The Springfield Preservation and Revitalization Council (“SPAR”) Board of Directors elected its officers for the upcoming year on November 16, 2015. We are proud to announce the officers as Michelle Tappouni, President; Todd Hollinghead , Vice President; Margaret Connor, Treasurer; and Aaron Glick, Secretary. Click here for a complete list of board members and their contact information. The SPAR board and its officers are elected in accordance with our bylaws, which can be found here. Officers serve an annual term and - along with the Executive Director - make up the Executive Committee, which provides guidance to the organization on how best to fulfill its mission and goals.
On November 18th the SPAR board learned that Ability Housing had filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Jacksonville in connection with its proposed project on Cottage Avenue, which lies within our Springfield Zoning Overlay.
Michelle is employed by Ability Housing as Director of Property Development. SPAR is not a party to this lawsuit, and neither SPAR nor Michelle is referenced in the filed complaint. SPAR is strongly opposed to this project and fully supports the City’s position that the proposed use of the Cottage Avenue property is not consistent with the Springfield Zoning Overlay.
Michelle served on the SPAR Board of Directors for several years before accepting her positon at Ability Housing, and was not employed by Ability Housing when they decided to develop the Cottage Avenue property. SPAR bylaws require that any board member with a potential conflict of interest – due to employment or otherwise - recuse themselves from voting on, or discussion of, any related matter. Michelle has not, and will not, be involved in any decisions or actions of the SPAR board that relate in any way to Ability Housing. She has not made, nor will make, public statements on behalf of Ability Housing or SPAR in connection with the Cottage Avenue project or the related lawsuit. She is not part of Ability Housing’s leadership on this issue, nor privy to their internal conversations about the lawsuit.
SPAR is fortunate to have a leader with Michelle’s qualifications and experience. She is an eight year resident of Springfield who has worked countless hours on behalf of our community and the urban core. She is SPAR’s immediate past Vice President and has been an officer of the Springfield Area Merchants and Business Association. She is currently Chair of the City’s Environmental Protection Board and Vice Chair of the Urban Core Citizens Planning Advisory Committee.
We look forward to continuing our work facilitating positive change in the Springfield Historic District, and invite all interested residents and stakeholders to become involved with SPAR. Our board meetings are open to the public and held at 6 p.m. on the third Monday of each month in our offices at 1321 N. Main Street. Notes of all SPAR board and community meetings can be found here. And of course, as neighbors, we’re always open to a front porch conversation.
