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200625 BIA MIN 1 Tillsonburg Business Improvement Area MINUTES - Board Meeting of Thursday, June 25th, 2020 TELECONFERENCE Time: 10:30 am - noon 1. CALL TO ORDER: Time: 10:35 am QUORUM: 6/9, YES MEMBERS PRESENT: D. Gilvesy, C. Tomico, M. Tedesco, M. Van Geer Truyde, J. Tilson, C. Heutinck STAFF PRESENT: M. Renaud, K. Slattery STAFF ABSENT: C. Pepper MEMBERS ABSENT: D. Rasokas, W. Cameron, A. Hicks Guests present: None. 2. ADOPTION OF THE AGENDA: a. moved by: D. Gilvesy seconded by: M. Van Geer Truyde “And resolved that the agenda, as prepared for the BIA Board of Management meeting for Thursday, June 25th, 2020 be adopted”. “CARRIED” 3. DISCLOSURE OF PECUNIARY INTEREST AND THE GENERAL NATURE THEREOF: a. None declared. 4. ADOPTION OF THE MINUTES from the board meeting of May 21st, 2020 a. moved by: M. Tedesco seconded by: J. Tilson “And resolved that the minutes, as prepared for the OPEN SESSION meeting of May 21st, 2020 be adopted”. 2 “CARRIED” 5. EVENTS AND MARKETING CO-ORDINATOR’S REPORT: a. Social media update. The EMC delivered her report to the board. Instagram traffic increased. The next big social media event are the spots on the new pop-up patios. The communication will include how service will be different from what people might have seen or been accustomed to in the past. It’s all about managing expectations and communication. b. Video story take-overs: Anchor Shoppe was the first focus. The second was Rinconcito Mexican grocery store. This is a unique shop. This BIA member is very active on social media. The next event was Tillsonburg AGM performing at The Copper Mug. The ED provided the BIA cell phone to broadcast the event and was in attendance. The EMC suggested that all of these videos will be archived and presented on the main BIA website going forward. c. EBB signage update. The sign at Venison Street is now operational with basic messaging. The hardware is still not functioning correctly. There are evergreen messages posted until the transmitter issue is finally corrected. The vendor was on-site to effect repairs for a temporary fix. The full issue of wireless transmission is not yet resolved and needs immediate corrective action. The Board Chair directed the EMC to send an e-mail today for follow- up with the vendor to seek a permanent solution. d. The EMC has been working with Karen Keller at the Town of Tillsonburg – she replaced Shelley Imbeault. There will be a joint effort to cross-promote with the town. The EMC delivered an on-line presentation about the product packs. These packs will be available on the BIA Shopify site. The board members made several comments about the program including the timing of the program implementation given that we should be promoting actually visiting store locations vs. selling on-line. There were additional comments about who was contributing what to this promotion. D. Gilvesy indicated that the town does not make charitable donations as is outlined in the program. The EMC will adjust the program based upon the board feedback. General comments: D. Gilvesy suggested that while Instagram is important, the demographics in town would suggest that we need more Facebook posts. The EMC has committed to providing more Facebook commentary and posts in the upcoming months. The Board Chair asked about more video marketing efforts to be made. D. Gilvesy also spoke about featuring videos with safe-practices to build confidence with the consumer so that they will in fact shop downtown. 3 6. BEAUTIFICATION & OPERATIONS COMMITTEE REPORT & UPDATE: The ED gave the monthly report highlighting the accomplishments and priorities for the month. The general comments were supportive of the efforts. The ED has attended council to provide an update for the benefit of the town and town council. The ED spoke about several merchants who requested some street furniture for the comfort of their clients. There were no questions and overall positive board comments. An amended resolution was presented to the board for consideration as follows: MOTION: moved by: M. Tedesco seconded by: J. Tilson “And resolved that the Board of Management of the BIA approves of the deployment of patio furniture and umbrellas following the currently “in place” Stage 2 guidelines from the Province of Ontario whereas groups of tables and chairs in one area will not exceed seating for 10 persons and further; additional tables and chairs be provided throughout the downtown core at the node areas following strict adherences to the provincial and Southwest Public Health guidelines”. “CARRIED” The EMC indicated the importance of a communication plan for the sanitation and the protocols for same if we do in fact place street furniture on the town property. Several members commented about the beautification and how the downtown looks great as did the Board Chair and D. Gilvesy. The board agreed that small amounts of furniture should be placed in the specified areas as discussed. The ED asked the group for what the sanitation protocol should be for surface care and disinfection. C. Heutinck indicated what the protocols were at Boston Pizza and what the timelines were. Quaternary sanitizer is the choice because it is food- safe. C. Heutinck suggest a frequency of 1-2 hours. The ED will follow-up with other stakeholders to determine the best-practices. D. Gilvesy mentioned that the mall had a high frequency sanitation program for high-contact surfaces like door handles. M. Tedesco indicated that we cannot rely upon the individual store/business owners to sanitize and care for the street furniture. The ED will order quaternary sanitizer and cloths for sanitization of the street furniture when it is placed throughout the downtown area. C. Heutinck indicated that a record of sanitation practices must be kept for 30 days. 4 The ED reviewed all the details of the cleanliness, maintenance and ongoing waste operations. The ED highlighted the issue of household garbage dumping in rear alleys. D. Gilvesy indicated that the south-end of Broadway is always an issue with cleanliness and garbage. M. Van Geer Truyde commented about how good things look downtown and expressed her thanks to the team. 7. FINANCIAL REPORT: Funds on deposit at CIBC: as at 05/31/2020: $60,194.39 Funds on deposit at FirstOntario: as at 05/31/2020: $66,996.04 Total funds on hand as of 05/31/2020: $127,160.43 Net change from previous month: -$10,553.97 (unfavourable) Accounts receivable: Town of Tillsonburg – HST rebate from 2019 $11,712 Dufferin Construction – damage to BIA assets $1,804.20 This report was delivered by the ED given the absence of the Board Treasurer. The ED delivered the report and there were no questions. There are still some outstanding payables which will need to be followed-up on by the ED. There were no further comments. The Board Chair reviewed some of the outstanding items for clarity including the timelines for the HST rebate from the Town of Tillsonburg. The Board Chair commented that the ED had not taken a salary during COVID and that a regular paycheque was to commence again on July 1st. The ED provided the Board with a suggested resolution to manage costs for the next month as follows: MOTION ON COST REDUCTION AND CONTAINMENT: Moved by: M. Van Geer Truyde and Seconded by: M. Tedesco “And resolved that the Board of Management of the BIA recognizes the severity of the COVID-19 health crisis and directs the BIA staff to continue to reduce all costs; including human resources until further notice. This includes a reduction across the board with the exception of fixed costs such as debenture payments, truck lease & office rent”. 5 “CARRIED” 8. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT: Priority has been given to ramping up and implementing the required services under the recently approved MOU with the Town of Tillsonburg for 2020 including all garbage and watering. The ED complimented the town’s CBO for being prompt with attention to the pop-up patio project(s). BIA affiliate memberships: Two additional businesses have requested to be BIA affiliates including Mill Tales Inn and Indigo Lounge. The fee for such membership was determined to be $500 based upon the median BIA member contribution for 2020 minus the assessed value of the Tillsonburg Town Centre mall properties. This fee would fairly represent the value of a BIA membership. In order to work with the cash-flow issues of these 2 new affiliate members; the ED has indicated that the invoicing will be issued now however it will not be due and payable until the first quarter of 2021 by March 31st, 2021. We have masks now in stock at a cost- recovery of 0.42 cents per each. The part-time labour has been effected with additional student labour to commence as needed. The truck sponsors have been finalized and will get this underway forthwith. The boundary adjustment is still proposed to proceed for January 1st, 2021. This will need to have a sub-committee in order to drive it forward. The ED spoke about the CFDC application and there were no questions. The ED highlighted the many areas of focus for the downtown. Ongoing ambassadorial duties will continue. The ED indicated that the cleanliness and maintenance programs have been very involved and time-consuming with many positive comments received from tourists, citizens, board members and BIA business owners, tenants and landlords alike. MOTION: Moved by: J. Tilson and Seconded by: M. Van Geer Truyde “And resolved that the Board of Management of the BIA endorses and supports the application to Community Futures Oxford for a non-repayable grant of $25,000 to be used for: a) Youth employment initiatives for pop-up patio operations and b) Capital and maintenance costs of pop-up patio infrastructure”. “CARRIED’ 9. BIA EMERGENCY RELIEF FUNDING PROGRAM: This program has remained in place during Phase 2. The only application for June 2020 was as follows: 6 a) Lindsay Tribble of On Our Way Massage Therapy & Wellness Clinic: $1,130 This application was funded and the cheque was hand delivered. The ED will keep the Board of Management apprised of any further interest with this program. Discussion. There were no questions or comments from the Board. 10. BIA OFFICE, MAINTENANCE & OPERATIONS SPACE REQUIREMENT(S): The Board Chair asked to have this item added to the agenda. The ED presented an overview of the current operational situation with a discussion of the 4 various sites that we are using. The board was given a detailed overview of where the BIA assets are being kept and how they are not all under one roof. The ED suggested that there are items that should be discussed in closed session and board concurred. The remainder of this discuss was directed to be held in closed session. 11. FAÇADE IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM UPDATE: The Board Chair indicated that there is still interest in the FIP for 2020. The Board Chair indicated that David Frei from Southridge Concept Renderings continues to do an excellent job for the BIA. The FIP committee is to meet on July 14th to discuss the four applications that are in the pipeline. The Board Chair asked the board to consider the 40 Broadway property and whether or not it qualifies for one or two addresses and hence $10k or $20k for the FIP application. The board discussed the matter and agreed to $30k for the 40 Broadway FIP location pending an agreement to deal with the waste management practices. The ED informed the Board that there are significant reserves to cover off the applications that are in the queue. The ED indicated that the designer/renderer always gets paid for their work whether the BIA member goes ahead with the FIP project or not. D. Gilvesy indicated that there perhaps should be a claw-back clause that if after 2 years the BIA member doesn’t go ahead; they would need to repay the design fees. This would require a change to the FIP guidelines. The ED and Board Chair will bring these suggestions to the next FIP Committee meeting. 12. APPRECIATION TO COMMUNITY PARTNERS: The ED would like the Board and members know of the following parties who have made significant contributions to the BIA thus far in 2020: i. Sobey’s – Wendy Cameron, Board Member ii. Tillsonburg Horticultural Society – Christine Nagy iii. Tillsonburg Garden Gate – Linda & Matt Fenn iv. Mark Tedesco – Anchor Shoppe, Board Member 7 v. Cedric Tomico – Nu Décor, Board Member The EMC will recognize these on social media in the coming weeks. D. Gilvesy suggested that these people be recognized on Facebook specifically. The Board Chair indicated that he would like Rasco Environmental and not Nu-Décor for the purposes of this recognition. 13. MOTION TO MOVE INTO CLOSED SESSION TO DISCUSS MATTERS RELATING TO: a. SECURITY OF THE PROPERY OF THE BIA INCLUDING OWNED ASSETS; AND; b. A PROPOSED OR PENDING ACQUISTION OR DISPOSAL OF LAND. TIME: 11:59 a.m. A pecuniary interest was declared by M. Van Geer Truyde and C. Tomico MOTION: a. moved by: J. Tilson seconded by: D. Gilvesy “And resolved that Board of Management of the BIA move into closed session to discuss matters relating to the security of the property of the BIA including owned assets and a proposed or pending acquisition or disposal of land”. “CARRIED” 14. RETURN FROM CLOSED SESSION AT 12:35 PM 15. ROUND TABLE: D. Gilvesy indicated the outdoor pool was opening July 11th and the one ice pad July 18th, the Town’s customer service centre to open June 29th and the corporate office is still closed with appointment-only service. D. Gilvesy also wished everyone a Happy Canada Day. 16. NEXT MEETING: Thursday, July 23rd, 2020 – TIME AND VENUE TBD pending COVID-19. 17. MOTION TO ADJOURN: Time of adjournment: 12:37 pm a. moved by: M. Van Geer Truyde b. seconded by: M. Tedesco 8 “CARRIED”