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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Minutes - Business Council Committee - Meeting Date: 8/19/2021MINUTES BUSINESS COUNCIL COMMITTEE GLENDALE CIVIC CENTER CONFERENCE ROOM B3 5850 W. GLENDALE AVE. GLENDALE, ARIZONA 85301 THURSDAY, August 19th, 2021 2:00 PM CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at approximately 2 PM. ROLL CALL Committee members present: Chairperson Joyce Clark, Councilmember Ray Malnar, Councilmember Lauren Tolmachoff, Dale Adams, John Crow, and Yvonne Knaack were present. Committee members absent: Bart Shea and Ricardo Toris City staff present: Jamsheed Mehta (Development Services Director) Rick St. John (Deputy City Manager) Tabitha Perry (Interim Planning Administrator) Shannon Beck (Council Assistant) and Sherry Crapser (Management Assistant) were present. Presentation by Adam Pruett from Michael Baker International. CITIZEN COMMENTS No citizen comments were made. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES A motion to approve the June meeting minutes was made by Ms. Knaack, and it was seconded by Mr. Crow. All were in favor, and none opposed. ITEMS a. Distribute and Discuss Committee Comments on Modules 1-4 Chairperson Clark asked if anyone had anything else to bring up aside from their submitted comments. Ms. Knaack brought up the building owner's ability to control the advertising on their properties. To ensure there wasn't an oversight Councilmember Tolmachoff asked where the Scenic Corridor is noted, and it was confirmed that it is located in modules 1 and 2. It is also referenced again in signage. Mr. Pruett said the entire document will be made searchable just like the previous one. Chairperson Clark noted that it's her intention to share the final code to everyone that has an interest in making comments on the final document, but not everyone will be involved in the finishing touches. b. King/Queen for a Day Initiatives A few months ago, Chairperson Clark asked the committee to come up with the major initiatives that the city could undertake to make it more business -friendly. Chairperson Clark asked for Mr. Crow to begin with discussing his preferences. Mr. Crow discussed the specifics with Mr. Adams and Councilmember Tolmachoff, and they compiled a list. They all said their facilities in town aren't conducive to being business -friendly. Another item discussed was about codes (specifically code violations) and the impacts on businesses and the community at large. Holding everyone accountable is difficult, so their suggestion is to form a citizen code committee complete with a method to help them report what they see. Another concern was the lack of follow through with the violations reported. The permitting desk on level 3 was closed and online only due to COVID-19, but Mr. Mehta noted that was resolved. Their final suggestion was to use a chatbot for the city website. Ms. Knaack suggested the city creates a small business advocate position to help guide and educate businesses of what's required by the city. Ms. Knaack asked about implementing a team approach for most building projects (no matter the size); she was hoping for people from different departments could work together as a team to approve projects in a more efficient way. Chairperson Clark expressed her support of doing this as well. Mr. Adams said upon revisiting the committee's original questions, he thought creating a customer service division would work best for the city. No other neighboring cities have a customer service division, but it might be best to include this with the city. Chairperson Clark acknowledged that while everyone is becoming reliant on technology, but people are best served by their government when done face-to-face. Councilmember Tolmachoff agreed that having some initial interaction when entering the city buildings will make all the difference with serving the community. Ms. Knaack then strongly encouraged having more code officers and then asked about the mobile food vendor progress, and there is something noted in the current code draft. Ms. Knaack's final question was about temporary structures (specifically the Chick-Fil-A and Dutch Bros. tents in the city). They are permitted structures, but Mr. St. John noted they may be considered permanent structures based on specific criteria. Councilmember Malnar brought up the issue of sex trafficking and that many businesses are pretending to be massage parlors but actually are involved in sex trafficking. Mr. St. John noted Mesa and Phoenix passed ordinances that have restrictions on massage businesses. Both cities have specific hours of operation and intense background checks for the businesses. Similar to dispensaries, there is also a limit for how many massage businesses can exist in each area. Chairperson Clark asked about what they can do about this issue; an ordinance has been pending for years for Glendale, and Mr. St. John said he would work on making this finally come to fruition. Councilmember Malnar noted that, like Mr. Crow suggested earlier, the Code Review Committee made recommendations in this area in creating a volunteer group to help with code enforcement. Chairperson Clark brought up that code is quite reactive, rather than proactive, and if there was a volunteer group to observe violations (but not cite). Chairperson Clark suggested observing one square mile at a time, and then reminded everyone that they are the business subcommittee, and it's a matter of finding ways for the city to help businesses. She then asked the committee how they can be more proactive in helping their small businesses in the city. Mr. Crow brought up the customer service element, and he asked why there is security in front of the building. Mr. St. John noted that city -employed security is necessary based on government security issues, but he did acknowledge that security should not be the initial point of contact for Glendale citizens. Ms. Knaack then asked about the Childers survey that they completed during 2 the committee's infancy. Mr. Mehta said there is a report of the surveys, and it was one of the elements that led to the reshuffling of employees in certain departments. Chairperson Clark said the general theme is the city being business -friendly, and she recapped the other ideas: more electronic use the chatbot and a customer service kiosk in city hall. Chairperson Clark said she would like to have specific recommendations for ways the committee can format appropriately and forward to senior management. The committee will also hear back from the consultant and their reactions to our comments on modules 1-4. Chairperson Clark asked for any other suggestions, and Mr. Mehta said the staff will ask around to see if there is anything else the city staff would like to include. OTHER BUSINESS No other business was discussed. STAFF REPORT No staff report was given. COMMITTEE COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS Chairperson Clark told everyone that they will meet in person in October. NEXT MEETING The next regular meeting of the Business Council Committee will be held on September 16th, 2021, at 5850 W Glendale Ave, Conference Room B3, Glendale, AZ 85301. ADJOURNMENT Ms. Knaack made a motion to adjourn the meeting, and Mr. Adams seconded. All were in favor. The meeting adjourned at approximately 3:21 PM. Sherry Crapser, Recording Secretary 3