Minutes

WBL Board Meeting

February 28, 2007

The meeting was held at Richard Ferrin’s house.

In attendance: Barbara Ames, Don Berman, Ellen Cherniavsky, Richard Ferrin, Fred King, Clyde Kruskal, Steve Robinson, Dick Wegman, and non-voting members Kitty Gottfried, Donna Rogall, Ted Ying, and Nadine Wood. 

President King called the meeting to order at 7:50 PM.

Secretary’s Report

Without objection, the board approved the minutes, as amended. 

Treasurer’s Report

Steve Robinson reported that the WBL current has $17,149.04 in its checking account.  It had $12,920.33 as of December 31, 2006.  Ted Ying noted that the latest figures do not include the February unit game.

Bridge and Bowling

Fred King reported an incident that occurred in the bridge portion of the event.  One person left after two matches.  She thought that her teammates were not supportive, and that she was “out of her league”.  Ted Ying said that he asked Peter Boyd for his advice, and Peter said that no sanctions were necessary at this time.  However, the situation should be monitored.  More caution should be taken in matching up inexperienced players.  Clyde Kruskal commented that this appeared to be a rare situation.

Fred said that 27 people attended the bowling event.  Last year the number was 35.  There is a clear downward trend in attendance at this event.  He queried, if the WBL wants to continue this event, how can we increase participation?  Fred noted that one problem is that this event is scheduled opposite the Baltimore sectional.  Donna Rogall and Ted Ying agreed, observing that attendance seems to be lower at a Maryland site than at a Northern Virginia site.  Nadine Wood commented that the Baltimore sectional does not pose a serious conflict, since that sectional is poorly attended anyway.  Don Berman speculated that the increasing age of the WBL may be hurting attendance at the bowling event.  Richard Ferrin suggested that the poor quality of the lanes at Laurel may be keeping attendance down.

Several people suggested alternative bowling alleys, such as Strike in Downtown Bethesda (suggested by Dick Wegman, combined with bridge at the Methodist Home in DC), Bowl America at Shady Grove (suggested by Barbara Ames), and White Oak (suggested by Ted).  Ted pointed out that the biggest problem with changing the bowling location is that it should be close to the bridge site, and sites other than the Laurel Bridge club would be costly.  Barbara Ames replied that the WBL should subsidize the event, if necessary.

Fred concluded the discussion by suggesting that the bridge and bowling event be placed in the Calendar of Obligations for next September, so that there would be plenty of time to consider these issues before next year’s event.

Unit Game

Steve Robinson proposed changing the directors’ salary structure.  He proposed lowering the salary by $37, but compensating by adding in a $32 per diem and $5 travel expense component.  Such a breakout would be beneficial from a tax standpoint.

Ted Ying explained further that director salaries currently are broken out in IRS Form 1099 into salary, per diem, and travel.  Ted Ying proposed that the Chief Director assign the total compensation package, and break it out into salary, per diem, and travel components.  Ted also requested that the change be made retroactive to January 1, 2007.  Richard Ferrin moved that the board adopt Ted’s proposal, and Ellen Cherniavsky seconded.  The motion passed unanimously.

Ted Ying reminded the board that it needs to review the lighting situation again this summer, because of the rate of breakage of lamps.

Dick Wegman reported that issues concerning the functioning and cleanliness of the bathrooms at the Church still have not been resolved.  Ellen Cherniavsky agreed, noting the cold temperatures, bad lighting, and the fact that there are only two stalls in the ladies’ room.  Clyde Kruskal complained that the hot water in the bathrooms did not seem to work.  Steve Robinson suggested raising money to fix the problem by holding a unit charity game with the Church as beneficiary.  Dick Wegman said that he would discuss the bathroom problems with the Church Rector. 

Dealing Machine

Steve Robinson reported that the WBL’s “old” dealing machine has been fixed.  It is now in Australia, awaiting transport back to the United States.  Ted Ying said that Allen Crank recommends that the WBL stay with the old machine, instead of the “new” machine from Florida.  Fred King moved to authorize Steve Robinson, on behalf of the WBL, to pay the Australian company for the repairs.  Steve Robinson seconded the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

Fred King stated that the NVBA’s minutes of January 2007 concerning their possible purchase of a dealing machine do not describe accurately his understanding after having talked with Leo Cardillo (NVBA President).  Leo Cardillo found people who have offered to pay for the NVBA to acquire a dealing machine; the funds would not come out of the NVBA’s budget.  Fred said that he understands the NVBA has not yet decided what to do.

Calendar of Obligations

Don Berman suggested adding the regional tournament and elections to the Calendar of Obligations.  Fred King suggested adding the Ace of Club awards.  Don Berman added that the Mini McKinney should be added, including making sure that the WBL receives the medallions (which are now supplied by Baron Barclay).  Dick Wegman suggested adding the President’s awards to the Calendar of Obligations. 

Kensington Armory

Fred King recalled the discussion at the last board meeting that a Kensington town representative approached Dick Wegman to see if the WBL would be interested in returning to Kensington Armory for the unit game and sectionals.  Fred noted that the consensus at the last meeting was that the Schweinhaut Senior Center was a better location for WBL sectionals than the Kensington Armory.  One problem in particular with the Kensington Armory is the location of the kitchen.  However, a backup location would always be nice.

Dick Wegman said that he was aware of a possible conflict at Kensington Armory with theater productions, and was unsure whether any scheduling conflict could be accommodated.  He said that the Kensington official thought that the parking situation would be better this time.  He also noted that we would have access to several rooms in the downstairs portion of the Armory, and those rooms would be vastly better conditions than the basement of Christ the King Church.  Also, he noted that the Kensington Armory bathrooms have been refurbished.  Dick suggested holding the Unit Game there on April 5, since Christ the King Church is not available on that date.  Steve Robinson and Fred King said that it would be too much trouble to move all the tables just for that one night.

Kitty Gottfried said that the location of the kitchen would not be a problem if the Unit Game were relocated there.  She did express concern, however, that Kensington Armory does not have a caretaker, so she would have to lock the door as the last person out.  Kitty said that she would prefer to be at a site where there was a caretaker on hand to lock up.

Dick said that he would raise all these issues and discuss the possibilities further with the Kensington officials.

Regarding April 5, Don Berman asked whether Laurel Bridge Club could hold an open game that evening, since the WBL Unit Game would not be held that night.  He said that if the Church next door to the Laurel Bridge Club is available, he could accommodate some 30-odd tables. 

Sunday Novice Game

Dick Wegman reported that the Sunday novice game at the Methodist Home is thriving, now drawing up to 18 ½ tables.  Clyde Kruskal reminded the Board that the WBL trophy race rules should be updated  to reflect the Board’s recent agreement to count points earned in the Sunday Methodist Home novice game in the trophy races.

Steve Robinson stated that the WBL needs to define “non-life master” for purposes of the Tubbs trophy.  He suggested that an eligible player be a non-life master with under 500 masterpoints, consistent with the ACBL’s demarcation for non-life master events.  The Board agreed to Steve’s suggestion, effective January 1, 2007. 

Planning for Regional

Fred King reported that he and Nadine met with the hotel, and with Steve Forsythe, to plan for the tournament.  Most of the tournament jobs have been filled.  Nadine Wood said that we still need a prizes chairman.  Richard Ferrin volunteered to serve in that position.  Nadine said that she will be sending out e-mail advertisements, and is trying to line up speakers.  The Mid-Atlantic Bridge Conference has set an attendance target of 2400, although Nadine expects the total to be significantly higher than that.  Fred King reminded the Board of the need to encourage people to attend the speakers’ events; in the past, the lectures have not always been well attended, and speakers are less likely to speak the next time if the audience is too small.

Don Berman asked about parking at the hotel.  Nadine replied that the hotel would charge $8 per day for parking, with and-and-out privileges.  Parking for hotel guests would be free.

Don volunteered to help Helene Bauman with the dining guides.  He asked whether they should approach local restaurants and propose discount deals.  Fred suggested that we might as well ask.  Nadine reminded Don to get copies of menus, and days and hours of operation.

Dick Wegman asked whether we should advertise in the Washington Post.  Nadine replied that ads in local journals and gazettes tended to be more cost-effective.

Don Berman stated that other districts have asked whether the WBL would add a link to its web site to their tournaments, and raised the possibility of making a reciprocal advertising deal with districts that are close to ours. 

Elections

Fred King noted that Jim Allen will chair the election.  We need a list of eligible voters.  Don Berman agreed to generate that list.  Frances Burke will be in charge of ballots. 

Round Robin 

Steve Robinson noted that the deadline to register in the Round Robin is May 17.  The entry fee will be $50 for A/X teams and $40 for B/C/D.  Steve also discussed complaints about one slow player in the B/C/D home events.

Upcoming Meeting

The next WBL Board meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, March 28 at Steve Robinson’s house.

The board thanked Richard Ferrin for hosting the meeting.  Whereupon, the meeting adjourned at 9:40 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

Richard Ferrin, Secretary