Did You Miss the State of the Cooperative Townhall Meeting?

DID YOU MISS THE STATE OF THE COOPERATIVE TOWN HALL MEETING?

Did you miss the State of the Cooperative town hall meeting on February 4? The GHI Board of Directors and staff talked candidly about the issues that the cooperative is facing and strategies for meeting the challenges. GHI member Eric Zhang, photo blogger for Greenbelt’s 75th Anniversary, attended and posted his photos and very thorough highlights on his blog, at http://greenbelt2012.wordpress.com/2012/02/06/ghi-town-hall-meeting/ Check it out!

President Tokey Boswell raised concerns about rising costs and the need to keep costs down. Because of increasing taxes and maintenance costs, he said, “Some of us might not be able to afford to live here in the future.” That is, unless we make changes to the status quo!

GHI’s Board and committees are actively looking at ways to keep our costs down and our revenues up:

• The Board has filed real estate tax appeals for hundreds of units.
• The Buildings Committee is developing proposals for the Pilot Project and the Community-Wide Upgrade that will lower our future energy and maintenance costs.
• The Finance Committee has proposed that GHI buy more apartment buildings and use the profits to benefit GHI members.
• Everyone on staff is brainstorming better ways to do business.

 But we need your help too!

If you want to be part of the solution to help keep GHI affordable, there are many ways to get involved.

• We need you to serve on the Board and as committee members. These strong leaders and dedicated volunteers—members just like you—are the heart and soul of our cooperative.
• We need you to attend the Annual Meeting in May and the Budget sessions in September and tell us what is most important to you.
• We need you to submit your unique ideas and innovative ways of doing things to the Board and staff. Members like you came up with the ideas for the “News in Review” page and the E-newsletter!

 Mostly, we need members to be ENGAGED. Read—and write for—the “News in Review” and the Communicator! Sign up for the weekly E-Newsletter! Stop by the webpage every once in a while to see what's new there. And volunteer when and where you can. The more involved you become, the more influence you will have over our cooperative's future!

Don't be afraid about rising costs. Be engaged and help us find solutions!