Old Webster Business District Advisory Commission

Old Webster Special Business District Advisory Commission MEETING MINUTES APPROVED MEETING DATE: Tuesday, November 28, 2023 LOCATION: City Hall & Zoom CALLED TO ORDER: 8:05 AM MEETING ADJOURNED: 8:35 AM NEXT MEETING: Tuesday, January 23, 2024 NAME PRESENT ABSENT Ron Clipp, Chair X Tim Delanty X Stacie Swederska X Dan Warner X Karen Drexler X David Smith X Frank Romano X Emerson Smith, Council Liaison X Eric Peterson, City Liaison X Also, in attendance: Joe Rath – Former Old Webster Commission Member Officer Ahmar Rasool – Webster Groves Police Department Fran Sudekum – Administrative Support Approval of Minutes – A motion to approve the October minutes was made by Karen Drexler, seconded by Dan Warner, and unanimously approved. Rooftop Lighting Update – Streib missed their previous start date; now they are scheduled to begin work in Old Orchard early next week and then move to Old Webster late next week. The lights in the block containing Paisley, etc. need to be replaced. Commission 2024 Meeting Schedule – The Commission will continue to meet at 8:15 AM on the fourth Tuesday of the month except for December with the caveat for longer meetings such as budget meetings, the start time will be 8:00 AM. Meeting dates are as follows: January 23, February 27, March 26, April 23, May 28, June 25, July 23, August 27, September 24, October 22, and November 26. Officer Elections – Commission Officer Elections for Chair and Vice Chair will take place in January; going forward, elections will be held each January. Parking Permits – Commission Members discussed a desire to allow more retail customers to use the permitted spaces in the parking garage that are not being used by the permit owner. All permits are sold, but usage of them has gone done significantly as many employees are working from home for periods of time. The perception of empty spots that can’t be utilized for patron parking is a bad look for the District. Perhaps temporary signage of some time. Another option may need to 1 of 2 move to include a caveat to the permit acknowledging the overselling of the permits and they are somewhat first-come first-serve. Adjusting permit parking to zones instead of specific spots could possibly help juggle parking loads. City staff will look into possible solutions. Very long term, the City is looking to a license plate reader based permitted parking. Bench Reconstruction – Dan Warner has finished putting together a bench from parts of several benches. The Parks Department has more bench parts available to reconstruct more benches. Commission Members decided to put this first reconstructed bench on Lockwood near the new 23W coffee house. Holiday Open House – The attendance at the Open House was record-breaking and with the large number of crowds, perhaps it’s time to think about closing certain sections of the street/s next year for safety reasons. BDC Update – The next Business Coffee is scheduled for February 7th; CID (Community Improvement Districts) explanation, speakers will be City Attorney and Eric Peterson. City Update • The City is working on a new business directory which will be part of the online business license process. It will be a dynamic business mapping and directory system. Businesses will be able to enter their own information such as sales, job posts, or highlights. It will replace the current static listing that is on the City website. It also includes mapping feature. A QR code for Old Webster can put businesses’ windows, counters, tables that will link to the system. It rolls the business license, business directory, and Webster job board functions all into one; it’s very Google-like. • The Parks & Recreation “Destination Webster Groves” no-tax bond issue will be on the April 2024 ballot. • Charter Review Advisory Board’s made their recommendations to City Council; who will potentially put seven or eight of the recommendations on the April 2024 ballot. • The City has launched a tool on its website showing the breakdown of property taxes - https://www.webstergrovesmo.gov/101/Property-Tax • Waste Management is now picking up the blue recycling cans along with the trash cans in the business districts. In addition, reporting district trash can issues, i.e., overflowing, has been added to the City’s online “fix it” form which can be found under the “Community” tab of the City website; it goes directly to Public Works who contacts waste management. Next Meeting – January 23 at 8:15 AM Adjournment – Meeting adjourned at 8:35 AM 2 of 2