Arlington City Council Special Meeting - September 17, 2024
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Arlington City Council Special Meeting - September 17, 2024
The Arlington City Council met in a special work session on Tuesday, September 17, 2024, from 12:15 p.m. to 4:28 p.m. The meeting began with a closed executive session (12:15–1:40 p.m.) to discuss legal matters, eminent domain, and economic development incentives. The open session reconvened at 2:30 p.m. and covered presentations and discussions on healthcare, lake planning, fiber installation, charter amendments, parking ordinances, park lighting, housing tax credits, board appointments, and the Tarrant Appraisal District board. No formal votes were taken; directives were given for future committee discussions.
Discussion Items
Texas Health Resources Update
Blake Kretz, President of Texas Health Arlington Memorial Hospital, presented an update on the hospital's history, current operations, and future renovations. He reported 14,000 annual inpatients, a 50-bed emergency room with ~200+ patients per day, 5,000 surgeries, 1,600 births, and 1,600 employees with a $125 million payroll. The hospital has been a Level III trauma center, with advanced stroke care (39-minute CT-to-treatment) and a new robot for lung nodule biopsies. Renovations include a breast center (to be completed January 2025), a women’s center, and exterior upgrades to camouflage loading docks along Cooper Street.
Councilmember Peel expressed concerns from the community about perceived underinvestment by Texas Health Resources compared to other facilities on Matlock and I‑20, and fears that retiring surgeons are not being replaced. Mr. Kretz assured that the health system continues to invest in technology (e.g., Da Vinci robot) and has committed to Arlington Memorial’s future. Councilmember Peel requested a system-level update on long‑term capital plans.
Councilmember Odom‑Wesley asked about the Texas Health Breeze urgent care clinics and the partnership with North Texas Area Community Health Center (relocated to Vandergriff Building). Mr. Kretz noted positive reviews and a planned expansion in south Arlington.
City Manager Yelverton asked about the behavioral health unit. Mr. Kretz explained that the 30‑bed unit was relocated to HEB hospital, with outpatient follow-up still available in Vandergriff Building. The vacated space will be used for the women’s center expansion.
Comprehensive Plan Element: Lake Arlington
Alex Whiteway, Director of Water Utilities, presented the history and current management of Lake Arlington. The Pierce Birch water treatment plant now pumps about 8 billion gallons annually (up from 36 million in 1957). The lake is jointly managed with TRWD and TRA, ensuring triple testing for water quality. The Village Creek watershed protection plan involves upstream communities. Completed projects include the Richard Simpson Lake House Event Center and a raw water pump station rehab (shared cost with TRA). Future activities include buoy improvements and dock maintenance.
Councilmember Peel noted a complaint about deteriorating private docks on the lake. James Orloski (Parks & Recreation) described cross‑departmental efforts (Parks, Code, Planning) to survey and address those structures.
Councilmember Odom‑Wesley asked about development on the Fort Worth side of the lake. Mayor Ross clarified that Fort Worth acquired 500 acres for open space preservation, and a private development remains in early stages.
Fiber Installation and Right‑of‑Way Permitting Update
Lyndsay Mitchell (Office of Strategic Initiatives) and Stuart Young (Real Estate Manager) reported that Arlington currently has the highest fiber build‑installation rate for AT&T in the U.S. In 2022, 148 miles of fiber permits were approved; in 2023, 170 miles; and in 2024, 383 miles so far. The permitting process involves registration, bonding, plan review (2–3 days), and 90‑day permits. Communication requirements include 72‑hour door hangers and project signs. Complaints: 84 in July (majority resolved in 2 days), 133 in August (resolved in 3 days). Staff conduct pre‑construction meetings, audits, and can issue stop‑work orders.
Councilmembers Peel, Hunter, and Gonzalez commended staff for responsive complaint resolution. Mayor Yelverton highlighted that the strategy behind fiber expansion, while not with the initially expected partner, has delivered a stronger result.
Charter Amendment
City Attorney Molly Shortall presented options for a charter amendment election in May 2025 (during the off‑year for council elections). The deadline to order an election is early February 2025. Councilmember Hogg supported exploring charter amendments, noting that neighboring cities often have multiple items. Council agreed to refer the matter to the Municipal Policy Committee for study.
Special Event Parking Ordinance
Alex Busken (Interim Code Compliance Director) reviewed the 2010 ordinance that allows businesses to offer special event parking. There are currently 76 active permits. Councilmember Galante raised concerns about enforcement in neighborhoods, especially after the Cowboys’ opening game, where residents reported excessive noise, litter, and parking on lawns. Staff had already increased citations. Councilmember Galante asked about expanding the limited access zone to include more neighborhoods.
City Manager Yelverton explained that the ordinance was designed to balance business needs and neighborhood protection, but enforcement is challenging given the scale of events (up to 130,000 visitors). He suggested relying on staff expertise rather than a committee. Councilmember Gonzalez agreed, noting that traffic management involves many variables. Councilmember Boxall offered to take the issue to the Community and Neighborhood Development (CND) Committee to allow neighborhood input while hearing from experts. Council agreed to refer the matter to the CND Committee.
Park Lighting
James Orloski (Parks & Recreation) reported that the department is surveying all park lighting to document existing security lights. Lights can be remotely controlled via Skylogics (e.g., sports field lights), but individual fixture circuits may limit flexibility. Councilmember Boxall suggested exploring motion‑sensor lights and temporary lighting for problem areas. Mr. Orloski noted that lighting can be controversial – some neighborhoods prefer parks dark after hours. The survey will help identify needs and costs.
Community and Neighborhood Development – Housing Tax Credit Application Process
Councilmember Boxall, chair of the CND Committee, reported that the committee reviewed the housing tax credit program (4% and 9% credits). Since 2017, Arlington has supported 61 applications; 7 (11%) received state awards, resulting in 749 units built. The next 9% cycle requires applications to the city by January 2025. The committee reviewed the city’s evaluation criteria.
Arlington Housing Finance Corporation Update
Councilmember Hunter, chair of the Arlington Housing Finance Corporation, reported that the board approved the FY25 budget and an MOU for Savitus to convert 194 existing market-rate units to 50% affordable housing (94 units at 60–80% AMI within 12 months). The board also reviewed the housing rehab program (supplemented with $600K in 2023), a single-family bond program (37 new homebuyers), and ongoing developments.
Appointments to Boards and Commissions
Acting City Secretary Garcia noted that 39 appointments are on the evening agenda for council action.
Tarrant Appraisal District Board Nominations
Ethan Klos (Treasurer) explained that the city must nominate five candidates for the TAD Board by October 8, 2024. The voting process involves weighted ballots (Arlington has 4.2% of total votes, or 211 out of 5,000). The board oversees the chief appraiser, ARB, budget, and reappraisal plan. The new reappraisal plan (adopted in 2024) freezes residential market values for two years and imposes a 5% cap on value increases (market value, not taxable value). ISDs have raised concerns about potentially failing state property value studies, but the board can amend the plan if needed. Council will need to take action at the October 8 meeting to nominate candidates.
Key Outcomes
- The Charter Amendment topic was referred to the Municipal Policy Committee for further study.
- The Special Event Parking Ordinance was referred to the Community and Neighborhood Development (CND) Committee for discussion with staff and neighborhood input.
- Staff will survey all park lighting and explore temporary lighting solutions for security.
- Council will nominate candidates for the Tarrant Appraisal District Board at the October 8, 2024 meeting.
- The Council will consider 39 board and commission appointments at the evening session.
- Councilmember Boxall requested a future agenda item on creating a local artist committee or round table.
Meeting Transcript
It's important to get in world expo because in one look. Welcome to another episode of Forged by Honor with our great partners, the city of Arlington. I'm Cory Crowley filling in this week for Chris Cassidy, who's in the South Pacific with Medal of Honor recipient Kyle Carpenter and Project Recover. But what we'd like to do is welcome you up to the visitor deck of the museum. Behind me you see an immersive theater. This is where every visitor will enter the museum exhibits for the first time. It's called the Medal of Honor Experience. And on both sides of you in this room shaped like a big donut, you'll see the stories of the Medal of Honor recipients coming to life before your very eyes with 16 foot tall theater screens and projections all around you. As visitors leave this experience, they'll head out into the galleries, which are 360 degrees all around the rest of the building and tell the stories on different islands of each Medal of Honor recipient who is featured in our first batch of 85 recipients. And one of the macro artifacts, the biggest one. Hi, I'm Cynthia Lemut with my Arlington TV, and in this episode of Arlington Eats, I'm going to talk about National Taco Day that here in the United States we celebrated on October 4th. And I'm gonna take you to one of the places that they say they have the best birry at tacos. Let's see. We have lawada, we have three pitas, we have lengua, cabeza, which is uh similar to barbacoa. It's a traditional Mexican dish. If you have only tried beef tacos, which are the most common, believe me, you are missing a lot. Basically any meat you want. A taco can be made with a variety of feelings. I'm sure you wonder why. And the answer is because in every Mexican state, they use different meat or they cook it differently with a unique taste. So this is my first time trying birya tacos. How do you recommend me eating it? Okay, so there's different ways of eating it. How do you eat your tacos is not important. What really matters is the taste. But unlike us, she got good at it. And we just stuck with it. So much so, her husband who by the way loves his wife's homemade biscotti asked if there was a way that they're not be so much around. He's like, I have goals, you know, like I'm in the gym, I'm trying to get fit, I'm trying to watch what I eat. She understood. So she took them to her son's daycare, where they were enjoyed just as much. So they continue to ask for more. Okay. So I didn't get in trouble. That's going to kill us back in. I get that way. I don't know if I didn't know. Yeah, so I'm going to read that one. Good afternoon. We'll go ahead and call the afternoon session of the Arlington City Council work session to order. And we're gonna start off with one of my favorite hospital presidents. Mr. Blake, how are you today? I'm doing great. Well, come on up and talk to us, sir. Good to see you. Well, thank you all. Appreciate the opportunity to come and uh kind of give you an update on Texas Health Arlington Memorial Hospital. Um we're excited to give you a little bit of uh background on uh the hospital, uh what's going on now, and then kind of what we have uh planned for the future as well. And uh of course, our hospital has a rich history.
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