ECCO Meeting Minutes for November 3, 2011

ECCO Meeting Minutes for November 3, 2011 at St. Mary’s Greek Orthodox Church

Minutes recorded and submitted by Monica Smith and approved by the ECCO Board by electronic vote prior to publication.

Board Members Present: Sarah Sponheim, VP; Glen Christianson, Treasurer; Anja Curiskis; Brad Durham; Gael Ellis; Blake Harper; Harry Savage; Judy Shields; Linda Todd; and past President Nancy Ward. 

Missing:  Kate Davenport, Heather Wulfsberg, Jim Smith

ECCO Board Vice President Sarah Sponheim called the meeting to order at 7:10 p.m.

The meeting began with introductions. The agenda was unanimously approved.

Announcements

Community Energy Services (CES) Awards Ceremony was held October 25. East Calhoun won first place for the Participation Grant ($5,000 from the McKnight Foundation). Council Member Meg Tuthill won the Ward Award and Monica Smith was recognized for Outstanding Contribution for work in promoting the program ($334 to East Calhoun). Congratulations!

Meg Tuthill (City Council Member, Ward 10)

• Congratulations to ECCO for CES Awards
• The Mayor is proposing cutting four of the 18 Crime Prevention Specialists in the City. Meg encouraged concerned resident to send emails opposing these cuts to all the council members, the mayor and the police chief.
• Mesa Pizza’s application for extended hours was denied by the Regulatory, Energy and Environment committee. Mesa Pizza was encouraged to reapply after they have established a track record.
• Kowalski’s application for their liquor store is expected to be approved by the City Council on 11-4-11.
• Residents interested in learning more about how to obtain critical parking (permit parking) on their block can contact Tim Drew at timothy.drew@minneapolismn.gov at 612-673-2152 for more information.
• Mayor Rybak is holding a community meeting about the 2012 budget and how budget choices affect property taxes and City services on Nov. 16, 6:30-8:00 p.m. at Temple Israel, 2324 Emerson Ave S.
• Council Member Gary Schiff is proposing changes to the Conditional Use Permit (CUP) process for residential development with 5-9 units. The change would expedite processes for the Planning Commission. Site plans are still required. CM Schiff will meet with neighborhoods to answer questions and get feedback on the proposal.
• CM Tuthill does not think there is City Council support for a new stadium sales tax. 
• Meet with Meg is Nov. 8, 12-1 p.m. at the 5^th Precinct, no meeting in December.

Treasurer’s Report

Treasurer Glenn Christianson reviewed ECCO’s budget. The report did not include the Wine Tasting revenue ($3000 plus) nor the $5,334 grant from the CES Awards. Expenditures for the rest of the year are expected to be about $2,000 for communications and staff. Expenses for the year will be below what was budgeted. ECCO saved money by accessing an NRP policy for insurance.

The Board approved a raise for Monica Smith effective January, 2012 (to $27.50 per hour).

Monica Smith’s Report

• Housing program Grant program: 38 grants have closed. $65,000 remains available for other grants. Loan program: 2 loans have closed. $64,000 remains available. Keep promoting the program so property owners know that these funds are available for improvements.
• Community Participation Program (CPP) Expenses year-to-date were reviewed for the CPP funding. The Board requested monthly updates. The current program has been extended until June 30, 2012; ECCO will receive 50% more funding than in 2011 to cover the six-month period. The 2012 program will begin July 1, 2012.
• New CPP guidelines Neighborhood Community Relations released a draft of the guidelines for the 2012 CPP program. The deadline for feedback is Nov 21. Sarah Sponheim and Judy Shields will attend an informational meeting about the new guidelines on Nov 8.  
• Mailing The Board discussed sending a mailing to all East Calhoun households to promote our NRP programs, social events, invite participation in committees, etc. The cost of the mailing is $900. The discussion was tabled until next month.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

The committees will give reports at the December meeting. Standing committees are: Social, Crime and Safety, Zoning, and Green Team. ECCO also has a Tree Task Force and has three representatives on the Uptown Neighborhood News (UNN) Board. ECCO Board members are required to serve on one committee. New board members can sign up for committee assignments at the December meeting.

The UNN Board is looking for a new representative from East Calhoun. The UNN Board meets the first Monday of each month at 7:00 p.m. and provides oversight of the staff and clarifies procedures for the paper.

Social Committee update

Judy Shields reported that ECCO sold 114 tickets to the Wine Tasting fundraiser. Thank you to event sponsors: Great Clips, Hennepin Lake Liquor, il Gatto and Parasole Restaurant Holdings. Zero Waste Sponsors were: Uptown Business Association and EcoLitin. Special thanks to event coordinator Pat Fleetham.

Tree Task Force

The task force held their first meeting in October. They had a good start with a lot of ideas. Their goal is to present a plan to the ECCO Board in Spring 2012. The will meet monthly on the third Tuesday of each month at 7pm at St. Mary’s Greek Orthodox Church. 

Officer Elections

The ECCO Board unanimously elected the Executive Committee: Sarah Sponheim, President: Blake Harper and Linda Todd, Co-Vice Presidents, Glen Christianson, Treasurer; Harry Savage, Secretary.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:58 p.m.

Next meeting: Thursday, December 1, 7:00 p.m. at St. Mary’s Greek Orthodox Church.