City Council

City Hall City of Olympia 601 4th Avenue E Olympia, WA 98501 Information: 360.753.8447 Meeting Minutes City Council Thursday, December 4, 2014 4:30 PM Council Chambers Potential Meeting - CRA Open House 1. ROLL CALL Present: 4 - Mayor Stephen H. Buxbaum, Mayor Pro Tem Nathaniel Jones, Councilmember Julie Hankins and Councilmember Steve Langer OTHERS PRESENT Community Planning and Development Director Keith Stahley Downtown Liaison Brian Wilson Associate Planner Amy Buckler ECONorthwest Managing Director Lorelei Juntunen Project Manager Erik Rundell Pacifica Law Group Partner Jay Reich 2. BUSINESS ITEM 2.A 14-1150 Community Renewal Area (CRA) Open House Events December 3, 2014 and December 4, 2014 The open house began with approximately 15 citizens discussing the Community Renewal Area (CRA) with City staff at breakout tables from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Mayor Buxbaum introduced the meeting at 5:30 p.m to about 25 citizens. He gave an overview of the meeting and asked for public input for quality development of Downtown. He turned the time to Mr. Reich who gave a background on the Community Renewal Act. Mr. Reich explained that government does not provide funding for development. However, private investment will increase development. He explained that investors will only come to Olympia when confident on the return on investment. Currently, Downtown contains a significant amount of blight that detracts investors including a large homeless population, high crime rate, and drug use. The goal is to build partnerships with private investors to improve Downtown. Mr. Stahley outlined Washington communities that have successfully implemented CRA including Bremerton, Vancouver, Tukwila, and Shoreline. The City of Tukwila has used CRA to eradicate blight including prostitution, high crime rates, and drug use. City of Olympia Page 1 City Council Meeting Minutes December 4, 2014 Ms. Buckler explained the relationship between CRA and the Comprehensive Plan. CRA is project oriented and will include public and private partnerships for funding. The Comprehensive Plan is a five year plan with high level policies. Ms. Juntunen discussed the next steps following this open house including Council action, the RFP process, and ongoing public outreach, education, and involvement. The information was provided. 3. ADJOURNMENT Mr. Buxbaum closed the meeting at 6:05 p.m. thanking citizens for participating. He encouraged them to circulate around the room to discuss their concerns with City staff. City of Olympia Page 2