BM 1990-07-11 EcDevMinutes of the
Economic and Business Development Board
July 111 1994
The Economic and Business Development Board met in regular session
on Wednesday, July 11, 1990, at 7:34 p.m., in the Executive
Conference Room of Coppell Town Center. The following Board
members were present:
Lee Richardson, Chairman
David Greer
Richard Johnson
Angelo Vacarro
City staff members present were:
Alan Ratliff, City Manager
Guests present were:
Gary Kennedy, TU Electric
Kirk King, TU Electric
Tom Parsons, TU Electric
Deborah Penn, Zenith Data Systems
John Prickett, TU Electric
Rusty Roberts, Carrollton Bicycle Exchange
Item 1: Call to Ord -.r: The meeting was called to order by
Chairman Richardson, noting a quorum was present.
Item 2: Review and Approval of Minutes: The minutes of the
June 6, 1990, meeting were reviewed. Richard Johnson
noted one correction to the minutes: The vote on the
Metrocrest ad was four members approving, and one against
(R. Johnson ). David Greer made a motion that the minutes
be approved with the correction. Angelo Vacarro seconded
the motion. The motion carried and the minutes were
approved.
Bicycle Race - Angelo Vacarro presented a report and
critique of the bicycle race and called upon Rusty
Roberts and Deborah Penn to present their comments and
talk about the event.
Rusty informed the Board that the feedback he received
indicated that all the participants loved the course and
felt it was a close to perfect course for a bicycle race.
He reported that officials of the state bike racing
association are considering holding the state
championship here in Coppell next June.
Ms. Penn reported that Zenith Data Systems spent $7,000
on the race and its promotion. They felt the media
coverage was excellent. however, they would have liked
to see greater participation from the metroplex citizens.
They recommend joining this event with another community
event to increase metroplex participation. Ms. Penn felt
that the mention of joining the event with Founder's Day
was highly desirable.
Lee Richardson suggested that sports figures with high
profiles could also be involved in the event. Lee stated
he had spoken with representatives of the Rotary Club and
they expressed interest in affiliating with the bike
race. Founder's Day is held the last weekend in April,
and Lee will have further discussions with the Rotary
Club concerning this matter.
Angelo Vacarro suggested that a meeting be set up with
John Hill of the Rotary Club, and the president of the
Coppell Chamber of Commerce to discuss improving and
joining these events. Richard Johnson suggested that a
major media be contacted and requested to sponsor the
event. This would, according to Richard, ensure more
publicity. Rusty Roberts also suggested the need for a
sponsor to contribute prize money for the participants
in the race.
Lee Richardson summarized discussions and stated that we
should continue to work on this project as was discussed.
Item 4: Presentation by TU Electric:
Lee Richardson called upon Tom Parsons of TU Electric to
present and introduce the program. John Prickett, who
heads economic development for TU in this area, presented
his thoughts and comments. He serves an area including
87 counties and stated that the metroplex and DFW Airport
are the hottest spots in his territory. TU economic
development primarily serves industrial development,
community development, and agribusiness. Agribusiness
is the backbone of Texas' economic development, producing
$70+ billion in raw products. Most of the value added
occurs in out-of-state locations where the raw products
are processed. They are therefore concentrating on the
agribusiness.
Angelo Vacarro asked what TU was able to do in the way
of community development. Mr. Prickett responded that
they could put on a training program for an economic
development team, assist in gathering demographics, and
make the data for industrial prospects available. He
futher stated that TU representatives have leads from the
Texas Department of commerce and Dallas Partnership as
well as developing their own leads.
Alan Ratliff asked what items were of most importance to
industry prospects. Gary Kennedy responded by providing
the following:
1) Labor - concerned about availability of an educated
labor force.
2) Transportation, particularly in and out of the
airport.
3) Telecommunications network.
4) Quality of life, which includes educational
opportunities, cultural amenities, and housing.
Mr. Kennedy stated that most decisions about relocation
are made by a plant manager or CEO based on friendships
formed with local persons as well as personal opinion of
the city being considered. Mr. Kennedy stated that
Coppell's major strengths are its highways and its
proximity to the airport.
Lee Richardson requested that TU consider assisting
Coppell in developing a response team. Mr. Kennedy said
that he would be happy to conduct a training program
consisting of two hours per week for three to four weeks,
during which time a notebook would be prepared containing
information needed to work with industrial prospects.
The response team should Consist of members of the
Economic Development Board, City Council, City staff,, and
other community leaders. Lee Richardson suggested that
we should consider conducting such a training effort in
the early fall.
TU representatives indicated they would assist Coppell
with the video project; if we want them to do so, we
should contact Tom Parsons who will arrange for this
assistance. They stated they could assist with the
development of the Coppell brochure and would provide
camera-ready work if the City would undertake the cost
of printing the brochure. This concluded discussion of
items with, TU and TU representatives excused themselves
from the meeting.
Item 5: Video Production: The video was discussed by Richard
Johnson who related that he had gotten an estimate from
Bob Krysak of $2,600 for preparing the Coppell video.
Mr. Johnson stated that Mr. Krysak said he would provide
the video footage of many Coppell events free of charge
if we needed it. The bid of $2,600 does not include
voice or music, which are estimated at an additional
$2,000. Lee Richardson stated he had discussed the video
with the Mayor and related the Mayor's suggestion that
the Economic Development Board present their proposal to
the City Council. Lee also suggested that based on the
comments made by the TU representatives, we need to make
some changes to the script to incorporate regional
attractions into the program. Richard Johnson stated he
could do this and would make those changes. Richard also
agreed to present the video concept to the City Council
at the next meeting.
Angelo Vacarro moved to adjourn the meeting and the motion was
seconded by David Greer. The motion received unanimous approval
and the meeting was adjourned at 10 p.m. The next regularly
scheduled meeting of the Economic and Business Development Board
will be Wednesday, August 1, 1990, at Coppell Town Center,
RespectfU;V
Alan D.
Acting Recording Secretary
Economic and Business Development Board
City of Coppell
Deborah Penn ZEN,ry
Spec a tVefitS -Coordinator 0,,�Iqqpl
data systems
Groupe Bull
Zenith Data Systems
1501 Luna Road
Suite 102
Carrollton, Texas 75006
Ph.(214)323-1010 Ext. 250
FAX (214) 245-1769 FAX (214)245-0863
Jlrl
— —j", '?,,S 61 s -
PY'i
4e-
eq�- L
t -c_
'--Ftk-,
C ��
vz� r cz-4-