Brookfield Heritage Neighborhood Association
Meeting Notes from June 30, 2016 Board Meeting
Roll Call
The meeting was attended by BHNA Board members Mike Benedict, Beth Blythe, John Boughman, Jennifer Castner, Jeff Johnson, Alan Munn, Dawn Parker, and Kay Ruekberg, and Philip Eisenlohr.
Treasurer’s Report
Alan Munn reported that the BHNA holds approximately $449.00 in its checking account and $3,347.00 in its savings account. Neighborhood trees are the biggest expense item for the BHNA. Alan brought up the possibility of removing the PayPal option for paying dues from the website as it is not used. He will investigate other options and report back.
Approval of Minutes
Minutes of the previous meeting were not prepared.
Old Business
Nothing new to report on the history project.
Mike Benedict offered to contact the East Lansing Human Relations Commission to see if there was any way to remove the offensive language from the BHNA charter documents without having to put the neighborhood at any risk.
New Business
The board was unable to contact BHNA president Ed Swanson prior to the meeting. John Boughman will contact Ed.
Jennifer Castner announced a bake sale in support of a neighborhood Little Free Library. The bake sale will take place on Saturday, July 16.
The upcoming board rotation was discussed. John Boughman, Beth Blythe, and Dawn Parker will all be leaving the board at the time of the annual picnic, and new people need to be recruited to fill their roles. Each member of the board was asked to think about anyone who might be interested in joining up and discussing at the next meeting.
The board discussed a message from a resident who inquired about the threat to our neighborhood posed by the Asian Longhorned Beetle. Kay Ruekberg agreed to inquire at the MSU extension program and other places to see if anyone could speak to the issue at a future meeting. The importance of tree diversity was discussed, along with maintaining the character of the neighborhood. .
The CATA BRT and its potential impact on the neighborhood were discussed. An article inviting feedback from Brookfield neighborhood residents will appear in the next neighborhood newsletter.
The annual picnic was discussed. It will be held on September 11 from 4:00pm – 6:00pm at the mid-point of Maplewood Drive. Board members volunteered to complete the following tasks:
- John – Supply extension cord for electricity, gather signatures for road closure and deliver to City Hall with check, tables, ladder
- Alan – Prepare agenda, put out signs, contact balloon man, man the dues table along with John, email reminders and update social media, banner
- Jennifer – Prepare newsletter, contact Heather about entertainment for the kids.
- Beth – Mail newsletter
- Mike – hot dogs, buns, condiments, paper products; set up barriers
- Jeff – Cups, tables
- Dawn – Drink cooler, invite dignitaries
- Kay – Contact Whole Foods about contribution for drawing.