Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013 [03] Mar 27CITY OF ST. JOSEPH ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY Meeting Minutes — Wednesday March 27, 2013 Present: Board Members Chair Wick, Doug Danielson, Steve Frank, Larry Hosch, and Gary Osberg. Also present City Administrator Judy Weyrens, resident Michael McDonald, and EDA Director Cynthia Smith - Strack. Call to Order. Chairperson Wick called the March 27, 2013 meeting of the St. Joseph EDA to order at 5:00 p.m. Agenda. Chairperson Wick introduced the agenda. Danielson requested the addition of agenda item 6(d) relating to a discussion of welcome packets to new business owners. Motion by Frank second by Wick to approve the agenda with the addition of item 6(d). Motion carried 5-0. Public Comment. Michael McDonald opined that since the EDA was still working with the biotech firm, then the City should proceed with a land use ordinance update to allow for the proposed use. McDonald opined the website link to 'find a business' leads only to area real estate professionals, some who do not office locally. He opined City staff should be directed to remove the link at this time. He offered assistance in creating links to various local businesses. McDonald spoke in regard to the guidelines for the Business Facade and Architectural grant program. He inquired as to whether or not the EDA intended to use the program to support the purchase of eye glass cases, the development of landscape plans that were not implemented, the development of signage, or the development of signage for a housing development. He opined the use of the program for such items was irritating. Approval of Minutes. Chair Wick introduced the minutes from the February 27, 2013 regular EDA meeting. One change relating to a report requested by Osberg was noted as needed. The change was to replace 'large project' with 'new project'. Motion by Osberg, Second Wick to approve the February 27, 2013 minutes with the requested change. Motion carried 5 -0. Farmer's Market in Downtown. Chairperson Wick introduced the agenda item and Farmer's Market participant Jim Degiovanni, Wick invited staff to provide an overview of the discussion. Strack noted that last fall representatives from the St. Joseph Farmers Market requested a meeting to discuss moving the market to the Downtown. Discussion at the meeting included potential locations Downtown and support services needed to bring the market to the heart of the City. Strack stated that members of the Market have indicated an interest in making the move this year. The matter was discussed at the March staff meeting with perceived support from all departments. The next step in the process is to work with the Market to identify actual locations for the weekly event and potential means of capitalizing on such an activity. It appears this is a significant opportunity to bring foot traffic into the Downtown and promote lingering after the market closes. March 27, 2013 EDA Meeting Page 1 EDA Member Frank noted the requested action was open dialogue and discussion surrounding the topic. Frank stated he fully supported the concept of bringing the market to the Downtown and incorporating other events together with the Market. Frank indicated support for closing a street for the Market. EDA Board Member Frank also stated he didn't want to 'reinvent the wheel' preferring instead to examine what other communities of similar size had done in the past. Osberg stated Monticello holds a similar event in a large parking lot, that St. Cloud hosts such an event at a City Park, and that Avon holds its market by the amateur ballfields. Danielson brought up past discussion regarding events happening at the St. Joseph's Church parking lot at the corner of College and Minnesota. He noted the Church and College of St. Benedict have a shared parking agreement in place which may or may not limit the availability of the lot for a venue such as the Market. Danielson noted with proper coordination perhaps use of the parking lot for such an event would be possible. Wick inquired as to what the EDA Board thought about using the City Hall parking lot and potentially adjacent areas for the Market. Osberg inquired as to the volume of space needed to house the market. Degiovanni thanked the Board for welcoming him to the meeting and corrected an earlier statement by Strack relating to the timing of the Market move. Degiovanni indicated the Market would not be ready to move Downtown in 2013 but would like to be Downtown in 2014. Degiovanni stated that most of the Market membership was in favor of a move to the Downtown. He noted he and his wife were supportive of healthy downtowns, and enjoyed spending time in Downtown St. Joseph. Degiovanni opined the Market moving to Downtown would be good for both the Downtown and the Market. He noted an interest in incorporating area businesses into to the weekly event. He further opined the most logical place for the Market may be the parking lot at City Hall. Finally he noted hours for the Market would likely remain the same. Wick asked Degiovanni for his opinion on closing Ash Street and using that for the Market. Degiovanni considered the street closing a good idea but noted Market vendors would need access to restrooms, electricity, and parking area. Osberg inquired as to whether or not a committee should be established to investigate potential sites. Wick opined the Market Board should be the entity that chooses the most suitable location for their needs. Danielson stated the EDA Board as a whole seemed to be in support of moving the Market to a location in the Downtown. Degiovanni stated that if the City Hall parking lot was ruled out as a possibility, the Church parking lot was probably the best location for access to electrical. Degiovanni noted Frank has mentioned something that spurred a thought. He noted some communities provide shelters in parks that are used for a variety of activities. If the City were to install a shelter near City Hall and the Market could use it that would be the best case scenario. Degiovanni stressed he was just putting the thought on the table but didn't expect any action or consideration. He reiterated parking, restrooms, and access to electricity were the principal needs of the Market. Motion Frank, second Danielson to formalize EDA support for moving the Market to the Downtown and directing the EDA Director to work with the Farmer's Market Board to work out event logistics. Motion passed 5 -0. Accounts Payable and Monthly Report. March 27, 2013 EDA Meeting Page 2 Chairperson Wick introduced the agenda items and reviewed accounts payable from February 2013 in the amount of $2,516.97 (MDG contract and mileage) and the check register. Frank inquired as to why a negative balance occurs in TIF 2 -2. Strack noted a two year lag in receipt of first TIF payment following establishment of the district and that the City's portion of the TIF proceeds retained for administrative purposes will eventually return the fund to a positive balance. Wick inquired as to why the Revolving Loan Fund on the EDA Balance Sheet was only $7,983.27. Strack noted the accurate, but unaudited, balance was included in the Summary Treasurer's Report and represented at $24,142.37. Motion by Frank, Seconded by Osberg to approve the accounts payable and financial reports as presented. Motion carried 5 -0. BFA Grant Disbursement — Scenic Specialties. Chairperson Wick noted the request for reimbursement included in the packet and the need to formally approve the disbursement as per the minutes from the October 2012 meeting. Motion Osberg, Second Danielson to approve the disbursement. Motion carried 5:0. BFA Program Guidelines. Wick introduced the agenda item and noted a copy of the most recent updates was included in the EDA packet. Strack noted review of the guidelines was included in the minutes from the August 2012 meeting. Review and discussion was requested. Wick opined that there has been good use of this funding in the past and perhaps at some points questionable use of the funding program, but no major changes to the guidelines were anticipated. Osberg asked whether or not the program guidelines were available on the website. Strack confirmed the application and guidelines could be downloaded from the website. McDonald suggested a language change in the guidelines pertaining to a reference to 'first come, first served' availability of funds. Danielson stated a perceived need to better screen applicants and follow the guidelines. Hosch inquired as to whether or not the program funds should be used for projects that exceed the minimum design standards referenced in the zoning ordinance. Frank inquired as to how to institutionalize such a standard within the program. Frank further stated an apparent need review future applications with a more critical eye and reserve the right to say 'no' to some project. Frank indicated he is willing to say 'no' to applications in the future. Frank opined a change in the guidelines wasn't needed. Danielson stated that if the applications don't meet the program requirements they should not be forwarded to the EDA in the future. Frank concurred and requested staff perform thorough screenings of applications in the future. Hosch inquired as to whether or not the EDA felt a need to strengthen the guidelines. Osberg questioned whether or not an appeal process should be included in the guidelines. The EDA reached consensus and agreed the guidelines were to remain as written, but in the future the projects will likely face additional scrutiny. Hosch left the meeting at 5:45 p.m. Business Development Report. Strack referenced a business development report which was included in the packet. She noted the sewer capacity study along west Minnesota should be completed in April, that the biotech company has achieved financing from GRE and that reports of raw land price increases doe to the opening of McDonalds have been reported. Strack noted her review of comparable sales in the area did not affirm March 27, 2013 EDA Meeting Page 3 the notion of increased value. Osberg noted the market was what the market was. Strack agreed but opined the role of an economic development program was in part to promote cost effective development and repeated unsubstantiated rumors could artificially elevate the perceived affordability of development. Frank clarified that if EDA members were to be told of increasing land values due to the presence of McDonalds they could and perhaps should note comparable sales data didn't support that notion. Strack noted she spent quite a bit of time updated the economic development portion of the website and that Healthy Source Wellness is now leasing space in the former office of DM Builders along Cedar Street. Osberg inquired as to any new project(s), Strack noted there were not any solid new leads. Welcome Packet for Business Owners. Danielson passed along an information packet from the Becker EDA. The packet folder is apparently distributed to new businesses in the City of Becker. The packet includes information on the community, programs and information available through the City, Sherburne County, and the Small Business Association. The folder features a professional quality brochure from the EDA and other preprinted materials. The folder is of a high quality. Danielson asked if there was any sort of a welcome packet distributed in St. Joseph. Weyrens noted new residential utility customers receive an information and contact summary. Strack noted the EDA did not have a packet of information for new business owners. Danielson inquired as to whether this was a common product used by local EDA's. Strack stated the practice in her experience was not common. Danielson noted the folder contained interesting information. All those present agreed. Wick noted the EDA budget included $8,000 for marketing which could be used to develop a similar product. Frank suggested the EDA Director evaluate the potential cost and benefit of such a product and report back to the EDA. Osberg suggested working with the Chamber of Commerce to design a welcome packet. Osberg left the meeting at 5:55 p.m. Board Member Announcements. Frank spoke about a series of features included in the St. Cloud Daily Times which centered on information available through Census and GIS data sources. The features included copious mapping applications that illustrated targeted data such as sewer line ages, demographics, and population characteristics at a neighborhood level. He noted the series of maps and charts were extremely informative and easily understood. Frank suggested resources at SCSU could potentially assist the City of St. Joseph with the production of similar data series, should the City be interested. Frank also cited a recently completed market analysis which illustrated SCSU's annual economic impact in the area is upwards of $650 million. Danielson reported the gathering space at St. Joseph's Church is nearly complete and will be open by July 1, 2013. He noted that in the future the gathering space may be available for special event rental. Adjournment. Motion by Frank, Seconded by Danielson to adjourn the EDA meeting at 5:59 pm. Motion carried 3 -0. Cynthia Smith-Strack Smith - Strack EDA Director March 27, 2013 EDA Meeting Page 4