NEARTOWN ASSOCIATION (NTA) MEETING Cherryhurst Community Center, Tuesday June 24, 2003 Minutes

NTA President Raju Adwaney called the meeting to order at 7:10 p.m. Robert Graham moved to approve the May minutes.

Management District: Guest speaker, David Hawes, with Hawes, Hill & Associates gave a presentation on the topic of management districts in Houston and the management district recently approved in the Texas legislature encompassing a portion of Montrose. (Hawes, Hill & Assoc. are consultants representing cities and non-profit organizations)

What is a Management District? A management district is a political subdivision of the state of Texas. It is property owners and tenants funding an organization focused on a specific geographic area to leverage resources and ensure a fair share of public sector investment. They have been used in Aldine, Arlington, Corpus Christi, Frisco, Houston and Spring. Board members are sworn in and bonded.

There are currently 18 management districts in Houston. They typically have 9-13 member boards and assess an extra tax of $ .10 / $100 valuation on non-residential property owners within the designated district (residential is defined as 4-plex to single-family structures; apartment property is commercial) .

A new district known as the Museum Montrose Community Improvement District, including roughly the boundaries of Neartown, was proposed in the last Texas legislative session. Another district known as the Buffalo Bayou District was proposed as well. The district that was ultimately formed and approved under the legislative leadership of Rep. Garnet Coleman is the Buffalo Bayou Management District which includes property along Buffalo Bayou, the Fourth Ward and only a portion of Montrose to the east of Montrose Blvd.

The newly formed Buffalo Bayou Mgmt. district has $474 million value of nonresidential property (the area of Montrose/Neartown left out of this has approx. $497 million value). The newly formed district has a 31 member board, including Neartown President Raju Adwaney and Spur Task-force leader Mike Mark.

The goals of the unrealized Museum Montrose Mgmt. Dist. included: Transportation (perhaps a trolley), Public Safety, Environmental and Urban Design (pedestrian friendly, revitalizing the divided boulevard design of Montrose Blvd.), and Business Development (encouraging chef-owned restaurants) & Public Relations.

Questions and comments from Neartown residents/property owners in attendance sparked the following: There was some question and confusion as to how the proposed Museum Montrose Community Improvement District had been organized and lobbied for. The MDBA (Museum District

Business Alliance) seems to have been the initiator and engaged Hawes, Hill & Assoc. long ago, although this was never sorted out. There was disagreement among David Hawes, and some of the NTA board members, including Pres. Raju Adwaney, as to whether NTA had been brought into the planning. Former NTA president Scott Howard expressed great consternation that NTA had been in the dark about this project.

Annexation: There is a petition provision for various groups to request annexation into an existing management district - either 50 petitions or 50% of the value of the area.

If NTA is interested in pursuing a separate management district, the next steps would be to: Determine the district's boundaries Work with property owners to create a Service and Assessment plan Make application to TCEQ for creation of district.

The meeting was adjourned at 8 p.m. NTA Secretary, Dana Padgett