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Minutes 10-14-03MINUTES OF THE COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY SPECIAL MEEETING HELD IN COMMISSION CHAMBERS, CITY HALL, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON TUESDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2003 AT 5:00 P.M Present Larry Finkelstein, Chairman Douglas Hutchinson, CRA Director Jeanne Heavilin, Vice Chair Lindsey Payne, Board Attorney Alexander DeMarco Susan Vielhauer, Controller Don Fenton Charlie Fisher Michelle Hoyland Henderson Tillman I. Call to Order Chairman Finkelstein called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. He announced that this' meeting would be devoted entirely to the two finalists' presentations for the Savage Creatures of Ancient Seas Feasibility Study as recommended by the selection committee. Mr. Hutchinson explained that the two finalists would each be making a 30-minute presentation, after which the Board could ask questions. The first presentation will be made by Lord Cultural Resources Planning and Management and the second by the Baker Leisure Group. The order of presentation does not reflect any type of preference. II. Roll Call The Recording Secretary called the roll and declared that all members were present. II1. Public Audience None IV. New Business A. Presentation of qualification from the two finalists selected through the RFQ process for the Savage Creatures of Ancient Seas Feasibility Study The following made up the team of the Lord Cultural Resources Group: ~. Ted Silberberg of Lord Cultural Resources, who is responsible for market and financial planning > Larry Riser of McBride Design > Sergio Bacchus and Tom Westberg of ^rguitectonica Meeting Minutes Community Redevelopment Agency Special Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida October 14, 2003 Russell Barnes of Kimley Horne Tilden Lobnitz Cooper (TLC) Hall Train Studios Mr. Silberberg stated that they were a multi-disciplinary team and cover all the areas that the study requires. Copies of the PowerPoint presentation were distributed to the Board. The salient points of the presentation were as follows: 1. The project should be entertainment orientated and be able to generate substantial earned income. 2. The project needs to attract foundation, corporate, individual and government support. 3. The project should be a museum-related attraction. If the project were just a theme park, it would not be able to receive grants. 4. The Lord Group is a creative and realistic team. 5. They will look for ways to maximize the feasibility of the project. 6. They would do a study to determine how the project could meet wider community needs, such as downtown and waterfront revitalization and economic and tourism development. 7. The team is a multi-disciplinary team that will be covering concept and design; facilities planning; and market and feasibility. 8. Mr. Silberberg would be the principal in charge working with all the other members of the team. Mr. Silberberg next reviewed the background and qualification of his company. 1. The Lord Group was founded in 1981. It is the largest museum planning firm in the world, headquartered in Toronto with offices in Washington D.C. and San Francisco and elsewhere throughout the world. 2. They have performed all types of feasibility studies, which were outlined in their brochure. 3. They have experience performing multi-disciplinary master plan work, including a project they are currently working on in South Florida for Vizcaya. 4. The Lord Group specializes in museums and has worked with science and children's museums. Mr. Larry Riser, representing the McBride Design Company, presented the qualifications of their firm, which is located in Miami. Their firm specializes in concept design and planning. Mr. Riser gave a brief overview of the work that they have performed. Their role with the team would be the entertainment portion of the project. McBride Design Company were the designers for: · All the patron amenities and the pre-show theater at Biosphere 2 near Tucson, Arizona Meeting Minutes Community Redevelopment Agency Special Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida October 14, 2003 · Asian River Life at the Miami Metro Zoo · A project for the Discovery Channel that was filmed at the Atlantis Hotel and Casino in the Bahamas. The project is geared for children 6 to 12 years and teaches them about the environment of the Caribbean. · A project in conjunction with the Smithsonian for the Miami Museum of Science. Hall Train Studio that has a very good reputation in the theme park business will be working with them. Their specialty is creating animatronic dinosaurs. Sergio Bacchus, Senior Vice President of Arguitectonica, would be the architect for the project. They are located in South Florida and specialize in architectural planning and interior design. They have participated in many feasibility and planning studies including the following: · The Miami Children's Museum; · Discovery Science Center located on the west coast of the U.S.; · Walt DisneyWodd; and · The Cruise Terminal at Port Canaveral. They would also be working with Tilden Lobnitz Cooper, which is one of the largest engineering firms in Flodda. They will be doing the structural, mechanical, electrical and plumbing engineering work for the project. Kimley-Horne will be doing the civil engineering and environmental work. Russell Barnes of Kimley-Horne and Associates is currently working with the CRA on the Boynton Beach Promenade Extension Project. Their job would be to make sure that the ideas being produced can be constructed. They are a full service firm that deals with environmental, transportation, stormwater, and sewer projects. It is important to keep continuity between the Boynton Beach Promenade Project and the Museum. Mr. Barnes also explained all the other areas that they would be dealing with on the project. Question and Answer Session Mr. Fisher noted that at this point the CRA is hiring a firm to do a feasibility study; they are not looking for a final design. Mr. Fisher inquired that when the feasibility study is completed would the CRA be informed of the cost of the project. Mr. Silberberg responded that it was important that the CRA receive credible projections on the capital and operating side. They would project attendance, revenue and expenses and the sources of income, which is the purpose of assembling a team to determine these factors. Mr. Fisher also inquired if they would be able to project where the funds for the Museum would come from. Mr. Silberberg stated that they could project the total dollar amount necessary for the project, but the funding would have to come from a vadety of sources, Meeting Minutes Community Redevelopment Agency Special Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida October 14, 2003 which they could help identify. They cannot say who will give what. Mr. Silberberg stated that it was important to maximize the earned income to support the Museum. Mr. Fisher also asked if the number of jobs could be projected. Mr. Silberberg said that this would be included in their study. Chairman Finkelstein also requested that if the feasibility study indicates that the Museum would not work that they would be told this. Chairman Finkelstein would like all the results of the study brought back to them so that all aspects of the project could be looked at. Mr. Silberberg stated that they were a credible firm and would come back with an honest and realistic study. Mr. Fenton asked how the Lord Group chose the firms that they did to work on the study. Mr. Silberberg stated that they work all over the wodd and they felt that it was important that there be a balance among the team of international and local firms. They selected firms that they felt would be most appropriate for the project. Mr. DeMarco asked if they ever performed work for other CRA organizations. He would like to see other studies that they performed so that problems that came up previously could be avoided. Mr. DeMarco also inquired if Lord group would help the CRA with marketing and advertising. Mr. Silberberg pointed out that they were doing a feasibility study and it would not be credible to begin preparing marketing at this time. His firm would actually not perform this type of work that could be handled by a local company. It is important that a feasibility study be done with independence and objectivity. Mr. Fisher inquired if the cost of the marketing would be included in the study, and Mr. Silberberg responded that it would. The architect responded that they could assist by making presentations to the community. Mr. Silberberg pointed out that McBride would normally be involved in the next phases of the project and could do the marketing. Mr. Henderson inquired how long the study would take. Mr. Silberberg responded that it could take between four and six months. Mr. Hutchinson would like assurances that the project does not get out of control and become bigger than anticipated and requested that the size and scale of Boynton Beach not get lost when performing the study. Mr. Fisher asked when was the last time the Lord Group said that a project was not feasible. Mr. Silberberg stated that in 23 years he has never said that a project is or is not feasible. This is not their job. They present the numbers realistically and it would then be up to the CRA if they want to proceed. Chairman Finkelstein thanked The Lord Group for their presentation. Meeting Minutes Community Redevelopment Agency Special Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida October 14, 2003 Chairman Finkelstein welcomed Commissioner McCray to the meeting. The next presenter was the Baker Leisure Group Mr. Steven Baker, representing the Baker Leisure Group, stated that they are prepared to take the project from the beginning to its future success. He noted that they would be presenting a PowerPoint presentation. The Members of the Baker Group team are as follows: The Baker Leisure Group located in Odando is comprised of 8 partners and specializes in feasibility studies, market assessments and business analysis. The JBP Entertainment Group would create the concept development and focuses on entertainment, storytelling, and artistic design. The Currie Partnership would be the architects. The Currie Partnership is committed to elevating the standards of design, while creating places for people to live, work and play. EDSA would do the landscape design and is a leading international planning and architectural firm. Their expertise is also in tourism and entertainment related projects, such as theme parks, urban entertainment centers, museums, zoos and much more. Applied Technology Management (ATM) is in the waterfront development business. They are a full service, turnkey environmental consulting company. Wonder Works Exhibits Company is a leader in providing the museum and zoo communities with exhibits and special programming. Their focus is teaching through interaction, exploration and discovery. The Conway Company determines the needs of non-profit organizations for the. application of analytical techniques and would then recommend customized solutions. Recent projects include funding for the Texas State Aquarium, Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, and the Indiana State Museum. Cumming McGillvary is a leading cost-estimating and project management resource and will compare warranted investment levels in relation to the feasibility study and market assessment. They will also determine the best use of funds based upon the project's budget. Questions and Answers Mr. Fisher inquired who would be doing the financials and Mr. Baker responded that the Baker Group would. Mr. Fisher asked about the Conway Company and was informed that the Conway Company secures funding for not-for-profit organizations. Mr. Fisher asked if after doing a feasibility study, The Baker Group has gone back to an organization and informed them it was not feasible. 5 Meeting Minutes Community Redevelopment Agency Special Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida October 14, 2003 Mr. Baker responded that they have said a project was not feasible. Their business is to validate projects. It is in their best interests to make certain that a project is financially doable. Mr. Baker further responded that there are any many projects that do not come to fruition. Mr. Fenton inquired what their role was in revitalizing Fremont Street in Las Vegas. Mr. Baker responded that they helped develop sponsorship for the 11 hotels that paid for the $65 million light show. Chairman Finkelstein asked how the Baker Group would approach the initial feasibility study. Mr. Baker stated that first they would try to validate the numbers furnished to them and asked his associate to elaborate on this, who explained the process they use to determine if the project is feasible. They look at certain rules based upon their research and knowledge of how these things work. After that, the financial analysis is done, and they would be able to determine estimated attendance. Mr. Tillman asked how long the feasibility study would take. Mr. Baker stated that it would take eight weeks, since they work together as a team. Mr. DeMarco inquired if they have worked with a City and County the size of Boynton Beach and Palm Beach County and created a successful project. Mr. Baker pointed out that for the project's success, you could not depend upon the population of Boynton Beach. The project must be credible enough to draw people from surrounding areas. Mr. DeMarco also questioned if the population in this area could solely fund the project Mr. Baker responded that if you have a budget, you raise money to cover that budget anyway possible. Secondly, if the project were operated correctly within the guidelines, it should not be a drain on the community, but should benefit the community. Mr. Aguila responded that their team would (1) analyze what staff has come up with to determine whether the project was feasible, (2) could it be fixed to work, or (3) would not work at all. Mr. Tillman inquired if The Baker Group would review Mr. Hutchinson's numbers or would they perform their own study. Jose Aguila, of the Currie Partnership, responded that they would do a study that would parallel what Mr. Hutchinson has done, using the knowledge that the team has garnered by doing these types of studies throughout the world. He pointed out that they do their 6 Meeting Minutes Community Redevelopment Agency Special Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida October 14, 2003 own studies and perform certain analysis. After that they would prepare a report to be presented to the Board to determine the next step. Chairman Finkelstein thanked The Baker Group for their presentation. Chairman Finkelstein announced that the meeting would adjourn, and the Regular Meeting would start at 6:30 p.m. At the Regular Meeting the Board will select who would be doing the feasibility study, and it is being recommended that selection of the feasibility team will be moved up on the agenda. V. Other Items None VI. Adjournment There being no further business, the meeting propedy adjoumed at 6:10 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Barbara M. Madden Recording Secretary (October 20, 2003) 7