Minutes

Appalachian Cave Conservancy

Board of Directors Meeting

8 March 2008

Attendance: John Wilson, Terri Brown, TM, Teresa Matthews, John Matthews, Tony McGee, Joel Stevenson, Don Feathers, Robbie Spiegel, Bill James, Ellen Hofler, Jason Lachniet, Gary Fielden.

Guests: Michael Rhinehart, Charlie Maus, Scott McCrea, Dan Henry,

Meeting Chair John W. called the meeting called to order at 10:30 am. Joel moved to dispense with the reading of the minutes of the last meeting. John W. recommended changing the motion to accept the minutes as published on the website. Joel assented. Tony seconded. Motion passed unanimously with no discussion.

Executive Committee

John W. said that his recent attempts at to get a large gift were unsuccessful.

Finance Committee

TM reported that the following summary as:

$1368.85 as of 1 march 2007

$1585.00 deposits from 1 march 2007- 1 march 2008 from t-shirts and memberships

$138.60 for mailings and mailing supplies

$447.00 for t-shirts

$50.00 for compass

$25.00 for Virginia state corp. commission

$2293.25 as of 1 march 2008

Membership Committee

John M. reported that all but four members were now in his database. He has little or no info on board members. John M. announced that Swaygo Gear had designated the ACC as recipient of the annual Swaygo Award. ACC will receive an amount dependent on Swaygo’s sales.

Gary said that Terri’s friends Sean and Samantha want to renew their memberships provided they get tee-shirts.

Fund-Raising

John M and Don said tee-shirts are available now.

Stewardship Caves

Bill met with the owners of Moccasin Valley Cave. They are in favor of joining the ACC. They want to read a sample agreement and they want a cave law sign to be placed in the cave.

John W. explained to visitors that stewardship caves are affiliated to the ACC by renewable agreements.

Tony reported on the plan to make our own cave signs. East Tennessee Storm Door is willing to sell window frame for $0.40 per foot, including rubber seal to ensure waterproofing. John W. will print the signs on his computer printer, laminate and paste them on Plexiglas. Tony will place the signs in the frames. John W. estimated that we will need about 100 signs in the next few years. $160 will cover enough window frame stock to make 100 signs.

The chair indicated he would entertain a motion to allocate the money needed to buy the window frame. Joel so moved, Terri seconded. Discussion: Tony will find out how much stock they have and are willing to sell. He asked for discretion to spend up to $300. Terri and Joel agreed to the $300 maximum. Tony said that the catalog price is $1.40 per foot. The motion passed unanimously.

Gilley Cave

Don: Moved we accept gift of land and cave with stipulation that we gate the cave – essentially, the motion as expressed in the meeting agenda. Joel seconded. Discussion followed:

John W. said that Jean Moore (Gilley Cave owner) has a problem in her neighborhood: drug and alcohol use in the cave and on the cave property. UVA Wise and TNC never talked to her to find out her needs, namely, to clean up the neighborhood and cave of drug abuse. She feels that she has exhausted the intentions of her late husband to donate the cave to Clinch Valley Community College as his first choice and UVA Wise as his alternative. John said that the colleges and TNC would not have been able to reach an agreement with her without agreeing to a cave gate. Mrs. Moore is prepared to gate the cave with or without ACC support. She has more neighbors than in the past, and they are calling the Sheriff to tow away vehicles of people parking without permission. Mrs. Moore wants to guarantee access to scout groups and the colleges and keep the drug abusers and drunken riffraff out. She wants to keep a key to the gate in addition to the keys that ACC has, even if the property is donated to the ACC. John W. concluded that the ACC is the best group available to take the cave. The alternative is to let Mrs. Moore keep sole control – probably not as good as a cooperative relationship with the caving community. Gary, who was present at the conference with Mrs. Moore, said that he agreed with John’s account. John W. said that access details have not been worked out. Tony said that the Sheriff and rescue groups should have keys. Gary said that Sean in Jonesville could keep a key; Gary could keep a key. TM said that we would be blamed by the caving community for a gate. She asked when ACC learned that Mrs. Moore would insist on a gate. John W. replied that until the visit by himself, Gary, Becky, and Tony, there was no indication that she would insist on a gate. Jason said that Emily had committed to Brad of TNC that we would not gate the cave. Tony said that the cave is going to get a gate regardless, so let’s get involved – it could be six to eight months before we have to install a gate. John W. said that the gate is not negotiable with Mrs. Moore. Don asked, isn’t it true that Mr. Moore did not want a gate? Tony replied, yes, but Mrs. Moore feels otherwise. John W. said that Roy Powers is ready to gate the cave, with the steel already on hand. Roy had the impression that Mrs. Moore always pushed for a gate but Mr. Moore resisted. Roy felt that the ACCA might be turned down for a management agreement. Dan said that we have a unique opportunity to save the cave. A relationship entailing a gate would be far better than leaving the cave to the mercy of future heirs and developers. Ellen said that McClungs was now closed after the lady owner died and the heirs have denied access. Dan said that a cave gate is a necessary evil. Tony said that there could be a fixed id. device on keys and those cavers could leave a form on Mrs. Moore’s door. Ellen told about the caving experience in Pennsylvania, where there are many gated caves. Scouts must go with a NSS member. There is a caretaker near the cave. There is a key for the grotto. This system works well, access is not a problem. Tony said that groups from the North and Midwest coming to Gilley need to be apprised of the gating situation and suggested that we publish in the NSS News a notice that a management plan is being implemented. John W. stressed that TNV and UVA had never found out about the stipulation of a gate. After the meeting with Mrs. Moore, he immediately went to Hawaii and did not have time to inform the board members of the details of the meeting. Joel said that there are time constraints for making a decision on whether to make an agreement with Mrs. Moore. John W. said that Mrs. Moore expected an answer today. Joel said we needed an outline of the responsibilities and duties we would assume through an agreement. Tony replied the gate, and key distribution. TM: What time frame? John W.: For the gate, a time frame of this summer. Mrs. Moore is pressing for rapid gating. Gary: There should be notices in the News and the local paper. John W.: Also, the duty of maintaining the gate to the best of our ability. Joel: We should avoid any written responsibility for repairing the gate. We should take a look soon to determine how much work it would take to install the gate. John W.: We have a standing offer from Roy Powers to put a gate in. Joel: A really strong gate would be difficult to breach.

Tony asked Charlie about his opinion.

Charlie made several recommendations: including 1. Use an outside fence and gate, as opposed to in-cave gate. 2. Market the problem/ solution with the local caver community. 3. As to covenants of the agreement, don’t get obligated beyond gating this year. 4. Management plan Market the objectives with publicity and a kiosk at cave. Philosophy – aim for an eventually open cave.

Don: Leave open the possibility of leaving the cave open in the future.

Joel: Agree to a gate but retain absolute flexibility.

Gary: Need a parking area with gated access. Terri: A greenway area.

Dan: What about tax liability? John W.: We would have to pay taxes until we can possibly persuade county to waive them. We would be morally obligated to work closely with Mrs. Moore and other neighbors. Joel: While retaining as much flexibility as possible. Joel: We should not tie our hands until we get final documentation. Don: Agreed. Joel: A team should go to Gilley now to assess the gating situation. Tony: Let’s vote on the motion, then assess.

The motion passed, 12 for, two against, two not present.

John W. said we need to approve legal expenditures. He suggested allocating up to $1000 for counsel. Joel so moved, someone seconded. Discussion ensued:

TM asked if the land been surveyed? John W. replies that the land was surveyed back when subdivision began. John W. proposed that a committee be appointed to address these issues. Tony, Gary, Bill, John M., Joel, and John W. agreed to serve.

Terri suggested that Emily be left the option to remain on committee if she wants. Jason agreed.

Committee motion passes by acclamation (TM not present for vote).

Ellen said that local cavers would quickly get used to a gate. Gary asked Terri to check with Lee County attorney Montgomery about title transfer.

SERA VAR decisions

Don said we needed Perkins trip leaders and times set. One trip Thursday, as many as possible on Friday and Saturday, and possibly one for Sunday morning. He suggested both long and short trip alternatives.

Thursday leaders: John W., Robbie

Friday: John W., Jason, Robbie

Saturday: Terri and John Wilson

Gary: We should get a minimum number before justifying a Sunday trip.

John W.: Let’s forget the Sunday trip, cleanup will demand maximum resources.

Tony: Stipulate advanced cavers only for Perkins trips. TM: Call it advanced horizontal.

Tony said that Dave Foster was coming down to perform Saturday night.

New Business

John W. raised the proposed reorganization of ACC into four operational spheres, each with its officers: Program, Finance and Information Systems, and Publications and Development. This would require a by-law amendment.

Tony moved and Joel seconded that the president formulate an amendment for presentation to the board.

Discussion: John W.: We don’t currently meeting auditing standards. This reorganization would start working toward the goal of accountability. Tony revised his motion to more closely match John W.’s formulation as presented in the Agenda, specifically, naming three vice-presidents to draft the by-law.

Joel expressed concern that by-law should not strait-jacket what we must or should do as opposed to what it would be nice to do. John W.: By-law would not specify every detail. That would be left as division of general responsibilities. Joel: For example, financial records must be kept meticulously, but tracking volunteer participation is something that would be nice but not necessary to do.

Motion passed unanimously.

Blacksburg Cave

John W. raised the issue brought to our attention by Paul Thompson of Blacksburg Cave, owned by Ricky Shutt. TM said that Jason had talked to Shutt. Jason said he had put the Blacksburg survey on the backburner. Emory & Henry is involved in the cave; they did a cleanup there. What kind of help does Shutt need? John W. suggested we can pursue the matter to find out what’s up. Tony moved and Joel seconded a motion to table action on Blacksburg Cave until more is known. Motion carried.

The board meeting was adjourned by general consent and the annual meeting was called to order at 12:45.

ACC Annual Meeting

President: Tony nominated John W. as president. Joel moved to close nominations. John was reelected president by acclamation.

Vice-President: John M. nominated Tony as vice-president. Hearing no other nominations, the chair declared Tony elected by acclamation.

Secretary: Gary nominated Robbie as secretary. Hearing no other nominations, the chair declared Robbie elected by acclamation.

Treasurer: Tony nominated TM as treasurer. Hearing no other nominations, the chair declared TM elected by acclamation.

TM said she needed a new cosigner since Terri had moved.

Election of directors – Four directors are up for reelection: Jason, TM, Christine, and Tony. Christine is ineligible to stand again. John M. nominated the three eligible plus Ellen. Tony moved to close nominations. In the absence of any other nominees, the chair declared the four nominees elected.

At 12:55 the annual meeting was adjourned and the Perkins Cave Management meeting began.

Perkins Cave Management Meeting

Jason reported that at DOM 2007, total survey was 1534 feet, largely thanks to Bill Balfour and his team. The total resurvey now stands at 1.38 miles.

John W. said that he needed two volunteers to help install the ladder.

Tony said that the cave gate opens and swings well.

Tony and Joel said they were on their way to Pennington Gap to assess the Gilley Cave gate situation.

Don and Bill planned would perfect the Tore Peter Tube modifications that afternoon. Survey groups including Scott, Dan, Michael, Jason, Ellen, and Robbie would attempt to survey the 200-Foot Crawl and the Tore Peter Tube.

The Perkins Cave Management meeting adjourned at 1 pm.

Minutes were recorded by Robbie Spiegel and edited by several ACC officers.