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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013 HRRC MinutesMINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE EDINA HUMAN RIGHTS & RELATIONS COMMISSION January 22, 2013 7:00 PM I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Kingston called the meeting to order at 7:07 PM. II. ROLLCALL Answering roll call were Commissioners Bigbee, Finsness, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick and Chair Kingston, and Student Members Mohtadi and Stang. Staff present: Lisa Schaefer, Staff Liaison and Ari Klugman, City Manager Intern. III. MEETING AGENDA APPROVED Motion was made by Commissioner Stanton to approve the meeting agenda of the January 22, 2013 meeting. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Bigbee. Ayes: Bigbee, Erhardt, Finsness, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. IV. CONSENT AGENDA ADOPTED IV. A. November 27, 2012 Minutes Motion was made by Commissioner Seidman and seconded by Commissioner Bigbee to approve the November 27, 2012 minutes. Ayes: Bigbee, Finsness, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. V. COMMUNITY COMMENT There were no community comments. VL REPORTSAND RECOMMENDATIONS A. 2013 Meeting Schedule Commissioner Finsness made a motion and Vice Chair Seidman seconded the motion to cancel the December 26`' meeting. Ayes: Bigbee, Finsness, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. Chair Kingston pointed out that the Commission had previous made a decision to change the March meeting to March 19, 2013. Motion was made by Commissioner Newell and seconded by Commissioner Bigbee to adopt the 2013 meeting schedule. Ayes: Bigbee, Finsness, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. B. Assess 2012 Commission Work Chair Kingston congratulated the Commission on a hard year's work; the Commission will evaluate the 2012 work plan and decide what to carry over to the 2013 work plan. Domestic Partner Ordinance Commissioner Stanton explained this is no longer just a local government issue; there may be bills at the state level for domestic partner benefits. Chair Kingston clarified what is currently on the 2012 work plan was for contracting preference to be given to companies that offer domestic partner benefits when all else is equal. Commissioner Winnick suggested the domestic partner ordinance may need to be adjusted from time to time. As more issues come up in this area, and at the state level having a person be the contact could be helpful. Commissioner Bigbee suggested a revision to action and due date in light of new developments at the State. It should be revised to say, will monitor the domestic partner ordinance and what is developing and will bring up changes as necessary. Chair Kingston pointed out the State is not bringing up contracts, and this was put on here to be a focus of the joint work session. Commissioner Finsness suggested monitoring at all levels. Commissioner Winnick suggested changing the category to monitor domestic partner ordinance and propose changes to City policy in accordance with domestic partner related developments. Commissioner Stanton expressed his interest in taking over if there is a broader mission to the category. Commissioner Bigbee made a motion and Commissioner Winnick seconded a motion to create a broader mission for the monitoring domestic partnership ordinance commission initiative and to accept Commissioner Stanton's offer to lead the broadened objective. Ayes: Bigbee, Finsness, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. Commissioner Stanton will lead item four and present the contracting information in May at the Joint session with the Council. In April, Commission Stanton will bring forward other issues for us to consider for the Joint Session. At the next meeting Commissioner Stanton will bring forth an idea of what a broader objective in this area would look like. Initiate Census Research Funding Recommendation Commissioner Stanton made a motion to remove initiating census research funding in 2013 and replace with community outreach efforts. Vice Chair Seidman seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Finsness, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. Commissioner Bigbee asked if Commissioner Stanton and Newell would still be in leading this issue. Commissioner Newell commented Fartun Weli is planning to report back to us in the upcoming months with what she will need in order to help with outreach. She offered to lead the initiative. Commissioner Stanton shared an update about the Resolution 2012-178 approved by Council about domestic partner health care benefits. He also offered to talk to legislatures about the resolution at the capital, if the City would like to. Staff Liaison Schaefer will check with Manager Neal about whether Commissioner Stanton should speak to legislators on behalf of the City about the resolution. Chair Kingston asked if Commissioner Stanton would like to include this with the first item monitoring domestic partner related issues. The Commission agreed the item would fit with the broader mission. C. 2013 Work Plan and Budget Edina Reads Chair Kingston shared, although all of the items on the 2013 work plan were approved by the Council, the budget for the HRRC was not changed. The Commission has $3,050 for all activities and needs to prioritize the funds. In 2012, the Commission purchased the books for Edina Reads. Commissioner Finsness explained the only item left is the Speaker fee for $150.00. Any other money would be for video and communications. We would need to discuss that with Jennifer. Chair Kingston suggested capping this at $500 for video. Staff Liaison Schaefer stated she would check on the budget. She also clarified the City is in the second year of a two year budget, there could be an additional request made at another date. Chair Kingston stated we will put down $150 and pend additional funding for video production. Developing Cross Organizational Partnerships Commissioner Stanton stated the $1,500 for developing cross organizational partnerships was just a place holder at this point and could probably be cut in half. Commissioner Newell disagreed and said until we hear from Fartun she is hesitant to cut the budget. She wanted to put together a work plan with Fartun, doing it as a request for our group where she would record her hours, etc. Commissioner Seidman asked if she would be essentially a consultant. Commissioner Newell said yes, but she has not replied with what she would need in order to do that yet. Commissioner Finsness suggested we could make a recommendation to the Council to use her expertise and it could come from another source of City funds. Chair Kingston stated she did not leave the November meeting thinking the Commission had agreed to hire her as a consultant to the Commission. Commissioner Newell responded at the end of the meeting we asked where we wanted to take this and Fartun said she would put a proposal together we could consider. Chair Kingston clarified she thought it was what the Commission could do, not that we were hiring her. Commissioner Bigbee stated if we go to the Council for this, there are partners like the police department and parks and recreation. Commissioner Finsness proposes leaving the $1,500 as is today, because we don't have enough information. Explore support opportunities for victims of domestic violence Commissioner Newell said she envisioned having someone come in and talk about the needs for victims of domestic violence. There would be no budget associated with the item. Commissioner Bigbee stated getting more information and data from the police about incidents could be helpful. Commissioner Seidman suggested a bigger event rather than just the Commission; the Commission could advertise the event to the public. Days of Remembrance Chair Kingston shared there are still some unknowns in the budget. She does not know what the space fee for the school would be, and if they would charge a fee for renting the piano. This event is probably going to be over $1,000 which would put us over budget at this point. The would also need a piano. Commissioner Finsness asked if there is a date and if a church with a piano and seats, could work. Chair Kingston said we could look at that but we were trying to keep the venue neutral. Commissioner Bigbee suggested reaching out to multiple faith groups to get funding for the space. Chair Kingston stated we are going to have to make a decision pretty quickly about this and where we will spend our dollars, and she was not comfortable fundraising. Commissioner Finsness stated she believes they paid about $450 for tech fees and did not pay for the space last time. D. Appoint leaders for each Commission initiative Chair Kingston confirmed that all of the initiatives have an assigned leader and leaders would give updates at the next meeting. E. Discover Human Rights training series by The Advocates for Human Rights Commissioner Bigbee explained two offers for training for human rights. The first one is from the Advocates for Human Rights. This is a series of four workshops. Each session is half a day. From previous experience, they have been really good. He thought this could be an educational opportunity for commission members and employees. Chair Kingston shared the last two options are courses that relate to a step by step process for implementation. She will probably be sending some of her City of St. Paul staff, and she will give an update on their experiences. F. YWCA of Minneapolis Racial Justice Workshops Commissioner Bigbee shared he is not very familiar with the next option but it would be another opportunity for commission members and city, staff. Staff Liaison Schaefer will share this with all appropriate city staff. G. LMHRC Commissioner Bigbee shared his experience working with the LMHRC. He has been working with the group since 2010. He has suggested ways in which the league could be more effective. He recommends that if the City gets an invoice for membership that the City does not continue to be members at this time. He is open to someone else representing HRRC if they want to continue. Chair Kingston explained her experience with the group over the past two years. Some of the cities who were on the league have left the league or disbanded their human rights commissions She agrees with Arnie and his experience and would support moving away from the league for 2013. Commissioner Bigbee moved and Commissioner Winnick seconded a motion to suspend the commission's membership with the LMHRC to be revisited next year. Ayes: Bigbee, Finsness, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. H. Present Tom Oye Award nominations Commissioner Winnick shared that the Commission received five nominations for the Tom Oye Award. Two nominations were for the same candidate, and one nomination was for two co - nominees resulting in five nominees. Commissioner Winnick made the motion and Commissioner Seidman seconded the motion accepting the nominations. Ayes: Bigbee, Finsness, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. Commissioner Winnick moved to formally establish a two year cycle for all nominations not selected as a recipient of the award, without any further work on the nominee's part. When the thank you letter goes out to all nominees and nominators announcing the award recipient, they should also be informed of the two year cycle. Commissioner Seidman seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Finsness, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. Commissioner Winnick made a motion to move the nomination deadline date to before the January meeting, so discussions can take place at the February meeting, and the final action at the March meeting. Commissioner Bigbee seconded the motion. Commissioner Finsness stated she still feels she would have trouble making a determination without more detailed criteria. Chair Kingston stated the Commission had previously determined they will not be establishing further criteria during this award cycle. Ayes: Bigbee, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Abstain: Finsness Motion carried. Commissioner Winnick stated they should formalize the voting process. Commissioner Winnick made a motion that the vote be held like any other vote of the Commission, by individual vote of the Commissioners present, majority rule. Commissioner Stanton seconded the motion. Commissioner Finsness stated she would like her comments to be considered, because she feels you cannot vote up or down this many people without running into ties. She feels very uncomfortable voting on five individuals who are all very well qualified without the Commission having common definitions of what the criteria is. She didn't vote last year and will not vote again, because she feels all of the nominees meet the criteria. Chair Kingston stated the application does have criteria listed. The Commission has discussed having a rubric many times. In September, the Commission decided to table the rubric or modifying the criteria until after the 2013 Tom Oye Award cycle is finished in April. Commission Newell asked for Commissioner Winnick to state the current criteria that is on the form. Commissioner Winnick shared the following selection criteria. Selection Criteria Anyone who lives or works in Edina is eligible for this award. Nominees will be evaluated based on their efforts to: (1) Foster respect and dignity for others (2) Model courage and/or compassion in the advancement of human rights (3) Demonstrate leadership by example for improving human relations and/or advancing human rights Chair Kingston stated this has gone on for a number of months and we already decided the issue is tabled until May. She does not want the Commission to spend more time on something that has already been voted on and discussed many times. If a member chooses to not participate in this process, that is his/her choice. Commissioner Newell asked if stated everyone was comfortable with what the criteria mean. Commissioner Stanton explained he has participated in a lot of democratic bodies, and you cannot reduce everything to a totally objective decision. There is a place for subjective evaluation. Commissioner Newell pointed out there is a description which outlines criteria, there just seems to be some discomfort with what the criteria means. The description is the basis of what a rubric would be to go any further would mean we all have different definitions of these terms. Commissioner Seidman agreed with Commissioner Stanton. She stated it feels bad to pick one winner, but eventually we need to make a decision. The rubric was on previous agendas, but no specific rubric was ever brought forward for consideration, and they needed to move forward with the nomination process. Commissioner Bigbee shared they are all good candidates, it is a choice and it does reflect us as a group, culture and society. The real goals are to lift up someone in our community and acknowledge them. Commissioner Winnick stated he felt deference has been given by the chair to discuss this again because this has already been decided on by the Commission for this year. We have an approach and by majority vote it can go forward. What we have to remember is that our nomination has a tremendous effect on the winner. Commissioner Newell shared she felt the difference is how we are interpreting. For Commissioner Finsness, the award is a property right. Commissioner Newell asked why we needed to have one winner. Commissioner Seidman moved to call to question and Commissioner Stanton seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Kingston, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Nays: None. Motion carried. Return to original motion regarding voting. Ayes: Bigbee, Kingston, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Nays: None. Motion carried. I. Present Chair and Vice Chair nominees Commissioner Winnick shared they have one Commissioner willing to stand for Chair, Commissioner Bigbee and one Commissioner willing to stand for Vice Chair, Commissioner Seidman. Chair Kingston clarified there will be a discussion at next month's meeting and they will allow any nominations from the floor, then the Commission will vote. If we have a contested race, each person can speak for no more than three minutes. Commissioner Winnick reminded the group, if the race is contested, it will be by ballot signed by the voter. Chair Kingston reminded the group they will also have an opening for administrative chair. After the Chair and Vice Chair has been concluded they will need to choose a new administrative chair. J. 2013 Work Plan Edina Reads Commissioner Finsness asked to allow time to talk about the Edina Read's book. Commissioner Bigbee asked to put it on the agenda for next meeting for 20 minutes. Commissioner Finsness shared the League of Women voters is on board to help with publicize the event. Student Commissioner Stang shared that she talked to some parent groups about including the book in the spring newsletters; she will also be distributing posters around the school for the event. Commissioner Finsness said one Edina teacheris having her whole class read the book. Days of Remembrance Chair Kingston explained she is trying to pick a day with Janet Horvath and wanted to know whether or not a Saturday or Sunday performance would work. Commissioner Seidman shared two years ago, the event was held on a weekend and we had a good turnout. Commissioner Finsness asked if there is a difference in cost or availability with the school. Commissioner Winnick asked if it was enough for a program. Chair Kingston shared Janet speaks and there are pictures.She normally leads a discussion afterwards. She believes Janet has only performed the piece three times before. Chair Kingston asked if the Student Commissioners Stang and Mohtadi would want to help with the event. Both Commissioners agreed. VII. REPORTS/RECOMMENDATIONS CORRESPONDENCE AND PETITIONS Chair Kingston shared there was one correspondence that came to the Mayor, and may work well with the monitoring domestic partner ordinance work plan item. It is about gender expression being included in our definition of human rights. Commissioner Bigbee asked if the phrase `gender expression' is common terminology. Commissioner Winnick stated right now the policy reflects the State Statute. He is going to look into whether transgender has been interpreted and included under sexual orientation. Staff Liaison Schaefer shared our policy does reflect state statute and in employment law sexual orientation has been interpreted to include transgender. That doesn't mean the Commission couldn't recommend to the Council to change the terminology. Commissioner Stanton stated our policy has not always matched up with the law. Chair Kingston stated I am not sure if the transgender community would feel they belong under sexual orientation. In the past, Outfront Minnesota has talked to us about labeling single stall bathrooms as unisex, but this has not been on their list. Commissioner Newell and Winnick will both reach out to the writer. Commissioner Stanton will talk to Outfront Minnesota. VIII. CHAIR AND COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS Commissioner Bigbee shared several publications and said he has a lending library if anyone would like any reading material. Commissioner Seidman asked about recruitment for the boards and commissions. Applications are due on February 1 at 4:30 pm. Commissioner Stanton asked about how term limits work, and if there is a break between serving years if they can come back. Staff will check on that information and get back to the Commission. Commissioner Finsness shared she has received a human rights kit to help teach human rights. The Commission will allocate around 15 minutes on the March meeting. IX. STAFF COMMENTS Staff Liaison Schaefer reminded the group about the electronic packet and asked the Commission to let us know if you would like a paper copy. X. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business on the Commission Agenda, Commissioner Bigbee moved and Commissioner Seidman seconded adjournment of the meeting. Ayes: Bigbee, Finsness, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. Chair Kingston declared the meeting adjourned at 9:17 PM. Respectfully submitted, Ari Klugman, City Manager Intern Minutes approved by HRRC, February 26, 2013 Jessi Kingston, HRRC Chair MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE EDINA HUMAN RIGHTS & RELATIONS COMMISSION February 26, 2013 7:00 PM I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Kingston called the meeting to order at 7:07 PM. II. ROLLCALL Answering roll call were Commissioners Bigbee, Cashmore, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick and Chair Kingston, and Student Member Stang. Staff present: Lisa Schaefer, Staff Liaison and Ari Klugman, City Manager Intern. III. MEETING AGENDA APPROVED Motion was made by Commissioner Bigbee to approve the meeting agenda of the January 22, 2013 meeting. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Seidman. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. IV. CONSENT AGENDA ADOPTED IV. A. January 22, 2013 Minutes Motion was made by Commissioner Seidman and seconded by Commissioner Cashmore to approve the consent agenda. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. V. COMMUNITY COMMENT There were no community comments. VI. REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS A. Chair and Vice Chair Elections Commissioner Winnick asked the two nominee's he introduced at the January 22nd meeting to confirm their interest in running. Commissioner Bigbee confirmed his interest in Chair, and Commissioner Seidman confirmed her interest in Vice -Chair. Commissioner Winnick opened up to further nominations for Chair, hearing none he moved for nominations to be closed. Commissioner Cashmore seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. Commissioner Winnick opened up to further nominations for Vice -Chair, hearing none he moved for nominations to be closed. Chair Bigbee seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. Commissioner Winnick made a motion and Commissioner Stanton seconded the motion to vote by voice acclamation to appoint Arnie Bigbee as Chair and Jan Seidman as Vice Chair. Commissioner Stanton seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. B. Review and update bylaws City Manager Intern Klugman shared this is part of the annual work plan; it is an opportunity to review the current bylaws and recommend to Council any changes. Staff Liaison Schaefer shared staff has no recommended changes at this time. Commissioner Kingston shared the history of the bylaws; the work was done by Assistant Manager Kurt and a small committee last year. Commissioner Kingston did not recall any problems in the past year that have come up over the past year. Commissioner Newell shared she is concerned there is not a formal process for the removal of a commissioner by council. She believes this should be addressed in the bylaws. Staff Liaison Schaefer shared the Council is elected and has the authority to appoint and unappoint anyone they choose to, because ultimately they are appointing these people to do work on their behalf. Commissioner Newell felt that the human rights commission should persuade the Council to revise the process. Commissioner Kingston asked if Commissioner Newell had any specific language she would like to propose. Commissioner Stanton asked for clarification about the HRRC's bylaws and how, as a subservient group of the Council, they would go about changing the bylaws. Staff Liaison Schaefer clarified changes would have to be in the form of recommendations to the Council and the Council would have to approve of the change. Commissioner Stanton stated he agreed there should be due process and transparency. Commissioner Winnick stated he felt anything the Commission does regarding this can only be in the form of a recommendation to the Council. The focus should be solely on whether or not any member of an Edina Board or Commission receives due process from the Council when the issue of removal is considered. It should have nothing to do with any particular person. Commissioner Winnick stated if what she is just talking about is just due process, he would support the idea, but felt it should start at the council level, not the EHRRC. Commissioner Newell stated she believes the human rights commission has a special charter to address issues like this for the City. Commissioner Kingston made a motion to disband this discussion and deal with a proposal of a process in March. Commissioner Seidman seconded the motion. Commissioner Winnick stated he will not be here in March and this is an issue he feels very strongly about and would request it be moved to April and that he is willing to serve as a co-chair on a subcommittee with Commissioner Newell on the issue. Commissioner Kingston amended her motion to move the discussion to April, Commissioner Seidman seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. Chair Bigbee suggested the Commission come in one hour early to a meeting and have box dinners and use the opportunity to get to know one another. Commissioner Kingston suggested moving the dinner to April, so all Commissioners can be present. The Commission will meet at 6 pm for the meeting on April 23rd. Commissioner Cashmore asked for clarification if it would be City Staff would be included. Chair Bigbee said the group here, including City Staff. C. Selection of Administrative Chair Commissioner Kingston nominated Commissioner Winnick to serve as administrative chair. Commissioner Seidman seconded the nomination. Commissioner Winnick accepted the nomination. Chair Bigbee asked if there were any other nominations. Hearing none, he called for a vote. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. D. Tom Oye Award Discussion Commissioner Winnick introduced the Tom Oye Award discussion by reviewing the nominations. The Commission then discussed the nominations. E. Volunteer Awards Reception Staff Liaison Schaefer shared the invitation to the April Volunteer Recognition Reception, which was sent to the HRRC from City Manager Neal and is in the packet. There is an opportunity for Commission members or residents to individually nominate individuals for the Mayor's Commendation awards. Send the nominations to Susan Howl. F. Edina Reads Book Review Chair Bigbee have an update on the Edina Read event. The event will take place on April 22 from 7-8:30 pm at the Senior Center. Student Member Stang shared she brought the books to the library and plans to put up a display in the library when it gets closer to the event. The Commission then held a brief discussion of the book. G. Monitor Domestic Partner Legislation and the City Ordinance Commissioner Stanton reviewed the correspondence they received regarding sexual expression as part of our City Ordinance. He found several examples of this being done in other cities, and provided proposed language for the amendment. After hearing about our new member being the one who wrote the correspondence, the Commission decided it may be fitting for her to make the motion at our next meeting. The Commission tabled the item until the March meeting. Commissioner Winnick asked about altering subpoint c. of the City Ordinance which currently reads, "Cooperate with the State Department of Human Rights, the State League of Human Rights Commissions and other agencies and programs that relate to the public policy stated herein." To read: "Cooperate with the State Department of Human Rights, the Sta4e League efl4ufn—a Rights Cemmissiens and other agencies and commissions in their programs that relate to the public policy stated herein." Commissioner Stanton stated he would rather have the gender identity and the agencies/commission issues handled separately so as to not confuse the issues. Commissioner Newell pointed out there is another point in the ordinance, subpoint c. of the policy statement where it would need to be altered as well. Commissioner Stanton made a motion to make the changes to the Ordinance, Commissioner Winnick seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. Chair Bigbee stated he will speak with Chief Long before the next meeting to clarify if there are any legal restrictions that would affect the ordinance change. Commissioner Stanton shared this week at the legislature there is going to be a bill introduced to legalize same sex marriage. The bill would make other legislative changes, such as domestic partner benefits, moot. This will not be a party line vote. Minnesota United for all Families has asked others who have proposed domestic partner legislation to delay it until there is a vote on gay marriage. If the marriage bill doesn't pass, we have proposed legislation for domestic partner benefits. Both Representative Erhardt and Senator Franzen are both going to work on that legislation, if needed. H. 2013 Budget Commissioner Kingston explained the Commission did not receive full funding from the Council because of the biennium budget. There are two events that were competing for funds, the first was for community outreach, which could potentially be used to do something with Fartun Weli. The second was for the Days of Remembrance program with Janet Horvath. Dates are fairly limited now for Janet, so it would have to be April 14''. The Commission would need to nail down a location, and confirm with her this week if they wanted to do the event. Commissioner Cashmore made a motion to coordinate the bigger event with Janet Horvath in 2014 with Commissioner Cashmore serving as Chair. Commissioner Stanton seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. Commissioner Kingston clarified we are just going to run the videos for Days of Remembrance. I. Review leaders and draft work plans for each commission initiative. Commissioner Bigbee suggested moving commission initiative work plans to next month's meeting. J. 2013 Work Plan Commissioner Newell shared Fartun Weli will be at next month's meeting to share her proposal. Commissioner Newell has spoken to professors at Hamline about speaking to the EHRRC about the state of legislation and protections for victims of domestic violence. This would have to be April. Commissioner Winnick requested to move the updating of the Bias/Hate Crime Response Plan from March of each year to May of each year. Commissioner Cashmore is going to work on the plan with Commissioner Winnick this year, with the intention of taking over the response plan. Chair Bigbee said one other thing to mention is the celebration of the City's 125"` anniversary. The Commission should go through and identify what their role is going to be in the celebration. VII. CORRESPONDENCE AND PETITIONS There were none. VIII. CHAIR AND COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS Chair Bigbee shared he is excited to work this next year, there is a lot of information ahead of us. Commissioner Cashmore asked for the date of the work session with Council. Chair Bigbee stated it is May 7`'' Staff Liaison Schaefer shared it will probably start at 5:30pm. Chair Bigbee asked for a reminder to be sent that we are convening an hour early for the April meeting. IX. STAFF COMMENTS Staff Liaison Schaefer clarified that two new commissioners will be appointed because Commissioner Erhardt resigned. X. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business on the Commission Agenda, Commissioner Winnick moved and Commissioner Seidman seconded adjournment of the meeting. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Kingston, Newell, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Motion carried. Chair Bigbee declared the meeting adjourned at 9:20 PM. Respectfully submitted, Minutes approved by HRRC, March 19, 2013 Ari Klugman, City Manager Intern Arnie Bigbee, HRRC Chair MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE EDINA HUMAN RIGHTS & RELATIONS COMMISSION March 19, 2013 7:00 PM I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Bigbee called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. II. ROLLCALL Answering roll call were Commissioners Cashmore, Davis, Lagerstrom, Seidman, Chair Bigbee Newell, and Student Member Stang. Staff present: Lisa Schaefer, Staff Liaison and Ari Klugman, City Manager Intern. III. MEE TING A GENDA APPRO VED Motion was made by Commissioner Cashmore to approve the meeting agenda of the March 19, 2013 meeting. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Seidman. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Davis, Lagerstrom and Seidman. Motion carried. IV. CONSENT AGENDA ADOPTED IV. A. February 26, 2013 Minutes Motion was made by Commissioner Seidman and seconded by Commissioner Cashmore to approve the consent agenda. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Davis, Lagerstrom and Seidman. Motion carried. V. COMMUNITY COMMENT There were no community comments. VI. REPORTSANDRECOMMENDATIONS Commissioner Stanton and Student Member Mohtadi entered at 7:05 pm. Commissioner Newell entered at 7:12 pm. A. Community Outreach i. Fartun Weli Chair Bigbee introduced Fartun Weli from Isuroom and reminded the Commission she has previously spoken to the Commission several months ago. Fartun Weli briefly introduced herself and why she is here presenting to the Commission. She presented her proposal to the Commission to help identify needs and Somali Community leaders in Edina. Commissioner Seidman asked about the budget proposal and clarified that it did not include the Community Event as part of the proposal. Commissioner Seidman then asked if there are other sponsors that could be part of the process. Weli stated she has worked on all budgets and knows a lot of people who might be able to donate food. Chair Bigbee thanked Fartun Weli and Weli left the meeting at 7:25 pm. Commissioner Stanton asked about the budget available for the event. City Manager Intern Klugman stated she believes there was $1,500 put in for Community Outreach. Chair Bigbee stated rather than focusing on the budget, he wanted to talk about what direction the Commission wants to go. ii. Community Listening Sessions Chair Bigbee asked if he could include the next item as part of the conversation about the next step for Community Outreach. He shared this information is from the Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights. They are doing a project to get a feel for how welcoming Minnesota is for immigrant communities. Community Listening Sessions are part of the One Voice Minnesota project. They would provide materials, gather information and be a welcoming presence at the event. There were members of the Richfield and Eden Prairie Human Rights Commission present and they talked about possibly cohosting a listening session or training. He stated this is really preliminary, but could help simplify or reduce some of what Fartun Weli is proposing. Commissioner Stanton asked about the costs, and Chair Bigbee stated they do not charge. They would like a report to help them measure how welcoming Minnesota is. Commissioner Stanton stated he would not mind doing a dual track. He emphasized the Commission has tried for a long time to make a contact and progress in this area, and he doesn't want to lose that opportunity. Commissioner Stanton stated he feels we should ask the Council for funds. Commissioner Cashmore stated the money doesn't necessarily have to be city funds; the Commission could talk to the Edina Community Foundation or approach other non- profits within the community to help. He doesn't know if the first option should be to ask the Council. Commissioner Seidman agrees with both and explained that she asked Fartun Weli about sponsorship for this reason. Commissioner Newell stated the one important distinction is that we would be putting the Somali Community Members in the productive role and giving them the opportunity for leadership. Chair Bigbee stated he believed active participation from the HRRC would be critical. He also stated it is important to keep in mind that we have Somali's in our community but we also have other community groups in Edina. Commissioner Cashmore stated he thinks there needs to be Commission subcommittee or workgroup. Chair Bigbee asked if there were members of the Commission that would like to help lead this initiative. Commissioner Cashmore volunteered to chair the subcommittee and Commissioner Davis volunteered to help lead the initiative. Chair Bigbee asked staff if they could give a little information of the work group contact information. City Manager Intern Klugman shared there were six individuals who expressed an interest in serving on the HRRC who were not selected for any board or commission, who could be contacted to help out with a work group. Chair Bigbee asked to have their info shared with him. Chair Bigbee is going to contact the advocates and get further information about the One Voice Minnesota project and include other commissions like Park Board and the Health committee. B. Tom Oye Award Selection Commissioner Seidman briefly reviewed the nominations and the process that has occurred this year for the Tom Oye Award and opened the floor for nominations. Commissioner Cashmore nominated Alec Fisher to be the 2013 Tom Oye Award recipient. Commissioner Stanton seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Lagerstrom, Newell, Seidman and Stanton. Nays: Davis Motion carried. C. City Ordinance Revision- Gender Expression Commissioner Lagerstrom made a motion to recommend to the City Council to add gender expression to policy statement of Section 1501 of the City Code. Commissioner Stanton seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Davis, Lagerstrom, Newell, Seidman and Stanton. Motion carried. City Manager Intern shared she had checked with the City Attorney and the City would not be required to make any changes to the restroom. Chair Bigbee checked with the police chief and he stated we should make sure we are in accordance with state statutes so we can enforce laws and the policy in schools may be different. D. General Work Plan updates i. Monitor Domestic Partner Legislation and the City Ordinance. Commissioner Stanton gave an update on domestic partner legislation and stated there is a proposed marriage equality bill. There is legislation for the domestic partner benefits if the marriage bill does not pass. ii. Anti -bullying event and education- Edina Reads Student Member Stang said she was working to put up posters at school. Commissioner Cashmore asked for the Edina Reads event to be publicized on City Extra. iii. Days of Remembrance Commissioner Cashmore and Seidman shared they will be setting up a display at City Hall for the Days of Remembrance and asked for the event to be posted on the front sign and a press release to be written. iv. Domestic Violence Chair Bigbee asked us to think about where Domestic Violence is going to fall in our work plan, the commission will talk about it more next month. E. Resource File Chair Bigbee introduced the commission to the resource file and shared some of its contents. The resource file will be available at City Hall for Commissioners to use. F. Other i. EBT SNAP Chair Bigbee informed the Commission that the do.town was working on getting Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Electronic Benefit Transfers to be available at the Farmer's Market. Tom Shirley, the General Manager of Centennial Lakes is working on the initiative. ii. 125`1' Anniversary Chair Bigbee shared 2013 is the 125th anniversary and wanted to know if the Commission wanted to form a workgroup for the initiative. Commissioner Lagerstrom volunteered to help lead and Student Members Stang and Mohtadi will also work on the project. iii. Reminder Work Session May 7`" 5:30-7 pm Chair Bigbee reminded the Commission the work session is planned with the Council on May 7h from 5:30- 7pm. A major portion of the next meeting will be on planning the upcoming event. VII. CORRESPONDENCE AND PETITIONS City Manager Intern will draft an email response to the correspondence the Commission received regarding human trafficking and ask her for further contact information. VIII. CHAIR AND COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS Chair Bigbee reminded the Commission that next month's meeting will start at 6 pm and include boxed dinners. IX. STAFF COMMENTS There were none. X. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business on the Commission Agenda, Commissioner Stanton moved and Commissioner Seidman seconded adjournment of the meeting. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Davis, Lagerstrom, Newell, Seidman and Stanton. Motion carried. Chair Bigbee declared the meeting adjourned at 9:00 PM. Respectfully submitted, Minutes approved by HRRC, April 23, 2013 Ari Klugman, City Manager Intern Arnie Bigbee, HRRC Chair MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE EDINA HUMAN RIGHTS & RELATIONS COMMISSION April 23, 2013 7:00 PM I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Bigbee called the meeting to order at 6:55 PM. II. ROLLCALL Answering roll call were Commissioners Cashmore, Davis, Kingston, Lagerstrom, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick, Chair Bigbee and Student Member Stang. Staff present: Lisa Schaefer, Staff Liaison and Ari Klugman, City Manager Intern. III. MEETING AGENDA APPROVED Motion was made by Commissioner Stanton to approve the meeting agenda of the April 23, 2013 meeting. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Kingston. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Davis, Kingston, Lagerstrom, Seidman, Stanton and Winnick. Motion carried. IV. CONSENT AGENDA ADOPTED A. March 19, 2013 Minutes B. Community Outreach Work Group and Press Release. Motion was made by Commissioner Cashmore and seconded by Commissioner Seidman to approve the consent agenda. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Davis, Kingston, Lagerstrom, Seidman, Stanton and Winnick. Motion carried. V. COMMUNITY COMMENT Lisa Finsness, addressed the Human Rights and Relations Commission regarding the removal of a Human Rights and Relations Commission Member. Finsness stated on February 5, 2013 a member was removed by the City Council, as a result of a complaint. She stated that the HRRC's role is to value human rights, which involves the right to participate in government and respect its community. o Concern was expressed about the removal by the Council allegedly without due process, due diligence or fact finding. Finsness was also concerned about the bylaws of the HRRC not honoring article 10 of the United Nations' International Declaration for Human Rights. o Finsness suggested correcting the wrong by having a conversation with the person affected by this complaint and amending the bylaws to require due process. Commissioner Kingston stated she did not feel that Finsness' statement was an accurate depiction of the situation, the actions of the City Council or the role of this Commission. Chair Bigbee reminded the Commission that although Commission Members may be asked to sit in interviews, the appointment or removal of individuals from the Commission is done by the City Council. VI. REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS A. Plan a joint Work Session with Council Chair Bigbee reminded the Commission the joint work session will be held from 5:30-7 pm on Tuesday May 7, 2013. Commissioner Kingston reminded the Commission the structure of past work sessions. Last time, they highlighted the key accomplishments of the previous year and each group presented what they are working on. There is a specific item on the agenda related to the Domestic Partnership Ordinance that has been tabled to be discussed at the work session with Council. Commissioner Stanton asked to discuss whether the Commission wants to bring forward the Domestic Partner Ordinance Revisions. He has two concerns, 1) next week the legislature will vote on legalizing same-sex marriage, which could render the ordinance redundant; 2) In July the Suprerne Court will rule on DOMA, which may have a lot of impacts related to benefits. Since it is in a state of flux and some of the ordinance itself is out of date, a lot has changed since 2010. Commissioner Stanton made a motion to revisit in July, and ask the Council for their input on what is being suggested. 'There was not a second, motion failed. Commissioner Cashmore pointed out that DOMA will not affect businesses smaller than 50 employees, so it would not accomplish the goal of the revision. Commissioner Winnick explained even if marriage was legalized in Minnesota, the City does business with others outside the state. All this provision does is allow the City to give preference to a company that provides benefits for domestic partners. If this is the approach we take, the next level of discussion is whether or not it should be exact or substantially similar. Commissioner Cashmore explained they put in exact because Council Member Brindle had concerns about justifying paying more because someone offers domestic partnerships. We wanted to give the City the out. The goal is for this to serve symbolically, as a gesture of support for companies who offer benefits to domestic partners. Chair Bigbee asked to put together a presentation which review of our previous years' experience and highlights the new ideas and initiatives the Commission has. The presentation will include: Anti -Bullying- Edina Reads, Tom Oye Award, adding Gender Expression to the City Ordinance, Opposition to the Marriage Amendment, Opposition to the Voter ID Amendment, Domestic Partner Registry, Conflict Free Materials, Days of Remembrance, Religious Observance Policy, Nazi Persecution of Homosexuals, Bias/Hate Crime Response Plan, Super PACs (even though it was tabled by Council). Commissioner Lagerstrom proposed an additional anti -bullying event for 2013 and provided information about what the Blake School is currently doing. Commissioner Seidman stated we should bring to the Council that we will be working on another event for this year related to anti -bullying it will be a new event. Chair Bigbee asked if the Quasquicentennial is currently on the work plan. City Manager Intern Klugman stated this event is not on the work plan approved by the Council, it will need to be presented to Council and get their approval. Chair Bigbee also stated we will review and update the Council on our current approved work plan items which include: Anti -Bullying- Edina Reads, Community Outreach related to Census Demographic Changes. The Community Outreach will have two initiatives to explain the working group and the MN Advocates for Human Rights' community listening sessions training The City of Richfield has reached out to the Commission about training. Chair Bigbee stated the Commission will also present new ideas and initiatives to be discussed with council, an additional anti -bullying event, youth retreats and the Quasquicentennial event. B. Domestic Partner Legislation Review Commissioner Stanton gave an update on domestic partner legislation and stated there are three options right now that may get voted on in the next week or so. Those options include: the legalized marriage bill, a proposal for all new marriages to be civil unions for all couples regardless of sexual orientation and the bill the HRRC recommended to Council about local jurisdictions having the ability to define dependents for their own jurisdictions. C. Quasquicentennial City Manager Intern Klugman explained to the Commission the Quasquicentennial is not currently on the commission's work plan. Since the HRRC bylaws outline a press release is needed for the implementation of a new working group we need to get permission from the council to work on the project. Commissioner Lagerstrom shared if they give permission we will be putting out a press release for the working group. Chair Bigbee shared that we have talked to a few people who signed up to be on the Human Rights and Relations Commission who were not selected to see if they have any interest in being on a working group. So far, four of them have expressed interest. Commissioner Winnick made a motion to approve the formation of the working group for the Quasquicentennial with the condition the Council gives permission at the joint work session and to give Leslie permission to work with staff to draft a press release for the working group. Commissioner Kingston seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Davis, Kingston, Lagerstrom, Seidman, Stanton and Winnick. Motion carried. D. General Work Plan updates i. Monitor Domestic Partner Legislation and the City Ordinance. Commissioner Stanton shared the Council did amend the City Ordinance to include Gender Expression. ii. Community Outreach Efforts- no updates. iii. Anti -bullying event and education- Edina Reads City Manager Intern Klugman shared that the Communication and Technology services department is planning to finish up the video of the Edina Reads event this week. The video will play on channel 16 until May 26 on Tuesdays at 1 1 pm, Wednesdays 7 am and 3 pm. Commissioner Davis asked if the video will be available on the website. Staff Liaison Schaefer responded that we will look into it. iv. Tom Oye Award Commissioner Winnick shared the Tom Oye Award presentation will be at 5 pm on April 30 at the volunteer recognition reception. v. Days of Remembrance Commissioner Seidman shared they are currently working with the JCRC to find a speaker for next year's Day of Remembrance. This year, the posters were put up in the lobby and the videos are playing on channel 16. Commissioner Seidman mentioned the Commission has only reused the information for the last two years and has not spent additional funds. Commissioner Kingston shared we still have the books, videos and handouts available from the last two years for future events. vi. Domestic Violence Commissioner Kingston shared when this was put on the work plan it was an idea from a commissioner and has not been started. She asked if this is an item the commission wants to continue to explore or if the commission wants to table the item and find out from the community what is actually needed. Since the work hasn't started. Commissioner Stanton shared through the human services task force, we are already currently funding this and we get a copy oftheir statistics. As a commission, he feels we need to be a little more focused and that others are better suited to work on this issue. Commissioner Davis stated her agreement with Commissions Stanton's comment. Commissioner Kingston asked about contacting the partners that the City is already funding to get an update. Chair Bigbee asked if this is a priority or if the HRRC should remove it from the work plan. Commissioner Kingston made a motion to remove Domestic Violence from the 2013 work plan, Commissioner Winnick seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Davis, Kingston, Lagerstrom, Seidman, Stanton and Winnick. Motion carried. VII. CORRESPONDENCE AND PETITIONS There was none. VIII. CHAIR AND COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS Commissioner Winnick explained we have to appoint a member to serve on the Edina Community Council. Commissioner Winnick has served for the past two years, if anyone is interested in serving. Chair Bigbee asked if by June Commissioner could have their nominations selected. IX. STAFF COMMENTS Staff Liaison Schaefer reminded the Commission to register for the April 30 Volunteer Reception. City Manager Intern Klugman passed out an email from former Commissioner Meg Newell, saying goodbye and giving an update about the Charity Woods contact. X. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business on the Commission Agenda, Commissioner Davis moved and Commissioner Kingston seconded adjournment of the meeting. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Davis, Kingston, Lagerstrom, Seidman, Stanton and Winnick. Motion carried. Chair Bigbee declared the meeting adjourned at 9:07 PM. Respectfully submitted, Minutes approved by HRRC, May 28, 2013 Ari Klugman, City Manager Intern Arnie Bigbee, HRRC Chair MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS & RELATIONS COMMISSION May 28, 2013 7:00 P.M. I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Bigbee called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. II. ROLL CALL Answering roll call were Commissioners, Cashmore, Kingston, Lagerstrom, Seidman, Winnick, Chair Bigbee and Student Member Mohtadi. Staff present: Lisa Schaefer, Staff Liaison and Candy Fiedler, Administrative Staff. Chair Bigbee questioned filling the vacant member position and Staff Liaison Schaefer said that City Council will be discussing the vacancy at the June 4th Workshop. III. APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA Motion was made by Commissioner Cashmore to approve the meeting agenda of the May 28, 2013 meeting as presented. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Seidman. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Kingston, Lagerstrom, Seidman, and Winnick. Motion carried. IV. ADOPTION OF CONSENT AGENDA A. Approval of Minutes -Regular Meeting of April 23, 2013 Motion was made by Commissioner Winnick with suggested revisions and seconded by Commissioner Seidman to approve the consent agenda. Ayes: Bigbee, Cashmore, Kingston, Lagerstrom, Seidman, and Winnick. Motion carried. V. COMMUNITY COMMENT There were no community comments. VI. REPORTS/RECOMMENDATIONS A. Living Streets Committee Presentation. Assistant City Manager Karen Kurt and Jennifer Janovy from the Edina Transportation Commission gave a presentation regarding a Living Streets Policy for Edina and Edina's vision to achieve this. An overview of the policy was presented to the HRRC explaining the goals of the City including safety in walking, bicycling and driving, reduced storm water runoff, reduced energy consumption and the promotion of health. The proposed policy will be used to create a Living Streets Plan to achieve the above listed goals. Challenges were presented and there were questions from members regarding bike lane markings and laws, and universal signage. Commissioner Winnick discussed the concept of including place making, which is pursuing how to create a community that people say "this is where I want to be". Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 2 Assistant Manager Kurt explained that the purpose of the presentation to the HRRC was to see if there was interest from any HRRC member to join an Advisory Committee which will oversee the next step in the process to create the Living Streets Plan. The position would require a commitment of meeting once each month and there will be 10 to 12 representatives on the committee. Commissioner Bigbee stated that there will be someone from the HRRC on the Living Streets Advisory Committee. Assistant Manager Kurt requested that Staff Liaison Schaefer forward a draft copy of the policy to the HRRC members, and if members have additional comments or questions to forward them to Staff Liaison Schaefer prior to the July 16 Council Work Session where this will be taken into consideration. B. Review Joint Work Session with Council Proposed revisions to the 2013 HRRC Work Plan were presented. Staff member Schaefer said a draft version of the revisions was attached for formal City Council approval. Commissioner Kingston questioned the use of the $1500 budget asking if it was it to be used for professional services to meet community needs as presented by Fartun Weli, since we didn't do Holocaust programming this year, or is it for the training that Chair Bigbee mentioned. Chair Bigbee said that the professional services amount from Fartun Weli would be $3500 which was not achievable in one year and there would be no additional funding from City Council. The budgeted amount should remain for community engagement partnership expenses. C. Strategic Review of Initiatives Chair Bigbee suggested the HRRC use the training services provided from One Voice Minnesota. This is affordable training with the only cost being that of providing coffee and snacks to attendees. The training could be presented to all of Edina's Commissions and would create consistency in holding community meetings. Staff Liaison Schaefer stated that City Manager Intern Klugman put together the attached draft Report/Recommendation and Approved Work Plan along with proposed revisions to send to Council. These documents were marked with a Draft watermark. Commissioner Cashmore requested page numbers be added to the packets and Staff Liaison Schaefer said we will work on this. After discussion as to the allocation of the $1500 budget, it was decided that Commissioners Cashmore and Davis present the proposed changes at the next meeting in June. This would implement the goal of spreading the $1500 over other initiatives and would include the training services from One Voice Minnesota. Staff person Schaefer advised that the work plan revisions should be a separate item for approval on the June agenda. HRRC discussed removal of the Domestic Violence item and the addition of Anti -Bullying and Quasquicentennial (Timeline) Event items. Commissioner Seidman suggested making the Community Listening Sessions a subsection of the Community Outreach project, not two separate projects, and bring a Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 3 plan to the June meeting. Member Cashmore moved, Kingston seconded, motion carried. Chair Bigbee will draft the work plan revisions, go through to make the language easier to understand, and to postpone action until the June meeting. D. Update from Teams i. Days of Remembrance 2014 (Cashmore and Seidman) There was discussion to determine if this should be one or two events. Commissioner Cashmore felt that the Yom HaShoah Holocaust Remembrance Day should be a separate event. Commissioner Bigbee reported that the Mayor indicated he would prefer one event so that we're sensitive to the entire community. Commissioner Winnick said that in Minnesota, the entire month of April was dedicated to remembrance of all genocides and it was decided that one event is sufficient. Commissioner Kingston said Edina passed a Proclamation Day of Remembrance to remember victims of the Holocaust. It was then decided to bring this item back to the June meeting and investigate if a second Proclamation should be made. Monitoring Domestic Partner Legislation and the City Ordinance (Stanton) Commissioner Stanton was not present and this item is postponed until July, after the Supreme Court decisions have been made. iii. Community Outreach Efforts (Cashmore and Davis) Commissioners Cashmore and Davis will come prepared with speaking to this at the June meeting. This item is also postponed until June or July. iv. Quasquicentennial (Lagerstrom, Stang and Mohtadi) leave as is Member Lagerstrom drafted a press release to recruit a working group. They are looking for someone with background in history, diversity or civic engagement. E. Other Staff Liaison Schaefer said that the HRRC needs to select a Human Services committee member by September. She is unsure whether or not Commissioner Stanton will remain on for 2013. This item will be added to the next agenda. VII. CORRESPONDENCE AND PETITIONS None. VIII. CHAIR AND COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS Commissioner Winnick reported that he was happy to serve as the representative for the Edina Community Council and his term runs through the end of this year. He explained that the Edina Resource Center is the main social service agency in the south metro area, and how magnificent the Volunteers Enlisted to Assist People (VEAP) is. He said there will be a new building opening in Bloomington this September which will make it more accessible for those needing these services. Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 4 Commissioner Cashmore requested the Commission look at different dates for meetings next year. Staff Liaison Schaefer said that she will check into what needs to be done to change all meeting dates. Commissioner Winnick questioned if thank you notes had been sent out for Tom Oye awards. Staff Liaison Schaefer said that City Manager Intern Klugman had done this. She will send copies of these letters to Commissioners Seidman and Winnick. IX. STAFF COMMENTS X. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business on the Commission Agenda, Commissioner Cashmore moved and Commissioner Kingston seconded adjournment of the meeting. Motion carried. Chair Bigbee declared the meeting adjourned at 9 PM. Respectfully submitted, Minutes approved by HRRC, June 25, 2013 Candy Fiedler, Administrative Staff Arnie Bigbee, HRRC Chair MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS & RELATIONS COMMISSION June 25, 2013 7:00 P.M. CALL TO ORDER Chair Bigbee called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. II. ROLL CALL Answering roll call were Commissioners Arsenault, Cashmore, Davis, Kingston, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick, Chair Bigbee and Student Member Stang. Staff present: Lisa Schaefer, Staff Liaison and Candy Fiedler, Administrative Staff. III. APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA Commissioner Cashmore requested moving Agenda Item VI.D. to follow Agenda Item VI.A. and to add Item VI.G. which would be Commissioner Winnick speaking about his Meeting with the Chief. Motion was made by Commissioner Stanton to approve the meeting agenda of the June 25, 2013 meeting as presented with the above changes. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Davis. Ayes: Bigbee, Arsenault, Cashmore, Davis, Kingston, Seidman, Stanton and Winnick. Motion carried. IV. ADOPTION OF CONSENT AGENDA A. Approval of Minutes -Regular Meeting of May 28, 2013 Motion was made by Commissioner Stanton to approve the consent agenda with the suggested revisions of removing his name from the motions because he was not at the meeting; the motion was seconded by Commissioner Cashmore. Ayes: Bigbee, Arsenault, Cashmore, Davis, Kingston, Seidman, Stanton and Winnick. Motion carried. V. COMMUNITY COMMENT There were no community comments. VI. REPORTS/RECOMMENDATIONS A. Introduce New Commission Member. Chair Bigbee asked those present to introduce themselves and to welcome the new Commissioner, Patrice "Pat" Arsenault. B. Select HSTF Member. Commissioner Stanton corrected the Action to change Hennepin South Services Collaborative to Human Services Task Force. He explained that he has been on this Task Force for two years now which deals with services such as women's shelters, VEAP, food shelves, and senior citizen services. The Task Force recommends and prioritizes grants to the City Council to fund these services. Commissioner Stanton said this was his last year to serve on the Task Force and asked those present if there was someone interested in taking over. Commissioner Arsenault volunteered to take the position. Commissioner Winnick added that he is already involved with another committee, the Edina Community Council, and since the Council deals with the disbursement of funds Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 2 for the Human Services Task Force, he should not be on both ends. He did however, offer to help and work with Commissioner Arsenault. Motion was made by Commissioner Kingston and seconded by Commissioner Cashmore to approve the appointment of Commissioner Arsenault to serve on the Human Services Task Force. Ayes: Bigbee, Arsenault, Cashmore, Davis, Kingston, Seidman, Stanton and Winnick. Motion carried. C. Select Living Streets Committee Member. Chair Bigbee summarized what the Living Streets Committee is about to those Commissioners who were not present at the last meeting to hear the presentation. Chair Bigbee explained that this was a personal interest of his and if no others were interested in becoming a member, he would be happy to. Motion was made by Commissioner Kingston to nominate Chair Bigbee to serve as a Living Streets Committee member and seconded by Commissioner Davis. Ayes: Bigbee, Arsenault, Cashmore, Davis, Kingston, Seidman, Stanton and Winnick. Motion carried. D. Select Community Outreach Working Group Members. Commissioner Davis reported that she and Commissioner Cashmore were following up and interviewing all of the people who applied to be on this group. She said she had three people for sure that wanted to be on the working group and it will be exciting for the new members to decide exactly what the group will do. She said they can still use a couple more people to commit and they should have the group formed by the end of the week. Commissioner Cashmore said that they also could have a representative from the high school, the Police Department and Park and Recreation Department, so they need to determine where the talents are when selecting members. There should be a cap of three, four or at the most, five people in the group. Commissioner Kingston questioned how many people were on the list to select from and Commissioner Davis said there were seven but one could not be considered because they are a Bloomington resident. Staff Liaison Schaefer clarified that for Commissions, members are required to be Edina residents but for Working Groups they do not have to be. Commissioner Cashmore stated that this item should be firmed up and added as an agenda item for the July meeting. E. Work Plan Revisions for Council. A revision of the Proposed Work Plan Additions handout was given to those present. The major revision was the inclusion of the last paragraph on the second page. i. Explore support opportunities for Victims of Domestic Violence. There are no changes to this item. ii. Additional anti -bullying event and/or education. Commissioner Kingston made a motion to move this item to 2014. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Seidman. Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 3 Ayes: Bigbee, Arsenault, Davis, Kingston, Seidman, Stanton and Winnick. Motion carried. Chair Bigbee then explained that Staff Liaison Schaefer had forwarded an email from the NFL to the members of the HRRC which was originally sent by the Mayor for HRRC review. The cost for this item would be from $500 to $5000. Commissioner Kingston said that it was necessary to determine the role of the HRRC and proposed to look at this item in 2014. Chair Bigbee said he personally would not recommend this and it appears to be something more appropriate for the School District to look at. Commissioner Winnick said he thought we should respond to the Mayor. When he reviewed the document, it appeared to be national in scope - two celebrities and a famous sportscaster are all from the East Coast. If the hook is to use celebrities, Edina is the home to many celebrity athletes and we should consider bringing them in, adding we do not need a franchise program. When we consider an anti -bullying event, it makes sense for the School District to continue with their program. We could work with the Park Department to develop a program if necessary, but this is not feasible for the month of July. Motion was made by Commissioner Winnick to forward the above comments to the Mayor. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Kingston. Ayes: Bigbee, Arsenault, Davis, Kingston, Seidman, Stanton and Winnick. Motion carried. iii. Quasquicentennial Event. Chair Bigbee said he felt a few additions were necessary to be included in the Explanation of the Addition. Commissioner Winnick said he had checked and confirms the examples listed. Commissioner Stanton said Edina was one of the first cities to adopt a Human Rights Ordinance in the 60's and thought this could be added. Chair Bigbee suggested adding "and more recent events such as the City's adoption of the Human Rights Ordinance" to the Explanation of Addition for this item. Commissioner Davis questioned if Voter ID should be included. Commissioner Kingston asked if we needed to list everything, or just examples. She said she thought we should highlight the key items and Commissioner Lagerstrom will help put together the entire timeline. Commissioner Seidman suggested that any additions to the list be sent to Commissioners Cashmore and Lagerstrom to be sure all items are captured for this process. Chair Bigbee concluded that the comments such as the City's Adoption of the Human Rights Ordinance should be added to the list of items in the Explanation of Addition section. iv. Community Listening Sessions (Training and Listening Sessions) Chair Bigbee summarized what the sessions were and asked for input from the ` other Commissioners. It was explained that this is a subset item to be run by Commissioners Cashmore and Davis. There was discussion as to how long the sessions were and how many people could be at the sessions. Chair Bigbee asked for input and explained they were approximately two hours each for both the Training and Listening sessions and if the Commission would like, they could invite Richfield, Eden Prairie, or other commissions or people from our police Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 4 department. Commissioner Davis clarified that the people who get the training will host sessions to train others. Chair Bigbee explained that the question of how many sessions depends on the ambition of the team setting this up and how many groups are decided on. He added about 20 to 30 people would be a good number per session. Chair Bigbee said the $500 number was an estimate and dependent upon how many sessions were held and the number of people per session. The completion dates were then discussed and Chair Bigbee said that the Training Sessions should be completed by November, 2013 and the Listening Sessions between November, 2013 and March, 2014. Commissioner Seidman said she thought dates should be a placeholder. Staff Liaison Schaefer reminded the Commission that changes in the deadline dates do not have to go to City Council; they anticipate dates are used for guidelines. Chair Bigbee made the motion to add the revision of Adopting the Human Rights Ordinance to the Work Plan Quisquicentennial Event. Commissioner Seidman seconded the motion. Ayes: Bigbee, Arsenault, Davis, Kingston, Seidman, Stanton and Winnick. Motion carried. General Work Plan Updates. Staff Liaison Schaefer explained that the 2013 HRRC Work Plan Status by Topic was revised and included updates from the last meeting so it reflected the current status. Commissioner Seidman requested that the Days of Remembrance be put back on for 2014. She reported that Commissioners Cashmore and Kingston were working on this with her and would like two separate events for a week in April; one for Yom HaShoah and one for Holocaust Remembrance. Commissioner Stanton questioned what they would need to do for a City Ordinance regarding Monitoring Domestic Partner Legislation. Commissioner Kingston reminded those present that the city registry is also for opposite gender couples. It was decided to add an Agenda Item next month for discussion of the major changes which took place with DOMA and Prop 8 from the Supreme Court's decision, and contact the City Attorney's office regarding any potential impact to the City's ordinance in preparation for September. Commissioner Davis made the announcement that Student Member Mohtadi was voted "Most Likely to Change the World" and Student Member Stang was voted "Most Respected" by their high school senior classmates. G. Update Bias/Hate Crimes Response Plan Commissioner Winnick reported that they would like to change the date from July to August so that they have the opportunity to meet and discuss this with the Police Chief. VII. CORRESPONDENCE AND PETITIONS None. VIII. CHAIR AND COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 5 Commissioner Seidman reported there was one more day for student member interviews and a final decision would be made in August. Chair Bigbee added that we have excellent student members. IX. STAFF COMMENTS None ADJOURNMENT There being no further business on the Commission Agenda, Chair Bigbee moved and Commissioner Stanton seconded adjournment of the meeting. Motion carried. Chair Bigbee declared the meeting adjourned at 8:15 PM. Respectfully submitted, Minutes approved by HRRC, July 23, 2013 Candy Fiedler, Administrative Staff Arnie Bigbee, HRRC Chair MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS & RELATIONS COMMISSION July 23, 2013 7:00 P.M. I. CALL TO ORDER Vice Chair Seidman called the meeting to order at 7:04 PM. II. ROLL CALL Answering roll call were Commissioners Arsenault, Lagerstrom, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick. Staff present: Lisa Schaefer, Staff Liaison and Annie Johnson, Staff Liaison. III. APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA Motion was made by Commissioner Winnick to approve the meeting agenda of the July 23, 2013 meeting as presented. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Lagerstrom Motion carried. IV. ADOPTION OF CONSENT AGENDA A. Approval of Minutes -Regular Meeting of June 25, 2013 Motion was made by Commissioner Stanton to approve the consent agenda; the motion was seconded by Commissioner Winnick. Motion carried. V. COMMUNITY COMMENT There were no community comments. VI. REPORTS/RECOMMENDATIONS A. Monitoring Domestic Partner Legislation and the City Ordinance. Commissioner Stanton indicated this item would be better reviewed in August. Vice Chair Seidman asked that it be moved to the August agenda. Appoint Members for Quasquicentennial Working Group Commissioner Lagerstrom reported that one person responded to the press release to volunteer for the working group. She indicated that to recruit more members to the working group, she was going to inquire with friends and acquaintances. The Todd Park neighborhood also has an online group that Commissioner Lagerstrom can post info on. Vice Chair Seidman reported that the City Council recently selected the 2013/14 Student Board and Commission members and they will start in September. Staff Liaison Schaefer reported that there were many students who did not get selected, but may be interested in working on a Task Force and they were sent an email by the city clerk. Commissioner Davis arrived to the meeting at 7:08pm. C. Appoint Members for Community Outreach Working Group. Commissioner Davis reported that she and Commissioner Cashmore are planning a working group meeting the week of August 19 and wanted to know if staff would Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 2 attend. Staff Liaison Schaefer explained that staff does not attend working group meetings. Commissioner Davis has a group of individuals who are interested in the working group, but they need to determine their work scope. The working group will report back at the next month's HRRC meeting. Working Group members will be appointed at the August HRRC meeting. D. Request for Funding for 2014 Days of Remembrance. Vice Chair Seidman presented a funding request to secure the 5th video for the City's Holocaust Collection for the 2014 Days of Remembrance Event and Genocide Awareness in April. There will be 2 or 3 day events associated with the Days of Remembrance event, including possibly a play, survivor presentation, and Ellen Kennedy. Staff Liaison Schaefer reported that the City Council Chambers are available for all times requested. The video is $60.00 and will be rotated, as to not play the same video each year. Vice Chair Seidman reported that Commissioner Kingston recommended the video. Motion was made by Commissioner Winnick to approve the funding request for the 2014 Days of Remembrance materials and seconded by Commissioner Davis. Motion carried. E. Draft 2014 Work Plan. Vice Chair Seidman reported that she worked with Staff Liaison Schaefer to compile a draft work plan for 2014 based on activities from 2013. The work plan needs to be approved at the August meeting, so Commissioners have the opportunity to review and provide suggestions within the next month. The anti -bullying event had a place -holder date listed on the work plan. Staff Liaison Schaefer handed out information about an anti -bullying play through the Homeward Bound Theater in Chanhassen. The theater company contacted the school district, but they thought it would be better to go through the HRRC. There has been no request or communication from the school district. Vice Chair Seidman indicated that it would be best to have partners if the HRRC were to support this initiative. Commissioner Winnick thought it would be best for Commissioners to review a performance or script. Vice Chair Seidman suggested that a representative of the Theater be invited to discuss the project in August. Staff liaison Schaefer reported that most of the August meeting will be devoted to the work plan and that there is no need to have a specific event planned at this time; instead the HRRC needs to just indicate on the work plan for the council that they are doing an anti -bullying event in 2014. Commissioner Lagerstrom moved to have Homeward Bound Theater present their anti - bullying play concept at the September HRRC meeting; motion seconded by Commissioner Davis. Motion carried. Staff Liaison Schaefer reported that commissioners should bring up potential ideas for the work plan before the August meeting. Commissioners should send Staff Liaison Annie Johnson ideas for the 2014 work plan so that they can be added to the draft work plan. Commissioner Stanton suggested a 'Minnesota Nice?' showing for 2014 in partnership with the School District. It was shown at both the High School and Middle School this Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 3 past year. Commissioners discussed that it may be best to show the film alternating years. Commissioner Winnick suggested organizing a film festival that highlights multiple films. He suggested that the HRRC engage Alec Fischer to help the commission organize a listing of films for the event. Staff Liaison Schaefer reported that Alec is currently interning with the City of Edina. Commissioner Lagerstrom reported that several parents have contacted her about doing an event highlighting the autism spectrum and about how different people learn differently; essentially holding a neuro -diversity fair, similar to the event at Southview. This may be a good partnership with the school district. Immigration Reform Commissioner Stanton reported that recently, at the Edina daycare center, many staff have disappeared due to immigration issues. The reform is national in scope and needs a congressional resolution. He said that this would be a new area of focus for HRRC and asked that it be discussed in August. F. General Work Plan Updates. G. Monitoring Domestic Partner Legislation Commissioner Stanton reported that they were currently reviewing the new legislation and will discuss in August. Update Bias/Hate Crimes Response Plan Commissioner Winnick reported that they will be meeting with the Police Chief on August 19 to review the response plan and garner any police department ideas. Quasquicentennial Working Group Commissioner Lagerstrom reported that they are recruiting new volunteers, and engaged with the Communications Department regarding resources. Any materials sent out from the City would need to be billed to HRRC. Staff Liaison Johnson will provide Commissioner Lagerstrom with the HRRC Funding Request Form. Councilmember Bennett is summarizing the group's activities in the next About Town. Commissioner Lagerstrom also reported that research is being done about the descendants of the individuals that formed Edina in 1888. There is an October goal for finalize communication materials as to ensure they are ready for Founders Day in December. As a final note, nothing can be on display in the Edina City Hall until after Election Day. VII. CORRESPONDENCE AND PETITIONS None. VIII. CHAIR AND COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS Commissioner Stanton reported that the Immigration Act is stalled before congress. He reported that cities across the country are adopting resolutions urging their members of congress to move on the issue. He suggested that HRRC draft a resolution for City Council. Commissioner Stanton will draft a resolution to be discussed in August. Commissioner Winnick reported that many Edina businesses have been impacted by recent INS actions. Commissioner Davis suggested that it be looked at more broadly related to the number of new immigrants moving into the Edina Community, not just by business impact. Commissioner Stanton would welcome any suggested clauses for the draft resolution from interested commissioners. The resolution will be discussed at the August HRRC meeting. Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 4 Commissioner Arseneault reported that the HRRC was highlighted in the most recent edition of the MN Bench & Bar. The article features Phil Duran, quotes Jessi Kingston, and mentions the City's Domestic Partner Registration as a model used across the nation. Commissioner Arseneault will provide the article to the staff liaisons for distribution to all HRRC members. Vice Chair Seidman reported that the new Student Commission members will have an orientation August 21St before Edina Get Connected Day. The students were approved at the most recent City Council meeting and will start in September. Vice Chair Seidman asked Commissioners to think about how to reach out to the students, and ideas for mentoring. IX. STAFF COMMENTS New Staff Liaison Johnson introduced herself to the Commission. She is studying at Hamline University and will be with the City for the next year as the City Manager Intern and will be staffing the Commission. Johnson is also staffing the New Student Board and Commission Orientation and will provide the slides to the HRRC at the August meeting. X. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business on the Commission Agenda, Commissioner Davis moved and Commissioner Winnick seconded adjournment of the meeting. Motion carried. Vice Chair Seidman declared the meeting adjourned at 7:45 PM. Respectfully submitted, Minutes approved by HRRC August 27, 2013 Annie Johnson, HRRC Staff Liaison Arnie Bigbee, HRRC Chair MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS & RELATIONS COMMISSION August 27, 2013 7:00 P.M. I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Bigbee called the meeting to order at 7:02 PM. II. ROLL CALL Answering roll call were Commissioners Arsenault, Bigbee, Davis, Lagerstrom, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick and Staff Liaisons Lisa Schaefer and Annie Johnson. III. APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA Chair Bigbee asked that the Southview Incident (Item A) be moved so that it could be in conjunction with item K.V. Bias/Hate Response Plan. Motion was made by Commissioner Stanton to approve the meeting agenda of the August 27, 2013 meeting as revised. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Winnick. Motion carried. IV. ADOPTION OF CONSENT AGENDA A. Approval of Minutes -Regular Meeting of July 23, 2013 Motion was made by Commissioner Stanton to approve the consent agenda; the motion was seconded by Commissioner Davis. Motion carried. V. COMMUNITY COMMENT There were no community comments. VI. REPORTS/RECOMMENDATIONS A. Immigration Reform. Commissioner Stanton provided an updated version of the draft resolution. Changes included: removal of reference to poll data, which was replaced by American Action Network Study Data; reference to the U.S. Chamber; correction of grammar; updating the reference to estimated foreign -born population; and the removal of clause regarding whom to send the resolution. Additional data used was from the U.S. Department of Commerce. Commissioners offered additional revisions. A cover memo will be included with suggestions of whom to send the resolution. Motion was made by Commissioner Stanton to recommend to the City Council that they adopt the revised resolution and that it be circulated as widely as possible, including the Minnesota Congressional Delegation; the motion was seconded by Commissioner Winnick. Motion carried. B. Appoint Members for Community Outreach Working Group. Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 2 Commissioner Davis reported that Commissioner Cashmore has been out of town. Commissioner Winnick provided an update from Cashmore regarding membership. Chair Bigbee expressed concern with the delay in the working groups' membership, and both asked and offered help to the group. Commissioner Davis had been in contact with all prospective members earlier this summer; she will reconnect with each. Her intention is to have the group determine the mission of the Community Outreach Working Group at the first meeting. Chair Bigbee requested that workshop sessions be set, volunteers identified, and broadened participation teed up by the September HRRC meeting; he will meet with Commissioner Davis and Cashmore to help implement. C. Appoint Members for Quasquicentennial Working Group. Commissioner Lagerstrom reported that she has two community volunteers for the working group. The individual that responded to the press release has not responded to additional communications to work with the group. Commissioner Lagerstrom also requested that the two new student commissioners be appointed to the working group as well. The initiative will wrap up in at the end of December; Founder's Day is December 12th and Commissioner Lagerstrom has been in touch with the City's Director of Communications to prepare. Motion was made by Commissioner Lagerstrom to appoint Ailleen Foley, Laura Nisi, Paige Harrington, and Molly Haeg to the Quasquicentennial Working Group; motion was seconded by Commissioner Seidman. Motion carried. Jessi Kingston arrived to the meeting at 7:29pm. D. Southview Middle School & Bias/Hate Response Plan. Commissioner Winnick provided an update on the Bias/Hate Response Plan; copies of the existing plan were distributed to commissioners. Commissioner Winnick reported that he was setting up a meeting with the Edina Police Chief when the incident at Southview Middle School occurred on Sunday morning, August 11; paint was sprayed on three sides of the building. There were references to marijuana and also derogatory references to school staff. There were also racial references made in the vandalism. The graffiti had been removed by the afternoon of the day it occurred. The police reported that the incident will not be charged as a hate crime, and three juvenile individuals are being formally referred to the Hennepin County Attorney's Office with a charge of defaming and destruction of public property. The matter is still under investigation by the police. Commissioner Kingston requested that the City issue a blanket statement against the actions, regardless of who committed the act. Commissioner Stanton reported that other HRRC groups take a more active role in these types of incidents, but that the City Council has only charged the EHRRC with an advisory role. Chair Bigbee asked that the commission be aware of the School District's role, as the incident occurred on their property. Commissioner Lagerstrom provided a statement from the Southview Principal which was sent to Southview parents via email. Copies were distributed to the members of the commission. There has been no communication from the School District. There has been no communication to the greater community impacted by the incident. Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 3 Commissioner Kingston moved to have Chair Bigbee urge the City Council and Mayor to issue a public statement against the incident at Southview Middle School and to reiterate that the City of Edina is an inclusive community which does not tolerate this type of activity; the motion was seconded by Commissioner Davis. Motion carried; Chair Bigbee abstained. The motion will be supported by the Commission's work plan and initiatives to be more inclusive and support anti -bullying initiatives. Chair Bigbee and Commissioner Winnick will meet with the Mayor to deliver the Commission's message. No additional specific action by the Commission is planned. New Student Orientation and Mentoring. Commissioner Seidman reported that the new student orientation occurred on the morning of the Edina High School orientation day and was hosted by Karen Kurt, Assistant City Manager, and Annie Johnson, City Manager Fellow. The students completed a mock meeting and were given a presentation on the roles and responsibilities of being a commissioner. The student will continue meeting on a quarterly basis. There are not currently any city guidelines for commission mentorships. Staff Liaison Johnson reported that the student applications will be provided to the Commission at the September meeting. Both student commissioners are seniors at Edina High School and have both never served on a commission before. Mentors are needed to provide a 30 minute update and work plan review before the September meeting. Commissioner Lagerstrom volunteered to be a mentor; she, Commissioner Seidman, and Staff Liaison Johnson will meet with the students at 6:30 September 24tH Johnson passed out updated Commission roster information. Commissioner Seidman reported that there may be an Edina High School Anti -Bullying club this year. Bound for Great Leadership Program. Chair Bigbee reported that the NFL anti -bullying program was suggested to the School District, which responded that the HRRC should be involved. This was referred back to the School District because it was beyond the scope of the HRRC Work Plan and budget; however Bigbee told Superintendent Rick Dressen that the HRRC would be a partner on initiative if they decided to take it up. G. SHIP/Public Health Update. Commissioners received a copy of the most recent program update. The cities of Edina, Richfield, and Bloomington are involved in do.Town. Chair Bigbee reported that transportation issues are involved, such as sidewalks and livability issues for the community. Issues with a walking path near Cornelia School had brought out some Not - In -My -Back -Yard conversations by community members at the City Council level, which makes Edina less inclusive and welcoming to all people who need basic infrastructure; the City Council adopted the sidewalk infrastructure. H. Southview International Festival. Chair Bigbee reported that the Southview International Festival 'Taste of Southview' was brought up at the last work session by Councilmember Sprague. The Festival of Nations in Saint Paul is a much larger, similar event. There has not been much support Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 4 for a separate event, but instead the Commission could issue a statement of support for the Southview event and Commissioners could attend if possible. I. Appoint an Edina Resource Center Council Representative. Commissioner Winnick reported that he has been the representative for the Edina Community Council the past couple of years. He asked if any other commissioners were interested in serving. There are 5-6 meetings per year at 7:30am at the Community Center. If Winnick is reappointed, he will serve at the Council Chair. Commissioner Kingston moved to appoint Commissioner Steve Winnick to the Edina Community Council Board for the next year as the Chairperson; the motion was seconded by Commissioner Seidman. Motion carried. J. Draft 2014 Work Plan. Chair Bigbee drew the Commission's attention to the draft work plan provided in the meeting packet. No specific events for 2014 have yet been selected; the work plan highlights general initiatives. The anti -bullying initiative will happen in the ft or 2nd quarter of 2014. Commissioner Lagerstrom suggested that the HRRC sponsor a book reading for elementary kids with Nancy Carlson, Edina native. The budget for the total initiative will be $800. The Community Outreach Initiative will be complete by the end of March 2014, with a budget of $500 for beverages and snacks for listening sessions. The Police Department, Parks and Rec Department, and School Liaisons are also to be listed as initiative partners. The Neuro -Diversity Fair was revised to be the Disability Awareness Campaign, with target completion by October 2014 and a $300 budget. Days of Remembrance will require a $1500 budget to bring in Ellen Kennedy and to do three events in 2014. Two of three days have been confirmed. Events may include a play, speaker, and video screening. Staff Liaison Schaefer submitted a preliminary budget to City Council for HRRC that was between $3,000-$3,500 for 2014. Commissioner Kingston moved to adopt the 2014 HRRC Work Plan as revised; Commissioner Seidman seconded the motion. Motion carried. Staff will send the revised Work Plan to Chair Bigbee before submission to Assistant City Manager Kurt. K. General Work Plan Updates/Updates from Teams. i. Monitoring Domestic Partner Legislation Commissioner Stanton reported that there are no urgent updates; the City ordinance regarding Domestic Partner Ordinance may need to be revised based on recent DOMA changes. The IRS guidelines are still needed, and there is a risk for the law to be overturned in the future. The registration could still apply to individuals who have a committed relationship, but are not married. Staff Liaison Johnson reported that City Attorney Knutson indicted there are no issues with leaving the ordinance as -is or revising. Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 5 Group Health insurance would require a change in the statue to allow domestic partners to have family/dependent insurance coverage. The HRRC had discussed this issue in the past and the legislation had not been moved at the state level, but the bill is still up for consideration in the next session. This item will be added to the Monthly Work Plan document for consideration by HRRC in March of 2014. Quasquicentennial Commissioner Lagerstrom provided a request for a $500 budget for the Quasquicentennial event in December 2013 for a banner. The banner will be freestanding and can be donated to the Historical Society after the event. Staff will clarify if the budget request needs approval for the September meeting. Staff will pull out existing HRRC banners for the September meeting VII. CORRESPONDENCE AND PETITIONS None. VIII. CHAIR AND COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS None. IX. STAFF COMMENTS Staff Liaison Johnson reported that Suburban Human Rights Commission Liaisons have started meeting and there is a potential November event for Commissioners from Eden Prairie, Bloomington, Falcon Heights, Red Wing. Bloomington HRC extended an invitation to the EHRRC for a Human Rights event they are sponsoring in September 2013. X. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business on the Commission Agenda, Commissioner Seidman moved and Commissioner Winnick seconded adjournment of the meeting. Motion carried. Chair Bigbee declared the meeting adjourned at 9:11 PM. Respectfully submitted, Minutes approved by HRRC, September 24, 2013 Annie Johnson, HRRC Staff Liaison Arnie Bigbee, HRRC Chair MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS & RELATIONS COMMISSION September 24, 2013 7:00 P.M. I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Bigbee called the meeting to order at 7:06 PM. II. ROLL CALL Answering roll call were Commissioners Arseneault, Bigbee, Cashmore, Haeg, Harrington, Kingston, Lagerstrom, Stanton, Winnick and Staff Liaison Annie Johnson and Assistant City Manager Karen Kurt. III. APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA Motion was made by Commissioner Stanton to approve the meeting agenda of the September 24, 2013 meeting. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Arseneault. Motion carried. IV. ADOPTION OF CONSENT AGENDA A. Approval of Minutes -Regular Meeting of August 27, 2013 Motion was made by Commissioner Winnick to approve the consent agenda; the motion was seconded by Commissioner Arseneault. Motion carried. Motion was made by Commissioner Winnick to reconsider the adoption of minutes; the motion was adopted by Commissioner Kingston. Motion carried. Commissioner Winnick moved to amend the minutes and strike the following statement in the first paragraph of Section D: 'Commissioner Winnick reminded commissioners that the Human rights and Relations Commission's role is primarily advisory to the City Council.'; the motion was seconded by Commissioner Kingston. Motion carried. Jan Seidman arrived to the meeting at 7:15pm. Commissioner Winnick moved to amend the minutes and strike the following statement in the first paragraph of Section D: 'The current Bias/Hate Response Plan is designed to deal with incidents involving adults, not juveniles.'; the motion was seconded by Commissioner Kingston. Commissioner Cashmore called the question; motion carried. Original motion to strike sentence carried. Commissioner Winnick moved to amend the minutes and strike the following statement from paragraph two of Section D: 'and was directed towards their staff.'; motion was seconded by Commissioner Kingston. Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 2 Motion carried. Commissioner Stanton moved to adopt the minutes as amended; motion was seconded by Commissioner Cashmore. Motion carried. Commissioner Stanton suggested that the Commission remove the Minutes from the Consent Agenda and have them as a separate item. V. INTRODUCTION OF NEW STUDENT COMMISSIONERS Chair Bigbee invited the student commissioners to introduce themselves, why they were in attendance, and their hope for the next year; Commissioners Haeg and Harrington provided brief introductions. Commissioners Seidman and Winnick welcomed the students. Chair Bigbee mentioned that former Student Commissioner Daria has decided to become a Human Rights attorney. VI. COMMUNITY COMMENT There were no community comments. VII. REPORTS/RECOMMENDATIONS A. Homeward Bound Theater Bruce and Donna Kirkpatrick introduced Homeward Bound Theater to the Commission and passed out information. The theater specializes in prevention plays in schools for kids and the community, in the 7 state area, and has been doing so since 1995. Student actors perform the plays for other students, and then do Q&A after the performance. 'Harsh Reality' is another high school anti -bullying play. 'Higher Ground' was written by a teacher to address bullying in middle school. The Kirkpatrick's are interested in having the HRRC sponsor a performance of the play in the evening at a local venue. Mr. Kirkpatrick will connect with the Edina Schools, specifically the principal of the Middle School, and will give an update to the Commission. The production would cost $1500.00. Adjust work plan for balance of 2013, as necessary Community Outreach Working Group will be meeting within a week to determine how to move forward. Chief Long will be contacted regarding a member of his department for the group. Domestic Violence initiative had been taken off the agenda earlier in the year and would not be pursued. 2013 Days of Remembrance event had been cut due to budgeting. Channel 16 videos did run throughout the month, and there were displays in City Hall. Quasquicentennial initiative is ongoing and will be purchasing a timeline in preparation for the December 12 event at City Hall. The timeline would feature a history of Edina's settlement related to groups that had encountered discrimination. The item had been budgeted; no vote was needed. Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 3 Commissioners asked that the diversity film festival be removed from the work plan and replaced with the Edina Reads project under the Anti -Bullying initiative. C. Draft plan and presentation for November annual televised meeting The November 2013 HRRC meeting will be a regular business meeting that is televised and run on Channel 16. The HRRC also covers highlights of their work during the last year at this meeting with a PowerPoint presentation. Staff will send a draft of the PowerPoint out to the Commission before next month's meeting. Information to highlight includes the new Days of Remembrance video, a teaser shot of the Quasquicentennial banner, the Henry the Bully Edina Reads event info, a call for volunteers for the Outreach Working Group, and updates on Immigration Reform, and Marriage Equality. The Student Commissioners will research if there has been any impact on the City's purchasing by the adoption of the Conflict -Free Minerals Resolution; if yes, than this will also be included in the PowerPoint. Chair Bigbee recorded volunteer names of Commissioners to speak about each topic and will work with Staff to prepare this information for the October meeting. D. Youth Well -Being Project and Time to THRIVE Conference update Chair Bigbee provided an update on the Youth Well -Being Project and Time to THRIVE Conference from the Human Rights Campaign Update. A Teaching Tolerance edition recently came out from the Southern Poverty Law Journal. E. Edina Reads Books Chair Bigbee reported that 14 of the original 50 copies were returned to staff. F. Living Streets Advisory Committee Chair Bigbee attended the first Living Streets Advisory Committee meeting and provided an update. He reported that Hennepin County has also embraced Living Streets. G. 2014 Budget Request Commissioner Lagerstrom provided additional information about a 2014 Edina Reads event for students in grades 1-6 on September 30, 2014. Any leftover books could be donated to local childcare centers. Commissioner Lagerstrom moved to approve the Edina Reads Anti -Bullying Event featuring 'Henry the Bully' by Nancy Carlson and the purchase of 75 books; Commissioner Winnick seconded the motion. Motion carried. H. Immigration Reform The resolution adopted by HRRC will be on the next Council Meeting Agenda as an Advisory Communication. Commissioner Stanton and Chair Bigbee will work with staff to draft a cover memo. Questions for City Departments (follow up from Southview Incident) Commissioner Winnick provided an update to the Commission. The Mayor directed HRRC to work further on this issue in a press release published in the Edina SunCurrent. Commissioner Winnick and Chair Bigbee will be meeting with leaders from Police, Fire, Pubic Works, Parks, and Administration Departments to discuss forms and reporting, and will determine if there should be further communication; the commissioners will Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 4 provide draft questions to the Commission to review in October, and ultimately a report to the HRRC and Manager Neal on findings. J. General Work Plan Updates/Updates from Teams. Teams provided updates during 2013 work plan review. VIII. CORRESPONDENCE AND PETITIONS Included in the packet. IX. CHAIR AND COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS Commissioner Kingston will be out until the January, 2014 meeting. Commissioner Kingston reported that the 'Real Abilities' Disabilities Film Festival was happening in the Twin Cities this year. Commissioners Harrington and Haeg will look into possible promotion of the event with support from Commissioner Winnick. Commissioner Arseneault reported that the Human Services Task Force had ten proposals and two new groups. Their first meeting is Wednesday, October 2, 2013. X. STAFF COMMENTS None. XI. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business on the Commission Agenda, the meeting was adjourned. Chair Bigbee declared the meeting adjourned at 9:21 PM. Respectfully submitted, Minutes approved by HRRC, October 22, 2013 Annie Johnson, HRRC Staff Liaison Arnie Bigbee, HRRC Chair MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS & RELATIONS COMMISSION October 22, 2013 7:00 P.M. I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Bigbee called the meeting to order at 7:01 PM. Manager Neal gave a special presentation regarding follow-up from the Southview Middle School vandalism incident. The School Superintendent would like to attend an upcoming meeting of the HRRC. II. ROLL CALL Answering roll call were Commissioners Arseneault, Bigbee, Cashmore, Haeg, Harrington, Lagerstrom, Seidman, Stanton, Winnick and Staff Liaison Schaefer. III. APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA Motion was made by Commissioner Arseneault to approve the meeting agenda of the October 22, 2013 meeting. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Seidman. Motion carried. IV. ADOPTION OF MEETING MINUTES Motion was made by Commissioner Stanton to approve the Regular Meeting Minutes of September 24, 2013; the motion was seconded by Commissioner Winnick. Motion carried. V. COMMUNITY COMMENT There were no community comments. VI. REPORTS/RECOMMENDATIONS A. Appoint Community Outreach Working Group Members Commissioners Davis and Cashmore reviewed applications for individuals to serve on the working group. They determined that four individuals would be needed for the working group in addition to themselves, and a representative from both the Edina Police Department and Edina school District. Seven people applied for the working group. Point of Information: There is not an internal process for notification of acceptance/declination of applicants. Staff will send out letters to applicants that were not selected. Those individuals may have an opportunity to serve on another group. Motion was made by Commissioner Cashmore to appoint the following individuals to the Community Outreach Working Group: Ann Meagher, Rick Kruger, Eric Holm, and Judith Rogers; and the following individuals as alternates: Katie Mehan, Agnes Yu, and Polly Bowles. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Stanton. Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 2 Motion carried. B. Human Rights Symposium December 5, 2013 Chair Bigbee, Commissioner Davis, and Commissioner Cashmore are interested in attending the conference on behalf of the Commission. Commissioner Winnick will be an alternate. C. Human Services Task Force Update Commissioner Arseneault provided an update that the Human Services Task Force had met twice and reviewed the 10 proposals submitted for funding. There were two new proposals this year from Prism Express and New America Academy; neither was recommended for funding. Prism's services were halted after they submitted the request for funding due to staffing change and New America Academy's program could not be funded by Human Services funding due to statute requirements. Cornerstone, Normadale Center, Oasis for Youth, Senior Community Services, VEAP, The Bridge, Conflict Resolution Center, and Store to Door were being recommended for funding. The total budget was $84,600. A member from each board and commission was on the task force. The recommendations will be given to the City Council on November 4th D. Finalize plan and presentation for November annual televised meeting Commissioners provided updates and revisions to the powerpoint for the November Annual Televised Meeting. Staff will make changes and send out to the commission for final review. Commissioner Winnick and Chair Bigbee requested that they following comments be included in the minutes: Commissioner Cashmore questioned whether 'disability' was the correct verb to use to describe the awareness event because 'disability' is now seen as a bad word. Disabled people are abled in different ways. E. Prepare process for the Tom Oye Award for 2014 Commissioner Winnick met with Communications Staff and discussed a press release and plan. Information will be available on the website. F. General Work Plan Updates Days of Remembrance 2014 Commissioner Seidman provided an update on the three events. A readers' theater play called'Upstanders: Ten Who Dared"; a performance of resistance music from the Holocaust and the story of Sophie Scholl and the White Rose, a youth resistance movement in Nazi Germany will be performed at the Edina Senior Center. Ellen Kennedy is working with our commission to coordinate the interactive play, stories and music for the event. The entire event will last approximately 90 minutes. An additional video will be run on Channel 16. The Mayor needs to be confirmed to provide an address. ii. Monitoring Domestic Partner Legislation and the City Ordinance No update. iii. Community Outreach Efforts - Focus on the initiatives and discuss evident/emerging issues in the community Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 3 Update provided earlier in the meeting. iv. Quasquicentennial Commissioner Lagerstrom updated the committee that the group hopes to have their document in the hands of the Communication Department by November 1st v. Bias/Hate Crime Response Plan Update provided at the beginning of the meeting. vi. Disability Awareness Campaign No update. vii. 2014 Anti -Bullying Event Commissioner Lagerstrom has been working with the Edina Reads group and they have moved the event to the Fireside Room in the Senior Center. Books will be purchased at a 42% discount. Nancy Carlson's fee will be $400. Edina Reads may be able to provide the refreshments. The Friends of the Edina Library can sell additional books at the event. VII. CORRESPONDENCE AND PETITIONS None. VIII. CHAIR AND COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS Chair Bigbee reported that the Living Streets Advisory Group needs activity photos of intergenerational groups. Any photos should be sent to Mark Nolan in the Engineering Department. Commissioner Stanton questioned if the City Council has taken up the Immigration Reform issue. IX. STAFF COMMENTS Staff Liaison Schaefer reported that Councilmember Bennett sent a letter of invitation to Founders Day events. In addition, she reported that Ari Klugman recently accepted as position as the City Administrator of Madison Lake, MN. X. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business on the Commission Agenda, the meeting was adjourned. Chair Bigbee declared the meeting adjourned at 9:20 PM. Respectfully submitted, Minutes approved by HRRC, November 26, 2013 Annie Johnson, HRRC Staff Liaison Arnie Bigbee, HRRC Chair MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS & RELATIONS COMMISSION November 26, 2013 7:00 P.M. I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Bigbee called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM. II. ROLL CALL Answering roll call were Commissioners Arseneault, Bigbee, Cashmore, Davis, Haeg, Harrington, Lagerstrom, Seidman, Winnick, Staff Liaison Schaefer, and City Manager Fellow Coyle. III. APPROVAL OF MEETING AGENDA Motion was made by Commissioner Winnick to approve the meeting agenda of the November 26, 2013 meeting. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Davis. Motion carried. IV. ADOPTION OF MEETING MINUTES Commissioner Arseneault provided the following changes to VI section C: total budget was $84,600 and section VI F.iv: insert document after 'hopes to have'. City Manager Fellow Coyle reported that additional changes and corrections were submitted before the meeting and passed out to each commissioner: VLA Agnes and Mehan were misspelled. Commissioner Seidman provided the following changes to section F.i.: A readers' theater play called 'Upstanders: Ten Who Dared'; a performance of resistance music from the Holocaust and the story of Sophie Scholl and the White Rose, a youth resistance movement in Nazi Germany will be performed at the Edina Senior Center. Ellen Kennedy is working with our commission to coordinate the interactive play, stories and music for the event. The entire event will last approximately 90 minutes. Motion was made by Commissioner Cashmore to approve the Regular Meeting Minutes of October 22, 2013; the motion was seconded by Commissioner Seidman. Motion carried. V. COMMUNITY COMMENT There were no community comments. VI. REPORTS/RECOMMENDATIONS A. Year in Review Presentation Chair Bigbee encouraged community participation and feedback on HRRC work. Commissioner Lagerstrom provided an update on the Edina Quasquicentennial. Commissioner Winnick provided an update on the 2014 Tom Oye Award. The deadline for applications is January 31St, 2014. Recognition happens at the Volunteer Recognition event. Nominees are on a two-year cycle. Commissioner Lagerstrom provided an update on the 2013 and 2014 Edina Reads events for the annual anti -bullying campaign. Edina Human Rights & Relations Commission Agenda Page 2 Commissioner Cashmore provided an update on the Bias/Hate Crime Response Plan. Commissioner Arseneault provided an update on HRRC support for marriage equality and immigration reform. Commissioner Davis provided an update on the HRRC Community Outreach and Engagement Working Group and the Religious Observance Policy. Commissioner Seidman provided an update on the 2013 and 2014 Days of Remembrance and Genocide Awareness events. Chair Bigbee provided an update on the conflict free materials, living streets advisory group, the positive impact of student commission members, and finally the new 2014 HRRC Special Needs Awareness Campaign. B. Review 2014 Work Plan Chair Bigbee called attention to the 2014 HRRC Work Plan included in the meeting packet. C. Appoint nominating committee Commissioner Winnick has agreed to serve as a nominating committee member for the 2014 nomination process. There are two officers for HRRC that serve one year terms: Chair and Vice Chair. Winnick will reach out to each member of the commission to determine if there is an interest to serve. The nominations will be presented at the January 2014 meeting and the election happens at the February 2014 meeting. VII. CORRESPONDENCE AND PETITIONS None. VIII. CHAIR AND COMMISSION MEMBER COMMENTS Commissioner Cashmore recalled that the Commission's very best projects were brought about by members of the community, such as Days of Remembrance and Domestic Partnerships. Community members with ideas can attend the Outreach Working Group, or get in contact with staff directly. IX. STAFF COMMENTS None. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business on the Commission Agenda, Commissioner Cashmore moved and Commissioner Seidman seconded that the meeting be adjourned. Motion carried. Chair Bigbee declared the meeting adjourned at 7:40 PM. Respectfully submitted, Minutes approved by HRRC, January 28, 2014 Annie Johnson, City Manager Fellow Arnie Bigbee, HRRC Chair