Austin Cycling Association

ACA Board of Directors meeting minutes for May 2010

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

recorded by Sandy Raphel, ACA Secretary

Location: Bike Texas, 1902 E. Sixth St., Austin, Texas

Present: Gilbert D. Martinez, Wes Robinson, Stanton Truxillo, Susie Truxillo, Eileen Schaubert, Tommy Eden, Sara Deshong-Baker, Michael Portman, Pete Dahlberg, Sandy Raphel

ACA President Gilbert D. Martinez began the board meeting at 6:35 p.m.

There were two resolutions before the board from the Legislative Liaison Committee.

Resolution 1: That the Austin Cycling Association supports the city staff recommendation for traffic-calming improvements on Rio Grande and Nueces streets. The Austin Cycling Association recommends that the parking spaces on Nueces Street be preserved and that additional traffic calming devices, rather than bicycle lanes, be installed on Nueces Street between 13th Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

Tommy Eden made a motion to approve the first resolution. Stanton Truxillo seconded the motion. Wes Robinson requested a friendly amendment be made to the proposal. He requested “traffic calming improvements” be replaced with “bicycle infrastructure improvements.” Tommy accepted the friendly amendment. Eileen Schaubert and Pete Dahlberg abstained. The motion carried with 6 votes in favor, 2 abstaining, and none opposed.

Resolution 2: That the Austin Cycling Association applauds the diligent efforts of the City of Austin to comply with its Complete Streets Policy, City Council Resolution 020418-40. Our review has determined that all current Capital Improvements Program projects are in compliance at this time.

Tommy Eden stated that the Legislative Liaison Committee has been reviewing the city’s compliance with its policy and determined that it had been compliant. Tommy made a motion to approve the second resolution. Susie Truxillo seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

Eileen Schaubert made a motion that Gilbert Martinez draft a letter to the Texas Department of Transportation to express the appreciation of ACA for the additional signage at Loop 360 and RM 2244. Stanton Truxillo seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

Agenda discussion item 1: Defensive cycling classes. Wes Robinson gave an update. Allan Dunlop has volunteered to prepare the material and to teach the first bicycle diversion class. Allan submitted a list of questions to Wes for the board to discuss regarding his participation in the diversion program. One of the questions was whether the diversion classes should be two hours or three hours. Allan has requested that the classes run for three hours. The board will put off the decision until after the first “dry run” class sometime in mid-June. Wes will continue to work on class particulars, and Eileen Schaubert and Patti Hill will look for possible scholarship donors for the upcoming classes. They will report back to the board at the June meeting.

Discussion item 2: Should the Monday optional board conference calls be adjusted or eliminated? Stanton and Susie Truxillo felt the calls were very helpful during the Armadillo Ride planning times. Gilbert Martinez suggested that he speak with Patti Hill and Gary Holliday and perhaps come up with a more convenient day or time for the calls.

Discussion item 3: ACA helmet grant policy. Wes Robinson made a motion that the draft ACA Helmet Grant Agreement be approved with the stipulation that ACA’s education director may provide helmets to organizations/instructors outside of the grant agreement guidelines provided that such helmets do not exceed the amount ACA has budgeted for helmets in any fiscal year. If the providing of additional helmets outside of the grant agreement’s guidelines exceeds what ACA has budgeted for helmets in a given fiscal year, said additional helmets may be provided only upon approval by the ACA Board of Directors. Stanton Truxillo seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

Discussion item 4: Stanton Truxillo had a meeting with Kathleen Houlihan on May 21 on how Kathleen may assist in a volunteer coordinator/consultant-type role. Kathleen had many good suggestions for recruiting volunteers. Stanton has invited Kathleen to attend the June board meeting. Each committee should prioritize volunteer needs and send specifics to Gilbert. He will then work with Stanton, Susie and Kathleen on specifics for recruiting needed volunteers. The web team will also be speaking with a volunteer Drupal expert for possible work on the web page.

Vice president’s report: Monica Leo submitted her report via email. Monica reports the City of Austin failed to put up our street banner for a week after the date that was requested. So far, the city is refusing to refund any part of the $560 we paid for permit and hanging fees (of which REI donated $300). The offer from the city right now is to waive the hanging fee of $460 for our event in 2011 if ACA submits its application within the next 30 days. She has asked if the city will waive the remaining $100, but she had not received a response as of the board meeting. Monica poses two options. The first option would be to submit the application now and end additional efforts to obtain a refund. If the board plans to coordinate Bike to Work Day next year, this is a good option; but if our commitment to that event is in question at this time, we may not want to give up on getting a full or partial refund of the fees we paid this year. The second option would be to fight the city to get a refund of the fees we paid this year. Stanton Truxillo made a motion that the board submit the application now and end spending additional effort and time to obtain a refund. Eileen Schaubert seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. The June 7 general meeting will be at Zilker Hillside Theatre at 6:30 p.m. with Annick Beaudet as the guest speaker. The July 5 meeting will be held (tentatively) at Bike Texas, with updates on statewide bike advocacy and other issues.

Treasurer: Gary Holliday was unable to attend the meeting but reported approximately $17,000 in the bank and another deposit for $18,000. The AHCC was a big financial success.

Armadillo Hill Country Classic: Susie Truxillo reported that there were 950 riders, with 149 new members joining ACA. Stanton reported that the ride went very smoothly. He offered the suggestion that cell phones, instead of radios, be used for communication on future rides. Stanton and Susie thank all the volunteers that helped make the ride possible. ACA will also need a new ride director for the Armadillo in 2011.

Education: Wes Robinson reported that ACA provided 40 helmets to Blanton Elementary for their child safety clinic on May 18. Doug Ballew and Bicycle Sport Shop employees set up and ran the skills courses, while Laura King and City of Austin employees distributed and fitted helmets. ACA provided 15 helmets to Allan Elementary upon request for a bike giveaway that they were providing to select kids. Wes also reported that Austin’s Safe Routes to School issued a certificate of appreciation to the Austin Cycling Association.

Legislative Liaison Committee: Tommy Eden reported that there will be a TxDOT Bicycle Advisory Committee meeting on June 29 at 10 a.m. at the TxDOT Riverside location. He is requesting more ACA representation.

Membership: Susie Truxillo reports 1,175 memberships and 196 family memberships for a total of 1271 members, with 149 new memberships resulting from the Armadillo Ride.

Southwest Cycling News: The editor requests that articles be submitted as soon as possible.

Wes Robinson made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Stanton Truxillo seconded the motion. The meeting was adjourned at 8:52 p.m.