Jefferson County Radio Amateur Club, Inc.
P.O. Box 523, Brownville, NY 13615

Monthly Meeting – August 1, 2005

Meeting called to order at 7:30 pm by President Steve Gunn, WA2VQD.  The flag salute was given.  

Steve read the minutes of the July 11th meeting.  A motion to accept the minutes was made by Jim, K2PNA, and seconded by Paul, KC2GWT.  The minutes were approved as read. 

QSL cards were received from K2JGL, K0EFM, KE5APC, and W1DYJ.  We need someone from Field Days to respond with the club’s QSL cards. 

A letter was received from Walter M. Jeram, Jr., Attorney at Law regarding the Estate of Claude Preston Burt.  Verification forms from the remaining beneficiaries are still needed before a Notice of Probate can be forwarded to JCRAC.

Mal, KC2CUJ, went over the finances for July.  A motion to accept the treasurer’s report was made by Pete, N2YRS, and seconded by Sam, KC2JNL.  The motion was carried.  Mal brought us up-to-date on the status of members who have paid their 2005/2006 dues.  Members who have not yet paid are now a month late with their checks.

Old Business

The club picnic will be Saturday, August 13th and will be a pot-luck luncheon.  Members should bring a dish to pass and their own meat, if desired.  Charcoal grills will be provided.

New Business

Club Repeater - The 146.760 Club Repeater had a minor glitch yesterday.  For whatever reason, some of the programming sequences were temporarily interrupted.  Paul, KC2GWT, went to Hilltop Towers today and re-booted the repeater and controller.  It seems to be functioning properly.  Our signal strength has improved considerably since the repeater was repaired at the factory.

An Echolink connection to our repeater is now available courtesy, Mike Elcsisin, KC2FTN.  The node number is 130382 and is on a broadband cable connection to the Internet.  It is set up to handle 5 users at a time.  Steve sent a letter to Mike thanking him on behalf of the club.

Lunch Bunch - It has been rumored that there is a little confusion as to when the “lunch bunch” meets at Bob Evan’s Restaurant.  It was decided several months ago to have the lunch at noon every 2 weeks.  This was an excellent idea that was discussed then by Ernie, WB2ASL, Paul KC2GWT, and Steve, WA2VQD.  The lunch dates have been posted on the club’s website through the end of December 2005. 

Aug. 11 & 25
Sept. 8 & 22
Oct. 6 & 20
Nov. 3 & 17
Dec. 1, 15 & 29

Breakfast at Denny’s - Due to the apparent lack of interest and participation, it was recommended that the breakfast get-togethers at Denny’s Restaurant be cancelled.  Those in attendance agreed.

Election of 2006 Officers - Elections will take place in October.  We need someone to head up a nominations committee who will then select two other members to assist with the process.  Only FCC licensed members may serve on this committee or run for office.  Nominations are due by the September 12 regular club meeting.

·    President: After two years, Steve Gunn, WA2VQD, is planning on stepping down to allow someone else the chance to run for the office of club president.

·    Vice-President: Pete Leslie, N2YRS, will not seek re-election.

·    Secretary:  Dondra Liebman, KC2MYS, has not attended any meetings during her term this year.  A replacement must be found to fill this vacancy.

·    Treasurer:  Malcolm Adsit, KC2CUJ, is willing to run again for the office of treasurer.

·    Activities Director:  Ric Letson, NB2E (Status unknown)

·    3-Year Trustee:  Jim Dupree, K2PNA, is ending his 3rd and final year as trustee.

·    2-Year Trustee:  Ernie Jeican, WB2ASL, has two years remaining in his term. (Yrs: 2006-2007)

·    1-Year Trustee: Fred Wolcott, KC2KBQ, will serve one more year.

Club Records, Documents, and Historical Items - Jim, K2PNA, had asked last month what was going to be done about all of the papers lying around the clubhouse.  Steve asked him if anybody has come forth willing to help out.  Jim said that he is taking photos of the clubhouse and its contents as a way of starting an inventory of equipment, etc.  He asked if it would be okay to open up the file cabinets and organize the club’s records.  The general consensus was that this would be a good idea.

Steve reported that Jerry, W2JMP, and Mike, KC2MYR, were still planning on making a concrete cover for our well.  Because of liability concerns, it is hoped that this can be done prior to the club picnic.

Lawn Equipment - The riding lawn mower, donated by Earl Timmerman’s daughter, needed a new battery.  Sam, KC2JNL, took care of getting a new battery and was reimbursed by the club.  According to Don Scee, it needs a new starter as well.  He is going to see if he can repair the old starter.

The Future of the Club - At the last meeting, Steve expressed concern about the continued deterioration of the clubhouse, shed and other outside areas including the well cover, septic cover, condition of the silo, lawn equipment, and the debris that is ever present around and inside the building.  When the discussion regarding the possibility of selling the Lloyd Road property followed, Jim Dupree, K2PNA, said that he thought the club would have to surrender any proceeds from the sale of the property.

Steve Gunn, WA2VQD, contacted the IRS and was informed by Agent #3107367 that monies gained from the sale of the property would be considered “passive income” and would fall under the Unrelated Business Taxable Income exclusionary clause which states under the heading Gains and losses from disposition of property…  “Also excluded from unrelated business taxable income are gains or losses from the sale, exchange, or other disposition of property…”  The agent went on to say that the club could continue to operate under section 501 (c) (3) and could retain the monies gained from the sale of the property.  These references can be found on pages 8 and 9 of the IRS publication #598.

Steve suggested that we need to take a hard look at the situation to see if there is really enough interest, energy and willingness from enough members to keep the clubhouse.  Steve shared the information he sent to the IRS this year.  It shows that our club takes in just enough money annually to barely cover expenses of property insurance, utilities, etc.  There is very little money left over to hire competent contractors to repair things that must be fixed.  Perhaps the club’s interests would be best served by selling the property.  This would free the club from the burden of constant maintenance and expense.  Most of our members use the clubhouse once or twice a year for Field Day and the August picnic.  A few meet on Tuesdays throughout the summer for the “band jam.”  Since we tend to be more of a social club, we could easily hold those meetings at a local restaurant or other meeting place.

Many opinions were expressed both pro and con.  Emotions tended to run a bit high at times, but for the most part, people respected the fact that everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion.  Suggestions were made as to how to generate income, bring in new members, etc, and still maintain the property.  A show of hands indicated that most would like to be able to keep our clubhouse.

A motion was made by Ron, KC2JGP, and seconded by Bob, WB2BTE, for the club to reimburse Jim, K2PNA, up to $175.00 to purchase a new storm door and framing for the back entrance of the building.  The motion carried.

Nelson, KB2SVQ, will check into steel covers for the well and septic if a concrete cover for the well isn’t ready in time for the picnic.

Adjournment - A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Paul, KC2GWT, and seconded by Cliff, KB2UQV.  The meeting ended at 8:40 pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Steve Gunn, WA2VQD, President

(Notes taken by Pete Leslie, N2YRS, Vice-Pres.)