Sachem Fund Board

Sachem Fund Committee 4/08/09 Room 335 Meeting Notes Attendees: Co-Chairman Alderman Bill Nash, Co-Chairman Bill Quidgeon, Jr., Joseph Ruffo, Comptroller, James Gessner, Mohegan Tribal Council, Peter Davis, Director of Planning, Lottie Scott, Mayor Benjamin P. Lathrop and Recording Secretary Evelyn Bessette Not Present: Mark Brown, Mohegan Tribal Council Members of Press Present: Michael Gannon, Norwich Bulletin, Kevin Gordon, WICH 1. The Meeting of the Sachem Fund Committee was called to order at 5:40 p.m. 2. It was determined a quorum was present 3. A motion was made by Bill Quidgeon, seconded by Joe Ruffo to approve the Minutes of the February 26, 2009 Motion carried in due form 4. A motion was made by Bill Nash to cap disbursements of this round to $116,000 seconded by Joe Ruffo. Discussion followed. Action taken: Vote taken 1 for, 2 opposed and 2 abstained. Motion failed. 5. Review 2nd round applications Upon review of 2nd round of applications with much discussion, it was determined some of the applicants were repeat applicants who may not have completed the full criteria of the grant award. Criteria from the first round award recipients stated documentation was to be given to the Sachem Committee on how monies awarded were used in accordance to their applications. It was further discussed that if first round recipients did not follow the procedure set forth, the repeat applicants would be disqualified. Letters received will be reviewed prior to any disqualifications to ensure propriety. 6. Discussion regarding revised criteria and guidelines for Sachem Fund Awards. It was determined that members of the Sachem Fund Committee will send their suggestions for revised criteria to Co-chairman Bill Nash. Bill will compile all data and send to other committee members for their review and determination to be discussed in depth at the May 6, 2009 meeting. It was also determined a sub-committee should be established to review and re- establish the criteria. Committee member Lottie Scott volunteered to be on this sub-committee. 7. Citizen Comment: a) Bill Champagne from the Norwich Historical Society along with other members of the NHS, Victor Butch, Vivian Zoe, and Bill Shannon presented a visual concept of the Historical Timeline to be installed in the Sidney Frank Center at NFA. The NHS applied for a grant from the Sachem Fund in round 2 of awards. b) Brian Kobalryz – Downtown NRZ applied for a grant from the Sachem Fund and wanted it known, that the Downtown NRZ received a grant from the first round, however, the monies were not expended as of yet due to the NRZ doing their due diligence prior to awarding a contract for their efforts. c) Keith Ripley – Norwich resident- commented on it is standard government process to establish a target amount for expenditure. Mr. Ripley also commented on how the grant expenditures may be buried in a disbursement letter previously sent in to the Committee and to revisit those letters to ensure fair and equitable treatment to the Applicants. d) Josh Perry – Norwich resident requested clarification of guidelines to the Sachem Fund. e) Sheila Hayes – resident – stated she is concerned about the possibility of repealing the Sachem Fund or the current proposal to repeal the Sachem Fund. This is of major concern when organizations that previously depended on funding from the City with line items in the budget is no longer available when it is needed most. To eliminate the possibility of replacing any amount of assistance from an alternative source, like the Sachem Fund, is of grave concern. Next meeting dates – Wednesday, May 6, 2009 5:30 p.m. Room 335 Meeting adjourned at 6:45 p.m. Respectfully submitted by: Evelyn Bessette, Recording Secretary