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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCEDC Minutes 2012-06-06 RegularFriendswood Community and Economic Development Committee Meeting Minutes June 6, 2012 The Friendswood Community and Economic Development Committee met on Wednesday, June 6, 2012, at 8:30 a.m., in the second floor conference room of City Hall, 910 S. Friendswood Drive, Friendswood, Texas, with the following members present: V i c e C h a i r Pauline Moore, Mark Conrad, Kirk Lippert, Jeremy Magnuson, Bill Provenzano, and Hilmar Zeissig. Liaisons present were Friendswood Chamber of Commerce President Carol Marcantel, Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership representative Barbara Cutsinger, and Clear Creek Independent School District representative Eva DeCardenas. Absent from the meeting were Tony Annan, Brett Banfield, and Skip Evans. Staff members present were Karen Capps and Morad Kabiri. Also present were Jeff Newpher of the Friendswood Journal and City Councilmember Deirdre Brown. 1. Call to Order. The meeting was called to order at 8:35 with a quorum present. 2. Roll Call. Roll call was made. 3. Approval of Minutes. Kirk Lippert made a motion to approve the May 2, 2012 meeting minutes. The motion was seconded by Mark Conrad and it passed unanimously in the committee. 4. Discussion and possible action, but not limited to the Community and Economic Development Committee's strategic plan, goals, and action items. Karen Capps reported that an electronic component assembly company is moving forward with purchasing property in the panhandle area. The company inquired about business incentives several months ago. The committee reviewed and discussed a draft letter pertaining to the FM 528 corridor. Hilmar Zeissig made a motion to place in the minutes the following recommendation concerning the FM 528 corridor which will also be discussed and provided to the CEDC liaison. The motion was seconded by Bill Provenzano and passed unanimously in the committee. CEDC's Recommendation Further to the Friendswood Community and Economic Development Committee meeting of Wednesday May 2nd, 2012, the committee would like to share its findings and propose a course of action to City Council about the FM 528 corridor through Friendswood. The property on both sides of the FM 528 corridor through Friendswood is currently the city's prime commercial real estate (power corridor). Records show that this property generates a substantial portion of Friendswood's property and sales tax. After visiting with commercial developers and retailers, this real estate is the most sought-after and likely to be developed. Currently and for the foreseeable future this section of Friendswood real estate is its greatest commercial asset. Therefore this committee recommends that City Council acknowledge this publicly and issue recommendations to its boards and committees to make this their primary focus. The focus should be to deter, or minimize further development along this corridor that does not have the potential for increased city revenue. Additionally, we recommend that when financial resources become available, preferential consideration be given for infrastructure improvements, beautification, and attracting desired development. 5. Reports: Clear Creek ISD Eva de Cardenas reported that 2,778 high school students just graduated from CCISD. Three incumbents were reelected to the CCISD Board of Trustees at the May election. U.S. News and World Report released the 2012 U.S. News Best High Schools rankings last month. Clear Horizons Early College High School is ranked 481h among charter schools and 387 among all high schools in the U.S. It is ranked 34th in Texas. Clear Lake High School is listed as 690 in the nation and 63rd in the state. Friendswood Chamber of Commerce Carl Marcantel reported that Frank Billingsley of Channel 2 News will be the guest speaker at the Chamber's General Membership luncheon in June. The luncheon will be held at the Green Event Center from 11:30 until 1 pm. The Chamber is accepting applications for Leadership Friendswood. There are usually twelve participants who attend the class with the purpose of learning about local/regional government and resources. The cost is $675 per participant which includes an overnight retreat in Conroe and a legislative trip to Austin. Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership Barbara Cutsinger reported that BAHEP has held recent luncheons with speakers that included Governor Perry, Mario Diaz of the Houston Airport System and Colonel Jack Daniel of Ellington Airport. Dan Seal is currently in Washington, D.C. along with Councilmember Billy Enochs and others participating in the Citizens for Space Exploration trip. Barbara will attend the Bio 2012- Texas conference and tradeshow in Boston on June 18. Two booths have been reserved again this year by BAHEP at the International Council of Shopping Centers Deal Making tradeshow which will be held at the beginning of November in Dallas. The Cheesecake Factory is under construction at Baybrook Mall. H&M recently opened along with Bonefish Grill. Last weekend, the Shuttlebration (arrival of the shuttle replica) was well attended. City Staff Karen Capps reported that next month's agenda will include the election of a new Chair and Vice Chair positions on the committee. A business has purchased Ken Wick's building on Friendswood Drive and is planning to make improvements to the property that may include downtown streetscaping. There is a 6,635 square foot retail building under construction as an addition to the Friendswood Crossing Shopping Center on FM 518 at FM 528. Make Ya Smile Dental has leased half of the space. Keep Friendswood Beautiful will be discussing the downtown streetscape requirements with the Planning and Zoning Commission this Thursday. A report was made about possible changes to the City's Alcohol ordinance that had been discussed with City Council during a work session on June 4, 2012. 6. Adjournment. The meeting adjourned at 9:30 am.