December 2021 Board Meeting Minutes
December Monthly Board Meeting
Dec. 15, 2021
Approved Minutes
1. Call to Order
Board Members present included: Jim Dallas, President; Michael Pastore, President-Elect; Chris Currington, Secretary; Nancy Kelly; Margi Koors; Nancy Lambert; Karen Moske; and Gary Toribio. Billy Tomber arrived at 7:24 p.m.
Board Members absent included: Debby Brown, Treasurer; and Neil Putz, Past President
John Haas, Soulard Restoration Group (SRG) Member, asked to and attended the meeting.
The meeting was held at Molly’s In Soulard.
Jim Dallas called the meeting to order at 7:07 p.m. and thanked those in attendance. Jim also acknowledged the Board’s work over the last eight months. Jim said that he’s not received any comments or questions about the updated SRG by-laws currently on the website. However, Jim said that the auditor may have changes to the by-laws.
2. Minutes of the Previous Monthly Board Meeting
Chris Currington said that the minutes from the November Board Meeting had been sent to the Board a week earlier, and he received minor corrections from Margi Koors and Karen Moske. Those changes have been made to the minutes. Chris asked for a motion to approve the November Board Meeting minutes.
Margi Koors made the motion to accept the November Board Meeting minutes. Karen Moske seconded.
The vote was taken.
All voted in favor to accept the draft of the November Board Meeting minutes as final.
The motion passed.
3. Financial Report
Jim Dallas gave the Treasurer’s report in Debby Brown’s absence. Debby sent Jim and Michael the Profit & Loss (P&L) statement through Dec. 15. She also sent over checks that needed to be signed. SRG keeps moving in a positive direction. The last time Debby gave a report, there was a gain of ~$7,000; now it’s at $10,349, with a cash balance of ~$80,000. This includes some Parlour Tour income and expenses, but Jim wasn’t sure if it included all of them.
Jim also said that insurance payments appear to be reflected in the numbers. Margi Koors asked if the insurance costs include paying forward for two events. Jim confirmed that SRG has paid for insurance for two events. These don’t have to be covered by the Soulard Concert Series; they can be applied to any applicable event. Jim also said there may be a point in time when the Board may consider purchasing insurance for two additional events, but we still have to wait on the audit costs. Jim has confirmed with Linda Howdeshell (auditor) that she’s okay being paid after the audit has been completed and presented to the Board, which won’t be until January or February.
Jim said that most of the fundraising events are over (except for Smarty Gras, which Jim delayed discussing until later in the meeting). From this point forward will be an uphill climb when it comes to fundraising. Jim also said that income from Oktoberfest still hasn’t been received. He doesn’t know how much or when it will be received. Gary Toribio said that the amount to split has been set but did not estimate what SRG’s share will be.
Chris Currington asked about the live Christmas/Mardi Gras wreath sales. Jim said that an additional $450 of income has been booked from the wreath sales.
Jim then asked if anyone wanted the P&L by email. Everyone said no, they didn’t want it by email. Jim said the next posting of the P&L on the SRG website will be January (quarterly).
The auditor (Linda) has sent Michael Pastore, Debby, and Jim her preliminary report—it’s a standard auditor report Linda was hired to do this and generally the books are in “good health.” Jim also asked Linda where we need to change processes, and she has sent a separate letter with her recommendation. Michael, Debby, and Jim have a Zoom call set up for the next Tuesday to go over the documents. As part of the process, Michael, Debby, and Jim will ask questions, and then in the near future, Linda will share her official report and recommendations through written form, or we can have her show up at a future Board meeting. Margi Koors asked if they were happy with what Linda has done. Jim said they were happy with a “clean bill of health.” However, because Michael is the next President, Jim didn’t want to speak about the recommendations yet.
There was then a brief discussion about SRG being a neighborhood association, and whether some of the recommendations might be difficult to implement due to the voluntary nature of our organization.
Gary asked if there was anything caught with receipts or not having approvals. Jim said there were some catches about not having two signatures on checks, but he believes those instances were prior to Debby taking over as treasurer (the audit covers the fiscal year from July 1, 2020-June 30, 2021).
The conversation went back to any future recommendations and SRG—the size it is—not having to worry about some of them. Jim said he thinks the current President, President-Elect, and Treasurer should look through the findings first, and then come back to the Board with recommendations, but offered for other board members to enter the process or to review the drafts that Linda has already supplied. Everyone agreed to let Michael, Debby, and Jim continue, then present the final documents and findings with the Board at a later date.
4. Smarty Gras Budget
Jim Dallas said that Andrea Maddox-Dallas has been charged with organizing Smarty Gras this year, and she was asked to be on the Fundraising Committee, specifically for Smarty Gras. Andrea, Billy Tomber, Michael Pastore, and Jim met. Smarty Gras will be at The Franklin of Soulard, and it will have an open bar. There have been many things announced, so the four want to make sure they can be accomplished.
One of the questions coming up is the budget for the trivia night for the Fundraising Committee. The current budget has a budget of $1,000 for expenses, with an estimated revenue of $2,500.
Margi Koors asked if we need to adjust the budget. Jim said it should be increased to $2,000 or $2,500. Billy Tomber said he wanted to request $2,500 but spend less.
Margi Koors made the motion to increase the budget for Smarty Gras from $1,000 to $2,500. Karen Moske seconded the motion.
Jim then said Smarty Gras should easily make back the difference from table revenue (costs for tables), as well as from the 50/50 drawing and the mulligan revenue. Michael Pastore also said that the budget included in the expenses $1,750 for space rental and setup, but we don’t need set up, so Michael is meeting with the owners of The Franklin to see if that can be waived. All SRG needs is someone to open the doors; we’ll do the rest. Michael’s goal is to get the rental fee down from the $1,750 to $1,000. Jim said if that comes down, we’ll still have money to work with. If they won’t come down, then there will only be $750 to work with.
There was then a side conversation about the donation SRG made for the elevator at The Franklin; Membership previously voted on and approved that donation.
The vote on the motion was requested.
All voted in favor. No votes opposed it.
The motion to increase the Smarty Gras budget from $1,000 to $2,500 passed.
5. Crow Bar Request
Jim Dallas said he sent in the petition upon the Board’s approval (see minutes from previous November Board Meeting). Since then, an additional request has come in from The Crow Bar for a Letter of Support despite the fact they will not have dedicated parking spaces. The former occupant of the space—Nadine’s—operated without any dedicated spaces, and it appears that Pizzeoli (across the street) is operating without any dedicated spaces. The request is that SRG will write a Letter of Support giving The Crow Bar a permit, despite it will not have six dedicated spots.
Karen Moske said the space already has four spaces up to the corner, and there are spots on the street.
Nancy Kelly made the motion to provide the Letter of Support for the permit, despite no dedicated parking spaces. Margi Koors seconded.
Jim asked if there was any push back on The Crow Bar not trying to get dedicated spaces. Karen said we are in favor because The Crow Bar is perfect for the neighborhood.
The vote was taken.
All voted in favor of a Letter of Support for permit, despite no dedicated parking spaces. No votes opposed it.
The motion for the Letter of Support passed.
6. Nominating Committee
Jim Dallas asked Michael Pastore to report on the formation of the Nominating Committee. Michael said that he has people lined up who are interested in serving on the Committee. The potential members include Karen Moske, Jeanne Kirby, Scott Plackemeier, Andrea Maddox-Dallas, Jim, and Michael, for a total of six. This provides a good, broad base with different perspectives, and Michael is looking forward to working with them.
Jim then said we need a motion to approve the Nominating Committee.
Nancy Lambert made the motion to approve the members of the Nominating Committee. Nancy Kelly seconded.
The vote was taken.
All voted in favor of the members of the Nominating Committee. No votes opposed it.
The motion to accept the members of the Nominating Committee passed.
7. Clean Team Response
Jim Dallas said that at the November Board Meeting, Deb Cottin, with Peter & Paul Services, was present to discuss The Clean Team. The Board had the opportunity to ask Deb many questions, and she has sent email responses that were emailed to the Board with this meeting’s agenda. Jim’s intention for presenting this tonight was more informational. Peter & Paul Services hasn’t sent a contribution invoice to SRG yet. Jim encouraged the Board to review Deb’s comments.
Jim then discussed the area The Clean Team covers—down Shenandoah; Pontiac Square Park; etc. Margi Koors said she wants to keep areas covered down to Barton. Nancy Lambert asked about covering down to Lynch Street. Jim reminded the Board that Deb is just answering questions, and The Clean Team is on the West side of 7th Street, north up to Soulard Market. SRG is part of their annual budget, along with the Soulard Business Association (SBA) and the Community Improvement District. (CID). Jim said that SRG has budgeted $5,000 for The Clean Team, and last year the donation was made in January or February. Neil Putz, Past President, asked the current Board at the time to vote on it. This is why Jim is bringing it up with this Board before getting to that point.
Margi said this will be another big expense for SRG after the new year, and we need to support this effort. Nancy Kelly agreed, and suggested we discuss the donation when we get the request. Jim then suggested we could give something upon receipt, and then more later; there’s nothing that says we need to give the full contribution at once.
Karen Moske said she wanted the record to reflect that Deb Cottin did respond well to our questions and that is important for the neighborhood association.
Nancy Lambert said that her comments reflect that she lives on the other end of the neighborhood and that end doesn’t receive the services of The Clean Team. Nancy asked if there could be a different Clean Team, and SRG pays for one at one end of the neighborhood, and the CID pays for another one at the other end of the neighborhood. Nancy Kelly said these are good ideas.
Billy Tomber said this has been referenced in the past; Michael Pastore brought it up. Others (i.e., Don Kirby) pointed out areas that needed cleaning to The Clean Team that aren’t traditionally covered. It could be someone’s job to do this. Jim asked if this is something we’d advertise to General Membership. This wouldn’t be three days a week (The Clean Team’s typical schedule), but maybe once or twice a month. Karen said this would have to be run by Deb Cottin; she was clear they weren’t at capacity with the current shelter residents. Jim said that he can stress that—in the long run—we’d like something like the suggestion implemented. Billy said Deb was amenable to the concept.
8. V&V
Jim Dallas said that this topic is on the agenda tonight to remind the current Board that the previous SRG Board voted at the February 2021 Board Meeting that the Vices & Virtues event(s) would no longer be an SRG-sponsored event(s), and that all future Vices & Virtues events would not be included in SRG’s budgets.
At the January 2021 Board Meeting, trademarking the events was discussed, but no action took place. Karen Moske asked about trademarking something that SRG wouldn’t be doing or budgeting. Jim reminded everyone that the previous Board’s action was in response to the previous committee chair. Then, at the February 2021 meeting, the motion was passed that SRG would no longer host the event going forward, and that “all future Vices & Virtues events will not be included in SRG’s budgets.”
Jim also said that he is aware that the phrase “Vices & Virtues” has been trademarked by someone. SRG does have the option to purchase the trademark if it wishes.
Nancy Kelly asked who owns the trademark. Karen Moske asked specifically, since it’s public information. Jim said that according to public records he found from a US Patent website the owner is Vanessa Schwarz. Nancy Kelly asked if someone asked SRG to purchase it. Jim said Chris Schwarz discussed with Jim the idea of SRG paying $175 for the trademark. Karen Moske asked why SRG would want anything to do with this. Jim said he agrees that SRG shouldn’t purchase it, and that he’s informed The Renaissance editors/writers that the Vices & Virtues phrase has been trademarked. If anyone wants to place an ad in The Renaissance, then we need to proceed with caution.
Karen asked again why SRG would want the trademark. Billy Tomber said to impede someone else from using it. Margi Koors said that when she saw Vices & Virtues advertised on Facebook, she knew the owner of the trademark and reached out to her. Margi’s best advice is for SRG to do nothing. The Board took no action regarding potentially purchasing the trademark.
9. Twelfth Night
Jim Dallas said that Twelfth Night was coming up—Jan. 6. Tim Lorson, president of Mardi Gras Inc., asked if SRG wants to participate. Nancy Kelly said the SRG President usually does. There was a resounding “yes” from meeting attendees. Michael Pastore said we have to participate in the general petition to let Mardi Gras happen. Billy Tomber said there will be two different things: 1) the petition to have Mardi Gras; and then 2) the proclamation. Typically, the President makes the petition, and sometimes does so in a “goofy” costume. Margi Koors offered to help with the petition to the Mardi Gras Inc. Board at the Twelfth Night. Nancy Kelly volunteered to help.
10. Request from Jason Stump of The Island
Jim Dallas read aloud the request he received from Jason Stump, owner of The Island.
“I have owned The Island in Soulard for 10 years.
“I am the property owner of 1005, 1007, and 1009 Russell Blvd.
“Reaching out for support on my new venture, a take out (pressure cooked) chicken restaurant next door to The Island.
“Our menu will have Whole Pressure Cooked Chickens, appetizers, mac and cheese, Cole slaw, fries and other sides.
“This will be a place that will feed families, large groups, and individuals.
“I have acquired 15 min parking in front of the restaurant to accommodate the take out traffic.
“I will be attending the zoning hearing and would really appreciate your support and blessings.
“A letter of support would be wonderful to take to my hearing, later this month.”
Jim said that Jason didn’t communicate the date of the hearing, and asked if the Board knew enough to accommodate the request, or if we should wait until the January Board Meeting to discuss it further.
Nancy Kelly said that Jason presented when she was President of SRG, and he stuck to his plan. He started as a frozen yogurt place and expanded into frozen drinks. Jason has maintained great credibility in Soulard. He’s done fundraising through the free dog washes and given money to charities. Nancy Kelly knows him well, and she doesn’t think there’s any reason we shouldn’t support his request. Jason has already proven to have a good business model, and the Board shouldn’t shut this down when we’re letting in new people’s businesses that we don’t know well. Margi Koors said she agreed with Nancy Kelly; Jason has been a good guy and has done what he’s said he’s going to do.
Gary Toribio asked if Jason is an SRG Business Member, and if he isn’t then Jim/SRG has no business sending the letter. Gary also didn’t like the idea of 15-minute parking; all other businesses will ask for this. Gary didn’t believe the Board should support the request.
Karen Moske said she wanted to know how many 15-minute parking spots there would be. Jim said that Jason is asking for SRG’s support for the general permit. Karen then asked again how many parking spaces. Jim said he would ask. Billy Tomber said he thought Jason is asking about turning regular street spots into 15-minute spots, similar to the laundromat’s 2-hour limited spots. We’re a little in the dark about the spaces and their location. Margi said that perhaps the Board needs more information about the parking spaces. Jim said that he would ask about the parking spaces, and also ask if Jason is an SRG Business Member and an SBA Member. Billy said that it’s not SRG’s business if The Island is a member of SBA, but it is our business if Jason is an SRG member.
There was then a discussion if Jason had been a past member or if Jason had even been asked to be a member.
Michael Pastore said he knows Jason well, and he’s a standup guy whether he’s a member of SRG or not. He’s raised a lot of money for homeless dogs, he’s successful with The Island, and Michael is open to giving Jason a strong chance. Karen Moske said she remembers Jason giving gift certificates to nonprofits and coupons at SRG events. Nancy Kelly said she remembered hustling businesses for donations, and Jason always cooperated.
Nancy Lambert asked Jim if he can ask Jason the questions and we’ll take the motion over email. Jim said that he had just opened the information this day; if the hearing is tomorrow, we’re too late. This would be too soon to vote. Jim said if the hearing is next Thursday, then we could vote by email.
11. Executive Session
Jim asked if there was any reason for moving to Executive Session. There was not.
12. Adjourn
Billy Tomber made the motion to adjourn the meeting. Nancy Kelly seconded.
The vote was taken.
All voted in favor to adjourn the meeting at 8:03 p.m.