TO:
OAKLYN SWIM CLUB Members
It is with great sorrow and despair that as President and
Treasurer of the Oaklyn Swim Club we write this letter to inform you of the
status of the organization.
As
many of you may know, the Oaklyn Swim Club celebrated its 50th
anniversary in 2012. Every past president, board member, volunteer and
participating member has taken great pride in our pool. It is unfortunate at
this time that we must inform you, the ACTIVE Bondholders, the pool is no
longer able to operate and will not open this year.
There
are currently only four (4) board members, We have been acting in all
capacities for the 2011 and 2012 seasons.
The board held a meeting on
January 20th, 2013.
A Board meeting was called
on December 3rd and again on January 20th to which we did not have a
quorum, therefore no action regarding the swim club was taken
It
is with an extremely heavy heart that we recommend we close the swim club &
dissolve the organization.
Over
the years the income derived from dues, bonds, the snack stand and
contributions has not kept up pace with the ever rising cost to maintain the
pool and operate it safely. Despite all of our efforts and ideas, membership
has declined, the number of volunteers has declined, and the condition of the
pool as a whole has declined. The struggle lately has been to connect the
income to the expenses and balance the budget to a “break even”status each
year. Unfortunately, we have found that this has become impossible. Over the
past 10 years we have never been able to sustain any financial cushion. Because
of the age of the facility, new health regulations, and the increasing cost of
running the pool and grounds, we find the situation no longer sustainable.
Our current outstanding debts are over $6,500 to water,
electric & repair contractors.
In addition, taxes for 2011 and 2012, along with fees and
interest, now total just over $29,800. And, the Initial cost to open the pool
each year is approx $3,500. This means that, just to try to open, we would need
to have $39,000 NOW and the ability to pay ongoing expenses and taxes.
This scenario has been repeating itself over and over the
last 10 years. Annually, we have barely, if at all, been able to cover taxes. As
we continue to reach out to the Borough, we are now two years behind and the
property has gone to tax sale. Because the property has little or no value
other than as a pool, no one purchased this debt. The Borough of Oaklyn assumed
the tax liability on January 1st 2013. They will own the property in
July of this year.
Please remember, we are a PRIVATE Corporation. The
municipality does not have the ability to just “bail us out” or release us of
our tax liability. We will have to dissolve the organization. The Borough will
then assume the property with the hope for an opportunity in the future to
operate again as a municipal pool. That decision would fall to the current
Mayor and Council. We will need to pursue this together to show the importance
the swim club is to Oaklyn and surrounding towns.
If we, the Bondholders, choose to hold the property for
the thought of possible resale and/or value, we would have to come up with the
money to pay the current tax liability and the outstanding bills. Then, we would
need to cover our liability insurance as a vacant pool and list the property
for sale. We must note, however, that the property currently is NON-CONFORMING
and any use other than a Swim Club will most likely require many variances not
to mention time
Some
information that you may not know:
Each
year on average we expend $45,000 – if you include Real Estate taxes the
average is $52,500.
Our
average Income has been $42,000
So
that there may be no confusion, our by-laws state in summary, the following:
·
There is a Board of Trustees – Nine (9)
members in all, elected from the Certificate Holders.
·
Elected from the Trustees – there are to be
Five (5) Board members. They are
President,
Vice President of Administration, Vice President of Pools & Grounds,
Secretary
& Treasurer.
·
A Quorum consist of five (5) or a majority of
the board.
·
No dues shall be refundable in the event that
pool operations are suspended for any period.
·
In the event of dissolution of the club in
any manner or for any cause, and in no other event, upon the effect date of
dissolution of the Club, certificates shall be a lien upon the proceeds of the
sale of the property of the club after the payment of it’s just debts and
obligations to the extent of then value of certificates, as fixed by these
bylaws, subject to set off of all debts, dues and obligations owed by the
holder of the certificates. After payment of all certificates outstanding upon
the effective date of the dissolution of the club, the surplus remaining shall
be paid and distributed pro rata among the then memberships of the club. (In our case , now that the Borough owns
the tax lien, and will own the property in July, there will be no value to distribute.)
Everyone involved, Presidents, Board Members, Volunteers
and Members, over these past 50 years have done an incredible job in
maintaining and operating our Family Town Pool! It is with an extremely heavy
heart that we have recommended we close the Swim Club. Letting the municipality
assume the property is what we believe will present the only opportunity to
possibly see the Swim Club reopen as a Community Pool, owned and run by the
municipality, serving the residents of Oaklyn.
Regretfully,
Oaklyn Swim Club Board
Sharon Brandley President
