At the meeting this Friday morning, Mayor Lois called the meeting to order at 7:34 a.m. starting with a roll call: Mayor Claude Lois, David Torgler, Mary Brensinger, John Ekes, John Smith, Dennis Spankowski, Tom Stelling, Bill Stone and Jenny Trick. Absent: Jack Eckola, Mike Hohner and Kevin McKillip.

Approval of Minutes. Dennis Spankowski motioned and John Ekes seconded to approve the minutes of the October 5, 2001 DET meeting. All were in favor and the motion carried.

Chief Patla provided an update regarding his research into parking enforcement practices and potential changes. On average, the Chief offered, hand-held devices cost anywhere from $15,000-25,000. Given the cost, he believed that he could save the City a great deal of money by creating a similar device with a "Palm Pilot" type of unit and expand a formerly developed database. He offered that this cost item was proposed within the Police Department’s 2002 budget.

Regarding the matter of creating a parking zone within the central business district, Chief Patla stated that he spoke with the Kenosha Chief of Police regarding their zone parking restrictions. The Chief asked the DET for additional time to consider the practical and legal aspects of the potential zone.

The Chief then recounted the subjects that have been discussed previously: (1) seek voluntary compliance from the "car-movers" within the downtown area; (2) further strengthen the collection of parking fees; and (3) continue to improve the internal process of data and related. He noted the value in the list but resolved that a step-by-step approach may be more palatable.

One of the attendees requested that the municipal lots be free of charge during the months of November and December to accommodate the additional traffic that results during the holiday season. Alternatively, it was also suggested that the parking lots include a varied time/cost scenario. Chief Patla recognized that the parking situation may appear to be moving slowly, but believed it was important to analyze the potential opportunities comprehensively.

After additional discussion, it was agreed that the City should consider allowing the municipal parking lots to be free of charge from the hours of 8:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. during the month of December. However, overnight parking would still require a permit. This matter will be required to proceed through the Common Council.

The presentation concluded with Mayor Lois asking Chief Patla to continue the investigative activities regarding the enforcement options and report back to the DET at the next meeting.

Jenny Trick distributed a memorandum document identifying the locations of the proposed wayfinding signage. A similar document was distributed at the October 5, 2001, DET meeting, but the modified document includes information regarding the potential use of existing poles to mount the signage, or if a new pole would be necessary. To prepare for this discussion, Mr. Spankowski of Burli Signs, Larry Gobel of the City of Burlington and Ms. Trick reviewed the proposed locations and determined that less than 10 poles would be necessary to complete the project.

Some discussion included the order of feature placements on the sign. It was concluded that the placement should be consistent with the travel distance to the feature (i.e., during travel, as you proceed closer to the "feature ", the feature is closer to the top of the list).

Mr. Torgler asked about the potential of adding reflective material on the signage. Although many of the signs will be within areas illuminated by existing road lights, Mr. Torgler was concerned about the ability to read the signs without reflective material. Mr. Spankowski offered to bring a sample of the reflective material to the next DET meeting.

Finally, given the lead-time required to purchase the necessary poles, it was determined that the bid document should be prepared for advertisement during the month of December 2001.

Ms. Trick offered an update regarding the subject matter and the potential of retaining the UW Extension to assess the current market situation in and around Burlington. After meeting with the UW representatives, Ms. Trick requested the names of communities and contacts that have undergone this assessment process. One community, Waupaca, recently completed the activity. Ms. Trick stated that she spoke with the Waupaca Main Street manager (referred by UW Extension), to gain their perspective of the data gathering process, as well as the use of the completed information. It was offered that it was a rather arduous process and required more time than originally anticipated, however the data did appear to assist in attracting a children’s book store into the area. The Main Street manager stated that although this information assisted in the decision, it was not the single issue. The Waupaca community also has a successful Main Street program and a well utilized façade loan program. It was the opinion of the Waupaca Main Street Manager that they have realized greater interest in their downtown area due to their concerted façade improvement efforts.

It was further noted that upon completion of the assessment and inventory, the data needs to be maintained and updated regularly, given the inventory of building tenants change frequently.

The DET discussion concluded that although the information would be interesting, it is costly and would require diligent upkeep to remain effective. The topic was finalized with the agreement that Mr. Torgler, Mayor Lois and Ms. Trick would attend the next Retail Meeting to better understand their future goals and objectives and report back to the DET.

None.

Tom Stelling motioned and Bill Stone seconded to adjourn. All were in favor and the motion carried.

Adjourned at 8:49 a.m.

Recording Secretary – Jenny Trick