Waterloo Co-operative Residence Incorporated
Encyclopedia
Waterloo, Ontario
Waterloo is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It is the smallest of the three cities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, and is adjacent to the city of Kitchener....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It is owned by its residents, who are mostly students at the University of Waterloo
University of Waterloo
The University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
, Wilfrid Laurier University
Wilfrid Laurier University
Wilfrid Laurier University is a university located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It also has campuses in Brantford, Ontario, Kitchener, Ontario and Toronto, Ontario and a future proposed campus in Milton, Ontario. It is named in honour of Sir Wilfrid Laurier, the seventh Prime Minister of Canada....
, or Conestoga College
Conestoga College
The Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning is a public college based in Kitchener, Ontario in Canada.-History:The College was founded in 1967 as the Conestoga College of Applied Arts and Technology, one of many such institutions established in that time by the Ontario...
. The co-op can accommodate over 900 residents in its dormitories and apartments, making it the second-largest organization of its kind in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
. Overall, it has over 2000 members. It is a founding member of the Ontario Student Co-operative Association and the North American Students of Cooperation
North American Students of Cooperation
The North American Students of Cooperation is a federation of housing cooperatives in Canada and the United States, started in 1968. Traditionally, NASCO has been associated with student housing cooperatives, though non-student cooperatives are included in its network...
.
Properties and accommodation
WCRI is organized into seven semi-autonomous divisions: three are dormitories and four are apartment buildings. The dormitory divisions are Phillip North, Phillip South, and HammarDag Hammarskjöld
Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld was a Swedish diplomat, economist, and author. An early Secretary-General of the United Nations, he served from April 1953 until his death in a plane crash in September 1961. He is the only person to have been awarded a posthumous Nobel Peace Prize. Hammarskjöld...
, and the apartment divisions are Carver
George Washington Carver
George Washington Carver , was an American scientist, botanist, educator, and inventor. The exact day and year of his birth are unknown; he is believed to have been born into slavery in Missouri in January 1864....
, Clayfield, Kershaw
John Kershaw
John Kershaw was a U.S. Representative from South Carolina.Born in Camden, South Carolina, Kershaw attended Rushworth School and Oxford College, England where he studied law. He was the son of Joseph Kershaw, one of the founders of Camden, SC. He married Harriet DuBose in 1812...
, and B-Division.
Governance
As a co-operative, WCRI is a representative democracyRepresentative democracy
Representative democracy is a form of government founded on the principle of elected individuals representing the people, as opposed to autocracy and direct democracy...
. The members elect a board
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
of ten directors to oversee the business and affairs of the corporation. Elections take place every four months, with directors holding office for rotating one-year terms, as well as other time periods; such as, 8 month terms. The board selects a general manager who hires staff to assist in the General Manager's business operations, based on a policy governance
Policy Governance
Policy Governance is a trademarked governance model designed for Boards of Directors that provides a clear differentiation between governance and management responsibilities in organizations. The model was developed by John Carver....
model. The board sets the board policy, while the General Manager in consultation with staff including resident student division managers implement staff policies.
In addition, there are a number of decentralized decision-making bodies within the co-op structure; such as, Division Councils, Division Social Councils, Interdivision Social Council, Interdivision Council, and a variety of potential committees for activities such as sports, social outreach, and environmental. The Social Councils organize social events of various sizes, while division council must approve social spending for their division, and may also have the ability to make small purchases - this amount is relatively small usually not amounting to more than a couple hundred dollars per term on average. Interdivision council has the ability to fund larger projects which will cost over 1000$; while interdivision social council (IDSC) usually has the capacity to throw a few good sized events. Fresh week - WCRI's frosh is also a somewhat regular mainstay, and is a type of orientation week and general social for members.
History
The history of WCRI began in September 1964 with the founding of the Waterloo division of Campus Co-operative Residence IncorporatedCampus Co-operative Residence Incorporated
Campus Co-operative Residence Incorporated, often abbreviated to Campus Co-op or CCRI, is a non-profit student housing co-operative located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1936, it is the oldest co-operative residence in Canada.-External links:*...
in Toronto. Due to changes in the National Housing Act, student housing co-operatives were able to apply for financing from Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation. Initially, two separate houses on University Avenue in Waterloo accommodated twenty-seven male and nine female students, though meals were taken together at the men's house. One cook was hired, but all other work was done by the members.
Independence from CCRI was soon deemed desirable and the process of splitting off into a separate co-op was undertaken. Letters patent
Letters patent
Letters patent are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch or president, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, title, or status to a person or corporation...
for the incorporation
Incorporation (business)
Incorporation is the forming of a new corporation . The corporation may be a business, a non-profit organisation, sports club, or a government of a new city or town...
of WCRI were issued on November 8, 1965.
Expansion was the word of the day in the early years of the co-op and by September 1966, more than 200 students lived in various WCRI accommodations. In addition to owning several houses, the co-op had built a four-storey dormitory called Hammar
Dag Hammarskjöld
Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld was a Swedish diplomat, economist, and author. An early Secretary-General of the United Nations, he served from April 1953 until his death in a plane crash in September 1961. He is the only person to have been awarded a posthumous Nobel Peace Prize. Hammarskjöld...
, the first such building in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
to be built, owned, and operated by students. At this point, full-time staff were beginning to be hired to handle various administrative matters.
In January 1969, the co-op completed the construction of two new dormitory divisions and an apartment division on Phillip Street. The former were called Phillip North and South, and the latter was simply called the Apartment Division. At this time, resident membership surpassed 600, including some members who still lived in houses.
In 1976, the last of the houses were sold off, beginning what could be thought of as the modern era of WCRI. This also coincided with significant changes to the organizational structure of the co-op, creating a complex hierarchy of decentralized decision-making bodies.
In 1986, the co-op undertook the construction of three new apartment divisions on Phillip Street, next to the existing property, named Carver
George Washington Carver
George Washington Carver , was an American scientist, botanist, educator, and inventor. The exact day and year of his birth are unknown; he is believed to have been born into slavery in Missouri in January 1864....
, Clayfield, and Kershaw
John Kershaw
John Kershaw was a U.S. Representative from South Carolina.Born in Camden, South Carolina, Kershaw attended Rushworth School and Oxford College, England where he studied law. He was the son of Joseph Kershaw, one of the founders of Camden, SC. He married Harriet DuBose in 1812...
. The existing Apartment Division was renamed B-Division to disambiguate.
In 1993, the co-operative used some empty space in the basement of Clayfield to open an English-style pub called Weavers' Arms. The pub was financially unsuccessful year after year, despite several attempts at revitalization, and was permanently closed in August 2004; however, is still available for social events - although only currently serves alcohol under event specific liquor licenses rather than a commercial site license. WCRI policy is generally not to allocate funds for purchases of alcohol, however in event planning for the 2008 Fresh Week, two liquor licensed events were planned - a Kegger and a Monte Carlo night. There are hopes from some members to see the location serve a variety of ongoing usages; however currently requires booking in advance of event with a member(s) responsible for the establishment during events, in general supplied for the membership rather than for commercial reasons.
In 2005, Hammar underwent a comprehensive redevelopment project, with two floors reopened in September 2005 and the remaining two in January 2006.