Forward New Richmond Committee

Forward New Richmond Committee Meeting Agenda Wednesday, June 18, 2025 at 12:00 PM Council Chambers Page 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. ROLL CALL 3. ADOPTION OF AGENDA 4. CONSENT AGENDA a. Minutes from previous meeting 2-3 Minutes: Forward New Richmond Committee - May 21, 2025 b. FNR Community Development Updates 4-6 Memo: FNR Community Development Updates - June 2025 5. PRIORITY #3 DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION a. Memo: Priority #3 - Downtown Revitalization 7 6. CLOSED SESSION Closed Session per Wis. Stat. 19.85(1)(e) deliberating or negotiating the purchasing of public properties, the investing of public funds, or conducting other specified public business, whenever competitive or bargaining reasons require a closed session. a. Business & Technical Park: PID 261-1070-44-060 (between Cernohous Avenue and St. Croix Avenue) b. Regional Business Fund Downtown Facade Loan Application - 157 S Knowles Avenue 7. OPEN SESSION - ACTION ON CLOSED SESSION AGENDA 8. COMMUNICATION AND MISCELLANEOUS 9. ADJOURNMENT  Forward New Richmond Committee Meeting Minutes Wednesday, May 21, 2025 at 12:00 PM Council Chambers The Forward New Richmond Committee was called to order on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, at 12:00 PM, in the Council Chambers, with the following members present: PRESENT: Ryan Shervey, Kent Elkin, Joe Green, Liz Pizzi, Bryan Knudtson, Mike Montello, and Pete Kling ABSENT: Krista Paulus and Aaron Sundeen OTHERS BethThompson, Amber Toutge, Melissa Meschke, Jim Zajkowski, Brian Meyer PRESENT: and Scott Soderberg CALL TO ORDER ROLL CALL ADOPTION OF AGENDA Joe Green made a motion to approve the agenda as presented. Bryan Knudtson seconded the motion. Carried unanimously. CONSENT AGENDA Ryan Shervey made a motion to approve the consent agenda as presented. Joe Green seconded the motion. Carried unanimously. DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION Beth Thompson opened the discussion on Downtown Revitalization with a recap of the strengths and weaknesses identified through the Business Retention & Expansion (BR&E) program. The group then explored questions about how the City can support revitalization efforts and potential partnerships with other organizations. Scott Soderberg and Brian Meyer attended on behalf of the ReNew Richmond group. Scott shared the group's priorities, which led to a productive discussion with the committee. The FNR committee then shifted to identifying and organizing priorities for future consideration. Beth provided several example initiatives for potential categorization:  Streetscape improvements  Historic District Overlay Forward New Richmond Committee Meeting May 21, 2025   Property acquisition for revitalization (e.g., Anytime Fitness site)  Safety  Traffic calming  Zoning regulation updates  Façade improvements (e.g., grant programs)  Creation of a downtown brand identity  Identification of target businesses (e.g., restaurants, retail, coworking spaces)  Support for upper-level housing development  Alleyway repairs and improvements behind downtown buildings FNR members added additional priorities to the list:  Glover Park Revitalization  Addressing downtown vacancies  Incentives for repurposing vacant buildings To help prioritize these items, Beth will distribute a survey to FNR members, asking them to rank each item from 1 to 14. The survey will also be shared with the ReNew Richmond group via Scott Soderberg. In addition to ranking priorities, the survey will include questions about what types of businesses community members would like to see—or prefer not to see—in the downtown area. COMMUNICATION AND MISCELLANEOUS Beth Thompson stated our next meeting will be June 18, 2025, July there will be no meeting and back again for August 20, 2025. Beth will also send out an email with a link to Noah Wiedenfeld's weekly updates called "The Extra Mile". FNR members can sign up to receive weekly email updates on City projects, etc. ADJOURNMENT Ryan Shervey made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 12:55 p.m. Joe Green seconded the motion. Carried unanimously. Forward New Richmond Committee Meeting May 21, 2025  MEMO Prepared for: Forward New Richmond Staff Contact: Beth Thompson Meeting: Forward New Richmond Committee - 18 Jun 2025 Subject: FNR Community Development Updates - June 2025 BACKGROUND INFORMATION: Building / Zoning Updates: January 1, 2025 - May 31, 2025 Number of Building Permits - 160 Number of New Dwelling Units - 53 Number of Inspections - 620 Residential Construction Value - $18,615,327.00 Commercial Construction Value - $4,933,296.00 Building Permit Fees - $131,723.50 Occupancy Updates: In May, the building inspector issued occupancy for three single-family homes and one twin home. The Building Office recently completed the Insurance Services Office (ISO) reclassification survey as part of the Building Code Effectiveness Grading Schedule (BCEGS). This comprehensive review, conducted every four years, evaluates the building codes currently in place and the effectiveness of their enforcement—particularly those related to reducing risks from natural hazards. As part of the process, an ISO representative met with City staff and our contracted building inspector to review documentation, ask detailed questions, and collect information for the final report. This survey is a time-intensive effort, and I would like to extend a sincere thank you to Erica Balcerek and Ben Campbell for their valuable support throughout this process. Events and Ribbon Cutting: On May 16, we had the pleasure of hosting the 3rd Grade Classes from our local schools at City Hall. This annual field trip has become a cherished tradition and a great opportunity to introduce students to the workings of local government. The students learned about the roles of elected officials, how elections are conducted, and the importance of civic engagement. They also received a brief overview of the dam’s operation. The visit concluded with a walk along the John Doar History Trail, where they learned about the legacy of one of our most notable local figures. We’re grateful to the staff and teachers who help make this event possible each year, and we’re already looking forward to welcoming next year’s class! A Groundbreaking Ceremony was held on Tuesday, June 3 for the new Edward Jones Advisors building. This new facility will be located on the south end of New Richmond, just south of Caribou Coffee. Thanks to Edward Jones for choosing to expand in our community! Economic Development Week-May 12th-16th: We made the following Facebook post to celebrate this week to thank and honor all in our wonderful community! "The week recognizes and honors the dedicated work of economic developers and their contributions to communities around the world. It's a time to recognize the vital role economic developers play in building thriving communities. This week, we're celebrating Economic Development Week in New Richmond! We're proud of the growth and progress all have made, thanks to the hard work of our businesses, organizations, and community members. We invite you to share your stories, experiences, and ideas for how we can continue to grow our local economy. What makes New Richmond a great place to live, work, and play? Let's celebrate our strong community and businesses that make it thrive and place to call home! We invite you to share your stories, ideas, thoughts and photos in the comments below! #EconDevWeek #NewRichmond #Community" Affordable Housing Fund Sub-Committee Update: As FNR members are aware, City staff has established an Affordable Housing Sub-Committee to develop recommendations on how the City could allocate the $1.4 million in the Affordable Housing Fund for Starter Homes. The Sub-Committee has met four times to date, discussing topics such as potential land availability, HUD income thresholds, pre-qualification criteria, and possible zoning changes. The group is scheduled to meet again on May 29 to finalize key aspects of these discussions. In the meantime, City staff has been working diligently between meetings to compile and present relevant information to support the Sub-Committee’s efforts. Staff will have one more meeting with the Sub-Committee and then we will be moving the recommensations on to the City Council in July or early August. Industrial Land Update: Page 2 of 3 After the April FNR meeting, Noah Wiedenfeld shared the committee’s discussion about pursuing an RFP or RFQ with the City Council during a work session. In response, the Council directed City staff to move forward with issuing an RFQ to select a consulting firm to assist the City with industrial land planning. The RFQ will be developed over the next couple of months, with interviews to follow before a firm is selected. As a quick Reminder, if you would like to sign up for Noah's Weekly Updates - The Extra Mile, you can do so here. Page 3 of 3  MEMO Prepared for: Forward New Richmond Staff Contact: Beth Thompson Meeting: Forward New Richmond Committee - 18 Jun 2025 Subject: Priority #3 - Downtown Revitalization BACKGROUND INFORMATION: At the April 16 meeting, Noah Wiedenfeld provided a comprehensive presentation on downtown economic development strategies. His overview included key characteristics of a thriving downtown, the "Power of 10+" concept in placemaking, upcoming downtown streetlight improvements, and the four-point Main Street Approach to revitalization. At the May 21 meeting, members of Forward New Richmond engaged in a discussion to help identify and prioritize initiatives for the downtown area. It was agreed that a survey would be distributed to both Forward New Richmond and ReNew Richmond members to gather input and assist in ranking downtown priorities. The goal is to better understand which efforts should be emphasized by the City as we work toward a more vibrant downtown district. City staff will present the results of the survey at the June FNR meeting, which will guide further discussion and assist in establishing short and long-term focus areas.