Remarks by Gina Ortiz Jones
215 remarks on the record, newest first · Page 8 of 9
- Play at 4:15:43
“Thank you. Anissa Avena, please. Followed by Don and Latios and then Seema Kyram.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:17:55
“Thank you. Dawn Ann Laudios, followed by Seema Khairam, and then Sissy Yaddo, please.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:20:17
“Thank you. Seema Khairam. And then our final speaker is Sissy Yaddo.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:23:30
“Thank you Sissy Otto Sissy Otto, okay. It was our final speaker. I Is there a motion and a second for approval so we may begin council discussion?”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:24:02
“There's a motion and a second to approve. Council member core. It's not she virtual or she's not here. Okay, council member monkey up.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:25:20
“I'm going to paraphrase that. There's a motion and a second to amend the item so that staff comes back with a finance plan that essentially flushes it out and allows the projects to be funded. Correct? All of the projects funded? Is that correct, Councilman?”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:27:52
“not only the projects that have been identified, so that's the zoo, that's the Breckenridge, that's the botanical gardens, as well as the arena, the ITC land rather, as well as now the Jones property.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:28:29
“For clarity, though, that Jones item was just an item for kind of TBD at the Jones, excuse me, at the TERS board meeting. That's not an item that was included as part. So are we now adding that to this finance plan from this dais without any analysis?”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:29:13
“Councilman Munguia, is that your intention that they continue looking at the finance? One second. Look at financing for the MMD, the Jones MMD?”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:29:27
“to be very clear I don't think it was presented to the board there wasn't a list of projects I mean Veronica please just clarify for us what was presented my understanding of that meeting is that it was a this is a kind of a TBD this is something that we'd come back to you too so there's not a list of projects and I want to make sure there's clarity on that point because what they could come back to come back with is something that would extend that I mean you might get to”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:30:51
“Yes for clarity, I mean There's also a different way in which you could do this. Instead of it being a yes until it's a no, it could be a no until you've actually justified what you want to have invested in. You could do it that way as well. I mean, as has been very clear, there is buffer even just to pay for the arena. If you took out the three projects, you have enough in there to go to 2041 and just pay for the arena. The other projects you could also scale back instead of 10 million for the animal hospital at the zoo, that could be 7 million. That could be 6 million. You wrap in those…”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:32:34
“There's already a second. Thank you, Council. Okay. Okay. So we'll begin discussion on the amendment. Please sign in if you'd like to speak on this item. This is just the amendment. Yeah. Thank you. Councilman White, this is on the amendment, Councilman White? Yes. Okay, go ahead.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:37:18
“Councilman McKee Rodriguez, please. Please raise your hands. There's something wrong with the system.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:39:00
“Liz, may I offer a friendly amendment to Councilman Munguia's amendment, which is an option that helps us understand how we would fund all of the projects, well, excuse me, all of the projects, one, the ITC, and then what level of funding would be needed inclusive of their debt and financing for the other projects, and then what does that look like to end by 2041?”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:39:34
“As part of the finance as part of the RFI that he's asked for.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:43:30
“And for clarity, as we're talking about affordable housing and the bond there, extending this TERS, how does it, just a yes or no, does it increase or does it decrease our bond capacity for 2027? If we extended the TERS to 2060 or even just, for example, say 2050, does that reduce our capacity for the 2027 bond? No. Councilman Galvan, please.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:49:39
“Thank you. Council Member Spears, please.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:58:06
“Is there any other discussion on the amendment?”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:58:40
“The clerk has asked for clarification on the motion and who seconded it. So please restate the motion. Do you have what you need? Do you have what you need? Okay.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 4:59:51
“Okay. Correct. We're able to do that. We're able to vote on all of it at the same time. Correct, Liz?”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 5:00:14
“So right now we're taking up the amendment as amended by Councilwoman Corr. Okay.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 5:01:03
“I think for public clarity, please clerk capture, say, the thing that we are going to vote on so there's clarity on it. Or if you need Liz to do that.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 5:02:34
“Thank you, Liz. Okay. Okay, there's a motion and a second on the amendment as read. Please vote. Oh, it's not coming up. Oh, no, no. For the public's edification, we'll do a voice vote, please.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 5:03:53
“The motion passes. So now we vote on the main motion as amended. Thank you. Any further discussion on the main motion as amended? Okay. Go ahead, Councilman Kaur.”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026
- Play at 5:06:01
“Would anyone else like to speak on the main motion as amended? Okay. Uh, thank you to everybody that, that came to speak today. Uh, certainly that would, those that would, um, benefit from it as well as those that spoke so eloquently about the challenges with this financial construct. Um, you know, it's not lost on me earlier. We were, um, you know, celebrating the beginning of national Hispanic heritage month. and in a community that is the most economically segregated in the community, unfortunately, that also falls along racial and ethnic lines. And it's hard to look at some of the…”
City Council · Sep 10, 2026