Thursday May 18th, 2023
9:04am – 10:11am
In Attendance: Eva Martens, Subbu Subramonian, Brenda Eszenyi, Terry Rhodes, and Sarah Matacic
Additional: Robert Hand, Ryan Cosgrove, Jim Foreman, and Alexa Chavez
Regrets: Joanne Emberson
Absent: Esther Pauls
A. Welcome & Introductory Remarks: Chair E. Martens
B. Review & Approval of the Agenda: Chair E. Martens
Motion: Terry Rhodes
Second: Subbu Subramonian
C. Review & Approval of April 2023 Minutes: Chair E. Martens
Motion: Eva Martens
Second: Terry Rhodes
D. Board Business:
Receive Darryl Howe’s Resignation:
Motion: Eva Martens
Second: Brenda Eszenyi
Executive Team:
Vice Chair and Treasurer positions are open, need to be filled as soon as possible.
Digital Marketing Campaign:
Discussed marketing options for Concession Street BIA with Star Metroland Media. Advertising with social media to lump services/goods into categories for users. The social media ads or SEO keywords can be changed monthly or bi-monthly for seasonal changes in advertising or for events. Data results can be sent bi-weekly or monthly for demographics/results of ads. Vote to continue SEO without the social media campaign for $500/month for 6 months, a total of $3000.
Motion: Eva Martens
Second: Terry Rhodes
Social Media Management:
We have received a quote from Suzanne of The Generator for social media management of our pages, we have worked with them in the past on social media content creation which was also made available to the businesses themselves to use on their pages. We do have part of our marketing budget allocated to The Generator but this would require an increase in that amount as the estimate given to us is only for one month and ideally, we would like to try this for a few months over the course of the summer where our main events are taking place to really see the benefits. It would be ideal to start this partnership as soon as possible with sidewalk sounds starting this Saturday and Streetfest on the horizon, and continue until the end of August with a re-evaluation at that point to see if we would like to continue it.
Motion: Eva Martens
Second: Sarah Matacic
Concession Bucks Program:
We have decided to end the Concession Bucks Program, it has caused a number of issues on our books and at this time it will be best to no longer issue any new bucks but we will be honouring the existing bucks given out prior to today. We would like to implement a new program in the future that is similar and we can discuss this further at an in-depth marketing meeting.
Change of Board Meeting Time:
We would like to change the time of our meetings to better accommodate other members to be able to join and take a more involved role in the Board and BIA. We will be accepting times that work best for everyone and we can put together options to send out for a pre approval to be voted on. We are looking at still having the meetings on Thursdays but most likely in the evening.
July Board Meeting In Person:
We would like to start moving to in person meetings with the flexibility of them being hybrid (virtual will still be available but in person is preferred). The BIA office has been updated and cleaned up to be better suited to host in person meetings there. We are going to have our July board meeting in person at the BIA office.
E. Safety Report: J. Foreman
Aggressive person who yells often:
Alexa and Jim were both witness to the middle point of this situation. There was a young person that had gotten into some sort of altercation with a pedestrian and it escalated to the point of police response. The pedestrian was also warned by police to step back and calm down to not continue the issue. The young person is known to have caused a number of issues on the street and surrounding areas, they are displaced and the police officers know them by name.
Ashtrays Issue:
There has been another bin identified to be rusted out, which causes concern for fire.
F. Beautification Report: A. Chavez
Summer Flower Inserts & Baskets:
Our summer flowers will be installed the week after Victoria Day weekend, starting the 22nd.
Broken Flower Boxes:
We are in conversation with the city about these and we were given a look at the planters available for the replacement of broken ones that can’t be repaired as the existing style of planter that we have on the street is no longer available. The new planter boxes are very different from the current design and we would not be able to replace all available planters at once, so we would have a handful that would stand out until we have eventually replaced all existing planters after being damaged.
G. Marketing Report: A. Chavez
Mountain News articles:
Mark Newman came by the office to interview a couple of our musicians that are schedule for Sidewalk Sounds on May 20th, he also took a couple photos for the article on the event. This article has all the information for our Sidewalk Sounds events this summer. Mark will also be doing an interview for an article on Streetfest in the coming weeks to promote it. Mark had also recently done an article on the pollinator garden off the side of the library building, he had interviewed Eva Martens and Carly Bedford from HPL who worked hard in preparing the garden bed for the planting of plants and flowers for the season.
H. Events Report: A. Chavez
Sidewalk Sounds Update:
Our first Sidewalk Sounds of the year is coming up this Saturday, we have 5 musicians lined up to perform throughout the day at multiple spots along Concession Street. We are keeping an eye on the weather as there is a possible chance it will rain but, our events are rain or shine until there is thunder or lightning.
Streetfest Update:
All our entertainment is booked and confirmed for the day. We will be having local artists placed throughout the road closure in front of businesses have confirmed with me they will not be using the area in front of their location. There will also be a maker’s market in the parking lot beside 555 Concession Street, where local businesses will have booths to sell their handmade goods. We have added these elements of Streetfest to supplement the event as we will not be having outside vendors again this year. There will be a number businesses that are outside of the road closure who will be setting up a booth within the closure to have a space to share their services and help guide attendees to their storefront locations. There will be two separate car shows happening all day, one at Mountain Tire and one at KAL Tire who will also be hosting a BBQ where the proceeds are going toward fundraising for Cancer Assistance Program. Posters are being printed to be distributed to the businesses in the next week.
I. Executive Director Updates: A. Chavez
BIA Annual Audit Update:
The annual audit has started, we have submitted our files to the city on Monday (May 15th) who will then submit them to the third-party company (KPMG) conducting the audit on May 22nd. We are audited at the same level that the city is due to our funds coming from the city with our levy. We have had a few issues come up, one of them was the concession bucks program that we have now decided to end so it will not cause any further issues in the future. There was also an invoice needed by Pop Up Patios for our on-street patio program last year, which we should hear back on soon. Our bookkeeper is taking care of these outstanding issues and anything else that comes up through the audit process with our assistance. We will probably see the drafts for the audit in July and the final statements will be ready come September which will be presented at our AGM in October.
Action Plan Update:
We would like to explore different options for our planter boxes that are not the costly summer flower and winter inserts which also have high maintenance costs as well. There are many avenues we can look at including art installations, community projects, ‘sponsor a planter’ initiative with businesses owners or community members, pollinator or edible gardens, and more options. This will be part of a beautification committee meeting to plan things for next year.
9:04am – 10:11am
In Attendance: Eva Martens, Subbu Subramonian, Brenda Eszenyi, Terry Rhodes, and Sarah Matacic
Additional: Robert Hand, Ryan Cosgrove, Jim Foreman, and Alexa Chavez
Regrets: Joanne Emberson
Absent: Esther Pauls
A. Welcome & Introductory Remarks: Chair E. Martens
B. Review & Approval of the Agenda: Chair E. Martens
Motion: Terry Rhodes
Second: Subbu Subramonian
C. Review & Approval of April 2023 Minutes: Chair E. Martens
Motion: Eva Martens
Second: Terry Rhodes
D. Board Business:
Receive Darryl Howe’s Resignation:
Motion: Eva Martens
Second: Brenda Eszenyi
Executive Team:
Vice Chair and Treasurer positions are open, need to be filled as soon as possible.
Digital Marketing Campaign:
Discussed marketing options for Concession Street BIA with Star Metroland Media. Advertising with social media to lump services/goods into categories for users. The social media ads or SEO keywords can be changed monthly or bi-monthly for seasonal changes in advertising or for events. Data results can be sent bi-weekly or monthly for demographics/results of ads. Vote to continue SEO without the social media campaign for $500/month for 6 months, a total of $3000.
Motion: Eva Martens
Second: Terry Rhodes
Social Media Management:
We have received a quote from Suzanne of The Generator for social media management of our pages, we have worked with them in the past on social media content creation which was also made available to the businesses themselves to use on their pages. We do have part of our marketing budget allocated to The Generator but this would require an increase in that amount as the estimate given to us is only for one month and ideally, we would like to try this for a few months over the course of the summer where our main events are taking place to really see the benefits. It would be ideal to start this partnership as soon as possible with sidewalk sounds starting this Saturday and Streetfest on the horizon, and continue until the end of August with a re-evaluation at that point to see if we would like to continue it.
Motion: Eva Martens
Second: Sarah Matacic
Concession Bucks Program:
We have decided to end the Concession Bucks Program, it has caused a number of issues on our books and at this time it will be best to no longer issue any new bucks but we will be honouring the existing bucks given out prior to today. We would like to implement a new program in the future that is similar and we can discuss this further at an in-depth marketing meeting.
Change of Board Meeting Time:
We would like to change the time of our meetings to better accommodate other members to be able to join and take a more involved role in the Board and BIA. We will be accepting times that work best for everyone and we can put together options to send out for a pre approval to be voted on. We are looking at still having the meetings on Thursdays but most likely in the evening.
July Board Meeting In Person:
We would like to start moving to in person meetings with the flexibility of them being hybrid (virtual will still be available but in person is preferred). The BIA office has been updated and cleaned up to be better suited to host in person meetings there. We are going to have our July board meeting in person at the BIA office.
E. Safety Report: J. Foreman
Aggressive person who yells often:
Alexa and Jim were both witness to the middle point of this situation. There was a young person that had gotten into some sort of altercation with a pedestrian and it escalated to the point of police response. The pedestrian was also warned by police to step back and calm down to not continue the issue. The young person is known to have caused a number of issues on the street and surrounding areas, they are displaced and the police officers know them by name.
Ashtrays Issue:
There has been another bin identified to be rusted out, which causes concern for fire.
F. Beautification Report: A. Chavez
Summer Flower Inserts & Baskets:
Our summer flowers will be installed the week after Victoria Day weekend, starting the 22nd.
Broken Flower Boxes:
We are in conversation with the city about these and we were given a look at the planters available for the replacement of broken ones that can’t be repaired as the existing style of planter that we have on the street is no longer available. The new planter boxes are very different from the current design and we would not be able to replace all available planters at once, so we would have a handful that would stand out until we have eventually replaced all existing planters after being damaged.
G. Marketing Report: A. Chavez
Mountain News articles:
Mark Newman came by the office to interview a couple of our musicians that are schedule for Sidewalk Sounds on May 20th, he also took a couple photos for the article on the event. This article has all the information for our Sidewalk Sounds events this summer. Mark will also be doing an interview for an article on Streetfest in the coming weeks to promote it. Mark had also recently done an article on the pollinator garden off the side of the library building, he had interviewed Eva Martens and Carly Bedford from HPL who worked hard in preparing the garden bed for the planting of plants and flowers for the season.
H. Events Report: A. Chavez
Sidewalk Sounds Update:
Our first Sidewalk Sounds of the year is coming up this Saturday, we have 5 musicians lined up to perform throughout the day at multiple spots along Concession Street. We are keeping an eye on the weather as there is a possible chance it will rain but, our events are rain or shine until there is thunder or lightning.
Streetfest Update:
All our entertainment is booked and confirmed for the day. We will be having local artists placed throughout the road closure in front of businesses have confirmed with me they will not be using the area in front of their location. There will also be a maker’s market in the parking lot beside 555 Concession Street, where local businesses will have booths to sell their handmade goods. We have added these elements of Streetfest to supplement the event as we will not be having outside vendors again this year. There will be a number businesses that are outside of the road closure who will be setting up a booth within the closure to have a space to share their services and help guide attendees to their storefront locations. There will be two separate car shows happening all day, one at Mountain Tire and one at KAL Tire who will also be hosting a BBQ where the proceeds are going toward fundraising for Cancer Assistance Program. Posters are being printed to be distributed to the businesses in the next week.
I. Executive Director Updates: A. Chavez
BIA Annual Audit Update:
The annual audit has started, we have submitted our files to the city on Monday (May 15th) who will then submit them to the third-party company (KPMG) conducting the audit on May 22nd. We are audited at the same level that the city is due to our funds coming from the city with our levy. We have had a few issues come up, one of them was the concession bucks program that we have now decided to end so it will not cause any further issues in the future. There was also an invoice needed by Pop Up Patios for our on-street patio program last year, which we should hear back on soon. Our bookkeeper is taking care of these outstanding issues and anything else that comes up through the audit process with our assistance. We will probably see the drafts for the audit in July and the final statements will be ready come September which will be presented at our AGM in October.
Action Plan Update:
We would like to explore different options for our planter boxes that are not the costly summer flower and winter inserts which also have high maintenance costs as well. There are many avenues we can look at including art installations, community projects, ‘sponsor a planter’ initiative with businesses owners or community members, pollinator or edible gardens, and more options. This will be part of a beautification committee meeting to plan things for next year.