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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-27-25 EDC Agenda Packet Chair: • Jud Murchie Commissioners: • Ted Brausen • Julie Gronquist • Bobby Bonine • Vincent Meyer • Jessica Daniels • Kyle Sorenson • Kristine Poelzer Council Liaison: Councilmember Emily Rousseau Arden Hills Economic Development Commission Meeting August 27, 2025 1245 W. Highway 96 Arden Hills, MN 55112 651.792.7800 www.cityofardenhills.org City Vision A strong community that values our unique environment, our fiscal soundness, and our tradition as a desirable city in which to live, work, and play. Agenda Regular Economic Development Commission Convenes 7:30 AM Call to Order 1. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. July 23, 2025 3. UNFINISHED AND NEW BUSINESS A. Business Event Updates B. Business Licenses C. EDC Work Plan 4. COMMENTS AND REPORTS A. Report from the City Council B. Economic Development Commission Comments 5. ADJOURNMENT A quorum of the City Council may be present at this meeting. Meeting materials are available online at: http://www.cityofardenhills.org/agendacenter CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION JULY 23, 2025 7:30 A.M. – ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL Present: Chair Jud Murchie, Commissioners Ted Brausen, Julie Gronquist, Kristine Poelzer, Jessica Daniels, Deborah Fellows Absent: Commissioners Bobby Bonine, Kyle Sorenson and Youth Commissioner Vincent Meyer Also Present: City Administrator Jessica Jagoe, Council Liaison Emily Rousseau and Senior Planner Elena Fransen 1. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA Chair Murchie called the meeting to order. A motion was made by Commissioner Gronquist and seconded by Commissioner Brausen to approve the agenda. Motion passed unanimously. 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. June 25, 2025 A motion was made by Commissioner Brausen and seconded by Commissioner Gronquist to approve the minutes, as written. Motion passed unanimously. 3. UNFINISHED AND NEW BUSINESS A. Business Event Updates Senior Planner Fransen summarized the agenda includes some updates for the planning of the business event. Commissioner Bonine put together a draft agenda, including possible speakers. Commissioner Gronquist updated the survey questions that can be asked of attendees of the event and she created an invitation. Commissioner Poelzer worked on an outreach strategy to get the invited guests to attend the event. Staff created a checklist to ensure all of the necessary details are ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION – JULY 23, 2025 2 worked out. Today’s discussion will center on locking in that information and filling in wherever there may be gaps. Commissioner Brausen said he has spoken with Flaherty’s and there was some confusion over the event, as Staff also reached out to them to inquire about an event. He will reach out to confirm October 22 for the Business Event. Discussion ensued regarding the State of the City event, which is the other event that Staff reached out to Flaherty’s for. Senior Planner Fransen said date, time and location are on the checklist and will be confirmed by Commissioner Brausen. She asked the commission if anyone had thoughts on the event title. City Administrator Jagoe pointed to page two of the memo, establishing a theme. She said the Senior Communications Coordinator could create a title that incorporates the theme and purpose of the event. Senior Planner Fransen said we can focus on the theme. She thought business networking, updates and reintroduction to the EDC go along with the questions and the language on the proposed invitation. The theme can be based on reintroduction, old and new Arden Hills conversation, something that captures the historic elements of Arden Hills and the prominence of the location as a long-standing business in Arden Hills. Commissioner Gronquist read from the proposed invitation. It says “We are delighted to invite you to our upcoming business event. The event promises to be a morning of valuable connections, insightful conversations and a new start of the local business community becoming united in Arden Hills.” Commissioner Poelzer likes that language. She especially likes the new start aspect. That may spur some energy. Commissioner Daniels asked if it is worth stating that there was a tradition of regular business events. Senior Planner Fransen said new start, reinvigorating or revamping a tradition. She likes the idea of highlighting tradition. This was done in the past and was well received. It’s a tradition of community and business interaction. City Administrator Jagoe asked if the messaging is the tradition of having an event. Is the tradition that the EDC plans to get into a cadence of regular events or is it the tradition of EDC interaction with the business community? Commissioner Brausen thinks it’s a mixture of both. It is nice to start it up again. Chair Murchie said he thought the use of the word points to that there was a united business community. Commissioner Brausen thought “renewal”. He wouldn’t want the message to be that the City has forgotten. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION – JULY 23, 2025 3 Commissioner Poelzer said it could be that the City had let go of bringing businesses together. This is more than having individual contacts with businesses. This is the City bringing business together. She was talking to other residents and they asked what she did for the EDC. They were asking about the history of the business events. It was a tradition to get businesses in the City to connect together. Commissioner Brausen thought “connect” would be a good theme. City Administrator Jagoe said we can work with the Senior Communications Coordinator to refine the message. What she is hearing is this is bringing life back to past tradition and spring board to what is ahead, without committing entirely to what that is. This is the first interaction and a reminder of what was done in the past and bringing that back. Commissioner Poelzer wondered who owned the event, in the past. Commissioner Brausen remembers it came from a committee similar to the EDC. He thinks the interest ebbs and flows depending on who is on City Council. He thinks the City being more engaging with the businesses is wonderful. For the past ten years there wasn’t much interest from Council. He said it’s easily been at least a decade since an event like this. Commissioner Poelzer looked at the website to try to glean what we are supposed to be doing here. She thinks we are here to facilitate positive interaction with the business community. That is also a piece to share with the Senior Communications Coordinator. Commissioner Daniels said Bethel has alumni events about six times a year. They are networking events and there is typically a speaker. They are finding that people are hesitant to come to the conversation piece. They are more comfortable if there is a program or a scheduled speaker. They advertise for attendees to arrive 30 minutes before the speaker starts for networking. People don’t come for that part. They changed the format so the networking is structured. People seem to be more willing to come for facilitated networking. Commissioner Poelzer said that is what we are thinking about. We thought of having an EDC member at each of the tables. We thought about having a survey at the tables, too. Chair Murchie said one of the outcomes we are looking for is to inform our work through building relationships. We can say we will have facilitated discussion to inform the EDC’s work over the next year. That will set an expectation. It’s not just asking them to come to the event and meet your business neighbors. That will be part of it. It is building connections, facilitating discussions to inform our work and building new connections. Senior Planner Fransen said there has been a conversation about breakfast. She wondered how that will fit in to the title. She thinks having pastries and coffee, it could be something like “Coffee and Connection”. Hearing no other suggestions for themes and title, Senior Communications Coordinator Michlig will work on a themed title based off of the discussion today. Commissioner Brausen asked if we have a speaker yet. Senior Planner Fransen that will be part of today’s discussion. Commissioner Gronquist said the biggest difference with this is it is only Arden Hills businesses. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION – JULY 23, 2025 4 Commissioner Poelzer said one word she thought of was “exclusive”. She agrees with Commissioner Gronquist. This being exclusively for Arden Hills businesses is the differentiator. When you put people in an exclusive environment, they can see the event in a different light. Senior Planner Fransen summarized what she heard. She wasn’t sure how “exclusive” can be fit in but she took the note. Commissioner Poelzer said there are other words that can be used in place of “exclusive”. That idea frames it in a way that people will understand that this is specifically catered to Arden Hills businesses. Senior Planner Fransen summarized that Commissioner Brausen will speak to Flaherty’s regarding the space, date and time of the event and ask if it’s okay to bring food in. She asked if he needed any more information. Commissioner Brausen said he will need to know how many donuts and cookies we want. He would need to know that at least two weeks in advance of the event. Chair Murchie said we will get a better idea of what we need once we get the invitations out. We can have an RSVP date of October 1. Senior Planner Fransen said she created a timeline. As of next week, we are 12 weeks out from the event. Two weeks prior to the event will be October 8. The September meeting will be approximately five weeks out. She asked the Commissioners who are business owners how long in advance of an event they would want an invitation and know if they can attend. Commissioner Gronquist said as soon as you see the invite, you either add it to the calendar, or you know immediately it won’t work for you. She thinks the latest the RSVP deadline should be is two weeks prior, maybe a little longer. City Administrator Jagoe said they will either register as soon as they see the invite or it will get forgotten about. She doesn’t think people will wait until the deadline to register, if they have interest. Senior Planner Fransen said we can earmark the September meeting for having some numbers. The commissioners agreed with that strategy. Senior Planner Fransen said Commissioner Bonine provided a draft agenda. They have had conversations regarding if there should be a general handout that could be made available to attendees that wouldn’t identify a specific speaker. Information could still be shared in the written format even if there isn’t a specific topic for it. This draft agenda is a packed. It would be interesting to be able to do all of it. It is a lot to coordinate. We would like to leave some room for facilitated conversations and networking opportunities. There has been discussion of inviting the Sheriff’s Department as a speaker. We could provide relevant transportation updates, followed by some City-related updates, and then transition into that networking conversation regarding the topics discussed. Those conversations can surround how the topics relate to their business and ask if there is anything the EDC can do to support them. She thinks the introduction could include a welcome from Flaherty’s as the host business. A Commission Member could do an EDC welcome message, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION – JULY 23, 2025 5 sharing what the Commission does and its goals are. She asked the Commission to take a look at the draft agenda and begin to think about how it can be tweaked. Commissioner Brausen asked if anyone has reached out to the Sheriff’s Department. Senior Planner Fransen said no. She thinks once the date is confirmed, we can start having those conversations. Council Liaison Rousseau thought we could convey some information about the Gateway Grant that the City can provide or about their regional grant. The other thing she thought of was when she heard about Bethel changing the programming regarding internships, that’s something unique to our city and it might be a good opportunity to highlight that. Commissioner Poelzer asked how much those grants are. Council Liaison Rousseau said we got $18,000 last year. We gave most of it to the Ice Swim event. We can award it to businesses. The regional grant is larger. She isn’t sure how they divide that up. The grant is designed to put “heads in beds”. The hope is you draw people into the City and they stay in a hotel in town. Senior Planner Fransen said that grant money has to go to a specific event. Council Liaison Rousseau confirmed. But she thought it would be good to make the business owners aware that it exists. Senior Planner Fransen thought a handout could be provided. Commissioner Brausen said we have Jack’s Baskets in Arden Hills. They help families with babies with Down syndrome. They could possibly speak. It’s a well run organization. Commissioner Daniels said Down Syndrome Awareness Month is in October. Chair Murchie said one thing Commissioner Bonine was clear about with the agenda is making sure there is a value to the business community. If our theme is going to be exclusive to “this is an Arden Hills event” it makes sense to highlight things that are available to the Arden Hills community. There is a lot to learn about Rice Creek Commons. There are other places to learn about that. A block of the agenda can be some things going on in the community. Businesses are always interested in a report from the Sheriff. We can cater this to highlight what is going on in the community and share resources. Maybe we share the food and facility were provided by Arden Hills businesses. Maybe we update how Bethel is engaging the community. That may help tie together the theme of exclusivity to Arden Hills. Commissioner Gronquist thinks it would be better to allow a couple of the topics to talk longer than trying to let all of them talk for just a couple of minutes. She isn’t sure there will be much value in a five-minute presentation. She would rather expand the Sheriff and City Council topics. She thinks it will be important to highlight that the new City Council has been reinvigorated towards businesses. She would rather see more of the Council engage and show support than have a transportation update. There’s not much to be said in five minutes. Learning about road construction won’t be a positive thing after living through the Lexington improvements. She thinks ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION – JULY 23, 2025 6 the road construction, the Rice Creek Commons and the Fire Department can be cut out and allow time to expand on the other topics/presenters. Commissioner Daniels asked what topics will generate the most participation? Senior Planner Fransen tried to narrow down the agenda, based on discussion. Her thought was an welcome and introduction, a Sheriff Department report, City Council update and then structured conversation time. It would be good to have a facilitated discussion with an established goal. Commissioner Gronquist said she takes a lot of courses through the Small Business Association (SBA). It might be worth reaching out to them to find out what their most popular subjects are. Their courses are focused on small business. The people who will attend this event will be the small businesses. She will reach out to them, if the commission thinks that would be of interest, if not for this meeting, for a future event. Commissioner Brausen said there is an SBA company in Arden Hills. Their offices are on Pine Tree Drive. Senior Planner Fransen thought that would be a great connection to make for future events. She said in looking at this agenda, we have structured 20-minutes for the Sheriff, 20-minutes for City Council. She asked if we want to reach out to SBA for this agenda, or maybe we keep it a little loose. We give 10-20 minutes to each speaker and folks can be in and out in under an hour. That may be a good structure for this initial event. She asked if there is anything else that should be added. Chair Murchie thinks it should be an hour or less. He thinks there should be two major conversations, maybe one’s crime and the other is the City Council. There could be facilitated conversations at the tables at the end. That could be when we share Arden Hills specific information regarding the grants, Bethel and code updates. Then we can ask attendees if these updates are helpful and ask what else they would like to discuss at future events. Would it be beneficial to have the final five minutes of the Sheriff’s update be Q&A? Commissioner Brausen doesn’t think there will be any issues with the Sheriff filling his time. City Administrator Jagoe summarized what has been decided. She asked what kind of feedback the commission is hoping to get from the survey questions. She said there can be an EDC member at each table and will facilitate a discussion incorporating those questions and gather information about what businesses want from the EDC. The commissioners agreed with that strategy. Chair Murchie said that’s how he hoped it would go. There could be 30-40 minutes of program and then have the tables positioned so the EDC can ask the questions and that will inform the workplan for next year. Commissioner Gronquist said her intention was to make the survey short and sweet. It should only take minutes to answer and submit the questions. She said we could ask attendees to take a couple of minutes to complete the survey and then have a discussion. Chair Murchie likes that she included the question asking if they would like to attend more events. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION – JULY 23, 2025 7 Senior Planner Fransen asked if the EDC introduction should be Commissioner Brausen sharing his experience as a business owner in Arden Hills. Commissioner Brausen said he could do that. Chair Murchie thought it would be good to have Commissioner Brausen and Dan the owner of Flaherty’s speak about their two established businesses. Commissioner Brausen said he is happy to do that and he will talk to Dan. Council Liaison Rousseau thinks that is a good plan. It would be interesting to share their experience, knowing that County Road E used to be Arden Hills’ Main Street. Discussion ensued regarding the proposed location of City Hall before it was built in it’s current location. City Administrator Jagoe asked if Chair Murchie would be interested in being the MC of the event. Chair Murchie would be happy to do it, but he is not a business owner. That’s the only thing that gives him pause. He could do a welcome message and then introduce Commissioner Brausen. Then he can keep the event moving between speakers. Commissioner Daniels is thinking about attendance. She wondered if we can create a list of small businesses and contact them individually. She has done similar events with a Shoreview group. She is trying to think about how to boost attendance. Chair Murchie said Commissioner Poelzer has some ideas and he thought Commissioner Daniels could touch base with her and brainstorm other ideas and use some of her experience with events for Bethel. Commissioner Daniels thinks Commissioner Brausen probably knows a lot of people. She said it could be beneficial for him to compose an email that discusses that these events used to be held on a regular basis and let everyone know it’s starting again. Commissioner Poelzer agreed. She said receiving an email from Commissioner Brausen will be more effective than receiving an email from Arden Hills. City Administrator Jagoe said Senior Planner Fransen will work with Commissioner Brausen and Flaherty’s owner, Dan on the opening remarks script. She can reach out to the Sheriff, as she has a contact there. We should know right away if they have the availability to attend. She asked if Council Liaison Rousseau would talk to Council about interest in attending and what that script may be. Council Liaison Rousseau confirmed she would do that. Chair Murchie said it would be interesting to facilitate a panel conversation with City Council. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION – JULY 23, 2025 8 Council Liaison Rousseau likes that idea. She is always looking for opportunities for people to say how certain things will impact them. Chair Murchie said he would take the agenda and add some detail then the content can be filled in. Senior Planner Fransen said she can put together some initial structure and then she will work with Chair Murchie on that. Council Liaison Rousseau asked if any of the EDC members would like to be a member of the panel. Commissioner Daniels said she can ask the President of Bethel if he is available and would attend. Chair Murchie said that is great. It would be nice to incorporate the EDC into the discussion. Senior Planner Fransen said if there were no further thoughts on the agenda and event content, the discussion should move to outreach and attendance. She asked the Commissioners to review the invitation brought by Commissioner Gronquist. Commissioner Brausen said there should be a phone number on there that people can text or call if they have questions. City Administrator Jagoe said the City doesn’t have a mechanism to receive texts. She thought it would have to be a Survey Monkey registration, or something like that. Chair Murchie asked if we could use a QR code. City Administrator Jagoe said we would have to talk to Senior Communications Coordinator Michlig. Senior Planner Fransen said Staff will follow up on the format for the RSVP. Commissioner Brausen said he will have an invitation with him when he is working at the store because he talks to a lot of business owners. Commissioner Poelzer asked if we want to let people know about money available for the EDA. If we are going to talk about the Gateway grants it would make sense to discuss other monies that are available for businesses and how to access them. Business owners are interested in partnering with grants for funding. If access to the EDA is through the EDC it behooves us to make that information available. City Administrator Jagoe would encourage the EDC to stay with the core themes. We don’t want it to get overwhelming. There are City and Ramsey County resources that we want to share. We can provide a follow up email to share resources or that can be a more focused topic that the EDC can refine the messaging. There isn’t a pot of money for every situation. She wouldn’t want to over-promise what the EDA and the EDC can support. There is definitely value in providing that information, but maybe not at this event. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION – JULY 23, 2025 9 Chair Murchie said that could be a part of the panel discussion. We can say there are resources and one of the things the EDC wants to do is share those resources with the businesses. Commissioner Poelzer said we could have a hand out or at least mention it. Chair Murchie said he and Senior Planner Fransen will think through what the key points we want to mention. That will include the big picture of what we want to do over time, as well as some specific and tangible examples to help the audience see what we’re trying to do. We can expand on that more during the table conversations, letting them know we plan to highlight specific things that we know are valuable to the business community. He suggested the Commission move on and discuss marketing and attendance. Senior Planner Fransen said she met with Commissioner Poelzer before the meeting. They talked through some of the details. The outreach can include email, door to door or a mailing. Commissioner Poelzer said when looking at invites she thinks when it is received matters. When thinking about all the mail and emails businesses receive. What do your eyes go to first? It will be thought of differently if it is received at the beginning of a week vs. at the end. If we are sending something in the mail, we need not put it in a white envelope. It should be yellow or beige, something that stands out. The size of the envelope matters, too. If we do a postcard, it should have color. A mailing label will not stand out as much as cursive writing. She hadn’t considered a point brought up earlier that the large businesses may not attend. She is willing to extend a personal outreach to those businesses. She understands the business list on the website are businesses that have completed the business license process. The list doesn’t include any contact information, other than the address. She presumes the City has emails and phone numbers. Senior Planner Fransen said the business license application doesn’t always provide local contact information. Commissioner Poelzer said if we are going to send an email or mailing we want to try our hardest to get 100% delivered without receiving a lot of return mail. She isn’t sure what is the best way to collect that information. She likes the idea of having some of the invites at some Arden Hills businesses. Senior Planner Fransen summarized possible strategies. Sending an email, if we have that information. Sending something in the mail is an option. She noted a personalized strategy of making phone calls or a drop in, are an option but the mail and email will have a wider reach. Staff can generate a mailing or email list. We could provide a personal touch by breaking down the list among EDC members so the invite is coming from an actual person vs. arriving in a white City of Arden Hills envelope. Commissioner Brausen said we could put it on Facebook. Commissioner Gronquist agreed. She said if we put it on the Arden Hills Facebook page everyone can link it and forward it. Commissioner Poelzer if we make it clear who we are trying to reach, that would work on Facebook. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION – JULY 23, 2025 10 Chair Murchie spoke to City Administrator Jagoe’s comment regarding the invitee will make a decision in that moment when they see it. It would be good to have the registration up and available by early August. We can send a “save the date” and people may just register then. Then we follow up with an actual invitation four weeks later. Then we can follow up after that. There will be multiple moments to have that quick register. Commissioner Gronquist said she can scale the invitation in a postcard size. That would be cheaper than regular mail. Senior Planner Fransen asked if the business owners will respond more positively to a postcard vs. something in an envelope. Commissioner Gronquist said it’s not something you have to open. She was thinking about social media when she created the invite. She can make it more colorful. Commissioner Daniels likes what Commissioner Gronquist provided. It can be hung up in windows. Commissioner Gronquist said if we are doing a mailing we should do a post card. It’s bright and we can make it catchy and it can be easily saved on a fridge or bulletin board as a reminder. Council Liaison Rousseau asked if Staff have contacts at Boston Scientific and Land O Lakes that could be an avenue for them to participate. City Administrator Jagoe said Staff would have a contact to start with. We may be routed to someone else, but we can make the initial contact. Council Liaison Rousseau wondered if there is an alumni list of business people who are interested in businesses in Arden Hills. That could be another avenue. She knows Rotary and Lions Club have outreach. They won’t meet the thresholds to comply with privacy laws. Maybe they can communicate to people who are a part of their community. She thought we could use recent previous commissioners that may still be involved in the Arden Hills business community. Chair Murchie said we will leverage The Lions Club and Rotary for outreach. Then there can be a save the date, as well. Commissioner Gronquist thinks we’re close enough to the event that there isn’t time for a save the date. It needs to just be the invite. She doesn’t think we have the time or the resources to do it twice. Senior Planner Fransen said we could do a Facebook save the date. Commissioner Gronquist said Commissioner Daniels has a lot of experience with Bethel and thinks we can defer to her for those connections. Commissioner Daniels is surprised and disappointed about the attendance with a lot of the events she plans. Commissioner Gronquist asked if there is a certain strategy that has been successful. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION – JULY 23, 2025 11 Commissioner Daniels said it comes down to a relevant and timely agenda or if there are enough people involved who feel invested. Is there some way these businesses will feel like there is an opportunity for them to share their experiences or increase their customer engagement? If we can get specific businesses to commit and get excited about these events, they can help spread the word. Commissioner Gronquist said once we receive RSVPs we can reach back and ask them to invite some other businesses. Commissioner Daniels said we can do the same thing with the Facebook post. We can ask businesses that reply that they are attending to share the information on their page. She would hate it if we plan a great event but the attendance is low. That may set a low expectation for the people who do attend. Senior Planner Fransen said we want to have enough events so people are aware of them but not too many that it feels like no big deal to skip one. She said we can confirm the event title and location and update the invitation. Once we have the date, there is opportunity for sharing it. Commissioner Gronquist said the electronic notices are easy to update as we confirm speakers and topics. She thinks we have one shot at a mailing, but the electronic messaging can go out now and get more specific. Senior Planner Fransen asked if the Commission thought we needed to have the speakers confirmed before the mailing. Commissioner Gronquist thought it could be kind of vague, but we need enough to make if feel important. Chair Murchie suggested “the Sheriff and a conversation with community leaders coming together to discuss resources”. Commissioner Gronquist said the emails can be repetitive. As a business owner she doesn’t mind being contacted three times. It is a good reminder. People get busy and emails get lost so repetition is fine with her. Senior Planner Fransen asked if Commissioner Gronquist can put together the first draft of a post card. Commissioner Gronquist confirmed. Senior Planner Fransen thinks the mailing should be sent approximately 5-8 weeks ahead of the event. City Administrator Jagoe said we should allow two weeks for Senior Communication Coordinator Michlig to look at the draft post card. She can help make sure the message is consistent with the message formatting and logo. Chair Murchie offered to regroup on Friday. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION – JULY 23, 2025 12 Senior Planner Fransen said the ask for the next meeting is being prepared with how you can be involved in the outreach. How do we get bodies in chairs? How are we leveraging existing connections? How are we creating new connections? 4. COMMENTS AND REPORTS A. Report from the City Council Council Liaison Rousseau said Council is starting budget discussions. One rule is we have to set a preliminary levy. We set that higher because once the preliminary levy is set, there is no option to go higher than that. It can be reduced, but not increased. She said this is a good time to discuss any funding needs the Commission may want to request. She said there was $300,000 budgeted for gateway signs, about half of that was moved to a different fund to offset the levy increase. If there is an appetite to explore gateway signs in the future, that can be built back up. Council Liaison Rousseau said the Council has been discussing zoning updates at the work sessions. She encouraged the commission to look at the proposed changes to the Business Districts. If there are any concerns, Council can take a second look at some of those changes. She encouraged them to email her if there are any concerns. Council Liaison Rousseau said the Park Survey is available on the website. They would appreciate as much participation as possible. Commissioner Poelzer wondered if one of the yard signs could be placed in the garden so people would see it when they are coming and going. Council Liaison Rousseau said Staff is sending out a post card with a specific QR Code for that mailing. So Staff can discern how many responses were received based on that unique code. That may be something for EDC to consider for future mailings, if this is successful. Commissioner Poelzer said she talked with someone on the PTRC and they said the QR Code is extremely important. She thought we could ask businesses to post it in their window so their customers will see it, even if they aren’t actively using the parks and trails. B. Economic Development Commission Comments Commissioner Poelzer said the Arden Hills Verizon will be having a backpack give away on Sunday, July 27. They are looking for businesses to support them with facepainting and other activities. ADJOURNMENT A motion was made by Chair Brausen and seconded by Commissioner Gronquist to adjourn. Motion passed unanimously The meeting adjourned at 9:07 a.m. Page 1 of 4 EDC AGENDA ITEM –3A MEMORANDUM DATE: August 27, 2025 TO: Economic Development Commission Chair and Commissioners FROM: Elena Fransen, AICP, Senior Planner SUBJECT: EDC Business Event Updates Requested Action The Economic Development Commission should discuss planning updates for the business event planned for October. Discussion topics should include the review of materials put together by members of the EDC and the Business Event Checklist created by staff. The EDC should determine next steps, responsible parties, and associated milestones for the September meeting. Background The EDC is planning for a business event to be held on October 22. At previous meetings, the EDC discussed the logistics for such an event as well as an event topic. Items for discussion included event agenda and possible speakers, refreshments, event takeaways and invitation, and event marketing and outreach. Details were discussed at the July meeting with information filled into the tables within the staff report. Following the meeting, staff has updated the tables and the business event checklist that was used during the meeting (Attachment A). Discussion Review Event Details Title Common Grounds: Brewing Local Business Connections Date/time/location Wednesday, October 22, 2025, 8 am, Flaherty’s Event Description – for promoting and including in flyer Page 2 of 4 Review Agenda and Proposed Speakers - Review updates to local businesses item and discuss details o DRAFT program agenda Time stamp (estimated) Agenda Item Speaker Details 7:30-8:00 am (30 minutes) Check-in and Networking EDC members Doors open at 7:30, food and coffee available, EDC members to mingle, make introductions, put attendees at ease 8:00-8:10 am (up to 10 minutes) Welcome and Opening Remarks Jud Murchie Ted Brausen Dan Flaherty Welcome, describe role and EDC, describe plan and goal of event, introduce Ted and Dan for brief remarks Transition to sheriff topic 8:10-8:25 am (up to 15 minutes) Conversation with Ramsey County Sheriff Facilitator TBD Alicia Ouellette, County Sheriff’s Department Sheriff content (trends and key safety concerns to help local businesses) Facilitated Q&A Transition to City Updates 8:25-8:40 am (up to 15 minutes) Updates to Local Businesses Facilitator TBD Emily Rousseau Relevant updates, perhaps other speakers Transition to table conversations 8:40-8:55 am (up to 15 minutes) Facilitated table conversations EDC members Introductions at table Event takeaways? Ideas for future? Connections of interest? EDC as a bridge? 8:55-9:00 am (up to 5 minutes) Closing Jud Murchie Brief summary Next steps Review Outreach strategy - Audience – business owners, representatives - Available contact information – mailing addresses for licensed businesses, survey respondent contact information, addresses from in person visits - Avenues for sharing – mailing, emailing, in person drop offs/invites Review Event Flyer (to be shared at meeting) Event title Messaging in flyer RSVP process Sponsorship messaging Strategy for Flyer - EDC to approve Page 3 of 4 - Share to socials, print copies for EDC members making in person visits to invite businesses, post to the City website as a newsflash, post to the business page of the City website Review Event Postcard (to be shared at meeting) Event title Speaker Details RSVP process Sponsorship messaging Strategy for Postcard - EDC to approve - To mail to business addresses week of September 8 Next Steps Planning for 9/17 meeting Event Content - Review and finalize questionnaire for attendees - Finalize prompts for table conversations - Confirm facilitators for speaker topics - Confirm table facilitators and note takers - Distribute flyers to EDC members who will make business visits Dates Milestone 8 weeks out – 8/27 Distribute Flyer 7 weeks out – 9/3 Print Postcard 6 weeks out – 9/10 Distribute Postcard 5 weeks out – 9/17 Check RSVP numbers 4 weeks out – 9/24 3 weeks out – 10/1 2 weeks out – 10/8 Share RSVP numbers with Ted for refreshments 1 week out – 10/15 Staff will share meeting notes and an updated checklist with the EDC following the meeting. EDC to continue working on deliverables. Page 4 of 4 Attachments A. Draft Agenda/Program for EDC Event B. EDC Event Checklist Event Overview • Date & Time: Wednesday, October 22, 7:30 AM – 9:00 AM • Venue: Flaherty’s Arden Bowl, 1273 County Road E W • Theme: Reaffirming Arden Hills’s connection with the business community through networking, feedback, and information sharing • Hosted by: The City of Arden Hills Economic Development Commission Run of Show Time Check Agenda Item Speakers/ Facilitator Framing for item 7:30-8:00 am (30 minutes) Check-in and Networking EDC members Doors open at 7:30, food and coffee available, EDC members to mingle, make introductions, put attendees at ease 8:00-8:10 am (up to 10 minutes) Welcome and Opening Remarks Jud Murchie Ted Brausen Dan Flaherty To cover - Welcome, describe role and EDC, describe plan and goal of event, introduce Ted and Dan - Brausen and Flaherty comments – history in Arden Hills, general experience, why Arden Hills, tips to other businesses - Transition to sheriff topic 8:10-8:25 am (up to 15 minutes) Conversation with Ramsey County Sheriff Facilitator TBD Alicia Ouellette, Ramsey County Sheriff’s Department To cover - Sheriff content (trends and key safety concerns to help local businesses) - Facilitated Q&A - Transition to City Updates 8:25-8:40 am (up to 15 minutes) City Updates to Local Businesses Facilitator TBD Emily Rousseau To cover - Rousseau w/ city update - Support with one pager updates (ideas) Gateway grant – summary and next steps Zoning Code – summary and next steps - Transition to table conversations 8:40-8:55 am (up to 15 minutes) Facilitated table conversations EDC members To cover - Introductions at table - Event takeaways? - Ideas for future? - Connections of interest? - EDC as a bridge? 8:55-9:00 am (up to 5 minutes) Closing Jud Murchie To cover - Brief summary, first step in a journey - Link as a quick reference - More of this event? Other events - Next steps Done? Item Lead Discuss by Finalize by Details X Event Theme All X Event Title All X Event Date EDC/Event space Wednesday October 22, 2025 X Event Time EDC/Event space 7:30-9 (8-9 program) X Event Location EDC/Event space Flaherty’s Event food Ted 10/8 Planning for coffee, donuts, cookies Provide RSVP numbers to Ted by 9/17, update by 10/8 Event agenda Bobby 8/27 8/29 Event speakers Bobby 8/27 8/29 Speaker Topics 8/27 8/29 Questions for attendees Julie 9/17 9/19 Event Flyer Julie/Communicatio ns Coordinator 8/27 Event Postcard Communications Coordinator 8/27 Post Event Flyer 8/27 8/29 Mail Event Postcard 8/27 Prompts for table conversations 9/17 Identify table facilitators and note takers 9/17 Page 1 of 3 EDC AGENDA ITEM – 3B MEMORANDUM DATE: August 27, 2025 TO: Economic Development Commission Chair and Commissioners FROM: Elena Fransen, AICP, Senior Planner SUBJECT: Business License/Registration Discussion Requested Action At the direction of the City Council, the Economic Development Commission is asked to discuss the business licensing/registration process and provide feedback to the City Council. Background During the 2024 Work Plan discussions and preparations for the in-person business visits, the EDC discussed the business license/registration process. The business license/registration process is maintained by the City Clerk and Deputy Clerk. At the City Council meeting on July 14, Council Liaison Rousseau mentioned having the EDC review and provide a recommendation on the business licensing/registrations to be considered by Council with their year-end fee schedule discussion. In addition, at the City Council meeting on July 28, Council discussed direction for the EDC to provide feedback on the business license/registration process. Business License vs. Business Registrations Process Business Licenses In Arden Hills, certain types of businesses, occupations, and activities are regulated with licenses so that the public welfare shall be protected and promoted. Chapter 3 of City Code – Licenses and Regulations, Section 300 states the Council shall assign license fees for certain businesses and that a license is required to engage in any business. Section 310 itemizes the various types of licenses required by the City that have an associated fee. It is important to note that some licenses contained in this section are required by law (such as liquor, tobacco, massage, garbage/recycling) and other license types are at the discretion of the City Council. Business licenses are issued for the calendar year and must be renewed annually. Staff mails a business license/registration application form (Attachment A) with a letter (Attachment B) requesting the business complete the form and return it along with a copy of their Certificate of Page 2 of 3 Insurance showing the business has current insurance coverage, as well as payment for the associated license fee. Business license fees are based on the City’s fee schedule which is reviewed annually by the City Council. Business Registrations Some businesses do not have a fee associated with the type of business. Generally, these businesses do not have tangible goods/services along with their business, and examples are an insurance adjuster/company, counseling services, etc. Staff mails the same letter and application form to these businesses as they are urged to complete and submit the application and attain a business registration (a Certificate of Insurance is also requested). General Process The process of obtaining a license or registration provides valuable information to the City so that we know what businesses are operating in Arden Hills. Knowing what businesses are here is a tool the City can utilize to provide outreach to the businesses for various reasons (surveys, notification of potential programs for business assistance (think COVID), communications about a road project that will impact them (think Ramsey County’s Lexington Avenue project) and so forth). The City initiates the renewal process generally in October/November for the following calendar year period. Businesses are asked to return their information by a certain due date; however, staff will follow up after the first of the year with a secondary renewal letter, giving the business another opportunity to obtain their license or get registered. Note that this past year, the Deputy Clerk made two additional attempts after the first of the year to connect with businesses that had not yet returned their information. The City does publish a list of businesses that have obtained a license or registration for the current year; however, it is challenging for the City to ensure the list of businesses is accurate. Businesses do not necessarily contact the City when they move into Arden Hills. For example, City staff may learn that a new business has started operating in Arden Hills after receiving a new building or sign permit application. The reviewer of the permit application may inform the Deputy Clerk of the new business to then follow-up with information about the business license and registration process. The City may also learn about a new business through changes to utility billing accounts. During the license process, a business may reply to the City that they are no longer operating in Arden Hills. In general, staff is not typically made aware when a business moves out of a tenant space or if a tenant space is vacant for a length of time. We may only find out about a business being in operation from the above-referenced scenarios. Non-Compliance It can be noted that Chapter 3, Licenses and Regulations in the City Code also establishes penalties for late payment, with the fees being established in the fee schedule. Penalties for late payment are 10% of license fee or $32.00, whichever is greater. However, typically the City has not pursued late fees as it relates to business licensing. Page 3 of 3 Arden Hills Business Licensing for 2025 In 2025 – - Arden Hills sent notices to 170 total businesses about registering or licensing their business for 2025, based on the licensed list from last year. - Arden Hills had 77 businesses submit the application to register their business. - Arden Hills had 44 businesses submit the application and associated fees to license their business. - Arden Hills had 29 businesses request to be removed from the list as they were no longer operating within the City. - Arden Hills had 23 businesses who were sent notices but did not submit the business license application. o 16 of the 23 would be business registrations o 7 of the 23 would require business licenses Neighboring Communities City staff surveyed 14 neighboring communities. All of the neighboring communities have some sort of business licensing process. Discussion The EDC may discuss feedback to be shared with the City Council on the business license process. Other topics related to the business license process may be brought back to the EDC at a later date. Staff will work with the City Clerk and Deputy City Clerk to determine more specific next steps following the August meeting. Attachments Attachment A – 2025 Business License/Registration Application Form Attachment B – 2025 Letter to Business to Renew License/Registration 2025 City Business License/Registration 1245 W Hwy 96 * Arden Hills MN 55112 Phone 651.792.7800 * Fax 651.634.5137 www.cityofardenhills.org Applicant Information (please print) Business Name EXACTLY as it is registered with the State of MN Applicant Name Property Address, Including Zip Code Local Phone Number Number of Employees at Arden Hills Location Email Address MN Tax ID Number (per State Statute 207C.72, Subd. 3) Federal Tax ID Number (per State Statute 207C.72, Subd. 3) Nature of Business Preferred Mailing Information (if different from above) Company Name (or Property Owner Name for In Home Businesses) Mailing Address City State Zip Contact Name Contact Phone Number Contact Email Address License Types (check all that apply, see fees on reverse)  Amusement Facility  Amusement Devices - #Loc _____ #Devices _____  Bulk Fuel Storage - # of units ________  Drive-thru Restaurants  Firework Sales  Grocery Store - ________ square feet  Hotel/Motel - # of Rooms _______  In Home Business Type I  Permanent Signs - # of Signs ______  Restaurant - ________ square feet  Retail Sales  Service Station  Other _____________________________ Required Submittals  Payment - see reverse side for Fee Schedule. If no fee is listed for your type of business, please Register by returning the completed application form and insurance certificate.  Certificate of Liability Insurance of at least $100,000 for bodily injury to any one person, including accidental death, and not less than $300,000 aggregate; property damage liability of at least $100,000 for each accident and not less than $100,000 aggregate. This is a one-page document available from your insurance provider.  Certificate of Worker’s Compensation to the minimum acceptable levels of the State of Minnesota. OR: Signed Worker’s Compensation Waiver: If you are a sole proprietor and have chosen not to carry worker’s comp, the following waiver must be signed: As a sole proprietor or partnership, I/we have chosen not to carry Worker’s Compensation Insurance on myself/ourselves. ______________________________________________________ _______________ Applicant Signature Date All Applicants Sign Here: Date: The City Council will be approving the 2025 Fee Schedule at an upcoming meeting. City of Arden Hills – 2025 Fee Schedule Sidewalk Sales $53.00 Business Licensing – Amusement Facilities Includes arcade, dance hall, movie theater, pool/billiard tables, bowling alleys, indoor tennis, skating facility, outdoor tennis, driving ranges, etc. $105.00 Business Licensing – Wholesale Bulk Fuel Storage Liability insurance required $210.00 Business Licensing – Hotel/Motel $6.50/room Business Licensing – Courtesy Bench, Non- advertising $26.00 Business Licensing – Courtesy Bench, Advertising $79.00 Business Licensing – Mechanical/Electronic Devices Includes musical devices, amusement rides, bowling alleys, etc. $15.00/location + $15.00/machine (State Statute 449.15 limits fees to $15) Business Licensing – Retail Sales Includes antique shops, beauty/barber shops, boat dealers, Christmas tree sales, dry cleaning, laundry, bakery, candy, meats, wholesale foods, caterers, motor vehicle sales, optometrist, mortuary, video sales/rentals, over-the-counter tobacco sales, vending machines (excluding tobacco), & other retail goods not listed $53.00 Business Licensing – Restaurants, Cafes, Coffee Houses, etc. $21.00 up to 1,000 square feet, $42.00 for 1001-2000 square feet, $63.00 for 2001-3000 square feet, etc. Business Licensing – Restaurants, drive-thru $315.00 Business Licensing – Service Stations $105.00 Business Licensing – Grocery $21.00 up to 1,000 square feet, $42.00 for 1001-2000 square feet, $63.00 for 2001-3000 square feet, etc. Charitable Gambling Permit – Per Minnesota State Statute, Chapter 349 Includes investigation fee $158.00 Tobacco Sales License Includes investigation fee $300.00 Fireworks Sales As part of existing business $100.00 (MN Statute 624.20 sets maximum permit fee at $100.00) Fireworks Sales Exclusive Business $350.00 (MN Statute 624.20 sets maximum permit fee at $350.00) Massage Therapist Annual Fee, Includes investigation fee $53.00 Massage Therapist Establishment Annual Fee, Includes investigation fee $158.00 Solicitors, Peddlers, Transient Permit – For- Profit Organizations Please reference Section 350 of the Municipal Code for more information $158.00 background investigation + $105.00/month permit fee Solicitors, Peddlers, Transient Permit – Non- Profit Organizations Please reference Section 350 of the Municipal Code for more information No charge Garbage Hauler Annual $158.00 Recycling Hauler Annual $158.00 Permanent Signs, Annual Renewal Per Sign, 100 square feet or less $25.00 each Investigation Fees Tobacco, Liquor, Charitable Gambling, & Solicitor’s Permits $158.00 2025 Business License Application Dear Business License Applicant: Enclosed you will find the 2025 Business License Renewal Application. City Code requires certain businesses obtain a license for which a fee is approved in our Fee Schedule. The City does not require businesses to be Registered (without fee), but we encourage you to complete the application and submit the insurance certificate so your business can be included in our published list of license holders, as well as any City business outreach. Please return the following items to City Hall NO LATER than December 20, 2024. Completed 2025 Business License Application. Certificate of Insurance covering the entire licensing period and Worker’s Compensation Certificate or Waiver. A Certificate of Insurance is a one-page document obtained from your insurance provider. An example is shown on the back of this letter. An insurance declaration page or a copy of the policy is NOT acceptable. Proper payment, if applicable. Please make your check payable to the City of Arden Hills. Paying by check is preferred, however, if you wish to pay using a card, please return the application and indicate you would like a payment link. You will receive a link via email. Please wait for the payment link and instructions to ensure the payment is properly applied to your license. Please Note: ALL businesses with Permanent Signs must pay a $25 per sign annual renewal fee, even if the business is Registered with no fee. (See Fee Schedule on the reverse side of the application.) *Only those businesses that hold a current liquor or tobacco license can sell THC edible products in Arden Hills. Please contact City Hall if you have any questions. A list of all licensed and registered businesses will be available on the City’s website. We appreciate that you are continuing to do business in Arden Hills. Thank you for your assistance with this renewal process. Please contact me at 651-792-7830 or jestling@cityofardenhills.org if you have any questions. Sincerely, Jen Estling Deputy City Clerk City of Arden Hills Page 1 of 2 EDC AGENDA ITEM –3C MEMORANDUM DATE: August 27, 2025 TO: Economic Development Commission Chair and Commissioners FROM: Elena Fransen, AICP, Senior Planner SUBJECT: Economic Development Commission Work Plan Requested Action The Economic Development Commission should review and discuss a drafted work plan for 2026 and 2027. Background At the June 25, 2025 EDC meeting, there was a discussion about past work plan efforts that took place in 2024. Staff provided an overview of previous efforts and shared documents that were created to establish the EDC’s mission, organize types of strategies, prioritize strategies, and break the strategies down into smaller tasks. The EDC discussed tasks for the remainder of 2025, which include a business event and review of the business license process and fee schedule for business related items. Other tasks the EDC may consider are feedback on updated code language that is part of the larger the Zoning Code update, which may include amended language for the sign code and development standards for non- residential zoning districts. Following the June meeting, staff drafted a work plan outline to reflect the current direction of the EDC. Strategies include business outreach support and communications and marketing. Discussion Review the new work plan document Discuss identified goals Discuss previously considered strategies - Business events - Surveys - Newsletter features Page 2 of 2 - Business webpage on the City website - Partnerships with other business organizations Next Steps Following the meeting, staff will revise the work plan and review with the EDC Chair and Council Liaison. The EDC will revisit the work plan at the September meeting. Attachments A – Drafted EDC Work Plan Economic Development Commission (EDC) 2026-2027 Work Plan EDC Purpose and Mission The mission of the Arden Hills Economic Development Commission is to build lasting connections with and support for the local business community to foster a thriving local economy and to advise the City Council and Economic Development Authority on economic development, redevelopment, and related community development issues. Main Duties  Advise the City Council and Economic Development Authority on economic development, redevelopment, and related community development issues.  Evaluate specific development and redevelopment proposals and advise City Council and staff.  Facilitate positive interaction with the business community. Meetings • Fourth Wednesday of the month at 7:30 a.m. 2026-2027 Goals • Business outreach support • Communications and Marketing • Partnerships 2026-2027 Timeline Goal Initiatives Q 1 2026 Q 2 2026 Q 3 2026 Q 4 2026 Q 1 2027 Q 2 2027 Q 3 2027 Q 4 2027