Minutes taken by: Cindy Sweeney

Minutes

Meeting of the Rondout Valley Business Association Board of Directors Thursday April 1, 2010, 7:30am at Friends & Family II.

In attendance: Richard Travers, Carl Pezzino, Pam Kimmerling-Hoveling, Ben Shor, Rocco Pucino, Tim Sweeney, Ev Mann, Eric Stewart, Dan Johnson, Denise McCarrol, Laurel Sweeney, Cindy Sweeney

Not present: Dan Gagnon

Meeting convened at 7:30

Motion made by Carl to adopt the minutes of February 2010 board meeting. The motion was seconded by Tim and unanimously approved.

The Board elected not to have a March meeting due to limited agenda and low attendance

1. Board Term worksheet: Cindy and Richard worked together to create a spreadsheet to track Board member terms. Cindy will email a copy to each member of the Board.

2. 2010 Meeting and event schedule: Richard gave an overview of the 2010 meeting and event schedule. Cindy and Richard will be working together to fill in the calendar and will email a copy to each member of the Board. Once complete, the schedule will also be posted to the website. 3. Canopy and setup equipment: The Board approved, by way of an electronic vote, the purchase of a canopy and other items needed to facilitate an RVBA presence at various events occurring in the area.

4. Rocco Pucino resignation: Rocco Pucino, Secretary for the RVBA has submitted his letter of resignation. Rocco has been promoted and will be working in New Paltz. All Board members present expressed both their happiness at Rocco’s promotion and regret at the loss to the RVBA. Richard suggested at this time asking three new people to join the RVBA Board. Sue Benz, Bill Gettell and Steve Kelley have all expressed interest in becoming Board members. One of the three will be chosen to replace Rocco as secretary. All present agreed upon the choices and asked that Richard formalize the invitations.

5. Garden Tour: Eric gave an update on the Garden Tour. Saunderskill Farms has agreed to host the ticket sales. Signs are being made by Ledermans Children Center. Signs will be 6x8. Kids will be painting the background and adults will be doing the lettering. There will be a removable insert for the date and location so the signs can be used again next year. They will be placed through out the community 4-6 weeks prior to the tour. The date has been changed this year to July 17th to allow for fuller garden maturity and in hopes of avoiding spring rains.

6. Buy Local: Richard has been in contact with the tech department at the Rondout Valley High School. They have agreed to make 20 “Buy Local” signs for the RVBA. Williams Lumber has again agreed to donate all the necessary supplies at cost. Richard also reported that there are 3-4 people waiting to purchase the signs as soon as they are finished.

7. Website update: Pam reported to the Board that we are still waiting for a completed product. She has been working closely with Cornerstones new designer and has made some headway but has not yet finished the process. She will continue to give the Board regular updates on progress.

8. 2010 membership: Cindy reported that many members still have not paid their 2010 membership dues. Richard suggested sending out a reminder notice. Discussion was had about sending out the notice with an easy payment option. Cindy agreed to check into the use of Pay Pal in conjunction with Constant Contact as a way of a “click to pay” option. She will report back to the Board on her findings. Discussion was also had on the membership packet. Richard agreed to contact Cornerstone for the printing of new membership cards and window stickers.

9. Property tax reform task force: Tim brought to the attention of the board a request placed by a local Property Tax Reform Coalition. Tim explained that the group has been working state wide to try to get a cap on property tax increases. They have requested an opportunity to speak with the business community to gather input on how the property tax impacts business. Discussion was had regarding the request. A decision was reached to allow the group to present first to the Board before communicating with the membership. Richard agreed to contact the group and invite them to the May BOD meeting.

10. Zoning: Tim brought to the attention of the Board some zoning challenges being faced by area businesses. He suggested that some of the difficulties being faced by local businesses are excessive. After an in depth explanation and much discussion the Board was in agreement that the RVBA needed to speak up in favor of business in regards to these zoning difficulties. Since Pam, Tim and Ev are all members of the Marbletown Economic Sustainability task force they also serve as the RVBA representative committee in this matter.

11. Visions of the Valley 2009 Event: Cindy gave a final report on the Visions event. A profit of $743.60 was realized by the RVBA.

12. RVBA/RVGA Events: Richard, Tim and Pam met again with RVGA members Mike Segal and Bruce Davenport. They were presented with an income analysis for the last two years. After review, they felt that the results were favorable and could be improved upon. As such, the process of co-hosting the Barn Dance and Harvest Dinner will continue to move forward.

13. Advertising sales position: Richard brought to the attention of the Board the fact that Carol Ricken, who handled all the advertising sales for the Visitors Guide last year will not be available this year. He explained that she has generously offered to share all her rolladex information with the RVBA. Richard also suggested that there be a part time position created for an individual to sell advertising sales each time the RVBA needs it. General discussion was had and agreed upon by all present regarding the commission and possible individuals who might be interested.

14. Shawangunk Journal: Richard told the Board of the Shawangunk Journal decision to enter the Marbletown marketplace. He explained that he had spoken with Alex Shiffer, editor, about purchasing an email blast right from the RVBA in order to alert the business community and offer advertising space. He also suggested that he attend next months mixer and say a few words to the attendees regarding his plans.

Action items:

· Cindy send updated Board term sheet to Board members · Cindy & Richard complete 2010 calendar – Cindy post to website and email to Board · Cindy investigate Pay Pal/ Constant Contact click to pay option for membership renewals · Richard contact Cornerstone to order necessary 2010 membership packet supplies · Richard contact Property Tax Reform Coalition and invite them to the May BOD meeting

The meeting adjourned at 9:00am.

Submitted by Cindy Sweeney April 4, 2010