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City Council Meeting Minutes June 2, 2020 <br />board. Mr. Mock mentioned the board chair, Mr. David Case will be sending a <br />letter of support. Mr. Mock thanked Scott Hardwick and Josie Falletta with <br />the City. Since day one we have discussed; how can we help the business with <br />this process? Mr. Mock stated that the 3 entities will be in a partnership that <br />can help get all the business community get back on their feet. Mr. Mock <br />mentioned that this is not a Chamber membership funding mechanism but it <br />will be available to all businesses that in the criteria of the HUD census track is <br />for low to moderate income. We would market this and make this an easy <br />streamlined process for businesses to submit their application. <br />Tricia Schneider, Development Director with Court Appointed Special <br />Advocates (CASA) made the following comments: <br />Good evening Mayor Hughson and City Council. I've prepared brief notes to <br />present and am available for questions. In the midst of the COVIDI9 <br />pandemic, we know that home is not safe for some children. The Child <br />Protection Court judge in Hays County is currently appointing CASA of <br />Central Texas to almost all incoming cases and experts predict a significant rise <br />in child abuse in the months to come. Already, data supports our concerns. By <br />the end of March, there was a 22% increase in monthly calls from people <br />younger than 18 to the National Sexual Assault Hotline. It is clear abuse is <br />escalating in both frequency and severity. Kids are isolated with their abusers. <br />The pandemic further amplifies problems that may exist in homes, as <br />contributing factors placing children at risk, such as domestic violence, drug <br />and alcohol abuse, and mental illness. When CASA is involved, our volunteers <br />are focused on the wellbeing of the children including their mental health, <br />medical, education and housing needs. During this time, we are also concerned <br />about older youth. Many lack relationships, resources and connections needed <br />to get through the pandemic. Homelessness is common among youth exiting <br />foster care. With the San Marcos CDBG CV funding, CASA plans to help an <br />additional 30 children and youth, over and above our previous projections. We <br />also submitted a similar proposal to the City of New Braunfels as the two of <br />you present the greatest need in our service area. CASA has a scalable model <br />that with more funding, we can train and support more volunteers who are <br />interested in helping our local children. CASA volunteer training classes are <br />being held virtually through Zoom and YouTube. Our next round of 5 weekly <br />classes begin June 24, 5 8pm. And, to close, I'd like to encourage anyone <br />listening, people who are interested in our free training, you may find our <br />volunteer application online at casacentex.org. <br />There being no further comments, the Mayor closed the Public Hearing at 8:22 <br />p.m. <br />City of San Marcos page 20 <br />