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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-03-27ORONO DBIA Board Meeting — Minutes Friday, March 27, 2026 | 8:30 a.m. Meeting Orono DBIA — Regular Board Meeting Date & Time March 27, 2026 | 8:30 a.m. Location Orono Town Hall Chair Chad Harmer Recorded By Transcribed via Fireflies.ai and prepared for the record 1. Attendance Board & Members Present • Chad Harmer • Brad Beckstead • Will Davies Guests & Presenters • Heather — Clarington Library, Museums & Archives (attending in place of Samantha) • Laura Knox — Clarington Economic Development, Municipality of Clarington • Rhonda Armour — Clarington Board of Trade • Orono Town Hall Board • Timothy Jackson — Social Media (joining online) • Margaret Zwart • Julie Cashin-Oster • Karen Lowery Events Committee (joined for combined session) • Shelley Rivers • Scott Story • Lena (new member) 2. Approval of the Agenda Motion: To approve the agenda as circulated. Motioned and seconded. Motion carried by a unanimous vote in favour — 6 in favour, 0 opposed (Chad Harmer, Brad Beckstead, Will Davies, Julie Cashin-Oster, Karen Lowery, and Scott Story). 3. Approval of Previous Minutes Motion: To approve the minutes of the January meeting as presented. Motioned and seconded. Motion carried by a unanimous vote in favour — 6 in favour, 0 opposed (Chad Harmer, Brad Beckstead, Will Davies, Julie Cashin-Oster, Karen Lowery, and Scott Story). 4. Treasurer's Report The following financial update was presented: • Opening balance: approximately $14,000. • Two outstanding cheques pending, which will bring the balance to $12,851.95. Additional Events Committee cheques are anticipated shortly. • The DBIA and Events Committee accounts have been fully amalgamated; the organization now operates from a single consolidated budget. • The municipal audit is approximately 85% complete. Strong working relationship with Kasey at the Municipality. The file has been handed off to the external auditors; books are clean. • A new bookkeeper, Lucy (Whitby), has been engaged. Local options were explored, however no suitable candidates were available in the immediate area. Cost is slightly higher than the previous provider; exposure will be managed to keep fees contained. • QuickBooks is now in place. The bookkeeper has ongoing digital access, and bank access will be extended to support automated uploads. 5. Guest Presentations and Community Updates 5.1 Clarington Library, Museums & Archives — Heather Heather presented on behalf of Samantha regarding the Story Walk initiative. • Concept: Individual pages of a book are displayed on signage throughout the downtown, paired with a map for the community to follow. • Participating businesses would display one page in their storefront window so the walk remains visible even outside business hours. • All signage and maps are provided by CLMA. • Drop-off to businesses: April 23, 2026. Pickup: May 7, 2026. • Action: The Chair will circulate an invitation to the business community to confirm participation. 5.2 Clarington Economic Development — Laura Knox • Rural Ontario Development (ROD) Fund: Approximately $15,000 in funding has been confirmed through the Province of Ontario to update the Orono Economic Development Strategy and Marketing Plan. An Executive group will be convened once consultants are finalized; work begins spring into summer. • Community Improvement Plan (CIP): The program is being refreshed. Consultant recommendations will be presented at the next DBIA meeting for feedback prior to finalization. • Film Durham: A location seminar will be held April 14, 2026. Any Orono businesses interested in being added to the location registry are encouraged to attend. • Downtown CCTV Camera: Installation is complete. The camera is not live-monitored and is managed exclusively by DRPS. Footage is retained for 30 days and only accessed in connection with a reported incident or missing-person investigation. Feedback to date has been generally positive. 5.3 Clarington Board of Trade — Rhonda • MP Breakfast Session with Philip Lawrence: Thursday, May 22, 2026, 8:00–9:30 a.m. at Orono Town Hall. Members are encouraged to attend and bring questions. • Clarington Shop Local Showcase: Inaugural event on Saturday, July 25, 2026, 10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. at Garnet B. Rickard Recreation Complex. Targeting 75–100 Clarington-based businesses and 1,000+ attendees. Booth options and pricing are available on the CBOT website. • CBOT has released its first-ever Impact Report, available on the Board of Trade website. Members are encouraged to review and share feedback. 5.4 Orono Town Hall Board Representatives from the Orono Town Hall Board were introduced and welcomed. No formal update was presented; members remain available for questions. 6. Business and Action Items 6.1 Big Box Reserve Fund — Draw of $7,500 The Chair presented a motion to draw $7,500 from the Big Box Reserve Fund, to be allocated as follows: • Repair of downtown Christmas lighting, with a view to extending useful life. • DBIA portion of the CCTV camera installation. • Additional downtown décor and lighting enhancements. • Preliminary exploration of relocating the Christmas Tree Lighting to the mature tree in front of Orono Town Hall, pending logistics for the tree-lift requirement. Motion: To approve a draw of $7,500 from the Big Box Reserve Fund for the purposes outlined above. Motioned and seconded. Motion carried by a unanimous vote in favour — 6 in favour, 0 opposed (Chad Harmer, Brad Beckstead, Will Davies, Julie Cashin-Oster, Karen Lowery, and Scott Story). 6.2 Orono Town Hall Wedding Venue Collaboration • The launch wedding showcase drew over 30 couples, including attendees travelling from the Greater Toronto Area and points east — a strong indicator that the marketing effort reached well beyond the local market. • Two confirmed bookings have resulted from the showcase to date. Program goal: 25 weddings. • Liz of Al Fresco Weddings is coordinating vendors and all-inclusive packaging. • Parking will be addressed as part of the forthcoming strategic plan. • Next phase: social media reels and video content, continued vendor marketing, and presence on platforms including Wedding Wire. 6.3 Rural Ontario Development (ROD) Program • Approximately $10,000 is allocated to the marketing strategy itself, with additional funding being pursued for approximately one year of paid social media advertising. • Timothy will support the social media execution as the framework is rolled out. • The Chair extended thanks to Laura Knox and Glenn at the Municipality for their support securing the grant. 6.4 Central Counties Tourism Grant • An application will be submitted for growth-marketing funding through the single annual intake, consistent with last year's successful cycle. 6.5 Social Media Management — Motion Motion: To formally appoint Timothy as Social Media Manager at an honorarium of $900 per annum, funded within the approved budget. Motioned and seconded. Motion carried by a unanimous vote in favour — 6 in favour, 0 opposed (Chad Harmer, Brad Beckstead, Will Davies, Julie Cashin-Oster, Karen Lowery, and Scott Story). 6.6 Orono Sign The Orono sign remains in the municipal warehouse. Installation was unsuccessful last year due to the selected avenue. The item remains on the 2026 agenda and will be revisited. 7. Other Business 7.1 Rockstalgia Event — July 11 and 12, 2026 • A two-day event with camping is planned at the Orono Fairgrounds. • Organizers have requested banner placement on Highway 115, consistent with the Antique Festival and Christmas signage. The Chair will confirm approval with Scott. • A backstage vendor market is being offered; DBIA members have been extended vendor space consideration. • This item will be formally added to the next meeting agenda once additional details are confirmed. 7.2 Easter Egg Hunt — Saturday, April 4, 2026 • Chocolate has been secured: 28 kg this year (up from 20 kg in 2025) at a lower overall cost. • A new Easter Bunny costume has been ordered via Amazon and is expected to arrive prior to the event. • Mark Rutherford has been asked regarding use of the megaphone. • Action: A social media call will be posted inviting community members to volunteer as the Easter Bunny. Timothy will also inquire with Lindsay at the pharmacy regarding a potential volunteer. 8. Next Meeting The next regular meeting of the Orono DBIA is scheduled for Friday, April 24, 2026. A recap of the Easter Egg Hunt will be included on the agenda. 9. Adjournment There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned. EVENTS COMMITTEE SESSION Held immediately following the Board meeting 10. Framework, Roles and Reporting Structure A combined working session was held with the Events Committee to establish the 2026 operating framework. Priorities discussed: • Defining Events Committee roles and decision-making authority. • Establishing a reporting structure back to the DBIA Board, including per-event budgets. • Aligning the Events Committee budget within the consolidated DBIA budget, in keeping with the Municipal Act and the DBIA's governance obligations. • Recommended role structure: Chair, Treasurer, Secretary, Operations Lead, and Marketing Lead — with Shelley continuing to anchor Events Committee leadership given institutional experience. • Action: Events Committee to schedule its own planning meeting prior to the April 24 DBIA meeting to confirm role assignments and bring recommendations back to the Board. 11. Sponsorship Structure and Budgeting • Target: approximately $5,500 in corporate sponsorship across the 2026 event calendar. • Tiered sponsorship packages will be developed (e.g., $250, $500, $1,000 tiers) with clearly defined recognition deliverables at each level — including social media recognition, signage, and in-event placement. • Sponsorship packages and donations will be treated as distinct streams. Existing long-standing donors may continue as donors without being moved to the tiered package structure. • Larger regional organizations will be approached directly, reducing the burden historically carried by small local businesses. • Easter Egg Hunt: $4,000 event budget approved. • Button sponsorship for the Santa Claus Parade has been secured in full by David, eliminating the prior button fundraising effort — a strong outcome. Recognition will be extended through DBIA communications. • Year-end surplus philosophy: where events generate a surplus, the DBIA will consider a year-end charitable contribution to a local, non-governmental community organization, presented under the DBIA banner. 12. Invoicing, Communication and Digital Workflow • Action: Will to establish a dedicated DBIA email address this week to centralize invoicing, e- transfers, and electronic documentation. Access will be shared with the Chair and Co-Chair. • All invoices, sponsorship commitments, and event-related receipts are to be forwarded electronically — scans or photos acceptable — so they can be filed into QuickBooks without delay. • Cash deposits are to be accompanied by a short email itemizing the source, and can be handed over at scheduled Events Committee meetings. • This workflow supports the annual municipal audit and reduces the administrative load on individual board members. 13. 2026 Event Calendar — Planning List The following events were confirmed for planning this year: • Easter Egg Hunt — Saturday, April 4 • Fall Fair Parade — DBIA float participation (refresh of the float design to be considered) • Pumpkin Walk — to be reinstated following a quiet 2025 • Santa Claus Parade • Downtown Christmas Tree Lighting — exploring a collaborative "Light Up Orono" evening at Orono Town Hall, aligned with the downtown lights coming on • Antique Festival — under DBIA insurance only; not within the Events Committee budget or workplan 14. Action Items Summary Owner Action Timing Chad Harmer Email the business community regarding Story Walk participation Before April 23 Chad Harmer Confirm Highway 115 banner approval for Rockstalgia with Scott Prior to next meeting Owner Action Timing Timothy Post Easter Bunny volunteer call on social; connect with Lindsay at the pharmacy Immediately Will Set up centralized DBIA email address for invoicing and communications This week Events Committee Meet to confirm role assignments (Chair, Treasurer, Secretary, Operations, Marketing) Before April 24 Events Committee Draft tiered sponsorship packages for Board review April 24 meeting Board Review CIP program recommendations from the consultant April 24 meeting Board Revisit Orono sign installation plan 2026 End of Minutes Prepared for review and approval at the next regular meeting on April 24, 2026.