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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-02-14 EDC Minutesn EN HILLS CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION APRIL 2, 2014 8:00 AM CITY HALL -- 1245 WEST HIGHWAY 96 CALL MEETING TO ORDER Chair Ed von Holtum called the meeting to order at 8:04 a.m. ROLL CALL Present: Chair Ed von Holtum and Commissioners Steve Heikkila, Jim Huninghake, and David Radziej Also Present: Council Liaison Ed Werner, City Administrator Patrick Klaers, Community Development Director Jill Hutmacher, and Associate Planner Matthew Bachler 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 March 5, 2014, meeting minutes as presented. 3. UNFINISHED AND NEW BUSINESS A. Revolving Loan Fund Associate Planner Bachler provided an overview of the City's Revolving Loan Fund (RLF). He explained that the Economic Development Authority (EDA) was currently discussing changes to the RLF, and that staff presented these recommendations to the EDC at their meeting in November 2013. Since then, staff has met with several local bankers to discuss the RLF in more detail and to determine the feasibility of the proposed revisions. Associate Planner Bachler explained that staff would like to present general recommendations on how the RLF program could be restructured at the EDA meeting on April 28, 2014. He requested that the EDC provide staff with any comments after reviewing the feedback received from the local bankers. EDC Minutes April 2, 2014 Page 2 of 5 Associate Planner Bachler stated that it was recommended that the program have clearly defined goals so that businesses can easily evaluate whether a project meets the City's objectives. The bankers thought the City should prioritize projects that would result in a direct financial benefit to the City, such as through increases in property value, and that well - established businesses and industries should be targeted. The application process should also be transparent and the City should set a goal of completing the evaluation of loan requests within 30 days. In order to achieve this goal, a special committee made up of councilmembers and staff may need to be formed to review applications. Associate Planner Bachler reported that the maximum loan amount should be between $50,000 and $75,000, with an interest rate of two or three percent. The private lender would set the term length, but the City could still set a maximum number of years for a loan term. If the City wanted to focus on projects with shorter amortization periods, it may want to set 10 years as the maximum term length. Eligible projects should include land and building acquisition, real property improvements, commercial faeade improvements, and fixed asset equipment. Associate Planner Bachler explained that revolving fund loans would act as gap financing for loans being made by a private lender. He provided details on how such a partnership between the City and a private bank would be structured. Local bankers recommended that a minimum of 50 percent of any project be privately financed. It was also advised that RLF projects be exempt from evaluation using the City's Grading and Report Card as this tool is largely focused on redevelopment projects. Chair von Holtum asked if the RLF interest rate could be changed over time in response to fluctuations in the private lending market. Associate Planner Bachler responded that the City could decide to change the interest rate at a point in the future. He recommended that the City try to maintain a consistent interest rate, as this would help in efforts to market the program and would reduce confusion amongst applicants. Chair von Holtum asked if a business applied for revolving loan funds whether their financial records would be included in the public record. He commented that this would be a deal breaker for most businesses. Commissioner Radziej questioned how the City would ensure timely approval of RLF loan applications if final approval is required by the EDA, which only meets quarterly. Associate Planner Bachler commented that this was an area of concern identified by staff and that further research needed to be done on how the approval process could be structured to make it as streamlined as possible. Commissioner Heikkila suggested that the City could establish a short window of time each year when applications for revolving loan funds are accepted. This would allow the City to more easily coordinate the different approvals required for an application. EDC Minutes April 2, 2014 Page 3 of 5 Associate Planner Bachler commented that this would be an, interesting approach. His one concern was that a business' need for financing may not always line up with the period of time during which the City accepted applications. Chair von Holtum commented that the biggest stumbling block appeared to be the approval process. Commissioner Huninghake reported that the Minneapolis Community Planning and Economic Development department manages a similar revolving loan fund program and that the approval process was handled at the staff level for the most part. He recommended that if the participating bank approves the loan package, the City should also approve it. Commissioner Radziej recommended that very specific guidelines be established for the RLF. This would allow City to more easily approve applications assuming all of the criteria were met. B. City Video Tour Community Development Director Hutmacher reported that staff has met with CTV and has drafted an outline for the City video tour. The video would include five parts: an introduction by the Mayor, background information, business and industry, economic development, and a wrap- up. She asked the EDC for additional direction so that staff could begin the work of drafting a script, contacting businesses to request testimonials, and identifying "shots" with CTV. Commissioner Radziej recommended that the video include information on the travel time from Arden Hills to the Minneapolis -St. Paul International Airport, as well as to other recreational and cultural amenities in the metro. He noted that the TCAAP redevelopment should be included in the video given the importance of this project for the City and the region. He added that the City Revolving Loan Fund could be promoted in the economic development segment of the video. Chair von Holtum commented that the proposed outline was formulaic, but that this was a safe and effective approach for the City to take. Community Development Director Hutmacher replied that while the format may be standard, the information presented in the video would clearly distinguish the City from other communities. Commissioner Huninghake questioned how the video voice over would be done. Community Development Director Hutmacher responded that City would have a professional do the voice over for the video. She commented that it was important for the narration to be professional sounding in order to help attract businesses to the community. EDC Minutes April 2, 2014 Page 4 of 5 C. Business Retention and Expansion Associate Planner Bachler explained that staff had recently completed a course on Business Retention and Expansion through the University of Minnesota Extension. The final course paper written by staff was included in the EDC packet and it discusses what some of the important milestones might be for implementing a BRE program in Arden Hills. He asked the commissioners to provide staff with feedback on the course paper. Commissioner Radziej commented that the BRE program outlined in the paper involved a large number of different groups in the implementation process, such as the Leadership Team, the Task Force Team, and the EDA. He expressed a concern that having so many groups working on the project may lead to inefficiency and confusion. Associate Planner Bachler commented that the University of Minnesota Extension advised that the different groups described in the course paper be included in a BRE program. He added that the framework recommended by the university would need to be adapted to fit the particular needs of Arden Hills and that this may include having fewer working groups. Chair von Holtum commented that he knew of several local businesses with pressing needs that may require them to relocate. Having open lines of communication between the City and the business community will be critical in retaining these companies. He recommended that the EDC serve a prominent role on the Leadership Team and that this group make recommendations to the EDA and City Council. Community Development Director Hutmacher explained that the City Council should be actively involved in the decision making process throughout the BRE initiative considering that many of the proposed projects will require public funding. She recommended that the Leadership Team include at least two members of the City Council. Commissioner Radziej asked if the business survey in the BRE program could be set up so that businesses could complete the survey online. Associate Planner Bachler commented that the face-to-face interviews with participating businesses are an important component of the overall BRE program. He explained that the information gathered from these interviews would likely be more valuable and thorough than if the surveys were completed online. Community Development Director Hutmacher added that doing face-to-face interviews with businesses would allow the City to more easily identify warning flag issues that may require an immediate response. 4. UPDATES A. TCAAP Update EDC Minutes April 2, 2014 Page 5 of 5 Community Development Director Hutmacher explained that the City and Ramsey County are currently working together on a Request for Proposals for an infrastructure study that will consider roadways, utilities, surface water management, and grading on the TCAAP site. Staff expects that the RFP will be released in early April, and a consultant will be selected by mid - May. Community Development Director Hutmacher provided an overview of the scheduled City Council work session meetings where issues related to the Master Plan and City infrastructure will be discussed. She invited the commissioners to attend any of the upcoming meetings. None. B. Commission Members C. Council Liaison Council Liaison Werner reported that the City Council approved a budget adjustment to create the TCAAP Capital Fund at their March 31, 2014 meeting. He explained that this change will improve transparency and make it easier for the City to track expenditures and revenues. Council Liaison Werner provided an update on the revisions to the multi -family design standards recently approved by the City Council. He explained that the amendment reduced the size requirement for efficiency units and increased the size requirement for two and three - bedroom units. Council Liaison Werner reported that the proposed Minnesota House bonding bill included $18.3 million for the TCAAP road network. D. Staff Comments None. ADJOURNMENT Chair von Holtum adjourned the meeting at 9:28 a.m. 2"�6 ( // AL__ Ed von Holtum, Chair JillXi�acher Conity Development Director