Monday, November 19, 2012

Mt. Moriah (410 Wharton)
MINUTES

1. 7:05 PM Call to Order.

2. 7:05 PM Welcome and Message from the President. The President welcomed all residents who were in attendance and asked the Officers and Directors to introduce themselves. He then thanked Grindcore for donating the coffee for the meeting.

3. 7:10 PM Roll Call. Present were:

• President Wiesner
• Director Armistead
• Vice-President Hicks
• Director Lavini
• Treasurer Hostettler
• Director Winkel
• Secretary Savage

4. 7:10 PM Minutes Approval. The President asked for a motion to approve the Minutes of the October 15, 2012 Board Meeting. The Treasurer so moved; the Secretary seconded; and all present so approved.

5. 7:10 PM Reports of Officers, Board Members and Standing Committees.
A. Bylaws Committee. The President reported that the Committee has identified provisions that are unclear or with which there are disagreements. Bylaws of neighboring civics have been examined. It is the intention of the Committee to report to the Board by January with a draft of the modifications. He noted that action by the General Assembly will be required, in order to approve any changes, and that timing is important, since new Bylaws must be part of the civic association application to the IRS for non-profit status.

B. Finance Committee. The Treasurer reported that the DNCA account has a balance of $9,503.78, after payment of routine expenses, such as our post office box, etc., and including the $60 raised from the raffle at the October Neighbor’s Night at The Industry. She stated that she and the Committee will be preparing an annual report and finalizing the budget for 2013.

C. Green & Clean Committee. The Co-Chairs could not attend the meeting, and the President said that he was aware that the Committee is exploring a number of activities.

D. Outreach Committee. The Vice-President reported that the Committee continues to discuss the design and distribution of door-hangers for January meeting of the Board, improving our website, the contents of a welcome package for new neighbors, and social events. The Secretary noted that the implementation of these projects should move forward more quickly now that our civic has received the grant and the Finance Committee has prepared a draft budget to fund these ideas.

E. Safety Committee. The President said that the Committee is trying to identify issues of concern, which could be addressed. He also noted that representatives of the Police Department will be guest speakers in 2013.

F. Zoning Committee. The Treasurer reported that one application for 443 Cross Street was reviewed. The application was for a rear addition with an open space variance for 25%, where a minimum of 30% is required, but the applicant admitted that the building had already been enlarged, diverging from the plans filed with L&I. The Committee recommended to the ZBA that the variance be denied.

6. 7:30 PM Old Business.
A. 9th Board Member. The President explained that only 8 persons ran for positions as Officers/Directors, although the Bylaws call for 9 Board members. He said that the Board is accepting applications for the vacancy and that the instructions for applying and a description of the process to select the member are available at the meeting room entrance. In summary, applications must be submitted with a postmark no later than Monday, December 3, 2012; candidates will meet with the President and other Board members, between December 4, 2012, and Monday, January 14, 2013; and the President will announce his appointment, pursuant to the Bylaws, at the January 15, 2013 Board meeting.

B. Golden Rule Grant. The President explained that, in order to receive the grant, he was required to sign documents on behalf of the Board, and that additional documents may require his or another Officer’s signature in the future. In order to be certain that the process is transparent, he requested a motion in this regard. The Secretary moved that the Board approve the President’s signing of initial grant documents and authorize him or the Vice-President to sign on behalf of the Board any requisite documents in the future. The motion was seconded by Jeff Weisner and the Board members present unanimously approved.

7. 7:40 PM New Business.
A. Name Change. The President announced that the Board has discussed a name change for our civic, but that such a change would have to be incorporated into the Bylaws revision. Further, in order not to stall our application to the IRS for non-profit status, new Bylaws would have to be approved by the General Assembly early in 2013. He asked all members to send ideas to info@dickinsonnarrows.org and that further information will be posted on our website.

B. Office Space. The President explained that the Board is seeking office space to store records, to house our printer and other equipment, and, hopefully, to be used for Board and Committee meetings. The Secretary noted that both the Commonwealth and the IRS require that our civic have a physical, not post office box, address for service of process and other legal issues. The President noted that included in the budget submitted with the application for the Golden Rule grant, there is included monies for such purposes, and that, in order to enhance our prospects for receiving another grant next year, it would be very important for us to have demonstrated the use of the grant monies as projected. He asked for volunteers for a task force to proceed to identify prospective locations and alternatives

8. 7:45 PM Announcements & Events.

• Next General Meeting, Monday, December 17th, 7 PM, Mt. Moriah (410 Wharton Street) – Shortened Agenda. Refreshments and a focus on socializing.  Bring your neighbors!
• Finance: Monday, January 14th, 7 PM, email finance@dickinsonnarrows.org for further info.
• Outreach: Tuesday, December 4th, 7:30 PM, Mt. Moriah
• Zoning: Wednesday, Wednesday, December 5th, 6:30 PM, Parsons Bldg (if needed)
• Clean & Green: Wednesday, December 5th, 7:30 PM, Parsons Bldg
• Bylaws: TBD

9. 7:50 PM Adjournment.