Event:2020/08/06 Delegates

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(what is virtual attending link for next 8/20 meeting? from Bunker LLC) Omni Delegates' Meeting - 06 August 2020 7pm-9pm

for instructions on preparing and archiving these notes, please see the bottom

Agenda

  • Introductions [15 minutes]
    • Meeting Roles
    • Delegates Count
    • Access Check-in
  • Check-ins, Updates & Report-Backs [30 minutes]
    • Brief Announcements
    • Working Groups
    • Member Collectives
    • Conflicts, Mediation & Safe Space
  • Proposals & Discussions

Introductions

Introduce yourself: Name; Preferred Pronoun; Affiliation; any brief announcements; say whether you're a delegate; let us know about any access needs you have†

  • WHY DO WE ASK PRONOUNS? To make space for people who are trans, nonbinary, gender noncomforming or otherwise vulnerable to being misgendered. It's not an invitation to make jokes or trivialize the idea of pronouns. If you are fine with the gender and pronouns society generally assigns to you, please just say what they are without fanfare or embellishment. Conversely, please don't pressure anybody to give their pronouns, as that can harm trans people who are closeted or questioning. The point is to prompt and normalize asking, but not to mandate or enforce. Thank you! <3 Yar
  • Jenny - sudo room / sudo mesh / finance
  • Aaron - he/him - Acta Non Verba
  • Mai - sudomesh
  • Dane - FNB/sudoroom
  • Jane GWS
    • Rachel wanted to be here but has a sore throat.
    • But it's ok to join on mute! she can listen!
  • Helen FNB
  • John GWS
  • Kelly - ANV
  • MaryAnn - CSC
  • Patrik CCL
  • Robb LL
  • Roya PB/ANV
  • Yar Sudoroom
  • Daniel Lee, spearheads local popups for renegade bio
  • Silver

Sudo, FNB, Sudo Mesh, Sudo Room, CSC, GWS, LL, Phat Beets, CCL, 8/9 quorum.

Access Check In

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

Meeting Roles

  • Facilitator/s: Jenny
  • Explanation of hand signals: "deaf applause", "raised hand", "point of process", "direct response"(wildcard), etc.
  • Stacktaker:
  • Timekeeper: robb
  • Notetaker/s: yar, patrik, jenny, john
  • Vibe Reader: mai
  • Who will out next meeting's agenda beforehand:
  • Next meeting's facilitator(s):

Delegates

  • CCL: Patrik
  • CSC: MaryAnn
  • FNB: Helen
  • FYE:
  • GWS: Jane
  • LL: Robb
  • Phat Beets/ANV: Aaron, Kelly, Roya
  • Sudo Room:
  • Sudo Mesh: Mai
  • Quorum:

Brief Announcements

Working Group Report-Backs

Building & permits

  • Meetings: only the kitchen group meets regularly, new times tbd
  • https://omnicommons.org/lists/listinfo/building
  • Jenny: we're overdue for a fire inspection, it got delayed in March. Jenny will send an email to OFD.
  • robb: Broken window off classroom to bar. there's a broken window. we have all materials to fix, except new glass. was waiting on new debit cards from unify, but jenny could help speed that up. robb will get it custom made.
    • jane could help install glass, likes ladders
    • ian offered to help but haven't seen him for a while

Commons

Communications

Finance

  • Meetings: TBD @ https://omnicommons.live/finance
  • Join! https://omnicommons.org/lists/listinfo/finance
  • we're good, thanks to fundraising folks!
  • $10k grant from SFF - allocate to purchase supplies?
    • Grant Period: June 18, 2020 - December 18, 2020
    • “Grant Purpose: To support Omni Commons in providing food, hand sanitizer and other supplies to houseless families in need in North Oakland.”
  • requesting another extension of forebearance from lender
    • MaryAnn: how much are we paying on principle vs interest right now? good to know before jesse sends request
    • jenny: it's 5.5% right now. the schedule is in omni google drive
    • MaryAnn: so the proposal to "pay only interest" might not be much relief. also, is deferring balloon payment actually what we want to do?
    • yar: it'd be great to have the option to wait to refinance. we wouldn't have to wait though.
    • maryann: everybody's trying to finance right now, not everybody's succeeding. but we couldn't even make our first payments. if they extend it, it'd give us probably 1 year of post-pandemic operations that we could show a lender. that'd probably be ideal.
  • jenny working on 990 taxes, due August 15th
  • another finance meeting? or a delegates proposal for lender requests?

Fundraising

  • Meetings: Ad hoc
  • Join! https://omnicommons.org/lists/listinfo/fundraising
  • maryann: we're about to launch a gofundme. language needs review from this sunday's f/f meeting. will upload photos.
  • robb: liberated lens is still finishing up a different project before we work on a new omni fundraising video.
  • john got $1500 from [fb birthday fundraiser]
  • maryann & jane wrote a thank-you letter to SFF

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?

CCL

  • One of our scales went missing awhile back. Turned up again - in the ballroom with the food distro gear. Needless to say, lab equip should not be in contact with any food.
  • Building a testing rig to test DIY face mask matterials - efficiency and breathability. Hardware with some software behind it, intend ot loop in other orgs that are making lots of face masks Notes page here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1R0HlyGVRSm2KImP_0eF_JeKRo8pi1d5RfuaTi17UDPU/edit#
  • patrik: a member is willing to install a card reader for the bocce ball court room. need to coordinate that with sudo members, and jake who has the card reader hardware

CSC

  • showing films online, posted on omni's facebook page
    • 2pm sunday they're showing "fourth world war" (double check)
  • holding zapata festival online this year, instead of in the ballroom

FNB

  • helen: doing a lot of meal support around groups dealing with police violence
  • joe: Last night at monthly meeting we passed a plan in response to problems we have either had or heard about with Dimitry.. We suspending his activities as a FNB volunteer and during that month will explore ways to understand why things were not workable.
    • yar: dmitry is already banned from omni for sexual assault
  • joe: also decided to work at extending more support with food to camps in non-Berkeley areas. Will do this without dropping any of the People's Park meals.
  • best way for potential volunteers to join are to contact ryan or kalie
    • yar: you can also email ebfnb@omnicommons.org, it goes to the mailing list
    • jenny had issues with the mailing list though, will try to resolve out of meeting

FYE

  • nobody here

GWS

  • Jane: August is usually the month GWS goes on vacation - but still a lot of work going on with Poor People's Campaign, outreach there - steering committee mtg coming up this Sat. Trying to push gov't to give more pandemic payment to mothers and children, pushing for more movement in Congress.
  • John: Also supporting & promoting an online fundraiser w/ Mildred Aristide, former First Lady of Haiti - Saturday August 8th 2pm, free but please register with eventbrite. they're building a new hospital.

LL

  • Outdoor event off Wood St very successful

Phat Beets

  • CSA pumping up with help from Acta Non Verba, materials and supplies needed for a long time being supported. Lots of demand for the Beet Boxes. Grateful to team, and omninoms, and Acta Non Verba (set to transition on Aug 24th) - working that out. Excited and looking forward to awesome new changes

Sudo Room

  • Lots of people working on projects from home. had our 1st meeting in a while last week, over video.
  • want to provide more on-the-ground support to protesters

Sudo Mesh

  • mai: been missing tuesday meetings. members are working on projects.
  • got a grant for emergency preparedness materials, need to help distribute. lots of pamphlets.

Conflicts, Mediation & Safe Space

  • Updates for any ongoing issues
  • Has anybody been asked to leave? asked to leave

Proposals

Acta Non Verba proposal to become member collective and take over Phat Beets space/CSA

  • original proposal from Roya and Kelly on 7/15/2020, amended on July 25
  • https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dGaNgCPiggCDV6z0r3GotMAt08k3424kEuhLISKOsK8/edit
  • patrik: how is the leadership elected?
  • Kelly: i'm the founder & ED since they started 10 years ago. working on a strategic plan, including a succession plan. no plans to leave anytime soon. board goes through a recruiting check, reference checks, voted in with quorum by the rest of the board.
  • Roya: i was asked what if the ballroom & entrance hall are rented at the same time after the pandemic? in the past we've been able to use the basement. coordination can be done.
    • also, max will send an email to consensus that phat beets is willing to transfer their lease over. and would no longer be a member collective.
  • jenny: my sense is the paperwork of maintaining phat beets was too much. this is a way to support the actual work better.
  • roya: yes. as we went through the process of choosing a new group, it was extremely important to choose a group that would support us continuing the work we've done in the past, our commitment to bringing up youth, encouraging them to be awesome in thecommunity & do food justice work. they're willing to continuing to work with the farmers that we have long relationships with. they will be supportive and conscienscious of us. very excited!
  • John: I move that we accept ANV under the terms of the proposal.
  • sudoroom abstains because we don't have our shit together, but members present support this
  • FNB wanted to convert the walk-in fridge, had a conversation with Phat Beets about it, but will need to have that conversation again with ANV
  • best way to contact their collective is info@anvfarm.org

Consenso

  • $675 / month
  • yes: CCL (patrik), GWS (Jane), sudomesh (mai), fnb (helen), CSC (Mary Ann), LL (robb), Phat Beets (Roya)
  • abstain: sudoroom

Fiscally Sponsor renegade.bio's free public testing donations

   I agree that providing free Covid19 testing to members of the public is a charitable activity.  It lessens the burdens of government and promotes social welfare. 

As such, Omni can raise money for the activity and provide grants to Renegade Bio to provide free testing.

The re-grant / fiscal sponsorship should be specific in what it covers and I think that could include: -- collecting samples -- targeting underserved populations -- doing the testing of the samples -- education of the public about the testing and how members of the public can prevent spread of the virus.

Because Renegade is a private company, Omni should take some steps to make sure that the cost per test / number of tests and other services is reasonably related to the money provided. I am wondering if something objective on that issue could be added to the proposal?

For example, imagine a different situation in which you had "scam charity" collecting donations for Covid testing that it transferred to "scam company." Scam company tests 10 people and gets $10,000 in donations. That would not be reasonable. What would be best for Omni is to have something objective in the arrangement so that the amount of money that Renegade gets is not purely based on the amount it raises, but related to the services offered, or in which Renegade agrees to provide minimum services for each $1000 raised, etc. That way, you avoid a situation in which excessive $$ goes to overhead or non-charitable uses.

I am not sure if that is possible but it would make the proposal better.

Omni should sign a standard fiscal sponsorship agreement with Renegade which states that the funds will be used exclusively for charitable purposes, and which permits Omni to terminate if minimum results are not achieved. The agreement would provide for reports.

Discussions

  • yar totally flaked on taking notes for this conversation, sorry :(
  • lots of back and forth about the right way to structure this, how to allocate or keep track of the money in the right way
  • proposal needs some more work. will hopefully finish formal consent in 2 weeks, August 20


Last Meeting Notes

https://omnicommons.org/wiki/Event:2020/07/16_Delegates_Meeting

End of Meeting