Saturday, December 11, 2010

2011 News and Updates

Hello Members,

Sorry to be so behind in getting out these updates... please remember, I'm only a volunteer :) I do hope you read all the way through this, as it contains some important news and updates for 2011.

Saline Update:
After doing lots of research, listening to the sales reps and debating with each other, we decided not to upgrade to saline. The bottom line is that the majority of the Board felt that there were too many risks and the rewards were questionable, based on the feedback we heard from members. If you want the details, please call me or find me somewhere at the pool or in the neighborhood.

Deck Update:
Have you seen our new deck?!? It's awesome! It has two levels and a built-in bench for watching tennis. Someday soon I hope to get all the photos online. Many thanks to all who built the old deck, which served us well for almost 25 years! And many thanks to those who showed up to demo the old deck so we could save some money and make way for our new deck. Also, a special thanks to Board Member, Braden Buck for the design and for overseeing all construction.

Budget Update:
We finished 2010 with a surplus, which we used to build the deck. The remaining surplus will go towards savings and prepayment of the loan. All the budget details will be presented at the annual meeting.

Annual Meeting: January 30th @ 5pm:
We will be electing the new 2011 Board, voting on officers, presenting the budget and discussing any news/updates. If you care about the Club, please plan to attend.

Membership Dues, Etc:
After thoroughly discussing dues, etc. during at least 3 Board meetings, we have voted on the following changes for 2011...

We will cap membership at 175. We are currently at 150 (an all-time high) and over the last 5 years have added an average of 27 memberships every year. We always lose memberships due to moves and other circumstances, but the growth has been consistent and encouraging.

We are waiving the initiation fee for new single/couple Senior Citizens (over 65). We'd like our club to reflect the entire community and want to encourage seniors to be a part of our success. Also, truthfully, in order to maintain the Club, pay off our loan, occasionally make improvements and be financially comfortable, we need more memberships. We hope this change (along with lowering dues for singles in 2008) will help us grow the club and keep us strong for many decades.

All dues are due by April 1st or there will be a $50 late fee.  After April 1st, payment (with late fee) are due in full before you come to the pool or before your kids show up for swim team practice. No exceptions, no partial payments, no payment plans, etc. We allowed this last year, on a case-by-case basis and quite frankly, it is extremely time/emotionally consuming and I just can't do it again - and no one else has volunteered. If we reach 175 memberships, any members not paid in full by April 1st will risk losing their membership. Start saving now!

We are, however, offering new members the option of paying the initiation fee early (i.e. now) in order to secure their membership.

We have not raised dues in the last 4 years and this year we decided to raise them by $25. This will still keep the family membership under $500, and we will maintain our status as being the least expensive club anywhere around town. Our initiation fee will remain the same, at $400. Our closest neighbors in Gainsborough are $100 more to join, $25 more per membership, they do not have tennis, and their facilities are about where we were 5 years ago, before all of our major improvements. We encourage you to shop around before you decide to join/renew :)

We need more volunteers to help keep costs low and morale high for all the Board members and the other small handful of people who always show up to help with work days, etc. So this year we are adding a refundable $25 work day assessment fee to all memberships. You will get 100% of it back at the end of the season if you volunteer for 3 hours. We will include work days, Friday night grilling, concession stand sales and any other opportunities that arise. Our hope is that more members will volunteer and if not, at least we will have a little extra money.

2011 Board:
I'm happy to say that we had a great Board in 2010 and the majority will be coming back for another year. However, we will probably be losing some (haven't yet received full commitments, either way from a few folks) but most likely we will have room for a couple more people. If you are interested in joining us, please let me know. I've heard from so many of you about the things you'd like to see added, done differently, etc - we all do our best to accommodate everyone, but joining the Board and volunteering to help is really the best way to ensure your voice is heard. It's a great group of people and by far it has been my favorite volunteer effort - which is why I keep coming back every year :)

I think that's all the updates I have for now. I look forward to seeing everyone on January 30th for the annual meeting. If you have any questions/concerns, please contact me anytime.

Thanks!

-Leslie Freymann

HHSTC Board Member
Membership & Communications Chair