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City Council convened for a study session Wednesday, Oct. 8, addressing critical governance topics ranging from harassment prevention to economic development strategies, with a harassment training presentation proving complex enough to prompt an immediate mid-session executive session for legal consultation.
The session's most substantive agenda item featured a comprehensive presentation by Jeffrey Ross, director of human resources, on harassment and discrimination awareness for elected officials.
The training was requested by three council members, according to Public Information Officer Christian Grisales. The city will now provide this training to council members annually.
Ross opened with sobering statistics from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, noting that 88,531 new harassment and discrimination cases were reported in 2024 alone. More troubling, according to EEOC data, 85% of people who experience workplace harassment never file formal charges, while 70% never report it at all.
"These are things that happen a lot more often than we might think," Ross told council members.
The presentation clarified a nuanced legal question: Are elected officials employees? The answer, Ross explained, is "both yes and also no," depending on the context. While the Department of Labor and IRS consider council members employees, the EEOC and Texas Workforce Commission do not. Instead, elected officials are classified as "official agents of the city," a designation carrying significant legal weight.
"An agent is really anybody who represents the employer in an official capacity," Ross explained. "Somebody who can make decisions on behalf of the business, somebody who affects the business or the organization."
Unlike city employees governed by personnel policy manuals, council members operate under the city charter and code of ethics. Notably, the code of ethics explicitly treats situations "as though they occurred in an official employee-employer relationship," Ross noted.
The training covered two primary types of harassment: quid pro quo (Latin for "this for that") and hostile work environment. However, Ross emphasized that retaliation represents the most common claim and finding by regulatory agencies.
"Someone does something that they're allowed to do and we take an adverse or disparate action against them for doing that thing," Ross said, describing how retaliation claims often supersede original complaints in investigations.
Ross outlined various prohibited behaviors, from non-consensual physical contact to verbal harassment, and warned that consequences can include reputational damage, civil liability and, in severe cases, criminal charges. Under Texas law, council members can be held personally liable if they "knew or should have known" about harassment and failed to take appropriate action.
Following the presentation, Council Member Elizabeth Villafranca requested an immediate executive session to seek legal advice. Council members reconvened after about 45 minutes in closed session, with Council Member Roger Neal stating he was "reluctant to move forward with any questioning" given the legal discussions.
Deputy Director of Economic Development Darren Harris then presented a revised demolition-rebuild program following previous council direction. After considering three-year, five-year and seven-year tax incentive options at a Sept. 2 meeting, council members had requested a four-year alternative.
The approved program offers a four-year tax abatement without cash rebates to encourage property owners to demolish aging structures and rebuild. All council members expressed support for the compromise approach, providing staff clear direction to move forward with implementation.
Harris also delivered the quarterly economic development update, highlighting significant activity despite some concerning vacancy statistics. The department completed 62 business visits during the quarter, including meetings with CEOs and prospective businesses.
Major accomplishments included securing a new 10-year incentive package for Brinks Monetronics, which will relocate its headquarters while keeping sales tax revenue in the city. The department also facilitated 12 demolition-rebuild incentives and two facade grants during the period.
Community engagement initiatives included a healthcare workers celebration, a "Passport to Farmers Branch" program featuring 24 local businesses, and milestone celebrations for longtime establishments including Jim's Pizza (50 years), Marshall's Barbecue (60 years) and Jen's Place (30 years).
Addressing constituent concerns about vacancy rates, Harris provided context for seemingly high numbers. While industrial space shows approximately 25% vacancy and office space 32%, Harris explained these figures are skewed by major outliers: the 1.2 million-square-foot former Tuesday Morning building and approximately 310,000 square feet of office space from Brinks and other properties.
"Once those buildings are occupied or brought back as commerce, that puts us in a more competitive rate," Harris said, noting adjusted vacancy rates would drop to approximately 9% for industrial and 18-19% for office space, competitive with regional markets.
The department outlined ambitious goals including 200 annual business retention visits, enhanced LinkedIn presence for national and international visibility, and increased participation in site-selection conferences.
Council members praised the presentation's thoroughness, with Neal requesting similar updates quarterly or semi-annually to keep residents informed of economic development progress.
The session concluded with council entering executive session on five items, including city manager evaluation, economic development incentives for a 2025 project, DART-related legal matters, municipal court judge evaluation and legal representation review.
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