Town Of Willington
Economic Development Commission Meeting
Meeting Minutes of
November 24, 2014
*Minutes are not official until approved at the next regular meeting.
Attendees: Kim Kowalyshyn Tom Treiber, Vice Chair/Secretary Jackie Silverstein, Chair
Steven Vera
Opened Meeting at 6:01 PM
Public Present: John Blessington, Selectman, and Christina Mailhos, First Selectman, were present and participated in our meeting.
Seating of Alternate Member: On a motion by Kim seconded by Tom, the seating of Steven Vera for Ethan Griswold was approved.
Approval of Minutes:
On a motion by Tom and seconded by Steven, the minutes from November 12, 2014 were approved.
New Business
- 2015 meeting schedule was approved along with a new starting time for the Monday meetings of 6:30 PM beginning with our December 2014 meeting
- Steven Vera was congratulated and welcomed as a new alternate member. He filled the last EDC vacancy.
- Correspondence/email – Kim will provide information on how to access EDC email.
- Facebook – Jackie reported that our Facebook initiative has been well received and has reached 967 folks.
Old Business:
Economic Development
- Dunkin Donuts - owner of property reports that he will break ground this winter. Tom will contact realtor for any additional information.
- FedEx - Susan Yorgensen reports that FedEx is moving forward with a parking lot expansion. They plan to expand on adjacent property rather than on their current site.
- Love’s Travel – no change
- New Business Activity and Contacts included the Hilltop expansion as well as the delivery of welcome baskets to new businesses - Elegant Edge Hair Salon & Day Spa, Pastries 4 Pets and River Road Veterinary Center.
2014 EDC Activities
- Business Directory Updates – Kim will process when she has Tom B’s data.
- Business Profiles – next up Elegant Edge Hair Salon & Day Spa and affiliated, but separately owned, businesses.
- EDC Marketing & Promotion included our Facebook initiative, welcome basket distribution to new businesses, our new Facebook page and the QuickBooks training offered in July.
- EDC News/Newsletter- activity cancelled in light of Facebook initiative.
- Willington Word – Jackie wrote an article covering our Facebook page and QuickBooks training session.
- RFQ - Willington Market Study -Jackie compiled feedback from members, Susan Yorgensen, Land Use, and Christina Mailhos, First Selectman, into a final draft. We reviewed the final draft and suggested some minor changes that Jackie will incorporate them into the final document. Then, Jackie will work with Tom B. (map) and Kim to forward a properly formatted document to Robin Campbell for assistance in distribution/publishing.
2015 Goals including scheduling a Business Networking Meeting, determining the timing for a new Business Directory, etc. will be discussed at our December meeting.
Budget and Housekeeping
EDC Finances - $763 on hand after welcome basket expenses
Housekeeping – Jackie updated member contact listing and reviewed a member responsibility chart that she had prepared. We discussed the importance of meeting attendance.
Meeting adjourned at 7:43 PM. Our next regularly scheduled meeting will be held on Monday December 22, 2014 at 6:30 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Tom Treiber
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