1. stay at Central Park Mall in our present location. If that was not possible, we wanted to 
2. stay at Central Park in another location. 
3. Failing to achieve either of the above, we wanted to obtain a location, if possible, close to our present location and one that would be cost-effective and adequate to meet our needs.

While we were offered a “reduced rate,” it was an amount such that we did not believe it practical or in the best interests of Alamo PC Organization, Inc. to remain there. As President, I asked for another meeting with Mr. Abramoff to negotiate a more amenable lease for the organization, pointing out that we brought many people to the mall who would not come there otherwise. He acknowledged this and offered a very slight reduction from the original quote. Throughout negotiating with Mr. Abramoff, he remained consistent in asking for an amount that we as your representatives determined to be excessive to us, considering our budget for the year. From our view, he was no longer able to accommodate our needs at a cost we felt was fair and reasonable. From his perspective, he was doing what was necessary to manage his property well. When you reach an impasse, as we did during these negotiations, exploring other options becomes a priority. 

The Mall management’s offer was, in my opinion, outrageous for us to consider. We had hoped to negotiate a significant reduction from the original offer, that was fair to both the Mall Management team and us. It was the Executive Committee’s responsibility to meet with and negotiate a plan of action that we would then recommend to the rest of the Board for approval. Initially, we had hoped to stay in our former Central Park Mall site. During negotiations, we also learned that Central Park Mall had tentative plans to rent out our space to a business that would pay them more money than they were asking from us. We were told that we could remain tenants in Central Park Mall on a lease, with the Mall Management holding a 30-day notice for us to move to another location in the mall at their discretion. It seemed clear to us that the mall management had plans for our space and that one way or another, we would be moving within 6 months time. 

We had considered several other properties and we evaluated them based on whether they could meet our needs, where they were located, and how much they would cost us to obtain. The Board voted to accept the lease offered at Crossroads Mall. Although there will need to be some work done in order to facilitate our occupation of the site, it should only keep us without an active Resource Center for a brief time. Our initial plan was to occupy the property by April 16, 2001 and begin limited classes and SIG’s at that time. It appears that a May 1, 2001 opening date is more realistic at the time of this writing. This is an unfortunate but unavoidable down time for some of our SIG’s and for our Resource Center. Please remember that we chose this option with the understanding that we would have moved even if we had accepted the terms of the lease Central Park offered. Another way to look at this is that we made a proactive choice rather than remaining where we were and having to react to events that would have given us less control of our situation.

What had to happen the last weekend of March was for us to get packed up and moved. Most of us have had to move before, so we understand what a big job that is. Many volunteers came in to help out with this project we are very grateful for the help. Moving into the new facility will require an additional wall, and since the last occupant was a pet shop, the pet cages had to be dismantled and a small section of wall was removed. The new Resource Center will also have two separate labs and they will be networked together, separated by a wall, which we will construct with member volunteers doing the majority of the work. Those who have moved know that this is not an inexpensive endeavor. We continue to incur expenses for our facility, telephones, the magazine, monthly meetings and other services. As a non-profit, volunteer organization, we must rely on our own members to accomplish our tasks. Please remember that our motto is computer users helping other computer users. Much work has been done and much more will be done as we continue on our mission to provide a quality user group in our community to our members and to provide services that will attract new members and keep our organization viable. 

Our eventual, long-term goal for the Resource Center is to build or buy our own property and house the Resource Center and all of our equipment there. Financially that is simply not feasible at this point. However, the Board of Directors, I believe is committed to working toward this goal. One of the things we have discussed is the possibility of obtaining grant money that would help us, as a non-profit 501 (C) 3 organization reach this goal. So, if anyone reading this has knowledge or expertise in writing grant proposals, or if you know about a grant we might be considered for, please let me or one of the other Board Members know. Please do not hesitate to offer your services if you are a grant-writer or if you could train some of our Board Members how to write effective grants. We always need more volunteers, so this might also be an opportunity for you to volunteer at the Resource Center or as a volunteer for Alamo PC Organization Inc., in some other capacity. Please consider volunteering your time to help when and where you can.