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08-19-1997 (WEDC) Minutes Minutes WYLIE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION Tuesday,August 19, 1997 Board Members Present: Marvin Fuller Kevin St. John J.C. Worley John Yeager Merrill Young Staff Present: Samuel Satterwhite, Executive Director Others Present: Mike Collins, City Manager Mindy Manson, Assistant to the City Manager With notice of the meeting posted in time and manner required by law and a quorum of Board members present, the Board of Directors of the Wylie Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) met in Regular Session on August 19, 1997 in the Wylie Chamber of Commerce Board Room at 108 W. Marble, Wylie, Texas. The meeting was called to order by President John Yeager at 2:10 p.m. ITEM NO. 1 - Discuss and Consider Approval of Minutes for the July 23, 1997 Regular Board of Directors Meeting of the Wylie Economic Development Corporation. MOTION: A motion was made by Marvin Fuller and seconded by Kevin St. John to approve the Minutes for the July 23, 1997 Regular Meeting of the Wylie Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors. The WEDC Board of Directors voted 5 - FOR and 0 - AGAINST in favor of the motion. ITEM NO. 2 - Discuss and Consider Approval of the July, 1997 Treasurer's Report for the Wylie Economic Development Corporation. MOTION: A motion was made by Kevin St. John and seconded by J.C. Worley to approve the July, 1997 Treasurer's Report for the Wylie Economic Development Corporation. The WEDC Board of Directors voted 5 - FOR and 0 - AGAINST in favor of the motion. WEDC - Minutes August 19, 1997 Page 2 ITEM NO. 3 - Discuss and Consider Issues Surrounding a Study Prepared by Insight Research Corporation Analyzing the Economic, Tax and Employment Impacts Created by the Development of a Rail Manifest Yard, Intermodal Facility, and Associated Industrial Activity. Ms. Elizabeth Morris, President of Insight Research Corporation, presented the WEDC Board of Directors with the findings of a study prepared to analyze the economic impact of the Kansas City Southern Railway (KCS) proposal which includes a manifest yard, intermodal facility, and associated industrial development. The direct and indirect tax impact for the applicable taxing jurisdictions are as follows: Direct Indirect Total Direct and Indirect Taxes City of Wylie $1,564,000 $364,000 $1,928,000 Collin County 397,000 477,000 875,000 State of Texas 3,869,000 4,596,000 8,465,000 WISD 2,370,000 569,000 2,939,000 4A/4B Sales Tax 547,000 120,000 667,000 CCCC 151,000 181,000 332,000 Total $8,897,000 $6,308,000 $15,206,000 These taxes will be generated from the following economic impact at the site: Manifest and Intermodal $164 Million Warehouse/Distribution Facilities $150 Million The Warehouse distribution impact was calculated with assistance from the Alliance Development Company. Alliance has agreed to become the world-wide marketer of property adjacent to the rail facilities which will be known as "Eastport Business Park". Alliance, with assistance from WEDC staff, estimated that over the next ten years this business park should attract 550,000 square feet of warehouse/distribution facilities, 220 full-time equivalent positions, and an annual payroll of$6.1 million. The WEDC Board of Directors indicated that with the catalyst of an intermodal facility, the above figures appear to be very conservative, but hesitated to increase estimates wanting to over deliver rather than overestimate. The WEDC Board of Directors believed the evaluation of related industrial development, methodology of determining the economic and employment impact, and limitations of assumptions are an accurate representation of the rail facility proposed by KCS. WEDC - Minutes August 19, 1997 Page 3 MOTION: A motion was made by Kevin St. John and seconded by Merrill Young to accept the study prepared by Insight Research Corporation as a true and accurate representation of the economic, tax, and employment impacts created by the development of a Kansas City Southern rail manifest yard, intermodal facility, and associated industrial activity The WEDC Board of Directors voted 5 - FOR and 0 -AGAINST in favor of the motion. ITEM NO. 4 - Discuss and Consider the Rezoning of Approximately 550 Acres Northeast of the Wylie Municipal Complex with the Proposed Use Being a Rail Manifest Yard, Intermodal Facility, and Associated Industrial Activity. Staff informed the WEDC Board of Directors that a referendum has been called to allow the registered voters in Wylie to officially voice their opinions regarding the proposed KCS manifest/intermodal facility and associated industrial development. The referendum will be held on September 20, 1997. Although the referendum is non-binding, the Wylie City Council believes it to be necessary to gauge public opinion of the proposal. It has been suggested that the citizens attending the recent public hearing on the issue have been the `vocal minority', but the Council would like to determine the accuracy of this assertion prior to any formal proposal being submitted. The Board discussed economic issues as well as quality of life issues which are at stake in this project and the difficulty surrounding the attempt to separate the two issues. For example, removing the railroad track adjacent to Highway 75 will create a more aesthetically pleasing downtown Wylie, but the increased tractor trailer traffic will be burdensome at times. Board members believed that if the WEDC is to promote quality, economic development which expands the Wylie tax base and increases jobs, the KCS proposal must be supported by this organization. As well, if the Executive Director is to promote Wylie and the WEDC, the authority must be granted to speak out for the KCS proposal. Board member Worley suggested the Executive Director act in an advisory role to any group supporting the proposal while responding to all questions and requests for information from the entire community. Board member Worley also commented that while staff should support this project, the WEDC should not directly fund activities furthering any political group formed to support the project. MOTION: A motion was made by J.C. Worley and seconded by Merrill Young authorizing staff to support the manifest/intermodal project proposed by Kansas City Southern Railway Co. in an advisory capacity. The WEDC Board of Directors voted 5 - FOR and 0 - AGAINST in favor of the motion. WEDC - Minutes August 19, 1997 Page 4 ITEM NO. 5 - Discuss and Consider Issues Surrounding the FY 1997 - 1998 Budget for the Wylie Economic Development Corporation. Staff informed the WEDC Board of Directors that consideration of this issue was preliminary due to the lack of finalized budget documents. The Board instructed staff to complete the budget as soon as possible and present finalized figures to the Board within the week. MOTION: A motion was made by J.C. Worley and seconded by Merrill Young to table discussion and consideration of the FY 1997 - 1998 budget for the WEDC. The WEDC Board of Directors voted 5 - FOR and 0 - AGAINST in favor of the motion. ITEM NO 6 - Staff Reports. Staff discussed issues regarding Wylie Machine, Inc., Accurate Automatic, Extruders, the WEDC promotional brochure, CPI Communications, Best Technologies, Inc., and the employee evaluation of Administrative Assistant Vicky Cross. ITEM NO 7- Adjourn. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 4:21 p.m. ohn ager, President Attest: Samuel D.R. Satterwhite Executive Director