* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.
          [I. Call to order]
          [00:00:05]
          10 O'CLOCK, PLEASE SILENCE ALL CELL PHONES. 
          , DON'T FORGET TO TURN ON YOUR MICS, UM, TO SPEAK. 
          AND LET'S START WITH A ROLL CALL. 
          DO YOU WANNA GO FIRST? GOOD MORNING. 
          UH, JESSE GUTIERREZ, TEXAS BAY CREDIT UNION. 
          UH, GOOD MORNING. 
          JOSE MIRANDA, SOUTH SHORE HARBOR RESORT. 
          UH, MIKE INSHOT, GENZER ARCHITECTS, JACOB PRATT, ESTEBAN'S CAFE, AMBER MURPHY, BUTLER'S COURTYARD, JUDITH BURLESON, RETIRED CORPORATE MARKETING. 
          SANDRA JONES. 
          BORN AGAIN RENTALS. 
          PATEL, UH, FAIRFIELD IN THE STATES. 
          UH, LEAGUE CITY. 
          JULIANA AGUILAR LEAGUE CITY, CBB. 
          STEPHANIE PO. 
          UH, LEAGUE CITY, CBB. 
          SARAH OSBORNE, COMMUNICATIONS, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND CULTURAL AFFAIRS FOR THE CITY OF LAKE CITY. 
          ANY CITIZENS THAT WOULD LIKE YOU TO ADDRESS THE BOARD? OKAY. 
          UH, 
          [IV. Approval of Minutes –July 2025]
MOVING ON TO THE APPROVAL OF THE JULY MINUTES. 
          UH, I PUT IN MOTION TO APPROVE. 
          I SECOND. 
          OKAY. 
          ALL IN FAVOR? I. 
          ANYONE OPPOSED? ALRIGHT. 
          PASSES. 
          UNOPPOSED. 
          AND DO WE NEED TO SKIP THE NEED TO, OKAY. 
          YEAH, WE NEED TO MOVE. 
          WE'RE GONNA MOVE ON TO ITEM SIX. 
          OH, NOPE. 
          [VII. Communications Update (Part 1 of 2)]
WE'RE GONNA MOVE ON TO ITEM SEVEN. 
          OH. 
          WHICH IS ME ALREADY. 
          OKAY. 
          ALL RIGHT. 
          SO WE'LL DO A LITTLE COMMUNICATIONS UPDATE. 
          UM, SO FIRST OF ALL, UH, WANTED TO UPDATE YOU ON A BUNCH OF OUR ART PROJECTS. 
          SO, UM, THE FIRST OF ALL, THE ARTISTS IN RESIDENCY PROGRAM IS GOING VERY, VERY WELL. 
          UH, ALL THREE OF THE ARTISTS HAVE TAUGHT CLASSES THEIR FIRST ROUND OF CLASSES AS PART OF THE AGREEMENT, THEY HAVE TO TEACH THREE CLASSES, UH, THAT ARE FREE TO RESIDENTS. 
          SO WE HAD ONE OF THE ARTISTS TEACH A FISH PRINTING WORKSHOP WITH DEAD FISH. 
          SO YOU CAN IMAGINE. 
          AND WE TAUGHT IT AT SUMMER CAMP FOR CAMP BY THE CREEK. 
          OH, BY THE CREEK. 
          OH, THE KIDS LOVED IT. 
          THEY JUST WERE HOLDING THESE HUGE FISH AND EELS, THE COVERING 'EM WITH PAINT AND PRINTING ON FABRIC AND PRINTING ON BANDANAS. 
          AND, UM, THEY HAD A GREAT TIME. 
          AND SHE, UH, GOT ABOUT 60 KIDS TO PARTICIPATE IN CAMP BY THE CREEK. 
          SHE'S GONNA BE DOING ONE AT THE LIBRARY BECAUSE SHE DOES A LITTLE STEM CLASS AND THEN SHE DOES THE ACTUAL PRINTING. 
          SO THE LIBRARY'S EXCITED ABOUT HAVING THAT. 
          THEN WE HAD OUR OTHER ARTISTS TEACH A PORTRAIT DRAWING CLASS AT THE LIBRARY. 
          AND THEN OUR THIRD ARTIST TAUGHT A CANVAS ON CANVAS KIND OF CLASS WHERE YOU WALK AWAY WITH A, WITH A FINISHED PRODUCT. 
          AND SHE TAUGHT THAT AT THE LIBRARY AS WELL. 
          SO WE'LL BE DOING MORE CLASSES. 
          UH, THEY, LIKE I SAID, THEY HAVE TO TEACH THREE. 
          THERE HAS BEEN SOME DISCUSSION AMONGST THE LEAGUE CITY KEEP LEAGUE CITY BEAUTIFUL COMMITTEE TO EXTENDING THE, UH, RESIDENCY TO A YEAR. 
          'CAUSE A NINE MONTHS IS WE'RE, IT'S A PILOT PROGRAM OR WE'RE KIND OF FLYING THE PLANE, PLANE AND BUILDING IT AS WE GO ALONG. 
          SO, UH, AND THE ARTISTS AGREE THAT LIKE, BECAUSE MOVING IN, GETTING SETTLED, GETTING THINGS STARTED A YEAR WOULD, WOULD PROBABLY BE BETTER. 
          SO MOST LIKELY WE'RE GONNA EXPAND IT TO, UH, TO A YEAR. 
          BUT EXCITING NEWS, IF YOU WANNA SAVE THE DATE FOR OCTOBER 17TH, THAT IS GONNA BE OUR FIRST, UH, ARTIST IN RESIDENCY, OPEN HOUSE AT THE ACTUAL GALLERY, UH, THE STUDIO SPACE. 
          AND IT WILL BE SOME LIGHT BITES, SOME WINE, UM, CONTRIBUTED BY THE PATRONS OF THE PARTS AND ARTS FOUNDATION. 
          AND IT'LL BE A CHANCE TO MEET ALL THE ARTISTS. 
          THEY'LL HAVE THEIR WORK ON DISPLAY, DO A LITTLE SHOW AND TELL IN THEIR STUDIO SPACE. 
          SO, WE'LL, I'LL REMIND YOU AT THE NEXT, UM, THE NEXT COUPLE OF MEETINGS HERE. 
          UM, AND THEN, UH, WE'LL PUT AN, UH, AN ALL CALL TO ALL OF, UH, EVERYONE ON SOCIAL MEDIA. 
          'CAUSE WE WANT PEOPLE TO COME AND SEE WHAT'S GOING ON. 
          JUST A REMINDER, THAT'S AT HERITAGE PARK, THAT'S AT THE GIRARDI HOUSE, WHICH IS, WHICH HAS BEEN A BIG PART OF THE HOT FUNDS  RENOVATING OVER THE YEARS. 
          WHAT DO WE DO WITH THIS BUILDING? HOW DOES IT FUNCTION? SO IT'S EXCITING THAT THIS BUILDING IS FUNCTIONING, UM, IS, IS SERVING A PURPOSE, UM, AND IS GETTING A LOT OF, OF INTEREST FROM RESIDENTS. 
          PEOPLE IN THE PARK ARE CONSTANTLY JUST STOPPING BY AND KNOCKING ON THE DOOR AND THEY LET 'EM IN AND THEY TALK ABOUT WHAT THEY'RE DOING, UM, AND ALL OF THAT. 
          SO IT'S GOING REALLY, REALLY WELL. 
          UH, AS FAR AS ART PROJECTS, I PASSED AROUND TWO. 
          SO THE WATER, UH, TANK OVER AT THE SPORTSPLEX, UH, YOU MAY SEE IS COMING ALONG VERY WELL. 
          SHE'LL BE DONE AT THE END OF THIS MONTH. 
          UM, AND I THINK IT TURNED OUT REALLY IT IS TURNING OUT REALLY, REALLY WELL TO KIND OF, TO COVER AN EYESORE THAT WAS THERE AT THE SPORTSPLEX RIGHT BY THE MAIN PARKING LOT THERE OFF OF WALKER STREET. 
          SO WE'RE EXCITED THAT THAT'S UP, UP IN, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, SHE HAD TO RENT A, A, A LIFT AND EVERYTHING TO PAINT IT 'CAUSE IT'S PRETTY HIGH. 
          UM, BUT, SO THAT'S COMING ALONG REALLY WELL. 
          AND THEN OUR FIVE TRAFFIC BOXES, UH, OUR NEXT ROUND OF FIVE TRAFFIC BOXES ARE COMING ALONG. 
          THIS IS THE ONE AT WALKER STREET AT VICTORY LAKES. 
          TURNED OUT REALLY, REALLY 
          [00:05:01]
WELL BY A NEW MURAL ARTIST THAT, UH, IS A LAKE CITY RESIDENT WHO JUST MOVED HERE SIX MONTHS AGO AND, UH, REACHED OUT TO US. 
          SO SHE, UH, IT'S GOOD TO HAVE A NEW BRAND NEW FACE PAINTING THE BOXES. 
          UM, AND THEN ANOTHER ONE, APPARENTLY SOMEBODY JUST DROVE BY AND APPARENTLY THEY COMPLETED THE ONE OVER BY WALKER STREET AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE LOWE'S THERE AND INTO WALMART, LIKE BEFORE YOU HIT, UM, 6 46 MM-HMM . 
          WHICH I, WHICH I DIDN'T HAVE TIME TO DRIVE BY AND TAKE A PICTURE OF. 
          I WAS LIKE, WHAT? THEY FINISHED IT. 
          'CAUSE THEY'RE KIND OF JUST WORKING ON THEIR OWN SCHEDULE OVER THE LAST, OVER THE NEXT MONTH. 
          THEY HAVE UNTIL, UM, SEPTEMBER 30TH TO GET THEM ALL DONE. 
          AND THEN WHAT I'M MOST EXCITED ABOUT, AND I'LL PASS THESE PICTURES AROUND, IS THAT ADAM SOCI, WHO PAINTED THE LARGE MURAL ON THE BUILDING, UH, RIGHT THERE ON THE FEEDER ROAD AND MAIN STREET IS, UH, WE HAVE COME TO AN AGREEMENT WITH THE MASONIC LODGE TO PAINT THEIR BUILDING, WHICH IS, YOU KIND OF KNOW THAT BUILDING IS NOT THE MOST ATTRACTIVE BUILDING, UH, RIGHT NEXT TO LEE PARK, WHICH IS OUR MOST BEAUTIFUL HISTORIC PARK. 
          AND THEN YOU KINDA SEE THIS BUILDING. 
          SO I WILL PASS AROUND THE RENDERINGS. 
          IT'S GOING TO BE KIND OF A, A SCENE THAT BLENDS INTO THE PARK WITH SONGBIRDS AND BUMBLEBEES BECAUSE WE ARE A BIRD, OR EXCUSE ME, A BEE CITY. 
          UM, WE INCORPORATED BEES. 
          AND ALSO THE BEE IS A SYMBOLIC, UM, UM, SYMBOL OR SYMBOLIC FOR THE MASONS. 
          THEY, THEY USE THAT AS ONE OF THEIR, THEIR KIND OF ICONS ON THINGS BECAUSE IT MEANS LIKE, OH, UH, DEDICATION AND DETERMINATION, LIKE ALL THE VALUES THAT THE MASONS HOLD DEAR. 
          SO IT KIND OF WORKED OUT THAT WE HAVE THE BUMBLEBEES ON THE SIDE AND THEY'RE SOMEWHAT INTERACTIVE. 
          SO YOU CAN KIND OF SEE, LIKE, YOU COULD HOLD UP SOMETHING TO THE BIRD AND PRETEND YOU'RE PAINTING IT OR FEEDING IT. 
          RATHER, YOU COULD HIDE UNDERNEATH THE BUMBLEBEE AND BE LIKE, PRETENDING LIKE YOU'RE BEING ATTACKED BY THE BUMBLEBEE. 
          SO THEY ARE GONNA BE INTERACTIVE AS, UH, AS WELL. 
          UM, SO YEAH, I'M SUPER EXCITED. 
          HE, UH, ADAM IS ALREADY PRESSURE WASHING AND STARTING TO PAINT, AND THOSE WILL BE DONE BY SEPTEMBER 3RD. 
          THE MURAL WILL BE DONE BY SEPTEMBER 30TH AND TIME FOR HARVEST FEST. 
          UM, AND WE'LL BE THERE AS WELL FOR HOLIDAY IN THE PARK. 
          SO WE'LL BE READY FOR ALL OF OUR FALL, FALL EVENTS THAT WE'RE HOSTING. 
          SO I'M SUPER EXCITED ABOUT THAT. 
          AND THAT'S ALL THAT I'VE GOT REALLY IS AN UPDATE ON THE ART INITIATIVE. 
          AND, UH, HOT FUNDS ARE BEING USED, OUR A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS IN HOT FUNDS, A PORTION OF THAT IS BEING USED TO DO THE MASONIC LODGE MURAL BECAUSE WE LOOK AT IT AS A WAY OF BEAUTIFYING MARKETING, KIND OF ALMOST A GATEWAY TO THE HISTORIC DISTRICT, UM, TO BEAUTIFY THAT AREA OF TOWN. 
          SO, AND, UM, AS YOU KNOW, HOT BUT HOT FUND BUDGETS CAN GO TO ART. 
          SO JUST SO YOU KNOW THAT, THAT IS PAYING FOR THAT. 
          AND THEN PART OF THE TRAFFIC BOXES ARE ALSO BEING PAID OUT OF HOT FUNDS AS WELL AS TRAFFIC FUNDS. 
          SO JUST KNOW THAT THE, THE HOT FUND BUDGET DOES CONTRIBUTE TO A LOT OF THIS ART INITIATIVE. 
          SO, BUT THAT'S ALL I'VE GOT FOR TODAY. 
          THANK YOU, SARAH. 
          UH, 
          [VIII. Update on soccer impact planning and regional tourism efforts]
STEPHANIE, WE'VE GOT AN UPDATE ON THE WORLD CUP. 
          YES. 
          ALRIGHT, GO AHEAD AND GET, OKAY. 
          SO AT PRETTY MUCH, UH, EARLIER THIS YEAR, EVERYBODY'S, EVERY MEETING I GO TO, THE QUESTION IS, WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO TO GET READY FOR WORLD CUP? WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO TO, WHAT ARE WE DOING FOR WORLD CUP? EVERYBODY'S ASKING THE QUESTION AT EVERY ONE OF THE MEETINGS I'M ATTENDING. 
          SO, UH, WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO TO GET READY FOR WORLD CUP? FIRST OF ALL, LET'S TALK ABOUT HOW BIG THIS IS GOING TO BE FOR OUR AREA. 
          OVER 1 MILLION VISITORS ARE EXPECTED IN THE REGION. 
          HOUSTON WILL WELCOME THE WORLD CUP FOR SOCCER NEXT SUMMER. 
          THIS COULD DRIVE MORE THAN $1.5 BILLION IN TOURISM SPENDING, AND WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT OUR AREA GETS ITS PIECE OF THAT PIE. 
          SO, UH, WE ARE GOING TO WORK ON THIS. 
          LET'S SEE. 
          ALL RIGHT, LET'S LOOK AT SOME QUICK STATS. 
          A LOT OF THEM HERE, UM, SOCCER'S A MAJOR GLOBAL ECONOMIC DRIVER. 
          WORLD CUP WILL HOST SEVEN MATCHES IN HOUSTON. 
          IT'LL BE PART OF A GLOBAL EVENT WITH 5 BILLION, OVER 5 BILLION VIEWERS. 
          AND THEY ARE EXPECTING 47 VISITING COMPANIES AT COUNTRIES TO COME INTO HOUSTON FOR THAT. 
          WE'RE GEARING UP ALREADY. 
          WE HAVE THE GOLD CUP THIS SUMMER IN HOUSTON. 
          THERE'S LEAGUE CUPS, CLUB GAMES, MMLS, ALL KIND OF DIFFERENT GAMES HAPPENING. 
          SO SOCCER'S ALREADY GROWING IN OUR AREA. 
          UM, IT'S THE FASTEST GROWING MAJOR SPORT IN THE UNITED STATES, NUMBER ONE GLOBALLY. 
          MM-HMM . 
          UH, LOTS OF BRANDS AND INVESTORS AND VISITORS USE SOCCER AS THE PLATFORM RIGHT NOW FOR BUSINESS MARKETING AND NETWORKING. 
          UM, SOCCER IS A CULTURAL AND ECONOMIC BRIDGE. 
          IT'S ONE OF THE MOST INTERNATIONAL. 
          HOUSTON IS ONE OF THE MOST INTERNATIONALLY DIVERSE CITIES IN THE UNITED STATES. 
          AND SOCCER BRINGS A LOT OF DIFFERENT PIECES OF THIS TOGETHER. 
          SO IT IS A COMMON CULTURAL DENOMINATOR AND BUSINESSES CAN, UH, USE IT TO BUILD BRIDGES RELATIONSHIPS AND INCREASE THEIR VISIBILITY. 
          SO, KEY DATES ON THE CALENDAR, JULY AND AUGUST RIGHT NOW. 
          SO 
          [00:10:01]
WE HAVE THE LEAGUES CUP, WHICH WOULD BE UNITED STATES AND MEXICO. 
          AND THAT'S HAPPENING IN HOUSTON. 
          UH, WE HAVE THE QUALIFIERS COMING UP THIS FALL. 
          AND THAT'S REALLY WHAT EVERYBODY IS WATCHING BECAUSE IN DECEMBER THEY'RE GOING TO ANNOUNCE WHICH COUNTRIES WILL BE COMING INTO THE HOUSTON AREA. 
          AND THAT IS GOING TO MATTER A, A GOOD BIT. 
          A LOT. 
          YEAH. 
          UH, SO THE SPRING IS WHENEVER WE'LL HAVE THE QUALIFIERS, THEY FINALIZE THE TEAMS AND THE BASE CAMPS ALL GET CONFIRMED. 
          UM, THE WORLD CUP IN HOUSTON HAPPENS JUNE THROUGH JULY NEXT YEAR. 
          SO BACK TO WHAT ARE WE GONNA DO TO GET READY FOR SOCCER? I PUT TOGETHER A DRAFT OF A PLAN, AND I GAVE YOU LIKE THE BOOK OF THAT AT THE VERY BACK OF YOUR PACKET THERE. 
          IT LOOKS LIKE THIS OR SOMETHING LIKE THIS. 
          THIS IS THE OFFICIAL WORLD CUP POSTER. 
          THIS IS NOT FOR US TO USE A REPRODUCE. 
          I JUST AM SHARING THAT WITH YOU BECAUSE IT HAS SOMETHING REALLY IMPORTANT ON THERE. 
          THAT IS A, THEY'RE USING A BAY AREA SPACE AS THE POSTER CHILD FOR THE CREATIVE OF ALL OF THEIR HOUSTON CAMPAIGN, WHICH IS GIVING US A REALLY BIG ADVANTAGE ON THIS. 
          SO WE'RE GETTING, UH, SOME, YOU KNOW, BEING THE COVER MODEL FOR THIS IS A REALLY GOOD THING. 
          UH, SO THE GOALS OF OUR SOCCER PLANNING THING, RIGHT? SO WE WANNA DRIVE OUR ECONOMIC IMPACT, BOOST OUR HOTEL STAYS, BRING PEOPLE TO EAT IN OUR RESTAURANTS, AND VISIT OUR ATTRACTIONS AND SPEND MONEY IN OUR LOCAL ECONOMY. 
          WE WANNA ELEVATE OUR AREA AS THE NEXT STOP AFTER MISSION CONTROL, BECAUSE WE'RE GONNA LEAN INTO THIS WHOLE SOCCER SPACE CONCEPT ALREADY. 
          SO THEY GAVE US THIS GREAT ADVANTAGE. 
          WE WANNA ENHANCE THE VISITOR EXPERIENCE WHERE WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT, UH, MULTILINGUAL SUPPORT, SIGNAGE, HOSPITALITY, TRAINING, AND GETTING THE WORD OUT ABOUT THAT AND PROVIDING RESOURCES AND TOOLS FOR PEOPLE TO USE AND MAKE THIS HAPPEN. 
          AND REGIONAL COLLABORATION IS GOING TO BE A VERY BIG PART OF THIS. 
          MM-HMM . 
          ALL THE CITIES, CBBS ALL THE STAKEHOLDERS COMING TOGETHER TO WORK ON THIS AS A GROUP. 
          UM, AND WE, YOU KNOW, USE THIS AS A WAY TO PROMOTE RETURN VISITS AS WELL, SO THAT THEY WILL COME BACK AND STAY. 
          SO THE PLAN HAS A LOT OF PIECES TO IT, AND YOU'RE WELCOME TO READ THROUGH THE WHOLE THING. 
          I REALLY WANTED TO KIND OF JUST HIGHLIGHT THE TOP THREE THINGS THAT I'M WORKING ON RIGHT NOW, WHICH IS, UH, VISITOR READINESS AND HOSPITALITY. 
          LEMME SEE. 
          THIS IS FUN. 
          SO RIGHT NOW WE ARE WORKING WITH, UH, AND THIS IS KIND OF LIKE WHEN I WAS TRYING TO PUT THIS TOGETHER, MAKE IT NICE AND CLEAN FOR YOU, BUT IT'S JUST KIND OF A BIG BOWL OF SPAGHETTI. 
          I FEEL LIKE IT ALL WORKS TOGETHER AND SAUCE JUST GETS EVERYWHERE BECAUSE WE NEED TO GET VISITOR READY. 
          HOW DO WE DO THAT? WE HAVE HOSPITALITY, UH, INVENTORY. 
          WHAT DO WE HAVE TO OFFER PEOPLE IF WE GET A CALL FROM THE HOSTING COMMITTEE? WHERE ARE OUR FIELDS? YOU KNOW, WHAT IS THAT? SO WE'RE WORKING WITH THE BEHE TOURISM COMMITTEE THAT WAS RECENTLY ESTABLISHED, UH, TO PUT TOGETHER AN INVENTORY THAT IS UNDERWAY. 
          UM, WE REVIEWED THAT AT THE LAST MEETING THERE. 
          AND, UM, WE'RE PULLING ALL OF THAT TOGETHER. 
          SO HOW MANY HOTELS? WHAT, HOW MANY ROOMS DO WE HAVE? HOW MANY KEYS DO WE HAVE? WHAT RESTAURANTS ARE GONNA BE, UH, POSSIBLY HOSTING PARTIES? SO WE DON'T HAVE THAT INFORMATION JUST YET, BUT LIKE, WE NEED TO KNOW WHAT THESE RESTAURANTS WOULD BE. 
          SO ALL THE CITIES WERE RESPONSIBLE TO SUBMITTING ALL THAT TOGETHER. 
          UH, WHAT KIND OF MEETING SPACE ARE WE LOOKING AT? WHAT ABOUT SUPPLIERS FOR RENTALS OR, UH, TRANSPORTATION COMPANIES, THAT SORT OF THING. 
          SO WE'RE GETTING THIS HUGE LIST OF THINGS TOGETHER. 
          BEHE HAS TAKEN THE LEAD ON THAT FOR US. 
          AND THEN ONCE WE GET THAT INFORMATION, IT'S KIND OF, THEY'RE LOOKING AT ME LIKE, OKAY, HERE'S THE INFORMATION. 
          LET'S MARKET THIS STUFF. 
          RIGHT? SO WE WANNA USE OUR OWN MEDIA. 
          WE ARE A LITTLE BIT, I FEEL BEHIND ON GETTING THIS READY WITH THE BAY AREA GROUP. 
          UM, WE NEED TO DEVELOP GUIDE MATERIALS IN A CAMPAIGN, LAUNCH PROMOTIONS, AND, AND REALLY COLLABORATE WITH SPACE CENTER HOUSTON IN A BIG WAY BECAUSE THEY'RE ALREADY A KEY ENTRY POINT TO THESE VISITORS. 
          RIGHT. 
          UM, THANKFULLY WE DO HAVE SOME RESOURCES IN PLACE. 
          WE'RE WORKING WITH OUR, UH, AREA CHAMBERS. 
          THERE IS A GROUP CALLED TEAM HOUSTON THAT HAS PULLED TOGETHER A LOT OF HOSPITALITY TRAINING RESOURCES THAT WE'RE ASKING HELP FROM OUR CHAMBERS TO HELP GET THAT OUT TO OUR LOCAL BUSINESS COMMUNITY. 
          UH, THEY HAVE WEBINARS ABOUT JUST THE IMPORTANCE OF SOCCER, ECONOMIC IMPACT AND JUST GENERAL HOSPITALITY TRAINING THAT WE CAN SHARE OUT. 
          UM, AND THEN JUST LOTS AND LOTS OF MEETINGS RECENTLY WITH, UH, TALKING ABOUT TRANSPORTATION ISSUES. 
          WHERE, WHERE WOULD WE WANT UBER TO DROP OFF IN LEAGUE CITY? WHAT KIND OF TRANSPORTATION PLANNING CAN WE DO RIGHT NOW TO TALK ABOUT GETTING PEOPLE FROM THE, UH, THE, THE FAN FESTIVAL DOWNTOWN IN EDO TO LEAGUE CITY? DO WE NEED TO DO SOME SORT OF ROTATION WITH TRANSPORTATION? SO A LOT OF THAT IS BEING DONE THROUGH THE HOUSTON'S THE HOUSTON HOST COMMITTEE, BUT WE'RE NOT GETTING A LOT OF INFORMATION FROM THE HOUSTON HOST COMMITTEE. 
          UM, WHENEVER I GO TO THE HU VISIT, HOUSTON, CBB AND AROUND HOUSTON PARTNERSHIP MEETINGS, THEY'RE ALL ASKING THE SAME QUESTIONS AS WE ARE RIGHT NOW. 
          LIKE, WHAT DO WE DO AND HOW DO WE WORK WITH THIS? AND HOUSTON'S LIKE, WE'RE NOT GETTING A LOT OF INFORMATION EITHER. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, NOW IT'S LIKE, OKAY, WELL WE'RE JUST GONNA TAKE THE, WE'RE JUST GONNA GO AHEAD AND DO THIS AND FIGURE OUT WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO. 
          SO I HAVE BEEN MEETING WITH, UH, BRIAN, UH, ROLLER, UH, WITH 
          [00:15:01]
LEAGUE CITY CHAMBER AND THEN ALSO SCOTT, UH, LIVINGSTON HAS MET WITH UBER AND WE'RE JUST, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS AND WE'RE TRYING TO WORK THIS THROUGH. 
          SO, UM, ANYWAY, THERE'S JUST A LOT OF ELEMENTS THAT ARE, THAT ARE GOING INTO THIS. 
          SO WE NEED TO BE THINKING ABOUT GETTING THE WORD OUT AND BEING ABLE TO GET THE INFORMATION AND PUT IT OUT THERE FOR PEOPLE AND FANS TO KNOW ABOUT, LIKE WHERE ARE THE THEME WATCH PARTIES GONNA BE HELD. 
          MM-HMM . 
          UH, ANY RESTAURANTS THAT ARE GONNA OFFER SOCCER FRIENDLY MENUS, GAME DAY SPECIALS, WE NEED THAT. 
          SO WE WANNA GRAB THAT AND BE ABLE TO PUSH THAT OUT THERE AND GET IT OUT THERE RIGHT NOW. 
          MM-HMM . 
          SO LOTS OF ELEMENTS THERE. 
          MARKETING PROMOTION'S KIND OF MORE IN MY WHEELHOUSE. 
          SO I'M WORKING, LEAGUE CITY WILL HAVE A LANDING PAGE ON ITS WEBSITE, BUT THIS IS A BIGGER THING THAN JUST THE LEAGUE CITY AREA. 
          SO THE INFORMATION REALLY NEEDS TO LIVE ON THE VISIT BAY AREA, CBB SITE. 
          WE HAVE AN AGENCY AND I'M WORKING ON THE CONTRACT NOW TO GET THAT CREATED. 
          AND THAT IS JUST GONNA BE A PRETTY BIG UNDERTAKING 'CAUSE WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT DIFFERENT LANGUAGES, YOU KNOW, ALL OF THOSE THINGS AND MAKING IT REALLY EASY FOR PEOPLE TO USE. 
          UH, WE HAVE A MAJOR ADVANTAGE AS SORT OF RIGHT NOW TO COLLABORATE WITH, WITH SPACE CENTER HOUSTON, WE'RE, THEY'RE ALREADY USING SPACE AS THEIR CENTRAL THEME CREATIVELY FOR HOUSTON. 
          AND WE ARE DEFINITELY RIGHT THERE FOR THAT. 
          SO, UM, IT OPENS UP LOTS OF OPPORTUNITIES TO DRIVE SPILL OVER VISITATION. 
          UM, SO I WANNA TIE IN AND LEAN INTO THAT. 
          SO WE WANNA POSITION THE BAY AREA AS A NEXT STOP AFTER MISSION CONTROL. 
          AND THAT'S KIND OF HOW I'M THINKING AS FAR AS LIKE MESSAGING AND HOW WE'RE GOING TO GET EVERYTHING FOR THAT. 
          UH, WE'LL PROMOTE AND PULL TOGETHER ALL THE RESTAURANT INFORMATION ATTRACTIONS AND REALLY MAKE LIKE A FAN GUIDE TYPE PIECE THERE ON THAT WEBSITE. 
          UH, AND MAYBE A MORE TO EXPLORE MISSION CONTROL PASSPORT PROGRAM. 
          WE CAN DO THAT THROUGH OUR VISIT WIDGET. 
          BAY AREA HAS A VISIT WIDGET AS WELL. 
          WE USE OURS. 
          THIS, IT'S A REALLY EASY WAY TO DO THAT. 
          WE CAN MAKE A CUSTOM ITINERARY AND IT'S ALREADY GOT THE MAPS IN THERE. 
          UM, AND THEN WE LAUNCH THE LANDING PAGE CAMPAIGNS AND ALL THE PROMOTIONS. 
          UH, I WANT TO WORK WITH SPACE CENTER HOUSTON, I'VE ALREADY REACHED OUT TO THEM TO SET THIS UP AND ASK WHAT CAN WE DO? LIKE, CAN WE HAVE SIGNAGE THERE? CAN WE PROMOTE QR CODES, YOU KNOW, AT YOUR INFORMATION AREA, MAYBE SOME SIGNAGE ON THE GROUND OR WHATEVER. 
          JUST LIKE NEXT STOP AFTER MISSION CONTROL AND HELP PARTNER WITH THAT. 
          SO THAT WILL PROBABLY COME NEXT. 
          SO WE'RE THE NEXT STEP WHERE WE ARE RIGHT NOW IS CREATING A SOCCER TASK FORCE, COMBINING THE EFFORTS OF THE BAY HEAD TOURISM COMMITTEE, THE CLEAR LAKE AREA, CHAMBER OF COMMERCE BAY, HOUSTON'S VISIT, BAY AREA, HOUSTON GROUP. 
          AND WE HAVE TO DETERMINE WHO'S DOING WHAT, DEFINE ALL THOSE TASKS AND ASSIGN THE RESPONSIBILITY. 
          SO IT'S, IT'S STILL KIND OF IN THE FORMULATION, BUT YOU KNOW, WE JUST NEED TO GET THERE AND START WORKING ON THIS. 
          AND I'VE HAD A LOT OF DIFFERENT PEOPLE REACH OUT. 
          EVEN OUR, UH, CHRIS, CHRIS SIMS FROM OUR OH YEAH. 
          HE'S VERY INTERESTED IN HELPING AND HE'S SERVICES. 
          HE'S ALREADY THINKING THROUGH ALL THE LOGISTICS AND YEAH, THERE'S JUST A WHOLE LOT, WHICH IS GREAT. 
          HE'S ABOUT TRAFFIC AND YEAH, EXACTLY. 
          I MEAN, 'CAUSE THAT'S A MAJOR PART OF IT THERE. 
          SO THAT'S JUST A BIG DEAL. 
          UM, SO THAT IS KIND OF WHERE WE ARE, UH, PUT TOGETHER A PLAN FOR SOCCER, AND NOW WE'RE JUST LIKE, WE'RE HAVING LOTS OF MEETINGS AND I WELCOME YOUR INPUT AND ANYBODY WANT HELP MAKE THIS STUFF HAPPEN. 
          LIKE, PLEASE , THAT WOULD BE GREAT. 
          UH, THERE'S JUST A LOT OF WORK TO BE DONE. 
          YES. 
          I JUST HAVE A QUICK QUESTION. 
          SO, OR MAYBE A COMMENT THEN QUESTION. 
          IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S A HUGE COMMUNICATION BARRIER BETWEEN OUR AREA AND HOUSTON MM-HMM . 
          IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN. 
          WITH THE COMMITTEE. 
          YES. 
          WITH THE COMMITTEE. 
          SO I'M KIND OF WONDERING IF THERE ARE OTHER COMMITTEES THAT WE CAN, UM, INTERACT WITH BESIDES JUST, YOU KNOW, OR JUST OTHER GROUPS BESIDES HOUSTON FIRST OR GREATER HOUSTON PARTNERSHIP MM-HMM . 
          THERE IS THE HOTEL LODGING ASSOCIATION, BREEDER HOUSTON. 
          YES. 
          AND YOU MUST KNOW STEPHANIE. 
          YES. 
          YEAH. 
          SO I THINK THAT SHE COULD BE A HUGE RESOURCE AND COULD BE HELPFUL IN THE SENSE. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, SO JUST A COMMON THOUGHT ON THAT. 
          I WONDER IF THEY'RE ALREADY WORKING THROUGH. 
          SO THE, UM, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GROUP, GREATER HOUSTON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GROUP IS HAVING A MEETING ON THEIR, THE WORLD CUP PRESIDENT, HOUSTON'S PLANNING COMMITTEE PRESIDENT IS SPEAKING AT THAT MEETING. 
          MM-HMM . 
          I JUST GOT THE INVITE FOR IT YESTERDAY AND IT'S GONNA BE, UH, SEPTEMBER THE 10TH OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. 
          YEAH. 
          AROUND THAT TIME PERIOD. 
          UM, AND SO WE'RE GETTING THE UPDATE OFFICIALLY FROM THEM FOR THE FIRST TIME TO OUR GROUP. 
          AND THAT'S OFFERED THROUGH THE BAY HUB GROUP. 
          I, I DON'T KNOW. 
          SO YES, THERE'S A LOT OF REGIONAL, BUT I THINK THE INFORMATION IS JUST COMING REALLY SLOW FROM THEM. 
          MM-HMM . 
          UM, THEY DID JUST OPEN UP THEIR VOLUNTEER, UM, APPLICATION PROCESS TO SIGN UP TO BE A WORLD CUP HOUSTON OFFICIAL VOLUNTEER, IF ANYBODY WOULD LIKE TO DO THAT. 
          I SIGNED UP FOR THE EMAILS AND I GOT IT AND I LOOKED, AND IT'S A, IT'S AN EIGHT, UH, YOU HAVE TO COMMIT TO DOING EIGHT SHIFTS OF IT, AND IT'S VERY HEAVY. 
          I WAS LIKE, I DON'T KNOW THAT I CAN ACTUALLY DO THAT, BUT WELL, THIS FAR OUT TOO, LIKE, I DON'T KNOW. 
          WHO KNOWS? YEAH. 
          YEAH. 
          BUT IT WOULD BE AMAZING. 
          I MEAN, THERE IT IS AN APPLICATION PROCESS. 
          YOU HAVE TO GO THROUGH TRAINING AND EVERYTHING. 
          SO IF ANYBODY WOULD LIKE TO SIGN UP AND DO THAT, I, IT WOULD BE AN AMAZING EXPERIENCE. 
          MM-HMM. 
          IF YOU HAVE THE TIME TO DO IT. 
          I DON'T KNOW THAT I CAN COMMIT TO IT RIGHT NOW, BUT I MIGHT, I MIGHT CHANGE MY MIND, YOU KNOW. 
          BUT, UM, THE HOUSTON, IN THAT LITTLE, IN THIS, THAT DOCUMENT 
          [00:20:01]
THERE IS ON THE OPPORTUNITY AND OVERVIEW PAGE, IT HAS LINKS. 
          OF COURSE, YOU CAN'T CLICK IT ON A PAGE, BUT THE, IF YOU GO TO F WC 26 HOUSTON, THAT IS THEIR COMMITTEE, AND YOU CAN SIGN UP TO BE A VENDOR AND GET RFPS FOR WHENEVER THEY PUT THOSE OUT THERE. 
          YOU NEED TO GO AHEAD AND REGISTER FOR THAT IF YOU ARE A SUPPLIER FOR THINGS. 
          I HAVE REGISTERED AS THE POINT OF CONTACT FOR THIS AREA FOR TOURISM AND HAVE REACHED OUT AND SENT EMAILS. 
          I HAVEN'T GOTTEN ANY RESPONSES YET. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST KIND OF LIKE, WE'RE, WE'RE THERE, WE'RE GETTING THERE AND WE NEED TO START WORKING ON THAT. 
          AND, BUT WHAT I'M FOCUSED ON MARKETING WISE IS GETTING THE FAN GUIDE INFORMATION TOGETHER. 
          MM-HMM . 
          MM-HMM . 
          UH, BUILDING THAT SITE AND THE CONTENT THERE TO GET THOSE RESTAURANTS LOADED IN TO GET THE HOTELS LOADED IN TO GET ALL THOSE THINGS IN PLACE SO THAT WHEN PEOPLE ARE LOOKING FOR IT, IT IT IS, THERE IT IS ONLINE. 
          THAT'LL BE VALUABLE FOR OUR LOCALS TOO, THOUGH. 
          YEAH. 
          YOU KNOW, WHERE TO WATCH THE GAME AND YEAH. 
          THAT SORT, ALL THOSE THINGS. 
          SO IT JUST REALLY NEEDS TO BE BUILT AND STUFF. 
          SO, UM, SO THAT'S WHERE WE ARE ON WORLD CUP CHECK ON THE NEXT SLIDE. 
          I WANTED TO LET Y'ALL KNOW, BESIDES WORLD CUP NEXT SUMMER, THE BIGGEST THING HAPPENING KIND OF IN THE AREAS IS FLEET WEEK IN HOUSTON. 
          THAT'S HAPPENING THIS NOVEMBER. 
          WE HAVE LOTS OF THINGS HAPPENING BECAUSE WE HAVE THE AIR SHOW AT THE END OF OCTOBER AS WELL, THAT'S GONNA BRING IN LOTS AND LOTS OF VISITORS. 
          BUT ALSO FLEET WEEK IN HOUSTON IS ALSO HAPPENING IN OUR BACKYARD AT THE PORT OF HOUSTON. 
          SO WE'VE NEVER HAD A FLEET WEEK IN, IN HOUSTON'S HISTORY. 
          UM, IT'S COINCIDED WITH THE 250TH BIRTHDAY OF THE US NAVY AND THE UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS BIRTHDAY AND VETERAN'S DAY. 
          SO IT'S A HUGE THING. 
          UM, AND IT'S, IT'S A DIFFERENT, UH, VERSION OF FLEET WEEK BECAUSE OF OUR GEOGRAPHY. 
          THEY HAD TO KIND OF MOVE THINGS AROUND A GOOD BIT. 
          BUT THERE WILL BE A LOT OF PEOPLE COMING IN, A LOT OF SAILORS AND TONS OF SHIP TOURS. 
          SO, UH, THAT WEBSITE, UH, I DIDN'T LIST IT ON THERE. 
          COOL. 
          IS, IS, SO YOU GOOGLE HOUSTON FLEET WEEK, FIND THAT WEBSITE. 
          YOU CAN ALSO REQUEST TO HAVE AN EVENT AND SUBMIT A REQUEST, LIKE IF WE WANTED TO DO SOMETHING WITH OUR VETERANS DAY PROGRAM OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT MM-HMM . 
          THEY'LL HAVE SPEAKERS IN TOWN FOR THIS, SO, OKAY. 
          OKAY. 
          THERE'S LOTS OF THINGS IN THERE. 
          SO THE HOUSTON FLEET WEEK WEBSITE, IT HAS A PAGE ON, IT SAYS LIKE, THINGS TO DO NEARBY. 
          WHENEVER YOU CLICK THAT, IT ACTUALLY GOES TO OUR AROUND HOUSTON PAGE THAT HAS THE BAY AREA ALREADY FEATURED IN THERE. 
          AND, UH, THAT LINKS TO OUR BAY AREA HOUSTON WEBSITE, WHICH IS ALSO LINKED TO OUR LEAGUE CITY WEBSITE. 
          SO IT'S LIKE, THERE'S JUST A LOT OF, THERE'S A LOT OF SPAGHETTI IN THAT BOWL. 
          OKAY. 
          SO , WE'RE JUST GETTING ALL OF THIS REALLY, I'M, I'M REALLY FOCUSED ON GETTING THE, THE CONTENT CORRECT AND READY TO GO FOR ALL OF THESE THINGS SO THAT FOR WORLD CUP WE HAVE INFORMATION READY AND READY TO GO. 
          UM, AND FOR THIS, WE HAVE THINGS READY TO GO AS WELL. 
          SO THIS IS GONNA BE A BIG DEAL. 
          UM, THERE'LL BE LOTS OF PUBLIC SHIP TOURS, UH, ALL KIND OF THINGS. 
          THERE'S A WHOLE SCHEDULE OF EVENTS. 
          I SEE THE DATE 2025. 
          OH, AND THEN IT'S NOT 26TH. 
          I'M SORRY, IT IS THIS NOVEMBER. 
          I, THAT WAS A TYPO. 
          OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          IT'S NICE AND UNDERLINED SO THAT, I DON'T KNOW WHY . 
          YEAH. 
          WELL YOUR BRAIN IS IN TWO YEARS. 
          IT, IT'S, IT'S KIND OF ALL OVER THE PLACE. 
          26 FLEET. 
          YEAH. 
          I, YES, BECAUSE OKAY. 
          AT THE SAME TIME, , LET'S COMPLICATE THINGS A LITTLE BIT MORE. 
          THE BAY AREA, HOUSTON, CBB, WHERE ALL OF THIS INFORMATION IS KIND OF LIVING, THE ORGANIZATION HAS BEEN GOING THROUGH ALL SORTS OF TRANSITIONS FOR THE LAST FIVE YEARS. 
          IT'S JUST BEEN TUMBLED AND TUMBLED AND TUMBLED. 
          IT IS A, THERE IS A LOT OF INTEREST. 
          TOURISM IS BOOMING IN THIS AREA RIGHT NOW. 
          LIKE WE ARE, WE'RE DOING PRETTY GOOD. 
          UM, WE HAVE LOTS OF OPPORTUNITIES. 
          WE ARE HOUSTON'S HAMPTONS, BASICALLY EVERYBODY COMES TO OUR AREA TO BE, TO VACATION OUT OF HOUSTON. 
          PLUS WE HAVE TONS AND TONS OF VISITORS ANYWAY. 
          BUT, UM, BAY AREA IS JUST POPPING WITH TOURISM. 
          THE, THE REGIONAL DESTINATION MARKETING ORGANIZATION OR CBB IS KIND OF NOT IN, IN, IT'S, IT'S THERE, BUT IT'S NOT, THERE'S NO STAFF . 
          SO, UH, I'M ACTING AS THE BOARD CHAIR RIGHT NOW. 
          UM, WE HAVE OUTSOURCED ALL THE MARKETING, UH, TO MADDEN MEDIA, OUR AGENCY, AND WE ALSO HAVE A WONDERFUL SOCIAL MEDIA PARTNER NOW WHO'S DONE A GREAT JOB WITH OUR, WITH OUR CHANNELS THERE. 
          AND SO THEY'VE DONE A LOT OF CONTENT FOR US, BUT, UH, THE ORGANIZATION AS IT STANDS RIGHT NOW IS GOING THROUGH A LOT OF CHALLENGES. 
          AND I'VE WORKING WITH BAY HIP AND THE NEW TOURISM COMMITTEE AND SEEING THE SUPPORT FOR THE REGIONAL TOURISM, I'M LIKE, SOMEBODY TAKE BAY AREA, HOUSTON, CBB AND LET, LET'S MAKE THIS WORK IN THE RIGHT WAY BECAUSE IT HAS JUST FLOUNDERED FOR SEVERAL YEARS. 
          AS FAR AS THE ORGANIZATION AND THE STAFFING, THE BOARD TURNOVER, THERE'S JUST BEEN A LOT OF ISSUES THERE. 
          UM, AND BECAUSE MAINLY THE BIGGEST ISSUE IS THAT THE DIFFERENT COMMITTEES, UH, COMMUNITIES THAT ARE PAYING INTO IT ALL CAN'T AGREE OF WHAT, WHAT THE PROGRAM SHOULD BE CENTERED ON AND WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE. 
          SO DIFFERENT CITIES WILL SAY, I'M NOT GETTING ENOUGH ATTENTION ON SOCIAL MEDIA, OR I DON'T SEE THE RETURN ON HAVING A WEBSITE, OR, YOU KNOW, THERE'S ALL THESE DIFFERENT THINGS. 
          SO, HEY, COME ON IN. 
          RIGHT. 
          SO I ACTUALLY YESTERDAY MET WITH THE CLEAR LAKE AREA CHAMBER OF 
          [00:25:01]
COMMERCE BOARD AND ASKED THEM TO TAKE THAT IN-HOUSE AGAIN, BECAUSE A LONG, LONG TIME AGO IT WAS ACTUALLY PART OF THE CLEAR LAKE AREA CHAMBER. 
          AND THEN, I MEAN, MAYBE 40 YEARS AGO OR SOMETHING WHERE IT STARTED MM-HMM . 
          WHERE IT STARTED. 
          YEAH. 
          AND THEN IT KIND OF BECAME ITS OWN ENTITY. 
          AND THEN IT WENT THROUGH LOTS OF OTHER CHANGES BECAUSE VISIT HOUSTON TOOK IT BACK IN AND MADE IT GREATER HOUSTON. 
          LONG STORY, IT NEEDS TO BE ADOPTED. 
          AND I PITCHED TO THEM BECAUSE THEY ARE A VERY STRONG ORGANIZATION WITH A HUGE REACH. 
          IT MAKES SENSE TO LIKE, BRING THAT BACK IN HOUSE. 
          AND IT WAS, IT WENT OVER VERY, VERY WELL. 
          SO I'M HOPING THAT WE CAN GET THIS ESTABLISHED AGAIN AND MAKE THIS WORK BECAUSE IT, IT, WE NEED ONE, THIS AREA NEEDS A CBB FOR THE AREA. 
          LIKE, IT JUST, IT MAKES SENSE WHEN YOU HAVE PEOPLE CALL IN FOR FAMILY REUNIONS AND THEY'RE SAYING, I'VE GOT, YOU KNOW, 300 PEOPLE COMING IN FOR A CONVENTION, I WANNA COME INTO THE BAY AREA. 
          WHERE DO I GO? WHO, WHO IS THAT? WHO CALLS DO YOU CALL LEAGUE CITY? AND THEN I'M ONLY GONNA TELL YOU ABOUT LEAGUE CITY. 
          DO YOU CALL EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THESE? NW YOU JUST DON'T DO THAT. 
          YOU JUST CALL THE AREA. 
          SO ANYWAY, I'M REALLY HOPING THAT THIS WORKS OUT. 
          WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THIS AND I, I THINK WE'RE GONNA BE MOVING FORWARD IN THE MEANTIME. 
          YES, I AM WORKING ON, UH, WITH OUR AGENCY TO GET ALL OF THE, THE FAN INFORMATION AND ALL THE STUFF READY FOR THIS WEBSITE SO THAT WE CAN PUSH IT OUT. 
          SO THAT'S WHERE WE ARE IN WORLD CUP. 
          IT'S COMPLICATED, BUT WE ARE WORKING ON IT AND WE'RE MAKING PROGRESS. 
          IT'S JUST, IT'S KIND OF OVERWHELMING RIGHT THIS SECOND, BUT IT, IT'S ALL GOOD. 
          IT'S VERY EXCITING. 
          WE HAVE A LOT OF REALLY GOOD THINGS COMING UP. 
          SO THAT'S WHERE WE ARE ON THAT. 
          OH, I WON'T GO INTO THAT JUST NOW BECAUSE OF OUR, OUR, UH, SPEAKER STUFF. 
          OUR, UH, CLEAR LAKE AREA JUST OUT HERE. 
          SO WE CAN GO BACK TO THE, DO Y'ALL HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT WORLD CUP? DO Y'ALL WANNA TALK ABOUT THAT AT ALL RIGHT NOW? THANK YOU. 
          YEAH, THAT'S A LOT. 
          THANK YOU, STEPHANIE. 
          I'M HAPPY TO TALK MORE ABOUT IT. 
          AND MAYBE WE HAVE A FOLLOW UP LITTLE TASK FORCE IN LEAGUE CITY. 
          I DON'T KNOW. 
          WE'LL, WE'LL FIGURE THIS OUT. 
          SO ANYWAY, THAT'S WHERE WE ARE IN WORLD CUP. 
          ALRIGHT, SO WE'RE 
          [V. HOT Grant Application Presentation: Christmas Boat Lane Parade 2025]
GONNA GO BACK UP TO ITEM FIVE IN HERE ABOUT THE CHRISTMAS BULLETING PARADE. 
          ALRIGHT. 
          YOU HAVE YOUR PACKETS. 
          IT SHOULD BE PRINTED OUT FOR YOU BEFORE YOU, SO JUST SO YOU KNOW, I PRINTED OUT THE APPLICATION, NOT THE LONGER APPLICATION, BUT THE, THE FULL ONE IS RIGHT HERE IF ANYBODY WANTS TO TAKE A LOOK AT ALL THE DOCUMENTS. 
          UM, BUT YOU SHOULD HAVE THE, THE SKINNY IN THERE. 
          SO. 
          ALRIGHT, SHERRY, TAKE IT AWAY. 
          THANKS FOR LETTING US COME LATE. 
          YEAH, WE POST, UH, A NON-PROFIT ENGAGEMENT COMMITTEE EVERY MONTH AND THEY WERE VERY LONG-WINDED THIS MORNING. 
          SO, UH, MELISSA AND I WERE LIKE RUSHING OUT THE DOOR. 
          WE DIDN'T EVEN CLEAN UP BREAKFAST. 
          I ASSUME SOMEONE'S CLEANING IT UP. 
          UM, SHERRY SWEENEY, I'M VICE PRESIDENT AT THE PUBLIC AREA AT OF COMMERCE. 
          AND FOR YEARS AND YEARS AND YEARS, THE CITY OF LAKE CITY, UH, ALONG WITH, UM, THIS GROUP HAS BEEN A SPONSOR OF THE CHRISTMAS BOAT PARADE. 
          WE'RE ACTUALLY ON OUR 64TH YEAR OF THE PARADE. 
          OUR HOST HOTEL IS SOUTH SHO HARBOR RESORT, WHICH THEY HAVE HOSTED IT FOREVER. 
          AND, UM, IT, WE TAKE OVER THE WHOLE WEEKEND, PUT IT THAT WAY. 
          UH, WE COME IN ON FRIDAY, WE'RE THEIR SATURDAY AND WHERE THEIR SUNDAY, I KNOW THE HOTEL IS FULL. 
          UH, PEOPLE CALL US TO HAVE THEIR COMPANY FUNCTIONS AND DIFFERENT THINGS THAT WEEKEND AT SOUTH SHORE SO THAT THEY CAN SEE THE BOATS, THAT KIND OF THING. 
          LAKE CITY USED TO BE YEARS AGO, THE TITLE SPONSOR OF THIS PARADE ACTUALLY. 
          UM, AND THE OTHER CITIES WERE, UM, OTHER LEVEL SPONSORS. 
          AND THEN, UM, THERE WAS A DECISION BY SEVERAL OF THE MAYORS TO SAY, OKAY, ALL OF US WHO WERE SPONSORING AS CITIES, LET'S JUST ALL BE EQUAL AND ALL BE PRESENTING SPONSORS. 
          BUT FOR A WHILE, UH, LEAGUE CITY WAS ACTUALLY THE PRESENTING SPONSOR OF IT. 
          SO WE GAVE THEM THE TITLE. 
          SO IT WAS ACTUALLY CALLED THE LEAGUE CITY ANNUAL CHRISTMAS BOAT LANE PARADE, UH, FOR A WHILE. 
          AND THEN THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS IT'S BEEN ALL OF THE CITIES THAT ARE PARTICIPATE, UH, PRESENTING SPONSORS LEAGUE CITY. 
          AND THIS COMMITTEE HAS NOT BEEN A SPONSOR, I THINK NOW FOR TWO YEARS, UM, OF THE EVENT, WHICH IS A SHAME BECAUSE IT IS NOT LIKE WE EXCLUDE YOU GUYS. 
          UH, SOUTH SHORE HARBOR RESORT AND LAKE CITY IS EVERYWHERE. 
          UH, WHEN WE PROMOTE THIS EVENT, UH, FOR ALL OF OUR MARKETING AND FOR ALL THE ACTIVITIES BECAUSE OF WHAT WE DO AT SOUTH HARBOR RESORT. 
          SO, UH, WE, WE HAVEN'T TOLD ANYBODY NOT TO DO ANYTHING WITH LAKE CITY. 
          ALSO PART OF THE ROUTE, UH, THE PARADE YEARS AGO, UM, WAS STARTED ON THE NASSAU BAY SIDE OF THE LAKE, WENT TO SOUTH SHORE, AND THEN KEPT IN THE SOUTH CHANNEL. 
          WENT PAST SEABROOK, CLEAR LAKE SHORES UNDERNEATH THE BIG BRIDGE OUT PAST THE KEMA BOARDWALK OUT INTO THE BAY. 
          AND RETURNED, UH, ABOUT FOUR YEARS AGO, 
          [00:30:01]
WE ACTUALLY ADDED A PIECE INTO MORE OF LAKE CITY. 
          SO, UH, THE, IT IT, THERE'S A DISCREPANCY ON WHAT YOU CALL IT, BUT THAT CONSTELLATION POINT MM-HMM . 
          AREA. 
          UM, THE BOATS ACTUALLY GO DOWN THAT. 
          SO THEY, THEY START IN NASSAU BAY, THEY COME OUT OF NASSAU BAY, THEY GO DOWN CONSTELLATION POINT ALL THE WAY DOWN TO THE END AND BACK, WHICH THE RESIDENTS THERE HAVE A BLAST. 
          'CAUSE THEY ACTUALLY HAVE GOTTEN THEM INVOLVED AND THEY DECORATE THE BACKSIDE OF THEIR HOMES. 
          AND SO OUR BOAT GET A LITTLE BIT OF A SHOW WHILE THEY'RE PUTTING ON A SHOW. 
          UH, AND A LOT OF PEOPLE WILL HAVE PARTIES AND THINGS LIKE THAT. 
          SO WE ADDED THAT LEG ABOUT FOUR YEARS AGO OF LAKE CITY. 
          THEN WE COME BACK OUT, THEN WE CATCH UP AT SOUTH SHORE HARBOR, UH, MARINA, AND THEN WE CONTINUE ON. 
          SO IT'S BEEN, UH, IT'S, IT ADDED ABOUT 30, 45 MINUTES ONTO THE PARADE. 
          UH, SO THEY'RE GETTING TEMA LATER, BUT IT JUST MADE IT SO MUCH MORE FUN. 
          AND FOR THE BOATERS, IT MADE IT A LOT OF FUN BECAUSE THEY WERE GETTING A SHOW TOO. 
          UH, THEY WERE GETTING TO SEE PEOPLE BECAUSE THIS PARADE, WHEN IT STARTED 64 YEARS AGO, UM, ACTUALLY STARTED WITH FIVE BOAT. 
          UM, SOME GENTLEMEN WERE DRINKING AND THOUGHT, WOULDN'T THIS BE FUN FOR US TO GO HAVE A PARADE? AND, AND THEY DID. 
          RED DARE WAS ONE OF 'EM. 
          UH, AND, AND THEY DID. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER WE, WE CLAIM THAT, UH, FOR THE PARADE. 
          BUT, UM, MAINLY IT, IT, IT STARTED WHERE PEOPLE COULD GET AROUND THE LAKE IN VARIOUS PLACES AND WATCH. 
          UM, NOW IT'S A LITTLE BIT HARDER TO DO THAT 'CAUSE EVERYTHING IS REALLY PRIVATE. 
          UM, OOPS, SORRY. 
          OH, THAT'S OKAY. 
          OUR FOLLOW UP. 
          OH, NO. 
          UM, IT, THERE'S A LOT OF PRIVATE AREAS, SO IT'S A LITTLE BIT HARDER FOR PEOPLE TO GET TO SEE. 
          SO THE FACT THAT WE CAN TAKE THE CONSTELLATION POINT, IT'S ABOUT A MILE DOWN AND BACK AND LET THOSE RESIDENTS SEE IN LAKE CITY IS A BIG DEAL, UH, BECAUSE THERE AREN'T AS MANY PLACES TO GO WATCH SOUTH SHORE'S A GOOD PLACE TO GO, BUT THERE AREN'T AS MANY PLACES, RIGHT? SO, UM, ANYWAY, IT'S BEEN A LOT OF FUN FOR THAT. 
          WE'D LOVE TO HAVE LEAGUE CITY'S SUPPORT BACK, UH, IN THE PARADE. 
          UM, THE OTHER COOL THING IS I 45 NOW, IF YOU GUYS KNOW TJ ALS, THEY BROADCAST THE PARADE LIVE AND IT GOES ALL OVER THE WORLD. 
          SO THE FUN PART ABOUT THAT IS THERE'S SO MANY MORE THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE HEARING ABOUT THE PARADE, THE SPONSORS WHERE THE PARADE'S GOING. 
          THE OTHER FUN PART IS EVERYBODY CAN, UH, VOTE FOR THEIR FAVORITE. 
          AND WE GET VOTES FROM JAPAN, FRANCE, CANADA, I MEAN, ALL OVER THE WORLD, WHICH JUST FREAKS ME OUT NOW FOR MANY, MANY YEARS. 
          THERE'S A RADIO STATION IN GERMANY THAT CALLS ME AND INTERVIEWS ME ABOUT THE PARADE. 
          THEY THINK IT'S THE FUNNEST THING. 
          I DON'T KNOW WHY. 
          BUT THESE GUYS, THESE DJS THINK IT'S FUN. 
          AND SO I'VE INTERVIEWED WITH THEM MANY TIMES, UH, ABOUT THE PARADE. 
          BUT NOW THAT TJ AND I 45 PUTS US OUT THERE, WE SEE THE ACTUAL VOTES COMING IN FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD. 
          SO THAT'S A REALLY COOL THING. 
          I THINK THE MOST WE'VE HAD IS LIKE 65,000 VIEWERS OR SOMETHING THAT NIGHT OF THE PARADE LIVE, UH, WHICH IS REALLY NEAT, UH, FOR THE PARADE. 
          ANYWAY, UM, SPONSORSHIP WISE, YOU KNOW, THERE'S INFORMATION IN THERE, UH, FOR YOU. 
          BUT THE CITIES AND WHOM, YOU KNOW, WHOEVER'S SUPPORTING OUR, OUR, AGAIN, INCLUDED IN ALL THE MARKETING THAT GOES OUT FOR THE PARADE, WE DO ANNUAL SHIRTS FOR THE PARADE. 
          SO THE BOATERS PURCHASE, THEY PURCHASE SHIRTS EVERY YEAR, WHATEVER THE NEWS DESIGN IS FOR THE YEAR. 
          WE HAVE. 
          UH, SO THE SPONSORS ARE ON THAT. 
          WE HAVE SKIPPER'S BAGS. 
          EVERY SKIPPER GETS A BAG FILLED WITH ITEMS FROM ALL OF OUR DIFFERENT BUSINESSES IN THE COMMUNITY. 
          UH, FOR THAT, UH, YOU'RE ON THAT YOU'RE ON EVERY, EVERY BOATER CAPTAIN GETS A, A SOUVENIR PLATE THAT THEY CAN PUT ON THEIR BOAT, UH, AS WELL AS THE AWARDS. 
          SO WE DO THE PARADE. 
          UH, WE TAKE, LIKE I SAID, WE TAKE OVER SOUTH SHORE HARBOR RESORT. 
          WE, WE HAVE A SKIPPER'S MEETING THE MORNING OF THE PARADE. 
          AND THAT IS A BRIEFING REALLY ABOUT SAFETY AND DIFFERENT THINGS, UH, FOR THE BOATERS BECAUSE OUR BOAT KNOW THE RULES, RIGHT? THEY KNOW WHAT THE PLAN IS, THEY KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON. 
          BUT THERE'S A COUPLE OF HUNDRED VOTERS OUT THERE THAT HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH IT OTHER THAN THEY WANNA GO SEE THE PARADE OUT ON THE WATER. 
          'CAUSE IT'S A REALLY COOL WAY TO WATCH. 
          AND SO WE AT LEAST TRY TO KEEP OUR VOTERS SAFE AND, UH, HELP THEM UNDERSTAND THERE'S ALL THESE OTHER THINGS HAPPENING. 
          UH, WE GO OVER THE ROUTE, WE HAVE THE US COAST GUARD THERE THAT TALKS TO 'EM. 
          WE HAVE LAW ENFORCEMENT AND THINGS LIKE THAT. 
          AND THEN SATURDAY NIGHT WE DO THE PARADE. 
          THEN SUNDAY MORNING WE DO AN AWARDS BRUNCH AT SOUTH SHO HARBOR RESORT BACK IN THE BALLROOM. 
          AND IT'S A WAY FOR US TO 
          [00:35:01]
GIVE OUT A LOT OF AWARDS AND RECOGNIZE OUR SPONSORS. 
          SO BUSINESSES ARE ABLE TO SPONSOR FIRST, SECOND, AND THIRD PLACE AWARDS. 
          OUR MAJOR SPONSORS, OUR TOP SPONSORS LIKE YOU GUYS, UH, WOULD BE, Y'ALL GET TO ACTUALLY PRESENT THE TOP AWARDS. 
          AND THEY'RE VERY COMPETITIVE. 
          SOME OF OUR BOAT START THE DAY AFTER THE PARADE TRYING TO PLAN THEIR NEXT THEME. 
          IT'S CALLED A CHRISTMAS BOAT LANE PARADE. 
          BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN THEY HAVE TO DO CHRISTMAS, IT JUST MEANS THAT THEY'RE USING CHRISTMAS LIGHTS REALLY TO DECORATE. 
          BUT PEOPLE DO AMAZING DIFFERENT THEMES. 
          THEY'RE VERY CREATIVE, AND WE LET OUR BIG SPONSORS PRESENT THOSE BIG AWARDS. 
          SO YOU'RE ON THE AWARD, YOUR, YOUR, UM, CITY OR WHATEVER IS ACTUALLY NAMED ON THE AWARD. 
          UM, AND IT'S A WAY FOR, AGAIN, THE COMMUNITY TO SEE, YOU KNOW, THE DIFFERENT CITIES AND THE DIFFERENT BUSINESSES WHO CARE ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON IN THE COMMUNITY AND, UH, GET IN FRONT OF THEM IN A DIFFERENT MARKETING WAY. 
          SO WHAT WE DO FOR THE HOT MONEY, UH, WHAT WE DO FOR TRYING TO GET PEOPLE TO COME ONE, IT'S A SATURDAY NIGHT EVENT. 
          AND SO WE PUSH THIS OUT AS A WEEKEND OVERNIGHT EVENT, RIGHT? SO WE, WE PUSH OUT MARKETING 50 MILES PLUS OUT FROM THIS AREA SO THAT FOLKS COME IN TOWN. 
          NOW, SOME OF OUR BOAT ARE FROM OUT OF TOWN. 
          UH, WE'VE ALWAYS HAD VOTERS FROM OSH AND SOME FROM, UH, LOUISIANA AND DIFFERENT PLACES LIKE THAT. 
          BUT, UH, WE'VE TRIED TO GET VISITORS TOO, TO COME TO TOWN. 
          IT'S A GREAT EXCUSE TO COME TO THE CLEAR LAKE AREA IN DECEMBER, WHICH MAY SEEM ODD TO BE ON THE WATER, BUT WE DON'T CARE IF IT'S FREEZING. 
          AND IN SOME YEARS PEOPLE ARE IN SHORTS. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, YOU NEVER KNOW DOWN HERE. 
          BUT WE REALLY DO PUSH OUR MARKETING OUT FAR BEYOND THE GREATER HOUSTON GALVESTON AREA. 
          WE WANNA GO FURTHER OUT. 
          WE WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW THAT THEY CAN COME HERE AND STAY AND, AND LEARN ABOUT OUR AREA AND SPEND MONEY. 
          UH, WE'RE WITH YOU GUYS. 
          WE KNOW THAT MONEY TURNS OVER SEVEN TIMES AND IT'S GOOD FOR ALL OF US. 
          SO WE PUT OUT THE DIFFERENT HOTELS THAT ARE AVAILABLE. 
          SOUTH SHORE HARBOR RESORT IS OUR HOST HOTEL, BUT OF COURSE WE PUT OUT TO EVERYBODY THAT THERE ARE OTHER AREA HOTELS WHERE YOU CAN GET TO SEE THE PARADE. 
          I MEAN, GET TO THE PARADE, NOT SEE THE PARADE FROM THOSE PROPERTIES, BUT ACTUALLY DRIVE OR UBER TO GET, UH, TO THE PARADE. 
          SO WE DO PUSH OUT THE MARKETING FOR THAT. 
          AND IT'S AN INCREDIBLE PARADE. 
          I CAN TELL YOU. 
          UM, AFTER IKE, WHEN THERE WAS SO MUCH DEBRIS IN THE WATER FROM THINGS THAT CAME UP FROM BOLIVAR AND OTHER PLACES, WE ALMOST DIDN'T HAVE THE PARADE BECAUSE THE COAST GUARD DIDN'T BECAUSE THEY, I HAVE TO GET A PERMIT APPROVAL FOR IT. 
          AND, UH, THEY DIDN'T KNOW THAT THE WATERWAY WOULD BE SAFE ENOUGH FOR THE BOATS TO, TO TRAVEL. 
          UM, AND MANY ENTITIES CAME TO US, INCLUDING LAKE CITY, KEAH DIFFERENT ONES, AND SAID, Y'ALL GOTTA DO THIS. 
          THIS, THIS IS A TRADITION THAT'S BEEN GOING ON FOR SO LONG. 
          AND AGAIN, NOW WE'RE ON OUR 64TH YEAR. 
          IT'S SOMETHING THAT BRINGS PEOPLE TOGETHER AROUND THE LAKE. 
          IT IS A WAY FOR ALL OF THE DIFFERENT CITIES TO HOLD HANDS AND, AND BE FRIENDS, UH, FOR A WEEKEND. 
          AND SO WE CLAIM THAT TOO. 
          UH, BUT IT WAS SOMETHING THAT WE WERE ASKED TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET IT DONE BECAUSE THERE WERE REFRIGERATORS IN THE WATER. 
          THERE WERE BOATS UNDERWATER. 
          I MEAN, THERE WAS SO MUCH STUFF, UM, THAT WE DID FIGURE THAT OUT. 
          WE DID GO OUT WITH THE COAST GUARD AND WE WERE ABLE TO MAKE IT HAPPEN. 
          IT WAS A SMALLER PARADE BECAUSE A LOT OF OUR BOATERS LOST BOATS, UH, DURING IKES. 
          BUT, UM, IT STILL HAPPENED. 
          AND SO WE KEPT THE TRADITION GOING. 
          AND SO I KNOW, UM, IT'S IMPORTANT TO PEOPLE TO HAVE IT. 
          AND AGAIN, IF YOU GUYS WANNA JUMP IN ON SUPPORTING IT, WE'D LOVE TO HAVE IT. 
          UM, AGAIN, IT'S BEEN ABOUT TWO YEARS THOUGH, I THINK, SINCE LAKE CITY HAS, UM, SUPPORTED THE EVENT. 
          BUT WE, WE HAVEN'T EXCLUDED YOU. 
          I MEAN, YOU GUYS ARE OBVIOUSLY OUR, OUR BIG HOST. 
          SO, UM, Y'ALL ARE A BIG PART OF IT. 
          DOES, DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? WHY WAS THE VISITOR SINCE VISITOR TRIPS? IT WAS DOWN LAST YEAR. 
          SO TERRY, THIS IS, THIS IS I, YEAH, IT'S OKAY. 
          I PULLED THIS DATA FILE. 
          UH, THIS IS THE GEO FIXING SOFTWARE THAT I USE THAT TRACKS CELL PHONE DEVICES OKAY. 
          TO CERTAIN AREAS. 
          SO I JUST PULLED THIS AS, BECAUSE I HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY NOTES. 
          OKAY. 
          THIS IS SOMETHING NEW THAT, THAT THEY JUST CAME OUT WITH, UH, IS, AND I'M ABLE TO SAY PULL BASICALLY HOW MANY TRIPS WERE MADE TO THE DESTINATION, UH, FOR, FOR THE HISTORY. 
          SO ANYWAY, UH, SHERRY, YOU'VE NOT SEEN THIS. 
          OH, OKAY. 
          SO I'M SORRY. 
          UH, BUT AS FAR AS DOWN, I DON'T KNOW, I GUESS LAST YEAR SEEMS LIKE A LOT. 
          YEAH. 
          LAST YEAR. 
          I DON'T KNOW. 
          IT JUST, IT'S, IT'S A SAMPLE SIZE. 
          IT'S, WELL, AND I CAN TELL YOU, OTHER THAN IT MAY HAVE BEEN THE FACT THAT LAKE CITY WASN'T ON ALL OF THE STUFF, RIGHT? SOUTHSHORE WAS ON IT 
          [00:40:01]
AS OUR HOST HOTEL, BUT THE OTHER CITIES WERE SPONSORING. 
          AND SO KEA SEABROOK, NASSAU BAY, CLEAR LAKE SHORES, WEBSTER, UH, THEY WERE ON EVERYTHING. 
          UH, SO THAT MAY HAVE BEEN SOMETHING, IF THAT IS DIRECTLY, UM, LAKE CITY INFORMATION, STEPHANIE, THEN THAT COULD HAVE BEEN IT. 
          I DON'T KNOW. 
          NOT, NOT REALLY. 
          IT JUST LOOKED LIKE IT. 
          IT'S, IT'S MORE, IT'S NOT SIGN, I MEAN IT IS SINUS NUMBERS. 
          IT'S NOT EXACT SEEMS, I DUNNO, IT SEEMS IT COULD BE A WEATHER THING TOO, RIGHT? COULD BEEN IF THE WEATHER WAS BAD OR NOT AS GREAT OR WHATEVER. 
          I MEAN, IT'S SUBJECTIVE, RIGHT? YES. 
          WHAT, WHAT THE WEATHER IS, UH, IS THE WEATHER PART IS HUGE. 
          UM, FOR US LAST YEAR IT WAS, HOW WAS THE ATTENDANCE ON IT WAS HUMID. 
          WAS IT? UM, DID Y'ALL NOTICE A DIP IN ANY SORT OF ATTENDANCE NUMBERS LAST YEAR? FROM PRIOR YEARS? NO, NOT REALLY. 
          I DON'T THINK SO. 
          NO. 
          UH, THE YEAR BEFORE IT, IT RAINED, WHICH WAS REALLY COOL. 
          THAT DOESN'T TYPICALLY HAPPEN, BUT IT DID HAPPEN, KNOCK ON WOOD, WHEREVER WOOD IS. 
          UM, BUT LAST YEAR, NO, WE DIDN'T, WE DIDN'T FEEL THAT. 
          I DON'T THINK THE HOTEL FELT IT. 
          SO THIS IS JUST SHOWING, SEE THOSE LITTLE, UH, THAT MAP AND YOU SEE THE LITTLE, UH, THE PINK AND THE PURPLE SQUARES OVER THERE. 
          THOSE ARE THE TWO AREAS THAT I'M GEOFENCING AND PULLING THIS DATA FOR. 
          MM. 
          SO I'M ABLE TO, I HAVE POINTS, CERTAIN POINTS OF INTEREST THAT ARE ALREADY GEOFENCED AND I'M AT THAT SOUTH SHORE HARBOR AND THEN THE CHEMO BOARDWALK AREA. 
          OH. 
          SO THAT'S WHAT THAT IS REPRESENTING. 
          SO IF THERE WAS OTHER AREAS RELATED TO THE PARADE FOR VIEWING PLACES, WHAT I, WHAT I REALLY WOULD LIKE TO DO IS, IS CREATE MORE OF A, OF A, WE HAVE A HISTORY OF THE PARADE SOMEWHERE ON, ON THE OLD SITE AND JUST LAUNCH A NEW SITE. 
          BUT, UH, TELLING PEOPLE HOW THEY CAN PARTICIPATE, TALK ABOUT THE HISTORY OF THE PARADE AND THEN ALL THE DIFFERENT OPTIONS FOR VIEWING. 
          SO MAYBE PULL TOGETHER THE LIST OF CHARTERS AVAILABLE, PRIVATE VOTE OPTIONS WHERE THE WATCH WOULD BE IMPORTANT BECAUSE YOU KEEP MENTIONING CONSTELLATION POINT, BUT I THINK THAT'S GATED. 
          IS IT GATED? YEAH. 
          THAT'S FOR THE RESIDENCE ONLY. 
          YEAH, FOR PUBLIC VIEWING. 
          LIKE VISITATION FOR VISITORS IS THE BEST PLACE, IS THE BOARDWALK AREA. 
          BUT THAT, THAT'S FINE. 
          UM, WE WANT PEOPLE TO GO TO THE BOARDWALK AND DO THINGS. 
          BUT, UM, IT BEEN THE NIGHT IN THE WAKE CITY, THAT'S THE BEST PART. 
          MM-HMM . 
          THEN THERE'S BEEN A WHOLE AREA, RIGHT. 
          BECAUSE THE DOING STUFF HERE, THE BOARDWALK HOTEL'S FULL, SO THEY CAN'T STAY THERE. 
          YEAH, NO THEY DON'T. 
          SO THEY'VE GOTTA STAY OTHER PLACES. 
          AND SO, UH, YEAH. 
          AND IT IS THE SECOND WEEKEND IN DECEMBER. 
          SO WHENEVER I'M DOING CHRISTMAS PROMOTIONS, YOU KNOW, THE FIRST WEEKEND IS THE HOLIDAY IN THE PARK, BIG WEEKEND PUSH OUT. 
          AND THEN THE SECOND WEEKEND IS THE BOAT PARADE. 
          AND THEN THE LAST TWO WEEKENDS OF DECEMBER, KIND OF LIKE, EH, YOU KNOW, ACTUAL HOLIDAYS, EVERYTHING'S DONE. 
          AND THEN THE LAST IS THE  PUSHES. 
          SO IT'S AN IMPORTANT PIECE OF OUR PRODUCT TO HELP PROMOTE AND BRING VISITORS HERE FOR THAT TIME PERIOD. 
          RIGHT. 
          AND WE ARE THE SECOND SATURDAY ALWAYS, BECAUSE LEAGUE CITY'S STUFF IS THE FIRST. 
          AND WE'VE ALWAYS HAD THAT AGREEMENT, UM, WITH LEAGUE CITY. 
          'CAUSE THAT'S HUGE. 
          YEAH. 
          UM, THAT, THAT'S A HUGE PARADE. 
          UM, SO WE'VE ALWAYS STAYED AWAY FROM, UH, ANY KIND OF CONFLICT THERE. 
          SO IT'S ALWAYS THE SECOND SATURDAY FOR SURE. 
          UH, OH, SORRY, SORRY, QUESTION. 
          I, I WAS JUST GONNA ADD TO THAT, TALKING ABOUT THE DATES IN, IN MY LAST COUPLE OF YEARS, BEING THERE AT SOUTH SHORE, UH, THE BOAT PARADE IS IT, IT IS, IT IS SPECIAL, BUT THAT TIME IS A REALLY BUSY TIME FOR, FOR OUR PROPERTY, THAT AREA, OUR AREA. 
          UM, AND IF YOU LOOK AT IT, YOU KNOW, RIGHT OUTSIDE OF THE CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY, UH, THAT TRULY IS THAT, THAT SECOND WEEKEND OR WHEREVER IT FALLS, THAT USUALLY IS ONE OF THE BUSIER ONES. 
          AND THEN IT MIGHT TAPER OFF AFTER THAT. 
          I KNOW IN OUR WORLD. 
          SO AGAIN, THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS BEING THERE, UM, ACTUALLY PARTICIPATING IN THE AWARD CEREMONY THE LAST COUPLE YEARS AND BEING IN THERE, IT IS A REALLY, UH, IT IS A FUN EVENT. 
          UH, YOU, WE TRULY, PEOPLE DO KIND OF COME TOGETHER FOR THAT FROM DIFFERENT AREAS. 
          MET QUITE A FEW DIFFERENT PEOPLE LAST YEAR ESPECIALLY. 
          UM, BUT, UH, VERY IMPORTANT, UH, TIMEFRAME, I THINK IN GENERAL FOR OUR AREA, BECAUSE RIGHT AFTER THAT IS WHEN THE HOLIDAY SEASON COMES. 
          BUT JUST GOING BACK TO THE DATES, UH, JUST WANTED TO REITERATE THAT POINT. 
          UH, THAT SECOND WEEK OF DECEMBER IS USUALLY THE, THE, THE PEAK AND THEN IT KIND OF TAPERS FROM THERE. 
          SO THIS COULD BE BETTER TIMING FOR THIS PARADE. 
          GOTCHA. 
          . 
          UM, SO IT WAS A LITTLE BIT KIND OF TO, UM, JOSE'S POINT. 
          SO, UM, IN YOUR APPLICATION, UM, I KNOW THAT YOU NOTE THAT THE RESORT IS THE HOST HOTEL, UM, AND IT'S SOLD OUT FOR THE WEEKEND AND IT'S BEEN LIKE THAT FOR THE LAST FEW YEARS. 
          UM, DOES THAT MEAN THAT YOUR ROOM BLOCK WAS FILLED OR THE ROOM WAS SO FILLED UP THAT YOU ALL DIDN'T HAVE A ROOM BLOCK TO FILL ROOMS WITH? WE'VE NEVER DONE A ROOM BLOCK. 
          SO THEN HOW ARE YOU ALL TRACKING THE ROOM NIGHTS THAT THIS EVENT BRINGS FROM THE ACTUAL HOTELS TELLING US THAT THEY'RE FULL? UM, 
          [00:45:02]
SOUTH SHORE HAS ALWAYS TOLD US THEIR NUMBERS. 
          THE HOTEL AT THE CHEMO BOARDWALK TELLS US THEIR NUMBERS. 
          UM, BUT WE'VE NOT DONE ROOM BLOCKS BECAUSE WE'VE, WE'VE PROMOTED ALL OF THE SPONSORING CITIES HOTELS. 
          UM, I MEAN OBVIOUSLY SOUTH SHORES IS EITHER OBVIOUS, OBVIOUS, BUT THE OTHER ONES THAT WE, WE PROMOTE ALL OF THE DIFFERENT HOTELS IN THE, ALL THE DIFFERENT CITIES. 
          SO WE DON'T HAVE A ROOM BLOCK AT EVERY DIFFERENT HOTEL. 
          OKAY. 
          I THINK TO ASK MORE SPECIFICALLY, HOW DO YOU KNOW THE HOTEL'S FULL BECAUSE OF THIS EVENT AND NOT JUST FULL? BECAUSE THAT'S A BUSY TRAVEL WEEKEND, IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE ASKING? ESSENTIALLY? YEAH. 
          YES. 
          OH, I, I WAS JUST RELYING ON THE STAFF TELLING ME THAT IT WAS JOSE. 
          ARE THEY, ARE YOU TRACKING CONNECTION WHY THAT THEY ARE THERE FOR SURE FOR THE BOAT PARADE? WELL, TO SHERRY'S POINT, WE DON'T HAVE AN OFFICIAL BLOCK. 
          UHHUH . 
          UH, AND THAT'S KIND OF WHAT I WAS ALLUDING TO, YOU KNOW, THAT WEEKEND. 
          WE ARE, WE'RE BUSY IN, IN GENERAL. 
          WE DO HAVE, YOU KNOW, THAT'S USUALLY OUR LAST WEEKEND IF WE HAVE ANY, UH, HOLIDAY PARTIES, IF YOU WILL, FROM COMPANIES. 
          BUT THOSE ARE USUALLY MAYBE SOME OF THE SMALLER ONES BECAUSE IN THIS INSTANCE, UH, THE BOAT PARADE DOES TAKE UP THE CRYSTAL BALLROOM, UH, MARINA PLAZA AND, AND OUR LARGEST SPACES, UH, I DON'T HAVE ANY TANGIBLE, UH, NUMBERS IN FRONT OF ME NOW, BUT, UH, TRADITIONALLY THAT IS A, IT, IT'S, I'LL, I'LL USE THE WORD FULL WEEKEND AT THE HOTEL MM-HMM . 
          UM, AND I WOULD VENTURE TO SAY IN THE LAST TWO YEARS WHEN I WAS THERE, A MAJORITY OF IT, UH, IS CONTRIBUTED FROM, UH, ATTENDEES AND OR PARTICIPANTS RATHER, UH, WITH THE BILL PARADE. 
          BUT YES, WE DON'T, WE HAVE NOT DONE A ROOM BLOCK. 
          I'VE JUST RELIED ON THE STAFFS TELLING ME THEY'RE FULL PEOPLE ARE CALLING BECAUSE IT'S BILL PARADE WEEKEND. 
          THAT'S ALL I HAVE. 
          I DON'T, I DON'T HAVE THAT. 
          NO PROBLEM. 
          AND THEN JUST, YEAH, THAT'S A GREAT QUESTION. 
          UH, ANOTHER QUESTION REGARDING YOUR ASK, WHICH IS FOR $4,000. 
          SO, UM, ONE PART OF THAT QUESTION IS WHERE, WHAT IS THE, I GUESS LIKE THE NAME OF THE SPONSOR WOULD BE, WOULD THAT BE GOLD OR SILVER? 'CAUSE THERE'S NO $4,000 SPONSORSHIP LISTED IN YOUR PACKET. 
          AND THEN FOR, UM, THE OTHER CITIES, AND I'M SORRY, I MAY HAVE MISSED OVER IT, BUT WHAT ARE THE OTHER CITIES, UH, WHAT Y'ALL, WHAT DO THE HOT TAX FUNDS WITH? THANK YOU. 
          UM, Y'ALL ARE THE FIRST ONE TO WORK ON IT THIS YEAR. 
          SO I CAN TELL YOU FROM LAST YEAR, UH, KEA 7,500, WHICH IS WHAT LAKE CITY USED TO BE. 
          BUT AGAIN, THAT 4,000 WAS A COMBO IN THE PAST BETWEEN THE CITY MONEY AND THE HOT MONEY. 
          Y'ALL SHARED IT. 
          SO BECAUSE THE MAYOR WAS GIVING MONEY, BUT HE'S PROBABLY, IS HE DOING THAT? MM-HMM. 
          IT'S NOT PART OF THE COUNCIL BUDGET. 
          SO THEY USED TO GET MONEY FROM THE CBB AND THE MAYOR'S FUND. 
          IT WAS A COMBO. 
          RIGHT. 
          HOWEVER YOU WANNA DESCRIBE THAT, BUT CORRECT. 
          TO COUNCIL'S CORRECT. 
          DONATION. 
          YEAH, THAT'S CORRECT. 
          SO, BUT THEY'VE CUT THAT, CORRECT? MM-HMM . 
          YEAH. 
          YEAH. 
          SO THAT MAY NOT, THAT MAY BE OUT OF YOUR BUDGET BECAUSE IT USED TO BE A COMBO. 
          ANYWAY. 
          UM, KIM LAST YEAR, 7,500 NASSAU BAY, 4,000, UH, SEABROOK, 2000 CLEAR LAKE SHORES. 
          2000 WEBSTER I THINK WAS 3000 OR 4,000. 
          UM, AND THEN, LIKE I SAID, YEARS PAST LAKE CITY WAS EITHER A 10,000 OR A 7,500, AND A LOT OF IT WAS A COMBO AGAIN, BETWEEN THE CITY AND HOT TOGETHER. 
          SO, UM, IT, UH, THAT 4,000 MAY BE HIGHER THAN Y'ALL ARE THINKING, FOR SURE. 
          YEAH, THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION. 
          MM-HMM . 
          I'M SORRY. 
          SO ARE, SO YOU'RE ASKING FOR MORE THOUSAND SAYING THAT YOU WOULD ASK FOR A DIFFERENT NUMBER? WELL, I DIDN'T KNOW IF THE CITY WAS BACK IN PARTNERSHIP WITH YOU GUYS ON THIS OR NOT, SO I DIDN'T, I TECHNICALLY NO, IT'S NOT, IT'S, THERE'S NOT COUNCIL BUDGET ALLOCATED FOR THAT AT THE 2026 FISCAL YEAR BUDGET. 
          SO I GUESS THE QUESTION IS, DO YOU WANT YOUR ASK TO BE 7,500 INSTEAD OF 4,000, JUST TO PUT IT OUT THERE FOR YOU GUYS? MM-HMM . 
          YEAH, IT'S, WELL, IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE WHOLE CONVO SITUATION, I MEAN, IN HERE IT SAYS THAT WHAT WE'VE DONE FROM LEAK SEA HOT FUNDS, IT LOOKS LIKE THE LAST TIME WE GRANTED FUNDS WAS IN 2022. 
          MM-HMM . 
          AND THEN 2120 IS BETWEEN 2020 500, WHICH MEANS THAT THE COUNCIL PROVIDED THE OTHER REST OF THAT. 
          CORRECT. 
          THAT'S CORRECT. 
          SO, SO IT COULD, YEAH. 
          SO IN THE, THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS HAS BEEN 2000 OR 2,500, AND THAT'S THE TOP MINE TOTAL WAS 4,000. 
          MM-HMM . 
          OKAY. 
          JUST WANNA MAKE SURE. 
          YES, THAT MAKES SENSE. 
          YEAH. 
          I DIDN'T KNOW IF Y'ALL WERE DOING THAT AGAIN OR NOT, SO NO, NOT NOT THIS YEAR. 
          SO, YEAH, NO WORRIES. 
          SO WOULD THAT, IF, WOULD THE 4,000, WOULD THAT MAKE US A GOLD SPONSOR? CORRECT. 
          OKAY. 
          CORRECT. 
          BUT AGAIN, BECAUSE 
          [00:50:01]
SEVERAL YEARS AGO ALL THE MAYORS GOT TOGETHER AND DECIDED LET'S ALL HOLD HANDS AND SWAY. 
          UM, THEY, WE COUNT 'EM ALL. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU FOR LAUGHING . 
          UM, THEY ALL, WE, WE COUNT ALL OF ALL OF THE CITIES AS PRESENTING SPONSORS. 
          AND SO, UM, THE DIFFERENCE WAS WHEN LEAGUE CITY HOT WANTED TO BE A $10,000, WELL, THEY WANTED TO BE THE TITLE. 
          THEY WERE THE ONLY TITLE, AND THEN THE OTHERS WERE BELOW THAT. 
          BUT CURRENTLY WE HAVEN'T HAD A 10,000 SINCE LAKE CITY STOPPED YEARS AGO. 
          UM, Y'ALL HAVE ALL BEEN PRESENTING SPONSORS. 
          SO EVEN THOUGH CLEAR LAKE SHORES ONLY DID 2000 AND SEABROOK ONLY DID 2000, AND KEA DID 7,500, ALL OF THE MAYORS AGREED IT WOULD BE BETTER TO MAKE OUR COMMUNITY JUST LIKE WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO WITH CBB STUFF, MAKE IT ONE HUGE COMMUNITY AND KEEP A, A UNIFIED FRONT. 
          SO I THINK, YEAH. 
          ANY MORE QUESTIONS? I'M SORRY, JUST ONE MORE, SIR. 
          YES. 
          IF, IF WE DO, THEN WE'D BE HERE. 
          THE LEAGUE CITY WOULD BE ADDED HERE. 
          YES. 
          OKAY. 
          YEAH. 
          UNLESS Y'ALL WERE THE TITLE, THEN YOU WOULD BE, IT WOULD BE CALLED THE LEAGUE CITY, UH, 64TH ANNUAL CHRISTMAS BOAT LANE PARADE ON CLEAR LAKE. 
          YEAH. 
          HOW MANY BOATS ARE IN THE PARADE? UH, WE GET ABOUT 80. 
          80 NOW. 
          YEARS AGO WE HAD CLOSE TO 150 MM-HMM . 
          UM, YEAH, IT WAS HUGE. 
          IT TOOK FOREVER, , UM, IT WAS A LONG PARADE. 
          BUT, UM, AFTER IKE, AND WE HAVE BOATERS WHO'VE BEEN IN THE PARADE FOR 10 YEARS OR MORE, WE CALL 'EM OLD SALTS. 
          AND AFTER IKE, SO MANY OF OUR OLD SALTS LOST BOATS, THEY GOT DESTROYED. 
          UM, AND THEY NEVER BOUGHT BOATS AGAIN. 
          SO WE WENT DOWN. 
          AND SO WE HAVE NOW JUST GOTTEN BACK TO, IN THE EIGHTIES, I'M HAPPY IT WAS THE EIGHTIES, UM, BECAUSE IT IS A LOT AND IT'S A LOT OF PEOPLE AND IT'S A LOT GOING ON. 
          BUT WE USED TO BE WELL OVER A HUNDRED WHEN I STARTED. 
          I'VE BEEN WITH THE CHAMBER FOR 31 YEARS, AND WHEN WE STARTED IT WAS WELL OVER 180. 
          SEEMS TO BE THAT NUMBER. 
          BUT THE OTHER COOL THING IS WHEN PEOPLE ARE COMING, THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF BOATS OUT THERE BECAUSE THERE'S SEVERAL HUNDRED BOATS OUT THERE THAT AREN'T IN THE PREY, BUT THEY'RE DECORATED AND THEY LOOK BEAUTIFUL. 
          AND EVERY TIME THEY PASS THE JUDGES, I'M LIKE, Y'ALL ARE DUMB. 
          YOU COULD WIN A YOU COULD WIN A PLAQUE TOMORROW. 
          UM, THAT KIND OF THING. 
          SO THERE ARE BOATS ALL OVER THE PLACE DECORATED, AND THEY'RE BEAUTIFUL AND THEY WORK SO HARD ON 'EM, BUT THEY'RE NOT ALL IN IT. 
          BUT FOR THE MARKETING, IT'S HUNDREDS OF BOATS THAT ARE DECORATED BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT WE SEE. 
          DO THEY, DO THEY HAVE TO PAY TO ENTER? IT IS, YES. 
          OH, THAT'S OKAY. 
          MM-HMM . 
          THERE'S A, IT'S VERY MINIMAL. 
          IT'S, UH, IT'S BEEN $75 FOR A LONG, LONG TIME. 
          AND IT INCLUDES TWO TICKETS TO THE BRUNCH AT SOUTH SHORE. 
          SO THE OTHER PART OF THIS IS WE PAY, UM, QUITE A BIT TO SOUTH SHORE HARBOR RESORT FOR, WELL, EVERYTHING WE DO, WE DO THE SKIPPERS MEETING THERE, WE DO THE AWARDS BRUNCH THERE. 
          WE DO THE BAG STUFFING THERE OF ALL THE SKIPPERS STUFF AND WHATEVER. 
          SO THERE'S A GOOD CHUNK OF MONEY THAT, UH, WE GIVE OVER TO SOUTH SHORE HARBOR RESORT, UM, FOR THIS EVENT. 
          AND SO THEIR ENTRY FEE INCLUDES THOSE TWO TICKETS. 
          UM, AND THEN THEY CAN PURCHASE OTHERS, RIGHT? IF THEY HAVE A FAMILY OR A CREW OR WHATEVER. 
          BUT, UM, IT'S VERY MINIMAL BECAUSE WE, THEY'RE PAYING MONEY FOR ALL THOSE LIGHTS. 
          LIKE WE HAVE DIFFERENT CATEGORIES. 
          IF YOU'RE A A SPONSORED BOAT, THAT MEANS A BUSINESS IS PAYING FOR ALL THOSE LIGHTS AND ALL THAT STUFF, OR YOU'RE A FAMILY BOAT. 
          AND SO WE DIVIDE OUR AWARDS, WE DIVIDE 'EM BY SIZE, WE DIVIDE 'EM BY POWER SAIL OR MANPOWER. 
          'CAUSE WE HAVE PEOPLE WHO ROW IT, WHICH IS CRAZY, BUT THEY DO. 
          UM, BUT WE DIVIDE IT UP AND WE KNOW THE, THE FAMILIES ARE SPENDING A TON OF MONEY ON THOSE LIGHTS BECAUSE Y'ALL, IF YOU'VE NOT SEEN IT, THEY ARE CREATIVE. 
          MM-HMM . 
          UH, WE HAVE, WE'VE HAD PEOPLE WHO, YOU KNOW, A GIANT SAILBOAT THAT HAD A CHRISTMAS TREE AND A MOVING TRAIN OF LIGHTS GOING AROUND IT. 
          UM, MY, MY MOST FAVORITE BOAT WAS AFTER NINE 11. 
          UM, WE HAD SOMEBODY DO A, UM, THE NEW YORK BUILDINGS WITH THE, WITH A FIREMAN OUT OF LIGHTS HANGING OFF OF ONE OF THE WORLD TRADE CENTER BUILDINGS. 
          IT WAS INCREDIBLE. 
          LIKE THEY GET SUPER CREATIVE, BUT THEY'RE SPENDING SO MUCH MONEY ON THAT. 
          WE DON'T WANNA GUG 'EM ON A, ON A ADMIN, BUT, BUT WE HAVE TO HAVE SOME KIND OF REGISTRATION FEE. 
          UM, JUST SO THEY GET THEIR COMMITMENT TO SHOW UP. 
          I'D HATE FOR PEOPLE TO GO, YEAH, I'M COMING. 
          AND THEN THERE'S NO GRADE AND ALL THESE VISITORS CAME TO TOWN. 
          SO WE TRY TO KEEP IT PRETTY LOW. 
          ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? OKAY. 
          THANK YOU SARAH. 
          THANKS YOU GUYS. 
          I APPRECIATE IT. 
          AND SARAH, I WANTED YOU TO HAVE THAT I SENT YOU. 
          I APPRECIATE IT. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU. 
          [00:55:01]
THANKS. 
          THANKS FOR COMING. 
          THANK YOU. 
          BYE. 
          THANKS, AMBER. 
          YEAH. 
          SEE YA. 
          [VI. Discuss and take action on HOT Grant Request]
OKAY. 
          DISCUSSION. 
          DISCUSSION. 
          AND TAKE ACTION. 
          SO I THINK THE REASON WE STOPPED GIVING THEM MONEY IS BECAUSE THEY CANNOT TRACK HEADS AND BUDS BECAUSE IT'S A LOCAL EVENT. 
          I THINK THIS HAS BEEN A TOPIC, TO YOUR POINT, A TOPIC OF DISCUSSION FOR MANY YEARS. 
          MM-HMM . 
          UM, FROM MM-HMM . 
          YEAH. 
          EVERY YEAR. 
          YEAH. 
          I THINK THAT, I MEAN, THE FOUR GRAND REQUEST, BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT GETTING THE OTHER HALF FROM CITY COUNCIL IS A BIT OF A STRETCH. 
          MM-HMM . 
          UM, AND THEN, UM, YOU KNOW, AND I, I HATE TO PUT YOU ON THE SPOT, JOSE, BUT YOU'RE SAYING THAT THERE'S NO ROOM BLOCKS OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT. 
          THERE REALLY HASN'T BEEN ANY TRACKING APART FROM WHAT THEY'RE DOING, UM, INSIDE THE BALLROOM AND STUFF. 
          FOOD AND STUFF. 
          YEAH. 
          SO THE, THE, UH, THE BOAT PARADE, THEY HAVE THEIR EVENTS AT SOUTH SHORE HARBOR. 
          SO SOUTH SHORE HARBOR IS THE HUB, UM, ON SATURDAY AND SUNDAY, UH, OFFICIALLY, NO, SHE'S, SHE'S CORRECT. 
          THERE'S, THERE'S NO, UH, THAT AND THAT'S OF THEIR OWN YEAH. 
          UH, DOING MM-HMM . 
          UH, BUT NO, IF, IF YOU ASK ME FOR A, A CHRISTMAS BOAT LANE PARADE, UH, ROOM BLOCK FOR THIS YEAR, NO. 
          THERE, THERE'S NOT ONE. 
          UM, I BELIEVE SHE, THERE THEY'RE PROBABLY MORE TRACKING OR LOOKING AT A GENERAL VOLUME THAT'S COMING THROUGH THE PROPERTY. 
          WHEN SHE SAYS SHE'S FILLING AGAIN. 
          UM, FOR US, THAT'S ONE OF THE BUSIER, IT'S, IT'S A BUSY WEEKEND. 
          UM, THIS JUST KIND OF PUTS IT OVER THE TOP AS WELL, UH, BECAUSE WE DO HAVE, UH, WE, WE DO FILL THE HOTEL. 
          I, I WAS TRYING, I WISH I HAD THE, MY NUMBERS FROM LAST YEAR, BUT, UM, IT, IT, IT'S A BUSY WEEKEND. 
          I WOULD PROBABLY SAY WE'RE 80, 90 PLUS PERCENT FULL. 
          WE'RE 230 ROOMS. SO WE EASILY TALK 200, 210 ROOMS, UH, EACH NIGHT, FRIDAY, SATURDAY, FOR THAT WEEKEND. 
          THE CITIES WERE, BUT NO, TO GO BACK AND, AND I DIGS TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, NO, THERE IS NO OFFICIAL ROOM BLOCK FOR THIS. 
          BUT THEY DO HOST THESE TWO ALL OF THEIR EVENTS, UH, FOR BOAT PARADE AT SRO HARFORD. 
          SO, I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY PART OF ME WANTS TO BE A TEAM PLAYER, AND IF ALL OF OUR NEIGHBORS ARE GIVING SOMETHING, YOU KNOW, I WOULD FEEL COMFORTABLE, PERSONALLY JUST GIVEN, ESPECIALLY JUST GIVEN HOW TOURISM IS GOING RIGHT NOW. 
          MM-HMM . 
          YOU KNOW, EVERYONE IS, I, I DON'T REALLY SEE MUCH OF A RETURN ON DOING THE 4K. 
          I THINK I WOULD BE COMFORTABLE WITH KIND OF KEEPING IN LINE WITH WHAT WE'VE GIVEN IN THE PAST. 
          MM-HMM . 
          ESPECIALLY SINCE WE HAVEN'T SEW IN THE LAST FEW YEARS, AROUND THAT 2000, 2,500 MARK, WHICH IS I THINK IS IN LINE WITH OUR DIRECT NEIGHBORS. 
          THEY SAID, UM, WAS IT CLEAR LAKE SHORES OR, YEAH. 
          SO CLEAR LAKE SHORES IN, UM, SEABROOK GIVE TWO MM-HMM . 
          NOW, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY THEY'RE LIKE MUCH SMALLER THAN US. 
          YEAH, TRUE, TRUE. 
          AND THEY, YOU KNOW, CLEAR LAKE SHORES DOESN'T EVEN HAVE A HOTEL. 
          I DON'T THINK SO. 
          NO. 
          . 
          UM, YOU KNOW, SO MAYBE WE WOULD BE MORE IN LINE WITH LIKE THE WEBSTER BECAUSE THEY GIVE THREE OR FOUR, THREE OR THREE OR FOUR. 
          SO TO ME, THIS THREE WOULD BE GOOD. 
          AND THEN IS THERE LEVERAGE TO BE LIKE, WELL, OUR TEAM DOES ALL THIS MARKETING FOR YOU TOO. 
          YOU KNOW, WE'VE PULLED THAT CARD BEFORE 'CAUSE YOU KNOW THEY'RE GOING TO MM-HMM . 
          YEAH. 
          I MEAN, YOU COULD SAY THAT WE'RE GIVING A THOUSAND DOLLARS IN, IN KIND IN KIND MARKETING. 
          'CAUSE WE DO MARKET THE BOAT PARADE AND ALL OF OUR CHRISTMAS, I MEAN, SHE'S GONNA DO THAT REGARDLESS IF WE GIVE THEM MONEY. 
          SO WE MAY AS WELL LIKE POINT IT OUT, , YOU KNOW. 
          YEAH. 
          WELL, HERE IS A, I HAVE BEEN THIS WEEK DOING A LOT OF REPORTING ON OUR HOT GRANT PROGRAM. 
          EVERY, THIS YEAR WE WERE, UH, WE BUDGETED A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS TO GIVE IN GRANT FUNDS. 
          THAT'S WHAT THE BILL REQUESTED LAST YEAR. 
          MM-HMM . 
          AND THEN, UH, THIS YEAR WE ALSO ARE REQUESTING A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS. 
          UH, WE HAVE, IF YOU LOOK AT OUR BUDGET RIGHT NOW, WE STILL HAVE QUITE A BIT MORE, UH, THAT, THAT IS UNENCUMBERED. 
          NOW THIS IS TALKING, THIS EVENT WILL BE NEXT FISCAL FULL YEAR. 
          SO JUST SO Y'ALL KNOW, 26TH. 
          UM, BUT WE, WE DO NEED TO SPEND, YEAH. 
          WE HAVE THE MONEY. 
          YEAH, WE HAVE THE MONEY AT THE END, LIKE YEAH. 
          OR . 
          YEAH. 
          CAN I COMMENT AS WELL? YOU KNOW, I, BEING NEW TO THIS COMMITTEE, UM, I'VE BEEN IN THE CITY OF LEAGUE CITY NOW, UM, ALMOST 10 YEARS NOW. 
          [01:00:01]
BUT PRIOR TO THAT, I WILL TELL YOU, I'VE BEEN A, A PARTICIPANT, NOT PHYSICALLY PARTICIPATING, UH, PARTICIPATING, BUT ON THE BOAT ROUTE FOR MANY, MANY YEARS, LONG BEFORE, UH, I MOVED TO LEAGUE CITY. 
          I THINK IT'S A, A MAJOR EVENT THAT BRINGS A LOT OF LIGHT TO THE CLEAR LAKE AREA. 
          UH, I THINK, UH, I THINK $4,000 IS A VALUE, UH, TO HELP THIS THING CONTINUE TO, UH, PROMOTE THE, THE WHOLE AREA. 
          UH, IF IT'S FILLING UP, THEY'RE, THEY'RE DOING ALL THEIR EVENTS AT SOUTH SHORE. 
          UH, IT'S BRINGING A LOT OF ECONOMIC VALUE TO THIS WHOLE COMMUNITY. 
          AND FOR $4,000, I THINK IT'S A WORTHY COST, WHICH JUST MY TAKE, HOW MUCH WE NEED TO SPEND TO BE NAMED SEVEN FIVE, I THINK. 
          MM-HMM . 
          11. 
          WOULD THAT DO ANYTHING TO BE WORTH NOT TO ME, BECAUSE I CONSIDER THIS A LOCAL EVENT BECAUSE THEY, IT DOESN'T, AND I MEAN, YOU CAN LOOK AT HER HEAT OR HER HEAT, DIGITAL HEAT MAP IT LOCALLY ATTENDED. 
          NOW THERE'S VALUE IN THAT. 
          I AGREE. 
          AND I'M ALWAYS WANTING TO GIVE MONEY TO THE LOCAL GROUPS TOO, BECAUSE THERE'S VALUE IN THAT. 
          BUT I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW ABOUT 79. 
          IT DOES BRING PEOPLE IN. 
          I, I GUARANTEE YOU IT DOES. 
          I MEAN, LIKE I SAID, I DIDN'T LIVE IN THE AREA AND I CAME IN AND I'VE ALSO INVITED FAMILY MEMBERS AND FRIENDS TO COME DOWN JUST FOR THAT EVENT. 
          DID YOU STAY IN A HOTEL? I DID NOT BECAUSE I LIVED CLOSE ENOUGH. 
          YEAH. 
          BUT I SPENT MONEY IN A HO IN RESTAURANTS, RIGHT? YES. 
          AND THERE'S AN IMPACT THERE THAT'S VALUABLE. 
          YOU GOT GAS, YOU MAYBE GRABBED A CASE OF BEER, YOU KNOW, SO WHATEVER, MORE THAN THAT. 
          YEAH. 
          . 
          SO THERE IS VALUE IN THAT FOR SURE. 
          YEAH. 
          HAVING SOMETHING, UM, YEAH, THERE'S, AS FAR AS TRACKING, THERE'S ROOM BLOCKS. 
          BUT I'M WONDERING, SHE DIDN'T KNOW. 
          THEY SAID THERE'S NO ROOM BLOCKS. 
          NO, THERE'S, YEAH. 
          I KNOW, UM, MECHANISMS TO TRACK ACTUAL VISITATION. 
          UH, NOT HAVING ROOM BLOCKS ESTABLISHED FOR THINGS IS, IS A HARD THING BECAUSE THEN WE DON'T HAVE THAT SPECIFIC THING. 
          DOES IT FALL THE GUIDELINES? AND THAT IS THAT REQUIRE FROM ANYONE WHO APPLIES WITH US? WE, JACOB RAISES A GOOD POINT. 
          LIKE DOES IT FALL INTO THE GUIDELINES OF WHAT WE CAN GIVE HOT TEXT TO? YEAH. 
          THERE'S NO ROOM BLOCKS OR PARTS. 
          IT DOESN'T MEET BOTH PRONGS. 
          BUT CAN WE REQUEST THAT THEY DO ROOM WALKING? THEY NEED TO, I'M GONNA BE HAVING A CONVERSATION WITH SHERRY ABOUT THAT FOR THE FUTURE. 
          'CAUSE I THINK THAT'S, IT HAS TO SHOW A DIRECT IMPACT ON THE HOTEL IN LODGING INDUSTRY IN LEAGUE CITY. 
          AND IT HAS TO FIT IN ONE OF THESE CATEGORIES. 
          YEAH. 
          YES. 
          IT FITS IN A PROMOTIONAL CATEGORY. 
          UM, DOES IT HAVE A DIRECT IMPACT ON THE HOTEL? WELL, IT, DOES FOOD AND BEVERAGE HAVE A YEAH, YOU HAVE A FULL, BRINGING IN DEMAND IS A PRECINCT DEMAND IN THE AREA, BUT IT ALSO HAS A DIRECT, UH, FOOD AND BEVERAGE SPEND AND MEETING SPACE SPEND, RIGHT? THAT'S CORRECT. 
          THAT AGAIN, AGAIN, ON FRIDAY AND SATURDAY, THEY HAVE MEALS AND EVENTS AND PARTIES, AND SO THEY HAVE ALL THAT WE'RE HOSTING THEIR EVENTS. 
          UM, AND I'LL ADD TO IT, IT'S OUR TWO LARGEST SPACES, UH, OUR CRYSTAL BALLROOM AS WELL AS THE, UH, THE MARINA PLAZA. 
          SO, YOU KNOW, THE, THOSE ARE OUR TWO LARGEST EVENT SPACES. 
          AND, AND, AND, UH, JUST TO REITERATE, THOSE ARE THE, THE TWO DAYS. 
          UH, SO YES, IT'S, IT'S, UH, DO YOU NOTICE AN INCREASE IN YOUR HOTEL DURING THAT? NOT DUE TO THIS, NO. 
          I MEAN, NO, NO. 
          WE ARE, WE DO HAVE LIKE CHRISTMAS PARTIES AND LIKE, YOU KNOW, THOSE LIKE GROUP EVENTS AND THINGS LIKE THAT. 
          UHHUH, BUT NOT 'CAUSE OF THIS. 
          OH. 
          BUT I MEAN, THAT'S NOT GONNA BE A REASON FOR ME TO SAY NO TO THIS OR NOT. 
          NO, NO, NO. 
          BUT IT'S JUST CURIOUS. 
          I'M LOOKING AT, LIKE, WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO THE COMMUNITY, I DON'T REALLY SEE THIS BEING SOMETHING THAT WARRANTS, YOU KNOW, FOUR GRAND FOR THE LACK OF INFORMATION WE'RE GETTING. 
          I DON'T KNOW. 
          I WAS, I WAS AT LAKEWOOD FOR 30 YEARS, AND SO, I MEAN, THIS WAS A BIG THING. 
          THIS WAS A BIG THING. 
          AND, YOU KNOW, EVERY, EVERY PLACE YOU WENT, IT WAS JUST, THEY WERE THERE FOR THE, THE RESTAURANTS. 
          AND I'M SURE THE OVERFLOW COMES HERE. 
          IT'S GOT TO, YOU KNOW, I WOULD THINK SO AS WELL. 
          AND ALSO, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU PARTICIPATE IN A BALLROOM EVENT, AND I'VE DONE THAT PLENTY OF TIMES, Y'ALL'S NEW YEAR'S PARTIES AS WELL, EVEN THOUGH I LIVE LOCALLY, GET A HOTEL ROOM. 
          SO YOU COULD JUST WALK RIGHT ON UPSTAIRS AND GO TO SLEEP AFTER THE PARTY'S OVER. 
          LAST THING YOU WANT IS PEOPLE DRIVING OR HITTING ROADS. 
          AND, UM, YOU KNOW, HAVING AN EVENT AT A HOTEL IS WHY YOU DO THAT IS SO THAT THEY CAN GET A ROOM RIGHT THERE. 
          UH, AS WHETHER OR NOT THERE'S A ROOM BLOCK. 
          IS IT EVEN NECESSARY? UM, ARE YOU ALREADY GIVING ANY KIND OF SPECIAL DEALS ON THAT WEEKEND OR 
          [01:05:01]
IS IT NORMAL PRICING? WHAT DOES A ROOM BLOCK DO? HOLDS IT HOLDS ROOMS FOR THAT EVENT? IS IT AT A SPECIAL PRICE? SURE. 
          A A A ROOM BLOCK IN EFFECT, WHETHER IT'S, LET'S SAY IT STARTS AT 10 ROOMS, MAYBE IT GOES TO 20, OR SOMEBODY HAS A, A BLOCK OF 25 OR 30 ROOMS. AND IN EFFECT, WHAT YOU'RE DOING IS YOU'RE, YOU'RE GUARANTEEING, HEY, I'M GONNA HAVE X AMOUNT OF ROOMS COME IN. 
          SO IF MY RATE THAT EVENING IS $159, UM, AT A, AT A, AT A GROUP RATE, I'LL BE ABLE TO ADJUST IT TO MAYBE $139 A NIGHT. 
          UM, BUT IT, IT, WHAT WHAT THE, WHAT THAT DOES FOR US AND WHAT IT DOES IN THE HOTELS IS TRACKING. 
          IT ALLOWS US TO, IT, WE TRACK, BUT IT ALSO ALLOWS US TO ESTABLISH A BASE. 
          HEY, I KNOW THIS WEEKEND, UH, I'VE GOT 110 ROOMS ON THE BOOKS, SO MY TRANSIENT OR MY LEISURE RATE, I KNOW, I KNOW I'M GONNA GO THROUGH A HUNDRED MORE OF THOSE ROOMS BY THE TIME I GET TO THE DATE. 
          SO THAT'S HOW WE, UH, ADJUST AND MARKET ROOMS AND RATES. 
          UM, BUT ADJUST A LITTLE MUCH. 
          BUT GOING BACK TO THE GROUP BLOCK, YOU WOULD WANT TO GET A GROUP BLOCK BECAUSE, UH, IN EFFECT YOU GET A, A, A SLIGHTLY DISCOUNTED GRADE OFF OF WHAT WE WERE GONNA RUN. 
          UH, AND HERE AGAIN, ACTUALLY FOR US, UH, OR FOR A HOTEL, YOU KNOW, WE, WE WILL, WE WILL BE OPEN THAT WEEKEND AND WE WILL PRETTY MUCH GO WITH OUR BEST AVAILABLE RATE. 
          AND I WOULD IMAGINE THAT WEEKEND THERE, IT'S PROBABLY ABOUT $149 BEING IT'S IN DECEMBER, SOMETHING AROUND THERE. 
          SO, UH, BUT I THINK GOING BACK THE REALLY KIND OF THE QUESTION IS, IS OR, OR THAT WE DON'T HAVE IS, IS NO, THEY DON'T HAVE A STANDING, UH, BLOCK OF ROOMS. SOMETHING TANGIBLE WE COULD GO BACK TO AND SAID, HEY, THEY PRODUCED 50 ROOMS, UH, THAT WEEKEND OF DECEMBER, 14TH, 13TH AND 14TH, FRIDAY AND SATURDAY. 
          SO, UH, SO WE'RE JUST KIND OF GOING OFF A GENERAL NARRATIVE THAT WE'RE BUSY. 
          YEAH. 
          AND I WOULD THINK THOUGH, YOU KNOW WHAT? SHE KIND OF ALLUDED TO IT, IT'S, IT'S MULTIPLE CITIES INVOLVED. 
          MM-HMM . 
          AND THE HOST HOTEL IS SOUTH SHORE HARBOR. 
          NOW, GRANTED, ARE YOU, UH, IF THEY START DOING ROOM BLOCKS AT EIGHT PARTICULAR HOTEL, WOULD THE OTHER CITIES START PULLING THEIR SUPPORT? YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE TO KIND OF BE NEUTRAL, I WOULD THINK IN SOME OF THAT STUFF. 
          I THINK THEY COULD DO A HOTEL BLOCK AT ALL. 
          THE HOTELS IS IS, UH, THE MAIN POINT OF IT IS WE'RE TRACKING. 
          THERE'S NO REASON THEY COULDN'T DO, IT'S NOT EVEN THAT THEY NEED TO DO A BLOCK OUT EVERY SINGLE, YOU JUST NEED SOME WAY OF TRACKING A CODE OR SOMETHING. 
          LIKE YEAH. 
          IS THERE, IS THERE, WHAT WAYS COULD WE DO, COULD WE DO SOME SORT OF A DISCOUNT CODE OR SOMETHING THAT WE COULD PROMOTE AND SAY, AND TRACK IT WITH THAT? OR, I MEAN, IF WE LOOK AT JUST LIKE THE BASE LEVEL OF HOW THEY DO THEIR EVENT, RIGHT? YOU HAVE THESE VOTERS, RIGHT, WHO COME IN, MAYBE THEY'RE INTERNATIONAL, LIKE YOU CAN ASK YOUR REGISTRANTS EASILY, HEY, WHERE ARE YOU STAYING? MM-HMM . 
          WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE? LIKE SURVEY, RIGHT. 
          AT LEAST. 
          WELL, THE REGISTRATION FOR THE ACTUAL ATTENDEES, THEY HAVE REGISTERED SKIPPERS SO THEY KNOW WHERE THEY'RE COMING FROM. 
          YEAH, EXACTLY. 
          SO THERE'S, IT IS NOT HARD FOR THEM TO BE LIKE, HEY, LIKE WHAT, WHAT ARE YOUR ACCOMMODATIONS LOOKING LIKE? IT COULD BE AN AIRBNB FOR ALL WE KNOW. 
          THAT'S OKAY THERE. 
          THEY'RE A LOT OF 'EM STAY ON THEIR BOAT. 
          YEAH. 
          I WOULD THINK THAT WE NEED TO ADVISE THEM FOR FUTURE REFERENCE THAT THAT'S, THAT NEEDS TO BE A MAJOR PIECE OF ANY GRANT REQUEST. 
          AND THAT'S SOMETHING WE'VE BEEN ADVISING FOR YEARS. 
          SO THAT'S WHY YOU PROBABLY WOULDN'T BE HAVING THIS DEBATE. 
          THAT'S WHY WE GOT FRUSTRATED. 
          YEAH. 
          WELL, TRYING TO BE FRUSTRATED, BUT I JUST, THAT'S SOMETHING WE'VE BEEN ASKING FOR YEARS. 
          SO, YES. 
          JUST TO STEPHANIE'S POINT THOUGH, WE, YOU GUYS SPEND SOME MONEY, WE GOTTA SPEND IT OR IT'LL BE TAKEN AWAY FROM THAT. 
          CAN WE NOT MAKE A CONDITION THAT'S FOR THEM TO COME BACK WITH THAT DATA OR SOME METHOD OF TRACKING? I MEAN, THIS IS OUTTA MY REALM PERSONALLY, BUT, UM, TO YOUR POINT, A QR CODE THAT, THAT THEY CAN SCAN AND THEY GET PUSHED TO THE HOTEL WEBSITES OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. 
          AND THAT WAY WE KNOW THAT THEY'RE AT LEAST TRACKED. 
          THERE'S WEBSITE TRAFFIC OR SOMETHING FALL. 
          SHE SAID, I ASKED HER IF SHE SAID WE WOULD BE THE GOAL BUMP UP. 
          SO, SO WE WOULD NEED, UH, A TRACKING MECHANISM IMPLEMENTED FOR A PICKUP REPORTS FOR LEAGUE CITY HOTELS AS WELL AS SOME, I MEAN, JUST SOME WAY FOR THEM TO COME BACK AND SAY, HEY, WE'VE GOT A PLAN IN PLACE THAT IT REGISTER. 
          YOU KNOW, THEY REGISTER THEIR BOAT AND THEY SCAN A QR CODE AND GET A DISCOUNT, A 10, WHATEVER. 
          I DON'T KNOW, YOU KNOW, SAY DISCOUNT, BUT A FREE COOKIE IS, YOU KNOW, A STICKER OR SOMETHING LIKE FOR THE  REPORT, PART OF THE GRANT, LIKE AFTER THEY ARE AWARDED FUNDS, WHENEVER THEY FILL UP THAT IT HAS THAT STUFF, THAT STUFF IN THERE. 
          AND SO THEY DON'T GET THEIR FINAL PAYMENT UNTIL ALL THAT STUFF IS SUBMITTED. 
          [01:10:01]
I FALL, I'VE FALL IN LINE WITH SOME OF THE PREVIOUS COMMENTS GROWING UP AROUND HERE. 
          IT'S A BIG DEAL. 
          IT IS A, I DON'T LIKE SEEING A LIST OF THE CITIES AND NOT HAVE THE BIGGEST ONE IN THE WHOLE AREA ON IT. 
          UM, BY A LOT. 
          WE ARE THE BIGGEST BY A LOT NOW. 
          UM, SO HAVING US ASSOCIATED WITH THOSE THINGS IS USUALLY A GOOD, ESPECIALLY SINCE THE ROUTE BASICALLY IS ALONG THE CLEAR LAKE SIDE OF THE, OR THE LAKE CITY SIDE OF THE, OF THE, OF THE LAKE. 
          SO I FOUND THAT IN LINE WITH THAT. 
          I THINK IT'S A GOOD THING TO SPEND THE MONEY ON. 
          I DO THINK THAT PART OF THE MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS HERE THOUGH ARE TO PROVIDE SOME METHOD OF JUSTIFYING THEMSELVES. 
          YEAH. 
          NOT JUST FOOD AND BEVERAGE HEADS AND BEDS IS RIGHT. 
          AND, YOU KNOW, I, I THINK THE FOOD AND BEVERAGE IS A BIG DEAL, BUT IF THERE'S A WAY FOR THEM TO COME BACK AND JUST SAY, HEY, WE'VE GOT AN IDEA TRACKING, THIS IS WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO. 
          UH, I HAVE ONE LAST QUESTION AND HOPEFULLY THAT JUST CLARIFIES A SPONSORSHIP LEVEL. 
          I KNOW THAT, UM, IT WAS ASKED WHAT LEVEL WOULD BE AT, WHICH WOULD BE GOLD, BUT THEN IMMEDIATELY AFTER I WAS HEARING THAT IT, CITY SPONSORS ACTUALLY BECOME PRESENTING SPONSORS. 
          SO THERE WAS WHAT EXACTLY THAT WAS CONFUSING. 
          ARE WE GOLD? ARE WE PRESENTING OR WELL, SHE SAID WE WERE PRESENTING SPONSORS WHEN, WHEN ALL THE MAYORS WERE IN AGREEMENT. 
          YEAH. 
          SO AS CITIES WE'D BE PRESENTING, BUT THEN THINGS HAD CHANGED. 
          I THINK OUR NAME WOULD BE ON THERE IF WE DID THE 4,000 LEVEL. 
          YEAH, SHE SAID THAT. 
          WELL, I BELIEVE THAT SHE WAS VERY CLEAR THAT WE WOULD BE A PRESENTING SPONSOR UNLESS WE WANT TO GO DEEPER. 
          IF YOU WANNA BE CALLED BIG CITY, 64TH ANNUAL CHRISTMAS, WHATEVER ON CLEAR LAKE, THEN WE WOULD HAVE TO DO, I THINK SHE'S SAW LIKE SEVEN GRAND OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. 
          10 10 10 GRAND ME. 
          OH, SORRY. 
          10 GRAND. 
          YEAH. 
          SO MAYBE ONE EIGHT. 
          I THINK I FOR NUMBER 65. 
          YEAH. 
          HEY, YOU GO. 
          ACTUALLY THAT'S A GOOD, I THINK IF MAYBE I, I'D LIKE TO PUT A MOTION. 
          MM, PLEASE. 
          UM, I'D LIKE TO PUT A MOTION THAT WE APPROVE FOR $3,000, UM, IN HOT FUND MONEY WITH $1,000 IN IN KIND MARKETING. 
          I'LL SECOND. 
          ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. 
          ANYONE? AYE. 
          ANYONE OPPOSED? ANYONE OPPOSED? OKAY. 
          PASSES 3000 IN HOT FUNDS AND A THOUSAND IN STEPHANIE AND JULIANA'S TIME . 
          SO TOTAL 4,000 CONTRIBUTION. 
          MM-HMM . 
          I'D LIKE TO ADD THAT WE ADVISE THEM FOR NEXT YEAR YES. 
          TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY PUT IN, IF THEY'RE GOING TO REQUEST AND THEY COULD POTENTIALLY REQUEST MORE IF THEY PROVIDE US WITH THE DATA THAT WE NEED IN ORDER FOR US TO MEET OUR OBLIGATION. 
          BECAUSE I THINK THAT'S WHAT'S MISSING HERE NEEDS TO BE PUT IN WRITING IN YOUR RESPONSE. 
          BUT I THINK THAT CAN BE A CONVERSATION THAT I PERSONALLY HAVE WITH JERRY TOO, BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY I DO. 
          BECAUSE IT IS LACKING. 
          HELP US HELP YOU. 
          YES. 
          YES. 
          IT'S LIKE, YEAH, WE NEED DISIN INFORMATION. 
          I HAVE TO, HERE'S WHERE WE KIND OF RAN INTO SOME CONFLICTS AND CAN WE FIX IT FOR NEXT YEAR? AND, AND NOT THAT THIS MEANS WE PUT LIKE IN MINUTES OR ANYTHING, BUT THIS IS ACTUALLY VERY GENEROUS OF US. 
          SO THE FACT THAT WE'RE GIVING, WE'RE GRANTING THE FUNDS AND AFTER NOT GIVING IT FOR SO MANY YEARS AND WE HAVE MATCHED WHAT IT USED TO BE PREVIOUSLY. 
          YEAH. 
          EVEN THOUGH IT'S ALL COMING OUT OF OUR FUNDS, OUR MAYORS ARE NOT CONTRIBUTING. 
          YEAH. 
          WE ACCEPT IT ESSENTIALLY. 
          AND THE, THE COUNCIL'S NOT CONTRIBUTING ANYMORE TOO. 
          YEP. 
          AGREE. 
          OKAY. 
          COOL. 
          I LOVE IT. 
          LOVE A HEATED DEBATE. 
          . 
          WE HAVEN'T HAD ONE OF THOSE IN A WHILE. 
          I'M GETTING A LITTLE LONGHORN. 
          PTSD COMING BACK. 
          YEAH. 
          OKAY. 
          UM, ANY BOARD MEMBER COMMENTS OR UPDATES? YOU WANNA START AT THE END HERE? OH, DID YOU FINISH YOUR REPORT THOUGH? OH, I DON'T THINK SHE FINISHED. 
          DID YOU HAVE MORE DEAL? I CAN GIVE YOU STATS. 
          OKAY. 
          SORRY. 
          [VII. Communications Update (Part 2 of 2)]
GOING BACK TO, SORRY, I DON'T WANNA TAKE EVERYBODY'S TIME UP TOO MUCH. 
          UH, I DID INCLUDE MONTHLY STATS BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE I NEED TO DO THAT. 
          YES. 
          WE'D LIKE TO SEE THEM. 
          YEAH. 
          SO JULY, OUR WEBSITE TRAFFIC WAS DOWN, BUT I DON'T EXPECT THAT TO BE A PERMANENT THING. 
          MM-HMM . 
          WE LAUNCHED THE NEW SITE AND WE WERE HAVING SOME SEO ISSUES AND WE WERE, WE WERE HAVING TO PUT MORE CONTENT IN THERE. 
          SO THAT'S A WORK IN PROGRESS. 
          I JUST HIRED A CONTRACT WITH A COMPANY TO HELP US FIX SOME OF THESE ISSUES WITH SEARCH ENGINE STUFF. 
          IT'S VERY TECHNICAL AND I TRIED AND I'M LIKE, I CAN'T DO THIS RIGHT NOW. 
          SO WE HAVE OUTSOURCED THIS SO I CAN USE MY TIME MORE WISELY. 
          GOOD. 
          UH, BUT OUR TRAFFIC WAS DOWN SLIGHTLY IN JULY. 
          UH, VISIT WIDGET APP WAS OKAY. 
          WE HAD, YOU KNOW, TWO OVER 8,000 USERS THERE. 
          UM, FACEBOOK SOCIAL MEDIAS FOR THE MONTH. 
          UH, THE VIEWS WERE DOWN, THE REACH WAS DOWN SLIGHTLY. 
          UM, BUT OUR FAN COUNT GREW AND OUR FOLLOWER ACCOUNT GREW. 
          OUR FOLLOWER ACCOUNT'S NOW OVER 6,000, WHICH IS NICE. 
          UH, INSTAGRAM ALSO 3069 FANS WAS A MILESTONE FOR US. 
          AND WE DID A LITTLE GIVEAWAY AND THAT, THAT WAS REALLY GOOD. 
          SO, UH, 'CAUSE THERE'S MOSTLY STATS AS 
          [01:15:01]
FAR AS FINANCIALS, THAT'S PROBABLY THE MOST IMPORTANT THING HERE. 
          UH, WE DID GET OUR QUARTER THREE, UH, REVENUE IN FOR THE FIRST TIME IN I DON'T KNOW HOW MANY YEARS. 
          OUR, WE DID NOT BEAT LAST YEAR'S Q3 YEAR OVER YEAR. 
          OURS WAS DOWN FROM LAST JULY, ABOUT 10% AS FAR AS HOT TAX COLLECTIONS ARE CONCERNED. 
          UM, THAT IS KIND OF CONSISTENT WITH THE REST OF THE MARKET, THOUGH. 
          HOUSTON HAS BEEN DOWN, JUST THINGS ARE TRENDING DOWN. 
          THE SUMMER TRAVEL SEASON WAS NOT AS STRONG AS WE WERE HOPING FOR THIS YEAR, AND WE ARE DEFINITELY SEEING A DECLINE. 
          UH, OCCUPANCY WAS AT 62.8% A DR ONE 19 FOR THE CITY REVPAR $74 AND 77 CENTS DEMAND. 
          UH, 10,000 9 719 ROOMS WERE SOLD AND HOTELS MADE 1.2, $1.27 MILLION, UH, WHICH IS IS ALL DOWN FROM LAST YEAR'S. 
          BUT LAST JULY WE ALSO HAD A WEATHER, UH, WE HAD BURROW. 
          BURROW, YEAH. 
          AND SO WE HAD A LOT OF DE YOU KNOW, WEATHER GENERATED DEMAND THERE THAT WASN'T THERE THIS YEAR. 
          MM-HMM. 
          SO, UM, OUR A DR WAS PRETTY STRONG. 
          UH, BUT THE MARKET IS DEFINITELY SOFT SOFTENING, UH, LOOKING AT HOUSTON'S REPORTS, THE AIR TRAVEL OVERALL FOR THE YEAR HAS, HAS BEEN DOWN SLIGHTLY. 
          UM, OUR HOT FUND BALANCE REMAINS VERY SOUND THOUGH. 
          UM, WE WILL MAKE OUR BUDGET FOR SURE THIS YEAR. 
          I'M NOT WORRIED ABOUT, I DON'T WANNA SAY THAT OUT LOUD, BUT , WE'RE ON TRACK. 
          WE'RE ONLY, UH, TWO, UH, 200 AND SOMETHING THOUSAND DOLLARS AWAY FROM ACTUALLY MAKING OUR BUDGET, WHICH IS $968,000 FOR THE YEAR. 
          WE'RE AT 6 84, UH, 321 RIGHT NOW. 
          SO WE'RE STILL UP FOR THE YEAR. 
          UH, WE'RE GOOD. 
          BUT I JUST WANTED TO BRING THAT TO YOUR ATTENTION. 
          UH, LOOKING AT ALL THE THINGS COMING UP, I NOW AM GEARING UP TO PROMOTE ALL THE EVENTS, FESTIVALS AND THINGS THAT I CAN TALK ABOUT AND PROMOTE TOURISM FOR THIS HOLIDAY SEASON AND FOR THIS FALL. 
          SO THAT'S WHERE, AND ON TOP OF THE OTHER THINGS THAT WE'RE DOING, UH, WITH SOCCER AND ALL THE OTHER STUFF, BUT LIKE EVENTS, FESTIVALS AND MARKETING AND MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE, UH, BUILDING THAT DEMAND AND GETTING THAT AWARENESS OUT TO BRING PEOPLE HERE INTO LAKE CITY. 
          SO, UH, IT'S, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A LOT OF PIECES OF THIS GETTING, GETTING SOMETHING FOR ME TO PROMOTE AND GET IT OUT THERE AND THEN CREATE ALL THE MATERIALS AND PLACE THE ADVERTISING. 
          SO, UM, I'VE HAD DIFFERENT HOTELIERS REACH OUT TO ME. 
          UH, CAL PARISH CALLED ME AND HE'S LIKE, YOU NEED TO DO THIS. 
          JULY WAS DOWN. 
          I WAS LIKE, OKAY, LET ME, LET ME HELP, LET DO WHAT I CAN. 
          SO, UM, I AM FOCUSED ON GETTING, UH, FALL AND HOLIDAY STUFF READY TO GO. 
          SO I'VE GOTTA BUILD BLENDING PAGES AND WE'VE GOTTA GET CREATIVE GOING AND STUFF. 
          SO ANYWAY, THAT'S WHERE WE ARE. 
          THAT'S, THAT'S NOW I'M DONE. 
          THANK YOU, . 
          SORRY. 
          OKAY. 
          [IX. Board member comments and updates]
BOARD MEMBER COMMENTS, YOU WANNA START? I HAVE NONE. 
          THANK YOU. 
          . 
          OTHER THAN THANK YOU FOR THE INFORMATION ON THE, UH, SOCCER AND ALSO THE, THE, UH, FLEET DEAL. 
          I DIDN'T, HAD NO IDEA. 
          IT ALWAYS SEEMS IRONIC THAT I HAVE TRAVEL PLANS AROUND EVERY SINGLE EVENT THAT WE'VE HAD THIS YEAR. 
          OH NO. 
          OKAY. 
          I'VE BEEN GONE . 
          WE HAVE A LOT COMING UP. 
          IT'S A LOT. 
          I TRAVEL A LOT. 
          TRAVEL WILL BE BUSY IN NOVEMBER. 
          NOT TO TRAVEL MORE. 
          JOSE, I NOTHING REALLY TO REPORT FROM, UH, THE HOTEL. 
          OBVIOUSLY WE'RE OUT OF THE SUMMERTIME, UH, INTO MORE OF A, UH, GROUPS SLASH EVENT SEASON, UM, COMING UP TO THE PROPERTY. 
          SO WE'VE GOT, UH, QUITE A FEW EVENTS COMING UP. 
          UM, WE WILL ACTUALLY HAVE, UH, OUR SALES TEAM DOWN AT FLEET WEEK, UM, THAT QUICKLY, I FORGOT, UH, WHERE KIM, OUR DIRECTOR OF SALES TOLD ME WE WERE GONNA BE STATIONED AT. 
          BUT, UH, WE'RE GONNA BE A PART OF THAT AND, AND, AND WELCOMING, UM, THE PEOPLE THAT ARE COMING THROUGH THERE AS WELL. 
          SO JUST LOOKING FORWARD TO, UH, TRYING TO HIT THAT FOURTH QUARTER. 
          AND, AND TO YOUR POINT, STEPHANIE, GOING BACK TO THE, UH, THE OVERALL SUMMER AND THE NUMBERS. 
          THEY WERE, UH, I KNOW AT OUR PROPERTY WE WERE, I WOULD SAY MORE ALONG THE LINES OF FLAT TO LAST YEAR IN THE SUMMER, WE DIDN'T REALLY EXCEED ANYWHERE. 
          OVERALL OCCUPANCY WAS A TAD DOWN. 
          UM, BUT, UH, I, I JUST FIND IT INTERESTING. 
          OUR NUMBERS PRETTY MUCH MIRRORED THAT PERCENTAGE. 
          UH, AND, AND SO IT'S SOMETHING TO LOOK AT, BUT I HAD ALWAYS, I HAD THOUGHT ANYWAY THAT WE HAD PEAKED LAST YEAR IN THE SUMMER. 
          SO THINGS KIND OF GO THROUGH THESE LITTLE VALLEYS AND, YOU KNOW, IT'LL COME BACK. 
          BUT, UH, PRETTY ACCURATE INFORMATION THERE. 
          BUT THAT'S ALL I HAVE FROM THE HOTEL. 
          I DON'T HAVE ANY COMMENTS. 
          . 
          OKAY. 
          I'LL PASS. 
          OKAY. 
          UH, WEDDING WISE, WE ARE BRACING FOR OUR BUSY SEASON. 
          WE HAVE NOTHING NEXT WEEKEND. 
          AND THEN THAT'S OUR LAST FREE WEEKEND FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR. 
          SO I HAVE ONE SATURDAY IN DECEMBER I'D LIKE TO BOOK, BUT, UM, AND BOOKINGS OR STUDY GOING INTO 2026. 
          THAT'S THE GOOD NEWS. 
          THE BAD NEWS IS A NEW VENUE IS OPENING IN FRIENDSWOOD IN 2026. 
          OH, RIGHT. 
          SO THAT'S GONNA HURT A LITTLE BIT, BUT THAT'S OKAY. 
          UM, THE NEXT COMMUNITY EVENT I'D LIKE YOU TO ALL PUT IN YOUR CALENDARS IS OUR BLOCK PARTY, NOVEMBER 7TH. 
          I'LL HAVE LITTLE 
          [01:20:01]
CARDS FOR Y'ALL NEXT TIME. 
          IT DIDN'T COME IN TIME FOR THE MEETING, BUT, UM, THAT IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. 
          USUALLY THE CITY SETS UP A TABLE, SO I'D LIKE TO OFFICIALLY INVITE YOU GUYS TO DO THAT. 
          AGAIN. 
          HAND OUT CITY SWAG. 
          UH, WE DO NOT CHARGE ANYTHING FOR THAT EVENT. 
          THERE'S FOOD TRUCKS. 
          I'VE GOT SOME GREAT TRUCKS LINED UP. 
          UM, SO WE'RE EXCITED ABOUT THAT. 
          AND THEN PUTTING ON MY HOLIDAY IN THE PARK LAKE CITY, PROUD HAT, WE ARE IN FULL FORCE PLANNING THAT EVENT. 
          SO PLEASE MAKE SURE, YOU KNOW, FIRST SATURDAY OF DEC, FIRST WEEKEND OF DECEMBER, ALWAYS HOLIDAY IN THE PARK. 
          AND JUST A REMINDER THAT IS PUT ON BY A GROUP OF VOLUNTEERS THAT IS NOT PUT ON BY THE CITY OF LAKE CITY, ALTHOUGH WE DO VALUE OUR AMAZING PARTNERSHIP WITH THEM. 
          UM, AND WE'VE ALREADY SOLD OUT ALL OF OUR VENDOR TENTS, WHICH IS AMAZING TO BE ALREADY SOLD OUT BY AUGUST. 
          WE WERE SOLD OUT. 
          WE NEED A HANDFUL MORE FOOD TRUCKS. 
          BUT, YOU KNOW, THEY'LL COME, THOSE PEOPLE ARE A LITTLE MORE LAST MINUTE. 
          AND THEN OF COURSE, PARADE REGISTRATION IS OPENING SOON. 
          SO IF YOU WANNA HAVE A FLOAT FOR YOUR BUSINESS OR YOUR FAMILY, PLEASE CONSIDER DOING THAT. 
          AND OF COURSE, BAR 1909 WILL BE OPEN ALL DAY SERVING COLD OR HOT DRINKS DEPENDING ON THE WEATHER. 
          UM, AND PLEASE ALSO CONSIDER VOLUNTEERING THAT WEEKEND. 
          YOU KNOW, YOU DON'T HAVE TO HELP PLANNING IT, BUT WE COULD ALWAYS USE HANDS ON FRIDAY OR SATURDAY OR EVEN SUNDAY WITH TAKE DOWN. 
          SO, UM, I THINK IT'S AN, IT WOULD BE A GOOD OPPORTUNITY TO BRING YOUR KIDS TO VOLUNTEER. 
          IT IS A LOCAL EVENT. 
          SO, UM, THERE'S MY SPIEL ON THAT. 
          Y'ALL CAN TELL JANICE'S HOUSE THAT I DID A GOOD JOB TODAY WITH THAT  . 
          UM, OKAY. 
          MOVING ON. 
          YES. 
          UM, WELL, I WILL TELL YOU THAT THE SHORT TERM RENTALS HAVE BEEN A LITTLE BIT DOWN THAT THE RATES HAVE BEEN UP, BUT THE ACTUAL, UM, OCCUPANCY WAS A LITTLE BIT DOWN. 
          SO, YEAH. 
          YEAH. 
          UM, NO NEW ANNOUNCEMENTS. 
          I MET WITH, UH, CRYSTAL THE OTHER DAY. 
          YEAH. 
          SHE HAD SOME SECURITY CONCERNS MM-HMM . 
          AND, UH, WE WERE WORKING THROUGH ALL THAT STUFF. 
          WE'VE WORKING WITH THE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND, UM, MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE, WE HAVE A NEW, UM, THE TASK FORCE. 
          YES. 
          YEP. 
          I HEARD ABOUT THAT. 
          SO THAT'S GONNA BE FOR THE BALLPARK? YES, FOR THE BALLPARK AREA. 
          THAT WHOLE BUSINESS DISTRICT OVER THERE, THERE'S BEEN AN INCREASE IN, IN CRIME AND OH BOY. 
          INCREASE IN PEOPLE. 
          I DIDN'T WANNA BRING THAT UP, BUT YOU DID. 
          . 
          I'M NOT TRYING TO, BUT IT'S AN IMPORTANT PART OF IT. 
          STAYING ON TOP OF IT. 
          YEAH. 
          YEAH, A HUNDRED PERCENT. 
          SO THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU FOR LOOKING TO IT. 
          YEAH. 
          YEAH. 
          JULIANA, DO YOU HAVE ANY NEWS? ? OKAY. 
          THANK YOU. 
          THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR YOUR PATIENCE. 
          ADJOURN, UH, 1122.
* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.