Edwards County Economic Development Corporation

Edwards County Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors Meeting Minutes January 26, 2009, 5:30 PM

The Board of Directors of the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation met on Monday, January 26, 2009, at 5:30 PM at 200 E. 6th Street. The following directors were present: Connie Oliphant, Jan Kuckleman, Dave Zimmerman, Raul Amaya, and Executive Director Linette Miller. Connie Oliphant called the meeting to order. The minutes of the December meeting were approved as read. The financial report was approved as presented. Linette Miller presented a staff activity report. In unfinished business, Linette indicated that Al Hatch has talked to Doug McLean about serving as a board member and he is interested. Connie made a motion to elect Doug McLean to the board of directors. Raul seconded the motion. Motion Carried. In new business, we need to replace our Secretary and Treasurer officers since Julie Ackerman and Al Hatch are no long on the board. Dave made the motion to elect Jan Kuckleman as Secretary and Raul Amaya as Treasurer. Jan seconded the motion. Motion carried. Next Meeting Monday, March 23, 2009., 5:30 PM. Meeting Adjourned.

Respectfully submitted by,

Linette Miller, Executive Director Edwards County Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors Meeting Minutes March 2, 2009, 5:30 PM

The Board of Directors of the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation met on Monday, March 2, 2009, at 5:30 PM at 200 E. 6th Street. The following directors were present: Connie Oliphant, Jan Kuckleman, Dave Zimmerman, Raul Amaya, Chad Matthews and Executive Director Linette Miller. Connie Oliphant called the meeting to order. The minutes of the January meeting were approved as read. The financial report was approved as presented. Linette Miller presented a staff activity report. In unfinished business, Linette indicated that Bob McKinney would like to drop off the board since we have added Doug McLean. Other suggestions for board members were Aaron Cross and Ron Gruber. Linette will check to make sure they are willing to serve and we will vote at the next meeting. In new business, Linette indicated that Debbie Call asked if it would be possible for us to purchase some sort of display with carrying case to make it easier for them to carry and set up for the Sampler Festival. The display could be used for other booths as well. Connie indicated that she thought we had a display perhaps stored in the other side of the building. Linette will check with Shirley Watson to see if there is an existing display. Linette explained that Carnival Heritage presented the bill for the materials that were used to finish the walls in the office wondering if we would be willing to share the cost with them. Connie indicated that she felt that we had provided the labor for the project so they should pay for the supplies. Jan Kuckleman made a motion that we give David Brokar $30 in Chamber Bucks for the labor on the project. Chad Matthews seconded the motion. Motion carried. Next Meeting Monday, April 27, 2009., 5:30 PM. Meeting Adjourned.

Linette Miller, Executive Director Edwards County Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors Meeting Minutes March 30, 2009, 5:30 PM

The Board of Directors of the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation met on Monday, March 30, 2009, at 5:30 PM at 200 E. 6th Street. The following directors were present: Connie Oliphant, Jan Kuckleman, Dave Zimmerman, Raul Amaya, Kathy Stegman, Doug McLean and Executive Director Linette Miller. President Kathy Stegman called the meeting to order. The minutes of the March 2 meeting were approved as read. The financial report was approved as presented. Linette Miller presented a staff activity report. Kathy Stegman moved and Jan Kuckleman seconded that we approve Aaron Cross and Ron Gruber to be on the board if they are willing to serve. The motion carried. In unfinished business, Linette indicated that she had talked to Shirley Watson about display board that we may have used in prior years. Connie Oliphant indicated she thought we had some and would call around to see if she could find them. Linette announced that we have received a grant for $10,458 from Compassion Kansas. The grant will pay for office equipment, website updating, our 501(c)3 application and a strategic plan for the county. However we are going to receive about $1600 more than we requested. Linette asked if any of the board members knew of any needs that we could put the money towards. Some suggestions were additional computers, brochures or more upgrades for the website. Linette shared with the board that the County Commisioners are not happy with the service we are getting from Great Plains Development on CDBG, Housing and the Revolving loan. They would like for Linette to become a certified grant administrator so that we can handle this in the county. Connie moved and Kathy seconded that we cover the expenses related to receiving this certification. The motion carried. Linette will check into it and find out when the next certification opportunity is to take place.. In a special vote done by email, Connie moved that we purchase display board for use at the Sampler Festival and other promotional events not to exceed $1000. Jan seconded and the vote was approved by Connie, Kathy, David, and Jan. Next Meeting Monday, April 27, 2009., 5:30 PM. Meeting Adjourned.

Linette Miller, Executive Director Edwards County Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors Meeting Minutes April 27, 2009, 5:30 PM

The Board of Directors of the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation met on Monday, March 30, 2009, at 5:30 PM at 200 E. 6th Street. The following directors were present: Connie Oliphant, Jan Kuckelman, Dave Zimmerman, Raul Amaya, Ron Gruber, Doug McLean and Executive Director Linette Miller. Vice President Connie Oliphant called the meeting to order. The minutes of the March 30 meeting were approved as read. The financial report was approved as presented. Linette Miller presented a staff activity report. In unfinished business, Linette has researched the grant administration certification further and found out that there is no training for the general CDBG certification until 2011. There was a housing certification training in March and there will be another one in Spring 2010. The other option is to test out of the program without taking the training. If we can obtain the training book from someone who has taken the test recently then maybe we can test out and not have to wait. Linette will see if there is anyone who has taken the training recently. The board discussed possible candidates for the Kinsley Housing committee. Some suggestions were Rhonda Burkhart, Dale Thorp, Brock Katz, Carol McLean, Connie Oliphant, Karen Wolfe, and Stacy Neilson. Next Meeting Monday, May 25, 2009., 5:30 PM. Meeting Adjourned.

Linette Miller, Executive Director Edwards County Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors Meeting Minutes June 1, 2009, 5:30 PM

The Board of Directors of the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation met on Monday, June 1, 2009, at 5:30 PM at 200 E. 6th Street. The following directors were present: Jan Kuckleman, Dave Zimmerman, Ron Gruber, Doug McLean and Executive Director Linette Miller. In the absence of the President and Vice President, Linette Miller called the meeting to order. The minutes of the April 27 meeting were approved as read. The financial report was approved as presented. Linette Miller presented a staff activity report. In unfinished business, Linette has contacted some of the names presented for new board members in the Belpre/Trousdale area but hasn’t had any luck yet and needs some additional information to be able to contact others. The board, having provided additional contact information about the suggested names indicated Linette should move forward with contacting the remainder. Linette indicated that there are now 4 members on the Housing committee; Josh Schmidt, Desira Schmidt, Carol McLean and herself. They have scheduled a meeting for July 3. Linette asked if it would be possible to move forward with purchasing the equipment requested from the Compassion Kansas Grant even though we have not received an allocation. Don made a motion to order the equipment and Dave seconded it. The motion carried. Linette indicated that USD #347 asked if we would put an ad in the school calendar. The consensus of the board was that the school calendar is not county-wide and that it doesn’t really represent what we are trying to promote so decided against advertising. The board discussed various options concerned with obtaining our 501(c)3. It was decided to continue with the process to change our status from 501(c)6 to 501(c)3. The board also discussed how many community meetings to hold in conjunction with our strategic planning process. The board suggested that a meeting be held in Lewis and one in Kinsley. The board discussed changing the date of the meeting from July 22 to July 29 since we met a week late this month. It was decided to hold the next meeting on July 29. Next Meeting Monday, July 29, 2009., 5:30 PM. Meeting Adjourned.

Linette Miller, Executive Director Edwards County Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors Meeting Minutes June 29, 2009

The Board of Directors of the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation met on Monday, June 29, 2009, at 5:30 PM at 200 E. 6th Street. The following directors were present: Aaron Cross, Doug McLean, Raul Amaya, Connie Oliphant, Jan Kuckleman, David Zimmerman, Kathy Stegman, and Executive Director Linette Miller President Kathy Stegman called the meeting to order. The minutes of the June 1 meeting were approved as read. The financial report was approved as presented. Linette Miller presented a staff activity report. The board reviewed training information on Understanding Legal Duties and Responsibilities of Non profit boards and a Summary of Board Roles and Responsibilities. In unfinished business, Linette has contacted the remainder of the names on the list of possible board members and no one was interested in serving. The board suggested trying Jim Carlson and Jerry Stapleton and reporting back at the next meeting. Linette reported that although the board had voted to move forward with purchasing the equipment that will be funded through the Compassion Kansas Grant, she has held off as we did not receiving any funding until the day before this meeting. She will move forward on this as soon as we are sure how much the website update will cost. Linette indicated she has discussed the creation of a 501(c)3 with Seth Bate at Wichita State and he has contacted their legal representation on staff to discuss this. He indicated that the fazing out of our current 501(c)6 into a 501(c)3 would take longer and be a much larger legal matter than simply creating a separate 501(c)3 foundation where funds could be run through for various community development projects. Linette indicated that the only problem she could see with this plan is that we may possibly have to maintain two separate boards of directors. Linette is waiting for information on this from Seth. The board decided to table the issue until they have an answer regarding boards of directors. Linette presented the board with a preliminary budget for 2010 which reflects the current level of funding from all our income sources. The projected budget leaves us with a deficit of about $20,000. However, we do anticipate having that much in reserves in our bank account at that time. Connie Oliphant indicated that she doesn’t think the county will increase its allocation. She also indicated that she thought it was the plan for Linette to become Certified in Grant administration so that we could take over the Revolving Loan fund as well as charge administration fees on grants to generate additional revenue. Connie stressed that Linette should spend a day a week studying for the test so that we can start generating additional income as soon as possible. The board also decided to ask the Kinsley City Commission to increase their allocation to the previous level of $1000 as well as request funds from the other cities in the county. Linette will take care of this. Linette shared with the board that the allocation for the CDRR grant has been cut in half which will barely cover the cost of Connie working at her current level. Most other things have been cut from the CDRR budget. Linette indicated she is looking for other funding sources that can pick up the extras in the program. She also indicated that there is a little over $3000 left in a grant that she wrote last year that can pick up the deficit in Connie’s salary so that she can continue at her current 20 hour per week level. Linette shared information concerning a board training from the Department of Commerce title ED101. The board proceeded to set a date for the training of Tuesday, August 18 from 3 to 5 PM. They also decided to change the board meeting from August 24th to August 18th following the training.

Next Meeting Monday, July 27, 2009., 5:30 PM. Meeting Adjourned.

Linette Miller, Executive Director Edwards County Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors Meeting Minutes July 27, 2009

The Board of Directors of the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation met on Monday, July 27, 2009, at 5:30 PM at 200 E. 6th Street. The following directors were present: Ron Gruber, Doug McLean, Connie Oliphant, Jan Kuckleman, David Zimmerman, and Executive Director Linette Miller Vice-President Connie Oliphant called the meeting to order. The minutes of the June 29 meeting were approved as read. The financial report was approved as presented. Linette Miller presented a staff activity report. The board discussed in length possible sites for a new retail store in Kinsley. The board reviewed a Board Member Commitment Pledge and a Work Sheet on Board/Staff Responsibilities. In unfinished business, Linette contacted Jerry Stapleton and Jim Carlson and got no response. At the suggestion of one of the board members Linette contacted Bob Davies. He has agreed to serve on the board. Linette also contacted Greg White from Cross but he passed and suggested Raymond Law who also passed but suggested general manager Ian Patterson. He wants to gather additional information before making a decision. Linette also asked Bryan Taylor of Tyree Ag and he agreed. Doug McLean moved and Ron Gruber seconded that we approve Bob Davies and Bryan Taylor as new members of the board. Connie proceeded to read a resignation letter from Kathy Stegman. In the event that Ian Patterson decides not to join the board, Connie and Jan presented a list of alternate suggestions: Elizabeth Saenz, Rosa Flores, Marsha Bagby, Kathy Long, Terry Perry. In new business Connie shared that she and a few board members had met last week to discuss evaluation of the Executive Director since her hiring date was August 1, 2008. Connie suggested that the board meet in a special executive session for the purpose of performing the evaluation. Linette shared that the ED101 training will take place August 18 from 3 to 5 PM at the City Meeting Room. The Department of Commerce will facilitate the meeting and suggested that we invite members of city and county government, school boards and other nonprofit boards to attend. Linette will send out notices to those parties in the County. Our next meeting will be held following the training. Next Meeting Tuesday, August 18, 2009, 5:00 PM (following ED101 training). Meeting Adjourned.

Linette Miller, Executive Director Edwards County Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors Meeting Minutes August 18, 2009

The Board of Directors of the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation met on Tuesday, August 18, 2009, at 5:30 PM at 721 Marsh Avenue. The following directors were present: Connie Oliphant, Brian Taylor, Ron Gruber, Jan Kuckleman, Doug McLean, Raul Amaya, guest Ian Paterson and Executive Director Linette Miller Connie Oliphant called the meeting to order. The minutes of the July 29 meeting were approved as read. The financial report was approved as presented. Connie asked that Linette organize future reports by Class so that the board can see separate balances for all of our projects. Linette Miller presented a staff activity report. In unfinished business Linette Miller introduced Ian Patterson, the CEO of Cross Manufacturing in Lewis. He is considering taking the open position on our board but wanted to sit in on a meeting before agreeing. In new business Linette shared that since Kathy Stegman has resigned from the board we need additional board members on the signature cards at the bank so that if Connie is gone we have someone to sign checks. Doug made a motion that Jan Kuckleman be added to the accounts at the bank and Raoul seconded the motion. Motion carried. We need to clarify which board members hold offices since the resignation of the President last month. It was decided that Connie will move up to President from Vice-President, Jan will move from Secretary to Vice-President and David Zimmerman will remain Treasurer. Linette will continue typing the minutes of the meetings and send to Jan for approval. Linette indicated that the American Legion is agreeable to us moving into their building. We will not be charged rent but will pay for half of the utilities each month. Linette, Jan and Connie have looked at the office and found that it will fill our needs while allowing for a more professional appearing office that will be more comfortable. Doug made the motion that we relocate after giving 30 days notice to the National Foundation for Carnival Heritage. Brian Taylor seconded the motion. Motion carried. The board discussed the budget and possible ways to raise additional funds. Raul made a motion to get on the agenda for the August 31st County Commission Meeting and to have Linette draft a letter requesting that they end their contract with Great Plains Development for administration of the revolving loan fund and turn that duty over to Economic Development. Jan seconded the motion. Motion Carried. Linette discussed some artwork that is in our possession from one of the recipients of a Revolving Loan that went into default. We could sell the art and recoup some of the loss for the County Revolving Loan Fund. The board suggested Linette list the art on an online website and see if we can sell it after checking with Mark Frame, County Attorney to make sure there are no legal issues prohibiting the sale. Linette indicated that there are several inquiries for restaurant equipment and it would be nice if we could recoup some of the loss on another of the revolving loans. She will check with Mark about the legal issues of selling these items as well. We need to obtain the services of a Certified Public Accountant to audit our books so that we are in compliance with the agreement with the County as well as with some grants. Connie will check with the Kansas Public Accountants listing and Linette will check with Aaron at VonFeldt, Bauer, and Vonfeldt in Larned. Connie indicated that she and Jan are still working on Linette’s Annual Evaluation. They will be contacting other members of the board for their feedback and participation. Next Meeting Monday, September 28, 2009, 5:30 PM. Meeting Adjourned.

Linette Miller, Executive Director Board of Directors Meeting Minutes September 28, 2009

The Board of Directors of the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation met on Monday, September 28, 2009, at 5:30 PM at 200 E. 6th Street, Kinsley. The following directors were present: Aaron Cross, David Zimmerman, Doug McLean, Bob Davies, Ian Patterson and Executive Director Linette Miller In the absence of the President or Vice President, Linette Miller called the meeting to order. The minutes of the August meeting were approved as read. The financial report was approved as presented. Linette Miller presented a staff activity report. In unfinished business Doug McLean made a motion to accept Ian Patterson as a new board member. Aaron Cross seconded the motion. The motion carried by email vote due to being under quorum. Linette indicated that she has called Vonfeldt, Bauer & Vonfeldt accounting firm in Larned about performing our annual audit. They indicated they could do an audit for Economic Development however could not perform an A-133 audit as required for the CDRR Grant. They said they could not give us a quote without further information. Linette will see if Connie Oliphant has obtained any information about available auditors. In new business Linette asked the board members to come up with some ideas for fundraisers to help reduce the budget deficit. Raffles and Golf Tournaments were discussed. Connie Oliphant is looking into some possible trips that could be raffled. Linette will do some additional research regarding a possible golf tournament. Linette passed out packets of 10 surveys for each board member present. Each board member should ask friends, neighbors, coworkers, etc. to fill out he surveys and they should bring the completed surveys back to the meeting in October. This will give us a sampling of data from around the County and as starting point for discussions at the community meetings in November. Linette announced that the office will be moving on September 30 to the American Legion building at 108 E. 6th. CPS employees have volunteered to help. Any board member is welcome to come and help if they would like. Linette indicated that she has received a bill from the website developer, IGOV. The board indicated that we should not pay until the project is complete. Next Meeting Monday, October 26, 2009, 5:30 PM at 108 E. 6th Street, Kinsley. Meeting Adjourned.

Linette Miller, Executive Director Edwards County Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors Meeting Minutes Monday, October 26, 2009

The Board of Directors of the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation met on Monday, October 29, 2009, at 5:30 PM at 108 E. 6th Street, Kinsley. The following directors were present: Connie Oliphant, Bob Davies, Ron Gruber, Ian Paterson, Jan Kuckleman, Doug McLean, and Raul Amaya. Connie Oliphant called the meeting to order. The minutes of the September meeting were approved with a change to the spelling of Ian Paterson’s name. The financial report was approved as presented. Linette Miller presented leave and travel requests for November and a staff activity report which were both approved. In unfinished business Linette Miller asked if Connie had obtained the names of any CPA’s that could perform the A-133 audit that is needed for the CDRR Grant. Connie indicated that any CPA should be able to perform the audit. Linette will call the State financial audit and find out if that level of audit is need and if so would they have any suggestions of possible auditors in the area. The board discussed possible fundraising ideas including holding raffles/drawings, festivals like Oktoberfest, sports events like golf tournaments, biking or running events, or membership drives. No action was taken. In new business Linette asked the board members to come up with some ideas for fundraisers to help reduce the budget deficit. Raffles and Golf Tournaments were discussed. Connie Oliphant is looking into some possible trips that could be raffled. Linette will do some additional research regarding a possible golf tournament. Board members delivered the surveys that they had filled out by community members. There was no new business brought before the board. Next Meeting Monday, November23, 2009, 5:30 PM at 108 E. 6th Street, Kinsley. Meeting Adjourned.

Linette Miller, Executive Director Edwards County Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors Meeting Minutes Monday, November 23, 2009

The Board of Directors of the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation met on Monday, November 23, 2009, at 5:30 PM at 108 E. 6th Street, Kinsley. The following directors were present: Bob Davies, Brian Taylor, Doug McLean, Ian Paterson, Aaron Cross, Jan Kuckleman, Connie Oliphant, and Executive Director Linette Miller. Connie Oliphant called the meeting to order. The minutes of the October meeting were approved as presented. The financial report was approved as presented. Linette Miller presented leave and travel requests for December and a staff activity report. Both were approved as presented. In unfinished Business, Linette contacted the State to inquire about the requirement of an A-133 audit. Kevin Shaughnessy with KDHE responded that we are not required to obtain this level of audit by their grant. So the only audit stipulations we must adhere to are those imposed by Edwards County. Linette will seek bids from several CPAs and present those at the next meeting. Linette presented a possible idea to help decrease our budget deficit for next year. If she and her family were allowed to enroll in the State of Kansas insurance since her husband is an employee, and Economic Development would reimburse her for their out of pocket costs, it would save ECEDC at least $10,000 next year. Linette has talked this over with the commissioners and they are in favor of the idea but would require some of our board members to visit with them before we take action. Linette will continue researching the situation to ensure that we will be able to reenroll in the County health plan at a later date and that this is agreeable to both insurance companies and the county. She will present her findings at the next meeting. In new business Linette indicated that the Articles of Incorporation are being looked over by the attorney for Compassion Kansas. We will table this item until we receive information back from them. We need to obtain another board member to replace David Zimmerman who moved to Nebraska. Several names were considered. It was decided that Bob Davies would talk to Rosa Flores to see if she is willing to serve. Connie Oliphant inquired whether the American Legion ever presented us with a Lease Agreement. Linette indicated that they had not. She will come up with an agreement and present to the board. Several board members asked that the Community Survey results be emailed to them. Connie Oliphant suggested we move the next meeting up to December 21st rather than December 28th. A consensus was reached to move the meeting date to December 21. Next Meeting Monday, December 21, 2009, 5:30 PM at 108 E. 6th Street, Kinsley. Meeting Adjourned.

Linette Miller, Executive Director Edwards County Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors Meeting Minutes Monday, December 21, 2009

The Board of Directors of the Edwards County Economic Development Corporation met on Monday, December 21, 2009, at 5:30 PM at 108 E. 6th Street, Kinsley. The following directors were present: Connie Oliphant, Ron Gruber, Doug McLean, Bob Davies, Ian Paterson and Executive Director Linette Miller. Connie Oliphant called the meeting to order. The minutes of the November meeting were approved as presented. The financial report was approved as presented. Linette Miller presented leave and travel requests for January. Ron Gruber made a motion to accept the leave and travel requests and Doug McLean seconded the motion. Motion passed. Linette presented a staff activity report. It was approved as presented. In unfinished Business, the board reviewed the Articles of Incorporation for the 501(c) 3 Foundation. It was decided to accept them as presented as soon as we receive approval from the Compassion Kansas Attorney. The board discussed possible new board members. Rosa Flores was asked to serve and declined. It was decided to ask Wendy Avilla. Connie will talk with her. Linette presented information regarding the audit bids that were received. She sent out bid requests to 10 companies and all declined to send a bid due to staff limitations and the cost prohibitive nature of the audit. Linette indicated that she had discussed this with the County Commissioners and they agreed to waive the audit requirement of our contract for fiscal year 2009. Linette presented the board with an agreement amendment. Bob Davies made a motion to accept the agreement amendment and Ian Paterson seconded the motion. Motion passed. Connie Oliphant signed the agreement. The board discussed the budget and fundraising. Linette presented three options for changes in Health Insurance that could possibly be adopted for one year as a way of decreasing costs until our fundraising plan is in place. Bob Davies made a motion to leave Linette on the County health insurance policy and transfer her husband and children to health insurance provided by her husband’s employer and to reimburse her the costs of this insurance provided it is agreeable to both insurance companies and the County. Linette should not make any changes unless she is sure everyone can be covered. The change would be reviewed in one year. Doug McLean seconded the motion. Motion passed. The board also discussed the fundraising plan and Budgetary Needs Assessment presented by Linette. The fundraisers were discussed. Ron Gruber will check into the costs of several different types of ATVs. Linette will continue to research different options for the raffle. In new business, Linette indicated that we need to come up with some possible dates for the next Strategic Planning session with Compassion Kansas. The grant ends March 30 so we need to get the dates in place. The board indicated they would prefer to work a 4 hour session on a Monday night with a working supper provided. Linette will ask Compassion Kansas to give us dates on Mondays in January and February that will work for them then get back to the board to set a final date. Next Meeting Monday, January 25, 2010, 5:30 PM at 108 E. 6th Street, Kinsley. Meeting Adjourned.

Linette Miller, Executive Director