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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-20-2009 Minutes of the Economic Development Commission City of Mounds View Ramsey County, Minnesota Regular Meeting November 20, 2009 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, Commissioners Greg Belting, Jackie Entsminger, Jason Helgemoe & Torri Johnson Members Absent: Vice Chair Wagner-Harkonen & Commissioner Dan Larson Staff Present: Community Development Director Ken Roberts & Economic Development Specialist Heidi Steinmetz 3. APPROVAL OF NOVEMBER 20, 2009 AGENDA Motion/Second: Commissioner Johnson moved and Commissioner Entsminger seconded the approval of the November 20, 2009 EDC agenda. Motion Carried: 5 Ayes 0 Nays 4. APPROVAL OF AUGUST 21, 2009 EDC MINUTES Motion/Second: Commissioner Helgemoe moved and Commissioner Johnson seconded the approval of the September 18, 2009 EDC minutes. Motion Carried: 5 Ayes 0 Nays 5. SPECIAL BUSINESS There was no special business. 6. EDC BUSINESS Chair Gary Meehlhause stated that there are three open Commission seats – two business seats currently occupied by Torri Johnson and Jason Helgemoe and one resident seat currently occupied by him. He added that there were two additional applicants for the resident seat - Andrew Johnson and Holly Smith; however, Ms. Smith withdrew her application because the Planning Commission recently recommended that the City Council should appoint her to the Planning Commission. Chair Meehlhause mentioned that all EDC applications were included in the EDC’s packet for review and that Andrew Johnson was not in attendance this morning to speak with the EDC. He asked if any of the other applicants in attendance wished to speak to the EDC. Hearing none, Chair Meehlhause mentioned the ballots in front of the EDC. Each EDC Minutes November 20, 2009 Page 2 of 5 Commissioner voted and submitted his/her ballot to Economic Development Specialist Steinmetz. Commissioner Belting thanked the existing Commissioners for re-applying and stated that he is also impressed that over the last two years, several residents had applied who had never served on the EDC. Ms. Steinmetz tallied the five ballots and reported that the EDC would recommend on December 14, 2009 that the City Council re-appoint Torri Johnson, Jason Helgemoe and Gary Meehlhause to the EDC for terms lasting to December 31, 2012. 7. REPORTS OF COMMISSIONERS Commissioner Helgemoe announced that the Twin Cities North Chamber of Commerce would hold its annual fundraising Gala on Friday, February 19, 2010 at the Earle Brown Heritage Center in Brooklyn Center. He added that during the Gala, the Chamber would honor five local businesses in five different categories. 8. REPORTS OF STAFF A. Burger Time Concept Denied by City Council on October 5, 2009 Ms. Steinmetz reminded the EDC that in September 2009, they provided two recommendations to the EDA – that the EDA further discuss the concept with Burger Time and that the EDA set an asking price for the 2390 County Road 10 property. She reported that the City Council discussed this item at their October 5, 2009 Work Session and were not interested in recruiting Burger Time to the site nor setting an asking price for the property. Commissioner Helgemoe asked about the Council’s thought process in not setting an asking price for the property. Community Development Director Ken Roberts answered that the Council provided staff with mixed direction – some members wanted the asking price to at least be Ramsey County’s assessed value and some members wanted the asking price to be what the EDA paid for the property, which is around $625,000. Commission Helgemoe asked if any of the appraisers that staff talked to were able to provide a land price range. Ms. Steinmetz answered that they did not because even a price range is considered a form of an appraisal. Commissioner Belting asked if a commercial real estate broker would be willing to provide a value without the City having to hire them as the listing agent. He mentioned that perhaps the Council needs some guidance or education on the realities of the local real estate market at this time. He concluded by saying that the Council probably did not want to order an appraisal of the property because commercial appraisals cost about $3,000 or $4,000. Commissioner Helgemoe added that the problem appraisers are running into is that they do not have comparable sales to use to establish property value. Motion/Second: Commissioner Belting moved and Commissioner Helgemoe seconded a recommended that the City Council authorize staff to request present market value estimates for 2390 County Road 10 from several commercial real estate brokers. Motion Carried: 5 Ayes 0 Nays EDC Minutes November 20, 2009 Page 3 of 5 B. Logo Implementation on City Signs Ms. Steinmetz reported that the City Council recently approved for the new City logo to be implemented on two signs within Mounds View – the electronic message board sign on County Road 10 and the wall sign in the City Council Chambers. C. Saturn Dealership Update Ms. Steinmetz stated that Mounds View Saturn would continue to sell new Saturn vehicles until October 2010. After that time, the property owners hope to recruit two national brand names to the site – a service shop and a higher end used car facility. Chair Meehlhause asked if Saturn no longer plans to open a facility in Blaine. Ms. Steinmetz answered that Saturn has resold the Blaine property back to its original owner. Chair Meehlhause said this is great news, that he has purchased three vehicles there and that the sales and service staff was great. Commissioner Belting agreed. D. New Mounds View Businesses Ms. Steinmetz reported on three new Mounds View Square tenants – Right Fit Running, Ultra Tan and A-1 Foam & Upholstery. She added that it would take awhile before A-1 opens because they have not begun the build-out. Ms. Steinmetz asked Commissioner Belting to confirm when ICS Consulting would be moving into Mounds View City Center Suites. He answered that ICS purchased a suite on October 5, 2009 and that they plan to open around December 1, 2009. Commissioner Johnson mentioned that she spoke with some of the runners who participated in Irondale Hockey Association’s 5K and they said that the North Metro does not have a good running shoe store, so whoever did the due diligence in locating Right Fit Running to Mounds View did a good job. Chair Meehlhause concluded by saying that Pastor Enterprises’ major investment in Mounds View Square has paid dividends (from his perspective), that the occupancy rates have been good and that when space does become available, it does not remain vacant very long. He said Mounds View Square is an example of the positive things that can come from investing into a property. E. City Council to Discuss City Tagline on December 7, 2009 Ms. Steinmetz said that the City is struggling with trying to choose a new tagline for Mounds View. She reported that the EDA chose a new tagline “See for Yourself” on October 12, 2009 but when members of the public provided negative feedback on the EDA’s choice, the City Council decided to discuss the issue at length at the December 7, 2009 Work Session. Commissioner Entsminger said that taglines work better when heard on commercials rather than viewed on paper. Ms. Steinmetz suggested recording a jingle for Mounds View and playing it on the City’s Cable Channel. Commissioner Belting added that he is happy to see the process continue since there were better tagline choices several months ago than what the Council almost chose back in October. EDC Minutes November 20, 2009 Page 4 of 5 Ms. Steinmetz mentioned that the public could vote on the City’s Website on whether they like or dislike “See for Yourself” as the City’s possible new tagline. Other Commissioner Belting asked staff to provide a reminder of how Mounds View is paying for the County Road 10 trails. Ms. Steinmetz answered that a Federal grant is funding most of the cost of the trail. Chair Meehlhause added that the City has talked about extending its trails for a long time and that it is nice to see the project come to fruition. Community Development Director Roberts said that the lighting for the trail should be finished within the next couple of weeks. He added that the City would like to thank Multi- Tech Systems for allowing the trail contractor to use Multi-Tech’s vacant lot for a staging area during construction and that the recent tour of Multi-Tech’s facility was interesting. Mr. Roberts added that the Street Project (Area A) is complete; that the City should have plans for Areas B and C done by January 1, 2010 and that the City will receive bids for those areas in February or March 2010. Commissioner Johnson said that fellow residents told her that since their street was done, they have never seen so many neighborhood kids out and about, so it is amazing what a new street can do for a community. Mr. Roberts asked Commissioner Helgemoe how the street turned out by Western Bank. Commissioner Helgemoe said it turned out very nice especially after striping was completed heading north/south at the intersection of Silver Lake Road and Red Oak Drive. Commissioner Belting stated that, as a business taxpayer, he appreciates the curbside appeal that comes from new roads and curbs. He said that it puts pride into the community and that he is glad the project was finally approved and done. Chair Meehlhause added that he knows there was a lot of discussion about asphalt versus concrete curbs and that there is no substitute for concrete. Commissioner Belting said concrete looks much better too. Commissioner Helgemoe said that good infrastructure promotes good business, which helps the tax base. Chair Meehlhause concluded that future Councils and residents need to support that investment by repairing that infrastructure. Commissioner Johnson mentioned that a football/hockey/baseball dad whose kids go to Irondale High School was recently in a serious motorcycle accident on Airport Road. She said that the public can “Google” Irondale Hockey to find out about various fundraisers. She said that the community has really come together through this ordeal, which is one of the reasons why we enjoy living here. 9. UPCOMING EDC MEETING The next regular EDC meeting is scheduled for Friday, December 18, 2009 at 7:30am. 10. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Commission, Commissioner Belting moved and Commissioner Entsminger seconded the adjournment of the meeting at 8:33am. Respectfully submitted, Heidi Steinmetz EDC Minutes November 20, 2009 Page 5 of 5 Economic Development Specialist