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08-B PEDC (04-14-04) MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE PARIS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION April 14, 2004 The Paris Economic Development Corporation met in regular session on Wednesday, April 14, 2004, 4:00 P.M., at Paris Junior College, Bobby R. Walters Applied Technology Building, Room 1206, 2400 Clarksville Street, Paris, Texas. President Don Wall called the meeting to order with the following Directors present: Mike Dunn, Richard Severson and Rodney Bass. Also, present were Executive Director Gary Vest, Mayor Curtis Fendley, Interim City Manager Terry Townsend, City Attorney Larry Schenk and Acting City Clerk Sherian Dixon. President Wall called for approval of the minutes of the meeting for January 20, 2004. A motion was made by Director Severson to approve the minutes. Director Bass seconded the motion and it carried unanimously. President Wall called for the Financial Reports for January 2004 and February 2004 and Gene Anderson, Director of Finance, came forward. Mr. Anderson stated that the sales tax has been above average for the last three months and this was a good economic indicator. He stated there was minimal activity on the Cash Flow Statement for January. He pointed out the Debt Payment category on the February Cash Flow Statement. He explained this was a minus because it was a correction. President Wall called for any questions concerning the Financial Reports. There being none, Director Dunn made a motion to accept the Financial Reports. Director Severson seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. Executive Director Gary Vest came forward to give the Director’s Report. He informed the Directors that Southwestern Foundry was in Chapter 11. He said they had indicated that one of their major problems was the cost of electricity. Mr. Vest had researched this and it would cost the PEDC $2500 to get TXU to do an assessment of the electrical usage by the foundry and come back with some cost cutting measures. Mr. Vest stated that TXU no longer performed April 14, 2004 Page 2 this service for free and he felt it would be something the PEDC could do to help Southwestern Foundry. Executive Director Vest said that Paris Packaging had sold. Mr. Vest said there was a new prospect called “Project Appetite,” which is a producer of diverse food products. He related that the PEDC has already submitted a proposal to them. This was just one of the prospects the Governor’s Office had told them about, but they have not heard back from them. He explained, since the advertising had been cut, the Governor’s office had become their best source for prospects. He said that Erik Roddy had attended an automotive show in San Antonio for suppliers for the new Toyota plant. Mr. Vest said that he felt this probably would not benefit Paris because of its distance from San Antonio. Mr. Vest said he has had several meetings with C -Tech and has shown them the building site and they are very ready to build. He indicated that Todd will cut the streets in the Industrial Park next week. He mentioned that he and Erik will be contacting Leggitt and Platt, who own Rodgers and Wade, Campbell Soup and others to let them know that PEDC is here to help. He informed them that on the Hearne Street Project, they had found an underground tank and Reeves Hayter was getting proposals for its removal, which would add to the cost of the project. They also cut a drain line from the County Jail and they are in the process of fixing that. Mayor Curtis Fendley asked since Paris Packaging sold, would they have to get new signatures on the note. Mr. Vest explained that since the original corporation is still in tact, there will be no need. Director Dunn asked if local investors bought the business and Mr. Vest said they did not. April 14, 2004 Page 3 Mr. Vest mentioned that the State has put out a request for proposals on a fish hatchery. He and President Wall have been working with representatives from the State Parks and Wildlife on this. He indicated, although Paris probably will not have a chance to qualify for this particular hatchery, there will probably be several more down the road and Paris has a good chance for one of those. Director Dunn asked how many jobs this hatchery would create. Mr. Vest estimated about 15 direct jobs. He said the hatchery in Athens, Texas, has more jobs tied to it, but it also has a visitor center. He suggested that they also consider having a visitor center if Paris qualified for a hatchery in the future. President Wall called for the audit report and Gene Anderson returned to the podium. Mr. Anderson said there were no problems found during the audit. He called the PEDC’s attention to the new reporting format. The format was changed to meet the requirements of the GASB 34 for reporting. Resolution 2004-003, a resolution of the Board of Directors of the Paris Economic Development Corporation approving the audit for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2003, was presented by City Attorney Schenk. Director Severson made a motion to approve the resolution. Director Dunn seconded the motion and it carried unanimously. President Wall said the next item was a closed session in accordance with Sec. 551.086 of the Open Meetings Act, to discuss possible incentives, pending negotiations, and commercial or financial information from business prospects regarding the following: A. Prospect 2004-100. B. Prospect 2004-200. The Open Session closed at 4:25 P.M. The Open Session reconvened at 5:09 P.M. Director Wall indicated that no April 14, 2004 Page 4 action was needed for the items discussed in the closed session. There being no further business, Director Dunn made a motion to dismiss, which was seconded by Director Bass, and passed unanimously. ____________________________ DON WALL, PRESIDENT ATTEST: _____________________________________ SHERIAN DIXON, ACTING CITY CLERK