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Home My WebLink AboutSPAC.2011.1018.Minutes TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS MINUTES OF THE FOUNTAIN HILLS STRATEGIC PLANNING ADVISORY COMMISSION MEETING October 18,2011 AGENDA ITEM#1 —CALL TO ORDER Chair Koester Thomas called the meeting to order in Council Chambers at Town Hall at 3:03 p.m. AGENDA ITEM#2—ROLL CALL Present for roll call were the following members of the Strategic Planning Advisory Commission: Chair Audra Koester Thomas, Vice Chair Curt Dunham, Commissioner Mike Dooley, and Commissioner Alan Magazine. Commissioner Nick DePorter and Youth Commissioner Sarah Traylor were excused. Commissioner Barry Spiker was absent. Also present were Acting Town Manager Julie Ghetti and Recording Secretary Shaunna Williams. AGENDA ITEM#3—CALL TO THE PUBLIC No one appeared at the Call to the Public. AGENDA ITEM#4—PRESENTATION ON BRANDING PROPOSAL Mark McDermott and Francesca Carozza made a presentation on behalf of the Fountain Hills and Fort McDowell Visitors Bureau, a division of the Fountain Hills Chamber of Commerce, regarding their new branding/destination marketing campaign. They presented a series of poster boards illustrating their messages, color palette and logo. They noted that the branding campaign has already been used in a six-page spread in Phoenix Magazine. S Commissioner Magazine inquired as to the objective of the branding campaign and Mr. McDermott replied that their focus is tourism, i.e.,to promote Fountain Hills as a destination and to market the Town as such. Discussion ensued as to content of the campaign; the need to create a unified marketing campaign for the Town in order to attract visitors, retail establishments and jobs; BVAC act as the coordinator cooperative efforts between the Town and the Visitors Bureau; the current investment in the branding platform of under $10,000; the fact that the Visitors Bureau owns the copyright (although the owner is listed as the Chamber of Commerce in Phoenix Magazine); the Visitors Bureau's funding request from the Town in the amount of$103,000 for projects/activities unspecified; the fact that the Visitors Bureau does not consider the branding strategy part of their funding request; the projected implementation strategy for the branding campaign in print advertisements, on the web, and in social media; and performance measures associated with the Town funding. Commissioner Magazine reiterated the need to "marry" what the Visitors Bureau is doing with the Town's Economic Development strategy in order to market the Town. Mr. McDermott stated that he would be delighted to work with Lori Gary on synergies and ways to collaborate. Chair Koester Thomas thanked Mr.McDermott and Ms. Carozza for their presentation. AGENDA ITEM#5—PRESENTATION ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY Lori Gary, Economic Development Administrator, made a PowerPoint presentation on the Town's economic development strategy (copy attached). She specifically focused on business recruitment to obtain quality jobs and pointed out cooperative efforts currently underway with the Greater Phoenix Economic Council. C Page 1 of 3 Ms. Gary stated that GPEC is holding a "Personalized Medicine Summit" on November 17, 2011, but she will not be able to attend. At the request of Chair Koester Thomas, Ms. Gary agreed to forward information about the summit to her. Ms. Gary then responded to questions from the Commission. Commissioner Dooley noted that Ms. Gary is an asset to the community. Chair Koester Thomas echoed Commissioner Dooley's comment and thanked Ms. Gary for her presentation. AGENDA ITEM#6—CONSIDERATION OF APPROVING MEETING MINUTES OF SEPTEMBER 13, 2011 Commissioner Dooley MOVED to approve the September 13, 2011 meeting minutes and Vice Chair Dunham SECONDED the motion, which CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY by those present. AGENDA ITEM#7-INTERIM TOWN MANAGER'S UPDATE a. Economic update—Ms. Ghetti distributed copies of a PowerPoint presentation entitled Economic Update, October 6, 2011 (copy attached) and reviewed relevant sections. She stated that she is concerned about sales tax collections as a result of lack of consumer confidence due to the recent stock market volatility. Chair Koester Thomas inquired if performance measures are in place for the Chamber's tourism contract related to the branding strategy. Ms. Ghetti replied that in the past performance measures have been very specific but that Council has not yet determined performance measures for this year's funding; that the contract will need to come before Council for approval before funding can be provided to the Chamber. b. Council Retreat - Ms. Ghetti stated that the purpose of the retreat on November 17 from 8:00 a.m. to noon is to decide how to close the budget deficit and that the Council will be provided a "toolbox" of (30 options from which to choose in order to close the deficit. Commissioner Dooley inquired if the Council Retreat is open to the public and Ms. Ghetti responded that it is. Vice Chair Dunham inquired if there was time in a four-hour meeting to get Council consensus and walk away with direction. Mr. Ghetti replied that she is optimistic because the Council will be provided toolbox options in advance of the meeting. AGENDA ITEM #8 — DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE CONSIDERATION REGARDING DEVELOPMENT OF RECOMMENDED APPROACH(ES) FOR COUNCIL TO INITIATE ITS FY2010- 11 GOAL 5.5 TO "ASSEMBLE A CITIZEN BLUE RIBBON COMMITTEE TO DEVELOP A FINANCIAL ROADMAP FOR THE TOWN'S FUTURE." Chair Koester Thomas noted that the joint meeting with the Town Council will be held next Monday, October 24, and that SPAC has previously delivered a memorandum and white paper to Council. She stated that she has received an acknowledgment of receipt of the memorandum from Mayor Schlum and Councilmember Dickey,but that she had received no comments about the content of memorandum. She pointed out that the Commission must decide today how to present the memorandum and white paper at the joint meeting, together with alternatives for moving forward. Following a lengthy discussion, the Commission agreed that after an introduction by Chair Koester Thomas, Vice Chair Dunham should present the issue at the joint meeting. Vice Chair Dunham it to walk through the memorandum and white paper, and reiterate the SPAC's concerns about the viability of the community and about Page 2 of 3 the viability of the Strategic Plan itself unless the Town achieves some financial stability. Vice Chair Dunham should point out that it is SPAC's hope that Council will take a very serious look at their options at the November co, 17 Council Retreat, and also state that SPAC is willing to do anything it can to support the Council in its decision. AGENDA ITEM #9 — DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE CONSIDERATION OF ALTERNATIVE WORK PROGRAM IDEAS TO PRESENT TO COUNCIL AT JOINT MEETING Following discussion, it was agreed that a separate agenda item at the joint meeting with Council should relate to economic development efforts. During the joint meeting, it should be pointed out that SPAC has received presentations from both the Visitors Bureau and the Town's Economic Development Administrator; that while economic development is not a solution to long-term financial stability, SPAC recommends a balanced approach to economic development; that SPAC has heard and agrees with what Lori Gary is doing with respect to targeting specific business sectors in order to bring quality jobs to Fountain Hills; that SPAC feels it is very important for Council to look at the balance of resources going to the Visitors Bureau and economic business recruitment; and that SPAC is will to help with the basic job creation sector of our economy. AGENDA ITEM #10 — DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE CONSIDERATION OF RECOMMENDING POTENTIAL REVISIONS TO STRATEGIC PLAN 2010 Tabled to next SPAC meeting. AGENDA ITEM #11 — DISCUSSION REGARDING RECOMMENDING PRIORITIES AND COUNCIL GOALS FOR FY 12-13 BUDGET PROCESS PER STRATEGIC PLAN 2010 Tabled to next SPAC meeting. AGENDA ITEM#12—SCHEDULE UPCOMING MEETING DATES It was noted that SPAC meetings currently scheduled are a joint meeting with the Town Council on October 24, 2011, at 5:30 p.m., and SPAC meetings on November 16, 2011 and December 7, 2011 at 3:00 p.m. An additional SPAC meeting was scheduled on January 11, 2012 at 3:00 p.m. AGENDA ITEM#10—ADJOURN Commissioner Magazine MOVED to adjourn at 5:50 p.m. and Commissioner Dooley SECONDED the motion, which CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY by those present. Shaunna Williams, Recording Secretary Page 3 of 3 10/17/2011 Business Attraction Strategies for Fountain Hills Tuesday,October 18,2011 Presented by • a EcD• £ t> a °-.- 14, Economic Development Update Economic development is: • Long Term • Consistent Effort • Persistence • Filling the pipeline Economic Development Strategies for Fountain Hills 1. Retail Recruitment 2. Increasing Avenue Vitality 3. Business Recruitment (quality jobs) C 1 10/17/2011 Economic Development Update Retail Recruitment Guiding Principles Provide citizens with desired products/services which will increase their quality of life 41) Economic Development Update Increasing Avenue Vitality Guiding Principles • Increase foot traffic on the Avenue • Increase vibrancy on the Avenue • Complimentary business mix Economic Development Update Business Attraction Guiding Principles Attract businesses which will: • Create quality jobs • Increase daytime population • Build the community's economic base(basic sector industries) 2 10/17/2011 Objective: Fill Empty Office Space 1. Develop an inventory of current office users 2. Review business sector targets from Greater Phoenix Economic Council(GPEC) 3. Identify business target sectors Target Industry Identification The targeted industry sectors must meet three areas: 1. Currently in operation in the community,thereby,11. most likely to be successful in targeting for attraction. 2. Utilizes office space as part of the business operations. 3. Adhere to guiding principles. Target Industry Identification • Analysis performed on existing business base • Used NAICS to determine sectors most prevalent • NAICS-North American Industry Classification System 461, • 10/17/2011 J Target Industry Identification Business licenses were culled using the following three criteria: 1. The business must be physically located within the Town limits. 2. The business must have an active business license. 3. The business must not be a home based business. 618 businesses matched the criteria and were used in this analysis. Target Industry Identification Findings NAICS Industry Sectors in Fountain Hills March 24,2011 111111114"- Target Industry Identification Findings Top 3 industry sectors: 1. NAICS 44—45: Retail Trade—15.7%(or 97) 2. NAICS 81: Other Services(except Public Administration)-15.4%(or 95) 3. NAICS 54: Professional,Scientific,and Technical Services-11.5%(or 71) Accounted for almost half(42.6%or 263)of the existing business base. J 4 10/17/2011 C Target Industry Identification Conclusion Focused effort on 3 NAICS industry sectors for business attraction purposes: 1. NAICS 54—Professional,Scientific,and Technical Services 2. NAICS 62—Health Care and Social Assistance 3. NAICS 52—Finance and Insurance Target Industry Identification Conclusion The targeted industry sectors meet the three areas discussed at the outset of this analysis: 1. Currently in operation in the community,thereby, most likely to be successful in targeting for attraction. 2. Utilizes office space as part of the business operations. 3. Adhere to guiding principles. Objective: Fill Empty Office Space Business Recruitment Strategy • Target Industry Identification • Analysis of existing business base. —used categories from business licenses —crossed referenced GPEC targets —three potential target business categories (las, 10/17/2011 Economic Development Update Business Recruitment Strategy Implementation Strategies-completed: 1. Develop list of target businesses. 2. Meeting with office space leasing agents and owners—input&feedback. 3. Meeting with GPEC—input&feedback. Economic Development Update Business Recruitment Strategy — Implementation Strategies: 1. Market intelligence&competitive analysis. — Partnering with GPEC to perform outreach to existing businesses. 2. Case development 3. Targeted industry outreach preparation — marketing material/collateral pieces/script Ask Business Attraction Develop competitive advantage list — Readily available office space — Competitive pricing — Qualified,skilled,&available workers — Reverse commute — Available executive housing — Proximity to airport — Minimal potential disaster impact(earthquakes, massive flooding,tsunamis,tornados,etc.) 6 • 10/17/2011 Business Attraction Identify target markets(expansion or relocation) — Phoenix — San Diego — Los Angeles — San Francisco/San Jose — Chicago Business Attraction Kick-off: • Phoenix market: — —180 businesses(NAICS 54-Professional,Scientific,and Technical Services) • Software firms • Interactive marketing firms • Soler industry(marketing and installers) • Architecture firms • Engineering firms • Management consultants • Computer network integrators • Computer consultants • Accounting firms • Web design firms Questions? 7 0 omic Update i ber 6,2011 I Ai '':--...'f'9 Sar'-'-- . -''- ..k.' ; 471 ‘1111011 *Cal 15 AIL a _a-. .N Alli 30 nag, a 0 4 'Ithat is An" S TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS PERIOD ENDING 9/30/2011 GENERAL FUND REVENUES TOTAL$3.111/41 ilo(ai Sales Tax $1 5 $1.0 State Sales Tax State Income Tax ::: I Ill III ■SEPT FY10-11 SEPT FY11.12 0 TOWN OF FOUNTAIN HILLS PERIOD ENDING 9/30/2011 ALL OTHER FUNDS TOTAL $0.91\1 $500.0 HURF $400.0 -- $300.0 -- -- —. Debt Svc MPC Debt Svc GO $200.0 Special Revenue t 1V Dem s Thy+u:ancU Economic Development SEPTFY10-11 ■SEPTPYII-12 • GENERAL FUND REVENUE BREAKDOWN Total $3. 1 M Vehicle License Tax Other 8% State Sales Tax 13% Local Sales Tax 56% State Income Tax 15% 2 L OCAL SALES TAX REVENUE BREAKDOWN 1st Quarter Total $1 .7M Fountain Hills 2.6%Sales Tax Revenue For the Fiscal Year 2011.12 Services '., 4°° Misc. Real Estate I _ 5% 8% Rest/Bars Trans/UUI F6 21% wholesale/Retailer • Fountain Hills Total Local Sales Tax Collections Fiscal Years 06/07 through 10/11 (in millions) $11.0 $9.0 -- $7.0 $5.0 F106/07 FY07/08 FY08/09 FY09/10 FY10/11 LI July-September Retail Activity Sso0,000 Seoo,000 Saoo,000 $200,000 So . FY07-08 FY08-09 FY09-10 FY10-11 FY11-12 FY12Budget July-September Restaurant/Bar Activity $1oo,o00 S7soo0 - Sso,o0o $25,000 I ' $0 FY07-08 FY0&09 FY09.10 FY10-11 FY11-12 FY12 Budget 11) July-September Trans/Telecommunications Sales Tax Activity $3oo,000 - — $200,000 ;is0000 I I I III $1o0,000 I I I I I I $50,000Iiii $0 FY07-08 FY08-09 FY09-10 FY10-11 FY11-12 FY12 Budget July-September Construction Sales Tax Actis-ity saoopoo $350,000 $300,000 $250.000 $200 100 $150000 $100,000 $50.000 • • • $0 FY07-08 FY08-09 FY09.10 FY10-11 FY11-12 FY12 Budget 5 conomic Outlook ® :C... y.n economic outlook is volatile, affects :consurnQ confidence which affects retail sales o evenues will ' onitored before expenditures are approved Research contr •tization versus in- house and vice versa ---- gig question marks are sales tax an :;islature S stions? 6