June 11, 2008 (McNamara residence)

Present: Michael McNamara, Ian Thomson, Scott Sweeney, Michael Berman, Kevin McMahon, Michelle Wilson, Bill Engleson, Jenny Brown, Masoud Zadeh. Recorder: Reina LeBaron
Regrets: Joanne Ovitsland, Erin O'Brien-Hornsey

Call to order: 7:35 pm.

1. Agenda accepted by general consent.

2. Minutes of May 10, 2008 meeting accepted as presented by general consent.

3. Business arising from previous minutes:

AGM: The tenor of the AGM held on Sunday, June 1, 2008, was discussed by all members of the board.
Margaret Eberle, the housing consultant doing the Needs Assessment, was the guest speaker and gave a very useful presentation, specifically in relation to the costs and benefits of housing.
The AGM reinforced the need for the Board to better structure its public presentations in the future.
Post AGM communications raised further concerns.
There was general agreement that ISLA’s success will depend on building capacity to be able to properly manage monies, land, volunteers and all practical aspects of the organization all for the creating of permanently affordable housing.
Hornby/Denman issues: Each of the Gulf Islands are different
There was general agreement that ISLA can only focus on one project at this stage.
If ISLA wishes to become a purely Hornby CLT, the constitution may need to be revised.
M/S/C “That the ISLA board devote one hundred percent of its energy to Hornby Island for the 2008 year.”
ACTION: Michael Berman and Ian will form a sub-committee to focus on the constitution with the intent of having any revisions necessary ready for adoption at the next AGM or at a special meeting.
Meeting with Jim Saks: Michael Berman had a meeting with Jim Saks to discuss ISLA issues. Jim was very open and suggested the board request twenty acres, push ahead and be firm about needs and preferences.
Jim suggested two ten dwelling clusters with the first being owner-occupied and the second cluster being rent-controlled.
He thinks it is important to potential donors (of land or money) that ISLA have charitable status. A charitable housing co-op could serve this function instead. There was a suggestion that a charitable-status housing co-op be set up to lease land from ISLA. This charitable group could then raise funds to build service infrastructure that would serve the entire property. This would require that the Weiss family agree to having rent-controlled low-income housing on this land.
Jim is willing to help fund a staff person for ISLA.
HICEEC Housing Conference: The conference was a great success with most of the ISLA board members attending as well as participants from other islands. The information was timely and useful.
Treasurer’s Report: None presented.
Quilt Raffle: Michelle has filled out the lottery license application.
ACTION: Masoud and Scott will be responsible for overseeing and organizing volunteers for two weeks each.
Liaison with Bernhard Weiss: Ian has been in contact with Bernhard. Bernhard has requested access to ISLA’s charitable tax status paperwork and correspondence.
M/S/C “That the board share with Berhard Weiss any and all information with respect to communications with Revenue Canada regarding Charitable Status.”
A new working group seems to be forming amongst the gulf islands to lobby Revenue Canada to change the charitable status requirements to allow for CLT’s to be registered charities.

4. New Business:

Building a strong unified board: Three ingredients are key for the success of ISLA, “money land and people”—or, according to Sandy’s presentation at the Housing Workshop, “vision, relationships and communication.”
Board orientation or training would be useful in unifying the board.
There was a round-table discussion to hear board members’ vision for ISLA.
There was unanimous agreement that the purpose of ISLA is to stabilize land and housing by taking it permanently out of the real-estate market and providing access to that land for island residents to create perpetually affordable housing.
It was seen as particularly important to enable younger working people, often with families, to live on Hornby and maintain a diverse community.
Another high priority was for ISLA housing to be a model for eco-village-style shared services, green buildings, alternative energy and water conservation.
There was general agreement that the process needs to remain as inclusive as possible and that wide community support is essential to ISLA’s success, especially when proposing higher densities. This will probably involve a design charette.
It was mentioned that some big money needs to be raised. Also there always needs to be a realistic appraisal of what working people earn and can actually afford.
Role of board members: There was a round-table discussion to hear members’ views on their role on the ISLA board. There was general agreement to the following roles:
To communicate ISLA’s vision, purpose and plans to the wider community.
To be committed to the success of ISLA and its projects.
To attend meetings to discuss issues with each other and with the community.
To be unified in supporting other board members and to struggle with issues not each other (or the community).
To maintain respect for each other and maintain objectivity (not attack personalities).
To raise funds to establish, promote and maintain ISLA projects.
To attend board retreat workshops as necessary to develop and improve board capacity.
ACTION: Kevin and Bill will form a sub-committee to organize a board retreat workshop in October and to research potential outside leadership and funding. (It will probably require about $1000.)
Hiring a staff person: There was general agreement that ISLA needs to hire a staff person to help with fund-raising, research and organization.
Jim Saks may be willing to help fund a staff person, especially if there are matching funds. It would require about $4200 for a six month contract at 35 hours per month.
It was suggested that ten people be approached to pledge $50 a month toward maintaining a staff person.
M/S/C “That the board strike a sub-committee to develop a job description and ad for hiring a staff person and report back at the next meeting.”
ACTION: Michael, Michael and Masoud will work on the sub-committee.
Election of Executive: The following members volunteered to be on the executive: Michael McNamara, Michael Berman, Jenny Brown, Kevin MacMahon.
M/S/C “That the following members be elected by acclamation to form the executive: Michael McNamara, Chair-person; Michael Berman, Vice-chair; Jenny Brown, Secretary; Kevin MacMahon, Treasurer.”
Budget report: Deferred to next meeting.
Membership update: Deferred to next meeting.
Next Meeting: 7:30 pm, Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Adjourned: 10:35 pm.