May 2024 Council News

from Marilyn Chase, Council President

GreenStar Council News for May 2024

GreenStar Bylaws Refresh Project Update: Spring 2024

Back in 2021, Council approved a proposal directing the Co-op to launch a comprehensive review of Greenstar’s Bylaws. This work was interrupted due to the unexpected departure of our General Manager, but was restarted last year by the Governance Committee. The hope is to have a finalized version of the revised Bylaws available for member approval by the annual fall voting period this October. 

Our next step is obtaining member commentary on the revised version. Over the next few months, Council is setting up multiple meetings, both virtual and in-person, to solicit feedback on this revised version from the membership (Dates and times below). Council needs your input! The Bylaws are our basic governance principles and they are under the exclusive control of the membership; we need to make sure that what we are crafting resonates with the values and goals of the Co-op. 

Register here to attend one of the following in-person or online Bylaws Feedback Member Forums

• Monday June 17, from 5:00 – 7:00 PM: In-person Member Forum at the Tompkins County Public Library Borg Warner Room
• Monday, June 24, from 6:00 (or 6:30) to 7:00 (or 7:30): Online Member Forum
• Sunday, July 7 from 3:00 to 4:00 PM: Online Member Forum
• Thursday July 11, from 5:00 – 7:00 PM: In-person Member Forum at Greenstar (770 Cascadilla Street / the Space)

You are also welcome to provide your feedback to Council via this online feedback form. If you have any questions, please contact Council via email at: council@greenstar.coop

Highlights from the May Council Meeting

At its May regular meeting, Council listened to a presentation from Tompkins County Worker Center, GreenStar’s April Partners for Change recipient and received the General Manager’s Monthly Report.

Council approved the following proposals:

• Policy B.2 – Planning and Budgeting Monitoring Report
• Fresh Start Bylaws Draft#2 
• Amendments to the Council Travel Procedure

Council reviewed the following New Business items:

• Draft Amendments to Council’s Vote Counting Procedure
• Draft Amendments to Council’s Elections and Appointments Procedure

You can find details on these items by reviewing the May Council Agenda, available on the Council Documents page of the greenstar.coop/ website, or by reviewing the meeting minutes, which are posted to the website upon approval from Council (typically at the following month’s Council meeting).

Next GreenStar Council Meeting: Tuesday, June 11th at 6:30 PM 

Member-Owners are always welcome to attend! Meetings are held online. Email boardadmin@greenstar.coop for instructions on how to attend. Meeting agendas are posted online 6 days before the meeting at: https://greenstar.coop/council-downloads

Come early for pre-meeting engagement with Council!

From 6:15 – 6:30 PM GreenStar members are invited to join Council members for an opportunity to engage in conversation. This 15 minute period is an “open-mic” format and will be recurring – taking place ahead of the GreenStar Council meeting every second Tuesday of the month. Email boardadmin@greenstar.coop for instructions on how to attend.