Event:2018/02/01 Delegates Meeting

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Agenda February 1, 2018

  • Introductions, Meeting Roles, and Delegates Count [10 minutes]
  • Access Check-in [5 minutes]
  • Announcements [5 minutes]
  • Bans [5 minutes]
  • Working Group Report-Backs [10 minutes]
  • Member Collective Updates (25 minutes)

Introductions

Introduce yourself: Name; Preferred Pronoun; Affiliation; any brief announcements; whether you're a delegate; access needs†

  • Kazoo, we/she, ABDC, we need new members
  • Elon, Food Not Bombs
  • Joe, Food Not Bombs
  • Mary Ann, CSC
  • Laura, she/her, Finance/Fundraising & Commons, no access needs right now
    • plz sign the donation appreciation cards that are currently circulating
  • Brian, he/him, finance/committee & secretary, no stated access needs
  • Sierk, he/him, Sudo
  • Yar, She/her, sudo & CDC working group
    • bathroom passed insection!
  • Maria, she/her, going down w/ OOC ship, no access needs currently,
  • Phil Mc, FNB & Kitchen
  • Ken, CCL - building wg & kitch & rats,
  • Julian, BAPS & Comms,
  • remote-jenny, treasurer, sudo, comms / finance / building / occasionally commons
  • Almaz

† Is everybody able to participate fully in this meeting? Do people have unmet needs or concerns?

Meeting Roles

  • Facilitator/s: Kazoo
  • Explanation of hand signals: "deaf applause", "raised hand", "point of process", "direct response"(wildcard), etc.
  • Stacktaker: kazoo
  • Timekeeper: joe
  • Notetaker/s: Laura, Brian, Julian
  • Vibe Reader: Brian
  • Next meeting's facilitator(s):

Delegates

  • ABDC: kazoo
  • BAPS: Julian
  • CCL: Ken
  • CSC: maryanne
  • FNB: joe
  • GWS:
  • LL: Liz remote
  • Sudo: Sierk
  • TIL: inactive
  • GCEA: almaz
  • Quorum: 8/9 active collectives - yes

Announcements

  • ABDC needs new members - send people! (screen printing or work interested people).

New Bans

Statement by the Challenging Dominant Cultures Working Group on Omni’s Mediation with Running Wolf

Running Wolf and a number of Omni Commoners have successfully completed mediation with SEEDs, under Almaz’s Stewardship. Therefore, Running Wolf should be able to return to the Omni. Regarding the matter of what the delegates meeting minutes from December 21st, 2017 refer to as a “written agreement that Running Wolf will sign agreeing to Omni policies,” there is no written agreement and there are currently no plans for there to be one. Running Wolf has verbally agreed to honor Omni policies and has been accepted by BAPS as a member. BAPS is currently in the process of scheduling a meeting with Running Wolf. A review of the relevant assembly notes shows that at no time has it been consensed that for Running Wolf to return that he must sign such a document. We believe that this is an unreasonable request, insofar as, to our knowledge, Commoners have not previously been required to sign a similar agreement, despite the fact that a number have returned after bans. With respect to the fact that this agreement is documented in the December 21st notes, it is our belief that this reflects a misunderstanding. The document Almaz intended to refer to was not one that Running Wolf would have to sign, but a document that SEEDs would sign, certifying the mediation is complete. Participants in the mediation process can also certify this completion. Almaz and Steve state the process was satisfactorily completed, and our working group affirms this. Almaz is in the process of obtaining the signed document.

  • Joe: "I'm shocked. RW just slashed [someone's] tires"
  • Yar doesn't know RW and hasn't been involved in mediation
  • Laura: Paraphrased: Thought that there was a process where delegates agreed that a document would need to be signed, sounds like he has not completed the agreements.
  • Laura: "if he doesn't sign the thing, I completely oppose RW coming back to Omni"
  • Julian...my understanding is that if there was an ... "it is my understanding that nobody else has been required to sign a document to finish mediation."
  • Phil: seems like he wants business as usual, sleeping here til 6 or 7am every day. sounds like that's what he wants. others at omni won't accept that. at mediation people offered to use computers at reasonable time, "not make this your home"
  • Ken: i think there was consensus that he has to write this. RW is a unique case. the fact we're willing to try mediating with him, is already a lot. I believe that we did have a consensus that he would need to sign a document".
  • Yar: this is to something that can't be resolved in this meeting.
  • Julian: Anyone has a right to a mediation process, this is not a unique offer that has been extended to RW.
  • Yar: Only a right as much as someone is willing to volunteer their time to run a mediation process.
  • Kazoo: Can't make a decision now. DO we have a process to resolve this?
  • Joe: I am going to talk to seeds and ask them how they processed this mediation, and give them this information and I will report back.

Working Group Report-Backs

Building & permits

Meetings: 1st & 3rd Mondays @ 6pm

  • Yar: Alan has volunteered to facilitate two building working group meetings in February. Dates TBD.
  • This group needs help; https://omnicommons.org/lists/listinfo/building
  • Laura: We received new green compost cans and they have been distributed throughout the building. Please use plastic bags in all the cans. When emptying compost, dump the compostables into the large green bins in the trash room and throw the plastic bag in the trash. Would people be interested in a staff training on trash sorting and use of the compost cans? There is a free training available. Remember to put a liner in the bag after you empty it. There is a free training available.
    • Julian: Is there a document with the training information in it?
      • LAura: Maybe. Will check
  • Yar: The wheelchair accessible bathroom passed all three inspections this week.
  • jenny: Need support in initiating the permit process for kitchen. $30K tee'd up in savings. plz reach out to your collectives re: upcoming building & kitchen mtgs (kitchen general meetings are 1st Wednesdays @ 6pm in the basement. Ken and Sierk have have volunteered to help.

Commons

Meetings: First and Third Thursdays at 6pm (this meeting isn't really happening. We're meeting on an ad-hoc basis)

Communications

Meetings: Second and Fourth Wednesdays at 6pm - note, generally Weds at 6pm, but more regularly sometimes than this (in cooperation w/ kitchen campaign. if you're on the list you get the heads up

  • Working on messaging aroung the kitchen fundraising campaign. Trying to have more active communication to publicize the campaign
  • kazoo suggests veggie chili cook off
    • eems feasible!

Finance

Meetings: Currently conjoined with Fundraising, 2nd & 4th Mondays at 6pm

  • laura: idk lol
  • Laura: paperwork and filings that need to happen. Wrapping up the books for last year, etc.
  • jenny: prop tax exemption app is gonna consist of 141 documents this year >_< will ping commons, need help reaching out to all 2017 renters
    • otherwise finances are pretty solid. have savings now for kitchen, moved mortgage payments to the 8th of every month so it's not a crisis every month as most collective payments dont come in until after the 1st (but plz still pay by the 25th!)
  • budget request form for folks doing building stuff etc: https://omnicommons.org/budgetrequest

Fundraising

Meetings: Currently conjoined with Finance,, 2nd & 4th Mondays at 6pm

  • see above

Member Collective Updates

What is going on with your collective? What are you working on? What have you accomplished? Any events coming up? Any difficulties you are encountering that you need help with?

ABDC

  • Kazoo: ON Saturday we will be completely out of our SF studio. We only have 3 people paying rent so Kazoo is paying the balance. We need 5 more members to make an even split. We are actively looking for people to get invovled. People who are targeted by oppression.
    • Almaz: I have talked to a few people who are interested. OUr kids benefit a lot fromm having ABDC here.
  • Kazoo: one thought, what if we switched ABCD to be like a "public utility" that everyone used? People could use the equipment after training.
  • abdc pays omni $450/mo. they ask $50/mo to be a member but right now kazoo is paying $350/mo and two others $100/mo.
  • Almaz: It could be open to the public that would pay fees to use it or for training.
  • Laura - media center idea for the idea, what if this was wrapped up into that?
  • Ken - why that amount (?) / target number of members. We have had a lot of discussions about this kind of issue in CCL.
    • potentially recruit more BAAM people & CCL to cross connect w/ ABDC
  • Jenny - this should be discussed w/ finance - we often make arrangements out of band of delegates meetings. still issue of rentable room and significant loss of omni monthly income (still under target) - maybe other ways to raise funds eg donation-based used of equipment, was considering this for potential basement medialab. (btw y'all should check out the basement, some of us have been working hard at cleaning it up)
    • jenny: re: cost of ticket booth room, because private room that is only accessible private meeting space available (ground floor, window, widened doorway, locked, etc) - which is wheel chair accessible
    • Kazoo - one member of the collective has wheelchair access needs. losing that access not cool
    • Yar: we are trying to put in a wheelchair lift on the stairs to the basement as part of the kitchen project
      • another idea - might be for abdc to steward renting out the space on occasion for small groups w/ access needs, doing some outreach on that front - cool.
  • moving on

BAPS

  • Have a new class.. Now known to the Democratic Socialists now boooking classes here.!! The "Marx was Right" reading group will be here periodically.

CCL

  • Ken: We had BAAM mushroom foray Last weekend we had 45 members of the public show to collect some shrooms w/ us. New folks joined us. We are making several food products we are making in the lab that we are looking forward to using the kitchen for - mycelium protein. WE want to make an sell it through the omni.
  • mushroom tempeh. hipster sensation.
  • Continuing insulin project. Working on unpatented version of human insulin.
  • Real Vegan Cheese: GE so that you can have real cheese, without there being actual animal product involved.
  • CCL rated as CDC Type 1 lab.

CSC

  • MaryAnn: We jsut finished a long phase of activity and I thought we were going to have a rest. We are going to continue the Affles and Zapatismo on the last Saturday of the month 10-12 and then a meeting for anyone who wants to join the collective.

FNB

  • Joe: asked to join berkeley food network - offered warehouse space which will be vacant until knocked down for housing. like a small branch of alameda county food bank
  • waiting for kitchen to happen

GCEA

  • Almaz: We are working on grants. We stopped our younger kids afterschool program becasue we don't have enought volunteers. Still serving the older kids.
  • african health table - african community convening. will happen every month
  • looking for tutors/volunteers for younger kids after school. parents need it but not enough people doing it

GWS

Rachel is absent tonight because of planning meetings for International Women's Day on March 8th. She sends her regards <3 go GWS & March 8th!!!!

LL

  • Next film night is Feb 24th, screening “YOU A NOMAD” directed & produced by our former member Shirah Dedman. She and Khafre Jay from Hip Hop 4 Change will attend the Q&A afterwards.
  • Anka, Dennis and Robb (with help from Jenny) have been working on a grant to put on the next short film festival

Sudo

  • Memorial for Rick Simon, one of the cofounders of the BACE Timebank which has been a sister project since the old space, on Feb 10th from 3-6pm in the entrance hall
  • Build Your Own Internet office hours now every Sunday afternoon from 1-2pm if you're interested in learning more and getting involved with the People's Open Network

TIL

  • Laura: TIL is going to meet with the Poets who came to a delegates/orientation.

discussion - cafe?

  • laura drafting lease
  • we can't rent to a for profit org at a less than market rate, says our lawyer. calculated this reasonably; communicated the rent amount & sent this too them.
  • we had been asking for $1k/mo and now laura raised that to $1270. they "weren't completely opposed"
  • yar thinks it would be best to keep it at $1k/mo. markets are nonsense. good luck getting anybody else to rent the space for that much under the same conditions. they already agreed to 1k and frankly this agreement is way better and more crucial for omni than it is for them.

Proposal: OOC Board

Following up from the proposal at the last meeting in which it was agreed to change the number of OOC board members and how they are selected, Laura has edited the OOC bylaws. The proposed new bylaws are here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lvXpZDX6caHvuBJg9yTKxOSzqOKN_yj385TXdUaNEJU/edit?usp=sharing

  • The agreed upon changes are that the board would consist of only 3 people and they would be elected by the OC board (delegates).
  • This proposal is to approve the specific changes, which are highlighted in red in Article 3, Sections 1 and 4.

Consensus:

  • YES: kazoo (ABDC) julian (BAPS) ken (CCL) maryanne (CSC) Joe(fnb) almaz (GCEA), Liz (LL),
  • Stand aside: none
  • Blox: Jenny & Yar (sudo) on grounds that it needs to be run by our lawyer Jesse first. Concerns that some of the language might raise flags for IRS.
  • other folks are okay postponing another 2 weeks

Proposal: Election of Directors for OOC and Officer-Elect for OC

  • Nominations for President (Phil), Secretary (Maria Tostado), and Treasurer (Jose Plascencia) of Omni Oakland Commons
    • Jenny asked Jose, they haven't caught up directly but via phone-tag he said he was willing to remain Treasurer of OOC if it just involved a placeholder role.
    • jnny: Phil for president! ...who is Elon?? A fnb member, he stands aside
  • Vote by secret ballot: 6 yes, 1 abstain.
  • Nominations for President-elect (Kazoo Studios (KLS)), Secretary-elect (Almaz Tesfazghi), and Treasurer-elect (Robert Benson)

of Omni Commons

    • jnny: nominates kazoo tho hasn't mentioned this prior to this mtg. mebbe liz? also i think melissa expressed interest @ last meeting, will ping her.
      • nominates for what? president? ja, and liz or melissa for secretary
  • yar: this feels half baked. bring it back to the delegates when it's fully baked.
  • isn't this agenda item for nominations? are there any other nominations? i'm assuming we consense @ next meeting or the one after
    • if that's true, great. seems like it's run its course at this meeting either way.
      • haven't seen notes for awhile so not sure what that means. just trying to make strides forward on it..
      • there's a bunch of hand-wavey election engineering going on right now which doesn't make sense to me

ah..

  • Decision: We will take another another 2 weeks to solicit more nominations.

Proposal to approve the OC 2018 Budget

End of Meeting

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