It started this way ...

It all started on 2nd July, 2007.

Several weeks before, Diana said she wanted to get a few boxes of fruit and vegetables to sell to the tourists.  After a few weeks of listening to her plan brewing, Terry and I decided to join in and activate the idea.   We pooled our $150's, ordered the minimum order of $300, arranged delivery and set up outside of the Three Sisters' of Clallam Gallery, the green building in Clallam Bay.

The summer was cold.  The wood stove burned all day most days.  We put on our jackets to go out and serve by the road; we sold enough to renew our order every three weeks. It was a testing job, six days a week, but one that captured my imagination. I found myself saying we will be growing into a Co-op. At this point I had no idea and had not heard that any research had been done on this by anyone. 

Then along came a fisherman, introduced by Able Guides of Sekiu; he was the General Manager of the Pittsburgh Co-op. He liked the idea and encouraged me to keep going.  Then along came a family from Brooklyn Co-op, again they encouraged us, and so it started a run of public meetings, every two weeks to test the interest levels.

Folk came from all over this area, the Hoh, Forks and our own areas.  The idea captured the imagination of quite a few people.  Small decisions were taken, firstly to begin small and grow at our own pace, testing the waters of local interest.  As the locals had not shown a great deal of interest in the fruit and vegetable stall idea during the summer, some said that we should just do a buyers' club and others that we should start as we meant to grow with a store front and buyers' club.

An offer of indoor premises was arranged and so we now felt warm. 

Small was an understatement, we were tiny.  $34 to $50 dollars a week in sales was common, could we do it?

A decision to start with a few dry goods and so it began, then yogurt, and bulk foods, some veggies and fruit.

A meeting with a connection to Sundara Yarn of Sequim, over a birthday dip at Sol Duc Hot Springs brought out a great idea.  The new company was expanding, it was outgrowing its sole proprietor, it needed extra hands, and so the idea of sharing work with people in Clallam Bay was born.  Terry and I would go to Sequim every Wednesday and pick up the consignment, get the directions and drive it back to the people who would do the work to reskein it ready for the Internet.  It took a month or more to attract people interested in doing the work.  Terry and I spent November and December  doing the orders and taking them back to Sequim.  After the holiday season people started coming out  and asking about the work we were offering, and from here we gathered a team of willing workers, ending up with 10.

Because of the influx of funds we were able to rent the building that we are housed in, eventually take on the PUD account, and increase our stock.  The stock is always different but some are always the same; you will need to check regularly to see what is here.

By February, a Town Planner was chosen to lead our town forward into renewal and to gain infrastructure changes and tidy up.  The Co-op, now a buzzing little enterprise was chosen to move forward as the third initiative.  It was voted as a Farm/Co-op, so with the support of the USDA, we entered another phase of our growth; the garden was started with only one week prior to the growing season.  It was the coldest spring and so it was a challenging start for the new enterprise, but a hardy group of people held it together and formed up a home garden/Co-op produce development.

At this point the North West Co-op Development Center, was offering a grant and training to 'Grow Your Own Co-op' through the USDA.  We attracted the services of a grant writer and almost immediately were granted the pre-grant that would enable us to learn and process through the right hoops to become a candidate for a full grant.  This has driven us quicker than we first thought it would be possible.  I have represented us at a conference in  Port Townsend, researched a bank connection or two, and a hardware connection and as the ideas came forward so did the option of gaining the old grocery store in town which had been closed for four years, as with the bank. 

At this point we are planning with the support of  Mike Doherty the County Commissioner, John Miller County's Economic Development, Leon Smith Building Inspector, Roy Helwig Green Architect and our grant writer Dana Sarff of Neah Bay, to develop an offer for the old grocery store.  It is in poor condition in regard to its storm damage which was not fixed quickly enough, but the structure itself is good enough to work with.  We have been in contact with USDA in regard to a guaranteed loan for improvements, and  Forks Pharmacy, about a drop off and pick up service here, and we are re instigating the butchery. We have plans for a bakery, laundromat, public toilet and shower, a mini bank and social area with a juice bar and simple healthy food, and some hardware at a later stage.

Over the past few weeks, the First Federal Bankers came out to visit the store, the town and its Co-op.  Connie Kemp, Dawnya Texor, Brian Kuh and Mary Beth Wesener enjoyed a whole day with us, talking listening and sharing the dream we have of our own mini branch of their bank. 

This week Gary Deakins came out from Seattle to talk to us about a True Value Hardware here sharing the Co-op Building with food service.   It was decided that we can't afford them.  But he had other ideas for us to think about into the future.  It was OK'd for us to subcontract with the Forks store of True Value for our needs to be met here in some ways into the future. 

The Building inspector gave us a list for the architect to include in his drawings for the future Co-op.

The County are behind us getting the store up and running.

The architect sees potential for alternate power sources, and the consequent relining of the building, and restructuring of the floors and closing off of the west wing. All additions are not up to code at this point.

The meetings of the Co-op are held every second Tuesday of the month at the Co-op Building, 16732 Hwy 112 Clallam Bay, WA at 5.30pm. 

This month it is the 12th August 2008.

See you there!



This is the current status from our grant writer, and is only a process not a promise at this point, we are working toward an agreed outcome.

"Hello all,   I have been asked by Jane Heilman and the folks at the Coop to spearhead the effort at putting together a report and a proposal for the Clallam Bay Grocery property. This proposal can be used to make a "lease to own" offer on the property . Because of the age of the building, the numerous "as built" additions to the property for which there were no plans and apparently no permits, and finally the extensive damage to the building which was caused by a severe storm, this is going to take some time.    Another task, directly related to this, that must be completed, is a business plan for the Coop. Even with a building proposal, the Coop will have to show support organizations and potential funding agencies, such as the EDC and the USDA, that it can support the "lease to own" proposal and become a viable coop. I for one believe it can, but only a realistic business planning effort can show this.        Thanks to a committed group of people in Clallam Bay and Seiku, including the Three Sisters, Jane, Terry, the Board, and the as of yet, small  membership, this coop is gaining strength and is manifesting itself in the present tense. It is growing organically, if you will, a little bit at a time. I am sure that I speak for Jane and all at the Coop in extending our thanks for your efforts in assisting us.   We have now brought Roy Hellwig, Architect, aboard to help us in this report. On July 15th, Roy and I spent an afternoon on the property and in the building doing a survey and an assessment. We were followed by Leon Smith, with the Clallam County Building Department along with John Miller and Mike Doherty. All comments and questions are being compiled and collated as part of the report.    We have come to some preliminary conclusions, however we are not done yet. We are essentially dealing with three issues here: 
 
The integrity of physical structure. The west addition is not structurally sound however it is not an integral part of the structure and can be boarded off until such a time that it can be structurally renovated or removed/replaced, whichever is more feasible for the business plan This part of the building includes the walk in cooler and freezer. The freight room at the rear may also have to be removed/replaced. This significantly reduces the square footage of the usable portion of the existing building. Reportedly, there were no building permits for these additions.  

The extensive damage to the building caused by the storm, and the deferred maintenance and repair work that has caused the building to essentially become un-usable as it is. The question here is what it will cost to bring this building back to it's original state before it sat idle and before the storm damaged it. Combined with the reduced square footage of the building as mentioned above (for which there were no permits), this will serve as a baseline upon which to make an offer on the property. Because of the extent of damage caused by exposure to rain over an extended period of time, the building insulation and wood partition walls/drywall are  all water damaged, and it appears that mold and mildew permeates the structure. The building will most likely have to be gutted and stripped down to the structural elements, possibly including all interior wood flooring and partition walls.
 
A property and building renovation and remodel plan, showing phased improvements to the property and building over a period of time such that it would permit the coop to manage the costs in relation to it's business growth. Small steps is the only way to take on this project, otherwise it is not feasible to do. This is also a doable strategy for the business plan and with funding agencies.   
 
Our next steps will be to get an electrician, plumber, and mechanical contractor in to look at the building.    Once again, thanks for your help!!!!!"       

Dana Sarff: Land Use/Economic Development Planner Process Oriented Development P.O. Box # 675 1211 Sooyes Beach Road Neah Bay, WA. 98357 Phone: (360) 645-2554 Cell:     (360) 640-0879 E-Mial: dana_at_pod@yahoo.com


NEWS:

Watch this space for news.

First Federal, definitely has something in the air .... 

We will have some day to day hardware, that has been decided. 

We are working on a loan with Government guarantees, and First Federal says that they can provide that. 

The men; grant writer, architect, building inspector, community development personnel, commissioner, are working toward a realistic offer for the grocery store. 

A decision has been taken that there will be no alcohol or cigarettes sold from the Co-op, I have taken people through the old store and when I ask them what took the other owners down, the answer is always drinking and/or drugs on behalf of the employees or the management. 
 
It is good to learn from the past and then use the information to create the future.

I have gained agreement from Olympic Electric and John's Plumbing to inspect the old store for the purpose of supplying a report on the condition and upgrades needed for price negotiation and reconstruction of the building.

Our current need is a Chair Person for the Co-op.

NOW ..
The next meeting of the Co-op is September 9th 2008, we will share good news and get down to our business plan, chair person, by-laws, articles of incorporation,  and settle a lot of issues ready for the big move into our future identity.  Please come along to hear the  story and be part of  developing our co-operative community.  The towns need to be involved and take hold of the dream.  It is real and it is here now.

22nd September 2008

We now  have all of the reports for the old store. The Architects and the grant writer are ready to present an offer to the bank who currently owns the store. 

We are intending to operate our store on alternate power sources and are negotiating with PUD Port Angeles at this time.

Our Co-op at present location is growing in volume as is our stock and choices. Thank you for your support and feed back.

Important Meeting Notice

7th October, 2008 5.30 pm at Sue's Gallery the green Building our guest, Andrew McLeod from North West Co-operative Development Center will be here to share the beginnings of the Technical Assistance Grant Program in which we are enrolled. Come along and find out what this is all about.  This is the beginning of something wonderful.First Federal is still interested, but not ready to say what they are working on as far as banking in our own communities.

Chuck from Chinook pharmacy is still exploring the possibilities of a pharmacy drop off and pick up point.

We are planning a big Barbecue and HOOTENANNY when we get the store, we will need to gut and rebuild, so many hands will make light work.  Let's work and play together for the future of our communities.

11th November,2008 5.30pm at Sues Gallery the green building.  Annual General Meeting to close West End Co-operative and open with Sunsets West Co-op.  Elections of officers was held and reports were given on the current financial and structural position of the Co-op.  We enter the new year with no debts, no creditors and a bank balance.  We have 25 members and 19 memberships. We have signed the contract with the Northwest Co-op Development Center for a year long Technical Assistance Package, and know we need to find bigger premises for the food section of our co-op.

The paperwork is now complete for the proposed acquisition of the old grocery store and also for Al's Mini Mart .  Both of these situations will be discussed by the board at our next meeting on December, 9th 2008. We will also be ready to discuss the terms of membership and yearly dues.  Thank you to all of those who are showing interest and patronage of the Co-op, it is greatly appreciated.  We are growing fast.