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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-07-17 Minutes - Northeast Urban Renewal Board (NURB) NURB Meeting – November 7, 2017 1 Northeast Urban Renewal Board (NURB) Regular Meeting Tuesday, November 7, 2017 The Northeast Urban Renewal Board met in regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, November 7, 2017, in the Conference Room, Professional Building, 20 East Olive Street, Bozeman, Montana. Present: Absent: Voting Members: John Usher, Chair Robert Pavlic Bobbi Clem Dan Doehring Jeanne Wesley-Wiese (6:39 to 8:00 p.m.) Non-Voting Members: Ethan Barlow (arrived at 6:39 p.m.) Dalton Brink (left at 7:42 p.m.) Nolan Campbell Commissioner Liaison: I-Ho Pomeroy Staff: Shane Strong, KLJ Engineering Brit Fontenot, Economic Development Director Lanette Windemaker, CDS of Montana Robin Sullivan, Recording Secretary Guests: Chris Nixon, 719 North Wallace Avenue Call to Order – Chair John Usher called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. Changes to the Agenda – No changes were made to the agenda. Public Comment – No comment was received under this agenda item. Minutes – October 3, 2017. It was moved by Dan Doehring, seconded by Bobbi Clem, that the minutes of the meeting of October 3, 2017, be approved as submitted. The motion carried on a 3-0 vote. NURB Meeting – November 7, 2017 2 Discussion/Action Items – Staff updates on items of interest to the Board. Brit Fontenot stated he has asked Lanette Windemaker to make a presentation at this meeting possible regarding expansion of the boundaries to include the Idaho Pole site. Lanette Windemaker distributed an information sheet on the process, timeline and cost of expanding the district. She noted that the NorthEast Urban Renewal District is an urban renewal district with a tax increment financing provision. Lanette Windemaker noted that the original base year of the NorthEast Urban Renewal District is 2005; and the original date of sunset is 2020. In light of the recent bond sale, the district will sunset with the end of the 2017 bond issue, which is 2042. If the Board issues additional bonds prior to the original sunset date in 2020, the sunset date could actually be extended to as far as 2045. She stressed that this does not preclude the issuance of additional bonds; it means that they must be for a shorter time period. Lanette Windemaker stated that if the district is expanded, the expansion area will have an original base year set when the expansion process is complete. If the Board is interested in expanding the district to include the Idaho Pole site and to set 2018 as its base year, the public process must be completed by November 2018. She stated that the expansion of the district follows the same process as the creation of a district. It requires a statement of blight, which means an update to the 2005 study. Once that step is complete, a resolution of necessity is adopted by the Commission. The first step is an update to the plan adopted in 2005. Lanette Windemaker noted this process would give the Board an opportunity to look at the plan and to revise the goals if it desires. Brit Fontenot noted that this district’s plan has been in place since 2005 and has not been changed. He suggested that, if the Board chooses to pursue expansion of the district, it may wish to adopt the RUDAT plan as a part of the urban renewal plan. Lanette Windemaker stated that once the plan has been updated, it is submitted to the Planning Board for review to ensure it is in conformance with the Bozeman Community Plan. Certified letters are sent to all property owners in the base district and the expansion area; a public hearing is held and then an ordinance is adopted at two separate meetings. Once those steps are completed, the plan is submitted to the Department of Revenue for certification. Lanette Windemaker indicated that this process generally takes six to nine months, and will cost $20,000 to $30,000. She then briefly reviewed the pros and cons of expanding the district, noting that the goals for the expansion area may conflict with the goals of the original urban renewal district; public outreach may trigger negative reaction; and the lack of money may limit options. She cautioned that, in this instance, the goals for the brownfield site may not align with the goals for the original area, which has a significant residential component. Brit Fontenot noted there are some tools that none of the urban renewal districts are taking advantage of because they are not in the original plan, including a revolving loan fund. Responding to Dalton Brink, Brit Fontenot stated the Department of Revenue assesses the properties; and it is important that they know which properties lie within the urban renewal district so the tax increment financing monies can be properly captured. He then stated that the NURB Meeting – November 7, 2017 3 City Commission makes the final decision on expansion of the district and may include all or only a portion of the properties proposed for inclusion. Nolan Campbell announced that he will recuse himself from any discussion on this issue since it impacts properties that he has an interest in. Responding to Jeanne Wesley-Wiese, Lanette Windemaker confirmed that review of the urban renewal plan includes review of the principles but does not have to result to changes to the plan or the principles. Responding to comments from Bobbi Clem, Dalton Brink stated that expanding the district to include the Idaho Pole site will result in an increase in taxable value. Brit Fontenot stated this presentation is to educate the Board on the process and cost of expanding the urban renewal district. He then noted that there are discussions and inquiries about development of the Idaho Pole site on a regular basis; and someone asked about why it is not part of this district during one of those discussions. Responding to John Usher, Lanette Windemaker stated a parcel must be contiguous to the urban renewal district to be included in it. She then confirmed that a separate urban renewal district with tax increment financing provision could be created for the Idaho Pole site and may be immediately adjacent to this district. Responding to Ethan Barlow, Lanette Windemaker stated that two adjacent urban renewal districts could leverage each other’s monies to extend services. The Board thanked Lanette Windemaker for her presentation. Continued discussion regarding funding of feasibility study for quiet zones at railroad crossings. Shane Strong briefly summarized the process of creating a quiet zone, noting that it includes surveying each of the three crossings; doing an analysis of what safety measures make sense; meeting with the City, MDT and railroad and getting an agreement on the recommended improvements; doing a cost estimate; and finding the funds to build the improvements. Brit Fontenot reported that he met with representatives of the Gallatin Valley Land Trust to see if they would be willing partners, especially since the monies for the grade crossing on North Wallace Avenue were not needed. He was informed that those funds were commitments from donors for that specific project; and they do not find that the quiet zone is in conformance with their mission. Responding to suggestions from Bobbi Clem that monies budgeted for the pedestrian bridge be used for the feasibility study, Robin Sullivan stated that at last month’s meeting she suggested up to $7,250 in the monies budgeted for the engineering consultant could be earmarked for the quiet zone study, particularly since KLJ would be doing the study. She stressed that this Board can commit monies for only the North Wallace Avenue crossing since the crossings at North Rouse Avenue and Griffin Drive lie outside the boundaries of the district and an adequate nexus cannot be drawn. NURB Meeting – November 7, 2017 4 Ethan Barlow voiced an interest in discussing this issue in conjunction with the previous agenda item, particularly since the total of each is estimated at roughly $20,000. He noted that in this instance, the $20,000 results in a study that then requires a significant outlay of monies to implement. Dalton Brink voiced his preference for putting the $20,000 toward expansion of the district, which will allow for further development. Jeanne Wesley-Wiese voiced concern about expanding the district to include the Idaho Pole site, which she characterized as a “needy piece of land.” John Usher noted the Board has just floated a bond issue that has five identified projects; however, it appears only two of those can be done with the monies available. He voiced concern that the expansion will result in the need for an additional bond that covers only a portion of the needed improvements. He is interested in this Board finishing what it has started before considering other possibilities. Responding to questions raised during Board discussion, Brit Fontenot stated a variety of grants are available for infrastructure improvements, including quiet zones. He stated that if the feasibility study is completed and specific improvements identified, he will commit to pursuing those resources. He then indicated that quiet zones have never been a topic of discussion at the City staff level. Ethan Barlow stated he would benefit from a quick synopsis of the quiet zone discussions to date and a general sense of why it is being considered. He suggested there are two angles to this discussion, a lifestyle angle and an economic development angle. He characterized the lifestyle issue as more acute, while the economic development angle suggests the property would be more valuable without the “loud screeching horns.” Chris Nixon stated he has had customers who like the sound of the train and he has had others who have requested a room as far from the track as possible. He then suggested a survey of both businesses and residents in the neighborhood to determine whether the train horns are a major issue. John Usher requested that continued discussion on this issue be included on next month’s agenda. Update on Vision NorthEast process and findings. Bobbi Clem reported that the group is meeting once a month and met last week. They will be making a presentation at the NENA meeting, which will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 16, at the Beall Park Center. She asked if she should give a NURB update, including the reconstruction of East Tamarack Street next summer and the status of the East Peach Street reconstruction project. Jeanne Wesley-Wiese stated she has typically presented the NURB report; however, she is unable to attend this year’s meeting. She stated that her report has been based on the minutes from those meetings and encouraged Bobbi Clem to do the same to ensure that the report reflects the Board’s position. She then noted that she has been including reports in the NENA newsletter, based on the minutes from the NURB meetings. NURB Meeting – November 7, 2017 5 Bobbi Clem stated that Vision NorthEast has recognized the need to become subordinate to one of the existing non-profit organizations in the area and has chosen to ask NENA if it can become a subset of that organization. She reported that ThinkTank and Bangtail are preparing to submit a preliminary plan for the Edgerly and Tinworks properties to the City; however, they will not have that plan ready for the NENA meeting. Bobbi Clem stated the group has been talking about urban street furniture, possibly in conjunction with the planting of boulevard trees. She noted that the hospital has voiced interest in the installation of sunscreen stations along the trails. Bobbi Clem concluded by announcing that the NorthEast neighborhood will be holding a northside stroll. It is currently scheduled for Friday, December 15, but may be changed to December 16 to coordinate with other area activities. Updates on current projects. Shane Strong reported that East Peach Street was paved last Tuesday and Wednesday. He cautioned that the weather conditions were well outside specifications, and the known result at this time is surface blemishes. If testing reveals the pavement is not in compliance, milling and repaving will be done next spring. He stated that the contractor is not willing to open the street until all concrete work has been done due to liability concerns; and that is currently scheduled for the end of next week. That will be followed by a winter shutdown, leaving approximately a week to complete striping, clean up and grassing of the boulevard areas. He noted that after that, the contractor will be into liquidated damages. Brit Fontenot stated the final payment will not be made until the project has been inspected and accepted by the City. Shane Strong stated he will meet with Bob Murray in the City Engineering Department one more time before finalizing the plans for East Tamarack Street. Shane Strong concluded by stating Knife River has indicated the punch list items for North Wallace Avenue are done, so he will make one final inspection and close out the contract. Update on financial status of NURB fund. Robin Sullivan distributed copies of the revenues and expenditures for Fiscal Year 2017-18 and the spreadsheet showing revenues and expenditures by project since creation of the district. She briefly highlighted the information contained in those spreadsheets, noting that the monthly report includes the bond proceeds. Responding to Brit Fontenot, Robin Sullivan stated that the total account balance as of November 2 includes $450,666 in remaining bond proceeds. Set agenda for December 5, 2017 meeting or cancel meeting. Due to the lack of agenda items, it was moved by John Usher, seconded by Dan Doehring, that the meeting of December 5, 2017, be cancelled. The motion carried on a 3-0 vote. FYI/Discussion (formerly Neighborhood News). There was no discussion under this agenda item. NURB Meeting – November 7, 2017 6 Adjournment – 8:04 p.m. There being no further business to come before the Board at this time, Chair Usher adjourned the meeting. John Usher, Chair Northeast Urban Renewal Board City of Bozeman