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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014.04.14 Economic Development Committee Meeting Minutes 14c6 SUMMARY MINUTES OF THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE CITY OF DUBLIN REGULAR MEETING -April 14, 2014 A regular meeting of the Economic Development Committee was held on April 14, 2014, in the City Manager's Conference Room of the Dublin Civic Center. The meeting was called to order at 1:32 p.m. by Mayor Sbranti. 1. Call to Order PRESENT: Mayor Sbranti and Vice Mayor Biddle ABSENT: None GUESTS: Councilmember Haubert 2. Public Comment No comments were made by any member of the public at this time. 3. Minutes of the Standing Economic Development Committee Regular meeting of February 10, 2014 and the Special meeting of March 25, 2014 ACTION: By Consensus, the Committee approved the minutes of the meeting of February 10, 2014 and March 25, 2014. 4. i-GATE Update The Committee provided a verbal update on i-GATE staffing and the possibility of bringing on an interim CEO, the concept of a "friendship" city with a city in China, and of an Ireland based company being interested in a Dublin location. 5. Priority Development Areas Update— Downtown Dublin Specific Plan, Dublin Transit Center/Dublin Crossing, Dublin Town Center Staff provided an update on economic development activities within the three Priority Development Areas specifically on Zone Laser, Rahma Market, Tous Les Jours Bakery, Burger King, 3 Sheets Craft Beer Pub on Village Parkway, the Horizon property on Regional Street, the Eclipse retail space at the East Dublin/Pleasanton BART Station, and the Shops at Waterford. ACTION: The Committee accepted the verbal report. 6. East Bay Broadband Consortium Staff (Roger Bradley) provided a verbal report on the East Bay Broadband Consortium's (EBBC) efforts to raise awareness of cities on their current broadband infrastructure. The City received a grade of C, which represents that the City has adequate broadband, but it's not at the level it should be according to the goals of the EBBC. According to the rating scale of EBBC, having more providers would increase the City's score. Staff also presented the "Get Fast Pledge" that the EBBC has drafted and is requesting that cities adopt the pledge. ACTION: The Committee requested that Staff bring the item back to the Committee in June with answers to the following questions: who are the other providers of broadband other than AT&T and Comcast, and what have communities in the South Bay done? The Committee also provided direction to Staff to move forward with the "Get Fast Pledge" to the City Council, and to set up a meeting with AT&T and Comcast with Staff. 7. Request for Participation in Sewer Capacity Assistance Program Staff presented the Committee with two requests for participation in the Sewer Capacity Assistance Program. One request was from BruBar Coffee who is looking to locate in Fallon Gateway and is requesting assistance with 0.95 Dwelling Unit Equivalents (DUEs) of which the City could assist with 100%, and the second request from Chaat Café who is looking to locate in Persimmon Place and is requesting assistance with 5.40 DUEs of which the City could assist with 75%. ACTION: The Committee was in favor of both requests and directed Staff to move forward to the City Council for consideration. 8. Request for Participation in Small Business Assistance Program Staff presented the Committee with a request for participation in the Small Business Assistance Program in the form of a $20,000 grant request from Lydia Karpenko, who owns a small retail shopping center along Amador Plaza Road, to assist with the construction of a trash enclosure to accommodate the center's restaurant users (including Tous Les Jours Bakery). ACTION: The Committee approved the request for$20,000. 9. Commercial Facade Improvement Grant Program Selection Staff presented the Committee with four applications for participation in the Commercial Façade Improvement Grant Program. The applications were as follows: 1) a small retail shopping center along Village Parkway; 2) the new Dublin Valero and 7-Eleven at Amador Valley Boulevard (AVB) and Regional Street; 3) existing retail building along the west side of Village Parkway (Bette Felton) ; and 4) a retail building along the west side of Village Parkway (SF Rents) — adjacent to application No. 3 above. All four requests were for the matching grant of$70,000. ACTION: The Committee reviewed all four applications and was in support of two applicants, Bette Felton and SF Rents. The Committee directed Staff to bring forward both applications to the City Council for consideration in June so FY 2013/14 and FY 2014/15 funding of $70,000 could be allocated for each property owner. 10. Economic Development Strategy Implementation Update a. OppSites Staff presented the Committee with a presentation on a new tool that would further implement the Economic Development Strategy through the marketing of opportunity sites within the City. Staff has identified 12 opportunity sites within the City that will be showcased on the OppSites website. ACTION: The Committee accepted the verbal report and was in support of the project. b. Economic/Community Development Corporations Staff presented the Committee with a White Paper on Economic/Community Development Corporations (E/CDC). The White Paper addressed the functions, formations, benefits of an E/CDC and case studies of city-sponsored E/CDC. Staff's recommendation provided in the White Paper was not to move forward with the creation of an E/CDC at this time due to the financial risk to the City, limited resources, limited staffing, and the lack of a redevelopment agency. ACTION: The Committee accepted the report and was in support of Staff's recommendation. The Committee directed Staff to present the White Paper at a future City Council meeting over the summer months. 11.Tri-Valley Meetups Staff presented the Committee with a table of Tri-Valley Meetup groups that are focused on tech, education, business and entrepreneurialism, which meet in Dublin or have Dublin participation. This research was conducted at the request of the Committee to assess the City's role surrounding entrepreneurs. ACTION: The Committee requested that Staff reach out to the Meetup organizers and continue researching ways the City can support their efforts and to consider whether a Roundtable with the Meetup organizers is needed, which if needed, would be scheduled for late summer/early fall. 12. Discussion with Clear Channel Staff provided a verbal report on a discussion held with Clear Channel about the possible location of an electronic reader board at the City's Maintenance Facility along 1-580, which the City could serve as a revenue generator. ACTION: The Committee accepted the verbal report and requested that Staff bring back this item to the June Committee meeting with answers to the following questions: what would the reader board look like; how much revenue could the City receive; and what would it be used for? 13. Request for Future Agenda Items None. 14.Adjournment There being no further business to come before the Committee, the meeting was adjourned at 3:16 PM. Minutes prepared by Hazel L. Wetherford, Economic Development Analyst. lifzejt Mayor ATTEST: Economic evelopment Director/ Public Information Officer