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Minutes 04-21-20 MINUTES OF THE COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY BOARD MEETING HELD ONLINE VIA THE GOTOWEBINAR PLATFORM BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA ON TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2020, AT 5:55 P.M. Steven B. Grant, Board Chair Michael Simon, Executive Director Ty Penserga, Vice Chair Thuy Shutt, Assistant Director Justin Katz, Board Member Tara Duhy, Board Counsel Woodrow L. Hay, Board Member Christina L. Romelus, Board Member 1. Call to Order Chair Grant called the meeting to order at 5:55pm. 2. Invocation Chair Grant provided the invocation. 3. Roll Call Roll Call was taken there was a quorum. 4. Agenda Approval A. Additions, Deletions, Correction to the Agenda B. Adoption of Agenda Motion Vice Chair Penserga moved to approve the agenda as presented. Board Member Hay seconded the motion, which unanimously passed. 5. Legal A. Consideration of Resolution 20-03- An Emergency Resolution of the Boynton Beach CRA adopting certain procedures during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Attorney Tara Duhy congratulated Board members Hay and Penserga on their appointments. She introduced the resolution Indicated there were three changes to procedures currently in place: Allows any board member to sign documents and bind the board. She indicated normally there is a chain of command, if approved any member of the board could make changes and could execute a contract with the power of the Mayor and bind the CRA. Allows the Executive Director to make administrative changes to the existing program, such as changes to deadlines. Allows abatement of rents from the Marina between April 30th to September 30, 2020 Meeting Minutes CRA Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida April 21, 2020 Vice Chair Penserga asked for clarification regarding the abatement of rents. Continued to say this is not a delay in rents or the reduction in rents, but forgoing rents. Attorney Duhy indicated this was correct, Chair Grants stated board member could sign contracts and deeds. Attorney Duhy indicated this would allow staff more flexibility to process documentation and contracts. Motion Board Member Hay moved to approve Resolution 20-03. Vice Chair Penserga seconded the motion, which unanimously passed. 6. Informational Items and Disclosures by Board Members and CRA Staff A. Disclosure flic Contacts I i i Items Presented The CRA Board on Agenda Board r Katz spoke withBradley Miller of Miller Land Planningregarding roc on the east side. He congratulated Board Member Hay and Vis it Penserga. Board r Hay spoke withBradley Miller of Miller Land Planningregarding o projects in districtII and III. Board er Romelus spoke withr I y Miller of Miller Land Planning, Jim Knight, Urban t io and hadconversation iFern McMillian. Vice it Penserga spokei r I Miller of Miller Land Planningtwo projects. Chair Grant spoke withill I i the openingof Chez Andrea Gourmet Provence restaurant, food was delicious. 7. Announcements and Awards A. Boynton Beach CRA Fiscal Year 2018-2019 Annual Report Michael Simon, Executive Director, indicated the CRA has completed its annual report and has posted the annual report to the CRA website as well as in the local newspaper. 8. Information Only 9. Public Comments 2 Meeting Minutes CRA Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida April 21, 2020 Chair Grant opened public comments and will be limited to 3 minutes. Tori Orr, Activist, announced the community provided free lunch for local residents. Expressed the CRA was doing a great job in the community and thanked staff for provided needed food to the community. Commented on the project on 7th street. Inquired about the new apartment's application process. Michael Simon, Executive Director stated the developer will provide a telephone number later, but for now, interest applicants can call the CRA office with questions or concerns. Congratulated Board Member Hay and Vice Chair Penserga. Mr. Orr inquired about the City of Boynton Beach 100-year Centennial celebration. Chair Grant stated their will be a celebration, and Pirate Feast is still a go. Chair Grant asked if the CRA staff could provide a listing of required documents needed in order to process the application for renting apartments. Romero Chavez, 641 NW 5 street, commented he is new to this forum, and he wanted to know about the rental abatement program Chair Grant explained the rental abatement program. Mr. Chavez asked when the CRA usually meet. Chair Grant indicated the second Tuesday of each month. Board Member Romelus requested Mr. Simon provide the telephone number to the CRA offices. Mr. Simon provided the number as 561-737-3256. David Costanzo, 224 NE 3 Street, owner of Appliance King of America, congratulated Commissioner Penserga. He was interested if the CRA was planning to provide any financial aid for the small businesses. Golene Gordon congratulated the new members of the Commission. Thanked Lori LaVerriere, City Manager for protecting the community in this epidemic, and continuing to update the community with updates. Lucille Gustava, 8202 White Rock Circle, congratulated the new members of the Commission. This is her first opportunity to attend a CRA meeting. Suggested having this type of platform moving forward. Chair Grant responded that the new City Hall would have more technology for online meetings. This is something, which the City Commission and the CRA can discuss. 3 Meeting Minutes CRA Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida April 21, 2020 Attorney Duhy stated the reason the city is allowed to have these virtual meetings at this time was that the governor lifted the restrictions to the Sunshine law. Indicated board members must attend physically to constitute a quorum. Jim Knight congratulated the new commissioners. Thanked the CRA for moving forward with policies, which are so important to the community. It is very important for small business owners to continue forward. He stated the pandemic should not stop progress. He believed the issues of mental health becomes a problem if people cannot get out of the home. Chair Grant noted the press release from County Mayor Dave Kerner stated Palm Beach County is working together with Broward, Miami Dade and Monroe County, to ensure a smooth transition in reopening the cities and counties. Chair Grant agreed with the mental health aspect that Mr. Knight stated. He looks forward to the enhancement of the parks in the CRA district. Mr. Knight stated this was a group effort and everyone needs to work together and wear a mask. Chair Grant closed Public Audience. 10.Consent Agenda A. Financial Report Period Ending March 31, 2020. B. Approval of CRA Board Meeting Minutes - March 10, 2020. C. Approval of Commercial Property Improvement Grant Program in the Amount of $1,900 for Marketing Innovations Enterprises, Inc. for their property located at 810 N. Federal Highway D. Approval of Increase in Commercial Property Improvement Grant Funding in the Amount of$14,660.27 for Guaca Go Corp. Located in 500 Ocean at 510 E. Ocean Avenue, Unit 106 E. Approval of Commercial Rent Reimbursement Grant Program in the amount of $31,500 for Chez Andrea Gourmet Provence, LLC located at 480 E. Ocean Avenue Motion Board Member Katz moved to approve the consent agenda as presented. Board Member Romelus seconded the motion, which unanimously passed. 11.Pulled Consent Agenda Items 4 Meeting Minutes CRA Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida April 21, 2020 12.CRA Projects in Progress 13.Public Hearing 14.Old Business 15.New Business A. Consideration and Discussion of the BBCRA's Small Business Disaster Relief Forgivable Loan Program. Michael Simon, Executive Director, stated he was pleased to offer this Small Business Disaster Relief forgiveness loan program to local business owners. Noted this program is for small businesses, which would include sole proprietor and businesses with 50 or fewer employees for a loan amount up to $10,000. This would be an interest free loan. This loan could be used to pay for payroll and/or inventory. Businesses must provide receipts showing that the funds were spent towards payroll, utilities, inventory or directly related expense within one year of the loan date, the loan would be forgiven. The loan converts to a grant. Mr. Simon noted staff was recommending$300,000 from the FY 2019-2020 Project Fund- Community Caring Center Relocation line item. Board Member Hay requested clarification of how the funds are to be used. Mr. Simon replied the funds used for verifiable payroll, utilities and inventory. Board Member Hay asked if there was a penalty for violations of the loan. Mr. Simon responded the only binding condition was to sign a loan agreement. If the business provides documentation within a year, the loan is forgiven. Vice Chair Penserga stated he was excited about the program. Commended Mr. Simon on the format of the forgivable loan converting to a grant. He liked the fact this grant is being limited to small businesses. Vice Chair Penserga noted because of the merger between Feeding South Florida and the Community Caring Center, $300,000 is available. Wanted to thank the board members from Community Caring Center and Feeding South Florida for streamlining food distributions in Boynton Beach. He was in favor of adding $200,000 to the Future Redevelopment Project line for a total of$500,000 for the BBCRA Small Business Disaster Relief Forgivable Loan Program. Board Member Romelus commended Mike Simon and staff for coming up with this program. She echoed Vice Chair Penserga's comments regarding increasing the amount to $500,000. 5 Meeting Minutes CRA Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida April 21, 2020 Board Member Katz supported increasing the amount to $500,000. Requested clarification regarding advantages of going into phases and potential changes needed. Attorney Duhy expressed when this program is rolled out; if changes are needed to be made at that time, the board has power to make those changes. Mr. Simon liked the idea of the board to approve the second round of funding releases. Inquired if the emergency order and resolution could be adjusted, if staff overlooked an item during this discussion of the program, asked if the resolution provided any type of flexibility? Attorney Duhy responded, "yes" and indicated there are items, which could not be changed, such as the categories for reimbursement, time, and the cap of how much is given. She explained administrative procedural changes, which Mr. Simon deem necessary, could be changed. Chair Grant asked if there are limitations to businesses receiving this funding, such as profit or non-profit. Mr. Simon replied this program is intended to help for-profit businesses. Chair Grant stated with the CRA other economic grants there are businesses, which would not be eligible for funding. Mr. Simon replied the CRA mimics the existing guidelines for other grant programs. Chair Grant noted one of the categories is payroll expenses. Chair Grant wanted to clarify this grant would be for payroll of the employees not the owners or related family member's payroll. Mr. Simon stated one of the qualifiers is for the business to provide a UTC6 Form (Standard payroll reporting form). Chair Grant agreed with the board with increasing the funding to $500,000 in two phases. Attorney Duhy asked if the board wishes to make a recommendation, regarding the Board Chair's clarification, make a motion to exclude sole proprietors from the program. Chair Grant stated he did not want to rule out sole proprietors. He did not want to include the sole proprietor personal payroll. Mr. Simon noted the State Payroll Protection Act program excluded sole proprietors. Chair Grant requested to limit the sole proprietor payroll to $5,000, explained he feels uncomfortable writing out a check for $10,000 for a sole proprietor payroll. Mr. Simon explained the payroll protection act did not allow for inventory or utilities. Board Member Romelus restated the payroll portion of the grant would limit sole proprietors to $5,000, but the sole proprietors could receive an additional $5,000 for inventory and/or utilities. 6 Meeting Minutes CRA Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida April 21, 2020 Chair Grant read questions from the public into the record: Mr. Brown asked, does the business need to be in the CRA district? Chair Grant answered, "yes, it does" and explained that the CRA could not expend funds outside of the CRA district. Adam Birdwell asked, are the funds to be used for the entire year of 2020, or does the funds need to be used during the current pandemic? If the pandemic ends and the funds have not been used would be funds now be unforgivable? Mr. Simon responded the business must provide the documentation of eligible expenses to the CRA for up to 1 year of the date of the funding of the loan. This funding was not limited to the COVID-19 time period. Reiterated this was a loan, which would be converted to a grant if documentation is submitted to the CRA within a year. If documents were not received within a year, this would be an interest free loan. Vice Chair Penserga asked about timelines and rollout. How soon can businesses apply for funding? Mr. Simon noted the program is ready to be rolled out to small businesses within the CRA district. Staff is ready to open this program up on April 23, 2020 once the CRA board approves. The first checks could be in the hand of small businesses by Wednesday. Chair Grant asked for a motion. Motion Board Member Romelus moved to approve the motion as amended to increase the funding from $300,000 to $500,000 to be funded in phases and limit payroll for sole proprietor to $5,000. Board Member Katz seconded the motion, which unanimously passed. B. Consideration of Changes to the Commercial Rent Reimbursement Grant Program in Response to COVID-19 Chair Grant read the changes to the Commercial Rent Reimbursement Grant into the record. Michael Simon, Executive Director, explained the current Commercial Rent Reimbursement Grant program as a monthly reimbursement program for a period of up to 12 months under a multi-year lease agreement. Given the past few months, staff is requesting to extend the reimbursement program between October 1, 2019 and September 2020; recipients currently in the program would be granted a 6-month 7 Meeting Minutes CRA Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida April 21, 2020 extension to the Commercial Rent Reimbursement Grant program extending it from a 12- month reimbursement program to an 18-month reimbursement program. The goal of this extension is to provide additional funding to businesses impacted by the COVID-19 virus. Mr. Simon indicated there are currently 22 eligible businesses that would qualify to receive the 6-month extension. The total funding needed under the Economic Development Grant Project Fund line item would be $156,481. If the 22 businesses identified received the extension, there would be approximately $250,000 remaining in the Economic Development Grant Program Project Fund line item. Mr. Simon indicated there are funds available for new grant recipients and the new recipient time limit was for 18 months. Chair Grant inquired, if the recipient of the program lease ended October 2019, would the recipient be eligible for an extension? Mr. Simon responded that if the grant ended October 2019, the recipient is eligible for the 6-month extension. Mr. Simon continued to say that if the grant ended in July 2019, the recipient would not be eligible to receive the rental reimbursement 6-month extension. Chair Grant requested to add prior five-year grant recipients' eligibility to the program. Chair Grant indicated businesses, which are older than two years are struggling as well. He stated one of the main reasons businesses leave is because of rental payments. This would allow the opportunity for previous recipients to reapply for the grant. Indicated the board wants to keep businesses in the CRA district. Requested Attorney guidance. Attorney Duhy stated the motion would be to move as recommended by staff with the removal of the restriction on the previous grant recipient to be able to reapply for additional six months of rental assistance. Board Member Hay indicated he believed this would be fair to allow previous recipients to reapply for a 6-month extension. Vice Chair Penserga noted he was in favor of the extension but wanted to know the financial ramification of going back five years. Mr. Simon responded without having the five-year list he was unable to provide the ramifications of allowing prior recipients to apply. Mr. Simon indicated from a funding perspective he believes another $100,000 is needed. Noted there are funds for 22 businesses. Mr. Simon requested clarification for previous businesses from five years. Inquired if the business would need to come before the board or could staff approve the application. Chair Grant responded if the recipients were approved in the past, then they would be approved at reapplication. These applicants would have a different application. 8 Meeting Minutes CRA Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida April 21, 2020 Board Member Romelus agreed. Board Member Katz agreed. Requested clarification regarding staff could approve the application, based on previous board approval. Attorney Duhy indicated this would be an administrative approval. Motion Vice Chair Penserga moved to approve item 15-B. Seconded by Board Member Romelus, which unanimously passed. Motion Board Member Hay made a motion to move $100,000 from the Special Project Fund into the Economic Development Fund and allow previous grant recipient to reapply for an additional six-month period to be approved administratively by staff. Board Member Romelus seconded the motion, which unanimously passed. 16.CRA Advisory Board A. Pending Assignments B. Reports on Pending Assignments C. New Assignments. 17.Future Agenda Items 18.Adjournment. Motion There being no further business to discuss, Board Member Hay moved to adjourn. Board Member Romelus seconded the motion that unanimously passed. The meeting adjourned at 6:50 p.m. Queenester Nieves Deputy City Clerk 9