October
4th, 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
“Nothing will work unless you do”.
-Maya
Angelou
Board Roster: Jenny
Bjorgo, Rosie Cruz, Mary Gonsior, Jeanne Howard, Linda Leonard, Ali Macalin,
Carol Pass, Cesar Prado, Earl Simms
Present board members: Mary
Gonsior, Carol Pass, Linda Leonard, Jenny Bjorgo, Rosie Cruz
Absent board members: Earl
Simms (Son’s event), Cesar Prado (working), Jeanne Howard, Ali Macalin (EID),
Members: Brad Pass
Guest: Shirley Heyer
MOTION: Meet as committee of the whole. (MG, LL) Approved.
10:00 Introduction:
· Approval of Agenda with additions: Board Training. (LL, CP)
Approved.
· Approval of the September 6th EPIC Board Minutes (CP, LL)
Approved with correction to p. 2, (*) “When a beautified barrier is installed,
consider inviting The Banyan to take responsibility for maintaining the
barrier.”
MOTION: EPIC
will form a committee to implement the Garden Diversion project in the CPP/NPP
Crime and Safety Budget (2014).
(CP, LL) Approved.
Goals for the Garden Diversion Project:
o Beautified Barrier
§ Planning committee: Mary, Doug, Carol, Brad
· Approved EPIC design to submit to the traffic department.
· Ask Naomi to sit on the committee to represent The Banyon.
· Find a representative from adjoining blocks.
· Linda will take pictures of examples.
· Coordinate with streetscape project in Midtown.
· Public works is okay with this.
· Traffic dept. needs an form completed and a plan. (Doug).
o Will give guidance on material
o Need to consider snow material
§ Flower Pots at Maria’s
· Someone came up with a forklift truck and trailer and stole
them all.
· New project on Franklin, bolting them down
· Speak to Ventura Village to ask about this.
Announcements
Announcement- We are out from under the frozen funds thing,
but we haven’t seen Lissa Jones’ report. She has not interviewed the people we suggested. NCR wants to have a meeting where we all get together in a room.
CP: we shouldn’t do this until we see
the report, after Lissa Jones interviews the individuals we suggested.
LL: Lissa told LL that in her contract
she has a limited amount of time and money to do this project and wasn’t sure
if all these people could fit into her contract, but Lissa would do her best to
speak with those individuals and amend her report at some point, on her own
time, after the contract is done.???
BP: that means it would not be part of
the official report; that doesn’t make sense.
LL: I don’t want to misrepresent what she said; she offered
to somehow interview the people that LL forwarded to her. CP staed
CP: this became an issue because Robert Thompson, when CP said she would sue if necessary, RT had told LJ from the outset to choose people from both sides of the issue to interview. This contradicts what LJ previously told LL and makes made CP realize that NCR is changing the story to try to create the impression that their actions were fair and unbiased, which they were not in fact.
CP: this became an issue because Robert Thompson, when CP said she would sue if necessary, RT had told LJ from the outset to choose people from both sides of the issue to interview. This contradicts what LJ previously told LL and makes made CP realize that NCR is changing the story to try to create the impression that their actions were fair and unbiased, which they were not in fact.
LL: LJ interviewed only the people
named by Carrie and Alondra. CP and LL articulated to RT that this was not
unbiased.
CP demanded documents related to this
action, citing MN Data Practices Act. She did receive them, and needs to review
them. CP threatened to sue NCR, after consulting an attorney. CP also spoke at
the NRP Policy Board, citing NCR letters, in order, making demands of EPIC:
David Rubedor’s letter of June 27th, EPIC’s letter agreeing to all
demands, the final DR letter where he agreed to unfreeze EPIC funds. After
agreeing to all DR’s demands immediately, EPIC heard nothing from DR for 2.5
months. No one responded to inquiries regarding EPIC funds. In the interim, NCR
put this claim of apparent wrong-doing on public television and claimed that
there had been due process in their actions against EPIC. There was no due process, because there was no policy or process available. NCR doesn't have one.
CP stated that this
should NEVER happen to another neighborhood and demanded that NCR write
policies to prevent it. David Rubedor admitted that his office had mishandled
the situation, but stopped short of an apology. DR unfroze our funds and apparently
told RT to write policies addressing situations when neighborhoods have
disagreements with NCR.
CP stated that she personally will not finished be with this until no other neighborhood has to go through this.
JB arrived: 11:08
· Garden Meetings:
Next steering committee is Saturday,
March 7, 2015; 9 am at EPPCCC. The next membership meeting is Saturday, April
11th, 2015, same time and place.
· Phillips Clean Sweep, Saturday, October 11, 2014. 9 am at Welna’s parking lot.
· EPIC Garden Fall
Harvest Party. Saturday, October 18, 2014 at 4 pm in
the garden (17th Avenue).
10:15 Progress
on CPP Program: CPP Plan: What is being implemented
EPPCCC’s computer lab has the highest
use by the community by double of all the parks in Mpls. Plans include upgrades
to high-speed internet service, and wi-fi;
Bridging the Digital Divide: Plan to
implement Computer Literacy Program
EPIC will implement a program with
Megan Muffett, Americore Volunteer, to teach classes at East Phillips Park;
EPIC needs to invite folks to sign up. This is being implemented through EPIC’s
East Phillips Park Programming Partnership.
Plan to implement Financial Literacy
Project: Wells Fargo
Another program will begin to implement
Financial Literacy at EPPCCC. Community Action Financial Literacy has closed
down their program; there may only be one other program in Saint Paul. This is
being implemented through a EPIC’s East Phillips Park Programming Partnership.
MOTION: (MG,
LL) Approved. Whereas EPIC’s committees, East Phillips Park Programming
Partnership and the Garden Committee are committees whose work is ongoing and
permanent, therefore, EPIC formally recognizes them as Standing Committees to
be included in the EPIC Bylaws.
Task Forces & Committees
Garden Diversion Project (Barriers/25th
Street)
Ambassadors (Ad-hoc committee)
Housing Committee
10:30 Change
in EPIC Home Loan Program: We need to move our
Home Loan Program. We were informed this past month that Center for Energy and
Environment (CEE) will end their Loan Office and close their Lending Center.
CEE is getting out of the business. The other neghborhoods that havae these
loans are all going to put them in to Greater Metro Housing Corp (GMHC). They
have offices near by for loan processing…much easier to reach than CEE. No one
else really does this. We should vote to move our loan program to GMHC and then
should inform CEE that we will be moving EPIC’s Loan Home Programs to Greater
Metro Housing Corp (GMHC).
CP asked board members to print a copy of the CPP Plan and
put it in their board binder,. CP distributed a Summary of the EPIC/NRP Phase
II Action Plan (serves as a guide for Neighborhood Priority Plan.
MOTION: (LL, JB) Approved. Move $35,000 from Objective 1 to
Objective 3 to cover the cost of Greenway Heights balconies ($35,000). Leave
the remaining $5,000 in Objective 1, strategy 1 (loans for home repair).
MOTION: (LL, JB) Approved. EPIC will move all funds remaining in
Goal 2, Objective 1 and 2 to Greater Metro Housing Corporation (GMHC) to be
administered according to the current contract with CEE.
We have about $105,000
(Objective 1 and 2) in our housing goals and we need to move it because
CEE is closing most of their housing program, and other neighborhoods are
moving their funds. The best option for EPIC, based on research, is Greater
Metro Housing who has an available loan officer and resources right on Cedar
Ave.
11:05 Preparations
for Clean Sweep – For those of you not familiar with
Clean Sweep, this is the one event
all the 4 Phillips Neighborhoods do together. We have been doing this for 6
years. My apologies, I missed putting on the proposed agenda the need for EPIC
to put in our share of the cost of the Clean Sweep budget. Each neighborhood is
to put in $1,000 a piece to pay for the trucks and other expenses. The Board is
allowed to pass motions for up to $1,000 without a vote at the community
meeting.
MOTION: (CP, LL) Approved. Funding: $1,000 to pay for trucks for clean sweep.
MOTION: (LL,JB) Approved. Funding : $150 to pay for posters.
11:45 Office
for EPIC
Asked Mark Welna, and he agreed. We need
to decide to move ahead with this. This is a great location, and there really
isn’t another location available. Easily accessible, has security. Funds for an
office are in EPIC’s CPP budget for 2014 – 2016.
MOTION: (LL, JB) Authorize EPIC’s chair to pursue a lease agreement for office
space at 24XX Bloomington Ave.
11:55 NPP
Crime Strategy: Meeting, Progress Report, Next Steps
Ambassador Task Force met with Don Greeley in September.
Will and Jenny agreed to co-chair. Don gave us materials we can carry along to
distribute. Brad designed an EPIC logo and is arranging to have vests printed
(costs are approximately $5 per vest.) All attendees at the meeting were
approved. People are free to start, but EPIC hasn’t notified the community that
we are doing this. LL needs reimbursement for vests and notepads. CP ordered a
Handbook of the Streets (research piece), and are assembling an overall packet
for ambassadors to carry. Contact: Will Gillian, Jenny Bjorgo.
12:10 Final
Vote for the Pool Fund.
EPIC passed a motion in July to approve funding of $50,000
for the pool. David Rubedor sent EPIC a letter stating that we didn’t need an
extra neighborhood vote for these leftover Phase I NRP dollars, since this was
a plan modification that was approved by the entire neighborhood; the funds are
sitting in a “Recreation Fund.” However, the neighborhood approved these funds
for soccer fields, but the funds were not needed for that project, and the
funds have been sitting with the Park Board all this time. Because EPIC’s funds
were frozen, the 2nd vote on the July motion wasn’t held. Time is of
the essence, as the Shakopee matching funds could be lost. CP proposed we
explain this to the community and we present the 2nd motion to the
October membership meeting. This 2nd vote is legal, and in
accordance with our board.
Quorum achieved.
Rosie Cruz arrived. 12:11 pm.
MOTION: (MG, RC) Approved. CP will invite Dean Duvolis to come to
the October meeting, lead the discussion and request the 2nd vote
for the $50,000 matching grant for the pool.
MOTION: (MG, JB) Approved. Ratify the previous motions of the
committee of the whole.
12:20 Roof
Depot building and potential land sale to City for Public Works Water
Distribution Center.
CP just received notice about a week ago that the City wants
to purchase the Roof Depot building and put the water distribution center
there. It suggests truck traffic. Alondra Cano has said she is not sure we want
to do this. CP spoke with Steve Kotke, with the city asking what is involved,
can it be made environmentally sensitive, and explained we want the whole
industrial complex out of our neighborhood. The intersection where our main
thoroughfare’s and LRT join, should be housing and this plan suggests a higher
industrial center, and could negatively impact our need for housing in this
area. We need to form a task force to work on this. Goal: study the situation
and the impact, inform the community, to suggest a goal/path, to help determine
what the community’s response should be and execute the planned community
response.
· EPIC has a community plan that specifies residential as our
commitment/goal.
12:25 Board
Self Evaluation & Training
Discussed implementing an individual board member
self-evaluation which will be completed periodically by board members. Mary
will work on a form that is specific to EPIC’s board responsibilities.
12:30 Adjourn- consensus
