CHARLOTTE AREA GREEN PARTY / NOVEMBER MEETING


Members present:Alan Burns, Gregg Jocoy, Mark Ortiz, Kathryn Kuppers, Richard Hornsby, Harry Phillips, Ben Collins and Gray Newman

• Mark Ortiz, Treasurer, reported that we have $527.8 in our treasury, which includes $33 in cash. We received two $50 donations during the past month, one from Graham Jenkin and the other from Edward Saab. For these donations, we incurred a $3.50 Pay Pal service charge. Mark will annotate receipts and Gray and Harry will sign receipts regarding our contribution to the NCGP State Fair booth. Ed and Eileen Hanson-Kelly will mail us $105 in Labor Day Parade proceeds.
  
  
• Clerk Harry Phillips read October meeting minutes.
  
  
• Kathryn reported on the recent stream clean-up and noted that there was more trash this time. A brief discussion involved the demolition of the Midtown Square area and the loss of 250 jobs for the Little Sugar Creek Greenway project. There is nothing we can do now to help, but Gray will apprise us of future city building plans. Alan suggested we consider taking on another stretch of the greenway area, as this would potentially generate some publicity.
  
  
• A group at Myers Park High School wants to work with us, in general, and this group agreed to put a link to CAGP on their web site.
  
  
• Gray reported on CAGP’s participation at the State Fair and noted that we got 97 ballot access signatures. We partnered in a booth with Forests of the World and they may agree to share their booth again next year. The Libertarians supported us there and we may work with them re: ballot access.
  
  
• Gray reported on his election victory to the position of Soil and Water Conservation District Supervisor. In 48 (of 191) precincts, he was first in vote-getting and second in 69 precincts. Of the 48 precincts, 25 are Black-Democrat, 15 White-Democrat, and 8 White-Republican. Gray outpaced incumbent Eddie Stroupe by 219 votes, or .6 percent. Of the ten or so precincts we worked for Gray, he beat Stroupe by 380 votes, a measure of how effective precinct campaigning can be. Gray explained his focus on the following federal programs: reforestation, farm runoff, revegetation by streams, a sapling sale, education in local schools, and sponsoring the envirathon contest in high schools. It was agreed that our web site needs a link to Gray’s official conservation board site. Gregg commended Gray, as we all did, for a well organized campaign. Darrell Williams, Black at-large candidate for county commissioner and Norman Mitchell, a Black candidate, suggested that Black voters need to look at other voting options, such as the Green Party. George Martin in Wisconsin, a Black Green Party member, will contact Williams and Mitchell. Paul Delaney won 1,257 votes in his U.S. Senate campaign.
  
  
• Alan reported that we may appear in late-Nov. or early-Dec. on “Charlotte Talks.”
  
  
• Richard reported on the anti-war march in Washington, DC.
  
  
• Mary Olson from NIRS-SE is looking for a new litigant in her agency’s case vs. Duke Energy. The litigant should live within 10-20 miles of McGuire Power Plant.
  
  
• Harry suggested that Ed McGuire be invited to our Dec. meeting. Becky Tin, newly elected district judge, and her husband are lawyers and are folks we should keep in mind should we need legal counsel.
  
  
• Alan will investigate the possibility of an independent running for local office and appearing on the ballot.
  
  
• Lee Hicks’s proposed campaign-organizing workshop will likely happen in Raleigh in January. Gregg mentioned that some South Carolina folks may go to Raleigh and help with the workshop. Alan will post to the listserve as to the EC’s vote on this proposal.
  
  
• Kathryn mentioned the North Carolina Conservation Network’s upcoming retreat and wondered whether we should have a link to this group on our site. Harry suggested that we should.
  
  
• Gregg will contact the Hanson-Kellys about presenting to our Dec. meeting at 3pm. This will allow them to present their for-profit insurance company policies.
  
  
• Gray reported that a new air quality committee for Mecklenburg County has been formed. He and Gregg agreed that our presence on this committee (Gray) can influence policy and we should pursue this involvement.
  
  
• Alan distributed copies of Living Simply and asked if we are agreeable to having an ad for our group in LS in exchange for Alan distributing copies of this publication. This was, at least in part, agreed on.
  
  Respectfully Submitted,
  
  Harry Phillips Nov. 25, 2002