Meetings

State Membership Meeting -- October 15-16, 2011

Green Party of Michigan State Membership Meeting

St. Ignace, October 15-16, 2011

St. Ignace Public Library
110 W. Spruce Street
St. Ignace, Michigan 49781
http://g.co/maps/jr2w9

Saturday Oct 15 10am - 5pm
Sun Oct 16 9am - 11am

Agenda includes:
Officer Reports
National, Regional and Local Reports including Fracking, and Occupy Wall St
Planning for the Election Year

Full Agenda:

Saturday Morning, 8 - noon

1. Coffee, setup etc. (8 – 9 am)
2. Welcome from Marquette Greens (9:15 – 9:30)
3. Review of Agenda and Saturday night dinner, Sunday breakfast meeting (9:30-9:45)
4. Reportback from the Annual National Meeting in Alfred NY (9:45-10:15)
5. Officer Reports (10:15 – 10:45)
6. Locals reports and local struggles – (10:45 – noon) We will assign time for reports and discussion depending on how many local reports they are.

“The Great Lakes” and the U.S. 1st District Congressional Race and a “Fracking” Update
– Tom Mair, Traverse Greens

Cynthia McKinney meeting, struggle to stop welfare cuts, Herrada Campaign, Repeal Emergency Manager law update
– Fred Vitale, Detroit Greens

Repeal Snyder campaign update

Any other locals or reports

LUNCH and LUNCH SPEAKER (noon – 1 pm)

Saturday Afternoon (1 – 5 pm)
7. Follow up on motions from March SMM (1 – 1:30)
8. New Business of SMM (1:30 – 4:30)
A. Growing the Green Party in Michigan 2011-2012
1. Recruitment campaign for candidates – the 2012 elections
2. Platform Work
3. Media Work
i. Green Light / supplement
ii. Website, social media etc.
4. Build locals around campaigns or candidates
B. 2012 officer elections
C. Other Business – Next SMM (4:30-5:00 pm)

Sunday 9 – 11 am

Breakfast together
Any unresolved issues from the day before

MEETING LOCATION
St. Ignace Public Library
Website: http://web.uproc.lib.mi.us/stignace/
This is right on the main road going into St. Ignace. Coming from the Mackinac Bridge, take the first exit to St. Ignace. Turn right off the exit ramp and drive 0.4 miles to Spruce St. Turn left. The library is the first building on your left. The meeting room is to your right once you enter the library.

MEETING NOTE
We were able to line up a luncheon speaker, Lee Sprague, of the Little River Band of Ottawa - he's been involved on environmental issues from the state to the national, tribal, and international political level.

LODGING
We reserved a block of rooms at the Golden Anchor Budget Host Inn at a conference rate of around $79/night - just let them know you are with the Green Party conference. Their web address is http://www.stignacelodging.com/ and the phone number: 1-800-872-7057. It's a very nice place to stay, especially if you ask for second floor rooms overlooking the harbor.

There are a plethora of other motels in the area as well - Super 8 has rooms with a great view of the Mackinac Bridge - but it tends to be quite pricey (http://www.stignacesuper8.com/).

AREA ACTIVITIES (All are family-friendly)
1. A couple of good museums downtown:
- The Museum of Ojibwa Culture (more [brief] info at http://www.stignace.com/attractions/ojibwa/)
- Fort de Buade Musuem (more info at http://www.stignace.com/index.php?catid=485&member_id=1292)

2. A great stretch of shoreline along Lake Michigan is only a small drive down US 2 West

3. Mackinac Trail, just north of St. Ignace, takes you by a lovely National Forest campground (that soon will be closed)

4. Mackinac Island - expensive to get there and back (around $25/adult) but well worth the trip! Shepler's Ferry is the ferry business, I believe, that did not form what many would call a cartel with other ferry businesses in the area: http://sheplersferry.com/ There may also be some discount tickets ($15/adult) still available from Marquette's 101.9 WKQS Shopping Show: 906-227-7777 - I don't know what ferry line they are from, though.

5. The St. Ignace boardwalk which begins not far from the library (just down the hill along the Lake) and traces almost the entire harbor

6. The library has a small children's area with toys, stuffed animals, and, of course, books!

7. Kids may like "The Mystery Spot" or a climb up a lighthouse - tourist attactions located along US 2 West

8. There is a small playground off the town's main road just down the hill from the library along the lake.

9. WINDFARM: If anyone wants to check out how a mega-windfarm can damage an area, take a jaunt up to Bay Mills (just west of Sault Ste. Marie) and check out their shoreline view (http://www.scenicdrivesusa.com/node/100) - go further and check out the National Forest Bay View Campground that used to offer absolutely wildly beautiful shoreline views of Lake Superior along both the American and Canadian sides. Now Ontario's largest windfarm (some 30 miles long) clogs the view with its industrialization of the Lake's northern shore. Check it out.

10. If you head out for an even bigger jaunt, Tahquamenon Falls is absolutely gorgeous....especially at the height of the fall colors (http://www.exploringthenorth.com/tahqua/tahqua.html) ... and it's near the Whitefish Bay Scenic Byway along which the Bay View Campground mentioned above is located.