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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-20-2004 Minutes of the Economic Development Commission City of Mounds View Ramsey County, Minnesota Regular Meeting August 20, 2004 City of Mounds View, Council Chambers 2401 Highway 10, Mounds View, MN 55112 1. CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Torri Johnson called the meeting to order at 7:36 a.m. 2. ROLL CALL: Members Present: Greg Belting, Jackie Entsminger, Tom Field, David Fox, Jason Helgemoe, Torri Johnson, Stan McDonald Members Absent: None Staff Present: Economic Development Coordinator Aaron Backman Others Present: None 3. APPROVAL OF EDC MINUTES: Motion/Second: The June 18, 2004 minutes were not completed by this meeting. No Commission action was taken. 4. SPECIAL BUSINESS A. No Special Business Scheduled 5. REPORT OF COMMISSIONERS, STAFF AND EDA LIAISON A. Commissioner Reports: None B. Report of EDA Liaison: Backman updated the Commission on developments regarding the Mounds View Banquet Center. In July the City Council instructed staff to proceed with an RFP process. On August 9th responses were due to the City. Sixteen caterers/banquet managers were contacted and three responded by the deadline—Canyon Grille, Lancer Catering and the Mermaid. Backman compared them in terms of space to be leased, revenue structure, length of lease agreement, sales and marketing staff, capital investment into facility, and willingness to pay property taxes. Based on financial considerations, the best proposal appears to be Canyon Grille’s. [McDonald arrived at this point in the meeting] Field asked if the City had done any due diligence regarding Canyon Grille. Backman indicated he had utilized Verifications, Inc. to get background information regarding both principals Roy Dodds and Ann Peterson. Helgemoe EDC Minutes August 20, 2004 Page 2 inquired if business financials had been sought. Backman replied that additional financial information was being sought in preparation for the next City Council meeting next Monday. Field asked about the principals’ catering experience. Backman responded that Mr. Dodds had over 10 years of related experience, including working for Prom Catering and banquet/catering management at Greenhaven Golf Course. C. TCN Chamber of Commerce Update: The Chamber’s Annual Meeting was held yesterday at Majestic Oaks. Helgemoe reported that the meeting was well attended. He noted that Eric Curry from the Minnesota Twins was the main speaker at the event. Backman mentioned that aTransportation Forum was held last week at Connexus Energy’s Headquarters in the City of Ramsey. Bill Blazer from the Minnesota Chamber was the meeting’s moderator. Funding priorities were discussed, including Highway 65, Hansen Blvd. Interchange, Hwy 610 and I-35W. Bob Benke, representing the Metro North Mayors’ Association, also spoke to transportation priorities. As a regional group it is good to present our specific priorities to the legislature. D. Report of Staff: 1. Excavation, House Demolition and Bid Opening—Pro Craft Development: (Hidden Hollow): Johnson noted that ProCraft put an insert about Hidden Hollow into the TCN Chamber monthly newsletter. Backman noted that several activities occurred during the past month. During the week of July 20th, the uncapped well was sealed and asbestos siding removed at 3016 Co. Rd H2. The following week the house was demolished and site clearance activities were begun. Out of 17 lots, 10 already have deposits placed on them. 2. Land Closing on Amoco, Fox and Simon (Almost) Properties—Velmeir Companies (CVS Pharmacy Site): Backman expressed satisfaction that after a year and a half of effort, Amoco has sold its property to Velmeir. Fox has signed off and most of the Simon family has as well. Velmeir, the developer representing CVS Pharmacy in our area has 16 sites in the metro area that it is pursuing for CVS. Of those, six are under construction and two (Coon Rapids and Eagan) have been turned over to the end user. 3. Development Agreement Approved & Signed to Provide $75,000 in TIF Assistance to Velmeir Companies to Facilitate Redevelopment of Amoco Property: On July 26, 2004 the Mounds View EDA adopted a resolution (on a 3 to 1 vote) approving $75,000 in TIF assistance to Velmeir to facilitate the redevelopment of the former Amoco site. The money will be used to defray some of the stormwater management and demolition expenses. Field and Belting expressed the view that this was a good use of the City’s TIF funds. 4. Authorization of TIF Developer Payments for Building N, Silver Lake Pointe, Midwest I.V. and Zep Manufacturing projects: The City of Mounds View has five projects that require TIF payments to developers. Four payments were due in August—for Building N, Silver Lake Pointe, Midwest I.V., and Zep Manufacturing. Backman reminded members that Everest Development would receive its payment for Building N in February of 2005. Overall, the City is in good shape financially regarding its TIF districts. In fact, we will need to incur ED project costs in 2005 to avoid excess TIF being returned to Ramsey County. 6. EDC BUSINESS A. Potential Redevelopment of the Bridges Golf Course (CRESA Partners for Undisclosed Client): During July Backman was contacted by CRESA Partners of Minneapolis. They are a real estate advisor to some large companies and were seeking 50+ acres for a single user. After EDC Minutes August 20, 2004 Page 3 discussions it was clear that CRESA’s undisclosed end user was interested in potentially buying the Bridges, the City’s golf course, to develop a corporate office campus. The first phase of the development was a 500,000 sq. ft. facility with over 1,000 employees. Backman showed members a map of the City’s property (the developed portion of the golf course—70+ acres and the undeveloped area 45+ acres). To date most of the focus and information (utility and environmental) that Backman has provided to CRESA has largely pertained to the developed area. On July 26, 2004, the Mounds View EDA adopted a motion to proceed with Title Commitment research of the property to verify ownership, easements and any covenants that might exist. The City is working with Kennedy & Graven and with Old Republic regarding this information. On August 10th, Kurt Ulrich, City Administrator and Backman met with CRESA representatives to discuss process, developability of the site and economics. Johnson asked if we are in competition with other sites. Backman indicated there are several sites being considered. Field asked if there has been opposition to this potential development. Backman expressed surprise that there hasn’t been more and concern for the staff directly impacted. However, it is an opportunity to add significant tax base to the City. He reviewed a memo prepared by Mary Ippel, Briggs & Morgan, regarding TIF considerations relative to the Bridges. The consensus of the Commission was that we should pursue this development opportunity, explore all funding options, and study our infrastructure requirements that would be needed in Mounds View and neighboring communities for this project. [Entsminger left the meeting] B. Discussion of a Proposed TIF Parcel Decertification. Backman had provided a memo prepared by Jim Ericson for Charlie Hansen, Finance Director, regarding the decertification of parcels from two TIF districts (11 parcels from District #2 and 1 parcel from District #1). Backman indicated that the City does need to periodically evaluate whether parcels should be in TIF districts. Ones that should be removed are ones where redevelopment is unlikely to occur or where development has occurred without TIF assistance. The total taxable value of the 11 parcels is $11,750,000 or about 10% of the taxable value in the three TIF districts. What is the financial impact of this? It will reduce our economic development resources by about $210,000 or 10% a year. Field asked about the seven homes being decertified. Backman replied that these homes along County Road I are unlikely to be redeveloped to commercial use especially since they abut other residential properties. Johnson asked why should the City approve this? Backman stated that there are political and financial reasons to do so. The City Council has a number of times asked that this be done (and the City has a high percentage of its commercial property in such districts). Financially, when the properties come back onto the tax roles, those tax revenues will go to the school district, county, and the city (the latter in the form of general funds). Moreover, it is better to limit districts to parcels where we think redevelopment will likely occur. After discussion a motion was made by Field to recommend approval of the decertification of the 11 designated parcels from their respective TIF districts, seconded by Helgemoe. Passed 5 to 0. 7. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Commission, Johnson adjourned the August 20th meeting of the Economic Development Commission at 8:58 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Aaron A. Backman Economic Development Coordinator EDC Minutes August 20, 2004 Page 4 \\Trout\CommDev\Economic Development\EDC\Minutes\Min04\8-20-04.doc