In July, the Greater Dayton Union Co-op Initiative was thrilled to be the recipient of the Dayton Rotary Club's first ever Signature Grant.
So much to report! Get the latest at the August 15th Community Owners Meeting! All are welcome. Hear about the partnership with Northside's
Summer is heating up, and Sustainergy is not immune! With record heat many people are learning insulation and proper air sealing is not just for the winter.
Our Harvest had a very busy July! They launched a Community-Owner Share drive and completed their 2016-2017 Annual Report!
I've been getting a lot of questions about what I'm up to this summer, and now that I've been here in Cincy for a few weeks I finally feel qualified to share!
In late May, CUCI and GDUCI hosted workshops in Cincinnati and Dayton on succession planning for retiring small business owners, with a focus on engaging manufacturing businesses. Chris Cooper from the Ohio Employee Ownership Center led these workshops, which were also co-sponsored by Ohio Means Jobs, the Ohio Small Business Development Centers, Montgomery County, and the law firm of Pickrel, Schaeffer, and Ebeling. Attendees included small business owners, service providers such as CPAs and financial planners, and representatives of county economic development agencies. Participants got an overview of the process of planning for retirement as an owner of a small business, as well as concrete tips on tax incentives, timelinesand options. Conversion to worker-ownership, and specifically cooperatives and ESOPs, were discussed in detail.
GDUCI is proud to announce that Executive Director Lela Klein has been selected as a 2017 Echoing Green Fellow! Echoing Green provides unrestricted seed-stage funding and strategic foundational support to emerging leaders working to bring about positive social change. Past Echoing Green Fellows include the founders of City Year and Public Allies as well a First Lady of the United States. In May, GDUCI elected five new Board members. In June, it held its first Board mini-retreat to engage in annual and longer term planning. GDUCI's Gem City Market continues its share drive, with over 400 shares sold in the first six weeks of sales.
Another great month on the books for Sustainergy! We have now expanded into mold remediation to further help people improve their homes. We inspired a Harvard Graduate Student Rachel Price to come work with us as an intern for the summer. She will be using her business expertise to help us continue to expand and grow our business. This Fourth of July we're celebrating independence and freedom by sharing a little "free" — as in a FREE home assessment where we will determine ways to help make your home more comfortable and reduce your energy bills up to 30%! CONTACT US today to schedule yours!
Apple Street Market invites everyone to our Community Owner Meeting August 15 at the Letter Carriers Hall (4100 Colerain Ave) at 5:30pm. Hear the latest—learn about Apple Street’s important partnership with NEST; how the building permitting process is going; and how the city of Cincinnati can help secure the building with a HUD 108 loan. This will supercharge the project, catalyzing the financing from our other partners, and allowing bidding and then construction to begin later this year. Also, now that they are transitioning to development they need to change a couple of legal documents. This will require your (community owner) vote, at the General Meeting scheduled for August 15th at 4100 Colerain Avenue.
Read more on the specific by laws and articles of incorporation proposed amendments.
Our Harvest has been busy giving back to the communities we serve. This month we have hosted inspectors from the Ohio Department of Agriculture at Bahr Farm for an on-farm training session about the Food Safety Modernization Act.
Happy summer! It's been an exciting time for CUCI. We have been able to welcome co-founder Ellen Vera to our staff; MaKenzie Collier, an awesome marketing major from Xavier, as a summer intern; and Rachel Price, a Harvard MBA, as a volunteer consultant for 3 months!
Renting Partnerships is seeking people to help us unleash our potential for building the assets of people who cannot afford to buy a home. We create intentional communities in which individual households build financial credits as they participate in policy and problem solving to preserve the quality, stability and affordability of housing that is owned or leased collectively. This system creates a sense of ownership and the security that low income households need to grow personally and financially. If this sounds exciting and you would be willing to participate in several strategic planning meetings, please join us at a meeting on July 17 at 6:30pm in the CUCI office at the Peaslee Center.
Apple Street expects to have building permits approved by the city by June 9th. Another bright spot is that asbestos remediation will be far less intensive than originally anticipated!
Another great month on the books for Sustainergy! April is historically the slowest month in the insulation sector, yet we were able to surpass our sales goal. Be part of the movement. Visit sustainergy.coop for your free assessment!
It's a time of new energy and possibility at Our Harvest. The co-op's excited to welcome two new people onto the farm team and to bringing two people onto the food hub team in the coming weeks! Learn more about our Weekly Harvest Box and Harvest Day programs!
Each year, Echoing Green receives thousands of applications for a two year immersive leadership development program that provides seed-funding and hands-on support. 73 next-generation innovators have been chosen as finalists, and Lela is thrilled to be among them.
Gem City Market launched its member share drive on Wednesday April 26th at a standing room only kickoff event. Former Congressman and Ambassador Tony Hall addressed the crowd
In preparation for the union co-op symposium December 1 & 2, we want to connect with all people who are doing this work around the country. Help us understand the depth and span of the Union Co-op movement around the country by filling out this 6 question survey!
Cincinnati, Ohio – On Dec 1st & 2nd people from all across the U.S. and from Mondragon, Spain will be gathering in Cincinnati to further develop the union co-op sector of the U.S. economy. The Symposium offers a look at what's happening on the ground to establish integrated networks of worker-owned, unionized businesses. Participants will discuss best practices, union co-op management, financing, training, the power of the union co-op model, and how to build an economy that works for all, and more. Check our event page for more updates in the coming months!
