Sachem Fund Board

Sachem Fund Committee 10/21/09 Room 335 Meeting Notes Attendees: Co-Chairman Alderman Bill Nash, Co-Chairman Bill Quidgeon, Jr., Joseph Ruffo, Comptroller, James Gessner, Mohegan Tribal Council, Lottie Scott, Peter Davis, Director of Planning, and Recording Secretary Evelyn Bessette Not Present: Mayor Benjamin P. Lathrop and Mark Brown, Mohegan Tribal Council Members of Press Present: Mike Gannon, Norwich Bulletin and Claire Bessette, The Day 1. The Meeting of the Sachem Fund Committee was called to order at 5:31 p.m. 2. It was determined a quorum was present 3. A motion was made by Joseph Ruffo, seconded by Bill Quidgeon to approve the Minutes of the September 23, 2009 - Motion carried in due form. 4. Joseph Ruffo explained the financial report of the Sachem Fund balance of $76,210.61 had not changed since the prior meeting. 5. Discussion in reference to the response of the grant awardees who haven’t yet drawn down their award to date resulted in the following determination: a. A deadline of January 1, 2010 will be extended to those recipients in order they provide the Committee with documentation that the awardee has at least entered into a contract to fulfill the grant requirements or be advised the monies will be recaptured to the Fund and it will be necessary to reapply. b. Sachem Fund Awards were given on a project specific base and no applicant can re-direct their award. The monies will then be recaptured by the Sachem Fund and it will be necessary the applicant re-apply for a project specific grant. c. Discussion regarding revised criteria and guidelines for Fund usage and qualifications resulted in the following determinations: i. Sachem Fund Committee will only accept one (1) application per organization and/or agency per round for consideration, with that applicant prioritizing funding per project if requesting funding for more than one project is requested. ii. The Sachem Fund Committee established the following timeline for applications and award recommendations to City Council.  1. February 1 Open application process 2. March 1 Application deadline and review begins 3. 3rd week of March Meeting to allow applicants to make 2 minute presentation to the Committee on their project 4. April 1 Committee completes reviewing of application and votes on distribution of funds 5. May 1 Recommendations by Sachem Fund Committee presented to City Council for vote at first Council Meeting in May iii. The following suggestions will be included in the application • Impact directly to the community • Location of program and/or projects • Potential of recapturing any unused funds • Timelines for the completion of programs or projects with the stipulation of a progress report submitted every 6 months (the recording secretary will send reminder follow up letter if necessary) iv. The entire Sachem Fund Committee will serve as the review panel on all funded programs and projects. v. Peter Davis noted he has spoken to Corporation Counsel on the viability and possibility of utilizing a grant writer for the benefit of the Sachem Fund Applicants to maximize their funding requests. Further information will follow at a future meeting. vi. Research for a Loan Program through the Sachem Fund is still being investigated and will be discussed at future meetings. Next meeting date – Tuesday November 24, 2009 5:30 p.m. Room 335 Citizen Comment: Mr. Vic Butsch commented on his disappointment that the Sachem Fund only distributed monies once a year as there may be projects presented that would come into conception and fruition prior to the application deadline process set up by the Committee. Meeting adjourned at 6:42 p.m. Respectfully submitted by: Evelyn Bessette, Recording Secretary