REPORT TO SPC MEMBERS

With the Club remaining closed to room rentals, dining, and live events this season, the key issue became how to manage our expenses and raise at least some revenue to ensure our financial viability through to next season.

Bob has done a fine job controlling expenses.  Basically, our costs have been reduced to those of maintaining an old building, at a minimum level, providing no services to the members other than the take-out food and some online offerings, and funding a payroll of Bob, Ginny, and Chef Rob for the summer.

The contribution from take-out food and beverage sales appears to be between $11,000 to $12,000. That is the difference between the revenue and the cost of the food.  This is as good as could be expected.

Below is an estimate of our results for this year ending September 30 and a cash flow forecast for the balance of the calendar year.  It was prepared by me with review and suggested changes (all of which were accepted) from Bob and Ginny.

The headlines are that we will have a loss of $25,206 as compared to our break-even budget, and worst-case negative cash flow of $57,749.  Neither of these results are acceptable or sustainable.  We are forecasting that we will not have to borrow under our line of credit this calendar year. Importantly, the totals below assume that none of the unpaid 2020 dues (discussed below) will be collected.  To the extent they are, the picture will improve.

Key issues affecting our results have been the following: controlling expenses, the positive contribution of our take-out revenue, the $17,500 PPP loan/and forgiveness, and non-payment of dues.

There are still a number of members who have not paid their 2020 dues.

 

• PPP loan forgiveness request has been filed and is in the review process with Bath Savings and SBA.  No problems anticipated.
• Bath Savings has renewed our $60,000 line of credit for 2 more years.  The current line expires November 7, 2020.

As the Small Point Club Board Secretary, I am responsible for writing up the minutes of our meetings and sending welcome letters to new members.

As Communications Committee chair, I manage Tidings — collecting content, designing and drafting, and sending our online newsletter. This happens weekly during the summer season and less frequently during the off-season. I also send out news blasts with more time-urgent information. Jon Tierce has kindly pitched in when I have had an unavoidable conflict, for which I am very grateful!

This fall, I plan to make cards to send to our elderly members, thanking them for their loyalty to the Club over the years and letting them know we missed seeing them and are hoping to resume normal operations next year.

We have submitted and been granted a request in the amount of $34,654 to the Small Point Club Preservation Fund (Nikki Darre is its new president) for repairs to roof, sheathing, shingles, catwalk, decking, railings, sill, and framing. All of these repairs were identified as high priority in the 2019 inspection and meet the criteria of work that the Preservation Fund can cover. The educational and charitable purpose of the SPC Preservation Fund is to: maintain, restore, and preserve the exterior and fundamental interior supporting structure; to support the work and goals of historical preservation in the areas in which the building is located; and to foster awareness of and appreciation for the work of their architects and landscape architects.

Over the last few years, we accomplished the following:

• Improved internet access at the Club.  You can get “piping hot internet” anywhere in the building.
• Added Diane Gibbs as our real-time, enthusiastic, professional web developer.
• Installed Reservation Key software to allow potential guests to check room availability (the request itself goes through Bob K.).
• Assigned Member Numbers to help keep accounts straight with so many shared surnames.
• Built two databases – QuickBooks for finances (360) and Tidings for communication (450)
• Coordinated with Ben Mitchell-Lewis, who manages the AllSP database. (This work will continue this winter with a census and cleaning of these and AllSP databases.)
• Introduced Touch Bistro, point-of-sale software that simplifies ordering and billing.

First of all, thank you to all of you who have contributed to the Small Point Club Preservation Fund. Your gifts are greatly appreciated.

The purpose of the Preservation Fund is to provide a tax-deductible vehicle to raise money to maintain the historic Small Point Club building. The Preservation Fund can pay for the upkeep of the building. Things such as new steps to the beach or interior decorating and furnishing are not in our purview.

Since September 2019 we have received over $18,500 in donations from 88 donors, up from 75 the year before. We have recently approved $34,654 for the highest priority items, based on the building inspection report SPC commissioned last year.  Your generosity helps to give peace of mind to the Club board that should major structure needs occur, the Preservation Fund is there to cover the costs.

We currently have close to $74,500. As you know, one major hurricane or Nor’easter could wipe out those funds. So, our goal is to continue to build the Fund.

Our annual appeal letter goes out right after Columbus Day. This year we will be sending an electronic appeal as our board is not able to gather, due to Covid-19, to assemble a physical mailing.

Again, thank you to all of you who have been so generous. The Club is a better place for your generosity.

In summer 2020, the Board charged an Outreach committee to survey our membership when dues for 2021 are solicited.  The survey will canvass members’ sentiments toward club services and facilities pre, during, and post 2020 (pandemic).  Results will make use of our database to analyze various subsets of members based on age, co-membership in other SP organizations, distance from Club (winter and summer residences). We might also solicit input from summer residents who are not members.  Results will be reported to the Board by the annual spring Board meeting.

JON: In my last email as Co-chair of the Small Point Club, I owe many debts of gratitude.  Many thanks to the Board for its steady collaboration and support over my four-year tenure. This year we sadly lose Rod Tenney from the Board.  But I thank you, Rod, for your stalwart and sage leadership on finances and especially the important role you played getting the Club back on a positive fiscal track.

I also welcome new members Paula McLaughlin, Rob Tenney, and Sumner Miller.  You will be wonderful additions to the Board, and I look forward to working with all of you.

Thanks to Sarah and Martie for stepping into their new roles as Co-chairs. It’s a demanding but rewarding job, and you are going to be supported by an excellent array of Board members.  I have no doubt that you will be successful.

And, I can’t close without acknowledging my Co-chair for the last four years, Rebecca Milliken. Rebecca retires from the Board entirely this year.  We all have to credit Rebecca with making the Club’s inclusive paradigm a reality. I, the Board, and the Club have benefited from Rebecca’s leadership, flexibility, and willingness to make the extra effort (especially when my own workload increased).

In my final two years on the Board, I will continue to serve as chair of the technology committee and otherwise support the Board and new leadership to do whatever is needed to make the Club even better in the future.
Over the last four years, I have had the chance to work with wonderful, talented, hardworking people, and I have especially enjoyed getting to know so many members of the Small Point Community through their interactions at the Club.  Being a part of the Club leadership truly has been one of the highlights of my life!

REBECCA: Being a member of the Small Point Club Board for the last 6 years and having the opportunity to be a co-chair for the last 4 years had been an energizing and enriching experience for me, surprising in many ways. Jon and I could not have done what we have done without the steady support, collaborative approaches to challenges, and consistent commitment of the members of this Board. I thank you for all you have brought to our experiences together.  And, of course, most especially, I will be forever grateful to my hard-working, insightful co-chair who has taught me much about good leadership and creative partnership.

Finally, I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to the entire Small Point Club membership and community.  Your enthusiastic support for and engagement in what we have been offering over these last years and your willingness to show up in so many ways has made all the difference in our becoming a more vibrant, relevant community gathering place.