[1. Proclamation for Lights On Afterschool! - October 23, 2025]
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          I'M GOING TO CALL COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE TO ORDER. AND OUR FIRST ITEM OF BUSINESS IS A PROCLAMATION. SO I'M GOING TO GO TO THE PODIUM AND READ IT. I SHOULD FRAME THIS. THIS IS A LIGHTS ON AFTER SCHOOL PROCLAMATION. AND WHO SHOULD I HAVE? JOIN ME AT THE MICROPHONE. 
          CITY MANAGER SARAH SHOULD COME UP WITH HER CREW. OKAY. I SEE A NUMBER OF THE USUAL SUSPECTS FROM THE MAYOR'S YOUTH COUNCIL HERE, SO I ASSUME THAT THEY'RE HERE PARTLY BECAUSE OF THIS PROCLAMATION. SO THIS IS A PROCLAMATION ON LIGHTS OUT AFTER SCHOOL, AND I WILL READ IT. WHAT RESEARCH SHOWS THAT CHILDREN WHO REGULARLY ATTEND AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS IMPROVE THEIR SELF-CONFIDENCE, PERFORMANCE AND SCHOOL ATTENDANCE. AND OVER 8 IN 10 PARENTS IN MICHIGAN SAY AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS HELP THEM KEEP THEIR JOBS AND AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS INSPIRE CAREER AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT, AS WELL AS PHYSICAL AND MENTAL WELLNESS AND SUPPORT LEARNING. AND THESE PROGRAMS REQUIRE INVESTMENT FROM ALL SECTORS TO ENSURE THAT AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMING FOR ALL YOUNG PEOPLE SUSTAINED, AND BECAUSE THE CITY IS COMMITTED TO SUPPORTING QUALITY AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE. THEREFORE, I, DAVID LEGRANDE, MAYOR OF THE CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS, PROCLAIM OCTOBER 23RD OF THIS YEAR AS LIGHTS ON AFTER SCHOOL DAY IN GRAND RAPIDS AND CALL ON ALL RESIDENTS TO LIFT UP THE IMPORTANCE OF OUT OF SCHOOL TIME AND URGE EVERYONE TO SUPPORT THIS DAY BEING CELEBRATED ACROSS THE NATION AND SHINE THE BRIGHTEST OF LIGHTS ON PROGRAMS THAT PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE BEFORE SCHOOL, AFTER SCHOOL, ON WEEKENDS AND IN THE SUMMER. 
          THANK YOU. THANK YOU, THANK YOU. SO THANK YOU. MORNING. THANK YOU, MAYOR, AND GOOD MORNING TO EVERYONE. GOOD MORNING TO OUR CITY COMMISSIONERS, OUR CITY MANAGER AND OTHER APPOINTED OFFICIALS AND STAFF. GRAND RAPIDS IS ONE OF 8000 COMMUNITIES AROUND THE NATION CELEBRATING THE IMPACT OF OUT-OF-SCHOOL TIME PROGRAMS. FOR EVERY ONE YOUNG PERSON ATTENDING AN OUT OF SCHOOL TIME PROGRAM IN THE STATE OF MICHIGAN, THERE ARE FOUR OTHER YOUTH ON A WAITING LIST THAT AMOUNTS TO 750,000 YOUTH. OUR COMMUNITIES CHILDREN MANAGES AN OUT OF SCHOOL TIME SYSTEM BUILDING EFFORT CALLED THE EXPANDED LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES NETWORK FOR SHORT. OUR PURPOSE IS TO PROMOTE AND ALIGN COMMUNITY EFFORTS IN THE PROVISION OF QUALITY OUT OF SCHOOL TIME PROGRAMS, AND WE HAVE SOME MEMBERS IN OUR AUDIENCE TODAY, INCLUDING THE GRAND RAPIDS SYMPHONY, THE GRANDVILLE AVENUE ARTS AND HUMANITIES. AND WE ALSO HAVE MEMBERS SUCH AS DIATRIBE GIRLS ACADEMY, THE GRAND RAPIDS CHILDREN'S MUSEUM, MARVELOUS LIFESTYLES, KIDS, FOOD BASKET, FIRST TEE, MASS, MICHIGAN AFTER-SCHOOL PARTNERSHIP, AND OTHERS. IF YOU ARE HERE, PLEASE WAVE YOUR HANDS. NOW I WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE TIFFANY YOUNG, WHO IS OUR ELO LEADERSHIP COUNCIL VICE CHAIR TO THE MIC TO SAY A FEW WORDS. GOOD MORNING EVERYONE, AND THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING US. I JUST WANT TO GIVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO JUST THANK YOU ALL FOR THE COMMITMENT THAT YOU HAVE TO SUPPORTING US AT THE ELO NETWORK. OUR MISSION IS TO JUST REALLY SUPPORT THE PROVIDERS IN OUR CITY RIGHT NOW. WE CURRENTLY HAVE OVER 30 COMMITTED MEMBERS AS PROVIDERS AND OVER HUNDREDS OF INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS THAT SHOW UP TO TRAININGS EVERY YEAR. 
          INDIVIDUAL CELEBRATIONS. AND WHAT THIS DOES IS JUST ESTABLISH A SUPER STRONG, COMMITTED, QUALITY, SAFE OPPORTUNITY THAT GIVES OUR CITY JUST AN OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE A UNITED FRONT AGAINST AFTER SCHOOL IN THIS CITY. AND IT'S IT MAKES KIND OF MAGIC HAPPEN. 
          TO BE HONEST, MORE THAN ANYTHING, WHEN IT COMES TO FUNDING AND PULLING INTO THE CITY, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU ARE AWARE OF LIKE THE 32 FUNDING THAT'S COMING DOWN FROM THE STATE LEVEL, BUT WE HAVE MORE THAN DOUBLED THAT FUNDING IN THE CITY OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS, AND THAT IS BECAUSE OF THE NETWORK AND THE COMMITMENT THAT WE'VE HAD. SO WE JUST WANT TO CELEBRATE THAT MORE THAN ANYTHING THIS WEEK AND CELEBRATE THE WORK THAT THE PROVIDERS ARE DOING. AND JUST THANK YOU MORE THAN ANYTHING FOR BEING ON BOARD WITH US. 
          WITH THAT AND THE WORK THAT YOU CONTINUE TO DO IN EACH OF YOUR AREAS OF THE CITY. SO THANK YOU SO MUCH. ALL RIGHT. I ALSO WANT TO GIVE A SPECIAL SHOUT OUT TO THE GRAND RAPIDS CHILDREN'S MUSEUM. LAST NIGHT WE HAD A LIGHTS ON AFTER SCHOOL PRE BASH, AND WE HAD ABOUT 70 YOUNG PEOPLE AT THE MUSEUM CELEBRATING THE IMPORTANCE OF AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS, INCLUDING THE MAYOR'S YOUTH COUNCIL. SO YOU SEE OUR YOUNG PEOPLE IN THE BACK HERE OF OUR MAYOR'S YOUTH COUNCIL MEMBERS. WE HAVE ELI HAGAR WHO IS A THIRD WARD RESIDENT AND A 12TH 
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GRADE STUDENT AT CITY MIDDLE HIGH SCHOOL. AND HE IS GOING TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, JUST VERY BRIEFLY, ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF OUT OF SCHOOL TIME PROGRAMS IN PARTICULARLY THE MAYOR'S YOUTH COUNCIL. I'LL START BY SAYING THAT IF YOU HAD TOLD ME A YEAR AGO THAT I'D BE STANDING UP HERE SPEAKING IN FRONT OF THE CITY COMMISSION, I WOULDN'T HAVE BELIEVED YOU. A YEAR AGO, I WAS SOMEONE WHO WAS UNSURE OF THEIR PATH. I LACKED PURPOSE OR DIRECTION OUTSIDE OF SCHOOL. I WASN'T REALLY SURE WHO I WAS. THAT WOULD ALL CHANGE. WHEN I JOINED THE MAYOR'S YOUTH COUNCIL, I MET ROLE MODELS AND MR. LEROY AND MISS HARRIS. I WAS ABLE TO CONTRIBUTE TO IMPORTANT DISCUSSIONS ABOUT MY COMMUNITY, AND I WAS ABLE TO ADVOCATE FOR THE CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS AND ITS YOUTH. TODAY. I LOOK FORWARD TO EVERY MEETING. I HAVE FOUND A TRUE SENSE OF BELONGING WITHIN THIS PROGRAM. I HAVE GAINED DIRECTION IN WHAT I DO EVERY DAY WITHIN MY COMMUNITIES, AND I AM JUST ONE EXAMPLE OF THE VALUE OF AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS. BELIEVE ME WHEN I TELL YOU THAT AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS TRULY GIVE OUR YOUTH LIFE, THEY ARE CRUCIAL IN PROTECTING OUR WELL-BEING AND ALLOWING US TO THRIVE. PROGRAMS LIKE THE NYC ARE KEY IN ENSURING OUR SUCCESS AND HAPPINESS OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM, AND I ASK THAT YOU ALL CONTINUE TO SUPPORT PROGRAMS LIKE THE MAYOR'S YOUTH COUNCIL. THANK YOU. YEAH. ANYBODY INVOLVED IN THIS WHO WANTS TO COME UP FOR A PHOTO? NOW'S YOUR CHANCE. DON'T BE SHY, COMMISSIONERS. YOU STILL WANT TO BE INVOLVED IN IT, TOO. SO WE'RE JUST ALL GOING TO BE UP HERE FOR A PHOTO. ALL RIGHT, DON'T BE SHY. ANYBODY ELSE WANT TO COME UP? COME ON UP. AND OUR YELLOW PROVIDERS TO COME ON YELLOW WANTS TO BE IN. DON'T BE SHY. I'M NOT GOING TO BREAK THIS UP. THERE ARE PEOPLE IN THE PICTURE. WELL DONE SIR. THANK YOU. BECAUSE WE'RE SENDING IT TO THE STATE. COME ON, COME ON. KIND OF PERSON. SECOND ROLE. YEAH. YOU ALL ARE YOUNG. DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT. ALL OF YOU ARE. YOU'LL BE JUST FINE. YOU ALWAYS LOOK BETTER. 
          PROFESSIONAL. THEY CAN DO IT. RIGHT ON. THANK YOU. HI. THANK YOU. I'M SORRY. LET. OKAY. NEXT 
          [2. Resolution approving an agreement with the City of Wyoming to temporarily accept and process municipal wastewater sludge at the Grand Rapids Waste Resource Recovery Facility (WRRF) for biosolids handling and processing]
ITEM ON OUR AGENDA IS RESOLUTION PROVIDING AN AGREEMENT WITH THE CITY OF WYOMING. AND TO SPEAK TO THIS. WE HAVE, I ASSUME, SOMEONE FROM WATER AND SEWER. GOOD MORNING, COMMISSIONERS. JARED GRABINSKI WITH ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES. THIS RESOLUTION BEFORE YOU IS A SIX MONTH TRIAL TO ACCEPT WYOMING'S MUNICIPAL WASTE WATER SLUDGE AT OUR WATER RESOURCE RECOVERY FACILITY. SORRY. SUPPORT. SORRY, SORRY. SO WE WOULD LIKE TO ACCEPT THE MUNICIPAL SLUDGE FROM CITY, WYOMING AND TO OUR CONCENTRATED WASTE DIGESTER AS AN ALTERNATIVE FEEDSTOCK. THE GOAL OF THIS AGREEMENT IS TO EXPLORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR COLLABORATION BETWEEN BOTH OF OUR CITIES TO FIND SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE FISCALLY BENEFICIAL FOR BOTH OF US IF WE ACHIEVE POSITIVE BIOGAS PRODUCTION FROM THIS TRIAL PERIOD, OUR NEXT STEP WOULD BE SWITCHING OUT SOME EQUIPMENT SO THAT WE CAN HAVE A LONGER TERM PERIOD IN DOING THIS. AND AT THAT POINT, I'M SURE WE'LL BE BACK BEFORE THIS BODY TO GIVE YOU ANY UPDATES AS NEEDED. YEAH. COMMISSIONER PERDUE, GOOD MORNING. A QUICK QUESTION. I SAW IN THE MEMO THAT THAT THE INITIAL PLAN IS FOR THIS TO BE TEMPORARY. SO CAN YOU JUST TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT IS IT THE INTENTION TO BE TEMPORARY OR IS THIS MORE OF A PILOT PERIOD. YES. SO THIS IS A SIX MONTH TRIAL PERIOD. RIGHT NOW OUR EXISTING EQUIPMENT IS NOT REALLY SET UP FOR WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO. SO WE'RE TRYING TO WORK WITH WYOMING TO EXPLORE SOME POSSIBILITIES ON IF IT WILL REALLY WORK. SO WE HAVE SOME EQUIPMENT THAT ISN'T DESIGNED FOR THE PARTICULAR SOLIDS, CONTENT THAT'S GOING THROUGH THE, THE, THE DIGESTER RIGHT NOW. SO THIS SIX MONTH 
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TRIAL PERIOD IS ESSENTIALLY TO SEE IF WE GET POSITIVE BIOGAS PRODUCTION. IF THAT HAPPENS, WE'RE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND SWITCH SOME PUMPS AND SOME PIPING TO ALLOW FOR THAT THICKER VISCOSITY FLUID TO BE MOVED THROUGH IT. AND AT THAT POINT, YOU KNOW, WE'LL WE'LL MAKE SOME CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS TO, TO MAKE IT LONG TERM. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? I HAD ONE QUICK. SO ARE WE TAKING ARE YOU TAKING ALL THEIR SOLIDS OR ARE WE TAKING SOME AS THE ULTIMATE GOAL? YOU'LL SEE IN THE THING IT'S RETROACTIVE TO SEPTEMBER 1ST. SO WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH WYOMING. THEY'VE BEEN HAVING SOME STRUGGLES ON THEIR LAND APPLICATION SIDE. 
          THEY LAND APPLY THEIR BIO CELLS. WE SEND OUR BIOSOLIDS TO THE LANDFILL. SO WE'VE BEEN WORKING WITH THEM FOR A FEW MONTHS NOW, NOT ONLY DRAFTING THIS AGREEMENT, BUT HELPING TAKES A PORTION OF THEIR SOLIDS. WE CAN'T TAKE ALL OF IT UP UNTIL THE POINT WHERE WE GET THIS EQUIPMENT UPGRADED. ONCE WE GET THE EQUIPMENT UPGRADED AND CHANGED OUT, THEN WE'LL LOOK AT ACCEPTING EVERYTHING THAT THEY DON'T WANT TO LAND, APPLY THROUGH OUR THROUGH OUR DIGESTER. OKAY. AND CAN YOU IN LAYMAN'S TERMS, I KNOW THEY'VE BEEN ESSENTIALLY USING WASTE FOR FERTILIZER FOR A LONG TIME AND WE DON'T. WHICH SEEMS LIKE A REALLY GOOD IDEA TO ME, TO MY IN MY LAYMAN'S UNDERSTANDING AND MY, YOU KNOW, AMATEUR FARM UNDERSTANDING FERTILIZERS. GOOD. 
          SO WHAT DO WE DO WITH THE RESULT OF OUR BIODIGESTER RIGHT NOW? I MEAN, POTENTIALLY THAT'S STILL GOT FERTILIZER VALUE. IF IT DIDN'T HAVE HEAVY METALS, CONTAMINANTS, WHATEVER. I'M GUESSING WYOMING HAS A WHOLE LOT LESS INDUSTRIAL INPUT AND THAT'S WHY THEY'RE ABLE TO DO LAND APPLICATION OR NOT. BUT CAN YOU WALK THROUGH THAT? AND I KNOW WHAT THE FEDERAL STANDARDS ARE. I KNOW ALL THE REASONS. I KNOW ALL THE PARAMETERS THEY'RE DEALING WITH. 
          I GUESS THE QUESTION IS WE'RE NOT IS THERE ANY HOPE FOR US TO DO THAT? IS THERE ANY WAY THAT THE BIODIGESTER COULD THEN HAVE ITS ULTIMATE BYPRODUCT, OR WHEN IT'S DONE BEING DIGESTED, IS THERE ANY POSSIBILITY FOR FERTILIZER USE FOR ANY OF THE RESULTS? SO TRADITIONALLY WE HAVE NOT LAND APPLIED BASICALLY BECAUSE OF THOSE INHERENT RISKS OF PFAS, HEAVY METALS, PHARMACEUTICALS IN THE SLUDGE. WE JUST DON'T WANT TO PUT THAT ON THE LAND BECAUSE THERE'S ALWAYS THAT, YOU KNOW, COME BACK LATER YEARS WILL BE LITIGATED OR SOMETHING. HOWEVER, THE CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS FOR THE WATER RESOURCE RECOVERY FACILITY, WE'RE WORKING WITH OFFICE OF SUSTAINABILITY AND OTHER COMMUNITY PARTNERS TO GO AHEAD AND LOOK AT WHAT THE NEXT STEP IS FOR US, WHETHER THAT BE BIOSOLIDS DRYING, LOOKING AT COMPOSTING WITH PUBLIC WORKS, MAYBE ADDING IT TO THEIR, YOU KNOW, FOOD SCRAP PROGRAM AND STUFF, MAYBE MIXING IT TOGETHER FOR COMPOST THAT WE COULD THEN, YOU KNOW, GET BACK OUT INTO THE COMMUNITY AS A BENEFICIAL REUSE PRODUCT. WE'RE ALSO LOOKING AT. BIOCHAR, STUFF LIKE THAT. SO WE ARE LOOKING AT USING OUR BIOSOLIDS IN AN ALTERNATIVE WAY. JUST HAVEN'T QUITE GOT DOWN THAT WHOLE PROCESS YET AND FOUND CAPITAL FUNDING FOR IT AND THE LIKE. BUT WE'RE LOOKING AT DOING SOMETHING MORE SUSTAINABLE RIGHT NOW. WE'RE, YOU KNOW, MADE BIG STRIDES WITH THE DIGESTER AS FAR AS YOU KNOW, REUSING THAT. WE'VE REDUCED OUR SOLIDS BY 40%, GOING TO THE LANDFILL IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS. 
          WE'VE HAD SERIOUS SAVINGS WITH, YOU KNOW, CHEMICAL COSTS, TRUCKING COSTS AND IMPACTS ON THE ENVIRONMENT IN THAT WAY. SO WE'RE STILL LOOKING AT THOSE NEXT STEPS. WE'RE IN TALKS WITH THAT NOW OKAY. THANK YOU MAYOR. I'LL JUST IF I COULD JUST ADD THAT THE BIGGER PICTURE, SINCE WE'VE HAD TO CHANGE OUR PORTFOLIO WITH THE CHANGE WITH DTE AND THE RAPID NOT PARTNERING WITH US, I THINK THIS ADDS ANOTHER POTENTIAL LONG TERM PARTNER THAT WILL HELP OUR REVENUE MODEL AND FORECASTING AS WE INITIALLY INTENDED. SO THIS IS HOPEFULLY THIS WILL BECOME LONG TERM. THAT'S THE HOPE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ANY SEEING. NO OTHER QUESTIONS THEN I WILL CALL THE QUESTION. ALL IN FAVOR OF THE RESOLUTION SAY AYE. AYE. ALL OPPOSED. MOTION CARRIES. THANK YOU. THAT TAKES US TO OUR NEXT ITEM. RESOLUTION PERTAINING TO 
          [3. Resolution setting the date to consider amendment to Article 5, Chapter 7, Title I of the Grand Rapids City Code pertaining to the Police and Fire Retirement System in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement for the period of July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2028]
POLICE AND FIRE RETIREMENT SYSTEM COLLECTION. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT. CAN I HAVE A MOTION? SO MOVED. OKAY. GOOD MORNING. MOLLY CLAIRE AND CFO. THIS ITEM IS REALLY A HOUSEKEEPING ITEM BROUGHT BEFORE YOU. YOU. IT PROBABLY LOOKS FAMILIAR FROM WHEN WE BROUGHT ALL THOSE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS FORWARD. WE HAD SOMETHING SIMILAR TO THIS. IN SPEAKING WITH THE RETIREMENT OFFICE, WE REALIZED THE ORDINANCE, AS IT WAS WRITTEN, THAT WE APPROVED DID NOT INCLUDE THE COMPLETE TABLE. SO WHILE OUR BARGAINING, THE CHANGES THAT WE VOTED ON EARLIER THIS WELL, BACK IN, I BELIEVE AUGUST, SEPTEMBER, WHILE WE WE VOTED ON THE CHANGES TO THE OFFICERS AND COMMAND UNION, IT DIDN'T CONTAIN THE OTHER TWO SECTIONS OF THE TABLE THAT ADDRESS THE RETIREMENT OFFERINGS FOR THE FIRE CHIEF AND THE POLICE CHIEF AND DEPUTY CHIEF AND THE POLICE, I SHOULD SAY THE POLICE CHIEF THAT'S RETIRED, THAT PERSON THAT'S IN THE SYSTEM. SO WE REQUIRE THE COMPLETE ORDINANCE 
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TO ADOPT. SO THIS IS REALLY JUST CLEANING UP, CLEANING UP WHAT WE ALREADY VOTED ON. SO. 
          YEP. SO THIS SOUNDS LIKE SOMETHING WE SHOULD DEFINITELY DISCUSS FOR HALF AN HOUR. WELL LET'S GO. IT'S RETIREMENTS. YEAH I GET ALL MY ACTUARIAL REPORTS. HERE WE GO. SO ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS COMMISSIONERS SEEING NONE I'LL CALL THE QUESTION. ALL IN FAVOR OF THE RESOLUTION SAY AYE. AYE. ALL OPPOSED. MOTION CARRIES. THANK YOU. AND THAT BRINGS US 
          [4. Resolution Approving Amendments to Equal Business Opportunity (EBO) City Commission Policies 600-12 (Construction) and 600-15 (Goods and Services)]
TO A MORE ROBUST DISCUSSION, PERHAPS. AND MR. DAVIS'S COMING UP. THIS IS A RESOLUTION UPDATING OUR POLICIES. WE HAD FAIRLY INVOLVED DISCUSSION ABOUT THIS EARLIER WHEN THE WHEN THE PROPOSED CHANGE WAS BROUGHT IN FRONT OF US, AS YOU, I'M SURE YOU ALL RECALL. BUT FOR THE PUBLIC'S BENEFIT, THIS IS OUR SECOND SORT OF SECOND BITE AT THIS AT THE RESOLUTION STAGE. SO CAN I HAVE A MOTION? SO MOVED. MR. DAVIS, ARE YOU WAITING FOR YOUR COMPUTER TO CATCH UP WITH YOU, OR DO YOU WANT TO START TALKING? I AM WAITING FOR THE SLIDES TO COME UP, BUT HERE THEY ARE. SO GOOD MORNING. THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO GET THIS BRIEFING ON OUR PROPOSED UPDATES TO POLICIES AND GUIDELINES GOVERNING THE CITY'S EQUAL BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY PROGRAMS. SO THE REAL PURPOSE OF THIS DISCUSSION TODAY IS TO TALK ABOUT THE SUITE OR THE EQUAL BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY SUITE OF PROGRAMS HERE IN THE CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS. SO THERE'S REALLY THREE PARTS THAT WE'LL TALK ABOUT. AND IT'S DIVIDED IN THREE PARTS. SO THERE'S THE CITY COMMISSION POLICY UPDATES, WHICH IS WHAT WE'RE HERE TO ASK YOU ABOUT TODAY. THERE ARE ALSO ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES WHICH FALL UNDER THE DISCRETION OF THE CITY MANAGER. AND THOSE ARE THE OPERATIONAL CHANGES TO OUR BID DISCOUNT STRUCTURES AND IMPLEMENTATION PROCEDURES AND POLICIES. AND THEN THERE'S ALSO THE MLB CERTIFICATION PART OF THIS. AND THAT UPDATES THE POLICY. 0401 SO THERE'S A LOT TO TALK ABOUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE EQUAL BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY SUITE OF PROGRAMS HERE AT THE CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS, BECAUSE WE ARE VERY INTENTIONAL ABOUT MAKING SURE THAT WE ADVANCE EQUITY IN THESE SPACES, THANKS TO SOME AMAZING WORK THAT'S BEEN DONE BY MATT HARDY, WHO JOINS ME HERE TODAY, AND ALSO ALVIN HILLS. WE'VE COME UP WITH THIS HOUSE TO REALLY EXPLAIN OR PROVIDE AN ANALOGY TO UNDERSTAND THE SUITE OF PROGRAMS. SO THERE'S THE CITY COMMISSION POLICY 612 AND 615. CITY COMMISSION POLICY 612 IS FOR CONSTRUCTION. AND THERE'S ALSO ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES ATTACHED TO THAT FOR 612. SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE CITY COMMISSION POLICY, OBVIOUSLY THAT IS A CITY COMMISSION POLICY. AND THEREFORE TO CHANGE THAT, WE NEED THE CONSENT OF THE CITY COMMISSION. HOWEVER, THE ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES ATTACHED TO THAT AND ADMINISTRATIVE POLICIES ARE UNDER THE CITY MANAGER'S AUTHORITY. WHEN WE LOOK AT THE ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES FOR 612, IT APPLIES TO CONSTRUCTION RELATED BIDS. IT DEFINES BID DISCOUNTS AND MLB SUBCONTRACTOR INCENTIVES. THERE'S 17 IN TOTAL, AND IT ALSO WORKS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT.■ WHEN WE LOOK AT CITY COMMISSION POLICY 615, THAT'S ABOUT GOODS AND SERVICES. SO THE ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES FOR THAT APPLY TO PROFESSIONAL SERVICES OR GOODS PROCUREMENT. AND IT'S SIMILAR TO THE DISCOUNT FRAMEWORK FOR 612. BUT IT'S NON-CONSTRUCTION. 
          SO THERE'S ONLY 13 OF THOSE IN TOTAL. AND IT WORKS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE PURCHASING DEPARTMENT AND THEIR PROCEDURES. THEN YOU HAVE ADMINISTRATIVE POLICY 0401, WHICH IS MLB CERTIFICATION, WHICH IS OFTEN WHAT WE TALK ABOUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THIS SUITE OF PROGRAMS, THAT ADMINISTRATIVE POLICY 0401 GOVERNS THE ELIGIBILITY FOR ALL ASPIRATIONAL MLB COMPANIES. IT ALSO SETS STANDARDS FOR OWNERSHIP, LOCATION AND NETWORK REQUIREMENTS. THE INCENTIVES ARE STRUCTURED TO INCREASE UTILIZATION OF THESE CERTIFIED COMPANIES. SO WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THE CITY COMMISSION POLICY, IT'S A HIGH LEVEL POLICY APPROVED BY THE CITY COMMISSION. THE ADMINISTRATIVE POLICY IS AN INTERNAL OPERATING POLICY APPROVED BY THE CITY MANAGER AND ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES, WHICH ARE DETAILED PROCEDURES OR RULES FOR IMPLEMENTING A CITY COMMISSION POLICY OR ADMINISTRATIVE POLICY. AND THE CITY MANAGER DEALS WITH THAT. SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE SUITE OF PROGRAMS, IT'S THE BEST WAY TO THINK ABOUT THIS IS A HOUSE. IT'S ALL UNDER ONE ROOF. THEY'RE ALL INTERCONNECTED, BUT THEY'RE SEPARATE ROOMS, RIGHT? EACH OF THESE THINGS OPERATE IN THEIR OWN INDIVIDUAL ROOM. SO THERE'S SEPARATE RULES AND SEPARATE GUIDELINES FOR EACH OF THEM, BUT RELATED TO MAKE TO CREATE OUR FULL EQUAL BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY PROGRAM. SO I'M GOING TO TURN IT OVER TO MR. AJ HILLS WHO WILL TAKE US FURTHER IN THE PRESENTATION. THANK YOU MR. DAVIS. GOOD MORNING. THIS SLIDE IS REALLY WHAT WE'RE HERE FOR TODAY TO GET COMMISSION SUPPORT FOR AMENDING THE EXISTING POLICIES. BOTH 612 CONSTRUCTION AND 615 GOODS AND SERVICES. THE UPDATES THAT WE ARE LOOKING TO MAKE IS TO UPDATE THE WELL, I'M SORRY, THE MLB CERTIFICATION ELIGIBILITY ELIGIBILITY LANGUAGE TO BE IN ALIGNMENT WITH 0401. SO RIGHT NOW, 0401 HAS DIFFERENT OR MORE UPDATED LANGUAGE THAN THE CITY COMMISSION POLICY. SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT ALL OF OUR 
          [00:20:03]
POLICIES ARE IN ALIGNMENT FOR THE SAKE OF THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY. AND NAVIGATING THOSE THINGS ALSO WILL BE INCREASING THE MLB ELIGIBILITY BUSINESS SIZE. THAT IS A NORTH AMERICAN INDUSTRY CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM. WHENEVER A COMPANY ENROLLS IN THE MLB CERTIFICATION PRIOR WAS 25% OF WHAT THE SBA DEEMED A SMALL BUSINESS. WE WANTED TO BUMP THAT UP TO ALLOW SOME OTHER COMPANIES TO ALLOW MORE COMPANIES TO BE ABLE TO FIT OUR DEFINITION. SO THAT IS ANOTHER AMENDMENT THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO MAKE THERE. ALSO, WE'RE TYING THE NET WORTH TO THE HISTORICAL 202,007 AMOUNT, WHICH IS THE 242, BUT WE'RE ADDING IN THE INFLATION LANGUAGE. AND THE REASON FOR THAT IS TO THIS POINT, THE POLICY HAS READ ONE NUMBER. BUT HOWEVER, AS WE MOVE FORWARD, WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE DON'T HAVE TO COME ASK YOU ALL FOR INFLATION AMENDMENTS AS WE MOVE FORWARD. SO WE WANTED TO INCLUDE INFLATION LANGUAGE. SO MOVING FORWARD, THAT COULD KEEP UP WITH THE CURRENT YEAR THAT WE'RE IN. AND THE LAST PIECE IS THE PART OF THE MLB CERTIFICATION PROCESS IS A NET WORTH STATEMENT. WE JUST WANTED TO ADD THE LANGUAGE THAT THAT NET WORTH STATEMENT HAS TO BE COMPLETED BY A CPA. WE HAD QUESTIONS OF CAN OTHER FINANCIAL ADVISORS OR FOLKS IN THE INDUSTRY PROVIDE THAT STATEMENT? BEST PRACTICES TO BE IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE SBA? SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL IS TO HAVE THAT COMPLETED BY CPA. NOW WE'RE INTO THE ADMINISTRATIVE SIDE OF THE HOUSE WITH POLICY 0401. AND THIS IS CURRENTLY UNDER THE CITY MANAGER'S AUTHORITY HERE. WHAT WE'RE LOOKING TO DO HERE IS KIND OF AS I SHARED IN THAT SLIDE BEFORE, UPDATE OUR ELIGIBILITY LANGUAGE TO ENSURE THAT THIS POLICY IS IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE CURRENT CITY COMMISSION POLICIES. THE ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES. THIS IS THE MEAT AND POTATOES OF HOW WE DO THE WORK FOR BOTH OF THOSE EXISTING POLICIES. SO IN THE FORTHCOMING SLIDES, I'LL SHARE SOME UPDATES THAT WE ARE PROVIDING TO BOTH THE 612 CONSTRUCTION ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES, AS WELL AS THE 615 GOODS AND SERVICES GUIDELINE. FOR 612 CONSTRUCTION. FIRST THING WAS LANGUAGE. WE HAD SOME OUTDATED LANGUAGE THERE THAT REALLY SPOKE TO MY PAST PARTNERSHIPS THAT ARE NOT IN EXISTENCE ANYMORE, AND WE HAVE SOME NEW PROVIDERS AND PARTNERS IN THE ECOSYSTEM. SO WE WANT TO UPDATE THAT LANGUAGE TO ENSURE THAT WE ARE UP TO 2025 LANGUAGE WITHIN THAT ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES. SO A LOT OF JUST UPDATES AND REFRESHMENT OF LANGUAGE. WE DID ADD TWO NEW BIG DISCOUNTS THOUGH. ONE IS FOR EMPLOYEE OWNED BUSINESSES. THESE BUSINESSES ARE CERTIFIED BY A THIRD PARTY ORGANIZATION SIMILAR TO ANY BUSINESS CERTIFICATION THAT'S NOT ADMINISTERED BY THE CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS. IN REGARDS TO THE EMPLOYEE OWNED ASPECT OF THAT, BUT WE ARE LOOKING FOR THAT TO BE RECOGNIZED BY A CREDENTIAL ORGANIZATION. AND THEN THE SECOND PIECE IS BUSINESSES WHO ARE ALIGNED WITH FRIENDS OF GRAND RAPIDS PARKS PRACTICES. SIMPLY IF THEY GO OVER THERE AND THEY COMMIT TO X AMOUNT OF HOURS TO DO X AMOUNT OF WORK, GRAND RAPIDS FRIENDS OF GRAND RAPIDS PARKS WILL ALLOW THEM TO PARTNER, AND THEY'LL SEND US OVER VERIFICATION THAT THE SAID BUSINESS COMPLETED THEIR WORK THERE. AND THAT REALLY SPEAKS TO OUR BID DISCOUNTS THAT ARE IN LINE WITH THE ENVIRONMENTAL SUPPORT. AND LAST IS THE GEOGRAPHIC FOCUS. THE CURRENT LANGUAGE IN THE ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES IS FOR TARGET MARKET, TARGET MARKET AREAS, AND THAT THOSE NEIGHBORHOODS HAVE CHANGED TREMENDOUSLY SINCE THE LAST TIME THIS POLICY HAS BEEN UPDATED. AND WE'D LIKE TO UPDATE IT TO NEIGHBORHOODS OF FOCUS TO BE MORE IN ALIGNMENT WITH GEOGRAPHIC AREAS. 
          CHALLENGES TO OUR CURRENT MLB GROWTH AND PARTICIPATION, LIMITED CAPACITY, AND FREQUENTLY USED MLB. SO WHEN WE HAVE BIG TRANSFORMATIONAL PROJECTS, WE HAVE SOME COMPANIES THAT HAVE BEEN USED FOR SOME TIME CONSISTENTLY AND THEN THEY HAVE LIMITED CAPACITY. 
          SO WHAT THAT DOES IS WE EITHER A CAN'T USE THEM OR B PRICE GOES UP. SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE ABLE TO CONTINUE TO ADD SOME MORE COMPANIES INTO THE SUPPLIER SIDE OF THINGS TO HELP ENSURE THAT WE'RE MEETING PROJECTS ON TIME AND ALSO BEING COST EFFECTIVE. THAT KIND OF SPEAKS TO NUMBER TWO OVER RELIANCE ON A SMALL GROUP OF FIRMS. BONDING LIMITATIONS IS A HUGE CHALLENGE THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO SOLVE. WE HAVE OUR CURRENT EXISTING BONDING PILOT GOING ON. SO ANY COMPANIES THAT ARE CERTIFIED AS A MICRO LOCAL UNDER 250,000 CAN BE PART OF THAT BONDING PROGRAM THAT WE HAVE NOW. GAPS IN ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT PRE-QUALIFICATION. I'LL SHARE A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT IN THE FORTHCOMING SLIDE. BUT PRETTY MUCH WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE IS WE HAVE A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF OUR MLB EAS THAT ARE NOT PRE-QUALIFIED OVER 250,000. SO A LOT OF COMPANIES BETWEEN TEN AND MAYBE 250,000 THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO FOCUS ON AND GROW. THE NEW ONE NEW BID DISCOUNT THAT WE'RE ADDING 
          [00:25:06]
UNDER 612 IS OUR GROWTH MARKET DISCOUNT. I KIND OF SPOKE TO THAT IN THE SLIDE BEFORE, BUT THIS IS FOR ANY MLB THAT'S PREQUALIFIED AS A PRIME CONTRACTOR UNDER 250,000. AND THE WHY FOR THAT IS IN THE SLIDE SHARED BEFORE. WE'RE LOOKING TO GET MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR SMALLER FIRMS THAT ARE IN THE PIPELINE. SO THIS IS A DIRECT OPPORTUNITY FOR GENERAL CONTRACTORS TO UTILIZE MLB UNDER THE 250,000 MARK. WE'RE LOOKING TO INVEST IN THEM TO HELP GROW THEM OVER THAT 250 MARK, WHICH WILL HELP US ON THE SUPPLY SIDE OF THINGS TREMENDOUSLY, AND ALSO, AGAIN, WANT TO BE IN ALIGNMENT WITH OUR CITY'S EQUITY AND WORKFORCE GOALS. WE'RE SUPER EXCITED ABOUT THIS BID DISCOUNT PILOT THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO LAUNCH. 
          SO RIGHT NOW UNDER THE ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES, WE CURRENTLY HAVE $100,000, 5% CAP ON BID DISCOUNTS. WHAT THAT MEANS IS WHEN A GENERAL CONTRACTOR IS BIDDING ON CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS WORK BASED UPON THE BID DISCOUNTS THAT WE HAVE IN OUR SUITE OF OR OUR TOOLBOX OF BID DISCOUNTS, THEY COULD GET UP TO A MAX OF 5% DISCOUNTED FROM THAT BID, UP TO $100,000 IN VALUE. AND WHAT WE SAW OVER TIME IS CONSTRUCTION. THE NUMBER OF CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS HAS INCREASED. THE DOLLAR AMOUNT FOR CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS HAS INCREASED. SO IN TALKING TO A LOT OF DEVELOPERS, GENERAL CONTRACTORS AND OUR MONDAY GROUP, WE NOTICED THAT THE CURRENT 5% ISN'T AS COMPETITIVE FOR HIGHER DOLLAR PROJECTS. SO AND REALLY, IT COMES INTO EFFECT WITH PROJECTS OVER $2 MILLION. SO WE'RE LOOKING TO PILOT FOR THREE YEARS, A 10% UP TO $200,000 BID DISCOUNT, WHERE WE COULD SEE HOW EFFECTIVE THAT DISCOUNT IS IN THE FIRES, THE CAP INCREASE FOR FURTHER, MAYBE INSTITUTIONALIZING THE INCREASE DISCOUNT. HOWEVER, IN ORDER TO BE TO UTILIZE THE 10%, YOU HAVE TO USE ONE OF THE FOUR ELIGIBLE CATEGORIES, WHICH IS EITHER MLB SUBCONTRACTOR, MLB GROWTH SUBCONTRACTOR UTILIZATION, WHICH I JUST SHARED. MENTOR PROTEGE. MENTOR PROTEGE LOOKS LIKE AN EXISTING GENERAL CONTRACTOR MENTORING MLB THAT IS ON OUR CERTIFIED LISTING. THAT COMMITMENT MUST HAPPEN FOR A YEAR PRIOR TO THEM APPLYING FOR THE BID DISCOUNT, WITH AGREEMENT SIGNED BY BOTH PARTIES. SO NO COMPANY COULD JUST COME IN AND SAY, HEY, I'M MENTORING. WE ACTUALLY HAVE TO SIGN OFF ON THAT. AND THAT'S APPROVED THROUGH OUR OFFICE OF EQUITY AND ENGAGEMENT. AND THEN LASTLY, JOINT VENTURE. WE WOULD LOVE TO SEE MORE MLB FIRMS BE ABLE TO JOINT VENTURE WITH BIGGER FIRMS, TO TAKE ON BIGGER PROJECTS AND DO SOME GREAT WORK HERE IN THE CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS. SO AT THE END OF THIS THREE YEAR PILOT, WE'LL HOPE TO HAVE THE DATA THAT WE CAN EVALUATE AND SEE IF THIS PILOT WAS EFFECTIVE TO BRING BACK BEFORE YOU FOR POSSIBLY INSTITUTIONALIZING THIS LONG TERM. WHAT INFORMED US TO EXPLORE THE PILOT WAS THIS DATA HERE, BASED UPON 2024 GENERAL CONTRACTING PROJECTS IN OUR OFFICE OF ENGINEERING. FIRST BULLET POINT 14% OF THESE PROJECTS COULD HAVE BEEN FLIPPED TO AN MLB WITH A HIGHER DISCOUNT. SO WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE IS CURRENTLY ON A LOT OF PROJECTS. YOU'LL SEE THAT THE SECOND BIDDER, WHO HAS THE LOWEST PRICE, HAD AN MLB, BUT THE DISCOUNT WASN'T LARGE ENOUGH TO BE SIGNIFICANT TO BRING THEM TO THE THE NUMBER ONE BIDDER, WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN THE LOWEST PRICE. SO WE'RE LOOKING TO ADD THAT DISCOUNT TO HELP MAKE THOSE FIRMS WHO ARE UTILIZING MLB FIRMS GO FROM 2 TO 1 IN THE BIDDING PROCESS TO NOT ONLY EARN PROJECTS WITH THE CITY, BUT ALSO DO MORE WORK WITH OUR MLB CONTRACTORS. 25% WERE UNAFFECTED BY THE DISCOUNT LEVEL. SO WHAT THAT MEANS TO US IS SIMPLY THE DISCOUNT LEVEL. WHERE IT IS IS IT WOULDN'T SWAY ONE EYE, SWAY IT EITHER, OR 41% HAD MLB POTENTIAL BUT WERE NOT UTILIZED. THIS ALSO IS AN ISSUE. 
          AGAIN, WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT COST COMPARISONS AND ANALYSIS. AS GENERAL CONTRACTORS ARE MAKING DECISIONS, SOMETIMES OUR MLB SUPPLIERS MIGHT BE A COUPLE THOUSAND DOLLARS OVER ONE OF THEIR OTHER SOLICITORS THAT THEY'RE COMING TO, AND IF THAT DISCOUNT WAS GREATER THAT WOULD BE ABLE FOR THAT WOULD BE ABLE TO POSITION THE GENERAL CONTRACTOR TO UTILIZE A FIRM THAT MIGHT HAVE A HIGHER FACE VALUE ON THEIR BID, BECAUSE THEY KNOW THEY'RE GETTING A DISCOUNT ON THE BACK END. AND THE LAST PIECE IS 10% WERE INELIGIBLE. SO SOMETIMES WE HAVE PROJECTS WHERE WE DON'T HAVE MLB THAT ARE SPECIALIZED IN THOSE TRADES. SO SOMETIMES WE AREN'T ABLE TO PROCURE MLB SERVICES ON PROJECTS OF THAT NATURE. NOW WE'RE GOING TO A DIFFERENT ROOM OF THE HOUSE. THIS IS OUR GOODS AND SERVICES END OF THE HOUSE, WHICH IS UNDER OUR PURCHASING OR IN PARTNERSHIP WITH OUR PURCHASING DEPARTMENT. UNDER NEW DISCOUNTS, YOU'LL SEE SIMILAR DISCOUNTS THAT WILL THE SAME DISCOUNTS THAT WE ADDED TO CONSTRUCTION. 
          WE'RE LOOKING TO BRING OVER TO GOODS AND SERVICES. WE'RE ALSO SHIFTING THE GEOGRAPHIC 
          [00:30:06]
LANGUAGE FROM TARGET MARKET AREAS TO NEIGHBORHOODS OF FOCUS. AGAIN, WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT ALL OF OUR ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES, 600 1215 ARE IN ALIGNMENT AND WORKING DIRECTLY WITH EACH OTHER. AND CURRENTLY WE'RE LOOKING TO AS WE GO INTO THE FUTURE OF THIS, NOW THAT WE HAVE OUR NEW ERP SYSTEM THAT'S ROLLED OUT, LOOKING TO COLLECT SOME DATA OVER THE NEXT YEAR TO POTENTIALLY PILOT BID DISCOUNT INCREASE ON THAT SIDE OF THE HOUSE OR IN THAT ROOM OF THE HOUSE AS WELL. SO AS WE GET SOME MORE DATA THAT WE COULD EVALUATE, WE'LL SEE WHAT WE CAN POTENTIALLY BRING BEFORE YOU TO MAKE OUR GOODS AND SERVICES ROOM OF THE HOUSE MORE COMPETITIVE FOR MLB CONTRACTORS. OUR FINAL ROOM OF THE HOUSE, WHICH IS THE POLICY 0401 OUR MLB CERTIFICATION. THESE ARE THE CHANGES THAT WE ARE AMENDING THERE, WHICH IS A INCREASE IN THE PERSONAL NET WORTH TO $375,000, WHICH IS IN LINE WITH INFLATION FOR INFLATION FOR THE YEAR 2025. SECOND, ENSURE THAT ALL NET WORTH VERIFICATIONS ARE PROVIDED BY A LICENSED CPA. AND THEN LASTLY, WE DID CHANGE THE AMOUNT OF EXTENSIONS THAT MLB COULD BE PROVIDED IN THE PROGRAM. SO RIGHT NOW THE TERM PERIOD IS NINE YEARS. AFTER NINE YEARS YOU CAN APPLY IF YOU STILL MEET OUR SIZE, OUR SIZE LIMIT, YOU CAN APPLY FOR A FIVE YEAR EXTENSION. AND NOW WE'RE SIMPLY JUST SAYING YOU CAN APPLY FOR TWO OF THOSE WHICH WOULD MAKE 19 YEARS IN THE PROGRAM. AND AFTER THAT YOU WILL SUNSET OR GRADUATE FROM THE PROGRAM TO ALLOW MORE COMPANIES TO COME INTO THE PIPELINE AND GROW AS WELL. THIS SLIDE KIND OF DETAILS OUR JOURNEY BEFORE YOU OF HOW WE GOT HERE AND THE NEXT STEPS THAT WE'RE LOOKING TO DO POST THE APPROVALS AND UPDATES. WE'LL BE GOING BACK OUT INTO THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY TO HELP EDUCATE THEM ON THE UPDATES TO OUR POLICIES AND ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES FOR THEM, TO BEST UTILIZE THEM TO BE SUCCESSFUL ON CITY PROJECTS. AND AT THIS TIME, WE'LL TAKE ANY QUESTIONS THAT YOU ALL MAY HAVE. COLLEAGUES. COMMISSIONER NIGHT. 
          YES, THANK YOU FOR THIS PRESENTATION. I KNOW YOU GUYS THINK PRESENTED TO US A COUPLE MONTHS AGO ON THIS INFORMATION. A COUPLE QUESTIONS THAT I JUST HAD WAS SO IF THEY HAVE TO BE CERTIFIED BY CPA, IS THERE A PROGRAM THAT HELPS THEM DO THAT KIND OF WORK? IF YOU KNOW, THAT CAN BE SOMETIMES SOME LENGTHY, LENGTHY TIME. AND SO AND IT'S EXPENSIVE WITH THE CPA AND I KNOW THAT THAT THE CITY DOES SOME WORK AND YOU GUYS KIND OF PARTNER WITH COMMUNITY OR CONSTRUCTION ALLIES IN ACTION FOR SOME OF THE THINGS THAT SMALL BUSINESSES NEED. BUT THAT WAS THAT WAS ONE OF MY QUESTIONS. OKAY. YEAH. I'LL LET YOU GO AHEAD. YEAH. SO THAT'S A GREAT POINT. ACTUALLY A LOT OF CHALLENGES FOR SMALL MLB CONTRACTORS IS THE BACK OFFICE FINANCIAL CPA ACCESS. SO RIGHT NOW WE ACTUALLY HAVE A PARTNERSHIP WITH HAWKINS CPA, A LOCAL MINORITY OWNED CPA FIRM. AND THEY PROVIDE OUR NET WORTH STATEMENTS FOR COMPANIES WHO DON'T HAVE A CPA. IT DOES COME AT A COST THOUGH. SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE ABOUT $750 PER CERTIFICATION. SO THAT IS HAS HELPED INCREASE THE AMOUNT OF MLB CERTIFIED SIGNIFICANTLY, ESPECIALLY OVER THE LAST 3 OR 4 YEARS. SO AS WE LOOK TO MOVE FORWARD, I THINK IT'S A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR US AS A CITY TO INVEST IN THAT OPPORTUNITY LONG TERM BECAUSE IT IS CURRENTLY GRANT FUNDED. SO ONCE THAT THAT GRANT RUNS OUT, WE'LL HAVE TO FIGURE OUT HOW WE COULD BEST SUPPORT AND CONTINUE TO PARTNERSHIP TO REMOVE THAT BARRIER. YEAH. AND THAT WAS THAT WAS KIND OF WHERE I WAS GOING BECAUSE I KNOW THAT THEY WERE PROVIDING THEY WERE PROVIDING SUPPORTS FOR THE SMALLER BUSINESSES TO RECEIVE SOME OF THEIR CERTIFICATIONS, THEIR MWBE, THEIR WOSB, ALL OF THOSE THINGS. THAT'S A HUGE COST BEHIND THAT TOO. SO JUST WONDERING HOW THOSE CAN ALL PAIR IN A SUITE OF SERVICES TO BE ABLE TO PROVIDE SOME OF THOSE DISCOUNTS. AND THEN WHEN I BROUGHT UP CONSTRUCTION ALLIES IN ACTION, I KNOW THAT THEY PROVIDE A NUMBER OF SERVICES FOR FOR COSTING AND FOR BIDDING AND FOR THINGS LIKE THAT FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE A PART OF THAT PARTICULAR PROGRAM. SO I DON'T KNOW IF THOSE CAN WORK IN CONJUNCTION OR IF THERE'S A WAY TO, BECAUSE 75, $750 IS, YOU KNOW, THAT'S A LOT OF MONEY. 
          IT DEFINITELY IS. AND JUST TO BE WANT TO PROVIDE CLARITY, THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE PAY CURRENTLY OUT OF OUR GRANT. SO IT'S NOT A COST THAT ROLLING DIRECTLY TO THE MLB AT THIS TIME. BUT ONCE THOSE GRANT DOLLARS SUBSIDE, IT WILL BE. SECONDLY, TO YOUR POINT ABOUT PARTNERSHIPS, CONSTRUCTION, ALLIES AND ACTION WITH THEY'RE A HUGE SUPPORTER OF OURS. AND THEN THEY DO HELP POSITION COMPANIES FOR A VARIETY OF BACK OFFICE NEEDS AS WELL. SO WE SIT 
          [00:35:02]
AT A TABLE WITH A VARIETY OF PARTNERS. THEY ARE GREAT PARTNER AND WE'RE LOOKING TO CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THEM EFFECTIVELY TO HELP SOLVE SOME OF THESE BACK OFFICE ISSUES. 
          AND THEN THE LAST PIECE I WANT TO TOUCH ON CURRENTLY, ALSO UNDER THE GRANT, WE DO SUPPORT MLB WITH BECOMING MINORITY OR WOMEN BUSINESS CERTIFIED AS AN ENTERPRISE. THOSE CERTIFICATIONS COME FROM MICHIGAN MINORITY SUPPLIER DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL FOR MINORITY MWBE CERTIFICATIONS, AND GREAT LAKES WOMEN'S BUSINESS COUNCIL FOR WBE WOMEN BUSINESS ENTERPRISE CERTIFICATION. SO YEAH, WE'RE WE'RE DOING AS MUCH AS WE CAN TO SUPPORT MLB CONTRACTORS, BUT ALSO POSITIONING THEM NOT ONLY TO DO DO GOOD BUSINESS WITH THE CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS, BUT ACROSS INDUSTRY, PRIVATE AND PUBLIC. NOW, I KNOW THAT YOU ALL DO THE HELP WITH THOSE THOSE CERTIFICATIONS. THAT IS A ONE TIME THING THOUGH, RIGHT? YEAH. SO WHAT WE DO IS WE PAY A CONSULTANT TO ESSENTIALLY HELP YOU GET YOUR CERTIFICATION, WALK YOU THROUGH THE APPLICATION, PAY THAT INITIAL APPLICATION FEE. SO THAT'S DEPENDS ON THE REVENUE SIZE OF THE BUSINESS. IT COULD BE AS LITTLE AS $350 UP TO A THOUSAND BASED UPON REVENUE. SO WE PAY FOR THE CONSULTANT AND THE APPLICATION. AND ONCE YOU ARE AWARDED THAT CERTIFICATION, THEN THEIR ANNUAL RENEWAL IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE BUSINESS OWNER. OKAY. AND THEN ONE MORE QUESTION ABOUT THE BONDING ASSISTANCE PIECE. SO HOW UP TO HOW MUCH DO YOU ALL HELP WITH BONDING ON THESE. BECAUSE YOU KNOW, LIKE THE AMPHITHEATER SOCCER STADIUM, IF YOU GOT TO COME UP WITH 10% AND YOUR YOUR BID IS LIKE, YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN, $1 MILLION. SO WHAT I'LL SAY IS OUR PARTNERSHIP ON THE BONDING PROGRAM, WE'RE REALLY WORKING WITH THE THREE CPAS TO CLEAN UP THE FINANCIAL FINANCIALS OF THOSE FIRMS. SO WE'RE NOT INVESTING IN THE ACTUAL BOND PORTION OF IT. BUT IN ORDER TO SUBMIT AND APPLY FOR A BOND, YOU HAVE TO HAVE CLEAR, CLEAN BOOKS AND CONSTRUCTION RELATED FINANCIALS. SO WHAT WE'RE DOING IS HELPING THE BACK OFFICE FOR THE COMPANIES IN THE PROGRAM TO GET TO THAT INITIAL BONDING APPLICATION, HAVE ALL THE NECESSARY DOCUMENTATION THAT THEY HAVE AND TO APPLY. WE DO KNOW THAT CONSTRUCTION ALLIES IN ACTION DOES SUPPORT SOME OF THE BONDING PIECES OF IT. SO THEY ARE SUPPORTING THERE. BUT TO YOUR POINT, COMMISSIONER KNIGHT, IT DEPENDS ON PROJECT AND PROJECT SIZE. SO THAT BONDING PERCENTAGE VARIES BASED UPON IF IT'S YOUR FIRST BOND, SECOND BOND, AND THEN ALSO THE SIZE OF THE PROJECT. SO WE DON'T TOUCH THAT AREA OF THE OF THE WORK. HOWEVER, CONSTRUCTION ALLIES IN ACTION IS A IS A GREAT PARTNER IN THAT THAT AREA. AND MY LAST ONE SORRY I WAS WRITING NOTES. HOW DO WE NOTIFY BUSINESSES WHEN THEY'RE GETTING TO THE END OF THEIR CERTIFICATION AS AN MLB, SO THAT IT'S TIME FOR THEM TO GET RECERTIFIED OR DO AN EXTENSION? YEP. MR. HARDY DOES ANNUAL. 
          WELL, LET ME LET ME REFRAME THAT BIANNUAL OR EVERY THREE YEAR REVIEW RENEWAL PERIODS OF EACH MLB. SO SIMPLY EVERY MLB DOESN'T RESTART DOESN'T HAVE TO GO THROUGH AN ANNUAL REVIEW. 
          BUT WE KIND OF STAGGER IT AND ROLL IT, ROLL IT. SO HE'S CHECKING IN WITH THEM REGULARLY TO ENSURE THAT THEY'RE AWARE OF THEIR, YOU KNOW, GRADUATION DATES, WHERE THEN THEY'LL HAVE TO ESSENTIALLY APPLY FOR THE EXTENSION IF THEY STILL MEET THE SIZE OF OUR PROGRAM. BUT IF THEY GROW, WHICH WE WANT COMPANIES TO DO, WE'LL, YOU KNOW, MAKE SURE THAT WE CELEBRATE THEM ON THEIR WAY TO THE NEXT STAGE OF GROWTH FOR THEIR COMPANY. ANY OTHER COMMISSIONER BOUCEK, I WAS WONDERING ON SLIDE PAGE NINE, IF YOU COULD JUST EXPLAIN THE THOUGHT PROCESS BEHIND THE DISCOUNT STRUCTURE. I'M WONDERING, WHY ARE WE GIVING 3% TO THE LOWER AND 5% TO THE HIGHER? IT SEEMS LIKE WE WOULD WANT TO BE ENCOURAGING ALL LEVELS, AND PARTICULARLY THE SMALLER LEVELS, MAYBE MORE. SO JUST EXPLAIN THAT THOUGHT PROCESS. SO IT'S KIND OF A BUILD UPON OUR CURRENT MLB UTILIZATION. SO BASED UPON THE DISCOUNT STRUCTURE, COMPANIES WHO RECEIVE OR INVEST OR DO BUSINESS 25,000 TO 75,000 WITH THE MLB WILL RECEIVE A 3%. AND THEN AS WE THEY DO MORE BUSINESS WITH THE MLB, THEIR DISCOUNT GROWS GREATER. SO COMMISSIONER FOR FOR THAT ONE WE WANT TO INCENTIVIZE COMPANIES SPENDING MORE DOLLARS DOING MORE BUSINESS WITH OUR MLB, WHICH IS WHY THE 5% IS GEARED TOWARD THE 150,000 TO 250,000. OKAY, THAT MAKES SENSE. SO THIS IS THE DOLLARS THEY'RE SPENDING VERSUS THE SIZE OF THE BUSINESS. ABSOLUTELY I GOTCHA. AND THEN DO YOU KNOW ROUGHLY HOW MANY MLB E FOLKS WE OR BUSINESSES WE HAVE NOW CERTIFIED 113? OKAY. DO YOU HAVE ANY ESTIMATE OR GUESS AS TO HOW MANY WE COULD HAVE IN THE CITY, LIKE IF WE WERE TO BE ABLE TO ENROLL EVERYONE RIGHT NOW? THAT IS A GREAT QUESTION. LET ME HELP WITH THAT ANSWER 
          [00:40:03]
FOR CONTEXT. SO WHEN WE FIRST STARTED, WHEN I REMEMBER WHEN MR. HILL STARTED, I THINK WE WERE IN 2019, WE HAD 24, 24. SO WE'VE MADE QUITE A LOT OF PROGRESS OVER THE FEW YEARS. SO HOW MANY REMAIN? WE DON'T KNOW. BUT I KNOW WE'VE WE'VE QUADRUPLED OUR PARTICIPATION. 
          ABSOLUTELY. DO YOU KNOW WHAT YEAR WE STARTED THIS WHOLE THING? OH YEAH. WHICH WHICH ONE? THE 24 NUMBER. THAT WAS 2020 1820 1820. THANK YOU. SORRY. AND I WOULD JUST SAY THE SUPPORT ENABLED TO BEING ABLE TO HELP THEM WITH NETWORK STATEMENT HAS REALLY HELPED INCREASE THOSE WHO APPLY. BECAUSE BEFORE WE'LL GIVE THEM SOME RECOMMENDATIONS. BUT THERE'S STILL A COST ASSOCIATED WITH THAT, WHICH IS A CHALLENGE FOR SOME OPERATORS. 
          COMMISSIONER PERDUE, MORNING. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR THOUGHTFUL WORK ON THIS. 
          EXCITED TO SEE OR TO TO HEAR THE COMPREHENSIVE UPDATE OF THE PROGRAM. THREE FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS. I'M STARTING KIND OF AT THE BEGINNING, PAGE FOUR, WHEN YOU FIRST TALK ABOUT THE NET WORTH LETTER THAT CAME UP THE LAST TIME THAT YOU ALL PRESENTED TO THIS BODY. SO HAPPY TO SEE THAT THAT WAS INCLUDED. CAN YOU TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THE CURRENT INFLATION PART OF THAT AND HOW THAT'S CALCULATED? YEAH. SO ESSENTIALLY CONSUMER WHAT IS THE CONSUMER PRICE INFLATION, INFLATION OR CPI. BUT LONG STORY SHORT, INFLATION CALCULATORS THAT WE USE FROM THE EXISTING 242 PUT IN THE YEAR OF THAT WE'RE CURRENTLY IN. 
          AND IT FACTORS IN INFLATION FOR THE CURRENT PERIOD. SO ORIGINALLY, YOU KNOW, IN THE INCEPTION OF THE POLICY AND WHATNOT, IT WAS 242. AND THAT'S HOW WE GOT TO THE 375. NOW WAS CONSIDERING INFLATION FROM THE TIME THAT THE POLICY WAS CREATED. SO ESSENTIALLY, IF IT WAS IF IT WAS $242 AND 2007, WHAT ARE TODAY'S DOLLARS? AND 242 IN TODAY'S DOLLARS? OKAY. 
          NO, NO, IT'S 375 IN TODAY'S DOLLARS. THAT'S THAT WAS THE BASE OF WHEN IT WAS CREATED. 
          375 IN TODAY'S DOLLARS. BUT IF NEXT YEAR, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE ANOTHER 3.5% INCREASE IN INFLATION, THEN IT'LL CONTINUE. IT'LL CONTINUE TO ADJUST. AND WE FACTORED IN INFLATION LANGUAGE SO WE WOULDN'T HAVE TO COME GET IT EXACTLY EACH TIME. VERY THOUGHTFUL OKAY SEVEN. 
          THANK YOU FOR THAT. SEVEN. PAGE SEVEN REVIEWING THE ADMINISTRATIVE GUIDELINES THE NEW BID DISCOUNTS. I'M JUST CURIOUS TO LEARN A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THE INCLUSION OF FRIENDS WITH GRAND RAPIDS PARKS. AND IS THERE AN OPPORTUNITY TO ALSO INCLUDE ACTIVITIES OUTLINED IN OUR OUR CLIMATE, OUR CLIMATE PLAN AS WELL? YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. TO CONNECT THAT HERE. YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. SO. PASS IT OVER TO MY GOOD MORNING ALL TO SPEAK ON THE CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN ENVIRONMENT POLICIES. HOW WE CAME UP WITH THE FRIENDS OF GRAND RAPIDS PARKS WAS THAT THEY HAVE AN URBAN TREE PLANTING PROGRAM. WE WANTED TO INCENTIVIZE BUSINESSES TO WORK WITH, YOU KNOW, TO INCREASE THE TREE CANOPY COVERAGE ACROSS THE CITY. IN OUR. UNIQUE, IN INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS IN UNDER THE CLEAN ENVIRONMENT POLICY, WE ARE PARTNERING WITH THE OFFICE OF. SUSTAINABILITY TO PARTNER UNDER CLEAN UNDER CAP POLICIES. SO WHAT WHAT WE'RE DOING IS THAT IF IF A COMPANY IS IS CREATED, CREATED, CREATED THEIR OWN PROGRAM, WE'RE GOING TO ASK THE OFFICE OF SUSTAINABILITY TO LOOK OVER THEIR PROGRAM AND SEE IF IT FOLLOWS THEIR, THEIR STANDARDS, BECAUSE THEY ARE THE EXPERT IN THAT, IN THAT POLICY. AND IF THEY GIVE THE COMPANY THE THE GREEN LIGHT, THEN THE OFFICE OF EQUITY AND ENGAGEMENT WILL CONCUR WITH THEIR THOUGHTS. SO THE PARTNERSHIP WITH FRIENDS IS MORE ABOUT TREE PLANTING ON THEIR PROPERTY FOR THIS NEW BUSINESS OR THE BUSINESS, OR JUST SUPPORTING THE TREE CANOPY IN GENERAL ACROSS THE CITY, TREE CANOPY IN GENERAL ACROSS ACROSS THE CITY, WITH A SPECIAL FOCUS ON THE NEIGHBORHOODS OF FOCUS. OKAY. THANK YOU. AND THEN ONE FINAL QUESTION OR REALLY EXAMPLE, AN ANALOGY AND THEN QUESTION RELATED TO SOME OF THE CHALLENGES LISTED ON SLIDE EIGHT, PARTICULARLY THE GAPS IN ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT QUALIFICATIONS. I WORKED WITH A GENTLEMAN WHO HAD A CONSTRUCTION COMPANY, HAS BEEN DOING WORK WITH THE CITY FOR YEARS AND WAS WAS HAVING CHALLENGES GETTING GETTING BIDS. BUT WHAT WE FOUND WAS THAT HIS PRE-QUALIFICATION LEVELS HAD NOT BEEN UPDATED SINCE LIKE 2005. RIGHT. SO TALK ABOUT 
          [00:45:01]
INFLATION. AND BY THEN HE HAD DONE CONTRACTS WORTH MULTI MILLIONS OF DOLLARS OUTSIDE OF GRAND RAPIDS. BUT HERE HIS PRE-QUALIFICATION LEVEL IS REALLY LOW. AND SO WE YOU KNOW BY CONNECTING HIM WITH ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT, WE LEARNED A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THEIR PROCESS FOR PRE-QUALIFICATION. BUT I THINK THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE A BIT MORE PROACTIVE IN ASSESSING AND NOTING WHEN A LONG TIME PERIOD WHEN 20 YEARS HAS GONE BY AND WHAT THAT MEANS FOR FOR QUALIFICATION LEVEL. SO I JUST WONDER IF YOU COULD TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT HOW YOU MAY HAVE OR WILL WORK WITH ENGINEERING ON SOME OF THE PRE-QUALIFICATION WORK? SO IF YOU COULD TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT, THAT CHALLENGE, SO WOULD YOU SPOKE TO IS REALLY A GOOD SCENARIO FOR THAT CONTRACTOR, YOU KNOW, ON THE BACK END. BUT RIGHT NOW WITH ENGINEERING THAT UPDATING YOUR PREQUALIFICATION IS AN ANNUAL OR REALLY A PROJECT BY PROJECT OPPORTUNITY THAT'S BUSINESS OWNERS FACILITATE. SO THERE'S NOT A ANNUAL RENEWAL OF PRE-QUALIFICATION. AND WHAT WE UNDERSTAND IS DUE TO THE NUMBER OF FIRMS THAT CURRENTLY ARE PREQUALIFIED, AND THEN ALSO ENSURING THAT PROJECTS ARE ABLE TO DEPLOY ON A TIMELY MANNER. WE DON'T HAVE AN ANNUAL PRE-QUALIFICATION DEADLINE OR RENEWAL PERIOD EACH YEAR FOR COMPANIES, SO THAT IS AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THE COMPANY TO CONTINUOUSLY BE IN TALKS WITH OUR ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT TO SHARE UPDATED INFORMATION. BUT FOR THAT EXAMPLE THAT YOU PROVIDED, THAT IS A, YOU KNOW, A HUGE MISSED OPPORTUNITY JUST FROM, YOU KNOW, NOT HAVING THAT MOST UP TO DATE INFORMATION FOR SURE. RIGHT. AND BUT YOU'RE SAYING THAT IT'LL CONTINUE TO BE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE BUSINESS OWNER TO. YEAH. I CAN'T SPEAK FOR ENGINEERING, BUT RIGHT NOW THE CURRENT PROCESS IS THAT BUSINESS OWNERS MUST UPDATE THEIR PRE-QUALIFICATION AS THEY HAVE NEW PROJECTS, HIGHER DOLLAR PROJECTS, NEW REFERENCES TO ENSURE THAT THEY'RE APPROPRIATELY REPRESENTED UNDER THE PRE-QUALIFICATION PROCESS. IT MIGHT BE A GOOD OPPORTUNITY FOR FOR PARTNERSHIP. THIS PERSON, I THINK, WOULD HAVE QUALIFIED FOR A LOT OF ASPECTS OF YOUR PROGRAM AND IT TRULY WAS A MISSED OPPORTUNITY. BUT I'M SUPER SUPPORTIVE OF THIS DIRECTION YOU'RE GOING. AND THANK YOU ALL AGAIN FOR ALL YOUR HARD WORK ON IT. THANK YOU. SO I HAVE A COUPLE QUESTIONS. 
          IF YOU COULD LOOK AT SLIDE 11 FOR ME, I'M JUST I'M CONFUSED. SO I MUST BE MISSING SOMETHING. 
          YOU THE THE PERCENTAGES THERE ARE TOTAL UP TO 100 AND YOU'RE LOOKING AT 51 PROJECTS. SO I ASSUME THERE'S A NON-ZERO NUMBER OF THEM THAT THAT GOT MLB. MLB THAT GOT THE BID. SO WHEN YOU ADD UP ALL OF THE CATEGORIES HERE, THEY DON'T INCLUDE ANYBODY WHO GOT THE BID. 
          SO THERE WERE 51 PROJECTS IN TOWN. HOW MANY OF THEM GOT THE BID USING THE CURRENT MLB ARCHITECTURE? AND WHERE ARE THEY IN THAT BASKET THAT WE WOULD HAVE TO GRAB THAT INFORMATION? I DON'T HAVE THAT OFFHAND. YEAH, I WOULD SAY WE WOULD HAVE TO GET THAT INFORMATION BACK TO YOU FOR THE NUMBER THAT WAS UTILIZED. WELL, THAT WERE AWARDED A BID, BUT HAD MLB UTILIZATION CORRECT, IS WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR, RIGHT? I MEAN, THE WAY THIS IS LAID OUT, IT LOOKS LIKE NOBODY'S GETTING IT RIGHT NOW AND THAT CAN'T BE THE CASE. SO NEXT QUESTION THEN IS OF PEOPLE WHO GOT OF THE BIDS THAT GOT AWARDED IN THIS PROGRAM. WHAT WERE THE TOTAL VALUE OF THOSE CONTRACTS. SO WE DO HAVE I'M SORRY, WE DO HAVE THAT DATA READILY AVAILABLE, JUST NOT AT THE MOMENT. BUT THAT'S THE ANSWER THAT WE COULD PROVIDE AS SOON AS THIS IS DONE. OKAY. WELL, THE SEVEN PROJECTS THAT YOU SAY COULD HAVE FLIPPED. 
          WHAT WAS THE VALUE OF THOSE PROJECTS? VERY WELL. TOTAL. I MEAN, ESSENTIALLY THE WHERE I'M GETTING AT HERE IS ESSENTIALLY YOU'RE ASKING THE COMMISSION TO SPEND MONEY BECAUSE IF WE GIVE PEOPLE A DISCOUNT, COST OF CONSTRUCTION GO UP BY THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DISCOUNT. 
          SO IF WE GIVE IF WE GO FROM A 5% TO A 10% BID DISCOUNT, WE'RE GOING TO GET A LOT MORE BUSINESSES THAT ARE GOING TO BE THEN ESSENTIALLY GETTING BIDS BY NOT BEING THE LOWEST BIDDER, WHICH MEANS THE CITY IS GOING TO BE SPENDING THE MONEY. THAT'S THE VALUE OF THAT DISCOUNT. SO IF WE'RE GOING TO BE SPENDING $100 MILLION A YEAR ON THIS, THAT WOULD BE NICE TO KNOW. ON THE OTHER HAND, IF WE'RE SPENDING $20,000 A YEAR ON THIS, THAT WOULD BE NICE TO KNOW. LIKE THIS IS A SPENDING DECISION BY THE COMMISSION. AND IF I IF YOU CAN'T TELL ME WHAT THE DOLLAR FIGURES ARE FOR A WHAT WE'RE DOING NOW OR B WHAT YOU'RE MODELING FOR, I MEAN, YOU'VE GOT A HYPOTHETICAL HERE LIKE THESE SEVEN WOULD HAVE GOTTEN IT IF THEY HAD IF WE HAD USED THE 10% DISCOUNT, I DON'T IF I DON'T EVEN KNOW THE VALUE THERE, THEN IT'S TOUGH TO MAKE A FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE DECISION. I UNDERSTAND THE QUESTION, MAYOR. I WOULD SAY THAT THERE'S 
          [00:50:03]
STILL A $200,000 CAP, EVEN WITH THE AMENDMENT THAT'S BEING PROPOSED. SO IF WE WERE TO TAKE THAT AT THE HIGHEST THAT 200 TIMES THE SEVEN, THE SEVEN PROJECTS, THAT'S A MILLION AND A HALF DOLLARS, RIGHT, THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT AT AT THE MAX, WHICH WILL ALLOW US TO DO WHAT WE'VE BEEN SAYING TO THE CITY WE WANT TO DO FOR A LONG TIME, WHICH IS INCREASE OUR MLB UTILIZATION AT A NUMBER THAT I MEAN, IT'S IT'S OVER $1 MILLION. BUT IN THE GRAND SCHEME OF THINGS, IT'S NOT A SUPER LARGE NUMBER COMPARED TO WHAT WE SPEND IN CONSTRUCTION. OKAY. SO IF YOU COULD FIND OUT FOR US WITH THE TOTAL VALUE OF THOSE PROJECTS WOULD BE PARTICULARLY THE SEVEN, BECAUSE YOU SORT OF MODELED OUT THE THE UNIVERSE WITH THESE PROPOSED CHANGES, HOW THAT WOULD HAVE LAID OUT OVER LAST YEAR. NEXT QUESTION THEN IS IN EITHER THE RENEWAL. 
          CURRENTLY, PEOPLE CAN QUALIFY TO BE AN MLB AND THEN RENEW ONCE. SO. SO CURRENTLY THE FIRST RENEWAL IS NINE YEARS. AS LONG AS YOU STILL MEET THE EXTENSION PERIODS. SIZE FOR THE BUSINESS SIZE REQUIREMENTS, YOU COULD RENEW FOR TWO YEARS FOR TWO FIVE YEAR PERIODS. I'M SORRY. SO IT WOULD BE A GRAND TOTAL OF 19 YEARS IF SOMEONE WAS GRANTED TWO EXTENSIONS. 
          OKAY. AND NOW SO HERE'S THE QUESTION. THAT'S FOR COMPANIES THAT STILL FIT THE CRITERIA. SO ESSENTIALLY YOU'RE SORT OF LIKE RENEWING YOUR MORTGAGE OR SOMETHING. WHAT IF IF THE COMPANY GROWS, DO YOU INHERENTLY FALL OUT OF ELIGIBILITY IF YOU GROW? AND IF SO, HAVE YOU GIVEN ANY THOUGHT TO SCALING? BECAUSE I HATE TO SEE AN ON OFF SWITCH. I DON'T LIKE BINARY POLICIES IN ANY ENVIRONMENT. SO IF YOU'VE GOT A COMPANY THAT BARELY QUALIFIED AND THEY'RE DOING GREAT WORK AND WE LOVE THEM AND WE WANT TO SEE THEM GROW. WE'RE TELLING THEM TO GROW AND WE'RE SAYING GROW. NOW YOU'RE OUT OF THE PROGRAM. GROW NOW YOU DON'T GET ANY BENEFIT. IS THERE ANY THOUGHT TO A GRADUATED REDUCTION IN BIDS? I MEAN, LIKE I GET WE'RE VOTING ON SOMETHING NOW TODAY THE QUESTION IS IN THE FUTURE HAVE YOU HAVE THERE'S HAS THERE BEEN ANY NETWORKING AROUND LIKE BABY STEPS FOR GETTING PEOPLE OUT OF THE PROGRAM? IN OTHER WORDS, SAY LIKE, OKAY, YOU GOT OVER OUR NET WORTH REQUIREMENT. SO NOW WE'LL GIVE YOU AN 8% BID DISCOUNT, NOT A 10% DISCOUNT. AND IF YOU GO TO IF YOUR NET WORTH IS HALF A MILLION, WE'LL GIVE YOU A 6% BID DISCOUNT. I JUST I DON'T LIKE PUSHING PEOPLE, PUSHING BABIES OUT OF THE NEST, BABY BIRDS OUT OF THE NEST WHEN THEY I MEAN, IF THEY'RE ALMOST READY TO FLY. YEAH. SO RIGHT NOW. YEAH THAT'S A THAT'S A GOOD POINT. THE SIZE REQUIREMENT TO TO NOT BE ABLE TO BE GRANTED AN EXTENSION IS 50% OF THE SBA STANDARD. SO FOR THIS EXAMPLE, IF THE SBA DEEMS CONCRETE COMPANIES SMALL BUSINESSES AT 20 MILLION, ONCE THEY GROW PAST 10 MILLION, THEN THEY'LL GRADUATE FROM THE PROGRAM, WHICH MEANS THEY'RE NOT MICRO ANYMORE, BUT THEY'RE NOW A SMALL BUSINESS THAT THAT THAT'S LOOKING TO GROW. SO IT IS BASED UPON THEIR NAICS CODE AND THAT DOLLAR AMOUNT THAT IS HANDED DOWN FROM THE SBA. SO IT DOES VARY FOR PER INDUSTRY AND TYPE OF CONTRACT. I GUESS WHAT I'M SAYING IS IF YOU GUYS CAME BACK IN A YEAR AND WERE LIKE, HEY, WE'D LIKE TO SCALE THIS AND BABY STEP PEOPLE OUT OF THE PROGRAM, I WOULD WELCOME THAT DISCUSSION. I MEAN, I GET WE'RE VOTING ON A PARTICULAR POLICY TODAY, BUT AGAIN, IMAGINE YOU'VE GOT A GREAT CONTRACTOR WHO'S DOING GREAT WORK. THEY KNOW THE CITY. THEY KNOW THE PROCESSES. WE'RE HAPPY TO WORK WITH THEM. WE'RE PROUD OF THEM. 
          AND THEN WE'RE ALL OF A SUDDEN LIKE, OH, YOU GOT TO 50% CHAO. I'D WAY RATHER SEE GRADUATED REDUCTION OF BID DISCOUNT FOR COMPANIES AS THEY GREW RATHER THAN SORT OF A BINARY UNDERSTANDING FEEDBACK. THAT'S SOMETHING WE CAN CONSIDER FOR THE FUTURE. THIS PROGRAM IS DESIGNED THE PART WE'RE TALKING ABOUT. THAT PART IS FOR MICRO LOCAL BUSINESSES. IT WASN'T DESIGNED FOR SMALL BUSINESSES, SO WE'VE ALWAYS TIED IT TO THAT. BUT HEARING THAT, WE CAN CONSIDER WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE IN THE FUTURE. YES, THANKS. OKAY. THANK YOU ALL FOR THE DISCUSSION. AND I THINK WE'RE READY TO CALL THE QUESTION. AND JUST TO THROW OUT, BECAUSE I REMEMBER YOU ALL DID THIS PRESENTATION. I JUST COULDN'T REMEMBER WHEN, BUT I FOUND IT. 
          IT WAS IN FEBRUARY THAT YOU ACTUALLY DID THE PRESENTATION THAT SHOWED THE NUMBERS OF DOLLARS THAT HAVE BEEN CAPTURED BY MLB IN THE COMMUNITY, HOW MANY WERE WORKING, HOW MANY INCLUSION PLANS WERE SUBMITTED. YOU TALKED ABOUT THE BONDING PROGRAM AND THOSE THINGS. SO YOU MIGHT WANT TO JUST RESHARE THAT INFORMATION OUT SO THAT EVERYBODY CAN BE REFRESHED ON. 
          THANK YOU COMMISSIONER. WE CAN DEFINITELY GO BACK AND PULL THOSE NUMBERS AGAIN. THANK YOU. 
          ALL RIGHT THEN I THINK WE'RE AT A VOTE. ALL IN FAVOR OF RESOLUTION ALTERING THE BID PROCESSES. SAY AYE. AYE. ALL OPPOSED. MOTION CARRIES. THANK YOU GENTLEMEN. THANK YOU. AND 
          [1. Briefing on the City's Artificial Intelligence (AI) Council and Initiatives]
THAT BRINGS US TO THE END OF OUR RESOLUTIONS AND TO OUR FIRST BRIEFING. I BELIEVE MR. MATTHEWS IS GOING TO BRIEF US ON AI. THE AI CITY'S AI COUNCIL AND INITIATIVES. THE THE OTHER 
          [00:55:03]
DOG IS COMING. OH, I THOUGHT IT WAS STARTED. ALSO, DOUG. WE LIKE TO KEEP IT EASY. SO WE ONLY HIRE PEOPLE NAMED DOUG. SO GOOD MORNING, MAYOR AND COMMISSIONERS. IT'S BEEN A MINUTE SINCE I'VE BRIEFED THIS, THIS COUNCIL. WE HAVE A WHOLE NEW COUNCIL. SO JUST REAL BRIEF. 
          I'M DOUG START. I'M THE IT DIRECTOR FOR THE CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS. I'VE BEEN AN IT PRACTITIONER FOR 25 YEARS. FIRST STARTING OUT AS A TEACHER, TEACHING TECH TOPICS, NETWORKING, PROGRAMING, WEB DESIGN, AND THEN MOVING INTO A DIRECTOR ROLE AS A DIRECTOR OF INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGY, WHERE I FOCUSED ON IMPLEMENTATION AND INTEGRATION OF TECHNOLOGY, AS WELL AS DATA CENTER SUPPORT AND NETWORK SUPPORT. I STARTED HERE WITH THE CITY IN 2017 AS THE IT, THE ENTERPRISE IT MANAGER, AND I'VE BEEN THE DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY SINCE 2019, SO BEEN AROUND A LITTLE BIT, BUT I DO APPRECIATE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO BRIEF YOU ON OUR WORK REGARDING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE HERE IN THE CITY. WELL, AI IS A WIDELY DISCUSSED TOPIC WITH A LOT OF HYPE AND A LOT OF PROMISE. IT HAS BECOME INTEGRAL TO A LOT OF OUR TECHNOLOGY CONVERSATIONS TODAY. MANY OF YOU HAVE LIKELY SEEN HEADLINES LIKE THESE ABOUT AI'S POTENTIAL IMPACT STORIES, PREDICTING THAT AI WILL REPLACE HUMANS AT SKYNET IS IMMINENT, THAT THE MACHINES WILL TAKE OVER OUR JOBS AND OUR LIVES. AND WHILE SOME OF THESE HEADLINES REFLECT, REFLECT, SPECULATION AND HYPE, OTHERS ARE ALREADY BECOMING A REALITY HERE, RIGHT HERE IN THE CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS, ACRISURE RECENTLY ANNOUNCED A LAYOFF OF 400 EMPLOYEES, HALF OF THOSE LOCAL. 
          AS IT AUTOMATES ACCOUNTING FUNCTIONS USING AI. YOU MAY HAVE ALSO SEEN HEADLINES LIKE THESE SUGGESTING THAT AI IS EXPERIENCING A BUBBLE COMPARABLE TO THE.COM CRASH OF THE EARLY 2000. THERE ARE CONCERNS ABOUT OVERINVESTMENT IN AI AND ITS FRAMEWORKS, WITH SUBSTANTIAL HYPE BUT LIMITED TANGIBLE OUTCOMES. A NOTABLE STATISTIC FROM A RECENT MIT REPORT, WHICH ANALYZED 300 PUBLIC DEPLOYMENTS OF AI AND CONDUCTED 150 EXECUTIVE INTERVIEWS INVOLVING 30 TO $40 BILLION IN INVESTMENTS, REVEALED THAT 95% OF THOSE AI PILOTS FAILED TO SCALE OR INTEGRATE INTO EXISTING WORKFLOWS. THIS SIGNIFICANT PERCENTAGE HIGHLIGHTS OUR CURRENT DILEMMA SORTING OUT WHAT IS HOPE, WHAT IS PROMISE, AND WHAT IS REALITY WHEN IT COMES TO AI'S CAPABILITIES. AS WE PROCEED AS A CITY, IT WILL BE IMPORTANT TO BE STRATEGIC AND INTENTIONAL ABOUT OUR IMPLEMENTATION OF AI. SO TODAY, WHAT I'D LIKE TO TALK WITH YOU ABOUT IS THE WORK THAT WE HAVE DONE AROUND AI. DISCUSS A BIT ABOUT HOW OUR DEPARTMENTS ARE ALREADY ENGAGED WITH AI. AND THOSE THAT ARE EXPLORING AI POWERED SOLUTIONS, AND THEN ALSO TALK ABOUT OUR NEWLY FORMED COUNCIL ON AI. SO ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE REPRESENTS A SIGNIFICANT TECHNOLOGICAL SHIFT, NOT A NEW CONCEPT. MACHINE LEARNING HAS BEEN AROUND IN SOME WAY, SHAPE OR FORM SINCE THE 1950S. RECENT ADVANCEMENTS IN ALGORITHMS, MOST NOTABLY WITH THE RELEASE OF CHATGPT IN 2022, HAVE BROUGHT AI BACK INTO THE FOCUS. SO WHY AI AND WHY NOW? ONE DRIVER IS THAT AI IS CURRENTLY TRANSFORMING BUSINESS OPERATIONS. OUR PERSONAL INTERACTIONS WITH BUSINESSES, AND OUR PERSONAL INTERACTIONS WITH TECHNOLOGY IN GENERAL. ON A DAY TO DAY BASIS. THIS TRANSFORMATION IS ALSO ALTERING EXPECTATIONS FOR HOW CITIES DELIVER SERVICES TO THEIR CITIZENS. AND THE SECOND DRIVER IS THE CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS HAS CONSISTENTLY VIEWED TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENTS AS ESSENTIAL FOR PROVIDING QUALITY SERVICES. THE DEPARTMENT'S COMMITMENT TO USING TECHNOLOGY TO ENHANCE SERVICES CONTRIBUTES TO THE CITY'S LEADERSHIP AND SERVICE DELIVERY, AND IT HAS ALSO PUSHED AI ADOPTION FORWARD HERE IN THE CITY. WHEN IMPLEMENTED APPROPRIATELY, AI CAN BE A VERY USEFUL TOOL. SO THE DISCUSSION ON ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IS NOT NEW HERE IN THE CITY. CONVERSATIONS BEGAN IN 2022 WITH THE RELEASE OF CHATGPT, OUR IT LEADERSHIP GROUP CONVENED TO DISCUSS THE TOPIC OF AI AND ITS POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS WITHIN THE CITY. TWO PRIMARY THEMES EMERGED FROM THOSE DISCUSSIONS. FIRST IS THE NEED FOR INTENTIONALITY, AND SECOND WAS THE NECESSITY OF GOVERNANCE. FIRSTLY, ANY IMPLEMENTATION OF AI HAD TO BE DELIBERATE. IT COULD NOT BE A CASE OF UNCOORDINATED ADOPTION OF VARIOUS AI TOOLS BY DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS WITHOUT CONSIDERING SECURITY. 
          CONTINUITY OF SERVICES OR COORDINATED USE. SECONDLY, THERE NEEDED TO BE GOVERNANCE 
          [01:00:06]
SURROUNDING THE USE OF AI, AND THIS INCLUDED ESTABLISHING GUIDELINES THAT PROMOTED RESPONSIBLE AND SAFE ENGAGEMENT WITH AI WHILE ENCOURAGING ITS USE RATHER THAN SIMPLY PROHIBITING CERTAIN ACTIONS. IN 2024, ADMINISTRATIVE POLICY 2401 WAS PRESENTED AND SUBSEQUENTLY ADOPTED BY THE CITY MANAGER. THE IT LEADERSHIP GROUP'S COLLABORATIVE EFFORT RESULTED IN A WELL RECEIVED POLICY. OVER THE PAST FEW MONTHS, I'VE HAD THE PLEASURE OF PRESENTING THIS POLICY TO GROUPS AROUND THE STATE, AND IT HAS GARNERED POSITIVE FEEDBACK FROM OTHERS WHO ARE ALSO ON THIS AI GOVERNANCE JOURNEY. OUR POLICY HIGHLIGHTS SEVERAL KEY COMPONENTS AND JUST REAL QUICK. FIRST AND FOREMOST, IT ALIGNS WITH THE CITY'S CORE VALUES, IN PARTICULAR TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY, WHICH ARE CRUCIAL IN THE CONTEXT OF AI. 
          SECONDLY, IT PROVIDES GUIDANCE FOR SPECIFIC USE CASES FROM GENERIC INQUIRIES TO FULL AUTOMATION. FOR INSTANCE, IT DETAILS CONSIDERATIONS STAFF SHOULD TAKE WHEN USING GENERATIVE AI TOOLS LIKE COPILOT FOR NON-SENSITIVE QUERIES, QUERIES THAT DON'T INVOLVE CITY DATA OR CITIZEN DATA, AS WELL AS THE PROTOCOLS LIKE HUMAN IN THE LOOP PRINCIPLES. FOR MORE COMPLEX SCENARIOS INVOLVING DATA SECURITY AND HUMAN OVERSIGHT. 
          ADDITIONALLY, THE POLICY EMPHASIZES ETHICAL PRINCIPLES, RECOGNIZING THAT DATA ANALYSIS REQUIRES CONTEXT AND REASONING BEYOND AI'S CURRENT CAPABILITIES, IT ENCOURAGES STAFF TO CONSIDER THE ETHICS AND EQUITY OF THEIR DATA SOURCES. AND LASTLY, AS A PUBLIC INSTITUTION, THE POLICY REINFORCES THE IMPORTANCE OF DATA SHARING AND TRANSPARENCY, ENSURING THAT INSIGHTS GAINED THROUGH THE USE OF AI ARE PUBLICLY SHARED WHENEVER, WHENEVER POSSIBLE. OVERALL, ADMINISTRATIVE POLICY 2401 IS A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE FOR THE RESPONSIBLE AND EFFECTIVE USE OF AI IN THE CITY, BALANCING INNOVATION AND SAFETY AND ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS. OFTEN WHEN WE THINK ABOUT ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, WE ENVISION A SINGULAR SYSTEM LIKE COPILOT. HOWEVER, AI'S TRANSPORTATION TRANSFORMATIONAL POTENTIAL LIES IN OUR CONTRACTORS AND VENDORS, ENHANCING THEIR CURRENT TOOLS AND SOLUTIONS TO INCORPORATE AI FEATURES. MANY CITY DEPARTMENTS ALREADY USE THIRD PARTY AI POWERED TOOLS. EXAMPLES INCLUDE OUR CYBERSECURITY PROGRAM FOR NETWORK PROTECTION, GENERATIVE AI FOR DOCUMENT CREATION, SUMMARIZING IMAGE CREATION, COUNTERPOINT, CONSIDERATIONS, AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE. FOIA PROCESSING AND REDACTION TO EXPEDITE REQUESTS, ROUTE OPTIMIZATION FOR VEHICLE DISPATCH. PREDICTIVE STAFFING ANALYSIS. VIDEO ANALYSIS OF SEWER INSPECTIONS FOR FOR FLAWS AND DAMAGE, AND AUTOMATED INCOME TAX. DOCUMENT SCANNING TO ELIMINATE MANUAL ENTRY. 
          THESE ARE. THESE APPLICATIONS DEMONSTRATE HOW THE HOW DEPARTMENTS ARE CURRENTLY USING AI HERE WITHIN THE CITY. WE HAVE VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS WITHIN THE CITY THAT ARE STRATEGIZING AND PREPARING TO ENGAGE AT THE APPROPRIATE TIME IN AREAS SUCH AS AUTOMATED TRANSCRIPTION, LEGAL RESEARCH RECORDS AND POLICY MANAGEMENT. AGENTIC, AI CHAT BOTS AND GEOSPATIAL IMAGERY FOR PLANNING. THESE DEPARTMENTS ARE ACTIVELY MONITORING AND OBSERVING THE DEVELOPMENT OF THESE TOOLS AND THEIR POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS. SO THE NEXT STEP IN THE CITY'S PLAN IS TO FORM AN INTERNAL COUNCIL ON AI. THIS COUNCIL, REQUESTED BY THE CITY MANAGER, WILL INCLUDE DECISION MAKERS FROM DEPARTMENTS AROUND THE CITY, AS WELL AS 1 OR 2 ADVISORS FROM UNIVERSITIES WHO ARE LEADING IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF USE OF THE USE OF AI. ITS PURPOSE IS TO CREATE A ROADMAP FOR AI INVESTMENTS. BASED ON NEEDS, PAIN POINTS OR ADVANCEMENTS IN THE FIELD OF AI. THE COUNCIL ADVISED THE CITY MANAGER ON WHERE TO ALLOCATE RESOURCES, CONSIDERING COSTS, SUPPORT AND UPSKILLING REQUIREMENTS. THE NEWLY FORMED COUNCIL WILL WORK TOGETHER TO DEVELOP THE AI OR THE CITY'S AI SMART STRATEGY. SO WHAT IS AN AI SMART STRATEGY? AN AI SMART STRATEGY INVOLVES IMPLEMENTING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, WHERE IT IS APPROPRIATE AND ALIGNS WITH OUR CORE VALUES, NOT SIMPLY ENGAGING AI. TO SAY WE'VE ENGAGED WITH AI. OUR AI SMART STRATEGY WOULD SERVE AS A COMPREHENSIVE FRAMEWORK THAT GUIDES HOW THE CITY ADOPTS, INTEGRATES, AND GOVERNS AI TO ACHIEVE ITS GOALS EFFECTIVELY AND RESPONSIBLY. THE KEY ELEMENTS OF THIS FRAMEWORK ARE ENSURING THAT IT IS STRATEGIC, THAT IT IS SCALABLE, THAT IT'S ETHICAL AND ALIGNED WITH OUR OBJECTIVES. AS THIS COUNCIL CONVENES AND FORMS ITS STRATEGY AND FRAMEWORK FOR ACTION, WE'LL FOCUS ON A FEW KEY AREAS LISTED 
          [01:05:04]
HERE. THESE AREAS INCLUDE DEVELOPING ORGANIZATIONAL OBJECTIVES AROUND AI, IDENTIFYING HIGH IMPACT USE CASES, AND ESTABLISHING A ROBUST DATA STRATEGY. WE RECOGNIZE THAT THE EFFECTIVE USE OF AI DEPENDS ON ACCESS TO QUALITY DATA. MERELY POINTING IT AT THE INTERNET YIELDS BOTH ACTIONABLE RESULTS AND A RELEVANT CONTENT. THEREFORE, IDENTIFYING GOLD STANDARDS FOR DATA ANALYSIS IS CRUCIAL. ADDITIONALLY, WE'LL RECOMMEND UPSKILLING AND RESKILLING INITIATIVES FOR OUR ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND HR DEPARTMENTS TO ENSURE THAT OUR STAFF REMAINS AT THE FOREFRONT OF SERVICE DELIVERY, AND THIS GROUP WILL ALSO EXAMINE WAYS TO GUARANTEE ETHICAL AI USAGE AND EVOLVE THE GOVERNANCE THAT WAS ESTABLISHED IN 2401. OUR INITIAL POLICY WAS AN EARLY ATTEMPT THAT MUST ADAPT AS THE TECHNOLOGY ADVANCES, AND CONSIDERING RECENT HEADLINES INDICATING A LACK OF SIGNIFICANT OR RELIABLE RETURN ON INVESTMENT WITH AI, WE'LL DEVELOP A FRAMEWORK FOR MEASURING OPERATIONAL SUCCESS. THIS WILL ENABLE DEPARTMENTS TO IMPLEMENT AI STRATEGIES, EFFECTIVELY MEASURE THEIR SUCCESS, AND REPORT OUTCOMES. ASSESSING OUR ROI IS VITAL IS A VITAL COMPONENT OF THIS COUNCIL'S WORK. AND FINALLY, WE MUST MONITOR THE SUSTAINABILITY IMPACT OF AI AS ONE OF OUR CORE VALUES IS SUSTAINABILITY. IT IS ESSENTIAL TO UNDERSTAND THE ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS OF EXPANDING DATA CENTERS AND INCREASED AI PROCESSING DEMANDS. 
          SO IN SUMMARY, THE CITY IS WELL POSITIONED TO ADOPT AI DUE TO ITS CULTURE FOR USING TECHNOLOGY FOR EFFECTIVE SERVICES. AS AN ORGANIZATION, WE'VE LAID OUT A SOLID FOUNDATION WITH GOVERNANCE AND INFORMING AN INTERNAL GROUP TO HELP US DEVELOP A ROADMAP. THAT IS ALL FOR TODAY, AND I'M OPEN TO ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONER. THANKS. 
          THANKS SO MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION. I'VE BEEN CONTINUING TO BE CAUTIOUS AND PRUDENT ABOUT OUR USE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE. I THINK IT'S A NICE WEIGHING OF WHAT IT CAN DO FOR THE CITY, BUT I ALSO THINK REAL PEOPLE CAN DO A LOT FOR THE CITY. SO THIS IS NICE TO HEAR ABOUT THE COUNCIL, BUT I'M REQUESTING FOR THE CITY MANAGER AND FOR ALL OF THOSE INVOLVED, A BENCHMARKING OF SORTS OF TO SEE HOW MUCH WE ARE USING OF THIS TOOL COMPARED TO CITIES OF OUR SIZE OR OTHER FOLKS WITHIN THE NATION, AND THEN ALSO FOR THE PUBLIC AND OUR STUDENT STUDENTS IN THE AUDIENCE TODAY. CAN YOU REVIEW TWO? LET'S ALL ASK YOU IF YOU KNOW OF TWO OF THE MOST PRIMARY CHALLENGES THAT AI POSES TO OUR ENVIRONMENT, TWO OF THE MOST AS FAR AS FROM A SUSTAINABILITY IMPACT? AGAIN, THE DATA CENTERS REQUIRE A HUGE AMOUNT OF PROCESSING AND THAT AMOUNT OF PROCESSING CREATES HEAT. AND SO WATER IS THE PRIMARY WAY TO COOL THOSE DATA CENTERS. AND TYPICALLY IT IS TAPPED FROM GROUNDWATER. WATER ALONE IS NOT SUFFICIENT. AND SO THINGS ARE ADDED TO THE WATER TO HELP IT CONDUCT HEAT OUT. AND SO A LOT OF TIMES THAT GROUNDWATER IS IS EITHER RETURNED IN A NON-CLEAN STATE OR IS NOT ABLE TO BE RETURNED TO THE GROUND. AND SO YOU'VE SEEN AREAS WHERE DATA CENTERS HAVE GONE IN, TAPPED INTO AQUIFERS, AND THE SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES HAVE DRIED UP, WELLS HAVE DRIED UP AND THINGS. AND I THINK THAT'S ONE OF THE BIGGEST, ONE OF THE BIGGEST, AT LEAST FROM A SUSTAINABILITY STANDPOINT THAT I CAN SEE. YEAH, DISPLACEMENT OF WATER. AND THEN COULD YOU SPEAK TO ALSO THE EXTREME USE OF ENERGY TAPPING INTO OUR POWER, AND COULD YOU SPEAK TO THAT? AGAIN, THE LARGE DEMAND FOR POWER OR FOR PROCESSING DEMANDS A LOT OF ENERGY. AND SO THEY ARE PRIMARILY LOOKING FOR, FOR WAYS TO PLACE THOSE DATA CENTERS IN AREAS WHERE, WHERE THEY CAN TAP INTO THE GRID. BUT AGAIN, IT'S ONE OF THOSE INCREASING STRAINS ON, ON AN ALREADY STRAINED ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, RIGHT? AS FAR AS PRODUCING POWER FOR A LOT OF OUR ELECTRIFIED. I GUESS WE'LL SAY PROJECTS, RIGHT, WHETHER IT BE VEHICLES, CARS, HOMES, THINGS LIKE THAT. BUT A LOT OF THE THE ELECTRIFICATION OF TRADITIONALLY FOSSIL FUEL POWERED ITEMS, ON TOP OF THE INCREASED USE OF DATA CENTERS. YEAH. AND WE ALREADY HAVE ONE KENT COUNTY RIGHT AT THE OLD STEELCASE FOR DATA CENTER. AND I JUST DON'T THINK WE HAVE ENOUGH SAFEGUARDS. AND I KNOW SOME OF THAT IS AT THE STATE LEVEL. I DID A PRESS CONFERENCE. 
          I RECENTLY WORKED WITH WEST MICHIGAN ENVIRONMENTAL ACTION COUNCIL, AND NOW I'M WITH THE MICHIGAN ENVIRONMENTAL COUNCIL DOING ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE ADVOCACY AT THE STATE LEVEL. SO CERTAINLY INTERESTED TO SEE HOW WE ACTUALLY QUANTIFY THIS. SO WE SAY EVALUATE. I'M HOPING THERE CAN ACTUALLY BE SOME NUMBERS. ONCE AGAIN WHAT IS A BENCHMARK. WHAT IS OUR USE LOOK LIKE COMPARED TO OTHER CITIES. HOW MUCH ENERGY ARE WE USING WITH THESE AI SERVICES AND WHAT 
          [01:10:01]
IS THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT FOR THE REGION ON HOW MUCH WATER WE'RE USING FOR THAT? I'M HOPING TO SEE THIS GOING FORWARD OR I WILL CONTINUE TO OR MAYBE INCREASE MY OPPOSITION TO THESE INTEGRATED SERVICES. SO THANKS AGAIN, MAYOR. IF I COULD THANK YOU, COMMISSIONER, FOR THAT COMMENT. LET ME AGAIN JUST PUT THIS IN CONTEXT FOR THE COMMISSION AND THE PUBLIC. 
          WE HAVE VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES IN THE COMMUNITY ON THIS DAIS. YOU'VE HEARD FROM COMMISSIONER KILGORE ABOUT SOME OF THE CONCERNS, AND I'VE HEARD FROM SOME OF THE OTHER COMMISSIONERS HERE ABOUT ACCELERATING THE USES EXPONENTIALLY BEYOND WHAT WE ARE CURRENTLY DOING. SO THIS APPROACH THAT I ASKED TO BE PUT ON THE AGENDA TODAY IS OUR MEASURED APPROACH, OUR VERY WELL THOUGHT THROUGH APPROACH. WE AS YOU'VE SEEN, WE'VE BEEN THINKING AND DOING THIS FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS NOW AND HAVE BEEN INTENTIONAL WHERE THERE ARE ISSUES LIKE IN THREE, ONE, ONE WHERE WE CAN IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF SERVICES AS WELL AS INCREASE EFFICIENCIES. WE ARE MEASURED AND WE'RE NOT JUST GOING AROUND TELLING EVERY DEPARTMENT, AUTOMATE EVERYTHING POSSIBLE WITHOUT REGARD TO ANY IMPACT, COSTS, ETC. SO I DON'T WANT TO RAISE EXPECTATIONS OF NOW THAT WE ARE GOING TO EITHER BE ACCELERATING SOMETHING OR NOW WE HAVE THIS, YOU KNOW, THIS BECOMES A PROJECT WHERE WE'RE UBIQUITOUSLY MEASURING EVERYTHING WE DO AGAINST EVERY OTHER MUNICIPALITY THAT I DON'T WANT TO WALK AWAY WITH UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS. THE COUNCIL IS GOING TO MEET WITH INTERNAL EXPERTS. WE'RE GOING TO HAVE WELL-INFORMED EXPERTS FROM ACADEMIA. AND THE REASON WHY WE HAVE DONE THAT, BECAUSE SOME OF YOU HAVE ASKED FOR ME TO GO GET PEOPLE FROM THE PRIVATE SECTOR, WHICH MAY HAVE A VESTED INTEREST IN ACCELERATING PRODUCT OR TECHNOLOGY. SO WE'RE NOT TRYING TO MAKE THIS A PROFIT CENTER FOR ANYONE. AND SO THE REASON WHY WE WANT THE UNIVERSITY EXPERTISE IS TO BE OBJECTIVE. 
          AND I TRUST THE PARTNERS THAT WE'VE TALKED TO, LOCAL INSTITUTIONS WILL HELP US DO THIS IN A VERY INFORMED WAY. AND AS WE GET THAT, WE WILL WE WILL KEEP THE COMMISSION UPDATED. BUT I WANT YOU TO TO KNOW THERE ARE VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES ON THIS, AND I APPRECIATE, COMMISSIONER KILLGORE, FOR BEING VERY CANDID UPFRONT ABOUT HIS OTHERS. OF YOU HAVE NOT BEEN AS PUBLIC IN THAT. SO THAT SO I DON'T WANT TO MAKE IT SEEM LIKE THIS IS A STAFF INITIATIVE TO OVER UTILIZE. THE POLICE CHIEF IS HE'S HE'S ONE OF THE ONES THAT WAS THE MOST SENSITIVE. HE SAID ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND POLICING IS A VERY SENSITIVE TOPIC. AND THE POLICE DEPARTMENT WANTS TO BE VERY CAUTIOUS IN DOING THAT. SO I WANT THE PUBLIC TO KNOW WE HAVE BEEN RESPONSIBLY LOOKING AT THIS, AND I EVEN HESITATED IN HAVING THIS, BUT BECAUSE I'VE HAD SO MANY VARIOUS DISCUSSIONS AND IT IS PART OF OUR FOCUS SERIES, WE JUST WANT TO LET THE COMMISSION KNOW THAT WE ARE BEING VERY CAUTIOUS IN MOVING FORWARD. MAYOR. THANKS. YEP. IF I MAY, THANK YOU. THANK YOU, CITY MANAGER, FOR THAT. BUT, YOU KNOW, WE PASSED OUR CLIMATE ACTION ADAPTATION PLAN, SO I DON'T THINK IT'S UNREALISTIC. 
          I'M TRYING TO MAKE SURE WE'RE IN LINE WITH A RATHER PROGRESSIVE, WELL THOUGHT OUT, CITY INFORMED, RESIDENT INFORMED PLAN. AND THE USE THAT WE SEE. THIS IS WHY I WANT ACTUAL STATS NUMBERS FOR THE COMMUNITY TO MAKE SURE WE'RE NOT AN OPPOSITION TO THIS WELL THOUGHT OUT, COMMUNITY CENTERED PLAN THAT WE JUST RECENTLY PASSED. SO THAT'S THE HOPE, RIGHT? I'M NOT JUST SAYING, OH, WELL, LET'S START, YOU KNOW, GETTING MORE DATA JUST TO MAKE MORE FOLKS DO WORK, BUT IN HOPES THAT WE ARE IN LINE WITH THE CLIMATE ACTION ADAPTATION PLAN, OUR CHIEF SUSTAINABILITY OFFICER WILL BE ON THE COUNCIL, AND WE'LL MAKE SURE THAT THAT IS AT THE FOREFRONT OF MOST OF OUR DISCUSSIONS. WONDERFUL. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANKS FOR THE BRIEFING. IT LOOKS LIKE WE'VE GOT SOME COMMENTS. COMMISSIONER PURDUE SECOND HAND FIRST. OKAY. THANK YOU MAYOR. GOOD MORNING. STILL. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE PRESENTATION. 
          YOU KNOW WHAT I SOME TAKEAWAYS THAT I HEARD DURING THIS PRESENTATION. AND I THINK ONE OF THE STRENGTHS OF OUR EXISTING POLICY IS THAT IT IS WRITTEN TO ALIGN WITH OUR VALUES. AND IT HAS STRONG PRIVACY CONCERNS WRITTEN INTO IT AND OVERSIGHT. BUT IT ALSO TALKS ABOUT PROHIBITING BIAS. AND BY THEIR NATURE AND HOW THEY'RE CREATED. THESE SYSTEMS DO HAVE BIAS BUILT IN. SO I WANT TO FLAG THAT, THAT THOUGH OUR USERS MIGHT NOT BE ENTERING THAT INTO THE SYSTEM, WHAT THEY'RE GETTING BACK FROM THE SYSTEM WILL LIKELY BE LACED WITH BIAS. AND SO ANOTHER REASON TO TO TRAIN UP THE HUMAN PART OF THE INTERACTION AND USE OF, OF THESE SYSTEMS. SO THAT'S THAT'S FIRST I ALSO I WANT TO TALK ABOUT KIND OF SIMILAR TO COMMISSIONER KILLGORE AROUND WHAT WE MEASURE AND WITHOUT CLEAR METRICS, THIS IDEA OF 
          [01:15:03]
WHAT IS ETHICAL USE MAY BECOME MORE SYMBOLIC THAN MEASURABLE. AND SO WOULD LOVE KIND OF IN THAT SAME THING TO THINK ABOUT HOW DO WE MEASURE THE SUCCESS OF THE USE, THE EFFICIENCY, THE ACCURACY, THE USER SATISFACTION, THE DATA QUALITY? I THINK THOSE ARE REALLY IMPORTANT METRICS TO SIGNAL HOW SUCCESSFUL OUR USE IS AND HOW IT HOW WELL IT IS ALIGNED TO BEST PRACTICES. AND THEN FINALLY, I DON'T THINK YOU TOUCHED ON THIS AND I DON'T THINK WE'RE HERE YET IS WHAT I'M WHAT I, WHAT I'M ASSUMING. BUT I'D LIKE YOU TO TO JUST CLARIFY, I'M WONDERING IF WE HAVE CURRENTLY OR ANY PLANS TO HAVE RESIDENT FACING TOOLS. SO FOR EXAMPLE, I ACTUALLY WOULD LOVE TO SEE THIS INTEGRATED IN 311, SOME SORT OF PUBLIC DASHBOARD OR EVEN INTERNALLY. 
          HOW DO HOW CAN WE ANALYZE ALL THE DATA THAT WE GET FROM THREE, ONE, ONE TO EVEN MORE EFFECTIVELY LOOK FOR PATTERNS TO, TO BETTER OUR, OUR SERVICE DELIVERY. SO MY QUESTION TO YOU IS IS THERE A RESIDENT FACING ARE THERE ANY AI RESIDENT FACING AI USES CURRENTLY FROM THE CITY? NOT THAT I'M AWARE OF. I KNOW THAT THERE THERE. THERE'S A LOT OF PLANNING GOING ON IN THREE AND ONE. AGAIN, NOT TO SPEAK FOR YOU, LOU OR ANGELA, BUT I BELIEVE THAT THEY ARE IN THAT THAT PLANNING STAGE. I KNOW AS WE GET DEEPER INTO AI BEING INTEGRATED IN SEARCH. SO I'M NOT SURE ABOUT OUR WEBSITE USAGE IF IT IS AI POWERED AS FAR AS SEARCH ON OUR WEBSITE OR NOT. OKAY, THOSE WOULD BE THE ONLY TWO AREAS THAT I WOULD KNOW THAT WOULD BE PUBLIC FACING. YEP. WELL, LET ME ALSO ADD THAT I WISH OUR TREASURER WAS HERE BECAUSE AS OFTEN AS HE CAN, HE TOUTS THE EFFICIENCIES THROUGH GRPD. AND AND ONE OF THE THINGS I THINK WE NEED TO KEEP FOCUSED ON IS NOT JUST THE DIRECT SUPPORTED TOOLS OF THE CITY, IT'S WHAT ARE OUR OTHER VENDORS OFFER, AND MANY OF THEM ARE PUBLIC FACING. AND THERE MAY BE OTHER WAYS THAT WE DON'T MEASURE THEIR UTILIZATION OF IT THAT HAS IMPACT. BUT HE HAS TOUTED SOME OF THE EFFICIENCIES THROUGH GRPD AS WELL. AND I CERTAINLY WANT TO THANK YOU FOR I THINK THE FRAMEWORK IS ENTIRELY APPROPRIATE. I THINK WE ARE AT A WE MAY BE AT A, YOU KNOW, TRANSITION FROM HORSE AND BUGGY TO CARS, SO TO SPEAK, AND WE CAN SAY, OH MY GOSH, WE REALLY LIKE HORSES AND BUGGIES. 
          AND, YOU KNOW, THEY USE LESS ENERGY AND MAYBE THEY USE MORE WATER THAN CARS. BUT, YOU KNOW, THIS IS CLEARLY COMING IN THE WORLD. AND SO I WE ABSOLUTELY OWE IT TO OUR TAXPAYERS TO BE ABLE TO HAVE A THOUGHTFUL DISCUSSION ABOUT HOW WE CAN ALWAYS ABOUT HOW WE CAN PROVIDE SERVICES BETTER. AND COMMISSIONER PURDUE, YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. LIKE THREE IS AN OBVIOUS PLACE TO TO START LOOKING. AND AS FAR AS I CAN SEE, AS VERY GOOD AT AGGREGATING PATTERNS AND BEING ABLE TO. AND IT CAN HELP US WITH PLANNING. I MEAN, I USED IT THE OTHER DAY, I ASKED IT, YOU KNOW, I ASKED IT TO GIVE ME A MODEL FOR SOME STREET WORK, AND IT CAME UP WITH A COST PER MILE TO DO SOME STUFF AND, AND SUGGESTED SOME PLACES TO DO IT. 
          AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT WHERE THE CONVERSATION STOPPED STOPS, BUT IT CERTAINLY IS A IS A GOOD THING TO PRIME DISCUSSION AND HELP US ALL GET BETTER AT OUR JOBS AND I THINK POTENTIALLY HELP THE CITY GET BETTER. ITS JOBS. SO BUT AT THE SAME TIME, YEAH, WE ANYTIME THERE'S A BIG CHANGE, YOU HAVE TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO HANDLE THAT BIG CHANGE. AND I THINK IT'S A FAIR, FAIR TO SAY THAT THE CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS IS NOT GOING TO STOP AI HAPPENING. THE QUESTION IS GOING TO BE, HOW DO WE ENGAGE IN THIS SPACE? BECAUSE IT'S HERE. THAT'S JUST THE REALITY. 
          AND SO HOW THE CITY USES IT, WHETHER WE USE IT WELL OR POORLY. AND FRANKLY, OUR I DON'T THINK OUR BENCHMARKS SHOULD JUST BE OUR POINTS OF COMPARISON, OUR OTHER CITIES. 
          OUR POINT OF COMPARISON IS HOW IS THIS BEING USED WELL IN THE WORLD. AND SO, YOU KNOW, IF AMAZON'S USING IT REALLY WELL TO HELP ME FIND SNEAKERS, MAYBE 311 CAN USE IT REALLY WELL TO HELP ME, TO POINT ME TO WHICH DEPARTMENT I SHOULD BE TALKING TO ABOUT THE TREE IN MY FRONT YARD THAT JUST FELL DOWN. I MEAN, THERE ARE THERE ARE LOTS OF POSSIBILITIES AND I WANT TO OVERSTATE THEM, BUT THIS IS EXACTLY WHY I THINK IT'S GREAT TO HAVE A PLANNING COMMITTEE. 
          AND I LOVE AND AGAIN, CITY MANAGER, YOU KNOW, KUDOS TO WHOEVER WAS INVOLVED IN GETTING THE ACADEMICS INVOLVED, BECAUSE I THINK THAT'S GOING TO BE OUR BEST SHOT AT A DISINTERESTED, NOT PROFIT SEEKING OUTSIDE OF THE CITY GROUP OF EXPERTS WHO CAN SAY, WELL, YOU KNOW, THERE'S, YOU KNOW, ACADEMICS THINK ABOUT THINGS LIKE MORAL HAZARDS AND THE BIAS AND ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF ALL THE TIME. AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WORRIES ME ABOUT THIS SPACE IS THAT SOME OF THE EARLY PROPONENTS OF AI STOP TALKING ABOUT ETHICS PRETTY DRAMATICALLY, AND WE DON'T WANT TO STOP TALKING ABOUT ETHICS, BECAUSE, YES, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT'S GOING TO AFFECT ALL HUMANS ON PLANET EARTH, NOT JUST IN TERMS OF WHETHER IT 
          [01:20:01]
TAKES THEIR JOB, BUT, YOU KNOW, THE IMPLICATIONS FOR FULL ROLLOUT OF AI OR SOMETHING WE'RE ALL GOING TO HAVE TO PAY ATTENTION TO BECAUSE IT GOES ETHICALLY, WAY, WAY BEYOND THE IMPLICATIONS OF DOES IT HELP ME CODE FASTER OR, YOU KNOW, DOES IT HELP ME FIND THE NEAREST BUS STOP? YOU KNOW, THERE ARE THERE ARE BIG, BIG IMPLICATIONS HERE. AND SO HAVING A GROUP OF PEOPLE WHO ARE PAYING ATTENTION TO THIS ON BEHALF OF THE CITY AND ON BEHALF OF OUR RESIDENTS IS REALLY, REALLY KEY. SO THANK YOU FOR PUTTING THIS TOGETHER. THANK YOU AGAIN. I'M SORRY, COMMISSIONER, GO AHEAD. JUST TO FINISH OUR KIND OF MY SENTIMENTS, I, I THINK WE DO NEED TO EMBRACE AI, BUT IN A VERY MEASURED, RESPONSIBLE, WELL THOUGHT OUT WAY. SO ALSO LIKE THAT WE HAVE THIS KIND OF INTERSECTIONAL COUNCIL ALONG WITH OUR EXPERTISE HERE, AND DO HOPE THAT IT CAN HELP US PROVIDE BETTER SERVICES UPFRONT, THAT WE DO HAVE SOME PUBLIC TRANSPARENCY ABOUT WHERE WE ARE USING AI TOOLS INTERNALLY AND EXTERNALLY AND HAVING THOSE CLEAR METRICS. AND WE ALSO HAVE TO BE MINDFUL OF HOW THAT'S IMPACTING THE CONTEXT AND THE ECONOMY WITHIN THE CITY. WE JUST SAW ONE OF OUR LARGEST EMPLOYERS LAY OFF HUNDREDS OF FOLKS BECAUSE THEY FOUND NEW EFFICIENCIES THROUGH THE USE OF AI. AND SO IT IS GOING TO DRASTICALLY SHIFT HOW WE WORK, WHERE WE WORK, WHO'S PREPARED FOR THOSE JOBS. AND SO I DO THINK, THOUGH, THAT'S NOT THE CORE WORK OF THE CITY DAY IN AND DAY OUT IN TERMS OF BASIC, ESSENTIAL SERVICES, IT IS GOING TO IMPACT OUR LOCAL ECONOMY AND OUR COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE AND SHOULD BE INCLUDED IN HOW ALL DEPARTMENTS THINK ABOUT OUR WORK GOING FORWARD. YEAH, AND JUST TO MAKE A COMMENT, I VERY MUCH APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENT AND THE MAYOR'S COMMENT AROUND DATA. I THINK REGARDLESS OF THE PUBLIC FACING OUTPUT, THE INTENTIONALITY ABOUT LOOKING AT QUALITY DATA SOURCES AND WHERE OUR DATA SOURCES LIE, WE'D ALL LOVE TO HAVE NO BIAS BUTTON THAT WE COULD JUST CHECK, BUT AGAIN, WE KNOW IT RELIES ON CONTEXT, RIGHT? HISTORICAL CONTEXT, PRESENT DAY CONTEXT. THERE'S A LOT OF THAT. AND HAVING OUR, OUR, OUR DEPARTMENT LEADERS BE FOCUSED ON THAT DATA STRATEGY, I THINK WILL HELP. EVEN IF IT DOESN'T COME OUT IN AN AI. IT HELPS US BETTER WITH INSIGHTS HERE WITHIN THE CITY TO HELP US. CAN YOU CREATE LIKE A CLOSED ENVIRONMENT WHERE, LET'S SAY ENGINEERING IS ONLY PULLING FROM LIKE THOSE CERTIFIED LIKE INDUSTRIES, ENGINEERING LEADERS? SO IT'S NOT JUST LIKE GOOGLE. YES, THAT'S WHAT THAT'S WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IS CREATING DATA LAKES AND DATA WAREHOUSES HERE WITHIN THE CITY THAT WE CAN RELY ON, BUT WILL ALLOW INTERSECTIONALITY BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS, DATA TO ALLOW THAT THAT KIND OF CROSS-REFERENCING OF OF HOW PERHAPS ROAD CONDITIONS OR ROAD DESIGN MIGHT IMPACT THINGS LIKE PUBLIC SAFETY AND THINGS LIKE THAT. SO BUILDING OUT THOSE DATA SOURCES TO HELP WEED OUT WHAT MAY NATURALLY CONTAIN BIAS OR WHAT MAY NATURALLY CONTAIN BAD DATA. ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU. SO. AND I GUESS I ALSO AM GLAD TO HEAR, I ASSUME THAT I MEAN THIS THIS IS A GROUP THAT OUGHT TO HAVE THE CAPACITY TO LOOK AT, AGAIN, SOMETHING I DON'T KNOW OFFHAND, BUT PRESUMABLY DIFFERENT COMPANIES IN THE SPACE ARE GOING TO BE DIFFERENT, HAVE DIFFERENT POLICIES REGARDING WATER. SO IF YOU'RE FRACKING AND PRODUCING TOXIC WATER THAT CAN'T BE USED FOR ANYTHING ELSE, AND YOU REALLY ARE DESTROYING WATER IN SOME SENSE. ON THE OTHER HAND, IF YOU'RE STICKING A STRAW INTO A WELL AND JUST RUNNING IT THROUGH A RADIATOR AND PUTTING IT OUT THE OTHER END, AND IT'S AS CLEAN WHEN IT COMES OUT AS WHEN IT GOES IN, THAT'S A VERY DIFFERENT USE OF WATER. IT'S NOT A CONSUMPTION OF WATER AT ALL, IT'S JUST SIMPLY USING IT AS A HEAT SINK. SO THOSE ARE THE KINDS OF THINGS I THINK COMMISSIONER KILGORE CAN HELP, HELP KEEP TRACK OF TO PERHAPS COMMISSIONER. YES. THANK YOU MAYOR. SO IF WE MAKE CAN WE REVIEW CITY MANAGER AND YOU AS WELL, IF YOU HAVE THE ANSWER TO THAT OF THE THE MAKEUP OF THE COUNCIL. SO I SEE DEPARTMENTAL DECISION MAKERS, 1 TO 2 EXTERNAL VOLUNTEER ADVISORS FROM LOCAL UNIVERSITIES. THIS SOUNDS VERY HIGH LEVEL, HIGH DOLLAR EARNER FOLKS. LIKE WE SAID, WE'VE GOT EVERYDAY REGULAR RESIDENTS AND NEIGHBORS GETTING LAID OFF FROM THESE TYPES OF TOOLS. SO I'M WONDERING IF IF THERE'S ANY POINT WHERE THE AVERAGE NEIGHBOR WHO WE SERVE CAN BE A PART OF THIS WORK, OR IS IT ONLY GOING TO BE MORE HIGH LEVEL DEPARTMENT AND PROBABLY RATHER BUILT OUT FOLKS FROM UNIVERSITIES? YEAH, THANKS FOR THAT QUESTION. WE DID TALK ABOUT THAT. SO THIS IS OUR INITIAL STEP IS INTERNALLY FOCUSED WITH I THINK ABOUT 10 OR 12 DEPARTMENTS OR SO. AND IT'S UP TO WHO THE DIRECTORS ASSIGNED. SO IT'S NOT NECESSARILY WE'RE PUTTING ALL THE SENIOR ELECTED OFFICIALS THERE, TECHNOLOGISTS IN EACH DEPARTMENT THAT HAVE THE EXPERTISE TO BE ON THE COUNCIL. AND AS AS I SAID EARLIER WITH I 
          [01:25:03]
ACADEMIC PARTNERS, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THERE MAY BE NEED TO, ON OCCASION, HAVE OTHER PEOPLE PARTICIPATE IN THE COUNCIL MEETING, WHICH COULD BE MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY, WHICH COULD BE BUSINESSES, RESIDENTS COULD BE OTHER EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS OR GROUP, BUT THAT WOULD BE PART OF THE SCHEDULE. AND SO AS WE START AGAIN, THIS IS THIS IS INCEPTION. IT IS VERY INTERNALLY FOCUSED NOW. AND BASED ON THE TOPIC, WE MAY ADD, PEOPLE HAVE PEOPLE COME BEFORE THE COUNCIL. THANK YOU SO MUCH. THANKS. AND JUST AGAIN TO HIGHLIGHT THIS, THIS DOESN'T PREEMPT OUR DEPARTMENT'S COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT WORK. THIS IS SIMPLY TO PROVIDE THAT ROADMAP. OUR DEPARTMENTS WILL STILL ENGAGE WITH THE COMMUNITY AS THEY ROLL OUT THEIR PROJECTS AND IMPLEMENT THEIR PROJECTS. COMMISSIONER BOUCEK YEAH, THANK YOU EVERYONE, AND THANK YOU FOR THIS PRESENTATION. THANK YOU FOR THE VERY ROBUST DISCUSSION. I APPRECIATE THE COMMENTS THAT HAVE BEEN MADE HERE. I THINK AT THIS TIME, I JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT IT MAY BE MISSED IN THIS WHOLE CONVERSATION, THAT THE FACT THAT WE HAVE THIS COUNCIL BEING FORMED INTERNALLY IS ACTUALLY A BEST PRACTICE IN THE INDUSTRY. SO WE ARE DOING SOMETHING THAT IS ALREADY AT A VERY HIGH LEVEL, HAVING THE POLICY THAT WAS ALREADY INITIATED. BY THE WAY, WHEN WAS THE COUNCIL FORMED? IT'S LIKE BRAND NEW, RIGHT? IT'S BRAND NEW. I MEAN, WE WE HAVE WE HAVE EMAILS OUT, WE'VE GOTTEN COMMITMENTS FROM SOME WAITING ON OTHERS. THAT'S WHY I HAVEN'T. 
          THAT'S WHY I DIDN'T PROVIDE A LIST. WE'LL GIVE AN UPDATE. SO WHEN WE WERE AT THE MICHIGAN MUNICIPAL LEAGUE CONFERENCE THIS SEPTEMBER, WE THERE WAS A DISCUSSION ABOUT AI AND GOVERNANCE. AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WAS TALKED ABOUT REALLY WAS THIS IDEA THAT WE NEED TO HAVE AN INTERNAL COUNCIL THAT'S GUIDING THE PRACTICE AND DEVELOPMENT OF THIS AND BEING VERY THOUGHTFUL AND INTENTIONAL. SO I JUST WANT TO HIGHLIGHT THAT BECAUSE IT COULD GET MISSED, LIKE WE'RE DOING THE PART OF IT. BUT I THINK IT'S VERY GOOD TO BE REMEMBERING THAT WE ARE WHO'S INVOLVED IN THAT CONVERSATION DOES MATTER AS IT EVOLVES. AND I'VE BEEN TO SEVERAL DIFFERENT SEMINARS AND THINGS ABOUT AI RECENTLY, INCLUDING AI IN THE FUTURE OF THE WORKFORCE, AI, AND HOW WE'RE USING IT IN GOVERNING AND WHAT. AND I'VE BEEN IN QUASI EARLY ADOPTER, I GUESS, WITH CHATGPT, BUT I WANT PEOPLE TO REMEMBER THAT IT'S NOT JUST CHATGPT, IT'S A WHOLE SLEW OF TOOLS. AND FOR ME, THE IMPACT IS REALLY ABOUT THE HUMAN IN THE LOOP BEST PRACTICES. SO IF YOU WANT TO TALK A LITTLE MORE ABOUT THAT, JUST BRIEFLY, AND, YOU KNOW, FOR THE YOUNG PEOPLE WHO ARE HERE, BUT ALSO FOR ANYONE IN GENERAL AND US AS A CITY STAFF, MOST CRITICAL SKILL SET, NO MATTER WHAT KIND OF AI WE HAVE, IS GOING TO BE BEING ABLE TO THINK, BEING ABLE TO ASK REALLY HIGHLY CALIBRATED QUESTIONS, BEING ABLE TO JUDGE WHETHER THE INFORMATION IS ACCURATE, WORTHY, SHOULD IT BE REPEATED, SHOULD, AND THEN TESTING. IF YOU'RE DEALING WITH GENERATIVE AI TO BE ASKING IT, CAN YOU GIVE ME THE COUNTERPOINT? CAN YOU GIVE ME THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STORY? CAN YOU GOT TO ASK THE QUESTIONS DIFFERENTLY, BOTH ON WHAT YOU'RE TRYING TO FIND AND THEN ALSO WHAT YOU MIGHT NOT BE TRYING TO FIND. SO I GUESS I'LL LEAVE THAT THERE, BECAUSE I THINK THAT'S WHERE OUR BIGGEST SKILL GAP IS GOING TO BE. AND SO HOW DO YOU SEE HUMAN IN THE LOOP AND WHAT THAT MEANS? PEOPLE MIGHT NOT KNOW WHAT THAT TERM MEANS. SURE. YEAH. HUMAN IN THE LOOP PRINCIPLES GOES BACK TO AGAIN. WE USE THE TERM AI TODAY. BUT AI IS JUST ADVANCED MACHINE LEARNING RIGHT. 
          THE ALGORITHMS ALGORITHMS ARE IMPROVED. SO HUMAN IN THE LOOP GOES BACK TO MACHINE LEARNING. 
          AND AS HAVING INTENTIONAL FEEDBACK LOOPS AND INTENTIONAL STEPS WHERE THE HUMANS ARE DOING QUALITY CONTROL AND QUALITY ASSURANCE ON WHAT THAT THAT OUTCOME IS. SO IF YOU IMAGINE PARTS COMING OFF A LINE, HOW OFTEN ARE WE TESTING THOSE PARTS UP AGAINST WHAT THE MACHINE IS TELLING US MIGHT BE A FLAWED PART. SO AGAIN, HERE, AS WE USE AI AND IT'S REALLY MORE AROUND FULL AUTOMATION, WHEN WE BEGIN TO REMOVE PEOPLE FROM PROCESSES, HOW ARE WE HOW ARE WE ASSURING THAT WE'RE GETTING THE END OUTCOME THAT WE HAD INTENDED? AND SO THAT REALLY DOES SHIFT THE FOCUS FROM WHAT MIGHT BE CONSIDERED MORE ROUTINE INTO WHAT MIGHT BE MORE CRITICAL THINKING. AND I THINK YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. THIS HIGHLIGHTS AND REALLY FOR ME, FREEING UP OUR DEPARTMENTAL EXPERTS FROM DOING WHAT MIGHT BE ROUTINE TO FOCUS TRULY ON THE SKILLS THAT THEY HAVE IN THEIR IN THEIR PARTICULAR AREAS IS PRESENT IN THOSE HUMAN IN THE LOOP PRINCIPLES. SO HOW DO WE GET THOSE EXPERTS DIRECTLY CONNECTED WITH THE TOUGHER PROBLEMS, THE TOUGHEST PROBLEMS, THE MOST AT NEED CONSUMERS? AND REALLY LOOKING AT AND DOING THE ANALYSIS OF OUR DATA, NOT NECESSARILY THE ROUTINE PROCESSING OF IT. SO YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT. CRITICAL THINKING, NOT JUST ASSUMING RIGHT, SKEPTICAL USE IS WHAT WE IS IS WHAT WE CALL IT. NOT JUST ASSUMING THAT THAT IT'S THERE BUT THAT IT'S VERIFIED. DOES THAT HELP ANSWER. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR ON BEHALF OF EVERYBODY WHO WILL BE INTERESTED IN THIS TOPIC. ABSOLUTELY. THANKS. OKAY. I THINK THAT WRAPS IT UP I WILL. 
          [01:30:02]
OH ALL RIGHT, I YOU, MAYOR, REQUEST THAT WE MOVE INTO CLOSED SESSION FOR WE HAVE ONE 
          [2. Update on City Attorney Selection Process]
MORE ITEM. MAYOR. DO WE THE CITY ATTORNEY SELECTION PROCESS. OH, THAT LOOKS OKAY. GOT SO EXCITED ABOUT THAT DISCUSSION. IT'S FELT LIKE THE END. SO YEAH. UPDATE ON THE CITY ATTORNEY PROCESS IF WE COULD. SO GOOD MORNING MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSIONERS. THIS SERVES AS AN UPDATE REGARDING OUR CITY ATTORNEY SELECTION PROCESS. THE HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENT HAS BEGUN THE PROCESS OF IDENTIFYING A SEARCH FIRM THAT WILL LEAD THE TALENT, ATTRACTION AND SELECTION PROCESS FOR YOUR NEXT CITY ATTORNEY. WE'VE ISSUED AN RFP, AND THE DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS OCTOBER 22ND. SOME OF THE SELECTED FIRMS RESPONSIBILITIES WILL INCLUDE STAKEHOLDER INPUT, THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE JOB PROFILE, THE RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION PROCESS, AND PROVIDING A PROPOSED TIMELINE FOR THE ENTIRE PROCESS. WE ANTICIPATE RECOMMENDING A FIRM FOR THE COMMISSION'S CONSIDERATION IN NOVEMBER FOLLOWING SELECTION, THE OVERALL SEARCH PROCESS FROM KICKOFF TO FINAL CANDIDATE RECOMMENDATION IS EXPECTED TO TAKE 4 TO 5 MONTHS, AND THE HR DEPARTMENT WILL ACT AS THE PRINCIPAL LIAISON WITH THE SEARCH FIRM. THANK YOU. YEAH, THAT'S IMPORTANT TO KEEP THE PUBLIC INVOLVED AND INFORMED ON THIS, BUT WE'RE ALL PRETTY ENGAGED IN THIS. SO THANKS FOR THE THANKS FOR THE UPDATE AND I HOPE EVERYONE FAST FORWARDS, BACK OR FAST FORWARDS TO THIS OR BACK TO IT OR WHATEVER. SO THAT SO THAT WE CAN HAVE GOOD PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT AS WE GO FORWARD WHEN THAT'S WHEN THAT HAPPENS. THANKS. THANK YOU. OKAY. NOW I THINK WE'RE ADJOURNED EXCEPT CLOSED SESSION. SO THERE'S BEEN A REQUEST FROM CITY ATTORNEY TO HAVE US MOVE IN CLOSED SESSION TO DISCUSS ONGOING LITIGATION AND OTHER MATTERS AND ASK FOR A MOTION. 
          SO MOVED. SUPPORT. OKAY, MADAM CLERK. COMMISSIONER. YES. YES, COMMISSIONER. KILGORE. YES, COMMISSIONER. YES, COMMISSIONER. ROBBINS. YES, MAYOR. LEGRANDE. YES. AND THAT WILL BE IN ROO
* This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.