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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12/03/90 MINUTES RA143 Bakersfield, California, December 3, 1990 Minutes of the Regular Meeting of the Central District Development Agency of the City of Bakersfield, California, held in the Council Chambers of City Hall, 1501 Truxtun Avenue, at 3:00 p.m., December 3, 1990. The meeting was called to order by Vice Chairperson Rubin. Deputy City Clerk Welty called the roll as follows: Present: Agency Members Ruddell, Dunn, Araujo, Rubin Absent: Agency Members Paynter, Watson, Sceales CONSENT CALENDAR The following items were listed on the Consent Calendar: ae Approval of Warrant Nos. 130 to 151, inclusive, in the amount of $15,419.70. be Minutes of the Regular Meeting of November 3, 1990, for approval. Ce Design Review Application No. 90-15 submitted by Bakersfield Neon Sign Co., Inc., for Bruce and Birdie Lenocker for approval of sign for building located at 2026 Chester Avenue. de Design Review Application No. 90-16 submitted by Portfolio Properties for approval of sign for building located at 2210 Chester Avenue. Design Review Application No. 90-17 submitted by Good Samaritan Incorporated for approval of sign for building located at 1330 19th Street. f. REMOVED FOR SEPARATION CONSIDERATION. Upon a motion by Agency Member Ruddell, Items a, c, d, and e were adopted, and Item f. was removed for separate consideration immediately following the Consent Calendar, by the following roll call vote: Ayes: Noes: Abstain: Absent: Agency Members Araujo, Dunn, Rubin, Ruddell None None Agency Members Paynter, Sceales, Watson Exclusive Right to Negotiate Agreement with Hallmark Ventures/Signet Hotel (dba Bakersfield Hotel Property, Inc.). Vice Chairperson Rubin suggested that the Exclusive Right to Negotiate Agreement be modified to provide that the developer shall share the results of its market survey with the Agency within seven days upon receipt of that market study. 144 Bakersfield, California, December 3, 1990 - Page 2 Assistant City Attorney Daniel advised that, as a point of order, the reason this item is on the Agenda is for the purpose of substituting Bakersfield Hotel Property as the signator of the Exclusive Right to Negotiate Agreement. Mr. Daniel further advised that the Agreement itself has already been approved and it would be very difficult at this time to modify the document since the Agency had previously approved the terms. Vice Chairperson Rubin requested that staff communicate the Agency's wishes to the developer regarding the market survey. Upon a motion by Agency Member Ruddell, Item f., the substitution of Bakersfield Hotel Property as the signator of the Exclusive Right to Negotiate Agreement, was approved by the following roll call vote: Ayes: Noes: Abstain: Absent: Agency Members Araujo, Dunn, Rubin, Ruddell None None Agency Members Paynter, Sceales, Watson REPORTS An oral report regarding the Annual Review of the Bakersfield Redevelopment Project was presented by various personnel of the Economic/Community Development Department. Principal Planner Art Hartenberger initiated the presentation by distributing a draft copy of the General Plan Redevelopment Element for Economic Revitalization, which is anticipated to be finalized in the next few weeks. He then highlighted the noteworthy accomplishments and for the 1989-90 Fiscal Year, as well as the ongoing activities and program goals for the Fiscal Year 1990-91, as follows: The Design Review Guidelines have been adopted and are in the process of being implemented. The Master Street Tree Plan soon will be coming out of the Design Review Committee and presented to the Agency (hopefully by the first part of 1991) in the form of a physical plan, showing the types of trees and location. A program defining the financing and the important maintenance responsibilities will also be presented. The City-wide Parking Ordinance, a very important portion of which was central City, is now being implemented and working. The Historic Preservation Ordinance has been updated and is currently before the City Council Urban Development Committee. The updated Ordinance defines historic structure designation, as well as how the local designation of buildings or districts are facilitated. Besides the proposal from the Old Westchester neighborhood for a district in that area, there are three owners of downtown buildings that meet the historical criteria who have applied for local designations. Bakersfield, California, December 3, 1990 - Page 3 After the Redevelopment Element is submitted to the Agency, an Environmental Impact Report will need to be prepared, as required by the California Environmental Quality Act, and that document will be prepared over the next six or seven months. The construction program to remodel and enlarge the Bakersfield Convention Center has been completed. Also during the Fiscal Year, a half- dozen existing business owners applied for and received grants from the Facade Improvement Program. The program has been placed on hold; however, some new interest is being shown in that program. The Agency entered into discussions to implement the rehabilitation of the Tegeler Hotel. The 4-story project will provide its tenants with 52 1-bedroom units and 1 2-bedroom unit, with commercial retail space on 19th Street. Some of the programs which carry over into the 1990-91 Fiscal Year are: the completion of the Redevelopment Element, the completion of the Environmental Impact Report, and the codification (the Zoning Ordinance that will have to be prepared). Some of the new programs to be pursued this next Fiscal Year, and some of which are already under way, are: the Auto Care Center in the 23rd-24th Street Corridor, which is an auto commercial center that is being coordinated with private developers; the Market Plan for the 18th and Eye Streets Parking Structure; the Historic District Plan for Old Westchester; the Marketing Plan for the Central City in cooperation with the Downtown Business Association; the Fifth Year Cultural Survey; the Day Care Center for Downtown; New Restaurant Marketing Strategy; and the Athletic Health Club Complex. The second portion of the presentation was made by Development Associate Donna Barnes, who showed slides outlining the economic trends of downtown Bakersfield, and discussed a survey that was conducted in the Project Area and the Study Area where all of the businesses were inventoried. The results of the inventories are described in great detail in the General Plan Redevelopment Element booklet handed out earlier by Principal Planner Hartenberger. "i .t ¢ Bakersfield, California, December 3, 1990 - Page 4 The final part of the presentation was made by Development Assistant Andre Devereaux who described the Marketing Plan phase of the Redevelopment Element, as follows: One aspect of marketing downtown is to develop a relationship with the local merchants by creating a relationship between the City and the Downtown Business Association. By assigning a City contact to the DBA, efforts to revitalize the downtown will be better coordinated and efforts that are scheduled to be achieved will be more focused. This will provide a means in which the downtown merchants can express their opinions early in the marketing plan that will enhance the collaborative effort between the City and the DBA to develop solutions to downtown. In order to successfully market downtown, it is necessary to identify the physical limitations, the site availability and the tenant mix. As part of the Marketing Plan, it appears to be a 3-step program involving stabilization, enhancement and expansion. During the stabilization phase, probably the key role would be merchant retention, and, with the assistance of the DBA, this can be achieved. Creating a core group of retailers to serve as ambassadors to the local merchants, and providing assistance to the property owners in improving and maintaining their properties, would assist in this area. One phase of this could be educational merchant seminars co-sponsored by the City and DBA. Along with these seminars, not only can merchandising and advertising promotions be discussed, but also various incentives, such as the Facade Program and the Small Business Administration Loan Program. The second phase will be the enhancement. In this stage the role would be general marketing of downtown. Key to this would be marketing and promoting downtown as a unified shopping area, enhancing the visual image of downtown and organizing interest groups within the downtown core. The third phase, expansion, includes identifying in-the-field opportunities, and also what needs are not currently served by the tenant mix. During this phase of the program, commercial marketing would be the emphasis. As indicated earlier in the presentation, an analysis of the retail markets currently in place is critical and also identifying niche markets that are not currently served by the downtown, identifying vacant space and also the potential end use. 147 Bakersfield, California, December 3, 1990 - Page 5 Development Assistant Devereaux then discussed some general ideas of how the Marketing Plan might be put in place identifying the goals and objectives, and some possible activities, as follows: One goal is to strengthen and retain the retail business by creating an information package. A marketing package would then be targeted to retail brokers. Currently, a data base of commercial brokers and franchises is being compiled. Another aspect would be to improve the visual landscape and appearance of vacant store fronts, and incorporating merchandise displays. Retaining existing retailers, whenever possible, could be achieved through consultation, as far as specific needs that may not be currently met by the local merchants, thereby creating a communication mechanism in which retailers and City staff could informally meet in developing retail opportunities. The City is currently putting together a progress report to monitor the efforts in the downtown and also assist in recruiting new retailers to the downtown. Vice Chairperson Rubin commended Principal Planner Hartenberger and the other staff members for making an excellent presentation. NEW BUSINESS Adoption of Resolution No. RA3-90 of the Central District Development Agency of the City of Bakersfield fixing the dates of meetings of the Central District Development Agency for the Calendar Year 1991. Upon a motion by Agency Member Dunn, Resolution No. RA3-90 of the Central District Development Agency of the City of Bakersfield was adopted by the following roll call vote: Ayes: Noes: Abstain: Absent: Agency Members Araujo, Dunn, Rubin, Ruddell None None Agency Members Paynter, Sceales, Watson Annual Report of Financial Transaction of the Central District Development Agency to the State Controller. Upon a motion by Agency Member Dunn, the Annual Report of Financial Transaction of the Central District Development Agency was accepted and forwarded to the City Council. 148 Bakersfield, California, December 3, 1990 - Page 6 Central District Development Agency of the City of Bakersfield, California, Component Unit Financial Report for the Fiscal Year ended June 30, 1990. Upon a motion by Agency Member Dunn, the Central District Development Agency of the City of Bakersfield, California, Component Unit Financial Report for the Fiscal Year ended June 30, 1990, was accepted. Agency, ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the the meeting wa~ adjournS~t 3:53 p.m. CHAIRPERSON of ~strict Development Agency of the City of Bakersfield ATTEST: SEC Development Agency of the City of Bakersfield ndw