01-15-09 Envision Connection Project Executive Board Minutes
Envision Connection Project
Board of Directors Meeting Minutes
January 15, 2009
Present: Sharon Glover, Helene Johnson, Linda Loomis, Dean Penk, Marshall Tanick,
and Blair Tremere
Absent: Jim Heidelberg, Philip Lund, and Luke Weisberg (GVCEF Representative)
Staff: Jeanne Andre
The meeting began at 7:25 pm in the Council Conference Room.
Approval of Minutes
Members identified two typographical errors and a formatting error. PenklJohnson
moved to approve the minutes of December, 2008, as corrected. Motion carried.
Golden Valley Connects Outreach
GVCEF Meet-and-Greet - Philip Lund sent an email update and Dean Penk
commented about the event. Very few new volunteers were identified. The Board
discussed strategies to work with GVCEF and get more volunteers for all events.
Coordinated Volunteer Recruitment - Newsletter Feature - Jeanne Andre reported
that the April/May issue of CityNews will have a two-page feature highlighting activities
of the Connection Project, Golden Valley Human Services Foundation, Historical
Society and the Golden Valley Community Events Fund. A bulleted list of volunteer
opportunities will be featured, as will the upcoming Bridge Builder events.
Golden Vallev Davs 2009 - Philip Lund will continue involvement with the planning
group for this event. He asked via email for ideas on other groups to invite to have a
community booth. Members brainstormed on ways to feature community involvement.
One idea was to have different neighborhoods and Bridge Builders take shifts at the
Connection Project/Bridge Builder booth to share information about their activities and
how others could get involved or emulate them. Members also brainstormed on ways to
get more folks involved in the festival. One idea was to have a car circulate in the
community with a speaker advertising the event. Another was to have a neighborhood
challenge such as a tug-of-war competition or awards for the neighborhood that has the
most people bike to the event.
Ice Cream Social - The members recommended July 20 as the preferred date for the
Ice Cream Social. Jeanne Andre will communicate with Sue Cook about arrangements
for 2009.
Bridge Builder Activities
Spring Bridge Builder Training - Helene Johnson reported that February 7 is the
preferred date for the Bridge Builder coaches to meet. The meeting was tentatively set
for 12:30 pm at the Brookview Grill. Blair Tremere, Philip Lund, Dean Penk and Gary
Cohen will be attending. They will plan for the spring Bridge Building events tentatively
set for Thursday, August 2, at Brookview and Saturday, August 25, at the Golden Valley
Country Club. Marshall Tanick and Jeanne Andre will check on room availability. The
group will consider ways to feature new Bridge Builder initiatives and ways for
volunteers to connect with existing community activities.
Envision Connection Project
Board of Directors Meeting Minutes
January 15, 2009 - Page 2
Bridae Builder Quarterlv Meetina- The Calvary Coop has been established as the
venue for the next meeting on Saturday, February 28. Blair Tremere suggested that the
group consider the Wirth Park chalet as a venue for the spring/summer quarterly
meeting.
Buckthorn Bustina - Blair Tremere reported that he talked with City Environmental
Coordinator AI Lundstrom about the possibility of buckthorn educational sessions in
Golden Valley. AI is familiar with the City of Minnetonka program and is supportive of
similar training being scheduled in Golden Valley. Chair Loomis reported that the
Bassett Creek Water Management Commission has also considered doing this type of
training, so there is an opportunity for collaboration. The Board would like to see support
for eradication efforts on private property as well as community initiatives at sites such
as Rice Lake and the General Mills Nature Center. The training could possibly be
scheduled in late summer or early fall. Blair Tremere said he would still like to have a
festive component such as a barbeque.
2009 Lilac Plantina - There was good turnout at theJanuary 12 planning meeting.
Todd Carroll, landscape architect at the Minnesota Department of Transportation, had a
preliminary plan for the next phase. New volunteers would like to add daffodil beds to
the plan and kick-off an initiative to maintain the 2008 plantings and perhaps do other
clean-up along transportation corridors. The tentative date for 2009 planting is
September 26.
Doa Park - City staff did a tour of potential sites and will probably recommend a few for
further analysis. One of the top sites is at the Animal Humane Society (AHS), with the
possibility that Bridge Builders could work collaboratively with the City and AHS to bring
the project to fruition.
Demoaraphics Forum - Philip Lund is still interested in having this forum.
Fundraising to Support Bridge Builder Activities
Sharon Glover and Dean Penk have been meeting as a subcommittee to determine the
best approach to establish a Community Foundation. A draft plan will be presented at
the next meeting along with copies of common and general grant forms. Ms. Glover
asked members to help identify private foundations and private donors who may be
interested in supporting a Golden Valley Community Foundation. She referenced the
booklet Philanthropic Foundations in the United States as a good resource. The
fund raising group will send out materials for review prior to the next meeting and the
item will be placed earlier on the agenda. Jim Heidelberg emailed information from the
Secretary of State on 501 (c) 3 organizations with Golden Valley in the name.
Envision (Visi) Award
Jeanne Andre circulated materials the Communications staff prepared about the award,
including a one-page flyer and an application that could also be placed on the Web.
These materials were based on Helene Johnson's most recent summary of the
proposed award. Andre reviewed some ideas for actual awards and a plaque listing all
award winners to be displayed at City Hall. Discussion ensued on the physical award
that should be given and the likely number of awards in a given year. This information is
necessary to present the proposal to the City Council. Consensus was to check into
Envision Connection Project
Board of Directors Meeting Minutes
January 15, 2009 - Page 3
wooden plaques with plexi-glass covers that would hold the custom certificates to be
developed for each award winner.
Recruitment of Members to the Executive Board
Blair Tremere will send the VolunteerMatch request for posting on the General Mills
Intranet. Members commented that this item should be earlier on the agenda so they
could spend more time on it. Some items to address are: methods to recruit new
members, what skill sets would complement the Board, and how to appeal to different
age groups.
Future Meetings
The next meeting will be on February 19. The members determined that April 16 is at
the end of Passover, so the April Meeting does not need to be rescheduled.
The meeting ended at 9:20 pm.
Jeanne Andre
Assistant City Manager