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HomeMy WebLinkAboutEconomic Advisory Commission - Minutes - 03/21/20121 Minutes City of Fort Collins Economic Advisory Commission Regular Meeting 300 LaPorte Ave City Hall March 21, 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: Blue Hovatter Christophe Febvre Michael Kulisheck Bill Timpson Rick Price Channing Arndt Jim Clark Sam Solt Stu MacMillan Guests: Ann Hutchison, FC Chamber of Commerce Dale Adamy Eric Sutherland Peter O’Neill, Energy Board Liaison Staff Present: Wendy Bricher, Minutes Josh Birks, Economic Health Director Agenda Item 1: Meeting called to order Meeting called to order at 11:06 a.m. Agenda Item 2: Approval of Minutes Unanimous approval of minutes dated 2/15/12 Agenda Item 3: Public Comment Mike Pruznick provided a hand-out to the EAC and stated that he believes that there should be more public outreach regarding the Economic Strategic Plan. He is requesting that the EAC make a formal recommendation to Council that more public comments be gathered about the Economic Strategic plan before being adopted. Financial Services 300 LaPorte Ave PO Box 580 Fort Collins, CO 80522 970.221.6505 970.224.6107 - fax fcgov.com 2 Eric Sutherland reiterated his concerns about the financing of RMI2. He believes the EAC should be more involved in advising Council regarding using public funds for private use. Agenda Item 4: Follow-up Discussion Regarding Previous Meetings Rick Price provided additional information to the EAC regarding bike programs in Fort Collins including history of programs, funding and events. He asked that the EAC consider a motion to propose four specific items for BFO offers that included a ½ time program administrator, bicycle safety education plan implementation, funding for national/international event attraction, and a modern bike share program. Christophe Febvre suggested that the EAC has formally supported bike programs as an economic driver in the past; however, the EAC does not have the research or background to make such specific recommendations to Council. The EAC agreed and suggested that the Bike Advisory Committee would be more appropriate venue for this request. The motion has been tabled at this time. Mayor Weitkunat attended the meeting and vocalized her appreciation for the Economic Advisory Commission. She commented that she would like to see the EAC play a bigger role in advising the Council on Economic Health policy and direction and vocalize their recommendations more effectively. The EAC has forwarded recommendations to Council by memo in the past and will seek more effective and direct ways to make their recommendations heard. They currently follow the 6-month calendar as a map to upcoming, important topics to be considered by the Council. The EAC also requested that Council send recommendation requests to them directly as needed. Agenda Item 5: Member Updates/Future Agenda Items Discussion No updates were provided. Agenda items for the April meeting will include the KFCG 2011 report, Economic Research (Dr. Henrique Barreto), and the Economic Health BFO offers. In addition, the Finance Department will provide a brief report on current and long-range strategic issues and what the EAC should keep their eyes on. Agenda Item 6: KFCG Funding Report Postponed until April Agenda Item 7: Economic Research – Dr. Henrique Barreto Postponed until April Agenda Item 8: Economic Strategic Plan Josh Birks provided a copy of the most recent draft Economic Strategic Plan in advance of the meeting to the EAC members and asked them to consider the following questions: 1. Do you have any overall comments/concerns about the plan? 2. Does the Vision statement and the guiding principles as set forth in the plan resonate with overall community values? 3. The four key objectives provide broad direction to the City and the community regarding economic health. Do these objectives encompass the activities necessary to preserve our Economic Health? 4. Which of the three proposed implementation strategies make the most sense? Do you support the TIP and staff recommendation? 5. Do you believe the document is ready for approval by City Council? In addition, Josh reminded the EAC that the original strategic plan focused more on specific action items that the Economic Health Office could incorporate into their work and planning. The strategic plan now being drafted incorporates more strategic partners and tactics, as well as specific roles/planning for the Economic Health Office. During the meeting, the EAC reviewed the context, plan framework, four key objectives, and implementation strategies. Their comments/suggestions are as follows: 3 CONTEXT 1) The SWOT analysis has CSU in the very middle of the diagram both visually and analytically. The question arises if this is accurate and a reasonable graphical representation. It gives the appearance that CSU is the single most important element of the City of Fort Collins. In discussing the SWOT analysis, it became apparent that slightly more refinement might lead to separate bubbles for aspects of CSU (rather than one large bubble). 2) Water and gas issues need to be addressed in the plan for long-range planning. FRAMEWORK 1) Guiding Principles – Agreed with plan 2) Vision – Suggested replacing “Pioneering”. It is nice to be a leader in pioneering new ideas, but it is also intelligent to watch and learn from other communities as well. OBJECTIVES 1) Supporting Existing Businesses  Need to understand/fill the entrepreneurial service gaps  Shop Fort Collins First (SFCF) is important  The New Business Center needs to have an updated model. They are good at traditional methods, but need training for innovative and new ideas. The City can act as a catalyst.  Include action item such as “Facilitate” 2) Innovation Ecosystem  Define triple helix – academic, public, private  Include action items such as “Enhance” 3) Talent Management  This item needs the most work – what is talent management?  Incorporate public schools, community colleges, etc  Include action items such as “Develop” 4) Assets and Infrastructure  Add housing  Add transportation and regional connections  Add energy infrastructure IMPLEMENTATION OPTIONS Of the three options, the EAC agreed that option #3 was the best choice for implementation. It makes sense to leverage relationships with other entities. At times, the City may lead, at times they may participate, at other time they may just convene groups together. In addition to the above comments, the EAC also recommends that the Economic Strategic Plan contain an Executive Summary as well as a summary of the Appendix. Meeting adjourned at 1:33p.m. 4 The next meeting is scheduled on April 18, 2012 from 11:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. CIC Room, City Hall