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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02-21-2003 Minutes of the Economic Development Commission City of Mounds View Ramsey County, Minnesota Regular Meeting February 21, 2003 City of Mounds View, Council Chambers 2401 Highway 10, Mounds View, MN 55112 1. CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Greg Belting called the meeting to order at 7:40 a.m. 2. INTRODUCTION & SWEARING IN OF NEW COMMISSION MEMBER: Staff member Backman proceeded with the swearing in of Jackie Entsminger. 3. ROLL CALL: Members Present: Dr. Greg Belting, Jackie Entsminger, David Fox, Tom Field, and Jason Helgemoe Members Absent: Torri Johnson, Stan McDonald Staff Present: Economic Development Coordinator Aaron Backman Others Present: None 4. APPROVAL OF EDC MINUTES: Motion/Second: Fox moved and Helgemoe seconded the approval of the January 17, 2003 EDC minutes as amended. Motion Carried: 5 Ayes 0 Nays 5. SPECIAL BUSINESS No Special Business Scheduled. 6. REPORT OF COMMISSIONERS, STAFF AND EDA LIAISON A. Commissioner Reports: Prior to the Roll Call, Backman read an e-mail from Stan McDonald updating the Commission regarding his recovery from a stroke in December. Backman indicated that McDonald will be taking a leave of absence from the Commission for health reasons and that his situation will be re-evaluated after 60-90 days. Field brought up the recently published report EDC Minutes February 21, 2003 Page 2 by State Auditor Awada regarding city finances. For Mounds View he noticed a significant drop in fund balances from 2000 to 2001. Backman stated that he planned to discuss the report later in the meeting. He mentioned that he had discussed the drop in unreserved designated funds with Charlie Hansen, the City’s Finance Director. Hansen, who began working for the City in the fall of 2001, indicated that he had reclassified funds for accounting purposes and there were some one-time expenses. B. Report of EDA Liaison: Backman requested and the EDA considered naming a liaison to the EDC at its February 10th meeting. At this point, this was left open with no specific representative. Field would encourage their attendance. C. TCN Chamber of Commerce Update: During the past month Backman participated in various meetings, including the Gaming Oversight Committee (1/22/02), the Board of the Directors Meeting and the Membership Gaming Meeting on 1/24/02. On February 14th he attended the Public Policy Task Force meeting in Fridley where the focus was on the legislative session and the budgetary cuts that are expected. The TCN Chamber is holding its Annual Gala at the Mermaid on March 1st in the evening (the Home & Garden Show occurs earlier on the same day at the M.V. Community Center beginning at 10:00 a.m.). Backman illustrated the projected Local Government Aid (LGA) cuts that would occur under Gov. Pawlenty’s budget. For the City of Mounds View the projected 2003 cut would be over $326,000. The following year the City would lose two thirds of its LGA or nearly $697,000. These are significant cuts that will substantially affect operations. Moreover, the cuts are not limited to LGA but also include Homestead Credit and Police grants Backman compared our projected cuts with our neighboring cities. D. Report of Staff: 1. Rob Carlson Builders Activities—Hwy 10 Business Center: Redevelopment of the former Perkins property by Rob Carlson Builders, the developer, continues to move ahead steadily. As you are aware the Perkins building was demolished the week of November 19th. The invoice for the demolition was received the last week of January. The City Council approved this TIF expenditure for $24,985 a week and a half ago. Concrete panels went up the week of January 20th and now one can get a sense of the general shape and size of the building. During this past week the supporting beams for the roof of the building were installed. Abbey Carpet, the largest tenant, is looking forward to moving to Mounds View in June. Several prospective businesses have been looking at the remaining 11,000 sq. ft. of available commercial space. 2. Metro North CVB Annual Meeting: On January 23rd Backman attended the CVB’s Annual Meeting at the Earle Brown Center in Brooklyn Center. Overall lodging tax receipts are down 7.8% from the previous year. Post 9/11 effects and the softer economy continue to impact the convention and business traveler side of the hospitality industry. Amateur sports, a strategic advantage for our CVB, continues to perform well. Backman, who has served on the CVB Board of Directors for a year, was elected to the Executive Committee and will serve as Treasurer during 2003. On February 12th, the new Executive Committee held its meeting at the Edinburgh USA facility. This was immediately followed by a Strategic Planning Session facilitated by Joseph Strauss, I-35W Coalition. Currently nine communities are members of the Mpls. Metro North CVB. Four additional cities were discussed as potential candidates for entry—Plymouth, Roseville, Arden Hills, and Ham Lake. The first two have the most number of hotel properties and may not wish to join. EDC Minutes February 21, 2003 Page 3 3. 2003 Public Finance Seminar (Ehlers): On February 6 & 7 Backman attended the annual TIF seminar that is put on by Ehlers. It was held at the Earle Brown Center in Brooklyn Center. Some of the sessions Backman attended were: TIF and Abatement Basics, Mixed Use Development, Land Assembly and Eminent Domain, TIF Legal Issues and Redevelopment, and TIF Management. 4. Developer Activities—Community Development Group (Amoco Site): I spent considerable time regarding this project during the past month and there has been significant progress. For several years the former Amoco gas station located at 2800 Co. Highway 10 has been closed. It has been consistently viewed by the EDC as a high priority for redevelopment. In September of last year Community Development Group (CDG), a developer from Michigan, began looking for various locations in the Twin Cities to build on for a national retailing company. The Company, headquartered on the East Coast, wishes to expand to the Twin Cities this year. Tony Strauss, the broker representing the BP Amoco site, indicated that the client needs a minimum of 1.7 acres of land and would build a 12,000 to 14,000 sq. ft. building. During Mid-December, CDG, the developer, made written offers to both Amoco and to the owners of the vacant land to the west of the Amoco parcels. To move the process along, Backman facilitated a meeting of all the parties at City Hall on Wednesday, February 5th. By the next day all the owners of the vacant property signed a letter of intent or LOI. The real estate committee for the end user met on Thursday, February 13th, and approved funding for the Mounds View location. Mounds View would be one of the first nine locations for the company in Minnesota. The name of the end user, a Fortune 50 company, has not been released by the developer at this time but will be available when the site plan comes before the Planning Commission early next month. 5. Loads of Clothes Grand Opening: Back in November the two principals of the business indicated that they intended to open a new Laundromat in Silver View Plaza by February 15th. True to their word on February 13th Janet & Michelle had their Grand Opening. Loads of Clothes is located on the west end of Silver View Plaza. The Chamber sponsored the event that was well attended with representatives from SBA, Ramsey County, Kraus-Anderson, ALL, the equipment supplier, etc. Smart cards are used to operate the washers and dryers. Pay a visit. Damont, the general contractor, has done a beautiful job of finishing the space. 6. Developer Activities—Long Lake & Hwy 10 Medical Clinic: During the past year several potential businesses have considered the outparcels near the Wynnsong Theater complex. Since last Fall, a developer from the Osseo area has been negotiating with Anthony Properties, the broker representing the owner. This week the developer signed the documents to secure Parcel A (Long Lake Rd.) and Parcel B (Edgewood). The developer intends to develop both properties in 2003. A strip mall, potentially including a Starbucks, would be located in Parcel B. A two-story medical clinic providing optical, dental and other services would be built on Parcel A with access from Long Lake Road and Co. Hwy 10. Yesterday an architectural firm began surveying the property. 7. EDC BUSINESS A. Renaming of County Highway 10 (Old 10). Backman was encouraged by Jim Ericson to bring this matter before the EDC. He discussed the confusion that results from having Co. Highway 10 (Old 10) and State Trunk Highway 10 (New 10). Belting mentioned that the NB-MV Chamber did previously discuss this issue without resolution. He did note there were important aspects to the debate in terms of business identification, lost customers, etc. Backman noted that the timing of a change was important so that businesses could adjust their advertising. Not sure if business EDC Minutes February 21, 2003 Page 4 recruitment would be impacted. Belting asked about how quickly the County would agree to any name change. Not known at this time. Backman stated that improved signage would be helpful for better access, especially from I-35W. Helgemoe remarked that Western Bank continually faces the issue of directing lost customers back to the right location. Chair Belting suggested that a meeting of all businesses/entities along Co. Highway 10 be held to seek their input regarding this issue. It could be a luncheon or something sponsored by the Chamber and City. The consensus of the Commission was that the idea had merit. At this point in the meeting, Chair Belting left the meeting for another obligation. Field took over the EDC meeting. B. Review of Mounds View’s Tax Abatement Policy (Cont. from page 4). Backman briefly reviewed and contrasted Tax Increment Financing (TIF) and Tax Abatement. He denoted the changes agreed to through page four and noted the EDC’s consensus to rename the City’s Tax Abatement program to Tax Rebate Financing. New language in the draft document is underlined. Commission members then considered Section IV, Policies for the Use of TRF and Section V, Project Qualifications. The Commission briefly considered Section VI, Subsidy Agreement & Reporting Requirements on p. 6. The State of Minnesota requires that Cities adopt a Business Subsidy Policy. This separate document, referenced in Section VI, will need to be reviewed and updated by the EDC as well. Backman asked members to review the Application Review Worksheet on p. 16. C. Other: Helgemoe inquired about interest in the former Hardee’s building. Backman encouraged Paster Enterprises to submit a proposal to Steve Sparks, the Culver’s franchisee regarding the Hardee’s facility. This was done and Mr. Sparks is reviewing the information. 8. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Commission, Field adjourned the February 21st meeting of the Economic Development Commission at 9:10 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Aaron A. Backman Economic Development Coordinator \\Ntserver\CityHall\DATA\GROUPS\ECONDEV\EDC\Minutes\Min03\2-21-03.doc