FEBRUARY 2023 GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING MINUTES

Feb 1

February General Membership Meeting

Feb. 1, 2023

DRAFT Minutes

Board Members present included: Michael Pastore, President, Abbey Bethel, President Elect; Debby Brown, Secretary; Chris Currington, Secretary; Jim Dallas, Past President; Margi Koors; Nancy Lambert; Karen Moske; Stephen Shuman; and Gary Toribio.

Committee Chairs present included: Richard Eaton, Beautification; Brenton Henry, Communications; Veronica Putz, Historical; Walker Hamilton, Plan Review Team; Andrea Maddox-Dallas, Safety; and Bonita Leiber, Soulard Station co-chair.

Special Guests and Elected Officials present included: Tim Lorson, Executive Director, Mardi Gras Inc; Officer Kevin Dilg, St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department; and Dan Guenther, Alderman, Ward 9.

1. Call to Order

Michael Pastore called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. and introduced Margi Koors. Margi explained the procedures for the bingo attendance game. Margi then welcomed new members:

* Melissa

* Brandon

* Parker and Alex

Margi then went over the number of SRG General Members and Friends of Soulard. The Membership Committee is working on the May membership party. The social after this meeting would be at Eat Crow. Anyone wishing to attend will pay for their own drinks but Eat Crow will provide snacks and appetizers.

2. Mardi Gras Inc. Update about Mardi Gras

Michael Pastore introduced Tim Lorson, Executive Director of Mardi Gras Inc. (MGI).

Tim said that this was the 18th time he’s updated SRG about the Mardi Gras festival. Among the items Tim discussed were:

* Mardi Gras Parking places, signs, and passes

* Anheuser Busch has provided pallets of beer and Red Bull for pickup at the Mardi Gras Inc. office

* Purina Pet Parade parking

* Trash and cleanup from and after the Mardi Gras Grand Parade (all trash should be cleaned up by noon the next day)

* Police officer and security detail; when to call the Mardi Gras Inc. office for a disturbance and when to call 911 for a real emergency

*The calendar of upcoming Mardi-Gras-related events

There was a general discussion about the parade routes for the Purina Pet Parade and the Mardi Gras Grand Parade.

Michael thanked Tim for his update and the members applauded.

3. Committee Reports

a. Plan Review Team

Walker Hamilton, PRT Committee chair, reported that there have been a couple of property update/building reviews the past month. Those were on Allen, Barton, Geyer, and South 11th Street.

John Durnell recognized Jay Gibbs (former PRT Chair and attendee at this meeting) for his work leading the PRT for many years.

b. Safety

Andrea Maddox-Dallas, Safety Committee chair, said that she’s looking for members on the committee. There has recently been an uptick in crime, and though this committee is not composed of the crime solvers, there are things that the committee can to do help police officers.

Andrea reminded attendees about the camera program, and she provided a handout with a QR code that will take people to the program, online, with additional information.

Andrea talked about the First Responder Breakfast at the American Legion to show the neighborhood’s appreciation of their services.

Andrea would also like to update the SRG website because there are a lot of other issues than crime that members can be educated on.

In March, she’s going to have pizza and beer at iTap and Epic for a brainstorming session. Attendees don’t need to be Safety Committee members to participate. Andrea passed a clipboard for those interested to sign up for the brainstorming meeting, and attendees were asked to email safety@soulard.org if they were interested in any matters listed above.

c. Communications

Brenton Henry, Communications Committee chair, said that one important thing the committee is currently working on is migrating to a better email system. The current platform is outdated. This is a huge undertaking, but Constantine, committee member, is taking the lead on this. He’s targeting some time in March to complete the migration. Brenton said the committee will be following up with anyone who has an @soulard.org email.

The committee is preparing for SRG Board elections which will be managed electronically this year. The plan is, before the April meeting, there will be an email to all voters with information about the election and how to vote. The votes will be tallied by the Communications Committee, and then they’ll have the results.

The committee is also working on streamlining the Soulard Station access. The work on updating the SRG website is also slowly getting started. Valerie (Communications Committee member) will soon start looking at wireframes. The website updates will be a tremendous effort.

d. Soulard Station

Bonita Leiber, Soulard Station Committee co-chair, said the Committee, along with the SRG Board, is exploring investing in and expanding the fence toward the front of the building. This would help with safety at the Station. Bonita spends time removing tents, clothing, and people who shouldn’t be there. There may be money received from Mardi Gras Inc. for the fencing, but it won’t happen quickly.

The Station has also been open to people who are SRG Members to rent for parties, showers, events, etc. The member has to be in good standing, attend the event, and is responsible for care and cleanup of the facility. The cost is $50 to rent, with a $100 security deposit, and an insurance rider. The limit is four hours, but the committee will work with members to extend time (such as set up).

There was a question about occupancy. The limits at the Station are 43 inside and 96 outside.

e. Historical Committee

Veronica Putz, Historical Committee chair, said most of the committee’s updates were in the recent Blaster (SRG email newsletter and communication).

4. President’s Report

Michael Pastore gave an update about the SRG beer booth at Mardi Gras. It will be in front of Julie Price’s office (Star Agency at S. 11th and Russell), and offers access to a gated backyard and upstairs apartment and bathroom. The organizers have cut down shifts to two-hours, and they hope to get new people involved. There’s a signup link on the SRG website, and in the Blaster, or anyone interested can email president@soulard.org.

Michael said that, at the corner of Shenandoah and up from the 13th Street alley to Lami, the city, with the help of Jack Coatar, have put up an official sign on the alley calling it “Don Kirby Way.” There was applause from attendees.

Jack Coatar, Alderman, Ward 7, has put through an amount of money from the city for speed humps in Soulard. This is separate money from the Soulard Community Improvement District (Soulard CID), who has also committed to the speed humps. The humps will slow traffic and accidents. Attendees were encouraged to thank Jack when they see him.

5. Crime Update

Michael Pastore asked Officer Kevin Dilg, of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, to give the crime update for Soulard. Officer Dilg introduced himself, and referred to handouts on the table that explained the different types of crime, locations, and the time periods.

Officer Dilg mentioned the new chief of police, but Dilg doesn’t know what he has planned to implement. The new chief is into community organizations, and he’ll probably want to come to an SRG General Membership meeting.

Officer Dilg discussed firearms and the harms of keeping them in vehicles. This is where a majority of firearms [on the streets] are coming from. If anyone leaves a firearm in a vehicle, then they need to have a container attached to the vehicle (i.e., car safe); not the glove compartment.

Officer Dilg then discussed the various forms of property/trespassing signs.

6. President-Elect Updates

Abbey Bethel, President-Elect, gave the following updates:

i. There will be a meeting at John Hamilton’s house on March 8 about the Soulard Community Garden and available plots.

ii. At this year’s Oktoberfest, SRG had a beer booth and sold beer and limited mixed drinks. We made a lot of money, and Abbey thanked everyone who volunteered. Cash received from tips was $1,078, and SRG’s cut from the event sales was ~$10,390. There was a round of applause, and Abbey thanked the volunteers again.

iii. The SRG Board election will be coming up in April. The Nominating Committee worked hard to recommend and identify the following who are running for positions:

* President-Elect – Adriano Martinez

* Secretary – Elizabeth Henry

* Director positions:

-- Abby Goodson

--Amanda Ramcharan

--Connie Suydham

--Aaron Terry

--Lillian Thompson

All candidate bios have been received, and they’ll be posted on the SRG website. If anyone feels compelled to run, they can still put their name in.

7. Adjourn

Brenton Henry made the motion to adjourn the meeting. Richard Eaton seconded the motion.

All members present voted to adjourn the meeting at 8:18 p.m.