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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2003-04-22 Business and Economic Development Committee Minutes i 1 BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE � TUESDAY, April 22, 2003 Meeting Minutes � ' Councilors Attending: Gerry Palmer, Frank Farrington, David Nealley, John Rohman, Dan Tremble, Richard Greene � Staff Attending: Ed Barrett, Jonathan Daniels, Rebecca Hupp, Sally Bates � Others Attending: Ken Buckley, Les Stevens, Chad Walton � The meeting convened at 5:03. 1. Bangor International Airport Report � a. Passenger Trends b. Air Service Development c. Runway Reconstruction Update ' Hupp said that the passenger numbers are down 9% year to date due to the � events of the world such as the war in Iraq and SARS. She noted that most airports across the country are down 14% over a two-year time period, and Bangor was up 10% last year. ' She said that we are expecting Northwest to start here in June, and US Airways has made significant enhancements to their service in Bangor. We should have ' additional capacity during our peak summer months, and therefore improvements in passenger trends. � The runway reconstruction is going to afFect our passenger numbers in April, May and June, due to the runway being closed. The construction starts this weekend at 7:30 a.m., and the runway will be closed until 10:30 p.m. She said � that we have received a number of inquiries from airline tenants and local travel agents. She said that they had me with both of those groups and asked how � they were handling the situation. They assured her that they have nearly completed accommodating passengers either through Bangor, from another airport or to get a refund. They did not think that a shuttle was necessary to ' travel to Portland. ' , , Palmer asked for an update on the greeting of troops returning from the war. � Hupp said that 80-90% of troops returning from the war in 1991 returned � through Bangor. Due to the security concerns, Hupp said that they are working with TSA and local law enforcement to coordinate the greeting without compromising security. She said that as of right now they do not have a timeline � of when troops are returning. 2. Report of the Downtown Parking Advisory Committee. ' Tremble said that the primary charge of the committee was to review pricing. � The recommendations are to relocate the loading zone on Cross Street, increasing the waiver fee for Courtesy Tickets from $7.50 to $10.00, and to leave the Saturday on-street parking as is. Tremble said that the proposed monthly � rate increases will generate increased revenue of approximately $54,000. The Committee recommended the proposed changes to full Council. , 3. Preliminary Review of Potential Activities to be Funded with the Allocation from the Community Development Block Grant Program. � McKay said that this is a preliminary reading of activities that staff is proposing to be considered by the Committee and City Council for funding under the , Community Development Block Grant Program in the coming year, from July 1, 2003 to June 30, 2004. We expect to have a grant in the amount of $1,275,00 � from the federal government this year. The anticipated program income, mostly from repayment of loans that we have made, at $360,000, making the total available for activities to be funded $1,635,000. He presented the budget for � FY03, and possible activities for FY04. McKay asked the Committee to review the possible activities and any others that , might be eligible. Rohman clarified the process that McKay was going to bring this to the next Committee meeting for a recommendation to the full Council. 4. Request for Extension to Begin Construction for Project to be Located on Lot lA , —Telcom Drive. Daniels said that Earl Black contacted City Solicitor Norm Heitmann about not � being able to meet the starting date for construction of the new Town and � Country Realtors headquarters due to the delay in their plan review with the state fire marshall. Staff is recommending a 60-day extension to the contract. The Committee approved the extension of the contract. , , , 1 , 5. Review of Legislative Issues. � a. State Bonds b. Pine Tree Zones c. Other , Daniels said that Councilor Tremble brought to his attention the fact that we should bring some of these issues to the Committee to get some type of formal ' approval or action to take to the Council in support of a few of these issues. Tremble said that both of these items have regional significance and that this � was a good opportunity to take a regional leadership role. He noted that he invited Les Stevens, who is the former Director of the State Department of Community and Economic Development. , Stevens said that he understands that the Council may be taking a position for the Pine Tree Zone. He commended the Governor and his administration for ' doing exactly what they said they were going to do in Maine. He said that any action the Council could take in support of this legislation would be timely, as it is going before the Senate ne� Monday. � He said that the legislation calls for four enumerated specifically spelled out in the Pine Tree Zone, Aroostook County, the Androscoggin Valley, Penobscot , Valley, and Washington County/Downeast. In addition there could be up to four other zones that aren't enumerated in the legislation. Each of the eight zones ' will be required to have at least one predetermined development site. Each of ' the eight zones can have up to 5,000 acres, or 20 parcels in that zone for a total of 40,000 acres. This incentive is not to encourage the transfer property or ' moving assets or jobs from one area to another; that is not in the public's interest. ' Stevens stated that the legislation requires an area to have economic distress above the state unemployment rate, and wages below the state average. He went on to note the exemptions to these limitations. Stevens discussed what � types of businesses would qualify to receive the benefits within their zones, and the types of benefits they would receive. ' He said that the value of this legislation targets the areas of need and focuses on certain targeted sectors, it avoids the zero sum game. It is a big enough ' incentive so that it should work, and focuses on the tax issues. Farrington wanted to know if there was any protection to prevent companies � from receiving the benefits and then leaving. Stevens said that he was not sure how DECD would choose to regulate this, however, there is no claw-back provision. � ' , � Daniels said that the 10-year time frame is a very short time frame for businesses to capitalize on their capital, thereby making it very difficult to move � their business. Farrington asked about the regulatory process and if this legislation might ease ' some of it. Stevens said that this particular piece of legislation focuses on tax policy as it relates to the investment process and economic development. It is , the intent of the administration to apply other incentives along with the tax incentives, such as training programs, financial incentives and infrastructure incentives. Regarding the regulatory policy, the Governor is concerned with this, , and there is another seven person advisory group working on this aspect. They will be looking at a one-stop approach to economic development. Palmer stated that we need to market this, and Daniels agreed that this is a , program that could be marketed nationally and internationally. The Council voted to recommend the resolve to full Council. ' The Committee discussed other bond issues. � The Committee voted to send this to full Council for a resolve to include an ' infusion of capital for improvements. Barrett said that the court system has a special proposal to get some , architectural planning services to help them come up with an initial bond allocation for a master plan and case studies. They are not yet ready to spend money, and they asked the appropriations committee for $750,000 to go towards ' planning for courthouse expansion and renovations in Penobscot, Washington, Piscataquis and another county. He said that there is also a bond issue for civic centers/auditoriums. Daniels said ' that Rep. Bull submitted a bill for $50 million for civic centers/arenas at the five primary locations throughout the state at Portland, Lewiston-Auburn, Augusta, � Bangor and Presque Isle. He said that this has raised the visibility of the need to replace facilities throughout the state, although the bill will probably not go � through this year. Barrett said that the Governor has two other initiatives, one is healthcare, which ' has not yet been released, and the other is a tax reform proposal. Barrett said that he has had the opportunity to work on the City level as well as the Service Center level, and will keep the Committee informed as details become available. � , , ' ' Palmer thanked the staff for their work regarding the $6 million arena. He noted � that we need to look for some sort of support for the Bangor Lumberjacks to be able to play in Bangor. , The Committee voted to go into executive session. 6. Executive Session - Negotiations for Lease of Land for Development - Maine ' Business Enterprise Park. ' 7. Action on Executive Session — Negotiations for Lease of Land for Development— Maine Business Enterprise Park. , The Committee returned from executive session. Chad Walton introduced the members of his project. He asked if there were any questions regarding his project. Nealley said that there is a lot of need for this type of development. ' Rohman said that they will be discussing the visibility of how this fits into the whole Maine Enterprise Park. Walton said that we tried to put this together so that it is on the other side of Maine Avenue from the rest of the business park. , The uses will be different than the uses of the other side, and we put it together so that the building can evolve with the growth of the area. McKay said that there are issues with a phase project, and subdivision issues, and the need for � additional land. The next step would be for staff to negotiate a development agreement to go forward. ' The Committee voted to go into executive session. , 8. 6cecutive Session — Negotiations with Tentative Developer — Bass Park. 9. Action on Executive Session — Negotiations with Tentative Developer — Bass Park. ' The Committee returned from executive session, and Daniels noted that there was no action on this item. 1 The Committee adjourned the meeting at 7:30 p.m. i 1 � ! 1