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HomeMy WebLinkAboutIDC COMM 12/16/2016MINUTES OF MEETING R (r IVCD INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT COMMISSIOrbt ka C° r OF, December 16, 2016 P011 JAN 18 A 11: 28 Members present: lLA,'<S lELQ Bob Krentzman, Chair Krista Hill Cummings, Vice CM "' : �: � r � ;'S c. l 7 S Matthew Cummings David Martin Nancy Wall Kevin Moran Others Present: Maria Correa, Mansfield Holiday Inn Jen McCabe, Mansfield High School Student, Marketing Intern,for IDC Emily Sullivan, Mansfield High School Student, Marketing Intern for IDC Bill Ross, Town Manager Laurie Driscoll, SEED Vice President, Commercial Loan Officer Angela Laperriere, SEED Small Loan Lending Officer Frank Gay, GATRA Administrator Chairman Krentzman called the meeting to order at 7:05 PM with six members present. MOTION (Moran, Wall) to approve minutes of November 15t' PASSED. MOTION (Wall, Cummings) to approve Downtown Subcommittee Minutes of Novermeber 9TH PASSED. Discussion of SEED marketing and informational materials- Laurie Driscoll, Vice President, Commercial Loan Officer & Angela Laperriere, Small Loan Lending Officer South Eastern Economic Development corporation provides small loans to startups in the area. Driscoll asked about the Downtown subcommittee. Nancy Wall explained how the DBA has been operating for a number of years putting on events and for developing community. Krentzman added that a committee has been setup by the selectmen to focus on the downtown. Driscoll provided an overview of the SEED corporation. The organization can help people with technical assistance and have loan programs that range from $100045.5 million. Driscoll specifically discussed loans for commercial real-estate which have the benefits of lower down payments (10-20%) and a fixed interest rate for 20 years). SEED can provide financing when a bank cannot so they are not competing with the banks, but instead filling in gaps that banks leave. SEED will also help with technical assistance—filling out forms, assisting with the application process, hosting small business workshops, and offering business plan booklets. Krentzman asked if any clients will come before knowing where they want to locate. Driscoll said that yes, this does occur sometimes and she will reach out to realtors and IDCs. Driscoll recommends putting together a pamphlet of available real estate (online or posted at town hall) and holding marketing sessions. Also recommends holding a Business Summit—including a panel of business resources (CPA, SEED, Attorney). Lakeville did this and was sponsored by banks in town. They advertised through SEED, the banks, the small business development network, and the Chamber of Commerce. SEED would also be willing to speak with Mansfield's commercial brokers to speak about their program. Krentzman recommends to commission to look over brochure and discuss at January meeting. Discussion Frank Gay, GATRA Administrator Gay—intent of GATRA is to create partnerships with communities and they can only provide service that is authorized by the town. There is a cost to the community for any additional/new services. Wall asks about running a Cabot -Downtown route and whether we can run that on an experimental basis. Partnerships could also be made with the park or businesses to pay it back to the town. Another option could be to have a downtown-Xfinity center route. GATRA can also help with wayfinding signs and signage. Keohlis may also be interested in working in projects like this as long as it is tied to the train station. The downtown subcormnittee will add this to their agenda. All GATRA information will be added to the IDC website by Hill Cummings and the interns. The IDC interns can also put together a small post about the available services to post on Facebook. The IDC can begin a dialogue between GATRA and the Cabot Park. Discussion about future speakers Krentzman suggests we end our speaker series so we can focus on accomplishing some goals. Discussion of Board of Selectmen Downtown Strategy Committee- Nancy Wall IDC Representative. Ross says the committee has met twice. The first meeting concluded on the need for brainstorming sessions. The first one was last week and focused on small projects like signage. Other projects discussed included things such as a path from Mansfield bank to Rumford Avenue. May also clean up area behind Jimmy's Pub adding parking and lighting. Downtown events were also discussed so were food truck events. The next meeting in January will be a focus on long-term projects. Update from Downtown Subcommittee Nothing to report at this moment. Potential zoning articles this year- i.e. recreational marijuana- Beth Ashman (see attached) Ross says we must provide a location (required by law). Report on progress on IDC website, social media and marketing campaign Interns have been working on social media sites and on website Discussion on IDC Brochure and Mansfield presentation folder Review and discussion of business listings/contact info and town map provided by the Town Manager Bill Ross demonstrated the Cabot park map that includes each building and information on the size, photographs, value, sales related to the property, the business information (who owns it), who the electric customers are, and who the water customers are. This is all available on the town website. As of right now, contact information is not available, but we hope it will be in the near future. Vacancy may also be a variable we can add to the system. Krentzman will organize a meeting with Kara Griffin and Bill Ross to coordinate the collection of contact information. Schedule next meeting for Tuesday, January 17, 2017 Motion to adjourn (Martin/Wall)