March 2026

Board of Directors Meeting Minutes ACBL Unit 503

Tuesday, March 10, 2026, via Zoom

Directors Present

Liz Koh, Marc Cervellino, Dan Thatte, John Schwartz, Dana Shelley, Geraldine MacDonald, H. Paul Davis and Dianne Giancarlo.

Directors not Present

Stephanie Youngquist, Alex Narasin

Others Present

Alan Templeton, Allen Simon

M/S/P  = Moved/Seconded/Passed

Call to Order

Liz Koh, President of the Board, served as Chair of the meeting, called the meeting to order at 4:00 PM and announced that a quorum of the Board members was present and that the meeting, having duly convened, was ready to proceed with business. Dianne Giancarlo served as Secretary of the meeting.

Approval of Meeting Minutes

Dianne G. announced that the minutes of the February 10, 2026, Board Meeting were approved via email.

Financials Update

Marc C. reported that February financials are off to a great start. Warning that two months is not a trend, Marc C. noted that attendance at our weekly games has been averaging 67 tables and average attendance at every game has increased over last year. The NABC took place in February which probably impacted our club game attendance somewhat. Marc C. pointed out that attendance at our four sectionals will be the key element of our annual financials results. 

Dana S. suggested that we correct the statement in our monthly newsletter that the Bridge Center offers games every day, Monday through Saturday, to the actual games offered, Monday through Friday, until we start offering Saturday games at the Bridge Center. 

Tournaments at PABC

Maximum Tables: San Mateo Unit 498 hosted its Sectional on February 21-22 at the Bridge Center. It was extremely successful, drawing 54 tables on Saturday. The Bridge Center has been approved by the local Fire Marshall to accommodate up to 232 people but there is a fair degree of wear and tear on our supplies and facilities that comes with the extra occupancy. Marc C. proposed that the Board limit the number of tables to licensees of the facility to 50 maximum. M/S/P

The Board discussed that our contract with licensees should require them to implement a system to monitor the number of tables at an event so as not to exceed 50 and to specify that there should be a minimum of two directors present at tournaments held at the Bridge Center from start to finish. 

Licensing Fee: Marc C. led a discussion on whether we should increase our licensing fee to outside Units who use our Bridge Center. Marc C. proposed increasing the licensing fee starting July 1, 2026 as follows: $18/table/session ($1 increase) table rent with a daily maximum fee of $1,000 ($100 increase); fee for coffee, tea, and related supplies increased from $50/day to between $50/day to $100/day depending on the attendance; maintain weekend cleaning fee of $159 (the Unit’s cost). M/S/P

Firecracker Site: Marc C. began the discussion with a reminder of why we hold the Firecracker: to have fun, to offer games with colored points, to make money for the Unit, and to introduce the Bridge Center and tournaments to bridge players. Before last year, the Firecracker has been held at both the Bridge Center and rented space from IFES. Last year the decision was made by the Board to hold it only at the Bridge Center because the IFES substantially increased the rent they would charge for their space. 

Marc C. led a discussion on where the Firecracker should be held this year, with the options being: 100% at the Bridge Center, which is what we did last year; 100% rented from the IFES; at both the Bridge Center and rented from IFES; and at both the Bridge Center and rented from the Buddhist Temple across the street. The Board discussed the many reasons that may influence our decision such as how many players may have been turned away because of limited space; the logistics that go into setting up more than one room; profits to the Unit; and how comfortable or uncomfortable each option is for our players. The Board discussed that it is difficult to track how many players we may have turned away. However, since Covid, our most successful Firecracker in terms of profit for the Unit was from last year when we used only the Bridge Center. Liz K. offered to talk to the IFES to get an idea of what they would charge us to rent their space this year. 

Reservation system:

Allen Simon discussed how his reservation system could be used for the Firecracker. If we decide to use limited space this year, it will be particularly important to notify players to sign up in advance to hopefully avoid disappointment and needless travel. 

We discussed whether it is possible to use his reservation system to prepay for games at the Firecracker as well as at regular games at the Bridge Center. John S. pointed out some of the complexities in doing that but felt that overall it would be a useful component of the system. Dana S. pointed out that we should state on the registration page of our website what our table fees are and whether they could be paid online using software such as Zelle or Stripe. John S. pointed out that sometimes the table fees vary, such as for STAC games.  It was noted that there is no cost to use Zelle, but there are costs to using Stripe (for card payments).

BridgeMates or Alternatives: Gerry M. led a discussion on whether the Unit should adopt a new technology for keeping scores at the table called RSVP. This system integrates with the current BridgeMates, and with ACBL’s Score system, but is less expensive because you can use iPhones or iPads instead of BridgeMates which are expensive to replace. RSVP is working with the ACBL to adopt it for some tournaments and apparently the bridge clubs in San Francisco are considering adopting this system.

Trash Bins

Marc C. discussed how the trash carts in front of the Bridge Center are always full and unsightly. We are not sure where all this trash is coming from since the Bridge Center uses the large trash containers maintained by the IFES. The Board agreed that we should get rid of the unsightly trash carts.

Status on New Initiatives 

New EZ games on Mondays:  The Board congratulated Dana S., Alex N. and their team of about 6 volunteers for a very successful first EZ game on Monday. There were 9.5 tables of new duplicate bridge players including some from Alex N. referrals and Phil Abrahamson from Planet Bridge. Volunteers help players with their questions.  There are two more scheduled for the next two Mondays but John S. agreed that he and Will Watson are willing to continue this on an ongoing basis and to provide some volunteers if needed to allow Dana S., Alex N. and Phil Abrahamson to taper off their involvement. Dana S. pointed out that the game was preceded by a free 15-minute lecture which she feels would be good to continue to provide by various volunteers, including Chris Chung. Dana S. also asked Allen Simon to continue to have a separate sign up for these games in the reservation system. Allen Simon agreed that he would also include a masterpoint limit on the sign up (under 50 for EZ games), so that our regular players don’t accidentally sign up in the wrong section. Dana will update the EZ flyer.

Pro-Am Pairs

H. Paul D. has organized another Pro-Am game that will take place on Thursday, March 12^th. He is still in need of about 4-6 pros. The sign up has been very healthy, as these are very popular. 

Next Special Event St Patrick’s Day

Liz K. mentioned that the next special game at the club will be held on Tuesday, March 17 in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day. She said that Stephanie Y. has already started decorating the Bridge Center in beautiful shades of green. Liz K. also mentioned that Debbie Rosenberg will be holding a postmortem Tuesday evening for players who attend the game.  

The Board meeting adjourned at 5:50 pm.