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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes CITY OF OSHKOSH SUSTAINABILITY ADVISORY BOARD Minutes January 6,2020 PRESENT: Margy Davey, Pat Dwyer Hallquist, Lurton Blassingame, Eric DeGroot,Vic Oliver, Bradley Spanbauer,Jake Krause EXCUSED: Michelle Bogden Muetzel, Adam Maslowski, Robert Turner ABSENT: None STAFF AND OTHERS: Steven Wiley, Scott Williams (Oshkosh Media) I. Call to Order Chair Margy Davey called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm and a quorum was declared present. II. Public Comment Chair Davey asked Mr. Blassingame to share the 1993 UW-Oshkosh commencement address he had originally wrote and presented over 26 years previously. Mr. Blassingame presented this address to the board as he did to the 1993 class. The address focused on a challenge of the belief that the planet had unlimited resources. Mr. Blassingame mentioned spaceship Earth running through space with a malfunctioning filtration system and certain vital supplies running dangerously low. Other images shared a common theme of a finite planet with limits that were being approached or exceeded. Mr. Blassingame's address mentioned a new line of thinking summed up by the phrase "sustainable development." He defined sustainability as that of development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. Sustainable development was a metaphor for a way of thinking now accepted around the world. The 1993 class was the first May class to graduate since 162 nations sent representatives to the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. He mentioned that as college educated people, the class had learned to trust data. He presented a number of examples and figures of adverse impacts on the environment. He stated that sustainability would come when people saw that it was in their own interests. He stated that people had allies in the battle to save the planet and provided examples such as CEOs of companies, scientists, Nobel Prize recipients, government leaders,school children and college counterparts. Mr.Blassingame finished his address and Chair Davey thanked him. She noted that in 1992 the summit had occurred in Rio de Janeiro. In 1993 Mr. Blassingame presented to the graduates of UWO. In 2006, Al Gore came out with Au Inconvenient Truth and she stated that she wanted Mr. Blassingame to share the address so that it would serve as inspiration for the board later when they went through their workshop and decide what they wanted to do for the City of Oshkosh in 2020. She then proceeded with the agenda. III. Approval of Minutes,December 2nd,2019 No board members had any revisions for the minutes so the board approved the December 2nd minutes 7-0 (Dwyer-Hallquist/Blassingame). IV. UW-Oshkosh Senior Seminar—Student Projects-Update Mr. Wiley provided a brief update and explained that he had contacted Professor Feldman regarding the four student projects that the Environmental Studies class had presented in December to the board. He stated that he had not yet heard back from Professor Feldman but that the Professor might have been off of campus. Mr. Spanbauer stated that he could check with Professor Feldman since he would see him on campus. V. Proposal—Electric Vehicle Project—Eric DeGroot-Update Mr. Wiley explained that he got an inventory of the City's vehicle fleets from staff. He stated that the list provided the vehicle make and model, type and year. Mr. DeGroot asked if Mr. Wiley could also obtain the list of locations where the vehicles were stored. Mr. Wiley answered that he could follow up with staff. VI. Lakeshore Master Planning Process -Update Mr. Wiley explained that the Lakeshore Park Master Plan was recently approved at the December 10th Common Council meeting and December 3rd Plan Commission meeting. Mr. Wiley stated that the Plan's implementation would be a long-term process. Mr. Krause stated that the implementation was expected to cost around$12 million. He stated that questions and discussion had come up around funding and why certain items were planned for funding at certain times. VII. Menominee Shoreland Restoration—Update Chair Davey explained that there was no update for the month because Ms. Bogden Muetzel could not attend the meeting. VIII. Social Media—Discussion/Action Ms. Oliver announced that she would plan 2020 Facebook posts and had sent Mr. Wiley the posts for January on electric vehicles. Chair Davey also mentioned that there was information on Facebook for nominating people for the 2020 Environmental Awards and that nominations would close on January 31st. IX. Agenda Items for Future Meeting Items for the February meeting would include 2020 goals, an update on the student reports and an update on the Electric Vehicle project. Chair Davey explained that for February she was planning a guest speaker to talk about ways to fund energy improvements to homes. The Menominee Shoreland Restoration would also be on the February agenda. X. Next Meeting,Monday,February 3rd1 2020-City Hall Room 404 Chair Davey reminded the board of the next meeting. The board voted 7-0 to adjourn at 6:19 pm (Oliver/Blassingame). Recorded by: Steven Wiley,Assistant Planner