Also present: Bryan Blazak, Town Council Liaison.
Absent: None.
Mr. Barry Aye
Mr. Godoy Aye
Ms. Hill Aye
Mr. Madsen Aye
Ms. Stoming Aye
Mr. DeYoung Aye
The nomination vote carried unanimously and John DeYoung was elected President.
Vice-President: Mr. Barry nominated Rob Godoy; Mr. Madsen seconded the nomination. Hearing no further nominations, Mr. DeYoung called a roll-call vote:
Mr. Barry Aye
Mr. Godoy Aye
Ms. Hill Aye
Mr. Madsen Aye
Ms. Stoming Aye
Mr. DeYoung Aye
The nomination vote carried unanimously and Rob Godoy was elected Vice-President.
Recording Secretary: Ms. Hill nominated herself; Ms. Stoming seconded the motion. Hearing no further nominations, Mr. DeYoung called a roll-call vote.
Mr. Barry Aye
Mr. Godoy Aye
Ms. Hill Aye
Mr. Madsen Aye
Ms. Stoming Aye
Mr. DeYoung Aye
The nomination vote carried unanimously and Erica Hill was elected Recording Secretary.
Mr. DeYoung advised that the Town Council will be appointing another member to the EDC at their meeting later that evening.
Mr. Blazak advised that the Town Council will be naming a new Building and Planning Director at their meeting later that night, and with his experience, he may be able to help with this endeavor.
Mr. DeYoung advised that they are keeping that in the TIF District starting at Wall Street and U.S. 41 to the southern end of the TIF District and added that two more licenses should be available after the U.S. Census data is completed.
Discussion ensued.
Mr. Blazak stated that he would make some telephone calls and see if he can make some progress.
Mr. DeYoung stated that he would like to delve into the façade grant beautification project at the next meeting in a study session manner and work on something that they could take to the Town Council for consideration.
Mr. Madsen inquired about having a monthly study session. Mr. DeYoung responded that they would discuss it at the next meeting and formulate the direction for the year.
The Members discussed the impact that COVID-19 has taken on the Committee and the community and the logistics of being able to have all members present at the meeting in person.
Respectfully submitted;
Margaret R. Abernathy, Recording Secretary
St. John Economic Development Committee
Also present: Sergio Mendoza, Building and Planning Director; Jennifer Matyas, Administrative Assistant; Joey Lax-Salinas, prior EDC Member; and Bryan Blazak, Town Council Liaison.
Absent: Erica Hill, Recording Secretary.
Mr. DeYoung asked for input. The consensus was to use the form almost verbatim but change “project cost” to “estimated project cost”.
The Members discussed the percentage formulations in the packet and the areas in which to allocate funds. Mr. Blazak advised that the budget is already set with funds earmarked for this year, so the fund parameters for this year would be minimal.
Discussion ensued regarding who would decide if funds are awarded. Mr. Blazak advised that the EDC would likely make a recommendation to the Town Council, who would then make the final decision.
Mr. Mendoza advised that most façade grants usually have a checklist of what needs to be provided that is checked by Building and Planning, then it would go to the appropriate board or commission for a decision.
Mr. Mendoza explained how the façade grant process in Hobart was a rebate program where the applicant does all the work upfront and gets reimbursed.
The Committee discussed the funding and the use of TIF Funds for the grant program. Mr. Mendoza advised that TIF Funds can only be used inside the TIF Districts.
Mr. Dravet, IT Director, displayed the TIF map on the media screen. Discussion ensued.
Mr. Mendoza stated that criteria would be set to determine which projects would be eligible to receive grant fund consideration. He advised that the Board of Appeals does not need to participate unless the petitioner would need a variance of some sort.
It was suggested that perhaps the Code Enforcement Officer could chime in about properties needing a façade improvement.
When asked if a redevelopment agreement would be needed, Mr. Mendoza responded that there should be a façade grant agreement in place that would also carry over to any new owner(s) to maintain those façade improvement for a specified length of time to protect the investment made by the grant funds.
Mr. DeYoung requested to have a subcommittee meet with him to go over the ins and outs of a façade grant program. Mr. Mendoza agreed to do so but asked for time to get familiarized with the Town’s TIF guidelines.
Mr. Godoy recommended thinking about the additional funding source for “one-offs”. Mr. Blazak noted that the funding would be impacted by the Town Council’s input.
Mr. Mendoza advised that it would be a good idea to add language where if an application is submitted by a contractor who will do the work, that the contractor must submit two quotes or estimates from other contractors to validate the costs.
Discussion ensued regarding when they can meet with Mr. Mendoza again.
Mr. DeYoung laid out a projected timeline for preparing the application and façade grant program packet for final review. He stated that Mr. Fred Terpstra is going to be attending the next meeting as a guest speaker to discuss the processes he followed to bring Culver’s to St. John.
Discussion ensued about money and the timeframe it would take to get this program started, and Mr. Blazak responded that he will look into the funding available.
Mr. Lax-Salinas recommended keeping photographic documentation of the work done for marketing purposes.
Respectfully submitted;
Margaret R. Abernathy, Recording Secretary
St. John Economic Development Committee
Also present: Michael Aurelio, Town Council Liaison, and Beth Hernandez, Clerk-Treasurer.
Absent: Erica Hill, Recording Secretary, and Karl Madsen.
Ms. Hernandez gave a summary of the inception of this award and thanked the EDC for taking on this project. The nomination form was read:
“Welch’s does so much for the community. They give back to first responders, veterans. They take care of the elderly. They are involved with behind-the-scenes improvements. They have been a community fixture for nearly 70 years.”
Ms. Hernandez presented Ed Welch with the award.
The Members reviewed the program guideline bullet points. Mr. DeYoung stopped reading and entertained any remarks or suggested changes. It was recommended that signage be added to bullet point 4 along with the ordinance for signage.
The members discussed the verbiage concerning the reimbursement amount and it was recommended that “up to” be added to the maximum percentage in bullet point 11.
A discussion was had about the application wherein it was decided to add language that applicants may be asked to make a presentation to the EDC. Where it says “attend all EDC meetings” should be changed to “attend initial EDC meeting”.
Mr. DeYoung advised that they will do this award once a year to start. If other funds become available, the Committee possibly could add additional calls for applications.
The wording for the reimbursement was clarified to show that reimbursement requests will be reviewed by the Committee and approve the reimbursement after all the rebate documents are approved.
Adding verbiage that a petitioner may reapply for another grant or additional funding after maintaining the property that has received the grant prior for the required three years.
The addition of a clause that the program is subject to change in the preamble was recommended.
The Chamber of Commerce was mentioned as a possible contributor to assist with the program.
The Members decided to use a yes or no check box to ask if there is a tenant.
Discussion ensued regarding liens and mortgages and decided to remove “date of mortgage, original amount, and current balance” and leave the rest.
For leases, the Committee felt that there needs to be a provision for lessees to apply for the program.
After the members agreed they were comfortable with the revisions, Mr. DeYoung stated that he will make those additions and corrections and have the same printed for the next meeting as well as send it via email beforehand. If the EDC approves the documentation, it will be sent to the Town Council for their approval.
Mr. Godoy stated that it might be advantageous to discuss changing the ordinance prohibiting the use of alcohol in parks to allow it for special events, it could mean more events and bringing more exposure and business into town.
Respectfully submitted;
Margaret R. Abernathy, Recording Secretary
St. John Economic Development Committee
Mr. Godoy made a motion to approve the meeting minutes of January 27, 2021; Ms. Stoming seconded the motion. Motion carried unanimously.
Mr. Barry made a motion to approve the meeting minutes of February 24, 2021; Mr. Beezhold seconded the motion. Motion carried unanimously.
Mr. Beezhold made a motion to approve the meeting minutes of April 28, 2021; Mr. Godoy seconded the motion. Motion carried unanimously.
It was noted that a notary would be required to be at the meetings to witness the agreement when signed.
Mr. Godoy made a motion to accept and approve the Façade Beautification Program document as amended during this meeting; Mr. Barry seconded the motion.
Ms. Stoming stated that she has spoken with a member of the Chamber of Commerce and asked if it would be all right if she were to share the draft document with that member. Mr. DeYoung requested that she wait until it is approved by the Town Council and the final draft is ready.
Mr. Beezhold asked if Franciscan is going into Shops 96. Others said they have heard that as well. Mr. Beezhold stated that it is a non-tax-paying entity. Discussion ensued regarding Shops 96 and the change from the inception till now. He also asked if Wendy’s is going to be in the front lot in that development, other members affirmed the same.
Mr. DeYoung thanked the Town for the lighted signs on U.S. 41 noting that the upgrades may bring more businesses into St. John.
Respectfully submitted;
Margaret R. Abernathy, Recording Secretary
St. John Economic Development Committee
Mr. Madsen made a motion to approve the meeting minutes of February 26, 2020; June 24, 2020; July 22, 2020; August 26, 2020; and May 26, 2021; Mr. Barry seconded the motion. Motion carried unanimously by roll-call vote:
Mr. Barry Aye
Mr. Godoy Aye
Mr. Madsen Aye
Ms. Stoming Aye
Number 9 on the first page was changed in this copy. The copy that was proofed last month said, “Before submitting an application, applicants must meet with the Town Manager and a Member of the EDC” was amended to read “with the Town Manager and/or the Town Council” in the event that the Town Manager was not available. That is not in this copy. Discussion ensued, and the members changed it to read, “…one Member of the EDC and the Town Manager or one Member of the EDC and the Building and Planning Director.” Item 13, replace “agent” with “Building and Planning Director.”
Change 3, 7, and 8 under “How to apply” to read for submissions to be made “to the Town Manager’s Office”. Signature and date lines should be added to the application.
Mr. Godoy entertained a motion to approve this document as the final draft contingent upon the revisions being accurate through to and including this evening’s revisions.
Mr. Barry made the motion; Mr. Madsen seconded the motion. Motion carried unanimously by roll-call vote:
Mr. Barry Aye
Mr. Godoy Aye
Mr. Madsen Aye
Ms. Stoming Aye
Mr. Barry Aye
Mr. Godoy Aye
Mr. Madsen Aye
Ms. Stoming Aye
Mr. Godoy adjourned the meeting at 5:32 p.m.
Respectfully submitted;
Margaret R. Abernathy, Recording Secretary
St. John Economic Development Committee
