MINUTES From the Special Called Meeting

Thanks again Bill for great minutes! 73, Rod, N1YZ
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SCARC MEETING NOTES
May 3, 2007
Special Called Meeting

At 20:30 SCARC President Rod Scott N1YZ called the meeting to order at the Bluff Park Community Center and had the attendees introduce themselves. Treasurer Jack Evans checked the roll of current members to ensure that a Club membership quorum was present. The purpose of the called meeting was to discuss and pass proposals for improvements to the Club’s main two meter FM repeater on 146.98 MHz.

Mike Spanos KA4VCA reported that the current condition is that the twenty-eight-year-old repeater system is working but not reliable. He cited several recent repairs including a burned trace on one of the boards and a broken wire. Repeater Committee Chairman Bob Thomas continued with a list of recent repairs made on the system over the past few weeks. A detailed explanation of the repairs was presented to the club members as a report which is attached to the minutes. The consensus of the Repeater Committee is that the main repeater must be replaced with a new machine and that the associated antenna be replaced with one that is expected to give additional gain. The Committee suggested that the repeater replacement be a Kenwood TKR-750 and that the antenna be an Andrew Exposed Dipole Quasi-Omni (Model DB228E). Copies of the specifications were passed out to the membership along with an estimate of the entire project replacement cost, which is $4035.24. A detailed copy of the estimate is attached to this document along with the technical data.

The floor was then opened to the membership for discussion, and the following questions were presented:
· Will there be a repeater coordination problem?
Jack Evans, a member of the Alabama Repeater Coordination Council, stated that this is merely an equipment upgrade and should not cause a problem.
· Will there be an issue with the remote receiver or voter installations?
Lee Aured KI4NMD, a member of the Repeater Committee stated that he discussed this issue with Kenwood and they believe the equipment to be adaptable.
· Is the current DC power supply adequate for the new equipment?
It was reported and affirmed by several members that the new equipment can be served by the existing power supply.
· Is the unit complete as listed (e.g. no hidden costs)?
It has to be programmed but the vendor will do that once our information is provided.
· Is the existing tower safe to climb for antenna replacement?
The consensus of several of the recent workers on the repeater system indicates that it is safe. It was also pointed out that a bonded, professional climber will be doing this part of the installation.
· Can the existing antenna be reused instead of a new one?
Discussion from the floor indicates that the old antenna needs to be replaced. The cost of the new antenna and the associated tower climb/installation is a small percentage of the total outlay, and the new antenna will give 3 db more of gain.
· If replaced, can the old repeater be repaired and used as a spare?
Several of the repeater workers agree that it cannot be used as a backup due to the lack of spare parts.

A financial discussion ensued during which Treasurer Jack Evans reported that the club has approximately $3500 in savings and $125 in checking. He also indicated that there have been individual current donations and commitments of $1000 towards this project by the membership that are not included in his estimate. The club should have at least $1000 in savings if the proposed purchase is approved. It was pointed out that there may also be some FEMA and other EMCOM money made available shortly due to some planned projects.

It was pointed out that the Club is entering into some commitments to provide emergency communication assistance to several local agencies, and that a reliable, efficient repeater system could be the backbone of our assets. Also, it was noted that a club’s reputation can hang upon how well it maintains and uses its repeater. Finally, but not least, the southern part of Shelby County has been suffering from lack of repeater coverage which will be improved by the new system.

A motion was made, voted, and passed that the Club purchase and install the new repeater and antenna as recommended and presented by the Repeater Committee. The motion was carried by 17 affirmatives, 0 nays, and 2 abstentions.


Attachments:
· SCARC Meeting Roll
· Secretary’s raw notes
· Kenwood TKR-750/850 series and Andrew DB228E technical notes
· SCARC Repeater Committee Update Dated May 3, 2007
· SCARC Repeater Committee Estimated Repeater System Upgrade Costs