---WELCOME AND GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS---

●Copies of the ordinances that need to be posted in rental homes are available by contacting Anthony Pelopida.  The police department will look into posting the ordinances on-line.

●Door tags and copies of  “Living in Narragansett:  A Guide for Off-Campus Living” are now available from URI’s Commuter Housing Office (Phone: 874-2828).  These guides will be made available to the Town Clerk’s office and to the Neighborhood Associations. 

●The Coalition Hotline (874- 5393) was developed for reporting problems arising from student disturbances.  When using the hotline, remember to include the address of the problem residence, and (when possible) the student’s name.

---SUBCOMMITTEE MEETINGS---

The following subcommittees met from 6:45-7:30pm:

Common Ground (Chair:  Nancy Devaney)

Realtors/Neighborhood Association (Co-Chairs:  Eileen Desforges and Joe Robenhymer)

Programming (Chair:  Kristin Pedicone)

Communications (Chair:  Tom Dougan)

---SUBCOMMITTEE REPORTS AND STEERING COMMITTEE MEETINGS---

Common Ground

Nancy Devaney distributed copies of Common Ground’s proposed timeline of activities.  She presented a large map of Narragansett so that in the future, coalition members can see where police visits are occurring.   Nancy also discussed Joseph Meister’s exploration of AAA’s programs on drinking and driving.

Realtor/Neighborhood Association Committee

Eileen Desforges reported that this committee is currently prioritizing and assessing needs like:

• Distributing information to homeowners who do not attend coalition meetings
• Updating the model lease
• Working on trash ordinances (including pressing for pickup twice a week)
• Working with Maurice Loontjens to hire a part-time building inspector
• Beefing up police patrols during first few weeks of school
• Requiring that landlords/property managers regularly drive by their property
• Condensing ordinances to make posting easier
• Working on parking issues
• Encouraging students to have their newspapers delivered to campus

Programming Committee

Kristin Pedicone reported that the Programming Committee is working on developing a mission statement.  Their goals include:

• Passing out door tags and booklets
• Developing additional interactive activities for students and residents
• Increasing student participation in the off-campus community
• Redeveloping SONARS

Communication Committee

Chief Smith reported that the police have developed a brochure describing their programs.  The Communication Committee will also be working on:

§        Getting a sound system or restructuring the meeting room so that everyone can hear the meetings

§        Updating the coalition website on a regular basis

§        Emailing coalition minutes using the Listserv

§        Having URI post the party-house list on their website

§        Keeping neighborhood associations and landlords informed when URI meets with a problem student

§        Maintaining a working relationship with The Cigar (URI’s campus newspaper)

§        Using an agreed upon word (“Common Ground”) in all coalition email communications, to filter out spam.

Additional comments/concerns raised during the steering committee meeting

●Coalition members expressed concern over houses that are bought by a student’s parents and subsequently rented out to 4-5 of that student’s friends.  They felt that this type of situation “fell under the radar” of town rental ordinances.  A coalition member suggested that the town may be able to find these houses by looking closely at property transfers. 

●Starting this fall, students will be required to provide contact information in order to log onto URI’s computer system.  Because URI is a public university, students cannot be “forced” to provide this information.

●Coalition members suggested that the steering committee/open forum meeting be condensed to one hour, and suggested that the subcommittees meet on a separate night.

●Coalition members requested that Dr. Carothers attend a steering committee/open forum meeting, so that he can directly hear community concerns.

---FINAL NOTE---

●The coalition meeting that was originally scheduled for September 14^th has been rescheduled for September 21^st at 6:30 in the Narragansett Town Hall.