- Thanks to Gary for his time and effort in bringing us this presentation!

- Gary's presentation will be made available at the GIS Coop's website: http://www.ci.tucson.az.us/gis/

- Entails recruitment material development, organization research, resource research, initial contact with organizations, GIS Coop web page revisions

- It was suggested that the GIS Coop develop a proper and lasting mission statement

- Mike Schrade from the Town of Sahuarita has so kindly volunteered to be on the Recruitment subcommittee. Thanks, Mike!

- We are still looking to get at least one other member to work on this committee. Please consider this volunteer effort.

- There may be 50 or more organizations that may benefit from joining the Coop and the Coop may benefit from having them join. These organizations may be represented at all levels such as the Federal level (Forest Service, Park Service, etc.), State (AZ Geological Survey, ADOT, etc.), and local (local fire departments, etc.)

- Thanks to all of you for your comments!

- Entails planning budget strategies for the GIS Coop so that resources can be used more efficiently

- It was pointed out that it is rare for a Coop or user group like ours to have a budget. We currently carry a budget of about $80,000 whereas when we first started in 1999, we had $250,000 (for that fiscal year)

- Dave Koss has volunteered to take on Budget planning tasks in this committee. We still need one or two other members to volunteer their time and efforts into making the Tucson GIS Coop a successfully run organization with capable and worthwhile geospatial goals. Thanks Dave!

- It was suggested that we ask some of the larger organizations in the greater Tucson area on how they plan (for GIS budgets)

- It was mentioned this is a worthwhile effort

- Thanks to all of you for your comments!

- May initially entail establishing a Co-chair, Treasurer, Secretary, and Member-at-Large (or some other tie-breaking and vote-eligible position). With the position of Chair, this would be a total of five (5) positions so that any voting process taking place will not result in a tie

- It was mentioned that this was a good idea

- It was mentioned that different disciplines/organizations need to be represented in these leadership roles

- Reception to this idea seemed positive

- Having executive leadership would allow ideas to be considered and decisions to be made without having to take up too much time in the normal Coop meetings

- It was mentioned that executive leadership meetings should take place outside of normal Coop meetings

- From Larry - Executive Leadership roles could entail chairing certain subcommittees (these are just sample ideas):

- Bryn Enright has volunteered to be on this committee. Thanks, Bryn!

- Jack Avis may provide some insight on how to develop and maintain an executive leadership subcommittee. Jack, thank you for your suggestions at the Coop meeting!

- I know some of you may be interested in working on this subcommittee but aren't sure what is expected of you or even what to do. Along with Jack Avis, we have numerous resources that we can work with (AGIC, AzPLS, other GIS "Coops", various GIS organizations, members in the Coop who have held such positions before, etc.) This is an exciting opportunity for members to make a difference.

- However, we still need one or two other members to volunteer their time and efforts for this committee - this committee may be crucial in deciding the future directions of the GIS Coop

- Thanks to all of you for your comments!

- Entails sponsoring the fair and encouraging other members to have their respective departments take part as "vendors"

- It was mentioned, by several people, that the Coop may want to establish a GIS Coop booth at the GIS Fair in November. This would enable the Coop to reach a wider audience and allow those who are involved with geospatial disciplines to become acquainted with what the Coop has to offer, if they haven't already

- It was mentioned that the Coop may be able to use it's own funding for sponsor a larger space for the next GIS Fair. TCC, U of A annex (old TEP bldg.), U of Campus, were among some ideas

- It was mentioned we could assist those in charge of the Fair organization in securing more space, refreshments, etc.

- It was mentioned that this venue would need to be kept downtown

- It was mentioned that an all-day mini-training curriculum could be set up, an ESRI representative could be asked to appear and talk, and some education items be offered

- It was mentioned that this could be a joint project with the Recruitment subcommittee

- Jack Lloyd (at the county) is a contact for this event: Jack.lloyd@dot.pima.gov

- Dave Koss/Larry - The ArcInfo license and two extensions (3-D and Spatial Analyst) have been purchased and are awaiting shipment

- Melisa Hadinger is still working on training facilities assessment - has about 5 to 7 facilities marked down

- Jack Avis mentioned that Steve Whitney has a "Mobi" lab - 10 laptops that were bought for emergency coordination after 9/11

- It was mentioned that ESRI's 90-day evaluation policy on GIS software be explored

- It was mentioned that ArcGIS II will be offered by SAIAT

- Autumn is still researching all available education/training coursework available to our members and the GIS community

- Licensing with other organizations outside of COT was mentioned and still needs to be researched, as there may be legal issues that have to be covered. The Coop sincerely hopes that this level of sharing will become a reality in the very near future

- Thanks to all of you for your suggestions!

- Larry has talked to Rick Harrington about combining SAGIS (which is generally inactive) with the GIS Coop

- GIS Members made it known that it may be more beneficial to invite SAGIS members to our meetings rather than take part in some type of "merger" with their organization

- It was mentioned that we may benefit from letting other organizations know that we exist and keeping open communications with them concerning our activities

- The thought of what defines a member was brought up in this discussion. More than one person has let me know this may be an issue we need to define

- The IGA between COT and Pima County has been approved and signed. If other agencies wish to take part in this, please contact Colleen Rosen at COT's IT department: Colleen.rosen@tucsonaz.gov . Only COT's IT director has to sign the IGA with any organization on behalf of COT. As far as other organzations, each one may need to consult with their respective mayor/council/executive leadership on what they need to do. Again, contact Colleen Rosen for more on this matter and Bill Marum on GIS Internet Portal technical details at Bill.Marum@tucsonaz.gov

- I mentioned that the Coop may benefit from having the Coop Chair tenure span the entire fiscal year (7/1/xx to 6/30/xx), rather than the entire calendar year (1/1/xx to 12/31/xx). Reasons include more fiscal guidance, more budget control, and more stable resource planning for the Coop, especially in context with line items. The Coop members attending the meeting appeared to overwhelmingly agree with this proposal.

- Since the new fiscal year starts in approximately two weeks, I am assuming that members would want this idea to take root at the same time as well. If the Coop members believe this should be the case, I will run the Coop until the end of June 2006.

- Please let me know if I am correct in understanding what it is you want. I would like to make sure that I do not usurp the professional wishes of Coop members

- Laura Pinnas mentioned she needed help with finding out sales tax codes for her work at TEP. Laura will send me an example of what it is she is looking for and I will distribute it to Coop members from there. Jack Avis mentioned talking to Andy Schubert at the County for this

- Steve Whitney mentioned in an email that using the GIS intern (Kaoru Johanssen) for E911 efforts in City Communications (tuning the ESN layer) may be of great help, and that it wouldn't affect the DSD address development that much. There is some behind-the-scenes support for this

- Rob MacArthur, in an email to me, suggested conducting, what I term as "Monograph" sessions. This entails devoting whole GIS Coop meetings to one topic, such as hydrology, real estate, GPS in archaeology, IR remote sensing methods and uses, etc.

- I welcome other new subcommittee formation suggestions

- Remember, if you know of anybody or organization that would benefit from membership,

please let me know!

Thanks to all of you who brought forth great open floor topics!

Larry

Lawrence.Cassen@tucsonaz.gov