Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout1996-03-03 Celebration Trust Committee MinutesTown of Reading 16 Lowell Street Reading, MA 01867-2685 L ~U - r~M KIFIR 15 1127 y- 3 s , 'ro CELEBRATION COMMITTEE (617) 942-9050 MEETING OF MARCH 3, 1996 Called to order at 7:35 P.M. Present: Alan Foulds, Gladys Jones, William McLaughlin, Debbie Stackpole and Mary Williams Minutes of February 12, 1996 were accepted without changes. Voted 4-0-1 Alan Foulds distributed copies of letters that had gone to applicants: 1) invitation to make a presentation to the Committee which went to five applicants and 2) letters to four sponsors stating that funds would not be available for their projects. Letters and lists of recipients attached. The process of interviewing applicants began, with three slated to attend this session. Materials presented are attached. 1. Highland School Centennial: Dee Hanley, Director of the Reading Public Library, made the presentation. While no representative of the Friends of the Library attended; Dee noted that the Friends would coordinate the project and customarily develop the donations that support events. The background provided was that the library building, designed by Reading architect Horace Wadlin and thought to have been the first brick school building in town, will be 100 years old this year. Commemorative events are slated for September 6-8; all would be free of charge to the public. Priority elements of the project were identified: 1) reception/open house, 2) speakers on Reading history and Horace Wadlin, and 3) concerts (the Library's Saturday concerts are supported by the Friends and have a following). The Theodore Roosevelt impersonator was not considered as important as the other aspects of the program. Feasibility of having outdoor events on the library grounds was discussed. 2. Community Day: Selectman Camille Anthony, along with Nancy Eaton and John McGrath, two members of the Community Task Force, presented, without benefit of having seen the application filed by the Town Manager. In their discussion of the project background, they noted the idea for Community Day originated with the Task Force's recommendation that the town develop an Open Space Day to promote connections within the community, and to promote enhancement of Reading's open spaces, maintenance, trail marking and the initiation of a Friends program. In a 1995 survey, residents supported the acquisition of more land (76%), of more recreation fields (56%), and the addition of more biking, hiking, cross-country skiing and nature trails. A Community Day, foreseen to be an annual event, would help promote awareness of what's available. Components would include an old-fashioned town picnic, games and sports, guided walks through conservation areas, and presentations on open spaces. The $500 request was detailed as $100 for flyers and ads, $100 for supplies for games, $100 for prizes, and $200 for a popcorn machine and/or other item to provide free food for the crowd. It was thought that all food should be free, whether supplied by local restaurants and markets or brought as pot luck by attendees. For Community Day, June 2 is the target date and various locations were discussed. They noted that a Clean-up of public spaces, mentioned as a component of the project in the application, would be earlier and separate. 3. Parker School Good-bye: Susan Kalmakis and Donna Walsh presented. They discussed project background: 1996 is the 70th anniversary of the building which is being demolished to make way for a new one and which, as a middle school, was attended by many Reading residents. The date for the event is set at May 4, following a parents' open house on May 2. The school will be decorated for that event; in addition, students will sing songs from the 1927 play "Good News" they are producing this year, "Poetrees" developed as wall murals and resulting from a poet-in- residence program will be shown, and 7th and 8th graders are researching the building itself. Retired teachers will be invited, and the event will be promoted with public relations and possible advertising to attract alumnae. A committee has developed a list of ideas, which include participation from other community groups, bands and choruses and a pie or strawberry shortcake social. The budget had not been firmed up; it was suggested that this be done in time for the Trust Committee's March 12 meeting. With the presentations finished, the Trust Committee talked about its decision-making process. It had been discussed that those with a potential conflict of interest in a project W. McLaughlin for the Library, D. Stackpole for the Reading Memorial High School Band, and Gladys Montgomery Jones for the Reading Historical Commission abstain from the yea-nea vote on whether or not to fund a project. Once it has been decided to fund a project, the process for determining the funding amount was discussed. It was suggested that each Committee member be given five cards (one for each project) to write the amount the project should receive (from zero to the full available amount in the Trust). If all were close, the decision would be clear; if widely different, a full discussion would be needed. Gladys Jones volunteered to bring cards to the next meeting (March 12), which the Committee decided to begin at 7:15 P.M. The meeting was adjourned at 9:20 P.M.