12/13/05: I am glad to report that the Country Club is no more and has been successfully leveled on Friday.

I want to thank John for selling it to us, Bill for his encouragement to push this through, Mike for handling the money (great job as always), Jim for handling the leveling of the property, and to Tom Hart for his help with the transaction!

In Hoc,

James “Gassi” Ahrens ‘90

We are asking for your financial assistance to help lay the groundwork for the future of our chapter.

The Property

The lot's address is 525 S. Seagrave (directly behind 520 S. Ridgewood) The lot size is 11,000 sq ft (1/3 acre +) 110 x 150. Coupled with the H.C. property, the chapter would then have a total of about 3 acres. Due to hurricane damage, flooding, termites, and general wear and tear, the building on the property has exceeded its useful life and will have to be torn down.

History

In 1986, John Wrightington purchased the land and house for about $20,000 in the hopes that someday the land would be given to the House Corporation and/or National Fraternity as an extension of the chapter house property. Since then about a dozen brothers have lived there over the years virtually for free, while attending school. We have hung out there and parked on the lawn. It has also served as a buffer between the house and the surrounding neighbors. Since John's purchase, nobody living there has ever called the cops to complain about noise!

The Proposal

For personal reasons, John must to divest himself of the property in the immediate future. He has offered the House Corporation the ability to purchase it for the net tax benefit he would receive if he donated it to an an organization such as Habitat for Humanity That value is $10,900. Unfortunately, it is not possible to donate the property to the House Corporation or chapter and capture any tax benefit. Nor is it possible to donate it to the Sigma Chi Foundation and have the property come under the control of the local chapter. Suffice to say that these options have been fully explored and are not possible.

If donated to Habitat for Humanity, which would be one of John's top alternate options, they would most likely put two residences on the property. New residents would also tend not to take so kindly to parking on the lawn or refrain from making those phone calls.

As to the current value of the property, the current tax roll value is $32,400. John states that "at one point, the incremental value of the 525 S. Segrave property was $45K when absorbed into 520 S. Ridgewood, that value increased with the Days Inn being built as it legitimized the commercial value of 520 [S. Ridgewood]." The Days Inn is in the old Sun Bank lot on the corner (next to Delta Chi) . Consider that if this estimate is even close, the $10.9K investment would possibly quadruple our investment.

The Future

As you may know, there is a growing opinion that the chapter cannot stay at the current location forever. Crime in the current area has been an increasing problem and the house is in continual need of repair.

If we decide to sell the current property and acquire a new location, certainly having the Country Club property to sell along with the main lot would provide us more money to buy something else, and may very well increase the value of the main property if sold independently. It also provides the possibility of selling the 525 Seagrave property independently should an emergency arise.

As if a potential $20,000 loss against selling the property outright wasn't enough, John has stated that if the fraternity does decide to commit to a new location, that he will "pledge to give back the net proceeds of the Country Club back to a tax exempt body to assist in that endeavor over the next 7 years (from the commitment to go for a new location)." Brothers, we are not going to have an opportunity like this again.

Remember, this is not just "patching up the old joint." This project is one of the first steps we are taking for the long term housing needs of Eta Iota. Enhancing the size and value of our Ridgewood Ave. property far beyond the cost of this transaction. Whether we sell it separately, together with the 520 S. Ridegewood property(to enhance it's value), or keep it for more room is yet to be determined, but with this purchase we will be in in better shape to pursue all of these options.

The Money

As anyone who has purchased property knows, there's always just a little more to it than the price. As previously stated, the building on the property will have to be torn down and removed (estimated at up to $8000), additionally liability insurance will have to be purchased, taxes paid, and whatever minimal closing costs are involved must also be covered.

Unfortunately, the House Corporation does not have all the funds currently available to complete the acquisition, demolition, and financial maintenance of the property (taxes, insurance, etc). Therefore, we need to ask for your assistance to avoid missing this opportunity.

Here's the rundown:

• We have $55,436 in our capital fund.
• Of which, we are required to keep $20K for reserves, leaving $35,436 available for all House Corporation expenditures
  
• We have approved $21,962 for renovations currently under way.
  
• This leaves $13,474.
  
• We are proposing an expenditure of approximately $18,800
  
• As of 10/29/05 we have raised just over $11,000.

This chapter house could not be sustained without the generous support of our alumni over the years. Past support through the Fred J. Ford Fund, 1855 Club and other donations you may have made are certainly appreciated. As you can see from the above, your donation to the purchase of the country club has the potential to benefit the chapter several times over the amount you give. If you have not donated before, we urge you to consider making a donation in any amount. If you are a past or current contributor we ask once again for you generosity for this project specifically, in addition to your usual donations.

Our goal is to raise at least $20,000 to cover all potential expenses with this investment opportunity.

However, as John's need to dispose of the property exists in the immediate future, so too does our need to raise the money to complete the transaction. Therefore we need your participation as soon as possible, for whatever amount you are willing to donate. Any amount is appreciated and will go a long way to make this incredible opportunity a reality.

Your House Corporation officers and trustees belive that with over 580 undergraduates, alumni, and local alumni (not listed as lost, deceased, or expelled), it is reasonable to be able to raise this much money for this purpose in a short amount of time.

The Incentive

In order to encourage participation and promote the 35th Birthday Party, the House Corporation offered an incentive:
For each $100 donated a brother will have his name entered in a drawing for a free 35th Birthday Party weekend. (Spring 2006)

This includes:

• 2 nights at the Shores Resort ($320),
  
• Golf Tournament @ LPGA ($80),
  
• Birthday Party registration for 1 person ($150),
  

Total value is $550!!
Thus, if you donated $200, you would automatically be entered twice, donate $1000 and you're in the hat 10

The winner was drawn on Oct 29th. Congratulations to Michael Pelosi for winning the drawing.

However, even though the drawing is over, the need for donations continues.

Why Donate?

Here's what some of our donors have had to say:

Donating

We have two easy ways to make a donation to help cover the cost of the country club purchase: mail a check or use Paypal.
To mail a check,, please send your donation made payable to "Eta Iota House Corporation" to:

Eta Iota House Corp
c/o Mike Gehman
2719 Kutztown Road
Pennsburg, PA 18073

Please indicate that your donation should be applied to the Country Club purchase so that it may be property credited and so that you will be entered in the Birthday Party Weekend drawing (for donations of $100 or more).

VIce President: Nicholas F. Weiss
Cell: 224-659-0734
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