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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-19-2010Minutes of the Economic Development Commission City of Mounds View Ramsey County, Minnesota Regular Meeting November 19, 2010 City of Mounds View, Council Chambers 2401 Highway 10, Mounds View, MN 55112 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair Gary Meehlhause called the meeting to order at 7:35am. 2. ROLL CALL Members Present: Chair Gary Meehlhause, Vice Chair Jennifer Wagner-Harkonen and Commissioners Greg Belting, Torri Johnson and Dan Larson Members Absent: Commissioners Jackie Entsminger & Jason Helgemoe Staff Present: Community Development Director Ken Roberts & Economic Development Specialist Heidi Steinmetz 3. APPROVAL OF NOVEMBER 19, 2010 AGENDA Motion/Second: Commissioner Johnson moved and Commissioner Wagner-Harkonen seconded the approval of the November 19, 2010 EDC agenda. Motion Carried: 5 Ayes, 0 Nays 4. APPROVAL OF JULY 16 AND OCTOBER 15, 2010 EDC MINUTES Ms. Steinmetz mentioned that she fixed the typos on page 3/item 7 (the word "loosing" was changed to "losing"). Motion/Second: Vice Chair Wagner-Harkonen moved and Commissioner Larson seconded the approval of the July 16, 2010 minutes. Motion Carried: 4 Ayes, 0 Nays, 1 Abstained (Johnson) Motion/Second: Commissioner Johnson moved and Commissioner Belting seconded the approval of the October 15, 2010 minutes. Motion Carried: 4 Ayes, 0 Nays, 1 Abstained (Meehlhause) Chair Meehlhause asked if EDC members should vote on minutes if they are not in attendance at a particular meeting. Community Development Director Ken Roberts said that he would inquire about how the City Council handles those situations. EDC Minutes Nov. 19, 2010 Page 2 of 4 5. SPECIAL BUSINESS There was no special EDC business. 6. EDC BUSINESS A. 2011 EDC Applications Economic Development Specialist Heidi Steinmetz stated that there are two resident terms (2011-2013) available on the EDC. She said there were three applicants for two vacancies and that the applications were included in the EDC's packet. All three applicants are in attendance at today's EDC meeting (existing EDC members Jennifer Wagner-Harkonen and Dan Larson and long-time resident Jim Paron). Chair Meehlhause asked each applicant if they wished to speak to the EDC, beginning with Mr. Paron. Mr. Paron told the EDC that he has lived in Mounds View his whole life and that he would like to get involved with the EDC. He added that as long as he has lived in Mounds View, he has thought that County Rd 10 should be similar to Snelling Ave in Roseville. He said that he believes Ramsey County should lower the speed limit on County Rd 10 to 40 miles per hour in order to get people to look at the City rather than zoom through it. Commissioner Belting asked Mr. Paron if he has served on other commissions before and Mr. Paron said no. Commissioner Johnson said that she thought Mr. Paron's application was outstanding. Commissioner Belting agreed. Commissioner Johnson added that she was a little bit dismayed that she has lived in Mounds View for twenty years and had never met Mr. Paron. She feels that we need to do something in Mounds View to get long-term residents together every once in awhile. She thanked Mr. Paron for being part of Mounds View. Chair Meehlhause said that Mr. Paron's view on County Rd 10 corresponds with how the EDC views County Rd 10 (that we should be proud of the corridor and it needs to be redeveloped). Commissioner Belting agreed. Mr. Paron left the meeting at this time. Vice Chair Wagner-Harkonen said that she really likes that Mr. Paron has a long-term vested family interest in Mounds View and those things would make him a very good member of the Commission. Commissioner Larson said that he is enjoying serving on the Commission and his main goal is that the City will ensure that Mounds View's housing stock does not deteriorate and that the housing stock improves within the next couple of years. Vice Chair Wagner-Harkonen agreed with Commissioner's Larson's main goal and the goal of revitalizing County Rd 10. She also said that she has enjoyed serving on the Commission. She asked if it would be a conflict of interest for Mr. Paron to serve on the Commission since he owns property in the Premium Stop Redevelopment Area. Community Development Director Ken Roberts said that it would not unless the City is considering a project that affected Mr. Paron's property directly. Mr. Paron would have to abstain on any votes related to the redevelopment of his property. EDC Minutes Nov. 19, 2010 Page 3 of 4 Ms. Steinmetz said that it is important for the City Council to hear from residents that live along County Rd 10, so she hopes that Mr. Paron can serve in some capacity. She added that Mr. Paron has consistently contacted her to get updates and provide ideas for the redevelopment of County Rd 10, which shows that he wants to be engaged in the City's decision-making for the corridor. Commissioner Belting noted that there is a good balance on this Commission between members that focus on housing and members that focus on business development. Chair Meehlhause added that this Commission has always been in sync as a group in terms of its priorities. Ms. Steinmetz distributed ballots to the EDC so that the EDC could vote on a recommendation to the EDA for which two EDC applicants the EDA should appoint to the EDC. All five ballots submitted recommended that EDC members Jennifer Wagner- Harkonen and Dan Larson be re -appointed to the EDC from 2011-2013. 7. REPORTS OF COMMISSIONERS There were no Commissioner reports. 8. REPORTS OF STAFF City staff provided the EDC with updates on the following items: Update on Mounds View Home Improvement Loan Program Mr. Roberts said that the EDA would consider final approval of this program on Monday, November 22, 2010. There are four different loans as part of this program. Once the EDA approves the program, the EDA will need to consider who is going to administer the loans and the associated fees. Staff will begin marketing the program to residents in February 2011. Update on Select Senior Living Project Mr. Roberts reported that the bond house is currently marketing the Housing Revenue Bonds for this project, which is an indicator that the project is moving forward. New Design for Monument Entrance Signs on County Rd 10 Mr. Roberts referenced images in the EDC packet showing the updated monument entrance signs on County Rd 10. Local sign company, Traffix Graphix, updated the signs to reflect the new City logo. Bethlehem Baptist Church donated funds to the EDA who decided to spend some of the donation dollars on the signs. In addition, the EDA will be considering using the rest of the funds towards updating the twelve City limit signs with the new logo. Mounds View Business News - Recap of Homeshield Tour Mr. Roberts provided a recap of the tour. Commissioner Belting added that he thinks such events are important for all of us to attend and that we need to visit businesses more often. He said that businesses need to know we care about them. We need to address their concerns even if we cannot resolve them. He offered to attend future business visits with City staff. EDC Minutes Nov. 19, 2010 Page 4 of 4 Available Business Sites in Mounds View - BP Gas Station Staff provided the EDC with facts about the property and asked for insight on the property as a redevelopment site. Commissioner Johnson mentioned using the site for expanded Metro Transit parking. Commissioner Larson said a small drive-thru restaurant would be better than a vacant building. Vice Chair Wagner-Harkonen asked if the City could close Clifton Drive to allow for a more buildable site. Mr. Roberts said that would not be possible because doing so would eliminate access to the south side of the business park. Chair Meehlhause added that Clifton Drive provides access for drivers trying to head west on County Rd 10. Ms. Steinmetz said that the list of other available business sites in Mounds View has not changed since the last EDC meeting. 9. UPCOMING EDC MEETING Motion/Second: Commissioner Belting moved and Commissioner Johnson seconded a motion to cancel the December 17, 2010 EDC meeting. Motion Carried: 5 Ayes, 0 Nays The next regular EDC meeting is scheduled for Friday, January 21, 2010 at 7:30am. OTHER Vice Chair Wagner-Harkonen asked if a staff person from another community, such as Osseo, could provide a redevelopment presentation to the EDC at a future meeting. Ms. Steinmetz said that she would invite an Osseo staff person to the February 2011 EDC meeting. Ms. Steinmetz also said that the EDC should meet with the City Council in early 2011 to discuss their accomplishments over the last couple of years. Also, Commissioner Johnson mentioned that Crystal has an aging housing stock, so Ms. Steinmetz said she would invite a staff person from Crystal or Coon Rapids to a future EDC meeting to talk about how other cities are improving neighborhoods 10. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, the November 19, 2010 meeting adjourned at 8:38am. Respectfully submitted, A Heidi Steinmetz, Economic Development Specialist