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Photo by Erica Techo
Mayor Tony Picklesimer speaks at the Oct. 3 Chelsea City Council meeting. During the meeting, Picklesimer discussed the city's Existing Business Incentive Plan.
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Courtesy of the city of Chelsea
The Chelsea City Council voted to annex a .21-acre property into the city during its Oct. 3 meeting.
At the first Chelsea City Council meeting of October, Mayor Tony Picklesimer used his mayor’s report to address comments and criticism that had been taking place on social media.
Picklesimer’s comments were in reference to the city’s existing business incentive plan (EBIP) and a recent economic development proposal passed by the council. At its Sept. 19 meeting, the council held a public hearing, for which no one had signed up to speak, and voted unanimously to pass the proposal, which would provide Chelsea Tire LLC up to $25,000 over a seven year period.
Prior to opening the public hearing, council member Scott Weygand recused himself from discussion of this matter.
A few days following the meeting, posts on a community Facebook page included comments and critiques of the city’s decision to give Chelsea Tire $25,000. Some said they did not think there was enough notice about the proposal or the public hearing, others said they believed the decision was the result of favoritism and others said there was not enough information about whether this sort of incentive was available to other businesses.
Some commenters said government incentives for businesses are not unusual, with others adding they thought the incentive was a good way to increase Chelsea’s tax base.
At the Council’s Oct. 3 meeting, Picklesimer said he acknowledged that information about the EBIP was not publicized widely enough.
“I did not do a good job of announcing and talking about this program. I just didn’t, and I take responsibility for that,” Picklesimer said during the pre-council meeting.
During the regular council meeting, Picklesimer said he hoped by addressing the issue, it would help “clear up some misinformation that has been put out on social media.”
The program was something Picklesimer said he discussed during his campaign for mayor, and something he saw, as a former business owner, as important. At that time, the city his business in worked to recruit new business but did not work to help existing businesses.
“I thought it was wrong then, and I think it is wrong now,” Picklesimer said. “Our budget is over 90 percent sales tax, generated by local businesses. The best way to grow our tax base is through our existing businesses. The EBIP program is designed to do exactly that.”
Businesses can apply by bringing a plan to improve a business, with a minimum investment of $50,000, and the maximum amount of the incentive would be 10 percent of the project’s total cost, Picklesimer said.
“The incentive would be funded based on construction material taxes paid and increased tax revenues to the city,” he said.
Chelsea Tire brought the council a plan to spend $250,000 to construct a new building on its property. Picklesimer also said that Chelsea Tire did not receive special favor because it was a car business, and that any businesses meeting the EBIP requirements and willing to invest would be supported by the council.
Picklesimer also commented on the fact that people were posting negative comments on Facebook.
“Every commercial and retail development company does its research before investing in a new venture,” he said. “Part of that research is social media. Who would want to build a new research center or plant a franchise where they stand a chance of negative publicity before they even open their doors? The fact is, we’re in a highly competitive marketplace, and to land new opportunities, we will need to be a partner.”
Land owners are also concerned, Picklesimer said, and “derogatory comments in public media does not help this cause.”
EBIP applications are available at Chelsea City Hall and will be uploaded to the city’s website in the next few days.
Other council business included:
- The approval of an ordinance to establish the Municipal Court Corrections Fund Fee Amounts. The amount will be $46.50 for traffic citations and $76 for misdemeanors, including ordinance violations and other offenses. These funds can only be used at the discretion of the municipal judge or court clerk Becky Landers.
- The approval of an annexation ordinance for a .21 acre property at 9383 Chelsea Road.
- The approval of a resolution to accept a bid for street repairs on Tara and O’Hare drives. The bid amount was $2,900.
- Approval to pay the city’s bills.
