HomeMy WebLinkAboutEconomic Advisory Commission - Minutes - 04/17/20131
Minutes
City of Fort Collins
Economic Advisory Commission
Regular Meeting
300 LaPorte Ave
City Hall
April 17, 2013
11:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
For Reference:
Blue Hovatter, Chair 493-3673
Council Liaison Wade Troxell
Josh Birks, Staff Liaison 416-6324
Wendy Bricher, Minutes 221-6506
Commission members present: Commission members absent:
Michael Kulisheck
Christophe Febvre
Daniel Lenskold
Sam Solt
Glen Colton
Ann Hutchison
Blue Hovatter
Channing Arndt
Jim Clark
Guests:
Eric Sutherland
Mike Pruznick
Staff Present:
Wendy Bricher, Minutes
Josh Birks, Economic Health Director
Jessica Ping-Small, Sales Tax Manager
Lindsay Ex, Sr. Environmental Planner
Agenda Item 1: Meeting called to order
Meeting called to order at 11:03 a.m.
Agenda Item 2: Approval of Minutes
Unanimous approval of minutes dated 3/20/2013 and 3/27/2013
Agenda Item 3: Public Comment
Eric Sutherland commented that, in his opinion, the financial spreadsheet presented to EAC regarding the
Urban Renewal Authority’s financial health is inaccurate and does not address a 2.8 million give-a-way to
the Innosphere. He believes the funding going to the URA offers no additional public benefit. Glen
Colton commented that he shares some concerns with Eric regarding URA’s in that they divert sales tax
from public entities such as PSD and Larimer County. Sam Solt commented that he would like to see
Financial Services
300 LaPorte Ave
PO Box 580
Fort Collins, CO 80522
970.221.6505
970.224.6107 - fax
fcgov.com
2
written data and cited sources regarding Mr. Sutherland’s claims in a more formal written presentation
moving forward.
Mike Pruznick commented on job/skills mismatch and believes it is a fallacy based on research he has
done. In addition, he believes the City should diversify its financial support and not rely so heavily on
sales tax revenue. He also stated that local retailers are not meeting the needs of the citizens of Fort
Collins, but internet retailers are. Retail is changing and it doesn’t need to be revitalized, it needs to be
revamped.
Agenda Item 4: Follow-up Discussion
Josh Birks provided an update regarding the Woodward Assistance Package. He stated that first and
second reading have passed Council, and the Package will now be reviewed by Woodward’s Board. He
is hopeful the project will move forward in May.
Agenda Item 5: Future Agenda Items and Sales Tax Update
Jessica Ping-Small presented a Sales Tax Update. Sales and Use Tax are up 4.2% for the year and we
have been trending in about the 4% range.
Josh Birks, Sam Solt, and Blue Hovatter met prior to the meeting to discuss a new EAC Agenda format
with the goal of making our monthly meetings more efficient. The new format would include a logistics
section (30 minutes), New Projects/Policy Review (45 minutes) and on-going initiatives (75 minutes). It
was also stated that moving forward, the EAC would be more selective in reviewing items brought forth
by other departments and more proactive about the implementation of the Economic Health Strategic Plan
and other topical areas of focus. The EAC agreed, and the new agenda format will be put in place for
next month.
After additional discussion regarding the Urban Renewal Authority, next month’s agenda will include a
URA educational training including a 3rd party URA expert and additional information provided by the
City specific to our program. In June, the agenda will include a panel discussion with all interests
represented to discuss the use of URA’s and their positive and negative benefits.
Agenda Item 6: EAC Process Logistics
No updates provided at this time.
Agenda Item 7: Urban Ag
Lindsay Ex presented an overview regarding Urban Agriculture in Fort Collins. Information included a
description of urban agriculture, the project goal, public outreach, proposed regulations, and next steps in
the process. Current trends show that many urban agricultural uses are already occurring outside of their
zone districts. The proposed changes include creating a licensing system that allows for urban agriculture
in all zone districts including a change in land use codes to support farming activities and a change in City
animal codes to allow ducks and goats. Dan Lenskold and Jim Clark commented that they were
concerned about allowing more livestock in an urban environment and the possibility for disease.
Lindsay commented that she would add those concerns to do further research. After thorough
consideration and discussion, the EAC developed the following recommendation to the Fort Collins City
Council.
Mike Kulisheck motioned, and Dan Lenskold seconded the following motion:
Due to the economic benefit of sourcing food locally, the Economic Advisory Commission supports the
Land Use Code changes as proposed on April 17, 2013. We find the changes to be economically
sustainable appropriately supporting a local marketplace in a local economy.
Motion passed 9-0
3
Agenda Item 8: Foothills Mall Assistance Package
Josh Birks commented that the details of the package are still under negotiation. He will work to
schedule a special EAC meeting next Friday, April 26, to bring more details to EAC for review. A
Larimer County representative will be invited to present their viewpoint regarding the package (per Glen
Colton’s request).
The next meeting is scheduled on May 15, 2013 from 11:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
CIC Room, City Hall