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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-24-2014 (2)1t ,ka Auburn International Farmers Market Advisory Board Meeting Minutes Friday, January 24, 2014 Auburn City Hall Annex Room #1 - 3:00 pm Mission Statement: The mission of the AIFM is to provide a forum for the purchase of a variety of healthy and locally grown products to area residents, a convenient marketplace for local farmers and artisans, and a vibrant gathering place for the community to enjoy downtown Auburn. Call to Order The meeting was called to order by Trudy Ginther at 3:06 pm. Advisory Board Members present: Trudy Ginther, Maggie Greenslit, Linda Morris, Christian McLendon, Tren Walker, Ronnie Roberts. City Staff /Council present: Market Manager Joanne Macnab, City Council member Bill Peloza and Parks Secretary Julie Mehl. Minutes May 2013 and October 2013 minutes both approved unanimously. III. Market Manager Report— Joanne Macnab Trudy and I will be attending the 2014 Washington State Farmers Market Association Annual Conference. The conference will, once again, be at Heathman Lodge in Vancouver, WA and is scheduled for January 31 — February 2. The title of this years conference is: Strengthening Farmers Markets: Where Do We Go From Here? This three day conference is the only state wide opportunity for Market organizers, farmers, and market partners to come together for continuing education, collaboration, networking, and celebration of the achievements of Washington's outstanding farmers markets. I have been asked to be a session leader and teach a measurement & data collection class as a part of a "Farmers Market Boot Camp" being offered for the first time. The WSFMA is paying us $100.00 for this service. There was a market managers meeting Monday, December 2nd. Topics discussed were: 1. Several managers mentioned they were forced to close their markets early due to inclement weather. Because of this, there was discussion about developing policies for emergency closures. 2. There were questions regarding the sale of marijuana at markets. There need to be refinements to the initiative that was passed that will allow markets to sell marijuana. Right now, those refinements would alter the basic characteristics of the initiative; therefore, the Washington State Department of Agriculture is predicting it will be at least 5 years before marijuana will be legal for sale at farmers markets. 3. The Health Dept. will be doing a review in 2014 on how farmers markets are being permitted and the fee structure. They did report that for 2014, all fees will remain unchanged. It was just last year that they implemented the Tier structure that raised our event permit from $100.00 to $502.00. Puget Sound Fresh is going mobile in 2014 with a mobile app. They will have a soft launch in early February and the app will go live in April, just as the Farm Guides hit the streets. This app will connect consumers with farmers, farmers markets, products, recipes and events. In November, we applied for a grant opportunity through the City of Auburn Arts Commission. They allocate funding support received from 4Culture (Cultural Development Authority of King County) to community arts organizations and special projects through its Arts Sustained Support Program. The primary purpose of this program is to provide support to arts - related projects and programs within the City of Auburn, to encourage the development and stability of local arts programs, as well as offer opportunities for local artists. The grant amount requested is typically $500 - $2000. I applied for the maximum $2000 and on January 13, 2014, I received notification that we have been awarded the entire $2000. For the 2014 grant cycle, the City had $12,000 to award to community art groups. In December, we applied for another grant opportunity with KCD. This is a $15,000 grant for marketing and promotion of the 2014 season. $12,500 for marketing and $2,500 for education and demonstrations. Our request will go up for review at the February 10th Board of Supervisor's meeting. I have also asked KCD to be a participant at the market again this season. Our Rules and Regulations, Vendor Application and Sponsorship Package have been updated for the 2014 season and were posted to our website on January 22nd. I mailed a 2014 welcome letter, application and set of rules and regulations to 41 of our 2013 vendors this week. I made a couple of revisions to our rules and regulations. 1. This season, we will have an additional three sets of canopy weights. These weights will be offered, as available, to our vendors for $15.00 per set, per market day. This is 2 offered as a solution to those vendors that are not in compliance with our rules and regulations. I added a bullet to Section III. Fees, Sales Reporting and Payment. This bullet states that, based on availability, canopy weights may be rented from the market. I mentioned this again in Section V. Set -Up and Take -Down, in the Canopies and Umbrellas section. 2. In 2013, The City of Renton received a market visit from the Washington State DOA in response to a complaint about a vendor that was selling their produce by the pound. Apparently the same produce was weighed three times, with three different totals. As a result, I'm attempting to be proactive and in accordance with the requirements of the Washington State Department of Agriculture, I have revised Section VI. Booth Merchandising, Requirements and Certifications; Section E. Weights, Measures and Labeling. I also added a sentence to Section IV. License, Permits, Taxes and Insurance Requirements; Section A. Unified Business Identifier (UBI) Number. This addition reads; Vendors that sell their products by the pound are requested to provide a copy of their business license with their application. Weighing devices are registered annually and this registration appears on the vendors master business license. We have a new bakery joining our vendor family this year. Mama's Bakery in Tacoma. All their baked goods are made from scratch with no preservatives. They offer 35 different flavors of jumbo muffins, cupcakes, danish, pies, cinnamon rolls, cookies, turnovers and specialty breads like cinnamon raisin, bacon cheddar, pumpernickel and 11- grain. They are a young bakery, they opened in 2011 and currently attend the Broadway (Tacoma), Gig Harbor and Steilacoom Farmers Markets. In 2013, they took 6th place in the Best Bakery of Western Washington out of over 150 entries. Our 2014 theme days have been designated and outside sources are beginning to sign on for the different events. IV. Council report — Bill Peloza King Conservation District is having their first meeting of the year on February 10, Bill will attend. The $15,000 grant we submitted will be voted on. Bill is almost certain we will get the grant approved. He has a good relationship with KCD, has given the board a tour of Mary Olson Farm. Bill had a meeting with Finance Director Shelley Coleman regarding a purchasing card for Joanne. Bill asks Joanne to please call Shelley regarding some alternative options. Bill also spoke with Innovation & Technology Director Ron Tiedeman regarding voicemail for Joanne's desk phone. Bill will follow up with Ron. Bill talked to staff at the City of Algona and Pacific and communicated we are going to hit them up for payment as they are on the AIFM logo and all advertising. Hopefully we won't have to take anything from the Parks fund; it will all be collected as revenue to pay Joanne and other operating expenses. That's what we've been working for five years to do. V. Correspondence /Public Input VI. Old Business Ronnie Roberts attended a Chamber meeting and the developer for the complex being built on Main Street was in attendance and expressed his excitement for the AIFM. Ronnie and Christian still would like to move the market location to Division St so it's more visible. Ronnie and Christian would also like to change the market day from Sunday to a different day, perhaps Saturday when the city is open. The market could really benefit from the 75 local employees and 400 hospital employees. Trudy asks what the best thing is for the market; would there be water, electricity, storage? Ronnie responds yes. Bill does not think there is a water source. Ronnie feels we are running out of space at Sound Transit. Joanne adds we almost ran out of space a few times last season. Christian feels it would be a better layout on Division, straight down two blocks rather than the current layout. Christian adds the Maple Valley market is huge with 60 or 70 vendors. Bill says we could also use City Hall Plaza. Trudy attended the International event and felt it was well connected to downtown. If we move the market we wouldn't have to deal with Sound Transit, just ourselves, the City, including public restrooms. Trudy feels it's more important to change the market day. Christian attended a Friday market in Tacoma and it was doing a booming business. Christian would like to add craft beer and wine. VII. New Business 2014 Goals — Joanne Macnab, Bill Peloza and Trudy Ginther had a meeting and feel that many of these meetings seem un- productive. Bill brought a sample Goal Matrix form to track ideas and status of goals. Many other boards and /or commissions use this form with good results. Joanne modified the form to accommodate the market goals. The secretary maintains and sends with the minutes. VIII. Board Recommendations /Input Mark Wayne, Linda Morris and Tren Walker have terms which expired 12/31/14. Mark Wayne has resigned; Tren and Linda will serve another term. We still need one member to represent Algona. Bill Peloza is working with Mayor Dave Hill on a new member. New terms will go through the next City Council meeting. Maggie asks if any decisions have been made about extending the market season, perhaps adding three more Sundays for fall produce. Joanne says we would have to communicate with Sound Transit. Christian feels we may lose some fruit vendors, there may not be enough. Tren says it may be an opportunity to gain new vendors. Bill would like to add this question at the year end vendor survey and asks Joanne to get input at the upcoming market conference. Linda Morris went to the Puyallup Farmers Market in October and 20% of their vendors were still there. It was a nice day and quite crowded. Bill feels it would not be a problem for Sound Transit to extend our market into fall. 4 2014 election — Ronnie Roberts motions for Trudy Ginther to chair for the 2014 year. Trudy agrees but this will be her final year to chair. Margaret Greenslit was also nominated to retain her position as vice chair. Board agrees unanimously. Christian asks the board if we should have an `app' such as "Puget Sound Fresh ". He can put it together and keep it simple; the cost would be $120 per month through Conduit Mobile. Tren adds that people could view vendors on a daily basis. Joanne asks if it should be done through the City's Innovation & Technology Department. Bill Peloza spoke with Julie Krueger and there are companies who could help with set up and take down of the market. Tren adds we could offer a sponsorship opportunity including set up and take down (Kiwanis, Soroptimist, Lions etc.) along with a booth. They would be getting something out of volunteering. Trudy feels the volunteer coordinator should be a volunteer. International Day — Maggie spoke to Duanna Richards, the Neighborhood Services Manager and she said that Auburn Mountainview High School has a huge diversity club as does Green River Community College. She will be getting contact information from both schools. Maggie also would like to get a world map and place pins where the students are from. IX. Adjournment There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 4:30 pm. The next meeting will be held February 28, 3:00 pm. Approved this Day of , 2014 Trudy Ginther, Chair