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HomeMy WebLinkAboutRestaurant Association BID Minutes 03/27/20131 Minutes of the Newport Beach Restaurant Association Business Improvement District Board of Directors Meeting March 27, 2013 Island Hotel 1. Call to Order Mr. Walker called the meeting to order at 3:11 p.m. at the Island Hotel. Directors Present: Jim Walker The Bungalow Thomas Giulioni Newport Dunes Ali Zadeh The Port Sheri Drewry Wilma’s Patio Ron Schwartz Muldoon’s John Robinson Amelia’s City Representatives: Mary Locey Public Information Specialist Public: Peggy Fort CMC, Inc. Joey Campbell Ruby’s Diner Joe Campbell Ruby’s Diner Dennis Whole Foods Jim Mosher Newport Beach Resident Representatives OC Register Representative OC Health Care Agency 2. Roll Call Mr. Walker invited everyone in attendance to introduce themselves. 3. Public Comments Mr. Mosher noted that Mr. Giulioni name is spelled wrong in some areas of the January 23 minutes. 4. Approval of the Minutes Mr. Walker noted that the Board is behind on the approval of minutes. The September meeting minutes were not listed on the agenda and still need to be approved along with the January meeting minutes. The Board waived approval of the minutes to take time to review and provide any corrections at the next meeting. 5. Current Business 2 A) President’s Report Mr. Walker reported that the Balboa Village BID and Marine Avenue BID voted to disband and reform as merchant associations. The Corona del Mar (CdM) BID and Newport Beach Restaurant Association BID voted to remain as BIDs. The City recommended changing to a 1994 BID; however, both the CdM and NBRA BIDs opted to maintain their current standing as 1989 Act BIDs. Mr. Walker and other BID presidents have been meeting with City representatives to discuss moving forward. At the March 26 Study Session, the City Council and public were presented the proposed plan. The City’s offer is to provide $40,000 each year for the next five years which is the longest time period that the City would enter into a contract. If the BIDs opt to use Visit Newport Beach (VNB) for marketing services, the City will pay $10,000 per BID directly to VNB in the first year of the agreements. The City will also continue to pay for BID accounting services for one year with Whittaker & Company (Whittaker). After the one-year period, the BID can choose to use another vendor or continue with Whittaker, City funding of this service will stop. Administrative support for minutes and general administrative duties will also be needed through the use of a BID Administrator. Combining services with CdM BID might help save money. Mr. Walker requested to have a City liaison to help guide the administrator and assist with needed communications and assistance. Mr. Walker noted some of the problems in the past were the limitation on contracts for one-year periods, which hinders long-range planning efforts. The City’s legal department approved the issuance of five-year contacts with options – contracts up to $10,000 do not require multiple bids and there is a threshold that requires Council approval. Mr. Giulioni added that the City made the pledge for $40,000 per year, but the BID can ask for more if there is a clear benefit the City would be open to listening and considering additional funding. Mr. Walker noted that a good business plan that shows the benefit would be needed. The NBRA is currently working on its strategic planning with Mr. Anderson is important for all Board members to attend. A part of the planning process includes a survey for all NBRA BID members to analyze how members see the BID and what changes are recommended. A part of the strategic planning will include what role VNB will play in helping the NBRA with marketing. It needs to include how to maintain accountability, holding VNB responsible and what is the cost verses the benefit. 3 Mr. Walker commented on how the CdM BID had a plan to improve the entry area by reducing the traffic lanes from three to two; however, the City Council did not approve the plan. As an alternative, the City is now looking into removing some parking spaces and creating some seating and walking space at the MacArthur Boulevard intersection. A parking study is underway, but the main issue is the current codes are based on building square footage, not the business use. The CdM BID believes that the City should negotiate with business owners to arrange for the use of parking lots after hours for other businesses, such as restaurants. Mr. Walker noted that more restaurants are coming to Newport Beach, which is good for the restaurant community. Extension of CMC, Inc. for NBRA BID Marketing – Mr. Walker asked the Board for its approval of extending the CMC, Inc. contract for an additional 90 days. Mr. Giulioni noted that the contract should be for 60 days, which will bring it to the end of the fiscal year. Ms. Fort noted that the Restaurant Week contract will be expiring as well and the Board needs to consider planning for next year. Mr. Giulioni pointed out that the Board needs to think about what is a successful campaign or event with the budget and delivery and recommends obtaining a formal proposal from CMC, VNB and others would be ideal. Mr. Giulioni motioned to approve the extension for 60 days to run through the fiscal year. Mr. Schwartz seconded the revised motion. The revised motion was approved to extend CMC, Inc. contract through June. There was a brief discussion about the Taste of Newport being cancelled this year by the Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce. Many of the people in the room thought that the NBRA should consider taking on a more active role in the Taste of Newport and this topic should be added into the strategic planning process. B) City Report Ms. Locey informed the group that the City was preparing to move the City Hall offices and will be closed from April 5 through April 10. The grand opening community event will take place on May 4 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. with 22 Newport Beach restaurants participating. C) Financial Report There was a discussion about developing a process for collecting past due assessments. Many felt the responsibility was with the Board members to manage the receivables and a process needs to be developed. The item will be addressed on the next agenda. Further, there was discussion about the provided financial reports that are somewhat confusing to interpret. It was requested to have additional reports run that include a general ledger. 4 The Newport Beach Dining Guide and the selling of advertisements were discussed by the Board and Ms. Fort. Ms. Fort clarified questions including the Board’s desire to maintain a low rate for ads to cover the printing costs and not to turn a profit from the dining guide. Mr. Walker wanted to table the approval of the financial report pending a discussion with Whittaker and Company. Ms. Fort submitted some checks for deposit. D) NBRA BID Marketing Report Ms. Fort provided a report on current marketing efforts by developing and distributing brochures to neighboring corporate and tourism industries. The dining guide is distributed to target guests staying overnight. The current campaign created for VNB’s visitors guide was created to complement VNB’s marketing efforts. Ms. Fort distributed the Restaurant Week PowerPoint presentation that will be provided during the recap meeting taking place after the NBRA BID adjournment. Ms. Fort informed the group that updates are taking place for the Newport Beach Dining website to make it compatible with mobile devices. Ms. Fort introduced some guests from the OC Register’s advertising section. The OC Register representatives told the group how the new newspaper owners want to connect more with the local communities and that the paper wants to be a strategic partner with Newport Beach and Costa Mesa. They announced that the Current will be published five days a week starting the first week of May. The OC Register advertising schedule was distributed and there was an invitation of forming a sponsorship for future advertising and events. Another guest was from the Orange County Health Care Agency to discuss RBS (Restaurant Beverage Servers) training for restaurant owners, managers and staff. RBS is focused on prevention of drinking and driving. Information was distributed and restaurant owners can call for training if interested. 6. NBRA BID Announcements No announcements. 7. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 4:24 p.m.