SCCARC Board Minutes 4/23/20

Call to order
A meeting of SCCARC (Santa Cruz County Amateur Radio Club) was held via telephone conference call on April 23, 2020, beginning at 7:20 PM.
Attendees
Attendees: Allen, WB6RWU; David, N6DTA; John, N6QX; Becky, KI6TKB; Nate, KM6THA; Cap, KE6AFE; Richard, K8SQB; Don, K6GHA; Robert, KJ6FFP
Board Members not in attendance
Not in attendance: none
Approval of minutes
March BOD meeting minutes approved.
Reports
Treasurer’s Report
All bills paid and deposits entered – current balance $4,489.33.
Approximately 78 members paid for 2020.
Email Reflector
105 members subscribed, 36 messages posted so far in April
Website
Please send any items of interest to Ron, K6EXT, for inclusion and posting on Short Skip.
Club Meetings On the Air
Last week’s meeting on the air on K6BJ-2m went well. We will continue to hold meetings this way during mandated social distancing requirements.
Old Business
Field Day 2020
The combined Santa Cruz and SLV clubs’ Field Day Committee consists of Scott, KE6QZJ; Richard, K8SQB; Gary, K6PDL; Sam, WB6RJH; Kerry, K3RRY; Karen, KM6SV; and Becky,KI6TKB. The committee continues to discuss the shape of the event, given social distancing requirements. There will be no pot luck, and so no club expenses for food. The SLV Club is
willing to pay for a PortaPotty this year only. Ideas for public outreach via video were discussed.
An update from the Field Day Committee is expected next month.
Club Repeater Shack Door
Site assessment by Becky and Duane, K6TS, still to be scheduled.
Club Station Shack Roof
No further actions needed.
Club Repeater Status Update (Nate)
No new problems were reported in the last month, so Nate has not visited the site. The quality of audio on link to KJ6FFP/W varies.

Club Name Badges
Don has good-looking badges for about 7 new members. Becky volunteered to distribute them personally.
New Business
Club Standing Committees and MOU with ARES
Cap noted that club bylaws mandate a number of standing committees which no longer have members. Which should we prioritize staffing? Discuss at next month’s Board Meeting.
The Club’s MOU with ARES needs some updates. Cap will distribute these to the Board.
Club Repeater Equipment Upgrade
After extended discussion, the Board voted unanimously to allocate up to $1,998 of Club finds for the equipment listed in the repeater upgrade proposal (rev. 3) created by Nate and Robert, KJ6FFP. (Copy attached to these minutes.) John will order the equipment. Nate and Robert will
configure and install the equipment in June. This adds no new capabilities; rather it replaces older equipment feared to be increasingly unreliable.
David will post a notice of this decision to members on the Groups I/O repeater-discussion site and ask Ron to post it on the club web site.
Upgrade or replacement of back-up batteries is not addressed by this. Batteries are likely at the end of their useful life. John will lead a battery assessment committee including Nate, Robert, and Cap. They will give a date for a recommendation at the next Board meeting.
Repeater Use for ARES Exercises
No objection to loading K6BJ-2m and KJ6FFP/W with traffic for ARES exercises.
PSPS Activation (Robert)
Santa Cruz County is hoping for ham support during cellular outages caused by the expected power shut-downs this summer and fall. ARES will coordinate this. Details are still unknown, but extensive use of the K6BJ repeaters seems likely.
Adjournment
Meeting adjourned at 9:03 PM.
Next Board Meeting
Conference call, Thursday, May 28, 7:30 PM
Voice-only dial-in number: 515-604-9396. Code: 781200
Video conference link: https://join.freeconferencecall.com/k6y_radio
Minutes by John, N6QX.

Summary of proposed Equipment upgrades to K6BJ 2 meter repeater