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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/18/2016 Work Session City of Springfield Work Session Meeting MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION MEETING OF THE SPRINGFIELD CITY COUNCIL HELD MONDAY JULY 18, 2016 The City of Springfield Council met in a work session in the Jesse Maine Meeting Room, 225 Fifth Street, Springfield, Oregon, on Monday July 18, 2016 at 5:30 p.m.,with Mayor Lundberg presiding. ATTENDANCE Present were Mayor Lundberg and Councilors VanGordon, Wylie, Moore,Ralston, Woodrow and Pishioneri.Also present were Acting City Manager Anette Spickard, City Attorney Mary Bridget Smith, City Recorder Amy Sowa and members of the staff. 1. Springfield Economic Look—Regional Competitiveness and Industry Assessment and Economic Strategy. Courtney Griesel, Community Development Manager,presented the staff report on this item. In September,the City will begin a project to create a city-wide economic development strategy with a focus on regional and national competitiveness and industry opportunities. This work will provide the foundation to later develop and market the community and industry values and opportunities through the creation of a Springfield Economic Development Marketing and Branding plan. The economic development strategy work is fully budgeted and anticipated to be complete in April, 2017. Marketing and branding would occur at a later date following completion of the economic strategy. The City is proposing to sole source this work to Allison Larsen with TadZo Consulting. TadZo is a leader in strategic economic development planning and marking and branding work.Allison worked recently and extensively in the region to guide the regional"Big Look"efforts. In 2014,Allison worked specifically with the Springfield City Council and staff to explore tough questions and dialogue around our urban growth boundary expansion. City Council has identified economic development and the Springfield economic look as priority initiatives,acknowledging a need to understand our competitive advantages and disadvantages in the regional and national markets. Funds were budgeted for this work during the FY17 budget process in an amount of$75,000. The goal for this project will be to generate a strategy and marketing plan which sets clear direction for realistic priorities while clarifying responsibilities and metrics for implementation;the plan will identify where the City is best positioned to 'go' and how to most effectively get `there.' Provided as Attachment 1 of the agenda packet is a detailed discussion of the proposed work, outlining; • Why an Economic Strategic Plan and Marketing Effort, and • Phased Work and Costs to Complete the Project; o Phase I—Strategic Economic Plan Cost: $64,500(budgeted) Estimated Start Time: September 2016 Estimated Complete: April 2017 o Phase II—Economic Development Marketing and Branding Cost: $35,499 (not budgeted) Estimated Time to Complete: Four Months City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes July 18,2016 Page 2 Ms. Griesel described Phase I. Step 1— Where are we now? A. Economic Performance B. Competitiveness Assessment C. Economic Development Program Review Step 2— Where do we want to be? A. Stakeholder Input B. Target Industry Analysis; a. Industry trends research and screening b. Capabilities screening c. Niche and Emerging Industry Sectors d. Industry Intelligence C. Competitor Benchmarking D. Priorities Interactive Work Session Step 3—How will we get there? A. Priority Strategic Initiative Work Sessions B. Written Plan C. Final Plan Presentation! Ms. Griesel said looking at these things will help staff identify the priorities and work needed to move forward. This allows the City to look at the data to understand how we are positioned to be most competitive in for economic growth. It also helps staff and leadership assess new projects and opportunities and how they align with industry trends or the priorities set by the City. Staff has asked Ms. Larsen to create the plan and provide a train the trainer method by teaching staff how to do these things and update the plan in the future. Staff would love to start discussions about funding the marketing and branding component. Tonight,they are looking for feedback from the Council. Councilor Woodrow said this is something whose time has come. In pulling the data together, she asked how many years of accumulation the trending encompassed. Ms. Griesel said it was dependent on the industry. She could get clarification from Ms. Larsen. Councilor Woodrow asked if there is a general standard for prospective developers. Ms. Griesel said again it depends on the industry and is case specific. In the second phase of work, they will go into details of the general targets identified. Councilor Woodrow said that is more beneficial than a standard response. In looking at the categories of entities researched, she did not see women's professional business networks, and other business networks, including the Board of Realtors. Ms. Griesel said they will better define the stakeholders once they start. She acknowledged there may be some groups that are missing and will be added. Councilor Pishioneri asked if the proposal was asking us to hire TADZo. Ms. Griesel said she would come back with a formal request to hire TADzo. Staff had started with discussions because Ms. Larsen has experience in the area of branding and marketing. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes July 18,2016 Page 3 Ms. Smith said under the City's public contracting code there is an exemption for marketing consultants and would not be subject to the same Request for Proposals(RFP)process. $100,000 is the sole source maximum. Councilor Pishioneri said a competitor may look at this as being excluded. Ms. Griesel said the $99,999 is an internal dollar amount, not a State requirement. Staff will bring the contract forward if needed. Councilor Pishioneri said he wants to make sure it is clear they are doing their due diligence. He likes what he sees so far,but hopes the product will be more clear than this information. Councilor Moore asked if they would have a better idea of the timeline once Ms. Larsen is hired. Ms. Griesel said the earliest Ms. Larsen is available to start is September. If the City wanted to change the start date, other adjustments might be needed to extend the timeline. Councilor Ralston asked how much the City pays the Springfield Chamber. Ms. Griesel said$45,000. It was recently increased from $35,000. Councilor Ralston said this seems like a steep price tag. He is not concerned about our brand,but wants someone who is looking for industries who might want to move here. He wants to make sure we aren't duplicating services we receive from the Springfield Chamber and Travel Lane County(TLC). Ms. Griesel said Chamber funds are specifically for tourism services. The City works with the Chamber regarding economic development,but this work will be helpful for both entities to be able to respond to questions from industry and the public. TLC focuses on tourism, hotels and heads on beds. The City is looking at jobs in other industry areas. TLC is funded through a share of our overnight stay revenues. Councilor Ralston asked about the time period involved. Ms. Griesel said 6-8 months starting in September,wrapping up in April. Work sessions and meetings with stakeholders will occur during that time frame. Councilor Ralston said he is excited to see what they come up with. Springfield needs to go out and target industry to come into town. It is going to be a tough environment with the State tax system. Councilor Pishioneri asked if the $75,000 was approved. Ms. Griesel said they have not yet authorized Phase 2 and do not have the budget for that additional expense. Phase 1 will cost about$65,000. Staff will likely come back in the next budget cycle or if funds become available to request completion of Phase 2. The Budget Committee and Council would review that request. Councilor VanGordon said overall it looks good. He asked how Ms. Larsen would be dealing with regional issues. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes July 18,2016 Page 4 Ms. Griesel said from a geographic perspective, it is focused on Springfield. When they get into the labor market and incomes, it will be a regional look. Ms. Larsen will identify how competitive Springfield is with comparable cities with comparable industries in surrounding states. That helps us understand our positioning at a national scale. Councilor VanGordon said the main thing will be the end product. He wants to see some actionable items come from the final work plan. Mayor Lundberg said she had worked with Allison and she was very good. She has a national perspective. They need a sense of who we want to reach out to proactively. It will be important to do the marketing piece in addition. Ms. Larsen has a distinct way of doing things, gets you where you need to go, and is familiar with the Council and the region. In addition to employment,we need to think about our transportation system, projections for population, and how to have more businesses. This gives us an opportunity to better define what the City wants to do. She is happy with what Ms. Larsen has put together to date. Councilor Pishioneri asked what the City will get for Phase 1. Ms. Griesel said Phase 2 requires Phase 1,but Phase 1 does not require Phase 2. Staff would like to see Phase 2 approved as it provides more technology moving forward. Phase 1 will provide the train- the-trainer work, allowing staff to update the plan as needed in the future. Phase 2 is the package to wrap up the information from Phase 1 with an outfacing brand and additional resources and tools. Mayor Lundberg said Council is supportive of moving forward. 2. Downtown District Design Standards(File No. TYP414-00001). Linda Pauly, Principal Planner, presented the staff report on this item. Mayor Lundberg said last time they met the Council discussed streets, and now they will discuss building standards. She asked Ms.Pauly to go over which things need discussed. It was helpful to have a long list of question staff needs answered by the Council. Councilor Ralston said it all looks great on paper, but the cost of doing this is high. He is not sure how they would get existing businesses to do this. He doesn't want Downtown streets to look like the diagrams; he wants it to look like Springfield. Bringing them up to these standards is onerous. Mayor Lundberg said she didn't like neon signs in the Plaza District. She asked for clarification on new design standards and how they are meant to fit with existing buildings. Ms. Pauly said the proposed standards are trying to use those historic patterns. A lot of it is based on work from the Historic Commission. The concept of the new area between the existing Main Street and the river and Glenwood takes into account that development may have a larger scale to it in that area. That area has larger lots and different patterns could emerge there. Council had noted that they would like to see that area as a smooth transition between the existing historic Main Street and new development in Glenwood. Mayor Lundberg asked what size shops are allowed in the Glenwood District. She is not too concerned about transition between Downtown from Glenwood, but would prefer to see an identifying characteristic between Downtown and Glenwood such as the bridge. She asked if they were looking at City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes July 18,2016 Page 5 larger retail Downtown because Glenwood would not have larger retail, or if there was some duplication. Ms. Pauly said there would be some duplication. The previous vision adopted by Council in 2010 was a desire to have more retail space. We currently don't have enough square footage to have a viable retail district in Downtown.Retail, including restaurants and stores, is part of a successful downtown. Councilor Moore asked about the cost of meeting these standards for those businesses that wanted to remodel. Ms. Pauly said only major exterior improvements trigger the new development standards. There are different levels depending on what is being done. Councilor Moore asked about programs that could assist with the cost. Mayor Lundberg said that would be a different conversation. Councilor Ralston said tonight's topic is Downtown, and Glenwood is a different conversation. He doesn't see Main Street changing that much. He would be more supportive of this in Glenwood. He doesn't support trees and dividers as they take up too much roadway and are a huge expense. Councilor Woodrow said one of the busiest areas on Main Street is Plank Town with the tables and chairs outside. They created an attractive place. It's possible to do that in other areas of Main Street without major remodeling of the buildings, but it takes incentives. She has seen businesses come in and improve their site,bringing it up to the new standards. That is not a bad thing.After several take that step,more people will become interested. She wants to see Downtown as walkable from 10t Street to Pioneer Parkway with stores that attract people to encourage them to keep walking. We need to have something like this to create that atmosphere. Councilor VanGordon said this is still way too complicated and he is ready for the next draft. It needs to be streamlined. He wants to see Downtown with the historic look to the buildings. We need a plaza Downtown, but he doesn't want to lock the City into something specific. Councilor Wylie agreed that it is too complicated. She doesn't want to lose our uniqueness, but doesn't want something unattractive coming in. They need to be careful not to require too much of the businesses, and be sensitive to what is existing and not requiring too much standardization. Too many standards will take the unique character of Downtown Springfield away. Ms. Pauly said in the existing code,there is a list of different amenities that can be provided when a developer comes in. They don't have to do everything on the list. She asked if that was a good way to go about the proposed standards. There may be some things they definitely want,but other things could be requests. Councilor Pishioneri said this is complicated. He asked about the 18 inch step up into the building. Many buildings are in need of upgrading and modernizing,but he doesn't want to lose what we already have. The standards look like a full modernization of Downtown. These standards could put off developers. Councilor Ralston said this looks like a cookie cutter,but he wants to keep Downtown as it is. He wants to see something that can be used for Downtown. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes July 18,2016 Page 6 Councilor Woodrow said her vision is a light updated look, but not modernization. She doesn't want o loose the character and personality in Downtown. She agreed the standards need to be simplified. Councilor Moore said there appears to be some flexibility in the standards. Ms. Pauly said the City did ask the consultant for more flexibility than the current standards. Many of the photos that the Council did not like were examples of what current code allows. The next time they bring this to Council, they will show examples of current versus proposed standards. Mayor Lundberg said they are in agreement that the standards need to be refined, clarified and simplified. Council wants to keep the Downtown historic buildings, although there are some older buildings that aren't historic and could be replaced. It would be nice to have new buildings that are complimentary to the historic buildings. Main Street to A Street is her focus in this area and there is an opportunity for moving more activity to A Street. The area around City Hall,referred to as the Town Square, is friendly and inviting. They need to figure out how to make our design standards so someone could design something complimentary. They don't want to lose the sense of the historic area,but need to allow some flexibility. Ms.Pauly asked if the Royal Building fit their definition of a complimentary new building in Downtown. The majority of the Council said it did. Councilor Pishioneri said for him that building pushes the envelope of modernization. Ms. Pauly said staff had done outreach with community meetings and citizen advisory committee meetings. The idea of the setbacks has been favorable. Mayor Lundberg asked who was reviewing this proposal. Ms. Pauly said an architect who works for several developers serves on the citizen advisory committee. They plan on doing more outreach to the development community. Mayor Lundberg said it is important to check in with the developers about these standards since they would be most likely to invest in Downtown. Ms. Pauly said they did have a real estate appraiser on the committee. Councilor Wylie said she would like staff to find out from developers what is feasible and what is not. Councilor Ralston spoke about incentives and said he is not supportive of the city providing funds. Ms. Pauly said some of the public improvements the Council has approved such as downtown lighting provide incentives. Mayor Lundberg said businesses want to come. Councilor Woodrow said other stores encourage others. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes July 18,2016 Page 7 Mayor Lundberg said the block where Plank Town is located looks the best. The buildings have colors that complement each other and look warm and friendly. It is reflective of early Downtown Springfield. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 6:30 p.m. Minutes Recorder—Amy Sowa Christine L. Lundb rg Mayor Attest: Amy Sow City Recorder