At our annual meeting the membership approved expenditure of an estimated $4000 to $5000 for design and permitting of possible improvements to the club. Most of the estimated cost is for

a Survey and Engineering required to obtain a permit for new retaining walls and permit filing costs. Also included are design fees for working out the construction details of a possible replacement for the Butler building and Utility shed, design of a better system for dingy storage racks, and cost estimates. No expenditures toward construction were approved. A vote on those expenditures will come before the membership as early as the January 2009 Change of Watch.

Construction costs for the projects were not available at the meeting because the design has not progressed far enough to know what materials or methods will be used for construction. It is my hope that any construction project can be designed to be built almost entirely by the members, similar to our work on the ramp to the main dock. The dingy racks and maybe even a new building could be designed as modules that can be erected as we have funds to add more structure(s).

There are also permit questions that will need to be answered before we know a final location for any proposed new structure or if loss of parking spaces might affect our mooring permits. I was not willing to approach the town to ask these questions until the membership had voted to proceed. I will update you all in the November issue of the Binnacle with any answers to our questions about permitting.

The Board of governors will thoughtfully consider any proposed projects before they are brought to the Membership for a vote. We also track all probable capital expenditures related to maintenance and get realistic estimates from vendors. A full financial report will be given at the change of watch before any other actions are requested.