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<br /> <br />Commissioner Benke stated he does not have a lot of interaction with local business owners. He has <br />heard several complaints about the length of time it takes to receive permits from the City, but he sensed <br />that the City was always willing and eager to assist. He understood that the Chamber has been <br />addressing employee workforce issues. He believed that college and technical college opportunities <br />needed to be further discussed with graduating seniors. <br /> <br />Commissioner Murlowski explained how difficult it was for him to find enough minorities to work at his <br />place of business. He indicated there were great careers available without a college degree and these <br />options needed to be made known. <br /> <br />Chair Zisla commented that the scope of this issue may go beyond New Brighton as it was becoming a <br />national concern. <br /> <br />Commissioner Garcia-Perez reported that she was a labor economist and workforce concerns were being <br />raised all across the country, even in New York City. She recommended that training programs be <br />considered by local businesses. She believed that vocation training was needed and could perhaps begin <br />at the high school level. She challenged New Brighton to begin a pilot program in order to address the <br />workforce concerns. <br /> <br />Councilmember Jacobsen discussed the two year college degree program that was available to Mounds <br />View Senior High School students. <br /> <br />A member discussed the construction training program that was taking place in Minnesota in order to <br />assist with training the next labor force. He suggested that students not interested in attending college <br />should consider visiting local businesses to see what interested them. He recommended that the Mounds <br />View School staff speak with local business owners to better understand what technical workforce needs <br />the north metro had. <br /> <br />Chair Zisla asked how the EDC felt about getting systematically involved with the Chamber of <br />Commerce on business retention visits. <br /> <br />Commissioner Garcia-Perez supported a partnership between the EDC and the Chamber. She did not <br />believe the EDC should approach businesses alone. She feared this may create a tense relationship and <br />believed the Chamber would assist in opening lines of communication. <br /> <br />Chair Zisla questioned what the next step was for the EDC and Chamber. Schlichting believed that staff <br />could share the information gathered from the Chamber with the EDC. The City would then cooperate <br />with the retention interviews. <br /> <br />Commissioner Garcia-Perez suggested a question be asked of businesses inquiring as to why they are <br />located in New Brighton. She questioned how many businesses were located in the City. Gundlach <br />stated she could gather this information for the EDC to review at a future meeting. <br /> <br />Chair Zisla was in favor of reviewing information from the Chamber prior to staff gathering this <br />information. He thanked the EDC for their input regarding the City’s business retention efforts. <br /> <br />2008-2009 New Brighton Business Survey <br />Gundlach provided the EDC with a summary on the 2008-2009 New Brighton Business Survey. <br /> <br />Next Meeting Topic – Topic Slides <br />Gundlach provided the EDC with a handout on New Brighton’s redevelopment history.