Economic Vitality Committee Agenda and Packet 2023 10 27

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Economic Vitality Committee Meeting Minutes September 15, 2023 Page 6 of 7 Chair Leh asked whether members of City Council should be included on business retention visits and encouraged Manager Brown to consider this moving forward. Manager Brown agreed that it may make sense to include City Council on retention visits in certain cases but added that having members of Council on visits may impact the feedback that the business provides. Public comment from Mike Kranzdorf: Mr. Kranzdorf agreed with Councilmember Most's comment about the Market Gap Analysis being a snapshot of the market at that particular time. But he added that the report will likely include demographics which can be quite valuable and are not as susceptible to drastic changes over time. He concluded that knowing the demographics will help inform the market. Chair Leh summarized that the answer is probably a combination of both the Market Gap Analysis and modeling, rather than one or the other. Public Comment from Eric Reed: Mr. Reed mentioned that perception often helps create the reality and suggested some consideration around how the group is marketing Louisville. He added that progressive environmental and sustainability policies could be considered either a deterrent or an advantage depending on how it is presented to businesses. Public Comment from Sherry Sommer: Ms. Sommer added that there are many things that the residents of Louisville love and wondered how these traits can be marketed to businesses. She also suggested adding murals to some of the vacancies downtown. Ms. Sommer concluded her comments with a statement in support of business retention visits. Both Mayor Pro Tern Fahey and Councilmember Most agreed that a mix of restaurants and retail are key to a vibrant downtown. Councilmember Most added that Louisville's downtown is light on retail and could benefit from additional small, local retailers. She concluded that some of the large buildings founds downtown may not be conducive to small retailers. 9. Recent Articles: No comments. 10. Discussion Items for Next Meeting: The next regular meeting will be October 27, 2023 @ 1:30 PM. Chair Leh requested an update on the feedback received on the Business Forum. Manager Brown confirmed that this would be included on the October agenda. Chair Leh added that he would also like to discuss items on which Council makes decisions (such as Dark Sky Lighting) and asked for an update on business retention. Councilmember Most noted that some communities provide tools to support minority and women -owned businesses downtown and asked whether it would be possible to explore some of the programs that other communities offer. Chair Leh made a note that this is not Agenda Packet P. 7