11/15/2016 MINUTESPARIS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
MONTHLY MEETING
Paris City Council Chambers
107 East Kaufinan St.
Paris, Texas 75460
Tuesday, November 15, 2016
4:00 O'CLOCK P.M.
MINUTES
Board Members Present: Staff Present:
Richard Manning, Chairman Michael Paris, Executive Director
John Brockman, Vice -Chair Chris Stout, Office Assistant
Don Wilson, Secretary /Treasurer
Ray Banks
Ex- Officio Members Present:
John Godwin, City Manager
Legal Counsel:
Stephanie Harris, City Attorney
Call to Order.
Guest(s) Present:
Kelsey McLaughlin, The Paris News
Colton Sanders, Paris Free Press
City Council Liaison:
Billy Trenado
Mr. Manning called the meeting of the Paris Economic Development Corporation to order at 4:00 p.m.
on November 15, 2016.
Citizens' Input
Mr. Manning opened the floor for Citizen's Input. No citizens stepped forward.
Discuss and possibly approve Minutes of the October 18, 2016, Monthly Meeting,
Mr. Manning asked for a discussion and approval of the October 18, 2016, meeting minutes. No
comments were made and Mr. Banks made a motion to accept the minutes as presented. Mr. Brockman
seconded the motion. The vote was 4 -ayes and 0 -nays.
Discuss and possibly approve September 2016 Financials and 5 -year Projections of Business &
Capital Expenses.
Mr. Wilson opened by asking if there were any specific questions about the budget. After no one came
forward with questions, Mr. Wilson briefly explained three unique aspects of the financials presented
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November 15, 2016
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to the Board. First, Mr. Wilson pointed out the extra money spent in the payroll section. Since pay
periods cannot be divided evenly throughout the year, there is more money in September's payroll to
reflect the higher amount of pay covered during this period. Second, in the 5 -year Projections, there is
$8,000 extra dollars in this year's budget for Potters Industries. Mr. Wilson explains that this is to
fulfill our obligations to Potters for meeting the employment quota in their incentive agreement. The
total was not appropriately placed in last year's budget. Finally, Mr. Wilson briefly discussed the debt
service payments, explaining that they would soon be resolved. Mr. Banks motioned to approve the
September financials as well as the 5 -year projections. Mr. Brockman seconded the motion, and the
vote was 4 -ayes and 0 -nays.
Discuss and possibly approve askiny- Bobby Smallwood Construction to maintain his bid as we
market a bufld to suit site at 2305 NW Loop 286.
The Board discussed the purpose of the bid, explaining that if a business was interested in starting an
operation at 2305 NW Loop 286 an existing bid would allow them to move forward more quickly than
they would if the Board was forced to acquire new bids. Mr. Manning asked Mrs. Harris if there were
any potential problems with asking Bobby Smallwood to maintain their bid. Mrs. Harris did not see
any problems. Mr. Manning asked if Mr. Trenado had any questions or concerns on the behalf of the
City Council. Mr. Trenado declined to ask any questions, and stated that he thought it was a sound
idea. Mr. Brockman motioned to approve asking Bobby Smallwood Construction to maintain the bid.
Mr. Banks seconded the motion. The vote was 4 -ayes and 0 -nays.
Executive Director's Monthly Report.
Mr. Paris presented his Monthly Report, discussing each of the following topics:
• TEDC Annual Conference: Mr. Paris attended this conference. At this conference, Ray
Perryman stated that Texas is much more diversified since 70s, and continuing our trade
with partners in China, Mexico, and Canada is key to remaining successful in the years
ahead.
• October 24th: Took Spec Building before City Council to get an official decision. City
Council ultimately turned the request down. Mr. Paris stated that he was impressed with
the support shown by the business community at the meeting, and stated that the support
would be helpful as we began to promote 2305 NW Loop 286 as a build -to -suit property.
• Promotion of Build -to -Suit: Mr. Paris stated that he and the staff were working with three
Texas magazines to start marketing in print: Red News, which promotes Texas
commercial real estate; the Dallas Business Journal; and Texas Real Estate Business
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November 15, 2016
Page 3 of 4
magazine, where we hired each for both print ads and online marketing for the month of
December. Mr. Paris stated that the staff had also secured the domain "buildinparis.com"
for marketing online. The staff has also started a weekly email newsletter to highlight
PEDC properties, connecting them to Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram. The
last email, which was sent to 913 recipients, had a 37% open rate (319 people). Using
these different marketing avenues, Mr. Paris stated that he was optimistic about getting
the build -to -suit picked up by an interested company.
• Industry of the Year Award: at the Lamar County Chamber of Commerce Annual
Banquet, we gave Kimberly -Clark the Industry of the Year Award. James Alspaugh, Lesa
Lumen, and Benny Plata from Kimberly -Clark were there to accept the award.
• November 14`h: An Enterprise Zone was granted for Kimberly- Clark. The abatement will
be over 5 years for approximately $100 million in improvements to their machinery and
facilities.
• ROI: the firm has finalized our information sheet and we have approved their first list for
calling manufacturers, with a list of 227 names and more to come. ROI arranged a
meeting with a prospect at FABTECH as well.
• Transportation Summit in Sulphur Springs: Mr. Paris attended a summit in Sulphur
Springs. Several high- profile individuals attended the summit, such as County
Commissioners Keith Mitchell, Lawrence Malone, and Ronnie Bass, as well as State
Senator Bob Hall along with Caroline Myer, Jeff Austin, and Lauren Garduno. Mr. Paris
stated that there is a considerable amount of road development occurring in this region
that is vital to improving our local economy. Widening projects for US 82 are having
trouble with funding, extending beyond Lamar County into Red River County. There is
also significant transload activity occurring that is a signifier for the future of the region.
• Turner Industries has completed the construction of their new office building, and plans
on putting it into use around the beginning of the year.
• Paula Brownfield's father has passed away recently, and she will be out of the office for
the remainder of the week. The funeral will be held this coming Friday, and flowers have
been sent on behalf of the organization.
Discuss Future Agenda Items.
No future agenda items were discussed.
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November 15, 2016
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Adiourn
Mr. Brockman made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Wilson seconded the motion. Vote was 4 -ayes to 0 -nays.
The meeting was adjourned at 4:39 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Chris Stout
Office Assistant
Paris Economic Development Corporation