CDA Elects New Officers, Approves Grants

During the city’s Community Development Authority (CDA) meeting last night, election of officers for the commission were held.  Chairman Rob Glazier, Vice-Chair Larry Lefebvre and Secretary Gail Konkel were elected to their positions before they got down to general business.

A grant not to exceed $3,000 was approved for Jim Haag of State Farm insurance. Haag, whose office is located on Janesville Road, is spending $6,000 on landscaping in front of his business to coincide with the Janesville Road reconstruction project. The grant will cover half of the cost.

The commission decided not to attach a deed restriction to the grant, a new idea that it is experimenting with.  Under the concept, businesses receiving grant monies from the CDA for landscaping would be under agreement with the city to upkeep the landscaping in perpetuity, even if the property changes owners. The agreement would be held against the title of the property as a deed restriction. Monetary fines for violations would be a part of the agreement as well.

However, CDA member Jason Thompson recommended considering making the agreement non-transferable. Fifth District Alderman Dan Soltysiak, who serves on the commission, recommended perhaps setting a time limit on the agreement, like two or three years, for example. Konkel said she is not a fan of deed restrictions. More details are to be worked out.

The condo association of the Bay Breeze Condominiums also requested a grant from the CDA. The association sought up to $5,000 to help defray the costs of its $14,210 bid to remove a number of trees that were uprooted during last year’s tornadoes.

When it came down to voting on the request, however, a bylaw issue and Bay Breeze's status prevented the vote.

Thompson, who recently purchased a condo at Bay Breeze, offered to recuse himself from voting on the request to avoid the appearance of any impropriety, but Soltysiak warned that Thompson’s offer to recuse himself may not be enough. Soltysiak stated that the CDA’s bylaws prohibit members of the CDA to receive funds from it. Even though it’s the condo association, which is a company in the form of an LLC, that is asking for the funds, each condo owner owns a share in the company. Following that logic then, one can attempt to argue that Thompson stands to gain financially through being a shareholder in the company.

The question also arose as to whether, for purposes of being able to request funding from the CDA, Bay Breeze is considered commercial or residential. The determination could impact Bay Breeze’s eligibility to receive grant monies.

In light of these major questions arising, the CDA deferred its vote on the grant request by Bay Breeze until its next meeting on June 23.

In other spending proposals, the commission approved a grant request to cover half the cost of removing a dying tree in front of the Janesville Commons. The CDS also approved a grant for up to $500 to plant trees on the boulevard near the city’s gateway sign on Racine Avenue.