MINUTES

Board Meeting

Wednesday, April 18, 2012, 4:30 p.m.

Forest County Chamber of Commerce, Crandon, WI

Attendees: (7) Jim Schuessler, Jack Matuszewski, Steve Nelson, Rob Jaeger, Mike Gruett, John Schnorr, Melinda Otto

Absent: Ben Parsons, Denise Bostron, Wayne Link, Jimmy Landru, Jr.

1.          Meeting Standard Operating Procedures for Meeting: John Schnorr directed all board members to leave any personal agendas, racial slurs or innuendos at the door. He added that respect and a united effort are important to properly function as a board.

2.         Review & Approval of March Minutes: President John Schnorr called the meeting to order at 4:37 p.m. Melinda Otto provided the minutes. After review, Rob Jaeger made a motion to approve the minutes as presented by unanimous consent, seconded by Jim Schuessler. All aye, motion carried.

3.         Communications: John Schnorr presented a letter of appreciation to Tiffany Landru regarding her recent resignation from this board. Consensus was to approve and forward the letter. Jim Schuessler announced that the grant check for the MRA Workshop from Plum Creek is sitting on Bill O’Brien’s desk for pick up. John said Lake State Resource Alliance will be forwarding their support for the feasibility study.

4.         Financial Report: Melinda Otto provided the financial report. After review, Rob Jaeger made a motion to approve the report, seconded by Jim Schuessler. All aye, motion carried.

5.         Tasks List from March Meeting:   John Schnorr reported that he contacted the Department of Financial Institutions regarding the 501c3 paperwork and they guaranteed the document would be forwarded by next week. Melinda Otto relayed that the bumper stickers were delivered.

6.         Old Business:

• Feasibility Study (NCWRPC) – John Schnorr, Jim Schuessler, and Steve Nelson have been conducting conference call meetings with Matt Schreiber to provide information for the upcoming feasibility study. He passed out a copy of the map showing possible sites that was presented at the workshop.
• Feasibility Study (Creative Enterprise Center – Ripon College) – John Schnorr provided copies of the phase one report from Ripon, adding that they are now on phase two. This includes surveying user groups online. Discussion followed.
• Annual Membership Meeting – John Schnorr said the annual membership meeting is set for Saturday, May 12 at the Potawatomi Carter Casino Hotel at 11:00 a.m., with lunch to follow for $15.00 per person (deadline for lunch is May 4).
• Website Update – John Schnorr relayed that the site is up and working, including the PayPal option. He said WOHVA paid the first six month and WORVPI will have start paying the webhosting beginning in May. John said they will begin posting the meeting minutes and other items.

Minutes, April 18, 2012                      - 2 –

• MRA Workshop – John Schnorr said last Friday’s workshop was well attended and very informative. Melinda Otto said she is more encouraged than ever that this group is on the right track. Mike Gruett said he is definitely re-energized about this project.       Jim Schuessler and Steve Nelson also attended and provided positive feedback. Discussion followed on starting the public information process.
• Other Old Business – None at this time

7          New Business:

• Membership Application Processing – John Schnorr announced 14 individuals have joined WORVPI throughout the past month. He also reminded all to fill out and turn in their memberships.       Discussion on membership levels followed. Jim Schuessler made a motion to confirm the membership fees as follows:       Individual-$10.00, Small Business-$50.00, Groups & Organizations-$100.00, Local Government-$100.00, Silver Level-$250.00, and Gold Level-$500.00. The motion was seconded by Mike Gruett. All aye, motion carried. Annual versus anniversary renewal was discussed with consensus to set renewal each May. Discussion took place regarding board member recruiting, including efforts be made to ask for representatives from both tribal communities, Clifford Flannery and Crandon International Off-Road Raceway, and user groups. Jim Schuessler confirmed the news release went out regarding the annual meeting.
• Other New Business – Melinda Otto shared news that Secretary Stephanie Klett stopped in for a visit last week and she and the State Department of Tourism would like to do a “Power of Tourism” presentation here in Forest County. The suggested audience includes county board, tribal councils, town boards, city council, organizations, and others interested. Jim Schuessler was pleased to announce that he met with Naletta Burr who is the WEDA specialist for this area. He said this is a brand new position which will help “walk” people through working with the state, providing a wealth of expertise and knowledge for area projects.       He said he just completed the grant application requesting $6,000.00 for the feasibility study.

8.         Adjournment: Next Meeting will take place May 16, 2012 at the Forest County Chamber of Commerce beginning at 4:30 p.m. Jack Matuszewski made a motion to adjourn, seconded by Mike Gruett. The meeting was adjourned at 5:55 p.m.

Submitted by,

Melinda Otto