President's report

Article from Volume 11, Issue Number 2, 2024

By John Popowich | Other articles by John Popowich | Regular Column

Looking forward with a view to success

After a relatively mild winter we can now look forward to the nice warm weather, planting our gardens and taking in the fresh Winnipeg air.

CCI Manitoba has had a great year. As it turns out, it was much better than we anticipated and budgeted for. Our membership numbers are up slightly, our forecasted surplus is over budget and all of our events have seen increased attendance.

This year we decided to host two Presidents’ forums and two Treasurers’ forums rather than the usual one.

The first Presidents’ forum was held on Feb. 6 and I was a little surprised at the turnout. We had 39 presidents (or their alternates) attend what was an amazing evening. The idea behind the forum is to give condominium board presidents a chance to meet each other and to ask questions, offer opinions or advice and try to find solutions for whatever problems they have encountered. Of course there were the usual questions: Which suppliers do you use for various work? Whom would you recommend? And, of course, are we required to have an audit?

All presidents were given an opportunity to speak to whatever subject they felt important. There was no hesitation to provide suggestions and ideas for improvement. This is what the forum is all about.

The next Presidents’ forum is scheduled for June 26. If you’re a board president and couldn’t make it to the last one, plan on attending the summer edition. It is something every condominium president should attend.

In keeping with the concept of the Presidents’ Forum, last year we introduced our first Treasurers’ forum. It was the same format but was for condo board treasurers.

As it was well received and, in my opinion, highly beneficial, we put it on the schedule again for this year. The first of two forums for treasurers was held on March 20. Twenty-five treasurers attended and succeeded topping last year’s event. It was extremely interesting to hear their concerns and suggestions. I wish I could have attended this kind of event way back when I first became treasurer of my condominium corporation. It would have saved me a lot of time on Google searching for answers. Everyone is quite willing to share their knowledge and expertise.

The summer Treasurers’ forum is scheduled for Aug. 14 and, again, if you’re a board treasurer and missed the first one, plan on being there this summer. I really hope to see you there.

Best of all, there is no cost for either of the forums for our members.

Our lunch & learns are continuing at Smitty’s Restaurant on Kenaston Blvd. Our Education Committee has scheduled sessions right through to the summer, including Building Condo-munity (Sue Langlois flew in from Toronto to show us how to build a better community in our condo buildings); Funding options for condo corporations (I expect this to be very interesting); as well as Building and preventative maintenance. I am always impressed with the imaginative and interesting sessions our Education Committee devises.

The next National Leaders’ Forum and conference will be held at the Hotel Halifax in Halifax from May 29 to June 1. This year’s theme is “Charting New Horizons” and I’m excited to see what will be presented. The Leaders’ Forum and Conference is a great opportunity to connect with other leaders from across the country who are involved in the condominium Industry. It will be filled with discussions and presentations, networking with CCI members and will include some fun-filled social events. I and my fellow board members enjoyed last year’s forum and took away a lot of suggestions and insights from the other chapters. We have a number of board members attending this year and I know they will not only enjoy Halifax but come away with more ideas and plans for improvement.

Our Sponsorship and AGM Committee is busy planning our AGM, to be held in late September. The AGM has always been a fun event and I’m excited to see what the committee has in store for us.

As always, check out our website at Home - CCI Manitoba Chapter and CCI National website to find out the latest news in the condominium industry, events here and across the country and a host of other topics.

I’ll close by saying I’m looking forward to the Leaders’ Forum and Conference in Halifax in May and I would love to see a strong contingent of people from Manitoba. Have a great spring and enjoy the finest summer you’ll find in this country.

Stay safe.

John Popowich is the president of CCI Manitoba and its representative on CCI’s National Council.