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Minutes Downtown Plann 5 5 03 MINUTES Downtown Planning Committee Long Range Planning Advisory Commission Monday, May 5, 2003 10:00 a.m. Conference Room 2, City Hall Annex 1300 Main Street, Dubuque, Iowa PRESENT: Committee members Jim Giesen, Doris Hingtgen. Bob Felderman Jim Gibbs, Dan LoBianco, Ann Michatski, Dave Rusk. John Walsh Dick Wertzberger, Judie Fjellman: Staff Members Bill Baum, Beth Conton. Laura Carstens, David Harris, Jerelyn O'Connor and Rich Russell. Also · present were consultants Anne Ricker of Leland Consulting Group, Bob Kost of SEH, Inc., and Jim Holz of MSA Professional Services, nc. ABSENT: Committee members Pam Jochum, Mike lronside and Steward Sandstrom. CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order at 10:10 a.m. AFFIDAVIT OF COMPLIANCE: Staff presented an Affidavit of Compliance verifying the - meeting was being held in compliance with the Iowa Open Meetings Law. MINUTES: Motion by Walsh, seconded by Felderman, to approve the minutes of the April 11, 2003 meeting as submitted. Motion carried unanimously. Anne Ricker distributed an.updated consultant team directory. Judie Fjellman requested two changes to the new Downtown Planning Committee roster. ACTIONITEMS: Review Retreat Results: Ms. Ricker reviewed the results of the April 11th planning retreat. Review Preliminary Concept Economics: Bob Kost reviewed the preliminary concept economics based on the retreat results and background research. He noted the ptanning activity for the warehouse district in relation to the possible school sites and the creation of an urban rehabilitation area. Discussion followed. Consensus was that the Committee does not have a role in the selection of a downtown school site. Mr. Kost stated that planning is an ongoing continual process and the Committee should plan for 10 - 20 years work on the Downtown Planning area. The Committee discussed the time horizon for the Downtown Master Plan. The Committee noted that some of the proposed redevelopment sites are currently parking lots and that the Committee should address the parking redevelopment with the Minutes - Downtown Planning Committee May 5. 2003 Page 2 of 3 plan's strategy. Committee members d ~scussed consulting local realtors for the economic analysis, addressing the existing downtown parking issues and touring the downtown area to look at and discuss development possibilities. Committee consensus was to conduct a tour after the next meeting on June 9t~ with box lunches at noon and a trolley tour from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. Mr. Kost provided an update on the transit alternatives analysis. He said a workshop will be held at the end of May on alignments and the evolving transit system. Ms. Ricker stated that regarding planning, the reality of the market must balance with community vision. The Committee talked about the downtown neiglqborhoods and their connection and importance to the Downtown Master Plan area. Mr. Kost discussed the City's support for adaptive re-use and that preliminary redevelopment opportunities wou~d be included with the next presentation of the Downtown Master Plan to the Committee. Ms. Ricker reminded the Committee that there will be a Public Open House on June 9th from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the Orpheum Room at Five Flags Civic Center. She said that she and Bob Kost will sketch a pro forma outline of strategies for each vision and present the information to the general public. Review May 5 City Council Work Session: Ms. Ricker reviewed with the Committee the presentation for the May 5th City Council work session at Carnegie Stout Public Library. She also mentioned that there would be an implementation meeting on August 11t" with the Committee, and in September they would present the final plan to the City Council. Review of May 6 Focus Group Meetin,qs: Ms. Ricker reported that one-hour focus group meetings with stakeholders will be held on May 6tt~ at Five Flags Civic Center at 7:30 a.m.. 11:30 a.m., and 5:30 p.m., and breakfast lunch and dinner will be served. Consensus was the Committee members can attend as observers. She discussed the focus group script and asked for Committee input regarding the questions and prompts. Committee members asked that Ms. Ricker clarify that the plan we are working on includes providing a list of developers but doesn't include the next step of implementation, such as setting up meetings and contacting those developers. Review Travelin,q Questions: There was a brief discussion of the traveling questions exhibit. ITEMS FROM COMMISSION: Plannin,q Area Boundary: Committee members and consultants debated whether the Downtown Master Plan should be focused on the designated area that was set two years ago, should be Minutes - Downtown Planning Committee May 5, 2003 Page 3 of 3 amended to included the Warehouse District, which is outside the ptanning boundary, or should identify the Warehouse District as a contiguous area of influence. Several Committee members commented that areas of influence outside the boundaries may be critical to a successful redevelopment of the downtown area. Other Committee members noted that the planning boundary had been set for Vision Downtown and for the state grant as the service area of Dubuque Main Street Ltd. Bob Felderman commented that the 2020 plan of Dubuque Main Street Ltd. includes the peripheries of Jackson Park and the Warehouse District. Dan LoBianco discussed that the boundaries of Dubuque Main Street Ltd. include buildings that face both sides of the street. The Committee continued their discussion of how much emphasis to put on contiguous areas of influence. Bob Kost suggested that the Committee should prioritize the importance of these areas. He suggested that the plan's implementation might include planning for the Warehouse District as one of the next steps. There was a consensus of the Committee to continue to refer to the Dubuque Main Street Ltd. service area and to identify the importance of the contiguous areas of influence. Chan~qes in Minutes: Committee members referred back to the results of the retreat in the minutes. They requested a change be made to the minutes under "common elements" that were found on the tabletop plans. Common Elements should read "urban and linear parks" instead of a "Town Square with green space" and "support for Main Street" should also include a bullet for "service specialty retail". ADJOURNMENT: The meeting adjourned at 12:05 p.m. Respectfully-submitted, Elizabeth Conlon, Assistant Planner Adopted