ANA Meeting Minutes

3/15/22 / 6:30 PM / Zoom

BOARD ATTENDEES

Eli Johnson, Ethan Komoroski, Nikki Lindberg, Kevin Ross, Judy Vecere, Charlie Wolfe

NOT IN ATTENDANCE: Samantha Bild, Adriana Dobrzycka, Vikisha Goberdhan, Janhel Leandre, Sharla McIntosh-Ziegler

OTHER ATTENDEES

Lauren Anderson (Coordinator), Jordan Nelson (Armatage Park Director)

THE MEETING

January meeting minutes approved via email. Updated financials were sent via email.

6:30    Welcome and Introductions (Kevin Ross)

6:33    Park Update (Jordan Nelson, Armatage Park Director)

• Winter sports wrapping up this week
• Spring and summer sports and programming open for online registration
• Scholarship and fee waiver programs have been updated by MPRB. Complete an application and qualify for $300 per person to spend city-wide on park programs
• Due to the teacher’s strike there are additional school-age programs available

6:40    Transitioning to In-person Meetings

• Multi-purpose room at the park is available on Tuesdays or Thursdays at this point

• • May need to do either/or (in-person or Zoom) not hybrid because of budget and personnel limits
  • Plan to move in-person outdoors (May-Oct). If needed, indoors would require masks.
  • Would like to continue with a mask policy (due to not all having kids eligible for the vaccine) as well as those with immune-compromised family members
  • We (as well as the park) have lots of masks still on hand for any who attend
  • Board can make a decision for the board. Committees can decide for themselves.

• Motion to transition to in-person meetings in May for the board (allowing committees to make their own choice). Seconded. Carries

6:55    Approval of February Minutes & Financials

• Motion to approve the February minutes and financials. Seconded. Carries. 

6:45    2020-2021 CPP Annual Report

• • Did a walk-through of the report to ensure that it is accurate and comprehensive

• Motion to approve the 2020-2021 CPP Annual Report. Seconded. Carries.

7:00    Safety, Equity & Outreach Update

• Tech Day for Seniors (Sat, April 23 | 1:00-3:00pm)
• Will not be doing the Community Helpers event and will be re-focusing on more education and community discussion focused (as part of meetings vs additional events)

7:15    Annual Meeting & Board Election
    [May 17 (outdoors if possible) 6:30-8:00]

• Julie from Unwind Within will be a speaker (focus on stress/relaxation techniques)
• Topic: Growing Together
• Jamie Long plans to attend, as do Marion Greene & Linea Palmisano
• Seats up for election: Sam, Nikki, Sharla, Kevin, plus 2 open seat (1 year and 2 year)
• Kevin, Ethan, Charlie, Nikki (6pm) to help set up
• Potential food (something reusable)

7:35    Coordinator Report:

• Add Comments from Community Item to Agendas
• Meeting Materials Options (Online, PDF, Projector)
  • Hope to source used equipment (projector and free-standing screen)
  • Leverage tech available (Google Slides)
  • Minimize printed materials
  • Project what we can via slides
• Help Needed to Share ANA Programs/Events
  • So many events this spring and we need to each do our part to help share, like, etc.  through social media to help reach the most neighbors we can
  • If you want to help do posts, just let her know and she will get you connected

8:10    ANA Committee Updates

• • Safety, Equity & Outreach

• Motion to allow $20 towards drinks/snacks. Second. Carries.

• • Community Engagement
    • Great support from local businesses for the Pet Fest
  • Green Team
    • Soil Health (Kiss the Ground – can link for free or on Netflix) and expert panel (3 guests)
    • Earth Day Clean-up on April 23 (mostly managed by the city)
    • Lawns to Legumes (still waiting to hear – should know later this month)
    • Another grant through City – People for Parks grant (due tonight)
      • Requires some matching funds. There is $ in a fund slated for environmental greening ($4,000 available in NRP). Should know in June if we get this grant.
      • Built in a maintenance plan to help the success of the plantings

• Motion to approve up to $1,000 matching funds in support of this grant for plantings at the Washburn Tot Lot. Second. Carries

• • Depot update (Frey vetoed with caveats – 6 stipulations, that should be addressed soon, and the veto will be dropped) Note – Palmisano didn’t vote to support Chavez’s proposal, would have made it veto proof (but looks like it will move to be an urban farm)
    • Will be keeping an eye on the Upper Harbor Development Project

8:30    New Business

• Welcome bag delivery – Ethan has some great ideas for people to connect with and stories to share. Great to do on social media (print space is very limited). We could highlight area businesses, too.

Meeting adjourned at 8:33

UPCOMING MEETINGS/EVENTS

• March 21 – Palmisano Presents on Public Safety (6:30-8:00pm, Teams & Mount Olivet)
• April 5 – Safety, Equity & Outreach Committee (6:00-7:00pm, Zoom)
• April 7 – Community Engagement Committee (6:00-7:00pm, Zoom)
• April 14 – Green Team Meeting (7:00-8:30pm, Zoom)
• April 19 – Monthly Meeting (6:30-8:30pm, Zoom)
• April 23 – Earth Day Clean-up (9:30am-12:00pm, Armatage Park)
• April 23 – Senior Tech Day (2:00-4:00pm, Armatage Park)
• May 14 – Garden Tool Swap (9:00 am-12:00 pm, Armatage Park)
• May 14 – Armatage Pet Fest (2:00-4:00 pm, Armatage Park)
• May 17 – Armatage Annual Meeting (6:30-8:00 pm, Armatage Park)

ANA Meeting Minutes

2/15/22 / 6:30 PM / Zoom

BOARD ATTENDEES

Vikisha Goberdhan, Eli Johnson, Ethan Komoroski, Nikki Lindberg, Sharla McIntosh-Ziegler, Kevin Ross, Judy Vecere

NOT IN ATTENDANCE: Samantha Bild, Adriana Dobrzycka, Janhel Leandre

OTHER ATTENDEES

Lauren Anderson (Coordinator), Jordan Nelson (Armatage Park Director), Cathy Abene (Park Board), Charlie Wolfe, Joyce Cundiff

THE MEETING

January meeting minutes approved via email. Updated financials were sent via email.

6:30    Welcome and Introductions (Kevin Ross)

6:35    Park Update (Jordan Nelson, Armatage Park Director)

• Rec centers back to normal hours (3-9, sat 12-6, sun)
• Fire and Ice – great event and thanks for the help from the board. Estimate 150-200 people at one point in time.
• Spring/Summer program registration opens March 2 online (from tots to seniors)
• Most rec centers are hiring, including Armatage and Kenny

6:40    MPRB District 6 Update – Commissioner Cathy Abene

• Work colleagues with Kevin for 14 years
• Kids (just grad) and 2 washburn seniors and they have enjoyed working for the parks (plus gets babysitting jobs on top of it)
• Sw area quiet on the capital improvement projects. Elected Meg Fornay president (as one of 2 returning members) and opted to have co-chair to help transitions
• Co-charing housing committee. (w/ Dist 3) and many partners
• Co-chairing  legislative agenda/ bonding programs 1-governor 2-waterworks facility 3-(perpetual) grand rounds missing link along 280 4-green infrastructure creeks // also focused on youth programming (under 24) // put forth policy
• Current board has several more parents serving, 3 teachers, several who have kids who have or do participate in the public park system
• Lots of respect for the superintendent al bangor
• Question about youth programming that might affect us: broadly across the city, want to encourage more park identity building
• Diamond sports, skateparks, – might have planning committees for some of these particular areas and how they should be looked at throughout the entire system (schools, club, etc.)
• She does water resource engineering at the U // with her lens, wants to make sure water quality is considered (along with equity, etc.) and push on relationships (City, Watershed, etc.) and focusing environmental work in our parks and systems
• What does the park board have regarding work plans? Next Wed they are having a public meeting about strategy for the next 4 years, around the superintendent’s goals.
• Ethan / how do we use the park land as a climate resiliency tool? IE Hiawatha — issues around rising ground water at Nokomis // respecting our natural resources is part of the mission and heart of what park lands represent // finding a way to quantify it key, must value it
• Funding for tree canopy, plantings…how to we steward the land and its future role
• Minnehaha watershed plan – but some had broken down…and 3 commissioners + district 5, getting together to talk about what is holding it back

7:00    Open Board Seats

• Two open seats. Two candidates. Charlie Wolfe (intro) interested to find a spot where he can help.
  • Motion to elect Charlie Wolfe the board (through May 2023). Seconded. Motion carries.
• Emily Rawsted (hold off until she can attend)

7:05    Annual Meeting & Board Election Planning

• Topic & Speakers – May 17 (outdoors if possible)
  • 6:30-8:00 (need to stick to shorter timeframe with it getting dark)
  • Theme: Growing Together
    • Welcome signs
    • Speaker idea: dept of innovation, hr dept mental health, (? good speaker at HCMC, Laurie) // Ethan, Charlie will work on ideas for speaker choices
    • Reps: Palmasano, Long, Greene
• Board Recruitment
  • Those up for re-election will be contacted about running again
  • Request to current members to encourage new members
  • Reminder that a board member can be a representative of a business or organization in the neighborhood
• Election Timeline
  • Candidate register April 15 through May 17
  • Online guide and voting May 18-26
  • Results announced online May 27
• Volunteers
  • Election moderators (3-4): Ethan, Charlie, Vicky

7:25    Spring Newsletter – Lauren

• Content & Timeline
  • Mar 15: Article deadline
  • Mar 15-21: Layout
  • Mar 22: Draft sent to volunteer editors (Charlie, Sharla, Stephanie)
  • Mar 27: Edits due
  • Mar 29: Final pdf sent to Jerry’s Printing
  • Arrives in mailboxes by April 15
•  Articles
  • Annual meeting
  • Rain garden program (maybe grant)
  • Board Spotlight: Eli
  • Senior Tech Day (April 23)
  • Spring Clean-up (April 23)
  • Armatage Pet Fest (May 14) and volunteer recruitment (qr code)
  • Events calendar
  • If space permits:
    • Welcome bags
    • Block leader recruitment

7:40    Collaboration & Shared Resource Fund – Kevin, Sharla, Nikki & Judy

• • Exec committee met and discussed if we wanted to pursue and bring to the board. Natural fit seems Kenny. (have sort of the same 3 committees)
  • Deadline is Feb 28 (funding window through 2023 up to $15k) hopes we’d learn quickly if we are awarded a grant
  • Looking to get an exploratory meeting on the calendar with the Kenny exec board
  • Lynnhurst and Fulton interested
  • Could do some shared committee meetings / event planning and event itself (with Lauren’s time) conservatively saves $2,500/year per neighborhood

• Motion to explore a collaboration for the grant. Seconded. Motion carries.

• Will set up a meeting with Kenny

7:55    Coordinator Report:

• ANA Calendar (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OT0nehoBIQdch_EljmokmDU9knvss3P24JmZ18by3Yo/edit?usp=sharing)
• New Board Folder (bylaws, policies, calendar, roster, committee work plans, etc.) will be shared with members so folks have access to information and resources as needed
• Website updates – can we use some of tech bundle to help with planning/staging as we update to a new WordPress platform

8:00    ANA Committee Updates

• Green Team
  • Lawns to Legumes grant submitted. Hope to learn by the end of the month.
  • Next month Soil Health education series (view movie on your own, and then bring in experts to be part of discussions) https://armatage.org/soilhealth/
  • Senior workshop (moved to early June) Gardening as you Grow Older
  • April neighborhood clean-up in partnership with Kenny
  • Slothful book club – Overstory
• Safety, Equity & Outreach
  • Cyber Seniors (April 24)
  • Policy and Government Oversight Committee (video of meeting) conversation around accountability
• Community Engagement
  • Welcome bags (Kevin, Eli, Ethan)
  • Senior workshop end of Sept/early Oct – focus on home maintenance
  • Pet Fest (May 14) 2-4pm
    • Vendors: Sparrow, Zero-ish, Dreadlocks for Dingoes, People & Pets (food drive)
    • Tables: ANA, Dreadlocks, Animal chiropractor (?), Woof Central (?)
    • 2:15 parade
    • 3pm contest (categories tbd)
  • Next up will be planning for the Food Truck Festival

8:15    New Business

• Approval of January minutes
  • Motion to approve and seconded (online). Motion carries.
• Neighborhood election day

Meeting adjourned at 8:17

UPCOMING MEETINGS/EVENTS

• Feb 23 – 60th/Sunrise/58th St Repaving Meeting (6:30pm, Microsoft Teams)
• March 1 – Safety, Equity & Outreach Committee (6:00-7:00pm, Zoom)
• March 3 – Community Engagement Committee (6:00-7:00pm, Zoom)
• March 10 – Green Team Meeting (7:00-8:30pm, Zoom)
• March 15 – Monthly Meeting (6:30-8:30pm, Zoom)
• ANA 2022 Planning Calendar  (link)

 

ANA Meeting Minutes

1/18/22 / 6:30 PM / Zoom

BOARD ATTENDEES

Vikisha Goberdhan, Eli Johnson, Ethan Komoroski, Nikki Lindberg, Sharla McIntosh-Ziegler, Kevin Ross, Judy Vecere

NOT IN ATTENDANCE: Samantha Bild, Adriana Dobrzycka, Janhel Leandre

OTHER ATTENDEES

Lauren Anderson (Coordinator), Jordan Nelson (Armatage Park Director), Tara Brown, Council Vice President Linea Palmisano

THE MEETING

December meeting minutes approved via email. Updated financials were sent via email.

6:30    Welcome and Introductions (Kevin Ross)

6:35    Park Update (Jordan Nelson, Armatage Park Director)

• Buildings have returned to more restricted operations due to the recent Omicron surge, and will be open for programs but not open to the public. Warming room hours have been scaled back, but will still be open 7 days a week (4-7 weekdays; 1-5 Sat; noon-5 Sun)
• Winter programs are underway (basketball, skating, gymnastics, adult yoga)
• Fire & Ice event on Fri the 28th 6-7:30, skating, bonfire, s’mores, ANA tabling, mutual aid winter gear table, Armatage PTA tabling
• Movie in the Park — probably in June (10/11 our first choice, later in June second choice), SEO plans to table and would like to hand out popcorn, movie selection TBD (suggestions: Back to the Future, My Girl) Watch for a list to generate ideas.

6:50    Ward 13 Update (Council Member Linea Palmisano)

• Announced the addition of a new member of her team, Ruth Olson (long-time neighborhood coordinator and Armatage resident).
• First public forum for 2022 will be focused on public safety, details in the works.
• As the newly elected Council VP she hopes to work closely with Pres Andrea Jenkins (Ward 8). She thinks they will make a great team, as Andrea thinks big and she thinks details.
  • Working on committee assignments (some 60+)
  • Voters chose to change the government structure, and will be put in place in phases
  • Her office has received questions about a Snow Emergency not being declared after the  recent snowfall. The city crew felt it wasn’t necessary. If you have areas that are problematic, reporting through 311 will help prioritize where clean up is needed.
  • Linea asked how best she can connect with us and work with the neighborhood — the ANA is looking at a comprehensive plan for connecting with several of our representatives and will let her know the plan (see notes later in the meeting)
  • A question was raised as to the function of the audit committee and how it can be used for police oversight. This has been a priority and activity during her involvement on the audit committee and she’d like to see it as part of the system no matter the leadership. There is also an added legislative audit function (as a check on the mayor). Ultimately the audit committee’s key feature is its independence.

7:00    Special Election for Open Board Seat

• No candidates applied. Will address again at a future meeting.
• Ideally the seat would be filled asap, but we are able to have an on-the-spot election if someone steps forward.
• Board needs to work on recruitment (are there people serving as committee members or parents from the community school who might be interested)
• Seat term runs through May 2023 (and must be 18)

7:05    Vice President Midterm Election

• Sharla was nominated to serve as Vice President. The nomination was accepted. Sharla was elected VP.

7:10    Lawns to Legumes Grant Opportunity – Tara B., Sarah, Eva

• This is a state sponsored grant similar to the rain garden program, and focuses on plantings to support pollinators in both residential and park settings (includes plants, shrubs, trees, etc.) https://bwsr.state.mn.us/media/16491
• The Green Team is seeking board approval to apply for the grant. If we are awarded the grant, we will address the financial commitment and whether or not we can meet the 10% match.
• They see 2-3 projects in the park: The park would need to approve the plantings and agree to 5 years of pesticide-free maintenance. 1) Tot lot on Washburn (at the request of neighbors) for vegetation between park and alley; 2) Triangle on 58th St; 3) Area around the playground that would include signage about the rusty patched bumblebee
• We have to have residents sign-up to be a part of the program (home owners that can display successful yardscapes) and expect we would need at least 7 and ideally between 7-10 participants.
• Project management is still managed by Metro Blooms and the ANA. The grant would pay for the plants (with our 10% match) and would cost about $1,500 to the participant. Finance details will be finalized if the grant is awarded (these numbers are an educated guess).
• Grant deadline Feb 5
• We live in a priority 1 zone, so while very competitive grant, this does improve our chances
• This would be in addition to the rain garden program, though we could slide some of our rain garden funding to this program.

• Motion to support the green team grant application. Seconded. Motion carries.

7:25    Armatage.org Updates – Ethan

• Joel, Lauren, and Ethan have been looking at the website. At this point, just looking at the top nav bar and where to house certain pieces of information.
• Recommendation:
  • Home — running blog style
  • Donate
  • Get Involved
    • The committees
    • Board meetings
  • Events & Programs
    • Art Journal
    • Board meetings
    • Community helpers
    • Movie
    • Food truck nights
    • Clean ups
    • Rain gardens
    • Safety rebate program
    • Welcome bags
    • Light tours
    • Etc
  • About
    • News
    • Board & other meetings
    • Accomplishments
    • Financials
    • History
    • Policies
    • Our community
  • Resources
    • Need to clean up and trim down this section
  • Contact Us

7:50    Coordinator Report

• City Contract – all of our policies were accepted. Now an approved scope of work is needed before work can begin. Lauren is meeting tomorrow to clarify what this means. A financial summary is posted to the website as part of these new city policies.
• 2022 Annual Meeting Topic (May 17)
  • City-wide election day has been discussed but no details have been given to neighborhoods, so we recommend our regular 3rd Tuesday of the month meeting date
  • Who do we want to invite to speak? Should figure out our topic first
  • What topic do we want? Consider the categories from the equity sign / could do a Facebook poll to get some community feedback for the topic
  • We need to allow for nominations from the floor, so will need to tweak the voting process
  • Venue: hope we can host it outside at the park, masked indoors if weather is poor
• Neighborhood Traffic Calming Process — Ethan is willing to look at the survey, and come back to the board with suggestions for an ANA response
• Zoom Account — recommended that we share a Zoom account with Kenny which will give us more features
• Fire & Ice (request for board members for tabling and helping volunteer)
• Monthly meeting schedule (each quarterly)
  • Palmisano, City Council
  • Abene, Parks
  • Waisenen, Crime Prevention Specialist

8:00    ANA Committee Updates

• Green Team
  • Have developed subcommittees to help focus on certain things: Lawns and Legumes, Slothful Book Club (“Overstory”), Movie/discussion (Kiss the Ground) around soil health and regenerative farming (March 24 panel discussion); Rain Garden program is in contact with renters; Senior workshop in May, gardening as you grow older
• Safety, Equity & Outreach
  • Next meeting Feb 1 – Lauren met with Cyber Seniors regarding our April event
  • Will be working on sharing some tips for public safety, especially about the car jackings
• Community Engagement
  • Welcome bags, mini grants (pausing), finalized fall Senior Workshop focused on home maintenance; Pet Fest (May 14) from 2-4pm at the park with parade, contest (open to ideas: person who most looks like their pet, best dressed, best trick); committee members are reaching out to tons of area business that support pets, as well as could do other event treats for non-pets, etc.

8:25    New Business

• Reminder for some board members to get bios to Lauren.

Meeting adjourned at 8:25

UPCOMING MEETINGS/EVENTS

• February 1 – Safety, Equity & Outreach Committee (6:00-7:00pm, Zoom)
• February 3 – Community Engagement Committee (6:00-7:00pm, Zoom)
• February 10 – Green Team Meeting (7:00-8:30pm, Zoom)
• February 15 – Monthly Meeting (6:30-8:30pm, Zoom)

ANA Meeting Minutes

12/21/21 / 6:30 PM / Zoom

BOARD ATTENDEES

Samantha Bild, Joel Federer, Vikisha Goberdhan, Ethan Komoroski, Nikki Lindberg, Sharla McIntosh-Ziegler, Kevin Ross

NOT IN ATTENDANCE: Adriana Dobrzycka, Eli Johnson, Janhel Leandre, Judy Vecere

OTHER ATTENDEES

Lauren Anderson (Coordinator), Jordan Nelson (Armatage Park Director), Joyce Cundiff, Sheila Dingels, Stephanie Vigen

THE MEETING

November meeting minutes approved via email. Updated financials were sent via email.

6:30    Welcome and Introductions (Joel Federer)

6:35    Park Update (Jordan Nelson, Armatage Park Director)

• The building will be open from 12-7pm over winter break (closed Fridays). Starting January 3 building hours citywide will be from 3-9 pm weekdays with some hours on Saturdays.
• Winter sports registration is still open, but many sessions are already full. Basketball has over 250 kids signed-up. Other programs include gymnastics and ice skating.
• Ice rink construction is in progress. Estimating the rink will open in a couple weeks, but depends on the weather. They will notify us once it is open. The warming room will be open 5-9pm weekdays, 12-8 or 9pm Saturdays, and 1-5pm Sundays.
• Jordan asked the board’s possible interest in co-hosting a smaller winter event like Fire & Ice. The Community Engagement team has been considering something similar already, so it is something the board would be able to support. Date will be one of the last two weekends in January. Recommended that we reach out to the school (to see if they would like to be involved in any way). The SEO committee could also plan to host a winter safety station.

6:42    President Midterm Election

• Tonight is Joel’s last meeting. Kevin Ross has put himself forward for the role of president. With no other nominations, a vote to elect Kevin to the remainder of Joel’s term was held, and Kevin was elected as our new board president.
• The role of vice president is now open and up for consideration.
• We also have an open spot on the board that will be promoted for our January meeting.
• Many thanks to Joel for his time and leadership.

6:50    ANA Committee Work Plans

• Green Team ($200)
  • Priority 1 — Equity-focused rain garden program — Two gardens will be scholarshipped and the cost of participation will be $50. The regular cost to participate is $850 with the ANA subsidizing the rest.The full price for a rain garden is $2,000. One of the scholarshipped gardens will be at the apartment complex on Xerxes, and maintenance will be shared between the Green Team and apartment residents.
  • Priority 2 – Film screening and panel conversation — Current idea is to host a panel discussion for Kiss the Ground. People would watch it on their own, and a conversation over Zoom with invited panelists would be scheduled for sometime in February/March.
  • Priority 3 – Spring and fall neighborhood clean-ups — They may also do a storm drain clean-up in the fall.
  • Senior workshop — Gardening as you grow older — Hoping to host an outdoor workshop with a tent in June.
  • Other ideas: book club, Lawns to Legumes grant, climate-centric trivia night, additional workshop ideas
• Safety, Equity & Outreach ($400)
  • Priority 1 — Meet your community helpers event — Will create more robust programming as part of this event for September
  • Priority 2 — Renter pop-up event in October — Co-hosting with the board to connect more with renters in the neighborhood
  • Priority 3 — Tabling at the Movie in the Park — Anticipating in June, we will have an information table and hope to hand out popcorn
  • Senior workshop — Technology focused — Topics under consideration: how to cut the cord, answering tech questions, resources for specific topics (chore support, further tech learning opportunities, online safety/how to avoid scams, online dating)
  • Sheila shared the comments from the Equity sign from the Community Helpers event. SEO will continue to use this and ask for ideas at future events to help guide our future programming. From the current feedback a couple ideas are to host a mutual aid exchange for winter gear and to network with realtor groups to promote our neighborhood.
• Community Engagement ($500)
  • Priority 1 — Summer Food Truck Festival — The largest event they will host, and hope to have a band along with 5 trucks and other activities (August)
  • Priority 2 — Pet Parade — Hoping this event will reach a different demographic in the neighborhood, and planning for a spring event (May)
  • Priority 3 — Halloween Decoration tour — has gotten great engagement both from participating homes as well as tour goers
  • Priority 4 — Holiday Lights tour — planning to get feedback from participants to confirm interest in continuing to sponsor this tour program. Did have lots of online views of the tour map, so engagement may be higher than we realized, and there seems to be a growing interest on certain blocks to expand their displays in the future.
  • Priority 4ish — Cocoa, sledding, makers market, etc. this winter. Could be done in conjunction with the proposed park event for late January.
  • Senior workshop — TBD — Some thoughts are: relationships 55 and up, handy person program, technology, exercise/health

7:17    Safety Rebate Program Changes

• • To help the safety rebate program continue as long as possible, the ANA has to look at ways to cap or limit the expenses, to allow for expanded involvement and continued engagement.
  • This is definitely a program we want to keep as it gets a lot of interest, connects us with neighbors, and meets many of our goals.

• Motion to add a $200 lifetime cap per household, continue with the $100/year max, and discontinue the business rebate portion of the program. Motion seconded. Motion carries.

7:39    2022 ANA Budget Approval

• • Committee budgets for supplies & materials (noted above) will detail in future budget reports
  • The Board added $400 for Welcome Bags to the annual supply budget
  • Clarifying unrestricted funds that can be used on food/drink/entertainment and added $500 in unrestricted funds to the budget.
  • It was noted that the process to move funds between budget categories is fairly easy for amounts less than $25,000. Anything over that requires more engagement and community support as per our recent plan mod.
  • We will have uncontracted dollars at the city in 2022, and will likely need to do a larger plan mod or two.
  • Currently, we will keep the $1,000 budgeted for mini grants (micro grants) and can decide later if this budget item needs to be reassigned.

• Motion to approve the budget. Motion seconded. Motion carries. 

7:50    Coordinator Report

• Financials and Board Info on ANA Website
  • The city is requiring these to be online. Lauren will figure out the best place to add the financials. It was agreed that something relatively simple and easy to understand would be the best information to post, including our annual budget (and year to date spending) along with our donation totals and fundraising goals.
• 2021 Fundraising Totals
  • $645 in checks from fall newsletter donation ask (cost of adding the envelope $360) — might consider a QR code to scan and donate and allow for drop-offs at the park, etc.
  • $720 net from lawn signs. Still have signs to sell.
  • $1,830 from GiveMN in 2021 (Give to the Max Day and ongoing donations)
  • 2022 fundraising goal of $4,000
• Holiday Light Tour Wrap-up
  • 14 tour stops, Google map have over 15k hits, 110 votes, with the top way people learned about the tour from word of mouth. It did bring a lot of awareness to the ANA, wasn’t a big time commitment for Lauren, and has low expenses.
  • Beyond promotions, we could consider driving the neighborhood and encouraging houses to sign-up if they are decorated and not on the tour list.
  • Plan to survey this year’s participants
• Staffing Update – Lauren will be out next week; she also took on a new role as the part-time coordinator for Kenny. Should be a great partnership and connection for our neighborhoods. Congrats to Lauren.

8:19    New Business

• Idea to great buttons that say “ask me about X committee” that we can wear at events
• Noticed that the sidewalks over 62 aren’t being shoveled. They are under the county’s jurisdiction and they do not plan to maintain them. Ethan offered to reach out to Greene and Palmisano to see if there is something that can be done to help address this safety and accessibility issue.
• Remember that in January  we will vote to fill the open vice president role and open board seat. We will be posting and promoting online, and board members can encourage people to get involved.
• Congrats to Vicky who is expecting later this winter!
• Joel thanked the board for the opportunity to serve as president for the past 3.5 years, and looks forward to still being involved in committee work.

Meeting adjourned at 8:27

UPCOMING MEETINGS/EVENTS

• January 6 – Community Engagement Committee (6:00-7:00pm, Zoom)
• January TBD – Safety, Equity & Outreach Committee (Time TBD, Zoom)
• January 13 – Green Team Meeting (7:00-8:30pm, Zoom)
• January 18 – Monthly Meeting (6:30-8:30pm, Zoom)

ANA Meeting Minutes

11/16/21 / 6:30 PM / Zoom

BOARD ATTENDEES

Samantha Bild, Adriana Dobrzycka, Joel Federer, Vikisha Goberdhan, Eli Johnson, Ethan Komoroski, Nikki Lindberg, Sharla McIntosh-Ziegler, Kevin Ross, Judy Vecere

Not in attendance: Janhel Leandre

OTHER ATTENDEES

Lauren Anderson (Coordinator), Jordan Nelson (Armatage Park Director), Joyce (resident and business owner in Armatage)

THE MEETING

October meeting minutes approved via email. Updated financials were sent via email.

6:30    Welcome and Introductions (Joel Federer)

6:35    Park Update (Jordan Nelson, Armatage Park Director)

• Park Board has announced a soft reopening for after Thanksgiving (masks are still required at all times in the building).
• Ice rinks will be back with benches outside. Warming rooms TBD.
• Current programs: youth and adult volleyball, youth gymnastics
• Registration is now open for Jan – May programming
• Question about ice skate donations (need to see what they need, because they have very limited storage space, but can always use skates)

6:44    Edits and Approval of Remaining Policies (viewable online)

• Americans with Disabilities Act Policy – presented one small addition. Discussed combining this policy with the Language Access so the overlapping issues and processes can be in one place. But after discussion, felt best to keep separate and have the language portion of the ADA refer to the Language Access Policy.
• Language Access Policies – small edits made.
• Financial Policies & Procedures – key points to highlight:
  • To allow the coordinator to spend up to $100 each month toward pre-approved expenses, with anything above $100 requiring board approval.
  • Creating a Google form for committee members to submit receipts and reimbursement requests. Reimbursements will be allowed for the approved budget totals and for qualifying expenses without additional board approval.
• Board Training (PowerPoint)
• Board Strategic Funding Plan (focuses on what the organization’s plans are if the City funding were to go away)
• Board Development Plan
• Member Hiring Policy (states that when hiring, it is best practice to hire someone from outside the neighborhood. For staff that are from the neighborhood, there is a stated two-year waiting period for joining the board.)

• Motion to approve all of the above policies. Seconded. Motion carries.

7:27    Coordinator’s Report

• Give to the Max Day – Thursday
  • Please share on your social media. Ideas for content are always welcome.
• CPP Contract Clean-out Vote: Transfer $30 from Occupancy to Staffing.

• Motion to transfer the $30. Seconded. Motion carries

• Proposed 2022 Newsletter Timeline ($1,400 printing + $300 postage + 7 hours of staff time = just under $2,000 per issue)
  • April 15 (April/May/June events and programs including Annual Meeting & Board Elections)
  • July 15 (July/Aug/Sept events including Meet Your Community Helpers and Food Truck events)
  • October 15 (Oct/Nov/Dec events plus any early winter programs that fit)
  • January newsletter – cut
• Volunteers for ANA Website Working Group
  • We need to update our WordPress template and refresh our site, and would like to work on this during our quieter winter months to create a list of recommendations for our website.
  • Joel, Joyce (?), and Ethan willing to do some research and UX input.
• Committee Work Plans
  • Each committee has been working through their planning document with 2-4 events for 2022. Each will host one of the senior workshops. Each will have an annual budget, and determine how to meet any funding gaps. Committees will present in December.
• December Meeting Date – will keep on the 21.
• Red Wagon inquired about a business facade grant. We have discontinued the program because of budget concerns, and since they have been a past recipient, we are unsure if we’d grant additional funds even if they were available. Lauren will send other resources
• Holiday tours coming up!

7:54    Staffing Contracts

• Lauren/Coordinator
  • Current hourly rate, annual cap and weekly hours presented
  • Discussion that board members should be helping more regarding social media posts and article writing. Hours should be less stressed from the policy creation requirements that won’t be required in 2022.

• Motion to continue at her current hourly rate with an annual cap (for an average work week of 15hrs). Seconded. Motion carries.

• • Claire/Bookkeeper
    • Duties outlined in Finance Policy.

• Motion to continue with contract as currently written with $2,000 cap for bookkeeping services ($40/hr). Seconded. Motion carries.

8:26    Committees (3 minute updates)

• Community Engagement
  • Events, micro grants (potential)
• Safety, Equity & Outreach
  • Started our 2022 plan and will be working on our December presentation (Community Helpers Event, Movie, Tech event for Seniors)
• Green Team
  • Zeroish, book club, and other 2022 plans
  • 6 gardens (we fund design only) and 2 scholarship recommended with one designated for Xerxes Manor
  • Early stages of a grant proposal

8:20    New Business

• None

Meeting adjourned at 8:34

UPCOMING MEETINGS/EVENTS

• December 2 – Community Engagement Committee (6:00-7:00pm, Zoom)
• December 4 – Safety, Equity & Outreach Committee (10:00-11:00am, Zoom)
• December 9 – Green Team Meeting (7:00-8:30pm, Zoom)
• December 10 – 22 – Holiday Light Tour (6:00-8:00pm, armatage.org)
• December 21 – Monthly Meeting (6:30-8:30pm, Zoom)

ANA Meeting Minutes

10/19/21 / 6:30 PM / Zoom

BOARD ATTENDEES

Adriana Dobrzycka, Eli Johnson, Ethan Komoroski, Vikisha Goberdhan, Nikki Lindberg, Kevin Ross

NOT IN ATTENDANCE: Samantha Bild, Joel Federer, Janhel Leandre, Sharla McIntosh-Ziegler, Judy Vecere

OTHER ATTENDEES

Lauren Anderson (Coordinator), Jordan Nelson (Armatage Park Director), Charlie Rybak (Southwest Voices)

THE MEETING

September meeting minutes approved via email. Updated financials were sent via email.

6:34    Welcome and Introductions (Kevin Ross)

6:35    Park Update (Jordan Nelson, Armatage Park Director)

• Reopening plans have been pushed off until November. Tentative date to reopen is November 8, but will be re-evaluated in early November.
• They do remain open for athletics and rentals/reservations during current program hours (3-9 weekdays, 9-6 Saturday, closed Sunday).
• Fall outdoor athletics are wrapping up (football 200-220 kids, soccer 250 kids). Volleyball (youth and adult) is starting.
• The park will have drop-in programs during MEA (open gym, art/craft, games).
• The park staff said the September event was great.
• The tomato plants outside the front door are able to be used by the community. Originally they had been used for some of the programming (Rec Plus made salsa).

6:43    Southwest Voices (Charlie Rybak) 

• An online media resource for southwest Minneapolis, to help fill the void left from the closure of the Southwest Journal. Hope to focus on what’s happening at the schools, with city council, in the neighborhoods, in a manner that is positive and unifying for the city.
• Have been operating for about 3 weeks, and are about to hire their founding editor.
• The intent is to provide free content. You can sign up for a daily newsletter. Through a membership model they hope to support the work.
• Because of the natural symbiotic relationship between neighborhoods and a media outlet, a partnership opportunity has been presented to neighborhood organizations in their news area. Participating neighborhoods will receive a portion of proceeds and memberships as outlined in the agreement (see attachment).
• Kevin invited Southwest Voices to participate in our welcome bag. They have a flyer that they can contribute at this time.
• Motion to sign the agreement with SW Voices. Seconded. Motion carries.

7:00    Bylaws (edits and approval)

• For full language, see attachment.
• Motion to adopt the bylaws. Seconded. Motion carries.

7:15    Plan Mod (edits and approval)

• To see neighborhood engagement results and full language, see attachment.
• Motion allocate funds as outlined in the plan modification. Seconded. Motion carries.

7:30    ADA & Language Access Policies

• Due to concerns about being able to live up to the expectations outlined in the boilerplate policy language, both policies have been tabled to November. Volunteers will get proposed language to Lauren by November 9 for the board to review.
  • Kevin and Ethan will work on the ADA Policy
  • Adriana and Nikki will work on the Language Access Policy

7:50    Rain Garden Program Recommendations (Ethan Komoroski)

• Due to budget cuts, the Green Team is proposing to scale back the program.
  • They propose to reduce the allocation to $4,000, and to have the ANA pay $200 (for the design fee) for each garden and the garden recipient would pay for the remaining portion (typically about $800 but depends on the size of the garden, etc.). This structure would allow for (6) gardens for non-financially burdened households and (2) additional gardens reserved for low-income applicants or for one at an apartment site.
  • If we are able to connect with Xerxes Manor, it could be a good stepping stone to building relationships with the renters in that area.
  • Would like to reevaluate in a year.
  • The program continues to be in partnership with Metro Blooms.
• In prior years we have allocated $8,000 for 15 installations. The gardens cost about $1,000/installation (which reflects a great savings through a “bulk” installation, since a similar garden done by an individual homeowner is typically at least $2,000).
• Motion to approve a $4,000 maximum to support the rain garden program. Seconded. Motion carries.

8:00    Coordinator’s Report

• 2022 Committee Planning
  • A planning template will be given to each committee to help in their 2022 planning
  • Each committee will present in December (max 10 minutes from each group)
    • Initial calendaring
    • Estimate of volunteer needs
    • Estimated attendance
    • $500 for CE, $500 SEO, $200 (beyond the rain garden program), Welcome bag program
    • How the event works towards our goals
      • Sponsorship program (work to develop parameters and recommendations for where businesses can support our work)
  • 15 sign-ups for the Halloween tours
    • Prior winners, are they eligible again? Yes, at this point.
  • Lauren’s hours were high the past couple months because of events and items due to the city. She will be working with limited hours for the rest of the year to help stay on budget.
  • Our speaker was stolen out of her car before the Sept event, but she luckily has been able to replace it with a used version through FB Marketplace.

8:10    Committees (3 minute updates)

• Community Engagement
  • Welcome bag folks noted it had been hard to find people at home, but that seems to be improving
• Safety, Equity & Outreach
  • The Sept 25 Community Helper Event went great
  • The Oct 7 Jim Crow of the North Screening & Discussion was well attended and went well
  • The Oct 16 Ballot question forum was well attended (both in-person and online)  (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1C9jE4kJZrA&t=263s)
• Green Team
  • Oct 2 Fall Clean-up went well
  • $4,000 was approved for rain gardens in 2022
  • Announcement about a new shop, Zeroish (50th & Penn) that seems like a great partnership opportunity

8:15    New Business

• Request was made to invite our future Park Board representative to attend our meetings with some regularity.

Meeting adjourned at 8:29

UPCOMING MEETINGS/EVENTS

• October 22 – 31 – Halloween Decoration Tour (6:00-8:00pm, armatage.org)
• November 1  – Community Engagement Committee (6:00-7:00pm, Armatage Park)
• November 6 – Safety, Equity & Outreach Committee (10:00-11:00am, Armatage Park)
• November 11 – Green Team Meeting (7:00-8:30pm, Zoom)
• November 16 – Monthly Meeting (6:30-8:30pm, Zoom)

ANA Meeting Minutes

Monthly Meeting Minutes 9/21/21 / 6:30 PM / Armatage Park

BOARD ATTENDEES

Samantha Bild, Adriana Dobrzycka, Eli Johnson, Joel Federer, Vikisha Goberdhan, Nikki Lindberg, Sharla McIntosh-Ziegler, Kevin Ross

NOT IN ATTENDANCE: Ethan Komoroski, Janhel Leandre, Judy Vecere

OTHER ATTENDEES

Lauren Anderson (Coordinator), Jordan Nelson (Armatage Park Director), Larry Matsumoto (Public Works Department), John Freude (Council Member Palmisano Senior Policy Aide), and three neighbors

THE MEETING

August meeting minutes approved via email. Updated financials were sent via email.

6:33    Welcome and Introductions

6:35    Park Update (Jordan Nelson, Armatage Park Director)

• Park improvements are finally done. The opening event was great.
• Summer programming has wrapped up and fall sports, classes and after school programming is underway. Soccer and flag football have started, and volleyball starts up at the end of October with over 100 families involved in these park programs.
• The park building has been cleared to host indoor meetings and events. Masks are required and meetings must be held during programming hours. The board will discuss if future meetings will be indoors or via Zoom as the weather turns.

6:40    60th/Sunrise/58th Street repaving project
    (Larry Matsumoto, Department of Public Works) 

• 60th/Sunrise/58th from Xerxes to Cty Rd 22/Lyndale is part of the 2022 Resurfacing Program (mill and overlay). A public hearing will happen in the winter regarding the assessments that will be sent to affected residents. Larry will host a pre-public hearing meeting, date and time to be determined, but will be in the Armatage/Kenny area, and will help answer questions and concerns prior to the formal public hearing.
• It was asked if other improvements would be done as part of this project, in particular raised concerns regarding the speeds and increased traffic flow (especially looking ahead to the 494 construction project and more people avoiding 62). The current resurfacing project will not address these concerns, and if there are safety issues, they would be addressed through a fact-based evaluation done at the citywide level.
  • Recommended to contact the city council office to share these concerns. Report issues using 311 to help start better tracking issues. It was asked to learn when a speed study was last done on 60th. Also, an idea to paint crosswalk stripes at the stop sign, as an affordable and potentially quick way to help address these concerns.

6:50    City Council Update (John Freude, Senior Policy Aide)

• It is budget season. The mayor has sent his version to the city council for review. The council will also be allocating $50 million in American Rescue Plan (ARP) dollars. A survey was sent out to gather public comments (comments due by Friday, Sept 24). ARP funds will be received over 3 years. The mayor’s budget hopes to use ARP to offset property tax increases due to pandemic impacts (reduction in taxes collected). There will be public hearings (likely virtual) about these budget allocations.
• The city is coming to the end of the tree levy dollars that were earmarked to address issues related to climate. It is a hope from the city that some of the ARP funds could be used to create a new climate resiliency program.
• The Minneapolis Airport Commission is being asked to contribute $2 million to help support climate programming.
• It was asked what the city is doing to reduce the use of road salt. John knows they have drastically reduced the amount that is used, are investing more into sand, but was not sure about any other alternatives that might be under consideration.
• Made sure that everyone was aware of the three ballot questions — 1) executive mayor 2) public safety 3) rent stabilization — and encouraged people to take time to educate themselves about the issues. There are several events that the southwest area neighborhoods are hosting, as well as online resources.

7:00    City Funding Applications and ANA Policies

• • Neighborhood Network Fund Application
    • The city requires board demographics, and the language was finalized and updated in the document to include the required data.

• Motion to approve the Neighborhood Network Fund Application. Seconded.
  Motion carries.

• • Equitable Engagement Fund Application

• Motion to approve the Equitable Engagement Fund Application. Seconded.
  Motion carries.

• Policies: ​​
  • Audit Policy
  • Conflict of Interest Annual Certification
  • Conflict of Interest Policy
  • EEO Policy and AA Plan
  • Expense Reimbursement Policy
  • Gift Acceptance Policy
  • Member Grievance Policy
  • Member Hiring Policy
  • Records Retention Policy
  • Whistleblower Policy

• Motion to table the ADA Policy (Draft or Current) until October. Seconded. Motion carries.

• Motion to approve the new policies listed above. Seconded. Motion carries.

7:30    2022 Draft Budget

• Lauren presented a draft budget that brings the various funding streams into one document to better show how the various buckets support overlapping funding needs. Hoping this helps us better see where we are overall financially.
• Note some programs, such as the rain garden program, are not included in this draft budget, while others are still included, like the safety rebates and happy hours (informal gatherings). As we look at our reduced funding in the future, these are all up for consideration within the budget constraints.
• The draft reflects four printed newsletters, though we’ve discussed possibly trimming to three.
• Staff time reflects a reduction, but it is hard to cut significantly considering both the significant city requirements and committees activities.
• This budget shows a modest fundraising goal of $4,000. It is hoped that this will steadily increase over time as we work at growing our cash reserves.
• This draft was presented as a starting place, and will be revisited, with the plan to vote on a budget in November. Note, the city budget, and whether they increase our funding, will not be known until December.

7:35    Hybrid Meeting Options

• An overview of what it would take to host hybrid meetings was shared, including a list of equipment needs. However, this would need to be more deeply considered, if we opt to host hybrid meetings.
• Due to the costs and logistics, it is probably not feasible for the ANA to move to a hybrid option, and will continue to either host in-person or Zoom meetings and events.
• We could consider applying for the new city grant for neighborhood partnership programming where we could work both with other neighborhoods and community organizations to help address accessibility and hybrid event issues.

7:35    President’s Report

• Joel is resigning as board president at the end of December to focus on his career, but will stay engaged with the SEO committee. Anyone interested in learning more about this position can reach out to him with any questions.

7:45    Coordinator’s Report

• • The bylaws & plan mod Comment Period is up and running through Oct 15. Please share with your neighbors to encourage feedback and participation.
    • A city requirement was clarified, and a small language update was presented regarding the make up of the board members and years of service:
      No more than 25% of the board shall have served for 6 years or more.

• Motion to approve the required language update to the proposed bylaws. Seconded. Motion carries.

• • • In order to meet the city requirements for neighborhood engagement and voting numbers, we may have to door knock depending on how promotion at the event Saturday goes.
  • Halloween Decoration Tour (Oct 22-31)
    • We already have 2 sign-ups.
    • Idea were generated around where to purchase or ask for gift cards.

• Motion to approve the $300 for gift cards for both the Halloween and Holiday tour prize winners. Seconded. Motion carries.

• Fundraising
  • We have received $145 through GiveMN and $100 in checks
  • We are encouraged to request support for neighborhoods as part of the American Rescue Act survey (by Friday)
  • Southwest Voices (and online-only news outlet) will be operating soon, and will help fill the void left from the closure of the Southwest Journal. As part of their contract, they will be sharing a percentage of their profits with neighborhood organizations. More details to follow.

8:00    Committees (3 minute updates)

• Safety, Equity & Outreach
  • Saturday, Sept 25 Community Helper Event / 2:00-5:00pm / Armatage Park
  • Thursday, Oct 7 Jim Crow of the North Screening & Discussion / 6:30-8:00pm / Armatage Park w/ Just Deeds
  • Sam will look into Slack or other tool to help foster information sharing.
• Community Engagement
  • Have hosted several events this year (Tea & Blooms, Fall Food Trucks), and plan to out a plan for the calendar year.
• Green Team
  • Have promoted several programs such as rain gardens and native plantings, and are focusing on issues around climate equity across the city. They are planning to select a new book for the reading circle (to begin this winter). They also encourage people to Adopt-A-Drain — did you know you can name your drain?
  • Oct 2 Fall Clean-up / 9:00-11:00am / Armatage Park (sign-up online)
  • A neighbor shared their solar panel installation story (in process now). They didn’t think they’d be a good candidate since they have so much tree cover, but they will generate enough to offset their own usage. Might be worth promoting this more to the neighborhood.

8:15    New Business

• In response to our discussions around equity (in communications, at meetings and events, etc.) a suggestion was made to look into a text messaging service. Sam mentioned a program that helps address equity and accessibility, and will look more into it and see what options a small non-profit might have with the tools she is considering.

Meeting adjourned at 8:24

UPCOMING MEETINGS/EVENTS

• Sep 25 – Meet Your Community Helpers Event (2:00-5:00pm, Armatage Park)
• Sep 28 – MPRB District 6 Candidate Forum (7:00-8:30pm, Mount Olivet and Live Streaming)
• Oct 2 – Fall Clean-up (9:00-11:00am, Armatage Park)
• Oct 2 – Safety, Equity & Outreach Meeting (10:00-11:00am, Armatage Park)
• Oct 4 – Ward 13 Candidate Forum (7:00pm, St. John’s Episcopal Church and Live Streaming)
• Oct 7 – Community Engagement Committee (6:00-7:00pm, Armatage Park)
• Oct 7 – Jim Crow of the North Screening & Discussion (6:30-8:00pm, Armatage Park)
• Oct 14 – Green Team Meeting (7:00-8:15pm, Outdoors – email anacoordinator@armatage.org for address)
• Oct 15 – Public Comment Period for ANA Bylaws & Plan Modification Ends
• Oct 16 – Charter Amendment Forum (10:00-11:30am, Mayflower & Live Streaming)
• Oct 19 – ANA Monthly Meeting (6:30-8:30pm, Zoom or Armatage Park)
• Oct 22-31 – Halloween Decoration Tour (6:00-8:00pm)

ANA Meeting Minutes

Monthly Meeting 8/24/21 / 6:30 PM / Zoom

BOARD ATTENDEES

Samantha Bild, Adriana Dobrzycka, Joel Federer, Vikisha Goberdhan, Ethan Komoroski, Nikki Lindberg, Sharla McIntosh-Ziegler, Kevin Ross, Judy Vecere

NOT IN ATTENDANCE: Eli Johnson, Janhel Leandre

OTHER ATTENDEES

Lauren Anderson (Coordinator), Sarah Komoroski, Inspector Katie Blackwell (5th Precinct), Sheila Dingels, Council Member Linea Palmisano, Jennifer Waisanen (Crime Prevention Specialist), Jan Unstad

THE MEETING

Updated financials were sent via email.

6:33    Welcome and Introductions

6:35    Safety Update (CPS Jennifer Waisanen and
    Inspector Katie Blackwell)

• The biggest concerns in the precinct are the increase in robberies, with many happening in the morning (6-9am). Juveniles have been involved, and hoping the start of school will address some of these. The 5th precinct no longer has a community response team (only in 1 and 4) to help with these matters, however they did arrest two juveniles this morning. Armatage has had only one robbery reported since May (the northern parts of the precinct are seeing most of the crime).
• Armatage Crime stats YTD Jan 1-August 24th:
  2019 — 7 Violent Crimes/45 Property Crimes
  2020 — 6 Violent Crimes/37 Property Crimes
  2021 — 6 Violent Crimes/28 Property Crimes
• Second biggest issue is auto thefts (most from people leaving cars running while running in to pick up food or keys being left in the car).
• Traffic complaints are what they get the most calls about in the office. The police have very limited resources to address these types of concerns.
• We are still seeing some catalytic converter thefts, and package thefts on the rise. Ring cameras can help, but thieves are often covering faces or keeping heads down, so best to arrange deliveries when you know you will be home. There have also been several mopeds put into trucks and taken, so need to park in a garage or more securely lock them.
  • Minneapolis is still evaluating a program like what St Paul implemented that painted catalytic converters in the hopes that it would deter thefts. In asking area junkyards if they would purchase painted converters, the responses were mixed, so it isn’t clear if such a program is effective.
  • There is a way to register your Ring or other security camera with the Minneapolis Police Department. This can allow them to know where footage might be available to help with an investigation. Learn more at https://mpls.registry.cam/login.
• Our SEO team made sure to invite the MPD to our September 25th Community Helpers celebration event.
• Regarding the racial assaults via milk jugs, an investigator with the assault unit has been assigned. They are running the prints from the jugs, where possible, but this takes time. If you see a jug, call 911 to request proper removal (they ask we don’t don’t touch them or if you must, to use gloves and put in a paper bag) so it can be fingerprinted. The neighborhood wants to make sure that any affected individuals know about the support from the ANA, both in our disgust towards these actions, as well as efforts to counteract these messages (through social media and our “All Are Welcome Here” sign sales), and the availability of the safety rebate program to help with buying a security camera.

7:00    City Update (Council Member Linea Palmisano)

• Linea reiterated that hate speech has no place in our city — and appreciates the ANA’s efforts
• Neighborhood Funding — She is supportive of funding neighborhood organizations, and will work with the Mayor and City Council to have funding included in the budget, but this City Council has not been as receptive to neighborhood funding. A community survey will be coming out some time after September 6 to ask about where to distribute the federal relief funds. She is part of a review team, and noted that proposals that are Covid-related best fit the funding parameters, and everyone should be sure to let the city know your ideas to support neighborhoods, etc.
• Roof Depot Project — The Council voted to reassess the city-owned property in East Phillips. The community was granted 2 years to present a plan to create an urban farm or other project that can be financially viable. It was a divided vote, but Linea felt strongly about supporting both the environmental and equity issues this project represents.
• Ballot language for 3 charter amendments has been finalized. The three amendments are 1) Government Structure 2) Rent Stabilization and 3) Public Safety (watch for more information to learn about these amendments coming soon).

7:20    Equitable Engagement Plan due Sept 1

• • Lauren completed the plan and sent the draft to the City. It was given great feedback, and were were told it was ready to submit. With a few minor changes, it was felt that the plan is reflective of what our committees hope to achieve for calendar year 2022. Future funding cycles should cover a three-year period. Two main groups we will be focusing on include renters and residents with disabilities/seniors. (see attached)

• Motion to approve the Equitable Engagement Plan. Seconded. Motion carries.

7:30    Future of Safety Rebate Program

• Because of our future budget limitations, the board discussed the pros and cons of this program, and our ability to sustain it. The program has run for four years and it has been very well received. We have distributed about $6,000 annually to area residents, and at this current level we could continue the program for one more year. The program has been a great way to connect with individuals (mostly homeowners) in the neighborhood, and has been used to purchase security cameras, carbon monoxide detectors, radon tests and more.
• If we choose to continue the program, and want it to last more than one year, we can consider some program changes. Ideas included a cap per resident, a cap for total annual allocation, requiring an education or registration component, or adding an income limit.
• The SEO committee will continue this discussion and present a recommendation to the board in October.
• It was recommended that we could share stories in the newsletter about what neighbors have done with their rebate purchase that have been successful at their house. For example, Sheila has two alley cameras installed and has had a lot of helpful outcomes as a result of footage that has been pull off the cameras.

7:50    Coordinator’s Report

• • Plan Mod Budget & Engagement Plan
    • The ANA has approximately $65k to be put toward Staffing and Community Engagement (with language to allow sweep for exact totals at time of transfer).
    • This budget modification requires a 30-day comment period which will run from September 15 to October 15

• Motion to move forward with the Plan Mod as proposed. Second. Motion carries.

• • Bylaws Updates (draft updated Bylaws)
    • Bylaw updates requires a 30-day comment period which will run from September 15 to October 15
    • Need to schedule a separate meeting to walk through these updates with appropriate focus. Lauren will send out a Doodle Poll to find a date in the next week or so.
  • Funds for District 6 Park Commissioner ($75), Charter Amendment Education ($150), and Ward 13 City Council Candidate Forums ($100)

• Motion to fund voter education for the District 6 Park Commissioner forum  ($75), Ward 13 City Council candidate forum ($100) and charter amendment education efforts ($150) (total of $325). Seconded. Motion carries.

8:10    Committee Action Needed

• • Safety, Equity & Outreach: Funds for Sep 25 Event EQUITY signs (Donte/Sheila)
    The idea is to create a sign that spells out the word Equity (and maybe Safety on the other side). People will be prompted with a question,and their ideas and reactions will be captured on Post-it notes and added to the sign during the event. This information will be gathered to help us know what the neighborhood wants the ANA to focus on for future programming.To create a reusable sign, Sheila and Donte requested up to $225 to purchase a pack of ten 3-4 foot tall blue Coroplast boards, paint, and other supplies as needed.

• Motion to approve up to $225 for the materials needed to create a re-usable Equity/Safety sign. Seconded. Motion carries.

8:30    New Business

• Motion to approve the June and July minutes. Seconded. Motion carries

• Park ribbon cutting event on August 26 may need to be postponed due to weather. Suggested we move to overlap with the school’s open house on September 2 if we need to reschedule. Exact event time will be determined as needed. We should also purchase hand wipes for families that may be going from popsicles into the school.

Meeting adjourned at 8:36

UPCOMING MEETINGS/EVENTS

• Aug 26 – New Playground Celebration (4:30-6:30pm, Armatage Park)
• Sep 2 – Community Engagement Committee (5:30-6:30pm, Zoom)
• Sep 4 – Safety, Equity & Outreach Meeting (10:00-11:00am, Armatage Park)
• Sep TBD – Reading Circle Meeting #8 (7:00-8:00pm, Outdoors)
• Sep 9 – Green Team Meeting (7:00-8:15pm, Outdoors – email anacoordinator@armatage.org for address)
• Sep 21 – Monthly Meeting (6:30-8:30pm, Armatage Park)
• Sep 25 – Meet Your Community Helpers Event (2:00-5:00pm, Armatage Park)
• Sep 28 – MPRB District 6 Candidate Forum (7:00-8:30pm, Mount Olivet and Live Streaming)

 

ARMATAGE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

Monthly Meeting Minutes 7/20/21 | 6:30 PM | Armatage Park

BOARD ATTENDEES

Samantha Bild, Vikisha Goberdhan, Eli Johnson, Ethan Komoroski, Nikki Lindberg, Sharla McIntosh-Ziegler, Kevin Ross, Judy Vecere
NOT IN ATTENDANCE: Adriana Dobrzycka, Joel Federer, Janhel Leandre

OTHER ATTENDEES

Lauren Anderson (Coordinator), Jordan Nelson (Armatage/Kenny Park Director), Sarah Komoroski, Aryca Myers and Bob Cooper (NCR)

THE MEETING

June meeting minutes approved via email. Updated financials were sent via email.

6:33    Welcome and Introductions

• Kevin Ross, board VP, presided over the meeting

6:35    Coordinator’s Report

• Armatage Playground Celebration (Thursday, Aug 26 from 4:30-6:30pm). Jointly hosted by the ANA, MPRB and Armatage school
  • Construction should be finished within the week. Waiting on swings and final inspection.
  • Johnny Pops donated 100 treats.
  • Board members to help: Sam, Joel and anyone else able to get to the park that afternoon
  • Motion to allocate $75-100 for additional frozen treats and ice. Seconded. Motion carries.
• Fall Programs and Newsletter Content
  • Fall newsletter will come out early, by mid-September, with content due in about 1 month
  • Fundraising messaging: help crafting language — Nikki, Sam, Joel
  • SEO Meet Your Community Helpers (Sept 25)
  • Plan Modification and Bylaws Edits
  • Charter amendment and election education
  • SEO Screening & Conversation of Jim Crow of the North (in October)
  • Holiday Tours (Halloween, Winter Lights) (Costs in 2020 $40 printing, $150 in gift cards for each tour.) Eli is willing to be the lead, and can be on the CE agenda. May be able to coordinate something together in timing with the park re Halloween.
  • Quick Mention of Senior Engagement
  • Include a way to gather info about interest in community group activities such as gardening groups, etc. Better fit for winter newsletter and likely part of our Equity Engagement Plan (January newsletter)

6:55    Armatage Funds (Aryca Myers and Bob Cooper, NCR)

• Funds Available to Contract
  • From the NRP Contract — Home Improvement Program repayment income (currently over $63,000 available) anticipate program future for loans coming come due in 2035 & 37 (about $1,000/year); The joint neighbor Home Improvement Program we can anticipate about $6,300/year (2024, 2026, 2031, 2034, 2036)
  • From the Neighborhood Priority Program (NPP) Contract — about $260,000 available in currently assigned categories (or we can modify the contract to move/reassign these funds to better suit the needs of the neighborhood)
  • From the CPP Contract — what funds are remaining must be spent by the end of 2021. We will accomplish that, and are transferring some NPP funds to cover current calendar year needs
  • 2022 and beyond — The City is replacing the CPP program with Neighborhoods 2020. This program has four components:
    • (1) Citywide Neighborhood Network Fund (or base funding) and the ANA is allocated $15k for 2022 and $10k for future years;
    • (2) Equitable Engagement Fund that requires each neighborhood to submit a proposal for their allotment and the ANA is allotted $3,800 for 2022, and about $4k for future years (see below for more);
    • (3) Short-term Fund to help cover the costs of neighborhood organizational collaboration efforts to help save costs long-term;
    • (4) Partnership Engagement Fund, a competitive fund available to community organizations, distributing $218k this year, and this will grow to over $1mil/year. Anticipating more funding requests than funds available, so will continue to be very competitive (deadline past for this year’s funds).
• Plan Modification Process
  • For modifications of $25,000 or less, the neighborhood must be given at least 21-day meeting notice and only a board vote is required.
  • For $25,000.01 to $200,000, notice and broad community support is required. This support can be gathered in various ways (email, social media, events), and must gather at least 25 positive votes beyond the board towards a majority.
  • Modifications over $200,000.01 must go before the Policy Board.
  • There are more rules around the “buckets,” but that can be facilitated with help from our city support team to best meet the needs of the neighborhood’s priorities.
• Equitable Engagement Fund (EEF)
  • Budget should match the work. So keep that in mind when completing the program application. Lauren has started completing the template (copy in the board packet). The EEF wants to expand ways to gather ideas and support (so not limited to a meeting setting and traditional vote structure). First draft due Sept 1, and will be considered a living document.
  • There will be a metric for plan review process viewable online to help understand the City’s expectations, and to help understand when an application may need more work to meet parameters and program goals.
  • The ANA August meeting is being moved to the 24th, and the board will vote to approve the first draft at that time.

7:35    Bookkeeping Candidate: Clare King (Judy Vecere)

• Family emergency kept Clare from attending. Clare is certified and trained with an experienced person. She has a great understanding of both QB the neighborhood funding dynamics.
• Motion to approve the bookkeeper contract. Seconded. Motion carries.

7:40    Committee Action Needed

• Community Engagement: Funds for Aug 14 Event
  • Motion to approve $100 for printing and art making supplies $175 ($275 total). Seconded. Motion carries
• Safety, Equity & Outreach: Funds for Sep 25 Event
  • Motion to approve $300 for printing, park staff, door prizes. Seconded. Motion carries
  • Motion to approve up to $450 for button machine kit. Seconded. Motion carries.

7:55    New Business

• August meeting moved to the 24th, when board can approve the first draft of the EEF via Zoom
• SEO meeting moving to July 31

Meeting adjourned at 7:57

UPCOMING MEETINGS/EVENTS

• Aug 7 July 31 (new date) – Safety, Equity & Outreach Meeting (10:00-11:00am, Armatage Park)
• Aug 5 – Community Engagement Committee (5:30-6:30pm, Zoom)
• Aug 11 – Reading Circle Meeting #7 (7:00-8:30pm, Outdoors – email anacoordinator@armatage.org for address)
• Aug 12 – Green Team Meeting (7:00-8:15pm, Outdoors – email anacoordinator@armatage.org for address)
• Aug 14 – Summer Food Truck Night (4:00-6:00pm, Armatage Park)
• Aug 24 (new date) – Monthly Meeting (6:30-8:30pm, Armatage Park)
• Aug 26 – New Playground Celebration (4:30-6:30pm, Armatage Park)
• Sep 2 – Community Engagement Committee (5:30-6:30pm, Zoom)
• Sep 4 – Safety, Equity & Outreach Meeting (10:00-11:00am, Armatage Park)
• Sep TBD – Reading Circle Meeting #7 (7:00-8:00pm, Outdoors)
• Sep 9 – Green Team Meeting (7:00-8:15pm, Outdoors – email anacoordinator@armatage.org for address)
• Sep 21 – Monthly Meeting & Safety Update (6:30-8:30pm, Armatage Park)
• Sep 25 – Meet Your Community Helpers Event (2:00-5:00pm, Armatage Park)

ANA Meeting Minutes

Monthly Meeting Minutes 6/15/21 | 6:30 PM | Outside at Armatage Park

BOARD ATTENDEES

Samantha Bild, Adriana Dobrzycka, Joel Federer, Vikisha Goberdhan, Eli Johnson, Ethan Komoroski, Janhel Leandre,Nikki Lindberg, Sharla McIntosh-Ziegler, Kevin Ross

NOT IN ATTENDANCE: Judy Vecere

OTHER ATTENDEES

Lauren Anderson (Coordinator), Rachel Ireland-Henry (Accountant), Jordan Nelson (Armatage/Kenny Park Director), Sarah Komoroski, MPRB Project Designer Francisca Pass

THE MEETING

May meeting minutes approved via email. Updated financials were sent via email. Due to unforeseen circumstances, Jennifer Waisanen, Crime Prevention Specialist, had to reschedule to July 20.

6:32    Welcome and Introductions

6:37    Officer Elections for President and Treasurer

• A motion was made and seconded to elect Joel Federer, President for a 2-year term.
  Motion carries.
• A motion was made and seconded to elect Judy Vecere, Treasurer for a 1-year term.
  Motion carries.

6:41    Armatage Park Construction Update – Francisca Pass, Project Designer with the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board 

• A couple of adjustments to some equipment was made to address ADA compliance and water drainage. The project is about a week behind schedule, and the current completion date will be toward the end of July. Project updates can be found online at https://www.minneapolisparks.org/park_care__improvements/park_projects/current_projects/armatage-park-play-area-and-site-improvements/
• A wood chip delivery will happen toward the end of next week. Although the chips will be in the street, the crew will be moving them the same day, so it should cause minimal traffic or parking disruption.
• Phase 2 includes an addition of a see saw and two shade structures, and would occur if/when funding was available (total cost of Phase 2: $27,645.21). Installation of current structure will have everything in place to easily add these additional items, however it would cost more to do these installations as a separate project in the future. The ANA has NRP funds totalling $28,095.89 that have prior approval for park improvements. A motion was made and seconded to put these NRP dollars towards funding the Phase 2 Armatage Park amenities. Motion carries.

6:59    Park Update – Jordan Nelson, Park Director

• Although the rec center building remains closed to the public, they are running summer sports programming including a summer child care program (full days, Mon-Fri), sports (baseball, softball, track), and a variety of classes (held outside) including an upcoming aqua yoga program.
• The park purchased more canopy tents to help with adding classes outdoors.
• The wading pool is open everyday from about 9am-9pm. Pool upgrades (to a zero-entry wading pool) are not imminent. Kenny park will have their wading pool converted to a splash pad in about three years.
• Graffiti has mostly been removed/painted over. [NOTE: we were approached by one of the skateboarders who let us know that the paint used on the skatepark is sticky, takes time to wear down, and that spraypaint is a better surface.]
  • There was some discussion about whether we could treat certain areas like a street art site and what that might entail. Kevin mentions a washable clear coat that he has seen used on campus that could help protect surfaces (https://industrial.sherwin-williams.com/na/us/en/protective-marine/catalog/product/products-by-industry.11543396/anti-graffiti-coating.9170222.html). Other temporary installation ideas were mentioned (Nikki will contact the park and/or city about what options we may have).

7:21    President’s Report

• Due to a difference in actual spending from the original proposal submitted three years ago, we need to move some funds between line items.
• A motion was made and seconded to approve the proposed CPP budget and necessary transfers (see end of minutes). Motion carries.
• Because of significant cuts to our city funding (from about $30,000/year to $18,000 for 2021-22, and $15,000 in future years, the ANA needs to both re-prioritize program spending and look at ways to increase fundraising.
  • The exec committee will present budget proposals and fundraising ideas to the board for consideration as we look to meet both the city’s equity goals and the needs/wants in Armatage.
  • Some of the largest areas that we will need to look at regarding cuts include rain gardens, community engagement, mini grants and staffing. Some initial fundraising ideas include the addition of a donation envelope into the newsletter, a fundraising letter sent to all residents, and looking at sponsorship opportunities at our events.
  • A question was raised about the American Rescue Act funds. There are neighborhoods already organizing around the funds coming to Minneapolis in the hopes that increases for 2021-22 funding could be included as part of those allocations.
  • We will be inviting a City staff member to our July meeting to help layout the situation and answer questions about what we can and can’t do to help address future budget gaps.

7:42    Treasurer’s Report

• Accountant Search — We have reached out to five people recommended by the City and have heard back from three. For various reasons, it isn’t looking like any of these options will be doable and believe we will need to post the position. It was suggested that we write up a job description with the monthly expectations, etc., that can be listed on the MCN jobs board. Then we can promote that through our newsletter, social media and word of mouth in the hopes of finding someone in the neighborhood interested in acting as our bookkeeper (with Quickbook skills).

7:50    Coordinator’s Report

• Bylaws/Policy Wizard — The City has 15 required policies for neighborhoods and recently gave us access to a wizard tool to help generate boilerplate language. Lauren will generate our policies and share to a Google Drive folder for review. Final policies are due by Dec 2021. Most of these we can approve at a regular meeting, but any updates/changes to the Bylaws will require more public notification.
• Equitable Engagement Plan — The City has set aside a second set of funds for each neighborhood specifically based on an application process. The amount varies greatly by neighborhood based on a set of metrics, and our neighborhood has been given $2,000. This may increase in future years to closer to $4,000. Lauren wll share the guidelines with the board, and we will need to identify goals and define a project by the application deadline in September. We will share this with our committees to determine how they might be able to use these funds toward their specific goals.
  • Several existing programs were mentioned, including sports-focused programming, who we may be able to partner with to help us meet any specific goals.
• Nonpartisan Election Forums & Volunteers – The board members were asked to be part of a community forum around the upcoming ballot amendments and elections. Adriana and Nikki are willing to be our representatives to learn about these issues and share back to the neighborhood.

8:05    Committee 3 Minute Updates

• Community Engagement
  • Food Truck Night (August 14, 4-6pm) — Sonny’s Ice Cream and Asian Invasion and committed. Still working to secure another dessert and a couple more dinner vendors. Hoping to finalize by the end of June. The spreadsheet will be shared with the board so people can help where possible.
    • The board will staff a table focused on fundraising messaging and gathering community ideas around our equity mission.
    • A motion was made and seconded to approve $250 to pay for a band to perform at the event. Motion carries.
  • Armatage Park Ribbon Cutting Event (August 7/tentative) — Hoping to secure a donation for a treat like popsicles, but may need to purchase treats using unrestricted funds. A motion was made and seconded to approve $200 to purchase supplies, if needed. Motion carries.
  • It was suggested that we organize neighborhood walks/bike rides (ie. for rain gardens, health, etc.) to provide a casual way to talk and learn about our neighbors. [Might be able to pair with our Saturday SEO meetings]
  • Welcome Bags — Asked for help reaching out to area businesses for bag content.
• Safety, Equity & Outreach (SEO)
  • Community Helpers Event (Sept 25, afternoon) — Tasks are being assigned, and we will be thanking our local helpers as well as gathering ideas around equity. Planning on having some food trucks. More details to come.
  • Next meeting July 10 (rescheduling from the 3rd) in Armatage Park
  • The “All Are Welcome” signs are selling well. Will continue to have at ANA events, and will look for some pop-up opportunities when volunteers are available.
• Green Team
  • 604 donations were received by Kid A.
  • There are three more book club meetings, and then there will be a new selection.
  • Rain garden installations are underway. They are also following up with prior gardens to see how they mature, and what to expect over time.

Meeting adjourned at 8:31

APPROVED TRANSFERS

City Funding Budget for ANA from 2017 through 2021:

	CPP (Jan 2017-Jun 2021)	Neighborhoods 2020 July-Dec 2021	Board-Approved Transfers (Jun 2021)	Totals
Staff Expenses	$79,500.00	$11,610.00		$91,110.00
Employee Benefits
Professional Services	$10,200.00		($ 2,820.00)	$7,380.00
Occupancy	$1,717.00		$ 1,543.56	$3,260.56
General Liability Insurance	$1,125.00		($ 20.92)	$1,104.08
Directors and Officers Insurance	$4,170.00			$4,170.00
Communications and Outreach	$27,387.00	$3,070.00	$ 1,685.43	$32,142.43
Translation
Supplies and Materials	$5,136.00		$ 2,422.10	$7,558.10
Meetings/Community Building Events	46,800.00		($ 975.00)	$5,825.00
Development	$1,100.00		($ 827.01)	$272.99
Fundraising	$900.00		$ 210.79	$1,110.79
Other Services	$2,200.00		($ 1,218.95)	$981.05
Totals	$140,235.00	$14,680.00	$0.00	$154,915.00

UPCOMING MEETINGS/EVENTS

• Jul 1 – Community Engagement Committee (5:30-6:30pm, Zoom)
• Jul TBD – Reading Circle Meeting #6 (7:00-8:00pm, Outdoors)
• Jul 8 – Green Team Meeting (7:00-8:15pm, Outdoors – email anacoordinator@armatage.org for address)
• Jul 10 – Safety, Equity & Outreach Meeting (10:00-11:00am, Armatage Park)
• Jul 20 – Monthly Meeting & Safety Update (6:30-8:30pm, Armatage Park)