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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDowntown Lansing, Inc. Minutes 03.12.26DOWNTOWN LANSING MARCH 2026 BOARD MEETING 215 S. WASHINGTON SQUARE STE. 100 DLI Board Meeting March 12, 2026 | 11:30 am 215 S. Washington Square Ste. 100, Lansing, MI 48933 Members Present: J. Estill, J. Hinze, K. Tomac, K. Klein, J. Flores, J. Pugh Members Absent: J. Durham, A. Rusek Board Advisors Present: J. Lenon Board Advisors Absent: Peter Spadafore Staff Present: C. Edgerly, J. Markham, K. Litwin, M. Gonzales Guests Present: Shontae Tolliver Minutes 1. Call to Order: Meeting called to order at 11:33 a.m. by J. Estill 2. Citizen’s Comments (items not on the agenda): Shontae Tolliver attended as a guest and downtown resident. Ms. Tolliver presented some of her ideas for utilizing and activating the main strip of Washington Square. She would like to see the following: seasonal or temporary community hub; canteen style non-alcoholic nightlife/club/gathering venue Would like to see dinner food as well as a gym or fitness center. 3. Correspondence: Phone call from Cherry Hill neighborhood. Tents popping up in their area and they asked us to convey the message to the appropriate City contacts. 4. Consent Agenda Approvals ● Agenda March 12, 2026 ● Minutes from February 12, 2026 Meeting ● Committee Reports ● Monthly Financials Motion by J. Hinze to approve the consent agenda., Second by J. Pugh. Motion passed unanimously. 5. Old Town Updates: J. Lenon shared updates from Old Town including the annual Lumberjack Festival: weather was not great, but attendees seemed to stay longer and the event surpassed profit goals. Cinnamon Lane Bakery opened in February. Ribbon cutting will be held Friday, March 20 at 11:30 a.m. and he will send an invite. Tanukis Gaming opened last week. District information: Turner North development - demo will start in next few weeks. No street closure on Turner will take place due to this project. 6. Reports: ● Director’s Report: C. Edgerly shared the following: State of Downtown: based on feedback from board and other groups involved, planning on April 15th at 3:00 pm to invite stakeholders. Planning on holding at Chamber based on numbers attended. K. Tomac asked about invite only vs public. Edgerly indicated the event will not be shared broadly. DOWNTOWN LANSING MARCH 2026 BOARD MEETING 215 S. WASHINGTON SQUARE STE. 100 Main Street Technical Service Kickoff is April 6 with Kate, Jen, Jesse. This will build on the work of the Business Development team’s work on recruitment and Michigan’s Downtown page. Downtown Egg-Stravaganza: Saturday, April 4 from 10:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Volunteers are still needed for day of. All asked to sign up and spread the word. ● President’s Report: J. Estill has proposed a new way of reviewing budgets. Would like to split income into three sections: Fund transfer; assessment revenue; grants and sponsorships. Stronger if we look at sponsorships as a bigger portion of the budget - ease of explaining where funds come from. Kate expressed ease of seeing where improvement and additional funding was needed. C. Edgerly and treasurer J. Durham will work on how to set up for the next FY’s budget presentation. 7. Action/Discussion Items: • Leo Grant Talent Investment Grant : C. Edgerly discussed utilizing funds as CSO deadline will not be timely. Proposed project scope outlined three priorities after meeting with Klein: 1. Sidewalk and public space enhancements; 2. Infrastructure enhancements and beautification from Michigan Ave. bridge to Capital Ave. 3. Art installation tying into Legendary Women of Lansing. Estill asked how long we have to use funds - until November 2027. Funds approved, but anticipating new grant agreement to extend into 2027. Estill asked if 100 block would be getting things that would be moved. Edgerly explained that we are working with existing plans and strategy so that improvements are complimenting. Klein expressed leveraging dollars to connect spaces, including River Front. No action needed - for informational purpose only. Estill asked about Community Foundation plans for space (Wentworth). No specific updates are known at this time. Parks & Rec plans on extending riverfront as well. • Legendary Women of Lansing: Edgerly reported on a community-centerered historical art project that DPS Committee has been planning to honor and tell the story of Legendary Women of Lansing. The project pairs local artists, with each final nominated woman for this inaugural installation. Utility boxes have been selected and we’re working with BWL, City, and MDOT. Local artists Tiffany Luke of La Fille Gallery would like to contribute with a sculpture that signifies empowered women and how women support each other, words tied to women, etc. Partners who helped with history and nominees include: Historical Society of Greater Lansing, Women’s Hall of Fame, Capitol Commission, Women’s Center of Greater Lansing, National Trust for Historic Preservation, Choose Lansing, etc. to seek out community nominations and identified women. Estill asked about the funds. Edgerly reported there is $8,000 for wraps and $62,000 needed for sculpture. Estill asked to add information about sculpture nearer the top of sponsor pieces. Installation: utility box wraps would be in July and sculpture in the fall. The sculpture would be on Michigan Ave past Lansing Center and visible from the Capital. Estill questioned whether we can proceed with the whole project using LEO Grant money. Looking for approval to do part B if we can get the sponsorship funds. Discussion held on if sculpture will be ready in time for install. Nothing needed from the board at this time. DOWNTOWN LANSING MARCH 2026 BOARD MEETING 215 S. WASHINGTON SQUARE STE. 100 Big Red Ball: J. Estill and C. Edgerly provided updates regarding the annual fundraising gala. The event date this year has been moved to November 21st due to a variety of conflicts with the traditional December dates. 8. MMS Technical Service: Discussed in the Director's Report. Focused on business recruitment on April 6th with Downtown Professional Network. 9. New Business: None 10. Motion to Adjourn: J. Hinze motioned to adjourn at 12:14 p.m. 2nd by J. Pugh. Motion approved unanimously.