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• Scrutinize the addition of any new Capital assets to be
sure it is absolutely necessary before buying it.
• Look at what other possible revenues could be produced
utilizing our property with little disruption to our
landscape. One possibility is a strategically placed cell
phone tower which would serve a twofold benefit to our
members; It would generate lost income and ensure cell
phone reception everywhere on CCR. This would improve
safety concerns outback, allow more people to “work from
home”, and improve the quality of life for those without a
landline.
Mark Smith
Question #1: The strengths and
positive attributes of CCR that
together will enhance the long term
sustainability of the Ranch are
evidenced through the combined efforts
of our stakeholders; CCR’s superior
services, amenities, and facilities; long
standing governance documents; and
a disciplined fund structure that distinguishes this club
far above clubs of similar purpose. Stakeholders: The
most important strength of CCR is through the actions of
the club stakeholders; the members at large, Board of
Directors, the Manager and Staff. An engaged
membership is a positive attribute that really stands out.
Many members volunteer their time and efforts in so
many ways. Whether on a committee, a work project, or
offering their advice and opinions based on their
background or skillsets, the club would not be as strong
as it is without them. Those members who are unable to
volunteer but keep themselves informed and cast their
vote according to their understanding of available
information are a real value to the club. With fiduciary
responsibilities vested in the members on the Board of
Directors to set the direction and policies of the
Association, this body is a critical stakeholder to ensuring
the long-term sustainability of the Ranch. Board
members commit to viewing issues and making decisions
with ‘what’s best’ for the entire membership – a positive
attribute that supports the long-term sustainability of
the Ranch. The “experience” members enjoy while at CCR
is largely attributable to how the club is operationally
managed. The actions of our Manager and dedicated staff
on a daily basis are tangible positive attributes to the
Ranch. The Manager’s leadership and the staff’s actions
we’ve seen during this tough COVID-19 environment are
clear examples of their love and commitment to the
membership and all the Ranch stands for. This type of
behavior enhances the long-term sustainability of the
Ranch. CCR’s superior services, amenities, and facilities
are the attributes that draw new members to the club
and keep us paying our dues and assessments for the
years we remain members. I’ve been coming to CCR since
the early 70’s and the same outstanding core amenities
and facilities that I fell in love with back then exist today
and still get me excited to come to the Ranch. As far as
enhancing the long-term sustainability of the Ranch, we
first must remain mindful of the experience we (as an
19
organization) have gained over the life of the club. We
have gotten many things right that should be sustained
going forward. At the same time the Board of Directors
and Management must understand the membership
demographics and interests in order to evaluate ‘where’
and ‘if’ some changes to services, amenities, or facilities
may be appropriate to enhance the membership
experience. Our key governance documents are an
extension of the vision expressed in the CCR Mission
Statement. Our Mission Statement must remain the
anchor point for all actions that are required to
successfully run the club. Governance documents such
as our Bylaws, Association Rules of Conduct, CCR Policies
and Procedures, and several other plans and studies (e.g.
Forestry and Wildlife Plan; Density Study; Reserve Study;
and the CCR Strategic Plan) establish the club rules and
policies, set the principles of conduct for members, address
a vision and processes for the management of our prized
possession (the Outback), and provide analysis and
recommendations for actions related to our infrastructure
and capital assets. Although all these documents reflect
the best efforts from dedicated members and outside
experts, they all should be reviewed and validated on a
recurring basis. This review will ensure they continue to
represent and address the membership’s long-term vision
of the Ranch. CCR’s fund structure and the discipline
imposed by our bylaws for use of each fund support the
long-term sustainability of the Ranch. One of the funds,
the Capital Fund, is in need of review to ensure it will be
adequate and robust enough to fund future needs critical
to sustain the Ranch. Over the last couple of years, the
Board of Directors has discussed potential long-term
shortfalls of this fund and recently an ad hoc committee
was formed to discuss the long-term viability of the fund.
I anticipate the recommendations coming out of the work
of this committee will be very informative to the Board of
Directors, the membership, and Management as it
pertains to future funding needs for replacement of Ranch
capital assets.
Question #2: First and foremost, all actions of a Board of
Director must be taken with the best interest of the entire
membership. Decisions made by the board (a body
comprised of members who were elected by the entire
membership) must be made for the good of the whole. An
overarching key issue the Board needs to address to
sustain and improve member’s enjoyment and use of the
Ranch and its facilities is related to ensuring there is a
sufficient revenue stream coming in that covers expenses
required to provide the membership experience we all
desire. Improving the membership’s enjoyment and usage
of the Ranch and its facilities is also dependent on
communications with the membership. The Board needs
to understand what the member’s want that improves
their experience while at the Ranch. A recently completed
strategic goal produced a document titled
“Communication Methods”. The document addresses
communications methods employed at CCR and has been
made accessible to the membership. In addition to the
communications methods addressed in this document,
occasional surveys and workshops with the membership
should be undertaken. These forms of communication
proved very valuable as part of drafting the CCR Strategic
Plan. Most of the strategic goals found in the Plan’s Goal
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