Board Meeting Minutes- October 2025

Jan 8

Soulard Restoration Group | Board Meeting Minutes
Wednesday, October 15, 2025 at 7PM
Soulard Station | 1911 South 12th Street

Minutes prepared by Andrew Paniello, Secretary

Present: Amanda Ramcharan (President), April Flores (President-Elect), Adriano Martinez (Past President), Neil Putz (Treasurer), Andrew Paniello (Secretary); Joy Christensen, John Cline, Paula Dostal, Bob Printz, Mary Schlesinger, Wade Weistreich

Absent: None

Call to Order/Opening Remarks

Amanda Ramcharan called the meeting to order at 7:06pm.

Welcome, Mary!

The Board welcomed Mary Schlesinger, our newest board member. Mary will be replacing Beth Bennett for the remainder of the SRG term. We are very thankful for the work Beth did and are happy to have Mary on The Board.

Email Discussion/Budget Reapproval

The Board delved into a lengthy discussion about our current communications and general use of email. Some members expressed concern that we are using email more than we should be, while others pointed out that email is essential for getting things done in a timely manner. Andrew Paniello, Secretary, agreed that he would do his best to catalogue all previous email votes into the SRG minutes.

There were some concerns that our budget was (unanimously) approved via email. Amanda Ramcharan motioned to have another, in-person vote on the budget, April Flores seconded, and the board then unanimously voted to reapprove the budget.

Treasurer’s Report

Neil Putz, Treasurer, announced that the SRG assets now total $72,175. This represents an expected decrease compared to last month, largely due to investments in repairing the Soulard Station roof and expenses from the Development Committee. Neil also shared we now have four insurance policies, with a total annual premium of about $6,000 (about $500/month). We are conducting a financial review, which is simpler than a financial audit and will save us about $4,000. We are also preparing our annual tax submission.

Secretary’s Report

Given the email discussion that took place earlier, Andrew Paniello, Secretary, affirmed that he will add a note for all email votes into the old minutes, during the months these votes took place. Andrew also stated that he will be gone for the General Meeting in December; Mary Schlesinger, already taking some much-appreciated initiative, volunteered to take notes on his behalf.

Additionally, Andrew said he would begin adding attendance records for all board meetings, as you may have noticed at the top of these minutes. He briefly mentioned his experience at the UMSL Neighborhood Leadership Academy, a certificate program he is actively participating in that has been sponsored by SRG. Lastly, the board voted to approve the minutes from August and September.

Committee Roundup

Beautification: the Oktoberfest fundraiser was a big success, raising more than $15,000. Thank you, Molly’s, for hosting! We are also making progress on finalizing the statue for Pontiac Square Park.
CI&E: The Nightmare Before Christmas showing in Pontiac Square Park was a success. There will be another movie night in November, likely Lilo and Stitch.
Development: the annual Oktoberfest was a big success, we are very thankful for all of our volunteers. We may look into getting a different banner next year, one with better visibility.
Communications: no updates. There will be a committee chair meeting in January 2026.
Historical: The Ghost Tour was a huge success; everyone seemed to have a great time and we made more than $4,000 (while only spending $1,300). The committee conducted an after-event review, which helped them gain a lot of valuable insight. Additionally, the committee is working on advancing the time capsule project, as well preparing for the Parlour Tour in December.
Membership: The membership committee is looking at “JoinIt” as the likely option for the new membership database. They have also printed some new sheets with information about the committees, shared at The General Meeting, with the goal of encouraging participation.
Parlour Tour: preparation for the Parlour Tour is fully underway; the committee recently met at Molly’s to get organized and share information. We are currently looking for more volunteers; those interested should contact Allyson Whipple.
PRT: there were no direct updates from PRT. However, we briefly discussed whether there are any permitting issues with the Trinity Lutheran Church. April Flores said she would look into it further.
Station: there is a lot happening at The Station, including the Ladies of Soulard planning a decorating day on 11/11. The SRG social following the December General Meeting, 12/3, will take place in The Station. Additionally, they are getting estimates on new stucco, scheduled for the spring; so far, the best value estimate is $5,800. Lastly, the committee is taking a closer look at the full financial breakdown for rentals and cleaning costs, with the hopes of potentially improving our cash flow.
Safety: the neighborhood hosted three National Night Out gatherings, which were each well attended. We are still looking for a new chair of the safety committee–in light of this challenging search, we are also considering restructuring this position.

President’s Report

Amanda announced that the owner of 1222 Allen Avenue has been avoiding getting served, which has resulted in a 60-day extension to the summons. A few developers have expressed some interest in the building, possibly turning it into a restaurant, but movement has been generally slow. April made some connections at a conference and is looking into historic tax credits that could potentially attract a buyer.

We no longer need to select a chair for the CID. Furthermore, we are still considering giving $10,000 for part of their neighborhood plan; we will make a final decision on this once the RFP has been posted and we’ve had a chance to meet (this should be discussed in the November Board Meeting).

John Cornell, the CID liaison, briefly discussed two church projects in the neighborhood. Sts. Peter & Paul are looking to create transitional housing for 28 people, though it seems unlikely this will actually come to fruition. Trinity Lutheran is actively doing a lot of work but they are likely underpermitted, which may create some future problems. John plans to attend more Board Meetings in the future.