MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING
The West Galveston Island Property Owners Association Annual Members meeting President Jerry Mohn, called the meeting late to order at 9:10 a.m. since the breakfast burritos were late in coming. A quorum of Directors was present with the attendance of: Ken Diestler – Spanish Grant Bay, Peggy Zahler – Spanish Grant Beachside, Al Galli – Jamaica Beach, Matt Wigle – Acapulco Village, Lee Slataper – Pirates Beach/Cove, Clay Lewis – Sportsman Road, Bob Dozier – Dunes of the West, and Susan Gonzales representing Isla del Sol and Pointe San Luis and as the Acting Secretary.
Introductions of Officials and Corporate Sponsors were held. Judge Jim Schweitzer was introduced as well as District 6 City Council Member Dianna Puccetti, and Jeri Kinnear, former Chair of the Parks Board, and Lt. Henry Porretto and Chad Meyers from the Galveston Police Department.
Corporate sponsors Peggy Zahler from JCS Federal Credit Union and Marie Robb from Coastal Solutions were introduced.
Judge Jim Schweitzer provided a community service list of agencies. Information on Galveston County – pickup trash around the courthouse and buildings
The prior minutes were emailed and reviewed. Motion by Peggy Zahler and seconded by Matt Wigle, the Board approved the February minutes as presented.
Jerry Mohn gave the financial report and the Board approved the report as presented with approval by Matt Wigle and a second by Peggy Zahler...
A moment of silence was held for former WGIPOA Board members, John Schiller from Acapulco Village, who passed away. Also, a silence was held for the tsunami disaster victims in Japan.
Nominations of expiring Directors, Jerry Mohn, Pirates Beach/Cove, Acapulco Village, Pointe San Luis, and Spanish Grant Beach were voted by acclamation for another three year term expiring February 28, 2014. In addition, new directors from the Pointe West Condo Association and Beach Side Village were also voted to the Board of Directors by proxy and members at the meeting. Lee Petros from Pointe West Condo Association and Vince LePar from Beachside Village joined the WGIPOA Board of Directors, which now will total 15 members. A quorum of 40% or 6 members is required for each meeting.
Community Policing: Lt. Henry Porretto of the Galveston Police Department indicated the most important thing is we cannot do it without the property owner’s help. Golf cart registration begins in April. Remind residents to re-register their golf cart. Beginning June 1 an additional officer will be assigned to the west end. City of Galveston call numbers for various departments were handed out and will be posted on the COG website.
FeatherFest: Alice Ann O’Donnell indicated "FeatherFest" has been an event for at least 10 years. It will be held on April 7 through Sunday. This is for birders and non-birders. Lots of birders bizarre items – books, cameras, photography. There is a Raptor show on Friday-Sunday. He will show the birds flying free in that area. Featherfest Galveston site will have information on the event. If you miss Featherfest, please go to Laffites Cove Nature Society. Last year it was sited as one of the best for birds. Photo Fest will also be featured.
District 6 Happenings: City Council member Dianna Puccetti – in May you will vote for paid parking on the seawall. The Severance case that has affected the Open Beaches Act is set for a review on a re-hearing on April 19. For the Stewart Road construction, two 5’ bike lanes will be added improvements to begin in 6-9 months.
Comprehensive Plan: Update on the Comprehensive Plan – maps the direction for the community. Need a plan to make Galveston a positive place to live. The plan has been improved by lessons learned from Ike.
Lori Schwartz from City of Galveston Planning – Assistant Director of Planning Department, gave the following:
Overview of Progress Galveston – It is a three part process, comprehensive, specialized plans and land development regulations
Part I: comprehensive plan update - The City is finalizing an update to the Comprehensive Plan that will help guide the City’s decisions for years to come. As a long-term guide for the community, the Comprehensive Plan will help City leaders make decisions about the location, scale, and quality of new development; the improvement of neighborhoods and commercial corridors; the revitalization of downtown and surrounding historic areas; and the future of the City’s parks, public spaces, beaches, and natural areas.
Part II: specialized plans – As part of the Progress Galveston initiative, a series of Specialized Plans will be completed. These plans are intended to support the policies and guidance of the Comprehensive Plan and ensure City actions are consistent with federal and state regulations. The following plans will be completed:
Part III: Land Development Regulations: The Progress Galveston initiative will also result in an overhaul of the City’s land development regulations, including zoning standards, subdivision regulations, and additional regulations affecting development in historic districts, wetlands, coastal areas, tree preservation, signage, etc. The project will also include a reworking of the City’s development approval processes and review procedures.
The process will result in new tools, to protect the city’s unique assets, support reinvestment & revitalization, address barrier island issues, and improve livability and resilience.
The Planning Process
The 2011 Comprehensive Plan represents an update to the 2001 Comprehensive Plan and is a culmination of work first initiated by City Council in 2007. To guide the process of plan development, City Council appointed a Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee to review the 2001 Plan and make any necessary updates and modifications. The Steering Committee consisted of over 30 members to ensure that the Plan is crafted to reflect the vision, values, aspirations, and priorities of the citizens of Galveston. The Steering Committee created several subcommittees to focus on key strategic directions pertaining to the following plan elements:
Visioning for the Plan occurred in early 2008. The Steering Committee developed a vision statement that was presented to the public for feedback in a series of small-scaled public meetings held in February and March 2008. The Plan’s goals and objectives were drafted during summer 2008 and were about to be presented to public in fall 2008 when Hurricane Ike interrupted the process.
In the weeks after the storm, the community’s focus shifted to the Long-Term Community Recovery Plan process and the development of "a vision, goals, and projects that would move Galveston along the road to full recovery from the devastation of Hurricane Ike." (Long-Term Community Recovery Plan, 2009) Many members of the Steering Committee became part of the Galveston Community Recovery Committee (GCRC).
Following completion of the Long-Term Community Recovery Plan, the Comp Plan process was reinitiated in late 2009. Several members of the Steering Committee who were no longer on island resigned from the committee and many new members were added, including several who participated on the GCRC. In 2010, the Steering Committee subcommittees began the process of updating existing or drafting new plan elements.
Over the next several months, the completion of the Plan will require an extensive outreach effort. City staff and their consultant team will work with the Steering Committee to refine the plan elements; present the Comprehensive Plan Public Review Draft to City Council, Planning Commission, other city boards and commissions; and conduct workshops with community stakeholder groups and members of the general public.
Ultimately, a final draft of the Comprehensive Plan will be prepared and presented for review and approval. The final draft will incorporate Steering Committee recommendations and public feedback and will be presented to the Planning Commission and City Council for consideration and action.
Project Timeline
Part I: Comprehensive Plan: January 2011 to June 2011
Part II: Specialized Plans: March 2011 to June 2011
Parks & Recreation Plan, Historic Preservation Plan, Coastal Management
& Erosion Response Plan, Thoroughfare & Mobility Plan, Disaster
Recovery Plan and Community Sustainability Plan
Part III: Land Development Regulations: February 2011 to June 2012
Diagnostics: February
2011 to April 2011
− Module 1: April 2011 to August 2011
− Module 2: August 2011 to January 2012
− Module 3: January 2012 to June 2012
The Planning Team
The City's Planning and Community Development Department is leading the planning process, with assistance from other city departments and a team of professional planners led by HDR, Inc. The HDR team includes Kendig Keast Collaborative, Winter & Company, and the Law Offices of Kimberley Mickelson. Those who worked on the plan were Bonnie White, Christopher Benson, Jeri Kinnear and Jerry Mohn and Dianna Puccetti.
A five year master plan will be approved which will actualize the Comprehensive plan.
www.ProgressGalveston.com this will have all of the progress of this project. planningcounter@cityofgalveston.org
Texas Supreme Court Decision: Rolling easement and static easement. State cannot claim property due to a storm event but can if from natural erosion. Decision last week is that Supreme Court will review it April 19th but it could take two years.
The $40 million project was cancelled and $26 million were FEMA funds for the West End. The City of Galveston, County and Parks Board have requested from FEMA the money.
Windstorm Insurance: The impact will be great. Limit amt of windstorm to amt of flood INS which is $250,000. Ottie Zapp may be at the next meeting. There is more money spent on hail and tornado damage.
Newsletter for WGIPOA: Peggy Zahler stated that EGIPOA have needed a newsletter for 11 years. Sidney McClendon stated previously that we needed it to take to Austin. We now have a quarterly newsletter. The WestEnder welcome your articles. We will be distributing our newsletter to the County, State and to Washington. Committee members: Peggy Zahler, Lee Slataper, Marty Bilek, Susan Gonzales, Tom Boothe, William Boney and Jerry Mohn as Advisory.
Adjourned at 10:39 a.m.
A Directors meeting was held immediately after the Members meeting. The Slate of Officers will remain the same.
President – Jerry Mohn
Vice-President – Peggy Zahler
Treasurer – Jeff Southard
Secretary – Ken Diestler