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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1993 05-12 HRRMMINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS AND RESOURCES COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND THE STATE OF MINNESOTA REGULAR SESSION MAY 12, 1993 CITY HALL CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center Human Rights and Resources Commission met in regular session and was called to order by Chairperson Stoderl at 7:08 p.m. ROLL CALL Chairperson Stoderl, Commissioners Brown, Achtelik, and Maddox. Also present were City Council Liaison Dave Rosene and Recording Secretary Geralyn Barone. Excused from this evening's meeting were Commissioners Eoloff, Windsor, and Eckman. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - APRIL 7. 1.993 There was a motion by Commissioner Brown and seconded by Chairperson Stoderl to approve the minutes of the April 7, 1993, meeting as submitted. The motion passed. INTRODUCTION OF NEW MEMBER New Commissioner Sherry Maddox introduced herself to the commission, and members introduced themselves to Commissioner Maddox. OTHER BUSINESS Chairperson Stoderl reviewed a letter received from former Commissioner Carmody. NUMBER OF COMMISSION MEMBERS On the draft resolution increasing the size of the commission, it was recommended that the section on composition read "The commission shall be composed of a chairperson and eight (8) members, all of whom shall be appointed and service set forth in subdivision 6". The Recording Secretary noted Commissioner Eoloff reported she feels nine members on the commission would be great because there would be more energy and more input. Chairperson Stoderl noted the commission has discussed if there are problems associated with having nine members, the commission could always return to seven members. Commissioner Brown said previously with nine members there had been problems obtaining a quorum at each meeting. There was a motion by Chairperson Stoderl and seconded by Commissioner Brown to recommend to the city council the passage of a resolution amending the Brooklyn Center 0 05/12/93 - 1 - Human Rights and Resources Commission's enabling resolutions to increase the number of commission members from seven to nine. Councilmember Rosene asked the commissioners to try to recruit new members from other neighborhoods in the city along with some male representation. Commissioner Achtelik pointed out more diversity is also needed on the commission. Upon vote being taken on the foregoing motion, the motion passed. CHILD CARE FOR ADVISORY COMMISSIONS Chairperson Stoderl reviewed a draft letter that may be sent to other commission chairpersons to obtain feedback on whether or not to provide child care for members attending commission meetings. The Recording Secretary said Commissioner Eoloff said she would vote to drop this idea and feels it is not the proper or correct way to be more inclusive. Commissioner Brown agreed with Commission Eoloff s comments. Commissioner Maddox noted this type of policy would indicate low-income mothers are the only ones the commission would be recruiting, and she noted there are also low-income older residents. Chairperson Stoderl suggested this item be dropped and brought up again in the future if necessary. Commissioner Maddox asked if any other cities have a policy regarding provision of child care for commission members; no one was aware of any. Commissioner Maddox suggested better efforts be made at making the community aware of the need for diversity. There was a motion by Commissioner Achtelik and seconded by Commissioner Maddox to discontinue discussion of child care for advisory commissioners. The motion passed. - 0 OTHER BUSINESS (Continued) Chairperson Stoderl reviewed correspondence received from the Suburban Human Rights Commission. Chairperson Stoderl requested that a current membership roster of the Human Rights and Resources Commission be included in the next agenda packet. Chairperson Stoderl reviewed a letter received from Charter Commission Chairperson Bev Wolfe. The Charter Commission is looking at revising the City's charter and is requesting suggestions by May 20, 1993. Chairperson Stoderl said the commission should inform the Charter Commission that it is working on a human rights ordinance and a bias response plan. Councilmember Rosene noted the charter is like the City's constitution. Chairperson Stoderl said she will call Chairperson Wolfe and inform her the commission is interested in reviewing the City charter but needs more time to do so. BIAS RESPONSE PLAN Commissioner Brown said she attended the meeting sponsored by Northwest Hennepin Human Services Council (NWHHSC) regarding a bias response plan. She reviewed the highlights of this meeting and said there is an attempt to develop a response plan. The Recording Secretary 05/12/93 -2- • noted Commissioner Eoloff reported a team was put together from the Five Cities area to begin work on a bias response plan. Commissioner Eoloff will be a part of that team and will keep the Human Rights and Resources Commission updated. Chairperson Stoderl said this item will be kept on the agenda with reports from Commissioner Eoloff. HERITAGE FESTIVAL The Recording Secretary said Commissioner Eoloff reported no commission members were able to attend the April 21 planning meeting for the Heritage Festival. However, Commissioner Eoloff talked with Mary Welch of the Brooklyn Center Chamber of Commerce who said efforts are being made to obtain grant money for festival activities. One steering committee member is working on a play to be put on by students. Commissioner Eoloff reported there was a luncheon at Edinborough on May 4 hosted by North Hennepin Community College for superintendents and teachers to spark their interest in the event scheduled for this fall. There will be buttons for kids to wear and there is the possibility of getting Ann Bancroft, the arctic explorer, or Kirby Puckett to be guest speaker. Chairperson Stoderl said she will try to find out when the next meeting is scheduled for the Heritage Festival. OTHER BUSINESS (Continued) The Recording Secretary said Commissioner Eoloff reported that she and Commissioner Achtelik attended a session on April 26 on how to get discussion groups going on diversity issues. Commissioner Eoloff reported she has notes she can share if the commission is interested in doing so. Commissioner Eoloff feels she received valuable information that would be useful if the commission decides to hold open-forum type meetings to gather input for a human rights ordinance. This session was sponsored by District 281, Co-op Northwest and Northwest Hennepin Human Services Council. Commissioner Achtelik reviewed highlights from the April 26 meeting and discussed various issues brought up at that time. Commissioner Achtelik expressed her surprise that the Civil Rights Act has a sunset and is set to expire. Chairperson Stoderl noted because it is an act, it needs to be reviewed. Commissioner Achtelik discussed ways of attracting diversity. Commissioner Achtelik said she attended a real estate forum sponsored by the City which included a tour of Brooklyn Center High School. She noted she was impressed with school officials who are proud of their diversity (20 percent of the school population is minority students). Commissioner Achtelik suggested it would be good if the community could focus on its diversity rather than the media focusing on the negative elements. She reviewed other events as part of the real estate forum. There was discussion regarding open enrollment, the real estate forum, and the image of the city. Commissioner Maddox noted her experience with Brooklyn Center High School was not a positive experience of diversity. She said her children faced racial comments at the high school on a regular basis. Chairperson Stoderl expressed concern over the comments regarding problems at Brooklyn Center High School, and she indicated she will talk with school officials regarding these concerns. Commissioner Eoloff arrived at this time and introduced herself to Commissioner Maddox. 05/12/93 -3- There was further discussion regarding the city's image and concerns related to Brooklyn Center High School. RECESS The Human Rights and Resources Commission recessed at 8:35 p.m. and reconvened at 8:38 p.m. OTHER BUSINESS (Continued) The discussion regarding diversity at Brooklyn Center High School briefly continued. Commissioner Achtelik noted there is a need to have more people of diversity in the school's administration. She added the newer breed of teachers does have more of a diversity background. GOALS/DIRECTIONS/BUDGET OF COMMISSION Commissioner Eoloff noted she has sample human rights ordinances from all over the state, which generally mimic state law but are more concise. Councilmember Rosene suggested a subcommittee could work on this over the summer months. Commissioner Eoloff volunteered to work on a project to draft a human rights ordinance for Brooklyn Center. Commissioner Eoloff noted she will be resigning as secretary of LMHRC but will remain on its board of directors. There was a motion by Chairperson Stoderl and seconded by Commissioner Eoloff to create a subcommittee to draft a human rights ordinance with an update on its progress in September. Commissioners Eoloff, Maddox, and Brown volunteered to participate on this subcommittee. Upon vote being taken on the foregoing motion, the motion passed. Commissioner Eoloff said the commission had discussed creating a brochure publicizing the human rights commission. She distributed a brochure from the Robbinsdale Human Rights Commission. Commissioner Eoloff reviewed what she would like to include in the brochure which could be distributed at events such as the Heritage Festival and Earle Brown Days' activities. Buttons or stickers could also be distributed at these events. The Recording Secretary suggested working with the LMHRC on standardizing buttons and stickers for purchase by individual commissions. There was discussion on what to include in the 1994 budget. There was a motion by Commissioner Achtelik and seconded by Commissioner Brown to recommend to the city council approval of the following items for the 1994 budget: $700 for community education, $500 for the joint meeting of the city council and its advisory commissions, and $300 for community awards, for a total of $1,500. The motion passed. 05/12/93 -4- 0 LEAGUE OF MINNESOTA HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSIONS (LMHRC) UPDATE Commissioner Eoloff noted the LMHRC is considering providing no-fault grievance training. She will keep the commission updated on this item. UPDATE ON CHILDREN'S ISSUES Commissioner Achtelik said the Success by Six birthday party is scheduled for May 15 from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. at the Brooklyn Park Community Center and Armory. Commissioner Achtelik said she attended a seminar on March 27 regarding influencing our children's future with Misty Snow as the speaker. TRANSIT Councilmember Rosene said he knows of. someone who works for the Minnesota Department of Transportation who may be a good member for this commission. He will invite this individual to apply for membership if the size of the commission is increased. The commission agreed to keep transit as an agenda item. COMMUNITY RESOURCE LIST Chairperson Stoderl said this item is intertwined with some of the other agenda items. The Recording Secretary will bring samples of existing resource lists to the next meeting. 1994 MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY ACTIVITIES Commissioner Eoloff noted Martin Luther King Day is celebrated in January, and Black History Month is in February. She suggested there could be an event in January or February in which community service awards could be given. Chairperson Stoderl suggested using the Rotary Club's criteria for volunteer awards. A copy of the Invest Northwest criteria and application should also be obtained. NEXT MEETING The next meeting of the Human Rights and Resources Commission is scheduled for June 9, 1993, at 7:00 p.m. Councilmember Rosene noted June 10 is the last day of school, so he cannot guarantee he will be at the meeting. ADJOURNMENT There was a motion by Commissioner Achtelik and seconded by Commissioner Maddox to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed. The Brooklyn Center Human Rights and Resources Commission adjourned at 9:25 p.m. Chairperson 0 05/12/93 -5-