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05.12.20 DMC MinutesCITY OF BOULDER, COLORADO BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS MEETING MINUTES DOWNTOWN MANAGEMENT COMMISSION NAMES OF MEMBERS, STAFF, AND INVITED GUESTS PRESENT: BOARD MEMBERS: Shapins, Niemeyer, Nuzum, (Knoff absent) STAFF: Bowden, Landrith, Woulf, Jones, Bray, Mayotte, Wyton (BPD), Hayward GUESTS: Chip (DBP) PERSON PREPARING SUMMARY: Heather Hayward, 303-441-4191 TYPE OF MEETING: Regular May 12, 2020 Roll Call: Completed. Called to order at 4:05 p.m. Approval of the March 10, 2020 Joint Meeting Minutes Shapins moved to approve the March 10, 2020 minutes. Nuzum seconded. All in favor. Public Participation None. Consent Items Consent Items - No questions. Consent Items stand. BPD Update Sergeant Wyton took over from Sgt. Gehrhart as the new supervisor of the mall team. The mall team is continuing to patrol the mall as things are starting to open. They are limited as to what they can do in terms of summonsing and jailing because of the court closures and jail situation right now. The Hill team is assisting and doing extra patrols for them. They have three mall officers and are working on getting a fourth. Shapins discussed issues with the courthouse lawn becoming a scary place. Wyton stated that the they are limited in terms of what legally they can do. They’ve been telling merchants to call dispatch right away if they see something. A lot of places where the homeless population used to go are closed. They’ve been doing cleanups with ServPro and they think the closure of the restrooms and disbursement of porta potties has helped. Landrith read from a report from Officer Ryan Austin. There’s still a high number of bike thefts, vehicle trespasses, burglaries and general property crimes. BPD is putting extra plain clothes officers out. Wyton stated that most of these crimes are not in the mall area but are in other areas of Boulder. Bowden stated that Police Chief Maris will be providing a more city-wide report at Council on May 12 and May 17. DBP Update Chip discussed that Downtown Boulder Partnership has moved into stabilization mode and focus is on communication with their members. They’ve been having weekly business calls on a range of topics. They’ve setup a Slack channel for businesses to communicate. DBP initiated doing one-on-one calls with everyone in the district and are starting to work on a second round of those calls. They’ve ramped up the Local campaign promoting online and retailers re-opening. DBP has setup an employee assistance fund and have now funded close to 60 downtown employees with gifts of $500. DBP has been doing some deep cleaning and sanitizing. Chip discussed they added private security that works with the police department. They are continuing to work with the PD and the HOT on addressing issues around the 1300 block. Chip talked about DBP working with a partnership of business associations throughout the city and they are working on industry-specific trainings. DBP has put together a mural program to add attractive murals to businesses that have had to board up. Shapins discussed that one of the biggest issues for businesses is having a full understanding of the safety issues and that he believes we should focus on and communicate a “healthy downtown”. Bowden discussed the Boulder Business Response and Recovery Alliance and all the parties involved. Bowden discussed that the alliance’s most recent activities including educating on PPE, how to get resources, and standardizing materials so businesses don’t need to create them on their own. Bowden referred all to the COVID related business web page on the City’s web site. Matters from Staff Vote for new Chairperson Shapins was nominated by Feldman for Chair at the previous meeting. All in favor. Shapins elected Chairperson. Shapins nominated Nuzum for Vice-Chair. All in favor. Nuzum elected Vice-Chairperson. Parking Wait List Mayotte discussed the addition of online T-2 software called FlexPort and how this will allow for more ease in the permitting and purchasing process. Implementation will be complete by Fall, 2020. There are currently over 400 businesses on the waitlist. Mayotte shared the following FlexPort recommendations: •Permit cap for any customer •Requirement that customers remove their place in line •Removal of permits that haven’t been used for a period of time •One waitlist per garage •$10 permit fee – continue going forward and how we will wait •Addressing the need to collect certain customer information Nuzum discussed issues with the Day Pass. People are generally using the day pass at her office because they’re driving to go out for an appointment (no in and out), so it doesn’t work for them. Also, the way they encourage people to use alternative transportation to driving is by having these “pool” passes. With license plate recognition that this isn’t going to work, so it takes away an incentive for alternate transportation. Shapins commented that he would appreciate staff taking a pause and paying attention to how public spaces are used for the next couple of years until we get a vaccine. Bowden stated they are using past data to address what is changing right now. This is about the infrastructure that CAGID deals with and how it will be maintained. Parking & Access Restoration Woulf discussed that on-street operations are critical to supporting our General Fund programs and services. They will not suddenly turn enforcement back on, as it was before. Next Monday is first day they’ll charge in garages again. There will also be a two-week time period of communications regarding on street parking and warnings before full enforcement at the beginning of June. Woulf discussed some discounts in June. The CV front desk will be open on June 1st with 50% staff with PPE measures. Quarterly permits will be handled with a Q3 renewals credit to those who renewed during Q2. Bowden talked about the increased grace period from 5 mins to 20 mins downtown, M-F, in order to pick up meals, etc. For people working downtown M-F, they’re encouraging use of garages with a daily cap of $8.00 through June 30. COVID Budget Impact on CAGID and Funding Strategies Woulf stated that due to the COVID revenue impact, the City has asked them to present 10% reductions in the 2020 budget and to build the 2021 budget with an additional 10% reductions. They can credit ongoing reductions from the 2020 budget. They’re working to make sure any reductions are in alignment with the Strategic Plan. They did a lot of work on our CIP (Capital Improvement Plan), so they don’t have a lot of wiggle room in the CIP. Tenants are an important form of revenue for CAGID. They’ve worked with departments to develop a citywide policy for an optional rent hiatus in April and May with payback over 3 or 6 months. During this time, they’ve signed one lease extension and are in negotiations for another lease, which is positive. Woulf discussed the decline in parking utilization during shutdown, but that this is projected to increase as businesses reopen. He also discussed other factors to consider that may impact funds, including remote working and changes in public transportation preferences. CAGID is in very good health overall in terms of fund balance and reserve. Woulf wouldn’t suggest patching lost revenue solely from fund balance but does think it’s appropriate to use reserve in these circumstances. Woulf stated that they are expecting reimbursement from EcoPass of approximately $200,000. Community Vitality Department did have some furloughs. They will keep the commission posted as those decisions come in and hope to have a near final budget in July for the commission’s approval. Niemeyer suggested the option for vacant space of considering a straight percentage rate lease. Bowden discussed that our commercial broker, Bittner, has been in contact with tenants not suggested changes. We are currently are already much more affordable than other downtown spaces. Depending on experience over the next couple of weeks, Bowden may reach out to Niemeyer to discuss this more. Bowden talked about the Affordable Commercial Pilot which involves planning of how to split spaces to smaller/more affordable spaces, if we have vacancies. Niemeyer asked about the House Bill for stimulus funds, PPP loans and VA loans and whether Boulder would be hindered in securing these loans because of its resources. Bowden stated that the City, along with the Chamber, has submitted a strong letter to the state and our federal representatives regarding consideration of smaller cities and counties than received money in the first round of CARES Act. The Council, Mayor and Chamber have submitted letters as well. Bowden doesn’t believe that our fiscal situation in the City hinders us. Consideration of Restaurant Industry Recovery-Related Requests Bowden reviewed the COVID-19 briefing presentation that will be presented at Council this evening. As part of the alliance, they have setup a grant process both through the DBP and the Chamber and also through a $200,000 challenge grant the City gave to the Community Foundation. They’ve been working with employees to find alternate employment. They are helping people, through the SBDC and Chamber, to rework their business operations. The alliance is providing assistance in navigating process of getting PPE, loans and lease negotiations. The industry letter was written on behalf of the Colorado Restaurant Association to all mayors, councils and city managers across Colorado. The wants are limits to operating costs, particularly minimum wage. They also want aid in addressing reopening challenges and have continued need for access for pickup and delivery. Their initial May 7 response addressed the following: •Clarification that they are not addressing changes to minimum wage this year •They’ve been doing work on pickup and delivery drop off locations. •They’ve been doing work on assisting in navigating the loan process for business •They will be working with Transportation on curbside management for a pickup and delivery pilot •They are making interim adjustments to special district parking, which needs to balance the needs of different business types and different types of customers. This includes: the garage evening pilot through the end of the year; adjustment of daytime garage rates to $8 max.; and on-street parking grace periods increased from 5 mins to 20 mins to accommodate pickup and delivery. Since alcohol licensure is a state issue, they’ve sent a letter to the State asking for an opinion letter regarding alcohol service of outside of the lease line. They are also meeting now on temporary right-of - way repurposing for revocable permits. They’ve already been working on patios, alleys and use of the event street in the University Hill area. Next steps include a planning meeting this week with local restaurant representatives, Chamber and Downtown. Chip will be closing Consumer Sentiment Survey on the 17th and will have some updates. On the 19th, there will be a more extensive Council presentation on the curbside management pilot, engagement, right-of-way and minimum parking considerations. Hopefully, there will be a State update on alcohol licensure limits and outreach to the State and the Boulder County Health Department to discuss any concerns they have around gatherings. Shapins stated that one of the most important things is that city departments, legal staff and others to work together holistically to isolate downtown from other areas that are needing public space or right-of-way modifications. He encouraged acting with some urgency towards use of the public right-of-way. Meeting Adjourned: 5:52 p.m. NEXT MEETING: July 14, 2020 APPROVED BY: DOWNTOWN MANAGEMENT COMMISSION Attest: ________________________ _______________________________________ Heather Hayward, Secretary Jerry Shapins, Chairperson Jerry Shapins (Jul 16, 2020 11:28 MDT)