June 15, 2021 Minutes

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.]

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$7,558.10
Meetings/Community Building Events46,800.00($ 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)