JOINT SPECIAL MEETING OF FICRA & THE FICRA BUILDING TRUST BOARDS MEETING MINUTES 5-28-2020

JOINT SPECIAL MEETING OF FICRA & THE FICRA BUILDING TRUST BOARDS VIDEO/TELECONFERENCE METING MINUTES
Thursday, May 28, 2020, 6:30PM

TRUST Board Attendees: Jim Braden, Hal Goodell, Naomi Grant, Gina Olson and Howard Stapleton all in attendance.

FICRA Board Attendees: Pia Beetham, Hal Goodell, Miguel Martinez, Howard Stapleton and Candy Wawro in attendance.  Excused: Rob Moore.

Additional Attendees: Ray Kittelberger, Karen Kretschmer.

The Zoom Meeting started at 6:30pm and there was a brief waiting period to allow everyone to join. The meeting date, time and method was posted to the website and advertised to the residents of FI with at least 10 days’ notice.

The Joint Special Meeting was officially called to order at 6:42pm.

Minutes from the FICRA Annual Member Meeting, FICRA Board Meeting, and FICRA Trust Board Meeting from March 12, 2020 were unanimously approved with no abstentions.  Motion by Jim Braden with second by Naomi Grant.

Treasurer’s Report: Hal Goodell

Document sharing was enabled for Hal to display the financial reports.  The following information was provided:

Trust Checking account: Mar 1 Balance: $ 27,004.17, Mar 31 Balance: $ 28,098.35

Trust Capital Checking: Mar 1 Balance: $ 3,925.45, Mar 31 Balance: $ 3,925.45

Trust Reserve Checking: Mar 1 Balance: $ 1,541.00, Mar 31 Balance: $ 1,541.00

Trust Money Market:  Mar 1 Balance: $ 184,638.55, Mar 31 Balance: $ 184,781.25

Trust Savings: Mar 1 Balance: $ 226.92, Mar 31 Balance $ 226.93

Trust PayPal: Mar 1 Balance: $ 3,751.71, Mar 31 Balance $ 0.00

Trust Checking account: Apr 1 Balance: $ 28,098.35, Apr 30 Balance: $ 25,427.59

Trust Capital Checking: Apr 1 Balance: $ 3,925.45, Apr 30 Balance: $ 3,925.45

Trust Reserve Checking: Apr 1 Balance: $ 1,541.00, Apr 30 Balance: $ 1,541.00

Trust Money Market:  Apr 1 Balance: $ 184,781.25, Apr 30 Balance: $ 184,895.16

Trust Savings: Apr 1 Balance: $ 226.93, Apr 30 Balance $ 226.94

Trust PayPal: Apr 1 Balance: $ 0.00, Apr 30 Balance $ 24.28

FICRA Checking: Mar 1: $13,688.69 Mar 31: Cleared Balance: $13,915.55

FICRA Money Market: Mar 1: $30,954.74 Mar 31: Cleared Balance: $30,971.83

FICRA PayPal: Mar 1: $311.61 Mar 31: Balance: $0.00

FICRA Checking: Apr 1: $13,915.55 Apr 30: Cleared Balance: $14,145.55

FICRA Money Market: Apr 1: $30,971.83 Apr 30: Cleared Balance: $30,984.56

FICRA PayPal: Apr 1: $0.00 Apr 30: Balance: $23.97

Membership is currently at 373.  Income taxes are done for the Trust.  Taxes for FICRA are still pending, waiting for the IRS to get back to Hal on online account access.  Ray Kittelberger asked about the $2,700 negative in the PWP live auction income for March.  Hal responded that this was associated with a refund to one of the participants.

NCC Maintenance & Facility Improvements:

NCC Painting and Windows – Jim Braden reports they are working on prep for the painting on the building exterior.  Jim is asking for volunteers to help with scraping south and west sides.  The building to be painted by a local professional painter for a reasonable price.  Quotes on windows is still pending, which will be wood with metal clad for west side, and restoration for front windows.  Jim is continuing to work toward a good choice, abiding by regulations to keep historical status.  

Sports Field – The field continues to improve and the exercise stations have been cleaned up.  No problems have been observed with the use of the facilities and people appear to be observing social distancing requirements.  Looking forward, Jim would like the Board to consider an automated irrigation system for the grass field.  The Trust Board is supportive of this plan and Miguel Martinez stated that FICRA will support the effort and help out.  Jim has been in contact with FIMWA – they are very supportive.  He has also been in contact with the folks at Chambers Bay to try to get a sense of the expected water usage.  Hal advocated making this a priority so we don’t lose grass on the field this summer.  Jim is looking at available funding, but does not think we can act fast enough to complete a project before the summer.     

Soccer Nets – Gina would like to see the soccer goals & nets repaired.  In addition, the goals are difficult to move without coming apart, which could be addresses by gluing the existing PVC.  If they don’t need to be taken apart, gluing them would help hold them together structurally and make them easier to move for maintenance.  Jim noted that they were originally built so they could be altered, but if everyone is happy with the current size, they can be glued and the nets should be trimmed down and tightened to match their size.  Miguel agreed that the existing size works and volunteered to help repair them.  The Board agreed they should be repaired, glued, and have the netting retied.

Reopening the NCC in Stages for Public Use: Howard noted that our use should be based on guidance provided by the County & that we don’t anticipate getting ahead of this.  He asked for Board input on the topic.  Miguel agrees that we should keep our outdoor use as it is now, following the guidelines of the State of Washington, Pierce County Health Department and CDC.  He expressed concerns that indoor use would be severely curtailed, since most of the groups using the NCC exceed the current limitations.  Naomi Grant said it was her understanding that Phase 2 limited groups to 5 or less and that groups larger than 50 persons would not be possible until after Phase 3.  Based on the initial input and the timeline needed for event planning, Howard suggested that we need to be looking around 8 weeks out and anticipate what phase we will be in then.  We need to consider the lead time and have contingency plans for cancellation.  Miguel thinks our next event target should be the Fair and go ahead with planning, incorporating a cut-off date to determine if we go forward with the event.  Howard suggested we table the NCC opening discussion for now (since this depends on the County being in Stage 3 or later) and go to the agenda item on the Fair.

Planning for the 2020 FICRA Fair:  Howard asked Hal to provide an overview of the current plan for the Fair. 

Hal believes that it’s possible that we could be in Stage 4 by the end of July, meaning the FICRA Fair most probably could be held.  He noted that even if we are in Phase 4, we need to look at any requirements that would need to be placed on attendance.  He did apply for the liquor (special occasions) permit, since this needs to be submitted 60 days before the event.  This is the only paid permit that needs to be submitted this early.  We have music talent lined up and Hal has asked Cheryl Nelson to talk with them about including a provision that they will accept no or a reduced (perhaps 20%) payment of their normal fee if we have to cancel after August 1 because the State has not allowed Pierce County to reach Phase 4.  Other than this, the only activity that needs to occur now is reaching out to our vendors and getting them to sign up.  Hal’s opinion regarding the vendors is that if we have to cancel, we will refund their fees.  He does not expect us to incur much in the way of expense ($120 for the liquor permit) until we have to apply for the County permit ($400-500), which we do not have to do until the beginning of July.

Naomi does not have any objections to moving forward, but noted that the Phase 4 requirements for high risk populations allow public interactions with physical distancing.  Some booths are staffed by more than one person, and as we allow people to move about the Fair, will we need arrows and other guidance to meet requirements.  She acknowledged this may be too much detail to address at this point.  Hal noted that there are certain things that need to happen now, such as vendor applications, and we may have to include some language regarding uncertainty over regulations in future phases in our documents for now. Naomi noted that “the new normal” until vaccines are developed will be physical distancing.

Gina advised that you have to be within 6 feet of someone 10-15 minutes, with certain types of exposure (coughing, sneezing, laughing, talking forcefully or singing) to increase the risk of getting sick, which is why shopping is still possible.  She thinks people will abide by distancing where appropriate and that people should still wear masks if they are at higher risk.  The bottom line is that you can’t have a Fair without standing closer than 6 feet for some things and if we want to be totally safe we should cancel the event.  She believes we have a spirit of courage, not fear, on this island and the Fair must go on.

Pia Beetham reviewed the documents Naomi referred to and suggested that we consider eliminating indoor events (flower display, auction) and limit activities to outside only.

Jim noted that physical distancing in Phase 4 was limited to high risk populations and that Pierce County is still in Phase 1, with roughly double the infection rate needed to reach Phase 2.  He believes Hal’s approach is reasonable but we need to be cautious.

Howard summarized the input provided, that we move forward with the planning, open up vendor registration for booths (including language that this is dependent on County requirements and our Board feeling that it is safe to do so), and limit our financial risk by postponing actions requiring payment as long as possible.

Gina was contacted by Jeff Hooker from FIYC who wanted to know if we were having the Fair so they could prepare.  She asked that somebody reach out to Jeff with our official response that we intend to plan for it but may cancel.  Hal indicated that he also needs to reach out to Kathy Smith regarding the Beer Garden and the FIYC booth.  He would also like to send an EMail as the Fair Coordinator to FIYC contacts.  Pia will contact Jeff Hooker and let him know that Hal is the official contact for the event, and will provide Jeff’s contact information to Hal.

Gina has already created a design for T‑Shirts and needs to know if we should go ahead and commit for the costs.  The shirt design this year is a collage of Fox Island street names, an image of a kayak, orca and coffee cup, and a small COVID.  The Board agreed to move forward with the T‑Shirts.

Miguel wants to know what kind of communication we want to get out to the public and when do we want to start that.  Candy, Karen and Cheryl will also want to know this.  Hal would like to see a news release go out as soon as we can.  Howard asked for Karen Kretschmer’s thoughts. Karen suggested we might want to wait for more information before putting out an EMail blast but perhaps we could include some information in a newsletter or on our website for now.  Hal suggested the timing might be when we get out of Phase 1 and go to Phase 2.  Howard suggested the Communication Team plan for a communication.  Miguel suggested that the team plan for a communication regarding the Fair separate from our Newsletter that includes social media and website.

Current NCC Use Request:  Jim has a party interested in having a wedding reception on June 20^th with a maximum of 25 that they believe is now allowed.  The Board is not aware of any State or County rules allowing this now, and unless there is a change from Pierce County, our response should be that the event is not possible.   

FICRA/Trust Newsletter: Jim briefly reviewed the items to be included in the newsletter; he will have more information on the Fox Island Bridge before it goes out.  Howard asked if Jim wanted to provide more specifics on dates/times for volunteers to help prepare the NCC for painting.  Jim would like to first “test the waters” for volunteers before arranging dates.  Ray asked if it would be appropriate to include some preliminary information on the Fair.  Miguel wants to provide a separate Fair communication (news blast) with details.  He also wants to ensure the Newsletter thanks people to reinforce their proper use of the NCC and continued positive approach.

FICRA Trust Board Elections: Howard summarized three potential options for the Trust Board Election; 1) Mail‑In or Website‑Based voting, which may be difficult since voting is limited to those who has specifically contributed to the Trust; 2) Specific Date/Time Voting with Proper Precautions, which would involve a published time frame of 1-2 hours at the NCC allowing votes to be cast with appropriate physical separation; and 3) Postponing the Elections Until Public Meetings are Allowed.  Hal added that we could place public notices on the Website and Facebook and handle an election via Zoom.  Jim prefers Option 2, with the slate of candidates published in the newsletter or in a separate EMail Flash.  This would let us get on with things, so Karen and others can officially be in their positions.  He would also like to have the new Board approve a Project Manager or other position.  Miguel agrees with Option 2, in the front and out the back.  There was some additional discussion on when to check the requirements for voting.  The FICRA Trust Bylaws state that “voting members shall consist of those persons who have contributed to the Trust” (Trust members) and that “only Trust members shall be considered for election to the Board.”  While regular Board Meetings require one week prior notification to the members, Special Meetings (such as the revised date for the Annual Meeting/Election), require ten days advance notice.  Based on the comments and what he has experienced, Miguel doesn’t anticipate a large attendance and we may want to consider limiting the Election time frame to one hour.  Jim suggests we get input from the Nominating Committee that will run the election and both Jim and Pia volunteered to staff the Election meeting.  Gina is in favor of a physical distancing voting or a Zoom Election to accommodate those unable to show up in person.  Naomi agrees with Option 2 and expressed concern that some people could encounter problems with a Zoom meeting.  Howard will discuss the Election with the Nominating Committee and we will plan the Election in accordance with Board recommendations.

Meeting Adjournment:  Howard asked if there were any other items before adjournment.  Hearing none, the meeting officially adjourned at 7:46pm.

Next Meetings: The next FICRA and FICRA Trust Board Meetings are scheduled for Thursday, June 11, 2020 at 6:30pm via video/teleconference.  The meeting notice and instructions for receiving the Zoom meeting invitation are posted on the website event calendar.

Respectfully submitted by Gina Olson, Secretary (incorporating edits by Jim Braden and Howard Stapleton).

Note: There was some post adjournment discussion concerning the meeting on Bella Bella and future meeting dates/methods (there are regular Board Meetings currently scheduled for the 2^nd Thursday of June).  There was also some discussion on how to post Meeting Minutes and whether votes at a Zoom meeting meet Bylaw requirements.