Scot Marsters asked, "How do we help businesses benefit from being near a park?" and "How do we maintain a balance between park space and population size?"  Barry Weiss responded by referring to the quality of life and quality of good workers that are attracted by cities with good parks & recreation programs.

The commissioners then discussed "Park In Lieu" fees and if they could be used to purchase additional land for parks.  Barry Weiss said that the Park In Lieu fees are paid in lieu of (instead of) donating land when a new residential development is built in San Carlos.  These funds are restricted and can only be used for Park Capital Improvements which sometimes includes major renovations to current facilities.  A purchase of land for future park facilities would also be an eligible use of these funds.

Barry Weiss added that there are a number of unfunded Parks and Recreation projects in the City’s 2007-08 Budget (over $9 Million of the $77.3 Million Unfunded Projects List approved by the City Council).  He also indicated that the upcoming Parks Master Plan will explore additional Parks Facilities and Projects that might include turning a four acre site along Crestview into a Community Center.

Mark Green shared a statistic that in San Mateo County, San Carlos ranked fourth out of 21 cities for having 5.1 acres of parks per 1,000 residents.  Barry Weiss said a lot of that land is Open Space that is inaccessible rather than parks used by the public.

The Commissioners further discussed maintaining and operating our parks and noted that it is a budget challenge.  The Parks & Recreation department is creating a residential survey in conjunction with a Master Plan due to be completed by next March.  The survey would determine what parks projects and programs residents would be willing to pay for in the future.  One challenge is finding money to cover the annual operating costs of a new facility once a project is complete in addition to the cost of building the facility.

Mark Green mentioned that businesses benefit from parks.  He asked if they would they be willing to pay for some of these costs and could we increase operating permit fees in City Parks?  Barry Weiss said that had not been done or considered.  Gary Wiessinger stated his support for opportunities to increase supporting economic growth with these types of impact fees and promote what we have.

Mark Green then asked if there are any proposed sports events that could be brought into the community.  Barry Weiss said no.  Barry Weiss also shared that adults typically spend $140 per day when staying overnight for a softball tournament for example.

Scot Marsters suggested that if a sports event could be found, it would best serve the community if we could tie it in with another event to increase the impact.  Barry Weiss indicated that it may be difficult to support more than one event at a time due to budget cuts. 

Mark Green suggested that we have Barry Weiss report back to EDAC in the Fall on the feasibility of this idea.  If feasible, it could lead to a joint EDAC/Parks & Recreation combination meeting in the future that would include a brainstorming session on future revenue building opportunities.

4.      Economic Development Plan

The City Council will review the Economic Development plan on June 25.  The final report document will include the EDAC Top 5 recommended priorities, minutes from the May 9 and May 16 EDAC meeting and EDAC commissioner notes as a report appendix.  Brian Moura stated there are Redevelopment Agency funds in the upcoming City Budget to fund the first year events within the Plan.

5.      Discussion of Draft Economic Development Grid (Cross Impact Matrix) and City Wide Economic Development Priorities, Strategies and Principles

The EDAC Commissioners deferred action and further discussion of this item until a future meeting so that it could be reviewed with the EDAC Liaison Sub Committee and the Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Sub Committee.

6.      Report on Liaison with Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Sub Committee

A meeting with the Chamber Sub Committee, the EDAC Liaison Sub Committee and Chamber and City Staff has been set for June 19.  Mark Green reviewed several handouts regarding the committee’s progress on accomplishments, mission statement, and agenda items.

7.      Updates from Staff

Brian Moura provided EDAC with an update on economic development projects and items of interest.

a)    City Budget – Brian Moura reported that the City Council will review and likely adopt the changes in the City Budget that they approved at their May budget study session.  There will likely be $800,000 in budget cuts affecting primarily the Police Department (eliminate 1 vacant Police Officer position) and the Parks and Recreation Department (close Youth Center on Sundays and reduce its hours of availability).  We can expect additional deficits for the next three to four years.  

b)    General Plan – The City Council will also be selecting a consultant to develop a new General Plan over the next two years.  There will be a General Plan Advisory Committee (GPAC) formed for this effort.

c)     Palo Alto Medical Foundation (PAMF) – A more detailed version of the development plan will be reviewed by the City Council.  The development agreement term is now extended from 30 years to 50 years and includes non-financial terms.  The endowment principal amount paid by PAMF is $9 Million.  The total value of the financial part of the agreement could reach $91 Million over the 50 year period if the City Council (and future City Councils) does not touch the principal amount.  Under the terms of the draft agreement, the money will be unavailable to the City until 2013.  EDAC will review the Economic and Fiscal aspects of the PAMF development plan in August.

d)    Solar City Solar Discount Program in San Carlos – The EDAC Commissioners received copies of the San Carlos Green handout and a Solar City special solar power purchase program flyer. Solar City will offer San Carlos residents and businesses a 15%-20% savings on solar panel installations if residents and businesses sign up for systems that generate 50kW or more of solar power.  The offer ends on August 27, 2007.  

e)    Yahoo Green City Contest – Yahoo is having a "green city" contest.  The first prize is a fleet of hybrid taxis for the winning City. San Carlos is currently ranked in the top five cities in the nation for this contest.  Residents are encouraged to go to the Yahoo web site and make a Green Pledge to increase the City’s chances of winning the grand prize.

f)     Chamber of Commerce Spring Luncheon – Brian encouraged the EDAC commissioners to attend the Chamber of Commerce Spring luncheon on June 13.  The Speaker at the luncheon will be the co-founder of Tesla Motors.  The event will also feature a Tesla Roadster on display.  The luncheon is open to the public and more information can be found on the Chamber of Commerce website.