Austin passed out copies of bank statements for the current period, there was about $1240 prior to the transition to formal CAIC tax ID account and after aug/sep rent and utilities about $860 remains
Past practice has been to try to maintain a 2 month reserve as buffer or approximately $700
Austins practice is to make a deposit when about $100 in petty cash accumulates
Austin has been exploring 501(C3) status. The forms and process seems daunting. In addition he is exploring incorporating CAIC as a charitable organization. The purpose is to get CAIC on a stable financial footing with growth potential and with a good $$ buffer for winters and dry income periods ( a self-sustaining vehicle for recovery efforts , in Austin's words)
(aside) The most common type of tax-exempt nonprofit organization falls under category 501(c)(3), whereby a nonprofit organization is exempt from federal income tax if its activities have the following purposes: charitable, religious, educational, scientific, literary, public safety etc.
For these purposes the AA traditions such as anonymity do not apply since CAIC is not AA but a separate supporting entity. Therefore Austin is requesting board members supply full names and contact info (Board currently 5 Austin, Scott, Rocky, Tom H. , Big Al)
Austin mentioned that there is a lot of grant money available but the processes are tedious and complex. Perhaps the first grant obtained could be used to hire a professional grant writer to pursue subsequent grants. Perhaps there is one in local AA?
In the short term, there is general agreement on board and attendees that more information about how other similar centers operate , would be helpful. Austin and Shawn are going to question Marlboro ARC leaders. Ausin is going to investigate affiliation with other local charitable organizations such as WHEAT. It was brought up that CAIC formerly had a United Way affiliation as did Leominster MAC center. United used to pay Smokey to run the center. (also Rocky mentioned last meeting that Greenfield Grapevine employ 2 part time center managers)
Alternate siting for CAIC: There was some discussion about alternate sites, perhaps real estate owned by town that they might donate or share use. Shawn made a good point that maintaining independence (with a commercial rather than town site, as is the current situation) gives total freedom on meeting scheduling, such as for new meetings whereas a shared town site (particular a shared use, the new senior center was mentioned) might present limitations. Austin favors keeping town dependency minimal, they already help significantly with finances (~450/month this budget period).
In the meantime, what can be done to move operations closer to a break-even status?
Teague mentioned improvements that could be made to reduce costs in particular replacing the six lighting fixtures with LED equivalents which is something he would volunteer to do.
Rocky volunteered to tweek meeting opening script to perhaps correct the impression held by some that donations were gravy and that the town was fully supporting the center. This revision can be reviewed or word-smithed at next meeting Sep 21.
Rocky suggested that each meeting which uses CAIC ought to be self-supporting and that a consistent method of rent allocation be devised (some algorithm based on hours of use for example). Austin commented that there is only 2 meetings and that the nooner is the primary income.
