Metropolitan Pier Exposition Authority Board met April 26.
Here are the minutes provided by the board:
Board Members Present: Jeffrey Bethke, Chairman; Don Villar, Vice Chairman; Jorge Ramirez**, Secretary/Treasurer; Dr. Sonat Birnecker Hart; Nina Grondin*; Sherman Wright
*Teleconference / **Arrived at 9:17 a.m.
Others Present: Larita Clark, Chief Executive Officer; Matthew Simmons, General Counsel; Jason Bormann, Chief Financial Officer; Pat Allen, Senior Director of Labor Relations and Campus Operations; Stephanie Lovelace-Nieves, Controller; Dao Ngo, Deputy General Counsel; Molly Kievit, Senior Director of Campus Sales; Hilary Barker, Director of Procurement; Jill Kolinski, Assistant General Counsel; Jeanette Swan, Director of Internal Audit; Tiffany Wright, Business Diversity Program Manager; David Causton, ASM Global/McCormick Place; Veronica Lynch; Cynthia McCafferty, Hawthorne Strategy Group; Doug Bradley, Savor/McCormick Place; Ed De La Harza, Savor/McCormick Place; Scott Winterroth, ASM Global/McCormick Place; G. Earrey, Unite Here Local 1; Marissa Levendis, Unite Here Local 1; Kevin Leezh, Unite Here Local 1; Rufus Purnell, Resident; Jim Meyer, Choose Chicago; Pat Doerr, HBAC; Illegible Signature; Maria Calderon, Compliance Officer and Board Administrator
General Matters: Chairman Bethke asked for a motion to permit Member Grondin participate via teleconference. Upon motion duly made by Member McGann and seconded by Member Wright, the remaining members present unanimously voted passing the motion.
A1. Roll Call: MPEA Chairman Bethke, called the meeting to order at 9:03 a.m. and Ms. Calderon called roll.
A2. Approval of Minutes: Chairman Bethke called for the approval of the minutes of the March 29, 2022.
Moved by Member Villar, seconded by Member Birnecker Hart, and the remaining members present voted approving item A2.
Roll call vote. Record as:
| Jeffrey Bethke, Chairman – Yes | Nina Grondin – Yes |
| Don Villar, Vice Chairman – Yes | Terrance McGann – Yes |
| Dr. Sonat Birnecker Hart – Yes | Sherman Wright – Yes |
C1. Consideration of Approval of Resolution No. MPEA 22-01 Honoring James R. Reilly.
Moved by Member McGann, seconded by Member Wright, and the remaining members present voted approving item C1.
Roll call vote. Record as:
| Jeffrey Bethke, Chairman – Yes | Nina Grondin – Yes |
| Don Villar, Vice Chairman – Yes | Terrance McGann – Yes |
| Dr. Sonat Birnecker Hart – Yes | Sherman Wright – Yes |
A3. Public Comment.
There was no public comment.
Report from CEO: Ms. Clark reported as part of the State’s budget MPEA’s budget requests were approved including the $15 million incentive fund to maintain and/or attract new events and the debt service for the upcoming year. Ms. Clark reported she was invited to be a panelist at the Hospitality & Tourism Summit which had over 2,000 attendees.
Report from Controller: Ms. Lovelace-Nieves presented the financial results for March 2022. Report from Chief Financial Officer: Mr. Bormann presented the tax collections for March 2022.
Report from McCormick Place General Manager: Mr. Causton reported Wintrust Arena hosted the McDonald's All American Games with 6,000 attendees; An Evening of Soul with Patti LaBelle, Gladys Knight, & Friends with 6,000 attendees; a sold-out concert by Maxwell with over 7,000 attendees; and a Chicago Sky scrimmage. Mr. Causton reported McCormick Place hosted the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy for the first time in Lakeside Center with 3,000 attendees; The Oddities & Curiosities Expo had over 10,000 attendees; the National Automatic Merchandising Association (NAMA) hosted their meeting in Lakeside Center with 3,600 attendees; Star Trek: Mission Chicago hosted their event in the West Building; Adidas Windy City National Qualifier had over 30,000 participants; KCF All-Girls National Chess Championship hosted their event in the West Building; and the Association for Advancing Physician and Provider Recruitment (AAPPR) was hosted for the first time in Lakeside Center. Mr. Causton reported the following shows will host their events on campus: the American College of Physicians Internal Medicine; the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Convention; Retail Innovation Conference & Expo; The National Restaurant Association Show and the American Society of Clinical Oncology.
Review of Covered Actions and Eligible Agreements:
C2. Consideration of Approval of Financial Plan FY23-25.
Moved by Member Ramirez, seconded by Member McGann, and the remaining members present voted approving item C2.
Roll call vote. Record as:
| Jeffrey Bethke, Chairman – Yes | Nina Grondin – Yes |
| Don Villar, Vice Chairman – Yes | Terrance McGann – Yes |
| Jorge Ramirez, Secretary/Treasurer – Yes | Sherman Wright – Yes |
| Dr. Sonat Birnecker Hart – Yes |
C3. Consideration of Approval of New Contract for Compliance Attestation Audit Engagement Exhibitor Rights at McCormick Place.
Moved by Member McGann, seconded by Member Ramirez, and the remaining members present voted approving item C3.
Roll call vote. Record as:
| Jeffrey Bethke, Chairman – Yes | Nina Grondin – Yes |
| Don Villar, Vice Chairman – Yes | Terrance McGann – Yes |
| Jorge Ramirez, Secretary/Treasurer – Yes | Sherman Wright – Yes |
| Dr. Sonat Birnecker Hart – Yes |
C4. Consideration of Approval of New Contract for Telecommunication Supplies.
Moved by Member Villar, seconded by Member Ramirez, and the remaining members present voted approving item C4.
Roll call vote. Records as:
| Jeffrey Bethke, Chairman – Yes | Nina Grondin – Yes |
| Don Villar, Vice Chairman – Yes | Terrance McGann – Yes |
| Jorge Ramirez, Secretary/Treasurer – Yes | Sherman Wright – Yes |
| Dr. Sonat Birnecker Hart – Yes |
C5. Consideration of Approval of New Reference Contract for Professional Bridge Inspection Engineering Services.
Moved by Member Villar, seconded by Member Birnecker Hart, and the remaining members present voted approving item C5.
Roll call vote. Records as:
| Jeffrey Bethke, Chairman – Yes | Nina Grondin – Yes |
| Don Villar, Vice Chairman – Yes | Terrance McGann – Yes |
| Jorge Ramirez, Secretary/Treasurer – Yes | Sherman Wright – Yes |
| Dr. Sonat Birnecker Hart – Yes |
D1. New Business.
There was no new business introduced.
Adjournment
Chairman Bethke moved to adjourn the meeting moved by Member Ramirez, seconded by Member McGann, and the meeting was adjourned by unanimous vote of the Board.
Roll call vote. Record as:
| Jeffrey Bethke, Chairman – Yes | Nina Grondin – Yes |
| Don Villar, Vice Chairman – Yes | Terrance McGann – Yes |
| Jorge Ramirez, Secretary/Treasurer – Yes | Sherman Wright – Yes |
| Dr. Sonat Birnecker Hart – Yes |
https://www.mpea.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/MPEA-Board-Minutes-Regular-Session-April-26-2022_Final.pdf
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