CALIFORNIA BLUEGRASS ASSOCIATION
SYNOPSIS OF THE MINUTES OF THE JULY 12, 2014 BOARD MEETING
CALL TO ORDER
Tim Edes, Chairman of the Board, called the meeting to order at 10:05 AM on Saturday July 12, 2014 at the Brace River House, 2608 Paradise Road, Modesto, CA
95358.
ROLL CALL
Board Members Present:
Darby Brandli, David Brace, Tim Edes, Dave Gooding Mark Hogan, Jack Hyland, Jim Ingram, Larry Phegley, Geoffrey Sargent
Board Members Absent:
Montie Elston, Steve Goldfield
Officers Present:
Colleen Hogan, Lucy Smith, Carl Pagter, Rick Cornish, Marcos Alivira, Bruno Brandli, Frank Solivan, Mark Varner
SETTING OF THE AGENDA
The Board approved the meeting agenda with three additions.
APPROVAL OF THE MAY 2014 BOARD MEETING MINUTES
The Board approved the May minutes as written.
PERSONS DESIRING TO ADDRESS THE BOARD ON UNAGENDIZED ITEMS
Frank Solivan thanked the Board for the honor of the lifetime membership. He had some questions about expenses for KOB and was asked to submit a budget at the beginning of 2015.
Carl Pagter attended the ROMP festival in Owensboro and gave an update on the effort to build a new International Bluegrass Music Museum. They have raised 7 million of the 10 million goal. He urged the Board to consider making another donation specifically earmarked for the building fund.
OLD BUSINESS
Modesto Concert Financials:
David Brace gave the financial report for the Modesto Concert. The total net was in the positive.
Area Activities VP Job Description:
The Board approved a revised version of the job description. The modified description will be distributed to the Area Activities VPs to review and sign to signify their agreement.
2015 Fathers Day Festival Music Format:
The TAG committee is discussing the idea of changing the format for the 40th anniversary festival to allow for more flexibility in band selection.
JD Rhynes Cookbook Project:
Kickstarter has only raised $2,650 of the $10K goal with just 30 days left. It expires the day after the Good Old Fashioned Festival. A letter is going out to the CBA membership however it is likely that the goal won’t be met without a big push. The Board agreed to contribute up to 20% ($2,000) if 80% of the Kickstarter goal is met.
CBA BOD Elections:
The Board confirmed that the deadline to submit candidate statements to Mark Varner for the Bluegrass Breakdown is August 1st for publication in the September issue.
NEW BUSINESS
2014 IBMA Budget and Proposal:
The Board approved the IBMA budget as submitted by Lucy Smith, IBMA Liaison. The eight person team is complete and 22 of the showcase bands already booked. Lucy is looking for a wine donor with a distributor in North Carolina.
2015 FDF Graphics:
The Board discussed if it is important to approve the t-shirt design for the 2015 festival to use on marketing materials at IBMA in October. A discussion ensued about marketing at IBMA in general that will be discussed further at the August meeting.
Handicap Camping Coordinator resignation:
John Skarr resigned from the position of Handicapped Camping Coordinator. This job has been dissolved and merged with two others:
Gate Coordinator Resignation:
Mike McGar resigned but will stay on in 2015 as an advisor and mentor. David Brace knows someone who is willing to take it on. The Board agreed to make the position official in October.
Executive Committee Authorization to issue refunds:
The Executive Committee wants the authority to review and approve requests for FDF refunds and credits. This was approved by the Board, though not unanimously.
Kids Jam Aug 23:
A father of some children who participated in the KOB program is trying to start a kids’ jam in the East Bay. The first one is tentatively schedule at the Bruno house in Oakland on Aug 23. The Board approved money to help support the jam if they have to move to rented space.
Youth Program Grants to IBMA KOB:
Six CBA kids have been invited to IBMA this year. The Board approved a small bequest per child to help defray the cost of attending.
Great 48 Band Contest:
The band contest at the Great 48 is not well attended and it is hard to get bands to participate. The Board agreed to hire one or two bands to play that night instead of the Band Contest.
REPORTS
Executive Committee Report:
The Executive Committee addressed several items between meetings:
– Dealt with email regarding the Vern’ Stage headliner set
– Granted several music family festival comps
– Made decisions about the stage scrims
– Talked about festival
comps – deferred to the Retrospective
– Authorized a ticket credit
– Issued a partial refund to a vendor who had poor placement at FDF
– Fielded some complaints about dogs and other issues that will be discussed at the Retrospective
– Sent cards to members who had deaths in their family
Membership Report:
As of July 1, the CBA membership is 2563 members. Larry Phegley processed a large number of new/renewed members in June but the CBA is still below where it has been in prior years at this time.
Treasurer’s Report:
Treasurer Montie Elston was not present.
Music Camp Report:
Geoff Sargent reported that Music Camp went well. It will be discussed in depth at the Retrospective. Darby Brandli reported that Youth Camp was sold out.
Area Activities VP Reports:
– Bruno Brandli (East Bay) – The Alameda jam was cancelled due to low attendance. There is another jam in Oakland that is quite successful
– Lucy Smith (Butte / Tehama) – Lucy is taking a hiatus from concerts this summer. They lost one venue in the area and she is looking for another venue to start up after IBMA.
– Mark Hogan (North Bay Coast) – Mark reported that the lineup for the 15th Anniversary Sebastopol festival is beginning to take shape. So far he has confirmed Si Kahn, Bean Creek and Steep Ravine. The Coffee Catz jam in Sebastopol is self-running and going into its 17th year. He had to work out a parking issue with the city but now has a validation system to keep jam attendees from getting ticketed or towed.
– Marcos Alvira (Stanislaus / Merced / Mariposa) – The radio show is on hiatus for the summer. The jam at a coffee house in Merced brings in young musicians and may increase to a few jams per month.
– Larry Phegley (South Bay / Monterey Bay) – Attendance at jams in his area is up and down but going well. A lot of middle school kids go to the library so he’s looking at doing something for kids there.
President’s Report:
Darby Brandli has received several emails about the festival, most of which will be discussed at the retrospective. One continuing issue is dogs. The Executive Committee is charged with developing legal language about dogs to publish and enforce at future festivals.
Chairman’s Report:
Tim Edes read some letters regarding the FDF to give perspective from various people, positive and negative. Tim brought up the idea of setting up a video screen on one side of the stage at the 40th anniversary festival, which could possibly be paid for by sponsors such as a local cable television company. Jack Hyland recommended that the CBA invest in a shade cloth for the audience area and was put in charge of researching the cost.
CONFIRM TIME AND PLACE FOR THE FEBRUARY BOARD MEETING
Next meeting: Sunday August 10, 2014 at 10 AM The Grove Restaurant, 7511 Pacheco Pass Highway, Hollister, CA.
**IMPORTANT** The September meeting has been changed to Saturday, Sept 6th at 10 AM at the Brandli house in Oakland.
ADJOURNMENT
Meeting adjourned at 2:15 pm.