MORNINGSIDE GARDENS COOPERATORS ASSEMBLY (MGCA)

The primary purpose of the Morningside Gardens Cooperators Assembly (MGCA) is its service as an instrument for expression of the popular will of shareholders and conveying that expression to the Gardens’ governing body; the elected Board of Directors and/or to Management. The organization was originally founded as the Morningside Gardens Tenant-Cooperators Committee (MGTCC) in approximately 1961. At that time, cooperators acknowledged that the non-resident members of the Board, put in place by the co-op’s supporting institutions, were not hearing their voice nor meeting their needs. It was felt the Board members simply did not understand what being a tenant at the Gardens was like and so the shareholders organized to provide their own collective voice.

MGCA exists outside the Board’s jurisdiction and is composed of its own elected officers with voting representation from each building consisting of an elected chair and three elected delegates. It currently follows Bylaws adopted in 1997. All shareholders are welcome at its monthly meetings and can freely participate in dialogue and debate. However, if a “resolution” is proposed by a building chair or delegate, only the attending elected chairs and delegates can vote (providing there is a quorum) whether or not to bring the resolution to the attention of the Board. At each meeting, a member of the Board will present the “Flash Report,” an abbreviated notice of what transpired at the most recent Board meeting, and will take questions from the floor.

MGCA has standing committees contributing to the consistency of the quality of life at Morningside Gardens. These committees include Community Relations, Employees Holiday Fund and the Emergency Food Drive.