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Home My WebLink About2/21/2018 - Minutes - i The Economic Development Authority of Roanoke County Roanoke County Administration Center 3rd Floor HR Training Room 5204 Bernard Drive Roanoke,Virginia 24018 Minutes Wednesday,February 21,2018 The Economic Development Authority of Roanoke County,Virginia met this day at the Roanoke County Administration Center. Members Present Chairman-Steve Musselwhite Vice Chairman-Woody Windley Greg Apostolou Max Beyer Leon McGhee Kyle.Richardson Ssunny Shah Jill Loope, Secretary-Treasurer. Ruth Ellen.Kuhnel, Counsel Glenna Ratcliffe,Recording Clerk Members Absent Kirtesh Patel Steve Anderson Guest Evan Malone,Financial Analyst;Ashley Anderson,Finance Manager;Megan Cronise, Planner; Cecile Newcomb,Planner;Philip Thompson,Director of Planning CALL TO ORDER. Chairman Steve Musselwhite determined a quorum was established and called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m. REQUEST TO POSTPONE, ADD TO, OR CHANGE THE ORDER OF F THE AGENDA ITEMS None APPROVAL OF DECEMBER 20,2017. MINUTES After a motion by Ssunny Shah and second by Leon McGhee the,minutes of the December 20, 2017. meeting were approved by unanimous voice vote. _ 3 Page 2 February 21,2018 Economic Development Authority Minutes FINANCE REPORT Evan Malone, Financial Analyst, reviewed the information provided on the condensed financial report for the month ending January 31, 2018. A motion made by Woody Windley and seconded by Kyle Robinson to accept and approve the financial report as presented. The motion carried by unanimous voice vote. NEW BUSINESS ELECTION OF OFFICERS At this time, Chairman Musselwhite stated the floor was open for nominations for Chair, Vice- Chair and Secretary-Treasurer of the-EDA. Leon McGhee made a motion to reappoint Steve Musselwhite as Chairman. Max Beyer seconded the motion which carried by unanimous voice vote. Ssunny Shah made a motion to reappoint Woody Windley as Vice-Chair. Leon McGhee seconded the motion which carried by unanimous voice vote Woody Windley made a motion to reappoint Jill Loope as Secretary-Treasurer. Max Beyer seconded the motion and carried by unanimous voice vote. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT UPDATES At this time,Jill Loope gave an update of Economic Development activities. MEMBER REAPPOINTMENTS Ms. Loope stated the Board recently reappointed Greg Aposotolou, Steve Musselwhite and Leon McGhee. GO VIRGINIA GRANT - The Western Virginia Regional Industrial Facilities Authority received a$200,000 grant through the state's GO Virginia program for the Woodhaven Road properties. This project,led by the Western Virginia Regional Industrial Facilities Authority, is a multi jurisdictional partnership including the City and County of Roanoke and the City of Salem. The project will extend water and sewer to the 109 acre site and will improve the marketability of one of the largest industrial sites in the region. Bringing more large sites to market and continued investment in regional parks were specific needs identified in the Council's Regional Growth and Diversification Plan. The grant will extend water and sewer to the site, and will improve this 109-acre site located between Interstate 81 and 581 to the second highest level of readiness in the state classification system for industrial land. This is required for marketing the site to the region's target sectors and will accomplish this goal more rapidly than would be the case without GO Virginia support Page 3 February 21,2018 Economic Development Authority Minutes HOLLINS UNIVERSITY'S DANA SCIENCE BUILDING REDEDICATION The Hollins University's Dana Science Building Rededication is scheduled Friday, February 23, 2018 in the Babcock Auditorium,4:30 to 5:15. Ms. Loope urged members to attend. VIRGINIIA WESTERN COMMUNITY COLLEGE'S MECHATRONICS PROGRAM OPEN HOUSE Virginia Western Community College will host a Mechatronics Program open house on Thursday,May 12,2018 Recently,the Roanoke Region hosted major announcements of business expansions for Italian auto parts manufacturer Eldor Corporation(350 new jobs) and Deschutes Brewery(108 new jobs). At both announcements,Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe and business leaders cited Virginia Western Community College's Mechatronics Program and the region's trained workforce as major reasons for these positive economic developments. Virginia Western will provide prospective students the opportunity to get in on the ground floor with these companies and others like them through a Mechatronics Program open house on Thursday, May 12, 2018, from 2-6 p.m.beginning on the first floor of Webber Hall. WORKSHOPS The following workshops are currently scheduled by the Economic Development Department: • Selling to the Government Workshop,February 27—9:00 a.m./11:00 a.m., South County Library • Broadband 101,March 8—9:00a.m./10:30 a.m., South County Library • Entrepreneur Express Seminar,March 20—9:00 a.m./12 Noon, South County Library EXISTING BUSINESS SURVEY The Economic Development Department is currently working on an Existing Business survey in an effort to better serve the businesses located in the county. Services and tools needed to expand in the County are examples of some of the questions on the survey. TOUR OF ARNOLD R. BURTON TECHNICAL CENTER Staff is planning to schedule a tour for the EDA and hold the next meeting at the Burton Center. Connecting students and schools to the employers and the workforce is an important economic development strategy for the County. CRT PROSPECT On behalf of the EDA, Steve Musselwhite provided a letter to the current prospect authorizing agents and contractors to perform additional testing at CRT. Ms.Loope stated this project is still alive;however,there are issues to be addressed. Page 4 February 21,2018 Economic Development Authority Minutes BRIEFING REIMAGINE HOLLINS CENTER PLAN& OAK GROVE PLAN At this time, Philip Thompson gave a PowerPoint presentation regarding the Hollins Center Plan and Oak Grove Center plan to provide new planning efforts for the Hollins and Oak Grove area. The Oak Grove Center plan will be in collaboration with Roanoke City, as part of the Oak Grove Center is located in the City of Roanoke. He reviewed the economic development areas of focus for both centers, identified the land use and zoning, and reviewed the county's goals and planning study objectives. He presented the overall schedule for implementation of the planning review with the community. STAKEHOLDER'S DISCUSSION At this time, discussion ensued regarding the Oak Grove and Hollins planning studies. HOLLINS: • Peters Creek Road: there is a dire need for sidewalks along the whole corridor • Cranwell property should be redeveloped • Empty lots on Williamson,next to Lew's Restaurant and Northwest True Value should be redeveloped Concerns: • The rezoning for storage facility on Plantation Road was a mistake—underutilizing the property • When regulations hurt the viability of a business (Walmart in Clearbrook trees/landscaping example). The County should resist over-regulating screening& buffering • Need to protect developable land for future business attraction&job creation • The EDA membership does not understand the desires of younger generations, millennia's. Younger members are needed. • The study area should be extended to the Botetourt County and Roanoke City lines • Hollins Road should also be included in future studies due to land availability Opportunities/Suggestions: • Gateway into Roanoke County from Botetourt,near Hollins University should be improved • Development that supports the major employers on Plantation, such as restaurants for employees of Wells Fargo should be encouraged • More variety on Plantation for people coming off of I-81 • Multi-family residential between Walrond Park and commercial/industrial zone on Plantation Page 5 February 21,2018 Economic Development Authority Minutes Future possibilities for Huffman Farm: • Multi-family residential—good quality,near employment centers • Microbrewery • Last large tract of developable land in the area—needs to be protected for future high quality development • Campus style research park • Commercial/Industrial o I-81 proximity o Utilities and transportation infrastructure already exist • Corporate center, related to Hollins University OAK GROVE • Oak Grove Plaza should be redeveloped into mixed-use,with multi-family residential • Keagy Village—unfortunate location,needs to be filled up • Develop or use the lawn in front of VACORP • Crosswalks and sidewalks connecting neighborhoods to commercial areas • Could Oak Grove School be relocated? How will the declining school population impact future school needs? Discussion about how to attract and retain young people: • Condo ownership opportunities • Should create"city centers"to attract millennials • Higher density housing without yards • Night life/entertainment • Public transportation • Should study younger groups to determine interests&desires REPORTS AND INQUIRIES OF BOARD MEMBERS No Reports ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 10:40 a.m. NEXT SCHEDULED MEETING The next regularly meeting is scheduled March 21,2018. Respectfully submitted, hoc)-Q . Jill.,, 00pe Secretary-Treasurer