Minutes

Main Street Planning Meeting, June 14, 2006

7:30 – 9:15 a.m., Brainerd office of the Chamber

Present: Dan Vogt, Mark Ostgarden, Ed Menk, Vince Kline, Sheila Haverkamp, Chris Robinson, Doug Grout, Darren Larson, Lisa Paxton

Through a brainstorming session and shared consensus, the attendees developed the following based on the four-point Main Street concept:

Organization Outcomes:

• Vested stakeholders engaged in ensuring a healthy downtown
• Stakeholders are clearly defined
• Consistent and on-going plan implementation
• Recognized go-to organization
• Clear vision for downtown – and guides and direct toward that vision
• Continuous income and resources to accomplish goals
• Paid staff
• Effective committee structure

Staff role:

- Facilitator and coordinator

- Consensus builder

- Works closely to support and guide committees

- Liaison between property owners, tenants, board, city, and others

- Capacity and ability to learn

- Implement the vision and guide the board

Economic Restructuring Outcomes:

• Shared and long-term vision of business mix in the downtown.
• Understanding of the current mix.
• Improved property values and rental income.
• Downtown filled with appropriate busineses.
• Appropriate infrastructure for growth and improvements to occur.

Staff role:

- Advocate for downtown

- Understand and use appropriate resources to support goals

- Goal focused

- Creative

- Sales and marketing skills

Design Outcomes:

• Advocate for the implementation of the master plan conceptual design as the guiding document for downtown.
• Develop timeline for implementation
• Determine implementation details
• Identify financial resources
• Ordinances are in place for design implementation.
• Maintenance and beautification best practices established.
• Long term planning for design.

Staff role:

- Lead advocate for the master plan

- Liaison with the Board, Property Owners, Property Tenants, City

- Understanding of and promotion of design implementation benefits

- Understands resources – technical, ordinances, best practices

Promotion Outcome:

• Evaluation of current promotion
• Consistent promotional image
• Shared budget with stakeholders
• Coordinated promotion
• Establish and follow promotional budget
• Promote the downtown assets
• Promote the shared vision for downtown

Staff role:

- Develop and implement annual promotional plan

- Access outside expertise as appropriate

Assignments for the next meeting:

• Vince will research the background and purpose of downtown restoration and downtown business association.
• Mark and Doug will draft a budget of expenses based on the outline of the Main Street program distributed at the meeting.
• Read the information distributed at the meeting copied from the mainstreet.org web site or visit the web site to reach information relating to: About Local Programs (organizational structures, budgets and funding, etc.) to prepare for the next meeting.

Agenda for the next meeting Wednesday, June 28, 7:30-9:15 a.m.:

Organizational structure, funding options, timelines

• Identify possible organizational structures – pros and cons (list from Main Street web site and others?)
• Identify stakeholders in detail
• Review and approve draft budget of expenses
• Identify funding options
• Timeline for implementation