Wednesday - December 1, 2021 Minutes

MINUTES October 27, 2021 Board Meeting via Zoom at 7:30 a. m. DRAFT BOARD MEMBERS AND STAFF: Kim Adams, Mayor Robin Christiansen, Dave Hugg, Linda Parkowski, Codi Canasa, Carla Wilson, Al Grinsted, Pete Bradley, Councilman Fred Neil, Todd Stonesifer, John Van Gorp, Michael Casson, Bill Bush, Senator Trey Paradee, Tina Bradbury, Diane Laird, Jordan Resh, Adalberto Aviles DPD GUESTS: Katie Tabeling DE Business Times, Donny Legans COMMITTEE CHAIRS, PRESENTERS, AND OTHER ATTENDEES: Call to Order: Chair Todd Stonesifer opened the meeting at 7:30 a.m. Councilman Neil voted to approve the agenda, Codi Canasa seconded, and the Board unanimously approved. Mayor Christiansen voted to approve the minutes, Councilman Neil seconded, and the board unanimously approved. Police Report Aviles started with an update of crime in downtown from July-September, provided in an Excel document. There was a shooting in July and August, but no shootings in Septembers. There was an increase in theft from July to September. Grinsted added that the statistics Aviles presented is only for the Business Development District and does not reflect statistics for all of Dover. Stonesifer asked if the statistics included the Downtown Development District, or only the Business District, and Aviles explained that the statistics are for a block north and south of Loockerman St, which includes some residential areas. Canasa asked about a letter received at their business, and if anyone else received one. The letter mentions a case number, inappropriate touching, and a lie. Canasa also thanked Dover PD for their presence when the bars close, and that it reduced the people loitering outside their building during those hours. Todd explained that Irish Mike’s reopened this weekend, and Dave Hugg added that the business has until the middle of December to cooperate with the City of Dover. With no further comments, Aviles left the Zoom call. Executive Committee Bradbury presented the budget for September 2021 and explained that the DDP is always one month behind on the budget because the City of Dover must review the budget at the end of the month. Bradbury noted that line 34 and 47 and identical and will be corrected on next month’s budget. Bradbury noted that line 57 is new due to the renovations at the DDP’s property. Bradbury also recapped that the DDP is under budget. Parkowski asked when the DDP does the budget for 2023, and Stonesifer said that the 2023 budget will be worked on in June 2022 before the DDP recess in July. ___________________ DRAFT October 27, 2021 - DDP Board Meeting 1

Strategic Master Plan Stonesifer shared that the DDP received seven proposals and shortlisted three. Two of the three shortlisted companies have presented, and after the third presentation, the board will vote on the company to move forward with. Property Updates Stonesifer shared that there are no property updates at this time. Committee Reports Parking Stonesifer explained that the parking plan was approved at the September 2021 board meeting. On October 26, the parking plan was presented to the City Council, and it was explained that the implementation date is not set. Stonesifer noted that the strategic master plan will involve a parking plan, and approval will be required to move forward with development. Stonesifer said the Council’s concerns will also be addressed before a plan will be implemented. Safety Grinstead shared that Irish Mike’s has been under review as a part of the safety committee. Grinstead also shared that the committee is giving Ring cameras, an app-based security system, to downtown storefronts that do not have security cameras. Stonesifer described Ring as a “digitized neighborhood watch program” and that the program hopes to unite safety efforts for business owners downtown. Stonesifer shared that he has heard a positive reception to these efforts from business owners. Merchant Laird shared the plans for First Friday, the Cartoon Christmas Trio, and Small Business Saturday. Laird invited the Board to attend the Cartoon Christmas Trio at the Schwartz with two free tickets, courtesy of the DDP and a grant from the DE Division of Arts. Laird shared that the goal is to have the Schwartz open more regularly, and a meeting with DSU is scheduled for Friday to discuss the possibility of more events. The Cartoon Christmas Trio will play jazz music and will cater to an audience of all ages. Legislative Bush updated the proposal for district changes to the City of Dover. Bush updated on laws being passed, one for the creation of commercial ready sites. This law will bring jobs to people of Dover, and opportunities for funding on projects in Dover. The goal of the bills are to “speed up” the development process. Bush shared that another bill is being passed for the removal of dirt, a usually lengthy process with Del-dot, and will be streamlined after the bill is passed. The other bills will hire an additional staff for pushing through development projects and cooperating with engineering firms. These bills are known as “ready in 6.” Bush also shared bills of interest such as – providing additional training to develop trade skills, and additional funding for employees and employers to receive training. Bush explained that these bills would also expand the SEED program to encourage more people to receive training. Bush elaborated that the district changes will make Sean Lynn’s district from Governors to State St. Senator Paradee added that the revenue projection for the state of Delaware has increased, including nearly 40 million dollars of additional revenue from last fiscal year. Senator Paradee shared the goal that more ___________________ DRAFT October 27, 2021 - DDP Board Meeting 2

money can be given to small businesses with the additional revenue available. Mayor Christiansen shared that addressing Irish Mike’s is a part of a long-term plan to make sure Downtown stays safe. Councilman Neil shared that there is a need for affordable housing and parking accommodations to increase customer traffic for downtown. Councilman Neil shared that there is a plan to address people “dawdling” – blocking parking lots and store entrances. Councilman Neil added that the Council is working with the ACLU to make sure that the people dawdling receive their constitutional rights, are not mistreated, and are not affecting business functions. Councilman Neil shared that the installation of LED lights will debut downtown and eventually be used throughout Dover and will reduce crime at night. Councilman Neil shared that the LED lights should be functional for First Friday, November 5. Stonesifer said that the DDP and the city should work together to promote the efforts to reduce crime and ensure safety. Laird added that debuting the lights on First Friday would be a useful public announcement. Laird added that shift workers who are residents of downtown will be addressed in a future parking meeting to ensure that the ticketing from 10am-6pm will not discourage shift workers from living downtown. Hugg updated that the City of Dover wants to help add more businesses to downtown Dover. Stonesifer added that reducing the barriers to developing property with the “ready in 6” bills would allow more businesses to start. Hugg added that developers with a plan do not face many barriers from the City of Dover. Business Owners Van Gorp added that Bayhealth has had a large influx of non-Covid patients, but the presence of Covid- patients makes accommodating to this influx difficult. Van Gorp shared that there are 50 beds occupied by Covid-patients, the majority of which are unvaccinated, and that there is a shortage of nurses nationwide. Bayhealth started to hire travelling nurses to make up for limited staff. Van Gorp shared that Bayhealth is looking to expand the hospital by creating more private rooms and updating their master plan. Bayhealth is also partnering with an in-patient recovery center, allowing both companies to expand their business and increase the number of patients they can treat. Casson shared that DSU celebrated homecoming October 23, and the parade route was changed to showcase the new downtown campus. Senator Paradee shared that during homecoming, the downtown DSU campus looked well-renovated, and that budget conversations are occurring to allow for continued improvement. Kent County Tourism Bradley shared that there is 35 million for a recovery plan for the DE Relief program, and Bradley has created a committee for approving small business grants for businesses with less than 100 employees and a hospitality grant. Kent County Levy Court is working with Bradley to approve this program. Bradley shared that they are working to create the application process and will continue to move forward until the grants are available. Bradley shared that the goal is for the application to go out by the end of 2021 and will prioritize businesses that have been the most impacted. Canasa added that previous grant applications had a minimum employee requirement, and so the “smallest of small businesses” were ineligible to apply. Bradley shared those current discussions will divide applicants into quadrants of number of employees so that very small businesses can still apply. Site Readiness Parkowski shared updates on properties that are being prioritized. Parkowski shared that the Kent County MPO is studying the zoning along the rail lines so that industrial zones can be preserved to be sold for ___________________ DRAFT October 27, 2021 - DDP Board Meeting 3

industrial uses, instead of residential. Parkowski shared that zoning laws are being evaluated to ensure that they are modernized. Parkowski shared that there are four business retention and expansion visits occurring. Parkowski shared that the Harrington industrial park is moving along in development, has access to the rail corridor, and is the only industrial plant with that access. Stonesifer added that Parkowski’s work increases employment opportunities for Delaware, and that this increases the potential customers that will visit the downtown district. OktDoverFest Stonesifer shared and updated on the October 9th OktDoverFest. Stonesifer said that they prioritized businesses that had suffered during the pandemic, such as food vendors and musicians. Stonesifer shared that there is a “sister event” occurring in December, and that vendors and sponsors and being sought out. Public Comment: Stonesifer introduced Donny Legans, who is planning to develop a beer garden in Downtown Dover that will employee local residents. Call to Adjourn: Canasa motioned to adjourn the meeting and Van Gorp seconded, the Board voted unanimously to adjourn at 8:51 a.m. JR/DJL ___________________ DRAFT October 27, 2021 - DDP Board Meeting 4