* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [Houston State of the City 2023: "A Lasting Legacy"] [00:02:04] PLEASE WELCOME THE STAR OF THE NETFLIX SERIES, MO HOUSTON'S OWN MO AMER. HELLO, HELLO, HELLO. HOW WE DOING HOUSTON? THAT'S A HORRIBLE, UH, INTRO. HOW WE DOING? HOUSTON? MAN, IT'S AN ABSOLUTE PLEASURE TO BE HERE. UH, JUST MAYOR TURNER, THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU'VE DONE. HE'S GIVEN ME THE DATE OF THE CITY, A MEDALLION OF THE CITY, UH, THE BELL BUCKLE OF THE CITY. I I WANTED TO GIVE HIM THE MEDALLION CITY, BUT IT'D BE REGIFTING AND I THINK THAT'S A LITTLE TAGGY. I DON'T THINK THAT'S QUITE APPROPRIATE, BUT I JUST WANT TO SALUTE YOU AND SAY THANK YOU FOR NOT ONLY SUPPORTING ME, BUT SO MANY ARTISTS THAT HAVE COME THROUGH HOUSTON, COME FROM HOUSTON, AND TO PROVIDE HOUSTON WITH ITS FIRST, FIRST EVER SITCOM HERE. YOU WERE A TREMENDOUS SUPPORT AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR EVERYTHING THAT YOU'VE DONE. UH, I'M HERE FOR THAT. AND ALSO MY POTHOLES, MY STREET IS, IS IN NEED OF FIXING. IS THAT TOO MUCH? IT'S WHAT I'M HERE FOR. I'M NOT GONNA LIE. THIS IS PROBABLY THE VERY CLOSE TIE. FIRST, UH, . NO, IT'S LOVE. UH, AND I JUST WANTED TO SHOW SO MUCH LOVE AND GRATITUDE TO YOU AND RESPECT TO YOU. UH, SO THANK YOU SO MUCH AGAIN. THAT'S ALL. THAT'S IT. THAT'S IT. THAT'S ALL WE'RE HERE FOR. WE'VE GOT GIVE IT UP FOR THESE KIDS. THEY'RE AMAZING. THIS STOMP GROUP. I TWISTED MY ANKLE THREE TIMES WATCHING THEM. THIS WAS, IT WAS REALLY PROUD. I WISH TO BE YOUNG AGAIN. YOU KNOW, UH, IT'S A BEAUTIFUL THING. AND I, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, I'D LIKE TO INTRODUCE TO YOU MARQUIS TAYLOR AND THE HOUSTON CITY ENSEMBLE. I CAN ALMOST SEE THAT DREAM. I DREAM THERE'S A VOICE INSIDE MY NEVER EVERY STEP I'M TAKING EVERY MOVE I'M MAKING WITH NO DIRECTION. MY, I GOTTA [00:05:25] MORE ALWAYS NEW BATTLE. SO WAITING ON THE OTHER SIDE IN THE LISTEN BABY. AIN'T NO MOUNTAIN HIGH. AIN'T NO VALLEY LOW. AIN'T NO RIVER WIDE ENOUGH. BABY. IF YOU NEED ME, CALL ME. NO MATTER WHERE YOU ARE, NO MATTER HOW FAR. DON'T WORRY BABY. JUST CALL MY NAME. I'LL BE THERE IN A HURRY. YOU DO TO WORRY. COME BABY THERE. DON'T, DON'T THE KEEP ME FROM GETTING TO AIN LOOK FOR WHY. LOOK, KEEP FROM GETTING TO YOU. KEEP ME FROM GETTING TOGETHER AND WE WALK ON. WE'RE FAMILY. I GOT ALL MY PEOPLE WITH ME. WE ARE FAMILY. EVERYBODY INSIDE. EVERYBODY AND FAMILY. WE'RE FAMILY. I GOT PEOPLE, I GOT ALL MY PEOPLE IN. ME, WE, EVERYBODY, EVERYBODY PUT TODAY FAMILY. I GOT ALL PEOPLE. I GOT ALL MY PEOPLE WITH ME. WE'RE EVERYBODY INSIDE. EVERYBODY. WE'RE FAMILY. I GOT ALL MY PEOPLE WITH ME. WE'RE FAMILY. WE'RE FAMILY. GET UP, EVERYBODY INSIDE. GET UP. EVERYBODY INSIDE. PLEASE WELCOME DAVID MINTZBERG, CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS HOUSTON FIRST CORPORATION. WELCOME EVERYBODY. HOW ABOUT A THANK YOU FOR THAT INCREDIBLE OPENING ENTERTAINMENT. NOW I VISITED BRIEFLY BACKSTAGE WITH MO AND I TOLD THEM THAT SATURDAY, A WEEK AGO, LAINEY AND I WERE AT HIS SHOW, UH, AT BIO CITY. AND WITHOUT MISSING A BEAT, MO LOOKED AT ME AND SAID, OH, YOU'RE EXACTLY OUR DEMOGRAPHIC. , MAYBE NOT IF YOU HAVEN'T CAUGHT MO. MO'S SERIES RUNS ON NETFLIX. HE HAS FINISHED SEASON ONE. AND HE TOLD ME HE'S SHORTLY NOW THAT THE RIDER STRIKE HAS SETTLED, HE'S ABOUT TO BEGIN DOING SEASON TWO. HOUSTON FIRST WAS VERY HELPFUL IN UNDERWRITING THAT SHOW INITIALLY AND IT DOES FEATURE MO AND HOUSTON, TEXAS. SO BE SURE AND CATCH THAT. WELL, WHAT A CROWD. AS I LOOK OUT 1500 PEOPLE AND WE ARE COMPLETELY, AND I CAN SEE TO THE FAR REACHES, WE ARE COMPLETELY SOLD OUT. WHAT A, WHAT A TRIBUTE TO MAYOR SYLVESTER TURNER AND TO HIS FINAL STATE OF THE CITY. I'M DAVID MINTZBERG AND I SERVE AS CHAIR OF HOUSTON FIRST CORPORATION, THE ORGANIZATION CHARGED BY MAYOR TURNER IN HOSTING THIS LUNCHEON. AND TO DO SO, TAKES AN INCREDIBLE TEAM. LET ME START BY RECOGNIZING ALL THE FOLKS WHO WORK FOR HOUSTON. FIRST, IF Y'ALL WOULD ALL STAND [00:10:01] AND REMAIN STANDING, PLEASE, BECAUSE I SERVE ALONG WITH A TERRIFIC AND COMMITTED BOARD OF DIRECTORS. AND AS I CALL EACH OF YOUR NAMES, IF YOU WOULD PLEASE STAND. DESIREE MORGAN, VICE CHAIR COUNCIL MEMBER AND MAYOR PRO TEM DAVE MARTIN, COUNCIL MEMBER ROBERT GALLEGOS, SOPHIA AND DROGE, ALEX BRENNAN, MARTIN, ELIZABETH GONZALEZ, BROCK, NIKKI KEENAN, REGGIE MARTIN, RYAN MARTIN PAUL PUENTE, TOM S AUGUSTA, BOBBY SINGH, GERALD WOMACK, AND JAY ZEIDMAN. PLEASE THANK ALL OF HOUSTON FIRST STAFF AND BOARD MEMBERS FOR THEIR SERVICE. AND EVERY EVENT NEEDS A CHAIR. AND TODAY'S EVENT IS NO EXCEPTION. TODAY'S CO-CHAIRS ARE CINDY CLIFFORD AND FRAZIER WILSON. IF THEY WOULD PLEASE STAND AND, AND BE RECOGNIZED. PLEASE THANK THEM FOR A PHENOMENAL JOB AS YOU LOOK OUT IN THIS BALLROOM. AND I HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS, HOWEVER, THAT HONOR IS RESERVED FOR MAYOR TURNER. HOWEVER, I DI I HAVEN'T SEEN HER, BUT I'M ASSURED SHE'S HERE. UM, AND I'M NOT ABOVE PANDERING, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO ONE OF MY CHILDREN. SO MY DAUGHTER'S AARON'S BOSS, COMMISSIONER LESLIE S COMMISSIONER, ARE YOU RIGHT DOWN HERE? THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER. NOW EVERYONE PLEASE STAND AND JOIN ME IN STANDING FOR THE PRESENTATION OF COLORS BY THE HOUSTON POLICE DEPARTMENT. HONOR GUARD THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE BY YOUNG MEN SUCCESSFULLY STEPPEN THE NATIONAL ANTHEM, PERFORMED BY THE HOUSTON BLUES, FEATURING SENIOR POLICE OFFICER WENDY KAMER, OFFICER DANIELLE DEMPSEY AND OFFICER KATIE MULDROW. AND THE INVOCATION OFFERED BY RALPH DOUGLAS WEST, PASTOR, FOUNDER, AND SHERETTA WEST, FIRST LADY AND MINISTER TO MOSAIC WOMEN, THE CHURCH WITHOUT WALLS. MARK, MAY EVERYONE PLEASE JOIN US FOR THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE. I PLEDGE. PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. WHO SEE? CAN YOU SEE BY THE EARLY LIGHT WHAT SO PROUDLY WE HELD? AND LASTLY, WHO BROAD STRIPES AND BRIGHT STARS THROUGH THE FIGHT OR THE, WE WATCHED WE SO STREAMING AND THROUGH THE NIGHT THAT OUR FLAG WAS STILL THAT. OH, THE AND THE YOU GONNA BE STANDING A WHILE. I'VE ALLOWED SOME OF THESE POLITICIANS TO COME TO MY CHURCH AND THEY NEVER DO WHAT THEY SAY THEY'RE GONNA DO. SO I'M GONNA ACT LIKE THEM TODAY. EIGHT YEARS HAVE PASSED. WE HAVE EXPERIENCED MAGNETIC AND CHARISMATIC LEADERSHIP FROM MAYOR TURNER [00:15:04] ON ELECTION NIGHT, ONE OF THE JOURNALISTS APPROACHED ME AND ASKED, IT IS REPORTED THAT SYLVESTER TURNER IS A MAN OF FAITH. SHE ASKED, HE SAID, AND SHE ASKED ME, HOW DOES HE PRACTICE HIS FAITH? I SAID, YOU ARE ASKING ME TO MAKE AN OBJECTIVE STATEMENT ABOUT SOMETHING THAT'S VERY SUBJECTIVE AND PERSONAL. I SAID, BUT I'LL GIVE YOU A SLIT TO A WINDOW OF HIS FAITH THAT I KNOW PERSONALLY. NO DECISION DOES HE MAKE, THAT HE DOES NOT WALK DOWN THE HALL AND COME BACK TO HIS OFFICE, PHYSICALLY GET ON HIS KNEES, OPEN HIS BIBLE, PRAY. AND THEN I SAID TO HER SOMEWHERE HE HAS BORROWED WHAT AFRICAN RELIGIONS TEACH US. HE IS NOTORIOUSLY RELIGIOUS THAT FAITH FOR HIM IS NOT ON SUNDAY. IT'S EVERY DAY. AND WITH THOSE WORDS, I WANT TO PRAY A PRAYER THAT HAS SUSTAINED PEOPLE, COMMUNITIES, AND NATIONS FOR THE LAST THOUSANDS OF YEARS. YOU CAN ACTUALLY LOOK AT ME WHILE I PRAY THIS PRAYER. IT'S FOUND IN PSALM 46. AND THIS IS THE PRAYER THAT CORA PRAYED. GOD IS OUR REFUGE AND OUR STRENGTH AND EVER PRESENT HELP IN TROUBLE. THEREFORE, WE WILL NOT FEAR THOUGH THE EARTH GIVE WAY IN THE MOUNTAINS FALL INTO THE HEART OF THE SEA. THOUGH THE WATERS ROAR IN FOAM AND THE MOUNTAINS QUAKE WITH THEIR SURGING. THERE'S A RIVER WHOSE STREAMS MAKE GLAD THE CITY OF GOD, THE HOLY PLACE OF THE MOST HIDE IS WHERE HE DWELLS. GOD IS WITHIN HER. SHE WILL NOT FAIL. GOD WILL HELP HER. AT THE BREAK OF DAY, NATIONS ARE IN A UPROAR. KINGDOMS FALL. HE LIFTS HIS VOICE. THE EARTH MELTS. THE LORD ALMIGHTY IS WITH US. THE GOD OF JACOB IS OUR FORTRESS. COME AND SEE WHAT THE LORD HAS DONE. THE DESOLATION HE'S BROUGHT ON THE EARTH. HE MAKES WARS CEASE TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH. HE BREAKS THE BOW AND SHATTERS THE SPEAR. HE BURNS THE SHIELD WITH FIRE. HE SAYS, BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD. I WILL BE EXALTED AMONG THE NATIONS. I WILL BE EXALTED IN THE EARTH. THE LORD ALMIGHT IS WITH US. THE GOD OF JACOB IS OUR FORTRESS. AMEN. PLEASE BE SEATED. THANK YOU PASTOR FOR SETTING THE TONE FOR TODAY'S LUNCHEON. BY NOW, YOU'VE ALL NOTICED THE BOOK ON YOUR TABLE. A WINNING LEGACY IS A POWERFUL LOOK AT MAYOR TURNER'S. AS THE PASTOR SAID, EIGHT YEARS IN OFFICE, THERE'S ONE ON EACH TABLE FOR THE LUNCH SPONSOR, THERE'S A QR CODE FOR EVERYONE ELSE TO DOWNLOAD THE BOOK. AND AS SOON AS I LEAVE HERE, I'M GONNA ASK MY 9-YEAR-OLD GRANDSON CHARLIE, HOW TO DO THAT. TODAY WILL BE AN OPPORTUNITY TO HEAR FROM MAYOR TURNER, HIS REFLECTIONS ON EIGHT YEARS AND HIS VISION OF THE CHALLENGES AHEAD FOR US IN THIS CITY AND REGION. PLEASE EAT FOR ME AND MANY OF US, IT'S A LITTLE BIT OF A BITTERSWEET MOMENT AS THE EIGHT YEARS DRAW TO A CLOSE AND THE 62ND MAYOR OF THE CITY OF HOUSTON WILL DELIVER HIS FINAL STATE OF THE CITY. MAYOR TURNER WILL BE MORE FORMALLY INTRODUCED SHORTLY. INSTEAD. I'LL DIGRESS TO HOUSTON. [00:20:01] FIRST, OUR ROLE AND HOW WE INTERACT WITH THE MAYOR. OR AS MY FRIENDS FREQUENTLY ASK ME, WHAT DOES HOUSTON FIRST DO? AS MAYOR TURNER TOOK OFFICE IN 2016, WHICH SEEMS SO LONG AGO, AS IN PRE HURRICANES, PRE PANDEMIC, AND PRE BEYONCE SETTING, HOUSTON A GLOW. THIS PAST WEEKEND, HOUSTON WAS SET THEN TO HOST SUPER BOWL 51 AND IT WAS A TREMENDOUS SUCCESS, BUT NOT JUST FOR GLOBAL EXPOSURE AND ECONOMIC IMPACT. MORE SO IN LAYING THE GROUNDWORK FOR HOUSTON'S CONVENTION AND TOURISM BUSINESS, THE WORLD SAW HOUSTON PERFORM ON THE BIG STAGE AND THE WORLD TOOK NOTICE. FOLLOWING SUPER BOWL 51, HOUSTON FIRST SUCCESSFULLY SECURED MANY MAJOR EVENTS RANGING FROM THE WORLD PETROLEUM CONGRESS TO THE JUST ANNOUNCED, JUST AWARDED 2028 REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION. THE RNC DECISION WAS IN NO SMALL PART TO THE COMMITMENT SHOWN BY MAYOR TURNER. WHEN RNC DELEGATES VISITED A FEW MONTHS AGO, RNC CHAIRWOMAN RONNA MCDANIEL TOLD ME THAT A MAJOR FACTOR WAS SEEING OUR DEMOCRATIC MAYOR WARMLY WELCOMING THE REPUBLICAN SELECTION COMMITTEE. AND I HAVE TO ADMIT, I KIND OF ENJOYED THAT MYSELF. WITH HIS HELP, OUR ORGANIZATION HAS GROWN ITS CAPACITY AS AN ECONOMIC ENGINE FOR OUR CITY, BRINGING CONFERENCES AND CONVENTIONS, HELPING CREATE JOBS AND EXPANDING OUR TAX BASE. THREE YEARS AGO, THE MAYOR ASKED ME AND MICHAEL AND HOUSTON FIRST TO HOST THE PRODUCTION OF STATE OF THE CITY. AND AS I THINK YOU CAN SEE BY THIS ROOM, BY THE SOLD OUT CROWD, BY THE RECEPTION, BY THE PRE RECEPTION, HOUSTON FIRST ROSE TO THE OPPORTUNITY LAST WEEK WE CUT THE RIBBON FOR LYNN WYATT SQUARE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS. A CITY BLOCK BEAUTIFULLY TRANSFORMED SITTING IN THE HEART OF THE THEATER DISTRICT. WHEN YOU NEXT VISIT THE ALLEY JONES HALL OR THE WORTHHAM, PLEASE EXPLORE THIS WONDERFUL ADDITION TO THE WEST SIDE OF DOWNTOWN. BUT WE DO MORE THAN THAT. AND I'D LIKE TO MENTION A CO A FEW ITEMS, PERHAPS A LITTLE BIT LESS KNOWN. I BELIEVE THAT WE ELECT LEADERS, NOT JUST FOR WHAT THEY PROMISE US ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL, BUT RATHER MORE FOR HOW WE HOPE THEY WILL RESPOND IN A CRISIS. AND THIS MAYOR RESPONDED IN MULTIPLE CRISISES. WHEN HURRICANE HARVEY HIT MAYOR TURNER CALLED AND OVERNIGHT HOUSTON FIRST TURNED THE GEORGE R. BROWN CONVENTION CENTER INTO A SHELTER FIRST FOR A THOUSAND PEOPLE, THEN FOR 3000, THEN FOR 5,000 AND ULTIMATELY 10,000 PEOPLE. 10,000 DISPLACED HOUSTONIANS. THANK YOU. AND WHEN YOUR WINTER STORM URI FROZE US, MAYOR TURNER CALLED AND WE CREATED A WARMING CENTER FOR THOSE IN NEED. AND YOU MAY NOTICE A PATTERN THERE OF PHONE CALLS. MAYOR HAS BEEN KNOWN TO CALL EARLY AND OFTEN THROUGHOUT HIS TERM, WHETHER IT'S TURNING OUR CONVENTION CENTER AROUND TO HELP HOUSTONIANS IN NEED, PUTTING ON BIG EVENTS LIKE THIS, 1500 PEOPLE AT LUNCH, LUNCH IN A BALLROOM, AND HOSTING MAJOR EVENTS LIKE THE RNC HOUSTON FIRST AND OUR AMAZING STAFF GET IT DONE. THAT'S WHAT HOUSTON FIRST DOES. IT'S MY PLEASURE NOW TO INTRODUCE THE HOUSTON FIRST PRESIDENT AND CEO POINTED A LITTLE OVER THREE YEARS AGO, EARLY PANDEMIC WHO HAS SUCCESSFULLY LED OUR ORGANIZATION THROUGH, AS WE CALL IT, THROUGH TO THE OTHER SIDE. PLEASE JOIN ME IN WELCOMING OUR CEO, MICHAEL HECKMAN. OH, THANK YOU DAVID. AND LET ME THANK YOU FOR THE SEVEN PLUS YEARS OF SERVICE AS THE CHAIR OF THE BOARD OF HOUSTON. FIRST ALL THE TIME AND EFFORT AND COMMITMENT THAT YOU HAVE PUT IN. SO DAVID, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE. IT'S SO TERRIFIC TO SEE YOU ALL AND SEE YOU ALL HERE ON SUCH A SPECIAL DAY. [00:25:01] NOT ONLY IS IT MAYOR TURNER'S FINAL STATE OF THE CITY ADDRESS, BUT SOME OF YOU MAY KNOW TODAY IS ALSO HIS BIRTHDAY. THIS ROOM IS PACKED WITH ANOTHER SOLD OUT CROWD, THE THIRD CONSECUTIVE YEAR FOR THE STATE OF THE CITY. IN FACT, OVER THE PAST THREE YEARS, NEARLY 5,000 ATTENDEES HAVE TURNED OUT TO HEAR THESE ADDRESSES. AND WE AT HOUSTON FIRST ARE PROUD TO BE ABLE TO HAVE THE PRIVILEGE TO PRODUCE THIS EVENT. WE DO EVENTS OF ALL KINDS ALL YEAR, BUT THIS ONE ALWAYS HAS SPECIAL MEANING. AS OUR CITY'S DESTINATION MARKETING ORGANIZATION. WE WORK VERY CLOSELY WITH THE MAYOR TO SELL MARKET AND PROMOTE HOUSTON ALL OVER THE WORLD. AND I CAN ATTEST THAT EVERY TIME WE HAVE NEEDED HIM, HE HAS BEEN THERE AND HE HAS ANSWERED THE CALL. HE HAS LED ON SOME OF THE BIGGEST PITCHES. NO MATTER HOW BUSY HE HAS BEEN, HE HAS ALWAYS MADE THE TIME. THERE'S A QUOTE THAT SAYS A LEADER IS ONE WHO KNOWS THE WAY, WHO GOES THE WAY AND WHO SHOWS THE WAY THE MAYOR HAS EMBODIED THAT FOR OUR INDUSTRY AND FOR HOUSTON. HE ALSO HAS A GREAT SENSE AND APPRECIATION OF THE IMPORTANCE OF OUR MISSION AND WHAT WE DO TO CREATE VALUE FOR OUR CITY AND A STRONG BRAND FOR HOUSTON. AS DAVID MENTIONED, I CAME INTO THIS ROLE, MID PANDEMIC, THE TOUGHEST OF TIMES. AND DURING THIS TIME, MAYOR, YOU HAVE SHOWN ME AND OUR ENTIRE TEAM, YOUR UNWAVERING SUPPORT, EVEN THROUGH THE DIFFICULT TIMES THAT WE FACED, YOUR TRUST THAT YOU HAD IN US, ENABLED US TO BE MORE INNOVATIVE, CREATIVE, AND COLLABORATIVE IN THE WORK THAT WE DO. AND THOSE INGREDIENTS SET THE TABLE FOR SUCCESS. THIS HAS LED TO SOME BIG RESULTS FOR HOUSTON. FIRST IN 2023 ON BEHALF OF HOUSTON, FROM OPENING A JEWEL OF LIN WHITE SQUARE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS IN THE THEATER DISTRICT, TO WINNING THE BID FOR THE 2028 REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION TO THIS YEAR, SEEING A RECORD FOR THE HIGHEST AMOUNT OF HOTEL REVENUE TO THE HOUSTON MARKET EVER. AND OF COURSE, AND DUE TO THE MAYOR'S VISION, WE WERE ABLE TO PASS GAME CHANGING LEGISLATION IN AUSTIN TO TRANSFORM OUR CONVENTION DISTRICT IN THE YEARS AHEAD. WITH APPROXIMATELY $2 BILLION OF STATE FUNDING OVER THE NEXT 30 YEARS, THIS WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE WITHOUT THE HARD WORK OF BIPARTISAN SPONSORS OF SENATE BILL 10 57, SENATOR JOHN WHITMEYER AND REPRESENTATIVE SAM HARLESS. I APPRECIATE THEM BOTH FOR AGREEING TO TAKE UP THE BILL AND DOING THE HARD WORK TO ULTIMATELY GET IT ACROSS THE FINISH LINE. LET ME ADD MY GRATITUDE TO ALL OF MY COLLEAGUES AT HOUSTON FIRST WHO INSPIRE ME EACH AND EVERY DAY. THEY ARE THE ONES WHO ARE EXECUTING AND DELIVERING ON ALL OF THE HUGE OBJECTIVES THAT WE HAVE IN FRONT OF US. I'M CONSTANTLY IN AWE OF WHAT THEY ACHIEVE FOR HOUSTON. SO PLEASE GIVE A ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR ALL OF MY COLLEAGUES AT HOUSTON FIRST, FINALLY, IN CLOSING AND ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND ALL OF MY TEAMMATES AT HOUSTON, FIRST MAYOR, A HEARTFELT THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU HAVE DONE FOR US. WE NEVER COULD HAVE ASKED MORE FROM YOUR LEADERSHIP AND WE APPRECIATE IT SO MUCH. NOW I HAVE THE PLEASURE OF INTRODUCING TODAY'S EVENT CO-CHAIRS, WHO WE'VE HAD THE PLEASURE OF WORKING WITH TO PREPARE FOR TODAY AND WHO HAVE DONE JUST A TERRIFIC JOB. PLEASE JOIN ME IN WELCOMING TO THE STAGE FRAZIER WILSON OF SHELL AND CINDY CLIFFORD OF THE CLIFFORD GROUP. THANK YOU. WHAT AN HONOR. WHEN MAYOR TURNER CALLED THREE YEARS AGO AND ASKED US TO CO-CHAIR THIS EVENT, IT WAS DAUNTING. WE HAD NO LIST. WE STARTED FROM SCRATCH. THREE YEARS LATER HE ASKED US AGAIN THE SECOND TIME, AND THEN IT WAS EQUALLY AS DAUNTING THE SECOND AND THIRD TIME. BUT I WANNA SAY THANK YOU TO HIM. IT WAS HARD TO SAY NO TO A MAN [00:30:01] WHO HAS GIVEN SO MUCH OF HIMSELF HIS ENTIRE LIFE TO MAKE THIS CITY A BETTER PLACE. SO I WANNA THANK ALL OF YOU. WHEN I CALLED YOU FOR MONEY AND AND ASKED YOU TO BUY A TABLE. AND TO SOME OF YOU, I ASKED TO MAKE YOUR SPONSORSHIP EVEN HIGHER THIS YEAR. AND I HAVE TO SAY HOW HONORED I AM THAT ALL OF YOU SAID YES, I CANNOT THANK YOU ENOUGH. BUT I DO WANNA RECOGNIZE OUR TOP SPONSORS FIRST, OUR PRESENTING SPONSORS, CENTER POINT ENERGY, HOUSTON HOSPITALITY ALLIANCE, IKE SMART CITY, AND ORANGE BARREL MEDIA THAT GOES TOGETHER. JACOBS ENGINEERING AND SHELL FOR OUR PLATINUM SPONSORS. WE HAVE AMERICAN FIRST NATIONAL BANK, COROLLA, ENGINEERING, CIGNA, CI O GO. ARE ALL OUR FRIENDS AT COMCAST, GREENBERG TROLLING, HOUSTON POLICE OFFICERS UNION, KEEPING US WELL EVERY DAY. KELSEY SEABOLD, PAIGE, PORT HOUSTON, AND ALL OUR FRIENDS WHO ARE BRINGING THINGS THROUGH THAT PORT AND GETTING IT TO US AT UNION PACIFIC. PLEASE GIVE THEM ALL A ROUND OF APPLAUSE AS CHAIR OF CO-CHAIR OF THIS EVENT, ALONG WITH MY FRIEND FRAZIER, WE'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR SO MUCH SELLING ALL THE TABLES, ORGANIZING DECORATIONS, HELPING PICK THE ENTERTAINMENT, ALL OF IT. BUT IT COULD NOT BE POSSIBLE WITHOUT SEVERAL PEOPLE THAT I PERSONALLY WANNA RECOGNIZE FROM HOUSTON. FIRST, THESE THREE GUYS, IF YOU'RE IN A WAR, YOU WANT THEM IN YOUR FOXHOLE. TODD HOLMAN, PAUL CASO, AND STEVE MILLER. AND FROM THE MAYOR'S OFFICE, TWO PEOPLE THAT I DEPENDED ON DAILY TO HELP ME WITH DECISIONS, HELP PRODUCE THE VIDEO, AND JUST BE THERE FOR A SOUNDING BOARD OR PHONE NUMBERS. I CAN NEVER THANK MARY BETTON AND WE OR HAMBRICK HAMRICK FOR ALL OF THEIR HELP. THIS IS A LABOR OF LOVE, A LOVE FOR A MAN WHO'S LED THE CITY. I'M VERY PROUD TODAY. AND NOW I GET TO TURN IT OVER TO MY CO-CHAIR. ALRIGHT, THANKS. THANKS CINDY. SO IT WAS AN HONOR TO SERVE AND BE CO-CHAIR WITH YOU. YOU DID AN EXCELLENT JOB. I JUST FOLLOWED HER LEAD AND DID THE WHAT I'M SUPPOSED TO DO AND JUST SAID YES. YES, THAT WORKS. LET'S MAKE IT HAPPEN. SO AGAIN, WE'RE DELIGHTED TO BE HERE TODAY AS WE'VE ALREADY RECOGNIZED THE ELECTED OFFICIALS. BUT WE WANT TO ELECT, UH, RECOGNIZE THEM AGAIN. 'CAUSE WE KNOW THE MAYOR'S RELATIONSHIP WITH THE ELECTED OFFICIALS IS SO IMPORTANT TO THE THINGS THAT WE ACCOMPLISH IN HOUSTON AND WHAT HE'S BEEN ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH. SO WILL ALL ELECTED OFFICIALS PLEASE STAND AGAIN SO WE CAN RECOGNIZE YOU ALL ELECTED OFFICIALS AND AND WE KNOW A LOT OF PEOPLE CONTINUE TO CONTRIBUTE THROUGHOUT THE YEAR TO MAKE EVERYTHING RUN SMOOTHLY IN THE CITY. SO WE ALSO WANNA RECOGNIZE ALL THE APPOINTED OFFICIALS, ALL APPOINTED OFFICIALS, WILL YOU PLEASE STAND AND BE RECOGNIZED. SO NOW SINCE OUR PASTOR IS HERE, I NEED TO DEVIATE FROM WHAT I ORIGINALLY HAD PLANNED. SO I NEED TO BE ON MY BEST BEHAVIOR SINCE PASTOR WEST'S HERE. SO, SO MAYOR, WE DEFINITELY WANNA RECOGNIZE YOU FOR WHAT YOU'VE, WHAT YOU'VE DONE, WHAT YOU'VE BEEN ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH OVER THE PAST EIGHT YEARS. WE REALIZED THROUGH YOUR LEADERSHIP THAT GOD REALLY HAS HIS HAND ON HOUSTON THROUGH, THROUGH THE STORMS THAT WE'VE ENDURED, THROUGH THE TOUGH TIMES THAT WE'VE EXPERIENCED THROUGH HURRICANES, COVID, TOUGH ECONOMICS AND LEGISLATIVE CHALLENGES. YOU HAVE LED HOUSTON WITH [00:35:01] A STEADY HAND AND YOU CONTINUE TO BE AN ADVOCATE FOR HOUSTON THROUGHOUT THIS WORLD. AND BECAUSE OF YOU, WE CONTINUE TO MAKE GREAT STRIDES IN ACCOMPLISHING THE GOALS THAT THIS CITY HAS AND WHAT YOU'VE ENVISIONED FOR THIS CITY. AND I'LL PASS, I DO LISTEN TO YOU DURING THE SERMON, SO I'M GONNA THROW IN ONE FOR YOU. UH, JAMES ONE AND TWO, CONSIDER IT PURE JOY. MY BROTHER AND SISTER, WHENEVER YOU FACE TRIALS OF MANY KINDS BECAUSE YOU KNOW THAT THE TESTING OF YOUR FACE PROVIDES PERSEVERANCE. AND WE KNOW THAT THE MAYOR AND THE CITY HAS PERSEVERED A LOT. BUT WHAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT IN THIS, GOD KNEW WHAT WE NEEDED INSTEAD OF WHAT WE WANTED. WE WANTED THE MAYOR SEVERAL YEARS AGO WHEN HE, WHEN HE RAN. BUT THAT WAS NOT THE TIME WE NEEDED HIM FOR THE TIMES THAT WE EXPERIENCED THROUGH COVID, THROUGH A HURRICANE. BECAUSE OF THOSE RELATIONSHIPS THAT HE WAS ABLE TO DEVELOP, WE WERE ABLE TO COME THROUGH IT SHINING BECAUSE OF WHAT HE CONTINUED TO DO. THAT EARLY SACRIFICE AND THAT COMMITMENT, PREPARING HIM FOR A TIME LIKE NOW. HE WAS PREPARED FOR THIS TIME. AND WE BENEFITED BECAUSE WE'VE RECEIVED WHAT WE NEEDED INSTEAD OF WHAT WE WANTED. SO MAYOR, WE APPRECIATE ALL THAT YOU HAVE DONE THROUGH YOUR SUCCESS. YOU'VE CONTINUED TO REMAIN IN THE COMMUNITY. YOU ALWAYS REPRESENT THE FOUR, FOUR WHERE YOU WERE RAISED, AND YOU STILL STAY THERE. SO REPRESENTING THE FOUR, FOUR TO THE FULLEST, YOUR CAREER HAS PROVIDED AN OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO SPEAK AND WALK WITH KINGS, PRESIDENTS AND CEOS. YET YOU HAVE MAINTAINED A COMMON TOUCH. SO AGAIN, MAYOR, YOU HAVE BEEN THE MAYOR FOR ALL OF HOUSTON. WE APPRECIATE WHAT YOU CONTINUE TO DO FROM YOUR TWO STEPS AND YOUR ELECTRIC SLIDE ON THE STAGE TILL YOU SING OFF KEY, SING BEYONCE AS LOUD AS YOU CAN. YOU CONTINUE TO BE THE BEST MAYOR FOR THIS CITY, FOR THIS COUNTRY. AND MAKE SURE I PUT MY GLASSES DOWN. AND YOU ARE OUR MAYOR. AND FOREVER WE'LL LOVE YOU FOR WHAT YOU DO. SO THANK YOU AGAIN EVERYONE. ELO, ENJOY YOUR LUNCH. THANK YOU. HELLO, HELLO, HELLO. WE GOT A VERY SPECIAL DAY HERE, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. WE NEED YOUR FOCUS. STOP TRADING CARDS AND MAKING DEALS ON THE SIDE. THAT'S ALL. NO. OR IN PUBLIC. IT DOESN'T MATTER. WE HAVE A VERY SPECIAL THING. MARQUIS, YOU WANNA COME OUT HERE, MARQUIS AND, AND CINDY WOULD LOVE FOR YOU GUYS TO JOIN ME. FIRST, I WANT TO SAY, MAYOR, YOU'VE BEEN THE GREATEST MAYOR WE'VE HAD THE LAST EIGHT YEARS. IT'S BEEN PHENOMENAL. NO, TRULY. AND I DIDN'T KNOW THAT YOU SHARED A BIRTHDAY WITH MY NEPHEW AND WE WANTED TO WISH YOU THE ABSOLUTE BEST AND MOST AMAZING BIRTH. THAT CAKE REALLY LOOKS LEGIT. IS IT CAKE? NO, IT'S REALLY CAKE. WE WANTED TO WISH YOU A BLESSED BIRTHDAY. LET'S, LET'S HAVE MARQUIS HERE, LEAD US. 'CAUSE I CAN'T SING. I CAN'T SING TO SAVE MY LIFE. MARY, LET'S COME DOWN HERE. MAY HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU EVERYBODY. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAY TURN WHEEL OUT. HAPPY TO YOU, MAN. I CAN'T SING LIKE THAT, BRO. I THOUGHT YOU WERE GONNA DO THE OTHER VERSION. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YA. ARE YOU GONNA LEAVE ME LIKE THAT? MARQUIS MARQUIS. HE'S GOT A RESERVATION AND A BUFFET COMING UP HERE. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU MAN. TARA, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR EVERYTHING. I APPRECIATE YOU AND LOVE YOU. AND, AND HERE'S AN AUTOGRAPH BO JACKSON CARD. NOW I'M JUST KIDDING. I GOT NOTHING. REALLY LOVELY, LOVELY TO SEE YOU. AND THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU'VE DONE TO THE CITY AND FOR ME ESPECIALLY. THANK YOU SO MUCH. YOU INTO NETFLIX. UH, HE'S ASKING IF HE'S GONNA BE MY NETFLIX SERIES. YES, OF COURSE. YOU'RE IMMEDIATELY CAST. YOU'RE GONNA BE GUY NUMBER FOUR FOR SURE. UH, AT THE DINER. NO, I'LL GIVE YOU A SPEAKING ROLE. THAT'S A GOOD 1250 RIGHT THERE. YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? PUT THAT IN A RETIREMENT PLAN. NO, REALLY HAPPY BIRTHDAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH. COME ON, GIVE THE MAYOR A BIG ROUND OF APPLAUSE. WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH YOU GUYS? HAPPY BIRTHDAY. THANK YOU. MO IMPACT. WHEN I THINK ABOUT MAYOR TURNER, I THINK ABOUT THE IMPACT HE HAS MADE HIS ENTIRE LIFE. [00:40:01] STARTING WHEN HE WAS A YOUNG MAN, GROWING UP IN AKERS, HOME OF MODEST MEANS, HE WAS BUSED TO KLEIN FOR HIGH SCHOOL. HE TOLD ME WHEN HE GOT OFF THE BUS, HE LOOKED AT THE SCHOOL AND WENT, WOW. JUST WOW. BUT HE DIDN'T JUST SAY, WOW, HE BECAME THE CLASS PRESIDENT AND THE VALEDICTORIAN. WHEN I TALKED ABOUT HIM TO FRIENDS, I SAY, THAT'S ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT HIM. WHAT KID FROM AKER HOMES GROWS UP, GOES TO A MOSTLY WHITE SCHOOL AND BECOMES NOT ONLY THE VALEDICTORIAN, BUT THE CLASS PRESIDENT. HIS WHOLE LIFE HAS BEEN LIKE THAT. WENT TO THE STATE LEGISLATURE, MADE A WILDLY IMPRESSIVE IMPACT ALL THE WAY THROUGH AND THEN RAN FOR MAYOR. HE'S AN AMAZING MAN. AN AMAZING MAN. I'M SO HONORED TO CALL HIM MY FRIEND. AND I'M HONORED THAT HE ASKED FRAZIER AND I TO JOIN US TO BE THE CO-CHAIRS TODAY. AT THIS TIME, I WANT TO ALSO INTRODUCE MELINDA SPALDING. AFTER THE MAYOR SPEAKS FOR A FEW MINUTES, MELINDA WILL DO A FIRESIDE CHAT WITH MAYOR TURNER AND IT WILL AL. IT'S ALWAYS AMAZING, AND WE COULDN'T HAVE THOUGHT OF ANYBODY BETTER THAN MELINDA TO DO IT. MELINDA SERVES AS THE VICE PRESIDENT OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS FOR RICE UNIVERSITY MEN. MANY OF YOU WILL KNOW HER THOUGH, BECAUSE OF HER LONG ANCHOR SHIP OF THE EVENING NEWS AND KRIV CHANNEL 26. SHE WON AN AMAZING AMOUNT OF AWARDS FOR DOING THAT AND THEN TOOK HER CAREER TO TSU WHERE SHE ALSO SERVED AS VICE PRESIDENT OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS. OR I THINK IT WAS CALLED ADVANCEMENT THERE. BUT WHEREVER MELINDA GOES, SHE MAKES A DIFFERENCE. SHE'S BEEN THROUGH THIS ADMINISTRATION WITH US AND LONG BEFORE, SO SHE WILL COME UP AFTERWARD. AND NOW, PLEASE ENJOY A VERY BRIEF VIDEO ABOUT MAYOR TURNER. WE CHECKED IN WITH HOUSTON'S MVP, SYLVESTER TURNER TO SEE WHAT HE WOULD INCLUDE IN A HIGHLIGHT REEL OF HIS TIME AS MAYOR OF THE CITY OF HOUSTON. KICKING THINGS OFF AT NUMBER FIVE, THROWING IT BACK TO INAUGURATION DAY, JANUARY 2ND, 2016. I REMEMBER GETTING SWORN IN AT JONES HALL AFTER THAT. I DON'T EVEN REMEMBER HOW I GOT TO CITY HALL. THAT WAS THE FIRST CITY COUNCIL MEETING TOGETHER. LET'S MOVE FORWARD TO MAKE THIS THE BEST CITY THAT THIS WORLD HAS EVER SEEN. IT WAS A VERY, VERY GOOD DAY. MAYOR TURNER HAD TO HIT THE GROUND RUNNING WHEN HE CAME INTO OFFICE. AND YOU CAN'T DO A HIGHLIGHT REEL WITHOUT FEATURING THE PERSISTENT OPPONENT PENSION REFORM. UH, THAT WAS THE NUMBER ONE ISSUE FACING THE CITY WHEN I CAME INTO OFFICE. HAD TO BE DEALT WITH, BUT THEN THE FIRST YEAR OR TWO, BUT WE WERE ABLE TO GET IT DONE. HOUSTON NOW HAS ITS PENSION REFORM, A LANDMARK LEGISLATION THAT PUTS US ON A MUCH MORE STABLE COURSE. THIS IS HISTORIC. THIS IS MAJOR. THIS IS JUST THE WAY HOUSTON DOES IT. AND I COULD NOT BE MORE PROUD TO BE THE MAYOR OF THIS CITY AT THIS POINT IN TIME. NUMBER THREE ON OUR LIST IS A DOOZY. YOU CAN'T TALK ABOUT MAYOR TURNER WITHOUT TALKING ABOUT THE WAVES OF CURVE BALLS AND BLINDSIDE BLITZES HEAT. AND OUR CITY FACED OVER THE PAST EIGHT YEARS, CAME INTO OFFICE IN 2016, TAX DAY FLOOD IN APRIL, 2016. HARVEY WAS IN AUGUST OF 2017. 52 INCHES OF RAIN. SIX YEARS LATER, NOT ENOUGH RAIN, BUT A HELL OF A LOT OF HEAT AND A DROUGHT. AND THEN WE HAD TO DEAL WITH COVID-19. WE WEATHERED THAT STORM AGAIN. THE PEOPLE OF THE CITY OF HOUSTON CAME TOGETHER LIKE THAT WAS BEFORE HOUSTONIANS HAVE LEARNED HOW TO DEAL WITH THE HAND THAT WE HAVE BEEN DEALT AND WE STILL MOVE FORWARD. BRINGING US TO NUMBER TWO. DURING HIS TENURE, MAYOR TURNER USHERED IN THE ESTABLISHMENT OF MAJOR INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY HUBS IN HOUSTON. [00:45:01] HOUSTON IS TRULY NOW A SMART CITY, AND THE INNOVATIVE ECOSYSTEM IS REALLY SPRINTING ALONG IN THE CITY OF HOUSTON. BEFORE WE CROSS THE FINISH LINE, WE HAVE TO TOSS IN AN HONORABLE MENTION. MAYOR TURNER HAS BEEN KNOWN TO CRACK A JOKE, CUT A RUG, AND GET DOWNRIGHT SILLY SOMETIMES , EVEN THOUGH WE'VE DEALT WITH SOME VERY SERIOUS STUFF, WE'VE ALSO FOUND A LOT OF TIME TO LAUGH, TO DANCE, TO SING, AND QUITE FRANKLY, TO BUILD A VERY STRONG RELATIONSHIP AND FELLOWSHIP WITH A LOT OF HOUSTONIANS. AND NOW TO BRING IT ALL HOME, NUMBER ONE IS WATCHING THE FRUIT OF HIS LABOR. HIS INITIATIVES IMPROVE AND ENERGIZE OUR CITY MANY TIMES OVER ONE COMPLETE CITY, REGARDLESS OF WHO YOU ARE, WHERE YOU COME FROM, WHAT LANGUAGE YOU SPEAK, WHAT YOUR SEXUAL ORIENTATION MAY BE, OR YOUR RELIGION. WE ARE ALL A PART OF ONE CITY. IN OUR CITY. WE WORK AS ONE, ONE CITY. THANK YOU FOR GIVING THIS OPPORTUNITY TO SERVE YOU. PLEASE WELCOME TO THE STAGE THE HONORABLE SYLVESTER TURNER, MAYOR CITY OF HOUSTON. THANK YOU. THANK YOU ALL SO VERY, VERY MUCH. AND LET ME SAY TO CINDY AND FRAZIER, UH, WITH SHELL, UH, HOUSTON, FIRST DAVID, UH, AND MICHAEL, AND ALL OF THOSE WHO ARE AFFILIATED WITH HOUSTON. FIRST, UH, LET ME THANK YOU ALL FOR, UH, AN INCREDIBLE, YOU KNOW, LUNCHEON ALREADY AND ALL THE WORK LEADING UP TO IT. PLEASE GIVE IT UP TO CINDY SHELL, UH, AND HOUSTON. FIRST I WANT TO THANK, UM, MY PASTOR AND FIRST LADY PASTOR RALPH D. WEST AND CHERITA WEST, UH, FOR, FOR HONORING ME AND, AND FOR BEING HERE AND FOR THEIR SUPPORT AND THE CHURCH OVER THE LAST, WELL, REALLY FOR ME, 35 YEARS AT THE CHURCH. AND FOR THEM BEING HERE THIS MORNING. I KNOW THEY DROVE IN THIS MORNING FROM WACO, UH, BAYLOR TO BE HERE. SO PLEASE GET UP TO MY PASTOR OF TY WEST AND SHERITA WEST. MY DAUGHTER IS ALSO HERE AND AS PAIGE TURNER. AND SHE WOULD SAY MY ONLY CHILD. UM, SO I REALLY APPRECIATE, APPRECIATE HER, LOVE HER DEARLY. UH, THIS IS GONNA BE A FEW THANK YOUS. THIS MY, UH, SINCE THIS, UM, THEY SAY MY LAST, UH, UH, SO LET ME, UM, LET ME THANK, UM, MY EXECUTIVE TEAM AND STAFF, UM, MARETTE, UH, UH, ANDY, ALL OF MY DIRECTORS, ALL OF MY DIRECTORS AND, UM, UH, FOR BEING WITH ME. MANY HAVE BEEN WITH ME FOR THE ENTIRE EIGHT YEARS. UM, MOST HAVE BEEN WITH ME FROM SIX TO EIGHT YEARS. UH, BUT WHETHER YOU'VE BEEN WITH ME FOR, UH, TWO YEARS OR EIGHT, I CERTAINLY WANT TO THANK MY ENTIRE EXECUTIVE TEAM. UM, AND I WANT TO THANK, UH, UH, THE PEOPLE IN THIS CITY, UH, THE 2.3 MILLION HOUSTONIANS, UH, FOR BEING VERY SUPPORTIVE, UH, NOT JUST OF ME, BUT OF THEIR CITY, UH, OVER THE LAST, UH, 80 YEARS. WITHOUT THE PEOPLE THEMSELVES, UH, WE WOULD NOT BE WHERE WE ARE. UH, SO REGARDLESS OF, UH, YOUR POLITICAL PERSUASION, REGARDLESS OF YOUR ORIENTATION, HOWEVER DIVERSE YOU MAY BE, YOUR YOUR FAITH, UH, REGARDLESS OF WHERE YOU LIVE, UH, THIS HAS BEEN PROVEN TO BE ONE GREAT CITY. SO TO THE PEOPLE OF THE CITY OF HOUSTON, THANK YOU FOR AN INCREDIBLE AND INCREDIBLE RIDE. UH, NOW TO THE 22,000 CITY EMPLOYEES, LET ME TELL YOU, I COULDN'T DO IT WITHOUT 22,000 OF THEM. UH, AND OFTENTIMES, UH, THEY GET A LOT OF CRITICISM. UH, I TELL PEOPLE, YOU CAN [00:50:01] EASILY FIND SOME LOW HANGING FRUIT AT THE CITY OF HOUSTON. IF YOU NEED TO DO A STORY. YOU CAN COME TO THE CITY OF HOUSTON ON ANY DAY AND YOU CAN FIND SOME LOW HANGING FRUIT. BUT 22,000 EMPLOYEES THROUGH THE STORMS, THROUGH COVID, THROUGH SOCIAL CIVIL UNREST, THROUGH WINTER STORM URI, THROUGH EXTREME HEAT, UH, THESE EMPLOYEES SHOW UP AND THEY REALLY REPRESENTED CITY WELL. AND TODAY, UH, IN MY FINAL, UH, DEAL, I WANT TO GIVE SOME SPECIAL RECOGNITION TO SOME OF THEM WHO REPRESENT THOSE 22,000 EMPLOYEES, THE PEOPLE STANDING BEFORE YOU WERE NOMINATED BY THEIR DEPARTMENT DIRECTORS, UH, FOR THEIR EXEMPLARY WORK, BUT REPRESENTATIVE OF ALL OF THE EMPLOYEES IN THEIR RESPECTIVE DEPARTMENTS. AND SO TODAY, IF YOU WILL HELP ME, UH, AT THE END, NICOLE BROOKS FROM HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, YAN YANETTE CALDERON FROM THE OFFICE OF CHIEF RESILIENCE AND SUSTAINABILITY, LINDA KELLI FROM A RA PAYROLL, GRACE, VE THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS. MICHELLE DUVAL FROM THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF COMMUNICATIONS. GABRIELA FINNEY FROM HTV JA, JAMIE FLORES FROM THE MUNICIPAL COURTS, ALEJANDRA GARCIA PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT, OPHELIA GOMEZ FROM THE HOUSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY. VANESSA GRAHAM MORGAN FROM THE MAYOR'S OFFICE. KAYLEEN HENDERSON FROM THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT. SCOTT KENYON FROM THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF SPECIAL EVENTS. TROY LEMON CITY SECRETARY ANDY MATEO FROM THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS. JESSICA MCGOWAN FROM THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF EDUCATION. LEVI MCGUIRE FROM FINANCE. TOM MUNOZ FROM THE OFFICE OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT. JESSICA INGO FROM THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF TRADE AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS. RICHARD NICHOLSON FROM HITCH. COLLEEN. COLLEEN PETTY FROM LEGAL CHAPLAIN RICHARD PONCY FROM THE HOUSTON FIRE DEPARTMENT. LESTER POWELL FROM SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT. LILIANA RMBO FROM THE HOUSTON AMPO SYSTEM. PETRO SALINAS FROM THE HOUSTON PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT. JOHN SERRANO FROM THE MAYOR'S OFFICE WITH PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES. HERBERT SIMS FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF NEIGHBORHOODS. ROMAN VALLEYS FROM THE EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES. KEVIN WARREN FROM H HOUSTON POLICE DEPARTMENT. TIMOTHY WARREN FROM THE OFFICE OF BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY. DARIUS WASHINGTON FROM THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF COMPLETE COMMUNITIES. VINCENT WALES FROM HOUSTON PUBLIC WORKS. COURTNEY WILKERSON FROM THE HOUSTON EMERGENCY CENTER. ROGER WILFARM FROM GHD. COREY WARDEN FROM HUMAN RESOURCES. AND LISA YOUNG FROM FLEET MANAGEMENT DEPARTMENT. PLEASE GIVE IT UP IF YOU WOULD JOIN ME IN APPLAUDING THESE OUTSTANDING CITY EMPLOYEES. THANK YOU ALL SO VERY, VERY MUCH. AND I WILL TELL YOU THAT WHAT WE HAVE ACCOMPLISHED OVER THE EIGHT YEARS, WE HAVE COME ACCOMPLISHED TOGETHER. IF YOU TAKE THESE EMPLOYEES OUT, NOTHING GETS DONE. AND YOU CAN'T BE A MAYOR IF YOU DON'T HAVE DEDICATED AND, AND, AND UH, UH, WORKERS AND PEOPLE ON THE STAFF MAKING IT HAPPEN. SO I WANT TO THANK YOU. TOGETHER, WE HAVE FACED MANY STORMS. HAVE YOU HAVE HEARD? AND YOU KNOW, SEVEN FEDERALLY DECLARED DISASTERS IN EIGHT YEARS FROM FLOODS OR FREEZE FROM A SUPER BOWL OR THE PANDEMIC, WE ROSE UP AND WE MET THE CHALLENGES OF OUR TIMES FROM INEQUITIES IN NEIGHBORHOOD INVESTMENTS TO BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN UNFUNDED PENSION LIABILITIES. FROM ONE SAFE HOUSTON TO ONE CLEAN HOUSTON. WE CONFRONTED EACH ISSUE HEAD ON AND WE SET THE CITY ON FIRM A FOOTING FROM THE TAX DAY FLOODS HARVEY AND TROPICAL STORMY MELTING. WE LAUNCHED RESILIENT HOUSTON, THE CLIMATE ACTION PLAN. WE FOCUS ON ENERGY TRANSITION AND LEAVING THE NEXT GENERATION BETTER AWARE AND BETTER PREPARED FOR THE FUTURE FROM BEING A NATIONAL LEADER ON REDUCING HOMELESSNESS TO PROVIDING SUMMER JOBS TO 20,000 OF OUR KIDS JUST THIS YEAR ALONE, TO BEING NAMED THE FIRST CHILD FRIENDLY CITY IN THE UNITED STATES. WE CAN TAKE PRIDE AS HOUSTONIANS THAT WE ARE THE ENVY OF SO MANY CITIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY. WE ARE THE ENERGY CAPITAL OF THE WORLD, BUT YET WE PURCHASE MORE RENEWABLE ENERGY THAN ANY OTHER CITY IN THE UNITED STATES. [00:55:01] WE BEAT OUT NEW YORK, LA, PHILADELPHIA, YOU NAME IT. WE LEAD THE COUNTRY IN RENEWABLES. WE ARE DIVERSE, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, WE WORK EVERY DAY TO BE INCLUSIVE. WE ARE GREENER, MORE COMPASSIONATE, MORE UNITED AND MORE FORWARD MOVING THAN WE CAN EVER IMAGINE. AND WE HAVE NOT, I HAVE NOT DONE IT ALONE OVER THE LAST EIGHT YEARS. I'VE HAD SOME INCREDIBLE PARTNERS ON CITY COUNCIL. WE HAVE NOT ALWAYS VOTED TOGETHER, BUT MOST TIME WE HAVE. AND EVERY NOW AND THEN WE HAVE A FEW COUNCIL MEMBERS WHO JUST WANT TO KEEP ME FROM HAVING A PERFECT RECORD. SO THEY MAY VOICE A LITTLE OPPOSITION ALONG THE WAY, BUT IN THEIR HEARTS, I KNOW THEY WANTED TO VOTE WITH ME. . I JUST KNOW THEY DID. IF YOU ARE A COUNCIL MEMBER NOW, OR YOU'VE BEEN A COUNCIL MEMBER THE LAST EIGHT YEARS, WILL ALL OF THE COUNCIL MEMBERS IN THIS ROOM PLEASE STAND UP? ALL OF MY COUNCIL MEMBERS STAND UP. WE ARE AN INCREDIBLE GROUP. AND LET ME TELL YOU, I COULD NOT HAVE ENJOYED WORKING WITH THEM MORE. AND THEN LASTLY, THIS ADMINISTRATION HAS LAID THE GROUNDWORK FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON'S FUTURE. IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT WHAT WE HAVE DONE, BUT IT'S ABOUT THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE DONE THAT WILL UNFOLD IN THE FUTURE. BECAUSE IF YOU SIMPLY MEASURE ABOUT WHAT WE HAVE DONE, THAT MEANS WHEN THE TERM ENDS, THEN THE WORK WE HAVE DONE WILL HAVE COME TO AN END. BUT IT'S THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE DONE THAT WILL UNFOLD IN YEARS TO COME. EARLIER THIS YEAR, WE HELD THE OFFICIAL GROUND-BREAKING OF THE INWOOD FOREST STORMWATER DETENTION BASIN PROJECT, CONSTRUCTING 12 INDIVIDUAL BASINS, PROVIDING 1200 ACRE FEET OF MITIGATING STORMWATER STORAGE. THE INWOOD PROJECT WOULD PROVIDE FLOOD DAMAGE REDUCTION TO OVER 4,400 STRUCTURES IN THE WHITE UBA AND BOGO CREEK WATERSHEDS. WITH THE ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE IN MAY OF 26. IN AUGUST OF 2017, HURRICANE HARVEY DAMAGED THE MUNICIPAL COURT BUILDING. INITIALLY FEMA IDENTIFIED TOTAL DAMAGES OF 7 MILLION. THE CITY OF HOUSTON ADMINISTRATION REQUESTED ANOTHER REVIEW AND JUST LAST WEEK, FEMA HAS PRELIMINARILY AGREED TO A PAVEMENT OF $54.2 MILLION. WHICH, WHICH WHEN COMBINED WITH WHAT WE HAVE ALREADY SET ASIDE, WE'LL FINANCE A TOTALLY NEW MUNICIPAL COURT BUILDING YESTERDAY. YESTERDAY WE CUT THE RIBBON ON THE SOLID WASTE NORTHEAST TRANSFER STATION. IT WILL BE BUILT IN MARCH OF 2025. THE NORTH CANAL STONEWATER PROJECT IS CURRENTLY IN DESIGN. THE LAKE LIVINGTON FLOOD WATERGATES IN KINGWOOD IS CURRENTLY IN DESIGN. THE I 45 EXPANSION PROJECT IS MOVING FORWARD. THE SUNNY SIDE SOLAR FARM, WHICH WILL BE THE LARGEST URBAN SOLAR FARM IN THE COUNTRY, WILL BE OPERATIONAL IN 2024. THE $250 MILLION ISMA CENTER, THE SEVENTH IN THE WORLD, WILL BE COMPLETED NEXT YEAR. METRO IS MOVING FORWARD ON THREE BRT. CORRIDORS RIGHT NOW WILL BE COMPLETED VERY SOON. THE UNIVERSITY CORRIDOR FOR METRO THE LONGEST IN THE NATION IS ALREADY IN THE PRESIDENT'S BUDGET OF 150 MILLION AT THE SEED FUNDING WITH MORE TO COME. AND EVEN THOUGH I WOULD'VE LOVED THIS HIGH SPEED BULLET TRAIN TO ALREADY BEEN MOVING, AT LEAST WE HAVE THE FEDERAL REPRESENTATIVE HERE TODAY TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT IT IS STILL ALIVE. THANKS. THANKS TO A BILL PASSED DURING THIS YEAR'S TEXAS LEGISLATIVE SESSION. HOUSTON WILL GET NEARLY $2 BILLION IN THE COMING YEARS TO TRANSFORM THE CONVENTION CENTER ITSELF AND THE SURROUNDING DISTRICT. A PROJECT THAT WILL CATALYZE FURTHER DEVELOPMENT IN THAT PART OF DOWNTOWN. THE RENDERINGS THAT YOU ARE SEEING NOW ARE REALLY JUST CONCEPTUAL DRAWINGS OF WHAT THIS PART OF OUR CITY COULD LOOK LIKE IN THE YEARS TO COME. HOUSTON FIRST WILL WORK WITH NEIGHBORING STAKEHOLDERS, CONVENTION CLIENTS, AND OTHERS TO DEVELOP A DETAILED PLAN AND A TIMELINE FOR THE PROJECT THAT WILL BE PHASED AND TAKE SEVERAL YEARS TO COMPLETE. BUT MAKE NO MISTAKE, [01:00:01] THIS TRANSFORMATIVE ONCE IN A GENERATION PROJECT WILL NOT ONLY CREATE A NEW DESTINATION FOR LOCALS AND VISITORS. IT WILL ALSO WORK IN TANDEM WITH A VISION FOR THE NORTH HOUSTON HIGHWAY IMPROVEMENT PROJECT. RECONNECTING DOWNTOWN WITH THE EDO AND THE A EAST END AND THE BILLIONS OF DOLLARS OF INVESTMENT HAPPENING IN THAT PART OF THE CITY. THE REIMAGINE CONVENTION CENTER AND DISTRICT WILL INTEGRATE WITH ITS SURROUNDINGS ON BOTH SIDES OF THE NEW I 45 CORRIDOR, HELPING TO TITCH NEIGHBORHOODS AND FACILITATE GROWTH FOR THE NEXT 50 YEARS. I'M PROUD THAT WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO BEGIN THIS IMPORTANT EFFORT THAT WILL KEEP US COMPETITIVE AS A DESTINATION, AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, LEAVE A LASTING IMPACT FOR HOUSTONIANS. I SEE THIS AS A KEYSTONE TO OTHER DEVELOPMENTS THAT ARE JUST BEGINNING TO TAKE SHAPE AROUND THE CITY OF CENTER OF THE CITY. FROM BUFFALO BAYOU PARTNERSHIPS MASTER PLAN FOR THE DOWNTOWN SECTION OF THE BAYOU AND MIDWAY 150 ACRE EAST RIVER PROJECT TO THE EMERGING ION DISTRICT IN MIDTOWN. AND THE RAPIDLY RISING 37 ACRE TMC HELIX PARKS. THESE ARE ALL TRANSFORMATIVE PROJECTS THAT HAVE THE CAPACITY TO MAKE OUR CITY BETTER AND TO ENRICH THE LIVES OF HOUSTONIANS. THIS MAY BE MY FINAL, WILL BE MY FINAL, UH, STATE OF THE CITY. BUT LET ME JUST BE CLEAR. I AM NOT ANXIOUS TO LEAVE . AND IF I COULD RUN AGAIN, I WOULD. BUT A WORD OF ADVICE FOR THOSE WHO SEEK TO FOLLOW ME. BE CAREFUL OF WHAT YOU PROMISE. BE CAREFUL ON HOW YOU CRITICIZE BECAUSE YOU HAVEN'T LOOKED UNDER THE HOOD. BUT WHAT I CAN SAY TO THE NEXT MAYOR IS WHEN INHERITED OF THE CITY OF 160 MILLION IN THE WHOLE AND AN UNFUNDED LIABILITY OF 8.2 BILLION, I WILL HAND TO WHOEVER THE NEXT MAYOR WILL BE. INSTEAD OF 160 MILLION IN A HOLE, WE'LL GIVE YOU A SURPLUS OF NEARLY $420 MILLION. INSTEAD OF AN UNFUNDED, INSTEAD OF AN UNFUNDED LIABILITY OF 8.2 BILLION WILL GIVE YOU A PENSION SYSTEM WHERE THE UNFUNDED LIABILITY IS LESS THAN $2.2 BILLION. WE'LL GIVE YOU A CITY THAT IS STILL UNITED, EVEN THOUGH HOW DIVERSE IT MAY BE. WE'LL GIVE YOU A CITY THAT'S MORE UNITED AND WE'LL GIVE YOU A CITY THAT IF YOU GO ANYWHERE AROUND THE WORLD, HOUSTON IS NOW TALKED ABOUT IN THE TOP FIVE, CERTAINLY WITHIN THE TOP 10. AND WHEREVER CITY YOU GO TO IN THE UNITED STATES, HOUSTON IS IN THAT DISCUSSION. WE ARE NOT AT THE BACK END. WE ARE ON THE FRONT END. AND WHAT I CAN SAY TO HOUSTONIANS, I HAVE GIVEN YOU MY BEST AND I AM PROUD. I AM VERY PROUD OF THE CITY THAT I SHALL PASS FORWARD. THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH FOR ALLOWING ME TO BE YOUR MAYOR. MAYOR TURNER, ANOTHER ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR YOUR MAYOR, SYLVESTER TURNER. I FEEL LIKE I NEED TO FAN YOU. YOU TOOK US TO CHURCH AS YOU TOOK THAT LOOK BACK. AND FIRST OF ALL, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. I FEEL LIKE WE NEED TO HAVE SOME BIRTHDAY CAKE AND COFFEE UP HERE FOR THIS CONVERSATION, . IT'S ONE OF THOSE DAYS. SO WE'VE TALKED A LOT, UM, ABOUT THIS DAY AND THANK YOU FIRST OF ALL. IT'S MY HONOR AND PLEASURE. THANKS. THANKS FOR AGREEING. PARTICIPATE IN THIS CONVERSATION AND IT WILL BE A CONVERSATION. IT'S GOING TO BE UPBEAT. SO I HAVE TO TELL YOU, MAYOR, 'CAUSE I KNOW YOU'RE JUST COMING DOWN, RIGHT? SO I'M GONNA GIVE YOU A FEW SECONDS BACK AS I WALKED IN AND I SAW SO MANY KEY MEMBERS OF YOUR TEAM. I SAW MARSHA IN PARTICULAR. I [01:05:01] SAW JANICE WEAVER, I SAW CHIEF NER. AND, AND EVERYONE'S LIKE WATERY EYE. I'M LIKE, HAPPY TEARS TODAY, EVERYONE. HAPPY TEARS. THIS IS NOT AN OCCASION TO BE SAD. TRUE. THIS IS AN OCCASION TO CELEBRATE. BUT THEN CHIEF FINNER SAID HE WASN'T TOO SURE AND I MIGHT HAVE TO HAND HIM A TISSUE. SO I JUST WONDER , HOW HE WAS GONNA HAND TODAY. SO I NOTICED THE IMPORTANCE OF ACKNOWLEDGING YOUR TEAM. I WATCHED YOUR CHIEF OF STAFF MARETTE SHAKE EVERY SINGLE PERSON'S HAND BEFORE THEIR NAME WAS CALLED OUT TODAY. LET'S START WITH THAT. UM, YOU TALK A LOT ABOUT COLLABORATION. LET'S TALK ABOUT THE POWER OF TEAMWORK AND HOW YOU PUT YOUR TEAM TOGETHER. YOU KNOW, ONE IS, UH, EACH ONE OF THEM, UH, UH, IS HIGHLY CAPABLE. YES. UM, YOU CAN HAVE, UH, YOU CAN PUT A A, A, A TEAM REPRESENTATIVE, SO AND SO AND SO AND SO, UH, BUT THEY NEED TO KNOW WHAT THEY'RE DOING AND THEY NEED TO KNOW THEIR JOBS. WHEN YOU HAVE A CITY OF 23 DEPARTMENTS AND 22,000 EMPLOYEES, YEAH. YOU KNOW, I DON'T CARE WHO YOU ARE AS THE MAYOR, YOU'RE NOT GONNA BE IN EVERY ONE OF THOSE DEPARTMENTS SEVEN DAYS A WEEK. MM-HMM . UH, YOU'RE NOT GONNA KNOW ALL 22,000. SO YOU NEED TO HAVE CAPABLE, UH, DEDICATED DIRECTORS. AND YOU NEED TO HAVE, UH, CAPABLE PEOPLE UP AND DOWN IN, IN THOSE, UH, DEPARTMENTS. AND THE PEOPLE THAT YOU SAW TODAY, UH, REPRESENTED THE BEST OF THE BEST. AND THEY ARE THE ONES THROUGH THE STORMS. THEY'VE KEPT THE CITY GOING, UH, THROUGH COVID. THEY KEPT THE CITY MOVING, UH, UH, THROUGH DIFFICULT, TOUGH, CHALLENGING TIMES. UH, THEY TAKE PRIDE IN WHAT THEY DO. AND I COULDN'T DO MY JOB, UH, WITHOUT MANY OF THE CITY, WELL WITHOUT ALL OF THE CITY EMPLOYEES, UH, THAT ARE IN THIS ROOM AND THOSE THAT ARE NOT IN THIS ROOM. AND, UH, AND I APPRECIATE 'EM AND, AND, AND I WANT TO THANK THEM. SO THIS STATE OF THE CITY IS FOR THEM. MM-HMM . UH, EVEN MORE SO THAN IT IS FOR ME. I FEEL LIKE THEY DESERVE ANOTHER ROUND OF APPLAUSE. SO THIS BOOK, THAT'S A GIFT FOR EVERYONE WINNING LEGACY. OH, WHO IS THAT GUY? HE LOOKS PRETTY GOOD. YEAH, HE DOES . YOU KNOW, I THOUGHT MAYOR TURNER ABOUT PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES, HOW THEY GRAY OVER THE YEARS. WELL YOU'VE MAINTAINED THE SAME LOOK, THE SAME HAIRCUT FOR THE MOST PART. FEW CHANGES HERE AND THERE THAT WE HAVE. WE LOOKED BACK IN THE EIGHT YEARS. JUST A FEW. JUST A FEW. SO THIS TALKS ABOUT THE POWER OF VISION, COLLABORATION, RESILIENCE AND TRANSFORMATION. LET'S TALK ABOUT RESILIENCE. OKAY. FOR A MINUTE, BECAUSE IT'S OBVIOUSLY AN IMPORTANT CHARACTERISTIC FOR A LEADER AND FOR YOUR ENTIRE TEAM AND FOR A CITY. TELL ME WHAT RESILIENCE MEANS TO YOU AS YOU TAKE A LOOK BACK. WELL, BASICALLY, UM, I DON'T CARE HOW PREPARED YOU MAY BE OR YOU SEEK TO BE. UH, AN ORGANIZATION IS GOING TO EXPERIENCE SHOCKS AND STRESSES. INDIVIDUALS ARE GOING TO EXPERIENCE SHOCKS AND STRESSES. UH, AND MANY OF THOSE SHOCKS AND STRESSES ARE THINGS YOU DIDN'T PLAN FOR. AND SO YOU HAVE TO BUILD AN ORGANIZATION, IN THIS CASE, A CITY, UH, THAT CAN AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE WITHSTAND THOSE SHOCKS AND STRESSES MM-HMM . AND BE ABLE TO BOUNCE BACK WHEN THEY, WHEN THEY COME. UM, HURRICANE, LET'S USE HURRICANE HARVEY, A LOT OF RAIN EXAMPLE. UM, BUT UNLESS YOU PUT SYSTEMS IN PLACE AND PEOPLE IN PLACE, UH, WHEN THOSE TYPE OF EVENTS COME, YOUR CITY STILL HAS, YOU HAVE TO WEATHER THE STORM AND THEN YOU HAVE TO COME OUT OF THE STORM. AND THEN YOU HAVE TO BE STRONGER AFTER THE FACT THAN BEFORE. SO YOU BUILD FORWARD, YOU DON'T BUILD BACKWARDS. IF YOU BUILD BACKWARDS, YOU BUILD BACK FOR FAILURE. SO YOU HAVE TO BUILD FORWARD. AND THAT'S WHY, UH, WE CAME FORTH WITH THE RESILIENT HOUSTON PLAN. YES. IN 2020 AND THE CLIMATE ACTION PLAN ON EARTH DAY OF 2020. AND IN ALL OF THE DEPARTMENTS, WE KIND OF ASSESSED, YOU KNOW, WHAT WE LEARNED FROM THAT PREVIOUS EVENT MM-HMM . AND THEN HOW CAN WE BETTER PREPARE FOR THE NEXT ONE? AND IF NOTHING ELSE, YOU SIMPLY HAVE TO HAVE THE RIGHT PEOPLE AND THE RIGHT SYSTEMS IN PLACE SUCH THAT WHEN THINGS COME AND THEY WILL COME, YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO TAKE IT AND BOUNCE BACK FROM IT AND GO BACK AND MOVE EVEN, UH, UH, MORE SO INTO THE FUTURE THAN WERE YOU IN THE PAST. AND THAT'S ORGANIZATIONS, SOMETIMES IT APPLY, IT MAY NOT BE AN ORGANIZATION, SOMETIMES IT MAY BE PERSONAL. RIGHT. YOU KNOW, SO I HAVE, YOU KNOW, MY OWN PERSONAL EVENT. UH, AND SO, UH, EVEN WHEN SITUATION CAME MY WAY, THE CANCER, FOR EXAMPLE, UH, THE QUESTION IS HOW DO YOU CONTINUE TO, HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH YOUR SITUATION AND AT THE SAME TIME, UH, CONTINUE TO DEAL WITH YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES AND YOU FIND A WAY TO WEATHER THE SHOCKS AND THE STRESSES AND YOU KEEP GOING FORWARD. YOU KNOW, I'M REALLY INTERESTED IN YOUR ROUTINE AS SUCH [01:10:01] A GREAT LEADER BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO MOTIVATE YOUR TEAMS. YOU HAVE TO MOTIVATE YOURSELF, AND YOU HAVE TO KEEP GOING. DO YOU WANNA GIVE US SOME INSIGHT? YOU KEEP A VERY BUSY SCHEDULE. TELL US ABOUT YOUR ROUTINE AS MAYOR. DID IT CHANGE FROM YOUR LIFE BEFORE YOU BECAME MAYOR OF THE CITY OF HOUSTON AND WHAT YOU'D LIKE TO MAYBE GET RID OF IN THE NEXT FEW? I I, I THINK FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE BUSY AND EVERYBODY IN THIS ROOM BUSY MM-HMM . I THINK MOST OF US IN THIS ROOM HAVE ALWAYS JUGGLED THREE AND FOUR TO 5, 6, 7 THINGS AT THE SAME TIME. IF YOU WANT THINGS DONE, OFTENTIMES YOU GO TO BUSY PEOPLE TO GET 'EM DONE. THAT'S RIGHT. BECAUSE THEY KNOW HOW TO MANAGE THEIR TIME. UH, AND THEY KNOW HOW TO COMPARTMENTALIZE AND THEY KNOW HOW TO JUGGLE. OKAY. UH, YOU DON'T GIVE, UH, A LOT OF PEOPLE, YOU DON'T GIVE PEOPLE MUCH WHO CAN'T DO MUCH. YOU KINDA HAVE TO KNOW WHAT PEOPLE CAN DO. SO DON'T OVERLOAD PEOPLE THAT YOU KNOW CAN'T DO IT. 'CAUSE IT WON'T GET DONE. AND THEN YOU'LL GET FRUSTRATED AND IT WILL AGGRAVATE YOU AND YOU KNOW, SO YOU DON'T WANNA DO THAT. YOU DON'T GET AGGRAVATED. NO, I DON'T GET AGGRAVATED. AND MY, YOU KNOW, CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS KNOW. I, I DON'T, I'M NOT AN EMOTIONAL PERSON. UH, I WAS JUST TALKING TO MY PASTOR OVER THERE. I TOLD HIM, PASTOR, I SAID A FEW WORDS THE OTHER DAY. I ASKED THE LORD TO FORGIVE ME, BUT THEY CAME OUT BEFORE I RECORD. I REALIZED IT, I MEAN, Y'ALL KNOW I'M FROM ACRES HOME. THE FOFO FRAZIER SAID FOUR OF FOUR , LEMME TELL FRAZIER IS FO FO. OKAY. SO EVERY, EVERY NOW AND THEN, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW IT EVEN UNDER THE BEST OF TIMES IT, BUT A MAR A MOTTO WHO SITS NEXT TO ME, UM, JUST LIKE A CITY COUNCIL TODAY, SHE TOLD ME, SHE SAID, UH, DON'T, DON'T GO THERE ME, HOLD IT, HOLD IT, HOLD IT, HOLD IT, HOLD IT, . SO YOU HAVE TO HAVE PEOPLE CLOSE TO YOU WHO KIND OF KNOW YOU. AND, BUT, UM, I THINK WE, NUMBER ONE, IF YOU'RE GONNA BE A LEAD A LEADER, YOU GOTTA LEAD AND YOU GOTTA BE OUT FRONT. IF YOU WANT PEOPLE TO HAVE GOOD SOLID WORK ETHIC, THEN YOU'VE GOT TO DEMONSTRATE THAT. UM, AND, UH, I TRY TO, AND YOU CAN'T LEAD THE CITY JUST FROM CITY HALL. OKAY. WHICH EXPLAINS YOUR SCHEDULE. RIGHT? I MEAN, WHEN YOU HAVE A, THE, THE MOST DIVERSE CITY IN THE UNITED STATES, PEOPLE WANNA SEE YOU IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD. THAT'S RIGHT. PEOPLE WANNA SEE YOU AT THEIR EVENTS AND SOMETIMES PEOPLE WANT YOU AT THEIR TABLE. YOU CAN'T TELL PEOPLE ALL THE TIME, WELL, IF YOU WANNA SEE ME COME TO CITY HALL, THAT'S NOT, THAT'S NOT THE WAY TO LEAD THE FOURTH LARGEST CITY. SO YOU HAVE TO, YOU HAVE TO, YOU HAVE TO EMBRACE THAT DIVERSITY AND PEOPLE HAVE TO FEEL AS THOUGH YOU ARE EMBRACING THAT DIVERSITY AND RELATIONSHIPS MATTER. OKAY? NOW MY TERM IS GOING TO END ON DECEMBER THE 31ST, BUT MY RELATIONSHIPS WILL CONTINUE. FRIENDSHIP DOESN'T END BASED FRIENDSHIP, FRIENDSHIP, FRIENDSHIP IS, FRIENDSHIP IS NOT TERM LIMITED. OKAY. IF THAT'S THE CASE, THEN YEAH, IT, IT REALLY IS A ROUGH RIDE. BUT WHAT I HAVE LEARNED IS THAT RELATIONSHIPS MATTER AND PEOPLE WILL GO OUT OF THEIR WAY IF THEY FEEL AS THOUGH THEY HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH YOU AND, AND, AND, AND, AND YOU HAVE TO WORK AT IT. IF IN THE MOST DIVERSE CITY YOU HAVE TO WORK AT IT. AND IF YOU DON'T WORK AT IT, THEN YOU, YOU'RE GOING TO INHERIT A CITY THAT'S HIGHLY DIVERSE, BUT CERTAINLY IS ON THE BRINK OF BEING SEPARATE, SEPARATE, SEGREGATED, AND APART. AND IF THAT HAPPENS, THEN YOU REALLY HAVE A MAJOR PROBLEM. SO, UH, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW ALL OF THOSE THINGS. I, YOU KNOW, WITH MY STAFF, THE STAFF IS DIVERSE AND IT'S A DIVERSITY OF OPINIONS AROUND MY EXECUTIVE TABLE, YOU WILL HEAR MANY OPINIONS AND PEOPLE HAVE OPINIONS AND, AND I, I HAVE NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT. MM-HMM . I THINK THAT'S A GOOD THING. UH, BUT I ALSO KNOW THAT, UH, WHEN I CALLED THE PLAY AFTER I HEARD YOU OUT AND I CALLED THE PLAY, LET'S RUN THE PLAY. THAT'S IT. YOU CAN'T HAVE THREE QUARTERBACKS AND THEN EVERYBODY THROWING THE BALL DOWN THE FIELD. GIVE ME YOUR OPINIONS, I WANT TO HEAR YOU. BUT AT THE END, IF PEOPLE EXPECT ME TO CALL THE PLAY AND THEN COLLECTIVELY WE HAVE TO RUN IT. BUT COLLABORATION IS, PARDON. WE SAW THAT WHEN WE DEALT WITH CHAPTER 42 TODAY ON LIVABLE PLACES. AND I TELL YOU, UM, UM, SIX WEEKS AGO PEOPLE WERE ALL OVER THE PLACE. [01:15:02] BUT TODAY, CITY COUNCIL, YOU HAD CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS, YOU HAD THE GREATEST HOUSTON BUILDERS, YOU HAD THE HOUSTON AREA REALTORS, YOU HAD SOME OF THE STAKEHOLDER GROUPS ALL CAME TOGETHER. AND QUITE FRANKLY, IT WAS NOT ACRIMONIOUS AT ALL. AND I THINK THAT'S WHEN THE CITY OF HOUSTON IS OPERATING AT ITS BEST. EXCELLENT. YOU TALKED ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS, AND I'M WATCHING OUR TIME BECAUSE YOU ARE THE QUARTERBACK AND YOU SAID MELINDA, MAKE SURE EVERYONE IS OUT OF HERE BY ONE 30. THAT'S CORRECT. WE'RE GOING TO DO THAT. THAT'S CORRECT. I WILL. IS IT RUN THE PLAY OR FOLLOW THE PLAY? WELL, NO, YOU, YOU RUNNING THE PLAY. I'M FOLLOWING YOU. I'M RUNNING THE PLAY. OKAY. OKAY. THANK YOU FOR THAT DIRECTION, . SO LET'S TALK ABOUT YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY AND HOW ESSENTIAL THAT WAS TO YOUR SUCCESS OVER THE PAST EIGHT YEARS. WELL, I WOULD TELL YOU, UH, THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY WAS VERY INSTRUMENTAL IN THE PENSION REFORM. UH, CITY COUNCIL CAME ON BOARD THE UNIONS. I WANT TO THANK THE UNION GROUPS FOR COMING ON BOARD. THEN CITY COUNCIL CAME ON BOARD, THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY CAME ON BOARD. THEY WERE VERY INSTRUMENTAL IN AUSTIN MM-HMM . IN GETTING THE, UH, LEGISLATORS TO COME ON BOARD. SO THEY'VE BEEN CRITICAL ON, ON, ON MOST OF OUR TRADING INVESTMENT MISSIONS. THEY'VE BEEN DONE IN COLLABORATION WITH THE, WITH THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY S IN PARTNERSHIP AND OTHERS. THEY'VE BEEN VERY INSTRUMENTAL, UH, WITH RESPECT TO WHAT WE ARE DOING, FOR EXAMPLE, IN COMPLETE COMMUNITIES. UH, THAT'S BEING DONE HIGHLY IN COLLABORATION WITH THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY. THE SUNNYSIDE SOLAR FORUM, FOR EXAMPLE, THAT'S BEEN DONE IN COLLABORATION WITH THE ENERGY SECTOR. UH, WHAT WE ARE DOING AT THE BEUM EMPOWERMENT CENTER IN RE HOMES, SAME THING. UH, THE BESOS ACADEMIES, UH, THAT WE ARE SETTING UP IN SEVERAL PLACES THROUGHOUT THE CITY OF HOUSTON WHERE PARENTS ARE NOT HAVING TO PAY. YES. UH, THAT'S BEEN DONE IN COLLABORATION WITH THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY. SO, UH, THE RELATIONSHIP HAS BEEN VERY GOOD, UH, WITH THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY. AND QUITE FRANKLY, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN'T RUN THE CITY WITHOUT HAVING GOOD TIES WITH THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY. MANY OF THE PEOPLE IN THIS ROOM, THE ENERGY SECTOR FOR EXAMPLE, HAS BEEN PHENOMENAL. AND THAT'S WHY EVEN WHEN I WAS CHAIR OF THE UNITED STATES CLIMATE MAYORS, I REFUSE TO DEMONIZE OUR ENERGY COMMUNITY BECAUSE THE CITY OF HOUSTON WAS BASED ON THE ENERGY COMMUNITY. WE WOULDN'T HAVE THE MEDICAL CENTER WITHOUT THE, THE ENERGY COMMUNITY OR NELSON SO MANY OTHER ELEMENTS. SO WHY WOULD I DEMONIZE SOMEONE THAT HAS HELPED TO MAKE THIS THE GREAT CITY THAT IT IS? BUT, BUT CAN WE, BUT CAN WE WORK TOGETHER TO ADDRESS CLIMATE CHANGE? AND ALL OF THESE STORMS ENERGY TRANSITION IS BEING DONE IN COLLABORATION WITH THE, WITH THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY. UM, SO, YOU KNOW, THE MEDICAL CENTER, TREMENDOUS PARTNERS, UH, YOU'VE GOT A NUMBER OF YOUR TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANIES THAT ARE HERE, UH, TODAY SUPPORTING THIS EVENT. SO OVER THE LAST EIGHT YEARS'S BEEN, IT'S BEEN, IT'S BEEN GREAT POINT, FOR EXAMPLE, IS HOSTING SO MANY OTHERS. NOW THAT IS, NOT TO SAY THAT WE AGREE ALL THE TIME, BUT YOU CAN DISAGREE AND YET HAVE A VERY SUPPORTIVE RELATIONSHIP. AND THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT. I THINK THAT'S A GOOD THING. THE QUESTION IS, DO YOU, DO YOU DISAGREE AND GO TO YOUR CORNERS AND YOU JUST FIGHT? WELL, THAT'S, THAT DOESN'T WIN. I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO TRY TO FIND WAYS WHERE WE CAN BE, WHERE WE CAN CREATE WINNERS AND NOT WINNERS AND LOSERS. AND I THINK OVER THE LAST EIGHT YEARS WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO WORK VERY EFFECTIVELY, EFFECTIVELY TOGETHER. AND THE PEOPLE IN THE CITY OF HOUSTON HAVE BENEFITED FROM THE RELATIONSHIP. ABSOLUTELY. I DID WANNA ASK YOU, YOU MENTIONED THE NEXT MAYOR OF THE CITY OF HOUSTON. I'M CURIOUS 'CAUSE THIS IS A VERY PERSONAL CONVERSATION BETWEEN US, WE'VE GONE OVER ALL OF YOUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS RIGHT, IN THE VIDEO AND IN YOUR SPEECH. BUT WHAT IS THE NOTE THAT YOU WILL LEAVE ON THE CHAIR FOR THE NEXT MAYOR OF THE GREAT CITY OF HOUSTON? WILL YOU LEAVE ONE? I'M STILL FORMULATING THOSE STARTS. . LOOK, I LISTENED TO ONE OF THEM DEBATES THE OTHER NIGHT. I CLICKED THE CHANNEL. LOOK, LEMME JUST WHAT I WOULD SAY AND, AND YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU'RE IN CAMPAIGNS, YOU JUST SAY, YOU KNOW, YOU SAY CERTAIN THINGS AND YOU KNOW, YOU'RE TRYING TO WIN VOTES, SO YOU JUST PROBABLY SHOULDN'T WATCH RIGHT NOW. WELL, YOU KNOW, I, I CAN'T, I CAN'T HELP MYSELF . I EVENTUALLY KICK THE CHANNEL BACK. UH, BUT YOU KNOW WHAT I I, YOU KNOW, I WILL PREPARE. I AM GOING TO WRITE A NOTE. UH, AND, AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I'M GOING TO SAY IS ENJOY IT. UH, ANOTHER THING THAT I'M GOING TO SAY, IT'S NOTHING WRONG WHEN YOU GET HERE THAT YOU RECOGNIZE WHAT YOU SAID IN GETTING HERE DOESN'T MATCH UP TO WHAT YOU FIND WHEN YOU GET HERE. MM. THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH MAKING A U-TURN. OKAY. AND THEN WHAT I WILL SAY IS THAT, UM, EVERY COMMUNITY IS IMPORTANT. EVERY PERSON NEEDS TO BE RESPECTED. UM, AND A POSITIVE ATTITUDE WILL GO A LONG WAY. GOOD ADVICE. [01:20:01] SO GOOD ADVICE. LAST TWO QUESTIONS FOR YOU. YOU ARE ALSO A FATHER AND YOU'VE HAD A PERSONAL LIFE. YOU ARE NOT JUST A MAYOR, YOU'RE A FATHER, YOU'RE A GIRL, DAD, MAYOR OF THE CITY OF HOUSTON. YEAH. RIGHT. AND WE KNOW ASHLEY'S HERE TODAY, AND THAT, I THINK, BROUGHT AN ADDITIONAL LAYER TO HOW YOU DID YOUR JOB. IT APPEARED THAT WAY TO ME. TELL US ABOUT HOW IMPORTANT IT WAS FOR YOU TO HAVE YOUR FAMILY BE A PART. WELL, WAS MY DAUGHTER WHO SAID WHEN I, WHEN I WAS RUNNING IN 2015, DAD, DON'T BUILD A CITY FOR, FOR PEOPLE YOUR AGE AND OLDER . INITIALLY, I DIDN'T KNOW HOW TO TAKE THAT , YOU KNOW? 'CAUSE YOU KNOW, I WAS HER DADDY. SO I JUST KINDA SMILED. AND THEN SHE SAID, UH, BUT BUILD A CITY FOR PEOPLE MY AGE AND YOUNGER. MM. AND I TOOK, AND I TOOK THAT TO, I TOOK THAT TO HEART. UH, IT IS IMPORTANT THAT YOU BUILD A CITY, NOT FOR JUST TODAY OR YESTERDAY. YESTERDAY IS GONE. AND IF YOU TRY TO BUILD A CITY ON YESTERDAY'S MODEL, YOU, YOU HAVE ALREADY FAILED. AND BY THE END OF TODAY, TODAY WILL BE GONE. AND SO YOU HAVE TO BE FUTURISTIC IN YOUR THINKING. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I DID, AND I'M PROUD OF IT, THE, THE PERSON OVER BOARD AND COMMISSIONS. I'VE HAD THREE CHAIRPERSONS. NOT ONE OF THEM HAS BEEN OLDER THAN 40 YEARS OLD, NOT ONE. AND WHAT I SAID TO MY CHAIRPERSON, I'M PUTTING YOU IN THIS POSITION, YOUR BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS. IF YOU DON'T PUT PEOPLE OR BRING PEOPLE TO ME WHO ARE YOUR AGE AND YOUNGER, THEN THAT'S YOUR FAULT BECAUSE I'M MAKING YOU, PUTTING YOU IN CHARGE. SO TAKE A LOOK AT ALL OF THESE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS AND SEE WHO'S BEEN THERE FOR A LONG TIME, OR SEE IF THERE'S NOT ENOUGH DIVERSITY ON THESE, AND THEN BRING ME, BRING ME PEOPLE THAT WILL BE REFLECTIVE OF WHERE THIS CITY IS GOING. SO I THINK IT'S, I THINK IT'S VERY IMPORTANT, UH, TO BUILD A CITY THAT'S FUTURISTIC IN NATURE, UH, BECAUSE YOU CAN'T CAPTURE YESTERDAY. AND QUITE FRANKLY, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE ARE COMING FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD AND THERE ARE THINGS THAT THEY ARE LOOKING FOR. UH, AND YOU KNOW, WHAT MY DAUGHTER SAID IS, DAD, THIS, YOU KNOW, THE CITY STILL NEEDS A LITTLE SIZZLE AND SOME POP TO IT. BUT I AGREE WITH THAT. OKAY. SO I THINK THAT'S, YOU KNOW, THAT'S CRITICALLY IMPORTANT THAT YOU HAVE TO PROJECT THIS CITY INTO THE FUTURE. AND THAT'S, AS, AS THIS, UH, POET ONCE SAID, CHILDREN ARE MESSAGES THAT WE SEND INTO THE FUTURE TO A WORLD. WE OURSELVES MAY NEVER SEE. WHAT SORT OF MESSAGE SHALL WE SEND THEM. AND IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT WHATEVER WE DO, THAT WE BUILD THE CITY FOR TOMORROW THAT HAS YET TO COME. AND THEN I THINK WE'LL BE PREPARED FOR WHAT COMES DOWN THE ROAD. WELL, SPEAKING OF WHAT'S YET TO COME, YOU KNOW, I HAVE TO ASK, IT SEEMS LIKE YOU HAVE A LOT MORE WORK LEFT TO DO AND A LOT MORE ENERGY TO USE. WHAT IS NEXT FOR YOU? SYLVESTER TURNER? YOU KNOW, MORE, MORE I THINK ABOUT IT. YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW WHY I SHOULD LEAVE. I SHOULD JUST STAY STICK AROUND . WOULDN'T THAT THEY HAVE TO PUSH YOU OUT? WOULDN'T WOULDN'T THAT BE A STORY? ? BUT, UH, IN TERMS OF THE FUTURE, FOR ME, QUITE FRANKLY, THAT IS IN GOD'S HANDS. UM, AND I DON'T, AND I'M NOT TRYING TO BE, YOU KNOW, OH, THERE YOU GO, HOLIER THAN THAT, THAT, YOU KNOW, I'M NOT TRYING. WHAT I'M SAYING IS THAT, UM, I THINK SOMETIMES IF YOU TRY TO PLAN THINGS OUT AHEAD, YOU KNOW, WAY DOWN THE ROAD SOMETIMES YOU MISS, WHAT I WILL SAY IS THAT WE GOT THREE MONTHS LEFT. MM-HMM . WE GONNA WORK THE NEXT THREE MONTHS AND TOMORROW WILL TAKE CARE OF ITSELF. AND THAT'S THE WAY I'VE OPERATED ALL, ALL MY LIFE. I'VE HAD AN INCREDIBLE, INCREDIBLE, UH, CAREER. I'LL TAKE NOTHING FROM MY JOURNEY. THESE EIGHT YEARS HAVE BEEN INCREDIBLE. AND I HAVE ENJOYED EVERY SINGLE MINUTE. NO QUESTION ABOUT THAT. QUITE FRANKLY, OVER THE NEXT THREE MONTHS, I'M JUST GOING TO TAKE THE TIME TO SOAK IT ALL IN. AND THAT'S WHY I LOOK OVER THIS AUDIENCE. YOU KNOW, AFTER TODAY, I'LL NEVER SEE IN THIS SETTING AGAIN. SO FOR THE NEXT THREE MONTHS, [01:25:01] AFTER DEALING WITH SEVEN FEDERALLY DECLARED DISASTERS, , SOCIAL AND CIVIL UNREST, COVID, THAT JUST WON'T GO AWAY. WINTER STORM URI, EXTREME HEAT, DROUGHT CONDITIONS. I DIDN'T OVER THE NEXT THREE CANCER. I DIDN'T GO OVER THE NEXT THREE MONTHS. I'M JUST GOING TO TAKE IT ALL IN AND WHATEVER COMES NEXT FOR ME WILL BE JUST ICING ON THE CAKE. THAT'S THE WAY I LOOK AT IT. MAYOR SYLVESTER TURNER, HAPPY BIRTHDAY. THANK YOU. CONGRATULATIONS. THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO BE YOUR MAYOR. THANK YOU SO MUCH. TAKE IT ALL IN. TAKE IT ALL IN. MAYOR TURNER, TAKE IT ALL IN. THANK YOU ALL FOR JOINING US FOR TODAY'S LUNCHEON. I FOLLOWED THE PLAY. THANK YOU FOR BEING OUR QUARTERBACK. THANK YOU. AWESOME. AWESOME, AWESOME. HAVE A GREAT AFTERNOON. THANK YOU. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.