UPCOMING EVENTS!
New Board Elections on November 12th!
Join us for Board Elections of the NYC Real Estate Investment Cooperative at our next All-Member Meeting! Sunday, November 12 from 3pm to 6pm at Prime Produce (424 West 54th St, between 9th & 10th Aves., Hell’s Kitchen, Manhattan, NY 10019): A, C, B, D, 1 at Columbus Circle or 50th Street. Run for the Board of the NYC Real Estate Investment Cooperative (or nominate someone you know)!
A message from the Nominating Committee:
We, the Nominating Committee, have been hard at work planning for the election, where YOU will select the first full board of the NYC REIC. What is this all about? Read more here.
There is still room on the ballot! Don’t be shy, this is a great opportunity to put your hopes and dreams into shape, and to take control of our own common destiny here in New York City.
We’re looking for people to fill the ten (10) seats on the first full board. Are you a good person to fill that role? We’re looking for people:
- From all five boroughs who are committed to their neighborhood and our city of New York;
- Who have been organizing to make their neighborhood strong in the face of disinvestment over the years (check out this interactive map to see if your neighborhood is historically redlined);
- Who will act in accordance with the cooperative principles (read them here);
- Who adhere to the ethical values of honesty, openness, social responsibility, and caring for others;
- Who are interested in educating our members and the public on the benefits of cooperation and the cooperative movement; and
- Who are committed to working for the sustainable development of the communities of which they are a part!
Does any of this sound like you or someone you know? Find out how to add yourself to the ballot: http://nycreic.com/nominations/ or contact the Nominating Committee at nominations@nycreic.com or (718) 316-6092 ext. 5. Thanks for all you do!
Founding Board Update
From all of us on the Founding Board, we want to thank you all for your help in getting us to this point. As you know, the Founding Board is made up of members of the Steering Committee (SC) who were listed on our Certificate of Incorporation. The Board replaced the SC in order to comply with New York State laws governing not-for-profit corporations.
While we still have work to do before we are ready for our first project, we have now completed the core mission of our mandate, as stated in the Steering Committee Charter. We have a formal Governing Body and have incorporated as a not-for-profit. We have a draft Criteria to help us vet and focus our efforts on the projects that most fit our goals and values. We have a sketch of a business plan and an investment finance model, ready to hand over to the First Board to take these plans from ideas to reality. And, as discussed further below, we are close to receiving permission from New York State to do all that we want to do.
And we could not have done any of this without YOU! Please join us at the Fall All-Member Meeting and First Annual Election, taking place on November 12th (see info above!). We want to be able to thank you personally before we take our steps in this exciting new phase of the cooperative.
Attorney General Pre-Approval Process
Many of you will recall that we announced last fall that we began getting our legal ducks in a row, working with the Lincoln Square Legal Services’ (LSLS) Community Economic Development Clinic of Fordham Law School as well as Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP, to “register” with the NYS Attorney General to fundraise for collective real estate investment through the LLC(s) we will incorporate (it’s actually more accurate to say we’re pre-approving our fundraising plans with them). Since then, we have followed our relationship attorney to Nixon Peabody LLP, and we are now represented by an excellent and talented team there. Nixon submitted the package to the NYS AG’s office describing our model, and how it fits within their regulatory framework, earlier this year!
We recently heard back from the AG’s office, who told us they believe that the regulatory framework we felt we fit within was not a great fit, but rather than just telling us “no,” they went the extra mile to suggest to us a different, and potentially BETTER regulatory regime. We believe this shows what is possible when cooperatives and other social enterprises work effectively with the government and make a strong case that their business models will benefit communities (or, as the government sees us, “citizens,” i.e., taxpayers and voters).
We are in the final phases of revising our package to re-submit to the AG’s office under this new regulatory regime (and we may have submitted the package by the time you read this). We are confident that, with this new package, we will be ready to hit the ground running on our fundraising plans by Spring 2018. Stay tuned for updates and more detail on the regulatory regime once we receive a final determination from the AG’s office!
JOIN US AT AN UPCOMING EVENT!
- Founding Board member Todd Arena will join a panel to discuss the intersection of real estate, impact investing and the emergence of Naturally Occurring Cultural Districts as part of the 10th Anniversary Asian American Community Development Conference at the New York University Kimmel Center on Wednesday, October 25th from 230 to 4pm. Todd will talk about the NYC REIC as a model of real estate impact investing that places . The conference is hosted by Asian Americans for Equality (AAFE), one of our many inspirations and a true innovator in channeling real estate investment to community-led initiatives. Program and ticketing information available at: https://www.aacdc2017.org/
- Founding Board members Mara Kravitz and Oksana Mironova will be part of a panel discussion and workshop about anti-displacement organizing at NYC REIC partner Flux Factory on Thursday, October 27 from 7 to 9pm. The panel will discuss how to secure well-loved and needed places of culture and community, and how to make more, even here and now in NYC. Find out about pathways for community access to vacant buildings! More information at: http://596acres.org/events/self-storage-panelworkshop-on-securing-community-space-in-nyc/
- Sandy5 March: the Sandy5 march for climate action is coming up on Saturday, October 28th! We will be marching across the Brooklyn Bridge to demand our elected officials take action to protect us from the effects of climate change. It has been 5 years since Hurricane Sandy and extreme weather conditions and natural disasters have escalated since then. Read more about the march here: https://sandy5.org/. The Cooperative Economics Alliance of NYC (CEANYC), of which the REIC is a member, is organizing a cooperative contingent to march. Please join us! This will be a great community builder and a great way for us to live Cooperative Principles 6 & 7 (Cooperation Among Cooperatives and Concern for Community). We’ll also have the chance to meet and connect with some others working in cooperatives/the solidarity economy here in NYC, such as our community partners at the Central Brooklyn Food Co-op (whose Raina Kennedy developed this Sandy5 March blurb).
Let us know if you’re coming and would like to march with the cooperative contingent! Contact us at steering@nycreic.com and by voicemail at (718) 316-6092 ext. 5.
Donate for the future of NYC!
We have completed our 2-year incubation period!
Help us get to the next level!
Make a tax-deductible donation to the NYC REIC, help us find and apply for suitable grants, or donate your pro-bono professional services in real estate, finance, accounting, web design, graphic design, development, facilitation, law, or something else.
Your donation will support the creation of a new infrastructure for social investment in the places that make NYC livable and great!
Please email steering@nycreic.com to donate labor, or write a check to the New York City Real Estate Investment Cooperative and send it to:
New York City REIC
℅ 596 Acres
540 President Street, #2E
Brooklyn, NY 11215
During this period, fiscal sponsorship is provided by Spaceworks NYC, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit cultural community development organization dedicated to expanding the supply of long-term, affordable rehearsal and studio space for artists in New York City. Thanks, Spaceworks!
Contact us
info@nycreic.com
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