MAINE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION

ANNUAL MEETING MINUTES

Thursday, October 6, 2005

[Note: minutes are unapproved.]  

The Maine Community Development Association held their annual meeting at the Augusta Civic Center on Thursday, October 6, 2005 at approximately 11:40 a.m.  Present were:

 

Michael Baran                                                                    Orman Whitcomb

Tony Levesque                                                                   Peter Lyford                

Terry Ann Stevens                                                              Mathew Eddy

Tammy Knight                                                                    Michelle Begin

Paul Bernier                                                                       Joella R. McBreairty

Mary Walton                                                                      Al Smith

Chris Spruce                                                                      Stephen Dyer

Rodney Lynch                                                                    John Briel

Alexis Mann                                                                       Noreen Norton

Brian Bowdoin                                                                    Margo Fraser

Ron Harriman

 

I.                    WELCOME AND INTRODUCTIONS:

Matt Eddy welcomed everyone to the MCDA Annual Meeting and introduced Orman Whitcomb, Program Manager, DECD – Office of Community Development.  See Item #VII below.

 

II.                 APPROVAL OF MEETING MINUTES FROM AUGUST 19, 2005:

Moved by Tony Levesque and seconded by Mary Walton to approve the minutes as presented.  The vote was unanimously in favor.

 

III.               TREASURER’S REPORT:

Ron Harriman reported the following:

 

                  Income This Month:       $    0.00                        Year-To-Date Income:  $2,219.00

                  Expenses This Month    $866.00                   Year-To-Date Expense:$ 5,380.00

                  Net                               (866.00)                                                $(3,161.00)

 

                  Fund Balance as of 09/30/05:     $5,307.00

 

Moved by Mike Baran and seconded by Orman Whitcomb to approve the Treasurer’s Report as presented.  The vote was unanimously in favor.

 

IV.              OFFICERS NOMINATION COMMITTEE REPORT:

Peter Lyford extended his appreciation for Tony Levesque’s work on the nomination committee and moved to approve the slate of officers as presented; seconded by Mike Baran.  The vote was unanimously in favor.  See Attached Election of Officers Ballot.

 

V.                 ELECTION OF OFFICERS:

Tony Levesque moved to cast one ballot for the election of officers; seconded by Peter Lyford.  The vote was unanimously in favor.

 

 

 

 

      President:  Isaac Wagner

      Vice President:  Chris Spruce

      Treasurer:  Ron Harriman

      Secretary:  Joella R. McBreairty

      Member at Large:  Mary Walton

      Member at Large:  Rodney Lynch

 

      Immediate Past President:  Mathew Eddy

      Member at Large:  Michele Gagnon

      Member at Large:  James Gulnac

 

VI.              RECOGNITION OF MCDA SERVICE:

Peter Lyford presented Mathew Eddy with a plaque for his services as president of MCDA.

 

VII.            CDBG 2006 PROGRAM REPORT FROM ORMAN WHITCOMB:

Orman Whitcomb reported that both the House and Senate have voted to keep the CDBG program in the 2006 budget and keep the program at HUD.  The CDBG allocation for Maine will be approximately $280,000 less than the $14.3 anticipated. 

 

The current issue is to change the funding formula.  If this occurs, it could have a drastic impact on the State of Maine’s budget.  The Bush Administration is not giving up on the Strengthening America’s Communities Initiative (SACI).  The Administration is also talking about doing something different with the CDBG Program.  They are discussing changing the basic rules governing entitlement programs.  There is talk about funneling all funds through the State.  Results of the proposed changes will not be known until the end of the year or possibly next year.

 

Orman reminded everyone that October 18 is the scheduled date for mailing the 2006 Program Statement.  There will be application workshops held throughout the State the first week of November.  Letters of Intent for Public Facilities and Public Infrastructure programs are due December 2.

 

HUD has issued new rules regarding clarification language for slum/blight designation.  Also, very important is the timeline and performance measures.  These have become a very important part of reporting to HUD.  Other topics of discussion included; (1) Census tract for site of activity, (2) certification that municipalities are not on the suspended contractor list, (3) there were no changes made to the 2006 Program Statement as a result of public hearing comments.

 

Tammy Knight reported that TTY or request for special accommodations language must now be added to all public advertisements for public hearings or meetings regarding CDBG programs.

 

Mike Baran noted that the Rural Housing and Economic Development (RHED) application submitted on behalf of Northern Aroostook Wells and Septic Project (NAWSP) to replace dilapidated housing is not on the list of successful projects funded.  An official notice however has not been received by the State.

 

VIII.         UPDATE FROM COSCDA CONVENTION:

Mike Baran and Al Smith attended the annual COSCDA Convention on September 18-21, 2005 held in Cleveland, Ohio.  Mike reported that the SACI program was discussed.  The problem with the CDBG program is that there is no real effective communication with the congressional delegates regarding the success of the program.  It is important that we continue to educate members of Congress so that they can help support the program.  All states, COSCDA, and groups such as MCDA need to continue to improve and demonstrate to Congress that performance measures are in place and they are working.   

 

The flexibility of the CDBG program is a problem.  The State’s need to target CDBG funds into five categories rather than the current 13.  Mike noted that the Undersecretary of HUD is in favor of SACI.

 

Mike and Al visited several of the sites where CDBG programs were completed; such as downtown revitalization in Burbank, Habitat for Humanity in Medina, etc.  They encouraged MCDA to continue their role with COSCDA.  MCDA is a valuable tool for providing information on the CDBG program.

 

Susan Elkins, Director of Office of Community Development, State of Louisiana, was presented with the COSCDA award.

 

IX.               MCDA ANNUAL REPORT AND YEAR-IN-REVIEW:

This year’s highlights included advocacy for saving the CDBG program; Base Realignment and Closure of three major facilities; and MCDA comments regarding the 2006 CDBG proposed statement.  These three items have taken up a great deal of time this year, which prohibited the association from conducting training seminars and other workshops routinely scheduled for the year.

 

Joella McBreairty asked that anyone interested in providing articles for the newsletters should contact her, or any other member of MCDA.

 

X.                 SET DATE FOR 2006 ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING:

The group scheduled the organizational meeting for Friday, November 4, 2005 at Eastern Maine Development Corporation.

 

XI.               ADJOURN:

The meeting adjourned at approximately 1:15 p.m.

 

Respectfully submitted by,

 

 

 

Joella R. McBreairty

Secretary

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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