HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/16/1996 MEDC
MINUTES OF THE MUNICIPAL ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
HELD ON
JANUARY 16, 1996
A meeting of the Municipal Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors for the City
of The Colony, Texas was called to order at 6:40 p.m. on the 16th day of January, 1996, at The
Colony Chamber of Commerce. The following persons were in attendance:
Gary McClure, President
David Stanwick, Vice President
Jerry Sebastian, Secretary
Ronnie Fischer, Treasurer
Tommy Thompson, Executive Vice President
Lori Harlan, City Staff Liaison, Director of Economic Development
Executive Vice President John Dillard arrived at 6:45 p.m. and departed at 7:00 p.m.
1. DISCUSSION CONCERNING ONGOING NEGOTIATIONS WITH PENINSULA
GOLF PARTNERS
Ms. Harlan updated the board on a meeting of the small negotiating group of the EDC held on
Friday, January 12. At that time a decision was made to inform Peninsula Golf that the land lease
figures presented in the EDC's December 6 correspondence were non-negotiable. Ms. Harlan
spoke with Kevin Bleiler on Monday, January 15, and related that information. On January 16,
Mr. Bleiler contacted Ms. Harlan and responded that Peninsula Golf could not agree to the land
lease as specified by the EDC. Negotiations were therefore terminated and a discussion followed
concerning reimbursement of Peninsula Golf expenditures from the escrow deposit held by the
city.
Based on Ms. Harlan's update, Mr. Stanwick made a motion to accept the termination of
negotiations and send a letter to Peninsula Golf officially terminating the relationship. The motion
also included proceeding forward with revenue bond financing for the golf course project.
The board then discussed actions that must take place to restart the bond financing process. Ms.
Harlan gave a brief overview of all parties that must be consulted including the environmental
assessment team, Corps of Engineers, Matthews Southwest, Mark Pressman Associates, Boyd
London, Leroy Grawunder, Tripp Davis, and Finger Dye Spann. Ms. Harlan will begin contacting
key individuals to determine a time frame for moving ahead. Board members expressed their
desire to meet earlier than the next regularly scheduled meeting for an update and possible action
needed to speed the project. Ms. Harlan agreed to work toward a time line for presentation at the
next meeting.
2. DISCUSSION OF HOW TO PROCEED WITH MARINA PROJECT
President McClure asked Ms. Harlan to explain this item. Ms. Harlan gave a brief history of the
City Council's discussions concerning a marina in the city of The Colony. Most recently, the
Council terminated a relationship with a marina developer and directed that a request for proposal
or similar document be prepared to solicit developers interested in constructing a marina at an
unspecified location in The Colony. City Manager Johnny Smith asked Ms. Harlan to work on
developing an RFP for the marina project and indicated the EDC board would provide oversight
during the RFP process. The purpose of placing the item on the current agenda is to determine the
amount of detail that should be included in the RFP.
Board members expressed opinions ranging from developing a very general request for
information to a detailed RFP that specifies even the location the city would like for the marina.
Ms. Harlan shared with the board copies of selected pages from the 1994 marina demand study
commissioned by the Corps of Engineers. In the study, the most appropriate locations designated
for marina development are located within The Colony city limits. The "best" zone for
development encompasses Wynnewood Peninsula and Hidden Cove Park. The five year
moratorium on marina development on Lewisville Lake was also discussed, and the board agreed
that the best opportunity for convincing the Corps to lift the moratorium is a thorough marina
proposal at a location that the Corps believes is appropriate.
To facilitate such a proposal, the EDC directed Ms. Harlan to prepare a moderately detailed
request for proposal that utilizes information from the 1994 Corps study. That document will be
reviewed by the EDC and submitted to the City Council for comments prior to advertisement.
President McClure asked what work the EDC should be doing to research paying the city back
for the $600,000 spent to purchase the right-of-way for the Main Street expansion. Ms. Harlan
stated she will be researching that topic as well.
The next meeting of the Economic Development Corporation will be Thursday, February 1, 1996.
The meeting was adjourned at 7:45 p.m.
Lori Ha lan, Director of Economic Development