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Big Park Council Regular Business Meeting
Roll Call: Secretary Mary Pope called the roll and recorded 14member organizations present and 6 guests.
President’s Report: President John Wichert then called for approval of the meeting agenda, and on a motion by Carolyn Fisher, seconded by Paul Sullivan, the agenda was unanimously approved. He then introduced Fred Lenz, who has recently volunteered to be the Council’s technical consultant on electronic meetings and communications. John noted that Fred approached the Council because of an article in the Villager calling for help. A retired attorney, Doug Fitzpatrick also joined the APS Transmission line subcommittee because of an article in the Villager.
Secretary’s Report: Mary Pope noted that there were no changes to member organizations or representatives and then asked if there were any corrections to the minutes of the May 11th meeting and hearing none, called for a motion to approve them as written. Carolyn Fisher so moved and Pat Robles seconded. The minutes were unanimously approved.
Treasurer’s Report: John Wichert presented the Treasurer’s Report on behalf of Patty Reski. The second part of the anonymous donation toward the new website has been received and the website developer paid. One final payment will be made when the site is completed and approved.
Unfinished Business: John then noted that although there is unfinished business, these topics are postponed until July because today’s meeting is lengthy.
Committee Reports
Art in the Roundabouts: Rolf Funk presented the Art in the Roundabouts Committee (AiR) report announcing that their meeting on June 1st welcomed John Wichert and Lisa Snowdon as guests. The AiR survey on artistic themes received 169 responses (with thanks to the BPC for publicizing it!) Results were 86%positive, 11% wanted no artwork at all on the roundabouts and 11% recommended removing the suggested flagpole. Additional details will be posted to the AiR website next week and a link provided. (OurVillageArt.org) The committee concluded that there is strong community support for their recommended themes and will move forward with a call for entries based on the themes as described in the survey.
Membership: Colleen Hinds presented the Membership Committee report on behalf of Dennis Bauman. She showed examples of the two fliers being prepared to help inform the community on the work of the Big Park Council, and how to get involved. They’ve also prepared a general information flier “Welcome to the Village.” She thanked John Wichert for his help in creating the fliers. Help with printing and distribution are needed and volunteers are welcome. Distribution of the fliers will coincide with the launch of the BPC new website. Colleen then noted that in addition to the Council’s Facebook page, we are now on NextDoor and Instagram. A Social Media Correspondent is needed to help manage these sites and a volunteer will be most welcome. The committee is also looking for someone to create maps to show the community what areas are represented by the Big Park Council, how to get in touch with their Representatives, and what areas are not covered. She noted that a list of ideas is being worked on to help Representatives communicate with their constituents and a once a month coffee meet and greet that the committee would like to start in the fall.
Emergency Preparedness: Mary Pope presented the Emergency Preparedness Planning Committee (EPPiC) update on behalf of Gwen Hanna, noting that although the committee had completed its assignment of creating a repository of information, they would remain together to help the website committee beta test the site, assuring that the emergency information repository was complete and simple to navigate.
Website: Pat Robles presented the Website Committee’s progress to date noting that all content had been received, with many thanks to all who provided content and photographs as well as to those who’ve helped edit the content. Sedona Website Design is now populating the site with this content on a staging server so that the committee can do preliminary evaluations including ease of navigation. The next step will be to have the site available to beta test, hopefully before the next Big Park Council meeting.
Planning & Zoning: Jeff Swan reported on behalf of the Planning & Zoning Committee at the request of President Wichert, noting that the Las Piedras HOA Board has hired an engineering firm (CivilTech) to review the existing condition of Jack’s Canyon Wash and recommend repairs that will reduce/eliminate scouring drainage during heavy rainfalls. Preliminary review is expected to be completed within the next 3-4 weeks and recommendations should fall within a scope of repair that will not require the Army Corp of Engineers involvement. He noted that together with the BPC, Las Piedras is closely monitoring progress on the environmental assessment by a private firm hired by the Patels so that their loan would be guaranteed by the USDA for the lot on the SE corner of SR179 and Jacks Canyon Road. He noted that the private Environmental Review was dismissive of flood concerns. USDA will not give their final approval until after Yavapai County Planning & Development approves construction plans. Jeff mentioned concerns that paving the property for parking would negatively impact drainage, are lessened by a county requirement that a developer cannot increase water flow outside of their property. There would therefore need to be a retention/detention facility built within the property. During discussion, Jeff was asked to keep the Council updated on Las Piedras’ progress.
John Wichert thanked the committee presenters noting that Steve Fiedler will be resigning as liaison for VVTPO and that a replacement is needed.
The public meeting was adjourned at 10:24 am, members of the public were asked to leave and the Council moved into Executive Session to discuss a legal matter.
