Clear Creek Food Cooperative

Co-op Members, volunteers, friends,

Just as many configurations of the Clear Creek Board of Directors have in the past; we the current board, have been wrestling with the notions of relocating.

The student meal plan was an innovative way to keep the co-op solvent over the years.  However, the board has decided to focus on our co-op. The students have been working with the College to revitalize the current space to fit their needs and to provide their own alternative meal plan.

The board’s decision to move the store away from its current location is a move back to the basic co-operative model.  This has not been a simple decision, however If we are a Co-op our guiding principles are clear enough.  A Co-op is voluntarily owned by the people who use it, operated for the benefit of its members, governed democratically, and it adheres to the internationally recognized cooperative principles.

These principles are:

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In my last update, I noted that the Co-op would be scaling back its operations at the end of the Spring semester at Earlham.  The Board and staff have since met to talk more about what that scaling back will look like, and we’d like to pass along information about this new direction and some new opportunities:

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We have several updates to report on related to planning around the future of the Co-op:

Last week, I met with members of Earlham College’s administrative faculty to discuss the proposals the Co-op had put forth to the College regarding its future on campus.  The bottom-line conclusion from this conversation was that the College would do all that it can to remove any barriers to the Co-op’s success in its current location, but that it is also limited in what it can do to support a private business on campus.  We appreciated that Earlham took the time to consider our requests, and we think we have a good understanding of the constraints they face.

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Today’s issue of The Earlham Word features an article about the uncertain future of the Clear Creek Food Co-op, including notes from our recent open meeting:

Clear Creek Co-op, the small food cooperative that provides, among other things, an alternative meal plan for Earlham students, may no longer be a fixture of campus next year.

At a recent open meeting, students, faculty and Richmond community members discussed the possibilities open to the co-op. According to Jon Flory Schrock, co-manager of the co-op, these possibilities range from closing completely to scaling back to a smaller presence in the space they now occupy to moving downtown or into a college house.

You can read the full article.

To All Clear Creek Food Cooperative Members, Supporters and Customers,

Over the last year, the Board of Directors and Management of the Coop have conducted intensive discussions about the viability and future of the Coop and its business model.  The document that’s linked at the end of this post is a result of those conversations, and we feel that it is a summary of the state of the organization, as it exists today.  A summary was presented to all in attendance of our recent all-member meeting in November.  We’d like to make it more broadly available for any feedback.

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The Co-op will be open the following days and hours over the winter break.

As the managers will be taking vacation, no bulk orders will be placed during this time.  Please place any bulk orders by December 18th, to arrive on the 22nd.  Orders placed after this time will be ordered on January 8th.

From Saturday, December 20th through Sunday, January 4th, we will be open:

• Mon-Tue  12 to 5 p.m.
• Wed-Fri  CLOSED
• Sat      12 to 5 p.m.
• Sun      CLOSED

Normal hours will resume on Monday, January 5th, 2009.