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Dear Members,
One thing we all agree on is that our club is an amazing and special place that must be maintained and cared for so that we and future generations can enjoy it. Our club has seen tremendous growth over the years. Our membership of nearly 300 members continues to enjoy 14 acres of lakefront property that offers a private beach, junior programs, cruising and racing events, social events, a clubhouse, and boat storage. Furthermore, we are home to the finest docks and slips on the lake. Additionally, our club owns a fleet of power and sailboats has grown to over 30! These boats are used for education, recreation, and racing. Our club and members maintain over a mile of road, a clubhouse, water and electrical infrastructure, courtesy docks, boat ramps, moorings, a junior pavilion with restrooms, and additional out-buildings all at an affordable cost to our membership. Our goal has always been to provide ourselves with all of this at a cost that is far below market value and without changing the quality of our club. I am happy to say that our organization has been able to do so because our members step-up and volunteer!
However, one thing we cannot change is the rise in cost of materials, services, and supplies. All of these have gone up significantly in the last 5 years. These increases have left us in a situation in which we must act by slightly increasing our dues and fees to adjust to cost of living increases or decide what we are willing to do without. Having said this, our expectations for a high-quality sailing club still exists amongst our members. Therefore, the Board of Governors, have discussed slightly raising dues and fees in order to meet the needs of our organization’s operating costs. An increase of dues by $7 a month has been proposed along with an increase in fees. Discussion on the increase will occur at the September board meeting with a final vote scheduled at our October meeting. By doing so, we can continue to maintain our club at the level that we have enjoyed.
Finally, I would like to thank David Mosier for creating the budget presentation and explanation of our current and projected financial status. I encourage you to take time to view each slide as it is the goal of this board to be transparent with any changes that may occur.
Thank you,
Eli Putnam
Commodore
Augusta Sailing Club
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