Financial Summary
Investment Perks
Expired 06/01/2019 | $100,000.00
$100,000+ Investment
(1) Annual coworking membership at Commonplace (about $1,500 value), (2) Six month Table Lifestyle membership with massage, personal health, movement, and nutrition options, (3) Four tickets to six shows OR use of event space for one day, (4) Free Iron Fish barn rental for private party (Sat excluded, must be used by 2020, guest responsible for planning/food/bev costs), (5) Higher Grounds consultation on a personalized home brewing system and $200 Coffee Bar credit, (6) Large plaque/brick with your name in the building, and (7) One week per year in the Commongrounds Coop suite overlooking the Boardman River.
Expired 06/01/2019 | $50,000.00
$50,000+ Investment
All $10,000+ perks AND (1) Annual coworking membership at Commonplace (about $1,500 value), (2) Three month Table Lifestyle membership with massage, personal health, movement, and nutrition options, (3) Two tickets to six shows, (4) Two nights per year in Commongrounds Coop suite overlooking Boardman River, (5) Free use of gallery event space/guided tour for private party at Iron Fish Distillery (must use by 2020), (6) Private Higher Grounds coffee cupping and tour for six people, and (7) large plaque/brick with your name in the building.
Expired 06/01/2019 | $500.00
$500+ Investment Level
(1) Exclusive building tours before grand opening, (2) Free admission to grand opening party, (3) Free admission to annual investors party (like a flock star), (4) Swag, (5) Discounted food/drink and free admission to events on community investor days (2x per year), (6) Like something a little more 'concrete'? How about your name in our recognition/gratitude wall!
Expired 04/16/2019 | $10,000.00
$10,000+ Investment Level
All $2,000+ perks AND (1) free Commongrounds Coop membership (about $100 value), (2) One free Table Movement Studio class per month, (3) Two tickets to two shows (and early access to choose tickets), (4) Six months Higher Grounds coffee subscription, and (5) Ten hours of meeting time per year in Commonplace.
Expired 04/16/2019 | $2,000.00
$2000+ Investment Level
All $500+ perks AND (1) daily beverage discounts including $1 Higher Grounds coffee Daily Brew, (2) 10% off first Iron Fish cocktail, (3) One free Commonplace coworking pass every month, (4) Three free Table Movement Studio classes per year, (5) One ticket to a show (and early access to select!) and (6) Like something a bit more 'concrete'? How about your name on our recognition/gratitude wall!
Expired 03/08/2019 | $2,000.00
Hurry! These rewards expire Mar 8!
Limited (awesome) BONUS rewards for investors who commit to invest by the end of the day on 3/8! No need to attend the Flock Party event to receive the rewards if you have already invested. Each investor can choose ONE bonus reward from the list and first to invest gets first pick (quantities of each reward are limited). Rewards include ten-class packages at Table Movement Studio, reserved underground bike parking spot at Commongrounds, use of private event space at Iron Fish Distillery or the new event space in Commongrounds, one year subscription of Higher Grounds coffee, and much more! You can read more detail on the bonus rewards on our website.
Financials
This is an overview of the previous and planned financings of the business, including the capital needs the business is looking to cover in the current financing.
Funding Uses for Target Raise ($250 k)
Location/Buildout
$240,000
| Description | Architect and Engineering Fees (up to 4% of const incl contingency) |
|---|---|
| Timing | A one-time payment 1 month after investments close. |
Funding Uses for Max Raise ($1.1 mil)
In addition to target raise
Location/Buildout
$522,235
| Description | Capital contribution to affiliate (Commongrounds LLC) to repay loan to seller from land purchase agreement. |
|---|---|
| Timing | A one-time payment when investments close. |
Pay Down Existing Debt
$165,325
| Description | Existing unsecured debt owed to affiliated entity for operating capital prior to the closing of this fundraise. |
|---|---|
| Timing | A one-time payment when investments close. |
Location/Buildout
$99,640
| Description | Additional Architect and Engineering Fees (up to 4% of const incl contingency) |
|---|---|
| Timing | A one-time payment 1 month after investments close. |
Remaining funding uses include Localstake Marketplace fees. See offering materials for full details.
$11,280,861 from Other Financings
MEDC
(Grant)
$1,500,000
| Source | MEDC |
|---|---|
| Structure | Grant |
| Date Closed | June 1, 2019 |
Bank
(Debt)
$8,130,861
| Source | Bank |
|---|---|
| Structure | Debt |
| Date Closed | May 1, 2019 |
Outside Investors
(Equity)
$1,000,000
| Source | Outside Investors |
|---|---|
| Structure | Equity |
| Date Closed | April 1, 2019 |
Founders
(Equity)
$650,000
| Source | Founders |
|---|---|
| Structure | Equity |
| Date Closed | August 1, 2018 |
Financial projections are subject to certain risks of the business and may not be achieved. Projections only contemplate projected cash flows, are unaudited and may not be formulated in accordance with US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. Consult the investment materials for more information on business specific risks and a discussion of the key risks that may impede the achievement of the revenue forecasts presented. There is no guarantee that an investment may achieve any level of return. Review our Risks of Investing before making an investment decision.
Pitch Deck
Q&A
Team
Kate Redman
Project Director, Board of Directors
Background Check
Kate is a community enterprise attorney and founder of Commonplace Law and Commonplace, a coworking space and future tenant of Commongrounds.
Why Commongrounds?
"Because I can't wait to hang out in this building!"
Richard Anderson
Board of Directors
Background Check
Richard is the Co-owner of Iron Fish Distillery, Michigan's first farm distillery and future tenant in collaboration with Higher Grounds and a restaurant operator.
Why Commongrounds?
"Joining the Birdhouse allows me to work with a crazy great and audacious group of people working to create a values inspired intentional community and with it, an urban landscape that supports the talent that makes Traverse City what it can be."
Chris Treter
Board of Directors
Background Check
Chris is the co-founder of Higher Grounds Trading Company, future tenant of Commongrounds.
Why Commongrounds?
"To germinate community-based development that addresses the needs of the ecosystem, workforce, and local population with spaces that foster a sharing and collaborative economy."
Megan Olds, Fund Development
Service Provider
Megan supports communities and organizations as the founder of Parallel Solutions LLC, and serves on the board of directors of Commonplace, a coworking space and future tenant of Commongrounds.
Why Commongrounds?
"I’m energized by the opportunity for everyone in the community to invest and generate equity in a real estate development project."
Nan Perez, Construction Owners Representative
Service Provider
Why Commongrounds?
"Commongrounds encompasses some of my most treasured passions in my most treasured hometown: construction, building community & connections, and coffee. Let’s put a shovel in the ground!"
Ray Kendra, Architect
Service Provider
Ray is founder of Environment Architects and specializes in environmental, green design, and architecture throughout Northern Michigan.
Why Commongrounds?
"I want to help facilitate an integrated design and process for a unique community driven development."
Sakura Takano, Financing Lead
Service Provider
Why Commongrounds?
"I’m excited to optimize federal, state, and local resources to develop and implement workforce and housing solutions in Traverse City."
Elise Crafts, Communications
Service Provider
Elise is founder of Statecraft and co-director of Commonplace, future tenant of Commongrounds.
Why Commongrounds?
"I love people, animal puns, and well-designed spaces. I’m eager to connect with the many birds who make this project possible."
Joey DiFranco, Communications
Service Provider
Joey is the Creative Director at TentCraft, SEEDS board member and vintage camper enthusiast.
Why Commongrounds?
"I strongly believe that when we all work together as a community, amazing things happen in Traverse City."
Andrew Straley, Communications
Service Provider
Andrew is a digital marketer at TentCraft in Traverse City and proud early bird owner.
Why Commongrounds?
"I want to be a part of and help build a community that inspires the people of Traverse City."
Ed Bailey, Construction Management Advisor
Service Provider
Why Commongrounds?
"My interest in the project is about the opportunity to work with the people involved. Having a great project also helps."
Table Health
Partner
Pathways Preschool
Partner
Higher Grounds Trading Company
Partner
Commonplace
Partner
Iron Fish Distillery
Partner
Crosshatch
Partner
Hallmark Construction
Service Provider
Hallmark Construction is Northern Michigan's leading construction and development company, located in Traverse City, MI.
About Commongrounds Cooperative
Company Updates
Commongrounds Project Update! August 2019
August 20, 2019
It's hard to believe it is almost back-to-school time already! We hope you are all are enjoying these last official days of summer and gearing up for a beautiful fall.
This summer, the Commongrounds team has been hard at work on building design and assembling the financing pieces for our project. A huge thank you to our architect, Ray Kendra, and his team at Environment Architects for their tireless work on the project; and to the rest of our building team for their work (our Construction Manager, Hallmark, and our owner representatives Ed Bailey and Nan Perez). We feel very lucky to have such a dedicated and experienced team working on the project to make it great (and within budget ;).
We expect to break ground as soon as weather allows in spring 2020! We might do some soil clean-up on the property this fall, but the bulk of the project will start in the spring with completion by summer 2021. This is an update from our original plan to break ground this summer. In June, we realized it would likely be fall at the earliest by the time our building plans and financing were complete. Since fall is not the best time to break ground on a building in northern Michigan, we decided to wait until spring and bumped back some of our other timeline accordingly. We expect to have financing and building plans, including final construction bids and subcontracts in place at the beginning of the year in accordance with a building timeline that lets us hit the ground running as soon as weather allows in spring with building completion by summer 2021.
Why the delay? As we all have heard from other real estate developers, real estate development can sometimes take longer than expected because financing, building design, and bidding are complicated pieces that must fit together in just the right way. Commongrounds is particularly complicated because of our ownership and investment/equity structure. However, we continue to make good progress and are very excited about how the pieces are coming together. We received preliminary letter of loan terms from the bank in January, but the detailed building plans and bids will allow us to finalize bank financing and a loan guarantee from the USDA. When bank financing is finalized, we can start the official process for approval by the MEDC for grant and loan support for the project, which will also take a couple of months.
Some other highlights from this summer:
- 90% Complete Building Design Plans. We're designing the building right down to the electrical outlets. After receiving zoning approval for the conceptual building and site plan, our building team got hard to work designing the guts of the building. Plans were completed at the end of July and we are receiving updated preliminary bids. After that, we'll look at how build in some cost savings without sacrificing the quality and environmental protection aspects of the building to ensure that the project stays in budget with some room for contingencies.
- Community investment. We've been collecting investment from community owners and continue to develop equity investment from other community partners. Securities law keeps us from giving too much detail on a public site right now, but we look forward to sharing a full update this fall when details are finalized. We expect to officially close this Reg CF crowdfunding in September -- so if you haven't already invested, do so now before you miss the window (and the doors, flooring, green roof, and cafe space).
-8th Street reconstruction. If you've been in TC this summer, you know that the city has been doing a major rebuild of 8th Street, right in front of our building, to transform it from an eyesore that is the butt of community jokes to the most pedestrian- and bike-friendly street in town. They are starting to lay the cycle track and sidewalks with projected completion by the end of September. We're working with other businesses in the North Boardman Lake District and the DDA to plan a party to celebrate the street opening in early October. Stay tuned for more updates!
- Full Board development. Commongrounds has operated with an agile start-up board of Kate Redman, Chris Treter, and Richard Anderson to help design and mobilize Commongrounds, the building. We are now ready to build Commongrounds, the organization, which will prepare Commongrounds to be more than just a real estate development and also a space for community events and partnership. To build the organization, we are adding additional community members to the board and leadership committees this fall in order to add more depth, brains, experience, and friendly faces to the leadership team. We'll be announcing the board this fall, including the process for filling community-owner elected board seats, and looking for additional community owner volunteers interested in getting involved in leadership committees.
That's just a taste of what we've been up to -- we'll be sharing other updates with community owners this fall include, some updates in tenant-partners, overall community investment lessons learned, and future events. If you are not already an owner and would like to stay in the loop, visit www.commongrounds.coop and you can become an owner for $50.
Thanks for reading and looking forward to seeing you on 8th Street soon!
It's time! Commongrounds investment this week.
August 20, 2019
Hello, investors! We have great news - it is (finally) time for Localstake to collect your investment in Commongrounds. We appreciate your support and patience and can't wait to move to this next phase with our owners and investors, like you.
So, what can you expect next?
1. This week - investment. Localstake will collect funds from investors (like you!) and hold in escrow until they have collected at least $250k in funds for this "public" portion of the crowd investment. If you indicated you wanted funds collected electronically, Localstake will automatically collect funds, no work required from you. If you are sending money a different way, your investment confirmation email will have instructions on how to send your funds.
As a reminder, securities law requires that all investments must come through an online third-party (Localstake) who is a registered broker dealer. Commongrounds will not have access to the financial or other private information you provide Localstake, other than your contact information. If you have questions or concerns about your funding account or the transfer, please reach out to Localstake (support@localstake.com). Other questions you can send to hello@commongrounds.coop.
Thanks for your patience in the gap between making your commitment and collecting funds: we were able to collect funds from other community investment portions of our campaign sooner, but this public crowdfunding portion has taken longer. Over 120 people pledged to invest $250k+ dollars, and everyone had to complete several steps of paperwork before funds could actually be collected. If we were doing it again, we would have planned a lower minimum amount and more staff time allocated to follow up and assistance in using the Localstake website to prevent the gap. However, we are very glad to be ready to collect funds now. Thanks for your patience with the process!
2. This week - project updates and drop-in hours. We will shortly be posting an updated project timeline on Localstake and sending owners a more detailed update with an invite to attend drop-in hours for an in-person update, as well. An updated timeline graphic is attached for a quick overview.
The short summary is that we are making great progress: building designs are 90% complete, and we are currently receiving updated estimated bids for the more detailed plans. Originally, we were working to break ground this summer, but we realized it would likely be fall at the earliest by the time our building plans and financing were complete. Since fall is not the best time to break ground on a building in northern Michigan, we decided to wait until spring and bumped back some of our other timeline accordingly. We expect to have financing and building plans, including final construction bids and subcontracts in place at the beginning of the year in accordance with a building timeline that lets us hit the ground running as soon as weather allows in spring with building completion by summer 2021.
3. Next week - investor rewards. If you remember, investors have access to certain sweet rewards depending on your investment level. Next week (or whenever you invest), look for more information about collecting on your rewards.
4. Upcoming months- ongoing owner updates and events. We took a hiatus in communications and events this summer in part because we thought y'all might be tired of hearing from us after the crowdfunding campaign; and to focus on the building design and financing process. But this fall, we'll be back in action with regular updates. Stay tuned for more insight on our tenant-partners and the building design process! If you are not already a cooperative owner, you can sign up at www.commongrounds.coop to make sure you are on the update list.
We're looking forward to building something great with you and your investment-- thanks for helping to make the project possible.
The Commongrounds Team
Public Raise: Rewards Extended to 4/16
April 3, 2019
Thanks to the 120+ folks who have invested to help us surpass our minimum goal by April 2, the date our rewards were set to expire. We are excited and awed by the community of people pulling together to help make the project possible.
We’ve heard from a lot of folks that they would like to invest but they just learned about the opportunity or need more time to ask questions and plan.
We don’t want ANYONE to miss out on investing in Commongrounds and receiving the awesome rewards from our tenant-partners, so we are extending the rewards for our campaign until 4/16 (in honor of our new address 416. E. Eighth) to allow anyone who needs it, just a little more time to ask questions and do research.
One of those people with questions? Come and find us! We are hosting more info sessions, or you can schedule a meeting one-on-one meeting or call with Kate Redman at https://calendly.com/commongrounds/invest. We’ll also be hosting a Facebook live presentation the week of 4/7 where we’ll walk though investing and we’ll take questions about the project. Stay tuned to our facebook page for updates on events.
If you have questions about LocalStake, we're glad to help if we can, but also feel free to contact them directly: support@localstake.com. If you already invested and aren't sure if you have more steps: watch for another email from us with an update on whether you need to do more.
If none of these options work for you, no problem - just reach out to let us know how we can help. Thanks so much for your interest and support! We appreciate you.
6 days, 25% to go! Will you help us meet our goal?
March 27, 2019
Hey, there!
Thank you so much for your interest in investing Commongrounds. We are so grateful for, and blown away by the support community members have shown for the project and are so excited to keep moving toward groundbreaking in June 2019.
Today, I'm writing to ask you take action. We have 6 days left in our public crowdfunding campaign to reach our minimum investment goal. 71 people have pledged a commitment to invest in Commongrounds. Another 106 people, like you, have officially said you are "interested" on Localstake but not yet pledged commitment to a specific amount.
If every person who has expressed "interest" pledged $2000 today, we would exceed our minimum goal to raise money and meet almost half of our maximum goal. Even more amazing, if half of you pledged $10,000, we would meet our maximum goal.
Will you help us close the gap to meet our goal? Even if you are committing at the $500 level instead of the $2000 or $10,000 level, you still make a difference in dollars and in helping us reach our goal of 100 investors in the project.
If you are interested in investing but not yet comfortable, let us know what we can do to help.
a. Are you confused about the process?
b. Do you need more time?
c. Do you need more info about rewards?
d. Do you want more info about investment terms or the project overall?
Drop us a line and let us know how we can help. And please feel free to set up a one-on-one phone call or meeting with me (Kate), at https://calendly.com/commongrounds/invest.
A note on the Localstake process, in case you are confused about what it means to show "interest" or "commit": On Localstake, you can click that you are "interested" or you can click "commit to invest," and enter an amount. Localstake will only collect investment dollars when we reach pledged commitment for our minimum goal. So, until we reach pledges for our minimum goal, when you "commit" you are not immediately asked to put money in - instead, you are making a pledge that you will invest when we reach the minimum. This ensures you do not risk investing money unless we receive a minimum level of support from the community as a whole.
Thank you so much for your interest in the project. It is not an exaggeration to say that investment from supporters like you is what makes this project possible. Y'all rock.
With gratitude,
Kate
Commongrounds Receives Zoning Approval!
March 25, 2019
In an exciting update, the Commongrounds project received unanimous approval from the Traverse City Planning Commission for its site plan. Other than financing, the zoning approval was the most significant step yet to be completed in approvals for the project and keeps the project on its anticipated timeline to break ground by June 2019. To read more about the approval in local press, check out: https://www.traverseticker.com/news/three-eight...
One more week to invest in Commongrounds and claim rewards that expire April 2! Wondering if you want to invest? If you have questions, please message us or schedule a call or meeting with Kate Redman at https://calendly.com/commongrounds/invest/ .
Discussion
Risks & Disclosures
An investment in the Company involves a high degree of risk, and should be regarded as speculative. Prospective investors should carefully consider these investment risks, among others, in addition to the other information presented in the Offering Materials, in evaluating the Company for investment. The risks listed herein are not a complete list of potential risks facing the Company and it may encounter unexpected risks in the future, which, may adversely affect its performance.
Company Updates
Commongrounds Project Update! August 2019
August 20, 2019
It's hard to believe it is almost back-to-school time already! We hope you are all are enjoying these last official days of summer and gearing up for a beautiful fall.
This summer, the Commongrounds team has been hard at work on building design and assembling the financing pieces for our project. A huge thank you to our architect, Ray Kendra, and his team at Environment Architects for their tireless work on the project; and to the rest of our building team for their work (our Construction Manager, Hallmark, and our owner representatives Ed Bailey and Nan Perez). We feel very lucky to have such a dedicated and experienced team working on the project to make it great (and within budget ;).
We expect to break ground as soon as weather allows in spring 2020! We might do some soil clean-up on the property this fall, but the bulk of the project will start in the spring with completion by summer 2021. This is an update from our original plan to break ground this summer. In June, we realized it would likely be fall at the earliest by the time our building plans and financing were complete. Since fall is not the best time to break ground on a building in northern Michigan, we decided to wait until spring and bumped back some of our other timeline accordingly. We expect to have financing and building plans, including final construction bids and subcontracts in place at the beginning of the year in accordance with a building timeline that lets us hit the ground running as soon as weather allows in spring with building completion by summer 2021.
Why the delay? As we all have heard from other real estate developers, real estate development can sometimes take longer than expected because financing, building design, and bidding are complicated pieces that must fit together in just the right way. Commongrounds is particularly complicated because of our ownership and investment/equity structure. However, we continue to make good progress and are very excited about how the pieces are coming together. We received preliminary letter of loan terms from the bank in January, but the detailed building plans and bids will allow us to finalize bank financing and a loan guarantee from the USDA. When bank financing is finalized, we can start the official process for approval by the MEDC for grant and loan support for the project, which will also take a couple of months.
Some other highlights from this summer:
- 90% Complete Building Design Plans. We're designing the building right down to the electrical outlets. After receiving zoning approval for the conceptual building and site plan, our building team got hard to work designing the guts of the building. Plans were completed at the end of July and we are receiving updated preliminary bids. After that, we'll look at how build in some cost savings without sacrificing the quality and environmental protection aspects of the building to ensure that the project stays in budget with some room for contingencies.
- Community investment. We've been collecting investment from community owners and continue to develop equity investment from other community partners. Securities law keeps us from giving too much detail on a public site right now, but we look forward to sharing a full update this fall when details are finalized. We expect to officially close this Reg CF crowdfunding in September -- so if you haven't already invested, do so now before you miss the window (and the doors, flooring, green roof, and cafe space).
-8th Street reconstruction. If you've been in TC this summer, you know that the city has been doing a major rebuild of 8th Street, right in front of our building, to transform it from an eyesore that is the butt of community jokes to the most pedestrian- and bike-friendly street in town. They are starting to lay the cycle track and sidewalks with projected completion by the end of September. We're working with other businesses in the North Boardman Lake District and the DDA to plan a party to celebrate the street opening in early October. Stay tuned for more updates!
- Full Board development. Commongrounds has operated with an agile start-up board of Kate Redman, Chris Treter, and Richard Anderson to help design and mobilize Commongrounds, the building. We are now ready to build Commongrounds, the organization, which will prepare Commongrounds to be more than just a real estate development and also a space for community events and partnership. To build the organization, we are adding additional community members to the board and leadership committees this fall in order to add more depth, brains, experience, and friendly faces to the leadership team. We'll be announcing the board this fall, including the process for filling community-owner elected board seats, and looking for additional community owner volunteers interested in getting involved in leadership committees.
That's just a taste of what we've been up to -- we'll be sharing other updates with community owners this fall include, some updates in tenant-partners, overall community investment lessons learned, and future events. If you are not already an owner and would like to stay in the loop, visit www.commongrounds.coop and you can become an owner for $50.
Thanks for reading and looking forward to seeing you on 8th Street soon!
It's time! Commongrounds investment this week.
August 20, 2019
Hello, investors! We have great news - it is (finally) time for Localstake to collect your investment in Commongrounds. We appreciate your support and patience and can't wait to move to this next phase with our owners and investors, like you.
So, what can you expect next?
1. This week - investment. Localstake will collect funds from investors (like you!) and hold in escrow until they have collected at least $250k in funds for this "public" portion of the crowd investment. If you indicated you wanted funds collected electronically, Localstake will automatically collect funds, no work required from you. If you are sending money a different way, your investment confirmation email will have instructions on how to send your funds.
As a reminder, securities law requires that all investments must come through an online third-party (Localstake) who is a registered broker dealer. Commongrounds will not have access to the financial or other private information you provide Localstake, other than your contact information. If you have questions or concerns about your funding account or the transfer, please reach out to Localstake (support@localstake.com). Other questions you can send to hello@commongrounds.coop.
Thanks for your patience in the gap between making your commitment and collecting funds: we were able to collect funds from other community investment portions of our campaign sooner, but this public crowdfunding portion has taken longer. Over 120 people pledged to invest $250k+ dollars, and everyone had to complete several steps of paperwork before funds could actually be collected. If we were doing it again, we would have planned a lower minimum amount and more staff time allocated to follow up and assistance in using the Localstake website to prevent the gap. However, we are very glad to be ready to collect funds now. Thanks for your patience with the process!
2. This week - project updates and drop-in hours. We will shortly be posting an updated project timeline on Localstake and sending owners a more detailed update with an invite to attend drop-in hours for an in-person update, as well. An updated timeline graphic is attached for a quick overview.
The short summary is that we are making great progress: building designs are 90% complete, and we are currently receiving updated estimated bids for the more detailed plans. Originally, we were working to break ground this summer, but we realized it would likely be fall at the earliest by the time our building plans and financing were complete. Since fall is not the best time to break ground on a building in northern Michigan, we decided to wait until spring and bumped back some of our other timeline accordingly. We expect to have financing and building plans, including final construction bids and subcontracts in place at the beginning of the year in accordance with a building timeline that lets us hit the ground running as soon as weather allows in spring with building completion by summer 2021.
3. Next week - investor rewards. If you remember, investors have access to certain sweet rewards depending on your investment level. Next week (or whenever you invest), look for more information about collecting on your rewards.
4. Upcoming months- ongoing owner updates and events. We took a hiatus in communications and events this summer in part because we thought y'all might be tired of hearing from us after the crowdfunding campaign; and to focus on the building design and financing process. But this fall, we'll be back in action with regular updates. Stay tuned for more insight on our tenant-partners and the building design process! If you are not already a cooperative owner, you can sign up at www.commongrounds.coop to make sure you are on the update list.
We're looking forward to building something great with you and your investment-- thanks for helping to make the project possible.
The Commongrounds Team
Public Raise: Rewards Extended to 4/16
April 3, 2019
Thanks to the 120+ folks who have invested to help us surpass our minimum goal by April 2, the date our rewards were set to expire. We are excited and awed by the community of people pulling together to help make the project possible.
We’ve heard from a lot of folks that they would like to invest but they just learned about the opportunity or need more time to ask questions and plan.
We don’t want ANYONE to miss out on investing in Commongrounds and receiving the awesome rewards from our tenant-partners, so we are extending the rewards for our campaign until 4/16 (in honor of our new address 416. E. Eighth) to allow anyone who needs it, just a little more time to ask questions and do research.
One of those people with questions? Come and find us! We are hosting more info sessions, or you can schedule a meeting one-on-one meeting or call with Kate Redman at https://calendly.com/commongrounds/invest. We’ll also be hosting a Facebook live presentation the week of 4/7 where we’ll walk though investing and we’ll take questions about the project. Stay tuned to our facebook page for updates on events.
If you have questions about LocalStake, we're glad to help if we can, but also feel free to contact them directly: support@localstake.com. If you already invested and aren't sure if you have more steps: watch for another email from us with an update on whether you need to do more.
If none of these options work for you, no problem - just reach out to let us know how we can help. Thanks so much for your interest and support! We appreciate you.
6 days, 25% to go! Will you help us meet our goal?
March 27, 2019
Hey, there!
Thank you so much for your interest in investing Commongrounds. We are so grateful for, and blown away by the support community members have shown for the project and are so excited to keep moving toward groundbreaking in June 2019.
Today, I'm writing to ask you take action. We have 6 days left in our public crowdfunding campaign to reach our minimum investment goal. 71 people have pledged a commitment to invest in Commongrounds. Another 106 people, like you, have officially said you are "interested" on Localstake but not yet pledged commitment to a specific amount.
If every person who has expressed "interest" pledged $2000 today, we would exceed our minimum goal to raise money and meet almost half of our maximum goal. Even more amazing, if half of you pledged $10,000, we would meet our maximum goal.
Will you help us close the gap to meet our goal? Even if you are committing at the $500 level instead of the $2000 or $10,000 level, you still make a difference in dollars and in helping us reach our goal of 100 investors in the project.
If you are interested in investing but not yet comfortable, let us know what we can do to help.
a. Are you confused about the process?
b. Do you need more time?
c. Do you need more info about rewards?
d. Do you want more info about investment terms or the project overall?
Drop us a line and let us know how we can help. And please feel free to set up a one-on-one phone call or meeting with me (Kate), at https://calendly.com/commongrounds/invest.
A note on the Localstake process, in case you are confused about what it means to show "interest" or "commit": On Localstake, you can click that you are "interested" or you can click "commit to invest," and enter an amount. Localstake will only collect investment dollars when we reach pledged commitment for our minimum goal. So, until we reach pledges for our minimum goal, when you "commit" you are not immediately asked to put money in - instead, you are making a pledge that you will invest when we reach the minimum. This ensures you do not risk investing money unless we receive a minimum level of support from the community as a whole.
Thank you so much for your interest in the project. It is not an exaggeration to say that investment from supporters like you is what makes this project possible. Y'all rock.
With gratitude,
Kate
Commongrounds Receives Zoning Approval!
March 25, 2019
In an exciting update, the Commongrounds project received unanimous approval from the Traverse City Planning Commission for its site plan. Other than financing, the zoning approval was the most significant step yet to be completed in approvals for the project and keeps the project on its anticipated timeline to break ground by June 2019. To read more about the approval in local press, check out: https://www.traverseticker.com/news/three-eight...
One more week to invest in Commongrounds and claim rewards that expire April 2! Wondering if you want to invest? If you have questions, please message us or schedule a call or meeting with Kate Redman at https://calendly.com/commongrounds/invest/ .
Discussion
JM
Jack M
Greetings,
Your offering indicates that your desired funding goal is $13.455M, that you have raised $277,150 from this platform and $11.280M from other sources. Thus, total raised appears to be $11.558, with up to $1.1M additional funding possible through this offering. If you raise the maximum amount, total raised would be $12.65M, which seems short of your intended funding goal, stated above. Perhaps I have missed something. Could you please clarify how you intend on meeting your funding targets? Thank you.
8 months ago
1 reply
Greetings,
Your offering indicates that your desired funding goal is $13.455M, that you have raised $277,150 from this platform and $11.280M from other sources. Thus, total raised appears to be $11.558, with up to $1.1M additional funding possible through this offering. If you raise the maximum amount, total raised would be $12.65M, which seems short of your intended funding goal, stated above. Perhaps I have missed something. Could you please clarify how you intend on meeting your funding targets? Thank you.
Hi, Jack! If you look at the Project Overview handout, it has a "sources and uses" section that talks about where the funds are coming from and where they are applied. We do have funding sources that meet the project cost, which are a combination of bank loans, CDFI loans, grants, brownfield TIF funds, and equity investment from tenant-owners and community owners. In addition to this "public" crowdfunding raise, we have other owner investment in the project.
It is of course possible the project will cost more than projected when we get final bids immediately prior to construction; in that case we may have to increase the amount of financing. We are required to have 20% equity to leverage the additional loan funds. I hope this helps -- let me know if you have additional questions.
Best,
Kate Redman