Event:2023/07/20 Delegates

Omni Delegates' Meeting - July 20 2023 7pm-9pm

Meeting Details

• Talk at https://meet.google.com/diw-hszw-msr or 515-428-1108 (PIN: 465814905)
• Type at https://omnicommons.org/notes
• Send proposals to consensus@lists.omnicommons.org prior to the meeting

Roles

• Facilitator/s: Patrik
• Stacktaker:
• Timekeeper:
• Notetaker/s: Patrik, Sarah, Daniel
• Next meeting's facilitator(s):

Delegates

• ANV: inactive
• BOGSS: Kiri
• CCL: Patrik
• CLP: Rafiq
• CSC: inactive
• FNB: absent
• GWS: inactive
• LL: inactive
• MOP: inactive Jacqi
• SM: inactive
• SR: absent
• Quorum (2/3 of active groups): YES

intros

BRIEF INTROS MAY INCLUDE: name, pronouns, groups you're in, land you're on, if you're a delegate, unmet access needs, meeting roles you'd like to help with, discussion topics or proposals to add to agenda, announcements/updates/report-backs from your groups, safe space issues or updates

• Sarah: Omni's bookkeeper, dir of Pro Arts, wants to finish Hellman grant budget allocation (website designer/fire alarm)
• Kiri: she/they, member of CLP, delegate for BOGGS
• Rafiq: delegate for CLP
• Jacqi: Myriad Outreach delegate
• Silver: events WG, media lab, FNB
• Daniel: TANC
• Carlos: TANC member; new member of Fundraising WG
• Patrik: (not in Emeryville rn!!!) CCL delegate; any news on the re-fi?

TANC member collective proposal

• trying to bring other activities here; like Omni space
• Would like to move as early as August
• Sarah: Would you want to be a member collective if that specific space was not available? How much of application is dependent on room currenty occupied by CSC/GWS?
  • Daniel: Have talked with 10's of people with that room in mind - big part of appel, but Omni has other great spaces. Might delay
• Rafiq: How were you even offered this space, if it is in use by other groups?
  • Daniel: Room currently not being used, just for storage
  • Silver: brought up this idea more than a year ago; when room is inactive, can affect property tax. Both GWS and CSC are very active in their other HQ spaces. Want to support Omni, but could be open to let go of their space in Omni - would help financially.
    • Sarah: prop tax issue is minor point; assessor imposing much stricter standards on Omni than they should have. Should not be reason to displace paying collectives. Would TANC be interested in Den room next to GWS/CSC office?
    • Silver: How can we support CSC without losing them altogether?
• Rafiq: Seems a moot point to dicuss this room unless we get agreement from CSC and GWS in writing. Would be a shame to lose these groups.
• Patrik: sounds like we can't make a decision yet this week. Let's work on contacting CSC and GWS, and check if TANC might be interested in Den room
  • Sarah: John did send out email before he went on vacation. Would be good to get some of these things in writing.
    • Silver: CSC is waiting for their consensus process
    • Daniel: Omni office room likely too small. Will look at Den.

Hellman Grant Funds Allocation Round 3

• Leftover unallocated budget is $4800

proposed expenses:

   1. Website designer ($2000) - this is crucial in the view of Susan our Fundraising Consultant
   2. Fire Alarm system as proposed/approved by delegates/Finance in November 2021:
       https://omnicommons.org/wiki/Event:2021/11/04_Delegates 

• Sarah: Hoping to get the last of this done.
• First thing hoping for approval - approve money to re-do the Omni website. Our fundraising consultant really wanted this to happen.
• Silver: Been having a working group since [cut out] Daniel sent over amazing person interested in doing the site, already a web developer and want to expand to being web designer also. Take a month or two because want to do it seriously. Needs to get done, been talking with a lot of people on it. Really not getting enough event requests because the web needs improvement. Need approval to pay someone. Other people interested. Process is holding us back here, suggest approving the $2000 and having web group choose the designer.
• Rafiq in chat: anyone in SR who can do web design.
• Patrik: Certain there is, but getting someone to do it might be harder.
• Silver: We're sticking to wordpress. Rayan came up with a solution to use a Wordpress theme that can integrate with eventbrite.

8 Sarah: Created a content map / site map to see what it would entail. Seemed like current work needs to be described so there's a clear goal. Going from thing I worked up with Susan Silber. Design aspect is not too significant, requires more content. Without a functional framework in the wordpress theme it's hard.

• Daniel's friend Diana worked in web design, got layed off, wants to develop portfolio in web design.
• Sarah: Basically here to get the money for it, don't care who does it or how it get's done.
• Patrik: How much is remaining on Helman grant, after what we already allocated?
• Sarah: Talking about $4800 remaining (form spreadsheet).
• Sarah: Would vote separately because the second one is really different in content. One of the things proposed by Safer DIY was installing a fire system. David Keenan, partner in Safer DIY has gotten it approved in other facilities. Omni ballroom capacity is currently limited to 275, most likely way to get it increased is the lack of an alarm system. Recently recieved inquiries trying to have events, but if can't get 500 people in it just wouldn't work. This could be capacity-building because it would increase ballroom capacity. Also reduce insurance.

Omni agreed for $1500 a year ago, but last month some pushback. Now recommending allocating the remaining $2800 to this so it will happen without issues.

• Patrik: Don't think there was much pushback on the alarm system, was about other repair issues. Will have to be integrative. Jake had proposed he could do it.
• Sarah: We need one fire Dept will sign on to.
• Patrik shares spreadsheet with other costs.
• Partik: Other item most of interest was the alcohol permits, that by itself would already be more than the $4800 remaining.
  • Sarah: $2,500 is for labor, $3000 is for the permits. Not something that would happen super quickly. Also since alchohol we would have to make nice with the neighbors, who might try to block the application.
    • Patrik: This can't happen in time for the ReFi, but other can.
      • Sarah: Yes, website is likely the thing to generate the most revenue quickly.

• Proposal: Allocate $2K for web design
  • YES: CLP/Rafiq, MOP/Jacqi, BOGSS/Kiri,
  • ABSTAIN: CCL/Patrik

• Proposal: Allocate up to $2800 for integrated fire alarm system
  • YES: CCL/Patrik, CLP/Rafiq, MOP/Jacqi, BOGSS/Kiri

Real Estate WG/Committee proposal

• Sarah: Yar proposed last year, not much response. Might be good to have a formal/informal group responsible for brining in new tenants, letting people know what's available, be good to have more people supporting Silver and effort to bring people into Omni.
• Patrik: What was the actual proposal?
• Sarah: Basically just that there's a group for coordinating the efforts for communicating with potential future tenants. Maybe we can have a group/channel for this.
• Silver: Be nice to map out all the different space, how much is paid for the different spaces, what feels fair, check in with the collectives and see if they might be able to afford more, what rooms are rentable, etc. Went through finances and we're just breaking even or losing money each month.
• Rafiq: Totally for bringing in new tenants. But on that same thing, if we cancel the money from the current tenants how can we trust that new tenants will be consistent, etc.
• Silver: Don't appreciate the implications of kicking out tenants. Obviously some rooms are not really for renting. But generally hard to bring in collectives in current situation so we should be flexible and supportive.
• Patrik: This seems common sense to me, so what concretely needs to be done?
• Sarah: Start a group here to do this, so that there's a more consistent sense of what the Omni wants to do when offering space. Want what we offer to people to be the consensus.
• Sarah has list of rooms, square footages, and issues with those rooms.
• Dani: If there's too much process before renting out rooms, might not be able to happen before end of year.
• Sarah: Just want to have a collective group to take some of the burden from Silver.
• Patrik: Let's try to have a list, and even designed pages, with these on the website.

Typing out the vote on the Allocate $2000 from Hellman Grant for web design: CLP approves, CCL abstains, MOP is in favor, BOGGS approves. Typing out next vote on Allocate up to $2800 from Hellman Grant for Alarm System: CCL votes yes, CLP votes yes, MOP votes yes, BOGGS approves.

Other loose ends?

• Sarah asked Philip Bell - lined up a few people to come in and give us quotes on rat proofing
• Lot of the crates have gone away.
• Silver: Entrance hall? painting walls first. got long carpet
  • Patrik does have strong feelings against carpet, Silver says there's no budget now and the carpet is temporary. Wanting photos for the web, so a temporary fix.
  • Sarah: are there still some funds on Home Depot cards, still $300 on that, been used for paint supply.