CHCA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING
Parish Hall, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church
Thursday, February 13, 2008

MINUTES

Executive Committee Members Present: Ed Berg (At-Large), Moss Disston (Treasurer), Anne
McNally (At-Large), Ned Mitinger (VP Physical Division), Jane Piotrowski (VP Social Division), Ron Recko (Immediate Past President), Kristina Sullivan (Secretary), and Tolis Vardakis (President)

Executive Committee Members Excused: Lou Aiello (At-Large), Jane Becker (At-Large), Tom
Fleming (At-Large), and Dina Hitchcock (VP Operations)

Board Members Present: Jim Foster, Meredith Sonderskov, and Ann Spaeth

Others Present: Pete Mazzaccaro (CH Local Editor), Martha Sharkey (Community Manager), and
Noreen Spota (Administrative Coordinator)

Tolis Vardakis called the meeting to order at 7:31 PM. Noreen Spota conducted the roll call.

Approval of Minutes. There was a motion to approve the Executive Committee meeting minutes from January 10, 2008 as submitted. This motion was seconded and passed with one abstention (Jane Piotrowski). There was some discussion about when the meeting minutes should be sent to the Board and the Executive Committee. Ann Spaeth and Ron Recko stated that the minutes, after review by the Secretary, should be sent out at least one week prior to the Board meetings.

Report from Treasurer. Moss Disston stated that due to bookkeeper Sue Kowert’s continued absence from the office, there have been no financial statements since November. The temporary bookkeeper will prepare the December financials in time for review by the Budget and Finance Committee at its meeting on Tuesday, February 19. Three meetings were held by the committee in order to interview the grant applicants. The final 2007 audit report for the CHCA/Local will be ready for review at the February 28 Board meeting.

Report from Vice President, Social Division. Jane Piotrowski stated that she had nothing to report from the Social Division.

Report from Vice President of Operations. In Dina Hitchcock’s absence, Jane Piotrowski reported that the Membership Committee has met to discuss recruitment strategies and the proposed dues increase. There are 14 committee members, and the next meeting will be held on Wednesday, February 20. A half-page advertisement for membership has been placed in the Local; Tolis thanked Jane and the Membership Committee for creating it. It has been suggested that the CHCA purchase a banner, to be hung over Germantown Avenue, encouraging people to join the Association. Jane will recommend inclusion of this item in next year’s budget. The banner schedule, which is managed by Peggy Hendrie at the Business Association, is filled far in advance. The only time still available in 2008 was mid-August through early September; this period has been reserved for the CHCA. Tolis suggested that in the future, the Membership Committee should be responsible for reserving time on the schedule for the CHCA membership banner.
Report from Vice President, Physical Division. Ned Mitinger mentioned that the Traffic, Transportation, and Parking Committee’s next meeting will be held on Monday, March 3. Pat Moran, the committee’s chair, will speak at the February 28 Board meeting. Ned also mentioned that the Land Use Planning and Zoning Committee did not meet in January and February but will meet in March. He clarified that projects do not need to go through the LUPZ process unless a variance is necessary. Ann Spaeth mentioned the importance of the “planning” function of the LUPZ in addition to its “zoning” function.

Report from Community Manager. Martha Sharkey distributed and reviewed her report, which covered the following topics: 1) Fund Drive and database ($51,876 was raised as of February 11, and we have exceeded last year’s number of donors); 2) Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) Study; 3) CHCA page in the Local; 4) various office issues, including the search for a new tenant for the first floor commercial space; and 5) community relations.

Old Business.

Board Member Absences. Ron Recko referred to the CHCA bylaws, which state that “any Director who has more than four unexplained absences in a fiscal year is automatically removed from the Board.” He stated that a number of Board members have many “excused” absences and this is unfair to those in attendance. He feels that the word “unexplained” should be deleted from this section of the bylaws and that the total number of absences should be limited in order to increase participation. After some discussion, including the need for an appeal process to address extenuating circumstances, Ron offered the following motion: the Executive Committee will recommend to the Board that the bylaws be changed to state that “Any Director who has five absences in a year term is automatically removed from the Board. If a removal occurs, the Director has the right to appeal for reinstatement based on a majority vote of those present.” This motion was seconded and passed with one opposed (Kristina Sullivan). Tolis suggested that if this proposed amendment passes, the Secretary should write to Board members who have four absences with a reminder that five absences will result in removal from the Board.

Interlocking Directors. Ron Recko stated his concern that the CHCA representative on the Historical Society Board, Susan Pizzano, evidently has to be approved by that Board even though the Historical Society’s representative on the CHCA Board does not have to be approved. Tolis will contact Ellen Grady, President of the Historical Society, to resolve this issue.

Price Increases for the Local. Pete Mazzaccaro proposed that the subscription rate for the Local be increased from $20 to $25 per year, and that the single-issue price be increased from 50 cents to 75 cents. At 75 cents per issue, the cost would be $39 per year at the newsstand, resulting in a $14 incentive to subscribe. Pete noted that currently, the $30 membership dues are split 50-50 between the CHCA and the Local. He asked whether the CHCA would give the Local $20 instead of the current $15 per member if the dues are increased. Ed Berg offered a motion to support Pete’s recommendation to increase the subscription rate from $20 to $25 per year and the single-issue price from 50 cents to 75 cents. This motion was approved unanimously.

Requests from Montgomery, McCracken Law Firm. After Ned Mitinger inquired about the status of the requests for CHCA/Local and Fund financial records for the fiscal year 2006, Tolis Vardakis stated that all financial records have been sent, but we still need to provide meeting minutes, the list of Board members, and the list of employees.

There was no New Business.

Announcements.

* Anne McNally noted that there has been improvement in trash collection for the Top of the Hill Plaza.

* Tolis Vardakis inquired about the status of the lawsuit against the Local regarding its classified ads for housing; Pete Mazzaccaro responded that he has not been contacted about this. 

* Ann Spaeth stressed the importance of the following issues: 1) having written motions at Board meetings; 2) appointments of committee members must be announced to the Board; 3) all CHCA committee meetings (including those of the Membership Committee) must be publicized in the Local; and 4) Executive Committee meeting minutes should be sent to the Board at least one week prior to the Board meeting (i.e. one week after the Executive Committee meeting).

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:50 PM.

Minutes prepared by Noreen Spota, CHCA Administrative Coordinator, on 2/18/08.

Respectfully submitted on 2/21/08 by:

Kristina Sullivan
CHCA Secretary

Approved by the Executive Committee without amendment on 3/13/08.