Agenda - Council - 08/22/2017 - Laserfiche WebLink

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be an opportunity to explore an incubator office space, which could help local people establish businesses and have quick access to meeting space as well. He noted that the space has not been utilized for the past five years and there has not been interest in the market thus far. He stated that the concept would be to have a setup similar to the Itasca Room, as there is always a need and desire for that type of meeting space. He believed that it would be a benefit to the community as the City currently does not have a community center. He stated that the proposed estimate is figured on the cost to finish the Itasca Room and the room finished for the County. He noted that if the Council is interested, staff would work with an architect to get a better idea of costs. He stated that if there is not interest, the space would continue to be utilized as it is currently. He noted that the funding would come from the facility fund, which has been built up over time to improve and maintain the facility. Councilmember LeTourneau asked for more information on demand. City Administrator Ulrich stated that staff can bring that full data back to the Council. He provided examples of groups that rent similar spaces with the City such as Homeowners Associations, civic groups, and business retreats. He stated that there are times when staff has to shuffle reservations to ensure that the groups have sufficient space. He stated that there is a room divider but it is not the most effective. Councilmember LeTourneau asked if the City would be reacting to the demand or would be getting ahead of the demand. Councilmember Kuzma asked if future staffing needs have been considered and whether additional remodeling would be needed in the future to provide space for staff if this space is converted to meeting space. Councilmember LeTourneau asked if the item would have any impact to the levy. City Administrator Ulrich stated that the item would not impact the levy but there would be costs for future maintenance that would also come from that fund. He stated that staff can attempt to project some future maintenance costs. Councilmember LeTourneau stated that he could support the action, as these dollars have been levied in the past and this would be a way to provide a benefit to the community as this would be additional space for members of the community to gather. He stated that this might be a great way to utilize funds that have been collected from residents and return some value. Finance Director Lund stated that there is a safety factor as there is not a real divider between the staff space and the meeting space. She noted that there are also noise concerns as the noise from the rented space travels to the adjacent work spaces for staff. City Administrator Ulrich noted that the classes, such as yoga, are discretionary, but this additional space would allow for more programing to utilize the space as well. He stated that he would bring back additional data on room rentals and the projected maintenance. City Council Work Session / August 8, 2017 Page 3 of 7