Economic Vitality Committee Agenda and Packet 2024 01 26

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Economic Vitality Committee Meeting Minutes December 15, 2023 Page 3 of 6 Manager Brown continued with an update on Old Town Skate, noting that the rink opened on Friday, December 1st at 3 PM, just in time for the Parade of Lights. The grand opening included free hot chocolate for the first 100 customers and light shows throughout the evening. The opening was delayed from the November 23 anticipated opening date due to equipment delays and electrical issues. Councilmember Dickinson shared some of the feedback that he has received so far this year. He noted that feedback around the skates has been very positive but added that some feedback around lighting and scheduling has been critical. Public comment from Lexi Adler: Ms. Adler noted that she tried to help a group schedule a cultural event at the ice rink. The group had held the event at the ice rink in previous years but they were not able to use the rink this year. Manager Brown continued with updates on both the Downtown Vision Plan and the Comprehensive Plan and noted anticipated opportunities for public engagement for both plans. Brown also added that the Community Decarbonization Plan held its third and final workshop on December 13. It's anticipated that the final plan will be presented to Council in March. Manager Brown closed with updates on the LRC including an amendment to their 2023 Budget, adoption of the 2024 Budget, and a new Property Improvement Program that the LRC is hoping to implement in 2024. 7. Discussion — Bag Tax Funded Sustainability Programs Overview: Specialist Miller gave an overview of the Bag Tax Funded Sustainability Program that is available to all businesses that provide remit bag tax to the City. Chair Dickinson commented that he appreciates that the programs will be made available first to the businesses that have remitted bag taxes to the City. He also noted that he hopes to see the amount of funding in this program decrease year over year as fewer bags are used. Councilmember Kern added that if the goal of the bag tax is to reduce the use of plastic bags, then businesses that provide disposable bags to their customers but do not remit any bag tax should not be excluded. She also wondered whether there is a program that could be tailored exclusively to fast food restaurants that require food to be put in a bag through the drive-thru. Manager Betzold responded that the plastic bag ban will be in effect in 2024 and that staff will focus on education for restaurants around plastic bags for takeout and delivery. Agenda Packet P. 5