President’s Message
In a few days the United States of America will have a new President and thankfully we won’t be subjected to any more political ads, phone calls, flyers, signs and polls for a while. Despite the incessant and petty sparring between candidates, the apparent inability for Washington to agree on anything meaningful and the public’s seeming lack of confidence in our elected officials we will move forward. Unlike Washington, NH CIBOR will be making a smooth transition to a new regime as President Kathy DeMello and President-Elect Ralph Valentine take over after our Annual Board Meeting in December. I have worked closely with Kathy and Ralph this year to assure a well-planned transition takes place and our projects and policies don’t fall by the wayside.
I have to say that in my years of being involved with NH CIBOR and being on its Board and Executive Committee I have not always agreed with my colleagues’ political views or choices of candidates. That being said, I don’t recall politics ever getting in the way of my doing business with other commercial brokers or in helping further the goals of NH CIBOR. Our organization has thrived because of our visionary and committed founding members, the ability for us to recruit new and contributing members and the willingness for current members to embrace new ideas and opinions brought to the table.
Speaking of vision, commitment and new ideas and I would like to welcome our new members to the 2017 Board and thank them for their willingness to serve. Robert Cruess of TF Moran, Christian Stallkamp of CBRE, Tenley Callaghan of Cleveland, Waters and Bass P.A., and Dave Garvey of KW Commercial. None have previously served on this board and we look forward to their involvement and insight into how best to manage this organization now and into the future.
Because of our ability to work together to promote the common goals of our organization we are well-positioned to continue our growth and influence locally, statewide and nationally. On November 4th Tom Riley will be inducted as Treasurer for the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) and as of January 1st I will be serving on NAR’s State and Local Issues Mobilization Committee. Tom and I will be working to access additional funding from NAR for NH CIBOR-sponsored projects that benefit our membership such as the Community Development and Smart Growth forums currently being undertaken. Next year former NH CIBOR President Gerry O’Connell becomes President-Elect of the New Hampshire Association of Realtors® (NHAR) and takes over as their President in 2018. We currently have over 70 NH CIBOR members on various local government boards and committees and two members on the New Hampshire Real Estate Commission.
Many thanks to all who serve, have served and will serve NH CIBOR to help make this organization strong, relevant and influential. We always welcome and encourage our members to become more engaged and anyone involved in commercial real estate in New Hampshire to become a member or affiliate member of NH CIBOR.
Don’t forget to sign up for this year’s NH CIBOR Holiday Party. Not only will the new slate of officers be sworn in but festivities include food, drink, raffles, prizes and Dueling Pianos! Please contact Allison Ropes allison@nhcibor.com for information about attending and/or sponsoring the event.