SRG GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING MINUTES FEBRUARY 2025

Mar 6

Wednesday, February 5, 2025 at 7PM

Minutes prepared by Abby Goodson, Secretary

PRESENT
Officers: Adriano Martinez, President; Amanda Ramcharan, President-Elect; Neil Putz, FY25 Treasurer; Abby Goodson, Secretary
Directors: Aaron Terry, Paula Dostal, Wade Weistreich

REGRETS
Officers: Abbey Bethel, Past President
Directors: Beth Bennett, Alan Ziegler

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

Call to Order/Opening Remarks

President Adriano Martinez called the meeting to order at 7:00pm.

Round Table — Committee Updates

Membership
Christina Del Azodi, Membership Committee Chair, welcomed two new members to the front to introduce themselves; invited everyone to the social after the meeting at Megan and Jeremy Mehrle’s house at 1726 South 10th Street; and added that membership flyers are available for people to take/distribute and learn more about the SRG.
Safety
Andrea Dallas, Safety Chair, did not have an update.
Beautification
Jeff Weitzel announced that voting is live on the website for the 2nd Annual Winter Street Pot Decorating Contest and added that the winner will be announced in March and receive a $100 cash prize.
Communications Committee (ComCom)
Brenton Henry, ComCom Chair, said they are working on website revisions to increase visibility to neighborhood events; shared that the email distribution list is growing (over 1,000 emails); cautioned that some people are marking SRG emails as spam instead of unsubscribing, and provided some solutions to help curb this issue; noted that the SRG payment processing system is being transitioned to Stripe from Square; and mentioned that the committee is working with the City to amplify problem properties in the neighborhood, starting with the burned down church at Gravois and Allen.
Community Involvement & Events (CI&E)
Brad Pitlylk, CI&E Chair, said that the committee is beginning to plan spring events.
Development
Abby Goodson reported on behalf of Jim Dallas, Development Chair, and announced merchandise was available for purchase in the merchandise catalog, and shared the final Oktoberfest numbers from 2024:

$17,175 (gross revenue including tips)
$15,800 (net revenue after expenses)
The net amount in 2023 was $11,100, for comparison

Historical
Neil Putz, Historical Chair Secretary, did not have an update.
Parlour Tour
Jeanne Kirby, Parlour Tour Chair, did not have an update.
Code & Zoning and Plan Review Team (PRT)
Walker Hamilton, PRT Chair, did not have an update.
Properties (Station)
Bonita Leiber, Properties Chair, played “I Got Plenty O’nuttin”’ by Frank Sinatra to note that she did not have any updates.

Treasurer’s Report

Neil Putz reported on financials:

Checking: $84,980.55
Savings: $10,124.58
Money Market #1: $12,741.14
Money Market #2: $10,000.00

Total assets: $117,846.27

Neil Putz shared that we moved some of our funds to a money market account so that we can gain around 3% interest.

Secretary’s Report

Abby Goodson announced that a draft of the January 8, 2025 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. Becca Gilberg moved to approve the minutes. Allyson Whipple seconded. The motion passed unanimously.

Crime Report

Captain Anglea Dickerson of District 3 shared that crime is down 67% in Soulard over the last week, and down 68% since 2023; added that the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department launched a new website with CompStat reports, Crime Mapping, and an event calendar; and reminded everyone of two safety measures:

Remove all valuables/bags from your vehicle when parking.
Keep your phone, wallet/purse, and/or backpacks on your person when pumping gas (not on a seat in the car where it is easily accessible), or make sure your car doors are locked.

Mardi Gras Inc.

Tim Lorson, Executive Director of Mardi Gras Inc., announced that Mardi Gras event calendars are printed on the tables; noted that planning for public safety has been increased since the incident in New Orleans on New Years Eve; and went over the highlights of their planning efforts:

Parking: Passes were mailed; if you did not receive yours or need additional parking passes, they will be available February 24–27 from 9am–8pm at the Mardi Gras, Inc. office (2200 Dolman). View the map to determine where the Yellow and Red Zones are located.
Trash: There are 30 additional dumpsters located along the route this year to help with public safety and trash. After the event ends, all trash will be pushed into the street so that street sweepers can clean it up. They will continue to make their rounds throughout the neighborhood until it’s all cleaned up. If you’re still seeing trash in the street, sidewalks, and alleys after 12pm on Sunday, call the MGI office (314-771-5110) and report the location of the trash. They will dispatch crews throughout the week to ensure it all gets picked up.
Restroom Facilities: MGI has ordered 1,000 portable toilets and each bar will have a minimum of 7 additional portable toilets available. There is $100 fine for urinating in public.
Issues on Grand Parade Day: For non-emergency nuisance issues (such as public urination, parking issues, trash complaints) DO NOT CALL 911. Call MGI at 314-771-5110 because they have a direct line with the police and will coordinate efforts without clogging up the line for emergency situations. CALL 911 for all emergency situations (medical, fires, bomb threats, etc).
Restrictions: No cans/coolers/bottles/backpacks will be allowed in the Red Zone (plastic cups are fine).

Mack Bradley said there are things that are different this year.
They will be messaging out revised plans soon and sharing details with SRG to get to their constituents.

Alderperson Update

Dan Guenther, Campaign Aide for Ward 8 Alderperson Cara Spencer, said the Soulard CID Expansion has passed among the Board of Alderman and is awaiting signatures from President Megan Greene and Mayor Tishaura Jones.

Soulard Neighborhood Organization Updates

Soulard Business Association (SBA)
Laura Leister, SBA Director, did not have an update.
Soulard Special Business District (SSBD)
No updates.
Community Improvement District (CID)
Terry Hoffman, CID Chairperson, gave the following updates:

Echoed Dan Guenther’s update about the CID Expansion Bill, shared they hope to have a legally ordained law by mid- to late-March, announced they will set up a subcommittee to help coordinate services to the newly-expanded district; and thanked everyone who worked on this initiative.
Announced that the Soulard CID + SSBD co-funded salt services to every street and alley three times during the last snowstorm, and said they will make a plan to work with the street department in the future to supplement a plan for plowing.
Completed a tree inventory (1,821 street trees in Soulard) and plan to integrate that into a 5-year management plan. They have a rough draft of the plan, which includes pruning trees, stump removals, planting new trees, etc. You can visit stlouis-mo.gov/trees to see which trees are in front of your house. The current replacement value of the street trees is about $4 million currently.
Installed Mardi Gras banners throughout the neighborhood — 3 designs, all designed by local artists: Heaven Ross (30 banners), Janet Neuhaus (20 banners), and Jen Coke (20 banners). Plan is to auction some of the banners off (18” wide x 5.5ft tall).
Shared updates on the traffic calming efforts noting that they have a set of plans in the works to redesign intersections, and added that the streets need to be paved first so they are working with Alderwoman Cara Spencer’s office.

Mardi Gras Inc. (MGI)
Nancy Lambert shared that Mardi Gras event information can be found at stlmardigras.org.
St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC)
Lisa Otke, Neighborhood Manager for SLDC, did not have an update.
Krewe of Vices and Virtues (KVV)
Levi Cullifer, KVV Liaison, invited people to their upcoming events:
- February 15: Mardi Gras Ball
- April 12: Soulard Bunny comes to Soulard
- June 14: Soulard Pride

South Broadway Athletic Club (SBAC)
No updates.

Neighborhood Stabilization Update

James Simpson, our Neighborhood Improvement Specialist, shared 2024 improvement stats:

Filled 95 potholes
Removed 43 instances of graffiti
Fixed 51 street lights
Repaired/replaced 51 dumpsters

James added that applications are open for the St. Louis Mayor’s Youth Cabinet.

President’s Report

Adriano Martinez announced they are looking for new board members, and to contact him at president@soulard.org, if interested. He also encouraged people to join a committee and help the neighborhood prosper by visiting soulard.org and reaching out to committee chairs to get involved.