The Crookston Housing & Economic Development Authority (CHEDA) board met inside Valley Technology Park on Tuesday morning. The meeting began with appointing Robert Barnes for the role of Community Development Director/CHEDA Executive Director. The board approved the motion unanimously.
Barnes grew up in Tennessee and has an Economic Development Background. His first day of work with the City of Crookston was back on September 30, and he said he’s been adjusting to the role well, and it will continue to be a process. “I’m still going to be adjusting for a long time. It takes a while to get to know a community,” said Barnes. “It was a good meeting to be at today, and the board’s process was superb. I can’t wait to continue to work with them for as long as they sit on the board.”
There was then a Public Hearing for the Public Housing Capital Fund 5-Year plan. However, no one spoke at the hearing, and it was closed without any discussion. CHEDA President Wayne Melbye was absent from the meeting, and Dylane Klatt was filling in.
CONSENT AGENDA
The Consent Agenda included EDA Financials, Crookston Job Loan Status and Financials, Community Investment Financials, B3 Grants and Financials, the Prairie Skyline Project, Epitome Energy Financials, Crookston Jobs Revolving Loan Fund, Revolving Loan Status, and Financials, Oak Court Public Housing Financials, Housing Choice Voucher Financials, Workforce Housing Financials, Rehab Housing Loan Status, and Financials, All CHEDA Bills Payable, Valley Technology Park Financials, Valley Technology Park Building Occupancy, and Valley Technology Park Expanded Business Incubation.
All Consent Agenda items were approved unanimously in one motion.
The board then heard an update on the Colborn Property Infrastructure Project, and no new updates were available or provided. The board also listened to a POHP Plumbing Project from Theresa Tahran, and things should be wrapping up soon with the project. No action was needed on these items as they were informational only.
MAIN AGENDA
The Main Agenda began with consideration for authorizing sending a request for qualifications for engineering and architectural services for the POHP 2020 Project. The board approved the motion.
The next item on the agenda was the HRA Annual Plan Approval. Two items needed approval with this motion. The first was the approval of a Civil Rights Certificate, and the second was a Compliance Agreement with the PHA. The board approved both items unanimously.
The Next item was another quick one, as it was a purchase agreement for 1603 Hoven Lane, which the board approved without hesitation.
EPITOME ENERGY LOAN EXTENSION
The biggest item on the main agenda was consideration for a loan extension agreement with Epitome Energy. The initial loan from CHEDA to Epitome Energy was $250,000 with no collateralization in place. City of Crookston Attorney Corky Reynolds provided the board with some suggestions for collateralization moving forward if they decided to extend the loan. “I recommended they consider personal guarantees from Dennis Egan, CEO of Epitome Energy,” said Reynolds. “Now that they’re seeking an extension on the loan, I also recommended they receive guarantees from the corporation itself, whether that’s specific items or an insurance policy for Egan.”
Reynolds also talked about the four items in the loan agreement that will need to be hit by Epitome Energy for the loan to be forgiven. “The original loan agreement provided that the $250,000 loan shall be forgiven if four items are met,” said Reynolds. “The first being that all reports and permits are attained by Epitome. The second is that they obtain all permits necessary for the construction and operation of the facility. The third is that Epitome acquires the property the facility will be built on within two years of the loan closing date, and the last one is that Epitome commences construction of the facility. For various reasons, none of these conditions have been met, so Epitome is seeking an extension with the loan, and because of this, I believe the board should have collateralization of some kind in place.”
The board voted to extend the loan until September 30, 2022, with the goal for Egan to provide and secure some collateralization by December 21, which is the next planned CHEDA board meeting. This will allow Egan time to meet with his law firm to ensure collateralization and implement a plan.
The next item on the agenda was the approval of the 2020 CHEDA Audited Financials. The board approved the resolution unanimously, and the financials look normal and in good shape.
CHEDA BUDGET
The 2022 CHEDA budget was removed from the agenda before the meeting and will be reviewed again in December 2021. Barnes was the one who made the recommendation to remove the budget from the meeting, and he talked about why he made the recommendation. “Bluntly, I have to understand the budget,” said Barnes. “Before I can present something to represent this organization, I have to understand it better. There are a few things I’m looking at potentially adding to the budget in 2022 and a direction we may want to go, so I want more time to review the budget and come up with a better understanding of it before we make a move on it.”
B3 APPLICATION REQUESTS
The B3 Program “Building Better Business” was then discussed as there were two applications reviewed. A&L Body Shop was seeking $3,000, and RBJ’s Restaurant was seeking $4,000. The board approved the A&L Body Shop request but denied RBJ’s request because the project they would use the money for has already begun.
The application for the B3 Program states a project cannot have started for the business to be eligible to receive the money. The board agreed they will need to follow the rules and deny the request but will go back to RBJ’s to see if they can use the money for another project.
The meeting ended with a discussion on potentially moving future meeting dates and times. The goal is to try and get more community members to attend the CHEDA meetings, and some board members believe having the meetings at 7:00 a.m. doesn’t encourage public participation. No decision was reached, and a proposal will be drawn up by new Executive Director Robert Barnes and brought back before the board to review at the December meeting.
There is no scheduled meeting for November, and the next board meeting will commence on December 21.
