LLC Formation Status
The paper work was submitted as of Tuesday September 29th with rush processing.
Action Items
- Obtain a checking account for the LLC
Escrow Account Status
Tom’s lawyer maybe willing to hold the escrow account for a small fee of $5 per person. Discussion was on the table of ways to increase the security and legitimacy of the escrow.The conclusion was to get a joint bank account with one of the managers of the LLC and Tom’s lawyer that requires both parties signatures to withdraw funds. We are still open to suggestions to make this more appealing for potential members.
Action Items
- Finalize escrow agreement with Tom’s lawyer
Web Site Status
The new domain name www.milwaukeemakerspace.org is now online. The content from the old web site has been transfered. The potential rental space pictures have been posted.
Action Items
- Transfer user accounts
- Create goal meter for launch
- Register the domains milwaukeemakerspace.com and milwaukeemakerspace.net
- Update the hacker space listing on hackerspaces.org to reflect the new domain
Non Profit Investigation
Royce and Tom presented about the different types of non profit entities and their benefits. An important aspect of non profit orgnizations was discovered that dues are not deductible. The conclusion was to not apply for non profit status at the monment as it provides little benefits for us right now.
Dues Discussion
To acheive the maximun retention of members from month to month the desired structure for collecting dues is the sbuscription model. The potential services to set this up that are being considered are Amazon Payments, Paypal, and direct credit card processing.
It was decided to add a little hysteresis into the transitions on the previously proposed dues scale.
| Amount | People | |
|---|---|---|
| $80 | First 30 | |
| $65 | 30-60 | once acheived will incress to $80 if membership falls to 25 |
| $50 | 60 Above | once acheived will incress to $65 if membership falls to 55 |
Membership Agreement and Bylaws
– Further Discussion is Encouraged
Sean was put in charge of drafting and managing these documents through the web site. The following list are the potential items discussed to include in these agreements.
- Membership extends to immediate family?
- Restrictions on guests
- Membership requires sponsorship
- Access control for equipment
- Members holding events
- Member removal process
Officer Election Cycles
– Further Discussion is Encouraged
Two different models of officer appointment were discussed. The first was the traditional election process after the officer’s term has ended. The second purposed election cycle was through promotions. The appointed official will make a three year commitment. They will start out as the secretary for the first year, than promoted to the vice president for their second year, and finally promoted to president for their final year.
Equipment Lease Agreement
– Further Discussion is Encouraged
The purpose of the equipment lease agreement is that in the event the LLC folds the privatly held machinery being used by the organization does not need to be liquidated. The following list are the potential item dicussed to include in this agreement.
- Lease equipment from the members at a low rate to keep the contract leagly binding
- Allow the lease holder to withdraw from the lease with prior notice
- Leases are approved once voted on by the members to prevent clutter
- Managers of the LLC will be the ones that sign the leases
Consumables
The honor system is the current purposed policy for dealng with consumables the LLC owns. The LLC will have no obligation to provide members with consumales in any way. Procurement of consumables will be decided through the democratic process by the members.
Flyer
Thanks to Emmett for drafting the initial flyers as they look promising. The consensus of the meeting was that the second flyer was intriguing and got our point across nicely. The only thing it is missing is to advertise about the weekly meetings and contact information.
Action Items
- Pursue the nearly free option for printing the flyers in color
Logo
We are still open to new ideas for our logo. The present members liked the idea of putting our name on a wrench.
Action Items
- Take pictures of candidate wrenches