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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDowntown Advisory 2008-04-10 DOWNTOWN ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES April 10, 2008 City of Kitchener The Kitchener Downtown Advisory Committee met this date, commencing at 4:10 p.m., Chaired by Glenn Scheels with the following members present: Denis Pellerin, Glen Woolner, Karen Taylor-Harrison, Chris Farley, Glenn Scheels, Thomas Seebohm, Vince Buehler, Denis Pellerin, Councillor John Smola, Councillor Christina Weylie, City staff present include: Sandy Curzon, Silvia Wright, Tracey DeVille, Jeff Willmer, Rod Regier, Grant Murphy, Jay Athia, Cory Bluhm, Don Chapman 1. Minute Approval That the minutes of the February 14, 2008 meeting be approved. Moved by Glen Woolner Seconded by Karen Taylor-Harrison Advisory Committee Updates – Economic Development Advisory Committee – Park Dedication report was discussed as well, the committee then viewed a Richard Florida video and it was suggested that we view it at a future DAC meeting. No other Advisory Committee updates were available. 2. Business Arising 2.1 King Street Streetscape Update Grant Murphy provided an update to the Downtown Advisory Committee on the status of the King Street Streetscape. He advised the Committee that: - Pedestrian first was the chosen design - Approval from Council received - Currently working on a final design - Report went to Council in February outlining cost estimates which included an original cost $5.68M to redevelop Speakers Corner, urban vitality efforts as well as the streetscape - Last month design complete, tender package ready, consulting eng completed detailed estimate of cost = additional 2M - Concern that there is an increase so decision has been made to pause construction to allow for an overview of the cost analysis – take another look at the costs related to construction - Monday they are meeting with a consultant to look at the costs and determine what the actual costs should be - Report to Council after that process is complete - In the mean time they will look at the design again and see if there is room to change design alternatives - Around mid-May back to Council detailed report making recommendations - Do expect portion of project to proceed in 2008; likely Speakers Corner depending on Council approval Questions: What is the approximate budget amount for Speakers Corner? ? Approximately $350,000 o Businesses and owners from Ontario Street to Queen Street and Queen Street to ? Frederick Street are eager to get the project complete this summer instead of waiting, is there any way possible to get this project started in that area this year? We are looking at a new phasing and direction, material alternatives and possible o changes to the tender package. Once we have Council approval, we will be able to determine a timing schedule more accurately. can you let us know that before the final report goes to council that the consultation with ? people that took in the process they will be part of the next process of updates people that took part in the beginning should be part of this next process the public process was around picking the concept picking the pedestrian fist o concept and the landscape architect and eng have done the design. We are working with the KDBA and I don’t see an issue keeping the KDBA informed on this and we will have a good sense on where we are heading on this KDBA had a number of meetings and retailers had to buy inventory based on the ? schedule and now some of those businesses are affected by that not all but some are now effected by this change (john Smola) o we are doing good things, we shouldn’t loose the momentum, keep it going of course ? we are having to sort out matters now but we need to keep the consultation going and open and I think the more we can do this year the better it will be for everyone it will be important to look at the range of options with the respect to the money from the province is that in addition to the money no the 3.2 received was to offset the entire cost of the project we do not now o have an 8.8m budget - is part of the increase in the estimate due to the timing for tender process and start time creating an issue if so is delaying the design and timing able to be done – any tender out now will bring in higher costs, material, lead times etc., don’t believe that is and issue but the main issue is to understand what type of material we want – granite or concrete for example – we need to look at the variation in cost of where we are getting the material and the quality of the material, the lead time comes into play but not necessarily the main issue – would it be true than that the quality / material should not change anything you should know that before hand – yes that is true we are going to look at that and make sure that it is clear as to what we are getting. That is one of the main reasons that we wanted to delay – to make sure that everyone was on the same page. Park Dedication Policy Jeff Willmer provided a background on the report and went through the report with the Committee. Currently the downtown is exempt and with ongoing development, the exemption needs to be reviewed. The Committee provided the following comments: - Give an example of where parks would be added or taken away no example of taking any away, addition possibilities in small greens such as o Speakers Corner, Hibner Park, Victoria Park being a larger example, also look at map and see where we would benefit from more parks due to development and or could be improvement of existing park - Explain issue of high density allocation The Act states residential development provides the City 5% of land at no cost o for the purpose of park land, if more density 1 hectare per 300 units developed which means that it may be more than 5% of the land since there is a greater requirement due to more people such as a downtown development - Does this allocation apply to trails and walkways as well Yes it does allow for that o - Cost would be so high that development may not happen, could an assessment on the value of construction be considered instead The wording in the Act limits our flexibility o - Intended to be fair and reasonable but we need to do the most to max the funds that are potentially available. Downtown Strategic Plan Revision – Subcommittee Report Thomas Seebohm chaired a sub-committee of Glenn Scheels, Glen Woolner, Mark and Vince Buelher. Report was circulated. Mr. Seebohm provided a presentation on the revision to the strategic plan. Five recommendations were presented: 1. follow approach in statement of intentions 2. refocus on important issues 3. hire appropriate consultants be overseen by steering committee 4. council direct sufficient funding for the project 5. initial focus on social issues Seven step process for implementation (based on WHO Centre for Urban Heath, March 2001) 1. vision needed with strong support from council and partnership with community 2. manage the project – select team, determine financing and time scale 3. collect data – what is the current health of the city, use this data to determine target and assessment 4. set priorities – with community groups and stakeholders 5. develop strategic plan – with goals objectives etc 6. drat the plan 7. implementation, monitoring and continuing evaluation – with all participants Question / Comments: - With continued support of downtown development and the unique issues that exist, the Committee members should continue to advocate Council’s commitment. - Outcomes of the presentation make sense, they are in line with the healthy communities and they are valid, we need to understand the best way to approach this and understand that the current strategic plan proved successful and an update to the plan is important to ensure we stay on the right track. - This is a powerful document that brings people to a common approach it has resulted in the current downtown taking shape, the vision, including is new participation, new wealth etc., we need to make certain that we do not lose that momentum - When an investment of an updated Strategic Plan is done, we leverage a return that goes beyond, we create a framework that people can identify with and contribute to and a place they fit in - Appreciation was expressed to the Committee for identifying the social issues as something that needs to be addressed ACTION: City staff to take this information and work on a plan and report back to the committee 3.2 Preview downtown monitoring report This item was deferred to a future meeting. 4.2 Upper Storey Program Applications for upper storey program are now closed, 4 did not meet, one incomplete, 2 complete and under evaluation and total number of units of all applications is 22 and construction cost in excess of $1.3M – this value reflects the applications that have met the requirements of the program. Façade loans and grants will be summarized for the downtown monitoring report A concern was raised regarding the food and clothing distribution in the downtown. The Committee was advised that there is an agreement in place for the group and currently we have received complaints and staff are looking into a solution that is beneficial to all parties. On motion, the meeting was adjourned at 6:00 p.m.