Mory’s hopes to open by early summer 2010, the club announced in an e-mail sent to members Wednesday.
In the e-mail, meant to bring members “up to speed” about recent developments, Mory’s Board of Governors President Christopher Getman ’64 said the organization needs to raise $400,000 to $500,000 more before the club can reopen. The final cost of the project, including opening costs and “contingent cash reserves,” is about $3.1 million, Getman wrote.
In an interview last Wednesday, Getman said the organization is waiting to raise more funds to start renovations. According to the e-mail, the club’s contractor has finished the requisite demolition and has begun construction work for the primary modifications to the club, including creating the frame for a new dining “alcove.”
Last Wednesday Getman said the club has raised about $1.7 million.
Read Getman’s full letter below:
To: Mory’s Members and Friends
From: Chris Getman ’64, President
It’s been a while since you’ve heard from the Club, so I thought I’d bring you up to speed about recent developments at 306 York St.
1) Mory’s Preservation, Inc. (MPI) has received 501(c) 3 status from the IRS for the renovation and restoration work on the building. Gifts made to MPI are tax deductible. MPI will handle your gift conservatively. Professor Douglas Rae, the treasurer of The Mory’s Association, will serve as President of MPI. Major gifts will be committed to rebuilding and renovation only when we are confident that we have the resources to complete the entire job in a first class manner.
2) Showing its support of the project, the University will grant reunion credit for gifts made to MPI by December 31, 2009 for any class regardless of when its reunion occurs. This note is designed to drum up as much reunion support as possible by year-end.
3) We have engaged an excellent restaurant operator, Ben Bloom, owner of La Cuisine in Branford, CT. Ben has extensive experience in the restaurant business and great knowledge of both the New Haven and Yale communities. We are confident that under Ben’s guidance the quality of both the food and the service will improve dramatically. Mory’s recently hosted a brunch in Hospitality Village at the Harvard game which featured some of Ben’s offerings. The event was a huge success. Photos of the event will be posted on the website soon.
4) Our contractor, New England Reconstruction Services, Inc. (NERS) has completed demolition and begun work on the infrastructure including framing out the new dining alcove, chimney work and painting. We plan to pour the foundation for the new bar/pub shortly. In addition, NERS has presented us with a reasonable estimate of what the project will cost.
5) Among significant structural changes, we are converting the front room on the first floor into a small bar and lounge with a working fireplace. It will be a very cozy and attractive space.
6) Both the men’s and ladies’ rooms will be located on the first floor where the old service bar used to be.
7) We are building a large bar and pub on the back of the building. It will open up to a patio with seasonal outside dining for 45 patrons and will overlook the beautiful courtyard of the neighboring colleges. The bar/pub will be open until at least midnight, and we’re hopeful that it will become the pub of choice for the habitually nocturnal student population as well as other members looking for late night fare. It will also be accessible not only from the club but from an additional entrance on the walkway from York St. to Morse and Stiles.
8) The private dining rooms on the second floor are being upgraded and will continue to offer attractive opportunities for meetings of 5 to 30 people.
9) The ambiance of the clubhouse will not change. It will still be a “museum” of Yale memorabilia, which has been a magnet for members and their guests in the past. The place will be cleaner, brighter and fuller of life-much as it was a generation back.
10) In addition to the above, we have a new dues structure, which we think will attract a broad membership from the entire Yale community. Lifetime members will remain exactly that, Lifetime members with no dues obligation. We’re hoping, however, that they will continue to support Mory’s with annual gifts. Student dues will be a one time fee of $15 with a $10 food credit. We expect that this will expand our student base dramatically, and we plan to generate much broader participation from graduate students than we’ve had in the past. Dues for annual members within a 30 mile radius of the Club will be $99 and for those outside of the 30 mile radius just $49. Our strategy is to make the Club attractive to a broad range of potential members, and we’re confident that the quality of the experience will encourage members to use the Club frequently.
11) We are looking into establishing reciprocal relationships with many other clubs, both nationally and internationally.
The cost of the entire project, which will include opening costs and contingent cash reserves, is about $3.1 million. We hope to open by early summer 2010. Thanks to the generosity of over 2,400 donors we are getting close. At this point we believe we’ll need to raise an additional $400-500K to complete the project. With your help we’re confident that we’ll be able to do so.
PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE, www.morysclub.org. Click on the Mory’s Preservation link to see the Naming Opportunities that remain. A few rooms and the outside dining on the south side are still available, but the majority of the bigger items have already been spoken for. However, there is large numbers of tables, chairs and bar stools available. Prices for those are as follows: Tables for four $10,000, Tables for two $5,000, bar stools (located in the new bar/pub and front lounge) are $2,500 and chairs throughout the clubhouse are $1,000. The list of available tables along with the floor plan will be posted on the website on Tuesday, December 1st.
I hope that you’ll decide to “plaque” something in your name or to honor someone else before the end of the year. That said, gifts of any size are most welcome.
Thank you and best wishes.