July 2026 MNA Meeting Minutes

July Meeting Minutes 

07/13/26

Present Board Members: 

Steph Cleary, President

Keegan Baurer, Secretary

Sarah Hartzel, Treasurer 

Adam Fiss, SE Uplift Liaison 

Louise Hoff, Member at Large

Elisabeth Litster, Member at large

Emily Meneer, Member at Large

Nedim Filipovic, Member at Large

Steph called this meeting to order on 07/13/26 at 6:34pm after confirming that a quorum was present. 

Agenda: 

1. Treasurer Report

2. SE Uplift

3. Parks and Gardens

4. Communications Committee

5. Land Use and Transportation 

6. Oak Street Community Action Committee

7. Harrison Community GNA Committee

8. Art Walk Committee

9. Joy Committee

10. City Hall Update

11. PEMO

12. Unfinished Business

13. New Business 

Vote to approve June minutes. Motion by Steph. Seconded by Keegan. In favor: 6. Opposed: 0. Motion passes. 

1. Treasurer Report: 

   1. Sarah reported that the largest MNA expense in the past month was the Street Fair application fee, which will be split with the 82nd Avenue Business Association. Sarah also indicated that she has filed MNA’s 990 tax form for 2026. Sarah confirmed that she is willing to navigate getting Venmo and Cash App set up to maximize profits from merch sales at the Street Fair.

1. SE Uplift:

   1. MNA received a grant from Urban Forestry to assist with the yard tree giveaway. Montavilla was selected for this program due a lower tree canopy relative to much of the rest of the city. Urban Forestry is offering free trees and Adam requested support in raising awareness of this project. MNA received a $1000 grant from SE Uplift to further this cause. MNA has been loaned an iPad to help sign people up for the tree giveaway. The expected quota is sixty people signed up per month over the course of three months. Urban Forestry is hoping to give away 4,000 trees over the entire city. 

1. Parks and Gardens:

   1. The committee shared that Harrison Park and Montavilla Park are the sites to go to in the event of local seismic activity. Residents were encouraged to stockpile water (a gallon per day) as well as other survival supplies to be adequately prepared for such an event.

1. Communications Committee:

   1. Steph shared that Adam and Keegan have been trained to manage the website. MNA Meeting minutes have been updated on the MNA website.

1. Land Use and Transportation: 

   1. Nedim shared that Washington from Thurburn to I-205 has been lowered to 25mph from 30mph. PBOT has started their 2045 transportation system plan. This is a document that jurisdictions generate that help influence what is built and what projects are undertaken. The plan is comprised of a list of projects that PBOT hopes to accomplish over the next 20 years. This list is not what is guaranteed to happen, but inclusion on the list increases the likelihood of the project being completed. PBOT is accepting community feedback until the end of the month, which will then be fed back into the project list. Find more info at portland.gov/transportation/20245tsp-committee

   2. Smaller scale concerns can be reported to Nedim, SE Uplift, PBOT, etc.

1. Oak Street Community Action Committee: 

   1. Committee denied any updates. The CAC did not meet last month but will reconvene on 07/15. The committee made positive remarks about the Oak Street project, with the only noted concern being a trail of trash left from 82nd Ave to the MNA meeting site.

1. Harrison Community GNA Committee: 

   1. Keegan denied any updates regarding the Harrison Street Village or the follow-up CAC meetings. Keegan agreed to follow-up with Harrison Street Village to ascertain when residents will begin to be admitted to the shelter.

1. Art Walk

   1. No major updates noted by the committee. Emily is assembling list of local art in hopes of creating a virtual art walk that will eventually be displayed on the MNA website.

1. Joy Committee

   1. Steph is working on street mural applications. MNA will be reaching out to the community next month for potential street corners whereat the art mural may be installed. MNA is rolling out a “Meet Your Neighbor” program, where neighbors can submit applications for notable residents that the community would like to highlight. Those interested can find the nomination form on the MNA newsletter and website.

1. City Hall Update:

   1. Spencer, from Councilor Novick’s office, reported that budgeting is wrapped up and now they are working addressing concerns regarding MODA Center renovations. Spencer encouraged residents to reach out to him with opinions about how to best proceed with this issue.

1. PEMO Update

   1. PEMO meets twice a month (next meeting is 07/14 at 1:00pm). Residents can attend and report concerns or they can submit concerns to MNA. METBA offered the MNA an incident report form, which is now listed on the website under the Resources section. These reports will be funneled back to PEMO for additional problem solving.

1. Unfinished Business: 

   1. None noted.

1. New Business:

   1. The Montavilla Street Fair will be hosted on 07/26. The MNA is assembling prize baskets for raffling and is seeking volunteers to solicit local businesses for donations. MNA is also searching for volunteers to host the MNA Street Fair booth.

Steph moved to adjourn the meeting at 07:12pm. Keegan seconded.