7th November Matilda meeting

new proposals

Space was requested for building a few speakers. The tat room was agreed as suitable. Proposal passed.

It was suggested that a safe space for kids be created - not a creche, so no legal problems. The old kitchen was suggested as ideal for this space, with tea/coffee facilities moved to the room up the stairs at the back of the meeting room. The proposal was passed subject to a week's wait before work begins on it to allow any objections.

We can easily get an allotment. What do we want from it, are we going to do it, who's gonna do the digging? We need to decide and get back to the guy...

An art market in the run-up to Christmas was proposed to raise money for MATILDA and the artists selling their work. A long discussion ensued about whether profit-making activity should be allowed - the proposal had 30% of the sale price going to MATILDA, the rest to the artist. It was pointed out that gigs/parties are generally not permitted if the promoters intend to make a significant profit rather than just covering costs. The proposer felt that the idea represented an opportunity for art collective members to contribute to the running costs of the building. The proposal was not passed, but a modified version may be brought to a future meeting. A discussion of not-for-profitness was suggested for the next meeting.

Indymedia doc fest:

It was noted that the organisers need to talk to the Cafe collective about food arrangements for the opening night.

It was proposed that, on the last night of the festival, the films be followed by a couple of hours of music for those who attended the films, going on till 2 or 3, "chillin not bangin". This was passed.

The gig collective had a succesful night on Tuesday, about £90 went to the bands that adequately covered costs. Unfortuately the band that was to play an afternoon 'skiving' gig can not do so, but the idea may be used some other time. A presence on the website was requested - see below.

Regarding the building, it was decided that the dangerous gas pipe in the basement could be capped, as it only supplies a couple of ineffectual heaters. It was also agreed that up to £100 could be spent on decent heaters.

There was some confusion about what is happening with the website. Apparently two front pages exist. It was proposed that those with web design skills pool their expertise to work on the site. The aim is to have a seperate page for each collective that wants one, linked to the front page, so a meeting needs to happen with web designers and collectives to decide to content.

We don't know yet...the group that is working on this hasn't met yet. People are keen to see this process happen, so it will be discussed at the next meeting to see if the process needs adjusting.

It was proposed that these meetings should begin (and end) earlier to mitigate the effects of minging winter weather. No conclusion was reached - perhaps people could talk about it and revisit the idea if it's popular.

It was proposed that certain substances be banned from the building, but it became apparent that the proposal arose from a misunderstanding of the smoking policy and was dropped.

Discussion about how, or whether, to regulate the email list following some recent exchanges. It was proposed that people should intervene in arguments to ask the participants to settle it face-to-face. This may not work, but could be tried. It was highlighted that the list may be peoples' first point of contact with MATIDLA, and users should be aware of that. Short-term steps should perhaps be taken to prevent the list being the first point of contact. Medium-term, it was proposed that a forum on the new website would be a better place for the discussions that currently take place on the list. The issue was parked.

the following issues either fell off the agenda or were raised during the meeting and should be discussed next week:

...or at least those who went to the pub did. It was warmer there.