ACC Fall 2003 Board Meeting - General Information

The weekend actually began with a social at the Canadian Alpine Centre in Lake Louise Friday night.  With the time change and an early start from work, I was able to attend.  As the evening progressed, Nancy Hansen (ACC Director of Mountaineering) presented a slide show which illustrated some of her exploits in recently completing ascents of all 54 Rockies peaks over 11,000 ft.  Quite a feat!

The meeting began at 8:30 am on Saturday morning with a welcome followed by Section reports.  Each of the 19 sections talked briefly about their recent events and problems they faced.  Some quick thoughts:

• We need SK Section centennial ideas for 2005/2006.
• The Manitoba Section charges non-members $10 to participate in any trip where Section gear/equipment is used.
• Information about running camps, sort of a Camp Manager's Resource, is being developed and will soon appear on the ACC's website.

The ACC's Secretary discussed the need for another IT (Information Technology) position as the current person is really the only one who can deal with the ACC's database and other important financial database matters.  This person is currently operating at their limit.

The Treasurer (Gord Currie) indicated that the 2003 deficit would be approximately $100,000 for the year ending October 31, 2003.  At a later point in the meeting, the Treasurer and others spoke to the proposed budget which included a provision for a membership fee increase.  To see information about this issue, follow this link.

Facilities (Carl Hannigan) (huts and the clubhouse) discussed the Fay Hut situation.  As probably everyone knows, the Fay hut burned down last summer in a forest fire in Kootenay National Park.  There is a potential donation of $100,000 available along with the insurance to rebuild the hut.  The actual rebuild will cost more.  No decision will be made at this time, but there appears to be some leaning toward creating a new Fay Hut.  As well, the ACC is still looking for a suitable location for a Centennial Hut; also the Elk Lake Ranger Cabin may become available on a lease basis from BC Parks.

Activities (Cam Roe) discussed the fatal accident last summer on an ACC trip.  It was pointed out that the activities brochure lists 22 summer activities (trips), 11 winter, 2 leadership courses and 4 international trips for a total of 52 weeks of activities in total.  This is one reason why office staff are so busy.

Services (David Zemrau) reported on the June 2003 UIAA Safety meeting in Canmore and other items.  The Chair of the Safety Committee (Dave McCormick), presented a proposed "Waiver & Incident Reporting Policy" developed by the Committee.  After some discussion, the motion was passed.  This policy makes the ACC's position on waivers and reporting of accidents clearer and outlines what trip leaders and Sections must do to follow this policy.

Mountain Heritage (Bob Sandford) reported on items such as the CAJ, Gazette timelines for stories, the Lake O'Hara art book availability.  

Access & Environment (Peter Muir) discuss his portfolio briefly.

There will probably be some changes to the operation of the Guide's Ball, the introduction of a Capital Campaign, a Centennial Campaign and the news that the ACC now has Charitable status in the USA.  These changes will reflect a more aggressive fundraising style in the ACC. 

Mike Mortimer discussed progress on Centennial plans and activities.  Noted that volunteers will be needed.

In other news, the following items were raised and discussed briefly:

• the ACC now has an awards presentation protocol
• the Canadian Alpine Centre now has its finances back on track
• the ACC was audited last year by CCRA, necessary to maintain its charitable status.  This audit consumed a lot of staff time to service the demands of the audit.
• How to attract more members to the AGM
• Liability insurance.  This cost of this will be rising significantly (40%?) this year, putting the ACC already over budget on that item.  There was an interesting discussion about action the ACC could take to deal with this increasingly serious problem.  One possible strategy would for the ACC to incorporate (as would all sections) and then self-insure all trips, including all Section trips.

Back to Fall 2003 Board Meeting