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TCDA Minutes - 09/04/2018 ■ City ofTigard ® Tigard Town Center Development Agency Minutes . . September 4, 2018 1. BUSINESS MEETING A. At 6:33 p.m. Chair Cook called the meeting to order. B. Deputy City Recorder Burgoyne called the roll. Name Present Absent Director Snider Director Woodard Director Anderson Chair Cook Director Goodhouse C. Chair Cook asked everyone to stand and join him in the Pledge of Allegiance. D. Call to Council and Staff for Non-Agenda Items—None. 2. CITIZEN COMMUNICATION (Two Minutes or Less,Please) A. Follow-up to Previous Citizen Communication—None. B. Citizen Communication—None. 3. UNIVERSAL PLAZA UPDATE Community Development Director Asher,Redevelopment Project Manager Farrelly and Community Engagement Coordinator Scott presented this item. John Flynn and Suenn Ho with Resolve Architecture and Urban Strategist Michele Reeves were present and gave a PowerPoint presentation. Mr. Farrelly discussed council's goal of"making Downtown Tigard a place where people want to be and designing a public space." He provided council with a brief background of their last discussion and council's direction to staff back in February. He said staff looked at potential sites and hired Resolve Architects for the conception and design phase. He briefed council on the outreach staff has done to date. Ms. Scott said staff decided to go where the people are and to reach out to them for public input while at city events. She said they have a new engagement platform on the website that allows citizens an opportunity to provide input on what they would like to see in the plaza and take a survey. She said so far TOWN CENTER DEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING MINUTES—September 4,2018 City of Tigard 1 13125 SW Hall Blvd.,Tigard,OR 97223 www.tigard-or.gov I Page 1 of 4 people would like to see food carts,more sustainable urban areas and more parking and they want a covered area and a splash pad that includes shaded areas. She said staff has heard people ask why the city is doing the plaza now when the city cannot maintain the parks they already have. Mr. Flynn said they are still in the concept design phase and have not had a chance yet to engage the community. They want to simplify connectivity and create a walkable downtown area that engages with the Fanno Creek Trail,increase visibility and discussed the concept layout and other elements designed for the plaza. Ms. Ho talked about the open arrangements for activating the space,audience for performances and event opportunities. She said the feedback from the Farmer's Market representative is that they would like to see upwards of 80 vendor tents in the plaza area. They have incorporated a nighttime friendly space for people to gather and enjoy the light show and water features. Ms. Reeves showed multiple slides showing the transformation of the Tigard Downtown area and said that Tigard's Downtown area is now a great place for a plaza and is impressed with the transformation that has taken place since 2010. She talked about the framework of a plaza, design and activation and said the rule of thumb for a well-activated plaza is one person per 300 square feet of plaza space. She said plazas are people spaces and the key is to think about how to get people there. Creating a space that is active with canopy coverage,water features and other interactive elements will get people there and engage in the space. She said the key is to concentrate on pulling people from outside the downtown area inside to the plaza and if executed well,it will add to the downtown brand and will be a long-term gathering place for people, creating a great investment for the city. Mr. Farrelly said staff is looking for direction and input from the Town Center Development Agency,and explained staff is working with the current tenant on relocation and a RFP for design and engineering. Director Woodard commended Ms. Reeves on her work and asked if she still sees this as a local investment. Ms. Reeves said the strongest collection is on Main Street now,but this was not the case back in 2011. Director Woodard asked if there is any relationship concerns with food cart businesses and brick and mortar businesses getting along in the same general space. Ms. Reeves replied that food carts do not compete with brick and mortar businesses,and in fact,the more selection of businesses in an area tend to bring more people in. Director Goodhouse said he likes the ideas presented for the plaza and that the suggested plaza location is off the trail. Ms. Reeves said that is why capacity is so important and said it is important to work with established businesses in the downtown area on how they can interact with the new group of people coming into the plaza. Director Snider said he is happy to have Ms. Reeves back and said this is a big public investment and wants to make sure they avoid mistakes. He feels much more confident in the design after hearing from Ms. Reeves. Chair Cook said after talking with people,the number one wanted element in a plaza is a splash pad,with restrooms being second on the list. . He has a hard time adding general fund items like maintenance of the plaza to the budget,and that the city would need to give up something else they are maintaining to do this. TOWN CENTER DEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING MINUTES — September 4, 2018 City of Tigard 1 13125 SW Hall Blvd.,Tigard,OR 97223 www.tigard-or.gov I Page 2 of 4 Mr. Asher explained that under the circumstances, the earliest timeframe for completion would be 2021. He said the Tigard voters had already approved the Urban Renewal Bond,which can be used for things like this and that the universal plaza needs to be the heart of the city,and needs to be a good public space. If it is not,than they have not fulfilled the potential of the downtown area or the mandate from the voters. This will be something that will bring people to downtown to live,work and shop. Public Works Director Rager said the city has a difficult time maintaining the city parks they currently have,and while he likes the design and agrees with what has been said,he has concerns with being able to maintain the plaza once it is done. He explained that maintaining the plaza would require an additional full-time employee and with the city's current budget concerns,they would need to use existing personnel, which would mean less maintenance to park areas the city is currently maintaining. Mr.Asher talked about this being a commitment and goal council set,and that staff is not interested in building a beautiful plaza only to have it fail because they cannot maintain it long-term. He said this is a check-in with council to see if they still want staff to continue working on this. He discussed the possibility of being able to use urban renewal funds for other capital improvement projects in order to free up those funds to use for ongoing maintenance of the plaza. Ms. Reeves said it is important to focus on the space being a plaza and not a park. She suggested the board explore options for activating the site and see if they can use partnerships within the business community that could help activate the space. Director Snider asked if there is a way to design and build the plaza so there is much less ongoing maintenance needed. Ms. Ho said they built a plaza in Astoria that took several years to complete,and when it was finished,the people who use the space are the people who help maintain it and they were able to do things that required less ongoing maintenance. However,this plaza has more maintenance challenges because of the mechanical aspects. She said this design is a good design and ensures public safety. Director Snider asked if there is a way to engineer the mechanics in a way that will not be a major maintenance burden. Could they use better pump systems that may cost more upfront,but that almost never fail? He asked if the city could use urban renewal funds for some of the operating and staff costs. Mr. Farrelly replied that under the ORS,administration of the district is an allowable expense,but does not allow for the ongoing maintenance of things in the district. Director Goodhouse talked about other creative ways for funding the ongoing maintenance concern of the plaza that could help offset the use of general fund money. Director Woodard stated it is a cool idea but is concerned there is not enough density and activation. He would be more comfortable if they knew how much funding and revenue is needed,and until these questions are resolved,he cannot get there. Director Goodhouse said he would like to continue to move forward and continue to look at funding sources. TOWN CENTER DEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING MINUTES — September 4, 2018 City of Tigard 1 13125 SW Hall Blvd.,Tigard,OR 97223 www.tigard-or.gov I Page 3 of 4 Ms. Reeves gave examples of economic development generators the city could do that would generate revenues to offset the ongoing maintenance costs. Chair Cook agreed with Director Woodard,and said that explaining buckets of money to the public is difficult,and the cost of maintenance is a hard one to swallow. He said if they could figure a way to solve the maintenance funding issue,then he could see this move forward. Director Snider agreed and said they need a solid maintenance plan. Director Woodard agreed. Mr.Asher said they have some capacity in the recreation group to put some work towards answering these questions. He said staff would work on a business plan for the plaza that will include possible revenue generating activities and what those funds would be able to support. Staff will keep this moving and will come back to council when they have more answers to their questions. Mr. Rager agreed. There was consensus from the board to move forward as outlined by staff. 4. EXECUTIVE SESSION —None. 5. ADJOURNMENT At 7:52 p.m. Director Woodard moved to adjourn the meeting and Director Goodhouse seconded the motion. Motion passed by a unanimous vote. Name Yes No Director Snider Director Woodard Director Anderson (Absent) Chair Cook Director Goodhouse Kelly BurgoynelDeputy CitAecdrder At Joh . Cook,TCDA Chair Date: i C/ i U/ 1 g TOWN CENTER DEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEETING MINUTES — September 4, 2018 City of Tigard 1 13125 SW Hall Blvd.,Tigard,OR 97223 www.tigard-or.gov I Page 4 of 4