2026-11-09 - Administrative Conference

00:10Your hair?

00:50>> How you go, sir?

02:20>> [clears throat]

03:06>> Yeah.

03:19Okay.

03:23Over there?

03:38Oh.

03:44Maybe.

03:52Come on,

03:54Hey, what's up? What are you doing?

03:58What? Hey.

04:08>> Is that a new Monday tradition?

04:10Dark household?

04:33>> I'll shoot you a text today. Call me

04:34back. Call me back.

04:36Look forward to it.

05:40>> Hello, Gary.

05:42Hello.

05:51>> Okay.

05:54>> [laughter]

05:59[laughter]

06:05[laughter]

07:05>> Huh?

07:12I'm good.

07:13>> I'm really glad to see you.

07:20And then what else?

07:30No, we

07:42Yeah.

09:06>> [laughter]

09:12[cough]

09:33>> Madam Clerk,

09:35you ready?

09:41Good afternoon. The Shreveport City

09:43Council meeting is now called to order.

09:44I'm [clears throat] going to ask [name redacted]

09:46[name redacted] to lead us in the invocation. I'm

09:49going to ask

09:50Councilman Lake Tim to lead us into the

09:52pledge.

09:58>> Heavenly Father, thank you for

10:00understanding. Thank you for wisdom.

10:02Thank you for encouragement and may this

10:05here the council meeting

10:07provide us with better understanding for

10:09our city. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

10:10>> Amen.

10:12>> Join me with the pledge.

10:13>> I pledge allegiance to the flag of the

10:16United States of America, and to the

10:18Republic for which it stands, one nation

10:21under God, indivisible, with liberty and

10:24justice for all.

10:27>> Madam Clerk, will you please call the

10:28roll? Councilwoman Taylor.

10:30>> Present.

10:30>> Councilman Brooks.

10:31>> Here.

10:32>> Councilman Tyler Pharo.

10:33Councilman Butcher.

10:35Councilman Jackson.

10:36>> Happy to be here.

10:37>> [laughter]

10:38>> Happy to see you.

10:39Councilman Green.

10:40>> I'm here.

10:41>> And Councilwoman Bowman.

10:42>> Present.

10:42>> Tomorrow I will entertain a motion to

10:44approve the minutes of the

10:45administrative conference Monday,

10:46October 26, 2026 and the city council

10:49meeting Tuesday, October 27, 2026.

10:53I think

10:54right now that there are probably

10:57all of us when I ask does any council

10:59member have any awards, recognition, and

11:01distinguished guests not to exceed 15

11:03minutes, that we are thanking God that

11:05our colleague Dr. Allen Jackson is here

11:08with us IN THE FLESH.

11:11[applause]

11:18WE HAD BEEN PRAYING LIKE WE HAD NEVER

11:20prayed before.

11:22But we are happy that you are here and

11:24still thanking God for your continuous

11:27healing in the name of Jesus. Do you

11:30have any words?

11:47>> [laughter]

11:57>> Um

11:58[clears throat] I'm going to try to get

11:59this through this without getting too

12:00emotional. Um

12:03so we will start off with um

12:07[name redacted] is my

12:08girlfriend.

12:09And

12:10um

12:12she had

12:14very very quick actions. Um, she

12:17performed CPR on me. She called 911.

12:19Um,

12:21even weighed them down to make sure they

12:24found the right home.

12:26Um,

12:28there were three gentlemen um that came

12:31in.

12:32Um, and Chief Reese, I would love to

12:33thank them personally

12:35um that got me stable

12:38and transported me to the hospital.

12:41Uh, Berclair was completely shut down

12:44uh to make sure I got there as quickly

12:46as possible.

12:48It only took them 3 minutes to get to my

12:50home.

12:54I want to thank a lot of people.

12:57Um,

12:58and I'm sorry Councilman Butcher's not

13:01here. He has always been the biggest

13:02advocate for fire being a former

13:06fire chief.

13:07I'm hoping to take his place

13:09and to be as big as advocate.

13:12Um, when you think about

13:14saving lives, when you think about

13:17um somebody's grandmother or

13:20uh or even me and the work they do on a

13:23daily basis

13:25just to make sure you have a chance

13:28at a full recovery is remarkable.

13:31And so I don't think we should ever have

13:32a conversation about their worth,

13:36their pay,

13:37um their duty [clears throat]

13:39to the city,

13:41um

13:42because one day 911 may be called and it

13:45may be you

13:47or someone you care about.

13:50I want to thank this council.

13:52I received so many calls, emails,

13:56visit.

13:57Um,

13:60and before

14:02the accident

14:03I received prayers from James Green.

14:06I guess his

14:08past divine intervention

14:11may have known.

14:13Councilwoman Taylor,

14:15Ursula Bowman all visited me at the

14:17hospital.

14:20The mayor,

14:21his wife,

14:23I was told that there was an anointing

14:25in the room

14:27when she prayed over me.

14:31I want to thank

14:33great citizens of District E

14:35for reelecting me

14:38while in the hospital,

14:41while recovering.

14:45For me it's weird. I went back and

14:47watched all of my

14:50camera videos

14:53because

14:55I went to sleep on October 31st

14:58and I woke up on election day

15:01and I did not know why I did not They

15:03did not want to release me from the

15:04hospital.

15:06I kept saying I have to go campaign, I

15:08have to go knock on polls.

15:10And I was competent, I was in my right

15:13mind.

15:14I answered all the doctors questions

15:16where they were like, well technically

15:17we we we can't keep you.

15:20Um that in itself

15:21again is a miracle.

15:23Um I attribute all of that

15:25to the fast actions starting with

15:28my girlfriend and continue with Chief

15:29Priest and his team.

15:33Lastly,

15:34I want to thank

15:36my parents and my campaign team

15:38collectively.

15:40They did not miss a beat.

15:43They was out on the streets

15:52waving signs

15:56and telling people to still vote.

16:04Now,

16:06they did have a watch party without me.

16:08So I'll be asking Mr. Edwards if I have

16:12to file that on my campaign report cuz I

16:13wasn't there. So

16:15we'll we'll we'll talk about that a

16:16little bit later.

16:17Um

16:19but that watch part that gave my parents

16:22some reprieve.

16:23It gave them some time not to be

16:25thinking in the world about me.

16:28And

16:29uh I appreciate them for that.

16:32And so my team is no longer my team.

16:35Um I consider them family.

16:39Thank you.

16:40>> AMEN.

16:40>> THANK YOU.

16:42>> [applause]

16:46>> COUNCILMAN GREEN.

16:47>> YEAH. THANK YOU, ALAN.

16:49GOD bless you. I um

16:52woke up that morning and I called my

16:55barber said

16:58and I asked him could he work me in.

17:01And he said um

17:03yeah, I could work you in at

17:0710:30.

17:09Said okay.

17:10So when I left home I was in route to

17:13the barber shop.

17:17But while being in route to the barber

17:19shop

17:20I was going to go to the jewelry store

17:22down where you were getting your feet.

17:25But I went to go to the barber shop.

17:29And

17:30two lights from the barber shop said

17:32call and said

17:34hey would listen my customer for 10:00

17:38has just walked in with her two sons.

17:40Can you come at 1:00?

17:42I kindly said to him yes and I made a

17:45U-turn and

17:47that's how I went on to the jewelry

17:48store and once I was at the jewelry

17:50store was inside

17:52it was fixing my cross

17:54sitting there talking to them and when I

17:56come out

17:57truck sitting there

17:59before I pulled off and the next thing I

18:01knew you was walking up to the truck.

18:04And you was telling me about how you had

18:06campaign and

18:08uh she wanted you to come and get her

18:10feet to get your feet done and she was

18:12behind you saying it wasn't me, it was

18:14him.

18:15And she was laughing.

18:18But I was looking in your eyes and

18:21I I didn't know what I was seeing, but

18:24only thing I knew what to do was to say

18:26a prayer.

18:28And you were so gentle and so kind and I

18:31said the prayer and you walked off.

18:33Next thing I knew

18:35after that councilwoman Taylor called

18:36me.

18:38But God had some angels

18:41covering you and protecting you.

18:44And

18:45we give all the glory and thanks to him.

18:48And I'm glad that

18:51a delay is not a denial.

18:53>> Amen.

18:55>> After that I went on got my haircut at

18:571:00.

18:58But I'm thankful that I came in contact

19:01with you

19:02just for a word of prayer.

19:03>> Amen.

19:04>> And while we were yet praying prayers

19:06were being answered.

19:07>> Amen.

19:08>> So just know that God has his hand on

19:10you for something special.

19:12>> Amen.

19:13>> Thank you madam chair.

19:14>> You're welcome.

19:16Any other council member have any

19:17awards, recognition, or distinguished

19:19guests not to exceed 15 minutes?

19:28Congratulations to my colleagues

19:32on their wins.

19:33Yay. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

19:36Thank you. Y'all can clap for yourself.

19:38[applause]

19:39Thank you. You can clap for yourself for

19:42real.

19:42>> Um madam chair.

19:43>> Yes.

19:45>> I I didn't win but I got 111,188

19:48votes.

19:49[laughter]

19:52So

19:52>> And you got you got 38,000 in Caddo.

19:55>> I got 30 I would like to thank

19:57all of them everybody who voted for me.

20:00>> Thank you.

20:00>> But I'd like to thank the voters in

20:03Caddo Parish.

20:04>> Amen.

20:05>> Thank y'all so much and God bless you.

20:08And I am now on to my next chapter.

20:10>> Amen.

20:11Amen.

20:14I know that we have two presentations.

20:16Mayor Arsenal, do you have any awards,

20:18recognition, or distinguished guests not

20:19to exceed 15 minutes?

20:21>> No ma'am.

20:22>> Uh Mayor Arsenal, do you have

20:23>> communications of the mayor relative to

20:25city business other than awards,

20:27recognition, or distinguished guests?

20:29>> Not other than the two presentations,

20:30Madam Chair.

20:31>> Mr. Daug, you want to do those

20:32presentations at this point?

20:35>> Y'all ain't sending nothing to Gary?

20:37>> What you say? Gary is the city

20:38councilman, right?

20:39>> call his name.

20:41Gary, thank you

20:44for sitting beside me.

20:45>> Anyway, you only have a few more

20:48Thursdays, Tuesdays down here.

20:50>> We'll be good.

20:51>> [name redacted].

20:51>> You're going to last. Thank you, Gary.

20:54>> [name redacted] is going to handle the Spar

20:56and Golf ones because he used to work

20:57for those folks and knows a great deal

20:59about them and it's time for him to

21:01begin to shine.

21:02>> Okay.

21:03Come on down.

21:04>> employee. [laughter]

21:06We'll start off with Spar. The 2027

21:09proposed budget for Spar is $21,630,600.

21:15That's up $448,500.

21:18Not much. It's almost a continuation

21:20budget.

21:21Uh, it's up a little bit more for get

21:25the

21:26There we go.

21:28A little bit more just to account for

21:30some additional utilities and building

21:32maintenance. And I'll let [name redacted] talk to

21:34you a little bit.

21:37>> Good afternoon and congratulations,

21:39Mayor,

21:40Chairman. Thank y'all. And thank you for

21:42accommodating

21:44my budget hearing today.

21:46I really do appreciate it. It has been a

21:48tremendous year. As many of you know,

21:49we've had lots of accomplishments and

21:51we'll talk about some of those as we

21:53head into talking about the capital

21:54budget. But as you can see from this

21:56budget, it's as [name redacted] said, it's a

21:59pretty much standalone budget.

22:01We have done a lot of work in security,

22:05trying to mitigate the damage caused by

22:07vandalism, caused by theft. We've been

22:10working really hard on that. You'll see

22:12that we've put cameras at

22:14a lot of our parks. We have a few parks

22:16to go.

22:17That is in our unfunded needs. I think

22:19y'all looked at that.

22:21So we have some of those things, but we

22:23have had a tremendous year. The scope of

22:25our responsibilities don't have not

22:28decreased. We had hoped we'd see some

22:30negative net effect of buildings as we

22:33began to move people around, but that

22:35has not happened with the three

22:37additional substations and

22:40well, actually four. And then the

22:44OSI building, some of the other

22:45locations, we just did not see that net

22:48effect. So we are still maintaining as

22:50much if not more as we were before in

22:52that area.

22:54Since 2020 when COVID hit and we our rec

22:57centers really dipped and and use and

23:01services, we have really hit the ground

23:03running 2024. Some of our rec centers

23:06has seen as many as 40,000 visits this

23:08far this year.

23:10Our after school program is full. Our

23:12summer camps, our spring break camps,

23:14all of our holiday camps tend to stay

23:16full. So things have really picked back

23:18up since then.

23:20So you know, if they said there's not a

23:22lot of changes, but I would be more than

23:24happy to answer any questions you might

23:26have about our general fund budget.

23:31>> I don't think

23:33probably

23:35council members were prepared today to

23:38ask any questions for

23:40Yeah, because we didn't know about the

23:42the presentation. So Mr. Dark needed to

23:45to give them some time to be able to

23:48update that, [name redacted].

23:50>> Oh, absolutely. We just found out, you

23:52know, [name redacted] and [name redacted] were not going

23:53to be here Thursday, so we wanted to at

23:55least give you the [laughter]

23:56the early the early date. [name redacted]'s

23:58[name redacted]'s budget's done really well. We

24:00we can go on a little bit. [name redacted] can

24:01talk a little bit more about some of the

24:02rest of it, but we'll certainly have

24:04plenty of time for you to ask whatever

24:06questions

24:07and [name redacted] be happy to answer.

24:09>> Okay.

24:10>> Yeah, like I said, I can go a little

24:12more into detail since you haven't, but

24:15we'll get into the capital improvements,

24:17but you all know all the capital

24:18improvements have been going on in your

24:20district from the riverfront out to all

24:22of our parks. We've got some

24:25big plans for the riverfront park, the

24:26roses. We're working on that. We hope

24:28that those are repaired with the color

24:30changing lights by the time Rockets over

24:33the Red takes place later in December.

24:36There's you know, there's still a lot of

24:37things going on like that those kind of

24:40capital improvements that weren't

24:41necessary

24:42part of the bond issue, but part of our

24:44capital projects.

24:46Um you know, just

24:47just as a reminder cuz a lot of people

24:49don't realize, but we're not only

24:50responsible for parks, but we're also

24:53responsible for all the buildings in the

24:54city and those things.

24:56Um we've really done a good job of

24:58trying to keep up and this money where

25:01they talked about there was a little

25:02change in building maintenance. That's

25:04what's been able to help us do things

25:07like roof replacements and HVACs and

25:10things like that that you know, we don't

25:12want to fall behind on and those are

25:14some of the things that we've really

25:16focused in on this year. Our staff is

25:19doing a really good job of thinking

25:22you know, innovatively.

25:24We have done some things with our mowing

25:26to keep up with that. As I've said

25:28before, she does a really good job of

25:30thinking about contractors. She thinks

25:33about part-time employees, full-time

25:34employees. How do we get this done?

25:37I think y'all saw that. We did an

25:39autonomous mower at the golf courses and

25:42we're trying to make sure that

25:43technology really works well cuz it

25:45could be something that we could deploy

25:46to the parkway somewhere like that might

25:49make sense. So our staffs are really

25:51doing a good job of thinking about how

25:52do we handle everything that we're

25:54responsible for and how do we handle it

25:57with the latest technology and by really

25:59utilizing our resources.

26:02Programming like I said at all of our

26:04rec centers is just been overwhelming

26:07this year from you know, our young

26:08people who start at 6:00 all the way up

26:11to 106. We're serving seniors but the

26:14young adults, adults, children through

26:17all of our programs.

26:19After school is like I said full. All of

26:22our summer camps are full. Our spring

26:24break, any holiday camps, but as well as

26:26all the other just date like I said some

26:28of your rec centers are seeing about

26:3140,000 visits so far this year. That's a

26:33lot of visits to our rec centers.

26:35>> I know for because we've seen that high

26:40traffic and a lot of our rec centers

26:42then I know that some additional

26:44equipment is needed like the replacement

26:46of basketballs and things of that nature

26:49that I know many of us wanted to make

26:50sure that we had

26:52reordered

26:54and making sure that other the gym floor

26:56surfaces and all of those things were

26:58taken care of for the activities that we

27:00had

27:01that are present. So I'm sure that we

27:04will probably have some additional

27:06information on Thursday, [name redacted],

27:09for that that we'll provide to you for

27:11sure.

27:12>> Yes, if I can answer any questions by

27:13writing I can do that too. But yes, all

27:15of our gym floors are on a rotation

27:18basis. We do so many then we rotate in

27:20the spring and the fall. So we've got a

27:22set that are due to be

27:24finished before the year's up. We've

27:26been buying some new outdoor basketball

27:29goals.

27:30We had brand new ones at AB Palmer and

27:33someone ran into one of them recently.

27:35So we're having to fix that one. We can

27:37blame that on the police.

27:39But anyway, we're you know trying very

27:42hard to keep things updated. We're about

27:43to do some new playground equipment at

27:46on the land side at Ford Park, you know

27:48just trying to keep up with some of

27:51those

27:52that just ongoing maintenance.

27:56>> Thank you, [name redacted].

27:59We had spoke about a wish list for Bill

28:01Cockerel and Bill Berry. Do we get that

28:04wish list from the pack?

28:06>> They have not sent it. I know that they

28:08know they're supposed to be providing

28:10it, but I have not seen that yet.

28:12>> Well, I'll check with them because they

28:13did have some concerns. I think the

28:14weights

28:16Cockerel and then Bill Berry had a

28:19couple of problems with their TVs.

28:21>> Okay. Yes, if they'll send those in

28:23we'll get we can take care of that in

28:24our budget. I will say Bill Cockerel,

28:26you know we did a whole bunch of work.

28:28They got the new parking lot that was

28:29part of

28:30the bond issue. They also we redid some

28:33areas around their gardens this year.

28:36So, I mean a lot of work going on there

28:39too. And then we can take care of the

28:40TVs.

28:41>> I got a big wish list for Bill Barry.

28:43They want a pool.

28:45>> Oh, yes. [laughter] I know.

28:48I get that one from them too.

28:49>> I know David Rains wants that big

28:51television like they have over there at

28:52Airport Park.

28:55>> [laughter]

28:59>> They ain't so

29:00loud.

29:02Mr. Mr. Dark will find me one.

29:04>> [laughter]

29:06>> Like Friday.

29:07>> I wouldn't be surprised if James comes

29:08in one day and the one at the airport's

29:10not there and all of a sudden [laughter]

29:11you find it.

29:13>> Yeah, it is really nice and they're

29:14doing a lot of great programming with

29:16it. So, we're really proud of it. Yes,

29:18sir.

29:18>> We want us a television too.

29:20>> See, how did they get over to my park

29:22anyway? They ain't supposed to be able

29:23to

29:24They don't even supposed to know.

29:26>> Yes, that's what I'm just saying.

29:28>> Well, I want if if they get a TV, I want

29:31you to extend Airport Park to have a

29:34swimming pool like Alan has over there.

29:37>> [laughter]

29:39>> You have land.

29:41>> We do.

29:42>> You have land, so don't worry about it.

29:44>> things going on in our parks.

29:45>> Alan, you want to talk a little about

29:46your

29:47the stuff that would be funded if you

29:49get the next set of bonds?

29:52>> Yeah, I didn't know if I wanted to talk

29:53about that capital or now.

29:54>> Yeah, we'll come back to golf as that.

29:55>> Okay. So, you all know that there's been

29:57a lot of great things going on in our

29:59capital projects. We as I said, the

30:02parking lot, the swimming pools. There's

30:04been a lot that was accomplished this

30:06year and we've got lots of things coming

30:08up for the new year with our bonds when

30:11the next set of bonds are being sold. Um

30:14we will be doing the Fire and Police

30:16Academy. We're going to see the final

30:21drawings next week. They'll be ready to

30:23get out. They'll be Then they'll move

30:24those into construction drawings. But

30:26they're touching every part of the Fire

30:28and Police Academy with that.

30:30SPD headquarters continues. It's

30:33I'm sure the chief will talk about it.

30:34Don't want to his report, but that

30:36project is moving right along. They're

30:39not ready to change their final date,

30:41but it is moving quickly.

30:43Um, we've been working municipal

30:46auditorium ceiling that

30:48many of you have been to concerts there

30:49and asked me about it. That project's in

30:51the works. The public build public works

30:54building at 70th. He's working on the

30:56ghost construction drawings, so you'll

30:58see that. And then the Shreveport

30:59Convention Center has some projects that

31:01we're going to be accomplishing there.

31:03We finished the garage where we did all

31:06the waterproofing on the garage

31:08building, which is going to last help

31:10last the lifetime of that garage. We 've

31:13done that. You'll be seeing the outside

31:15power washing. We're doing power washing

31:18at Sci-Port. And this is another place

31:20where we're using innovation.

31:22The high work we're doing with drones

31:24and the low work is being done the way

31:26we always power wash. And Independent

31:29Stadium, that's also been a problem for

31:31power washing cuz the sides are so tall,

31:34but they're doing those with high work

31:36is all being doing with being done with

31:38drones. So you'll see that work. All the

31:41chairs have been replaced at Independent

31:42Stadium.

31:44Um, you'll see restroom upgrades at some

31:46of our parks. Betty Virginia's one of

31:48them.

31:49Um, Columbia was slated to get bathroom

31:52upgrade through the bond issue.

31:55Um, all the tennis centers, Mayme Hicks,

31:57Bill Berry, Highland, all of those

31:59tennis projects as well as AC Steere

32:02will start. You know, we celebrated the

32:04100th anniversary of Columbia

32:06and we did some work there as we

32:08celebrated that.

32:10Their um the Therapeutic Recreation

32:13Program, their new building will bid

32:15next year also. So we've got some really

32:17big things coming up with that next sale

32:19of bonds that will affect each and every

32:21one of your

32:22your districts. So our capital program

32:25is going well. We're

32:27um able to get these out. Some of the

32:29things that we're doing at Riverview

32:31Park, which you know, everybody's

32:33cares about Riverview Park. We did the

32:35fountains. We're going to do the roses.

32:38Then all the bollard lights, which are

32:39about 85 of those in the park. Those are

32:42also going to be replaced with color

32:44changing LED that can program with the

32:46bridge. So that whole park will be able

32:48to program and the lighting will be

32:51be able to have phenomenal shows in

32:52Riverfront Park with that. So there's a

32:54lot going on.

32:57We do continue construction on fire

33:00stations. I think the next one up and

33:02like I said, I'll let Chief Reese talk

33:04more about it, but fire station 15

33:07should be getting ready to move in. And

33:09we've got lots of renovation projects

33:12going on at our fire stations, too. So

33:13there's work going on all over the city

33:16with buildings and parks.

33:22>> Now now we can do golf.

33:23>> Now we can do golf.

33:30I'll say that golf is

33:32it continues to experience city growth

33:35both at both in participation and in

33:38revenues. We anticipate that we might

33:40see us We thought we would see a

33:42slowdown this year because East Ridge

33:44opened back up. They were under

33:46construction and we gained a lot of

33:48players from East Ridge and we were

33:50concerned this year that we wouldn't see

33:53the amount of play, but fortunately, we

33:55have not seen the kind of decrease in

33:57play that we thought we might. And

34:00that has really helped our revenues.

34:03But also we're very conservative at our

34:05spending at the golf courses.

34:07Real good sound financial management.

34:10We've been able to self-fund a lot of

34:12minor projects. If you go to both

34:14courses, you'll see things that we're

34:15doing out those.

34:18I do know that there is a project slated

34:22a budget amendment slated. It's in the

34:23golf budget. I don't think it made

34:25another fund, but it's a million to

34:26transfer a million from our operating

34:28reserves so that we can do some major

34:30work at Huntington and at

34:34Corby's. We're also many of you know we

34:36had a fire at Jerry Timberooks. We are

34:39currently uh rebuilding facility after

34:43the fire. So, lots of things going on

34:45and with golf, but the good thing about

34:46it is is that revenues continued to

34:50um stay steady and our staff is doing a

34:53really good job of being conservative

34:54with their spending.

35:00I think

35:01anything on capital? Any questions about

35:03it that you might

35:07>> While [name redacted]'s up there,

35:10there's really not a department head

35:11that fits all this well, but the the

35:13Film and Entertainment Gateway fund that

35:15you created to replace the old downtown

35:18entertainment district data, they'll

35:20start collecting revenue starting next

35:22year.

35:23And we have a budget for that. It's only

35:25$10,000 just because we had to put a

35:26number in. We won't know what it'll

35:28actually be until we start getting

35:29revenue. Um but that that collection

35:33will start at at the start of the first

35:35quarter.

35:47>> I do want to say that um before I leave

35:49that I do want to recognize the staff at

35:51Spar.

35:52There's a lot of incredible people there

35:54who work really hard.

35:56They are the heart of our department,

35:58our people.

35:59And none of this accomplishments that

36:01we've had this year would have been

36:02possible without them. We've had a lot

36:04of special events with America 250.

36:06We've done a lot of open houses. We've

36:08done a lot of ribbon cuttings. Um all of

36:11that staff works together to produce all

36:13of these things and you know I couldn't

36:14do

36:16be nothing without all of them. And so I

36:17just want to before I leave to just say

36:20this has been an exceptional year. I

36:21couldn't be more proud to be part of

36:22that team and that they continue to

36:25produce the amount of work they produce

36:26with the number of people we have.

36:30Um

36:31thank y'all unless you have questions

36:33for me.

36:38Thank y'all.

36:39>> Thank [name redacted].

36:40We uh we learned this morning that

36:42[name redacted] is likely to be gone

36:44Thursday, so we decided to bring him up

36:46as well.

36:47Since y'all love him, I thought that

36:48would be an easy one for today. But

36:50SportTran's budget, while he's coming

36:52up,

36:52going to be just a little bit under 21

36:54million, about 6.6% up. He has some

36:57handout to give you about kind of where

36:59all that's been, but you know, the main

37:01thing is labor costs and equipment costs

37:03are going up a little bit. Um he's got

37:06some more capital grants we got to

37:07match. Zero fares are still where they

37:09are.

37:10We're going to be giving them as from

37:12general fund 12 million 650. That's up a

37:15little bit, um but not a whole lot. I

37:17mean he's he's pretty much what managed

37:19to hold it pretty well. His big victory

37:21this year, as you've already heard

37:22earlier, was

37:24convincing the city of Boer City to

37:25begin paying a considerable amount more

37:27money for what service we provide over

37:29there.

37:30Your own, [name redacted].

37:32>> Good afternoon, council, mayor,

37:34administration. I do want to also say

37:36congratulations to each one of you and

37:38thank you for your support of SportTran

37:39over the years.

37:41Um our 2027 budget,

37:43uh I'm passing around a little handout

37:44if you get it.

37:46The big

37:47big changes in our budget this year for

37:49increases is labor has to do with our

37:51CBA for fixed route as well as our own

37:54demand drivers. Our fringe benefits of

37:56course will increase due to that.

37:58Services, the other increase in our

38:00budget, we went from 900,000 to about

38:021.5 million in Boer. Looking at bringing

38:06night nights and weekend service back in

38:07Boer and had some great conversations

38:09with them. Might affect, we're even

38:11meeting tomorrow at 3:30 about their new

38:13transfer facility they're willing to

38:15build there in Boer. So we're heading in

38:17the right direction. Everyone knows

38:19electric and water is increasing.

38:21So those are other increases that we

38:23have. And then we did see a pretty

38:25substantial increase in our insurance

38:26coverages

38:28because of course we have a pretty new

38:29fleet. It's good to get federal grants

38:31here to get a lot of new buses, but when

38:33you go from

38:3418 million in costs to about 42 million

38:37in costs for your fleet, we did see an

38:39increase in insurance costs.

38:42Revenues that are coming in are are the

38:45same.

38:46Passenger fare, if you look at that one

38:47you say well they don't have fair. We do

38:49have one contract uh that we take here

38:52on our mobility brand that brings in

38:53about 36,000 a year.

38:56Advertising, just balancing that number

38:58out. We were trying to see where it's

38:59going to be. It's going to be about 336

39:01next year. Of course we just talked

39:02about Boger.

39:04Uh, going forward

39:06uh I would just hop down to key

39:07um key key goals for us.

39:11Uh, we're looking at long-term funding

39:12solutions. We're going to be working

39:13with the mayor's office on that. I knew

39:15autonomous facility opened actually last

39:17Tuesday.

39:18Um, we are working with Thrash

39:19Construction to sign a contract and get

39:21that facility out the ground within the

39:23next 30 days.

39:25Uh,

39:26at ADA Resource Center, this was a grant

39:28that was funded by Senator Cassidy.

39:30Uh, he gave us $8 million

39:32uh as a direct spending grant to build

39:34this facility. Uh, we hope to get that

39:36facility out the ground first quarter.

39:38It's in the MLK community right outside

39:40of Cherokee Park.

39:42Um, city of Boger just talked about the

39:44transfer terminal uh in Boger. We have

39:46identified some land in Boger that is

39:48owned by the city of Boger and we're

39:49working to build that facility and meet

39:51with them again tomorrow.

39:53Uh,

39:54exciting thing, we have received a grant

39:56for e-paper signs. These are signs that

39:58will go at a lot of our bus stops, about

39:59400 that would actually give real-time

40:01information and real-time updates to all

40:03passengers throughout the system.

40:05Uh, we will continue installing those

40:07bus shelters

40:08uh and then the thing that I'm actually

40:10might have been DC on Thursday about is

40:12our is our CIG grant, that 175 million

40:15we talked to you about earlier this

40:16year. Uh, we were actually invited to be

40:18there this Thursday with everything

40:19happening last Tuesday. Uh, we're not

40:22sure if that meeting is still on, but if

40:23it is, we plan to be there represent

40:25Shreveport and try to bring that 175

40:27million back home.

40:30The back, if you flip over, this just

40:32kind of give you some of your

40:33expenditures of where your ridership is

40:34at at this point in time. We do still

40:36service the number two city for

40:38ridership throughout the state of

40:39Louisiana with us approaching 5 million

40:42in ridership, our budget being about 20

40:45million. Uh, if And the next system

40:48above us with ridership about 9 million,

40:50which would be

40:52RTA. In New Orleans, they spent about

40:54227 million

40:56on their ridership. That includes ferry,

40:58rail, as well as bus service.

41:00I always like to compare Baton Rouge.

41:02Baton Rouge spends 51 million on public

41:04transportation, and they do about 1.4

41:07million rides a year. So that kind of

41:09gives you a comparison. I'm happy to

41:10take any questions that you might have.

41:13>> Um

41:14Councilman Green.

41:16>> [name redacted], I don't have any

41:17questions, but I would like to

41:20thank you all again for selecting

41:23Hollywood for your transfer station.

41:26It has worked out perfect.

41:28The people are like

41:31thankful that it's there. They say how

41:33beautiful it is

41:35and it's well kept, and I just like to

41:37say thank you

41:38for that

41:40facility there. It is

41:42second to none, and I just like to say

41:44thank you.

41:45>> Thank you.

41:49>> I also

41:50want to piggyback on

41:52Councilman Green.

41:55The citizens in which report

41:58asked asked for something

42:00and you delivered.

42:02It has helped tremendously with some of

42:04the rideshares there,

42:06the additional routes that you helped to

42:08maintain. So I want to thank you say

42:09thank you from District G.

42:11>> No problem. Thank you.

42:15>> Councilman Telefero.

42:16>> Thank you, Madam Chair.

42:19I just want to tell you how thankful I

42:21am for you

42:24for always returning my texts,

42:27phone calls, emails

42:30when I have concerns about

42:32one of the major economic corridors, you

42:34know, in our city.

42:36And

42:37your willingness to

42:39not give

42:41a canned answer, but you're always the

42:43willingness to say, let's see what we

42:44can do.

42:45Let's find a better way.

42:47Let's you know

42:49let's fix the issue.

42:51And that's what leaders do. They don't

42:53complain. We just fix.

42:55And I admire that about you, and I look

42:57forward to

42:58serving you as you have served us, you

43:01know, for another four years. So thank

43:03you

43:04for for

43:05for me and for my district for always

43:08taking care of us as throughout the

43:10city. Um, I think you're

43:13I think you're under your leadership um

43:16we are farther along than we ever

43:17thought we could be, and I appreciate

43:19it. Thank you.

43:20>> Thank you.

43:20>> [name redacted], thank you and your and your team

43:23again. You guys are amazing. I

43:25appreciate the zero fare operations

43:27again going into 2027.

43:30Um, especially right now with with gas

43:32prices, I wish I had a route

43:34uh for the most part. Um, but I mean I I

43:37think that is a plus plus for the city

43:40of Shreveport being a city of our size.

43:43I I did want to ask you about the um

43:47transit security

43:49for that particular facility. What have

43:51we worked out there? Do we have a budget

43:53as it relates to that um because I know

43:55that that was a real issue

43:57here?

43:58>> this administration has introduced a few

44:00new things to help us out with off-duty

44:02officers. They were testing out actually

44:04were testing a new pilot program today

44:06with off-duty officers

44:07supported by the administration

44:10Chief Smith and uh

44:12Chief Chief Kelly. Uh, they're working

44:15on some plans of action. They've become

44:16a lot more engaged. They have assigned

44:17some sergeants to make sure that those

44:19operations are. So what we decided to do

44:21is use the data, use those off-duty

44:24officers, use those sergeants that they

44:25have on duty

44:26to kind of help with the operations, and

44:28we're going to staff that,

44:30uh see how that goes, and then we'll be

44:31able to provide a full report back to

44:33you of exactly what we think we need

44:34based on what is coming out of

44:35Shreveport. But I want to thank the

44:37administration. I want to thank Chief

44:38Smith. Um, they have worked, you know,

44:40tireless over the last two or three

44:42months to actually put a program

44:43together to actually make this happen.

44:45>> Thank you so much. That's good to hear.

44:47>> We actually put a little extra money in

44:48his city part of his budget to help

44:51cover some of the expenses that that

44:53might incur.

44:53>> Yeah, I I

44:54>> knew that that was a big deal.

44:56Yes. Thank you so much, sir.

44:57>> Thank you.

45:01>> Anyone else, Mr. Dart?

45:03>> Before you get off SporTran, I want to

45:04thank you for your quite impassioned

45:06defense of SporTran during

45:09the campaign a month or so ago.

45:11[laughter]

45:12It was very much appreciated.

45:14>> You're more than welcome. I think they

45:15do a remarkable job and

45:17they create and facilitate the economic

45:19impact to this city. So we have to make

45:21sure of that.

45:27Does any member have any questions or

45:29concerns relative to property standards

45:30from Mr. Green?

46:02Watch out throw all those questions out

46:03at one time.

46:06Mr. Morgan.

46:09Come on down.

46:24>> Yes, ma'am.

46:29>> Have to add a little bit more to that

46:30budget.

46:33Um

46:35at the end of Bullen Street

46:38I think that's the 4900 block of Bullen

46:41Street off of Hutcheson.

46:42>> Okay.

46:43>> Um at the dead end is a dumping site and

46:47I'm not sure

46:49that if that is ours or the parish.

46:52>> Okay.

46:53>> Um in that part um it's It's that

46:56Councilwoman Bowman and I

46:58both have. Um.

46:59>> Is that the where they putting the new

47:02Caddo Parish, I think it's SWEPCO

47:04building or something?

47:05>> Yeah.

47:05>> Yeah, that that's our street. They just

47:07own the building.

47:08>> But it's on the it's at the end of the

47:10street.

47:11>> Okay. That it's it's our street.

47:12>> lot of that land

47:14too, still a part of it is in the

47:15parish.

47:16>> Okay.

47:16>> Yeah. Um but they it's an illegal

47:18dumping site there

47:20um that I actually need

47:22that site uh clean.

47:25>> Okay.

47:25>> then on the uh

47:272800 block of

47:31where is that?

47:40[snorts]

47:47Looney.

47:48>> Looney. [clears throat]

47:49Looney and Bully. I got you. Okay.

47:51Another dump site?

47:52>> Yeah. Looney and Missouri.

47:55>> Okay.

47:55>> Uh up in that area right there.

47:58For whatever reason, I don't know why

48:01people like to dump in that area, but I

48:04am asking

48:06the chief them to get some cameras over

48:08in that area too because that that is

48:11Looney, Sycamore,

48:13Missouri,

48:15all right up in that section right

48:16there, Anna Street.

48:18They just consistently dump in there.

48:20You have just a multitude of tires,

48:22mattresses, and couches uh in that area,

48:25but it's been some debris there for a

48:27couple of weeks. And so I know we were

48:29backlogged on the bulk pickups, but if

48:31we can tackle that area too, I would

48:34greatly appreciate that.

48:35>> Okay. Will do.

48:36>> Okay.

48:37>> All right.

48:41That's it.

48:42>> I think that's it. Anybody else?

48:44Okay. Thank you, sir.

48:45>> All right.

48:50>> Everyone should have received the

48:51revenue collection plan and

48:53implementation report, public hearing.

48:56Tomorrow we will have a public hearing

48:58on the 2027 proposed budget.

49:00Mr. Dark, will there be any legislation

49:02added tomorrow?

49:03>> No, ma'am, chair.

49:04>> Okay. Today we're here at public

49:06comments on non-agenda and agenda items.

49:09Um you have three minutes to speak.

49:10Please state your name for the record

49:12and Madam Vice Chair will handle this

49:14part of the agenda.

49:16>> Today we have zero public comments.

49:18>> What? What [applause] the what?

49:22Did you did you turn your slip?

49:25>> [laughter]

49:27>> No. I missed understood the agenda item.

49:32I thought the public hearing was for

49:33today.

49:35And I wanted to ask a question about the

49:37budget.

49:38>> Right.

49:38>> But then you said it's tomorrow. So

49:41that's why I didn't send in a slip.

49:43Otherwise I could have spoken to it

49:45today.

49:45>> Okay.

49:46>> Okay. So

49:47>> do you want your three minutes?

49:48>> If you don't mind because and I'll be

49:50glad to fill out the document to to

49:53address that.

49:54>> from the council.

49:55>> That's fine.

49:56>> Aye.

49:56>> Aye.

49:57>> Aye.

49:57>> Aye.

49:58>> Aye.

49:58>> Okay. So we'll give you your three

50:00minutes.

50:00>> Thank you so much. [name redacted], [address redacted]

50:03[address redacted]

50:04When I was

50:08looking through the review packet that I

50:10was given this evening, uh like you all,

50:13I didn't have a lot of

50:15time to look it over, but I did look it

50:17over. And I wanted to ask the question

50:20with regards to the Linwood Bridge.

50:22There is some $2.6 million seemingly

50:25allocated for that bridge. How are we or

50:28do we anticipate we're going to bring

50:31this particular project to a fruition?

50:34That's what I wanted to know.

50:36>> There's been a lot of discussion on that

50:37Linwood Bridge. Um and the last report

50:41that we had in infrastructure meeting,

50:42[name redacted], is that we were waiting on

50:45um

50:47the railroad

50:48um to

50:50to approve the design um that you all

50:53had for that particular bridge. If David

50:56Smith is here. Is he here?

50:59Um Mr. Morgan or Mr. Dark, do you want

51:01to speak [clears throat] to that?

51:03>> I suspect they're going to talk a little

51:04bit more about that when you get to

51:06public works.

51:07Understanding is is as Madam Chair said,

51:10they're trying to get the plans far

51:11enough along so where the railroad can

51:13actually say yea or nay over what's on

51:15them.

51:16You know, that's still in in progress.

51:18What what you saw in the handout is the

51:21the last of the city money

51:23that was voted on in the 24 bond issue

51:25is being added so that if the railroad

51:28says yes, we would have the money to

51:30actually do the repair.

51:31>> So am I to understand that there are

51:33more funds than the 2.6 million that you

51:36all are going to be addressing?

51:37>> I think

51:38>> Oh, I'm sorry. I should have gotten

51:39permission. I apologize. Forgive me.

51:42>> There's there's money from the city bond

51:44issue and there's also some state

51:45capital

51:45>> Right.

51:46>> Okay.

51:47>> So preferably that they will receive the

51:50plans that the city has submitted to

51:51them so we can get the moving on that

51:55particular project and open that end of

51:57the bridge.

51:58>> And thank you so much for allowing me

51:59this opportunity to ask that question

52:02because I did misread or didn't

52:04understand clearly that the public

52:06hearing was not for today.

52:07>> Okay.

52:08>> Thank you.

52:08>> one second, Councilman

52:09>> And also in the infrastructure meeting,

52:12it was also clarified and discussed that

52:16nobody tells the railroad what to do.

52:21>> With Jesus.

52:22>> [laughter]

52:24>> they don't even call him.

52:25>> Jesus call him. Yeah, Jesus call him.

52:28>> And that was a meeting that was held

52:29recently, the infrastructure meeting?

52:31>> Say it again.

52:32>> The the infrastructure meeting was held

52:34recently?

52:35>> Yes, ma'am. About a month ago.

52:37>> Okay. Thank you so much.

52:38>> Thank you, [name redacted].

52:40That concludes public comments.

52:41>> Okay, we have no executive performance

52:43to consider tomorrow. There are no items

52:44under consent agenda for introduction or

52:47to be adopted. Mr. Dark, please proceed

52:49with regular agenda legislation.

52:51>> Thank you, Madam Chair. 116 is a

52:53resolution that temporarily allows some

52:55all-terrain utility vehicles on on

52:57certain downtown streets, not the state

52:59route part, but but all the city streets

53:01in downtown. This is for the proposed

53:03DDA security patrol and it's a temporary

53:06thing until I believe the end of

53:07January.

53:09118 through 122 are CEA pass throughs

53:13that we have from the state. Um

53:16118 is $15,000 for Extensions of

53:18Excellence Pro Performing Arts.

53:20119 is 66,000 for

53:23[name redacted] for a couple of murals

53:25in the City Grove area. 120 is 15,000

53:27for something called RDM Educational

53:30Consulting for for neurodiversity and a

53:32safety initiative. 121 is 15,000 for

53:35Rutherford House. 122 is 15,000 for the

53:38theater of of the Performing Arts.

53:41>> What was 120?

53:43>> 120 is

53:45for it's 15,000 for a group called RDM

53:47Educational Consulting for

53:49neurodiversity and safety initiative.

53:51And that is all I know about it.

53:54>> Okay.

53:57>> Uh 123 is is one of your mineral lease

53:59uh requests. It's a fairly large one,

54:01almost 384 acres.

54:03It's mostly street right of way and

54:05airport park property. Um and if we get

54:08bids even at the minimum, it's a little

54:10over 1.1 million.

54:12124 and 125 are ones we talked at the

54:14last council meeting about about 3 hours

54:17ago now the HR board approved uh pay

54:20schedule for December 1st for the 3% pay

54:23raise and then approved a separate pay

54:25scale that includes the parity raises in

54:27January January 1st. So you are now free

54:30to to adopt both of those. But those

54:32went through unanimously at the HR

54:33board. They met uh

54:35at 11:30 this morning.

54:37>> Okay. Thank you.

54:39Mr. Doggett, any questions?

54:42Mr. Doggett, would you proceed with

54:43introduction of resolutions not to be

54:44adopted prior to December 8, 2026?

54:47>> 126 is another CEA for a state pass

54:50through. This is for a group called

54:51Jewel House Youth Outreach and Services.

54:53They do a transitional

54:55uh shelter for young females, I believe.

54:59>> We have no items on the introduction of

55:01ordinances. Mr. Doggett, please proceed

55:03with ordinances on second reading and

55:04final passage.

55:06>> Ordinance 121 is the one that Mr.

55:07>> [name redacted] came to you about last time. It's

55:10a no parking zone

55:11on the 15th on both sides of the 15 and

55:121600 blocks of

55:14Crosslake Boulevard

55:16uh in in response to

55:18some issues with a neighboring business.

55:21132 is zoning case 2680

55:24C

55:25piece of property on Live Oak just off

55:26Kingston Road. [name redacted] talked about

55:28that one last time. It's R17

55:31residential to R17 residential with

55:33conditional uses

55:34uh for an existing use that's already

55:35there.

55:37Uh 123 is a zoning case 2683 C

55:41piece of property on just north of Texas

55:43Avenue southwest of Levy Street

55:45from C3 to I1 basically to to bring it

55:48into conformity with what the other uses

55:50around it are.

55:52124 is zoning case

55:54uh 26119 C. This is property north side

55:57of Flono Lucas got 390 ft

56:00west of Forbing Road from R17 to C2.

56:03This is for an expansion of the property

56:05that's being used by El Patio

56:07restaurant.

56:08And all of those came through without

56:10any opposition at MPC.

56:12>> Okay.

56:13>> The last one is is 125

56:16ordinance I mean zoning case C20

56:1826122 C. This is for property on the

56:22east side of Linwood near McCrary. Um

56:25this is for a C4 to R15 for a fairly

56:28large size housing development.

56:31And it also was unanimous without

56:32opposition.

56:33>> All right.

56:35Madam Clerk, is there any other table

56:37legislation to be removed from the table

56:39today?

56:40>> No, ma'am.

56:43Councilman Green, you wanted to

56:45>> Thank you, Chief. Your name has been

56:46called a lot today. I wanted to make a

56:49special request

57:00that if all possible

57:02the paramedics that were blessing to uh

57:05council colleague, if you could have

57:08them to come to the meeting tomorrow so

57:09that we could publicly thank them.

57:11>> Yes sir, we'll do.

57:13>> All right.

57:13>> Thank you, sir.

57:15We have no property standards or

57:17appeals to consider today. We have no

57:19MPC ZBA appeals to consider tomorrow.

57:22Are there any other appeals, Madam

57:23Clerk?

57:25>> No, ma'am.

57:25>> Are there any reports from officers,

57:27boards, and committees?

57:31Madam Clerk, is there a clerk's report?

57:33>> Yes ma'am. Um

57:35the departmental budget review will be

57:37Thursday at 9 o'clock. And I also want

57:39to let you know that our next meeting,

57:41which is November 20th, will begin at 10

57:43a.m.

57:45It's a combined meeting.

57:46>> So 9 a.m. will be budget meeting

57:49Thursday.

57:50>> Yes.

57:51>> Okay.

57:52>> And 10 a.m. November 20th

57:55for combined council meeting.

57:58>> I'm sorry.

57:59>> Yes.

58:01>> We haven't prepared for breakfast.

58:03Breakfast.

58:04Lunch?

58:17>> [laughter]

58:22[laughter]

58:28>> Cuz this is a Cuz this is a all day

58:30meeting.

58:32It's a all day meeting.

58:34It's all day.

58:36No, it's a all day meeting. [laughter]

58:39It's a all day meeting.

58:41Executive session.

58:44There is none. If there is nothing else,

58:48this meeting is adjourned.