VALLEY SWIM CLUB
Case Problem
VALLEY SWIM CLUB
The Valley Swim Club has 300 stockholders, each holding one share of stock in the club. A share of club stock allows the shareholder's family to use the club's heated outdoor pool during the summer, upon payment of annual membership dues of $175. The club has not issued any new stock in years, and only a few of the existing shares come up for sale each year. The board of directors administers the sale of all stock. When a shareholder wants to sell, he or she turns the stock in to the board, which sells it to the person at the top of the waiting list. For the past few years, the length of the waiting list has remained relatively steady, at approximately 20 names.
However, during the past winter, two events occurred that have increased the demand for shares in the club. The winter was especially severe, and subzero weather and heavy ice storms caused both the town and the county pools to buckle and crack. The problems were not discovered until maintenance crews began to ready the pools for the summer, and repairs cannot be completed until the fall. Also during the winter, the manager of the local country club had an argument with her board of directors and one night burned down the clubhouse.
Although the pool itself was not damaged, the dressing room facilities, showers, and snack bar were destroyed. As a result of these two events, the Valley Swim Club was inundated with applications to purchase shares. The waiting list suddenly grew to 250 people as the summer approached.
The board of directors of the swim club had refrained from issuing new shares in the past because there was never a very great demand, and the demand that did exist was usually absorbed within a year by stock turnover. In addition, the board has a real concern about overcrowding. It seemed like the present membership was about right, and there were very few complaints about overcrowding, except on holidays like Memorial Day and the Fourth of July.
VALLEY SWIM CLUB
The Valley Swim Club has 300 stockholders, each holding one share of stock in the club. A share of club stock allows the shareholder's family to use the club's heated outdoor pool during the summer, upon payment of annual membership dues of $175. The club has not issued any new stock in years, and only a few of the existing shares come up for sale each year. The board of directors administers the sale of all stock. When a shareholder wants to sell, he or she turns the stock in to the board, which sells it to the person at the top of the waiting list. For the past few years, the length of the waiting list has remained relatively steady, at approximately 20 names.
However, during the past winter, two events occurred that have increased the demand for shares in the club. The winter was especially severe, and subzero weather and heavy ice storms caused both the town and the county pools to buckle and crack. The problems were not discovered until maintenance crews began to ready the pools for the summer, and repairs cannot be completed until the fall. Also during the winter, the manager of the local country club had an argument with her board of directors and one night burned down the clubhouse.
Although the pool itself was not damaged, the dressing room facilities, showers, and snack bar were destroyed. As a result of these two events, the Valley Swim Club was inundated with applications to purchase shares. The waiting list suddenly grew to 250 people as the summer approached.
The board of directors of the swim club had refrained from issuing new shares in the past because there was never a very great demand, and the demand that did exist was usually absorbed within a year by stock turnover. In addition, the board has a real concern about overcrowding. It seemed like the present membership was about right, and there were very few complaints about overcrowding, except on holidays like Memorial Day and the Fourth of July.