City Council
MEETING DATE: 12/9/2015
TITLE:
Title
Cathedral Center Funding and Operations Status
End
FROM:
Charlie McClendon, City Manager
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
Staff recommends the Cathedral Center board and the City work with the Mizell Center toward a possible interim operating agreement.
Body
BACKGROUND:
The City provides funding to the Cathedral Center, a non-profit agency providing services to seniors in the community, in the amount of $40,000 annually ($18,500 from the general fund and $21,500 from CDBG). In June of 2015 Council approved a one-time loan of $50,000 to the Cathedral Center with the provision that it could be completely or partially forgiven over time based on the Center's success in its own fundraising. Hopes were high then that the Center would be able to hire a new executive director and meet the fundraising goals. Council expressed its commitment to the Cathedral Center, which counts among its clients many of the lowest income seniors in the area.
DISCUSSION:
Following is an update from Peter Rittenhouse on some of the efforts made by the board and the interim director at the Cathedral Center since June:
1. Fundraising:
Despite our best efforts fundraising has not been successful. The large local funders are "not interested" in "rescuing" the Center.
There are grants outstanding from Champions Foundation ($5K), CV Wellness Foundation (likely $10K) and Spearman Foundation (likely $10k)
Paula Kennedy will be finished as our Fundraising Consultant on November 30. The grant from Cal Wellness Foundation will be exhausted at that point.
The year-end fundraising letter was sent to 400+ people on November 19 and the results so far are not encouraging
2. Merger Possibilities:
Joslyn is not interested because it would be a distraction during their capital campaign.
Jewish Family Services is not interested unless there is a years-worth of operating income in the bank
The Sisters of Me...
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