City Council - Regular Meeting

No. It's not. My count my iPad's wrong. Friday. Friday, May 22, 03:13PM. Wanna welcome everyone to the special meeting today. Wanna give a special shout out to councilman Wally for being here. It is his wedding anniversary today. So it's already a volunteer job, but happy anniversary to you and your much, much, much, much, much better half.

Thank you very much. I I got lucky and found a beautiful lady with low standards.

And That's right.

Yeah. And I apologize for my tardiness. Sorry. I'm very Thank

you for being here. We also have doctor Charles Ranclave is is on Zoom, and then councilwoman Brennan is literally in the sky. I think this might be the only meeting she's ever not been able to attend, so we'll we'll get her up to speed through staff. But like every meeting, we'll start with an invocation. Councilman Duberle has offered to do that for us.

Councilman? Yeah. Thank you, mister mayor. Should I add it something for Suzanne? Happy anniversary, Chris. If you bow your heads, please. Heavenly father, we thank you for the opportunity to gather today in service to our community and to the great state of Texas. We ask for your wisdom and guidance for all who have chosen the path of public service. We ask that you grant them clarity in decision making, humility in leadership, and a steadfast commitment to justice, integrity, and the rule of law. Thank you.

Amen. Let's stand for the pledges. Honor the Texas flag, I pledge allegiance to thee, Texas, one state under God, one and indivisible. So we're gonna move into persons to be heard. I'll just briefly state, we all believe the natatorium is a cherished community amenity, and that's why we're here today.

As a city, we're at the end of a twenty five year lease agreement with the school district. And so there's two reasons for our for our meeting. One, first and foremost, wanna hear feedback, from y'all that took the time out of of your schedule to be here today and those who are watching and and and have will continue to write in. And then the second is we've gotta consult with our city attorney on what next steps could look like. And so we'll go have persons to be heard right now, and then we'll break into executive session, which when you're consulting with your city attorney, that's a closed meeting.

But the first and most important part is that we're here to listen to you today. And so we'll go ahead and start with persons to be heard. It's a time for the public to address the city council on any subject. However, the Texas Open Meetings Act prohibits the city council from discussing issues, which the public has not been given three business days notice. Issues raised may be referred to staff for research and possible future action. Each speaker has three minutes on the list here. Nice job, Kelly. It's all populated on the screen. I'm gonna mess up this name probably. We have Chinmay Bide. If you wouldn't mind stepping forward, name and address for the record.

So my name is Chinmay Bide. I'm I'm a resident at 5683 Meadow Drive in Keller. So good afternoon. My name is Chunmabhirde, and I have been a resident of Keller since 2015. First of all, I would like to thank the Mayor and the Council for the outstanding work at the Keller Sports Park.

My son participates in Keller Soccer Association and family has directly benefited from those outstanding facilities. I think it also demonstrates what can be achieved when the city and residents work together towards a shared goal. So I respectfully submit that we have a similar opportunity to support the improvement of Keller's swimming facilities through partnership with Keller ISD, thereby providing students and residents high quality natatorium. As Mayor McMullen said during his campaign, great schools make great communities, and I agree. And I believe that that principle remains true today.

The excellence of the Keller ISD is one of the primary reasons many families, including my own, chose to move to Keller from California. So continued support for the Keller ISD also helps sustain Keller's reputation, attracts prospective homebuyers, protects property values and tax revenues. So I again respectfully urge the Mayor to do everything possible within your authority to support the Keller ISD in maintaining and improving the natatorium. So thank you for your time and consideration.

Thank you, sir. Next up, we have Tom Cypress. Mister Cypress, thanks for being here. Name and address for the record.

Thank you. My name is Tom Cyprus. Address is 6217 Cedarsage Trail in Argyle. So I'm here on behalf of Lakeside Aquatic Club. Thanks for having us.

Basically, LAC would like to propose would be some time to sit down, come up with a plan between Lakeside Aquatic Club, the city of Keller and Keller ISD. The current plan that's been in place with the pool, obviously, is not working. During the past twenty three years or twenty five years it's been opened, they've operated at a deficit of more than $5,000,000. Now we found out that there's the additional $2,000,000 expense coming up with the HVAC system and the filter. This building, excuse me, serves over 600 competitive swimmers.

Several district programs including swimming, water polo, diving, swim lessons, safety education, adaptive and inclusive programs. There's not one single entity who can save this facility. It has to be a a shared responsibility between the three entities, Keller ISD, City of Keller, and and Lakeside Aquatic Club. All parties will accept some risk. All parties can receive some benefits.

LAC has put almost 1 or just over $1,000,000 into the facility in terms of rent, revenue generation programs that have been paid to Keller ISD over the last three years. Currently, the most critical need is the filter system. That needs to be replaced. It's cracked and leaking in its custom built filter system. The HVAC system that's also on that 2,100,000 agenda is needed, but could be scheduled later.

We're losing revenue and time in facility due to the filters. So, if we could find a time to sit down and come up with a plan, we we are working on a three part, or three pronged approach to having the building up and running and and not losing as much money as it does every year, kind of sharing that responsibility. And, we just would appreciate you all's time. Thank you very much. Thank you, sir.

Mister Cyprus, if you don't mind sticking around, even when we're exec, if the council has questions, we could we might call you in, if that's alright. Thank you. And, we have mister Tate Floyd. Welcome, sir. Thanks for being here. Name and address for the record.

My name is Tate Floyd, and I live at 1303 Lindsay Drive. First off, I just wanna say thank you for your time, city council and Mary McMullen. My family has lived in Keller since 2009 and has been a part of the Lakeside Aquatics Club since 2009. LAC has over six fifty swimmers. They serve on a monthly basis at the natatorium, including swim team and swim lessons.

These swimmers span the entire district in not just one area. This facility serves the entire district, which is not something many other facilities in Keller ISD can say. My older brother and I each started swim lessons when we were four years old in the enclosed safety platforms at the Natatorium, and continued swim lessons through stroke club and then advanced to swim team. I'm currently on the LAC senior prep team. My brother was on the senior team and was also a Keller ISD lifeguard, which I hope to be too.

When he was a lifeguard, he served many children. Every year, all Keller ISD elementary schools bring their students to the natatorium. Thousands of children have been served in the waterproof kids safety classes. Like I stated, I swim for LAC, and our club is part of the natatorium swim family. So many opportunities are available at the natatorium.

Club swim and dive practice, high school swim and dive practices, swim and dive meets, triathlons, water aerobics, lifeguard certifications, swim lessons, dive lessons, waterproof kids safety field trips, and the list goes on. Please partner with KISD to repair the natatorium. Funding the pool saves lives. Funding the pool provides opportunities for Keller State titles and records, which lead to scholarships and college futures. Funding the pool allows for many jobs, and funding the pool funds the community and swimming toddlers, children, teens, adults, and so many more.

I love the Keller Natatorium. Almost every day or night, sometimes both, my family has been a part of the Keller ISD Natatorium swim family. On behalf of my fellow swimmers, please partner with KISD to fund the repairs so we can get back to our home in the water, the Keller ISD Natatorium. Thank you.

And Tate, how old are

you? 13.

You're 13 years old. You're on the senior prep team?

Yes.

That's excellent. Where do go to school?

Homeschool. Homeschool? Yeah. The natatorium is, like, one of two opportunities I have to socialize.

Excellent. Excellent. Well, thanks for being here today. Great job. Great job.

Alright. Next up, we have Rustin Floyd. I'll just say I wouldn't wanna follow that act. Good luck.

I I credit his mother, really. So I would too. Smart man. My name is Rustin Floyd. I we're at 1303 Lindsay Drive here in Keller. And I would just say from the mouth of babes. Right? We we opened the meeting with prayer, and it's it's pretty powerful to see the youth that the program generates. It's it's one thing to for them to come and swim and to do well athletically, but it's much more than that. The natatorium generates or develops youth with goals.

They learn how to power through difficult days and set goals and achieve and to lead, and there there's so many things that that the natatorium helps to to build within our youth, not just good swimmers. You know, we we're grateful for for your service, for your leadership as as city council and city council members. We are grateful for your partnership with KSD and and with LAC to to get us back in the water again. We all recognize this is an important thing for our community, for for the citizens of Keller. And, we, again, just really appreciate your your efforts and your time to make this right and to get us back.

As soon as we leave this meeting, we'll be driving an hour to Justin's so we can get him in the pool. I know a lot of the members of LAC are swimming in HOA pools, and they're swimming in Southlake, and they're they're displaced. We've we've got swimmers all over all over the metroplex. But we we really appreciate your efforts to get them back here and kill her where where they belong. Well, thank you.

Thank you, mister Floyd. It's actually a good time, for me to briefly say I really wanna go on record and thank the Hidden Lakes HOA for opening up a lot of pool time. Our folks at the Keller Point have opened up their doors in the facility. Also, Carroll ISD has done a great job of trying to accommodate. So I want to say that. Next up, we have Ashley Wallace. Good afternoon. Name and address for the record.

Ashley Wallace, Keller, Texas. Good afternoon, mayor and members of Keller City Council. Thank you for your leadership and for your continued engagement with the KISD natatorium. I appreciate the city's coordination with Keller ISD and community partners like Carol ISD and the HOAs, as well as you calling this special meeting today. As as counsel evaluates next steps, I respectfully ask that you consider a partnership with Keller ISD, hope they too will come to the table here, on the auditorium's ongoing annual costs.

I recognize that the city's participation would need to be structured carefully with clear expectations around access, cost sharing, and long term stability, and while balancing all of the city's many other priorities. While the facility serves families beyond Keller, that regional draw is its strength for you, much like the Keller Sports Park. These types of amenities evaluate elevate Keller's profile and attract visitors and contribute to the quality of life that residents like myself value. The natatorium aligns with the with Keller's identity as Texas' most family friendly city, particularly its commitment to youth sports and active families. It supports swim, dive, and water polo programs, as well as essential water safety skills, and serves approximately 700 youth who rely on the facility multiple times each week.

Beyond those programs, Senatorium contributes the local economy. Its central location supports consistent traffic to nearby businesses as families regularly visit restaurants, coffee shops, and other local establishments before and after practice. Meets hosted by organizations like LAC also bring visitors from our surrounding communities, further supporting local businesses and contributing to sales tax activity. Multi day and early morning events can also drive additional overnight stays. At Tuesday's meeting, the city manager joked, don't ever leave Keller.

And while I got a laugh, it also struck me because that message reflects something very real. Amenities like this are a part of what keeps families here and engaged in this community. I could talk about the accolades, the amazing youth that the program produces, the speakers at the Keller ISD meeting. It was really great to hear them. My daughter's a swimmer, and I thought, man, if these are the kind of kids she's going to hang out with long term, this is the program for us. But I really appreciate you guys coming to the table, and I appreciate your leadership and as you move forward in these discussions.

Thank you, miss Wallace. Next up, Jamie Dowell. Welcome. Name and address for the record.

Sure. It's Jamie Dowell. I live at 1820 Forest Bend Lane in Keller. First of all, congratulations to the new city council members. Looking at the names up here, I can say I have proudly voted for each and every one of you. So I'm hoping that that trust will pay.

Even that guy?

Yes. Even him.

Wow.

I know. Everyone. Kudos. I have a good record. We've heard a lot about how the pool serves us largely a community. In my household, my son is swimming for the sunfish every summer, but unfortunately won't get to do that this summer. My daughter started swimming at the natatorium back when it was the barracudas, and she now swims for LAC and Keller High School. She was also supposed to work for Keller Sunfish, her first job this summer, so she's missing out on that too. She wanted to here today but this is in the middle practice, I think you'd have a lot more swimmers here, but she did want me to come here today and speak. These kids aren't looking for shiny new locker rooms and upgrades, they just want a functioning pool as soon as possible.

I understand and appreciate everyone's desire to make the natatorium efficient long term. I do believe that strategic discussions and negotiations can continue while repairs are actively moving forward because time does matter. When the natatorium closed before school let out, my daughter was getting up at about 4AM every single morning to go to practice. I had three girls meet at my house last Wednesday morning at 04:15AM departure so I could drive them to the WAC because they didn't feel comfortable making that drive. We'll get through the summer with the different pool adjustments, but when school starts up in the in the fall, it's just not safe and it's not sustainable for these kids to do that every day with a school day following.

These kids are paying for the price for a building that probably wasn't well maintained, and in doing so, we're not surprised that the natatorium needs repairs. I think we're just surprised how long the the repairs are gonna take to get it done. I do appreciate that the city recognizes the seriousness of the issue and is working towards a solution. We are all grateful for that, but I'm asking you, please move as quickly as possible. For these athletes, time is just not an inconvenience. It directly affects their training, their opportunities, and their future. Thank you.

Thank you. All right. Next up, we have Saurabh B. Thank you for being here, sir. Name and address for the record?

My name is, Saurabh B. I live at 1313 Shropshire Court, Keller. Dear Mayor and City Council, congratulations on the recent win. So many familiar names. I don't think I've seen most of you. Usually, I'm

one

of those folks who's typically silent, but, you know, this particular situation compelled me to essentially show up and have my voice heard. I've been a resident here for the past ten years or so, and over this period of time, I've watched my, daughter grow from a baby to now a confident young girl, and this is this is one of the activities where she derives a lot of joy. So as a father, I was compelled to show up and speak on her behalf. As, dear mayor, you pointed out, this is, the natatorium, has been a cherished tradition. Right?

Instead of watching TV or spend time over a device, I've seen my kid spend time in a valuable activity, which I feel will really help her in the long run. I feel it's a non impact sport, and over a period of time, this is where my kid learned to swim and now compete. She's moved, as one of the other parents said, from the sunfish group over to red, black, bronze, and finally now to the silver group. I'm hoping over a period of time, she will compete and she will rise. Through this program and partnership between the city, the ISD, as well as LAC, she's learned team spirit, friendship, and competing in the right way.

As you know, a lot of local, state, and national champions have emanated from this program. As you know, in due course of time, as our kids grow up, college applications also depend on holistic criteria. It's not just academics, it's sports, co curricular activities. Swimming, I feel, in due course of time, will play a pivotal part in that as well. I view this to be an investment in our kids' futures.

Right now, as one of the other parents stated, we are going to Justin and Plough Mound. I'll conclude by saying, I respectfully urge you to consider this investment in our kids' future. Thank you so much for listening to me today. Take care. Thank you, sir.

All right. Next up, Van Lun Rizal. Thank you for being here.

Vandalin Roselle, 2230 Union Church Road here in Keller. When I wrote this, I didn't know that the city owned this building, which makes it even worse now. So here's my biggest complaint right this minute is, here we are, the Friday before a holiday weekend, we get this notice for a Thousand Bear Creek Parkway. I didn't even know what that was, I had to look it up. And I see it's the natatorium, and then I start researching and calling my friends.

Well, there's repairs that need to be done. And I'm thinking, we just dropped $48,000,000 on a freaking sports park out here for kids, and some splash pad, and now they want more money. No. Absolutely not. I understand if we own that building, we renew the lease, but the the school district pays for those repairs. Do not take our city money. You won't even buy the pickleballs for the seniors at the Keller Senior Center, and you wanna give more money to these kids. I'm sorry. I want it stopped. Don't do it.

For crying out loud, we've spent enough on the kids. Rent the bad thing back to the school district. They've got plenty of money. I looked up our property taxes for the school before I came here, and I fell over. They're awful. They're mismanaging the money from right over here. They've been doing it for a long time, and now they are asking for money. No. Let them repair it if they want a natatorium. That is not the city of Keller's responsibility. Thank you.

Alright. Thank you. Next up, Frank Rosol.

Frank Rossell, 2230 Union Church Road. Keller, I wanna welcome the new council. I see that some of the new council people aren't here. But, anyway, I also wanna talk about my hat. This is not a military hat.

It's a 250 year anniversary hat for United States. And I hope that, Keller does that celebration properly and big. And I really hope that you do drones rather than firecrackers at a thousand dollars a minute. So but, anyway, because of your promotion, Ross, I wanted to give you a hat, just like mine. Only I had carried black. This was red. Great promotion.

Thank you, sir.

And if anybody talks to a woman, they know that red is power. So you're gonna have the power as mayor. All I say is don't abuse that power.

Yes, sir.

Now you're starting out on a legacy of your own. By the way, the rest of you guys can buy your own hats. You're starting out a legacy on your own. Whatever's happened in the past, that legacy goes with the mayor. Okay? Even though you're a participant. So what is your legacy gonna be? That's what you're gonna have to think about. And the way this meeting was arranged, all kinds of speculation hit. What was happening?

Who why are they doing this on a holiday at 03:00? It just could have been approached a lot better. And on the survey that we had, it says public input, more public input. I checked that off. We need more public we need to be more open.

We need to be able to get information that can be printed on the Keller Connect, which I have it on my my my iPhone. But the way this thing was arranged, it just could've been done better. I've been a real estate broker for thirty years, more than that probably. But there's one cardinal rule in in real estate. A lease stands on its own.

You go exactly by the words and the agreement on a lease. You don't alter it. That's the reason you have the lease. If you start slightly deviating from it, it ends up in lawsuits, and I've been there. So whatever the lease says on the school district, you need to abide by even though it's on holdover.

I'm sure on the lease, it takes care of that. But the school district has been historically bad and managed money, and they don't know the difference between a luxury and necessity. And when you can't afford a luxury or you can't afford the necessities, then you get rid of the luxury. I would heavily think about the city since you own it, selling that sucker, getting some revenue out of it. And, because it's a twenty five year old building, you're gonna have roof repairs, all kinds of stuff that you can't anticipate.

I guarantee you, the estimate for the repair that they're going to do, I understand from this gentleman back there, there was a spring underneath the pool, water underneath the pool, that, is gonna keep that stuff from ship will be shifting forever, if that's true. Dump it. Get rid of it. Let's does KISD find some other place to swim? There's plenty of places.

I'm sure they're in better shape. And let them make a deal with some other entity, maybe Fort Worth, but Fort Worth never really helps us out on anything. So I'm saying stick by the lees. If you're gonna do anything, sell it. If they can't afford it, they shouldn't be trying to get other people to pay their debt.

I spent $7,000 of my tax bill and gave it to Keller. I mean, excuse me, to KISD. $1,000 went to the city of Keller. You know, that's kind of disproportionate unless you all want to give the thousand dollars to the KISD too. I mean, they got a budget, stick within it. Just because we're frugal and they're not, we shouldn't have to subsidize their poor management. Understood. You're close, sir.

Thank you, sir. Appreciate it. That's that we have on our list. Is there anyone else who wanted to speak during persons to be heard? Alright. If you don't mind, coming on up. Name and address for the record.

I apologize that I didn't sign up. My name is Dominica Corbin, and I live at 1224 Baller Street in Caller. There's a lot that I could say about the budget and the KISD management of the swimming pool. I don't know if you've all heard it, but you can watch the board meeting, and you'll probably hear everything you need to know. My family moved here in 2023 back to Dallas. My husband's from Dallas originally, and we were heading to Southlake. That's where our family lived. That's where my husband lived before we moved to The Woodlands. And we happened to come across LAC, and we met with Jason from the head coach, and he convinced us to move to Callaher. And so we did.

And my girls have gone on to win state championships swimming with this team. They also won them in The Woodlands, but it happened here for the first time for the girls. It was huge against all odds as the Marinos. And I want you all to know how important that is for these kids to have those kind of competitions and wins, and that is all thanks to LAC and this amazing facility that's here channeling through the high school. My my daughter is at SMU this year.

She just finished her freshman year at pre pre med. It was a difficult year, but she was there because of a scholarship, a full ride from swimming, thanks to LAC. And I can tell you through LAC, I wanna say there's probably millions of dollars in scholarships that have gone to these kids from swimming, and that is the benefit of a community pool like Callanatorium. It's I've heard it's a money pit. Pools are pits, but you have to outweigh the benefits.

And I know the city has spent so much money on things, neighborhood, community parks, things like that, but the natatorium needs to be considered the same way. People move here for the schools. Without the schools, you're not gonna have many people here, not many families. And so you have to remember the benefit of this facility. Yes. It costs a lot of money. Yes. It was mismanaged to the core, but there's absolutely groups that can come together, and we can find ways to fix it, whether it's sponsorship, whether it's selling it. There are so many ways we can discuss this. I'm happy to send a list of all my ideas.

I've sent it to the board. I hope they look at it. But I wanted to quickly tell you guys that I've got a younger one who starts recruiting next month, also for swimming in college, and she had some really big goals for swim meets in the next few weeks. And now it's kind of in the air because they're having to travel so much more. They're exhausted.

The other day, she left at 03:50AM, went to Jamie's house, and then the girls drove with Jamie at 04:15. She got home from school at 02:30 and went to bed, and I saw her the next day at 07:30. One of the other boys driving to Justin, who's going to Stanford, my understanding is he had a car accident this week driving to Justin to practice. I drove the girls I I led the girls the other day. They followed me so I could teach them how to drive that route. I mean, those are small things, just just a little peek into our family lives, but I really hope we can find a solution. Thank you all.

Thank you. Alright. I think we had at least one more.

My name is Susan Walker. I live at 1744 Adelina Drive in Keller. And I had some prepared things to say, but I'm actually just gonna try to address some things that have been talked about because a lot of what I would have said has already been said. I'm here as a Keller resident. Thank you guys for having us.

I'm also a PTA board member at Keller Middle School. I am an LAC club member. I have a 13 year old who's been swimming competitively for two years, and I'm a swim mom, which is probably like my strongest identity for the moment. My family moved here in 2023, and we also looked strongly at Southlake. That's probably where we were aiming until our real estate agent talked about LAC and the Keller High School swim program, and it made a huge difference for us to move into a school district that we were already excited about, we thought Keller was a great city.

But to be able to move into a school district that had a successful program and that had a club at the pool that could offer what LAC can offer was a huge benefit to us. And I do believe that you will lose people looking to move into the city based on not just swim, but on all types of your sports and activities. Right? So having a sports center is great. Having great fine arts programs is great.

But having an auditorium and having a swim program and a dive program and a water polo program, having every first and third grader go through the auditorium for a water safety program. Those are the Keller point this morning, and Coke Children's has this huge display out about drowning. But the truth is Keller is one of the only school districts we've ever lived in that has a water safety program for every elementary school student that goes through Keller. So I feel like it's really an invaluable asset for people who are looking to move into Keller. The other thing I'd just like to address briefly is that I have a 13 year old.

I also have a 15 year old. I spend a lot of time in my car, as you guys might imagine. There is not another facility near us that can offer anything like what the Keller Natatorium can offer. The WAC, the Westside Aquatic Center, is over forty minutes from my house. I live five minutes from here.

Justin's twenty five minutes from my house. So even my 15 year old, who is not a swimmer, having him drive to Justin would concern me deeply. And it does when you have kids I mean, have a 13 year old who literally does nothing but goes to school, comes home, does her homework, goes to swim practice for two and a half hours, comes home, finishes her homework, goes to bed. So when she's 15 and she has to get up at four in the morning to drive, that's a lot to ask of a kid. So to not have that asset in our community to draw people in and to give our kids a community center and a real nexus and a place to be and to live and to grow socially, I think would be a huge detriment.

So we do hope that you'll I know this is an ISD. I understand it's a school district issue. We feel like the Keller community is motivated to find creative solutions, naming rights, bonds, fundraising. I mean, again, I'm on a PTA board. Like, get the moms together. They'll come up with ideas. Right? We're all here to help, but we do need a partnership with the city to come up with these ideas and to come up with some creative solutions. So thank you again for having us today. Again, I mean, I think we've got thousands of kids going through here. Please remember, like, our kids really deserve this as much as they deserve a sports center or great schools or a family community. So thank you so much.

Thank you. Alright. I know we have another speaker, if you wouldn't mind coming on.

One just Sure.

Yeah. So everyone's welcome to speak. So if you wanna get a card from our city secretary, Kelly Ballard, keep moving. If you don't mind, name and address for the record.

Good evening. My name is Cassandra Smith. 4903 Rustic Timbers Drive or 4309 Rustic Timbers Drive. I just wanna talk about how much the natatorium has impacted my life. Over the course of ten years, I've swam for LAC. I've also been a high school swimmer, and I've also worked for LAC for three years. I spoke at the Keller ISD board meeting, and I said how I basically I spent over six thousand five hundred hours at that building, and I think it is well worth an investment.

I

spent practices, competitions, and work, and relationships, I've all been built there. During my freshman and sophomore years, my days revolved around the pool. I would leave the house around 6AM to go to the natatorium, attend school from nine to four, and then I'd go to swim practice until nine along with work, which I also do at the natatorium. I did this every single day because I loved it. I loved swimming beside my closest friends, teaching young swimmers, and sharing the passion that has shaped my life with future swimmers like me.

I heard my junior year, and I wanna join back my senior year for swimming, and possibly I cannot do a job and practice and drive all the way 30, forty minutes to a pool. That building is more than just a building, it's a home. By definition, a home is a place of comfort, security, and belonging, and refuge. The natatorium has been all of those things for me. The natatorium has where I where I discovered discipline, lifelong friendships, and created memories that have defined me who I am today.

It is where I met some of my closest friends. I consider these people family in my second home. Every major chapter of my life has been connected to this facility. To many people, this may just look like a $22,000,000 repair project put to swimmers and families and coaches and children who walk through the same doors every day. It is so much more than that. It is more than it is just a community. It is a safe place. It is a home to me and many others. Many can always be armed again, but experience memories and the impact of a place has a person's life that cannot be replaced. The Keller ISD natatorium has shaped me into the person who I am today, and I truly do not know who I would be without it.

I hope you guys consider that the cost of these repairs and you partner with Keller ISD and LAC for the value of these opportunities and community, this facility to support these families. Thank you for your time.

Thank you. Alright. We also have Elena Kantarovich? Thank you.

Hi. Elena Kantarovich. I was hesitant to talk because I am not a Cali resident. I live 3925 Glenney Lane, Fort Worth, so we are exactly on the border. Right? So we moved to the to Texas absolutely blindly. I have never been to Texas at all. We bought house online, and we just moved here. And we were I am a mom of three kids, so we were selecting a place with good schools, obviously. So it was one first factor we considered, and we moved.

My kids were already swimming by that time. So, of course, when we moved, we decided, okay, they need to go back to the water. We found a tutorial. So eventually, we I I feel I live in color way more than I live in Fort Worth because we live in the pool. We go to the library here.

We buy food in color. We we do everything here. My husband walks those labs every single day. We are at the pool six times a week, so we literally live here. I mean, that's this whole situation that happened with the pool, it just impacted me so drastically that I'm even like, I'm worried that I will start crying right now. We need to bring those kids back to the water. It's just it's just important. Important. I have three of them. I have 12 years old.

I have 10 years old, and I have six years old. Okay? So I have three groups. I have three different times. I'm a full working mom.

You can imagine how much hassle this whole thing creates on us, but we are committed, and we will be doing it. So there is absolutely no options to us to consider that our kids will be dropping or doing something else because we are in love with this sport. Absolutely. I cannot imagine anything even close that would help me to grow these kids into personalities my kids are becoming as something else than than swimming. I was able to bring my 12 years old into the order and make him disciplined, organized, responsible, committed.

It's not only a place for them to do athletic. It's a place for them to grow, to bloom, to meet friends. Literally, we there spent more time than I spent at home. It's it's absolutely true. I have fourteen, fifteen practices a week at this facility.

Believe me, we do not care about lockers or something else. We tolerated those dripping waters from the ceiling. Well, I did not care. This proximity and Believe location just means a lot. I understand it's a lot of problems with, Calor ISD, but I I truly believe LAC leadership, you know, like intentions and parents power and and and your authority to come to some wisdom and solution because this is a true gem. We we just need to save it because those kids just deserve it. Thank you. Thank you.

Is there anyone else from the public who'd like to speak in persons to be heard? Hey. I'll just briefly say a couple quick things. We're gonna go ahead and recognize colleagues on council for comments, listen on the agenda before we break into executive session. But I'll just tell you the same thing that we told the school district's leadership when we met with them.

We've already started those discussions. We're gonna work with urgency to address the natatorium situation. The pool being down is a simple concept to understand if you're a swim dad or a swim mom, but it's a complicated problem to solve because of the arrangement and the lease agreement. So that's the main purpose. We got to this as quickly as we could under the Texas Open Meetings Act to convene this whole group to get together and start evaluating options. I think all options need to be on the table because I think that's what our families and our kids deserve and and that's what we're about. So we're gonna get into it. But before that, councilman Will.

Sorry. My mic wouldn't turn on. I just wanna thank everyone for coming out today. I I know that we all agree that this is an important asset to our community. That's why we partnered with the school district in the first place to build it twenty five years ago.

I think for context, it's important to make the public aware that when we entered into this lease agreement, the city has been renting it to the school district for $10 a year. And the reason that that lease rate was set that way is because the understanding was that the school district would bear the burden of the full cost of maintaining the building. And it's very unfortunate that apparently even the basic maintenance was not done for the last twenty five years on the city building. I think it's also important to recognize that Keller ISD is made up of nine municipalities. I think it's important for us to be a partner with the school district, but I think it's also important for the other eight municipalities to also be good partners with the school district.

It is not fair to the residents of Keller to continually expect our tax dollars to go towards maintaining school district facilities. But City Of Fort Worth, City Of North Richland Hills, City Of Colleyville, City Of Southlake are not expected to come to the table as well. And so I would hope that those other municipalities value the partnership that they have with Keller ISD as much as the City of Keller does and hope that they take it as seriously as we are going to as well.

Thank you, Councilman Will. Councilman Shannon D'Arberle.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Councilman Will spoke to some of issues. First of all, it's great to see so many you all here today. The natatorium is an important part of the community. I think all of us agree to that. And I'm proud that Keller helped build it in the beginning. It was 2001, is that what you said? Two and five years ago when a lot of North Fort Worth wasn't even built out yet. It was still past years over there.

And I think it's just important for everyone listening to remember, as Councilman Will said, is that, you know, Keller ISD, I think, is around 125,000 people within it, nine cities. And if we get to a solution where we're able to help, that it would be nice that all of the cities that participate and benefit from it also help. We have no problem, know, if we decide to maintain ownership of the building or whatever happens. I'm proud that it's in Keller. Definitely, the city and the other cities around us benefit from it.

And it's really neat to hear the stories of how the, discipline builds on your kids. Might need to send one of my three kids there right now. But I I think it's important that some of the other cities really listen to the words that y'all said as well and are willing to get involved and help because it's it is an important part of community in the surrounding area. And one other thing. In Keller, this has been something, you know, budgeting for every government entity is an issue right now.

And when you look at our gel and our animal services, even our SWAT team, we do regionalization in Keller. And it helps share the burden of some of the issues. Because the issue to me isn't just the 2,100,000 or whatever it may cost, it's the continued maintenance. It's the continued support of the building, which is gonna needs to be a part of this discussion as well. So whatever the solution is, it'd be really nice to have some of the other entities get involved and some of the citizens of those communities reach out to their leadership as well. So thank you. Councilman?

Councilman Wiley, did you wanna add anything? Or doctor Rankleaf, you good? Charles is councilman Rankleaf's listening by Zoom, but because of work.

Hey, mayor. I'm sorry. I'm I'm driving right now, so I know I'm gonna up too safe this is, but I I just wanna kinda echo some of the comments that my colleagues and and you've said on the on the diocese afternoon. I wanna thank the people that showed up, and shared these stories. I appreciate the emails that folks have sent in. Like many of you that are on the diocese, you know, I have kids in the district. I believe that one of the city's strengths has been the strong partnership it has with the district. And, mister mayor, I agree that we should be looking at all options. So thank you very much.

Thanks, doctor Rankleave. Aaron, I don't wanna leave you out.

Oh, I'm good.

Nothing to add?

Appreciate that, though.

Okay. Again, thank you for being here today. At this time, we're gonna convene into into executive session. I've gotta read the language to make sure I get it right. As a rookie mayor, don't wanna screw it up. So if I screw it up, let me know, Kelly. So we're gonna convene into exec executive session under section five five one dot o seven one. Consultation with attorney. It's a closed meeting to consult with our city attorney. Good enough? Yeah. Alright.