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HomeMy WebLinkAbout3.1 10-12-2021 EDA Meeting Minutes CITY OF COTTAGE GROVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY ____________________________________________________________________ MINUTES Economic Development Authority (EDA) Meeting October 12, 2021 Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a meeting of the Economic Development Authority was held on the 12th day of October, 2021, at 7:30 a.m. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 7:30 a.m. by EDA President Bailey. ROLL CALL Assistant Mann called the roll: EDA President Bailey-Here; EDA Member Carey-Here; EDA Member Knop-Here; EDA Member Myers-Here; EDA Member Thiewes-Here. Members Present: Myron Bailey, EDA President Chris Carey, EDA Member Kyle Knop, EDA Member Dan Myers, EDA Member Eric Thiewes, EDA Member Members Absent: Steve Dennis, EDA Vice President Rachel Smoot, EDA Member Staff Present: Jennifer Levitt, EDA Executive Director/City Administrator Robin Roland, Finance Director Christine Costello, Community Development Director Jaime Mann, Assistant to the City Administrator Others Present: None EDA President Bailey welcomed EDA Member Kyle Knop to his first EDA meeting. EDA Member Knop thanked him and stated he was very happy to be here. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 3.1 Approval of April 13, 2021 EDA Meeting Minutes EDA Member Thiewes motioned to approve the April 13, 2021 EDA Meeting Minutes. Motion was seconded by EDA Member Myers. Motion passed unanimously (5-to-0 vote). BUSINESS ITEMS 4.1 Community Center Presentation EDA President Bailey stated we’re getting down to the wire, as the citizens will vote on the Community Center on November 2. He stated they’ll be sharing with the EDA Members a short video that was shared with the public; it will give an overview of what the Community Center is about. The video was played, after which he stated the role of the City of Cottage Grove was to simply get the information to the voters so they could make an informed decision. He noted they’d also done two Facebook Live events regarding the Community Center. Postcards have also been given out at various events to share information and answer any questions about the Community Center. We want the public to vote on this, so asked the EDA Members to share the information with the public on where they can get answers to questions; they can contact him, City staff, or ask a question on the City website. EDA President Bailey stated he hopes everybody votes on November 2. 4.2 Economic Development Update/Business Inquiry City Administrator Jennifer Levitt gave the Beige Book Report for the month of August, 2021. Employment had strong growth, but hiring demand outpaced labor’s response. Employers reported continued difficulty in attracting labor, as the labor supply remained tight; the City has that same struggle. Wage and price pressures were strong; wage pressures higher in wholesale than in consumer prices. Summer tourism was strong. Construction delays increased due to labor availability, supply chain constraints, and high costs of materials; our housing market project, Oppidan, was delayed due to lumber availability. Commercial and residential construction grew moderately; our housing market continued to thrive in August and September. Commercial real estate was flat, residential real estate slowed slightly, and industrial property continued to be strong. With the inquiries in our Business Park and the NorthPoint development, we’re seeing a very strong commercial and industrial aspect here. Economic Development Authority - Minutes October 12, 2021 Page 2 of 3 Administrator Levitt spoke about Business Retention and Expansion; it’s been one of our important missions to engage with our local businesses and help them expand. We want to attract and retain them. Survey letters were sent to over 53 businesses in Cottage Grove; we were focusing on food service businesses but also small businesses that had received our grants during COVID. We want to see how they’re doing and also how the City can help to support them, especially during the pandemic recovery. We have eight in-person interviews scheduled, beginning October 13. We’ll provide a formal report on findings from those interviews. Administrator Levitt gave the following updates: Salons by jc: The in-person ribbon cutting took place on October 5. It’s an amazing facility, which has gorgeous interior finishes, and it was exciting to engage with the local owners of each one of the spaces. They still have 50% capacity available; information can be found on their website or contact City staff and we’ll tell you how to connect with them. Grove80 Apartments: Received their occupancy permit in September; the units have been filling up quickly. The ribbon cutting will take place on October 28, at 3:30 p.m.; EDA Members will receive an invitation to that. They’re now putting the final touches on the landscaping. Caribou Cabin: We’ve been receiving many inquiries as to when they’ll be serving coffee; we don’t have the exact date, but it’s getting close. They’re finishing their interior rough-in, and there’s still a little bit of site work that needs completion. We anticipate a ribbon cutting coming soon. Capp Industries: It’s exciting to see this completed. We don’t yet have a list of the tenants that will occupy this office-warehouse building, but the occupancy permit will be issued. Landscaping has been completed; we don’t know if they’d like to do a ribbon cutting or if they’d like to wait until they have tenants there. Up North Plastics: Made some improvements to their guard shack; they’re in the final stages of construction right now. The Views Apartments: Pillai Builders made application for a 31-unit market-rate apartment building; this will be north of the Oppidan apartment complex, between Harkness and Hardwood Avenues. Boondocks: It’s exciting to see an investment in an existing space, in Old Cottage Grove. They are now open, and it’s a very unique vintage boutique, specializing in up-cycled furniture, home décor, gifts, clothing, etc. We’re excited to welcome them to Cottage Grove. Mississippi Dunes Master Plan: This is the former Mississippi Dunes Golf Course site. This is a master plan we’ve laid out regarding both housing and park elements, trails, and road connectivity. In our Comprehensive Plan, this is guided as a transitional planning area. Last winter, the landowner indicated he was interested in developing it. So, we needed to conduct a Master Plan and study of that area. One of the main objectives of the Council’s strategic goals has been to get river access. So, we actually first focused on the park element itself. Our Parks Commission really engaged regarding the design, layout, and elements we’d see there. We’re also working with other local partners, DNR and Washington County, for acquisition of that land. We held a neighborhood meeting last Thursday with 24 people; we’re still taking public comment until October 15. It will be at the Planning Commission meeting in November and to the City Council in December. Made in Cottage Grove Video: She played the video of Modern Automotive Performance in Cottage Grove, which gave its history, their success, expansion, the products they make on site, and the fact that they have job opportunities available. 4.3 TIF Boundary Change Community Development Director Christine Costello stated the City Council and the EDA work to position the City for growth. Sometimes financial assistance is used to move a development project forward; one tool the City commonly uses is Tax Increment Financing (TIF). TIF provides the opportunity to capture and use most of the increased local property tax revenues from a new development within a defined geographic area for a defined period of time. Director Costello provided the development District No. 1 background beginning on January 7, 1985, modified on December 17, 1986; it was a very small area, and the City has grown significantly since that time. The City and the EDA may wish to provide future financing programs in order to spur reinvestment or new development. Ehlers, Inc., the City’s financial advisor, recommends expanding the district boundary to include the entire City; last month, the Planning Commission voted 6-0 to expand the boundary, consistent with the development plans of the City, which are guided by the City’s Comprehensive Plan. Currently, this district boundary doesn’t include anything north of 70th Street or south of 100th Street; we’re expecting commercial and residential development south of 100th Street, all of which may or may not use Tax Increment Financing. Recommendation: By motion, consider recommending that the City Council modify the development district boundary to be coterminous with the corporate boundary of the City of Cottage Grove. EDA Member Carey confirmed with Director Costello that the Planning Commission vote was 6-0. EDA Member Thiewes asked if this is pretty common in other cities wanting to expand citywide versus a defined boundary; Director Costello replied that it is very common to just have the entire city instead of it being limited, as it was in 1986. EDA Member Myers motioned to consider recommending that the City Council modify the development district boundary to be coterminous with the corporate boundary of the City of Cottage Grove. Motion was seconded by EDA Member Carey. Motion carried unanimously (5-to-0). PUBLIC HEARINGS 5.1 None. OTHER BUSINESS 6.1 EDA Calendar EDA President Bailey stated the calendar was included the EDA Members’ packets for this meeting. 6.2 EDA Comments - None. 6.3 Response to Previous EDA Comments - None. 7 WORKSHOP - None. ADJOURNMENT Economic Development Authority - Minutes October 12, 2021 Page 3 of 3 EDA Member Carey made a motion to adjourn. Motion was seconded by EDA Member Knop. The meeting adjourned at 7:55 a.m. (5-to-0 vote). Respectfully submitted, Jaime Mann Assistant to the City Administrator /jag