Our Community Association board has had another busy year and as the new president of such an active and vibrant group of people, I have had to navigate a steep learning curve. Thank you to all who have helped me in this important and sometimes daunting leadership role!
I encourage you to read the directors’ reports about their many accomplishments and activities this past year. They will give you details about the many projects and activities that your board has been involved with over the last 12 months. I will now mention some of the highlights as well as thoughts on future endeavours for our community association.
First – the fun stuff! Our board voted unanimously last December to provide funds for maintenance of the outdoor rinks at Green Park. Thanks goes to Lucas Ramage for buying a snow blower and to his crew of neighbours for using it to keep the ice cleaned off. As well, our board was very happy to pay for several ice cleaning sessions to maintain the surface. The rinks were well used and enjoyed by residents of all ages and we have budgeted funds to continue maintenance again this winter!
Expenditures to also improve the enjoyment of our community facility included the purchase of a new scoreboard for the gym and, as you may have noticed at our meeting, a new outside entrance sign, and new flooring for rooms, hallways and washrooms. Thank you to Gunter Sammet for the scoreboard project and to Kathleen Staniland for applying successfully for a grant to pay for 75% of the flooring project and for supervising its installation.
Our board is trying to communicate with our residents more efficiently and effectively. Over the last year our Communication Director, Liz Stewart, has worked hard to improve and maintain our HH-BH.ca website, work with Great News Publishing to improve our newsletter, The Beacon, and set up Twitter and Face Book accounts. Thank you to Liz and her helpers for these important steps forward in engaging and communicating with residents.
Less fun but necessary was the hand-over of our community run kindergarten to the Calgary Board of Education at Briar Hill Elementary School. It was very unfortunate that our ability as volunteers to administer the program was no longer adequate, and regrettable that the change had to happen quickly due to unforeseen circumstances. The hours of work and worry that were involved were too numerous to count. I owe our board’s Education Directors, Jill Letal and JIll Hadland a huge thank you, and I thank everyone both on and off the board who supported us during this difficult project.
One worry is the decreased revenue that we have received from gym rentals. We depend on this source of income to pay for a big part of our operating budget. Some regular renters have moved to their own new facilities or other venues and we haven’t replaced them, leaving the gym empty more often. And some of the decrease may be due to our hurting local economy. Increasing facility rental must be a priority in the coming year.
And now a look into the year ahead:
Our casino funds have been carefully saved over many years with plans to use them to help finance a renovation or expansion to our facility. The Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission (AGLC) stipulates that their proceeds must be spent within a specific time period. We have been allowed to extend this period in the past but were recently told that our board must submit definite plans and a time frame in order to keep these funds. With that in mind, we have started preliminary work on a project outline which we must submit by November 24. This will be an exciting project and we look forward to receiving input from residents as it progresses!
Our cooperative play school has been an important program in our community for many years and is administered through a parent council who is ultimately accountable to our board. One priority this year is to improve our governance and strengthen our board’s ties with the play school through more direct supervision of its administration. This will also improve our community association’s support for the parents who volunteer.
One smaller but important project is to update our community association’s bylaws. As many of you know, quorum is rarely met at our AGM’s and the reality of small turn outs needs to be addressed. As well, communication has changed over the years and we no longer only rely on Canada Post and The Beacon to advertise meetings. Other articles also need to be updated and reviewed in terms of their legality and legitimacy. I hope that this will be done at a special meeting in the new year.
We are a small community with a big heart! I have been honoured to serve you and I thank you for your support in so many ways. Please know that you are always welcome to attend our meetings or communicate with board members individually, and that we value your input and participation in our community association.
Yours sincerely,
Laura