Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-19-11 Downtown Business Improvement District (BID) Minutes Downtown Business Improvement District Board Meeting Minutes DoW*)%vw October 19, 2011 H O I F M A FI Attending: Mike Basile, Eric Bowman, Dan Himsworth, Ileana Indreland, Buck Taylor, Chris Naumann Absent: Steve Stinson Public Comments None Disclosures None Minutes ACTION: Dan Himsworth moved to approve the minutes as presented for May, June, July, August and September. Eric Bowman seconded the motion. All voted in favor. Financial Report Chris presented the financial report indicating that $57,040 had been received in revenue to date. He outlined the recent expenses incurred including the second quarter Partnership management fee and the anticipated maintenance program costs. Chris noted that $390 had been spent purchasing some holiday decoration materials. He also mentioned that in preparation for hanging the spiders, the overstreet cables needed to be replaced. The quote from Montana Crane is $6900. Chris said he would apply the $1000 in the BID budget for Spider repairs and fund the rest with TIF infrastructure repair money. Chris concluded by informing the board that the checking balance was in excess of$34,300 and the CD balance was approximately $50,234. Chris also noted that there was no interest reflected in the 12 month CD and he would correct that with Susan Seibert. It was discussed again that the BID should seek bids for the summer flower basket purchase since the total amount will exceed $20,000. Chris said he would put together a plan to seek bids and present it to the board at a future meeting. Program Director's Report None presented Executive Director's Report Maintenance Program Update The maintenance staff worked 7 days a week until the flower baskets came down September 26th. During the fall staff work 4 to 5 days a week which will transition to 3 to 4 times a week with the advent of winter. Their primary duties include emptying trash receptacles, picking up garbage, banner installations, and graffiti removal. FY2011 Y-T-D FY2012 Y-T-D Trash Emptied 943 1340 Graffiti Removed 55 51 Operations Manager Update As previously reported, the committee chose Jessica Edelen as the Downtown Partnership Operations Manager. Jess had previously worked for the DBA and Downtown Partnership for the past three years as part-time event and office help. Jess started working in this capacity Thursday, September 1St. She shadowed the maintenance staff as they did the flower watering and trash pick-up. She began to overhaul the light pole banner program by updating all of the placement maps to coincide with the installation schedule. Jess also did a considerable amount of work in preparation for the Montana Downtown Conference. 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. The City Commission finalized the Carnegie Lot RFP on September 26th, but the Mayor recommended that the Commission wait at least 6 months to publish the request to allow some more time for private owners to pursue the development of their properties. The Commission decided to postpone the decision regarding the publishing timeline until the regularly scheduled meeting on Monday, October 241h The Bozeman Creek Park(ing) Project Request for Qualifications was released on August 5, 2011 . Five Submittals of Qualifications were received by the September 1 St deadline. Submitting teams were led by: Allied Engineering, Atkins North America, Intrinsik Architecture, Kerin & Associates, Sanderson Stewart. All submittals of qualification were reviewed and ranked by the selection committee consisting of the following members: • Chris Naumann, Executive Director, Downtown Partnership • Paul Burns, Parking Manager, City of Bozeman • Ron Dingman, Parks Director, City of Bozeman • Dustin Johnson, Engineer, City of Bozeman • Gary Weiner, Coordinator, Bozeman Creek Enhancement Committee The selection committee evaluated all five submittals and chose to interview the Allied and Intrinsik teams. In the end, the committee concluded that the Intrinsik team was the best selection for this multi- disciplinary project that would require a significant amount of consensus building both internally, politically and publically. The Intrinsik team includes: Intrinsik Architecture, TD&H Engineering, Confluence and Design 5 Landscaping. At least three alternatives will be ready for public presentation in January 2012. Board Vacancy I have notified all of the downtown property owners in the e-mail database of the vacancy. Eric Sutherland has continued to express interest and I have encouraged him to apply. Montana Downtown Conference The Downtown Partnership hosted the annual Montana Downtown Conference October 12-14. Over 60 downtown management professionals from across the state attended. The conference consisted of 20 different sessions held at the Public Library and Baxter Hotel featuring 30 presenters. The subjects ranged from transportation funding to e-marketing; complete streets to public art; economic development to historic preservation. We received numerous comments that ours was the best of the five annual conferences held to date. Next year's conference will be held in Great Falls. Discussion and Decision Items General Discussions Buck asked how the recycling pilot program was going and does it take up very much of the maintenance staff's time. Chris replied that at the height of the busy summer season the bins got emptied once a week and at other times it was every two weeks. He observed that there was only 5-10% of the contents were garbage rather than the intended recyclables. Chris said that he had requested City to provide a recycling dumpster downtown where BID staff could off- load the bins. Buck also asked if now that the Rocky Mountain Rug Gallery windows had been replaced if there were any plans to fix the broken windows at the old Bzn TV and Appliance building. Chris said he did not know of any plans, but would inquire with the owner. Revised 2020 Financial Projections Chris presented the revised financial projections for the life of the BID district. He noted that he previous projections failed to take into account any capital expenditures such as replacing the truck and/or the Mule. By adding in the replacement costs for the truck, the Mule and the pressure washer (a total of$18,000), the BID would potentially run out of funds before the end of the district's term. Chris presented a version of the financials depicting this scenario. He then presented another version demonstrating the positive impact of securing contract revenue to supplement the assessment and sponsorship dollars. This scenario would provide the capacity to absorb $26,000 in capital expenditure and have in excess of$80,000 in reserve at the end of the district's term. Chris noted that he cannot foresee a reason that the district would not be renewed again in 2020 and it would be advantageous to start the district's third term with a healthy reserve. Eric noted that we should do something proactive to not only avoid running out of money but also to maintain a sizeable reserve. Dan asked Chris what kind of contracts he has in mind. Chris replied that it is very common for BIDs to contract with their municipalities for general maintenance services. For instance, in Missoula and Billings the Downtown BIDs receive contract revenues for garbage removal. Chris said that the cleaning contract at the garage would be another opportunity. Chris said that his intent was to present the revised projections and introduce the concept of seeking contract revenue at this meeting to be further discussed at future meetings. Maintenance Truck Chris informed the board that the transmission in the BID maintenance truck completely failed and is unfeasible to repair. The quotes to rebuild the transmission range between $2000 and $3000. The truck was purchased three years ago for $3000. He said it failed with two weeks left in the flower watering season, but fortunately the City Parks Department loaned the BID a truck to complete the watering. Chris asked the board for permission to begin shopping for another truck. The board agreed that we had gotten good utility out of the old truck and it should be replaced. Mike suggested Chris contact Joe Billion (a downtown property owner) to see if he could facilitate our search. Buck mentioned to check with the USDA and Forest Service over at the federal building about purchasing a truck from their fleet. Dan said that Chris should have the ability to purchase a truck should the right opportunity come along. The group agreed. ACTION: Dan Himsworth motioned to allow Chris Naumann to purchase a new BID maintenance truck not to exceed a total price of$8000. Mike Basile seconded the motion. All voted in favor. With no additional new or old business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned.