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Min - Keep Allen Beautiful Board - 1998 - 03/17 - Regular11 KABB Members Present Sandy Sanders Heidi Smalley Lonnie Simmons Phil Lakin Beverly Wortham Pat Buckley Melissa Owen Staff Present Edie MCMillion George Conner Audrey Smyth Call to Order (Agenda Item I) With a quorum of the Board present, the Keep Allen Beautiful Special Called Workshop meeting was called to order at 7:21 p.m. on Tuesday, March 17, 1998, in the Conference Room of Allen City Hall, One Butler Circle. Approve the Minutes of the January 20 and February 17 199S Meetings (Agenda Item ID A motion was made and second to approve the minutes of January 20, 1998 and February 17, 1998 meetings. The Board votes seven (7) for and none (0) opposed all minutes were approved. Review Table of Goals Developed at Last Meeting (Agenda Item IID Below are the list of Coals and Objectives that were brought up at the February 17th meeting. Changes have been made. GOALS FOR 1995 MINUTES 1. KEEP ALLEN BEAUTIFUL BOARD 1. REGULAR CALLED MEETING 2. signs MARCH 17, 1998 - 7:00 P.M. 11 KABB Members Present Sandy Sanders Heidi Smalley Lonnie Simmons Phil Lakin Beverly Wortham Pat Buckley Melissa Owen Staff Present Edie MCMillion George Conner Audrey Smyth Call to Order (Agenda Item I) With a quorum of the Board present, the Keep Allen Beautiful Special Called Workshop meeting was called to order at 7:21 p.m. on Tuesday, March 17, 1998, in the Conference Room of Allen City Hall, One Butler Circle. Approve the Minutes of the January 20 and February 17 199S Meetings (Agenda Item ID A motion was made and second to approve the minutes of January 20, 1998 and February 17, 1998 meetings. The Board votes seven (7) for and none (0) opposed all minutes were approved. Review Table of Goals Developed at Last Meeting (Agenda Item IID Below are the list of Coals and Objectives that were brought up at the February 17th meeting. Changes have been made. GOALS FOR 1995 VISION 2000 ESTIMATED TIME 1. Recycling Bins for all city parks. 1. Committee Structure. 2. signs Budding for our future please pardon our mess at entrances of street construction. 2. Utility Bill Pledges. 3. Gardening project at compost facility. 3. Information for Schools in Allen. 4. Theme for our City 4. Keep America Beautiful Affiliate Done. 5. Information on Parks. 5. Promotional Video/Public Relations Info. Cable Television Page 2 Keep Allen Beautiful Hoard Meeting March 17, 1998 COALS FOR 1998 VISION 2000 ESTIMATED TIME 7 Financial Sponsorship. 7.Massive Promotional Carnpaign 8 Award Programs. 8. Arbor Day 9. Who in the business community is actively recycling. 9. 10. Beautification of the entrances to our city will need to consult with Parks Department. 10. 11. Membership Drive 11 12. 501c.3 Articles of Incorpomtionln process. 12. 14. Adopt -a -Spot areas. 14. Make Changes to By Laws and Set Date to go Before Council for Approval (Agenda Item IV) Bylaws were approved by the Board. Phil will get the changes to Edie to get ready to go to the Council for Approval. Bylaws were approved by Allen City Council on April 2, 1998. Melissa will answer any questions that Council might have. No one else will need to go to meeting. Articles of Inrxirporation will be sent to Edie and she will get it to the City Attorney for legal review. The Articles will have to go to the Services Subcommittee for review before they go to Council. Miscellaneous (Agenda Item V) Heidi: Wants to submit a booklet for the Keep Texas Beautiful Governors Award. She will need help to get the information together and get it off to Keep Texas Beautiful it is due to them by May 15, 1998, at 5:00 p.m. We can include a lot of the information of things that we have done and them put the data about the trash -off after we are finished, we should also cover the Spring Fest event. Heidi: Edie has done a mailout to all of the businesses in Allen. There were over 300 flyers and an event letter. The Schools all have their press releases, they will send the information home with the students in thew next newsletter. Dennis is taking care of the logistics and taking care of assigning spots. Heidi wanted to know if we could start calling the girl scout groups (phone committee) volunteers will be needed. Melissa: Wanted to announce the opening and dedication of the Allen Station Park Ball Fields on the same day as the trash -off in the afternoon. Says this is going to be a very exciting event and everyone will have a good time. She thinks events will start around 1:00 p.m. Heidi: Has some concern about kids warning to go to the ball park instead of coming to help with the trash -off. Hopefully, we will still have a good turn out for the trash -off and maybe go to the dedication atter working. When you call people on the phone, tell them to get registered, pick up their bags in the morning and set bags at the designated area. Page 3 Keep Allen Beautiful Board Meeting March 17, 1998 Edie: Needs someone to take over getting information and pricing on the fresh fruit (Lonnie). Also need someone to get pricing and make plans to pick up the water and juice possibly from Dr Pepper (Phil). Edie says she has been getting several calls and we will treed people to be there about 7:00 to help set up table and get the registration table ready Edie is going to check with Print Towne and Phil will check with other vendors. Edie wanted to get permission after the logo is approved to order letter head from Prim Towne. Board suggested that we order total of 1,000 because of the cost break. We could possibly get a different address for the new City Hall, but we would get the mail anyway, at least for a year. Audrey: Went to the Code Enfon:ement's Association Conference in Midland. One of the things that Midland does for their trash -off is they spray paint gold coke cans and put numbers or levers on them then they hide cans in the areas to be cleaned and whoever brings them back gets a special prize. We will try to do this and we will make a wrap of where they are put, so if they are not picked up we can go get them. We will paint 10-12 cans. Keep Midland Beautiful also told Audrey about their one fund raiser a year. They do a garden tour, they pick three homes or three gardens in town and they charge $10.00 per person to tore the gardens They visit the gardens on a Saturday or Sunday. They told tnc that they make $10,000 per year but they have two underwriters that gave them $2,500 up from. Another fund raiser is the stay at home dinner. They ask people to stay at home and eat and send us your check for the annum of money you would have spent to go out to eat and you don't have to do anything. Melissa: The Council is unhappy with her about the letter that the Board sem to the Sign Board in support of the Sign Ordinance, although she was excused from the vote (Melissa was absent). The problem was that the Council was trying to stay very neutral. The point is that she can't take a stand on the Sign Ordinance at this time. The Ordinance is not coming forward because it has been given to a Consultant to study It will be some time before it will be back for a vote. There has been a lot of division in the community Sandy: Sandy reminded us that the Sign Board win to us wanting backing on this issue to help make Allen a better community for all. It appears to her that the business community swings so much weight that there is a son of bullying going on here and if you're feeling bullied by friends or people in the Chamber, that all the Council have to be above this. We can't be made to feel that we did the wrong thing or that we have to be worried about what will happen because we made a stand. We have to be able to take stands on other items besides litter and recycling. Phil: Bottom line is that the sign control issue would have made Allen more beautiful in the minds of six (6) of the members of this Board. That was what was communicated in the letter. I think that we need to take a stand on any piece of legislation on anything that is coming through that beautifies Allen or makes Allen uglier. If we as a Board need to make our voices known then we need to let the proper people know about that We did a very good job of taking Melissa out of the equation. She never helped draft the letter, everybody else saw it bcforc it went out and they approved it. I took a vote and you were excused as I stated before. I even put verbiage in the letter to signify to the Council that you were not involved; we said the Council appointed members of this Board do support the Sign Control Board. We were very, very careful about this. I talked to everyone individually to make sure that we, as a hoard, could do this. If it is making Allen more beautiful then this is what we are trying to do. If we can't do that then we are not a Board. You don't need a Board to pick up trash We have to take a stand to make Allen what ever you want it to be. Melissa: The Council is not against this Board or Business. Page 4 Keep Allen Beautiful Board Meeting March 17 1999 Sandy: The Council has a difficult position but that is what you are elected to do. There are times when your are not going to be able to please everyone but that is what voting is all about and if they don't please the people the people don't vote for them Pat: Maybe I am missing something or maybe I am just naive but I don't understand why, or how could we have prevented this? Is this a problem for you with your position on the City Council or does the City Council have a problem with us supporting another Board? Melissa: The problem is that the Ordinance is not complete and hasn't come to Council. The Council would support us absolutely and would encourage this Board to corse to the table when it comes to us. It is not finished. The revisions arc not even finished. Pat asked how the City Council even knew that we wrote to this Board. Phil sent copies of the letter to the Council. Sandy: The Sign Board told me because I asked them. The acting chairman told her that it was finished. It was voted on by the Sign Board and they compromised, other than the Monument Signs, and they sent it on to the City Council. The City Council obviously does not want to touch it. Melissa: That is not true. Staff carne to us with a recommendation of what the Sign Board comes up with. This needs to go into the overall plan on how we want Allen to look. That would be one element and I think it is a good idea and I absolutely support it 100% Sandy: In the meantime signs will start cropping up, right? The fast couple of businesses that put their signs up, if there is no ordinance change, then we will all have to live with the signs that sort coming. Melissa: I don't know, I'm really not sure. Phil: I guess we were out of line in sending it to the City Council? Melissa said that you could have sent your support to the Sign Board and when it came in front of the Council we want to hear it. Lonnie: So your saying we were premature Melissa: Yes, that is all I am saying. Lonnie: What did they take exception to, was it the whole letter or was there anything in particular? Melissa : The fact that it was a Board action on something that had not come before the Council. Pat: O.K., So could we have just written to the other Board? Melissa: Yes, that would have been fine. Pat How can be prevent this in the future'! Melissa advises that you get Staff or Council recommendation to see if this is the appropriate time. Sandy: We had been told that the Ordimnce had already went before the City Council, that is why Phil wrote the letter We were finished with the Sign Board. Originally, we voted on this on January 26, 1998, and we held the letter until February 28, 1998 Melissa: I absolutely would not feel the teed to stifle anybody I felt that it was not proper for me to interact at this time and I still do. I feel very, very strongly about this. Too many people are working to make some really good changes. I don't want to hear the negotiations; we hear negotiations as a Council member every day that is why we have the Boards That is also why it is not appropriate for us to be involved at the Board level, otherwise we don't need Boards. We need to be able to hear it in the Page 5 Keep Allen Beautiful Board Meeting March 17 1998 completed form and at that time when we hear the public hearing we absolutely want in hear everything that is being said Too many changes can be made from point .A to point B All I am saying is that if it had just gone to the Sign Board that would have been O K. It was a real source of confusion for the Council, because we did not even have the Ordinance before us. It was not even on the Agenda that night. Phil: 1 am still having difficulty understanding why this letter would aggravate you, because we do say that we do support the Sign Control Board, especially as it relates to the work that the Sign Control Board and you are currently negotiating regarding Sign Ordinance changes. Also, we say that we do not agree with the pole sign and we do support the idea of monument signs. We are just saying that it would allow busiresses to amply advertise and serve to benefit the entire community We are very clear through the letter that we are talking about the ordinance that is being negotiated and, beyond that, we are talking about how those signs would be more beautiful than the pole signs. Melissa: All that I am saying is that you come to us when the Ordinance comes as a package. You may not even want this letter to accompany it, especially if changes are made from point A to point B. Sandy We weren't doing anything illegal like tampering with a jury, if they are in doubt about our intentions, they can read our minutes and see what position we have taken. Lonnie: I think what happened is that we almost let this thing sneak up on us as a Board. If it hadn't been for Phil, Sandy and some others we would completely gotten down We just wanted the Board to l riow how we stood and Melissa was out of it. I am a little offended that Council Members are upset with you. j Melissa said you can't make it better, but I can. George said he didn't hear any angry comments at all. Melissa said that it was more bewilderment. The Council may need to get with the Boards and tell them what they expect and how to work with other Boards and give some guidance to the Boards. Things got so out of control at the Sign Board meetings. Sandy said yes, fifty of them (business ) and four people. Fifty business people can't take any changes and four residents. It seemed to be a total swaying of one portion of the community to influence the people who make the decisions for the residents of this City The Board needs to educate itself on when to take things to Council, this from Lonnie. Melissa said that is all I am saying and if I didn't say it correctly, I am sorry What I am also saying is that yes, 1 have lost friends and I am taking a lot of heat here and I am not blaming you. Phil wants to know how this information got to the businesses'! Melissa wants the Board to know that she very much appreciates your input Edie: Beverly, is going to be leaving and I think it is important to give her a nice gift from the Board to thank her for her help the last few months. Melissa says that the Mayor's office gives out plaques of thank you Pat: Spring Fest on Saturday April 25. 1998, has not been mentioned. I have put a lot of energy into Spring Fest and I need some bodies to get this done, and I will hand out a work sheet of jobs that need to be done. 1 really lust want you be there to work for two hour shifts We need to have clip boards with something for residents to sign up on items of interest that they might have. She wants a suggestion box for suggestions. Brown bags to show residents about how to use them, have some give I away items. We can have some bags there for information Recycling bins with items inside to show people how to recycle Spring fest is a fun event. She would like to display some plants she would be Page 6 Beep Allen Beautiful Board Meeting March 17 1998 happy to bring some. Melissa thinks that next year we might want to sell plains to help raise money. Lonnie might be able to get some seeds from the extension service and see if they might have some. George said that there is a seed farm that we might be able to get seed from Keep Texas Beautiful or TXDOT The Garden Club new to Allen is another source and we may want to work together on projects. The second thing is that we need to get the compost center planted. Pat would like to use native plants and have them marked so when the residents are looking at the compost site they can identify plants they might want to put in their yards. Edie says that she will find the money to buy plants it they are reasonable We will also need to pull weeds from this area. Adjourn The meeting was adjourned at 8:59 p.m These minutes were approved on April 21, 1998. Patricia Buckley, Secre Phillip Lakin, Chair (Agenda- tem VI)