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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDowntown Advisory 2013-06-27 DOWNTOWN ACTION & ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES June 27, 2013 City of Kitchener The Downtown Action & Advisory Committee met this date, Chaired by Shannon Weber with the following members in attendance: Tania Benninger, Melissa Bowman, Councillor Frank Etherington, Amina Gilani, Councillor Dan Glenn-Graham, Eric Johnson, Dean Knipfel, and Brad Watson. Representatives from the Economic Development Advisory Committee were also in attendance including Councillors, Bil Ioanidis, Paul Singh and Scott Davey City staff in attendance: Hilary Abel, Cory Bluhm, Silvia DiDonato, Monica Grau and Sandy Curzon Prior to the start of the meeting, Councillor Bil Ioanidis declared a conflict of interest. Motion by Paul Singh: that Councillor Ioanidis be allowed to stay Second by Scott Davey Carried 1. New Business 1.1 Downtown Financial Incentive Review The Downtown Action & Advisory Committee along with the Economic Development Advisory Committee met today to jointly talk about the Downtown Financial Incentive Review, Discussion Paper. Cory Bluhm, Manger, Downtown Development provided an overview of the existing downtown financial incentive programs which include: Façade Improvement Grant, 3- Year Tax Exemption, Building Permit Rebate Fee, Exemption from Development Charges and Exemption from Parkland Dedication Fees. Programs not included in the review are Brownfield Remediation, Adaptive Re-use and Heritage Conservation incentives. The purpose of the review is to evaluate and determine which of the current incentives are still relevant today given the current economic climate and do we have the financial capacity to fund future incentives. A Landing Pad Grant Program is one of the new programs being considered. A copy of the Downtown Discussion Paper can be reviewed on the following website: http://kitchener.ca/en/businessinkitchener/BuildingADynamicDowntown.asp Following is a list of questions that were asked and addressed accordingly by staff:  Explain DC’s and how they work  What is the fee for Parkland downtown vs anywhere else in The City of Kitchener?  How often is the Official Plan revisited?  Why is there a Parkland fee exemption – why don’t we collect it?  Is there a cost to taxpayers? Downtown Action & Advisory Committee June 27, 2013  With a 3-year tax exemption, how is this dealt with?  How do you enforce high quality urban design?  Parts of King East are outside the CIP area – how will we deal with development outside the boundary?  What happens when businesses who have been given a façade grant close?  Is assessment growth gaged?  Where do you see the need for new incentives– business, office or residential?  Is the Breithaupt Block within downtown boundary?  Do we work with the Region for affordable housing?  Is the Region doing a review of DC’s?  How much money out of the overall budget are we talking about?  What are the current lease rates – are they in line – what are our goals?  What is exempt from fees? It was noted that the BIA board of directors has endorsed the staff report. A resolution was not required from those in attendance today, however further feedback would be welcomed. Next steps including taking the information received from the public, stakeholders and the open house, back to Council in August/September. Implementation would start 6 months later. 2. Minutes & Committee Updates 2.1 Approval of Minutes The Downtown Action & Advisory committee minutes of May 23, 2013: Approved by: Brad Watson Seconded by: Tania Benninger Carried 2.2 Economic Development Updates Committee were in receipt of the June 2013 EDAC updates, there were no questions or discussion. 3. Standing Items/Business Arising 3.1 Summer Vacation th CANCELLED Members were advised that Thursday, July 25 DAAC meeting is Meeting adjourned @ 5:23 Downtown Action & Advisory Committee June 27, 2013