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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02/24/1999 , ORIGINAL MINUTES OF WHEAT RIDGE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND REVITALIZATION COMMISSION FEBRUARY 24, 1999 7:00 P.M. 1. CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER The Wheat Ridge Economic Development and Revitalization Commission meeting was called to order by Chairman ROACH at 7:00 p.m. 2. ROLL CALL OF MEMBERS EDARC Commissioners present: Rae Jean Behm Norman Burkpile Sandra Collins John Hall Richard Matthews Margy Platter Jerry Roach Also attending were: Martin Orner, Economic Development Specialist! Associate Planner Alan White, Director ofPlanriing and Development Ann Lazzeri, Recording Secretary 3. CONSIDERATION OF ABSENCES EDARC Commissioners absent: Elwyn Kiplinger Janet Leo Mr. Orner stated that Commissioner Kiplinger expressed his apology for his inability to attend the meeting due to a conflict and that he had requested a copy of the audio tape of this meeting. 4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES It was moved by Commissioner BURKPILE and seconded by Commissioner HALL to approve the minutes of the February 2,1999 EDARC meeting. The motion carried 7-0 with Commissioners KIPLINGER and LEO absent. , \ Page 1 EDARC Minutes 02/25/99 5. PUBLIC FORUM No one appeared to speak. 6. NEW BUSINESS A. Guest Sl}eaker Martin Orner introduced Felice Plain, Economic Development Director for the City of Lakewood. She presented an overview of Lakewood's economic development programs. A surmnary of her comments follows: Lakewood's economic development budget is approximately one million dollars and is funded by a bed tax from the hotels and motels. Lakewood's economic development program is split into five areas: Community Image - Lakewood has a community profile package and an Internet site which gives basic information about the City. It is important to ascertain how the local community fits into the big picture of the Denver metro area and then get the word out to businesses regarding the advantages of locating in your City. Cities should target the types of businesses they want to attract to their area, taking into consideration the limited amount of property which is available for development in Lakewood and Wheat Ridge. Lakewood also has a newspaper called Looking At Lakewood which is circulated to every business and residence in Lakewood and includes an economic development portion called The Briefcase which strictly reports on what is happening in the business community in Lakewood. Business Retention and Expansion - Lakewood started a formal business retention program two years ago which was initiated by a survey which was mailed to 4,000 Lakewood businesses not only asking questions about different aspects of the businesses but asking for ideas on how the City of Lake wood could be of assistance to businesses. From the 30% response rate, information and programs were developed that the City feels are helpful and important to the community. As a result of this survey, The Lakewood Business Advisor was created which contains information on available resources is only mailed to businesses within the City. For example, there was series on SBA programs and Y2K resources. This publication is not designed to compete with the chamber of commerce. Another business retention area has been in merchant association formation. The City was involved with Alameda Gateway Community Association around Villa Italia Shopping Center. A small grant program was started last year in which the City matched up to $1,000 in target areas for exterior improvements. Ten businesses responded and resulted in approximately $55,000 worth of improvements. EDARC Minutes 02/25/99 Page 2 A new grant program is being instituted this year to aid in work force development. $30,000 has been budgeted for a pilot program which will offer up to $3,000 per business for training costs. Business Recruitment - Lakewood targets the types of businesses which are attractive to the City such as high technology, biomedical research and development etc. Because advertising is very expensive, direct mail proved to be the most effective way to market Lakewood. Retail Sales Health and Urban Renewal - Lakewood looks for ways to be attractive to the business community. For example, building permits can sometimes be waived or even paid for by the economic development fund. Projectteams are formed to streamline and expedite the planning and permitting processes. Urban renewal tax increment financing has been instituted which offers up to 30% of use tax on capital equipment and up to 75% rebate on sales and use tax for construction. Hospitality Industry - Lakewood has instituted a Hospitality Association which is a group of hotels that pay a small fee ($2.00 per room per year). In return, the City works with the hotels on advertising issues, event promotion and coordination so there are more room nights in the area. Tip sheets are available in these hotels that offer information about the Lakewood area. This association has a web site and an 800 number (1-800-728-1492). Following her presentation, Ms. Plain invited questions from Commission members. Commissioner BURKPILE asked for an example of bringing a targeted industry into Lakewood. She cited the Lakewood Industrial Park which was a cooperative effort between Cobe Laboratories and Lakewood. Cobe was planning to leave Lakewood unless a way could be found for them to expand as well as to create an environment where they could thrive by bringing in suppliers and other complementary business. A partnership evolved between the City and Cobe Laboratories to accomplish master planning which resulted in the creation of Lakewood Industrial Park. There are over 1,000 employees in the park with a specialty that is international. She suggested that the location of Lutheran Hospital in Wheat Ridge might invite research business into the area. Commissioner HALL asked where the vision and mission of economic development comes from in Lakewood. She replied that this direction comes directly from the City Council. The City Council has an annual retreat to formulate goals that are communicated to the staff for implementation. It is important to develop short term and long term goals and to look at resources that are already in place to assist businesses, such as the SBA which counsels small businesses. Ms. Plain stated that Lakewood has implemented a design assistance team that meets to go over details of major projects. A team will have an assigned planner, building inspector, etc. Page 3 EDARC Minutes 02/25/99 to work on the project from begiuning to end. She also explained Lakewood's process for tracking business data. Commissioner COLLINS asked how businesses qualified for the grant programs. Ms. Plain explained that the businesses were, first of all, geographically qualified. Applications were reviewed to ensure the projects were viable and that the changes would meet code. The grants were totally funded by economic development. In response to a question from Mr. Orner, Ms. Plain stated that Lakewood conducts a citizens planning academy which takes participants through the process of all the aspects of community planning and development with one session devoted to economic development. Wheat Ridge has been invited in the past to attend the planning academy and would be welcome to participate this fall. Mr. Orner asked if Lakewood draws on the Community Reinvestment Act. Ms. Plain replied that the City does not; however, Lakewood is involved with Business Capital of Colorado which is a high risk lending group. In conclusion, Ms. Plain stated she believed that time is better spent on projects than on fund raising. B. Jefferson Economic Council Mr. Orner stated that JEC is the umbrella economic development organization for the west side of Denver metro area. Membership dues are paid each year by participating cities and are calculated by number of residents in a City. As part of City Council budget discussions, there was some question about the necessity of continuing our membership in the JEc. City Council decided to split the $6,000 annual dues with EDARC and stipulated that dues not be paid until after March 18th when Tom Clark of the Jefferson Economic Council addresses the Council and explains the membership benefits of this organization. Mr. Orner has been attending the JEC meetings for over a year and gave the Commissioners copies of material which explained the function of the JEC and the benefits to member cities. Following discussion of the benefits of belonging to the Jefferson Economic Council, it was moved by Commissioner BURKPILE and seconded by Commissioner BEHM that the Wheat Ridge Economic Development and Revitalization Commission (EDARC) recognizes the value of services provided by the Jefferson Economic Council (JEC) in furthering economic development in Wheat Ridge. Valuable services provided by the JEC include: I. Acting as the city's Enterprise Zone administrator. This saves the City's limited staff the job of maintaining fiscal data regarding the Zone, especially in coordinating state tax credits for businesses locating to and operating in the Zone. 2. Significant monetary investments in state-of-the-art computer software for demographic, geographic and economic data which is available free of charge to JEC investors. This software is a valuable and necessary tool in economic studies for EDARC Minutes 02/25/99 Page 4 prospective and existing Wheat Ridge businesses. Without these software tools, the City would be at a competitive disadvantage in attracting new businesses and retaining existing businesses. The EDARC realizes that direct and independent City investment in said software would be a significant financial commitment which is not realistic. 3. EDARC realizes that the economic prosperity of Wheat Ridge cannot be accomplished independently ofthe overall west side community and the Denver metropolitan area. The JEC represents the city's interest to the Jefferson County Commissioners, the Metro Denver Network and State of Colorado elected representatives relative to the continued economic vitality of Wheat ridge and environs. The EDARC realizes that the Wheat Ridge City government offers valuable services to its residential and business community which depend on tax revenues for funding. Additionally, the cost of providing City services to the community is constantly increasing. The EDARC also realizes the city's economic development staff essentially consists of one staff person and that continued membership in the JEC greatly reduces the amount of paper work and data entry work which would otherwise be the responsibility of City staff. Therefore, the EDARC concludes that continued membership in the Jefferson Economic Council is highly valuable to and, in the big picture, is a cost savings to the City, and recommends to Wheat Ridge City Council that the City of Wheat Ridge membership in the JEC continue without interruption. The motion passed by a vote of 7 to 0 with Commissioners KIPLINGER and LEO absent Mr. Orner stated that he will arrange for Tom Clark of the JEC to appear before EDARC at the next scheduled meeting. C. 1999 Bud~et - Mr. Orner reported that City Council has budgeted a salary amount of $10,000 from EDARC funds to complement the city's general fund contribution to the Economic Development Specialist salary. 7. UNFINISHED BUSINESS A. Wheat Ride:e Wadsworth Corridor Studv Mr. White presented an update on the Corridor Study and stated that a final draft is being prepared and should be ready for review at a public meeting in the next month or two. Commissioner HALL suggested that it might be appropriate for EDARC to review the plan at a study session prior to the public meeting. This would give EDARC the opportunity to formulate some recommendations concerning the economic development aspects of the plan to be presented to City Council at the public meeting. EDARC Minutes 02/25/99 Page 5 Mr. White and Mr. Orner agreed that such review by EDARC would be appropriate. There was a consensus to have a study session in March when the plan is available for review. Mr. Orner will advise EDARC members ofthe date of the study session. B. 1999 EDARC Goals Mr. Orner distributed copies of the City of Wheat Ridge Economic Development Plan adopted by City Council in 1995 and Ordinance No. 1078 which sets forth the duties of ED ARC. These materials need to be reviewed for relevancy regarding long range and short range plans followed by firm direction from City Council. Commissioner HALL briefly summarized his meeting with Susan Grafton and Mike Smythe from the economic development department of the City of Westminster. Mr. Orner advised EDARC members that he would make copies of Commissioner HALL's written report to be included in the next meeting packet. Mr. Orner reported that he is meeting with the city's information technology officer to establish and maintain a database of all the businesses in the City of Wheat Ridge. Mr. White stated that staff is also working to update the city's web site which will include an economic development page. Mr. Orner stated that he would arrange for the City Manager to make a presentation to EDARC to discuss funding alternatives for economic development programs. There was discussion of the possibility of conducting a joint study session or retreat with City Council to develop a plan once EDARC members have completed and reviewed the surmnaries of meetings with economic development representatives from other cities and have heard the City Manager's presentation. Chairman ROACH suggested that EDARC might develop an award program to recognize businesses for beautification efforts. There was discussion regarding possible criteria for such awards. Commissioner COLLINS commented that State Beauty Supply might be considered for their architecture, landscaping, parking, etc. Mr. Orner stated that State Beauty supply also dedicated a deceleration lane and that they are setting the tone for new businesses along Wadsworth. There was discussion concerning the utilization of the CAP newsletter as part of the economic development strategies. For example, the newsletter could be used to perform a business survey. Mr. Orner invited EDARC members to contribute suggestions for newsletter topics. Commissioner MATTHEWS stated that the Colorado Association of Commerce and Industry is of the opinion that personal property tax is a barrier to economic development in Colorado and asked if this tax might affect businesses looking at locating in Wheat Ridge. Mr. Orner replied that he didn't think CACI would take such a strong stance if they didn't EDARC Minutes 02/25/99 Page 6 think it was an important issue and stated that there has been discussion at the Denver Metro Network meetings about refunding a portion of that tax which would only last as long as there is a budget surplus. This would not be viewed as tax reform because the tax would not be eliminated. 8. ADJOURNMENT_ It was moved by Commissioner BURKPILE and seconded by Commissioner HALL to adjourn the meeting at 9:40 p.m. The motion passed by a vote of7-0with Commissioners KIPLINGER and LEO absent. '--')'- .. / .' L2 ..._,(~~ ~.. JE.RRY R ~CH, Chair .' C:\Barbara\ECODEVO\MINUTES\990224.wpd EDARC Minutes 02/25/99 Page 7