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1000 ‎Rochester Hills Dr‎

Rochester Hills, MI ‎

48309‎

(‎248‎) ‎656‎-‎4600‎

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Rochester Hills

Minutes

Local Development Finance Authority

Brandy Boyd, Clarence Brantley, Michael Damone, Michael Ellis, Lois Golden, Lori Hartnell, ‎

Darlene Janulis, Daniel Romzek, Stephan Slavik‎

7:30 AM

1000 Rochester Hills Drive

Thursday, August 9, 2012

CALL TO ORDER

Chairperson Stephan Slavik called the Special Meeting to order at ‎7‎:‎33 ‎

a‎.‎m‎. ‎in Conference Room ‎221‎.‎

ROLL CALL

Michael Damone, Michael Ellis, Lois Golden, Stephan Slavik, Darlene ‎

Janulis, Lori Hartnell and Daniel Romzek‎

Present

7 -

Clarence Brantley and Brandy Boyd

Absent

2 -

Quorum Present‎

Also present‎: ‎Ed Anzek, Director, Planning and Economic Development‎

Pamela Valentik, Manager of Economic Development‎

Paul Davis, Deputy Director of DPS‎/‎Engineering‎

Kurt Dawson, Director of Assessing‎/‎Treasury‎

Keith Sawdon, Director of Fiscal‎

Maureen Gentry, Recording Secretary‎

‎

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

2012-0243

April ‎12‎, ‎2012 ‎Regular Meeting‎

A motion was made by Golden, seconded by Ellis, that this matter be Approved ‎

as Presented‎. ‎The motion carried by the following vote‎:‎

Aye

Damone, Ellis, Golden, Slavik, Janulis, Hartnell and Romzek

7 -

Absent

Brantley and Boyd

2 -

COMMUNICATIONS

There were no Comunications brought forward‎.‎

NEW BUSINESS

2012-0244

Update and request for support for the proposed LDFA Concrete Slab Repair ‎

Program for ‎2012 ‎and how the amount budgeted for road work will be utilized ‎- ‎

Paul Davis, DPS‎/‎Engineering‎

Mr‎. ‎Davis stated that in the last several years, the City had incorporated ‎

concrete slab reconstruction work in the LDFA district as part of a project ‎

of the Local Road Program‎. ‎They took a project to City Council on May ‎

21‎, ‎2012 ‎which was already up and running‎. ‎Typical to the last few years, ‎

the bids had come in lower than what was originally budgeted‎. ‎They went ‎

to Council with two options‎: ‎One was to inform about the amount of work ‎

they could do based on the bids or use another plan, which Council did ‎

adopt, which included some additional work to fully utilize the amount that ‎

was budgeted‎. ‎He pointed out some areas on a map where the City ‎

would be doing work and where the City had concentrated doing work in ‎

the last few years‎. ‎They were not doing full reconstructions like they did ‎

seven or eight years ago because of limited funding‎. ‎They were doing ‎

select concrete slab repairs in the worst places in the subdivisions‎. ‎They ‎

used ranking criteria, and they looked at the most critical roads‎. ‎They ‎

next looked at intersections and then at cul‎-‎de‎-‎sacs with low traffic‎. ‎He ‎

stated that there were a lot of areas in the City that needed to be repaired, ‎

but unfortunately, in every year‎’‎s budget allotments, they did not have ‎

enough to get to the cul‎-‎de‎-‎sacs‎. ‎They identified Bond St‎.‎, and with the ‎

bids that came in, they were also able to do some work on Technology, ‎

and that was the area being used for the ‎2012 ‎LDFA monies‎. ‎They would ‎

be working on Technology and Bond toward the end of the year‎. ‎

Mr‎. ‎Davis explained that he was asking the board to accept spending the ‎

budgeted amount, which expanded the original scope planned for Bond ‎

to do work on Technology‎. ‎The board had no objections, and hearing no ‎

further discussion, Ms‎. ‎Golden moved the following motion‎:‎

MOTION ‎by Golden, seconded by Romzek, the Rochester Hills Local ‎

Development Finance Authority hereby approves the addition of road ‎

work to be included in the ‎2012 ‎Concrete Slab Repair Program‎.‎

A motion was made by Golden, seconded by Romzek, that this matter be ‎

Accepted‎. ‎The motion carried by the following vote‎:‎

Aye

Damone, Ellis, Golden, Slavik, Janulis, Hartnell and Romzek

7 -

Absent

Brantley and Boyd

2 -

Chairperson Slavik stated for the record that the motion had passed ‎

unanimously as presented‎.‎

2012-0245

Discussion and request for approval of the ‎2‎nd Quarter Budget Amendments to ‎

the ‎2012 ‎LDFA Budget and approval of the ‎2013‎-‎2015 ‎LDFA Budget‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Anzek related that Staff was requesting that the LDFA acknowledged ‎

the change for the ‎2‎nd Quarter Budget Amendments‎. ‎When they put the ‎

budget together, they had been somewhat conservative in estimating ‎

revenues‎. ‎The revenues had come in higher than expected, and as part ‎

of the Budget Amendment that had already gone to Council, they were ‎

asking the LDFA to acknowledge the increased revenues into the Fund ‎

Balance‎. ‎The second part was the request for approval of the proposed ‎

2013‎, ‎2014 ‎and ‎2015 ‎LDFA portion of the City budgets‎. ‎He indicated that ‎

it was rather new to the LDFA because the matter usually came before the ‎

Board after the fact‎. ‎They had been pushing to get it in front of the Board ‎

before it went to Council next Monday ‎(‎Aug‎. ‎13‎) ‎night‎. ‎They would like to ‎

be able to say that the LDFA reviewed their numbers and supported it‎. ‎

Mr‎. ‎Anzek recalled that In previous years, they had identified Research ‎

Drive for a total reconstruction, with an estimate of around $‎900‎,‎000‎. ‎In ‎

subsequent site reviews, they determined that the road had not ‎

deteriorated as foreseen, and not as much needed to be done in ‎2013‎. ‎

They had been reviewing new techniques for repairing, patching and ‎

sealing, and they would like to try that‎. ‎Instead of paying $‎900‎,‎000 ‎for ‎

reconstruction, they thought it would be best to put another $‎100‎,‎000 ‎

toward the street reconstruction program in the LDFA area‎. ‎It had been ‎

$‎200‎,‎000 ‎for the last four years and for ‎2013‎-‎2015‎, they proposed that ‎

$‎300‎,‎000 ‎be transferred to the Major Road Fund‎. ‎Another item in the ‎

budget was for a portion of payment for Strategic Communication ‎

Solutions ‎(‎SCS‎)‎, which was a company that they briefly discussed at the ‎

last meeting‎. ‎The Mayor and Council had retained the company to assist ‎

the City and pursue grants‎. ‎Staff discussed with the LDFA the need to ‎

find monies for the infrastructure identified in the LDFA area ‎(‎about $‎23 ‎

million for the M‎-‎59 ‎Corridor Plan‎). ‎They would like the consultants to ‎

participate with the LDFA in the pursuit of money to attract jobs and ‎

businesses for the area‎. ‎The contract was for year to year, although they ‎

were doing three‎-‎year budgeting‎. ‎The $‎10‎,‎000 ‎was for half of ‎2012‎, and ‎

$‎20‎,‎000 ‎would be in next year‎’‎s budget‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Slavik clarified that $‎20‎,‎000 ‎

would come from the LDFA for next year‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Anzek agreed, and said ‎

that the total contract for SCS was $‎60‎,‎000‎.‎

Chairperson Slavik inquired if the Fire Department had been successful ‎

in the grant pursuit that SCS had provided‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Anzek responded that ‎

Staff had not yet heard back‎. ‎He further advised that Staff had met with ‎

the SCS folks and they went over the M‎-‎59 ‎Corridor, the business parks, ‎

and companies, and they were coming back next week in an effort to get ‎

more detail and to work closer with Staff on the LDFA area, business ‎

attraction and issues for the district‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Damone wondered, since they were planning a three‎-‎year budget, if ‎

there would still be the ability to adjust the budget if there were changes in ‎

priorities, income or expenses‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Sawdon explained that he presented ‎

three‎-‎year budgets, but they would only adopt ‎2013‎. ‎Years ‎2014 ‎and ‎

2015 ‎were projected budgets‎. ‎2014 ‎would be re‎-‎examined next year and ‎

2016 ‎would be added on the back‎. ‎The two years beyond ‎2013 ‎would be ‎

fully refined working with Assessing on tax values and working with Staff ‎

on costs‎. ‎The latter two budgets were presented to give the LDFA an idea ‎

of what things would look like in a few years if the current policies were ‎

followed as adopted in ‎2013‎. ‎

Mr‎. ‎Romzek added that they were in place as a planning tool‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎

Sawdon agreed, and said that it was an extension of the fiscal forecast ‎

into a document presented to the public‎.‎

Ms‎. ‎Janulis asked if the future budget would be brought back in January if ‎

it were tweaked‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Sawdon advised that fiscal years ‎2014‎-‎2016 ‎would ‎

come before the LDFA in July of next year‎. ‎That would be what they ‎

believed ‎2014 ‎would look like‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Janulis clarified that they were not ‎

really behind then‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Sawdon said that they would just be adopting ‎

2013‎’‎s concept‎. ‎2014 ‎and ‎2015 ‎were there to look at, but he reiterated ‎

that they were just projections‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Anzek said that historically, they never ‎

brought the budget to the LDFA until after the fact, so that was why they ‎

were offering it sooner‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Romzek summarized that they would be giving their blessing on the ‎

budget prior to the adoption process‎. ‎

Ms‎. ‎Golden said that she reviewed the memo regarding the government ‎

relation strategist, and she noted that it was not included in the ‎2012 ‎

budget‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Anzek said that they were not amending the ‎2012 ‎budget ‎

again until the ‎3‎rd Quarter‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Sawdon said that they were seeing it ‎

because they anticipated adoption of ‎3‎rd Quarter Budget Amendments ‎

for the City and the LDFA‎’‎s budget‎. ‎Ms‎. ‎Golden asked if the projection, if ‎

they approved the consultant fee, would go up to $‎20‎,‎000 ‎for the next ‎

three years‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Sawdon said it could, but that would be up to the LDFA to ‎

decide next July‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Anzek advised that there was a $‎50‎,‎000 ‎amount in the budget in ‎

support of the initial implementation of the M‎-‎59 ‎Corridor Plan, to deal ‎

with sidewalks and beautification projects in the industrial parks‎. ‎He ‎

believed they discussed it back in January‎. ‎Staff was suggesting that ‎

they start with $‎50‎,‎000 ‎in ‎2013‎, using this year to begin to organize and ‎

work with the property owners to see what type of public‎/‎private ‎

partnerships they could get‎. ‎If someone traveled the parks, they could ‎

see a lot of people walking in the streets, and the City was trying to create ‎

a more human‎-‎friendly atmosphere in the business parks to get people to ‎

the restaurants across Adams Rd‎. ‎The whole program was expected to ‎

cost less than $‎400‎,‎000‎. ‎They were planning $‎50‎,‎000‎, but they were not ‎

committing to it at this point‎. ‎They would see how it went for next year‎. ‎He ‎

also advised that Travel and Seminars had been increased a little ‎

because they realized that to further economic development, they had to ‎

get more focused and go get business‎. ‎A new economic development ‎

strategy, called ‎2‎.‎0‎, called for a more active, face‎-‎to‎-‎face participation in ‎

targeted medical industry shows and to travel with the County and the ‎

State ‎(‎MEDC‎) ‎to Boston and Chicago, for example‎. ‎

Mr‎. ‎Sawdon pointed out the fund balance, and said that the budget was ‎

still growing‎. ‎That was a good sign in a taxable value market that was still ‎

down‎. ‎Ms‎. ‎Golden said that when the fruits of the labors of all the road ‎

projects were seen, it would be an even better number‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Anzek added ‎

that the Hamlin Rd‎. ‎widening projects had created a great deal of interest ‎

in locating the buildings along Hamlin‎. ‎He agreed with Ms‎. ‎Golden that ‎

there would be more activity‎.‎

Hearing no further discussion, Ms‎. ‎Golden moved the following motion ‎

from the packet‎:‎

MOTION‎ by Golden, seconded by Janulis, that at the August ‎9‎, ‎2012 ‎

Regular Meeting, the Rochester Hills Local Development Finance ‎

Authority hereby approves the ‎2‎nd Quarter Amendments to the ‎2012 ‎

LDFA Budget and approves the ‎20130‎-‎2015 ‎LDFA budget‎. ‎

A motion was made by Golden, seconded byJanulis, that his matter be approved‎. ‎

The motion carried the following vote‎:‎

Aye

Damone, Ellis, Golden, Slavik, Janulis, Hartnell and Romzek

7 -

Absent

Brantley and Boyd

2 -

2012-0298

Discussion and request for approval of the ‎2‎nd Quarter Budget Amendments to ‎

the ‎2012 ‎SmartZone Budget and approval of the ‎2013‎-‎2015 ‎SmartZone Budget‎

Regarding the SmartZone budget, Ms‎. ‎Golden mentioned that they were ‎

aware of lack of revenue to the INCubator‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Dawson agreed they did ‎

not project any for a long time, especially with the potential for the ‎

Personal Property Tax to go away‎. ‎If that happened, there would be ‎

absolutely no chance for the SmartZones being viable for a revenue ‎

source‎. ‎He had asked the Legislative agent on the Assessor‎’‎s side about ‎

it, and he felt one of the intents was to lose that money‎. ‎He was not sure ‎

what the communities would do that had bonded and if they would try to ‎

get some type of replacement‎. ‎It was still in the discussion stage in the ‎

Legislature, and they had not addressed TIFs yet‎. ‎Rochester Hills was in ‎

a good position because the LDFA was still generating revenue, and they ‎

did not have any outstanding bonds‎. ‎They were on a cash basis‎.‎

Ms‎. ‎Golden asked if there was anything else the members should note‎. ‎

Mr‎. ‎Dawson said that they had held back funds due to the tax tribunals‎. ‎

They were caught up through ‎2009‎, and after ‎2009‎, the volume had ‎

dropped down, so they were getting to the end where they could see if ‎

there were any sufficient funds‎. ‎At some point, they would start to ‎

disburse some of the revenues to Oakland University‎. ‎They had been ‎

very conservative in holding the funds until they knew all the liabilities for ‎

the SmartZone were gone‎. ‎They did not have any collection for ‎2011 ‎and ‎

2012‎, and the liability was only for what was collected in each year‎. ‎Once ‎

they were done in ‎2009‎, ‎2010 ‎would be the only year they had liabilities ‎

left‎. ‎

Mr‎. ‎Ellis asked how much contact there had been between the City and ‎

Oakland University since they had a shortfall with the SmartZone‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎

Anzek said they tried to meet on a scheduled basis with the Executive ‎

Director there‎. ‎They had a meeting the Mayor, Dr‎. ‎Russi, Ms‎. ‎Valentik ‎

and Mr‎. ‎Anzek on their progress‎. ‎They were getting very successful‎. ‎

They were on a path of doing what they had intended to do‎. ‎They still ‎

hoped to get the opportunity where a company that was initiated at the OU ‎

INCubator took up residence in one of the business parks‎. ‎He stated that ‎

the relationship was good, and they understood the financial situation‎. ‎

They rolled the OU INCubator out as part of the Engineering and ‎

Computer Science School, which had helped them with a financial stream ‎

to stay open‎. ‎They were still exploring the opportunity to see if LDFA ‎

money could be spent as a short term bridge loan or grant, although he ‎

was not sure the LDFA laws permitted that‎. ‎He stated that the INCubator ‎

was taking a new direction with clean energy, and they were working very ‎

closely with the MEDC ‎(‎the State‎) ‎to be established as the medical ‎

INCubator for the State‎. ‎They were working together with Medical Main ‎

Street, and it was getting more focused‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Ellis asked if they hoped the medical area worked out for the Hamlin ‎

Rd‎. ‎site ‎(‎former Softball City and site to the north of that‎). ‎Mr‎. ‎Anzek said ‎

that there was a lot happening, and he could not really speak to what ‎

people wanted, but it was all positive and good‎. ‎The owners of the Hamlin ‎

property were aggressively marketing it for medical‎. ‎They were working ‎

with the strategic consultants for funding‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Ellis asked if there had ‎

been a falling off since Oakland University had the same relationship with ‎

Sterling Heights‎. ‎

Ms‎. ‎Valentik said that Macomb had a little different focus‎. ‎She agreed ‎

that Oakland University was putting resources into the Macomb ‎

INCubator, but their focus was more on defense‎. ‎That had been one ‎

sector the County was focusing on, and there had been a lot of activity ‎

with the clustering along the Mound‎/‎Van Dyke corridor‎. ‎They did other ‎

types of activities, too‎. ‎There was an article in the paper about those ‎

activities, such as helping entrepreneurs‎. ‎The OU INCubator was more ‎

focused with the Clean Energy Research Center and programs coming ‎

out of the campus‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Ellis asked if they were still pushing the OU ‎

INCubator and not ignoring it because the Macomb INCubator was so ‎

active‎. ‎Ms‎. ‎Valentik said that the OU INCubator was also very active, and ‎

Oakland University was pushing both INCubators‎. ‎They both got some ‎

fairly new direction‎. ‎Ms‎. ‎Amy Butler, Executive Director at OU INCubator, ‎

had done some very good things, and OU was pleased with what they had ‎

seen‎. ‎Macomb‎’‎s director was also somewhat new‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Anzek suggested that the next LDFA meeting might be scheduled at ‎

the OU INCubator‎. ‎Being tied to the School of Engineering, they were ‎

trying to capture that entrepreneurial spirit from the students, and they ‎

were trying to nurture them toward product development through the labs ‎

and other resources they had over there‎. ‎Ms‎. ‎Valentik thought that there ‎

was definitely an advantage for the INCubator in Rochester Hills because ‎

of the proximity to the labs on the OU campus‎. ‎The Macomb building did ‎

not have that‎. ‎

Hearing no further discussion, Ms‎. ‎Golden moved the motion for the ‎

SmartZone budget‎:‎

MOTION‎ by Golden, seconded by Ellis, that at the August ‎9‎, ‎2012 ‎

Regular Meeting, the Rochester Hills Local Development Finance ‎

Authority hereby approves the ‎2‎nd quarter amendments to the ‎2012 ‎

SmartZone Budget and approves the ‎2013‎-‎2015 ‎SmartZone budget‎.‎

A motion was made by Golden, seconded by Ellis, that this matter be Approved‎. ‎

The motion carried by the following vote‎:‎

Aye

Damone, Ellis, Golden, Slavik, Janulis, Hartnell and Romzek

7 -

Absent

Brantley and Boyd

2 -

Chairperson Slavik stated for the record that the motion had passed‎.‎

2012-0274

Request for Resolution of Support in the amount up to but not to exceed ‎

$‎10‎,‎000‎.‎00 ‎for services provided in fiscal year ‎2012 ‎by Strategic ‎

Communication Solutions, Inc‎.‎, a governmental representation and consulting ‎

services firm located in Novi, Michigan‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Anzek noted that the subject request was for the last six months of ‎

2012‎. ‎Staff was asking for up to $‎10‎,‎000 ‎for support for Strategic ‎

Communication Solutions‎. ‎They had already started and, as mentioned, ‎

they met with Staff to go over the business parks, identifying infrastructure ‎

project needs and so on‎. ‎They had already sent some information on ‎

potential grants the City could pursue‎. ‎They only had a one‎-‎year ‎

contract, which could be broken at any time, but they had gotten off to a ‎

good start‎. ‎He felt that the return on investment would be the key thing as ‎

to whether the Board would support it‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Slavik said that he liked what he heard the last time‎. ‎It seemed as if ‎

they were working in a lot of areas‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Valentik said that they were also looking into how the Personal ‎

Property Tax elimination would affect SmartZone and LDFA budgets ‎

across the State‎. ‎It would not be a unique situation for Rochester Hills if ‎

the Personal Property Tax went away, so she was glad to hear that they ‎

were already starting to ask those questions in Lansing and trying to get it ‎

on the radar screen for when it got a little farther down the road‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Anzek ‎

recalled what Mr‎. ‎Dawson had said about bond issues, noting that there ‎

were a lot of LDFAs that had issues with that‎. ‎If an LDFA was obligated to ‎

a bond issue, they would have a ‎15‎-‎20 ‎year payment‎. ‎If the money to pay ‎

went away, he questioned where they would get it from to pay it back‎. ‎

Their LDFA was very fortunate, because they had never had to use ‎

projected LDFA revenues to retire a bond‎. ‎

Ms‎. ‎Golden said that she watched the City Council meeting, and she ‎

thought that Staff had done a good job with the presentation‎. ‎She stated ‎

that she completely supported the request to help fund the consultants‎. ‎

Some at Council had concerns about hiring an outsider that might not ‎

know the City or its background‎. ‎She knew from experience that Staff ‎

would turn over the necessary information‎. ‎She knew that Staff also had ‎

plenty on their plates, and extra work writing grants would be another huge ‎

work load, so she thought it was a great idea to use consultants‎. ‎She said ‎

that she did not have time to pull the LDFA Plan, and she believed there ‎

would be quite a bit in the district to use grants for and that there were ‎

issues for which to lobby‎. ‎There might be concerns about the LDFA ‎

getting its fair share of the value‎. ‎She was not sure if there was anything ‎

specific in the LDFA Plan about sharing those types of costs with the ‎

general fund or anything that would prohibit it‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Anzek said that there was not anything in the infrastructure update or ‎

the M‎-‎59 ‎Corridor Plan‎. ‎He felt that there was opportunity for the LDFA to ‎

capitalize‎. ‎Ms‎. ‎Golden offered her services as a liaison if they needed ‎

one from the Board‎. ‎She said that she would be willing to do that because ‎

she was familiar with the capital improvement projects and grants‎. ‎If they ‎

wanted someone to step in and address the group with priorities for the ‎

district, she would volunteer to do that‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Anzek said that he ‎

appreciated it‎. ‎Ms‎. ‎Golden said that in order for it to be a great success, ‎

everyone had to pitch in and assist the outsiders with the City‎’‎s ‎

information that was unique to the community‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Anzek said that Ms‎. ‎Golden touched on SCS getting to know the City‎. ‎

From his perspective, it was more important that they were hiring ‎

someone who knew Lansing and Washington, D‎.‎C‎. ‎That was where the ‎

City was lacking in resources‎. ‎Ms‎. ‎Golden agreed‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Anzek advised ‎

that they had former high level DEQ and MDOT managers on their team ‎

who were decision makers for grants and loans‎.‎

Ms‎. ‎Janulis felt that the biggest mistake, and she had worked with lots of ‎

cities and towns, was that some cities and even schools felt they were ‎

distinctly unique‎. ‎She stated that they had much more in common than ‎

they had uniqueness‎. ‎She would be very surprised if Staff could not bring ‎

the consultants up to speed on what they needed to do‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Anzek ‎

reported that the consultants had been out to the City every week, trying to ‎

get to know them‎. ‎Ms‎. ‎Janulis felt that getting to know the personalities ‎

they were working with was important‎. ‎She indicated that as great as ‎

Rochester Hills was, she did not think they had anything really ‎

desperately unique that would make it difficult to be brought up to speed‎. ‎

She thought that was always a mistake cities made‎. ‎She felt that a ‎

company like SCS could see the commonality rather than the ‎

uniqueness for what they had to do to lobby‎.‎

Ms‎. ‎Golden said that the district not only had the potential for Medical ‎

Main Street, but there were the Clinton River Trail and parks‎. ‎She could ‎

see promoting the green aspect‎. ‎They did not have the freeway access ‎

like Troy or Sterling Heights, and they were kind of off in the corner, but ‎

they had special things to offer that could bump them up criteria‎-‎wise for ‎

outside money‎. ‎She felt that for what they were charging and the work ‎

they were doing that it was a bargain, and she felt it would work out very ‎

well‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Damone thought that after the consultants had familiarized ‎

themselves more with the City and had created a more specific plan, that ‎

it might make sense to ask them to come to an LDFA meeting‎. ‎

Mr‎. ‎Anzek said that Staff planned to invite them‎. ‎They were very ‎

interested in meeting with the Board‎. ‎They knew that the LDFA held ‎

some purse strings, and they wanted to see how to work with them‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎

Damone observed that after they were more familiar and had some ideas ‎

as to what they specifically planned to do, that the LDFA would probably ‎

be very interested in meeting them‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Anzek agreed, and said that it ‎

could perhaps be at the January meeting‎. ‎He mentioned that with the ‎

activities starting to pick up, such as Medical Main Street, if they needed ‎

the LDFA for something, they might call Special Meetings‎. ‎City Council ‎

could not spend LDFA money without the Board‎’‎s approval‎. ‎If there was ‎

an opportunity to do some type of public‎/‎private partnership to get things ‎

moving, they could schedule more meetings‎.‎

Ms‎. ‎Golden moved the Motion, reading the following from the packet‎:‎

MOTION‎ by Golden, seconded by Janulis, Resolved, that the Rochester ‎

Hills Local Development Finance Authority hereby supports the City of ‎

Rochester Hills in the contract with Strategic Communication Solutions, ‎

Inc‎. ‎for governmental representation and consulting services with local, ‎

state and federal relations in support of economic development in the ‎

LDFA district in the amount of $‎10‎,‎000‎.‎00‎.‎

A motion was made by Golden, seconded by Janulis, that this matter be ‎

Approved‎. ‎The motion carried by the following vote‎:‎

Aye

Damone, Ellis, Golden, Slavik, Janulis, Hartnell and Romzek

7 -

Absent

Brantley and Boyd

2 -

Chairperson Slavik stated that the motion was approved as written‎.‎

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Chairperson Slavik asked about a drawing on the board behind Mr‎. ‎

Anzek ‎- ‎referring to it as a kiosk‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Anzek said that they showed that ‎

sketch to Steiner School on Livernois and South Boulevard as an ‎

example of a type of beautification enhancement‎. ‎It was very similar to a ‎

project proposed near the Livernois bridge, for which he believed the City ‎

had a $‎250‎,‎000 ‎grant from the Traffic Enhancement Program‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Davis related that it was not quite that much, but he concurred that the ‎

City was approved for a Transportation Enhancement Grant‎. ‎It was ‎60‎% ‎

of the bid amount, and the bids were just opened on August ‎3‎rd‎. ‎They ‎

hoped to start the project within a month‎. ‎It would be a seat wall that would ‎

overlook the Veteran‎’‎s Memorial Park on Livernois to the southeast‎. ‎

There were other items included, and he commented that it should be a ‎

nice compliment to the area‎. ‎He noted that it was good timing with the ‎

bridges being redone‎. ‎The contractor would be the same one that did the ‎

Livernois bridge‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Anzek said that knowing that was happening, they met with people ‎

from Steiner School, who wanted to do some gateway enhancements, and ‎

Staff suggested that they consider a design similar to the one on the ‎

board to be reflective of what was put in at Livernois and Avon‎.‎

Ms‎. ‎Golden wondered if there was any more construction coming up‎. ‎She ‎

remarked that she lived off of Orion and if the City did anything else, they ‎

would be landlocked‎. ‎She mentioned Tienken in Auburn Hills‎.‎

Mr‎. ‎Davis agreed that Auburn Hills was moving forward with work on ‎

Hamlin, west of the corporate line and also some roadwork on Tienken‎. ‎

Ms‎. ‎Janulis added that the sooner it got done, the sooner it would be over‎. ‎

Mr‎. ‎Davis said that the Crooks work had generated a lot of complaints‎. ‎

Ms‎. ‎Janulis indicated that people should just give themselves more time‎. ‎

Mr‎. ‎Davis advised that the closure of Hamlin and Crooks was going into ‎

effect on August ‎9‎th ‎(‎today‎)‎, and no one would be able to go north or ‎

south through that intersection‎. ‎They were expecting to hear from ‎

Avondale Schools, because it would really affect them‎. ‎They picked kids ‎

up from one of the subdivisions there, and they would have to go way ‎

around the intersection, and he guessed that some kids might be late to ‎

school at first‎. ‎

Mr‎. ‎Ellis asked how long the project would last‎. ‎Mr‎. ‎Davis advised that the ‎

completion date currently was November ‎1‎st‎.‎

NEXT MEETING DATE

Chairperson Slavik reminded the members that the next Regular Meeting ‎

was scheduled for October ‎4‎, ‎2012‎.‎

ADJOURNMENT

Hearing no further business to come before the LDFA Board, and upon ‎

motion by Janulis, seconded by Golden, Chairperson Slavik adjourned the ‎

Special meeting at ‎8‎:‎16 ‎a‎.‎m‎.‎

Respectfully Submitted,‎

_____________________________‎

Stephan Slavik, Chairperson‎

Rochester Hills ‎

Local Development Finance Authority‎

_____________________________‎

Maureen Gentry, Recording Secretary‎