Agenda - Council - 07/26/2016 - Laserfiche WebLink

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with the comments from Councilmember Shryock regarding staff completing a comparison of certain elements in The COR. Mayor Strommen stated that there was a lot of housing in the original vision and agreed that timing is key as people have seen this housing development but have not seen the retail elements. Councilmember Kuzma stated that CBRE is the consultant the City hired to work on this vision and provide input and they have said that the City needs rooftops in order to bring in the retail elements. He noted that the rail station and Armstrong interchange were also important elements in attracting the desired development. Mayor Strommen asked the items that people would like to reaffirm or re-evaluate from the list of items included in the vision. Commissioner Brauer stated that the original vision was never viable because Ramsey did not have the space or demographics that big box retailers are looking for. He stated that the City needs to look at the data and also believes that the City would benefit from the cluster data that developers use in order to better determine and attract development. Mayor Strommen confirmed that Commissioner Brauer would like to re-evaluate the retail aspects in the vision using data. Commissioner Brauer stated that Ramsey will not get big box retail and should instead focus on local businesses. He referenced the piecemeal strategy that the City has been using, noting the changes in the past eight years in the market, and stated that it would be difficult to obtain beneficial data from that changing market. He stated that the City needs a vision that keeps them from being jerked back and forth from a temporary change, or what the City interprets to be a temporary change. Mayor Strommen confirmed consensus that the group would like to re-evaluate retail components within the vision. Vice Chair Bauer stated that the attempt is to make Ramsey a destination type of stop and would cater more towards the smaller unique businesses and explained that pedestrian connections would also be important in that element. Councilmember Shryock stated that sign regulations have been discussed and if The COR is meant to be the hub, then a unified look should be determined and focused on, specifically regarding signage, streetscapes, and design. Councilmember LeTourneau stated that geography is also a factor in how large this market can be in addition to demographics. He stated that in reference to items three and four, he would like to see the appropriate density discussed to support that potential retail. He noted that, in essence, Ramsey is an island because of river placement and therefore the needed density needs to be determined in order to determine appropriate retail desires. City Council Work Session /July 12, 2016 Page 4 of 8