Mission

The mission of the Palm Haven Residents Committee is to restore and preserve the public places and installations that exist in the Palm Haven Historic Conservation Area as defined by the City of San Jose Historic Landmarks Commission, to build a sense of community by encouraging neighborhood involvement in the care and preservation of its public resources, and to educate local citizens on those resources and the importance of their relationship to the Conservation Area.

Meeting Minutes

2002


April 6, 2002



Minutes of the Meeting of April 6th on the Palm Haven Pillar Restoration Project


1.      Attendance

Kate & Mark Allison
Joan Bohnett
Mike Borbely
Rosemarie & Martin Delson
Chuck Frascone
Doug Gardner
Greg Gunwall
John Hops
Sandy Kasik
Cathy Marshall
Grace Willson


2.      United Neighborhoods

Cathy Marshall of the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association told us about the services that United Neighborhoods of Santa Clara County could offer us. First of all, they are a non-profit organization, and can establish a dedicated account for the Pillar Project so contributions can be tax-deductible. They offer a variety of other services, including disbursements, record keeping, reporting, etc. Checks would be co-signed by themselves and someone from our group. Their fees are negotiable.

We agreed that we would try to ask as little from them as we can in order to minimize the costs of their services.

Cathy said that she would talk with them informally and let us know what their fee structure is, what our least-cost involvement could be, their requirements and suggestions for gathering and disbursing funds, and how we can issue receipts.


3.      Fund Raising

There was a discussion of ways to raise money in addition to asking contributions. Some ideas were selling T-shirts, selling stationery, and having a tour of houses in the neighborhood. No decision was made. We felt that it was more important at this point to define the scope of the project and to determine its costs.


4.      Historical Society

We recognized the need to have the San Jose Historical Society informed of our project in order to ensure that we do not plan anything that would violate their guidelines or raise their objections. Furthermore, they may have some information about the original appearance of the pillars that would be of value to us in our planning.

Mike Borbely knows several of the members of the Historical Society. He volunteered to speak to them informally to learn about their guidelines for this kind of project.


5.      Original Pillars

We shared our knowledge of the state of the original pillars. We think there was some kind of lamp suspended from the beams, and that there was a large urn or flower pot on the base that held a plant. Greg Gunwall said he would talk with his neighbor (Mary Ellen Klein, whose family were original residents) to see if she had any photographs of the pillars in a photograph album.


6.      Scope of the Project

We discussed three alternatives for the scope of the pillar restoration project.
a.                   Restoration of the appearance of the seven existing pillars.
b.                  Restoration of the appearance and the function of the seven existing pillars. This will include adding some sort of lighting and an urn or planter.
c.                   The above, plus construction of four additional pillars, two at each end of Riverside Avenue.

We agreed on alternative (b) – a restoration of the appearance and the function of the seven existing pillars.

We discussed some of the difficulties of having a planter with a live plant. One question is who would be responsible for their maintenance, the City or the neighbors. Another question is whether the pots would be automatically irrigated, and if so how. The possibility was mentioned of having some artificial plant in the planter. No decision was made.

We discussed some of the issues involved with introducing lighting. For electric lights, the obvious question was about the difficulty of bringing power to the lights. The possibility was mentioned of using solar panels to power the lights. Everyone was in full agreement that solar panels, if used, must not be allowed to impact the appearance of the pillars. No decision was made.


7.      Organization of the Committee

Cathy Marshall emphasized the need to have a formal agreement that everyone acknowledged about issues such as who is eligible for membership, who would be allowed to vote, and how issues would be decided.

After a vigorous discussion, we agreed on the following rules for the organization:

a.                   The name of the committee is the Palm Haven Restoration Committee.
b.                  The Palm Haven Neighborhood is defined to include all residences west of Bird Avenue, North of Coe Avenue, and on both sides of Riverside Avenue between Bird and Coe.
c.                   Membership in the Committee is open to all current owners and residents of the Neighborhood plus all former owners who express an interest in the project.
d.                  All persons who attended this meeting will be included on the Committee
e.                   We will distribute an invitation to the next Committee meeting to every residence in the Neighborhood. Everyone who wants to be a Committee member will either have to attend the next meeting or inform Rosemarie Delson or Chuck Frascone of their interest on serving on the Committee. (We will emphasize that the members of the Committee will be expected to contribute their time and efforts.) After that, the membership of the Committee will be closed.
f.                   Committee meetings will be announced in advance and an agenda will be published. Mike Borbely has a web site on the Palm Haven Neighborhood that may be used for this. Cathy Marshall said that the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association might also allow postings on their web site. (www.wgna.net).
g.                   Meetings are open to all owners and residents of the Neighborhood. Everyone will be allowed to speak and voice an opinion. However only members of the Committee will be permitted to vote on any issue.
h.                  If members of the Committee cannot participate in a meeting, they will be permitted to transmit voting instructions by mail or email.
i.                    Decisions will be made on the agreement of at least 2/3 of the members who vote.
i.j.                    The minutes of the meeting will be posted on the web site.


8.      Next Meeting

The next meeting will be held on Saturday, May 4th. The agenda will include the following items:

a.                   Report by Cathy on the services and fees of United Neighborhoods.
b.                  Report by Mike on the guidelines of the Historical Society.
c.                   Formation of the Working Committee and assignment of responsibilities.
d.                  Starting a plan of action and setting a time frame for the work

We will print up a flier describing the goals of the Pillar Project and the agenda for the meeting. The flier will be mailed to all residences in the Palm Haven Neighborhood in advance of the meeting. The flier will not state the address of the next meeting. But anyone who is interested in attending will be asked to contact Rosemarie Delson or Chuck Frascone for details.

May 4, 2002 

Minutes of the Meeting of May 4th of the Palm Haven Restoration Committee


1.      Attendance

Kate & Mark Allison
Jill Arnone
Joan Bohnett
Mike Borbely
Rosemarie & Martin Delson
Kathy Fantauzzi
Greg Gunwall
John Hops
Sandy Kasik
Cathy Marshall
Jim & Iria Nishimura
Fran Smith
Rita Strena
Curt & Gracie Willson


2.      Report on United Neighborhoods

Cathy Marshall and Rosemarie Delson reported on a meeting with United Neighborhoods of Santa Clara County. Chuck Frascone also attended that meeting.

United Neighborhoods will provide a way for donations to the Pillar Restoration Project to be tax deductible. They will also provide other services. Their fee structure is negotiable, but will not exceed 5% of the available funds. The more of the work that we do ourselves, the lower their fees will be.

We agreed unanimously that we would make use of the service of United Neighborhoods.

We formed a Finance Committee with Cathy, Rosemarie, and Chuck as members. We authorized the Finance Committee to negotiate the responsibilities of both parties and the fees that we will pay for their services.

The Finance Committee will also be responsible to submit requests for disbursements to the PHRC. The PHRC as a whole will authorize all payments.

The person at United Neighborhoods who will act as the treasurer is Jacqui Carr Gouveia. (Address is United Neighborhoods / 525 W. Alma Avenue / San Jose 95125.)


3.      Mike Borberly’s report

Mike reported the following information after investigations with the City Planning Commision, Historical Society, PG&E, and several contractors:

  1. City Planning Department / Historical Landmarks Commission guidance and early discussion
i.        Columns are not habitable structures and so fall out of some guidelines leaving possible flexibility on restoration
ii.      However, local historic guidelines follow Secretary of the Interior guidelines: Keep as much original as possible.

  1. Potential of solar-powered installation for lighting
i.        Must not be seen or interfere with historic restoration
ii.      Useable solar area
iii.    Maintenance

  1. PG&E position on electrification of the lanterns and street lamp locations
i.        Normally works with the city
ii.      Need to determine what circuit to use – street lamps or other
iii.    Simple coordination is the routine for energizing circuits

  1. City responsibilities for columns and street lamps
i.        Currently determining responsibility between DOT & Public Works
ii.      Committee may set tone for city responsibility and funding
iii.    DOT would handle street lamp relocation/installation
iv.    Further discussion w/K. Yeager to determine funding availability from historic street lamp project for restoration/relocation of Palm Haven street lamps.

  1. Review of original condition factors – urns/lanterns, drawings, photographs
i.        Tall metal street lamps were added to Palm Haven years after the lighted columns were installed. One was unfortunately stuck within a few inches of the center column on the plaza. Correct historic restoration would call for that street lamp to be removed or relocated. Initial comments from contractors and city is that this is not as difficult as it may seem.
ii.      Columns are out of plumb due in part to poorly installed resident irrigation systems. This must be rectified. Simple to fix but committee needs to decide how to approach problem.
iii.    Where are urns and lanterns? Experienced contractor says look nearby.

  1. Initial architecture/contractor discussions
i.        Page & Turnbull, Inc. – historic restoration architects – many credits including Montgomery Hotel in San Jose
ii.      Tim Lantz, General Contractor – historic restoration contractor/assessor – currently restoring Wolfe & Wolfe Prairie style home at 595 Brooks Avenue, his rough guess on cost was $35,000 but with the caveat that discovery may affect this figure
iii.    Joe Carter expressed interest in project if electrical is simple, his rough guess on cost was $11,220 before we added electrification and determined the need to follow historic guidelines
iv.    Other contacts being pursued

  1. Irrigation discussion
i.        Can irrigation be added to the columns without violating historic restoration guidelines?
ii.      Can city provide irrigation? Public irrigation systems are present on Palm Haven Avenue but not on Coe.
iii.    Can residents provide irrigation?
iv.    Contractor feels that fitting for irrigation is simple
v.      Can drought-tolerant plants be installed avoiding need for irrigation?


Mike identified this follow-on work:

  1. Continue to work with city departments to determine responsibilities and project contacts
  2. Meet with Ken Yeager to solidify city financial, operational, and restoration role
  3. Contact more historic contractors for comparisons
  4. Determine if/when contractor official estimate is required
  5. Resolve irrigation questions to nail down project scope/expectations
  6. Contact Public Works and see how far they will go in maintaining plants.

Mike pointed out that the solar solution might not be very satisfactory. Because it was necessary to hide the solar panels, only enough power would be generated to light 4 or 5 LEDs. This would not be a very bright source of light. Another drawback of a solution depending on solar power is that the City would not be likely to assume their maintenance – they are not familiar with these systems.

Note that the $35,000 estimate from Tim Lantz excludes the cost of lanterns and urns.

There was a discussion of the subject of irrigation that seemed to lead to the conclusion that we should be able to count on the neighbors to take care of the watering of the plants. Martin pointed out that it would please the CAP Grant committee if we set up a long-term plan that would keep the neighborhood involved after the completion of the original project.


4.      Documentation of original pillars

Mike provided a drawing, dated 1913, of the pillar from the original advertising brochure of the Palm Haven development. He has distributed a photograph (probably from the 1920’s) that shows one pillar and a protion of another, and clearly shows the urn.

Mike earned a round of applause for the effort he put in and the quality of the information he provided.

5.      CAP Grant

Martin reported on his meeting with the City of San Jose, Department of Parks, Recreation & Neighborhood Services, regarding the application for a CAP (Community Action & Pride) Grant. (Note, the minutes of that meeting were distributed in an earlier e-mail.) One of the most important points is that the CAP Grant can be used only for materials and supplies, and cannot be used to pay for labor or to pay contractors.

The Grant application has to be turned in by Friday May 17th.

We voted to apply for the CAP Grant. A Grant Committee was formed, consisting of Martin, Jim Nishimura, and Mark Allison. They will meet next Saturday (May 11) to complete and submit the application.

Sandy Kasik volunteered to provide the Grant Committee with budgetary information on the cost of urns and lamps.

We asked Mike Borberly to talk with Tim Lantz to get approximate figures on the cost of materials that would be used in the restoration.

 Rita Strena volunteered to take the training that the City requires for recipients of a CAP Grant.

3.6.      Fund Raising

A Fund Raising Committee was formed. The members are Jill Arnone, Mike Borberly, Joan Bohnett, Cathy Fantauzzi, John Hops, and Sandy Kasik.

The first event that they will plan will be a Palm Haven Neighborhood house tour. Mike said that he would be going to the Naglee Park tour next week to see how they organize it.

3.7.      Other Assignments

Martin volunteered to continue to serve as secretary of the Committee. Mike volunteered to host a web site.

8.      Next Meeting

The next meeting will be held on Saturday, June 1st at 9:00 am.

8.9.      Attachments

The following documents are attached to these minutes:

1)      Word document with the list of PHRC members and their contact information.
2)      Word document with the job assignments.

June 1, 2002


Minutes of the Meeting of June 1st of the Palm Haven Restoration Committee


1.      Attendance

Kate & Mark Allison
Joan Bohnett
Mike Borbely
Chuck Frascone
Rosemarie & Martin Delson
John Hops
Sandy Kasik
Luke Reimer
Fran Smith
Curt & Gracie Willson


2.      Report of Finance Committee

Chuck Frascone and Rosemarie Delson reported on a meeting with Jacqui Carr Gouveia, Executive Director of the United Neighborhoods of Santa Clara County. Cathy Marshall also attended that meeting.

The Finance Committee negotiated a rate of 3% for the services of United Neighborhoods, but Jacqui could not see if the 3% fee would be approved. The vote will be on Tuesday, June 4.

Most of the accounting work will be done by the PHRC. We will collect donations, issue preliminary receipts, and bring the donations and list of donors to United Neighborhoods. United Neighborhoods will provide official receipts (signed by Jackie) on their stationery. Checks for disbursements would also be issued by United Neighborhoods.

Martin Delson said that one of the rules for a grant from CAP (the City’s Community Action & Pride organization) is that none of the funds that the grant can be subject to an administrative fee. That raises the question about whether these funds could also be administered by United Neighborhoods.

It will be necessary to have two accounts, since the CAP Grant funds can only be used to purchase materials and other goods, and not for labor.

One possibility is that we let United Neighborhoods administer the funds provided by donations, for which they would charge a fee, and that we independently administer any CAP Grant funds.

Others thought that we should ask United Neighborhoods to administer both accounts. There was general agreement that United Neighborhoods may not and should not apply the fee to the CAP Grant money. Some participants felt that we might agree to a fee of 3½% of donations to United Neighborhoods for administering both funds. Others felt that 3% would be sufficient, and we should not agree to a higher fee.

We asked Chuck to speak with Jacqui on Monday, raise the issue of the rules of the CAP Grant, and figure out the best way to handle these two accounts. We authorized him to negotiate the best deal on our behalf.

Someone pointed out that Jacqui is also on the CAP Grant review committee, and should be familiar with the issue.

3.      CAP Committee report

Martin and Mark Allison reported that an application for a CAP Grant was submitted earlier in the month. (Martin drafted the first application, all committee members worked to fine-tune it and come up with a budget, and Jim Nishimura submitted it to CAP.)

The budget in the original application estimated $7,000 for urns, $7,000 for the lanterns, and $500 for incidentals, for a total of $14,500. Afterwards Jim revised the application, based on further information from Sandy Kasik, with much higher costs for the urns (see below).

Unfortunately, when the application was submitted, although the budget sheet showed the higher estimate, the cover sheet did not. Martin explained the discrepancy over the phone to the CAP review staff member.

Martin and Jim will be meeting with the CAP review committee on Wednesday, June 5. At that time, they will explain that the reason for the revised budget is because the Neighborhood is a Historical Preservation area, and this requires us to replicate as closely as possible the original appearance of the pillars. Martin was concerned that if our request is too high, the CAP committee might choose to reject it completely rather than just grant part of our request. That will be an issue when we meet with them on June 5.

On another point, Martin said that the CAP committee states that our participation in all committee activities can be counted as the equivalent of a cash contribution. However, we have to keep an account of the time we volunteer. Martin asked that we report the time we are working to Jim Nishimura. (Time spend attending meetings counts as well.)

4.      Treasurer

The CAP Grant application asked us to identify our treasurer. At Cathy Marshall’s urging, saying that United Neighborhoods will have to be the keeper of our accounts, we identified Jacqui Carr Gouveia as the treasurer.

We now recognized the need for our own treasurer, to keep our own accounts of our income and our disbursements. Mark Allison volunteered for this task, and we unanimously agreed to award him this prestigious job.

5.      Sandy Kasik’s report

Sandy described the results of her investigations of the costs of urns. The first estimate (used in the draft CAP Grant application) was based on urns shown in a catalog, and those would cost between $300 and $400 per urn.

The second estimate was from a contractor who would try to replicate the urns based on the 1913 photograph. His estimate was $980 per urn plus $4,600 for the mold plus $2,400 for installation, for a total of $20,720. (This was the estimate used in the submitted CAP Grant application.)

A third estimate was from another contractor who estimated $2,000 for the mold plus $110 per urn, for a total of only $3,540, exclusive on installation. The committee was informed that the first contractor had given a great deal of attention to our specific requirements, and made a careful estimate. The other contractor was a more of a seat of the pants estimate. There probably is also a great difference in the quality of the materials.

3.6.      Report of the Fund Raising Committee

Mike Borberly provided the following report:

The Fundraising Committee met May 21 at the offices of Coldwell Banker, courtesy Sandy Kasik.

All committee members were present: Jill Arnone, Joan Bohnett, Michael Borbely, Kathy Fantauzzi, John Hops, and Sandy Kasik.

The committee discussed the mission of the Fundraising Committee for clarification of its role and responsibility as part of the Palm Haven Restoration Committee:

  • The Fundraising Committee will make general fund-raising recommendations to the Restoration Committee.
  • Upon approval of the fund-raising recommendations, the Fundraising Committee will organize and guide fund-raising projects by assembling teams of volunteers from the whole Palm Haven Restoration Committee and friends.

With the basic mission resolved, the committee then discussed fundraising efforts and developed a list of recommendations that include events for the year 2002 and some on-going types of functions. Some time was spent to set a timetable so the efforts are coordinated according to major milestones and events.
Recommendations to the Palm Haven Restoration Committee are:

  1. Begin by accepting initial private donations immediately
  2. Move the originally schedule July PHRC meeting to June 29 to precede July 4th celebration for final review and preparation for July 4th.
  3. Hold the annual July 4th celebration in the park with a special focus on the restoration project.
i.        The event will be used to educate the neighborhood on what is going on and how neighbors can participate and contribute.
ii.      All neighborhood residents and property owners will be invited.
iii.    An information table/poster area will be set up to illustrate some of Palm Haven’s history and show the current status of the fundraising. (Total all donations to date.)
iv.    The food aspect of the celebration will be coordinated in a way to make it easier for neighbors to come and enjoy the celebration.
  1. Organize a neighborhood rummage sale for the month of August.
i.        The sale will be organized as one big sale for advertising.
ii.      The sale will be advertised as a fundraiser for the Palm Haven Restoration Committee.
iii.    Items will be sold from individual homes for the convenience of residents.
iv.    Some discussion on how to collect funds from residents on a percentage basis or otherwise was considered and referred to the larger group for further discussion.
  1. Hold an historic homes tour in autumn.
i.        Some discussion about linking the homes tour with the Willow Glen Founder’s Day celebration was considered. Some questions about this are being investigated with Founder’s Day organizers to gauge interest and level of coordination.
ii.      M. Borbely brought in newspaper articles from his research about Palm Haven showing how the city of San Jose waited with much anticipation and excitement for the opening of the development. He suggested the same excitement could be recreated for the homes tour.
iii.    Some discussion about the nature of the homes tour was also considered which demonstrated a variety of feelings on the topic:
                                                              i.      Some felt it needed to include homes that have been through a comprehensive remodel in order to draw patrons.
                                                            ii.      Some worried about the tour becoming “competitive”.
                                                          iii.      Resolved that these questions would be taken to the larger group to find consensus about approach.
  1. Begin corporate and public fundraising solicitation.


The committee assigned “liaisons” to each function to be the focal point of communication and organization.


A table summary follows:

Function                                Date                                       Liaison
Private Donations                   Immediate and ongoing          Finance Committee via PHRC
July 4th Celebration                July 4, 2002                           Rosemarie Delson
Rummage Sale                       August 2002                           Kathy Fantauzzi
Historic Homes Tour              Autumn, 2002                        Michael Borbely
Corporate/Public Fundraising Immediate and ongoing          Jill Arnone


3.7.      Mission Statement

Some felt we needed a mission statement, to explain to potential contributors what we are planning to do with the money. However no action was taken on this suggestion.

3.8.      July 4th Picnic

There was a lengthy discussion of organizing the picnic for the Fourth of July. Rosemarie Delson volunteered to organize the picnic. John Hops volunteered to speak to local merchants about donating hamburgers and hot dogs for the picnic. Joan Bohnett and John will loan their barbeque grills. People will be asked to bring pot-luck salads, deserts, etc. We won’t try to organize games for the children – instead, we will simply invite people to bring appropriate games of their choice.
.
We agreed to distribute fliers to inform the neighbors about the picnic, but also to send mail to invite all owners who don’t live in the neighborhood.

3.9.      Homes Tour

We agreed that the homes tour should not occur in conjunction with Founder’s Day. We agreed it should occur on the first week-end in October.

We will not try to focus either on historic homes only, or on “designer” homes only, but will try to find a mix of homes that would be of greatest interest to the widest public. We will try to have about five houses on the tour. (If we have more volunteers, we will ask others to wait for another year.)

We agreed, the suggested price to take the tour will be $20.

According to Mike, who spoke with the organizers of the Naglee Park tour, it will take about 2 – 3 months to organize the tour. We will need some volunteers to organize this fund-raiser.

3.10.  Neighborhood Yard Sale

We will coordinate individual yard sales, where participants will be encouraged to donate part of the proceeds to the committee. In addition, people can also donate goods to the committee, who will then organize a sale in the park, all of the proceeds to go to the project. We will need some volunteers to organize this fund raiser as well.

3.11.  Question about Partial Build

The issue was raised, if we are only able to raise some of the funds initially, whether we should have the work done on just a few of the pillars. On the one hand, it would give the community a visible sign of progress and encourage further work. On the other hands, doing the project in fits and starts will be more costly than if we do it all at once. The issue was not resolved.

3.12.  Question about a Fund-Raising Thermometer

We considered having a poster to show how much funds we’ve collected and how close we are getting to our goal. The suggestion was made that the “thermometer” could be in the shape of a pillar. It was further suggested that we might paint the pillar in the park itself to show the progress. No decision was reached.

3.13.  Project Management

Martin voiced the concern that we were getting distracted by peripheral activities: organizing a picnic, a neighborhood yard sale, a house tour, etc., and that we were losing our main focus – restoring the pillars. He said much work was needed to finalize the design, find contractors, a determine the respective responsibilities of the City and the Committee.

We recognized that Mike Borberly has been doing much of this work unaided. We decided to form a Project Management Committee. It would be responsible for approving the pillar restoration plans and materials, meeting with the City and determining their role and contribution, complying with the requirements of the Historical Society, choosing the Contractor(s), negotiating contract(s), and ensuring that the work is done in accord with our requirements.

Mark Allison, Mike Borberly, Martin Delson, Chuck Frascone, and Luke Reimer volunteered for this job.

8.14.  Relationship with the City

The project management committee was asked to discuss with the City the fact that the pillars are actually City property, to point out that the current deteriorated state of the pillars is due to the City having at some time neglected their maintenance. The City should be asked to make a commitment for the continuing maintenance of the pillars once they are restored.

It was also suggested that, because the pillars are City property, no fees should be asked for construction permits.

8.15.  Next Meeting

The next meeting will be held on Saturday, June 29th at 9:00 am.

8.16.  Attachments

The following document is attached to these minutes:

1)      Revised document with the job assignments.

June 29, 2002



Minutes of the Meeting of June 29th of the Palm Haven Restoration Committee
1.      Attendance
Kate & Mark Allison
Marie Belardi
Joan Bohnett
Mike Borbely
Adrienne Clever
Rosemarie & Martin Delson
Cathy Fantauzzi
Chuck Frascone
John Hops
Sandy Kasik
Cathy Marshall
Jim Nishimura
Rita Strena
Curt & Gracie Willson

2.       Election of Officers
The following officers were nominated and elected:

Chairman, Mike Borberly
Vice-Chairman, Rosemarie Delson
Secretary, Martin Delson
Treasurer, Chuck Frascone

Chuck Frascone takes over the position of Treasurer from Mark Allison because Mark felt he didn t have an appropriate background and experience in business matters.

3.       Mission Statement
Mike felt that the Committee needed an official mission statement to inform the public what our goals were when we solicit donations. He proposed a statement which was debated, amended, and adopted as follows:
The mission of the Palm Haven Restoration Committee is to restore and preserve the public places and installations that exist in the Palm Haven Historic Conservation Area as defined by the City of San Jose Historic Landmarks Commission, to build a sense of community by encouraging neighborhood involvement in the care and preservation of its public resources, and to educate local citizens on those resources and the importance of their relationship to the Conservation Area.

4. Report of Finance Subcommittee
Chuck Frascone reported that the PHRC now has a contract with United Neighborhoods of Santa Clara County, where United Neighborhoods will charge a fee of 3% of collected funds for the administration of the accounts and related services.
The Committee can now collect donations which will be tax-deductible. Checks may be written to United Neighborhoods of Santa Clara County, or UNSCC.
There was a renewed discussion of whether a separate account should be maintained for funds received from a CAP Grant, or whether those funds should be placed in the same account as donations (and therefore subject to the 3% fee.) It was agreed that it was very important that the accounting for funds received and disbursed be transparent and able to stand up to scrutiny.
Mike directed the Finance Subcommittee to consider the issue and to decide on the best method to collect, disburse, and account for the funds received from the various sources. They were asked to look into obtaining volunteered services of an auditor.

5.      CAP Subcommittee report
Martin reported that he spoke with Margaret Wagonet of the Department of Parks, Recreation, and Neighborhood Services. Margaret said that the PHRC has indeed been awarded a Community Action and Pride (CAP) Grant. The award is still unofficial, but she had no doubt that it would be made official when the paper work was completed.
The award was for the amount of $14,500 as requested in the original application (before it was amended to account for the estimated higher cost of the urns.) A lack of funds prevented CAP from awarding the higher requested amount, but it is possible that the grant amount may be amended.
Martin reminded the Committee that CAP is looking for a substantial neighborhood financial contribution. CAP s rules state that our participation in all Committee activities can be counted as the equivalent of a cash contribution. However, we have to keep an account of the time we volunteer. All participants in PHRC activities, including outside contractors and professionals, should report their volunteered time to Chuck Frascone, who as Treasurer will account for volunteer labor.

6.      Fund Raising Subcommittee Report
A date for the garage sale needs to be set. Mike told the Fund Raising Subcommittee to do that in private session and to report back to the PHRC.
Fliers have been distributed to all households for the 4th of July picnic. Several people volunteered to bring tables and garbage cans. John Hops said he has not yet been successful in getting donations of hot dogs and hamburgers, and would buy them himself if he didn t hear from the store manager.
Mike instructed the Finance Subcommittee to look into how we can treat this expense (as well as other similar petty cash expenses) to allow the person spending their own money to get a tax deduction.
Martin asked for John, and anyone else who spends money on out-of-the-pocket expenses for the PHRC to let Chuck know, so Chuck can keep an account for the CAP Committee.

7.      Project Management Subcommittee Report
John said that he and Joan went to the Bancrofft collection at UC to view the materials donated by the Bohnett family. They found further pictures of the pillars in their original state, including very clear pictures of the original urns.
Chuck says that an architect friend has donated the time to take exact measurements of the pillars and to draw a scale drawing that can serve as the basis for getting bids for the work.
Mike said that a contractor he has been working with was asking for $1,000 to develop an estimate to do the restoration work. This apparently is standard practice when it comes to historical restorations. It was agreed that it was necessary to obtain a minimum of two bids to complete the work. The PHRC voted to approve a disbursement of approximately $1,000 per bid estimate to obtain a minimum of two and a maximum of three estimates for the pillar restoration work in accord with historical guidelines.

8.Homes Tour
 Mike made the following report:
 X       Documented mission statement:

The Historic Palm Haven Neighborhood and Homes Tour is being held to raise funds for the restoration of the area s historic entrance columns, and to expand the awareness of Palm Haven's historical significance to the residents and citizens of the greater San Jose area.

X      Considered the offer by Founder s Day to hold Palm Haven tour in conjunction. We tested the question against our mission statement and came to a much clearer conclusion that the tour should be held in conjunction with Founder s Day. Resolved, unless there is any major reconsideration by the June 29 meeting, the tour will be planned for September 8, 2002.
X      Identified key functional areas. (i.e. sales & marketing, logistics, homeowner liaisons, park activity, historic research/presentation)
X      Assigned team leaders to functional areas.
X      Next meeting on July 6, 9AM.
X      Team leads will start organizing and seeking participation from everyone to flesh out the event plans.
X      6 homes have been lined up for the 2002 tour!

9. Next Meeting
 The next meeting will be held on Saturday, August 3rd, at 9:00 am.

10.          Attachments
 The following document is attached to these minutes:
 1)      Revised document with the PHRC positions and committee assignments.


  August 3, 2002



Minutes of the Meeting of August 3rd of the Palm Haven Restoration Committee

1.      Attendance
Kate & Mark Allison
Marie Belardi
Joan Bohnett
Mike Borbely
Martin Delson
Kathy Fantauzzi
Chuck Frascone
John Hops
Jim Nishimura
Curt & Gracie Willson

2.         Report of the Project Management Subcommittee
Chuck and Mike met with an architect who is drawing up the plans of the existing pillars. They will be completed this weekend.
Mark met with Tim Lantz, a contractor experienced in historical restoration. He was authorized to perform an “assessment” of the condition of the pillars and the work needed to restore them. The assessment will probably cost $1,000, but authorization was given to spend as much as $1,500 if necessary.
Mark said, has the names of four other contractors with whom he made preliminary contact, which he will be following up.

3.         Report of the CAP Subcommitte
Martin said that he got voice mail from Margaret Wagonet of CAP who informed him that the PHRC’s application for a grant was approved for the full amount of $25,820. We still do not have any official notification however. Martin will call CAP this following week to follow up.

4. Report of Finance Subcommittee
Chuck reported that we have collected a total of $4,500: $1,700 in advertisements for the Home Tour brochure, and $2,800 in straight donations. We have had out of pocket expenses for porta-potties for the Home Tour, the podium for the presentation ceremony,  advertising for the yard sale, etc. Cash on hand is now $2,300.

5.      Report of the Fundraising Subcommittee on the yard sale
The combined rummage sale in the park and people’s driveways is scheduled for next Saturday, August 10th, from 8 AM until 4 PM. Kathy said that volunteers are still needed to move goods to the park, to staff the tables in the park, and other chores. Volunteers should get in touch with Kathy (278-1992) or Joan (295-3340).

6.   Report of the Fundraising Subcommittee on the Home Tour
The Palm Haven Neighborhood and Home Tour is scheduled for Sunday September 8th. See www.palmhaven.info
 Mike reported that 5,000 fliers were printed. Committee members were urged to take some and distribute them to friends, businesses, etc. A flier team is needed to put fliers in local businesses.
We need volunteers to make door-to-door visits to inform neighbors of the event and ask them for their cooperation in placing all vehicles in driveways that way and not placing trimmings on the street until that evening.
Mike outlined the ways in which we will inform the community of the event: ads, articles, door-to-door, e-mail, word of mouth, bulletin boards, community calendars, etc.
Many volunteers are needed to support this major fund raising event. Please see the web site www.palmhaven.info and sign up there. Or call Mike Borberly (640-8100) directly.

7.      Next Meeting
 The next meeting will be held on Saturday, ???????

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