* 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. [Resilience Committee on June 6, 2024.] [00:00:21] WE ARE GONNA GO AHEAD AND GET STARTED. UH, BEFORE WE DO, I JUST WANNA, UM, JUST TAKE A MOMENT AND, AND ACKNOWLEDGE TODAY AS THE 80TH ANNIVERSARY OF D-DAY AND THANK OUR, UH, VETERANS WHO SERVED OUR, UH, HAVE SERVED OUR COUNTRY OVER, OVER THE MANY YEARS. AND WHILE WE, UH, COMMEMORATE NORMANDY, WE CERTAINLY WANT TO THANK OUR, UH, NATION'S GREATEST TREASURES AND THE GREATEST GENERATION OF ALL TIME, THE WORLD WAR II, UH, UH, VETERANS IN THERE. SO, I HEARD THIS MORNING LESS THAN 1%, UH, STILL OUT THERE TODAY. SO THANK A VETERAN TODAY. UM, IN THE INTEREST OF TIME, WE'RE GONNA GO AHEAD AND GET STARTED. WE, UH, DO NOT HAVE A QUORUM. UH, SO IN, IN ACCORDANCE WITH CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE PRACTICES, WE WILL CONVENE THE MEETING AND ENSURE THAT NO VOTE WOULD BE HELD IN, IN CASE WE WOULD NEED A QUORUM BECAUSE WE HAVE NO QUORUM PRESENT UNTIL PERHAPS A COUPLE OTHER MEMBERS SHOW UP. UM, WOULD LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT. UH, COUNCIL MEMBER RAMIREZ IS HERE, STAFF FROM COUNCIL MEMBER DAVIS COUNCIL, UH, VICE CHAIR, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER CAYMAN. UM, COUNCIL MEMBER JACKSON, DISTRICT B. UH, WE'VE GOT THE STAFF FROM VICE MAYOR, FROM MAYOR PRO TEM, DISTRICT K CASTEX TATUM. UM, AND WE'VE GOT STAFF FROM, UH, MARTINEZ, MARTINEZ. I'M, I'M LOOKING, I SHOULD JUST GO DOWN MY LIST, UH, STAFF FROM COUNCIL MEMBER MARTINEZ. UM, COUNCIL MEMBER LETITIA PLUMMER, ALCORN AND CASTILLO. THANK Y'ALL FOR BEING HERE. UM, JUST A, A BIT OF AN UPDATE TODAY. UH, WE'VE BEEN, UM, UH, SUNNYSIDE SOLAR PROJECT, THE URBAN SOLAR, THE, UH, URBAN SOLAR FARM HAS BEEN ON THE RADAR A BIT AND JUST WANTED TO UPDATE THAT. UH, MY OFFICE WILL BE MEETING WITH THE STAKEHOLDERS IN THE COMMUNITY, UH, OVER THE NEXT TWO WEEKS, UH, ON THIS PROJECT. AND WE'LL BE PROVIDING AN UPDATE, UH, TO, TO THE COMMUNITY ON THAT. UM, ALSO TO THE, UM, FOLLOW UP ON THE $2 MILLION GRANT THAT THE CITY HAS RECEIVED FOR FUNDING TO CONDUCT THE ENERGY AUDIT AUDITS AT MUNICIPAL BUILDINGS AND SUBSEQUENT RETROFITS, UM, TO UPDATE ENERGY CODES AND BOLSTER COMPLIANCE AND ESTABLISH A LOAN FUND TO FINANCE SUSTAINABILITY PROJECTS AND TO INSTALL SOLAR PANELS AND BATTERY STORAGE AT COMMUNITY SERVING MUNICIPAL FACILITIES. UM, I THINK WE'RE READY TO GO INTO OUR PRESENTATION. AND FIRST UP, WE WELCOME TODAY THE HOUSTON TOOL BANK. UH, MARLEY MASKELL, THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSTON TOOL BANK. AND IF YOU DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE HOUSTON TOOL BANK, YOU'RE ABOUT TO WHAT A GREAT COMMUNITY PARTNER AND CERTAINLY A WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL NONPROFIT IN OUR CITY. SO WELCOME. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. I WILL SIT DOWN THEN. . OKAY. IS THAT BETTER? OKAY. SO WE ARE A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION AND WE PARTNER WITH OTHER NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS IN SERVICE OF THEIR MISSION. OUR GOAL IS TO INCREASE THE CAPACITY OF THE NONPROFIT SECTOR BY SHARING TOOLS, RESOURCES, AND OTHER ITEMS TO HELP NONPROFITS AND TAX EXEMPT ENTITIES DO MORE GOOD WORK IN THE COMMUNITY. UM, OUR ULTIMATE GOAL IS TO REDUCE THOSE NON-MISSION RELATED LINE ITEMS SO THAT NONPROFITS CAN DIRECT THEIR FUNDING TO MISSION-FOCUSED ACTIVITY RATHER THAN TOOLS AND RESOURCES. THE PRIMARY WAY WE DO THIS IS THROUGH OUR TOOL LENDING PROGRAM. SO WE SHARE MORE THAN 16,000 TOOLS ACROSS 855 NONPROFITS ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS. OUR WAREHOUSE IS LOCATED IN DENVER HARBOR, AND BECAUSE WE PARTNER WITH 855 NONPROFITS, WE SERVE A WIDE RANGE OF MISSION TYPES. AND SO OUR INVENTORY REFLECTS THAT. WE HAVE EVERYTHING FROM CEMENT MIXERS TO COCKTAIL TABLES, AND REALLY EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN THOSE ITEMS THAT NONPROFITS SPEND MONEY ON, UM, SO THAT THEY CAN REDIRECT THOSE FUNDS TO THE MISSION AND THE WORK THAT THEY DO. ULTIMATELY, OUR GOAL IS TO HEAR THAT NONPROFITS HAD PLANNED TO REPAIR THREE [00:05:01] HOMES, BUT THEY WERE ABLE TO REPAIR SIX HOMES BECAUSE THEY WERE ABLE TO SAVE MONEY BY WORKING WITH THE TOOL BANK AND REDIRECT THAT FUNDING TO SERVE MORE INDIVIDUALS IMPACTED IN OUR COMMUNITY. IN ADDITION TO OUR WAREHOUSE IN DENVER HARBOR, WE HAVE NEIGHBORHOOD TOOL HUBS IN SIX LOCATIONS IN THE GREATER HOUSTON AREA. SO THESE ARE MODIFIED SHIPPING CONTAINERS. THEY'RE PLACED IN CONROE CITY CENTER, UM, ANGLETON, RICHMOND, ROSENBERG, GALVESTON ISLAND, AND BEAUMONT. AND THESE ACT AS REMOTE PICKUP SITES. SO THOSE PARTNERS THAT ARE FURTHER FROM OUR LOCATION IN DOWNTOWN HOUSTON HAVE EQUAL ACCESSES EQUAL ACCESS TO THE TOOLS AND RESOURCES TO SERVE THEIR MISSIONS AS WELL. UM, AND IT'S NO STRETCH OF IMAGINATION HOW A TOOL LENDING PROGRAM CAN BE IMPACTFUL IN OUR COMMUNITY AFTER A DISASTER. SO WE HAVE A WIDE RANGE OF INVENTORY THAT WE SHARE THROUGHOUT THE NONPROFIT SECTOR, AND, UM, ALSO WITH TAX EXEMPT ENTITIES TO SUPPORT THEIR DISASTER RESPONSE EFFORTS, UM, BOTH DURING THE PREPARATION RESPONSE AND LONG-TERM RECOVERY PHASES. UM, THE HOUSTON TOOL BANK WAS FOUNDED IN 2014, AND OVER THE LAST 10 YEARS, WE'VE, UM, RESPONDED TO A WIDE RANGE OF DISASTERS THAT HAVE IMPACTED OUR COMMUNITY IN THAT TIME. UM, AND ONE OF THE OPPORTUNITIES THAT WE HAVE RECOGNIZED IN RECENT YEARS IS THE, UM, NEED TO GET TOOLS OUT AS FAST AS POSSIBLE AFTER A STORM. EVERYONE IN THIS ROOM KNOWS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MUCKING, GETTING A HOME ON THE FIRST DAY IT WAS FLOODED VERSUS 14 DAYS AFTER IT WAS FLOODED, AND THE, UM, COST, TIME OF REPAIR AND OTHER RECOVERY CHALLENGES THAT THAT EXTRA TWO WEEKS MAY POSE ON AN INDIVIDUAL HOMEOWNER. AND SO WE HAVE IMPLEMENTED WHAT WE CALL PREPAREDNESS PARTNERSHIPS, AND THESE ARE RELATIONSHIPS WITH ENTITIES THAT KNOW THAT THEY'RE GOING TO RESPOND AFTER A DISASTER SO THAT THEY CAN, UM, HAVE THOSE TOOLS BEFORE IMPACT OF A MAJOR STORM. SO THEY DON'T HAVE TO WAIT TO CONNECT WITH THE TOOL BANK TO BE ABLE TO HAVE THE TOOLS THEY NEED TO RESPOND TO THEIR CONSTITUENTS AND CLIENTS IMPACTED BY A DISASTER EVENT. UM, WE ALSO USE THOSE NEIGHBORHOOD TOOL HUBS I MENTIONED AS, UM, DEPLOYMENT SITES FOR RESOURCES, UM, ACROSS THE GREATER HOUSTON AREA. SO WE PRE STOCK THOSE HUBS WITH GENERATORS, DEHUMIDIFIERS, MUCKING, GUT TOOLS, AND OTHER RECOVERY TOOLS, UM, BEFORE LANDFALL OR IMPACT OF A MAJOR EVENT, SO THAT IF WE CAN'T GET ACROSS 45 OR I 10, THOSE TOOLS ARE ALREADY IN THOSE COMMUNITIES. I'M GONNA INTERRUPT YOU A SECOND. YES. WHICH SLIDE ARE YOU ON? IF YOU COULD? UM, THE, THERE'S A DISASTER SUPPORT SLIDE. OKAY. IF YOU COULD JUST SAY NEXT SLIDE WHEN YOU'RE READY. OKAY. PLEASE. THANK YOU. SORRY, . NO, YOU'RE FINE. IT'S, UH, NEXT SLIDE IS, IS SOMEONE GONNA ADVANCE IT? OKAY. WE CAN, NEXT SLIDE. NEXT ONE. THERE WE GO. UM, SO OUR TOOLS ARE DEPLOYED THROUGH THESE, UH, DISASTER OR THROUGH OUR NEIGHBORHOOD TOOL HUBS, WHICH BECOME OUR DISASTER HUBS. IN THAT EVENT, UM, IT ALSO FURTHER REDUCES THE RISK OF ALL OF OUR INVENTORY BEING STORED IN ONE LOCATION. SO WE HAVE TOOLS DISTRIBUTED ACROSS GREATER HOUSTON AREA SO THAT IF THERE IS AN IMPACT IN ONE OF THEM, WE STILL HAVE TOOLS AVAILABLE, UM, TO OUR PARTNERS ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS. UM, AND NEXT SLIDE. SO, ONE OF THE PREPAREDNESS PARTNERSHIPS THAT I'M MOST PROUD OF IS OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH OUR CITY OF HOUSTON COUNCIL MEMBERS. SO WE HAVE DIRECT PARTNERSHIPS WITH EIGHT CITY OF HOUSTON COUNCIL DISTRICTS. UM, AND WHAT THESE RELATIONSHIPS LOOK LIKE IS WE HAVE PROCURED KITS OF TOOLS FOR EACH DISTRICTS. UM, THE BASE OF THESE KITS ARE FOCUSED ON MUCKING GUT AND THOSE DISASTER, IMMEDIATE DISASTER RESPONSE DEBRIS REMOVAL TOOLS THAT ARE NEEDED, UM, THAT ARE VERY HARD TO PROCURE ON DAY ONE AFTER A STORM. AND SO WE HAVE ASSEMBLED THESE KITS FOR THESE DISTRICTS, AND WE'VE WORKED WITH THESE DISTRICTS WHO IDENTIFY THE APPROPRIATE DISASTER HUB SITES WITHIN THEIR AREAS SO THAT WE CAN, UM, RE-DEPLOY THESE KITS BEFORE LANDFALL. SO THE TOOLS ARE ALREADY AVAILABLE TO BE USED FOR THE, THOSE CONSTITUENTS WHO MAY BE IMPACTED BY AN UPCOMING STORM. UM, A FEW BENEFITS OF THIS RELATIONSHIP IS THE COUNCIL'S DISTRICTS HAVE FULL ACCESS TO OUR INVENTORY IN ADDITION TO THESE KITS. SO IT'S NOT LIMITED TO JUST THE MUCKING GUT KITS THAT WE'VE ASSEMBLED, BUT IF IT TURNS OUT TO BE A WIND EVENT, WE CAN FLEX THAT INVENTORY TO PROVIDE MORE DEBRIS, REMOVAL, ROOF TARPING AND CHAINSAWS THAT MAY BE NEEDED IN THAT CASE, AND, AND LEAVE BEHIND THE MUCKING GUT IF THERE IS NO [00:10:01] FLOODING EVENT OR WHATEVER THE SPECIFIC DISASTER REQUIRES. UM, AND WE'RE ALSO ABLE TO SWAP OUT AND REPLACE TOOLS THROUGHOUT THAT LONG-TERM RECOVERY PROCESS. SO AS POWER RETURNS, WE CAN RETURN THE GENERATORS AND WE CAN REPLACE IT WITH THOSE LONG-TERM HOME REPAIR NEEDS. THE TOOL BANK ALSO TAKES RESPONSIBLE FOR INVENTORYING, REPAIRING, REPLACING, AND MANAGING THAT INVENTORY IN BETWEEN AND AFTER STORMS. SO AFTER RECOVERY CONCLUDES, WE RETURN ALL OF THE TOOLS BACK TO THE TOOL BANK, WE ASSESS THE KITS, MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE WHOLE AND COMPLETE, AND READY TO GO BEFORE THE NEXT DISASTER EVENT. AND NEXT SLIDE. UM, SO UP ONE BACK. THERE YOU GO. THANK YOU. UM, SO THE, UM, UH, JUST TO PROVIDE YOU AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT HAPPENED IN MAY, UM, A LOT OF MY LANGUAGE, UM, IS PREDEPLOYMENT WHEN WE HAVE HEADS UP THREE TO FIVE DAYS NOTICE OF A DISASTER EVENT THAT WE DON'T ALWAYS HAVE THAT LUXURY. SO IN MAY, UM, WE DID NOT HAVE, UM, WE DID NOT PRE REDEPLOY OUR TOOLS FOR THE WEATHER EVENT. WE DID NOT, UM, WE WERE NOT AWARE OF THE IMPACT THAT, UM, THE POTENTIAL IMPACT. UM, SO OUR TEAM WAS IN THE WAREHOUSE EARLY FRIDAY MORNING ASSEMBLING THE TOOLS, PREPARING THEM FOR DEPLOYMENT ACROSS OUR CITY. FOUR OF OUR CITY OF HOUSTON COUNCIL MEMBERS ACTIVATED AND SUPPORTED THE RESPONSE. AND SO WE DEPLOYED OUR TOOLS THROUGH THOSE, UM, COUNCIL MEMBER PARTNERSHIPS, AND WE ALSO SUPPORT AN ADDITIONAL 15 NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS. UM, SO FAR WE HAVE SHARED MORE THAN 800 TOOLS ACROSS THOSE PARTNERS. UM, AND OUR TOOLS, UM, SUPPORTED VOLUNTEER RECEPTION CENTERS, COOLING CENTERS, AND FOOD DISTRIBUTION SITES. SO THOSE WERE GENERATORS, AC UNITS, EVAPORATIVE COOLERS, TABLES AND CHAIRS THAT WERE USED TO SUPPORT THOSE EFFORTS. UM, WE HAD GENERATORS AND AC UNITS, UM, AND OTHER EQUIPMENT BE PROVIDED TO INDIVIDUAL CONSTITUENTS HOMES WHO ARE OF A VULNERABLE POPULATION. SO THEY HAD THE POWER IN THEIR OWN HOME TO SUPPORT, YOU KNOW, MEDICAL EQUIPMENT OR WHATEVER THEY MAY NEED. UM, WE PROVIDED TOOLS FOR DEBRIS REMOVAL AND PRELIMINARY CLEANUP, SO IT WAS SAFE TO TRAVEL AROUND OUR COMMUNITY, AND WE ALSO PROVIDED TOOLS TO BEGIN THOSE PRELIMINARY HOME REPAIRS. UM, NOW THAT POWER HAS RETURNED, UM, WE ARE SEEING THE RETURN OF ALL OF THOSE GENERATORS AND AC UNITS, AND WE'RE SEEING THE REQUESTS COME IN FOR THE TOOLS FOR ROOF TARPING, HOME REPAIRS, UM, AND OTHER NEEDS THAT HAVE, YOU KNOW, THAT WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE LONG-TERM RECOVERY PROCESS FOR THIS STORM. UM, AND NEXT SLIDE. AND JUST TO SHARE A LITTLE BIT, UH, ABOUT HOW WE'RE PREPARING FOR HURRICANE SEASON. SO YOU ALL MAY HAVE SAW THE, THE HOUSTON CHRONICLE ARTICLE THIS MORNING THAT SAID THAT HOUSTON IS THE NUMBER TWO LEAST PREPARED CITY. UM, AND SO WE ARE DOING ALL WE CAN TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE AS PREPARED AS POSSIBLE TO SUPPORT OUR COMMUNITIES, SHOULD WE BE IMPACTED BY ANOTHER DISASTER THIS HURRICANE SEASON. UM, WHILE WE ARE PROUD OF WHAT WE DID IN MAY, 2024, UM, WE DEFINITELY HAD SOME LESSONS LEARNED. SO WE'RE REEVALUATING OUR DISASTER PLAN, MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE ALL THE PIECES IN PLACE. WE KNOW OUR PARTNERS ARE DOING THE SAME. SO WE'RE CONNECTING WITH ALL OF OUR PREPAREDNESS PARTNERS AND MAKING SURE THAT IF THE TOOL BANK IS WRITTEN INTO THEIR DISASTER PLAN, WE KNOW, UM, WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO BE ASKING OF US SO THAT WE CAN BE AS PREPARED AS POSSIBLE. UH, WE'LL ALSO BE CONNECTING WITH ALL OF OUR CITY OF HOUSTON COUNCIL MEMBER, DISTRICT PARTNERS, UM, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'VE IDENTIFIED THE BEST HUBS, UM, THE RIGHT TOOLKIT SO THAT WE ARE ALL ON THE SAME PAGE IF WE DO NEED TO DEPLOY VERY, VERY QUICKLY. UM, AND WE ARE ALSO PARTNERING WITH TEXAS CONGREGATIONAL DISASTER READINESS NETWORK TO OFFER HANDS-ON PREPAREDNESS TRAININGS AT THE TOOL BANK. SO THESE TRAININGS BRING PEOPLE TO THE TOOL BANK WHO WANT TO BE ACTIVE IN SUPPORTING RECOVERY. WE TEACH PEOPLE HOW TO TARP A ROOF, HOW TO MUCKING GUT A HOME, AND HOW TO OFFER COMPASSIONATE CARE TO THOSE IMPACTED BY DISASTER. WE ACTUALLY HAD THE FIRST ONE OF THESE TRAININGS ONE WEEK BEFORE THE WIND EVENT IN MAY. SO, UM, THAT WAS DECENT TIMING, THAT WE HAD A HANDFUL OF PEOPLE PREPARED AF BEFORE THAT EVENT, AND WE PLAN TO HAVE THEM IN JULY, AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER OF THIS YEAR AS WELL. AND THAT ARE, THOSE ARE MY, UH, REMARKS ABOUT THE HOUSTON TOOL BANK AND OUR TOOL, UM, LENDING PROGRAM FOR DISASTER. AND WITH THAT, I'LL OPEN IT UP TO ANY QUESTIONS. WELL, THANK YOU, MARLEY. WHAT A, A WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL NONPROFIT. AND I WOULD ENCOURAGE ANY OF THE COUNCIL MEMBERS WHO DON'T HAVE A PARTNERSHIP, THOSE DISTRICT COUNCIL MEMBERS, TO GET A PARTNERSHIP. I ESPECIALLY, I, UH, WOULD LOVE MY OWN DISTRICT E TO GET, UH, GET CONNECTED THERE, BUT NO, UH, I WAS JUST CURIOUS. SO, UH, I, I KNOW YOUR OPERATION AND WHAT A TREMENDOUS VALUE YOU BRING TO THE COMMUNITY. HOW, WHAT, WHAT IS YOUR, UH, WHAT IS YOUR STAFF AS OPPOSED TO VOLUNTEER NUMBERS? WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? YES. SO WE'RE A RELATIVELY SMALL TEAM. WE HAVE SIX EMPLOYEES. UM, WE HAVE, UH, FOUR PEOPLE WORKING IN [00:15:01] ACTIVELY IN THE WAREHOUSE, AND THAT INCLUDES A DELIVERY DRIVER. SO WE DO DELIVERIES OF OUR TOOLS AROUND TOWN AS WELL. UM, AND THEN WE HAVE TWO STAFF, MYSELF AND A, AND A PROGRAM, UH, MANAGER WHO FOCUS MORE ON THE STRUCTURE AND ORGANIZATION OF, OF THE TOOL BANK. UM, AND THEN WE HAVE A LARGE, UM, VOLUNTEER NETWORK. SO WE HAVE, UM, FOUR REGULAR VOLUNTEERS THAT ARE WITH US ALMOST AS MUCH AS OUR STAFF IS, WHICH IS, THEY'RE VERY, UM, APPRECIATED. UM, AND THEN WE WORK REALLY CLOSELY, UM, WITH A LOT OF CORPORATE GROUPS AND, UM, VOLUNTEER GROUPS IN THE COMMUNITY TO BRING IN LARGE VOLUNTEER GROUPS TO HELP US TACKLE, UM, BIG PROJECTS. THANK YOU. WE HAVE, UH, A COUPLE QUESTIONS HERE. UH, COUNCIL MEMBER RAMIREZ. THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. GOOD MORNING. AND, AND, UM, HAVE TO COMMEND YOU GUYS ON A WONDERFUL ORGANIZATION AND THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU DO TO, UH, HELP HOUSTONIANS. I'M CURIOUS ABOUT HOW, UH, HOUSTONIANS WHO WOULD LIKE TO SUPPORT YOUR ORGANIZATION CAN HELP OUT. WHAT, WHAT, HOW CAN WE HELP OUT? THANK YOU. UM, SO WE'RE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR PARTNERS, UM, OF THE TOOL BANK. SO IF YOU KNOW ANY ORGANIZATIONS WHO COULD BENEFIT FROM USING OUR RESOURCES BOTH FOR DISASTER OR THEIR OTHER OPERATIONS, PLEASE REFER THEM TO THE TOOL BANK. WE LOVE TO KIND OF BUILD THOSE RELATIONSHIPS WITH COMMUNITY GROUPS THAT WE MAY NOT ALREADY BE PARTNERING WITH, AND WE'RE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR VOLUNTEERS TO SUPPORT OUR EFFORTS, UM, OR IN KIND AND DONATIONS OF TOOLS AS WELL. SO WE ARE A NONPROFIT. AND SO, UM, TO BRING IN THE TOOLS THAT WE SHARE WITH THE COMMUNITY, WE'RE EITHER WRITING GRANTS THROUGH SEEKING IN KIND DONATIONS, AND WE HAVE FOUND THAT, UM, UH, PROCURING DONATIONS, UH, THROUGH INDIVIDUAL INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE, YOU KNOW, CLEANING OUT THEIR, UH, GARAGE OR HAVE TOOLS THAT THEY HAVEN'T USED IN A WHILE, IS ONE OF THE BEST WAYS FOR US TO GET, UM, TOOLS IN THE COMMUNITY. SO WE WOULD, WE WOULD WELCOME THOSE AS WELL. UM, AND JUST WELCOME ANY CONVERSATIONS FOR POTENTIAL PARTNERSHIPS AS WELL. SO WE'RE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR A WAY TO BE STRATEGIC IN SHARING TOOLS. AND JUST LIKE OUR PREPAREDNESS PARTNERSHIPS WITH THE CITY OF HOUSTON COUNCIL MEMBERS JUST CAME OUT OF SOME CONVERSATIONS ABOUT HOW CAN WE PARTNER TOGETHER MORE EFFECTIVELY? AND SO ALWAYS WELCOME THOSE CONVERSATIONS WITH THOSE WHO ARE INTERESTED TO SEE HOW WE CAN ALIGN OUR PROGRAMMING BEST. MM-HMM . AND IT'S PRETTY CLEAR FROM THE MODEL YOU'VE LAID OUT THAT A LOT OF THOUGHT HAS GONE INTO WHAT YOU GUYS DO AND HOW YOU DO IT. AND AS WE'VE HAD A FEW INCIDENTS THIS YEAR THAT WE'VE HAD TO DEAL WITH, UH, OF AN EMERGENCY NATURE. HA DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY THOUGHTS ON, UH, HOW WE COULD IMPROVE IN, IN WHAT WE DO AND HOW WE WORK WITH, UH, WITH YOU GUYS? I THINK COMMUNICATION IS THE NUMBER ONE, UM, MISSING COMPONENT OR AREA WHERE WE COULD HAVE, UM, AN IMPROVED, UH, KIND OF COORDINATED WORK. UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE OFTEN HEAR IS WE'LL GET A CALL AFTER THE DISASTER SAYING, YES, WE'VE BEEN PLANNING TO CALL YOU FOR MONTHS. WE'VE BEEN, WE KNOW THAT WE ARE GONNA WORK WITH YOU, AND THAT'S NOT WHAT WE WANNA HEAR. WE, IF YOU'RE PLANNING TO CALL US AFTER DISASTER, WE WANNA KNOW THAT BEFOREHAND SO THAT WE CAN BE PREPARED. SO I REALLY THINK JUST THAT COMMUNICATION PIECE, WHAT ARE YOUR DISASTER PLANS? WHAT, WHAT DO YOU NEED? 'CAUSE KNOWING AHEAD OF TIME WE CAN ADAPT OUR PROGRAM, WE CAN BRING IN ADDITIONAL TOOLS, WE CAN MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE THE CAPACITY TO SUPPORT WHATEVER THAT MAY BE, BUT FINDING OUT AFTER THE FACT, WE MIGHT HAVE LESS, UM, FLEXIBILITY IN THAT. AND SO I THINK REALLY THAT COORDINATED APPROACH BY KIND OF OVER COMMUNICATING, COMMUNICATING EVERYONE'S STRENGTHS AND OPPORTUNITY AREAS, UM, IS, UM, REALLY WOULD BE MOST BENEFICIAL. YOUR TIME HAS EXPIRED. UH, WE HAVE A QUESTION FROM COUNCIL MEMBER CAYMAN'S OFFICE. THANK YOU. AND MARLEY, I JUST WANTED TO THANK YOU SO MUCH. I DON'T KNOW WHAT WE WOULD'VE DONE WITHOUT Y'ALL DURING THE MAY STORM. I KNOW YOU PERSONALLY MADE YOURSELF AVAILABLE TO OUR OFFICE 24 7, I CAN'T COUNT HOW MANY PHONE CALLS, TEXT MESSAGES. THANK YOU SO MUCH. WITHOUT THOSE CHAINSAWS, DEBRIS, SLEDS, IT WOULD'VE BEEN MUCH MORE DIFFICULT TO HELP OUR COMMUNITIES CLEAN UP. AND IN ADDITION TO THE DISASTER, I KNOW YOU'VE BEEN THERE FOR DISTRICT C FOR NEIGHBORHOOD BEAUTIFICATION PROJECTS AND GOING TO OUR COMMUNITIES AND SHARING WHAT OPPORTUNITIES MAY BE AVAILABLE TO PARTNER. SO JUST THANK YOU. THANK YOU. NEXT WE HAVE, UH, QUESTIONS FROM STAFF FROM, UH, MAYOR PRO, TIMM CASTEX TATUM. THANK YOU, MADAM CHAIR. THANK YOU MARLEY, FOR THE PRESENTATION. UM, JUST WANTED TO STATE ON BEHALF OF, UM, MAYOR PRO TEEX TATUM. UH, WE TOURED THE TOOL BANK FACILITY IN OCTOBER, 2023, AND THE INVENTORY OF RESOURCES THAT YOU HAVE THERE IS JUST COMMENDABLE. UM, I DO RECALL, UM, THE TABLES THAT WERE MADE, UM, IN YOUR PARTNERSHIP WITH THE SCHOOLS, UM, THAT WAS PRETTY UNIQUE AND JUST [00:20:01] THE, UM, EQUIPMENT AND EQUIPMENT THAT YOU HAVE FOR OUTREACH EVENTS IS JUST COMMENDABLE. UM, BUT THANK YOU AGAIN FOR BEING SUCH A GREAT RESOURCE TO THE CITY OF HOUSTON. THANK YOU. COUNCIL MEMBER RAMIREZ. IT'S CURIOUS TO KNOW IF YOU HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH MAJOR BOX RETAILERS LIKE HOME DEPOT AND LOWE'S. WE DO. SO HOME DEPOT AND HOME DEPOT FOUNDATION IS ONE OF OUR BIGGEST SUPPORTERS. GREAT. SO WE, WE GET A LOT OF IN KIND DONATIONS, UM, FROM HOME DEPOT, AND THEY'RE ALSO SUPPORTING, UM, THE, THE MAY EVENT WITH BOTH IN KIND AND FUNDING TO HELP US WITH THE OPERATIONS, UM, THAT WE HAD FOR THAT. WE ALSO HAVE A GREAT RELATIONSHIP WITH STANLEY BLACK AND DECKER. ALRIGHT. AND CAN YOU ALSO SHARE WITH US SOME OF THE NONPROFITS THAT WERE DEPLOYED DURING THE MOST RECENT EMERGENCY EVENTS? YES. SO WE WORKED, UM, WE WORKED WITH 15 DIFFERENT ORGANIZATIONS. UM, WE WORKED WITH CROWDSOURCE RESCUE, UM, IN, UH, THEY, I THINK THEY PARTNERED WITH, UM, COUNCIL MEMBER PECK IN DEPLOYING TOOLS IN HER AREA. WE WORKED WITH A SPRING BRANCH FAMILY DEVELOPMENT CENTER, WHICH WAS A, UH, FOOD DISTRI MAIN FOOD DISTRIBUTION SITE. WE WORKED WITH EAST HARRIS COUNTY EMPOWERMENT COUNCIL FOR THEIR WORK, UM, WEST STREET RECOVERY RESTORATION TEAM AND TEJANO CENTER, UM, AND, UM, THE HOUSTON FOOD BANK AS WELL FOR SOME OF THEIR DISTRIBUTIONS. AND THERE ARE A FEW OTHERS, BUT I DON'T HAVE IT AT TOP OF MIND. GREAT. ALRIGHT, THANKS SO MUCH. ANY MORE QUESTIONS? AGAIN, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING HERE. THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU DO. CERTAINLY, UH, WE LOOK TO, UH, REALLY, UH, INCREASE THE, YOUR VISIBILITY IN THE COMMUNITY, BUT ALSO TO THE PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CITY. UM, I'M GONNA PUT YOU ON THE SPOT AND JUST ASK FOR, UH, PURPOSES OF COMMUNITY MEETINGS, TOWN HALLS AND SUCH. UM, ASSUMING SOMEONE FROM YOUR ORGANIZATION WOULD BE AVAILABLE TO TALK TO, UH, TALK TO THE COMMUNITIES AND AND BRING AWARENESS TO WHAT YOU DO. ABSOLUTELY, YES. WE WOULD LOVE TO JOIN ANY TOWN HALLS, COMMUNITY MEETINGS OR SUPER NEIGHBORHOOD MEETINGS. UM, WE, THOSE ARE OUR PRIMARY PARTNERS, AND SO THE MORE THAT WE CAN RAISE AWARENESS OF THE RESOURCES THAT WE HAVE FOR THEM, THE BETTER. SO DON'T HESITATE TO REACH OUT. WE'D LOVE TO BE INVOLVED. THANK YOU. I WOULD SAY YOU'RE ONE OF THE BEST KEPT SECRETS, BUT YOU'RE NOT A SECRET BECAUSE I KNOW ABOUT YOU. BUT, UM, ONE OF THE BEST KEPT, NOT BEST KEPT SECRET NONPROFITS IN THIS CITY. AND, AND AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO AND THANK YOU. YOU'RE, UH, IT'S LIKE INSURANCE. NO ONE THINKS ABOUT IT UNTIL YOU NEED IT. AND THANK GOD YOU'RE THERE. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE AND WE APPRECIATE YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT. OUR NEXT PRESENTATION IS FROM, UH, OUR FRIENDS WITH THE MASTER WATERSHED PLAN. WE'VE GOT, UH, CHOICE, UH, CHOICE MORROW AND, AND TAC KINNO. CHOICE IS THE MANAGING ENGINEER FOR HOUSTON PUBLIC WORKS FOR THE FOOD FOR FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT OFFICE, AND T IS, UH, WORKING ON THE CRS, THE COMMUNITY RATING SYSTEM. HE IS A CONTRACTOR WITH LOCKWOOD ANDREWS AND NEWNAN. THANK Y'ALL FOR BEING HERE. GOOD MORNING AND THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR SEEING US THIS MORNING AND LETTING US PRESENT THIS TO YOU. ACTUALLY, THIS IS A GREAT MORNING FOR ME BECAUSE I KNOW WHAT THIS STUDY IS AND WHAT THE PURPOSE IS, BUT AGAIN, MY NAME IS CHOICE MORROW. I AM THE MANAGING ENGINEER FOR THE FLOODPLAIN OFFICE, AND I AM ALSO THE CITY'S FLOODPLAIN ADMINISTRATOR AND TECH AND HIS COMPANY, UH, ASSIST US WITH OUR AUDITS. AND THEY ARE THE TECHNICAL ARM OF US BECAUSE THERE ARE ONLY TWO PEOPLE ON STAFF FOR THE CRS PROGRAM ALSO. UM, IN SAYING THAT, I WOULD LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE FOR PUBLIC WORKS WHAT OUR PURPOSE IS, AND I KNOW YOU'VE HEARD IT BEFORE, BUT TOGETHER, WE CREATE A STRONG FOUNDATION FOR HOUSTON TO THRIVE, AS WELL AS THE FIVE VALUES THAT WE AS EMPLOYEES OF PUBLIC WORKS ARE SUPPOSED TO GOVERN OURSELVES BY ALSO KNOWN AS THE FIVE TO THRIVE VALUE, WHICH IS RESPECT. WE LISTEN AND CARE OWNERSHIP, WE FIND SOLUTIONS AND NOT EXCUSES, COMMUNICATIONS. WE ARE RELIABLE AND WE, AND CLEAR IN OUR SPEAKING INTEGRITY. WE ARE TRUTHFUL AND WE KEEP OUR WORD AND TEAMWORK. WE WORK TOGETHER. NEXT SLIDE. WE ARE HERE BECAUSE OF THE WATERSHED MASTER PLAN, BUT WE ARE GONNA GIVE YOU A LITTLE, UH, OR CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER OF WHAT IS THE WATERSHED MASTER PLAN, UH, WHAT IS IT ATTACHED TO, WHY DO WE HAVE TO DO IT, AND WHY ARE WE HERE? THE WATERSHED MASTER PLAN, AS PART OF THE NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM, [00:25:01] WHICH IS MANAGED OUTTA THE FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT OFFICE, IT WAS ESTABLISHED IN 1968 BY, UM, I GUESS IT WAS FEMA AND THE CITY OF HOUSTON ACTUALLY ENROLLED IN THE PROGRAM IN 1979. IT IS, IT IS VOLUNTARY. UM, YOU HAVE TO REQUEST FROM FEMA THAT YOU WANNA ENROLL IN THE PROGRAM. YOU HAVE TO SHOW THEM THAT YOU HAVE PRACTICES IN PLACE, UM, WITH GOOD FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT PRACTICES, PERMITTING, INSPECTIONS, ENFORCEMENT, AND THEN THEY WILL LET YOU INTO THE PROGRAM AND MONITOR YOU ON EITHER A FIVE YEAR BASIS OR A THREE YEAR ANNUAL BASIS THAT THEY WILL AUDIT YOUR PROGRAM. ALSO, UH, THE NFIP PROVIDES INSURANCE PROTECTION, OBVIOUSLY, UH, REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS, AND WE, WE ARE SUPPOSED TO REDUCE OR MITIGATE THE FLOODING THAT HAPPENS HERE IN THE CITY. ALTHOUGH THE CITY IS REALLY HUGE, OUR LITTLE OFFICE HAS MADE SOME A LOT OF IMPACT IN THE CITY WITH THE HOUSES, UH, BEING ELEVATED OR, UH, REMOVED AND DEMOED REMOVED. AND ALSO THIS INSURANCE, I MEAN, UH, IS AVAILABLE TO RENTERS AS WELL AS HOMEOWNERS. ANOTHER PROGRAM WHICH THE WATERSHED MASTER PLAN FALLS UNDER IS CALLED THE COMMUNITY RATING SYSTEM. IT IS ALSO VOLUNTARY, BUT IT IS EXTREMELY TIME INTENSIVE. IT ALSO IS THE PROGRAM THAT AFFORDS THE DISCOUNT, UH, THE DISCOUNT POINTS FOR OUR RESIDENTS HERE IN HOUSTON. LIKE I SAID, IT IS VOLUNTARY. IT ENCOURAGES, UH, REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS FOR ENFORCEMENT AND PERMITTING TO BE HIGHER THAN THE STANDARDS THAN WHAT FEMA REQUIRES. MUCH HIGHER. AND THEY HOLD US TO THAT WHEN THEY AUDIT US EVERY THREE YEARS. ALSO, LIKE I SAID, THE MOST CRITICAL PART IS IT AFFORDS THE RESIDENTS DISCOUNT POINTS ON THEIR INSURANCE PREMIUM. THE FLOODPLAIN, THE STORM, THE WATERSHED MASTER PLAN IS CRITICAL BECAUSE IT IS A PRE PREREQUISITE FOR US TO MOVE IN CLASSIFICATION TO GIVE THE CITIZENS OF HOUSTON A GREATER DISCOUNT THAN WHAT THEY ARE RECEIVING. NOW WE SIT DOWN AND WE KNEW THAT IT WAS GONNA BE A TREMENDOUS EFFORT TO DO THE WORK THAT IS REQUIRED TO MOVE IN CLASSIFICATION, BUT WE KNEW THAT OUR RESIDENTS WERE HURTING AND THEY WERE DROPPING THEIR INSURANCES BECAUSE OF THE COST. UM, AND WE ARE FINISHING UP OUR AUDIT NOW AND WE ARE WANTING TO GET THE WATERSHED MASTER PLAN IN SO THAT WE CAN MOVE IN CLASSIFICATION. UM, WITH THAT, I AM GOING TO LET TECH GET INTO THE SCENARIOS OF THE WATERSHED MASTER PLAN AND ALSO, UH, THE TIMELINES ASSOCIATED WITH IT. THANK YOU. THIS WATERSHED MASTER PLAN IS A COMPONENT WITHIN THE CRS PROGRAM THAT LOOKS AT ALL OF THE WATERSHEDS THAT PASS THROUGH THE CITY. SO THOSE ARE THE AREAS OF LAND THAT DRAIN TO A SINGLE POINT, AND WE LOOK AT THE DRAINAGE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE DRAINAGE SYSTEM AND OVERLAND FLOW AND HOW THAT'S GOING TO BE AFFECTED BY FUTURE DEVELOPMENT OR HOW IT WILL AFFECT FUTURE DEVELOPMENT. ON THE NEXT SLIDE, I WANNA SHOW A LITTLE BIT OF OF CONTEXT OF HOW THE CRS PROGRAM OPERATES. FEMA SETS FORTH A 600 SOME ODD PAGE DOCUMENT THAT GUIDES HOW THIS PROGRAM OPERATES. AND IN SOME RESPECTS, IT OPERATES LIKE A BOARD GAME. THE CITY PERFORMS EFFORTS OR INITIATIVES THAT GENERATE CRS CREDIT POINTS AND EVERY 500 POINTS CORRESPONDS TO A CRS CLASS. BASICALLY, LIKE YOUR LETTER GRADE OF ACHIEVEMENT WITHIN THE PROGRAM, EVERY INCREMENTAL CRS CLASS PROVIDES AN ADDITIONAL 5% DISCOUNT FOR FLOOD INSURANCE POLICY HOLDERS IN THE CITY. SO THAT'S JUST REGULAR FOLKS IN THE COMMUNITY WHO HAVE FLOOD INSURANCE. UM, POLICIES. ON THE NEXT SLIDE, I WANNA SHOW THAT RIGHT NOW THE CITY OF HOUSTON SITS AT A CRS CLASS FIVE, WHICH MEANS THAT THERE'S A 25% REDUCTION ON YOUR FLOOD INSURANCE BILL. SO AT THE BOTTOM OF YOUR NFIP FLOOD INSURANCE BILL, THERE'S A LINE ITEM THAT SAYS 25% CRS DISCOUNT IN AGGREGATE ACROSS THE CITY. THAT WORKS OUT TO ALMOST $14 MILLION SAVED, UH, $14 MILLION RETURNED TO THE POCKETS OF FOLKS IN THE CITY OF HOUSTON EVERY SINGLE YEAR. RIGHT NOW, THESE ARE 2023 VALUES. WE DON'T HAVE THE VALUES FROM, UH, 24 QUITE YET, BUT WE'RE LOOKING AT ABOUT THE SAME ORDER OF MAGNITUDE. I DO WANNA POINT OUT WITH THE NEXT SLIDE THAT IN THE CITY'S 2020 AUDIT WITH FEMA, THE CITY RECEIVED 3004 POINTS, [00:30:01] WHICH IS ENOUGH TO PLACE THEM IN CRS CLASS FOUR. HOWEVER, AS CHOICE MENTIONED, THERE ARE SOME PROGRAM PREREQUISITES THAT, UH, SERVE AS A BARRIER BETWEEN ADVANCING ABOVE CLASS FIVE. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO, FIVE OUTTA 10 KIND OF SOUNDS MIDDLE OF THE PACK, BUT I REALLY WANNA PUT THAT INTO CONTEXT. THIS IS A DISTRIBUTION OF THE CRS COMMUNITIES IN THE STATE OF TEXAS. WE HAVE ONE CR S3 ONE CRS FOUR COMMUNITY IN THE STATE OF TEXAS AND SIX CRS CLASS FIVE COMMUNITIES, INCLUDING THE CITY OF HOUSTON. ONE THING I THINK IS REALLY INTERESTING ABOUT THIS DISTRIBUTION IS THAT THERE ARE RELATIVELY FEW CLASS NINE COMMUNITIES, AND THAT'S THE EASIEST LEVEL TO ACHIEVE THAT REQUIRES THE LEAST EFFORT. HOWEVER, WE SEE RELATIVELY FEW OF THEM. AND MY INTERPRETATION OF THAT IS THAT THOSE COMMUNITIES LIKE THE CITY OF HOUSTON THAT ARE ENGAGED IN PROACTIVE FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND REDUCING FLOOD RISK, BASICALLY HAVE THOSE POINTS IN THE BANK. AND THEN WHEN THEY DECIDE TO JOIN THE CRS PROGRAM, THEY CAN LEAPFROG OVER THAT CLASS NINE AND ENTER IN AS A SEVEN OR EIGHT. AND THAT'S WHAT THE CITY OF HOUSTON DID IN 2001 WHEN IT ENTERED THE PROGRAM AS A CLASS EIGHT. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. THESE ARE THE TOP FIVE LARGEST CRS DISCOUNTS IN THE STATE. AGAIN, THESE ARE 2023 NUMBERS. UH, A LARGE PART OF THIS IS DRIVEN BY SCALE. THE CITY OF HOUSTON IS VERY LARGE. WE HAVE A LOT OF FLOOD INSURANCE POLICIES, AND IT'S, WE'RE SEEING THAT ALMOST $14 MILLION SAVED, UH, RETURN TO THE CITY. THE CITIZENS OF HOUSTON EVERY SINGLE YEAR. UH, ALL TOP FIVE LARGEST CRS DISCOUNTS IN THE STATE OF TEXAS ARE ON THE TEXAS GULF COAST. OF COURSE, HERE WE'RE ACUTELY AWARE OF THE RISK OF HURRICANE SEASON, WHICH JUST STARTED. SO FOLKS HERE HAVE A LOT OF FLOOD INSURANCE POLICIES AND WANT TO ENGAGE IN THE CRS PROGRAM. SO RIGHT NOW WE SEE ABOUT THAT $14 MILLION PER YEAR SAVED, UH, THROUGH THE CITY'S PARTICIPATION IN THIS PROGRAM. BUT IF WE'RE ABLE TO ADVANCE TO A HIGHER CLASS, ADDITIONAL SAVINGS CAN BE REALIZED. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. THIS IS STRAIGHT OUT OF THE RESILIENT HOUSTON PLAN. GOAL NUMBER ONE OF RESILIENT HOUSTON IS TO SUPPORT HOUSTONIANS TO BE PREPARED FOR AN UNCERTAIN FUTURE. WITHIN THAT GOAL, IT'S, THERE'S SUB GOAL 1.5 IS TO INCREASE FLOOD INSURANCE COVERAGE WITHIN THE CITY AND IMPROVE THE CITY'S CRS RATING. AND THAT'S REALLY WHY WE'RE HERE TODAY IS BECAUSE THIS WATERSHED MASTER PLAN EFFORT WITHIN THE CRS PROGRAM WILL HELP TO ACHIEVE THOSE GOALS. SO IF WE CAN REDUCE THE COST OF FLOOD INSURANCE, IT'S POSSIBLE THAT PEOPLE WHO ARE CONSIDERING DROPPING THEIR POLICIES WILL RETAIN THOSE POLICIES. AND PEOPLE WHO ARE ON THE FENCE ABOUT PURCHASING FLOOD INSURANCE MAY FIND THAT IT'S SOMETHING THEY WANNA PURSUE NOW. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO TO KIND OF CONTIN CONTINUE TO PUT THE CITY OF HOUSTON'S EFFORTS INTO CONTEXT, THESE ARE THE LARGEST CRS PARTICIPATING COMMUNITIES IN THE STATE. THE CITY OF HOUSTON IS BY FAR THE LARGEST. WE HAVE ABOUT 107,000 FLOOD INSURANCE POLICIES. AGAIN, UH, WE SEE THAT THE LARGEST PARTICIPATING COMMUNITIES ARE ALL HERE ON THE GULF COAST. I THINK IT'S PRETTY INTERESTING THAT THE CITY OF HOUSTON HAS MORE FLOOD INSURANCE POLICIES THAN ALL CRS PARTICIPATING COMMUNITIES IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA COMBINED. ON THE NEXT SLIDE, WE KIND OF PUT IT INTO NATIONAL SCALE. AGAIN, IT'S THOSE GULF COAST COMMUNITIES THAT ARE VERY CONCERNED ABOUT FLOODING FROM TEXAS, FLORIDA, AND LOUISIANA. BUT ANY WAY YOU LOOK AT IT, THE CITY OF HOUSTON IS THE LARGEST PARTICIPATING COMMUNITY IN THE CRS AND HAS THE MOST PEOPLE WHO WILL BENEFIT FROM AN IMPROVED CRS PROGRAM. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO, CHOICE MENTIONED THAT THERE ARE THOSE PROGRAM PREREQUISITES AND THOSE THINGS SIT THERE RIGHT BETWEEN CLASS FOUR AND CLASS FIVE. AND CURRENTLY, UH, BECAUSE WE HAVE NOT SATISFIED ALL OF THEM, WE'RE HELD BACK, WE'RE HELD BACK AT THAT CRS CLASS FIVE. BUT THE GOOD NEWS IS ON THE NEXT SLIDE CAN SHOW THAT THE CITY HAS BEEN BEEN DOING A WONDERFUL JOB OF ADDRESSING THOSE PREREQUISITES. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. THE FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT OFFICE AND THE OFFICE OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT COORDINATED TOGETHER TO ADDRESS THE FLOOD WARNING AND RESPONSE AND DAMS PREREQUISITE THE ADOPTION OF THE 2021 BUILDING CODES CLEARED ANOTHER CRS CLASS FOUR PREREQUISITE, THE OFFICE OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT DID A FIVE-YEAR UPDATE TO THEIR HAZARD MITIGATION PLAN, WHICH WE WERE ABLE TO SUBMIT FOR CRS CREDIT CONSIDERATION AND THAT WAS SATISFIED. SO THIS WATERSHED MASTER PLAN REMAINS THE ONLY UNSATISFIED CRS CLASS FOUR PREREQUISITE. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO WE SAW THIS SLIDE EARLIER. THE WATERSHED MASTER PLAN LOOKS AT ALL OF THE WATERSHEDS IN THE CITY, LOOKS AT THE DRAINAGE CONDITIONS, RUNOFF CONDITIONS, UH, AND REALLY TOUCHES A WHOLE LOT OF DIFFERENT AREAS OF THE CITY. WE'RE LOOKING AT INFORMATION ABOUT, UM, NATURAL AREAS AND PARKS, SEA LEVEL RISE FUNDING. UM, SO THE PLAN THAT WE'VE WRITTEN IS A FAIRLY SHORT ABOUT 19 PAGE DOCUMENT THAT SERVES AS AN INDEX OF [00:35:01] ALL OF THE INITIATIVES AND EFFORT THAT THE CITY DOES AT A WATERSHED LEVEL TO REDUCE FLOOD RISK. UH, THERE'S A, A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF TECHNICAL BACKUP, UH, IN APPENDICES THAT SUPPORTS THIS EFFORT AND WE'RE, WE'RE VERY PLEASED AND LOOKING FORWARD TO SUBMITTING THIS TO FEMA. UH, NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. SO WE HAD A REALLY, UH, KIND OF FORTUITOUS TIMING THAT THE CITY WAS DOING A STORM WATER MASTER PLAN AT THE SAME TIME THAT WE WERE GOING AFTER THE CRS WATERSHED MASTER PLAN. SO WE WERE ABLE TO BUILD OFF THE BACK OF THAT EFFORT. SO KIND OF A GREAT SYNERGY WITHIN PUBLIC WORKS, MAKING SURE THAT THESE, UM, THESE PURSUITS ARE GOING TO SERVE MULTIPLE PURPOSES. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. TIMELINE WISE, UM, CITY OF HOUSTON ENTERED THE NFIP IN 1979. IN 2001, UH, CITY ENTERED INTO CRS AS A CLASS EIGHT LEADING TO A 10% DISCOUNT IN FLOOD INSURANCE PREMIUMS. AND THEN IN 2009, THE CITY ACHIEVED ITS CURRENT CLASS FIVE RATING, WHICH HAS BEEN HELD, UH, UNTIL TODAY. BACK IN MARCH, WE HELD THE INITIAL AUDIT MEETING WITH FEMA'S REVIEWER, WHERE WE SUPPLIED A LOT OF THE TECHNICAL DOCUMENTATION THAT GOES TO SUPPORT THE CITY'S PROGRAM. AND THEN MOVING FORWARD ON MONDAY, WE WILL SUBMIT THE WATERSHED MASTER PLAN FOR FEMA'S REVIEW. BEFORE FEMA FULLY ACCEPTS THE WATERSHED MASTER PLAN, IT WILL REQUIRE ADOPTION BY CITY COUNCIL. BUT THAT'S THE LAST, UH, ITEM THAT REQUIRES ANY COUNCIL ACTION GOING FORWARD TO EARLY JULY, FEMA WILL STOP ACCEPTING THE, ANY ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION. THEY KIND OF CLOSE THEIR FILE ON THAT, AND THEN THEY WILL REVIEW THAT DOCUMENTATION UNTIL MID-AUGUST. ONCE FEMA HAS REVIEWED THAT AND HAS ASSESSED THEIR CLASS SCORING, THOSE CLASS DISCOUNTS WILL GO INTO EFFECT IN APRIL OF 2025. NEXT SLIDE PLEASE. THIS IS A DISTRIBUTION OF THE CRS COMMUNITIES NATIONALLY, AND I THINK IT KIND OF PAINTS A SIMILAR PICTURE TO WHAT WE SAW WITH THE DISTRIBUTION OF STATE COMMUNITIES. UM, BUT PERHAPS IN A LITTLE BIT STARKER CONTRAST IN THE ENTIRE NATION, WE HAVE TWO CRS CLASS ONE COMMUNITIES, A RELATIVELY FEW THREE, UH, TWO, THREE AND FOUR COMMUNITIES, AND YOU CAN REALLY SEE THAT THE OVERWHELMING MAJORITY OF THE PROGRAM IS CLASS FIVE THROUGH NINE. AND WE SEE THAT SAME DISTRIBUTION WHERE WE SEE RELATIVELY FEW CLASS NINE COMMUNITIES. MY INTERPRETATION IS THE SAME. THOSE CITIES AND COUNTIES THAT ARE ENGAGED IN PROACTIVE FLOOD RISK REDUCTION CAN ENTER INTO THE PROGRAM AND LEAPFROG OVER THAT NINE. WE HAVE THE FINAL PROGRAM PREREQUISITE BETWEEN CLASS FOUR AND FIVE, AND I THINK IT'S INTERESTING TO SEE THAT THERE ARE MORE CLASS TWO AND CLASS THREE COMMUNITIES THAN CLASS FOUR. BUT MY INTERPRETATION OF THAT IS ESSENTIALLY THE SAME, THAT THOSE COMMUNITIES LIKE THE CITY OF HOUSTON THAT ARE ENGAGED IN PROACTIVE FLOOD RISK REDUCTION, ONCE THEY HAVE THOSE PREREQUISITES REMOVED, ARE ABLE TO LEAPFROG OVER THOSE CLASSES LIKE CLASS FOUR AND ENTER INTO THE HIGHER ECHELONS OF THE PROGRAM. AND I THINK THAT WE'LL TAKE QUESTIONS. WELL, THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. I LOOK FORWARD TO THAT, UH, RATING OF TWO OR ONE FOR THAT DEEPER DISCOUNT. SO KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. UH, COUNCIL, COUNCIL MEMBER RAMIREZ HAS A QUESTION. THANK YOU MADAM CHAIR. SO QUESTION IS EVERY HOMEOWNER THEN, WHO PURCHASES FLOOD INSURANCE IN HOUSTON AUTOMATICALLY ENROLLED IN THIS CLASS FIVE DISCOUNT? THEN DO WE AUTOMATICALLY GET THAT EVERY POLICY HOLDER WHO HAS AN NFIP POLICY, IF YOU PURCHASE PRIVATE FLOOD INSURANCE, THAT'S ON A DIFFERENT PROGRAM, DIFFERENT RATING SCHEDULE. OKAY, SO THOSE ARE TWO DIFFERENT PROGRAMS. HISTORICALLY, THERE'S REALLY ONLY BEEN THE NFIP THAT THERE WASN'T A LARGE PRIVATE FLOOD INSURANCE MARKET. BUT WE'RE STARTING TO SEE THAT, UM, PRIVATE COMPANIES ARE NOW OFFERING FLOOD INSURANCE AND THOSE ARE NOT AFFECTED BY THE COMMUNITY RATING SYSTEM. SO ONCE WE ADOPT, OR IF WE ADOPT THE WATERSHED PLAN, THEN UH, THAT WILL MAKE ALL OF US ELIGIBLE FOR THE LARGER DISCOUNT ASSOCIATED WITH CLASS FOUR. THAT'S CORRECT. AND NO FURTHER ACTION WILL BE REQUIRED BY THE POLICY HOLDER. HOW DO WE GET TO A CLASS THREE AND THEN A CLASS TWO IF THAT'S POSSIBLE, SHALL TECHNICALLY, WE ALREADY HAVE ACQUIRED IN OUR LAST AUDIT CLASS FOUR POINTS, WE COULD NOT GET THE FULL CLASS RATING AND GIVE THAT DISCOUNT TO THE RESIDENTS BECAUSE OF THE PREREQUISITES THAT HELD US BACK. NOW WE HAVE COMPLETED THOSE PREREQUISITES AND I AM HOPING THAT THE CLASS FOUR GOES TO A CLASS THREE OR BETTER. AND WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CLASS THREE AND CLASS FOUR? [00:40:02] 500 POINTS. OKAY, I, I UNDERSTAND DIFFERENT POINTS AND, UH, HIGHER DISCOUNT, BUT WHAT DO WE NEED AS A CITY NEED TO DO TO GET TO A CLASS THREE? GUESS I'M NOT, IF YOU KNOW. SURE. THE CRS PROGRAM HAS A MANUAL THAT DICTATES ALL OF THE DIFFERENT WAYS THAT A COMMUNITY CAN ACHIEVE POINTS. THERE ARE 19 DIFFERENT INITIATIVES WITHIN THAT, THAT MANUAL THAT DICTATE HOW WE CAN ACHIEVE POINTS. SO, UH, AND IT REALLY COVERS A WIDE RANGE OF TOPICS. SO PUBLIC OUTREACH IS A BIG ONE THAT THE FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT OFFICE DOES A GREAT JOB WITH. I THINK THEY WERE JUST OUT AT THE ASTROS GAME DOING PUBLIC OUTREACH, LETTING FOLKS KNOW ABOUT PURCHASING FLOOD INSURANCE, HOW TO REBUILD AFTER A FLOOD. THAT'S ONE EXAMPLE. UH, THE PARKS DEPARTMENT HAS A LOT OF PARKS THAT CONSERVE THE FLOODPLAIN AS OPEN SPACE WHERE DEVELOPMENT WILL NOT TAKE PLACE. THAT'S ANOTHER WAY THE CITY CAN GENERATE POINTS. GREAT COORDINATION WITH THE OFFICE OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT IS ANOTHER WAY. UH, THE, THE TENDRILS OF THE CRS PROGRAM REALLY SPREAD WIDE ACROSS THE CITY. SO ALL SORTS OF DIFFERENT WAYS TO GENERATE POINTS. ALRIGHT. AND, UM, LOOKING AT YOUR SLIDE ON WATERSHED MASTER PLAN, I THINK IT'S SLIDE NUMBER 16, THE SECOND BULLET POINT, POINT, A PLAN TO HANDLE DRAINAGE FOR FUTURE DEVELOPMENT. HAVE, HAVE YOU ALL CONSULTED WITH OTHER STAKEHOLDERS IN, IN INDUSTRY, UH, REGARDING THEIR, THEIR THOUGHTS ON THE PLAN THAT YOU'VE COME UP WITH THIS PLAN? FOR THIS PLAN? NOT DIRECTLY. THIS PLAN IS DESIGNED TO SATISFY THE CRS PROGRAM PREREQUISITES. OKAY. COUNCIL MEMBER FLICKINGER AND SORRY, I DIDN'T ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR ENTRANCE INTO THE ROOM EARLIER. WELCOME. THANK YOU CHAIR. WELL, PERCENTAGE OF HOUSTON RESIDENTS HAVE FLOOD INSURANCE. UM, I'D HAVE TO DO THE MATH IN MY HEAD, BUT IT'S, UH, 107,000 POLICIES AND WE HAVE 2.9 MILLION RESIDENTS, SOMETHING LIKE THAT. I ASSUME THE TWO POINT, ACTUALLY 2.3 MILLION. 2.3 RESIDENTS. AND I ASSUME THERE'S MORE THAN ONE PER HOUSEHOLD, SO, OKAY. DO WE GET EXTRA POINTS FOR MORE PEOPLE HAVING FLOOD INSURANCE? WE CAN. UH, ONE OF THE, THE PROGRAM ACTIVITIES IS TO HAVE A COVERAGE IMPROVEMENT PLAN WHERE WE CAN PROMOTE FLOOD INSURANCE AND REALLY WORK TO GET, UH, AN INCREASE IN UPTAKE. OKAY. THANK YOU. STEP FROM COUNCIL MEMBER PLUMMER'S OFFICE HAS A QUESTION. THANK YOU CHAIR. UM, AND THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION. WE ALL KNOW HOW IMPORTANT FLOOD INSURANCE IS AND, UM, ONE OF THE QUESTIONS THAT WE GET FROM OUR CONSTITUENTS, HOW CAN WE AFFORD IT? IT'S TOO EXPENSIVE AND WE, WE'VE DONE A GOOD JOB OF CONNECTING WITH THE, UM, CITY OFFICES TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE CONSTITUENTS ARE REFERRED TO THAT OFFICE SO THAT THEY CAN, UH, DISCUSS THE COST AND THINGS LIKE THAT. THE ISSUE THAT WE'VE HAD IS A LOT OF RENTERS ARE NOT AWARE, UM, OF THE NFIP. RIGHT. THEY ALWAYS THINK IT'S FOR HOMEOWNERS. AND SO THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, MISSING OUT ON THAT. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT COUNCIL MEMBER PLUMMER WOULD LIKE TO SEE IS IF YOU HAVE SOCIAL MEDIA GRAPHICS AND THINGS LIKE THAT, IF YOU COULD SHARE THOSE WITH OUR OFFICE, WE'RE OFTEN OUT IN THE COMMUNITY MEETING WITH, UM, HOMEOWNERS AND RENTERS, BUT PARTICULARLY RENTERS. WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO SHARE THAT INFORMATION WITH THEM. SO IF YOU COULD SHARE SOMETHING THAT YOU HAVE, ANY SOCIAL MEDIA GRAPHICS, ANY, UH, FLIES AND THINGS, WE WOULD LOVE TO HAVE THOSE. THANK YOU. WE HAVE A VERY ACTIVE SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN, UM, AND WE WILL BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO SHARE WITH YOU. UM, EVEN GOING OUT, UM, SINCE THE ASTROS EVENT ON SATURDAYS, WE HAVE ATTENDED TWO ADDITIONAL OUTREACH ACTIVITIES THIS WEEK. SO WHATEVER IT TAKES TO GET THE MESSAGE OUT TO THE RESIDENTS, THAT'S WHAT IS IMPORTANT. A LOT OF PEOPLE JUST DIDN'T KNOW, A LOT OF, UH, RENTERS DID NOT UNDERSTAND THAT THEY COULD GET INSURANCE. THANK YOU. WE REALLY APPRECIATE THAT. AND CERTAINLY THE, UH, YESTERDAY'S, UH, ANNOUNCEMENT WITH CLEAR CHANNEL AND HAR, UH, WITH THE DIGITAL, WITH THE BILLBOARDS SHOULD HELP, UH, TO INCREASE THOSE NUMBERS AS WELL. COUNCIL RAMIREZ HAS A QUESTION. YEAH. FINAL QUESTION. CAN YOU SEND US A, UH, A LINK OR A COPY OF THE ACTUAL PLAN SO THAT WE CAN TAKE A LOOK AT IT? ABSOLUTELY. GREAT. THANK YOU. ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS? LOOKS LIKE YOU'RE OFF THE HOOK. THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. THANK Y'ALL FOR WHAT YOU DO AND KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. WELL, [00:45:01] LOOKS LIKE WE HAVE NO PUBLIC SPEAKERS, UH, REGISTERED. IS THERE ANYONE THAT DID NOT SIGN UP THAT NEEDS TO SPEAK OR WANTS TO SPEAK? WELL, LOOKS LIKE WE'RE DONE. IT'S TEN FORTY NINE AND, AND WE'LL CALL IT A DAY. THANK YOU. 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.