Remarks by Amanda Rodriguez
219 remarks on the record, newest first · Page 3 of 9
- Play at 1:39:36
“Yeah. So, uh, I guess what I was asking is despite them being inverse, now that they're correct, you're not necessarily proposing that not only are doing, enhance them in terms of... No, no. I just wanted to clarify.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:39:53
“Yeah, especially for all the jumping castle.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:40:44
“So I went through this as comprehensively as possible, just cause it's so much. Um, and I guess I'll start with, so the two, uh, that were subject, not just to the 3%, but to the review as well, where just so I'm clear parks and the library. Correct. Yeah. Um, so let me ask, I know that all of that, all of the. proposed rates were contingent on the study that y'all looked at, peer review cities, correct?”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:41:11
“And let me ask, did that study and did the methodology within that study account for, and I understand in terms of peer cities what classifies what, but does it actually go and further disaggregate the data to include poverty rates in comparison to other cities?”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:41:46
“Okay, and I ask all this because the recouping of the fees isn't lost on me at all. It's just in terms of essentially some of these hikes that are being proposed are quite significant. And I want to support them, but I guess what I'm trying to understand is did we do an additional, and it doesn't sound like we did.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:42:09
“An additional accounting for the individual nature of our poverty rate in comparison to the other comparator cities.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:42:29
“Okay. You know, because one of the questions that I had asked, I guess let's start from the beginning. The portable toilet cleaning, the 538% increase, I see that the rationale was that we were greatly undercharging for that service. I guess in terms of the recipients of those charges, are they normally big organizations that host events at Plaza Park or who all necessarily goes and requires the portable?”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:43:51
“Yes, so I guess the 118 dollars I guess in terms of y'all's ability to calculate this where y'all looking at the number of events that are already Hosted on that property and then basing the cost recovery on Like insuring or I guess guessing that they would reschedule in the subsequent years to do the cost recovery or I'm just trying to understand so that so the the fee that”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:44:34
“Okay, and I'm less concerned about... No, go ahead, but I want to ask a question relevant to that. Oh, please, because I was about to...”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:45:16
“I would wonder if whatever costs recovered from this could be actually for public facilities versus a portable, if they could be encumbered for that purpose, now that I'm thinking.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:45:33
“Is it more affordable to just build, similar like to the Dunbar? Yeah, I see where you're going.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:45:48
“But for each event, they would individually be charged $118, correct? Correct.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:46:33
“Yeah. I saw where our minds were going on that one.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:46:45
“Yeah. Cause the purpose of the question was we were kind of having an off, uh, the, the conversation about would it be more cost effective to encumber the whatever funds that are raised through this particular fee for the purpose of constructing public restroom systems similar to what we have at Dunbar. Which would also have to be cleaned, but they do have restrooms.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:49:42
“Okay, so now the activity center membership fees. This was really the one that, so for the public, and if we could pull the schedule fees just so everybody watching both in-house and online could be. ON THE SAME PAGE. SO THE PROPOSAL IS CURRENTLY THE ANNUAL FEE FOR A RESIDENT WHO IS AN ADULT IS $92 AND WE'RE PROPOSING TO INCREASE THAT BY ABOUT 40% TO $130. And, you know, I had asked other questions in the message board because I'm trying to think, like, I know I've been on y'all's tours before. The activity center is struggling. It's busting at the seams. I think that was the phrase that was…”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:51:40
“Okay, so within our software, it would be possible to have payment plans for adult residents without a family. Yes. Am I correct? Absolutely. Is that something we can, I think it just would help me, you know, be able to support this a lot more when there's a monthly payment plan available for somebody who maybe they still want to go, but that's, it's just too much, that increase on top of all the other rates we just applied. Um, is that something perhaps mayor that we can get some consensus on from council to see if anybody would be interested in something like that? Um, so the question is…”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:52:53
“Right, so I guess what I'm asking is for it to apply to yes, the other categories aside from just the family, so the youth, the senior, and the adult. It's not changing the proposed fee, it's just allowing more flexibility to be able to pay.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 1:53:23
“And then you also mentioned the silver sneakers and Optum Fitness. Can you explain the difference between those? I took notes because I thought you might ask.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 2:00:35
“Yes, ma'am. I actually was going to come in with a proposal specifically about the special events. I had asked a question on the message board if whether or not the current fee proposals account for the most recent block party hosted on the downtown square, particularly whether they accounted for the demand and staff, police, fire, and the like, and wanting to make sure that this conversation is as comprehensive as possible. I know that there was a suggestion about potential tiers and I just think that to do this without addressing that, I think we would be remiss.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 2:02:40
“Well, for mine, I just want to make sure that for special events, staff has enough time to comprehensively look at this. Hayden, sorry to throw a wheel.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 2:03:41
“Right, and I know our committee was supposed to get a comprehensive update regardless. Yep, you're right. Okay.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 2:05:00
“You're right, you're right, you're right. Yeah, this will be the first year we've done that. Let me get my calendar.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 2:06:20
“And Mayor, for that discussion, could we potentially, I don't know how much work it would be for staff, but could we potentially have The data further disaggregated in terms of peer city reviews to include poverty rates and how they differ between the ones listed.”
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 2:14:22
Not quoted here: it may name a member of the public. Hear it at the meeting.
City Council · Sep 15, 2026
- Play at 2:22:20
Not quoted here: it may name a member of the public. Hear it at the meeting.
City Council · Sep 15, 2026