The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutEconomic Advisory Commission - Minutes - 09/19/20121 Minutes City of Fort Collins Economic Advisory Commission Regular Meeting 300 LaPorte Ave City Hall September 19, 2012 11:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. For Reference: Bill Timpson, Chair 493-3673 Council Liaison Wade Troxell Josh Birks, Staff Liaison 416-6324 Wendy Bricher, Minutes 221-6506 Commission members present: Commission members absent: Sam Solt Michael Kulisheck Christophe Febvre Jim Clark Daniel Lenskold Blue Hovatter Stu MacMillan Channing Arndt Bill Timpson Guests: Ann Hutchison, FC Chamber of Commerce Dale Adamy Mike Pruznick Wade Troxell, Councilmember Staff Present: Wendy Bricher, Minutes Megan Bolin, Economic Health Analyst Jessica Ping-Small, Sales Tax Manager Agenda Item 1: Meeting called to order Meeting called to order at 11:08 a.m. Agenda Item 2: Approval of Minutes Unanimous approval of minutes dated 08/15/12 Agenda Item 3: Public Comment Mike Pruznick commented that Dial a Ride is not property funded in the South Fort Collins area and believes sales tax revenue would increase if the service were provided by seniors who are currently using Amazon.com for their shopping needs. He provided a list and suggested cutting several other funded offers including the URA Storefront Program, EHO partnership’s/cluster support, and others to fund Dial A Ride. Financial Services 300 LaPorte Ave PO Box 580 Fort Collins, CO 80522 970.221.6505 970.224.6107 - fax fcgov.com 2 Dale Adamy commented on Board relationships and believes communication between boards should be fostered in making recommendations to Council. He believes “stitching” together of the issues in the Future’s Committee, Finance Committee and Boards would be very beneficial to the City and encouraged the EAC to reach out as necessary. Agenda Item 4: Follow-up Discussion Regarding Previous Meetings Sam Solt and Christophe Febvre provided an update regarding the Oil and Gas Subcommittee. They stated that Ginny Sawyer and Dan Weinheimer are doing as excellent job in managing the committee and that the last meeting involved identifying the key issues and impacts facing Fort Collins. Great ideas came forth regarding the air quality, water quality, and transportation impacts. In addition, the financial impact of where the funding will come from to meet all the needs was also raised. Concerns regarding the oil and gas industries resources and their ability to trump city decisions as well as the question of if we should be acting as a region instead of by city was discussed by EAC. Members were encouraged to attend the meetings scheduled the first Wednesday of each month at 5:30 p.m. Jim Clark indicated he would be interested in acting as the Board Liaison to the Bicycle Advisory Committee. Agenda Item 5: Member Updates/Future Agenda Items Discussion Megan Bolin, Economic Health Analyst, provided the Monthly Operating Report (MOR) update on Avago, Aspen Heights, BFO and Foothills. In addition, she provided an update on programs and initiative status including URA Policies & Procedures, Midtown Urban Design Master Plan, PDOD, EHO Communication Plan, Mason Corridor, Cluster Dat Analysis RFP and EHO business processes. Some recent concerns from citizens have been raised regarding incentives to local companies. EAC members commented that the EAC did recommend to Council that the manufacturing use tax be eliminated in 2011 and support the tax incentive given to Avago. Sam Solt will represent the EAC and speak to Council on October 16 in favor of the Avago incentive package. Megan Bolin also gave an update regarding the EHO Strategic Plan and Implementation group. EAC requested that they be involved in the group and provide proactive input instead of reactive input (decisions already made). They asked to be invited to the Leadership group as plans are being developed. Jessica Ping-Small provided a sales tax update. August net sales tax collections are up 12.6% and net Use Tax collections are up 11.9%. High Park Fire exemptions are reflected in these returns. Agenda Item 6: Midtown Discussion The EAC continued their discussion regarding the Midtown Corridor - “What should we be focusing on in Midtown?” Sam Solt stated that Midtown offers a new opportunity for active seniors in Fort Collins to meet their housing, transportation, and shopping needs. He believes most seniors would be interested in renting vs. buying. Jim Clark agreed that this was an opportunity, but believes active seniors may be more interested in buying and owning a single family home. The EAC agreed that train noise along the corridor would be a strong deterrent, especially for hotels. Christophe Febvre asked for clarification regarding examining Midtown existing conditions and moving forward with development plans. Megan Bolin replied that we are now focusing and researching on how people are currently using the corridor and how to enhance that use. The goals include connectivity, integrate the Mason Trail and MAX, develop a parking strategy, provide clear design guidelines, identify catalyst sites, and provide signage recommendations The EAC agreed that it is important to consider bike and pedestrian uses in all of these goals, but not to forget about car convenience as well. Blue Hovatter suggested some kind of circulator be considered, as he believes pedestrians simply won’t walk that far. As we move into the BFO process, the EAC emphasized that funding for short term, mid-term, and long term needs to be the forefront of planning so that Midtown is successful. 3 Agenda Item 7: Financing for young, local companies Blue Hovatter provided additional information regarding Group Think Financing – a lot of people giving small amounts to create something larger. He explained the differences between the two models; 1) a Perks based system in which individual donate with a giftback return and 2) the Kick-starter Model in which individuals buy equity into the company. The Kick-starter is the newest model and allows companies to raise between 1-2 million a year with unaccredited investors. This gives an opportunity for local start-up companies to grow and receive financing they may not otherwise receive. Currently, solicitation rules are changing to allow more publicity and promotion. Nonprofit and neighbor in needs projects receive their funding regardless of whether their minimum requirements are met; other project ideas require all or nothing funding to move forward. This type of investment might give an opportunity to citizens to fund ideas in their community versus raising taxes to pay for them. Meeting adjourned at 1:30p.m. The next meeting is scheduled on October 17, 2012 from 11:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. CIC Room, City Hall Minutes approved by the Commission October 17, 2012