Castroville Economic Development Corporation Board

CITY OF CASTROVILLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COORPORATION CALLED MEETING 1209 Fiorella City Council Chambers February 11, 2022 FRIDAY 12:00 PM (NOON) MINUTES I. CALL TO ORDER The first meeting was called to order by City Administrator Scott Dixon at 12:02 pm. II. ROLL CALL Present: Board member Darrin Schroeder, Mayor Board member Phil King, Councilmember Board member Herb Dyer, Councilmember Board member Scott Tschirhart Board member Shannon Smith Beasley Board member Aaron Padilla Absent: Board member Arnie Dollase Others in Attendance: City Administrator Scott Dixon City/Board Secretary Debra Howe III. CITIZEN COMMENTS The EDC Board will hear comments from any citizen or visitor. Speakers must address their comments to the presiding officer rather than individual board members or staff; stand at the podium, speak clearly into the microphone and state your name and residential address before speaking. Speakers will be allowed a maximum of 3 minutes for testimony. In accordance with the State Open Meetings Act, the Board is restricted from discussing or taking action on items not listed on the agenda. Action can only be taken at a future meeting. No one requested to speak. IV. Discussion, nomination, and appointment of Board Officers Board member Phil King nominated Mayor Darrin Schroeder to serve as chairman of the EDC Board and Aaron Padilla to serve as vice-chairman. Both men said they were willing to assume the positions. A motion was made by Boardmember Phil King and duly seconded by Boardmember Scott Tschirhart to appoint Darrin Schroeder as Chairman and Aaron Padilla as Vice-Chairman. A vote was taken ( 6:0 all ayes) the motion carried by all present. Chairman/Mayor Darrin Schroeder took over the meeting. EDC Meeting Minutes, February 11, 2022 Page 2 V. Discussion and appropriate action on approval of a Resolution of the City of Castroville Economic Development Corporation, Type B, adopting Bylaws; and providing for other matters related thereto City Administrator Scott Dixon briefed the board on the creation of the board by the city council and a resolution was provided for them to adopt the recommended bylaws for the Economic Development Corporation (EDC). They agreed the Finance Director would serve as the treasurer and the City Secretary would serve as the board secretary. A motion was made by Boardmember King and duly seconded by Boardmember Dyer to approve a Resolution of the City of Castroville Economic Development Corporation, Type B, adopting Bylaws; and providing for other matters related thereto; appointing the City Finance Director as the Treasurer and the City Secretary as the Board Secretary. A vote was taken (6:0 all ayes) the motion carried by all present. VI. Discussion and appropriate action on establishing date, time, and place for regular monthly Meetings Board members discussed dates and times that worked best for the future meetings. A motion was made by Board member Tschirhart and duly seconded by Board member King to set the date as the second Friday of each month at 12:00 pm (noon) at City Hall Council Chambers. A vote was taken (6:0 all ayes) the motion carried by all present. VII. Presentation and discussion by Stephanie Blanks, GoMedina and Tom Long, SATX, on strategic planning, economic development priorities, and goal setting City Administrator Scott Dixon introduced Stephanie Blanks with GoMedina, and Tom Long with SATX, and City Consultants Ernie and Janice Gonzales with EMC Strategy. Ms. Blanks spoke on GoMedina, which consisted of approximately 60 members including Darrin Schroeder and Aaron Padilla. Ms. Blank said they had previously partnered with the Hondo Economic Development Board but now with Tom Long of SATX for promotion of the area. Ms. Blank said they worked together to identify the market and what each city had to offer and worked with them to promote. City Administrator Dixon said the city could take advantage of the program through the realtor group when the city decided to offer property. Ms. Blank said they had a page on the website dedicated to properties available. Ms. Blank said she was meeting with several members and hoped to streamline the process even more in the future. Tom Long, SATX said he was looking at areas to work with on development and the vision of the EDC. Mr. Long said the steps they followed was to make the long list, make the short list, and then make the deal was the strategy. Mr. Long said approximately 60% of the businesses were looking for existing space. The high priorities were manufacturing, food and beverage, automotive suppliers, and data centers. Medina County was in-line for these types of businesses. City Administrator Dixon said he had been through the process before and had nothing but praise for GoMedina. Mr. Long said the county was on the verge of large growth and they were preparing for it. EDC Meeting Minutes, February 11, 2022 Page 3 Ernie and Janice Gonzalez, EMC Strategy, spoke briefly on their services and working with the city and others for Economic Development Grants. Board member Shannon Smith Beasley felt in creating the board it was important for the board to establish a mission statement. Board member Phil King left the meeting at 12:46 p.m. City Administrator Dixon provided a history on when and why the city decided to start this board. Mr. Dixon said this Corporation was different in that it was not funded by sales taxes as most were. Mr. Dixon said at some point the EDC would have funding, but at this point, it was just be land for now. Board member Beasley felt a citizen’s committee would be beneficial to promote the city. City Administrator Dixon said it was good to speak to consultants on growth and the EDC can control with respect to the city’s culture. He said they may not want heavy industry but light industry would be something the city was interested in. Mr. Dixon said the city had an excellent school district, which drew people and was a plus for businesses for their employees. Mr. Dixon asked each of the board members why they had wanted to serve. Board member Dyer said he felt the city was untapped with no previous vision for the city and an underdeveloped airport. He felt with the creation of this board, it would make a big difference and wanted to be a part of it. Board member Tschirhart said he wanted to help make growth happen. Board member Padilla said he had past experience on an established EDC Board and wanted to be a part of the future growth. Board member Beasley said with her real-estate background and being a member of the school board she felt there was a forward motion now and wanted to be a part of it. Chairman/Mayor Schroeder said they would be able to control the future with the proper resources. Chairman Schroeder said the city had several hundred acres of future development coming to the city and the city had set out areas for residential and commercial. Board member Padilla said they needed to look at strengths and weaknesses of today. A SWAT Analysis was discussed. Mr. Padilla asked Mr. Gonzalez if he had any experience with this in other cities. Mr. Gonzalez said Floresville was going through this same thing right now. Ms. Beasley felt guiding was a better word to use than controlling. City Administrator Dixon said the board could help put into place controls to help guide the future. The focus was on tourism, small business, and the Airport. Board member Dyer felt the city had to get developers to invest in the infrastructure to support the future needs. Board member Beasley saw growth in the eastern areas, which would bring more traffic and busing of school children. The next meeting was scheduled for March 11, 2022, 12:00 (noon). VIII. ADJOURN Darrin Schroeder Chairman ATTEST: Debra Howe City/Board Secretary