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HomeMy WebLinkAbout3.1 4-12-2022 EDA Meeting Minutes CITY OF COTTAGE GROVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY ____________________________________________________________________ MINUTES Economic Development Authority (EDA) Meeting April 12, 2022 Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a meeting of the Economic Development Authority was held on the 12th day of April, 2022, 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 Vice President Dennis-Here; EDA Member Krohn-Here; EDA Member Myers- Here; EDA Member Carey-Here. Members Present: Myron Bailey, EDA President Steve Dennis, EDA Vice President Chris Carey, EDA Member (Arrived after Approval of Minutes) Dan Myers, EDA Member Joe Krohn, EDA Member Members Absent: Kyle Knop, EDA Member Eric Thiewes, EDA Member Staff Present: Jennifer Levitt, EDA Executive Director/City Administrator Robin Roland, Finance Director Gretchen Larson, Economic Development Director Jaime Mann, Assistant to the City Administrator Others Present: None. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 3.1 Approval of March 16, 2022, EDA Meeting Minutes EDA Vice President Dennis made a motion to approve the March 16, 2022, EDA Meeting Minutes. Motion was seconded by EDA Member Myers. Motion passed unanimously (4-to-0 vote). BUSINESS ITEMS 4.1 Economic Development Update/Business Inquiry Economic Development Director Gretchen Larson reviewed project updates: Project Updates: Cottage Grove Logistics Park/NorthPoint Development: Plan review has begun for the first two buildings. Building 1 is just under 283,000 square-feet; Building 2, just under 493,000 square-feet, will be the first one constructed. We sent invitations for the May 26, 2022, groundbreaking. Cottage Grove Apartments: The permit for the 171-unit apartment building, located off of Hardwood Avenue, just north of Anytime Fitness, has been submitted for review. Building, Engineering, and Fire have all finished their reviews; the Planning Division has completed their review, but they’re waiting on submittal of a landscape letter of credit before the building permit can be issued. The View Apartments: The footing and foundation permit has been issued, also located off of Hardwood Avenue, and the rest of the 31-unit building is still under review. 100th Street Extension Project: We have now received 15 letters of support and five are still pending. We set up the Grants.gov account and made sure that everybody had access to it that needed it; the grant application deadline is Thursday, April 14, 2022. Renewal by Andersen Expansion Project: The property closing took place on March 30, and the very next day the Executive Director was interviewed by Finance & Commerce News about the project, so we’ve had at least two interviews recently on projects in Cottage Grove. Publication of the Beige Book for April hasn’t yet taken place, so that will be reviewed at the next EDA meeting on May 10. Business Over Breakfast: This event was held on March 30; we had 20 attendees in spite of the terrible weather. There was much feedback received during the meeting and even afterward. Attendees are very much looking forward to a September event; in fact, a couple of attendees have contacted us wondering if they can present their projects at the next event. We sent out a survey, but most everybody emailed because they also had to do support letters. It was a wonderful opportunity to update databases and get names of the new CEOs and CFOs of various companies. 4.2 2022 Façade Improvement Program Applications Assistant Mann gave background of the program, which started in 2019; it is a matching grant program where we do a 50% match of up to $25,000. It’s meant to beautify buildings and keep the commercial building stock in Cottage Grove healthy. There are criteria that the awardees must meet: Economic Development Authority - Minutes April 12, 2022 Page 2 of 3 • Location within the City of Cottage Grove (based on the priority map). • Ability to encourage improvements to surrounding businesses. • Ability to improve the appearance and attractiveness of an area. • Consistent with the Cottage Grove Comprehensive Plan. • Compliance with City Codes. • Priority may be given to local businesses over national/regional tenants. • Building owners who have not previously been awarded a grant will be considered before those who have already received grant funding. Priority Map: Priority is given to applications from areas that contain a larger concentration of commercially zoned parcels, as well as those in the community that have a more visible/higher traffic count. • Priority Zone 1: 80th Street and East Point Douglas Road South; Jamaica Avenue and East Point Douglas Road South. • Priority Zone 2: Southwest corner of 70th Street and Keats Avenue; Northwest corner of 70th Street and Hinton Avenue; Along West Point Douglas Road. Funding: • The program allows the EDA to award matching grant funds for 50% of the cost of eligible expenses, up to $25,000. • The Façade Improvement Program budget is $75,000, which allows the EDA to award up to three $25,000 grants to businesses. • All work for eligible expenses needs to be performed after the grant is awarded. • Considering inflationary costs associated with construction materials, the awarded dollars could be adjusted based on the actual costs of eligible expenses. • Any awarded dollar would be based on a 50% match of actual costs incurred by the business up to a reimbursement of $25,000. Projects Submitted: 1. Oak Park Commons, 7420-7430 80th Street South, in Priority Zone 1. Proposed Project: New awnings; EIFS and exterior repairs; New illuminated monument sign. Estimated Cost: $51,295. Applicant is requesting the full $25,000 matching grant for eligible expenses. 2. The Shoppes at Almar Village, 7155 Jorgensen Lane South, in Priority Zone 2. Proposed Project: Landscaping upgrade; Lighting upgrade; Painting of the wood sign bases; Upgrading the building and monument signs; Exterior repairs. Estimated Cost: $27,788. Applicant is requesting up to the full $25,000 matching grant for eligible expenses. 3. Hound Around Resort, 8607 West Point Douglas Road South, in Priority Zone 2. Proposed Project: Replacement of monument sign with a new digital electronic sign. Invoiced Cost: $77,020. Applicant is requesting the full $25,000 matching grant for eligible expenses; the sign passed its final inspection on April 1, 2022, and per program guidelines, no word should be completed until after receiving an award letter and completion of the Business Subsidy Agreement. 4. Lakeside Events, 7404 Lamar Avenue South, is not in a Priority Zone. Proposed Project: Paint the building; Replace the garage door with a glass garage door; Refresh landscaping; Replace the sign; Replace the exterior lighting Estimated Cost: $315,116. Applicant is requesting the full $25,000 matching grant for eligible expenses. The proposed use will require multiple approvals and the termination of a CUP for the previous landscaping company before any site improvements can be made. The County has stated that the current site may not be able to support a septic system large enough for the proposed use. At this time, application for the program seems premature. Mayor Bailey asked staff since EDA Vice President Dennis has a business in one of these locations if it would be easier for him to recuse himself. Administrator Levitt replied she’d recommend we take two separate votes, and EDA Vice President Dennis can recuse himself from the vote involving the location of his business. EDA Vice President Dennis stated to make it easy, he would recuse himself from this entire vote, which he did. Recommendation: By motion: Consideration of awarding Oak Park Commons and The Shoppes at Almar Village an award letter and contract for each project with matching funds of up to $25,000 for any eligible as part of the Façade Improvement Grant Program. EDA Member Carey made a motion to consider awarding Oak Park Commons and The Shoppes at Almar Village an award letter and contract for each project with matching funds of up to $25,000 for any eligible expenses as part of the Façade Improvement Grant Program. Motion was seconded by EDA Member Krohn. Motion passed unanimously (4-0), as EDA Vice President Dennis recused himself. 5 PUBLIC HEARINGS 5.1 7470 East Point Douglas Road Land Sale Director Larson stated the City of Cottage Grove has received a Letter of Intent from Hang, LLC, and the EDA unanimously authorized execution of that on February 8, 2022. The map indicates that it is approximately .54 acres, and the Purchase Agreement amount is $188,179. The parcel is zoned B-2, Retail Zoning District, to encourage that retail sales and services by grouping of businesses to minimize impact on the surrounding neighborhoods. She displayed the proposed site plan for the future home of Thai Garden, a small, family-owned business; the building is approximately 3,000 square- feet with indoor seating for about 100 people and outdoor seating for approximately 40 people. No planning application has been received yet. EDA President Bailey opened the public hearing. As no one wished to speak on this item, EDA President Bailey closed the public hearing. Economic Development Authority - Minutes April 12, 2022 Page 3 of 3 Recommendation: Hold the public hearing. By motion: 1) Approve a resolution authorizing the sale of property to Hang, LLC for development purposes. 2) Authorize the EDA President and City Administrator to execute the Purchase Agreement with Hang, LLC for the sale of 0.54 acres for development purposes. EDA Member Myers made a motion to approve a resolution authorizing the sale of property to Hang, LLC for development purposes. Motion was seconded by EDA Vice President Dennis. Motion passed unanimously (5-0). EDA Member Myers made a motion to authorize the EDA President and City Administrator to execute the Purchase Agreement with Hang, LLC for the sale of 0.54 acres for development purposes. Motion was seconded by EDA Member Krohn. Motion passed unanimously (5-0). EDA President Bailey noted that we took it upon ourselves to buy a blighted property, clean it up, and then sell it; there is a new restaurant proposed at this location. He felt this was a win-win for the EDA in repurposing the property. OTHER BUSINESS 6.1 EDA Calendar EDA President Bailey stated tonight is our Volunteer Appreciation Banquet; it is the first time in a couple of years that we’ve been able to hold this, and there should be more than 180 people attending. 6.2 EDA Comments - None. 6.3 Response to Previous EDA Comments - None. 7 WORKSHOP - None. 8 ADJOURNMENT EDA Member Carey made a motion to adjourn. Motion was seconded by EDA Member Myers. The meeting adjourned at 7:47 a.m. (5-to-0 vote). Respectfully submitted, Jaime Mann Assistant to the City Administrator /jag