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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021-04-21 EDA Minutes - Approved APPROVED CITY OF CENTERVILLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MEETING MINUTES Wednesday April 21, 2021 6:30 p.m. Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, the City of Centerville held a regularly scheduled Economic Development Authority meeting on April 21, 2021 via videoconference. I. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called the meeting to order at approximately 6:30 p.m. by President Jeff Hanzal. II. ROLL CALL* PRESENT: President Jeff Hanzal Commissioner Steve King Commissioner Darrin Mosher Commissioner Mark Remillard Commissioner Jim Weatherhead STAFF: City Administrator, EDA Executive Director, Mark Statz *Note that “present” is construed to mean that the noted individuals were visibly and audibly present on the videoconference call III. APPROVAL OF AGENDA 1. Call for Changes to the Agenda Motion by Commissioner Weatherhead, seconded by commissioner Mosher to approve the agenda as presented. President Hanzal took a roll call vote and all were in favor. IV. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. March 17, 2021 Meeting Minutes Motion by Commissioner Weatherhead, seconded by commissioner Mosher to approve the minutes as presented. President Hanzal took a roll call vote and all were in favor. V. BILLS AND COMMUNICATIONS 1. Bills a. Check List Executive Director Statz stated that there were no checks to approve. City of Centerville EDA Minutes April 21, 2021 2. Communications a. None Introduction – Samantha Markman Executive Director Statz introduced the Samantha Markman, Economic Development Specialist with Anoka County Regional and Economic Development (ACRED). Ms. Markman explained that she had most recently worked with Economic Development at the City of Faribault, Minnesota. She asked about the Centerville EDA’s strategic plan and how she could best support the Commission. The Commissioners introduced themselves and spoke to Ms. Markman about the EDA. President Hanzal stated that they were looking at ways to attract new businesses. Commissioner Weatherhead introduced himself to Ms. Markman, and spoke about the Technology Corridor and the banners that would be going up soon. Ms. Markman stated that she had worked on the revitalization of Faribault’s historic downtown, as well as industrial growth in the industrial park along Interstate 35. Commissioner King asked Ms. Markman about her background and about the size of the City of Faribault. She stated that the town was approximately 25,000 people, and was located in Rice County off the Interstate 35 corridor. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies from the University of Minnesota, and did private consulting work. She is originally from the City of Faribault, and working for her hometown was a unique experience. She helped bring in an HVAC rooftop manufacturer to the city, which was a 40,000,000 project that created 300 jobs. Executive Director Statz explained to Ms. Markman that Centerville is boxed in by Lino Lakes, and showed her a map of the remaining commercially zoned land in the city. He also explained that the EDA had three functions; to support existing businesses, attract new businesses, and facilitate redevelopment. He stated that they hadn’t yet found the tools necessary for redevelopment. He explained Block 7 to her and the history of it along with downtown. President Hanzal asked her about the incentives she used to bring to Faribault. She explained that the city and the county provided five-year tax abatements, and the leveraged state incentives from the Job Creation Fund (JCF), which gives money back to the company as jobs are created. The also Hanzal asked about incentives used to bring the HVAC company to Faribault. Ms. Markman stated that the city and county provided 5 year tax abatements. They also leveraged state incentives through the Job Creation Fund (JCF), which gives money back to the company for every job created. They also received funds from the Minnesota Investment Fund (MIF), and two million dollars from the State also has Business Development Public Infrastructure Program (BDPI) to extend infrastructure to the land. The City of Faribault EDA also gave $150,000.00 Page 2 of 5 City of Centerville EDA Minutes April 21, 2021 Ms. Markman also spoke about a piece of property that the City of Faribault owned along the riverfront that was previously contaminated and had been used as a dump site. The City did a Request for Proposal (RFP) process but the leveraged a state program for soil clean up, and created a TIF soil district to incentivize the project. VI. REPORTS 1. Administrator’s Report stth There are proposals for the development between 21 and 20 called Rehbein Commercial for a 103-unit apartment building, a 4-unit high QT memory care facility and a Kwik Trip. The apartment building and the memory care facility would require rezoning. The City is working with the developer on different concepts for the 24-unit townhome site. They are looking at ways to add density to the area, and concepts that are narrower or have no driveways. There has been a proposal for the property to the southeast of Fairview Ave for a distribution center or cross-dock facility There has been a recent inquiry regarding the loan and grant program from Jets Machine shop. 2. Partner Agency Reports a. Anoka County Regional Economic Development (ACRED) Executive Director Statz spoke about the events that ACRED has planned, specifically a tent at the 3M Open. b. Quad Area Chamber of Commerce President Hanzal stated that he had attended a lunch-and-learn event recently. Executive Director Statz stated that he would like to see more businesses get involved in the organization. The Chamber is also planning a Business Expo during Fete des Lacs. c. Hugo Area Business Association Executive Director Statz spoke briefly about this organization. 3. Year to Date Financials a. None 4. Ongoing Programs: a. Blue Logo Sign b. CenterStage Page 3 of 5 City of Centerville EDA Minutes April 21, 2021 Executive Director Statz stated that some businesses have been contacted several times and haven’t shown an interest in the program so they are looking at circling back and doing businesses that have participated for a second time. 101Executive Director Statz stated that he had received an email from City Attorney Kurt Glaser regarding non-profits and the CenterStage program, as Commissioner King had asked about it at the March 23, 2021 meeting. Mr. Glaser said that a business such as a church should be treated as a business, and the ad content needs to be limited to non-religious content. He said that the city needs to have a policy in place in order to avoid controversy when editing their content. There was discussion about how to get the non-participating businesses involved, as a lot of businesses think the program is a scam when they are contacted. There was also discussion on creating ads for the Lions Club. Discussion was had regarding the new resolution, and Executive Director Statz stated that he would be able to point to the policy for a separation of church and state. All agreed that there may be other areas to include in the policy. Motion by Commissioner Weatherhead, seconded by Commissioner King, to approve EDA 21-03 to revising the CenterStage program to include restrictions on content that promote a particular religion, a religious belief, or otherwise violates the need for the City to uphold the separation of church and state, contingent upon acceptance by the City Attorney. A roll call vote was taken. All in favor. Motion passed. There was more discussion regarding the CenterStage program, and asking Ms. Michelle Koch, Main Street Marketer to reach out to businesses that had already participated and either create new ads or use the previous ads. c. Business Revolving Loan and Grant Program Executive Director Statz stated that he received an application for the program and would bring it to the May meeting. d. COVID Relief Business Assistance Grant Program (New County Program – State Funds) Executive Director Statz stated that the city would get the first half of its recovery fund from the federal government on May 11. The rules regarding how the money can be used are the same as the CARES Act, plus other things such as lost revenue and sewer and water projects. He also stated that the money is supposed to last until 2023, and he wanted to be more paced about allocating the funds. Page 4 of 5 City of Centerville EDA Minutes April 21, 2021 VII. OLD BUSINESS 1. Main Street Light Post Banners Commissioner Weatherhead spoke about meeting the Park and Rec Committee and the activities they wanted to be represented on the banners. He spoke about the layout of the banners, and the way the designs were staged so that the same picture wouldn’t be seen twice as someone drove down the street. Commissioner King asked if bids had been received from other vendors. Executive Director Statz stated that two other bids had been taken last year. President Hanzal asked about the $274.00 discrepancy in the budget. Executive Director Statz explained that he updated the records and there was room in the budget to cover the cost. Motion by Commissioner Mosher, seconded by Commissioner King to approve the purchase and installation of the banners as presented, contingent on City Council approval of the use of city light poles. 2. Review 2021 Strategic Plan and Budget Executive Director Statz presented a spreadsheet that showed items the Commission had already paid for in 2021. He spoke about the possibility of doing a market study to get a high-end store or a grocery store on the Rehbein site downtown. VIII. NEW BUSINESS. 1. None IX. ADJOURNMENT Motion by Commissioner Weatherhead, seconded by Commissioner Mosher to adjourn the April 21, 2021 meeting at 8:42 p.m. A roll call vote was taken. All in favor. Motion carried. Page 5 of 5