Administrative Team

Meeting Minutes of May 8, 2009

Present: Ron Bennett, Eben Marsh (excused early), Deb Sandler, Guy Gledhill, Chris Mills, Jim Otis and Cyndi Alden.

The meeting was called to order by the Meeting Chair Chris Mills at 7:05 p.m. Jim Otis was appointed Meeting Secretary and Chair for the next meeting.

The minutes of the April 2, 2009 meeting were reviewed and accepted.

Old Business:

• Financial Statements and Budget: Cyndi lead a review of our financial statements and budget for the period January 1 through May 7 , 2009 (35% of the year). There was a $(10,942) loss for this period (42%) vs. a budgeted loss of $(26,290) for the calendar year. Given the seasonality of certain expenses and accelerated payments of other expenses, we felt the variances were reasonable and we concluded that we are on track at this time.
• Tenant review: 1.) 331 Cottage Road: Steve Popp/Old Crow has moved out. Cyndi sent him a final statement for unpaid rent of $3,600 and we kept his security deposit of $1,200 for repairs. Regarding this space, Guy Gledhill has a potential commercial tenant to take the entire space. Since the use of the building is residential, we have to get an OK from the S.P. Board of Zoning Appeals each time we change tenants. Guy will handle the appeal process with the City and also will try to get a deposit from the tenant to reserve the space. Guy will also work with Cyndi on due diligence to be sure the new tenant is qualified. 2.) 509 Sawyer Street: Our residential tenant has told us that her job is being terminated in the near future, so we authorized Cyndi to discuss and negotiate a lower temporary rental amount.
• Room Rental Agreement: Cyndi has updated this agreement to include the language suggested by John McCall which (nicely) asks non-profits to consider a donation for the use of the space to defray heating and maintenance expenses.
  

Committee Reports:

• Counting: No formal report from Brian Wallace, but the system appears to be working fine and the Counting Committee is doing a great job.
• House: House Committee member Guy said they didn’t meet this past month since there wasn’t much on their agenda. Tom now has the ability to monitor and control any church thermostats from his home, which will save on fuel. They are working on the radiant floor heating system effectiveness in the sanctuary. They are also checking into a dual burner for both fuel oil and natural gas. Guy also said that we are going ahead with putting new windows in the third floor of the office wing. The cost is the same as the original bid price from the previous year.
• Planned Giving: Ron and Chris discussed having a Planned Giving poster at the A Team table on Homecoming Sunday. They also anticipate putting an article in the first September Beacon. The focus will be on educating members.

New Business:

• Council Finance Concerns: Ron and Jim attended the Council meeting on April 16 and discussed various concerns of the Council regarding church finances. The Council would like the A Team to review the financial processes, systems and controls of church programs and to provide any recommendations that don’t increase costs, including whether less material programs (i.e. Eskimos) should be included. Ron and Jim will spearhead this mission on behalf of the A Team over the course of this year. We discussed the fact that the Discovery Center and the Holly Daze bazaar should be included and that the A Team should review the initial draft of the financial statements. We would also want to revise and expand the A Team’s purposes beyond the procurement of the annual audit. Cyndi will also be contacting our CPA firm (Laurie Ann Wilson) to obtain feedback on pertinent issues.
• Annual Report: We made some minor editorial changes and Guy will finalize.
• Growth Group: We reviewed Dave Allen’s email regarding this new program, and we felt that it could be very helpful in increasing church attendance and membership. Jim will be in contact with Dave to learn more about the program and specific steps that we need to take.
• Green Action Group: We reviewed the various emails from Barbara Merrill, Tom Conlon and Elsa concerning recycling and a request to put up a “Clean Air Zone” sign in the parking lot. We had some concerns about the sign and Jim will email Elsa, Barbara and Tom.
  

The meeting was adjourned at 8:34 p.m.

The next AT meeting: Thursday, June 4, 2009 (last meeting until September)

Respectfully submitted by: Jim Otis, Meeting Secretary