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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 10-07-2009 TCERDA Treasure Coast Education, Research and Development Authority TCERDA Board of Directors Minutes of Meeting October 7, 2009 Convened: 1:10 p.m. Adjourned: 3:20 p.m. The meeting of the Treasure Coast Education, Research and Development Authority (TCERDA) was held Wednesday, October 7, 2009, in Room 219 West, University of Florida Indian River Research and Education Center, 2199 South Rock Road, Fort Pierce, Florida. MEMBERS PRESENT: Jane Bachelor, Chair Jose Farinos, Vice Chair Dr. Peter Stoffella Dr. Joseph C. Joyce (via videoconference) Tom Perona Hoyt C. “Pat” Murphy, Jr. Travis Murphy Steffan Matthes, P.E. O.R. “Rick” Minton, Jr. MEMBERS ABSENT: Dr. Kathleen A. McGinn, Secretary and Treasurer ALSO PRESENT: Commissioner Chris Craft, BOCC Liaison Ben DeVries, Executive Director, Treasure Coast Research Park Heather Young, Assistant County Attorney Robert I. “Rim” MacLaren, II, General Counsel Larry Pelton, Executive Director, Economic Development Council of SLC Jackie Bylsma, Economic Development Council of SLC Andy Treadwell, Economic Development Council of SLC A. CALL TO ORDER Ms. Jane Bachelor called the meeting to order at 1:10 p.m. B. WELCOME MEMBERS AND GUESTS Ms. Bachelor welcomed the members and other attendees. She welcomed Anne Bowers, the new Administrative Assistant, and introduced her to the Board. C. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Ms. Bachelor asked for a motion for approval of the September 3, 2009 TCERDA Board minutes. - 1 - A motion was made by Mr. Travis Murphy and seconded by Mr. Jose Farinos for approval of the rd September 3 minutes. The motion and second carried unanimously by voice vote. D. TREASURER’S REPORT In Dr. McGinn’s absence, Mr. Ben DeVries stated there was a current balance of $200,000+ in the budget. A motion was made by Dr. Peter Stoffella and seconded by Mr. Pat Murphy, Jr., for approval of the Treasurer’s Report. The motion and second carried unanimously by voice vote. E. LEGAL UPDATE Mr. Rim MacLaren discussed on the lease/sublease contingency between the St. Lucie County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC), FPUA, and the St. Lucie County School Board (SLCSB) and the timelines for the Interlocal Agreements between TCERDA and the BOCC. The master lease is sent to UF and the SLCSB to provide input, then to the State. The response from the State will be the basis for soliciting a timeframe for local contingencies. The status of the payback extension of the current contracts is December 31, 2009. A survey and legal description on 60 acres to be deeded the SLCSB is required to satisfy contingency for the SLC BOCC/SLCSB/UF lease and deed swaps. A meeting was held with adjacent property owners regarding the proposed ‘Exploration’ Parkway and a verbal agreement was reached. Mr. MacLaren will complete the appropriate paperwork presentation to TCERDA and the BOCC. E. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT Mr. Ben DeVries gave a briefing on the Washington, D.C. trip he, Ms. Bachelor and Commissioner Chris Craft made in October. Meetings to introduce the Treasure Coast Research Park (TCRP) and to solicit future matching funds with senior staff members for Congressman Hastings, Congressman Rooney, Senator Lemieux and Senator Nelson were very productive. During these meetings, Mr. DeVries presented information from a PowerPoint presentation of the TCRP to the Congressional Delegations’ professional staff members. Topics of discussion included predevelopment/site plans, roadways/stormwater/architectural designs and lease proposals. Commissioner Craft summarized the funding discussion held with the delegations’ professional staff members, wherein he noted St. Lucie County has invested approximately $10 million in the TCRP. It is anticipated these meetings will open opportunities for the TCRP, assisting it’s positioning for state and federal funding/stimulus dollars for infrastructure development. Mr. DeVries recently facilitated a meeting with the owners of property in the Orange to Okeechobee/Angle Road Corridor (approx. 35 people were in attendance). Diana Lewis, SLC Airport Director, and Mr. DeVries gave a presentation to the group. The participants met a second time, at which time 10 property owners formed a steering committee for the Treasure Coast Corridor Association (TCCA). By-laws, a mission statement and membership qualifications have been determined by the TCCA. A cross section of the road right-of-way design from Kimley Horn was presented as part of the overview of the proposed TCRP design. The property is divided into quadrangles and Mr. DeVries explained the potential for development of each ‘pod’. The Backbone Design Consultant RFQ has been redistributed and the selection committee will be meeting to discuss the submitted qualifications. - 2 - Mr. DeVries explained the site plan, proposed single and multi-story buildings, and retention ponds to the Board. He said he has the basics to start marketing the property. He said the CDI Committee had reviewed the basic standards which include large lakes for retention, plenty of parking, and flexible design (wet labs, offices, etc). Mr. DeVries noted as the state grows, research opportunities should increase and the TCRP should be in a position to accommodate this increase in business prospects. Mr. Rick Minton said the TCRP can cluster around the design of IFAS/USDA. Commissioner Craft said the Board needs to discuss how to expedite and streamline the tenant qualification process so Mr. DeVries can expediently work with prospective tenants. Ben DeVries said the primary problem with the TCRP’s tenant placement now is that the water/wastewater infrastructure needs to be in place for future tenants. He has had discussions with Mr. Dritenbas regarding standards. Mr. Perona remarked that once the first tenant is in place, additional tenant placement will be expedited more smoothly. Mr. DeVries discussed the roadway plan: facts, figures, proposed design, and the need for a second roadway from Okeechobee and Orange Avenue. He noted Kimley Horn designed a 4-lane road with swales and showed the Board a rendering of a 120’ cross section. Mr. DeVries reported the cost of two and four lane roadways (which included the cost of utilities and infrastructure) and said a traffic study would not be complete until next year. Once the first tenant is on board, the funding will be easier to find. F. CHAIR’S REPORT Ms. Jane Bachelor distributed the UF/UFAS Weather Station Site Memorandum of Understanding. The site was excluded by the County for UF/IFAS’ needs. UF will discontinue using the site for a weather site and once they relocate the equipment to the new site, they will terminate the lease and the County will add this area to the Authority and the Authority agreed to accept it. This has been th agendaed for next week’s BOCC Agenda Meeting on October 20. A motion was made by Mr. Pat Murphy, Jr., and seconded by Mr. Tom Perona, for approval of the MOU and authorized the Chair to execute on the Board’s behalf. The motion and second carried unanimously by voice vote. Mr. Tom Perona asked if there could be a not-to-exceed amount for the survey and Mr. Rim MacLaren suggested the Board allocate up to $120,000. Ms. Jane Bachelor discussed the 60-acre parcel of land which needs a survey and legal description for the K-12 school. Culpepper and Terpening (C & T) previously completed a survey which should be reviewed prior to the undertaking of a new survey. Information, as appropriate, from the C & T survey should be incorporated into the new survey work. Ms. Bachelor requested Board approval for a survey from Kings Highway to Rock Road and Picos to the northern boundary for the school property. A motion was made by Dr. Joe Joyce and seconded by Mr. Tom Perona, for approval of the survey. The motion and second carried unanimously by voice vote. Mr. Jose Farinos asked if a survey could be done of all property west of the road, north of the private property, and exclude the east/west conceptual line. Ms. Bachelor polled the Board and the motion carried unanimously by voice vote. - 3 - Ms. Bachelor opened for discussion the land west of the turnpike, currently under SLCSB jurisdiction. There is a 40-acre section the SLCSB had option on. It was reported the SLCSB is no longer interested in reserving this land. Mr. Peter Stoffella explained the reason the school is no longer interested is because they are moving agriculture to Westwood High School. Counsel has been asked to amend language in the documents so the land is no longer reserved by the SLCSB and will be transferred to UF when the land swap transaction commences. A motion was made by Mr. Jose Farinos and seconded by Mr. Tom Perona, for approval. Ms. Bachelor polled the Board and the motion and second carried unanimously by voice vote, with Dr. Joe Joyce and Dr. Peter Stoffella abstaining. The Chair next opened discussion on the architectural guidelines. It has been the opinion of the Board to use the USDA as the standard architectural model for the TCRP’s buildings. Ms. Bachelor requested the Board approve the architectural guidelines as standard guidelines for the 32 acres known as Phase I. A motion was made by Mr. Rick Minton and seconded by Mr. Pat Murphy for additional discussion. Discussion ensued and the motion and second carried unanimously by voice vote. G. NEW BUSINESS/COMMITTEE REPORTS Ms. Bachelor, as the CDI Committee Chair, reported the Committee is recommending to the TCERDA Board that Paul Dritenbas’ 32-acre site plan presented in the Board packet be approved to use when recruiting potential clients/tenants. She requested a motion to approve the site plan. A motion was made by Mr. Tom Perona and seconded by Dr. Peter Stoffella. The motion and second carried unanimously by voice vote. Ms. Bachelor reported the CDI Committee requested the TCERDA Board approve a proposal to connect Okeechobee Road to the TCRP, including traffic-calming devices in the design. Mr. Jose Farinos stated this would quadruple the value of the land and potentially add property from the north and south of the Park and enlarge the corridor. Additionally, he said connecting Orange Avenue and Okeechobee Road and having a major artery cutting through the TCRP is phenomenal. Mr. Farinos moved to present to the County Commission the conceptual road pattern. Mr. Tom Perona seconded the motion, which carried unanimously by voice vote. Mr. Ben DeVries gave an update on the digital park sign. He and Dr. Stoffella met with Dr. Arnold. The cost is estimated to be $42,000-48,000. The sign, to be located at the corner of Kings Highway and Pruitt Research Center Road, is LED with computer-controlled graphics and is portable should a need arise for the sign to be moved within the TCRP at a future date. Mr. DeVries reported he is awaiting a proposal from a third sign business prior to being able to secure a signed agreement. The BOCC requires three and he currently has two. Mr. Larry Pelton cautioned the Board regarding Micro Tech and its services associated with the website design and maintenance. He noted the Economic Development Council (EDC) had recently ended their contract with Micro Tech, stating the ad hoc charges from the company can get expensive. Mr. DeVries said Stacy Givens will provide some content for the website. Mr. DeVries and Ms. Bachelor informed the Board of a previous meeting with Former Senator Ken Pruitt regarding a research park association. Mr. DeVries, working with Dr. Joe Joyce and others at UF, has organized a new association with all the university-affiliated research parks in Florida. At the first meeting, the group developed their vision initiatives and worked out terms for membership in the association. They will meet quarterly and will rotate their meetings around the state, being hosted - 4 - each quarter by one of the ten research parks. Mr. DeVries was elected by the Florida Network of Research, Science and Technology Parks (FNRSTP) as its first Chairman. Ms. Bachelor said she and Mr. DeVries met with members from the XE3 group and they suggested the marketing of the upcoming school event through newspaper/radio/TV ads/guest speaking engagements. Ms. Bachelor suggested this item be discussed at the next TCERDA Board meeting. Items for discussion include the initiative to be taken by the XE3 group, its sponsors and the potential use of marketing dollars to promote the event. Other topics of discussion among the group included pricing policy/fair market value of the TCRP, and moving the current signage on I-95 from Okeechobee Road to Orange Avenue to avoid some of the truck traffic congestion when interested parties come to the TCRP. H. ANNOUNCEMENTS Ms. Bachelor made the following announcements: 1. She has a scheduling conflict and is unable to accompany Mr. DeVries to Vancouver for the Annual AURP Conference. 2. The Master Gardeners are hosting a plant sale on Saturday. 3. Ms. Bachelor is working with Commissioner Lewis and Ms. Faye Outlaw to schedule a joint meeting between the Board of County Commissioners and TCERDA. th 4. The SLC Commercial Real Estate Society Meeting has been moved from October 28 to th November 5. All TCERDA Board members are encouraged to attend this event from 4-6 p.m. Upon no further announcements or discussion, Ms. Jane Bachelor requested the meeting be adjourned. It was moved by Dr. Joyce and seconded by Mr. Travis Murphy to adjourn the meeting at 3:20 p.m. The motion and second carried unanimously by voice vote and Ms. Bachelor adjourned the meeting. Minutes submitted by: Anne Bowers The next TCERDA Board meeting is scheduled for November 5, 2009 at 1:00 p.m. in Room #219 West. - 5 -