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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDowntown Development Authority - Minutes - 02/12/2009DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY Regular Directors' Meeting Jack Wolfe, Chairperson 495-1298 (W) Kelly.Ohlson, Council Liaison 219-9814 (W) Steve Johnson, County Liaison 498-7010 (W) Joanna Stone, Staff Liaison 484-2020 (W) I_. ... - _ . .- -- - 1. - MINUTES of February 12, 2009 The Board of Directors of the Downtown Development Authority met in Regular Session at 7:30 a.m. on February 12, 2009 at Home State Bank, 303 East Mountain Avenue, Fort Collins, CO 80524. PRESENT George Brelig; McCabe Callahan; Steve Johnson; Ryan Keiffer, Wynne Odell; Kelly Ohlson; William Sears; Patty Spencer; Jack Wolfe; David Zamzow; Ellen Zibell ABSENT None STAFF Matt Robenalt, Executive Director; Anne Aspen, Project Manager; Carol Bennis, Beet Street, Executive Director; Kathy Cardona, Financial Coordinator; Joanna Stone, Administrative Manager; James Martell, Legal Counsel GUESTS INCLUDED Darin Atteberry, City Manager; Blue Hovatter: UCC; Ben Manvel, City Council; Vivian Armendariz; Jean Lamm, Beet Street; Ian Menzies, RC Special Events; John Koval, Penny Flats; Craig Russell & Paul Mills, Russell+Mills Studios; Amy Artzer; Rich Shannon, Pinnacle Consulting; Eric Nichols, Sullivan Hayes; Gemanda Powers; Marc Painter, Holland & Hart; Tina Peters & Tom Peters, FC Brewery; Doug Johnson, UCC; Christophe Attard, Spicy Investments; Jill Stillwell, Marty Heffernan & Ellen Martin, City of Fort Collins; Mike Jensen, Keller Williams; Melissa Chalona, CTL; Kevin Jones, DBA CALL TO ORDER Mr. Wolfe called the meeting to order at 7:30 a.m. Roll call was taken. New Board member County Commissioner Steve Johnson was introduced. Mr. Johnson is replacing Kathay Rennels as County Liaison to the DDA Board. APPROVAL OF MINUTES David Zamzow moved to approve the minutes of January 8, 2009 as amended. Seconded by Ryan Keiffer, and passed unanimously. BIG IDEAS No Big Ideas were presented BEETSTREET Carol Bennis gave an overview of upcoming events: Frank Abagnale is appearing on March 10"' as part of the Thought Leaders series. New marketing approaches are being explored. The spring immigration series and the imagination street fair, scheduled for June 6, 2009, are taking shape. Staff continues to. work on the . Jazz Experience which will feature Ramsey Lewis and Al Jarreau. The World Music Festival is scheduled for July 26a. PRIORITY PROJECTS UPDATE Hotel: The City Attorney and DDA legal counsel are working on a letter to Corporex regarding the termination of the hotel project. Community Marketplace: A forum on the community marketplace project will be held on February 18- 19. It will involve invited thought leaders and stakeholders from the community to help refine the marketplace concept. The Alley Masterplan and Amphitheater projects are addressed later in the agenda CONSENT AGENDA Penny Flats Amended & Restated Agreement: Coburn Development has requested an amended and restated agreement to accommodate a new construction schedule that extends beyond 2011 for the remaining buildings, and to structure reimbursement based on a building -by building construction scenario Coburn is not seeking additional funding or design changes. Elks Lease Amendment: Legal Counsel Lucia Liley and staff have been working on a lease amendment which would clarify the terms for removal of property from the building and extend the lease term from an outside date of February 28, 2009 to an outside date of May 31, 2009. The agreement will be ready for the March Board meeting but since the existing lease will expire before that meeting the Board is asked to confirm its intention to extend the lease. Elks Club/DDA Joint Project Fund: Representatives from the Elks Club and DDA Board subcommittee members Jack Wolfe and Bill Sears met to discuss the first expenditure for the $100,000 joint project fund. The group's recommendation is to designate $25,000 for the stabilization and restoration of the historic grand piano, which has been donated to the future Fort Collins Museum/Discovery Science Center. Staff recommends approval of this expenditure. Moved by Mr. Ohlson, seconded by Mr. Sears: To approve the Consent Agenda as presented: the motion passed unanimously REGULAR AGENDA Administrative Review Practices for Building Alterations: Mr. Robenalt passed out a memo, at the request of legal counsel, regarding current administrative staff review practices for minor alterations on buildings with DDA facade easements to see if the Board preferred to continue current practices or if there is a desire to change these practices and bring all alterations to the Board for a formal review. Legal language in facade easements states that no alteration of the facade improvements including alteration of or additions to signage and canopies shall be made without express written approval of the DDA. When an owner notifies the DDA of a proposed change, staff reviews the proposal to ensure that the request is consistent with the historic character of the building and compatible with the character of the area. Most requests are minor in nature. Major alterations are brought to the Board for review. Moved by Mr. Zamzow, seconded by Ms. Spencer: To approve continuation of the current practices of administrative review for proposed alterations on buildings with DDA facade easements : the motion passed unanimously. Petitions for Inclusion: Buckingham Street/Lemay Avenue: The DDA has received petitions for inclusion from three property owners in the Lemay/Lincoln Avenue area of downtown. The petitioners are Mountain View Community Church, Out West Properties, LLC (Fort Collins Brewery), and GTG Investments (Colorado Iron & Metal). Last autumn, after postponing a petition request from Mountain View Community Church, the Board directed staff to notify owners in the area of the voluntary option, which staff did with a series of letters explaining the process. The purpose was to use staff, legal counsel and City Council time more efficiently by processing more than one petition at a time. Board discussion focused on the benefits of inclusion. It was felt that the DDA could have a positive impact on design in a more industrial area and facilitate public improvements to sidewalks and roadways in the river district. Board members requested a broader discussion at a later date of future DDA boundaries. Moved by Mr. Keiffer, seconded by Mr. Callahan : To approve amendment of the DDA boundaries to include the petitioners properties: the motion passed unanimously. Fort Collins Brewery: Fort Collins Brewery is requesting $605,588 in tax increment financing for both fapade and public right-of-way improvements. In response to comments made during design review during the January Board meeting, the Brewery has made some design changes, particularly to the Lemay Avenue fagade. Construction is scheduled to begin in spring 2009. The project commitment worksheet, which is new to the packet and demonstrates how staff arrives at a recommendation, determines that there is $1,322,583 in supportable tax increment for this project. According to project estimates there is $539,918 in eligible expenses, with total project value $3,476,246. Because of the quality of the project, staff recommended funding above the typical 10% of project cost. The Board expressed approval of the design and appreciation of the response to design recommendations. It was felt that it will be a great addition to a highly visible intersection and will provide jobs to the area. Moved by Ms. Spencer, seconded by Mr. Zamzow: To approve the commitment of up to $324,525 for public improvements in the right -of way and up to $215,393 for fagade improvements on the Lincoln and Lemay Avenue facades for a total of up to $539,918: the motion passed unanimously. Mountain View Community Church: Mountain View Community Church is requesting funding for fagade and public improvements associated with construction of a new church at 1025 Buckingham Street, at the comer of Buckingham Street and Ninth (Lemay). They are seeking $139,957 for fagade improvements and $150,010 for public right of way improvements for a total request of $282,967. The total project cost is estimated at $4,800,000. Because churches are tax exempt the project will not generate tax increment. Staff recommends an investment of up to $119,501 for right-of-way improvements and up to $30,509 for right-of-way landscaping. Staff expressed some concern that the fagade improvements were set back from the street. Board members also noted that churches are an asset to the downtown community. Board discussion discussed the fagade and material use in the plans. In response to a question about how projects are funded that do not generate TIF, it was noted that many projects are funded at a lower amount than TIF generated so funds are available. Because of the nature of the project and its location, Board felt that more funding than the staff recommendation was appropriate. Moved by Mr. Ohlson, seconded by Mr. Sears: To approve the commitment of up to $150,010 for public improvements in the right -of way and up to $87,473 for fagade improvements on the east side of the property with the understanding that the project will be built as presented: the motion passed unanimously. Art in Public Places: Ellen Martin and Jill Stillwell of the City of Fort Collins presented an overview of the work of Art in Public Places and discussed ways to work with DDA on an ongoing revolving art project in Old Town Square. The sculpture "Transcend" currently housed in Old Town Square is soon to be moved to another City property. This provides the opportunity to host annual art creation events. Staff is requesting the Board form a subcommittee of two board members to work with APP and DDA staff to refine objectives for project and artist selection process, to report back to the Board with a funding proposal for a 2009 summer art projects, and identify permanent homes for art. Board member discussion was enthusiastic about the project noting the generosity of the Neenan family donation of the current sculpture and the activity it brought to the Square. In further updates from Ms. Martin, she noted that the North College gateway project is moving forward. She also said APP would love to partner of public art for the news racks, using the example of the transformer box art project as a deterrent to graffiti. Moved by Mr. Keiffer, seconded by Mr. Zamzow: To approve the formation of a subcommittee to work with Art in Public Places on an Old Town Square art project: the motion passed unanimously. George Brelig and Ellen Zibbell offered to serve as -the DDA representatives on the committee. Alley Master Plan Contract for Services: Russell+Mills Studios presented a proposal for final design and construction oversight services for the first three priority blocks. Such services for future alleys will be open to competitive bid. The proposal estimates total project constructions costs at $2,883,900 (excluding art installation). Design and administrative costs will be approximately $354,525 with an additional $53,560 in fees for survey work, a traffic study, a historic structure analysis and artists advisory fees, for a total estimated cost of $408,085. Moved by Ms. Odell, seconded by Mr. Brelig: To approve a contract with Russell+Mills in the amount of $408,085: the motion passed unanimously. Amphitheater Feasibility Study Subcommittee Recommendation: In November 2008, the DDA Board created a temporary subcommittee to conduct an in-depth evaluation of feasibility of the 4,000 seat venue proposed for the SE comer of Mountain Avenue and Mason Street. The subcommittee was given the dual tasks of review of the feasibility report prepared by Crossroads Consulting and to make a recommendation to the Board on how to proceed with the proposed venue. Following a series of presentations by HOK Venue and Crossroads Consulting, the consensus of the group is that there is no need to conduct an independent audit of the work done by Crossroads and that, in the context of the City's cultural facility priorities, and under the current economic conditions, it is not the ideal time to undertake development of this venue as currently proposed. The committee offers five suggestions to the Board. 1. It should remain a priority goal of the DDA and Beet Street Boards to develop a high -quality urban amphitheater that serves as a home for Beet Street. The project should be revisited in 18-24 months and the Beet Street vision should continue to be pursued vigorously. ' 2. The DDA and Beet Street Boards should re-evaluate the slate of possible downtown venues to outfit Beet Street today with a facility more appropriate to the current level of audience development. 3. The DDA and the City should collaboratively examine options for joint development of an outdoor facility that will benefit Beet Street activities and other user groups. 4. Beet Street and the DDA should consider the installation of a seasonal performance tent for the 2009 summer season. 5. Under the broader goal of developing downtown Fort Collins as a center for arts and culture, the DDA should examine options for enhancing existing cultural facilities that are both publicly and privately owned. In response.to these suggestions staff recommends that the DDA Board request that Beet Street Board prepare a revised business plan; that discussion and development of a proposal for funding Beet Street for a fourth year be prepared by July 2009; that staff further investigate leasing space for Beet Street in the Armory Building; that staff begin discussion with owners of cultural facilities to understand their long term capital needs; and that staff be authorized to begin discussions with the City on joint development of an outdoor facility. Board members supported the recommendations and noted that this gives Beet Street and the DDA time to build the case for a facility of this size and to build partnerships. Appreciation was expressed for the process and the thoughtful work done by the participants. OTHER BUSINESS Patio License Agreements: DDA patio license agreements will be brought into line with current City policies, with a $50 one time fee and incorporating all the conditions included in past agreements. UPDATES Sales tax figures were distributed. The sales tax office will be presenting quarterly reports to City Council and will make these reports available to DDA. EXECUTIVE SESSION Moved by Ms. Spencer, seconded by Mr. Sears : To move to Executive Session to discuss personnel issues This Executive Session for the purpose stated is authorized pursuant to CRS 24-6402 (4) (1) (1). The motion passed unanimously. It was moved to move from Executive Session back to Regular Session. The motion passed unanimously. ADJOURN There being no further business the meeting adjourned at 11:30 a.m.