Richardson City Council Meeting August 26th, 2024
OPENING
All councilmembers are present as well as City Manager Don Magner and City Secretary Aimee Nemer.
Councilman Dorian leads a prayer and the pledges.
Minutes of August meetings are approved unanimously.
City Manager Don Magner acknowledges 15 written public comments. One supports ZF 24-17 (Coram Deo). One is neutral to ZF 24-18 (Nest Wellness Center). 13 support ZF 24-18. Any speakers present will speak during the public hearings later. None speak during the visitors section.
A proclamation is presented to recognize National Preparedness Month. Emergency Management Director Alisha Gimbel presents. She explains the responsibilities of the emergency management department. She also announces the Preparedness Passport initiative sponsored by State Farm. Participants can complete the passport to receive a challenge coin. She also highlights the department’s efforts in recovering from the May 28th storm. Council thanks Alisha and the department for their work.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Next is a presentation on international economic development efforts. City Manager Don Magner introduces newly promoted Economic Development Director Chris Shacklett. Chris recaps an economic development trip to India. This trip was in partnership with Startup Runway, an organization focused on expanding India-based companies in the U.S. market. Chris and Communications Director Greg Sowell joined Startup Runway CEO Mahesh Nandyala and his team for this trip. Representatives from Ryan, LLC also joined on the trip. They visited Hyderabad, Chennai, Visakhapatnam, and Mumbai. In Hyderabad, they visited tech and startup hubs and met with investors. They also met with state officials and a hospital group. In Chennai, they visited another startup hub. In Visakhapatnam, they held roundtables with medical IT and other IT professionals. In Mumbai, they met with more government officials.
Resulting from the trip, Chris announces a partnership with Startup Runway. Startup Runway will open a location at the IQHQ where they will begin to host companies looking to expand to the U.S. market. The goal of this will be to make Richardson leasing space a target for these companies. Eventually, the city wants to expand these efforts to other countries. Council thanks Chris for his work on the Startup Runway partnership.
CODE OF ETHICS REVIEW
Next is the city’s biannual review of the Code of Ethics. Asst. City Manager Dannette Garcia presents. This code applies to Council, members of boards and commissions, and city officers. This code does not apply to employees. Based on neighboring cities’ codes, state law, and Council feedback, there are six suggested amendments to the code. The first suggested amendment is changing the timeframe for Council to respond to a complaint against an officer. Currently, the city attorney has 15 business days to notify Council. Then, Council has 15 business days to call a meeting to consider the complaint. This amendment would change only the timeframe for Council to call that meeting from “within 15 business days” to “no sooner than 15 business days and no later than 30 days”.
The second amendment suggests lowering the number of councilmembers required to meet to consider the complaint “from three to two”. Dannette clarifies that staff’s recommendation is to keep it the way it is. The third amendment raises the fine for disobeying a subpoena in response to a complaint from $200 to $500. The fourth amendment clarifies that an officer would be allowed to employ their own legal representation in response to a complaint. The fifth amendment would include temporary board or commission members in the code. Dannette shows that this language already exists, making this amendment unnecessary. The final amendment suggests clarifying the definition of “substantial interest”. Dannette again shows that this language already exists in the code. These amendments would be adopted at the Sep. 23rd meeting.
Two suggested amendments to the Council Rules of Order and Procedure are also presented. The first would clarify guidelines for meeting with property owners, developers, or anyone that has formal action scheduled before Council. The second establishes guidelines for meeting with property owners, developers, or anyone that wishes to discuss topics that may come before Council.
Councilwoman Justice asks for clarification on who would pay for an officer’s legal representation. She suggests clarifying that the officer would foot the bill for legal representation, not the city. Councilman Barrios agrees with the clarification on who would pay for an officer’s legal representation.
Councilman Hutchenrider asks for clarification on the first suggested amendment. He asks if it should read “no sooner than 15 business days and no later than 30 business days”. Currently, it just says “30 days” without clarifying if they are business or calendar days. Councilwoman Justice suggests that the language for the timeline of responding should actually read “no sooner than 15 business days and no later than 30 calendar days”. She doesn’t want to see complaints take too long to be considered. Councilman Barrios agrees.
Councilwoman Justice now asks about the considerations for clarifying guidelines for meeting with stakeholders in the Council Rules of Order and Procedure. She wants to see additional transparency measures to notify the public when a councilmember meets with a developer. Councilman Corcoran suggests having the discussion in detail at a future meeting so they can decide what the guidelines should be. Mayor Pro Tem Shamsul supports discussing it, but he doesn’t want to see councilmembers setting themselves up for trouble if they forget a discussion. Councilman Hutchenrider, Councilman Dorian, and Councilman Barrios also support having the discussion.
Mayor Dubey sees no reason to add these suggested guidelines. He really doesn’t want to see councilmembers get in trouble for not disclosing conversations. Councilwoman Justice replies that these still warrant discussion. She just wants to see existing practices put into policy.
PUBLIC HEARING – CORAM DEO ACADEMY
Now, the first of two public hearings. This one is on ZF 24-17, the repeat of Coram Deo Academy’s special permit request to put a private Christian school at Binnerri Presbyterian Church. As a reminder, Council denied this same request in April. This repeat request was also discussed at the Aug. 7th CPC meeting.
First, City Manager Don Magner recognizes the service and retirement of Development Services Director Sam Chavez. Council thanks Sam for his dedication and service to the city. He receives a standing ovation from those in attendance.
Ok, back to ZF 24-17. Staff presents a background of the request. Staff notes that 202 comments in support of the request have been received to date. Mayor Dubey asks if there are any differences between this request and the initial Coram Deo request that was denied in April. Staff replies that the second no-left-turn sign is the only difference. The applicant steps forward to re-present their same plans. The school’s headmaster explains their mission clearly, to train students to glorify God.
The headmaster also clarifies that the current enrollment is 240 students daily. They hope to increase their enrollment to a maximum of 400 students daily. They are 100% privately funded. They pay neither property nor sales tax since they are considered nonprofit. (I say this just to clarify that they do receive public benefit as a private religious entity. I encourage you to look up the nonprofit’s financial filings. They are public information and accessible online. ProPublica shows that they received $17M in revenue for 2023 and recorded $15.6M in expenses. By my math, that equals about $1.5M of, let’s see, profits? If 400 students went to public school instead of private school, that would net public school over $2.6M in average daily attendance funding.)
The applicant again asks those in attendance to stand to show their support for the request. Mayor Dubey asks how much of their current enrollment lives in Richardson. The headmaster replies that just over half (55%) of the current enrollment at their Richardson campus live in Richardson. Mayor Dubey points out that they are already willing to attend their existing campus. The applicant adds that they seek this relocation to reduce leasing costs.
Three speakers are present for this hearing. The first supports the request and complains about the discrepancies between CPC and Council decisions. He claims the CPC looks at these issues in greater detail and should be trusted. (I hope everyone takes a much closer look at what occurs in CPC meetings to decide for yourself if this is true.) The second speaker is the senior pastor at Binnerri Presbyterian Church. He also supports the request. The third speaker is the President of the Richland Neighborhood Association. She also supports the request.
Councilwoman Justice notes that, if the state passes vouchers, they will have some tough decisions to make in the future. However, she does not see this current model as impacting RISD. Councilman Corcoran notes that, with the church’s desire to only sell to another church or Christian school and the existing deed restrictions, he thinks there are too many obstacles to potential redevelopment. He is more supportive now than before.
Mayor Pro Tem Shamsul asks outgoing Development Services Director Sam Chavez if he sees any negative impact on economic development if they pass this. Sam answers that the land use for this area is Neighborhood Residential. Allowable secondary land uses for the area also don’t allow any nonresidential uses. From that standpoint, approval would keep in line with the land use plan. He doesn’t see any negative impact from queueing either. Mayor Pro Tem Shamsul also now supports the request. He sees this as serving as a potential buffer for the neighborhood. Regarding the potential impact to RISD, he states that a competitive open market ensures that the best option survives.
Councilman Hutchenrider says his priority is with the neighbors. Since they didn’t have much public input in April, he couldn’t consider the opinion of the neighbors. Now, he can. So, he is now supportive of the request. He blames the architect for his original denial. (Nothing has changed from an architectural standpoint in this request.) Councilman Barrios supported the request initially and still does. Mayor Pro Tem Shamsul now clarifies that he supports public education. He states that he put his own children through public school because he wanted them to experience the real world. Councilman Dorian also now supports the request due to the public input.
Mayor Dubey adds that public schools will not receive average daily attendance funding for students who do not attend public school. In that sense, yes, this absolutely does impact RISD financially. And, that should be heavily considered. Regardless, Council now unanimously approves the same unchanged request they denied in April. Pressure from the enrolled families wins the day.
PUBLIC HEARING – NEST WELLNESS CENTER
The final public hearing of the evening is on ZF 24-18. This is a special development plan request for The Nest Wellness Center at E. Kaufman and S. Texas St. This case was also considered at the August 7th CPC meeting. Staff presents a background of the request. Staff notes two changes to the concept plan since that CPC meeting. The dumpster has now been moved to the SW corner of the site and the NE corner will be a loading zone. The CPC voted unanimously to recommend approval of this request. Mayor Pro Tem Shamsul asks if the designated parking spaces will remain public. Staff confirms that they will.
Councilman Barrios asks about the width of the road between the site and the DART line. (S. Texas St.) Staff answers that this development will prompt the reconstruction of that portion of S. Texas St. Councilman Barrios then asks about the dedication of the alley and how that will be split between the applicant and the neighbor. City Manager Don Magner answers that this can be addressed after the zoning case is decided on.
The applicant steps forward to present their plans. The center’s hours of operation will be from 8-8. Councilman Dorian asks if Staycation will be relocating to their center. The applicant answers that that is their plan.
Councilman Hutchenrider asks who would be on the professional staff. The applicant answers that she is a chiropractor. They will also have other chiropractors on staff with an operations team and support staff. He also asks about the prenatal component. The applicant answers that she considers coffee, tacos, and massages as prenatal care. Councilman Hutchenrider clarifies that those are not prenatal care. He asks what specific services will be available to pregnant mothers. She clarifies that they will not have any traditional prenatal care. This is a retail development, not a medical facility, as chiropractors are not doctors. Councilman Hutchenrider then asks for an explanation as to what the applicant considers “holistic pediatric care”. He says that when places use these terms, they are sometimes anti-vaccine. He asks the applicant to clarify her intentions. The applicant answers that they do not intend to promote anti-vaccine beliefs. Councilman Hutchenrider asks if they intend to ever become a birthing center. The applicant answers that they do not.
Councilman Corcoran asks how they will conduct business in the heat of the summer. The applicant answers that they will offer earlier hours during summer and put shade structures in. Mayor Pro Tem Shamsul asks about the screening wall between the development and existing residences. The applicant answers that the neighboring residents prefer a wooden fence over a masonry wall. They will ensure proper maintenance of the fence. Councilman Dorian asks if the center will be pet-friendly. The applicant answers that they have not yet made that decision.
Five speakers are present for this hearing. The first is the neighboring resident and property owner. He expresses concern about the alley remnant being designated as a loading area. He still wants the opportunity to split it between himself and this development. The second speaker supports the request. The third speaker also supports the request. The fourth speaker, former councilmember Scott Dunn, does not step to the microphone but voices his support of the request. The fifth speaker also supports the request.
Mayor Pro Tem Shamsul asks if approving this request dedicates the alley remnant to the development. City Manager Don Magner answers that approval does not dedicate the alley remnant to this development. That would still need to be negotiated by the property owners and the city. Councilwoman Justice sees this development as supportive of future multifamily developments. She supports the request. Councilman Corcoran and Councilman Barrios also voice their support. Council unanimously approves the request.
CONSENT AGENDA & CLOSING
The consent agenda is also approved unanimously. It includes an ordinance codifying the approval of ZF 24-15. It also includes a two-year grant agreement for the Federal Highway Administration’s Safe Streets and Roads for All grant. This is a $400K grant agreement with $320K being federal funds and $80K being city funds for safer streets. Three bid awards are also included: $450K to Road Solutions, LLC for traffic signal construction at Waterview & Frank Johnson, a $50K annual requirements contract to Savatree LLC, Smith Lawn and Tree, and Treenewal LLC for urban forest maintenance, and $96K to Clifford Power Systems Inc. for emergency generator repairs and maintenance.
Council discusses a new hot pot restaurant, the Richardson Real Heroes event, an RISD internship program, and the Cultural Arts Commission’s art grant interviews, and the meeting adjourns.