An important part of our Annual Meeting of Owners every year is the chance for Owners to ask questions of the Board. We captured this year's questions and the answers from the Board here:
Q: The values we have are obtaining local food as well as sustainable practices – has any thought been given to a plastic policy? What are we imagining in terms of single-use plastic?
Lee: Not specifically. The spirit of the answer to the question is that we will be looking at that stuff, but that level of detail will come from the Board setting a policy direction that states goals around sustainability, and the use of plastic, and general manager will be the one to implement those things.
Exciting news regarding the question of reducing plastic use in our store: As you can read in this post from our friends at the Sugar Beet, the governor just approved Public Act 101-0510 which expressly allows consumers to fill or refill personal containers with bulk foods!
Q: There are rumblings that the economy may take a dip in the next year – one of the things that happens is that banks get a whole lot less fluid when it comes to loans.
Greg: We are working with many different institutions – banks, CDFIs. They will not all be impacted in the same way. If we are able to underwrite before anything like that happens, our chances are better.
Q: In terms of design, is there opportunity for anything outside of the store? Patios, tables, chairs? Is it possible to modify the building’s exterior?
Dan: In terms of openings in the façade, we are not allowed to or interested in changing the front façade – it’s a historically preserved building. We will be punching holes in the back of the building on the parking lot side.
We do have plans in our schematic ideas to have café seating out on Broadway/Wilson. Depending on what funds allow us to do, we will either have it when we open or later. The city has made screetscape improvements in front of the building recently – new paving, new trees.
Q: Can we gift Ownership to someone?
Anthony: Yes, it’s on the website under the shop option.
Q: When you were going through expenses, I didn’t notice any rent expense in the last year. At what point do we need to start paying rent on the space?
Grant: We signed our lease on May 9, 2018. The lease gives us a rent free period until May 9, 2020.
Q: Can businesses be Owners?
Sofia: Yes! The process is the same for an individual Owners. It allows us to do cross marketing and events. Businesses can loan as well. Check out our business Owner page and support those businesses.
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