Notices

The Quorum for the next General Meeting of the Membership, scheduled for 2:00 PM Sunday 20 May 2007 at the Eastlake home is Not Established Here; as your Clerk’s Helper does not have all the data to calculate the Quorum (there were 22 people listed at the last meeting).

Minutes of the April Meeting

• Date, Time, and Place

This General Meeting of the Membership was called to order at 7:39 PM Tuesday, 24 April 2007 at 88 Thorndike Street, Arlington MA; the home of Tom Murphy.

• In attendance

Jeanette Barrett, Jan Dumas, Don Eastlake, Jill Eastlake, Lisa Hertel, Lisa Holsberg, September Isdell, Walter Kahn, Allan Kent, Jennifer Koerber, Rick Kovalcik, Ben Levy, Skip Morris, Susan Mozzicato, Tom Murphy, Sharon Sbarsky, Rachel Silber, Mike Sprague, Janet Stickle, Brandi Tague (new member), Pat Vandenberg, and Conor Walsh.

• Proxies

Karen Purcell to Jill Eastlake, Don Eastlake to Jill Eastlake (until his arrival); Joel Herda to September Isdell, Peter Thomas to September Isdell; Alex Latzko to Ben Levy, Bridget Boyle to Ben Levy; Christina Hodges to Jeanette Barrett; Jeanne Kahn to Walter Kahn; Persis Thorndike to Lisa Holsberg; David D'Antonio to Skip Morris; Samantha Dings to Rachel Silber.

• Corrections to the Minutes

No Corrections to the Minutes of the last General Meeting were offered.

• Corrections to MENTOR as a whole

Key #17 to Lisa Holsberg
Key #18 to September Isdell (spare)
Key #19 to Skip Morris (spare)
Janet has a key.

• President's Report

Thanks to all; let’s make it a quick meeting.

• Vice-President's Report

• Treasurer

I've been away, data will be submitted for MENTOR.

• Clerk

Merv will guest edit / publish Mentor for May and June; Phi will handle mailbox responsibilities for the nonce.

• Executive Board Report

The Executive Board has appointed Jill Eastlake for Convention Chair of Arisia '09 (there are no objections from the floor). The Executive Board voted to allow Persis Thorndike to borrow Fast Track convention materials for the Beyond IQ Conference. We decided to allow NEFFA to borrow the OLD radios for the weekend of the Folk Festival. We voted to fund an additional $78.00 over the $500.00 voted in February to pay for the Truss.

• Arisia '07 Conchair

Alex Latzko is still working on the A'07 books; there has been no other activity. For any more outstanding issues, speak with September Isdell off-line.

• Arisia '07 Treasury

• Arisia '08 Conchair

There has been a lot of interesting progress; we have made some significant structure changes (viewable on the A'08 Website, thanks to Jasra). Staff Reservations will be available by 15 May 2007, in time for Balticon. A more comprehensive report available in writing.

From Ben Levy:

The Arisia'08 web site is online http://2008.arisia.org/ As time progresses, we'll be fleshing out the new web site, and adding new features.

The convention structure (Org Chart) for Arisia '08 has changed previous years. Instead of having all of the Division Heads report directly to the Con Chair. The Division Heads now report to an individual Assistant Con Chair (or the Con Chair). Also while rearranging, we ended up with a couple of Department Heads reporting directly to an Assistant Con Chair. The Org Chart can be seen at: http://2008.arisia.org/staffOrgChart08

We expect the Hyatt hotel reservations to be online and open to the public by Memorial Day. We'll make the reservation system available to convention staff a bit sooner to test out the system.

• Arisia '08 Treasury

No Report.

• Arisia '09 Conchair

Jill is soliciting suggestions for author guest of honor; send her email personally to jill@pothole.com. The convention's theme will be "The Fabric of Science Fiction."

• Arisia '09 Tresury

No Report.

• Archives Committee

No Report.

• Budget Committee

No Report.

• Corporate Inventory Control

Skip reports that the new door and locks work as well as the old ones always did. New parts for the truss are in and unpacked; Hobbit will drill holes and attach the brackets. The drape still needs to be repaired. How much drape do we really need? -- we have 90 feet of useable drape and 120 feet total (conversation from the floor suggests tapping Joel Lord as an information source). Skip is still working on getting damages from the flood dealt with.

Insurance: Ben Levy's Insurance Agent has called; he has the information needed for generating quotes.

• Corporate Sales

No Report.

• Honors Committee

• Hotel Search Committee

For the 2008 Convention, the Hotel will have repair / maintenance personnel on site during the weekend; it turns out to be cheaper for them to schedule the personnel than to call personnel in. There will be penalties for elevator down time for the 2009 Convention.

A question from the floor asks whether or not Hotel Search needs to do anything with respect to Arisia '09? The answer is that 2010 there is no reasonable alternative to the Hyatt Regency Cambridge, so we're looking to stay at the Hyatt for '09 and '10.

MOVED FROM COMMITTEE to authorize the Executive Board to sign a suitable contract for A'09 with the Hyatt Regency as negotiated by the Hotel Committee.

Motion PASSES unanimously.

Noted that there will be a new Marriott in Newton (with more function space than the Hyatt) which is likely to be available for A'10; this gives us a possible alternative for A'10.

Overflow Hotels: We have three offers; from the Hotel at MIT, the Marriott and the Doubletree Suites in Allston. The Hotel at MIT would save us money on transportation; the Doubletree is offering various concessions because they'd like the business. A question from the floor: What's the schedule for the overflow hotel? Hotel Search could have competitive contracts in a few weeks and get into more negotiation in short order.

MOVED FROM COMMITTEE to authorize the Executive Board to sign a suitable contract for Arisia '08 Overflow Hotel in consultation with the Arisia '08 Convention Chair.

Motion PASSES unanimously.

Finally, Hotel Search takes under advisement the opinion that it's not too early to suss out hotel prospects for A'11; what are possible dates at downtown hotels?

• Long Range Planning Committee

No Report

• Relaxacon Committee

A comment from the floor begins a brief discussion regarding publicity for the Arisia Relaxacon '07. The Staff needs to be notified. A question from the floor inquires whether or not it is too late to manage a relaxacon in '07? Answered, this was discussed at the March meeting, this is the best time of the year to hold a relaxacon for logistical reasons, etc. A show of hands demonstrates greater than majority favor for going forward with a relaxacon this year.

• Survey Committee

No Report.

• Technical Equipment Committee

No Report.

• Timeline Committee

A meeting was held 29 March 2007; there was some progress; mostly, it wound up being a convention discussion.

• Old Business

No old business was lifted from the Table.

A comment from the floor suggests that, regarding our attempts to recover damages owed from the Storage Mishap, it would be wise to send a formal letter in addition to trying to schedule a face-to-face meeting.

• New Business

The Meeting moves to a Committee of the Whole to discuss the fate of the Convention Mass Mailer. Much information is brought to the attention of the Convention Chair for her use; no motions made from the discussion. An item of note is that the database issues noted with regard to NCOA may eventually require Corporate attention; however, these are issues for each convention for the time being.

MOVED to charge $10/day or $15/weekend for the Arisia Relaxacon '07. Motion Seconded. Motion discussed.

MOVED to amend the motion by substitution; to give the relaxacon a $1,000.00 budget from the Corporate funds and not charge a membership fee. Motion to amend Seconded.

Motion to amend FAILS

Motion PASSES 22-5.

MOVED to give the Arisia Relaxacon '07 a $1,000.00 budget in addition to registrations. Motion Seconded.

Motion PASSES many to 2.

Regarding future General Meetings of the Membership:

May meeting shall be 2:00 PM to not later than 8:00 PM Sunday, 20 May 2007 at the Eastlake Home. A food plan is still ambiguous at this time.

June meeting shall be 2:00 PM Sunday, 10 June 2007 at the Hilton Boston Dedham, in conjunction with Arisia Relaxacon '07.

July meeting shall be Sunday, 29 July 2007 at the home of Jan Dumas (The Zoo) (No tree fruits please; occupant is allergic).

There is no meeting scheduled for August 2007.

• Announcements and future meetings

Merv is moving this Sunday, 29 April 2007; please come help, the boxes aren't THAT heavy . . . . Need only a few bodies at 11 AM to load the truck; more bodies at 12:30 PM to unload the truck right around the corner.

20 May, there will be a Northern Lights Fabric and Craft Materials swap.

A reminder that SmofCon is 7-9 December 2007 at the Airport Hilton.

Brendan Hertel is showing interest in attending meetings; as a voting member, please make him feel welcome.

Pending Business

From February

• Conclude discussion of refund policy and bring a new motion (eboard)
• Get quotes to eboard for liability and contents insurance. (CIC)
• Get list of damaged goods to Cal and follow up about fixing door and door frame. (Skip)
• Deferred discussion of a family or young fan rate to a future meeting.
• Weekend rates were changed, but single-day rates were not changed and need to be discussed in the context of a 4 day con.
• Report from hotel search committee about state of 2009/2010 possibilities.

From March

• Who is responsible for notifying non-corporate-member keyholders of new policy?
• Honors committee send funds to Patri's Girls fund

If anyone is aware of other pending business, please email clerk@arisia.org.

Mentor Subscription Information

Subscription to Mentor of Arisia is included with Corporate Membership to Arisia, Incorporated. Membership runs from September 1st to August 31st and costs $24. Dues are pro-rated on a monthly basis for members joining during the year.

Executive Board

Committee Members & Corporate Appointed Officers

Membership Roster

Here is the current membership roster for Arisia, Inc. If you believe there is an error, or if you are on this list and do not receive Mentor, email clerk@arisia.org.

Keys List

If you do not have a key to storage and need to get into storage, send mail to keys@arisia .org and all keyholders will get your request.

Upcoming Meetings

Look for upcoming corporate and concomm meetings at http://www.arisia.org/calendar.

Meeting Schedule

Corporate: 2:00 PM Sunday 20 May 2007, at the Eastlake residence, Milford MA.

Division Head: 7:00 PM Tuesday, 22 May 2007 at the home of September Isdell.

Party: Time to be announced Sunday, 27 May 2007 at Balticon.

Relaxacon: Friday through Sunday, 8-10 June 2007 at the Hilton Boston Dedham. See the flyer in this Mentor.

Corporate: 2:00 PM Sunday 10 June 2007 in a room (TBD) at the Hilton Boston Dedham in conjunction with Arisia Relaxacon '07.

Division Head: 7:00 PM Wednesday, 27 June 2007 at the home of September Isdell.

Readercon: Friday through Sunday, 6-8 July 2007

ConCom: 7:00 PM Wednesday, 18 July 2007 at the Hyatt Regency, Cambridge.

Corporate: Time TBA, Sunday, 29 July 2007 at the home of Jan Dumas; location and directions forthcoming.

Division Head: 7:00 PM Monday, 30 July 2007 at the home of September Isdell.

NASFiC: Thursday through Sunday, 2-5 August 2007

WORLDCON: Thursday through Monday, 30 August – 3 September 2007

Division Head: 7:00 PM Thursday, 6 September 2007 at the home of September Isdell.

Corporate: Annual Meeting 2:00 PM Sunday, 16 May 2007 at MIT Building 66 Room 168 (or an adjacent room on the same corridor).

Directions to the May Meeting

Directions to the Eastlakes', 155 Beaver Street, Milford, MA 01757-3601 (508) 634-2066 eastlake@pothole.com Donald's cell phone (508) 333-2270. Jill's cell phone (508) 333-2290.

Milford Massachusetts is located off I-495 west of Boston, south of the intersection with I-90 (the Mass Turnpike) and north of the intersection with I-95.

From the North, East, and West:

* I-495 is Exit 11A off the Mass Turnpike. The Mass Turnpike is Exit 22 off I-495. From this intersection, proceed south to I-495 Exit 19, route 109.

* Turn right, west at the end of the ramp (there are lights).

* Move to the left lane over the next 1/4 mile. You will be surrounded by fast food chains, gas stations, a Kohl's, a Jo-Ann Fabrics, loads of other stores. Proceed to the intersection (just past Maria's Italian Villa with a prominent Pizza sign, on the left) with the sometimes blinking yellow light, it cycles during most of the day.

* Turn left onto Birch Street (signs say Birch Street entrance to the Bear Hill Business Area).

* Turn right at the end of Birch Street onto Beaver Street (keep in mind that you could turn left here and one-way back to route 109).

* Go down about 1/8 of a mile to the fork in the road. Beaver Street is the right fork, Maple Street is the left. Use either one since Maple Street T-ends into Beaver Street (you will turn left on Beaver if you've taken Maple).

* Look carefully at the mailboxes along Beaver Street as they count up confusingly. 155 is on the right, across from a masonry company showroom and offices (not well labeled, but clearly a masonry building).

* If you see a horse farm on the left, you went a little too far and should turn around.

From the South:

* Traveling north on I-495 from route I-95, proceed to Exit 18 in Bellingham, route 126. You'll notice the Regal Cinema 14 theater on the right just before the exit, also a Whole Foods market and lots of other businesses.

* Turn left at the top of the ramp, from the center lane.

* Cross over I-495 and proceed on Hartford Avenue (do NOT follow route 126 when it turns left at the Dunkin Donuts). You will pass Varney Concrete on the right (it's impossible to see in the dark).

* Turn Right onto Grove Street at the cross-roads sign. Grove Street is a (mostly) residential street in Bellingham and becomes Beaver Street at the (not-obvious) town line with Milford. Drive down the middle of the road whenever possible as the edges have many, many potholes.

* Near the end of Bellingham you will see an Equestrian Crossing sign, a horse farm on the right (SLOW DOWN HERE), and then suddenly you're in Milford

* We're at 155, the second house on the left, just across from a masonry company showroom and offices (not well labeled, but clearly a masonry building).

(To see the latest version of this page on the web, go to http://2008.arisia.org/Relaxacon)

Relaxacon

Arisia Relaxacon!

YOU'RE INVITED!!!

What: A Weekend-Long Get-Away
Who: All Arisia Volunteers, Staff, & Program Participants
Where: Hilton, Dedham (just outside of Boston)
When: June 8-10, 2007

Cost: $15/weekend or $10 Friday or Saturday

Arisia is having a "Relaxacon" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relaxacon) This is an opportunity for all of us to get together without having to do any real work.

Activities Include: SMOFing, ConSuite (with food and drinks), Movies (Perhaps a marathon Hugo Nominees viewing session?), Pool and Jacuzzi (until midnight just for us), Tennis, Racketball, Basketball, Exercise Room, Jogging, Hotel surrounded by wooded conservation grounds, Local trips & hikes to Blue Hills & other sights, Nearby shopping, restaurants, movies, & golf.

PLEASE JOIN US!!!

This is meant as a get together for Staff, Volunteers, and others interested in Arisia. We expect there to be lots of talk about SF, SMOFing, and food / drink. People might also want to bring some light games to play. Think of it as a big Consuite or Staff Den. We hope to be able to arrange free WiFi access especially in and around the Consuite. Jack Dietz will be in charge of the Consuite. If you are interested in helping out with that, please let us know.

In order to provide food / drink for a Consuite, the cost is $15 for the weekend or $10 for Friday or Saturday. Sunday is free as it is a half day, and we're having the Arisia Corporate meeting at the hotel at 2 PM on Sunday. This would be a good opportunity to come and see an Arisia Corporate meeting for those interested in getting more involved with running Arisia. Children under 5 are free and between 5 and 21 are half price. No babysitting is provided, so parents are responsible for their own children.

We have negotiated a room rate of $99 per night plus tax for 1-4 people at the Hilton Dedham Hotel (including 3 days before and after the Relaxacon for those who really want to get away). There is free parking. The hotel has a Jacuzzi and heated indoor swimming pool which will both be available until midnight especially for us. There are tennis, racquetball, and basketball courts. You can also work out with exercise equipment or jog on a lovely outdoor trail. The hotel is surrounded by wooded conservation grounds. Nearby there is plenty of shopping and restaurants on Route 1, as well as a large National Amusements movie theater and golf nearby.

The hotel is easy to get to from Rt. 128/I-95 and there's a commuter rail station (Dedham Corporate stop on the Franklin line) that's a five minute walk from the hotel. The hotel is also a short ride from the Rt. 128 Amtrak station.

http://maps.google.com/maps?oi=map&q=25%20Allied%20Drive%2C%20Dedham%2C%20MA%2002026

To book a hotel room, you can call 1-800-HILTONS (445-8667) and ask for the Arisia block at the Dedham, MA Hilton or start from http://www.hilton.com/en/hi/groups/personalized/ddhdhhf_ari/index.jhtml . Rooms booked at the Arisia rate may be canceled up until 4 PM on the day of arrival. Our room block has expired, but it is still possible to use the hotel's web site to reserve a room at the discounted rate.

To register for the Relaxacon itself via PayPal, you can go to http://2008.arisia.org/RelaxaconReg (please be sure to fill in the “Name of Membership” field during checkout, especially if buying more than one membership) or see me, Ben Levy, or Conor Walsh (who has volunteered to be Registrar for this) at a Corporate / ConCom meeting or mail a check to:

Arisia Relaxacon,
Building 600, PMB 322,
1 Kendall Square,
Cambridge, MA 02139.