CALL TO ORDER/PLEDGE: CALL OF ROLL: CONSIDERATION OF AGENDA: Additions: Deletions: CONSIDERATION OF MINUTES AGENDA CITY OF LINDSTROM EDA MEETING Tuesday, July 11, 2017 7:30 A.M. CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS 13292 Sylvan Ave., Lindstrom, MN 1. May 9, 2017 No meeting in June (pgs. 2-4) BUSINESS ITEMS: 1. Strengthening the Core (pgs. 5-14) a) Fascia Loan Application Andrew Essling (pgs. 6-11) 2. Panel 1 Update (pg. 15) 3. Industrial Park Plat Clean up (pg. 16) 4. Comprehensive Plan review (pgs. 17-19 ) CORRESPONDENCE: ADJOURNMENT: Page 1 of 19
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY America s Little Sweden City of Lindstrom America s Best Community Meeting Minutes May 9, 2017 Members Present: AnnMarie Brink, Greg Shaleen, Sheryl Campbell, Jim McCarville, Keith Carlson Members Absent: Chair Randy Diers, Member Rob Doherty Also Present: City Administrator John Olinger, Deputy Clerk Kathy George Call to Order / Pledge: Acting Chair Campbell called the meeting to order at 7:30 a.m. Consideration of Agenda: The Agenda was approved as presented. Consideration of Minutes: Brink moved to approve the minutes from the March 14, 2017 meeting as written, McCarville seconded. Motion passed 5-0. The Business Breakfast was held on April 26 th in place of the monthly EDA meeting. EDA Members stated that they appreciated having Lyle Wright from the Small Business Development Center as the speaker, they heard positive comments from attendees, and they felt that the attendance was good. Business Items: 1. Strengthening the Core: Administrator Olinger stated that there haven t been any new Fascia Loan applications lately. The program has $20,697.04 available. Olinger asked EDA Members to think about whether or not the program should be expanded to include a broader geographic area and/or to include other uses, not just fascia improvements. EDA Member Brink noted that the planting area in front of Deutschland Meats needs attention. The proprietor is under the impression that they are not allowed to help maintain them. Brink stated that the wood chips have been placed on top of new plant growth and she is concerned about the plants being harmed. Administrator Olinger explained that staff is working on an Adopt-A-Planter program that will be rolled out very soon. Administrator Olinger updated EDA Members on discussions that occurred at the Highway 8 Task Force meeting. Summer projects for MN DOT include the Highway 8 bridge at I-35 in Forest Lake, fogging on Hwy 95 from Stillwater to Highway 8, and reconstruction of Pleasant Valley Road from Pleasant Valley Orchard to Hwy 95. On I-35, Olinger stated, the southbound exit will be extended. EDA Members discussed the available buildings in town. Contreras Construction is moving into the former State Farm building. Scenic Valley Solutions moved into the former Grandpa Cheesecake building. Administrator Olinger reported that a potential buyer would like to look at the old Juice Factory building. EDA Members asked Olinger to find out Page 2 of 19
what the needs are of this potential buyer size of space, height of ceilings, etc. An offer has been made on the old Quick Stop property. There is a potential purchase agreement on Dinnerbell/Meredee s. Half of the LPL building is being offered for sale. Lindgren & Associates is moving to Chisago City. EDA Members discussed the possibility of acquiring some property between and including the LPL Financial building and Lindgren. Olinger will contact the owner of LPL Financial regarding his plans. He will also put together a summary and potential layout of this area. EDA Member McCarville suggested the list of desired businesses that came out of the Future Walk process be included in the planning process. Elms Estates Redevelopment was also discussed. Mayor Carlson and Administrator Olinger will speak to the property owner. Olinger will also talk to the property owner at the lot adjacent to the City s lot on Oak Street. Mayor Carlson suggested the EDA lobby the legislators for ways to make economic development more viable for cities. 2. America s Best Communities & Blandin Broadband Update: The Award announcement took place on April 19th. Winning communities were: Huntington, West Virginia 1st Place - $3,000,000 Lake Havasu City, Arizona 2nd Place - $2,000,000 Statesboro, Georgia 3rd Place - $1,000,000 Administrator Olinger stated that although Chisago Lakes did not win one of the top three prizes, the community benefitted greatly from the effort and plans are underway to continue the momentum and the projects that have been identified. He reported that the new marketing website www.chisagolakes.org is up and running, the health care facilities are working together, manufacturing classes are now being offered locally with potential for health care and construction classes added, the water trail is established, progress is being made on the Swedish Immigrant Trail, and solar continues to gain momentum. EDA Member McCarville stated that he would like to see the celebrations and community meetings continue so that the progress that has been made will also continue. Olinger stated that the ABC Committee has some funds and is seeking more funding, hoping to be able to hire someone to continue to spearhead the effort. 3. Panel One Update: Administrator Olinger reported that demolition and site clean up work started this week. The contractor hopes to be finished by the end of the month. 4. Industrial Park Plat Clean up: Staff received two quotes for cleaning up the plat of the industrial park. The industrial park lots were part of the original plat for the City. But, over the years, parts and pieces were taken out as exceptions, leaving fragments that are still attached to the original parcel ID#, although they are not contiguous parcels. With the Panel One building demolition underway, Staff recommends cleaning up the plat so that we can be better prepared for new development. The following quotes were received: WSN, Forest Lake $ 9,000 MSA, St. Paul $14,320 Page 3 of 19
Motion by McCarville, second by Carlson, to accept the quote from WSN to clean up the plat of the industrial park for $9,000. Motion passed 5-0. 5. Housing Study Recommendations: EDA Members reviewed the findings and recommendations from the housing study that was recently completed for the City of Lindstrom. Administrator Olinger stated that staff is looking for developers/entities to work with to address the housing shortages in the community; which are mostly in the areas of affordable housing and rental units. Olinger recently met with a representative from the Greater Minnesota Housing Corporation, who lives in the Chisago Lakes area and has expressed an interest in undertaking a project here. Locations were discussed; such as, the Elms Estates area, downtown lots adding 2 nd stories, and the Newlander property. Olinger stated that the Planning Commission is looking at minimum lot sizes because bringing infrastructure to 100 lots can be expensive, which drives up the cost of development. 6. Comprehensive Plan Administrator Olinger reviewed Policy 1 of the proposed Comprehensive Plan Lindstrom s Downtown is Robust and Dynamic where Businesses and People want to be. Olinger asked EDA Members to review the section on Measures, which tries to quantify a return on investments. He stated that the Comp Plan will be completed this year and presented to the City Council for final adoption. Once adopted, staff will work on the various action steps and results will be measured. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 8:45 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Kathy George, Deputy Clerk / Admin Assist Page 4 of 19
MEETING DATE: July 11, 2017 STAFF REPORT SUBMITTED BY: Administrator Olinger ITEM: Strengthening the Core - Update The EDA has agreed on the four elements that make a downtown successful; Infrastructure, Marketing, Variety of Goods and Services and Customer Service. Here is a summary of what we are doing. Infrastructure; Fascia Loan Program An application was received from Andrew Essling. Essling recently purchased the former Quick Stop property and is planning to open Nick & Drew s Discount Foods. The project involves improvements to the store front at a total cost of $8,553.50. The loan request is for $5,000.00. We have $20,697.04. The application materials are included in the packet. Highway 8 Task Force Update Minutes from the March 17 th meeting are attached. Administrator Olinger attended the June 19 th meeting. Marketing; Available Lindstrom Properties E-Cig place by Fire Hall Big Scotts, (3) Old Juice Factory completely empty Dinner Bell-there is a signed purchase agreement, closing scheduled for November Lindgren and Associates Grow in Lindstrom Initiative The EDA has a total of $50,000. Customer Service: Variety of Goods and Services: Work on marketing and recruiting a brew pub. Page 5 of 19
Page 6 of 19
Page 7 of 19
Page 8 of 19
Page 9 of 19
Page 10 of 19
Page 11 of 19
Page 12 of 19
Page 13 of 19
Page 14 of 19
STAFF REPORT MEETING DATE: July 11, 2017 SUBMITTED BY: Administrator Olinger ITEM: Panel 1 Update The building has been demolished. All is ready for a company. Action to be considered: Page 15 of 19
STAFF REPORT MEETING DATE: July 11, 2017 SUBMITTED BY: Administrator Olinger ITEM: Industrial Park Plat Clean up WSN in Forest Lake is working on the plat clean up. Page 16 of 19
MEETING DATE: July 11, 2017 STAFF REPORT SUBMITTED BY: Administrator Olinger ITEM: Comprehensive Plan Please review and add or remove. Are these the appropriate Goals and Actions? What are appropriate ways to measure success of our programs and investments in downtown? POLICY 1. LINDSTROM'S DOWNTOWN IS ROBUST AND DYNAMIC WHERE BUSINESSES AND PEOPLE WANT TO BE Lindstrom is the place to be in southern Chisago County for business, recreation, and tourism. 1.0 GOALS GOAL 1.1 Action 1.1.1 Action 1.1.2 Action 1.1.3 Preserving the downtown character as a place for people to visit and gather Partner with Chamber of Commerce and local businesses to provide events. Complete a Downtown Plan. Evaluate and improve bicycle and pedestrian connections to downtown from surrounding residential neighborhoods. Action 1.1.4 Investigate opportunities to strengthen connections to the lakes including through public space on the lakes. Action 1.1.5 Action 1.1.6 Action 1.1.7 Action 1.1.8 Action 1.1.9 Add outdoor places for seating and gathering within the downtown. Optimize public parking on-street and off-street. Strategically add bicycle parking throughout the downtown. Explore space options for a centralized downtown farmer s market. Explore street fair/open streets event on streets close to downtown. GOAL 1.2 Action 1.2.1 Action 1.2.2 Encourage the diversification and resiliency of downtown businesses Perform a market study to assist with the development of profile to communicate the potential market area, especially based on the number of people that travel through the city. Explore grant/funding programs for rehabilitation/redevelopment of Page 17 of 19
Action 1.2.3 Action 1.2.4 Action 1.2.5 Action 1.2.6 GOAL 1.3 Action 1.3.1 Action 1.3.2 Action 1.3.3 Action 1.3.4 GOAL 1.4 Action 1.4.1 Action 1.4.2 Action 1.4.3 buildings downtown. Review zoning ordinances to remove barriers to mixed use and other downtown businesses (ex: breweries). Encourage the development of hotel/bed & breakfasts in downtown through zoning and other avenues. Conduct a Downtown Summit every three years to support the development of an identify and marketing program for downtown Lindstrom. Explore pop-up projects and opportunities, such as temporary retail installations, food trucks, temporary parks/outdoor spaces, business incubators, etc. Plan for complementary commercial districts elsewhere in the City to promote the vitality of the downtown Conduct a land use/zoning study to identify potential commercial districts and evaluate appropriate zoning regulations to support their development. Establishing a clearer connection between the commercial area on Highway 8 at County Road 14/Lincoln Road and downtown. Explore zoning regulations to limit the amount (%) of office space on first floor/store fronts in downtown. Explore opportunities to convert surface parking in the downtown to more active uses. Increase visibility of Lindstrom as a destination for visitors Work with Chamber of Commerce to advertise the area. Expand social media presence. Hold events that link with the Swedish heritage of city 2.0 MEASURES Percent of vacancies in downtown commercial buildings-<5%, keep vacancy rate under 5% Average lease per square foot of commercial space on Highway 8- Number of businesses in Lindstrom-95; increase by 5 businesses by 2015 Commercial/industrial market value-$28,031,147, 8.78%, as percent of whole increase by 2% per year Commercial/industrial tax capacity-$503,770,14.43%, as percent of whole, increase by 2% per year Page 18 of 19
Add 25 new living wage jobs and 40 part-time jobs in the community by 2020 Reduce the 72% commuters to 60% by 2020. one new lodging option in town by 2020 Website hits per year to increase each year by 5% Ensure the continuing viability of the Karl Oscar Days Event Attendance estimate of annual events (or number of events) Number of farmers market vendors Number of new business start-ups (jobs created) ACTION: Thoughts? Comments? Page 19 of 19