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MINUTES

The Community Services Committee of the City of Garland convened in regular session at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday, August 22, 2023, in the Work Session Room, 200 North Fifth Street, Garland, Texas, with the following members:

Present:

Deborah Morris, Chair

Carissa Dutton, Council Member

Absent:

Ed Moore, Council Member

Staff Present:

Mikayla Ray, Management Services Coordinator

Kevin Slay, Managing Director

Mandy Pippen, Health Director

Brian England, City Attorney

Brita Van Horne, Building Official

Phillip Urrutia, Assistant City Manager

Andy Hesser, Assistant City Manager

Rick Barker, Code Compliance Director

Lance Polster, Code Compliance Manager

MINUTES

Consider approval of the July 11, 2023 meeting minutes
After a motion by Dutton and a second from Morris minutes of the July 11, 2023 meeting were approved unanimously.

PUBLIC COMMENTS
There being no public comments, Morris moved to the next agenda item.

ITEMS FOR INDIVIDUAL CONSIDERATION

Discuss Mobile Ice Cream Sales
England provided an updated version of the ordinance based on input from the previous meeting. England reminded committee members that permitting and regulation of mobile food trucks including mobile ice cream truck sales was moved to the county level. England stated that we can regulate curtain areas of operation, but we don’t know what all the county is going to do at this time. England recommended we wait awhile longer before making a final decision. Dutton stated until everyone figures out what going on I want to make sure we are not going after any food trucks. England stated that likely would not happen unless we were receiving complaints or there was an unsafe or unsanitary condition. Morris stated, since we don’t have a complete set of rules in place it’s not fair to the operators since we are kind of just free-lancing regulation at this time. England stated that Dallas County currently does have regulations in place and the operators would need a permit from Dallas County to operate. Pippen stated most of the issues Dallas County will be looking at are related to health and public safety not time and place of operation. Morris asked if the city is having any issues or receiving any citizen complaints. Pippen stated no we are not. Morris stated, since it’s not a major problem maybe it’s okay to table the item for a while. Dutton stated that she supports tabling the item until the next meeting or we receive new information from the county.

Discuss Frequency of Inspections for Apartment Communities Older than 25 Years
Barker provided and overview related to the apartment communities located in Garland. Barker discussed the current ordinance and process involving annual inspections. Barker stated inspections are based on the age of the building, exterior condition, past inspections, and complaint history. Barker stated very rarely do they conduct comprehensive inspections, which is more in depth. Barker recommended that we look at policies, practices, and processes instead of changes to the existing ordinance. Dutton stated her primary concern is the apartments that are in bad shape and tenants are too afraid to contact the city for help. Morris recommended making comprehensive inspections more frequent and asked if an apartment complex score card system was in place. Barker stated there is a program in place that tracks issues and complaints. Dutton asked for a list of violations per category for apartments. Morris requested information related to how more frequent or more in-depth inspections might impact the department. The item was tabled until the next meeting.

ADJOURN
There being no further business to come before the committee, Chair Morris adjourned the meeting at 4:48 p.m.

Submitted By:

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Deborah Morris, Chair

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Kevin Slay, Staff Liaison