1 THESE MINUTES ARE NOT OFFICIAL
UNTIL APPROVED BY THE
CULVER CITY
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SUBCOMMITTEE
OF THE CITY COUNCIL
SPECIAL MEETING OF THE March 14, 2024
CULVER CITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 10:30 a.m.
SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE CITY COUNCIL
CULVER CITY, CALIFORNIA
Call to Order & Roll Call
Council Member Eriksson called the special meeting of the Economic Development Subcommittee of the City Council to order at 10:30 a.m. in the Patio Room and via Webex.
Present: Göran Eriksson, Council Member
Albert Vera, Council Member
Staff Present: Elaine Gerety-Warner, Economic Development Director
Elizabeth Garcia, Economic Development Project
Manager
Luis Gonzalez, Economic Development Project
Manager
Edgar Varela, Special Events Manager
Christina Burrows, Deputy City Attorney
Michelle Villongco, Economic Development
Associate Analyst
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Pledge of Allegiance
The Economic Development Subcommittee recited the Pledge of Allegiance.
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Public Comment for Items NOT On the Agenda
Economic Development Subcommittee of the City Council
March 14, 2024
2 Council Member Eriksson invited public comment.
Elizabeth Garcia, Economic Development Project Manager, reported that no public comment had been received.
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Receipt of Correspondence
Elizabeth Garcia, Economic Development Project Manager, reported that no correspondence had been received.
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Consent Calendar
Item C-1
Approval of Minutes for the Economic Development Subcommittee Meeting of October 3, 2023
MOVED BY COUNCIL MEMBER VERA, SECONDED BY COUNCIL MEMBER ERIKSSON
AND UNANIMOUSLY CARRIED, THAT THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
SUBCOMMITTEE APPROVE MINUTES FOR THE MEETING OF OCTOBER 3, 2023.
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Order of the Agenda
No changes were made.
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Action Items
Item A-1
Discussion Regarding Economic Development Work Program
Accomplishments for Fiscal Year 2023-2024 and Work Plan Priorities for Fiscal Year 2024-2025
Elaine Gerety-Warner, Economic Development Director, noted the new format; discussed Economic Development accomplishments for the previous year; the Buy Local – Love Local events; business and workforce development; the theme for the year ahead; the Sunstone Challenge; business visitations; the hotline; the Economic Development website; difficulty of getting permits without an Economic Development Subcommittee of the City Council
March 14, 2024
3 expeditor; business attraction and welcome resources; creative technology; Economic Sector/Cluster Roundtables; concierge service; special event management processes; 2028 Olympics community engagement; the electronic grant application process; the ensuring that Economic Development is part of the process; engagement events for the Olympics; Discover Culver City with the Chamber of Commerce; the webpage redirect; the need for a separate webpage; creation of a tourism page; visitculvercity.org; creation of a destination brand; Fiscal Year 2023-2024 Projects and Ongoing Activities; issues and challenges; MOVE Culver City; people who do not feel safe in Culver City; implementation of private security; increased costs of doing business; sustainability initiatives; compliance; commercial vacancy rates; the General Plan; workforce retention; lack of brand development; current opportunities; the 2024-2025 Work Plan; goals and priorities; activation; attraction and retention; workforce development; capital improvements; and she introduced staff.
Discussion ensued between staff and Subcommittee Members regarding partnerships; outreach and advertising for upcoming Love Local events; the void analysis; the report done in 2018; the linkage analysis; creating a balanced community; the ombudsmen program; complaints regarding the permit process; improving communication; online permit submittals; pre-announcements for the business attraction program; off-cycle grant requests; capturing those who did off-cycle grants last year to ensure grant funds are allocated; staff time and City Council time taken up with off-cycle requests; the opportunity to purchase parking spaces; clarification that there is no existing validation system; parking rates; the visible homeless population; those who refuse shelter; the launch of the Mobile Crisis Team; the job of Economic Development to share resources with businesses; the General Plan; modification of commercial space to accommodate housing; infrastructure changes; loss of tax revenue with changing use from commercial to residential; engaging in a thoughtful process; increased maintenance required in the Arts District as a result of MOVE Culver City; pushback with tree planting on Sepulveda; irrigation; signage issues with canopy trees; columnar trees; the Streetscape Plan; lighting upgrades; bringing back ice skating; opening up parking facilities for residents at night; lack of parking availability; security issues; perception that things are not safe; people sleeping in the garage; capacity issues; affordable housing; financing; leasing; status of the sign ordinance and digital kiosks; difficulty finding a qualified signage consultant; research into what San Diego has done; information provided by IKE on the San Diego ordinance that has not been challenged; and further research to be done.
Economic Development Subcommittee of the City Council
March 14, 2024
4 Additional discussion ensued between staff and Subcommittee Members regarding the focus on trade by Iksan, South Korea; the Chinese delegation focused on trade and film production; West LA College programs; facilitation of internships; keeping students in the City to build their careers and support businesses; workforce development; BioScienceLA; creating a bio-med cluster along Jefferson; Biocom California; life science as a driver regional driver; growing incubator companies; leveraging resources; the inability to assist with square footage in Culver City because of space issues; identifying opportunities; assisting and capturing emerging industries; 100 year anniversaries for the hotel and the studio; the need for a City sponsored event to use Town Plaza; screening old films at the MGM theater; partnerships; work being done by the Downtown Business Association (DBA); the need for direction from the City Council to add working on a centennial event into the work plan to develop branding for the City; creating a unifying logo to tie events together; application to grant programs for City sponsorship; extending the summer concert series to include events based on movie music; adding partnership with the DBA on centennial events to the work plan; streamlining the event process to facilitate promotion; events coming through the City that happen on a regular basis; the sponsorship program; Juneteenth; and City events.
Further discussion ensued between staff and Subcommittee Members regarding the importance of addressing safety and traffic issues; activating different areas of the City; the Arts District; connecting downtown to the eastern area of the City; making walkable areas; dead zones; working to make areas inviting with lighting; continuing the existing focus on retention; and tracking leases.
Elaine Gerety-Warner, Economic Development Director noted Subcommittee interest in the sign ordinance, examination of the San Diego consultant, looking at business development for Culver Village, development of BIDs (Business Improvement Districts) along West Washington, business retention focusing on safety and traffic concerns; tracking leases; support for 100 year MGM programming, and partnering with agencies; she discussed a potential tailgate event for the Olympics; Tech Week; the next Creative Technology cluster; and Creative Economy programming.
Council Member Eriksson invited public comment.
The following member of the public addressed the Subcommittee:
Economic Development Subcommittee of the City Council
March 14, 2024
5 Eric Shabsis discussed references to building BIDs along Sepulveda and West Washington; open store fronts along Sepulveda; studies done by developers regarding difficulties getting new businesses into store fronts that are not viable and do not fit the needs for the type of businesses that the City is trying to attract; types of businesses that are trying to locate in the City; difficulty for developers to get financing to build modern buildings; developers providing modern spaces that can be activated; money spent by the state on the former Westside Pavilion; negotiations with UCLA; the Community College District building on Jefferson Boulevard that is on pause as the final deal is negotiated with West Los Angeles College (WLAC); and he suggested Economic Development have a conversation with WLAC for expansion of a tentpole for biotech.
Discussion ensued between meeting attendees, staff, and Subcommittee Members regarding entitlements specific to entertainment uses; the neighbors; the potential biotech corridor; connecting downtown with the TOD (Transit Oriented District) and beyond; facilitating movement; encouraging pedestrians to walk; and the recent installation of monument signs by Apple. o0o
Public Comment – Items NOT On The Agenda (Continued)
None.
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Items from Members/Staff
None.
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Economic Development Subcommittee of the City Council
March 14, 2024
6 Adjournment
There being no further business, at 11:36 a.m., the Economic Development Subcommittee of the City Council adjourned its meeting.
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___________________________________________________________ Jeremy Bocchino
SECRETARY of the Culver City Economic Development Subcommittee of the City Council Culver City, California
APPROVED
___________________________________________________________ Göran Eriksson
COUNCIL MEMBER, Economic Development Subcommittee of the City Council Culver City, California