[CLOSED SESSION] [00:00:05] GOOD MORNING EVERYONE. OH, OKAY. THANK YOU. GOOD MORNING EVERYONE. THIS IS THE CLOSED SESSION OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT ON JULY 30TH, 2024, BEGINNING AT 11:08 A.M. MADAM CLERK, CAN YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? [ROLL CALL] YES, MADAM PRESIDENT. DIRECTOR COFFEY. HERE. DIRECTOR MERCURIO. HERE. DIRECTOR ROSARIO. HERE. DIRECTOR SANWONG. DIRECTOR WAESPI. HERE. THANK YOU, MADAM CLERK. DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS ON CLOSED SESSION AGENDA ITEMS? THERE ARE NO PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THIS CLOSED SESSION. OKAY, VERY WELL THEN. SO THEN WE CAN GO AHEAD AND MOVE TO THE OTHER ROOM FOR OUR CLOSED SESSION ITEMS. [CLOSED SESSION ITEMS] YES. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. GOOD. OKAY. SOUND IS OPEN. GREAT. GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE. THIS IS A REGULAR BOARD MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT ON JULY 30TH, 2024, BEGINNING AT 1:20 P.M. MADAM CLERK, CAN YOU PLEASE TAKE THE ROLL? [ROLL CALL] YES. JUST ONE SECOND. I'M STARTING MY VIDEO. [INAUDIBLE]. YES. PRESIDENT ECHOLS. DIRECTOR ROSARIO. HERE. DIRECTOR COFFEY. HERE. DIRECTOR MERCURIO. HERE. DIRECTOR SANWONG. HERE. DIRECTOR WAESPI. HERE. AND PRESIDENT ECHOLS. THANK YOU. OKAY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. FIRST, I'M GOING TO ASK DIRECTOR COFFEY TO RECITE, LEAD US IN THE RECITATION OF THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. [PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE] WILL DO, THANK YOU. AND, DIRECTOR ROSARIO. [LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT] CAN YOU LEAD US IN THE LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT, PLEASE. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. WE HUMBLY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE ARE ON THE UNCEDED LANDS OF THE OHLONE PEOPLE, AND THAT THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT HEADQUARTERS IS LOCATED WITHIN THE HUCHIUN TERRITORY, WHICH IS THEIR TRADITIONAL, ANCESTRAL AND SHARED HOME. SINCE TIME IMMEMORIAL, THE OHLONE PEOPLE HAVE AND CONTINUE TO LIVE IN RECIPROCITY WITH NATURE, UNDERSTANDING THE SEASONS AND CYCLES OF THE NATURAL WORLD, MANAGING RESOURCES FUNDAMENTAL FOR SURVIVAL, AND IMPORTANT TO CULTURAL PRACTICES, ALL WHILE PASSING DOWN THEIR KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERTISE. WE HONOR WITH GRATITUDE THE LAND ITSELF, THE WILDLIFE LIVING IN THESE LANDS AND THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE STEWARDED IT AND WHO CONTINUE TO REMAIN DEEPLY CONNECTED TO IT TODAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. OKAY. [APPROVAL OF AGENDA] WOULD SOMEONE LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE AGENDA? MAKE A MOTION. THANK YOU. OKAY. MOTION BY DIRECTOR SANWONG. SECOND BY DIRECTOR MERCURIO. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED. MOTION CARRIES. SO I UNDERSTAND WE HAVE NO SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS TODAY. SO WE'LL MOVE ON TO PUBLIC COMMENTS. [PUBLIC COMMENT ON ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA] NOT ON THE AGENDA. MADAM CLERK, CAN YOU EXPLAIN TO THE PUBLIC HOW TO SUBMIT THEIR PUBLIC COMMENTS? YES. EXCUSE ME. MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WISHING TO MAKE A COMMENT COMMENT CAN DO SO BY SUBMITTING AN EMAIL OR LEAVING A VOICEMAIL. STEPPING TO THE PODIUM TO COMMENT IN PERSON AND ALL OF THESE ITEMS. THIS ITEM IS. THIS INFORMATION IS NOTED ON THE AGENDA. THE SUBMISSION OF PUBLIC COMMENTS WAS NOTICED ON THE AGENDA AND THE BOARD PACKET WAS POSTED ON THE PARK DISTRICT'S WEBSITE. ALL EMAILS RECEIVED PRIOR TO THE DEADLINE OF MONDAY, JULY 29TH HAVE BEEN DISTRIBUTED TO THE BOARD AND THE EXECUTIVE TEAM. ANY EMAILS THAT HAVE COME IN AFTER THIS DATE WILL BE PROVIDED TO THE BOARD AFTER THIS MEETING. THANK YOU. IF YOU'RE HERE TO GIVE A COMMENT REGARDING AN ITEM ON THE AGENDA, THE CLERK WILL CALL YOUR NAME WHEN THAT ITEM COMES UP FOR PUBLIC COMMENT AND SO AT THIS TIME, WE'LL CONSIDER ANY ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA. MADAM CLERK, HAVE WE RECEIVED ANY EMAILS OR SPEAKER CARDS FROM THE PUBLIC FOR ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA? YES, MADAM PRESIDENT, WE HAVE ONE SPEAKER FOR AN ITEM THAT IS NOT ON THE AGENDA, RENEE PATTERSON, IF YOU COULD, PLEASE. [00:05:07] YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES, MA'AM. THANK YOU. GOOD AFTERNOON, MEMBERS OF THE BOARD. MY NAME IS RENEE PATTERSON. I'M AN ADMIN ANALYST 2 IN OPERATIONS IN THE BUSINESS SERVICES DEPARTMENT, AND I WORK HERE AT PERALTA OAKS ON THE THIRD FLOOR. SO I'M HERE TO REMIND YOU ABOUT THE PERBS FILING STATED CALIFORNIA PUBLIC EMPLOYEE BOARD. WE HAVE OR ASKED ME FILED AN UNFAIR PRACTICE CHARGE ON AUGUST 26TH, 2022, AND THE CHARGE WAS FOR BAD FAITH BARGAINING INTERFERENCE, DIRECT DEALING AND UNILATERAL IMPLEMENTATION. SO THIS IS MY REMINDER. I'LL COME EVERY MEETING UNTIL I HEAR SOMETHING HAPPENS. I KIND OF HEARD A RUMOR THAT SOMETHING HAPPENED, BUT NOT ANY KIND OF RESOLUTION. TO WHAT OR TO THE FILING. SO AND IT'S JUST A RUMOR. SO ANYWAY I'LL CONTINUE TO COME UNTIL I HEAR SOMETHING DEFINITIVE ABOUT THIS FILING. THANK YOU. OKAY. THANK YOU. SO AT THIS POINT, I UNDERSTAND WE HAVE A COUPLE OF ANNOUNCEMENTS. [ANNOUNCEMENTS] DO YOU WANT TO. WHY DON'T YOU START? OKAY, GREAT. I JUST WANTED TO, IS KAREN MCCLENDON IN THE HOUSE. PLEASE COME ON DOWN. YES. COME ON DOWN. I JUST WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE KAREN, YOUR 40 YEARS OF SERVICE TO THE PARK DISTRICT. I THINK YOU ARE PROBABLY THE MOST BELOVED AND RESPECTED EMPLOYEE IN THE PARK DISTRICT, AND I THINK ALL OF US HERE ON THE BOARD JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU A SPECIAL RECOGNITION, AND I WANTED TO PRESENT YOU WITH SOME WITH A SMALL GIFT. SMALL GIFT OF OUR APPRECIATION. OH. THAT IS SO BEAUTIFUL. WHAT'S THAT? WELL, IF I CAN ADDRESS THE BOARD, IT'S A VERY RARE THING TO BE OUT IN PUBLIC SPEAKING. IT'S MORE OVER THE TELEPHONE, AND PEOPLE ALWAYS RECOGNIZE MY VOICE AND KNOW WHEN I HAVE A COLD OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT. BUT I DO WANT TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO THANK EVERYONE WITHIN THE PARK DISTRICT, WHETHER THEY ARE RETIRED OR EVEN OUR NEWBIES. IT IS A GREAT HONOR TO BE HERE IN THESE 40 YEARS HAS REALLY GONE BY FAST, BUT IT'S THE FACT THAT EACH ONE OF YOU GUYS HAVE PROVIDED SO MUCH OF LOVE TO ME, AND I TAKE THAT AND PRESENT THAT OUTWARD, AND I WANT EVERYONE TO, WHEN THEY COME TO THE PARK DISTRICT OR BE AT AND IN THE PARKS THAT THEY ENJOY AND HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO SEE WHAT WE SEE AND SEE BEHIND THE SCENES OF WHAT THE WORK WE'RE DOING. YOU GUYS ARE ALL AMAZING, AND IF I CAN EACH DAY TOUCH EACH ONE OF YOU TO SAY THANK YOU BECAUSE WE DON'T KNOW WHAT EVERYONE'S LIFE IS IN THE BACKGROUND. BUT I KNOW WHEN YOU GUYS COME TO THE DISTRICT, YOU DO AMAZING THINGS AND YOU HAVE JUST MADE ME GROW IN SO MANY WAYS AND I'VE WATCHED YOU GROW AND YOU JUST DON'T KNOW HOW AMAZING EACH ONE OF YOU ARE. SO THANK YOU FOR THIS HONOR AND BY THE WAY, WE'RE ON 40 YEARS AND SO MANY DAYS NOW. SO I'M GOING FOR A YEAR FOR 41, 42, 43. BUT THANK YOU EACH ONE OF YOU GUYS FOR THIS BEAUTIFUL HONOR AND RECOGNITION. THANK YOU. KAREN, THANK YOU SO MUCH. WE REALLY APPRECIATE YOU. WE APPRECIATE YOUR 40 YEARS OF SERVICE AND KINDNESS AND REALLY EXCEPTIONAL FRIENDSHIP TO EVERYONE. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU. OKAY. WE HAVE ONE MORE ANNOUNCEMENT AND I THINK AGM LISA GOORJIAN IS GOING TO COME UP TO THE PODIUM FOR THIS. OKAY. GOOD AFTERNOON. LISA GOORJIAN ASSISTANT GENERAL MANAGER OF OPERATIONS. I AM SO EXCITED. THANK YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO ANNOUNCE THE NEW CHIEF OF PARK OPERATIONS IS ROBERT KENNEDY. [00:10:03] SO I JUST WANTED TO WELCOME HIM AND JUST SAY A FEW WORDS. SO YOU CAN COME UP AND THEN I'LL. YEAH. SO ROBERT JOINED THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT AS CHIEF OF MAINTENANCE AND SKILLED TRADES IN 2021. DURING HIS TENURE, HE OVERSAW SIGNIFICANT GROWTH IN THE DEPARTMENT, INCLUDING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A MAJOR MAINTENANCE TEAM, A SMALL TRAILS CREW, AN AFTER HOURS SEWER STANDBY OPERATIONS FOR EMERGENCY CALL SERVICE, AND A SWING SHIFT AT THE TILDEN MECHANIC SHOP AND THAT'S JUST A FEW. HE IS A NATIVE OF CALIFORNIA FROM SACRAMENTO. HE MOVED TO THE BAY AREA TO ATTEND UC BERKELEY, WHERE HE WAS ON THE TRACK AND FIELD TEAM, AND HE ALSO RECEIVED A DEGREE FROM THE COLLEGE OF ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN WITH A FOCUS ON LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE. WE'RE KINDRED SPIRITS. YEAH. SO AND IN ADDITION TO BRINGING OVER 15 YEARS OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT PARK AND OPERATIONS EXPERIENCE, HE IS A GRADUATE OF THE ALAMEDA COUNTY LEADERSHIP ACADEMY AND THE CONTRA COSTA COUNTY LEADERSHIP ACADEMY. HE HOLDS I'M GOING TO STOP NOW. HE HAS A LONG RESUME AND WE'RE JUST SO THRILLED THAT HE'S HERE. SO I JUST WANT TO INTRODUCE ROBERT. THANK YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY AND I LOOK FORWARD TO GROWING WITH OUR PARK OPERATIONS TEAM. THIS IS MY COMFORT ZONE. THIS IS WHAT I'VE BEEN TRAINED PROFESSIONALLY TO DO. IS PARK'S MANAGEMENT AND I FEEL VERY PRIVILEGED AND BLESSED TO BE GIVEN THIS OPPORTUNITY. SO I WANT TO CONTINUE MOVING FORWARD WITH OPERATIONS JUST IN A NEW PATH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. CONGRATULATIONS. I JUST WANTED TO LET ROBERT KNOW. CONGRATULATIONS. IT WASN'T THAT LONG AGO I HAD FORMED AN AD HOC COMMITTEE WITH THE CITY OF OAKLAND WITH MYSELF AND DOCTOR ALVAREZ AND DOCTOR ALVAREZ SAW SOMETHING SPECIAL IN YOU AND LOOK WHERE YOU'RE AT NOW. SO CONGRATULATIONS AGAIN AND IT'S GOOD TO SEE. THANK YOU. OKAY, SO WE'RE MOVING ON TO THE CONSENT CALENDAR. [CONSENT CALENDAR] HAVE THE VARIOUS BOARD MEMBER QUESTIONS BEEN ANSWERED ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR. EVERYBODY. IT'S OKAY. ALL RIGHT. AND WE ARE GOING TO PULL THE FINAL ITEM, NUMBER 14, JUST TO MAKE A CORRECTION IN THE TITLE. IT SHOULD BE MEASURE AA, NOT MEASURE WW IS WHERE THE FUNDS THE 150,000 WILL COME FROM. SO AT THIS POINT I'LL ASK FOR A MOTION TO APPROVE THE CONSENT CALENDAR FOR EVERYTHING EXCEPT FOR ITEM 14, AND WE'LL VOTE ON THAT ONE SEPARATELY. I HAVE A MOTION SO MOVED. THANK YOU. SECOND OKAY. MOTION BY DIRECTOR WAESPI. SECOND BY DIRECTOR MERCURIO. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED. MOTION CARRIES. OKAY. PRESIDENT ECHOLS. I NEGLECTED TO MENTION WE DO HAVE A MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC THAT IS GOING TO COMMENT ON ITEM NUMBER NINE ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR. OKAY. WHICH WOULD BE AUTHORIZATION TO USE UP TO $15,000 IN BOARD CONTINGENCY FUNDS, CONTINGENCY FUNDS FOR DEFERRED COMPENSATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBERS. AND THAT IS ROSS MITCHELL. YOU HAVE 3 MINUTES, SIR. THANK YOU. HELLO BOARD OF DIRECTORS. I JUST WANTED TO THANK THE BOARD FOR THEIR SUPPORT ON GETTING TRAINING FOR THE MEMBERS OF THAT DEFERRED COMPENSATION COMMITTEE. WE THINK THAT WILL BE A REALLY GOOD CONFERENCE. MEMBERS THAT HAVE GONE IN THE PAST HAVE SAID THEY REALLY LEARNED A LOT. SO AGAIN, WE JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU. WE THINK THAT'LL MAKE THAT COMMITTEE A LOT MORE EFFECTIVE IN HELPING GET OUR MEMBERS ENROLLED AND SAVING CORRECTLY, OR SAVING IN A MANNER THAT WILL SET THEM UP FOR SUCCESS FOR RETIREMENT AND WE APPRECIATE YOUR SUPPORT IN PROVIDING FUNDING. THANK YOU. OKAY, SO NOW WE'LL TAKE A VOTE ON ITEM 14. DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? IT'S BASICALLY THE SAME SUBSTANCE, EXCEPT THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE TAKING THE MONEY FROM MEASURE AA INSTEAD OF MEASURE WW. [00:15:03] SO WE'RE MAKING THAT CORRECTION ON THIS ITEM. OKAY. CAN SOMEONE PLEASE MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE IT. THANK YOU. I MOVE APPROVAL. OKAY I'LL SECOND. THANK YOU. MOTION BY DIRECTOR MERCURIO AND SECOND BY DIRECTOR ROSARIO. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES. OKAY, SO I TAKE IT. I ASSUME, MADAM CLERK, WE DON'T HAVE ANYONE ELSE WHO WANTED TO SPEAK ON THE CONSENT CALENDAR. NO. OKAY. THEN IN THAT CASE WE WILL MOVE ON TO THE GENERAL MANAGER'S OFFICE. [GENERAL MANAGER'S OFFICE] THE RECOMMENDED PILOT CHANGE TO THE BOARD MEETING AGENDA. HELLO BOARD MEMBERS. GOOD AFTERNOON. THE ITEM BEFORE YOU PROPOSES A PILOT CHANGE TO YOUR BOARD MEETING. AGENDA STRUCTURE TO ADD A SECTION WHERE BOARD MEMBERS CAN REQUEST FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS FOR BOARD MEETINGS. THIS IS A PILOT CHANGE BECAUSE IF SUCCESSFUL, IT WILL REQUIRE A CHANGE TO YOUR BOARD OPERATING GUIDELINES. BUT WE WANT TO SEE IF WE CAN TEST THIS OUT WHEN WE COME BACK IN SEPTEMBER AHEAD OF GOING THROUGH THAT WHOLE PROCESS. SO. OKAY. THANK YOU AND DO I HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM BOARD MEMBERS ON THIS? DIRECTOR COFFEY JUST A COMMENT, I SUPPORT IT AND THANK AMANDA FOR ALL HER WORK. GOING INTO THIS, I SAW IT ON THE EXEC COMMITTEE AGENDA, AND I WANTED TO MAKE A DISTINCTION BETWEEN AN EXISTING RIGHT EVERY BOARD MEMBER HAS, UNDER OUR OPERATING GUIDELINES AND UNDER THE BROWN ACT, AND RUN IT BY LEGAL COUNSEL, WHICH I DID AND IT'S IMPORTANT, AT LEAST FOR ME, THAT THERE'S A DISTINCTION IN WHAT'S GOING ON HERE WITH OUR ABILITY TO PLACE THINGS ON FUTURE AGENDAS, THIS ONE STRIKES ME AS A REASONABLE, APPROPRIATE WAY TO PLACE ITEMS THAT A BOARD MEMBER OR BOARD MEMBERS COLLECTIVELY WANT TO TEE UP FOR FEEDBACK FROM MANAGEMENT. WE CAN ALL THINK OF ISSUES THAT WE WISH COULD GET ON AN AGENDA AT SOME POINT, JUST SO THAT WE COULD HEAR FROM MANAGEMENT ON WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE TOPIC OR JUST SPECIFIC FEEDBACK ON A STATUS OR MANAGEMENT THOUGHTS ON AN ISSUE. SO THAT'S WHAT THIS STRIKES ME AS GOOD FOR. IF WE HAVE AN ISSUE, WE WANT TO TEE UP TO HAVE MANAGEMENT DO A REPORT TO US ON IT AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE KNOW HASN'T BEEN GETTING ON OUR AGENDAS AND THAT WE REALLY FEEL WANT TO BE ON THE AGENDA. THAT'S ONE CATEGORY AND THAT'S WHERE THIS RULE OR FUTURE, IF WE ADOPT IT FOR THE OPERATING GUIDELINES THE EQUIVALENT OF A BYLAW PROVISION. WHAT FOR ME WAS IMPORTANT IS THAT THE BOARD RETAIN ITS ABILITY AS INDIVIDUALS OR COLLECTIVELY UNDER OUR OPERATING GUIDELINES SUPPORTED BY THE BROWN ACT, WHICH SUGGESTS THAT OUTSIDE ANY MEETING, ANY TIME, ANY PLACE, ANYWHERE, WITHOUT ANY DISCRETION ON HOW THE REQUEST IS TREATED, I.E. IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE INFORMATIONAL ONLY, IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE BASED ON STAFF AVAILABILITY OR THE BOARD PRESIDENT OR AND GENERAL MANAGER AGREEING TO PUT IT ON THE AGENDA. WE HAVE AN ABSOLUTE RIGHT, AGAIN, UNDER OUR OPERATING BYLAWS AND THE BROWN ACT, TO PLACE AN ITEM ON THE AGENDA, AND IT CAN BE FOR ACTION. IT CAN BE JUST BECAUSE YOU AND I WANT TO HAVE AN ITEM ON THE AGENDA, AND IT TAKES A SECOND, IT TAKES ANOTHER BOARD MEMBER UNDER OUR OPERATING GUIDELINES TO SAY, YES, I WANT THAT ITEM ON THE AGENDA. SO IMPORTANT TO ME TO MAKE THAT DISTINCTION THAT WE STILL RETAIN THAT ABILITY. I HAD AN EXCHANGE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL TO CONFIRM THAT. SO I SUPPORT THIS. I THINK IT HAS A VERY SPECIFIC ROLE AND A GOOD ONE AND I APPRECIATE AGAIN THE WORK THAT WENT INTO IT. THANK YOU. ANYONE ELSE? OKAY. ALL RIGHT. CAN I GET A MOTION THEN, PLEASE? THANK YOU. SECOND. OKAY. MOTION BY DIRECTOR SANWONG. SECOND BY DIRECTOR ROSARIO. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED? OKAY. MOTION CARRIES. THANK YOU, AMANDA, FOR YOUR HELP WITH THAT. [00:20:07] OKAY. SO NOW WE HAVE THE PRESENTATION ON VOTER SURVEY FINDINGS FROM APRIL 2024. ERICH PFUEHLER, CHIEF OF GOVERNMENT AND LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS. VERY PLEASED TO HELP PRESENT OR INTRODUCE THIS ITEM TODAY. I WANTED TO RECOGNIZE IN ATTENDANCE BEN TULCHIN, THE POLLSTER, THE LEAD POLLSTER FOR THIS PARTICULAR SURVEY. BEN IS NATIONALLY KNOWN FOR BOTH WORK IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL SPACE AS WELL AS ELECTED WITH ELECTED OFFICIALS. THIS SURVEY WAS BASED ON QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH THAT WE DID WITH FOUR FOCUS GROUPS. THE FOCUS GROUPS WERE ONE GROUP OF MEN, 30 TO 54. I WOULD SAY IN GENERAL, THEIR PRIMARY INTERESTS WERE ACCOUNTABILITY WITH THE TAX DOLLARS AND DEMONSTRATING NEED FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDING. WOMEN 50 TO 72 WERE VERY INTERESTED IN PROTECTING OUR LAND FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS. AAPI GROUP WERE MORE OPTIMISTIC ABOUT THE ECONOMY AND THE DIRECTION. RIGHT TRACK, WRONG TRACK. BUT THEY HAD STRONG CONCERNS ABOUT WILDFIRE AND THEN THE LATINX COMMUNITY WERE VERY CONCERNED ABOUT SAFETY AND ECONOMIC CONCERNS. BUT THEY DID. THERE WAS A COMMON IN THAT GROUP THAT PARKS ARE A SAFE HAVEN FROM CRIME. ALL THE GROUPS RECOGNIZE THE CHANGES IN EXTREME WEATHER AND THE IMPACTS THAT IS HAVING ON OUR LAND, AND IDENTIFIED THAT AS A NEED THAT HAD BEEN UNFORESEEN IN PREVIOUS YEARS AND WOULD NEED ADDITIONAL RESOURCES TO HELP MAINTAIN OUR PARKS. AND THEY ALSO, ONCE THEY SAW THE SIZE OF THE PARK DISTRICT, UNDERSTOOD THE VASTNESS AND THE NEED FOR ADDITIONAL EMPLOYEES AND ADDITIONAL FUNDING. SO WITH THAT, I THINK I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE BEN COME UP TO TALK ABOUT THE SURVEY RESULTS FROM THE QUALITATIVE RESEARCH THAT WE DID. I HAVE ONE QUESTION BEFORE YOU START. HOW CAN THE BLACK POPULATION WAS NOT INCLUDED? THE MATHEMATICS, SURE, THEY WERE INCLUDED IN THE SURVEY, BUT THE FOCUS GROUPS, WE FOCUSED ON GROUPS THAT WERE LARGE ENOUGH TO BREAK OUT. SO AFRICAN AMERICAN POPULATION IS INCLUDED IN THE SURVEY, THE QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH, BUT NOT THE QUALITATIVE BECAUSE THEY'RE RELATIVELY SMALLER PERCENTAGE OF THE ELECTORATE. OKAY. THANK YOU. WELL, THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME TODAY. THANK YOU, ERICH, FOR THAT INTRODUCTION. IT'S GOOD TO SEE SOME OF YOU AGAIN AND APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO CONTINUE WORKING WITH THE PARK DISTRICT. SO JUST TO GIVE YOU AN OVERVIEW, THIS IS THE POLL AND WE'VE WRAPPED THE FOCUS GROUPS INTO THIS PRESENTATION AS WELL AND THE POLL REFLECTED WHAT WE LEARNED IN THE FOCUS GROUPS. SO JUST FOR THE SURVEY RESEARCH, WE DID 800 LIKELY IN NOVEMBER 2024, VOTERS ASSESSING A PARCEL TAX AS WELL AS ATTITUDES ABOUT THE PARK DISTRICT. WE'RE IN THE FIELD BACK IN APRIL AND THE MARGIN OF ERROR IS PLUS OR -3.5% AND JUST SO FOLKS UNDERSTAND OUR METHODOLOGY, AS THE POLLING INDUSTRY'S EVOLVED, NOW WE USE WHAT WE CALL A MULTIMODAL METHODOLOGY, WHICH WE CALL LIVE. WE DO LIVE INTERVIEWS BY PHONE CALLING, LANDLINES AND CELL PHONES. WE ALSO TEXT AN ONLINE SURVEY LINK TO A CELL PHONES. THEN WE EMAIL VOTERS FROM THE VOTER FILE AND ONLINE EMAIL LINK AND WE DO INTERVIEWS IN ENGLISH, SPANISH AND CHINESE AND SO JUST BROADLY SPEAKING, VOTERS ARE FAIRLY GRUMPY. THEY'RE FAIRLY VOTERS EVERYWHERE AROUND THE COUNTRY, INCLUDING HERE IN THE EAST BAY AND THIS IS A QUESTION WE ASK, A GENERAL QUESTION WE ASKED ABOUT HOW THEY FEEL ABOUT THINGS IN ALAMEDA COUNTY OR CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, DEPENDING ON WHICH COUNTY THEY LIVE IN AND A MAJORITY FEEL THAT THINGS ARE ON THE WRONG TRACK IN THEIR COUNTY. ALAMEDA COUNTY VOTERS ARE EVEN MORE PESSIMISTIC THAN CONTRA COSTA COUNTY VOTERS AND THEN THERE'S BEEN A RISE OF CYNICISM AND PESSIMISM OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS AND QUITE FRANKLY, WHAT WE'VE SEEN BROADLY AROUND CALIFORNIA, AROUND THE COUNTRY IS THAT AS INFLATION STARTED TO BITE AND IMPACT PEOPLE'S POCKETBOOKS, THEY FELT INCREASINGLY PESSIMISTIC ABOUT EVERYTHING AND SO THIS, YOU SEE IN ALAMEDA COUNTY, RISE IN ATTITUDES AND PESSIMISTIC ATTITUDES AND EVEN IN CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, THERE'S SLIGHTLY MORE PESSIMISM. THE GOOD NEWS IS EAST BAY PARK REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT ATTITUDES HAVEN'T CHANGED. PEOPLE ARE STILL VERY STILL FEEL VERY GOOD ABOUT THE PARK DISTRICT AND THE JOB YOU'RE DOING AND MAINTAINING REGIONAL PARKS AND TRAILS. 77% APPROVE. ONLY 7% DISAPPROVE IN THE RECENT SURVEY. NOW THERE IS A SEGMENT OF THE ELECTORATE, 16% THAT'S UNFAMILIAR WITH YOUR WORK AND THAT WOULD BE AN OPPORTUNITY FOR OUTREACH AND EDUCATION IF YOU WERE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE PARCEL TAX BUT BY AND LARGE, FOR A PUBLIC AGENCY TO RECEIVE SUCH HIGHER MARKS IS REMARKABLE AND HIGHLY UNUSUAL AND YOU DESERVE A LOT OF CREDIT FOR THE EXCELLENT JOB THAT [00:25:04] YOU'RE DOING MAINTAINING PARKS AND THAT VOTERS ARE AWARE OF THAT. THE FULL PRESENTATION IS IN YOUR PACKET. SO I'M GOING TO HIGHLIGHT SOME OF THE KEY FINDINGS HERE. SO I HAVE TIME FOR QUESTIONS FROM THE BOARD IF YOU HAVE THEM FOR ME. BUT A SOLID MAJORITY OF VOTERS BELIEVE YOU COULD BENEFIT FROM ADDITIONAL FUNDING. SO KIND OF THE KIND OF THE FOUNDATION FOR A POTENTIAL PARCEL TAX IF YOU WERE TO GO FORWARD WITH ONE, BUT 26% AREN'T AWARE OF ANY NEEDS FOR FUNDING. SO THAT IS, AGAIN, AN AREA OF OPPORTUNITY FOR VOTER EDUCATION AND PERSUASION. IF YOU WERE TO GO FORWARD WITH A PARCEL TAX, YOU KNOW, I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO DO A VOTER EDUCATION OUTREACH EFFORT TO MAKE MAKE VOTERS MORE AWARE OF THE NEEDS OF YOUR DISTRICT SO THAT THERE'S MORE SUPPORT FOR SUCH A PARCEL TAX. IN TERMS OF A SPECIFIC PARCEL TAX, THIS IS WE TESTED A $24 PARCEL TAX. HERE'S THE LANGUAGE WE USED, AND IT'S BUILT ON PAST SURVEYS WE'VE DONE, INCLUDING THE FOCUS GROUPS AND HOW TO SHAPE KIND OF OPTIMAL LANGUAGE AND WE FOUND 61% OF VOTERS IN THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT WILLING TO SUPPORT A $24 A YEAR PARCEL TAX. NOT QUITE THE TWO THIRDS NEEDED TO PASS, BUT CLOSE AND YOU HAVE 33% WHO ARE NO. CURRENTLY NO AND 6% UNDECIDED. SO YOU'RE WITHIN STRIKING DISTANCE, BUT NOT QUITE THERE YET AND THIS IS KIND OF A CURRENT POLLING DATA COMPARED TO PAST POLLING DATA, INCLUDING OUR POLL FROM EARLY 2023, WHERE THERE WAS LOWER SUPPORT FOR A $24 PARTIAL TAX. SO THE GOOD NEWS IS, AS WE COMING OUT OF THE HIGH SPIKE OF INFLATION AS INFLATION HAS FALLEN, THERE'S MORE SUPPORT. WE'VE ALSO REVISED THE BALLOT LANGUAGE REFLECTING ON PAST RESEARCH TO MAKE IT STRONGER. SO YOU'VE MADE PROGRESS AT 61%. YES WITH 33%. NO. LAST TIME THAT THE NO WAS YOU KNOW, CLEARLY ENOUGH TO PREVENT ANY POTENTIAL PARTIAL TAX, BUT YOU'RE NOW WITHIN STRIKING DISTANCE. SO THERE'S BEEN PROGRESS THANKS TO I THINK, THE DROP OF INFLATION AS WELL AS REVISING THE BALLOT LABEL THAT WE TESTED THANKS TO THE RESEARCH WE'VE DONE IN WE LEARNING IN THIS ERA OF INFLATION THAT VOTERS ARE VERY COST SENSITIVE. WE TESTED DIFFERENT DOLLAR AMOUNTS 24, 30 AND 36, WHICH IS, IF YOU THINK ABOUT NOT A LOT MORE MONEY PER YEAR FOR THE AVERAGE TAXPAYER, BUT VOTERS BACKED AWAY FROM ANYTHING ABOVE $24. SO IT TELLS US, YOU KNOW, LOOK, IF INFLATION CONTINUES TO DROP, IF THE ECONOMY CONTINUES TO STRENGTHEN, THEY MAY THESE ATTITUDES MAY CHANGE. BUT AS OF NOW, WE FOUND 24 TO BE THE ABSOLUTE UPPER LIMIT. IN TERMS OF HOW MUCH YOU COULD ASK FOR VOTERS THAT BE WILLING TO EVEN CONSIDER SUPPORTING AND THEN THERE'S IN TERMS OF DEMOGRAPHICS WOMEN ARE MORE LIKELY TO SUPPORT A PARCEL TAX THAN MEN. YOUNGER VOTERS ARE MORE LIKELY TO SUPPORT IT THAN VOTERS 50-40 AND OVER AND WHAT THAT TELLS US IS YOU PROBABLY WANT TO GO FORWARD ON A PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION YEAR WHERE THERE'S HIGHER TURNOUT, PARTICULARLY WITH A YOUNGER VOTERS. SO THAT'S AN INDICATION OF IF YOU WERE TO GO FORWARD WITH SOMETHING, THE TIMING OF THAT AND THEN IN TERMS OF ETHNICITY, ERICH TALKED ABOUT WHO THE FOCUS GROUPS WE DID WITH. WE SEE CAUCASIAN VOTERS ARE MORE LIKELY TO SUPPORT A PARCEL TAX. LATINOS. WE'RE SEEING THIS NOT JUST THE BAY AREA. THROUGHOUT CALIFORNIA, LATINOS ARE DISPROPORTIONATELY WORKING CLASS AND HAVE BEEN REALLY IMPACTED BY INFLATION AND THEY WE'VE SEEN LATINOS THROUGHOUT CALIFORNIA PULL BACK ON WILLINGNESS TO SUPPORT REVENUE MEASURES. SO YOU'RE NOT ALONE IN SEEING SUPPORT WITH LATINOS. BE NOT AS GOOD AS YOU NEED THEM TO BE TO PASS A PARCEL TAX AND THE AAPI COMMUNITY IS MORE SUPPORTIVE, BUT NOT TO THE LEVELS AS CAUCASIAN VOTERS ARE. SO THERE'S STILL WORK TO DO AND THE LATINO COMMUNITY AND THE AAPI COMMUNITY AND THEN RENTERS MORE LIKELY TO SUPPORT, OBVIOUSLY THEY'RE NOT REALLY PAYING FOR IT DIRECTLY AND HOMEOWNERS. SO THERE'S MORE EDUCATION. I THINK THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE WITH HOMEOWNERS AND THEN YOU SEE, OPTIMISTS ARE MORE LIKELY TO SUPPORT IT THAN PESSIMISTS AND THAT'S WHY I SHOWED YOU THAT SLIDE ABOUT COUNTY DIRECTION. THE BETTER VOTERS FEEL ABOUT LIFE, COUNTRY, STATE OR COUNTY, THE MORE WILLING THEY ARE TO SUPPORT FUNDING FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS. RIGHT AND SO WITH VOTERS BEING A LITTLE BIT PESSIMISTIC RIGHT NOW, IT'S HARDER TO GALVANIZE SUPPORT FOR FUNDING AND THAT'S WE'RE SEEING THIS NOT JUST, AGAIN IN THE EAST BAY, BUT UP AND DOWN CALIFORNIA. AND THEN JUST TO GROUPS THAT IF YOU DO ENGAGE IN A VOTER EDUCATION OUTREACH EFFORT, AT SOME POINT, IF YOU DO GO FORWARD WITH A PARCEL TAX THESE ARE THE VOTERS WHO ARE MOST LIKELY TO BE PERSUADED TO SUPPORT YOUR EFFORTS AND YOU SEE, THEY'RE DISPROPORTIONATELY NPP HAS NO PARTY PREFERENCE FOR INDEPENDENCE AND A LOT OF ASIAN AMERICAN VOTERS ARE REPRESENTED ON THIS SLIDE. SO THOSE ARE TWO KEY CONSTITUENCIES INDEPENDENCE AND ASIAN AMERICANS AND YOU SAW WOMEN ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE OPEN TO INFORMATION THAN MEN ON THIS TOPIC. IN TERMS OF MESSAGING. SO WE GAVE THEM MORE INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT A PARTIAL TAX COULD DO OR HOW THE FUNDING COULD BE USED AND WE SAW AN INCREASE IN SUPPORT. [00:30:06] WE WENT FROM 61% TO 64%. SO THAT IS ENCOURAGING. THERE IS SOME FLEXIBILITY WITHIN THE ELECTORATE AND YOU DO INCREASE SUPPORT. YOU SEE A HUGE INCREASE IN THE DEFINITE YES TO 41% DEFINITE YES. THAT'S IN MY VIEW WINNING TERRITORY FOR PASSING IT, GETTING TWO THIRDS SUPPORT. SO YOU WITH INFORMATION YOU ARE ABLE TO MOVE VOTERS TO TO YOUR SIDE AND YOU DO KNOCK DOWN THE NO VOTE A BIT. SO YOU'RE 64. 30 IS ONE OF THOSE. IF YOU STARTED OFF WITH THAT IN THIS POLL, THAT WOULD BE A POTENTIAL GREEN LIGHT TO MOVE FORWARD WITH, A PARTIAL TAX. NOW, IF YOU'RE STARTING AT 61%, BUT 64%. SO WITH PERSUASION AND EDUCATION YOU DO INCREASE YOUR SUPPORT AND WHAT WE FOUND IS WE DID TWO DIFFERENT KIND OF FORMS OF VOTER EDUCATION. WE DID KIND OF TESTING INDIVIDUAL POLICIES AND A SERIES OF THEM IN A BATTERY, A LENGTHY BATTERY, AND THEN WE FOLLOWED UP WITH THEMATIC MESSAGES AND THE NUMBER ONE TESTING ELEMENT, YOU KNOW, FUNDING PRIORITY IS TO CLEAN UP DUMPING, CLEAN UP, THE ILLEGAL DUMPING OF MATTRESSES, APPLIANCES, OLD CARS AND TOXIC CHEMICALS THAT OCCURS IN AROUND PARKLAND. I WANT TO CREDIT ERICH AND HIS COLLEAGUE LISA FOR HIGHLIGHTING THIS BECAUSE IN OUR DISCUSSIONS, THEY BROUGHT THIS UP AS AN ISSUE. LIKE THIS IS SOMETHING THAT'S BEEN HAPPENING AROUND PARK DISTRICTS. WE'VE NEVER PULLED ON THIS ISSUE BEFORE. WE TEST IT IN FOCUS GROUPS, AND IT REALLY RESONATED WITH OUR FOCUS GROUP PARTICIPANTS. THEY SAID, YES, IT'S A PROBLEM. THEY'RE SEEING IT, AND THEN WE INCLUDE IT IN THE SURVEY, AND IT'S THE NUMBER ONE TESTING ITEM IN THE POLL AND EVEN TRUMPING WILDFIRE RISK, WHICH HAS BEEN THE DOMINANT ISSUE FOR YEARS AND SO NOW WE DID INCLUDE IT IN THE PARCEL TAX BECAUSE WE WEREN'T SURE HOW WELL IT WOULD TEST. BUT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT IF YOU WERE TO GO TO VOTERS AND SAY, HEY, THIS IS HAPPENING BECAUSE THEY'RE AWARE OF IT, WE NEED MORE FUNDING. THIS COULD INCREASE SUPPORT FOR A PARCEL TAX. I KNOW LISA AND ERICH ARE WORKING ON POLICIES CURRENTLY TO TRY TO TO CLEAN UP THE PARK, BUT I CAN TELL JUST FROM ANECDOTALLY, I WROTE IN THE GRIZZLY PEAK BIKE RIDE, WHICH IS BASICALLY A TOUR OF YOUR BEAUTIFUL PARKS THROUGHOUT THE EAST BAY AND I SAW EXACTLY WHAT VOTERS WERE TALKING ABOUT OUTSIDE OF ALL YOUR PARKS, JUST, YOU KNOW, APPLIANCES, MATTRESSES, CARS. SO CLEARLY IT'S A PROBLEM. VOTERS ARE AWARE IT'S A PROBLEM AND THEY ARE WILLING TO SPEND MORE MONEY TO ADDRESS IT. SO AND THEN WILDFIRE RISK, OBVIOUSLY AND WE PULLED IN APRIL AFTER A WET WINTER IF WE WERE TO PULL IN THE FALL IN THE MIDDLE OF A VERY BAD FIRE SEASON, I WOULD IMAGINE, YOU KNOW, THAT WOULD EVEN RESONATE EVEN MORE WITH VOTERS PRESERVING PARKLANDS AND TRAILS FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS. ALSO VERY POWERFUL ISSUE. ACCOUNTABILITY AND OVERSIGHT AUDITS. CLEARLY THAT'S AN ISSUE. ERICH MENTIONED THAT WITH SPECIFIC SUBGROUPS IN PARTICULAR TO AND THIS IS WHERE VOTERS ARE SO PESSIMISTIC AND CYNICAL RIGHT NOW. WHEN YOU ASK THEM FOR MORE MONEY, THEY WANT REASSURANCE THAT YOU'RE GOING TO SPEND IT PROPERLY. SO THE HAVING AN AUDITS, HAVING OVERSIGHT IS CRITICAL FOR ANY PUBLIC FUNDING. RIGHT. INCREASE RIGHT NOW AND THEN ERICH MENTIONED THE EXTREME WEATHER PIECE. SO ENSURING THE DISTRICT HAS THE RESOURCES IT NEEDS TO DEAL WITH THE IMPACT FROM EXTREME WEATHER, INCLUDING DANGER FROM MORE SEVERE STORMS, WILDFIRES, FLOODING, DROUGHT AND TOXIC ALGAE BLOOMS. VOTERS WERE VERY RESPONSIVE IN THE FOCUS GROUPS TO THIS, AND WE LEARNED IN THE POLL LIKE, YOU KNOW, THIS IS A BETTER A MORE EFFECTIVE WAY TO FRAME IT THAN USING THE TERM CLIMATE CHANGE. OBVIOUSLY IT'S SIMILAR, BUT CLIMATE CHANGE FOR SOME PEOPLE HAS BECOME POLITICIZED AND BECOME A PARTISAN ISSUE. SO DESCRIBING WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THE CLIMATE IN THIS THESE TERMS IS MORE EFFECTIVE. THIS IS OTHER ITEMS WE TESTED. YOU SEE, WE TESTED A LONG BATTERY OF THEM AND THESE DID WELL, BUT NOT QUITE AS WELL AS THAT FIRST PAGE AND AGAIN, THIS IS IN YOUR PACKET FOR REFERENCE, BUT AND THEN THESE ARE THE THEMATIC MESSAGES. NOW, WE DIDN'T TEST A STANDALONE THEME OF THE ILLEGAL DUMPING BECAUSE WE DIDN'T QUITE KNOW HOW WELL IT WOULD TEST. BUT NOW WE KNOW IT'S A TOP TESTING ISSUE, BUT THE NUMBER ONE THEME THAT WE DID TEST WAS THE WILDFIRE. RIGHT? IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS, THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA HAS EXPERIENCED THE WORST WILDFIRES IN RECORDED HISTORY. DROUGHT CONDITIONS, DRY AND DYING VEGETATION AND INCREASED TREE MORTALITY ACROSS THE EAST BAY REQUIRE ADDITIONAL RESOURCES TO MANAGE FIRE RESILIENT, SAFE AND HEALTHY FORESTS. WE NEED TO INCREASE FUNDING FOR VEGETATION MANAGEMENT, FIRE SAFETY EQUIPMENT AND ADDITIONAL FIREFIGHTERS TO PROTECT OUR COMMUNITY FROM CATASTROPHIC WILDFIRE. SO THAT WAS NUMBER ONE. LOOK AT THE INTENSITY. 42% FOUND THAT VERY CONVINCING, A VERY COMPELLING AND 68% TOTAL. SO IT GETS YOU ABOVE TO TWO THIRDS IN TERMS OF FINDING IT COMPELLING, PROTECTING IT FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS, ALSO VERY COMPELLING AND THEN MAINTAINING EXISTING PARKS AND, YOU KNOW, ALSO RESONATES YOU KNOW, LOOK WHAT WE FOUND IN THE FOCUS GROUPS IN THE POLLING AND ERICH MENTIONED, THIS IS WHEN YOU'RE GOING TO VOTERS AND ASKING THEM, YOU KNOW, FOR MORE MONEY, THEY WANT TO KNOW WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO DO WITH IT. RIGHT AND YOU SAW HOW STRONG YOUR JOB APPROVAL NUMBERS ARE AND IN A WAY, YOU'RE A VICTIM OF YOUR OWN SUCCESS. [00:35:03] VOTERS FEEL YOUR PARKS ARE HUGELY IMPORTANT PART OF THE LIFE IN THE EAST BAY. THEY'RE ALSO LIKE THEM, RIGHT? AND SO THEY DON'T SEE ANYTHING DRAMATICALLY WRONG WITH THEM RIGHT AWAY. NOW THE ILLEGAL DUMPING IS SOMETHING THEY'VE NOTICED IS SOMETHING THAT'S NEW AND DIFFERENT AND A PROBLEM. RIGHT. SO THAT'S THOSE ARE THE KINDS OF THINGS THEY'RE WILLING TO PAY MORE MONEY FOR. BUT IF YOU WITHOUT THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY DON'T NECESSARILY SEE WHAT THE PROBLEM IS AND WHY YOU NEED MORE MONEY. NOW SOME VOTERS DO. BUT THAT'S WHERE A VOTER EDUCATION PIECE IS GOING TO BE HUGELY IMPORTANT, BECAUSE THE ILLEGAL DUMPING PIECE, THEY'RE STARTING TO WEAR THAT. SO IF YOU CONNECT THE DOTS ON THAT, THE EXTREME WEATHER PIECE IN OUR FOCUS GROUPS, WE REALIZE VOTERS UNDERSTOOD THAT THINGS ARE CHANGING. RIGHT. YOU HAVE A BUDGET TO DO X, BUT NOW WE HAVE THESE EXTRAORDINARY CIRCUMSTANCES IMPOSING MORE OF A BURDEN ON YOU. SO AND THEN, AS ERICH MENTIONED, THE FOCUS GROUPS, WE SHOWED THEM A MAP OF THE PARK DISTRICT, AND THEY WERE BLOWN AWAY ABOUT HOW I MEAN, MOST PEOPLE ONLY EXPERIENCE YOUR PARKS AT THEIR REGIONAL OR LOCAL PARK, RIGHT? THEY OR MAYBE THEY HAVE ONE OTHER THAT THEY KNOW ABOUT. THEY DON'T REALIZE THAT YOU HAVE A VAST NUMBER OF PARKS COVERING SO MUCH TERRITORY, AND THEY'RE REALLY KIND OF LIT UP THEIR EYES AND SAID, OH, I CAN SEE WHY YOU'RE ASKING FOR MORE MONEY NOW. SO THAT'S WHAT WE LEARNED IN THE FOCUS GROUPS AS WELL AS THE SURVEY. YOU KNOW, EXTREME WEATHER MESSAGE DOES WELL TO SOME DEGREE AS WELL. BUT IT DOES BETTER MORE IMPORTANTLY THAN THE CLIMATE MESSAGE. WE TESTED A LOT OF MESSAGES. THESE DIDN'T TEST QUITE AS WELL, BUT JUST IN TERMS OF SUMMARIZING, YOU KNOW, HIGHLIGHTING THE POINT THAT VOTERS ARE PESSIMISTIC AND THEY'RE MORE PESSIMISTIC NOW THAN THEY WERE LAST YEAR THAT THEY CONTINUE TO HOLD THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT IN HIGH REGARD. AND IT REALLY IS IMPRESSIVE. AGAIN, IT'S RARE. I DO A LOT OF POLLING FOR PUBLIC AGENCIES, AND I'VE NOT I RARELY SEE NUMBERS OTHER THAN FIREFIGHTERS, AND THE FIRE DEPARTMENT RARELY SEE JOB APPROVAL NUMBERS LIKE THIS FOR PUBLIC AGENCY AND THAT, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE A MAJORITY SUPPORT, SOLID MAJORITY SUPPORT AND POTENTIAL TO INCREASE THAT SUPPORT WITH VOTER EDUCATION PARTICULARLY FOCUSED ON ILLEGAL DUMPING AND EXTREME WEATHER AND THE NEED FOR MAINTAINING YOUR VAST ARRAY OF PARKS FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS. BUT LET ME STOP THERE AND SEE IF FOLKS HAVE QUESTIONS. QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? DO YOU WANT TO GO? JUST A COMMENT. I HAD A SIDEBAR WITH THE GENERAL MANAGER REGARDING THE ILLEGAL DUMPING. A LOT OF THAT IS ON IS NOT IN OUR JURISDICTION. BUT IF WE EVER IF WE EVER USE THAT AS A PART OF OUR MESSAGING, WE COULD ALLOW FOR GRANTS TO THE JURISDICTIONS THAT YOU KNOW, JUST LIKE WE DO HAVE LOCAL GRANTS FOR LOCAL PARKS. YOU KNOW, WE COULD HAVE A MAYBE CREATE A LOCAL GRANT WHERE THE CITIES OR THE OTHER JURISDICTIONS COULD USE THAT MONEY TO CLEAN UP SOME OF THOSE PROPERTIES ADJACENT TO OURS. SO JUST A THOUGHT, BUT I LOVE THE GOOD SURVEY, AND I LOVE HOW THE TESTING DIFFERENT, DIFFERENT MESSAGES. IT'S FUNNY, SOME OF THE MESSAGES ARE THE SAME BUT DIFFERENT HEADING AND IT'S FUNNY HOW WORDS MAKE A DIFFERENCE. THANK YOU. DIRECTOR MERCURIO. YEAH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR THAT. IT'S ONE THING TO READ IT, BUT TO HAVE YOU PRESENTED, IT HELPS US A LOT. SO THANK YOU FOR DOING THAT. SO I HAVE TWO QUESTIONS. ONE, I'LL JUST TELL YOU BOTH OF THEM RIGHT NOW. WHAT WOULD BASED ON PAST EXPERIENCE AND WE HAVE QUITE A BIT OF PAST EXPERIENCE WITH RUNNING DIFFERENT KINDS OF CAMPAIGNS AND BEING SUCCESSFUL IN THEM. HOW MUCH OF AN EFFECT, HOW MUCH OF A BUMP DO YOU GET BY HAVING SOME KIND OF A CAMPAIGN? YOU KNOW, WHERE YOU AN EDUCATIONAL PROCESS, WHERE YOU KNOW, THE COMMUNITY GETS INFORMED IN MORE DETAIL ABOUT WHAT WE'RE ASKING FOR AND WHY WE NEED IT AND THE OTHER ONE IS A HOW MUCH I KNOW. I READ IT SOMEWHERE. I DON'T SEE IT HERE. HOW MUCH WOULD THE $24 ASSESSMENT GENERATE IN A YEAR? YEAH. SO I CAN ANSWER THE FIRST QUESTION. I'LL LET OTHERS WHO DID THE FISCAL ANALYSIS ANSWER THE SECOND IN TERMS OF HOW MUCH REVENUE IT WOULD GENERATE IN TERMS OF HOW MUCH INFLUENCE YOU CAN HAVE IN A CAMPAIGN. I MEAN, I WOULD SAY THE POLL SHOWED YOU INCREASE THREE POINTS FROM 61 TO 64, AND I THINK THAT'S WITHIN THE RANGE OF HOW MUCH YOU CAN INCREASE. YOU CAN GO FROM 64 TO TWO THIRDS. RIGHT. IT'S HARD TO EXPECT TO INCREASE A LOT MORE THAN THAT BECAUSE UNLESS YOU HAVE A MASSIVE ADVERTISING BUDGET BUT YOUR PUBLIC AGENCY, THEN YOU'D HAVE TO RUN A PRIVATELY FUNDED CAMPAIGN INDEPENDENTLY FROM THE AGENCY AND TYPICALLY, MY EXPERIENCE IS IT'S HARD TO GENERATE, YOU KNOW, AS A DISTRICT, YOU HAVE LIMITED RESOURCES. YOU CAN SPEND SOME MONEY EDUCATING THE PUBLIC AND THAT MOVES THE NEEDLE TO SOME DEGREE. [00:40:02] IN MY EXPERIENCE, IN THESE IS THE ONES THAT ARE SUCCESSFUL. EVERYONE'S UNIFIED. THE WHOLE BOARD SUPPORTS UNANIMOUSLY. YOU GET THE LOCAL POLITICAL OPERATION, THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY, LOCAL NEWSPAPERS, LABOR UNIONS TO ALL BE BEHIND THIS AND THEN YOU ALL ARE PRESENTING A UNIFIED FRONT AND THEN WHAT'S LEFT AND THAT KIND OF SOAKS UP SOME OF THE UNDECIDED, LEFT LEANING, UNDECIDED VOTERS AND THEN WHAT'S LEFT ARE THE KIND OF ANTI-TAX FOLKS, RIGHT? WHO WILL VOTE NO IF YOU'RE GIVING AWAY FREE ICE CREAM AND PUPPIES. RIGHT. SO BUT YOU KNOW, SO I THINK THAT'S WHERE YOU DO HAVE A FEW POINTS. THAT'S WHY IT'S 64%. I CAN SAY YOU SHOULD CONSIDER MOVING FORWARD AT 61. THAT'S TWO TO A BRIDGE TOO FAR TO HAVE A SUCCESSFUL OUTCOME. SO THAT'S BEEN MY EXPERIENCE ON THAT AND THEN AGAIN, YOU ONLY GO FORWARD IF YOU HAVE THE WHOLE COMMUNITY BEHIND YOU. RIGHT. IF THERE'S ANY SORT OF DIVISION DEBATE WITHIN, YOU KNOW, THIS GROUP OR BROADLY SPEAKING IF LIKE THE BOARD OF SUPS IN EACH OF THE COUNTIES ARE AGAINST YOU AND THEN YOU HAVE A, BIG SQUABBLE, VOTERS ARE GOING TO SAY, WAIT, YOU GUYS AREN'T SURE ABOUT THIS? I'M NOT SURE EITHER. SO THAT'S KIND OF BEEN MY EXPERIENCE. IT TAKES A LOT OF LEGWORK TO KIND OF GET EVERYONE ALL THE DUCKS IN A ROW, AND I DON'T KNOW IF ANYONE CAN ANSWER THE QUESTION. SECOND QUESTION ABOUT REVENUES, BUT I KNOW, ERICH, WE DID SOME ANALYSIS ON IT. DIRECTOR MERCURIO WE I WOULD LIKE TO FACT CHECK THIS, BUT MY RECOLLECTION WAS THAT IT WAS ABOUT $36 MILLION A YEAR. YEAH. OKAY. VERY GOOD. YEAH, THAT WAS BASED ON THE $24 ASSESSMENT. YEAH. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. THAT'S ALL I HAVE. THANK YOU. DIRECTOR WAESPI. 21 MILLION FOR $24 A PIECE. I'M FAIRLY CERTAIN I'M READING THIS CORRECTLY. IF I CAN GET TO THE DARN PAGE. I'LL GET BACK TO IT. OKAY, FINE. GO TO SOMEBODY ELSE, PLEASE. DIRECTOR COFFEY. YOUR CONCLUSION THAT VOTERS GENERALLY ARE GRUMPY IS BASED ON A QUESTION IN WHICH PEOPLE WERE ASKED, HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THINGS? WAS THAT HOW IT WAS WORDED? THINGS? IT WAS. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE DIRECTION? YEAH, I THINK I CAN'T REMEMBER EXACTLY, BUT I THINK SO, YEAH. HOW THINGS ARE GOING. I'M ASKING BECAUSE I'M WONDERING WHETHER, YOU KNOW, HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE WAY THINGS ARE GOING ECONOMICALLY FOR YOUR FAMILY OR THINGS IS VERY OBVIOUSLY GENERAL. WHAT HOW ARE THINGS GOING IN LIFE IN GENERAL? IS THAT HOW YOU ON PURPOSE? YEAH, I MEAN, THIS IS A QUESTION THAT THAT GALLUP CAME UP WITH AND LIKE, ALMOST 100 YEARS AGO ABOUT THE RIGHT TRACK, WRONG TRACK IN THE COUNTRY AND IT'S PROVEN TO BE A VERY USEFUL INDICATOR NATIONALLY, STATE AND LOCAL. SO THAT'S I MEAN, IT'S YEAH, IT'S THERE'S A RAGING DEBATE. I WON'T BORE YOU THE DETAILS LIKE IT'S RIGHT DIRECTION OR WRONG TRACK. WELL, THOSE AREN'T PARALLEL LIKE BUT IT WORKS AND IT'S WORKED FOR 100 YEARS. SO WE USE IT AND IT JUST IT GIVES US A SENSE, IMMEDIATE KIND OF A QUICK REPLY THAT VOTERS GIVE US OF LIKE IT'S A QUICK TEMPERATURE CHECK AND IF THEY SAY A MAJORITY SAY THEIR THINGS ARE ON THE WRONG TRACK, WHICH IS WHAT THEY DID IN THE SURVEY. IT'S A VERY GOOD INDICATOR AND I THINK VOTERS ARE FAMILIAR ENOUGH WITH THAT QUESTION BECAUSE THEY SEE IT ALL THE TIME IN SURVEYS THAT THEY GET ASKED, OR IN THE MEDIA THAT THEY'RE PRETTY USED TO. GIVING US AN ANSWER TO IT. SO AND AGAIN, THIS ISN'T JUST ONE POLL WE DID IN THE EAST BAY. THIS IS YEAH, HUNDREDS OF POLLING, POLLS WE'VE DONE OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS WHERE AS INFLATION SPIKED A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, YOU SAW JUST A REALLY SOURING OF THE MOOD NATIONALLY, AND THAT'S TRICKLED DOWN. AND IN THE STATE AND LOCAL LEVEL. SO AND NORMALLY THE PEOPLE FEEL BETTER ABOUT THEIR LOCAL, YOU KNOW, CITY AND GOVERNMENT, LOCAL GOVERNMENT THAN THEY DO ABOUT STATE OR NATIONAL. BUT NOW THAT SENSE OF PESSIMIST HAS, YOU KNOW ARRIVED HERE AT THE SHORES OF THE COUNTY LEVEL, TOO. SO I WAS JUST CURIOUS WHETHER IT'S TRYING TO GAUGE HOW PEOPLE FEEL ABOUT THEIR GOVERNMENT AT ANY PARTICULAR LEVEL OR THE ECONOMY AND YOU'RE JUST SAYING IT'S AN AMALGAMATION OF, YEAH, I MEAN, ALL TENDS TO HAVE A PARTISAN TILT. [00:45:03] LIKE IF YOU LOOK AT NATIONAL RIGHT DIRECTION, WRONG TRACK NUMBERS OR STATE RIGHT DIRECTION, REPUBLICANS THINK THE WORLD IS ENDING. I MEAN, THEY ARE VERY DARK AND THEIR OUTLOOK AND AT THE STATE LEVEL TOO, BECAUSE DEMOCRATS RUN THE STATE. BUT DEMOCRATS ARE MORE SPLIT AND WE SAW THAT HERE TO SOME DEGREE TOO. BUT EVEN DEMOCRATS NOW ARE PRETTY PESSIMISTIC. SO IT KIND OF DEFIES PARTISANSHIP. YEAH. IT'S HARD TO GAUGE, ISN'T IT? YEAH. JUST OTHER THAN IT'S NOT A GOOD TIME. PERHAPS WHEN PEOPLE ARE GRUMPY TO GO AFTER A TAX. WHEN YOU LISTEN TO FOLKS WHO ARE NO TO A TAX AND IT LOOKS LIKE THAT HARD NO, HAS BEEN AROUND 30%, GIVE OR TAKE, LAST COUPLE OF SURVEYS AND THEN A SURVEY BACK IN 21, WHICH WAS ARGUABLY WHEN OUR POPULARITY WAS REALLY HIGH BECAUSE OF THE COVID ENHANCEMENT TO THE ABILITY OF PEOPLE FELT TO ENJOY PARKS. IT WAS DOWN TO 16. IS THAT AN INDICATION THAT THE HARD NO ISN'T JUST THE ANTI-TAX JARVIS TYPES WHO WILL JUST FOREVER BE AGAINST TAXES? OR IS THERE SOME GIVE THERE BECAUSE IT DID SHIFT FROM 16 TO 30 AT ONE POINT, AND I'M WONDERING IF THERE'S SOME WAY TO JUST NOT WRITE OFF 30% OF OUR ELECTORATE AS JUST VERY HARD. NO. YEAH. I MEAN, LOOK, I THINK LOOK, THE NO'S COME DOWN. IT WAS 39% EARLY LAST YEAR. SO THE FACT THAT YOU'VE GONE FROM 39 TO 33 IS PROGRESS, THAT THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE WHO ARE PERSUADABLE ON IT. I THINK THAT YOUR PEAK IN 2021 WAS LIKE, YOU KNOW, EVERYONE. A LOT MORE PEOPLE WERE USING THE PARKS. IT WAS PRE INFLATION SPIKE. RIGHT. SO I THINK YOU HAD A MOMENT IN TIME WHERE PEOPLE WERE, YOU KNOW FELT VERY GOOD ABOUT YOU AND WARREN IS RELUCTANT TO SPEND MONEY. NOW WE'VE HAD KIND OF GONE BACK TO QUASI YOU KNOW STATUS QUO. NOT QUITE OUR NORMAL LIVES, BUT MORE LIKE I'M SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, USE OF PARKS IS NOT IS DOWN FROM ITS PEAK THEN AND WITH INFLATION. I MEAN YOU SAW THE NUMBERS OF LATINOS. I MEAN, LATINOS HAVE BEEN YOU KNOW, HAVE TURNED SIGNIFICANTLY, NOT JUST IN THE EAST BAY, THROUGHOUT CALIFORNIA, THROUGHOUT THE SOUTHWEST. YOU LOOK AT NUMBERS IN NEVADA AND ARIZONA. THERE'S A REASON WHY BIDEN IS NOT RUNNING FOR REELECTION RIGHT NOW. HE WAS STRUGGLING. HE WAS STRUGGLING WITH LATINOS. THEY REALLY, LATINO VOTERS WE SAW AROUND THE COUNTRY AND PARTICULARLY IN THE WEST BE DISPROPORTIONATELY NEGATIVE IMPACT BY INFLATION AND REALLY FEEL LIKE TURN MORE NEGATIVE TOWARDS DEMOCRATS WHO THEY'VE BEEN VOTING FOR AND BE MUCH MORE CONCERNED ABOUT ECONOMIC POCKETBOOK ISSUES LIKE THIS AND WE HEARD IT IN THE FOCUS GROUPS AND ERICH WATCHED THE FOCUS GROUPS, AND THE LATINO GROUP WAS THE MOST COST SENSITIVE. WHEN WE PRESENTED THE PARCEL TAX, THERE WERE LATINOS WHO SAID, YEAH, I LIKE IT, BUT I CAN'T AFFORD IT, RIGHT? I JUST CAN'T AFFORD IT. SO THAT'S I THINK, WHAT'S DIFFERENT TODAY THAN 2021, WHERE YOU DIDN'T HAVE INFLATION AND THE IDEA OF SPENDING $24 A YEAR WASN'T AS BIG A DEAL. PEOPLE ARE MUCH MORE SENSITIVE, ESPECIALLY WORKING CLASS VOTERS WHO YOU KNOW, WE LOOK AT WHAT'S HAPPENED, THEIR AVERAGE GROCERY BILL, THEIR AVERAGE GAS BILL HAS GONE UP AND IF THEIR, YOU KNOW, WAGES HAVEN'T KEPT UP WITH INFLATION, THEY'RE HAVING TO MAKE REALLY HARD DECISIONS ABOUT BUDGETS AND SO WHEN YOU COME TO THEM WITH A $24 A YEAR PARCEL TAX, THEY'RE LIKE, THAT'S NICE. I APPRECIATE THE PARKS, BUT I JUST CAN'T AFFORD IT. SO THAT'S THE SLICE THAT'S HIGHER TODAY THAN IT WAS A FEW YEARS AGO. AND IT'LL TAKE A BIT TO, FOR THAT INFLATION TO KEEP GOING DOWN AND THE ECONOMY TO GO UP FOR THEM TO FEEL BETTER ABOUT THEIR ECONOMIC LIVES. I THINK THAT'S HELPFUL. SO HOPEFULLY THIS WILL BE THE LAST. BUT YOU TRIGGERED A THOUGHT WHEN YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT THE SHIFT IN LATINO SUPPORT FOR WE'RE TALKING IN THIS CASE ABOUT THE PRESIDENT. WE USED TO WHEN I SAY USED TO. SO THIS MIGHT BE A QUESTION FOR ERICH BUT WE USED TO EMPHASIZE THE ECONOMIC IMPACT THE PARK DISTRICT HAS ON THE COMMUNITIES WE SERVE DOWN TO A CALCULATION THAT A CONSULTANT MADE. FOR US WAS A BEACON, AN ECONOMIC CONSULTANT. THIS IS, I'M GOING TO GUESS, FIVE YEARS AGO, MAYBE MORE. THAT EVERY DOLLAR WE SPENT DEVELOPING PARKS AND TRAILS RESULTED IN $4 BACK TO THE COMMUNITY [00:50:01] AND WE EMPHASIZE THAT A LOT. WE TALKED ABOUT IT A LOT IN PART OF THE JUST THE RESIDENT EDUCATION WE DID AS PART OF OUR REGULAR PROGRAMING. SO I'M WONDERING IS, DO YOU GET A SENSE FROM THESE RESPONSES THAT WE SHOULD MAYBE BE TALKING ABOUT THAT AGAIN AND OR MAYBE GETTING THAT THOSE THAT ANALYSIS UPDATED. BECAUSE IF THERE ARE FOLKS WHO FEEL THAT THE ECONOMY ISN'T GENERATING INCOME FOR THEM OR BENEFITS TO THEM, THIS PARK DISTRICT HAS A BROAD ECONOMIC GENERATOR TO ITS OPERATIONS, AND MAYBE WE SHOULD BE TALKING MORE ABOUT THAT. DOES THAT MAKE ANY SENSE? YEAH, NO IT DOES. I THINK WHAT WE HEARD IN THE FOCUS GROUPS IS THAT I JUST CAN'T AFFORD THIS RIGHT NOW. LIKE I SUPPORT THE PARKS. I LIKE WHAT YOU OFFER. I USE THEM, BUT I JUST CAN'T PAY YOU A DOLLAR MORE RIGHT NOW AND SO I DON'T KNOW IF UNLESS THERE WAS AN ARGUMENT TO MAKE THAT YOU'RE GOING TO THEY'RE GOING TO BENEFIT DIRECTLY FINANCIALLY FROM THE INVESTMENT IN THE PARKS, WHICH IS PROBABLY MORE OF AN INDIRECT ARGUMENT. I DON'T KNOW IF AT SOME POINT, LIKE, YEAH, IF THEY'RE NOT, IF THEY FEEL THEY CAN'T AFFORD TO PAY A DOLLAR MORE, IT'S HARD TO ARGUE WITH THAT. IT'S MORE IMPORTANT WHEN THERE'S HIGHER UNEMPLOYMENT. YEAH. I MEAN, MAYBE I MEAN, LOOK, IF THE ECONOMY WERE STRUGGLING, THEY DON'T SAY THE ECONOMY IS STRUGGLING. THEY'RE JUST SAYING PRICES ARE SO BAD I'M GETTING HAMMERED BY HIGHER PRICES. I CAN'T AFFORD TO PAY MORE. SO I THINK THAT'S NOT QUITE THE ECONOMY WHERE WE ARE. I THINK IT'S MORE THAT THEY'RE JUST FEEL THEY CAN'T PAY MORE AND AGAIN, THEY SUPPORT THE PARKS. THEY LIKE THE JOB YOU'RE DOING. THEY'RE JUST TELLING US AND YOU'RE NOT ALONE IN THAT. THEY'RE SAYING TO A LOT OF FOLKS HEY, I CAN'T AFFORD TO PAY A DOLLAR MORE FOR ANYTHING RIGHT NOW, OKAY? I'M JUST LOOKING FOR THINGS. YEAH. THANK YOU. DIRECTOR SANWONG. THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING US TODAY. IT'S REALLY GREAT TO HAVE YOU HERE AND THIS IS AN EXCELLENT OVERVIEW AND SUMMARY OF THE WORK THAT YOU'VE DONE. YOURS IS ON. I DO HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS. I SUPPOSE WHEN I LOOK AT THIS OVERALL, THE ONE THAT THE TOP QUESTION THAT COMES TO MY MIND, AND I ALSO HAVE SOME THOUGHTS IN REGARDS TO THIS, IS THE RISK OF A WELL FUNDED OPPOSITION. SHOULD WE, YOU KNOW, TAKE THIS TO THE VOTERS? I DO BELIEVE THERE'S SOME RISK OUT THERE. I DON'T KNOW HOW HIGH I WOULD RATE THAT RISK AND I'M JUST CURIOUS I GUESS YOUR INITIAL THOUGHTS ON THAT QUESTION AND THEN ALSO HOW WE CAN YOU KNOW, TRY TO PREPARE FOR THAT POTENTIAL POSSIBILITY AND OR BETTER ASSESS THE RISK OF THIS HAPPENING. YEAH, THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION. I MEAN, LOOK, THAT'S WHERE, YOU KNOW, I MENTIONED BEFORE, THESE ARE SUCCESSFUL WHEN YOU HAVE KIND OF BROAD SUPPORT IN THE COMMUNITY AND YOU KNOW, THE PARCEL TAX I'VE WORKED FOR, I MEAN, TYPICALLY PARCEL TAXES GET APPROVED FOR YOU KNOW, SCHOOLS. THAT'S THE MOST COMMON SOURCE, AND THAT'S, LOOK, YOU GO TO THE LARGEST PROPERTY OWNERS AND YOU TALK TO THEM, RIGHT? I MEAN, THAT'S REALLY BEEN MY EXPERIENCE WITH HOW YOU ARE SUCCESSFUL AND AVOID WELL-FUNDED OPPOSITION. THESE THINGS TEND TO NOT SURVIVE WELL-FUNDED OPPOSITION, TO BE FRANK. I MEAN, IF SOMEONE SPENDS MONEY AGAINST IT, BUT AT $24 A PARCEL TAX, EVEN YOUR LARGEST PROPERTY OWNERS NOT PAYING A LOT OF MONEY, RIGHT? IT'S NOT A SQUARE FOOT. WE LOOKED INTO SQUARE FOOT ONE. AND OBVIOUSLY IT DIDN'T PULL AS WELL. THOSE THAT WAS YOU KNOW, THOSE ARE HARDER TO PASS ANYWAY BECAUSE THEY'RE MORE COMPLICATED AND THEY TEND TO DRAW OPPOSITION. BUT NO, IT TAKES A LOT OF OUTREACH. I MEAN, TO BE SUCCESSFUL WITH THIS KIND OF VENTURE, IT REQUIRES A FULLY, YOU KNOW, LIKE, YOU KNOW, A FULL COURT PRESS, RIGHT? YOU HAVE TO BE UNIFIED INTERNALLY. YOU HAVE TO GET EVERYBODY LEADING OFFICIALS, PUBLIC OFFICIALS ON BOARD LOCAL, LIKE I SAID, UNIONS IN THE PARTY, YOU KNOW, POLITICAL PARTIES AND YEAH, YOU GOT TO GO TO LEADING BUSINESSES TO GET SUPPORT FROM THEM, OR AT LEAST NEUTRALITY. RIGHT AND THEN, I MEAN, GETTING OPPOSITION FROM HOWARD JARVIS TAXPAYERS GROUPS IS EXPECTED AND YOU CAN SURVIVE. YOU CAN STILL PASS ABOUT A PARCEL TAX WITH ANTI-TAX SENTIMENT BECAUSE THAT'S OKAY. FINE. JARVIS OPPOSING A PARCEL TAX THAT'S NOT SURPRISING TO ANYONE AND THEIR IMPACT IS DIMINISHING ANYWAY. BUT LOOK THAT'S A $24 PARCEL. THAT IS PRETTY MODEST AMOUNT AND THAT'S WHAT YOU GO TO BUSINESS OWNERS AND YOU MAKE THE CASE LIKE THIS IS WHAT WE NEED. YOU LAY OUT THE NEEDS FOR IT, AND YOU SAY IT'S ONLY GOING TO COST YOU X AND TYPICALLY MOST BUSINESS LEADERS TEND TO BE PRETTY REASONABLE AND IF YOU EXPLAIN THE BENEFIT TO THE COMMUNITY OF WHY YOU'RE DOING IT, THEY TEND TO GET ON BOARD. BUT YOU CAN'T. IT'S WHY YOU CAN'T JUST PUT THIS ON THE BALLOT IN JUNE AND GO, YOU KNOW, FOR NOVEMBER ELECTION. [00:55:05] I MEAN, THIS TAKES TWO YEARS TYPICALLY OF LEAD TIME OR LONGER IT GOING BECAUSE YOU DON'T WANT TO SURPRISE PEOPLE WITH IT. THEY WANT TO HAVE HEARD ABOUT IT FOR A WHILE. YOU'VE DONE YOUR DUE DILIGENCE. YOU'VE DONE YOUR HOMEWORK AND WHEN YOU SAY, OKAY, LOOK, I'M WORKING WITH ERICH AND LISA FOR THE LAST FEW YEARS AND YOUR TEAM, YOU'VE ALL BEEN VERY THOUGHTFUL ABOUT THIS. YOU HAVEN'T SAID WE'RE GOING TO TRY ANYWAY. YOU KNOW, AND I THINK BECAUSE YOU'VE PUT A LOT OF LEGWORK INTO IT, YOU'D BE READY TO GO. BUT YEAH, IT TAKES A YEAR OR TWO OF GROUNDWORK TO BE SUCCESSFUL AND IF YOU GO INTO THE COMMUNITY AND YOU GET A MEDIOCRE RECEPTION, THEN YOU HAVE TO RECONSIDER, RIGHT? I MEAN, THE POLL IS A SNAPSHOT IN TIME AND IT'S CONCEPTUAL SUPPORT. IT'S NOT ACTUALLY ON THE BALLOT AND AGAIN, THE ONES THAT HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFUL ARE YOU START WITH A POLL TO SHOW YOU'RE VIABLE. YOU'RE NOT VIABLE. YET AT 61% YOU WOULD BE AT 64%. BUT YOU GO THROUGH STAGES, RIGHT? YOU DO A POLL SHOWS YOU'RE VIABLE. OKAY, LET'S DO A VOTER EDUCATION AND OUTREACH. YOU GOT TO FUND THAT. YOU GOT TO SPEND REAL MONEY. TALK TO EVERYONE. ALL OF YOU. GO OUT IN THE COMMUNITY AND TALK TO PEOPLE ABOUT THE NEED FOR IT. YOU'RE ON THE SAME PAGE. YOU HAVE MESSAGE BULLET TALKING POINTS FROM THE POLL, AND YOU DO A CONCERTED EFFORT, INCLUDING PAID COMMUNICATION ON THAT. AND THEN YOU TALK TO BUSINESS LEADERS AND YOU TALK TO LABOR UNIONS, POLITICAL PARTIES, AND YOU GET THE SENSE OF WHAT THEY'RE SUPPORTIVE OF YOU AND THEN IF YOU COME BACK AND EVERYONE'S THRILLED TO DO IT, THEN YOU SAY, OKAY, LET'S GO FORWARD. BUT YOU DON'T JUST SAY, LET'S DO IT, PUT IT ON THE BALLOT AND THEN GO TALK TO PEOPLE AFTER THE FACT, BECAUSE THAT'S WHEN YOU CAN RUN INTO PROBLEMS. RIGHT? SO THAT WOULD BE MY EXPERIENCE. THAT'S BEEN MY EXPERIENCE IN PASSING THESE THAT HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFUL. THAT'S FAIR AND THEN IN TERMS OF TIMELINE, I THINK WE CAN ALL BE PRETTY CONFIDENT THIS WILL NOT BE ON THE NOVEMBER 2024 BALLOT AND THERE ARE A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT PARCEL TAXES, BOND MEASURES, SALES TAX MEASURES, BOTH, YOU KNOW, AT THE VERY LOCAL LEVEL, ALL THE WAY UP TO THE STATE LEVEL AND I THINK THAT WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY SEE WHAT THOSE RESULTS THAT WE'RE GOING TO GET BACK IN NOVEMBER ARE, BECAUSE THAT ALSO MIGHT GIVE US A SENSE OF THE RESPONSE TO THIS POSSIBILITY IN THE FUTURE FOR THE PARK DISTRICT AND IS THAT THE TYPE OF ANALYSIS THAT WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO BE READY TO DO? I GUESS THE BALLOTS WILL BE YOU KNOW, THE VOTING RESULTS WILL BE CERTIFIED BY DECEMBER. SO MAYBE IN THE EARLY PART OF 2025 TO MAKE AN EFFORT TO LOOK AT THOSE NOVEMBER 2024 RESULTS, JUST TO SEE WHAT SEE HOW EACH OF THESE FARES ACROSS OUR TWO COUNTIES. AND TO ALSO PAIR THAT WITH VOTER TURNOUT AS WELL. I KNOW I HEAR ANECDOTALLY THAT THERE'S SOME CITIES WHERE YOU MIGHT HAVE HIGHER VOTER TURNOUT COMPARED TO OTHER CITIES, AND THAT WOULD ALSO BE INTERESTING INFORMATION TO SEE, BUT THEN ALSO TO BE ABLE TO COMPARE IF IT'S A PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION VERSUS A MIDTERM ELECTION. BECAUSE I KNOW YOU'VE GIVEN US SOME DATA THAT WITH YOUNGER VOTERS, IT'S A LITTLE BIT BETTER TO GO TO THE BALLOT DURING A PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. BUT SINCE WE'RE NOT GOING TO MAKE IT IN NOVEMBER 2024, THAT MEANS WE HAVE TO WAIT FOUR YEARS FOR THE NEXT PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. SO IF WE GET TO A POINT WHERE WE'RE LOOKING AT THE MIDTERM ELECTION, WE MIGHT WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT THE DATA FROM PREVIOUS ELECTIONS TO KIND OF GET A SENSE OF WHAT THAT ELECTORATE IS GOING TO LOOK LIKE, AND IT COULD BE A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. SO I'M JUST CURIOUS ON YOUR THOUGHTS IN TERMS OF TRYING TO USE SOME OF THIS. I GUESS YOU SAY SECONDARY DATA ANALYSIS TO HELP US TRIANGULATE YOU KNOW, THE POSSIBILITY OF WHAT MIGHT WORK BEST FOR US WITHOUT HAVING TO GO OUT AND DO ANOTHER POLL, BECAUSE I THINK SOME OF THAT SECONDARY DATA COULD BE VERY VALUABLE FOR US AND I DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S SOMETHING YOUR FIRM DOES OR SOMETHING WE CAN DO INTERNALLY OR WHERE THAT RECOMMENDATION. YEAH. I MEAN, WE CAN HELP YOU WITH THAT FOR SURE. YEAH. I MEAN, IT WOULD MAKE SENSE IF YOU'RE SERIOUS ABOUT MOVING FORWARD TO DO THAT SORT OF ANALYSIS AND WE'VE DONE THAT KIND OF ANALYSIS. YOU LOOK AT TURNOUT, YOU LOOK AT LOCAL BOND PARCEL TAXES THROUGHOUT, YOU KNOW, WITHIN THE DISTRICT AND AS WELL AS THE STATEWIDE MEASURES, HOW THEY DID IN EACH COUNTY. YEAH. SO WE'D BE HAPPY TO TALK TO YOUR TEAM ABOUT HOW WE CAN FACILITATE THAT. BUT THAT WOULD MAKE A LOT OF SENSE. YEAH. I MEAN, LOOK, I DON'T WANT TO WRITE OFF THE MIDTERMS, BUT IT'S BASED ON THIS POLL IT SUGGESTS AND LOOK, IF INFLATION GOES DOWN AND SUPPORT CONTINUES TO RISE THEN YOU MAY HAVE THE OPTION TO GO INTO MIDTERM. RIGHT. BUT BASED ON THIS POLL TODAY, CLEARLY YOU SAW THE SUPPORT OR YOUNG PEOPLE AND THAT, YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE BARELY, YOU KNOW, ON THE CUSP OF PASSING, YOU KNOW, THE MIDTERM WHEN TURNOUT IS NOT AS HIGH AS THE PRESIDENTIAL AND THE ELECTORATE IS A LITTLE BIT OLDER. IT WOULD BE TOUGHER. BUT YEAH, NO, WE'RE HAPPY TO WORK WITH YOUR TEAM TO FIGURE OUT WHAT MAKES THE MOST SENSE. POST ELECTION, ONCE THE VOTE IS CERTIFIED, TO SEE WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE. OKAY AND THEN I JUST HAVE A FEW MORE. YOU KNOW, I BELIEVE I HAD HEARD FROM DEE AT ONE OF OUR PREVIOUS MEETINGS. IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN FINANCE COMMITTEE, BUT IT COULD HAVE BEEN OPERATIONS COMMITTEE, JUST THAT WE'VE GONE TWICE BEFORE FOR A DISTRICT WIDE PARCEL TAX AND IT FAILED BOTH TIMES. SO MAYBE HAVING THAT HISTORY PREPARED WHENEVER THIS COMES UP NEXT IN OUR CONVERSATION WOULD BE HELPFUL, BECAUSE I'M LESS FAMILIAR WITH THOSE WITH THAT HISTORY. [01:00:02] SO THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL. ESPECIALLY, YOU KNOW, SHOULD THIS COME BACK BEFORE PEOPLE WHO MIGHT BE NEW TO THE BOARD, THERE ALSO MAY BE LESS FAMILIARITY AMONGST NEWER BOARD MEMBERS. THE OTHER POINT I WANT TO MAKE RIGHT NOW, WE HAVE SOME BOND MEASURES OUT THERE AND THERE IS A PRETTY LARGE SECTION OF ALAMEDA COUNTY. AGAIN, I'VE MENTIONED THIS BEFORE WHEN I EYEBALL A MAP AND HAPPY TO GET THIS VERIFIED BY OUR GIS TEAM, BUT WE HAVE THE MURRAY TOWNSHIP, WHICH IS THE ENTIRE CITY OF LIVERMORE AS WELL AS EASTERN ALAMEDA COUNTY. IT'S NOT CURRENTLY INCLUDED IN OUR MEASURE WW BOND, FOR EXAMPLE AND I LOOK AT THAT AND SEE THAT IS ABOUT IN TERMS OF LAND AREA, 25% OF THE COUNTY POPULATION MUCH LOWER. BUT WHETHER OR NOT THIS WOULD INCLUDE MURRAY TOWNSHIP IS A QUESTION THAT WE WOULD HAVE TO EXPLORE. SO THAT'S MORE OF A COMMENT AND THEN ANOTHER COMMENT AND OR QUESTION IS, YOU KNOW, ONE THING THAT I'VE NOTICED WHERE I LIVE ARE TWO TRENDS. YOU KNOW, I LIVE IN A VERY HIGH GROWTH AREA. SO I'LL SHARE WITH YOU. I THE WARD I REPRESENT INCLUDES THE CITY OF DUBLIN, WHICH IS THE FASTEST GROWING CITY IN CALIFORNIA, CURRENTLY CONSIDERED THE FASTEST GROWING CITY IN CALIFORNIA. I ALSO HAVE FREMONT IN MY DISTRICT. THESE ARE BOTH TWO CITIES THAT ARE CONSIDERED ASIAN MAJORITY CITIES WHERE OVER 50% OF THE POPULATION IN BOTH THOSE CITIES CONSIDERS THEMSELVES TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, ASIAN HERITAGE AND FROM THAT I SEE A LOT OF THINGS HAPPENING. YOU KNOW, THERE'S A LOT OF NEW PARCELS BEING INTRODUCED IN A HIGH GROWTH CITY LIKE DUBLIN, AS WELL AS NEW APARTMENTS BEING BUILT, SO NEW RESIDENTS IN COMPLETELY NEW UNITS. I ALSO SEE A LOT OF REAL ESTATE TRANSFERS INCREASING AS WELL AND TYPICALLY WHEN THESE HAPPEN, I FIND THAT THE COMMUNITIES, EVEN THE COMMUNITIES OF NEWARK, PLEASANTON AS WELL AS LIVERMORE DO BECOME MORE ASIAN AND SO THESE ARE SOME TRENDS TOO, THAT I THINK ARE IMPORTANT. AGAIN, YOU KNOW, OUTSIDE OF DOING SCIENTIFIC POLL THAT MIGHT BE HELPFUL TO INCLUDE IN THIS CONVERSATION AND EVEN WITHIN THAT, YOU KNOW, I JUST WANT TO MAKE ANOTHER COMMENT THAT WITHIN THE API COMMUNITY, IT'S NOT A MONOCULTURE. SO YOU'LL SEE THAT THERE'S GOING TO BE DIFFERENCES AMONGST PEOPLE WHO MIGHT HAVE HERITAGE FROM AN EAST ASIAN COUNTRY VERSUS SOUTHEAST ASIAN VERSUS SOUTH ASIAN. YOU KNOW, EVEN, YOU KNOW, WHY EITHER THEMSELVES OR THEIR RELATIVES CAME TO THE COUNTRY IN REGARDS TO IMMIGRATION. YOU KNOW, SOME MIGHT BE COMING TO THE US BECAUSE THEY'RE WEALTHIER, OTHERS ARE ARRIVING AS REFUGEES. AND SO SOME OF THESE ASPECTS I THINK ARE REALLY IMPORTANT TO CONSIDER, AND ALSO IN COMMUNITIES WHERE WE'RE STARTING TO SEE MORE OF A MAJORITY AND I THINK THERE THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT. BUT THEN ALSO SOMETIMES IT CAN ALSO BE A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT IN TERMS OF WHO'S, YOU KNOW, REGISTERED VOTER AND WHO'S GOING TO VOTE IN THE ELECTION. SO I THINK KEEPING SOME OF THIS IN MIND, BUT I GUESS, YOU KNOW, IF WE'RE LOOKING AT 2026 OR 2028, WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, NEW PARCELS AND APARTMENTS AS WELL AS MORE REAL ESTATE TRANSFERS. SO JUST TO KEEP THAT IN MIND, AS WE'RE KIND OF GOING FORWARD, IT COULD REALLY SHIFT SOME OF THESE THIS DATA AS WELL. THAT'S WELL THAT'S A GOOD POINT BECAUSE YOU CALL FROM THE SLIDE ABOUT SWING VOTERS AND WHO MOVES TOWARDS VOTING. YES. AFTER MORE INFORMATION. THE API COMMUNITY WAS LIKE A WELL REPRESENTED IN THAT SLIDE. SO IF THERE IF YOU ALL DO DECIDE TO MOVE FORWARD, AT LEAST WITH THE VOTER EDUCATION OUTREACH, YOU, THE API COMMUNITY WILL NEED A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF RESOURCES AND OF COURSE, YES, IT'S NOT. IT'S VERY DIVERSE, MULTIPLE LANGUAGES AND SO THAT WOULD HAVE TO BE A PART OF WHAT YOU ALL DO BECAUSE YOU KNOW, WHERE YOU ARE IN TERMS OF SUPPORT IN THE API COMMUNITY NOW ISN'T ENOUGH, BUT YOU SAW HOW MUCH THEY MOVE WITH THE INFORMATION, AND WE SAW THAT IN THE FOCUS GROUPS TOO, THAT MUCH MORE OPEN TO HEARING MORE INFORMATION SUPPORTING IT, WHERE LATINOS WERE MORE DUG IN AGAIN, BECAUSE THEY WERE JUST LIKE, I CAN'T AFFORD IT. I LIKE WHAT YOU DO. I CAN'T AFFORD IT. SO YEAH, AND YOUR LEADERSHIP ON THAT AND THAT COMMUNITY WOULD BE HUGELY HELPFUL BECAUSE LIKE YOU GOT TO MOVE NUMBERS IN THE API COMMUNITY FOR THIS TO BE SUCCESSFUL AND THEN MY FINAL POINT THAT I WANT TO MAKE, YOU MENTIONED THIS ON THE SLIDE WHERE YOU HAD MADE A COMMENT ABOUT THOSE WHO KNOW WHO WE ARE REMAIN POSITIVE, BUT THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY FOR EDUCATION AND OUTREACH. SO THIS IS SIMILAR TO THE COMMENT YOU JUST MADE. BUT ALSO, YOU KNOW, I HAVE MY OWN HYPOTHESIS OR THEORY THAT, YOU KNOW, THE FARTHER WE ARE FROM PERALTA OAKS OR FROM TILDEN, I FIND THAT THERE'S LESS FAMILIARITY WITH EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT AS AN ORGANIZATION, BUT DEFINITELY FAMILIARITY WITH ONE'S LOCAL PARK AND SO HOW WE BRIDGE THAT, I THINK, IS ANOTHER CHALLENGE. A GOOD CHALLENGE FOR US TO CONSIDER, BECAUSE IF WE'RE WANTING FOLKS TO VOTE ON THIS FOR EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT, IF THERE'S SOME WAY WE CAN BETTER CONNECT TO THOSE LOCAL PARKS THAT ARE NEARBY, THAT WOULD ALSO BE HELPFUL IN TERMS OF GETTING SOME TO SUPPORT THIS, BECAUSE IT MAY BE THAT SOMEONE WHO SAID DON'T KNOW IN THIS POLL MIGHT REALLY LOVE, YOU KNOW THE PLEASANTON RIDGE, BUT NOT REALIZE THAT'S EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT. THAT'S A GOOD POINT. THANK YOU. [01:05:04] GOOD. WELL, THANKS, EVERYONE FOR YOUR COMMENTS AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE AND PRESENTING THIS. THIS WAS VERY INTERESTING, VERY HELPFUL. I HAD A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS AS WELL. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WAS THINKING ABOUT WAS, IS YOU SAID THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE IN SOME SENSE WE'RE A VICTIM OF OUR OWN SUCCESS BECAUSE WE DO THINGS WELL. SO PEOPLE ARE LIKE, WELL, WHY DON'T YOU NEED MONEY? BUT SO WHAT I WAS THINKING ABOUT IS, WELL, MAYBE THAT'S WHY SOMETHING LIKE, YOU KNOW, ILLEGAL DUMPING POPS UP TO THE TOP, BECAUSE THAT'S AN AREA WHERE PEOPLE THINK, FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE, BECAUSE AS PEOPLE POINT OUT, IT'S NOT REALLY OUR PROPERTY, BUT BUT THEY SEE, OH, THAT'S NOT WORKING. YEAH, WE NEED TO WE NEED MONEY IN THAT. AND OF COURSE, YOU KNOW FIRE DANGER PEOPLE GET THAT TOO. SO I GUESS I WAS JUST THINKING ABOUT, LIKE, HOW CAN WE, WHILE BEING POSITIVE AND NOT, YOU KNOW, NOT SAYING, WELL, IF YOU DON'T FUND US, THERE'LL BE NO MORE TOILETS, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, IF YOU HOW DO YOU KIND OF SAY, WELL, YEAH, GREAT. WE'RE DOING GREAT. BUT BUT WE NEED TO WE NEED MONEY TO KEEP DOING GREAT BECAUSE WE CAN'T DO IT WITHOUT HELP. SO THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION. NO, I THINK WE SAW THAT IN THE FOCUS GROUPS IN PARTICULAR. AND YOU SAW THAT WITH THE LIKE TRAIL MAINTENANCE. PEOPLE LIKE IT, BUT IT'S NOT IT DOESN'T SCORE ALL THAT WELL. IT DOES WELL, BUT NOT OFF THE CHARTS BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE LIKE THE PARKS ARE IN GOOD SHAPE. RIGHT. SO YEAH, IT'D BE NICE. IT'S KIND OF A NICE TO HAVE, BUT I THINK THE ILLEGAL DUMPING I MEAN I THINK YOU PUT IT WELL, WHICH IS IT'S A NEW PROBLEM AND WE NEED HELP AND I THINK YOU KNOW, IT TIES INTO KIND OF THE BROADER KIND OF DECLINE THAT FOLKS ARE SEEING WITH THE RISE OF HOMELESSNESS, KIND OF OUR CITIES BECOMING GRUNGIER AND MORE EMPTY AND THEY'RE SEEING KIND OF OUR SOCIETY FRAY ON THE EDGES AND THAT'S AN INDICATION OF IT. SO LIKE SAY, HEY, THIS IS A NEW PROBLEM THAT IT'S NOT IT'S OUTSIDE OF OUR CONTROL AND PART OF IT IS LIKE STUFF IS HAPPENING LIKE ON THE OUTSIDE, LIKE THE ENTRANCES OF YOUR PARKS, IN THE PARKS. RIGHT. SO I THINK THAT'S SO, YOU KNOW, I THAT'S WHY I THINK PEOPLE RESPOND SO WELL TO IT BECAUSE THEY DON'T, YOU KNOW, THEY SEE IT KIND OF OUTSIDE OF YOUR PARKS. BUT I THINK IT'S A NEW PROBLEM. SAME WITH THE FIRE DANGER, OBVIOUSLY. YOU KNOW, THERE'S BEEN FIRE DANGER FOR DECADES AND AS THE OAKLAND HILLS FIRE SHOWED, BUT IT'S THE LAST FIVE YEARS OF IT. CLEARLY, IT'S A NEW DEVELOPMENT IN PEOPLE'S LIVES. AND I THINK THAT'S THE KEY TO ASKING PEOPLE FOR MORE MONEY. I MEAN, THE IF YOU RECALL STATE SENATE PRESIDENT JOHN BURTON HAD A FAMOUS METAPHOR. HE SAID, LOOK, IF YOU'RE ASKING VOTERS FOR A DOLLAR, YOU GOT TO GIVE THEM A HOT DOG, RIGHT? YOU GOT TO GIVE THEM SOMETHING EXCHANGED FOR THE MONEY THAT YOU'RE ASKING THEM FOR AND SO IF THERE ARE TWO CONCRETE HOT DOGS YOU'RE GIVING THEM, WHICH IS CLEANING UP ILLEGAL DUMPING AND ADDRESSING FIRES, THERE'S MORE COMPLICATED THAN JUST GIVING THEM A HOT DOG A DOLLAR HOT DOGS. THAT THEN YOU CAN MAKE PROGRESS AND THE BEAUTY OF THE $24 PARCEL, IT'S NOT A LOT OF MONEY. I MEAN, IT'S PEOPLE GET THAT AND THAT'S WHAT WE SAW A LOT OF FEEDBACK FROM THE NON-LATINO GROUPS. NOT MUCH MONEY. IT'S A COFFEE NOT EVEN STARBUCKS. THAT'S LIKE TWO COFFEES AT STARBUCKS NOW. BUT SO I THINK THAT'S WHAT THE KIND OF TASK YOU'RE ASKING AND IT'S A SIMPLE LIKE MY EXPERIENCE WITH THE CAMPAIGNS IS SIMPLER, THE CAMPAIGN, THE EASIER IT IS TO RUN, RIGHT WHEN YOU'RE IF YOU HAVE TO EXPLAIN A LOT OF STUFF TO A VOTER, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU'RE EXPLAINING, YOU TEND TO BE LOSING. BUT IF THEY LIKE, THEY KNOW WHO YOU ARE. MOSTLY THEY LIKE THE JOB YOU'RE DOING. MOSTLY YOU SAY, LOOK, WE GOT TWO NEW PROBLEMS. WE GOT THIS ILLEGAL DUMPING, AND WE HAVE THESE FIRES AND THEY KIND OF ARE AWARE OF BOTH OF THOSE. AND YOU EXPLAIN MAYBE MORE OF THE ILLEGAL DUMPING THEN I THINK YOU AND YOU SAW THAT WITH THE SURVEY WE MOVED NUMBERS ONCE. YOU KIND OF MADE THE CASE FOR YOURSELF AND THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO DO. BUT THE SIMPLER, THE SIMPLER THE STORY YOU CAN TELL, THE EASIER IT IS FOR YOU. BECAUSE IF THEY THOUGHT YOU WERE DOING A TERRIBLE JOB OR THEY HAD QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW YOU MANAGED MONEY, THEN YOU'D HAVE TO GO SAY, WE NEED MORE MONEY BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO FIX THIS. THEN YOU HAVE TO SAY, BUT WE REASSURE YOU THAT WE'RE GOING TO SPEND IT PROPERLY. RIGHT AND SO THEN IT BECOMES A HARDER SELL. BUT THIS IS A FAIRLY STRAIGHTFORWARD SELL. LIKE YOU HAVE TWO NEW PROBLEMS THAT HAVE COME UP IN RECENT YEARS OUTSIDE OF YOUR CONTROL, NOT BECAUSE OF ANY SORT OF POOR MANAGEMENT. THINGS HAPPEN IN LIFE, AND WE NEED MORE MONEY FROM YOU ALL TO ADDRESS THEM. YEAH, AND I ALSO REALLY AGREE WITH DIRECTOR SANWONG ON THE BRANDING ISSUE AND I KNOW OUR GM HAS TALKED A LOT ABOUT THAT. LIKE, OKAY, WELL, PEOPLE ENJOY THESE PARKS, BUT THEY DON'T ALWAYS KNOW THAT THEY'RE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT. SOMETIMES WE GET CREDIT FOR OTHER PARKS THAT AREN'T OURS TOO. I'VE SEEN THAT HAPPEN BUT YEAH, THERE IS SOME UNCERTAINTY ABOUT WHAT IS THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT. SO DEFINITELY, AS YOU SAID, AN OPPORTUNITY FOR EDUCATION THERE. THE OTHER THING, JUST TO END ON A, YOU KNOW, A POSITIVE NOTE HERE. I WAS ENCOURAGED THAT EVEN THOUGH PEOPLE BECAME MORE NEGATIVE ABOUT CONTRA COSTA COUNTY AND ALAMEDA COUNTY, WE WERE PRETTY MUCH THE SAME. SO WE WEREN'T MAYBE ONE PERCENTAGE POINT WE DROPPED, BUT WE WEREN'T AS HIT BY THE NEGATIVITY OUT THERE. [01:10:03] SO NO AND WE SAW THAT IN THE FOCUS GROUPS THAT WE WEREN'T SURE IF THERE WAS CLARITY ON RESIDENTS OF WHAT EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK VERSUS A LOCAL, YOU KNOW, THE CITY PARK VERSUS, YOU KNOW, AND THERE, FOR THE MOST PART, THE CROWN JEWEL, YOU KNOW, THE TILT OF THE BEST KNOWNS ARE OBVIOUS ONES. THEY'RE WELL BRANDED WITHIN, YOU KNOW, THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT. BUT MOST PEOPLE KNEW THAT THEY HAD A PARK NEAR THEM THAT WAS A REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT AND THEY KIND OF UNDERSTOOD THAT'S DIFFERENT THAN THE CITY PARK. NOT EVERYONE DID, BUT THEY BY AND LARGE. BUT THEN WE DID. AS ERICH MENTIONED, WE SHOWED THEM THE MAP OF YOUR PARKS AND THEY WERE BLOWN AWAY LIKE, OH MY GOSH, IT'S NOT JUST TILT AND IT'S NOT JUST, YOU KNOW, 2 OR 3 PARKS. IT'S A LOT AND THAT HELPS. I THINK THAT WOULD HELP YOUR STORE IF YOU'RE DOING VOTER EDUCATION OUTREACH. WE SAW ONCE YOU SHOWED THEM THE MAP, THEY UNDERSTOOD THE SCALE OF THE CHALLENGES AND YOU SAY, LOOK, WE'VE GOT TO MAINTAIN ALL THESE PARKS. THAT'S HARD, RIGHT? AND EVERYONE THINKS YOU'RE DOING A GREAT JOB. BUT NOW WE HAVE TWO NEW AND THAT'S SO THE FIRE DANGER AND ALL THOSE PARKS IS REAL BECAUSE PEOPLE LIKE TILDEN. REALLY. I MEAN, YES, THE OAKLAND HILL FIRES WERE YEARS AGO, BUT LIKE, IS IT REALLY GOING TO BURN DOWN? BUT LIKE, YOU HAVE SUCH AN EXPANSIVE REACH, INCLUDING IN THE EAST BAY AND THE CONTRA COSTA WHERE THAT'S IN FIRE DANGER? AND THEN THE NEED FOR THESE TWO NEW PROBLEMS, THE FIRE AND THE ILLEGAL DUMPING. HOW DO YOU MAINTAIN ALL THESE THAT IN ALL THESE PARKS? AND THEY KIND OF REALIZE THE SCALE AND SCOPE THAT YOU HAVE. SO THAT HELPED. GREAT. WELL THANK YOU. WE HAVE ONE ONE LAST THING. YEAH I'M SORRY. I AGREE WITH YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR REPORT AND YOUR I MEAN, YOUR SURVEY AND I AGREE, THERE'S SO MANY THINGS THAT HAVE CHANGED AROUND HERE THAT WE REALLY CAN SELL VERY EASILY IN MY OPINION. I MEAN, 30 YEARS AGO, ALL WE DID WAS WAIT FOR FIRES AND THEN TRY TO PUT THEM OUT. NOW WE DO PRE-FIRE MITIGATION AND IT'S EXPENSIVE, BUT IT'S EFFECTIVE. YEAH AND I THINK IF, YOU KNOW, I THINK OF THE THREE FIRES THAT WE HAD IN THE BAY AREA, AT BAY POINT, AT WELCH CREEK ROAD AND OUT IN THE ALTAMONT. HEY, WE PUT THEM OUT AND NOT MANY STRUCTURES. I DON'T KNOW IF ANY STRUCTURES OUT IN WELCH CREEK GOT TAKEN CARE OF, BUT WE DO A REALLY GOOD JOB WITH PRE-FIRE MITIGATION WITH THE CARBONIZER. ALL OF THE THINGS WE'VE BEEN DOING IN ANTICIPATION OF THIS SLOWS THE FIRES DOWN. THEY'RE GOING TO HAPPEN, BUT WE SLOW THEM DOWN AND THEN WE CAN PUT THEM OUT. SO THAT'S A TALE WE CAN TELL I THINK IT'S VERY IT'S SO COST EFFECTIVE IN MY OPINION OR WILL BE TRAIL MAINTENANCE HAS BEEN A BIG THING. WE GOT IT. REDO OUR TRAILS. WE'VE GOT 1430 MILES OF TRAILS THAT JUST KIND OF SIT THERE AND WE HOPE THEY'RE OKAY, AND WE FIX ONE WHEN THEY WASH OUT. BUT WE ALL GOT A LETTER FROM BIKE GUY WHO WAS SUGGESTING THE TRAILS ARE LOUSY AND WE NEED TO WORK ON THAT. WELL, THAT'S ANOTHER CONSTITUENCY GROUP IN A VERY BIG ONE AND MAYBE WE NEED TO ADDRESS THOSE ISSUES, BUT THAT'S WHAT A PARCEL TAX WOULD DO. YOU KNOW, ALL OF THE STUFF WE DO I REALLY THINK WE'RE ALL WORKING TOWARDS IT, AND I THINK WE CAN SELL IT REALLY EASY IF WE START. I MEAN, HAVING A STRIKE CAMP, WHICH HOPEFULLY WE'RE GOING TO DO IN A COUPLE OF MINUTES, YOU KNOW, WE'RE BRINGING IN NOT FREE LABOR, BUT, YOU KNOW, LABOR THAT WE'RE ADDRESSING THESE ISSUES, HAVING WORK PROVIDING WORK FOR PEOPLE, TRAINING FOR PEOPLE, FUTURE JOBS FOR PEOPLE, ALL WITH THE STUFF WE DO. SO I'M CONFIDENT, YOU KNOW, WE KEEP SAYING WE STARTED THIS DISTRICT IN THE DEPRESSION. SO YOU KNOW, IT'S GOING TO GO UP AND DOWN. IT'S GOING TO CONTINUE TO GO UP AND DOWN AND I THINK WE OUGHT TO JUST SAY, HEY, LET'S GO FOUR YEARS FROM NOW LET'S HIT IT HARD AND THEN WE, WITH THE GOOD WORK OF LEGISLATIVE STAFF WE'RE ALL GOING TO BE MEETING WITH YOU KNOW, ALL OF THE LOCAL LEGISLATORS AND THAT'S HOW, IN MY OPINION, MEASURE WW PASSED. I MEAN, LET'S FACE IT, WE SAID, HEY, YOU WANT A 125 MILLION JUMP ON BOARD AND IT WAS VERY EFFECTIVE. DID GREAT WORK IN THE COMMUNITIES. WE EVERY PARK THAT'S, YOU KNOW, A BENEFIT AND LIKE HARD HAS A FUNDED BY MEASURE WW I THINK WE COULD DO THIS EXACT SAME THING. WELL NOT ON A BIGGER SCALE, BUT WE NEED TO LIAISE WITH THOSE FOLKS AND BE IN, YOU KNOW, FOUR YEARS FROM NOW, HAVE EVERY CITY COUNCIL AND EVERY MAYOR AND EVERY BOARD OF SUPERVISOR MEMBER BE ON OUR SIDE AND SAY, HEY, THIS IS THE GOOD THING. THAT'S A GOOD POINT AND YOU JUST PROMPTED SOMETHING. FIREFIGHTERS, RIGHT? IF YOU HAVE FIREFIGHTERS ON BOARD EARLY, IF YOU'RE ASKING, YOU KNOW, FOR MORE MONEY TO DEAL WITH FIRE MITIGATION, HAVING THEM AS AN ALLY THIS WILL LOOK LIKE A VERY DIFFERENT CAMPAIGN THAN YOU'VE RUN IN THE PAST. IT'S NOT JUST TYPICAL PARK BOND CAMPAIGN AND SAY, THIS IS UNITED WITH FIREFIGHTERS AND LOCAL LEADERS TO ADDRESS FIRES SO IT COULD LOOK. SO THAT'S PART OF YOUR OUTREACH IS TO GET THEM ON BOARD EARLY AND THEN GO AROUND ASKING FOLKS FOR MONEY WITH THEM IN TOW IS GOING TO BE PRETTY PERSUASIVE, I THINK. THANKS. I JUST WANT TO SAY ONE THING. YES. YEAH. JUST REALLY BRIEFLY AND THIS ACTUALLY IS A PERFECT SEGUE TO YOUR NEXT ITEM, BUT I DO ALSO, I REALLY APPRECIATE THE BOARD REALLY CONNECTING THE DOTS HERE WITH ALL OF THE STRATEGIC PLANNING THAT WE'RE DOING AND ALL THE OUTREACH THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE DOING WITH THE TEAM AROUND LOCAL GOVERNMENT, WHICH ARE GETTING SCHEDULED, BUT ALSO THE [01:15:06] OPPORTUNITIES WE HAVE TO EDUCATE OUR COMMUNITY WITH OUR DISTRICT PLAN OUTREACH. SO THIS IS ALL PART OF IT. THE DATA IS BEING SHARED WITH YOUR CONSULTANT AND WITH THE PLANNING TEAM. SO THIS IS ALL KIND OF COMING TOGETHER TO DIRECTOR WAESPI POINT OF THREE, FOUR YEARS FROM NOW, REALLY WHERE WE'RE GOING TO HAVE ALL OF THOSE PIECES AND REALLY KNOW WHAT WE'RE ASKING FOR WHEN WE GO TO OUR VOTERS. JUST BECAUSE THEY'LL PASS IT DOESN'T MEAN WE SHOULD BE GOING THERE. WE NEED TO KNOW EXACTLY WHAT IT IS THAT WE NEED. SO ALL OF THESE THINGS ARE LINING UP REALLY WELL. GREAT. OKAY. WELL, THANK YOU SO MUCH. THIS IS AN INFORMATIONAL ITEM SO WE DON'T HAVE TO VOTE. THANK YOU FOR THE THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. APPRECIATE IT. OKAY. I THINK WE'LL DO ONE MORE ITEM AND THEN MAYBE TAKE A TEN MINUTE BREAK. BUT WE WILL MOVE ON TO ACQUISITION, STEWARDSHIP AND DEVELOPMENT. [ACQUISITION, STEWARDSHIP AND DEVELOPMENT DIVISION] WELL. GOOD AFTERNOON. I'M BRIAN HOLT CHIEF OF PLANNING TRAILS GIS. APPRECIATE BEING ABLE TO PRESENT TO YOU TODAY ON THE AWARD OF CONTRACT OR FOR PHASE ONE CONSULTING SERVICES ON THE DISTRICT PLAN, AND GENERAL MANAGER KIND OF STOLE MY THUNDER AS I WAS LISTENING TO THAT PRESENTATION THAT THIS ALL TIES IN REALLY NICELY WITH OUR LAST PRESENTATION ON THE ON VOTER PREFERENCES TIE IN REALLY WELL ON OUR EFFORTS ON THE DISTRICT PLAN AND OUR ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS HERE. SO APOLOGIES, AS I'M TRYING TO FIND HOW TO. LET'S SEE. LET ME SEE WHERE. [INAUDIBLE]. THERE WE GO. ALL RIGHT. SO AGAIN, GOOD AFTERNOON, BRIAN HOLT CHIEF OF PLANNING TRAILS GIS HERE WITH YOU ON THE AWARD OF CONTRACT TO PLACEWORKS, INC. ON THE PHASE ONE FOR THE SECOND CENTURY DISTRICT PLAN. SO THIS WILL BE A RELATIVELY BRIEF PRESENTATION. I'VE BEEN TO THE BOARD A COUPLE TIMES NOW, JUST SORT OF ON THE BACKGROUND, WHAT WE'RE WORKING ON INTERNALLY ON THE DISTRICT PLAN AND HAVE PRESENTED AS WELL TO THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, THE PAC AND A NUMBER OF OTHERS. I'M KIND OF THE HISTORY OF MASTER PLANNING HERE AT THE PARK DISTRICT. WE ALSO DISCUSSED SORT OF THE STATUS OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE 2013 MASTER PLAN. SO A LOT OF WORK HAS BEEN BEEN DONE. A NUMBER OF PRESENTATIONS HAVE BEEN GIVING. THIS IS AWARDING THE CONTRACT TO BRING A CONSULTANT TEAM ON TO KIND OF BRING THIS ON TO THE NEXT PHASE. SO THAT IS WHERE WE ARE AT HERE. SO AGAIN WE'VE BEEN REFERRING TO THE PLAN AS THE SECOND CENTURY DISTRICT PLAN. AGAIN, THIS IS OUR 90TH ANNIVERSARY HERE AT THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT. THE THOUGHT IS, THIS IS REALLY THE PLAN THAT WILL GUIDE US INTO THAT INTO THAT SECOND CENTURY AND BEYOND AND, YOU KNOW, QUESTIONS HAVE COME UP ABOUT HOW OFTEN WE UPDATE MASTER PLANS. HOW LONG YOU KNOW, WITH THIS MASTER PLAN REALLY BE IN PLACE AND, YOU KNOW, AS WE'VE BEEN LOOKING AT PAST MASTER PLANS, REALLY, ONE THING THAT'S COME OUT TO ME IS THAT THE LAST TIME THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT HAS REALLY DONE A FULL, COMPREHENSIVE, SYSTEM WIDE PLANNING EFFORT AND REALLY DATES BACK TO 1973. SO AS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS PLAN, WE'RE REFERRING TO IT AS THE SECOND CENTURY PLAN AND QUESTIONS COME UP ABOUT HOW LONG IT COULD BE IN PLACE. I SORT OF REFLECT ON THE FACT THAT, YOU KNOW, OUR EXISTING MASTER PLAN IS REALLY BASED ON AND ROOTED IN THAT 1973 MASTER PLAN. SO A LOT OF THE POLICIES, A LOT OF THE LANGUAGE THAT WE'RE WORKING ON, YOU KNOW, IS 50 SOME PLUS YEARS OLD. SO IT SEEMS LIKE A GOOD TIME TO LOOK AT A COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING EFFORT. AGAIN, THIS IS BUILDING OFF OF OUR PREVIOUS MASTER PLANS, BUT REALLY TAKING A FRESH LOOK AT OUR SYSTEM AND WITH AN EMPHASIS ON THE EQUITY, SUSTAINABILITY AND RESILIENCY OF OUR SYSTEM AND AGAIN, NOT JUST CLIMATE RESILIENCY BUT THE FISCAL [01:20:08] RESILIENCY AND EVERYTHING ELSE THAT GOES INTO THAT. SO JUST AGAIN, A QUICK REMINDER OF THE GOALS THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT. SO EQUITY AND ACCESS. LOOKING AT THAT HOW ARE WE PROVIDING FOR EQUITABLE ACCESS TO OUR PARKLANDS? WE KNOW THAT'S THAT'S IMPORTANT. CONNECTIVITY AND RECREATION. THAT'S ONE THING THAT'S AGAIN, IS ALSO REALLY POPPED OUT THAT CERTAINLY SINCE THE 1973 MASTER PLAN. BUT SINCE THE 2013 MASTER PLAN, WE'RE JUST A MUCH MORE CONNECTED PARK DISTRICT MORE CONNECTED TO OUR OWN LANDS. BUT THEN OUR TRAILS, CONNECTIVITY CONNECTED TO CITY PARK SYSTEMS, STATE PARK SYSTEMS OR AND WATERSHED LANDS, EVERYTHING ELSE. WE CAN'T AGAIN LOOK AT THAT ACCESS PIECE WITHOUT ALSO REALLY LOOKING AT THE STEWARDSHIP AND RESILIENCY OF OUR SYSTEM. HOW ARE WE PROTECTING OUR RESOURCES AND HOW ARE WE REALLY FUNDING AND MANAGING AND OPERATING, PARTICULARLY IN LIGHT OF CLIMATE CHANGE AND THE OTHER SORT OF BIG FACTORS THAT ARE IN FRONT OF US? ENGAGEMENT AND EXPERIENCES MAINTENANCE, PUBLIC SAFETY, FINANCE AND OPERATIONS, PARTNERSHIPS AND COLLABORATIONS. SO THESE WERE THE GOALS THAT WE HAD PRESENTED AND THAT WE HAD PUT TOGETHER IN THE REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS THAT WE HAD SHARED WITH THE CONSULTANT TEAM. AGAIN, THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF ENGAGEMENT THAT'S BEEN HAPPENING. SOME OF THIS YOU MAY HAVE BEEN A PART OF, SOME OF IT YOU MAY HAVE NOT. BUT THIS IS AN ONGOING EFFORT IN VARIOUS FORUMS. I WOULD SAY BOTH FORMAL AND INFORMAL. SO WE HAVE BEEN TO THE BOARD EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE AND TO THE PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE. WE ACTUALLY DID CONDUCT A SIMILAR SWOT ANALYSIS WITH THE PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE AS THE BOARD ENGAGED IN. SO WE'RE KIND OF DOING THAT SAME SORT OF EXERCISE AND KIND OF GETTING A SORT OF BROAD SWATH OF INPUT AROUND THE STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES AND THREATS FROM VARIOUS FORUMS THAT WE CAN KIND OF LOOK AT. WE HAVE BEEN HOLDING MONTHLY LEADERSHIP TEAM MEETINGS. SO THAT'S A GROUP THAT WE PULLED TOGETHER, REALLY, OF THE CHIEF'S AGM'S AND OTHERS ACROSS THE DISTRICT TO, EVALUATE THIS DISTRICT PLAN AND WHAT WE'RE PUTTING OUT. WE'VE BEGUN COORDINATION WITH THE EMPLOYEE APPRECIATION COMMITTEE. SO LOOKING TO GET STAFF INPUT THROUGH THAT. THERE'S BEEN DISCUSSION ON TRANSITIONING THE WORKING GROUPS FROM THE 30 BY 30 EFFORT TO REALLY MODEL THAT SAME SYSTEM TO THE DISTRICT PLAN. SO CONTINUING TO BUILD OFF OF THE SUCCESS OF THAT EFFORT WE'VE HAD TABLING AT VARIOUS DISTRICT WIDE EVENTS. WE WILL BE AT THE HEALTH AND SAFETY FAIR. WE'VE BEEN AT VARIOUS OTHER DISTRICT EVENTS. AND THEN HAVE BEEN PARTICIPATING IN VARIOUS DIVISION EVENTS. SO WE'VE HAD MEETINGS AT WITH THE ASD DIVISION, AND I BELIEVE WE'RE PLANNING ON COMING TO THE OPERATIONS FORUM SOON AND HAVE MET WITH FINANCE, HUMAN RESOURCES ALL TO GET THE SAME SORT OF INPUT AND THEN AGAIN, AS A REMINDER, WE HAVE BEEN WORKING AS STAFF TO DEVELOP SOME VARIOUS STRATEGIES THAT KIND OF COMPILING OUR DATA WITHIN THE DISTRICT AND PRESENTING THAT. SO ONE EFFORT IS THE WARD REPORTS. SO WE'RE WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH GOVERNMENT AND LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS TO DEVELOP THOSE WARD REPORTS AS PART OF YOUR LOCAL ENGAGEMENT STRATEGIES. WE'RE DEVELOPING A SERIES OF BACKGROUND PAPERS SORT OF ISSUE PAPERS TO KIND OF DESCRIBE, YOU KNOW, WHAT, THE STATE OF WILDFIRE RESPONSE OR CLIMATE CHANGE OR SEA LEVEL RISE IS AT THE PARK DISTRICT. I PRESENTED ON THE JUST GENERALLY ON THE PARKLAND DECISION SUPPORT TOOL, BUT, YOU KNOW, KIND OF HELP US IN OUR ACQUISITION EFFORTS AND OUR PLANNING EFFORTS AND ALSO IN OUR SORT OF RESOURCE ALLOCATION AND OPERATIONS EFFORTS IN TERMS OF WHERE WE SHOULD STAFF, CERTAIN STAFF AND WHERE WE'RE SEEING THE MOST VISITOR ACTIVITY THE TRAIL STRATEGIC PLAN CONTINUED TO WORK WITH SEAN AND HIS TEAM ON THAT AND COORDINATION WITH REN AND THE DECO TEAM. ON DEVELOPING SOME CAPITAL PROJECT PRIORITIZATION AND KIND OF HOW THAT AND ALL THIS AGAIN, IT TIES IN WELL WITH THE PRESENTATION THAT WE JUST HEARD ON REALLY BEING ABLE TO GO AND TALK TO THE VOTERS ON YOU KNOW, AND GETTING THAT INPUT ON WHERE VOTER PREFERENCES ARE COUPLED WITH WHAT WE'RE SEEING INTERNALLY AS OUR DISTRICT NEEDS. SO WE DID PUT OUT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL IN FEBRUARY. [01:25:04] WE ASSEMBLED A SELECTION TEAM OF SENIOR MANAGEMENT FROM THE ASD DIVISION OPERATIONS DIVISION GENERAL MANAGER'S OFFICE AND WE REALLY LOOKED AT THE TEAM'S ABILITY TO PROVIDE LONG RANGE PLANNING. THE PARK, NOT BALANCED WITH PARK AND NATURAL RESOURCE PLANNING AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, IS REALLY IMPORTANT AND THEN ALSO KIND OF TAKING A LOOK AT THAT, THE OPERATIONS AND FINANCE PIECE. SO WE DID SELECT PLACEWORKS AS THE MOST QUALIFIED FIRM. PLACEWORKS IS A FIRM THAT WE HAVE WORKED WITH A NUMBER OF TIMES IN THE PAST. SO PLACEWORKS DID DEVELOP THE CONCORD HILLS REGIONAL PARK, NOW THE THURGOOD MARSHALL REGIONAL PARK LAND USE PLAN FOR US. THEY DID DEVELOP THE MCKAY AVENUE MASTER PLAN AND ALSO DEVELOPED THE TIDEWATER DAY USE AREA, THE PUBLIC ACCESS IMPROVEMENT PROJECT THERE FOR DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION. THEY'VE WORKED ON A NUMBER OF OTHER SIMILAR PLANNING EFFORTS. SO THEY DID THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY PARK AND RECREATION NEEDS ASSESSMENT AND DID A FACILITIES AND MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR SANTA CRUZ COUNTY. THEY HAVE AND CONTINUE TO WORK ON THE GENERAL PLAN UPDATE FOR CONTRA COSTA COUNTY AND DEVELOP HAVE BEEN WORKING ON THE PARK EQUITY PROJECT IN THE CITY OF RICHMOND AND I SHOULD ALSO SAY THEY'RE WORKING ON A NUMBER OF STATE PARK PROJECTS AS WELL, INCLUDING THE CLASSIFICATION PROJECT PROCESS FOR TESLA. SO IT'S A FIRM THAT'S FAMILIAR WITH US, FAMILIAR WITH THE AREA AND A TEAM THAT WE'RE ALSO ALSO FAMILIAR WITH. SO WE FELT COMFORTABLE AND EXCITED ABOUT MOVING FORWARD WITH RECOMMENDING THEM AS THE MOST QUALIFIED FIRM. SO AGAIN, WE'VE BEEN WE'VE BEEN KIND OF WORKING ON A PHASE ZERO. SO WE DID FUND A SMALL CONTRACT TO REALLY KIND OF WORK WITH THEM TO KIND OF HELP CLARIFY THE SCOPE. SO THAT WAS TO START TO TAKE A LOOK AT OUR EXISTING DATA AND A LOOK AT OUR DATA NEEDS AND THAT LED US TO DEVELOPMENT OF THIS PHASE ONE, PHASE TWO STRATEGY. SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE COMING TO YOU WITH PHASE ONE, WHICH WE'RE LOOKING AT KIND OF GOING THROUGH THE MIDDLE PART OF NEXT YEAR. THAT'S AGAIN, A LOT OF THE DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS DEVELOPING A PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY. SO I THINK THAT'LL BE WORKING CLOSELY WITH GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS AND TAKING A LOOK AT SOME OF THE INFORMATION THAT WAS JUST PRESENTED TO US AND REALLY, HOW CAN WE BEST ENGAGE THE COMMUNITY AND WHAT INFORMATION DO WE NEED? SO THAT'LL BE PART OF THIS. PHASE ONE IS DEVELOPING THAT PHASE TWO WILL REALLY BE GOING THROUGH AND ACTUALLY DOING THAT ENGAGEMENT, ACTUALLY DEVELOPING THE PLAN, WORKING IT THROUGH THAT PROCESS AND WILL BE LOOKING TO REQUEST SOME ADDITIONAL FUNDS FOR THAT PHASE TWO. PART OF THE REASON WHY WE BROKE IT OUT AND WHY WE'RE AWARDING THE CONTRACT FOR PHASE ONE, IS I DO THINK THERE'S SOME OPPORTUNITY TO CONTINUE TO LOOK AT THAT SCOPE FOR PHASE TWO, BECAUSE THERE IS, AGAIN, A LOT OF INFORMATION, A LOT OF WORK THAT WE'VE BEEN DOING INTERNALLY THAT ONCE WE'RE ABLE TO SIT DOWN WITH THE CONSULTANT TEAM AND DIVE MORE DEEPLY INTO THAT, WE CAN REALLY REFINE THOSE NUMBERS AND REFINE EXACTLY WHAT'S BEING DONE. SO WE THOUGHT IT WAS PRUDENT TO TO SEPARATE THAT PIECE OUT. SO THIS IS THE BUDGET THAT WE PROPOSED. AGAIN, THE BOARD DID FUND $500,000 AND THE BUDGET FOR THIS YEAR. WE DID USE SOME OF THOSE FUNDS FOR SOME SUPPORT WITH TINA STOTT TO HELP US DEVELOP THE RFP AND REVIEW PROPOSALS AND DO SOME OF THAT WORK AND AGAIN, WE DID FUND A SMALL CONTRACT WITH PLACEWORKS TO START TO TAKE A LOOK AT SOME OF THE EXISTING DATA AND TO HELP REFINE OUR SCOPE. I HAVE SOME, SO MOST OF THE FUNDS ARE COMING FROM THAT PROJECT FUND THAT WAS ALREADY OUT THERE, AND SOME ADDITIONAL FUNDS IN MY PROJECT, IN MY DEPARTMENT BUDGET THAT WE'RE PROVIDING TO THAT AND THEN THERE WAS SOME FUNDS PROVIDED FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT TO THE PUBLIC AFFAIRS DIVISION, THAT WE'RE APPLYING TOWARDS THIS AND THAT GETS US TO FUNDING THE PHASE ONE COST OF 599,547. SO WITH THAT, THE RECOMMENDATION IS THAT WE AWARD A CONTRACT FOR PLANNING SERVICES TO PLACEWORKS IN THE AMOUNT OF 1.6 MILLION AND THEN AUTHORIZE THE CONTRACT FOR THE 599,000 FOR THE PHASE ONE CONSULTING SERVICES AND WITH THAT, I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, BOARD MEMBERS. QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? DIRECTOR SANWONG. YEAH. THIS IS GREAT. THANKS SO MUCH FOR BRINGING THIS FORWARD TO THE FULL BOARD, I BELIEVE. I THINK WE DO A LOT OF 1 TO 1 MEETINGS OR MAYBE SMALL GROUP MEETINGS. [01:30:03] I DON'T KNOW IF WE'VE HAD A FULL BOARD REVIEW OF ALL THIS. SO THIS IS GOOD TO DO TOGETHER. SO, YOU KNOW, I UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF THE WARD REPORTS, AND I GET THAT IT'S HELPFUL FOR EACH OF US RIGHT NOW IN THE PRESENT MOMENT AND I KNOW I MADE THIS COMMENT BEFORE, BUT I THINK IT'S AN IMPORTANT ONE TO MAKE IS THAT SOME OF THE WARDS MAY BE CUTTING THROUGH SOME ESTABLISHED CITIES THAT ALREADY WORK TOGETHER. SO FOR EXAMPLE, I THINK ABOUT THE TRI-CITIES AREAS. THAT'S SPECIFICALLY THE CITIES OF FREMONT, NEWARK AND UNION CITY AND WHILE IT MIGHT BE TWO OF OUR PARK DISTRICT WARDS, I WOULD HOPE THAT WE CAN SOMEHOW SET THINGS UP IN SUCH A WAY THAT WE'RE ABLE TO ALSO LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, THE DATA COLLECTION THROUGH THE LENS OF YOU KNOW, SOME OF THESE GEOGRAPHICALLY CONNECTED AREAS, SUCH AS THE TRI CITIES. I THINK THAT WOULD BE REALLY HELPFUL. BECAUSE IT IS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT FROM MAYBE SOME OF THE OTHER, YOU KNOW, PARTS OF THE WARDS AND I KNOW THIS IS SPECIFICALLY ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE DISTRICT THAT DENNIS REPRESENTS AND THAT I REPRESENT, BUT I'M SURE YOU KNOW, WHEN I THINK ABOUT MAYBE THE HAYWARD AREA RECREATION DISTRICT, MAYBE THAT WOULD BE ITS OWN, LIKE KIND OF SUBSEGMENT AND THEN YOU HAVE THE TRI-CITIES AND THEN, YOU KNOW, THE TRI-VALLEY AND I THINK THAT I KNOW THAT'S A LITTLE BIT EXTRA WORK ON ONE HAND, BUT IF WE CAN SOMEHOW DESIGN THE DATA IN SUCH A WAY THAT WE COULD HAVE THAT LENS, I THINK THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL AND MY POINT HERE IS AN IMPORTANT ONE, BECAUSE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE SECOND CENTURY DISTRICT PLAN. SO WHEN I THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE THE 2020 CENSUS DATA, WHEN I THINK ABOUT THE 2030 CENSUS AND LOOK AT THAT WITH SOME OF THE REGIONAL HOUSING NEEDS ASSESSMENT, THE RHNA NUMBERS. I KNOW THAT A LOT OF THESE CITIES ARE GOING TO CHANGE IN TERMS OF POPULATION GROWTH, WHICH COULD THEN IMPACT, YOU KNOW, HOW THE WARDS ARE SET UP AFTER THE 2030 CENSUS. SO, FOR EXAMPLE, AND I KNOW I'VE MENTIONED THIS BEFORE, BUT THIS IS THE DATA POINT THAT I FOLLOW JUST FROM MY PREVIOUS WORK AT A WATER AGENCY. YOU KNOW, THE PLEASANTON RHNA SIX CYCLE, WHICH GOES FROM 2023 TO 2031, HAS 5965 UNITS, WHICH REPRESENTS A 7.3% GROWTH RATE FOR THAT SPECIFIC CITY. ONE CITY AND I ALWAYS COMPARE THAT TO HAYWARD SINCE THEY'RE IN A DIFFERENT WATER WHOLESALER SITUATION AND THEIR GROWTH RATE IS 2.9%. SO JUST KNOWING THAT, I KNOW THAT THERE'S GOING TO BE SOME DIFFERENCES ONCE WE GET TO THAT 2030 CENSUS. SO YOU KNOW, IF THERE'S JUSTIFICATION TO TRY TO SEGMENT THE DATA IN SUCH A WAY THAT WE CAN KEEP SOME OF THESE GROUPS TOGETHER, I THINK IT'D BE REALLY HELPFUL, BECAUSE I HAVE A FEELING THAT WHEN WE GET TO THE NEXT CENSUS, THE WARDS WILL CHANGE AGAIN AND IT'S TOUGH TO PREDICT THAT, TOO. SO WE CAN GO WITH WHAT WE KNOW NOW. BUT OTHERWISE IT SEEMS PRETTY STRAIGHTFORWARD, AND I'M HAPPY TO SUPPORT THIS. I'M CURIOUS HOW OUR WARDS ARE GOING TO CHANGE IN 2030 WHEN WE GET THE CENSUS. IF THERE'S MORE POPULATION GROWTH IN SOME SECTIONS VERSUS OTHERS, THEN EXACTLY OR ANOTHER. YES, SEGMENTATION. ATTENTION. OKAY. IS THERE ANYONE ELSE WHO WANTED TO COMMENT ON DIRECTOR COFFEY? BRIAN I'M NOT EXACTLY SURE HOW PLACEWORKS IS CHARGING US. IS IT FEE BASED HOURLY DELIVERABLES? HOW DO THEY COME UP WITH THE NUMBERS? THERE'S A SERIES OF DELIVERABLES THAT'S INCLUDED IN THERE. SO WE HAVE A SCOPE OF WORK THAT SPELLS OUT JUST A SERIES OF DIFFERENT TASKS, INCLUDING THE DELIVERABLES FOR EACH TASK DRAFT AND FINAL DELIVERABLES BIWEEKLY STATUS MEMOS AND WHAT WE GATHER. OKAY. I ALSO HAVE A NOTE, BUT I DON'T WANT TO TAKE UP THE TIME HERE. I'D LIKE TO LEARN ABOUT THE RICHMOND PARK EQUITY PROJECT PROJECT SOMETIME. YEAH. HAPPY TO SHARE THAT WITH YOU. OKAY, I THINK WE'RE CONTENT OVER HERE. BRIAN, THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. MADAM CLERK, DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THIS? OKAY, THEN COULD SOMEONE MAKE A MOTION? I'LL MAKE SO MOVED. THANK YOU. DIRECTOR ROSARIO. I'LL SECOND. THANK YOU. DIRECTOR SANWONG. SO. MOTION BY DIRECTOR ROSARIO AND SECOND BY DIRECTOR SANWONG. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES. THANKS, BRIAN. OKAY, WE'RE GOING TO TAKE A TEN MINUTE BREAK, SO WE WILL SEE LET'S SAY 3:05. WE'LL COME BACK. OKAY. THANKS. [01:35:10] OKAY. WELCOME BACK EVERYONE. NOW WE HAVE PERALTA OAKS NORTH. ALL RIGHT. GOOD AFTERNOON. I'M CARMEN ERASMUS, AND I'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE MYSELF AS THE NEW CAPITAL PROJECTS MANAGER AND IT'S A PLEASURE TO BE HERE TODAY TO INTRODUCE TOBY PERRY, WHO'S GOING TO PRESENT THE IMPROVED PERALTA OAKS NORTH PROJECT AND PRESENT THE CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT AUTHORIZATION REQUEST FOR THIS PROJECT. BUT BEFORE TOBY STARTS, I'D LIKE TO RECOGNIZE ALL OF HIS ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND EXTENSIVE WORK AS PROJECT MANAGER. TO GET A PROJECT OF THIS SIZE TO THIS MAJOR MILESTONE BEFORE YOU TODAY. TOBY HAS BEEN COMMITTED TO THIS PROJECT FROM ITS INITIATION PHASE DURING THE PANDEMIC AND MOST RECENTLY, THE FACILITATION OF THE PUBLIC BIDDING PROCESS, WHICH WAS AN INTENSIVE PROCESS. SO WITH THAT ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND OF TOBY'S CONTRIBUTION, HE WILL NOW PRESENT THE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST IN DETAIL. THANK YOU. THANKS, CARMEN. NICE OF YOU TO SAY. TOBY PERRY, PROJECT MANAGER AND THE DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION DEPARTMENT AND YEAH, I DO REMEMBER BACK TO THE END OF 2019, BEFORE THE PANDEMIC, WHEN LISA AND REN APPROACHED ME WITH THIS. IT WAS CERTAINLY AN UNEXPECTED KIND OF A PROJECT TO GET WORKING AT THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT, BUT IT'S REALLY BEEN A FUN AND INTERESTING PROJECT, ONE TO WORK ON. SO WITH THAT I LAST PRESENTED TO YOU ALL LAST FALL AS A PROJECT UPDATE, BUT SINCE THAT TIME, REN BATES, OUR CHIEF DESIGNER OF CONSTRUCTION, HAS PRESENTED A COUPLE OF TIMES AS RECENTLY AS TWO WEEKS AGO. SO SEVERAL OF THE SLIDES THAT I'LL BE SHARING WITH YOU TODAY WILL I THINK SEEM QUITE FAMILIAR TO YOU AND SO, YEAH, I'M REALLY EXCITED TO BE BACK HERE TODAY TO PROVIDE A RECOMMENDATION OF THE AWARD OF THE CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT FOR THE PROJECT. SO WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, HERE'S THE RECOMMENDATION BEFORE YOU. THE GENERAL MANAGER RECOMMENDS THAT THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AWARD AND AUTHORIZE EXECUTION OF A CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT WITH SWINERTON INCORPORATED OF OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, AT THE LOWEST RESPONSIBLE BIDDER. THE AMOUNT OF $59,847,000 FOR CONSTRUCTION OF THE IMPROVED PERALTA OAKS NORTH PROJECT AT 2955 PERALTA OAKS COURT. THIS REPORT ALSO RECOMMENDS APPROPRIATING THE FUNDS RECEIVED FROM THE SALE OF 2024 PROMISSORY NOTE FUNDS, EXPECTED TO BE APPROXIMATELY 39 MILLION, AS WELL AS APPROXIMATELY $950,000 UNAPPROPRIATED 2012 PROMISSORY NOTES. SO HERE'S THE PROJECT LOCATION. 2955 PERALTA OAKS COURT. YOU CAN SEE IN THE UPPER SIDE OF THIS IMAGE THAT'S ACROSS THE STREET FROM WHERE WE'RE STANDING RIGHT NOW AND PART OF THE REASON FOR THIS ACQUISITION WAS REALLY TO BE ABLE TO CREATE A PROJECT WITH A CAMPUS FEEL. AS A REMINDER, WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS PROJECT, AS I JUST SAID, SINCE WE FIRST ACQUIRED THE PROPERTY IN 2019. FOR THE PURPOSES OF NEW PUBLIC SAFETY AND ADMINISTRATIVE SPACE, THE BUILDING WAS INITIALLY CONSTRUCTED IN 1983. THE BUILDING CONSISTS OF FOUR LEVELS AND 107,000FT², OF WHICH APPROXIMATELY 65,000FT² IS OCCUPIABLE. THE PROJECT WAS PROPOSED FOR THE FOLLOWING REASONS. PRIMARILY, OUR CURRENT HEADQUARTERS IN THIS BUILDING CANNOT ACCOMMODATE ALL OUR CURRENT ADMINISTRATIVE PERSONNEL AND HAS NO ROOM FOR GROWTH. TWO CURRENT PUBLIC SAFETY. THE CURRENT PUBLIC SAFETY BUILDING HAS LONG OUTLIVED ITS USEFUL LIFE AND CANNOT ACCOMMODATE ALL CURRENT PUBLIC SAFETY PERSONNEL AND THREE BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING. THE ROOM WE'RE IN RIGHT NOW IS UNDERSIZED, DIFFICULT TO ACCESS, AND NEEDS TECHNOLOGICAL UPGRADES. SINCE WE ACQUIRED THE BUILDING IN 2019, WE'VE BEEN WORKING HARD TO DEVELOP PLANS, SPECIFICATIONS AND GET CONSTRUCTION PERMITS WITH THIS SLIDE. THE NEXT, I'LL TRY AND GIVE YOU A QUICK SENSE FOR WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH EACH OF THE FLOORS IN THE BUILDING IN FRONT OF YOU. HERE IS THE FIRST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING, WHICH IS WHERE YOU'LL ENTER AS A MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC, OR IF YOU'RE NON PUBLIC SAFETY STAFF, THE BEIGE AND TAN AREAS IN THE CENTER IS WHERE LOBBY WHERE THE LOBBY AND NEW BOARDROOM AND EOC MEETING ROOMS WILL BE. THE GREEN IN THE LOWER LEFT IS WHERE OUR RESERVATION STAFF WILL BE. RECEPTION IS THE SMALL LITTLE GREEN CENTER OF THE LOBBY, WHICH IS WHERE YOU'LL FIRST ENTER THE BUILDING, AND THEN THE LARGE GREEN AREA ON THE UPPER PART OF THE [01:40:03] IMAGE IS WHERE THE CLOSED SESSION ROOM, THE CLERK OF THE BOARDS SPACE AND HR OFFICES WILL BE AND THEN THERE'S ALSO A AREA OF WHITE ON THIS FLOOR, WHICH IS THE INTERIOR PARKING, WHICH ALSO EXISTS ON THE OTHER THREE LEVELS AND WILL BE LIMITED TO DISTRICT STAFF AND BOARD MEMBERS FOR SECURITY REASONS. THE OTHER THREE FLOORS HERE, THE BASEMENT, THE SECOND FLOOR AND THE THIRD FLOOR. WITH THE EXCEPTION OF A COUPLE COMMON AREAS ACCESSIBLE TO ALL STAFF, THESE FLOORS WILL BE SECURE. PUBLIC SAFETY SPACES SHOWN IN BLUE. SO THE NEXT ARE A COUPLE OF SLIDES OF RENDERINGS THAT I'VE SHARED IN THE PAST WITH SOME OF THE FUTURE SPACE, WHAT THE FUTURE SPACES WILL LOOK LIKE WHEN THE WORK IS DONE. THIS IS A VIEW FROM INSIDE THE LOBBY LOOKING INTO THE BOARDROOM AND THEN THIS IS ALSO PROBABLY FROM ABOUT THAT SAME VANTAGE POINT, BUT LOOKING TO THE RIGHT WHERE THE RECEPTION AREA WILL BE. SO IF YOU RECALL, DUE TO THE SCALE AND COMPLEXITY OF THIS PROJECT, WE UTILIZED A PRE-QUALIFICATION PROCESS TO IDENTIFY GENERAL CONTRACTORS WHO HAD THE REQUISITE EXPERIENCE AND FIDUCIARY CAPACITY TO SUCCESSFULLY CONSTRUCT THE PROJECT. A REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS FROM GENERAL CONTRACTORS WAS DEVELOPED AND ADVERTISED, AND WE RECEIVED AND REVIEWED FIVE QUALIFICATION PACKAGES IN JANUARY, THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS APPROVED FOUR PRE-QUALIFIED GENERAL CONTRACTORS TO BE ELIGIBLE TO BID ON THIS PROJECT, AND THEN ON APRIL 25TH, WE ADVERTISE THE CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT WITH BIDS DUE JUNE 5TH. THE PROJECT WAS AVAILABLE THROUGH THE DISTRICT'S ONLINE PLAN ROOM TO THE FOUR PRE-QUALIFIED GENERAL CONTRACTORS AND THEN ON JUNE 5TH, WE RECEIVED TWO BIDS. AS YOU CAN SEE IN THIS TABLE, SWINERTON, WITH THE BID OF $59,847,000, WAS THE LOWEST RESPONSIVE BIDDER UNDER THE ENGINEER'S ESTIMATE OF 81 MILLION. SWINERTON IS A LARGE NATIONAL GENERAL CONTRACTING COMPANY. THAT'S BEEN AROUND A LONG TIME, AND THEY HAVE A LONG HISTORY OF WORKING ON CIVIC PROJECTS LIKE THIS ONE. MOST RECENTLY, THEY'VE WORKED ON A COUPLE OF PROJECTS LOCALLY IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA, TWO STORY POLICE BUILDING IN SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, AND THEY BUILT A NEW POLICE STATION FOR THE CITY OF LOS BANOS AS WELL. THEY'VE ALSO WORKED ON A HANDFUL OF PROJECTS DESIGNED BY OUR ARCHITECT, SHAH KAWASAKI, SO THERE'S NICE FAMILIARITY THERE. INCLUDED IN YOUR BOARD MATERIAL IS THE PROJECT BUDGET INFORMATION. IT RELATES AS IT RELATES TO TODAY'S PROPOSED RECOMMENDATION. TWO WEEKS AGO, DEBORAH SPAULDING, OUR AGM OF FINANCE AND MANAGEMENT SERVICES PRESENTED A RECOMMENDATION FOR FUNDING THE PROJECT THROUGH DISCUSSIONS. AT THAT BOARD MEETING, THE BOARD APPROVED A FUNDING PLAN THAT IS REFLECTED ON THIS SLIDE. REGARDING OUR TIMELINE FOR THE PROJECT, OUR CURRENT ESTIMATED SCHEDULE, BASED ON THE APPROVAL OF OUR CONTRACTOR TODAY, WOULD ALLOW US TO BEGIN CONSTRUCTION IN SEPTEMBER. CONSTRUCTION IS EXPECTED TO BE APPROXIMATELY 20 TO 22 MONTHS AND WOULD CONTINUE THROUGH THE SPRING OF 2026, WHICH WOULD INCLUDE INSTALLATION OF ALL THE FURNITURE, FIXTURES AND EQUIPMENT THAT WILL BE PURCHASED FOR THE BUILDING. THEN, IN SUMMER FALL OF 2026, WE WOULD COMMISSION THE BUILDING, WHICH INCLUDES UTILIZING A THIRD PARTY EXPERT TO VERIFY THAT ALL OF OUR MECHANICAL, ELECTRICAL AND PLUMBING SYSTEMS ARE FULLY FUNCTIONAL AND ALSO TRAINING OUR FACILITY STAFF ON HOW TO MOST EFFECTIVELY AND EFFICIENTLY MANAGE THE BUILDING. FOLLOWING THAT, STAFF WOULD MOVE IN AND OCCUPY THE BUILDING. I FULLY EXPECT THAT WE CAN HOST OUR FIRST BOARD MEETING IN THE NEW BUILDING ACROSS THE STREET BEFORE THE END OF 2026. SO WITH A LOT OF WORK AHEAD OF US, I VERY MUCH LOOK FORWARD TO THAT DAY AND WITH THAT, I'LL TURN IT BACK TO THE RECOMMENDATION SLIDE AND I'M HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. I THINK OUR GENERAL MANAGER WANTS TO SAY SOMETHING. YEAH, I JUST ONE QUICK UPDATE TO LET YOU KNOW ABOUT, WHICH CAME IN LATE YESTERDAY AFTER TOBY FINISHED HIS PRESENTATION. SO JUST LETTING THE BOARD KNOW ON THE SALE OF OUR PROMISSORY NOTES. WE DID QUITE WELL YESTERDAY. WE HAD 11 BIDDERS AND THE MOST SUCCESSFUL ONE WAS WITH MORGAN STANLEY AND WE WERE ABLE TO GET A VERY COMPETITIVE RATE AT 3.35%, WHICH WAS BETTER THAN WE HAD HOPED. AND SO THAT'S GOING TO TRANSLATE INTO YOUR ANNUAL DEBT SERVICE OF 2.75 MILLION A YEAR, WHICH IS ALSO LESS THAN WE THOUGHT IT WOULD BE. [01:45:06] SO KUDOS TO THE ENTIRE TEAM AND JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU THE LATE BREAKING NEWS. NICE. WELL THANK YOU. THAT IS GOOD NEWS. OKAY, SO BOARD MEMBERS, ANY COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? DIRECTOR WAESPI, SURE. SO, TOBY, I LOVE YOUR PROJECTION OF HAVING IT BE READY BY THE END OF 2026 AND HAVING US BE IN THERE. TOTALLY. WHO'S DOING PROJECT MANAGEMENT ON THIS? CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT OR. PARDON ME, WHAT DID I SAY? PROJECT MANAGEMENT. CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT. PROJECT MANAGEMENT. YOU'RE LOOKING AT THEM. BUT CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT WOULD BE IS GRIFFIN STRUCTURES. OKAY, THAT'S THE NAME OF THE FIRM. HAVE WE USED THOSE FOLKS BEFORE? WE DID. WE USED THEM AT ROBERTS POOL. OKAY. GREAT. ARE THERE IS THERE ANY INCENTIVE? I MEAN, DO WE CAN WE INVOKE LIQUIDATED DAMAGES AND THINGS LIKE THAT? THAT'S PROBABLY A STANDARD OF THE INDUSTRY, BUT THERE CAN BE UNFORESEEN STUFF. ABSOLUTELY. LIQUID DAMAGES ARE A STANDARD PART OF OUR CONTRACT. OKAY. GREAT. HOPE TO SEE YOU BACK ROUTINELY. TELL US YOUR PROGRESS ON HOW YOU. ABSOLUTELY. THANKS. DIRECTOR ROSARIO, NO? NOTHING. YOU'RE JUST SMILING. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. GOOD. ANYONE ELSE? DIRECTOR MERCURIO I THINK THE AS IT TURNS OUT, THE FINANCIAL ASPECT OF THIS PROJECT WORKED OUT. YOU KNOW, WE HAD TO DO A COMPROMISE THERE. WE HAD A LITTLE BIT OF A BUMP ABOUT HOW TO FINANCE THIS AND HOW MUCH AND ALL THAT STUFF, AND WE HAD TO COME UP WITH SOMETHING ON THE FLY, AND WE DID. BUT NOW WITH THIS LOWER INTEREST RATE AND IT'S REALLY GOOD BID COMPARED TO WHAT WE THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO BE, I DON'T KNOW HOW IT ALL SHAKES OUT. I'D LOVE TO SEE A COMPARISON BETWEEN WHAT WE'RE GOING TO END UP WITH AND WHAT WAS RECOMMENDED LAST TIME. I JUST HAVEN'T HAD A CHANCE TO GO BACK AND CHECK THAT, BECAUSE IT'S JUST HAPPENED IN THE LAST FEW HOURS, REALLY. I MEAN, SINCE YESTERDAY. SO YEAH, WE'LL EMAIL THAT AROUND TO THE BOARD. YEAH, FOR SURE, BECAUSE I DON'T THINK IT'S THAT FAR OFF FROM WHERE WE WOULD HAVE BEEN ON THE RECOMMENDED ALTERNATIVE LAST TIME. YEAH. BUT ANYWAY DO YOU THINK ANYBODY IS GOING TO FORGET WHAT YOU JUST SAID ABOUT THE BOARD MEETING HAPPENING IN 2020? I DON'T THINK ANYBODY'S GOING TO FORGET. I THINK SO, YOU KNOW AND YOUR HAIR'S ALREADY GONE, SO YOU NOTHING TO LOSE AT THIS POINT. SO YOU DON'T HAVE THAT TO GO BACK ON. SO I DON'T KNOW. JUST DO IT YOU KNOW. YEAH YEAH. YEAH. OKAY. WE'RE ALL LOOKING FORWARD TO IT. THANK YOU. YEAH. OKAY. YEAH. WELL, I AGREE WITH DENNIS THAT IT IS IMPORTANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE MOVE THIS ALONG. IT IS A BIG PROJECT AND SO IF THERE'S ANY WHATEVER YOU ALL CAN DO TO MAKE SURE THAT WE DON'T RUN INTO THE SAME KINDS OF PROBLEMS AS WE DID AT ROBERT'S POOL, I'LL JUST SAY IT SINCE SINCE DENNIS DIDN'T YEAH AND I'M VERY EXCITED. I THINK THIS, YOU KNOW, I APPRECIATE THE PRESENTATION. I'M DELIGHTED TO HEAR ABOUT THE YOU KNOW, THE FUNDING. THAT'S GREAT NEWS AND I DID ALSO JUST WANT TO SAY, I THINK AS EVERYBODY IN THIS ROOM KNOWS ME, ALONG WITH OTHERS ON THE BOARD, HAD HOPED TO HAVE A PLA IN PLACE IN TIME FOR THIS PROJECT. THAT DIDN'T HAPPEN. I AM ENCOURAGED THAT AT LEAST WE HAVE A GOOD UNION CONTRACTOR AND OF COURSE, BY OUR OWN STANDARDS WE DO PAY PREVAILING WAGES. BUT I DO HOPE THAT WE CAN PRIORITIZE THE PLA AND THEN GET THAT GOING AS WELL FOR FUTURE PROJECTS. SO WITH THAT, UNLESS ANYONE ELSE HERE HAS, I THINK YOU GOT SOME. OKAY. DIRECTOR SANWONG. I'LL JUST BE REAL QUICK. I APPRECIATE ALL THE HARD WORK THAT EVERYONE'S DONE ACROSS THE TEAM. I JUST DON'T SUPPORT THIS PROJECT, SO I WILL BE VOTING NO. OKAY. MADAM CLERK, DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THIS? NO, WE DO NOT. OKAY, SO WE DO NEED A MOTION ON THIS. IS THERE A SO MOVED. OKAY. DIRECTOR WAESPI. SECOND. MOTION BY DIRECTOR WAESPI. SECOND BY DIRECTOR MERCURIO. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED? I OPPOSE. OKAY. MOTION CARRIES. THANKS. THANKS, TOBY. THANK YOU. [01:50:12] OKAY. OKAY, SO NOW WE ARE ON TO THE OPERATION DIVISION AND THE [OPERATIONS DIVISION] CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION SPIKE CAMP. OKAY. GOOD AFTERNOON. BOARD OF DIRECTORS, TIFFANY MARGULICI, BUSINESS SERVICES MANAGER AND THE ITEM BEFORE YOU IS TO AUTHORIZE TO EXECUTE AN AGREEMENT WITH THE CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION CORPS TO USE THE HOMESTEAD VALLEY GROUP CAMP AT BRIONES REGIONAL PARK AS A SPIKE CAMP AND WITH ME FOR THIS ITEM TO SUPPORT THIS ITEM IS SLOANE VIOLA. SHE'S THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF LEGISLATIVE AND EXTERNAL AFFAIRS WITH CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION CORPS AND SO I'LL PROVIDE A BRIEF INTRODUCTION AND AS SLOANE HAS JOINED THE MEETING HERE WITH US VIRTUALLY. SO FOR OVER ABOUT THE LAST FOUR YEARS, STAFF HAS BEEN WORKING WITH THE CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION CORPS TO FACILITATE BRINGING CREW WORK CLOSER INTO THE EAST BAY THROUGH THE CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION CORPS. THERE IS NO CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION CORPS LOCATION IN THE EAST BAY. THE CLOSEST ARE IN SOLANO AND SAN JOAQUIN COUNTIES. SO IN 2020, THE BOARD HAD AUTHORIZED A STUDY OF THE HOLLY COURT AREA OR IN LAS TRAMPAS REGIONAL PARK FOR BOLLINGER CANYON TO CONSTRUCT A PERMANENT CAMP THERE AND KNOWING THAT WOULD TAKE SEVERAL YEARS TO EXPLORE THE FEASIBILITY AND FUNDING OF THAT IN 2022, A STAFF HAD RECEIVED AUTHORIZATION FROM THE BOARD TO HAVE A SPIKE CAMP AT THE LYDIA LANE SITE IN ROUND VALLEY AND WE HAD THEN CONTINUED OUR DISCUSSIONS WITH CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION CORPS AS TO WHERE THE BEST LOCATION FOR A SPIKE CAMP WOULD BE, AND CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION CORPS SHARED WITH ME THAT THE SPIKE CAMP IS A GENERAL TERM FOR ANY SATELLITE LOCATION THEY WOULDN'T CONSIDER PERMANENT. IT'S NOT ALWAYS AN ACTUAL CAMP. SOMETIMES IT'S IN A BUILDING. THE ONE WE'RE PROPOSING TO HAVE AUTHORIZED TODAY WOULD BE A CAMP AND SO AS THE DISCUSSIONS HAVE CONTINUED OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS WITH THE CONSERVATION CORPS, WE'VE DETERMINED THAT THE HOMESTEAD VALLEY GROUP CAMP SITE AT BRIONES WOULD BE A BETTER LOCATION. IT'S A LITTLE MORE CENTRAL. THAT PROVIDES MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR PROJECTS AND SO THIS BUSINESS ITEM BEFORE THE BOARD TODAY IS TO BASICALLY UPDATE THE PRIOR AUTHORIZATION INSTEAD OF THE ROUND VALLEY LYDIA LANE LOCATION. WE WOULD LIKE TO RECOMMEND AUTHORIZATION TO USE THE HOMESTEAD VALLEY GROUP CAMP, AND I'M AVAILABLE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS AND IF PRESIDENT ECHOLS. IF YOU PREFER, WE CAN TURN IT OVER TO SLOANE FOR A FEW COMMENTS OR GO TO QUESTIONS FIRST. DEFER TO YOU. WELL, IF SLOANE HAS SOME COMMENTS, WE MIGHT AS WELL GO AHEAD AND HEAR THOSE FIRST. THANK YOU SO MUCH, CHAIR. I JUST WANTED TO THANK STAFF FOR ALL OF THE WORK THAT THEY'VE DONE ON THIS SO FAR. AS TIFFANY SHARED IN HER PRESENTATION AND IN THE STAFF REPORT, YOU KNOW, THERE'S BEEN A LONG REALLY, YOU KNOW, HISTORY OF RELATIONSHIP HERE OF US WORKING TOGETHER AND STRIVING TO, YOU KNOW, FIND NEW PROJECT OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUR CORPS MEMBERS AND WORK FOR THE DISTRICT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU KNOW, WE'RE MOVING FORWARD. SO WE REALLY APPRECIATE THAT CONTINUED PARTNERSHIP AND JUST WANT TO THANK BOARD, THE BOARD MEMBERS FOR THEIR CONSIDERATION OF THIS ITEM AND I'M ALSO HAPPY TO HELP WITH ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU AND THANKS FOR JOINING US. OKAY. BOARD MEMBERS. DIRECTOR WAESPI. YEAH, I VERY HAPPY ABOUT THIS. I REALLY LOOK FORWARD TO THIS. I THINK FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS. I MEAN, THE FACT THAT ONCE AGAIN, WE'RE PROVING TO OUR FOLKS THAT WE ARE CONCERNED WITH FIRE MITIGATION, THINGS LIKE THAT PARK RESTORATION, WHICH WE TALK ABOUT ALL THE TIME. THESE FOLKS WILL BE ABLE TO HELP OUT WHEN ALSO WE'RE PROVIDING JOBS IN THE EAST BAY, WHICH IS TREMENDOUS FOR OUR YOUNG PEOPLE AND A STEPPING STONE TO COME TO WORK FOR THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT. SO I DON'T WANT TO PUT YOU ON THE SPOT HERE, BUT WHEN YOU PITCH IN THE TENTS. THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. SO RIGHT NOW, I'M SURE YOU'RE AWARE THAT FIRES ARE RAGING ALL OVER THE STATE. SO WE HAVE A LOT OF CORPS MEMBERS THAT ARE OUT ON EMERGENCY DEPLOYMENTS. SO THE ABILITY FOR US TO SEND CORPS MEMBERS OUT TO BRIONES DEPENDS ON THEIR AVAILABILITY IN LIGHT OF THE EMERGENCY RESPONSE NEEDS. SO OUR MOST OPTIMISTIC VIEW WAS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. BUT IN LIGHT OF THE RECENT EMERGENCIES, WE MIGHT BE LOOKING AT THE FALL TO BEGIN OPERATIONS. THAT SOUNDS WONDERFUL. THANK YOU AND PLEASE INVITE US TO COME OUT AND LOOK AT YOUR OPERATION. BODLEY. DIRECTOR ROSARIO. YEAH. THIS LOOKS LIKE LOOKING FORWARD TO HAVING THIS SPY CAMP. [01:55:06] THE WORK THAT THE C.C.C. CREWS ARE GOING TO BE DOING IN FUEL MITIGATION AND OR PARK. WILL THERE BE OVERSEEN BY OUR FIRE DEPARTMENT? ABSOLUTELY. THE WORK WILL BE DONE IN THE PROJECTS ARE GOING TO BE IDENTIFIED BY AND ARE ALREADY BEING THOUGHT OF BY OUR PARK OPERATIONS STAFF UNIT MANAGER DAVE KENDALL. IN COORDINATION WITH OTHERS AND ALSO WITH OUR FIRE DEPARTMENT. EXCELLENT. THANK YOU. DIRECTOR MERCURIO. YEAH. THIS IS GREAT NEWS. I DON'T KNOW, I WASN'T EXPECTING THIS, BUT IT'S A GOOD SURPRISE TO HEAR THIS, TO SEE THIS NOW THEY DO GREAT WORK. I'VE SEEN THEIR WORK UP IN THE HIGH SIERRA, YOU KNOW UNFORTUNATELY, WE'RE NOT THE HIGH SIERRA, BUT WE'RE DARN BEAUTIFUL, TOO. ARE THEY 100% DEDICATED TO WORKING FOR THE DISTRICT? THE STRUCTURE OF THE SPIKE CAMP WILL BE THAT THE CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION CORPS WILL BE WORKING INTERMITTENTLY OUT OF HOMESTEAD VALLEY IN THE I THINK WE SAID SPRING THROUGH FALL AND SO THE IDEA WITH THE SPIKE CAMP IS IT WOULD NOT NECESSARILY BE ONE DEDICATED CREW. IT WOULD BE CREWS DEPLOYING FROM THEIR OTHER LOCATIONS ON AN INTERMITTENT BASIS BASED ON THEIR SCHEDULE, COULD COME AND SPIKE FOR A WEEK AT A TIME AND USE THE GROUP CAMP. SO IT WILL DEPEND ON THE CREW AVAILABILITY AND AT THE OTHER LOCATIONS, AND ALSO THE CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION CORPS FUNDING SOURCES. SO PRIMARILY, WE'LL BE PLANNING ON RECEIVING CREWS FUNDED THROUGH THE STATE FORESTRY CORPS AND THAT WOULD ALSO FURTHER INFORM WHAT TYPE OF PROJECTS THEY DO AND IF OTHER FUNDING FOR CREWS BECOMES AVAILABLE AND THEY'RE ABLE TO DEPLOY THOSE TO SPIKE AT HOMESTEAD VALLEY, THAT MIGHT CHANGE THE SCOPE OF THE PROJECTS. OKAY. STILL WITH THE OVERSIGHT OF THE PARK OPERATIONS. SO WHEN BUT WHEN THEY'RE THERE, THEY'RE WORKING ON OUR PROJECTS. THAT'S THE PLAN? YES. YEAH. CORRECT AND THEN AND SO FAR WE'RE ONLY LOOKING ONE YEAR AHEAD THAT THEY'RE GOING TO BE THERE OR WHAT'S THE SENSE OF HOW LONG THEY'RE GOING TO BE IN THAT LOCATION. THE AGREEMENT THAT THIS INITIAL AGREEMENT, WE'RE LOOKING AT A THREE YEAR TIME PERIOD. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. GOOD. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. DIRECTOR COFFEY. WELL, I WANT TO THANK DIRECTOR WAESPI, WHO HAS CHAMPIONED THE CONCEPT OF GETTING CCC TO DO A SPIKE CAMP FOR NOW YEARS. DENNIS, AND BROUGHT IT TO MY ATTENTION THAT THIS WAS SOMETHING VALUABLE THAT WE SHOULD BE PURSUING. SO THANK YOU, DENNIS, FOR YOUR WORK ON THIS AND I WOULD SUSPECT IT WILL ENHANCE THE PURSUIT OF FUNDING FOR THE HOLLY COURT PROJECT THAT WE'VE ENVISIONED. I THINK IF YOU HAVE AN OPERATION IN CONTRA COSTA COUNTY GOING AND SUCCESSFUL IN THAT, IT MAY BE IT WOULD HELP IN THAT PURSUIT WILL CONTINUE, I TAKE IT. YES. THE CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION CORPS IS CONTINUING THEIR CONCURRENT TO WHAT WE'VE BEEN DOING WITH OUR FEASIBILITY ASSESSMENT OF HOLLY COURT, BOLLINGER CANYON. THE CCC IS CONTINUING THEIR BUDGETARY PURSUITS. I DON'T KNOW, I'M JUST IMAGINING THAT IT WOULD HELP THAT PROCESS, THAT APPLICATION. I'M FAMILIAR WITH THE HOMESTEAD VALLEY SITE OUT THERE. WE USE THE WORD PRIMITIVE, WHICH I UNDERSTAND IS A TERM OF ART, BUT IN THIS CASE IT'S PRETTY DESCRIPTIVE. SO I'M, I YOU GUYS PROBABLY COULD ANSWER THIS BETTER. WHAT IS THE ADVANTAGE TO THIS SITE AS OPPOSED TO HOMES WITH RUNNING WATER AND AND BATHROOMS AND SUCH THAT WE CAN PROVIDE EITHER. LYDIA COURT OR ELSEWHERE WITH RESIDENCES. WHAT I'M I GUESS I'M FAMOUSLY NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO COMPREHEND THE DISCUSSIONS, AND I'LL TURN IT OVER TO SLOANE AS WELL. I THINK PART OF THE CONSTRAINTS AROUND THE LYDIA LANE SITE WAS THE SIZING AND IN ORDER TO HAVE THE ECONOMIES OF SCALE TO HAVE A INDOOR RESIDENTIAL SETTING WORK OVER A LONGER TIME, CCC WOULD WANT TO HAVE TWO CREWS AND SO WE DIDN'T HAVE QUITE ENOUGH SQUARE FOOTAGE AND SPACE TO HOUSE THE TWO CREWS, WHICH IS WHY WE THEN PIVOTED TO A CAMPSITE. IS THAT YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO ADD TO THAT SLOANE? YOU CAPTURED IT PERFECTLY. THANK YOU. I GUESS IF YOU'RE TURNING OVER FOLKS THAT ARE COMING IN AND OUT, THAT IT'S EASIER TO PITCH TENTS THAN PITCH THEM IN A LIVING ROOM. [02:00:01] YES. WE WANT TO RESPECT OUR YOU KNOW, OUR LAND USE GUIDELINES AND IF THERE WAS TO BE CAMPING, HAVE CAMPING HAPPEN IN A DESIGNATED GROUP. I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE DOING WHATEVER WE CAN TO FULFILL DIRECTOR WAESPI VISION OF GETTING IN TO OUR COMMUNITIES AND AND WORKING AS SOON AS THEY CAN. SO IF THIS IS THE BEST WAY TO DO THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT'S WONDERFUL. THANK YOU. OKAY. I THINK THAT'S EVERYONE EXCEPT ME. WELL. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I'M. I'M. SHARE THE EXCITEMENT OF THE OTHER BOARD MEMBERS HERE. I THINK THIS IS EXCITING, VERY EXCITING AND I REALLY WANT TO THANK EVERYBODY INVOLVED FOR YOUR HELP AND MAKING THIS HAPPEN. THANKS. SO WE NEED TO TAKE A VOTE. PRESIDENT ECHOLS. WE DO HAVE A SPEAKER ON THIS. OH, GREAT. THANK YOU. YOU HAVE THREE. ROSS MITCHELL, YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES. HELLO AGAIN, BOARD OF DIRECTORS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. AFSCME WOULD LIKE TO MAKE IT KNOWN THAT WE BELIEVE THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN NOTICED TO AFSCME. WE HAVE CLEAR LANGUAGE UNDER ARTICLE 19, IN OUR CONTRACT. THAT REQUIRES BOTH NOTICE AND A JOINT LABOR MANAGEMENT REVIEW BOARD TO BE CONVENED FOR EXPANSION OF USE OF COMMUNITY RESOURCE GROUPS, SUCH AS CONSERVATION COURSE HISTORICALLY, AFSCME HAS BEEN VERY SUPPORTIVE OF VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES AND CAREER DEVELOPMENT. I PERSONALLY HAVE A HISTORY WORKING IN AND WITH CONSERVATION CORPS CREWS AND AM EXCITED TO PARTNER WITH THE DISTRICT TO MAKE CAREER DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE. SO IT'S UNFORTUNATE TO US THAT IN THIS AREA WHERE WE THINK THERE'S A GREAT DEAL OF MUTUAL SUPPORT AND AREA TO WORK TOGETHER, THAT WE ARE CONTINUALLY STYMIED WHEN WE DISCUSS WITH MANAGEMENT AND ASSERT OUR RIGHTS UNDER ARTICLE 19 TO WORK TOGETHER UNDER THIS JOINT LABOR MANAGEMENT REVIEW BOARD. SO WE'VE HAD SEVERAL INSTANCES OF THIS HAPPENING IN THE LAST YEAR OR TWO AND UNFORTUNATELY, THAT'S RESULTED IN SEVERAL GRIEVANCES AND UNFAIR LABOR CHARGES PENDING WITH THE PERB BOARD. IT'D MUCH AFSCME MUCH PREFERRED PREFERENCE WOULD BE THAT WE FOLLOW OUR CONTRACT AND WORK THROUGH THIS JOINT LABOR LABOR MANAGEMENT REVIEW BOARD TO IDENTIFY OUR MUTUAL GOALS IN WORKING WITH GROUPS LIKE CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION CORPS, SO WE CAN BRING THEM INTO THE DISTRICT TO DO A LOT OF THESE PROJECTS THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT TODAY. SO I'LL JUST END BY SAYING WE WILL BE PROVIDING MANAGEMENT WITH A NOTICE ASSERTING OUR RIGHTS UNDER ARTICLE 19 AND THAT WE HOPE WE'LL BE ABLE TO CONVENE THAT JOINT LABOR MANAGEMENT REVIEW BOARD AND HAVE A PRODUCTIVE MEETING REGARDING THIS PROPOSAL AND WE WOULD JUST END BY ASKING FOR THE BOARD'S SUPPORT IN ENSURING THAT AFSCME IS FOLLOWED. THANK YOU. OKAY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENT. OKAY. SO DO WE HAVE A MOTION FOR THIS DIRECTOR WAESPI. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. DIRECTOR ROSARIO. SO WE HAVE A MOTION BY DIRECTOR WAESPI AND A SECOND BY DIRECTOR ROSARIO. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES. SO OUR THE NEXT ITEM WAS ACTUALLY PULLED FROM THE AGENDA. I THINK MOST PEOPLE ARE AWARE OF THAT. BUT IF ANYONE FROM THE PUBLIC WHO'S LISTENING, WE'RE NOT GOING TO BE COVERING THE PUBLIC SAFETY DIVISION ITEM TODAY. SO WE CAN MOVE ON. GENERAL MANAGER, DO WE HAVE ANY COMMENTS FROM YOU TODAY? [GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS] THANK YOU, PRESIDENT ECHOLS, I JUST HAVE ONE QUICK UPDATE AND THAT IS ON THE CREEK FIRE. JUST TO LET YOU AT SUNOL REGIONAL, JUST TO LET YOU KNOW AS OF THIS MORNING, THE FIRE. IT HAS REACHED A 55% CONTAINMENT. WE ARE ESTIMATING THAT WE WILL GET TO 100. [02:05:03] THE GOAL IS TO GET TO 100% CONTAINMENT. THE MORNING OF FRIDAY, AUGUST 2ND. THE PARK IS STILL CLOSED. ONLY RESIDENTS AND EMERGENCY PERSONNEL. ARE BEING ALLOWED THROUGH ON THE ROAD THERE AS WE SPEAK, BUT WE HAVE TRANSITIONED FROM UNIFIED COMMAND TO CAL FIRE BEING THE INCIDENT COMMANDER NOW. SO REALLY OUT OF THE WORST OF THIS AND JUST KUDOS TO ALL OF OUR STAFF. AS YOU GUYS KNOW, THIS STARTED ON FRIDAY AFTERNOON, AND THANKFULLY MOTHER NATURE HELPED US OUT A LITTLE BIT WITH THE COOLER WEATHER. BUT JUST THIS HAS BEEN A CHALLENGING ONE. AS YOU ALL KNOW, THE STATE IS FIGHTING A MASSIVE FIRE UP NORTH, SO GETTING RESOURCES HERE IN OUR PARK WAS A BIT OF A CHALLENGE. BUT AS ALWAYS, WE HAD ALL OF OUR MUTUAL ASSISTANCE PARTNERS AND ALL HANDS ON DECK WITHIN OUR STAFF. SO JUST WANT TO THANK EVERYBODY FOR ALL OF THEIR HARD WORK AND THE REPORT THAT I HAVE IS THAT NO HOMES OR BUILDINGS WERE DAMAGED OR DESTROYED. SO WE WILL BE DOING WORKING WITH CAL FIRE ON THE MOP UP AND DEMOBILIZATION AND THEN CERTAINLY THEY WILL BE LEADING ON THE INVESTIGATION OF THE CAUSE OF THE FIRE. SO MORE TO COME ON THAT, BUT JUST WANT TO THANK THE BOARD FOR YOUR SUPPORT AND IF ANYTHING CHANGES WE'LL LET YOU KNOW. THAT'S IT. THANK YOU. OKAY. SO, GENERAL COUNSEL, DO WE HAVE ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM CLOSED SESSION? WE DO NOT. THANK YOU. OKAY. ALL RIGHT, SO IN THAT CASE, WE CAN MOVE TO BOARD COMMENTS. [BOARD COMMENTS] I'LL START AT YEAR END. DIRECTOR ROSARIO. GREAT. THANK YOU. LET'S SEE, WHEN WAS OUR LAST MEETING? OH, YES. 16TH. OKAY. STARTING WITH THE 17TH, WE HAD THE DAY AFTER THE BOARD MEETING, WE HAD A OPERATIONS COMMITTEE MEETING, AND ON THE 18TH, I ATTENDED THE PORT CHICAGO WEEKEND AT THE AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSEUM LOCATED IN OAKLAND. THAT WAS A WONDERFUL EVENT. I WANTED TO GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO OUR BLACK EMPLOYEES COALITION THAT DID A WONDERFUL JOB. BOTH ULI AND YOLANDA. BEAUTIFUL POEM THAT YOU READ THERE, YOLANDA AND THEN ALSO GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO FORMER MAYOR LIBBY SCHAAF, WHO ATTENDED THAT AND SPOKE AT THAT MEETING, DESPITE HER FATHER PASSING AWAY THE DAY BEFORE. SO I WANTED TO GIVE A SHOUT OUT TO HER AS WELL. AND THEN ON THE 20TH, ATTENDED THE PORT CHICAGO WEEKEND AT PORT CHICAGO. WHAT A MOMENTOUS OCCASION AND YOU KNOW, WE BE COMING IN ON KIND OF LIKE THE TAIL END OF IT BECAUSE OF OUR LATE PARTICIPATION WITH THE NAMING OF THURGOOD MARSHALL REGIONAL PARK, HOME OF THE PARK, CHICAGO 50. IT STILL FEELS TO BE JUST TO BE PART OF THAT, EVEN AT THE END. IT'S JUST A MOMENTOUS OCCASION AND IT JUST VERY SAD THAT THERE WERE NO SURVIVORS TO SEE THAT EVENT OR, AND BE THERE FOR THAT. BUT I FEEL REALLY GOOD FOR THE FAMILIES AND ALL THE ADVOCACY THAT WE DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT THAT WAS HAPPENING AT THE SAME TIME AND SO IT'S QUITE TREMENDOUS AND THEN AGAIN, THANK YOU TO OUR BLACK EMPLOYEES COALITION OR COOPERATIVE IN STEERING THAT WEEKEND AND LEADING US IN THAT DIRECTION. ON 7/24 ATTENDED THE FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING, AND ON 26TH WE HAD THE BOARD SIDE TOUR COYOTE HILLS. ANOTHER EXCELLENT JOB THERE. IT WAS GREAT TO SEE THE NEW SERVICE YARD AND THEN ALSO THE FUTURE PROJECT THERE THAT WE'RE GOING TO BE DOING FOR THE MARSH RESTORATION AND THEN ON SEVENTH. OH, WE'RE HERE TODAY AND THEN I GUESS THIS AFTERNOON I'LL TRY TO MAKE IT TO THE REGIONAL PARKS FOUNDATION ANNUAL PICNIC AND THEN TOMORROW'S RANGER DAY. INTERNATIONAL RANGER DAY. WHERE THEY AT THE BRIDGE YARD. SO I'LL BE THERE FOR THAT AND THEN I JUST WANTED TO AS WE CLOSE, I WANT TO REMEMBER JAN SOUTHWORTH, WHO'S A NATURAL. SHE DID PASS AWAY LAST WEEK AND ALSO TREMENDOUS. SHE WAS A TREMENDOUS ASSET TO THE PARK DISTRICT. VERY INNOVATIVE. SHE CREATED THE POLLINATOR GARDEN THERE AT COYOTE HILLS AND THEY SHE INITIATED THE BUILDING AND THE FLOATING AND [02:10:06] OF THE TULE BOAT PROJECT THAT WAS THERE. SO HER LEGACY IS LONG AND DEEP AND SHE WAS WELL LOVED AND SOMETHING THAT THE PARK DISTRICT KIND OF THAT'S HOW WE BUILD OUR REPUTATION ON THE SHOULDERS OF SOME OF OUR INCREDIBLE PEOPLE THAT WE HAVE HERE. SO I JUST WANT TO REMEMBER HER AND THEN ALSO I WANTED TO REMEMBER RECOGNIZE YOLANDA'S UNCLE PASSED ALSO, SHE HAD TO LEAVE THE DAY AFTER THE DAY OF THE EVENT TO FLY BACK TO HER HOMETOWN TO ATTEND THE FUNERAL FOR HER UNCLE AND ALSO, AGAIN, LIBBY SCHAAF. I'D LIKE TO RECOGNIZE HER LOSS AS WELL. SO THANK YOU. OKAY. DIRECTOR MERCURIO. SURE. SO ON THE JULY 16TH, I WAS AT THE BOARD MEETING. JULY 18TH I WENT OUT TO VASCO HILLS TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE FLAG BARN TO SEE WHAT CONDITION IT WAS IN. ALSO ON THE 18TH, KIND OF CONTINUING THE CIRCUIT AROUND MOUNT DIABLO. I ENDED UP AT SAN RAMON FOR THE STATE OF THE COUNTY LUNCH WHICH WAS A GREAT EVENT THAT WAS LED BY PRESENTED BY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS PRESIDENT CANDACE ANDERSEN. AND SHE PUT ON A REALLY GOOD, WELL PACED REVIEW OF, YOU KNOW, THE THINGS THAT THE COUNTY HAS BEEN DOING AND WHAT THEY DID IN THE PAST YEAR, IT WAS VERY EDUCATIONAL. REALLY GREAT. I, TOO, WAS AT THE PORT CHICAGO COMMEMORATION EVENT. IT'S NOT THE FIRST TIME I'VE BEEN THERE, BUT THIS IS BY FAR THE BEST ONE FOR THE OBVIOUS REASON OF THE EXONERATION. HOW EXHILARATING WAS THAT AND THE SPEAKERS WERE TREMENDOUS AND TO SEE THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY THERE ACTUALLY GET CHOKED UP DURING PART OF HIS PRESENTATION ABOUT WHAT MOTIVATED HIM TO PROVIDE THAT LEADERSHIP AND FINALLY DO WHAT TOOK SO LONG TO DO AND WAY OVERDUE. BUT THEN WE HAD A TOUR AFTER THAT, WHICH WAS VERY INTERESTING. WE TOOK SOME OF THE FOLKS OUT INTO THE INLAND AREA OF THE NAVAL WEAPONS STATION, SHOWED THEM THE PROPOSED VISITOR CENTER BUILDING. IT WAS REALLY HOT, AND IT WAS REALLY HARD FOR THEM TO WALK AROUND IN THEIR DARK BLACK SUITS. BUT I DID GET A CHANCE TO TALK TO THURGOOD MARSHALL'S SON, WHO'S A GREAT GUY, AND HE I THINK, COLIN, YOU'LL RECALL THAT HE HAD A REAL INTEREST IN THE TRIALS THAT WERE GOING TO BE PRESENT IN THAT PARK. HE WANTED TO KNOW HOW MANY MILES, AND THAT WAS EMBARRASSING TO NOT KNOW GOT TO FIND OUT WHAT THE REAL NUMBER IS, BUT WE MADE A PRETTY GOOD ESTIMATE. YOU WERE GOOD. YOU WERE? YEAH, WE GAVE HIM AN ESTIMATE, BUT YEAH, HE'S ENGAGED AND HE'S GOING TO COME BACK. SO WE GOT TO KEEP HIM CLOSE. YOU KNOW HE'S A GREAT GUY. THEN ON THE 24TH WE HAD THE FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING HERE ON THE 25TH I WENT UP TO LAS TRAMPAS REGIONAL WILDERNESS WITH BRUCE HENRY, WHO'S A PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBER, AND TOOK A HIKE UP THERE AND HADN'T BEEN TO A LOT OF THAT PARK I HAVEN'T BEEN TO. SO IT WAS NICE TO HAVE COMPANY. BUT I RECOMMEND TAKING A HIKE UP ON THE WESTERN END OF THE PARK AND GOING UP ON ROCKY RIDGE, BECAUSE I HAD NO IDEA. THE VIEW FROM UP THERE IS LIKE OF LIKE A HUGE SECTION OF THE BAY. YOU CAN SEE THE BAY AND ALL THE EAST BAY DOWN THERE. IT'S ALMOST 2000FT ELEVATION THERE. SO I RECOMMEND THAT. THAT WAS A GREAT EXPERIENCE AND THEN THE NEXT DAY WE HAD THE BOARD SIDE VISIT AT COYOTE HILLS AND EVERYTHING ELSE THERE, DUMBARTON QUARRY, HAYWARD MARSH. THAT WAS A GREAT DAY. APPRECIATE ALL THAT WENT INTO MAKING THAT POSSIBLE FOR US TO SEE AND LEARN. SO THAT WAS IT FOR ME. THANK YOU. DIRECTOR WAESPI. THANK YOU. WELL, ON JULY 20TH, I HAD COMMITTED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE LAKE CHABOT FOUNDATION'S RUN AT LAKE CHABOT, WHICH WAS CALLED LAKESIDE LAPS AND MY ONLY COMMENT IS THAT IT WAS A LOT OF FUN. IT WAS JUST SO WELL DONE. YOU KNOW, THE FOUNDATION DID A GREAT JOB. ALL THE RUNNERS STAYED AROUND AND HAD A LOT OF FUN, A LOT OF WAY TO SHOW PEOPLE ABOUT THE PARK DISTRICT AND THE FOUNDATION. IT WAS A WONDERFUL THING AND ALL I CAN SAY ABOUT THAT IS SOMEBODY HAD TO, YOU KNOW, PLACE 228TH OUT OF 237 RUNNERS. [02:15:05] SOMEBODY HAD TO DO IT. I WAS VERY PROUD TO DO THAT. ON JULY 23RD, I HAD A ONE ON ONE WITH GENERAL COUNCIL BOURGAULT, AND IT WAS A VERY NICE DAY ON LAKE CHABOT AND THEN WE TALKED ABOUT A LOT OF GREAT THINGS. ON THE 25TH, I ATTENDED THE HASKELL MEETING HOUSE HAS NOW SIGNED FINALLY HAS A NEW MEMBER, ALAMEDA COUNTY MOSQUITO ABATEMENT DISTRICT. WE APPROVED OUR BUDGET FOR 24-25 AND WE GOT GREAT THINGS GOING WITH THE HELP OF DEVIN REIF AND OUR STAFF HERE. WE'RE GOING TO HIRE SOMEONE TO RUN THE HORSEPOWER SO THAT THE LOCAL AGENCIES DON'T HAVE TO DO IT. IT'LL TAKE A LITTLE BURDEN OFF OF US AND HOPE TO BE GOING STRAIGHT FORWARD WITH A WONDERFUL MASTER PLAN AND ABILITIES TO PROVIDE, DO WORK, AND DO GOOD WORK DOWN IN THAT END OF THE BAY. SO IT'S A VERY PRODUCTIVE MEETING. ON THE 26TH, I DID THE BOARD SITE TOUR, AND IT WAS EXCELLENT. I LOVE THAT DUMBARTON QUARRY CAMPGROUND. IT'S. I LOVE IT DOWN THERE AND WHAT A GREAT PLACE TO HAVE A CAMPGROUND. I WAS GOING TO ACKNOWLEDGE LISA GOORJIAN, BUT EVERYBODY LEAVES. BUT, LISA, YOU KNOW, I THINK WE ALL READ IS NOW ON THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COUNTY PARKS AND RECREATION OFFICIALS BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND I FIND THAT GREAT. I THINK THAT OUR PEOPLE GETTING OUT AND PARTICIPATING AND BEING PARTS OF ALL THIS STUFF MAKES IT ALL THAT BETTER FOR EVERYONE. ALSO, ROBERT KENNEDY, I'D LIKE TO I WANTED TO SAY IT TO HIM IN PERSON, BUT, YOU KNOW, I'LL REPRESENT MAINTENANCE. SOME OF US FEEL THAT'S A KIND OF A STEP DOWN TO GO FROM MAINTENANCE TO OPERATIONS. BUT I'LL TELL HIM PERSONALLY. YEAH AND GEE, I DON'T. DID ANYBODY ELSE GET A REQUEST FROM AMELIA MARSHALL ABOUT THE NATIONAL HORSE OR HORSEMAN'S MONTH? I WOULD HOPE WE WOULD CONSIDER THAT. IT'S PROBABLY A GOOD THING TO DO. THANK YOU TO JUANCHO AND STAFF AND DOCTOR ALVAREZ. THE DISHWASHER IS NOW WORKS. SO THE GUILT THAT EVERYONE FEELS OF USING ALL THESE OR THE WHAT? THE SENSE OF ACCOMPLISHMENT PEOPLE GET FROM USING NON-DISPOSABLE UTENSILS AND PLATES BECAUSE WE'RE DOING THE RIGHT THING WILL BE ASSUAGED OR WILL ASSUAGE THE GUILT YOU HAVE OF THROWING HIM IN THERE AND NOT WASHING THEM, EXPECTING SOMEONE ELSE TO WASH THEM. EXPECTING YOUR MOTHER TO WASH THEM LIKE ME. OKAY. WELL, NO LONGER WILL ANYONE HAVE TO FEEL THAT PAIN BECAUSE THE DISHWASHER WORKS. THE EXISTING DISHWASHER WAS IN FACT DISHWASHER. SO I THINK THE PROCESS IS I COULD BE WRONG ON THIS, BUT AFTER YOU'RE DONE USING YOUR REUSABLE DISHES AND UTENSILS, JUST PUT THEM IN THE DISHWASHER. I THINK WE CAN GET SOMEONE TO PUSH THE BUTTON. IT'S ALREADY CONNECTED. THE SOAP GOES IN AND SO DOES THE MAGIC THAT DRIES THEM. YEAH. ANY. WHATEVER HAPPENS AND THEN SOMEBODY WILL HAVE TO TAKE THEM OUT. ALL VOLUNTEER TO DO IT. BUT JUST GIVE ME A CALL AN HOUR BEFORE, BUT I THINK IT'LL BE A GREAT IMPROVEMENT. WE'RE DOING THE RIGHT THING, AND I THINK WE CAN SHOW THAT AS AN EXAMPLE. THE NATIONAL DAY OUT IS AUGUST 6TH, SO WE WON'T BE AROUND TILL THEN. IT'S A GREAT NIGHT OUT. IF YOU'VE NEVER DONE IT, IT'S LAKE CHABOT. OUR PUBLIC SAFETY DEPARTMENT DOES AN INCREDIBLE JOB. EVERYBODY IN THE COMMUNITY COMES DOWN THERE. IT'S JUST EVERYBODY IS HAVING FUN. REALLY? ONCE AGAIN, ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY TO SHOW WHAT WE'VE GOT HERE IN THE PARK DISTRICT. [INAUDIBLE] YEAH AND OH WHEN THE UN DAY OF PEACE IS GOING TO BE SEPTEMBER 21ST, I WAS WONDERING IF WE'RE GOING TO PARTICIPATE IN THAT AND HOW WE'RE GOING TO DO THAT, AND IF IT WILL CONTINUE INTO ITS SIXTH OR SEVENTH YEAR. LET ME FOLLOW UP WITH YOU ON THAT. I BELIEVE SANDY SHOP IS INVOLVED, BUT I DON'T LET ME HAVE THEM EMAIL YOU. YEAH. THANK YOU AND ALSO I'D LIKE TO OFFER MY SAME CONDOLENCES TO JAN SOUTHWORTH. SHE WAS AN INCREDIBLE PERSON. [INAUDIBLE]. WAS THIS WHAT SHE DEVISED? SHE THEORIZED THAT NATIVE AMERICANS CAME FROM HAYWARD COUNTY HILLS AREA AND MADE BOATS OUT OF REEDS THAT THEY HAD READILY RIGHT THERE, AND COYOTE HILLS AND THE MARSHES THERE, AND MOTOR OR SAILED ACROSS TO, PADDLED ACROSS AND TRADED ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE [02:20:01] BAY AND THEN WHEN SHE WAS SUCCESSFUL IN THAT SHE MADE A GIANT BOAT IN HER, INCLUDED ALL THE COMMUNITY IN IT, AND MADE A BIG BOAT AND THEY SAILED FROM BROWN'S ISLAND ALL THE WAY TO CANADA HILLS AND SHE PROVED, YOU KNOW, TRADE WITH NATIVE AMERICANS UP IN THE DELTA WAS A POSSIBILITY AND IN FACT, POSSIBLE REALITY AND SHE WAS JUST WONDERFUL IN EVERY WAY. SO SHE'LL BE MISSED AND THAT'S IT. DIRECTOR SANWONG. YEAH AND I BELIEVE AT THE NATIONAL NIGHT OUT AT LAKE CHABOT, THERE WILL BE HOT DOGS AND, YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHAT I THOUGHT OF WHEN WE HAD OUR POLLING CONSULTANT HERE EARLIER. HE'S LIKE, OH, DO YOU WANT TO OFFER PEOPLE HOT DOGS? I'M LIKE, WE'RE ABOUT TO AT LAKE CHABOT. SO, YEAH. YES. SO SINCE THE LAST BOARD MEETING ON JULY 17TH, WE HAD OUR OPERATIONS COMMITTEE MEETING, AND I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION THAT WE CONSIDER APPOINTING A SECOND ALTERNATE TO THE OPERATIONS COMMITTEE JUST BECAUSE I KNOW WE HAVE A FULL AGENDA COMING UP IN THE SEPTEMBER TO DECEMBER TIME FRAME. SO IT JUST MIGHT BE GOOD TO HAVE TWO ALTERNATES AVAILABLE FOR THE OPERATIONS COMMITTEE SO THAT WE DON'T HAVE ANY QUORUM ISSUES IN THE FALL. ON THE 24TH, WE HAD OUR FINANCE COMMITTEE. 26 WAS THE SITE VISIT AND THEN THIS MORNING WE HAD OUR ECOLOGY COMMITTEE, DIRECTOR MERCURIO AND I AND THAT WAS VERY ENLIGHTENING. I THINK WE COULD HAVE PROBABLY SPENT A COUPLE MORE HOURS TALKING ABOUT THE INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT PLAN AND IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT WORK THAT WE DO HERE AT THE PARK DISTRICT. SO THAT WAS NICE. THANK YOU. DIRECTOR COFFEY. THANK YOU. AFTER OUR LAST BOARD MEETING ON THE 14TH, I ATTENDED THE BIG BREAK CAMPFIRE. BIG BREAK? STAFF PUTS ON CAMPFIRES FOR FAMILIES SEVERAL DURING THE COURSE OF THE SUMMER AND THESE ARE EVENING PROGRAMS THAT INVOLVE DOCENTS CREATING EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE KIDS AND DOING S'MORES DOWN IN THE AMPHITHEATER AND READING STORIES. IT'S ALWAYS A REALLY GREAT EVENT, AND I LIKE MAKING AS MANY OF THEM AS I CAN EVERY YEAR WITH MILA AND SOMETIMES WE'LL PULL A YOUNG NIECE OR NEPHEW ALONG WITH US, AND I REALLY APPRECIATE THE WORK THE FOLKS UP AT BIG BREAK DO FOR A VERY POPULAR PROGRAM. ON THE 17TH, I ATTENDED THE OPPS COMMITTEE AS AN ALTERNATE. ON THE 17TH, I ATTENDED THE MARSH CREEK WATERSHED COUNCIL. COMMITTEE ON THE CREATION OF BYLAWS. THAT IS A PROCESS THAT IS CLOSE TO COMPLETION. IT'S GOING TO THE LARGER GROUP OF ORGANIZERS OF THE MARSH CREEK WATERSHED COUNCIL LATER THIS WEEK, I BELIEVE AND JUST OF NOTE, THAT ORGANIZATION IS LOOKING TO CREATE AN OVERSIGHT FUNCTION FOR CONTRA COSTA COUNTY AND THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT IN SOME FORM OVER WHAT WOULD BECOME A WATERSHED COUNCIL, ONE OF HALF A DOZEN THAT EXIST IN IN CONTRA COSTA, ALL OF WHICH, OR MOST OF WHICH ARE STAFFED BY THE RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICT OR FLOOD CONTROL DISTRICT OR OTHER ORGANIZATIONS AND I WILL HAVE TO BRING IT TO THE ATTENTION OF OUR LEGAL COUNSEL, SINCE WE'RE GOING TO HAVE IT'S A FAIRLY INFORMAL STRUCTURE, BUT I DID WANT THE BOARD TO KNOW THERE IS RECOGNITION OUT THERE OF THE IMPORTANCE WHEN YOU DISCUSS THE TOPIC OF THE MARSH CREEK WATERSHED, WHICH IS HUGE. IT'S A HUGE DELTA WATERSHED WITH ITS ORIGINS UP IN MORGAN TERRITORY, MOUNT DIABLO FLOWING ALL THE WAY INTO THE DELTA AT DUTCH SLOUGH. TOUCHING ON A LOT OF COMMUNITIES, TOUCHING ON WARD SIX AND WARD SEVEN AND THEY ENVISION A ROLE IN. THAT OVERSIGHT ENTITY FOR DIRECTORS FROM WARD SEVEN AND WARD SIX. ALONG WITH THE EXISTING CONTRA COSTA LIAISON COMMITTEE FOR THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT. AS YOU KNOW, WE MEET SEVERAL TIMES A YEAR. IN THEORY, AT ANY EVENT, IT'S COMING TO FRUITION. IT INVOLVES THE RECOGNITION OF THE PARK DISTRICT'S ROLE IN AS A REGIONAL ORGANIZATION INVOLVED IN THE MARSH CREEK WATERSHED AND WE'LL BRING IT TO THE FULL BOARD JUST TO GET A TASTE FOR IT AT SOME POINT IN THE NEAR FUTURE. THE 19TH, 20TH, THAT WHOLE WEEKEND OF THE PORT CHICAGO COMMEMORATION [02:25:09] THAT THE COMMITTEE, BLACK EMPLOYEES COLLECTIVE AND THE COMMITTEE THAT JULIE AND YOLANDA AND SABRINA PUT TOGETHER. YOU WERE THERE THAT ENTIRE WEEKEND, IF FOR AT LEAST IN OUR THOUGHTS, ESPECIALLY FOR THE COMMEMORATION AND EVENTS THAT YOU MISSED. SO BUT BE AWARE THAT ALL OF US WERE THINKING OF YOU AND HOPING YOU COULD JUST ABSORB SOME OF IT FROM US AND HOPEFULLY YOU HAVE HEARD FROM EVERYONE ON WHAT AN INCREDIBLE SUCCESS, EVERY SINGLE ASPECT OF THAT PORT CHICAGO WEEKEND ORGANIZATION'S WORK AND THE COMMEMORATION ITSELF, THE RECEPTION AFTER THE COMMEMORATION AT THE SHORELINE, AND THEN THE TOUR WE DID WITH THE SECRETARY OF NAVY AND THURGOOD MARSHALL JUNIOR AND I ALSO WANT TO THANK ALL OUR STAFF THAT PUT EFFORTS INTO BOTH THE COMMEMORATION, THE RECEPTION AND THE TOUR. THANKING IN PARTICULAR KEVIN DAMSTRA FOR ALL HIS WORK AND THE BLACK DIAMOND NATURALISTS, ALL WHO WERE THERE AT THE SITE AND PROVIDING INFORMATION ON THE PARK DISTRICT TO ALL THOSE FOLKS AND IT WAS EXCITING AND I DID GET TO CHAT AS AS DIRECTOR MERCURIO DID WITH THURGOOD MARSHALL JR. THE IMPACT OF HAVING HIM HERE ON SITE, CLEARLY HAVING HEARD A LOT ABOUT THIS NEW PARK OUT ON THE WEST COAST THAT WAS BEING NAMED AFTER HIS FATHER, I HE DIDN'T HAVE AN IDEA THAT THIS WASN'T JUST ANY, YOU KNOW, CITY PARK OR PARK. HE NOW CAME OUT AND WE WERE OUT ON THE SITE AND WE WERE POINTING OUT WHAT? LOOK, AS FAR AS YOU CAN SOUTH AS FAR AS YOU CAN NORTH. THAT'S ALL. THE PARK NAMED AFTER YOUR FATHER AND HIS EYES WOULD WIDEN AND GET A BIG GRIN. HE REALLY ENJOYED THAT OPPORTUNITY TO BE OUT THERE AND SEE JUST WHAT WE ARE TALKING ABOUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THURGOOD MARSHALL, HOME OF THE PORT CHICAGO 50 AND HE DID EXPRESS AN EAGERNESS TO COME BACK OUT AND BE HERE AND BE AT THE EVENT WHEN WE'RE ABLE TO BREAK GROUND AND CUT A RIBBON. HE DEFINITELY WANTS TO BE A PART OF THAT. SO THAT WAS FUN. THAT WAS EXCITING FOR ME AND ALL OF US ON THAT TOUR. I TOOK THE SPEAKING OF TOUR. THE BOARD PSYCH TOUR WITH ALL OF YOU, MY COLLEAGUES ON THE 26TH. JUST IN CLOSING, I ATTENDED AN EVENT HOSTED BY CONGRESSMAN DESAULNIER FOR HIS COLLEAGUE, CONGRESSMAN ADAM SCHIFF, WHO'S RUNNING FOR US SENATE. OBVIOUSLY AND I MENTIONED THIS ONLY BECAUSE IT WAS VERY INTERESTING. I HAVE TO SAY HELLO TO CONGRESSMAN SCHIFF AND INTRODUCE MYSELF AND HE SAID YES. WE MET IN THE CAFETERIA AT THE LONGWORTH HOUSE OFFICE BUILDING A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, DIDN'T WE? AND I WAS LIKE, NO, I HAVE MET THE CONGRESSMAN A COUPLE OF TIMES SINCE THEN, BUT THAT'S THE EVENT, THE SETTING. HE HOW HE JUST SOMEHOW REMEMBERED THAT AND I WAS LIKE, YEAH, CONGRESSMAN, WE MET IN THE CAFETERIA AT THE LONGWORTH HOUSE, SO ANYTIME ANYONE QUESTIONS THE VALUE OF OUR TRIPS TO DC, YOU KNOW, WE MEET WITH OUR MEMBERS HERE IN THE DISTRICT, IN THE EAST BAY FREQUENTLY. BUT THEY REMEMBER US WHEN THEY MET US BACK THERE. SO I THOUGHT THAT WAS AN INTERESTING ANECDOTE TO SHARE WITH YOU FOLKS AND THAT DOES IT FOR ME. THANK YOU. GREAT. GOOD TO KNOW. MORE MEETINGS IN THE LONGWORTH CAFETERIA. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. SO I ALSO HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO ATTEND THE PORT CHICAGO COMMEMORATION AND REALLY, IT WAS VERY POWERFUL, VERY MOVING AND ALSO HAPPILY VERY CELEBRATORY BECAUSE OF THE EXONERATION OF ALL OF THOSE MEN WHO WERE UNJUSTLY ACCUSED AND SO I DO WANT TO EXPRESS MY GRATITUDE FOR YOLANDA AND ULI AND THE BLACK EMPLOYEES COLLECTIVE AND ALL THE WORK THAT THEY DID, NOT ONLY DURING THE COURSE OF THE WEEKEND ON ALL THOSE EVENTS BUT BUT ALSO THEIR WORK AND LEADERSHIP IN BRINGING ATTENTION TO THIS ISSUE, THAT HERE WERE THESE MEN WHO WERE REALLY HEROES AND WHO WERE, YOU KNOW, BASICALLY ACCUSED OF MUTINY. SO OUR WORK USED A MUTINY AND FOR, YOU KNOW, FOR 80 YEARS IT STAYED THAT WAY. SO VERY HAPPY TO HAVE THEM EXONERATED AND APPRECIATE YOUR WORK ALONG WITH OTHERS ON COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND PEOPLE ACROSS [02:30:09] THE COUNTRY WHO WORK TO GET THAT DONE, ALONG WITH, AS WE LEARNED ALL ABOUT THE SECRETARY OF NAVY STAFF, TO WAS ALSO INSTRUMENTAL IN THAT AND WHAT A CREW WITH YEAH, WITH HIS CHIEF COUNSEL AND HIS DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF, GRANDDAUGHTER OF ELEANOR ROOSEVELT AND EVERYBODY ELSE. YEAH, DEFINITELY HAD A GOOD GROUP. SO ON THE MONDAY THE 22ND, I MET WITH THE BERKELEY CITY COUNCIL MEMBER, WENGRAF, WHO ALSO CHAIRS THE EAST BAY WILDFIRE COALITION, AND SPOKE TO HER ABOUT SOME OF THE WORK THAT THAT THEY'RE DOING AND SHE EXPRESSED AN INTEREST IN HAVING US JOIN POSSIBLY AS A PART OF AN ADVISORY BOARD AND SO I THINK WE SHOULD EXPLORE THAT, POSSIBILITY. ON THE 25TH, I AND WELL, ACTUALLY, LET ME JUST BACK UP, FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO AREN'T FAMILIAR WITH THE BAY EAST BAY WILDFIRE COALITION, IT'S BASICALLY ALL OF THE CITIES ALONG THE RIDGELINE. SO RICHMOND, EL CERRITO BERKELEY, OAKLAND I THINK SAN PABLO AS WELL. ALL OF THEIR CHIEFS, THEIR FIRE CHIEFS MEET AND SOME ELECTEDS AND I THINK THE CONTRA COSTA COUNTY FIRE IS THERE AND ALAMEDA COUNTY FIRE IS THERE, ALONG WITH THE VARIOUS FIRE SAFE COUNCILS. SO IT'S YOU KNOW, THEY'RE REALLY LOOKING TO HAVE STANDARDS AND AND I MEAN, IT WOULDN'T I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO BE IN THE ROOM TO PROVIDE LEADERSHIP AND TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE HELPING TO GUIDE THAT CONVERSATION AND SHARING KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERTISE, BECAUSE THIS IS AN ISSUE THAT CLEARLY KNOWS NO BOUNDARIES. LET'S SEE. SO ON THE 25TH, I MET WITH OUR DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER ON ALVAREZ. WORKING ON PLANNING OUR 2025 BOARD CALENDAR ON THE 26TH. AS YOU HEARD, WE HAD A BOARD SITE VISIT COYOTE HILLS, DUMBARTON QUARRY CAMPGROUND AND HAYWARD SHORELINE. I HAVEN'T SPENT MUCH TIME IN THESE PARKS AND IT WAS AMAZING. IT WAS REALLY WOW, ESPECIALLY COYOTE HILLS. WELL, ALL OF THEM REALLY. IT WAS VERY REALLY BEAUTIFUL AREA AND SO MUCH TO LEARN ABOUT THE WILDLIFE THERE AND EVERYTHING ELSE. SO REALLY ENJOYED THOSE SITE VISITS. SO OF COURSE, THANK YOU TO THE STAFF FOR ALL THE HARD WORK THAT GOES INTO THOSE AND THEN ON MONDAY THE 29TH HAD MY PRE BOARD MEETING AND NOW I'M HERE. SO ALL RIGHT. SO WE ARE ONCE WE ADJOURN THIS WILL BE OUR LAST MEETING UNTIL SEPTEMBER. SO AT LEAST IN THEORY, WE HAVE A BREAK IN THE MONTH OF AUGUST. I KNOW I ALREADY HAVE A NUMBER OF BOARD RELATED THINGS SCHEDULED, BUT I'M SURE OTHERS DO TOO BUT THAT'S OKAY. AT LEAST WE'LL CUT DOWN ON OUR MEETINGS SO WE CAN DO OTHER WORK BUT THANK YOU ALL. I HOPE YOU DO GET SOME TIME TIME OFF. I HOPE THE STAFF ENJOYS HAVING SLIGHTLY FEWER MEETINGS WITH US OVER THE MONTH OF AUGUST, AND HOPEFULLY YOU CAN GET SOME REST AS WELL AND WE WILL MOST LIKELY SEE YOU BEFORE SEPTEMBER IN SOME FORM OR ANOTHER, BUT WE WILL SEE YOU AT OUR NEXT BOARD MEETING FOR SURE ON SEPTEMBER 3RD AND WE ARE NOW ADJOURNED. * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.