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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-14-13 EN HILLS CITY OF ARDEN HILLS,MINNESOTA ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION AUGUST 14,2013 8:00 AM CITY HALL-- 1245 WEST HIGHWAY 96 CALL MEETING TO ORDER Chair Ed von Holtum called the meeting to order at 8:05 a.m. ROLL CALL Present: Chair Ed von Holtum, Dan Erickson, Jim Huninghake, and Steve Heikkila. Also Present: Council Liaison Ed Werner and Community Development Director Jill Hutmacher. 1. APPROVAL OF AGENDA It was the consensus of the Commission to accept the agenda as presented. 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES It was the consensus of the Commission to accept the July 10, 2013, meeting minutes as presented. 3. UNFINISHED AND NEW BUSINESS A. State of the City Community Development Director Hutmacher stated that the promotional and marketing activities for the State of the City had already begun. Specific marketing tasks were listed in the staff memo. Community Development Director Hutmacher distributed post cards for commissioners to give to businesses. Hutmacher noted that when the EDC divided up business districts for commissioner visits,Lexington Avenue between the railroad tracks and 1-694 was not included. Commissioner Erickson volunteered to visit Lexington Avenue businesses. EDC Minutes August 14, 2013 Page 2 of 4 Chair von Holtum asked when would be the best week to visit businesses. Community Director Hutmacher responded that anytime between August 19 and September 6 would be fine, depending on commissioners' schedules. B. TCAAP Project Community Development Director Hutmacher stated that the TCAAP project is moving forward and much has happened in the past several months. Information on the demolition and remediation project as well as summaries of the developer interviews and July 30, 2013, panel discussion and public engagement workshop are included in the agenda packet. Chair von Holtum suggested that Commissioners who attended the July 30 event share their reflections. Councilmember Werner expressed his satisfaction with the quality and diversity of the panel. He found the comments on the importance of the younger generation at TCAAP very interesting. Councilmember Werner noted that Arden Hills is an older community, and people often look for senior housing that allows them to stay in Arden Hills. Chair von Holtum agreed that the panel was better than previous TCAAP panel discussions. He noted that many of the same people who attended public meetings during the Ryan plan also attended the July 30 event to voice support for their interests and projects. Chair von Holtum added that the panel did a good job of distinguishing between the realities of what will work on the site from what some people or groups would like to see on the site. The panel was able to address the advantages and challenges to the site. Councilmember Werner found the comparison to Centennial Lakes in Edina interesting, particularly the size difference between the projects and the length of the development timeframe for Centennial Lakes. Chair von Holtum suggested that people still do not understand the difference between TCAAP and the AHATS site. He continues to hear comments that people believe the AHATS site will be developed. Community Development Director Hutmacher stated that she was pleased by the attendance at the event, particularly that approximately half of the 85 or so attendees were Arden Hills residents. She noted that the City was working with the Chamber of Commerce on ideas to involve young professionals in the planning process. Commissioner Erickson asked whether the City should reach out to University of Minnesota students. EDC Minutes August 14, 2013 Page 3 of 4 Commissioner Huninghake supported the idea and noted that even if the students have many unrealistic ideas, they may also have a few very good ideas that would make the site more appealing for Generation Y. Commissioner Heikkila added that the outreach should be extended to the younger populations of Minneapolis and St. Paul. The outreach effort itself will help to brand Arden Hills as a progressive, growing community. Commissioner Huninghake asked about Community Development Director Hutmacher's impressions of the Denver redevelopment areas. Community Development Director Hutmacher noted that both Stapleton and Lowry were very interesting and well-designed, but she felt that Lowry was a better fit for Arden Hills since it had a somewhat more suburban development pattern and traditional architecture. She added that both developments incorporated a significant amount of public art which defined community character and provided a unique sense of place. She noted that both developments used alleys extensively, but that snow was less of a concern than in Minnesota. Alleys were maintained by homeowners associations and were kept looking very nice. Chair von Holtum inquired about the amount of park space at Stapleton in Denver. Community Development Director Hutmacher responded-that approximately 1100 out of 4700 acres at Stapleton were reserved for parks and open space. The development director for Stapleton advised that it was too much park space and that the City of Denver could really not afford to maintain such a large amount of park space. Councilmember Werner added that the City Council approved an amendment to the Kimley Horn contract on August 12, 2013. Ramsey County requested the amendment and will pay the contract amendment costs. The amendment authorizes Kimley Horn to begin analysis and pre- design work for the bridge and interchange improvements at Highway 96/I-35W and County Road H/I-35W. The work will provide the County will information to gain legislative support for transportation funding in time for the 2014 legislative session. 4. UPDATES A. Commission Members None. B. Council Liaison EDC Minutes August 14, 2013 Page 4 of 4 Councilmember Werner notified the EDC that E Street Flats was nearing completion and had leased 14 units. The City Council approved a temporary Certificate of Occupancy so that the tenants could move in before the final site improvements were completed. Councilmember Werner added that the south water tower is currently being repainted and will include the City logo. The logo will be visible to traffic on I-694 and Highway 51. The Snelling Avenue road improvement project between Lake Johanna Boulevard and Highway 51 may proceed next year. C. Staff Comments Community Development Director Hutmacher asked whether the EDC needed to meet in September. Chair von Holtum noted that the EDC would be meeting on September 12 for the State of the City event. He also noted that he would be out of town during the scheduled October meeting. Chair von Holtum noted that the EDC had already accomplished most of the items on the 2013 Work Plan and suggested that the EDC meet next in November. It was the consensus of the Commission to cancel the September and October meetings. ADJOURNMENT Chair von Holtum adjourned the meeting at 9:30 a.m. Ed von Holtum, Chair Jill H?unity Comevelopment Director