Event:2014/09/04 Weekly Delegates Meeting

September 4 Delegates Meeting

• Facilitator: Matt S.
• Stack: Kevin
• Timekeeper: Yar
• Notes: Niki, Yar
• Delegates: Emji (TIL), Jordan (SUDO), Joe (FNB), Margit (OMNIdance), Mia/Niki (BAPS), David B (La Commune), Cere (CCL)
• Quorum:
• Vibe Reader: Margit
• explain hand signals and share the URL of this pad!

intros

• Matt (Sudo), David B. (BAPS, La Commune), Monica, Patrick, James, Kevin, Lilia, Rhodey, Amanda (BAPS), Doug, Matt (BAPS), Niki (BAPS, La Commune), Margit (OMNIdance), Laura (BAPS), Owen (La Commune), Joe, Stephen (BAPS), Pam (La Commune), Caitlin, Joe (FNB), Mia (BAPS), Patrick (SUDO), Helen (FNB), Hayley, Yar (SUDO), David K (BAPS), Lucia, Gabriela (Rise Above), Emji (TIL), Brel, Cere (CCL)

new groups / event proposals

15 min (19:19)

Brief announcement RE: SF Anarchist Bookfair (Laura T)

• Bookfair (April 25th) is too big to have at the Omni, would love to have events the week of the Bookfair (maybe Anarchist Cafe - April 24th) at the Omni.
• April 25 2015

"some of us want to form a kitchen planning working group" - dk, patrick, helen

• to get basement kitchen working again
• 3 phases: informal, semi-formal, industrial
• david says it needs a limited liability entity
• contact helen to move forward / participatetact Helen if you'd like to be involved

Hayley

• Siren Festival (Feminist Transformative Art) happening in 2 weeks - Sept 14th
  • http://www.sirenproject.org/ [dead link]
  • https://www.facebook.com/SirenWeb
  • Village Craft (villagecraft.org) looking for folks who want to host workshops, low-cost or free.
  • Contact hayleysteele@villagecraft.org

Patrick

• Farm Hack event on a weekend in february
• 30-60 People, 1-2 days,
• Generally free events
• refugia@zoho.com
• who's invited? food involved? dinner?
• not clear. potluck?

Caitlin

• Wants to connect w/Backspace

Brel

• ONL is having a mayoral debate on Saturday, we need help getting the space together by 5pm
• work party every day between now and saturday afternoon
• to help contact brel.alexandre@gmail.com

Brel

• Life-Sentencing Alliance wants to have a full day meeting on Oct 4th
• Need to have a member of the Omni bottom-line this event

Work Parties!

• We need people to help get the space ready!
• Contact omni-building@lists.riseup.net

Doug

• Interested in holding concerts in the space to raise money

Quorum

• We regularly don't have quorum. How can we vote on pressing matters w/out quorum?
• We should act as if we've agreed to change quorum and then legitimize next week
• Brief discussion on how to resolve the issue w/regular lack of quorum.
  • One person talk to at least one of the groups
    • Margit (Peak Agency)
    • Emji (ONL)
    • DK (Sweet Tooth
    • Niki (CAMOO)
  • Perhaps have people sign a commitment and if they can't observe their commitment, they lose voting rights.
  • Governance suggested the need for collectives to participate.
  • Maybe some groups want to be tenants, not member collectives
  • Don't like asynchronous voting
    • Don't love it but we're so spread thin

Rise Above

10 min

Sudo Room consensed to "Sudoroom will consent to Rise Above renting space at the omni for $1000/month for a 6 month trial lease term, once the location and any building modifications and permits are clarified and once the meaning of tenancy is clarified by the Omni's legal/governance working group. We don't object to them being a tenant in a general sense."

• We are confirming that Sudo they approve of Rise Above moving in to the space. David, Cere and Emji will work with Gabriella to figure out the best space. Niki will help w/paperwork

ADA Proposals [Critical]

10 min

Note: The landlords will be obligated to pay for 50% of these costs in the form of a rent credit.

front door

• Proposal: replace the NE front door with an ADA-accessible door
  • Install a single 36" door with adjacent smaller side door or barrier.
  • Est cost: $500

chairlift

• Proposal: replace the western staircase from La Commune to the ballroom with a chairlift. This would involve knocking down part of the wall. This is what our CASp inspector recommended and is required for public access to the ballroom.
  • Option 1: ~$8000 for a fully-certified, professionally installed new commercial lift including all permitting.
  • Option 2: Failing the passage of option 1, that we authorize up to $3500 for a used chairlift. Note most used chairlifts are from houses and certified only for residential, not commercial, and therefore a used lift may not be technically to ADA code. A UPS (uninterruptable power supply) may need to be acuired to power a residential lift in the case of a power outage (as per ADA code for commercial spaces.)
  • Possibility to do it in the eastern staircase if that turns out to be easier
  • Western side would make it possible to access ADA the ADA bathroom directly from the ballroom without having to go through the cafe
  • Chairlift will technically be donated to Food Not Bombs

bathroom

• Proposal: make cafe bathroom ADA?accessible, single-stall, single-occupancy.
  • requires knocking down inner stalls, installing grab bars, moving the sink, fitting a wider door
  • Est cost: $500-$1000.

specific proposal

PROPOSAL: "whereas the OOC just received $15k in loans specifically to fix fire and accessibility issues in time for our upcoming events, we consent that the OOC should begin spending that money for those purposes."

• VOTE: 7/7 yes

notes

• • We received $15k for improvements to help us get open
  • We already consented to hosting this event that requires ADA access
  • CCL agreed at their last meeting to contribute $800 towards ADA improvements

law book reimbursement

• pay back helen $691.00 for recycling
• pay back joanna $110.99 for uhaul and gas
• VOTE: 6 yes, 1 abstain

building modifications & bans

• since these now must be considered at meetings, let's always keep a section here to remind us
• Sudoroom electrification begins imminently
• Sudoroom suspended access privileges (temporary ban) for Sally for one month. Not for safety reasons.

Space Access and Hours

• We need to have space access and hours. We don't currently have the human resources to be able to manage a public spacd 24/7
• We should research locks for all doors that are not common spaces
• Only the cafe should be considered public and the ballroom during events, until we are able to properly manage more space.
• We are commited to a radical commoning of space and resources

play rehearsals

2 min

• 8/26 Proposal: That the proposed 12 rehearsal dates/times in the ballroom for the play 'Annes White Glove' be proposed, discussed and whomever is bottomlining it. (Will they need use of the stage?)

(maybe this is a Ballroom WG action item?)

big events end by 9:30

3 min

• 8/26 Proposal: That for the time being all big events possibly creating lots of peoples hanging about outside or are noisy begin no earlier than 10AM and end fully by 9:30pm. Mostly to avert noise complaints before all the relevant permits are hunky-dory. Consense?
  • critical resistance event for september 20th (Dreaming Wildly) already advertised ending at 10pm
  • http://criticalresistance.org/oakland-dreaming-wildly-fighting-to-win-with-cece-mcdonald-and-ruthie-wilson-gilmore/

safer space & conflict resolution policies

• 8/30 Proposal from the CDC to approve the safer space and conflict resolution policies, with the understanding that both are living documents that will continue to evolve as we learn and grow as a collective.
• Safer space policy: http://wiki.omni-oakland.org/w/Safe_Space_Policy
• Conflict resolution policy: http://wiki.omni-oakland.org/w/Conflict_Resolution_Policy

Finance WG reportback

• PROPOSAL (Aug 19): To split utilities equally by default between all financially contributing collectives and tenants of the OOC.
• PROPOSAL (Sept. 2): To split equally between financially contributing collectives and tenants, expenditures which delegates have voted to allocate to projects.
• PROPOSAL (Aug 19): To commit to rent amounts on a quarterly basis.

Sept 1st Dec 1st March 1st June 1st

• PROPOSAL (Aug 2): To allocate $500 to Bathroom Demolition and grab bars (first step in ADA process)
• PROPOSAL (Aug 2): To allocate $500 to the matenance WG for the purchace items for getting up to fire code (extiguishers, exit signs, etc)
• PROPOSAL (Aug 2): To rent the three downstairs rooms for office/creative space starting Oct 1st at $600 per month. Short term 3 to 6 month sublease with an option to renew.
• PROPOSAL (Aug 19) : That all collectives and tenants of the OOC fill out a "Financial Health and Sustainability Questionnaire" ASAP. It has been created so that the Financial Work Group can more accurately assess the past, present, and future financial stability of the OOC. With this information we will work to create a more sustainable and clear financial plan. This document is due quarterly : Sept. 1st, Dec. 1st, March 1st, and June 1st. here's the pfd on the wiki: http://wiki.omni-oakland.org/w/File:FinancialHealthSustainabilityforOOC.pdf#filelinks

Delinquent Member Groups

• PROPOSAL: 8/28 Proposal from the Governance working group that a member-collective who defaults from their sublease be subject to the loss of their last month's rent and deposit, the money being put to paying two month's rent as the O.O.C. finds a member-collective to replace the errant one.

standing committee autonomy

8/26 PROPOSAL: standing committees that are empowered to make any decisions autonomously should have a clearly defined scope for their responsibilities and operational leeway by October 1st, containing at minimum these 4 parameters: 1) what the group is tasked with, 2) what the group is empowered to do autonomously, 3) what the group is not empowered to do autonomously, 4) how the group cooperates functionally with other OOC organs

"preparing to be open"

http://wiki.omni-oakland.org/w/Preparing_To_Be_Open

La Commune lockability

PROPOSAL : LOCKING LA COMMUNE submitted by La Commune, 9/2/2014

La Commune is committed to working with the Omni to provide maximum access to our space. As a retail business, however, our insurance, consignment arrangements, and vendor relationships will require us to close and lock the bookstore / cafe. This proposal outlines a plan that will balance La Commune's needs with those of the Omni as a whole.

Once we are officially open for business, La Commune will be open for regular hours, presently envisioned as 10am to 6pm, seven days a week. Outside of these hours the cafe will be locked. Access to the other areas of the Omni will be available through the ballroom doors on Shattuck Avenue and the side door on 48th Street.

In order to meet egress requirements for the Omni fire permit, La Commune will install panic bars on four doors: the front double doors at 48th & Shattuck, the double doors from the ballroom, the doors from the basement, and the doorway to the back hallway (we will also install a door here). As appropriate, we will also add a panic bar to the doorways to the upstairs. These bars will sound an alarm if anyone opens the door. With this equipment, the cafe space can be rendered secure while still providing egress in case of emergency.

La Commune is excited to be the front door of the Omni, and we are committed to working with other collectives and with the Omni as a whole towards solutions that meet all of our needs. We need to be able to lock up our business, but we want to work with everyone else to make sure that we can do this in the best possible way.

Question: How will we provide access to the ADA bathroom in the Cafe during after-hour events?

Note: Other proposals / ideas are also being prepared that might fit the needs of the Cafe & the Omni.

defining purpose of consensus blocks

• AUG 19 proposal by Governance Working Group
• Blocking is only to be considered in the case that a delegate believes that the proposal violates the mission of the Omni Oakland Commons or their collective's mission.
• In the case that a delegate does not want to consent nor block a proposal, abstentions are allowed. Delegates can also request that the facilitator allow more time for discussion in order to reach consensus on any given item.
• Governance will work with Sarah Larsen to incorporate general information on building consensus into the facilitation trainings in Sept.

Defining tenancy

• 09/02 Proposal from Governance Committee
• Tenants are defined as those groups renting space from the Omni who choose not to participate in the collective of collectives (i.e., attending delegate meetings, participating in working groups, etc.).
• Tenants must agree to the Omni's safer space and conflict resolution policies, statement of solidarity, and all pertinent decisions made by the collective of collectives. Tenants will not have voting rights at the weekly delegates' meetings.
• All tenants will sign a 6 month sub-lease with the OOC.

Tenancy cap

• 09/02 Proposal from Governance Committee
• In order for there to be an active core of member groups participating in the OOC, the ratio of tenants to member collectives should not exceed 30% tenants to 70% member groups.(%What? Space? Ah Income!)

Ballroom WG Report back

We formed a group! It's on the Wiki.

• PROPOSAL : To prioritize renting the ballroom as a way to bolster our working capital and get out of deficit. This means through the end of this year we will seek out and, at times, need to prioritize money making events over free events.
• PROPOSAL : In order to manage the schedule, we request that instead of directly scheduling your event, that you instead go through the Ballroom WG so that we avoid double booking etc. Jeremy D. will have that Ballroom WG email shortly and will email the logistics list with it.

==PROPOSAL : RAISING A FLAG

We propose that the Omni raises a flag from the main tower of the Omni, over the 48th & Shattuck entrance. It could be a red flag. Or it could say "Omni". Whatever the collective decides. Perhaps it could be the Omni logo?

PROPOSAL: Let's only meet every OTHER Thursday!

• yar's counterproposal: let's all do more work throughout the week so there's less to say at meetings