steering committee meeting -
02/04/2015

Tri-County LTR Steering Committee Meeting Minutes

February 4, 2015

The Steering Committee meeting of Tri-County Long Term Recovery was called to order at 9 a.m. by Chairman Jim Fassino. In attendance were Darius Alemzadeh, Terry Bibo, Capt. Katherine Clausell, Fassino, Kevin Gramm, Don Johnson, Jennifer M. Orban, Alyssa Pollock, Liz Pollack, Tom Pelger, Mark Roberts, Barb Slagel, Amber Wells, Kitty Yanko.

January minutes: Approved.

Chairman's report: Fassino said the Funder's Forum worked well with Gramm providing donation totals and Bibo offering a recap of the numbers. He said some requests were aggressive, but LTR policy is to have funders make their own decisions, which they did. He thinks that is better than having LTR deny such requests on its own.

Vice chairman: Orban mentioned œLet's Talk Disasters, a class about the new FEMA approach and emergency response. Peoria County's emergency management team will conduct the free class at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 5, at ICC North. She said LTR members might well be interested. Bibo will send out an email, since there won't be enough time for members to respond after the March 4 meeting.

Spirit/emotional: No report.

Communications: Bibo said most communications in January focused on internal matters such as soil remediation and the evolving website, but there were a few stories. After Steve Stein wrote about LTR's soil policy for the Journal Star, 11 people contacted the office for more information, according to Pollack. Members were asked for story ideas and Facebook contacts. In other business, Stein declined to do a story about a local landscaper who will provide free service to Washington residents affected by the tornadoes. Since LTR does not promote any one for-profit company, the office is not able to give out that company's brochures, even though some clients might be interested.

Donations:Roberts said Julie Siebert will be stepping back. Most of her work coordinating the enormous number of donated items is done, he said, and she did a œtremendous job.

Volunteer Management: No report.

Disaster Case Management: Pollock said there are 203 open cases and 813 closed cases for a total of 1,016 cases. Only seven cases are unassigned; they are waiting for release forms. Pollock said there may be fewer cases going forward, but they will be more difficult and involve significant funding needs. She said there are 88 more clients with soil remediation issues; 56 are inactive awaiting documentation. There are 17 cases outstanding which involve large insurance shortfalls. The cases range from $9,000 to $50,000.

Pollock said meetings are being held to plan staffing for case management and consider coordination with Community Organizations Active in Disaster and Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (COAD/VOAD).

Pets: Yanko said the emergency pet trailer is still in the works. She's awaiting word from the Illinois Department of Agriculture, which is in flux like most state agencies since there is new leadership in Springfield. She is hopeful ag officials will continue to support the idea.

Funder's Forum: Slagel said she is œvery comfortable funding projects which have been reviewed by Lu Ori, who recently retired from River City Construction. Ori has been providing LTR with additional information on construction projects. Roberts asked how often his services are used; Pollack said often, although case workers try not to impose too much. Fassino pointed out Ori is a œgood independent buffer. A case in point: one Pekin man's home would have been demolished unnecessarily without such intervention.

Construction Management: Fassino invited Ori, who did not get the message in time to attend, but Ori said he would do so when necessary in the future. Pollack said his help has been valuable.

Finance:. Gramm said LTR has granted $222,748.31. There is a balance of $354,080.76, plus $6,326.22 in checking. Fassino asked Roberts about spending grant money. Roberts said LTR can spend the $500,000 McCormick Foundation money for tornadoes first, which may leave $75,000 to $80,000 in unrestricted funds. Fassino said it is not known how much funder money is still available; Pollock said it may be a question worth asking for decision-making going forward. Pelger said his quick calculations indicate $450,000 may be needed for soil remediation and roughly $500,000 for insurance shortfalls.

Soil remediation: After months spent getting information, checking with landscapers and contractors, and refining a process to meet LTR policies, Barb Slagel says the lower-cost option is ready to go.

A couple of companies have agreed to offer special discounts on sod and seed if people will work through the Washington Apostolic Christian Church and the Slagels. So case managers will let clients know there is a possible deal, referring them to the specially-created tornadolawns@gmail.com address. Tim and Barb Slagel will send them a letter explaining the process, along with the special deal quotes. If the client chooses to participate, the Slagels will make the connection with the selected company. It is the client's choice and responsibility.

Morton LTR: Ben Davidson was not present. Pollock said this effort is being spearheaded by Morton's mayor, who wants the community to be prepared in case of disaster. She said she will know more next week, after the COAD/VOAD meetings. Fassino noted this is especially important as LTR winds down.

Community Long Term Recovery meeting: Orban said attendance is dwindling, even though communication is better. She said it is good to have a public forum, and should be done periodically. She would like to see some type of communication outreach to all the parties who attended the initial meetings. The next community meeting will be held 3 p.m. Wednesday, March 11, at the LTR Center.

Other business: Committee members discussed possible ways LTR could wind down. Orban said the Joplin, MO. LTR still has a small presence. Fassino responded that there should be a firm conclusion to Tri-County's LTR, perhaps with a public celebration at the time the office closes. Yanko said such an event could provide some closure. Bibo said perhaps LTR could use its Facebook page to solicit the key advice survivors would offer others to prepare for the future. Fassino said looking at insurance issues alone would be useful and there are other examples.

Slagel said gathering and communicating what has been learned is a key piece because the people working with LTR now probably will not be there in the future. Orban observed that LTR's evolution has been interesting -- œWe had to educate ourselves -- and proved useful when the tornadoes struck.

Fassino said that in donations and other areas, it's good to know what is helpful and what is a hindrance.Pollack added that many of these issues will be addressed as part of the COAD/VOAD discussion.

Fassino sought additional input from each member at the table.

Johnson brought up the long-term issue of food needs. Slagel said a closure event could be very valuable because people get great satisfaction from helping the next guy, as she recently saw in Arkansas. Alemzadeh said some templates exist to pass along information and they can be translated into Tri-County LTR terms. Roberts thanked Johnson for mentioning food security and added that Friendship House has been invaluable to LTR. Yanko said she'll develop a more intentional plan, but needs to engage some other people first. Bibo suggested a retreat or meeting where committee members could share the answer to three questions: What worked well? What didn't work? What would you suggest future LTRs do? Fassino said perhaps such a review could take place at Steering Committee meetings, engaging a couple of committees at a time.

Pollack said the office got a call recently from someone who was not a client, but had heard good things about LTR from others and followed media coverage. That person called just to say œThanks.

Fassino concluded that if anyone hears of a case that didn't work out, there is a process in place for review. The case can be reevaluated. He said LTR's name and integrity are important.

Next Steering Committee Meeting: 8 a.m. Wednesday, March 4, at the LTR Center.

The meeting adjourned at 8:50 a.m.