NOB5: Battle for the Minutes

I wonder a lot about what the point of being elected to the Neighborhood Board is. In terms of political or social influence we fall somewhere between "condo association" and "dogcatcher." There is potential here; if we spoke clearly and rationally we can make an impact.

So far Neighborhood Board No. 5 has only had an impact on parking. Specifically, they saved one parking lot from being developed as a store - and that took a year of protests. Luckily I had to excuse myself from the issue as I work for the State and there was a potential conflict of interest.

So we have potential. But instead, we spend our time dealing with nonsense side issues. I thought becoming an Executive Member (i.e. Secretary) would at least let me influence things a touch. Instead, I am fighting to accomplish simple things like getting the minutes approved.

This will bore most of you. The political junkies will enjoy it. Maybe. I don't care. I am hereby unilaterally applying the sunshine law to my webmail and liberating these executive emails for public consumption and review. For background, a representative from the Neighborhood Commission provides meeting notes for us. The secretary reviews them, and then every other Board on the island votes to approve them. Not us. We go half a year at a time without getting minutes approved.

This is the shit we deal with each month, and this is why we never get shit done.

From: Michael Cain
To: 4 board members, Chair, and Michelle S. Matson   
Sent: Thursday, November 06, 2008 11:34 AM
Subject: Fw: Draft minutes for October

Aloha all,

Here are the draft minutes from October. Monday should
give everyone enough time to go over them.

If you have suggestions for corrections, I'd like to
ask one favor: keep them brief and substantive.

 Thanks
 Michael

From: Michelle S. Matson
Sent: Nov 7, 2008 9:54 AM
To: Chairman Bert Narita NB#5, Michael Cain
Cc: (4 Board Members, and 1 Commission Official who has
blocked our emails)
Subject: Re: Draft minutes for October

The NB meeting is Thursday, November 13.
See attached Reso provided at the October meeting.
Apparently this was not reviewed by the regular NA
to have any initial effect.

What is the proposed status of the previous two
months' minutes,(August -deferred in September and
October- and September - deferred in October)and
their substantive and formatting corrections as 
previously provided for the record?

From: Michael Cain
To: Michelle S. Matson ; Chairman Bert Narita
Cc: (4 Board Members, and 1 Commission Official
who has blocked our emails)
Sent: Friday, November 07, 2008 11:05 AM
Subject: Re: Draft minutes for October

1. The resolution was introduced but not, to my
knowledge, voted on or approved by the Board.

2. I will be moving to accept the August and
September minutes at the upcoming meeting. Members
are free to object or vote against approval.I did not 
incorporate the nine pages of edits you sent. If you
need an explanation I will do it publicly and on the
record at next week's meeting.

 - Michael

 
From:  Michelle S. Matson  
Sent: Nov 7, 2008 8:46 PM
To: Michael Cain , Chairman Bert Narita NB#5
Cc: (4 Board Members, and 1 Commission Official who has
blocked our emails)
Subject: Re: Draft minutes for October

Michael:

1.  The Resolution was received by the Board and deferred
to the November meeting since there was no time for approval
of this or the corrected minutes at the end of the October
meeting.  As in previous months it was also suggested that
the regular NA review the recommendations and try to
work on some of the improvements.

 2.  There were not "9 pages of edits" but specifically
digital tracked changes within the minutes text, which showed
the substantive and grammatical corrections and formatting
improvements as a helpful convenience to assist comparison.
Is simple text without showing the corrections preferred?

 3.  If / when all substantive corrections provided by Board
officers and members have been incorporated into the August
and September minutes,respectively, we would appreciate
receiving your corrected draft minutes prior to the November
meeting so that we know what has been corrected for approval
of the minutes. In turn, for convenience of comparison please
 indicate where the corrections have been made.
 
 Michelle

 
From:  Michael Cain 
To: Michelle S. Matson; "Chairman Bert Narita NB#5
Cc: (4 Board Members, and 1 Commission Official who has
blocked our emails)
Sent: Friday, November 07, 2008 4:03 PM
Subject: Re: Draft minutes for October

No.

You waste too much of too many people's time with this
silliness. It stops here.

You can take it up at the Board meeting if you have a
problem with this.

From: Michelle S. Matson

To: Chairman Bert Narita

Cc: Michael Cain (& five board members and one commission
official who has blocked our emails)

Subject: Re: Draft minutes for October

Date: Nov 7, 2008 7:02 PM

I believe we are all looking for a democratic approach
to resolving current issues with the ongoing timing,
formatting, grammatical and often substantive deficiencies
in the minutes - deficiencies also acknowledged by 
Board Member Cain in previous emails (attached).

Is it too difficult to provide open disclosure to the Board
of any corrections to the minutes prior to the Board
meeting(s) at which such minutes are anticipated to be
adopted?  One would expect that any revised/corrected
minutes would be mailed/emailed to all Board members prior 
to the meeting date of any noticed anticipated approval.

As a constructive suggestion apart from the apparent
presently-imposed acrimony, an NCO regularly-issued
recorder could provide the NA with needed assistance for
any substantive areas of question.  The bottom line is that 
we would like to see positive and productive outcomes for
the whole in the form of readable and referable substantive
reflections of all Neighborhood Board meetings for the
collective community.

It is interesting to note that for some unknown reason
September's deferred minutes were publicly posted today,
November 7, with the unanimously deferred August minutes.
Both are absent any preliminary approval by the 
Executive Committee or ultimate approval by the Board:

To: Michelle S. Matson, Chairman Bert Narita NB#5

Cc: (five board members and one commission official who
has blocked our emails)

Subject: Re: Draft minutes for October

Date: Nov 7, 2008 11:31 PM

This discussion needs to occur in public and on the record.

Please cease your emails to me on the matter. I do not feel
they are appropriate.

Although I guess it is on the record now. Or at least in public.