@signalcleveland @cledocumenters Have questions? Think we got something wrong? Send any inquiries on the meeting or these tweets to @cledocumenters. Or email us at cledocumenters@gmail.com.

@signalcleveland @cledocumenters Here's the link to stream: youtube.com/watch?v=lIOL3H…

@signalcleveland @cledocumenters Brief lighthearted discussion of festive winter wear before the proceedings start

@signalcleveland @cledocumenters Six board members are present, including President Lucas

@signalcleveland @cledocumenters Public comment: "nothing in the agenda" to correct matters around E 79th st

@signalcleveland @cledocumenters Continues: "[the budget] is racially and generally* biased. Wealthy people get free rides" but poor, disabled, homeless folks get tickets. (*This word may have been "genderly")

@signalcleveland @cledocumenters Announcement: just awarded $8 million grant "by the federal and the state", using to make E 79th station ADA compliant

@signalcleveland @cledocumenters Public comment: requests allocation of budget funds for more training hours for drivers, eg knowing routes and landmarks better

Public comment: "code of conduct" not being followed; riders and drivers are mistreating disabled riders. Comment already reported and ignored by committee.

Public comment: difficult to understand. Seems to be a complaint about both locations of and timing of the routes.

Public comment: requesting return of circulators.

PowerPoint introduction of RTA 12/22 staff news; new employees, promotions

Chief Jones announces at approx. 6:30 AM, male suspect set fire to trash can at Tower City, boarded West-bound redline. Suspect apprehended and fire extinguished.

Currently in jail and will be charged with aggravated arson. Demonstrated behaviors consistent to mental illness. Investigation is ongoing.

Initial interruption of service; currently, all trains running.

I'm having trouble understanding here, but it seems like there is a motion about whether to go to a private executive session. Unanimous yes votes. Non-board members (and maybe additional RTA employees?) stay. Everyone told to leave and stream is paused.

Stream back up.

Resolution L: proposed Public Square improvements, not to exceed $500,000. No discussion. Resolution passes.
Biasiotta: yes
Koomar: yes
Lucas: yes
McCall: abstain
Moss: yes
Pellot: yes
Weiss: yes
Welch: yes

Resolution A: providing "On-Board Origin-Destination Passenger Surveys in an amount not to exceed" approx. $932,000. Weiss confirms that this includes federal funding; Deputy for Project and Engineering says yes, breakdown about 80 percent federal funding.

Resolution A passes with voice vote, all ayes, seemingly unanimous.

Resolution B on the table. I got lost in the weeds on this one, sorry! Seems to generally refer to health and medical centers. No discussion. Another voice vote. Lucas is a little hard to understand in his confirmation, but it sounds like the resolution passes.

Resolution C: Authorizing a contract with Richard L. Bowen & Associates, Inc. for "Design Service for Central Rail Service Building Mezzanine" project, not to exceed approx. $130,000.

A board member (whom I'm having trouble identifying) will vote aye, but says that having a single bidder (Bowen & Associates) harms the project, and in the future there should be multiple bidders considered.

Correction: seems like the board member was probably Moss. Apologies!

Another board member I'm having difficulty identifying says there should be an overview of the procurement process (eg, if there only is one bidder, there needs to be a re-bid process, etc.)

Roll call vote. Passes.
Biasiotta: yes
Koomar: yes
Lucas: yes
McCall: abstain
Moss: yes
Weiss: yes
Welch: yes

I'm having trouble understanding Resolution D, but it is to do with Transpro Consulting and Performance Management Services. Another roll call vote. Passes.
Biasiotta: yes
Koomar: yes
Lucas: yes
McCall: yes
Moss: no
Weiss: yes
Welch: yes

Resolution E: The purchase of two Ford Police Interceptor Utility Vehicles for a price not to exceed approx. $125,000. Passes unanimously.

Lucas takes a moment to emphasize "[the board is] not just racing through these [resolutions], these have all been through committee, they've all been through staff... today [is] a final look at them."

Resolution F: "Approving the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority's Fiscal Year 2023 Salary Structure for Non-bargaining Employees." (No explicit salary figures in the resolution.) Roll call is requested.

Passes, 6-1.
Biasiotta: yes
Koomar: yes
Lucas: yes
McCall: yes
Moss: no
Weiss: yes
Welch: yes

Resolution G: "Making appropriations for the current expenses and other expenditures for the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority Fiscal Year" 2023. Another straightforward but somewhat vague one. Passes unanimously.

Resolution H: "Amending budget appropriations for the fiscal year 2023 Capital Improvement Budget to provide an increase of" $6.7 million. (I couldn't figure out their total previous Capital Improvement Budget from the 2022 budget layout.) Passes unanimously.

Resolution I: Purchasing property insurance from Liberty Mutual and Evanston Insurance Company though Aon Risk Services Northeast, Inc., for 12 months, not to exceed approx. $1.4 million.

Lucas once again compliments the department for their previous work to make today's proceedings go efficiently.

Resolution I passes unanimously.

Resolution J: Amending 630 Infectious Disease Policy and removing Section 648.05 Infectious Disease from the Codified Rules and Regulations of the Greater Cleveland RTA. Passes unanimously.

Resolution K: Approval of the Authority's 2023 Public Transportation Agency Safety Plan. I had a trouble finding the actual wording for 2023 plan, but the 2022 plan is accessible and it may not be very different. Passes unanimously.

Resolution M: Supporting the filing of a grant application with the Federal Transit Administration through the Infrastructure and Jobs act for the replacement of rail vehicles. Passes unanimously.

Lucas introduces Secretary/Treasurer Rajan D. Gautam.

Gautam begins with "the overall Economic Conditions" Inflation increased between January 2020 and June 2022, but has begun falling since June 2022 and is expected to continue falling.

The purchasing power, "the extent to which a person or company has available funds," weakened.

The unemployment rate rose for Cuyahoga County, the state of Ohio, and the U.S. The rates for three of the largest metropolitan areas in Ohio, including Cleveland, "remain steady."

Ridership has been increasing since the beginning of COVID in 2019. Sales tax has been strong throughout this year.

Lucas presents General Manager and CEO India Birdsong Terry. She again highlights the recent $8 million award from Senator Sherrod Brown, which include lighting, cameras, bike racks, and making the E. 79th St Light Rail Station ADA compliant.

Discusses PTASP from Resolution K. Cleveland is ahead of most cities that are employing this initiative nationally. Recently sat on a panels discussing relationships with union leaders and women in transportation.

Stantec, an organization that worked on a transit-oriented community corridor plan for the GCRTA, was recently awarded an International Award for Planning Excellence from the Royal Town Planning Institute. A lot of vague phrasing on this slide.

New "Crisis Communications Training" ("Manage the Message") that seems to largely work on media training.

Also launched "Project Management Training."

Terry is still hosting Town Hall visits around the city, and reports positive feedback about the program.

Notes that the "Cleveland Reads" challenge, implemented by Mayor Bibb to encourage reading, is being advertised on four RTA buses.

Back to public comments. Someone states that there are several drivers that "don't feel comfortable" filing a complaint in case they lose their jobs. She says one driver in particular says there is poor communication amongst employees, and not enough of them.

She says there isn't enough community interaction, and there is no union representation in the board meetings. "The practices that take place are very discriminatory between the leadership and the union."

She goes on to say that women are also being discriminated against, saying that the board told women to "just shut their mouths." (She does not name a specific member.)

She says she would like Gautam to reveal
"how many people are incarcerated "in the finances... how to minimize that... and how to do more outreach."

Another public comment. Someone suggests going back to using text messages as a method of communication from the RTA, especially for scheduling and delays. She, like the previous commenter, ends with an upbeat "happy holidays!"

Third public commenter. I got a little lost here. He listed a lot of very specific routes including the train and the bus system, but I didn't understand what exactly he was trying to say.

Next commenter. She "encourages the board to reinstate the 15 A bus route" and asks why the community advisory board meetings were cancelled this year and when will they resume. The board says they've been doing "internal evaluating" and will resume in January.

Another commenter. Difficult to understand, but he talks about disabled people and paratransit. Might be requesting that there should be a disabled person on the board.

Back to Lucas, who reminds everyone of the next meeting (in 2023). Motion to adjourn, motion seconded, Lucas ends the meeting with "happy holidays!"

That was the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority Board of Trustees 12/20/2022 meeting! Apologies that I'm new to this :). Seconding the happy holidays message!

Note: the Deputy for Project and Engineering is named Michael J. Schipper.