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I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing is a true and correct copy of the minutes of the Special
Meeting of the Corpus Christi City Council of September 8, 2017 which were approved by the City
Council on September 19, 2017.
WITNESSETH MY HAND AND SEAL, on this the 19th day of September, 2017.
-H-Mi_A,c
Rebecca Huerta
City Secretary
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City Council
Friday,September 8,2017 1:30 PM Council Chambers
SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING
Public Notice --THE USE OF CELLULAR PHONES AND SOUND ACTIVATED
PAGERS ARE PROHIBITED IN THE CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS DURING
MEETINGS OF THE CITY COUNCIL.
Items on this agenda are for Council's information only. Council may give
direction to the City Manager, but no other action will be taken and no public
comment will be solicited.
A. Mayor Joe McComb to call the meeting to order.
Mayor McComb called the meeting to order at 1:34 p.m.
B. City Secretary Rebecca L. Huerta to call the roll of the required Charter Officers.
City Secretary Rebecca L.Huerta called the roll and verified that a quorum of
the City Council and the required Charter Officers were present to conduct the
meeting.
(Note:Council Member Smith arrived at 1:40 p.m.)
Charter Officers:
City Manager Margie C.Rose,City Attorney Miles K.Risley and City Secretary
Rebecca L.Huerta.
C. BRIEFINGS:
1. Update on Hurricane Harvey
Mayor McComb referred to Item 1,an update on Hurricane Harvey.Mayor
McComb thanked the citizens of the Corpus Christi for their outstanding
response to the hurricane event.Mayor McComb stated that Corpus Christi was
extremely fortunate to avoided any fatalities as a result of the hurricane and
that the City's number one goal was public safety.Mayor McComb commended
the work of City staff involved in the preparation and response during this
event.Mayor McComb discussed the devastation and impact Hurricane Harvey
had on surrounding communities and the City's efforts to assist those
communities.
City Manager Margie C.Rose stated that the purpose of this item is to provide
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information on the activities that occurred before,during,and after Hurricane
Harvey.City Manager Rose addressed the communications that occurred
between the City Manager and City Council and the City's reporting on the
event through social media.
Fire Chief Robert Rocha provided a brief overview of the presentation
including:pre-storm preparations;actions taken during the hurricane;
post-storm strategies;damage assessment; preliminary estimated costs
associated with the storm;important timelines;and next steps in the recovery
process.
John Metz,National Weather Service(NWS)Corpus Christi,provided the
following information:facts on Hurricane Harvey;National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration(NOAA)post storm aerial surveys of impacted
areas;first weather briefing on August 18,2017;NWS weather briefing on
August 21,2017;the genesis of the Hurricane Harvey;a radar depiction of the
landfall;the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale;photos of wind and surge
damage in Corpus Christi;peak storm surge analysis;photos of the impact of
wind and storm surge in hard impact areas of Rockport,Aransas County,Port
Lavaca,Port Aransas,Aransas,Lamar;estimated impacts of Harvey;and a
history of floods.Mr.Metz stated that the hurricane season is now at its peak
point and reminded the public to continue to remain prepared.
Emergency Manager Billy Delgado highlighted pre-storm preparations at each
Emergency Operations Center(EOC)activation level and preparations outside
of the EOC.Deputy Fire Chief Richie Quintero discussed the assisted
evacuation efforts for relocating residents to shelters in San Antonio;the
activation of the refuge team;and post-storm damage assessment activities.
Interim Executive Director of Utilities Dan Grimsbo reported on water and
wastewater operations affected during the storm
Fire Chief Rocha stated that the next section of the presentation was related to
significant issues post-storm including:debris removal;restoration of services;
emergency repair of buildings and lift stations;and emergency mutual aid to
neighboring communities.
Interim Executive Director of Utilities Dan Grimsbo reported on the following:
wastewater operations;maintenance of lines operations;and gas operations.
Director of Solid Waste Operations Lawrence Mikolajczyk provided an update
on Solid Waste Services including:the debris recovery;post event assistance
for debris pick-up;the debris management sites;current storm debris
collections;and the impact of Hurricane Harvey to the Cefe Valenzuela
Landfill.Director of Street Operations Andy Leal addressed the following street
operations:the maintenance of traffic signals and signs;pavement clearing;
support to the Police Department,Fire Department,and Solid Waste
Department;and reporting of damaged residential street lights to AEP.Interim
Director of Development Services Bill Green discussed the following topics:the
damage assessment impact to private community and public facilities;
windshield damage assessment to private property;and the initial damage
assessment to City facilities.Director of Engineering Services Jeff Edmonds
provided the following information regarding damages to Packery Channel:
satellite images and photos of erosion damage;the transmission water line
break;and structural damage.Mr.Edmonds discussed the FEMA repair
completion schedule and preliminary cost estimates for personnel,facilities
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and equipment.
Deputy Chief Quintero provided the timeline of the repatriation of evacuees.
Emergency Manager Billy Delgado provided an overview of post storm
assistance calls and volunteer coordination.
Fire Chief Rocha stated that the next steps include:finalizing the city's damage
assessment;completion of disaster summary outline for FEMA reimbursement;
FEMA's establishment of a Disaster Recovery Center;FEMA's outreach to
affected areas;door-to-doordamage assessments conducted by the Red Cross;
Ben Garza Gym provided for a Red Cross Shelter;continuing debris collection;
review of procedures and protocols related to the storm;continuing to provide
mutual aid to neighboring communities; review of contract management;and
undergoing facility review.
City Manager Rose stated that residents can continue to expect that the City of
Corpus Christi will continue to remove debris and repair damages to signage
and traffic signals.City Manager Rose discussed the issues with utilities during
the storm and reported that all utilities are operational.
Council members and staff discussed the following topics:appreciation to first
responders,emergency operations and city staff;the FEMA maximum
reimbursement;FEMA eligible expenses for recovery; how decisions are made
to open a shelter;the reason for evacuating residents to San Antonio;the
difference between a shelter and a refuge of last resort;the activation of
refuge teams at the domes;registration though 2-1-1 for individuals needing
assistance during a disaster event and how this information is communicated
to the public;the efforts by AEP to address power outages;the damages to Port
Aransas and Mustang Island and the City's assistance to help those
communities;damages to to maintenance barn on Mustang Island; improving
communications with the various EOC operations being conducted in the City;
the issues resulting in the overflow of the lift station at the Greenwood
Wastewater Treatment Plant;the Texas Commission on Environment Quality
(TCEQ)waiving regulatory issues on wastewater actions during a declaration
of emergency;Greenwood Wastewater Treatment Plant being the only plant
with an overflow;previous council discussions regarding the decision to
renovate the Greenwood Wastewater Treatment Plant instead of closing it
down;safety concerns regarding the EOC building and a future assessment of
the building;whether City Hall is a safer location for EOC operations;Red
Cross operations at the Ben Garza Gym;better identification of debris pickup
zones;fact checking related to comments made by citizens regarding the
FEMA domes and conditions at Ben Garza Gym; review of generators at O.N.
Stevens Water Treatment Plant;the need for additional locations for citizens to
receive sand bags;the radio stations dedicated to emergency notifications;
providing the City Council with an update on the projects identified in the
damage assessment; predictions on the storm by the NWS;addressing
construction zones where materials were not removed by contractors;
coordination with other entities;emphasizing to the public personal
responsibility to take care of self and family members during a hurricane;
collecting debris as soon as possible to limit fire hazards and additional
damage;a missed opportunity to have emergency management provide an
update on the impending storm at the August 22,2017 Council meeting;
neglecting to inform the community of a previous decision made by FEMA to
no longer provide shelters in the City of Corpus Christi;effective
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communication with council members;having Human Resources generate a
report of employees in danger zones; providing a list to City Council of
employees impacted by the storm;the ability to have elected officials more
engaged in the emergency management process,especially post-storm;a
detailed timeline of EOC actions to include what happened,what went well,
and improvements are needed;and contributions to the the Mayor's Hurricane
Harvey fund.
D. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 3:31 p.m.
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