Beautification Committee

Beautification Committee Meeting MINUTES November 8th, 2022 7PM [Held as a hybrid meeting, both in person and virtually] Present: Sandi Power, Mary Ellen Halliwell, Brooke Nagle, Sam Fiore, Zachary Schaad, Jeremy Baker, Ariana Lema-Driscoll, Henry Gulergun, Kim Parkinson, Janelle Rolke (City Liaison) Guests: Charlene Bailey, Jason Lang, Janis Manning Agenda: Mission Statement Minutes Approval from Last Meeting New Member Update and Introduction Traffic Island Updates Window Box Competition Update Lady of Salem Updates Mission Statement: The mission of the Salem Beautification Committee is to assist the City in developing and pursuing initiatives that promote the beautification of the City. The goal of the Committee is to create civic pride and to motivate the City's diverse population to participate in the beautification process. The Committee will identify areas in need of improvement, will create programs, recruit volunteers and will secure the funding resources to achieve its goals. Minutes Approved from October Meeting with below edits Edit to name and date from Mary Ellen Traffic islands updates edits: 3 traffic islands that are sponsored near Lafayette had the roots problem, not plain grass For the DPW: the Everette was outside the building Reminder that we have to have chairman and secretary, Chairperson traditionally sets the agenda LoS discussion on moving the project to Public Art Commission  Mary Ellen clarified that this idea is focused on finding the best place for LoS to be aligned with. Julie Barry was invited to attend the last meeting to discuss the potential migration but she did not attend. o No decisions/votes taking place until more information available once Julie reaches out and resumes contact with the Beautification Committee.  Oct 12 Takedown, ladies stored in PEM basement until June Arts Festival th  May 2023 Setup scheduled with DPW  Survey happened on favorite LoS o Held on Facebook, promoted by Destination Salem, Salem News o 64% of survey takers were visitors, many heard of LoS from Salem Patch  o 38% Of Votes for Scarlett Letter LoS o Winning artist (Cynthia) received $50 Gift Card, has requested the certificate be shared with Oonah DeVries, family of the Scarlett Letter Press owners who passed.  Two new Figureheads were delivered o New artists to sign contracts o Each artist paying $500 to receive the ladies and picking up at Mary Ellen’s house Committee Membership Nominations & Voting  Introduction of Jason Lang, who is getting voted into the committee through the Salem Council meeting in December o 19 years of experience in non-profit communications and government work o Also a member of the Salem garden club  Henry nominated for Chairperson position o 6 members in favor o 0 opposed o The motion moves forward, congratulations Henry  Arianna nominated for Vice Chair position o 6 members in favor o 0 opposed o The motion moves forward, congratulations Arianna  Kim nominated for a secretary position o 6 members in favor o 0 opposed o The motion moves forward, congratulations Kim o Brooke to be the backup secretary and will help transition notes and give context as needed December Meeting  December 13th  Social meetup, no agenda  Reflect on the year past  Potluck  Henry to find a location within a week  In-person, not hybrid  Members, Volunteers, prospective volunteers  Janelle to find out how we need to advertise as a public committee Traffic Island Updates  Request made for clarification on where the islands are located, and if there is a map with name/location/sponsors o The old map needs updating; currently around 30+ islands between outer neighborhoods that are sponsored by neighbors  o About a dozen are downtown and sponsored by local businesses o There is a desire to have a tour of the islands so we can digitize the map and help mobilize volunteers and identify sponsors/potential sponsors  We should include council people in a tour of the islands and program  Last Islands bulb planting was finished near Lafayette park, at the top on the corner of Lafayette and Washington  No pan-handling signs have been spotted downtown, included Washington St median Volunteers  We need to work towards having a volunteer communication program  How we communicate with volunteers  Where we host activities  How do we get the word amplified 2023 Planning  Previous activities: o Halloween contests o Plant Sale o Window Box o Ladies of Salem o Traffic Islands  City Wreath Project o Salem Main Streets hoping to get BComm representation  Kylie would like to pass the baton to Beautification Committee for tree decorating  Janelle has talked to John Andrews at Creative Collective about more projects  Trash Barrel Audit  Cleanup by DPW, including graphic art o Opportunity to get local school involved  Riley Plaza  Just outside the parks, there are opportunities to extend the upkeep  Establishing neighborhood liaisons to “sponsor” hot spots  Discussion of temperance park portable bathrooms in October, ruining many gardens  Need to discuss obtaining new traffic island signs with the BComm logo for 2023, replacing those with Mayor Kim Driscoll’s name on them  Plan how to utilize Trello board set up by Ariana (Thank you!)