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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuman Relations Commission - Minutes - 03/11/2021Human Relations Commission Meeting Minutes March 11, 2021 CALL TO ORDER Meeting was called to order by Chairperson, Beth Jaeger, at 5:30pm ROLL CALL Present: Jean Runyon, Denise Apodaca, Vic Smith, Oscar Felix, Beth Jaeger, Phil Walker, Julia Mackewich Staff Present: Carol Thomas, Equal Opportunity & Compliance Manager, HRC Liaison Observers: Olivia Hamel AGENDA REVIEW No additions. Accepted as written. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion to approve February11th minutes by Jean Runyon; second by Julia Mackewich. Approved 8-0 PUBLIC PARTICIPATION BUDGET REVIEW No expenses to date. All budgeted funds, $5,900, still intact. NEW BUSINESS Ad Hoc Committee on Housing Update: Marcy Yoder, Megan DeMasters Shared work done on Housing Strategic Plan during the last 8 months; Vision: Healthy, Stable, Affordable Housing Goal: reach 10% of affordable housing, currently at 5%; 56 strategies shared at December work session; refined to 26 strategies; final list adopted; implementation includes Quicker Wins (less than a year to implement) i.e. assess displacement and gentrification risk; Transitional Strategies (1-2 years) i.e. remove barriers to allowed densities through code revisions; Transformation Strategies (2+ years) i.e. promote inclusivity, housing diversity, and affordability as community values; received 137 public comments; stories heard from community members – challenges when building affordable housing & pushback from community; draft implementation process: assess progress, revisit priorities, confirm priorities, design summit; some of Guiding Principles include: center the work in people, be agile and adaptive; expect and label tensions, opportunities, and tradeoffs, focus investments on the lowest income levels, commit to transparency in decision-making; Ad Hoc Committee meetings through March/April; Community Summit April/May. Principles of Community Update: Honore Depew, Marcy Yoder, Carol Thomas City Council Priority: Diversity & Inclusion Ensuring all feel welcome and safe when engaging the City of Fort Collins CSU & Poudre School District have their own Principles of Community Framing: why, how, what; internal focus for the city organization Timeline: moving from idea/outline to framework and plan to build out: Q4 2020 internal working group of 20+; Q1 2021 Engagement and development; Q2 2021 Adoption & rollout; conversation about infusing into work plans, opportunity gaps, budgeting that promotes equity, institutional guidelines with equity lens, useful in Restorative Justice work HRC Letterhead and Emails- Signature Block Idea Denise: concept of all members of HRC being represented with contact information on letterhead, and emails, that would serve to represent all of HRC members when communicating with partners, other offices; Carol suggests creating a mock-up; will need to go through review for branding, other considerations; Denise will work on a draft with Vic’s help, and send out to HRC members. OLD BUSINESS Follow-up from February Meeting: A) SPLASH NoCo SPLASH asked for help in finding safe and reliable space; Recreation Department cut rates for non-profits by 50%; but still leaves a cost; SPLASH Director Kim Chambers prefers Youth Activity Center; library recommended but not a long-term solution; also idea of meeting in place of worship may not be a welcoming space; Kim wanted more advocacy from HRC and City for no-cost space, but no-fee option is not available; ideas? School district? Provide subsidy from the HRC budget? Create a grant application form, yearly allocation for such requests? Beth will reach out to City officials for ideas; FRCC and CSU restricted availability, particularly during COVID-19. B) COVID-19 Vaccination Outreach Vaccination Outreach: County beginning to effectively communicate and work is accelerating; met with Sergio and Ricardo (community outreach and communication coordinator); Sergio developing stakeholder list, and HRC would have liked to review and provide suggestions, but HRC never received list to review; have received copy of proposal of document sent to County Supervisors, asking for funding for hotlines based in trusted organizations, BIPOC, Spanish speaking orgs to connect to vaccines; also request for funding to produce videos, announcements, flyers re vaccine; more money for mobile clinics; incentives for vaccinations need to be culturally appropriate; brainstorm for gathering incentives. Jean offered FRCC as a possible vaccine site; Beth to follow-up with Sergio. C) City Response Re: Equity and Inclusion Office City response: positive response from Mayor and City Manager; Request 1) we will receive summary of listening sessions; Request 2) yes, they will welcome one HRC member on interview panel, Beth was nominated to represent HRC, with Julia to serve as backup; Request 3) all HRC will be invited to forums. Motion: Vic moves, Jean seconds: Beth to represent HRC on selection committee, with Julia as alternate; approved 8-0 COMMITTEE REPORTS Educational Outreach Phil- who is our target audience; need to target self-selected given the nature of material; do not want folks who were told to do this; managers? Equity Office folks? Board and Commission group? Train the trainer approach? Divided curriculum into 90-minute units; if done in zoom, need to provide homework assignments (reading materials, videos); looking for facilitator and willing to use HRC funds; Oscar will look for White Privilege content facilitator. Media/Community Recognition No update Government Relations No update Executive Julia and Beth to review HRC By-Laws and suggest possible revisions. ADJOURNMENT Motion to adjourn by Phil Walker, seconded by Denise Apodaca. Approved 8-0. Meeting adjourned at 7:35 pm.