[00:00:06]
          THANK YOU. GOOD AFTERNOON. WELCOME, EVERYONE. THIS IS A REGULAR PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE
MEETING OF THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT ON JANUARY 20TH 26, 
          [Roll Call]
2026, BEGINNING AT 4:01 P.M. MADAM CLERK, IF YOU COULD PLEASE DO A ROLL CALL. 
          OKAY. SORRY. OKAY. ROLL CALL. MEMBER BARTLEBAUGH. 
          NOT HERE. MEMBER CHANG. ALSO NOT HERE. MEMBER CLAXTON. 
          HERE. THANK YOU. MEMBER DETJENS. HERE. THANK YOU. 
          MEMBER DIETER. HERE. THANK YOU. MEMBER HENRY. 
          HERE. THANK YOU. MEMBER LOPEZ. PRESENT. THANK YOU. 
          MEMBER MAHADEVAN. HERE. THANK YOU. MEMBER MARSH. 
          PRESENT. THANK YOU. MEMBER MENDOZA. HERE. THANK YOU. 
          MEMBER OBRINGER. I AM HERE AS WELL. THANK YOU. 
          MEMBER OMOLO. HERE. THANK YOU. MEMBER PEOPLES. 
          PRESENT. THANK YOU. MEMBER SMITH. HERE. THANK YOU. 
          MEMBER VALENZUELA. HERE. THANK YOU. MEMBER VASUDEO. 
          HERE. THANK YOU AND WELCOME. MEMBER WILLIAMS IS NOT HERE. 
          OKAY. I WILL NOW READ A NOTE ON THE BROWN ACT AND MEETING PROCEDURES. 
          TODAY'S MEETING IS HELD PURSUANT TO THE BROWN ACT. 
          THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT OR PARK DISTRICT INTENDS TO HOLD MEETINGS THROUGH A
HYBRID PLATFORM OF IN-PERSON AND REMOTE ATTENDANCE TO ALLOW MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC TO PARTICIPATE VIA REMOTE ATTENDANCE THROUGH THE PARK DISTRICT'S VIRTUAL PLATFORM OF ZOOM. 
          THE PARK ADVISORY MEMBERS AND DESIGNATED STAFF WILL,
WITH LIMITED EXCEPTIONS, PARTICIPATE IN PERSON AT THE PARK DISTRICT HEADQUARTERS AT 2950 PERALTA OAKS COURT IN OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA. OCCASIONALLY,
MEMBERS OF THE PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE MAY ATTEND REMOTELY PURSUANT TO THE BROWN ACT, AS AMENDED BY AB2449, PURSUANT TO GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 54953,
SUBDIVISION B. 
          PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBER CARLYN OBRINGER WILL PARTICIPATE FROM 1950 PARKSIDE DRIVE
IN CONCORD, CALIFORNIA. PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBER DENNISHA MARSH WILL PARTICIPATE FROM 352
SHORELINE DRIVE IN PITTSBURG, CALIFORNIA. PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBER SCOTT BARTLEBAUGH WILL PARTICIPATE FROM 741
MILL RACE LANE IN NORTHFIELD, OHIO, AND PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBER CORINA LOPEZ WILL PARTICIPATE FROM 6218 SOUTH
STAPLES STREET IN CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS. THIS NOTICE AND AGENDA WILL BE POSTED AT THE TELECONFERENCE LOCATIONS. 
          ACCESSIBILITY TO AND PUBLIC COMMENT FROM THESE ADDRESSES WILL BE PROVIDED AS REQUIRED BY
GOVERNMENT CODE SECTION 54 953B3. 
          WE ARE PROVIDING LIVE AUDIO AND VIDEO STREAMING,
AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WISHING TO MAKE A PUBLIC COMMENT CAN DO SO EITHER IN PERSON OR LIVE VIA ZOOM BY SUBMITTING AN EMAIL TO PARKADVISORYCOMMITTEE@EBPARKS.ORG OR LEAVING A
VOICEMAIL AT (510) 544-2036. 
          THIS INFORMATION IS NOTED ON THE AGENDA, AND IF THERE ARE NO QUESTIONS ABOUT MEETING
PROCEDURES, WE WILL BEGIN. THANK YOU. VICE CHAIR MENDOZA,
IF YOU COULD PLEASE READ THE LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT. 
          AS WE GATHER HERE TODAY AND ON BEHALF OF THE PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE,
I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT ALL OF THE LANDS WITHIN THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT ARE THE ANCESTRAL LANDS OF EAST BAY OHLONE, BAY MIWOK,
AND THE NORTHERN VALLEY YOKUT, WHO ARE POLITICALLY ORGANIZED AND REPRESENTED BY A NUMBER OF TRIBES TODAY. WE MAKE THIS RECOGNITION AS A WAY TO RESPECT AND HONOR THE INDIGENOUS
PEOPLES WHO FIRST CULTIVATED AND INHABITED THIS LAND. 
          THE PARK DISTRICT IS COMMITTED TO IDENTIFYING WAYS TO WORK AND CONSULT WITH EAST BAY
TRIBES, AS WE RECOGNIZE THAT THESE TRIBAL CITIZENS REMAIN CONNECTED TO THEIR LAND AND THEIR
CULTURE. 
          I'D ALSO LIKE TO RECOGNIZE THAT WE ARE CURRENTLY IN THE VILLAGE KNOWN AS HUCHIUN ON
CHOCHENYO OHLONE LAND. 
          THANK YOU, VICE CHAIR MENDOZA. ARE THERE ANY MEMBERS PARTICIPATING VIRTUALLY DUE TO AN
EMERGENCY THAT WISHED TO REQUEST THE BODY'S APPROVAL TO PARTICIPATE REMOTELY? OKAY. WE'LL MOVE ON TO PRE-PLANNED MEMBERS ATTENDING REMOTELY. 
          FOR MEMBERS WHO PREVIOUSLY NOTED THEIR REMOTE PARTICIPATION PRIOR TO THIS MEETING,
WE WILL NOW CONFIRM IF THERE ARE ANY OTHER INDIVIDUALS PRESENT AND YOUR MEETING LOCATION. 
          IS MEMBERS OBRINGER. YES. MEMBER OBRINGER IS APPEARING REMOTELY. 
          PAC MEMBER OBRINGER. ARE THERE ANY OTHER INDIVIDUALS 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER THAT ARE OR
TO YOUR KNOWLEDGE, 
          [00:05:02]
PLAN TO BE PRESENT IN THE ROOM AT YOUR LOCATION? NO, THERE ARE NOT. THANK YOU. MEMBER MARSH IS APPEARING REMOTELY. 
          PAC MEMBER MARSH. ARE THERE ANY OTHER INDIVIDUALS 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER THAT ARE OR TO
YOUR KNOWLEDGE, PLAN TO BE PRESENT IN THE ROOM AT YOUR LOCATION? NO. THANK YOU. MEMBER BARTLEBAUGH. IS HE ONLINE NOW? I DON'T SEE HIM YET. YES HE IS. HE IS. I'M SORRY. 
          MEMBER BARTLEBAUGH IS APPEARING REMOTELY. PAC MEMBER BARTLEBAUGH. ARE THERE ANY OTHER
INDIVIDUALS 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER THAT ARE OR TO YOUR KNOWLEDGE, PLAN TO BE PRESENT IN THE ROOM AT YOUR LOCATION? NO. THANK YOU. MEMBER LOPEZ IS APPEARING REMOTELY. 
          PAC MEMBER LOPEZ. ARE THERE ANY OTHER INDIVIDUALS 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER THAT ARE OR TO
YOUR KNOWLEDGE, PLAN TO BE PRESENT IN THE ROOM AT YOUR LOCATION? NO. THANK YOU. MOVING ON TO APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES ONTO APPROVAL OF THE OCTOBER 27TH,
2025 MINUTES. 
          [Approval of Minutes]
DO WE HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE? SO MOVED. MOVED BY MEMBER DIETER. 
          FIRST HE BEAT YOU TO IT. AND SECONDED BY PEOPLES OR SIMMONS,
I DIDN'T CATCH, I JUST HAD A COMMENT. 
          VOTED IN FAVOR OF THE MINUTES, SO I'M ASSUMING THAT PEOPLE CAME IN LATE. 
          SO JUST IN ORDER TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S NOT CONFUSING,
MAYBE WE SHOULD INDICATE LATE ATTENDANCE. 
          IF IT WAS LATER ABSTAINED. IT USUALLY WILL SAY ABSTAIN OR SO. 
          ANYWAY, IT'S JUST. I'M NOT WEDDED TO THIS, BUT IT WAS JUST A LITTLE CONFUSING. 
          I THINK IT'S HAPPENED BEFORE. OKAY. THANK YOU. 
          WITH THAT, DO WE HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE AND A SECOND? SO MOVED. THANK YOU. MOVED BY PEOPLES. DO I HAVE A SECOND? SECOND BY CLAXTON. MADAM CLERK, IF YOU COULD PLEASE DO A ROLL CALL. 
          YES. MEMBER BARTLEBAUGH. AYE. MEMBER CLAXTON. 
          AYE. MEMBER DETJENS. AYE. MEMBER DIETER. AYE. 
          MEMBER HENRY. YES. MEMBER LOPEZ. YES. MEMBER MAHADEVAN. 
          YES. MEMBER MARSH. ABSTAIN. OKAY. MEMBER MENDOZA. 
          AYE. MEMBER OBRINGER. YES. MEMBER OMOLO. YES. 
          MEMBER PEOPLES. YES. MEMBER SMITH. YES. MEMBER VALENZUELA. 
          YES. MEMBER VASUDEO. YES. THANK YOU. THE MOTION PASSES. 
          THANK YOU. AND FOR APPROVAL OF THE NOVEMBER 24TH,
2025 MINUTES. 
          DO WE HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE? MEMBER VALENZUELA. 
          DO WE HAVE A SECOND? MEMBER PEOPLES. MADAM CLERK,
IF YOU COULD PLEASE DO A ROLL CALL VOTE. 
          MEMBER BARTLEBAUGH. AYE. MEMBER CLAXTON. YES. 
          MEMBER DETJENS. AYE. MEMBER DIETER. CLARIFYING QUESTION,
I'M NOT PAYING CLOSE ATTENTION HERE. 
          SORRY. DID WE JUST VOTE ON APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES? OCTOBER 25TH. WE'RE VOTING ON NOVEMBER NOW. YES. 
          OH, OKAY, AYE. OKAY. THANK YOU. MEMBER HENRY. 
          YES. THANK YOU. MEMBER LOPEZ. YES. MEMBER MAHADEVAN. 
          YES. MEMBER MARSH. YES. THANK YOU. MEMBER MENDOZA. 
          AYE. MEMBER OBRINGER. YES. THANK YOU. MEMBER OMOLO. 
          YES. MEMBER PEOPLES. YES. MEMBER SMITH. YES. MEMBER VALENZUELA. 
          YES. AND MEMBER VASUDEO. YES. THANK YOU. THE MOTION PASSES. 
          THANK YOU. IF THE CLERK COULD PLEASE EXPLAIN HOW TO SUBMIT PUBLIC COMMENTS. 
          YES. OKAY. PUBLIC COMMENTS MAY BE SUBMITTED ONE OF THREE WAYS. 
          ONE, VIA EMAIL TO PARKADVISORYCOMMITTEE@EBPARKS.ORG. 
          TWO, VIA VOICEMAIL AT (510) 544-2036 AND LEAVING A MESSAGE WHICH WILL BE TRANSCRIBED AND
GIVEN TO THE COMMITTEE AND MADE PART OF THE PUBLIC RECORD. 
          OR THREE, BY JOINING IN THE MEETING VIA THE ZOOM LINK,
WHICH IS LISTED ON THE AGENDA POSTED ON THE DISTRICT'S WEBSITE. 
          THE SUBMISSION OF PUBLIC COMMENTS WAS NOTICED ON THE AGENDA AND IN THE PARK ADVISORY
COMMITTEE PACKET POSTED ON THE DISTRICT'S WEBSITE. 
          ALL EMAILS RECEIVED PRIOR TO THE DEADLINE ON FRIDAY OF LAST WEEK ARE DISTRIBUTED TO THE
PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBERS. 
          [00:10:03]
ANY EMAILS THAT HAVE COME IN AFTER THIS DATE WILL BE ORGANIZED AND GIVEN TO THE COMMITTEE
AFTER THIS MEETING. 
          THANK YOU. THANK YOU. IF YOU'RE HERE TO PROVIDE A COMMENT REGARDING AN ITEM ON THE AGENDA, WE WILL CALL ON INDIVIDUALS DURING PUBLIC COMMENT FOR THAT SPECIFIC ITEM. 
          HAS THE CLERK RECEIVED ANY EMAILS OR SPEAKERS CARDS FROM THE PUBLIC FOR ANY ITEMS NOT ON
THE AGENDA? NO, WE HAVE NOT. THANK YOU AGAIN. WE WILL PROVIDE MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC THE OPPORTUNITY TO
COMMENT ABOUT ITEMS ON THE AGENDA AT THE END OF EACH ITEM. 
          SO WE'LL MOVE ON TO THE AGENDA. BEFORE WE DO THAT,
WE DO HAVE A NEW BOARD MEMBER JOINING US TONIGHT AND REALLY HAPPY TO HAVE HER HERE. 
          [Informational Items]
SO MEMBER VASUDEO, IF YOU COULD PLEASE JUST TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOURSELF. 
          SURE. HI, EVERYONE. NICE TO MEET YOU ALL. MY NAME IS ANA VASUDEO AND I'M A SCHOOL BOARD
MEMBER IN BERKELEY. 
          I'VE BEEN REALLY ACTIVE IN CHAMPIONING OUR CLIMATE LITERACY WORK IN THE SCHOOL DISTRICT
AND MAKING SURE THAT STUDENTS HAVE ACCESS TO THE OUTDOORS AND TO THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARKS. SO EXCITED TO BE HERE WITH YOU ALL. THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH AND WELCOME AGAIN. SO WE'RE JOINED TONIGHT BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD
OF DIRECTORS, DIRECTOR SANWONG, WHO IS GOING TO MAKE SOME COMMENTS AND JOIN US FOR THE MEETING. 
          SO THANK YOU. DIRECTOR SANWONG. YES. HI, EVERYONE. 
          WELCOME TO OUR FIRST PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE OF 2026. 
          IT'S SO GREAT TO SEE SO MANY FAMILIAR FACES AS WELL AS SOME NEW MEMBERS. 
          SO THANKS AGAIN FOR JOINING AND ALSO TO ALL OF YOU ONLINE AS WELL. 
          I KNOW WE HAD A GREAT 2025 YEAR AND IT REALLY FILTERED INTO COMING UP WITH THE WORK PLAN
FOR 2026, WHICH I KNOW IS ON THE AGENDA TODAY AND WE'LL DISCUSS LATER. 
          AND THAT WAS A CORE PART OF OUR FIRST AND ONLY MEETING SO FAR. 
          BOARD MEETING OF 2026, WHICH WAS ABOUT TWO WEEKS AGO,
AND I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO HEARING YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE WORK PLAN, RESULTS AND THE BOARD MEETING CONVERSATION A LITTLE BIT LATER IN THE AGENDA TODAY. 
          SO YES, MY NAME IS OLIVIA SANWONG. I REPRESENT WHAT'S WARD 5. 
          SO THAT'S SOUTHERN AND EASTERN ALAMEDA COUNTY OF THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT AREA. 
          AND REAL QUICK FOR BOARD MEMBER COMMENTS, BECAUSE I THINK SO MUCH OF WHAT WE'RE GOING TO
DO TODAY WILL FEED INTO THAT. 
          I JUST WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE DIABLO RANGE. I KNOW THAT THERE'S A LOT OF EFFORTS IN
REGARDS TO THINKING ABOUT THE DIABLO RANGE, WHERE MOUNT DIABLO IS A CORE PART OF THE DIABLO RANGE,
AND IT EXTENDS ALL THE WAY DOWN TO CLOSE TO SAN LUIS OBISPO. 
          SO QUITE A LARGE RANGE. AND THE REASON I'M GOING TO MENTION THIS,
YOU KNOW, OUR OUTGOING PRESIDENT, JOHN MERCURIO REPRESENTS THE PART OF THE EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT THAT INCLUDES
MOUNT DIABLO AND, AS TRADITION, AT EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT,
WE GIVE A PHOTOGRAPH OF A PARK AND HE RECEIVED THE ROUND VALLEY PHOTOGRAPH TO THANK HIM FOR HIS SERVICE AS BOARD PRESIDENT. AND IN THAT I MENTIONED HOW EXCITING IT WAS THAT WE
RECENTLY SPOTTED CALIFORNIA CONDORS IN ROUND VALLEY. 
          AND WE ALSO HAD A CALIFORNIA CONDOR SIGHTING IN SUNOL REGIONAL. 
          AND WHEN WE THINK ABOUT SOMETHING LIKE THE DIABLO RANGE,
WHAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT IS THINKING ABOUT MEGAFAUNA LIKE CALIFORNIA CONDORS OR, YOU KNOW, TULE ELK OR YOU KNOW, SOME OF THESE LARGER SPECIES. 
          AND WHEN WE PRESERVE WILDLIFE CORRIDORS AND REALLY THINK ABOUT THAT HABITAT,
IT CAN ENABLE SPECIES LIKE THE CALIFORNIA CONDOR TO THRIVE HERE IN THE EAST BAY. 
          AND I JUST WANTED TO TAKE A MOMENT TO MENTION THAT BECAUSE THAT'S SOMETHING A LITTLE BIT
DIFFERENT THAN WHAT WE HAVE ON THE AGENDA TODAY. BUT I'M CERTAINLY LOOKING FORWARD TO THE REST OF THE AGENDA, SO I DON'T WANT TO TAKE UP TOO MUCH TIME ON THIS ITEM. 
          SO THANK YOU EVERYONE, AND IT'S GREAT TO SEE YOU THIS YEAR. ANY QUESTIONS FOR PRESIDENT
SANWONG BEFORE WE MOVE ON? I'M JUST CURIOUS WHO IS THE NEW BOARD PRESIDENT FOR THIS YEAR? IT'S ME. THAT'S WHY I'M HERE WITH YOU TODAY FOR THE JANUARY MEETING. 
          OKAY. YES. WELL, CONGRATULATIONS. THANK YOU. AND FOR EACH OF YOU,
I MEAN, MOST OF YOU HAVE BEEN ON THE PAC, BUT FOR OUR NEW MEMBER, SO WE TRY TO ROTATE BOARD MEMBERS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. 
          AND THERE'S SEVEN OF US ON THE BOARD. YOU HAVE TEN MEETINGS,
IS THAT CORRECT? OR MAYBE AT LEAST NINE MEETINGS? YES. WHERE YOU'LL HAVE A BOARD MEMBER PRESENT. 
          SO SOME OF US MIGHT BE HERE TWICE. I THINK I'LL BE JOINING YOU AGAIN LATER THIS YEAR. 
          SO EACH TIME YOU COME HERE, YOU'LL HEAR FROM A DIFFERENT BOARD MEMBER. AND SOMETIMES THERE
MAY BE PREPARED A PRESENTATION. 
          I DIDN'T REALLY PREPARE THAT DAY BECAUSE I WANT TO HEAR THE REST OF THE AGENDA. 
          SO I DON'T WANT TO TAKE UP TOO MUCH TIME. BUT CERTAINLY I CAN ANSWER SOME QUESTIONS OR
TAKE SOME COMMENTS. 
          THIS MAY BE A SUPER QUICK QUESTION AND A SUPER QUICK ANSWER. 
          ARE YOU ABLE TO SPEAK ABOUT THE GENERAL MANAGER,
AND WHETHER THE CURRENT GENERAL MANAGER LISTED ON THE LETTERHEAD IS ACTING, OR HAS BEEN APPOINTED, OR KIND OF GIVE US AN UPDATE ON WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THAT? YES. I SEE MAX HERE AND HE'LL BE SPEAKING A LITTLE BIT LATER. 
          WE'LL HAVE THE GENERAL MANAGER´S UPDATE AND THE STATUS IS MAX IS OUR ACTING GENERAL
MANAGER AT THE PRESENT MOMENT. 
          NO CHANGE FROM THE PREVIOUS. NO CHANGE FROM THE PREVIOUS. YES. I BELIEVE WHEN PAST BOARD
PRESIDENT JOHN MERCURIO WAS HERE, 
          [00:15:07]
HE HAD MENTIONED THE ACTING STATUS WHEN MERCURIO WAS HERE IN NOVEMBER. 
          IS THAT CORRECT? YEAH. OKAY. I THINK I SAW THAT IN THE MINUTES THAT YOU JUST APPROVED. 
          YEAH. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, I MIC]. SO I NOTICED DIRECTOR ECHOLS IS ONLINE. 
          DIRECTOR ECHOLS, IS THERE A COMMENT OR SOMETHING YOU WISH TO ADDRESS THE BODY? I'M JUST HERE IN SUPPORT OF THE PAC, I GUESS,
AND JUST AS AN OBSERVER TONIGHT AND WANTED TO IN PARTICULAR WELCOME OUR NEWEST BOARD MEMBER, OR RATHER PAC MEMBER ANA VASUDEO,
WHO YOU JUST MET, AND I HOPE YOU'LL ENJOY WORKING WITH HER. 
          I THINK YOU'LL FIND HER TO BE SOMEONE VERY INSIGHTFUL AND HARD WORKING AND REALLY EASY TO
GET ALONG WITH AND GET THINGS DONE. THANK YOU, DIRECTOR ECHOLS. SO MOVING ON TO PRESENTATIONS. 
          THE FIRST ITEM, WE'RE JOINED BY THE CLERK OF THE BOARD,
I BELIEVE BOARD OF DIRECTORS FOR SWEARING IN THE PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBERS. 
          HELLO. GOOD EVENING. SO I AM HERE TO SWEAR EVERYBODY IN BECAUSE I'VE HEARD IT HAS NOT BEEN
DONE OFFICIALLY. 
          SO WHAT I'M GOING TO ASK IS IF EVERYBODY COULD PLEASE STAND. 
          AND IF YOU CANNOT STAND, JUST RAISE YOUR RIGHT HAND. 
          AND THEN REPEAT AFTER ME. SO JUST RAISE YOUR RIGHT HAND AND REPEAT AFTER ME. 
          I DO SOLEMNLY SWEAR. I DO SOLEMNLY SWEAR. THAT I WILL SUPPORT. 
          THAT I WILL SUPPORT AND DEFEND THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. 
          THAT I WILL SUPPORT AND DEFEND THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES. 
          AND THE CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA. 
          AND THE CONSTITUTION OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA. 
          AGAINST ALL ENEMIES, FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC. AGAINST ALL ENEMIES,
FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC. 
          THAT I WILL BEAR TRUE FAITH AND ALLEGIANCE TO THE SAME. 
          THAT I WILL BEAR TRUE FAITH AND ALLEGIANCE TO THE SAME. 
          THAT I TAKE THIS OBLIGATION FREELY. THAT I TAKE THIS OBLIGATION FREELY. 
          WITHOUT ANY MENTAL RESERVATION OR PURPOSE OF EVASION. 
          WITHOUT ANY MENTAL RESERVATION OR PURPOSE OF EVASION. 
          AND THAT I WILL WELL AND FAITHFULLY. AND THAT I WILL WELL AND FAITHFULLY. 
          DISCHARGE THE DUTIES UPON WHICH I AM ABOUT TO ENTER. 
          DISCHARGE THE DUTIES THAT I'M ABOUT TO ENTER. 
          CONGRATULATIONS. YOU'RE NOW OFFICIAL. YOU ALL HAVE YOUR OATH OF OFFICE. 
          SO IF YOU CAN SIGN THOSE AND THEN RETURN THEM TO ELSA BEFORE THE END OF THE MEETING,
THAT WOULD BE GREAT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          I CAN SEND YOU AN EMAIL. I CAN EMAIL YOU AN ELECTRONIC VERSION. 
          YES. SO I WILL GET WITH ELSA AND ANYBODY NOT HERE IN PERSON TODAY CAN SIGN IT
ELECTRONICALLY. 
          AND THEN IF YOU'RE IN PERSON, I JUST REQUEST NO BLACK INK. 
          BUT IT'S NOT A DEAL BREAKER. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU KELLY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. SO JUST TO STICK TO THE FORMAT,
ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS THAT PAC MEMBERS HAVE ANY CLARIFYING QUESTIONS FOR THE CLERK OF THE BOARD? DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THAT? ARE THERE ANY MEMBER DISCUSSION OR COMMENTS ON THAT? OKAY. THANK YOU. SO MOVING ON. I HAVE COMMENTS. 
          OKAY. WE HAVE A COMMENT. YES. THANK YOU KELLY. 
          CLERK OF THE BOARD. I'M VERY EXCITED TO WORK WITH YOU ONCE AGAIN. 
          WE WORKED TOGETHER AT THE CITY OF SAN LEANDRO,
AND YOU HAVE THE HIGHEST PROFESSIONAL STANDARD. 
          AND I KNOW THAT YOU'LL BRING THAT HERE TO THIS ORGANIZATION. 
          AND I SEE THAT ALREADY HAPPENING WITH THE SWEARING IN. 
          THANK YOU. THANK YOU. MOVING ON TO GENERAL MANAGER UPDATE,
WE'RE VERY PLEASED TO BE JOINED BY OUR ACTING GENERAL MANAGER. 
          AND I SHOULDN'T SAY THIS, BUT I WILL. YOU'RE ALREADY HERE ONE TIME,
MORE THAN YOUR PREDECESSOR, WHO WAS HERE FOR FOUR YEARS. SO THAT'S A GREAT START. 
          SO THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. WELL, THANK YOU SO MUCH. 
          WELL, THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. AND AGAIN MY NAME IS MAX KORTEN,
AND I'VE BEEN HERE AT THE DISTRICT AS A DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER FOR ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF. SO BEFORE THAT, I WAS THE PARKS DIRECTOR FOR THE COUNTY OF MARIN FOR ABOUT EIGHT AND
A HALF YEARS. 
          BUT I STARTED WORKING AS A RANGER FOR THE FOREST SERVICE WHEN I WAS 19. 
          AND I'VE WORKED IN THIS FIELD OF LAND MANAGEMENT FOR MY WHOLE CAREER AND HAVE WORKED AS AN
ARRANGER AND FOR THE BLM, THE FOREST SERVICE. I'VE SUPERVISED TRAIL CREWS AND THEN FOR SEVEN AND A HALF YEARS,
I WORKED FOR THE CONSERVATION CORPS IN THE NORTH BAY MANAGING THEIR NATURAL RESOURCE PROGRAM. AND SO I'M SUPER EXCITED TO BE HERE AND
SUPPORTING THIS AMAZING TEAM, 
          [00:20:07]
EAST BAY REGIONAL PARKS AND WORKING WITH ALL OF YOU. 
          I LIVE IN BERKELEY. I HAVE A SON WHO'S IN KING MIDDLE SCHOOL. 
          SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE. AND WE LOVE BERKELEY SCHOOLS. 
          SO YEAH, I'M PLEASED TO GET TO SHARE WITH YOU. 
          SO I HEARD FROM OUR TEAM THAT IN THE PAST, THE GENERAL MANAGER WOULD COME AND GIVE SORT OF
A STATE OF THE DISTRICT REPORT TO THE PAC EACH YEAR IN JANUARY. AND SO I THOUGHT THAT SEEMED GREAT. 
          AND LIKE I WANTED TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT THE PARK
DISTRICT'S BEEN UP TO THAT YOU MIGHT NOT OTHERWISE HAVE HEARD ABOUT. 
          AND HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO ASK QUESTIONS OR GET FEEDBACK FROM ALL OF YOU. 
          SO A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE DISTRICT. 73 PARKS,
OVER 126,000 ACRES. 
          YOU ALL PROBABLY ARE FAMILIAR WITH THIS. OVER 1000 MILES OF TRAILS,
SHORELINE 30 MILLION VISITS PER YEAR. 
          SO WE HAVE REALLY GOOD DATA ABOUT HOW MANY PEOPLE VISIT OUR PARKS. 
          BECAUSE OF PLACER.AI. WE HAVE SEVEN BOARD MEMBERS. 
          YOU'RE PROBABLY ALL VERY AWARE OF THIS. THAT ARE SPLIT INTO SEVEN DIFFERENT WARDS THERE. 
          AND WE HAVE OVER A THOUSAND EMPLOYEES. WE HAVE 425 NEW HIRES IN 2025. 
          SO YOU KNOW, ACTUALLY IT'S BEEN REALLY COOL TO BE HERE DURING SOME OF THESE HIRING
PROCESSES BECAUSE I'VE BEEN ABLE TO SEE FIRSTHAND THE QUALITY OF APPLICANTS THAT WE GET HERE AT EAST BAY REGIONAL PARKS. WE'RE REALLY LUCKY TO BE IN AN AREA WHERE
THERE'S SO MANY PEOPLE WHO ARE PROFESSIONALS IN THIS FIELD, AND THAT EAST BAY REGIONAL PARKS IS SEEN AS ONE OF THE BEST PLACES TO WORK IN PARKS
IN THE BAY AREA. 
          SO I ASKED ALL OF OUR TEAMS TO KIND OF SHARE SOME UPDATES THAT THEY WOULD WANT TO SHARE
WITH ALL OF YOU. 
          AND SO I'VE PUT ALL THESE. AMANDA GALLO FROM OUR OFFICE TO PUT ALL THESE TOGETHER. 
          AND SO THE FIRST THING I WANT TO TALK ABOUT IS OUR PAVING PROJECTS. 
          SO ONE OF THE THINGS I FEEL LIKE WE HAVEN'T TOLD THE STORY WELL ENOUGH IS WE MANAGE MILES, AS YOU ALL WELL KNOW, OF PAVED, MULTI-USE PATHWAYS THAT ARE HEAVILY VISITED. 
          AS VISITED AS MANY OF OUR PARKS, AND WE HAVE AN INCREDIBLE TEAM THAT WORKS ON REPAVING
THOSE EACH YEAR. 
          AND SO WE ASSESS THE CONDITION OF PAVING THROUGH A PCI,
PAVEMENT CONDITION INDEX, AND THEN LOOK AT WHAT ARE THE PLACES THAT WE CAN MOST STRATEGICALLY KEEP THAT INDEX AS HIGH AS POSSIBLE. 
          SO THAT'S SORT OF HOW THE PAVING IS DRIVEN ACROSS THE DISTRICT,
ALONG WITH THE FEEDBACK FROM OUR VISITORS, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THEY'LL OFTEN TELL US, HEY,
THIS SPOT'S REALLY DANGEROUS. 
          THERE'S A LOT OF POTHOLES. AND SO THERE'S A TON OF WORK. 
          I JUST WENT AND CHECKED OUT THE WORK THAT WAS DONE ON THE IRON HORSE TRAIL ALONG WALNUT
CREEK. 
          THERE'S THIS BULL VALLEY STAGING AREAS OUT THERE THE OTHER DAY AND CARQUINEZ STRAIT,
THERE'S A NEW RESTROOM AND A NEWLY PAVED AREA AND ADA ACCESS AND ADDITIONALLY AT THE TILDEN MERRY GO ROUNDS,
THERE WAS REPAVING OF THE PARKING LOT. 
          AND THEN WE'VE WORKED ON. EACH YEAR, WE SORT OF STRATEGICALLY LOOK AT WHAT ARE SITES THAT
WE CAN IMPROVE. 
          THESE ARE SOME OF THE ONES AT DON CASTRO WHERE WE MADE SOME IMPROVEMENTS TO THE PICNIC
AREAS. 
          WE HAVE A WHOLE NUMBER OF PLAYGROUNDS AT THE PARK DISTRICT,
AND LIKE A LOT OF OUR FACILITIES, THEY'RE AGING. SO WE HAVE A LOT OF PARKS THAT WERE BUILT 20,
30, 40 OR MORE YEARS AGO. 
          AND EACH OF THOSE FACILITIES, WHETHER IT'S THE SEWERS,
THE IRRIGATION LINE, THE DRINKING WATER LINES, THE PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT ARE ALL AGING AND NEED REPLACEMENT. 
          THESE WERE A COUPLE THAT WE MADE SOME MODEST IMPROVEMENTS TO,
BUT THIS REDWOOD PLAYGROUND, FOR EXAMPLE, PROBABLY NEEDS TO BE ENTIRELY REPLACED BECAUSE THE EQUIPMENT,
YOU KNOW, WE DO WEEKLY AND LONGER TERM INSPECTIONS OF THE EQUIPMENT OUR TEAM DOES TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S SAFE. 
          BUT OVER A CERTAIN PERIOD OF TIME, IT NEEDS TO BE FULLY REPLACED. 
          SO WE'RE EXCITED TO THINK DIFFERENTLY ABOUT SOME OF THOSE PLAYGROUNDS AND HOW WE CAN
IMPROVE THEM FOR THE SITE. 
          HERE'S SOME MORE PICTURES OF PICNIC TABLE INSTALLATIONS,
NEW BARBECUES AND THEN OTHER SITE WILL HAVE ANOTHER PIECE THAT'S SORT OF MORE SPECIFICALLY ABOUT TRAILS. 
          BUT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO IS WHEN INFRASTRUCTURE IS DAMAGED IN STORMS
OR OTHER EVENTS, 
          [00:25:08]
WHEN WE GO TO FIX THOSE THINGS THAT WE DON'T JUST REPLACE IT WITH WHAT WAS THERE,
BUT MAKE IT BETTER. 
          SO THIS IS AN EXAMPLE WHERE A CULVERT FAILED AND INSTEAD OF PUTTING IN A NEW CULVERT,
WE'RE ABLE TO CREATE A BRIDGE CROSSING THAT'S BETTER FOR THE NATURAL RESOURCES AND FOR VISITORS. THIS IS THE CAMP ARROYO POOL THAT WAS REBUILT
TO MAKE ACCESSIBILITY BETTER. THIS IS LOOKING AT COYOTE HILL. 
          SO THIS IS A REALLY COOL PROJECT. HAVE ANY OF YOU BEEN TO THIS SITE? THE PATTERSON? YEAH. SO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS SITE'S LIKE? WE HAD OUR PAC MEETING THERE LAST YEAR. OKAY. 
          OH, WELL. AWESOME. SO, YOU. YEAH, YOU ALL KNOW WHAT IT'S ABOUT. 
          THIS IS A SITE THAT'S BOTH A RESTORATION PROJECT AND A PUBLIC ACCESS PROJECT. 
          COYOTE HILLS GETS SO MUCH VISITATION AND LOVE,
AND THIS LOCATION IS ALSO A REALLY COOL WETLANDS HABITAT, AND SO OUR TEAM PLANTED THOUSANDS OF TREES AND PLANTS OUT THERE AND THEN CREATED NEW
FACILITIES, PARKING LOT, STAGING AREA, A NEW SORT OF THESE PLATFORMS FOR WILDLIFE VIEWING OUT THERE. 
          AND THAT'S NOW OPEN. WE STILL HAVE ON THE BOOKS PLANS TO HAVE LIKE A CELEBRATION AT SOME
POINT, BUT IT TOOK LONGER THAN WE'D HOPED BECAUSE WE WERE SORT OF WORKING THROUGH PERMITTING
CHALLENGES WITH THE CITY. 
          SO I THINK WE'RE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF IT, BUT TOOK TIME. 
          THIS IS A PROJECT WE'VE BEEN PLANNING FOR QUITE A WHILE,
AND OUR BOARD IN THE LAST BUDGET HELPED GET US ALONG WITH A LOT OF GRANT FUNDING TO HAVE THIS PROJECT FULLY FUNDED. IT IS A BRAND NEW PARK PROJECT SOUTH OF BAILEY ROAD FOR
THURGOOD MARSHALL, HOME OF THE PORT CHICAGO 50 REGIONAL PARK. SO THIS IS A PROJECT THAT IS PUBLIC ACCESS,
BUT IT'S ALSO RESTORATION. 
          SO TO ME, LIKE THIS IS ONE OF THE REALLY COOL THINGS ABOUT THE PARK DISTRICT. 
          PROBABLY SOMETHING THAT INSPIRES ALL OF YOUR LEADERSHIP HERE,
TOO, IS THAT COMBINATION OF PROVIDING PUBLIC ACCESS, BUT ALSO STEWARDING AND TAKING CARE OF THE ENVIRONMENT. 
          SO THAT'S A PROJECT THAT WE HOPE TO START WORK ON THE NEXT YEAR OR TWO. 
          SO FUEL VEGETATION MANAGEMENT, FUELS MANAGEMENT AND RESTORATION. 
          IT'S ANOTHER PLACE WHERE WE'RE DOING MULTIPLE BENEFIT WORK. 
          SO ONE OF THE PLACES I'VE BEEN FOCUSED ON WITH OUR TEAM HERE,
TOO, IS WE'VE HAD A TON OF INVESTMENT IN THE OAKLAND, BERKELEY HILLS, YOU KNOW, GOING ALONG. I KNOW I WENT TO ONE OF THE PAC MEETINGS UP ABOVE
CAL OFF OF GRIZZLY PEAK AND THAT, YOU KNOW, WE HAD IDENTIFIED THAT WAS FOLLOWING THE OAKLAND HILLS FIRE,
ONE OF THE PLACES OF THE MOST HAZARD TO THE COMMUNITY IN TERMS OF WILDFIRE THREAT. AND SO WE'VE INVESTED MILLIONS OF DOLLARS,
GOTTEN TONS OF GRANT FUNDING TO DO REALLY IMPORTANT WORK UP THERE. 
          AND THE SAME OVER HERE BY LAKE CHABOT. BUT IN THE NEXT YEAR,
WE'RE WORKING ON A VEGETATION MANAGEMENT STRATEGY, AND WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT IT IN THE NEXT ITEM COMING TO YOU OF HOW WE CAN TAKE
THAT SAME APPROACH AND BRING IT DISTRICT WIDE. 
          AND WE HOPE THAT YOU ALL WILL BE OUR PARTNERS IN HELPING MAKE THAT HAPPEN. 
          SO GOAT GRAZING. I KNOW FOR ME, WHEN MY KID WAS LITTLE,
LIKE, GOING TO SEE THE GOATS WAS REALLY FUN. 
          AND THEY DO REALLY GREAT WORK. WE HAVE A REALLY OUTSTANDING FUELS CREW,
THE DIABLO CREW. 
          THEY'VE BEEN WORKING IN SIBLEY PARK. YOU KNOW,
I LIVE IN BERKELEY, SO I'VE SEEN THEM UP THERE IN TILDEN RECENTLY AS WELL. 
          AND THEY'RE DOING THIS REALLY COOL WORK, WHICH IS BOTH REDUCING THE THREAT OF WILDFIRE,
HELPING TO RESTORE NATIVE SPECIES HABITAT AND AT THE SAME TIME, MAKING OUR OPERATIONAL NEEDS IN THIS AREA EASIER AS
WELL. 
          THIS IS OFF SOUTH PARK DRIVE. SO IF YOU DRIVE. 
          RIGHT NOW YOU CAN'T DRIVE IT BECAUSE WE'RE PROTECTING THE NEWTS OVER THERE. 
          BUT IF YOU WALK IT RIGHT NOW, YOU CAN SEE ON BOTH SIDES OF THE ROAD THERE'S SOME REALLY
GREAT FUELS REDUCTION WORK THAT HAPPENED. 
          AND WHEN WE DO THAT WORK WHEN WE BURN PILES OR USE OUR BIG BICARBONATE,
CARBONATE OR CARBONIZER. 
          OUR BIG MACHINE, WE CAN CREATE BIOCHAR, WHICH IS SORT OF A MORE STABLE CARBON PRODUCT
THAT'S BENEFICIAL IN A BUNCH OF WAYS. 
          THIS IS ANTHONY CHABOT. HAVE YOU ALL SEEN THE ANTHONY CHABOT VEGETATION MANAGEMENT WORK? 
          [00:30:04]
THAT WOULD BE A COOL FIELD TRIP FOR THIS GROUP. 
          THAT'S A HUGE PROJECT BECAUSE SEVERAL YEARS AGO,
WHEN WE WERE IN THE MIDST OF THAT REALLY BAD DROUGHT, WE HAD. THOUSANDS OF EUCALYPTUS TREES WERE DYING OUT THERE. 
          AND WE KNEW THAT BASED ON THE WILDFIRES WE'RE SEEING AROUND THE WORLD,
REALLY WITH CLIMATE CHANGE, THAT THIS WAS CREATING A REALLY DANGEROUS CONDITION. 
          AND SO WE'RE ABLE TO LEVERAGE GRANT MONEY FROM THE STATE TO HELP FUND THIS THINNING WORK
IN THAT EUCALYPTUS GROVE. 
          AND IT'S AT A LIKE A FORESTRY LEVEL SCALE THAT'S GOING TO BE BENEFICIAL FOR THAT PLACE,
YOU KNOW, FOR THE LANDSCAPE AND THE ENVIRONMENT IN A BIG WAY,
BUT ALSO FOR THE COMMUNITIES OF OAKLAND AND OTHERS THAT LIVE NEAR THERE. 
          THIS PICTURE IS ACTUALLY RIGHT BEHIND THE BRAZIL BRAZILIAN ROOM. 
          I WAS JUST OVER THERE THE OTHER DAY, AND IT LOOKS REALLY COOL BECAUSE AS THEY'VE THINNED
OUT THE EUCALYPTUS GROVE, YOU CAN SEE ALL THESE LITTLE BAY AND OAK TREES THAT WERE THERE,
AND NOW THEY HAVE THE CHANCE TO REALLY GROW AND THRIVE. 
          THIS IS OUT IN KARKINOS SHORELINE. THIS IS A REALLY COOL PROJECT. 
          I THINK WE HAVE A FEW PICTURES OF THIS. SO THIS WAS A FIRE THAT HAPPENED IN 2022,
AND ESSENTIALLY IT WAS A EUCALYPTUS GROVE THAT WAS IN THE PARK AND THEN ALONG THE RAILROAD TRACKS AND NEIGHBORING COMMUNITY THERE. 
          AND THE EUCALYPTUS GROVE, THE FIRE CROWNED IT WAS REALLY SCARY FOR THE NEIGHBORING
COMMUNITIES. 
          AND SO FOLLOWING THAT FIRE, WE'RE ABLE TO GO IN AND REMOVE ALL THE DEAD EUCALYPTUS TREES. 
          AND IN LOTS OF PLACES WE REMOVED THEM LIKE THE BRAZILIAN ROOM,
AND THERE'S ALREADY UNDERSTORY OF NATIVE TREES THAT ARE READY TO COME IN. 
          BUT THIS PLACE HAD GOTTEN HIT WITH THIS REALLY HIGH INTENSITY FIRE,
AND SO THERE WASN'T A LOT THERE. 
          AND SO OUR RESTORATION TEAM WENT IN AND DID PLANTING WORK AND SOME NATIVE PLANTS STARTED
COMING IN ON THEIR OWN. 
          AND IT IS REALLY NEAT TO SEE. OOPS. THIS IS SOMETHING SEPARATE. 
          IT'S HARD TO SEE IN THESE PICTURES, BUT THE PLANTS THAT ARE COMING BACK ARE AMAZING. 
          THERE'S THESE NATIVE WILD RYE GRASSES. THERE'S LOTS OF FORBES,
AND YOU CAN TELL I'M LIKE A PLANT NERD. 
          SO THAT'S WHAT I GET EXCITED ABOUT. BUT THIS IS REALLY A NEAT SITE,
AND IT'S YOU KNOW, FOR THE NEIGHBORS WHO LIVE NEAR THERE, NOT HAVING THE THREAT OF THIS EUCALYPTUS GROVE IS A BIG DEAL. 
          WE HAVE HUNDREDS OF PONDS ACROSS OUR PARK. SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S REALLY NEAT IS WE
HAVE A GRAZING TEAM THAT'S IN OUR STEWARDSHIP DIVISION. THEY'RE BIOLOGISTS,
NATURAL RESOURCE EXPERTS WHO THEIR WHOLE FOCUS IS USING GRAZING TO TAKE CARE OF THE LAND. 
          AND PART OF DOING THAT IS KEEPING THESE PONDS AVAILABLE FOR A WATER SOURCE FOR CATTLE. 
          BUT THE OTHER THING THAT THESE PONDS DO IS THEY'RE HABITAT FOR RED LEGGED FROGS AND
AMPHIBIANS. 
          AND THE CATTLE ARE ACTUALLY BENEFICIAL IF WE MANAGE THEM RIGHT TO THIS,
THE AMPHIBIAN HABITAT OUT THERE. 
          AND SO WHAT WE TRY TO DO IS WORK THROUGH EACH OF THE PONDS ON A ROTATIONAL BASIS TO MAKE
SURE THAT WE'RE REBUILDING THEM AND TAKING CARE OF THEM BECAUSE THEY TAKE CONSTANT MAINTENANCE. THESE ARE SOME OF OUR CATTLE TROUGHS THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING TO MAINTAIN. 
          THIS IS A BEAUTIFUL RESTORATION SITE. IF YOU GET A CHANCE TO GO THERE IN THE SPRING,
THERE'S A LOT OF WORK WE DO AT A LANDSCAPE LEVEL WHERE WE DON'T GET TO, YOU KNOW, HAVE A VERY HIGH TOUCH ON THE LAND. 
          BUT THIS IS A PLACE WHERE WE TOOK ONE SITE WITH VOLUNTEERS AND OVER 1200 VOLUNTEER HOURS
TO REALLY FOCUS IN AND RESTORE THIS ONE SITE THAT'S PART OF THE SERPENTINE GRASSLAND. 
          AND THE RESULTS ARE PRETTY AMAZING. PALLID MANZANITA. 
          SO THIS IS SORT OF USING FIRE TO HELP STIMULATE RARE NATIVE PLANT. 
          AND THEN TRAIL WORK. SO, YOU KNOW, THE DISTRICT FOR A LONG TIME DIDN'T HAVE A TRAIL CREW. 
          AND SO WHAT WE DID IS RELIED ON EACH OF OUR PARK TEAMS TO OPERATIONS TEAMS TO DO TRAIL
MAINTENANCE. 
          WE'VE, OVER THE LAST FEW YEARS, BUILT A REALLY STRONG TRAIL CREW. 
          THAT'S PAT WITH THE MUSTACHE THERE ON THE LITTLE MINI BULLDOZER. 
          IT'S A SWECO. AND HE HAS BUILT THIS TEAM OF. HE'S ABLE TO TAKE FOLKS FROM STATE PARKS AND
OTHER AGENCIES WHO ARE REALLY EXPERTS AND ABLE TO GO IN. AND WHAT THEY DO IS MAINTENANCE. 
          [00:35:01]
IT'S NOT BUILDING BRAND NEW TRAILS. IT'S TAKING ALL OF OUR EXISTING TRAILS AND MAKING THEM
BETTER. 
          AND THEN THIS IS AT POINT MOLATE. WE HAVE A TRAIL PROJECT GOING ON RIGHT NOW TO BUILD A
BRAND NEW SECTION OF THE BAY TRAIL IN POINT MOLATE. 
          SO THAT'LL TAKE A COUPLE OF YEARS, BUT IT'S VERY EXCITING. 
          THIS IS ON THE GOLDEN SPIKE TRAIL IN REINHARDT REDWOODS. 
          THIS IS A REALLY NEAT PROJECT WHERE OUR CREW USED,
YOU KNOW, WINCHES AND GRIP HOISTS, YOU KNOW, CABLING TO BRING IN LARGE ROCK TO STABILIZE THIS TRAIL. 
          THIS IS LIKE THE WAY THAT WE WANT TO BUILD TRAILS IS THAT WILL LAST FOR A LONG TIME AND
USES NATURAL MATERIALS. 
          THIS IS THE PHILIP SCHOLZ TRAIL. IT'S A NEW TRAIL IN PLEASANTON RIDGE THAT WAS FUNDED
THROUGH REMEMBERING KIND OF A COMMUNITY HERO THAT HELPED TO SAVE SOMEBODY'S LIFE IN IN THE NEARBY COMMUNITY. AND PEOPLE WANTED TO MEMORIALIZE TO HELP
SUPPORT THIS TRAIL PROJECT. THIS IS. WE ALSO HAVE A LOT OF VOLUNTEER DAYS AT BRIONES,
THAT'S BEEN A BIG PART OF IMPROVING THOSE TRAILS. WE ALSO HAVE A LOT OF EXCITING PLANNING PROJECTS. 
          SO ONE IS AT BOREL. THERE'S A NEW PARK THAT WE'RE PLANNING. 
          WE'RE REALLY LUCKY TO HAVE $20 MILLION THAT WAS PART OF SELLING A PORTION OF THIS PROPERTY
FOR DEVELOPMENT THAT'S ENABLING US TO PLAN A FUTURE PARK AT THIS LOCATION. 
          SO WE'VE BEEN HAVING COMMUNITY MEETINGS AND ENGAGING THE COMMUNITY IN WHAT THIS PARK MIGHT
LOOK LIKE. 
          IT'S A REALLY COOL, HISTORIC WALNUT ORCHARD. GARIN TO PLEASANTON RIDGE IS ANOTHER PLACE
THAT WE'VE BEEN ENGAGING IN, SORT OF PLANNING WHAT ACCESS MIGHT LOOK LIKE IN THIS PLACE THAT'S SORT OF BEEN ENVISIONED
FOR A LONG TIME, AND SORT OF BALANCING PROTECTING NATURAL RESOURCES WITH PUBLIC ACCESS. 
          DUTCH SLOUGH IS A PLACE WHERE THERE'S AN EXISTING TRAIL BUILT,
AND WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES AT THE STATE TO GET FUNDING TO PROVIDE PUBLIC ACCESS. AND SO WE HAVE A LETTER THAT WE BROUGHT TO OUR BOARD THAT WAS
APPROVED BY OUR BOARD RECENTLY THAT WOULD POTENTIALLY ENABLE US TO GET FUNDING FROM THE STATE TO OPEN THIS UP AND MANAGE IT FOR
PUBLIC ACCESS. 
          AND IT'S CLOSE TO BIG BREAK. FOR THE DISTRICT PLAN,
WE ARE MOVING INTO THE NEXT PHASE OF ENGAGING WITH THE COMMUNITY. 
          WE HAVE A NUMBER OF COMMUNITY MEETINGS THAT ARE UP ON OUR WEBSITE. 
          AND THEN WE'RE ALSO, IF INDIVIDUAL ORGANIZATIONS ARE INTERESTED IN MEETING WITH OUR TEAM,
WE ALSO WANT TO DO THAT. 
          ESSENTIALLY WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO. WE HEARD IN THAT INITIAL FEEDBACK ON THE DISTRICT PLAN A
WHOLE BUNCH OF REALLY GREAT IDEAS AND SO THAT HELPED US KIND OF SET THE TABLE FOR WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT. AND THEN THIS ENGAGEMENT IS LIKE BETWEEN THESE DIFFERENT AREAS
OF FOCUS, WHAT ARE THE PRIORITIES? AND SO THERE'S A COUPLE OF DIFFERENT EXERCISES THAT WE WANT TO DO
TO HELP UNDERSTAND PRIORITIES. 
          THE OTHER THING THAT WE LEARNED IS THAT WE DIDN'T DO A GREAT JOB OF REACHING EVERYBODY IN
THE COMMUNITY. 
          AND SO WE PUT OUT AN RFP FOR COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS THAT SERVE ESPECIALLY AREAS THAT WERE
UNDERREPRESENTED IN OUR INITIAL SURVEY THAT WENT OUT TO THE COMMUNITY. 
          AND WE HAD 20 ORGANIZATIONS RESPONDING. WE'RE HOPING TO GET INTO CONTRACT WITH ALL 20
ORGANIZATIONS OR CLOSE TO IT. 
          AND THEN THE IDEA IS TO SUPPORT THOSE ORGANIZATIONS TO HELP ENGAGE COMMUNITIES THAT
OTHERWISE WE MIGHT NOT HAVE GOTTEN FEEDBACK FROM. INTERPRETIVE AND RECREATIONAL SERVICES. 
          YOU ALL PROBABLY HAVE HEARD ABOUT OUR WORK, TONS OF VOLUNTEER HOURS INVITING YOUNG PEOPLE
OUT INTO OUR PARKS FOR PROGRAMS. OLD PEOPLE, EVERY KIND OF PEOPLE INTO OUR PARKS. 
          I KNOW MY KIDS BEEN OUT THERE OUT TO TILDEN TO THE VISITOR CENTER AS PART OF SCHOOL. 
          SO SUCH A COOL EVENT. AND ONE OF THE REALLY NEAT THINGS IS THAT OUR BOARD HAS FUNDED AN
ADDITIONAL RECREATION TEAM. 
          SO WE HAVE A NUMBER OF INTERPRETIVE TEAMS THAT ARE BASED OUT OF OUR VISITOR CENTERS,
AND THEN ONE THAT'S MOBILE. 
          WE ALSO HAVE A RECREATION TEAM THAT'S BASED DOWN AT MLK SHORELINE. 
          AND WE'RE ADDING ANOTHER ONE AT MILLER KNOX UP IN RICHMOND. 
          SO TRYING TO EXPAND THE CAPABILITIES. AND ONE THING THAT I KNOW HAS BEEN OF INTEREST WAS
THE WELLNESS WALKS THAT WE USED TO HAVE, AND THOSE ARE COMING BACK THIS YEAR. SO VERY EXCITED TO SHARE THAT. 
          [00:40:05]
LOTS OF REALLY COOL PARTNERSHIPS. I THINK IN ADDITION TO THESE,
THE PARTNERSHIPS THAT WE HAVE THROUGH OUR INTERPRETATION AND RECREATION SERVICES ARE THROUGH OUR OFFICE OF EQUITY. I'VE BEEN WORKING WITH OUR EQUITY OFFICER TO LAUNCH A GRANT
PROGRAM THAT'S GOING TO PROVIDE FUNDING TO PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS TO FOR ACCESS TO THE OUTDOORS. AND SO WE ALLOCATED $150,000. THE REGIONAL PARKS FOUNDATION MATCHED THAT WITH
ANOTHER $150,000. 
          SO WE'RE PLANNING TO GIVE $300,000 WORTH OF GRANTS FOR HELPING TO PROVIDE PROGRAMING FOR
ESPECIALLY UNDERSERVED GROUPS TO BE ABLE TO COME OUT AND ACCESS OUR PARKS. AND THERE'S SO MANY GREAT BENEFITS OF ALL OF THOSE KINDS OF
PROGRAMS AND PARTNERSHIPS. 
          AND LASTLY, THE GOVERNMENT AND LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS TEAM,
WHO'S HERE AND SUPPORTS THE PAC DOES SO MUCH WORK. 
          YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE PARTS IS THAT WE DO MEETINGS WITH
ALL THE CITIES, TOWNS, COUNTY WATER DISTRICTS. AND, YOU KNOW,
IT'S REALLY FUN BECAUSE WE'RE THE PARK DISTRICT. AND WHAT WE DO IS PARKS. AND SO IT'S GREAT TO HAVE THESE. 
          THEY'RE ALWAYS VERY POSITIVE MEETINGS. AND WE GET TO JUST CONNECT WITH OUR PARTNERS AND
LEARN ABOUT THINGS WHERE WE CAN COLLABORATE AND DO MORE TO SERVE THE COMMUNITIES. 
          AND THAT'S MY PRESENTATION. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR TAKING TIME. 
          YEAH. THANK YOU. [APPLAUSE]. TO JOIN US. AND WE REALLY APPRECIATE IT. 
          AND THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU'RE DOING TO MAKE THE PARK DISTRICT A BETTER PLACE. WE REALLY
APPRECIATE IT. 
          SO HEADS UP FOR THE PAC. WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A VERY MINOR FORMAT CHANGE. I KNOW
EVERYBODY'S LOOKING AT ME. I'M REALLY CONCERNED LIKE WHAT'S GOING ON. THE BOARD HAD THIS CHANGE ALSO RECENTLY AND WE'RE GOING TO STICK TO IT. 
          AND SO DON'T BE WORRIED. HERE'S HOW IT GOES. SO QUESTIONS FIRST. 
          OKAY? SO PLEASE DON'T MAKE ANY COMMENTS. QUESTIONS FIRST. 
          AFTER QUESTIONS, PUBLIC COMMENTS IF WE HAVE ANY. 
          AND THEN COMMENTS, OKAY? SO YOUR COMMENTS AREN'T BEING STIFLED. 
          IF YOU MAKE A COMMENT THOUGH DURING QUESTION,
I'M GOING TO GENTLY NUDGE YOU AS WE GET USED TO THIS NEW FORMAT AND NUDGE ME IF THAT HAPPENS TO ME TOO. SO THANK YOU. DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? MEMBER DIETER. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. 
          I'M WONDERING IF YOU COULD ELABORATE A LITTLE BIT ON WHAT FALLS UNDER STEWARDSHIP AMONG
ALL OF THESE DIFFERENT THINGS, WHAT EXACTLY FALLS UNDER THE CATEGORY OF STEWARDSHIP? WELL, THE WAY I THINK ABOUT IT, A, WE HAVE A STEWARDSHIP TEAM AT THE DISTRICT WHO ARE
NATURAL RESOURCE PROFESSIONALS. 
          BUT STEWARDSHIP IS SOMETHING THAT IS PART OF EVERYTHING THAT WE DO. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, IT'S ABOUT TAKING CARE OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND SUPPORTING THE HEALTH OF THE
PLANTS AND ANIMALS AND PLACES THAT WE MANAGE. AND SO, YOU KNOW,
EVERYTHING FROM JUST HOW WE OPERATE THE PARKS ON A DAILY BASIS, USING BEAR SAFE TRASH CANS OR, YOU KNOW, PRUNING TREES THAT,
YOU KNOW, IN WAYS WHERE WE'RE REMOVING INVASIVES AND HELPING NATIVE PLANTS THRIVE. ALL THOSE THINGS ARE PART OF STEWARDSHIP AND
TAKING CARE OF THE ENVIRONMENT. 
          SO TO ME, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I LOVE ABOUT PARKS,
AND THAT'S PART OF HOW I APPROACH THIS WORK, IS THAT HELPING OUR TEAMS WORK TOGETHER SO THAT IT'S NOT JUST ONE TEAM DOING STEWARDSHIP. 
          AND IT'S LIKE, I THINK ABOUT THIS A LOT WITH EQUITY,
RIGHT? IF JOSE IS OUR EQUITY OFFICER, IF HE'S THE ONLY PERSON FOCUSED ON EQUITY,
WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO VERY MUCH. 
          BUT IF HE'S THE CATALYST FOR EQUITY FOR OUR WHOLE ENTIRE TEAM,
THEN WE CAN DO A LOT. 
          AND I THINK THE SAME THING ABOUT STEWARDSHIP. 
          SO BASICALLY TRAIL IMPROVEMENTS IS NOT STEWARDSHIP OR IS IT? DOES THAT HAVE TO DO WITH THE ENVIRONMENT? IT IS 100% STEWARDSHIP IN MY MIND. 
          SO TO ME, WHEN WE PURCHASE LAND, WE INHERIT A SYSTEM OF FIRE ROADS AND SOMETIMES TRAILS
THAT WERE NEVER PLANNED TO BE LIGHT ON THE LAND. THEY WEREN'T PLANNED FOR RECREATION,
THEY WERE JUST PLANNED TO GET FROM POINT A TO POINT B. 
          AND SO WE HAVE THIS AMAZING OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE THAT SYSTEM AND MAKE IT BETTER. 
          AND IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE'RE NOT JUST MAKING IT BETTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND NOT JUST
FOR PEOPLE, BUT FOR BOTH THINGS AT THE SAME TIME. AND THAT'S WHAT MAKES IT FUN. 
          THANK YOU. MEMBER VASUDEO. YEAH. I ALSO JUST WANTED TO THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. 
          AND I HAD A QUESTION. IT'S REALLY EXCITING. I LOVE THAT YOU COVERED THE MAINTENANCE WORK
THAT YOU'RE DOING. 
          [00:45:01]
AND ALSO NEW TRAILS, THE NEW PORTION OF THE BAY TRAIL,
THAT'S PRETTY HUGE. 
          AND ALSO A NEW PARK. AND SO I JUST WANTED TO KNOW,
LIKE, WHAT'S THE PROCESS TO ACTIVATE THOSE NEW SITES, LIKE WHEN YOU HAVE A PORTION OF THE BAY TRAIL,
HOW DO YOU MAKE SURE THAT LIKE BIKE ADVOCATES KNOW ABOUT IT, THE BIKE PED GROUPS KNOW ABOUT IT. AND THEN SIMILARLY FOR THE FOR A NEW PARK. 
          IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU'RE STILL MAYBE AT THE DESIGN PHASE OF THAT,
BUT IS THERE A PLAN FOR HOW YOU'RE GOING TO ACTIVATE THAT SPACE? THAT'S SUCH A GREAT QUESTION. I MEAN, WE NEVER GET A NEW FACILITY OR PARK WITHOUT
ADVOCATES HELPING TO PUSH IT FORWARD. SO THE ADVOCATES HAVE BEEN A PART OF EVERYTHING WE DO. 
          AND I FEEL LIKE THAT'S PART OF THE FUN OF BEING IN PUBLIC SERVICE IS WE GET TO HEAR FROM
PEOPLE WITH STRONG OPINIONS ON ALL SIDES OF PROJECTS. 
          BUT WHEN WE'RE GOING OUT TO CONSTRUCT A NEW PROJECT,
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE THINKING ABOUT IS HOW DO WE MANAGE IT IN THE LONG TERM, AND HOW DO WE WELCOME PEOPLE TO THE SPACE? TO ME,
LIKE THERE'S WAYS THAT WE DO THAT INTERNALLY WITH OUR OWN TEAM, WITH THE INTERPRETATION RECREATION FOLKS AND OUR RANGERS. 
          BUT I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT OUR NEW PARTNERSHIPS WITH OUR GRANT PROGRAM,
WITH COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS THAT, YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES DOING THINGS OURSELVES IS GREAT AND IT HELPS IT BE A PART OF OUR
CULTURE. 
          BUT CONNECTING WITH OTHER ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE CLOSER TO THE COMMUNITY AND CAN HELP
CREATE A LINK THAT MEETS PEOPLE WHERE THEY ARE AND HELPS THEM FEEL LIKE THEY'RE A PART OF THE SPACE. 
          I THINK WILL BE EXCITING FOR OUR EXISTING PARKS,
BUT THOSE NEW PLACES AS WELL. 
          SO YEAH, I THINK ALL THOSE. MEMBER OMOLO. THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION. 
          I HAD A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. SO FIRST YOU SAID YOU WERE USING PLACER.AI. 
          DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE YOU SERVE THIS YEAR THROUGH RECREATION PROGRAMING,
AS WELL AS JUST PEOPLE WHO VISITED THE PARKS? I DON'T KNOW OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD. NO WORRIES. 
          SORRY. NO. THAT'S FINE. I WAS JUST CURIOUS IF. 
          WE COULD FIND OUT AND GET BACK TO YOU. THAT'D BE FANTASTIC. AND SECONDLY,
YOU NOTED THAT THERE'S A STRATEGIC PROCESS FOR CHOOSING IMPROVEMENTS. 
          WOULD YOU JUST QUICKLY JUST DISCUSS KIND OF WHAT THOSE INPUTS ARE AND HOW THOSE DECISIONS
ARE MADE WHEN LOOKING AT, FOR EXAMPLE, THE PLAYGROUNDS AND WHICH ONES SHOULD BE REPLACED? OKAY, GREAT QUESTION. SO FOR PAVEMENT WHICH IS LIKE ONE THAT WE ALREADY SORT OF HAVE AN
APPROACH ON, RIGHT? WE LOOK AT THAT PAVEMENT CONDITION INDEX. 
          AND THEN OUR TEAM IS TRYING TO BALANCE, YOU KNOW,
A, WHERE THE PLACES THAT WE CAN MAKE AN INVESTMENT AND IT'LL HELP THE MOST. 
          SO SOMETIMES THAT'S LIKE WHAT'S THE WORST PLACE. 
          AND LET'S TOTALLY REPAVE IT. BUT OTHER TIMES IT'S WHERE CAN WE FOR A LOW COST LIKE SEAL
CRACKS. 
          AND THAT'LL HELP THAT EXISTING FACILITY LAST LONGER. 
          FOR PLAYGROUNDS, TO BE TOTALLY HONEST, WE HAVEN'T HAD ANY SYSTEM,
SO WE JUST NOTICED THEY WERE IN BAD SHAPE AND OUR OPERATIONS TEAM RECOGNIZED, HEY, WE NEED TO ASSESS THESE AND FIGURE OUT A SYSTEMATIC
APPROACH TO HOW WE IMPROVE THEM. 
          SO I THINK THAT'S THE STEP WE'RE AT WITH PLAYGROUNDS,
UNFORTUNATELY. 
          YOU KNOW, WE HAVE SORT OF THAT SYSTEM WITH THE PAVEMENT. 
          WE ALSO ARE WORKING ON VEG MANAGEMENT, WHICH IS WHAT WE HOPE TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT MORE
THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, SIMILARLY TO BE STRATEGIC FOR RESTROOMS, WE HAVE A SIMILAR APPROACH WHERE WE KNOW THAT
COMMUNITY MEMBERS DON'T LOVE PORTA POTTIES. 
          BIG SURPRISE. AND SO OVER TIME, WE'RE TRYING TO TRANSITION OUR PORTA POTTY TOILETS INTO
LIKE PREFABRICATED PIT TOILETS, ESSENTIALLY, THAT ARE A LITTLE NICER. AND SO WE HAVE LIKE A LIST AND WE'RE TRYING TO JUST
SORT OF GO THROUGH THAT LIST AND FIGURE OUT WHAT ARE THE PLACES THAT WE CAN HELP THE MOST AND HAVE THE LEAST BARRIERS TO IMPLEMENTATION. 
          THANK YOU. YEAH. MEMBER LOPEZ. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. 
          QUICK QUESTION JUST ON THE NEW PLAN WHERE THE DISTRICT IS WORKING ON. 
          HOW DO YOU ENVISION SPECIFICALLY THE ROLE OF THE PAC IN HELPING PROVIDE INPUT AND FEEDBACK INTO THE PLAN AND OR OUR PARTICIPATION,
ANY KIND OF COMMUNITY MEETINGS? WELL, I MEAN, I THINK, I GUESS I'D SAY PUT IT BACK TO SAY THAT I'M OPEN TO HOWEVER THIS
GROUP WANTS TO PARTICIPATE AND HELP WITH THE PLAN. I THINK, LIKE AT THE BARE MINIMUM, WE WANT TO BRING THIS PLAN BACK TO THIS GROUP TO
GET FEEDBACK AND INPUT. 
          BUT IF THERE'S A DESIRE TO GO DEEPER WITH THE DISTRICT PLAN WITH THIS GROUP,
YOU KNOW, I KNOW WE TALKED ABOUT FOR THE WAY THAT YOU ALL ARE 
          [00:50:05]
WORKING ON TOPICS TO KIND OF TAKE A DEEP DIVE IN SEVERAL AREAS. 
          THAT'S AN AREA THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE DEFINITELY OPEN AND INTERESTED IN FOR THE FUTURE WITH
THE DISTRICT PLAN. 
          BUT, I MEAN, I THINK IT CAN CONTINUE TO BE A CONVERSATION. 
          AND IF THERE'S MORE IDEAS OF HOW YOU WANT TO BE ENGAGED,
HAPPY TO HAVE THOSE. 
          AND I THINK JUST AS INDIVIDUALS, WE WANT TO KEEP YOU ALL IN THE LOOP. 
          YOU ALL ARE CONNECTED TO A LOT OF THE DIFFERENT COMMUNITIES THAT WE SERVE. 
          AND SO, YOU KNOW, I THINK, YOU KNOW, AS WE SORT OF JUMP INTO THIS NEXT ROUND TO GIVE YOU
UPDATES ABOUT WHAT WE'RE UP TO, AND EVEN IF IT'S NOT ON YOUR WORK PLAN AS A BODY,
I THINK FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO ME OR TO BRIAN AND OUR TEAM TO GIVE US FEEDBACK IF IT FEELS LIKE OUR APPROACH IS OFF. MEMBER MARSH. 
          THANK YOU. I HAVE A COMMENT A FOLLOW UP COMMENT AT THE APPROPRIATE TIME ON THAT. 
          THANK YOU. THANK YOU. MEMBER MARSH. THANK YOU. 
          I AM JUST WONDERING, I DIDN'T SEE IT IN THIS PLAN. 
          HOW DO YOU GUYS, WITHOUT PHONE CALLS SUPPORT THOSE TRAILS THAT ARE NOT USED A LOT IN THE
LOW INCOME AREAS OR THEY'RE NOT IN A PARK? WE HAVE QUITE A FEW AREAS THAT I KNOW MYSELF I HAVE TO CALL AND SAY, HEY,
THE GRASS IS HIGHER THAN MY HEAD. 
          IS THERE NOT A STRATEGIC PLAN OR SCHEDULE THAT,
HEY, WE HIT ZONE SEVEN THIS TIME OF THE YEAR, ZONE FIVE THIS TIME OF THE YEAR,
ARE WE NOT BEING PROACTIVE ABOUT IT OR ARE WE JUST BEING REACTIVE? THAT'S A REALLY GREAT QUESTION. SO I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT COMING TO WORK AT THE
DISTRICT I'VE LIKE, STARTED TO LEARN IS THAT THE DISTRICT'S BIG. IT'S A LOT BIGGER THAN MOST OF ANY OTHER
REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT, BIGGER THAN COMING FROM COUNTY PARKS. AND ONE OF THE CHALLENGES IS THAT AS WE'VE EXPANDED, EACH PARK UNIT HAS KIND OF DEVELOPED THEIR APPROACH TO THEIR WORK WITHOUT A TON OF
STANDARDIZATION ACROSS THE DISTRICT. 
          AND AS WE WERE WORKING ON OUR VEG MANAGEMENT STRATEGY,
WHICH AGAIN, WE WILL TALK ABOUT IN THE NEXT ITEM, WE REALIZED THAT WE DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WHAT ALL THE AREAS WE MOWED WERE IN OPERATIONS. 
          AND SO JUST TO YOUR POINT, YOU KNOW, LIKE WHEN DOES AN AREA GET MOWED OR EVEN LIKE,
WHAT AREA GETS MOWED? WE HAVEN'T NECESSARILY HAD LIKE A MAP OF THOSE AREAS AND LIKE A STANDARD TIME FRAME. 
          SO WE WERE REALLY RELYING. AND WE HAVE AMAZING PARK SUPERVISORS AND RANGERS WHO HAVE TAKEN
GREAT CARE OF OUR PARKS, BUT SOMETIMES WE RELIED A LOT ON THE INDIVIDUALS RATHER THAN ON A PROCESS. 
          AND SO WHAT WE WANT TO DO IS KEEP SUPPORTING THOSE INDIVIDUALS,
BUT ALSO CREATE A PROCESS SO AS PEOPLE CHANGE OVER, WE DON'T MISS SOMETHING OR HAVE A TRAIL THAT GROWS OVER. 
          SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE ARE WORKING ON AND THAT WE DO HOPE TO ENGAGE THE PAC ON IN
THIS COMING YEAR. 
          MEMBER OBRINGER. THANK YOU. I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR PRESENTATION. 
          AND I THOUGHT I SAW A LIST OF UPCOMING PRESENTATIONS. 
          IT LOOKS LIKE THE CITY OF ANTIOCH IS ON THE LIST. 
          AND THEN I SAW REGIONS LISTED. SO IF A CITY WANTED TO RECEIVE A PRESENTATION,
WOULD THEY CONTACT YOU OR WHAT IS THE PROCESS? YES. FEEL FREE TO REACH OUT TO ME AND I'LL CONNECT YOU WITH OUR TEAM. 
          THAT SOUNDS PERFECT. THANK YOU. MEMBER SMITH. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. THAT WAS SUPER INFORMATIVE. 
          A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS. ON THE AREAS WHERE YOU ARE REDOING OR PUTTING IN PLAYGROUNDS AND
PICNIC TABLES, ARE YOU PUTTING IN UNIVERSAL DESIGN ELEMENTS FOR THOSE? AND IF NOT, THEY SHOULD BE? AND THERE ARE SOME REALLY GOOD MODELS,
ESPECIALLY FOR PLAYGROUND AREAS THAT ARE WHEELCHAIR. REALLY GREAT FOR KIDS WHO USE WHEELCHAIRS AND HAVE OTHER
DISABILITIES. 
          DOWN IN THE SOUTH BAY, I MEAN, SOME NATIONAL MODELS FOR THAT. 
          AND THEN I DO KNOW FROM EXPERIENCE THAT A LOT OF TIMES PICNIC TABLES GO IN AND THEY'RE NOT
UNIVERSALLY DESIGNED. 
          AND SO IF THERE ARE TWO PEOPLE IN WHEELCHAIRS,
WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO PULL IN END, BUT THEN WE'RE KIND OF YELLING BACK AND FORTH AT EACH 
          [00:55:07]
OTHER. YEAH. SO THAT'S ONE QUESTION. AND I HAVE A FEW OTHERS. 
          DO YOU WANT ME TO TELL YOU WHAT MY QUESTIONS ARE? WELL, HERE, LET ME ANSWER THAT ONE QUICK. ALRIGHT. AND THEN WE CAN GO TO THE NEXT ONE. SO
I JUST SAY THEY SHOULD BE. 
          AND HAPPY TO TALK MORE. AND YOU KNOW, I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF AREAS FOR GROWTH FOR THE
DISTRICT AND FOR SURE THAT'S ONE WHERE AGAIN, WE CAN BE SORT OF MORE STRATEGIC OVERALL TO HIGHLIGHT THAT. 
          AND THEN ON THE PLAYGROUNDS, THAT I REALLY APPRECIATE BRINGING THAT UP. 
          IN MARIN WE WERE WORKING IN MY PAST JOB ON BRINGING ONE OF THE MAGICAL BRIDGE PLAYGROUNDS. 
          THE MODEL IS IN THE SOUTH BAY. AND, YOU KNOW,
I THINK WHETHER IT'S THAT EXACT MODEL OR SOMETHING LIKE IT, YOU KNOW, I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF OPPORTUNITIES TO BRING THOSE ELEMENTS TO OUR PARKS. 
          SO I'D BE HAPPY TO HELP. GREAT. I ALSO, YOU KNOW,
KNOW PEOPLE WHO ARE EXPERTS IN THOSE AREAS. 
          EXCELLENT. THIS IS PROBABLY A QUICK QUESTION. 
          HOW DO YOU KEEP THE EUCALYPTUS FROM RESPROUTING IN AREAS WHERE YOU'RE TEARING OUT A LOT OF
IT? BECAUSE I KNOW THAT'S A HUGE PROBLEM. YEAH. SO,
YOU KNOW, MOST OF THE TIME IT'S TREATING IT WITH HERBICIDE. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT'S ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT OUR TEAM DOESN'T TAKE LIGHTLY. 
          I MEAN, LIKE NONE OF US WANT TO USE HERBICIDE. 
          WE'RE BUYING ORGANIC FOOD FOR OURSELVES. WE'RE TRYING,
RIGHT? IT'S NOT SOMETHING WE LOVE. YEAH. BUT WE ALSO KNOW THAT WE'RE TRYING TO TAKE CARE OF THE
ENVIRONMENT AND HELP TO RESTORE THESE PLACES AND PROTECT COMMUNITIES FROM FIRE. AND SO SOMETIMES THAT'S, YOU KNOW, THE TOOL. 
          AND WE ONLY USE IT WHEN IT'S LIKE THE ONLY WAY TO ACCOMPLISH THIS THING. 
          AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE NEVER WANT TO USE JUST BECAUSE IT'S EASY. 
          I'D ADD, YOU KNOW, FORTUNATELY, THERE ARE SOME PLACES WHERE LIKE ON THAT CARQUINEZ FIRE. 
          WHEN WE CAME IN, A LOT OF THOSE TREES JUST POPPED RIGHT OUT OF THE GROUND WHEN WE BROUGHT
IN SORT OF LARGER EQUIPMENT TO REMOVE THEM. 
          AND SO WE'RE FORTUNATE THAT IN THAT PLACE WE DIDN'T HAVE TO USE HERBICIDE WITH SOME OF
THEM, BUT WE DID GET SOME RESPROUTS, AND THEN THOSE RESPROUTS DID HAVE TO GET TREATED. 
          OKAY. WHERE IS BOREL PARK, JUST OUT OF CURIOSITY? SO IT IS RIGHT ON THE BORDER. CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG IF SOMEBODY KNOWS. 
          BETWEEN DANVILLE AND SAN RAMON. OKAY. AND IT'S RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET FROM COSTCO. 
          IF YOU'VE EVER BEEN TO COSTCO THERE. I HAVE NOT BEEN TO THAT ONE. 
          IN FACT, I TRY TO AVOID THEM LIKE THE PLAGUE. 
          MY HOUSEMATE GOES. I HEAR THAT. SO IT'S RIGHT NEXT TO THE FREEWAY. 
          IT'S A VERY URBAN SUBURBAN KIND OF LOCATION. SO IT'S VERY ACCESSIBLE. 
          AND SO THAT'S KIND OF ONE OF THE NEAT THINGS ABOUT IT IS IT'S LIKE,
RIGHT IN A VERY ACTIVE COMMUNITY. 
          THE WALNUT GROVE, CORRECT? YEAH. MEMBER PEOPLES. 
          I JUST HAVE ONE MORE QUICK ONE. SORRY. ON THE LIST OF MEETINGS THAT YOU HAD FOR DIFFERENT
WARDS AND CITIES, HOW CAN WE FIND OUT AND ATTEND OUR PARTICULAR CITY MEETING? BECAUSE I KNOW WARD 2 IS TOMORROW, AND I MIGHT HAVE TO TRY TO REARRANGE MY SCHEDULE
BECAUSE I BELIEVE IT'S VIRTUAL. 
          OKAY. BUT HOW DO WE FIND OUT ABOUT THOSE? AND CAN WE ATTEND? POTENTIALLY, SO WE HAVE. A, I'D SAY IF YOU'RE INTERESTED,
JUST LET ME KNOW AND I CAN CONNECT YOU WITH BRIAN, WHO'S HELPING TO LEAD OUR DISTRICT PLAN PROCESS AND MAKE SURE THAT THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY
TO ATTEND. 
          OKAY. YOU KNOW, WE CAN ALWAYS TALK ABOUT IF THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY FROM THIS GROUP TO,
LIKE, GET TOGETHER AND GET ENGAGED, WE CAN DO THAT. 
          I THINK THAT WAS LIKE, WE WERE KIND OF THINKING THAT AS ONE OF THE TOPICS THAT THIS GROUP
MIGHT WANT TO DIVE INTO, AND IT SOUNDED LIKE THERE WASN'T AS MUCH INTEREST IN THAT TOPIC AS OTHERS. 
          BUT WE'RE ALWAYS OPEN TO IT. 
          SO I THINK IT'S FORWARD SLASH BACKSLASH DISTRICT PLAN. 
          SO IT'S ON THE WEBSITE AND. 
          REGULARLY. 
          THEY'RE NOT LIKE EXCLUSIVE. WE'RE JUST MAKING THEM AVAILABLE BY GEOGRAPHY,
IF THAT'S THE WAY PEOPLE WANT TO ENGAGE. 
          IT MIGHT JUST BE BECAUSE YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH THE PARKS WHERE YOU LIVE. 
          AND SO WE ARE TRYING TO ORGANIZE THEM SOMEWHAT AROUND THAT. 
          BUT WE CAN HAVE ANOTHER ONE. SO WE HAVE TIME AND THERE'S GOING TO BE LOTS OF OPPORTUNITIES
FOR PEOPLE TO ENGAGE. 
          SO LOOK AT THE LIST. IF YOU FEEL LIKE IT'S MISSING SOMETHING OR WE NEED TO ADD SOMETHING,
WE CAN DO THAT. 
          SO WE HAVE SOME TIME. THANK YOU. MEMBER PEOPLES. 
          [01:00:02]
YES. THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION UPDATE ON ALL THIS WORK THAT'S GOING ON ON FACILITIES
AND INFRASTRUCTURE AND SO FORTH. 
          HOWEVER, I DIDN'T HEAR ANYTHING ABOUT HOW MUCH LAND THE DISTRICT ACQUIRED LAST YEAR AND TO
WHAT EXTENT. 
          YOU KNOW, WE WERE ACHIEVING OUR GOALS ON THAT OTHER HALF OF THE ACTIVITIES THAT THE
DISTRICT IS INVOLVED IN. 
          GREAT POINT. I TOTALLY FORGOT. I WAS LIKE FOCUSED ON THE OTHER WELL, LAND ACQUISITION IS STILL A REALLY BIG PART OF WHAT WE'RE DOING AS THE DISTRICT. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A VISION FOR THE AREAS THAT THE PARK DISTRICT HAS BEEN FOCUSED ON
ACQUIRING MORE PARK LAND. 
          AND WE'VE MADE I MEAN, POINT MOLATE WAS A REALLY BIG ONE THAT WE COMPLETED. 
          BUT THERE'S BEEN A NUMBER ALSO IN THE SORT OF EAST CONTRA COSTA AREA WITH THE HABITAT
CONSERVANCY OUT THERE THAT WE'VE COMPLETED IN THE LAST YEAR. 
          AND, YOU KNOW, KNOCK ON WOOD, WE'VE GOT SOME MORE EXCITING OPPORTUNITIES COMING UP. 
          WE HAVE A SUPER TALENTED REAL ESTATE TEAM WHO WORKS ON LAND ACQUISITION. 
          THAT'S A BIG, IMPORTANT PART OF WHAT THEY DO. 
          BUT THEY ALSO MANAGE A REALLY MIND BOGGLING AMOUNT OF LEASES AND ACCESS PERMITS. 
          AS YOU CAN IMAGINE, THERE'S TONS OF UTILITIES THAT RUN THROUGH OUR DISTRICT AND SO,
LANDS. 
          AND SO THOSE PEOPLE ARE ALWAYS WORKING TO MANAGE THOSE PERMITS THAT ACCESS AND THOSE
LEASES AS WELL. 
          IT WOULD BE NICE TO SEE SOME NUMBERS. GREAT. YEAH. 
          MEMBER DETJENS. WELL, ONE OTHER THING. WE'RE DOING OUR LAND STUDY SESSION WITH OUR BOARD
COMING UP, WHICH WILL BE. I'M PRETTY SURE THERE'S A WAY TO WATCH IT ON ZOOM,
BUT. 
          SHOULD BE. BUT ANYWAY, THAT'S AN OPPORTUNITY FOR OUR LANDS DIVISION TO LIKE,
TALK ALL ABOUT THAT STUFF, SO. 
          THE FRIDAY AFTER THIS ONE. YEAH. MEMBER DETJENS. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. IT'S MEANINGFUL TO HAVE THE GENERAL MANAGER COME
SPEAK TO US, AND WE WELCOME YOU TO COME BACK ANY TIME. LEST,
YOU THINK THAT'S A COMMENT. 
          THERE IS A QUESTION. AT THE EARLY ON PART OF YOUR PRESENTATION,
THERE WAS SOME FACTS AND FIGURES ABOUT LIKE SOME HR STUFF AND, YOU KNOW, HEY, WE'RE JUST OVER A THOUSAND EMPLOYEES. 
          I CAUGHT SOMETHING ON THERE THAT LOOKED LIKE THERE WAS 450 PLUS NEW HIRES. 
          COULD YOU SPEAK A LITTLE MORE ABOUT THAT IN TERMS OF,
THAT JUST SEEMS LIKE A TREMENDOUS NUMBER OF EITHER VACANCIES TO FILL OR TURNOVER OR TYPO OR SOMETHING? SO. WELL. COULD YOU HELP ME UNDERSTAND THAT A LITTLE BETTER,
PLEASE? I DON'T HAVE A BREAKDOWN OF WHAT THOSE POSITIONS ARE. 
          BUT I CAN TELL YOU, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S UNIQUE TO PARKS IS WE HIRE A LOT OF SEASONAL
EMPLOYEES. 
          SO EACH YEAR THERE'S A HUGE CHUNK OF FOLKS THAT WE HIRE,
LIKE ALL OF OUR LIFEGUARDS THAT ARE SEASONAL. 
          SO THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE HIRED IN A YEAR IS LARGER THAN LIKE YOU WOULD EXPECT FOR THE SIZE
ORGANIZATION. 
          AND THAT'S NOT LIKE NORMAL TURNOVER. I'D SAY THE OTHER THING,
THOUGH, IS THAT WE'VE BEEN BUILDING A REALLY STRONG HR TEAM AND WE'VE HAD A REALLY POSITIVE RECRUITMENT. SO WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO FILL SOME POSITIONS
THAT WERE VACANT. 
          IN THIS LAST YEAR, WE WERE ABLE TO BRING OUR POLICE FORCE UP TO FULL CAPACITY,
SO WHERE WE HAD NO OPENINGS. 
          SO I GUESS THAT WAS THE OTHER PIECE IS WE WERE KIND OF CATCHING UP FROM A PERIOD WHERE WE
MIGHT HAVE HAD MORE VACANCIES. 
          SO THAT'S A LEGITIMATE NUMBER, THE 450 OR 480 OR WHATEVER THAT NUMBER WAS? I BELIEVE SO. I DIDN'T PUT LIKE IT WAS LIKE I ASKED OUR DIFFERENT TEAM MEMBERS TO PUT THIS
TOGETHER. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, I'LL DOUBLE CHECK, BUT MY GUESS IS THAT THE REASON IT'S SO HIGH IS BECAUSE
WE HAVE A HUGE CHUNK OF THAT. PROBABLY HALF OR MORE IS SEASONAL HIRING. 
          OKAY. THANK YOU. MEMBER VALENZUELA. YES. A LITTLE BIT FURTHER INTO THAT. 
          WHAT ABOUT THE STAFFING MODEL GOING INTO THESE NEW PARKS THAT ARE BEING CREATED LIKE DUTCH
SLOUGH, THURGOOD MARSHALL, WHICH IS, YOU KNOW, COULD BE HEAVILY USED PARKS,
BUT HOW'S THE STAFFING GOING TO BE BROUGHT ON TO HANDLE THE EXTRA WORK? YOU'RE RIGHT. GREAT QUESTION. AND I THINK ONE THING THAT WE'RE DOING,
WE'RE STILL A COUPLE FEW YEARS FROM OPENING LIKE THE SOUTH OF BAILEY ROAD SITE AND OTHERS. WE DO ALREADY HAVE STAFF THAT ARE HELPING TO SUPPORT SOME OF THOSE
PARK SITES LIKE THURGOOD MARSHALL OR THE DEER VALLEY ON THE RODDY RANCH SITE OUT THERE. 
          AND SO AS WE'RE GETTING CLOSER TO OPENING, WE'LL NEED TO RAMP UP OUR SUPPORT TO MAKE SURE
WE'RE READY TO OPEN THOSE UP. 
          AND SO THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE'RE ACTIVELY PLANNING FOR. ON THE DUTCH SLEW SIDE,
THAT'S REALLY COOL BECAUSE THE STATE IS ACTUALLY OFFERING TO FUND 
          [01:05:07]
OUR STAFF TO MAINTAIN THE SITE. SO THEY IMPROVED IT. 
          IT'S A STATE SITE, BUT THEY WOULD FUND OUR OPERATION OF THE SITE FOR,
I THINK, 13 YEARS OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. 
          SO IT'S KIND OF A UNIQUE PARTNERSHIP FOR US. SO,
SO IS THAT EXTRA STAFF FOR WHATEVER'S CORRECT? HANDLE THAT LOCATION. CORRECT. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. 
          YEAH. SO MUCH LIKE, MEMBER DETJENS IS GOING TO SOUND LIKE A COMMENT,
BUT I PROMISE IT'S A QUESTION. 
          SO IF YOU LOOK AT THE WW TRANSFER, WE WE PROBABLY DIDN'T HAVE A BALANCED BUDGET. 
          SO IN LIGHT OF THAT, EVERY TIME YOU ACQUIRE SOMETHING,
IT KIND OF MAKES IT WORSE BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO MAINTAIN IT. 
          IS THERE A PLAN FOR THE DISTRICT TO GET A PARCEL TAX OR A BOND MEASURE OR SOMETHING TO
ADDRESS PENDING FINANCIAL SHORTFALLS? YEAH. SO I THINK, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT OUR. 
          ALLISON'S TEAM, LISA, ARE ACTIVELY WORKING ON IS,
YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE SET OURSELVES UP FOR A POTENTIAL FUNDING MEASURE IN THE FUTURE? BECAUSE I THINK, LIKE YOU SAID, LIKE OUR WHOLE BUDGET CONVERSATION WITH OUR BOARD HELPED
TO SORT OF PROVIDE AND WITH THE PAC A LITTLE BIT OF HIGHLIGHT OF A CHALLENGE WE HAVE,
WHICH IS OUR BOND FUNDS THAT ARE WHAT WE CAN USE FOR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS, WE'VE SPENT PRETTY MUCH ALL THE DEVELOPMENT,
ALL THE PROJECT FUNDS. 
          WE ONLY HAVE ACQUISITION FUNDS AT THIS POINT. 
          AND THEN OUR OPERATIONS ARE PROPERTY TAX FUNDING THAT FUNDS OPERATIONS IS ONLY PAYING FOR
THE EXISTING OPERATIONS AND THAT GROWTH, YOU KNOW,
INFLATION, YOU KNOW, GROWTH OF WHAT WE DO. 
          AND SO THERE'S NO MONEY FOR LIKE ONE TIME PROJECTS. 
          AND SO I THINK THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS WE'RE SEEING AS AN ISSUE. 
          THE OTHER ONE IS AS WE GROW, THAT OPERATIONS FUND IS COVERING WHAT WE HAVE NOW,
BUT IT'S NOT GROWING FAST ENOUGH TO FUND A LOT OF NEW PARKS. SO I THINK THOSE TWO THINGS PUT TOGETHER SORT OF CREATE A NEED FOR ADDITIONAL
FUNDING. 
          THANK YOU. THANK YOU. MADAM CLERK, DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THIS? YES. WE DO? EXCELLENT. OKAY. SO WE HAVE ONE PUBLIC COMMENT BY MEADOW DARCY. 
          YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES. GOOD EVENING, PAC MEMBERS. 
          MY NAME IS MEADOW DARCY AND I AM THE CHIEF STEWARD OF AFSCME LOCAL 2428. 
          I DID WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THERE WAS SOME DISCUSSION ABOUT LAND ACQUISITION,
AND I JUST WANTED TO GIVE A LITTLE HISTORICAL CONTEXT ABOUT LAND ACQUISITION. 
          WHEN WW HAD PASSED OR I THINK IT WAS AA BACK THEN AND THE PROMISES MADE,
PROMISES KEPT WAS THE FOCUS, THERE WAS A LOT OF INTEREST IN AFSCME SUPPORTING THIS BOND MEASURE. 
          AND SO PART OF THE DISCUSSIONS, THE INFORMAL DISCUSSIONS BETWEEN AFSCME AND THE DISTRICT
WAS TO ADDRESS THE STAFFING ISSUES OF THIS NEWLY ACQUIRED LAND. 
          AND THERE WAS A FORMULA THAT WAS MADE CALLED PIPELINE. 
          AND THAT FORMULA WAS TO LOOK AT EACH LAND ACQUISITION AND DETERMINE WHAT TYPES OF STAFFING
OR SUPPLIES WERE NEEDED FOR THAT LAND. 
          AND IN DOING SO, IT SORT OF CREATED A LOG, SO TO SPEAK,
OF THE PERSONNEL THAT MIGHT BE NEEDED TO RUN THAT LAND OR TO OPEN THAT LAND. 
          AND SO THERE'D BE DIFFERENT STAGES FOR OF COURSE,
IT WAS IN LAND BANK. 
          YOU DON'T NEED RANGERS, BUT PERHAPS YOU NEED,
YOU KNOW, FIREFIGHTERS TO PATROL IT, OR YOU NEED POLICE OFFICERS TO MAKE SURE IT'S SECURE. 
          BUT YOU DON'T NEED, YOU KNOW, ANOTHER LEVEL OF SERVICE. AND THEN ONCE IT OPENS,
THERE'S AN ADDITIONAL LEVEL OF SERVICE. AND SO EVERY YEAR IN THE PART OF THE CAPITAL PROJECTS MEETING, THERE WOULD BE A REVIEW OF ALL OF THE LAND BANK PROPERTIES AND THE
PROPERTIES THAT WERE COMING ON BOARD THAT YEAR. 
          AND AS PART OF THAT, FORMULAS WOULD BE PUT FORWARD ON THE STAFFING THAT WAS NEEDED AND
THEN THAT WOULD BE CONSIDERED IN THE BUDGET YEAR. 
          AND SO THIS WAS A WAY FOR AFSCME TO MAKE SURE THAT WE DIDN'T ACQUIRE A WHOLE BUNCH OF LAND
AND THEN NOT HAVE THE STAFFING TO TAKE CARE OF THAT LAND OR TO OPEN THAT LAND. 
          AND SO I JUST WANTED TO GIVE THAT A LITTLE BIT OF THAT HISTORICAL CONTEXT AND SORT OF PUSH
FOR MAKING SURE THAT CONTINUES. 
          THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF TALK ABOUT ELIMINATING THE PIPELINE. 
          AND SO I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT STAYS ON EVERYONE'S RADAR,
THAT WAS KIND OF HOW WE RESOLVED THAT ISSUE. 
          AND THAT'S IT. I JUST WANTED TO GIVE YOU THAT CONTEXT. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. 
          ANY OTHER PUBLIC COMMENTS, MADAM CLERK? NO, NOT AT THIS TIME. 
          OKAY. MOVING ON TO PAC COMMENTS. SO HERE, PLEASE DON'T ASK QUESTIONS BECAUSE WE HAD THAT. 
          BUT ANY PAC MEMBER COMMENTS? MEMBER MARSH. I DON'T HAVE ANY COMMENTS, 
          [01:10:08]
I APOLOGIZE, I AM HAVING TROUBLE WITH THE SCREEN. 
          SOMEBODY NEEDS TO GET ME TO THE OPTOMETRIST. LOPEZ. 
          MEMBER LOPEZ. THANK YOU, MEMBER PEOPLES. AND THEN MEMBER CHANG. 
          THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I GUESS A COUPLE OF COMMENTS I HAVE FIRST OF ALL,
YES, I DITTO OUR CHAIR´S SENTIMENT OF BEING HAPPY THAT YOU'RE HERE. 
          BECAUSE IT IS SOMETHING THAT HAS BEEN, YOU KNOW,
LONG COMING. 
          I THINK THAT THE GENERAL MANAGER SHOULD BE ACTIVELY ENGAGED WITH THE PAC,
WITH THE PUBLIC AT LEAST, YOU KNOW, IN THE SENSE OF KIND OF BACKING UP THE ELECTEDS IN THEIR PUBLIC MEETINGS AND
BEING THERE AND BEING VISIBLE TO THE PUBLIC, YOU KNOW. AND SO I'M GLAD YOU'RE HERE. 
          I HOPE THAT THERE WILL BE CONTINUE TO BE MORE VISIBILITY BY THE GM THAT EVENTUALLY
PERMANENTLY FILLS THE ROLE AND THAT THAT'S A MANDATE BY THE ELECTEDS THAT REPRESENT THE DISTRICT. SO MY COMMENT IS THAT I DO THINK THAT IT IS A
GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO CALL IDEAS FROM THIS GROUP. I'VE BEEN HERE FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS NOW,
AND I HAVE TO SAY, I HAVE A LOT OF RESPECT FOR MY COLLEAGUES HERE ON THE PAC. THERE'S A LOT OF WEALTH IN EXPERIENCE AND A LOT OF VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES THAT ARE
BROUGHT TO THE TABLE. 
          IT'S A CAPTIVE AUDIENCE. WE'RE HERE EVERY MONTH. 
          AND, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THE INPUT THAT WE'VE GIVEN BEFORE WAS VERY RUDIMENTARY,
AND IN THE BEGINNING I APPRECIATED THAT OPPORTUNITY. 
          BUT I THINK A DEEPER DIVE WOULD BE IN ORDER,
PERHAPS A WORK SESSION RATHER THAN ONE OF THESE MORE FORMAL MEETINGS, BUT A WORK SESSION WHERE WE'RE ABLE TO, YOU KNOW,
BE INFORMAL AND PROVIDE FEEDBACK IN THAT WAY OR RETREAT BY THE PAC ON A SATURDAY OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. YOU KNOW, IT WAS VERY SAD TO SEE THE RESULTS OF WHO PARTICIPATED IN, YOU KNOW, GIVING INPUT. I'M VERY GLAD THAT IS BEING RECTIFIED. 
          AND HERE WE ARE. WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY HERE WITH THIS GROUP ALSO TO PROVIDE,
APART FROM THE VARIOUS STAKEHOLDERS THAT APPLIED, YOU KNOW, TO GARNER SOME INFORMATION AND MAKE SURE THAT PLAN IS AS ROBUST AND HOLISTIC AS
POSSIBLE. 
          THANK YOU SO MUCH. MEMBER CHANG AND THEN MEMBER PEOPLES. 
          I GUESS IT'S MORE OF A POINT OF INFORMATION. I JUST WANT TO SAY I'M REALLY HAPPY ABOUT
THIS NEW PROCESS OF ASKING QUESTIONS FIRST AND THEN TAKING PUBLIC COMMENTS. 
          BUT I DO THINK THAT PART OF DOING THAT IS SO THAT WAY WE CAN ALL ENGAGE IN HOW WE'RE
THINKING AND POST PUBLIC COMMENT, IF PEOPLE DO HAVE QUESTIONS BASED ON WHAT WE'RE HEARING,
I HOPE THE CHAIR WILL ALLOW FLEXIBILITY. 
          YEAH, I'M TRYING TO. I MEAN, YOU GUYS HAVE SEEN I'M TRYING TO BALANCE BETWEEN HAVING LIKE
A MEETING WHERE WE'RE NOT HERE UNDULY LATE AND THEN THE ABILITY OF PEOPLE TO SPEAK. 
          AND SO IT IS A NEW FORMAT. IT'S WHAT THE BOARD´S FOLLOWING TOO. 
          AND SO WE'RE JUST TRYING TO FOLLOW WHAT THE BOARD´S FOLLOWING. BUT I HEAR WHAT YOU'RE
SAYING. ONE COMMENT TOO AROUND THE DISTRICT PLAN. 
          MEMBER LOPEZ, I SHARE YOUR CONCERNS ON THAT. THERE'S A COUPLE OF THINGS. 
          ONE IS THAT WHEN THE PAC VOTED ON WHAT OUR TOPICS WERE GOING TO BE,
THAT WE PRESENTED TO THE BOARD WHAT WE WANTED TO WORK ON, DISTRICT PLAN WAS ON THE LIST. UNFORTUNATELY,
WE DIDN'T VOTE ON IT AND WE DIDN'T VOTE TO BE A FINALIST. 
          BUT WHAT WAS DISCUSSED WAS LIKE SOME OTHER THINGS. 
          THE DISTRICT PLAN IS REALLY EMBEDDED IN EVERYTHING THAT THE PAC DOES. 
          SO I'M NOT DISMISSING YOUR COMMENT AT ALL. I AGREE WITH WHAT YOU'RE SAYING,
BUT HOPEFULLY WE. 
          I WOULDN'T SAY HOPEFULLY. WE WILL HAVE THE ABILITY TO ADDRESS COMPONENTS OF THE DISTRICT
PLAN, EVEN IF WE DON'T DO A DEEP DIVE ON THAT, JUST BASED ON THE WORK WE'RE DOING HERE. 
          SO STAY TUNED. AND THEN I'M ALSO GOING TO HAVE SOME COMMENTS AROUND HOW WE ARE GOING
DEEPER, WHEN I ACTUALLY AM GOING TO HAVE A BRIEF REPORT FROM THE CHAIR TONIGHT. SO I JUST WANTED
TO TALK ABOUT THAT. 
          AND THEN MEMBER PEOPLES. YES, I PICKED UP ON ONE THING THAT YOU PRESENTED ON DON CASTRO
WITH THE CULVERT REPLACEMENT WITH THE BRIDGE IN THAT INSTANCE,
THERE WAS WATER DAMAGE AND SO FORTH. 
          SO YOU HAD TO DO IT. AND I THINK JUST IN GENERAL,
WHENEVER WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO REPLACE A CULVERT, THEY TEND TO END UP BEING BLOCKAGES TO FISH PASSAGE. 
          YOU KNOW, THE MIGRATION OF FISH. WHEREAS A BRIDGE,
YOU DON'T HAVE THAT BLOCKAGE DEVELOPING OVER TIME. 
          SO THE MORE IT CAN BE DONE THAT WAY, IT CAN BE A LITTLE BIT MORE EXPENSIVE. 
          BUT AGAIN TO CHAIRMAN HENRY'S POINT, WE NEED ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR DEVELOPMENT 
          [01:15:04]
AND STEWARDSHIP ACTIVITIES TO SUPPORT THAT SORT OF THING. 
          SO I APPRECIATE THAT YOU PUT A BRIDGE IN THERE INSTEAD OF JUST PLOPPING ANOTHER CULVERT
DOWN IN PLACE OF IT. 
          ANY OTHER COMMENTS? MEMBER CLAXTON. THANK YOU. 
          SO FOLLOWING ON JUDITH'S COMMENTS ABOUT THE LIST OF ENGAGEMENT GROUPS. 
          SO I'M FROM WARD 3, AND I DON'T SEE ANYTHING ON HERE THAT REPRESENTS FREMONT. 
          AND I BROUGHT THIS UP WITH LISA BEFORE. HOW IF THERE WAS A MEETING FOR FREMONT,
EITHER THE CITY COUNCIL OR SOMEBODY, I'D LOVE TO BE ABLE TO ATTEND THAT. SO I'M DISAPPOINTED THAT I DON'T SEE ANYTHING. 
          AND I SEE UNION CITY FAMILY CENTER, WHICH IS RIGHT NEXT DOOR. 
          AND I CLICKED ON THAT GREAT LITTLE WEBSITE, CLICKED ON THAT,
AND SO WHAT THAT IS. 
          SO IF I FEEL LIKE FREMONT NEEDS TO GET THEIR ACT TOGETHER,
ESPECIALLY SINCE YOU SAID SOMETHING ABOUT PROBLEMS WITH PERMITTING WITH GETTING THAT WILLOW PROJECT OPEN. YEAH. NOTED. SO I THINK WE CAN FOLLOW UP. 
          APPRECIATE IT THOUGH. YEAH. AND CERTAINLY HAVING THE LIAISON MEETING WITH CITY OF FREMONT
HAS BEEN ONE OF MY TOP PRIORITIES. 
          UNFORTUNATELY, WE HAVEN'T HAD IT SINCE 2023,
SO I'VE CONSISTENTLY ADVOCATED FOR THIS. 
          BUT I GUESS IT'S STILL A POINT OF TENSION BETWEEN US RIGHT NOW TO SCHEDULE THE LIAISON
MEETINGS, WHICH IS PART OF OUR BOARD OPERATING GUIDELINES. 
          WE'RE WORKING ON IT, SO WE JUST DON'T HAVE IT ON THE LIST YET. 
          BUT ACTUALLY ALLISON'S TEAM IS SCHEDULING IT RIGHT NOW,
SO IT'LL GET ADDED TO THE LIST AND THAT'LL HELP I THINK. 
          BUT HONESTLY, LIKE THE MORE FEEDBACK AND IDEAS,
THE BETTER. 
          SO THANK YOU. VICE CHAIR MENDOZA. THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION. 
          IT'S GREAT TO SEE, YOU KNOW, NOT ONLY THE ACTING GENERAL MANAGER HERE,
BUT ALSO AFSCME AND HAVE THIS JUST WELL-ROUNDED CONVERSATION DISCUSSION ON ALL THE ISSUES, ESPECIALLY ON THE FIRST MEETING OF THE YEAR,
SO THAT IT CAN SORT OF SET THE STAGE FOR OUR WORK PLAN, WHICH WILL BE THE NEXT TOPIC. I JUST WANTED TO ALSO NOT INTRODUCE,
BUT YOU KNOW, GO TO ANOTHER PART OF THE LAND ACQUISITION CONVERSATION. THE DISTRICT HAS ENJOYED A LONG HISTORY OF ACQUISITION AND RESPONSIBLE
FISCAL GOVERNANCE OF IT, BUT ALSO THAT WE HAVE TO REALLY MAKE SURE THAT ALL OF THE TRENDS THAT ARE HAPPENING RIGHT
NOW, ESPECIALLY IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF TURTLE ISLAND,
ARE HAPPENING HERE AS WELL. 
          AND IN CALIFORNIA, EVEN WITH THE LAND BACK MOVEMENT. 
          AND THAT'S SOMETHING I HAVEN'T REALLY HEARD WITHIN THE PARK DISTRICT IS HAVING ANY STEPS
TOWARDS NOT JUST GIVING LAND BACK TO NATIVE AMERICAN TRIBES, WHICH HAS HAPPENED ALL THROUGHOUT THE STATE. ALSO YOU KNOW,
JUST RECENTLY WITH THE CITY OF OAKLAND WITH SECURITY AS WELL AS THE WEST BERKELEY SHELLMOUND. SO IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT'S DISTANT AND FAR,
SAY IN LIKE MINNESOTA OR NORTH CAROLINA. 
          IT'S HAPPENING HERE IN CALIFORNIA, BUT ALSO RECOGNIZE THE FACT THAT THE LAND BACK MOVEMENT
IS NOT JUST A METAPHOR FOR GIVING LAND. 
          IT'S NOT JUST CULTURAL LANGUAGE REVITALIZATION,
FOOD, INDIGENOUS FOOD SURVIVAL. 
          ALL OF THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE SUPPORTED OVER THE PAST 20,
30 YEARS WITH THE OHLONE PEOPLE SPECIFICALLY AT COYOTE HILLS, BUT ALSO IN MANY OF THE PARKS IN THE DISTRICT. 
          SO I JUST WANT TO NOTE THAT IS SOMETHING THAT I THINK SHOULD BE A PART OF THE CONVERSATION
AND A MEANINGFUL ONE INTO THE FUTURE. 
          IF I COULD JUST ADD, MEMBER MENDOZA, I'M SUPER EXCITED ABOUT THAT WORK AS WELL. 
          AND ACTUALLY HAD A REALLY INSPIRING MEETING WITH OUR TEAM TODAY. 
          WE'VE HAD A WORKING GROUP OF LEADERS FROM OUR DIFFERENT DIVISIONS WORKING ON THIS EXACT
ISSUE, AND I'VE BEEN JOINING ANNAMARIE GUERRERO, OUR CULTURAL RESOURCES MANAGER,
AS PART OF THE DISTRICT PLAN. 
          WE'VE MET WITH ALL OF THE DIFFERENT TRIBAL GROUPS AND INDIVIDUALS AROUND THAT ARE PART OF
THE DISTRICT TO SORT OF UNDERSTAND FROM THEM HOW CAN WE BE A BETTER PARTNER TO THEM AS THE PARK DISTRICT. AND WE'VE TAKEN SOME LEARNING FROM THAT EXPERIENCE,
AND WE'VE COME UP WITH SORT OF A FRAMEWORK FOR HOW WE CAN PARTNER WITH THOSE ORGANIZATIONS AND DO SOME OF THAT WORK TOGETHER. 
          AND SO ACTUALLY, IN THE COMING YEAR OR TWO, WE'RE LOOKING AT HOW WE CAN BRING THAT TO YOUR
BOARD. 
          AND MAYBE THAT'S ALSO SOMETHING WE COULD BRING TO THE PAC IS TO SORT OF GIVE AN
OPPORTUNITY OF SORT OF DAYLIGHTING THAT WORK THAT WE'RE DOING WITH THE TRIBAL ORGANIZATIONS AND GET YOUR INPUT AND CONNECTION TO IT. 
          [01:20:03]
ANYTHING ELSE? OKAY. AGAIN, MAX, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US. 
          WE REALLY APPRECIATE IT. AND ECHO MEMBER LOPEZ. 
          [APPLAUSE]. PLEASE, WE KNOW YOU'RE BUSY, BUT ANYTIME YOU CAN STOP BY EVEN JUST FOR ONE
PRESENTATION OR WATCH, WE REALLY APPRECIATE HAVING YOU HERE. SO THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU'RE DOING. MOVING ON
TO WORKPLAN FOCUS TOPIC UPDATE. 
          GOOD EVENING. LISA BALDINGER, LEGISLATIVE AND POLICY MANAGEMENT ANALYST. 
          AND I'LL BE BRIEF, AND I'LL BE ACTUALLY INVITING MAX BACK UP TO GIVE HIS VISION FOR THESE
TOPICS. 
          BUT BY WAY OF BACKGROUND, LAST YEAR THE PAC AND STAFF BROUGHT FORWARD A VARIETY OF TOPICS
TO CONSIDER FOR YOUR 2026 WORK PLAN. THE TOPICS THAT WERE REVIEWED BY THE PAC INCLUDED
ECOSYSTEM PROTECTION AND RESTORATION, TRAIL STEWARDSHIP AND SAFETY, CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIZATION PROGRAM EVALUATION,
THE DISTRICT PLAN. 
          AND THROUGH CONVERSATION, THE PAC PUT FORWARD THREE TOPICS FOR THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS TO
SELECT FROM, WHICH INCLUDED ECOSYSTEM PROTECTION AND RESTORATION,
EXPANDING PUBLIC ACCESS RESPONSIBLY, AND CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM EVALUATION. DURING A CONVERSATION AT THE EXECUTIVE BOARD
MEETING, ONE TOPIC WAS MOVED FORWARD TO THE FULL BOARD FOR CONSIDERATION,
WHICH WAS THE ECOSYSTEM PROTECTION. 
          BUT THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MADE THE RECOMMENDATION TO RE-ADD TRAIL
STEWARDSHIP AND SAFETY BACK ON THE LIST FOR FULL BOARD CONSIDERATION. 
          AND THEN IN NOVEMBER, THE FULL BOARD DID IDENTIFY THAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO SEE THE PAC WORK
ON THE TWO ITEMS, ECOSYSTEM, STEWARDSHIP. EXCUSE ME. ECOSYSTEM PROTECTION AND RESTORATION,
AND TRAIL STEWARDSHIP AND SAFETY AS PART OF YOUR WORK PLAN. 
          AND SO WE ARE IN THE EARLY DAYS OF SETTING THAT UP IN TERMS OF WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE. 
          SO BY WAY OF REMINDER OF OUR MEETING FLOW, OUR KICKOFF FOR THE FIRST TOPIC WILL BE IN
FEBRUARY, WHERE THE PAC WILL RECEIVE BACKGROUND PRESENTATIONS,
HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH STAFF AND SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS. 
          IN MARCH, THE PAC WILL HAVE A MEETING, SO DO KEEP THAT DATE ON YOUR CALENDAR. 
          HOWEVER, THAT WILL ALSO BE YOUR INFORMATION COLLECTION PERIOD. 
          SO AT THAT FEBRUARY MEETING, STAFF WILL PROVIDE YOU WITH A WORKSHEET FOR THAT INFORMATION
COLLECTION, A LITTLE BIT OF GUIDANCE ON SORT OF WHAT THEY'RE SEEKING FROM YOUR INPUT,
FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE, YOUR COMMUNITY AND YOUR CONVERSATIONS. SO MORE TO COME ON THAT. 
          IN APRIL WE'LL HAVE A DISCUSSION ON A WORKSHOP FORMAT TO HAVE ENGAGEMENT ON THAT TOPIC. 
          AND THEN IN MAY, A RECOMMENDATIONS REPORT WILL COME BACK BEFORE THE PAC BASED OFF WHAT WE
HEARD IN YOUR WORKSHOP DISCUSSION, FOR YOU ALL TO TAKE A FORMAL VOTE FOR YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS TO BE PRESENTED TO OUR BOARD OF
DIRECTORS, AND THEN WE'LL FOLLOW THAT SAME FLOW A SECOND TIME. 
          AND THEN IN OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER MEETINGS, WE'LL HAVE OUR BUDGET DISCUSSION AND OUR 2027
WORK PLAN DISCUSSION. 
          AND THEN HOPEFULLY IT'LL BE SUCCESSFUL AND WE CAN DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN WITH DIFFERENT
TOPICS AND DIVE IN DEEP. 
          SO THAT'S AN OVERVIEW OF WHERE WE ARE. BUT THOSE WORDS ARE PRETTY BROAD. 
          ECOSYSTEM PROTECTION AND RESTORATION AND TRAIL STEWARDSHIP AND SAFETY,
THAT CAN MEAN A LOT OF THINGS. 
          AND SO WE WERE ABLE TO CONNECT WITH OUR STAFF TEAM TO SORT OF IDENTIFY WHAT WORK IS MOVING
FORWARD, WHERE WE CAN BRING YOUR PERSPECTIVE, THE COMMUNITY'S PERSPECTIVE AND THE WORK FORWARD. 
          AND SO, AS YOU SAW IN YOUR STAFF REPORT FOR ECOSYSTEM PROTECTION AND RESTORATION,
AND MAX HINTED AT IT QUITE A FEW TIMES GIVING A PREVIEW IN HIS PRESENTATION, WE WILL BE SEEKING THE PAC´S INPUT ON THE VEGETATION MANAGEMENT STRATEGY THAT'S BEEN
COMING TOGETHER WITH A CROSS-DIVISIONAL TEAM OF OUR FIRE DEPARTMENT, THE GENERAL MANAGER'S OFFICE, OUR STEWARDSHIP DEPARTMENT TO REALLY BRING FORWARD A
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN FOR THE ENTIRETY OF THE EAST BAY, TO MANAGE VEGETATION IN A WAY THAT RESPECTS THE ENVIRONMENT,
CARES FOR OUR COMMUNITIES, AND SORT OF ACHIEVES THOSE SHARED GOALS AND VISION. 
          AND THEN FOR TRAIL STEWARDSHIP AND SAFETY, WE ARE HOPING TO GET THE PAC´S INPUT AROUND
E-BIKE SAFETY ON OUR TRAILS REGION WIDE. 
          SO WE'LL TALK MORE ABOUT THAT LATER IN THE YEAR. 
          BUT IN TERMS OF VEGETATION MANAGEMENT STRATEGY,
IF MAX IS STILL HERE. 
          DO YOU WANT TO SHARE A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT THE TEAM'S BEEN WORKING ON? BACK AGAIN. SO THANK YOU. THIS IS ACTUALLY REALLY EXCITING TO ME. 
          I THINK I MENTIONED IT A LITTLE BIT. BASICALLY,
YOU KNOW, WE REALIZED THAT AS A DISTRICT, WE DIDN'T HAVE A SENSE OF WHERE ALL THE DEFENSIBLE SPACE WAS THAT WE WERE REQUIRED TO WORK
ON, WHAT ALL THE PLACES WERE THAT WE WERE DOING MOWING ALREADY,
WHAT OPERATIONS WAS DOING, WHAT FIRE WAS DOING, WHAT STEWARDSHIP WAS DOING. WE DIDN'T HAVE LIKE ONE STRATEGY FOR THE DISTRICT FOR HOW WE
MANAGE VEGETATION. 
          AND SO ALL OF THOSE TEAMS HAVE BEEN WORKING TOGETHER ON WHAT WOULD A SHARED STRATEGY
ACROSS THE DISTRICT LOOK LIKE. 
          AND WE KNOW THAT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT FOR ALL THE COMMUNITIES AND
NEIGHBORHOODS WE SERVE, BECAUSE THEY SEE THE VEGETATION RIGHT BEHIND THEIR HOMES AND THEY'RE WORRIED ABOUT IT. 
          THEY'VE SEEN THESE CATASTROPHIC FIRES. AND SO WE THOUGHT THAT COULD BE A PLACE TO CONNECT
WITH YOU ALL ABOUT AND SHARE OUR DRAFT STRATEGY. 
          [01:25:02]
WE HAVEN'T DONE ANY COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AROUND THIS YET. 
          IT'S REALLY BEEN SORT OF A STAFF DRIVEN PROCESS. 
          AND SO WE WANTED TO PARTNER WITH YOU ALL TO HELP ENGAGE ALL THE COMMUNITIES THAT YOU'RE
CONNECTED WITH, TO FIND OUT, ARE WE ON THE RIGHT TRACK? ARE WE ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS? ARE WE FOCUSED ON THE RIGHT THINGS? ARE THERE THINGS THAT WE'RE MISSING? AND SO THE IDEA WAS HAVING OUR TEAMS, OUR STEWARDSHIP TEAM,
OUR OPERATIONS TEAM, OUR FIRE TEAM PRESENT TO YOU ALL THE WORK THAT WE'VE DONE SO FAR, AND THEN ASK FOR YOUR HELP TO TALK WITH THE DIFFERENT COMMUNITIES THAT YOU'RE CONNECTED
WITH TO GET FEEDBACK ON THAT. 
          AND THEN THAT'LL HELP INFORM WHAT WE WOULD BRING AND AT FIRST TO OUR NATURAL AND CULTURAL
RESOURCE COMMITTEE AND OUR BOARD, BUT THEN EVENTUALLY TO OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS. 
          THANK YOU. YEAH. AWESOME. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. 
          AND THEN THE LAST ITEM I JUST WANT TO TOUCH ON AND THEN WE CAN OPEN TO QUESTIONS,
COMMENTS, IS THAT IN ADDITION TO DIRECTION ON THESE ITEMS,
OUR BOARD ALSO EXPRESSED AN INTEREST IN SEEING US REALLY ACTIVATE OUR PAC´S FINANCE COMMITTEE. AND SO WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU ALL ON THAT,
HAVING MULTIPLE MEETINGS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR AND REPORTS BACK TO THE FULL BODY. 
          SO WE'RE MEETING WITH OUR FINANCE STAFF NEXT WEEK TO SIT DOWN AND SORT OF PLAN OUT THAT
WORK PLAN SO WE CAN BRING A PROPOSAL BACK TO YOU ALL. 
          EXCELLENT. THANK YOU. SO AGAIN, NEW FORMAT. QUESTIONS,
NO COMMENTS. 
          QUESTIONS FIRST PLEASE. NO? MEMBER DETJENS. I'LL TRY TO END THIS WITH A QUESTION MARK. 
          WHEN WE HAD OUR SPIRITED DISCUSSION ON THIS AS A BODY,
OUR HIGHEST RATED OR MOST VOTED ITEM WAS THE CIP. 
          AND THAT DIDN'T RISE TO THE BOARD´S LEVEL OF ENDORSEMENT,
IT SEEMS. I'M CURIOUS IF YOU SEE THAT THERE MIGHT BE OPPORTUNITIES FOR US AS A BODY TO ADDRESS THAT
OR DIVE INTO THAT A LITTLE DEEPER IN FUTURE YEARS RATHER THAN IN 2026? CAN I CLARIFY THAT YOUR QUESTION IS ABOUT DIVING INTO
THE CIP OR THE PROCESS FOR THE BOARD VOTE ON THE CIP TOPIC? YES. IN TERMS OF THE BOARD VOTE, I ACTUALLY WASN'T PRESENT FOR THAT MEETING. 
          SO I WOULD ASK IF ERIC COULD SPEAK TO THE CONVERSATION THE BOARD HAD AROUND IT. 
          YES. SO ACTUALLY ERIC AND I WERE BOTH THERE,
AND I'LL TALK ABOUT THAT. 
          BUT THANK YOU, ERIC. SO THE BOARD PICKS, I MEAN. 
          SAY IT THIS WAY, WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT,
THE BOARD´S GOING TO CHOOSE AGAIN. TRAILED STEWARDSHIP AND SAFETY WASN'T ON OUR RECOMMENDED LIST EITHER. AND SO SOMETHING I PROPOSED. 
          I'D ENCOURAGE YOU GUYS TO WATCH MEETINGS TO SEE WHAT'S GOING ON. BUT SOMETHING I HAD ASKED
OF THE BOARD WAS, HEY, CAN YOU GIVE US MORE THAN TWO? AND MY PROPOSAL WAS, YOU CAN DO CIP AS A THIRD TOPIC BY HAVING THE PAC FINANCE SUBCOMMITTEE LOOK INTO THIS. 
          AND SO WHAT I'M HEARING FROM LISA IS STAY TUNED ON THAT,
BECAUSE I THINK THERE IS GOING TO BE A LOT MORE FOCUS ON CIP BECAUSE OF THAT. 
          AND THEN IT ALSO ASKS FOR TRAIL STEWARDSHIP AND SAFETY AS A WORKSHOP. 
          BUT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GETTING IT AS A FULL TOPIC NOW. SO THE BOARD´S GOING TO DO WHAT THE
BOARD´S GOING TO DO. 
          AND SO THIS KIND OF CUTS INTO MY CHAIR REPORT. 
          BUT EVERYBODY IN HERE HAS AN APPOINTING AUTHORITY AND,
YOU KNOW, EMBARRASS YOU LIKE OLIVIA. 
          AND I TALK ALL THE TIME. AND HOPEFULLY YOU'RE DOING THAT WITH YOUR APPOINTING AUTHORITY AS
WELL. 
          SO WE HAVE INFLUENCE BEYOND THE PAC MEETING. I KNOW SOME FOLKS IN HERE MAKE PUBLIC
COMMENTS SOMEWHAT FREQUENTLY AT MEETINGS, SO THE BOARD DIDN'T VOTE ON IT SO THEY CAN TAKE A RECOMMENDATION OR NOT. 
          AND IN THIS CASE, I WOULD SAY THEY DIDN'T TAKE OUR FULL RECOMMENDATION UNFORTUNATELY. 
          AND THAT'S JUST KIND OF HOW IT SHOOK OUT. THEY DIDN'T REALLY ASK FOR A TALLY OR ANYTHING.
THEY JUST SAID, HERE'S THE LIST AND IT'S UP TO THEM TO CHOOSE. MEMBER CHANG. 
          INFORMATION, WHAT IS CIP? IT STANDS FOR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM,
AND IT'S A FRAMEWORK POLICY THAT OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS PASSED ABOUT FIVE YEARS AGO TO GUIDE OUR LARGE INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS. THANK YOU. 
          AND IF YOU WATCH THE MEETING, YOU'LL SEE DIFFERENT COMMENTS FROM DIFFERENT BOARD MEMBERS
AROUND THIS TOO. MEMBER PEOPLES AND THEN MEMBER SMITH. JUST AN IDEA FOR YOUR COMMITTEE, BECAUSE I THINK THIS YEAR WE SORT OF PROGRAMED OUT,
YOU KNOW, WHAT'S PROBABLY A CHUNK OF IMPORTANT WORK OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF YEARS IN TERMS OF OUR CAPITAL PROJECTS. IT COULD ALWAYS BE THAT THE CAPITAL PROJECT WORK,
THAT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT THE PAC COULD ENDEAVOR TO FOCUS ON NEXT YEAR. AND I THINK THAT WOULD STILL HAVE A LOT OF VALUE TO THE DISTRICT. 
          SO YOU COULD ALWAYS SORT OF. YOU'RE PILOTING THIS NEW WAY OF FOCUSING ON A FEW PROJECTS. 
          AND IF THE CIP STILL REMAINS OF HIGH IMPORTANCE TO THIS GROUP,
I GUESS I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO CONSIDER PUTTING THAT FORWARD AGAIN. THANK YOU FOR ADDRESSING MY SECOND QUESTION. 
          MEMBER PEOPLES. PICKING UP ON THAT LAST COMMENT,
YOU KNOW, THE CIP, IF WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT GETTING ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR DEVELOPMENT 
          [01:30:06]
AND STEWARDSHIP AND SO FORTH, THE CIP WOULD FIT INTO THAT BECAUSE THAT BECOMES THE BASIS
FOR WHAT WE HAVE TO ASK. 
          SO IT WOULD COME IN THERE. IN TERMS OF THE VEGETATION MANAGEMENT,
I WONDERED WHAT THE SCOPE OF THAT WAS. THE, YOU KNOW, OF THE 127,000,
WHATEVER IT IS, ACRES THAT THE DISTRICT CONTROLS, YOU KNOW, WELL, OVER 120,000 IS VEGETATED. AND ARE YOU LOOKING TO MANAGE ALL OF THAT? AND I'M ASKING THE QUESTION HERE. I HAVE A COMMENT ON RELATED TO THAT,
BUT. 
          OR IS IT A MUCH MORE LIMITED LOOK AT VEGETATION MANAGEMENT AND A MUCH MORE LIMITED AREA? WELL, WITHOUT PRESENTING THE ENTIRE STRATEGY HERE,
WHICH WOULD TAKE A WHILE, I'D JUST SAY OUR GOAL IS REALLY HOW DO WE BALANCE MULTIPLE OBJECTIVES THE WAY THAT WE MANAGE VEGETATION. 
          SO HOW DO WE MANAGE VEGETATION TO PROTECT NATURAL RESOURCES AND RESTORE ECOSYSTEMS? HOW DO WE KEEP COMMUNITIES SAFE FROM FIRE, AND HOW DO WE MAKE THIS WORK OPERATIONALLY
SUSTAINABLE SO THAT OUR TEAMS ARE, YOU KNOW, HAVE A REASONABLE SIZED AMOUNT OF WORK TO TAKE CARE OF,
AND WE DON'T INVEST SOMETHING AND THEN WE CAN'T TAKE CARE OF IT. 
          SO THOSE ARE SORT OF SOME OF THE GOALS THAT DRIVE THAT ARE SORT OF DRIVING THAT WORK. 
          AND WE ALSO WANT TO ASK, DO WE HAVE THE RIGHT GOALS? BUT A LOT OF WHAT WE DO FOR VEGETATION MANAGEMENT IS GRAZING RIGHT NOW. 
          IT COVERS A LOT OF AREA. ADDITIONALLY, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID AS PART OF THIS IS
MAP OUT ALL OF THE REQUIRED DEFENSIBLE SPACE WORK THAT'S REQUIRED BY THE FIRE CODE, WHICH WE HADN'T DONE BEFORE. 
          AND IT KIND OF GIVES US A NEW METRIC LIKE THAT PAVEMENT CONDITION INDEX,
WHERE WE CAN UNDERSTAND HERE'S THE AMOUNT WE'RE REQUIRED TO DO FOR FUELS REDUCTION. AND HOW WELL ARE WE DOING AT MEETING THAT GOAL,
WHICH IS PART OF THE STATE FIRE CODE. 
          SO I MIGHT BE GETTING TOO DEEP INTO IT RIGHT NOW,
BUT WE CAN DIVE INTO ALL OF THAT WHEN WE FOCUS ON ON IT WITH THIS GROUP. 
          MEMBER SMITH. YEAH, I JUST KIND OF HAD A QUESTION GOING BACK TO THE PAC'S INVOLVEMENT IN
CIP AND ACTUALLY IN WW FUND OVERSIGHT. MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THE PAC WAS ORIGINALLY
SUPPOSED TO BE THE CITIZEN OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE FOR WW FUNDS AND HOW THEY'RE SPENT. 
          AND WE REALLY HAVE HAD VERY LITTLE INFORMATION GIVEN TO US OR OPPORTUNITY. 
          SO I'M WONDERING IF THERE'S A WAY TO REVISIT THE PAC HAVING A LOT MORE INVOLVEMENT IN THE
OVERSIGHT. 
          HAPPY TO. YEAH, I THINK, AGAIN, LIKE, I FEEL LIKE THIS IS A CONVERSATION TO UNDERSTAND
WHAT ARE THE AREAS OF INTEREST FROM THE PAC, HOW CAN WE SUPPORT THOSE CONVERSATIONS WITH US AS STAFF. 
          AND I THINK WE WELCOME YOUR PARTICIPATION, REALLY VALUE IT,
SO. 
          WELL, I THINK IT'S ALSO A POLICY ISSUE BECAUSE THE PAC WAS SUPPOSED TO BE THE OVERSIGHT
COMMITTEE AND WE HAVE NOT BEEN. 
          OKAY. AND SO I THINK THAT THAT'S MORE OF A STRUCTURAL ORGANIZATIONAL ISSUE THAN WHETHER OR
NOT WE HAVE THE INTEREST IN DOING IT. 
          I MEAN, THAT WAS THE MANDATE. YEAH. I GUESS I'M SAYING LIKE IN TERMS OF WHAT THAT
REPORTING LOOKS LIKE AS PART OF THAT OVERSIGHT, YOU KNOW, OVERSIGHT. I'VE WORKED WITH OVERSIGHT COMMITTEES IN THE PAST FOR FUNDING
MEASURES. 
          IT CAN BE AS SIMPLE AS REPORTING THE PAST YEAR'S EXPENDITURES,
OR IT CAN BE MUCH MORE ENGAGING, RIGHT? TO TALK ABOUT WHY THAT WORK WAS DONE,
GET INTO DETAIL OF HOW IT WAS DONE AND TO TALK ABOUT FUTURE WORK, SO. YEAH, I MEAN, I THINK IT'S OUR RESPONSIBILITY. 
          YOU KNOW, AS WE REPRESENT OUR COMMUNITIES TO,
YOU KNOW, MAKE SURE THAT WE KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON. 
          MEMBERS. ARE YOU GOOD, MEMBER SMITH? MEMBER BARTLEBAUGH. 
          I APOLOGIZE. MEMBER OBRINGER. I'LL GO AHEAD AND ASK A QUESTION. 
          SORRY I LOWERED IT, BUT MY QUESTION WAS ON VEGETATION MANAGEMENT. 
          IS THAT REALLY PRIMARILY FUELS MANAGEMENT, OR IS THAT LOOKING BROADER AND CONSIDERING
OVERGROWTH ON TRAILS 
          [01:35:04]
AND LIMITS ON ACCESS THAT RESULT DUE TO THAT? IT'S OF ALL THE ABOVE. SO I THINK WE'RE TRYING TO LOOK AT VEGETATION MANAGEMENT
HOLISTICALLY. 
          THANK YOU. MEMBER OBRINGER. THANK YOU. MY QUESTION IS ALSO ABOUT VEGETATION MANAGEMENT. 
          AND I THINK YOU TOUCHED ON IT A LITTLE BIT. BUT COULD YOU TELL US MORE? I KNOW, FOR EXAMPLE, THE LAMORINDA AREA, THEY'VE FORMED A TASK FORCE WHERE THE DIFFERENT
CITIES PARTNER TOGETHER TO TRY TO ADDRESS. 
          EXCUSE ME. FIRE DANGER. IS THE PARK DISTRICT ALSO INVOLVED AT,
YOU KNOW, IN THOSE KINDS OF REGIONAL BODIES THAT HAVE BEEN PUT TOGETHER BY CITIES? YEAH. SO, YOU KNOW, WE MEET WITH THE LOCAL FIRE CHIEFS AND WE ALSO MEET WITH THE
CITIES AND CITY MANAGERS AND MAYORS AND CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS. RECENTLY I MET WITH THE LAMORINDA FIRE CHIEF,
I DON'T KNOW, SIX MONTHS AGO, MAYBE IT WAS LAST TIME. BUT ALSO,
WE HAVE A REALLY GREAT INTERIM FIRE CHIEF, CHIEF IVERSON, WHO'S BEEN, YOU KNOW, REACHING OUT PROACTIVELY TO OUR PARTNERS IN THE FIRE
COMMUNITY TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE, YOU KNOW, INTEGRATING OUR APPROACH WITH ALL OF OUR NEIGHBORS. 
          AND THEN WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT THIS VEG MANAGEMENT STRATEGY,
AGAIN, THESE ARE SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT WE WANT TO TALK TO YOU ALL ABOUT AND GET YOUR FEEDBACK ON IS, YOU KNOW, ARE THERE THINGS THAT WE'RE MISSING? ARE THERE OPPORTUNITIES TO PARTNER THAT WE COULD DO BETTER ON? YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS WE WANT TO DO MORE OF IS PARTNER WITH OUR LOCAL
FIRE AGENCY PARTNERS AND THEN ALSO OUR LAND MANAGEMENT NATURAL RESOURCE PARTNERS. SO WE'RE PART ALSO PART OF THE EAST BAY STEWARDSHIP
NETWORK, WHERE WE WORK WITH ALL THE WATER DISTRICTS AND RCDS,
SAVE MOUNT DIABLO, JOHN MUIR LAND TRUST. 
          AND THAT GROUP IS ALSO SORT OF TALKING ABOUT THIS VEG MANAGEMENT TOPIC. 
          AND SO WE'RE TRYING TO KIND OF INTERNALLY LOOK AT HOW WE HAVE A SHARED STRATEGY. 
          AND THEN WITH OUR FIRE AND LAND MANAGEMENT PARTNERS,
HOW DO WE ALSO HAVE A SHARED STRATEGY? THANK YOU. MEMBER LOPEZ YOUR HAND WAS UP, BUT IT LOOKS LIKE YOU'RE GOOD NOW? YES, SIR. I HAVE A COMMENT RATHER THAN QUESTION. 
          THANK YOU. THANK YOU. MEMBER CHANG. JUST REALLY QUICKLY. 
          I MEAN, REGARDLESS OF WHAT IS THE PLAN THAT,
WHAT IS THE PRIORITY PLAN THAT WE WILL BE LOOKING INTO ALL OF THE PLANS, WHETHER IT'S CIP OR WHAT WE DO, HOW WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO INTERACT WITH THE PUBLIC,
WHICH IS WHAT I RANKED NUMBER ONE. 
          THOSE ARE STILL GOING TO COME IN FRONT OF US FOR REVIEW,
CORRECT? CORRECT. 
          SO IN ADDITION TO THE FOCUS TOPIC ITEMS, THE REGULAR ITEMS THAT CONSISTENTLY COME BEFORE
THE PAC WILL BE INTEGRATED INTO THE SCHEDULE. 
          OKAY. THANKS, EVERYONE. MADAM CLERK, DO WE HAVE ANY PUBLIC COMMENTS ON THIS? NO, WE DO NOT. OKAY. COMMENTS. MEMBER LOPEZ,
YOU MENTIONED YOU HAD A COMMENT. 
          THANK YOU VERY MUCH. YEAH. SO I'D LIKE TO REALLY SUPPORT THE QUESTION AND COMMENT ABOUT
REALLY OUR ROLE AND RESPONSIBILITY HERE. 
          AND ONE IS THE OVERSIGHT. I THINK THAT IF YOU WERE TO GO AND TELL THE PUBLIC,
YEAH, WE JUST LET THEM KNOW, BUT THERE WAS AN OPPORTUNITY TO ACTUALLY HAVE SOME KIND OF HONEST FEEDBACK OR,
YOU KNOW, REALLY SOME DIVING INTO THE NUMBERS. 
          WHEN THE DISTRICT GOES BACK OUT TO THE PUBLIC FOR A REVENUE MEASURE AND YOU SAY THERE'S
OVERSIGHT, SOMEONE ACTUALLY EXPOSES THAT IT WAS MORE JUST SORT OF A QUICK BLUSH THAT WAS DONE,
RATHER THAN ACTUALLY HAVING A SUBSTANTIVE CONVERSATION. I THINK IT'LL REALLY BE REGRETTABLE FOR THE DISTRICT,
AND I THINK IT'S A GOOD INVESTMENT OF TIME AND RESOURCES FOR THERE TO BE THAT THOSE OBLIGATORY AND MANDATED CONVERSATIONS THAT IT'S NOT,
YOU KNOW, DECIDING TO DO IT. IT'S ACTUALLY REQUIRED. BUT TO THE VOTERS,
THE VOTERS HAVE MANDATED IT. 
          AND SO I'VE BEEN ON OVERSIGHT AND I'VE SERVED ON A LOT OF FINANCE COMMITTEES,
AND IT'S A LOT MORE THAN JUST RECEIVING A REPORT. 
          IT'S ACTUALLY SHOWING THAT HOW THE REVENUE MEASURE,
HOW THE LANGUAGE WAS ON THE BALLOT, IF THE HOW THE BOARD IS ACTUALLY MATCHING UP THE EXPENDITURES AND THEN THERE WOULD BE A REPORT THAT WOULD BE ISSUED BY THE PAC THAT
SAYING, YES, IT'S IN LINE WHAT WAS TOLD TO THE VOTERS OR NOT. 
          SO I REALLY WOULD INVITE THERE TO BE THAT AS PART OF THE WORK PLAN FOR THIS YEAR. 
          THANK YOU. MEMBER CHANG. THANK YOU. I JUST WANT TO ECHO WHAT BOTH COMMITTEE MEMBER LOPEZ
AND ALSO COMMITTEE MEMBER SMITH HAS BROUGHT UP, BECAUSE THE REASON WHY I ASKED MY QUESTION WAS
BECAUSE I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT WE, 
          [01:40:08]
AS AN OVERSIGHT BODY, WILL EVENTUALLY REVIEW EVERYTHING THAT DOES GO BEFORE THE BOARD. 
          AND I THINK THAT'S REALLY AWESOME AND THAT IS OUR ROLE. 
          BUT AT THE SAME TIME, BECAUSE. AND TO BE CLEAR,
THE BOARD HAS EVERY SINGLE RIGHT TO, AND THEY OFTEN DO, AS IN OTHER BOARDS, TO OVERTURN A COMMITTEE'S DECISION OR A ADVISORY DECISION BECAUSE THEY
SEE A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE. 
          AND THAT'S TOTALLY FINE. BUT IN REGARDS TO A WORK PLAN,
SPECIFICALLY OF A COMMITTEE AND THEN THEM CHANGING IT, WHEN IN REALITY THE WHOLE POINT IS THAT THIS IS AN OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE,
AND THEN YOU BRING UP MEASURE WW AND THE MEASURE WW SPECIFYING THAT THIS IS THE OVERSIGHT THING. THIS IS WHERE I WAS TELLING MEMBER DIETER I WAS LIKE,
I FEEL LIKE I NOW I HAVE A LOT TO SAY, WHICH INITIALLY I DIDN'T BECAUSE THE REALITY ONCE AGAIN GOING BACK IS THAT EVERYTHING WILL
STILL COME BEFORE THE COMMITTEE. 
          IT'S JUST IT'LL COME IN A SMALLER, MORE BRIEF FORM. 
          IF IT'S OKAY. I'D LIKE TO MAKE A QUICK COMMENT. 
          I JUST WANT TO GIVE ASSURANCE TO THE PAC THAT WHEN I SHARED EARLIER THAT WE ARE LOOKING
INTO THE FINANCE COMMITTEE HAVING A WORK PLAN AND A FOCUS TOPIC AND BRINGING MORE ITEMS, THIS IS THE TOP ITEM ON OUR AGENDA WITH OUR FINANCE TEAM. 
          NEXT WEEK IS TO GO OVER THE OVERSIGHT ROLE AND HOW WE CAN UTILIZE THE TIME OF THE FINANCE
COMMITTEE TO REALLY DIVE INTO THE DETAIL AND PROVIDE REPORTS TO THE FULL PAC, HOW WE CAN ENGAGE THE FULL PAC THROUGHOUT THE YEAR WITH DEEP DIVES AND KIND OF BALANCE
WITH THE DIFFERENT TOPICS. 
          AS YOU SAW IN MAX'S PRESENTATION, WE ARE A LARGE AGENCY WITH A LOT GOING ON,
AND THOUGH THIS IS A LARGE COMMITTEE, WE ALSO RECOGNIZE THAT YOU ARE ALL VOLUNTEERS AND WE'RE TRYING TO BALANCE OUT THOSE
DIFFERENT THINGS. BUT I JUST WANTED TO GIVE ASSURANCE THAT IS AGENDA ITEM NUMBER ONE FOR OUR MEETING NEXT WEEK WITH FINANCE. WE TRIED TO GET THEM ON THE MEETING LAST WEEK,
BUT UNFORTUNATELY THE SCHEDULE JUST DIDN'T ALLOW. 
          SO WE'RE GOING TO BRING A REPORT BACK AND I JUST WANTED TO GIVE THAT CONFIRMATION TONIGHT. 
          MEMBER PEOPLES. YEAH. I HAVE A COMMENT FOLLOWING UP ON SOME OF THIS DISCUSSION ABOUT THE
VEGETATIVE MANAGEMENT. 
          AND I GUESS I AM VERY MUCH AWARE THAT, YOU KNOW,
120 SOME THOUSAND ACRES SOUNDS LIKE A LOT OF VEGETATION, BUT THERE ARE AGENCIES AND COMPANIES THAT MANAGE MILLIONS OF ACRES OF
VEGETATION, FOREST PLANS AND WHATNOT, AND THEY DON'T LOOK INDIVIDUALLY AT LITTLE PARTS OF IT. 
          THEY LOOK AT THE WHOLE VEGETATIVE COVER. AND I THINK IT CAN BECOME A VERY SIGNIFICANT BASIS FOR UNDERSTANDING WHAT WE HAVE TO DO,
PARTICULARLY RELATED TO FIRE PROTECTION. 
          I KNOW WE FOCUS A LOT ON THESE SHELTERED FUEL BREAKS ADJACENT TO THE DEVELOPED AREAS AND
SO FORTH. 
          AND THAT'S GREAT. I THINK THOSE HELP ON NORMAL FIRE CONDITIONS. 
          BUT WE ALSO HAVE THE SITUATION EVERY FALL WITH THE DIABLO WINDS,
VERY DRY CONDITIONS AFTER 4 TO 5, 6 MONTHS OF NO RAIN. VERY DRY CONDITIONS, VERY HIGH WINDS. 
          AND THE FIRE DANGER JUST GOES THROUGH THE ROOF. 
          AND WHEN THE FIRES BEGIN AT THOSE TIMES, EMBERS ARE CAST MILES. 
          AND A 100 YARD OR EVEN A HALF MILE WIDE FUEL BREAK IS NOT GOING TO PROTECT THE URBAN
AREAS. 
          AND WE'VE SEEN A NUMBER OF AREAS RECENTLY WHERE PORTIONS OF CITIES IN THE BAY AREA AND
ELSEWHERE HAVE BURNED UNDER THESE KINDS OF CONDITIONS. I THINK WE NEED TO THINK MORE BROADLY RATHER THAN THINKING JUST IN TERMS OF
THAT SMALL AREA ADJACENT TO THE URBAN AREAS, WHICH EVERYBODY SEES AND EVERYBODY'S CONCERNED ABOUT. 
          BUT WE NEED TO RECOGNIZE THE BROADER ISSUE, THAT VERY SMALL PROBABILITY THAT SOMETHING CAN
GO REALLY TERRIBLY WRONG, AS HAPPENED IN LOS ANGELES A YEAR AGO. AND YOU CAN HAVE FIRE SPREADING INTO THE URBAN
AREAS, AND IT CAN COME FROM A LONG DISTANCE AWAY. KNOWING WHAT THE VEGETATION IS THROUGHOUT THE
AREA HELPS TO MANAGE THE FIRE. 
          AND CAL FIRE DOES THIS, AS DOES THE LOCAL FIRE DISTRICTS. 
          LOOK BEYOND THE IMMEDIATE FUEL BREAKS, AND I THINK THE DISTRICT NEEDS TO PARTICIPATE IN
THAT. 
          AND BEYOND THAT, AS WE THINK ABOUT TRYING TO REDUCE THE HAZARD IN THESE AREAS,
I THINK IT´S PRETTY WELL ACCEPTED THAT WE HAVE TO REDUCE THE FUEL LOADS THROUGHOUT THE AREAS. 
          WE USE GRAZING TO HELP TO DO THAT IN THE GRASSLANDS IN THE DISTRICT CURRENTLY,
WHAT, 87,000 ACRES OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, 
          [01:45:03]
AND THAT'S FINE. BUT WHEN YOU GET INTO THE WOODY VEGETATION AND WHATNOT,
THE GRAZING DOESN'T HELP YOU. 
          IF WE CAN. AND THERE'S AN ATTEMPT TO TRY TO RESTORE FIRE TO THESE ECOSYSTEMS AND USE THAT
TO HELP TO REDUCE THE FIRE LOAD, BUT WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH WITH THAT FUEL REDUCTION. 
          YOU KNOW, WHAT'S THE OBJECTIVE? AND TO DO THAT,
WE NEED TO TAKE AND UNDERSTAND WHAT THE CURRENT COVER TYPE IS. 
          BUT THEN WE HAVE TO LOOK AT IT AND SAY WHAT'S THE CLIMAX VEGETATION THERE,
WHAT'S LIKELY TO GROW THERE WITH FIRE OVER TIME, AND PARTICULARLY AS CLIMATE CHANGE OCCURS. AND IF WE CAN UNDERSTAND WHAT THAT CLIMAX
VEGETATION IS, WHAT THE ECOLOGISTS CALL CLIMAX VEGETATION, WE WILL THEN HAVE AN OBJECTIVE THAT WE CAN
WORK TOWARDS TO TRY TO ACHIEVE THAT, AND IT'LL BE ACHIEVED OVER DECADES. 
          IT'S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN QUICKLY, BUT IT CAN BE ACHIEVED OVER DECADES. 
          SO I'M JUST URGING THAT AS WE THINK ABOUT VEGETATION MANAGEMENT,
THAT WE THINK VERY BROADLY AND THROUGHOUT ALL THE DISTRICT´S LANDS AND THINK IN TERMS OF THOSE LONG TERM OBJECTIVES. 
          KEEP THAT IN MIND AND THEN WORK ON THOSE SPECIFIC INDIVIDUAL ISSUES THAT WE HAVE TO DEAL
WITH IN THE NEAR TERM. 
          OKAY. ANY OTHER COMMENTS? MOVE ON. MEMBER MAHADEVAN. 
          WHEN LISA'S BEEN TALKING ABOUT THE FINANCE COMMITTEE,
THAT'S THE FINANCE COMMITTEE OF THE PAC, ISN'T IT? JUST ADDED ON. SO I'LL SAVE MY COMMENTS FOR LATER ON THAT. 
          OKAY. ANYTHING ELSE BEFORE WE MOVE ON? ALL RIGHT. 
          MAX, THANK YOU AGAIN. REALLY APPRECIATE IT. LISA,
THANK YOU EVERYBODY. 
          [APPLAUSE]. OKAY. SO I DO ACTUALLY HAVE A FEW THINGS TO REPORT. THE FIRST ONE IS REALLY
MINOR. SO ELSA MADE THESE REALLY NICE NAME TAGS FOR US. 
          THEY'RE SO NICE THAT WHEN I CAME TO A BOARD MEETING,
SOMEONE TOLD ME, DON'T SHOW THOSE TO THE BOARD MEMBERS BECAUSE THEY'RE GOING TO WANT THEM TOO. SO WHAT YOU CAN DO, YOU CAN WEAR THESE TO THE MEETING. 
          I SEE ED DID AS WELL. AND THEN YOU CAN SAVE A PIECE OF PAPER AND THE DISTRICT WON'T HAVE
TO PRINT UP PAPER. 
          SO LITTLE THING GOOD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT. SO PLEASE WEAR THESE INSTEAD OF GETTING A PAPER
PRINT OUT. 
          THOSE WILL GET YOU IN THE BUILDING. OKAY. MORE DEEP ITEMS. ONCE A MONTH. YOU GUYS MAY OR MAY NOT KNOW. ONCE A MONTH,
VICE CHAIR MENDOZA AND I MEET WITH GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS TO GO THROUGH THE AGENDA FOR THE UPCOMING PAC MEETING. BUT WE ALSO BRING UP TOPICS OF CONCERN WITH PAC MEMBERS. 
          AND I WANT TO THANK EVERYBODY WHO HAS BROUGHT THINGS UP TO BOTH ME,
TO VICE CHAIR MENDOZA. 
          YOU MAY NOT ALWAYS HEAR AN UPDATE, BUT TRUST ME,
WE BRING THOSE UP AND WE DO TALK ABOUT THEM, AND I'LL TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE TANGIBLE PROGRESS WE'VE MADE,
BECAUSE WE HAVE MADE A LOT OF PROGRESS AND SOMETIMES WE DON'T GET EVERYTHING WE WANT. 
          WE FEEL LIKE WE HAVEN'T MADE ANY PROGRESS, BUT WE HAVE. I REALLY CANNOT SAY ENOUGH GOOD
THINGS ABOUT ERIC, LISA AND ELSA. I CAN TELL YOU THEY ARE RECEPTIVE TO EVERYTHING WE BRING TO THEM,
AND JUST BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE EVERYTHING WE'VE ASKED FOR, TRUST ME, AND PEOPLE WHO HAVE TALKED TO ME OFFLINE LIKE I'M NOT A RUBBER STAMP OR I'M NOT
LIKE, OH, IT'S JUST, YOU KNOW. I MEAN, I TRY TO BE POSITIVE IN MY COMMUNICATION,
BUT IF WE WEREN'T MAKING PROGRESS, I WOULDN'T SAY SO. TRUST ME, IT'S NOT FALSE PRAISE. 
          THESE GUYS REALLY DO LISTEN TO US AND THEY HEAR WHAT WE'RE SAYING. 
          AND THERE'S SOME TANGIBLE EXAMPLES. SO I'VE BEEN ON HERE. 
          THIS IS MY THIRD TERM. AND I WENT THROUGH, OKAY. 
          IT'S ALL INFORMATIONAL ITEMS. LIKE WE LITERALLY USED TO JOKE ABOUT IT. 
          THERE'S NOTHING GOING ON. THEY HEARD US. WE'RE GOING REALLY DEEP ON TWO FOCUSED TOPICS. 
          NOW WE WANT MORE. AND I WANTED MORE TOO. BUT HEY,
WE'RE MAKING PROGRESS. 
          AND THIS IS A NEW PROGRAM, SO WE DON'T REALLY KNOW HOW IT'S GOING TO WORK,
BUT THESE GUYS REALLY DO SUPPORT US. 
          SO I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT. THE OTHER PIECE AND I TALKED ABOUT THIS A LITTLE BIT
BEFORE. 
          I'M GOING TO KIND OF TIE INTO THE CIP BECAUSE I HAVE THOUGHTS ON THAT TOO. 
          PLEASE WATCH THE BOARD MEETINGS, EVEN IF YOU CAN'T WATCH THE WHOLE THING,
BECAUSE SOME OF THEM ARE PRETTY LONG. 
          BUT WATCH SECTIONS THAT APPLY TO PAC OR, YOU KNOW,
YOU CAN WATCH THEM REMOTELY OR COME AND ATTEND A MEETING. 
          I REALLY WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO DO THAT BECAUSE IT'S NOT ONLY WHAT. 
          EXCUSE ME. I´M ALWAYS TALKING AND KNOCK STUFF OVER. 
          IT'S NOT ONLY WHAT HAPPENS IN HERE. YOU REALLY DO. 
          THE PUBLIC HAS ACCESS, OBVIOUSLY TOO, BUT WHEN YOU'RE A PAC MEMBER. 
          NOT THAT WE DON'T LISTEN TO THE PUBLIC. I'M NOT IMPLYING THAT. BUT YOU HAVE ACCESS TO
STAFF. YOU HAVE ACCESS TO BOARD MEMBERS. 
          YOU'RE APPOINTING AUTHORITY. I CAN'T SAY THAT ENOUGH. 
          YOU KNOW, WE ALL HAVE DIFFERENT SCHEDULES AND TIMES,
BUT IF YOU'RE ABLE TO ATTEND EVEN ONE BOARD SITE VISIT, 
          [01:50:03]
THAT'S A WAY TO REALLY CONNECT WITH PEOPLE ONE ON ONE. 
          I'VE SEEN OTHER PAC MEMBERS, AND I TRY TO DO THAT TOO. 
          YOU CAN SEE THEY'RE AT THOSE THINGS AND THEY'RE WORKING BOARD MEMBERS WITH WHAT THEY WANT
TO GET DONE, AND THEY'RE REPRESENTING THE PUBLIC LIKE WE'RE SUPPOSED TO. 
          AND I WILL SAY, EVERY BOARD MEMBER, WHETHER. CERTAINLY OLIVIA AND I ACTUALLY DON'T AGREE
ON STUFF ALL THE TIME EITHER. 
          WE TALKED YESTERDAY AND WE REALLY DISAGREED ON SOMETHING,
WHICH IS GREAT, RIGHT? THAT'S HOW IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE. BUT EVERY BOARD MEMBER WE HAVE RIGHT NOW IS VERY
SUPPORTIVE OF PAC. 
          THEY WANT US TO BE PROVIDING ADVICE AND THEY'RE REALLY RECEPTIVE. 
          THEY WILL LISTEN TO YOU, OKAY? BUT THEY HAVE DIFFERENT OPINIONS. 
          AND SO IN BETWEEN THIS MEETING, OUR LAST MEETING AND THIS ONE,
I WAS AT A BOARD EXECUTIVE MEETING AND TWO BOARD MEETINGS BECAUSE ERIC ASKED ME TO BE THERE. ERIC AND LISA WERE PRESENTING ITEMS TO THE BOARD,
BUT THEY WANTED PAC TO HAVE A VOICE. 
          AND SO THEY ASKED ME, HEY, WOULD YOU COME PRESENT THIS PIECE AND ADDRESS QUESTIONS THAT
BOARD MEMBERS HAVE AROUND PAC? SO WHEN I DO THAT, WHAT I REALLY TRY TO DO, I HAVE MY OWN OPINIONS TOO. 
          AND OBVIOUSLY WE DON'T AGREE ON EVERYTHING EITHER,
RIGHT? BUT WHAT I TRY TO DO WITH THOSE IS NOT REPRESENT MY OPINION BECAUSE I'LL DO THAT ONE ON ONE. I TRY TO REPRESENT WHAT PAC WANTS. 
          SO AGAIN, I ASKED FOR, HEY, GIVE US FOUR TOPICS AND HERE'S WHAT WE CAN DO AND ARE REALLY
FOCUSED ON CIP. 
          SO JUST BE TRUSTFUL, RIGHT? AND IF THINGS WEREN'T GOING WELL I WOULD SAY THEY'RE NOT GOING
WELL, MAYBE NOT PUBLICLY, BUT WE TALK, YOU KNOW. BUT TRUST ME,
WE ARE MAKING PROGRESS. 
          AND I'M CAUTIOUSLY OPTIMISTIC ON THE CIP THING THAT WE'RE GOING TO DO A LOT MORE. 
          AND HAVING THE PAC FINANCE SUBCOMMITTEE EVEN MEET QUARTERLY IS A HUGE STEP UP FROM WHERE
WE'RE AT, BECAUSE I AGREE, AND YOU'LL HEAR ME SAY, WE ARE THE BOND OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE. 
          YOU'LL HEAR SOME BACK AND FORTH WITH DIFFERENT BOARD MEMBERS. AND FROM MY PERSPECTIVE AND
SOME BOARD MEMBERS, HAVING US DO A TWO HOUR REVIEW WITH THE PAC FINANCE COMMITTEE AND THEN A BRIEF REVIEW WITH
THIS BODY. 
          SO MY OPINION AND WHAT I'M HEARING FROM PAC,
THAT'S NOT REALLY AN APPROPRIATE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE. 
          BUT WE ARE MAKING PROGRESS. AND AGAIN, YOU'LL SEE DIFFERENT OPINIONS FROM DIFFERENT BOARD
MEMBERS AND SOME YOU MAY BE OH, I DIDN'T REALLY KNOW THEY FELT THAT WAY. IT MIGHT BE YOUR APPOINTING AUTHORITY WHO YOU'RE
LIKE, OH THEY'RE GREAT, OR OH, I NEED TO GET IN THEIR EAR BECAUSE THEY DON'T REALLY SEE WHAT'S GOING ON HERE. SO AS YOU KNOW, I NORMALLY DON'T EVEN HAVE A REPORT. 
          I TRY TO GET US ON TIME, BUT I JUST WANT TO KIND OF UPDATE YOU GUYS ON THOSE THINGS
BECAUSE FROM WHAT I'M SEEING HEADING INTO MY THIRD TERM HERE, WE REALLY HAVE NOT HAD THIS MUCH FOCUS AND ATTENTION FROM THE BOARD,
AND WE DIDN'T HAVE THE GENERAL MANAGER. 
          I WASN'T TRYING TO BE SNARKY. I REALIZE IT CAME ACROSS THAT WAY. 
          BUT, YOU KNOW, SABRINA, SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE,
SHE NEVER CAME TO PAC FOR WHATEVER REASON. 
          AND NOW MAX IS HERE RIGHT OUT OF THE GATE. THAT'S ANOTHER TANGIBLE FORM OF PROGRESS THAT
WE'RE MAKING. 
          SO, FEEL GOOD ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE DOING. WE'RE ALL VOLUNTEERS HERE,
RIGHT? AND SO THERE'S A LOT OF OTHER THINGS WE CAN BE DOING. 
          I KNOW I REALLY APPRECIATE HAVING ALL OF YOU HERE,
AND I KNOW THE BOARD DOES AS WELL. 
          BUT AGAIN, WE'RE SUPPORTED BY FANTASTIC PEOPLE. 
          AND JUST BECAUSE YOU DON'T SEE EVERYTHING YOU'RE ASKING FOR,
I REALLY COULDN'T BE HAPPIER WITH WHAT WE'RE GETTING. SO THAT'S MY REPORT. 
          I DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR ANYTHING ON THAT,
BUT PLEASE ATTEND BOARD MEETINGS AS YOU CAN MAKE COMMENTS, THINGS LIKE THAT. ALL RIGHT. SO MOVING. A QUESTION,
OR? NO, THANK YOU. OKAY. SO ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM ANYONE? 
          [Announcements]
MEMBER VALENZUELA. YES. MARCH 3RD, TUESDAY, 10 TO 1 BIG BREAK ALL ABILITIES DAY IS COMING
UP. 
          AND SO, YOU KNOW, IT'S OVER A MONTH AWAY. BUT IF YOU HAVE ANY GROUPS THAT CAN BENEFIT FROM
THIS AMAZING DAY, PLEASE COME OUT. ENJOY THE DAY. THE LAST ONE WE HAD,
WE HAD OVER 500 GUESTS. 
          THE TIME BEFORE THAT, WE HAD OVER 900 GUESTS IN A THREE HOUR SPAN. 
          SO IT'S AN AMAZING DAY. IF YOU CAN'T COME OUT TO THAT ONE,
ARDENWOOD IS HAVING THEIRS WEDNESDAY, MAY 13TH. SO THAT'S ANOTHER PLUS FOR THE PARK DISTRICT THAT WE'RE HAVING AT ANNUAL ALL
ABILITIES DAY, TOWARDS THE CENTRAL PART OF THE PARK DISTRICT,
AND NOT JUST THE FARTHEST EAST PART. 
          BUT I ENCOURAGE ANY BOARD MEMBERS, PLEASE ATTEND. 
          FOR THE MAIN BOARD OR THE PAC IS JUST A WONDERFUL,
HEARTWARMING DAY. 
          THANK YOU. MEMBER MARSH. 10 TO 1, MARCH 3RD TUESDAY IS BIG BREAKS. 
          MAY 13TH ON A WEDNESDAY IS ARDENWOOD. THANK YOU. 
          MEMBER MARSH. SO I JUST WANTED TO EXPRESS MY THANKS TO CARLYN OBRINGER. 
          SHE CAME OUT TO BLACK DIAMOND MINES WHEN ONE OF OUR CITY OFFICIALS DID A WALK AND TALK. 
          [01:55:05]
WE DID HAVE A FEW OFFICIALS THERE. BUT I WANTED TO THANK HER FOR COMING OUT TO MY DISTRICT
AND SUPPORTING ANTIOCH´S MAYORS WALK AND TALK. WE ARE DOING A DIFFERENT A BUNCH OF DIFFERENT WALK AND
TALKS WITH OUR DATE ELECTED OFFICIALS. AND SO I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO ENCOURAGE YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS TO
COME OUT INTO THE PARK SO THEY CAN LEARN ABOUT WHAT IT IS THAT EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK DISTRICT IS DOING AND HELP SUPPORT WITH DIFFERENT
FUNDING THAT MAY BE NEEDED IN YOUR PARKS THAT, YOU KNOW, COUNTY, STATE OR FEDERAL GOVERNMENT CAN HELP WITH. 
          AND SO YEAH, THAT'S MY COMMENT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. 
          MEMBER OBRINGER. THANK YOU. WELL, THAT WAS VERY KIND OF YOU. 
          I HAVE TO SAY. I HAD A GREAT TIME, AND I WANT TO THANK PARK DISTRICT STAFF BECAUSE THEY
ARRANGED TO ACTUALLY ENABLE THOSE WHO PARTICIPATED IN THAT WALK AND TALK TO TOUR THE MINE. 
          AND THEY HAD TO GO THROUGH SPECIAL CERTIFICATION TO BE ABLE TO DO SO BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO
ACTUALLY BE A MINER. 
          TECHNICALLY, M I N E R, NOT M I N O R. TO BE ABLE TO LEAD PEOPLE IN THE COAL SLASH SAND
MINES. 
          SO VERY MUCH ENJOYED THAT. AND ALSO IN THE SPIRIT OF HAVING FOLKS GO OUT AND EXPLORE THE
PARKS, I DO WANT TO ENCOURAGE FOLKS TO COME TO CONCORD TO THE THURGOOD MARSHALL REGIONAL PARK
HOME OF THE PORT CHICAGO 50, AS I'VE NOTED THAT ON FEBRUARY 7TH AND 8TH, THE PARK DISTRICT IS GOING TO BE HOLDING A
SPECIAL. 
          IT'S NOT WITHIN AN ELECTED OFFICIAL, IT'S JUST THE PARK DISTRICT IS DOING,
YOU KNOW, TOURS AND A WALK AND TALK IN HONOR OF BLACK HISTORY MONTH ON FEBRUARY 7TH AND 8TH AT 10 A.M. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. VICE CHAIR MENDOZA. 
          I WANTED TO THANK EVERYBODY WHO WAS SHOUTING OUT FELLOW PAC MEMBERS AND STAFF,
GOVERNMENT AND LEGISLATIVE STAFF HERE JUST FOR YOUR SERVICE THAT YOU'VE GIVEN OVER THE YEARS. 
          MANY OF YOU WENT TO MLK DAY OF SERVICE EVENTS OVER THE PAST COUPLE OF WEEKS ON MONDAY THE
19TH, SPECIFICALLY, I WENT WITH AN ORGANIZATION CALLED NURTURE NATURE. 
          I WANT TO MAKE SURE IT'S ON THE RIGHT SIDE THAT IS OVER AT MIDDLE HARBOR SHORELINE PARK IN
WEST OAKLAND, WHICH IS AN OLD EAST BAY REGIONAL PARK. SO IT'S SOMETHING THAT I THINK IS SO IMPORTANT TO
NOT ONLY ATTEND AND SHOUT OUT, BUT ALSO TO COMMEND YOU ALL ON THE SERVICE THAT YOU ALL HAVE PROVIDED OVER THE YEARS,
INCLUDING BEING ON THIS COMMITTEE. 
          AND I WANTED TO THANK SPECIFICALLY BOB REID,
WHO HAS STEPPED OFF THE COMMITTEE FROM LAST YEAR, JUST LATE LAST YEAR, AND ALSO OFFER OUR CONDOLENCES TO HIM AND HIS FAMILY FOR THE PASSING
OF HIS MOM, BETTY REID SOSKIN, WHO MANY OF YOU, AS YOU KNOW,
AT THE TIME SHE RETIRED, WAS THE OLDEST PARK RANGER IN NATIONAL PARK SERVICE. 
          SO I JUST REALLY WANT TO ENSURE THAT WE HAVE THAT HISTORY OF CIVIL RIGHTS IN OUR UNTOLD
STORIES THAT WE HAVE WITHIN THE PARK DISTRICT, INCLUDING WHAT MEMBER OBRINGER HAS HIGHLIGHTED WITH
THURGOOD MARSHALL AND THE PORT CHICAGO 50 AND THE EVENTS THAT ARE HAVING THERE IN FEBRUARY. SO AGAIN, THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SERVICE. 
          ANY OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS? OKAY. THIS MEETING OF JANUARY 26TH,
2026 IS NOW ADJOURNED IN THE MEMORY OF BETTY REID SOSKIN AT 6 P.M. THANK YOU. HAVE A GOOD DAY. GOOD NIGHT EVERYONE.
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.