Bicycle Church Handbook

Bicycle Church Handbook

This booklet serves as a guide to the Bike Church's organizational structure and a record of procedural decisions. It is a working document and is kept up-to-date and available by the volunteerand membership coordinator.

Mission

The Bike Church provides the tools, shop space, and supervision for a diverse community to learn, share knowledge, and effectively repair bicycles at low cost. This promotes: safe bicycling, more bikes in use, reuse of materials destined for landfill, and learning opportunites via hands-on-work, classes and apprenticeships.

The Bicycle Church is a collective

Community collectives and co-ops are unique institutions. Due to the egalitarian (ideally) nature of the organizational structure, all of the collective members are not only responsible for running a community project, but also for sharing power, and communicating their needs in a constructive and cooperative manner. The collective is ultimately responsible for every aspect of the Bike Church.

For a concise explanation of Concensus process, visit Skip's web pages at: http://www2.cruzio.com/~spitzer/consensus.html

Nonprofit Status: Through its affiliation with Santa Cruz Hub for Sustainable Transportation, The Bike Church receives nonprofit 501(c)(3) status as an educational and charitable organization. Our Federal ID: 31-174-8056

Meetings

Bike Church Core meetings generally happen on a bi-weekly basis at the Hub at a regular time, determined by the meeting. Decisions are made by consensus process. Only core members have decision-making rights, but volunteers and interested parties are welcome to attend. The Bike Church may decided to bar individuals from the meeting process.

• Quarterly Meetings occur on a quarterly basis (in January, April, July and October) at a time and place determined by the regular meeting. Generally, the meeting takes place at a location away from the Hub, accompanied by a Potluck dinner. The agenda is not limited to but contains:
  • Consensus upon current core membership list
  • Clerkship evaluations and assignment
  • Financial reports
  • Long-range visioning/planning
    • Core membership appreciation and evaluation?
  • Long-term scheduling
  • Other current pertinent agenda items
  • Schedule next Quarterly meetings.
  • Clear tabs with charges over $30.00

Volunteers

There are 3 levels of volunteer.

• Core Volunteer/Core mechanics are repsonsible for a shift of 4 hours/week, and help to maintain the space. They are also welcome, and encouraged to take on a clerkship. Twice monthly meetings are manditory.

Priviledges: keys (access to the shop in off hours), getting parts at 10% over wholesale (with a cap at $10.00), cheap to free used parts (use discretion and don't be a hog), and the right to keep a running tab in the finance book. If using the hsop in off-hours, make sure it is clean and clear of projects at least 15 minutes before a shift or scheduled workshop/class.

• Committed volunteers work at least 8 hours a month, either as an apprentice/aid to the core mechanics on a weekly basis, or by doing odd tasks from the chore list regularly. After volunteering consistently for one full month, they are entitled to the following privledges: New parts at 35% over Wholesale and cheap to free parts (@ the discretion of the shift mechanic), and membership privledges. The meeting may decide to offer keys to a long-term committed volunteer.

Access to the office and mechanics only areas is granted by the mechanic on duty, and should not be assumed.

• Impromptu volunteers are people who ask if they can do some work for that day, usually as a trade for shop use/assistance, and necessary used parts (and occasionally a new tube). The volunteer is referred to a list of chores, and the value is determined by the mechanic.

Bike Rentals and Loaners

• We do not currently rent bikes. We do allow core volunteers to loan out bikes by their own discretion, but no tagged bikes (i.e. for sale, or works-in-progress). Thus, we will only loan out "raw material", and get back "raw material".

• The Burley trailer from the cage (currently being reworked by Steve martinez) is the community trailer adn available for short term loan.

Shop Policies/running the shop

Opening Procedure:

The Shift:

Closing Procedure: