FRIENDS OF DONALD PARK, INC. MONTHLY MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS: 9/16/03.
IN ATTENDANCE: BOARD: S. GAUGER, D. HARTMAN, S. O'NEILL, P. HITCHCOCK, S. ROYSTON, D. HUGHES, B. GEIMER, N. CHENEY MILLS, D. THOMAS, AND B. WOODBURN(SPEAKER PHONE). GUEST: VOLUNTEER STEWARD PROGRAM COORDINATOR SEBASTIAN BAXTER.
PRESIDENT: S. ROYSTON, RECORDING SECRETARY: V. ANDERSON
CALL TO ORDER THE MONTHLY MEETING OF THE MEMBERS: by President Royston.
MINUTES: MOTION by _______/_______ to approve the minutes of 8/19/03 with the correction: Board of Director's training-10/25/03, motion carried unanimously.
TREASURER'S REPORT: MOTION by O'Neill/Hitchcock to adopt the 8/19/03 treasurer's report submitted by B. Woodburn. Discussion: The 9/16/03 treasurer's report distributed today will be reviewed for adoption at next month's meeting. Please feel free to contact Treasurer B. Woodburn with questions before then. Woodburn again requests monthly report of endowment fund, merchandise for general park and horse trail items, and horse trail accounts. The detail for horse trail accounts above and beyond what is already included in the monthly treasurer's report will be discussed between Hughes and Woodburn. Motion carried unanimously.
PRESIDENT'S REPORT:
Chamber of Commerce raffle tickets distributed for the 22nd Annual Mount Horeb Fall Festival on October 4-5, 2003. Board agreed to sell tickets numbered 1801 through 1875. In turn, Board will be listed on Chamber publicity. The raffle tickets cost $5.00 each or $20.00 for five and entitle holders to a chance for a trip for 2 to Norway. Raffle drawing: November 8, 2003.
Royston distributed her goals for the Board for 2004.
BOARD EXERCISE: to be postponed until the November Board meeting.
COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Nominating Committee: It appears that since no nominating committee has yet been formed for the October annual meeting Board elections and since it is too late now, this shall be a priority for next year. Since the by-laws establish the Board as between 5-11 members, no new Board members would have to be elected this year. Current Board members Woodburn and Hughes have each agreed to be nominated for another term and will be voted on at the meeting. Additional nominations for two open seats created by K. Ignatius resignation and B. Geimer completion of term of office may be accepted at the annual meeting. Royston will research the proper protocol.
Replacement for B. Geimer as chair of the membership committee. Due to Geimer's completion of term, his skills will be sorely missed. O'Neill will contact Jeanne Eloranta, newletter committee, to determine if she would be willing to assume these duties since the mailing list data contains the membership data.
Horse Trails:
Insurance: D. Hughes reports that the horse trail insurance policy through Mortenson, Matzelle and Meldrum, Inc. has been obtained by the due date of 9/13/03 for $504.00, the same premium as last year. Discussion: It was clarified that this insurance provides comprehensive liability coverage for $1,000,000.00/occurrence for the entire horse trail in the event legal expenses are incurred. This insurance does not apply in case of an accident, but rather, applies in case of legal action to document the fact that according to state statute the Friends, landowners who permit the trail on their land, Donald Park, Dane County Parks, etc. are not legally liable for accidents. Hughes to follow-up on the suggestion to include the state statute for recreation on park signs. Darren Marsh, Acting Direct for Dane County Parks responded in writing on 9/10/03 to Royston's questions re: whether or not it is within the by-laws of the FoDP, Inc. to buy insurance for trails outside of the park.
Matching funds for the construction of the shelters in Donald Park: In general DCP staff agree that approximately $250,000290,000 from the Scheidegger donation will be available as matching funds for specific projects in the Verona area. The rules for this program are being developed with publicity/application procedures slated for spring 2004.
Bills: Jean Warrior horse trail expenses-$97.50, signs-$347.60, sign posts-$375.00, insurance-$504.00, $1.52 mailing for insurance company information.
Outside the Park trails will hopefully be fully signed, inspected by DCP and ready for use on a trial basis with volunteers and for the general public before all the horse trails close by the end of October.
During the off-season, the trails will be monitored for wear-and-tear, and re-seeded and repaired as needed. Steep slopes will always require ongoing maintenance.
Facilities:
Kiosk: B. Geimer reports that the kiosk in Pop's Knoll is well on its way. He is finishing the rock work around it. DCP will complete the inserts and Chris James, DCP, has been consulted about a roof treatment. In general, this and other projects have identified the need to improve communication between the DCP staff and volunteers to sort out which projects are best completed by DCP staff vs. volunteers. MOTION by Geimer/Hitchcock to put a brass plaque on the kiosk in memory of Tim Statz, whose family donated $1000.00 to Donald Park in his memory. Discussion: O'Neill will write a thank you to the Statz family. Motion carried unanimously.
Toilets:
No specific completion date yet. The roofs, made of a transparent material to let in light and thus avoid electricity, will be installed this week. The doors need to be modified to meet ADA standards for wheelchair access. Limestone, similar to the material projected for the shelters, is being used. The interior walls are made in such a way to minimize graffiti.
Shelters: D. Hartman will arrange a meeting between the architect and the facilities committee before the 10/11/03 annual meeting. The goal is to resolve questions regarding the necessary surveys, site locations, etc. so that a sketch of the shelters could be presented at the annual meeting.
Membership Recruitment: Three part membership drive outlined:
Part 1: Board Member incentive program introduced last month. HOW ARE YOU DOING????
Part 2: Targeted mailing to landowners in close vicinity to the Park. Labels for 171 landowners in Springdale and 33 in Primrose have been obtained. Thomas and Royston are working on this. In the future it was suggested that the renters near the Park be identified and contacted.
Part 3: List of those members who have not renewed was divided among Board members with the assignment to personally contact the individuals and ask them to renew by next month.
OLD BUSINESS:
Trails: To designate trails by color can be done immediately by the Friends. To designate non-personal names for the trails requires approval by the DCP. To designate personal names for the trails requires an additional level of approval - the Dane County Board of Supervisors. Therefore, it was agreed that trails would be designated by color for the trail map ASAP. Hughes and S. Baxter to work on this in preparation for an emergency plan.
Grants: O'Neill to obtain the projected cost of the disabled fishing access at Frye's feeder from DCP Chris James in preparation for a grant proposal. The fundraising committee to apply for the Mt. Horeb Community Foundation grant by the due date of October 1, 2003, for the historical/archaeological project. WI State Horse Council is awaiting completion of the kiosk, previous grant monies project, before releasing the grant monies for the disabled mounting facility.
NEW BUSINESS:
2004 Work Plan/Budget Strategy: November meeting-work plan and budget submissions by committee for next year to be prepared by Board members. It was discussed that regardless of the funding sources for various projects for 2004, the Board should be aware of all committee activities/funding and DCP requires this information as part of the agreement between DCP and the Friends.
Facilities Committee: Requested to discuss size of shelters and report back to the Board.
October Annual Meeting: When: Saturday, 10/11/03, Where:The Barn,
Agenda: 11:00 a.m. Annual meeting of the membership, committee reports, presentation of architectural concept(s) for shelters, and election of 2003-04 Board of Directors. Followed by potluck for those in attendance during which the business meeting of the new board shall convene to elect their officers.
Publicity: In addition to the invitation in the most recent newsletter, Cheney-Mills will submit a reminder to Mt. Horeb Mail and Verona Free Press the week before.
Committee: O'Neill, Anderson, and Hitchcock volunteered to prepare the barn and arrange for tableware and refreshments. Anyone else available to help please contact them.
Timber Cutting on Park Land: It was agreed that the Board should adopt a policy. The DCP policy will be obtained as an example of the process for the disposition of public property to the public.
ADJOURN: MOTION by aclamation to adjourn. Motion carried unanimously, 9:13 p.m.
NEXT MEETING: Annual Meeting: Saturday, 10/11/03, 11:00 a.m., in the Barn. RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED, VICKI ANDERSON, RECORDING SECRETARY