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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12/19/2008 - Regular Minutes - Wolf Pen Creek Oversight Committee WOLF PEN CREEK OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE MINUTES 12:00 PM, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2008 THE GREEN ROOM AT WOLF PEN CREEK 1015 COLGATE COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS, 77840 ? STAFF PRESENT: Marco A. Cisneros, Director – Parks and Recreation; David Schmitz, Assistant Director – Parks and Recreation - Operations; Amanda Putz, Secretary; Peter Lamont, Recreation Superintendent; Pete Vanecek, Senior Park Planner; Mark Smith, Jeff Kersten, David Gwin, Scott Hooks, West District Park Operations Supervisor; Glenn Brown, City Manager; Kathy Merrill, Assistant City Manager; David Neeley, Assistant City Manager; Lance Simms, Wayne Larson, Public Communications Director; Gabriel Elliott, Assistant Director – Planning and Development Services COMMITTEE PRESENT: Dennis Maloney, James Massey, John Nichols, Gary Erwin, Jody Ford, Marc Chaloupka, Sharon Colson COMMITTEE ABSENT: None VISITORS PRESENT: None 1. Call to order: Dennis Maloney called the meeting to order with a quorum present at 12: 00 p.m. ~ Break for Lunch ~ James Massey called the meeting back to order at 12:14 p.m. 2. Pardon and possible action concerning requests for absences of members: Hearing none, this item was closed. 3. Presentation, possible action, and discussion of minutes from July 24, 2007: John Nichols made a motion to approve the minutes as submitted, and Gary Erwin seconded the motion. The vote was called. All were in favor, and the motion passed unanimously. 4. Presentation, possible action, and discussion on 2008 – 2009 Wolf Pen Creek TIF budget and forecast: Jeff Kersten, Chief Financial Officer, reported on this item with handouts included in the packets. Marco A. Cisneros, Director of Parks and Recreation, explained the handout of the Wolf Pen Creek Tax Increment Financing District Additional Information for Board Rankings of Projects. Dennis Maloney stated that a Science Technology Museum is something that we need in an educated area such as this. Discussion followed. 5. Presentation, possible action, and discussion regarding the Wolf Pen Creek Water Feature Project: The water feature project had been presented to the committee over a year ago. Sharon Colson said that some concerns in the past were that everyone was not given public access to the feature. It was discussed that being able to recycle the water within the water feature was also an important concern, and also discussed was to incorporate education as well as a tourist attraction for the water feature project. Marco A. Cisneros, Director of Parks and Recreation, explained that moving forward with the water feature project in the Wolf Pen Creek District is a commitment and tying in the same features as what the Wolf Pen Creek District already has would be nice. It is believed that the project is developable within the budget allocated. Marco A. Cisneros believes that placing the water feature next to the property that the city does not own should not be an issue, and stated that placing a border between the two should suffice. James Massey said that he is concerned that the property owner may place something on the land that may detract from the water feature. Dennis Maloney said that placing the water feature closer to the Arts Council building would be better in his view as the main attraction of the festival site. Why isn’t the water attraction the main attraction of the plaza? James Massey said that placing the attraction at the corner of Holleman may be an advantage, because it will draw individuals to the plaza/festival site. The discussion was that trying to gain the land would be the best route to go so that the City has full direction in the design of the surroundings around the water feature. John Nichols explained that he believes placing the water feature into the plaza/festival site would be a good place to put the water feature with the Arts Council being in the midst of it also. It was discussed that removing the Sears Building on Holleman across the street from the mall would be good for the strip, and we could leverage that for the growth of the Wolf Pen Creek District. James Massey said that he would like Wayne Larson’s vision on how the city can market this area, in order to let everyone know that Wolf Pen Creek has great advantages. Jody Ford left at 1:30 p.m. 2 December 19, 2008 Wolf Pen Creek Oversight Committee Meeting Minutes 6. Presentation, possible action, and discussion on development and future projects in Wolf Pen Creek: Marc Chaloupka explained that a high priority on the committee’s list is the festival area north of the Arts Center. That area was envisioned as a multi-use event area for events such as arts & crafts shows, car shows, etc. Dennis Maloney said the he does not think that parking is a major issue because certain parts of the road could be blocked for the festival. There was discussion over doing a newly designed mall including the parking. A festival site is an important concern, and having an attraction is a necessity. Discussion followed. 7. Discussion and possible action regarding future meeting dates and agendas: Staff will schedule a meeting date prior to the TIF Board meeting on February 5, 2009. 8. Adjourn: The meeting adjourned at 1:41 p.m. 3 December 19, 2008 Wolf Pen Creek Oversight Committee Meeting Minutes