Executive Committee Meeting Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Transcription

1 Executive Committee Meeting Wednesday, April 22, 2015 Members Staff William Bogart Cameron County Eric Bridges Mark McCracken Clearfield County Amy Kessler John Shimko Clearfield County Christine Perneski Daniel Freeburg Elk County Susan Snelick June Sorg Elk County Cheryl DePanfilis Jeffrey Pisarcik Jefferson County Katie Krise James Sleigh Jefferson County Julie Kasmierski Joseph DeMott McKean County James Swanson Robert Esch McKean County Pat Brennen Douglas Morley Potter County Mary Theresa Cianca Kristi Wendel Mary Lou Jessop Guests Thomas Coppolo Cliff Lane Richie Lecker Katie Weidenboerner Solicitor McKean County Commissioner Ridgway Record Courier Express Chairman Pisarcik called the meeting to order at 9:30 AM with the pledge to the flag. QUORUM/INTRODUCTIONS As there were several new people at the meeting, Chairman Pisarcik asked that introductions be made. There was a quorum for the meeting. MINUTES With no corrections, additions or amendments to the March 26 Executive Committee Meeting Minutes, Doug Morley moved to approve the minutes as presented, seconded by Joe DeMott. Motion unanimously passed. OLD BUSINESS

2 Page 2 June 11, 2015 Eric stated that the Audit/Finance Committee approved the 990 Tax Return and approval of the 990 was required by the Executive Committee. However, as the information was not included in the mailing, this will be moved to the Full Board meeting. NEW BUSINESS Financial Reports With no questions, Mark McCracken moved to accept the March Financial Reports as presented, seconded by John Shimko. Motion unanimously passed. A95s A95s were reviewed. Joe DeMott acknowledged receipt of the A95s as presented, seconded by Dan Freeburg. Motion unanimously passed. Correspondence There was one piece of Correspondence. The Elk County Commissioners appointed Todd Caltagarone to the North Central Board of Directors to replace David Greene as representative for the City of St. Marys. Mr. Caltagarone is the acting City Manager of St. Marys. Purchases There was one Purchase for the month. Jim Swanson stated there was a maintenance and licensing contract for our video conferencing unit at a yearly fee of $5,888. This will be paid from Workforce dollars. Mark McCracken moved to approve maintenance and licensing contract, seconded by John Shimko. Motion unanimously passed. Resolutions There were no Resolutions for the month. Loans Before reviewing the loans, Eric noted that Mary Theresa, current Loan Portfolio Coordinator, will be retiring on May 1. Kristi Wendel has been hired to fill this position and started on April 20. The Executive Committee extended its congratulations to Mary Theresa and welcomed Kristi. Mary Theresa then reported on the following loans: Russell Stone Products, Inc., Curwensville, Clearfield County, has requested loans in the amount of from the $100,000 from the Economic Development Administration Revolving Loan Fund for 8 years at the

3 Page 3 June 11, 2015 rate of 3% and $100,000 from the Appalachian Regional Commission Revolving Loan Fund for 8 years at the rate of 3%. This money is for the purchase of equipment. North Central s collateral will specific first lien on equipment to be acquired and the personal guarantees of Cynthia Russell, Daniel Russell and Thomas Lanager. Twenty-two jobs will be retained and two new jobs will be created. The projected annual average hourly rate will be $15.15/hour plus 34% benefits. Mark McCracken moved to approve the loan to Russell Stone Products, Inc., seconded by John Shimko. Motion unanimously passed. Matson Lumber, Inc., Brookville, Jefferson County, has requested loans in the amount of $100,000 from the Economic Development Administration Revolving Loan Fund for 7 years at the rate of 3%; $100,000 from the Appalachian Regional Commission Revolving Loan Fund for 7 years at the rate of 3%; $100,000 from the Intermediary Relending Program Wood for 7 years at the rate of 3%; and $100,000 from the Intermediary Relending Program Fund 3 for 7 years at the rate of 3%. This money is for the purchase of equipment. North Central s collateral will first lien position on specific equipment to be acquired with a value of $750,000, corporate guarantee of Matson Lumber and the personal guarantees of the two majority owners. One hundred-eighty jobs will be retained. The projected annual average hourly rate will be $18.00/hour plus 32% benefits. John Shimko moved to approve the loan to Matson Lumber, Inc., seconded by Bob Esch. Motion unanimously passed. Education Eric stated it s the time of the year where he and the other LDDs have the opportunity to meet with the new secretaries within the administration. As Chair of the Local Development District (LDD) they are working to set up meetings with as many of the secretaries as possible. Eric has had several opportunities to meet with DCED Acting Secretary Dennis Davin. Eric will also be meeting with the Secretary of Health to talk about some initiatives with our WIC Program. They (LDDs) are also hoping to set up meetings with the Secretary of Labor and Industry, as well as the Secretary of Education, to talk about who we are and the work we are doing, as well as talk about the collaborative successes we have had within the conversation of economic, business, workforce and education. There is a lot of important and exciting work we have been involved in which involves economic development, workforce development and education. We are seeing more and more focus at the federal level and state level for the importance of those three areas to be engaged with each other. Eric stated this is a good time to be talking with the administration because the people are new and they are still trying to figure things out. And under Governor Wolf s three phase budget they are also very receptive to ideas and thoughts and have been very inviting to have us come and talk to them.

4 Page 4 June 11, 2015 Susie stated that a small group had the opportunity to meet with the Acting Secretary for Labor and Industry, Kathy Manderino, and the Deputy Secretary for Workforce Development, Diane Bozak. Compared to the previous four years it was a very welcoming conversation. The Secretary stated she was excited to work with our system. The group is excited about working with the Secretary and she indicated that the departments across the board are already working together so collaboration is key. And Susie feels good that Labor and Industry will support us now. Bob Esch reported he has attended meetings in Harrisburg the past few weeks. He thinks it is important for all if we can help communicate a message to the administration. We have all heard the phrase underserved population and we understand for the most part who they are. But from an early childhood development and the population he has reclassified them from underserved to never served. There is a part of population in rural Pennsylvania that has never been served from an educational perspective. There are generations of families that have not had the opportunity for higher education, have not been able to afford it, have not been able to test in. This is a change that is significant for us in rural Pennsylvania, not just from an education standpoint but also from a workforce standpoint. At the meetings on Early Childhood Education a lot of discussion was on when a child says he/she wants to be a. Parents used to say the child was too little to know what he/she wanted to be. Bob stated his position is when a child says he/she wants to be a, as a parent, as a community, as a business we are to help the child be what he/she wants to be. This message is finally getting across; and for those children that have never had the opportunity, let s keep this movement going. Joe DeMott stated he had the opportunity to attend the annual meeting for the Career & Technical School in Port Allegany. At that meeting Joe spoke to many superintendents and was encouraged by what he heard. It seems they are appreciating the value of technical education and have a great deal of pride in the school. They have expanded the curriculum and established a welding program which they intend to expand. They have re-evaluated what they teach and what the demand is and are trying to work with industry. He was encouraged compared to ten years ago to where they are and how attitudes throughout the community have changed. Another thing Joe noted we should keep an eye on is the financial difficulties the school districts in our region are facing. DISCUSSION Eric reported that the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) will be holding five 2105 Strategic Planning Listening Sessions over the next few months to gather input on challenges and emerging opportunities in the Region. The input gathered from these sessions will help ARC develop a strategic plan for the coming years.

5 Page 5 June 11, 2015 In Pennsylvania the session will be held on Thursday, June 11, at the Blair County Convention Center, Altoona, PA. The session will be from 10 AM to 3 PM with lunch provided. There is no cost for this session and to register, go to Registration for the Pennsylvania event far exceeds that of the other four locations. Eric noted that he, along with other NC staff, will be attending and if you wish to attend to please let him know for the possibility of carpooling. The Governor s ImPAct Award Celebratory Breakfast, recognizing our Region s nominees, will be held on Wednesday, May 13, from 8 AM to 10 AM, at The Red Fern in Kersey. If you wish to attend, please RSVP by Wednesday, May 6, to Chris Perneski at ncexport@ncentral.com. The following Wednesday, all the nominees will be recognized by the Governor in Hershey. Eric reported that DCED Acting Secretary Davin will be in our region on April 23 to attend the PA Wilds Annual Banquet/Dinner at The Red Fern. He is coming to St. Marys, with Deputy Director Scott Dunkleberger, to do a tour of our Stackpole Complex. The Stackpole Complex is something we took on as a whole scale industrial redevelopment project years ago. This complex has been touted through many administrations as really a fine example of how to do industrial remediation correctly. The Acting Secretary, coming from a similar type of commercial and industrial redevelopment background, has an appreciation for that. The Department and Commonwealth have invested a lot of time, effort and resources in this as well. It s an opportunity for us to showcase something that DCED is proud of and we re proud of. This was made at the request of the Secretary asking if we would make ourselves available to do this. Eric noted that he will be leading a contingent to meet with the Secretary of Health, Dr. Murphy, on May 20. The contingent will be Eric and his counterparts who do the WIC programs throughout Pennsylvania. The WIC program is undergoing some procedural and bureaucratic changes. There have been conversations that the state will be looking to move away from its sole source agreements that it has with its existing contractors and looking to RFP. This is more an opportunity for Eric and his counterparts to develop a relationship with Dr. Murphy. We will be going in from the perspective of who we are, what we do and also speak on some of the opportunities we see and hopefully engage her in conversations of some of the new initiatives that are coming out within the Bureau of WIC. We want to make sure that the Department of Health appreciates the fact that we, as perspective WIC contractors, continue to be committed to the good work that we are doing. Eric stated that Julie and her staff have been providing him with the information to have those conversations with the Secretary. He feels very confident going into those potential RFP or bidding processes that we have a strategic competitive advantage. Eric thinks it is healthy for state bureaucracies to look at that and make sure we are delivering the best program for our clients as we possibly can. One other item Eric touched base briefly on was the North Central JOBS! Incumbent Worker Training. This will be discussed in depth at the Full Board meeting. Following the Board meeting and lunch, there will be a meeting of the North Central Rail Authority beginning at 1 PM in the Conference Room.

6 Page 6 June 11, 2015 The next Executive Committee Meeting will be held Wednesday, May 27, beginning at 9:30 AM in the North Central Conference Room. ADJOURN With no additional items to be discussed, Doug Morley moved to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Bill Bogart. Motion passed. The meeting adjourned at 10:15 AM. Respectfully submitted, June H. Sorg Secretary/Treasurer