NLNA Board of Directors Meeting Minutes – March 11, 2024

Board Meeting MinutesNews
Written By NLNA Admin


BOARD OF DIRECTORS Meeting Minutes

MArch 11, 2024

Present: Jeff Hornstein, President; Barbara Saverino, Vice-President; Donna Turi, Treasurer; Cristina Grisanti, Secretary; Shakirra Clark; Mariel Lewis; Margot O’Neil; Matt Ruben; Jim Thompson; Steve Westcott; Francesca Yepikhina; Meesh Zucker;

Not in attendance: Sana Bango; Kevin Wilkins

Also present: Sydney Rexroad, Executive Director

The meeting was called to order by the President at 6:35 p.m.

Approve prior meeting minutes

Motion: By Meesh, seconded by Donna. “To approve the minutes of the February Board meeting as presented.”

Unanimous.

NLNA Leadership Reports

  • President’s Report: Jeff Hornstein

    • Jeff has followed up with potential corporate sponsors and provided an update to the Board on potential sponsorships

    • Education Committee kicked off with 8-9 neighbors, meeting went well

    • Clean Street & Beautification Committee meetings going well

    • March 13 Bus Operations meeting is planned for neighborhood feedback; Jeff, Sydney, Larry attended a prep meeting with OTIS and PPA on March 8

    • Some elected officials will be able to attend our March 20th general meeting

  • Treasurer's Report: Donna Turi

    • Revenue: Slightly up by $7k over last year, Total donations from individuals is also up from last year by $2,500

    • Expense: Up this year due to coverage of our portion of ED salary

    • Finalizing taxes for last year

    • Moved $5,000 from reserve fund to Liberty Lands fund to cover continued park repairs (this is typical)

    • Motion: By Barbara, seconded by Jim. “To accept the Treasurer's report as presented.”

      Unanimous

  • Executive Director’s Report: Sydney Rexroad

    • Winterfest Review - Raised over $9,000 net for the event (may be the most raised to date at WinterFest), really positive experience this year, not over-crowded, reviewed lessons learned

    • Potential date for MusicFest (June 8) - Planning beginning soon

    • March 20 General Meeting, 6:00 PM

    • Elected officials and committee chair

    • Committee Updates

      • New sign-in form and spreadsheet (QR code scanned when you walk in)

      • Discussed Board access needs to the Community Center

NLNA Committees

Project

  • Playground Renovation Committee (Margot O’Neil) - Status Report

    • Will dedicate 15 minutes during every Liberty Lands Committee meeting to re-engage with Playground volunteers

    • Focus on putting together update for Playground project to share with the neighborhood in the next newsletter

    • Additional need to put together a fundraising strategy and discussed some additional ideas (Acme, CVS, coffee shops)

Functional

  • BID Liaison (Matt Ruben)

  • Community Center Operations (Barbara Saverino)

    • Committee will be looking into process and cost to replace the roof, and thank you to Lara and Rachel for their work to keep the CC and office running (wealth of knowledge)

  • Events (Mariel Lewis)

    • Winterfest 

    • Plant Sale - May 4, 2024 (Janet will be running working with Sydney)

    • Easter Egg hunt in Liberty Lands (March 31st - 11 AM)

  • Liberty Lands Committee (Francesca Yepikhina) - Status Report

    • Liberty Lands Committee will submit a grant for microclover-ing the previously mulched pathways in the garden in addition to other Liberty Lands updates

    • Partnering with Pietramala who is a new member of the community garden

  • Zoning Committee  - March Minutes

    • Motion: By Matt, seconded by Francesca. “To ratify the recommendations of the Zoning Committee in the matter of 1102 Germantown Ave. - CMX2.5 – Ron Patterson - Proposed restaurant review' '”

  • Unanimous.

  • NL Action Committee - No report, no activity

Impact

  • Clean Streets & Beautification (Steve Westcott) - Status Report

    • We are registered for April 6 Philly Clean Up Day

    • Will submit PTSSD grant for Electronic Waste Removal event for over the summer

  • Community Engagement / Membership (Shakirra Clark)  - Status Report

    • 3rd Tuesday of the Month - Committee Planning Meeting (March 19th)

    • 1st Tuesday of the Month (Community Engagement Event) - First one is 444 N 4th St Event (April 4th Event)

  • Education 

    •  Initial brainstorm meeting to start momentum around Education Committee, looking for a committed Committee Chair (or co-chairs) to support

      • Will try to connect with NL school principals to develop relationships and see how to lift up schools

  • Public Safety (Jim Thompson) - Status Report

    • First Wednesday of each month for Public Safety meeting

    • Kickoff for Public Safety on March 28

    • To ask about lighting and cameras under I-95 overpass (General Meeting)

  • Transportation & Mobility (Meesh Zucker)

    • Support Meesh revising the letter in response to the 5th St Petition - We support OTIS looking into traffic studies to better support the neighborhood traffic flow and safety

Additional Updates

Old Business

None.

New Business

None. 


The meeting was adjourned by acclaim at 8:31 p.m.

NLNA Admin
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