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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2003-06-10 EDA MinutesCITY OF COTTAGE GROVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MINUTES June 10, 2003 Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a regular meeting of the Economic Development Authority was held at City Hall, 7516 80th Street South, Cottage Grove, Minnesota on the 10th day of June 2003. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 7:30 a.m. by EDA President Wolcott. RnLL CALL Members Present: Jim Wolcott, EDA President Sandy Shiely, EDA Vice - President Gerry Weingartner, Authority Member Glen Kleven, Authority Member Dick Pederson, Authority Member Mike Wennen, Authority Member Al Boche, Authority Member Members Absent: Others Present: Ryan Schroeder, City Administrator Steve Barrett, Management Analyst Scott Johnson, Management Analyst Nancy Hanzlik, City Engineer Colby Johnson, South Washington County Bulletin APPROVAL OF MINUTES Authority Member Sandy Shiely moved to approve the May 13, 2003 EDA Minutes. Gerry Weingartner requested a clarification in the minutes to further explain that the grade improvements for the Oak Park Commons project were agreed to because of the enhancements to the roads. Mike Wennen seconded the motion and the Motion carried unanimously. Economic Development Authority - Minutes June 10, 2003 Page 2 PROJECT UPDATES Staff is currently working on updating the project list. One project has selected another site in Brooklyn Park. Six other projects are no longer active. Staff is still waiting for an update on one project. Currently, the city has nine prospective restaurants on the economic development database. Three of the restaurants are from the Cottage Grove area and are looking for land to relocate. They range from a quick serve — Culver's style restaurant to a sit down restaurant with a liquor license. Al Boche recently helped the city find a new lead for a possible sports bar. The city should expect more restaurant leads with the new sites around the Kohls project and Grove Plaza that will be able to accommodate these projects. The Wells Fargo project is going up quickly. There are also two other banks on the list that are interested in Cottage Grove. Also, there are currently two prospects that the city has a decent shot of bringing to the Industrial Park. GATEWAY Ryan Schroeder informed the EDA that the city is on target to deliver the Kohls site by the July 1 St deadline. Staff is currently working through title issues for the site, but they expect resolution shortly. All title work will be needed to complete the Alta Survey that Kohls has requested. There continues to be challenges with grading for the road and the site. Kohls recently changed the grading plan for the site. The City Attorney recently informed Mr. Schroeder that a public hearing will be necessary for disposition of the Kohls property. This hearing will take place on June 24 at 7:30 AM. Also, because of the new grading plan, dirt will need to be borrowed for the site. They will be able to get the dirt from the Hardwood Ct. project, the Oakwood site, or the Bruhn /Stoltz property. Gene Stoltz continues to proceed with development plans for his property north of the Kohls site. The high elevation will need to be graded down. This will leave a 2 acre pad that could accommodate perhaps a 20,000 — 25,000 sf project. GROVE PLAZA A new 4,200 sf project will be built on the old Applebee's site and they will reconstruct the small tenant space in Grove Plaza. The small box store that had an interest in Grove Plaza is not proceeding at this time. Mayor Shiely stated that she is running low on patience for the Grove Plaza project. Mr. Schroeder explained that Grove Plaza has had a letter of intent with the user, but there is no signed lease. They were waiting for the signed lease before they began reconstruction of the small tenant space, but now they are forced to reconstruct the space without the user. Mayor Shiely asked if the parking lot would be upgraded. Ryan Schroeder said it is not currently in the plans. Jim Wolcott mentioned that some streetscaping would be included in the project. Dick Economic Development Authority - Minutes June 10, 2003 Page 3 Pederson asked if the new owners of Rainbow were still moving ahead. Mr. Schroeder informed the EDA that they have pulled the necessary licenses to keep Rainbow open. Jim Wolcott mentioned that the Council could make the new small tenant space contingent on finishing the existing small tenant space. Also, the Oak Park Commons project is moving ahead. Plus, there has been some progress made on funding a new project at the Cottage Square site. Mayor Shiely said she likes the banners that were designed for the Gateway district. Ryan Schroeder also informed the EDA that there will be a new monument sign in the Gateway. The city has also hired two Horticulture Interns to help with the landscaping for the Gateway area and throughout the city. Glen Kleven asked if the city sign on the hill off of Highway 61 could be weeded. Mr. Schroeder said the city would take care of the problem. The grading continues on the Kohls project. Some temporary easements will be used for ponding and access to keep existing businesses open during the project. We are working with MNDOT on the planned temporary access because they have access control over that parcel. The city will work with MNDOT to keep the access open. Sidewalks will also be rebuilt on 80 Street during this project. OAKWOOD COMMERCIAL AGREEMENT Glen Kleven raised a number of concerns with the list of accepted uses in the agreement. He asked the EDA to look at uses 8,10,17,28,31,40,47,49,60,61, and 62. The EDA voted to remove all the uses from the list except the off -sale liquor item which will stay on the list. Glen Kleven made a motion to approve the list. Gerry Weingartner seconded the motion. Mayor Shiely explained to the EDA that she will vote no on the motion because she is not convinced the city should settle for a strip mall. She thinks that agreement will take the property out of the city's hands. Jim Wolcott likes the agreement because it narrows down the options for developers. Mayor Shiely thinks the agreement will limit the restaurant choices for the city. Ryan Schroeder explained to the EDA that a restaurant is a part of the agreement and one must be built on the site. Mayor Shiely would like to have the option of having one large restaurant on the site. Glen Kleven also wondered if the city would say no to a restaurant that is not wanted on the site. Jim Wolcott mentioned that the city is looking for a Sunsets style of restaurant on the site and the guidelines will help bring in this type of restaurant. Mayor Shiely thinks the city will lose their right to choose a restaurant if we proceed under this agreement. Mr. Schroeder explained to the EDA that the City Council owns the property and they will make the ultimate decision on what is built on the site. The document gives developers an idea of what is wanted on the site. Jim Wolcott mentioned that the agreement would be given to other land owners in the city which gives them guidance on what the city wants on the site. Glen Kleven said the city should change its zoning if it wants a specific type of development in the Gateway. Mike Wennen made a motion to approve the agreement. Dick Pederson seconded the motion and the motion passed. Mayor Shiely dissented on the motion. Economic Development Authority - Minutes June 10, 2003 Page 4 EDA The 2004 EDA budget will reduce operating costs by 14 %. The reductions will occur in professional services. Glen Kleven asked about goal number eight. Mr. Kleven would like to see the city put together a list of all city businesses. Woodbury currently has a program where businesses pay the city to have their name included on a business list. Jim Wolcott thought it would be a good idea to charge local businesses to be a part of a Cottage Grove business list. Ryan Schroeder mentioned that the city is looking into a general business license and providing a business list would be a good benefit. Mr. Schroeder also mentioned that goals 11 -14 are new and the Industrial Park promotion brought in 36 rounds of golf. Gerry Weingartner made a motion to approve the 2004 budget. Mike Wennen seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously. BUSINESS SUBSIDY CRITERIA Ryan Schroeder explained to the EDA that with the current changes in law the city needed to update its Business Subsidy criteria to become compliant with current law. The city currently has a wage floor of $11.00 per hour for any projects to receive a subsidy. Mr. Schroeder suggested to the EDA that the number stay where it is currently. Under the current law the city can drop the wage and job goal if it will help secure a specific benefit for the community. Jim Wolcott asked why the EDA and Council needed to hold hearings on the Business Subsidy Criteria. Ryan Schroeder explained that it would help to protect the city in future audits. The EDA members were comfortable with the $11.00 per hour wage standard. Glen Kleven reminded the EDA that that subsidy is only provided to businesses with a proven need. Mr. Schroeder also said the businesses need to pass the "but for" test and other tests to comply with the standards to receive the subsidy. Glen Kleven wanted to know how the city will force a business to stay in the community for five years. Ryan Schroeder said the city can demand the subsidy back and a new purchaser of the property will know about the restrictions on the title. Mr. Kleven also asked for which projects public hearings would be held. Mr. Schroeder said it just depended on the project and the state statutes. HWY 61 DRAINAGE PROJECT Staff is still waiting for the appraisals for this project. EDA GOLF OUTING Currently, 46 golfers have signed up for the event. The tournament to date has 6 silver sponsors and 2 bronze sponsors. EDA ANNUAL REPORT EDA members liked the new bullet points and photos. The report will be printed in the near future. Economic Development Authority - Minutes June 10, 2003 Page 5 2003 DEVELOPMENT UPDATE Ryan Schroeder explained to the EDA that the Development Update is reviewed 2 or 3 times a year. EDA members were given a recently updated version of the marketing piece. FOR SALE /LEASE EDA members were given an updated version of the For Sale /Lease database. MISC Mayor Shiely informed the EDA that the city has won the EDAM Award for the top direct mailing campaign. Cottage Grove is the only city to win an EDAM Award two years in a row. Glen Kleven would like staff to send out an e-mail reminder to the EDA for the June 24 meeting. Mr. Kleven also told the EDA about the golf outing for the Park Girls Basketball Booster Club which will be held on August 15 ADJOURN The EDA adjourned at 9:35 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Scott Johnson Management Analyst