Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout09-20-11 Downtown Tax Increment Finance (TIF) Board Minutes r Downtown Tax Increment Finance Board Meeting Minutes September 20, 2011 Attending: Paul Burns, Vonda Laird, Bob Lashaway, Bill Stoddart, Chris Naumann Absent: Bobby Bear, Bob Hietala Public Comments None Disclosures None Minutes ACTION: Bob Lashaway moved to approve the August minutes as presented. Bill Stoddart seconded the motion. All voted in favor. Financial Report Chris presented the financial report noting that no revenues had been received year-to-date. He reported the following expenses: 2nd Quarter Management Fee $23,937.50; Furniture and Park Maintenance $60.00; Phase 3 Streetscape Engineering $1175.50. There were no questions from the board regarding finances. Program Director's Report None provided Executive Director's Report Technical Assistance Program Update As you can see from the chart below, three Planning Grants or Fagade Grants have been awarded so far this year. The total committed funds for these projects total $18,000 of the $125,000 budget. Keep in mind that the committed grant amounts are only tentative since the actual reimbursement amount will be determined as a one to one match upon completion of the grant work. As a reminder, the Planning grants have a $7500 cap and the Fagade grants are capped at $3000. Downtown Technical Assistance Program Project Name Project Address Applicant Professional Grant Type Owenhouse Bldg 26 East Main Larry Bowman Focus Planning Owenhouse Bldg 26 East Main Larry Bowman Focus Fagade 136 West Main 136 West Main Jeff MacPherson Intrinsik Planning Development Updates The Armory is under the ownership of First Interstate Bank who has retained a real estate agent. I met with COB (Tim McHarg, Courtney Kramer, Brit Fontenot) and FIB agent (Jerry Pape) on August the 23rd. Mr. Pape indicated that he was preparing a proposal for FIB regarding how best to sell the property. He outlined a series of possible investments into the building that FIB will be considering prior to placing the property on the market. These include: • Preliminary Remediation of pigeon waste and mold to allow unprotected entry • Secondary Remediation of asbestos and lead hazards The cost estimate for the primary remediation is $40k. There was no estimate of the secondary remediation costs at this time. Mr. Pape said he has discussed two scenarios for the property: • Sell the property to a sole purchaser. Mr. Pape indicated he has been contacted by several interested parties. • Enter into a public-private partnership to develop a micro-conference center that could incorporate the MSU College of Business and/or the Gallatin College. Powder Horn has begun considerable fagade renovations and replacement of the Black Avenue sidewalk with the full downtown streetscape. The project should be completed in December. Discussion and Decision Items RMRG Building Improvements Chris informed the board that he had been in discussions with City Manager Chris Kukulski about getting the windows replaced at the Rocky Mountain Rug Gallery building at 201 East Main Street. Mr. Kukulski met with the building owner and discussed the options. Chris asked the board to consider re-extending the TIF offer to pay for the improvements. He said we could basically propose the same formal agreement that was put forth two years ago. Bob Lashaway said that despite the board's frustration that the original offer was not accepted in 2009, that the TIV board should "take the higher ground" and extend the offer again. Vonda Laird and Bill Stoddart agreed. Chris said he would let Mr. Kukulski know that the TIF offer still stands and strategize about how best to approach the building owner. Armory as Urban Renewal Project Chris asked the board if they had any objections to identifying the Armory Building as an urban renewal project. This designation would have some potential benefits to the pending new owners whether that is First Interstate Bank or another party. Chris reminded the board that the last development to be deemed an urban renewal project was the parking garage. The board concurred that all efforts should be made to facilitate the adaptive reuse or redevelopment of the Armory site. The board instructed Chris to proceed with declaring the Armory site an urban renewal project of the Downtown TIF District. Technical Assistance Grant Application Chris presented a Technical Assistance Planning Grant application to the board that had been submitted by Bright Ideas, LLC for the space along South Tracy that was formerly "After & and Weddings". Chris said that the application proposed to conduct the usual array of analysis: Unified Development Code; Fire Code; Structural Engineering; Parking Requirements. The space (and entire building) will need a fire suppression sprinkler system. The applicant has expressed interest in adding a second floor at a future date. Fagade changes would also be considered. Chris said the issue at hand is that the applicant is the new tenant rather than the property owner. Chris indicated that the building owner, Mike Dawkins, is in the process of condominiumizing the building and the applicant is interested in purchasing "his" portion. The board expressed concern over the fact that the applicant was the new tenant rather than the owner. They concluded that it sounds like extensive leasehold improvements and they would rather see an owner/tenant collaboration that would yield a larger building-wide investment. Chris mentioned that the board previously approved a planning assistance grant to the Community Food Co-op to design what were essentially tenant improvements to the Gallatin Building. The board asked that Chris inquire with Mr. Dawkins about his intentions to make any investments. Chris agreed and said he would also ask for the applicant to clarify how their proposed grant analysis would result in infrastructure improvements to the property and increased taxable value. With no further new or old business to discuss, Vonda adjourned the meeting.