Board Meeting: Tuesday, October 11, 2016, at 9:00 am
Location: The Rellik Bar and Lounge, 726 First Street, Benicia, CA
Notice to the Public:
You are welcomed and encourage to participate in this meeting. Public comment is taken (3 minutes maximum per person) on items listed on the agenda when they are called. Public Comment on items not listed on the agenda will be heard at the meeting as noted on the agenda. Comments on controversial items may be limited and large groups are encouraged to select one or two speakers to represent the opinion of the group. The order of Agenda items is listed for reference and may be taken in any order deemed appropriate by the Board of Directors. The Agenda provides a general description; however, the Board of Directors may take action other than what is recommended.
Brown Act Notice:
Government Code Section 54950 (The Brown Act) requires that a brief description of each item to be transacted or discussed be posted at least 72 hours prior to a Board Meeting. Action may not be taken on items not posted on the agenda. Meeting facilities are accessible to persons with disabilities. If you require special assistance to participate in the meeting, notify Leah Shelhorn at 707-745-0254 at least 24 hours prior to this special meeting.
Board of Directors for 2016:
1. Leah Shelhorn, Chair, Studio 41, Gifts4 Every1, Capitol District
2. Thomas Hamilton,Vice Chair & Treasurer, The Rellik Tavern, Capitol District
3. Eileen Stern, Secretary, Re Max Gold Real Estate, Waterfront District
4. James Morgan, Sailor Jacks, Waterfront District
5. James Long, Pups and Purrs, Waterfront District
6. Carl Lucca, Lucca Restaurant, Waterfront District
7. Jeanne Steinman, Benicia Magazine, Waterfront District
8. Tom Gavin, Gavin and Schreiner, Capitol District, 2nd Floor
Mario Giuliani, Economic Development Manager, City of Benicia
Downtown Benicia Alliance Board Meeting Agenda:
1. Call to Order:
2. Public Comment: Members of the Public are invited to comment on any item related to the affairs of the Downtown Benicia Alliance. Each member has up to three minutes to address the Board. The Board is not allowed to discuss matters brought up during public comment.
3. Approval of Agenda: The Chair will seek approval of the Agenda. Only items already on the agenda may be discussed. Approval of the Agenda allows for adjustment of the order in which items are discussed.
4. Approval of Minutes: The Chair will seek approval of the August 9, 2016 minutes. The minutes should be approved if they meet the adequately and accurately the decisions and action made at the previous meeting. If a Board Member was absent for a meeting, they should abstain from voting, unless their vote is necessary to make a quorum, at which point they may vote on the item.
5. Treasurer’s Report: Lynell R. Green, our Accountant, of ATS Tax and Financial Solutions. Lynell will report on invoices due, and updates. Possible Board Action and Vote.
6. Amend Bylaws Vote: Amend Section 5 of the Bylaws and delete the portion that says no sub-district should have more than 4 members. In the August meeting, we discussed this bylaw, and a vote will be taken at this meeting. In August ‘s packet the Bylaws were attached.
7. Update on Contract to All That Glows. Mario/Leah will report. Possible Board Action and Vote.
8. Update on Assessments Paid: Leah/Mario will give the report. Possible Board action and vote.
9. Benicia Film Festival Update: Leah, Eileen, Tom Hamilton, and James Morgan will discuss. Possible Board action and vote.
10.Business Improvement District (BID) 2017: Authorize to hire Civitas Consulting to guide the DBA. Board Action and Vote. The subcommittee was voted upon in August. The Board members are: Leah, Carl and Eileen. Lynell Green, our Accountant stepped up to be on Sub-Committee as well.
11.Elect Nomination Committee: Elect Board members for sub-committee. Letters go out November 1 and vote taken at the December 13 Board Meeting to elect new Board Members.
12.Traffic Safety Committee Meeting Update: Carl and Eileen will discuss the outcome of the meeting of August 18. Possible Board Action and Vote.
13.Directory for the Website: Discussion and possible Board Action and Vote.
14.Upcoming Important Dates for the DBA: Please mark your calendars.
final Wrap up Meeting, Tuesday, December 13.
Board Meeting
Tuesday, August 9, 2016
Rellik Tavern, 726 First Street
Board members present: Leah Shelhorn (Chair), Eileen Stern (Secretary), James Morgan, Carl Lucca, Thomas Hamilton, Tom Gavin
Others Present: Mario Guiliani, Lynell Green, Gordon Gray,
Absent: James Long, Jeannie Steinmann
Call to order: The meeting was called to order by Leah Shelhorn at 9:04 AM
Approval of Agenda: Tom Gavin moved to accept agenda as written. Tom Hamilton seconded. Motion carried.
Approval of minutes: Tom Hamilton to accept the minutes of the April 2016 special meeting as written. Carl Lucca seconded. The motion carried.
Public comment: none
Treasurers Report: Lynell Green of ATS will be doing the books. She met with Renee Marie who didn’t have any new information to give us. Largest monthly expense is ATG. Constant Contact has been paid out of Carl’s account. He needs to be reimbursed. ($20 a month)
Benicia Film Festival: The subcommittee (Tom Hamilton, James Morgan, Eileen Stern and Leah Shelhorn) had met to review the program. Gordon Gray has brought up a mock up of program. Will have proof sent to sponsors to sign off. If no response from sponsor, we will assume all is ok with ad.
Benicia Art Walk: Steve McClure found alcohol insurance through Event Helper. Leah paid the premium and needs to be reimbursed for $104.45. The City of Benicia and DBA are named insureds.
Amend bylaws: Currently our by-laws read that no district shall have more than 4 board members. The idea was to have all parts of the street covered. It is difficult to get volunteers, and we don’t want to exclude someone from the board because of their business location. It was brought up to amend section 5 of the By-Laws and delete the portion that says no sub-district should have more than 4 members. The original idea was to have all parts of the street covered. This will be voted on next meeting.
Renewal of Business Improvement District: Mario stated that the Business Improvement District agreement will have to be reviewed. We need to see what is the DBA’s responsibility and what is the city’s responsibility. We will need to evaluate how we can assess the performance of the Downtown Benicia Alliance. We need to have three members to do this review. Mitch from ATG will give projection of what costs will be over the next 10 years. Currently cost is $76,000 now to do lights. We have to purchase lights every three years. There will be a cost adjustment every 10 years, most likely to be tied with the Consumer Price Index.
Most likely the DBA will hire Civitas end of the year. They can file the paperwork and handle the election. DBA will have to do public outreach next year as the agreement expires December of 2017. Tom Gavin moved, and Tom Hamilton seconded a move to establish a subcommittee consisting of Leah Shelhorn, Carl Lucca and Eileen Stern. The motion passed.
Assessments: Mario said city has contracted with a firm called HDL does the billing. They are supposed to be following up with notice of non-payment. Mario will follow up with HDL and finance department. Business license and DBA billing go out together.
Veterans hall and gazebo: Lighting at Vets Hall and gazebo. Lights are on at gazebo. The City found electrician who will light the lamp posts by Veterans Hall (Put in new boxes) He expects it to be done this week. City has paid about 10k. Leah would like to have by film festival.
Traffic Safety committee: Mario recommended that people attend the committee meeting. The DBA is on the agenda and Carl and Eileen are going to the meeting on August 18. Issues to bring up are crosswalk lightings from side streets, speeders on First Street, green zones and signage for green 30 minute zones. At this point, the city cannot ticket for violations of the three hour zones.
Directory for web site: This is a big task that can be sent out in an email blast. We are all volunteers and this is very time consuming.
Water rate increases: The water rate increases are affecting restaurants hugely..
Adjourn: Meeting was adjourned at 10:12 AM
Respectfully submitted,
Eileen Stern
Eileen Stern
RE/MAX Gold
Secretary