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A look ahead...
LWV public meetings are held in the Sons of Norway Lodge, 722 2nd Ave.
N., Fargo, in the meeting room behind the cafeteria. Members and guests
who wish to go through the buffet line and eat together (in the lodge
meeting room), may do so at 11:30 a.m.
- September 6, 2002 12:00 noon
- First Friday, Sons of Norway
Meet with the Mayors-- A chance to hear from and question
the mayors of West Fargo, Fargo and Moorhead
- September 12, 2002 7:30 p.m.
- Membership Meeting
Fargo Public Library Meeting Room
Topic: DNet and Voters’ Service
- September 12, 2002 6:30 p.m.
- LWVRRV Board Meeting preceding the above membership meeting
- October 4, 2002 12:00 noon
- First Friday, Sons of Norway
Food Safety Issues Today
Speaker: Brian Kramer , Farm Bureau
- October 10, 2002 7:30 p.m.
- Membership Meeting
Fargo Public Library Meeting Room
Topic: Wind Energy in North Dakota
- November 1,2002 12:00 noon
- First Friday, Sons of Norway
Understanding Election Polls
Speakers: Drs. Jim Danielson and Phil Bauman, MSUM Political Science
Department
Candidate Forums
Fargo: Check the League website or DNet
for details of time and place
Moorhead: F-M Chamber of Commerce, Senior Connections and MN-AARP
are joining LWV in sponsoring candidate forums at the Hjemkomst Center
on:
- Thursday, Aug. 29, 2:30-4 p.m. Sheriff Candidates
- Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2:30-4 p.m. Candidates for House Seats 9A and
9B
- Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2:30-4 p.m. Senate District 9 and any contested
Clay County races
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The League of Women Voters values diversity in its
members. In primicple and in practice, the League knows no barriers
on the basis of age, creed, disability, gender, national origin,
race or sexual orientation, and encourages full participation in
and contribution to the organization by all its members.
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From
the President
I write this president's letter without the help of our co-president,
Janet Van Amburg, who has been ill the past several weeks. We all wish
Janet a full recovery.
As summer comes to an end, we find ourselves gearing up for another
year of League activities and opportunities. Make the commitment to get
involved! Whether it is attending the monthly membership meetings, Voter
Service, Observer Corps or First Fridays, you won't be disappointed.
We'll start our First Friday meetings on September 6th with the Mayors
of West Fargo, Fargo and Moorhead. This will certainly be a lively and
interesting discussion.
Our next membership meeting is scheduled for Thursday, September 12th
at the Fargo Public Library. The membership meetings are an opportunity
to discuss League activities, studies and items of community interest.
Mark your calendars!
I wish each of you a wonderful autumn and hope to see you soon!
--Janice Jones, Co-President
League presents position to local governments
At its July meeting, the LWVRRV Board adopted a local position on city
appointed boards and commissions as reached by member consensus in June.
The position calls for an open appointments process, diversity on appointed
boards and commissions and strengthening the integrity and effectiveness
of boards and commissions. The committee presented this position to Fargo
and Moorhead governing boards August 5.
Carol Sawicki made the presentation at the Fargo City Commission meeting.
Mayor Furness responded that Fargo has placed ads for board/commission
openings in the past, but received more names than they could use. He
said there are self-imposed term limits on many of the boards. The city
of Fargo already has programs to recognize persons who volunteer to serve
in the city. While training for new board members is not done in the city
as a whole, each individual board does have training sessions with city
staff members. The city officially received and filed the report. Later
in the meeting a citizens addressed the commission and mentioned the League
report. The Mayor then noted that the city of Fargo keeps a list of interested
people to appoint.
Mary Davies presented the same statement to the Moorhead City Council.
There were no questions. Mayor Voxland thanked the League for their interest
and said they would keep our suggestions in mind. Earlier in the meeting
Council Member Rowell had noted the difficulty in recruiting diverse populations
for boards and commissions.
Marlene Batterberry is working on approaching the city of West Fargo.
In our position we did say that the League has an obligation to help
inform citizens about their government and how they can be involved. In
Fargo and Moorhead it is important for League members to let their elected
officials know that they are interested in serving on a board or commission
and to suggest people who would be good candidates.
LWVRRV will need to monitor the appointment process and continue to encourage
greater diversity in appointments. This was a first step in that process.
--Carol Sawicki and Mary Davies
Board Briefs
The board of directors met for a planning session on July 17,2002. Suzanne
Dobbins, Jan Van Amberg and Carla Hartje spoke on their LWVUS National
Convention experiences in Florida last June. All agreed that it was a
wonderful opportunity.
The following committee portfolios were assigned:
- Finance Development: Kathy Kvalvog
- Voters’ Service: Marlene Batterberry, Mary Davies, Jan Van Amberg,
Barb Headrick and Carla Hartje
- Public Relations: Julia Jones
- Action: Audrey Richmond
- Voter Editor: Carol Sawicki
- First Friday Meetings: Barb Headrick and Carolyn Bowe
- Membership Meetings: Suzanne Dobbins and Carla Hartje
- Naturalization Ceremony: Margaret Blue and Marlene Batterberry
- Website and DNet: Suzanne Dobbins, Audrey Richmond, Carla Hartje and
Barbara Headrick
- Speakers Bureau: Mary Davies
- Annual Meeting: Julia Jones, Jan Van Amberg, Carla Hartje
- Freedom Lecture: Jan Van Amburg
It is hoped that each committee will expand as members sign up to serve.
The board voted to adopt the positions presented to the membership by
the Boards and Commissions Study Committee following consensus in June.
It was decided to present the positions/suggestions to the Fargo and Moorhead
city governing boards. (See League Presents Position to Local Governments
article.)
Mary Davies will order Minnesota Voters’ Guides from LW MN to be
distributed this fall. Mary, Carol Sawicki and Carla Hartje volunteered
to work on a New Citizen voter education training project this fall.
League of Women Voters of the Red River Valley
Officers 2002-03
Co-Presidents: Julia Jones* and Janet Van Amburg*
Vice President: Barbara Headrick*
Secretary: Mary Davies*
Treasurer: Suzanne Dobbins
Directors:
Marlene Batterberry, Carla Hartje, Margaret Blue,*
Carolyn Bowe,* Helen Rudie,* Carol Sawicki *
Nominating Committee:
Bea Arett, Judy Lee, Lois Ivers Altenburg, Mary Davies and Margaret Blue
* denotes terms expiring in 2003
Observer Corps
Fargo City Commission
August 19, 2002.
The city of Fargo is working to be proactive in the realm of planning
for future growth in the city. There was a widely reported discussion
of the proposed annexation of land southwest of the city, and how this
might conflict with the planned growth of West Fargo. There were several
other items of this nature that were voted on such as rezoning of property
in north Fargo on 32nd Ave. (the "pony farm" land). Although
this land is not currently owned by a developer, and there are no imminent
plans for such a sale, the city planners decided to rezone it now, ahead
of time.
The property is currently zoned agricultural although it is surrounded
by residential areas. If the property is developed in the future, the
new zoning will allow for residential uses only on most of the land with
a small commercial strip along University Drive. Because the land is near
the airport and the sewage treatment plant, special restrictions regarding
the height of buildings and the size of buffer zones were included in
the zoning language.
Fargo is also looking forward to growth towards the northwest of the
city, near the city of Reile’s Acres, since the new horse park will
probably create development there. The Growth Plan was amended to include
that land in Fargo’s extraterritorial area. --Carol Sawicki, Observer
Fargo School Board
July 23, 2002.
Co-chairs Ann Cichy and Jim Nelson of the Fargo Long Range Planning Committee
for School Facilities, presented final recommendations to the Fargo School
Board. The report contained two sections: Facility Planning Guiding Principles
in rank order and the committee’s actual recommendations for facilities
upon which consensus was reached.
The seven guiding principles included preference for:
- Class size: Elementary, 17-22; Secondary, 23-25
- School Size: elementary, 200-400; Middle school, 600-800; High school,
900-1200
- A single grade configuration across the city
- Travel of less than 1 mile to or from elementary school or a maximum
of 15-20 minutes on a bus and less than 1-1/2 miles from middle, junior
or high school and a maximum of 15-20 minutes on a bus
- A return of kindergarten programs to the elementary school across
the city
- Transportation of students to under-populated schools as opposed
to building new or closing schools.
- Community use of schools
Realizing that their recommendations have significant policy implications
and that several will require further feasibility studies, the committee
reported the following preferences for facilities:
- A single grade configuration.
- Movement of kindergartners back into elementary schools (in keeping
with principle #1).
- At least three middle/jr. high schools-- the number currently maintained
by the district.
- Replacement/major renovation of Agassiz Middle School-- specifically,
the committee recognizes the need for improving this facility and recommends
replacement of all or components of the building on the same or a new
site.
In addition, the committee requested that these facility related policies
be adopted:
- A broad-based, proactive process be developed and maintained for continuing
involvement of school and community in the facility planning process.
- Demographic evaluations should be established as enrollment and population
changes.
- The Facility Planning Guiding Principles should be used as a filter
for any future decisions regarding facilities including but not limited
to renovations, new construction and school closings.
- Policies should be put in place and published by the Board of Education
providing criteria for opening and closing schools which are in keeping
with the Guiding Principles.
- Before execution of any elements within the facility plan, a complete
and thorough feasibility study be conducted to ensure the best possible
solution to the facility needs of the community. This study should include
site feasibility studies, boundary and feeder pattern analysis, budget
implication analysis, busing plans, traffic studies and assessments
of existing building conditions.
The above recommendations are edited from the lengthy report prepared
by consultants DeJong and Associates which details the process and resources
used in drawing the conclusions presented. A longer condensation than
appearing here will be available at the First Friday meeting.
The school board seemed receptive to the report. William DeJong and
and Carolyn Staskievicz of the consultant firm DeJong and Associates,
Inc. were present at the meeting and provided additional comments. In
response to a question, Dr. DeJong said that in his judgment the time
line for the implementation of the total plan would be about five to ten
years. Surely, various aspects will not be accomplished quickly. There
was little unfavorable reaction expressed at the meeting to the consultants
or the process through which they guided the committee and community.
Changes to current facilities are still in progress as school starts.
Construction is underway at North High School and Clara Barton Elementary.
This will be the first year for the joint operation of Hawthorne (grades
K-3) and Clara Barton (grades 4-6) schools.
--Audrey Richmond, Participant Observer
Be a part of the league observer corps!
Are you interested in government and how it works?
If you are a member of the League of Women Voters, then the answer to
this question is almost certainly yes. Would you like to learn more and
become more involved in local government? If the answer to this question
is yes, then maybe you should consider joining the Observer Corps of the
League of Women Voters of the Red River Valley.
Would you like a chance to help other local Leaguers be better informed
citizens? This year the League is studying local board and commissions.
There are a large number of these that operate in Fargo, Moorhead, West
Fargo and Cass and Clay Counties. Most local citizens are not aware of
the duties and importance of these bodies. A LWV observer can report back
to our members via the Voter newsletter and help them learn more.
An observer, in most cases, spends only one or two hours per month attending
the regular meetings of a local board or commission. All observers wear
a badge identifying them as a league member. They do not participate in
the meeting, except to ask a question for clarification if necessary.
Many regular Observers have discovered that attending local board meetings
is an interesting and highly educational experience. The LWVRRV is a respected
organization, and the people who make up these local decision-making groups
come to know and respect individuals who come to observe them.
Observing is a good way for anyone who is considering political office
to become known to the community. It can also help them decide where they
can best use their own interests and talents to serve their community.
If you are interested or would like to learn more about the LWV Observer
Corps, please contact Carol Sawicki at 232-5676.
People Notes
A call to Co-President Jan Van Amberg on August 22 revealed that she
is home after two weeks in the hospital with high fever and pain. There
has been no diagnosis but after five weeks her symptoms are finally gone
leaving her very weak and also bruised from many IVs. We wish her well.
We send condolences to longtime active League member, Alice Hauan, whose
husband, Jim, passed away last month. Alice and Jim had spent the past
winter in Seattle but had returned to Fargo shortly before Jim’s
death.
Congratulations are due League member Arlette Preston who has begun
a four year term on the Fargo School Board. We know from Arlette’s
previous service on the city commission that she is not afraid to question
actions when she feels it is necessary.
We extend our appreciation to retired School Board members Mari McCullough
and Kim Brust for their service to the community as well as former City
Commissioner Gib Bromenschenkel for his many contributions to the city.
Special thanks to Finance Chair Kathy Kalvog for her fund raising ideas
and follow through. Most recently she managed the LWV rummage sale in
Oak Grove Park on August 17.
League Programs
Voters’ Service Forums
Fargo: Check the League website or DNet
for details of time and place
Moorhead: F-M Chamber of Commerce, Senior Connections and Moorhead/Clay-AARPare
joining LWV in sponsoring candidate forums at the Hjemkomst Center on:
- Thursday, Aug. 29, 2:30-4 p.m. Sheriff candidates
- Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2:30-4 p.m. Candidates for House Seats 9A and
9B
- Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2:30-4 p.m. Senate District 9 and any contested
Clay County races
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Table of Contents
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Red
River Valley