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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-09-2009 CIrv oF DOWNTOWN REDEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE 7 -TWASHINGTON June 9, 2009 MINUTES I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Lynn Norman called the meeting to order at 4:03 p.m. in the Council Chambers located on the first floor of Auburn City Hall, 25 West Main Street, Auburn, WA. Committee Members present were: Chair Lynn Norman and Member Gene Cerino. Deputy Mayor Sue Singer arrived at 4:05 p.m. Staff present included: Mayor Pete Lewis, Planning, Building & Community Director Cindy Baker, Principal Planner Elizabeth Chamberlain, Economic Development Manager Dave Baron, City Engineer Dennis Selle, Assistant City Engineer Ingrid Gaub, Project Engineer Jacob Sweeting, and Planning Secretary Renee Tobias. Audience Members present were: Spencer Alpert, Mel Maertz, Ronnie Roberts, Gail Spurrell, and Tim Weber. II. MINUTES Member Cerino moved to approve the May 26, 2009 minutes as presented; Chair Norman concurred. MOTION CARRIED 2-0 Deputy Mayor sue Singer arrived at 4:05 p.m. III. DISCUSSION A. Wayfinding Signage in Downtown A written evaluation of pole replacements for the Downtown Urban Center area was distributed to the Committee. Staff noted that there are nine signs and 30 panels in the Urban Center area. The City received a grant from the State to install wayfinding signs on Telespare poles. Staff reviewed the options with the Committee. • Option #1: Paint the Telesparo poles and use the existing signs and panels. Work could be done relatively quickly by City crews. Estimated cost would be $450. • Option #2: Install new signs on new pedestrian light poles. Existing wayfinding panels could not be re-used and the installation woutd depend on the timing of pedestrian pole installation. Pedestrian poles may not be planned at all wayfinding sign locations. Estimated cost would be $3,000 for the panels; cost does not include the pole or special mounting hardware. City would likely have to return the grant money for existing signs - $5,500. • Option #3: Install existing wayfinding panels on new decorative poles with a simple base. Estimated cost would be $9,000 for the nine poles. City would likely have to return $270 grant money for the existing nine sign poles. Page 1 Downtown Redevelopment Committee Minutes June 9, 2009 Committee concurred with Option No. 3- install existing wayfinding panels on new decorative poles. Committee asked staff to find a decorative pole that matches the decorative Main Street pedestrian lights. Committee further asked staff to work with Urban Center developers and staff from the Auburn Downtown Association. B. Main Street Pedestrian Lights Principal Planner Elizabeth Chamberlain reported that the pedestrian lights on Main Street were installed in 1994 and replacement parts are no longer available due to their unique design. The metal is fatiguing and basically the lights have served their life cycle. The Auburn Professional Plaza will be constructing sidewalks soon and will need to either put back the existing Main Street pedestrian lights or an alternative based on Committee's direction today. Staff presented three options via a memo for Committee's direction. After discussion, the Committee chose Option No. 3, select a new and different pedestrian light standard for Main Street. Staff will bring back options, including longevity of the light, to a future committee meeting. The Committee asked that the poles include an electrical outlet at the top. Committee further asked staff to include developers of the Auburn Junction project and the Auburn Downtown Association in the process. Any new development would be required to install the new standards. As money came into the downtown area, the City would replace lights by blocks that are not on Main Street. Chair Norman offered to hear brief comments from the audience. Spence Alpert, Alpert International, thanked the Committee for including developers in the wayfinding signage and pedestrian lighting process. Mr. Alpert stated that his team came away from the May 26, 2009 with the impression and expectation that the projects described in the map could be feasible as an initial phase of the infrastructure in conjunction with development improvements. Mr. Alpert asked for permission to have Mel Maertz, M2 Architects, share updates and graphics with preliminary concepts at future meetings. Specifically the items at the gateway corners that identify the Auburn Junction core development; including public art work, pedestrian features and lighting associated with corners and gateways. In response to Committee's question, Mr. Alpert reported that gateways on the west side of the Auburn Junction would be in the next phase of the development project. Mr. Alpert indicated that A Street NW has already been improved and will be a primary focus once the Auburn Junction is fully developed. Mr. Alpert Wants to use local revitalization funding and the EDA grant to get the project off the ground. The team proposes using the southwest block for an arboretum, storing all landscape materials temporarily so it would not look like a vacant lot during development. Mr. Alpert will start sharing plans with staff and obtain Committee's feedback. The marketing agent for the project, Tim Weber, First Western Properties, reported on his recent meeting with Safeway's real estate staff. The timing of Auburn Junction Phase 1 will coincide with Safeway remodeling their Auburn location. Safeway would Page 2 Downtown Redevelopment Committee Minutes June 9, 2009 consider moving their entrance to the southwest corner of their property when Auburn Junction is underway. Mr. Weber informed the Committee that the retail market is changing and stores are starting to call to find new sites. Lenders are starting to lend, such as Small Business Association, which is a great sign for the economy. Mr. Alpert stated that research indicates that when the market comes back, that almost every sector will be positive. He noted that if ground was broken tomorrow, the project would be a problem. The timing for this project couldn't be better. When recession improves, companies will be looking for new locations. Committee would like to have a public information meeting regarding the Auburn Junction project and future downtown development plans. Committee expressed an interest in discussing the retail mix, ensuring that opportunity for entrepreneurship and other small retailers are included that will make Auburn unique. Committee asked when the promenade project would begin. Mayor Pete Lewis responded that the City just had a meeting about the Economic Development Administration (EDA) grant and this should be discussed at the next Committee meeting. The EDA grant timelines need to be met first. Mayor Lewis would like to have staff provide an update to the Council. IV. INFORMATION • June 23, 2009 meeting - Staff will bring back options for Main Street pedestrian lights, including information on the life span of the lights. Staff will bring back options for decorative poles for wayfinding signs. • July 14, 2009 meeting - The Auburn Junction development team will share updates and graphics with preliminary concepts for gateway. V. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the Downtown Redevelopment Committee, Chair Norman adjourned the meeting at 5:02 p.m. APPROVED THIS ~9iAN DAY OF JULY, 2009 ~t. Lynn man, Chair R e S. Tobias, Planning Secretary Page 3