Special Meeting Minutes of December 9, 2016
Attendees: Tom Buccino, Jason Bracich, Adele Hall, and
Jackie Silverstein (Chairman)
Minutes Taken By: Jackie Silverstein
J Silverstein opened the meeting at 9:08 AM and welcomed A Hall as a member of the EDC. J Silverstein referenced the letter dated November 22, 2016, signed by C Mailhos, appointing A Hall with a term of November 21, 2016 through November 20, 2021.
No one from the public was present for public comment.
On a motion by J Bracich and seconded by A Hall, the minutes of the May 23, 2016 meeting were approved. On a motion by J Bracich and seconded by A Hall, the minutes of the November 9, 2016 meeting were approved.
T Buccino joined the meeting.
New Business
2017 Meeting Dates. J Silverstein presented the suggested 2017 meeting dates. The members agreed to the dates. J Silverstein will send to T Ignatowicz and R Campbell for posting.
Business Directory Software. J Silverstein asked the members to consider purchasing software, called flippingbook, to aid in the upkeep of the business directory electronically. Members agreed to review the email link previously sent by J Silverstein.
Correspondence / Email. J Silverstein noted there has been interest from an individual in town to join the EDC. She sent a follow up email and has not heard back. She will send one final email that provides the 2017 EDC meeting dates and invite the individual to join a meeting.
J Bracich noted the Willington EDC email still seems to be having issues with spam filtering. He is going to reach out to tech support to see if the issues can be resolved.
Members of the EDC have received the email notifications from the consultant hired by the Town of Willington to work on the Plan of Conservation. There are three scheduled listening sessions: January 3rd, February 7th, and March 7th. The February 7th meeting is specifically focused on economic development. EDC members will make efforts to attend all three meetings. In the meantime, J Bracich will send the consultant a copy of the report from Fairweather Consulting, the consultant hired in 2016 to do a market study on behalf of the EDC.
Housekeeping. J Silverstein distributed an updated Housekeeping document to the members of the EDC. Member contact information has been updated, as well as the contact information for a primary and secondary contact at the Town of Willington for agenda and meeting postings. The primary contact for the EDC is now Tish Ignatowicz, Treasurer. Robin Campbell, Town Manager, will be the backup.
J Silverstein also distributed the welcome letter from the EDC to new business prospects for the Town of Willington. It is outdated. J Silverstein will reach out to S Yorgensen to ask that the letter be removed until such time it can be updated.
Old Business
Business Activity. The Commission currently has a list of open economic development items in the Town of Willington. T Buccino will touch base with S Yorgensen to discuss a communication plan between her and the members of the EDC as it relates to our ability to stay apprised of economic development activities in the Town of Willington. T Buccino provided an update on the VCI Grant, noting there have been discussions centered around the inclusion of Hall’s Pond in the National Registry, and whether to consider Gardner Hall Jr. a significant person as it relates to section B of the application. T Buccino also reported Phelps Plaza is available and may be for sale.
A Hall exited the meeting.
Admin Position. J Silverstein provided a draft job description and members discussed making some minor edits. Any further suggested edits should be sent to J Silverstein by this coming Monday. Otherwise, the discussed edits will be made and the job description sent to R Campbell, to whom we will ask for guidance from in terms of next steps and determination of seating arrangements at the Town Hall, including appropriate equipment, and a telephone number.
Commission Vacancies. The Commission has vacancies for one open seat and two alternates.
Facebook. J Silverstein reported the Business of the Week posting will resume as soon as time permits, with a strong focus on returning to a weekly post in the new year.
Market Study. J Silverstein encouraged members to re-read the Market Study completed by Fairweather Consulting earlier this year, as it will most likely help in the upcoming discussions around the development of the new Plan of Conservation.
Mission Statement. J Silverstein provided the Mission Statement in hardcopy and noted she also sent an electronic copy to EDC members. Everyone agrees the current one is rather long and hard to remember. Members will work on suggested edits and discuss during a future meeting.
Process Mapping. Tabled.
Spring Business Meeting. J Silverstein distributed a list of Business Networking Meeting Ideas. A topic will be chosen at the next meeting. We would also like to consider reaching out to the Ashford Business Association to consider their participation, perhaps by way of a presentation.
Treasurer’s Report. T Buccino provided the most general ledger statement of the EDC budget and reported T Ignatowicz will unencumber $100 of the funds, presently allocated for membership in a service we do not participate in any longer. T Buccino requested J Silverstein send him any documentation pertaining to the details of the budget dollars originally requested.
The meeting adjourned at 11:15 AM.
The next meeting is scheduled for December 19, 2016 at 6:30 PM.
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