August 14, 2011 Meeting Minutes
Elk Forest Civic Association Meeting Minutes - August, 14, 2011
Prepared by: Susan Deeney, Secretary
The meeting was held at the home of President Ben Roth, Sunday August 14th, 2011 at 1pm. Despite the rain, the food , ice cream truck and neighborly conversations made it a nice afternoon.
President Ben Roth opened the meeting, and turned it over to Ms. Chris Brookmeyer, Treasurer, to summarize the financial state of the Association. The financial report is available to ElK Forest Civic Association members. During the report, the increase in mosquito spraying/costs was discussed and all in attendance agreed that the increase in fees was worth it.
Ms. Brookmeyer went thru the financials and acknowledged the helpful assistance of Mr. Dick Guttendorf.
It was highlighted that Ms. Chris Brookmeyer’s term as Treasurer is up, and according to the By-Laws, can no longer serve the Association in this capacity. A new Treasurer is being sought and recommendations are welcomed. Please provide them to President Roth.
Also discussed was the improvement in the quality of the river water this year – i.e. less grass, less algae – there does not seem to be a clear reason why, but the difference is noticeable and has made the river more enjoyable for all.
Ms. Debbie Koehler, Vice President, gave a report on her dealings with the Office of Senator Cardin regarding the depth of the Elk Forest river, and potential dredging. Ms. Koehler noted that the Office has been cooperative, that the Army Corps of Engineers has acknowledged fault in the flow of spoils into the river, but the path to what, if anything will be done, or in what time line, is unclear. It appears that other local rivers may be targeted for funding, but what funding is available, how you get it, is not easy to discern. Copies of reports/correspondence with the Senator’s Office are available to Association members. A few residents offered other contacts that might be of assistance. Another resident, said she read an article in the local paper indicating that the Elk River would be dredged, Ms. Koehler committed to look into this.
The opportunity to expand on the ‘Nice People’ section of the website was discussed. There is a desire to promote good businesses to neighbors, while alerting neighbors to ‘not good ‘ businesses. Also, it was mentioned that a small group of selected, preferred businesses could pay EFCA a small annual fee for advertising, making our website self-funding.
The Association member list was updated during the course of the meeting. All are encouraged to ensure that their contact info is accurate. Please send updates to President Ben Roth. Also, if the password for the site is needed, please contact President Roth.