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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCEDC Minutes 2010-03-03 RegularFriendswood Community and Economic Development Committee Meeting Minutes March 3, 2010 The Friendswood Community and Economic Development Committee met on Wednesday, March 3, 2010, at 8:00 a.m., in the second floor conference room of City Hall, 910 S. Friendswood Drive, Friendswood, Texas, with the following members present: Chair Brett Banfield, Mark Conrad, Kirk Lippert, Pauline Moore, and Dr. Hilmar Zeissig. Liaisons present were City Councilmember Mike Barker, Clear Creek ISD representative Eva deCardenas, Friendswood ISD Superintendent Trish Hanks, Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership representative Dan Seal, and Galveston County Economic Alliance President Don Gartman. Also in attendance was Ivee Sauls of the Friendswood Journal. Staff member present was Karen Capps. Absent from the meeting were Skip Evans, Cody Owen, Bill Provenzano, and Troy Waters. 1. Call to Order. The meeting was called to order at 8:12 with a quorum present. 2. Roll Call. Roll call was made. 3. Approval of Minutes. Kirk Lippert made a motion to approve the February 3, 2010 meeting minutes. The motion was seconded by Dr. Hilmar Zeissig and it passed unanimously in the committee. 4. Discussion and possible action, but not limited to the Community and Economic Development Committee's 2009-10 goals and action items. A. Retail/Restaurant Attraction Kirk Lippert reported that he met with Rene Zamore with the Greater Houston Restaurant Association. Ms. Zamore suggested that Friendswood representatives get involved with the association by attending GHRA events. She suggested that Friendswood host an educational event at a local restaurant for members and also to participate in their golf tournament. Kirk reported that he also attended a Bay Area Commercial Real Estate Networking lunch meeting and a Hotel Lodging Association meeting that provided some good information about tourism. B. Communications and Marketing -Live Here Work Here campaign Karen Capps reported that the owner has donated the space for the LHWH billboard so it will go up around the beginning of April along FM 2351. There will be a charge for printing the vinyl. Eva deCardenas inquired if we knew how many webpage hits were on the livehereworkhere.com webpage and whether there were any statistics from Google analytics. Karen Capps said she would provide that information to the committee. C. Business Retention Visits No report. 5. Reports: Liaisons City Council Councilmember Mike Barker reported that City Council has heard from various citizens regarding the hotel and need for an animal control facility. He also reported that a retreat is scheduled in April. Friendswood ISD Trish Hanks reported on facility construction/renovation projects underway. The Natatorium is almost complete and there will be swimmers utilizing the facility in April. FHS kids competed at the state swim meet and were 81h. The Junior High is almost complete outside. The new High School library will open around spring break. FISD is working with the City regarding a land site where a new animal control facility could possibly locate. There was a good bid received for the High School stadium expansion and that project will start after spring break. The turf will be replaced. Kitchen renovations at Cline elementary are almost complete. Superintendent Hanks also discussed school funding with the committee reemphasizing the only way to increase funding is to increase student enrollment. FISD has decided against limited open enrollment for this year but will begin allowing advertising on school buses. There could be 12 positions eliminated in next year's budget. Some of these positions could be persons retiring. Clear Creek ISD Eva deCardenas reported there are two open positions for the school board. The Clear Lake Area Chamber of Commerce will host a candidate forum. The Sandra Mossman Elementary has a "Room to Grow Garden" where kids can learn to grow vegetables for a farmers' market. CCISD is holding an essay contest in collaboration with BAHEP regarding where the Orbiter would rest and what the shuttle means to me. Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership Dan Seal reported on the upcoming Citizens for Space Exploration trip in May. Two Friendswood representatives will attend. The attendees will talk to more than 300 legislators about the importance of NASA. Dan Seal and David Braun attended a Friendswood City Council meeting to report on NASA's funding situation. Bob Mitchell is in Washington D.C. this week with Houston Mayor Parker. There will be another Citizens for Space Exploration trip in March to call on legislators with about 50 visits scheduled. Dan said that he attended the Heli Expo at the George R. Brown Convention Center pertaining to rotary wing helicopters which is a good fit for Ellington Field. The Greater Houston Partnership invited BAHEP to attend and meet with some site selection consultants. Dan asked the committee to visit goboldynasa.org for more information on how individually they can provide support. Galveston County Economic Alliance Don Gartman reported that the GCEA passed a resolution in support of the Constellation program and continuation of NASA funding. The Small Business Development Center held 73 classes last year that 501 persons attended. The SBDC helped 149 clients that resulted in 24 new businesses and $1.8 million in new capital investment. The SBDC is starting a new veterans program for small business grants. City Staff Karen Capps reminded everyone to attend the State of the City luncheon and Park Plaza's opening and presentation of their municipal grant check. She gave a prospect update and said that commercial prospect interest continues to increase. She is working on the first quarter e-newsletter. 6. Adiournment. The meeting was adjourned at 9:38 am.