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Minutes 01-29-14 Economic DevMINUTES OF THE SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP MEETING HELD ON WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2014 AT 2 P.M. IN THE INTRACOASTAL CLUBHOUSE, 2240 N. FEDERAL HIGHWAY, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA PRESENT: Jerry Taylor, Mayor Woodrow L. Hay, Vice Mayor David T. Merker, Commissioner Michael M. Fitzpatrick, Commissioner Joseph Casello, Commissioner CALL TO ORDER: Roll was called and a quorum was present. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: Lori LaVerriere, City Manager James Cherof, City Attorney Janet M. Prainito, City Clerk Mayor Taylor called the Special City Commission Workshop on Economic Development to order at 2:03 p.m. Mayor Taylor turned the meeting over to Kelly Smallridge, President and CEO of the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County. Ms. Smallridge indicated she had been working for approximately 25 years with many in the audience and had long- standing partnerships. She thanked Mayor Taylor for his leadership and Vice Mayor Hay for his continued support with the organization. There are 15 cities in Palm Beach County that have great economic development programs one being the City of Boynton Beach. Ms. Smallridge looked forward to working closer with the new Commissioners. The City had great staff including Ms. LaVerriere, Scott Kline and the Community Redevelopment Agency staff who were all eager to work on economic development. Her presentation would be an opportunity to have open dialogue and discover the future of Palm Beach County, the projects that are being considered and the criteria being sought by companies. She would discuss how corporations search and find a site that meets their needs and how it benefits the City and the entire County. The Business Development Board was formed over 30 years ago with a current staff of 15 employees. The corporate headquarters is in downtown West Palm Beach with facilities in North Palm Beach County Chambers, Belle Glade and Boca Raton. It is one of the largest economic development Boards in the State of Florida with 60% private funding and 40% public funding. The Board is the economic engine for Palm Beach County. It is the only organization that has a Memorandum of Understanding with MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH 2 JANUARY 29, 2014 Enterprise Florida, the Governor's Economic Development arm, to receive information and data and respond to any inquiries relating to Palm Beach County. The Board is accredited through the International Economic Development Council and is among only 27 boards accredited in the United States and one of two in the State of Florida. (Commissioner Fitzpatrick arrived at 2:14 p.m.) On the government side of economic development, all the grants and incentives are coordinated and approved through the Department of Economic Opportunity. It is important to have a State Workforce Board and the Workforce Alliance on the local level. The Board's best partners for a successful program are the Chambers of Commerce, the municipalities, the Board of County Commissioners, Workforce Alliance and the School Board. Many entities have to combine efforts to bring a business to Palm Beach County which makes partnerships essential. There is a focused economic development strategy with eight clusters that guide marketing efforts The clusters include aviation, aerospace and engineering; corporate HQ; IT /telecommunications; international commerce; life science; business and finance; green energy and manufacturing. The website addresses the clusters and geographic areas visited are only where the clusters are present. Companies like to cluster with like companies, like technology and like workforces. There are 629 companies related to aerospace/ aviation /technology /engineering in the County with an average salary of $66,000 in over 20,000 jobs. Information on any of the clusters is available to fully discuss with interested Chief Executive Officers (CEO). South County has an added advantage due to its proximity to Fort Lauderdale and Miami International Airports. For the City of Boynton Beach, there are many unrealized assets that have to be considered when expanding and growing a City. It is not just about housing. Such things as real estate, housing, vendors and suppliers, permitting, workforce assistance, education, demographics and access to grants and incentives all provide value to a prospective business moving to Boynton Beach. Visiting executives have to receive a level of service that is comprehensive and unique to sway their decisions to a particular city. Ms. Smallridge maintains a database of all available real estate in the City of Boynton Beach classified as light industrial property, vacant land for commercial use and the stock of A, B or C office space and available residential housing. An expedited permitting process was passed by the Commission to aid businesses. The supply and quality of the workforce to find skilled employees will make an area more appealing for businesses. For some business executives, the deciding factor could be the educational opportunities available to children of all ages. The City of Boynton Beach does excellent work in obtaining grants and incentives and matching MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH 3 JANUARY 29, 2014 State funding. It is critical that the City have funds available because local funding is required from the governing body. It requires months and even years of negotiation to lure businesses to Palm Beach County. They start their search with a project concept including the basic needs and what has to be moved. The cost is a consideration as well as the possibility of staff willing to relocate to the area. Of course, the investment aspect of the venture has to be gauged to obtain necessary financing. The availability of staff to facilitate the move and design and build any facilities has to be considered, along with a management team to oversee the venture from design to occupancy and startup. The Business Development Board provides all the services to accomplish the goal of bringing businesses to Palm Beach County free of charge. Another value of a development board is it is a private corporation and does not have to operate under the Sunshine Law for disclosures. Confidentiality is essential to avoid the uneasiness that would be created if an anticipated relocation was leaked to employees. Even competitors and customers should be unaware of any possible changes until plans and strategies are formulated to coordinate any announcement or release of information. It is crucial that all parties abide by the confidentiality rules. Ms. Smallridge suggested the City's confidentiality agreement be reviewed to ensure it is compatible with other municipalities and the County and be consistent with the norm in the industry. Everything from comparative analysis, looking at the communities and negotiation of the incentives takes a three to four month period. It is a complicated process. She cautioned the Business Development Board does not drive real estate. The CEO of any company drives that decision on location, not the business Development Board. The Board remains site neutral in the process. The site selection has three phases. Phase one involves determining goals and location, regional analysis, determining areas of interest and determining location candidates. Phase two includes community visits, site evaluation, comparative analysis and finalist communities chosen. Phase three commences incentive negotiations, site due diligence, evaluation and any announcement. City taxes determine the cost of doing business. Prospective businesses search web sites to analyze the cost for taxes. The current rate is within norm and includes nothing unusual. Ms. Smallridge had not heard any negative comments relating to the tax structure. The incentives offered by the City are good and the workforce talent availability needs some improvement. Employees can be accessed from Broward County and Miami -Dade County due to the access to Tri -Rail stations. Sustainability is important and a welcoming Mayor, government and City Commission are important as well. It should be a memorable experience to meet with the leadership of Boynton Beach and visit the local fare. Retention and expansion are also components that should not be ignored from the very beginning. MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH 4 JANUARY 29, 2014 Ms. Smallridge stressed she can only sell the product she is given by the Commission and City of Boynton Beach. The City has good product. More office space is needed and that is an area of opportunity. Another product is light industrial property and the City has 4.1 million square feet. She recommended that any vacant property be considered for the construction of Class A and Class B office buildings. What is important today is business costs, incentives, local participation in incentive packages, timing, eliminate missing deadlines, strict adherence to confidentiality, project location and expectations for local involvement of at least 20% with incentives. She stressed confidentiality gives any City a competitive edge if it can be maintained. Ms. Smallridge suggested that ad valorem tax exemptions be allowed for big expansions or big relocations. Several other cities have already enacted such an exemption, resulting in a double exemption, combined with the County exemption. The Business Development Board typically brings in 25 jobs with salaries of $70,000 to $80,000 a year. The higher salaries trickle down to all parts of the County. The goal is to create 3,500 jobs. The shift in job creation originated from an economy built on tourism, service and construction to knowledge, information, technology based companies with corporate headquarters and business and financial services. The wages are going up. The younger generation now has a job environment to return to after college with a much wider array of businesses. Having recognizable business names on buildings is a way of branding and telling the story. Ms. Smallridge requested assistance in identifying the location of high -end housing, mid -range housing and entry-level worker homes for the City of Boynton Beach. She would also need video clips of the City and would want more knowledge relating to the neighborhoods within the City. The Business Development Board brought ten projects into Palm Beach County over the first four months of their fiscal year, for a total of 3,000 new and retained jobs, 205,000 square feet with capital investments of $12.9 million. Ms. Smallridge reviewed projects that were in the pipeline for relocation and expansion in Palm Beach County. She strongly urged the Commission to work with the Chamber of Commerce to retain businesses and work with those entities to expand. The shovel ready program involves a property that possesses a development order and can be ready for building within one year. It was her recommendation that the City work with brokers and landowners to get property shovel ready and apply for the program that is free of charge. The property must be fully served with utilities, available for commercial development and have a willing seller. Time is money. The Board will facilitate all County, State and City incentives including filling out the application, navigate the paperwork through the appropriate government bodies and MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH JANUARY 29, 2014 attend all meetings before it is sent to the government for approval. Through Enterprise Florida, the Business Development Board is international in scope. The marketing strategy should be comprised of information that can be very easily accessed electronically. The City's web site is critical to the process and should include logos of key companies that exist in the City. Educational opportunities should be prominently displayed. Data on the workforce should be available. The information can be within a 20 mile radius. It has been studied and determined that more information is gathered through web sites than any other source. The Development Board has $200,000 to spend on marketing for all of Palm Beach County and they use every available free opportunity to sell Palm Beach County. The resources of the entire County are used regardless of the actual site of any business. There is a wide array of award - winning collaterals and marketing strategies that have been deployed over the last five years. Through Ms. Smallridge's experience, she learned most of the CEOs who have brought their business to Palm Beach County have had the connection of owning a second - home in Palm Beach County. She capitalized on the opportunity to educate those business leaders about the attributes of Palm Beach County that ultimately got the area national news coverage. The lack of a state tax and the excellent weather are incentives that draw attention to the State of Florida. Ms. Smallridge stressed that any top executive visiting the area is given the red carpet concierge service to distinguish Palm Beach County from any other area. It is imperative that County and City officials be personally present at any meetings with any prospective clients of the Business Development Board. An eco- system has been created where everybody wants to encourage good paying jobs in the City and entire County. The Board tries to anticipate every detail to showcase the County and each municipality in its very best Tight. The perception of the public school system has been problematic in the past, but perception is not reality. There are success stories from every public, private, religious, charter or magnet school. In some instances, the educational opportunities are the driving force to relocate to an area. There will be a new web site announced, pbcedu.org, that will encompass information and the location of all the schools in the County. It will be more comprehensive than what is currently available. The school district created a web site for use by CEOs that is more dynamic than available before. The higher the salaries are within a company, the more the role of education is important. Elected officials and the Chamber of Commerce need to provide the Business Development Board with an up -to -date inventory of available office space, one point of contact for the City, incentive programs to provide required match for state monies, polices and infrastructure that is conducive to economic development, a sense of 5 MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH JANUARY 29, 2014 urgency because time is money, coordination of pre - project permit review, a presentation on the City and an updated web site noting key industries, business logos and demographics. Expediting the permitting process is paramount to make it easier for businesses and developers to work through the process. She strongly recommended holding pre - project permit meetings with all interested parties present to be able to estimate a completion timeframe. It is important to have in depth knowledge about the City and data on businesses and housing to be able to respond to any potential questions. The staff is the best sales people for the City. The most critical components for economic development are the web site, policies, incentives and expediting. Ms. Smallridge opined the future outlook for the City of Boynton Beach was promising. Commissioner Merker noted Florida was fast becoming the third largest State in the Country. He questioned if the Business Development Board was the entity to direct development of the City of Boynton Beach. There can be significant resistance to change. How can the people be educated on the need for change? Ms. Smallridge replied it was not her role to help the City develop. She could advise on the product that could be created to capture good economic development projects. On occasion, she would speak to groups who need economic development education or to raise awareness on the value of good jobs for students and families. Ms. Smallridge would advise the top need of the market is currently Class A office space that overlooks the water. Commissioner Fitzpatrick asked for the distinction of Class A, B and C office space. Ms. Smallridge replied Class A office space would be tall buildings along the waterfront. It would probably include a beautiful view, concierge desk service, valet service with restaurants and other amenities on the ground floor. They want the expensive build out and they want the gem in the building. It should be close to major transportation too. The older buildings are not considered Class A. The City of Boynton Beach has good Class B and Class C. There was not significant interest in any Class C building space. Commissioner Merker asked Ms. Smallridge to speculate on high density standards. Ms. Smallridge opined 15 floors would be appropriate and maybe more. There is a compromise because they want the quality of life in South Florida and retain the same profit margins. The clients are looking for sufficient office space with great views, in a safe area, with other office buildings close by and restaurants with other retail establishments. There has to be several office buildings together in a cluster. The only option is for higher buildings. Each and every city has its own unique style. There is a common thread of knowledge, technology, aviation in the north end, business and financial services in central Palm Beach County and communication and technology and light manufacturing in the south. The western area includes warehouse distribution 6 MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH JANUARY 29, 2014 and logistics. There is a diversified job market, but not a qualified work force. A much better job needs to be done in the high schools to showcase where the quality jobs are in the County. Commissioner Merker interjected better teachers were needed and Ms. Smallridge asserted the teachers would follow the need. Ms. Smallridge commented Governor Scott was extremely aggressive in the area of economic development and job creation and very willing to assist. Ms. LaVerriere inquired about the role of trade schools in economic development. Ms. Smallridge agreed the trend has been building over the last six months. Contractors have complained there are not enough skilled construction workers. Many left during the construction slump. South Tech Academy is a diamond in the City of Boynton Beach that should be promoted. Ms. Smallridge suggested the Mayor and Chair of the Chamber of Commerce visit the school often and create a connection between graduating students and local business that need the skills and have the jobs available. South Tech is a rare commodity that should be maximized. Mike Rumpf, Director of Planning and Zoning, described an issue that involved a possible school expansion that is adjacent to light industrial zoning, both needed for economic development. Ms. Smallridge agreed both industrial and a work force are needed. There would need to be an analysis of the tax base and revenue that could be lost in one area and gained in another area. Mark Karageorge inquired if Ms. Smallridge's involvement with Enterprise Florida would give Palm Beach County some leverage for funding, in addition to the 20% match from the City, in addition to the County funds. The incentives were being layered to attract other businesses. Ms. Smallridge advised Governor Scott shares her office when he comes to Palm Beach County and has a representative from his office available regularly. The Governor comes to Palm Beach County more than once a week and has been extremely helpful. Vice Mayor Hay asked about the impact of All Aboard Florida and if it was considered a plus for the City of Boynton Beach. Ms. Smallridge concurred it was a positive development. It is promoted as an asset. Transportation is critical whether it is all around the State or among counties. Any form of mobility and access to major highways should always be promoted. The emerging new work force is not crazy about automobiles and would rather use bikes or walk or public transportation. They like the live, work, learn, play environment. It is super positive for the development of the County. Vice Mayor Hay added the water taxi would be another mode of mobility. Ms. Smallridge noted it would add to the quality of life of a community. Commissioner Fitzpatrick had read there is going to be a 20 to 40 inch rise in the sea level by 2100. He asked if that impact had been discussed or questioned by her clients. 7 MEETING MINUTES SPECIAL CITY COMMISSION WORKSHOP BOYNTON BEACH Ms. Smallridge reported it is not within the parameters of the current economic development plans. She directed him to the Seven5OSE Florida Prosperity Plan. There were no further questions and Ms. Smallridge thanked the Mayor and Commissioners for the opportunity to address the group. Mayor Taylor thanked Ms. Smallridge for her great presentation. ADJOURNMENT: There being nothing further to come before the Commission, Mayor Taylor adjourned the meeting at 3:19 p.m. ATTEST: et M. Prainito, MMC t Clerk 'ty . ickoLL;A_ct, dith A. Pyle, CMC eputy City Clerk CITY OF BOYNTON lor, "ayor row L. Hay, Vice Mayo Da'id . M =rker, Commissio 8 Casello, Commissioner ick, Commissioner JANUARY 29, 2014