Minutes Kent Narrows Development Foundation Board ofDirectors Meeting June 25, 2024  Board Members Participating Jody Schulz, Chair (via Zoom) Joe Pomerantz, Vice Chair Justin Kiernan Kim Hannon Bill Oertel Kelly Phipps JeffSmith Absent with Notice Patricia Worns, Secretary Victoria Hoffman, Treasurer Jake Boulay Jason Ruth  Commissioner Liaison Queen Anne's County Staff  Commissioner Phil Dumenil (absent with notice)  Steve Chandlee, Queen Anne's County Parks and Recreation April Plummer, QAC Economic and Tourism Development Paul Bize, Owner, Island Time Charters on the Bay Bente Cooney, Plastic Free QAC Marc Lacoste, Best Western Hotel Scott Davies, Narrows Pointe Community Linda Friday, Queen Anne's County Chamber of Commerce Gerald Irby, Piney Narrows Marina Board Kirby Schulz, Kent Narrows Rentals  Guests  Call to Order  Chair Jody Schulz called to order the regular meeting oft the Kent Narrows Development Foundation at 9 a.m. The meeting was conducted inj person and via Zoom.  Public Comment QAC Chamber ofCommerce  Linda Friday reported that the Chamber will hold its May 261 meeting at the Silver Swan on Kent  Island.    Plastic Free QAC  Bente Cooney reported that the effort to work with boat owners and marinas to recycle shrink wrap used for winterizing vessels has been a success. The organization announced recently that 10,700 lbs - or 5.35 tons - of boat shrink wrap was recycled this season. That's 3.73 tons more The "Ban the Bag" effort to get QAC to ban single-use plastic bags, is still active.  this season than last season.  Minutes RESOLUTION  Justin Kiernan made a motion to accept the KNDF meeting minutes of May 28, 2024. The  Board unanimously approved.  Financial Report (Gigi Windley for Victoria Hoffman) The following balances are from financial reports ending 5/30/2024:  Shore United Checking Account: $67,571.84; QAC 570 Fund, $255,157.00*; Amenities Fund, $67,191.36; Chesapeake Charities Fund, $7,923.31. Total assets are $390,751.41. Restricted funds balances: ESHI Grant, $1,500.00 and Safety Grant, $96,200. A discussion will be arranged with Chesapeake Charities and with Mid-Shore Community Foundation about moving funds to Mid-Shore. *$5,040.00 remains set aside for Dennison. (May interest is not yet  posted)  Economic and Tourism Development (April Plummer)  April Plummer reported on behalf ofthe QAC Economic and Tourism Development Division. The County Visitors Guides have been delivered and will be distributed. The County is using Getaways on Display and TDS sites as distribution points. State Welcome Centers will also be distributing the guides. The Division recently worked with KNDF toj produce a Chesapeake Bay Magazine video shorts Kent Narrows. A feature was also done at the Watermen's Boat Basin on fishing with Captain Meredith. That is aj paid video piece. Shorts will also highlight other aspects ofCounty Tourism. The report on the feasibility of passenger tourist ferry service to the Eastern Shore will be available in August. The Office is working with the MD Sports Coalition ona  Feasibility Study for Sports Tourism in QAC. Parks and Public Landings  Planning is underway for the Queen Anne's County Independence Day celebration at Chesapeake Heritage and Visitors Center on. July 4. The event opens at 6 p.m.; the fireworks display is scheduled to begin soon after 9 p.m. The CHVC building will be closed to the public on. July 4; Ferry Point Park will be closed on. July 3-5, since the fireworks are launched from The Veterans Point Memorial at Wells Cove is complete. A flag-raising ceremony was. held May  there.  31.4 A formal dedication will take place on Veterans Day.  2    The Skate Park on the western side of] Kent Island at Cockney Lane is nearing completion.  Director's Report (Gigi Windley) New and Expanded Business Ventures  Island Time Charters  Captain Paul Bise ofIsland Time Charters spoke about his business. Island Time Charters is registered as a sole proprietor corporation. Island Time is an upscale Charter Business that uses Captain Bise's Sea Ray 420. The vessel's s home port during boating season is Safe Harbor Marina (C-Dock), behind Red Eye's. Non-Fishing Charters are offered. Sunset Cruises are offered for $500. Three-hour charters are offered for $750; and Full Day Charters are offered for $1400. Bise will customize the experience according to the needs oft the party. The vessel holds up to six paying passengers. Destinations may include St. Michaels and Annapolis. Bise and his wife, who has worked in the hospitality industry, will offer on-board catering service as well. Customized evens include Private 2-hour Bay and Chester River Cruises and 3-hour Custom Charter: for bridal showers, birthdays, family outings, etc. ntps/ASlandtimechesapeake.com)  Chesapeake Water Tours  D.J. Fasick will be starting tours from Kent Narrows in mid-July. The 50ftx 14ft, 49-passenger vessel is currently berthed in Kent Narrows at the Hyatt Marina, but can pick up passengers at other locations. The vessel is U.S. Coast Guard inspected and takes two crew members to operate. Liquor can be served on board, but no alcohol is allowed to be carried on or off the vessel. The liquor license isi issued through the State ofl Md; the county is noti involved. Chesapeake Water Tours also offers water-based experiences elsewhere and is well experienced in serving group businesses. They already work with motorcoach tour operators and expect to be  able to serve this market well. itps:/Chesapeakewatertours.com  Maintenance Delmarva Power  We contacted Patty Melvin, Service Associate for Delmarva Power, about improving the lighting along the bend at Kent Narrows Way South. A: service application will be processed along with a site plan showing the proposed location ofar new light. They will then send out someone to assess the situation. How the light will be paid for has not yet been determined. Further discussion may occur about how to make it safer for pedestrians to walk between Wells Cove Road and Kent Narrows Way South. KNDF could work with the County to commission a study of the area, as the Rt. 18: study may not go into enough detail related toj pedestrian safety.  Denison Landscaping Contracts  KNDF has received the final contract adjustments from Denison. The delay was due toa reorganization in the company. The account manager and service team changes occurred.  3    Language was added to the contracts toi improve communication between KNDF and Denison. KNDF is requiring that three days advance notice be given to us before crews are dispatched. This allows adequate time for KNDF toi inspect the work and to communicate in advance any anticipated problems or conflicts, e.g., traffic, construction, or road closings. Thej projected total cost for both the Low Profile ($20,392.00) and High Profile ($19,067) is $39,495. The High Profile Contract has an extra one time charge of $3000 for Spring 2025 mulch included. The Low Profile contract has a one-time charge of $2500 for Spring 2025 mulch Copies oft the contracts were sent to Todd Mohn and Commissioner Dumenil for review. A follow-up phone call to Commissioner Dumenil revealed that the County will cover the Low and High contracts, but not the CHVC proposal. The contract period is from July 2024 to June 2025. Contracts must be signed and returned for service to continue. These contracts do not include the one-offo costs for bush hogging and the hand work needed to clean parts ofhillsides on the south The County will maintain all the CHVC lawn area including the front yard of the building that faces Piney Narrows Road and all other areas immediately next to the rest ofthe building between July 1, 2024 and June 30, 2025. The County will also handle the Wells Cove Landing Without the CHVC contract, the total cost for 2024-25 is $39,495, which is about what the  included.  side oft the drawbridge.  areas and the Wells Cove Road parking lots. County advised KNDF to spend. RESOLUTIONS  Joe Pomerantz made a motion to approve the High Profile Maintenance, Agreement with Dennison Landscaping for $20,392. The agreement is for. July 1, 2024-. June. 30, 2025. Jeff JeffSmith made a motion to approve the Low. Profile Maintenance. Agreement with Dennison Landscaping not to exceed $19,067. The approval is conditional upon the final approval of the document by. Joe Pomerantz and. Jody, Schulz. The agreement is for. July 1, 2024-. June 30,  Smith seconded. The. Board unanimously approved.  2025. Joe Pomerantz seconded. The Board unanimously approved.  Safety Grant Funds  Calls have been made and emails sent to the agency that supplied the Safety Grant Funding, explaining the inability to complete the Grant requirements in the allotted time. KNDFi is  awaiting a call back to see ifa an extension is possible.  Marketing and Promotion Summer-Fall Travel Guide  The new electronic version oft the KNDF Guide was posted on the KNDF website; 5,500 copies of the printed version will be delivered in early July. The latest version has ai new cover that  4    features aj photo of Wells Cove Landing with the Veterans Memorial from the. Jetty. A new photo of the lawn at CHVC is shown. Some changes were made to the introductory pages to showcase A decision wasi made to delay undertaking the redesign for the 2025 Guide. This will allow: more The cost for design, printing, and delivery is $7,750. This is for a 40-page book plus KNDF hosted and arranged a three-day tour for the team from Better Living. KNDF also assisted the Chesapeake Bay Magazine crew who filmed the paid segments for Queen Anne's County Tourism. KNDF, along with Kirby Schulz and Mary Lee Brown, helped develop the video tour oft the Kent Narrows Waterway. The Maryland Office ofTourism Development came to Kent Narrows to shoot B-roll for their upcoming promotion of Chesapeake Bay destinations for the Kent Narrows Rentals was mentioned in a piece on the Eastern Shore that appeared in  new businesses and improvements to existing businesses. time to collect content and design the expanded version.  Great Chesapeake Bay Loop program. Washingtonian Magazine. Delmarva Life  We received information from WBOC regarding the Small-Town Series Package. Each business that has a segment (total of6 6 segments) pays $750 each which includes everything plus radio promotion oft the show. WBOC also offers programming on Outdoors Delmarva. Those segments are 61 minutes each but don'tinclude radio. For WBOC to travel to Kent Narrows, they would need at least two interested parties/events. They air three times throughout the weekend. Saturday nights at 7:30: and 11:00 p.m. on WBOC, then Sunday Morning at 10:00 on Fox 21. WBOC offers a year-long package for $1,250/month, which includes four segments throughout  the year and 18 commercials per month. No action was taken by KNDF. Maryland Motorcoach Membership and Ad/Sponsorship  KNDF is moving forward with an ad or sponsorship with the Maryland Motorcoach Association and will renew the organization's membership for 2025. KNDF will not attend the group leader show this year due to a meeting conflict. IfQAC Tourism attends, KNDF will supply Kent  Narrows promotional information. The budget for this effort is $645.00.  Capital Region USA  KNDF will register to attend the Global Travel Exchange in Charlottesville in September. The cost for registration is $1,295. Most meals are included. Hotel and travel costs are additional. KNDF staffed a Welcome Table with Kent Narrows and QAC information at the Chesapeake Motoring Festival. Kent Narrows bags and information packets were offered to the registered  participants.  5    Administrative  Mike Foster resigned from the Board oft the KNDF. He is now ai trustee oft the R. Earl and Barbara Griffin Foundation, which funded the new Veterans Memorial at Wells Cove. This  foundation will have the means to fund other projects in QAC.  570 Fund Draw  A letter from KNDF to the Commissioners requesting a $65,000 draw on the 570 funds will be considered during their meeting the second week in. July. This will ensure that there are adequate funds in the KNDF checking account to cover operations until the: new: funds are made available,  usually in August. OLD BUSINESS  Bay Bridge Temporary Ramp Closures  The ramp closures appear to be helping keep Kent Island's local roads open. There are still some backups on Rt. 18 between the Queenstown Outlets and through some parts ofGrasonville. Traffic is consistently heavier since the Key Bridge collapsed. There has been a noticeable increase in HAZ: MAT traffic since those trucks can'tg go through the tunnels.  Short Term Rental Legislation  The QAC Travel and' Tourism Advisory Committee submitted a letter to Planning and Zoning  making additional recommendations related to short-term rentals.  NEW BUSINESS Bay Paddle  The Bay Paddle Event will be on July 20. Home base for the event will be the Kent Island Yacht Club. The event benefits the Oyster Recovery Partnership. Chris Hopkinson chairs the Event.  Business Round Robin Update  A discussion took place regarding the reduction in local business. Several factors were mentioned, including the rainy weekend weather and the changes in traffic patterns around Bill Oertel questioned whether KNDF should have more ofa voice on letting the Commissioners know about the impact oft the Independence Day celebration date choice on local businesses. July 41 falls on Friday next year, and Friday is a big day for restaurant business. A large event like the Fireworks display affects business in many restaurants. Also, since Friday already is al high  Baltimore due to the Key Bridge collapse.  traffic day, the event could create even more traffic backups.  6    Joel Pomerantz has talked with James Wood affiliation?)about the shoaling before the drawbridge in front ofUnited Shellfish. He suggested that all check in with the deep draft boat owners and be aware ofa and report areas in the channel that are problematic. As ofnow, the county is looking at getting funding and approval for dredging in fall 2025. It was suggested that Jeff Smith is working with Ben Gillis, with the DNR Vessel the. AV Sandusky. Hei is the engineer responsible for placing the buoys will help to obtain and place the signs. "Youare Responsible for Your Wake" signs. Jeff will follow up and report back. Kelly mentioned that the times the drawbridge is raised seem to be off schedule. The tender has discretion on when the bridge should be raised within the half-hour time frames. bridge Gigi distributed copies of the recently passed State Tourism Zone Legislation for the Board to  the KNDF ask for a sounding, as. had been done before.  review. What that will mean will be discussed at a later meeting. Jeff Smith made ai motion to adjourn the meeting. The Board agreed.  RESOLUTION  The meeting adjourned at 10:35 a.m. Respectfully submitted,  Georgeanna (Gigi) Windley, Executive Director Kent Narrows Development Foundation  Certification:  Ihereby certify that this is a true and correct copy ofthe Minutes that were adopted by the  Directors oft this Foundation on. July 23,2024. ZD  Patricia P. Worns, Secretary, KNDF  7