Simsbury, CT - Economic Development Commission Minutes 02/14/2008

The regular meeting of the Economic Development Commission was called to order at 7:35 AM in the Main Meeting Room of the Simsbury Town Offices. Commission members Nancy Haase, Mark Deming, Derek Peterson, Chuck Minor and Thomas Frank were present. Also in attendance were Hiram Peck, Director of Community Planning & Development, Alison Sturgeon, Commission Clerk, as well as other interested parties.

Hiram Peck stated that the PDD has been drafted and given to the Zoning Commission, who discussed it briefly at their last meeting. It will also be placed on their next agenda for discussion and to make any changes they feel are appropriate. There are then three options that the Zoning Commission has: 1) to continue forward with the PDD and set a public hearing date; 2) make changes to the draft PDD and set a public hearing date; or 3) do nothing with the draft PDD. Mr. Peck stated that if an applicant comes in with an application, then the Statutory timeframe requiring the holding of a public hearing, conducting the hearing and closing the hearing and ultimately making the decision still applies. He stated that as long as it is the Commission's initiative, the timeframes are not as strict as the Statues.

Sarah Floroski - Main Street - Ms. Floroski distributed a handout to the Commission regarding the Main Street Partnership's scope of services for 2008-2009. She stated that they have been working with the Board of Selectman to put together a scope of services that they will be providing for the next 12-18 months, although this is not a final document.

Ms. Floroski stated that as of tomorrow, February 15th, the bids for a request for proposals for design services will be closing. The incoming bids are for the design services for the trail guide for the Rails to Trails map. She stated that the trails are a huge economic driver for the Town of Simsbury. They will be putting the map on-line for easy access, which will also make it easy to update. She stated that the map will still have relevant information ten years out. Ms. Floroski stated that they will also be closing the bids tomorrow for requests for proposals for design services for Marketing and Heritage Tourism Services. She stated that they are working with Kevin Kane because the special revenue fund has been set up by the Town to pass by the grant money. She stated that they anticipate hiring two consulting firms, although it is possible that only one will need to be hired if there is a firm that has bid on both projects.

Ms. Floroski stated that the bridal show will be held on Sunday, June 1, 2008. She stated that Main Street Partnership is having this bridal show because there is going to be a huge amount of wedding business and banquet business because of the Riverview. They are opening on April 26, 2008. The Riverview is already booking approximately 8 weddings/functions a week and are already booking weddings into 2009. Main Street Partnership has been working with John Royce, the owner of Riverview. This is going to help Simsbury businesses that are already here and it will also provide opportunities for recruiting new businesses that are attracted to wedding banquet facilities.

Regarding the Design Committee for ENO Memorial Hall, Ms. Floroski stated that Emil Dahlquist is the Co-Chairman. There have already been two different landscape architects that have made presentations before the Board of Selectman. She also stated that one of the members of the Committee has written a HPTA (Historic Preservation Technical Assistance) grant to get a consultant to come in that will look at ENO regarding the short-term and long-term maintenance. This consultant can also give the Town a much better view of how much money, going forward, ENO will require.

Selectman Update - Mike Long - Mr. Long stated the budget process is still ongoing. There are many wants and needs, but resources are limited. The Board of Selectman are trying to prioritize the issues and trying to do what is right because not everything can be done. He discussed topics like ENO and the Town having to spend a great deal of money just to bring it up to code. He questioned if the Town should be purchasing new assets when it is sometimes a struggle to maintain the assets that the Town already owns. He stated that these issues effect economic development in various ways. It takes properties off of the tax rolls while spending money on them at the same time. He stated that, currently, the Town's resources are very limited and there are no known new revenue streams for the Town.

Commissioner Haase questioned if, at the last Board of Selectman meeting, there was discussion regarding the consultant part of the Metro Hartford Alliance. Mr. Long stated that a review was done as to the contract and what it provided. He stated that because of the limited resources, they did not put this in their budget, although he believes they will still be paying dues to MHA.

Ms. Floroski stated, regarding the Home Connecticut Legislation, there is funding, and Simsbury is one of the sixteen Towns that have applied for some of this funding. One of the issues that Connecticut Main Street will be looking at is conducting a market-niche study. This will look at what the existing strengths are and what kinds of businesses Simsbury could naturally attract without spending a great deal of money.

Commissioner Frank stated that in the last meeting minutes, it stated that there would be a letter sent by Chairman George to the Board of Selectman explaining the budget and defending the budget that this Commission recommended at its last meeting and suggest that the BOS consider budgeting for an ECD Director. He stated that if you look at the money that this Commission is spending and how it is being used, the vast majority of the money is being spent to support existing businesses. He feels that the challenge associated with bringing new business is expanding the Grand List. The challenge of expanding the Grand List is enormous. He would observe that this Commission and the BOS has its challenges regarding this issue.

As per Commissioner Haase's request, Mr. Peck stated that he will be distributing the 1998 Charrette to this Commission. He stated that although that Charrette is a bit outdated in a number of their recommendations, there are some suggestions regarding the Town Center that are still current.

Commissioner Haase stated that there will be a meeting on February 20th regarding the Charrette discussion. She encouraged the members of the Commission to attend. She stated that prior to this meeting, they should become familiar with the 1998 Charette and the Plan of Conservation and Development. Commissioner Haase stated that many things have already been done, such as the studies for Iron Horse Boulevard, the PDD that has been drafted, the POCD and extensive input from many groups. She questioned if a whole new Charrette would be needed or if they could simply take those pieces and see if somehow they can be worked in together. Mr. Peck stated that it is important for people to understand that the purpose of the meeting on February 20th is to talk about the possibilities. Questions will also be answered at that meeting. He stated that they will be looking at three different areas in Town: the center, the north end and the south end. The common thread is Route 10, which would tie these areas together. There will be discussion about the connection and interaction of these areas and how they inter-relate.

Ferg Jansen stated that the Charrette is something that the EDC should be focusing on. He stated that the POCD is very similar to a Charrette in many ways. He questioned if a new Charrette might tell them what they already know. He agreed with Commissioner Haase regarding taking the 1998 Charrette along with the POCD and the other tools, if possible, rather than spending a lot of money to have a new, full Charrette done.

Commissioner Haase questioned where the Planning Commission is in regard to the implementation of the POCD. Mr. Peck stated that Planning Commission is starting to discuss how the implementation will take place. The Chairman of the Planning Commission had questioned whether or not the Town could hire Glenn Chalder to help them along in this process.

Commissioner Deming stated that there was a meeting earlier in the week to look at Simsbury Meadows. They would like to go back approximately 15 years to look at all of the studies that have been done and gather the environmental, wetlands and engineering information. They would like to bring all of that information together and put in on one map. This would help identify what is on the parcel, particularly with the sensitivity to the environmental issues. This will also help people to understand if any part of this property can be used and what it might possibly be used for. Commissioner Deming stated that this would include identifying what is currently commercial along Iron Horse Boulevard, and what could be used. This would also tie into the Farmington River Watershed Association. After all of this information is gathered, a good discussion can then be had about what parts of the property could be used and how it would be integrated into Town Center at some future date. He stated that they are currently in the process of gathering this information, which will take several months to complete.

Commissioner Minor questioned who would be gathering and compiling this information. Commissioner Deming stated that Richard Sawitzke would be doing the majority of this work. There have been studies done in the late 1990's about putting in recreational types of walkways along with other studies. The effort is to bring all of this information together. Commissioner Peterson stated that there were improvements made to the water treatment plant and it is possible that there might be some information or studies that may be beneficial.

Mr. Peck stated that he would be putting the 1998 Charrette on-line for residents to look at prior to the February 20th meeting. Ms. Floroski stated that something should be put on SCTV regarding that this meeting will be held. She stated that copies of the 1998 Charrette should also be made available in the First Selectman's office and the Planning Department.

Commissioner Haase stated that she attended the Airport Study meeting. She stated that it should take approximately 10 weeks for the Advisory Committee to get back to the Town and approximately 3-4 months to have a draft report for public review. She stated that there will be 2 more public meetings. She also discussed the status of the Robertson Airport and where they are in their study.

Commissioner Haase stated that the Developer's Showcase will be held on March 26, 2008. She stated that the EDC has had a booth there for the last 5 years. It has always been a good opportunity to get out and talk to people about some of the great projects that have taken place in Town and about what makes Simsbury an attractive community for economic development. Regarding their display, she stated that, in the past, they had a banner in their display and also a map with available properties. Mr. Peck stated that he liked the display last year; there was a lot of interest and discussion with people. He felt that they should do something similar again this year. Mr. Peck stated that he would handle putting the display together along with registration form for the Showcase. Commissioner Haase encouraged Commission members to volunteer at the Showcase.