City of Goodview
Economic Development Authority Minutes
November 16, 2016
The meeting was called to order by Mr. Dick Ledebuhr at 6:00 p.m.
Upon Roll Call: Mr. Dick Ledebuhr, Ms. Ashley Czaplewski, Mr. Dennis Meyer, Mr. Charlie Andring, and Ms. Alice Zimmer.
City Staff Present: City Administrator Mr. Dan Matejka, Secretary Ms. Melissa Gerry, and Mr. Ryan Yetzer of CEDA.
The Pledge of Allegiance was said.
Mr. Meyer moved and Mr. Andring seconded to approve the agenda for the meeting. All voted aye and the motion carried.
Ms. Czaplewski moved and Ms. Zimmer seconded to approve the minutes of the September 14, 2016 EDA meeting. All voted aye and the motion carried.
Under New Business;
a) Final Draft of Business Façade Improvement Program.
Mr. Matejka indicated the City Attorney did review the draft, and did make a few revisions, but nothing that changed the nuts and bolts of the program. Mr. Meyer asked how citizens will be made aware of the program, of which Mr. Yetzer said he will go out to businesses and promote it. He also said it could be advertised on the City’s website and/or in a press release if we wanted, but mostly by word of mouth. Mr. Yetzer shared his suggestions for inclusion on the website if we choose that option. Mr. Meyer was not sure a press release is necessary at this point, but possibly in the future when we have a success story to share about the program. Mr. Andring moved and Ms. Czaplewski seconded to approve the draft as presented. All voted aye and the motion carried. Mr. Ledebuhr and Mr. Andring agreed to present the document to the City Council at its next meeting.
b) Goodview EDA CEDA Projects handout – Mr. Ryan Yetzer of CEDA.
Mr. Yetzer gave the Board a brief summary of his background and how he came to be employed by CEDA. He shared two documents with the Board he has used with his other CEDA clients. He likes to use these to show the Board what he is working on, what is coming up, etc. The idea is to get a work plan in place for the upcoming year. Mr. Ledebuhr asked for clarification regarding the Façade program as it was listed under two sections in Mr. Yetzer’s handouts. Mr. Yetzer indicated he put it in as an example knowing the Program would be up for approval today. Mr. Ledebuhr hypothetically asked if there would be a conflict of interest if the tenant of The Bar, which the City owns, applied for a project under the Façade Improvement Program. Mr. Yetzer recommended that if this occurs it should be approved by the EDA versus the City Council with the City Council giving the final approval of funds disbursed. Should a request like this occur details would need to be researched before any disbursement is made.
c) Proposed 2017 meeting dates – two options.
Mr. Matejka presented two options of proposed meeting dates for 2017. The reason for two options is because the second option works better for Mr. Yetzer due to his other client commitments. Mr. Meyer indicated he prefers the second option of the second Wednesday of every other month as the first of the month is often quite busy. Ms. Czaplewski moved and Mr. Andring seconded to approve Option two (second Wednesday of every other month). All voted aye and the motion carried.
d) Discussion pertaining to EDA position held by Mr. Charlie Andring whose term ends December 31, 2016.
Mr. Andring would like to see the Mayor ask the other two council members currently not on the EDA Board if they would like to serve on the Board. If they do not Mr. Andring would gladly accept another term. The EDA By-laws indicate there needs to be two City Council members on the EDA Board. Mr. Matejka recommended that this be brought up at the first City Council Meeting in January when Mr. Steve Schacht begins his term. Mr. Meyer asked how officers change. Once again the by-laws were researched where they pointed out the officer positions should be elected annually at the annual meeting. This will be on the EDA agenda for the January 11, 2017 meeting, which will be the first of the new year.
Under Old Business;
a) Discussion of logistics of presenting EDA’s first recipient of the EDA’s Appreciation Award to Borkowski Towing & Salvage.
The plaque for Borkowski Towing was shown to the Board. Mr. Ledebuhr indicated he has confirmed with the Borkowski family their intentions to happily accept the award. Mr. Ledebuhr thought presenting the award to them some morning at 9:00 at their place of business would be the best. He also thought bringing a dozen or so Bloedows donuts would also be a nice gesture that all employees of Borkowski’s could receive. Mr. Matejka said he would contact the local newspapers and radio station for publicity. Mr. Ledebuhr suggested talking with the family to see if Friday, November 25 at 9:00 a.m. would work for them for the presentation. He said he will check on this and will confirm with Mr. Matejka. Mr. Meyer was the only Board member who said this date will not work for him.
Other Business;
a) Newsletter from 7 Rivers Alliance. Just informational handout for the Board.
b) Ms. Czaplewski pointed out that she feels the City should have its CEDA representative in the City more frequently (i.e.; once per week) instead of the current one day every other week so that the individual can have more time to work on things for the City. The City is in the process of considering the current contract with CEDA to see if it has been beneficial or not. Mr. Matejka shared with the Board that the EDA can help fund any contract with CEDA. He went onto say the EDA could recommend to the City Council a cost sharing agreement between the EDA and the City budget. For example, paying half of the cost, whatever it may be, and the City could pay the other half. In this arrangement there would not be any increase cost to the City budget to double the time CEDA is in the City as the proposed budget covers the current arrangement. Mr. Meyer said he would like to keep the cost with the City to maximize the funds available for the various EDA programs. Mr. Ledebuhr indicated he would be open to the EDA covering 25% of the total cost instead of 50%. He feels the City has more to gain from CEDA than the EDA does so he would be willing to try the increased time for a year. Mr. Yetzer said in his opinion that at least one day per week is needed in order to be effective. His other clients typically have him coming two days a week. He said the increased time would allow him the time to build relationships in the community and to work on ideas that are presented. Mr. Matejka asked Ms. Czaplewski if she was willing to make a formal recommendation to the City Council to increase the contracted CEDA time to one day per week. Ms. Czaplewski moved to approve recommending to the City Council to increase CEDA to one day per week. Ms. Zimmer seconded the motion. All voted aye and the motion carried. Mr. Matejka encouraged the EDA Board members to attend the next City Council meeting on Monday November 21 to show support for the recommendation. Mr. Yetzer said he is planning to attend as well.
Mr. Meyer moved and Ms. Czaplewski seconded to adjourn. All voted aye and the motion carried.
Adjournment at 6:47p.m.
NOTE: The next regular meeting of the Goodview Economic Development Authority will be on Wednesday, January 11th at 6:00 p.m. at Goodview City Hall.