Good evening and welcome to the city council meeting. Before Mayor Prom Flores calls the meeting to order, we ask that you please be seated and silence all electronic devices. City council meetings are conducted for the official business of city council and to
receive input from residents. Members of the public attending meetings shall observe rules of decorum and shall not engage in conduct conduct that interferes with the ability of those present to observe or to participate in a meeting without disruption or fear of
intimidation. An individual engaging in disruptive conduct may be removed from the chamber and could be arrested for disruption of a meeting. Speakers who engage in disruptive conduct could have their their mic muted and be removed from the
chamber and arrested for disruption of a meeting. Disruptive conduct includes yelling, screaming, clapping, and other noisecreating acts. For those of you who are requested to speak, when your name is called, please come forward to the center podium. The countdown clock is
displayed on the left monitor and will indicate how much time is remaining. A bell will sound when you have 30 seconds remaining. Before you begin your comments, please state your name. And thank you. >> Thank you, Janette. And welcome everyone
to our Tuesday, March 10th city council meeting. I'll call the meeting to order. >> Tonight's invitation will be given by Father Sergio Diaz from Inglacia, San Miguel. Please rise for the invocation and remain standing for the pledges of
allegiance which will be led by the Girl Scouts of Texas Oklahoma Plains. Let us pray. God of wisdom and justice and service today we gather with gratitude for the opportunity to serve the community of
forward. We recognize our responsibility just to this city council and to all leaders who work for the being well of our city. We ask that you grant discernment to the members of the
forward city council to our mayor and to all public officials and employees participating in this meeting. May day deliverance to guidance by integrity, mutual respect, and sincere
commitment to the common good. Help us to listen carefully to the voices of our residents to fairly consider the needs of every neighborhood and to make decisions that promote the safety, prosperity, and dignity of all who call
for war home. Bless this time of public service and the work carried out for the good of our city. Amen. >> Amen. Before we say our pledge of allegiance, I'm going to call on the Girl Scouts of Oklahoma and Texas Plains
to come up to the podium and lead us in that pledge of allegiance, please. Pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation
under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Honor flag. I aliance to the Texas. One state under God, one and indivisible. >> Thank you very much.
All right, we have some special presentations uh that we're going to hear today. Let's see. First up, I believe, is Council Member Martinez. She's going to give a presentation of recognition to the Girl Scouts of Texas Oklahoma.
Good afternoon everyone. So, I'm super excited to be here today. As you can see, today's all about the Girl Scouts. And so, we're celebrating Girl Scout Week. For those who may not know, we celebrate this week every year on March 12th uh to mark the anniversary of the very first troop meeting in 1912. Uh
that makes the Girl Scouts 114 years old this year. That is over a century of providing uh sorry that is over a century of providing exceptional service and Girl Scout confidence to cultivate the
leadership skills that truly make the world a better place. So behind every Girl Scout and volunteer uh there is a dedicated team member leader and staff members that are ready to help them earn the next badge, embark on a camping
adventure or organizing an impactful service project. Now this is a surprise. I would like to turn the spotlight onto Becky Burton. As we all know, an organization is only as strong as the people who breathe life into its mission. While we told Becky we were
here today for a general recognition of Girl Scouts Week, that was only a small small part of the truth. The real reason we are gathered here is to recognize the woman who has been the heartbeat of this organization for 40 incredible years.
Becky, you have spent four decades making sure the Girl Scout way isn't just a phrase in a handbook, but a lived reality for thousands of young women. You have taught us all that leadership isn't about a title, it's about service. So, if you'd like to join me at the
podium, please. I have the distinct honor to present Mrs. Becky Burton with the special recognition to honor her lifetime achievement uh with the and service to the Girl Scouts. [applause]
So, I will now read this. uh the city of Port Worth special recognition presented to Becky Burton in recognition of 40 years of service. Whereas since its founding by Juliet Gordon Low in 1912, the Girl Scout movement has empowered generations of girls to discovering
their strengths, build confidence, and become leaders in their communities. And whereas Becky Burton has devoted 40 years of service to the mission of Girl Scouting, demonstrating visionary leadership, steadfast commitment, and an unwavering belief in the potential of every girl to lead with courage,
confidence, and character. And whereas during her distinguished tenure as chief executive officer of Girl Scouts of Texas Oklahoma Plains, she guided the organization through transformational growth, expanded access to leadership programming, champion outdoor and STEM experiences, and built strong
partnerships across North Texas and beyond. And whereas her leadership has empowered thousands of girls to discover their strengths, serve their communities, and become the leaders, innovators, and public servants of tomorrow, creating a legacy whose impact will be felt for decades. And whereas
Becky's influence extends far beyond organizational success, reflecting a lifelong commitment to mentorship, volunteerism, and the betterment of the Fort Worth community, embodying the very spirit of service that defines this city. Now therefore, we the city of Fort Worth congratulate Becky on her
well-deserved retirement and proudly join her colleagues, volunteers, alumni, and community partners in expressing deep gratitude for her four decades of visionary leadership and service. [applause] Do you want to say a few words?
You know, this is this is just means so much to me and I really appreciate it. Thank you, Janette. This I'm speechless and I know I've got to pull myself together, but I'm I'm a crier and everyone knows that. So, now you all know that, too. But this has been a
tremendous career and it it's not been a job. It it's it's just it's my passion and I've been a Girl Scout all my life and absolutely love what I do. And as I telling people now, it is time for me to go and play. I've worked hard and I'm
going to go play now. So, but thank you all so much. This means the world to me and I love Fort Worth and Girl Scouts and thank you. I really appreciate it. [applause] >> So, we'd like to take a picture with any Girl Scouts that are out here. You know, the Girl Scouts themselves, board
members, lifetime Girl Scouts. Anybody born? I think you're here. You're still here. Dana, board member. Yes. [laughter] So, See everyone's faces. >> All right, guys. Congratulations,
Becky. Well deserved. All right, next up and uh Council Member Martinez, stay up there. I'll join you here shortly. We're going to recognize 30 years of the League of United Latin American Citizens, LUAC Council number 4568. Okay.
Thank you, Mayor Prom. I'd like to invite Albert Goa and all the members of LUAC Council 4568 to join us at the podium. For 30 years, the League of United Latin American Citizens or LUAC Council 4568
stands as a dedicated advocate for the Hispanic Community of Fort Worth. As part of the oldest and largest Hispanic organization in the United States, which just celebrated its 97th anniversary, Council 4568 is more than just our local
LULAC chapter. It's an engine for social progress, educational support, community health, and economic empowerment where they are opening doors through their scholarship fund, fostering literacy at Fiesta de Libros, or providing for families through the Tree of Hope
holiday drive, Council 4568, is also a true leader in supporting our Latino youth. To celebrate this milestone and their steadfast commitment to the Latino residents of Fort Worth, we have the privilege uh to present LULAC Council 4568 with a special recognition that
Mayor Prom Flores will read into the record. >> Thank you, Sio Martinez. And I will read special recognition. Whereas the League of United Latin American Citizens, founded in 1929, has been and continues to be a steadfast advocate for
advancement, equity, empowerment of the Latino community across the United States and beyond. And whereas local Amigos Lua Council 4568 established in 1995 has exemplified leadership and many uh in unity for 30 years by working
tirelessly to promote educational opportunities, protect civil rights, foster civic engagement, and mentor our future leaders. And whereas through the decades of dedication, the members of this chapter have uplifted countless individuals and families, strengthened community bonds, inspired future
generations to lead with integrity, and celebrated our rich Latino culture. And whereas the 30th anniversary of the Amigos Luac Council 4568 is a milestone that reflects the chapter's enduring commitment to the collective achievements of its members, partners, and supporters. Now therefore, we, Mayor
Pro Tim, myself, and Councilwoman Janette Martinez do hereby recognize congratulate Amigos Luac Council 4568 on their 30th anniversary in celebration of this chapter's outstanding contribution to our Latino community and its legacy of service, leadership, and advocacy.
[applause] If you'd like to say anything, go ahead. I would just like to thank uh Councilwoman Janette Martinez and Mayor Prom Carlos Flores for this recognition. As uh you may know uh our work very
often goes unnoticed and in many ways that's that's a good thing because we're not looking for recognition. It's nice to have the recognition, but but the work is our recognition. And uh I'm just really happy that most of these people
that you see behind me work every year tirelessly to make sure that our programs function along with the people that donate generously. So, uh I again I want to thank everyone uh here for their support. And I especially want to single
out my wife. She's been here since day one. So, and uh I'll mention him and coach Ramos I think came in on our second year of being established and uh also family that uh without their help we could not uh continue our work either and we hope
that they'll take our work into the future even even when some of us may be not may not be here anymore they'll continue our work. Uh, one last thing, one of our fa we have several programs, but one of our favorite programs is the annual tree of hope dearansa program.
And every year we have Pancho Claus, which is Santa Claus's nephew that comes out to visit the children. Our programs at North Side. Uh, Poncho Claus is coming in a firetruck. He's coming in low rider. So, you never know how Pan Claus is going to arrive. But one thing
that you do know, he's going to be here for all the children. And we even have a book now that Angel Claus's backstory. So again, thank you everyone. [applause] Next will be items to be continued or withdrawn.
>> So we've got we have uh four items to be continued. The first is ZC25-185 to April 28th. Next is ZC-25004 to May 12th.
And then ZC2184 to delayed till June 9th and ZC25-205 also to June 9th. All these are being uh delayed at the request of the applicants.
>> Okay. If there are no questions on that, I ask for a motion to approve the consent agenda. >> Mayor, we have one. >> Oh, we do. >> One consent >> speaker. >> Okay. >> Adrien. >> Adrien Smith. >> Adrienne Smith. I am one with the people. Um, the mayor and council
communication I'm speaking on tonight is a is 26-01 057 and it is recom it's a recommendation
for execution of a uh contract for artwork totaling 191,896 191,896 6 uh dollars for fabrication, delivery, installation, and contingencies for
artwork at the S Cindera Springs Library located at 1297 Aenddale Hazard Road, Fort Worth, Texas, 76052. I stand in favor of this because um for one, it's it's in support of the arts
and we know that this city has been failing when it comes to support of local arts. So for the individual due to receive this contract, congratulations to you.
Although when I looked at the map, I didn't see the library. So, I'm assuming this library is due to come online because I didn't I just saw empty space. I was looking for a library when I did the Google search. However, again, we are in support of the arts.
But let's be mindful not to forget about the Fort Worth Communities Arts Center who was which is still waiting for its funding or answers as to which direction this city is going to go with it. considering that
failures happened not nothing towards the managers who who were managing that facility but I think it was deliberately done the failures were done deliberately so this particular property can go down so that another developer can come in and develop on it so hopefully we can
get some funding or some type of answers for the uh regarding the for community's art center it's been um what two three years now and it's been tabled. You all had a commission that was established to
a uh answer questions to look at different options etc etc. A former council member he was the head of that Mr. Firestone. He's no longer the council member. He was the head of that particular commission which I felt was
in direct conflict and I felt like they deliberately allow this that that the forward communities art center to go under. So hopefully you all are really considering the forward communities arts center as you all continue to devy out
devy out dollars towards arts. Thank you. Okay. All right. Now you can start voting, please. Right. Motion passes. Next will be upcoming and recent events,
recognition of citizens, and approval of ceremonial travel if needed. All >> right. First up, we have uh council member Larsdorf Charlie. >> Thank you, Mayor Pro Tim. We just have two upcoming events. Uh first one is April 25th from 11:00 to 2 at North Park
YMCA. We're going to be having a resource fair. It'll be our second one. Uh so we're going to have all of our city offices out there as well as some uh fun to do things out there to bring your families out. It's a free event uh with the exception of the food truck, but bring your family out. It's sure to be a good time. Next slide.
And a uh big congratulations to Parkland Neighborhood Association for taking home three awards and then being a first runner up and two others. So uh they're showing what communities can do whenever they come together and all work together and not just beautifying their community but making it a safer place to live. Um,
so congratulations to Parkland. And that is it. >> Great. Thank you, Charlie. Next up, we have Dr. Mia Hall. >> Now, >> thank you, Mayor Person. All right. to begin. Um it's been a busy
I would say 30 days since my last update. Um next slide, sorry. Um we started off February 14th, Valentine's Day with the annual sneaker ball. Um I'm so happy to have been joined by my other colleagues or joining them. Um there's a photo there of that was my last my
husband's last harra for his uh shoulder replacement. Now he has an excuse not to go to any nighttime events or weekend events right now. but also um our library board um appointee was there and so it was great to fellowship with so much of Fort Worth community for a great
cause. Next slide. Uh Crowley ISD hosted their annual Black History Bowl. Um and I see a typo there. February. Um their annual Black History Ball. It's a great opportunity for students to learn uh key historic facts about African-American contributions
here in this country, in this nation. Um they did an outstanding job this year with student performances um just the lineup in itself and they included every age group down to the little prek students uh to do to pull off this um
epic event. So uh that's pictured there is trustee um trustee CC Watkins. So it was great again to attend that have an affinity for Kley as you know. Um the youth mental health conference was held at the KOMO community center on February
21st, 2026. Um I was unable to attend but we did have representation from the D6 office with Andrea West. Um hats off to them um for having a great event. Mental health of course um impacts our youth uh disproportionately and so it
was great uh to have to see them um host this event uh to support our youth. Next slide. Um on February 21st, keeping the ball going, we had the Fort Worth uh Links Incorporated Boots and Bling event. It also is a fundraiser that
supports education. They raise uh money for STEM and support STEM in our schools. Um had a great time there. are of course joined by my colleagues um and appreciative of the invitation from Leah King who's a a lynx. Next slide.
Charlton State University which I consider to be the official university of district 6. Um they're uh featured with uh Rachel Capua. Um I was able to uh join them for their forward summit in which we were doing um some strategic
planning on um what the next steps will be for Charlton. It is growing. the campus is growing, D6 is growing and so it was great to be a part of so um joining hands with others who are interested in visioning and uh deciding
what the the impact of education is going to look like higher ed in our Fort Worth community. Next slide. Later that evening, same location at the Omni just went across the hall and we hosted the Fort Worth ISD ACE premiere. This is
actually my daytime job and so I'm had the uh honor of hosting this event. I wanted to thank my colleague Michael Crane who graciously made a donation to support uh our DJ efforts because in case you did not know, you cannot use school money to pay for DJ. And so
Michael Crane stepped in and took care of that for us. So we had more than 300 people attend that event. We're trying to attract uh high performing educators to uh help our students uh achieve um their fullest potential. So if you know this is my commercial now if you know of
a educator a teacher looking for an opportunity to serve and make a difference for ISTD is certainly um a destination uh location for them. Next slide. Unit United Way of Taran County in which I have the pleasure of serving on the executive board hosted their first gala in quite some time I think
since I've been on the board. Um it was a great night. We had a great keynote speaker. Um learned a lot that night and uh again a great place to hear about the visioning for Fort Worth. Um we had Rachel Capua there. We had uh the head
administrator from the law school there. So great things are coming in Tarant County and the United Way is joining hands with not only our educators and our and other um providers in our community, but great things are happening at United Way in Taran County.
On March 5th, got to [sighs] join the Girls Inc. Celebration Breakfast. I don't think I've missed one of those before. Um on March 5th, um so many great uh leaders recognized. Regina Williams was recognized. Uh our own very own uh Honorable Betsy Price was
recognized. um as well. Um another great event. If you don't know about Girls, Inc. of Tarant County and their mission, I encourage you to get involved. Next slide. And this was my very first uh Visit Fort Worth annual meeting. I was I I always
asked the question, should I go to this because we go to so many different events and the schedule's always so tight and I was told we do not miss this for any for any reason. So had an opportunity to say goodbye to the convention center as we know it. Um and
uh it it was a great place to be. It was so much history for this history teacher. It was just great to see where we've been, where where we've come from, and where we're going. Next slide. Um on this Saturday, we visited we uh I had a chance to attend
the mayor's uh neighborhood awards. And so I want to congratulate Rainbow Ridge Homeowners Association in District 6 for receiving two awards this year. They were recognized as the safety first award and the community collaboration and engagement award. Um our very own
Andrea West uh serves as the VP and all of the things that she has to do. She's the vice president of the HOA and Derkica Parison serves as president. They've done a great job and Rainbow Ridge uh just building collaboration amongst their young neighborhood. And so congratulations to them on this honor
and we look forward to the awards that you'll win again next year. And then of course I want to I mean I feel like this is a drum roll and maybe confetti should fall from the ceiling. The Lake Ko community uh neighborhood advisory council won neighborhood of the year for
the third, I repeat, third year in a row. So, um if you were there, KOMO won a number of different um recognitions on that day for all of the community involvement that they have, all of the resources that they provide for their community, opportunities for their
youth, the elderly, and everyone in between. And so, um congratulations to the late KOak again on your win. Um and I hope that you can take it home at U Nusa this year. Um, and this weekend, this Friday,
actually, on March 13th, Friday the 13th from 10 a.m. to 4 pm, we will have office hours. We have mobile office hours every month. They'll be at the Chisum Trail Community Center. I encourage uh District 6 neighbors and residents to come out um meet our uh
team and let us know how things are going and how we can uh stand in the gap. And next slide. For those of you who share in my excitement, next week is spring break. It's like a holiday for educators. So, happy spring break, District 6. That's all.
>> Thanks, Mia. Next up, we have Chris Nettles. Council member Nettles. >> Thank you. I'll be brief. Uh, the first slide talks about our opportunity to represent the city of Fort Worth at TUCA, uh, Mexico City. Um, I'm a council
member, Elizabeth Beck. We'll talk more about that, but great opportunity to talk all things economic development. Next slide. New Mitchell Boulevard neighborhood block party. It's going to be Saturday, March the 14th from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Please uh hit the QR
code and come out and enjoy. Next slide, please. Easter uh event is Saturday, March the 21st from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. It's going to be at the Tatiana Carr Jefferson at Hillside Community Center.
Next slide is going to be our annual cleanup day at annual Glenwood Park Spring Cleanup, which is S Saturday, April the 11 from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Come out and be a part of the cleanup. And tonight,
North Crowley will be uh facing I think it is Duncanville uh for the game before the state championship. So, if you haven't got your tickets, it's sold out. You maybe can look online for that. But we're going to be rooting on our forward team to take it to state to the state title.
Those are all of my announcements. Thank you. >> Go Crowley. Thanks, Chris. Next up, we have Council Member Beck. >> Uh, great. Uh, first of all, happy Women's History Month, everybody. Uh, next slide. So, it's been busy in District 9. Um, had the opportunity to speak to the West 7th Neighborhood
Association during their spring meeting. Um, and it's always good to be with that group of folks. Next slide. Uh, as you can see, we all cleaned up pretty nice for the um black uh Metropolitan Black Chamber Sneaker Ball. Um, not all of us
council members are um shown in that photograph. We took a vote several months ago that was quite uh controversial and um in that vote, we said that we were going to continue to support the Hispanic and the black
chambers here in the city of Fort Worth. So, my challenge to all the members on council next year is to make sure that we're doing everything we can to support those chambers in light of taking away of our um WMBBE programs because this is really how we keep it alive. Next slide.
Um, the monks who you may have seen uh make national news started right here in the city of Fort Worth and I was pleased to be there with um uh family and friends and also colleagues like Councilwoman Deborah Peebles to welcome them back to Fort Worth. Um I also want
to thank the Fort Worth Police Department for making sure that of all of the badges that they had on their um garments that they had one of ours from home. So thank you for that. Next slide. Uh long time in the making. We attended the Tobias Place grand opening with my
colleague Janette Martinez. It was a great day for the Southside and a great day for affordable housing here in the city of Fort Worth. You have 288 units of the most deeply affordable um units in the city of Fort Worth about a mile away from the central business
district. So that's a big win for our community. Next slide. As uh you heard from council member Nettles, we did attend the sister cities trip to Tuca, Mexico. So, it was really great. Um, this particular sister cities trip focused on the economic bonds between our two cities and you think, well, what
do we have um to tie us together? But, uh, we have a pasta factory. So, TUCA and Fort Worth share in the same company. Um, and so if you have had pasta from HV or Kroger or Tom Thumb, um, you have had pasta from La Maderna.
Um, so it was really great to go with the Hispanic Chamber and um, not just do the dignitary exchange but be part of um, um, some economic development work as well. Next slide. Um, had a really great opportunity to visit district 5
um, and speak to a group of students uh, Dumbar High School students about my legal profession. They didn't have any questions about my legal profession, but I do anticipate that you will see several of them up here on this dis soon enough because they were very interested
in how the city worked. Next slide. Um, this last week had the opportunity to attend the Westside Village groundbreaking. This is a $1.7 billion investment in the city of Fort Worth. Notably, this is the um largest
construction of a single user office space um in the last 40 years in the city of Fort Worth. So, we're making big investments here in District 9. Next slide. Speaking of District 9, there's another District 9 here in Texas. And for the first time in a while, the city
of Fort Worth now can um claim that we have our very own state rep once again. Um so had the opportunity to welcome uh ta new newly elected senator state senator Taylor Reett to um his new district office that is located just off
of Jennings in the near southside. Okay, next slide for upcoming events. We've got a lot. So Fort Worth ISD spring break is March 16th to the 20th and for educators it's a lot of fun but for those of us um that answer the phone call for spring break traffic not so
much. Um, please remember that, um, be alert of the traffic in and around the zoo during the week of spring break. If you can, avoid it. Um, and if you really want to go, purchase your tickets ahead of time. Um, and I would highly
recommend taking Trinity Metro to avoid the madness. Next slide. We have a meeting coming up Thursday, March 2nd, the virtual WebEx on the near southside street improvement uh, program for those of you interested. Next slide. Same
evening, March 12th, from 5:30 to 7 uh p.m. at the Fororth Convention Center Ballroom on the third floor, we will be having our town hall for phase two of the convention center. If you have questions or concerns, now is your time to to come and speak. So, I hope to see
you there. Next slide. Uh, last but not least, we have the Fort Worth PD Central Division Safety Fair April 11th from 9:30 to 12:30 at the Montgomery Plaza Target. um come by, pick up some Chick-fil-A and visit our safety fair. Thank you.
>> Thank you, Elizabeth. Next up, we have Council Member Martinez. >> Thank you, Mayor Pro Tim. So, uh District 11 has two upcoming events. On March 26th, we will be hosting a town hall meeting at the historic stage coach Ballroom on Bellnap. Uh so, residents
are invited to speak directly with city departments and get updates on updates on what's happening in their community. On April 22nd, we are celebrating Earth Day at Black Coffee. So, we're partnering with environmental services again this year. Uh they're going to bring out the CRUD Cruiser. So, there
will be several uh free services that are going to be provided on site. Paper shredding, disposal of household hazardous waste, electronics recycling. But this year, we're also adding um a partnership with the Drug Enfor enforcement administration to help you
safely dispose of any old prescription drugs. Uh this takeback program helps ensure that potential harmful pharmaceuticals do not end up in the water or in the hands of children. So, please join us. We'll have free coffee and mini konchas for you. Next slide. A
huge congratulations to our very own Rachel Areo. She was recognized, she will be recognized on April 8th as an exceptional woman of influence in the Fort Worth Business Press 2026 great women of Texas class. So, we're very
excited for her, very proud of her. Um, another other uh top honores include Joe Ellard, great woman of Texas. Lily Biggins gets the legacy award and a Dr. Opel Lee Lifetime Achievement Award. Congratulations. Oh, Deborah, I think you're also being
recognized, right, Councilwoman Peoples, as a great woman of Texas. >> Well, congratulations. [laughter] >> That's all I have. >> All right. Thank you, Janette. >> Next will be non-consent speakers, and I believe we have two.
>> Yes. Daniel Heis, I think, is first up. Good evening. My name is Dan Hayes and I wanted to speak on the habitual nuisance ordinance. I just want to say a thank you to Benjamin Samract and the numerous other people who had a role in bringing
this ordinance to the city council for a vote tonight. To anyone who thinks the city doesn't listen to its citizens, I say this ordinance is proof that it does. This ordinance is a direct result of a number of us in East Fort Worth consistently
advocating for a way to hold negligent commercial property owners responsible for their actions. Excuse me. It's an unfortunate reality that places like the Eco Motel, Rockies One and Two, and plenty of other commercial establishments consume a huge amount of
taxpayer funded resources, far more than their fair share. These include police, fire and ENMS, vice and detective units, code compliance, environmental services, development services, legal staff, court officers, and other departments. And
when these first responders and city staff are dealing with these blighted properties, they are not available to other taxpayers in the city. This ordinance will force owners who are essentially just sucking the life out of their properties to pay the price for
their continued negligence. Maybe some will wise up and reinvest in their properties. There's always hope. It gives the city another tool to serve the hardworking people who live near such places so maybe have a little better quality of life. I look forward
to the results it will hopefully achieve. Thank you. >> Thank you, Dan. Our next speaker is Ryan Burgess. He's not speaking. Okay. Thank you, Michael. Okay.
>> Next will be resolution 26-5819. Second. Okay. Let's get the vote started here. >> Just a moment. Janette, do you show Mr. Willoughby is signed up to speak? Just a moment, Bob. We're checking
>> you signed up on public comments. >> That's a that Yes, sir. Mr. Mr. Willoughby, that is a public hearing and you will be called when we get to the public hearing. That >> that that's next, Bob. Just a moment.
Just bear with us. Okay. All right. All right. Now, we may vote on the item, please. Motion passes. >> Next will be item 26-5831.
All right, Michael, I think you have some language to read in on this one. >> Let me turn you on just a moment ago. >> There you are. Your mic's on. >> Can you hear me? Yep. Okay. Move to approve MNC 26-5831 with the following change. Update the date and time of the public hearing to
reflect that it will occur during the city council meeting scheduled to begin at 11:00 a.m. on April 28th, 2026 and revise the date for giving notice accordingly. Okay. Motion is second. Let's start the vote, please.
>> Motion passes. >> Next is 26-5832. >> Have a second. Let's get the vote started. Just a moment. All right. Cast your votes, please. Motion passes.
>> Next is MNC26-0198. >> Mayor Patton, we have one speaker. >> One speaker. All right, >> Mr. Willoughby. Now's your queue. and my apologies. I did jump the gun. Okay, it's on there, but Maddiey's bypassed me so many times.
Okay. Oh, it's on the screen, too. Up there. What do you know? Okay. I don't know why y'all put some of these up there and you don't put other ones up there. I don't understand it. That's why I put it on here so that when it's blank over there, the people can actually see what we're talking about. Anyway, you can go ahead and start my time. It's
okay. It's up here mainly. So, you can start my time. Appreciate it. You matter of fact, uh, it's a lot better when Maddy's not here. A lot more relaxed. Okay. This is CCPD funds car. You know, you don't like hearing me talk about this. And I got a big sign back there. I didn't bring it up here. But also, you
y'all never you never answered publicly. Okay. I am working on this with the DA. the a roadblock from getting an audit on the CCP funds, but all CCP funds should be frozen until we have an audit. Now, Carlos, I called you. I got you on film. You ran away. Uh you said, "Let's meet
behind closed doors." All that kind of stuff. You also sent me um to Mr. Keith Morris, which is on here, too. And Keith Morris emailed me and here and it says, well, down below there anyway, what it says, Mr. Morris. What he did, he gave
me the answer to the new rules. Well, we're talking about the old rules. The old rules said they couldn't get over $300,000. Six organizations got more than that. The ISD got $1.4 million. Rodney got $800,000. You know, that's a lot of money we're
giving here. And I grant you, Rodney cannot produce receipts for that money to go. I met with him. He cannot. And if we get an audit, that's what we need. And Phil Sor is stopping from an audit. Texas Rangers will come in and audit this stuff if Bill Sores but Phil Sores a DA says I'm not going to dispute this.
I'm not going to answer. I'm not going to do anything. So I'm at the commissioner's court but Lisa Simmons commissioner to work with this. We'll try to get Phil Sor to do his job. You're not doing yours Carlos. So this [clears throat] but Ke says in here now he gave me that he says let me know if
you have any additional questions. Well I did. I called back Keith. I said Kee this answer is to the new one. See, y'all went ahead and passed it, but didn't get any amount. Now, 300,000 was too much to give these people, but you opened it up to any amount. So, anyway, so Keith, he never answered questions
either. So, it's a lack of not answering questions is an emission, a guilt 100% right there. When you can't come out and be transparent, and this is our money, this CCPD funds is ours. So, and I'm not going to let up on it. It's been almost two years yelling about this. And uh I'm
going to stay with it till we get an answer. And we need an audit. when you if you just give me a one clear audit of Rodney. Let's just see Rodney just one. Okay? Because Rodney cannot show what he did with $800,000. I'll grant you he cannot. And that's our money. >> So you're you're misrepresentating fund.
You're not You know what? You should never This board is not council. I If council removed a a independent board that used to give us money out and they put themsel there and it should be a conflict of interest, too. It should be a conflict. And then you say you're over work and you want more. you want to
raise, you're overworked. Well, take yourself off these boards, Chris >> and put people there you can do >> so you're not overworked. So anyway, the CCP must answer this. Okay, you don't deserve if you can't answer this.
>> Okay. And we're moving to close the public hearing and approve this MNC. Correct. Okay. All right. We have a second and let's start the voting. All right, cast your votes, please. >> Motion passes.
>> Next will be ZC- 25212. Have >> a second. Okay. And a second by Chris Nettles. All right, let's get the voting started. Cast your votes. Motion passes.
>> Next will be ZC-25-208. I am going to move to continue this case until the next zoning meeting to give the applicant the opportunity to reach out to our council office. >> Second
and start voting, please. Motion passes. Next will be ZC-25-210. >> And that's D5. And uh Deborah. >> Okay. A second. And let's get the voting
started. Cast your votes, please. Everyone voted me up. There you go. All right. Motion passes. >> Next will be ZC-25-211. >> All right. D11. Janette, let me get your mic on. Go ahead.
>> We have a couple speakers. >> All right. Next. First up, we have Diego Pinceno. Is he here? It's going to be followed by Daniel Molina. Good evening, council. Um, I'm here to
uh just address some of the things that came up during PNZ and see if I could clear anything anything up and hopefully get a favorable decision here. Um, I know that one of the first things that came up with a problem with our site was
the fact that we were trying to zone this for general commercial restricted in a future land use map showed it as single family residential. I just wanted to call for just understanding the area.
The area that is in question right now is sandwiched between two heavy industrial sites and it's a very difficult piece of land or area to realistically turn it into single single family residential.
Um the heavy industrial sites are auto parts businesses and republic services. This is this is this makes this area a very difficult site to turn into a single family residential and it's also half of the area is in a 100redyear
flood plane. So I'm just trying we're trying to get something moving here. See if we can you know have some sort of development in this area that seems to be like it doesn't get too much attention. The other thing that I wanted to cover was the fact that there was
some historic historic area concerns for this part of land. And if you look at the map, there is no historic area designation for the land in question, which is 5904 Etsy street. And then the
last thing was the fact that we did not have uh at the at PNZ, we did not have neighbor support. We do have plenty of neighbor support now. uh we've brought them today and I just want to clarify again because I know we had some issues
or some concerns about the neighbor to the west um and the noise that a general commercial or uh auto uh auto repair shop would bring. Um just uh just something I wanted to know is that every
single residential uh property around in this area is within 100 ft of a heavy industrial site. um the overall character of this area and land that just part of the neighborhood is sandwiched between heavy industrial sites and I we don't I I would hope that
we could bring some sort of development general commercial that's a lot less u I guess a lot less not I guess a lot less heavy than a heavy industrial site. That's basically
what I came over here to do is just kind of show the character of what's around us, what's the the actual area provides and we're just trying to get something moving and hopefully I could have, you know, addressed some of those concerns today. >> Thank you, Mr. Pino. Next up, we have
Daniel Molina followed by Daniel Hos. Um, thank you for taking the time. Um, like Diego mentioned, we're a small we're small owners, the three of us. We're not asking for a lot of changes.
We're not asking money from the city. We're not it's there's no historical history there. The people objecting this are just looking for money from the church or the city. We're not asking for that. We're just asking for permission
to open our businesses. And we're going to be small businesses. As you can see, it's.3 of an acre. It's going to be a small little shop. And there's junkyards. There's a a waste company there. There's
only two houses, as you can see, right next to where we want to put the shop. So, if you would approve it, we would appreciate it. Um, and like you mentioned, Fort Worth is growing. It's been the It's been the fastest
growing city in the United States. So, we just want the opportunity to grow with the city. We want the opportunity to have our own little business. If you can do that and approve us, we would appreciate it. Thank you. >> Thank you, sir. Next speaker is Daniel
Hayes. >> Good evening. Good evening again. My name is Dan Hayes and I am opposed to this zoning change. I'm part of the executive board of the Gateway Park Action Coalition, but my interest doesn't start stop at the park boundary.
Gateway Park is blessed to have some of the only natural parts of the Trinity River in Fort Worth. The property in this case sits just to the north of the park and just 500 ft from the Trinity River. Today, people appreciate the
Trinity River in ways those in the early and mid 20th century did not. A paved trail system extends through most of the city, and at times parts of it are quite crowded. People love to be near the river. There are many places like Clear Fork in the River District where the
river is celebrated as an asset. Others like Panther Island are working their way towards that goal after decades of past abuse. In East Fort Worth, however, it seems that auto salvage yards and other inappropriate uses are the order of the day. That practice needs to stop.
In this case, the property is agriculturally zoned, but yet it contains over a dozen cars, carcasses, and three structures in violation of its zoning. as of the last aerial image. In fact, the image that was up earlier,
everything on the south side of Etsy is in agricultural, but yet there's about 60 cars there. Uh, in 2019, Streams and Valleys, the nonprofit who first advocated so many years ago for a walking and biking trail system along
the Trinity, released a new master plan called Confluence. There was a beautiful accompanying video with these opening lines. The Trinity River belongs to all of us. It is the reason Fort Worth was founded. It remains our grandest civic
space. There's nothing grand about how this area of the river is being treated. So, please advocate for the river but denying this case. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Hayes. There no further speakers on this. Janette, >> thank you, Mayor Prom. Um, with this
being a auto repair that's planned, I'm concerned that uh and so close to a flood plane that there'd be runoff uh to the river. So, I'm going to uphold zoning commission's denial u with prejudice uh for ZC25211.
>> Okay. Motion second. There's no discussion. Let's begin. Vote, please. Motion passes. >> Next will be ZC-25-213. >> Okay, Janette, I don't think we have any speakers on this one.
>> Oh, um, yes, I have specific wording that. So, I'm going to move to approve as recommended by zoning commission with a three-year time limit. Start your voting, please. >> Motion passes.
>> Next will be ZC-26-00002. >> Council member uh Martinez, we have a number of speakers on this item. Uh first up is Ashton Miller. It's going to be followed by Leticia Wilburn. >> Good evening, council. My name is Ashton
Miller. I'm with Encore, address 777 Main Street in Fort Worth, Texas. Uh primarily just here to uh answer any questions that the council may have. Um but I would like to provide a little bit of backstory um as to why we are here today. So, Encore initially purchased
the property in 1966 uh where the uh current uh substation is located. Um and in order to meet um an increase in electrical demand in the area, um we have a need to expand uh the current
substation. Today, it has uh it's a two transformer station. Uh what we are proposing is to replace the two transformers um and add two additional transformers uh to the east. Um and so
um there were a number of residents that were um that were at the planning and zoning commission. Um um and I just like to uh make mention that we did uh reach out to the president of the Echo Heights uh neighborhood association. Um and we
um I myself did answer uh some of the questions or all of the questions that um uh Mr. Jones had uh related to to our application. I believe the the main concern is just nailing down you know exactly what Encore is doing. Um and so
by uh requesting a conditional use permit um the site plan that will be attached is is what Encore will be constructing. Um, so with that, happy to uh answer any questions that the council may have. >> Great, Janette or council members. Any questions?
>> I'll wait until the other >> speakers go. >> Thank you, Patricia Wilburn, >> and she will be followed by Chris Jones. Hi, this is my granddaughter. She's 21 years old. She has never been
able to enjoy a moment at my home in Echo Heights. I'm going to ask Janette Martinez to deny this with prejudice. You are a mother. Pretty soon you will be a grandmother. Echo Heights, according to the city,
has reszoned over 100 lots from residential to industrial. This area has become a haven of children with leukemia, miscarriages, which is by the way medically known as a
spontaneous abortion. Now, the state of Texas have laws against abortions, but it's okay for the city to continue to allow things in our communities that cause kids to have issues with leukemia
and to be aborted. Now, Encore, they have not met with the community. I am a member of the neighborhood association and they have not reached out to echo heights stop six environmental coalition nor have they reached out to forth and fire
forth environmental coalitions of communities to meet with us. Now at the uh commission hearing encore said they could put up a wall for the sound. This area is known as Echo
Heights for a reason. You cannot put up a wall to buffer the noise from the children, the abuses in this community. At some point, y'all going to have to put your foot down and say no. Just stop it. Lining on February 3rd, 2026, they
did the same thing in Lufkin. Lufkin said no because of the proximity to the school and the proximity to homes. There are mobile homes in this community. They are right there. There are homes in the community are right there. Those mobile
homes should be treated just the same as any other home. Those children deserve to be treated the same. People like me deserve to be treated the same. I deserve to live in an area where my grandchildren can come to my home. This
is one of nine. and she will tell you, I have never been able to host an event at my home because of the things that go on in Echo Heights. Now, you all sit up there and y'all think it's cool. Have any of y'all ever been sick with almost
a million dollars in medical bills for one event, not everything, for one event? I have based on what's going on in that community. What about the women that have counselors? What about the other people that have counselors? What about the people that have issues with
kidney disease, high blood pressure, and other stuff? This has got to stop. Y'all are gonna have to say no at some point. And I know all of y'all are looking at me, but blood is on y'all's hands. People, >> next up, we have Chris Jones, followed
by Caleb Roberts. One second. I gotta be able to see. All right. Good evening, council members. My name is Chris Jones. I am the vice president, not president, vice president of Echo Heights Neighborhood Association. I'm here tonight to explain how our neighborhood attempted to engage
with Encore and to return this matter to our membership for reconsideration. We were unable to complete that uh that process before tonight's vote. The Echo Heights membership previously voted to oppose this zoning request. After the vote occurred, Encore provided
additional clarification. Notice I said after that vote occurred, Encore provided additional clarification regarding the zoning configuration of the property and the conditional use permit that would regulate that substation expansion. You guys showed that on the first page where the confusion has been uh some of it
registered as I, some of it registered as B. uh so that confusion but they we couldn't get a lot of clarification on that. When the executive board reviewed that information, we felt it was important that the residents be given the opportunity to hear clarification directly and ask questions before the
association finalized its position. Because of that, the executive board voted unanimously to return the matter to membership for reconsideration. I also want to note that the zoning commission's recommendation on this case was not unanimous. The case passed on a six to4 vote. During the hearing,
commissioners specifically asked if Encore had contacted the surrounding neighborhood associations. Their response given at that meeting was that they had not. Following the hearing, we were informed that the counciloman Martinez's office encouraged Encore to reach out to Echo Heights so that a discussion with the
residents could occur. Once additional clarification was provided to us, the executive board attempted to facilitate exactly that type of meeting. We reached out to Encore. We requested a representative to attend an evening meeting with our membership. So the res residents could hear the project overview and ask questions directly.
Because our bylaws require a 7 days notice before a meeting will uh where a vote will occur. We also ask respectively that Encore continue requesting a short continuance from city council so this meeting could take place and we could have the membership come be complete in its reconsideration process.
Unfortunately, we did not receive a response to that. There was no s sufficient time remaining to conduct a meeting in accordance with our bylaws because the reconsideration meeting could not occur. The prior vote of the membership remains in effect. For that reason, Echo Heights neighborhood
association must maintain its previously adopted position of opposition to this zoning request. I do want to emphasize that our zoning association made in good faith effort to engage encore so that residents could receive clarification and potentially reconsider their
position based off of updated information. Our goal has always been transparency and ensuring the residents most directly affected have the opportunity to be informed and participate in the process. Echo Heights is not opposed to reliable infrastructure. Our concern is ensuring
that projects affecting our neighborhood and following a process that allows residents to be informed, ask questions, and participate meaningfully, meaningfully before a final decision is made. Thank you for your time. >> Right. Thank you, Mr. Jones. Uh, next
up, Caleb Roberts, followed by Jamie Perkins. Uh, good evening. Caleb Roberts, executive director of Don Wonders at Risk. Uh, I work with the Echo Heights community quite a bit. Um, I'm here to talk about structural racism. I don't
know if I can even say that here anymore, but I'm going go ahead. Um, I say structural racism because this is maybe the seventh time in three years I've been here about a zoning case to change something into industrial in Echo Heights. Um, and the gentleman from
Encore just said we have increased energy demands. I wonder if that's because of all the industry in Echo Heights. So, it kind of builds on itself because you create industry now you need more indust uh you need more energy uh to maintain those industries. Uh I know
we didn't get to talk about the data center today, but that may be something coming up that they need energy for just south of Echo Heights. Um, I'm also saying structural racism because we were here maybe eight months ago in June, uh,
about a cup then that we all came out and had a lot of fiery words about. Uh, we were kind of chastised for how strongly we came out on that case from members of this council. And it was almost like the residents knew that that
company was full of it because to this day that $30,000 that was supposed to be donated for air monitors so we can know the impacts of happening in Echo Heights has not materialized. I just talked to Dr. Lowry from University of Texas at Dallas and he hasn't heard anything in a
long time. That's trust eroding, you know, like in real time. We had a conversation about um you know, how are we going to respond to the federal government's claims of we can't do minority business and all these things
and how that was racist. But this issue is how racism takes place. And I have to be honest with you all about it because if we don't come make noise, these things just happen. They continue. They spur. There's an industrial growth
center right there in Echo Heights with highways uh built so semi-truckss can move things about this this community, but nothing for the community that is there. Uh I think they were saying Encore was supposed to do an environmental report or they claimed to
the community that they did that. I would love to see that to see what it says. Additionally, when you look at the zoning report by the staff, there is nothing that signifies that this community has been out multiple times to say that
industrial facilities and industrial zoning is a problem. They just say that Jason communities are are are industrial. They met with the the community, but the dozens of times the communities was here and you know the the people from Echo Heights, y'all know them when you see them. There is no
notice that the staff can even work on to say that there is an issue and we have to wait a year plus for the next comprehensive plan to happen. So what I want to say is this is structural racism and y'all have the opportunity to do something about it today.
>> Thank you Mr. Roberts. Next up Jamie Perkins followed by Tina James. >> Good evening. I'm Haime. I'm here to speak in strong opposition to the zoning change that would allow expansion of Encore's electrical substations. I took the time to watch the February 11th
forward zoning commission meeting where this item was discussed. Thank you, Miss T, uh, for sharing that with me. Uh while a couple questions were asked of Enonor during the meeting, the reality is that there were not nearly enough questions asked and uh honestly not
nearly enough of the right questions were asked before recommending approval because the real questions here is not just about electricity. The real question is about fairness, accountability, and whose neighborhoods are expected to absorb industrial
expansion. Why is it that time after time it is working-class communities of color that are asked to accept more industry creeping into their neighborhoods? Why are we expanding industrial uses in these areas instead of investing in
parks, green spaces, and community assets that improve people's qualities of life? Why are the same communities that already live with the heavy impacts of industry being asked to take on even more? This property is currently partially zoned for two family
residential housing. Instead of preserving the potential for housing or community serving development, this proposal would convert the more would convert even more acres to light industrial use. That is a major land use shift for a neighborhood where people live, raise families, and deserve the
same level of protection and planning as any other community in this city. And here's another question that should have been asked. Why isn't Encore required to meet directly with the community that they're trying to expand into? Why are residents forced to
show up here to react to a plan that has already moved through the process instead of the company being compelled to sit down, listen, and answer questions from people who will actually live next to this. Communities deserve
transparency and respect, not decisions that feel predetermined. No one is denying that energy is necessary but necessary uh but it's not necessary that companies get a free pass to site projects in the
same communities over and over and over and over again without meaningful engagement without serious consideration of alternatives without asking whether the burden is being distributed fairly across the city. Frontline communities should not be the default location for projects that other neighborhoods would
never accept. The recommendation from the zoning commission should not be the end of this conversation. This meeting should not be the end of this conversation. It should be the beginning of deeper scrutiny into how this community is facing unjust impacts. This
council has a responsibility to ask the hard questions that were not asked before. Who benefits from this project? Who bears the burden? And why is this not the right place? I urge you to vote no on this zoning request and stand with the residents who are asking for
fairness, transparency, and respect in the planning decision their neighborhood. >> Times up. >> Next up, we have Tina James followed by Anita Bryson. >> All right, y'all. Y'all see us here all the time. Like you said, y'all know who we are. But I just want to kind of
piggyback on the situation with uh Encore. Yeah, I do know that physical and mental health impacts the noise pollution and the potential potential exposure from all the uh electromagnetic magnetic fields, the EMF associated with
high voltage sustainabilities and significant concerns of residents in the echo heights. Also, the communive environmental burden, our neighbors are already saturated with industrial activities. Adding an expanded sub substation increases the overall toxin
and stress on the community that already suffers from disproportionated rates of respiratory issues and other pollutions in our community. I'm asking again that we remove it with prejudice. In June 25th, the city council approved the
conditional use for the permit for the fed uh FedEx to operate in our community. During that meeting, the public was told that the FedEx would provide $30,000 for the WM Green uh air monitors residents could see the quality in the air that we would be breathing.
The promise was not taken care of because of our community already surrounded with industrial activities, trucks, traffic, environmental pressure. The air monitors were supposed to be a trust tool and transparency from the city of Fort Worth making sure that they
followed through with what they needed to do. Uh the motion to approve that permit was first made by Councilman Nettles and then second by Councilman uh Martinez. But here we are today, months later and the $30,000 still have not been given to the city to be sent over
in the Echo Heights area. FedEx was given a response, a deadline, December the 1st, 2025. They still haven't responded. So, how often do we trust people to come in and say that they're going to take care of our community and they still don't. The city took continues to allow this to happen in the
residents and ignores the conditions and permits. What happens? We get fined, we get cited, and we get shut down. But when a major corporation ignores the public commit commitment to tide their approvals, nothing happens. This is not accountability. This is not
transparency. And the community is the one that suffers. I'm going to ask y'all to understand that families live here, children's breathe here, grandparents sit on their porches, and churches pray here. And your community keeps being asked to carry more and more industrial
burdens through our community. I want to acknowledge Councilwoman Deborah Peoples and Councilwoman Mia Hall for standing with the residents and supporting the protection of clean air and community health. But tonight, this is a bigger than uh two council members. Tonight, it's about the the credibility of the
entire council because our communities are asking three questions. First, uh enforce the agreement required by FedEx. Two, be transparent. Tell the community why this condition has yet to be put through and the permit has still been
enforced. Three, stop the expansions of industrial in our community. Thank you. >> Thank you, Miss James. Next speaker, Anita Bryson, followed by Aean Ibrahim. Good evening, council members. My name is Anita Bryson, president of Echo
Heights Neighborhood Association. Uh for decades, our neighborhood has been placed next to industrial use trucks trucking corridors and facilities that have created real environmental and safety harms. Our residents have lived
with illegal dumping, poor air quality, soil contamination concerns, and storm water runoff that causes pollution pollutants into our streets and yards. These are not abstract issues. They are part of our daily reality. When this zoning case first came before our
membership, residents overwhelming overwhelmingly voted to oppose. When the zoning commission later heard the case, commissioners asked whether Encore had contact with the surrounding neighborhood associations. The answer was no. After that hearing, we were
informed that council woman Martinez office encouraged Encore to reach out to Echo Heights. When additional clarification about the zoning request was later shared with our leadership, our executive board agreed that residents deserve to hear directly
from Encore. We unanim unanimously voted to return to the membership for reconsideration. We followed our bylaws. We provided notice. We invited Encore to attend an evening meeting so residents could ask questions and understand the environmental and safety impact
implications of this project. But the meeting never happened. And in a community that that has already endured decades of environmental burdens that lack of engagement is unacceptable. Residents needed answers about air
quality, soil conditions, storm water runoff, equipment failures, fire hazards, and how electrical faults would be handled near homes, schools, and churches. These are basic questions for any neighborhood, and especially for the one that has repeatedly been asked to
absorb risk without transparency or protection. Echo Heights has lived through the consequences of decisions made without community input. We have seen what happens when environmental and safety concerns are ignored. We will not allow that pattern to continue because
Encore did not meet with our community. The original vote of our membership remains in place and as president is my responsibility to stand firmly on that decision. For these reasons, the Echo Heights Neighborhood Association remains opposed to ZC260002.
And let me be clear, when the city still has not followed up on the FedEx incident that put our residents at risk, it raises a real question. If past harms haven't been addressed, how can our community trust that future ones will be
Echo Heights will not accept one more project, one more risk, one more burden without transparency, accountability, and respect. Not anymore. Thank you. >> Thank you, Miss Bryson. Our next speaker is Aman Ibrahim.
Is Mr. Ibrahim here? He is. That's the last of our speakers. Council member Martinez. >> Thank you, Mayor Prom. Um, somebody here from zoning. Zoning staff. I have a question. It's really just one question. Was there
any opposition from residents that uh received the 30 300 foot notice? Uh >> um Council Member Martinez, what you within the 300 foot notice area? Um, we did not,
so we did I don't think that we No, we did not receive any official any letters from anyone who were who was noticed within that area. >> Okay. >> Thank you. >> Welcome, >> Mr. Miller. So, you know, for those that aren't
familiar with the case, uh, you know, this has been an emotional uh, zoning case. Uh, what is the purpose of an electric substation? Yeah, the purpose of an electrical substation, uh, it takes the voltage
from a high-owered transmission line. In this case, it's the 138 KV line, um, that's there today. It steps that power down and it directly goes into the, um, homes of the residences in the area, um,
keeps their lights on as well as the businesses within the area. >> Where are those are there? Where are all the other substations located in Fort Worth? I know it's not just in one certain area of the city. >> Yeah, they are. Substations are all over the city of Fort Worth.
>> Is it uncommon for a substation to be located near a neighborhood? >> Uh, no ma'am, it is not. >> How often are these substations inspected? >> Uh, they are inspected uh monthly. Um we
do have our our district personnel that that go out and visit the site um at least once a month. >> What type of vehicles do those inspectors? >> Typically it's your your F250 um F-150 service type of trucks.
>> Um there are environmental testing that's done when you add um uh transformers, right? Uh so were there any findings from that environmental testing? Yeah. So, we did do a phase one environmental study um on the um uh
property in which we are expanding on as well as what we're currently operating and there were no environmental concerns. >> What would have happened if there was a finding? >> Yeah. So, if there were a finding, uh, we would evaluate, um, what the the
concerns were, um, and then we would clean up the site, uh, prior to, um, any construction of of new electrical equipment on site. >> So, the new equipment that you'll be installing will be installed in phases if this is approved, and then you will
replace the old equipment, correct? >> Yes, ma'am. So we will be expanding um just directly to the east of where the existing station is today. Uh there will be uh two new transformers. Uh then the ring bus equipment that connects the lines into the transformers as well as
one additional uh control enclosure that essentially houses electrical equipment of how we communicate to a station um offsite. Um, and there will also be, um, I just wanted to mention one new access point
off of Maxi. >> Um, this is more modern equipment that's going to be installed. Correct. What What's the difference between what's already there and what you're installing? >> Yeah. So, just like any kind of mechanical electrical equipment, um, it
does um require constant maintenance. And um the the new transformers are brand new uh transformers um that uh um are much modern uh much more modern than what is out there currently today
um as well as um is quieter as well. >> Are they the same size? Are they smaller? Do they take >> They are the exact same size as what's out there today. Just more just updated. Yes, ma'am. I see um Councilwoman Hall
has a question, so I will wait to um >> All right, Dr. Hall, >> I just had a question with regards to the notice that was sent. How many notices or how many residents received the notice within the 300 ft? Like how
many were were within that boundary? >> Council member Hall, I don't have that information in front of me. I I don't have the number. Um but that is the map of so every property owner within that
that bubbled area um received a notice. Okay. Um and then with regards to and maybe I missed it because I know there's been a lot of discussion. Was there a meeting held with the residents with Encore? Was there a meeting held with the residents?
No, no, there was not. >> Okay. >> Okay. No. Speaking from the floor, please. >> Yeah. Are you good? >> Yes. Deborah. >> Oh, sorry. >> Not a meeting. Uh
>> it was recommended by uh Councilwoman Martinez and both the president and uh someone else said that they were willing to have the meeting. >> Yes, ma'am. So um the so we did reach
out to um the neighborhood um association um to address their questions. Um, and not to get too personal or anything, my I uh we my wife and I did have our first baby uh last
week and so just timing wise um I was not able to meet with the the residents. Um so there but we did I did reach out to um the uh neighborhood association and was provided a list of questions um from
the neighborhood association in which I answered every question that was provided to me >> Janette. >> Thank you. Um, so I want to note that Thank you, Mr. Miller. So I want to note that this substation and property has been operating as industrial for
approximately 60 years. There is very little to no traffic out of the property. Keeping this property under residential purposes would not be appropriate with the surrounding industrial zoning. To my knowledge, there have been no complaints or concerns about this substation prior to
this zoning case. This expansion will reduce an area uh of open space where homeless camps and illegal dumping have been an issue. Um to reiterate, my motion will clean up the zoning that should have been corrected decades ago. My motion will ensure that if Encore
ever retired this substation, no other use would be allowed and a zoning change would be required for other development. Therefore, for ZC260002, I move to approve with the following amended language uh to PDI excluding all uses except for an electrical power
substation site plan approved. >> Have second. Any discussion? All right, let's start voting. See who we missing here. Uh Chris. All right.
Motion passes. Next will be ZC-26-00007. >> Chris, we have no speakers on this. Um, >> move to approve. >> All right, first a second. Any discussion? Seeing none, let's get ready to vote. Motion passes.
>> Next is MNC26-0192. >> Right, Macy, I think you have some language to read in on this. Let me get your mic on just a moment. There you go. >> Thank you. Okay. I move that the Fort Worth City Council adopt a resolution authorizing use of the power of imminent
domain to acquire 0.654 acres in permanent sanitary sewer easement and 0.192 acres in temporary construction easement from real property owned by Canary Properties LP. The property interest is needed for public use. the M199C
parallel SS interceptor project for easements to construct a relief sewer main. The property is located at 220 Red Bud Lane in the Cornelius Connelly survey track number 319, Tarant County, Texas. The property interest to be acquired is described by Meets and
Bounds and depicted by the survey exhibits attached as mayor and council communication. >> Okay, we have a second and let's get to voting. Motion passes. May >> protim. That concludes all of the action
items and gets us to public comments. >> All right. Our first speaker tonight is Dolores Phillips, followed by Erica Castellani. Is Dolores Phillips here? Okay, moving on. Erica Christristen
Telli, is she here? Moving on. Connley Brewer. Council members, good evening. My name is Connley Brewer. I'm a resident of district 6 and I'm here tonight to voice
my opposition to the proposed city council raise currently designated as Proposition G. One of the primary arguments for this increase is that it will foster economic diversity. However, decades of political science data, including research in the American Political Science Review, tell a
different story. Higher salaries do not increase blue collar representation. In fact, research shows that higher pay often leads to fewer working-class politicians as these roles become more attractive to professionalized white collar career politicians. Our city charter was intentionally designed
around a citizen servant model. Residents serving out of duty and not for a career policy salary. By doubling your pay, you aren't just adjusting for inflation. You are dismantling a philosophy meant to keep this body grounded in stewardship rather than
professional politics. Furthermore, we must address the cost to play. District 6 alone. Recent winning campaigns spent between $30,000 and $40,000. Raising the salary to $50,000 won't lower that barrier. It's likely to raise
it. A higher prize attracts higher spending campaigns that price out the very candidates you claim to be helping. Some will point to Dallas, but let's remember Dallas voters soundly rejected a pay raise less than two years ago. Fort Worth should not be benchmarking
against the most expensive cities in Texas while our taxpayers are facing an $845 million bond proposal and rising infrastructure cost. I will leave you with this. If you professionalize these seats, you will change the very nature of our elections. You may find that
instead of fostering diversity, you have simply invited a more crowded, highly funded field of professional challengers that could complicate your very own path to re-election. Before you ask taxpayers for 100% pay bump, ask yourselves, is Fort Worth better served by career
politicians or by the community servants our charter intended. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Brewer. Next up, Bob. Okay, legal never called me back. I had to check see if my beagles my video is clear or not. They never did call me
back. So, play the video unless it didn't clear. >> I know that's what you said last time. Your person before you said you would call, you're not called. So, I guess if you don't do an interview with us, then everything you said is just a bunch of lies. That's all it is. It's a bunch of lies.
>> Mr. Garcia, why are you afraid to speak to me? >> Over here, >> Mr. Garcia, why are you afraid? >> You're afraid to speak to me, aren't you? Okay. Anyway, we'll get that up here in a minute. And the reason I print these things up and put them out is because not to show off or anything, just to
send a signal. It's not up there yet. You'll see in a minute maybe that there's a problem. You should see that and an issue, a problem. Um, now I don't blame our police chief, Eddie Garcia, for being a coward. What I
do blame is council for hiring a coward for a police chief. Now the man runs away and you hired him. You don't deserve a raise whatsoever. You people, I'm surprised you even got the galls to ask for a raise. This job
is meant for people to serve. You know what? If I was hiring someone and they didn't answer questions like y'all, I wouldn't hire them. They wouldn't work for me. If I hired someone work in my company, I I work for the Cowboys. If my employees showed up late as many times
y'all showed up late, I would fire them. You should be fired. You should have a pay cut, not a raise, until you learn what transparency and respect is. When Carl runs away about the CCB funds, that's a mission of guilt that you want
to raise. I cannot believe, and you probably get it. I can't believe it, but you'll probably get it because I feel like I'm living in a bad sitcom is what I'm in. Only thing is it's reality until you learn how to be transparent and answer questions. But actually, this job's not meant for
you to live here. You know what? On the ballot, first things on there is your race, you know. And I'm glad you put I'm glad you put term Oh, wait a minute. You didn't put term limits on her, did you? That's what we wanted. You didn't put that on the ballot from the charter. No, but you put what you wanted, a raise,
right? And then you walk on people, you lie, and you don't answer questions. You don't answer questions. I sent I called your office, the lawyer, said, "Did my video clear?" No answer. Last time it got pulled, you said because it was for some of the reasons it's not
true. But anyway, you don't deserve a raise. You deserve a pay cut. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Willoughby. Next up, Chris Wood, followed by Derek Perry. I'm Chris Wood.
I'm here today to urge you to allow remote speakers at city council meetings. Four years ago, my stalker's best friend at the time broke my left arm. Later that day, he tried to break my right arm. Three days later, he tried
to break my lower back and crack my skull. If he had been successful at all of these attempts, I would have been bedridden for at least 6 months. If I had been incapacitated and the current policy banning remote speakers was in
place, I would have been unable to give input on city improvements to help stop this type of crime, such as better lighting or improved walkways. While my experience is extreme, it highlights a broader issue that affects many
residents. Remote options increases accessibility and inclusivity by removing barriers for people with health issues, disabilities, child care responsibilities, or transportation challenges. Participation is granted without
traveling to city hall, providing a platform for voices that are typically under reppresented in local government. Also, residents with rigid work schedules can still participate in the decision-making process. It improves
government transparency, strengthens trust, and results in more diverse and thoughtful public input. Increased engagement strengthens local democracy by ensuring decisions reflect a wider range of perspectives.
Furthermore, other large Texas cities allow for remote speaking at council meetings such as Dallas, San Antonio, and Austin. Fort Worth is a growing city, and our public engagement policies should reflect that growth. Please allow
remote speakers to attend city council meetings, so all Fort Worth residents can participate regardless of injury, disability, or circumstance. Thank you. >> Thank you, Miss Wood. Next speaker, Derek Perry, followed by EJ Kerrion.
>> Do you have some handouts? Give it to the city secretary, please. Sir, all right. The future of Fort Worth is being shaped by opportunities we create for our children today. Good evening, Mayor Pro Tim and council
members. My name is Derek Perry and I'm here representing the Hope Through Housing Foundation. Thank you for the opportunity to share a few words about the work we doing to support families and young people in Fort Worth. At Hope Through Housing, we believe something
simple but powerful. Stable, affordable housing can be a platform for transformation transformational change. When families have safe, stable place to live, parents can focus on work and
financial stability, children have the security they need to learn and grow, and communities become stronger. But housing alone is not enough. That's why we provide on-site programs that help residents move from stability to
opportunity and self-sufficiency. We offer financial coaching, workforce training, and wellness programs that help residents build stronger futures. Our most transformative work, however, happens with young people. In our Fort
Worth community, the Residences of Diamond Hill, we re recently launched the Eric Dickerson Learning Center. Programs like this help ensure young people growing up at Fort Worth today become skilled workforce and leaders our city will depend on. At the heart of the
Eric Dickerson Learning Center is a powerful belief every child deserves a chance to succeed. The center provides mentorship, academic support, and hands-on learning in technology, engineering, digital media, and the arts. It's a place where students build
confidence and begin to imagine new possibilities. For many students, it's the first place after school where someone is helping them discover their talents and see what their future is. That's why I'm here tonight. One way the community can support this work is through the Erica Dickerson All-Star
Golf Invitational, which raises critical funding for the Learning Student Center and its students. The event begins with a celebrity dinner and an 18hole celebrity golf tournament. If you know businesses or community leaders who believe in investing in the future of Fort Worth and its youth, we welcome
introductions to potential sponsors. Because we when we invest in the success of our children through the Eric Dickerson Learning Center, we're not just changing individual lives. We're strengthening the future workforce and leadership of Fort Worth. Thank you for
your time and your continued commitment to the families and young people of Fort Worth. Thank you, Mr. Perry. Our next speaker is EJ Carryon, followed by Liz Mendoza. What is going on, beautiful people? Good to see you guys. Uh, I want to give
credit to the city staff for reaching out to everyone who signed up for the Black Mountain to um the two zoning cases. Uh they sent out emails, they sent out phone calls. Um all of that communication was really great. Informed a lot of people um who were probably
going to be here today, but they didn't show up because of that communication. Our recommendation in the future is that we actually allow them to still be on sign up for public comments so that if they were available today, if they took off already for work, if they wanted to
share their comments still about those data centers, they could have spoke tonight at public comments and just have their names moved there. Um, so you guys can actually still hear from the public who was mad about something clearly that it changed everything all the way back
to June. And to me, to be fair, this isn't a fight that I was aware about until last uh meeting when I came to show up. I came to show up advocating for the salary increase uh because I believe more working people should be able to run for office. And so um Fort Worth is the 11th largest city. We need
to actually have a salary where working-class people can run for office. And so uh but I was inspired by the Charmaine's at Forest Hill, the you know Tina James at stop six, Miss Weston from the Weston Gardens or Miss T from Echo Heights. And so I use my platform to
activate and to communicate with people. And clearly Black Mountain says they go out to get public comments and get public feedback. But obviously spending only 48 hours, 72 hours caring about this and creating an action network and a letter and
activating with organizers. We see there's a lot of people frustrated about this. So I really want to close with my one minute is like who do you really answer to? Who do you really think you, you know, lead by? You know, the people are speaking up about things and somehow every time when the people react, we
minimize it. We minimize it. We make it harder. We make it harder. And I just want you guys to know, you know, this is history repeating itself. We know this happened with um right, Denton County with the fracking and the oil and and they got that passed, but then Governor Abbott, you know, made a state mandate
where then they had to be forced to be able to allow the oil and fracking happen. And you're right, you know, you guys may fight for with us for data centers and say no, and then the same thing is going to happen to you. Uh, but that's your job as municipal leaders, not to sit here and say, "Oh, the state
told us we had to do it." Because the Republicans on here, you guys are the ones for local control. So, if anyone should be writing a letter to Abbott and other people, it's you guys. Because municipal power is the thing you guys should be fighting for. And so, I'm looking over the next year and year and
a half. How do y'all respond to state things being pressed on you like the state takeover of Fort Worth ISD? We continue to enable them and you guys said it wasn't for Miss Mullenar is why it was okay and where is Miss Mullenar today. So listening to the state isn't
always the right thing to do. >> Thank you Mr. Carryon. Next up Liz Mendoza followed by Chandler Sharp. Good evening. Sorry I ran in here so I'm catching my breath. I was listening in. My name is
Liz Mendoza, resident of Irving, and I'm here to speak against data centers in our communities. Data centers deplete our water, land, and energy. They skyrocket electric bills that the working class then has to foot that
bill. Not the tech bros that are trying to implement these data centers. There's argument. So, these data centers need fresh water. And I actually had a question not that long ago asking, well, why can't we use salt water? It's because of
its eroding properties. These data centers need fresh water. We are taking fresh water away from drinking water away from our communities to have these data centers. So, let's all take stock and think of
this when we use chat GBT when creating AI image slop we don't need just because we're bored. That goes for all of us. AI is making us dumber, lazier, and leaving us without our necessary resources to survive. So, I suggest that all of us in
this room we delete any AI apps and disable any AI features on our browsers and apps. Look out for your most vulnerable communities because we're setting these data centers up in vulnerable communities. Why is that?
So that's all to say we don't need Black Mountain Data Center in Fort Worth. Thank you. >> Thank you, Miss Mendoza. Next speaker, Chandler Sharp, followed by Adira and
Amelia. Good pastor. Good evening, council. My name is Chandler Sharp from District 9 and I want to build on the previous comments about the Black Mountain data center and also focus on water. So along with the negative effects that data
centers have including light pollution and noise pollution, water is also a critical a critical thing that data centers need. So in ter of data centers intense water usage is need for cooling these centers which depending on the size could be
anywhere from 1 to 5 million gallons daily. And one of the primary sources is groundwater. A study published last year recently saw studied cities across the nation and
both Fort Worth and Dallas are two of the fastest sinking cities in the country especially amongst inland cities and a big cause of that is extraction of groundwater too quickly. And so these and on top of that centers
are not required to report water usage and the data that we have on how much water these cities are using is highly inadequate. And to build on top of that, the Texas state water plan does not include projected demand growth for data centers
as well, which is poised to place unprecedented stress on water supplies across Fort Worth, Dallas, the state, and ultimately the nation. So, three months from now, when making this vote, take all of this in consideration on how data centers like
Black Mountain are going to have negative effects on communities across Fort Worth, across the state, and ultimately the nation. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Sharp. Next speakers, Yadira and Amelia, good pastor.
Yadira and Amelia, good pastor are here. Moving on. Next speaker, Shakira Hussein, followed by Walla Omar. >> Good evening, council. My name is Shiv.
Instead of trying to unpack every global crisis unfolding right now, though many of them are deeply important, I want to focus on something that quietly connects to many of them. Islamophobia. When fear, misinformation, and prejudice are allowed to grow unchecked, they can
lead to discrimination, violence, and even tragedy. We see this we see this rhetoric that spreads harmful stereotypes about Muslims. For example, political figures have openly suggested that Muslims are terrorists, that Somali communities should be removed or that
Islam should not be treated as a protected religion under the constitution. Regardless of political affiliation, this kind of language spreads like wildfire and it encourages people to see an entire group of human beings as a threat. Sorry, as a threat rather than
neighbors. History shows us where that thinking can lead. In 2015, three young Muslim students, IA Barakat, Yusur, Yusur Abu Salah, and Razan Abu Salah were murdered in the home in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Many in Muslim community believe that the attack
reflected deeper anti-Muslim hostility. In 2017, Nebra Hassin, a 17-year-old high school student from Virginia, was murdered while walking with friends after Ramadan prayers. She was known as a compassionate and caring sister and friend. May God have mercy on her soul. These tragedies are painful reminders
that hateful rhetoric can have real consequences. And here in North Texas, we have even heard public discussions about deporting, jailing, and converting Muslims or re redefining Islam so it would no longer be protected by the first amendment. Political scientists
have said that rhetoric like like this crosses a dangerous line. Islamophobia is not just a global issue is it is community issue. I am a Somali black American and I am proud of who I am, the faith that guides me. Muslims are your neighbors, your
students, your co-workers. We contribute to this community. We care deeply about the future of the city just like everyone else. Leadership is not only about budgets and policies. It's about protecting the dignity and safety of everyone who calls this city home. So my question to the mayor is what concrete
steps will this city take to ensure that Muslim residents are protected from discrimination and hate and that Islam islamophobia has no place in our community? Thank you. >> Thank you Mr. Sang. Next speaker wall
mayor followed by Daniel Martinez Salivar. Good evening and greetings of peace. I reside in district 5. My name is Walla Omar or as my students call me, Miss Omar, the best teacher in the world.
So, as Councilwoman Dr. Hall said, we are counting down the days for spring break. We feel it. I teach third grade math, science, social studies, reading, and writing at
a public school. I know. But beyond those subjects, I teach something even more important. In my classroom, I teach my students that everyone belongs. I teach them that every shade of pigment, every
texture of hair, whether it's covered or not, every accent, every learning style, every story is welcome. I teach my students that beneath our beautiful differences, we all share the
same red blood. We all deserve dignity. We all deserve to belong. Yet only five miles from my home at the light of the world church in Fort Worth, political and community community
leaders hosted a panel called Muslims on the menu just this past Friday on the 5th. During that event, they discussed unthinkable ideas like deporting Muslims, jailing Muslims, and even forcibly converting them, in their own
words, to eradicate what they described as a threat of Islam. They reduced my faith, Islam, to something degrading and attempting to redefine it as a political ideology. The same Islam that guides me every day
when I step into my classroom. It calls me to teach with excellence, to pour with love into my students, to be kind to my neighbors, and serve my community with compassion, humility, and dignity. I am an educator, a sister, an aunt, a
daughter. I am American. I am Sudanese. I am a hijabi. I am educated. I am a law-abiding citizen. Above all, I am human with the right to be protected and define who I am. At Alhidaya Academy,
the mosque where I also teach few miles away, we recently hosted a Ramadanar and invited community leaders including Councilwoman Deborah Peoples. Together we shared meals and built bridges. During the sacred month of Ramadan, Muslims around the world are fasting,
praying for peace, healing, and stronger communities. Yet here in Texas, we are facing misunderstanding. I stand before you today as an educator, an activist, and a proud Muslim American to say that I will not allow others to write my story or define my history. I
am a teacher, a believer, a neighbor, a proud American. And I ask the leaders of Footworth one question. Will you stand? You are present in the city. Thank you, Miss Omir. Our next speaker is Daniel Martinez Salavar, followed by Haime Perkins.
Uh hello, my name is Daniel Martinez Alivar and I'm here to talk about the data centers. And if you allow to if you allow them to build the data center data centers, many of our people in the community are going to suffer who are making who are barely making enough in
order to pay for the to pay for the bills of this moment. And if you allow them, it's going to increase taxes and many more things, way more than they can afford. And it's going to increase in it's going to increase the the
um yeah it's going to increase in homelessness because or it's going to increase in that number because people are barely or for those people that barely been able to pay for them then
yeah >> you can continue. >> All right. >> Don't worry. uh they're barely going to be able to make make it and if if the data data centers were there then he basically be
the ruin for many of the families and people who are trying to make a living or the or to create the American dream by brick in in today or recently. >> Thank you Daniel. [applause] >> Next up we have Hime Perkins followed by
Alexander Stein. Hello, my name is Haime and I'm here tonight to ask you to reject any reszoning that would enable the proposed Black Mountain data center in Southeast for Worth. This project is enormous. The proposed campus is expected to cover
over 450 acres. That's more than 340 football fields. Once land is reszoned and developed at that scale, it permanently locks in industry into an area. And data centers don't operate like normal businesses. They run 24
hours a day, 7 days a week. Cooling systems, ventilation, backup generators, lighting, all running non-stop. That means constant noise, constant light, and constant industrial activity. But what makes this proposal especially troubling is where it's being placed and
who it will affect. I want to talk about some of the people who are already living with the consequences of of this proposal and what it'll mean to them. Charmaine Puit, who has been organizing her community in Forest Hill, bringing neighbors together and raising concerns about what this project will mean for
their quality of life. Bridget, who has lived in her quiet neighborhood for more than 40 years. After decades of building a peaceful life in her community, she's now being told that a massive industrial data center operating around the clock may become her neighbor. Sue Weston has
poured years of her life, her resources, and her passion into building Weston Gardens, a historic and beautiful green space that serves a comm as a community treasure. And now that places are at risk of being overshadowed by industrial
development and Miss T, who spent years fighting against the heavy industrial burden already placed on her community, landfills, warehouses, trucky yards, substations, and factories. Instead of relief, she's now being asked to fight yet another massive industrial project.
These stories matter because Southeast Worth is already carrying a heavy industrial burden. Adding one of the largest data center developments in Texas here would only deepen that burden. It would bring increased truck traffic, pollution, and strain on local
infrastructure. And projects like this demand enormous resources, millions of gallons of water per day and and massive amounts of electricity, all while being proposed near Lake Arlington, a critical
regional water supply. The impacts won't just stop at Fort Worth's border either. Communities in Forest Hill, Everman, Arlington, Kennedel, and Massfield will all feel the consequences of this decision. This isn't just about a data
center. It's about whether people who have built their lives in these communities are going to be heard or whether their neighborhoods will continue to be treated as places where industry can expand without limits. Please, I ask you to stand with residents like Charmaine, Bridget, Sue,
and Miss T. Reject any future zoning requests that would enable Black Mountain Data Center and protect Souththeast Fort Worth from becoming even >> Thank you, Mr. Perkins. Appreciate your comments. Next up, Alexander Stein followed by Sad Dowy.
Alexander Stein. All right, moving on. Said Dowy. Is Sad Dowy here? All right, moving on. Jean Batty. Jean Batty
on Messia Homer. Messia Homer. >> Hello. I want to introduce myself as Jia Homer. >> Sorry for misprononunciation. >> That's okay. Um, I am a resident of Fort
Worth. I've been here 44 years. Um, I'm a little nervous because I didn't know who to reach out to. Um, I've went through a lot of horrendous things, unsafe and unprotected things in Taran County
over the last few years. I've attempted to make several complaints with the local NAACP. I spoke with Chris, which he was pretty helpful. Um, a few years ago, I had a racist issue at a job I was working for as an
insurance adjuster. I took it to the uh EEOC and they provided me with the right to sue a company. I did sue and I won the suit. Um,
after that I opened up my own business and I started to receive backlash and didn't know where it was coming from. Um, I received several complaints on my business which eventually I had to shut down. Um,
I'm sorry. Uh after that I start receiving a lot of things attempting to sabotage my name, my character, my mental health and didn't know was where it was coming from.
I I've been watched in my home, my jobs, and I didn't know if this was coming from the actual company. I don't have any enemies or anything of that sort, so I just assumed it was from this company. Um,
anywhere I go at this moment, my mental health is being lied on. Um, I haven't had any issues of anything of that nature. Um, the reason why I'm here is because I have a daughter who attends LSU. This is
her sophomore year and I don't feel safe in the community. Um, I've never been questioned on my mental health or anything of that sort, but a couple of years ago, my home was intruded. The security um on doors now are
entering a code. Someone entered my my home and I wasn't aware and drugs were put in a couple of things in my house. I later, maybe a couple of days later, fell and had an incident to where I was in the ICU for a few days and they found
drugs in my system, not placed there by me. After that, I reached out to Chris and spoke with him about it and tried to um see what I could do to have an investigator to see what was going on. I later reached out to the lawyer that
helped me with the suit and he's now looking into everything as well. I've reached out to NAACP Lee Merritt, which is also a civil rights attorney. And >> please conclude your comments. Time. >> Okay. >> I'm really just looking for someone to
possibly help with anything or just bring some type of awareness to what's going on. >> Right. >> Thank you, ma'am. >> Thank you. >> All right. Next speaker, Adrienne Smith, followed by David Martinez. >> You all should have received handouts.
Good evening, Mayor Pro Tim and council. My name is Adrienne Smith and I am a volunteer reading a prepared statement on behalf of keep lake como beautiful KLCB. A program of proof for life community development corporation. I am reading the organization's approved text
of record. KLCB seat at the table campaign is grounded in one principle. No single entity should be treated as the sole civic voice for an entire neighborhood. We are here to improve process, access,
and representation. This is a process request to improve representation, access, and integrity in city resource neighborhood work. In Lake Ko, residents repeatedly report delayed notice, incomplete visibility,
and uncertainty about where neighborhood records are housed. When communication is function functionally rooted through one channel, people find out late, federal voices are heard and community trust erodess. Even when people are
trying to do right trying to do the right thing, KLCV is requesting a process fix that the city can implement clearly. One, multiple organization distribution of city facing notice and updates. Two,
a public custodian map for records by department and project type. and three, a standard public materials package, notice, meeting materials, summary, and next step pathway. These standards protect everyone,
residents, partner, organization, city staff, and council. These are governance, governance improvements, not personal disputes. They strengthen collaboration while preserving recognized neighborhood roles. Lake Como is bigger than any
one table. We are collecting stakeholder signons for seat at the table campaign at bit.lycomo table. Thank you for your time. And be in closing, I would like to uh welcome
everyone out to join to join us for the state of Lake Ko town hall. This is the annual kickoff for KLCB season 2, Porch to Curb, this Saturday, March 14th, 2026 at the Como Community Center, 4660
Horn Street, 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. And with my last 20 seconds, I just want to encourage the voices that had come out tonight. This is your first time to keep coming. Thank you for coming. Your voices are necessary. Stay encouraged. Keep going
forward. I'm with you and know that you're not alone. Thank you, Mr. Smith. Our last speaker is David Martinez. >> Good evening. I want to thank everybody on the council uh especially uh
Councilman Larsdorf for the uh ordinance expansion for the keeping children safe 2,000 ft. Uh I appreciate every appreciate all that that was done. Um I am uh deeply deeply deep concerned
with the people that were here that uh were the ones on the opposite side. Um but we're working on that. In fact, I have a plan to get rid of the ones that were grandfathered in already for the sex offenders. Uh I have a plan where we can eliminate them to also uh contact me
after this meeting and I'll be able to share that with y'all. Uh also uh and and God bless y'all and your descendants, please. That what y'all have done, y'all saved lots of children with that one ordinance. But we can go further. Um, so the next thing I want to bring up
because I've been talking about serious things and uh there are other matters I would like to talk about uh for the Native Americans. We had a stock show uh parade and there was a clown who got up there and uh ridiculed and insulted the
Native American community. I wish that he will never uh be a part of this uh stock show ever again, the stock show parade ever again. He insulted the Native American community, dressed up and and to insult us. Um
that we don't have very much and what we do have, we want to hold on to it and that's our respect. And so um I I'm going to I'm going to make sure that he never uh shows his face at the stock show parade ever again. Um,
also another thing I want to bring up is uh, uh, Councilman Hill, Councilwoman Hill, uh, appreciate with the the chada, the cowg girls, all that stuff. One of the things I wanted to bring up is an opportunity for the Native Americans to have their own day at stock show. That would be great for the Native Americans.
They have excellent horseback riders. And if you would see it, it's like Formula One racing. It is very exciting. It's dangerous. It's but it's exciting. Um, also I also want to bring up the thing in district 8 with the data center.
Look, I'm not gonna be a hypocrite because I have so much data on my phone and other things and everybody else. I don't see anybody tossing their phones out. So, I don't want to be a hypocrite and it's in my backyard in Carter Park across the freeway. But also uh I want
to uh tell y'all also uh another thing also want to bring up is so I I went against this and I posted on the Facebook page on North Side Facebook page. We have 65,000 members and I was attacked and they're making me a target. A national pedophile group has made me a
target. But I want to tell y'all something. Come get some. God bless y'all. >> Thank you, Mr. Martinez. And that's the end of our speakers. Any other business? Janette. All right, we are adjourned at 10
minutes after 8.