Meeting Minutes 7/3/01 7:00pm Monroe County Public Library Meeting Room 1-A The meeting began at 7:03pm. Facilitated by Steps to Freedom (Sean Bagley) Notes taken by Chris Stafford Attendance: (21 people) Chris Stafford, Matt Weber, Isabel Piedmont, George R. Brooks, Carol Polsgrove, Cora Polsgrove, Marsha McCarty, Emily Berlin, Julie Roberts, Greg Sidell, Brian O'Neill, Steps to Freedom (Sean Bagley), Craig Harvey, Jeff Melton, Erin White, John Howard, Brian Hendrickson, Philip Anderson, Fiona M. Marks, Larry Meehan, J.J. McGee Minutes from the 6/19/01 meeting were approved. Two changes were made to the agenda. "Mills Pool" and "National Policy" were both added to "New Business" as items 5) and 6) respectively. Coordinator Reports: 1) Media Report - Isabel reported that the Bloomington Independent will publish our first statement on Stoney Springs. Jeff reported that he, Peter, and Julie all appeared on WFHB the previous Tuesday for an hour-long show on the Green Party. All agreed the show was a success. 2) Technology Report - Because Peter Drake, the Technology Coordinator, was out of town, there was no tech. report. 3) Treasury Report - Isabel reported that we have $340.69. Working Group reports: 1) Canvass Reports - Julie reported that the canvassing has been going very well with many new members, both full and supporting, being added. The previous week there had been a canvasser-training session, and that anybody who was interested in canvassing could contact her. 2) Shadow Government - Several Green Party members have been attending city and county government meetings. a) Isabel went to the City Planning Meeting (with Heather Drake) and reported that the Bloomington Parks and Recreation dept. was working on four projects. b) Isabel also went to the Utility Services Board meeting and reported that Sewer Connection Fees will be made more equitable - the next meeting will be July 16 at 5pm and all should attend. c) Julie went to the County Commissioners meeting and reported that Bloomington was presented a "storm awareness and readiness" award. The commissioners also tabled an application from the Wininger-Stolberg group for rezoning. 3) Newsletter - Isabel says that she already has enough material for the fall newsletter, but people who are interested in submitting articles are welcome to do so for future newsletters. 4) Phone Tree - Chris says that he's having some trouble organizing it due to the difficulty in determining who exactly is to be included. He said he hoped to have it set up by the next meeting. Elected Official Outreach Brian O'Neill, the County Planning Commissioner provided some history (within the last decade) of the planning departments in Bloomington. He outlined the "Comprehensive Plan" that was subdivided into a Zoning Ordinance and a Subdivision Ordinance. The Zoning Ordinance is more map-dependent and general, while the Subdivision Ordinance is more neighborhood-specific. He repeatedly emphasized that the most efficient ways to fight inappropriate development was through these ordinances. He also said that the county's protection of Karst areas was stricter than that of the city's. The County Comprehensive Plan will be revised within the next year, and he advised the Green Party to stay on top of the issue to make sure it is done correctly. Questions were asked about the Metropolitan Planning Organization's role in city/county planning issues, and O'Neill explained that the MPO deals exclusively with transportation issues. Old Business: City GPP (Growth Policies Plan) update meeting Julie briefed the group on some of the highlights of the GPP Update meeting, especially the importance of "concurrency" - making sure that the infrastructure is in place before an area is developed. She announced two upcoming meetings relating to the GPP of which people should be aware. Wed. July 11, 2:30-5:30pm Thu. July 12, 5:30-8:30pm She advised people to stick with the issue through the GPP process because immediately after the GPP is approved, the ordinances will be up for public debate, and these are as important to city planning issues as the GPP. The Monroe County Green Party will be having a specific meeting on the GPP at Isabel's House (819 S. Washington) on Monday July 9th at 7:00pm. This meeting will be primarily for those working with our Ecological Wisdom focus group, but any are invited to attend. Brian O'Neill said people should contact their city representatives to get BCAT to cover the GPP meetings. Julie asked people to write letters to the editor about the GPP, and also bring friends to the meetings to speak about curbing sprawl. Water Privatization Isabel, who attended the previous day's Utility Services Board meeting, said that water privatization was not discussed, so this agenda item was tabled until Heather returns to town. Canterbury Tree-Sit Craig Harvey proposed several possibilities of legal recourse to stop the development on Stoney Springs. Jeff Melton says that there are rumors that the developers will come as soon as this Thursday or Friday and that if people want to be alerted when stuff goes down to let him know and he will sign you up on the phone list. His phone number is 337-0109 or 327-0232. At the meeting he passed around a phone list sign-up sheet. Jeff Melton has prepared a draft of our second statement on Stoney Springs, an educational history of Civil Disobedience. He will work with Steps to revise the draft and submit it for publication. July Fourth Parade Julie reported that we were signed up as entry number 28 (out of 70.) She also said that she had finished the main banner as well as four smaller signs, one for each of the pillars. Julie, Jeff, Steps, and Craig will show up at noon on the day of the parade to hold our spot in line. Others should show up along Morton Street between 2:00 and 3:00. Julie reminded people to bring water bottles. Disorientation This agenda item was tabled until Peter Drake returns to town, as he has been our primary contact with Disorientation. New Business: IGP/GPUSA issues: The next Indiana Green Party meeting will be July 14th in Indianapolis. The national GPUSA convention will be July 20-23 in Carbondale, Illinois. Many MCGP members are planning to attend. Legislative Update: Steps wants to start making a regular agenda item out of current legislative issues. Currently, it is important to contact Baron Hill and urge him not to allow Pres. Bush to "fast-track" the FTAA proposal. Charter Amendment Proposal: Several members felt that it would be more appropriate to rename our key value currently known as "Post-patriarchal values/Feminism" to the simpler and less polemical "Gender Equity." Under the current definition of quorum, there was not one present at the meeting to allow a vote on the issue, and this began a discussion of our quorum. Because of canvassing efforts, the number of full members will grow so quickly that it will be difficult to get a quorum at any meeting. Several MCGP members felt that the definition should be altered so that regular business can be conducted at the bi-monthly meetings. As the library was about to close, the group agreed to put this on the agenda for the next meeting as it wasn't a terribly pressing issue. Mills Pool: The Bloomington Parks and Recreation department is considering tearing down Mills Pool, which is the only public pool in a low-income area in Bloomington, and replacing it with a sprinkler park. At the same time, they are considering adding a third water slide to the Bryan Park Pool, which is located in the more affluent east side. Many MCGP members felt that this screamed of social injustice, and a petition to keep the Mills Pool was circulated at the meeting as well as presented at the previous Saturday's Farmer's Market table. National Policy: Because the meeting had already extended past 9:00pm and the library was about to close, this agenda item was also postponed until the next meeting. Farmer's Market scheduling Saturday July 7, 2001 Craig Harvey Steps to Freedom Saturday July 14, 2001 Greg Sidell Julie Roberts After a review of commitments, the meeting was adjourned at 9:06pm.