Ottawa New Horizons Band Steering Committee
Report to members, June 2016
Important News from the May 31, 2017 Meeting
As has been previously reported to members, Dominion Chalmers United Church is no longer able to maintain and operate the church building, and is in negotiations regarding its future. If the talks are successful, the next step will likely be substantial renovations. As timing for all of this is uncertain, Ottawa New Horizons Band must assume that the rehearsal, performance and storage spaces that we have used at DC since our founding in 2008 will not be available to us this fall.
The plan for 2017-2018 rehearsal locations, as previously emailed on May 31, is as follows:
- Bytown Beginners, Elgin Encores and Rideau Cadences at Brookfield H.S.,
- Capital Crescendos at Woodroffe United Church
- both Jazz bands at Merivale H.S.
ONHB instrument and music storage will be available at Woodroffe United Church, and the December concert is planned for Brookfield H.S. Free parking is available at all venues, as are transit services. Carpooling could facilitate travel for those without cars, especially to Brookfield, and the Facebook group could be useful for this.
As of the fall, ONHB will no longer be a program linked to Dominion Chalmers. We have decided to incorporate as a not-for-profit corporation led by a board of directors (secretarial note – documents applying for incorporation were filed in the first week of June). This change requires us to develop a set of by-laws that address, among other things, such issues as how the organization will be governed, how the board will be selected, the positions on the board, the role of the Steering Committee in advising the board, the role of band participants and band leaders as voting members, and the business to be conducted at the annual general meeting.
A set of by-laws will be presented to members at the first annual general meeting, perhaps in October. Our first board of directors will be elected at the same meeting, and a financial report will be tabled. Until a board is elected, Brian Carr, David Chaplin, Leslie Scott, Steve Snell, and Cathy Wilcox have agreed to act as “incorporators” to help get the new corporation on its feet, with invaluable assistance provided by Jody Gomber and Kathryn Elliot.
The Steering Committee reviewed a preliminary draft budget for the fall session prepared by Leslie Scott (rep C.C.). Given all the changes, this will likely be subject to unexpected developments throughout the term and beyond. What is clear is that our operating costs will increase such that we would run a substantial deficit in the fall if we retain our current fee levels. As this would be unsustainable, the Steering Committee has voted that the fees for the fall session be $175 for the first band, and $100 for each subsequent band. This represents a very modest increase over the fees charged from 2008 – 2016, and will cover location rentals, PayPal charges, banking costs, liability insurance (required by rehearsal venues), costs associated with incorporation and other administrative costs including a part-time administrator, Anna Tessier, who is taking over for Daphne. You will be pleased to note that we are aiming to guarantee 11 weeks of rehearsals (weather sometimes forces cancellation), and so are scheduling 12 rehearsals for the 2017-2018 sessions.
Registration for the fall term should be online before the end of June. The website will also include session dates and locations, so stay tuned!
