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Minutes 05-12-99 MINUTES OF THE COMMUNITY RELATIONS BOARD MEETING HELD IN COMMISSION CHAMBERS, CITY HALL BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA ON WEDNESDAY, MAY 12 1999 AT 7:30 P.M. PRESENT Ron Washam, Chairman Hank Ackermann, Neighborhood Specialist Floyd Beil Maynie Boles Blanche Girtman Hansome Jones Stephanie Mingo-McKoy Beth Miller Brett Sherman ABSENT Brenda Lee Williams I. OPENING, PLEDGE, PRAYER Chairman Washam apologized to those members who went to the Headstart location for the meeting, which had been changed back to the Commission Chambers. Chairman Washam called the meeting to order at 7:35 p.m. and asked Ms. Mingo- McKoy to lead the members in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag, followed by a moment of silent prayer. II. ROLL CALL The Recording Secretary called the roll and a quorum was declared present. Chairman Washam introduced Hank Ackermann, the City’s Neighborhood Specialist to the Board. Chairman Washam informed members that Mr. Ackermann would be the Board Liaison until further notice. III. RECOGNITION OF VISITORS None IV. AGENDA APPROVAL MEETING MINUTES COMMUNITY RELATIONS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 12, 1999 Chairman Washam asked if there were any additions or deletions to the agenda. Mr. Washam requested the addition of Item C. under New Business, the S.T.A.R.’s Program. Dr. Beil requested the addition of Item D. under New Business, the Multi-cultural Musical Festival. There being no additional changes, Chairman Washam called for a motion to approve the agenda. Motion Ms. Girtman moved that the Agenda, with the additions, be approved. Motion seconded by Ms. Mingo-McKoy and carried unanimously. V. MINUTES APPROVAL – Regular Meeting of April 14, 1999 and April 21, 1999 Workshop Meeting. Chairman Washam asked if there were any additions or corrections to the minutes. Chairman Washam called for a motion to accept the minutes. Motion Ms. Mingo-McCoy moved to approve the minutes as submitted. Motion seconded by Ms. Girtman and carried unanimously. (N.B. there were no minutes for the April 21, 1999 workshop meeting.) VI. CORRESPONDENCE AND ANNOUCEMENTS Chairman Washam asked if anyone had any announcements that they would like to make. Chairman Washam announced that the Royal Palm School would be holding a golf th tournament on Saturday, June 12 at the Atlantis County Club to benefit the Royal Palm School children and other youth projects in the area. The cost is $75 per person, which includes lunch and green fees and the remainder goes to the charities. Chairman Washam said the Kiwanis Club of Hypoluxo and Lantana is sponsoring the tournament. Chairman Washam announced that graduation at Royal Palm School would take place th on June 8 at 1:00 p.m. 2 MEETING MINUTES COMMUNITY RELATIONS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 12, 1999 Ms. Girtman announced that the Treasure Chest students would be graduating on July th 11 at the Civic Center at 3:00 p.m. Ms. Mingo-McKoy announced that the Juvenile Transition Center, in conjunction with the Workforce Development Board and the City of Boynton Beach, would be holding an outreach recruiting process on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. at the Hester Center. Fourteen to 17 year olds who are economically disadvantaged will be targeted for summer youth jobs. Each youth must bring a parent, their social security card, and proof of residency. Ms. Mingo-McKoy stated that only Boynton residents would be employed in Boynton Beach, but the overflow of Boynton youth that applies will work in other locations, such as Delray Beach, Lake Worth, etc. Ms. McKoy said there would also be a program for the 18 to 21 years olds who would be working eight-hour days. The younger age would only be working four-hour days and will complete an academic component for the other four hours. Ms. Mingo-McKoy announced that on May 22 the Juvenile Transition Center would be making its annual trip to Orlando to Universal Studios. Approximately 80 youth will be participating. Ms. Mingo-McKoy said that the trip last year to Epcot went extremely well. Also, Chairman Washam announced that the Advisory Board on Children and Youth th would be holding its annual Youth Volunteer Banquet on Saturday, May 15 at the Civic Center. Chairman Washam said he would be assisting the Board. Chairman Washam said he would be present at 6:00 p.m., but was uncertain of the exact time of the banquet. VII. PUBLIC AUDIENCE None VIII. MEETING LOCATIONS Chairman Washam said that for two months the Board has been attempting to take its meetings on the road without much success. Ms. Girtman said she called the Headstart once, but didn’t get any response and she forgot to follow through. Ms. Girtman apologized for not following through. Dr. Beil said he would like to arrange for next month’s meeting at the Headstart location, thrd which is located at NE 9 Avenue and NE 3 Street. Chairman Washam said that flyers should be prepared. Chairman Washam said that it is important that the Board take its meetings to the community. It had been successful in the past. 3 MEETING MINUTES COMMUNITY RELATIONS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 12, 1999 Chairman Washam welcomed the new members to the Board and asked Mr. Hansome Jones to introduce himself. Mr. Jones said he is a local resident and is married with four children. Mr. Jones said that he has been employed by the Department of Corrections for 25 years. Mr. Jones said he would like to invest something in the City and has become involved in other projects within the City as well. Mr. Ackermann stated that Mr. Jones has started a neighborhood association in his area. Chairman Washam next introduced Mr. Brett Sherman and welcomed him to the Board. Mr. Sherman said that he recently moved to Boynton Beach permanently over a year ago, after visiting the area most of his life. Mr. Sherman said he wanted to become a member of the Board so that he could become active in the community and was glad to be present this evening. Mr. Ackermann distributed an up-dated list of the Board membership to the members. Chairman Washam noted that two alternate positions remain open. B. Advisory Board Forum Chairman Washam reminded members that the Advisory Board Forum is scheduled for th Saturday, June 19 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Mr. Washam informed the new members that the other Boards involved in the Forum are the Education Advisory Board, the Senior Advisory Board and the Children and Youth Advisory Board. Chairman Washam stated that four times a year a forum is held to hold a general discussion about what can be done to make things better in the community. Each Board has a specific area they are working on. Chairman Washam stated the Forum would be held at the City Library. After the Forum, the Boards have been invited to Bruce Black’s neighborhood block party, which takes place across the street from the Library. Chairman Washam said the Board would be spotlighting the Homeless Veteran’s Project and that he has contacted them to arrange for a speaker to speak at the Forum. th Ms. Miller informed members that on April 24 a Rock ‘n Roll Saturday at the Park was held in Greenacres Community Park which was attended by more than 500 bikers for the benefit of Vetsville. Ms. Miller said the event was phenomenal. Ms. Miller said that she spoke with the promoter of the event who indicated he would be willing to work with the Board and Ms. Chris Noelle of Vetsville to sponsor an event like this in the City. Ms. Miller also indicated that the Exchange Club would be willing to work with the Board. Ms. Miller noted that if the Board sponsored a road rally, the contributions would probably be divided between Vetsville and the Dick Webber Foundation against child abuse. 4 MEETING MINUTES COMMUNITY RELATIONS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 12, 1999 Mr. Ackermann inquired if the Board planned to offer sandwiches at the Forum and if so, the Board should contact the City for some assistance. Chairman Washam said he would follow through on the refreshments. Chairman Washam stated if any Board member wished to contribute towards the refreshments, it would be greatly appreciated. Dr. Beil noted that the Board would be attending the block party after the meeting, and that perhaps just offering snacks would be more appropriate than sandwiches. Dr. Beil inquired if Mr. Black was aware that the Boards would be attending his party and was informed that Mr. Black had been advised of this. Ms. Miller said that a meeting needs to take place with the promoter to determine what a rally would involve and how much the cost would be. Ms. Miller indicated that October or November would be a good time of the year for the rally. Also, Ms. Miller said the wish list is still open and donations are needed. Chairman Washam requested that Ms. Miller put all the information together and bring it to the Board next month for review. Chairman Washam noted that since the Board would be sponsoring the S.T.A.R.’s event in October, that November would be the best time for the rally. Ms. Miller inquired that if any other Board member would like to participate in the meeting with the promoter and the Exchange Club and herself they would be welcomed. Mr. Sherman said he would be glad to participate in the meeting. Mr. Sherman and Ms. Miller would bring back the information to next month’s meeting for consideration. D. Youth in Government Day Chairman Washam said this item should be removed from the Agenda. Chairman Washam said it was very successful and there was a good turnout. Chairman Washam noted that Ms. Blanche Girtman started this program more than 27 years ago to bring students into the City to take over the government for a day. Chairman Washam thanked all the Board members for participating throughout the day. E. Commission Orientation Chairman Washam noted that Ms. Williams was not present this evening to make a report, but noted the orientation was successful. Chairman Washam thanked Ms. Miller for her participation and for the flyers, which she prepared. Ms. Miller inquired what the outcome of the orientation was and Chairman Washam said that the Commission indicated they would be relying upon more of the Boards’ advice than had been done in the past. Also, they indicated they would like to attend more Board meetings and that there should be more dialogue between the Boards. Chairman Washam said the main purpose of the Board is to be an advisory board to the Commission. 5 MEETING MINUTES COMMUNITY RELATIONS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 12, 1999 IX. NEW BUSINESS A. Election of Chairman and Vice Chairman Chairman Washam informed the Board that Ms. Currier is no longer on the Board and therefore there is no Vice Chair and it would be order to elect new officers which is done annually at the May meeting. Dr. Floyd Beil nominated Beth Miller for Chairperson. Nomination seconded by Mr. Sherman. Ms. Blanche Girtman nominated Ron Washam for Chairman. Nomination seconded by Ms. Mingo-McKoy. Ms. Girtman moved that the nominations be closed. Chairman Washam turned the gavel over to Ms. Girtman since there was no Vice Chair and since Ms. Girtman is the senior member on the Board. Ms. Girtman stated the first nomination for Chairperson was Beth Miller and asked for all those in favor of Ms. Miller as Chairperson to signify by raising their hand. Ms. Miller received one vote for Chairperson. Ms. Girtman stated the second nomination for Chairperson was Ron Washam and asked for all those in favor of Ron Washam as Chairperson to signify by raising their hand. Mr. Washam received six votes. Ms. Girtman declared Ron Washam the winner with six to one votes in his favor and that Mr. Washam would remain Chairman of the Board for the ensuing year. Chairman Washam called for nominations as Vice Chair. Chairman Washam nominated Beth Miller to be Vice Chairperson. Ms. Girtman seconded the motion. Chairman Washam asked if there were any other nominations. There were none. Therefore the nominations were closed. Chairman Washam asked for all those in favor of Ms. Miller as Vice Chair to signify by saying aye. There were no nays. Ms. Miller was unanimously elected Vice Chair for the ensuing year. B. Involvement in Community Activities 6 MEETING MINUTES COMMUNITY RELATIONS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 12, 1999 Chairman Washam said that this Board needs to become more involved with businesses in the Community. Chairman Washam said he attended a Chamber of Commerce breakfast and there are some programs that this Board might be able to assist the Chamber with. Chairman Washam said he would like to explore the possibilities of this Board becoming involved in projects that would benefit students, as well as people and businesses in the community. At this point in the meeting, Ms. Miller handed out the history of the Board that was distributed to the Commission and asked members if they would like to have this information incorporated into a pamphlet. Ms. Miller presented a longer version and a shorter version for review by the Board. Also, Ms. Miller said a decision needs to be made on the style of the pamphlet. Board members reviewed the material. Chairman Washam liked the longer version. Vice Chair Miller thought the longer version was more professional. Vice Chair Miller stated the purpose of having a pamphlet is that it would be available as handouts and also would be displayed on the table in the foyer of City Hall, etc. Mr. Ackermann thought that the City would be able to assist in the preparation of the pamphlet. Vice Chair Miller noted that the pamphlet would be similar to the one distributed by the City’s Citizen Action Center. Motion Vice Chair Miller moved that the longer version of the pamphlet be prepared and that it be prepared as a three-fold, two-sided brochure. Motion seconded by Ms. Girtman and unanimously carried. Vice Chair Miller gave the information for the pamphlet to Mr. Ackermann who said he would arrange to have the brochure prepared. Neighborhood Summit Meeting Mr. Ackermann added that the quarterly Neighborhood Summit Meeting would be held th on Monday, June 7 at 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the Library Program Room. The meetings are usually attended by representatives from most of the neighborhoods in the City. Mr. Ackermann noted that the meetings are held quarterly so that neighborhoods can share common concerns, common needs, celebrate victories, etc. Mr. Ackermann said he would be glad to put the Board on the agenda. 7 MEETING MINUTES COMMUNITY RELATIONS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 12, 1999 C. S.T.A.R. Program Chairman Washam would like the Board this evening to select the dates in October for the S.T.A.R. Program, which would take place again at the Galaxy Elementary School. It was decided to have the Program the second and third Saturday of the month, which thth is October 9 and October 16. Chairman Washam also said the Board needs to set its first workshop for June. Chairman Washam said he would like to have people from the Chamber of Commerce become involved this year. Chairman Washam said he would like to replicate the same program that the teacher from Santaluces used for her students at other schools to ensure a bigger student turnout. Chairman Washam felt that the involvement of the Chamber of Commerce and their Education Committee would be beneficial to the program and would bridge the gap between businesses and the intent of the program. th Thursday, June 17 for the first Chairman Washam suggested the date of Conference workshop. Mr. Ackermann said that the workshop could be held in Room C in the WestWing . It was decided the workshop would take place at 7:00 p.m. Chairman Washam asked Mr. Ackermann to follow through with the thth availability of the cafeteria in the Galaxy School on October 9 and 16 from 8:00 a.m. and noon, each Saturday. D. Multi-Cultural Music Festival Dr. Beil said that several years ago a multi-cultural music festival took place in Boynton Beach and Dr. Beil heard it was quite successful. However, it has not taken place for many years now. Chairman Washam stated that a multi-cultural musical festival was held in 1994. Dr. Beil said he would like to plan for another one in the City that could be held on an annual or bi-annual basis. Dr. Beil said he spoke with several members from the Advisory Board on Children and Youth and Dr. Beil thought that both Boards could plan the festival. A member suggested calling it the “unity music festival” and this could tie in nicely with the City’s application for All America City. Dr. Beil suggested that the event could be scheduled for sometime in March or April and in addition to having music, booths could be set up for arts and crafts and refreshments could be sold. Also location wise, the Boat Club Park was suggested and the festival could take place all day long. Dr. Beil would like to discuss ideas and suggestions for the festival. Ms. Girtman did not think that changing the name of the festival to a unity festival would be beneficial. Mr. Girtman said that a unity dinner had been previously held under the auspices of former Commissioner Jaskiewicz and she did not think that the music 8 MEETING MINUTES COMMUNITY RELATIONS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 12, 1999 festival might not be as successful if it were called a “unity festival”. Mr. Jones thought that the word “unity” would be more attractive than using “multi-cultural”. Chairman Washam said that when the last multi-cultural festival took place, it attracted a great deal of people. Chairman Washam said that Unity Day took place several years ago and thought that the Board could use “unity”. Mr. Sherman suggested calling it “City Palooza” which means a combination of several bands. Ms. Mingo-McKoy said that there is more than music involved in a multi-cultural festival and also there are traditional customs that people are involved with that should be incorporated along with the music. Ms. Mingo-McKoy suggested that the name remain multi-cultural festival. Mr. Ackermann suggested “a celebration of our diversity” and to celebrate the fact that everyone is different. After discussion it was determined that it would remain as the “Multi-cultural musical festival – a celebration of our diversity”. Mr. Ackermann “Diversity of our strength” suggested that would be a good slogan and Dr. Beil suggested this slogan could be used on tee shirts. Chairman Washam suggested that sometime in August workshops could begin for planning the festival. Since G.A.L.A. is held in March, it was decided that April would be the best month for the festival. However, Mr. Ackermann did not think that the festival could take place at Boat Club Park on a Saturday, since the Park is full of boat trailers. Chairman Washam said this could be further discussed at future workshops. There was a consensus among the Board members to hold the multi-cultural music festival. X. ADJOURNMENT The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, June 9, 1999 at 7:30 p.m. Motion Mrs. Girtman moved that the meeting adjourn. The motion was seconded by Ms. Mingo-McCoy and unanimously carried. The meeting properly adjourned at 8:40 p.m. Respectfully submitted, ______________________________ Barbara M. Madden Recording Secretary (two tapes) 9