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Minutes 05-01-25 MINUTES OF THE COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY ADVISORY BOARD MEETING HELD ON THURSDAY, MAY 1, 2025, AT 6:00 P.M. AT CITY HALL COMMISSION CHAMBERS 100 E. OCEAN AVENUE, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA PRESENT: Alexandria Lopresto, Chair Tim Tack, Interim Executive Director Tom Ramiccio, Vice Chair Vicki Curfman, Administrative Assistant George Feldman William Harper Thomas Isabella Angela Troyanowski ABSENT: Lesha Roundtree 1. Call to Order Mr. Tack called the meeting to order at 6:06 P.M. 2. Pledge of Allegiance The members recited the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. 3. Roll Call Roll call was taken. A quorum was present. 4. Agenda Approval A. Additions, Deletions, Corrections to the Agenda B. Adoption of Agenda Motion Mr. Ramiccio moved to accept the agenda as presented. Ms. Lopresto seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. 5. Public Comment None. Meeting Minutes CRA Advisory Board Boynton Beach, Florida May 1, 2025 6. Consent A. CRA Advisory Board Meeting Minutes — March 6, 2025 Motion Ms. LoPresto moved to approve the March 6th minutes. Mr. Ramiccio seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously 7. Old Business A. Pending Assignment No. 1 - Discussion and Consideration of New Assignments from the CRA Board Assigned at the February 13, 2024 CRA Monthly Board Meeting Mr. Tack explained that this item was assigned to the Board on February 13th by the CRA Board and he reviewed the item. The members introduced themselves as follows: Mr. William Harper stated that he is a Boynton Beach resident and he is in Real Estate Mr. George Feldman stated that he has been a resident for 29 years and is in Real Estate. Mr. Thomas Ramiccio stated that he is retired and he lives in Knollwood. Ms. Angela Troyanowski stated that she lives in Chapel Hill and has been in Boynton since 2018. She mentioned that she currently is a stay at home mom, was previously in public education, and that her husband runs a construction company. Mr. Thomas Isabella stated that he lives in High Point and that he has spent his life in government. He mentioned that he worked in Schenectady for 16 years, and has served the populus his whole life. He said that he was excited to serve on the Board and has lived in Boynton since 2015. Alexandria Lopresto commented that she was born and raised in Boynton Beach and that she was excited to be involved with the Board. She noted that this was her second term and she was looking forward to working collaboratively with the members. She said that she lives in Chapel Hill and also is in Real Estate and medical sales. Mr. Tack thanked all for volunteering their time and elaborated that the Board is being asked for recommendations on items that are above and beyond what is typically done by city governments. Ms. Troyanowski asked when was the last time the Districts were named. 2 Meeting Minutes CRA Advisory Board Boynton Beach, Florida May 1, 2025 Mr. Tack explained that the District was formed after a study regarding slum and blight was conducted. He said that the area, could be underutilized and/or have separate vacant parcels. He advised that the Board can re-evaluate the boundaries and expand or shrink them. He noted that the CRA will sunset in 19 years and it is unlikely the County would support dissolution of the District before that time. Ms. Troyanowski clarified that she was talking about renaming the internal districts. Ms. Lopresto stated that the last time the CRA Plan was updated was in 2016. Mr. Tack said that the members could look at the plan and assess the Districts, to see if any would be added or deleted. Mr. Feldman questioned why the marina area is not known as the Marina District. Ms. Lopresto explained that the Board had mentioned that the downtown area included the marina, but the downtown was more on Ocean Avenue. Discussion followed that it could be years to implement some of the recommendations, and that the Board could rename the districts or consolidate them. Mr. Tack stated that part of the recommendations were to reevaluate the districts. Ms. Lopresto stated that they looked at other cities and CRA's, to see what was implemented. She mentioned that the Board would research other areas, bring their findings back to the meetings to discuss and present to the CRA. She said that in the past, some of their responses to their recommendations was to conduct further research. Ms. Troyanowski suggested aiming for the low hanging fruit and that perhaps having lamp post signage would be helpful. Mr. Feldman inquired about programs to help residential owners. Mr. Tack explained that the CRA had offered façade improvements in the past, but those programs fare better when offered by the City, as they are challenging, and that the CRA mostly deals with incentives for commercial projects. He commented that they are locked into the Plan, and much of what they deal with has to do with property acquisition and achieving maximum development potential. He commented that the downtown has a higher density and intensity and that they look at improving store fronts and increasing foot traffic. He mentioned that each district has its own characteristics and it's in the same type of concept, which are intertwined with the CRA, but there are no blueprints on how to bring the plans to fruition. Ms. Lopresto suggested, for the benefit of the new members, that they review the plan as contained in the meeting materials, and note their recommendations. 3 Meeting Minutes CRA Advisory Board Boynton Beach, Florida May 1 , 2025 Some highlights of the plan were: • The need for a gateway feature on the north and south ends of the City, having wider sidewalks, banners on streetlights, and tree canopy. • The need to create a sense of place and destination. • The need to enter into an Interlocal Agreement with the Florida Department of Transportation, to allow the City to maintain the 195 aprons and rights-of-way. • Boynton's features should be showcased in a marketing package. Mr. Tack agreed to provide the Board's previous recommendations at the next meeting. Ms. Troyanowski suggested that the Board should focus on beautification and forward a shortlist of their recommendations to the Commission. Discussion followed that the CRA Advisory Board made recommendations to the CRA Board, and they were not excited about some of the recommendations and only one or two of them were accepted. Mr. Tack asked if the members wanted to bring back three to five suggestions in the realm of beautification for the next meeting. There was consensus for the members to do so, including the installation of splash pads, as Ms. Troyanowski had indicated that they are very popular, and they draw a lot of young families. Ms. Troyanowski stated that she would travel 45 minutes to take her children to a splash pad. B. Pending Assignment No. 2 - Discussion and Consideration of New Assignments from the CRA Board assigned at the February 13, 2024 CRA Monthly Board Meeting Regarding Property Acquisition — none C. Pending Assignment No. 3 - Discussion and Consideration of New Assignments from the CRA Board Assigned at the January 10, 2025 CRA Monthly Board Meeting (TABLED 03/06/2025) Motion Ms. Lopresto moved to remove the items from the March meeting. Ms. Troyanowski seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. 4 Meeting Minutes CRA Advisory Board Boynton Beach, Florida May 1, 2025 Mr. Tack said that the Board's task was to find a location for a Splash Pad. He explained that the Cultural District on Ocean Avenue runs from Seacrest to the railroad tracks and the idea was to have Ocean Avenue be family oriented. There was discussion of other nearby splash pads, and a comment was made that the one at Barrier Free Park never works. Ms. Troyonowski emphasized that there is an opportunity to create a beautiful event space on Ocean Avenue. She noted that the Schoolhouse Children's Museum was on Ocean Avenue and they are looking at activating the Magnuson House, owned by the CRA. She mentioned that there had been talk of having a coffee shop, and she suggested if the coffee shop falls through, they could make it a destination with the splash pad. Mr. Feldman commented that they should decide if they want Ocean Avenue to be active during the day or evenings. He noted that after 3:00 P.M., Lake Worth is active and it was mentioned that evening activities are not geared towards families. Discussion about why it takes so long for Boynton to make progress ensued. Mr. Tack explained that Delray has the beach and planned their amenities. He said that Delray has a lot of lighting, landscaping and decorative banners, and has spent millions of dollars on it and maintaining it. He also noted that Delray narrowed Federal Highway and there are a lot of other elements involved. Mr. Feldman pointed out that Boynton Beach has the number one Library in the State and the City does not advertise it. After discussion, there was consensus for the next meeting, that Mr. Isabella will provide costs for a splash pad, with various amenities including bathrooms. Mr. Isabella stated that the City was reluctant to build bathrooms for various reasons. Mr. Tack asked if the CRA AB wanted to make a full presentation to the CRA Board. Mr. Ramiccio said that they do not know where all of the pieces of the puzzle fit. He suggested keeping it on the table, to get a better idea of what will be constructed and where. Mr. Tack said that it will be hard to give a recommendation on a location and they should not limit it to what development they think is coming in. Ms. Troyanowski asked how the prior Board reviewed the plan and made a presentation. Mr. Feldman volunteered to make suggestions on the Federal Highway Corridor. 5 Meeting Minutes CRA Advisory Board Boynton Beach, Florida May 1, 2025 Ms. Lopresto said that the CRA Advisory Board will conduct additional research on their own, prior to the next meeting, and come back with a greater understanding about what splashpads could look like, offer broader locations contingent on other projects in the Cultural District, and will discuss Items 2 and 3 at the June meeting. 8. New Business Mr. Tack asked if the Board wants to meet on July 3rd or if they want to change the date. He said if so, he can bring potential meeting dates at the next meeting. There was agreement to discuss the matter in June. Mr. Isabella stated that he will not be at June meeting. A. Discussion and Consideration of Nomination of New Board Chair Motion Mr. Feldman nominated Ms. Lopresto as Chair. Ms. Lopresto accepted. Mr. Ramiccio seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. B. Discussion and Consideration of Nomination of New Board Vice Chair Motion Mr. Harper nominated Mr. Ramiccio as Vice Chair. Mr. Ramiccio accepted. Mr. Isabella seconded the motion. The motion unanimously passed. 9. Future Agenda Items 10. Adjournment Motion Ms. Lopresto moved to adjourn. Mr. Harper seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously. The meeting was adjourned at 7:59 P.M. 6,164/U162- Ojai"), Catherine Cherry Minutes Specialist 6