Downtown Revitalization Committee (DRC)

DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE THURSDAY - JULY 14, 2022 - 5:30 PM Notice of AGENDA Liberty Hill Municipal Court Building 2801 RR 1869 Liberty Hill, Texas 78642 Amy Gandy Jodi McCumber Kellie Oliski Lonnie Wendling LIVE VIDEO ACCESS Live video of the meeting will be displayed on the City's Facebook page. PLEASE SILENCE YOUR CELL PHONES 1) CALL TO ORDER a) Establish quorum 2) REGULAR SESSION a) Discuss and consider approval of minutes of Downtown Revitalization Committee meeting held on June 9, 2022. 06-09-2022 Downtown Revitalization Minutes_Draft.pdf b) Discuss and consider approval of minutes of Downtown Revitalization Committee meeting held on May 12, 2022. 05.12.2022 Downtown Revitalization Minutes_Draft.pdf c) Propose revised Downtown District Boundaries and Map. (Presented by Jerry Millard/Paul Brandenburg) Downtown Mapping.pdf d) Propose revised Downtown Revitalization Committee Membership Criteria. (Presented by Lonnie Wendling) Bylaws lor the City ol Liberty Hill Downtown Revitalization.pdf 1  e) Overview of Downtown Revitalization Action Plan. (Presented by Paul Brandenburg) Downtown Revitalization Committee Mission Statement.pdf f) Prioritize Items in Action Plan. (Presented by Committee Members) 3) DIRECTORS' COMMENTS 4) NEXT MEETING 5) ADJOURNMENT The City Council, Boards, and Commissions reserve the right to reconvene, recess, realign, change the order of business, or adjourn into Execu ve Session at any me during the course of the mee ng, prior to adjournment, to discuss any item listed above, as authorized by Texas Government Code Sec on §551.071 (Consulta on with A orney), §551.072 (Delibera ons about Real Property), §551.073 (Delibera ons about Gi s and Dona ons), §551.074 (Personnel Ma ers), §551.076 (Delibera ons about Security Devices), and §551.087 (Development). In compliance with the Americans with Disabili es Act, the City of Liberty Hill will provide reasonable accommoda on for persons a ending mee ngs. To be er serve you, requests need to be received 48 hours prior to the meeting. Contact the City Secretary at 512-778-5449 – Extension 125. POSTING CERTIFICATION: I, ELAINE SIMPSON – CITY SECRETARY – CITY OF LIBERTY HILL certify that the attached notice of meeting was duly posted on the bulletin board at Council Chambers located at 2801 Ranch Road 1869 in Liberty Hill, Texas and on the City website (www.libertyhilltx.gov) on the ______ day of ____________________, 202_ at ______. Elaine Simpson – City Secretary. REMOVAL CERTIFICATION: I ELAINE SIMPSON – CITY SECRETARY – CITY OF LIBERTY HILL certify that the attached notice of meeting was removed from the bulletin board at Municipal Court / Council Chambers located at 2801 Ranch Road 1869 in Liberty Hill, Texas on the ______ day of __________________, 202_ at _______. INITIALS _______ 2  DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE THURSDAY - JULY 14, 2022 2801 Ranch Road 1869 - Liberty Hill AGENDA ITEM 2.a Discuss and consider approval of minutes of Downtown Revitalization Committee meeting held on June 9, 2022. 3  June 9, 2022 Liberty Hill Downtown Revitalization Committee Minutes CALL TO ORDER The Downtown Revitalization Committee Workshop was called to order at 5:34 PM by Chair Lonnie Wendling. In attendance were Lonnie Wendling, Kellie Olisky and Amy Gandy. Quorum was established. Jodi McCumber was absent, Tambra Prince resigned earlier in the month. REGULAR SESSION 1) CALL TO ORDER Quorum was established. 2) REGULAR SESSION a) Discuss and consider approval of minutes of Downtown Beautification Committee meeting held on January 18, 2022. Chair Wendling moved, and Kelli Olisky seconded, to approve and to adopt, as presented, the Downtown Revitalization Meeting minutes from the meeting held January 18, 2022. Motion: Carried unanimously by a vote of 3-0-0. Ayes: Wendline, Olisky, and Gandy. Nays: None. Abstentions: None. Mr. McCumber being absent. b) Discuss and consider approval of minutes of Downtown Beautification Committee meeting held on February 10, 2022. Chair Wendling moved, and Kelli Olisky seconded, to approve and to adopt, as presented, the Downtown Revitalization Meeting minutes from the meeting held February 10, 2022. Motion: Carried unanimously by a vote of 3-0-0. Ayes: Wendline, Olisky, and Gandy. Nays: None. Abstentions: None. Mr. McCumber being absent. Downtown Revitalization Committee 1 June 9, 2022 4 c) Discuss and consider approval of minutes of Downtown Beautification Committee meeting held on April 14, 2022. Chair Wendling moved, and Kelli Olisky seconded, to approve and to adopt, as presented, the Downtown Revitalization Meeting minutes from the meeting held April 14, 2022. Motion: Carried unanimously by a vote of 3-0-0. Ayes: Wendline, Olisky, and Gandy. Nays: None. Abstentions: None. Mr. McCumber being absent. d) Accept Resignation of Tambra Prince and Nomination for new Vice-Chair (Lonnie Wendling) There were no nominations for a new Vice-Chair, the committee agreed by general consensus to bring the item back on a future agenda when more members were present. Motion: Motion to accept, with gratitude for a job well done, the resignation of Tambra Price, made by Chair Wendling, seconded by Kelli Olisky. Motion: Carried unanimously by a vote of 3-0-0. Ayes: Wendline, Olisky, and Gandy. Nays: None. Abstentions: None. Mr. McCumber being absent. e) Call for Director Candidates (Lonnie Wendling) Kristan Labaron volunteered to serve, if appointed. She will complete the application for Board and Committee members from the city’s official website, per standard process. f) Receive update on Downtown Passport (Kellie Olisky) Committee discussed various options for conducting this Passport project. The committee could include a Scavenger Hunt aspect to the project so that participants might collect stickers or other small items from downtown tenants, including those that were not retail stores. They discussed ideas for including the sculpture garden and the Veteran’s Park as attractions within the downtown that the participants would visit. There was no action taken, as it was agreed to focus on the upcoming agenda item of actually looking to define downtown, before proceeding with this Passport Program. g) Discussion regarding Walkable Downtown District. (Lonnie Wendling/Jerry Millard) Chair Wendling, Jerry Millard, and committee members discussed the pros and cons of modifying or updating the boundaries of what is considered ‘Downtown’. The Committee reviewed maps of a so- called Walkable District, including on maps with the Zoning Districts illustrated. There was a brief discussion of forming a Tax Increment Redevelopment Zone (TIRZ) in the Downtown area in the future. There was a discussion of the possibility of extending an arm of Downtown up to Hwy 29. There was a brief discussion of signage for Walkable Downtown. There were discussions of including historical (homes) places in Downtown. There was a discussion that the Committees By-Laws establish the Downtown area, and will need to be modified if some of these ideas are pursued. Downtown Revitalization Committee 2 June 9, 2022 5 There was no formal action taken. h) Receive update on Historical Subcommittee . (Lonnie Wendling/Kristan Lebaron) The Committee requested guidance related to the proper process to request the City Council allow a Historical Subcommittee be added to the Downtown Revitalization Committee structure as a standing committee. Kristan LeBaron presented a brief update on activities in process now to gauge the interest of citizens in being on such a subcommittee. 3) DIRECTORS' COMMENTS 4) NEXT MEETING Next meeting will be July 14, 2022. 5) ADJOURNMENT On motion by Lonnie Wendling and seconded by Kellie Olisky, The Downtown Revitalization Committee was adjourned at 6:34 PM. Motion passed on vote of 3 ayes, 0 nays, and O abstentions. PASSED AND APPROVED BY THE Downtown Revitalization Committee of the City of Liberty Hill, Texas on , , 2022 on vote of ayes, nays and abstentions. Lonnie Wendling City Secretary Downtown Revitalization Committee 3 June 9, 2022 6  DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE THURSDAY - JULY 14, 2022 2801 Ranch Road 1869 - Liberty Hill AGENDA ITEM 2.b Discuss and consider approval of minutes of Downtown Revitalization Committee meeting held on May 12, 2022. 7  DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE THURSDAY, MAY 12, 2022 – 5:30 PM MINUTES Liberty Hill Municipal Court Building 2801 Ranch Road 1869, Liberty Hill, Texas 78642 CALL TO ORDER The Downtown Revitalization Committee Workshop was called to order at 5:31 PM by Lonnie Wendling. In attendance were Lonnie Wendling, Kellie Olisky, Jodi McCumber and Amy Gandy. Quorum was established. REGULAR SESSION Lonnie Wendling made a motion to move Item 2H to the front of the agenda. Seconded by Jodi McCumber. Motion passed on vote of 4 ayes, 0 nays, and O abstentions. Jodi McCumber made a motion to move agenda items 2(a), 2(b) and 2(c) to the June meeting. Seconded by Kellie Olisky. Motion passed on vote of 4 ayes, 0 nays, and O abstentions. a) Discuss and consider approval of minutes of Downtown Beautification Committee meeting held on January 18, 2022. Postponed to June Meeting. b) Discuss and consider approval of minutes of Downtown Beautification Committee meeting held on April 14, 2022. Postponed to June Meeting. Downtown Revitalization Committee 1 May 12, 2022 8  c) Discuss and consider approval of minutes of Downtown Beautification Committee meeting held on February 10, 2022. Postponed to June Meeting. d) Brief presentation by Paul Brandenburg, City Administrator regarding his experience with Downtown Revitalization. Paul Brandenburg introduced himself to the Committee and said he’s excited to see the Committee's commitment and enthusiasm and mentioned the importance of a growing downtown and revitalizing it. He went over his background and experience, mentioning what happened in downtown Georgetown at the square, overcoming their identity crisis. He went over a few items on the City’s Vision and common goals, encouraged the committee members to think bigger, define our parameters, start small and move fast. Lonnie asked Paul what his thoughts were on Main Street Certification and the importance of that in relation to being able to revitalize the downtown. Paul responded as we move forward, we have a checklist of what our objectives and are what we want to reach. Some things will come before the others in being able to reach those goals. Paul commented that Main Street is something that will be needed but the question is do we do it with the first year, second year, because we have to fund it. Paul thinks that we will get there but it is an issue of timing right now. Paul also suggested that the committee needs a very good strategic action plan. Lonnie commented that he struggles with having a resource that can help with more dedicated time within the City that can focus on pulling all of this together and materializing it into a plan. Lonnie said we are all passionate and committed but we are strained in terms of being able to pull all the detail together and execute on it. Jodi McCumber asked a question on the sub-committee that we have are we able to utilize students from the high school to be able to do some of this research and possibly give them community service hours they need for scholarships. Paul responded that was a great idea to tap into any free resources you can get to help especially with limited staff and resources. Paul suggested ACC has different groups you can tap into. e) Update and discussion regarding grants. (Presented by Amy Gandy) Amy updated that she had contacted Justin with Texas Historical Commission via email and voice mail but did not hear back. Jodi McCumber said she went and visited the Leander Chamber of Commerce and spoke with Bridget Brant. Jodi commented that Bridget informed her that they had recently went through all of this grant situation and Bridget said that she would be happy to help us through the process of finding the grants and being able to get the grant writing done. Jodi said she has passed that information onto Amy today. Lonnie mentioned that the City has a grant writing consultant that we can leverage at a cost but it is a resource. Lonnie asked Katie Amsler to help Amy with that resource. Katie responded that Judy Langford is the grant writer and Katie forwarded that contact information to Amy during the meeting. Downtown Revitalization Committee 2 May 12, 2022 9 f) Update and discussion regarding weeding vacant buildings and lots. (Presented by Katie Amsler) Katie Amsler spoke about the Code Enforcement Officer focusing on the Downtown area starting in June and will be looking for individual owners to take responsibility for weed control on properties in the area. She also mention the Grass & Roots Program as an available resource for those elderly or handicapped owners who may not be able to do lawn and yard maintenance. g) Update and discussion regarding Downtown Business Passport and Mobile Scavenger Hunt. (Presented by Kellie Olisky) Kelli Olisky gave an update on the Downtown Passport. She asked the Committee if they thought the idea of mixing a scavenger hunt with the passport to include businesses that want retail traffic and those that may not was a good idea. She said they would need to create a Downtown Social Media acct to post activities, historical photos, parks & rec., and buildings. Lonnie commented that in looking at this actual passport in what you have designed here can fit into this. Lonnie said we can copy a similar layout to what they have, and we can also with Kristan’s team integrate historical locations as well. Kelly agreed it can be a part of the teaming. Lonnie also suggested when the passport is completely stamped it can be turned in to the visitor center. Jodi suggested the businesses that would be placed inside the passport for a stamp would donate a giftcard in place of paying to be printed int this and at the end of the month all of the completed passports would be put into a drawing and whatever business sponsored that month with the gift cart the person that is drawn will receive the gift card for that business. Lonnie suggested an idea for paying for the passport would be to see if we can get some of the businesses on 29 to advertise in the passport and their costs of advertising would pay for the passport. Jodi McCumber commented on the Hill Country Passport that various Chambers of Commerce advertise in the passport. Jodi suggests that the Liberty Hill Chamber of Commerce look into doing this. The cost is $400.00 per year to be in the passport. Jodi also suggested to include in the description that Liberty Hill is a Daytripper approved destination. Jodi McCumber also talked about the sidewalks in downtown being squares with tiles around it, Jodi suggested having students to get community service hours by taking photos of the old buildings and painting them on the sidewalks and have them coated so they will last. She also suggested having plaques with business sponsorship attached to the sidewalk squares. Kellie Olisky asked the committee to let her know which style they prefer on the passport whether it is the teaming up or just keeping it singular. She also asked if the committee liked the idea of the scavenger hunt and possible historical QR code idea with it. This way we can really finalize the look of it. Kellie also said we need to determine what the area is for downtown to see what businesses will actually be involved in this and that way we can pair everyone up correctly. Katie Amsler mentioned that before we could go forward with the Passport, we needed to identify the “downtown area map” and she would resend the draft map for review at the June meeting. Downtown Revitalization Committee 3 May 12, 2022 10 h) Update and discussion regarding Historic Subcommittee. (Presented by Lonnie Wendling and Kristan LeBaron) Kristan LeBaron presented a draft of an Overall Vision for the Downtown Historical Sub- Committee. Kristan commented that the purpose to this subcommittee will be to collect, research, preserve and interpret historical information and artifacts. It will also help our community to understand the towns relevance and help future generations understand their heritage. Kristan gave ideas on how to do this (1) create a pamphlet that highlights historical elements (2) send out a newsletter educating subscribers about our historical events (3) conduct historical tours (i.e. cemeteries and markers) (4) open an exhibit room in the visitor center of items collected (5) have someone on the committee visit the schools. Kristen gave ideas on how and where to gather the historical information (1) reach out to community members who hold stories of our history (2) meet with Williamson County Historical Commission to gather research and information (3) Visit Liberty Hill and George Public library. Once information is gathered come together as a community and investigate further and share ideas. Kristan suggested some ideas to explore (1) where did Liberty Hill name come from (2) what is it significance (3) what caused the settlement here (4) are there any buildings with historical significance in the area (5) what families are tied to the creation of the town. Kristan said the goals for the committee would be by the second ½ of 2022 to officially form the historical sub-committee, recruit at least 3-4 committee members, draw up the official plan of action with deadlines and milestones and gather enough information to send out our first newsletter. Kristan said the support the sub-committee would need from the Downtown Revitalization Committee and the City which just be guidance and feedback to make sure we are in alignment with the overall goals. Lonnie Wendling thanks Kristan for her presentation that went above and beyond expectations. Lonnie asked Katie Amsler if she would share her pictures with Kristan and make sure Kristan has the names of the individuals. Lonnie also mentioned that Kristan has been trying to connect with Nathan and others about recruiting for the committee. Lonnie suggested to Katie about maybe doing a Q&A Session where we invite people to get together at maybe a historical location and talk about the idea of focusing on the history of Liberty Hill and recruiting historical members from there. Lonnie said once we have a core then we can present to City Council for approval to set-up an official sub-committee. Jodi McCumber asked Kristan if she is familiar with Susan Jones Anderson and Kristan responded “no”. Jodi said that Susan’s family has a Centennial Ranch, she has Indian markers on her property and confederate soldiers are buried in the family cemetery. Jodi suggested that Susan may be a good source because her family has been here for so long. Downtown Revitalization Committee 4 May 12, 2022 11 i) Update and discussion regarding Puzzle Pieces Downtown Art. (Presented by Lonnie Wendling and Lauren Smith) Lauren Smith was not present for the meeting. However, Lonnie Wendling commented that he and Lauren have met. Lauren is a teacher at Fellowship Academy, and she teaches art and another subject. Lonnie said that Lauren has a passion for doing something similar to what we saw in Bastrop. Lonnie said that Lauren mentioned something like puzzle pieces that all fit together to form a puzzle. Lauren recommended that she have her Fellowship students and Liberty Hill ISD students submit idea recommendations. Lauren suggested defining it as a contest and then we select from the submissions be the design we move forward with. Lonnie said we could have Lauren come to the next meeting and present how to kick that contest off. Katie Amsler commented that we have the Sculpture Festival in October, and she works closely with the schools for that particular festival and that might be a good idea to kick off the contest. j) Update on City Comp Plan and Downtown Revitalization Master Plan. Jerry Millard, Interim Planning Director gave an update on the Comprehensive Plan. Jerry said the City Council agreed to pay Verdunity to move forward with the Comprehensive Plan and UDC rewrite. Jerry commented that they are looking at a full rewrite of both documents. Jerry mentioned that the EDC may be able to support some funding on this project as well and do an expanded downtown plan incorporated into that Comprehensive Plan. Jerry said today he spoke with Kevin Shephard of Verdunity regarding setting out and finalizing the scope and service agreement to get that going. Jerry said this is where we are at the moment. Jerry also said that Matt Powell with the EDC will also be speaking with Verdunity to try to lay out the basic expectations on the plan. Jerry said they also plan to have the Downtown Revitalization Committee be a big piece of that discussion. Amy Gandy asked Jerry if the Comprehensive Plan was public information and if we could look at the Comprehensive Plan. Jerry responded it is a 12-15 month process to build the entire plan but yes it will be made public throughout the process. Matt Powell with the EDC commented that the EDC board has expressed interest in getting more involved with downtown. Matt said the EDC budget was going up and he had plugged in its budget the funding for paying the entirety of the downtown plan. Matt says the EDC is getting excited about spending some money on the downtown plan, a roadmap, a workflow, for downtown buildings, roads, septics, etc. He said the EDC is “getting involved and bringing their wallet.” DIRECTOR'S COMMENTS Lonnie asked the Committee members if they had any questions. He thanked members of the audience for attending. Katie Amsler, Communications Manager commented that the Liberty Hill Daytripper episode airs on the YouTube Channel tonight at 7:00. The episode will air on PBS on May 19, 2022. Downtown Revitalization Committee 5 May 12, 2022 12 Jerry Millard, Interim Planning Director, commented that he has been with the City of Liberty Hill for 10 months now but prior to that he worked for the City of Killeen. In Killeen he worked as the Revitalization Planner for their downtown as well as the Heritage Preservation Officer for a short period of time. Jerry said they did some TIRZ funding and some grant administration and he is available if at any point in time you have questions regarding that. Lonnie Wendling congratulated Mayor Liz Branigan for her reelection. Mayor Branigan responded thank you and that she is very grateful to the citizens for their confidence and their support. NEXT MEETING Next meeting will take place on June 9, 2022. ADJOURNMENT On motion by Lonnie Wendling and seconded by Jodi McCumber, The Downtown Revitalization Committee was adjourned at 6:41 p.m. Motion passed on vote of 4 ayes, 0 nays, and O abstentions. PASSED AND APPROVED BY THE Downtown Revitalization Committee of the City of Liberty Hill, Texas on , , 2022 on vote of ayes, nays and abstentions. Lonnie Wendling City Secretary Downtown Revitalization Committee 6 May 12, 2022 13  DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE THURSDAY - JULY 14, 2022 2801 Ranch Road 1869 - Liberty Hill AGENDA ITEM 2.c Propose revised Downtown District Boundaries and Map. (Presented by Jerry Millard/Paul Brandenburg) 14 15  DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE THURSDAY - JULY 14, 2022 2801 Ranch Road 1869 - Liberty Hill AGENDA ITEM 2.d Propose revised Downtown Revitalization Committee Membership Criteria. (Presented by Lonnie Wendling) 16 17 18 19  DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE THURSDAY - JULY 14, 2022 2801 Ranch Road 1869 - Liberty Hill AGENDA ITEM 2.e Overview of Downtown Revitalization Action Plan. (Presented by Paul Brandenburg) 20  DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE Mission Statement The Liberty Hill Downtown Revitalization Committee is the unifying facilitator of both the historic preservation and economic expansion of downtown Liberty Hill. Why Invest Time, Resources, and Love into Downtown Liberty Hill? Downtown is the beating heart of our community. We want to preserve the historic feel of Downtown, while embracing the growth of our city. Downtown Liberty Hill is poised to become a destination location. We will implement a revitalization plan which brings focus on the rich history while improving the quality of life for Liberty Hill residents, attracting and supporting Downtown business owners, and providing an attractive experience for visitors. 21  DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION COMMITTEE THURSDAY - JULY 14, 2022 2801 Ranch Road 1869 - Liberty Hill AGENDA ITEM 2.f Prioritize Items in Action Plan. (Presented by Committee Members) 22