Bylaws of the Bloor West Residents Association as adopted March 22, 2006
1. Name
The name of the Residents Association shall be Bloor West Village Residents Association.
2. Boundaries
The boundaries of the Association shall be from the east side of Jane Street to the west side of Quebec Avenue and from the north side of Bloor Street to the south side of Annette Street within the City of Toronto.
3. Mission
To share information and encourage the participation of all area residents in activities that promote a liveable community.
Objectives:
- to engage residents, businesses and other interested members of the community in issues specific to Bloor West Village and concerns that may affect all of Toronto
- to provide a liaison and seek support from all levels of government (municipal, provincial and federal) on issues that concern our community
- to promote a safe and healthy environment
- to maintain the quality of life that reflects the unique character of the local community
- to participate, through the most effective means, in the planning of new and redevelopment opportunities that reflect the values of the local community
- to be proactive by keeping well informed and sharing information with all residents, businesses and other interested members of the community
4. Definition of Membership
a. All residents who live within the boundaries as defined in section 2. Boundaries are eligible to be members of the Association.
b. To be a member in good standing, a member must have paid the membership fee for the membership year as defined in 4.d.
c. All members in good standing have the right to vote at all general or special meetings and to stand for office.
d. The membership year shall be defined as the year ending March 31.
5. Executive
a. The Executive shall consist of the Table Officers and the Officers at Large.
b. Table Officers and Officers at large shall meet a minimum of eight times per year on a monthly basis.
c. Quorum for Executive shall be 3 of 5 Table Officers and one quarter of Officers at Large in attendance.
d. Meetings of Executive shall be at the call of the chair or his/her designate.
e. Seven days notice of meetings shall be given to Table Officers and Officers at Large.
6. Table Officers
a. The Table Officers shall consist of a Chair, Communications officer, Secretary/Treasurer, Policy officer, and Membership officer.
b. Table Officers shall be elected at the annual general meeting.
c. The duties of each shall be as follows:
- Chair: Provides leadership within the Association, calls and chairs meetings, functions as Association contact for external organizations; authorizes financial transactions in concert with the Secretary/Treasurer and one other Table Officer.
- Communications Officer: Manages the process of recommending ideas and contacting and securing guest speakers, assists chair with leadership role, writes materials for the Association; liaises with the media.
- Secretary/treasurer: Manages finances of the Association, takes minutes of meetings and provides an updated copy of the Association records to all Table Officers at the start of every Executive meeting.
- Policy Officer: Maintains awareness, conducts research and prepares proposals on issues affecting the Association.
- Membership: Maintains list of membership; contact with membership; recruitment of new members.
d. Table Officers shall have a term of one year.
e. Quorum for Table Officers shall be 3 of 5 officers.
f. Should the chair be absent, the responsibilities of the Chair shall be assigned to the Table Officer for Communications or any of the Table Officers as agreed upon by the remaining Table Officers.
g. Vacancies in any position shall be filled by the Executive from its members with confirmation being required at the next general meeting.
h. All Officers must give notice of their absence from Executive meetings to the Chair or designate. Should an Officer be absent for three or more consequent meetings, the Chair or designate will review her/his attendance with the Officer concerned to determine if the Officer should continue in her/his position. The Chair or designate will bring recommendations to the full Executive.
7. Officers at Large
a. There shall be a maximum of 16 Officers at Large.
b. They shall be elected at the annual general meeting.
c. Their duties shall be to assist the Table Officers in the operation of the Association, and in particular with responsibilities that include communications, membership recruitment, and policy development.
d. Officers at Large shall have a term of one year.
e. Should a position become vacant, the Executive shall appoint an individual from the general membership. That appointment shall be put to the next meeting of the general membership for approval.
f. Should an Officer at Large be absent for 3 or more consequent meetings of the Executive, the Chair or designate shall review her/his attendance with the Officer at Large to determine whether or not that individual should continue to hold the position of Officer at Large. The Chair shall make recommendations to the full Executive.
8. Committees
a. There shall be three standing committees of the Executive: communications, policy, and membership.
b. Ad hoc committees may struck by the Table Officers or the Executive as required.
9. General, Special and Annual General Meetings
a. A minimum of four general meetings shall be called by the Executive annually.
c. The Annual General Meeting shall be held in March of each year on a date set by the Executive and each Table Officer shall present an annual report.
d. Special meetings of the general membership will be called by the Executive or on the request of one third of the members in good standing. A request for a Special Meeting must clearly state the reason for the meeting and the agenda of the meeting will be restricted to that issue.
e. Notice for all meetings shall be given in a timely fashion. Where possible, email will be used to give notice of meetings. Where email is not available, written notice will be provided no less than three days prior to the meeting.
f. One tenth of the membership shall constitute a quorum of general, special and annual general meetings.
g. There shall be no proxy voting.
10. Fees
a. The membership fee shall be determined at the annual general meeting or at a special meeting.
11. Records
a. All records and minutes shall be held by the secretary/treasurer.
b. When there is a change of the individual holding the minutes and records, those minutes and records shall be transferred to the new office holder.
c. Any member of the BWVRA, upon written request to the Chair or Secretary/Treasurer, who wishes to view the minutes of a particular meeting or financial records shall be entitled to do so.
d. All financial transactions shall be held at a registered financial institution in Bloor West Village. The withdrawal of funds from this account shall require the simultaneous authority of two of three Table Officers, signatories that include the Chair and Secretary/Treasurer and one additional Table Officer.
d. In the event of the dissolution of the Association, the accumulated assets of the Association shall be given to the Bloor West Village Business Improvement Association to be designated for the beautification of the community.
12. Amendments of Bylaws
a. Bylaws may only be amended at an annual general meeting or a special meeting.
b. Notice of an amendment must be given in a timely manner to the membership as outlined in Section 6(e) General, Special, and Annual General Meetings.
c. A majority of 50% plus one of those members in good standing in attendance at an annual general meeting or special meeting is required to change a bylaw.
13. Parliamentary Authority
a. Roberts Rules of Order shall govern procedure at all meetings.
