The Nanaimo and Area Land Trust is holding an extraordinary general meeting Aug. 5 to approve amendments to its 2014 year-end financial report.
The meeting was necessitated after a new bookkeeper, Sheila Downey, came aboard in April and made some adjustments. According to Gail Adrienne, land trust executive director, financial management has become more complex over the last few years with more accounts and money being held by a financial adviser for reserve accounts.
In addition, the land trust now owns a property in Qualicum Bay, which was gifted to it.
According to Adrienne, the existing year-end financial statement was conditionally passed at the land trust's March annual general meeting.
Adrienne said Downey spent a couple of months going through the statement, noting items that needed to be shown in different ways, on different lines or worded differently. She was aided by Nanaimo accountant Mike Delves, who offered pro bono assistance.
“Together, meeting with our finance committee, it was decided that we really needed to redo this. It's not uncommon, other organizations do it from time to time as they upgrade their systems and this just happened to occur at a time when we needed that financial statement for our AGM.
“So we had to move with the old one, with the understanding that if it had any significant changes that might read differently, we needed to bring it back and that's what we're doing,” said Adrienne.
While the meeting is open to the public, only land trust members can vote.
A quorum of five board members is needed, although Adrienne anticipates seven board members will be present.
The meeting takes place on Aug. 5, at the Nanaimo and Area Land Trust Stewardship Centre, 8-140 Wallace Street, beginning with a social at 4 p.m.