2021-04-21 Economic Development Commission AgendaAGENDA
Edmonds Economic Development Commission
Wednesday, April 21, 2021
6 — 8 PM Zoom Info below
6:00 P.M. — Call to Order and Land Acknowledgement: "We acknowledge the original inhabitants of this place, the
Sdohobsh (Snohomish) people and their successors the Tulalip Tribes, who since time immemorial have hunted, fished,
gathered, and taken care of these lands. We respect their sovereignty, their right to self-determination, and we honor their
sacred spiritual connection with the land and water." - City Council Land Acknowledgment
Call to Order
1. Roll Call and recognition of approved absences (5 min)
2. Approval of Agenda (2 min)
3. Approval of March 17, 2021 Meeting Summary (2 min)
4. Audience Comments (3 minutes per person)
5. City Update (5 min)
6. Project Discussion: TBD (25 minutes)
7. Project Committee Updates (5 minutes each)
a. Neighborhood Districts & Business Zones
b. Edmonds Business Booster Portal
c. Waterfront Center Opportunities
d. Parking and Shuttle Service
e. Communication and Info Flow
f. Data Collection & Analysis
8. Idea Pipeline (10 minutes)
9. Liaison Update (10 minutes)
a. City Council
b. Port of Edmonds
c. Chamber of Commerce
d. Planning Board
10. Roundtable Discussion (10 minutes)
11. Adjourn
Next regular meeting: May 19, 2021 6PM
Zoom Information:
https://zoom.us/i/98696685791?pwd=RVtOZiVu K3ZCNON4Q1 RrM HZgSW pVQT09
Meeting ID: 986 9668 5791
Passcode: 901513
CITY OF EDMONDS
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION MEETING
March 17, 2021
COMMISSIONERS PRESENT:
LIAISONS PRESENT:
Nicole Hughes, Chair
Vivian Olson, Councilmember, ex-officio
Darrol Haug
Jay Hoag
Kevin Harris, Vice Chair
COMMISSIONERS/LIAISONS ABSENT:
Scott Merrick
Roger Pence, Planning Board, ex-officio
Jamie Reece
Bruce Faires, Port Commissioner, ex-officio
Kevin Smith
Greg Urban, Edmonds Chamber, ex-officio
Charlie Lieu
GUESTS:
Carrie Hulbert
None
Evan Sittauer, Student -Rep
STAFF PRESENT:
COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: Patrick Doherty, Director
Megan Luttrell, Program Coordinator
Economic Development Commission meeting conducted via ZOOM and called to order by Nicole Hughes
at 6:01 p.m.
Call to Order and Land Acknowledgement
1. Roll Call and recognition of absences:
2. Approval of Agenda:
Jay moved to approve; Jaime, seconded, motion passed.
3. Approval of February 17, 2021 Meeting Summary.
Darrol called out a correction to Item 6.e. Parking & Shuttle Service; where it was noted that there is
currently "350 employee permits", it should have read "750 employee permits". With this edit Scott,
moved to approve the minutes, Darrol seconded, motion passed.
4. Audience Comments: None.
S. City Update: Patrick shared there is currently a survey to solicit public input for the Walkable Main
Street program this year. The survey went public on March 111h and there have been nearly 900 responses
as of today. There is overwhelming support to include Fridays as well as have the program start earlier in
the year and/or last longer through the year. Responses indicate that a 3-block walk is supported. There
is also a need to accommodate people that have accessibility hindrances. Approximately half of
respondent's offered additional comments. A media release went out announcing the newly appointed
Acting Police Chief, Michelle Bennett. She will be a noncommissioned chief administrative officer. The
president signed the American Rescue Plan. The City will receive funds but there is currently no timeline.
Vivian asked Patrick to share the survey with the EDC so that it can be shared on their social media
platforms. She also requests to review the sales tax during last year's Walkable Main Street and compare
to years prior. She mentioned the Housing Commission presented an array of zoning changes for Council
to consider; Council will give staff direction on which options to move forward with. The Planning
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Department and Shane Hope are the leads. Any zoning changes will require public hearings prior to
approval.
6. Project Discussion: Communication and Information Flow: Nicole led the discussion and shared a draft
spreadsheet of four areas of communication: Reports to Council; Idea Exchange with Council; Project
Committee Reports; Project Summaries & Progress. The framework has a set of criteria associated with
each area to drive projects to evolve and provides guidelines for the committees to follow as projects
move forward. Nicole created templates that each committee can use to track project progress, this will
lend to concise reporting and work summaries. The goal is to share this information prior to the
Commission meeting so the Commissioners have time to review and bring questions and ideas to the
meeting. Charlie expressed concern that the template appears to work well for project -based Committees
but not for data gathering. Nicole agreed and shared that this template doesn't have to be used if it's not
helpful. Charlie envisioned a dashboard format for data. Kevin Harris added that this template is a
checklist for the Committees to use as a double-check to ensure that components are not being missed
as you move through projects. Nicole added, if Committee's find a different way organize info, go for it.
Nicole opened discussion on the Council update. What are thoughts on sharing info with Council? Some
suggestions: listening sessions; invite Councilmembers to join the EDC meetings. Kevin H. suggested
preparing a presentation for late April and reaching out individually to your appointing Councilmember
and/or Mayor. Kevin Smith agrees with Kevin Harris that presenting info and requesting feedback from
Council would be wise to build support. Nicole asked for thoughts on presenting a formal report to Council
(the last formal presentation to Council was in 2019). Jamie feels it's time but is not clear on what to share.
Patrick suggested sharing the work plan for the next 18 months. Vivian agreed that outreach to your
appointee would be valuable. Scott suggested using our meeting minutes as a tool to keep appointees
informed on what is being worked on. Vivian shared that the liaisons share board and commission reports
at the fourth Council meeting of the month, and she includes minutes.
7. Project Committee Updates
a. Data Collection & Analysis: Charlie shared that the committee met for the first time this last
month. They focused on working through high level data processes. Over the next month they
plan to work on collecting data. They are also going to endeavor to create a template to request
data.
b. Neighborhood Districts & Business Zones: Kevin Smith shared that they have focused on
identifying districts and educating on the history of each of them. They've narrowed down their
focus to three districts: Highway 99 (southern stretch), Firdale Village & Perrinville. During their
last meeting they discussed Highway 99, and the Burlington Coat Factory property. There's 11
acres of property, there is some opportunity there. Scott mentioned that Highway 99 could be a
huge focus in and of itself. There was research already done regarding the healthcare corridor,
Kevin H. is happy to share the research he's done with the Committee. Kevin S. added that the
Highway 99 corridor rebranding is also of interest. Darrol feels that shifting focus to one of the
non -Highway 99 might have more of an impact as there is already a lot of focus by other groups
within the City. He feels Five -Corners has a significant amount of data already compiled that could
be used and perhaps have a bigger impact. Firdale Village was chosen due to the number of
vacancies and the redevelopment opportunity. Perrinville is growing as new townhomes going in
the Lynnwood side. Patrick shared that the community renewal plan is starting up shortly and
there is opportunity for EDC participation. Carrie shared that not only are they looking at the
individual neighborhoods but they're also looking at an overarching umbrella for cohesiveness
between all the neighborhood districts.
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c. Edmonds Business Booster Portal: Kevin Harris led the update. There are 8 current providers
on the site and there are 6 that have potential to be added. Based off the interviews that were
conducted, there's a diverse, rich, pool of potential providers. They are taking the interview notes
and summarizing them. Once they're compiled, they will be sent to the EDC to review and
comment on. They will convene with the interviewees to have a brainstorming session; goal is to
do this in April and will present the results of the brainstorming session in May. Susan Paine
shared with Kevin H., Nicole and Patrick, a link for Build to Scale Venture grants for entrepreneurs,
there's also capital grants available, deadline is April 29tn
d. Waterfront Center Opportunities: Nicole led the update. The team spent some time at the
Waterfront Center, touring and getting a better understanding of how the community gathering
point will become a great asset to Edmonds. Daytime focus is on the Senior Center. After Spm,
the building will open for classes and rental space as well as on the weekends. The team has
discussed a variety of ideas: creative district collaboration; retail pop -ups; and beyond. The next
steps are to meet with Daniel Johnson, CEA to learn what they're working on. Nicole will send an
email to Daniel to setup a meeting with him. Scott mentioned that there's a parking opportunity,
at the Waterfront Center, perhaps they would open their parking lot during Walkable Main Street.
Also, the trolley would be helpful to connect folks downtown to the waterfront. Kevin H. shared
that the Port of Edmonds' goal is for long term tenants. Anything we can do to assist the Port
when there are vacancies would build a relationship between the Port and EDC. Kevin S. suggested
the EDC assist in getting the word out about events to build a bridge between downtown
businesses and the Waterfront Center.
e. Parking & Shuttle Service: Darrol led the update. He pointed out that it's great to have Evan
participate in their meetings. Parking is a hot button topic but data isn't readily available. The
team as met a couple times to identify easy to accomplish improvements. They met with Phil
Williams last week to discuss options. Public Works will be adding more tic marks to parking strips
as they have proven to be effective. The Committee supports contacting private property owners
to utilize parking lots during off hours. Public Works has agreed to help develop a survey to collect
public input about downtown parking. Carrie added that the BID/Ed! is trying to expand after
hours lots this year, if there are ideas please share. BID/Ed! is starting a be a good neighbor
campaign to suggest employees not park in front of businesses.
8. Idea Pipeline: Nicole shared a that this will be a standing item on the agenda. This is the time and place
to bring up new ideas or suggestions for the Commission to work on. Don't wait for the meeting to bring
up brilliant ideas, email to Nicole, Kevin H. & Patrick. Scott suggests moving trolley program forward again,
to be utilized once COVID restrictions allows. Kevin H. suggests putting some focus on the Highway 99
satellite City Hall. Vivian mentioned that adding hospital banners along Highway 99 from 212t" to 220tn
9. Liaison Updates (3 minutes per liaison)
Vivian Olson (Council) suggested starting a mentoring program for Evan.
11. Roundtable Discussion: Jay, nothing. Kevin H. great meeting, amazed at the amount of content that
is being produced. Kevin S. is really encouraged by the relief bills that have gone out over the last
year; it's supporting our economy in a positive way. Carrie seconds, Kevin S.'s sentiment. Evan
shared the superintendent just sent an email that as of 4/12 schools be opening to 2 days/week.
Charlie is also encouraged by the group. Jamie is optimistic about the next few months. Darrol
thanks to his team for meeting at a moment's notice this past month. Scott echoed that Edmonds
is looking alive and thanked Nicole for all the work that she's putting into creating communication
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formats. Patrick, Happy St. Patrick's day. Nicole is also excited about all the work, the group is
doing
Adjourn at 8:15 p.m.
Next regular meeting: April 21, 2021, 6 PM location TBA
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Economic Development Commission
March 17, 2021
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