SRG General Meeting Minutes- March 2026

Apr 9

Soulard Restoration Group
General Membership Meeting Minutes
Wednesday, March 4, 2026 at 7PM

Minutes prepared by Andrew Paniello, Secretary

LOCATION
Saints Peter & Paul Parish Hall in the Rose Room | 816 Allen Ave

Call to Order/Opening Remarks

President Amanda Ramcharan called the meeting to order at 7:00pm sharp. Membership welcomed the addition of a new podium.

Committee Roundup

Beautification: Jeff Weitzel, chair of the Beautification Committee, announced plans for a cleanup of Pontiac Square Park, on March 22, from 1-3pm. There will be an art auction at Lark on 4/11, from 1-5pm. The committee is also planning some patio crawls in June and September. There will be a metal miniature of the dragonfly sculpture, coming soon.
Communications: nothing new for now (see: follow-up below).
Development/CI&E: Jim Dallas spoke for both the Development and CI&E committees, primarily discussing the upcoming trivia night on 4/25. The trivia night will contribute to a $5,000 scholarship for a neighborhood student. Jim is also working on getting new swag for the committee, as well as coordinating the summer concerts.
Historical: Neil Putz was excited to announce that on March 8th, there will be an open house for our upcoming Time Capsule. The event will take place at the Soulard Station from 1-5pm. Allyson Whipple provided additional detail, noting that members can write letters and that we are primarily looking for items from 2018-2026. The burial date for the capsule will be July 12th.
Parlour Tour: no updates.
PRT: Walker Hamilton discussed some property developments in the neighborhood, including the opening of a smokeshop on Geyer and a large, growing mound of dirt. Other changes include unclear development at the Croatian Church, BWorks changing hands, and a few other anticipated changes.
Station: a lot has been accomplished at the Station! Bonita noted that Ladies Night will take place on 3/10 and there will be a few work weekends coming up. Additionally, there is a new pricing structure: $250 for members, $450 for non-members.

Aldermanic Update

Jamie Cox-Antwi, our Ward 8 Alderwoman, gave an update on a variety of things happening in the City. There is a municipal election coming up in April, where we will vote on whether to reauthorize the 1% earnings tax. The City is entering budget season. Areas of discussion will include funding for the state-run police board, the downtown entertainment district, new roads and infrastructure (see: Jefferson), and a visitor’s center in City Garden. There will be a substantial amount of work done to Gravois (and Russell) over the next few years. There will be a zoning meeting on 3/25. Other points of discussion included crime, homelessness, fiscal challenges, and the city-county merger.

Treasurer’s Report

Neil Putz, Treasurer, announced that our asset accounts are around $91,000, down by a bit over $3,000 compared to the month before. Major cash flows include the concert series and the Board’s large donation to the CID.

Secretary’s Report

Andrew Paniello, Secretary, announced that the February minutes had been posted; he asked for a vote to approve them, which was unanimous.

Communications Follow-Up

Billy Tomber announced that there will be a ComCom meeting on 3/23, at 7:15 at I-Tap. Topics for discussion include the new website layout.

Organization Roundup

SBA-KVV: Jim Lettau announced, on behalf of both the SBA and KVV, that the annual Easter Egg event will take place in Pontiac Square Park, on 4/4, from noon to 2pm. Laura Leister will play the role of Easter Bunny.
CID: Terry Hoffman announced about two dozen pet receptacles will be added to the south side of the neighborhood. New poles, signs, and banners will also be coming soon. The CID will sponsor an electronic/paper recycling event on 4/11 from 9-noon. The CID also continues vetting proposals for its upcoming neighborhood plan.
SSBD: things have been going well at the SSBD; the next meeting is 3/9.
MGI: Abbey Bethel noted that, now that Mardi Gras is over, MGI is looking for feedback and will host a forum on 3/5.
KVV: in addition to the Easter Bunny event, KVV will also participate in a Kentucky Derby Party (5/2, at 3:30pm) and Soulard Pride (6/13). The organization also hopes to give a $750 grant every quarter.
Legion: there will be fish fries on 3/6 and 3/20.
Neighborhood Stabilization: James Simpson encouraged the membership to participate in the ZOUP (Zoning) process. The City will be utilizing “311” as a phone number for all Citizen Service requests.

The SRG also had some members discuss upcoming events and training for individuals hoping to combat an increasingly hostile Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

City Water

Mike Kelly came to speak about an alley Farmer’s Market program, which will hopefully launch later this Spring. The goal of the program will be to set up cooperative farming markets, with fresh food, in alleyways throughout the City. More info to come.

President’s Report

The judge has granted access to 1222 Allen–a detailed summary of the property is coming soon. The purpose of the access is to build a better understanding of what is required to achieve stabilization. There will be a townhall for the project on 3/11, from 6-7pm–anybody who is interested can come.

Electronic voting instructions have been distributed to all members in good standing. There are many safeguards in place to ensure fair and accurate vote counting. Electronic voting begins on March 23rd and will conclude on April 1 (our next meeting).

Amanda reviewed several of the Board’s biggest accomplishments over the past year. These included passing the budget, increasing the stipend of social hosts, concrete action on the church (1222 Allen), utilizing QuickBooks for accounting, reducing the trash expense, increasing insurance, giving $5,000 to the tornado fund, giving $5,000 to the CID, giving $500 to the Missouri preservation conference, supporting the emergency shelter, sponsoring Andrew and Maggie at the UMSL-NLA, the art installation, repairs to the station, ad hoc committees, and so much more.

Amanda also noted that a historic AB sign is moving to the main campus, in Soulard. It will be a large eagle that spins.