Important - AYC Annual Meeting and Election - October 13
Monday - October 13 at 7:00 PM Main Clubhouse
The annual meeting in addition to covering club business and financial's also serves as the forum for officer elections for 2026 -27.
1. Many thanks to the Nominating Committee .....they have identified the following candidates for 2026 - 27:
Commodore
Jeff Pritchard
Vice Commodore
Chris Chmura
Rear Commodore
Melissa Berrey
Treasurer
Jen lindsey
Secretary
Jared Efantis
Sally Kenney
Trustees (2 positions)
Steve Held
George Hupertz
Cara Ogren
Emanuel (Skip) Paris
Tia Woodard
2. In addition to the election of officers, we will also vote on an amendment to increase dues beginning in 2027.
Effective February 1, 2027 we propose the annual dues be increased $200 to $985 annually
In addition. we currently transfer $112.50 of each member’s $785 dues payment to the bulkhead account, a practice established in 1989 -91 era.
As a result of the proposed dues increase to $985, we propose this transfer amount be adjusted to $200. And be documented in the bylaws.
As previously discussed, all expense categories have increased while the top 5 expenses like electricity, insurance, club maintenance, maintenance supplies have increased $40,000 in just the last 10 years. We have trimmed all the expenses we can identify to maintain operations. Income has remained essentially flat since the club is full and 80+ percent of income is determined by dues and dockage. The above proposed increase in dues starting in 2027 covers approximately half the shortfall. The Board also feels storage fees should be reviewed for 2027 - 28 to accomplish funding the balance of the shortfall. We are currently the cheapest storage as benchmarked. We feel this 2-phase approach, over 2 years, is fair and necessary after 16 years of the established fees.
Please remember assessment dollers are not spent on operating expenses and we are in the process of reversing the deficit spending of 2024 and 2025
3. Finally, a resolution has been submitted to re-establish the Ice machine at AYC. The Board in an effort to control expenses and be fiscally responsible did not process any ice orders during 2026. The club has lost money on ice for the last 10 consecutive years. During those years Ice was priced to generate a small return, so that was never realized as well.
A decision of the Board (or in this case a decision to not continue a past practice) can be reversed by a vote of the "majority of the membership".
This is a high bar since the AYC Constitution invests the authority to manage the club in the Board of Governors.
The Board has invested numerous hours of discussion and research to identify a solution that provides ice to those who desire, without penalizing all members financially.
This memo will not attempt to review all those discussions but will summarize a few common topics:
-We do not have the personnel to offer an attended/locked machine.
-Cameras have to be attached to something i.e. laptop, outside service etc. They also do not offer a level of detail concerning payment amount and product removed. No one on the Board is interested in conducting inventories versus revenue and then potentially watching hundreds of hours of tape.
-Ice Makers versus bag dispensing. Ice Makers are designed for restaurants, hospitals and hotels. They do not function well with intermittent demand only during peak days. They have a daily, bi-weekly and bi-monthly cleaning regimen. They need an operating environment that remains between 50 and 100 degrees F and require a dedicated water line and floor drain. If you charge for the ice from a machine that is not pre-bagged you are subject to a health department inspection.
At least 20 days prior to the meeting the Secretary will mail all full members, in good standing, a ballot listing the 3 issues above, along with a copy of the Amendment and signatures pertinent to the dues increase.