Facilities management principles — and strategic budgeting (Statement)

STRATEGIC BUDGETING is about prioritizing funds for the efficient use of capital resources. The Building & Grounds Committee strives to set its own priorities accordingly.

Standard facilities management principles are what determine the order of priorities. And in Mishkon’s case, our sanctuary building’s status as a historic-cultural monument is also a factor. 

Generally speaking, our attention and money is best spent/invested in the following order, starting with the most important.

1. Life-safety (e.g., fire exits)
2. Integrity of the building envelope (against threats from: water intrusion, termites, earthquakes)
3. Important systems (whose failure would greatly disrupt normal activity)
4. Preventative maintenance, and improvements with a good return on investment (e.g., energy savings)
5. “Historic-cultural monument” status: attend to the “character-defining features”*
6. High-priority improvements (that would make the biggest difference)
7. Low-value maintenance

*In other words, which of these distinctive features, if they were restored, would have the biggest positive impact? Which of these features, if they were not preserved, would be the biggest loss to Mishkon and to Venice?

 

Why is this list important? 

Because if it is not followed, we are likely to end up with unhappy outcomes: catastrophes that were preventable, more money spent than was necessary, disruptions in our programs and services, undue burdens on our staff, etc.

Note that any visible “building improvements” — the exciting changes that you may be dreaming about — do not show up until #4 and #6 on this list!

DISCLAIMER: The above statement of principles and priorities is that of our committee only. It has not been officially endorsed by the board of directors. 

Help Wanted: Volunteer Positions (updated 6-26-24)

WE MISHKON MEMBERS can easily convince ourselves that (nearly) everything at the synagogue is being taken care of. After all, we have paid staff. We have devoted officers and directors and committees. We even have eager ad-hoc volunteers for cleaning up after Kiddush lunches. 

Nonetheless, there are significant gaps in what is being attended to. Wouldn’t you like to know what those gaps are?

This post lays out some of Mishkon’s needs for your energy and acumen, as they relate to B&G concerns. Perhaps you or someone you know would thrive from being engaged in these matters! 🤔

Torah Scrolls Need Loving Care, Too

IT’S WIDELY ACKNOWLEDGED that regular maintenance and cleaning is needed to keep ספרי תורה sifrei Torah (Torah scrolls) in usable condition, and to preserve their useful life at the lowest overall cost. How­ever, the lore is not well known. 

In this post, I give some basic how-to guidance as gleaned from several סופרים sof’rim (Torah scribes). I also offer some sample photos of anomalies from last year’s inventory of our scrolls.

In this scroll, which is said to be some 3 centuries old,
the scribe patched the parchment even before inscribing it—
and then worked around it.

Recently, Morley Berenbach (the newest member of our committee) offered to serve as the custodian of our scrolls. If you are interested in assisting him in this effort, please let me know.

My Return to the Building & Grounds Committee

Originally published in the High Holy Days 5782 issue of the Galim (Sept. 2021)

SO THERE I WAS, in March of this year, happily serving as chair of the Communications Committee. It was a good fit for me: not only did it draw upon my experience in the field of marketing communications, but also it reflected how my mind naturally works—noticing communication gaps that warrant attention. 

In the process of identifying some of those gaps—and then bridging them—I saw that some longstanding water-intrusion problems in the sanctuary building were not getting addressed. Everyone seemed to be in favor of doing something, yet little was happening.