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Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Mon Apr 06, 2015 11:52 am
by Tiki_Dave
CORP will be having a major kick off meeting on May 3 @ 1pm at Wickham Park in Manchester, CT. Admission to the park is $5.
Wickham Park is located at 1329 West Middle Turnpike in Manchester, Connecticut and is easily accessible from Interstate 84.

Come out and support Matt and the CORP crew and show your support to the establishment of an off-road park in the state.

Re: Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Mon Apr 06, 2015 7:30 pm
by Voodoo Chile
can you tell us more about the park? Good luck!

Re: Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Wed Apr 08, 2015 3:19 pm
by Tiki_Dave
not much to tell yet....its in the initial stages. Trying to show the state there is a need for this and its in their best interest to work with the off-road community. Hoping for a big turn out and get people involved to get this to the next stage.

Re: Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Mon May 04, 2015 1:54 pm
by Eric
Looking forward to a report from this meeting. Is the plan to pursue state land through a legislative agenda, raise funds to open a private park, or . . . ?

Re: Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Tue May 05, 2015 2:07 pm
by Tiki_Dave
Unfortunately this meet was poorly attended. Possibly because it was the first really nice day and it was the weekend of Vermonster and the clean up at GTD.

The plan at this time is to seek out the state and pursue land through them. CORP is pursuing 501 status. This should help as well.
The main message was that the 4x4 off-roading community needs to pull together and get the good things we do brought to the attention of the public. Anything good needs to somehow be known by the public and we need to crack down as a community on the illegal and bad publicity that seems to follow us. Clean-ups, charity work, etc... needs to be known by the non-wheeling community. This will hopefully present us in a good light to those who really don't know what we do or think we are just driving in the woods and cutting trees and ruining the environment. We need to change this stereotype.

Another topic was a possible 4x4 show at the Big E next year with hopefully some major sponsors.

It was brought up that CORP should have a booth at non-4x4 events like the auto show, home show, the Big E, etc... Anywhere that Joe and Jane Public are.

That was about it for now.

Re: Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2015 7:32 am
by Voodoo Chile
keep up the good work guys! Its a long slog but the rewards should be worth it! Think about cruise nights as well. Easy to get to and get a decent crowd. Bring a TJ or YJ and you have a classic to display to boot! :up: :hello:

Re: Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2015 11:20 am
by Eric
Tiki_Dave wrote: . . . . The main message was that the 4x4 off-roading community needs to pull together and get the good things we do brought to the attention of the public. Anything good needs to somehow be known by the public and we need to crack down as a community on the illegal and bad publicity that seems to follow us. Clean-ups, charity work, etc... needs to be known by the non-wheeling community. This will hopefully present us in a good light to those who really don't know what we do or think we are just driving in the woods and cutting trees and ruining the environment. We need to change this stereotype. . .
Interesting. I would argue that NEA member clubs are already engaged in such activities (yes, we could always do more).

Based on the name and mission statement I understood CORP to have a more narrow focus on establishing a park. I'd like to get more involved with this effort and would recommend an evening meeting (perhaps via teleconference) since weekends this time of year can be a scheduling challenge.

Some specific questions I have include:
    Is there a documented business plan?
    What type of 501? (Presumably c3 which can take a year for IRS approval)
    Have any specific towns/properties been identified?
    What does the current balance sheet look like?
    Are any significant donors lined up?
    Are any federal/state grants available? (outside of RTP)
    Are any state legislators on board? Who?
    Are any local officials on board? Who?
    What governance model is expected for the park?
    Are there any measurable goals with deadlines?
In addition to ECOJOCS, I know that other NEA clubs including JonFund, Northeast Jeep Organization, Central CT 4 Wheelers, and Ocean State Jeepsters have members in CT. Several NOVA clubs also have CT-based memberships including JT4x4 & Eastern 4 Wheelers.

Perhaps its time for a unified effort?

Re: Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2015 3:57 pm
by Voodoo Chile
Eric wrote:
Tiki_Dave wrote:
In addition to ECOJOCS, I know that other NEA clubs including JonFund, Northeast Jeep Organization, Central CT 4 Wheelers, and Ocean State Jeepsters have members in CT. Several NOVA clubs also have CT-based memberships including JT4x4 & Eastern 4 Wheelers.

Perhaps its time for a unified effort?



As does Baystate! :up:

Re: Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2015 4:50 pm
by Tiki_Dave
Eric wrote:

Based on the name and mission statement I understood CORP to have a more narrow focus on establishing a park. I'd like to get more involved with this effort and would recommend an evening meeting (perhaps via teleconference) since weekends this time of year can be a scheduling challenge.

Some specific questions I have include:
    Is there a documented business plan?
    What type of 501? (Presumably c3 which can take a year for IRS approval)
    Have any specific towns/properties been identified?
    What does the current balance sheet look like?
    Are any significant donors lined up?
    Are any federal/state grants available? (outside of RTP)
    Are any state legislators on board? Who?
    Are any local officials on board? Who?
    What governance model is expected for the park?
    Are there any measurable goals with deadlines?
In addition to ECOJOCS, I know that other NEA clubs including JonFund, Northeast Jeep Organization, Central CT 4 Wheelers, and Ocean State Jeepsters have members in CT. Several NOVA clubs also have CT-based memberships including JT4x4 & Eastern 4 Wheelers.

Perhaps its time for a unified effort?


Perhaps it might make sense to reach out to Matt and set him up with an forum account here so he can post updates and answer questions from the NEA. Just a thought.

Re: Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2015 6:15 pm
by Eric
Done!!

Re: Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2015 7:21 pm
by xjmark
Besides the ECOJOCS members in the CORP bod, there were a few NEA members in attendance. Myself, Andy Heavisides (andy258) with CCFW, and Rey Rasco (gorilla_skater) With NEJeep.
It was good to sit down and throw some ideas around, and to share past experiences with dealing with the state of CT.

Re: Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2015 8:59 pm
by Eric
That's awesome!

Re: Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Thu May 07, 2015 1:17 pm
by Tiki_Dave
xjmark wrote:Besides the ECOJOCS members in the CORP bod, there were a few NEA members in attendance. Myself, Andy Heavisides (andy258) with CCFW, and Rey Rasco (gorilla_skater) With NEJeep.
It was good to sit down and throw some ideas around, and to share past experiences with dealing with the state of CT.


Yes. You guys were great and I think it got Matt thinking about different directions to go in to help get to the goal of a park one day.

Re: Connecticut Off-Road Park - CORP

PostPosted: Thu May 07, 2015 4:13 pm
by reeses81
Ntc also has almost 10 members that reside in ct, I am only the next town over and willing to help when I can.