Minnesota Alpha Chapter of Pi Beta Phi at the University of Minnesota
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/1065206
© 2018 PENNINGTON & COMPANY FUNDRAISING, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. 41 D. Facility management Alumnae do not want to give money to the chapter house unless there are assurances that policies and procedures are in place and enforced to protect their investment in the Minnesota Alpha Chapter of Pi Beta Phi. To counter any arguments that undergraduates will not take care of the facility, or are not paying their share of capital improvement costs, and to create resources for future capital improvement needs, Pennington & Company recommends the following actions, if not currently in place: 1. House bills should be set to the higher range of the sororities on campus. The Minnesota Alpha Chapter of Pi Beta Phi will have a premium facility and should plan to charge a premium rent to live there. 2. The rental portion of the house bill should be at least one-third of the total house bill. The rent paid by the undergraduates should never fall below one- third of the total dollars the chapter collects from live-in members. 3. Undergraduate rent should be paid in advance, either on an annual or semesterly basis. Doing so will help the chapter avoid potential collection problems and alleviate cash flow concerns. 4. The house corporation should institute a capital improvement fee of at least $200 for all new live-in members. Half of this fee should be paid at the beginning of the first semester and half at the beginning of the second semester. The fee should be non-refundable, set aside in a capital improvements fund, and used only for capital replacement needs such as carpet, furnishings, fixtures, or equipment. The capital improvements fund should be held by the house corporation in a separate account and should not be used for operations of the undergraduate chapter or house corporation, nor should it be used for ordinary repairs or maintenance. 5. Charge and collect a parlor fee from any non-resident members to help cover the costs of wear and tear and maintenance of the facility. The fee should be a minimum of $500 each semester. This fee should not be prohibitive but should help to service some of the anticipated debt. 6. Assess a minimum security deposit of $300. Contracts and security deposits should be collected from each undergraduate before she is permitted to move into the chapter house. Refunds of security deposits should not be made until damage and professional cleaning costs have been deducted at the end of the spring term.