##VIDEO ID:43G6vU6_li4## e this is a test of the city of Paca audio system e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e good evening everybody Welcome to the Paca community redevelopment agency meeting on August 10th 2024 at 5:00 pm I'm calling the meeting to order we're going to start with the invocation by Pastor mberry and the PGE of Allegiance led by M Jackson good evening everybody father we thank you again for this day we thank you for your loving kindness and for how you watched over us all day long thank you for bringing us together again Lord for another meeting pray God that you would give the mayor and the Commissioners give them wisdom to make sound and discret decisions God in all that they underg to do to move this city forward we pray God that you would do it for them God give us what we need for this journey ahead of us now we know God you're still in control you're God besides you there is none other we thank you again for all that you're doing continue to bless this city in Jesus name amen amen alance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all Miss CR roll call please thank you commissioner Tammy mcal is not present for the record commissioner Justin Campbell present commissioner will Jones presid in Chambers commissioner Rufus Borum present representative Teresa Jackson present commissioner Terry Turner here mayor Robbie C present we have a a quorum in the chambers Madame mayor thank you um approval of minutes has everybody happen had an opportunity to read the minutes from theun J 7 2024 Workshop June 10th 2024 regular meeting and June 2024 Workshop I move for the approval of the minutes as presented from items a through C we have a motion do we have a second second we have a motion second all I think it was correction I was I started the meeting by telecommunication but I did come in the chamber I just want the record flct which meeting the the 20 uh this last one minutes on the 7th I'm sorry June 7th I'll make the motion that we accept items a through C with the amendment of reflecting that commissioner Jones did appear in the Chambers second motion is second all in favor I any opposition thank you on to public comments is there anybody here for public comments they will be limited to three minutes you can give your city of residents and um also make it respectful and not um in defamation of any character for any individual and we will not be acting on them and I think I said that at this time is there anybody here for public comment seeing none we'll close public comment and we'll move on to presentations May yes I'd like for us to acknowledge um I know we previously had the conversation with regards to having meetings without an attorney present um and to note that we do not have our City attorney present this evening um and want to bring that to the Forefront because we just had that dialogue and discussion previously H and most recently at some of our commission meetings and I do see that this is a report and presentation but I do see um during our regular business component that there are questions uh with regards to Direction and recommendations that possibly would um warrant the presence of an attorney um with regards to depending on how the discussion may go Julie noted for the record thank you um presentations of the June 30 2024 quarterly financial report Miss cardi Madam mayor yes would it be appropriate at this time to ask that we add an item to the agenda for the presentation from uh Miss Jan cier um you can do that I was going to wait till the quality financial report presentation and add it afterward but if you would like that would be fine okay as Item B I would like to ask that you add uh her presentation with regard to the Blue Crab Festival do we need a motion to modify the agenda um it would be uh preferable if you would not mind somebody want to make a motion to modify motion that we accept this item as Item B a second a motion a second all in favor I any opposition thank you Miss cot good evening mayor Commissioners and all that are intendance um I'll quarterly report as of June 30th 2024 starting at page um 17 um I'm sorry P right okay so um basically it shows that we've generated 1, 4,548 and that's consisting of the 819,000 from our property tax for all three uh districts additionally we had contribution for benches and we had sell of hammock Hall of 131,000 and we also had some proceeds of 51,000 from some of surplus so that's the total revenue as of June 30th 20124 and uh our dispersements for downtown district on page number two you will see that is 131,000 now expenses year to date for the downtown district and um on page number three for the South historic district our dispersements of 3,627 th000 and then finally for North District um the amount is 35,000 394 so all together for all three District districts on page four as of June 30th 2024 we spent 202,000 332 and so we have revenues and sess of the expenses or our net results of 800 2,216 so that is the amount of surplus of revenues that we had as of June 30th 2024 any questions of this um what's the the next page please page okay so this is um preliminary as of June 30th 2024 sorry about that um as you can see the unspent funds that's what I want Target you see I I have it broken out by District so 45 is 495,000 for the downtown 279,000 for South historic 26,000 for North historic and so that gives you a snapshot as of June 30th uh where we were the 82,0 216 was unspent preliminarily we were trying to figure out like what's going to be the cash balance forward but again that was as of June 30th 20 24 uh now when we get into the budgeting part you'll see that uh we actually spent more money in the month of July yeah because the last meeting I think you said 1.4 didn't you right so the these numbers now were more precise as of June 30th 2024 and so there are some other factors that I needed to consider uh mainly looking at that cash balance forward things of that nature and by meeting with um persons that more intimately involved with CRA I came to a better understanding and when we're looking at the budget you're going to see me even have a different number so that's as of June 30th 2024 okay any questions okay thank you uh you have a question yeah yes sir on here it says miscellaneous expense North Side historic expense but it doesn't actually say what it was what the expenses were um when it breaks down from the account and District go back to it well all of them are broken down that way on page four right so you have expenditures saying that money went out but it don't say exactly what it went out for so is there somewhere we'll find at yes sir it is but also um can you make that larger anywhere on the there miscellaneous because I believe what's happening is that it's zero in the actual right okay yeah that's really really good thank you so misscellaneous expenses I did a quick glance for all the districts for this fiscal year is actually zero so those numbers that you see that's like 900 so those are budget numbers but there's only been for instance the one we're looking at it's only $27 that was spent in miscellaneous the actual expense those are budget but actual expenditures like either zero or North historic let me look at the other one for um South historic it's also zero so those are budget numbers but nothing was spent and on page two for downtown okay $70 was spent and the year that ended September 30th 2023 so the numbers that you are looking at that you do see some activity those are just budget numbers but monies was not spent generally so I go to the specific one I was asking about and I do see it uh reimburse General admin expense yes now that you want me to explain that okay so that is um the CRA receive services from various departments such as Finance legal um I'm sorry I don't have that list in front of me but the various departments that provide services to cra we have to charge them on a monthly basis for supporting that uh particular department so that's what that is I get but as I was at requesting to have it broken down so we'll know exactly and that's why I ask you is it somewhere we would see it I can give that to you I will provide it to you sir okay I'll make sure of it thank you Mr Bell um Item B in presentations blue crab are you going to introduce sure thank you Madame mayor uh I would like to ask uh Miss Janea to come to the podium um he's afraid to say your last name yes because I always butcher it so saera saera all right um to give us uh a presentation with regard to what the Blue Crab Festival can look like in the future and uh what our agreement proposed agreement might beail and can you give you a full name and city of residence for the record Janetta seero St Augustine Florida thank you Madame mayor I'm sorry this emergency item so I wasn't prepared may I ask if there's a timer or not 10 minutes I was just going to say that thank you um I'd like to thank the commission and the city um staff that's present in the building tonight for their ongoing support and uh help in executing the Blue Crab Festival every year it is a big big project so I definitely um grateful for the community support that we have seen in our three years um we had a great year this year uh we sought to um each year solve problems that arose and mitigate risk and um something like uh an event of this size is always a little bit of a moving Target um the budget changes the capacity to um draw a crowd can change so um our three-year concurrent events um have been incident-free they have um been uncompromised in production caliber um and I would like to call um to the attention that in the backend economic impact um that we've seen and been able to consolidate through surveys and local businesses and um sort of our backend data retrieval we have a cumulative uh$ 12.8 million impact in putam County over three years and we have a $7.9 million impact to the city of pakka while placing the city on a national stage and achieving uh positive media attention New Commerce and record-breaking attendance so I definitely um when I arrived in patka and took on this project didn't have a lot of data to go on historically so um I feel like it is an achievement of our team um moving forward each year we have um sort of come back together to reach an agreement um it's sort of my desire to procure our agreement to extend for three years moving forward um our ask is um indicative of adding an event to the Blue Crab Festival um a halfway to Blue Crab event that seeks to highlight the local merchants of St John's Avenue and also um provide an informational packet to the citizens of Paka the storefront holders um a moment for vendor sign up at a discounted uh rate for locals and then also um highlight and announce our lineup for the Blue Crab Festival so that people can become excited about it but have an opportunity to reach out to officials in our team each year and sort of know what to expect um in doing this our event footprint goes from a three-day uh per year annual um event to two events um and it will be a six actual event days um we also um in looking at our alcohol sales revenue wanted to design a Sustainable Seed for the blue crab to come back each year um and lower our ask of the city so we propos that moving forward our net alcohol sales come off of our annual request of the city that way we are able to ask hopefully less and less and build a Sustainable Seed fund for the blue crab to continue um our ask is a three is a three-year cap request at $150,000 and that breakdown is inclusive of both of those events the national Headliners the Staffing um all of the insurance uh all of the things we've carried year after year um we also have worked um alongside Parks and Recreation to develop some sustainable um security and um police sort of joined uh forces to make our round-the-clock footprint of safety um airtite and it has been all three years so I think you know when you're talking about an audience of this size there is always inherent risk but you know we've sort of navigated that uh moving forward we would like to um have exclusivity in selling alcohol I know this year there was a permitting issue at one point where a local Merchant um was permitted to sell alcohol and there was some confusion about it and illegality behind it and we worked together to work through it um it is our desire uh in doing the Crab Pot which is the halfway to Blue Crab um that on that Sunday if there is a local Merchant who is properly permitted they are able to sell um and participate in that we really want this halfway to Blue Crab event to be a highlight of St John's Avenue to open the storefronts that are empty and available for rent and to really look at this as a Commerce driver um of local patka and also to be able to offer that discounted um vendor pricing for people within patka um what I have seen all three years is that towards the end of the vendor sign up it just goes Bonkers and we have 200 people calling us and they're locals and their friends of so and so we really want to include everybody but we have to get a little bit ahead of it um I think I've touched on a lot of things um I know I've spoken um at length to people within the community I've made an effort to reach out to everybody within City staff um I've made an effort to change hours of the event to in regards to you know um respecting church on Sunday and you know just sort of fitting into the community really well I think was uh one of our goal posts when we took on this project and and I have to say um my team of 20 23 to 26 people per year has come in they've rented spaces within Paka they've spent um money enjoying Paka one of them has started a business in Paka two of them have moved to Paka so even within our own team you know we sort of have bought into the idea of the Blue Crab Festival all the way we really um appreciate the community engagement that we've received here so I think that's it for me at this point any questions of Miss otherwise it's just a presentation and we're not really going to I actually have one question I'm sorry that's okay uh as far as the alcohol um that you're selling you you mentioned about the impact of local Merchants now with you're providing um alcohol how does that impact the local Merchant or you know how does that go a little within the Blue Crab Festival or within the so the local Merchants that I was mentioning was if they um if they received a permit from the state of Florida they would be allowed to um sell within the bounds of their storefront um like sell beer to go essentially at the event um they don't do that at the blue crab at the blue crab it is specifically um exclusively us selling the alcohol and it is um it is imperative that we maintain that because we have paid staff and we have handling and liability and a lot of rules go into an event once you've hit attendance of that size did I answer your question I have a question and so to date I know you guys hopefully you guys did a after action from the blue crab you guys have the numbers and I'm interested in I hear your presentation and to this close you and I had a conversation about it I support the blue crab but I need to know what these numbers and what data is that support what you're saying and to see is it is it something that's going to be beneficial for the city to put up that kind of money front and so between Mr cutright and Mr Bell the decisions or the conversations that have been had hopefully you guys have seen this data where are you guys with it so um thank you for the question um commissioner so with a proposal of $150,000 um that is considerably higher than I understood that we have uh provided in the past um so that would be uh a significant cost associated with uh the city providing for the Blue Crab Festival even though it could be offset with uh future um alcohol sales um that is like I said sign significantly more than what's been paid in the past I believe this past year it was a $50,000 uh amount that was paid um as a a a supporter for for the festival but not necessarily a cost share so I would advocate for looking at uh some additional mechanisms for cost share if we were going to elevate the amount that is contributed I don't know that I would necessarily uh support going up to 150,000 at this point um based on what our budget looks like and some of the other uh uh priorities that we would have to forego in order to accomplish that um you mentioned alcohol sales so big number is a big question is how much uh we don't know the revenue numbers if you want to share that with us you kind of like so the first year um to put into perspective you the city of Paka covered all invoices um that was an expenditure of about $250,000 they cleared that expenditure and came out around $300,000 um in my understanding it came out around $298,000 so all invoices were covered and there was a surplus of that amount that first year I took a blanket fee um for just taking the project on for $155,000 that included PL paying my staff that included staying in Paca um and it ended up being about 800 hours of work um so the next Year you guys sponsored to the tune of $775,000 just as a direct sponsor um you received title sponsorship for that amount and the third year you um elected to be a sponsor for the amount of $50,000 so we've a little we've run the gamut um of sort of seeing the numbers and the support 150 um the reason for this amount um is that I also in turn pay the city staff pay the service fees on the backend that's about $25 to $30,000 depending so you can deduct that amount um I have a staff to pay as well um and we have elevated the the the level of the event the talent we've gotten and um I'm trying to you know I know now what I can rely on with Community Partnerships um I I have a good basis of data for that amount which has been about4 to $60,000 this event costs about $250,000 to put on um this year I shouldered the event myself personally my company to the tune of $77,000 so I'm a business person at the end of the day um I have no problem sharing our alcohol Revenue with you the first year I believe it was around $60,000 um the second year we did very well we did um a little bit more I think almost 71 and this past year it was very hot we had um a little bit of a lower number in the in the late 40s um and that is a gross alcohol number just to say that is not deducting the products um your alcohol order for patka has ranged from 11 to $177,000 per year sure oh no I was just just trying to figure out and we since we first started we're in year three going into year four and I thought we was HED in the right direction at one point um so the again because we when we set the deal we we said that the city would not be taking part in it other than the initial seed to try to help make sure that it it Go and and we're not part of the revenue share that that you can you can disguise the limit um so to do the 150 I think will'll be going be going backwards in in terms of getting the staff back involved um among other things and I think we had a number of issues in the past U when we had staff doing a lot of the trying to trying to maintain sure so so the staff is actually less involved that's why a little bit of why cost went up because my staff is involved um my staff grew as your staff pulled away so a presentation we're not making any decisions I'm just trying to figure out you know how we I know we went from 150 to 75 to 50 and I thought you know I was praising the city for not having to spend so much in the blue cra and it was taken on by partnership so it's kind of Madame mayor yes she misso has provided me handouts may I provide them to the agency at this time please just need to figure out what mechanisms other things we got in place to be able to ensure that Mr B and I also did speak about some additional um mechanisms parking being one of them we did Implement parking first year and we saw some great numbers with parking that's something we haven't done the two years that you guys have just sponsored it um so there is definitely verifiable revenue streams that um you can access and and I believe that I don't believe if I've heard you that you're looking to extend it a day or so correct yes one day so in looking to Extended a day and in looking to have that alcohol Revenue come back into it the ask will go down each year it will not be 150 so if you're thinking 150 minus our cost to the city of Paca which is 30 you're you're at 120 with our alcohol sales on the back end the first year would really be the only year to move it to and in our first year we were not at 150 our first year we were at 250 because of the length of the event which was 72 days and so additionally with the not only the extension of the day you're looking to add had an event that would be halfway through um which would be the Crab Pot I believe the name is correct The Crab Pot and we we were looking to do a Unity day on the first weekend of November so I would implore our commission to take those additional things into consideration as we take or as we talk about um this particular event that we're not just looking at a two-day event as we have or we're looking to extend or three two two-day event um well three-day event we're looking to extend it to um six days in total so that's something to take in consideration as we uh deliberate and give direction and if I might add um I'm not uh privy to some of the commitments that may have been made in in the past but the the blue crab is a premium event and I believe that Miss Janetta has um brought a tremendous number of people from outside the community into the community and in terms of Economic Development you not only want to serve the uh the citizens of the community but you also want to be able to attract people from the surrounding area and I think uh rather than being just Doom and Gloom when we talk about the numbers I want to make sure that I um acknowledge that uh the the event that I participated in this saw uh did bring in a tremendous number of people throughout the community as well as outside the community I think I think we all agree with that I think we're trying to balance that with the economics of our city and the reality of the funds that we have or don't have in this case and what we pay historic I mean what we pay historically but again if you know it is a multi multi-day event it'll be expanded from 2 to 6 um with the amid I guess leading up to the uh blue crab kind of help with downtown you gonna have a dedicated [Music] downtown yeah so I Crab Pot The Crab Pot this seeks to highlight the local Merchants so we would not put outside merchants on St John's Avenue the idea is to really highlight St John's Avenue and where I was going with it I think we can negotiate agreement that would take into account alcohol celles on uh the additional days I mean the additional events that might uh help to offset the cost as well and uh like Miss Jan said the parking that's wasn't figured into uh potential Revenue that could offset that number the parking first year Revenue was $113,000 so I think in the past we used to use some of that fund from the general fund correct yeah so I think with the event if it's specifically to help um the downtown district and um I think we could probably maybe even use some of those funds as well to try to help in that regard I don't know if um it's still allowed or not I do know for event that's matured um I don't know it's proceeding for the most part when you have um giving out fund for blue craft festival and different things of that nature so we need to see with our attorney or yeah is it and that's something that we get look into friendly that we can use in in that are you saying C funds is what you're right for this right because uh last year if I may city manager yes go ahead okay so last year um blue crab was given or paid 50,000 from general fund okay and um if we are looking at extending and this we can have it strictly related to The Districts yes there may be a way to consider some funds coming from the district money but additionally we want to stay alert to all of the purchasing requirements you know such as RFP or Is It soul Source you know we still got to kind of pay attention to that as well I think commissioner Campbell is on Deck next and and the other thing that we need to again this is a presentation not discussion for decision presentation there was a 2019 AG decision or ruling in regards to the CRA statute that funding could not that may be used for events and festivals now there may be a little twist on that interpretation now we need to learn more about that commissioner Campbell I also want us to take in consideration as we continue this discussion that um in the years we've handicapped ourselves with regards to the time frame in which we've given to dedicate to actually bringing on a successful event we know that she's done a tremendous job in the time frame but most times events of this magnitude literally takes a year you end it and you begin to plan for another but we have not given the opportunity for a schol which will offer several discounts um in entertainment the closer we get or the shorter time frame we get and planning the event the sometime costs are greater than it would be if so there's still an opportunity for to see some positive turnaround given if we were to go and provide a longer extension of time for the planning of this event so I want us to take that in consideration as well and I think that's important why we have Miss SE here today because we are in budget planning season and we need to make some of those decisions prior to finalizing the budget but but that's that's Miss Sal's um responsibility um knowing that she's in our she's in the contract um knowing coming out of the uh last event those things probably should have already been rolling in place it's hard to roll when we are the ones that ultimately provide what to say is as far as monetary value I know that I personally asked for this to be um brought to our attention uh prior to this particular meeting um and I asked again hence the reason why we're here today and probably had I not said nothing this probably would not have come before us um anytime soon so I've made the conscious acts to bring this before us so that we can make the determination of how and the way that we desire to go thank you certainly appreciate all of your efforts um but again we probably need to look at putting this into the contract in terms of you know when when we're if it's a year out let's go ahead and make sure that within the contract contract performance if you're going to be part of that to just make sure that that's an automatic thing to where we don't have to get involved until um we're asked to do so let it let it be a contract performance as opposed to um having to engage that that situation knowing that we've had the same vendor for the last three years and you want to say something yes um I'm the most annoying person in the world so I promise you that when the event wrapped up I did send um emails and reach out and attempt to contact um I will also share with you last year at this time uh at this date last year we had already renewed the contract and um received the check to do Talent deposits um after Labor Day Talent deposits for events in the spring with national Headliners go up and they go up not like 10% they go up like 25 30% um so part of the urg gency in my trying to reach out to you now is to effectively manage that and get ahead of it um I start talking in Talent agents while they're here at the blue crab um so we start pitching ideas and the artists say you know we had a great time jenu Wine's a great example of the the reason the yinyang twins came was because jenu wine came and said that was so fun he said I drove forever I didn't know where I was going he said and you told me it was going to be a party and this year you know Trick Daddy called me coming over the bridge and he said people parked on the bridge and I said oh they're not supposed to be but U but just to say um part of that begins actually on site at the event so part of my desire to um sustainably take on the event for several years is so that that forecasting can occur and those relationships can be built on my side of the team um for people working towards next year um people plan their schedules pretty far out the the entertainment this kind of entertainment absolutely any additional questions and Mr Bell um we need to address obviously address this issue and finish this discussion and make some determination soon so correct I'm sorry um I believe uh with a little bit of direction from the commission we can um pull together a through negotiations a contract to bring back to the commission for consideration prior to doing so I have one question it probably already been answered what was the return to us from this last the last Festival it's my understanding that we other than the uh the cost of paying for staff uh there was no cost share that came back to us my invoice was $24,000 and Your sponsorship was $50,000 and we did go get some TDC funding back into the city too but I don't think funds came back into our bank account I thought we were approved for TDC gr okay I think this the year we did 75 I know you applied for TDC the year we did 50 I know I applied for some TDC so I don't know if you also applied for TDC app but go ahead so as I said so as I said in the beginning I think we came right back to it I think Mr Bill Mr scright and finance need to get together and look at these numbers come back and make sure you know what the ask is is something that's palatable if it's not you guys need to do some negotiation before you bring it back to us we make the final decision y y'all want us to negotiate it but I think that's more on your side not our side and just see if we're going to do what's in the best interest of community after that's done I agree but again again I don't want to compromise the Integrity of what the event has been built to be um I believe that there's an opportunity for us to come and have some common ground but again we know when things switch hands often they tend to uh lose the momentum and it loses what it potentially could be um so again my I agree with commissioner Jones with regards to um finance and all of those individuals making up and getting us where we need to be but again I just want to go on the record to say I don't want to compromise what the event has built back up to be and if I may also add one last thing the cost of events rise every year just like the cost of milk um maybe maybe not every year but this year uh the bluecraft festival was 16.8% more expensive than the the prior year which is substantial and it we didn't get more barricades we didn't get more tents um so part of that is mitigating that cost on my end as a project manager but part of that is supply and demand you know the Jacksonville Jazz Festival is goes on that exact same weekend um our attendance when we had Sugar Hill Gang here beat the Jacksonville Jazz Festival so I do think that there is is cause for understanding that it's not getting cheaper to throw events and that's the reality of it on the business side of it um thank you any additional questions thank you thank you so much thank you and will we have a Time certain as to when you're going to come back to the commission it would be my objective to come back uh at the August 20 27 28th meeting um with with an agreement there's no more meeting we schedule yes there is a I'm I'm I'm I'm sorry losing TR thought here um the next budget Workshop is August 29th is that referring to Mr okay that's okay right and that in order to be able to have an agreement so that um um we have enough Runway to be able to book the talent necessary for both of those events so okay thank you thank you thank you um on to regular business 5A CRA budget presentation and recommendation of approval Mr B or miss cotti or both go ahead yes sir okay um again we're here so I'll budget uh for 24 to 25 I think that's the page 23 possibly uh we are projecting that we will receive from property taxes 964 th000 if you can make it bigger that would be great 821 and um we will have cash balance forward of uh 1,200 I want what page it should be page 23 23 that's 22 22 is it 22 is that where it's starting okay and that's the largest that you can make it I mean if you tell me what line to zoom in on I can make it okay I want you to go down to the balance there right yeah okay all right so 1 Milli 224,000 so our total we expect our budget this year to be 2 million 188828527277 in and so it is allocated between all three districts so the cost um with the downtown district is 38,500 with the anticipated cost for French benefits is 6,965 uh Professional Services is 75,000 the uh Small Business Development Center with other um well we have 75,000 here but um that might be explained even further um the maintenance is up is maintained at the 35,000 the downtown Christmas lights is 30,000 the building Improvement Grants has been increased uh to 150,000 from the 21,000 in the prior year and then we do have a line for Capital out L of 8,911 so that makes up that 51,3 199 for operating expenses what you go for let go back to this Small Business Development Center yes you budgeting 12,000 a year for this year in the year in September 18,000 right or so originally my recollection is that we were at 25,000 okay and I think city manager can speak so uh originally going from 25,000 to 75,000 represents the possibility of the potential that funding could be used to address the Elevate putam request for additional funding so so that's a different okay so that's the whole it's not the Small Business Development corre combin two It's a combination right so that would have to be uh feedback yes beiz I thought I thought that was another take on that I don't know if everybody said I thought we talked about that we didn't talk about it here but I don't know what we say no we talked about it when they brought it to the commission right right why are they bringing it back to almost like because it's a like it's a little bit framed up a little bit different and so we have to come back with a final budget for both the um uh the funds and for the CRA and so what we're representing here are potential ways that it can be addressed so when we get to the final budget we have to uh sharpen our pencil obviously and make sure that we come back with a balance budget taking into a uh to account the feed feedback that you're currently providing us and feedback that you have provided to us in the past what my concern my concern is that we were all given a presentation each one of us and I think we met individually and so that's my my issue and concern that is being re repackaged so the Small Business Development Centers were out where we're actually budgeting or sort of recommending I should say 25,000 yes that so so it was I'll put it back no I know that's what I'm saying I'm just asking for clarification so so why why isn't it broken out that way that's to be itemized um yeah so originally it was uh 25,000 for the Small Business Development Center and um so that's where we are and then there's the 50,000 so we can uh I just want to have an guidance for Elevate what you're what you're what is in here right now we're not agreeing to anything that's where I want to get specific guidance please so the Small Business Development Center should that be at the 25,000 or the 50,000 what number is is 25 as we had originally and so therefore that Capital out uh we'll figure out what's going to happen because remember we still have some more work that have to be done uh because we have to calculate that administrative General reimbursement still even more finitely but this is I've written down what you said I got a question um so so the submitt the submitt of the request for 50,000 do we have any information on what the request is what it's going to do and yes like the request that came from uh Elevate putam was uh for additional funding that would be used to hire an individual that would be specifically focused on retail development and what we were proposing was the option for that uh the CRA to uh cover that cost with the cavat that that 50,000 would only be used for retail development within the CRA area can we can we the board see it you know we want we would like to kind of understand if it's going to be in the budget um we would like to kind of at least understand and know what we're getting for what we what we about to approve in a budget that we didn't know that it was in there sure and and realize that we're not asking you to approve it here this is just the presentation but uh we can provide you with the um the documentation elev putam uh provided us and I believe they provided to the members of the commission as well uh which outlined exactly what they were asking for and I can go ahead and circulate that back to you I think it would be helpful I don't know if if again somebody from Elevate putam can come in expressly make clear expressly exactly how that's an excellent idea because it sounds good and I've heard the Elevate presentation and I'm optimistic but again if the CRA is going to give them 50,000 and it's want a fund a position how are they going to ensure that it covers only the CRA District I I would want to see that spelled out and in the job description even that would be helpful okay very well this but this other uh Small Business Development Center there was a so we benefit the county benefit as I I think I believe right correctly we asked that question of the 50,000 contribution well cost on a cost share what what is the salary for that position if we giving 50,000 what is the county giving well I believe the total amount that they were looking to pull together um and don't quote me on the numbers because I don't have them exactly in front of me was 250,000 uh they were asking for uh the county to to contribute I believe 60,000 more um as as well as us to increase from the 5,000 to the 50,000 um so the agreement that we're contemplating would very similar to what we do with our code enforcement where there's an agreement where we have Code Enforcement Officers but the time that they spend in our CRA districts is specific to our CRA districts and compensated for that so um I would anticipate the same thing for uh the Elevate putam um individual who's being hire who is intended to be ired by the uh Chamber of Commerce that that person would be focusing on retail and uh we would be able to clarify and identify the uh retail effort within the downtown district to be compensated for and I also because we are I think all in favor of having a CRA director position no I think well that's I said I think because I never know let me finish my sentence please um because if that we have CRA director it would seem to me that could be a task they could take on as well so yeah anyway I'm just I didn't say I said we think that's why I didn't say we are but I I think uh it would be o us to have somebody from Elevate putam come in and and speak to that specifically in addition to providing you with the documentation that they provided on um the funding that they're looking for and the individual that they're attempting to hire with that funding I think that would be helpful soon soon I mean again the C does not meet unless we can call a meeting but at this point we wouldn't meet again till October so we need to figure this out before right so and and our next meeting on August 29th was to kind of approve the budget total you know we need completely for the entire city so I I understand and that is what I'm saying we don't have a a lot of time for them to come forward with the presentation that's my point okay commission we ask what commission Turner think about it commission to CH in is he still with us commissioner Turner what is your question I didn't have I didn't have a question go ahead sir no I just want to know your thoughts on it sir well the I think at this point in the game until a decision is made what you want to do that it would be it would behoove you to put it in the budget where your hands aren't tied and then and then you would have the money available if you decided to do it later on I think that was what we I think that's what we've come to the decision meetings ago it's better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it so I know we drew that conclusion several CR meeting C meetings ago it wasn't 75 it was at 50,000 that was the ass wasn't it5 the 50 what we were talking about I think that was dealing with the um Small Business Development Center not not Small Business Development Center but it was for the um Main Street manager C manager yeah that's that's different that's here this is a whole different ass this is a different ass a different so this is in addition to the C manager um spot that's correct so this is that 50,000 even though it's the same number um is specific to the Elevate putam request uh it could either be funded uh in the city budget or it could be funded potentially in the CRA budget and so we're seeking direction from the commission on whether or not you would like to see it funded at all and if you do want to see it funded uh whether or not you want it funded in the city budget or if you want it funded through the CRA well this going back we're going to go back again to the same thing when we talked initially when we all met individually with Elevate putner so I don't know what the rest of the commission had decided but um you know if evidently I'm not sure if it happened in that with each individual commissioner presentation so if it's coming to the C board that tells me that it may have not been a positive thing to say that okay well we're going to commit $50,000 to that from the general fund and that to kind of go along the lines maybe I'm just not remembering I don't remember having this conversation honestly and I don't know how it slid the the only reason the only thing that I know with regards to a position was with rock with the CRA because Miss roach had been adamant as well as others to take it in consideration and the need for it that's the only reason why I said I will move for consideration and to go ahead and put it in there just in case it's better to have it and not to need it but this Elevate I don't even remember having that conversation and the fact that it's in here and I feel that we're being pressured to that we're being pressured for of better words to make a position or to do something I'm not cool with because again I don't even know how we got to this point so you you want so we're simply asking for direction uh we're giving the options and if that uh is not the pleasure of the board and it's not the intent is not uh I mean a lot of times we are you all want our direction of course but then again we're given and you want us to make a decision when we coming together within a few weeks to make a full decision for the entire budget for the city with respect to understanding that we there are questions that need to be asked and again I don't remember having this conversation I'm not sure if any other Commissioners are privy to the conversation but I personally do not remember having this conversation I remember having extensive conversation about the CRA manager but I do not remember this particular subject being brought before us and then again I still make the statement you're asking for Direction but there's clear that there's some unreadiness to move forward with this regards of it's CRA funded or city city related funded so City general fund but again I understand that you all are asking for Direction but sometime Direction comes at a time where it's an inconvenience and does not allow us the opportunity to fully investigate or ask questions as warranted without us feeling as if we are pressured to make a decision yes direction is needed but then again the courtesy of allowing us the opportunity to not be put in a position to compromise what we feel would compromise the city is not the best practice for us to do regardless of who what when where and how that's just not the best practice for us when we have other things that we are taking in consideration with other roles that looks to me almost the same so and that's just me being completely transparent and honest well commission B okay yes thank commiss Campbell but um again the the what I remember anything about Elevate pum we had that meeting over ATX and it was specifically to um provide we they said that we were given only $5,000 a year no 10,000,000 five with 5,000 so they wanted 10 times more than that they asked for 50,000 they never said anything about a um a position to do anything within this business district so so I'm not I'm I'm really confused about how now that more from 5,000 being contributed to them on an annual basis through the um um Chamber of Commerce and then asking for 10 th 10 times more than that because they said the county was supposed to been giving money as well and they they had private funding about a few million and so we couldn't understand how um you know all the funding was going to work and so we did not move on that and so now we're getting a whole different pitch saying that now it's going to be pitching the CRA and you're going to ask for a position for just strictly retail so what are what are we trying to do with Elevate put so in there or original request they did have those positions in the original request whether or not they emphasized that in the presentation that was part of their original request so what we're looking for is just a general consensus um and it seems like you're giving us Direction on that but until we have an opportunity to present this to you uh corporativo operatively we don't know cooperatively there's individual discussions that took place individual presentations that the Elevate Plum did but until and it's our responsibility to put it out there the options that you have but until we have a uh um consensus back from the commission uh of what direction we you want us to go in we don't have that direction as a courtesy to elevate Pam we put it in there as an option you have an opportunity to say no we want to go a different direction or look for something else and that's what we're at asking for I think I think the main well I think there are several issues but I think it would have been more transparent if it had if it was itemized as Elevate puam and instead 50,000 this is you know we know it's a a workshop and so there was not necessarily a decision to be made that it could be there for discussion and may or may not be approved but because it it wasn't it seems kind of well it it is part it is part of the uh presentation that's coming development Cent so a SL of hand I think is what we're seeing not comfortable with I mean again for the sake of transparent not just for us but for the community so they they know exactly what this is so you'll see well I'm going to call it out in that presentation either way but go ahead and finish so with that being said um the SP Small Business Development Center I'm putting it back to the 25,000 and uh that 50,000 previously uh as we get more information but for the moment it will be back in capital outlay that's where it was okay and um we'll we'll present the final version after all presentations and everything's considered again if we can have that presentation sooner than yes okay going forward to uh page the next page it's um just wanted you to see that we anticipate transferring out of the downtown fund about 947 th000 so our expectation is that the department cost will be 1,518 752 okay everyone see that at 1 million 518 752 moving on to South historic again we're allocating the CRA manager into all three districts so the portion of that 55,000 that goes to the South historic is 12,100 the salary with the French benefits is 19,1 160,000 and the only notable item in South historic would be the building Improvement Grant and um that's 16,7 34 our new budget um following that uh we do have capital outlay of about 127,000 uh we expect um some repairs to be complet at 324 River Street am I going too fast 155,000 um and that yellow is just me talking and asking questions um and side and so we expect a total budget for South historic of 517,000 moving on to North historic the portion of that 55,000 salary 4,400 fully loaded 6,967 and going on to the next page uh the building Improvement Grant is there 83,000 we expect some Capital Improvements of 50,000 our total cost will be 152,246 so that's just giving you a breakout of uh we do have a balanced budget for the CRA and uh the Perfection that will be required for the final budget will be uh us allocating out those General uh expenses the uh General administrative expenses and once that's perfected then we could have a balanced budget that you can actually approve and so our expenses are budgeted for 2,1 188,000 1828 um okay going back to the building Improvement building L project ending 9 2024 projected expenditure is 180,000 uh what District page 26 okay okay so please what is the question so you're saying project that ending amount expended right is $180 that's what oh the building Improvement oh yeah well that's um the um operating persons with the CRA that is they just didn't feel that they were spending the funds in that particular District so that's that North District I believe that's North District put 83,000 right1 yep we are uh because we're hoping to spend uh we're hoping to spend building Improvement Grants in the New Year up to 83,000 because we really as of this point have not spent much at all uh even the budget for the year we're currently living in is 50,000 and we have not spent so I believe that uh there's going to be a push operatively to um get the building Improvement Grants uh for our constituents yeah have they been pushed I mean I I'm I don't operate so I would not know that it has been there's been postcards there been Publications um and I I think it is there is an effort to Market or promote the opportunity for people I have seen it so I think there's a larger effort to do that just seem like I mean I'm looking for the even the prior year you know 120 180 and and even if you go to the actual 2022 you'll see in that North District only $265 and $5,000 in actual the year that ended September 30th 2023 so I believe that the operating personnel with CRA has committed to uh spending more funds in the building Improvement Grants and that's why they put a larger number this year we have to allocate off we have all the funds should be allocated in the CRA monies they shouldn't be left unallocated yes so that's another reason to do it I also think the reality of the building Improvement Grant is that it's a reimbursable program and in spite of the rumors to the cont Tria there are not a lot of wealthy people living in both districts so for people to pay those costs up front they probably wouldn't apply for the grant if they had that money and so that I think has been why people haven't applied because they don't have the funds to pay for the work to wait for reimbursement that can take a while frankly so just out of curiosity this this agency um make it more um us friend yeah applicable so could and that's what we've learned learned from this process have the home the Home Improvement Grant um and that the Tiff hip Home Improvement program and that is exactly how it it operated it was that um the work was done was bid it out was done and no money ever the homeowner never had to go through the reimbursement process uh the money was directly paid to contractors from the CR and that a lot of homes or rehabed as a result of that and that's something that we captured in the 2024 25 good but that that will make it more palatable folks and so uh I've given you hopefully uh an understanding of the amount that we expect to have as a budget for CRA we expect it to be 2,188 1828 you should receive a final version uh as soon as a few items get clarified mainly the reimbursement for um General Administration and reimbursement to utility those numbers have to be uh figured out and also uh projects and so talking about projects I just wanted to go to that next page 27 and just kind of give a snapshot we clearly understand uh unspent funds as of June 30th that we're at that 800 two Mark that's where we are as of June 30th we uh I did meet with operating staff members and said okay what do we project to spend between July and September they gave me their projection as a result we have a projected unspent amount as of September 30th so we're we we intend to spend that's what we're trying to do but we will uh still have about 24 1,000 unspent um the current year but then we also have to consider monies that we had sitting there from prior year so at the end of it all we expect the balance uh forward to be more like a mil2 200,000 as we've said I just kind of wanted to give you a snapshot of how we figure it out and we will perfect these numbers um with any last minute input that we receive anybody have any questions only only another one I had I think it's on page 26 where you got um a negative a negative uh 161,50 under the projected 2024 um ending 930 2024 column oh okay okay right and that is okay I remember that right because um I I let them tell me what they're projecting and uh they're projecting that by the time we get at year end we will spend a mil1 165,000 if we do like what I'd like you to do is go back to page um I believe it's 20 wherever that revenue is colorcoded my question would be then that would leave you at a negative right that means that we that that's not bad that's good in that case because it means we're spending the money from for our years which is what we want to do with we're projecting that okay that we will right that we're touching that balance forward number that we're spinning it down okay and and that is the goal for CRA okay as long as it's projected but it just said net and net results so is what you know is the net right and it means that we only like right now we have a hard number we've only brought in and that's all we expect to bring in for CRA it's a million 4,000 548 and with all the grants and so forth that they're working with currently they're projecting that they will spend more than that I just I I like to just see projected net or something oh it does oh okay you say so it says projected at the top of the col that's up there's just projected but it's a net right here all right so I'll put in parenthesis actual and projected right okay because I'm looking in the column to the left on count description yes sir I feel you and I do understand yeah so I will add that in parenthesis actual slash projected thank you okay because that 161 is projected thank you you Mr Bell north and south um tax I mean presentation tax increment fund excuse me that's correct so again here I am uh pin chaining for uh the assistant City Manager on this presentation um as we did yesterday the day before so this is about the budget for the CRA uh go to the next so a few uh photographs to highlight some of the work that has been accomplished uh under the CRA um next slide please so what you're looking at is tving the lines making sure that we are um that all of our lines are are um appropriately working appropriately and any repairs that need to be made next slide please and so the ult the end result is on the left hand side you see uh you see what it used to look like on St John's and on the right hand side you see the end result uh of what it looks like now and yes we still have some work to be done uh the punch list I mentioned this yesterday punch list still hasn't been completed uh on this so um it is not totally complete it's not perfect yet um once we get through the punch list and you'll see uh a market Improvement in the intersections uh the asphalt that was tracked into the intersections um some of the areas that uh were done on the side streets um need some touchup so um that is too good I yeah it's it's two different perspectives one is looking down and one is looking up and I BL right and so unfortunately you don't have the same view in the same direction and that was one of bless you that was one of the things that I asked our our our folks for can we get the same view from the same direction before and after but unfortunately that's not the way it uh uh was uh put together so I apologize for that so next slide please but it's funny you asked that because that was the same thing that I said when I I looked at it um 2023 24 goals um we had our cost share building Improvement Grants um as of March 26 2024 there were no uh Awards so we are learning um what some of the challenges are when we uh first talked about the fact that we did not have any uh Awards uh I think part of the the critique was that we weren't getting the word out there and so that's hence why we had the cards that went out uh to make sure that we blanketed the whole area to let everybody know that the the uh building Improvement Grants was an option and so please come in and apply uh through the course of this process we've also heard feedback that it's a complicated process um that because it's complicated it may be a barrier to some people uh applying furthermore we also heard that um that perhaps like was said just recently that asking people to match dollar for dollar up to uh 50,000 total meant that somebody would have to come out of their pocket for 25,000 in order to get the full $50,000 uh impact and so this is the part of the feedback that we're learning as the process goes on and you'll see in our uh 2024 25 goals that we have adjusted based on this feedback uh we read advertised with a May 22 uh 24 deadline uh shifted that to a 92324 deadline to give people more of an opportunity and we're still seeing uh similar results of um unexpended funds because those Grant options have not been taken advantage of um St John's Avenue lighting was completed uh the resurfacing from fourth to the railroad is in progress um ran into some uh uh issues um that slowed that process proc now but um more or less we're on our way with that landscaping and on the sidewalks is in the planning stage um that's what we consider the next phase in the um the downtown St John's Avenue beautification process um that uh we will now come back and do the sidewalks and uh the beautification associated with that additional lighting for all the Tiff areas is also in planning um so we're waiting for that design and planning to come back so that we can then move forward with the actual work uh of improving the downtown look we anticipate that that work will not take place until after Christmas um that way we're not affecting the Christmas season for downtown Merchants sidewalk improvements at South District uh we've completed 527 linear feet North dist District uh we have 80 linear feet in progress and and in the Central District the first phase we have 330 linear feet completed next slide please so on our 2425 uh draft goals um We are continuing uh to include the potential for a CRA director or possibly a project manager um that the idea of of pivoting and and possibly uh going after a project manager is basic on the realization that ultimately we need to drive these projects whether it's under the head of a CRA director or a project manager that is dedicated to that we've got to figure out a way to to drive the utili utilization of these funds for the purpose of benefiting the original objectives of the CRA in in uh in the Tiff districts develop lower tier blight removal grant program and that's what we were talking about as the uh as the potential solution to a lack of utilization of funds getting a program that does not require that you have to have matching funds uh but uh potentially going up to $25,000 to address to directly address blight um uh in some of the homes uh in the districts um so I think that's what we're learning from the process as I mentioned before of how we can better expend those funds and reach the people that could take the best advantage of those funds additional decorative lighting for all the Tiff districts uh on the North End uh sidewalks is part of our goal increase the cost share Grant utilization and like I said that could be um the the um tier program where we're not requiring the matching funds in order to address uh some of the code violations and bl downtown finalized a St John's Avenue streetcape talked about the side sidewalks and the beau a that's part of our goal in the downtown area in conjunction with the St John's um Avenue um project increase the cost share again and continue our sbdc funding um in our South area sidewalks and increase again the cost share Grant utilization uh however we um can achieve that next slide please yes going back to the um project manager M uh so is that just going to be the project manager for the CRA District yes okay so it would have to be because the funding is by the CR yes sir correct because we had the the previous project manager worked across the whole city so um but that's that's that's fine um so that position that we had that the funds that we had allocated for the original professional engineer position I guess that would need to be talked about in the in the commission funds right yes okay all right good question thank you um looking at revenues so our projected totals on 23 24 fiscal year are there um you got a chance to take a look at that in your package um and then our 2425 proposed totals um those are the totals uh Miss cardi went through that in the budget projections and proposed totals for the 2425 CRA budget um you see the line share is 1.5 in the central district 152 in North and South 517 and it although it's not mentioned here we are pursuing the RF RFP process of creating a tiff District um in the areas that are uh west of uh 4 and a half Fifth Street and uh north of uh Reed Street uh north of um um Main Street um so we're awaiting those results to come back uh and U the opportunity to be able to create that Tiff District um let's see uh the majority of our unexpended funds are due to the rollover as a result of St John's Avenue so so we've been amassing uh funds because we know that we have this this expenditure coming up for St John's Avenue um in order to be able to make the payments for the road project and the next phase of the beautification ETC and the lighting um one of the issues that uh were highlighted that you mentioned again is that low utilization of the cost share grants uh next slide okay so I had been prepared to mention about the um the additional option of the $50,000 for the um Elevate putam option so we've already talked about that I won't rehash that but thank you for your feedback on that okay so moving on to the North and South increment uh fund designation um you had a chance to take a look at the staff report I did want to provide an opportunity um go ahead may do you want to start with the north uh that was I think uh the next one that we had I'm going to accuse myself okay and I'm accusing myself because the block that's going to be dis in discussion my sister owns a home in it and so because of that associ make sure you she got the speech commissioner okay noted for the record gabble pass to commissioner Jones I say that because I can't see it thank you uh Miss CR what was the page number that you had for the North District it's 3 38 you said 338 no sir 38 38 okay all right so you had uh photos that were included in your package there um that's uh Miss splick hopefully I didn't butcher that uh that name um had provided report information based on her concerns with regard to the flooding that was occurring in those in those areas she was aable to be here with us today I don't know if there's anybody from the audience that was here prepared to speak about that so um you can see some of the challenges that have occurred based on um uh rainfalls that uh were not uh being properly um uh push through our flood control system um out into the ultimately out into the river and so the staff inspection about that has re uh revealed that we have some flood control um piping that needs to be addressed uh manholes that need to be addressed that would alleviate the flooding that you see in those photographs so ultimately it is uh sta recommendation that we consider um um bringing in an architect to take a look at uh or an engineer to take a look at assessing the condition of our flood control piping uh which we expect uh that we anticipate needs to be repaired and what those repairs would entail can we just spend some money on uh drainage and drainage project yes and we have ongoing projects that are and we have a continuing service contract um to to deal with and address um collapsed drain lines collapsed sewer lines and uh the need for relining those um those lines um the funding that we spent was not in this specific area and this specific area would be eligible for CRA funding and um we could address it either through an RFP process or through a continuing Services contract um if you could scroll up there's a a uh there you go so you see in in that photograph there yes so that's the flooding location and the direction of the flow should be going in the direction of the arrows um the existing drainage pipe is there and that drainage pipe is not functioning properly and that's what we uh believe is causing the flooding so our Focus would be to come in and take a look at that TV the line see to determine what are the necessary repairs in order to open that up how long how how long would you expect that this process would occur um I would say um to to get an engineering assessment done we're looking at um no more than 60 days in order to get that off the ground uh once we get the assessment um if we're able to use a continuing Services contract then you're talking about 45 days to 90 days on a continuing Services contract um depending on their availability and the opportunity for them to come in and do the work uh if we have to go to an RFP process that needs to be advertised for at least 30 days and depending on what the bids comes back um we would have to assess how long it's going to take for them to be on site and to do the work so is there anything that maybe the city can do and even if we had to deby in CRA funds like just say we have another um raining spell like we had for lack of a better word before so because this is this is this is dangerous right so how can we help so we can look at potentially pumping um to to address the the because if you can go back um so you can see the the majority of the flooding uh from the rainfall on the property is not leaving the property uh we could potentially push that water out into the street as opposed to it settling on the pro on the property and that would be a pumping process there's another photo I think if we go back to so again you see the streets are Rel I mean they're wet but they're they're not flooded so getting that uh that water off of the low Ling property uh area onto the street uh could alleviate some of the um the immediate impacts associated with that and so that's uh part of what I've asked um our Public Works folks to take a look [Music] at so but we haven't identified that it is a uh steady issue because you just mentioned how it's a low line and look like the house up on stills like that has happened for some time it's not like you know it's just started happening so but my concern is the sidewalks are down on the low end as well so as we know we we've known about the situation I think we should have probably acted a little sooner as well so but um if it's what if it's engineer come in engineer just hypothe engineer come in and say well you know you're close to the river and this is what you purchase this is where you are so do we go in and still is it our responsibility is it the CRA to make no right and then the first step in the process is to make sure that we the city um is not failing to do what we need to do with flood control if we've got a structure that is not functioning properly or is collapsed then we need to to uh look at what it takes to correct that once that is addressed and it does not alleviate the the um the problem then the conversation becomes um a conversation with the homeowner because we've done we've met our requirements we've done what we need to do so so the question put more plainly have we gone out and did an assessment to make certain that is not a city of P problem first no we have not and that's part of what we were hoping that we could uh get direction from the CRA to go ahead and address that you don't need direction from that from the CRA that seems like that's a city operation yes the the question I think um that was was being posed by the assistant city manager was can we use CRA funding to do that I think let's jump in a gun the assessment would be first and then you bring the problem um with some recommendation because again you're getting us to say yes to something without us having due diligence done in the in the front in so like we'll Vol that one back to city manager and assistant city manager to and then you bring it back with some yeah okay okay and um point taken understood question so the the professional engineer position that we initially had two years ago or three three years ago um we need to really look at getting that position because that's the type of position that will help us in regards to a lot of the projects that we're having whether it's road projects and among other things and so we wouldn't have to continue to pay all of these um engineering companies to keep coming in doing assessments every time there's a project so we can pay these individuals whatever the the going rate is today and not having to pay that going right every time we get a project and that's the way we've uh advertised that that vacancy with uh in alignment with what you were just asking for it's been my personal experience that the key value that I've been able to see from a PE is to be able to sign documents and um assume the liability associated with the design if you have that expertise inhouse you have the knowledge inhouse and not everything needs to be signed and so we can move move forward a lot less expensively if we have the right knowledge set in in house yes sir okay and I'm sorry I'm sorry um go ahead commission um yes I I completely agree with commissioner Jones and commissioner Borum on this I think the first step needs to be is this a city issue at all before it comes to the CRA for funding or even potential funding uh if it turns out to be a private issue on private property then I don't see where the CRA should expend those funds thank you commissioner um y move forward on that okay thank you commissioner is this uh the only one that the mayor need to be excused for I believe so have come back in thank I'm sorry I was looking over your head Mr B yes so I wanted to move on to uh the South District item and I believe we do have uh people here that are interested in this so um what page do we have their item on it's a series of Mouse um Mr manager begins on 44 good all right so um beginning on page 44 you see um in your package the series of emails uh about uh the P potential of uh addressing some of the questions and concerns on for street and I wanted to provide an opportunity if you wanted to say a few words concerning that Madam marathan does there should there be a timer um yes three minutes I guess we'll have to yes and please give your name and add Tim Jefferson 209 South 4th Street patka 32177 Fourth Street between Oak and Laurel is the is the portion of fourth that we're speaking of and there a couple neighbors that are here also this uh one side of the street are multifam buildings on the other side are single family buildings the multi family side has about 13 units in this one block one has four one has four one has two one has two one has one and this is the street that a lot of the um people that are fishing with their boats they leave the ramp uh area and come on Fourth it's sort of by the DMV if you know where that is in catty corner to the Catholic church so it's it's a busy street for people coming down Krill trying to get over to read or from the ramp trying to get over to read uh as well as the the uh ship that comes and has a tour bus they go right on this uh Road quite a bit so the curbs are all crumbled they're old curbs so that's one issue that's not um safe as well as the sidewalks we have lots of people who walk from the riverfront over to this district and so the sidewalks are all cracked and so forth so we're looking for the Curbing and the sidewalks in this area initially and then as time goes on we'd like to address the lighting in this whole block there's only one light for the whole street and then as we get into the Landscaping portion down the road we'd like some um trees put in there there's only one tree on this side of the street the other side has lots of trees but the the side that is closest to the river is what I'm speaking of so I met with Jonathan uh Griffith and Mr Bell and the neighbors and it seems like there are some funds available for this and so we're requesting that sure thank you okay Mr Jefferson so um we don't currently have a cost estimate for some of the things that are requested there this was a request uh that came to us from the uh members of the community to see if there was um any appetite for uh addressing that so we can uh um come back to the uh to the CRA with a scope of fork um that identifies exactly what's being asked and what the cost associated with with it would be and um get a determination from the commission I mean from the CRA um as how to move forward I make a request that when stuff of this magnitude comes before us that we do as much work as possible um because again with the c not meeting on a monthly basis as the commission does it further prolongs or further Kicks Down um the can down the road and I say it all the time we talk about stuff when it's hot or when it's present but then we tend to forget about um and it goes on the back burner until it's something that's hot again or something that we haven't done and it always come back to kind of hit us as a commission because they it it's always said that well we were looking for Direction in events like this I would again make the recommendation that what you're going to get out now the information that information be provided to us upfront so that we can make a sound decision as quick as possible to go ahead and address some of the needs of our citizens and our respective communities we often again it's a revolving door it appears as we never it it honestly appears sitting here that we don't get anything done because we're always going going out getting additional information or we're all we're going out getting this we're going out getting that and it never we never see really a full scope of what we're doing and it appears that sometimes we don't even see things get done so I would make that recommendation so we don't continue to belabor these points or we want to see progress with these funds and all of those kind of things understood C budget projected funds sidewalks other such things so it would be helpful as commissioner Campbell said to come up with a specific amount for this particular block on this particular street so we know on from the overall allocation what we're working with here that impacts the whole South Tiff or Central Tiff District in this case I can because if you would brought a cost analysis and told us what it cost we could say yes to exceed this that and third so that's want to do I I can tell that this board want to take care of that but we don't know how much it's going to cost right so we going to just give you the purse but uh so the request is could you have that for us next time when you these kind of requests or if you especially when we know it's coming so and we had a short period of time uh to try to shoehorn this in because we know that there is a uh the commission only meets every I'm sorry the CRA only meets every uh two months uh we didn't have an opportunity as of yet to be able to pull that together but we will have that opportunity to again if we don't have information to bring forth to us to have that conversation with the person who's bringing it to you so it doesn't appear as if we're bringing them before us with false hope or something again the more we have to bite on the more that we are able to make a sound decision we want to see things happening we don't want to continue to kick the ball down the road and it's with a great deal of respect to you I know that you're just coming in and you you're trying to get everything but I think we have to get to the point and I miss roach she says it all the time we have to do things she brings several things before and I use her as a soundboard because I do take in consideration what she brings to the commission or what she brings to the TR and other people within those um respective Tiff districts they come in their voice and again I really don't see things happening because again we push him down the road we k them down the road and sometimes people just give up hope because they don't see anything moving the excuse of us not having enough time that's not an excuse anymore we really have to put the metal to the P we have to put our we have to push the gas on go on some of these things and stop utilizing the the all of the excuses that we have to come forth some homework is better than no homework at all and I just want us to not get into the habit of making citizens have to wait or getting citizens false hope thinking that some things are going to happen when only thing we know when it comes before us we're giving them a pacifier we don't want to do that we want to see things happening in our community understood so for as far as clear Direction I mean the clear direction is to make sure you have complete information before it hit the commission or the CRA or whatever so that we can take action when it come before us as opposed to like say keep pushing it down the road because it looked like we're not prepared and that's not what we need to be looking like yeah we have not given you the information that you need to make a sound decision please so so please do not put anything else on the agenda that reflects what we just got okay any additional questions for Mr Bell on this topic M turno no okay um third okay okay third item ft registry decorative lighting and median request okay so F thank you fdot um I just want to make sure that there's no unrated what's going on yeah go ahead okay thank you mayor so um we we had the previous uh the presentation at the previous CRA um where the recommend well the request was along the lines of medians um on R Street and the guidance that we got was that the commission and I believe the vote that the commission took uh was for a median at First Street um fdot took that into consideration um they did their public input here in the chambers here and as a result of the public input they submitted um a request for not only the First Street median but the second uh piece median that just to the west of First Street um they feel that in addition to the median that was voted on and approved by the CRA that um there's some value in the one immediately to the west of it they would quite frankly like the rest of the medians but uh they were willing to to uh get behind those two medians um the one that you've already approved and that second one based on on that information uh we had projected uh based on projected analysis of uh cost for the design fee of 27,00 333 uh construction estimate of 109,8 55 and core or lighting uh in the amount of 33,8 um with a that's for materials and an overall construction estimate of uh 400,000 uh one of the things that the commission asked for in uh previous meetings was some type of indication of what the lighting could potentially look like um that was included in your package so at this point the information is um there before you and the staff recommendation giving the funding consideration the staff is requesting confirmation from you the CRA if you would like to move forward with the fdot project uh fdot would like an answer as quickly as possible and the second median they recommending for Traffic Safety reason that's correct yes I'm sorry I should have said that I'm glad you brought that up because I do have a little bit of footage yes I just randomly pick this spot I mean just going through and uh I'd like to share this with you what it looked like coming up on when you're talking about putting taking away a turn lane you're G to you're going to back up this traffic um a lot further I already I got a little bit of more I can commissioner Jones and while you're doing that what you're saying yeah he was okay the question was this this this commission said voted no on the second so how do it come back you go staff recommend staff recommend that we go along with uh what FDT said we actually experienced that traffic and we collectively said no to the second median how do it come back to us again so good question so the reason why it's coming back again is because this is an fdot project um they are doing the work um between from Curb to curve on Reed Street and they are wanting to collaborate with the city and getting this work done so based on their um Architects and Traffic Engineers this was their suggestion and recommendation so I'm bringing that back to you decision we had that same information we said no and we we also said it was in the notes that let's do the first one and see how that works that's and then we'll consider the second one um we've been talked about even further down the road on Ninth Street we we didn't agree with closing the roads there with a traffic garment device because the same thing would happen nin street is a monster once you get there rush out of traffic yeah when someone trying to make a left hand turn on it that road backs up all the way back to almost sometime to Seventh Street I'm trying to get to so um I don't think putting a median there would help at all well go ahead they're only asking at this point because they've abandoned the median uh suggestions recommendations further down the road for the area from uh First Street and um in front of Memorial Parkway and it's not to stop people it's going to stop people turning left on these two places because it is a danger for people to turn left there but I think for the rest of the street it is a safety issue it's not going to stop people from turning slowing down traffic is kind of the point because it is dangerous the way traffic flies down that street now and and we did go forward and say as a commission as a total board as a c boarding and commission that afterward that we were in favor of multiple medians just the one at the base of the bridge but they have the expertise as traffic and civil engineers that I don't have so out of due respect for that I I understand what you know where they're coming from in terms of the second median which we're only talking about two right now but go ahead commissioner how do we know that they they I mean did we get anything from them saying that but the thing with that is I think we said we would do it in phases so if we say it phases to see what it would look like I I think yeah I think we have just try to phase I know we didn't say no to Future uh amendments to the the project we didn't say no we just said that we want to try this phased approach and I I believe that their response was that they didn't think that they could do this in phases I know that was the interest can they send us something can did we get anything in writing did we get anything in writing I I don't have what they responded in writing in front of me so okay just show them what we ruled on because we said that we when we when we went through that we walked through it we said okay is it do we have is it all or nothing they then they said we can face it well they are trying to face they're not trying to do all or nothing they are trying to face two medians anyway and I'm just stating what is in Fr us but um and they have a budget cycle and they have to plan in advance because they're covering the whole state um so I I think that if we can get something I I know they want a decision sooner than later apparently we're not ready to make a decision if it includes a second median yet without more information is that correct so I think we do need a little bit more information about the their rationale and validation for the second median before we can make a final decision and this goes back to what I was saying to make it feel as if we're rushed to or forced to make a decision because again I believe that conversation was lengthy um we asked several questions then which we brought up today and if it's going to appear we understand the recommendation but if it's going to appear they might as well tell us what we can do or what they want us to do and not give us the option to tell them what we think would work best for our community right any other questions or not Madam mayor yes go ahead commission attorney I agree with this conversation completely we already had this and while I uh truly respect the opinion of the Traffic Engineers at do it is still just an opinion and I know they probably have more experience but I don't think they have more experience on local conditions than what we have driving over that bridge every day and seeing what's there so I I think we need to go back to do and tell them that we want to do do what we discussed last time around which was a median on the First Street hope that'll and hope that'll calm the traffic enough that it'll make a difference but the last thing we'd want to do is calm the traffic so much that it turns that into a traffic jam so I I just have to uh agree with all the other conversation that's gone on from the other Commissioners okay thank you all righty thank you very much and I'm going to hand it off to um rbdc you now before I before go ahead we can transition because what I'm about to say is going to be a reflection with regards to the you uh memorandum of understanding again I want us to um take in consideration we do not have an attorney here present with us to advise us should any questions become um one that needs to be directed to an attorney one last thing on the uh I want you you said that for 2024 2025 year we are are creation of the new CR district is one of the other priorities as well correct that that's correct but it wasn't it wasn't in the slide that it should have been in the 2324 because we're actively working on it and it should have been in the 2425 as well so I apologize through the the the the the information and the gathering information to to develop that that's right the funding comes from the general fund right that's correct doesn't come from the CRA right so if and when it was created were a different place but at this point we're not there yet correct um if I may you may I want to bring us back to understand that uh this meeting is the meeting in which we need the CRA board to approve our budget and uh we have the final numbers we have a balanced budget for CRA is 2,188 so what I am suggesting that we consider uh we need the budget to be approved and we could say that if we have any minor uh adjustments we will send it back out to you but we pretty much have you know the CRA budget is balanced so you yes sir with me do you want me to I don't mind going up let me go M on if it's ask question yes please Madame May if I may while she's coming up I just wanted to let the CRA know that this is the last regularly scheduled CRA meeting prior to the pass the first and second reading of the budget in September for the commission thank you I think we will We that but thank you and that is pretty much why you know I'm stopping us for a moment thank you uh city clerk that uh I want you to realize that we do have a balanced budget for CRA the amount is 2,188 828 the comments that have been made are will be reflected particularly like that 75 will be lowered to that 25 Etc so I'm asking you to consider approving this budget and that we will send it back to you with any minor adjustments that we may have so that we meet our responsibility for today and we wouldn't at this time be approving mou so as commissioner Campbell said without legal representation we can hold on that but separate from the budget approval exactly and we do have that 25,000 amount reflected IID like to make a motion to approve the CRA budget as presented second have a motion a second all in favor opposition oh sorry go ahead commission Turner my only question on our discussion was as the motion was as as presented but it was presented with the 75 and so I I think it needs to say as amended during during the meeting today yes sir yes sir um I can resend that motion okay to make a corrected motion to approve the CRA budget as amended as noted in this meeting to reflect the item that has been identified yes sir in the amount from 75,000 to 25 25,000 second a motion a second all in favor I I any opposition thank you thank you and we are um with the mou we're tbling that right do you still uh want the um input from okay sorry Madame mayor has there been a motion to table that I no I'm asking that's why we're having this discussion before we do anything we need a motion and that's why I'm asking for feel like we should not have any discussion we talked about this extensively at our last meeting I don't want anything to be able and with a great deal respect to small business develop but development but we just had this conversation and we don't want anything to come back and taunt us or bite us or making a decision without any sound legal advice should that arise so I think what I'm asking for is a motion to table I make a motion that we table The Item B for direction and recommendation with regards to the Small Business Development Center memorandum of understanding I said hold on you need a date certain be the October meeting that needs to be included it to the okay second that motion a motion a second all in favor I any opposition thank you um item C again I request the same thing because it's asking us for discussion and Direction and again should anything come with regards to this extension I make a motion that we table this to a Time certain to our next meeting October um we have that motion and also the applicant is out of the country due to death in his family so he is not able to be here anyway so he was requesting it be table so it's double tabled so we have a motion to table until the next c meeting in October we second second all in favor I any opposition thank you okay and then we have the Small Business Development Center report Mr Paul Paul's given me a hand out of his upcoming event May I pass that word good evening Madame mayor commissioner staff and all the folks gathered about Rick Paul 1100 Rich uh Reed Street for the Small Business Development Center I think part of the issue was that in the meeting notes in the previous CRA meeting mentioned $50,000 that's the total that was the goal between the CRA in the county so the total so the CRA uh would increase from 20 to the 25,000 and then the county was to go from 12 to 22 that's what was actually requested so um coming up uh in front of you you have another SBA event that's coming up it's called a lenders Round Table this will be the fourth time that the small business administration Representatives have been here to uh Paca this year uh we've had U they've been to both of the CRA meetings at the aelia City Brewing Company and we had a workshop not too long ago on July 23rd uh that that rosalin Bryant put on and Donnie Anderson uh at the Chamber of Commerce called access to Capital so the one coming up on October is called the lenders Round Table that's really uh targeting the actual uh lenders in the area uh to try to increase the small business activity uh in small business lending for this particular area uh coming up let's see oh the uh reports uh that I get uh I'm forwarding on to you I think you have some of the ones in front of you but again the the goals that uh uh the Small Business Development Center has for me um the first one is number of unique clients um I'm number two out of an 18 County region with 188 so far this year second goal is capital by consultant um right now I'm showing 1.5 million but I had a million dollar project uh I just found out about today so I'm up to two and a half million which puts me in third place for the 18 County region the third goal is new business starts currently I'm at four but I got six queued up so that puts me at 10 which puts me in fourth place in County region and then the last one is hours by consultant I'm currently in third place for the total number of hours that I've been Consulting with uh I've got something that you guys might be interested in I hope so uh next week uh at the Marriott at sass the state Small Business Development Center conference is being held uh there's an event Monday but the big part is on the Tuesday I believe it does cost a fee to get into it but there's about 20 different seminars and webinars you can go to uh talking everything from um breaking into Government Contracting uh cyber security understanding capital a meeting with vendors uh and there's there's about 20 or 25 different uh seminars that occur so that would be Tuesday um next Tuesday at the Marriott it's Saw Grass if you would be interested in attending with that being said I know I'm the last one up and it's been a long meeting does anybody have any questions may have questions or Mr Paul no thank you thank you Commissioners just go ahead I really want to prior to ending this meeting I really want us to reiterate uh in the event of us not having an attorney whether it's in this platform or any other City related meeting that we consider uh alternative options seeking a seeking outside Council we are not able to fully function or fully do the business of the city um in the absence thereof because at no at any given point we don't know if there is a legal question to be asked and I believe that in this instance time should be approved regardless of if it's yay or nay and in the event that it's always a yay on a med date we should have alternative options with regards to attorney this slows down the function or productivity of the city when we do not have legal council present of any sorts we we did make that clear um prior to um in another meeting that we did not have the City attorney and um commissioner cam did move to um cease the meeting as it related to anything for um legal matters so again I concur with commissioner Campbell that we should have um somebody who is already in place so business continuity can continue on in the absence of our legal counseling and we've been having quite a quite a few instances of not having legal counseling so we need to make sure that we have some alternative in place concur with Mion C and I will accept responsibility for um for that the absence of the City attorney here there was a conflict that uh occurred between family and and work and uh it was my advice that uh family should come first in that situation so I apologize for that boaw and completely understand but then again family comes first but we should always have a ram in the bush un understood so going forward I think you've gotten the message yes okay thank you um any further business for the CIA with that