Part 7 – "Tired, but still solid.”
Kommentaarid on kirjutatud EWR lugejate poolt. Nende sisu ei pruugi ühtida EWR toimetuse seisukohtadega.
VanemadUuemad
shell shocked20 Oct 2017 04:40
Thank you for your summary of this study on the estonian house, I am feeling a little shell shocked. At the April meeting the board gave a chronology of events where they brought up different studies and said, "we are now in critical olukord". The chronology included a 2009 Ernst & Young report (financial report), 2010 Turner/Townsend engineering inspection, 2012 Cushman & Wakefield report and I guess this Environmental report (which the board said was used to solicit developer proposals)
The board needs to show all the reports, otherwise, they are going to lose credibility. I can't believe that they would deliberately mislead us, but, they are not helping themselves by not showing the reports. It is not looking good.
lugeja20 Oct 2017 12:27
The only thing "critical" about this situation, is that the 4 orgs seem to be vailed in secrecy leaving us to fear that they are proceeding like lemmings over a cliff and taking our entire community with them. If these orgs have any integrity at all, then they MUST respond immediately to this. I could swear that just the other day I read an article where they promised timely responses. Why do I doubt one is forthcoming?

If any one of the people responsible for steamrolling our community to ditching the Eesti Maja is reading this - shame on you if you don't act immediately to shed some light on your actions and start answering the many questions that many of us have.
Do we need an Eesti Maja?21 Oct 2017 07:12
If so, for how much longer?
Let's face the truth. Our community is shrinking fast, both in quantity and in quality.
Our dear old folks are dying off. The remaining community activists, like Allan Meiusi, aren't fluent in Estonian.
Ingrid Tanner26 Oct 2017 11:38
MANY still WANT the Estonian House!

That is the issue.. and if the decision is only about our declining seniors.. then WHY spend money (Millions of dollars of debt") to build a new one?

Best to keep what we have... and for much less funds.. we can upgrade the old building.. put in energy efficient boilers... and Market it to "Torontonians" (as the Estonian house website mentions are welcome) so the the remaining users, many of which are young children and teenagers... will still have a place to go to... let the rental income enable us to KEEP the Estonian house for those Estonians who currently use it. I understand that on weekends they do not have enough space... so... Madison with less space, would be even worse and most likely will have way more debt

I do wonder if anyone did a an analysis on what percentage rental time to "others" is needed to be able to keep cost effective rental prices for Estonians...
Ingrid Tanner26 Oct 2017 11:44
as for being "fluent" in Estonian..
WOW... you just cut off more Estonians.

To say that born to Estonian parents mean nothing... not even if you have a passport that says you are...

Really

Being Fluent is NOT the issue.. and the fact that many adults who marry Estonians or those who are not fluent take time in the evening to learn Estonian at the Estonian House...

Kudos to the teachers and the people who are trying to better their language skills

Thumbs down to you and judge-mentalist attitude.
Samalt IP numbrilt on siin varem kommenteerinud: Ingrid Tanner (11:38)
another non-fluent estonian21 Oct 2017 08:33
So, I have to be fluent in Estonian to be a "quality" Estonian! Defining "quality" Estonian by the fluency of one's Estonian is as close to racism as you can get, a true superiority and elitist point of view. I guess in your very narrow world many Estonians are probably not white enough either.
What has been exciting to see at the Estonian house is the diversity, integration and welcoming of all people to the Estonian community.
I see this clearly at places like Estonian school, girl guides and scouts and even at the summer camps.
Maybe you should visit the Estonian house and see the many "quality" Estonia's that are not fluent in Estonian but are bound by our common ancestry, language (whatever level), have strong cultural morales and are very proud Estonians.
The Estonian house represents inclusiveness of all and maybe that is why it is the hub of the Estonian community.
What's an Estonian? ...21 Oct 2017 11:18
... in particular, an Estonian who doesn't speak the language and sees no point to learning.
At best, I'd say that it's someone with Estonian roots, but nothing more.
Perhaps, we should call him "a clear".
member advice21 Oct 2017 16:00
The chips definitely can't fall where they may any longer especially for each of the board members.
It is possible that members of the board have never seen the reports, especially if the reports were done between 2009-2012. This unfamiliarity doesn't absolve them from their responsibility to now ask for the reports, read and understand them and their potential implications to the corporation, certain board members, decision made within internal board meetings and presented to the shareholders. Especially in light of the new information put forward by this article and the previous article by the 3 professionals.
Assuming all the board members can get access to all of the reports. When allegations of misconduct arise, such as, potential (misrepresentation of the state of the Estonian House that could have lead and influenced the decision making of shareholders and potential voting outcomes) the board of directors have an obligation to investigate the details, take a proactive stance and to communicate the results to the shareholders and to the public. Free advice.
to - member advice22 Oct 2017 06:28
You make a good point, but; you should clarify the Board's obligation to the public.
What does the Board owe people on the sidelines, unwilling to make a financial investment?
To: to - member advice23 Oct 2017 20:34
Re: comment: "You make a good point, but; you should clarify the Board's obligation to the public.
What does the Board owe people on the sidelines, unwilling to make a financial investment?"

Your comment is a bit premature - no one has been asked to make a financial investment other than selling the House. Not even a hint of a capital campaign or how it would work, very odd.
member advice22 Oct 2017 14:22
When the board members are dealing directly with potential allegations of misconduct and the information is now public knowledge (in the public domain), shareholders and the public will be watching to see how well the board handles such matters. Each board members conduct and the conduct of the board as a whole will be under the microscope. Avoiding the hard questions and giving into groupthink mentality is not an excuse and in itself would be considered potential misconduct of the directors.
Samalt IP numbrilt on siin varem kommenteerinud: member advice (16:00)
to - member advice22 Oct 2017 18:01
Allegations of malfeasance, from anonymous sources, don't amount to 'public knowledge'.
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