|
MEMBERS MEETING MINUTES
Thursday, July 11th, 2024 4pm-5pm
Location: Storm Stayed Brewing Company & by Zoom
ITEMS:
1. Car Free Day event coming to Wortley Village Business District
2. Old South Community Organization update
3. Christmas in the Village (Reorganizing, looking for volunteers)
4. Skylar Franke, Ward 11 City Councillor (Small Business Programs, Energy Audit / grants etc.)
5. FedDev Old South Beautification Result
6. Communications report
7. Memberships report
8. Other Business Community Happenings / Discussion
(Grand Wood Park Night Market, New SOHO Community Group, Random Acts of Kindness Day, Business Meeting for Women)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Summary
Thank you Storm Stayed Brewing for hosting!
Some notes from owner Justin:
- They’ve been around for almost 7 years at their Wharncliffe location.
- Think of themselves as a Community Group
- Pride themselves on diversity of different flavours, always exploring.
- Available in LCBO (when they’re not on strike! 😉), & select restaurants / bars.
- Host trivia nights once a week
1. World Car Free Day event
- Wortley Village is celebrating World Car Free Day on September 22 11am to 4pm along with cities around the globe.
- Wortley Road will be pedestrianized from Craig/Askin to Bruce Streets.
- The event highlights the numerous benefits of going car-free to citizens
- Activities include walking tours, yoga, storytelling, karaoke, games, and exploring the many great shops and culinary delights that Wortley Village has to offer.
- A bicycle valet service will be provided in conjunction with a bike event that day.
- It’s a partnership between the London Environmental Network, the City of London and Doors Open London.
2. Old South Community Organization
- OSCO’s community Electric Vehicle charger at Village Auto Care is once again in service after some repair! (It's free for area residents.)
- There is a new bike repair station that is free to use by Tuckey’s Home Hardware!
3. Christmas in the Village Event (Reorganizing, looking for volunteers)
- The event will take place Saturday, November 30th 12n to 4pm in the Wortley Village business district
- Live music, sleigh rides, Outdoor games / kids crafts, Christmas market / holiday shopping, food, and more!
- Looking for volunteers & to fill some leadership roles. Area business owners encouraged to help mold this this incredible event.
4. Skylar Franke, Ward 11 City Councillor
- You can get all kinds of business help on the 2nd floor at city hall, specially if you’re starting out. Also a great resource for home based businesses, consultant resources, business licenses etc: https://london.ca/business-development
- If you know of a new business in Old South, Skylar has a “Welcome to the neighbourhood” bag with a lot of great information and resources that she can provide.
- You can ask the city for an energy audit and you can learn about the potential of getting a grant for thousands of dollars in incentive support.
- If there is an issue you’d like to report to the city, re: trees, garbage, roads, homelessness etc, go to the Service London Portal: https://service.london.ca/
GRANTS & ADVOCACY
5. FedDev Mainstreet Grant (Wortley Business District Beautification - Planter boxes and illumination of historically significant buildings) - Application
- The OSBA was informed that our submission was not selected to receive funding.
Ian Leishman: Perhaps next year we can better align our application with Downtown Guelph’s beautification plan that was approved, by consulting directly with the authors who developed and submitted it.
OSBA REPORTS
6. OSBA Communications
- OSBA Facebook Page followers: 3600+ (last month: 3600+)
- OSBA FB Business & Events members: 1900+ (last month: 1600+)
- Google Business Profile: 156 views (Last month: 148 views)
- Mailchimp email blasts
Recipients: 374 (last month: 357)
Last Month Open Rates: June Mixer Invite > 53.8%, May Meeting Minutes > 52.0%
(All time high: 67.0% > March Members Minutes)
7. OSBA Memberships
- # of members: 60 (Last month: 56)
- Past month new members, welcome to:
> Melissa Roth, Belle Maison Interiors
> William Buss, Buss Business Solutions
> Charlotte Fleming, Elmwood Lawn Bowling Club
> Tim Eifert, Priority Massage & Health
8. Business Community Happenings / Discussion
> Grand Wood Park Weekly Night Market
For those that aren’t already aware, Grand Wood Park is hosting a Weekly Thursday Night Market throughout the summer 4pm to 8pm on their grounds featuring vendors, artisans,crafters, food trucks and bring a lawn chair for various music artists performing each week!
> New SOHO Community Organization.
Mark Thomas, Rob Hodsun & team are reigniting the SOHO Community Organization. https://soholondon.ca/ and are looking for ways to collaborate and grow together. A new group was elected June 7th. They’re working on upcoming community events and opportunities for community involvement.
> Random Acts of Kindness Day
Project IMPACK's Random Acts of Kindness Day in London Friday, August 2nd. The MYLIE Group is part of the founding members of this organization for an inspiring day of community and kindness. More information including how to get involved on the Project IMPACK website.
> Breakfast Meeting for Women (BMW)
Eleni from the Cooperators wanted to invite businesswomen to a professional networking group for women based in London named Breakfast Meeting for Women. https://www.breakfastmeetingforwomen.com/
NEXT MEETINGS:
- Business Mixer: Thu September 12th 4:30-6pm @ the Wortley Roadhouse. (Free hors d'oeuvres & first drink)
- Member’s Meeting: Thu October 10th, 4pm at the Locomotive Espresso at 350 Ridout Street South.
|
