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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCEDC Minutes 2006-12-06 RegularCommunity and Economic Development Committee Minutes December 6, 2006 The Community and Economic Development Committee met on Wednesday, December 6, 2006, at 8 a.m., in the second floor conference room of City Hall, 910 S. Friendswood Drive, Friendswood, Texas, with the following members present: Chair, Deirdre Carey Brown, Vice Chair, Kirk Lippert; Karin Massicott; Pauline Moore; Bill Provenzano; and, Dr. Hilmar Zeissig. Also present were Council Member Liaison Laura Ewing; Friendswood Chamber President Carol Jones; Planning and Zoning representative Marcus Rives; Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership representative Janet Stoney; Jackie Hutto of Griffin Integrated Marketing; and, resident Brett Nichols. Staff members present were Karen Capps and Bo McDaniel. Absent from the meeting were: Jamie Ballard, Jon Olansen, Ed Sebesta, Trish Hanks, Don Gartman, and Michelle Arnold. 1. Call to Order. The meeting was called to order at 8:07 a.m. with a quorum present. 2. Roll Call. There was roll call and introductions were made. 3. Approval of Minutes. Kirk Lippert made a motion to approve the October 4, 2006 minutes. The motion was seconded by Bill Provenzano. Deirdre Brown made a motion to amend the minutes in paragraph four. The motion to amend was seconded by Kirk Lippert and it passed unanimously in the committee. The motion to approve the October 4, 2006 minutes as amended passed unanimously. Dr. Hilmar Zeissig made a motion to approve the November 8, 2006 meeting minutes. The motion was seconded by Bill Provenzano and it passed unanimously in the committee. Kirk Lippert made a motion to approve the November 12, 2006 meeting minutes. The motion was seconded by Dr. Hilmar Zeissig and it passed unanimously in the committee. Dr. Hilmar Zeissig made a motion to approve the amended August 2, 2006 meeting minutes. It was seconded by Bill Provenzano and it passed unanimously in the committee. 4. Subcommittee Chair Reports. A. Bill Provenzano reported on the Strategic Planning subcommittee. Bill is crafting a survey that can be used for businesses that recently located to Friendswood regarding their experience with the development process. The purpose of the survey would be to learn what can be done to expedite or improve the development process. He asked staff to provide a list of 20 businesses that opened recently or in the last year to survey. There was also discussion regarding surveying businesses that did not locate in Friendswood. Karen Capps provided the status on updating the statistical portion of Vision 2020. She said the Prof. Ted Cummings of UHCL agreed to oversee the project beginning in January, with the assistance of a professor of economics and a few students. Prof. Cummings will attend the January CEDC meeting to discuss this with the committee. B. Karin Massicott reported on the Community Outreach subcommittee. Karin has researched local events in which CEDC members might attend. She suggested the BACREN and Chamber monthly luncheons in addition to a spotlight table at the Chamber's luncheon. Karin stated she received a list of businesses to visit from Karen Capps and is drafting a business retention survey for these visits. The committee discussed whether to consider a town hall meeting on economic development at this time. It was decided that it would be best to hold a town hall forum meeting after Vision 2020 is updated and discussed with City Council. C. Kirk Lippert reported on the Finance subcommittee and stated he is developing a list of CEOs that live in the city who have their businesses elsewhere in order to contact and pursue if compatible with the city. He requested staff to provide him with a target market list by NAICS codes. 5. Discussion and possible action. A. The Why Economic Development Now PowerPoint presentation was discussed and modifications were recommended by the members. It was discussed that some pictures would need to be replaced in the presentation. Griffin Marketing will revamp the presentation to get it ready for placement on the City's municipal channel. The new presentation will be presented at the January 2007 meeting for consideration. B. CEDC members discussed the December 4, 2006 work session with City Council and items that will need following up. Related to Council's questions on why businesses hesitate to be located in Friendswood, CEDC discussed the "English as the Official Language" issue and the public perception and potential effect on current economic development projects. The CEDC considered proposed language for a recommendation regarding the subject to make to City Council. The proposed language did not meet member's approval. A motion was made by Hilmar Zeissig and seconded by Deirdre Brown in favor of sending a written recommendation on the "English as the Official Language" issue, with the actual language for the recommendation being the subject of a separate motion. A discussion ensured, and several members expressed concern with personally taking a position because of the corporate policies of their employers. The motion was tabled. Chair Brown said she would contact the Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem to communicate that the Committee considered the issue. Members were also encouraged to contact City Council Members in their individual capacity if they have concerns with the issue. 6. Reports. A motion was made by Deirdre Brown to table the remaining agenda items due to time constraints. Bill Provenzano seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. 7. Adiournment. The meeting was adjourned at 10:10 a.m.