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July 11, 2000

TIME:
9:30 am to Noon
Tuesday, July 11, 2000

PLACE:
Washington County Public Agency Center
333 East Washington Avenue (STH 33)
West Bend, WI
Room 1113A
Host: Steve Seyfert

AGENDA:

1. Opening/Introductions

2. Opening Comments by New Chairs

3. Approval of Minutes

4. Updates from Partners on Upcoming Issues

5. Executive Committee and Partnership Restructuring

6. Partnership Agreement and Goals

7. Single-Issue Project

8. New Grant Opportunities

9. Public Comments and New Business

10. Adjourn

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July 11, 2000

Attendance:
Karen Boren - Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Mary Beth Driscoll - Citizens for a Better Environment
David Fowler - Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District
Sharon Gayan - Wis. Department of Natural Resources
Andy Holschbach - Ozaukee Co. Land Conservation Department
Gretchen Messer- U.W.-Extension, Basin Educator
Matt Moroney - Metropolitan Builders Association
Dave Schlling - Southeast Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission
Walter Schmidtt - Conrad Technologies
Steve Seyfert - Ozaukee - Washington Land Trust
Steve Skavroneck - CBE/Independent Consultant
Kevin Thusius - Ozaukee Washington Land Trust (for Steve Seyfert)
Angie Tornes - National Park Service
Frank Trcka - Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Claire Vanderslice - Wisconsin Conservation Congress

Absent:
Kenneth Albinger - Ozaukee County Farm Bureau
Susan Baldwin - Milwaukee County Dept. of Parks
Bob Boucher - Friends of the Menomonee River
Buffy Cheek - Schlitz Audubon Center
Kevin Dittmar - Wisconsin Board of Realtors & Milwaukee Builders Assoc.
Bill Hanbury - Greater Milwaukee Convention & Visitor Bureau
Jim Hess - Wisconsin Woodlands Owners Association
Allen Hron - West Bend Chamber of Commerce
Marlene Johnson - City of Milwaukee Alderperson - District 6
Ted Lind - Milwaukee County Conservation Alliance
Jim Lubner - U.W. Sea Grant Institute
Dan Lynch - NRCS District Conservationist
Peter McAvoy - 16th Street Community Health Center
Sheldon Myerchin - U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Dick Osantowski - NRCS District Conservationist
Dan Stoffel - Washington County Land Conservation Committee/Farmer
Don Voith - Mayor, City of Glendale

1. Welcome and Introduction
   The July11, 2000 meeting of the Milwaukee River Basin Land & Water Partners was held at Harrington Beach State Park in Belgium. Co-chairs Dave Fowler and Angie Tornes, serving as hosts, opened the meeting at 9:30 a.m., introducing themselves as the Partnership's new co-chairs.

2. Opening Comments by New Chairs
   Angie and Dave expressed enthusiasm for the upcoming term. Dave said he hoped during the upcoming term the Partnership might build on the good work it has already done by providing greater focus through restructuring, by revitalizing the group through the completion of one or more projects, and by building membership. Angie noted the great potential the Partnership has for visibility within the watershed, stressing that this potential may be heightened by feedback and self-evaluation.

3. Approval of Minutes
   A movement was made approve the minutes of the May 11, 2000 meeting. The minutes were unanimously approved with no changes.

4. Updates from Partners on Upcoming Issues
   members provided updates of projects related to our partnership goals, including dissemination of smart growth information, activities of Milwaukee River Planning (Ozaukee County); riparian landowner contacts (Ozaukee and Washington Counties); meetings address combined sewer overflow, the Chair Factory damn removal, The North Branch Feasibility Study, The 2020 Park and Open Space Plan (Ozaukee County), Green Buildings Pilot Program, and Beer line Bike Path.

   Projects with upcoming deadlines include the following:

   • Steve Skavroneck announced the upcoming Lake Michigan Forum Meeting on Agriculture Pollution Prevention in the Lake Michigan Basin. The meeting will be held August 2-3, 2000. For more information contact Steve at (414) 486-1613. (Also see enclosed schedule and registration form.)

   • Frank Trcka announced that Hank Aaron will be making an appearance at the opening of the Hank Aaron Trail at 10:00 a.m. on August 19, 2000.

   • UW-Extension's Agricultural Clean Sweep will take place August 24, 2000. For more information contact Gretchen Messer (290-2434).

5. Executive Committee (and Partnership Restructuring)
   The new structure for the Partnership, proposed by Angie, Dave and other members, was reviewed. The new structure would more firmly define Partners' roles, creating term limits for the chairs (1 year), establishing an executive committee, and outlining responsibilities for the Partnership at large. Also notable is the change in meeting frequency. According to the new structure, the executive committee would meet quarterly while the Partnership at large would meet once per year.

   Steve Skavroneck suggested the words "by-laws" be changed to "ground rules" to avoid unnecessarily lengthy discussions about minor points. Dave suggested that ground rules such as Robert's Rules be adopted, as long as both the majority and minority points of view continue to be represented.

   Questions were raised as to who would make up the executive committee. Dave responded that to begin, the committee would be appointed based on expressed desire and proven commitment to the Partnership. Further, he affirmed that subcommittees would continued to be utilized as they have been extremely successful in the past. Finally, the suggestion was made that the entire Partnership meet twice each year rather than once as the new structure indicates.

6. Partnership Agreement and Goals
   The Partnership Goals were again reviewed and finalized, with the only changes being the following:

   • "Establish a natural area in the North Branch watershed" changed to "Protect a natural area in the Milwaukee River North Branch watershed study area."

   • "Develop an educational strategy focusing on a range of publics to increase awareness of the resource and how to protect it" changed to "Develop and implement an educational strategy focusing on a range of publics to increase awareness of the resource and how to protect it."

   There was discussion regarding the Partnership Agreement and the accompanying cover letter, the latter revised as to form by Karen Boren. Claire Vanderslice expressed her disapproval of the use of the term "strong economy" in the letter and of the lack of DNR identification within the letter. Sharon Gayan and Gretchen Messer, as well as other members, noted that the equal weight given to the three elements "healthy environment, a strong economy, and a high quality of life" represent a balance of interests within the Partnership. Additionally, various members indicated that especially with the election of the new chairs, neither of whom are representing the DNR, that the role of the DNR has changed, and that the DNR is now merely another member at the table, sharing resources, as all the members are expected to do. However, to reflect the history of the Partnership, the wording under "Purpose" of the Agreement will be changed as follows:

   Original
   "The Milwaukee River Basin Partnership is a voluntary coalition of businesses, non-profit groups, public agencies, educational institutions, organizations and individuals committed to restoring and sustaining the ecosystem of the Milwaukee River Basin, while ensuring economic viability."

   Revision
   "Begun as an initiative of the Department of Natural Resources and the University of Wisconsin Extension, the Milwaukee River Basin Partnership is a voluntary coalition of businesses, non-profit groups, public agencies, educational institutions, organizations and individuals committed to restoring and sustaining the ecosystem of the Milwaukee River Basin, while ensuring economic viability."

   Further, to stress the equal weight of the elements to which Claire objected, the word "combines" will replace the word "includes" in the cover letter.

   As Claire still disapproved of the letter and the Agreement, a vote was taken as to whether to adopt the changes and finalize the documents or to continue to revise them (already 2 years in the drafting). The vote was 12-1, with Karen Boren abstaining. Thus the changes were adopted and the letter and Partnership Agreement finalized.

7. Single-Issue Project
   Due to time constraints, discussion of the single-issue project, on which the Partnership will focus was deferred to the next meeting, which will be held solely for the discussion of this project on Friday, July 28, 2000 at the main Milwaukee office of the DNR (see below).

8. New Grant Opportunities
   Information on the following grant opportunity was distributed:

   • The Watershed Assistance Grant is aimed at "support[ing] the growth and sustainability of local watershed partnerships in the United States …to promote watershed protection and/or restoration by resolving identified watershed problems and issues." Deadline: August 15, 2000.

9. Public Comments and New Business
   There were no comments from the public and the meeting was adjourned. A luncheon followed the meeting at Harrington Beach.

10. Upcoming Meeting
    Friday, July 28, 2000
    Department of Natural Resources
    2300 North M.L. King Jr., Drive
    P.O. Box 12436
    Milwaukee, WI 53212-0436
    Hosts: Dave Fowler, Angie Tornes

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