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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2003-09-09 EDA MinutesCITY OF COTTAGE GROVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY MINUTES September 9, 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 9th day of September 2003. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 7:30 a.m. by EDA President Wolcott. Rni i CAI i Members Present: Jim Wolcott, EDA President Gerry Weingartner, Authority Member Dick Pederson, Authority Member Al Boche, Authority Member Glen Kleven, Authority Member Members Absent: Sandy Shiely, EDA Vice - President Mike Wennen, Authority Member Others Present: Ryan Schroeder, City Administrator Ron Hedberg, Finance Director Steve Barrett, Management Analyst Scott Johnson, Management Analyst Colby Johnson, South Washington County Bulletin APPROVAL OF MINUTES Authority Member Glen Kleven moved to approve the August 12, 2003 EDA Minutes. Dick Pederson seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously. PROJECT UPDATES ED -00 -31 — Grove Plaza — Plans have been submitted for rehabilitation of the interior center and new construction of a 4,200 SF building on the out lot next to Hollywood Video. We are working with KKE on final, minor design elements of each. Jim Wolcott asked Ryan Schroeder if the plans would be administratively approved. Mr. Schroeder Economic Development Authority - Minutes September 9, 2003 Page 2 said the plans will go to Council once the City reaches an agreement on the project. Mr. Wolcott also explained that approval of the 4,200 SF new space is contingent on redevelopment of the existing space. Mr. Schroeder said there are some aesthetic and site issues with the new proposed 4,200 SF. ED -01 -01 — Kohl's Project — Construction is expected to start on this project in mid September. ED -01 -06 — Cottage Square — Currently negotiating a development agreement on a potential mixed use development on that site. ED -02 -04 — County South Service Center — The County is currently analyzing sites for a potential 2005 project. Jim Wolcott met with County and National Guard representatives about this project. Both parties are open to the new project and the project seems to be moving forward. ED -02 -17 — Wells Fargo — October 17 ribbon cutting at 12:30 PM ED -02 -23 — Cambridge Commercial /Restaurant — Still interested in Cottage Grove and reviewing site options. ED -02 -24 — Schmid and Sons — Ryan Schroeder said they are in their new building and business is good. Staff is scheduling a ribbon cutting in the near future. ED -02 -31 — OakPark Commons — The grading operation on this project has begun. The EDA granted $10,000 for the Hardwood Court grading project to reduce the previously proposed grade by 3 feet. With the reduction in grading, a retaining wall would not be required on the Coldwell Banker Burnett property or Oakwood Park, but a wall would continue to be necessary on the west side of the Oak Park Commons property. Gerry Weingartner explained that the motion at the May meeting was made for this purpose. Jim Wolcott said the grade reduction of 3 feet was the entire reason for the supplement on the project. The May minutes should have reflected this reason. ED -03 -007 — Cambridge Commercial /Restaurant — Currently negotiating a purchase agreement and conducting site analysis on the Oakwood Commercial Sites ED -03 -024 — Olson General Contractors — They are working with a 5.8 acre user on the site next to American AgCo in the Industrial Park. This project may have outside storage issues. ED -03 -010 — MEDP — They are conducting an east metro site search for a 2.2 acre 20 SF manufacturer. Ryan proposed a site next to Schmid and Son Packaging. ED -03 -023 — Cambridge Commercial /multi- tenant — Initial site visit for north portion of Oakwood Commercial site Economic Development Authority - Minutes September 9, 2003 Page 3 ED -03 -025 — Restaurant Broker — Ryan sent information pertaining to the gateway sites, Cottage Square Redevelopment, Wells Fargo, Grove Plaza, and the Shoppe's at Almar. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE Ryan informed the EDA that the Finance and Administrative Departments have been restructured and combined. Ron Hedberg will be the department head for the new department and assume some economic development responsibilities. The Assistant City Administrator position will not be filled. Mr. Schroeder also reiterated that the generalist approach to Economic Development has helped the City because there are a number of people that a potential client can contact for information. GATEWAY UPDATE Ryan Schroeder told the EDA that there are currently 2 pieces to the Gateway street project. The first portion is north of the existing Coldwell Banker Burnet drive access and the second portion is south of Burnet's drive access. Paving will begin on Wednesday. Once the section south of Burnet is completed, then the rest of the road construction will be completed under traffic. Xcel Energy needs to move a transformer. The City will need to move the transformer if Xcel is unable to complete the project within the next week. The stop signs are in and the 1501 Property grading started (scheduled to be completed by the end of October). Weis Construction will begin moving their equipment in for construction on the Kohl's Store. Customers seem to be understanding of the temporary access to Tutor Time and US Bank. The long -term access for US Bank will use the lower lot to the west for access. If staff would have known about this access problem earlier the site could have been shifted for a better access. DLR continues to move dirt and they expect to be finished by January. KOHL'S The City is waiting for approval on the NPDES storm water ponding plan for the project. There will be minor adjustments for the site plan and the utilities. Mr. Wolcott asked if the road should be renamed south of 80 St. to Hardwood Avenue. Staff will look into the street name issue. HAMLET STORM WATER Staff is waiting for the results of the rock testing. If the rock is sufficiently hard, then the rock could be sold to subsidize the cost of the project. The project will be expensive if the City is unable to sell the rock. The project could be constructed in the winter and the neighborhood seemed reasonably comfortable with the expected disruptions from the construction. The project would create a buffer between the Industrial Park and residential areas. The City is currently working on a purchase agreement for the property. Mr. Schroeder informed the EDA that this will leave 33 acres for Commercial /Industrial property in that area. The City would still be able to construct a Economic Development Authority - Minutes September 9, 2003 Page 4 road from 95 Avenue in the future. The road will go in sooner if a large project is built on the property. The neighborhood meeting on this project was well attended by citizens. Al Boche asked if the expansion of Hamlet Park was discussed. Ryan Schroeder said they did discuss the possibility of adding four softball fields and possibly some trails, but the project is not at the design level yet. Jim Wolcott said that he liked the idea of adding ball fields and adding additional parking on the opposite side of the park. There is a 2 acre site on the Glendenning Property that could be used for parking. Al Boche mentioned that the Parks Commission did include this idea in their future plan for Hamlet Park. Mr. Schroeder informed the EDA that staff may need to revisit this topic depending on the rock analysis. Jim Wolcott mentioned the City is currently cleaning out the storm water pipe underneath Highway 10/61. Ryan Schroeder also said that the pipe has never been cleaned and the City has contracted with Veit to clean it out. The project has taken longer than expected to finish. Staff also found a spring in the MNDOT right of way. The spring produces 200,000 to 300,000 gallons of water per day, which could be a contributing factor to Hamlet pond water levels. CLEAR CHANNEL PROPERTY PURCHASE Steve Barrett has been going back and forth with Clear Channel over the size of the billboards allowed under a purchase agreement. Also, Mr. Barrett spoke to Bonestroo, Rosene, Anderlik and Associates about using the property for storm water holding. Apparently, a portion of the land is in a delineated wet land. The City cannot use this portion of the property for storm water unless they trade property to construct wetlands somewhere else in the City. Mr. Wolcott asked if the DNR was an issue for this project. Steve Barrett explained that even without the delineated wet land the project will still look like a single holding facility. 2003 GOLF OUTING 120 people golfed and 23 businesses sponsored the August 19 event at River Oaks Golf Course. Next year's tournament will be held on August 17 at River Oaks Golf Course. Ryan Schroeder suggested including an intermediate sponsorship at the $500 level. Jim Wolcott said the awards were a good idea and the EDA should create an event that participants will remember. He suggested upgrading the premium or door prizes for 2004 and mentioned giving out sleeveless windbreakers to promote Cottage Grove at next year's event. Al Boche said he would be able to help the EDA get a good price on the item through the CGAA and their vendors. Mr. Boche will forward the vendors information to Scott Johnson. Jim Wolcott said staff should go a head and add a sponsorship level for next year's event. Economic Development Authority - Minutes September 9, 2003 Page 5 INDUSTRIAL PARK EMPLOYMENT DATA Mr. Schroeder said the payroll for the companies that reported was $25 million. The majority of the employees live in the following areas; 37% of the employees are from St. Paul, 13% are from Cottage Grove, 23% are from the East Metro, and 12% are from Wisconsin. Jim Wolcott mentioned that once construction in complete on Highway 10/61 the area will open up for commuters, which should increase our reach for employees to a wider area. CALENDAR The EDA meeting in November will be moved to the 18 because of Veteran's Day. ADJOURN The EDA adjourned at 8:35 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Scott Johnson Management Analyst