HomeMy WebLinkAboutDowntown Advisory - 1995-11-09DAC\1995-11-09 KITCHENER DOWNTOWN ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES NOVEMBER 9, 1995 The IGtchener Downtown Action Committee met this date under the Chairmanship of Councillor Mark Yantzi with the following members present: Councillor Berry Vrbanovic, Councillor Chiqstina 3/L Weylie, Councillor Karen Redman, Robert Braun, Nancy Brawley, Karen Simonean, David Gowland, Deborah Budd, Michelle Morissettk Peggy Walshe, Brian Hunsberger. Others Present: T. Brock Stanley, Sybil lqYenette, Bob M'not, Grant NLxon, Tracy Morency. 1. OPENING REMARKS Councillor Mark Yantzi welcomed everyone and cared the meeting to order. APPROVAL OF AGENDA - November 9, 1995 and APPROVAL OF MINUTES October lQ, 1995 Moved by Nancy Brawley Seconded by Councillor Berry Vrbanovic That the Agenda of October lQ, 1995 be approved and that the Minutes of the meeting of October 1995 be adopted. Carried 3. UPDATE PROMOTIONAL BROCHURE "DOWNTOWN LIFE STYLE" Nh'. Gowland stated that in IGtchener This Week Ms, Tracy Morency's vcrote a very good article about the PI'omotional Brochure and also gave recognition to the KW Real Estate Board for theh' involvement. Nh'. Gowland advised that he had contacted Nh'. Bob Wakefield, Coordinator of Mapping and Graphics Services for help with the map for the Brochure. Nh'. Wakefield came up with an oval design for the map. This oval design solves the problem of having defined streets (showing the beginning or end of the streets). Nh'. Gowland circulated this map to the lO)AC. The text in the brochure is a blend of all the suggestions forthcoming from numerous meetings * 2V[~ Sybil l~'enette entered the meeting. 2V[r. Gowland stated that 2V[r. Brock Stanley had indicated that Budget funds will be available to pxqnt this Brochure. The KW Real Estate Board has agreed to pay for the int~'oduction and initiation of this Brochure covexqng such expenses as postage and courier charges involved in the dist~qbution of the Brochure. 2V[r. Gowland asked if he has approval to go ahead with the pxqnting of this Brochure. 2V[r. Brock Stanley asked if the Committee wished to make a Motion to support this initiative. Moved by Nancy Brawley Seconded by Michelle Morissetti "That the Kitchener Downtown Advisory Committee supports the initiative to go ahead with the pxqnting of the Kitchener Heritage Neighbourhoods Brochure." Carried 2V[~ Brawley inquired if the Brochure could be prepared for mounting on the walls of a busy location such as a Bank or Trust Company. 2V[r. Gowland offered to look after this after the Brochure has been pxqnted. 4. UPDATE DOWNTOWN ACTION TEAM 2V[~ Sybfl l~'enette inlbrmed the Committee that at the last Planning and Economic Development Committee she outlined two large areas the Downtown Action Team k focusing on, being: They have met with Downtown property owners~ 2V[~ l~'enette st~'essed it's important to know who they are and what their vision is for the Downtow~ Focusing on specific projects such as the Sauders' site. 2Vh'. Tim O'Brien, from the Department of Parks & Recreation, is working on a mews scheme for this site. When it's completed it will be presented to property owners for their input. M~, l~'enette stated that calls are still coming in with suggestions for the Downtow~ The Eaton's store is continuing to have difficulty with parking and is asking the KDBA to adch'ess this problem~ The bulk of their customers are middle aged to elderly women who are finding the parking garage very confusing. Construction k ongoing. Eaton's would like to see the rules of the parking garage made customer h%ndly. It would be helpful to have a December promotion offe~4ug two hours free parking to all customers Eatoffs new manager l,iz Bauman loves the Downtown and is very dedicated to making this store worlc Customer comments are 8570 positive. 1Vis Bauman would like to talk about an ambassador program for the Downtow~ Can City staff get involved? The Chilch'en's Museum Group has created a Board with sub-committees They are looking at several desirable locations for the museum but do not have a specific site in minck They are looking for locational inlbrmatiom The project could be 3 to 4 years in the making. The Downtown Action Team is actively pursuing aH of the Mayor's Task Force Recommendations Future meetings will see the completion of these Recommendations and they will be brought to the KDAC before going to Council 1Vis Deborah Budd speaking to the parking situation at Market Square added that due to the $7.00 daily parking charge at the garage the Waterloo Regional Arts Council doesn't get as many volunteers as they would ff there was free parking at the garage. She also agreed that the parking garage is very confusing. Councillor Karen Redman inquired ff signage at the garage would help. ]Vis Karen Simoneau asked for an update on the Events Co-ordinator positiom 1Vis Sybil l~'enette rephed that the interviews have now been completed_ Councillor Berry Vrbanovic stated that the selection of the Events Co-ordinator should be finalized by the end of this week 1Vt'. Brian Hunsberger asked ff parking passes can be issued to volunteers working at Market Square. Councillor Mark Yantzi stated that this could become costly for the City. Parking certainly is a problem and is being adch'esseck ]Vis Deborah Budd stated that three artists have come to their office and expressed interest in the Forsyth building. 1Vis Sybil l~'enette invited those interested in the Forsyth Factory l:q'oject to give them a call 5. UPDATE SMILES AND CHUCKLES A report (attached) prepared by 1Vis Sybil l~'enette was distaqbuted to KDAC members at the start of the meeting. - ~38- Ms. lqYenette refe~qqng to this report told the Committee that the question before them is "Can we proceed with this development without Ministry funding?". Kitchener Housing Inc. came up with three scenarios as outlined in the attached report~ In aH three scenarios the rental fee for the units will not cover the costs incurred in developing Smiles & Chuckle~ The only workable approach would be to build at bare bones cost with provincial and municipal contributions plus a mortgage write down of ~0% and an interest rate of 7 127~ However there is too much of a risk factor with this approacl~ It has been concluded that the development of Smiles & Chuckles can't proceed and that the property has to be sold. They are looking to see what interest there is in this property with certain conditions of sale as outlined in the report~ If there is no interest the parcel will be divided and sold bit by bit~ Councillor Berry Vrbanovic questioned how the private sector is able to make a profit on rental propertie~ ~V[~ l~'enette stated that often they rent at a loss but sometimes are able to w~qte off these losses against other properties owned. ~Vh'. Gowland asked if the City has ever given neighbourhoods the option to purchase property with the idea that a neighbourhood park would be developed. People in neighbourhoods may be willing to pay over a long period of time for the purchase of such property. Can this be explored? ~Vh'. Bob Argot stated that as far as he knows this has not been done. Councillor Mark Yantzi agreed that there may be some merit to this idem ~Vh'. Atmot asked what would happen to this property if it is not sold. Who will maintain it (cut grass, etc.). There is a need for some level of maintenance and this question should be ad(h'essed shortly. Ms. l~'enette rephed that they have held this land for over one year and will maintain a minimum standard of maintenance. They will shovel the snow and cut the gras~ Grading of the land will not be done, the cost for this alone would be $140,000. 6. PATIO AESTFIETICS M~'. Brock Stanley noted that patio aesthetics was ad(h'essed at the KDAC meeting of Ap~ql 13, 1995. At that time the following Motion was passed: - ~39- "That we encourage voluntary comphance from people to create a more aesthetically pleasing look, that they enforce the ch'ess code they have inside to apply to their patio and that the maximum height for a barrier be 48" hig]~" Nh'. Stanley suggested that we again look at the standards for sidewalk patio~ 1V[~ Lesley MacDonald from the City's Legal Department will adch'ess this issue at a future meeting. Various municipahties were contacted and asked for their patio guideline~ They did not have any guidelines in place adch'essing such issues as fencing, patio furniture, window boxes, etc. Nh'. Stanley stated that he will try to contact other municipalities as well Within the week the City will be a member of the IDA~ We will then be able to make use of their resources to see what has been done elsewhere in North America~ 3/h'. Stanley asked the Committee ff guidelines for patio aesthetics should be pursued and welcomed any suggestions~ Councillor Berry Vrbanovic suggested that the southern cities in the U.S.A~ could be contacted. Because of their climate they have a longer season for outdoor patios and therefore may have more guidelines in place. Councillor Christina Weylie suggested contacting Carmel, Calilbrnia~ lV[~ Nancy Brawley added that the behaviour of the patrons at the patio was more of a problem~ The look and size of a patio often goes hand in hand with the behaviour of the people patronizing the patio e.g. Dandy's patio. It would be helpful to have help for the owners on how to make their patios look better. Councillor Mark Yantzi stated that it is difficult to regulate because there is no authority for staff and no guidelines for Council Can we put the onus on the patio owners to enhance their patio? Ms~ Brawley wondered ff we should look at what kind of businesses may be permitted to have patios~ Nh'. Brian Hunsberger inquired how the City regulates the operation of sidewalk patio~ Nh'. Stanley replied that the City has the applicant enter into a standard encroachment agreement. Nh'. Hunsberger asked ff it was possible to write aesthetic guidelines into this encroachment agreement. Nh'. Stanley replied that the problem is one of enforcement and who is to regulate good taste. - 940- M~ Peggy Walshe suggested that the City of Ottawa be contacte& They run very successful patios that are aesthetically pleasing and have guidelines in place. }Vis Nancy Brawley pointed out that in Ottawa they are all eating establishments~ Councillor Karen Redman agreed that this was worthwhile to pursue and that there is a need to reflect on how much voluntary compliance there was this year. * Nh'. Robert Braun entered the meeting. Nh'. Brock Stanley added that it is difficult to reflect back now. This year they will take pictures of the various patios Nh'. David Gowland felt it was best to come up with a list of desirable patio features and include this list with the application to be filled out by the applicants and hopefully the applicants would choose some of the aesthetic points listed in their proposal The City could then review this proposal and see what features had been picked from the suggested aesthetic lisL }Vis Brawley reiterated the problem of undesirable behaviour by people frequenting the patios Councillor Berry Vrbanovic asked if this could be dealt with by the L,C.B.O. Councillor Mark Yantzi suggested that perhaps the City could explain to the owners the City goals for Downtown patios and ask the owners what their goals are for their patio. Councillor Karen Redman mentioned that a recognition award could be given for good patios }Vis Nancy Brawley agreed and advised that they are looking at the aspect of giving awards~ Nh'. Brian Hunsberger suggested that City staff' could give applicants design advice and be prepared to work with then~ The following year don't renew the applicant's agreement unless the applicant has followed the guidelines included in the encroachment agreemenL Councillor Mark Yantzi likes the idea of working with the applicants in a positive way, encouraging them by presenting them with guidelines for desirable aesthetics and encouraging them to use these suggestions It was suggested that applicants could be required to provide the City with their design proposal for review and approval by Council Councillor Yantzi concluded that he likes what he is heaKqng and suggests that we adch'ess patio aesthetics at a future meeting with input from the Legal and Parks & Recreation DepartmenL 7. KDBA REPORT Ms~ Nancy Brawley distributed a hst of new businesses that have located in the Downtown since September, 1995 (attached). Since September, 1995 the Downtown has only lost three businesses; one block is 100% leased and two other blocks have only one vacancy which is a very positive sigm The Business Development Committee decided to start a new initiative being a series of ads to be placed in IGtchener This Week and the Business Section of The Record highlighting businesses that are active on various Committees and have made improvements to theh' facade, etc. Dolan Shoes k features this week in IGtchener This Week under the heading "Downtown Businesses Speak Out,..". The featured businesses will be writing the text for these article~ They are looking at having a similar look to all the & Feedback so fax' k very positive. A Marketing Planning meeting was held on Tuesday, November 7, 1995. It was decided to shift the dh'ection of marketing the Downtow~ Instead of marketing upcoming events the emphasis will be placed on marketing what the area has to offer focusing on daytime, nighttime and familie~ The KDBA is looking at totally changing theh' look including theh' logo. The KDBA would like to see year round free parking on Saturday, at the very least dmqng the Christmas seasom This request has been put to Nh'. Don Snow, I)h'ector of Traffic and Parking. This would pull people back Downtown and give the retailers a real boost` Since parking is free aH day Sunday, they are going after businesses to open on Sunday. Ms. Nancy Brawley asked the Committee for any suggestion~ Councillor Mark Yantzi raised the question of how this would affect the parking garage. M~ Brawley rephed that various aspects of parking will be adch'essed by the report prepared by Mr. Don Snow. Councillor Christina Weyhe asked if Mr. John Gazzola could come up with assessment figure~ M~ Nancy Brawley rephed that hopefully this initiative will prove to be a real financial bonus for the City. Nh'. Robert Braun suggested that the positive aspect of extra employment that will be created if businesses remain open on Sunday should be looked at` Mr. D. Gowland said that he supports the KDBA's request` Why should customers pay for Downtown parking when there is free parking at the shopping mall~ Councillor Berry Vrbanovic asked if a blanket two hour free parking policy would be helpful M~ Brawley agreed that this is a very good option and is one of the options to be presented in ~Vh'. SnoWs report` - 949- Councillor Karen Redman commented that people working Downtown pay for parking from Monday to lq~qday but do not have free parking on Saturday. Councillor Redman asked if a Motion for an initiative to provide free Downtown parking on Saturday and Sunday should be made. M~ Peggy Walshe asked if free parking would include the Centre in the Square. 5/[s~ Brawley rephed that the Centre in the Square and the Kitchener Pubhc Library are not within the KDBA boundarie~ Councillor Karen Redman left the meeting. Councillor Mark Yantzi asked if the lO)AC wished to go ahead with a Motio~ Moved by David Gowland Seconded by Michelle Morissetti "That the Kitchener Downtown Advisory Committee supports the principle of free parking Downtown all day Saturday." Carried M~ N. Brawley advised that the Transportation Study is moving along and things are falling into place. There is little reservation about changing the one-way streets back to two-way streets On the whole Nh'. Don Ih'acldey is not getting any negative feedbaclL M~ Brawley gave an update of the Retail Action Plato the research and surveys are taking a httle longer than expecteck Downtown employees survey has seen a 4070 return Telephone survey is completed Tourist survey- very small response (looking for more input) It is anticipated that the Plan will be ready within the next few weeks as soon as all the intbrmation has been compiled and passed to the consultant~ A touch screen intbrmation kiosk will be put into the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium Complex~ They are looking at other sites (perhaps the Valhalla Inn) in the Downtown to put in a kiosk on a t~qal basis The initial cost for the kiosk is $800.00, it will have four street dh'ectories and will cost SL000. for each update. They are encouraging members to participate as partner~ M~ Peggy Walshe would like to see the hbrary as a test site. - 943- Nh'. Brian Hunsberger felt that a public location such as the library or Market Square would be more accessible than a hotel locatiom 3/[s~ Nancy Brawley stated that a main concern of the kiosk N vandalisn~ Budget money must be set aside to handle this cost. With a kiosk a link can be made with the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium Complex, Seagram's Museum and other sites Eventually aH tourist locations could be linked together. Nh'. David Gowland inquired if a banner could be put up Downtown to encourage people to support the Downtown retailers~ M~ Brawley replied that this was a good idea, however it costs $800. to $900. to make up the banner and another $700.00 to put it up. 8. NEW BUSINESS Nh'. Grant NLxon from the Department of Parks and Recreation brought to the attention of the Committee that their Department has had inquiries about the lighting standards installed from College to Water St~'eet. The standards should be operational within the next three weeks upon the arrival of new light bulbs Councillor Mark Yantzi asked if there were any further comments~ No further comments were made. 9. ADJOURNMENT On motion, the meeting adjourned at 10:15 a~n~ Sonja S. Tobin Committee Secretary