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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09/05/07 CDC MINUTES THE COLONY COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION SPECIAL SESSION SEPTEMBER 5TH 2007 PRESENT: Don Beckel - President Stephen Sohn - Treasurer Debby Short - Secretary TeRan Lawrence - Member John Sanders - Vice President STAFF: Pam Nelson Keith Helms Kathy Neal MEMBER ABSENT: Lisa Leary Andrea Porter COUNCIL LIAISON: Allen Harris - Absent GUEST: Wes Morrison - City Planner 1. CONDUCT INTERVIEWS AND RECEIVE PRESENATIONS FROM PROSPECTIVE CONSULTANTS REGARDING DEVELOPMENT OF THE CDC MASTER PLAN - Dennis Sims & Molly Walters from Dunkin Sims Stoffels, Inc. - Their firm has done a lot of work in The Colony. They will use goals set in the Comprehensive Plan and will combine iriformation from the other existing plans to develop a new plan. They will interview various groups and ask them for a wish list and they will also have public meetings. As a result of these meetings, they hope to have a new Parks & Recreation Master Plan and a document that shows how the money should be spent. Some of the elements in The Parks & Recreation Master Plan will have its own set of priorities to be approved by Texas Parks & Wildlife in case the board wants to go outfor grants. Those priorities will be combined into the overall plan. They will also have a community wish list or needs assessment. This will be developed with special interest groups, public input, public officials, interview city staff, Chamber of Commerce, Planning & Zoning Board, 4B Board members, and people that are involved in the community. After all the discussions with the various groups is complete, a preliminary priority list will be presented to the board. They will also have another public meeting to present the list to the public. Each park will be evaluated. Each park will have a concept plan for improvements along with a cost estimate for the improvements. They think the plan would take 9 months to complete. This plan will not just be about parks. The board stressed the need for a plan that will not have a lot of projects that cost a lot, but projects that will have a dramatic impact that everyone can see. Huitt Zollars - Trina Finney, Bridget Brock, Adam Beckom - They see many opportunities in the City, but they also think The Colony is in a unique position to explore Ecotourism and they want to incorporate that into the Master Plan. They think the plan could be done in 6 months. They will do an analysis of the city's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and a constraints analysis, all needed to establish a common frame of reference. The information will be distributed via a website, verbally, and graphically. They will conduct a Development Standards Review in which they will compare The Colony to other pier cities - Duncanville, Coppell, and Hurst, as well as compare it to the national Parks & Recreation Association standards. They will review the city's projected needs for the next 10 years. The public will be involved. They will have public meetings and have focus group meetings. Results from these meetings will be presented to the Board and the public and that will lead to plan adoption and implementation. They will also review partnerships - existing and new. They recommend a lot of interactive public meetings, but only one public hearing. The most valuable resource is the waterfront and the trail system that is being built. They will focus on access to the City, infrastructure, land use, housing market, parkland and zoning. They chose to focus on Ecotourism to give the City an image. The perception is that The Colony is an extension to other cities. We should expand on "City by the Lake ". 2. ACTION TO BE TAKEN AS A RESULT OF CONSULTANT INTERVIEWS - Wes said from a planning perspective he thinks Dunkin Sims & Stoffels has a better understanding of the City, even though he did like some of the ideas from Huitt Zollars. He also said that no matter who is chosen, the board can use ideas presented by the other consultants. Pam adds that Ecotourism is one of the fastest growing businesses and provides many opportunities. The board is very interested in exploring Ecotourism. No action was taken as interviews will continue tomorrow, Sept. 6th, 2007. There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned at 9: 15 p.m. . . ~ ) -UlJ// ~----. -k~I,~d Kath