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<br />Town Center" carries some bad connotations and the committee feels that the look of the project <br />needs to change, including particularly the name. He stated this will give the City an opportunity <br />to put a new, fresh face on the project and will create a buzz in the community that something <br />has changed and something is taking form with this project. He stated there are projects starting <br />to happen and the City should not miss this opportunity to market this unique property. <br /> <br />Mr. Lazan stated that Landform is currently reviewing the feedback gathered to date, <br />establishing a project vision, vision statement and mission statement, and summarizing all the <br />data. <br /> <br />Mayor Ramsey asked what impact any rebranding would have on others using the Town Center <br />name. <br /> <br />Councilmember Elvig stated the steering committee discussed this at length and felt there were <br />valid reasons for keeping certain elements of the name. He stated the committee felt it would be <br />helpful to hire someone to help steer the committee with respect to the branding process. <br /> <br />Councilmember Dehen stated that in his opinion, there has been a lot of activity by various <br />parties on this project, all trying to accomplish the same purpose, including the steering <br />committee, Landform, City staff, and the Council. He indicated it is critical that communication <br />remain a priority in order to keep everybody updated, and asked that the Weekly Update from <br />staff include current updates on this project. <br /> <br />Mr. Lazan discussed the renaming and noted there is a potential to keep some aspects of the <br />Town Center name, and focusing on branding the retail village with a new name, while still <br />being part of the overall town center. He indicated that several names have been floated by the <br />steering committee, including Ramsey City Center, Ramsey Center, City of Ramsey Center, as <br />well as names that include a theme, e.g., Park West or Park East, or a name that includes the <br />N orthstar component. <br /> <br />Councilmember Wise expressed concern that there is not one person in charge of the overall <br />project and felt it was important to streamline the project as much as possible. <br /> <br />Councilmember McGlone stated with a project of this scope and magnitude, it is important to <br />focus on and come up with the mission, and to define that mission to keep the project on track. <br />He added he was in favor of slowing down the project a little in order to see who might be out <br />there and be interested in the development. <br /> <br />Councilmember Look agreed and added that a decision will have to be made at a relatively early <br />stage regarding the City's exit strategy on the project. <br /> <br />Councilmember Elvig stated that one of the things the steering committee has learned is that <br />there is already a component of retail, park, residential, etc. in the project, and some of these <br />things are hardlined into the project. He added that the steering committee remains committed to <br />being flexible and to working with developers on the project. <br /> <br />City Council Work Session / August 25, 2009 <br />Page 2 of5 <br />