The May meeting was held at Maple Lawn with 18 members in attendance. The meeting was called to order at 8:00 a.m. The minutes of the last meeting were accepted for filing as presented.
Treasurer’s Report: Eldon LiaBraaten reported the balance was $7864.40.
Committee Reports:
Brighten Our Business: Vada Schertz reported the planting went well. A lot of people helped, so the planting went quickly and smoothly.
4th of July: Bryant Ruder said the parade plans were continuing to go well, and he needs about 6-8 people to volunteer to help with the parade.
Eureka Reagan Fest: Donna Sweeney reported the initial letters and contracts were out. This year the all-purpose room and the cafeteria of Eureka High School has been reserved in case of rain for the craft and food vendors. Donna is looking for someone to help organize the Ronald Reagan aspect of the festival, and she also will need directional signs or banners to use in case of rain. Chuck Staley volunteered to talk to Mike White about signs.
Economic Development: Lisa Reinmann said the EBA will need to be proactive about staying in touch with Economic Development about ideas.
City: No one from the City was present.
Old Business:
Chuck Staley reported he had attended the May 7 city council meeting as a representative of the EBA. The new alderman were seated. Ty Meiss said there were still several meetings for which no one had signed up. Bryant Ruder said he had compiled a working EBA e-mail list. Ty plans to e-mail members the current sign-up sheet with council meeting dates and EBA representatives.
New Business:
Lisa Reinmann said Eureka College has offered to host the EBA meetings at the Cerf Center. Beginning with the June meeting, the EBA will meet at the College. Lisa thanked the Communities of Maple Lawn for their hospitality to the EBA for so many years.
Lisa Reinmann said Patty Pierson had been contacted by the Culpepper & Merriweather circus. The circus is interested in coming to Eureka Labor Day weekend (Saturday, September 1). The general concensus was that the last circus was a positive thing for the community and the EBA. Bryant Ruder helped on the circus committee and he said the EBA got a percentage of all the pre-sold tickets. Many walk-in tickets were sold, and this year he would like to see the EBA do more to promote the pre-sale of tickets. A suggestion was made to contact the 4-H Park to see if the circus could be held on their grounds.
Business Spotlight:
Mark Scott of COUNTRY Insurance and Financial Services spoke about his business. He has been a COUNTRY Insurance agent since 2002. He thoroughly enjoys the daily challenges of his job. He is also a registered representative of mutual funds and investment advisor representative for asset-based products including 401k rollovers. He has three staff members and is happy to be in Eureka.
Suggestions for New Members to Contact: Rick Robinson said he had spoke with two business people who were interested in joining the EBA.
Brief Business Update:
Dana Wiegand shared that Goodfield State Bank’s Eureka branch would be hosting an EBA afterhours on Thursday, May 31, from 5-6 p.m. The EBA will reimburse $100 for refreshments. If anyone is interested in hosting an afterhours, let a board member know.
