I just got back from a really fascinating Bylaw Committee meeting and I can’t wait to tell you all about it! (No wait…come back…hmm maybe this is why people avoid me at parties…?)
Seriously though, I realize that bylaws are pretty much something only a process nerd could love so I won’t go into too much detail. First I want to say, I really appreciate all the time that Jim and Gloria and Bob have been putting in to modernize these; you have to be pretty darn dedicated to take on this type of task. To make the bylaws seem less annoying, I try and think of them as a roadmap for how we, as a community, make decisions. In my mind good bylaws keep people from getting lost when they are trying to make things happen. If we set them up right, they will make it easier to get things done in a transparent and efficient way and at the same time make it clear who is accountable for the actions we take. I’m happy to report, that I can safely say now that we’ve actually went through the bylaws line by line tonight, that we’re actually in pretty good shape.
But there are a few things that we think could be clearer such as: how we determine who is eligible to vote; how money is spent; and how the committees are set up. We think these area could be clearer or reflect better how we get things done now as opposed when the Bylaws were last amended back in 2004. If I’ve succeeded in getting you excited about the bylaws (ha, ever the optimist) you can see the current bylaws at: alleghenywest.org/get-involved/allegheny-west-civic-council/bylaws/. We hope to have a draft with the changes we’ve been talking about for several months at the April meeting if we can hammer out the wording to our satisfaction, but May at the latest. And I really am happy to talk to you about this (preferably with a glass of wine in my hand..or yours).
A few more selected updates: We’re still waiting to hear back about the grants that were submitted for the tree well projects. Trish, Holly and Mary did an such a great job on the flower baskets that we’re up to 18 baskets at this point, 10 more than the 8 that we had been hoping for. We’ll publish a complete list of sponsors next month, but in the meantime you can see the current list at alleghenywest.org/flowers. It’s not too late to sponsor a basket! Planning is underway for an Allegheny West Candidates night, tentatively scheduled for 4/14 (if we can convince anyone to show up). The Membership Committee has an incredibly ambitious set of events planned for this year that you’ll be hearing about (and man, that meeting has the best snacks ever, just saying, you know…in case you choose your committees to volunteer with based on the food.) We have the Wine Tour down to a science – tickets are on sale at alleghenywest.org/tour. You heard it here first! I could keep going…
Honestly, I figured as Treasurer that I had a pretty good idea of what was going on in the neighborhood, since I figured most things would need a check. Wow, two months in and my eyes have been opened! I’m truly amazed, especially for such a small neighborhood, by the number of people who are off just doing their part to make our neighborhood a better place.
I trust everyone will keep surprising me… 🙂
Catherine Serventi
President, AWCC