July
5th, 2014, Saturday, 10:00 am
East
Phillips Park Cultural and Community Center
EPIC web address:
www.eastphillips-epic.com
Office: 2536 18th Avenue S., Minneapolis, MN
55404
“The world needs dreamers and the world
needs doers,
but most of all the world needs
dreamers who do.”
Board Roster: Jenny
Bjorgo, Rosie Cruz, Mary Gonsior, Jeanne Howard, Linda Leonard, Ali Macalin, Carol
Pass, Cesar Prado, Earl Simms.
Present board members: Jenny
Bjorgo, Rosie Cruz, Mary Gonsior, Linda Leonard, Ali
Macalin, Carol Pass,
Absent board members: Jeanne
Howard, Cesar Prado, Earl Simms.
Members: Brad
Pass
Guests:
10:00 Introduction:
· Greetings and Introduction
· Approval of Agenda – approved with addition of announcement
for Little Earth to be clarified by Jeanne. (JB, MG) Approved.
· Approval of the May 3rd Board Minutes; Approved with
corrections, page 2. “Also be aware that most neighborhoods have zeroed out the priority plan budget line.” And
“We will try to reschedule the July
board meeting to late June.”
Announcements
Little Earth: There is a dispatcher on
site from 5 pm to 7 am that monitors cameras and takes phone calls for
emergencies or to report a crime. Police response is immediate. The phone
number is 612-729-9361. We will not announce this until Jeanne explains and
clarifies it.
10:15
Review Crime and Safety Proposals
·
EPIC Ambassadors
·
Patrols
·
Block Clubs
There was a lengthy discussion about the EPIC Ambassador
proposal. Some strengths noted were that it isn’t like having a “job” or
specific assignment; that the time commitment is flexible; that it includes
friends of the ambassadors; that it is a great way to build relationships; we
can start with a few people; the group chooses its own leadership; there is
balance between board oversight and EPIC Ambassador self-determination.
The purpose is “To foster positive communication and
relationships among and between all stakeholders in the EPIC community by
serving as a public relations and informational resource; and by inviting
further participation by collecting contact information for announcements and
invitations.”
MOTION: EPIC will establish a crime and safety initiative, EPIC
Ambassadors, including an initial budget of $500. (CP, JB) Approved.
CP will send out information about block club training on
this Wednesday coming up. Encourage people to attend.
CP proposed that EPIC include a formal patrol program in the
CPP Program draft.
This is a beginning of programs and elements to the CPP crime
and safety proposals, and others can be added.
10:30 Outreach
to the Native American Community:
Beginning
Discussion, Jeanne Howard
Tabled; Jeanne was not present.
10:40 Consider
CPP Submission for 2014, 15, 16: Discussion
Review and consider our finances
Reviewed and discussed the draft program proposal for
2014-2016.
We noted that a number of the questions seem redundant for us
because our general population is already so multi-cultural that our programs
and responses often overlap the questions.
Together we added notes about a number of relevant
traditional activities for item #4 : building neighborhood relationships”
and #5 “Involvement of
under-engaged stakeholders”. We looked carefully at the estimated CPP Budget
and made clarifying comments about the contract and neighborhood priority line
totals.
MOTION: EPIC will submit the Draft 2014 CPP Proposal
for review and approval by EPIC membership, as discussed (LL, JB) Approved
unanimously.
11:40 Review the EPIC Event on the 22nd, SummerFest
We skipped this for time constraints but noted that it was
large, multi-cultural, and a big success
11:45 Review the Powderhorn Crime Summer Kick Off
Event on June 16th
CP reported that there were 3 EPIC board members in
attendence, and 7 from Powderhorn. Considering that this event was organized by
Powderhorn staff, it seemed there was a very poor turnout. For those of us who attended at the
urging of Council member Cano, we found it ironic that it was a staff-created
meeting, according to Cano, that was supposed to generate a lot of
participation because of a recent shooting in the park, but there were fewer
than ten residents present and no participation of what would appear to be
ethnic diversity as constituents.
We can see that even without any paid staff members, EPIC’s board
members with their diverse and various natural communication networks in the
neighborhood can produce a much larger turnout.
11:50 Review
Correspondence from NCR
RC
reported that for all the years that she has been involved in EPIC (1995?),
“I’m insulted as a Latino. I feel disrespected.” …”because of the many years of service given, working closely
with Carol over years, with many communities, Native American, Somali, African
American, Nepali, Latino, and others, CP is the first one to come and approach
and say, ‘let’s meet and talk; let’s see how EPIC can help you.’ I am SO
offended.
RC
wants to invite David Rubedor to attend a meeting and discuss this – this is so
insulting.
“How
can he question our passion and commitment, our intentions for EPIC. All board
members have been tarnished by this decision. “
MG
– grateful to RC for stating her views, making them part of the official
record.
LL
is offended that David would say that EPIC doesn’t know what help from CPP is
available to EPIC. This is a false accusation that we are uninformed. Personal
comment about CP – I consider this decision unprofessional, and disrespectful
by David to discipline the board and CP based on hearsay.
RC
finds it hard to express how SAD this makes her – there is no appreciation for
what we (board volunteers) do for this community, in terms of bringing our
community together – we are sisters and brothers.
RC
– we have 1,000’s of pictures that illustrate the diversity of engagement with
EPIC’s community over many years.
AC
– if CP was racist, she wouldn’t spend all the time and work that she has working in the community among
every group of people, so many activities over many years…it doesn’t make
sense.
LL:
CP has supported Native American home ownership and proposals to bring funding
to support it. She has taken initiative to bring forward programs and spending
to assist and support Native American home ownership and did that with Council
Member Cano this month. She took the initiative to locate empty lots on Stately
Street and homes for sale on E 26th adjacent to Little Earth’s
boundaries.
11:12 Consider
responses.
LL sent a personal response to David Rubedor. This requested
copies of notes and specific details about who reported complaints and what
those individuals claimed to have heard.
Board members expressed a desire to have David Rubedor come present his evidence to the board
and to carry out an investigation about the truth of the claims people have
made.
The Board authorized the secretary to send a board response
with an opportunity for all Board members to personally sign the letter. Copies
should go to everyone who received NCR’s letter and perhaps to David Rubedor’s
supervisor. There is no due process and the neighborhood leadership is being
bullied at a time the Board is committed to being inclusive and careful of
funding disbursements.
12:05: Review and send our Codes of Conduct to
NCR.
EPIC has a code of conduct and board
members sign several agreements stating that they have read and agree to EPIC
Standards and Conduct, Duties and Responsibilities, and Board Contract.
MOTION: EPIC will forward our code of conduct, and relevant
documents to David Rubedor with a note that Robert Thompson has seen them in
the past. (LL, MG) Approved.
MOTION: The neighborhood specialist can make presentations to the
board when there is new information or at the board’s request. (RC, AM)
Approved.
Board members agreed that EPIC has already provided more than
sufficient time for Carrie Aspinwall to distribute information and to explain
her point of view at meetings about our finances for months. It is the board’s
responsibility to present finances to the community. EPIC policy states that
handouts be reviewed by the Board before membership meetings, and must be given
to the chair prior to the membership meeting. We agreed that we must be more consistent in following our
policies and are committed to doing so in the future.
12:15 Board
looked at the additional funding NRP Phase 2 Plan
Board
members stated they were very familiar with the NRP Phase II Plan, since we had
worked on it for a year and then spent time spending some of it…the pool money
and the money for the balconies on Greenway Heights Apartments …and some of the programming money. We discussed again the summary of the
EPIC/NRP Draft Phase II Action Plan which had clearly identified two potential
budgets based on the Mayor taking funds from the neighborhoods in 2010. We
reviewed some of the plan modifications we made after we lost the funds. We
also noted that the Park Board is still contracted for $75,000 which they have
not completed paperwork on to draw out the funds. We could have an opportunity
to redirect those allocated and partially contracted funds. CP pointed out that when the plan budget
was written, $58,000 that was in Housing Object #4 for “new construction” was
changed to Zero, because the fund was too small for any real
opportunities.
CP reminded the Board that the money went to the Home Rehab,
because that fund also was reduced to an almost insignificant size.
Comments about the neighborhood specialist
RC – based on her notes from the last GMM she observed that
Carrie Aspinwall (CA) has been angry for a long time, and is not there to help
EPIC’s board and community – She stated that “Carrie wants to take control over
the meeting every time she comes. Not in a positive way, but always attacking
CP. When Alondra left, CA followed her out. When Carrie came back she was
sweating and red and angry. When CP started talking, CA got angry and started
arguing with CP”. RC said she asked Carrie if she was alright, she was fanning
herself. Rosie claims she left the meeting because CA had taken over the
meeting.
Linda has notes from several members who were at the meeting
and who were upset about the conduct of Carrie Aspinwall and Councilmember
Cano.
MOTION: We request the reassignment of a new neighborhood
specialist. (RC, JB) Approved.
12:50 Adjourn
