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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 09-02-2003-9bORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT Meeting Date: September 2, 2003 Action Age~d~ Item No. SUBJECT: Chapel Hill -Carrboro Chamber of Commerce -Council on a Sustainable Community DEPARTMENT: County Commissioners PUBLIC HEARING: (Y/N) No ATTACHMENT(S): Chapel Hill -Carrboro Chamber of Commerce Letter -August 19, 2003 Chapel Hill -Carrboro Chamber of Commerce -Press Release -August 15, 2003 Chapel Hill -Carrboro Chamber of Commerce -Council on a Sustainable Community -Objectives and Commission (DRAFT) INFORMATION CONTACT: Donna S. Baker, ext 2130 TELEPHONE NUMBERS: Hillsborough 732-8181 Chapel Hill 968-4501 Durham 688-7331 Mebane 336-227-2031 PURPOSE: To consider appointing a County Commissioner or other appropriate representative to serve on the newly-formed Council on a Sustainable Community, sponsored by the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce. BACKGROUND: The Chapel Hill -Carrboro Chamber of Commerce is launching a new initiative, the Council on a Sustainable Community (CSC). The Council is an independent task force that will address how to proactively promote a healthy economy and ensure that Chapel Hill and Carrboro remain successfully and sustainable. Howard Lee, chair of the North Carolina State Board of Education, former state senator and former mayor of Chapel Hill, has been tapped to chair the Council. Charlie Fisher, former executive director of the Illinois Commerce Commission and principal of the Lakeside Business Group, a local public policy consulting firm, will serve as vice chair of the Council. The Chamber has assembled an accomplished congregation of southern Orange County talent, representing diverse perspectives on economic and community development. Starting in September, the group will meet for asix-month period before making recommendations on how the community can develop the most effective and efficient mechanisms to retain, enhance and grow a sustainable economy and a sustainable community. Aaron Nelson, Executive Director of the Chapel Hill -Carrboro Chamber of Commerce, has invited the Board of Commissioners to appoint a County Commissioner or other appropriate representative to serve on this newly formed Council. FINANCIAL IMPACT: NONE RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends that the Board appoint one of its members, or an appropriate representative, to serve on the Council on a Sustainable Community. 3 ~hapel Hill Carrbow am. er Margaret Brown, Chair Orange County Board of Commissioners Post Office Box 8181 Hillsborough, North Carolina 27278 August 19, 2003 Dear Chairwoman Brown, On behalf of the chair of the Chamber's Board of Directors, Chandler Burns of RBC Centura, and the Chair of the Council on a Sustainable Community, Howard Lee of the State Board of Education, I write to invite the Orange County Board of Commissioners to appoint a County Commissioner or other appropriate representative to serve on the newly formed Council. Attached to this letter you will find copies of the press release announcing this new community council, a list of current members, and the draft charge to the Council that will be given to the members at their first meeting on September 9, 2003 at 8:OOam at the CBB conference room in the Exchange at Meadowmont. Thank you for your interest in the Council on a Sustainable Community. Sincerely, Aaron Nelson Executive Director CC: Chandler Burns Howard Lee Charlie Fisher Mark Zimmerman 4 Chapel Hill Carrboro am er FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 15, 2003 Chamber Forms Council on a Sustainable Community, Howard Lee Named Chair The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce is launching a new initiative, the Council on a Sustainable Community (CSC). The Council is an independent task farce that will address how to proactively promote a healthy economy and ensure Chapel Hill and Carrboro remain successful and sustainable. Howard Lee, chair of the North Carolina State Board of Education, former state senator and former mayor of Chapel Hill, has been tapped to chair the Council. Charlie Fisher, former executive director of the Illinois Commerce Commission and principal of the Lakeside Business Group, a local public policy consulting firm, will serve as vice chair of the Council. The Chamber has assembled an accomplished congregation of southern Orange County talent, representing diverse perspectives on economic and community development. Starting in September, the group will meet for asix-month period before making recommendations on how our community can develop the most effective and efficient mechanisms to retain, enhance and grow a sustainable economy and a sustainable community. "The Chamber believes that no community can survive, let alone thrive, without a healthy local economy," said Chandler Burns, chair of the Chamber's 32-member board of directors and senior market officer for RBC Centura. "A sustainable local economy provides jobs for the community's citizens, generates revenue to support community goals, reduces residential tax burden to make the community more affordable, and provides goods and services conveniently to minimize transportation costs and negative environmental impact." Burns continued, "The Chamber's 920 members have an important stake in the health and sustainability of our community, both professionally and personally, and the Chamber's Board looks forward to receiving the recommendations of this critical community council." Howard Lee expressed his commitment to the CSC and its mission. "I am involved with this worthy effort because promoting a sustainable economy -where jobs are higher paying, businesses can look forward to healthy growth, economic operations have lower environmental 5 impact, and employers are actively involved in improving education and other community services - is key to the future of Chapel Hill and Carrboro. I am committed to the success and sustainability of this community. We need this process of discussion and exploration to determine how we can best protect and improve our community." Press Contacts: Chandler Burns, Chair, Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber Board of Directors, 918-4339 Howard Lee, Chair, Council on a Sustainable Community, 880-9201 Charlie Fisher, Vice Chair, Council on a Sustainable Community, 96()-3821 The Council on a Sustainable Community Membership: Howard Lee, Chair, currently serves as chair of the North Carolina State Board of Education. Lee served as North Carolina State Senator representing District 16 from 1990 to 1994 and 1996 to 2002. He served as Mayor of Chapel Hill from 1969 to 1975. Charlie Fisher, Vice Chair, is the principal of the Lakeside Business Group, a Carrboro-based public policy consulting firm. Fisher is the former executive director of the Illinois Commerce Commission. Mark Zimmerman, Secretary, is an entrepreneur operating his own marketing firm, ZIMarketing, and partnering in a start-up company, Ablatrics. After z~ long career in marketing and advertising, Zimmerman owned Great Harvest Bread Company in Chapel Hill unti12002. Delores Bailey is a community organizer and associate director of EmPOWEIZment, Inc., a Chapel Hill-based community development organization. Bailey is a resident of the Northside neighborhood and life-long resident of Chapel Hill. Barbara Baker is the vice president for student support services and dean of student services at Durham Technical Community College. Baker has been active in efforts to determine the adult education needs of Orange County in preparation for the construction of a satellite Durham Tech campus in Orange County. James Carnahan is an environmentalist and advocate for walkable communities. Carnahan is a resident of Carrboro, proprietor of Matrix Design and the chair of the board of directors of the Village Project, Inc. Jim Carter is the senior vice president and senior market executive for Central Carolina Bank. Carter served as chair of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors from 1997 to 1999. Mark Crowell is the Associate Vice Chancellor for Economic Development and Director of the Office of Technology Development at UNC-Chapel Hill. A resident of downtown Chapel Hill, Crowell has a long history in the field of technology transfer and economic development has directed those efforts at both Duke University and North Carolina State University. Nick Didow, PhD was first elected to the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City School Board in 1995 and is Professor of Marketing at Kenan-Flagler Business School at UNC-Chapel Hill. Dr. Didow served as chair of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City School Board in 1999 and 2001. Scott Gardner is the Manager of Business and Government Relations for Duke Power for the Triangle region. Gardner is the chair of the board of directors of the Triangle United Way and served as the chair of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors in 1999. 6 James Johnson, PhD, is William Rand Kenan Distinguished Professor of Management at the Kenan-Flagler Business School and Director of the Urban Investment: Strategies Center and the Center for Sustainable Enterprise at the Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise. Jim Heavner is the president and CEO of VilCom, a Chapel Hill-based company principally in the media business. Heavner has been in business in Chapel Hill for more than 40 years and has served many business and community leadership positions. Mark Kleinschmidt has been a member of the Chapel Hill Town Council since his election in 2001. Kleinschmidt hold two degrees from UNC Chapel Hill and is an attorney who works at the Center for Death Penalty Litigation. Scott Maitland is the proprietor of Top of the Hill Restaurant and Brewery and is a partner in the law firm of Maitland and Maitland, PLLC. Maitland has been active the Blue Ribbon Mentoring Program and is the immediate past chair of the Chapel Hill.-Carrboro Chamber Board of Directors. Hector Perez is the executive director of El Centro Latino, aCarrboro-based community organization serving the needs of the Orange County's Latino population. Perez is a recent graduate of Leadership Triangle and serves on the board of the Orange County Dispute Settlement Center. Roger Perry is the president of East-West Partners Management Company. Perry is a member of the Board of Trustees of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and immediate past chair of the Triangle United Way Board of Directors. Margaret Skinner is the Director of Marketing for the Carolina Inn and the immediate past chair of the Chapel Hill Downtown Commission Board of Directors. Ruffin Slater is the general manager and founder of Weaver Street Market, aCarrboro-based cooperative grocery, which has recently expanded to a store in Southern Village and Panzanella restaurant in Carr Mill Mall. Rosemary Waldorf is the principal of Rosemary Waldorf Public Relations. Waldorf served as Mayor of the Town of Chapel Hill from 1995 to 2001. *The Chamber has also invited and is awaiting an appointment from the Town of Carrboro. 7 Chapel Hili Carrboro am er COUNCIL ON A SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITY OBJECTIVES AND COMMISSION (DRAFT The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce has assembled the Council on a Sustainable Community (CSC), an independent taskforce, to research and recommend the most effective and efficient mechanisms for retaining, enhancing and building the sustainable economy necessary for a sustainable community. To that end, the Chamber specifically charges the CSC with reporting its findings on the following issues to the Chamber and the community at large by March 1, 2004: 1. What is the current and projected economic health of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro community? Are the factors that drove the growth in the past still active, and if not, what are the ramifications of that change? 2. What is the relationship between economic growth and the sustainability of the Chapel Hill Carrboro community? Does the commercial tax base provide sufficient funds for community needs and public services (teachers, police, firefighters, public spaces, etc.)? 3. What kind of economic growth is needed for the future sustainability of the Chapel Hill- Carrboro community? What kind of businesses do we want in Chapel Hill/Carrboro? 4. How will economic growth best be facilitated internally and externally? What improvements must be made to our area's education and training opportunities and housing and transportation infrastructure to compete successfully for appropriate economic growth? What are the roles of existing organizations and the need for new one(s) to promote the benefits of remaining or relocating businesses in our community?