2018 06 14 WS MinutesMINUTES OF THE REGULAR WORK SESSION OF THE
CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BAYTOWN
JUNE 14, 2018
The City Council of the City of Baytown, Texas, met in a Regular Work Session on Thursday,
June 14, 2018, at 5:30 P.M., in the Hullum Conference Room of the Baytown City Hall, 2401
Market Street, Baytown, Texas with the following in attendance:
Laura Alvarado
Mayor Pro Tem
Robert Hoskins
Council Member
Charles Johnson
Council Member
David Himsel
Council Member
Chris Presley
Council Member
Heather Betancourth
Council Member
Stephen DonCarlos Mayor
Rick Davis
City Manager
Ignacio Ramirez
City Attorney
Leticia Brysch
City Clerk
Mayor DonCarlos convened the June 14, 2018, City Council Regular Work Session with a
quorum present at 5:30 P.M., all members were present.
1. DISCUSSIONS
a. Discuss community wayfinding signage.
Director of Strategic Initiatives Nick Woolery presented that item and stated that as it relates to
the wayfinding initiative, staff would be giving Council an overview of (1) the background and
history of the process, (2) the designs and science behind them, and (3) potential locations,
naming options and items to list on the signs, etc.
Mr. Woolery noted that the City hired Ms. Vicky Soderberg with Cygnet Strategies to assist staff
with this wayfinding project and noted that she has had extensive experience in working with the
City's Marketing and Tourism team.
Ms. Soderberg noted that this project began in 2016 when the City hired her firm to complete a
touring assessment and noted that they did a presentation of their findings regarding what the
visitor experience was like in Baytown at that particular time. She noted that they had a lot of
observations; including, the good, the bad and the ugly and one of the things that jumped out at
them was how difficult it was to get around or find things in Baytown; this was the seed for the
wayfinding plan.
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June 14, 2018
Page 2 of 4
Ms. Soderberg noted that they completed the Tourism Strategic Plan for the City last year and
was happy to report that parts of said plan were already being implemented. She noted that as a
part of this plan, there was a recommendation for some wayfinding, which is before the Council
today in the hopes that it can be implemented by the end of the year.
Ms. Soderberg stated that wayfinding is an art and a science. She noted that it is a visual way of
helping people to navigate through an environment that they may or may not be familiar with
and it is a science because of the way that all the dots have to be connected in order to get people
from point "A" to point `B". Additionally, she noted that wayfinding for vehicles are very
different than wayfinding for pedestrians; for cities versus college campuses, hospitals, etc. A
Wayfinding Plan, what is currently being created for Baytown, has a variety of different
components, but begins with figuring out the location of the places that the City wants to help
people find and visit.
Ms. Soderberg noted that the group began this process by identifying the desired destinations.
She noted that the wayfinding system's destinations need to be either publicly owned or operated
by a nonprofit and must be something that will potentially be of interest to visitors.
Council Member Hoskins asked why high schools were not included in the wayfinding plan. Mr.
Woolery noted that this item was discussed by the group and it was noted that because there
were a limited amount of spaces available on each sign, they decided to focus on tourism items,
but noted that they will look at other type of signage for the high schools and the college that can
achieve a similar outcome outside of this wayfinding plan.
Ms. Soderberg showed the Council an illustration of the different wayfinding destinations and
sign locations to help visitors successfully reach their final destination and/or to entice travelers
to visit other locations that they may not have known about until they saw them listed on the
wayfinding signs. The Council discussed the two options for the large signs and the majority of
the Council preferred the second choice with the cut-outs.
Ms. Soderberg also clarified that there are some limitations to the wayfinding signs. She noted
that the Texas Code regulating these types of signs are based upon the Federal MUTCD and
includes the requirement that all signs that are on state right of way, which for Baytown includes
the feeder roads along I-10, Spur 330, SH146, can only have three items listed on the sign. She
noted that for other signs not on state right of way, the wayfinding signs can have up to four
items listed; she also cautioned about having too many items on one sign, as the destinations do
have to be large enough to read from the roadway.
Ms. Soderberg showed the Council two options for the regular wayfinding item with colors
based off of the City's logo that include: green, blue and white. She noted that the signs for the
Texas Avenue area will be in the same color scheme, but will have a little bit of a different
design that will still complement the larger signs. The Council also discussed the types of poles
and the sizes of the poles and signage. Ms. Soderberg reminded the Council that the poles will
be large and in compliance with the previously mentioned state regulations, but noted that they
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June 14, 2018
Page 3 of 4
can be as ornate as the Council chooses, but cautioned them that the more ornate the more
expensive.
The Council also discussed as to whether wayfinding was an outdated concept as most people
use GPS or a mobile app to get them to destinations. Ms. Soderberg noted that there is a
difference between directions to a place that you already know you are driving to versus the
wayfinding signage that is used to educate and entice visitors to explore or visit locations that
they might not have known existed.
City Manager Rick Davis noted that a lot of thought that went into this project, and noted that
these signs are not just to tell visitors what is in Baytown, these signs are there to tell people
about all the neat things that are in this great community. He noted that this is a form of story-
telling and not just a utilitarian way to get people from "A" to point `B".
Mr. Woolery noted that there are probably a lot of residents that still may not know or have not
experienced many of the neat activities and locations that are across Baytown. One such location
is the Texas Avenue area; there are some residents in town who still have not gone down and
seen the exciting things that are going on and so, this location is present in a lot of the proposed
wayfinding signs, in order to promote and market it.
Council Member Betancourth asked about listing the trails, particularly the Goose Creek Trail,
which she noted was a wonderful amenity in Baytown. Mr. Woolery noted that they would look
into the trails.
Council Member Johnson inquired about the addition of the convention center to the signs. Ms.
Soderberg noted that the convention center will not be added to the signs until such time as it is
in existence.
The Council discussed the manufacturing of the signs, options to change out the information on
the signs, and the number of signs that are going to be needed for this project. Ms. Soderberg
noted that she estimated needing between 60 and 65 signs. She noted that this number includes
the parking sing that will be placed in different places around the Texas Avenue area.
Ms. Soderberg noted that now that the Council has agreed on the second design for the
wayfinding signs, it was now time to discuss the signage specific to the Texas Avenue area. The
two options presented allowed for a specific name for the Texas Avenue area, this first design
not having a logo and the second one with a space for a logo that could be specific to the district
or the modified city logo being used on the other wayfinding signage.
The Council briefly discussed the potential names for the Texas Avenue area to include: (1) the
Historic District, (2) the Arts District, (3) the Arts, Cultural and Entertainment District, (4) the
A.C.E. District and the (5) Umbrella District. The Council also discussed possible logos for the
second wayfinding sign option that allowed for the placement of a logo; such as: (1) the existing
logo, (2) the oak tree, and (3) the modified logo on the other wayfinding sign. Due to the
limitation on time, the Council did not reach a consensus regarding (1) the naming of the Texas
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June 14, 2018
Page 4 of 4
Avenue area, (2) the signage style for the Texas Avenue area and/or (3) the logo for option two
of the wayfinding signs for this area; therefore, the Council requested that this item be brought
back to the Council for further discussion at a future meeting.
b. Discuss any or all of the agenda items on the City Council Regular Meeting Agenda
for June 14, 2018, which is attached below.
This item was not discussed.
2. ADJOURN
With there being no further business to discuss, Mayor DonCarlos adjourned the June 14, 2018,
City Council Regular Work Session at 6:32 P.M.
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Leticia Brysch, City Clerk
City of Baytown
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