MAY 2021 General Membership meeting minutes
SRG General Membership Meeting
May 5, 2021
Secretary’s Minutes
1. Call to Order + Opening Remarks
The meeting was called to order at 7:02 p.m. The meeting was a videoconference conducted via Zoom.
a. Recognition of Attendees: Elected Officials, Directors & Officers, New Members
SRG Board Members present were Jim Dallas (President), Michael Pastore (President Elect), Chris Currington (Secretary), Debby Brown (Treasurer), Billy Tomber (Executive Editor, SRG Communications), Neil Putz (Past President), Nancy Kelly, Margi Koors, Nancy Lambert, Karen Moske and Gary Toribio.
SRG Committee Chairs present were Andrea Maddox-Dallas (Safety), Julie Price (Membership), Laura Grace (Soulard Station), Veronica Putz (Historical). Filling in for Chairs were Megan Mehrle (Communications). The Residential Promotions Committee currently has no chair.
Speakers and other attendees included Dan Guenther (9th Ward Alderman) and Officer Sherdon Douglas (SLMPD Soulard Liaison).
Jim welcomed everyone and thanked them for joining. Then, he turned the meeting over to Officer Douglas.
2. SLMPD Liaison Report
Officer Douglas reported and reviewed the crime statistics for April 1-30, 2021.
Officer Douglas reminded all attendees to call 911 or a non-emergency number to report suspicious activity. She also provided her email in the chat function: sdouglas@slmpd.org.
3. Minutes of Previous Meeting
Chris Currington said that prior to this evening’s meeting, the final draft of the April 7, 2021 General Membership Meeting minutes were made available on the SRG website for membership review and comment. Both Neil Putz and Jim Dallas reviewed the minutes before they were posted, but no other comments or revisions were received from members.
There was a motion to approve the minutes for the SRG Monthly Board Meeting on March 7, 2021 as posted on the SRG website by the secretary.
The motion was made by Billy Tomber. Mark Lambert seconded the motion.
Those present voted in favor of this motion. No votes opposed it.
The motion passed unanimously.
4. Financial Report; Tax and Audit Update
Debby Brown (Treasurer) reported that the account balance as of April 30 was $76,019.40. She also has the P&L statements, but couldn’t immediately report on expenses since she is still resolving them. The profit in March was $981.76. Debby also reported that expenses in April were $4,925.57, which was a loss for the month. She also noted that SRG is not bringing in as much income or fundraising because of the pandemic. SRG recently incurred some costs for legal expenses, and there were some expenses for budgeted items in the last year, and some checks have been turned in.
Jim Dallas mentioned that the budget process was kicked off in April. There will be presentations by committee chairs on May 17 and 18 to present plans for the upcoming year and to set the proposed budget. As a board, we will consider requests, and then roll them up into one consolidated budget with the goal of voting on the budget at the June Board Meeting. The board approved budget will then be shared at the July 7 General Membership Meeting with the goal of seeking general membership approval at that meeting.
5. Soulard Events and Committee Reports
a. Safety Walk and Safety Survey (Safety Committee)
Jim Dallas mentioned that the Safety Committee resumed in January, and Andrea Maddox-Dallas is the chair of the committee.
Andrea reported that the Safety Walk would resume, it was not conducted in 2020 because of COVID-19, and the last time SRG had it was fall of 2019. Next Thursday, May 13, those interested in gathering will meet at Soulard Station. Then, there will be groups of three or four, and each group will walk a particular zone and make note of things like alley lighting, dark areas, dangerous areas needing repairs, graffiti, and anything that needs attention. Those will be recorded and collected at the end of the event. Then, those items will be given to the alderman and whoever else needs to be notified.
Andrea also noted the event should take approximately an hour. The group may also gather afterward at a local establishment, and Jack Coatar and Dan Guenther have offered a complementary beverage to anyone who participates.
Andrea reminded meeting participants that if they wanted to volunteer, they could put their names in the Zoom chat function, or email safety@soulard.org.
Andrea also mentioned the Safety Survey that was sent to all SRG members April 28 and encouraged everyone to fill it out.
There was a question about trees blocking stop signs and their safety risks. Andrea confirmed that this should be something to address.
b. Community party (Membership Committee)
Julie Price said that there have been a couple of meetings recently, and she thanked Gary Toribio, the liaison to the committee, for attending.
The Membership Drive is typically held in May in place of the May General Membership Meeting. However, to give time for more people to be vaccinated, this year the Membership Drive is moving to June 27 from 3 to 6 p.m., with music provided by “The Pedestrians”, and will be held at the American Legion Hall.
Julie also asked everyone to go online and make sure membership dues are paid as soon as possible, and be sure to bring potential new members along to the June 27 Membership Drive. Julie then went over the dues:
i. $20 for individual membership, under 65-years-old;
ii. $30 for household membership;
iii. $1 for seniors 65 and over; and
iv. $30 for businesses
v. $20 for a Friend of Soulard
For this year’s Membership Drive, the committee is expecting about 300 people to attend. The Soulard Star awards will also be announced at 4:30 p.m., with a new lifetime achievement winner. The Drive will have a Mardi Gras theme, and the committee is encouraging attendees to dress up, wear old shirts and/or bring some beads. There will be a gift giveaway and a merchandise table.
Julie also reported that there are currently 513 SRG members, and the committee will be mailing out invitations to the Membership Drive, posting on social media, including something in The Renaissance, The Blaster, and promoting it with managers at area apartment complexes. She encouraged attendees to bring chairs and coolers, and that drinks will be available from the Legion Hall.
The Membership Committee is also going to try and get some events together “off the island.”
Jim Dallas also reminded attendees that, because of COVID, there’s a hardship rule for membership dues. Anyone interested can email membership@soulard.org and ask that their dues be waived.
c. SSBD Neighborhood Safety Forum
Bill Clendenin filled in for Terry Hoffman and Bill explained that the SSBD is a taxing district that covers most of the neighborhood. The focus of the committee is safety and operates security patrols and cameras. Bill also reminded anyone interested in attending the next meeting (Monday, May 10) that they could visit the SSBD’s website and attend via Zoom videoconference.
d. SBA Sample Soulard
Cathy Weldon reported that Sample Soulard is scheduled for June 6, but the time is not definite yet (could be 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. or noon to 5 p.m.). SBA is currently getting information out to bars and retail stores that want to participate. Currently, SBA is waiting to see how many are interested in attending. A book of tickets will cost $25, which is similar to the Taste of Soulard. All money raised from SBA’s Sample Soulard will benefit the SBA.
e. Historical
Veronica Putz reported that this new committee is up and running, and that it has just the right amount of people to be effective without being too large. The previous week, the Historical Committee held its first meeting since its kickoff, they reviewed the charter and plans to improve historical research kills, projects assigned to the committee, and those the committee would like to pursue. Currently, the committee is in the process of developing its budget request for the coming year, and it will be prepared for the Board Meeting (budget) in two weeks.
f. Soulard Station
Laura Grace, Co-Chair of the Soulard Station Committee, reported. Currently, the committee is working on beautifying the grounds and making necessary repairs. Soulard Station is reopening for use by: SRG Board Committees and Working Groups; sister organizations; and subcommittees. Laura said some meetings/events are already scheduled, and if anyone is interested in scheduling something, email stationcalendar1911@gmail.com. Soulard Station has also created an automated calendar feature. The SRG Board has access to everything going on at Soulard Station, and the committee is collaborating with the board to create guidelines for use (during COVID-19) that comply with the CDC and St. Louis City guidelines.
Michael Pastore asked if there was an update about the status of the roof at Soulard Station (leaking and needing repair). Laura said that Soulard Station is looking into it and has gotten three bids with the hope of getting repairs submitted and scheduled in this budget year. If not in this budget year, then it will be next budget year. Jim Dallas said this may be something the Board will have to consider as presented in the budget process very soon. Laura said the budgeting will depend on what the final repairs will encompass, what’s in the current budget and then what Soulard Station will seek in the upcoming budget process. Michael Pastore asked if there was a range for the bid amount/cost. Laura said that at the moment, it’s between $3,000 and $7,000.
g. Communications
Megan Mehrle subbed for Jeremy Mehrle. Megan reported that the Communications Committee has set up a cloud storage solution, and thanked Billy Tomber for his help. The cloud storage will be a Google Workspace for which there will be no payment to add users, and each committee can add as many users as they need to. This will be an online storage solution that SRG controls, and Megan will be archivist responsible for keeping online storage organized. Megan will also be the person responsible for any questions, providing access and helping with any issues. She can be emailed at archive@soulard.org with any questions.
Jim Dallas said that he’d had several inquiries asking if SRG could get help with cloud storage, and he appreciates the Communications Committee’s response and looks forward to hearing more. After Megan wraps the next issue of The Renaissance, then she will begin working with committees and work groups on using cloud storage.
6. Recent Board Decisions and Actions (President)
a. Re-appointment of Billy Tomber
Jim Dallas explained the reappointment of Billy Tomber, editor of The Renaissance, to the SRG Board. The bylaws state that “The Board shall appoint by majority vote the Editor of the newspaper, who shall serve at the discretion of the Board.” Jim pointed out that this may change with the rewritten bylaws (in process) but until then, the bylaws state that the editor is an appointed position. When Neil Putz was President of SRG, the Board reaffirmed Billy as editor, and that future Boards will do so according to the bylaws (noting until if and when the bylaws change). At the April Board Meeting, the Board reconsidered Billy’s reappointment and unanimously reappointed Billy as editor. With that, the final SRG Board is set for the upcoming year.
Jim then asked if anyone present had any questions. Hearing none, Jim moved to the next agenda item.
b. Liaison assignments
Jim Dallas explained the bylaws for the Liaison assignments. “One (1) member of the Board shall serve as a liaison between the Board and a single committee.” One of the first acts of the new SRG Board was to agree on the liaison assignments. After the Board Meeting, there were additional changes to the assignments. Assuming that there would be no more changes, Jim projected the liaison assignments and read them aloud:
Committee
Assigned Liaison
Beautification
Karen Moske
Code and Zoning
Karen Moske
Communications
Billy Tomber
Fundraising
Margi Koors
Historical
Neil Putz
Membership
Gary Toribio
Parlour Tour
Nancy Lambert
Res Promo
Michael Pastore (temporary)
Safety
Nancy Lambert
Soulard Station
Nancy Kelly
Treasurer
Michael Pastore
For the Residential Promotions Committee, there is currently no chair. However, there’s still a need to have a liaison (Michael Pastore, temporary) for that committee because of the current budget process under way.
Jim Dallas explained that for the coming year, there will be a liaison for the Treasurer, and that Michael Pastore (President-Elect) will be the liaison to the Treasurer. Both Michael and Debby Brown have agreed to this. Jim said one of his goals is that future boards will continue the practice of assigning the President-Elect as the Board Liaison to the Treasurer, and he is working this into the bylaw amendments that are currently being drafted.
Jim asked if anyone in attendance had questions. Hearing none, Jim moved to the next agenda item.
c. Action on Vices & Virtues Ball
Jim Dallas reported that this is important to note as we approach the budgeting cycle for FY2022. At the February Board Meeting held Feb. 17, 2021, the SRG Board determined by unanimous vote that Vices & Virtues would no longer be an SRG event. Beginning with the FY2022 SRG budget, the 2022 Vices & Virtues event and all future Vices & Virtues events will not be included in SRG’s budgets.
Michael Pastore asked Jim to confirm that this was a unanimous vote about Vices & Virtues. Neil Putz said that it was a unanimous vote.
d. Concerts in the Park
Jim Dallas stated that, at the April Board Meeting, the Board also considered the issue of conducting the Concerts in the Park series. Again, this is a key issue to consider as we move into the budgeting process. The Concerts in the Park series dates back about 12 years when the Soulard Business Association (SBA) would conduct a series of concerts, and SRG assumed them in 2017 and held it twice. The Fundraising Committee looked to grow the festival starting with a multi-stage festival and working towards a neighborhood-wide festival with 4-8 stages. The committee had planned a beer fest as a sister event, and it was preparing that expansion when COVID-19 hit.
Recently, Christopher Schwarz, the Fundraising Committee Chair, asked the SRG Board to consider giving its blessing to take the Soulard Concert Series and move it under a specific, non-profit to be set up. After some discussion and consideration of the issue, the Board voted on a motion that SRG would not object to the exploration of the Summer Concert Series being taken over by a nonprofit, and that SRG would communicate to the new non-profit issues that SRG would like to be addressed as part of that exploration.
Those issues that SRG would like addressed include such things as:
i. A thorough plan for security, crowd control, COVID-restriction enforcement, trash, cleanup, and toilet facilities during the live events;
ii. Review of the Mission Statement of the organization, to assure itself that the purposes are complementary to the SRG; and
iii. Potential for SRG to have representation on the Board of the new organization.
Jim then opened the videoconference for questions.
Michael Pastore reiterated that the SRG Board is not blessing any non-profit at this point, but that the Board is open to the concept of another entity taking it on.
Cathy Weldon reiterated that the Soulard Concert Series was free as a give-back to the neighborhood, and she asked if it would still be that way. Jim answered that he wasn’t sure if there would be charges to attend or not, but that the SRG Board doesn’t have all of the details yet. Jim said he would add this—pay for entrance or free—to the list of items to explore with a nonprofit entity assuming responsibility for the Soulard Concert Series.
Ann Austin asked if SRG will have any input, or if the Soulard Concert Series will just be handed off. Jim said that he hopes there will be some representation on the Board. Billy Tomber said that the free concert series continues, and add to that making it multi-date, multi-stage, and SRG will have input into the new organization. Billy also said that, as a member of the Fundraising Committee, he will sit there as a civilian and volunteer.
Jim said that he hoped that this will be an event SRG will embrace and be represented in some fashion, such as a beer booth. Right now, the Board is in general support of the idea, and we thought it was important to come to an understanding about budget and if we wanted to put on the concert series.
Scott Plackemeier asked about the reasoning for another entity to take over a larger-ticketed event. Billy answered yes, the budget was going to be as much as $25,000 in a year with no income, and that’s not responsible. It would make more sense to reach out to different groups and sponsors to take it on. Jim also weighed in and said it would entail hiring workers and entering into contracts.
Michael Pastore said that, for the last 12 years, it’s never been a fundraising event for neighbors and that SBA and SRG pitch in money. It was established as a free event for the neighborhood, and because this is taking it in a different direction, this will require a lot of thought. Jim confirmed that he and SRG will provide more information as the months go by.
e. Consideration of In-person meetings
Jim Dallas reported that at the April Board Meeting, the Board considered the issue of when to restart in-person Board meetings, and that there wasn’t a firm conclusion during the meeting.
However, after the April Board Meeting, Jim polled each Board member via email to assess the comfort level of holding in-person Board meetings, and the Board Meetings will start in-person with the May Board Meeting.
The Board did not take up fully the issue of in-person general membership meetings. This will be discussed among the Board and membership, and consider when to go back to in-person meeting.
Jim then explained that what the Board did for in-person Board meetings is the model for the committee meetings. Each committee is to poll members, their comfort levels and how many have been fully vaccinated. There will be more information to come about the General Membership meetings.
Ann Austin asked about general members sitting in on Board Meetings. Jim said that if a member wants to attend in person, they can email him and let him know. If a member has concerns about sitting in on a Board Meeting in person, then Jim will consider adding a Zoom option for the meeting.
7. Working Groups
a. Bylaws
At the March General Membership Meeting, Jim Dallas reported that he was working with Christopher Schwarz on finalizing the markups of the bylaw revisions that were developed by the bylaws working group. Jim also reported that he and Christopher have completed their markups, and Jim plans to introduce the marked-up version to the Board within the next three months (most likely June or July) because he’s currently working out how to roll it out to the Board depending on other issues that may emerge.
Jim’s intended process is that he’ll present the marked-up version to the Board, get the Board’s feedback to the working group, and then post and roll-out sessions for the General Membership to consider the revisions to the bylaws.
8. Other Neighborhood Organizations
a. American Legion
No one was available to report on the American Legion.
b. Community Improvement District (CID)
John Durnell represents SRG on the CID and filled in for Terry Hoffman. John reported that in the next couple of weeks, the CID will be releasing a survey to the neighborhood including those who live inside and outside the CID boundary and gathering information about residency, business ownership, priorities in the neighborhood, etc.
Information about the survey will be included in The Blaster, and on NextDoor. John asked everyone in attendance to please take the survey and give the CID direction.
There have been 37 trash receptacles installed in the neighborhood and they are being emptied regularly. There will be more receptacles installed in the neighborhood. The CID is also contributing to the Saints Peter & Paul Cleanup Crew taking care of the receptacles, and there’s going to be an increase in the pickup of street and ally trash.
As for traffic calming (i.e., slowing traffic in the neighborhood, commercial traffic, etc.), the CID has gotten a scope-of-work together for the Board and public safety/City of St. Louis. This will go out for three bids.
John reminded attendees that the public is welcome to the CID’s meetings which are the first Monday of every month at 5:30 p.m. Interested parties can visit CID.org and sign up.
Jim asked about the logos on the trash receptacles. John explained that there are logos facing the street, and logos are being added on the sidewalk side, so each will have two logos.
Julie Price mentioned that there are trashcans that appear to be new put out by the Soulard Business Association (SBA) and confirmed that these are not the new ones from the CID. John said that older trashcans will be saved and the CID will work with SRG and other organizations on how to use the trashcans (they won’t be discarded) and determine how they’ll be emptied.
Michael Pastore said that he hoped that the CID is working hand-in-hand with some SRG proposed things that we’ll need money for. John said that he’s been working with Jim on those relationships.
c. Soulard Business Association (SBA)
Cathy Weldon had previously spoken.
9. Adjourn
Jim Dallas moved to adjourn the meeting. Veronica Putz seconded.
Those present voted in favor of this motion. No votes opposed it
The motion passed unanimously.
The meeting adjourned at 8:09 p.m.