[G.2. 2024 Westlake Academy Student Performance on STAAR and EOC Assessments and discussion (Mrs Beth Hughes, PYP Principal, Mr. Maxwell Ituah, Middle School Principal and Dr. James Owen, High School Principal)]

24-308 2024 WESTLAKE ACADEMY STUDENT PERFORMANCE ON STAAR AND EOC ASSESSMENTS AND DISCUSSIONS, MRS. HUGHES, MAXWELL, JAMES, AND BETH. HOW ARE YOU ALL?

>> GREAT.

>> ALWAYS GOOD TO SEE.

>> JUST OVER A MONTH ON THE JOB.

I STARTED AS THE NEW PYP PRINCIPAL ON AUGUST 5TH, SO IT HAS BEEN A WHIRLWIND OF FUN AND EXCITEMENT,

[00:25:03]

BUT I HAVE LOVED BEING WITH THE LITTLES AND I WANT TO JUST HIGHLIGHT SOME OF THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS FROM THE LAST YEAR WITH OUR STAAR DATA.

FIRST SLIDE HERE IS SHOWING THAT FOR MOST SUBJECTS, WE'VE STAYED ON PAR.

WE'RE REALLY PROUD OF OUR ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS PASSING RATES, AND MATH HAS STAYED FAIRLY CONSISTENT.

BUT THE PART THAT MATTERS FOR THE STUDENT WHO'S GOING TO BE ENTERING THE NYP AND THE DP IS REALLY THE STUDENT WHO IS HAVING A MASTER'S LEVEL SUCCESS.

ALTHOUGH THERE'S NOT A SCIENTIFIC CORRELATION BETWEEN SOMEONE SCORING MASTERS AND DOING WELL IN THE DP, WE KNOW THAT THOSE KIDS ARE READY AT A HIGHER RATE, AND SO WE'RE REALLY LOOKING FOR STUDENTS AT THE MASTER'S LEVEL, AND WE'RE ABOVE THE STATE IN EVERY CATEGORY.

SOME OF THE SUCCESSES THAT I'D LIKE TO HIGHLIGHT IS THE IB EFFECT, WHICH WE SEE IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS.

THE PLATFORM OF THE IB IS AN EDUCATION OF INQUIRY.

KIDS ARE ASKING QUESTIONS.

IF YOU GO IN TO SPEAK TO THE STUDENTS, THEY'RE GOING TO BE PREPARING QUESTIONS AHEAD OF TIME, AND THEY'RE WORKING ON THAT VERBAL COMMUNICATION AS WELL AS WRITTEN, AND THAT COMES THROUGH IN OUR SCORES.

THE CLASS OF 2031, WHICH IS OUR CURRENT SIXTH GRADE CLASS, HAD A MASTER'S LEVEL IN ENGLISH AT 62% WHEN THEY WERE IN THIRD GRADE, BUT EVERY YEAR THEY GOT BETTER AND THEN WHEN THEY LEFT IN FIFTH GRADE, 82% AT MASTERS.

THAT SHOWS THE FORTITUDE THAT THOSE EDUCATORS HAVE A TAKING KIDS FROM GOOD TO GREAT.

THAT'S REALLY WHAT WE'RE FOCUSED ON IS THAT MOVEMENT TO THE MASTERS.

IN THE APPENDIX, YOU'LL NOTICE A COMPARISON TO LOCAL SCHOOLS AND TO SOME IB COMPARABLE SCHOOLS, AND WE'RE ABOVE ALMOST ALL OF THEM IN EVERY CATEGORY.

THAT'S A NICE COMPARISON.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR GROWTH IS IN MATH AND SCIENCE, AND THIS IS SOMETHING THAT YOU GUYS HAVE HEARD FROM US IN PREVIOUS YEARS.

WE'RE STILL FOCUSING ON THAT.

WE ALSO IN THE PYP, IT WAS DIFFICULT TO UNCOVER THE EXACT ACTION PLAN WHEN WE HAD MID YEAR RESULTS SHOWING THAT WE WEREN'T EXACTLY WHERE WE WANTED TO BE LAST YEAR.

THAT IS A BIG FOCUS THAT I HAVE.

WE'RE LOOKING AT WHERE THE KIDS ARE NOW, WHERE ARE WE IN DECEMBER? THEN WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO IN RESPONSE TO IT.

THAT IS A BIG PIECE, AND WE MAYBE RIGHT ON TRACK, BUT IF WE'RE NOT, WE ARE GOING TO BE TAKING ACTION.

THEN ALSO WORKING WITH THE NEW SCIENCE TEKS.

THAT'S A BIG PORTION BECAUSE THINGS ARE NEW IN SCIENCE FOR US.

OUR ACTION PLAN INCLUDES MORE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN SCIENCE AND MORE STANDARDS BASED ASSESSMENT TRACKING.

ALTHOUGH THERE IS A LOT OF TRACKING HAPPENING IN THE PYP, THE CONSISTENCY OF THAT IS AN AREA THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO IMPROVE UPON, AND WE'RE LOOKING AT SEVERAL WAYS THAT TECHNOLOGY CAN ASSIST US IN DOING THAT WORK SMARTER.

WE'VE GOT A NEW SCIENCE CURRICULUM THAT WE'VE SPENT $30,000 ON AND WE ARE DIVING IN HEAD FIRST, GETTING IMMERSED IN ALL OF THE GREAT CAPABILITIES THAT A CURRICULUM HAS FOR US.

WE'RE WORKING ON ACADEMIC VOCABULARIES.

WHEN YOU SEE ME IN CAROLINE IN THE MORNING AND I'M FLASHING UP DECOMPOSER AS THEY WALK IN.

THAT'S ME WORKING EVERYONE.

[LAUGHTER] PE DOING RELAYS.

I'VE ASKED EVERY SUBJECT, HOW ARE YOU CONTRIBUTING TO OUR SCIENCE SUCCESS? THAT QUESTION HAS BEEN NEW.

I HAVE SOME SCIENCE RELAYS GOING ON.

NOW I'M GOING TO PASS IT UNLESS YOU WANT TO DO QUESTIONS NOW, I WAS JUST GOING TO PASS IT ON TO MIDDLE SCHOOL.

>> THANKS, BETH.

>> GOOD AFTERNOON. I'M GOING TO GO OVER THE MIDDLE SCHOOL DATA RESULTS FOR THE PAST ACADEMIC YEAR, IN WHICH IT COVERS A THREE YEAR TRAJECTORY OF OUR PAST PERFORMANCE.

BETWEEN THE 2022-2023 DATA, YOU CAN SEE THAT WE HAD THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NEW STAAR REDESIGN, AND FOR THE OVERALL PASSING, YOU CAN SEE THAT WE FALL WITHIN LINE OF PREVIOUS PERFORMANCE FOR THE 2023 ACADEMIC YEAR AS WELL AS THE 2022.

GOING INTO THE NEXT SLIDE, WE HAVE INFORMATION AS IT RELATES TO THE MASTER PASS RATE AND FOR THE ACADEMY FOR THE PAST THREE ACADEMIC YEARS.

THEN TO THE FAR RIGHT IN THAT COLUMN, WE HAVE INFORMATION AS IT RELATES TO THE STATE MASTERY LEVEL ON THE RESPECTIVE STAAR EXAMINATIONS.

FOR THE GRADE 8 ALGEBRA 1, SORRY THAT THE SLIDE DIDN'T UPLOAD PROPERLY.

I PUT A NOTE THAT THERE WAS AN ALGEBRA 1 READINESS COURSE LAST YEAR.

WE DID THAT IN ORDER TO PROVIDE ON LEVEL INSTRUCTION FOR

[00:30:03]

THOSE STUDENTS SO THAT THEY CAN THEN TAKE ALGEBRA 1 IN NINTH GRADE, WHICH IS THE TRADITIONAL PATHWAY.

>> HOWEVER, AT THE ACADEMY, WE ACCELERATE ALL OF OUR STUDENTS BEGINNING IN GRADE 6.

TRADITIONALLY WITH THE STATE OF TEXAS, ACCORDING TO TEXAS EDUCATION CODE 28, ONLY THE TOP 40% ARE REQUIRED TO BE ACCELERATED.

HOWEVER, WE ACCELERATE ALL OF OUR STUDENTS.

THAT SHOWS THE MASTERY PASS RATE FOR OUR RESPECTIVE GRADE LEVELS.

IN TERMS OF SUCCESSES FOR THE PREVIOUS ACADEMIC YEAR.

WE FOUND OUT THIS ACADEMIC YEAR, OF COURSE.

THE MIDDLE SCHOOL SECTION OF THE ACADEMY WAS RANKED THE NUMBER 1 TEXAS CHARTER SCHOOL AMONGST MIDDLE SCHOOLS IN THE STATE OF TEXAS AND THE NUMBER 8 TEXAS PUBLIC MIDDLE SCHOOL IN THE STATE OF TEXAS.

I JUST WANTED TO GIVE KUDOS FOR OUR TEACHERS FOR THE EXCELLENT WORK THAT THEY DID THAT ACADEMIC YEAR.

THIS PAST ACADEMIC YEAR, WE SAW THE SUCCESS OF HAVING AN ALGEBRA 1 READINESS COURSE IN WHICH WE HAD 100% OF OUR STUDENTS PASS ALGEBRA 1.

WE HAD 99% PASS THE GRADE 8 AND THE GRADE 7 STAR READING, AND WE HAD AN OVERALL 8% INCREASE IN THE STAR MASTER RATE, WHICH IS PHENOMENAL.

THEN ACROSS THE BOARD, WE'RE PERFORMING SIGNIFICANTLY ABOVE THE STATE AVERAGE AND IN COMPARISON WITH OUR RESPECTIVE SCHOOLS.

IN TERMS OF OPPORTUNITIES FOR GROWTH, THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY TO INCREASE THE STAR ACHIEVEMENT LEVEL FROM MEATS TO MASTER.

>> RECORDING IN PROGRESS.

>> I DON'T HOG THE ACTION NOW.

THERE ARE OPPORTUNITIES. I DON'T STILL.

>> MAKE IT HE'S STILL THERE, YOU'RE FINE.

>> THERE'S OPPORTUNITIES TO INCREASE THE ACHIEVEMENT LEVEL MIKE HE'S BACK AT IT.

[LAUGHTER] ONE PARTICULAR SUBJECT IS THAT BEING PRE ALGEBRA, INCREASING THE MEATS TO MASTERY RATE FOR OUR GRADE 7 MATH IN WHICH THEY SIT FOR THE GRADE 8 STAR.

ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY FOR GROWTH FROM THE LEADERSHIP STANDPOINT IS GIVING TEACHERS MORE TIME TO EVALUATE CURRENT PRACTICES AND DATA SOURCES IN ORDER TO HAVE THAT VERTICAL ALIGNMENT GOING FROM THE MIDDLE SCHOOL SECTION INTO THE HIGH SCHOOL.

DR. OWEN, WILL CONCLUDE TODAY'S MESSAGE WITH THIS, BUT ADHERING TO OUR CAMPUS WIDE T TEST GOAL OF MONITOR AND ADJUST, SO INFORMALLY AND FORMALLY COLLECTING DATA AND UTILIZING THAT IN ORDER TO DRIVE AND ADJUST INSTRUCTION.

WITH THAT, MIDDLE SCHOOL IN WORKING WITH THE SYSTEM PRINCIPAL, MRS. PHILLIPS, AND WE GENERATED A MIDDLE SCHOOL PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT PLAN.

PRETTY MUCH IT PROVIDES A SCOPE AND SEQUENCE FOR A YEAR AT A GLANCE OF PROVIDING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND COLLABORATIVE OPPORTUNITIES IN ORDER TO WORK WITH OUR TEACHERS, ANALYZE AND REVIEW DATA IN ORDER TO SEE THE GRADUAL CONTINUING IMPROVEMENT OVER THE COURSE OF THE ACADEMIC YEAR.

THUS FAR, WE'VE ALREADY MET WITH TEACHERS AS A TEAM COLLECTIVELY TO DISCUSS DATA IN AUGUST, AND WE RECENTLY HAD A LUNCH AND LEARN SESSION JUST LAST WEEK ON SEPTEMBER 11, AND THEN MOVING INTO OCTOBER, WE'LL START FOLLOWING UP WITH OUR TEACHERS, ALL OF OUR TEACHERS, JUST REVIEWING THE FORMATIVE ASSESSMENTS AND THEIR SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENTS, JUST TO SEE THE GRADUAL PROGRESS ACROSS THE BOARD, NOT JUST IN THE CORE TESTED SUBJECTS.

AT THIS JUNCTURE, I'LL JUST TURN IT OVER TO DR. OWEN TO REVIEW THE HIGH SCHOOL PERFORMANCE. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS?

>> TO THAT PLAN IS NEW, ISN'T IT? THAT PLAN IS NEW.

>> YES. THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT IMPLEMENT THIS YEAR.

LAST YEAR, WE DID HAVE IN THE SPRING SEMESTER.

WE HAD SPRING INTERVENTION SESSIONS IN WHICH WE HAD SOME AFTER SCHOOL SESSIONS TO MEET WITH STUDENTS.

BUT THIS YEAR, WE REALLY WANT TO HAVE EXTENSION OPPORTUNITIES.

THOSE STUDENTS THAT WE CAN PUSH FROM MEETS TO MASTERS OR APPROACHES TO MEET AS WELL AS THE INTERVENTION SESSIONS OF PROVIDING STUDENTS WITH ADDITIONAL LEARNING SUPPORT.

WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO SUPPORT BOTH SPECTRUMS OF THE LEARNING POPULATION.

>> THAT'S REALLY AWESOME.

>> GOOD EVENING, COUNSEL. I'M GOING TO TALK ABOUT THE SR AND EOC RESULTS FOR THE HIGH SCHOOL, THIS ENGLISH 1, ENGLISH 2 BIOLOGY AND US HISTORY.

THE DATA IS SHOWING THAT IN TERMS OF OUR PAST RATE, WE ARE MAINTAINING BETWEEN 100 AND 99% PASS RATE COURSES IN QUESTION.

[00:35:03]

WHAT WE REALLY HONE IN ON THOUGH IS THE RATE OF MASTERY.

FOR ALL THE FOUR IDENTIFIED SUBJECTS, WE'RE STILL EXTREMELY COMFORTABLY ABOVE THE STATE WIDE AVERAGES.

ALSO, LAST YEAR, WE WERE A LITTLE BIT LOWER IN BIOLOGY, WHERE WE NEEDED TO BE.

WE HAD A NEW TEACHER WHO CAME IN LATE.

AS MR. KIM AND I SPOKE TO THE BOARD, LAST YEAR, WE EXPLAINED THAT WE WERE GOING TO GIVE SUPPORT TO THIS TEACHER AS THEY TRANSITIONED INTO THEIR NEW ROLE.

THEY DID A FANTASTIC JOB AND YOU CAN SEE THAT OUR MASTERY RATE HAS ACTUALLY JUMPED UP TO THE HIGHEST THAT IT'S BEEN IN THE LAST THREE YEARS.

IN TERMS OF PARTICULAR PARTICULAR SUCCESSES, IN ADDITION TO THE 100% AND 99% PASS RATE.

THERE IS ONE THING IN PARTICULAR THAT I WANT TO DRAW THE BOARD'S ATTENTION TO, WHICH WAS IN THE FALL OF 2023, OUR NINTH GRADE ENGLISH ONE TEACHER.

MRS. WATSON CAME TO MRS. HUGHES AND I WITH SOME CONCERNS.

THE DATA WAS SHOWING THAT THERE ARE A NUMBER OF STUDENTS WHO WEREN'T ON TRACK TO PASS THE ENGLISH 1 EXAM, 50% OF THE STUDENTS WHO IDENTIFIED WERE NEW TO WESTLAKE ACADEMY AS WELL, SO THEY HADN'T HAD THE BENEFIT OF THE CONTINUUM.

WE WENT THROUGH SOME OPTIONS, FIRST OF ALL, WHICH WAS ADDITIONAL TUTORING FOR THESE STUDENTS HAVING A SPECIAL ADVISORY GROUP TO SUPPORT THE STUDENTS AS WELL, BUT THIS STILL FELT LIKE IT WASN'T ENOUGH, SO WE FELT THAT THE BEST COURSE OF ACTION WAS TO ACTUALLY CREATE A SPECIAL READING CLASS FOR THE SPRING SEMESTER WHERE THE STUDENTS IDENTIFIED COULD GO INTO THAT CLASS AND BE SUPPORTED.

THAT OBVIOUSLY HAD A MONETARY IMPACT AND WE CAME TO THE BOARD WITH THE REQUEST THE BOARD WAS FANTASTIC ABOUT IT, APPROVED IT STRAIGHT AWAY, AND OF ALL THE 18 STUDENTS WHO IDENTIFIED AS AT RISK BECAUSE OF THAT READING COURSE ALL 18 PAST THE ENGLISH 1.

I REALLY WANT TO THANK THE BOARD FOR SUPPORTING US ON THAT.

SAME THING AS ALL WITH OUR AS MR. KIM EXPLAINED, OUR WESTLAKE ACADEMY STUDENTS TAKE THE ALGEBRA ONE IN GRADE EIGHT.

WE HAD GRADE NINE STUDENTS NEW TO WESTLAKE ACADEMY, WHO HADN'T TAKEN THAT ALGEBRA ONE.

AGAIN, WE HAD DATA THAT SHOWED THAT THEY WERE STRUGGLING.

WE MADE A SPECIAL COURSE FOR THEM IN THE SPRING FOR 11 STUDENTS OR OF THEM PAST AS WELL.

THESE INTERVENTIONS DO WORK, AND WE WANT TO CELEBRATE INCREASING OUR MASTER WE BY 11% IN ENGLISH, 15% IN BIOLOGY 2.

AS THE DATA SHOWED ACROSS THE BOARD, WE WERE SIGNIFICANTLY ABOVE STATE AND COMPARISON SCHOOLS AS WELL.

>> DOCTOR, I'M SO GLAD TO HEAR THE FOLLOW UP BECAUSE WHEN THE BOARD PASSED THAT, I HAVE TO SAY I'D NEVER SEEN ANOTHER PUBLIC SCHOOL GO TO SUCH LENGTHS TO HELP ELEVATE STUDENTS WHO NEEDED SOME EXTRA SUPPORT, SO CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU AND YOUR TEAM.

>> THANK YOU. APPRECIATE THAT.

IN TERMS OF THE OPPORTUNITIES FOR GROWTH, THIS REALLY COMES DOWN TO FOCUSING ON THE LEVEL OF MASTERY THAT WE'RE SEEING WITH THE EOC.

AGAIN, IT'S NOT A SCIENTIFIC LINK, BUT THE MORE STUDENTS THAT WE HAVE ACHIEVING MASTERY, THE MORE LIKELY THEY ARE TO BE SUCCESSFUL ON THE DIPLOMA PROGRAM AND THE MORE LIKELY THEY ARE TO BE SUCCESSFUL AT COLLEGE.

FOCUSING ON THE MASTERY LEVEL IS REALLY KEEPING IN LINE.

WITH OUR VISION OF SUPPORTING COLLEGE BOUND STUDENTS ACHIEVE THEIR HIGHEST INDIVIDUAL POTENTIAL.

LAST MONTH, WHEN MR. JOHN AND I ADDRESSED THE BOARD IN TERMS OF THE DATA ANALYSIS THAT WE DO FOR AP EXAMS AND FOR IB EXAMS AS WELL, WE WANT TO BRING THAT SAME DEGREE OF BEING INTENTIONAL TO USING EOC DATA AS WELL.

IN TERMS OF OUR ACTION PLAN, WE BROKE THAT DOWN.

WHAT WE CAN DO AS LEADERSHIP IS WHEN WE'RE DOING OUR WEEKLY WALK THROUGHS, WE CAN COLLECT DATA BASED ON MONITOR AND ADJUST.

THIS HAS BEEN A CAMPUS WIDE GOAL THIS YEAR TO GIVE FEEDBACK TO TEACHERS IN TERMS OF WHAT WE'RE SEEING, AND ALSO LEADERSHIP CAN HELP DATA ANALYSIS, WHICH IS TIED TO THE ESC TICK AS WELL.

WHAT WE'RE ACTUALLY GOING TO DO IS MODEL THE DATA ANALYSIS THAT WE DID WITH THE ENGLISH 1 COURSE.

PLUS YEAR TO USE DATA TO IDENTIFY ANY ISSUES BY THE END OF THE FOUR SEMESTER SO WE CAN IMPLEMENT ANY INTERVENTIONS AS NEEDED IN THE SPRING.

THAT'S OUR ACTION PLAN TO REPLICATE THE DATA ANALYSIS OF IP AND AP AND TRANSFER THAT TO THE EOC.

BUT ALSO AS MRS. HUGHES, MR. KIM AND MYSELF ARE WORKING ON OUR ACTION PLANS, WE WANTED ALSO TO MAKE SURE THAT THAT WE HAD A CROSS CAMPUS ACTION PLAN AS WELL AND THAT WE WEREN'T ALL WORKING INDIVIDUALLY WHEN WE ALL HAD THE SAME GOAL OF IMPROVING STAR PERFORMANCE.

[00:40:04]

ON AUGUST 24TH, THE THREE OF US MET AND WORKED ON THE FORMS THAT WE USE FOR CAMPUS WALK THUS WHEN WE'RE GOING INTO THE CLASSROOMS AND GIVING FEEDBACK.

WE MAKE SURE THAT OUR FORMS ALIGNED, SO THERE WAS CONSISTENCY ACROSS THE IB CONTINUUM AS WELL.

AGAIN, WE AGREED TO HAVE T-TESS 2.5 MONITOR AND ADJUST AS A CAMPUS WIDE PRIORITY.

THAT'S HOW DO WE KNOW THAT THE STUDENTS HAVE ACTUALLY GOT THIS? THAT'S WHAT WE WANT TO MAKE OUR PRIORITY.

ALSO, BECAUSE THIS IS A YEAR WHERE WE WILL BE EVALUATED BY THE IB IN MARCH.

WE ARE HAVING STUDY SESSIONS CAMPUS WIDE, WHERE TEACHERS FROM PYP, YP, AND DP ARE COMING TOGETHER.

WE WANTED TO ACTUALLY USE THAT OPPORTUNITY, WHERE WE ARE HAVING CROSS CAMPUS COLLABORATION TO HAVE CAMPUS WIDE DISCUSSIONS ON HOW WE CAN IMPROVE OUR TEACHING. LEARNING.

>> CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, BUT THIS CROSS FUNCTIONAL ALIGNMENT IS RELATIVELY A NEWER ENDEAVOR WITH THIS PARTICULAR K THROUGH 12 CAMPUS WALK THROUGH AND ALIGNING THE FORMS, IS IT?

>> YES, IT IS. WE'VE ALL WORKED ON DATA ANALYSIS BEFORE, BUT SOMETIMES WE HAVEN'T ACTUALLY TAKEN TIME TO ALIGN THAT, SO THE THREE PRINCIPALS HAVE MADE THAT A PRIORITY.

>> YEAH. I LOVE THIS. I FEEL LIKE THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD ALL BENEFIT FROM. THANK YOU, GUYS.

>> GREAT JOB. THERE IS AN APPENDIX THAT WE ALSO ATTACHED WHICH SHOWED THE DATA WITH COMPARISON SCHOOLS AS WELL.

BUT WE'LL ALSO BE HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS AS A WHOLE.

>> YEAH. COULD YOU TELL ME WHO THOSE COMPARISON SCHOOLS ARE? I'M NOT UP. THE THREE OF THEM THERE WAS RADIAN.

>> IF I CAN JUST REALLY QUICKLY. YOU'VE INCLUDED SOME.

ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE TALK ABOUT AS LEADERSHIP TEAM IS THERE THE COMPARISON SCHOOLS THAT THE STATE SAYS ARE A COMPARISON GROUP, WHICH ARE SOMETIMES VERY RANDOM SCHOOLS THAT ARE NOT NECESSARILY WHAT WE WOULD CONSIDER OUR COMPARISON SCHOOLS.

WE KNOW SITTING HERE WITH THREE DISTRICTS THAT PULL FROM US, OUR TRUE COMPARISON SCHOOLS ARE THE PEOPLE WE SIT IN THE MIDDLE OF, THE PEOPLE THAT WE'RE IN COMPETITION WITH.

I THINK THAT THEY'VE DONE A GOOD JOB.

THE GROUP HAS DONE A GOOD JOB OF INCLUDING THOSE SCHOOLS AND THEN ALSO YOU'VE IDENTIFIED SOME CHARTER SCHOOLS, I THINK THAT ARE MORE COMPARABLE TO US

>> THE ONE STATE.

>> WHAT ABOUT WORLD CLASS THROUGH WORLD CLASS LEARNING INSTITUTIONS? THERE ARE SOME SCHOOLS IN THE DALLAS FORT WORTH AREA, HOUSTON, OTHER AREAS, ST. MARK, ST. JOHNS.

YEAH. I CAN GO THROUGH ALL THE NAMES.

THEY'RE KNOWN NATIONALLY.

WHAT ARE THEIR PERFORMANCE LEVELS AND HOW DO WE COMPARE TO THOSE? INTERESTING TO UNDERSTAND.

>> THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. IT'S A LITTLE HARD TO COMPARE DIRECTLY WITH THOSE BECAUSE THEY DON'T USE THE SAME MEASUREMENTS THAT WE DO.

WE'RE HELD TO THE STATE REQUIREMENTS AND THEN ALSO IB REQUIREMENTS.

UNLESS WE'RE COMPARING DIRECTLY TO AN IB SCHOOLS, THINGS THAT WE CAN LOOK AT AND THAT WE CAN DO SOME COMPARISONS AROUND OUR ACT SAT SCORES, THOSE ARE THINGS THAT THOSE ARE DATA POINTS THAT WE COULD DO FOR SURE AS A POINT OF COMPARISON, WHICH WOULD PROBABLY BE GOOD FOR US TO KNOW WHERE WE RANK WITH SOME OF THOSE WHAT ARE CONSIDERED A LITTLE BIT MORE LEAD INSTITUTIONS AND THAT'S WHERE WE'RE HEADED AND WHERE WE WANT TO BE FOR SURE.

WE CAN LOOK THAT, ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU.

>> GREAT JOB. ALL OF YOU.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

I'M GOING TO ASK YOU A QUESTION, WHAT DO YOU'LL NEED? WHAT YOU'LL NEED GOING FORWARD? YOU LAST REQUEST WORKED OUT PRETTY WELL.

>> I CERTAINLY WHAT YOU'LL SEE ALL THE ACTION PLANS HAD IN COMMON WAS THE USE OF DATA.

IT'S GREAT TO KNOW THAT IF THE DATA IS TELLING US SOMETHING THAT WE NEED, THEN THE BOARD IS THERE TO SUPPORT US, SO KNOWING THAT IS WHAT WE NEED RIGHT NOW. THAT'S GREAT.

>> I CAN'T SPEAK HIGHLY ENOUGH OF THESE THREE, THE WAY BETH HAS JUMPED IN AND KIND OF BROUGHT SOME STANDARDS THAT WERE BEING USED IN OTHER AREAS OF THE CAMPUS TO SECTION OF THE PROGRAM AND IT'S PAYING OFF IN SPADES.

THE TEACHERS ARE VERY EXCITED.

THESE TWO GENTLEMEN ARE JUST TRUE PROFESSIONALS AND BETH.

IT'S BEEN A DREAM TO BE ABLE TO WORK WITH THEM AND HAVE THEM TAKE THE LEAD.

ONE OF OUR FIRST ADMIN MEETINGS, THEY SAID THEY REALLY OWNED THIS 2.5.

FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO MIGHT NOT KNOW, T-TESS IS THE STATE EVALUATION SYSTEM FOR TEACHERS.

LAST YEAR, THEY STARTED A PROCESS OF ADOPTION AROUND THAT AND THIS YEAR IT'S GETTING A LOT MORE FORMALIZED AND THEY PICKED THIS CAMPUS WIDE GOAL OF MONITOR AND ADJUST BECAUSE THEY THOUGHT THAT'S THE BIGGEST LEVERAGE POINT THAT WE WOULD HAVE TO MOVE SOME THINGS FORWARD AND THEY'VE BEEN ALL IN ON THAT, AND I REALLY CAN'T SAY ENOUGH ABOUT HOW THEY'VE JUMPED INTO THAT WORK.

>> LOOK, I'VE BEEN A PARENT AROUND FOR 14 YEARS AND THIS MIGHT SOUND CRITICAL.

I DON'T MEAN IT TO BE, BUT IT'S NEVER FELT LIKE ONE SCHOOL.

IT'S FELT LIKE THREE SCHOOLS.

[00:45:02]

AND WHAT YOU GUYS ARE TELLING US TODAY, IT'S THE FIRST TIME I REALLY FEEL LIKE YOU GUYS ARE ALIGNED WITH THE LEADERSHIP AND IT'S ONE SCHOOL GOING THROUGH LOOKING AT ALL THE DAY.

I COULDN'T BE MORE PLEASED.

>> THANK YOU.

[APPLAUSE] GUYS, THANK YOU AGAIN.

OUTSTANDING. CONSENT AGENDA,

[H. CONSENT AGENDA]

DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY ISSUES ON THE CONSENT AGENDA? EXCELLENT. CAN I GET A MOTION TO PASS THE CONSENT AGENDA?

>> MOVED.

>> CAN I GET A SECOND?

AGENDA ITEM I PUBLIC HEARINGS.

[I.1. Hold public hearing, discuss, consider and act to adopt Ordinance 1005 approving the Annual Operating & Capital Budget for Fiscal Year 2024-2025 (Finance Director Cayce Lay Lamas)]

GO TO I.1 ORDINANCE 1005.

HOLD PUBLIC HEARING DISCUSS.

CONSIDER ACT TO ADOPT ORDINANCE 1005, APPROVING THE ANNUAL OPERATING CAPITAL BUDGET FOR FISCAL YEAR 2024/2025 AC. HOW ARE YOU?

>> GOOD AFTERNOON, MAYOR AND COUNCIL.

WE ARE AT THE FINISH LINE FOR ALL THE BUDGET STUFF FOR FISCAL YEAR 25.

>> YES.

>> WE ARE GOING TO DIVE RIGHT IN.

TONIGHT, WE ARE LEGALLY REQUIRED TO HAVE A PUBLIC HEARING BEFORE ADOPTION OF THE BUDGET SO I'M JUST GOING TO GIVE EVERYBODY A REAL QUICK REFRESHER ON WHAT IS IN THAT BUDGET BEFORE WE OPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING.

FIRST THINGS FIRST, WE'RE PROJECTING 28 MILLION IN REVENUES ACROSS ALL FUNDS AND 24.5 MILLION IN EXPENDITURES, WHICH IS RESULTING IN ABOUT A 4.6 PROJECTED CONTRIBUTION TO FUND BALANCE.

WITHIN THAT 4.6, WE'VE GOT ABOUT 1.5 MILLION THAT WE'RE EARMARKING TO GO BACK INTO THE GENERAL FUND FUND BALANCE FOR FUTURE CAPITAL SPENDING.

THE REMAINING 3 MILLION OR SO, MOST OF THAT HAS TO DO WITH OUR SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS, MEANING THAT WE HAVE SET ASIDE REVENUE SOURCE THAT CAN ONLY BE USED FOR VERY SPECIFIC THINGS.

IF WE DON'T HAVE THAT SOMETHING IDENTIFIED AT THE TIME OF ADOPTION, IT JUST GOES INTO THE FUND BALANCE.

THIS BUDGET ALSO INCLUDES A FLAT TAX RATE OF $0.16788.

IT'S ADDING FIVE AND A QUARTER FTES, WHICH ARE THE THREE FIREFIGHTERS, TWO PUBLIC WORKS CREW MEMBERS AND THEN THAT 0.25 IS THE TOWN SHARE OF THE BUILDING TECHNICIAN THAT WAS APPROVED AS PART OF THE ACADEMY'S BUDGET.

WE ALSO HAVE THE STAFF COMPENSATION ADJUSTMENTS INCLUDED.

THE 1.7 MILLION DOLLAR SUBSIDY, THAT'S THE DIRECT TRANSFER FROM THE TOWN TO THE SCHOOL.

THEN WE'VE GOT 1.4 MILLION IN CAPITAL EQUIPMENT, AND IT'S REALLY JUST TWO PIECES, IT'S A VAC TRAILER AND A REPLACEMENT FIRE ENGINE.

THEN WHENEVER WE'RE LOOKING AT YEAR OVER YEAR REVENUES AND EXPENDITURES, WHAT WE'RE SEEING FOR THIS UPCOMING YEAR IS A DECREASE OF ABOUT $150,000 IN PROJECTED REVENUES.

THE REAL REASON FOR THAT IS FISCAL YEAR 24 HAD ABOUT $4 MILLION IN ONE TIME DEVELOPMENT FEES THAT WON'T BE RETURNING FOR FISCAL YEAR 25.

THAT'S MOSTLY OFFSET WITH INCREASES IN SALES TAX RECEIPTS AND SOME INTEREST EARNINGS.

FOR THE EXPENDITURES.

WE ARE LOOKING AT AN INCREASE OF ABOUT 1.1 MILLION, AND THAT INCLUDES THE CAPITAL, THAT INCLUDES THE FIREFIGHTERS.

YOU WOULD THINK THAT IT'S NOT A ONE TO ONE, BUT WE ALSO JUST THROUGH DUE DILIGENCE OVER THE PAST YEAR.

WE'VE BEEN GOING BACK THROUGH LINE ITEMS AND MAKING SURE THAT THE THINGS THAT WE ARE INCLUDING IN THE BUDGET ARE THE THINGS THAT WE NEED.

THEN I JUST ALSO WANTED TO POINT OUT BECAUSE THIS HAD BEEN A QUESTION, THE SUBSIDY TO THE ACADEMY WENT FROM 1.4 IN FISCAL YEAR 24 TO 1.7.

THE MAJORITY OF THAT HAS TO DO WITH THOSE ADDITIONAL SLAS AND THE COMPENSATION ADJUSTMENTS APPROVED EARLIER THIS SUMMER.

WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT THE GENERAL FUND, THIS IS OUR LARGEST OPERATING FUND.

THE MAJORITY OF THE PROPERTY AND SALES TAX RECEIPTS ARE WHAT FUND MOST OF THOSE REVENUES.

ADDITIONALLY, THIS IS WHERE THE VAST MAJORITY OF ALL OF OUR DEVELOPMENT FEES GO.

THE $15 MILLION IN EXPENDITURES INCLUDES THE 1.7 MILLION TO THE ACADEMY.

IT INCLUDES THE THREE FIREFIGHTERS, THE REPLACEMENT ENGINE, AND ALL THOSE SALARY ADJUSTMENTS.

THE UTILITY FUND IS THE SECOND LARGEST OPERATING FUND.

THE REVENUE SOURCES HERE ARE BASICALLY THE WATER AND SEWER BILLS THAT EVERYBODY GETS EVERY MONTH AND DON'T FORGET TO PAY THOSE BECAUSE WE'LL ASSESS A 10% LATE FEES.

[LAUGHTER] THE 5.7 MILLION IN EXPENDITURES INCLUDES THE COST TO PURCHASE WATER AND TO TREAT SEWER.

THOSE COSTS ARE ABOUT 2.5 MILLION DOLLAR ANNUALLY FOR THE TOWN.

IT ALSO HAS MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS COSTS, THE VAC TRAILER, AND THOSE TWO CREW MEMBERS FOR PUBLIC WORKS.

IT IS A DECREASE OF ABOUT $500,000 YEAR OVER YEAR,

[00:50:01]

BUT THAT'S SOLELY BECAUSE WE SEPARATED OUT THE DEBT SERVICE INTO ITS OWN FUND FOR BETTER ACCOUNTING AND CLARITY.

DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS?

>> ANY QUESTIONS, COUNCIL? NOW, OPEN UP FOR A PUBLIC HEARING.

IS THERE ANYONE WISHES TO SPEAK? I WILL NOW CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING.

CAN I GET A MOTION TO APPROVE ORDINANCE 1005?

>> SO MOVED.

>> CAN I GET A SECOND?.

>> MOTION PASSES. CASEY, THANK YOU.

HOPE YOU'RE HERE FOR THE NEXT ONE, CORRECT?

>> YES, SIR. I'M STICKING AROUND.

>> ORDINANCE 1006, HOLD PUBLIC HEARING, DISCUSSED.

[I.2. Hold public hearing, discuss, consider and act to adopt Ordinance 1006 to Levy an Ad Valorem Rate for the Tax Year 2024 (Finance Director Cayce Lay Lamas)]

CONSIDER AN ACT TO ADOPT ORDINANCE 1006 TO LEVY AND ADVALORM TAX RATE FOR TAX YEAR 2024.

>> THE SECOND PUBLIC HEARING OF THE EVENING IS FOR THE PROPOSED PROPERTY TAX RATE.

THIS RATE THAT WE ARE ASKING TO LEVY IS WHAT WILL FUND THE GENERAL FUND AND THE DEBT SERVICE PAYMENTS.

WE ARE PROPOSING THE RATE STAY FLAT AT $0.16788 PER $100 EVALUATION.

THIS IS THE FOURTH YEAR CONSECUTIVELY THAT IT WILL BE FLAT.

WHENEVER WE'RE LOOKING AT THE TAX RATE, WHAT IS REQUIRED LEGALLY IS TO ADOPT A RATE IN TWO PARTS, ONE BEING M&O OR MAINTENANCE AND OPERATIONS.

THAT PORTION GENERATES THE REVENUE FOR THE GENERAL FUND.

THE OTHER SECTION INS INTEREST IN SINKING OR DEBT SERVICE IS THE MINIMUM AMOUNT REQUIRED IN ORDER TO PAY PROPERTY TAX PAID DEBT.

DURING FISCAL YEAR 24, WE ACTUALLY HAD A TAX NOTE OFF OF OUR BOOKS, WE PAID IT ALL OFF SO THAT REQUIREMENT ON THE INS SIDE IS LESS.

IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN A FLAT TAX RATE FOR CONSISTENCY PURPOSES AND STILL MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE FUNDING THOSE CAPITAL ITEMS THAT WE DO NEED AND THE ADDITIONAL PEOPLE, WE RE ALLOCATED AND WE DO THAT EVERY YEAR JUST BASED ON THOSE ANNUAL REQUIREMENTS.

FOR THE FISCAL YEAR 25 BUDGET, WHICH IS THE TAX YEAR 24 RATE, WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT IS $0.05 ON THE INS SIDE, AND THEN $0.11788 ON M&O.

THEN AGAIN, JUST FOR CONVERSATION, IF WE WERE SAYING THIS IS AN EQUIVALENT CALCULATION, THE 1.7 MILLION DOLLAR SUBSIDY FROM THE TOWN TO THE ACADEMY WOULD BE THE EQUIVALENT OF ABOUT 7.25.

I SPOKE ABOUT THAT INS PORTION SO A QUICK OVERVIEW ON THE DEBT FOR FISCAL YEAR 25.

THE PRINCIPAL AND INTEREST REQUIREMENTS ARE 4.2 MILLION DOLLAR, AND THAT'S GOING TO BE SPREAD OUT OVER 11 DIFFERENT ISSUANCES.

AS OF OCTOBER 1, WE'LL HAVE $46 MILLION IN OUTSTANDING PRINCIPAL.

OUT OF THOSE 11 ISSUANCES, THE ORIGINAL TOTAL WAS ABOUT 63.2%, SO WE PAID OFF A QUARTER OR SO OF OUR OUTSTANDING BALANCE.

OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, WE WILL HAVE THAT UP TO 50%.

WITHIN 10 YEARS, WE'LL HAVE ALMOST 70% OF THE OUTSTANDING OBLIGATIONS PAID, AND THEN BY THE TIME WE HIT 20 YEARS, WE'LL BE AT 95.

FUND REFRESHER, A LOT OF THESE DEBTS THAT WE ISSUE, THE SMALLEST LENGTH OF TIME IS SEVEN YEARS, THE LONGEST IS 30.

OUT OF THOSE 11 ISSUANCES WE'VE BROKEN IT DOWN JUST FOR SOME CLARITY AND DISCUSSION POINTS ON THE LEFT HAND SIDE, YOU'LL SEE THE PURPOSE.

WHY DID WE ISSUE THOSE INSTRUMENTS? THE MAJORITY OF THEM HAVE BEEN FOR INFRASTRUCTURE OVER ON CAMPUS.

YOU'LL RECALL THE SCHOOL JUST CELEBRATED ITS 20TH ANNIVERSARY, WHICH MEANS WE ONLY ARE ABOUT TO START PAYING OFF SOME OF THAT DEBT.

THE REMAINING TWO QUARTERS ARE FOR UTILITY INFRASTRUCTURE AND FOR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS ON THE TOWN SIDE, MOSTLY RELATING TO STREETS.

AS FAR AS HOW WE PLAN TO PAY FOR THESE PRINCIPAL AND INTEREST REQUIREMENTS NEXT YEAR.

THE VAST MAJORITY OF IT FALLS UNDER THE SALES TAX CATEGORY.

THE 1.2 MILLION FOR PROPERTY TAX, THAT SPECIFIC PORTION IS THAT $0.05 OF THE INS RATE, AND THEN THE REMAINING ON UTILITY REVENUE IS ONLY FROM THOSE WATER BILLS THAT WE SEND OUT.

HOW ALL OF THIS IS CALCULATED, IS A SUPER FUN CRAZY LONG FORM THAT WE HAVE TO FILL OUT EVERY YEAR, AND WE DON'T MAKE IT UP OURSELVES.

HOW WE DO ALL OF THE ALGEBRA STARTS WITH OUR NET TAXABLE VALUE.

THESE FIGURES ARE GIVEN TO US EVERY YEAR BY THE APPRAISAL DISTRICTS.

WE FALL INTO THE TARRANT APPRAISAL DISTRICT AND THE DENTON CENTRAL APPRAISAL DISTRICT.

WHAT THEY DO IS THEY GO AROUND TOWN AND THEY SAY ALL THE PROPERTY THAT IS TAXABLE WITHIN THE TOWN LIMITS, TOTAL THIS MUCH.

[00:55:05]

FOR TAX YEAR 24, WE'RE LOOKING AT 2.4 BILLION DOLLAR OF TAXABLE VALUE.

THAT'S AN INCREASE OF ABOUT 206 MILLION YEAR OVER YEAR, AND OFF THAT 206 MILLION, ALMOST 70,000 OF IT IS JUST BRAND NEW CONSTRUCTION SO DIFFERENT IMPROVEMENTS THAT HAVE HAPPENED AROUND TOWN OVER THE LAST YEAR.

WHAT THAT MEANS FOR FOLKS LIVING IN TOWN IS YOU ARE LIKELY TO SEE A LITTLE INCREASE ON YOUR PROPERTY TAX BILL.

THE AVERAGE TAXABLE HOME VALUE FOR THE TOWN OF WESTLAKE IS ABOUT 2.4 MILLION.

THAT'S AN INCREASE OF ALMOST 8% YEAR OVER YEAR SO WE ARE STARTING TO SEE THAT THOSE HUGE JUMPS THAT WE SAW IN 2020, 2021.

IT'S STARTING TO COME DOWN TO SOMETHING A LITTLE MORE MANAGEABLE.

IT ALSO MEANS THAT FOR THE TAX YEAR 24, THE AVERAGE WESTLAKE RESIDENT WOULD SEE A TAX BILL OF LESS THAN $4,000.

ONLY ABOUT A $300 INCREASE YEAR OVER YEAR.

IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT THE TOWN OF WESTLAKE HAS ONE OF THE LOWEST PROPERTY TAX RATES IN THE STATE.

NORMALLY, WHENEVER SOMEBODY IN THE STATE GETS THEIR TAX BILL, THE PORTION OF THE TOWN IS 20- 25%, REGARDLESS OF WHAT SCHOOL DISTRICT YOU LIVE IN IN TOWN, WESTLAKE TAKES UP LESS THAN 10% OF THAT TOTAL BILL FOR YOU ANNUALLY.

BY APPROVING THE $0.16788 TAX RATE TONIGHT, WE WILL BE PROPOSING A LEVY OF JUST OVER $4 MILLION WITH THE MAJORITY OF THAT GOING TO M&O AND THAT 1.2 MILLION GOING TO INS.

ARE ANY QUESTIONS ON PROPERTY TAX RATE?

>> HI CASEY IT'S MIKE, YOU CAN HEAR ME?

>> YES, SIR.

>> ON THE LAST SLIDE, THE AVERAGE TAX BILL THAT WAS JUST THE WESTLAKE PORTION.

>> CORRECT.

>> FOR TAX BILL. THANK YOU.

>> YOU ARE WELCOME. IF ANYBODY'S INTERESTED, YOU CAN GO OUT ON TARTA INFO.COM AND YOU CAN LOOK UP ALL THE RATES THAT APPLY TO YOUR HOUSE, AND THAT INCLUDES THE ONES THAT HAVE NOT BEEN ADOPTED YET SO ALL THE ENTITIES WERE LEGALLY REQUIRED TO GO TELL YOU WHAT OUR PROPOSED RATES ARE TOO.

>> CASEY, WE'VE HISTORICALLY SAID THAT 6.5% OF OUR PROPERTY TAXES GO TO WESTLAKE.

IS IT HIGHER THAN THAT NOW?

>> SAY THAT ONE MORE TIME?

>> 6% OF PROPERTY TAXES GO TO THE TOWN.

>> ABOUT ALMOST 10%, IT'S USUALLY LIKE NINE AND HALF.

IT REALLY DEPENDS ON WHAT SCHOOL DISTRICT YOU'RE IN.

>> ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? I NOW OPEN UP THE PUBLIC HEARING.

IS THERE ANYONE TO SPEAK? I WILL CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING.

CAN I GET A MOTION TO APPROVE ORDINANCE 1006.

>> MOVED.

>> CAN I GET A SECOND?.

>> SECOND.

>> ALL IN FAVOR?

>> AYE.

>> ANY OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES. THANK YOU, CASEY.

>> THANK Y'ALL.

>> [OVERLAPPING]. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

>> WOW. APPLAUSE AT THE TAX RATE.

>> I COULD HAVE WARNED IT WASN'T EVERYTHING.

>> THANKS FOR NOT LOWERING IT, OR NOT RAISING IT.

RESOLUTION 24-69, HOLD PUBLIC HEARING, DISCUSS,

[I.3. Hold public hearing, discuss, consider and act regarding Resolution 24-69 approving the Final Plat of the Villaggio Addition (Jason Alexander, AICP, CEcD, Deputy Town Manager)]

CONSIDER AND ACT REGARDING RESOLUTION 24-69, APPROVING THE FINAL PLAT OF THE VILLAGGIO ADDITION. JASON, HOW ARE YOU?

>> I'M WELL, HOW ARE YOU, MAYOR, TOWN COUNCIL. GOOD AFTERNOON.

THIS IS A REQUEST FOR THE APPROVAL OF A FINAL PLAT FOR THE VILLAGGIO ADDITION.

HERE IS JUST A PHOTO OF THE SITE GETTING YOU ACCLIMATED VISUALLY TO WHERE IT IS LOCATED.

IT IS A FINAL PLAT FOR APPROXIMATELY 37.5 ACRES THAT WAS APPROVED FOR DEVELOPMENT ON FEBRUARY 27, 2023, ORDINANCE NUMBER 965 FOR 17 RESIDENTIAL LOTS, ALL A MINIMUM OF ONE ACRE IN AREA.

THE FINAL PLAT DOES CONFORM WITH THE REQUIREMENTS, THE POLICIES, AND THE PLANS THAT ARE ESTABLISHED BY THE TOWN.

HERE IS THE FINAL PLAT DEMONSTRATING CONFORMANCE WITH THOSE REQUIREMENTS.

THE PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION, THEY DID MEET ON SEPTEMBER 10, 2024, THEY RECOMMENDED APPROVAL OF THE FINAL PLAT AS PRESENTED UNANIMOUSLY.

THE DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT RECOMMENDS THE SAME.

I'LL PAUSE THERE, MAYOR, TOWN COUNCIL TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE.

I DO BELIEVE THE APPLICANT OR A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE APPLICANT IS AVAILABLE AS WELL.

>> ANY QUESTIONS FROM COUNCIL? I WILL NOW OPEN UP THE PUBLIC HEARING.

IS THERE ANYONE THAT WISHES TO SPEAK? I WILL NOW CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING.

CAN I GET A MOTION TO APPROVE RESOLUTION 24-69?

>> MOVED.

>> CAN I GET A SECOND?

>> SECOND.

>> ALL IN FAVOR?

>> AYE.

[01:00:01]

>> ANY OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES. JASON. THANK YOU.

>> THANK YOU, MAYOR.

>> ORDINANCE 1002.

[I.4. (CONTINUED FROM 8/19/2024) Hold public hearing, discuss, consider and act to adopt Ordinance 1002 approving amendments to Ordinances 928 and 939, as amended, regulating PD7 Zoning District, known as “Westlake Ranch”, for an approximate three-acre portion of land platted as Aspen Estates, Tarrant County, Texas. The property is generally located east of Pearson Lane and South of Aspen Lane.]

>> 2-C. THIS IS CONTINUED FROM AUGUST 19.

THERE'LL BE NO ACTION ON THIS ITEM.

THIS ITEM WILL BE CONTINUED FROM THE 819 MEETING.

IN THE MEANTIME, THE APPLICANT HAS AMENDED A NEW PROPOSAL, WHICH IS THE NEXT AGENDA ITEM SO AGENDA ITEM I-5 ORDINANCE 1008, HOLD PUBLIC HEARING,

[I.5. Hold public hearing, discuss, consider and act to adopt Ordinance 1008 approving proposed amendments to Ordinances 928 and 939, as amended, regulating PD7 Zoning District, known as “Westlake Ranch”, for an approximate three-acre portion of land platted as Aspen Estates, Tarrant County, Texas. The property is generally located east of Pearson Lane and South of Aspen Lane. (Jason Alexander, AICP, CEcD, Deputy Town Manager)]

DISCUSS CONSIDER AN ACT TO ADOPT ORDINANCE 1008 APPROVING PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TWO ORDINANCE 928 AND 939 AS AMENDED, REGULATING PDS AND SEVEN ZONING DISTRICT, KNOWN AS WESTLAKE RANCH, FOR AN APPROXIMATELY THREE ACRE PORTION OF LAND PLATTED AS ASPEN ESTATES, TARRANT COUNTY, TEXAS.

THE PROPERTY IS GENERALLY LOCATED EAST OF PEARSON LANE AND SOUTH OF ASPEN LANE, JASON.

>> THANK YOU, MAYOR.

THIS IS A REQUEST AS WE'RE GETTING THAT PRESENTATION UP ON THE SCREEN FOR A PD PLANT DEVELOPMENT DISTRICT TO GO FROM THREE LOTS TO ONE LOT.

HERE IS AN AERIAL OF THE PROPERTY.

YOU CAN SEE THAT IS JUST OFF OF ASPEN LANE AND NEAR NORTH PEARSON LANE.

A COUPLE OF PHOTOGRAPHS SHOWING THE SITE.

IN TERMS OF THE REQUEST, AGAIN, IT'S TO GO FROM THREE LOTS TO ONE.

IT WOULD BE ACCESSED VIA A PRIVATE STREET THAT TERMINATES AS A HAMMERHEAD.

THE SITE WILL CONSIST OF APPROXIMATELY THREE ACRES.

AGAIN, DIRECT ACCESS ONTO ASPEN LANE.

A LOT WIDTH IS 125 FEET WITH THE BUILDING SETBACKS OF 40 FEET FROM ALL LOT LINES.

THE PROPOSED FLOOR AREA OF THE HOME IS 4,500 SQUARE FEET AT A MINIMUM.

THE MAXIMUM BUILDING HEIGHT IS 35 FEET, AND THE MAXIMUM LOT COVERAGE STANDS AT 5% AS PROPOSED UNDER THE DEVELOPMENT STANDARDS, LEADING TO THE DEVELOPMENT PLAN THAT IS SHOWN IN FRONT OF YOU THIS AFTERNOON.

THERE WERE SOME ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS THAT DID COME FROM THE PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION WHEN THIS ITEM WENT TO THEM FOR REVIEW, CONSIDERATION, AND A RECOMMENDATION TO YOU, MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL.

THE FIRST DEALT WITH THE PERMITTED USES, AND IN PARTICULAR, THE ACCESSORY USES AND STRUCTURES, ENSURING THAT THE SPORTS COURSE AND ATHLETIC TRAINING FIELDS DID NOT PROVIDE TOO MUCH NOISE OR DISRUPT THE QUALITY OF LIFE AND CONCERNS ABOUT THE LIGHTING ASSOCIATED WITH THE SAME.

I WOULD LIKE TO PAUSE THERE FOR A MOMENT AND STATE THAT THOSE ACCESSORY USES AND STRUCTURES WILL HAVE TO COMPLY WITH THE PROVISIONS IN THE TOWN'S CODE OF ORDINANCES DEALING WITH LIGHT AND NOISE.

THOSE CAN BE FOUND UNDER THE PERFORMANCE STANDARDS IN SECTION 102 OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES.

AS PART OF THAT, A SITE PLAN SHOWING WHERE THOSE STRUCTURES WOULD GO IS ALSO REQUIRED FOR REVIEW AND APPROVAL, AND THE SAME CAN BE SAID FOR THE LIGHTING PLAN AS WELL, AND THAT WOULD ENSURE THAT THE CONCERNS THAT WERE RAISED DURING THE PUBLIC HEARING WOULD BE ADEQUATELY ADDRESSED AND ENFORCED IF THE NEED SHOULD ARISE.

IN TERMS OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS, THE DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT RECOMMENDS APPROVAL WITH THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS.

THAT ALL CONDITIONS AND PROVISIONS OF ORDINANCE 939 SHALL BE APPLICABLE TO THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT, EXCEPT AS SPECIFICALLY AMENDED AND NOTED HERE IN.

THAT IS A PRELIMINARY SITE EVALUATION SHALL NOT BE REQUIRED FOR THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT, THAT THE LANDSCAPING AND TREE SURVEY REQUIREMENTS IN ORDINANCE NUMBER 928, THAT THAT BE SATISFIED.

CONTINUE WITH THE RECOMMENDATIONS REVISED CIVIL ENGINEERING PLANS WILL BE REQUIRED FOR THE REDESIGN OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE, AND THAT WILL COME IN AT THE SAME TIME AS REVIEWING THE PLAT, AND THAT RE-PLAT WILL BE REQUIRED PRIOR TO A BUILDING PERMIT ISSUED, WHICH IS CONSISTENT WITH THE PROVISIONS THAT ARE CURRENTLY ADOPTED BY THE TOWN FOR PLAT REVIEW AND APPROVAL.

THE PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION AGAIN, THEY DID MEET ON SEPTEMBER 10, 2024, AND THEY DID RECOMMEND APPROVAL WITH THE CONDITIONS AS RECOMMENDED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT.

THE ACTIONS THAT ARE IN FRONT OF YOU, MAYOR, TOWN COUNCIL ARE AS FOLLOWS AND GENERALLY SUMMARIZED.

IT IS A MOTION TO APPROVE ORDINANCE 1008, INCLUDING THE CONDITIONS RECOMMENDED, A MOTION TO APPROVE 1008 WITH MODIFICATIONS OR ADDITIONAL CONDITIONS AS DESIRED BY YOU AS THE ELECTED BODY,

[01:05:06]

A MOTION TO TABLE ORDINANCE 1008 OR A MOTION TO DENY ORDINANCE 1008.

I'LL PAUSE HERE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU MAY HAVE.

I DO BELIEVE THE APPLICANT OR A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE APPLICANT IS AVAILABLE.

>> ANY QUESTIONS FROM COUNCIL?

>> MY ONLY QUESTION IS BECAUSE WE'RE COMBINING THESE THREE LOTS BACK INTO ONE.

WHAT ABOUT THE FENCING?

>> THE FENCING WILL REMAIN THE SAME, AND I BELIEVE THAT IT IS SIX FEET IN HEIGHT.

>> DO YOU KNOW IF IT'S IRON FENCE OR STONE FENCE?

>> I THINK IT'S AN IRON FENCE, IF MEMORY SERVES ME CORRECTLY.

>> AND IS THAT CONSISTENT WITH THE WESTLAKE RAMP THAT'S JUST TO THE I GUESS WEST OF THIS PROPERTY?

>> I BELIEVE SO.

>> I BELIEVE THEY'LL SHARE A BORDER ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE PROPERTY, CORRECT?

>> I BELIEVE SO AND IF NOT, WE'LL DEFINITELY CONFIRM THAT WITH THE APPLICANT WHEN THE SITE PLAN COMES IN.

>> IT LOOKS GOOD TO ME. DO YOU HAVE ANY CONCERNS ABOUT THIS WHEN YOU'VE LOOKED IT OVER?

>> NO, MA'AM. I DID NOT.

>> JASON, I HAVE A QUESTION.

WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE TO, AND YOU MAY HAVE SAID THIS AND I MISSED IT, BUT WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE TO ASK THE OWNER JUST TO SUBMIT LANDSCAPING AND HARDSCAPING PLANS TO THE CITY BEFORE INSTALLATION? THAT MIGHT GIVE US A CHANCE TO REMEDY ANYTHING IF THERE'S A CONCERN WITH THE NEIGHBORING COMMUNITY?

>> YES, SIR AND THOSE PLANS WOULD HAVE TO BE CONSISTENT WITH THE PROVISIONS.

I THINK THAT WAS IN ORDINANCE 928.

>> THANK YOU.

>> YES, SIR.

>> ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? I'LL NOW OPEN UP THE PUBLIC HEARING.

IS THERE ANYONE THAT WISHES TO SPEAK? I WILL NOW CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING.

I'D LIKE TO ASK FOR A MOTION TO APPROVE ORDINANCE 1008, INCLUDING THE CONDITIONS RECOMMENDED.

>> SO MOVED.

>> DO I HAVE A SECOND?

>> SECOND.

>> ALL IN FAVOR?

>> AYE.

>> ANY OPPOSED? MOTION CARRIES. JASON, THANK YOU.

AGENDA ITEM J.1, ORDINANCE 1004.

[J.1. Discuss, consider and act regarding adoption of Ordinance 1004 Approving a Negotiated Settlement Between the Atmos Cities Steering Committee (“ACSC”) and Atmos Energy Corp., Mid-Tex Division regarding the Company’s 2024 Rate Review Mechanism Filing; declaring existing rates to be unreasonable; adopting tariffs that reflect rate adjustments consistent with the Negotiated Settlement; finding the rates to be set by the attached Settlement Tariffs to be just and reasonable and in the public interest; approving an attachment establishing a benchmark for pensions and retiree medical benefits; requiring the Company to reimburse ACSC’s Reasonable Ratemaking Expenses; determining that this Ordinance was passed in accordance with the requirements of the Texas Open Meetings Act; adopting a savings clause; declaring an effective ate; and requiring delivery of this Ordinance to the Company and the ACSC’s Legal Counsel.]

DISCUSS, CONSIDER AND ACT REGARDING ADOPTION OF ORDINANCE 1004, APPROVING A NEGOTIATED SETTLE BETWEEN ATMOS CITY STEERING COMMITTEE AND ATMOS ENERGY CORP, MID TEXAS DIVISION REGARDING THE COMPANY'S 2024 RATE REVIEW MECHANISM FILING, DECLARING EXISTING RATES TO BE UNREASONABLE.

ADOPTING TARIFFS THAT REFLECT RATE ADJUSTMENTS CONSISTENT WITH THE NEGOTIATED SETTLEMENT, FINDING THESE RATES TO BE SET BY THE ATTACHED SETTLEMENT TARIFFS JUST TO BE REASONABLE AND IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST, APPROVING THE ATTACHMENT, ESTABLISHING A BENCHMARK FOR PENSIONS AND RETIRING MEDICAL BENEFITS, REQUIRING THE COMPANY TO REIMBURSE ACSC'S, REASONABLE RATE MAKING EXPENSES.

DETERMINE THAT THIS ORDINANCE WAS PASSED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE TEXAS OPEN MEETING ACT, ADOPT A SAVINGS CLAUSE, DECLARING AN EFFECTIVE DATE, IN REQUIRING DELIVERY OF THIS ORDINANCE TO THE COMPANY AND ACSC'S LEGAL COUNCIL.

TURN THIS OVER, I THINK TO WADE?

>> THAT'S CORRECT.

>. THAT WAS A LOT.

>> THANK YOU FOR READING THAT, MAYOR.

MAYOR AND COUNCIL, THANK YOU FOR TAKING THIS ITEM TONIGHT.

ATMOS ENERGY IS REQUIRED BY STATE LEGISLATION TO COME UP WITH THEIR ANNUAL BILLING USING THE PREVIOUS YEAR'S COST OF SERVICES.

ONCE THEY LOOK BACK AT THE PREVIOUS YEAR'S COST OF SERVICE, THEY COME FORWARD WITH A REQUEST FOR NEW BILLING PRICES FOR THE FOLLOWING YEAR.

THE TOWN OF WESTLAKE IS IN A CONGLOMERATE WITH 181 OTHER MUNICIPALITIES THAT HAS HIRED A COMPANY TO COME IN AND NEGOTIATE FOR US ON THE TOWN'S BEHALF.

BY WORKING TOGETHER IN A LARGE GROUP, WE'RE ABLE TO SAVE CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF MONEY OFF OUR ATMOS BILL AND THROUGH THAT PROCESS, YOU'LL SEE FROM THE STAFF REPORT THAT THERE WAS CONSIDERABLE SAVINGS THIS YEAR'S ATMOS CHANGE FROM WHAT THEY HAD DESIRED CHANGE TO THE NEGOTIATED SETTLEMENT CHANGE.