13nov2011 Housing Minutes

[billvassilakis]

13nov2011
statements paraphrased unless "quoted"

agenda:
overview/disclaimer
infobox missionstatement
nytimes photographer
contact/legal
preview of HW results
mikes working on a proposal
underground walkways

first, announcements:
mike reads email from autumn (from Parents for OC).
text:

Autumn Hamer sent a message using the contact form at http://occupychi.org/contact.

Hi,
I'm representing the newly formed parents organization, Parents for Occupy Chicago. Our goal is to encourage parents to support the occupy movement. One of the ways we would like to do this is to have a regular "kids zone" equipped with things such as art supplies, toy instruments, small games, and books. At our meeting today we discussed the possibility of using an indoor space to do some of our actives during the cold and snowy months. I understand that you are very close to finding a "home". I writing to ask that you consider a space that would have room to accommodate families that would like to attend and possibly a space that would be suitable for small group children's activities. OWS has a very active parents organization, and they actually rope off an entire area for their kids zone. I realize we don't have the luxury of occupying an entire park. But we think it is important that Occupy Chicago has a designated safe and fun spot for parents and children.
nonlinear

wynne gives props to pilsen, citing the Whittier occupation and progressive social history

satellite locations are next

education is hookedup with CUAFE

Zoe wrote a mission statement for the hq infobox.
she wrote to the group:

[OC_House] Mission Statement - Input wanted
Inbox

Zoe Sigman
Nov 11 (5 days ago)

to OC_Housing
IC has asked all committees to put together a mission statement for
the info box that will be kept at HQ. Given the division of ideas
about the meaning of the term 'housing' that has occurred in the past
meeting I have put together a tentative statement. I'd like people's
input before submitting the mission statement to IC. Here it goes:

Housing Committee Mission Statement:

Our mission is to find and acquire a safe, warm, low-risk and stable
space for the coordination and organization of the movement in the
cold winter months ahead.

Sub-statement/clarification:

As housing committee our immediate and primary goal is to find a space
for the movement to survive the winter. This space will not be a place
for people to sleep, but rather a safe place for meetings and
organizational activities to occur. We plan to coordinate with other
applicable committees to look into possible places for people to
occupy this winter (using strategies such as squatting). It is
probable that after our primary goal is accomplished we will shift
gears to focus on the issue of housing people.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
...(an enormous thread followed this forum post...

discussion of whether or not the word "squatting" should appear in the statement

Mark thinks the statement is actually important

Todd thinks the statement should be vague to draw in readers

blanket term "squatting" replaced with more specific language

======
discussion on housing forum and OC_housing googleGroup threads so far
seems to be polarized:
1 a more aggressive approach involving
squatting,
reoccupations of foreclosures,
reclamations of vacant space, etc
2 a careful legally defensible approach involving
seeking donated space and/or
seeking space for rent

Mark: we can't let absent trolls keep us from pushing the envelope

Kieth: we need to keep it positive

Kieran: other groups (antiEviction, CUAFE, SOUL, etc) already taking the aggressive approach without us...

mission != goal

josh: after finding winter hq, OC_housing dissolves

vote on statement as is: PASSES

candidates
no news from mike or kristy
zoe: visiting tomorrow (delayed: actually visited Tuesday)

HW find more candidates

Thomas suggests building at Michigan/Wacker (officespace)

Kieran can get RealtyTrac permissions from CUAFE

Financial entity is just "around the corner"

are we honestly "a community group doing events organizing?"

NYTimes photographer - tempcheck = unanymously cold. REJECTED

mark/mikes proposal
[ADD PROPOSAL]

kieran suggests reducing the length and differeniating it from the ChicagoSpring proposal

mike: importance of changing hq scene, which is a negative image

wynne: chicago artists should appreciate the venue that the art project provides

difficulty of jackson/lasalle... mike gives great super concise breakdown of occuchi so far:
tried to take jackson/lasalle, tried to take horse, and again, now we just have the vestiges of these attempts
original plan -> obstacles -> now

"scarce manpower" at JacksonLasalle

how can/will we be organized, impactful, effective without defined goals?

economic warfare proposal for next mtg