Sister Cities

SISTER CITIES ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES 04.11.2024 ACTION ITEMS 5:45 PM Roll Call and Confirmation of Quorum ● In attendance: Amanda Logan, Lisa Armstrong, Laura Combs, Jake Durtschi, Lisa Armstrong, Charlotte Combs, Brad Cramer (representing the Adult Association), Jim Francis, Catherine Smith, Mayor Rebecca Casper ● Absent: Chloe Doucette, Cindy Ozaki, Jeremy Crook ● Note: Quorum was not reached immediately as several Committee members were absent and another had a conflict causing her to be late to the meeting. No votes were taken until quorum was reached. Approval of February 8, 2024 Meeting Minutes ● Tabled. To be approved at the next meeting. Approval of Reimbursements ● Tabled until quorum was reached. DISCUSSION ITEMS Updates from City ● Jim has taken on a time-consuming Board role with the Idaho Association of Cities at the request of Mayor Casper so Catherine Smith, Idaho Falls Economic Development Administrator, will be the representative from the City moving forward. Thank you to Jim for his work getting the Committee up and running! ● Mayor Casper joined the Committee meeting to thank everyone for their work, to support the Youth Association’s fundraiser, and to discuss the new financial process (Sister Cities Advisory Committee Policy 1.0: Financial Transaction) and form that the Associations/Committee will use moving forward. o Reimbursement: ▪ The Sister Cities Budget shall be set and approved by the Committee (and CIty Council) annually. ▪ The Adult and Youth Sister Cities Associations’ expenditures eligible for reimbursement shall be submitted to the Sister Cities Advisory Committee each month (no later than the 25th of the month to be considered for approval at the next month’s meeting). Each request shall include a list of reimbursable item(s) with supporting documentation, such as a receipt, as proof of expenditure as well as an explanation of the purpose of the expenditure. ▪ Upon submission, each request will then be approved by the Sister Cities Advisory Committee by a majority vote. No expenditure will be reimbursed without approval. There shall be enough information contained within the Committee’s minutes to determine what is being approved. If a regular  meeting is not scheduled within a month of submission, the Committee may approve reimbursements by email vote and record the vote in subsequent Committee minutes. ▪ Once approved by the Committee, the Mayor’s Office shall review and quality the reimbursement request. This review will ensure the adequacy of the documentation, qualify the approval, and verify the availability of funds within the appropriate City account. Once qualified, the Mayor’s Office will submit the requests to the Municipal Services Finance Division. The Finance Division will process the request in the next available check run. Reimbursements will only be issued to the Sister CIties Association, The City will not issue direct payments to any other party unless prior approval is granted by both the Sister Cities Advisory Committee Chair and the Mayor’s Office. o Advance: ▪ For major purchases, the Committee may submit a written request for an advance of budgeted funds. Such requests shall be limited to a specific program request for amounts over $1,000 and are subject to the availability of funds within the Sister Cities account. Advance requests shall have enough documentation for the City reviewer to verify the purpose of the proposed expenditure and how it relates to the Sister Cities program activities. ▪ Once an advance is issued and funds have been spent, the COmmittee shall submit to the Mayor’s Office a reconciliation of the use of the funds and any excess funds shall be returned to the City. If the advance does not cover all necessary expenditures for the approved program activity, the advanced amount will be subtracted from any subsequent reimbursement requests o FOrm: ▪ A hard copy of a “Sister Cities FInancial Transactions Reporting Form” was distributed. The form is to be submitted with all reimbursement requests, advance requests, and advance reconciliation. o Points of Contact ▪ Catherine Smith will be the representative of the Mayor’s Office and the Committee Chair will be the point of contact for the Committee. Discussion around having a Treasurer or Vice Chair handle in place of the Chair to be continued at the next Committee meeting. ● Juneteenth community festival “Making Room for Everyone” o June 15th) 9-230 at the river Needs to be staffed similar to the farmer’s market. o Jim invited the Sister Cities Association to have a booth similar to what we did at the Farmers Market last summer. ▪ Mayor Casper volunteered to host a shift. ▪ Amanda to send signup genius for volunteers.  ▪ Tents and tables to come from the Museum of Idaho. o Invited to Willard Arts Hall on June 19th for a diversity celebration event. Doors open at 6:00 PM (art and cupcakes). Programming begins at 7:00 PM. ● The City requested 3 spots during the Adult Association's visit to Tokai-Mura (October 30th - November 8th) for the purpose of building economic ties ACTION ITEMS TABLED UNTIL QUORUM WAS REACHED Approval of Reimbursements ● Two stage coach rentals for the Japanese youth visit this summer: o West Yellowstone Trip: $2,580 o Lagoon trip: $2,190 o Motion to approve a total of $4,770 for the above two rentals made by Jake and seconded by Lisa. Motion passed unanimously. ● $50 of items for a Sister Cities gift basket to be auctioned off at the Idaho Falls Symphony Gala on May 3rd. o Discussion around this being a good idea to consider doing with more community fundraisers that have an auction component in the future to help publicize Sister Cities. Something to consider as we formulate the FY 2025 outreach budget. o Motion to approve $50 to be used for the Sister Cities gift basket for the Idaho Falls Symphony Gala auction made by Jake and seconded by Lisa. Motion passed unanimously. DISCUSSION ITEMS, CONTINUED Report from Sister Cities Adult Association ● Requested an edit to the Japanese Garden sign text: “tends” changed to “honors”. Report from Sister Cities Youth Association ● Two big fundraisers of the year: o The Snow Eagle Fundraiser was today, hence the Committee meeting at the Snow Eagle. Thursday, April 11th. o The Cherry Blossom fundraiser will be held from 6:00 to 8:00 PM on Friday, May 10th at Empire Fitness. This is an auction basket fundraiser combined with a sushi making fundraiser. ● The Youth Association raked and cleaned up in the Friendship Garden recently. ● The Japanese youth will be here July 26th to August 5th and are still in need of additional host families, ideally those who have teenagers at home. o Would like to find a sponsor for the City Day Lunch, perhaps a business that could donate sandwiches. o There will be appetizers/finger food at the COmmunity Reception which will be held at the Friendship Garden. This could be another opportunity for sponsorship(s). Community Outreach Opportunities ● Youth Association Social Media Marketing o No updates at this time.  ● Local Educator Grant Application o Lisa circulated the draft grant application to the Committee and would like to approve the final grant application at the May Committee meeting. ● Friendship Garden Sign o Chloe provided the Committee with a long version (about 400 words) and a short version (about 200 words) at the March meeting and it is available in the Google Drive. The text has not been finalized yet. ● Fall 2024 Museum of Idaho Minidoka Exhibit o No updates at this time. ● Potential Exhibit at The Art Museum of Eastern Idaho o No updates at this time. ● Potential Sponsorships from and Involvement with Local Businesses o DIscussion around targeting specific businesses to help financially or with in--kind donations during the Japanese youth’s visit to Idaho Falls this summer, especially with expenses related to the Community Reception, City Day (lunch. o Additional discussion about furthering the “Idaho” business connection with Tokai-Mura. Suggestion to put together gift bags with local gifts, such as jerky, Idaho candy, (Farrs, Reeds, Golden Value), etc. Date and Agenda Items for Next Meeting ● FY 2025 Budget o Increase of $3,000 to pay for Friendship Garden sign; Interpretation costs? o Should the Committee be paying for insurance for the Associations? ● Finalize planning for a Juneteenth booth and another Farmer’s Market booth. ● Approve educator grant application. ADJOURNMENT 6:56 PM