metro

JCC Public Forum Scheduled

Community invited to discuss potential closure of Oak Park JCC.

I

Jackie Headapohl

Managing Editor

T

he boards of the Jewish
Community Center and
the Jewish Federation of
Metropolitan Detroit have arranged for
a public forum to discuss the ongoing
financial crisis at the JCC on Monday,
Jan. 12, at 7 p.m. at the Oak Park JCC,
located at 5110 W. 10 Mile Road.
The forum will bring the community
up to date on what's been happening to
solve the financial crisis at the JCC that
surfaced in the fall of 2013 and discuss
the recommendation that the Oak Park
JCC be closed to help offset an annual $1
million operating deficit.

Background

After the financial difficulties at the
JCC came to light, a Financial Oversight
Committee, comprised of both lay and
professional representatives from the
JCC and the Jewish Federation, was
formed to assess the financial condition
of the JCC and over-
see its operations. An
outside accounting
firm, Financial One,
was hired to fully
examine the finances
of the JCC in order
to establish a reliable
operational baseline.
Early in 2014, turn-
around
expert Jim
Jim Issner
Issner was hired by
the Oversight Committee as the interim
executive director of the JCC.

In late spring, Issner
and Financial One
reported that the JCC
had been operating
for multiple years
at an annual loss of
roughly $1 million,
financed through
unpaid vendors, lines
of credit, deferred
maintenance and the
significant support of
the Federation beyond
its annual campaign allocation of $1.5
million. In addition, the JCC had accu-
mulated a deficit of approximately $6
million.
Between January and May of 2014, the
Federation provided approximately $3.2
million of additional support to the JCC
that was used to pay off all existing ven-
dors and otherwise reduce the deficit to
approximately $2.6 million.
At the same time, Issner, with the sup-
port of his staff, volunteers, donors and
JCC Board, continued the operations of
the JCC at a high level, running an out-
standing Maccabi Games and summer
camp program that have put the JCC on
a track to break even operationally for
the 2014/2015 fiscal year.
Without the help of Maccabi, which
brought in around $800,000 in revenue
in 2014, Issner projects the JCC will lose
$1.2 million in the 2015-2016 fiscal year.

The Oak Park JCC Branch
The Oak Park JCC branch operates with
an annual cash shortfall of between
$800,000 and $1 million. Absent

"The JCC is more
than just its
facilities."

– Scott Kaufman

receiving a significant increase in its
Federation allocation or additional
annual fundraising /donor support, this
is unlikely to change.
Additional considerations involve the
condition of the Oak Park facility itself.
The building, constructed in 1956, cur-
rently has approximately $450,000 in
deferred maintenance and repair needs,
half of which will need to be addressed
in the next year.
While the JCC does what it can to
make the best use of the building,
there are significant space limitations.
Re-constructing, expanding or renovat-
ing the building to make it more service-
able would require a significant invest-
ment, which is financially impractical at
this time, Issner said.
As part of its charge, the Oversight
Committee is recommending the closure
of the Jimmy Prentis Morris facility in
Oak Park at the end of the fiscal year,
May 31.
Every option to reduce operating
expenses has been explored, accord-
ing to Issner, including program-by-
program reviews and cost analyses.

This also includes reducing operations
or operating hours and other service
cutbacks. "None of those provided the
savings required to keep the JCC sus-
tainable," he said.
Regardless of any decision, Federation
CEO Scott Kaufman said the JCC
remains committed to serving the
Jewish population in the Oak Park,
Southfield and Huntington Woods area.
"While facilities-based programs, such
as fitness and aquatics, would be most
affected if the building were to no longer
be part of the JCC, many of its programs
and services would continue, albeit in
different locations," Kaufman said.
"The JCC is more than just its facili-
ties," Kaufman added. "The JCC can, and
currently does to some degree, offer pro-
grams using other venues. This means
offering many of its programs and
services in alternative locations in the
area, outside of a traditional JCC facil-
ity. In fact, this 'mobile' concept is being
piloted by other JCCs."
The Jan. 12 public forum will allow
community members to offer alternate
solutions to closing the financial short-
fall at the JCC. A final decision will
come from the boards of the JCC and
Federation in late January.
A complete transition plan will be
developed if and when the decision to
close JPM is made, Issner said. If the
decision is to close, the building would
operate at least through May 31. All
events and activities would continue
without interruption until then.
To register for the Jan. 12 event, visit
http://jewishdetroit.org/jccrsvp .

❑

World Sabbath

Adat Shalom to host 16th annual interfaith day of peace program.

Gail Katz

Special to the Jewish News

T

he 16th Annual World Sabbath
Celebration is coming to
Adat Shalom Synagogue in
Farmington Hills from 4-5:30 p.m.
Sunday, Jan. 25. The mission of this
interfaith event is to teach the diverse
population in Metro Detroit that the
work of building a community of justice,
equality, respect and peace is a shared
calling — no matter what faith traditions
might be practiced.

12 January 8 • 2015

The opening processional
ference in the interfaith world
includes children of many
by bringing people together to
faith traditions, proudly
build community.
waving the peace banners
Clergy of many faiths are
they decorated themselves.
invited to participate in the
Together they will sing the
World Sabbath service. All
song, "We Are Children of
who are present will read the
Peace"
Congregation Pledge together
This year, Robert Bruttell,
about building a world of toler-
chair of the InterFaith
ance, justice, faithfulness and
Gail Katz
Leadership Council of
peace.
Metropolitan Detroit, will receive the
The World Sabbath interfaith service
World Sabbath Peace Award, which is
began in 1999 out of concerns raised
given annually to a person making a dif-
by wars raging around the world. The

Rev. Rod Reinhart, an Episcopal priest,
and Father Ed Mullins, priest at Christ
Church Cranbrook in Bloomfield Hills,
put together a celebration to call on all
religious groups to work together to cre-
ate an interfaith holy day of peace and
reconciliation among all religions, races,
ethnic groups and nations.
When Reinhart moved to Chicago, Gail
Katz, a Jewish interfaith activist, took
over as the event chairperson. Because of
her background as an elementary and

World Sabbath on page 19