January 2005 Board Meeting Minutes by Tom Blinn January 5, 2005
Added.
The meeting was called to order at 6:35 by Rich Davis. In attendance were Rich Davis, Mike Lussier, Phil Brown, Melanie Brown, Paul Michali, Tom Blinn, George Bixby, Walter Wolf, Dana Sion, Michael Morin, Jan Marc Holzer, Al Legerlotz, Gordon Geick, Bill Moore, Mike Francis, Eric Wensberg, Dan Giuliano, Dick Cadieux, Neil Neveu, Allen Goddu, and perhaps a few others. Rich indicated he would have to leave early for business and that Phil Brown would run the meeting in his absence.
Minutes from the December 1st meeting were distributed. Phil Brown moved that the minutes be accepted as presented. The motion was seconded and carried by voice vote.
Chapter Elections
George Bixby moved that the chapter elections for calendar year 2005 take place next. There was a somewhat confusing series of motions, the outcome of which was that the published slate of candidates was elected by unanimous vote of the member present. None of the positions were contested.
The chapter president for 2005 is Rich Davis. Vice President is Phil Brown. Both are incumbents in their respective positions. The new chapter treasurer is Neil N. Neveu, and the new chapter secretary is Michael P. Morin.
Most of the chapter's directors were present. They shared the observation that from the perspective of the National BMW CCA office, we are a prototypical small chapter, and that although we have had some financial surprises in 2004 they fully expect we will pull together to invigorate and expand the chapter's activities and financial success in 2005.
Chapter Bylaws
Rich Davis reported that the work on the chapter bylaws document is progressing. He has received many comments on the first draft. He was asked to update the first draft based on the comments received and circulate it for review. A posting on the chapter web site was suggested as a good way to make it available to a broader community. He hopes to have a "final" version ready by the February meeting for consideration and if acceptable to all, adoption by the chapter membership.
Directors and Officers Insurance
The chapter will investigate obtaining D&O (Directors and Officers) insurance through a local agency. It is hoped that this will be less expensive than obtaining the insurance through the National Chapter's agent.
Driving Events
The Performance Driving Events Committee (DEC) was represented by Al Legerlotz, the committee chair. The committee met in December. The discussions focused on the event schedule for 2005. They identified a total of 10 track days at NHIS, which may expand to 11 days if they can arrange a cost shared activity on the last weekend in July. Although they could have had more track days this year, they deliberately cut back the schedule to improve the likelihood of financial and student success. There is still a tentative plan to have a driving event at Club Motorsport in September if the track is ready for business.
Social Events
The Social Events Committee met in December. The committee plans to organize three events for 2005.
The first will be a family picnic at a New Hampshire state park. The first choice would be Pawtuckaway State Park in Nottingham, NH. The park includes a large family beach on the lake with a bathhouse, a group picnic area, a playground, and a group shelter with a ball field available by reservation only. Other activities in the park include biking, fishing, snowmobiling and cross-country skiing. Of course, some of those activities would not be appropriate to a summer outing.
The second activity for the season will be a touring / fun road rally, perhaps in the northern part of the state. It may take place during or just before foliage season.
The last chapter social event will be the 2005 Holiday Party, which is planned for January 6, 2006. It was noted that the Bed and Breakfast weekend is on schedule and that reservations are filling up. Anyone who wants to participate should review the information on the chapter web site and contact the event registrar. The proposed Nova Scotia road trip is also in the planning stages but is not one of the Social Committee's managed events.
Membership Report
Paul Michali noted that chapter membership is at 795 this month.
Web Site
Paul Michali reported that he is investigating alternative web hosting options. The web hosting service we now use provides excellent professional support, but the cost is not insignificant (about $1850 in 2004), and with the continuing evolution of public domain site support software, we may be able to manage our own web site less expensively. No decisions have been made or recommendations brought forward. Paul would appreciate input or feedback from the membership.
Treasurer's Report
Mike Lussier, outgoing treasurer, reported that our cash position on December 31st was nearly $17 thousand in the bank, most of it in CDs. We have reasonable reserves going into 2005, but fiscal prudence will be appropriate. We ended the year with about $13K more in expenses than income, largely due to the costs associated with the October driving schools and club race, which were not well attended (so the fixed costs were not recovered).
Mike was loudly and lovingly cheered by the members present for his many years of service as chapter treasurer.
New Business
Dana Sion noted that although it is our stated goal to have the monthly membership meeting be more a social evening than a business meeting, we have not been very successful in restructuring the event in that mold. Discussion ensued. It was noted that Mike Cooney's Concord Motorsport is one of our major sponsors for 2005, and that we might be able to work with him to have a tech session at his facility, possibly with Steve Dinan as a guest speaker, since the business is an authorized Dinan facility. Dana plans to contact them to see if they are interested.
Meeting was adjourned at 8:30 pm.