Board Meeting
September 5, 2003
11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
San Marcos Activity Center
501 E. Hopkins, San Marcos, Texas 78666

I. Chairman And Member Comments:

Chairman Wells opened the meeting by:

• Welcoming Councilman Slusher, who will replace Mayor Garcia, to the Board;
• Reminding the Board that they would not be where they are today but for Lamar Smith’s dedication and success in securing Federal funding. Chairman Wells asked the Members to thank Congressman Smith if they see him;
• Advising the Members that he has asked Capital Metro, through Mr. Harless, to visit with the Board about their plans with respect to rail in the Austin area; and
• Recapping what the Board has accomplished over the last 6 months.

II. Call to Order:

Notice was duly posted and a meeting of the Austin-San Antonio Intermunicipal Commuter Rail District Board was held on September 5, 2003. Chairman Wells called the meeting to order at approximately 11:06 a.m.

Participants:

• Mariano Camarillo
• Sid Covington
• Gerald Daugherty
• Fred Harless
• Dave Marsh
• Al Notzon
• Shelton Padgett
• Carroll Schubert
• Darryl Slusher
• Tullos Wells
• Jeff Wentworth

Tommy Adkisson, Senator Barrientos and Sam Barshop were unable to attend. Other participants included Ross Milloy.

III. Approval of Minutes of July 11 Meeting:

Mr. Covington and Mr. Marsh moved and seconded approval of the minutes for the July 11, 2003 meeting. The minutes were approved by the Board with abstention by Councilman Slusher and Senator Wentworth.

IV. Report on Status of TxDOT, FHWA Discussions:

Mr. Milloy provided the Board with a copy of a letter from TxDOT pursuant to the Rail District that includes a Federal Project Authorization and Agreement (letter of authority), certified by the FHWA confirming the Austin-San Antonio Intermunicipal Commuter Rail District is now fully authorized to commence with preliminary engineering and planning studies needed to develop regional commuter rail between the cities of Georgetown and San Antonio.

Mr. Milloy also provided the Board with a copy of a proposed Contract for Engineering Services between Austin-San Antonio Intermunicipal Commuter Rail District and Post, Buckley, Schuh & Jernigan (”PJS&J”), as drafted by PBS&J and Bill Bingham. Mr. Milloy advised that the proposed contract was a standard TxDOT contract with very few changes. Mr. Milloy asked the Board to consider approving the form of the contract and authorize the Chairman to sign on behalf of the Board.

Mario Medina confirmed that the contract is a standard TxDOT contract, with the exception of the following:

• contract now reflects “Austin-San Antonio Intermunicipal Commuter Rail District” instead of “Texas Department of Transportation”; and
• provides for issuance of work to consultants through work authorizations.

Chairman Wells suggested setting up a committee with a “cap” on what the committee will be able to do.

Councilman Schubert and Mr. Covington moved and seconded for the approval of the form of contract for PBS&J, respectively.

A discussion ensued regarding the proposed contract.

The Board unanimously approved the form of contract for PBS&J.

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V. Presentation by PBS&J/Carter-Burgess on proposed work plan:

Steve Lowry thanked the Board for the opportunity provided PBS&J to serve the district. Mr. Lowry and the PBS&J team then provided a presentation on the introduction/briefing of efforts taking place today:

• General goals and objectives, as presented by Alison Schulze;
• Funding, as presented Dennis Newjahr and Tom Shelton;
• Rail Coordination, as presented by Lonnie Blaydes;
• Necessity for work plan; as presented by Pete Hackley; and
• Schedule/Work Plan, as presented by Steve Lowry.

The board was provided a hard copy of PBS&J’s presentation, “Next Steps – Critical Path”.

VI. Consideration/Approval of Form of Contract; First Work Authorization:

Chairman Wells asked the Board to review and consider for approval “Attachment D: Work Authorization No. 1 – Critical Path Investigation”, in the maximum amount payable of $61,300.00, attached to the Contract for Engineering Services.

Senator Wentworth and Chairman Wells moved and seconded approval of the proposed initial work authorization in the amount of $61,300.00.

After discussing the proposed work authorization, the Board unanimously approved “Attachment D: Work Authorization No. 1 – Critical Path Investigation”, in the maximum amount payable of $61,300.00.

VII. Presentation by Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO) on Peer City Destination Transportation Alternatives for Commuter Rail Systems

Michael Aulick, Executive Director for CAMPO, provided a presentation on regional rail systems that currently exist in the United States:

• Potential Regional/Commuter Rail Operators in Central Texas;
• Location of Regional Rail Systems in the United States;
• Boarding Information by Region;
• Modes People Take to Get to and from Commuter Rail; and
• Potential Commuter/Regional Rail Peers.

The board was provided a hard copy of CAMPO’s presentation, “Commuter/Regional Rail Survey: Presentation to the Austin-San Antonio Intermunicipal Commuter Rail District” to the Board.

VIII. Report on Federal Matters (Hutchison Rail Bill, TEA3, Amtrak Board):

Mr. Milloy provided a brief report on current legislative issues at the Federal level. Mr. Milloy provided the Board with a copy of Senator Hutchison’s Rail Bill. Mr. Milloy advised that the bill provides a new funding stream and strategy for Amtrak. Mr. Milloy stated that he was calling the bill to the Board’s attention because according to the bill, Congress will be looking at different ways to solve freight rail problems in the United States.

IX. Public Comment:

There were no comments from the public.

X. Adjourn:

There being no further items of business brought before the Board, Chairman Wells adjourned the meeting at 12:59 p.m.