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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-08-15 EPPBID Regular Meeting MinutesBoard Meeting Minutes August 15, 2018 El Paseo Parking & Business Improvement District Civic Center North Wing Conference Room 73-510 Fred Waring Drive, Palm Desert, CA 92260 I. CALL TO ORDER Chairman Klein called the meeting to order at 8:02 AM. II. ROLL CALL Board Members Present: Patrick Klein; Susan Stauber; Elyssa Goldberg; Sonia Campbell; David Fletcher; Absent: Christine Stein. City of Palm Desert Staff Present: Thomas Soule, Tourism and Marketing Manager; Martin Alvarez, Director of Economic Development; Brianne Lawson, Recording Secretary. Other Attendees: Councilmember Jan Harnik, City of Palm Desert; Natalie Berg, Account Coordinator, FG Creative; Sarah Bryant, Executive Director, Desert Cancer Foundation; Sam Heaton, Director, CODA Gallery; Glenn Johnson, President, Thomas/Johnson; Kelly Gray, CEO, Grayse; Stephanie Greene, Director, FG Creative; Nicole Mare, General Manager, Escada; Raju Mehta, General Manager, El Paseo Jewelers; Amy Smith, Senior Vice President, Chartwell Properties. III. CONSENT ITEMS a. Approval of minutes from July 19, 2018 and July 26, 2018 Board of Directors Meetings. Mr. Klein asked for a motion to approve the minutes from the July 19, 2018 and July 26, 2018 Board Meetings. A motion was made by Campbell and seconded by Fletcher to accept and approve as submitted. Motion passed unanimously with a 5-1-0 vote, with Klein, Stauber, Goldberg, Campbell, and Fletcher voting in favor. b. Approval of the Financial Statements ending June 30, 2018. Mr. Klein asked for a motion to approve the financial statement ending June 30, 2018, subject to slight changes relating to unbilled amounts. A motion was made by Fletcher and seconded by Campbell. The motion passed unanimously with a 5-1-0 vote. 1 IV. ORAL COMMUNICTIONS Raju Mehta, General Manager of El Paseo Jewelers, spoke about the possibility of narrowing of lanes and expansion of sidewalks on El Paseo. He stated that this practice had caused a notable loss of business and contributed to traffic jams in the Cerritos neighborhood of Little India. Mr. Klein responded that there currently are no plans to reduce the number of lanes in the road diet study for El Paseo. Mr. Mehta replied that the demographics on El Paseo are different than in other areas, and that the elderly prefer to be able to park in front of the store they are visiting. Also, a reduction in the number of lanes would also be further complicated by traffic on El Paseo Cruise Night. Councilmember Harnik stated that there has been no talk of removing street parking on El Paseo, and that the street will never have metered parking. The narrowing of lanes while leaving the median at its current size is being considered in order to expand the sidewalks. However, the City Council needs a traffic count from the busiest time of the season to help with the road diet study. Mr. Klein added that decreasing the speed limit on the street would also allow window shopping from cars. V. CONSENT ITEMS HELD OVER NONE. VI. Guest Presentations a. Desert Cancer Foundation: Paint El Paseo Pink Update Sarah Bryant, Executive Director of the Desert Cancer Foundation, provided a presentation and handouts related to the 2018 Paint El Paseo Pink event. Ms. Bryant stated that the Desert Cancer Foundation had increased patient assistance within the first six months of 2018, that there had been a 15% increase of funds spent on patients, and that the foundation does need to raise more funds in order to serve more people. Ms. Bryant then invited El Paseo businesses to join in Paint El Paseo Pink, listing several options for participation: • Become a sponsor • Donate $20 for a store front pink ribbon • Register and start a team • Donate a percentage of sales from the day of the event • Hand out save the date cards • Open stores early the morning of the event VII. OLD BUSINESS NONE. 2 VIII. NEW BUSINESS a. City of Palm Desert Courtesy Cart Program Update Martin Alvarez, Director of Economic Development, provided a presentation on the El Paseo courtesy cart program. Mr. Alvarez stated that the program has been active since 2007, but some new options are being considered to augment the service and make it more unique and efficient. Following this, Mr. Alvarez introduced the concept for the Free Ride Everywhere Downtown (FRED) transportation service, an app based electric cart system that is currently being used in other tourist communities. Mr. Alvarez added that FRED is a geographically based program, which means its boundaries could be expanded to include the El Paseo/San Pablo/Westfield Mall areas. Users summon the cart with an app on their phone, and the costs of the carts is offset through the sale of advertising wraps placed on the vehicles. Councilmember Harnik then inquired how the content of the advertisements could be controlled, to which Mr. Alvarez responded that control of the advertising, as well as the look and feel of the carts, would be controlled through the City's contract with the company. Mr. Alvarez stated that nothing has yet been vetted with FRED, and that the proposal for this year is to continue the courtesy carts contract with Glyn Gray. Going further with the FRED concept would require input from the City Attorney, as 2-3 FRED carts would replace the courtesy carts program. Mr. Alvarez then asked for feedback from those in attendance, regarding their opinion on FRED. Mr. Klein responded that the idea seems worth exploring, but that FRED would cost much more than the current program. Councilmember Harnik added that the sale of advertisement might cheapen the image of the carts, and El Paseo. Mr. Klein then asked if it would be possible to have the carts without the advertising component, to which Mr. Alvarez responded that this would be much more expensive, as the advertisements offset the cost of the program. Mr. Klein suggested another presentation at the next meeting, on the subject of what could be done more immediately to improve the courtesy carts program. Thomas Soule, Tourism and Marketing Manager, stated that FG Creative is working on a mini marketing campaign to spread awareness about the courtesy carts. Mr. Klein added that the board would be voting on options for courtesy cart signage and sidewalk spots at the next meeting. To this, Mr. Alvarez responded that the City will come up with a full recommendation for placement. Stephanie Greene added that FG Creative does need direction from the City for signage and sidewalk placement, due to safety reasons. FG Creative: Marketing Update Monthly Marketing Report; Sent prior to meeting ii. Partnership Updates: 1. PSL; reports sent prior to meeting 3 2. CVB; status of new agreement Database: Discuss Options iv. Merchant Social Media Training Seminar v. New Branding Campaign Update vi. Merchant Outreach Program vii. Fashion Week/Fall Merchant Meeting Stephanie Greene reviewed the reports sent prior to the meeting, as well as the El Paseo business engagement efforts taken by FG Creative. Mr. Klein stated that FG Creative required a vote of confidence from the Board. A discussion followed regarding different methods for informing new businesses that open on El Paseo about the Board, and how to join. Ms. Greene stated that FG Creative is currently working on an engagement guide. IX. REMARKS a. City of Palm Desert Councilmember Harnik announced that there will be a Convention and Visitors Bureau meeting on September 21 in Rancho Mirage, and recommended that members of the Board attend. b. Board Members NONE. X. NEXT MEETING: Confirm September 20, 2018 Board Members confirmed that the next meeting will be held on September 20, 2018, 8:00 am. XI. ADJOURNMENT With board member concurrence, the meeting was adjourned at 9:37 am. Brianne Lawson, Recording Secretary 4