Minutes, May 19, 2020
Minutes from the May 19, 2020 Clarksville CDC Monthly Meeting
Board members in attendance: Aly Byatt, Aubrey Carter, BJ Friedman, Paula Hern, Malcolm Greenstein, Kim O’Brien, Mary Reed, and Chris Thomas
Others in attendance: Rose Gabriel
In support of citywide efforts to reduce the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), the Monthly Meeting was held via Zoom.
1. On a motion by Aly, seconded by Aubrey, the minutes from the April 21, 2020 Annual Meeting and monthly board meeting were approved.
2. BJ presented the monthly Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss reports. Our checking balance as of April 30 was $5870, savings balance $127,659. The savings balance includes the Home Base forgivable loan. Repairs and maintenance in April included a portion of the make ready expenses at 1729B and the removal of a tree at 1821 Waterston.
Minutes from the May 15, 2020 Finance Committee appear at the end of these minutes.
3. Rose presented the property management report. Two of the 5 tenants who submitted applications to the City’s housing assistance fund lottery received approval. Funds received will cover their May rents. A number of leases are coming up for renewal in the next few months. Two tenants will be leaving, other leases will be renewed. One tenant will remain on a month-to-month basis for the near-future.
At this time, Rose does not know about potential June rent waiver requests.
The board welcomed a new family at 1729B W. 11th street.
4. The board discussed the fiscal effects on the CCDC due to the coronavirus. BJ presented a projection of expenses for May & June. Income is lower due to rent waivers, but the projection is better than anticipated. May rents were about $10,000, June anticipated at $11,000, a combined deficit of $4,200.
We received a Payroll Protection Program loan in the amount of $7,500 (we requested $10,000.) The PPP loan will cover two-months of Rose’s salary. Our overall deficit, so far, is about $500. The PPP loan is supposed to be forgivable, but information on how to prove it’s forgivable is not yet available. Malcom suggested setting up a separate bank account to easily prove that expenditures were for what the program intended.
We have also submitted an Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) through the Small Business Administration (SBA.) Rose will follow up on its status.
5. On a motion by Malcolm, seconded by Aubrey, the following board members were unanimously elected to serve as CCDC officers: Mary Reed, president; Chris Thomas, vice-president; Kim O’Brien, secretary; BJ Friedman, Treasurer. The terms of office will run through May 2021.
6. The board discussed pending items that remained in regard to the amendment of the current CCDC Bylaws. Kim will type up what was discussed and distribute to the board for final approval. Once all changes have been approved, a Special Meeting of the CCDC will be called (as required by current bylaws) for the actual approval of the amended bylaws. This Special Meeting will not be held until we are able to meet in person.
7. On a recommendation by Chris, Tenant Selection Committee chair, the board approved the reappointments of Gregory Tran and BJ Friedman, representing the CCDC, and Chris Crane, representing the neighborhood, to new terms on the Tenant Selection Committee. Their terms will run until May 2022.
Chris reported that our current tenant representative will be moving so we will need to soon appoint a new person to that position.
8. Mary reported that the OWANA Steering Committee again discussed the affordable housing funds that have been managed by Home Base and decided to give the money to the CCDC. They will require quarterly reports regarding our expenditures. We are waiting for Home Base to complete their process to create paperwork that will designate the Home Base loans as forgiven. When that is completed, the approximately $50,000 will be turned to the CCDC. OWANA expects that we will not see the money until June or July.
9. The board conducted a preliminary discussion regarding spending priorities for the OWANA affordable housing funds. The Finance Committee proposed the following ways that the money could be spent:
· Use 100% of the funds to make repairs and improvements to our properties that will help maintain their integrity and provide for the safety of residents and visitors.
· Spend a portion of the money on property repairs and improvements and put the balance in savings in order to increase the CCDC’s financial safety net.
· Spend some of the $50,000 -- possibly as much as $20,000 – on the installation of splitters for the utility meters at the properties for which the CCDC is now paying the bills.
· Invest in improvements at the CCDC’s properties that are not essential, but that would benefit our tenants.
In discussion that followed, the board wondered how prescriptive, if at all, OWANA may be regarding how the money is spent. So far we do not know what requirements they may have. A suggestion was made to put the OWANA funds into a separate account in order to provide complete transparency. Malcolm suggested hosting a tour for the OWANA Steering Committee, perhaps open to the entire membership, once social distancing is over. The board will continue this discussion next month.
10. Rose reported on the status of our new home project at 1611 W. 10th Street. There has been some confusion on how to create loan documents since the City owns the property. When figured out, City Legal will have to approve, which will add more time, perhaps delaying until July. We are still awaiting a resolution of the utility line issue—if we cannot get a waiver, the drawings will have to be changed. Additionally, American YouthWorks is shut down due to coronavirus precautions.
11. There was no progress to report regarding grant-funded Haskell House repairs. Rose has reached out to the contract administrator, who referred her to City Purchasing. No word from them.
12. Under Other Business, Aubrey asked about installing a dog poop bag dispenser behind the Neighborhood Center. Rose priced one at $280. The board discussed maintenance issues: refilling bags, emptying the trash can. No one was too interested in the regular maintenance. Aubrey is going to see if he can find or create a less costly, easier to maintain solution.
13. The board met in Executive Session to discuss a tenant matter.
Minutes from Finance Committee Meeting on May 15, 2020
Attending: BJ, Friedman, CCDC Treasurer, Mary Reed, CCDC President, Rose Gabriel, CCDC Financial/Property Manager
Mary and BJ reviewed the April financials. They asked Rose to clarify some information. They also asked her to reorganize some information and to add explanatory notes for some of the expenses on the P & L.
Mary asked Rose if she was clear about the requirements the CCDC must meet in order to ensure that its PPP loan is forgivable. Rose said that Frost Bank will be sending Mary information about this issue via email, but she does not know when. Rose will send BJ and Rose what information she does have regarding the requirements and once she does, Mary said that she would reach out to her contact at Frost to try to get more specifics.
The FC members discussed some initial options for using the $50K that the CCDC will be receiving from OWANA. The options they identified include:
• Use all of the $ on repairs and improvements that will preserve the physical integrity of the CCDC’s properties and protect tenant (and visitor) safety.
• Use a portion of the $ on the above and put the balance in savings in order to increase the CCDC’s financial safety net.
• Spend a portion of the $ -- possibly as much as $20K – on the installation of splitters for the utility meters at the properties for which the CCDC is now paying the bills. BJ said that this project should pay for itself in two years.
• Invest in improvements that are not essential, but would benefit the tenants.
Previously Rose had developed a list of repairs/improvements by property at Mary’s request for her to present to the OWANA SC when Mary was trying to get the $50K for the CCDC. At the meeting, Mary asked Rose to reorganize her data into two categories: 1. Repairs and improvements that would maintain the physical integrity of the CCDC’s properties and protect tenant/visitor safety and 2. Non-essential improvements that would benefit the tenets. This information will be helpful to the board when it’s deciding what to do with the $50K. Because Rose is very busy, BJ offered to do what Mary requested. She will share her draft document with Rose for her review.