SRG GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING AUGUST 2024

Sep 5

Wednesday, August 7, 2024 at 7PM

PRESENT
Officers: Adriano Martinez, President; Amanda Ramcharan, President-Elect; Neil Putz, FY25 Treasurer; Abby Goodson, Secretary; Director: Alan Ziegler

REGRETS
Officer: Abbey Bethel, Past President; Directors: Beth Bennett, Joy Christensen, Paula Dostal, Aaron Terry, Wade Weistreich

LOCATION
Saints Peter & Paul Parish Hall in the Rose Room | 816 Allen Ave

Call to Order/Opening Remarks

Meeting called to order at 7:05pm by President Adriano Martinez.

Crime Report

Officer Gregory McClendon announced that the Soulard Crime CompStat report is listed on the St. Louis Metropolitan Police department website; reported that three gun arrests happened during the month of July; and noted that our year-to-date crimes are up by 1% (173 incidents in 2024 compared to 171 in 2023). Community members expressed concerns of unhoused individuals sleeping in parks and public spaces throughout the neighborhood.

Guest Speaker — AmeriCorps

Ann Hannan, Executive Director at AmeriCorps St. Louis (ACSTL), presented the history of the independent non-profit organization that has been located in Soulard for 30 years; shared the organization’s pledge and mission; reported that 1,400 young adults have completed their service program; announced ACSTL is always looking for host families or rental properties in the neighborhood to house their young adults in the program; offered a group of individuals to help volunteer at SRG neighborhood events; and mentioned that they collect clothing donations year round at 1315 Ann Ave.

Round Table — Committee Updates

Membership
Julie Price, Membership Chair, welcomed six new members to the front to introduce themselves; invited everyone to the social after the meeting at Susan Wiegand and Jeff Weitzel’s home at 716 Lami; announced that our membership is around 420 members strong; reminded folks that she is stepping down as membership chair and that she will help the new chair with the transition; and announced that the committee is seeking a host for the social after the September general membership meeting.
Safety
Andrea Maddox-Dallas, Safety Chair, announced that National Night Out will be held on October 1, the deadline to register your block is September 10, and that SRG will reimburse your block $150 for the cost of food/drink; shared that their Light Up Soulard initiative offers free dusk-to-dawn front porch light bulbs to residents; and invited people to join their committee by emailing safety@soulard.org.
Beautification
Jeff Weitzel, Beautification Chair, thanked everyone for attending their community clean up events and announced their three upcoming fundraising events:

Art & Floral Auction: August 24 at Soulard Station from 2–5pm. Margi Koors reported that 20 pieces of art will be included in the silent auction and that they are looking for volunteers to help with the event.
Soulard Patio Crawl: September 28
Oktoberfest Fundraiser at Molly’s: October 10

Communications Committee (ComCom)
Brenton Henry, ComCom Chair, did not have an update.
Community Involvement & Events (CI&E)
Brad Pitlyk, CI&E Chair, announced that the Movies in the Park series will resume on Friday, September 13 with The Incredibles and conclude for the season on Friday, October 18 with a Halloween-themed movie, and noted that the committee is working on organizing regular dog walking events in the neighborhood. Adriano Martinez added that the Bastille Day Parade was a success and thanked the committee for their hard work.
Development
Jim Dallas, Development Chair, announced the final concert of the series on August 17 (Sometimes a Fantasy, a Billy Joel Tribute Band); recapped the first two successful concerts; invited people to sign up to volunteer to pour beer at Oktoberfest (October 11–12); and shared the success of the brick and plaque programs and that installation should begin soon. Jim Dallas also announced that he is a co-chair of the Soulard Community Improvement District (CID) Expansion initiative and is looking for people who live in the zone to sign their petition for expansion. He noted that he will be available after the meeting to answer any questions.
Historical
Veronica Putz, Historical Chair, reminded everyone to make sure they pay their membership dues to be included in the Membership Roster and announced the committee’s three new initiatives:

Soulard Ghost Tour: A spooky walking tour of haunting neighborhood history is in development with a goal to be complete in 2025.
Brochure/Guide of Soulard Architectural Features: A handy booklet that will describe the architectural details throughout the neighborhood is in development.
Soulard Time Capsule: The committee is looking for the community to get involved and provide ideas for what to include in the time capsule (letters, historical/current event memorabilia, etc.).

Parlour Tour
Jeanne Kirby, Parlour Tour Chair, did not have an update.
Code & Zoning and Plan Review Team (PRT)
Walker Hamilton, PRT Chair, reminded people who are working on the exterior of their home or business to contact the committee at prt@soulard.org and noted that the committee is able to provide letters of support to the City. When a community member asked about the once vacant property at 916 Allen Avenue, Walker said the the City paid for the demolition of the property because it was deemed a safety hazard.
Properties (Station)
Bonita Leiber, Properties Chair, welcomed people to use the Station; reminded people of the code to enter the garden (1911); and played the song “Help” by The Beatles to call for volunteers from 8:30–10:30am on Saturday, August 10 to pull weeds, drink coffee, and visit.

Brightside Recycling

Richard Eaton distributed magnets with educational resources and tips for recycling from Brightside and noted that there are two locations with multiple recycling bins available for public use: the fire station at 2224 South 7th Street and the fire station at 2910 South Jefferson Avenue.

Treasurer’s Report

Neil Putz reported on financials and noted it was the first month of the fiscal year.

Income: $1,240.00
Expenses: $6,553.66
Cash balance: $83,920.94

Neil Putz also announced a ticketed event taking place on Thursday, August 29 at The Franklin — a Summer Harvest Supper Club with a five course dinner and wine pairings.

Secretary’s Report

Abby Goodson announced that a draft of the July general membership meeting minutes was attached to the Blaster email that went out today and asked for a motion to approve the minutes so that they could be posted to the website. Gayle Brinker moved to approve the minutes. Dylan Ackerman seconded. The motion passed unanimously.

Alderperson Update

Cara Spencer, Ward 8 Alderperson, thanked everyone for voting on Tuesday and noted that Soulard had a huge voter turnout; congratulated Phyllis Young for her committeewoman write-in nomination; announced that her office is introducing two bills during the legislative session: BB 80 (Prohibiting Street Takeovers) and BB 82 (Pay Bill — Circuit Attorney’s Office); and recommended that Soulard neighbors and organizations write a letter in support of the doggie daycare that is slated to open at 1800 South 10th Street to help expedite the process.

A community member and representative from Allen Market Lane apartments, mentioned that there are approximately 100 residents who would like to vote in the November election at the senior living facility and asked about the process of turning it into a polling place. Cara Spencer said they would discuss voting options offline.

Soulard Neighborhood Organization Updates

Soulard Business Association (SBA)
Jim Lettau and Shawn Caruso announced that they are looking for artists to create artwork for the official Mardi Gras 2025 poster/merchandise artwork using the theme “Soulard Celebrates Food”; noted that there is a $500 cash prize and that the deadline to submit artwork is September 30; mentioned that additional guidelines are posted on the historicsoulard.com website; and declared that the winner will be announced at Oktoberfest.
Soulard Special Business District (SSBD)
Terry Hoffman shared the background on the SSBD; noted that their income is based on a property tax percentage; reiterated that the funds of the district shall only be used for improvements related to enhanced security and safety (cameras, security, special programming, street and pedestrian lighting, streetscape visibility, police substation, and traffic calming); and welcomed Soulardians to attend the SSBD meetings at 6:30pm on the second Monday of every month at Molly’s. Julie Price added that free car clubs are available at The Star Agency (2027 South 7th Street).

Community Improvement District (CID)
Terry Hoffman discussed the creation, purpose, governance, and budget operations for the CID; noted that their income is based on a 1% sales tax; reiterated that the funds are to be used to facilitate community improvement projects to increase the use and value of the district property (trash cleanup, traffic calming, marketing/branding, beautification, legal, streetscape improvements) and can not be used for security (that is the SSBD’s responsibility); and welcomed Soulardians to attend the CID meetings at 5pm on the second Monday of the month at Molly’s.

A community member asked if license plate readers could be installed on main thoroughfares to help catch criminals entering/exiting the neighborhood, and Terry Hoffman said that sort of equipment is the responsibility of the police department to install, utilize, and maintain.

Mardi Gras Inc. (MGI)
Nancy Lambert announced that Mardi Gras season will kick off on Monday, January 6 with 12th Night Celebrations and encouraged people to sign up to volunteer for some of next year’s Mardi Gras events.
St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC)
Lisa Otke did not have an update.

Neighborhood Stabilization Update

James Simpson introduced himself as our new Neighborhood Improvement Specialist, the liaison between the community and city services, and added that he is available to meet after the meeting or can be contacted at simpsonj@stlouis-mo.gov to discuss neighborhood issues.

President’s Report — Approval of the FY24–25 Budget

Adriano Martinez announced that a draft of the FY24–25 Budget had been posted online and sent out via email to the SRG members for review in advance of the meeting and asked for a motion to approve the budget. Craig Markham moved. Alan Zielger seconded. During discussion, the Membership Committee asked if some of their line items could be combined/simplified instead of listed individually. Adriano Martinez agreed to make the formatting edit and noted that the numbers in the budget would remain the same, so he called for the vote. With one opposition vote and the majority in favor, the motion passed.