Macalester-Groveland Community Council

Residential grid representatives must by 16 years of age or older and live in the grid they represent and are elected by Mac-Grove community members currently living in their grid. For example, a candidate for the Grid 2 residential representative seat must currently live in Grid 2 as a renter or homeowner. 

At-large residential representatives must be 16 years of age of older and live in Macalester-Groveland and are elected by community members currently living anywhere in the Mac-Grove.

Residential community members who qualify for multiple seats must choose 1 seat to run for in the 2022 election. For example, a community member living in grid 4 cannot run for both the grid 4 residential seat and the at-large residential seat.

The candidate application is available below until April 13th. Applicants can either submit an application via google form or print and complete the pdf.

Board members are elected to 3 year terms (except when elected to fill an unexpired term at a special election). 

Board Member Responsibilities include: 

• Regularly attend Board meetings (usually held on the 2nd Thursday of each month at 6:30 pm via Zoom)
• Regularly attend all Board and Committee retreats (usually held twice per year)
• Contributions can be financial or through in-kind services
• Serve on one of the community council’s committees
• Comply with the conflict of interest policy and non-partisanship policy.
• Volunteer for at least 2 MGCC sponsored events each year.

More in-depth information on Board member responsibilities can be found here.

MGCC staff and board members will host four Board Interest Sessions in Mac-Grove. These sessions are open to everyone; email mgcc@macgrove.org if you have questions!

• Thursday, March 16th, 12 – 1 pm via Zoom (Meeting ID: 834 1566 2179 Passcode: 875721)
• Tuesday, March 21st, 5:30 – 6:30 pm, Simplicitea (272 Snelling Ave. S)
• Monday, March 27th, 4:30 – 5:30 pm, MGCC Office at Edgcumbe Rec Center (320 Griggs St. S)
• Tuesday, April 4th, 12 – 1 pm via Zoom (Meeting ID: 836 2675 9138 Passcode: 475072)
• Wednesday, April 12th, 5:30 – 6:30 pm, Groveland Tap (1834 St. Clair Avenue)

You can also reach out to MGCC staff to schedule a 1:1 phone call, Zoom meeting, or in-person meeting. Email alexa@macgrove.org to request a 1:1 meeting!

The online election ballot will be available beginning on Thursday, April 20th, 2023 until Thursday, April 27th, 2023 at 11:59 pm.

Paper ballots will be available by request beginning April 20th and must be postmarked between April 20th and April 27th, 2023. Community members can request a paper ballot from staff by emailing mgcc@macgrove.org or leaving a voicemail at (651) 695-4000.

Candidate profiles will be posted on the MGCC website, www.macgrove.org/boardelections, and at the Edgcumbe Recreation Center (320 Griggs Street South) on April 17, 2023. Candidates will also be invited to the Annual Meeting on Thursday, April 20th to meet community members and introduce themselves.

In March 2023, the Board of Directors approved the following additions to the Macalester-Groveland Community Council’s bylaws for approval by the Mac-Grove community at-large. These proposed bylaw additions will appear on the 2023 election ballot and can be voted upon by any residential or organizational member of Mac-Grove.  A Residential Member is any person sixteen (16) years of age or older who lives within Mac-Grove. An Organizational Member is any person sixteen (16) years of age or older who is a student attending any educational institution located in Mac-Grove, or who is the owner or authorized representative of any business, residential rental property, educational institution or religious institution located within Mac-Grove.

Proposed Bylaw Change #1:

Article IV – Membership

Section 4. All Community Members shall be given free accessibility to the most recent edition of the Democratic Rules of Order (Fred Francis and Peg Francis, authors) as specified use in Article VII, Section 5.

Explanation: This change would add a new section to Article 4 – Membership. Section 4 would specify that all community members will be given access to the most recent Democratic Rules of Order by request and free of charge. The Democratic Rules of Order are used to conduct all MGCC meetings (Article 7, Section 5). The bylaws do not currently state that community members must be given access to the Democratic Rules of Order although print copies are available in the MGCC office and can be borrowed by any community member.

Proposed Bylaw Change #2:

Article VIII – Committees

Section 6. The Board of Directors shall have the power to appoint seated Directors and/or Community Members to serve as their representatives on other non-profit boards, organizations, and committees acting in furtherance of MGCC’s mission. These positions shall be appointed at least every two years, or less as determined by the Board of Directors. These appointed Directors(s) and Community Members shall support the official resolutions of the MGCC Board of Directors at these other organization meetings if such official resolutions exist. These Directors and Community Members shall issue reports as established by the Board of Directors.

Explanation: This change would add a new section to Article 8 – Committees. Section 6 would specify the term lengths for MGCC representatives appointed by the Board of Directors to other organizations, etc. It would also specify that these representatives must support the resolutions passed by the MGCC Board of Directors at the organizational meetings they attend as representatives for MGCC. These practices have previously and are currently being implemented by MGCC staff and the Board of Directors; however, the practices are not mandated within the bylaws at this time. MGCC currently has Board members and community members appointed to serve as their representatives on the West Summit Neighborhood Advisory Committee (WSNAC) and the Grand Avenue Business Association (GABA).

Ballots are verified by members of the Election Verification Task Force which includes MGCC staff members and board members. To learn more about election verification, review the 2023 Election Rules & Procedures document below. 

6:30 pm: Welcome & 2022 MGCC Overview

6:40 pm: Councilmembers Jalali and Tolbert

6:55 pm: Dir. Brooke Blakey, Office of Neighborhood Safety & Cat Beltmann, District Council Coordinator

7:30 pm: How do MGCC elections work?

7:40 pm: Grid Breakouts (Breakout Rooms)