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Home My WebLink About2025.07.10 SERJAC minutes A r"' LAND, SOCIAL EQUITY AND RACIAL JUSTICE, ADVISORY COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING MINUTES July 10, 2025 4:30 RIVI- ,1195 East Main Street-The Grove-Otte-Petemon Conference Roorn 1. Calli to Orderand W&Icume� The imeeting was cailled to order at 4:30pm. Member IPresent: Catherine Greenspan, SeanSmith,Jofin'Tyler, Ili on Mendel,Gas Gas i IPreskenis,and Emily Simon(via Zoom) Council Liaison IPresent: in DuQuenne(arrived at 5:15) ,Staff Present: rrick.Gooden 1. Land Acknowledgment-Weackniowledge and honor the aborigin,61 peopleon whiose ancestral homelands we work,-the lkirakutsurn Bandofthie Shasta Nation, as well as the diverse and vibrant,Native communities,whio, make their hiome he rug hod ay.,Wedenouncetflu egregious acts of the colonizers and gove rumen tand recognizethie hiorrific,impacts,that,still exisittoday. We honor thefirst:stewards,in the Riogue Valley and the lands we loveand depend on: Tribes with ancestral lands,in and surro,uni iin i,tlh,e,gi,eo,grapIcy of t1he Ashland Watershed include the original past, presentand future indii'lgenous,inhabitants of tbe ShastaT Takelma and Atha,baska n people. We also reGiOgnizeand acknowledige the S hasta villag hak " of Kfwakhia - Wherethie CrCrow, Lights"-that, is niowthie Ashland City, �Plaza Ty'II er head the Laind Acknowledg imam eint 2. Labor Acknowl edgm ent-Wealso, pause'to recoginize and acknowledge t1he labor uipoinl ich our country, state,, and instituit ion s are built. We rememberthiat:i country is built oinl labor ofenslaved people w'hio were kidnapped and brought tiothie 'U.S.from the African continent and recognizetDiu continuied n t r'iii i io inl f their suirvivors., We also, acknowledge all immigrant:labor, including voluntaryl involuintaryi traffickedi forced, and undocumented peoples who GiOntributedtothie building of the couintryand GiOntinue to, serve withi[n i labor force. We sink nowledigeall unpaid care-giving labor. To t1he people who contributed t1his immeasuirable work and t1heir descendants, we acknowledge'th,eir indelible markon the space ini which wegathier tioday. It is our collective responsibility,tug critically examine these histiories, to repair harmT and to honor, protect, and suistain their GiOntributilion to it sodiety. Smith read the Labor Acknow1edgment II. Approval oill"Minutes,from 6.5.2025 Me,eting 1. Approval of minutesfrom the June 5,T 2,025,regular meeting., Tyler motioned,to approvethie m lib utesi from Junie 5,21025 asii The motioru was seconded by Greenspan.,All! ayes., Motion passed. IIL, Public Forum Nonle others present for the Public Forlurn I'V. Anrio ins ernienU-and Evein�ts Preskenis spoke out the recent gift from Guanajuato artist Gilberto Salazar Monte s of two Guanajuato hearts.On July third,the 1-1learts of Guanajuato airtexh lib it was unvei led aisa collaborative installation made possible through the support of Southern Oregon University(SOU),the Gity of h II n d'W IPlublic Arts Advisory Committee(PAAC)and the artist.The first Ih1 urt�was ismsta I lied anid univeiled at SOU Ibehind the Schneider Mu Turn while dele gate swere here from Guanajuato, Mexico.Thesecond heart w�iillIlI,gio,soni�ewhe�re,e III se in the City,t: Ibe determined in collaboration with PAAC. Preskenis also annolunced that Micah Blacklightsigned an MOU for Peace House to,Ibe the official fiscail sponsor of Ancestors Fluture:Crystallizing Our Cal!. Thie Committee discussed its support of these two installations. V. U�aison Updates and�� Reports,, 1. Report on Plawrig hit s Plaque lns:tallatiion� The cornmittee(SERJAC)discussed the Ipositive anid overwhelming turnout anid coverageof the June 22 Playwrights Plaque univefling at Railroad Park. Credit was given to,arfist Micah IBlac kliglit who liis planning to,present to SERJAC at its September 4 regular meeting t: itegarding the planning of the iiirrus tall ationof �ncestor�' IFlutuire: Crystallizingour Call.The committee discussed how to,suppo irk:this inext installation and considered forming a subcommittee, possibly in conjunctionwith the Public Arts Advisory Committee(PAAC),anid discussed the idea ofa, joint imeeting with PAAC Preskeinis spoke that the airbst impay present to the City Council about the project again once there i 3- itendering- IPresk,e ni,s,wi1l1l1,corn,slullt,wi,th the arfist regarding timing for additional suppoft anii publicity. 2. DEI Survey Subcommiffee Report The first draft was discussed(in cluded bellow),wit h the stated gloal ofsoliciting plublic fe,edback that City Council can address(as opposed to thibigis the Council can do nothing about). Mbmb,ers will consider and provid,e feedback. in I s,end back to,staff liaison to,relay to subcommitte,e pr I Jor to,sending to the City's legal depa�rtment for irevi,ew Gity of Ashland�-Community Belonging&Welcoming,Survey We want to h,ear from you!This anonymous survey helps the City of Ashland under tan IIIiow residents feel about Ib,elonging, iiinclusion,andacce:ss t muniiit itesou rces.,'You ir input helps shape a,stronger, more welcoming city forall Estimated completion ti imp,e: 10-12 minutes Section 1:Abo�ut You('Optional) 1. Do you live in Ashland?[]Yes No Part-time/seasonal If"yes: H ow loin ve you I ived i in Ash la nd?[]<11 yr[] 1-5 yrs 6-,10 yrs >10 yrs 2. Do you work in Ashland?[]Yes[] No[] Remote worker living in Ashland If"yes: H ow loin ve you worked in As h]a nd? <11 yr 1-5 yrs 6-,10 yrs >,1 0 yrs 3.What isyourage? 4.What isyour racial/ethnic background?(optional) 5. How doyou i,dentii�f-yyoui��r,giendl�eir?(,opfibnai) 6. Do you identify, as a rn,ember of any of th,e follo win g,groups?(,chieck all that apply) [] LGB1TQIA+[]Person wit ha,disability Immi,grantor refugee[]Veteran Other: Prefer not toanswer T How im a n Ipe Ile live in your Ihiousehold? Number of ui lts, 1 + INumberof,children (under 118): Section 2:Se�nse of Belonging& Inclusilon 8.Towhat extent do you agre,e with the following statements?(&ircle one ) I fe,elwelcom,e in Ashland. [1-Strongly Disagree to,5-Strongly Agre,e] I feel a strong sense of IbIll onging in my,neighborhood [1-5] I feel ite p,e tedanid valued in publibspaces. [1-5] My ildentity and culture are represented incommunity events anid institutilons. [1-5] I feel safe expressing m iiidentity in this city. [1-5] Section Diversity& Inclusion 9. How welcomingdo,you fee!Ashland is t 1peopleof diverse Ibackgrounds? []Very Unwelcoming[]UnwelconiJbig [] Neutral[]Wblcoming[]Veiry WeJcomliiing 10. Have you 1p,eirsoinallly,,ex peri,einc,e,d or witnessed discrimination in Ashland? []Yes-personally,experieinced []Yes-witnessed No Prefer not toanswe�r 11. If yes,Iplbase describ,,e(optional):� Section Housing 12. How would you irate the availability of safe,affordable housing in Ashland? [] Excellent[] Good [] Fair[]Poor[] Notsure 13. Igo,you fee!at ri s k.of I osi ing you ir ho u s i n g in t h e next 12 rn o nths? []Yes[]No[]Prefer not to,say 14.Whatareyour biggest Ihiou liing challenges?(check.all that apply) []Cost[]Availability[] Safety, Discrimination Accessibility Othier-, Section 5:Tra�nsportation 15.What transpoftation modes doyou use rnost?,(checkall that app!y) [] Personal vehic]b [] IPubllic transit[] Bicycle[]W'alking Ride shares/taxis Other: 16. the transportatilonsy'stem ime,et your it e,eds? []Always[]Often[]Somefirnes[] Rarely[]Never 17.What trans'gyp,,oimp,a,tiiion�,ch�alllenge,s do you face? Section&: Education 18. Igo,you or your family access education liin Ashland? []Yes[]No[]Not applicable 19. IRate acc,es:si ilIi,ty/iinclusiven�e:ss of educatiion:� [] Excellent[] Good [] Fair[]Poor[] Notsure 20. Barriers to accessing education? []Yes('explaiin): I Prefer snot to say Section T:Access toServibes 21. IEase of access to,the following services,(,&irclie one): Health care I Mental Ihealth 11 Food assistance 11 Child care Job support Legal/Immigration [1-Very Difficult to 4-Very Easy,or NJA] 22. Hard-to-access services or resources? Section&:Civic Engagement& Representation 23. �Have you atteinded a community meetingor event in the past year? []Yes[]No 24.What would help you feel m ore engaged in civic life? Section Final II> flections 25.What is one thing the city could do t I im orewelcoming and inclusive? I Updatefforn Chair regardin,gl GOnversation with Mayor Graham Mendel spoke of Ih er ositiiiv impeeting wit h Mayor Graham about this survey who was suppoftiveanid suggested starting witha�noutline to submit to the City Attorney for ite iiiew 4. Current liaison�assignments: ,Greenspan— Planning Commission Tyler—Climate and Energy, Policy Advisory Comrnifte,e Sage—Historic Preservation Advisory Cornrnifte,e Preskenis—'Transportation Advisory Cornrnifte,e Simon— Public Arts,Advisory Comrnifte,e Mend&l—Housing and Hurnan� Services Advisory Commiftee Smith-- Parks Greenspan-IRIIanninq:SOU 2025,master Iplan was presented. Discuss,ion includedwhile notifica tions of this plan weint out to n1eighbors via thi Iplanningi delpaftment, public sentiment was feelinig this was first to hearof it anid of'not feeling Sulu when not notified. Tyler-CEP AC:will attend in August-the Jul imeeting overlapped withl ,SE RJIAC"s,chan�gledII,dat,e. Presek.nis-TAC:Wll attend the next meeting Simon�-PAC: nothinig else to,report as PAAC didn't meet Mendel-HHSAC:willattend the next imeefing Smith-Par ks:will attend inext meetiag-Gooden will e-mail an introduction to Chair and Sta ff Lia ision. The committee discuss eel when,what, �in Ihow to present it Tsannual report to Council-Goodenwill inquire lif there is a request for a mid-year rep,ort thI iiisye,a,ir,.,,'Tlhle,co mmitte,e iteviewed anddisciussed meaningful collaborations with other committees that would be important to include in its future ireport to,Council DuQuenne off ered to support Iby talking to the chairs of other committee�s andcommissi,ons so thley understand Why SERJAC is attending their meetinigs Thiecommittee discussed the siurvey bein,g developed that,,could be usedasa reference tool when discuss,ing SERJACWth other committees and/br residents. DuQuennie announced that July is Disability Pride Month VII. New Busibess, 1. Discussion regard ing attendi ng Rotary Simon was invited to speak.to IRotary ire,giardiiing,SERJIAC,ors'Tiu,esfda,y,,,August 26,at,8:00am at Calvin Hall, First Presbyterianat 1615 Clark Ave.The committee discussed and Preskenis,volunteered to attend. VII. Adjournmien�t Mendel Iprovildeel clarification regarding the imontiIIy meetinagof Committee Chairs A SERJAC imeimlb,er,w,a,s,a,Ip,pro,a,che,d Iby a concerned,citizen that therewas not a place to �d Iproniouns on committee applications and had concerns of being miii - �M r itepeatedly.Committee im embers reviewed the application form online during the meetingand found that itcontains an optilonal"preferred pronouns"section on the application. A future agenda iii em was suggested for Ihow to discuss immi,gration itaids.Ashland Sunrise Pro�ectdid an event on how to,be goodally and had an ini�miigratio,n attorney speak. AnniouncemeM that Julyl 9 is an annual ILuLuau for NW,Seasonal Workers Association from 6-8:00pm-Discussed how allies can witiniess,andlor be awitness during key events such as this,as well as at co,uirtand/olr to,be Ipresent to help readany papers,etc. Meeting adjourned at 5:55pm