Minutes of General Meeting
January 13, 2009

Welcome

All in attendance were welcomed.

No items were added to the agenda.

Old Business

David reminded the group of the special meeting to be held on January 20, 2009 to elect new officers. He listed those already nominated: David Graff for President, Jacque Graff for Treasurer, and Manuel Maassen for Vocal

David nominated Mitchell Schilling as a Vocal. Vicki Schilling seconded the nomination and Mitch accepted. A Vocal is an assistant to the officers as well as a representative in the neighborhoods. Jenny Bernard nominated Yajaira Cazarez to continue her role as a Vocal. Jacque seconded and Yajaira accepted. Jacque withdrew from the Treasurer role (citing the potential appearance of abuse of power) and nominated Werner Rohde for the position. Bill Dickson seconded the nomination and Werner accepted. Bill nominated Jacque for Secretary, Mitch seconded, and Jacque accepted. Ana accepted the Vocal nomination that was made at the previous meeting. The candidates are:

President: David Graff

Treasurer: Werner Rohde

Secretary: Jacque Graff

Vocal:            Yajaira Cazarez
                      Ana Embury-Lewis
                      Manuel Maassen
                      Mitchell Schilling

Because there is no contention among the candidates, there is no need to have an election. Our bylaws require 15% of our members to vote for the election to be considered valid. At this meeting, 45% of the membership was present and the majority agreed to accept the nominations as the election and suspend the meeting scheduled for January 20, 2009.

Treasury Report

Jacque reported a balance of $29,557 (pesos). This balance includes a $200 donation received during the last month. A liability remains outstanding for the balance due on the garbage collection site.

Committee Reports

Garbage
Manuel reported that the committee would like to construct another garbage collection site. The first one at Calle Las Minitas and Universidad is well used by the community. Werner exhibited a wooden sign, “Casita de la Basura #1”, that will be mounted when the official dedication is conducted. There are more signs that acknowledge the contributors and explain the two compartments. After the signs are finished, the dedication will be scheduled.
Recycling
Ana requested that all Amigos members speak with everyone they know and tell them of the recycling centers in San Pancho and Sayulita. In the new garbage collection site, the north compartment is for recyclables. David suggested a plan be established for recyclable pickup. Vicki asked people to sign their names on the attendance sheet if they are interested in hauling recyclables to the centers.

In San Pancho, the recycling center is located close to the town entrance. After you enter the town, notice the large warehouse type buildings on the left. Look for a sign that says “San Pancho Limpio” and turn left. You will see another sign that says “Recicle” on the building that receives the recyclables.

In Sayulita, the center is situated along the road leading to Punta Mita (turn left at the 'Y', toward Punta Mita). The building is located immediately before the hill and it's south side is painted green. They prefer the recyclables be sorted.

Werner commented that there must be more sites in town for recyclable collection. Currently, the garbage collection site is full of trash because there are no explanatory signs. Rob Morton asked if Amigos is responsible for maintaining the cleanliness of the garbage collection site. Yes, and the maintenance is done by a worker from El Caracol and Ana. Ron Deschamps has asked the Delegado for a water connection at the site to help keep it clean.
Membership
Jacque reported 100 members in total , roughly 1/3 mexican, 1/3 canadian, and 1/3 from the United States. She and Ray Hummel registered three new members before the meeting began and they are available after the meeting as well.
Signs
Nothing to report.
Website
Rob Morton reported minor changes to the website. The committee is going to email notices of meetings. We are still looking for a translator for the spanish side of the website. Ralph Sima asked about the possibility of internet blogs for the committees. The Website committee will investigate.
Security

Ron Cothren presented a summary of the committee's work. It can be found on this website, under the Committee Reports menu. They have developed a mission statement, a plan of action, and a list of committee members email addresses and phone numbers.

Ron recommended a Neighborhood Watch program as well as more technical security systems. If people do not report crimes to the police, the police don't believe there are problems. The website will contain information about who to contact and what to do in case of a crime. We are strongly encouraged to report crimes that occur.

Ron solicited assistance from those familiar with mexican home insurance and home security systems. He would also like for Kelly Trainor de O., the US consular agent in Puerto Vallarta, to address our group. Lonney Ford asked for information concerning our rights – what can we do and what are we prohibited from doing when an intruder enters our home. The committee also plans to list information about lawyers in the area.

New Business

Carol Alford is the chairperson of this temporary committee. The first meeting was held last Saturday and the fund raiser is scheduled for Saturday, February 7th, at the plaza in front of the catholic church. The town Delegado will provide chairs and tables. The next meeting will be Saturday, January 17th, 3pm on the terrace at El Caracol. If you'd like to assist, please attend.
Eleven representatives of the newly elected town government arrived. Nestor Palomera is the delegate. Victor Carrillo is the president who represents the town. (He is also bilingual.) Salvador Gonzalez is the treasurer. Efrin Alvarez is a lawyer who takes care of the team. This group would like to work with the Amigos and believes that together, we are stronger. Nestor thanked Amigos for the work we are doing for the town and called the delegation 'Amigos de Los Amigos de Lo de Marcos'. Victor will provide a list of town events to post on the website.

Victor said the new president of Bahia de Banderas, a man named Paniagua, visited last week and promised many new projects for Lo de Marcos. They discussed the completion of road improvements to Emiliano Zapata, a boardwalk along the beach, an extension of the four lane highway at the Lo de Marcos intersection, and a new treatment plant for waste water.
The new treatment plant will prevent water pollution to the rivers and the ocean.

Victor and Efrin presented drawings of the town plaza. The first drawing was the original plaza, showing many raised flower beds and a kiosk with a 7 meter diameter in the center of the plaza. Now the raised flower beds in the interior have been demolished. The entrance arch has been rebuilt to be larger and more colorful (thanks to Tlaquepaque hotel and RV park). Many of the trees removed (with permission from the government's Environmental Committee) are being made into benches for the church. The paving bricks have been moved to the primary school grounds and will be used in five areas of Lo de Marcos: the kindergarten, the primary and secondary schools, the health clinic, and the senior center. The wood and roof tiles of the original kiosk will be used for a new terrace at the senior center. The new kiosk will have a 10 meter diameter and is designed to match the new arch. Twenty to thirty trees will be planted 'like a crown' around the plaza. They will be palm trees that do not bear coconuts.
The new plans show a large theater in the southeast corner, complete with dressing rooms, bathrooms, a stage with a 15 meter diameter, and ramps rather than stairs. The existing pine tree behind the theater will be decorated for Christmas. In the southwest corner, there will be a playground for children. The gardens along the perimeter of the plaza will remain. The interior will be open to permit more space for events. The floor of the plaza will be stamped, colored concrete. The plaza in Lo de Marcos is the biggest in the county. A letter has been sent to the Director of Transportation requesting ten trash containers. Work is expected to be complete by March 31, 2009.

Open Discussion

Nothing was discussed.

Meeting adjourned

Fifty-six people attended the meeting, including five officers of Amigos and eleven representatives from the town government.

jg: secretary

Minutes of General Meeting January 13, 2009