W. E. R. A. AGM Meeting

November 27, 2012: commenced 7:05 p.m.
Chair: Elmer Rudolph
Recorder: Gavin McLeod
Number of attendees: 11
1. Approval of minutes of previous meetings: Motion to approve minutes of May 26th and September 25th 2012.
2. Additional Agenda Items: Matt Lorenzi re. revival of Brow of the Hill RA; Mary Wilson reporting on ActBiPed committee and Translink open house on 2013 Bus Service Optimization; Gavin McLeod report on Traffic Advisory Committee and Citizen’s Police Committee ; Heather Mackenzie on vandalism and light pollution from Burnaby School playground.
3. Election of Officers and appointment of Directors:
President: Incumbent is Elmer Rudolph.
Nominations: Elmer Rudolph no other nominations Elmer Rudolph accepted the nomination and was declared elected by acclamation.
Vice President: Incumbent is Andrew Murray.
Nominations: no nominations
Secretary/ Treasurer: Incumbent is Gavin McLeod
Nominations: Gavin McLeod no other nominations Gavin McLeod accepted the nomination and was declared elected by acclamation.
Motion to accept Moved/ Seconded/ Carried
Appointment of Directors:
Appointed Directors are: Mary Wilson and Heather Mackenzie
Motion to accept election results and appointments by Frank Norman and seconded by Alice Millar.
4. Confirmation of WERA Boundaries (Elmer Rudolph): In 2009 WERA was asked by the Brow of the Hill RA to change the boundaries to allow Brow of the Hill to represent residents between 6th and Stewardson west of 12th Street; at the same time WERA was requested to officially represent the residences located below Stewardson accessed by River Drive, bylaw amendments were proposed and accepted at a meeting. The city was not notified; the city has been made aware of the boundary changes and will be given a copy of the constitution.
5. Report on City/Residents' Associations Forum (Elmer Rudolph): Elmer reported on the second meeting, the purpose of the forums is to improve communication between the city and the RAs and to create more effective RAs, issues discussed were cost of venues after school board began charging rent and insurance for previously free access to school facilities; one option suggested by the city was to submit a grant application; other suggestions were to supply a template for web design and/ or create a space on the city website for RAs to use; meeting are by invitation and not open to the public. The residents’ association guidelines were reviewed and changes were suggested. Future meetings will be held on a quarterly basis.
6. City asking for volunteers for Committees (Elmer Rudolph): The city has reported that they have had a problem with a lack of volunteer applicants for some committees, Elmer reported that he has received complaints about the running of the committees particularly from representatives to the Neighbourhood Traffic Committee; Gavin McLeod reported that the recent traffic advisory committee meetings were either cancelled or could not obtain a quorum; Gavin McLeod also suggested that the city announce which committees are lacking in volunteer applications.
7. Letter from city regarding condition of lane in 1400 block London St./ 10th Ave (Elmer Rudolph): Elmer sent a letter to the city on behalf of residents who were complaining about the condition of their back lane with numerous potholes and puddles; they also submitted a picture of the lane. The city replied that they were not scheduling a repaving at this time but should be able to fix the potholes before the end of the year.
8. Church Donation: Elmer reported that WERA donated $50 to the church last year to show appreciation for the free use of their facilities. Elmer requested a motion to provide a similar donation for this year. Motion by Mary Wilson seconded by Heather MacKenzie to donate $50; motion accepted.
9. Additional Agenda Items: Mary Wilson reported on ActBiPed committee meeting wrt. the proposed bicycle crossing at London and 20th streets; Mary also reported on the Connaught heights meeting and membership drive as well as the Translink 2013 Bus Service Optimization Open House; an online questionnaire is available until December 14th; Mary attended the West End Business association meeting where Christmas plans were announced; Mary also reported on safety issues on Edinburgh Street near 12th. Heather Mackenzie reported on vandalism in their area as well as light pollution from the Burnaby School on 10th and the Translink repair yards; Heather also commented on commercial vehicles parked for long term in front of residences in apparent violation of New Westminster bylaws. Matt Lorenzi reported on restarting the Brow of the Hill RA. Elmer asked for membership payments and announced a calendar year membership period.
Meeting adjourned at: 8:45
Next meeting Tentatively for January 22nd at Unity in Action Church from 7pm to 9pm.