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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013/11/06 - ADMIN - Minutes - Environment & Sustainability Commission - Regular (2)MINUTES ENVIRONMENT AND SUSTAINABILITY COMMISSIONS: SUSTAINABLE SLP ST. LOUIS PARK, MINNESOTA November 6, 2013 Rec Center MEMBERS PRESENT: Chris Anderson, Tim Brausen, Mark Eilers, Terry Gips, Caitlin Glennon, Rachel Harris, Tom Hillstrom, Cindy Larson O’Neil, Alex Sundvall, Whitney Thesing, Judy Voigt MEMBERS ABSENT: Mary Karius and Renee McGarvey, Excused STAFF PRESENT: Bridget Gothberg, Cindy Walsh CONSULTANTS: Mike Lamb, Fred Rozumalski, Barr Engineering Company GUESTS: Bill Sierks, Chair of the Edina Commission and Sean Gosiewski, Alliance for Sustainability   1. The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. 2. The minutes of the October 2, 2013 meeting were moved by Commissioner Eilers, seconded by Commissioner Harris and approved unanimously. It was also requested that we use only one “p” on Terry Gips name. 3. Unfinished Business a. Edina Commission Discussion: Bill Sierks shared how the Edina Commission works. Their main purpose is to Recommend and Educate. They have a staff liaison. They look at dollars, time and resources to help them rank what is important. They coordinate with other city commissions. They focus on only a few key things each year to stay on track and get things done. Things they have worked on are: Commercial Recycling, Residential Organics, Green City Projects –most of this was about educating the community. b. Alliance for Sustainability Discussion: Sean Gosiewski, Alliance for Sustainability, explained what the Alliance does with cities. He gave examples of what is happening around the state, country and in Canada. He talked about GreenSteps and Natural Steps. There was focus on developing visioning and systems. c. Work Plan Discussion: Mike Lamb brought information from the September meeting. There were three parts to this exercise: i. Commissioners put the areas they wanted to see the Commission work on, using three index cards and one idea per card. ii. Those ideas were then put on the wall, and Commissioners each had three colored dots to vote on what they believed was the most important for moving forward. iii. There was dialogue around these items. Many in the group felt that this process pointed toward the need for a more detailed community visioning process, to direct the work of the Commission to reflect community needs. Mike Lamb took this data and will bring back to the Commission in December. There was also a handout on Sustainable SLP: Process and Organizational Diagram Suggestions. It was agreed that the commission would not work with this handout at this point in time and would keep it for the future. 4. New Business: a. Term renewals were noted by staff liaison Gothberg for Mary Karius, Renee McGarvey and Cindy Larson O’Neil. They will receive an email with a Reappointment Status Form to complete and a deadline for returning it. This will be completed in December and sent to City Council for approval on January 6. b. December meeting will be held on the 11th due to conflicts of staff. The meeting will be two hours and start at 6:30, which is a half hour earlier than previous evening meetings. 5. Communications: a. Commissioner Rachel Harris is completing her Master’s Degree and invited Commissioners to attend her presentation. b. Commissioner Cindy Larson O’Neil leased an electric car. If anyone wants to test drive it, contact Cindy. 6. The meeting was adjourned at 9:10 p.m.