HomeMy WebLinkAboutEconomic Advisory Commission - Minutes - 08/17/2016MINUTES
CITY OF FORT COLLINS
ECONOMIC ADVISORY COMMISSION
Date: Wednesday, August 17, 2016
Location: CIC Room, City Hall, 300 Laporte Ave.
Time: 11:00am–1:30pm
For Reference
Wade Troxell, Mayor & Council Liaison
Josh Birks, Staff Liaison 221-6324
Dianne Tjalkens, Minutes 221-6734
Commission Members Present Commission Members Absent
Sam Solt, Chair Ann Hutchison
Ted Settle Glen Colton
Kristin Owens Linda Stanley
Denny Otsuga (arrived 11:15)
Alan Curtis
Craig Mueller
Staff Present Staff Absent
Dianne Tjalkens, Admin/Board Support
Josh Birks, Economic Health Director
Guests
Dale Adamy
Meeting called to order at 11:09am
Review and Approval of Minutes:
July minutes approved as presented.
Agenda Review—Light agenda—organization is dealing with issue of sale of portion of Natural Areas
land, currently leased by Hageman’s. Legal dept. says can sell with first right of offer and refusal, or
proceed with lease, which is not preference. Land Stewardship and Conservation Board (LCSB) does not
like idea of selling. Council had second site tour and determined would like to talk about larger part of
that Natural Area. Hageman’s has put in an offer on 22 acres (already leasing/using as recycling center).
Not a lot of ecological or habitat value as being used. Would take significant investment to rehabilitate.
Organics make up ~40% of waste stream. Hageman’s is valuable community resource. Council will be
looking for input from boards. This issue was original item on agenda, but pulled late, therefore spending
meeting having board-related discussions.
• Hageman’s provides a tremendous service.
• LCSB makes recommendation on use of open space tax dollars. Revoking lease is not on table;
LSCB does not want to sell the land. Legal thinks in best interest to sell with certain protections.
Hageman is looking to transfer ownership of business to his son, with something more secure
than 10 year lease on land.
• City had taken a position of considering providing all recycling services. If the City did, it would
include organics.
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o Currently not handling food scraps. Have been discussing requiring that compost bins be
provided by haulers in CRO. Different structures are being discussed.
o Landfill decisions need to be made soon. ~10 years left.
Public Comment—Dale Adamy: Council Finance has meeting packet with agenda and all supporting
documents available online. Would like to see something similar for EAC, or at minimum be able to
access prior agendas. Also, suggest moving public comment before agenda review to allow the committee
to add discussion on the public comment to the meeting agenda. In prior meeting, Dale requested
discussing carbon tax—it was not discussed in the rest of the meeting or added to a future agenda.
Recent newspaper article on struggle of funding CAP. Not necessarily an advocate of carbon tax, but have
read ways it has resolved some issues—not just how to fund CAP, but also other social issues. Comes
back to growth—can the board discuss it as an economic issue? Everything should be looked at through
lens of TBL, have full leeway to discuss anything as it relates TBL. Carbon tax is beautiful scenario for
our community, especially when struggle with sales and use tax fluctuations. Please consider raising issue
of carbon tax or other taxes that could fund social programs.
• Really appreciate comment on switching order of agenda.
• Suggest Dale attend August 30 Work Session on how communities go about paying for climate
action/GHG reduction projects/programs/goals. City has been working with CSU on carbon
pricing. It is in background of climate action discussions. Taxes are generally approached
cautiously. A lot of achieving these goals is a matter of private actions. Ex: citizen buys an
electric car vs. fuel combustion—City is not involved in transaction, but choice moves us toward
carbon goals.
• Appreciate comment on TBL. Struggle with how well City does this. Sent memo to Council
about Comcast, which did not appear to consider other two legs of TBL stool. Interested in Dale’s
perspective on the City’s use of TBL in decision making.
o Three legged stool needs balance. Can rework how it is applied. We know economics,
but not social and environment—lack metrics to discuss these. Don’t need to support
economics as much as we have in the past—need to concentrate on social and
environmental. Ex: Finance talking about budget, but social and environment are not as
well discussed. Talk about economic value of a bike route—how do we make a case for
something without economic value? Losing out on things with environmental and social
value. Suggest looking at charts City uses to discuss TBL of individual projects.
Commission Member/Staff Updates—
1. Denny: Continuing to engage with Rockies Venture Club. Starting to work with investment group
from Japan, looking for area for subsidy operation. If capital from Japan can land here, it could be
very beneficial. Sept 7 free RVC event for accredited investors to learn to be Angel investors.
2. Craig: Read article on economic incentives of Des Moines area—war of incentives within ~70
municipalities. Companies moving headquarters short distances to get millions in incentives. Have
made agreement not to do this, but corporations are scoring municipalities to make selection based on
incentives.
a. Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation, of which City is a member of, has code
of ethics that explicitly states we will not do this. When get approached from another
community’s business, first thing to do is call the community they are coming from. Meet
regionally to talk about ongoing projects to make sure not getting played off of each other.
Spend minimum amount possible to stimulate desired change. Working to be best region.
b. Tax incentives being offered, when none are actually needed.
c. Municipal incentives often motivated by job creation. But if only move company one town
over, unlikely to change employee base or spending behavior.
3. Ted: CSU Innovation and Economic Prosperity Award—going after full award; submitted
application last week. Judged on four categories: talent, innovation, place, and overall. Big step. Need
to organize and dedicate resources.
4. Sam: Had tours of Woodward and Broadcom. Woodward is extremely innovative. Fort Collins
campus is manufacturing technology that is impressive. Activity at Ziegler and Harmony is leading
edge in technology innovation/circuit design.
5. Alan: CSU, RMI and City working together on a business EV charging challenge. Test and
demonstration work, micro-projects to quantify charging patterns in Fort Collins. Will test and
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demonstrate technologies on City’s grid. Challenge presentations late August. Currently taking
applications. Finalist will present at CSU’s 21st Century Energy Transition Symposium late
September.
a. Big challenges in putting significant number of EVs on the grid. How does charging impact
the grid? Mostly about data and analysis at this step.
b. RMI is recruiting applicants to do an impact study of EV charging on the grid. Corporate
innovation/tech scouting.
c. Josh is leading ]CAP implementation group on alterative purchasing strategies to enable
innovation and different forms of partnership with the private sector. How do you open the
municipality up to different opportunities? May require code changes.
6. Kristin: Published article on Fort Collins Brewery and sustainable activities they are doing around
water filtration, using spent grains, etc. Neat economical things done to lower costs and improve
sustainability and social efforts. Published in The Pint magazine. Also publishing piece on CSU’s
fermentation program—have amazing infrastructure of external partnerships—providing money,
time, serving on board, equipment/machinery, technology, etc. that department would otherwise not
be able to afford. Bringing in community to create a rich program.
7. Josh: Update on Comcast—Staff were instructed to make sure continue conversing with OEDIT
(Office of Economic Development and International Trade) about goals of Fort Collins.
AGENDA ITEM 1—Next Steps on Growth Dialogue—Sam Solt & Ted Settle
Sam: Need to make decisions—serve at pleasure of City Council with support from staff. Role is to
advise Council on matters of economic health and sustainability. 2016 plan was to have presentations on
growth each month that could lead to a white paper. This led to the concept of an issues book. Idea was to
transform from rubber stamping projects to board creating content on what wanted to provide input to
leadership on. Mayor Troxell spoke to the board to caution about focusing on growth vs. economic
growth. Maintain an agenda with self-generated items of interest as well as “rubber stamping” items? Was
direction we had purposeful and still a priority? What should outcome of the initiative be? How much of
agenda does the board want to control? Rate of growth in city is on minds of many citizens.
Ted: Not clear how the modifier “economic” would have affected the plan we laid out months ago.
Unsure how to talk about one without the other—can’t divorce population growth from economic growth.
Also passionate about TBL and how it is used in the City. If take TBL lens on economic growth, pull in
all other aspects anyway. Hope to continue to discuss growth. Would like to complete issue book,
especially as lead into City Plan. Will take time and money, and not the role of this group to complete.
Discussion/Q & A:
• Comcast issue created a proper process—went through correct channels, committee sent a letter,
which led to further discussion from leadership with staff. Vehicle for change.
o Committee has freedom to say what it likes in memos to Council. Josh can provide guidance,
make sure it happens, etc.
o Struggling with influence and vehicles to get there.
• Should have discussion around process to determine if using the right one. All members need to be on
the same page.
o Is the commission capable of getting consensus?
There will be disagreements, but need consensus that taking this process, so don’t
continue to argue.
• Duties and functions in work plan are from code and charter. Would take Council action to change
the charter. Some have argued that the scope is broad. Two roles: review what is going to Council,
and create own content/raise issues. How do you balance and how are you most effective? Not very
effective with items going to Council. Come in too late. Group could choose things in motion, step
forward, and request being involved. Ex: City Plan—have influence in dialogue.
o We tried that, but didn’t get anywhere—either hit it too early or too late.
• 2016 came in with projections—the committee was being proactive on items to come before Council.
Issue book idea came up—gives board credibility and can reference/site the book. City can be
reactionary in how fast things happen. Could lessen our scope to build out the book. If chose City
Plan, would largely ignore other content. Find the items that need special attention.
o Proposing set of criteria or values by which to consider what to review?
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o Look for items that will have disproportionate impact on economy, become experts, and use
to build out rubric or framework by which to evaluate other future projects.
Tried something like that. One year ranked BFO offers, but didn’t feel like that did
anything. Once a month cycle doesn’t allow for impact.
Choose something moving at pace we can influence—City Plan will be 12-18 month
process. Can request being intimately associated with that process. If wait until it is
well underway, will be in situation we are in with Downtown Plan, having limited
influence. Can have a bigger conversation on relationship of boards to Council.
How much traction are we enabled? Our responsibility to know what is coming
forward? Constantly reactive, until Council tells boards what to work on.
Working hard to bring up issues the commission wants to address, so can submit
written record. Discussions we have never leave this room.
• Attended NFCBA meeting; they were discussing tax diversification. CFO said he was the messenger
and that the Economic Health Office provides the input and the EAC works as a filter.
o In revenue-neutral environment, reducing some taxes and increasing others implies cost
shifting. Political implications. If finance is taking an algorithmic perspective, not looking at
political implications or fairness of cost shifting. Ex: if put head tax in place, implying that
businesses are not paying their share. Shifting cost of government from one sector to another.
The commission did a good job of raising those issues. Next presentation CFO gave
identified these larger issues brought up by EAC. Should ask Finance to come back to
commission for further discussion.
• Ted’s approach memorializes the committee’s thinking, to Council, who we are serving. Minutes are
not the best communication tool.
• At minimum, should react and respond to products that come to the commission.
o That is not rubber stamping—thinking, reviewing, questioning, and providing an official
document to Council. Then have done our job.
o Be stewards of where it goes.
o And get feedback on how it was received. Request an action item in the memo.
o If every month picking new issue, hard to get feedback.
Must be fluid as issues present to us. If have 12-month structured agenda, can’t be
flexible.
• Two tasks—Be more purposeful in issues that come to commission; other is growth conversation.
View proposal to City Council as deliverable. Would involve commission members meeting with
CSU to flesh out what is needed. Commission cannot do that work.
o Propose to Council that ask staff to move forward on issue book. See what they do with it.
• At end of each meeting, consider whether have additional action/input that needs to be documented,
and determine who will draft the memo.
o Document questions, concerns, etc. about presentations/projects and include in memos to
Council.
ACTION ITEMS: Request Finance return to review revenue diversification. Draft memo to Council at
that time.
AGENDA ITEM 2— Identify Future Topics from 6 Month Calendar —Josh Birks
Not discussed.
Meeting Adjourned: 1:08pm
Next Meeting: September 21
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