Thursday   |  15 September 2016   |   9am to 11am

16^th Street Community Health Clinic   |   1032 S. Cesar E. Chavez Drive  |   Milwaukee, Wisconsin  53204

The Milwaukee Food Council is a coalition of diverse stakeholders committed to building a food system that is healthy, ecologically sustainable, economically vibrant, culturally relevant and socially just. Using collaborative action and collective impact, we bring our stakeholders together to increase the capacity to make real change.

1. 8:30 to 9am Networking and Orientation for New Members. Martha Davis Kipcak
2. 9:00am Meeting begins with introductions. Stephanie Calloway

• Meeting start at 9:07 am
• Draft of news announcement and request – If you have anything news wise, please fill out and return to Stephanie
• Working to get it digital
• Sign-up sheet – last page has paying member list
• Others – welcome, column to ‘opt in’ to be listed on the website as friends of the food council
• Alison from SSCHC – communications director. SSCHC is in the Heart of south side, densely Latino and also low income. Around for over 45 years (47 or 48) so they are well established in the community. Unique position to serve the community. Here to cater to the people that live here. We take everyone, people with and without insurance, immigration status does not matter, ability to pay does not matter. Everything is under one roof. Array of support services, ie healthy choices – obesity prevention, and other social determinants of health. Chronic health, environmental health, parenting resources etc. not just to get healthy, but to stay healthy
  • Introductions – please see attendance
• MFC committee updates and engagement
  1. Executive Committee.
• Submitted 501c3 in July, waiting to hear back hopefully within the next 6 months
• Minutes: how are they shared.
  1. Definition: ‘minutes’ – this was discussed, along with a summary of the notes
  2. Definition: ‘notes’ – we capture the discussion point
• At membership meeting Tony takes notes, Nya does back up, and passes to Kristen. Followed up by the BOD approval before posting, ie September will be approved in November.
• Then email will be sent with the link. About 3 weeks to comment on the notes,
  1. Email comments to back to ExCom and will be attached as additional.
• The final notes will be uploaded to the website before the next full meeting. Since we just created this policy, after October you will receive both the July and September.
• We do not have the capacity for video or voice recording
• Mary- duration. A number of new things it’s a long time to have open comments. It seems terribly lengthy since it is this body is embarking on new things, and committee input. For the record – that is terribly lengthy process.
• At least the BOD has to approve the minutes, email approval is challenging as well
• BOD elections in January – planting seeds – 6 members will be up for potential reelection in January
• Really a membership to the MFC is only requirement
• October we will send out a job description, and November have more discussion
  1. Membership Committee. Martha
• We encourage people to join, it is $25 a year, for the small costs that add up: a website, communicating, buying the coffee. We limp along as lean as possible we appreciate your participation. Encourage you to encourage other like minded people, networking for collaborative and collective impact
• Wall for facebook? To get membership –
• Suggest the power of social media to share
• All are welcome to the table
• More important than the membership is the participation
• Is there a dx of the vision why this was formed?
  1. Yes, on the top of the agenda but also the website.
• We realize that communication is probably our weak point.
• Suggestion to have support for Tony
  1. He would love to have support in that
• Applications are on the website with pay pal or check. Kristen has receipt booklet to take cash.

1. Fundraising Committee. Tim

• Waiting for 501c3,
• Trying to build a membership base, to show how we are supported
• New brochures as well as fundraising then marketing push
• What happened to that Uw-madison student?
• He graduated, he helped finish the 501c3
• Who is chair?
  1. We have not made a chair
• Have we developed policies for fundraising? – it is really important to decide what are we raising money for? How does membership participate and so we have a clear understanding about it before the first penny is raised, that we agree to raise money for these purposes.
• We will add that one to list of BOD policy to discuss and draft – what do we put our name on?
• If anyone has suggestion on wording that would be very helpful.
  1. Policy Outreach Update. Stephanie
• One thing is to connect with city of Milwaukee to create a food policy task force, we had meeting with the ECO office and the health department, just being clear if a task force is the best way to engage with the city. Hope to have more decision in November. The last meeting was a good step forward. We still want to reach out to the members of the common council.
• Question – it has been discussed over the past two years? Do you have something to show how that has evolved? So it has a historic reference. To look at what you are trying to do – represent the market place and the people in the market place. Who was there what did they speak about and what is on the table right now? And you say the city is leading, I need clarity about that, I am always concerned about conflict of interest and how that is viewed from the public.
• It might be helpful for Tim to talk about refresh-mke
• I would suggest that most of the people don’t know. Refresh mke is government. How does that square with the food council and how does that work with the people at the mfc, this food council. Have you adopted that? Is that really in the best interest of the people of Milwaukee. And conflict of interest is a big one.
• Conflict of interest is part of the 501c3 application. Part of the reason for minutes is that we have not done very good ones in the past. We will be talking about this in a few minutes here
• How will this group be seen as truth tellers to represent all the people in the neighborhood, we should be enhancing that from a leadership and stewardship role.
• The next item will speak toward to what the food council thinks on that

1. MFC Food Insecurity Initiative. Stephanie Calloway

• Programs that work
• Economic development – food processing distribution and marketing
• Chronic food shortage – food insecurity
• Local food production – urban farms, gardens, composting
• Gathering mapping convening the food system, – networking and pulling together of information
• Went out via email and will go out more commitment form for people, and some draft goals for smaller groups to get more people at the table
• If you are interested let us know and come to the meeting so as a food council and the city of Milwaukee and so we can move forward. This is what we have developed and it is what we will move forward with. We would like to pull people forward. We are now looking at more input
• When is upcoming meeting?
  1. Good point – more social media outreach to find the people to move this forward. So maybe early November. And meet separately because of different themes.
• Bruce – It has been a history of people meeting and formalizing is to continue that tradition
• Committee meetings – meet at other times? To allow for others to come.
• Absolutely we recommend other times, yes any time you can get a group together is great.
• Will we be notified by email? Yes.
• Thank you for patience.

1. David Johnson

• Ciuan- Cooperative Institute for Urban Agriculture and Nutrition
• BOD in place and developing other structures for the coop.
• Who is the contact?
  1. David Johnson john2779@uwm.edu 414-828-9625 education coordinator, community outreach

1. City of Milwaukee Tim McCollow, Carly Hegarty

• Carly Hegarty – Alderman Rainey asked Dept of City Development to come up with a study for healthy food access to get markets into food deserts. It passed the common council and there is Period of time 120 days from mid-July.
• CH- American heart association one main initiative is to increase healthy food access. Carly sent them the food insecurity from July meeting. Had done a partnership with pick -n-save and Hunger Task Force.
• If anyone is interested in getting involved can they get involved?
• Contact Tim – part of that group. ECO office is involved with the direction of it, and it is a high priority item 414.286.3748 tmccol@milwaukee.gov
• Ed Richardson is the point person richardson@milwaukee.gov
• Tim What can we do better to increase healthy food retail? Pretty wide body of information about it across the country. We can rely on other work. Cities have been doing this, we have some short term successes Pete’s is moving to MLK and Ring. Sur-mac is moving to First. Fresh thyme on water. Alderman Rainey is asking us to dig and find successes here and everywhere.
• Bruce – To make sure that folks are aware that just having supermarkets in the city does not increase healthy outcomes. MFC can point out some of these connections. It is not just veg in your neighborhood. If message is important then go ahead and write Ed Richardson.
• Mention – The focus of the study is just retail in the city? Ie Billy Prie in madison is wic approved,
• What type of retail and what partnerships
• Tim- we had a healthy cornerstone initiative a while back, Eric and Tim were working through city hall to create a healthy food ordinance to work with the corner store and mandated healthy food items. Mpls has mandates on every retail environment. There are small, medium and alternative outlets out there. If you look at the map of where there are NOT food stores, you can see where alderman Rainey is coming from
• Bruce passes resolution around – emphasis on retail and location. That is part of the reason we need education and outreach to our elected officials. To find appropriate food access. Part of our role and responsibility to reach city council.
• Mention – how can we support the initiative? Just because you build it does not mean people come. Can we share that information – Tim already shared that.
• David- counter point – grocery gap. There are also studies that show otherwise. Just providing the outlets you could see healthy outcomes. And eliminating one unhealthy increases health outcomes
• Education is still extremely important
• Paulette- fine to mandate it but if they do not have infrastructure to sell it profitably, it does not work. It is critical for retailers to have input. Mandate til cows come home but won’t necessarily help
• Tim-what was showing with the healthy cornerstone initiative – manager was not necessarily the owner, therefore the cooler is not possible – finding the root issues was key
• Paulette – where is the progress going to be felt
• Have you contacted Jesse Tobin for walnut way? Ed should follow up with Jesse
• Tim- a lot of successes and failures – a lot of work has been done, and what can Milwaukee do.
• Carly H – In other news, raw ag products is eliminating the licensing fee
  1. Bruce – has food safety board been established? Food safety advisory
  2. Ch- will have to find out, prelim meetings outside of industry
  3. B- so it is not a published agenda
  4. ch- do not think it is regularly scheduled
• Mary – what outreach are you doing with the citizens? Meetings with various neighborhood planning districts? Those are the folks that need to speak to this, what need to be brought into play, data should be where the people are, not 30,000 feet in the air, or able to afford. What outreach back to the community. Rainey will move it forward, we need to provide input.
• CH- city clerk sends letters, MKE elevate, Carly at meetings. From DOH it is education for the safety of food, and how you process it is making you sick.
• Tim – January 2015; 125-175 community outreach meetings on the north side
  1. Mary do you have a list you can share. Or notes as to not reinvent the wheel
• Stephanie- it should be a priority to reach out to the neighborhood organizations to share to make sure this gets done right

• Outreach, Education, and Advocacy Bruce Wiggins
• Bruce and Tim: How we talk to city officials on behalf of the mfc.
• Hand outs for training and map of alderperson
• If you want to go to alderperson to please sign up.
• Equip you to talk comfortable about mfc and the needs in our food system
• Mke common council will be the first round of visits but we also need to get out to business people and
• Goals of visit to elected officials – see sheet
• Nonprofits cannot advocate for specific persons, but we can push legislation. We are selling ideas, not products.
• Refresh mke is well thought out – talks about food within Milwaukee
• Lucky to get 30 min meeting with an official, probably will meet with staff but trust that is like talking to the official.
• Food policy board was recommended in the refresh mke. But there are new ideas out on the table right now
• Food emerged as a prominent need in the research in 2012. And plan has specific steps to take.
• Tim – see handouts
• 15 alders in the city
• Big shake up after the last election – common council president changed
• Page 2 is common council schedule – they take august off. Meet once per month. Must plan ahead
• Everything goes to a subcommittee then the full common council- first point of contact
• Very helpful for them – volunteer to write a resolution
• https://milwaukee.legistar.com/Legislation.aspx
• Has calendar button and what you will see when subcommittee meets, you can click on the agenda, the power points the resolution and anything that will be discussed, the hand outs, and look at the minutes and even watch from the internet.
• Showing up at a subcommittee meeting (room 301c of city hall). Everything is on camera, introduce yourself, the public has a right to speak at the meeting.
• 286.2221 will take 4 or 5 shots to get a hold of them.
• Public works committee passed banning of fruits and vegetable in the right of way. Kovac put up a fight. You can contact your alderperson to say you do not agree. File number – 160535
• The file number – is what everyone in the city knows the case by
• Bruce- if specific pieces of legislation you would like to speak more about please let me know
• Bruce will take the sign ups and email you. Would like one of you on each team to step up and convene to get it moving before December. Bruce is willing to meet with your team
• Stephanie – we hope that the one-pager will be up and ready.
• Mention- a call to action blast? So that we know when to act?
  1. yes
• Tim – we can use file 16096 the banning of fruit and veg in the right of way
• Mary – wants to go on record that it is not ready for the groups to go speak with the alderpersons about the mfc, you need to know self before pitching to others. I vehemently disagree item 4. Ask the city to implement the refresh Milwaukee plan. People were not part of that plan it at least needs to be reviewed. It needs tweaking to go to alderperson.
• Stephanie Refresh plan is aligned with our work plan

• Announcements
• WLFN 11^th annual summit 12 and 13^th

Panel to move discussion forward. Application for presenters and exhibitors as well.

• Kate holter – healthy Latino initiative. We need volunteers – students holter.kate@gmail.com
• Mary – September 20 Milwaukee smart grocery network. Allan Shannon for the Midwest. Center Street Library 1-2pm FREE
• Tricklebee – real food shindig Oct 22^nd Everything is pay what you can

One regular meeting creativity nights – Wednesday s

Agape meals – Thursdays. Oct 6^th

• Carly Saturday October 8^th Cream City Farms Open House. 1.5-acre brownfield redevelopment

Community project,  Art, 1-3 pm

End 11:04

Additions and Amendments

11/15/2016 – File case number for fruits and vegetables in right of way updated to correct file number, thanks Renee Scampini.