Norfolk Rotary has been at Scope longer than I’ve been a Rotarian and that is 22 years. It has served the club well as it was one of the few facilities in Norfolk that could handle a large lunch crowd (well over 100 when I joined), it was located downtown and had underground parking which was a benefit during inclement weather. Every few years, the board would reevaluate and we have remained at Norfolk Scope. We are once again reevaluating where to hold our meetings and the membership will have an opportunity to express their opinion and to make a decision at our next meeting.
The membership will be voting on whether to remain at Norfolk Scope or to have our meetings at either Norfolk Yacht Club or Town Point Club. All members are encouraged to vote (either in-person or electronically) which will be done by ranked choice voting where each member will give their opinion of ranking each venue.
Here are the pros and cons of each facility presented by President Michael at the September 17 meeting.
Norfolk Scope:
Pros:
- Covered indoor parking
- Downtown location
- Familiar space for club members
Cons:
- Basement location
- No Wi-Fi
- Food quality
- Can’t always meet at this space due to their scheduling
- Location doesn’t help with recruitment
Norfolk Yacht and Country Club
Pros:
- Beautiful newly renovated rooms with fantastic views
- Food quality
- Private club cache might help with member recruitment
Cons:
- Cost
- Not downtown
Town Point Club
Pros
- Food quality
- Familiar space for club members
- Private club cache might help with member recruitment
Cons:
- Parking garage is across the street
- Room is tight
- Cost
What is the all-in costs for each of these facilities? All-in costs include the membership dues ($525 per year), food, parking, taxes, facility fee, etc.
Norfolk Scope: $1,389 per year or $694.50 per member for half year
Norfolk Yacht: $1,605.00 per year or $802.50 per member for half year
Town Point Club: $1,605.00 per year or $802.50 per member for half year
The Meeting:
Visitation report: Lauren Kiger and her husband, Mark Sonnett, welcomed Dorothy Gray to their family on August 2. Let’s help Lauren celebrate the birth of Dorothy Gray with meals. It is easy to do through https://takethemameal.com/CFNE6595. Simply sign up for a day and coordinate with Lauren to arrange delivery for her home in Larchmont. The meal should be for three people. There are no allergy or dietary restrictions.
Growl Fest is fast approaching on September 11. For those new to the club, Growl Fest is a project of the Virginia Zoo, Norfolk-Sunrise Rotary and our club. It is a fun evening at the Virginia Zoo for the whole family with beer (and other non-alcoholic beverages), food trucks, band, etc. After being cooped up at home for the past year, we expect this event will have many people. Here is a link to buy tickets. https://virginiazoo.org/event/growlfest/. Norfolk-Sunrise is a very small club so the majority of the volunteers will come from our club. Please sign up to volunteer and make plans to go to Growl Fest.
Our Foundation chair, Sigur Whitaker, gave a very short (and unconfirmed through official Rotary channels) announcement about Rotary’s Polio-Plus initiative given the turmoil in Afghanistan. For the first six months of 2021, there have been two cases of wild polio in the world. Her Rotary contact indicated that, hopefully, the upheaval in Afghanistan will not impact the distribution of vaccine. The “hotspot” in Afghanistan has been in an area under Taliban control and we have been working in that area for several years so perhaps our efforts to eradicate this terrible disease will not be negatively impacted.
Happy Bucks:
- Clay Dills was pictured in the “amazing” book on the Garden of Tomorrow. The Garden of Tomorrow is the building project at Norfolk Botanical Garden and Clay is the architect.
- Wall, Einhorn & Chernitzer has been named as the Best Place to Work in Norfolk. Angela Kerns is the managing partner.
- Sharon Laderberg announced that her first grandchild was on the way.
- Chuck Spence is celebrating his 80th birthday on the 18th (Wednesday).
- Bill McGinnis is celebrating 58 years of marriage to Carol.
- Tom Koller thanked Norfolk Rotary for the warm welcome (he joined on August 10) and is celebrating finding a home in Virginia Beach after two months of looking and four bids.
- Brian McGuire confessed to not wearing a Rotary pin to today’s meeting.