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Downtown Redevelopment Authority Board of Directors met Feb. 14.
Here are the minutes provided by the board:
The Board of Directors (the “Board”) of the Downtown Redevelopment Authority (the “Authority”) convened in regular session, in person and open to the public, at the Authority’s office, located at 1221 McKinney Street, Suite 4250, Houston, TX 77010, on the 14th of February 2023, and the roll was called of the duly constituted officers and members of the Board, to wit:
Curtis Flowers Chair
Michele Sabino Vice Chair
Barry Mandel Secretary
Regina Garcia Director
Keith Hamm Director
James Harrison Director
Sherman Lewis Director
Tiko Reynolds-Hausman Director
William Taylor Director
and all of said persons were present except for Chair Flowers, Secretary Mandel, Director Hausman, and Director Lewis.
Also present were Allen Douglas, Executive Director; Kris Larson, President; Jana Gunter, Director of Finance; and Jamie Perkins, Executive Assistant & Paralegal, all with the Authority; Varun Cidambi, Research & Economic Development Specialist; David Gwin, Economic Development Manager; Robert Pieroni, Director of Economic Development; Albert Sanchez; Director of Strategic Initiatives; and Ann Taylor, Director of Engagement; all with Central Houston, Inc. (“CHI”); Brett DeBord, Director of Operations & Capital Projects; and Lonnie Hoogeboom, Director of Planning & Urban Design; all with the Houston Downtown Management District (“HDMD”); Algenita Davis, Government and Community Affairs Officer; and Clark Lord, Outside Council to the Authority with Bracewell LLP.
Additionally, guests invited to present at the meeting included Lieutenant Kennedy with HPD; Roksan Okan-Vick, Senior Vice President of Houston First; Alex Acenyman, Associate Vice President; Luis Nunez, Director of Economics & Advisory; Chris Brewer, VP of Economics (virtually); Hunter Gillaspie, Senior Analyst, Economics + Advisory (virtually); Garrett Harper, Senior Project Leader Design, Planning + Economics (virtually); all with AECOM. Andrew Busker with the City of Houston was the sole attendee of the public.
DETERMINE QUORUM; CALL TO ORDER
Vice Chair Sabino conducted a roll call. A quorum was established, and the meeting was called to order at 12:06 PM.
INTRODUCTION OF GUESTS AND PUBLIC COMMENTS
Vice Chair Sabino invited all meeting attendees to introduce themselves and welcomed all. Next, Vice Chair Sabino asked if there were any comments from the public. There were no comments from the public.
MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING
The Board considered approving the minutes of the regular January 10, 2023 joint board meeting. Hearing no questions or need for discussion; Vice Chair Sabino made a motion, moved by Director Harrison and seconded by Director Garcia, and the minutes of the regular January 10, 2023 joint board meeting were approved as presented.
FINANCE & ADMINISTRATION
Check Register – January 2023
Vice Chair Sabino called on Jana Gunter to provide updates from finance and administration. Ms. Gunter shared highlights from the check register for the month ending January 31, 2023. None of the Directors had questions and discussion did not take place.
A motion to accept was entertained by Vice Chair Sabino; moved by Director Harrison and seconded by Director Hamm, and the January check register was accepted as presented.
MUNICIPAL SERVICES - INITIATIVES
Vice Chair Sabino asked Executive Director Douglas to open the discussion. Executive Director Douglas began with a brief statement and invited Lieutenant Kennedy to share updates on the progress of 4Q22 initiatives, introduce newly developed initiatives, and share a presentation. Lieutenant Kennedy gave a brief summary of the actions taken in the fourth quarter within the patrol traffic enforcement, outdoor dining and biking, scooter/street racing, and specialized unit initiatives.
Next, she turned the conversation to focus on new initiatives, which include addressing the gathering of homeless individuals in and around the area of the Beacon. Discussion ensued and questions were asked and answered. Executive Director Douglas and Mr. Sanchez provided additional commentary. No further action was required.
AECOM PRESENTATION ON ADAPTIVE REUSE / OFFICE CONVERSION PROJECT
Vice Chair Sabino invited Executive Director Douglas to continue by introducing the next item. He provided highlights of the project and turned the conversation over to the AECOM team. Members of the AECOM team introduced themselves and shared a presentation with information about their company, downtown office trends post-covid, insights from past project cities similar to Houston, and AECOM’s approach to converting spaces in the adaptive reuse realm. Questions were asked and answered, and discussion ensued. No further action was required.
LYNN WYATT SQUARE UPDATE
Vice Chair Sabino turned to Executive Director Douglas to continue by introducing the final guest and presenter, Roksan Okan-Vick from Houston First. He invited Ms. Okan-Vick to share a presentation on the progress of Lynn Wyatt Square. Ms. Okan-Vick began by thanking the Board for their support and summarizing the history of the project. Next, she shared a slide deck of photos of the block’s transformation, which included a parking garage renovation needed for structural purposes and details of the building, respite areas, the various amenities, and newly transferred trees. Questions were asked and answered, and discussion ensued. Ms. Okan-Vick closed by stating the grand opening is scheduled for late April or early May. No further action was required.
OTHER BUSINESS
Goal-Based Updates
Executive Director Douglas referred to the Goal-Based updates in the materials previously provided, which contained notable items and updates based on each goal for the month of February. No further action was needed.
NEXT MEETINGS
Vice Chair Sabino announced the next Board and Committee meetings are scheduled on the following dates and times and encouraged Board members not currently serving on a committee to attend:
• Thrive Downtown – Wednesday, February 15th at 12:00 PM
• Engage Downtown – Thursday, February 16th at 12:00 PM
• Enhance Downtown – Monday, February 20th at 12:00 PM
• Connect Downtown – Tuesday, February 21st at 9:00 AM
• Board of Directors – Tuesday, February 14th at 12:00 PM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business to come before the Board, a motion was called to adjourn at 1:32 PM.
https://downtowntirz.com/downtownhouston/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/230314-DRA-TIRZ3-Board-Materials.pdf