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HomeMy WebLinkAboutEDAMinutes2025November7 MINUTES ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY | THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2025 | A meeting of the Frederick County Economic Development Authority was held on Thursday, November 7, 2025, at 8:00 a.m. in the County Administration Building, 1st Floor Conference Room, 107 N. Kent Street, Winchester, Virginia. PRESENT: Diane Kearns, Rick Till, Gary Lofton, Judy McCann-Slaughter, Bryan Fairbanks and Christine Kriz. Board member Tina Murphy participated remotely for a medical reason and her participation was approved by those present. STAFF: Patrick Barker, Wendy May, Shayla Rickard, and Donna McIlwee, Frederick County Economic Development Authority; Jay Tibbs, Assistant County Administrator; and Michael Bryan, EDA Attorney. MEETING CALLED TO ORDER: Chairman Till called the meeting to order at 8:00 a.m. APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes of the October 9, 2025, meeting were presented. On motion duly made by Ms. McCann-Slaughter and seconded by Mr. Fairbanks, the minutes were approved as presented by the following recorded vote: Bryan Fairbanks Aye Diane Kearns Aye Christine Kriz Aye Gary Lofton Aye Judy McCann-Slaughter Aye Tina Murphy Aye Rick Till Aye TREASURER'S REPORT Mr. Barker submitted the following report: Checking Account - Bank of Clarke as of September 30, 2025 - $4222.72 Intrafi Account – Bank of Clarke as of September 30, 2025 - $3,248,498.99 - 2 - On motion of Ms. McCann-Slaughter, seconded by Mr. Lofton, the Treasurer’s Report was approved by the following recorded vote: Bryan Fairbanks Aye Diane Kearns Aye Christine Kriz Aye Gary Lofton Aye Judy McCann-Slaughter Aye Tina Murphy Aye Rick Till Aye EDA STRATEGY FY 27 Mr. Barker presented a draft Strategy for 2026-27, which included revisions/comments received from Board members. He stated that, at our annual joint meeting with the BOS, we will aim for more in-depth direction from them. Mr. Fairbanks asked if the BOS has provided any guidance regarding data centers. Mr. Barker stated that the Planning Commission will be reporting on different factors concerning data centers to the BOS at their meeting in December. After that, the EDA will present a series of community information meetings. Ms. McCann-Slaughter made a motion to approve the Strategy as presented until we have the joint BOS meeting. This was seconded by Ms. Kriz and approved by the following recorded vote: Bryan Fairbanks Aye Diane Kearns Aye Christine Kriz Aye Gary Lofton Aye Judy McCann-Slaughter Aye Tina Murphy Aye Rick Till Aye EDA BUDGET FY27 Mr. Barker presented the draft FY27 EDA budget and stated the proposed plan is strategically aligned to advance our core priorities and designed to sharpen Frederick County’s competitive edge by addressing critical factors that influence corporate location decisions. The funding request total is $2122 higher than last fiscal year, reflecting a 0.3% increase over the prior year. Staff is seeking the Authority’s comments and recommendation for forwarding the FY27 budget request, if appropriate. - 3 - Mr. Fairbanks asked if salary increases were reflected in the budget or if that comes from elsewhere. Mr. Barker stated the proposed budget reflects current salaries and any increase comes from the County. On motion of Mr. Fairbanks, seconded by Ms. Kriz, the FY27 budget as presented was approved for submission by the following recorded vote: Bryan Fairbanks Aye Diane Kearns Aye Christine Kriz Aye Gary Lofton Aye Judy McCann-Slaughter Aye Tina Murphy Aye Rick Till Aye RESOLUTION OF APPRECIATION TO STAN CROCKETT Mr. Barker presented a Resolution of Appreciation honoring Stan Crockett for his long and dedicated service to the Frederick County Economic Development Authority and asked that the Board adopt the Resolution. On motion of Ms. McCann-Slaughter, seconded by Ms. Kearns, the Resolution was adopted by the following recorded vote: Bryan Fairbanks Aye Diane Kearns Aye Christine Kriz Aye Gary Lofton Aye Judy McCann-Slaughter Aye Tina Murphy Aye Rick Till Aye LARGE PROJECT READY SITES CONCEPT – CURRENT STATUS Mr. Barker reported the previously mentioned partnership for another large land bay by a prospective purchaser remains active. While contract discussions are occurring, staff has discussed the site with VEDP representatives to gauge the potential of a Virginia Business Ready Site Grant application. SALARY SONAR DEMONSTRATION Mr. Barker provided a demonstration of Salary Sonar, a real-time compensation benchmarking tool integrated within Chmura’s JobsEQ platform of which the EDA has been a long-standing - 4 - user. It draws on millions of active job postings daily to provide up-to-date wage insight. Using AI, it connects job descriptions, required skills, and locations with accurate pay benchmarks. Users, like the EDA, are able to explore pay ranges, trends over time, and comparisons across geographies. He stated the HR team at HP Hood is reviewing this tool and the HR team at Trex will also be asked to review. SUCH OTHER BUSINESS AS MAY COME BEFORE THIS AUTHORITY Mr. Lofton asked that a copy of the Planning Commission’s presentation to the BOS regarding data centers be shared with the EDA Board. Ms. Kearns stated there are things happening in the County that could drive economic development in the future that the EDA Board should be kept abreast of—also general rezonings. Mr. Barker will look at a way to keep the EDA Board updated on these topics. ADJOURN There being no further business to come before this Authority, the meeting was adjourned at 8:40 a.m. ________________________________ ____________________________ Richard Till Jay Tibbs Chairman Secretary