Richardson City Council Meeting December 2nd, 2024
OPENING
Six of the seven councilmembers are present as well as City Manager Don Magner and City Secretary Aimee Nemer. Councilman Corcoran is absent.
Councilman Dorian leads a prayer and the pledges.
Minutes of two meetings from Nov. 11th are approved unanimously.
No public speakers are present.
BOARD & COMMISSION APPOINTMENTS
Though there are some other items on the agenda, the main event tonight is appointing members to the newly established Charter Review Commission and appointing members to eight other city boards and commissions. I’ll try to note below who the appointees are, but I apologize ahead of time because I am bound to miss a name or two.
We start with the Animal Services Advisory Commission. Four are reappointed: Vice-Chair Maureen Doherty, Erica Batzler, Holly Goodside, and Animal Services Manager Noura Jammal. Three of these committee members reach term limits in 2026. The sitting chair of this commission reaches a term limit at the end of 2025. Start preparing now if you would like to be considered when this committee seeks new members!
Next up is the new Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee. Three are reappointed: Vice-Chair Brenda Hard-Wilson, Diane Litke, and Matthew Martin. No one reaches a term limit on this committee until 2032.
Now the Cultural Arts Commission. Three are reappointed: Brian Bentley, Ted Kollaja, and Amy Taylor. Lela Shook is newly appointed. The sitting chair of this committee reaches a term limit at the end of 2025, so plan ahead if you’re interested!
Next up is the City Plan Commission. Four are reappointed: Chair Bryan Marsh, Vice-Chair Ken Southard, Michael Keller, and Nate Roberts. The soonest term limit for this committee will be at the end of 2026. It’s never too early to start *planning* if you want to serve on this commission!
Next is the Library Board. Richard Lin is reappointed and promoted from vice-chair to chair. Amanda Gallegos is reappointed and promoted to vice-chair. Patricia Mulvihill is also reappointed. Johnette Alter and Serri Ayers are newly appointed. This board sees two term limits reached at the end of 2025 and one at the end of 2026. So, they will be looking for some new members soon!
Now it’s the Parks and Recreation Commission. Gregory Kish is reappointed and promoted to vice-chair. Bettye Stripling is also reappointed. Jennifer Jackson and Jeffrey Davis are newly appointed. The soonest term limit reached on this commission is 2027 so you’ve got time!
For the Sign Control Board, Jill Blevins is reappointed and promoted from vice-chair to chair. Joseph Quirk is reappointed and promoted to vice-chair. Jan Taylor is promoted from alternate to regular member. Neil Orleans is reappointed as an alternate. Bill Rodgers is newly appointed as an alternate. The soonest term limit for this board is reached in 2025, so start preparing if you want to keep signs regulated the Richardson way!
The last already existing board is the Zoning Board of Adjustment. This board also serves as the city’s Building & Standards Commission. Four are reappointed: Chair Jason Lemons, Phil Thames, Brent Sturman, and Alternate Mohammed Hafeez. The soonest term limit for this board is reached in 2026, so start preparing now if you want to ensure the safety of buildings in Richardson.
Now, Council unanimously adopts the ordinance forming the 2025 Charter Review Commission. The ordinance states that this commission will meet on Jan. 30th, 2025 to establish a meeting calendar. Eleven are appointed to the Charter Review Commission. I was only able to understand 7 of the 11 names as they were read, so I will provide an update as soon as the city’s website reflects this information.
2025 MEETING & ELECTION CALENDAR
Next is a discussion on the 2025 city council meeting calendar and the 2025 municipal election calendar. City Secretary Aimee Nemer presents. The proposed Council meeting calendar includes 39 meetings. In addition to holidays and fifth Mondays off, the proposed schedule also provides 2-week breaks in March, June - July, November, and December. For the 2025 municipal election, Election Day will be May 3rd, 2025. The required number of signatures collected to be nominated for this election is 48. Candidate packets will be available starting Jan. 2nd. The first day to apply for a place on the ballot will be Jan. 15th. The deadline to apply for a place on the ballot will be Feb. 14th. A drawing to determine the order of appearance on the ballot will take place on Feb. 17th. The ballot will be finalized on Feb. 21st. Apr. 3rd will be the last day to register to vote in this election. Early voting will take place from Apr. 22nd – 29th. Results will be canvassed and elected officials will take their oaths on May 12th at the Eisemann Center. Candidate packets will be available at the city secretary’s office.
CONSENT AGENDA & CLOSING
The consent agenda is unanimously approved. It includes a resolution adopting the city’s legislative agenda and asking legislators to support it. It also includes a resolution authorizing the use of grant funds for night vision equipment for the SWAT team. Nine bid awards are also included: a $153K annual requirements contract to Speedpro Richardson for banners and signs, an annual requirements contract to Protect Environmental Services Inc. for hazardous materials emergency response services, a $200K annual requirements contract to Sweeping Corporation of America, LLC for street sweeping services, $123K to Falkenberg Construction Company for upgrading the service center lobby vestibule, $79K to The Stovall Corporation for replacing service center fuel dispensers, $577K to Simon Roofing & Sheet Metal for replacing the roof on the municipal court, $89K to Metro Fire Apparatus Specialists, Inc. for thermal imaging cameras, $56K to Comm-Fit Holdings, LLC for fitness equipment for Heights Rec Center, and $388K to WeBuildFun, Inc. for playground equipment at Foxboro Park.
Council discusses serving Thanksgiving Dinner at the Senior Center, two Eisemann Center events, HOA annual meetings, the Leadership North Texas program, the Gobble Hobble, and Richardson’s 1st Place award for National Night Out.
Council then convenes into executive session to deliberate regarding economic development negotiations for commercial development in three areas: U.S. 75/Main St., 75/E. Arapaho Rd., and 75/E. Renner Rd. The footage stops here.