Bernie Hart gave a brief overhead presentation. He reviewed how the first Urban CAP meeting was held last June with primarily HRM staff. From that meeting came ideas for a) uses and b) locations. From September till the present a series of sectoral and geographic focus group meetings have taken place (reference document: Community Contact List). Since the development of the neighbourhood cluster concept a several neighbourhood meetings have taken place with more to come (reference documents: Neighbourhood Cluster Summary and Neighbourhood Cluster List) Cluster. Bernie used the Sackville neighbourhood as an example of the cluster concept. This group has put in an application for funding.

         Bernie reviewed the key requirements that are needed for an access site/arrangement. They are:

• Local community board
• Suitable site
• Open at least 25 hours per week with some evening/weekend access.

         Five applications have been submitted:

• Sackville as a cluster group
• Darmouth North Community Centre - individual application but they are working with library and school
• Veith House - individual application
• Mi'kmaq Friendship Centre
• Carrefor/College de Acadia

         Leo Deveau informed the group that there is a CAP Association for rural sites that David Murdoch (HRM CAP Coordinator) is working with.

         There was an observation and some discussion that in the rural program there was a sense that the community identified the needs whereas it seemed that with the urban program the program implementers were defining where the needs are. While it is true that there has been helping and organizing various groups within our urban community to meet and work together, Karen Parusel clarified that a lot of that kind of activity took place in the rural program as well. One of the constraints the urban program faces is time as applications must be submitted by March 31, 2001, whereas the rural program had a much longer time frame.

         Bernie distributed and explained an organizational chart titled "Nova Scotia CAP Management Structure". Within this structure which was established with the start of the rural CAP program there is a place for an "Urban CAP Committee". Initially it was not certain what form this committee would take. Today the vision is that the group invited to today's meeting would be that Advisory Committee. Bernie then showed an organizational chart for the Neighbourhood Cluster Arrangement that places this Advisory Committee at the top of that structure. The role of this Advisory Committee would be to provide:

• information to meet CAP needs
• information to meet your needs (ie organizations/groups represented on the committee)
• direction/advice on policy issues
• advice on future organizational structure

         The committee would work over at least the next year and would meet once a month. The committee would be the approximately 24 individuals invited to the meeting today. Individuals should give thought to their interest in working on this committee. With a group this large it is understood that not everyone would always be able to attend but that information sharing would be critical and email communication would be key. One suggestion has been to set up a special place on the Chebucto site to access information specific to this committee.

         There was a brief discussion about the name of this committee as it was called various names in the documentation. It was suggested since most of it's role is advisory in nature it be called an Advisory Committee. Leo Deveau added that CCN works on a volunteer basis through a variety of committees and could see how this committee might have sub-committees to work on various issues/topics.

         The working group would be comprised of five representatives - HR Library (Laura Jantek), HR School Board (Valerie MacLeod), CCN (Leo Deveau) and TSS (Bernie Hart). This group would depend on the Advisory Committee for direction and advice.

         Participants were asked to think about and submit now or later by email two things:

1. Review the Community Contact List and make suggestions of list other groups/organizations we should make contact with about this program.
2. Names of any others who they think should be included in this Advisory Committee.

         Bernie gave a brief history of how the neighbourhood cluster concept evolved and referred to the map posted on the wall which roughly showed the 13 clusters. The cluster idea first started to evolve at the downtown Dartmouth focus group meeting. The concept is not the only way to define the Urban CAP program but is a way of helping sites to connect with other groups, share information and support each other. Additionally there are communities of interest and some groups that cut across all neighbourhoods (for example seniors).

         Maurice Lloyd who was representing his daughter, Moira Lloyd (co-owner of the Celidih Connection) raised the point that government programs can have a negative effective on the private sector. If for example a "free access" site opened next door to their business it could put them out of business. Leo Deveau suggested that the community was bigger than what this program will offer. There are many different needs to be met and different sites will offer different benefits. He gave the example that although the Chebucto Community Net has offered "free access" for several years to those who cannot afford other service providers there is still plenty of room for the private sector.

         The question raised by Kim Vance was, are there not two different agendas at work and we should be clear about who was being targeted by this program. She suggested for example that there was likely no middle ground between say her organization and a private business.

• Minutes will be sent out to those in attendance as well as those unable to attend.
• An invitation to the next Advisory Committee meeting and likely a list of scheduled meetings will be sent asking people to participate on the committee.
• Participants at this meeting to share ideas about who else should be included. They can contact Joanne Fraser or Bernie Hart.