All decisions to rent or purchase office space or other real estate must be approved by the General Membership of the chapter. A temporary Building Subcommittee may be formed to research and present office space and other real estate options to the membership for a vote, dissolving after the chapter concludes its search. Any member of the chapter in good standing may participate in the activities of the Building Subcommittee. The Treasurer, Office Manager, and Executive Committee will be responsible for overseeing fundraising activities related to Milwaukee DSA’s office space and any other properties it rents or purchases.
Milwaukee DSA may raise money specifically for any real estate commitments. The funds available to pay for real estate commitments are made up of any money raised for this purpose, as well as any funds that were raised without a specific campaign, working group, committee, subcommittee, project, or event as the intended recipient. These are referred to as “unrestricted funds,” and the income to these funds as “unrestricted income.” Unrestricted funds and income include, but are not limited to, dues, general donations to the chapter, donations for maintaining an office or other piece of real estate, merchandise sales, and interest accrued on bank accounts.
Prior to the signing of any lease, unrestricted funds and/or funding commitments must be secured that are sufficient to cover one month’s rent for the space in question, as well as a security deposit if the terms of the lease require it. If the aforementioned requirements are not met, no lease can be signed. If the space selected by the chapter’s General Membership is no longer available by the time these requirements have been met, another space may be selected by a subsequent vote of the General Membership.
If at any point the chapter’s monthly unrestricted income falls below 150% of the monthly cost of the chapter’s real estate commitments, the chapter’s General Membership must be informed at or before the next General Meeting. At the next General Meeting, there must be a discussion and a vote made by the General Membership on how to proceed.