06-26-24 EDC Agenda Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION –MAY 22, 2024 3 Commissioner Bonine stated that having visibility and letting businesses know the EDC exists would be a success and as far as the survey goes, the power is in the questions. He said he thinks the visits could be completed in 10 or 15 minutes, with a more in-depth follow-up survey at another time if needed. He indicated 3 to 5 casual questions should be sufficient in providing direction as to where attention should be focused, and said as a business owner, he would not want to be engaged with an EDC member for 30 to 60 minutes in the middle of the day. He used a visit by John Connelly of the Twin Cities Chamber of Commerce as an example of how efficient and effective a short visit can be, noting it was important to be respectful of the business owner’s time. If they end up wanting to spend more time, certainly the Commissioner could do so. Commissioner Williams said there could be a qualitative survey and then a quantitative survey where comments could be added. He provided a suggestion of what this could entail. He also thought that a half hour to an hour to meet was a lot of time. Commissioner Williams noted that dropping in at a business is great but that there is a chance the business owner may not be there when they drop in. He wondered if an email notification letting the businesses know they would be coming ahead of time was an option. Senior Planner Fransen said data gathering in advance may work well and that planning the locations in advance as well as reaching out via email or by phone if possible was an option. A discussion ensued regarding outreach, administering two potential surveys and what those could entail, collecting feedback and following-up after the information has been gathered. Commissioner Bonine summarized the business outreach survey initiative as follows: holding an initial icebreaker meeting with business owners/managers with some sort of short-form survey that would lead to a longer survey, allowing for feedback from the survey participants, organizing the feedback to determine what needs to be done from there and bringing the findings back to the group as a whole. A discussion ensued about options for creating a survey and QR code. Commissioner Gronquist asked if the City has email contact information. She inquired as to how contacting the businesses via email would work and who would monitor responses and keep track. She suggested sending an email that would not elicit a back-and-forth response but rather one that introduces the EDC to the business and notifies them that the EDC members have three to five basic questions. She believed making contact with the businesses would result in better engagement in the future. Senior Planner Fransen noted that the contact information the City has on file can vary and suggested that a preferred local contact be established when the in-person visit was conducted as well. Commissioner Gronquist expressed some concern about the survey becoming too lengthy and suggested the group start with the basics such as introductions and no more than five questions. She stated the information they obtain will most likely point the way to go. A discussion ensued regarding how the group could potentially proceed with determining the content for the survey.