Appointed Committees

July 13, 2023 Committee on Childcare in Minot Committee on Childcare in Minot – July 13, 2023 AT 1:30 P.M. Members Present: Scott Burlingame, Heather Cymbaluk, Amy Jenkins, Lisa Olson, John Van Dyke Members Absent: Rianne Kuhn, Becca Oswill, Terry Schumalz, Keli Rosselli-Sullivan, Harold Stewart Also Present: Mikayla McWilliams (City Clerk) The meeting was called to order by Chairman Scott Burlingame at 1:30 pm. Mark Lyman with MACEDC passed out the MAGIC Fund Guidelines and discussed they are currently in review. MAGIC means Minot Area Growth by Investment and Cooperation. The MAGIC Fund currently focuses on Primary Sector business, which means a business that will bring new wealth to the community and the state. Mark mentioned the use of the MAGIC Fund dollars is to expand the tax base. In the past, these funds have not directly supported childcare. There is a possibility with some updates and changes to the guidelines it could. Some other funding available could be:  Flex PACE with BND (requires a local match)  Revolving Loan Fund  Business Accelerator Fund  ND Development Fund (ND Dept of Commerce – Childcare Program)  ND Regional Workforce Incentive Program (ARPA Funding – Grant Program) A major issue is how to bring awareness to the funding that is available. There is a possibility of creating a flyer for providers to offer information on programs available and contact information. It was discussed that if a flyer was created, a licensing agent with the State of ND provide them to the childcare providers. Emily Schroeder with Dakota Business Lending did a presentation to the committee. She discussed how Dakota Business Lending strives to drive economic growth through providing unique financing opportunities, educating and guiding small business, building partnerships, etc. Dakota Business Lending has an SBA 504 Loan Program, which offers a fixed rate financing option and the interest rates are about 6% for a 25-year loan. They also offer many other programs for financing and assistance in making the path to business easier. She gave examples of using multiple programs such as the SBA 504 Loan Program with the Flex PACE loan. They offer a comprehensive digital library of small business programs in North Dakota they call the Vault. They also have several other resources such as the Entrepreneur District, ACTIVATE Women, ACTIVATE Magazine, ACTIVATE U Podcast, SAGE, Website information, Social Media and CDFI. Emily mentioned her willingness and the willingness of Dakota Business Lending to help potential businesses. She stated the earlier the better to get in contact with her so she can help with such things as paperwork and even going with to the banking institutions to discuss funding. Brian Billingsley, City of Minot Community and Development Director, introduced himself to the committee as well. He had recently attended in May the ICSC Conference in Las Vegas. There were 3 national childcare providers at the conference and he talked with 2 of the 3. Both had stated Minot does not have a large enough median income for their companies. Brian had mentioned he could discuss the idea of an incentive package for these companies to come to Minot. He will reach out to both companies to see if any other cities have compiled an incentive program to help get a childcare company to come to their city. As for discussion on the survey, the employer survey is hopefully going to be distributed the 23rd or 24th of July. The potential new dates were provided to the committee members on the upcoming meetings. Page 1 of 2 There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 2:35 pm. Page 2 of 2