* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. OR TO [00:00:01] OPTIMIZE IMPROVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES AND [Economic Development Authority on February 5, 2024.] ECONOMIC IMPACT? IS IT JUST A QUICK SHUFFLE? I THINK, I THINK IT IS VERBALLY SAYING IT TOO. 'CAUSE WHEN I READ IT ON THE PAGE, IT MAKES SENSE AND WHEN I SAY IT, IT MAKES SENSE. IT'S JUST HARD TO SAY. YEAH. I THINK IT IS. THE VOWELS THING. HOW OPTIMIZE ECONOMIC IMPACT AND IMPROVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES. I DON'T KNOW. I CAN SAY IT SO WELL. YOU JUST AGREE TO NEVER SAY IT OUT LOUD. . PUT IT ON THE WEBSITE. THAT WAS A JOKE. THAT WAS A FUNNY JOKE. IMPROVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES. OPTIMIZE IMPROVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES AND ECONOMIC IMPACT. I MEAN, HAVE AN ECONOMIC IMPACT. I FEEL LIKE ECONOMIC IMPACT IS SO AMBIGUOUS. I FEEL LIKE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES IS A LITTLE MORE INTENTIONAL. MM-HMM. . BUT THEN YOU'RE LEFT WITH, I GUESS WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE IT LIKE A DUAL STATEMENT. SO FOR IMPROVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES WHERE WE'RE, WHICH WE WOULD WANT TO REPLACE, I WOULD THINK MAYBE LIKE COM. UH, COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT. I DON'T KNOW. UM, BUT LIKE AT THAT POINT WE'RE LIKE KIND OF REARRANGING. YEAH. THE WHOLE THING. UH, I DON'T KNOW. UM, HOW EXCITED ARE YOU ABOUT THE WORD IMPACT? I LOVE THE WORD IMPACT, BUT YOU COULD SAY OPTIMIZE ECONOMIC AND IMPROVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES, WORD IMPACT, AND THEN IT'S ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES AND IMPROVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES. WELL, I FELT LIKE WE NEEDED TO TAKE A WORD OUT OF THERE. SO DOES THAT, DOES THAT MAKE IT NOT, IT'S A LITTLE BIT EASIER TO DIGEST, BUT DOES THAT STILL SHARE THE SAME SENTIMENT YOU WANNA SHARE? I THINK SO. I THINK SO. I'M NOT SURE. 'CAUSE WHAT IS, WHAT IS AN IMPROVEMENT OPPORTUNITY OUTSIDE OF AN ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY? BECAUSE I THINK, I THINK THE DUAL STATEMENT POINT THAT, UH, ROBERT MADE IS REALLY GOOD. LIKE, I THINK WE DO WANT TO HAVE TWO THINGS IN THERE. BUT THE QUESTION, LIKE, IF YOU DO TAKE OUT A WORD, I THINK IT KIND OF DOES CHANGE THE TWO THINGS. UM, SO MY QUESTION, I DON'T THINK I HAVE THE ANSWER NECESSARILY, IS WHAT WOULD AN IMPROVEMENT OPPORTUNITY BE AS OPPOSED TO AN ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY? HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT COMMUNITY? WELL, THERE WERE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WERE MENTIONED IN THE COMP PLAN THAT WERE SORT OF LOOSELY, I GUESS, ATTACHED WITH US. THAT WOULD BE, YOU KNOW, LIKE THERE WAS THE, AFTER THE FESTIVALS DOWNTOWN, A PLACE TO KIND OF GO TO. UM, THERE, THERE'S THINGS THAT KIND OF COME ALONG FOR THE RIDE WITH THIS, YOU KNOW, ECONOMIC BOOST. BUT, BUT YOU KNOW, THAT MAYBE MIGHT NOT BE IN THE, THE WRONG POSSIBILITY GIVEN WHAT YOU KNOW, UM, WHAT THERE IS SO IMPROVEMENTS. UH, THERE WAS SOMETHING ABOUT FACADE GRANTS. MM-HMM. , UM, THINGS LIKE THAT. THOSE DON'T NECESSARILY CORRELATE DIRECTLY TO ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY, BUT, UM, ALONG THAT SAME LINE AND ANYTHING TO DO WITH INFRASTRUCTURE, IT'S NOT NECESSARILY RIGHT. THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT TOM BE, BUT IT'S AN IMPROVEMENT THAT MAKES IT ATTRACTIVE. CAN WE PUT THAT UNDER THE BLANKET OF COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT? THE TWO ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT, ECONOMIC ECONOMIC IMPACT AND COMMUNITY. AND, AND THEN WE WOULD JUST DROP COMMUNITY FROM THE BACKSIDE OF FRONT ROYAL. 'CAUSE YOU CAN STILL USE THAT. SO FOR THE FRONT ROYAL, OUR, JUST FOR FRONT ROYAL DROP THE AND COMMUNITY. SO LEADERSHIP NECESSARY FOR FRONT ROYAL ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT. LEADERSHIP NECESSARY FOR FRONT ROYAL TO OPTIMIZE ECONOMIC IMPACT AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT. YEAH, I LIKE IT. JUST THE COMMUNITY AND TAKING OUT OPPORTUNITIES, RIGHT? YES. SAY IT AGAIN. TO PROVIDE LEADERSHIP NECESSARY FOR FRONT ROYAL TO OPTIMIZE ECONOMIC IMPACT AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT OR ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY. ALRIGHT. ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY. OPTIMIZE. SO TAKE OUT IMPACT AND MAKE THAT OPPORTUNITY. ISN'T THERE A BOARD GAME THAT DOES THIS WHERE YOU PUT THE WORD IN . SO TO PROVIDE LEADERSHIP NECESSARY FOR FRONT ROYAL TO OPTIMIZE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT. YEAH. IS IT OPPORTUNITIES, PLURAL? I THINK I SAID IT WRONG. I FEEL LIKE THAT'S, I THINK I FEEL LIKE SINGULAR IS FINE. OPPORTUNITY [00:05:01] IS LIKE KIND OF A, I LIKE SINGULAR, BUT I DON'T REALLY GET TO VOTE. SO I WHAT DO Y'ALL THINK? I MEAN, AMERICA'S LIKE THE LAND OF OPPORTUNITY. I THINK WE CAN GO WITH IT. RIGHT? RIGHT. SINGULAR. YEAH. OKAY. ARE YOU GUYS HAPPY WITH THAT? SOMEBODY'S GOTTA READ IT ONE MORE TIME. YEAH. I THINK NICK SHOULD DO IT. SURE. PROVIDE LEADERSHIP NECESSARY FOR FRONT ROYAL TO OPTIMIZE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT TO PROVIDE LEADERSHIP NECESSARY FOR FRONT ROYAL TO OPTIMIZE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT. YEAH. I, WHAT IS HERE TO SAY THAT IS JOE, I'M JUST WONDERING IF WE SHOULD DEFINE COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENTS. WELL, I THINK IT'S KIND OF INTENTIONALLY LEFT RELATIVELY BIG. WELL, WELL, SO I'LL REFER TO SAY A SOD GRANT PROGRAM. THAT'S WHAT I WOULD, I WOULD LINK IT TO THAT. OR, OR POTENTIALLY, YOU KNOW, LIKE THE WARREN COUNTY EDA, THEY HAVE, YOU KNOW, SMALL LOANS TO, YOU KNOW, UH, THAT A BUSINESS COULD TAKE OUT TO, UH, YOU KNOW, BUILD OUT A, A SPACE OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. BUT I DON'T, I DON'T THINK WE'RE MUCH WELL, I'LL JUST, I'LL JUST, I'LL JUST SAY COULD BE, UH, IS YOUR HESITATION THAT IF WE DON'T DEFINE IT SOMEONE ELSE WOULD? NO, IT WAS JUST, WHEN I READ IT, I'M LIKE, OKAY. AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENTS TO WHAT? FACILITATE ECONOMIC GROWTH OR, WELL, SOME PEOPLE THINK WE SHOULD BE TALKING ABOUT A PARKING GARAGE. NOW WE HAVE, WE HAVEN'T STARTED THAT CONVERSATION YET. DON'T KNOW WHERE IT'S GOING. THAT WOULD CERTAINLY BE A COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT, BUT SINCE WE HAVEN'T STARTED DISCUSSION, IT'S, YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT EVEN APPROPRIATE. BUT THAT WOULD BE, THAT MIGHT FIT IN THAT SPOT. I THINK A LOT OF THINGS COULD FALL INTO THE UMBRELLA OF COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT. RIGHT. ANYTHING INFRASTRUCTURE WISE OR JUST MAKING IT EASIER FOR THE PEOPLE THAT LIVE IN THE TOWN OF FRONT ROYAL IS A COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT. WHETHER THAT BE A FACADE GRANT TO MAKE THINGS EASIER ON THE EYES AS YOU'RE DRIVING THROUGH TOWN. OR IF IT'S A PARKING DECK SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO DRIVE DOWN MAIN STREET TWO OR THREE TIMES AS YOU PARK OR TAKING CARE OF LOANS FOR BLIGHTED PROPERTIES. YOU KNOW, A LOT CAN FALL UNDER THAT UMBRELLA OF COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT. YEAH. AND I THINK, I THINK SWITCHING IMPACT TO OPPORTUNITY ALSO HELPS, UM, KEEP THEM MORE SEPARATE TOO. BECAUSE IMPACT I THINK ON THE ONE HAND COULD BE AN UMBRELLA THAT YOU COULD THROW ANY OF THAT UNDER. 'CAUSE ALL OF THAT HAS AN IMPACT. BUT OPPORTUNITY, I THINK IS FUTURE LOOKING. UM, MORE SO. YEAH. OKAY. YOU WANNA READ IT ONE MORE TIME? YES, I CAN READ IT ONE MORE TIME. TO PROVIDE LEADERSHIP NECESSARY FOR FRONT ROYAL TO OPTIMIZE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY AND COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT. YOU HAVE A MOTION TO APPROVE THAT? OH NO, WE HAVE A MOTION. YEAH. I WITHDRAW. YOU GOTTA WITHDRAW YOU SUBSTITUTE MOTION. SURE. I MOVE THAT WE APPROVE THE AMENDED, UH, MISSION STATEMENT AS FOLLOWS, TO PROVIDE LEADERSHIP NECESSARY FOR FRONT ROYAL TO OPTIMIZE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY AND COMMUNITY ENCOURAGEMENT. SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR SIGNIFY SAYING AYE. AYE. AYE. GREAT. ALRIGHT. ALRIGHT. PRETTY QUICK DISCUSSION. CAME UP WITH A NEW ONE. YOU DIDN'T EVEN HAVE TO GO TO THE BOARD. DIDN'T EVEN HAVE TO GO TO THE BOARD. DIDN'T EVEN HAVE TO GO IN AND WRITE THINGS DOWN. SO GOAL SETTING, WE'RE ONTO THAT. MM-HMM. . UM, THOSE ARE THE FIVE THEMES THAT KIND OF BUBBLED UP OUT OF THE CONVERSATION AT THE WORK SESSION. DO WE FEEL THAT THOSE FIVE THEMES STILL ENCOMPASS WHAT YOU WANT TO DO NOW THAT WE'VE SAT WITH IT? WELL, WE CAN ALWAYS ADD OR SUBTRACT IF WE'RE FIND COURSE YOU KNOWS THE STARTING POINT. ABSOLUTELY. YOU KNOW, SO WE'RE NOT, WE'RE NOT GETTING MARRIED OR ANYTHING, BUT NOT TO MY KNOWLEDGE. NO. WHAT, WHAT'S IT'S THE LORD'S PLEASURE. SO I GUESS THIS IS WHERE THE PHRASING OF THE TAX BASE PHRASE WOULD COME IN. I DIDN'T KNOW IF THAT WAS SOMETHING I WOULD WANT TO PUT UNDER THEMES SINCE WE DIDN'T INCLUDE IT ANYWHERE ELSE. WELL, I MEAN, I WOULD, I WOULD THINK THAT THAT'S I WOULD THINK THAT ACTUALLY COMES THROUGH ALMOST ALL OUR, ALL THOSE THINGS. OKAY. I MEAN, THAT, THAT WOULD BE MY INTERPRETATION. [00:10:01] IS THAT, IS THAT, I MEAN, WE HAD, WE TALKED ABOUT A LOT OF DIFFERENT THINGS AND THEN WE STARTED PUTTING THEM INTO BUCKETS, RIGHT, JOE, RIGHT? CORRECT. AND SO, UM, SO SOME MORE DIRECTLY, SOME LESS DIRECTLY. I DON'T KNOW. WHAT DO YOU GUYS THINK? I GUESS EVERYTHING ON THIS LIST HAS AN OVERARCHING TEAM OF GROWING, GROWING THE TAX BASE. YEAH. ALL KIND OF ENCOMPASSED AND, AND WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE MORE MONEY FOR THE TOWN SO THAT WAY WE CAN SPEND IT ON THE TOWN. MM-HMM. . OKAY. AND ALL DOWN TAXES. YEP. AND I THINK THIS, I DON'T KNOW IF WE DECIDED WE WOULD MOVE IN THIS DIRECTION, BUT I THINK THERE WAS DISCUSSION ABOUT THIS AS ALMOST A, AS A COMMITTEE STRUCTURE AS EACH OF THESE BEING A COMMITTEE. UM, AND THAT'S THE WAY I'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT IT. AND I THINK ALL OF THOSE MAKE SENSE AS A COMMITTEE AND ALL OF THEM SERVE AS PURPOSE OF LIKE THE TAX OF THE, YOU KNOW, WORKING TO DIVERSIFY AND GROW THE TAX BASE. BUT I DON'T KNOW IF LIKE A TAX BASED COMMITTEE WOULD MAKE SENSE. 'CAUSE I THINK IT WOULD BE TOO NO, I DON'T WANT, I DON'T WANT S GOING AFTER . SO, UM, DO, DO WE WANT TO LIKE, LIKE, UM, I MEAN, WE'RE SUCH A SMALL BOARD. IT'S HARD TO BE COMMITTEES. IT'S HARD TO BE COMMITTEES, BUT MAYBE WE NEED TO ASSIGN RESPONSIBILITY. UM, I'D LIKE TO MAKE A SUGGESTION. YES, PLEASE. IS IS THERE ANY OF THESE THAT PERHAPS SPEAK MORE TO YOU THAT LIKE YOU'RE MORE PASSIONATE ABOUT AS AN INDIVIDUAL THAT MAYBE YOU'D WANNA CHAMPION SOME OF THESE THINGS AND HELP DRIVE A CONVERSATION? UM, FOR EXAMPLE, YOU KNOW, I KNOW THAT FRANK IS PRETTY PASSIONATE ABOUT LIKE YOUTH EDUCATION AND, AND THAT SORT OF THING THAT WE'VE TALKED ABOUT FALLING UNDER WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT. RIGHT? LIKE I, I CERTAINLY WOULDN'T SPEAK FOR HIM, BUT AS AN EXAMPLE THAT MAY, OH NO, HE'S NOT HERE. WE'RE GONNA . THAT MAY BE SOME, THAT MAY BE SOMETHING THAT HE WOULD BE PASSIONATE ABOUT LEADING THE CHARGE ON IS MY POINT. I THINK THAT'S VERY LOGICAL BASED ON HIS COMMENTS. SO, YOU KNOW, ARE THERE ANY OF THESE THINGS THAT MAYBE SPEAK TO YOU MORE THAN OTHERS? THEY'RE ALL IMPORTANT AND THEY'RE ALL GONNA SERVE THAT GREATER PURPOSE, BUT, RIGHT. I DON'T KNOW. JUST A THOUGHT. MM-HMM. , I MEAN, SO I, I WILL, I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, NICK AND I PROBABLY SHOULD TRY AND SIT IN ON ALL THESE MEETINGS, YOU KNOW, AND SO I DON'T, I I DON'T THINK I SHOULD HEAD ANY ONE OF THEM AS CHAIRMAN. YOU ARE CHAIR OF THE TAX BASED COMMITTEE. . YEAH. RIGHT. ALRIGHT. WHAT, WHAT DO YOU THINK, NICK? I MEAN, SIT IN ON, ON ALL OF THEM. YEAH, SURE. WELL, I MEAN, YOU KNOW, IF, IF THERE'S A MEETING YEAH. I WANNA BE PART OF ALL OF THESE. THE ONES THAT I THINK SPEAK MOSTLY TO ME ARE FUTURE BUSINESS ASSET DEVELOPMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE. WHAT KIND, YOU KNOW, WHAT IF WE SORT OF SCHEDULE OUR WAY THROUGH THESE EACH TIME, YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN? EITHER IT BE DURING THE WORK SESSIONS OR THESE MONTHLY MEETINGS. UM, OR WE KIND OF, YOU KNOW, PUT OUR, WRAP OUR HEADS AROUND ONE FOR MAYBE BOTH OF THOSE FOR ONE MONTH. MM-HMM. , MOVE ON TO THE NEXT ONE. HOPEFULLY THINGS, YOU KNOW, WHOEVER MIGHT BE RUNNING OR OR SPEARHEADING ONE COMMITTEE SAY CAN, YOU KNOW, PROVIDE ANY UPDATES AT THE BEGINNING OF A MEETING. UM, GET THAT OUT OF THE WAY. UH, AND THEN, AND THEN WE MOVE INTO THE NEXT ONE ON THE LIST. AND THEN MM-HMM. KIND OF JUST KIND OF KEEP GOING AROUND AND, AND UNTIL WE'VE GOT SOME REAL THINGS GOING, I THINK THAT'S A GREAT IDEA. JUST WORK OFF OF EACH THEME. SAY, ALL RIGHT, WHAT ARE, WHAT ARE OUR NEW IDEAS FOR WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT? WHAT, WHAT DO WE HAVE GOING ON THAT WITH EXISTING BUSINESSES THAT WE CAN HELP WITH? AND JUST CREATE A RUNNING LIST OF NOTES, IDEAS, AND PROJECTS THAT WE CAN DO FOR EACH OF THESE THEMES. AND THAT WAY WE'RE FOCUSED AS A GROUP, ESPECIALLY NOW. MM-HMM. BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY WE'RE, WHAT YOU POINTED OUT, WE'RE SMALL. IT'S HARD TO DIVIDE INTO COMMITTEES WHEN . RIGHT, RIGHT. IT REALLY, ASIDE FROM YOU, YOU KNOW, YOU GUYS ARE, YOU ARE THE CHAIR AND YOU HAVE YOUR, YOU KNOW, FOR THE TREASURER. MM-HMM. . SO IT PRETTY MUCH VICE NOW HE'S VICE CHAIR NOW. NOW VICE CHAIR UP. OKAY. SO, UH, IT WOULD PRETTY MUCH BE EVERYONE WOULD HAVE THEIR OWN INDIVIDUAL COMMITTEE. IT WOULD JUST BE, I, I LIKE THE IDEA OF US ALL WORKING TOGETHER ON, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE EVEN IF I WAS THE HEAD OF MY OWN COMMITTEE, I WOULD BRING IT AND PRESENT EVERYONE WHATEVER IDEA I HAD. MM-HMM. . AND WE WOULD ALL DISCUSS IT. SO I, I THINK, [00:15:01] I THINK WE SHOULD DO IT THAT WAY. I MEAN, I, I THINK THAT WE SHOULD, I HONESTLY, WE NEED A WORK SESSION IN TWO WEEKS AND, AND PUT AND PUT SOME OF THESE THINGS ON IT. SO, UM, MY SUGGESTION WOULD BE IS THAT I, I WENT THROUGH THE WEEKEND, I WENT THROUGH THIS IMPLEMENTATION MATRIX ON THE COMP PLAN. UHHUH, THERE ARE A LOT OF GOALS THAT WILL FIT IN ALL THESE BUCKETS THAT WE HAVE. MM-HMM. LIKE DAVID, I KNOW DAVID, YOU'VE BEEN WORKING ON CREATING SOMEWHAT OF AN INVENTORY OF EXISTING BUSINESSES THAT THAT ACTUAL GOAL IS IN HERE AS WELL AS AN INCUBATOR SPACE. AND SO I THINK MAYBE OUR FIRST STEP WOULD BE TO MAYBE SEND THIS LIST OUT AND THEN HAVE YOU PUT IT IN YOUR BUCKETS AND THEN WE CAN RANK ON WHAT OUR PRIORITIES ARE. AND I THINK THAT YOU'RE GONNA SEE THESE BUCKETS GET FILLED UP PRETTY QUICK WITH JUST THESE GOALS ESTABLISHED. AND THEN, THEN WE CAN ADD OUR OWN END YEAH. WHERE WE FIND THOSE MISSING PIECES. YEAH. WHILE WE'RE GOING THROUGH THAT. RIGHT. ANOTHER IDEA MAY POP INTO OUR HEAD AND WE SHOULD KEEP TRACK OF THAT. SO MY THOUGHT WOULD BE THAT WE COULD SEND THIS OUT AS A SURVEY TO THE GROUP IN THE BUCKETS THAT WE THINK THAT ARE IN THE BUCKETS AND YOU CAN MOVE 'EM AROUND. BUT THE IDEA WOULD BE THAT WE WOULD COME BACK TO THE NEXT MEETING AND YOU COULD AT LEAST HAVE YOUR TOP THREE. AND THEN WE CAN FIND OUT WHETHER THERE'S SOME, SOME SYNERGY AMONG THE GROUP TO GO AFTER THESE GOALS. I THINK THAT SOUNDS GREAT. UM, SO MY TAKEAWAY WOULD BE, IF IT'S THE PLEASURE OF THE BOARD, IS THAT WE WOULD SEND SOMETHING OUT BY FRIDAY WITH A LIST OF THESE FOR THE, IN WHAT BUCKETS WE PERCEIVE THEM TO BE IN. AND THEN YOU CAN ORGANIZE 'EM. AND THEN WHEN WE HAVE EITHER A WORK SESSION OR THE NEXT MEETING, WE'LL HAVE SOMETHING TO WORK OFF AND START KIND OF MOVING AROUND. WE ALREADY HAVE WHAT THE RANKINGS ARE AND THAT SORT OF THING, AS OPPOSED TO HAVING TO DO IT AT THE TABLE. OKAY. OKAY. AND THEREFORE WE CAN GET THE INPUT OF TOM AND FRANK AS WELL AS A GROUP AND THEN, AND, AND THEN ASSIGN FRANK ALL THE WORK. AND TOM AND TOM EQUALLY. YES. . NO, I, I THINK THAT'S GREAT. I THINK THAT'S A GREAT RECOMMENDATION. ALRIGHT. SO DO YOU WANNA SCHEDULE THE NEXT WORK SESSION? YEAH, WE CAN IF, UM, IF THE BOARD IS PREPARED. ALRIGHT. WE CAN'T DO THIS ON A MONTHLY BASIS. MAYBE EVENTUALLY I AGREE. IF IT'S 9:00 AM ON A THURSDAY, WE CAN'T, I I CAN'T DO IT ON A RIGHT, RIGHT. OKAY. WELL THERE ARE TWO LESS PEOPLE HERE TO INFLUENCE. SO, I MEAN, LET'S START WITH WHAT'S YOUR AVAILABILITY AGAIN? I, IF WE CAN DO IT NOON AND NOT ON A TUESDAY OR WEDNESDAY, THAT WOULD BE MY PREFERENCE. SO, SO NOON ON A WHAT? OR, OR IN THE EVENING? NOON OR MONDAY OR FRIDAY. MONDAY, THURSDAY, DAVID, RIGHT. MM-HMM. MONDAY'S SORT OF ALWAYS. YEAH. THAT'S SORT OF MY BEST. AND THEN AS THE WEEK PROGRESSES AGAINST DEAD WORSE. RIGHT. RIGHT. SO ON 19TH, THAT'S, THAT'S A HOLIDAY PRESIDENT'S DAY, ACCORDING TO MY PHONE. IT IS CORRECT. MM-HMM. . SO, UM, I DON'T KNOW HOW THAT WOULD WORK. THE TOWN IS CLOSED PROBABLY. YEAH. THE TOWN IS CLOSED. I MEAN, WE COULD, WE COULD OPEN UP THE OFFICE FOR THE MEETING IF PEOPLE WANT TO HAVE THAT MEETING ON THE PRESIDENT STAFF. IF THAT'D HAVE TO GET STAFF THERE AS WELL. I MEAN, WE COULD PUT, IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE EVERY TWO WEEKS. WHAT ABOUT THE 26TH THEN? I, I, MY RECOMMENDATION WOULD BE THE BOARD IS TRY TO KIND OF STAY CONSISTENT. I THINK MONDAY SEEMS TO APPEAL TO MOST PEOPLE. MM-HMM. . AND SO, UM, I THINK THAT AS LONG AS WE CAN HAVE IT BEFORE OUR NEXT REGULAR MEETING SO THAT WE CAN KEEP THAT MOMENTUM GOING. SO, UM, 26 FOR ME IS, IS FINE. IS THAT OKAY WITH YOU? IS EVERYBODY ELSE IN HERE? YEAH, IT WORKS FOR ME. BE OUT TOWN. AH, COME ON MAN. , , LAKE TAHOE, RACKING UP THE ABSENCES. SO THE VERY NEXT MONDAY IS THE REGULARLY SCHEDULED. SO, UH, I MEAN NEXT WEEK, THE 12TH, I CAN DO THAT. IF WE DO THE 12TH, THEN WHAT WE COULD DO IS WE COULD GET OUT THE SURVEY OF THOSE GOALS BY FRIDAY AND THEN YOU CAN BRING 'EM THAT MONDAY AND WE CAN THEN PRIORITIZE THEM. IS THE 1230 START [00:20:01] FEASIBLE? THAT'S FINE. YEAH. THAT WORKS. 1230. 1230. 1230 INSTEAD OF 12. OH, I'M FINE. SECOND. YEAH. WHAT DO WE NEED? OKAY, THAT WORKS FOR ME. CHAIRMAN. YES SIR. I GOING TO HARRISONBURG FOR THE MCDONALD'S SENTENCING ON THE 12TH. OH, IS THAT HAPPENING? THAT, THAT'S IN MARCH. THIS FEBRUARY WE'RE TALKING ABOUT. WHERE IS THAT? FEBRUARY? YEAH, NEXT MONDAY. OH, WOW. HUH. WHEN IS THAT? WE'LL JUST HAVE TO CATCH. THANKS ROGER. CATCH IT IN THE LL HAVE TO CATCH THE HIGHLIGHTS ON, I HAVE TO READ ABOUT IN THE FUNNY PAGE. HARRISONBURG OR STAN? IT HARRISONBURG OR STAN HARRISONBURG. UH, OKAY. SO WE'RE LOOKING AT FEBRUARY 12TH AT 1230. IS THAT CORRECT, MR. CHAIRMAN? YES. OKAY. RIGHT. CORRECT. OKAY. ALL ALL RIGHT. UH, SORRY. PUT THAT IN. SO, UM, CAN WE MOVE ON FROM THAT THEN, I GUESS? CORRECT. MM-HMM. ALL WHOLE BUSINESS. UH, THE NAME CHANGE HAVE A PRESS RELEASE HERE. THAT'S A DRAFT THAT'S IN YOUR HAND. A DRAFT. YES. A DRAFT. I FORGOT TO PUT THE DRAFT WATERMARK ON THERE, BUT IT'S A DRAFT . UH, NATURALLY I'LL NEED TO MODIFY THE MISSION STATEMENT NOW GIVEN THE NEW CHANGES, BUT JUST A DRAFT. SO WHATEVER YOU'D LIKE TO INCLUDE, I'M HAPPY TO DESCRIBE. I'LL START OFF BY SAYING THIS IS AN EXCELLENT DRAFT. I LIKE THE VIBE OF THE FUTURE. MM-HMM. . GREAT JOB. JOB. YOU GUYS WANT ME TO DO SOMETHING? YEAH. I THINK MY ONE, UH, COMMENT AND IT IS VERY GOOD, IS THE, UM, RIGHT IN THE, THE SECOND PARAGRAPH, UM, INSTEAD OF THEY HOPE TO CREATE THAT VISION, I THINK MAYBE THEY HOPE TO REALIZE THAT VISION. OOH, I LIKE THAT. YEAH, I LIKE THAT. I HOPE YOU REALIZE THAT. YEAH. I MESSED AROUND WITH CREATE A FEW TIMES LIKE ENACT AND STRUCTURE AND DESIGN. YEAH. SO I, I LIKE REALIZE THAT'S GOOD. WHAT ELSE Y'ALL GOT? ARE WE STILL HUNG UP ON GROWING THE TAX BASE VERSUS DIVERSIFYING THE TAX BASE? NOW? IT COULD BE GROWING A DIVERSE TAX BASE, GROWING A DIVERSE TECH SPACE. I MEAN, IF YOU REALLY WANT IT, I THOUGHT I, I THOUGHT I HAD LIKE THIS HUGE LIGHT BULB MOMENT WHEN I WAS WATCHING A VIDEO RERUN OF THE MINUTES AND I WAS LIKE, DIVERSIFY. WHY DIDN'T THEY THINK OF THIS? BUT, UH, THAT'S AN IDEA. JUST AN IDEA. DIVERSIFY A GROWING TAX BASE. HMM. I'M GOOD WITH IT AS IS. YEAH. I MEAN, UH, WHAT YOU WANTED TO MAKE THAT MODIFICATION TO THE, TO THE MISSION. THE MISSION. YEAH, OF COURSE. RIGHT. AND WE'LL JUST USE WHAT WE'VE ALREADY AGREED ON. WE'RE NOT GONNA GO THROUGH THOSE WORDS , RIGHT? YEAH. YEAH. I THINK THIS IS GONNA BE A GREAT OPPORTUNITY. KIND OF A REINTRODUCE, LET 'EM KNOW THAT WE'RE UP AND RUNNING AND WE'VE GOT A VISION AND A MISSION. I I I, I THINK THIS IS PARAMOUNT TO GET THIS OUT THIS WEEK. ANYBODY WANNA MAKE A MOTION TO APPROVE THE PRESS RELEASE WITH THE EDITS? IF YOU ALL WANNA SEE IT AGAIN BEFORE IT GOES OUT, I'M HAPPY TO SEND IT OUT ONCE AGAIN. I DON'T WANT TO SEE IT. OKAY. OH YEAH, I'D BE FINE THEN. OKAY. YEAH. SO THE, THE EDITS BEING THE UPDATED MISSION STATEMENT AND THEN REALIZE INSTEAD OF CREATE, THOSE ARE THE TWO EDITS I HAVE NOTED. YEAH. OKAY. YEAH. UH, SO SECOND, SOMEBODY, I SECOND IT. ALRIGHT. ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? ALL IN FAVOR SIGNIFY AS SAYING AYE A I GREAT REFERENCE MATERIAL. UH, WHAT I MAPS. OH, OKAY. YOU GUYS HAD MENTIONED THAT HAVING SOME BIG MAPS COULD BE HELPFUL. SO WE'VE GOT THE CURRENT ZONING MAP [00:25:01] AS WELL AS THE FUTURE LAND USE MAP FROM THE NEWLY ADOPTED COMP PLAN. UH, THE PIECE OF PAPER THAT'S STUCK TO THE WHITEBOARD IS THE KEY FOR THE FUTURE LAND USE MAP. WE DO HAVE THESE DIGITALLY AS WELL. MM-HMM. . UM, AND WE'LL MAKE SURE THAT YOU'VE GOT THOSE. JUST, UM, I KNOW YOU GUYS ARE REALLY IMPRESSED WITH HOW I GLUED THOSE TO THAT SCIENCE CARE BOARD. MM-HMM. . MM-HMM. . UM, SO THIS, THIS ZONING MAP. MM-HMM. IT, IT REFLECTS 'CAUSE I'M NOT, THAT'S THE MOST CURRENT ALL RIGHT. ZONING MAP. SO IT JUST WANNA BE CLEAR YEAH. THAT HAS THE NEW COMPREHENSIVE PLAN IN IT OR NO? THAT I THINK THAT'S, THAT'S A STICKY QUESTION. UM, I, I KNOW THAT THERE HAVE HAVE BEEN SOME MODIFICATIONS THAT ARE RIGHT PENDING THE MOST CURRENT MAP THAT WOULD BE BE BY PLANNING AND ZONING AS OF THIS DATE, OF THIS DATE AS OF FRIDAY AFTERNOON AT GOTCHA. GOTCHA. YEAH, WHEN I, WHEN I DISCUSSED PLANNING DIRECTOR. YEAH. IT'S, YOU KNOW, IT'S, IT'S A MOVING TARGET. YES. NOW IF THERE, AND I THINK THAT'S WHY SHE ACTUALLY GAVE ME THE SUGGESTION, THE PLANNING DIRECTOR THAT I BRING THE FUTURE PLAN USE MAP AS WELL. MM-HMM. . MM-HMM. , UM, TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF KIND OF WHERE THE VISION WAS HEADED. OKAY. BUT AS SOON AS THERE'S ANY SORT OF MODIFICATION, WE'LL GET YOU A NEW MAP, UM, VISUALLY AND IN PRINT. AND THE COLORS ON THE ZONING MAP AND THE COLORS ON THE FUTURE LAND USE MAP DIFFERENT, THE SAME NO KEY, NOT SOMEWHAT DIFFERENT. THAT KEY LOU GOES DEEP. OKAY. ALRIGHT. OKAY. OKAY. OH, OKAY. AND THIS HAS ITS OWN KEY. I'M SORRY. MM-HMM. , I MISSED THAT. AND , AND I'VE GOT PDFS OF THESE GUYS. WE GET 'EM TO YOU IN YOUR EMAIL. THAT WAY YOU HAVE THEM AS WELL. ALRIGHT. THANK YOU. OF COURSE. YEAH. ANYWAY, I I THINK HAVING THESE, YOU KNOW, IN THE ROOM YEAH. BE HELPFUL AND THEY, WE WILL CONTINUE TO BE. SO, UH, WE WANTED TO PUT THIS ON THE AGENDA TO MAKE SURE THAT WE, THAT I HAD A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF OTHER MATERIALS THAT YOU MIGHT BE LOOKING FOR IN ADDITION TO THESE. THAT'S ALL. OKAY, GREAT. THERE WAS NO HOMEWORK ATTACHED TO THESE . AWESOME. THANK YOU. OF COURSE, WE WILL. UH, I, I DIDN'T BRING IT DOWN, BUT WE DO HAVE A PRINTED COPY OF THE COMP PLAN AS WELL, SO WE'LL HAVE A PAPER COPY HERE. AND SO YEAH. AS, AS LIZZIE MENTIONED, IF THERE'S OTHER THINGS YOU CAN THINK OF THAT WOULD BE GOOD VISUALS, LET US KNOW. BECAUSE WHAT OUR INTENT IS MOVING FORWARD IS TO BRING THESE MAPS EVERY MEETING SO, YOU KNOW, IF ANYBODY HAS A QUESTION OR WHATEVER, WE CAN ACTUALLY POINT AND LOOK AND RIGHT. AND HAVE A GOOD DISCUSSION. MM-HMM, AWESOME. YEAH, I DON'T KNOW ABOUT YOU GUYS. I'M VERY VISUAL. LIKE IF I CAN'T SEE IT, IT'S NOT, IT DOESN'T COMPUTE FOR ME. SO YEAH, THE REFERENCE MATERIALS YOU WILL NEED WILL CONTINUE TO GROW, I'M SURE. UM, BUT THIS IS A START. LOOKS GOOD. THANK YOU. YOU GUYS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT? THOSE, I MEAN, I THINK IT'S DEFINITELY GONNA BE A USEFUL TOOL. UM, I HAD, I HAD THE GENERAL IDEA THAT I WANT TO TALK ABOUT AT SOME POINT. IT'S MORE JUST LIKE A BROAD IDEA OF SOMETHING MAYBE A, A LONG-TERM GOAL PROJECT. AND THIS WOULD BE HELPFUL, YOU KNOW, BUT AS FAR AS, UH, I CAN, I CAN JUST GO AHEAD AND BRING IT UP RIGHT NOW. IT'S JUST, UH, SO I MEAN WE'RE, YOU KNOW, NOW WE'RE THE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT BOARD. SO LIKE WHAT DO WE WANT TO DO WITH THAT? WHAT DO WE, WHAT ARE LIKE OUR LONG TERM GOALS AS FAR AS LIKE, UH, UH, IF WE WANT TO FACILITATE, YOU KNOW, BUSINESSES, NEW BUSINESSES, UM, AND I KNOW LIKE THE TOWN COUNCIL TALKS ABOUT LOTTED PROPERTIES AND STUFF LIKE THAT, AND, UH, TAKING ADVANTAGE OF, UH, STUFF LIKE THAT. MAYBE TRYING TO FACILITATE USE OF PROPERTIES THAT AREN'T BEING USED AND STUFF LIKE THAT. UM, SO I WAS THINKING MAYBE, AND THIS IS JUST, YOU KNOW, SPIT BONE AND IT WOULD BE PROBABLY LIKE A LONG TERM PROJECT. UH, WE HAVE LIKE BASICALLY TWO DIFFERENT CATEGORIES. WE HAVE PROPERTIES THAT ARE EITHER CLOSED BUSINESSES, BLIGHTED PROPERTIES, UM, VACANT PROPERTIES, AND WE JUST CREATE AN INVENTORY OF ALL OF THAT WITHIN THE TOWN. AND THEN, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A LIST OF DESIRED BUSINESSES, UM, WHETHER IT BE CHICK-FIL-A'S MM-HMM. OR YOU KNOW, WHATEVER CORPORATE, YOU KNOW, THINGS WE WANT. UM, AND WE TRY TO FIGURE OUT, [00:30:01] YOU KNOW, AND THE GOAL IS TO, YOU KNOW, MERGE THE TWO, RIGHT? MM-HMM. . UM, SO YOU KNOW HOW THAT GETS DONE, YOU KNOW, IT LEAVES A LOT OF ROOM FOR DECISIONS AND STUFF. MM-HMM. . UM, BUT ESSENTIALLY, YOU KNOW, I GUESS THAT WOULD BE SORT OF A TWO COMMITTEE THING. YOU KNOW, YOU'VE GOT PEOPLE DETERMINING WHAT ARE THE AVAILABLE PROPERTIES, THE BLIGHTED PROPERTIES, THE CLOSED BUSINESSES, YOU KNOW. UM, AND THEN I GUESS, YOU KNOW, THAT THAT WOULD BE A KIND OF PROBABLY A, A BOOTS ON THE GROUND SORT OF THING OF, UH, YOU KNOW, MAYBE YOU WOULD, WE WOULD HAVE TO REACH OUT TO THOSE PROPERTY OWNERS AND SEE, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S PREVENTING YOU FROM SELLING OR WHAT'S, UH, YOU KNOW, WHAT'S THE BARRIER TO USE RIGHT HERE? RIGHT. UM, AND, YOU KNOW, WE COULD HAVE A SPREADSHEET OR WHAT HAVE YOU, UM, WITH ALL THESE LISTED OUT. UM, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, ON THE OTHER SIDE HAVE, YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING, UH, ALL THE BUSINESSES THAT WE WOULD LIKE AND THEN WE COULD PITCH, YOU KNOW, TO THOSE GROUPS. MM-HMM. , UM, THESE ARE OUR OPPORTUNITIES, YOU KNOW, AND THIS, YOU KNOW, THIS IS LIKE KIND OF A BIG IDEA. IT WOULD BE LIKE A LONG TERM PROJECT OR GOAL. UM, BE MATCHMAKER. YEAH, EXACTLY. THAT'S WHAT, THAT'S WHAT I'VE BEEN KIND OF, THAT'S KIND OF OUR FUNCTION WORKING ON A LITTLE BIT. THAT'S SORT OF WHAT I'VE BEEN PITCHING FOR ALL ALONG. BECAUSE AGAIN, NOT, YOU KNOW, THERE'S ONLY A FEW CHUNKS OF WIDE OPEN LAND AND IT'S REALLY NOT ALL THAT WIDE OPEN. AND, AND A LOT OF IT'S PRIVATELY OWNED, NOT VERY MUCH OF IT'S MUNICIPALLY OWNED. IT, IT'S, IT'S KIND OF A HARD THING. SO IN A WAY, WE, WE, WE ALMOST DO BECOME REAL ESTATE AGENTS OF, OF SORTS, UM, TRYING TO PUT, YOU KNOW, UH, THIS ONE PERSON WHO MAY BE SITTING ON A PROPERTY, THEY'RE NOT REAL SURE WHAT THEY CAN DO WITH IT, MAYBE. RIGHT. UM, I KNOW IN MY EXPERIENCE IN FRONT ROYAL, I'VE SEEN A LOT OF ANXIOUS LANDLORDING WHERE THEY WILL SIGN THE FIRST LEASE THAT COMES TO THEM. WHETHER IT'S A, WHETHER IT'S EITHER A SOLID BUSINESS OR EVEN A GOOD TENANT. UM, AND, YOU KNOW, JUST TO TRY TO GET THAT REVENUE AND, AND, YOU KNOW, I, I KNOW THAT, AND, AND I THINK, I WOULD ASSUME I SHOULD SAY, UH, ANYONE THAT GETS INTO THAT SORT OF REAL ESTATE, YOU KNOW, THAT'S THE IDEA IS OBVIOUSLY TO GENERATE SOME INCOME. MM-HMM. . BUT A TWO MONTH, A TWO MONTH LEASE, AND THEN TRYING TO GET THE REST OF THE YEAR OUT OF THE TENANT THAT, YOU KNOW, HAS GONE DRY, ISN'T, ISN'T GONNA DO YOU ANY GOOD. AND SO THERE, THERE'S LOTS OF, YOU KNOW, THAT KIND OF THING. AND, AND SO I WAS TRYING TO SAY, YOU KNOW, YES, WE NEED TO INVENTORY WHAT'S THERE, WHAT'S OCCUPIED, WHAT'S NOT OCCUPIED, KIND OF GET AN IDEA OF THE SPACE INVOLVED, BE IT A BUILDING OR, OR ACREAGE. UM, BECAUSE I KNOW THAT A LOT OF THESE S THEY ALREADY KNOW WHAT THEIR, WHAT THEIR FOOTPRINT LOOKS LIKE OR WHAT THEY NEED. UM, AND SO WE NEED TO HAVE KIND OF A, LIKE YOU'RE SAYING THAT DATABASE WHERE IT CAN BE A LITTLE SIMPLIFIED. WE SAY, OKAY, CONNECTS. YEAH. LIKE THESE, YOU KNOW, SAY THESE FIVE, THESE FIVE PEOPLE OVER HERE WANNA, THEY DON'T MIND, YOU KNOW, KIND OF WORKING TOGETHER TO, TO, YOU KNOW, UH, UNIFY A SPACE OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. LIKE, YOU KNOW, ALONG MAIN STREET THERE'S, I DON'T KNOW, MAYBE 10 TO 12 OWNERS OF, OF A LOT OF THE PROPERTY. MM-HMM. , UM, YOU KNOW, SO AGAIN, THAT, BUT THERE'S ONLY A FEW THAT ARE CONNECTED THERE. YOU KNOW, YOU REALLY CAN'T, I DON'T THINK ANYONE'S REALLY INTERESTED IN TEARING THINGS DOWN TO, YOU KNOW, OR IF THEY EVEN COULD, YOU KNOW, TO CREATE SOMETHING LARGER, BIGGER, BETTER. UM, BUT YOU KNOW, THAT THAT'S, THAT'S KIND OF THE WAY I'VE BEEN LOOKING AT IT AS, AS THE, OUR ONLY WAYS FORWARD BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE, YOU KNOW, THIS BIG THING THAT WE CAN, THAT WE CAN DO, UM, THE, THE THINGS THAT WE'RE, YOU KNOW, LOOSELY TIED TOGETHER WITH THE, THE WARREN COUNTY, IT, IT'S HARD TO REALIZE WHAT THE, YOU KNOW, WHAT WILL EVER BECOME OF, OF THAT. YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY PEOPLE WANT, YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE A COMMITTEE DEVOTED TO DOING SOMETHING WITH THOSE PROPERTIES AS WELL. SO, YOU KNOW, UM, OBVIOUSLY, AND, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THAT SITS IN THE FRONT ROYAL, MOST OF THE, I MEAN, UH, THE, THE FORMER BOARD, OR I SHOULDN'T SAY A FORMER BOARD, BUT EARLY ON, UH, WE HAD SOMEONE FROM WARREN COUNTY EDA COME AND GIVE US A PRESENTATION [00:35:01] AND, AND I THINK IT WAS LIKE NINE OUT OF 12 PROPERTIES WE'RE ACTUALLY IN THE TOWN OF FRONT ROYAL. UM, SOMETHING, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, JUST SPITBALLING NUMBER THERE, . RIGHT, RIGHT. YOU KNOW, BUT I MEAN, YEAH, I THINK THAT WE DEFINITELY DO NEED TO KIND OF, YOU KNOW, CREATE THAT HANDSHAKE BECAUSE THAT'S WHERE, YOU KNOW, THAT MATCHMAKING OR WHATEVER YOU WANT TO CALL IT IS, IS WHAT'S GOING TO GET THIS THING STARTED. RIGHT. SO THAT, I MEAN, SO THOSE ARE GONNA FALL UNDER EITHER FUTURE BUSINESS OR ASSETS ASSET DEVELOPMENT DEVELOPMENT. MM-HMM. . AND SO THAT'S, WE'LL GET INTO DEEPER DISCUSSION THERE AS A, YOU KNOW, AS A GROUP. YEAH. RIGHT. BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE, YOU'RE, YOU'RE RIGHT. YOU'RE ON IT, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, THERE'S SO MANY, WE COULD APPROACH IT IN A LOT OF DIFFERENT WAYS. TALK ABOUT ACTIVELY REACHING OUT TO BLIGHTED PROPERTIES OR UNUSED PROPERTIES OR WHAT HAVE YOU. BUT WE COULD ALSO USE LIZZIE TO PUT OUT PRESS RELEASES AND STUFF, SAY, OR EVEN CREATE A PORTAL ON OUR WEBSITE. OR IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN, YOU KNOW, UH, USING YOUR SPACE FOR A BUSINESS AND WANT TO PUT OUT THERE, YOU KNOW, WE COULD CREATE A FORM FOR THAT OR WHAT HAVE YOU SO THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY GIVE US THE INFORMATION, UM, THEY COULD FILL OUT A DATING PROFILE , SO TO SPEAK, FOR A POTENTIAL BUSINESS. SO, UM, I MEAN, THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT WAYS WE COULD APPROACH IT, YOU KNOW, UM, AGAIN, I MEAN, THERE'S AN EMAIL HERE FROM A WOMAN WHO WANTS TO GET SOMETHING STARTED. SHE'S LOOKING FOR SOME DEGREE OF FINANCING. IT WAS A QUESTION I WAS GONNA BRING TO JOE A. LITTLE LATER. UH, THERE IS AN EXISTING, IT WAS ON THE WARREN COUNTY WEBSITE. WARREN COUNTY EDA, OR WARREN COUNTY FRONT ROYAL EDA, UH, WEBSITE YEARS AGO. I'VE INQUIRED ABOUT IT SEVERAL TIMES IN THREE DIFFERENT TOWN MANAGERS AND NO ONE ABOUT WHAT THERE IS A TAX INCENTIVE, I DON'T KNOW, I CAN'T REMEMBER IF IT'S DOWNTOWN PEOPLE OR SALES TAX. YES. IF YOU LOCATE A BUSINESS IN, IN THE TOWN OF FRONT ROYAL MM-HMM. THERE IS, IT'S, IT'S A TAX INCENTIVE. YOU MEET CERTAIN QUALIFICATIONS YES. YOU KNOW, JOBS TAX AND IN CERTAIN DISTRICTS. CORRECT. YEAH. AND, AND THAT WAS ON THE WARREN COUNTY WEBSITE, BUT THEN NO ONE IN FRONT ROYAL SEEMED TO KNOW REALLY THE NEXT STEP. RIGHT. YOU KNOW, THERE WASN'T A FORM. SO, I MEAN, SO, SO THAT, THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING WE NEED TO MM-HMM. PUT ON OUR MENU OF, YOU KNOW, INVESTIGATING. YEAH. YEAH. SO, UH, I MEAN, UM, LIZ AND I MET WITH, UM, A LADY FRIDAY. UM, AND, YOU KNOW, I THINK YOU GUYS ALL GOT HER EMAIL AND, UH, AND SO SHE'S, YOU KNOW, LOOKING, SHE LIVES IN STRASBURG AND SHE WANTS TO OPEN, YOU KNOW, HER BUSINESS HERE IN, IN FRONT ROYAL MM-HMM. . AND SO WE'RE TRYING TO HELP HER WITH THAT. UM, SHE, SHE WANT MAYBE WANTS TO BUY A PROPERTY AND BUILD IT OUT. I DON'T KNOW. LIZ, YOU WANT TO YEAH. SHE'S AN EXISTING BUSINESS THAT'S LOOKING TO EXPAND INTO A BRICK AND MORTAR. UM, AND SO SHE IS, SHE HAS A SPECIFIC SET OF NEEDS THAT SHE'S LOOKING FOR. YOU KNOW, DAVID GAVE A GREAT EXAMPLE ABOUT, YOU KNOW, HOW MUCH SQUARE FOOTAGE YOU NEED AND THAT SORT OF THING. MM-HMM. . SO, YOU KNOW, AT THIS POINT, SHE'S ACTUALLY FOUND A SPACE THAT SHE'S ACTIVELY SEEKING, WHICH IS GREAT. SO NOW SHE'S, SHE'S FIGURING OUT WHAT, WHAT THOSE OTHER HURDLES ARE, UM, TO, TO BE ABLE TO EITHER ACQUIRE THAT SPACE OR, OR FIND A DIFFERENT OPTION. UM, BUT IT WAS, IT WAS GREAT TO HAVE THAT OPPORTUNITY TO CHAT WITH HER AND SEE KIND OF WHERE WE COULD HELP FACILITATE SOME OF THOSE CONVERSATIONS. UM, YOU KNOW, I WAS REALLY THINKING SHE WAS GONNA NEED HELP FINDING A SPACE. I DIDN'T REALIZE THAT SHE HAD ALREADY GOTTEN TO THAT POINT, WHICH IS GREAT. SO, YOU KNOW, I, I, EVERYONE'S QUESTION QUESTIONS ARE VERY CONSISTENT THAT, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR WHAT ARE THE FINANCING OPTIONS, WHAT ARE THE GRANT OPTIONS, THAT KIND OF THING. SO IF WE CAN BUILD, UH, A DIRECTORY, FOR LACK OF A BETTER WORD, UM, TO BE ABLE TO, TO SHARE THOSE, NOT EVEN JUST OUR OWN RESOURCES, BUT THE OTHER ONES THAT EXIST, AND WE ALL KNOW THERE'S DOZENS OUT THERE. UM, I, I THINK THAT'S, THAT'S A GREAT SERVICE THAT WE CAN PROVIDE TO EXISTING BUSINESS, NEW BUSINESS. I THINK I READ THAT, UH, WARREN COUNTY, EDA HAD STARTED UP THE USDA PROGRAM AGAIN, I'M NOT SURE. I BELIEVE SO, YES. RURAL BUSINESS. I HOPE SO. I GAVE, I GAVE HER , WE SHARED THAT WITH HER, SO WE HOPE SO. YES. YEAH. THERE WAS SORT OF A, A, A PERIOD WHERE THEY, UM, OR A LITTLE DORMANT MAYBE. YEAH, RIGHT. NO, I, I KNOW FOR SURE THAT THEY HAVE. AND, UM, I THINK THEY HAVE A COUPLE HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS TO, TO LOAN, YOU KNOW, EACH, EACH TIME IT CAME UP TO 150. WELL, NO, NO, I'M SAYING THEIR, THEIR TOTAL POOL OH, OKAY. I BELIEVE IS A COUPLE HUNDRED [00:40:01] THOUSAND DOLLARS AND BE EVERYWHERE FROM 5,000 TO, I'M NOT SURE WHAT THE TOP NUMBER WOULD BE, BUT, UM, I WOULDN'T WANT TO SPEAK FOR THEM. BUT, BUT ANYWAY, IT'S OUT THERE. AND, UH, YEAH. SO, ALL RIGHT. UH, ANY OTHER NEW BUSINESS? I HAD A QUESTION, AND THIS IS JUST AGAIN, JUST FROM WATCHING THE MINUTES OF THE CLOSED MEETING, UH, ABOUT LIKE THE EMAIL OR SOMETHING. WE HAVEN'T HAD ANY CLOSED MEETINGS. THE WORK SESSION MEETING, , THERE HAVE BEEN NO CLOSED MEETINGS. THE, THE WORK SESSION, UM, I DIDN'T KNOW IF THERE WAS LIKE A SEPARATE EMAIL FOLDER. I DON'T THINK I GOT WHATEVER EMAIL WAS IN DISCUSSION. I FIXED THAT FOR YOU. OKAY. YEAH. ALRIGHT, THAT'S GREAT TRANSITION TO TALK ABOUT POINT OF CONTACT. THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT CAME UP IN THE WORK SESSION. THANK YOU FOR THAT, ROB. YEAH. GOOD. YEAH. TALK ABOUT IT. YEAH, SO WE, WE UH, WE FIXED THAT ON OUR END. SO THE DISTRIBUTION, UM, GOES TO THE GROUP. UH, IT INCLUDES JOE AND I NOW AS WELL. 'CAUSE WE WERE ALSO NOT ON THOSE EMAILS, BUT WE'VE MODIFIED THAT. UM, AND THEN THAT INITIAL CONTACT THAT WE KIND OF SAW GOING THROUGH EMAILS LAST WEEK, UM, WITH THE PERSON WHO HAD THE INFRASTRUCTURE QUESTIONS ON THAT PROPERTY, I DID GO AHEAD AND REACH OUT AND ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR INQUIRY. UM, AND YOU KNOW, JOE AND I'VE TALKED ABOUT GETTING IN PERSON THE ANSWERS THAT THEY NEED, ALL THAT GOOD STUFF. BUT IT DOES BEG THE QUESTION, DO WE WANT TO CONTINUE THAT EVERYBODY ON THE GROUP GETS ALL OF THOSE GENERIC EMAILS? OR IS THAT SOMETHING THAT YOU WANNA FILTER THROUGH STAFF FIRST AND SEND OUT TO YOU? UM, THIS IS A, THIS IS A QUESTION, SO I, I DON'T HAVE A FEELING ABOUT IT IT EITHER WAY. SO IT COMES A NUISANCE. IT'S FINE. I DON'T THINK WE'RE GONNA GET AN AVALANCHE EMAIL. YEAH. I THINK KNOCK ON SOMETHING. BUT I, I, I, UM, WHAT I WILL SAY IS THAT IF YOU DO RESPOND TO IT, SOMEHOW NOTIFY, WE NEED TO KNOW. YEAH. RIGHT. SO LIKE, LIKE FOR INSTANCE, YOU KNOW, THE INFRASTRUCTURE QUESTION WASN'T EVEN A PROPERTY THAT WE'RE INVOLVED WITH, YOU KNOW, BUT SO, BUT WE HAD TO GET IT TO, YOU KNOW, THE WARREN COUNTY EDA AND SO PERHAPS THAT HANDOFF, WE JUST NEED TO SEE IT SO THAT IT'S NOT NAGGING SURE. AT US AND WELL, WELL, OR YOU KNOW, OR WE COME TO THE MEETING, WE GO, HEY, WHAT ABOUT THAT? YOU KNOW? RIGHT. I DON'T KNOW IF, I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S AN EFFECTIVE WAY TO DO THAT. IS IT, IS IT POSSIBLE THAT WE SEE THE STRING ONCE YOU'VE, LIKE FOR INSTANCE, THE, THE, THE WOMAN THAT YOU BOTH MET WITH BY LOOKING AT THIS, IT STILL LOOKS LIKE IT'S JUST A DEAD LETTER OFFICE TO ME. MM-HMM. . UM, RIGHT, RIGHT. YES. ABSOLUTELY. YEAH. WE DIDN'T, WE, WE DIDN'T IMPLEMENT. SO IF YOU'VE, IF YOU'VE RESPONDED, IT WOULD BE NICE TO, YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST ONE OF THOSE THINGS. 'CAUSE IT NAGS ME. I DON'T KNOW WHY. SURE. . NO, NO, NO, NO, NO. AND IT SHOULD, HONESTLY, I THINK IT SHOULD. AND DAVID, I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW THAT THAT'S HOW SHE REACHED OUT WAS VIA EMAIL. I ONLY MET WITH HER BECAUSE RICK ASKED ME TO. SO I, THAT WAS NEW INFORMATION TO ME TOO. SO NOW THAT WE'VE FIXED THE PATH IN WHICH THE EMAILS GO OUT, I THINK, I THINK WE CAN FIX THIS VERY, VERY EASILY. OKAY. YEAH. YEAH. IT WOULD JUST BE NICE TO KNOW THAT I AGREE. SOMEONE'S AGREE. BECAUSE I, AS I SAID, I DON'T, I FEEL ODD RESPONDING IN ANY WAY, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, I FEEL LIKE WE NEED TO BE UPDATED ON THE PROGRESS OR AT LEAST KNOW THAT SOMEBODY HAS. SO THAT, UM, I AGREE. YEAH. I MEAN, I, I THINK OUR FIRST RESPONSE NEEDS TO EITHER BE FROM, YOU KNOW, COUNT STAFF. ABSOLUTELY. OR, OR THE CHAIRMAN. YEAH. AND, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, WE CAN BRING OTHERS INTO IT FIRST, BUT I THINK WE HAVE TO HAVE A, A VOICE. NO, I AGREE. ABSOLUTELY. SO, ALRIGHT, WELL, WE'LL CONTINUE TO WORK ON THAT AND REFINE IT AS WE MOVE FORWARD, AS THAT'S OKAY WITH EVERYBODY ALL. UM, SO I WAS, UH, ASKED IF, UH, THE THEATER COULD BE RENTED. I DON'T, I HOPEFULLY I, THIS IS OKAY TO SAY , BUT ROB MCDOUGLE, I GUESS HE'S ONE OF THE OWNERS OF THE MURPHY BUILDING NOW DOWN HERE, AND HE WANTS TO, YOU KNOW, GET SOME FOLKS TOGETHER ON THE 27TH FROM 11 TO ONE AND TALK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, POSSIBLE IDEAS FOR IT. UM, AND MAYBE LIVE THEATER MIGHT BE THE, I I, YOU KNOW, I'M JUST RENTING THEM THE SPACE. BUT ON THE, ON FEBRUARY 27TH, FROM 11 TO ONE AT THE THEATER, IF YOU COULD COME BY, STICK YOUR HEAD IN, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'LL SEE WHAT, YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE WHAT THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT. I, I HONESTLY DON'T KNOW WHETHER THEY'RE BRAINSTORMING, YOU KNOW, WITH INTERESTED INDIVIDUALS OR, OR WHAT, I DUNNO. BUT [00:45:01] FEBRUARY 7TH, 27TH, 27TH. 27TH AT THE END OF THE MONTH. SO THIS IS AT THE MOVIE THEATER ABOUT THE MURPHY BUILDING. YEAH. UM, AND HOPEFULLY IT'S OKAY THAT I TOLD YOU , THAT'S AN ASSET DEVELOPMENT CONVERSATION HAPPENING IN THE COMMUNITY. YEAH, RIGHT. INAPPROPRIATE FOR US TO SHOW UP TO A PUBLIC MEETING. YEAH. WELL, AND I, SO, AND I, I WILL SAY THAT, UM, I, I HAVE SAID TO, UH, LIZ AND JOE THAT IN THE FUTURE IF WE COULD BE NOTIFIED ABOUT OTHER PUBLIC MEETINGS, UM, THAT ARE HAPPENING, THAT ARE RELATED TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, THAT THEY'RE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, THEN, YOU KNOW, WE'LL GET THAT OUT TO YOU GUYS AND, YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY IT'LL SPEED UP YOUR LEARNING CURVE A LITTLE BIT. THAT, THAT IS A QUESTION I HAVE. IS THAT MEETING TRULY OPEN TO THE PUBLIC? I DON'T KNOW. I THOUGHT IT WAS OKAY. I'M, I'M ASKING, I'M TALKING ABOUT, I'M ASKING BECAUSE THE NUMBER OF YOU THAT ATTEND THAT MATTERS, WHICH MEETING ARE WE TALKING ABOUT? ARE WE TALKING ABOUT ROB'S MEETING? ROB'S MEETING FOR THE MOMENT? YES. OH, UH, YEAH, I THINK ROB'S MEETINGS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. SURE. BECAUSE IF THERE ARE A CERTAIN NUMBER OF YOU THAT ATTEND, WE GOT LOTS OF SEATS AT THEATER. YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT. CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG ON THAT, JOE. RIGHT. NOTIFICATION, NOTIFICATION OF PRESS IF MORE THAN TWO MEMBERS ARE GONNA BE THERE. OH, OKAY. AND SO WHAT WE WOULD NEED TO KNOW IS EVEN THOUGH IT'S NOT OUR MEETING, IF YOU ARE ATTENDING IN, JUST TO MAKE SURE THAT WE COVER RIGHT. OUR COMPLIANCE, WELL, I WOULD NOTIFY THE PRESS THAT IT'S A POSSIBILITY, I GUESS THEN. OKAY. THANK YOU. I THINK YOU ALL RIGHT. . OKAY. NOT THAT YOU GUYS WOULD BE CONDUCTING BUSINESS, YOU WOULD BE NO, WE'RE THERE, WE'RE THERE, WE'RE THERE TO LEARN. WHAT DOES, WHAT DOES, WHAT DOES THAT, I GUESS, ENTAIL FURTHER? SO IF TWO OR MORE ARE GOING, WHAT, WHAT WOULD COUNT AS NOTIFICATION OF THE PRESS? LIKE DO WE RELEASE A PRESS RELEASE THAT WE'RE GOING OR? I THINK THE DEFINITION OF NOTIFICATION IS A LITTLE MORE LOOSE THAN THAT. OKAY. I DON'T KNOW THAT IT HAS TO BE FORMAL AS IN LIKE A RELEASE, BUT I, I DO KNOW THAT THE PUBLIC NOTICE RULES, UM, WOULD PROBABLY APPLY ON THAT. SO WE WOULD NORMALLY SEND NOTIFICATION TO ALL THE PRESS CONTACTS THAT, THAT THERE WOULD BE A POTENTIAL OF MORE THAN TWO ATTENDING THIS MEETING. SO, AND WHILE THERE ARE SOME LAWS THAT ALLOW YOU TO ATTEND THESE MEETINGS AND NOT HAVE TO MAKE THAT NOTIFICATION, THERE ARE SOME GRAY AREAS IN THERE. SO I ALWAYS CAUTION ON BEING AS, AS CLEAR AS I CAN AND WHAT WE'RE, WHAT OUR INTENT IS. SO I THINK THAT'S OKAY. AND WE ALWAYS HAVE THAT INTENTION OF, OF BRINGING THE COMMUNITY ALONGSIDE WHATEVER WE'RE DOING. SO. MM-HMM. , ANYBODY ELSE HAVE ANYTHING FOR THE GROUP? I'VE GOT ONE THING, SO I JUST YES SIR. I WAS GONNA SEE, AND IT KIND OF GOES ALONG WITH THE EMAIL THING. I WAS HOPING THERE WOULD BE A WAY FOR US TO LIKE KIND OF HAVE MAYBE STORED DOCUMENTS THAT WE COULD ALL ACCESS. I DON'T KNOW HOW WE WOULD DO THAT. UH, THAT WOULD BE A POSSIBILITY TO DO IT THROUGH OUR EMAIL OUTLOOK. UM, BUT I DID SEND SOME, I SENT SOME DOCUMENTS TO JOE RECENTLY THAT I PULLED FROM THE WARREN COUNTY EDA WEBSITE. THEY JUST HAVE A LOT OF LIKE WORKFORCE DATA STUFF LIKE, UH, LOCAL POPULATION CHARACTERISTICS, HOUSING DATA, STUFF THAT'S, THAT WOULD BE JUST GOOD INFO. KIND OF LIKE THE ZONING MAPS. JUST GOOD INFO TO HAVE FOR WHAT WE DO. UM, THAT WOULD JUST BE GOOD STUFF FOR US TO ALL HAVE ACCESS TO. MM-HMM. . SO I DIDN'T KNOW IF THERE WOULD BE, IF SAYS LIKE A FOLDER WE COULD ALL HAVE SHARED ACCESS TO OR IF THAT'S SOMETHING WE CAN DO FOR THE EMAIL OR WHAT HAVE YOU. YEAH, LET ME, UH, LET ME GET WITH STAFF. BUT THERE'S DEFINITELY, DEFINITELY AN EASY SOLUTION TO THE SOMETHING WE USE BOX FOR COUNCIL, WHICH ALLOWS YOU TO KIND OF AGGREGATE ALL YOUR INFORMATION AND BE AVAILABLE. SO YEAH, LET ME GET WITH STAFF AND WE CAN GET BACK WITH YOU. OKAY. AND GET THAT CREATED. I THINK THAT'S A GREAT SUGGESTION. MM-HMM. ESPECIALLY THE MORE STUFF YOU GUYS DO, THE MORE STUFF YOU'LL NEED TO SHARE. RIGHT. OKAY. ANYBODY ELSE HERE? A MOTION TO ADJOURN? SO MOVED. SECONDED. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. ALRIGHT. WE'LL SEE YOU NEXT MONDAY. 1230. 1230 MM-HMM. . * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.