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HomeMy WebLinkAbout5.10.22 DMC Packet DOWNTOWN MANAGEMENT COMMISSION May 10, 2022 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. Via Video Conference AGENDA All agenda items are approximate I. Roll Call (2 minutes) Board Secretary II. Procedural Items Chair A. Approval of the March 8, 2022 Meeting Minutes (2 minutes) B. Swearing in of New Commissioner: Justin Kalvin (2 minutes) C. Welcome New Commissioner (10 minutes) D. Officer Elections (10 minutes) III. Public Participation (0-10 minutes) Chair IV. Public Safety Update (10 minutes) Sergeant Kessler V. Downtown Boulder Partnership (DBP) Update Chip, CEO, Downtown Boulder Partnership A. Downtown Boulder Ambassadors (5 minutes) B. Downtown Vision Plan (10 minutes) C. West End Closure to Vehicle Traffic (10 minutes) VI. Consent Agenda – Topics will not be discussed unless there are questions posed by the Commission. Please reference the consent agenda memo. VII. Matters from Staff Staff A. Outdoor Dining Update (5 minutes) B. Gateless Installations (5 minutes) C. Community Vitality Strategic Plan Update and 2022 Work Plan priorities (10 minutes) D. 2023 Preliminary Budget Proposals (15 minutes) E. DMC Meetings: Remain Virtual/Move to Hybrid (10 minutes) VIII. Matters from Commissioners Commissioners IX. Next Commission Meeting: 4:00 p.m. Tuesday, July 12, 2022 X. Adjourn Attachments: - Draft March 8, 2022 DMC Meeting Minutes - Special District Boards and Commissions Consent Agenda – May 2022 Commissioner Term Exp DMC 2022 Priorities Susan Nuzum (Chair) Don Poe (Vice Chair) Stephanie Trees Justin Kalvin Vacant Property Owner/Rep Property Owner/Rep Citizen-at-Large Property Owner/Rep Citizen-at-Large 2024 2025 2026 2026 • Participate in meaningful processes and dialogue exploring future downtown transformations that strengthen the economy, diversify the user base, and enhance the safety and vibrancy of downtown • Participate in the implementation of the Access Management and Parking Strategy (AMPS) and Neighborhood Parking Permit Program and Parking Pricing (NPP) to strengthen multimodal downtown access experiences and infrastructure • Consider repurposed portions of parking infrastructure to meet broader city goals regarding diversity, art and neighborhoods • Explore staff capacity to facilitate more creative board engagements • Encourage cross-district collaboration of board/commission work, including a more active collaboration and discourse with Downtown Boulder Partnership (DBP) and the business improvement district (BID) CITY OF BOULDER, COLORADO BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS MEETING MINUTES DOWNTOWN MANAGEMENT COMMISSION NAMES OF MEMBERS, STAFF, AND INVITED GUESTS PRESENT: BOARD MEMBERS: Nuzum, Poe, Trees STAFF: Bowden, Jones, Pinkal, Brown, Landrith, Bromberg GUESTS: Chip (Downtown Boulder Partnership) PERSON PREPARING SUMMARY: Lisa Wuycheck, (303) 441-3254 TYPE OF MEETING: Regular March 8th, 2022 Roll Call: Complete. 4:03 PM Andrew called the meeting to order. Seconded by Susan. All were in favor. Approval of the Jan. 11th, 2022 Minutes Poe moved to approve the meeting minutes. Nuzum seconded. All in favor. Public Participation None. Consent Items DBP Update (Chip)- Chip announced the DBP Annual Awards event will be held on April 1, 2022. Chip invited all commissioners to attend. Jones said Community Vitality will send an invitation to the commissioners with all relevant information. Nuzum asked for updates on mall vacancies and if there was pandemic fallout. Chip said Google is starting hybrid work and with good weather, people are coming back downtown. Jack Walker- Safety Update Crime update- Walker reviewed crime in the downtown area and said there were no trends to be concerned about. He said the police are doing camp cleanups. Walker reported that the police department is adopting a new model for addressing crime. Officers will focus efforts more on the problem area, which is downtown. Nuzum said there seems to be more homeless people present. Nuzum added that when there is a camp clean-up, it does not correlate to reducing the homeless population. Trees addressed the police department’s policy for people camping out in front of vacant storefronts. Walker said if people are blocking access, it is a violation, and it should be reported. Poe asked if the marginalized community can be arrested and added that the homeless problem has not improved much. Poe said there were 13 misdemeanor warrants, but the jail won’t accept them. Poe said arrests for felonies has improved, but not misdemeanors. Walker said the homeless need to move their property and then officers can clean up needles, trash, etc. Walked added that the police will not move people physically but will point out where they should go and where they can find services. He added that people often return. Walker said the officers recommended services, but the homeless often have no interest. Poe asked if there is any preparation being done for St Patrick’s day. Walked said the police have reached out to fraternities, and they have a lot of extra staffing. The police are working with CU to ensure enforcement is there. Neimeyer inquired about staffing levels. Walker said 25 officers have completed training. He said by the mid-summer, they will see light at the end of the tunnel. Walked added that a couple of officers will make a lateral move and 50 people will be hired in the next hiring process. He said the police are looking at ways to shorten the process. Poe asked if ‘no trespassing' signs are needed. Officer said it is beneficial to have the signs so that people are aware. Poe is trying to find how to keep the signs up. Walker said the more obvious the sign is, the more effective it is. Walker encouraged people to send a note and said the police are happy to help. Chip asked why the social services are not being accepted. Officer Walker said the police received a grant to fund research questions regarding why there is resistance to services. He said different agencies are offering overlapping services. It is a large grant. Jones said the day shelter is a top priority for Council along with homelessness. Preinitz said someone had 13 misdemeanors and is wondering if there are other ways to get people to stop committing crimes since jail does not work. Officer Walker said these tickets do not generate funds for our courts. He added that these efforts are to get people engaged in services. Officer Walker will have more information about the status of the jail at the next meeting. Matters from Staff Community Vitality Department Update (Jones) Jones introduced Lisa Wuycheck, who will be serving as secretary for the commissions. Wuycheck provided her background experience working with commission meetings. Jones discussed staffing changes. Yvette Bowden is now the Assistant City Manager and Jones is the Interim CV Director. Community Vitality now includes Special Events and Arts & Culture. Jones said the department is doing more strategic planning and updating the Strategic Plan. He said he will share the plan with commissioners once it is complete. Curbside Management Project Update (Lewin) Lewin- Presentation included in the packet Questions for commissioners: What would you like to see more of? Less of? Specific issues would you like to address? Trees asked what prompted this project. Lewin said it is part of the AMPS implementation. Hagelin said once COVID emergency orders are lifted, the commissioners will think about what should remain. He said there are many other demands for the use of the curbs, including Uber, Amazon, etc. He said the commission and staff need to develop overarching policies on how to handle it. He said in areas where the demands are higher, policies for curb usage is needed. Trees said rideshare is a huge issue and that the airport is a good example. Trees said ride-sharing hurts the city and that it’s best to have a designated pick-up and drop-off area. She said people with accessibility issues need to be considered. Poe said UPS and Amazon are issues too. Poe said these companies plan their routes to only go right, and they cause traffic issues and double park frequently. Liv said bicycles are in an area where the community can find them. Lynne said scooters do not have a good drop-off/pick-up location. Lewin said scooters are managed by a company, and they are not allowed downtown. Lewin asked how commissioners feel about having storage for micro-mobility in the parking spot area. Trees said if they are paying for the spot, then it should be approved. Hagelin said one thing the project looks at is curbside fees. He said the best practices report will address using the fees to manage the curbs. Preinitz wants to see less long-term parking. Preinitz asked if a study exists regarding how much deterrence would occur if it is required to use parking garages. Preinitz would like to see more vendors and food trucks and said designated rideshare locations should be implemented. Poe said bikes are on sidewalks where the community should not ride. He would like clearer signs with biking rules. Trees said cyclists need to follow the law and need more education regarding rules. Niemeyer said the bike lane on 13th Street through downtown is a hazard. There needs to be more separation between the curb and bike lane. Trees suggested using color for crossing to prevent j-walking. Trees said there needs to be other creative ways to direct pedestrians where to cross. Neimeyer said pedestrians on 13th and Broadway step off the curb into traffic. He said there needs to be markings on the mall to warn them. Outdoor Dining Update (Jones) Jones-Outdoor Dining packet included with the packet. Jones said the agenda item has been bumped to April 19th for a regular council meeting. He said this allows more time for staff to collect feedback and prepare other elements. He is working on rules for restaurants once the emergency orders end. Nuzum asked if the emergency orders are ending at the end of April. Jones said Council members are anticipating a short extension of those orders. Poe is paying 12k for 200 sq/ft for a year. He asked if this is a good deal. Neimeyer said there is a bit of a tangent PR issue. He said the right-of-way leases are free and extend through this October and there is a movement from Denver to make those leases permanent. The commission said their responsibility is to serve the community and the restaurants affected by COVID disproportionality. The commission asked what regulations should exist addressing private use of the public right-of-way Neimeyer said restaurants in Glenwood Springs lease public right-of-way space. Trees asked how the city is making fiscally responsible decisions. She asked how many restaurants need to participate at the $50 an sq/ft to make up the cost. Jones said he is concerned about throwing money at things that are not being used. He said commitments from restaurants are needed before infrastructure is purchased. Neimeyer said all successful restaurants use public space, but others can’t use the space. He said there is a potential for the rich to get richer. Jones said there is a spectrum and restaurants are responsible for the cost. He said ARPA dollars are allocated to this program and state grant dollars are used to reduce the cost burden on restaurants for the infrastructure cost. Slides will be shared after the meeting. Trees said the West End Closure is a challenging thing to understand for a long-term city design. Trees asked if they can propose the parklets versus the street closure? Jones said he wants businesses to understand the spectrum of possibilities. Jones said we will get feedback from Council on what the process looks like. Trees said other towns bought infrastructure. Jones said he took a tour of Arvada, and they use the mod street infrastructure and used ARPA funds to purchase them. He said they allow open containers in the downtown area, but they have a lax understanding of the state rules. Jones said Arvada permanently closed several streets. Jones said Arvada is not charging for the space, and it is unclear how they responded to the pandemic and how that translates to the future. Neimeyer said Arvada has struggled to keep quality restaurants there. He said he is in favor of restaurants paying for their spaces. He said he is grateful for free space in Denver and would gladly pay for it. Trees asked if restaurants will pay. Jones said businesses will do their analysis of how much it costs to build their own, and they will understand where the fee comes from. Preinitz said not all businesses are restaurants. Preinitz said some are cafes, but when looking at the numbers for her space, it doesn’t make sense. She said not everyone’s outdoor table is worth a large return. Preinitz asked if the city is considering charging businesses different amounts or one blanket amount. Jones said no suggestions were made regarding a different rate because people must realize that cost is real and it doesn’t matter what type or size of the business is. Nuzum asked if the city could create qualifications for assistance based on need. Jones said it is possible, but if restaurants are willing and able to pay the full cost, there needs to be criteria outlining why to subsidize one business over the other. He said this opens up a can of worms. Nuzum asked how many spots are open if two new businesses open. Landrith there will be two vacancies. Preinitz asked if it is common to have vacancies. Landrith said COVID has messed with numbers, but things are looking up. Trees asked if any farmer’s market vendors want a cart. Landrith said it is challenging to predict the volume of mall shoppers, but at the farmers market, they know the crowd. He said specific vendors are not recruited to make it equitable. Nuzum said the commissioners need to move, but they need a quorum to approve. Mobile Vending Car Permit Applications (Landrith) Matters from commissioners: This is Andrew Niemeyer and Sara Preinitz’s last meeting . Meeting Adjourned: 6:18 pm NEXT MEETING: May 10, 2022 APPROVED BY: DOWNTOWN MANAGEMENT COMMISSION Attest: ________________________ ________________________ Lisa Wuycheck, Secretary Susan Nuzum, Chairperson Downtown Boulder Partnership Ambassadors Vision Plan West Pearl Street Stats Overview April 2022 Hospitality Contacts –10,381 Business Contacts –2029 Graffiti Removed –1719 Garage Checks –119 Trash Bags –185 Welfare Checks –693 March 2022 Hospitality Contacts –7639 Business Contacts –2296 Graffiti Removed –1322 Garage Checks –14 Trash Bags –141 Welfare Checks -930 Before and After Whatever it takes! What people are saying! “Just wanted to pass along my praise and gratitude to your exceptional team of Boulder Ambassadors. Their presence is a welcome addition to the east end of Pearl providing services to both the retail community and our visitors. When we need them they’re there -providing walks to our cars or making sure we’re safe. We thank each and every one of them and the Downtown Partnership for providing their services.”Ellen Epstein, Pearl Convenience Our opinion of the ambassador program is 100% positive We really appreciate having an external support team that we can interact with directly, and keep each other updated about ongoing issues. Ambassadors are respectful and friendly, not just to stores but also to the public—they bring a neutral energy to problem solving and diplomacy that is super helpful in Pearl Street’s changing environment. We would really like this program to continue. -Caryn Brick, manager, El Loro What’s Next? ●Staffing up for Summer ●Ongoing Training 2023 ●Additional Support for University Hill ●Dedicated Homeless Outreach Positions Downtown Vision Plan Identity Programming and Activation Transformative Public Enhancement Projects Climate Resilience Equity and Inclusion Funding and Management Pearl Street Mall at 50! Vision Plan Next Steps ●Engage consulting group ●Convene steering committee ●Integration of existing work ●Schedule focus groups, stakeholder interviews, and other inputs ●Design community engagement opportunities The Future of West Pearl…Sentiment Survey May 2022 Survey Details: Feedback Collected: April 26 -May 2, 2022 Email w/link to Google Form: 1,113 people (Two reminder emails) Initial Email Open Rate: 548 (50%) Initial Email Click Through Rate: 123 (11%) Total Respondents: 177 For the purposes of this report, West End businesses are defined as being located on Pearl Street -west of 11th Street, as well as 10th Street. 53% of the total respondents represented businesses that were in the West End district. The next five slides show overall results from all 177 respondents. Office (Company): 28% Retail (Shop): 24% Restaurant: 21% Other: 15% Service / Personal Care: 12% Business Owner: 47% Employee: 21% Property Owner: 11% General Manager: 19% Resident: 9% *Respondents could check more than one description West End between 11th and 10th Streets: 26% West End between 10th and 9th Streets: 16% Pearl Street Mall: 14% East End (east of 15th Street): 9% South of Pearl Street: 8% Other: 8% Resident: 7% North of Pearl Street: 5% West End on 10th Street: 3% West End between 9th and 8th Streets: 3% 44% favor a permanent year round vehicular closure 31% favor a permanent reopening (back to pre- covid) 13% favor a seasonal closure 8% favor a mixed use / hybrid model 4% other response 44% -No, leave the streets closed until a final decision is made either way 33% Open the streets back up on Sept. 1 while talks continue 21% Leave the street closure in place until the end of the fall season (October 31, 2022) 2% -Other response The next set of slides show overall results from businesses in the West End District. For the purposes of this report, West End businesses are defined as being located on Pearl Street -west of 11th Street, as well as 10th Street. 53% of the total respondents represented businesses that were in the West End district. Of that number, 27%of the respondents identified as restaurants and 37%as retailers / service providers. In looking at the West End district, my preference is: 93 responses In looking at the West End district, my preference is: Restaurant vs. Retail Boulder Business Recovery Program Emergency Order expires on August 31, 2022, would you want to see the West End re-opened while the talks continue about the West End's future? 93 responses Boulder Business Recovery Program Emergency Order expires on August 31, 2022, would you want to see the West End re-opened while the talks continue about the West End's future? Restaurant vs. Retail The next two slides show overall results of those who identified as business owners and/or property owners from all 177 respondents. Of the 177 respondents, 42% identified as business owners and 12% identified as property owners. In looking at the West End district, my preference is: Business Owners / Property Owners Boulder Business Recovery Program Emergency Order expires on August 31, 2022, would you want to see the West End re-opened while the talks continue about the West End's future? Business Owner / Property Owner The next two slides show overall results from business owners and property owners in the West End District. For the purposes of this report, West End businesses are defined as being located on Pearl Street -west of 11th Street, as well as 10th Street. 53% of the total respondents represented businesses that were in the West End district. Of that number, 42%of the respondents identified as business owners and 14%as property owners providers. In looking at the West End district, my preference is: West End Business Owners / Property Owners Boulder Business Recovery Program Emergency Order expires on August 31, 2022, would you want to see the West End re-opened while the talks continue about the West End's future? West End Business Owner / Property Owner The next slide represents feedback once the data was deduped from multiple responses per business. In addition, businesses west of 9th were also removed from this look. Deduping in this manner took the West End responses from 93 to 54. In addition, there are 14 email addresses that could not easily be identified / associated with a particular business so that corresponding business might be represented twice. In looking at the West End district, my preference is: West End Businesses Deduped Boulder Business Recovery Program Emergency Order expires on August 31, 2022, would you want to see the West End re-opened while the talks continue about the West End's future? West End Businesses Deduped City of Boulder Special District Board Consent Agenda University Hill Commercial Area Management Commission (UHCAMC) – March 1, 2022 Downtown Management Commission (DMC) – March 8, 2022 Boulder Junction Access District (BJAD) Commissions – March 16, 2022 Updates on Community Vitality work plan programs and projects for city special district boards. These updates are for informational purposes only and require no discussion or votes. Special District Updates • UHGID - University Hill 14th Street Parking Lot Redevelopment Exploration – EPS provided Community Vitality (CV) with several “Preliminary Strategies” to help form recommendations for actions UHGID should take to better utilize the 14th Street lot. CV met with EPS in early February to refine and narrow the list of strategies to better meet the needs of the community and our goals for the project, which includes meeting the parking and mobility needs of the district and improving the financial sustainability of UHGID. Once EPS incorporates our feedback, the next step will be to provide CV with a further evaluation of each recommendation, including financing options. • CAGID/UHGID – Downtown and University Hill Ambassador Pilot – The ambassador program, operating in the downtown, Civic Area, and on University Hill, with Brandon Lowe as operations manager for any outreach on issues. Brandon may be reached via phone or text at 720-467-9236. Pedestrian Counter statistics are found at: https://sites.google.com/downtownboulder.org/pedestrianimpressions/home • CAGID – Outdoor Dining Pilot Program - The Outdoor Dining Outreach Survey closed on Monday, February 7th. The survey link was emailed to 1,454 individuals representing downtown residents and businesses by Community Vitality and Tax & Licensing. It was also shared by Downtown Boulder Partnership in their business-to- business newsletter. We received a grand total of 836 responses including 54 restaurants. Immediate next steps include analyzing the results of the survey. Additionally, Teresa Pinkal, Chelsea Sullivan, and Reegan Brown will be working on creating a map that outlines where parklets could be installed in Downtown Boulder, which will ultimately be presented to Council on March 8, 2022. In the meantime, staff will continue to explore additional funding opportunities that could support this program and gain community buy-in for this effort. • BJAD – Public Wayfinding and Branding Design RFP – The City of Boulder is meeting weekly with the consulting firm of KMA Design www.thekmagroup.com for the public outreach to the Boulder community and stakeholders involved with this transit-oriented development. The creation of a Boulder Junction brand including a logo with unique design elements will be featured on directional and wayfinding signs and digital displays throughout the special districts. Stakeholder meetings were held on February 23, 2022 and a survey is currently underway to gather public feedback. City of Boulder Updates AMPS Implementation: Revitalizing Access in Boulder –Performance Based Pricing– New on-street pay station rates and less restrictive long-term parking rates in city-owned garages went into effect on January 1, 2022. A full listing of the changes and options may be seen at www.BoulderParking.com or at https://bouldercolorado.gov/guide/revitalizing-parking- transportation-access-boulder In 2022 we will be analyzing the effects that pricing changes have on garage and on street occupancy levels and using that data to inform or implement further pricing-related recommendations. Questions or comments: Cris Jones (jonesc@bouldercolorado.gov) AMPS Implementation: Revitalizing Access in Boulder – Priority Based Neighborhood Access Management – Beginning January 1, 2022, the rate for a Neighborhood Parking Permit was increased from $17 to $30 which will help the program achieve full cost recovery for administration. A Mobile Vendor Permit was also added to our permit options, to support businesses that provide frequent services in Neighborhood Permit Program (NPP) zones. In 2022 we will be analyzing neighborhoods based on a set of key performance indicators to pre- determine where new neighborhood permit zones might be established. Boulder Business Recovery Program - In response to the pandemic, the city created the Boulder Business Recovery Program, enabling businesses to expand into publicly held outdoor space to help offset the indoor mask mandates and social distancing. The latest version of this citywide program is set to expire on April 30, 2022. The exploration of a permanent permit process for outdoor dining pilot is being presented to city council during their March 8, 2022, meeting. Further details may be found at https://bouldercolorado.gov/news/city-boulder-will-extend-emergency-order-permitting-citywide- boulder-business-recovery-program Downtown Management Commission May 10, 2022 Community Vitality Preliminary Budget Report Preliminary Budget Overview Base Budget Consistent with 2021 Capital Improvement Plan Staffing and New Requests 2023 CIP $1,474,000 $400,000: Gateless Garages: 1500 Pearl, 1100 Spruce, St. Julian $300,000: 1500 Pearl HVAC Repairs $250,000: Elevator Repairs $40,000: Spruce Lot Repaving $100,000: Affordable Commercial $50,000: T2 Parking Software Replacement Analysis $300,000: Randolph Garage Repairs $34,000: Access Management and Parking Strategy (AMPS) 2023 CIP $1,474,000 New for 2023 $329,000 •CV Split -$74,000: Administrative/ Board Support •GF -$52,000: Arts and Culture Program Manager (¾ to full -time) •GF: $98:000: Special Events Program Manager •GF -$105,000: Special Events Coordinator Staffing Requests New for 2023 $783,000 •GF -$260,000: NFC for Pay Stations •GF -$70,000: Pay it Forward When you Pay to Park •GF -$300,000: Experiments In Public Art •GF -$31,000: Maintenance for Public Art •CAGID -$7,000: Randolph COA Dues Increase •CV Split -$115,000: AMPS Funding New Program Budget Requests