After a busy start to the year getting fully established as owners of the Hub, the Co-op Finance Working Group is pleased to share an update on the Co-op’s financial management and performance. This is an informal update before the release of our annual Finance Report at the AGM later in the year.
Firstly, we’d like to introduce the Board representatives on the Co-op’s Finance & Investment Working Group – Dave Pugh, Andrew Barnes and Angus Gratton.
We welcome any of our co-op members to also join this Working Group if you’d like to contribute to our financial management and oversight on an ongoing basis. If you simply want to check in on a one-off basis with any questions or suggestions, or attend a Finance Working Group meeting, please get in touch.
Secondly, some updates on our progress. A big thanks to the many members, volunteers and board colleagues that have contributed:
- The basics: with transition of the Co-op to owner of the Hub, we have bedded down our insurance, banking, bookkeeping and accounting, tax and property management arrangements. The theme here is continuity of our providers and the people that were well established working in and around the Hub.
- Overall, the income and costs involved with running the Hub are in line with our expectations and better than the projections used for the capital raise.The Hub’s vacancy rates have been below the projections used for our capital raise; and as of April the Hub is fully tenanted (see below for a list).
- Our operating expenses are focused on regular maintenance, some minor improvements around the Hub, and ensuring that our volunteers assisting around the Garden, and the Hub premises have the resources they need. Our member and volunteer groups are also actively seeking grants to offset these expenses.
- No Board members are receiving remuneration or payment from the Co-operative for services.
- We are accruing a monthly amount for debenture interest payments which come due each August; and have the resources we need to meet our interest payment obligations.
- We have developed an Investment Policy which provides for how we will manage temporary surplus funds that we generate before making a future community investment. In the short term, this has enabled us to place some funds in government-guaranteed term deposits with the Maldon & District Community Bank.
Our next priorities:
- We are developing new longer-term financial projections for the Co-op and the Hub, based on our actual revenues and costs. We will continue to refine and test these projections over the remainder of the year to give us more certainty over our future financial capacity.
- The potential uses of any future financial capacity would include:
- Improvements to the Hub for the benefit of our tenants; and to improve the amenity of common areas;
- Preparation for the maturity of the first tranche of debentures; due August 2030;
- Member and community activities; and
- New community investments.
Thanks for your attention, and we welcome your feedback on what you’d like to hear about in future Finance Working Group updates.
Dave, Andrew and Angus
Current Hub Tenants:
Cafe Nira
Connecting Country
Trust For Nature
Vegetation Link
Emma Brinkmann Chinese Medicine
Castlemaine Chinese Medicine
Bracken Lawyers
Operative Intelligence
Social Impact Software
Peter J Hunt AMHSW, Counsellor
Lilly Macdonald
Ballarat Psychology Clinic
Dr Kate Mahony, Clin Psych & Neuropsych
Here & Now Counselling