Mentor of ARISIA

Date, Time and Place: This General Meeting of the Membership was called to order at 2:33 PM on Sunday, 18 March 2001 at the home of Lisa Hertel, concurrent with the NESFA "Other" Meeting.

In Attendance: Traciy Fogarty, Brendan Hertel, Lisa Hertel, Sheeri Kritzer, Craig McDonough, Michelle McGuire, Tom Murphy, Nicholas Shectman, and Cris Shuldiner.

In the absence of the President, the Vice President chairs the meeting.

• Proxies

Elka Tovah Menkes to Cris Shuldiner, Rachel Silverman to Cris Shuldiner, Walter Kahn to Traciy Fogarty, Carsten Turner to Traciy Fogarty, Colette Fozard to Nicholas Shectman, Skip Morris to Nicholas Shectman, and Brendan Quinn to Sheeri Kritzer.

• Minutes of the Previous Meeting

No corrections were made to the minutes of previous meetings.

• President's Report (Brendan Quinn)

It has been brought to my attention, that technically the notice required to vote on the corporate budget at the February meeting was not met. I looked into this, and discovered that while this is, strictly speaking, true, the budget was published in November's Mentor, with notice that the budget would be voted on at "the next corporate meeting". The December meeting was canceled, and all business at the January meeting (save the grant proposal) was tabled to the February meeting. In the past, from what I've been able to determine, this has been deemed sufficient notice, but it doesn't satisfy the letter of the bylaws. It is my opinion, since we have a tradition in Arisia that tradition is binding, that this should have satisfied the notice requirement. However, since fiscal matters are involved, and a protest has been lodged, I would like to formally ratify the approval of the budget. Therefore it is:

RESOLVED: that the approval of the Arisia corporate budget by the membership at the February, 2001 meeting of the Arisia Corporation is hereby ratified.

It has also been brought to my attention that by some readings of the bylaws, verbal notice may not be sufficient for a corporate meeting, and so perhaps the February meeting was not legal. The bylaws being unclear on this subject, there is also a tradition within Arisia that verbal notice is sufficient. No member has ever argued, for example, that phone trees provide insufficient notice. It is my ruling that the February, 2001 meeting of the Arisia corporation was a valid meeting, and that the requirement for notification was met. It is also my opinion that the bylaws need to be clarified, so that in the future there will be no question as to whether a meeting is valid.

Finally, the executive board wishes to announce that it is seeking candidates for Convention Chairperson for Arisia '03. Interested persons should contact the EBoard.

• EBoard Report (Brendan Quinn)

No Report.

• Vice President's Report (Nicholas Shectman)

No Report.

• Grant Committee (Nicholas Shectman)

The Grant Committee has been in contact with a representative of MIT’s Media In Transition series, discussing an ARISIA grant to kickstart the series. The Grant Committee is exploring this concept.

• Treasurer's Report (Skip Morris)

My car’s starter broke.

• Budget Committee Report (Skip Morris)

No Report.

• Clerk's Report (Tom Murphy)

The Clerk ran through his usual spiel about signing in; that reports and motions should be submitted in writing or suffer the possibility of transcription errors; that major items of new business be presented to the EBoard for consideration before presentation to the Membership; and that dues for joining the Corporation were $12 at this meeting and $10 thereafter.

The Clerk notes that in the rush of the last few months, what with a Convention and Moving and all, he has allowed himself to slack off a little with the quality of MENTOR and the Corporate Web Site. Now that life is a bit calmer, the Membership can look forward to a return to the previous degree of service.

• Convention Chair '01 (Elka Tovah Menkes)

Elka reports that she has been getting positive feedback; the staff did a good job.

• Convention Treasurer '01 (Woody Bernardi)

No Report.

• Convention Chair '02 (Noel Rosenberg)

No Report.

• Gaming Convention Exploratory Committee
(Buzz Harris)

No Report.

• Long Range Planning Committee
(Brendan Quinn, Chair)

No Report.

• Hotel Search Committee (Cris Shuldiner, chair)

There was a report, something about looking for hotels, and considering an alternative to a January date. My transcription wasn’t very good, and no written report was submitted.

• Corporate Sales (Nicholas Shectman)

No Report.

• Corporate Inventory Control (Carsten Turner)

No Report.

• Corporate Systems Administrator (Cris Shuldiner)

No Report.

• Survey Committee (Ben Levy)

No Report.

• Old Business

Believe it or not, there was no old business.

• New Business

Regarding the following motion:

MOVED that ALL keys handed out for Arisia storage be numbered on at least one side of the key with the following number scheme: Set Number.Key Number. For example: 1.1 would be set 1, key 1; 8.4 would be set 8, key 4

Regarding the following motion:

MOVED that the EBoard be required to maintain an actual sign out sheet for key sets so that we know who has keys and how many sets are out.

Regarding the following motion:

MOVED that the EBoard be required to take a $10 deposit per key set when handing out key sets to cover cost of replacing the key set if it is lost or never returned.

Regarding the following motion:

MOVED that, the motion regarding the audit fund from the February meeting be known hereafter as the Audit Plan, AND, that the Audit Plan be amended, replacing, 'audit within 3 months' with 'have an audit by a qualified party firmly scheduled or begun within 3 months.'

Two motions to amend the ByLaws of ARISIA, Incorporated were submitted. They are printed in their entirety at the end of MENTOR.

The following motion was submitted from the floor:

Whereas Arisia has a history of attempting to have fan artists do the artwork for the Convention Staff Shirt, and Whereas the Staff Shirt is for the gratification of the staff, MOVED that Corporate Convention Policy should be modified by the addition of item IX to read, "The artwork for convention staff shirts must be taken from artwork submitted by members of that convention’s staff or by amateur artists. If there are no submissions that fit either of the previous categories, then the Convention Committee may use artwork submitted by a professional artist. The Arisia Lens shall always be considered acceptable artwork for staff shirts.

MOVED to set the cost of babysitting memberships to equal adult membership costs.

MOVED to open all committees to any interested Corporate Member provided the size of the committee is not unweildly.

• Announcements

Lisa invited everyone to hang out and enjoy the hospitality of the NESFA "Other" meeting. The Membership thanked Lisa for her generous hospitality.

Meeting ADJOURNS at 4:15 PM.

Subscription to Mentor of ARISIA is included with Corporate Membership to ARISIA, Incorporated. Membership runs from September 1st to August 31st and costs $24.00. Dues are pro-rated on a monthly basis for members joining during the year.

Tuesday, 17 Apr 2001, 7:30 PM
Meeting of the General Membership of ARISIA Incorporated.
The Oubliette, Somerville, MA – directions follow.

Sunday, 20 May 2001, 2:00 PM
Meeting of the General Membership of ARISIA Incorporated.
MIT Building 66 at MIT in Cambridge, MA

Friday through Sunday, 25-28 May 2001
Balticon 35
Baltimore Omni Inner Harbor Hotel, Baltimore MD

Wednesday 13 June 01, time TBA
Meeting of the General Membership of ARISIA, Incorporated.
Place TBA

Friday through Sunday, 13-15 July 2001
ReaderCon 13
Burlington MA

Thursday through Monday, 30 Aug - 3 Sept 2001
2001 WorldCon at The Millenium Philcon
Philadelphia PA

Friday through Sunday, 28-30 Sept 2001
Capclave
Beltsville MD

Friday through Sunday, 5-7 Oct 2001
Albacon 01
Schenectady NY

Thursday through Sunday, 1-4 Nov 2001
World Fantasy Convention
Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Whereas there is a subsection of the bylaws that is not a complete paragraph, and

Whereas this results in the subsection making no sense,

I move the following:

To amend by replacement Article VI, Section 6.2, Subsection (c), which currently reads:

to allow the Eboard to suspend the convention chair. Suspension shall limit all authority of the convention chair to act without removing the convention chair from their role.

With the following:

If there is a motion pending before the corporation to remove the convention chairperson from office, then the eboard may choose to suspend the convention chairperson until such motion has been resolved. Suspension shall limit all authority of the convention chairperson to act without removing the convention chairperson from office. While such a suspension is in effect, the ex-officio assistant convention chairperson will be responsible for making any decisions that must be made. If no one has been appointed tot hat position, then decisions will be made by the eboard.

Signed, Cris Shuldiner, Paul Selkirk, Traciy Fogarty, Craig McDonough, Sheeri Kritzer, (illegible)

The original motion is on file with the Clerk’s Records.

Whereas there has been confusion over an ambiguity in the bylaws regarding the convention treasurer, and

Whereas there is a tradition of the convention treasurer being a member of the convention chairmen’s staff,

I move

To amend by addition Article III, Section 3.2, Subsection (c), which currently reads:

The treasurer shall keep the funds in depositories designated by the Executive Board, maintain the financial records of the Corporation, exercise oversight over the convention treasurer’s activities, and pay the debts properly authorized in accordance with these bylaws.

With the following:

Oversight of the convention treasurer shall only extend to insuring that applicable state, and local laws, these bylaws, and corporate financial policy are adhered to and shall in no other ways over ride the authority of the convention chairperson.

And to amend by addition Article VI, Section 6.6, subsection (a), which currently reads:

(a) Each convention shall have a treasurer appointed by the Executive Board with the advice of the chairperson for that convention.

With the following:

The convention treasurer shall be directly under the authority of the convention chairperson, except where specified otherwise in these bylaws.

Signed,

Cris Shuldiner, Paul Selkirk, (illegible), Craig McDonough, Sheeri Kritzer, Lisa Hertel

Directions to the April Meeting:

The April meeting of the General Membership of ARISIA, Incorporated will be held at "The Oubliette," the home of Tom Murphy, at Apartment B, 26 Lowden Avenue, Somerville MA 02144. Questions and comments may be directed to him at phone 617 718 0608, or marvmerv@rcn.com

From the West:

I-90 to I-95 North. Take Exit 29 to Route 2 East – maneuver to the left hand lane before entering Cambridge. At the traffic signal in Cambridge, with the Alewife parking garage / T stop in sight, turn left onto Route 16 East. Ignoring flashing green traffic lights, go straight though the first traffic light (intersection of Mass Ave), turn right onto Broadway at the next traffic light – the landmark is a Johnny Foodmaster on the far right hand corner. Follow Broadway east through Teele Square to the Powderhouse Rotary. Take the second turn off of the rotary to continue straight on Broadway. At the next traffic light, turn right onto Willow Avenue and park within the first two blocks. The first side street on the right as you turn on to Willow is Mallet Street. Walk up Mallet Street one block and turn right. Not the corner house, but the next house up towards Broadway is #26. Walk down the driveway, through the wooden "gate", and to the back door. It’ll be open, feel free to walk in.

From the North:

Take I-93 South to exit 30, towards RT-28/RT-38/MYSTIC AVE, towards Somerville. Take the RT-38 S ramp towards RTE 28/Somerville. Turn Left onto Mystic Avenue. Turn slight right onto McGrath Highway / Route 28. Turn right onto Broadway at the traffic light – landmark is a Dunkin’ Donuts on the far right corner. Drive though Winter Hill, past the intersection of Medford Street and Broadway. Just past Ball Square, look for Willow Avenue on the left at a traffic lamp. There is a bakery on the far left hand corner. Turn left onto Willow Avenue and park within the first two blocks. The first side street on the right as you turn on to Willow is Mallet Street. Walk up Mallet Street one block and turn right. Not the corner house, but the next house up towards Broadway is #26. Walk down the driveway, through the wooden "gate", and to the back door. It’ll be open, feel free to walk in.

From the South:

Take I-93 to Exit 29, the Route 28 exit, towards RT-38/SOMEREVILLE/EVERETT. Keep left at the fork in the ramp. Merge onto Mystic Avenue / Route 38. Turn sharp left onto McGrath Highway / Route 28. Turn right onto Broadway at the traffic light – landmark is a Dunkin’ Donuts on the far right corner. Drive though Winter Hill, past the intersection of Medford Street and Broadway. Just past Ball Square, look for Willow Avenue on the left at a traffic lamp. There is a bakery on the far left hand corner. Turn left onto Willow Avenue and park within the first two blocks. The first side street on the right as you turn on to Willow is Mallet Street. Walk up Mallet Street one block and turn right. Not the corner house, but the next house up towards Broadway is #26. Walk down the driveway, through the wooden "gate", and to the back door. It’ll be open, feel free to walk in.

Mass Transit:

Take your favorite way to Davis Square on the Red Line. As you exit the turnstiles, turn left and go up the escalators / staircases. As you reach the top, turn left and proceed to exit the station. Turn left, and walk down the sidewalk of the bus-only way until it turns into a parking lot. Continue through the parking lot until it turns into the Minuteman Bikeway. Follow the Minuteman Bikeway to Willow Avenue – it’s the first real road that interrupts the bikeway. Turn left onto Willow Avenue. Walk up Willow Avenue towards Broadway for 5 blocks. Turn left and walk one block up Mallet Street and turn right. Not the corner house, but the next house up towards Broadway is #26. Walk down the driveway, through the wooden "gate," and to the back door. It’ll be open, feel free to walk in.

OR

The 80 and 89 bus run up Broadway from Lechmere Station and Sullivan Square Station, respectively. You want the Bay Street Stop. Walk east (towards Lechmere or Sullivan Square) one block and turn right onto Lowden. Walk almost all the way to Mallet Street; second house from the corner on the left hand side of the street is #26. Walk down the driveway, through the wooden "gate," and to the back door. It’ll be open, feel free to walk in.

FINALLY:

If you know how to get to the Generic Household, go there. Orient yourself with your back to Generic House. Turn right and proceed up Willow Avenue 4 blocks. Turn left and walk one block up Mallet Street and turn right. Not the corner house, but the next house up towards Broadway is #26. Walk down the driveway, through the wooden "gate," and to the back door. It’ll be open, feel free to walk in.

This Page Intentionally Left Blank