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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Minutes - Human Relations Commission - Meeting Date: 10/9/2019Glendale A R I Z O N A AMENDED MINUTES HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION 5850 W. GLENDALE AVE. GLENDALE, ARIZONA 85301 OCTOBER 9, 2019 6:30 P.M. 1. CALL TO ORDER Meeting was called to order by Interim Chair Salvador Obregon, Jr. at approximately 6:36 p.m. 2. ROLL CALL Present: Salvador Obregon Jr., Commissioner Elizabeth Brooks, Commissioner Kelly Carbello, Commissioner Janet Dayer, Commissioner April Greer, Commissioner Barbara Lentz, Commissioner Eva Ndavu, Commissioner Sandra Truelove, Commissioner Absent: Kirstin Flores, Commissioner Also Present: Nancy Mangone, Assistant City Attorney; Staff Liaison Brittany Leslie, Contracts Program Manager 3. CITIZEN COMMENTS None. 4. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES a. Human Relations Commission Minutes of May 8, 2019. A motion was made by Commissioner Sandra Truelove, seconded by Commissioner April Greer AYE: Commissioner Salvador Obregon Jr. Commissioner Elizabeth Brooks Commissioner Kelly Carbello Commissioner Janet Dayer Commissioner April Greer Commissioner Barbara Lentz Commissioner Eva Ndavu Commissioner Sandra Truelove Passed 5. NEW BUSINESS 1. New Staff Liaison, Brittany Leslie, was introduced and welcomed by the Commissioners. 2. Comissioner Carbello made a Motion to nominate Dr. Truelove as the new Chair of the Commission and to forward her name to the City Council's Government Services Committee for appointment. Commissioner Lentz seconded. There was unanimous consent on this motion. 3. The video of the October 8, 2019 City Council Workshop was viewed by the Commissioners. A general discussion was regarding the CIOSI — HRC Survey. Many expressed frustration over the inaccurate characterization of the HRC's work and attendance record over the last year. They questioned whether planning a "food fair" or similar event to bring all different ethnicities together was their proper role or even possible, given the City's recent history of curtailing funding for Citywide festivals like the Chocolate Affair and Glendale Glitters. They also noted that they are working on a strategic plan, which is in draft form, and that they view input from the community as vital to focusing their mission and fostering participation in any unity activities. The Commission disagreed that discrimination is not occurring in Glendale. For communitywide "unity" events, Commissioner Hoerner suggested Glendale look into establishing a "Friendship Garden" similar to the one in Phoenix. The Commission also reviewed its past flip charts, which identified existing community events, festivals, etc. to see what portions of the community are underrepresented or what Citywide needs to be filled. These suggestions will be worked into the strategic plan. The action items that resulted from this discussion was to have Vice Chair Obregon forward the draft strategic plan to Staff Liaison Leslie so that it can be circulated for review and comment at the next meeting. The Commission also directed staff to draft options for addressing the quorum issue, although it was recognized that there was a quorum today now that summer vacations are over and some vacancies on the Board have been filled. 4. Commissioners Lentz, Carbello and Obregon gave an update on the Peace Summit and suggested Glendale see if it can host something similar in the future. 5. The discussion of the development of a strategic plan including policies and procedures, work groups and short and long-term goals was already discussed as part of the discussion on the CIOSI. 6. Commissioners Truelove and Carbello noted that former Chair Jamie Kelly had the latest draft of the Glendale Resources Book. Commissioner Carbello will contact Ms. Kelly to obtain the latest draft so that it can be discussed at the November meeting. 7. Former Staff Liaison Mangone reported on her meeting in Tempe last week regarding the planning of the Regional Unity Walk. She stated that she relayed HRC's concerns about last year's Walk — that is was too far for many Glendale residents (and residents from other west valley cities) to be able to attend and the food and facilities were inadequate. She advised the Commission that the response of those on the planning committee was that it was too late to change anything for this year, even though the Walk is not being held until January. As a result of this discussion, the Commission directed staff to contact other west valley cities and determine if we could host a West Valley Regional Unity Walk on the same day, at a suitable west valley location. Staff could also explore whether other west valley cities could join in the unity event hosted by Peoria. 6. STAFF REPORTS There were no additional items reported by staff. 7. COMMISSION COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS Commissioner Hoerner reported that he was having problems with his email account and did not receive notification of the last 3 Commission meetings. Staff made sure they had his correct email address and agreed to forward it to the Clerk's Office. The Commissioners also asked if the Clerk's Office could provide them with the names and contact information for each other. 8. NEXT MEETING The next regular meeting of the Human Relations Commission will be held on November 13, 2019 at 6:30 p.m., in Conference Room B3, 5850 W. Glendale Ave., Glendale, Arizona, 85301. 9. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at approximately 8:19 p.m. upon a unanimous affirmative vote on a motion made by Commissioner Carbello and seconded by Commissioner Hoerner. The Human Relations Commission meeting minutes of October 9, 2019 were submitted and approved t ' 14t y of November, 2019. Recording Secret i r