Town of East Hampton
Economic Development Commission
Special Meeting
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
East Hampton Town Hall Meeting Room
6:30 PM
MINUTES
Present: Chairman Richard Leone, Alan Pawlak, Cindy Rooth, Kimberley Fontaine, Dave Shulman, Todd Schrager and Jack Solomon
Also Present: Chris Edge, Connected to CT; Kerry Nielson, Director of Community and Environmental Planning; and Cathy Sirois, Recording Secretary
1. Call to order: Chair Leone called this regular meeting to order at 6:32 p.m.
2. Approval of Minutes: Cindy Rooth made a motion to approve the June 16, 2009 minutes, seconded by Dave Shulman, vote in favor, motion passed. Vote: Yes 5 – No 0 – Abstentions 2 (Kimberley Fontaine and Alan Pawlak abstained as they were not present at the June 16th meeting). Mr. Schrager asked if the minutes could be forwarded to the members prior to the meeting and asked if they could be sent in PDF format as he does not have Microsoft Word.
3. Announcements: None
4. Town Manager/Town Council Liaison/Community & Environmental Planning Director: Kerry Nielson, Director of Community and Environmental Planning explained her position and her role with the Economic Development Commission. Mr. Leone noted that EDC may be able to utilize Kerry for grant applications. Ms. Rooth asked about the status of Cranberry Bog. Kerry will check into it.
5. Public Comments: None
6. Presentations:
- Connected to Connecticut activities report: Chris Edge reported to the Commission (handout made part of the record) the contacts, visitations, and meetings he made during July 2009. A request was made by the commission to add the address of the businesses in his report. Mr. Leone noted that he spoke with Monica Kangley regarding the Winterfest, they are interested in working with EDC on this project. Mr. Schrager mentioned ideas for Halloween in the Village Center, such as pumpkin carving.
Ms. Fontaine asked about creating an information book for new businesses interested in coming into town. Also, the visitor/business directory online is very outdated. Chris Edge will look at the document for updating.
Mr. Pawlak asked about demographic studies of towns similar to East Hampton.
7. EDC Liaison Reports:
- Summary discussion of other Board & Comm. Activity: Mr. Leone attended the Mother Board Meeting, a meeting of the town’s land use boards. Further discussion from that meeting related to Home Based businesses will be noted under Old Business.
b. Formal liaison assignment discussion: The commission discussed which board and commission meetings they should attend as liaisons. Mr. Leone will attend Planning & Zoning meetings. Mr. Pawlak will attend Brownfields/Redevelopment. A member will attend Town Council meetings as needed. Mr. O’Keefe and Ms. Nielson will be able to update EDC on Town Council matters as well.
8. Old Business:
- Blight ordinance action plan update: Mr. O’Keefe and Ms. Nielson will work with EDC to update this ordinance.
- Home Based Business Initiative: Mr. Leone noted that another workshop will be held with Planning & Zoning regarding the Home Based Business Initiative. The workshop will be held independent of either a P&Z or EDC meeting in the fall and will be a collaborative effort between both boards.
- Update on Existing/New Businesses in Town: This information was covered in the update from Connected to Connecticut. Bella Victoria is in the process of closing. It was also noted that Roadside Deli may be opening under a new owner.
- Business of the Month Concept: Chris Edge reported that he will email the commission a preliminary design for the sign for the Business of the Month. Once approved, he will order the sign.
- Farmers Market Grant Opportunity: There has been no feedback to date regarding the Farmers Market Grant opportunity.
9. New Business
a. Holiday Village Center Event: Monica Kangley will be attending the August EDC Meeting. The commission discussed possible dates for the event. Chris Edge will talk to the village businesses to get their opinion on possible dates. The commission would like to get corporate sponsorship and would like to involve businesses outside of the village center. Ms. Fontaine suggested possibly creating a skating rink on the Center School grounds.
b. Connected to Connecticut Contract Renewal Discussion: Chris Edge recused himself from this discussion. Mr. Leone and Mr. O’Keefe met with Craig Stevenson to discuss the scope of the new contract. The commission discussed what they would like to see from Connected to Connecticut with a need to re-focus the scope of their work.
Mr. Schrager left the meeting at 8:47 p.m.
A motion was made by Mr. Shulman, seconded by Mr. Pawlak, to recommend to the Town Council to renew the contract with Connected to Connecticut. The motion was tabled to the next meeting. The commission would like to see the original contract for Connected to Connecticut prior to a vote.
10. Public Comments: None
11. Adjournment: Ms. Rooth made a motion, seconded by Mr. Shulman, to adjourn this special meeting at 9:04 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Cathy Sirois
Recording Secretary
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