October 2021

The October 5, 2021 meeting was called to order at 8:15 pm, via Zoom, by President Elizabeth Lachowicz.

Present: Trustees: Todd Dennison, Joe Guzzo, Allan Kugel; Officers: Elizabeth Lachowicz*, Paul Fisher*, Peggy Karr, Jeff Canter*; Committees: Mark Schaffer, Nancy Beyer, Gary Pratt, Mike Agranoff, George Otto, John Mahon, Lindsey Meyer, Leigh Walker, Evelyn Maurer, Sandie Reilly; Absent:

Pamela Zave, Diane Polledri, Jean Scully

*also Trustees

MOTIONS MADE

• • Motion made to accept September Minutes. Motion passed unanimously.

  • Motion made for the board to accept the actions of the President and Treasurer to not renew Workman's Compensation. Motion passed 16 - 1.

  • Motion made to appoint Bob McNally to serve out the remainder of Lois DeRitter's term after Lois' resignation. Motion passed unanimously.

  • Motion made for the board to approve continuing virtual meetings. Motion passed unanimously.

  • Motion made to amend the bylaws to extend the number of consecutive terms that the Treasurer can serve from two to four. Motion will be voted on during the November meeting.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS

Treasurer's Report: (written report) Treasurer Peggy Karr described the difficulties she had with trying to obtain a credit card for the FP. Additionally, President Elizabeth Lachowicz reported that she and Peggy determined that Workman's Compensation policy was unnecessary and decided not to renew it. Mike Agranoff researched the issue and determined that since FP has no employees it does not require Workman's Compensation.

OLD BUSINESS

Open Trustee Position Until 12/31/21: Elizabeth proposed that Bob McNally serve the remainder of Lois DeRitter's term (Elizabeth previously discussed this with Bob). See Motions Made.

Nominations Committee Formation: Chair Gary Pratt announced that the nominations committee has been formed and has met twice. The committee consists of Gary, Todd Dennison, Elizabeth, Mark Schaffer, Mike Agranoff, Peggy Karr and Evelyn Maurer

FP Stationary Ideas: Peggy discussed the various logos that she proposed. The Board decided to let Peg take the lead with other board members providing input.

NEW BUSINESS

Annual Meeting on Zoom or in Person (Chimney Rock): In recognition of both the Executive decree, and the subsequent board decision, the Annual meeting will be held virtually. Todd Dennison said that if an anonymous vote is required (trustee positions are voted by the membership), he could support it.

Motion to Amend Bylaws to extend Treasurer Term Limit: Nominations committee Chair Gary Pratt moved to amend the bylaws Article VI Paragraph 1 to extend the number of possible terms the Treasurer can serve from two to four. The motion will be voted on at the November meeting.

Motion to Continue Zoom BoD Meetings until Board votes otherwise: Gary moved for board approval the continuation of virtual meetings (which heretofore was an executive decree). Gary mentioned that some members of the board would not serve if the meetings went back to in-person meetings, and virtual meetings would allow for a wider pool of candidates as candidate location would not be an issue. See Motions Made.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Shuttered Venues Operators' Grant (SVOG) Ad Hoc Committee: Elizabeth reported that Chair Bob McNally requested to meet with Jeff Canter to archive all the work the SVOG ad hoc committee has done in Back Office.

Membership: (written report) Chair Gary Pratt reported that, even though FP membership is down dramatically due to the Pandemic, he has seen an increase in new memberships and renewals as a result of the Troubadour reopening, the picnic, music in the park and Streaming Tuesdays, and he expects this trend to continue.

Streaming: Chair Gary Pratt reported that, in conjunction with John Mahon and Mike Agranoff, he has successfully streamed three Troubadour shows and an Open Mic. The online ticketing system is working well, with more than $229 in sales. Special Events chair Mark Schaffer announced that on Thursday, October 14, a new online series "Inside the Song" emceed by Tina Ross will premiere. The series will be a hybrid concert and interview, and will air on the second Thursday of every month.

Horses Sing None Of It: Chair Sandie Reilly is planning on reopening, and asked for volunteers for staff positions. Volunteers are required to be vaccinated.

Special Events: (written report)

Troubadour Staffing:

Publicity/Web: (written report)

Sound Reinforcement: (written report) Chair John Mahon reported that due to the changes in the actual sound production, and new equipment, a sound staff will need to be built up again, and new procedures need to be created.

Archives: (written report) Chair Lindsey Meyer reported that Speical Collections, the Rutgers department where FP keeps our archive was extensively damaged during the storm, and while the collections were not damaged, access to the collections will not resume for at least a year. Lindsey has some artifacts in her house, but due to space limitations, cannot store any additional items. However, she is still looking for old newsletters.

Open Stage: (written report)

Troubadour Booking: (written report) Supplementing his written report, Mike Agranoff reported that the opening act for Mad Agnes, Tom Gala, cancelled the day before the concert, and Mike decided not to try to book an opening act on such short notice, and to not have an opening act. Due to feedback from that decision from several members of the Board, Mike state that if possible, he would try to book an opening act in the event of such a short notice cancellation in the future. He also reported that over the last five concerts, the average streaming donation for the main act is $99, four times the average we used to get from Concert Window.

Community Service: (written report) Chair Evelyn Maurer reported two deaths in the last month; long time FP member Carl Zebooker, and Gary's father Ralph Pratt.

Swingin’ Tern: Chair Leigh Walker reported that Contra dances are suspended indefinitely.

Newsletter: (written report)

Meeting was adjourned at 9:50 p.m. Next month’s meeting is Tuesday, November 2, at 8:15 p.m. in cyberspace via Zoom.