[1. CALL TO ORDER] [00:00:04] WE'RE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND GET OUT AND START. WE'RE GOING TO OPEN UP. INVOCATION BY JUSTICE WARD, FOLLOWED BY THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE BY JUSTICE BLACKWOOD. IF YOU CAN, WOULD YOU PLEASE STAND? SO APPROPRIATE FOR ME TO PRAY. FATHER GOD, WE COME TO YOU THIS AFTERNOON, GOD. WE THANK YOU FOR OUR WILLINGNESS TO SERVE OUR COMMUNITIES, GOD. WE ASK FOR YOUR WISDOM, GOD, AND YOUR WISDOM ONLY, GOD, TO HELP US IN MAKING DECISIONS THAT IS EQUALLY FAIR FOR EVERYBODY. GOD, WE THANK YOU. IT'S IN JESUS' NAME I PRAY. AMEN. AMEN. I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS, ONE NATION UNDER GOD, INDIVISIBLE, WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. THANK YOU EVERYBODY FOR JOINING US TONIGHT AND ACTUALLY PARTICIPATING IN OUR OPENING. AMY, AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? MS. DAVIS IS ABSENT. MS. CAPPS? MS. LEWISON? HERE. MS. BLACKWOOD? HERE. MR. PERSON? HERE. MS. MASSEY IS ABSENT. MS. CURRY? PRESENT. MR. KEITH? HERE. MS. WARD? OH, HERE. MS. YOUNG-BAKER? PRESENT. HERE. MR. MCCOY IS ABSENT. MR. STOWERS? PRESENT. MR. ELLIOTT? HERE. AND MS. MEDLOCK IS ABSENT. SO YOU HAVE 11 PRESENT, 4 ABSENT. WE HAVE 11 PRESENT, 4 ABSENT. WE CAN GO AHEAD AND DO THE BUSINESS OF ACCOUNTING. AND RIGHT NOW, I'M GOING TO REMIND YOU IF WE CAN OPERATE WITH OUR MICROPHONES ON. I'M GOING TO LEAVE EVERYONE'S ON FOR NOW. [5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES] SO IS THERE A RECOMMENDATION FOR ITEM 5? SO MOVED. SECOND. SECOND. A MOTION WAS MADE WITH THE SECOND THAT WE APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM OUR LAST MEETING. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR SIGNIFY BY SAYING AYE. AYE. THOSE OPPOSED? OUR MINUTES HAVE BEEN APPROVED FROM OUR LAST MEETING. I AM NOT AWARE OF ANY UNFINISHED BUSINESS THAT WE [26-I-43 A RESOLUTION OF THE QUORUM COURT OF PULASKI COUNTY ENCOURAGING THE COUNTY JUDGE TO EXEMPT PUBLIC SAFETY POSITIONS FROM THE COUNTY HIRING FREEZE IMPOSED BY EXECUTIVE ORDER. ] HAVE, SO WE'LL GO AHEAD AND START OUR NEW BUSINESS. AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE READ RESOLUTION 26 I 43 NOT THE QUORUM COURT OF PULASKI COUNTY ENCOURAGING THE COUNTY JUDGE TO EXEMPT PUBLIC SAFETY POSITIONS FROM THE COUNTY HIRING FREEZE AND POSED BY EXECUTIVE ORDER JUST WARD. ALL RIGHT I MOVE FOR THE ADOPTION TO SEND TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT. SECOND. ALL RIGHT. A MOTION WAS MADE WITH THE SECOND THAT WE'RE GOING TO SEND RESOLUTION 26I43 TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT. JUSTICE WARD, WOULD YOU LIKE TO EXPLAIN? WELL, I'M SURE SOMEONE IS HERE THAT CAN EXPLAIN WHY IT'S SO IMPORTANT FOR US TO RELIEVE THESE FUNDS FOR PUBLIC SAFETY REASONS. SHERIFF HIGGINS, WOULD YOU LIKE TO COME TO THE PODIUM? GOOD EVENING. GOOD EVENING. AS YOU KNOW, IT'S EXTREMELY IMPORTANT FOR THE PLACER COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE TO BE ABLE TO FUND THE POSITIONS THAT WE HAVE SO WE CAN PROVIDE THE NECESSARY PUBLIC SAFETY SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITY AND TO THE DETENTION CENTER. SO I ASK THAT YOU PASS THIS RESOLUTION. JUSTICE CURRY, HOW MANY POSITIONS ARE WE REFERRING TO? SO WE'RE TALKING ABOUT JUST THE CURRENT STAFFING LEVEL OF THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE. SO WE'RE JUST ASKING THAT AS WE HAVE POSITIONS COME OPEN, THAT WE'RE ABLE TO FILL THOSE POSITIONS. CURRENTLY, IN A DETENTION CENTER, WE HAVE 61 VACANCIES, AND IN THE ENFORCEMENT SIDE, WE HAVE TWO VACANCIES. OKAY. DEPUTY POSITIONS, THESE ARE NOT SUPERVISOR POSITIONS OR CIVILIAN POSITIONS. THANK YOU. OKAY. ARE THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, CONCERNS? THANK YOU, SHERIFF HIGGINS. DID YOU HAVE? JUST ONE. OKAY. JUSTICE ELLIOTT? SIR, ARE YOU STARTING ANY NEW PROGRAMS UP? I MEAN, MORE PEOPLE? YOU MEAN DEPUTIES, JAIL? YES, WE CONTINUALLY HAVE A [00:05:02] CLASS GOING FOR OUR DETENTION CENTER. WE CURRENTLY LOSE AROUND SEVEN DEPUTIES A MONTH. BACK IN MARCH, WE LOST 14 DEPUTIES. AND LOOKING AT THE HISTORY OF THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE, WE'RE HIRING AROUND SEVEN A MONTH. SO ANY DELAYS AND BEING WITH FIELD POSITIONS CREATES PROBLEMS. IN FACT, WE WERE DOWN ABOUT 58 POSITIONS A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO BEFORE WE HAD THE FREEZE. AND SO WE'RE STARTING TO MOVE IN THE WRONG DIRECTION OF SEEING MORE VACANCIES. HOW ABOUT PATROL-WISE? PATROL-WISE, AGAIN, I HAVE ABOUT ONE DEPUTY POSITION VACANT. OF COURSE, WE WON'T DISCUSS THE NEED FOR ADDITIONAL AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL, BUT THAT'S NOT FOR THIS DISCUSSION TODAY. THANK YOU. YES, SIR. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, JUSTICE ELLIOTT. JUSTICE STOWERS. YES, SHERIFF, THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE AND GIVING US. THAT EXPLANATION, I WANT TO SAY THAT I SUPPORT THIS ITEM. WE'VE MADE SOME EXCEPTIONS, I BELIEVE THE LAST MONTH, TO THE MORATORIUM, AND I BELIEVE THIS EXCEPTION IS VITALLY IMPORTANT. ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS WE DO IN COUNTY GOVERNMENT, AND IT'S REFLECTED IN THE BUDGET, 45 TO 50 PERCENT OF OUR BUDGET GOES TO THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE. AND THAT IS BECAUSE OF THE IMPORTANT WORK THAT YOU AND YOUR DEPUTIES AND YOUR DEPARTMENT DOES. SO I THINK IT'S PRUDENT THAT WE CONSIDER PUBLIC SAFETY SENSITIVE POSITIONS, AND I HOPE THE COUNTY JUDGE WILL HEAR THAT. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE THAT. ANYTHING ELSE, JUSTICE STOWERS? NO, SIR. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. JUSTICE BLACKWOOD. YES. I WOULD LIKE TO BE ADDED TO THIS PLACE. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. ANYONE ELSE WOULD LIKE TO BE ADDED AS A SPONSOR? JUSTICE ELLIOTT, JUSTICE CURRY, JUSTICE, WELL, AMY, YOU CAN. JUSTICE LEWISON, JUSTICE CAPPS, JUSTICE PERSON. THANK YOU, CHIEF. THANK YOU. OH, JUSTICE YOUNGBAKER. JUSTICE YOUNGBAKER. ALL RIGHT. AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL ON RESOLUTION 26I43? PAPS? AYE. JESS? MISS LEWISON? HERE. YES. LEWISON VOTES YES. MISS BLACKWOOD? AYE. MISS BLACKWOOD VOTES YES. MR. PERSON? YES. MR. PERSON VOTES YES. MISS CURRY? AYE. MISS CURRY VOTES AYE. MR. KEITH? YES. MR. KEITH VOTES AYE. MS. WARD? YES. MS. WARD VOTES AYE. MS. YOUNG-BAKER? YES. MS. YOUNG-BAKER VOTES YES. MR. ROBINSON? AYE. MR. ROBINSON VOTES YES. MR. SOWERS? YES, AND I APPRECIATE YOUR ATTENTION TO DETAIL. MR. SOWERS VOTES YES. MR. ELLIOTT? YES. AND MR. ELLIOTT VOTES YES. THAT IS 11 AYES AND 4 ABSENCE. 11 EYES FOR ABSENT. WE WILL SEND RESOLUTION 26 I 43 TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT WITH A DO PASS RECOMMENDATION. JUST ONE OR TWO HOUSEKEEPING RULES. AS YOU SEE, AMY IS GOING TO REPEAT THE VOTE. SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE LOGGING CORRECT THE CORRECT VOTE. AND THE OTHER THING IS WE GOT A POTENTIALLY LONG AGENDA. I'M GOING TO ASK THAT YOU STAY ON ON TOPIC. WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO IS WE'VE GOT ITEMS TO DISCUSS. SO I'M GOING TO ASK YOU TO KEEP YOUR COMMENTS OR WHATEVER, AND WE'RE TALKING ABOUT EVERYBODY UP HERE, AND I'M NOT ACCUSING ANYBODY OF ANYTHING YET. I JUST WANT US TO DO THINGS DECENTLY AND IN ORDER TONIGHT SO WE CAN GET THROUGH THIS PROCESS, SO IF WE CAN KEEP OUR COMMENTS ON THE ITEM THAT'S BEFORE US AT THAT TIME. FAIR ENOUGH? AMEN. [26-I-39 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE 25-OR-52 (2026 ANNUAL BUDGET, PULASKI COUNTY, ARKANSAS) TO RECOGNIZE AND APPROPRIATE GRANT FUNDS FOR THE YOUTH SERVICES DEPARTMENT. ] THANK YOU. AMY, WE'RE GOING TO MOVE TO ORDINANCES. AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE READ ORDINANCE 26I39? AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE 25 OR 52 2026 ANNUAL BUDGET, PULASKI COUNTY, ARKANSAS, TO RECOGNIZE AND APPROPRIATE GRANT FUNDS FOR THE YOUTH SERVICES DEPARTMENT. JUSTICE BLACKWOOD. I MOVE THIS TO, I SEND, I MAKE A MOTION TO SEND THIS TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT WITH A DUE PASS. SECOND. A MOTION WAS MADE WITH THE SECOND THAT WE SEND 26 I 39 TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT WITH A DUE PASS RECOMMENDATION. JUSTICE BLACKWOOD, WOULD YOU LIKE TO EXPLAIN OR DO WE HAVE SOMEONE THAT CAN EXPLAIN FOR YOU? DO WE HAVE ANYONE HERE THAT CAN EXPLAIN FOR US? YES, WE DO. DIRECTOR SCOTT. I COULDN'T SEE YOU BACK THERE. GOOD EVENING, DIRECTOR SCOTT, PULASKI COUNTY YOUTH SERVICES. SO THIS IS JUST A SMALL APPROPRIATION THAT WE HAVE. Y'ALL ARE VERY FAMILIAR WITH OUR WORKFORCE PROGRAM. [00:10:01] SO WE HAVE BEEN WORKING WITH THE ARKANSAS ASSOCIATION OF ENERGY. THEY ARE TRYING TO BUILD A WORKFORCE PROGRAM SIMILAR TO OURS. AND SO THEY'VE CALLED US, AND WE'VE BEEN TELLING THEM ABOUT THE DO'S AND DON'TS, BEST PRACTICES. SO THIS IS BASICALLY AN APPROPRIATION THAT WILL PAY US FOR KIND OF BEING EXPERTS AND BEING KIND AND LENDING AN EAR WHEN THEY HAVE QUESTIONS. WE JUST WRAPPED UP OUR WORKFORCE. PROGRAM FOR THE SCHOOL YEAR WE HAD 55 KIDS PLACE THE JOBS. THE ASSOCIATION OF ARKANSAS ASSOCIATION OF ENERGY THEY ARE TRYING TO CREATE A WORKFORCE PROGRAM TO WHERE KIDS WILL BE EXPOSED TO JOBS WITH A VAC COMMERCIAL ENERGY ENERGY JOBS RESIDENTIAL ENERGY AND SOLAR POSITIONS SO THEY WANT TO CREATE A PROGRAM SIMILAR TO OURS BUT WITH EXPOSURE TO ENERGY POSITIONS FOR FOR FOR YOUNG ADULTS AND FOR YOUTH. AND SO THAT'S WHAT THE APPROPRIATION IS BASICALLY FOR. I'D BE HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. THANK YOU, DIRECTOR SCOTT. THERE APPEARS TO BE QUITE EFFECTIVE YOUR EXPLANATION. WE APPRECIATE THAT. THANK YOU. THERE ARE NO QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS. AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL ON 26I39? MR. ELLIOTT. YES. MR. ELLIOTT VOTES YES. MR. STOWERS? YES. MR. SOWERS VOTES YES. MR. ROBINSON? AYE. MR. ROBINSON VOTES AYE. MS. YOUNG-BAKER? YES. MS. YOUNG-BAKER VOTES YES. MS. WARD? YES. MS. WARD VOTES YES. MR. KEITH? YES. MR. KEITH VOTES YES. MS. CURRY? AYE. MS. CURRY VOTES AYE. MR. PERSON? YES. MR. PERSON VOTES YES. MS. BLACKWOOD? AYE. MS. BLACKWOOD VOTES YES. MS. LEWISON? YES. MS. LEWIS AND VOTES YES AND MS. CAPPS AYE. MS. LEWIS AND MS. CAPPS VOTES AYE. AND SO THAT IS 11 AYES AND 4 ABSENTS. 11 AYES, 4 ABSENTS. [26-I-40 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE 25-OR-52 (2026 ANNUAL BUDGET, PULASKI COUNTY, ARKANSAS) TO RECOGNIZE AND APPROPRIATE GRANT FUNDS FOR THE COURT APPOINTED SPECIAL ADVOCATES (CASA) DEPARTMENT. ] WE WILL SEND 26.39 TO THE FULL COURT WITH THE DUE PASS RECOMMENDATION. AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE READ 26.40? AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE 25.OR.52, 2026 ANNUAL BUDGET, PULASKI COUNTY, ARKANSAS. TO RECOGNIZE AND APPROPRIATE GRANT FUNDS FOR THE COURT APPOINTED SPECIAL ADVOCATES, COSTS THE DEPARTMENT. JUSTICE CAPPS. I MOVE TO SEND IT TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT WITH A DO PASS RECOMMENDATION. SECOND. A MOTION WAS MADE WITH THE SECOND THAT WE SEND 26I40 TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT WITH A DO PASS RECOMMENDATION. JUSTICE CAPPS, WOULD YOU LIKE TO EXPLAIN? YES, THE AGENT'S HERE. OKAY. IF YOU'LL INTRODUCE YOURSELF, PLEASE. HI, THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME TONIGHT. AS YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH CASA'S WORK, OUR COURT OF PLANE SPECIAL ADVOCATE PROGRAM, THIS IS A NEW INITIATIVE THAT WE ARE WORKING ON, WHICH IS A FAMILY FUNDING POSITION THAT WORKS SPECIFICALLY FOR CHILDREN THAT ARE LINGERING IN FOSTER CARE. THEY DO GENEALOGY SEARCHES WITH COURT APPROVAL AND DCFS APPROVAL, CAN DO EVEN DNA TESTING TO LOCATE UNKNOWN RELATIVES. SO THAT THE CHILDREN THAT ARE LINGERING IN CARE DO NOT HAVE TO LINGER. IT'S A GRANT THROUGH THE NATIONAL CASA ASSOCIATION THAT WILL COVER THE FULL COST OF THE PROGRAM. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THAT SEEMS TO BE AN EXCELLENT EXPLANATION. THERE SEEMS TO BE NO QUESTIONS. THANK YOU FOR THAT INFORMATION. AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE LET THE RECORD SHOW THAT JUSTICE MEDLOCK HAS ARRIVED? AND WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL ON 26 OUT OF 40? MS. CAPPS? AYE. MS. CAPPS VOTES YES. MS. LEWISON? YES. MS. LEWISON VOTES YES. MS. BLACKWOOD? AYE. MS. BLACKWOOD VOTES YES. MR. PERSON? YES. MR. PERSON VOTES YES. MS. CURRY? YES. MS. CURRY VOTES YES. MR. KEITH? YES. MR. KEITH VOTES YES. MS. WARD? YES. MS. WARD VOTES YES. MS. YOUNG-BAKER? YES. MS. YOUNG-BAKER VOTES YES. MR. ROBINSON? AYE. MR. ROBINSON VOTES YES. MR. STOWERS? YES. MR. STOWERS VOTES YES. MR. ELLIOTT? YES. MR. ELLIOTT VOTES YES. AND MS. MEDLOCK? AYE. MS. MEDLOCK VOTES YES. SO THAT IS 12 AYES AND 3 ABSENCE. [26-I-41 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE 25-OR-52 (2026 ANNUAL BUDGET, PULASKI COUNTY, ARKANSAS) TO RECOGNIZE AND APPROPRIATE ACT 442 911 RURAL ENHANCEMENT GRANT FUNDS FOR THE OFFICE OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT.] 12 AYES, 3 ABSENCE. WE WILL SEND 26 I-40 TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT WITH THE DO PASS RECOMMENDATION. AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE READ 26 I-41? AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE 25 OR 52 2026 ANNUAL BUDGET, PULASKI COUNTY, ARKANSAS, TO RECOGNIZE AND APPROPRIATE ACT 442-911 RULE ENHANCEMENT GRANT FUNDS FOR THE OFFICE OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT. JUSTICE STOWERS. THANK YOU, SIR. I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION THAT WE SEND THIS ITEM [00:15:01] TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT WITH A DUE PASS RECOMMENDATION. SECOND. A MOTION WAS MADE WITH THE SECOND THAT WE SEND 26-I-41 TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT WITH A DUE PASS RECOMMENDATION. JUSTICE STOWERS, WOULD YOU LIKE TO EXPLAIN? I'D LIKE TO RECOGNIZE MR. ANDY TRAPEZIN, WHO IS OUR DIRECTOR OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT. AND, SIR, IF YOU COULD GIVE US THE LOWDOWN ON THIS ORDINANCE. YES, ANDY TRAVISTEAD, EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT DIRECTOR. THIS IS A SMALL GRANT THAT WE GET FROM THE STATE. WE'VE BEEN GETTING SINCE 2013. IT'S FOR THE 911 CENTERS JUST TO HELP THEM ENHANCE THEIR OPERATIONS. IT'S ONLY $12,000, SO IT'S NOT A LOT OF FUNDS, BUT IT DOES HELP THEM. WELL, I GUESS EVERYBODY'S EXPLAINING AWAY TONIGHT. THERE SEEMS TO BE NO QUESTIONS. THANK YOU FOR THAT INFORMATION. THANK YOU, ANDY. AMY. OKAY, PLEASE ADD JUSTICE CURRY AS A SPONSOR. AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL ON 26I41? MS. MEDLOCK? AYE. MS. MEDLOCK VOTES YES. MR. ELLIOTT? YES. MR. ELLIOTT VOTES YES. MR. SOWERS? YES. MR. SOWERS VOTES YES. MR. ROBINSON? AYE. MR. ROBINSON VOTES YES. MS. YOUNG-BAKER? YES. MS. YOUNG-BAKER VOTES YES. MS. WARD? YES. WARD VOTE YES. MR. KEITH? YES. MR. KEITH VOTE YES. MS. CURRY? YES. MS. CURRY VOTE YES. MR. PERSON? YES. MR. PERSON VOTE YES. MS. BLACKWOOD? AYE. MS. BLACKWOOD VOTE YES. MS. LEWISON? YES. MS. LEWISON VOTE YES. AND MS. CAPPS? AYE. CAPPS VOTE YES. SO THAT IS 12 AYES, 3 APPS 12 HOURS, 3 ABSENT. [26-I-44 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE 25-OR-52 (2026 ANNUAL BUDGET, PULASKI COUNTY, ARKANSAS) TO APPROPRIATE CONTINGENCY FUNDS (FUND 1807) TO THE QUORUM COURT BUDGET FOR A REQUESTED FORENSIC FINANCIAL AUDIT.] WE WILL SEND 26 I-41 TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT WITH A DO-PASS RECOMMENDATION. AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE READ 26 I-44? ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE 25 OR 52 2026 ANNUAL BUDGET, PULASKI COUNTY, ARKANSAS, TO APPROPRIATE CONTINGENCY FUNDS, FUND 1807, TO THE QUORUM COURT BUDGET FOR REQUESTED FORENSIC FINANCIAL AUDITS. JUSTICE CURRY. YES. I'D LIKE TO MOVE. 26 I 44 TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT FOR A SECOND THANK YOU A MOTION WAS MADE WITH THE SECOND THAT WE SEND 26 I 44 TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT WITH THE DUE PASS RECOMMENDATION JUSTICE CURRY WOULD YOU LIKE TO EXPLAIN OR DO YOU HAVE SOMEONE TO EXPLAIN I WOULD LIKE FOR SOMEONE FROM THE BUSINESS OFFICE TO SHARE HI MICHELLE JOHNSON, ASSISTANT COMPTROLLER. THANK YOU. FILLING IN FOR HUTCH. YEAH, SO THE FORENSIC AUDIT IS SOMETHING THAT WAS REQUESTED BY THE BODY AND THE MEMBERS AND THE JUDGE. AND SO WE PUT OUT A BID FOR IT, RFP, WHICH IS A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL. AND WE PUT OUT, IT ENDED UP BEING SENT OUT WITH 464 INVITATIONS, WHICH SIX VIEWED THEM. AND TWO SUBMITTED THE TECHNICALS, HOWEVER ONE DID NOT SUBMIT THE FINANCIALS, SO THEY WERE DISQUALIFIED. SO THAT LEFT ONE VENDOR TO BE VETTED. THAT VENDOR WAS VETTED BY COUNTY ATTORNEY HAMILTON, AND WE MOVED FORWARD WITH DOING THE AWARD. THEIR FINANCIALS CAME IN AT $249,500, I THINK IT WAS, $249,500. FOR THE FULL FORENSIC FINANCIAL AUDIT FOR ALL DEPARTMENTS WITHIN THE COUNTY. OKAY, JUSTICE KERR, YOU STILL HAVE THE FLOOR. YES, THANK YOU FOR THAT. WOULD YOU SHARE A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, I KNOW IT'S ABOUT 1,100 HOURS TIED TO. CAN YOU KIND OF SHARE IF THEY'RE GOING TO DO THAT? DO YOU KNOW A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAILS ON THAT? I DON'T. AS TO HOW WE REALLY NEED TO KNOW HOW LONG IT WILL TAKE. IF THERE'S ANYTHING THAT INDICATED THAT IN CONVERSATIONS. AT THIS POINT, THERE WAS NO CONVERSATION AS FAR AS THAT GOES WITH THE VENDOR. THAT WOULD BE CONDUCTED AT THE PRE-FINANCIAL AUDIT. AND DO YOU HAVE A DATE WHEN THAT'S GOING TO BE SET? NO. CAN WE BE NOTIFIED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE? YES. YES, I THINK WE WERE WAITING FOR TONIGHT FOR THE RESOLUTION. APPROVAL. ORDINANCE, YEAH. I YIELD. OKAY. JUSTICE PARSON? THANK YOU. AS FAR AS YOU KNOW, DOES THIS COMPANY HAVE ANY PARTICULAR TIES OR RELATIONSHIPS [00:20:02] WITH ANYBODY IN COUNTY ADMINISTRATION OR PLESSY COUNTY GOVERNMENT? THEY DO NOT. WE HAVE A CONTRACT VENDOR DISCLOSURE THAT IS SENT TO THEM AND THEY HAVE COMPLETED IT THAT NO, THEY DO NOT HAVE ANY TIES TO THE COUNTY. THANK YOU. ARE YOU JUSTICE BLACKWOOD? AND YOU SIT ON AN RFP, RIGHT? CORRECT. AND ONLY, IS THIS THE ONLY ONE THAT RESPONDED TO THE RFP? TWO RESPONDENTS TO THE TECHNICAL BID. OKAY. AND THEN ONCE WE PUT OUT THE FINANCIALS TO REQUEST THE FINANCIALS, THE ONE COMPANY DID NOT RESPOND. SO THAT JUST LEFT THE ONE COMPANY. THE ONE COMPANY. OKAY. AND SO, AND ALL THE VETTING WENT THROUGH OUR ATTORNEY? YES. OKAY. THANK YOU. YOU'RE WELCOME. I YIELD. CAN YOU TELL ME WHERE THIS COMPANY IS FROM? MIRAMAR BEACH, FLORIDA. FLORIDA, OKAY, AND THEY'VE DONE WORK WITH COUNTY GOVERNMENT IN THE PAST? YES, THEY HAVE ALL THE REFERENCES INCLUDED IN THEIR SUBMITTALS. AND YOU SAY, I KNOW YOU SAID WE DON'T KNOW HOW LONG, IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE SAYING, WE DON'T KNOW HOW LONG IT SHOULD TAKE? WE HAVE THE NUMBER OF HOURS. OKAY, OKAY. YEAH, BUT WE DON'T HAVE THE DAYS. NOW, ARE THEY DOING THAT ON-SITE, OR ARE WE HAVING TO SEND THEM OR GIVE THEM ACCESS TO THE INFORMATION? IT'S BOTH. BOTH? OKAY. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. MICHELLE? YES, CORRECT. OKAY. THANK YOU. JUSTICE CAPPS? I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE CONTINGENCY NUMBER. IS THAT A STANDARD? IT'S NEARLY 40%. IS THAT A STANDARD VALUE IN THESE AUDITS? IN ACTUALITY, WE THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO BE A LOT MORE THAN $264,000 BECAUSE IT'S GOING OVER THE, YOU KNOW, THREE YEARS. SO THE $249,000 IS FOR THE AUDIT, AND THERE'S A $99,000 CONTINGENCY FIGURE. DO YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION ON WHETHER THAT'S STANDARD PRACTICE WITHIN THIS PURVIEW? I DO NOT. AND BECAUSE WE ONLY GOT ONE, THERE'S NO COMPARATIVE. THAT'S CORRECT. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. ANY OTHER? JUSTICE STOUTWOOD? I JUST WANT TO POINT OUT THAT ANY CONTINGENCY FUNDS THAT ARE NOT SPENT WILL GO BACK INTO THE GENERAL FUND. THANK YOU. JUSTICE BLACKWOOD? THE ONLY THING I'M WORRIED ABOUT IS THAT WE ONLY GOT THE ONE, AND THIS KIND OF CONCERNS ME THAT WE ONLY HAVE ONE PERSON THAT'S COMING IN HERE, AND WE DIDN'T GET ANY KIND OF... COMPETITION ON THIS. IS THERE ANY WAY WE CAN LIKE DO ANOTHER RFP AND PUT IT OUT AGAIN OR IS THAT NOT LEGAL? IS THAT LEGAL TO DO THAT? THAT'S THE OPTION OR THE DECISION OF THE JUDGE. SO EACH DEPARTMENT HEAD, WHOEVER WE PUT OUT AN RFP BECAUSE THIS FALLS UNDER HIM, WHEN WE PUT OUT AN RFP EACH DEPARTMENT HAS THE AUTHORITY I GUESS YOU CAN SAY. WHETHER TO TAKE THAT ONE RESPONDENT AND VET THEM, AND IF THEY'RE COMFORTABLE WITH THEM, THEY CAN GO WITH THEM. IF THEY'RE NOT COMFORTABLE WITH THEM, THEN YES, WE WOULD PUT OUT A BID. SO IS IT THE JUDGE THAT DECIDES WHETHER HE'S COMFORTABLE WITH THEM? IS THAT WHO DECIDES? NO, HAMILTON IS THE ONE THAT VETTED THEM. AND I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE CONVERSATION WAS BETWEEN HAMILTON AND THE JUDGE. I DON'T KNOW. BUT 464 INVITATIONS WENT OUT AND ONLY SIX VIEWED THEM. OKAY. AND HOW LONG WAS IT OUT FOR? IT'S OUT FOR AT LEAST 30 DAYS. OKAY. THANK YOU. YOU'RE WELCOME. JUSTICE STOWISH? I'D LIKE TO CALL THE QUESTION ON 26I44. THAT'S AN UNDEBATABLE BUT WE. RIGHT, BUT WE'VE GOT A, WELL, OKAY, BEFORE, I GOT A COMMENT, SO I NEED TO GO AHEAD AND GET THE COMMENT OUT OF THE WAY. YEAH, MOTION. OKAY. OKAY. AMY, WOULD YOU CALL THE ROLL ON 26I44? HOLD ON. OH YEAH, I'M SORRY, THE MOTION TO CALL THE QUESTION. I'M SORRY. YEAH, I'M WAKING UP. YEAH, PLEASE. SO THE MOTION IS NON-DEBATABLE ABOUT THE QUESTION TO END THE DISCUSSION. SO AMY, WOULD YOU CALL THE ROLL ON THE QUESTION TO END DEBATE [00:25:02] ON 26-I-44? YES. CAN I JUST ASK WHO MADE THE SECOND? I DID NOT HEAR THE SECOND. I DIDN'T EITHER. OH, I DIDN'T EITHER. SO I THINK PAUL GAVE THE SECOND. PAUL? PAUL DON'T LOOK LIKE HE GAVE A SECOND. OKAY, SO IT'S TIME TO GET A VOTE. PAUL. MR. ELLIOTT. YOU SECOND THE MOTION. PAUL, YOU DIDN'T LOOK LIKE YOU GAVE A SECOND. OKAY, SO. ALL RIGHT, MS. CAPPS, NO. MS. CAPPS VOTES NO. MS. LEWISON. NO. MS. LEWISON VOTES NO. MS. BLACKWOOD. NO. MS. BLACKWOOD VOTES NO. MR. PERSON. NO. MR. PERSON VOTES NO. MS. CURRY? NO. MS. CURRY VOTES NO. MR. KEITH? NO. MR. KEITH VOTES NO. MS. WARD? NO. MS. WARD VOTES NO. MS. YOUNG-BAKER? NO. MS. YOUNG-BAKER VOTES NO. MR. ROBINSON? NO. MR. STOWERS? YES. MR. STOWERS VOTES YES. MR. ELLIOTT? YES. MR. ELLIOTT VOTES YES. AND MS. MEDLOCK? OKAY, WOW. MS. MEDLOCK, WAS THAT NO? NO. OKAY, SO I HAVE TWO AYES, NAYS, AND THREE ABSENTS. OKAY, SO THE MOTION FAILS. OKAY, SO WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE OUR DISCUSSION. JUSTICE CURRY. YES, I'D LIKE TO JUST SHARE, COLLEAGUES, THAT WE KNOW HOW IMPORTANT IT IS BASED ON ALL THE THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN HAPPENING WITH THE COUNTY SINCE THE FIRST OF THE YEAR. AND PROPER BIDS HAVE BEEN SENT OUT, AND YOU KNOW, YOU CAN'T MAKE ANYBODY APPLY. BUT IF THE PROCEDURE HAS BEEN PROPERLY FOLLOWED, WHICH IT HAS, I DON'T SEE THE NEED TO DELAY BECAUSE IT'S URGENT TO ME. THAT WE SHOULD GO AHEAD AND GET OUR AUDIT BECAUSE IF NOT IT WOULD BE DELAYED PROBABLY WHAT ANOTHER 30 DAYS MAYBE TWO MONTHS I JUST DON'T SEE PERSONALLY THE NEED FOR US TO BE DELAYED IN AN AUDIT PROCEDURE THAT IS CRITICAL THANK YOU THANK YOU JUSTICE CURRY UM ARE THERE ANY OTHER I HAVE A QUESTION OH OKAY JUSTICE ROBBINS THANK YOU SO MY QUESTION IS UM THE $48 MILLION THAT WE MOVED A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO, WHY CAN WE NOT USE THAT MONEY? WHY ARE WE HAVING TO TAKE MORE MONEY OUT OF THE CONTINGENCY FUND FOR THIS? WHO CAN ANSWER THAT? I MEAN, WE MOVED ALL, I MEAN, NO ONE HAS REALLY, THE NOTIFICATION OF THIS AUDIT. FOURS TO FIGURE OUT BUT I MEAN IS THERE ANY WHERE ARE WE AT CRICKETS WELL I WAS TOLD WE WERE IN GOOD SHAPE WHAT DOES GOOD SHAPE MEAN IS THAT WE'RE IN GOOD SHAPE THAT THE MONEY IS WHERE IT'S A IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE AND THAT THAT WE'RE ABLE TO TO MEET THE COUNTY'S OBLIGATION THAT'S WHAT I WAS TOLD. OKAY, HOW ARE YOU? OKAY. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS BEFORE I ALLOW JUDGE GRIFFIN? I WOULD ECHO THE QUESTION BY MR. ROBINSON. SIX WEEKS AGO, THE- COUNTY MOVED $48 MILLION IN THE ROUNDABOUT FROM CONTINGENCY INTO GENERAL REVENUE. NOW WE'VE GOT TO SPEND $250,000 ALMOST FROM THE CONTINGENCY FUND. ACCORDING TO MY ARITHMETIC, THERE'S A WHOLE LOT DIFFERENT BETWEEN $250,000, $249,500, AND $48 MILLION. SOMEWHERE BETWEEN THERE, THERE OUGHT TO BE SOME CHANGE TO PAY FOR THE... SECOND THING IS, IF YOU'RE A MEMBER OF A HUNTING CLUB AND YOU'RE THE TREASURER OF THE HUNTING CLUB AND THE BOOKS COME UP BAD, YOU DON'T GET A CHANCE TO CHOOSE WHO TO AUDIT. NOW, IT DON'T HAPPEN IN THE CHURCH OR HUNTING CLUB. WHY IS THAT FOR THE COUNTY? WE'RE OUT OF A PROBLEM. [00:30:04] LET THE RECORD SHOW THAT JUSTICE MASSEY HAS ARRIVED. IS THERE ANYBODY HERE FROM THE TREASURER'S OFFICE THAT COULD... IS ANYBODY HERE FROM THE TREASURER'S OFFICE SO THAT WE CAN GET... WHAT ARE WE TRYING TO... MS. CURRY, POINT OF ORDER, DO YOU MEAN THE... HOLD ON, LISTEN, LISTEN, HOLD ON. I AM SITTING HERE, SO THAT'S WHAT I'M TRYING TO... I'M TRYING TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IS THE PURPOSE. SO IF YOU'LL GIVE ME THE OPPORTUNITY, I'LL SEE WHO WE NEED TO TRY TO ADDRESS THE QUESTION TO. I'M JUST INQUIRING BECAUSE WHETHER WE TAKE IT FROM THE CONTINGENCY FUND, IF THE MONEY IS AVAILABLE IN CONTINGENCY FUND... WHY COULDN'T WE USE IT? BUT NOBODY'S HERE THAT CAN ANSWER THAT, CORRECT? BUT ONE THING ABOUT IT IS THAT WE'RE ONLY, TONIGHT WHAT WE'RE DOING IS SENDING IT TO THE FULL COURT. WILL HUTCH BE BACK? OKAY, HE SHOULD BE BACK OR IF WE COULD SEND THAT INFORMATION, I MEAN, SEND IT TO HIM AND IF HE'S NOT HERE, SO HE CAN MAKE THAT INFORMATION AVAILABLE FOR US. BUT ALL WE'RE DOING IS MOVING IT. FROM THIS COMMITTEE TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT AND AT THAT TIME WE CAN VOTE IT UP OR DOWN BACK OR FORTH HOWEVER WE CHOOSE TO THAT NIGHT SO I UNDERSTAND BUT IF THEY'RE NOT HERE TONIGHT THEN YOU KNOW WE'RE YOU KNOW VOTE YOUR CONSCIOUS UH IF WE FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH SENDING IT FORWARD AND THEN WE MAKE THAT FINAL VOTE ON THAT NIGHT THAT'S WHAT I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO DO RIGHT THANK YOU ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? THERE BEING NONE, AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL ON 26I44? MS. MEDLOCK. MS. MEDLOCK VOTES YES. MR. ELLIOTT. YES. MR. ELLIOTT VOTES YES. MR. STOWERS. YES. MR. STOWERS VOTES YES. MR. ROBINSON. AYE. MR. ROBINSON VOTES YES. MS. YOUNG-BAKER. YES. MS. YOUNG-BAKER VOTES YES. MISS WARD? YES. MISS WARD VOTES YES. MR. KEITH? YES. MR. KEITH VOTES YES. MISS CURRY? YES. MISS CURRY VOTES YES. MISS MASSEY? MISS MASSEY VOTES YES. MR. PERSON? YES. MR. PERSON VOTES YES. MISS BLACKWOOD? NO. MISS BLACKWOOD VOTES NO. MISS LEWISON? YES. MISS LEWISON VOTES YES. MISS CAPPS? AYE. AND MISS CAPPS VOTES YES. SO THAT IS... 12 AYES, 1 NAY, AND 2 ABSENT. OKAY, 12 AYES, 1 NO, 2 ABSENT. WE WILL SEND THIS TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT. WE'LL SEND 26.544 TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT WITH THE DUE PASS RECOMMENDATION FOR FINAL APPROVAL. JUSTICE WARD. [Additional Item] OKAY, I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION TO SEND I HERE 26 I 45. THANK YOU. SECOND. ALL RIGHT. A MOTION WAS MADE WITH THE SECOND THAT WE CAN. IT WAS A LATE FILE AND THAT WE HEAR 26 I 45. AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE READ 26? OH, NO. NO. READ 26 I 45, PLEASE. AN ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING A 12-MONTH TEMPORARY MORATORIUM ON THE APPROVAL OF HIGH-IMPACT INDUSTRIAL AND HIGH-INTENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITIES IN THE UNINCORPORATED AREAS OF PULASKI COUNTY, PENDING DEVELOPMENT OF A COMPREHENSIVE CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT, AND NOTICE OF INDUSTRIAL IMPACT AND INTENT REGULATORY FRAMEWORK, DECLARING AN EMERGENCY, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. ALL RIGHT, JUSTICE WARD. I MOVE THIS. SENT TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT WITH A DO PASS RECOMMENDATION SECOND POINT OF ORDER YES SIR WE HAVE AN AMENDMENT TO THIS YEAH WE HAVE TO PUT THIS ON THE TABLE FIRST BEFORE WE TAKE THE AMENDMENT ALL RIGHT SO UH SO A MOTION WAS MADE WITH THE SECOND THAT WE TWIN SENT 26 OUT OF 45 TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT AND IT SO HAPPENS TO HAVE AN AMENDMENT JUSTICE YOUNG BAKER I MAKE THE MOTION THAT WE HEAR THE AMENDMENT, RIGHT? NO. [00:35:05] WE NEED TO HEAR IT. YEAH, THAT'S WHAT I THOUGHT. OKAY, I HEAR YOU, BUT YOU MAKE A MOTION THAT WE HEAR THE AMENDMENT FOR 26 OUT OF 45, AND SOMEBODY ELSE HAS TO MAKE A SECOND. OKAY. OKAY. A MOTION WAS MADE WITH THE SECOND THAT WE AMEND 26 I-45. AND REMEMBER, PEOPLE, WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT RIGHT NOW IS JUST THE AMENDMENT TO 26 I-45. JUST THE AMENDMENT. WE'RE NOT TAKING UP THE WHOLE ORDINANCE YET. SO JUSTICE YOUNGBAKER, WOULD YOU STILL HAVE THE FLOOR? BECAUSE IT'S YOUR AMENDMENT. WOULD YOU LIKE TO EXPLAIN? SO THE AMENDMENT DOES NOT CHANGE THE MORATORIUM THAT JUSTICE WARD IS THE LEAD SPONSOR ON. BUT THERE WAS A DEFICIENCY, I FELT LIKE, IN THAT MORATORIUM BECAUSE IT STIFLED ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT UNINTENTIONALLY. AND SO WHAT THE AMENDMENT IS GOING TO DO IS IT'S GOING TO ADDRESS EXISTING BUSINESSES. IN THE COUNTY, ALONG WITH BUSINESSES THAT ARE ALREADY IN THE PIPELINE THAT HAVE MADE APPLICATION, AS WELL AS FUTURE BUSINESSES. THAT THERE MAY BE JUST IN THE TALKS. AND SO THAT IS WHAT THIS AMENDMENT DOES. IT IS GOING TO ALLOW THE CONTINUATION OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN THE COUNTY VERSUS SAYING THAT THE COUNTY IS CLOSED FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. OKAY, THANK YOU. JUSTICE YOUNGBAKER. JUSTICE STOWERS. YEAH, THANK YOU, SIR. SO THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF CORRESPONDENCE THAT HAS WENT BACK AND FORTH TODAY IN VIOLATION OF FOIA. A LOT OF EMAILS BETWEEN MEMBERS OF THIS BODY IN VIOLATION OF FOIA. PRESS IS LISTENING TO THE CASE. I'VE SEEN ABOUT SEVEN DIFFERENT VERSIONS OF THIS AMENDMENT TODAY. MY UNDERSTANDING IN ASKING OUR DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS, TAB TOWNSEND, AND OUR DIRECTOR OF PLANNING, JIM CRANOR, THIS DOES NOT GRANDFATHER IN THE AVEO PROJECT AS... MY AMENDMENT DID IN MAY. SO I'D KIND OF LIKE TO FIGURE OUT, IN ONE OF THE CONCERNS, AND WHILE I HAVE THE FLOOR, I WOULD LIKE TO RECOGNIZE SOMEBODY, A GUEST, A SPECIAL GUEST THAT'S HERE WITH US, MR. JACK THOMAS. I HAVE QUESTIONS FOR YOU. WOULD YOU PLEASE COME FORWARD? NOW, IS THIS SPECIFICALLY ON JUSTICE STILES? YES, IT'S ON THE AMENDMENT. WHAT WE'RE AMENDING, OKAY. IT'S ON THE AMENDMENT. COME FORWARD. I BELIEVE YOU'RE EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT OF THE GREATER LITTLE ROCK CHAMBER OF COMMERCE. AND HOW DO YOU FEEL THAT THIS AMENDMENT WILL IMPACT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT? AND AS MS. YOUNG-BAKER STATED, HER INTENTIONS ARE FOR IT TO NOT. DEPLETE OR TO STOP ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN PULASKI COUNTY. BUT MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT IF WE'RE AT FIVE GIGAWATTS AND 100,000 GALLONS OF WATER, AND IF THAT'S WHERE WE'RE DRAWING THE LINE, THAT'S GOING TO CLOSE OUT ABOUT ANY FACTORY THAT WOULD WANT TO LOCATE HERE IN THE NEXT 12 MONTHS. IS THAT ACCURATE OR IS THAT INACCURATE? JUSTICE, CAN YOU REPEAT YOUR NAME, SIR? YES, SIR. JACK THOMAS. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. GO AHEAD. I AM A RESIDENT OF PULASKI COUNTY, CONSTITUENT OF JUSTICE LEWISON. SO, JUSTICE TOWERS, I HAVE NOT SEEN THE AMENDMENT. I CAN'T SAY THAT. WHAT I CAN SAY IS THAT, LIKE MANY IN THIS ROOM, I WAS NOT AWARE OF WHAT WENT ON TODAY AS FAR AS THE LATEST AMENDMENTS. I SAW SOMETHING THAT WAS POSTED ON THE ARKANSAS TIMES THAT HAD AN ORDINANCE. I BELIEVE IT WOULD BE THIS ORDINANCE. SO, JUST BY WAY OF CONTEXT. I LEAD OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS HERE IN LITTLE ROCK AND ACROSS CENTRAL ARKANSAS, CERTAINLY IN PULASKI COUNTY. MOST OF MY TIME THAT I SPEND IS SPENT RECRUITING NEW COMPANIES TO PULASKI COUNTY. SO HELPING THEM PICK SITES IN THE COUNTY. I WORKED WITH WITH SIG SAUER [00:40:01] IN JACKSONVILLE, DASSO FALCON JET AT THE AIRPORT, RELATE CARE IN SHERWOOD, NUMEROUS PROJECTS AT THE PORT OF LITTLE ROCK, NUMEROUS PROJECTS IN MAUMELLE. AND I THINK THIS MAY BE HELPFUL TO EXPLAIN THAT THESE PROJECTS START BY LOOKING AT MULTIPLE STATES AND THEN THEY NARROW IN ON A SET OF COMMUNITIES THAT MAY FIT A CERTAIN CRITERIA FOR THEIR LOCATION. AND WHAT HAPPENS IS THEY GET DOWN TO ULTIMATELY THERE'S ONE LOSER OR THERE'S ONE WINNER AND EVERYBODY ELSE HAS TO LOSE, RIGHT? SO THESE ARE COMPETITIVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS THAT LOOK AT MULTIPLE LOCATIONS AND THEN ULTIMATELY PICK ONE WINNER AND ONE LOSER. SOME OF THESE PROJECTS THAT I SEEM TO HAVE ISSUE WITH THE ORDINANCE THAT I SAW, AGAIN, I HADN'T SEEN THE AMENDMENT, IS YOU LOOK AT PROJECTS LIKE THOSE THAT I MENTIONED, BUT ALSO... ALOPAK, WHICH IS A NORWEGIAN CARTON COMPANY THAT MAKES ORANGE JUICE CARTONS AND MILK CARTONS AND COFFEE CREAMER. THEY EVALUATED 25 CITIES ACROSS FIVE STATES BEFORE THEY SELECTED LITTLE ROCK AND PULASKI COUNTY. ANOTHER PROJECT THAT WOULD MEET THESE CRITERIA WOULD BE AMAZON'S LATEST LIT 3 PROJECT THAT'S CREATING 1,000 JOBS IN PULASKI COUNTY. FAMONVILLE, WHICH IS A LUXEMBOURG-BASED TRAILER COMPANY THAT CHOSE PULASKI COUNTY AFTER LOOKING AT MULTIPLE DIFFERENT STATES. AND THEY'RE CREATING JOB OPPORTUNITIES FOR 500 PEOPLE IN PULASKI COUNTY. THERE'S OTHERS THAT OUR TEAM HAS WORKED IN UNINCORPORATED PORTIONS OF THE COUNTY THAT ARE ANNEXED INTO THE CITY TO GET, WHETHER IT'S THE CITY OF LITTLE ROCK, CITY OF NORTH LITTLE ROCK, WHATEVER IT MIGHT BE, TO GET SEWER SERVICE SUCH AS TREX, WHICH IS 500 NEW JOBS, $500 MILLION CAPITAL INVESTMENT, WELLSPUN, OVER 01,000 NEW JOBS NOW, SAGE FIVE FOODS AND THE DOLLAR GENERAL DISTRIBUTION CENTER IN GALLOWAY. AND THREE PROJECTS OFF 145TH STREET IN THE UNINCORPORATED PORTIONS OF THE COUNTY WITH ALL-WEATHER INSULATED PANELS, SOUTH ATLANTIC GALVANIZING, MOURNED BY KINGSPAN AND OTHERS. ALL OF THESE PROJECTS HAVE THREE THINGS IN COMMON. ONE, THEY'RE CREATING GOOD-PAYING JOBS FOR THE PEOPLE OF PULASKI COUNTY. TWO, THEIR NEW TAX REVENUES ARE FUNDING THE ROADS THAT WE DRIVE ON, THE POLICE AND FIRE DEPARTMENTS THAT PROTECT US, CENTRAL ARKANSAS LIBRARY SYSTEM, OUR CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL, THE COUNTY BUDGET, AND THE... EXCELLENT ITEMS THAT WERE VOTED TO APPROPRIATE FUNDS TO TONIGHT, AND PERHAPS MOST IMPORTANTLY, OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS. BUT THE THIRD THING THAT THEY HAVE IN COMMON IS THAT NONE OF THOSE PROJECTS WOULD BE ALLOWED TO MOVE FORWARD IF THIS ORDINANCE WERE TO PASS. SO I THINK TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, JUSTICE TOWERS, I DO SEE SIGNIFICANT ISSUE WITH THIS ORDINANCE. I HAVEN'T SEEN THE AMENDMENT, BUT I SEE SIGNIFICANT ISSUE WITH THIS ORDINANCE BECAUSE ALL OF THOSE PROJECTS THAT REPRESENT AT THOUSANDS OF JOBS. AND HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN CAPITAL INVESTMENT THAT FUND ALL OF THE NECESSARY SERVICES THAT WE HAVE, NONE OF THEM WOULD HAVE BEEN ALLOWED TO MOVE FORWARD IN THE FORMAT THAT THE ORDINANCE IS DRAFTED. SO I DO THINK THAT THE ORDINANCE IS WELL-INTENTIONED. I DO. BUT I DO THINK THAT THERE ARE UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES. AND AGAIN, THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH DATA CENTERS. THIS HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH THE EVERYDAY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS LIKE THE ONES THAT I JUST MENTIONED. WHEN WE BRING NEW BUSINESSES IN THAT DEVELOP RESPONSIBLY, IT BROADENS OUR TAX BASE. IT ALSO PROVIDES US WITH REVENUE, NEW REVENUE TO THE UTILITIES THAT THEY'RE ABLE TO DEFER COSTS, SUCH AS DEFERRED, OR THEY'RE ABLE TO COVER COSTS LIKE FIXED COSTS, SUCH AS DEFERRED MAINTENANCE, SO THAT WE, AS PEOPLE WHO LIVE HERE, DON'T HAVE TO BEAR THOSE COSTS, THAT THOSE COSTS ARE SPREAD TO NEW CUSTOMERS. SO I THINK I DO HAVE SIGNIFICANT CONCERNS WITH THIS. I THINK IF I GET A CALL, IF THIS WERE TO PASS, AND I GET A CALL FROM A SITE SELECTOR THAT SAYS, HEY, I HAVE A 2,500 JOB ADVANCED MANUFACTURING FACILITY THAT WANTS TO LOOK AT PULASKI COUNTY. UNFORTUNATELY, IF THIS WERE TO PASS, I WOULD HAVE TO PICK UP THE PHONE AND TELL THAT SITE SELECTOR THAT IT IS ILLEGAL FOR YOUR PROJECT TO COME TO PULASKI COUNTY. AND I THINK NOBODY WANTS THAT. SO IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING. CAN YOU HOLD ON? HEY, HEY, AUDIENCE, I'M GOING TO ASK YOU TO PLEASE REFRAIN. PLEASE REFRAME IT. IT'S KIND OF NOISE IN HERE AS IT IS. SO PLEASE ALLOW HIM TO TO SPEAK HIS PIECE. AND IF YOU FILL OUT A CARD, YOU'LL GET THE ABSOLUTE CHANCE TO DO YOUR DO THE SAME. MR. THOMAS, PLEASE CONTINUE. YEAH, WELL, JUST IN CLOSING, I WOULD SAY THAT THE ORDINANCE AS DRAFTED, I DO BELIEVE IS WELL INTENDED, BUT HAS UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES. AND I THINK THAT IT IS DETRIMENTAL TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN PULASKI COUNTY. OKAY. THANK YOU. HE'S GIVEN IT TO YOU. THAT'S FINE. AND DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE, OR DO YOU WANT HIM TO READ THAT WHILE HE'S UP THERE? NO, I THINK YOU'RE DOWN TO SPEAK ANYWAY, [00:45:03] SO YOU'LL GET THE OPPORTUNITY TO COME BACK. OKAY. DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE, JUSTICE STOWERS? NO, SIR. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. JUSTICE YOUNGBAKER. SO, YOU KNOW, I WANT TO REITERATE AGAIN THAT, YES, THE ORIGINAL MORATORIUM AS WRITTEN DID HAVE UNINTENTIONAL CONSEQUENCES. THAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THE AMENDMENT. SO THAT WE ARE NOT STIFLING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. THE MESSAGE THAT WE WANT TO SEND IS THAT PULASKI COUNTY IS OPEN FOR BUSINESS AND WE WELCOME BUSINESSES. WE ARE NOT TRYING TO PREVENT ANY OF OUR BUSINESSES IN THE COUNTY TO NOT BE ABLE TO EXPAND, UPGRADE, MODERNIZE. WE WANT THEM TO BE ABLE TO CONTINUE TO INVEST IN. IN OUR COUNTY. SAME AS APPLICANTS THAT HAVE ALREADY MADE APPLICATION AND IS IN THE PIPELINE. THOSE BUSINESSES ARE ALSO GOING TO BE EXEMPT. AND FUTURE BUSINESSES, WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT, OH, YOU KNOW, IF YOU'VE GOT SOME BUSINESS WANTS TO COME HERE AND THEY'RE VETTING, THEN THEY STILL HAVE THE RIGHT TO APPLY AT OUR PLANNING DEPARTMENT. AND THEN IN THE AMENDMENT, ARTICLE 5 GIVES THEM THE ABILITY TO THEN GO BETWEEN UP TO THE PLANNING BOARD, AND THE PLANNING BOARD MAKES THE ULTIMATE DECISION IF THAT BUSINESS ENTITY FALLS UNDER THE EXEMPTION. SO IT IS NOT A HARD NO THAT WE CANNOT PROCEED WITH ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. THAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS AMENDMENT IS TO ALLOW ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, AND TO SAY ANYTHING DIFFERENT IS UNTRUE. AND IF THE AUDIENCE WOULD PLEASE REFRAIN FROM YOUR COMMENTS. I YIELD. OKAY. JUSTICE MATLOCK. I HAVE A COUPLE OF THINGS TO SAY. FIRST, I DO WANT TO SAY THAT I DO HEAR YOU. I'VE RECEIVED ALL YOUR EMAILS. I'M TRYING TO GATHER ALL THE INFORMATION TO FILTER THROUGH ALL OF THIS. I DON'T FEEL THAT IT'S RESPECTFUL. TO NOT LISTEN TO ALL THE OPINIONS ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU WANT US TO HEAR YOUR OPINION AND WITH THAT BEING SAID I DID HAVE A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS FOR THE GENTLEMAN THAT SPOKE EARLIER JUSTICE I MEAN UH MR THOMAS I'M SORRY I'M MAKING YOU A JUSTICE MR THOMAS PLEASE APPROACH THANK YOU FOR YOUR BRAVERY. SO MY QUESTION TO YOU IS, YOU KNOW, I HEAR MISS YOUNG-BAKER ON WE DON'T WANT TO STIFLE BUSINESSES, ALTHOUGH ON THE FLIP SIDE, WE DON'T WANT TO POLLUTE THE AIR. WE DON'T WANT TO CAUSE ANY ADVERSE, I GUESS, NEGATIVE THINGS TO OUR ENVIRONMENT. AND WITH THAT BEING SAID, I HAD A HANG-UP ON THAT FIVE... MEGAWATT USAGE LIMITATION AND I WAS KIND OF CURIOUS AS TO WHAT FALLS UNDER THAT GUIDELINE. ALL OF THOSE PROJECTS THAT I JUST MENTIONED THAT PULASKI COUNTY HAS LANDED OVER THE LAST DECADE FALL WITHIN THAT FIVE MEGAWATT, 100,000 GALLON A DAY CLASSIFICATION. SO WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THOUSANDS OF JOBS AND PROBABLY APPROACHING OVER A BILLION DOLLARS IN CAPITAL INVESTMENT. SO ESSENTIALLY ANY BUSINESS WANTING TO TRY TO CONSTRUCT A BUSINESS IN THE COUNTY WOULD FALL UNDER THAT FIVE MEGAWATT USAGE AND IT WOULD PREVENT THEM AND PUT THE LIMITATIONS ON THEM. IN FAIRNESS, NOT EVERY PROJECT WOULD FIT WITHIN THAT FIVE MEGAWATTS, BUT ALL OF THOSE PROJECTS THAT I JUST MENTIONED, PLUS... MANY OF THE REQUESTS FOR INFORMATION THAT WE'RE GETTING FROM SITE SELECTORS AND COMPANIES WOULD EXCEED THAT 5 MEGAWATT AND 100,000 GALLON PER DAY CAPACITY LIMIT. SO JUST FOR SOME PERSPECTIVE, IF YOU LOOK AT 5 MEGAWATTS AS A FUNCTION OF INTERGY ARKANSAS'S GENERATION CAPACITY, IT REPRESENTS .0009 OF THEIR GENERATION CAPACITY. 100,000 GALLONS PER DAY OF WATER REPRESENTS .0006%. OF CAW'S TREATMENT CAPACITY. SO AGAIN, I THINK THAT THESE ARE WELL-INTENDED ORDINANCES, BUT THEY HAVE SOME UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES. AND I THINK WE WOULD FALL VICTIM AS A COUNTY. TO BEING CUT FROM NUMEROUS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS [00:50:02] IF WE WERE TO ENACT THIS ORDINANCE. DID YOU HAVE A CHANCE TO LOOK OVER THE ONE THAT YOUNG-BAKER HAS PRESENTED? I READ, BUT I DON'T READ THAT FAST. I WAS JUST CURIOUS OF YOUR THOUGHTS ON THAT. WITH THAT, I YIELD. THANK YOU. JUSTICE BLACKWOOD. YES. WHAT I SEE WITH THE 5 MEGAWATT IS THAT YOU CAN COME IN AND YOU CAN START ONE COMPANY AT 5 MEGAWATT, THEN YOU'LL START ANOTHER ONE AT 5 MEGAWATT, AND THEN YOU'LL START ANOTHER DATA AT 5 MEGAWATT. SO THEN WE'RE UP TO MULTIPLE 5 MEGAWATTS IS WHAT WE'RE DOING. AND SO THIS IS A WAY TO SKIRT AND GET AROUND THE LAW. AND SO THIS IS WHAT FRIGHTENS ME ABOUT THIS. AND SO I THINK THAT THIS IS SOMETHING, ONE REASON THAT WE LOOKED AT THE 5 MEGAWATT, I WENT THROUGH AND LOOKED TO SEE WHO IS ABOVE 5 MEGAWATTS. AND I WENT TO LOOK AND SEE WHAT COMPANIES, YOU KNOW, AND THEY WERE, YES, UAMS, AND THAT IS AN ARM IN YOUNG-BAKERS AMENDMENT IS HOSPITALS. AND SOME OF THE HOSPITALS WERE. THAT CAPACITY. I THINK THAT FALCON JET MIGHT HAVE BEEN AT THAT CAPACITY. I LOOKED AT THE, THERE'S ANOTHER DATA CENTER CALLED TRY SOMETHING. IT'S DONE BY WINDSTREAM, AND IT'S AT THAT CAPACITY. THERE'S VERY FEW AT THAT CAPACITY IN LITTLE ROCK. I MEAN, VERY FEW. I LOOKED AT ALL THE, I LOOKED AT LOWE'S. I LOOKED AT ALL THE BUSINESSES. I WENT DOWN THE LINE ASKING WHICH YOU BUSINESS, WHICH BUSINESS, WHICH BUSINESS IS AT THAT. AND NONE OF THEM WERE EVEN CLOSE. SO, AND THAT'S WHY WE ADDRESSED IT IN THE AMENDMENT FOR SOME OF THESE HOSPITALS, THINGS THAT WERE ALREADY AT THAT LOAD. AND, YOU KNOW, SO WE COULD CONTINUE WITH THOSE TYPES OF THINGS. BUT I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO HAVE HAVE WENDELL GRIFFIN COME UP AND SPEAK ON THIS AMENDMENT TOO, WHEN YOU ARE FINISHED, AND I YIELD. OKAY, THANK YOU. THANK YOU, SIR. THANK YOU. DID YOU WANT HIM TO SPEAK AS A PART OF WHAT YOU SEE? OF THIS AMENDMENT, ON THIS AMENDMENT, YEAH. WELL, MAYBE HE'S, BECAUSE I'M CURIOUS WHERE, BECAUSE I WAS LOOKING AT THAT FIVE MEGAWATTS, WHERE DID THAT COME FROM? HOW DID WE DETERMINE THAT THAT WAS AN APPROPRIATE LEVEL? WELL, CAN WENDELL COME UP AND SPEAK ON THAT? IF HE, YES, SIR, JUDGE GRIFFIN, YOU CAN COME ON. CHAIRMAN KEEFE, JUSTICES, MY NAME IS WENDELL GRIFFIN. MAY I ADDRESS TWO POINTS? FIRST OF ALL, I HAVE A MORE THAN PASSING FAMILIARITY WITH THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT SINCE I'VE WRITTEN DECISIONS ABOUT IT. THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT PROHIBITS MEETINGS THAT REVOLVE IN VOTES. READING IS FUNDAMENTAL. THE AMENDMENT READS AT ARTICLE 4C, THE SECOND SENTENCE, THE TEMPORARY MORATORIUM ESTABLISHED HEREIN SHALL NOT APPLY TO EXPANSION, MODERNIZATION, REPLACEMENT, REDEVELOPMENT, UPGRADING, REPAIR, OR IMPROVEMENT OF ANY CURRENTLY AUTHORIZED BUSINESS, COMMERCIAL FACILITY, MANUFACTURING FACILITY, DISTRIBUTION FACILITY, HEALTHCARE FACILITY, AGRICULTURAL OPERATION, INDUSTRIAL OPERATION, OR OTHER LAWFUL ENTERPRISE OPERATING IN THE UNINCORPORATED AREAS OF PULASKI COUNTY. PRIOR TO THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS ORDINANCE, PROVIDED THAT THE EXPANSION, REPLACEMENT, MODERNIZATION, REDEVELOPMENT, UPGRADING, REPAIR, OR IMPROVEMENT DOES NOT RESULT IN ESTABLISHED, CONVERT TO, EXPAND INTO, OR OTHERWISE CONSTITUTE A HIGH-INTENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY OR HIGH-IMPACT UTILITY-INTENSIVE INDUSTRIAL USE SUBJECT TO THIS ORDINANCE. SHALL NOT MEANS SHALL NOT. THERE IS A FUNDAMENTAL DIFFERENCE BETWEEN... MAKING ORANGE CRATES AND HAVING HIGH INTENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE. THERE'S A BIG DIFFERENCE. I APOLOGIZE FOR THE EFFECT. THE AMENDMENT ALSO READS, IT SHALL NOT APPLY TO PROJECTS THAT HAVE RECEIVED FINAL COUNTY APPROVAL OR RECEIVED FINAL UTILITY ACCEPTANCE OR HAVE EXECUTED BINDING UTILITY INTERCONNECTION AGREEMENTS. BEFORE THE EFFECT OF THIS ORDINANCE SHALL NOT MEANS WHAT [00:55:01] IT SAYS. IT SHALL NOT APPLY TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS, COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES, HOSPITALS, MEDICAL FACILITIES, PUBLIC SAFETY FACILITIES, WATER AND WASTEWATER FACILITIES, PUBLIC UTILITY INFRASTRUCTURE, ELECTRIC GENERATION FACILITIES, RENEWABLE ENERGY FACILITIES SERVING ELECTRIC GENERATION PURPOSES AND NOT PRIMARILY INTENDED TO SUPPORT A HIGH-INTENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY OR HIGH-IMPACT UTILITY-INTENSIVE INDUSTRIAL USE. SUBJECT TO THIS ORDINANCE AND AGRICULTURAL OPERATIONS ENGAGED IN PRODUCTION, PROCESSING, STORAGE, OR DISTRIBUTION OF AGRICULTURAL COMMODITIES. BUT IN CASE ANYBODY WAS MISSING IT, IT READS, THE EXEMPTIONS CONTAINED IN THIS ORDINANCE ARE INTENDED TO ENSURE THE CONTINUATION OF EXISTING LAWFUL BUSINESS ACTIVITIES, PROTECT REASONABLE INVESTMENT-BACKED EXPECTATIONS AND PROJECTS THAT HAVE ACHIEVED SIGNIFICANT DEVELOPMENT MILESTONES PRIOR TO THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS ORDINANCE, PRESERVE ESSENTIAL PUBLIC SERVICES AND AVOID UNNECESSARY INTERFERENCE WITH ECONOMIC ACTIVITY UNRELATED TO THE LAND USE, INFRASTRUCTURE, UTILITY, ENVIRONMENTAL, PUBLIC SAFETY, AND FISCAL IMPACTS OF, PAUSE NOW, HIGH-INTENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITIES AND HIGH-IMPACT UTILITY-INTENSIVE INDUSTRIAL USES THAT ARE THE SUBJECT OF THE COUNTY'S ONGOING STUDY AND REGULATORY REVIEW. THE EXEMPTIONS CONTAINED IN THIS ORDINANCE ARE INTENDED TO PRESERVE EXISTING LAWFUL ECONOMIC ACTIVITY AND ESSENTIAL SERVICES. THE EXEMPTIONS SHALL BE CONSTRUED NARROWLY SO AS NOT TO PERMIT THE ESTABLISHMENT, CONVERSION, EXPANSION, OR OPERATION OF A HIGH-INTENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY OR HIGH-IMPACT UTILITY-INTENSIVE INDUSTRIAL USE, OTHERWISE SUBJECT TO THIS ORDINANCE. ANY PERSON CLAIMING ENTITLEMENT TO AN EXEMPTION SHALL BEAR THE BURDEN. OF DEMONSTRATING ELIGIBILITY FOR SUCH EXEMPTION THROUGH COMPETENT AND SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE. THE POINT THAT JUSTICE YOUNG-BAKER MADE IS THAT THE AMENDMENT TAKES CARE OF THE CONCERN ABOUT UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES. THAT WAS ONE OF THE CONCERNS THAT WAS MADE WHEN THIS ISSUE OF MORATORIUM WAS RAISED BACK LAST MONTH. JUSTICE YOUNG-BAKER IS NOT THE ONLY PERSON WHO HAS DONE THAT. RAISE THAT CONCERN. SEVERAL OF YOU HAVE. AND THIS AMENDMENT IS MADE TO ADDRESS THAT. LAST THING I'LL SAY IS, AND I DID SAY READING IS FUNDAMENTAL, LABELS MATTER. THE AMENDMENT IS TITLED, AN ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING A 12-MONTH TEMPORARY MORATORIUM ON THE APPROVAL OF, POSE HIGH IMPACT UTILITY-INTENSIVE INDUSTRIAL USE, AND HIGH-INTENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITIES IN THE UNINCORPORATED AREAS OF PULASKI COUNTY, PENDING DEVELOPMENT OF A COMPREHENSIVE CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT AND NOTICE OF INDUSTRIAL IMPACT AND INTENT REGULATORY FRAMEWORK. THE REASON I READ THAT IS I USED TO BE HUNTING, DEER HUNTING. DADDY HAD DEER DOGS, BUT HE DID NOT LET HIS DEER DOGS GO OUT DURING RABBIT SEASON. BECAUSE A DEER DOG WILL CHASE A RABBIT AND IF DADDY GOT A DEER DOG THAT STARTED CHASING RABBITS THAT DEER DOG GOT FIRED FROM HUNTING AND GOT FIRED FROM DADDY THERE IS A REASON WHY YOU DON'T READ INTO STUFF THAT HAS ALREADY BEEN WRITTEN OUT OF IT THIS IS A RABBIT THIS IS A RABBIT THE AMENDMENT GOES TO HIGH-IMPACT UTILITY-INTENSIVE INDUSTRIAL USE AND HIGH-INTENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITIES, AS ARE EXPLAINED IN ITEM 26I45. NONE OF THOSE HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH MAKING ORANGE CRATES, ET CETERA. AND I SUGGEST... AS I CLOSE, I SUGGEST THAT IF WE'RE GOING TO BE SERIOUS ABOUT THIS, LET'S REMEMBER THAT WE LEARN TO READ FOR A REASON AND ACT LIKE WE ARE READING FROM THE SAME STUFF AND NOT MAKE UP STUFF THAT'S NOT IN THE ITEM BEFORE YOU AND TRY TO MAKE IT SEEM LIKE IT'S RELEVANT TO THE ITEM AT HAND. JUDGE GRIFFIN, IF YOU'LL HOLD ON. NO, I DON'T WANT TO ASK. OKAY, JUSTICE STOWERS, I THINK JUSTICE STOWERS HAD A QUESTION. THANK YOU, SIR. THANK YOU, JUDGE GRIFFIN. [01:00:02] I HEAR WHAT YOU'RE SAYING, AND YOU EXPOUNDED ON HOW THIS AMENDMENT WOULD NOT EXCLUDE THOSE WHO ARE IN EXPANSION, MODERNIZATION, REPLACEMENT, REDEVELOPMENT. I'M NOT GOING TO READ THE WHOLE THING, BUT IT DOESN'T ADDRESS NEW INDUSTRIES THAT MIGHT BE LOOKING TO LOCATE IN PULASKI COUNTY. LET ME GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE OF GENERAL MOTORS, WHO DOESN'T OPERATE IN THIS COUNTY TODAY. CALL TOMORROW AND WANTED TO EXPLORE A PLANT IN PULASKI COUNTY. IT EXCEEDS THE FIVE MEGAWATTS. WE'D HAVE TO TELL THEM NO. NOT SO. NOT SO. YEAH, WE'D HAVE TO TELL THEM YOU HAVE TO WAIT A YEAR. WELL, LET ME, IF THAT IS YOUR HYPOTHETICAL, SIR, AND I'M SOMEWHAT FAMILIAR WITH HYPOTHETICALS, YOUR HYPOTHETICAL IS SELF-LIMITING. FIRST OF ALL, GENERAL MOTORS WOULD HAVE TO BE... A HIGH-INTENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY OR A HIGH-IMPACT UTILITY INTENSIVE INDUSTRIAL USE TO COME WITHIN THIS PROVISION. READING IS FUNDAMENTAL, SIR. AND HOLD ON. I'M SORRY, BUT THIS ORDINANCE AND THESE AMENDMENTS HAVE CHANGED SEVERAL TIMES TODAY, JUDGE, AND MOST OF US WORK AN EIGHT-TO-FIVE JOB, SO I APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENTS ABOUT READING. BUT WHENEVER THINGS CHANGE BY THE MINUTE, AND I GET PROBABLY FIVE EMAILS THIS AFTERNOON, TODAY, DURING THE DAY, OF HOW THIS AMENDMENT AND THIS ORDINANCE HAS CHANGED, YES, IT IS VERY DIFFICULT TO KEEP UP WITH THE READING. IT IS. IF THAT'S YOUR QUESTION, MR. STOWERS, I WILL RESPECTFULLY SAY, SIR, THAT IT IS A DIFFERENT THING TO SAY, I DID NOT READ IT, OR I READ IT AND DIDN'T UNDERSTAND IT. AS OPPOSED TO SAY, I DIDN'T READ IT, I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND IT, BUT I KNOW WHAT IT MEANS. OKAY, SO DOES THIS AMENDMENT, OR DOES IT NOT, GRANDFATHER IN THE AVEO PROJECT? IT DOES NOT GRANDFATHER IN ANYTHING. THE AMENDMENT DOESN'T ADDRESS THAT. SO THE AMENDMENT WE DID LAST MONTH, I WANT MY COLLEAGUES TO UNDERSTAND THE AMENDMENT WE DID LAST MONTH SPECIFICALLY. THE LANGUAGE DID NOT CALL OUT AVEO, BUT IT DID, THE LANGUAGE IN THE AMENDMENT THAT WE TACKED ON DID GRANDFATHER RAND AVEO. SO THEY ARE SET TO SUE THIS COUNTY FOR MILLIONS OF DOLLARS. CAN I RESPOND? OKAY, IF YOU'LL RESPOND AND THEN I'VE GOT A QUESTION. I YIELD. OKAY, ALL RIGHT. GO AHEAD. MR. STOWERS ASKED A QUESTION ABOUT THE TERM GRANDFATHERING. THAT TERM IS NOT IN THE AMENDMENT. IT IS IN 26I45, THE DRAFT. MR. CHAIR, IF I STAND CORRECTED, THE ONLY ITEM ON THE TABLE AT THE PRESENT TIME IS THE AMENDMENT. SO IT WOULD BE INAPPROPRIATE FOR ME TO ADDRESS, AS IT WOULD BE FOR MR. STOWERS TO ADDRESS, THE ISSUE THAT HE OBVIOUSLY KNOWS IS NOT AN AMENDMENT BECAUSE HAVING READ ITEM 26 I-45, HE KNOWS IT CONTAINS A NON-RETROACTIVITY PROVISION, WHICH WOULD BE PERTINENT TO THE ISSUE, BUT WE'RE NOT THERE YET. IT'S IMPORTANT NOT TO TRY TO GET TO MEMPHIS IF YOU HAVEN'T GONE PAST WEST MEMPHIS. OKAY. THANK YOU, JUDGE. IF YOU HOLD, JUSTICE BLACKWOOD, I APOLOGIZE. I CUT YOU OFF. WERE YOU THROUGH? YES, I WAS. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, JUDGE GRIFFIN. THANK YOU, SIR. ALL RIGHT. ALL RIGHT. JUSTICE CURRY. YES. THANK YOU. WE DO KNOW HOW TO READ AND APPRECIATE THE COMMENTS. I WANT TO THANK THE PUBLIC THAT'S REACHED OUT. WE'VE DONE OUR BEST TO GET BACK WITH YOU AND SHARE OUR CONCERNS. WE ARE CONCERNED WITH OUR UNINCORPORATED AREA AND THE PEOPLE THAT MAY BE AFFECTED BY THIS THE MOST. BUT LOOKING AT, I'M NOT ON THE AMENDMENT THOUGH. I NEED TO MAYBE WAIT. AND MAKE MY COMMENT ON THE AMENDMENT PART BECAUSE IF THERE IS NO MORE COMMENTS THEN WE'RE GOING TO GO AHEAD AND VOTE UP OR DOWN THE AMENDMENT JUST BECAUSE BECAUSE IT WOULD BE IN VIOLATION UH JUSTICE PERSON YES IN IN A IN RELATION TO THE AMENDMENT UM I AM 100 FOR A MORATORIUM UM I DO HAVE CONCERNS ABOUT THE FIVE MEGAWATTS LIMITATION UM AND I DEFINITELY WOULD LOVE A SUBJECT [01:05:02] MATTER EXPERT IF THEY'RE HERE OR INDEPENDENT. I DON'T KNOW IF SOMEBODY FROM PLANNING MAY HAVE SOME INPUT ON THIS. BUT IF I CAN HOLD YOU, I THINK IN THE AMENDMENT IT'S MORE OR LESS EXPLAINING THE FIVE. SO I THINK MAYBE IF WE VOTE THE AMENDMENT UP OR DOWN, THEN WE GET THE FULL ORDINANCE, THEN WE CAN ADDRESS THE FIVE MEGAWATTS AND THE 100,000. GALLON WATER CONSUMPTION AND THINGS LIKE THAT IF WE CAN IF THAT PLEASES THE BODY AND YOU'LL BE FIRST YOU'LL BE FIRST OKAY ARE THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS ON THE AMENDMENT OKAY JUSTICE CURRY I WOULD LIKE TO HEAR DO I ATTORNEY HAVE ANYTHING TO SHARE THIS PRESENT REGARDING WHAT JUSTICE CURRY IS THE THE ORDINANCE ITSELF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE AMENDMENT THE AMENDMENT COMMENTS IN REGARDS NO YOU KNOW JUSTICE CURRY ALL RIGHT THANK YOU ALL RIGHT THANK YOU SO OH JUSTICE MEDLOCK SO I HAVE A QUESTION ON THE AMENDMENT OKAY UH AND IT MAY I DON'T KNOW BOTH OF THE GENTLEMEN SO TO PHIL'S THAT BEING GENERAL MUST BE EXEMPTED, EXCLUDED WITH THE WAY THIS AMENDMENT IS DRAFTED. IF IT'S, NOW I GUESS WHAT I'M GATHERING IS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HIGH INTENSIVE. SO DENSITY, WOULD THAT FALL UNDER THAT? I THINK THAT'S WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT. IF WE'RE LOOKING AT THE TITLE OF THE AMENDMENT, WOULD GENERAL MOTORS FALL UNDER THAT TITLE? I JUST WANT PLAIN AND CLEAR, YES OR NO. WOULD IT BE EXCLUDED? IT WAS. YES. JUDGE GRIFFIN. JUSTICE MEDLOCK, GENERAL MOTORS WOULD NOT EVEN BE SUBJECT TO THIS AMENDMENT. OR TO ITS PARENT BECAUSE GENERAL MOTORS AS AN AUTOMOTIVE MANUFACTURING COMPANY DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A HIGH IMPACT UTILITY INTENSIVE INDUSTRIAL USE OR A HIGH INTENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE FACT COMPANIES AS DEFINED BY THE ORDINANCE NOW I HAVE HEARD A LOT OF PEOPLE TALK ABOUT 5 MEGAWATTS AND 100,000 GALLONS. IF YOU PUT 5 MEGAWATTS AND 100,000 GALLONS IN WYOMING, IT'S NOT IN ARKANSAS. IF YOU PUT IT IN A TRACTOR, THAT DOESN'T TURN A TRACTOR INTO A DATA CENTER. IF YOU PUT IT INTO A DOLLHOUSE, IT DOESN'T TURN IT INTO AN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE COMPUTING CAMPUS. YOU CAN HAVE... FOR INSTANCE, A HOSPITAL THAT HAS 5 MEGAWATTS AND HIGHER, 100,000 GALLONS, WHICH IS EXPLICITLY EXEMPT BY THE AMENDMENT. YOU CAN HAVE, FOR INSTANCE, YOU MIGHT HAVE A NURSING HOME OR A MAJOR MEDICAL CENTER. BUT AGAIN, IT'S EXEMPTED BY THE AMENDMENT. THAT'S THE POINT THAT JUSTICE YOUNG-BAKER MADE BY TAKING CARE OF THE UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES. TO USE THE EXAMPLE OF GENERAL MOTORS, GENERAL MOTORS WOULDN'T EVEN COME INTO THE PICTURE. GENERAL MOTORS CAN COME IN, AND IF THE GENTLEMAN SAYS, I'D HAVE TO TELL GENERAL MOTORS NO, I WOULD SAY TO HIM, YOU WOULDN'T TELL HIM NO BASED UPON THIS, BECAUSE THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER IS... AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I NEEDED TO BE STATED, BECAUSE I THINK IT WAS VERY UNCLEAR, AND JUST NEEDED TO BE... CLEAR THAT. NO, I MEAN, EVEN DURING THE MORATORIUM, GENERAL MOTORS AND ANYBODY ELSE CAN APPLY FOR BUSINESS IN ARKANSAS, IN PULASKI COUNTY. THE MORATORIUM DOESN'T STOP ANYBODY FROM APPLYING FOR BUSINESS, DOESN'T STOP ANYBODY FROM STARTING A BUSINESS. THE AMENDMENT DOESN'T STOP ANYBODY FROM EXPANDING A BUSINESS, IMPROVING A BUSINESS, MODIFYING A BUSINESS, RETROFITTING A BUSINESS. AS LONG AS IT DOESN'T TURN IT INTO A HIGH-INTENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE OR A HIGH-IMPACT UTILITY-INTENSIVE STUFF THAT IS DEFINED. IN THE DEAL, IN THE ORDINANCE. [01:10:02] SO THERE IS A WHOLE WORLD OF STUFF. AND THEN THERE'S HIGH-INTENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND HIGH-IMPACT UTILITY-INTENSIVE USES. THIS IS NOT THAT. AND THAT CAN'T FIT INTO THIS. IF YOU'RE OUT THERE... YOU'RE NOT GOING TO BE, YOU'RE GOING TO BE DOING ALL KINDS OF STUFF. AND THIS SAYS, OKAY, GO ON, WE'RE NOT WORRIED ABOUT YOU. THANK YOU FOR CLEARING THAT UP BECAUSE I THINK THERE WAS A LOT OF CONFUSION WITH THAT. AND YES, THANK YOU. I YIELD. OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU, JUDGE GRIFFIN. JUSTICE KATZ. I HAVE A QUESTION. I THINK PROBABLY FOR TAB. I BELIEVE HE'S HERE. IS THERE ANYONE FROM PLANNING? MR. TOWNSEND. THERE HE IS. I HADN'T ASKED IT YET, THANK YOU. OKAY, GOOD. MY EARS AREN'T THAT BAD THEN. THE CHANGES WITH THE AMENDMENT THERE IS AN INITIAL, UNDER ARTICLE 4A, THERE'S AN INITIAL DEFINITION OF HIGH-DENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE. IT INCLUDES DATA CENTER, AI, CRYPTO, BLOCKCHAIN, CLOUD COMPUTING, HIGH PERFORMANCE, OR OTHER DIGITAL PROCESSING ACTIVITIES. SO THAT'S A. THAT WAS NOT IN THE AMENDMENT. B IS WHAT IS DIFFERENT. THAT INCLUDES THE 5 MEGAWATTS. THE 100,000 GALLONS HAS BEEN REMOVED IN B. REQUIRES SUBSTANTIAL NEW TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION OF WATER, WASTEWATER, OPERATES CONTINUOUSLY OR NEAR CONTINUOUSLY, AND IS RESPONSIBLE OR IS REASONABLY EXPECTED TO CREATE UTILITY PUBLIC SAFETY IMPACTS. I EMAILED JIM CRANOR TODAY TO GET A LIST OF THE ITEMS THAT WOULD FALL UNDER THE 5-MEGAWATT, 100,000-GALLON, AND THERE WAS A SUBSTANTIAL LIST. UM, CAN'T, WITH THIS AMENDMENT, IS THE LIST NOW EXCLUSIVELY TO WHAT HAS BEEN DEFINED UNDER A? I, I CAN'T ANSWER THAT. I DO NOT, I'VE NOT SEEN THE LIST OR HOW JIM RESPONDED TO YOU. SO I APOLOGIZE ABOUT THAT. SO I CAN'T ANSWER THAT QUESTION, MS. CAPPS. ANYONE WHO CAN ANSWER. IT'S VERY DIFFICULT TO VOTE ON SOMETHING THAT YOU SAT DOWN 20 MINUTES AGO TO READ, WHICH WE DID JUST RECEIVE THIS WITHOUT, AND IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT. AND I'VE NOT RECEIVED THAT. BUT IT'S, FROM MY PERSPECTIVE, NEAR IMPOSSIBLE TO VOTE ON SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE JUST POPPED IN AND NO ONE CAN EXPLAIN TO US WHAT THE DEFINITIONS WILL IMPACT. I FEEL THE SAME WAY. THANK YOU. AND JUST BECAUSE WE HAVE QUESTIONS, THAT DOESN'T MEAN WE CAN'T READ. YOU KNOW SAYING IS THAT WE HAVE QUESTIONS RIGHT THANK YOU SO SO AGAIN I I I UNDERSTAND I UNDERSTAND YOUR CONCERN BUT I ALWAYS ENCOURAGE PEOPLE JUST VOTE YOUR CONSCIENCE BUT REMEMBER THE ONLY THING WE'RE DOING IS IF WE MOVE THIS FORWARD TONIGHT THEN YOU'VE GOT TWO WEEKS TO REQUEST PEOPLE YOU'VE GOT TWO WEEKS TO TO TRY TO MEET WITH PEOPLE. YOU'VE GOT TWO WEEKS TO GET INFORMATION. AND THEN ON THAT, IF YOU DON'T FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH SUPPORTING IT, OR, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN DECIDE WHAT YOU WANT TO DO TONIGHT. WELL, I CAN'T TELL YOU WHAT TO DECIDE, BUT I'M SAYING, YOU KNOW, IF YOU DON'T FEEL APPROPRIATE OR YOU DON'T FEEL AS IF YOU CAN VOTE, YOU KNOW, VOTE FOR IT, THEN JUST AS A PERSON. HOW CAN I SPEAK WITH A SUBJECT MATTER EXPERT? I DON'T WANT TO TALK TO ENERGY RIGHT NOW. JUDGE GRIFFIN, HE'S BASICALLY THE AUTHOR OF THE ORDINANCE. I WANT TO TALK TO SOMEBODY THAT HAS AN INDEPENDENT VIEWPOINT. TAB, SIR. YES, SIR. I WANT TO SPEAK WHEN I'M PRETTY SURE I PROBABLY MAY SPEAK ON SOME OF THE OTHER JPS. WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK WITH AN INDEPENDENT SUBJECT MATTER EXPERT ON THIS. CAN WE MAKE THAT HAPPEN? WE CAN PROBABLY FIND SOME PEOPLE THAT CAN BE SELECTED [01:15:01] FROM THAT WOULD MEET THAT CRITERIA. I THINK THAT WOULD BE VERY BENEFICIAL, SIR. OKAY. AND HOW WE NEED TO ARRANGE THIS, WE CAN DISCUSS THAT, BUT I WANT TO TALK TO SOMEBODY THAT, FOR LACK OF BETTER WORDS, MAYBE NOT HAVE A VESTED INTEREST ON ONE SIDE OR THE OTHER, BUT JUST GIVE US FACTS. THANK YOU. IT SHOULDN'T BE THIS HARD TO REQUEST FACTS, AND THAT'S WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR. I DON'T THINK IT'S DIFFICULT. I DON'T THINK IT'S IMPOSSIBLE. I THINK IT'S A VERY SIMPLE ASK. CAN WE MAKE THAT HAPPEN, SIR? WE CAN TRY. THE CRITERIA GETS A LITTLE MORE COMPLICATED. IF YOU GET SOMEONE FROM AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PERSPECTIVE, THAT SEEMS SLANTED TO SOME PEOPLE. IF YOU GET PEOPLE FROM AN ENERGY BACKGROUND OR WATER BACKGROUND, THAT SEEMS SLANTED TO PEOPLE. IT'S HARD TO FIND THAT INDEPENDENT THIRD PARTY THAT HAS THE EXPERT INFORMATION WE'RE TRYING TO FIND. WE ARE IN CENTRAL ARKANSAS. THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL ARKANSAS HAS AN ENTIRE DEPARTMENT THAT MAY, I DON'T SEE THEM HAVING A VESTED INTEREST ONE WAY OR THE OTHER WHO PERHAPS COULD BE SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS IN THIS FIELD. THE UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS LITTLE ROCK HAS AN ENTIRE DEPARTMENT. I REALLY THINK THIS SHOULD BE A POSSIBILITY AND I'LL BE, I THINK THAT'LL BE VERY BENEFICIAL FOR WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH. WE WOULD REACH OUT AND TRY TO FIND SOME PEOPLE THAT CAN COME. THE UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS PINE BLUFF ALSO HAS A DEPARTMENT THAT MAY BE ABLE TO BE BENEFICIAL, PROVIDE SOME INFORMATION FOR US. I THINK WE SHOULD PURSUE THAT, SIR. AND ARE WE TALKING ABOUT BRINGING THIS INFORMATION, BRINGING THIS PERSON BACK FOR OUR... YOU KNOW WHAT, WE ARE ELECTED OFFICIALS AND IF WE HAVE A SPECIAL MEETING WHERE THEY COME IN, I'M ALL FOR IT, SIR. IF IT'S A REGULAR QUORUM COURT MEETING, I'M ALL FOR IT, SIR. I WANT TO HAVE AN INDEPENDENT SUBJECT MATTER EXPERT TO TALK ABOUT THE QUESTIONS THAT WE HAVE AND SOMEBODY THAT'S GOING TO ANSWER OUR QUESTIONS WITH THE INTELLECTUAL KNOW-HOW THAT IS NOT ON EITHER SIDE. AND I TAKE IT JUSTIN, YOU'LL... IS IT POSSIBLE? OKAY, ALL RIGHT. AND YOU'LL MAKE JUSTIN AWARE OR SOMEBODY? WE WILL. OKAY, ALL RIGHT. WE'LL COORDINATE WITH JUSTIN. OKAY, ALL RIGHT. DID YOU HAVE SOMETHING? I WAS CALLING FOR THE QUESTION. OKAY, THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, SO THE QUESTION IS WE'RE GOING TO END DEBATE ON THE AMENDMENT. SO, AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL ON ENDING? THE DISCUSSION ON AMENDING 26 I 45. CAPPS. AYE. CAPPS VOTES YES. MS. LEWISON. YES. MS. LEWISON VOTES YES. MS. BLACKWOOD. AYE. MS. BLACKWOOD VOTES YES. MR. PERSON. YES. MR. PERSON VOTES YES. MS. MASSEY. AYE. MS. MASSEY VOTES YES. MS. CURRY. AYE. MS. CURRY VOTES YES. MR. KEITH. YES. MR. KEITH VOTES YES. MS. WARD? YES. YES. MS. YOUNG-BAKER? YES. MS. YOUNG-BAKER VOTES YES. MR. ROBINSON? AYE. MR. ROBINSON VOTES YES. MR. STOWERS? YES. MR. STOWERS VOTES YES. MR. ELLIOTT? YES. MR. ELLIOTT VOTES YES. AND MS. MEDLOCK? NO. MS. MEDLOCK VOTES NO. SO THAT WOULD BE 12 AYES, 1 NAY, AND... TWO ABSENT. TO ADVISE ONE NAY WE WILL THE VOTE TO END DISCUSSION ON AMENDING 26 I 45 HAS BEEN ENDED SO NOW AMY WHAT WE'LL DO IS GO AHEAD AND VOTE TO APPROVE OR DISAPPROVE 26 I 45. RIGHT ON THE AMENDMENT. YEAH, I'M SORRY ON THE AMENDMENT. THAT'S WHAT I MEAN. I'M YEAH, SO WE'RE VOTING TO ACCEPT OR OR REJECT THE AMENDMENT TO 26 I-45. THAT'S WHAT I MEAN. ALL RIGHT, AMY, PLEASE CALL THE ROLL. MS. MEDLOCK. PRESENT. MS. MEDLOCK VOTES PRESENT. MR. ELLIOTT. YES. MR. ELLIOTT VOTES YES. MR. STOWERS. PRESENT. MR. STOWERS VOTES PRESENT. MR. ROBINSON. AYE. MR. ROBINSON VOTES AYE. MS. YOUNG-BAKER. YES. MS. YOUNG-BAKER VOTES YES. MS. WARD? YES. MS. WARD VOTES YES. MR. KEITH? YES. MR. KEITH VOTES YES. MS. CURRY? NO. MS. CURRY VOTES NO. MS. MASSEY? [01:20:01] AYE. MISS MASSEY VOTES AYE. MR. PERSON? YES. MR. PERSON VOTES YES. MISS BLACKWOOD? AYE. MISS BLACKWOOD VOTES YES. MISS LEWISON? YES. MISS LEWISON VOTES YES. AND MISS CAPPS? AYE. MISS CAPPS VOTES YES. YOU HAVE TEN AYES, ONE NAY, TWO PRESENT, AND TWO ABSENT. SO TEN AYES. WE HAVE APPROVED AMENDING 26 I-45. JUSTICE YOUNG-BAKER. I MOVE FOR THE, TO MOVE IT TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT AS AMENDED. SECOND. ALL RIGHT, A MOTION WAS MADE WITH THE SECOND THAT WE SEND 26 I-45 TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT WITH THE DUE PASS RECOMMENDATION AS AMENDED. SO NOW WE'RE ON THE FULL ORDINANCE THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT. ARE THERE ANY QUESTIONS, ANY CONCERNS? IF NOT, WE CAN GO AHEAD. OH, I'M SORRY. I'M SORRY. OKAY. I'M GOING TO START OFF WITH JUSTICE CURRY. YES. I'D JUST LIKE TO SAY, BASED ON THE DISCUSSION THAT'S BEEN MADE BY J.P. PERSON, WE NEED THAT INDEPENDENT CONVERSATION. AND I DON'T FEEL THAT WE SHOULD GO FORWARD ON 26 I 45 BECAUSE WE NEED OTHER THINGS ANSWERED THAT ARE CRITICAL TO MAKING THE ULTIMATE DECISION. AND THAT'S JUST MY RECOMMENDATION. ALL RIGHT. ANYTHING ELSE, JUSTICE CURRY? SO I'LL RECOMMEND. CAN I GET DO I NEED TO MAKE A MOTION? YEAH, YOU NEED TO MAKE A MOTION IF THERE'S A MOTION. I LIKE TO MAKE A MOTION THAT WE NOT VOTE. TABLE 26I45 UNTIL AFTER WE HAVE A DISCUSSION, INDEPENDENT DISCUSSION. SECOND. THANK YOU. AND THAT'S NOT, WELL, WE CAN DISCUSS. SO A MOTION WAS MADE WITH THE SECOND THAT WE TABLE, AND IS THAT THE LENGTH TABLE 26I45 UNTIL AFTER WE HAVE. SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS COME IN AND DISCUSS WITH US. SUBJECT MATTER INDEPENDENT EXPERTS COME IN AND DISCUSS WITH US OR ANSWER THE QUESTIONS THAT WE HAVE. IS THAT? YES. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. NOW WE OPEN FOR DISCUSSION OF AMENDING. DO YOU HAVE SOMETHING FOR US, JUSTIN? SO THE MOTION THAT SHE PUT FORWARD WAS TO LAY ON THE TABLE. RIGHT. THAT MEANS TO TEMPORARILY SET IT ASIDE. A PENDING MOTION AND REQUIRES A MOTION TO TAKE FROM THE TABLE IN ORDER TO RESUME THE CONSIDERATION. IT'S NON-DEBATABLE, NON-AMENDABLE, MAJORITY. ALL RIGHT, AND WE DISCUSS. OH, WE DON'T DISCUSS? OKAY, ALL RIGHT. SO WE'RE VOTING ON TABLING, AND YOU SAY MAJORITY? JUST MAJORITY. MAJORITY. OKAY, SO WE'RE VOTING TO TABLE 26 OUT OF 45. AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? MS. CAPPS VOTES AYE. MS. LEWISON? NO. MS. LEWISON VOTES NO. MS. BLACKWOOD? NO. MS. BLACKWOOD VOTES NO. MR. PERSON? YES. MR. PERSON VOTES YES. MS. MASSEY? NO. MS. MASSEY VOTES NO. MS. CURRY? AYE. CURRY VOTES YES. MR. KEITH? NO. MR. KEITH VOTES NO. MS. WARD? NO. MS. WARD VOTES NO. MS. YOUNG-BAKER? NO. MS. YOUNG-BAKER VOTES NO. MR. ROBINSON? OH, HE'S ABSENT. MR. STOWERS? YES. MR. STOWERS VOTES YES. MR. ELLIOTT? YES. MR. ELLIOTT VOTES YES. AND MS. MEDLOCK? AYE. MS. MEDLOCK VOTES AYE. MR. ROBINSON HAS RETURNED. WOULD YOU LIKE TO VOTE? WE'RE VOTING TO TABLE. 26 I 45 UNTIL INDEFINITELY. YEAH, NOTHING DIFFERENT. OKAY. MR. ROBINSON VOTES YES. SO, SEVEN AYES, SIX NAYS, AND TWO ABSENT. SEVEN AYES, MOTION FILLS. OKAY. THE MOTION TO TABLE FAILED, SO WE'RE GOING TO GO BACK TO APPROVING 26I45 AS AMENDED. DID YOU HAVE IT? [01:25:01] NO, JUSTICE PERSON, YOU WERE UP. I TOLD YOU YOU WERE GOING TO GET THERE. ALL RIGHT, SO NOW WE DON'T HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO, WE'RE JUST VOTING TO SEND IT TO THE FULL COURT, RIGHT? RIGHT. I STILL STAND BY WHAT I SAID. I BELIEVE WE, I AND I THINK SOME OTHER JPS AGREE. I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR THE CONVERSATION OF WHY. THAT'S NOT WARRANTED. YOU KNOW, I'M ALWAYS OPEN UP FOR CONVERSATION, SO I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR WHY THAT'S NOT WARRANTED TO LISTEN TO AN INDEPENDENT SUBJECT MATTER EXPERT BEFORE WE SEND TO THE FULL COURT. JUSTICE YOUNGBAKER. SO CAN WE NOT, JUSTIN, CAN WE NOT CALL A SPECIAL MEETING TO HEAR THE EXPERTS? SO WHY CAN'T WE DO THAT INSTEAD OF... TABLING, WE CAN HAVE A TIMEFRAME TO HEAR THE EXPERTS VERSUS JUST TABLING THE WHOLE MORATORIUM. MY RESPONSE, SIR? HOLD UP. YES. WELL, I WOULD THINK THAT WE DO NOT KNOW THE SCHEDULE OF THESE SUBJECT MATTER, I CALL THEM SMES, BUT SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS. WE DO NOT KNOW THEIR SCHEDULE. AND I WOULD CAUTION AGAINST ASSUMING THEIR SCHEDULE. AND I WILL GO ON THE RECORD, AND I JUST TALKED TO MY FELLOW JP, IF WE DO TABLE IT, I WILL BE, AND WE'RE ABLE TO HAVE THIS CONVERSATION, I WILL MOVE TO REMOVE FROM THE TABLE. BUT HERE'S WHAT I WOULD, AGAIN, REMIND YOU, JUST BECAUSE IT'S GOING TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT, IF WE DID NOT WANT TO ACT ON IT ON THAT NIGHT, WE STILL HAVE THE ABILITY TO TABLE. DO WHATEVER. AND I KNOW, I HEAR WHAT YOU'RE SAYING. YOU WANT TO GO AHEAD AND GET THE PEOPLE IN, BUT NOT KNOWING OUR SCHEDULE. YOU KNOW, I WORK. YEAH, WE WORK. AND, YOU KNOW, I DON'T KNOW IF WE GET A SUBJECT MATTER EXPERT AT THE LAST MINUTE. I'LL BE ABLE TO DROP, YOU KNOW, WHAT I'M IN HERE, BUT I DO KNOW THE FOURTH TUESDAY IS MY STANDING. AND THIS IS JUST ME TRYING TO SEE IF WE CAN REACH A COMPROMISE AND SAYING JUST BECAUSE WE SEND IT TONIGHT DOES NOT MEAN WE VOTE ON IT. WE HAVE TO VOTE ON IT. THAT'S THE ONLY THING I'M SAYING. BUT, HEY, EVERYBODY IS 13 OF US UP HERE TONIGHT. EVERYBODY HAS A VOTE. AND SO DID YOU HAVE I'M SORRY, JUSTICE YOUNGBAKER, WERE YOU FINISHED? WELL... LET ME JUST MAKE SURE I UNDERSTAND THE CORRECT PROCESS. WE CAN VOTE TO SEND IT TO THE FULL QUORUM COURT. IS IT ANYTHING THAT PROHIBITS POSSIBLY GETTING AN EXPERT TO SPEAK BEFORE OR TO SPEAK AT THAT MEETING? SO THE QUESTION, I THINK THE QUESTION WAS, OR THE WANT IS, IS THE ABILITY TO HEAR A THIRD PARTY TO SPEAK BEFORE THE BODY, AND THE BODY HAS THE ABILITY TO ASK QUESTIONS BEFORE WE TAKE A VOTE. IF WE CAN SECURE THAT THIRD PARTY PERSON BY THE FOURTH TUESDAY OF THE MONTH, WE WILL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY AT THAT MEETING TO ASK QUESTIONS AND THEN VOTE. TAD, CAN YOU WORK ON THAT? THANK YOU. BUT I THINK WHAT I'M HEARING IS THEY WANT TIME TO PROCESS. SO HAVING A SUBJECT MATTER EXPERT THAT NIGHT AND THEN HAVING TO VOTE THAT SAME NIGHT MAY BE A LOT. BUT DO YOU HAVE... WELL, THEN I GUESS YOU HEAR THEM, AND THEN AT THAT MEETING YOU TABLE IF YOU WANT TO MAKE A MOTION TO TABLE, AND THEN... I SEE YOU. IT'S... OKAY. OKAY. YOU HAD SOMETHING, JUSTICE BLACKWOOD? YES, I WANT TO MAKE A POINT OF ORDER. THE MOTION TO TABLE FAILED, SO IT DID FAIL. RIGHT. SO... CAN WE POSTPONE? NO. WE'LL HAVE A DISCUSSION OVER... YEAH, WE'RE STILL... WE'RE BACK ON THE MAIN... WE'RE BACK ON 26I45, SO WE'RE NOT DISCUSSING IF WE WANT TO TABLE IT. WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT, WE'RE TRYING TO WORK OUT A COMPROMISE. HOW DO WE, WHAT DO WE DO WITH 26I45? THAT'S WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO. [01:30:01] OKAY, 26I45. AS AMENDED. SO IT'S ACTUALLY ON THE TABLE TO BE VOTED ON. OKAY. AND WE'RE DISCUSSING IT, AND WE WERE STILL TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW DO WE MOVE FORWARD BASED ON, I GUESS. SOME HESITATION OR YOU KNOW OUR DESIRE TO HAVE DIFFERENT INFORMATION SO HOLD ON JUSTICE BLACKWOOD WERE YOU THROUGH UH I YIELD OKAY JUSTICE BLACKWOOD YOU WERE NEXT UP OKAY SO IF IF UM IF THEY WANTED TO TABLE THIS ARE THERE OTHER OPTIONS WE CAN DO BESIDES TABLE SO TABLING THE ITEM REQUIRES THAT YOU VOTE TO TAKE IT OFF THE TABLE, AND YOU DON'T SET IT FOR A DEFINITIVE TIME. IF YOU POSTPONE IT TO A CERTAIN DATE, THEN THERE'S NO VOTE THAT'S REQUIRED TO TAKE IT FROM THE TABLE. SO THEY'RE VERY SIMILAR, BUT THE POSTPONEMENT IS TO A SPECIFIC DATE. TO TABLE IS UNTIL YOU VOTE IT OFF THE TABLE. IS THAT CLEAR? DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? SO THEY'RE VERY SIMILAR, BUT THEY ARE DIFFERENT. OKAY. OKAY. AND I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO CALL THE QUESTION AND VOTE ON THIS. OKAY. WOW. SO, NON-DEBATABLE. SO, WHAT WE'RE CALLING, JUSTICE BLACKWOOD HAS CALLED THE QUESTION ON DISCUSSING 26I45. AND JUST TO MAKE SURE I UNDERSTAND, WE HAD ALL OF THIS STACK OF COMMENTS. SO IF THIS PASSES TO CALL THE QUESTION, THEN THAT MEANS ALL OF THESE COMMENTS THAT WE HAVE WAIT TO, OKAY, I JUST WANT TO MAKE EVERYBODY SURE. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. SO GO AHEAD AND, AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL TO TABLE? I'LL JUST CALL THE ROLL. I'M SORRY. OH, THE QUESTION. Y'ALL GOT ME SO. ALL RIGHT. CLOSE DEBATE. AND ONE MORE TIME, I NEED TO ASK, WAS THERE A SECOND? WAS THERE A SECOND? BECAUSE I DID NOT HEAR. OKAY. YOU MADE IT? OKAY. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. SO WE GOT A SECOND TO END DISCUSSION ON 26I45. AMY, PLEASE CALL THE ROLL. MS. MEDLOCK. MS. MEDLOCK VOTES NO. MR. ELLIOTT? NO. MR. ELLIOTT VOTES NO. MR. STOWERS? NO. NO. MR. ROBINSON? NO. MR. ROBINSON VOTES NO. MS. YOUNG-BAKER? NO. MS. YOUNG-BAKER VOTES NO. MS. WARD? NO. MS. WARD VOTES NO. MR. KEITH? NO. MR. KEITH VOTES NO. MS. CURRY? NO. MS. CURRY VOTES NO. MS. MASSEY? NO. MS. MASSEY VOTES NO. MR. PERSON? NO. MR. PERSON VOTES NO. MS. BLACKWOOD? YES. MS. BLACKWOOD VOTES YES. MS. LEWISON? NO. MS. LEWISON VOTES NO. AND MS. CAPPS? NO. MS. CAPPS VOTES NO. SO THAT WOULD BE ONE AYE AND 12 NAYS AND TWO ABSENT. OKAY, THE MOTION FAILED TO END THE DISCUSSION ON 26-45. SO WE'LL PICK UP AS AMENDED. SO WE'LL PICK UP JUST AS... MS. KERR, YOU HAD? YES. I'D LIKE TO MOVE TO POSTPONE DISCUSSION OF 26-545 UNTIL AFTER WE DO THE EXPERT DEBATE. AND I WOULD SAY IT'D BE AT THE NEXT AGENDA MEETING THAT WE COULD BRING IT BACK. SO I'LL GET THE DATES IN PLACE. COMMITTEE MEETING. BECAUSE OTHERWISE WE WON'T BE ABLE TO HEAR THE EXPERTS, THE OTHER EXPERTS. I NEED A SECOND. SECOND. WHO MADE A SECOND? OKAY. AND THAT'S NON-DEBATABLE, OF COURSE, AS WELL, I'M SURE. SO CAN YOU TELL US WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT? DEBATABLE, AMENABLE. DEBATABLE, AMENABLE. OKAY. SO A MOTION WAS MADE TO. POSTPONE VOTING ON 26 I 45 UNTIL OUR COMMITTEE MEETING IN JULY, WHICH IS ANYBODY YOU KNOW WHAT DATE THAT IS SECOND TO WHATEVER SECOND TUESDAY UNTIL THE SECOND TUESDAY OF JULY. ALL RIGHT YEAH, YOU CAN ASK THE QUESTION. THIS IS DEBATABLE. OKAY, GO AHEAD. JUST LET ME UNDERSTAND WE WANT TO POSTPONE IT TO THE SECOND TUESDAY IN JULY, AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO VOTE ON IT. [01:35:01] BUT JUST A FEW MINUTES AGO, YOU SAID THAT IF WE HEARD THE EXPERT THE FOURTH TUESDAY OF THE MONTH, YOU WEREN'T GOING TO BE ABLE TO BE PREPARED TO VOTE ON IT BECAUSE YOU NEED TIME TO DIGEST. SO DOES THIS MEAN NOW THAT WE'VE POSTPONED IT TO THE SECOND TUESDAY OF THE MONTH OF JULY, YOU STILL ARE NOT GOING TO WANT TO VOTE ON IT? YOU'RE GOING TO NEED MORE TIME TO DIGEST IT. OR, I MEAN, ARE WE GOING TO CONTINUE TO PUSH, I MEAN, CAN WE NOT HEAR THE EXPERT IN TWO WEEKS? THEN YOU HAVE TIME TO DIGEST AND BE READY TO VOTE ON IT THE FIRST OR THE SECOND TUESDAY IN JULY BECAUSE THAT GIVES YOU TIME TO DIGEST. I ASSUME THAT'S WHAT THEY WERE, HER MOTION. THAT'S WHAT SHE WAS SAYING SOMETIME BETWEEN NOW AND THEN WE HAVE AN EXPERT WHICH WOULD HELP. REQUIRE A SPECIAL MEETING OR WHATEVER I ASSUME AND WE HEAR THE EXPERT WE WOULD GET THE OPPORTUNITY TO DIGEST AND THEN WE WOULD VOTE ON IT THE SECOND TUESDAY OF JULY. THAT'S WHAT I UNDERSTOOD. YES, EVEN THOUGH SHE DIDN'T SAY ALL THAT. THAT WAS THAT'S WHAT I UNDERSTOOD THAT WAS MY INTENT. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. SO THAT WAS HER INTENT. OKAY. OKAY. DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE? OKAY, JUSTICE TOWERS. THANK YOU, SIR SO ON THE POSTPONEMENT MOTION, THEN THAT WOULD PUT US TO THE FOURTH TUESDAY IN JULY AS FAR AS A FINALITY VOTE. I'M REALLY HAPPY ABOUT THAT. THAT GIVES US QUITE A BIT OF TIME TO BRING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TO PULASKI COUNTY FOR THE CHAMBER TO WORK REALLY HARD TO GET OTHER PROJECTS IN THE PIPELINE. AND I'M KIND OF EXCITED ABOUT THIS. THAT'S 45 DAYS AWAY. EXACTLY WHAT THEY'RE SAYING. ALL RIGHT. MS. CURRY, I'M A YES ON YOUR MOTION. THANK YOU, JUSTICE STILES. I APPRECIATE IT. DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE, JUSTICE STILES? WE NEED TIME. DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE, JUSTICE STILES? NO. I YIELD, SIR. OKAY, THANK YOU. JUSTICE WARD. I'M KIND OF CONCERNED WITH THE FACT THAT WE'RE PUSHING AND WE'RE ASKING FOR EXPERTS. IT'S HARD FOR US TO GET AN EXPERT ATTORNEY. TO ANSWER QUESTIONS FOR US LEGITIMATELY. SO I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT, IT SOUNDS LIKE IT'S GOING TO BE A PROBLEM FOR TAD TO FIND AN EXPERT. HE DIDN'T SEEM REAL SURE ABOUT HOW HE COULD FIND ONE. SO IT CONCERNS ME THAT WE JUST KEEP ON PUSHING IT AND PUSHING IT, AND ALL THIS IS HAPPENING IN MY DISTRICT. WHERE I LIVE AND I'M NOT TRYING TO BE PUSHED OUT OF WHERE I LIVE YOU LOVE WHERE YOU LIVE I LOVE WHERE I LIVE SO I DON'T I DON'T I DON'T GET IT THAT WE KEEP ON PUSHING AND PUSHING AND WE WE WANT TO ASK FOR THIS WE WANT TO ASK FOR THAT EVERYBODY GOT THEIR ORDER IN EVERYBODY TRYING TO GO TO BURGER KING AND HAVE IT THEIR WAY BUT I REPRESENT THESE PEOPLE AND I AM ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE. SO THEREFORE, Y'ALL DON'T FEEL IT. MY CONSTITUENTS FEEL LIKE I'M NOT REPRESENTING THEM. THIS IS REAL. THANK YOU, SIR. I DO WANT TO POINT OUT THAT OUR COUNTY ATTORNEY WROTE A COMPLETE FOUR PARAGRAPH MEMO THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN ON ALL OF OUR DESKS STATING HIS POSITION ON THIS ORDINANCE AND HIS OPINION IS THAT WE WOULD BE IN WILLFUL OF STATE LAW. NOW I KNOW OTHER ATTORNEYS SOME OF THEM IN THIS ROOM HAVE A DIFFERENT OPINION, BUT WHO I HAVE TO LISTEN TO IS OUR COUNSEL, THE PEOPLE THAT WE HIRE TO REPRESENT US. AND I DON'T KNOW IF YOU ALL HAVE HAD A CHANCE TO READ MR. KEMP'S MEMO OR NOT, BUT IT'S PRETTY TELLING AS TO THE DAMAGE THAT COULD ENSUE IF WE PASS THIS ORDINANCE THIS EVENING. I YIELD. THANK YOU, JUSTICE STOWELL. JUSTICE BLACKWOOD? YES, I HAVE READ THIS LETTER FROM OUR ATTORNEY AND I TOTALLY [01:40:01] DISAGREE WITH IT. A HUNDRED PERCENT. I DON'T THINK THAT A MORATORIUM IS A BAN AND I WILL STAND BY UNDER TIMES. I LOOKED IT UP. I'VE GONE BACK. IT IS A TEMPORARY PAUSE. I THINK THAT IT IS A BAN. AND I WOULD LIKE TO. GET WENDELL TO COME UP AND JUST TALK ABOUT WHETHER IT'S A BAND OR NOT. NO, HOLD ON, HOLD ON. WHAT WE'RE DOING IS, NO, HOLD ON. WHAT WE'RE DOING IS VOTING TO POSTPONE. OH. YEAH, WE'RE VOTING TO POSTPONE. WE NEED TO TAKE CARE OF THIS ONE FIRST. OKAY. SO, AND WHAT WE'RE DOING IS DISCUSSING THE MERITS OF VOTING TO POSTPONE OR NOT. AH, OKAY. SO THAT, PLEASE, LET'S KEEP IT ON THAT. SORRY. I'M SO SORRY. ARE THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS BEFORE WE VOTE TO POSTPONE? SO JUST TO BE CLEAR, WE'RE WANTING TO POSTPONE TO THE SECOND TUESDAY OF JULY. YES. AND BETWEEN NOW AND THEN, WE WANT TO HEAR FROM THE EXPERT. YES. ARE YOU OPEN? OKAY, THANK YOU. ARE THERE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? YES, SIR. JUSTICE WARD. SO CAN I MAKE A MOTION TO COUNTER THE POSTPONEMENT? WHAT DO YOU MEAN? LIKE HOW DO I, WHAT KIND OF MOTION CAN I MAKE TO JUST LOOK PAST THE POSTPONEMENT? DON'T EVEN. THE MOTION'S ON THE TABLE. YOU HAVE TO DISPENSE WITH THE MOTION. I'M NOT SURE THERE WOULD BE A SECONDARY MOTION TO THAT. OKAY, SO WE CAN VOTE. WE CAN VOTE. SO WE'RE GETTING READY TO VOTE TO POSTPONE OR NOT TO POSTPONE. EVERYBODY'S CLEAR. WE'RE VOTING TO POSTPONE UNTIL THE SECOND TUESDAY, AND THEN FINAL VOTE THE FOURTH TUESDAY OF JULY. AMY, WOULD YOU PLEASE CALL THE ROLL? MS. CAPPS? AYE. MS. CAPPS VOTES YES. MS. LEWISON? YES. MS. LEWISON VOTES YES. MS. BLACKWOOD? NO. WOULD VOTES NO. MR. PERSON? YES. MR. KUTSON VOTES YES. MS. MASSEY? NO. MS. MASSEY VOTES NO. MS. CURRY? AYE. MS. CURRY VOTES YES. MR. KEITH? NO. MR. KEITH VOTES NO. MR. WARD? NO. MS. WARD VOTES NO. MS. YOUNG-BAKER? MS. YOUNG-BAKER VOTES NO. MR. ROBINSON? AYE. MR. ROBINSON VOTES YES. MR. STOWERS? YES. MR. STOWERS VOTES YES. MR. ELLIOTT? YES. MR. ELLIOTT VOTES YES. AND MS. MEDLOCK? AYE. SMEDLOCK VOTES YES. THAT IS EIGHT AYES AND FIVE NAYS WITH TWO ABSENT. EIGHT AYES, FIVE NAYS. WE HAVE VOTED TO POSTPONE. THANK YOU. YEAH, WE HAVE VOTED TO POSTPONE. OKAY, SO WE HAVE VOTED TO POSTPONE 26-I, I-45 UNTIL THE SECOND. OKAY, SO FORCED WAIT WAIT THE MEETINGS NOT OVER WE'VE GOT SOME IS THERE A MOTION SECOND WITHOUT OBJECTION WE ADJOURNED IN OUR OFFICIAL MEETING WE ARE THERE ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS UP HERE ON THE? THERE ARE NO ANNOUNCEMENTS. READY TO... WE'VE GOT QUITE A FEW. WE'RE GOING TO DO IS GO AHEAD AND TAKE A FIVE MINUTE BREAK AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO COME BACK AND DEAL WITH OUR COMMENTS. SO WE'RE ON FIVE MINUTE BREAK. MY WATCH IS 746. SO 751 PROMPT. [01:52:13] MAY I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION? [01:52:14] I'M GONNA ASK EVERYONE IF THEY'LL GO AHEAD AND TAKE THEIR SEAT PLEASE, SO WE CAN ALLOW THE PUBLIC COMMENT. ALL RIGHT, WE'RE BACK IN SESSION AND CANDY. I MISSED DINNER. PLEASE FORGIVE ME. ALL RIGHT, WE'RE GOING [Public Comment ] TO GO AHEAD AND OPEN BACK UP WITH JUDGE GRIFFIN. IT'S PUBLIC COMMENTS. THANK YOU CHAIRMAN KEEFE. JUSTICES, I WANT TO ECHO THE SENTIMENTS OF JUSTICE WARD. IT IS NO SECRET TO ANYONE THAT THE SUBJECT MATTER OF ITEM 26I45 IS DIRECTLY RELEVANT TO THE HEALTH, SAFETY, AND WELFARE OF THE PEOPLE LIVING IN SOUTH PULASKI COUNTY. BOTH THE GOOGLE DATA CENTER PROJECT PROPOSED IN THE PORT OF LITTLE ROCK, WHICH IS ADJACENT TO SWEET HOME, AND WILL DIRECTLY IMPACT THE HEALTH, SAFETY, AND WELFARE OF THE PEOPLE OF SWEET HOME, AND THE AVEO ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE CAMPUS PROJECT OUTSIDE WRIGHTSVILLE. ARE IN AREAS WITHIN JUSTICE WARD'S DISTRICT WHERE PEOPLE OF COLOR, LOW INCOME, AND PARTICULAR SENSITIVITY TO THE NOISE, ENVIRONMENTAL, DUST, HEAT, MICROCLIMATE, AND OTHER IMPACTS OF HIGH IMPACT INDUSTRIAL AND HEAVY UTILITY INDUSTRIAL AND HIGH IMPACT INDUSTRIAL AND HEAVY UTILITY INDUSTRIAL. INTENSITY DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE USES OUR VOTE ARRIVED THE QUORUM COURT HAS VOTED TO POSTPONE CONSIDERATION OF A MATTER THAT WAS PLACED ON ITS AGENDA ON ITS RADAR SCREEN WEEKS AGO ANYONE WANTING TO KNOW [01:55:04] ABOUT THE SUBJECT MATTER OF DATA CENTERS, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE COMPUTING CAMPUSES, CRYPTOCURRENCY MINING OPERATIONS, AND THE OTHER PERTINENT USES THAT WOULD BE GOVERNED BY ITEM 26 I-45 HAS HAD WEEKS TO READ, INTERVIEW, CHECK YOUTUBE, DOWNLOAD ANYTHING THEY WANTED TO. THE PEOPLE IN SOUTH PULASKI COUNTY DESERVE A MORATORIUM, AT LEAST A VOTE ON A MORATORIUM, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, THE PEOPLE OF PULASKI COUNTY DESERVE TO KNOW THAT THE PEOPLE WHO REPRESENT THEM ARE NOT AFRAID TO STUDY AND TO TAKE THE TIME TO PAUSE TO GET THE REGULATIONS RIGHT THAT ARE GOING TO PROTECT THEIR HEALTH, SAFETY, AND WELFARE. THE LAST THING I'LL SAY IS MORATORIUMS ARE NOT, HAVE NOT BEEN, AND DO NOT CONSTITUTE A BAN ON ANYTHING. IF THERE IS A MORATORIUM ON APPROVING OR ISSUING A PERMIT, IT STRAINS CREDULITY TO SAY THAT BANS THE PERMIT. THAT WOULD BE APPROVED OR ISSUED. BOTH PROPOSITIONS DIAMETRICALLY CANNOT BE LOGICALLY TRUE. THAT IS OBVIOUS. AND SO, I THINK WE NEED TO BE SERIOUS WITH EACH OTHER. IF PEOPLE DON'T WANT A MORATORIUM, VOTE NO FOR IT AND SAY SO. IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHETHER YOU WANT A MORATORIUM, VOTE PRESENT. IF YOU WANT A MORATORIUM, VOTE YES. BUT SAYING THAT YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU HAVEN'T TAKEN TIME TO LEARN, BUT YOU'RE GOING TO TAKE TIME THAT YOU HAD TO LEARN WHAT YOU DIDN'T TAKE TO LEARN AND LEARN, REALLY DOESN'T PASS THE CREDIBILITY TEST. I REST. THANK YOU, JUDGE GRIFFIN. MR. JACK THOMAS. MR. THOMAS LEFT. MR. RICHARD MAYS, HE TOOK OFF. MS. GULLY. KG GULLY. KG. JUST THREE THINGS. I HAVE A CONCERN ABOUT THE 26I44, THE FORENSIC AUDIT AND THE WAY THAT BIDDING PROCESS PLAYED OUT. I HAVE A CONCERN KNOWING THAT OUR CURRENT COUNTY JUDGE HAS A RESIDENCE IN FLORIDA AND I THINK YOU AND I'M JUST BEING FRANK AND I THINK MAJORITY OF YOU GUYS KNOW THERE. IF YOU DON'T, YOU KNOW IT NOW. GO BACK AND TAKE A LOOK AT THAT PROCESS. SECOND THING, WHETHER IT BE DATA CENTERS, WHATEVER, IF THEY'RE COMING OUT TO THE UNINCORPORATED AREA, AND IT'S GOING TO AFFECT THE COMMUNITY. FOR ME, IT STARTS WITH THE COUNTY. THE COUNTY NEEDS TO GET WITH THOSE REPRESENTATIVES FROM THOSE COMPANIES OR CITIES OR WHATEVER. GO OUT THERE AND HAVE A MEETING WITH THE COMMUNITY. I UNDERSTAND THERE'S NO STATE LAW THAT REQUIRES IT. THAT'S BEEN TOLD TO ME SEVERAL TIMES. IT'S JUST THE RIGHT THING TO DO. AND I DON'T CARE WHETHER IT'S A PREDOMINANTLY BLACK COMMUNITY, PREDOMINANTLY WHITE COMMUNITY. DO THE RIGHT THING. NOW, I HEARD SOME OF MY FORMER COLLEAGUES, FRIENDS, ASSOCIATES SAY THE AMENDMENT TO 26I45. THEY JUST RECEIVED IT WHEN THEY CAME TO QUORUM COURT. ANYTIME WE HAVE AN AMENDMENT, YOU GUYS DO AN AMENDMENT TO AN ORDINANCE OR RESOLUTION, IT NEEDS TO BE BROUGHT IN ADVANCE. THE MEMBERS ON THE QUORUM COURT NEED TO HAVE IT IN ADVANCE. THE CITIZENS OF PULASKI COUNTY NEED TO HAVE IT IN ADVANCE. WE SHOULDN'T BE HAVING TO COME HERE AND GET IT OFF THE TABLE. IT SHOULD BE ON THE WEBSITE. THAT'S NOT FAIR TO US, [02:00:02] AND THAT'S NOT FAIR TO YOU GUYS, OKAY? AND I DO SUPPORT 26I45, BUT I DON'T LIKE HEARING THAT THIS WAS DROPPED TO YOU GUYS TONIGHT. YOU NEED TIME TO READ AND TO DIGEST, OKAY? THAT'S ALL I WANT TO SAY, AND THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO SPEAK. THANK YOU, ABSOLUTELY. ANGELA HUNTER. HUNTER. ANGELA HUNTER. HELLO EVERYONE. THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK. I WILL NOT SPEAK LONG. I'M A RESIDENT AND CITIZEN OF PULASKI COUNTY HERE. I'M IN LITTLE ROCK AND I WAS HERE TO SUPPORT THE MORATORIUM AS AMENDED TONIGHT. I'M STILL FOR THAT PURPOSE NEXT MONTH. I SUPPOSE I'LL RETURN AGAIN WHEN IT COMES, BUT I THINK IF YOU ALL HAVE DIFFICULTY AND WANT MORE TIME TO UNDERSTAND THESE ISSUES, DOES THAT NOT MAKE IT CLEAR? WHY THE CITIZENS AND RATE PAYERS IN THIS COUNTY DESERVE TIME TO PUT UP IDEAS THAT WOULD LEAD TO BETTER REGULATION OF THESE TYPES OF PROJECTS THAT TOUCH ON THE ENVIRONMENT, SOUND, OUR WATER USAGE, ELECTRICITY USAGE, GAS THAT'S GOING TO BE USED FOR BACKUP GENERATORS POTENTIALLY, AT LEAST AT THE AVAYO PROJECT. SO IT JUST MAKES SENSE THAT A MORATORIUM IS NEEDED FOR THOSE SAME REASONS. PEOPLE NEED TO BE ABLE TO GET THEIR HEADS AROUND IT AND EXPRESS THEIR VIEWS SO THAT THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND OTHERS AREN'T PUSHING THINGS THROUGH AND GETTING DEALS MADE BEFORE REALLY THE PUBLIC IS EVEN AWARE OF WHAT IT IS, LET ALONE ABLE TO WEIGH IN AND WEIGH IN ON THE SIDE OF HOW ABOUT SOME REGULATION, HOW ABOUT SOME WAYS TO ACTUALLY MAKE SURE WE PROTECT WHAT WE HAVE AND PROTECT THE PEOPLE THAT WILL BE LIVING NEAR THIS. AS PEOPLE HAVE SAID, THERE ARE RESIDENTS. IT'S NOT JUST RATEPAYERS AND CITIZENS WHO ARE CONCERNED. AND SO I THINK THESE PROJECTS ARE EXTREMELY DISRUPTIVE. I THINK WE CAN STUDY WHERE IT'S BEEN HAPPENING AND BEING DISRUPTIVE IN OTHER STATES. THAT'S SOMETHING PEOPLE SHOULD LOOK INTO AND TRY TO UNDERSTAND SOME OF THE NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES SO THAT WE CAN AVOID THEM, AGAIN, THROUGH JUDICIOUS REGULATIONS. AND I URGE YOU TO LISTEN TO THE EXPERTISE THAT YOU'LL BRING IN. I BELIEVE IN EXPERTISE 100% FOR THAT, BUT ALSO TO STUDY THESE OTHER CASES AND TO LISTEN TO THE VERY STRONG VOICES OF THE COMMUNITY THAT ARE SPEAKING OUT. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. THANK YOU. MIKE POE? THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING ME. I REALLY APPRECIATE EVERYTHING THAT YOU GUYS DO, AND I APPRECIATE IT EVEN MORE SINCE I'VE BEEN COMING IN HERE AND SEEING HOW DIFFICULT THIS CAN BE. I DO UNDERSTAND THAT. I HAD OTHER THINGS I WANTED TO SAY TONIGHT, BUT I'LL SAY THEM AT ANOTHER TIME. BUT TONIGHT, I THINK IT'S MOST IMPORTANT FOR ME TO LET YOU KNOW THAT I THINK YOU BECOME AN EXPERT BY GETTING LIKE 1,000 HOURS IN SOMETHING THEY SAY TO 10,000 HOURS. I'VE BEEN WATCHING NOTHING BUT DATA CENTER STUFF FOR— FOUR TO SIX HOURS A DAY FOR MONTHS. I GOT A RADIO SHOW ABOUT DATA CENTERS. I'M A GRADUATE OF UALR IN MASS MEDIA. ALL I'VE DONE SINCE HIGH SCHOOL IS PHOTOGRAPHY AND VIDEO WORK AND STORE DATA. ALL RIGHT. I ALSO HAVE BEEN A COMMUNITY ORGANIZER FOR 30 PLUS YEARS. I WAS OUT THERE IN THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS, GRANITE MOUNTAIN AT THE DOLLAR GENERAL, SWEET HOME, COLLEGE STATION, TALKING TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY THAT I HAVE OUT THERE MYSELF. IT WAS HOT TODAY. IT'S GOING TO BE 16 DEGREES HOTTER IN THAT AREA, RIGHT AROUND THAT DATA CENTER, BY THE WAY. BUT I HAVE SOME EXPERTISE AS TO WHAT THIS IS, BUT I'M NOT AN EXPERT. IF WE COULD GET A DEFINITION OF THE TYPE OF EXPERTS YOU'RE LOOKING FOR, AS I JUST LET IS IT TAD? I LET HIM KNOW THAT I HAVE EXPERTS. I HAVE LIKE 3,000 CONTACTS ON MY PHONE FROM DOING 30 YEARS OF COMMUNITY ORGANIZING AND FIGHTING AGAINST COMPANIES LIKE 3M, SWEPCO, AND HONESTLY NOW ENERGY, THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, AND CENTRAL ARKANSAS WATER. SO I'VE GOT PLENTY OF EXPERTS IN THE WATER DEPARTMENT. I'VE GOT FRIENDS, ENGINEERS THAT ARE UNBIASED BECAUSE THEY'RE SCIENTISTS. THEY'RE ENGINEERS AT SOUTHWEST POWER POOL. THAT'S THE COMPANY THAT ENERGY USES TO HANDLE THEIR POWER GRIDS. AND THOSE PEOPLE HAVE TOLD ME THIS ISN'T DOABLE. THE PEOPLE THAT I KNOW IN AI. WHICH I'VE KNOWN SINCE HIGH SCHOOL. A FRIEND OF MINE STILL WORKS IN AI AND ROBOTICS IN MIT. HE'LL TELL YOU THIS. THIS ISN'T HAPPENING. YOU GUYS, THEY HAVEN'T EVEN FIGURED OUT PAPER TOWEL DISPENSERS, DUDE. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? THESE THINGS AREN'T TAKING OUR JOBS. THIS IS WHAT YOU GUYS ARE LOOKING FOR EXPERTS. I'LL GIVE YOU SOME EXPERTS. [02:05:01] DO YOU WANT AN EXPERT FROM MAUMELLE RIGHT HERE IN ARKANSAS? THAT WAS ONE OF THE ORIGINAL... FOUR PEOPLE THAT CODED AND CREATED ETHEREUM AND THE BLOCKCHAIN I CAN CALL HIM AT HIS HOME IN MY I JUST WENT AND STAYED WITH HIM TWO YEARS AGO HE'S AN ABSOLUTE EXPERT HE WILL LET YOU KNOW EVERYTHING AND HE DOES NOT HOLD BACK HE IS NOT GOING TO BE BIASED HE IS GOING TO TELL YOU THE FACTS BECAUSE THAT'S THE TYPE OF PERSON HE IS AND A LOT OF THE PEOPLE I KNOW TOO LIKE TY THE ANIMAL GUY I KNOW ABOUT ALL THE ANIMALS IN THE AREA AND A LOT OF THE FOLKS THAT I KNOW THAT ARE EXPERTS ARE ALSO AUTISTIC AND THEY SUFFER FOR THESE THINGS BUT THEY ALSO HAVE THE GREAT BENEFIT THAT THAT IS. WHILE IT MIGHT BE DIFFICULT TO HAVE A NONVERBAL AUTISM, THERE ARE PLACES ON THE SPECTRUM WHERE YOU ARE AN EXPERT ON A LOT OF THINGS. SO I WOULD JUST LIKE TO SAY MY NAME IS MIKE POE. YOU CAN FIND ME AT GETPOE AT GMAIL.COM. AND I CAN GIVE YOU MY NUMBER IF ANY OF YOU ABSOLUTELY WANT ME TO SEND YOU THE INFORMATION I SENT TO THE ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS, THE EXPERT DATA I SENT THEM. OR YOU WANT ANY OF THESE PEOPLE THAT I KNOW THAT WORK IN THESE VARIOUS FIELDS THAT YOU'RE LOOKING TO GET EXPERTS IN, WATER, ENERGY, DATA, CRYPTO, AI, GOT THEM ALL. AND I CAN GIVE THEM TO YOU. BUT I DO ENCOURAGE YOU TO GO AHEAD AND VOTE ON THIS MORATORIUM. IF THERE'S ANY ABILITY TO DO THAT TONIGHT, I DON'T KNOW IF THERE IS. BUT TO GO AHEAD AND PASS A MORATORIUM IS JUST THE SMARTEST THING TO DO. AND I THINK ALL OF THIS IS JUST A WASTE OF TIME. I'M FULLY BEHIND WHAT JUDGE WENDELL SAYS THAT. THAT, YOU KNOW, IF YOU'RE NOT SURE, THEN YOU SHOULD EITHER BE PRESENT OR SAY YES OR NO. YOU KNOW, LIKE THAT'S JUST WHERE WE'RE AT. BUT I WILL END WITH THIS. I WOULD LOVE TO GIVE YOU THAT INFORMATION BECAUSE IT MAKES ME VALUABLE. AND THESE CONTACTS I KNOW, KNOW I WON'T SHARE THEIR CONTACTS AS I NEVER HAVE GIVEN ANYBODY'S TELEPHONE NUMBER AWAY WITHOUT ASKING THEM. THE SAME WAY THAT I WOULDN'T COME UP TO ANY OF YOU GUYS AT KROGER AND START TALKING ABOUT THIS. LIKE WE'RE HANDLING BUSINESS IN HERE TODAY, AND I'M READY TO DO IT. PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF YOU NEED THAT HELP. I WOULD LOVE TO GIVE IT TO YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL YOU DO. THANK YOU. HELP ME OUT. MAGDALENE JAMES. GOOD EVENING. I JUST WANT TO START OFF BY SAYING THAT. I SEE YOU, MS. WARD. LIKE, WHAT YOU HAD TO SAY REALLY RESONATED WITH ME, AND I HAVE UTMOST RESPECT FOR YOU, AND IT'S VERY CLEAR THAT YOU CARE ABOUT OUR COMMUNITY AND THOSE THAT LIVE IN IT, BECAUSE AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE FAMILY. LIKE, WE ALL KINFOLK AT THE END OF THE DAY, BETWEEN SWEET HOME, COLOSSATION, WRIGHTSVILLE. I HAD TYPED UP THIS WHOLE ESSAY THING. FIRST, I WANT TO SAY, TAKE THE TIME TO DO YOUR RESEARCH WHEN IT COMES TO DATA CENTERS, WHEN IT COMES TO AI. IF Y'ALL NEED THE SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS TO FEEL CONFIDENT WITH THE MORATORIUM DECISION, I SUPPORT THAT. BUT I AM DEEPLY CONCERNED THAT IF WE CONTINUE TO POSTPONE AT LEAST PUTTING A MORATORIUM IN PLACE, THAT YOU'RE PUTTING SWEET HOME, WRIGHTSVILLE, THESE COMMUNITIES AT RISK. SO A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT I WANTED TO SAY. FOR THE PAST FEW WEEKS, I HAVE BEEN PAYING ATTENTION. I LIVE STREAMED THE LITTLE ROCK CITY BOARD MEETING THAT TOOK PLACE THIS PAST TUESDAY. I TOOK NOTES, ESPECIALLY REALLY LISTENING TO WHAT MS. BROWN HAD TO SAY, WHO WAS A PUBLIC AFFAIRS REPRESENTATIVE FOR GOOGLE. AND WE'RE HEARING A LOT, AND THIS IS BEING BROUGHT UP BECAUSE YOU WANT THE SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS, BUT WE'RE HEARING A LOT FROM THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE SOMETHING TO GAIN MONETARY FROM THESE PROJECTS. AND THERE'S JUST A COUPLE OF THINGS I WANT TO BRING UP. SO GOOGLE IS SAYING ABOUT HOW THEY'RE GOING TO PROVIDE FOR THE COMMUNITY, HOW THEY CARE ABOUT THE COMMUNITY, THIS, THAT, AND THE THIRD, RIGHT? WHAT THEY DON'T TELL YOU IS THAT IN THE HEADLINES JUST THIS PAST MONTH THAT A GOOGLE DATA CENTER TOOK 30 MILLION GALLONS OF WATER UNACCOUNTED FOR FROM THE DATA CENTER. AND NO ONE REALIZED IT WAS AN ISSUE UNTIL THE LOCAL RESIDENTS COMPLAINED. ABOUT HAVING LOW WATER PRESSURE. AND GOOGLE DIDN'T EVEN GET FINED FROM GEORGIA, OKAY? THEY JUST HAD TO PAY A BACK BILL THAT DIDN'T EVEN AMOUNT TO $150K. I'M BRINGING THAT UP BECAUSE Y'ALL HAVE A LOT OF WORK AHEAD OF YOU. YOU NEED TO BE STUDYING WHAT OTHER STATES ARE DOING, WHAT OTHER COUNTIES ARE DOING TO PROTECT THEMSELVES, BUT ALSO SEE WHAT THEY'RE DEALING WITH. AND I FEEL LIKE THAT'S AN EXAMPLE OF WHY REGULATIONS EXIST. ANOTHER THING I WANT TO BRING UP, THERE ARE TWO DATA CENTERS IN OHIO. LAST SEPTEMBER, AN ARTICLE WAS PUBLISHED THAT SAID [02:10:01] BETWEEN THOSE TWO DATA CENTERS, THERE WERE 80 EMERGENCY CALLS TO FIREFIGHTERS FOR THOSE TWO DATA CENTERS OVER THE COURSE OF FOUR YEARS. SWEET HOME HAS A VOLUNTEER-BASED FIRE DEPARTMENT. WHAT HAPPENS IF SOMETHING WERE TO HAPPEN TO THAT SCALE? IT'S JUST THINGS LIKE THAT. THAT I FEEL LIKE REALLY NEED TO BE TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION. I UNDERSTAND THAT ECONOMY IS IMPORTANT, I UNDERSTAND BUSINESS IS IMPORTANT, AND ALL OF THAT, BUT THESE ARE PEOPLE. AND I ALSO WANT TO CHALLENGE YOU TOO, LET'S EXPLORE WAYS THAT THESE COMPANIES CAN GIVE BACK TO SWEET HOME. SWEET HOME DOESN'T EVEN HAVE FAST INTERNET, OKAY? THEY'RE DEALING WITH MAYBE DSL INTERNET, WHICH IS REALLY OUTDATED. THEY DON'T HAVE ANY SORT OF COMPUTER LAB, NO. REALLY RECREATIONAL PLACE FOR THE YOUTH AND THE KIDS TO GO TO. LIKE, THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS THAT GOOGLE, IF THEY'RE SO CONCERNED ABOUT COMMUNITY AND BUILDING THAT RELATIONSHIP, THAT A $4 TRILLION COMPANY CAN ACCOUNT FOR IF THEY'RE GOING TO BE DOING ALL OF THIS. I DON'T REALLY HAVE TOO MUCH ELSE TO SAY HERE. JUST PLEASE TAKE YOUR TIME, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, THERE'S NOT TIME TO BE WASTED. GOOGLE IS GREAT. CLEARLY IN THEIR DESIGNING AND PLANNING STAGE, WHICH IS WHERE THEY ARE TALKING TO CIVIL ENGINEERING, TO THE FIRE DEPARTMENTS AND DOING THIS, THAT, AND THE THIRD. SO REALLY NOW IS THE TIME FOR A MORATORIUM. BUT IF IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN IN JULY, LET IT HAPPEN IN JULY. BUT PLEASE, PLEASE VOTE FOR ONE SO THAT YOU CAN TAKE YOUR TIME IN CREATING REGULATION ORDINANCES TO PROTECT THE PEOPLE OF SWEET HOME, WRIGHTSVILLE, AND COLOSSATION. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. INDIA JACKSON. I'M INDIA JACKSON. SHE WAS ABSOLUTELY RIGHT ABOUT THE PREVIOUS MEETING FOR THE CITY OF LITTLE ROCK. THE GOOGLE REPRESENTATIVE, SHE HAD A BUNCH OF I DON'T KNOWS, AND HONESTLY, YOU CAN'T REALLY VOTE ON A BUNCH OF I DON'T KNOWS. THEY WERE VERY. ALL WE HAVE TO GO ON IS WHAT'S GOING ON IN OTHER COUNTIES AND OTHER STATES. AND ANY EXAMPLE THAT I'VE SEEN, IT IS DETRIMENTAL TO THE COMMUNITY. AND THEY ARE NOT GIVING BACK. I KNOW THAT'S WHAT THEY SAY THEY'RE DOING, BUT HISTORY SHOWS THAT THEY ARE NOT DOING THAT. I LIVE ON 145TH STREET ALONG WITH MY FAMILY, AND IT WILL BE BUILT RIGHT NEXT TO MY PROPERTY. AND I'M NOT GOING TO... TOLERATE THE NOISE, THE AIR POLLUTION. WE'RE RIGHT DOWN THE STREET FROM DAISY BATES ELEMENTARY. SO YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT AFFECTING KIDS WHO WANT TO GO OUTSIDE AND PLAY, BUT NOW THERE'S A BUNCH OF POLLUTION IN THE AIR. YOU TURN YOUR WATER ON BECAUSE IN OTHER COUNTIES THE WATER TURNS BROWN OR THEY DON'T HAVE WATER. IT'S LIKE DRIPS. SO NOW ALL THE HEALTH ISSUES, ALL THE HEALTH RISKS, EVERYTHING THAT'S SUCH, WHO'S GOING TO PAY THESE MEDICAL BILLS FOR PEOPLE? THE ELDERLY THAT WE HAVE ON 145TH STREET THAT ALREADY HAVE RESPIRATORY ISSUES, THAT'S ONE OF THE SIDE EFFECTS OF A DATA CENTER. IF YOU JUST DO A LITTLE RESEARCH, THAT'S ONE OF THE SIDE EFFECTS OF A DATA CENTER. IT WAS REPORTED IN TEXAS, HEART MURMURS IN CHILDREN, EARLY ONSET DEMENTIA IN THE ELDERLY. THERE IS, I MENTIONED IN THE LAST ONE WITH THE CITY THAT THE FARMERS ARE TALKING ABOUT THEIR ANIMALS LOST 30% OF THEIR HEALTH. IT IS TOO MUCH. I DON'T KNOW. THEY DON'T EVEN HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY YET. THEY SAID THAT IN THE LAST MEETING. THEY DON'T HAVE IT. AND SO WE WOULD BE A TEST DUMMY FOR THEM ON WHATEVER THEY DECIDE TO DO OR WHATEVER THEY'RE ALLOWED TO DO. AND THAT'S UNACCEPTABLE BECAUSE THIS IS GOING TO AFFECT US. WE HAVE TO LIVE RIGHT NEXT TO IT, THE LIGHTS. EVERYTHING GOING ON, THE FREQUENCY, HEARING LOSS, EVERYTHING THAT COMES ALONG WITH IT. SO A MORATORIUM IS NECESSARY. ME AND MY SISTER WENT DOOR KNOCKING TODAY JUST TO TELL OUR NEIGHBORHOOD ABOUT IT. MOST PEOPLE DIDN'T EVEN KNOW THERE WAS A DATA CENTER BEING BUILT BECAUSE THEY WEREN'T CONTACTED, THEY WEREN'T TOLD. AND SO THIS DATA CENTER GETS BUILT, IT JUST POPS UP ONE DAY. AND ONCE IT'S BUILT, THERE'S NO, YOU CAN'T SAY, OH, I'M SORRY, I DIDN'T KNOW, BECAUSE ALL THIS EVIDENCE IS RIGHT THERE. THERE. IT'S RIGHT THERE. IF YOU JUST LOOK IN THE OTHER COUNTIES AND OTHER STATES, WHAT'S GOING ON IS RIGHT THERE. SO IT'S NOT LIKE THERE'S NO APOLOGIES. [02:15:01] WE WILL NOT ACCEPT ANY APOLOGIES. THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN DO BECAUSE ONCE THAT INFRASTRUCTURE IS BUILT, IT'S PRETTY MUCH SET IN STONE. AND SO A MORATORIUM GIVES US TIME TO DIGEST LIKE THAT PREVIOUS LADY WAS SAYING. IT GIVES YOU TIME TO DIGEST. IT REALLY GIVES US TIME TO FIGURE ALL THIS STUFF OUT BECAUSE WE WILL GET AFFECTED ME AND MY FAMILY LIKE I SAID, IT'S RIGHT NEXT DOOR. IT'LL BE RIGHT NEXT DOOR. ABSOLUTELY NOT. ABSOLUTELY NOT. SO I REALLY JUST THINK THIS THROUGH, PLEASE. AND WE NEED THIS MORATORIUM. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ISABELLA WINSINGER. HELLO, I'M ISABELLA WEISINGER. I LIVE IN STIFF STATION, WHICH I GUESS IS WARD 3, AND I'M HERE TONIGHT. I BROUGHT SOMETHING WITH ME IF I SEE ME GLANCE DOWN SO THAT I DON'T FORGET ANYTHING. I WANTED TO COME TONIGHT TO EXPRESS THAT I DON'T WANT THESE DATA CENTERS TO BE BUILT AT ALL. I KNOW THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT A LOT OF GRANULARITIES AND THERE'S A LOT OF CONSIDERATIONS TO BE MADE AND WE'RE NOT REALLY EVEN HAVING THE CONVERSATION OF SHOULD THIS BE DONE OR NOT, BUT I DON'T THINK IT SHOULD BE DONE AT ALL. I THINK THAT THE MAJORITY OF THE INFORMED PUBLIC DOES NOT WANT THIS AT ALL. ARKANSANS DON'T WANT DATA CENTERS BUILT ON OUR LAND. WE'RE THE NATURAL STATE. THERE'S NO BENEFIT TO THE PUBLIC THAT IS COMING THROUGH THIS PROJECT EITHER. THE ONLY BENEFICIARIES IN THIS SITUATION ARE THE PROFITEERS, NOT THE PUBLIC. THE PUBLIC IS GOING TO BE SEVERELY IMPACTED AND HARMED BY THESE PROJECTS IF THEY COME TO PASS. SO NOT JUST THE PEOPLE IMMEDIATELY AROUND THE DATA CENTERS, ALTHOUGH I AM VERY CONCERNED FOR THEM AND THE QUALITY OF THEIR HEALTH AND THE HEALTH ISSUES THAT ARE GOING TO ARISE FROM BEING EXPOSED TO THE LIGHT AND NOISE POLLUTION AND THE AIR POLLUTION, ALL KINDS OF POLLUTION. THE WILDLIFE AND THE ECOSYSTEM OF THE ENTIRE COUNTY WILL BE AFFECTED AS WELL. THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF DISCUSSION TONIGHT OVER GATHERING EVIDENCE AND MAKING SURE THAT WE HAVE THE RIGHT INFORMATION FROM THE RIGHT PEOPLE. I THINK IT'S AWESOME TO CONSULT THE EXPERTS. I THINK THE EXPERTS WILL BE ABLE TO CORROBORATE WHAT PEOPLE HERE ARE SAYING TONIGHT. I THINK THEY WILL BE ABLE TO CORROBORATE THE INFORMATION THAT'S COMING IN FROM OTHER COUNTIES AND OTHER STATES WHERE THESE DATA CENTERS HAVE ALREADY BEEN BUILT. WE HAVE AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF EVIDENCE OF WHAT DOES HAPPEN WHEN YOU BUILD A DATA CENTER IN THE SURROUNDING AREA. I'VE SEEN SO MUCH FOOTAGE OF DISGUSTING DRINKING WATER THAT PEOPLE CANNOT POSSIBLY CONSUME. OR SOME PEOPLE HAVE MENTIONED LOSING WATER PRESSURE ALTOGETHER. SO OUR DRINKING WATER IS PROBABLY, I DON'T EVEN LIKE TO SAY PROBABLY, I THINK WE KNOW THIS IS GOING TO CONTAMINATE OUR DRINKING WATER. AND IT'S GOING TO MAKE OUR WATER UNDRINKABLE WITHOUT THE INSTALLMENT OF EXPENSIVE... HOME FILTRATION SYSTEMS THAT MOST CONSTITUENTS HERE CANNOT AFFORD. THE ONLY PEOPLE THAT I REALLY HEAR STILL DEBATING OVER IS THIS GOOD OR IS THIS BAD ARE THE PEOPLE THAT STAND TO MAKE A PROFIT OFF OF THE REST OF US BECAUSE WE WILL BE PAYING FOR THIS. OUR ENERGY BILLS ARE ALREADY VERY HIGH. I THINK THAT THIS PROJECT IS ONLY GOING TO MAKE THEM MORE EXPENSIVE. SO AT A TIME OF ECONOMIC CRISIS, I CAN'T IMAGINE MAKING THE CHOICE TO GO THROUGH WITH THIS PROJECT. I THINK IT WOULD BE AN EGREGIOUS ABUSE OF THE AUTHORITY THAT'S BEEN VESTED IN THE GOVERNMENT TO ALLOW THIS TO COME TO PASS. WE DON'T WANT TO PAY FOR A PROJECT THAT'S GOING TO DISPLACE SOME OF US AND POISON THE REST OF US. SO I ALSO WENT TO MY NEIGHBORHOOD MEETING LAST NIGHT FOR WARD 3 TO SPEAK TO MY REPRESENTATIVE, AND SHE INFORMED ME THAT THE WATER COMMISSIONER HAS MADE HER PERSONAL ASSURANCE THAT THE WATER SYSTEM WILL NOT BE IMPACTED BY THE DATA CENTERS, WHICH IS JUST A BLATANT LIE. WE KNOW THAT IT WILL BE. IT'S GOING TO POISON OUR ECOSYSTEM, IT'S GOING TO POISON OUR BEAUTIFUL RIVER AND ALL THE CREATURES THAT LIVE IN IT. AND SO I WANT TO SPEAK TONIGHT FOR THE WILDLIFE TOO BECAUSE THEY DON'T HAVE A VOICE. SO I ALSO THINK THAT PRETENDING THAT WHATEVER FLIMSY REGULATIONS HAVE BEEN PROPOSED ARE GOING TO BE ENOUGH TO SAFEGUARD THE LAND AND PUBLIC HEALTH IS TOTAL GREENWASHING. AND WE CAN ALL GOOGLE THE FOOTAGE OF WHAT THE WATER LOOKS LIKE THAT COMES OUT OF THE FAUCET WHEN YOU'RE AROUND THESE DATA CENTERS. SO I GUESS TO CONCLUDE, I THINK THE MORATORIUM IS KIND OF THE BARE MINIMUM OF WHAT IS NEEDED, AND I HOPE THAT YOU WILL ALL VOTE TO PASS THIS MORATORIUM WHEN THE TIME COMES IN JULY. SO PLEASE ACT IN THE BEST INTEREST OF THE PUBLIC, AND THANK YOU FOR LISTENING AND FOR YOUR TIME THIS EVENING. THANK YOU. CHICO IS CHICO TELLEZ. THOSE [02:20:08] CORPORATE GUYS REALLY LEFT FAST DIDN'T THEY? JESUS. A COUPLE JPS TOO, BUT HEY, THANK YOU FOR STAYING. I AM A COMMUNITY MINISTER, TELL YOU THIS. YOU GUYS HAD A LOT OF TIME TO RESEARCH THIS ISSUE IN MY OPINION. A LOT OF US HERE HAVE DONE OUR HOMEWORK AND I DON'T THINK IT SHOULD BE A SHOCK THAT YOU KNOW YOU GUYS THAT ARE HERE SITTING IN THIS COURT SHOULD ALSO PROBABLY DO YOUR HOMEWORK BEFORE COMING TO THESE MEETINGS. WE WANT A MORATORIUM THAT PROTECTS PULASKI COUNTY AND IS NOT CORRUPTED BY BACKROOM DEALS THAT THAT SACRIFICE. SWEET HOME AND WRIGHTSVILLE. WE NEED TO CALL THIS FOR EXACTLY WHAT THIS IS. REDLINING. DIGITAL REDLINING. THIS COUNTY HAS A DEVASTATING HISTORY OF REDLINING. FROM LITERAL SEGREGATION LINES DRAWN BY BANKING MAPS TO THE CONCRETE WALL OF I-630. MUNICIPAL PLANNING IN LITTLE ROCK HAS ALSO HISTORICALLY BEEN USED TO DIVIDE US, UNDER INVESTING IN BLACK AND BROWN COMMUNITIES, AND THEY PUSH THESE HEAVY INDUSTRIAL BURDENS HERE TO THE SOUTH AND EAST SIDES. OF THIS COUNTY. THIS ISN'T A THEORY. THERE'S A BODY COUNT. LOOK AT THE 3M PLANT NEXT TO COLLEGE STATION. FOR DECADES, THESE COMMUNITIES HAVE SWALLOWED THE TOXIC DUST AND POLLUTION OF THE $80 BILLION COMPANY. $80 BILLION WITH A B. THOSE BLACK NEIGHBORHOODS GOT CANCER, A LOT OF THEM. COLLEGE STATION. THEY ARE THE DIRECT RESULT OF PAST QUORUM COURTS AND CITY BOARDS ZONING THESE PROJECTS. WHERE THEY THOUGHT PEOPLE WOULDN'T FIGHT. NOW WE'RE TOLD THAT THESE DATA CENTERS ARE SAFE, THAT THEY'RE CLEAN, BUT THEY DEMAND SO MUCH. THEY DEMAND SO MUCH POWER. THEY DEMAND SO MUCH WATER, OUR WATER. WHEN THESE BILLION-DOLLAR COMPANIES TELL US THERE'S NO RISK, Y'ALL HAVE TO ASK, IF THERE AIN'T NO RISK, WHY ARE THEY BUILDING IT HERE? WHY NOT MAUMELLE? WHY NOT CHENNAULT? YEAH, BUY SWEET HOME. WHY WRIGHTSVILLE? LIKE REVEREND GRIFFIN SAYS, I PAUSE FOR EFFECT. I WANT TO SPEAK DIRECTLY TO THE BLACK JUSTICES OF THE PEACE SITTING ON THIS COURT TODAY. YOU WERE ELECTED TO BE A VOICE, A SHIELD, AND A REPRESENTATIVE FOR THE COMMUNITIES THAT HAVE BEEN HISTORICALLY TARGETED AND IGNORED. THERE CANNOT BE A DISCONNECT BETWEEN YOUR VOTE AND THE PHYSICAL SAFETY OF THE BLACK COMMUNITIES YOU REPRESENT. TO VOTE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THESE DATA CENTERS AT WRIGHTSVILLE AND SWEET HOME IS A SIGN THAT YOU'RE WILLING TO SELL US OUT. IT TELLS YOUR CONSTITUENTS THAT THEIR AIR, THEIR WATER, THEIR WELL-BEING ARE ALL UP FOR SALE. HOW MANY OF Y'ALL PARENTS AND GRANDPARENTS FOUGHT AND SACRIFICED FOR YOU GUYS TO HAVE A SEAT AT THAT TABLE? THEY RISKED THEIR SAFETY AND LIVES TO DEMAND DIGNITY, TO WORK WITH DIGNITY, TO WORSHIP WITH DIGNITY. TO VOTE WITH DIGNITY, TO LIVE WITH DIGNITY. JUSTICE PERSON, JUSTICE MASSEY, JUSTICE CURRY, JUSTICE KEITH, JUSTICE WARD, JUSTICE YOUNGBAKER. YOU ALL STAND ON THE SHOULDERS OF BLACK LEADERS, BLACK FATHERS, AND BLACK MOTHERS WHO WANTED A BETTER FUTURE FOR THEIR CHILDREN. AND NOW YOU, THE CHILDREN, SIT AT THE SEATS OF POWER. DO YOU NOT WANT THE SAME? WILL YOU FIGHT TO PROTECT US? WILL YOU PLANT THE TREES YOU WILL NEVER GET TO ENJOY THE SHADE OF FOR YOUR OWN CHILDREN, YOUR GRANDCHILDREN, AND THE GENERATIONS TO COME? LOOK AT THE WALLS OF THIS VERY ROOM. LOOK AT THE FRAMED PORTRAITS OF THE MEN WHO SAT AT THE POSITION OF JUDGES, POSITIONS OF POWER. WE NOW HAVE A CHANCE THIS YEAR, SINCE THE FOUNDING OF THIS COUNTY 208 YEARS AGO, TO ELECT THE FIRST BLACK COUNTY JUDGE. WILL YOU FOLLOW HIS LEAD? WILL YOU HELP HIS MISSION TO PROTECT US FROM CORPORATE RAIDERS AND TECH ROBBER BARONS? OR WILL YOU TIMIDLY SELL US ALL OUT? I HEED A WARNING TO YOU, JUSTICES. WE WILL REMEMBER HOW YOU VOTE TODAY AND TOMORROW AND ALL OVER THIS ISSUE. AND IF YOU WANT TO STAY IN THOSE SEATS, YOU WILL VOTE IN FAVOR OF THE PEOPLE. OR WE'LL JUST VOTE YOU OUT. WE VOTED JUDGE HYDE OUT. WE'LL DO THE SAME TO YOU, NO MATTER WHAT SEAT YOU WANT. FOR. BE NOT AFRAID TO BE ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF HISTORY. THANK YOU AND GOD BLESS. KATIE ROSE, HE'S NOT HERE. [02:25:01] THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR STILL BEING HERE AND GIVING OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TODAY AND ALL OF MY FELLOW RESIDENTS. I WOULD LOVE TO ECHO WHAT EVERYBODY IS SO VERY PASSIONATELY IS SAYING. I THINK IT'S VERY CLEAR THAT THE COMMUNITY UNANIMOUSLY, LOUDLY WANTS TO PASS A MORATORIUM ON THE BUILDING OF HYPERSCALE DATA CENTERS. I THINK THAT'S VERY CLEAR. FOR SO MANY REASONS THAT EVERYBODY'S VERY PASSIONATELY BEEN SHARING. AND HONESTLY, I THINK SO MANY OF YOU DO AS WELL. I THINK MANY OF YOU ARE ALSO LOOKING TO PAUSE AND WAIT BEFORE MAKING BIG DECISIONS THAT UNDOUBTEDLY WILL AFFECT THE COMMUNITIES WHO LIVE HERE, NOT JUST THE COMMUNITIES AND FAMILIES, BUT THE DELICATE ECOSYSTEMS OF WILDLIFE WITH WHICH WE ARE SO INEXTRICABLY INTERCONNECTED AND INTERDEPENDENT. I THINK WE ALL UNDERSTAND THAT. THIS IS MY FIRST TIME IN A QUORUM COURT. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR WHAT YOU DO. I'M IN YOUR DISTRICT. THANK YOU. I'M LEARNING A LOT ABOUT LOCAL POLITICS THROUGH THIS. I ATTENDED THE CITY HALL MEETING LAST WEEK AND I CAN TELL ALL OF YOU IT SEEMED REALLY WANT TO REPRESENT YOUR CONSTITUENTS AND YOU HEAR WHAT WE'RE SAYING AND YOU ALSO SHARE THOSE CONCERNS BECAUSE YOU LIVE WHERE WE LIVE. I MEAN ANY NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES OF THESE THIS THE BUILDING OF THESE DATA CENTERS WHICH ARE VERY DIFFERENT THAN OTHER BUSINESSES THAT HAVE HISTORICALLY AND ARE HERE AND COULD COME HERE TO CREATE JOBS OKAY REGARDLESS OF HOW MANY MEGAWATTS THEY THE HYPERSCALE DATA CENTERS ARE ON A SCALE OF INDUSTRY AND INFRASTRUCTURE THAT IS RELATIVELY NEW AND PRETTY AGGRESSIVE, VERY DIFFERENT. I THINK THAT ALL OF YOU ALSO SHARE THOSE CONCERNS ABOUT THOSE GOING INTO OUR COMMUNITIES AND WHAT THE EFFECTS WILL LOOK LIKE LONG TERM, NOT JUST FOR US, BUT FOR OUR CHILDREN. AND I CAN SEE ALL OF YOUR BRAINS WORKING DURING ALL THE DISCUSSIONS AND YOU'RE ALL THINKING AND I KNOW YOU HEAR US, BUT THE WEIGHT OF THIS DECISION RESTS ON YOUR SHOULDERS. AND FOR THAT, I HAVE A LOT OF RESPECT. I KNEW NOTHING ABOUT LOCAL POLITICS. I APPRECIATE WHAT ALL OF YOU ARE DOING AND I WOULD JUST LIKE TO KIND OF GO THROUGH THE LOGIC OF THE I THINK THE BIGGEST CONCERN OF WHY THIS DECISION WAS POSTPONED BECAUSE IT SEEMED LIKE WHEN WE CAME IN A LOT OF Y'ALL WERE IN THE LAST MEETING I UNDERSTAND THERE WERE EIGHT OF YOU WHO VOTED YES FOR THE MORATORIUM AND AND I THINK A LOT OF YOU EVEN JUSTICE PERSON YOU SAID YEAH I'M FOR A MORATORIUM BUT I HAVE CONCERNS WITH THE LEGAL LANGUAGE IN THIS AMENDMENT IN PARTICULAR AND WHAT THE AS THEY'VE SAID UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES OF THE LEGAL LANGUAGE IN THE MORATORIUM, RIGHT? THAT'S LIKE THE BIGGEST CONCERN IS THE LEGAL LANGUAGE AND WHAT OPPORTUNITY COST WE MIGHT BE LOSING OUT ON IF WE DID PUT A TEMPORARY BAN. REMIND YOU, IT IS NOT A BAN. IT'S A TEMPORARY PAUSE, RIGHT? SO IT'S JUST A PAUSE SO WE CAN DO THAT RESEARCH, RIGHT? THERE MAY BE UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES. HYPOTHETICALLY, IT SEEMED TO ME LIKE THE LEGAL LANGUAGE IS PRETTY CLEAR. THIS IS VERY SPECIFICALLY TWO DATA CENTERS, SPECIFICALLY HYPERSCALE, NOT LIKE A GENERAL MOTORS BUILDING. ALL THOSE CONDITIONS AND THE DEFINITIONS, THERE WAS AN AND. IT SEEMED LIKE ALL OF THOSE HAD TO BE MET, NOT JUST THE 5 GIGAWATT THING. IT SEEMED LIKE THE LEGAL LANGUAGE WAS KIND OF CLEAR TO ME, BUT I'M NOT AN EXPERT. ALL I WOULD JUST ASK YOU TO DO IS CONSIDER LIKE... OKAY, WE KNOW THAT THERE COULD BE OPPORTUNITY COST, BUT WHAT IS THAT OPPORTUNITY COST? THE THEORETICAL GENERAL MOTORS WANTING TO BUILD AND THEN SOMEBODY BEING LIKE, NOPE, SORRY, CLICK. I MEAN, AND WE'VE LOST OUT ON SOME JOBS THAT COULD HAVE POTENTIALLY HAPPENED IN THIS SMALL TIME FRAME OF 12 MONTHS. LIKE, IT'S JUST A PAUSE. IT DOESN'T MEAN WE'RE NEVER GOING TO GET NEW JOBS. WE'RE NEVER GOING TO GET ECONOMIC GAIN, THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. IF THERE IS AN OPPORTUNITY COSTS WHICH I DON'T THINK THERE IS I'D LIKE YOU TO PLEASE PAY ATTENTION AND BE AWARE OF WHO IN YOUR GROUP MAY BE [02:30:06] PURPOSEFULLY INTRODUCING CONCERN AND CONFUSION WHERE IT MAY NOT EVEN REALLY EXIST TO SLOW THINGS DOWN. BUT AS COMMITTEE CHAIR, I'M SORRY, I DON'T SEE A NAME FOR YOU ON YOUR SIDE. CURTIS, CURTIS KEITH. CURTIS KEITH. OH, IT'S RIGHT THERE. YEAH. THANK YOU. VOTE YOUR CONSCIENCE. I THINK ALL OF YOU HAVE A CONSCIENCE. ALL OF YOU HERE, YOU'RE CITIZENS. ALL OF YOU KNOW TRULY DEEP DOWN WHAT YOU WANT TO VOTE. BE CAREFUL OF WHO IS INTRODUCING UNNECESSARY CONCERN AND CONFUSION. AND EVEN IF THE HYPOTHETICAL GENERAL MOTORS, WE HAD TO SAY, OH, HOLD ON, LET'S. TALK TO OUR LEGAL TEAM AND MAYBE VOTE ON ANOTHER AMENDMENT TO ALLOW YOU TO DEVELOP HERE BECAUSE YOU'RE NOT A DATA CENTER. THAT'S ALL POSSIBLE. I HATE TO CUT YOU OFF. CAN YOU PLEASE? YEAH. I'M JUST SAYING, PLEASE VOTE YOUR CONSCIENCE AND UNDERSTAND THAT THE OPPORTUNITY COST, IF IT'S EVEN THERE, OF PASSING JUST A PAUSE, A MORATORIUM, IS WAY LOWER THAN THE IMPACT THAT NOT DOING ANYTHING OR NOT PASSING A MORATORIUM WOULD HAVE ON YOUR COMMUNITIES. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE THAT. SO PERSONAL DISCLOSURE, AMY IS THE OFFICIAL TIMEKEEPER. SHE TELLS ME WHEN THREE MINUTES UP, I GENERALLY GIVE YOU AT LEAST ANOTHER MINUTE, MINUTE AND A HALF. BUT SO I ASK YOU, YOU KNOW, PLEASE JUST BE AWARE THAT WE'RE WE'RE DOING OUR BEST TO ALLOW YOU TO GET YOUR YOUR THOUGHTS OUT. WE'VE GOT A MR. ANTHONY OVERTON. IS HE STILL? NO SIR, THAT'S FINE. IT'S PUBLIC COMMENT SO WHATEVER YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT THAT'S FINE FOR YOUR THREE MINUTES. WE HOPE SO TOO. ALL RIGHT, I LIVE AT 1000 BINGHAMWOOD WHERE THE DATA CENTER WILL BE GOING IN, BUT LET ME START OFF. MY NAME IS ANTHONY OVERTON. I LIVE AT 1000 BINGHAMWOOD ROAD IN LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS. I'VE LIVED AT THIS ADDRESS FOR OVER 25 YEARS. IN 2019, PULASKI COUNTY SANITATION WAS INFORMED THAT I WAS A GREEN PROPERTY AND NO LONGER NEEDED THEIR SERVICE. ALSO IN 2019, THEY SAID I HAD NO CHOICE, THEN PUT THE UNPAID BILL ON MY TAXES. I PAID THE TAXES AND GOT THEM TO MOVE THEIR CAN BY STATE LAW. AS THE LANDOWNER, I WAS ALLOWED TO COMPOST AND HAUL MY PERSONAL GARBAGE. ON FEBRUARY 2026, ONE TRASH CAN WAS DELIVERED TO MY PROPERTY WITHOUT MY REQUEST OR MY AUTHORIZATION. I CONTACTED PLACID COUNTY SANITATION, ASKED THEM TO REMOVE THIS CAN. I WROTE THEM A... REGISTERED, STATED LETTER ASKING THAT THEY CAN BE REMOVED. IN RETURN THEY SENT A COPY OF SOME REGULATIONS. THEN THEY SENT ME A TWO MONTH BILL. I CONTACTED THE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE AND I MADE A CONSUMER COMPLAINT, NUMBER 645875. THEY DISCUSSED THIS MATTER WITH THE SANITATION DEPARTMENT. THEY INFORMED ME THAT THE SANITATION DEPARTMENT IS NOT OFFERING TO SETTLE THIS MATTER IN A MANNER ACCEPTABLE TO ME. THEY SAID TO CONTACT QUORUM COURT. AT THIS TIME, I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW THE LAW WAS CHANGED TO REMOVE MY RIGHT TO COMPOST OR HAUL MY PERSONAL GARBAGE. I HAVE RECEIVED A BILL DUE BY 5-15-2026 AND NOW A LATE NOTICE STATING THE UNPAID BALANCE OF IS OVER 90 DAYS. IT MAY BE ADDED TO MY COUNTY TAXES WITH PENALTIES. THEY HAVE DONE SO IN 2019. OKAY, TELL ME HOW A BILL CAN BE... PUT ON MY TAXES WITHOUT PROVIDING I OWE IT I HAVE BEEN GIVEN I HAVE BEEN GREEN MANAGING OVER FIVE ACRES AT [02:35:03] 1000 BINGHAMWOOD ROAD SINCE 2019 I WAS NOT AWARE THAT A LAW COULD TAKE THE RIGHTS THE LANDOWNER TO COMPACT EXCUSE ME COULD TAKE THE RIGHTS OF A LANDOWNER TO COMPOST AND TO HAUL HIS OWN PERSONAL GARBAGE. I AM PROVIDING INFORMATION FROM THE FEDERAL ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENT REGARDING COMPOSTING. MR. KEITH HAS THAT DOCUMENTATION. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. I WOULD APPRECIATE HAVING THAT CAN REMOVED. I DO NOT NEED IT OR WANT IT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. ONE THOUSAND BINGOS. OKAY, WE GOT HANNAH SIMPSON AND MARCELLA WEBER. THREE MINUTES APIECE? YEP, THREE MINUTES APIECE. MY NAME IS MARCELLA WEBER. I AM A PULASKI COUNTY RESIDENT AND I LIVE IN NORTH LITTLE ROCK. FIRST, I JUST WANT TO SAY I REALLY APPRECIATE ALL OF YOU ALL WHO STAYED TO LISTEN TO YOUR CONSTITUENTS. SOMEONE ELSE CAME UP HERE AND SAID THEY KNOW YOU ALL HAVE A CONSCIENCE, YOU ALL CARE. FRANKLY, NOT EVERYONE STAYED TO LISTEN TO THEIR CONSTITUENTS. NOT EVERYONE WANTED TO HEAR WHAT THE PEOPLE WHO THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO SERVE HAD TO SAY ABOUT THIS. SO I NOTICED WHO STAYED AND I REALLY APPRECIATE EVERY ONE OF YOU FOR... DOING THAT. I CAME BECAUSE I AM VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THE IMPACT OF THE DATA CENTERS ON THE PEOPLE CURRENTLY LIVING IN PULASKI COUNTY AND OUR FUTURE CHILDREN AND ALL THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF THAT. I DON'T KNOW THAT I HAVE A WHOLE LOT TO SAY THAT HASN'T ALREADY BEEN SAID OTHER THAN TO POINT OUT MY POINT OF VIEW ON THAT AND THAT LIKE YOU ALL WHO SKIPPED DINNER AND CAME STRAIGHT FROM WORK MANY OF YOUR CONSTITUENTS ALSO HAVE HAVE COME STRAIGHT FROM WORK WITHOUT EATING, CAME HERE BECAUSE OF HOW MUCH THIS MATTERS TO US. YOU'LL SEE THAT PRETTY MUCH ALL OF THE PEOPLE WHO VOTED YOU IN ARE TALKING FROM THE SAME SIDE HERE. I JUST WANT TO POINT OUT ONE THING I NOTICED EARLIER. JUSTICE STOWERS, WHEN THE AMENDMENT WAS BEING DISCUSSED, HE BROUGHT UP HOW HIS CONCERN ABOUT THIS IS THAT IT DOES NOT GRANDFATHER IN THE AVIO DATA CENTER. AND THEN RIGHT AFTER THAT, HE BROUGHT UP THE REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE WHO SAID, IT'S ON CAMERA, IT'S ON VIDEO, WHO SAID THIS IS NOTHING TO DO WITH DATA CENTER. AND I THINK THAT THAT REPRESENTS SOME LACK OF TRANSPARENCY FROM THOSE WHO DID NOT STAY TO LISTEN TO THE PUBLIC. YOU KNOW, HE WENT FROM SAYING, THE REASON I'M UPSET ABOUT THIS IS THAT AVIO ISN'T GRANDFATHERED IN. WHO DOES HE BRING UP? THE PERSON WHO'S CLAIMING THIS ISN'T ABOUT THE AVIO DATA CENTER. I DON'T BELIEVE THAT THAT'S TRANSPARENT. ONE OF THEM, SOMEONE'S NOT TELLING THE TRUTH THERE IN TERMS OF WHAT THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IS. TRYING TO TELL THE PUBLIC ABOUT WHAT THIS IS ALL ABOUT AND WHY THEY ARE WANTING TO PUSH AGAINST THIS MORATORIUM. SO THAT'S ALL I HAVE TO ADD THAT HAS NOT ALREADY BEEN SAID, BUT THANK YOU. I REALLY APPRECIATE EACH OF YOU. THANK YOU. HI, MY NAME IS HANNAH SIMPSON. I ALSO AM A RESIDENT OF PULASKI COUNTY. I LIVE IN DISTRICT 3. I TALKED TO YOU EARLIER TODAY ON THE PHONE, MS. LEWIS, AND YOU ENCOURAGED ME TO COME. THANK YOU. I WANTED TO SORT OF GIVE MY OPINION THAT WE DON'T WANT THESE DATA CENTERS AT ALL. I'M DEEPLY CONCERNED ABOUT THE INCREASED PRICES OF UTILITIES. WATER POLLUTION, I KNOW THERE'S BEEN SOME TALK ABOUT CLOSED-LOOP WATER SYSTEMS, BUT EVEN THESE, THERE HAVE BEEN STUDIES AND ARTICLES ABOUT HOW THOSE DON'T REALLY WORK OR THAT THEY STILL LEACH INTO THE ENVIRONMENT SURROUNDING THE DATA CENTERS. I'M CONCERNED THAT WE MIGHT OVERLOOK, LET ME START OVER, I'M CONCERNED THAT NO AMOUNT OF TAX REVENUE OR MONEY EARNED WILL MAKE UP FOR THE PHYSICAL COST OF THE PEOPLE LIVING AROUND. THE DATA CENTER WILL INCUR OR THE LOSS OF OUR NATURAL BEAUTY IN THIS STATE. ARKANSAS IS A NATURAL STATE. I'D LIKE FOR IT TO STAY THAT WAY. VERY PROUD TO BE FROM HERE AND ALL THE NATURAL BEAUTY THAT WE HAVE AROUND US. I'M ALSO CONCERNED THAT THERE WERE SOME COMMENTS THAT THE SORT OF POSTPONEMENT ON VOTING ON THIS, WHICH I UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, YOU NEED TO BE INFORMED [02:40:01] ABOUT THIS THING, BUT THAT THE POSTPONEMENT MIGHT BE AN OPPORTUNITY TO CRAM IN AS MANY SORT OF BUSINESS CHOICES. THAT THIS MORATORIUM MAY PUT A DAMPER ON AND THAT'S NOT VERY ENCOURAGING THAT WE MIGHT SORT OF TRY TO GET AROUND THIS BY GETTING IN EARLY. THAT SORT OF SEEMS LIKE IT WOULD GO AGAINST THE WISHES OF THE REST OF THE QUORUM COURT OR OF THE PEOPLE. AGAIN, I'D LIKE TO THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SERVICE TO THIS COUNTY. I GREATLY APPRECIATE IT. I UNDERSTAND THAT THIS IS, YOU MENTIONED PREVIOUSLY, YOU HAVE OTHER NINE TO FIVE JOBS. THIS CAN'T BE EASY. I STRUGGLED ENOUGH TO MUSTER UP THE ENERGY TO COME HERE AFTER MY NINE TO FIVE. SO. THANK YOU AGAIN. THANK YOU. SO WE HAVE JORDAN KARASEK. KARASEK. OKAY, I WAS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD. THANK YOU. I HAD SOMETHING PREPARED, BUT WITH THE POSTPONEMENT, I'VE KIND OF CHANGED THAT. THANK YOU ALL FOR STAYING. YOU KNOW, HEARING US OUT ON THIS, I'M PART OF A GROUP CALLED INDIVISIBLE. WE PUT TOGETHER, KNOWING THAT THERE WAS A NEED FOR YOUR GUYS' EDUCATION ON THE MORATORIUM AND THE DATA CENTERS OR THE TECHNICAL INDUSTRY THAT WE'RE TRYING TO PUT IN. AND SO WE'VE BEEN TRYING TO ORGANIZE SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS AND, YOU KNOW, KIND OF USE THAT TO EDUCATE THE PUBLIC. FOR YOURSELVES, EDUCATE YOU GUYS. SO IF THERE'S ANYTHING YOU GUYS NEED, WE'RE HAPPY TO HELP AND TRY AND PULL IN PEOPLE FROM THE COMMUNITY, YOU KNOW, PROFESSORS AND SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS THAT ARE GOING TO HELP YOU GUYS VOTE WITH CONFIDENCE AND FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE A GOOD LEGAL SENSE OF WHAT'S GOING ON AND NOT FEEL BLAMED OR FEEL LIKE YOU GUYS ARE JUST GOING TO GET IT FOR VOTING ONE WAY OR THE OTHER. BUT YOU GUYS COULD VOTE WITH GOOD INFO AND GO WITH WHAT THE PEOPLE ARE KIND OF WANTING. WE HAD A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO SHOWED UP TO OUR EVENT AND ASKED QUESTIONS, AND I'M SURE THEY'RE SIMILAR TO WHAT YOU GUYS HAVE. A COUPLE OF THEM THAT I HAD WERE JUST I'LL JUST READ A COUPLE HERE. YOU KNOW, PEOPLE WERE CONCERNED, YOU KNOW, OF COURSE, ABOUT THE WATER AND THINGS. WE'VE HEARD PEOPLE TALK ABOUT USING SURFACE WATER AND GROUNDWATER AND THOSE KINDS OF THINGS. AND, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE ASKING QUESTIONS, WHY CAN'T THEY JUST GET THEIR OWN GROUNDWATER AND TREAT IT AND USE IT THEMSELVES? IF IT'S NOT SO BAD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT, WHY CAN'T THEY DO ALL THAT ON THEIR OWN PROPERTY? AND LET ARKANSAS USE THE SURFACE WATER THAT WE USE FOR DRINKING, THINGS LIKE THAT. THE POWER IN THE GRIDS, YOU KNOW, EVERYONE'S WANTING TO KNOW ABOUT THAT. AND WE MENTIONED THE FIVE, WAS THAT MEGAWATT OR GIGAWATT CAP THAT WE HAD. YES, PEOPLE WANTING TO KNOW ABOUT WHAT EXACTLY DOES THAT AFFECT, WHAT KIND OF INDUSTRY, AND I THINK WE ALL KNOW. BUT WE ARE HAPPY TO PUT TOGETHER THOSE EXPERTS TO HELP EASE YOUR GUYS' MIND AND MAKE A NICE, EDUCATED VOTE. SO THANK YOU ALL FOR STAYING AND APPRECIATE ALL YOUR HARD WORK AND EVERYTHING THAT YOU'VE BEEN DEALING WITH FOR THIS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. SO WE HAVE KATIE. I'LL LET YOU SAY IT. YEAH, JUST INTRODUCE YOURSELF. SHORT AT THESE THINGS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME TODAY. MY NAME IS KATIE KORNREICH. I LIVE IN NORTH LITTLE ROCK. I KNOW THAT THIS IS REALLY DIFFICULT. I AM NOT ORIGINALLY FROM ARKANSAS. I'VE BEEN BUT I'VE MADE HER MY HOME THESE LAST SEVEN YEARS AND I HAVE GROWN TO LOVE HER. MORE THAN I WOULD LIKE, THAN MY PAST SELF WOULD LIKE TO ADMIT. I'VE TRIED VERY HARD TO GET OUT OF THIS STATE, BUT FOR SOME REASON THIS STATE'S HOLDING ON TO ME. I RECENTLY GRADUATED WITH MY MASTER'S IN PUBLIC SERVICE, AND IT DEEPLY SADDENS ME TO SEE SOME WHO ARE NOT INTERESTED IN PUBLIC SERVICE. TO SEE SOME JPS WHO LEFT WHO ARE MORE INTERESTED IN DOLLARS THAN THEY ARE IN DATA. I WANT PEOPLE TO HEAR THAT THE COMMUNITY'S VOICES MATTER MORE THAN DATA, OR EXCUSE ME, MORE [02:45:01] THAN DOLLARS. I SPENT THE LAST TWO YEARS OF MY LIFE DOING RESEARCH AND FOCUS GROUPS AND SURVEYS AND LISTENING, GENUINELY LISTENING TO COMMUNITIES. IT'S HARD, BUT IT'S NOT THAT HARD. IT'S DOABLE. AND WITH THIS, I ASK THAT YOU HAVE A MORATORIUM AND SPEND THIS TIME. LISTENING TO THE PEOPLE THAT IT'S GOING TO AFFECT THE MOST. I KNOW I STAND UP HERE AND LIVING IN MAUMELLE, NORTH LITTLE ROCK, IT MAY NOT AFFECT ME ALL THAT MUCH, BUT I ASK THAT YOU LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE WHO IT WOULD TRULY AFFECT. THEIR VOICES MATTER SO MUCH IN THIS. PLEASE DON'T DISREGARD WHAT THEY HAVE TO SAY OR BECOME MORE INTERESTED IN DEVELOPMENT AND DOLLARS. THAN IN THEIR OWN LIVES. I APPRECIATE YOUR TIME TODAY AND I'LL KEEP IT SHORT. THANK YOU. ALICIA WATSON. MY NAME IS ALICIA WATSON. I'M A CONSTITUENT OF YOURS, MS. CAPPS. MORE IMPORTANTLY, I'M AN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST IN THE PULASKI COUNTY SPECIAL SCHOOL DISTRICT. WILLIAMS FEEDER PATTERN IS MY SCHOOL. DAISY BATES ARE MY KIDS. THIS IS VERY PERSONAL. GOOD EVENING, JUSTICES OF THE PEACE. I STAND HERE TONIGHT AS A RESIDENT, A TAXPAYER, AND A VOTER TO DEMAND THAT YOU LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE AND VOTE FOR A MORATORIUM ON THE LARGE-SCALE DATA CENTER DEVELOPMENT. TWO WEEKS AGO, WE WATCHED A HISTORIC FAILURE IN THIS ROOM. WE WERE TOLD A MORATORIUM PASSED. WE WATCHED YOU APPROVE A LAST-MINUTE BACKDOOR AMENDMENT THAT COMPLETELY CARVED OUT AND EXEMPTED A VAO PROJECT. WE ARE BACK AT SQUARE ONE TONIGHT BECAUSE THE SYSTEM IS FAILING US AND THE PUBLIC IS BEING LEFT OUT OF THE DECISION MAKING. LET'S BE HONEST ABOUT WHAT IS REALLY HAPPENING. THE NATURAL STATE IS BEING SOLD FOR FINANCIAL GAIN BEHIND CLOSED DOORS AND UNDER THE GUISE OF GENERATIONAL INVESTMENT, JAY CHESHIRE, AND THE LITTLE ROCK CHAMBER COMMERCE. NEGOTIATED THESE DEALS IN TOTAL SECRECY. COUNTY JUDGE BARRY HYDE FAST-TRACKED THEM, SIGNING OFF ON A SINGLE PUBLIC TOWN WITHOUT A SINGLE PUBLIC TOWN HALL OR BEFORE DEBATE COULD OCCUR. IN THIS VERY CHAMBER, PHIL STOWERS, WHO IS NOT HERE, AND I MIGHT ADD WE HAVE LISTENED TO HIM, BUT HE DID NOT GIVE ME THE HONOR TO LISTEN TO THIS. J.P. PHIL STOWERS PLAYED HIS YOU PART BY PUSHING A CORPORATE AMENDMENT TO COMPLETELY CARVE OUT AN EXEMPTION ON A 760 ACRE OF VAIL DIGITAL PROJECT ON 145TH STREET. THE PEOPLE OF 145TH STREET ARE HERE IN THE BUILDING. J.P. STOWERS CLAIMS HE DID THAT TO AVOID FINANCIAL LIABILITY PUBLICLY STATING THAT WE SHOULDN'T CUT THEIR NIECE OUT FROM UNDERNEATH THEM BECAUSE THEY SPENT MONEY. WHAT ABOUT YOUR CONSTITUENTS' KNEES, J.P. STOWERS? WHO'S PROTECTING US? THE DATA SHOULD TERRIFY EVERY SINGLE RESIDENT IN THIS ROOM. THE AVAIL PROJECT ON 145TH STREET DEMANDS AN INITIAL 150 MEGAWATT OF POWER WITH PROJECTED GROWTH SKYROCKETING TO 1.1 GIGAWATTS. COMBINED WITH OTHER LOCAL DATA CENTERS, THESE FACILITIES WILL ABSORB MORE ELECTRICITY THAN EVERY SINGLE HOME IN LITTLE ROCK NEARLY TWO TIMES OVER. TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE, PLANS TO SUPPLY MILLIONS OF GALLONS OF WATER PER DAY TO COOL THE MASSIVE SERVER BLOCKS. WE ARE JEOPARDIZING OUR ELECTRIC GRID, OUR AQUIFER, AND OUR LOCAL ECOSYSTEM. ALL SO THE TECH GIANTS CAN PROFIT OFF THE TAX INCENTIVES WHILE LEAVING CONSTITUENTS TO LIVE WITH LOW FREQUENCY NOISE AND ENVIRONMENTAL FALLOUT. WE DON'T EVEN KNOW WHO THE REAL INVESTORS OF AVEO ARE. REMEMBER, HE DECLINED TO SAY THAT. HE ALSO DECLINED TO SAY WHO THE FINAL TENANTS WOULD BE. MANY OF YOU MIGHT OWN RENT HOUSES AND YOU WOULD NEVER SUBLET A RENT HOUSE, BUT YOU'RE GOING TO SUBLET THAT DATA CENTER. OKAY, THIS IS A FAILURE OF BOARD POLICIES AND PROCEDURES [02:50:01] THAT VALUE CORPORATE BOARDROOMS OVER NEIGHBORHOOD BACKYARDS. BUT LET ME REMIND EVERY SINGLE JP SITTING ON THIS QUORUM COURT TONIGHT, YOU ARE UP FOR RE-ELECTION OR YOU'RE SIMPLY CHOOSING TO MOVE ON AND NOT RETURN. EVERY SEAT IN THIS ROOM WILL BE ON THE BALLOT AND WE ARE TRACKING EXACTLY WHO STANDS UP FOR COMMUNITIES. AND WHO CAPITULATES TO THE CHAMBER'S CORPORATE AGENDA. JAY CHESHIRE, BARRY HYDE, AND CORPORATE DONORS DO NOT CONTROL YOUR POLITICAL FUTURES. THE VOTERS DO. CLOSE THE LOOPHOLES, INCREASE THE REGULATIONS, ADD TEETH TO THE REGULATIONS SO WE HAVE LEGAL AVENUES WHEN THERE ARE PROBLEMS, AND REJECT THE BACKDOOR EXEMPTIONS. PUT YOUR CONSTITUENTS FIRST AND VOTE YES. FOR THE MORATORIUM. DO NOT TRADE OUR HERITAGE FOR THEIR SERVER ROOMS BECAUSE TECH COMPANIES CAN ALWAYS BUILD ELSEWHERE, BUT WE ONLY HAVE ONE NATURAL STATE. I DO WANT TO ADD SOME TEETH TO MS. MAGDALENA AND MS. GINDIA. CAN I ASK YOU TO WRAP IT UP? I'LL BE HAPPY TO WRAP IT UP. I DID A DATA ANALYSIS ON DATA CENTERS. THE DATA CENTER THAT THEY WERE TALKING ABOUT OPENED IN 2021. IT'S IN COLUMBUS, OHIO. THE COMPANY IS AMAZON WEB SERVICES. THEY HAD 82 EMERGENCIES AT ONE OF THE TWO DATA CENTERS IN FOUR YEARS, AVERAGING TWO CALLS PER MONTH. THEY ARE WARNING THAT DATA CENTERS ARE QUICKLY BECOMING A FULL-TIME JOB FOR THESE COUNTIES. RESIDENTS LIVING NEAR THE OPERATIONAL DATA CENTER ENDURE A BUZZ FROM THE HEATING AND COOLING SYSTEM. RESIDENTS NOTE LONG-TERM DEGRADATION OF THEIR HOME VALUES. AND THERE WAS A... $50 MILLION FIRE THAT TOOK THE LOCAL FACILITY OVER 30 HOURS TO CONTROL. SO I HAVE INFORMATION IF YOU'RE WONDERING WHAT'S GOING ON IN DATA CENTERS. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. AND WE HAVE BRITTANY, I'M NOT SURE, BRITTANY WALKER. OKAY, BRITTANY WALKER. YES, MA'AM. BUT I HEARD SOME KEY WORDS AND I SUBJECT MATTER EXPERT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT I'VE BEEN IN THE COLLEGE STATION AREA FOR 37 YEARS. I AM A VICTIM OF 3M. I'M NOT GOING TO GO INTO DETAILS OF THAT. I DO HAVE PROPERTY ALSO IN SWEET HOME AS WELL. I MUST SAY THIS IS VERY CALCULATED, PERFECT PUZZLE, GOOGLE AND AVEO. I KNOW ONE IS CONSIDERED LITTLE ROCK, WHICH WAS ANNEXED TO BE LITTLE ROCK, VERY STRATEGIC. I THINK IT WAS DONE FOR THE TAXES BEING IT'S COUNTY WANT SOME PEOPLE IF YOU GUYS CANNOT MAKE A DECISION ON THIS MORATORIUM, AT LEAST CONSIDER US AS RESIDENTS. WE DO NOT KNOW HOW THIS IS GOING TO LOOK FOR US. BUT I CAN TELL YOU WE'RE ALREADY DEALING WITH HIGH INFRASTRUCTURE COMPANIES. WE HAVE THE TWISTED BARREL. I HEAR GUNSHOTS DAILY. AFRAID FOR MY KIDS TO EVEN GO OUTSIDE AND PLAY, WHICH IS ONE OF THE REASONS I MOVED BACK TO WHAT WE CALL THE COUNTRY, SO THEY CAN HAVE THAT FREEDOM. THE AIRPLANES, THE AIRPORT NOISE. CONSISTENTLY SHAKING MY HOME. SOMETIMES I LOOK OUT THE WINDOW, IS THAT A PLANE COMING TO FINALLY DO THE BIG ONE? OR IS THAT THE GRAND AND MOUNT QUARRY BOMBING AND MINING? THESE ARE THINGS WE DEAL WITH DAILY. I DON'T EXPECT YOU ALL TO UNDERSTAND NO ONE BUT MS. WARD BECAUSE SHE RESIDES DOWN THERE. BUT IF YOU'RE NOT BAGGING OUT OF YOUR HOME IN THE MORNING AND GOING ON 365, FRASER PIKE OR HARPER ROAD, YOU WILL NOT UNDERSTAND. AND THAT'S FAIR. A VERY FAIR ASSESSMENT. GROWING UP, I'M USED TO PEOPLE SHOWING UP FOR US WHEN WE HAVE CATASTROPHES. THESE CONVERSATIONS AND THESE ORDINANCE TO ME IS A DAY LATE AND A DOLLAR SHORT, YEAR SHORT. THERE NEEDS TO BE ORDINANCE IN PLACE FOR US AS CITIZENS IN THESE COMMUNITIES. WE'RE USED TO BEING LOOKED OVER, DISREGARD. IT'S NOTHING NEW. THE GOLF COURSE TALK, THE SUIT, THE JACKETS, THAT'S COMMON. WE'RE USED TO THAT. THAT'S NOT ANYTHING TO BE LIKE, IT'S NOT DISRESPECTFUL TO ME BECAUSE I'M USED TO. TO IT. YOU KNOW, WHEN I FINALLY SEEN PEOPLE REALLY SHOW UP FOR OUR COMMUNITIES IS WHEN WE HAD THAT TORNADO. GOT A CHANCE TO SEE BILL CLINTON, THE DALLAS COWBOY TEAM. SO I GUESS WE'RE JUST SITTING DUCKS WAITING FOR WHOEVER'S GOING TO STRIKE FIRST, GOOGLE OR AVAIL, WHOEVER'S GOING TO CAUSE US THE MOST HARM FOR PEOPLE TO SHOW UP FOR US. AND BECAUSE I LOVE MY HOME FOR VARIOUS REASONS. ONE, FINANCIAL FREEDOM. I DON'T HAVE OVERHEAD. REGARDLESS IF PEOPLE, [02:55:01] YOU KNOW, AND I HEAR PEOPLE SAY, OH, THIS IS A DISTRESSED COMMUNITY. NO, WE ARE A COMMUNITY. WE HAVE HOMES. WE DON'T HAVE HOUSES. WE HAVE HOMES. I ENJOY MY KIDS BEING ABLE TO WALK OVER, VISIT THEIR GRANDMOTHERS, VISIT THEIR AUNTS. I ENJOY THAT COMMUNITY FEELING. I'M NOT LEAVING. SO I'VE BEEN HERE 37 YEARS. I'M WILLING TO TAKE THE HITS. WE'RE READY FOR THE CATASTROPHE. WE'RE NOT LEAVING. SO IF YOU GUYS DO NOT WANT TO SUPPORT TO PUT ANY ORDINANCE IN PLACE. THAT'S FINE. LET US KNOW WHO DO WE CONTACT ON THE MORNINGS WE GET UP TO TAKE OUR KIDS TO SCHOOL. WE'RE NOT ABLE TO BATH. WE DON'T HAVE LIGHTS BECAUSE OF THE WATER AND THE ENERGY. WHEN WE HAVE THESE BIG BLACKOUTS, HOPEFULLY THE WRIGHTSVILLE PRISON UNIT DON'T HAVE A BLACKOUT AND THEY GET TO ESCAPE AND ROAM ALL OVER OUR COMMUNITIES. AND WE CAN JUST DEPEND ON SHERIFF HIGGINS TO SEND HIS TWO DEPUTIES TO SAVE US. OR WHAT ABOUT THIS? WHEN WE DO HAVE... FIRES OR THINGS OF THAT NATURE, I HOPE UNION PACIFIC DOESN'T HAVE OUR CROSSINGS BLOCKED BECAUSE WE'RE JUST GOING TO BE SOL. AND I'M BEING HONEST. THESE ARE NOT, YOU KNOW, I'M NOT MAKING THIS UP. THIS IS THE TRUTH. IF YOU DO NOT BELIEVE ME, CONTACT DREW TECHE, THE VP OF UNION PACIFIC. I CALL HIM EVERY DAY BECAUSE THE TRAINS ARE ON OUR CROSSINGS BLOCKING US. I WORK FROM HOME. I HAVE BEEN REPRIMANDED FROM JOBS BECAUSE I'M LATE FROM LUNCH. LATE, JUST COMING BACK. I HAVE VIDEOS OF THE TRAINS, SENDING IT TO MY SUPERVISOR. I'M LATE FROM LUNCH BECAUSE OF THIS TRAIN. I CAN GO TO COLLINS STATION, THE 3M TRAIN, BE BLOCKED FROM THERE, TAKE THE FREEWAY, COME BACK DOWN DIXON ROAD. THERE'S ONE ON HARPER ROAD BLOCKING ME. SO I'M INTERESTED TO SEE HOW ALL THIS INFRASTRUCTURE IS GOING TO LOOK. I'M PREPARED. I'M REALLY ANXIOUS. I'M WAITING TO SEE HOW ALL THIS IS GOING TO LOOK. BUT CAN YOU ALL PLEASE LET US KNOW WHO DO WE CONTACT IN THE COUNTY FOR ACCOUNTABILITY WHEN WE HAVE ISSUES? BECAUSE THAT'S THE ONLY TIME PEOPLE SHOW UP. I DID NOT COME HERE FOR A DECISION TO BE MADE. I KNEW IT WASN'T GOING TO BE MADE FOR WHATEVER AGENDA. SO I'M GOING TO LEAVE IT WITH THAT, AND I HOPE YOU GUYS HAVE A GOOD NIGHT. THAT IS ALL OF OUR PUBLIC COMMENTS, SO IF NOTHING ELSE TO CLAIM OUR ATTENTION. OH, I'M SORRY. OKAY, HOLD ON. THERE YOU GO, STEVE. ONE ANNOUNCEMENT. JUNE 25TH, 6 P.M., PULASKI COUNTY PLANNING WILL HAVE A PUBLIC HEARING MEETING RIGHT HERE IN THIS VERY ROOM. THAT IS JUNE 25TH, 6 P.M., PULASKI COUNTY PLANNING, AND IT'S ABOUT DATA CENTERS. WE'LL BE MEETING. RIGHT HERE IN HIS VERY ROOM. I'M SORRY. GO AHEAD. EXCUSE ME, Y'ALL. WHO WOULD TELL? * This transcript was compiled from uncorrected Closed Captioning.