September 2023 Minutes
Minutes
REGULAR MEETING OF THE
PANAMA CITY DOWNTOWN IMPROVEMENT BOARD
Wednesday, September 6th @ 8:30 AM
Panama City Center for the Arts
19 East 4th Street
1. Call to order – 8:34 AM Present: Catherine Shores, Allan Branch, Kevin Mitchell, Nate Taylor, Elizabeth Moore. Absent: Catherine McCloy, Jennifer Burg
2. Chairman’s report
3. Approval of minutes from August 2nd, 2023, meeting – Allan made a motion to approve. Kevin 2nd. All approved.
4. Public Participation – public invited to speak about anything not already on the agenda-
- Dewy Powell with Career Source shared that they have received grant money to help employ those directly affected by the opioid crisis. They are looking for businesses that would take on an intern. Career Source would fund training, salary, clothing, etc… She emphasized that stable employment is a key piece of their successful recovery.
- Beth Klien is bringing Peddle Wagons to Panama City and is looking for help navigating city and county governments.
- Ross Clemons explained that the Race for the Rescue Triathlon was going to be cost prohibitive to put on because of the biking portion of it. They are evaluating other sporting events to bring downtown.
- Lesli Todd with Jute and Palm wanted to confirm that there is still money available for a Merchant Christmas get together. She reported that on the 3rd Friday, many downtown merchants are staying open late and has been well received. She would like to see it advertised on the Martin Theatre marquee. Allan made a motion for the DIB to write a letter of support to the city for the event. Kevin 2nd. Lesli also asked if the DIB could provide plants for Franci with an Eye building when opened if the city does not.
5. Financial Update – Bank account balances, current budget update. Catherine shared that the DIB started with ~$270,000 in reserves at the beginning of the fiscal year and are in about the same place now going into FY 24. The public restroom project will be coming from the reserves. Nate requested there be a more formal policy in requesting funds for events. He suggested a rubric being used and would like to head up a committee to address.
6. Arts Update – Jayson commented that Bay Arts Alliance has used the Career Source internship program and received an excellent employee from it. He also stated that, unlike some non-profits, he does not make money based on his sponsorship efforts. He invited all to attend the Civic Center Workshop on Thursday @ 5:30pm. The background color was changed on the mural going up at 6th St. Backstage pass music series is about $20,000 short. Asking for $10,000 from the DIB. Bay Arts Alliance makes no money on this music series. Allan wished the event was closer to the downtown merchants. Jayson plans to move it back to the Arts Center when the streetscapes are completed. Fright Nights has changed again. The Marie Hotel approval was pulled from the commission agenda. Due to time constraints, Jayson has chosen to have in one location at The Center for the Arts. He also shared that a new app will be used for scheduling. Instead of $15,000, he is requesting $10,000 from the DIB. Allan made a motion to approve $10,000 for Back Stage Pass and amend the $15,000 original request for Fright Nights to $10,000. Kevin 2nd. All approved.
7. Old Business –
8. New Business –
a. McKenzie Park maintenance – Catherine shared that basic maintenance of the park will cost about $14,000 per year. Still waiting on quote for irrigation repair. This is an ongoing discussion with QOL.
b. Mainstreet- Catherine had hoped to find qualities in Mainstreet that would not require DIB to hire more employees and office space. She would like to see more involvement from the community. Catherine asked Grey from CRA to comment. He stated that CRA is not going to continue with Mainstreet. Allan and Kevin stated they are uninformed to the advantages. Lesli Todd stated that you must have enough participation and hours to commit to the program to be successful. Grey commented that there were a lot of valuable takeaways from the conference attended. He still believes coordinating between DIB, CRA and QOL is a valuable conversation that needs to continue.
9. Administrative Update
a. AT & T Parking Lot – Efforts were finally acknowledged. Hope to hear back within a couple of weeks.
b. 4th & Grace Parking Lot – Meeting with planning has been set up with the city for Sept. 21. Plans are needed by then. Maria asked if Allan would be able to meet with her to coordinate ideas.
c. Gateway Park Fountain – It is up and running. There are a few tweaks still to be made.
d. Public Bathroom Project – Maria met with city stakeholders on Aug. 30. The city is taking the lead in creating the RFP. They hope to have it out for bid within 2-3 weeks.
e. Social District Ordinance – Catherine and Maria have been working with Sean Brosnan with Gorgeous to create marketing material. Catherine stated that in researching, it was difficult to find any negative other than extra trash but indicated that would be a positive because it means more foot traffic. Beth Klein shared that she helped to bring the social district to downtown Dayton, OH and it was a huge benefit to the downtown.
10. Reminders / Calls to Action
a. Next meeting will be Wednesday, October 4, 2023 at 8:30 AM
b. Next Workshop meeting will be Wednesday, September 20, 2023 at Destination Panama City at 1 PM with the new Quality of Life Director, Mr. Mefford.
11. Adjournment 9:45 AM