Minutes 03-16-09

Monday, March 16, 2009

7:00 P.M.

ST. JOSEPH COUNTY SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION DISTRICT MONTHLY BOARD MEETING 5605 U.S. 31 South, South Bend, Indiana 46614 574-291-7444, ext. 3

MINUTES I. CALL TO ORDER A meeting of the Board of Supervisors of the St. Joseph County Soil and Water Conservation District was called to order by John Dooms, Chairman, at 7:15 p.m. at 5605 U.S. 31 South, South Bend, IN 46614. PRESENT

ABSENT

John Dooms, Chairman John Kulwicki, Bd. Mem.

Chuck Lehman Joe Long

Jan Ivkovich, Vice Chair Carole Riewe, Bd. Mem. Dave Craft, Bd. Mem.

Gene Meyers Paul Williams, III Randy Matthys

Jim LaFree Melvin Kulwicki

Dru Wrasse Brian Cherry

Dale Stoner Richard Schmidt Stacey Silvers

Rick Glassman Debbie Knepp, NRCS PUBLIC

Katie Kurtz Maria Schaefer

Dave Vandewalle EX-OFFICIO

Lisa W ynn

LEGISLATIVE LETTERS None II. ADDITIONS TO AGENDA  Jan Ivkovich relayed that she had information on the April 25th Master Gardener’s Workshop for “Old Business” (Section IV, G). III. REGULAR BUSINESS A. MINUTES: The minutes were reviewed from the February 2009 meeting. The minutes were filed with a hand-written amendment on page 4, where there was a typo consisting of a partial sentence under sub-section C, “Office Matters”. This section, with the addition/correction emboldened below, now reads: C. Office Matters: Letterhead Proposals: Reviewed handout with propels from 3 vendors for letterhead and envelopes due to the fact that

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our current vendor, Stoll’s Printing, has ceased to exist. However, due to our office moving in the future due to the US 31 expansion project, we will hold off on making a decision until the next meeting.

B. TREASURERS REPORT: Treasurer’s report was reviewed and filed as presented. 1. Claim Approval: A recommendation and motion were made and seconded to approve Claim numbers 9544 through 9549, 9800 through 9813, as well as EFT03022009 and EFT-031609 for a total of $12,626.59 1 . Both carried. It was requested, however, that the claims voucher spreadsheet for these transactions provided for the supervisors for the next Board Meeting, as the totals did not figure correctly on the spreadsheet presented at the current Board Meeting, apparently due to a technical difficulty in the template. Also, it was decided that, in the future, for electronic transactions, Lisa Wynn should go ahead and use the next check number and void the paper check out for consistency’s sake versus creating a transaction number such as EFT-XXXX. IV. OLD BUSINESS A. WRITTEN REPORTS: 1. Field Office Report: The Field Office Report was distributed. John Dooms asked generally whether anyone had questions regarding the Floodplain Easement Program and emphasized the importance of getting the word out quickly given the deadline for applying. 2. Rule 5/Rule 13 Report: The Rule5/Rule 13 Report was distributed. Jan Ivkovich asked Katie to go into detail regarding the Wal-Mart Retention Pond, and Katie provided some general comments on the site. B. COMMITTEE REPORTS: 1. Forestry: Richard Schmidt reported the tree totals are down at the conclusion of the pre-sales for 2008-2009, speculating that the economy is likely leading factor. The pre-sales figures for tree orders are as follows:

Wildflowers Groundcover Deciduous Evergreen Flowering Trees Discounts TOTALS

2008-2009 Quantity 2008-2009 $ 2007-2008 Quantity 2007-2008 $ Pre-Sold Amount Pre-Sold Pre-Sold Amount Pre-Sold 83 $581.00 135 $945.00 2,650 $1,363.00 136 $1,564.00 3,925 $4,834.70 4,955 $6,282.20 7,395 $11,766.00 10,765 $16,091.25 1,735 $2,555.70 3,180 $3,832.20 $21,100.40 $28,714.65 $0.00 -$39.90 15,788 $21,100.40 19,171 $28,674.75

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Check nos. 9550-9799 do not exist. Upon reordering checks with our last check being 9549, while we requested 9550 as the next check number, the vendor began with 9880.

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Richard also reported that the Forestry Committee met a few weeks ago to decide on the number of “extra trees” to order for purchase on the day of the preorder pickup (April 18th). They decided to trim the usual numbers for extra tree sales a bit to take the economy into account, while staying within the minimum quantity requirements agreed upon with the nurseries. Richard noted that we do have a few grant requests for the trees remaining at the conclusion of all pickups. A sign-up sheet for tree week volunteers was also passed around. Richard also asked that everyone help update the list of drop-off locations by providing current information to Katie Kurtz, and to also gather up the posters that were distributed this year. He also noted it is important to thank the business owners for allowing us to display our tree posters. In line with the upcoming week of preparing for tree pickups on Saturday, April 18th, Katie made a request for permission to pay for “incidentals” related to this preparation and the actual tree pickup day. She noted that some of the tree stock has yet to be paid for, and we would need permission to write a check to pay for the tree stock prior to or on the day it is picked up (Monday, April 13th). It was recommended by the board to give permission to pre-pay for the remaining tree stock, and to allot $500 for food and other miscellaneous expenses that come up for that week. A recommendation and motion were made to this effect, and both carried. It was further discussed that the trees will be picked up on Monday, April 13th by Rick and Katie. When they are closer to returning from this trip, Lisa Wynn will be notified to call the individuals who have volunteered to help out on that day.

2. Conservation Planning/Grass Drill: Katie reported that as of the time of the Board Meeting, 5 people had signed up for use of the grass drill. The first use should be within the next two weeks.

3. Education: Dale Stoner handed the floor to Lisa Wynn, who made a request on behalf of Rick for permission to purchase gummy worms for Rick’s educational programs. Lisa explained that she had done quite a bit of research on prices for the gummies, and even compared to local stores like Sam’s Club, the best prices by far were online at Bulkfoods.com. To qualify for the best shipping rate of $5, the order total would need to be at least $75, which would buy 40 pounds of gummy worms. In addition, Lisa requested permission to purchase water testing strips for $48.05 from the supplier recommended by Hoosier River Watch. Jan Ivkovich pointed out that we may be able to receive the water testing strips for free from Hoosier River Watch, and that she would look into this. The Board made a recommendation to grant permission to spend a total of $80 on gummy worms and $48.05 for water testing strips, with the condition that if we could get

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the water testing strips for free, then we should go this route instead. The recommendation carried. A motion was made to this effect, and this carried as well. C.

OFFICE STAFF UPDATES: 1. MS4: John Dooms formally introduced Maria Schaefer, our new MS4 Conservationist, to the Board, noting that we are now fully staffed. 2. Summer Intern: John Dooms explained that of the few applications we received for the summer intern position, none were a good fit for what we are looking for, so it was decided to not hire a summer intern for this 2009.

D. WINTER CWI MEETING: Katie reported on the Clean Water Indiana winter meeting we organized on Friday, February 27, 2009. While there was quite a small crowd consisting of about 15 attendees, almost all of them have spoken to Debbie Knepp/NRCS about programs. John Dooms pointed out that there were a lot of factors working against us as far as getting a larger crowd, including the fact that there were a lot of other winter meetings that same week, the meeting was held on a Friday which is usually a bad day for workshop attendance, and we were not able to get continuing education credits due to scheduling issues. Katie went on to ask for permission to refund the $35 for booth fees to Lake Farm Service and Farm Credit Services as a good will gesture, mainly due to a lack of exposure for these businesses. John Dooms expanded on this request, pointing out that if we request booth sponsors in the future, we will be more likely to have the support of these businesses in the future if we show them good will now. A recommendation and motion were made to this effect, and both carried. E. ANNUAL MEETING: Lisa Wynn updated the Annual Meeting report to reflect the sale of 8 additional tickets, equaling an extra $80 in sales. John Dooms reminded everyone that for the 2010 Annual Meeting, which is our 50th Anniversary, all ideas are welcome. We want to make this a special event. John included the suggestion that we should invite past board members, make it a bright occasion, and encourage friendly interactions by using round tables. He also pointed out that John Kulwicki's father was one of the original 5 supervisors, which is quite remarkable. F. OFFICE MATTERS: Lisa Wynn reported that, as requested at the February Board Meeting, she took a closer look at our supply of stationary and envelopes, and it looks like we can hold off on ordering more for a while in case we do end up moving the office within the near future. G. MASTER GARDENERS APRIL 25TH MEETING: Jan Ivkovich reported on the Master Gardener's April 25th meeting taking place at the main branch of the St. Joseph County Public Library, at which they have requested the SWCD do a presentation. The Master Gardeners are not interested in River Watch after all, despite the fact that this was the topic Jan had thought they wanted the SWCD to present on.

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Rather, the Master Gardeners want a more general presentation on what do we do to preserve soil and keep water clean. John Dooms recalled that we have done presentations in the past along this line, suggesting the possibility of perhaps updating one of these presentations and creating a slideshow. Jan will speak to Rick on how or if we will pursue this. V. A.

NEW BUSINESS SCHEDULES: Reviewed handout.

B. COMMITTEE SIGN-UPS: Jan Ivkovich reported that during a recent Supervisor’s meeting regarding committees, it was evident that we needed to evaluate the current committees to see which ones we need to keep, which ones we no longer need, etc. Jan passed around a Committee Sign-Up sheet that included slots that the supervisors filled based on different people’s interests; however, she noted that everyone should feel free to move their names around to different committees as desired. John Dooms reminded the Board that for our organization, committees are very important in that meetings on more specific topics can take place during a more convenient time to all. Allowing the committees to report to and make recommendations from the Board at the monthly meeting results in shorter and more efficient Board Meetings. C. TRAININGS/CONFERENCES: Katie requested permission to attend the NRCS Boot Camp during the first week of July in Wabash, Indiana. There is no fee for the Boot Camp. Katie also requested $30 per registration for her and Maria to attend a Green Site Planning workshop in Indianapolis on March 26th (total of $60.) Lastly, Katie requested the $35 per person registration fee for herself and Maria to attend the Indiana MS4 Annual Meeting in Noblesville, Indiana on April 23rd (total of $70.) Jan added that she had looked at the agenda for MS4 Annual Meeting, and it looks like perfect for training and networking for both Maria and Katie. The total registration fees request for these trainings was $130. A recommendation and motion were made to this effect, and both carried. D. FLOODPLAIN EASEMENT PROGRAM: questions on this topic. There were none.

Katie was available for additional

John Dooms announced that Dave VandeWalle VI. PRIVILEGE OF FLOOR: wished to serve as an Associate Supervisor with the St. Joseph County Soil & Water Conservation District. A recommendation and motion were made to this effect, and both carried. Dave added that he looked forward to working with the District. John also read thank you cards from Stacey Silvers regarding the plant sent by the SWCD in memory of her mother who had recently passed, as well as one from Rafael Vega and Lindsay Martinez regarding their appreciation for everything that was done for them and the good experiences they had during the time they were with the District. John then reemphasized that the tree sales are important fundraiser for the SWCD, and 5

for conservation in general. Dale asked if we can find out where the trees are being sold, to which Richard responded that this would be a good tool for strategizing how to place the tree flyer posters for 2009-2010 tree sales, especially since this year even the usual places seemed to be far less effective than in past years. Lisa Wynn noted that she should be able to create some kind of report along this line. VII. ADJOURNMENT The March 16, 2009 Board Meeting of the St. Joseph County Soil & Water Conservation District was adjourned at 8:30 p.m.

Respectfully Submitted,

Alisa R. Wynn, Treasurer Approved by:

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