ARE INCLUDED IN THOSE CONTRACTS FOR WHEN WE HAVE TO ISSUE CHECKS THROUGH DIRECT DEPOSITS.
ALL OF THE CITY'S ACCOUNTS ARE FALL UNDER THESE TYPES OF UNDER THESE TWO CONTRACTS CITIZENS AND J.P. MORGAN ARE BOTH OUR INCUMBENT BANKS.
WE ANALYZED SEVEN RESPONDENTS AND CITIZENS IN J.P. MORGAN BOTH CAME IN WITH THE BEST TECHNICAL AND PRICE.
WE'RE REQUESTING YOUR APPROVAL FOR BOTH THOSE. THANK YOU. I WOULD LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT COUNCILOR WEBER HAS JOINED US. I'D NOW LIKE TO TURN IT OVER TO
MY COUNCILOR COLLEAGUES FOR QUESTIONS IN ORDER ARRIVAL TIME WITH COUNCIL PRESIDENT LOUIJEUNE AND THE FLOOR IS NOW YOURS. THANK YOU AND GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE. I WANT TO THANK EVERYONE FOR BEING HERE. MR CHAIR, THANK YOU FOR HOLDING
THIS HEARING. I'M SO SORRY. CFO GRAFF AMERICA, I THINK RIGHT AS YOU WERE BEGINNING TO SPEAK I WAS GETTING CALLED AWAY TO ANOTHER MATTER QUICKLY. BUT THIS IS AN ISSUE THAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT BECAUSE I
THINK IT'S IMPORTANT WE MAXIMIZE OUR SAVINGS AND SO CAN YOU JUST EXPLAIN THE CONDITIONS THAT MAKE IT MAKE IT APPEALING
FOR US TO REFUND WHAT I BELIEVE OUR GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS TO GET A BETTER TICKET TO GET A BETTER RATE? I BELIEVE IS THAT THE PURPOSE OF THE REFUND? YEAH, EXACTLY. AND DERICA, YOU SHOULD
DEFINITELY CHIME IN WITH MORE SPECIFICS BUT I THINK THE GENERAL RULE OF THUMB THAT WE USE IS A GOOD REFUNDING OPPORTUNITY IS WHEN THE NET PRESENT VALUE SHOULD BE GREATER
THAN 3%. AM I SAYING THAT RIGHT, DERICA ? BUT LIKE I SAID, IF WE'RE ALREADY DOING NET PRESENT VALUE OF WHAT THE SAVINGS ARE ERIKA
OKAY. YEAH, YEAH WE'LL GO AHEAD ACTUALLY. NO GO AHEAD. YOU CAN CHIME IN. I WAS JUST GOING TO SAY IT'S KIND OF SIMILAR IF YOU REFINANCE YOUR CAR OR YOUR HOME OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT IF YOU
IF YOU GO OUT WITH A 8% MORTGAGE AND YOU HAVE 6% RATES, YOU LIKE THOSE THE FUTURE PAYMENTS THAT YOU WOULD PAY FOR PRINCIPAL AND INTEREST DISCOUNTED BACK OVER TIME IS WHAT WE CONSIDER THE NET
PRESENT VALUE REMEMBER SO WHEN THAT NUMBER WENT TO ASHES MINUS THREE 3% WE COULD DO IT LESS THAN 3% WHEN WE'RE DOING A BOND DEAL IT'S JUST A GOOD TARGET
NUMBER. AND ARE THESE FOUR IS IT FOR ALL OF OUR GENERAL GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS OR JUST A TRANCHE? WE WE LOOK AT THEM ALL AND WE
IN IN WHAT IS CALLABLE AND WE ANALYZE SOME MAYBE MORE THAN 3%, SOME MAYBE LESS THAN BUT IT'S FOUR DIFFERENT TRANCHES. FOR ALL OF OUR GENERAL OBLIGATION DEBT. THANK YOU.
AND WHAT IS THAT TOTAL AMOUNT. SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE OVER 350 MILLION THAT WE HAVE ELIGIBLE TO BE REFINANCED AND IT'S ABOUT
368 MILLION AND ELIGIBLE REFINANCING AND THE PART THAT'S NOT ELIGIBLE FOR FINANCING IS SO IN THERE ARE DEPENDING ON
WHEN OUR DEBT BECOMES CALLABLE SO IT USUALLY WE'VE GOT A TEN YEAR PAR CALL WHEN WE ISSUE DEBT SO EVENTUALLY SO LONG AS
WE HAVE A TEN YEAR PAR CALL IT WILL ALL BECOME CALLABLE BUT AS OF RIGHT NOW IT'S JUST ABOUT 360 WHICH IS LIKE PROBABLY 96 OR 7% OF THE TOTAL AMOUNT
THAT'S OUT OUTSTANDING OF DEBT OBLIGATIONS IT'S LESS THAN THAT. I THINK WE HAVE PROBABLY AROUND 1.3 BILLION OUTSTANDING. OH OKAY. THAT WAS OH SO IT REALLY IS LESS THAN THAT.
YEAH. SO IT'S ABOUT 350 OF ABOUT ONE POINT HOW MUCH THREE I CAN GET THE I CAN GET THE CORRECT NUMBER FOR YOU BUT IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY IT'S ABOUT
1.3 SO IT'S PROBABLY SOMEWHERE AROUND 30% ISH TERMS LIKE. AND CAN YOU REMIND ME WHAT OUR DEBT SERVICE RATE IS RIGHT NOW AS PART OF THE OPERATING BUDGET
? SO WE HAVE A WE HAVE A POLICY THAT DEBT SERVICE CANNOT EXCEED MORE THAN 7% OF GENERAL FUND EXPENDITURES.
MM HMM. SO RIGHT NOW I REMEMBER OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD THAT SERVICES THE ANNUAL DEBT SERVICE AMOUNT
THAT WE PAY IS AS I ALWAYS CONFUSE PENSION AND DEBT SERVICE. THEY'RE BOTH VERY LARGE NUMBERS. LET ME LOOK THAT UP AND GET
BACK TO YOU ON HOW MUCH. I WANT TO SAY FROM LIKE THE 200 ISH 200 MILLION ISH RANGE BUT LET ME GET YOU THE EXACT NUMBER BUT THAT'S I CAN OUT OF 2 TO 7% OF THE TOTAL OPERATING BUDGET.
RIGHT. AND THE SMALLER YOU GET JUST TO BE CLARIFIED THE SMALLER YOU GET ON THAT DEBT SERVICE PERCENTAGE NUMBER THE MORE MONEY THAT OPENS UP IN THE OPERATING BUDGET FOR POTENTIALLY OTHER OTHER MATTERS IN THE OPERATING BUDGET, RIGHT?
MM HMM. AND ON OUR DEBT SERVICE WE ARE WE'RE ON A 20 YEAR AMORTIZATION RUN RATE. IS THAT RIGHT? YES. YEAH. IN OTHER CITIES TEND TO BE ON LIKE A ARE WE ANOMALOUS IN THAT
IN THAT REGARD. MOST OF THESE ARE ON A IS IT 30 YEAR. I'D SAY THAT'S ACCURATE. MM HMM. OKAY. THOSE ARE MY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR.
AND I JUST WANT TO THANK YOU. I THINK I GUESS I. I GUESS I DO HAVE ONE LAST QUESTION. WHEN WE ISSUE THESE BONDS RIGHT NOW, WHAT ARE WHAT ARE WE
ISSUING THEM FOR THE BONDS. SO IT'S FOR PROJECTS THAT WILL BE OUTLINED IN THE LOAN ORDERS THAT YOU ALL VOTE ON. SO THAT IS WHAT OUR BONDS CAN
SUPPORT. OKAY. AND IT HAS TO SERVE A MUNICIPAL LIKE A MUNICIPAL FUNCTION I THINK. THAT'S RIGHT. YEAH. IT ARE THE I BELIEVE A FEW
YEARS AGO THERE WERE GREEN BONDS AND AFFORDABLE BONDS THAT WERE ISSUED BY THE CITY. ARE THOSE INCLUDED IN THE GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS THAT ARE THAT WE'RE SEEKING TO
REFINANCE HERE? WE CAN GET BACK TO YOU ON SPECIFIC TRANCHES THAT WERE DIFFERENT SERIES THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT. I DON'T RECALL OFF THE TOP
OF MY HEAD IF THERE ARE NO I DON'T BELIEVE THERE ARE ANY IN 2020 THAT'S WHEN WE DID THE GREEN AND SOCIAL BONDS. OKAY, GREAT. SLATED TO BE FUNDED. THANK YOU.
I'M OBVIOUSLY A REALLY BIG ADVOCATE FOR US USING OUR FISCAL STRENGTH THAT WE GET THROUGH GOOD DEBT MANAGEMENT AND OUR TRIPLE-A BOND RATING TO DO MORE OF THE WORK THAT IS
STATED AND SORT OF THE REASONS THAT WE'RE ALLOWED TO ISSUE BONDS FOR SUCH AS SCHOOLS. HOUSING AND OTHER THINGS THAT ARE OF A MUNICIPAL PURPOSE SO I
JUST WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THE WAY IN WHICH YOU SHARED OUR CITY AND LOOK FORWARD TO EXPLORING WHAT MORE WE CAN DO. THANK YOU. THANK YOU AND COUNCIL PRESIDENT JUST I GOT THE NUMBER FOR DEBT SERVICE IN FISCAL 25. IT'S 276 MILLION.
OKAY. 276 MILLION. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH, CHIEF. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THE PRESIDENT I'D ALSO LIKE TO
ACKNOWLEDGE THAT COUNCILOR COLETTE IS A PARTNER AND COUNCILOR BRAEDON HAS ALSO JOINED US. COUNCILOR FLYNN, THE FLOOR IS NOW YOURS.
OKAY. COUNCILOR WEBER, THE FLOOR IS YOURS. OKAY. THANKS, CHAIR. OKAY.
SO I MISSED THE THE CURRENT INTEREST RATE VERSUS THE INTEREST RATE. WE THINK WE CAN GET. DID YOU SAY 3% IS THE GOAL OR
CAN YOU JUST GO BACK UP THAT? SO THE 3% IS SORT OF THE TARGET WE HAVE FOR OURSELVES WHEN ASSESSING WHETHER OR NOT TO DO A REFINANCING. SO WE WANT WE TARGET THAT THE
NET PRESENT VALUE OF THE SAVINGS WOULD BE AROUND 3%. WE DON'T KNOW THE EXACT RATES THAT WE'RE GOING TO GET THROUGH A REFUNDING UNTIL WE GET CLOSER TO THE ISSUANCE DATE.
SO THIS IS JUST PROVIDING US SOME AUTHORIZATION SO THAT WHEN WE DO GET TO THE POINT WHERE WE'RE GOING TO BE ISSUING BONDS, WE CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE OPPORTUNITY. OKAY. AND THIS WOULD REQUIRE TO SEE
TO WE WOULD BUY BACK EVERYTHING AND JUST REISSUE NEW A NEW 350 MILLION MAYBE IN BONDS. SO YES.
OKAY. AND THEN IN TERMS OF SO THEN WE'LL NEGOTIATE WITH WHO ABOUT THE INTEREST RATE CHEAP WILL
JPMORGAN OR AS IT WERE MARKET DRIVEN. IT'S BASICALLY YOU KNOW WE WE MARKET THAT AND WE'RE SELLING DEBT AND THEN WE HAVE THE BANKS
COMPETE ON WHO WANTS TO GIVE US THE BEST RATE. OKAY. SO SLIGHTLY SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT THAN REFINANCING YOUR OWN HOME MORTGAGE WHERE THERE'S A SECOND RATE THAT IS BEING YOU YOU CAN
IDENTIFY. SO WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THE RATE IS BUT BECAUSE WE HAVE A TRIPLE-A BOND RATING AND WE HAVE A GREAT CFO AND YOU KNOW THE WAY WE THINK WE'LL GET AS
GOOD OF A RATE IS AS IS AVAILABLE. OKAY. CURRENT STOCK MARKET FLUCTUATIONS. YOU KNOW, MY SENSE IS BONDS IS
SUPPOSED TO BE MORE STABLE THAN WHATEVER'S HAPPENING OUT THERE. BUT I DON'T KNOW. DO YOU HAVE A TELL ME WHAT I SHOULD INVEST? NO, I I'M NOT AS YOUR PERSONAL INVESTMENT BANK.
HOW DOES. CAN YOU JUST EXPLAIN THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN YOU KNOW WHAT WAS WHAT WHEN I OPENED THE NEW YORK TIMES AND I SEE THE THE KASKY YOU KNOW, THE
DOWNWARD TRENDING ANGLE HOW THAT'S DIFFERENT THAN THE BOND MARKET SHARE GO FOR IT. YEAH. I MEAN I THINK THAT USUALLY BONDS ARE INVESTMENTS THAT ARE
VIEWED TO BE MORE STABLE SO WHEN YOU HAVE EQUITIES AS VOLATILE AS THEY ARE IN THE CURRENT MARKETS, THERE'S A FLIGHT TO A LESS RISKY INVESTMENT.
SO IN TYPICALLY I THINK YOU WOULD SEE AN INVERSE REACTION THAT IT'S MORE FAVOR YOU KNOW BUT EQUITIES OR THE STOCK MARKET IS DROPPING IT'S MORE
FAVORABLE FOR THE BOND MARKET. THAT'S TYPICALLY HOW IT WORKS. BUT THERE'S A LOT OF FACTORS AT PLAY AND SO I THINK THAT'S WHY WHEN OUR IS SAYING WE ACTUALLY GO TO MARKET TO ISSUE DEBT WELL
WE'LL LOOK AT EVERYTHING THEN TO MAKE SURE IT'S STILL IN OUR FAVOR TO DO THAT AND WE CAN CHOOSE YOU KNOW WE CAN CHOOSE NOT TO DO IT AT THAT TIME AND WAIT TILL THE MARKETS CALM DOWN AND STABILIZE BEFORE WE
ACTUALLY REFINANCE. OKAY. JUST A COUPLE MORE QUESTIONS. I HOPE THEIR BASIC SO I THINK CHIEF, YOU SAID 1.3 BILLION IN
LIKE IN DEBT WE'VE WE HAVE FOUR BONDS AND THIS WOULD SORT OF I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE WORD IS RESTRUCTURE 350 MILLION OUT OF THAT 1.3 IS THAT RIGHT? RIGHT. YES, THAT'S CORRECT.
OKAY. AND I GUESS SO WHAT WHAT IS THE I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FINANCIAL OPPORTUNITY COSTS LIKE WHAT WE'LL HAVE TO ASSUME WE HAVE TO
PAY SOMETHING OR JUST WILL THE BANKS I KNOW I REFINANCED A MORTGAGE ONCE AND I WAS LIKE YOU KNOW, THERE'S AN INCENTIVE FOR SOMEBODY TO BE OFFERING THIS EVEN THOUGH I END UP
PAYING LET'S WRITE YOU KNOW, CAN YOU JUST WALK ME THROUGH LIKE WHO'S WHO OTHER THAN US BENEFITING FROM IT AND PAYING LESS MONEY?
IS THERE ANYONE WHO'S PROFITING FROM THIS OR DO WE HAVE TO PAY PEOPLE TO DO THIS AND HOW MUCH WILL WRAPPING? YEAH. SO THE REASON WHY WE'RE SEEKING
THIS AUTHORIZATION NOW IS BECAUSE WE ARE PLANNING TO GO TO THE BOND MARKET IN ABOUT A MONTH AND SO WE WANT TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE FACT THAT WE'RE GOING TO ALREADY BE GOING THROUGH THAT PROCESS AND PAYING
FOR COST OF ISSUANCE AND SORT OF LEVERAGE THAT AS TO TO DO OUR REFUNDING AND ISSUING THOSE BONDS SO WE DON'T HAVE TO PAY TWICE FOR IT. SO WE SEE IT AS YOU KNOW,
ADVANTAGEOUS TIMING. SO THAT'S WHY WE'RE WE'RE SEEKING THIS AUTHORIZATION NOW. OKAY.
AND JUST LASTLY IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, OUR TRIPLE-A BOND RATING WHICH WE HAVE YOU TO THINK FOR A CHIEF AND EVERYONE
ELSE OVER THERE HOW WILL DOING THIS IMPACT OUR RATING OR YOU KNOW, WILL IT BENEFIT OUR RATING?
HOW DOES HOW DO THE READERS THINK ABOUT THIS KIND OF THING ? I GUESS I DON'T HAVE A SPECIFIC QUICK COMMENT ON IT OTHER THAN
IT'S JUST A IT'S A NORMAL PRACTICE TO TO REFINANCE. SO AND IF IT'S SAVING US SAVING US ACTUAL MONEY, THEN I WOULD IMAGINE THEY THINK IT'S A GOOD
THING. BUT I, I CAN'T SEE A WAY IN WHICH IT WOULD BE NEGATIVE. OKAY. AND JUST LASTLY, I KNOW THE COUNCIL PRESIDENT ASKED ABOUT
THE 20 YEAR RATE BUT WHY IS THAT? WHAT ARE WE GOING TO STICK WITH THAT OR WOULD WE BE OPEN TO SOMETHING LONGER TERM?
YEAH. SO THE CITY HAS HAD A PRACTICE OF RAPIDLY PAYING DOWN DEBT. I THINK THAT IS CITED OFTEN AS
A CREDIT POSITIVE FOR US AND SO WE HAVE NO PLANS TO DEVIATE FROM OUR DEBT MANAGEMENT POLICIES. OKAY. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU, CHAIR. THANK YOU. COUNSELOR ONE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT COUNSELOR DURKIN AND COUNSELOR PEPEN HAS ALSO JOINED US. NOW WE'LL GO TO COUNSELOR COLLETTE AS A PARTNER FOR OUR
YEAR. THANK YOU SO MUCH, CHAIR. THANK YOU TO THE CFO ANGELICA I APOLOGIZE. I DON'T HAVE YOUR TOTAL IN FRONT OF ME BUT THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK AS WELL.
WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME THE CITY DID THIS? I BELIEVE THE LAST TIME WE DID A REFUNDING WAS IN DECEMBER 2020. DOES THAT SOUND RIGHT, DERICA? YES.
AND I APOLOGIZE. I'VE BEEN IN AND OUT SO THIS WAS MOST LIKELY ASKED BUT IT'S ON MY LIST. WHAT ARE THE PROJECTED SAVINGS IS UP TO 350 MILLION. NOPE.
THE 350 MILLION IS THE TOTAL AUTHORIZATION SORT OF THE PATH OF OR THE CAP OF BONDS WE WOULD BE ABLE TO VALUE THAT WE WOULD BE ABLE TO TO REFINANCE THE SAVINGS IS A LITTLE UNKNOWN
BECAUSE WE DON'T KNOW EXACTLY UNTIL WE GO TO MARKET AND FIGURE OUT WHAT THAT RATE IS GOING TO BE AT THE TIME THAT WE ENTER THE MARKET. BUT BACK TO YOUR PREVIOUS
QUESTION ABOUT THAT. WHEN THE CITY DID THIS LAST IN DECEMBER 2020, THE CITY REISSUED 91 AND A HALF MILLION AND REFUNDING BONDS AND SAVED THE CITY TEN AND A HALF MILLION
IN DEBT SERVICE THROUGH 2034 WHICH WAS ABOUT $850,000 A YEAR IN DEBT SERVICE. SO THAT'S FROM OUR MOST RECENT EXAMPLE. SO ONCE WE ACTUALLY GO TO MARKET WE'LL BE ABLE TO REPORT
BACK ON ESTIMATED SAVINGS AS A RESULT OF THE REFUNDING. AND THANK YOU FOR THAT. THAT'S THAT PROVIDES FLAHERTY. ARE ANY OF THESE SAVINGS AND I THINK YOU MAY HAVE JUST ANSWERED IT WITH THAT BECAUSE WE'RE ESSENTIALLY SAVING
$850,000 PER YEAR. IS THAT RIGHT? YEP. YEAH. ACCORDING TO THE LAST REFUNDING, YEP. OKAY. ARE ANY OF THOSE OR POTENTIAL SAVINGS BEING REPURPOSED OR
REDIRECTED TO URGENT CAPITAL NEEDS FOR ANY WAY TO RELIEVE PRESSURE ON OUR OPERATING BUDGET? YEAH. SO NOT REALLY SPECIFICALLY TARGETED IN ANY WAY BUT LIKE
YOU SAID IT JUST PUTS LESS PRESSURE ON OUR GENERAL FUND OPERATING BUDGET AND JUST SLIGHTLY LESS DEBT SERVICE WE HAVE TO PAY AGAIN IT'S A FRACTION OF OUR OVERALL DEBT
SERVICE WHICH IN FISCAL 25 WAS $275 MILLION SO $850 MILLION A YEAR IS VERY, VERY SMALL BUT ANY LITTLE BIT OF SAVINGS HELPS
THE OVERALL OPERATING BUDGET. TODAY'S NEWS IS OBVIOUSLY PERTINENT I THINK TO THIS CONVERSATION OR IT MAY NOT BE AS THE FINANCIAL EXPERTS IN
THIS CITY GIVEN THAT THE THE STOCK MARKETS ARE DOWN TODAY, WILL THAT HAVE ANY IMPACT ON POTENTIALLY HOW MUCH MONEY WE SAVE MOVING FORWARD?
DERICA. I THINK THE SHORT ANSWER IS WE DON'T KNOW AND WE ALWAYS HAVE THE OPTION TO NOT REFINANCE IF
THE MARKET CONDITIONS ARE NOT IN OUR FAVOR. SO YOU KNOW, OUR HOPE WOULD BE THAT THE MARKET STABILIZES AND GIVES GIVE CONFIDENCE AND WHEN WE DO GO TO MARKET.
BUT I THINK IF BONDS ARE SEEN AS A MORE STABLE INVESTMENT THAT THAT WORKS IN OUR FAVOR. THANK YOU. AND I JUST HAVE ONE LAST QUESTION.
CHAIR SEEING THAT WE HAVE CITIZENS AT JPMORGAN CHASE SELECTED FOR DOCKET 0724 AND 0725 HAVE WE ENTERED INTO AGREEMENTS WITH THEM BEFORE?
IF NOT LIKE WHAT WAS THE PROCESS IN SELECTING THEM? THERE'S A GENERAL QUESTION FOR THE CFO AND WITH I BROUGHT UP IN A HEARING I THINK IT WAS IN
LAST YEAR'S BUDGET WHERE WE TALKED ABOUT HOW VARIOUS BANKS ARE BEING UTILIZED BY THE CITY AND IF THERE IS ANY LIKE ESG
FACTORS INVOLVED. YOU KNOW, DO THESE BANKS OR DO YOU EVALUATE PROPOSALS OR VARIOUS BANKS BASED ON THEIR COMMITMENT TO THE COMMUNITY OR
VARIOUS INVESTMENTS? IS THAT THAT'S A THAT'S A LARGER QUESTION. SO I'LL TAKE PART OF IT AND THEN DERICA, PICK UP WHERE I LEFT OFF. SO CITIZENS IN JPMORGAN ARE
INCUMBENT BANKING PROVIDERS. SO THIS WOULD BE WE WOULD JUST BE RE ENTERING INTO CONTRACT WITH THEM.
WE THE CITY HAS RELATIONSHIPS WITH MANY OTHER SMALL BANKS AS WELL WHERE WE HAVE CASH INVESTED IN DIFFERENT SMALL
LOCAL BANKS FOR AND WE MAKE DECISIONS ON WHERE TO PUT INVESTMENTS IN CASH DUE TO A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT FACTORS INCLUDING SOME OF THE ONES THAT YOU JUST MENTIONED.
SO NOTHING ABOUT THIS THESE BANKING SERVICES CONTRACTS WOULD PREVENT US FROM FROM DOING THAT. WE HAVE A PRACTICE OF DOING THAT AND WOULD CONTINUE. JESSICA.
ANYTHING TO ADD? THAT'S WHY WE THE BANKING SERVICES CONTRACTS FOCUSES ON OUR BREAD AND BUTTER LIKE BEING ABLE TO MOVE CASH EMAILS YOU
KNOW AND INVEST WHERE WE NEED TO. SO THAT AS FAR AS THE COMMUNITY REINVESTMENT ACT SO FAR OBVIOUSLY THEY THEY DO PUT SOME OF THAT INFORMATION IN THEIR PROPOSALS. BUT AS ASHLEY MENTIONED, WE DO
HAVE OTHER BANK PARTNERSHIPS THAT WE WHERE WE FOCUS AT MORE STRATEGIC PLAY. AND JUST TO BE CLEAR TOO, THIS WAS THESE TWO CONTRACTS WERE THE RESULT OF A COMPETITIVE RFP
PROCESS WHERE WE RECEIVED PROPOSALS FROM SEVERAL OTHER FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS AND CITIZENS AND J.P. MORGAN WERE THE TWO MOST ADVANTAGEOUS. AS A RESULT, AT THE END OF THAT
PROCESS. EXCELLENT. THAT WAS MY NEXT QUESTION. MY NEXT AND LAST QUESTION. BUT GIVEN THAT I WILL SEE THE REST OF MY TIME BACK TO THE CHAIR. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU, COUNSELOR. COUNSELOR BREADON. YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. I THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. GOOD AFTERNOON. I'M A MEMBER LAST YEAR WHEN WE
WERE IN BUDGET SEASON YOU SAID THAT LAST YEAR YOU DIDN'T ISSUE ANY NEW DEBT. THAT AND THEN YOU JUST SAID THE LAST TIME WE DID THIS AS A CITY WAS IN 2020.
I'M JUST CURIOUS BECAUSE I'M NOT I'M NOT I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE FINANCIAL FINANCE WORLD AT ALL. BUT WHAT CONDITIONS PROMPTED
LAKE PROMPTED YOU TO NOT DO IT LAST YEAR AND WHAT CONDITIONS PROMPTED YOU DO IT THIS YEAR? NOTWITHSTANDING THE CHAOS AROUND THIS BUDGET? CERTAINLY. SO I THINK THE LAST TIME WE DID
SORT OF A GENERAL OBLIGATION JUST LIKE NORMAL OFFERING WAS I THINK FALL 2023 GERICA WE DID A SMALL DIRECT PLACEMENT WHICH IS SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT THAN A BIG
COMPETITIVE SALE AND THEN I THINK WE HAD PLANNED TO GO TO MARKET AGAIN IN THE FALL OF 2024 BUT CONDITIONS WERE
SUCH THAT IT MADE MORE SENSE FOR US TO DO A LARGER ISSUANCE IN THE SPRING. SO IT'S ALL ABOUT TIMING HERE AND JUST MAKING SURE THAT YOU'RE KIND OF BREAKING WHEN
THE IRON IS HOT SO TO SPEAK AND GETTING THE TIMING RIGHT AND WE HAVE A TEAM OF FINANCIAL ADVISORS THAT HELP US WITH SOME OF THAT ANALYSIS AND TIMING.
THE DECEMBER 2020 EXAMPLE I REFERENCED WAS SPECIFICALLY RELATED TO THE LAST TIME THE CITY DID A REFUNDING. SO WE HAVE DONE GENERAL OBLIGATION ISSUANCES SINCE DECEMBER 2020 BUT THE LAST TIME
WE'VE DONE THIS REFUNDING WAS NOW FOR FIVE WEEKS OR YEARS AGO. YEAH. YEAH. AND THEN IN TERMS OF THE TIMING
LIKE SO YOU KNOW EVERYBODY'S LOOKING AT THEIR 41K AND LOOKING AT THE CRAZINESS. AND IF YOU HAVE SOME MONEY IN BONDS IT'S A LITTLE MORE
REASSURING THAN HAVING TO GO ON THE MARKET IN TERMS OF WHAT IS WHEN YOU JUST SEE HOW THE MARKET IS OPERATING AND FIGURE OUT WHAT RE ADVISED BY THE THE THE FOLKS THAT DO THIS ALL THE
TIME WHAT'S THE BEST THE BEST MOMENT TO SORT OF HIT THE SWITCH SO TO SPEAK. THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT. AND AS A TRIPLE-A RATED MUNICIPALITIES, I MEAN WE ARE A GREAT INVESTMENT.
SO I THINK AS DEREK MENTIONED PREVIOUSLY IN THIS MOMENT IT MIGHT BE REALLY ADVANTAGEOUS FOR US BUT WE'LL SEE SORT OF WHAT THE CONDITIONS ARE WHEN WE GO TO MARKET.
OKAY. WELL OF YOU MAY GET YOUR HEADS AROUND ALL THIS STUFF. THANK YOU. I DON'T HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS. MANY OF MY QUESTIONS ALREADY ASKED BY MY COLLEAGUES. SO THANK YOU, MR CHAIR.
THANK YOU BOTH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, COUNSELOR. THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES COUNSELOR DURKIN. COUNCILOR YOU HAVE THE FLOOR.
THANK YOU SO MUCH HEARING MY COLLEAGUE'S QUESTIONS, I THINK THAT MOST OF MINE ARE ANSWERED BUT IF I HAVE ANY ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS, I'LL REACH OUT TO YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU.
THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES COUNSELOR PEPEN CASTLE, YOU HAVE THE FLOOR. THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. AND THANK YOU TO THE PANELISTS FOR PRESENTING TODAY.
I'M IN A SIMILAR ROLE WITH COUNSELOR DURKIN AND I. MY ANSWER YOUR WELCOME COUNSELOR BRADEN'S MY QUESTION COUNCILOR BRADEN'S QUESTIONS BUT I DON'T HAVE ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS FOR THIS.
MR CHAIR THANK YOU. THANK YOU, COUNSELOR. A FEW MORE QUESTIONS THAT I HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS FOR THE PANEL.
HAVE WE RECEIVED THE LATEST UPDATE IN OUR BOND RATING FOR THIS YEAR AND DO WE ANTICIPATE ANY CHANGE TO OUR TRIPLE-A BOND RATING? I THINK PART OF THAT IS BECAUSE
OF THE FEDERAL FUNDING AND THEN AN THREAT THAT HAD BEEN TARGETED IN BOSTON THAT ARE ATTACKING, YOU KNOW, OUR HEALTH CARE OR HIGHER EDUCATION SECTORS. UM, ANY ANY IDEA THAT WILL BE
IMPACTED AND HAVE WE RECEIVED ANY UPDATE ON OUR TRIPLE-A BOND RATING. SO WE WILL BE MEETING WITH RATING AGENCIES PROBABLY AROUND THE END OF THIS MONTH IN
ADVANCE OF OUR GENERAL OBLIGATIONS. SALE SO WE EXPECT TO HAVE AN UPDATE ON OUR RATING SOMETIME IN MAY NEXT MONTH. I THINK AT THIS POINT THERE IS
NOTHING FUNDAMENTAL THAT HAS CHANGED ABOUT THE CITY'S FINANCES THAT WOULD LEAD US TO BELIEVE THAT WE WOULD EXPECT A CHANGE IN OUR RATING. WE JUST DID A VERY EXTENSIVE UPDATE TO THE CITY'S INFORMATION STATEMENT WHICH IS
OUR CONTINUING DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENT AND IN WHICH WE SORT OF OUTLINE EVERYTHING YOU WOULD WANT TO KNOW ABOUT THE CITY'S FINANCES AND TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE FEDERAL
FUNDING ENVIRONMENT AND WHETHER OR NOT THAT'S MATERIAL TO OUR ABILITY TO PAY BACK OUR BONDS OR NOT. SO LUCKILY I THINK WE ARE CONTINUE TO BE IN A REALLY
STRONG POSITION FINANCIALLY AS A CITY AND SO WE ARE NOT ANTICIPATING ANY CHANGE AT THIS TIME AND HAVE WE EVER
REFINANCED THIS MUCH AT ONCE AND WHAT ARE THE PROS AND CONS
SO LET'S SEE LOOKING BACK AT SOME PRIOR FUNDINGS WE HAVE IN
MARCH LET'S SEE MARCH 2015 REFUNDED 134 MILLION SO IT LOOKS LIKE THIS MIGHT BE THE LARGEST ALL AT ONCE CIRCA NOT
IF I'M SAYING THINGS THAT ARE CORRECT. YEAH I MEAN WE CAN WE CAN BACK IN HISTORY AND LOOK I THINK THAT ONE OF THE THINGS DRIVING THIS IS THE INTEREST RATES SO
IT WOULD HAVE THE MARKET WOULD HAVE TO BE CONDUCIVE ENOUGH FOR WHEN WE ORIGINALLY ISSUED DEBT IT'D BE HIGHER THAN AT THE POINT OF REFINANCING SO BUT I
WOULD GUESS THIS IS PROBABLY THE LARGEST IN ONE SETTING BUT WE CAN DOUBLE CHECK SOME OF THE KEY FURTHER EXPLAIN A 3% NET
PRESENT VALUE OF SAVINGS DOES MEAN YOU'LL SAVE 3% OF THE 350 MILLION SO IT'S AT LEAST AROUND
LIKE 10.5 MILLION IN SAVINGS IN PRESENT DAY VALUE GO FOR IT AND SO EVERY IT GETS A LITTLE BIT
COMPLICATED BECAUSE WHEN WE LOOK AT ALL THE DIFFERENT ISSUANCES THAT HAVE ELIGIBLE DEBT THAT WE CAN REFINANCE, WE KIND OF PIECE IT TOGETHER AND THEN TAKE THAT CHUNK AND ADD IT UP AND SEE WHAT THE TOTAL
SAVINGS IS. SO WE DO HAVE FROM OUR FINANCIAL ADVISORS AS OF I THINK THIRD WEEK IN MARCH ABOUT
10 MILLION AND POTENTIAL PV SAVINGS PRESENT VALUE SAVINGS ON THE 350 MILLION PLUS A RE FUNDINGS AND THAT'S OF THE
ELIGIBLE SERIES THAT WE CAN DO RE FUNDINGS FOR BUT THAT THAT NUMBER IS LIKELY TO CHANGE DEPENDING ON MARKET CONDITIONS RIGHT NOW IT MAKES SENSE.
AND THEN CAN YOU EXPLAIN A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THE RFP? WHAT ATTRIBUTE WERE YOU LOOKING FOR IN A BANK?
YEAH, SO WE DO CHECKING ACCOUNT SERVICES CERTAINLY WE CALL OUR BOX THE PORTALS THAT WE USE TO TO TRANSFER MONEY IN AND OUT
OF ACCOUNTS ACA TO ATTRACT DEPOSITS ALL OF OUR AND OUR REVENUE THAT WE RECEIVE WE LIKE TIMELY RECORDED REVENUE IN OUR
BANKS SO WE HAVE TO BE HAVE A REALLY CLOSE RELATIONSHIP WITH HOW THE BANK MATCHES THEIR DOES THEIR BATCH UPLOADS OF OUR REVENUE.
WE HAVE CASH SERVICES, WE HAVE FRAUD RIGHT? WE CARE A LOT ABOUT FRAUD AND WE WANT TO KNOW WHAT TYPES OF SERVICES BANKS OFFER CAN
OFFER US TO HELP US PROTECT ALL OF OUR BALANCES. WE HAVE A FEW OTHER THINGS LIKE
WHEN WE PAY BILLS OBVIOUSLY LIKE THE VAST MAJORITY OF THEM GO OUT THROUGH LIKE A DIRECT DEPOSIT OR AN AC AGE BUT STILL FOLKS DO LIKE CHECKS. OFTENTIMES WE HAVE TO CANCEL
THOSE CHECKS SO THEY HAVE TO BE ABLE TO HELP US DO THAT. SO IT'S KIND OF LIKE A GLOBAL VERSION OF LIKE OUR PRIVATE CHECKING ACCOUNTS. IT'S JUST A LOT MORE SERVICES
ARE NEEDED BECAUSE OF THE VOLUME OF TRANSACTIONS AND WE DO WE DO PRODUCE QUITE A BIT OF VOLUME. WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, AN ESTIMATED
50 TO $100 MILLION IN OUTGOING VENDOR PAYMENTS A WEEK PAYROLL. SO IT'S JUST A LOT OF VOLUME AND BOTH WHILE CITIZENS HAS DOES THE PRIMARY PART OF THAT
SERVICE FOR US AND THEY'VE BEEN DOING IT FOR A FEW YEARS AND THEY KNOW US WELL AND THEY'VE BEEN BOTH JPMORGAN AND CITIZENS HAVE GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE AND
ANYTHING WE NEED THEY PICK UP THE PHONE AND ANSWER RIGHT AWAY. SO THEY'VE BEEN GREAT GREAT BEING PARTNERS. AWESOME. AND THEN MY LAST QUESTION IS IS
THERE ANY COMMUNICATION THAT WILL BE GIVEN BACK TO THE COUNCIL ON ONCE WE DO REFINANCE SO THAT YOU KNOW, THE
COUNCIL WAS MADE AWARE OF YOU KNOW, IF WE DO AND AT WHAT RATE AND THEN THE SAVINGS I'M I'M NOT SURE IF THERE'S ANY OFFICIAL COMMUNICATION BUT WE'D
BE VERY HAPPY TO REPORT BACK TO YOU ALL ON THE RESULTS OF THAT PROCESS AND GIVE YOU AN UPDATE ON THE AMOUNT HOW MUCH WE ACTUALLY AND THE ESTIMATED
SAVINGS THAT'LL BE GREAT. I THINK THAT WOULD BE USEFUL INFORMATION. THEY ME IS GOING TO SEE IF ANY OF MY COUNCIL COLLEAGUES HAS. ALL RIGHT COUNCILMEMBER THE
FLOOR IS YOURS. SORRY COUNCIL MEMBER IF YOU DO HAVE SECOND ROUND OF QUESTIONS PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND. THANKS. YEAH, THANKS. THANKS CHAIR SO JUST A COUPLE
JUST QUICK THINGS. ONE IS HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE DO YOU THINK TO REFINANCE OR AND
MAYBE AT THE SAME TIME YOU KNOW, WHAT'S THE MECHANISM? WHERE'S THE YOU KNOW, I ASSUME WE HAVE TO COME UP WITH $350 MILLION. IT'S WHERE IS IT COMING FROM AND THEN IT'S GOING IS THIS ALL
HAPPEN AT ONCE OR DO WE DO WE PAY OFF THAT AND THEN START THAT WE HAVE TO DO THAT FIRST TO START THE REFINANCING PROCESS AND THEN HOW LONG WILL
THAT TAKE AND THAT'S ERIKA DO YOU WANT TO GIVE THE 121 OVERVIEW? YEAH, SURE. SO I THINK MAYBE HOLISTICALLY NANCY, IS YOUR QUESTION THE
REFUNDING WILL HAPPEN AT IS AT THE SAME TIME AS OUR GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND IT'LL JUST BE KIND OF TACKED ON AS A SECOND SERIES OF THAT ISSUANCE SO WHAT
THAT SERIES DOES IS IT PAYS OFF THE OLDER, MORE EXPENSIVE DEBT AND AT THAT POINT IN TIME IS WHEN THE REFINANCING STARTS. OKAY.
YEAH. AND THEN HOW LONG DOES THAT TAKE DO YOU THINK SO FINANCING IT I UNDERSTAND YOUR QUESTION
CORRECTLY SO WHEN WE LET THE MARKET KNOW FOR EXAMPLE THAT WE'RE GOING TO DO THIS, WE KIND OF LET THEM KNOW A FEW WEEKS IN ADVANCE AND THEN WHEN WE SELL IT WE SELL ON A PARTICULAR DAY
AND IT TAKES ABOUT 24 HOURS TO CLOSE THAT DEAL. OKAY. SO YOU'RE THINKING LIKE MAYBE THERE'LL BE 24 HOURS BETWEEN
WHEN WE I GUESS PAY OFF THE DEBT AND THEN YOU BASICALLY THEN GET THE MONEY IN THE BOND AND THEN JUST START UP THE THE
PROCESS AGAIN OF PAYING OFF OUR YOU KNOW, MAKING OUR BOND PAYMENTS. YOU'LL GET AN IDEA. SORRY I HAD NO IDEA IF THAT WAS GOING TO TAKE MONTHS 24 HOURS. YOU KNOW, SO 24 HOURS.
SO YEAH, WHATEVER MONEY WE TAKE IN FROM THE NEW SERIES WILL GO TO PAY OFF THE OLD DEBT AND JUST THE LAST THING YOU WOULD JUST AT THE BEGINNING OF THAT WHERE DOES THE MONEY COME FROM
FOR THE 350 TO TO PAY OFF THAT DEBT WHICH WAS THEN IS IT SO WE ISSUE THE BONDS TO INVESTORS
THEY GIVE US THE MONEY WE USE THAT TO PAY OFF THE DEBT OUTSTANDING. OKAY. OKAY. OKAY. SO IT'S NOT COMING OUT OF LIKE FREE CASH OR WHATEVER, YOU KNOW? NO.
OKAY. SO IT'S COMING OUT OF THE BOND. OKAY, GREAT. I THINK I YEAH, YEAH. THE PROCEEDS FROM THAT SALE GO
TO BUY BACK AND REFUNDS THAT YOU MAY HAVE SAID THIS IS THE BEGINNING. I JUST MISSED THE FIRST MINUTE OR SO. HOW MUCH ARE WE SEEKING THIS THE SEED IN THIS GENERAL BOND
YEAH SO OUR WE ANTICIPATE THE FUNDING WILL BE AROUND 350 MILLION WE HAVE 200 MILLION OF EXISTING AUTHORIZATION. THE CITY COUNCIL HAS ALREADY
GIVEN US BUT AS DEREK MENTIONED THERE'S ABOUT 360 MILLION OR SO OF CALLABLE DEBT THAT WOULD BE ELIGIBLE FOR RE FUNDING AND SO WE NEED THAT EXTRA ROOM TO BE
ABLE TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF EVERYTHING SHOULD THE MARKET CONDITIONS WARRANT IT. SO SO WHAT'S THE NUMBER THAT WE'RE SEEKING IN THE IN THE BOND ISSUANCE THIS THIS YEAR?
SO WE WILL WE WILL ISSUE SOME AMOUNT OF GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS. I THINK WE'RE STILL KIND OF WORKING OUT WHAT THAT NUMBER IS GOING TO BE AND THEN WE WILL
HAVE A SEPARATE SERIES THAT WILL JUST BE FOR THE REFUNDING THAT WILL BE LIKE JARED SAID MAYBE AROUND 350 MILLION. OKAY, OKAY. OKAY. THANK YOU.
I APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU CHAIR THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER COUNCIL DWAYNE QUESTIONS? ALL RIGHT.
SO YOU KNOW HANS JUST WANT TO THANK THE CFO AND THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR FIRST ASSISTANT COLLECTOR TREASURER FIRST
ASSISTANT OUR FIRST ASSISTANT FOR BEING FISCAL RESPONSIBLE AND THIS IS WHY WE HAVE A TRIPLE-A BOND RATING BECAUSE OF THESE THESE ACTIONS.
SO THANK YOU GUYS. I APPRECIATE ALL YOUR EFFORT. I MEAN LOOK FORWARD TO ACTUALLY SEEING YOU AGAIN AT BUDGET HEARING. WE'RE GOING TO BE SEEING A LOT OF EACH OTHER. THANK YOU. THANK YOU.
AND THIS THIS HEARING ON TAXES IS NUMBER 059007240725 IS
ADJOURNED THANK YOU FOR