* 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. [00:00:16] A LONG TIME SUPPORTER OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND OF OUR CITY'S LAW ENFORCEMENT, MAYOR OF HOUSTON, JOHN WHITMEYER. THANK YOU HOUSTON. THANK YOU CAPTAIN KENNEDY. AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR PUBLIC SERVICE. YOU'VE DONE SUCH A GREAT JOB OF CLEANING UP MEMORIAL PARK, WASHINGTON, AND EVERYWHERE YOU'RE ASSIGNED, WE NOTICE A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE. SO THANK YOU AND I HAVE A LOT OF CONFIDENCE OF YOU WORKING OUTTA THIS BUILDING AND YOUR RANK AND FILE. SO THANK YOU. LISTEN, I WAS GONNA CUT MY REMARKS SHORT BECAUSE IT'S HOT OVER THERE, BUT IT'S ACTUALLY PRETTY NICE WITH A BREEZE THROUGH THIS LITTLE TUNNEL LIGHT. SO I'LL GET BACK TO MY ORIGINAL THOUGHTS OF USING THIS OCCASION TO THANK SO MANY PEOPLE. YOU KNOW, THIS IS A STATEMENT OF WHAT COLLABORATION IN HARD WORK, IT CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. YOU KNOW, PEOPLE COME BEFORE COUNCIL ON A REGULAR BASIS CRITICIZING CITY OPERATIONS, AND I AGREE WITH THEM. IF THINGS WERE NOT BROKEN, I WOULDN'T HAVE RUN FOR MAYOR. I'D BE IN THE SENATE FIXING TO START A SPECIAL SESSION. BUT THE TRUTH IS, THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF NEGLECT ACROSS HOUSTON FOR YEARS. WE'RE WITNESSING TODAY A STATEMENT THAT THE PAST IS UNACCEPTABLE. LOOK AT THE RANK AND FILE HERE TODAY. MORALE'S NEVER BEEN HIGHER IN PUBLIC WORKS, OR CERTAINLY IN HPD. THE THOUGHT THAT YOU WOULD COME TOGETHER AND PUT FIRST RESPONDERS, AND I CALL PUBLIC WORKS FIRST RESPONDERS, YOU SHOULD SEE 'EM WORK ALL NIGHT DURING A STORM, RESPONDING TO URGENT CALLS, LONG HOURS, BRINGING THEIR SLEEPING BAGS TO THE EMERGENCY CENTER. THOSE ARE FIRST RESPONDERS THAT DO NOT GET ENOUGH RECOGNITION. THANK YOU, RANDY, FOR YOUR LEADERSHIP. RANDY MACA TOOK OVER A PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT THAT WAS OVERWHELMED WITH CALLS FROM OUTRAGEOUS WATER BILLS, AND NO ONE WOULD LISTEN TO 'EM. ONE OF THE BEST APPOINTMENTS I'VE MADE, AND THE BEST IS YET TO COME AS WE PAVE A THOUSAND ROAD MILES THIS YEAR IN FISCAL 26. THEN YOU GET TO HPD. RECRUITING HAS NEVER BEEN HIRED. HPD OFFICERS THAT HAD ALREADY APPLIED IT DPS THROUGH THOSE APPLICATIONS IN THE TRASH 'CAUSE THEY KNOW PUBLIC SAFETY IS MY ADMINISTRATION AND CITIZENS' HIGHEST PRIORITY. WE GO TO WORK EACH AND EVERY DAY TO MAKE THIS A SAFER CITY. AND WE COULD NOT DO IT WITHOUT THE MEN AND WOMEN IN BLUE. AND THEY'RE BEING LED WHO I BY A CHIEF THAT I THINK IS THE BEST IN THE NATION. NOW PEOPLE SAY, HOW'D YOU KNOW DIAZ? HOW'D YOU KNOW HE'D BE SO GOOD? I'VE WORKED WITH HIM FOR 20 YEARS AS A STATE SENATOR. I'VE WATCHED HIM IN AUSTIN LEAD. I SAW HIM WHEN HE WAS ASSIGNED TO A TASK FORCE IN HOUSTON. HE STILL HAS THOSE STREET CONTACTS THAT HE'S USING TO MAKE HOUSTON A SAFER CITY. BUT LET ME FINISH UP BECAUSE I'M GETTING SOME WORKED UP. I I CAN'T WAIT TO GET TO CITY HALL. WE'VE GOT A LIST OF THINGS WE WANT TO DO TODAY. I WANT TO THANK THE RANK AND FILE OF PUBLIC WORKS AND HPD AND I COULD GO TO SOLID WASTE. I COULD GO TO OUR NEIGHBORHOOD DEPARTMENT. THANK YOU FOR BEING PUBLIC SERVANTS, THANK YOU TO THE FAIRCHILDS. THANK YOU TO CITIZENS THAT BRING US ISSUES AND GIVE US AN OPPORTUNITY TO LEAD THIS CITY. CJ, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICES. I COULD GO ON AND ON AND MAKE THIS A THANK YOU BECAUSE WE DON'T DO IT ENOUGH. I DEAL WITH PROBLEMS EACH AND EVERY DAY. SOME ARE VERY SEVERE LIFE-THREATENING PROBLEMS. WE MAKE TOUGH DECISIONS. WE ALL NEED A DAY LIKE TODAY. I CAN'T THINK OF A BETTER WAY TO START MY MONDAY. I LOOK FORWARD TO THIS MORNING 'CAUSE I KNEW I WAS GOING TO USE IT AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO SAY, FOLKS WE'RE ON THE RIGHT TRACK. IF WE WORK TOGETHER, STAY FOCUSED AND GO TO WORK, THIS CAN EVEN BE A GREATER CENTER. HOUSTON IS A GREAT CITY WITH GREAT PEOPLE, BUT WE HAVE CHALLENGES LIKE OTHER MAJOR CITIES. THE DIFFERENCE IS WE MEET OUR CHALLENGES. THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO BE HERE TODAY. LET'S GO TO WORK. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, MAYOR. NOW PLEASE JOIN ME IN WELCOMING SOMEBODY WHO WORKS TIRELESSLY TO ENSURE [00:05:01] THE NEEDS OF OUR DEPARTMENT ARE MET CHIEF OF THE HOUSTON POLICE DEPARTMENT. CHIEF, NO DIAZ. ALRIGHT, GOOD MORNING EVERYBODY. THANK YOU. UH, WHAT AN AMAZING DAY. IT'S, IT'S ALWAYS A HARD ACT TO FOLLOW AFTER THE MAYOR'S ALREADY SAID EVERYTHING. UH, BUT I'M SO THRILLED, RANDY, I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR THE PARTNERSHIP. UM, THIS IS, THIS IS A BIG DEAL IN THE CITY BECAUSE IT SHOWS THE VIBRANCE OF THE CITY, THE HEALTH OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, HOW AN ORGANIZATION CAN GROW AND HAVE OUTSTANDING FACILITIES FOR THE MEN AND WOMEN WHO DO THIS JOB TIRELESSLY EVERY SINGLE DAY. AND I TOO WANNA THANK THE COMMUNITY BECAUSE THIS IS A BIG RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE COMMUNITY TO TAKE ON AS, UH, YOU GUYS HAVE HEARD THE MAYOR SAY A LOT OF OUR STATIONS ARE A LITTLE BIT LONG IN THE TOOTH. AND THIS IS GOING TO BE A SHINING EXAMPLE OF US PARTNERING WITH ANOTHER OFFICE THAT DOES A GREAT JOB FOR THE CITY, PARTNERING WITH THE COMMUNITY AND HAVING SOMETHING. THIS IS, I MEAN, THIS IS SOMETHING BRILLIANT FOR AN AGENCY THAT HAS NEEDED SOMETHING LIKE THIS SO LONG. AND THE MAYOR'S RIGHT, WE'RE GROWING. UH, WE'VE GOT A LOT OF CADETS IN THE ACADEMY. WE HAVE A TREMENDOUS COMMAND STAFF. I WANT TO THANK AND I ECHO CAPTAIN KENNEDY TAKES CARE OF BUSINESS WHEREVER SHE GOES. SO SHE IS A, A, A FANTASTIC EMPLOYEE FOR US. BUT I, I JUST WANT TO END WITH THANKING THE COMMUNITY. THANK YOU FOR SACRIFICING YOUR RESOURCES THAT WE WILL ENSURE TO BE GOOD STEWARDS OF SO THAT WE CAN CONTINUE THIS MODEL. 'CAUSE THERE'S OTHER STATIONS THAT NEED JUST LIKE THE CENTRAL STATION NEEDED. SO, UH, THIS IS JUST A, A GOOD START, A VERY WELL DESERVED FACILITY THAT WE WILL SHARE, UH, WITH ANOTHER FANTASTIC, UH, CITY DEPARTMENT THAT DOES SO MUCH. YOU KNOW, AND I, AND I TRULY MEAN THAT BECAUSE THE MAYOR, YOU SAID IT, THEY'RE OUT JUST LIKE WE ARE. THEY DON'T GET A BREAK. THEY DON'T GO HOME. THEY'RE, THEY'RE, THEY'RE EATING BEEF JERKY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT ALL NIGHT. LIKE WE ARE, YOU KNOW, AND IT'S, IT'S, IT'S A, IT'S A TOUGH, IT'S A TOUGH JOB, BUT THEY DO IT BECAUSE THEY TRULY ARE SERVANTS IN THE COMMUNITY. SO I'LL END WITH THIS JUST THANKING, AGAIN, THANKING THE COMMUNITY, THANKING, UH, OUR MEDIA PARTNERS ARE HERE TO SHARE THIS EXCITING DAY FOR US. IT'S A GREAT DAY FOR US TO BE HERE. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH. ENJOY THE DAY. I HOPE YOU ENJOY THE TOUR. I'LL SAY THAT, UM, WE'RE GOT SOME FURNITURE IN IT YET, SO WHEN YOU DO THE WALKTHROUGH, WE'RE WAITING. THE FIRE DEPARTMENT DIDN'T GIVE US AN OCCUPANCY PERMIT YET. SO , SO WE'VE, WE ARE, WE'RE, WE FOLLOW THE RULES ALL THE TIME. SO ANYWAY, THANK Y'ALL. HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY. I APPRECIATE YOU. THANK YOU CAPTAIN KENNEDY. THANK YOU CHIEF. UH, WE'RE NOW, UH, PROUD TO RECOGNIZE A KEY PARTNER IN THIS RENOVATION AND, UH, NEW PARKING GARAGE, PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR RANDY MCKAY. THANK YOU, CAPTAIN. THANK YOU MAYOR AND CHIEF. YOU KNOW, I'LL KEEP IT REALLY BRIEF BECAUSE IT JUST STARTS TO SOUND REALLY REPETITIVE AND REDUNDANT. BUT WHAT YOU'VE NOTICED TODAY IS ANOTHER ONE OF THE MODELS THAT YOU SEE UNDER THE WHITMEYER ADMINISTRATION. IT'S OF THE COLLABORATION AND THE ABILITY FOR ALL OF US TO COME TOGETHER TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO MAKE OUR RESOURCES WORK BETTER FOR OUR GOOD. AND I THINK THAT TRULY THERE'S NO BETTER PARTNERSHIP IN THE CITY THAN THERE IS BETWEEN PUBLIC WORKS AND BETWEEN HPD, WE ARE CONSTANTLY DOING THINGS TOGETHER. YOU KNOW, AFTER THE STORM WHEN WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT WHAT THE STATUS OF OUR TRAFFIC SIGNALS IS. HPD IS OUT THERE HELPING TO RELAY THAT INFORMATION TO US, TO HELP US UNDERSTAND IF THERE'S BROKEN WATER LINES OR BROKEN WATER MAINS. EVEN JUST THIS FRIDAY WHEN WE WERE TRYING TO MOW THE BERMUDA TRIANGLE OUT HERE, UH, ON WASHINGTON, IT WAS A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN HPD AND PUBLIC WORKS TO MAKE SURE THAT THE SPACE WAS SAFE FOR US TO GET THE WORK DONE. SO WE'RE JUST SO, SO PROUD TO, TO BE ABLE TO COLLABORATE TOGETHER, TO WORK TOGETHER, TO LITERALLY, UH, BE HOUSED TOGETHER CLOSELY IN A GARAGE, UM, AND SHARING THAT. BUT LIKE THE MAYOR SAID, THE BEST IS YET TO COME. UH, THERE'S SO MUCH MORE TO BE DONE. AS THE CHIEF SAID, THERE'S SO MANY OTHER FACILITIES THAT NEED IMPROVEMENT AND WORK AND ATTENTION THROUGHOUT THE CITY SO THAT ALL OF OUR, UH, FINE PUBLIC SERVANTS ARE ABLE TO BE PLACED IN AREAS THAT THEY'RE PROUD TO COME TO WORK IN EACH DAY, AREAS WHERE THEY'RE SAFE AND THEY'RE ABLE TO DO THEIR JOBS TO THE BEST SO THAT WE CAN DELIVER TO HOUSTONIANS EXACTLY WHAT IT IS THEY DESERVE, WHAT THEY EXPECT. AND WE'RE JUST HAPPY TO DO THAT. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH, MAYOR. THANK YOU, CJ. I KNOW THAT GENERAL SERVICES, UH, PUT LONG, LONG HOURS INTO MAKING SURE THAT THIS COULD COME TOGETHER, SO THANK YOU FOR ALL OF THE WORK THERE. THANK YOU, CHIEF. AND, AND AS THE MAYOR SAYS, LET'S, LET'S GET TO WORK. THANK YOU, DIRECTOR. NOW THAT WE'VE HEARD FROM OUR CITY LEADERSHIP, WE INVITE YOU, UH, RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER JUST OUTSIDE OUR FRONT ENTRANCE TO JOIN US FOR THE OFFICIAL RIBBON CUTTING CEREMONY. AFTER THE RIBBON IS CUT, WE WELCOME [00:10:01] YOU INSIDE TO OUR BRAND NEW COMMUNITY ROOM FOR SOME LIGHT REFRESHMENTS, AS WELL AS SOME GUIDED TOURS. AGAIN, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US FOR THIS SPECIAL OCCASION, AND WELCOME TO THE NEW HOME OF CENTRAL PATROL. * 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.