I was reviewing our West End campus expansion recently, and I was struck by how much we have collectively accomplished over the past 12 months. In this short period of time, we’ve gone from identifying a new home for the West End to now being on the cusp of starting construction. All the stakeholders have worked tirelessly to put the pieces in place so our owners could make informed decisions as to the future of our cooperative enterprise. The vote to approve our expansion proposal overwhelmingly passed with 93 percent in favor. And now, with construction scheduled for this fall, your co-op is issuing another call to action to make this project happen.
Hello, cooperative co-owners. I hope you’ve been able to enjoy the sunshine these past few weeks. This past winter felt like the longest in my 14 years of residing in Ithaca. On the plus side of the long and gloomy days of the last season, the Co-op Board and staff members working tirelessly on our West End expansion didn’t feel so bad about putting in the hours needed to move our project forward. I am truly amazed at the speed with which we’ve been able to reach our benchmarks.
The Special Vote Passed ... What's Next?!
Since the votes were tallied in early April, our General Manager and the expansion team has been working hard to get the expansion project going. In April we held two all staff meetings where we discussed our proposed store layout, brainstormed ideas for new products and services, and collected general expansion feedback. It's all starting to come together and it's truly been a cooperative effort.
Should GreenStar’s Council be authorized to relocate the Co-op’s West End store and operations to 770 Cascadilla Street and enter into a lease for that site, and shall Council be authorized to sell the cooperative’s operations at 700 & 702 W. Buffalo Street?
Should GreenStar’s bylaws and certificate of incorporation be amended to allow for the purchase of optional member-owner equity investments, for the purpose of raising funds, by its Member-Owners?
We're excited to announce the goal of relocation and expansion of our West End operations by the end of 2019! Our member-owners must approve any long-term leases, and the project to relocate to 770 Cascadilla Street will be presented for an owner vote in March 2018. This special vote will run from March 11 - 31 — more information will be sent to Co-op owners in early March.
