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Indianapolis Meeting Agenda
NARP Fall 2015 Council And Membership Meeting - Indianapolis, Indiana - Crown Plaza at Union Station
Agenda - Revised To 10-8-15
Full Agenda In PDF
Friday, October 16
8:45am Amtrak Beech Grove Tour Departs Hotel via Chartered Buses
- Tour check-in and boarding will be at the main hotel entrance. NOTE: All tour participants must take the bus from the hotel. Individuals cannot drive to Beech Grove on their own.
- Tour Dress Requirements: All tour participants must wear appropriate closed-toe, sturdy footwear! For your safety high heels, sandals, flip-flops, etc. are NOT permitted. Many areas of the facility are unheated. The tour will be both outside and inside of the buildings. Please be prepared to dress according to the weather conditions that day, including for rain if necessary.
- Hard hats and safety glasses will be provided by Amtrak to all tour participants. These safety items must be worn at all times while on the tour.
- Tour will require walking approximately 1.5 miles on uneven, rough surfaces; both indoors and outside. The ability to board train cars without assistance will be required for some aspects of the tour. The tour should not be considered as handicap accessible!
- A Box Lunch is included. Lunch sandwich selections will be turkey or a vegetarian option. Water stations will be available during the tour.
~2:30pm Tour Group Returns To Hotel
4:15pm – 5:15pm Board Of Directors Meeting – Conrail Room
- Open To All NARP Members
5:15pm – 6:15pm Vice-Chair and Committee Reports – Conrail Room
Optional Attendance for Council Members. There will be no action taken on any of the reports given on Friday; they are informational reports only. The reports will be available in printed form and on the Website
- Vice Chair - Advocacy/Division Leaders - Carol Haslett
- Vice Chair - Government Relations - Chuck Riecks
- Vice-Char - Marketing - Jim Loomis
- Vice Chair - Peter LeCody
- Legislative Committee Report - Rick Harnish
- Membership Committee Report - Bill Hutchinson
- Service Delivery Committee Report - Dave Randal
- Finance Committee Report - Rich Vavra-Musser
Times TBA Chairman’s Hospitality Suite
- Location To Be Announced
Saturday, October 17
6:30am – 5:00pm Meeting Registration – Executive Foyer Area
7:15am – 8:15am Buffet Breakfast – Victoria Station
8:30am ‘A Connected America Day’ Commences - Grand Central Station
- 8:30am – 8:45am - Chair’s Welcome & Opening Remarks - Bob Stewart
- 8:45am – 9:00am - Welcome to Indianapolis on behalf of Rep. Andre Carson - Megan Sims
- 9:00am – 9:40am - Opening Address - Mayor Dennis Buckley, Beech Grove, IN
- 9:40am – 10:00am - Hoosier State Update - Steve Coxhead
- 10:00am – 10:15am - Beverage Break
- 10:15am – 10:30am - President/CEO Opening Remarks - Jim Mathews
10:30am - 11:45am - Morning Concurrent Sessions
1) Advocacy Panel – Advancing Our Cause Across Multiple States And Regions - Haymarket Station 1 Room
- Steve Coxhead - Moderator
- Ken Prendergast – Executive Director - All Aboard Ohio – Cleveland, OH
- Helen Hudson – Teacher & Activist - Crawfordsville, IN
- Cliff Kuhl – Advocate - Louisville, KY - “A Cautionary Tale…When you get service, Pay attention!”
- Brad Bishop – Executive Director – OrthoWorx – Indianapolis
2) Current Issues Impacting Our Cause Panel – Topics Will Include Effects Of Section 209 On Regional Corridor Services, The Looming PTC Deadline Issue And Rail Re-authorization/Funding - Haymarket Station 2 Room
- Sean Jean-Gails - Moderator
- Heather Hice – Iowa Pacific - AM Session
- Venetta Keefe – Senior Rail Planner - Indiana DOT - PM Session
- Kevin Lynch – President – Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Regional Council of Governments
- Beth Nachreiner – Chief, Passenger Rail Policy – Federal Railroad Administration – Washington, DC
3) The Future of Rail and Public Transportation Workshop – Who Will Be The Next Generation Of Public Transportation Users? What Will This Generation Be Looking For? How Do We Plan For These Needs? - Grand Central Station
- Claire Bowen - Facilitator
- Tony Dutzik – Senior Policy Analyst – Frontier Group
- Environmental Law & Policy Center Representative TBA
- Student Presenters - NARP 2015 Interns - Jared Hoffman & Berry Mobley
12:00n – 1:30pm Lunch – Victoria Station
- 12:45pm - 1:30pm Lunch Speaker - Ed Ellis - President - Iowa Pacific Holdings - Chicago
1:30pm – 1:45pm Break
1:45pm – 3:15pm Afternoon Concurrent Sessions
1) Advocacy Panel – Advancing Our Cause Across Multiple States And Regions (Repeat of morning session) - Haymarket Station 1 Room
2) Current Issues Impacting Our Cause Panel – Topics Will Include Effects Of Section 209 On Regional Corridor Services, The Looming PTC Deadline Issue And Rail Re-authorization/Funding (Repeat of morning session) - Haymarket Station 2 Room
3) The Future of Rail and Public Transportation Workshop – Who Will Be The Next Generation Of Public Transportation Users? What Will This Generation Be Looking For? How Do We Plan For These Needs? (Continuation from morning session) - Grand Central Station
3:15pm – 3:30pm Beverage Break
3:30pm – 3:45pm Report Out From Concurrent Panels & Workshop - Grand Central Station
- Concurrent Session Moderators
3:45pm – 4:00pm Wrap Up Of ‘A Connected America’ Advocacy & Learning Day - Grand Central Station
- Bob Stewart and Jim Mathews
4:00pm – 4:15pm Break
4:15pm – 5:15pm NARP Committee Meetings:
- Membership – Bill Hutchinson – Haymarket 2
- Legislative – Rick Harnish – Grand Central Station
- Marketing – Jim Loomis – Atrium
- Service Delivery – Dave Randall – Grand Central Station
- 50th Anniversary – George Chilson/Jim Loomis – Haymarket 1
Times TBA Chairman’s Hospitality Suite
- Location To Be Announced
Sunday, October 18
7:15am – 8:15am Buffet Breakfast – Victoria Station
8:30am NARP Business Session – Grand Central Station
- 8:30am – 8:35am - Chairs Remarks - Bob Stewart
- 8:35am – 8:50am - Council & Member Self - Introductions Council Members
- 8:50am – 9:05am - Secretary’s Report - Steve Salatti
- Approval of Spring 2015 Meeting Minutes
- Attendance Recording
- 9:05am – 9:25am - National Meeting Report - Bruce Becker
- 50th Anniversary Celebration Update George Chilson. Jim Loomis, Bruce Becker
- 9:25am – 9:35am - Report on 501C (4) Research - John DeLora
- 9:35am – 9:45am - McCallum Gift Update - Bob Stewart
- 9:45am – 9:55am - Treasurer’s Report - Ken Clifford
- 9:55am – 10:25am - Finance Committee Presentation - Rich Vavra-Musser
10:25am – 10:40am Beverage Break
- 10:40am - 11:40am - Bylaw Amendments - Steve Musen
- 11:40am – 11:55am - CEO/President Report - Jim Mathews
11:55am – 12:10pm Break
12:10pm – 1:30pm Lunch – Victoria Station
- 12:45pm - 1:30pm - Lunch Speaker - Matt Hardision - Executive Vice-President Marketing & Sales - Amtrak - Washington, DC
1:30pm – 2:00pm Closing Remarks & Send-Off Bob Stewart & Jim Mathews
2:00pm Adjournment
"I wish to extend my appreciation to members of the Rail Passengers Association for their steadfast advocacy to protect not only the Southwest Chief, but all rail transportation which plays such an important role in our economy and local communities. I look forward to continuing this close partnership, both with America’s rail passengers and our bipartisan group of senators, to ensure a bright future for the Southwest Chief route."
Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS)
April 2, 2019, on receiving the Association's Golden Spike Award for his work to protect the Southwest Chief