Resident Communication Committee

4 PM. – February 20, 2008 – Coosaw River Room
Minutes

Present:	Joyce Hoerner, Steve Koehl, John Lynch, Bob Rasmussen, Sid Schwartz
Board Liaison:	Jo Stephey
Communications Director:	Dan Baxter
Web Portal Administrator:	Paul Shane
Excused:	Jim McGrath, Bea Boockholdt
Guests:	Karen Bayer, Bert Walker

Opening Remarks:

• Chair – mentioned that others may be asked to read quarterly reports to BoD.
• Board Liaison- Jo discussed a number of items:

1. Change of BoD, liaison assignments

2. BoD will take action to fill our vacancies.

3. The upcoming meeting on Magnolia Hall.

4. No time-line on old/new portal other than completion of the RFP.

• Communications Director - no remarks.
• Portal Administrator - no remarks.
• Karen Bayer, Government and Business Affairs Committee, seeking advice on how to communicate GBAC items of interest more effectively. The remarks included:

1. SunSations

2. CATV for simple communiqués – slide show format

3. CATV for interview style airing of the facts

4. TYSK

5. The GBAC website is undergoing change of webmaster

6. Portal is not seen as a competitor

7. Low Power FM radio was also mentioned in a prospective sense

• Bert Walker, chair Technology Advisory Committee- spoke about completion of the RFP for a new web presence.

Quorum – Minutes

There was a quorum. There was no objection to a waiving of the reading of minutes. There were no changes to the minutes as distributed. The minutes were accepted as distributed.

Old Business:

• Begin consideration of RCC Objectives for 2008.

The chair urged that we focus on what we can actually achieve on our own or through cooperative action with other groups. The items below were put forth earlier. Bob Rasmussen will present an update of the previous work along with some suggestions.

1.       A website that is readily acceptable by the residents (high utilization numbers). This could be achieved with easy access, timely news, and interactivity with daily activities, for example golf and tennis sign-ups, cam account, event sign-ups, etc. Revenue generation should be a long term goal and should not hinder the initial goals.

2.     Sunsations and the phone directory seem to be successes among the residents. It is necessary to determine ways to optimize the revenue they generate. Since the number of pages in Sunsations is maxed out, it looks to be a cheap means for local companies to advertise and we should take this opportunity to raise the rates for advertising.

• Request for certain documents showing the bottom line for the Communications Department, its Goals and Objectives

Dan said he will email budget and goals.

• Plan for Public Relations Program

Jim McGrath, who is heading this effort is not here and had no report.

Sub-committee and Liaison Reports – Recommendations, Exceptional Items, Questions

• Broadcast Sub-committee Report:

1.       Status of SunRise readers – still trying

2.       Effort to expand content on CATV 50

• Fitness

• Old time radio – check with play reading group in Community Theatre

• Freebies from vendors

3.     LPFM update. Old Time Radio has gone on to Channel 51. We would like to set up a working group to start getting the FCC LPFM license application started and John is going to DC to meet with the interest group to learn more about licensing and lobbying Demint and Graham and Wilson. John reported on:

• Progress of the house and senate bills and lobbying efforts

• Expects LPFM licensing to be available in 2009

• We have to be ready to jump in

• Need for budget

• Need for a working group

• Resident Directory and Maps Sub-committee Report: – no report
• NewComers Sub-committee Report:

NewComers' Welcoming Group report for Jan. 2008 Activity: Greeted 42 from 24 homes; held 3 coffees with 48 attendees from 33 homes.

• Internet Sub-committee Report: – no report from Steve. Paul had sent number [Note: the numbers for January were later discovered to be in error. The revised numbers are below. –Secretary]:

Month/2007	Unique users	Percent of residents	Total logins	Logged more than once
Jan	3212	28.8	25158	2201
Feb	2774	24.5	16570	1712
Mar	2892	25.3	16488	1777
Apr	2650	22.8	20815	1819
May	2538	21.6	20,263	1740
Jun	2554	21.4	22121	1724
Jul	2491	21.6	23522	1695
Aug	2759	22.1	25981	1897
Sep	2757	22.1	21597	1925
Oct	2557	21.1	22322	1819
Nov	2463	20.2	20591	1757
Dec	2950	24.0	25719	1964
Month/2008
Jan	2455	24.1	20714	1732

• TAC liaison: - already covered by remarks from Bert Walker.
• Transition Team liaison: - nothing in the area of communication was discussed.

New Business:

• Getting an answer to: is anyone listening to Sunrise Readers; homes that do not get our CATV, or more generally, the sense of the community on any particular issue.

Answers are needed so that managers and volunteer leaders can make judgments about which projects to put scarce resources into, e.g., Sunrise Readers, CATV 51.

Dan Baxter said that his department plans for 2008 include conducting a community survey. The hope is that something can be learned from that work that would apply to more limited questions and a shorter time-frame.

Adjournment: 5:03 pm.

Open Action Items:

• Consider possible changes to the Strategic Plan and Objectives
• Develop Public Relations Program – BoD assignment.

Next meeting 

4 PM Wednesday, March 19, 2008, Coosaw River Room, HCGCRC