Having consulted with members, your committee has determined that a new category of membership will achieve the long-term objective of maintaining an acceptable waiting time for a membership offer without adversely impacting existing members.
SNAPSHOT
- New membership category proposed.
- Provisional members to be introduced gradually during next 5-10 years.
- Fewer benefits/limited access for Provisional members.
- No access to AFL Finals Series, Boxing Day or Anzac Day.
- No access to levels 2 and 3 seating on majority of event days.
- No increase to total number of Full or Restricted members.
Published: July 23, 2015
As communicated previously, the MCC Committee has been preparing a long-term strategy to ensure the time it takes for a waiting list candidate to receive a membership offer remains within acceptable limits. The club has long been concerned that, unless action is taken now, a person who joins the waiting list today will wait at least 41 years before receiving a membership offer.
To address that issue, at the same time being mindful of maximising use of the Members Reserve on MCG event days, we put a concept to members late last year that proposed a steady increase in the total number of Restricted members.
Having consulted with members, via focus groups and a forum, and listened to a wide range of feedback since tabling that approach, the club has now amended its proposal that will still require rule changes to be put to a vote at the Annual General Meeting on August 12.
The full proposal has been mailed to Full members, but can also be seen at mcc.org.au/provisionalmembership.
What the club proposes
We are proposing to create a new, third category of membership, titled Provisional, that carries fewer benefits and more limited access to the Members Reserve than those provided to Full and Restricted members.
By reducing the number and type of events, and facilities within the Reserve, that Provisional members will have access to, the introduction of these new members will have minimal impact on the use of the Members Reserve by existing members.
Should the proposal be approved, no more than 10,000 Provisional members would be elected in any one year and up to a maximum of 50,000 during the next 5-10 years. Importantly, the gradual increase in overall member numbers would be carefully monitored each year to ensure minimal impact on member comfort and access to seating and facilities in the Reserve.
Any impact will influence the maximum number of Provisional members elected. It is possible that less than 50,000 Provisional members will be introduced during this 5-10 year period.
This proposal has no impact on current arrangements for the AFL Grand Final, as we do not propose to increase the total number of Full members.
Provisional membership is intended as an intermediary step on the way to the normal flow to Restricted membership, and then Full. It serves to give waiting list candidates a membership during the period when they would otherwise be waiting for Restricted membership.
The club will also work on managing waiting list growth by putting forward a further rule change that limits Full members to proposing or seconding up to four nominations per membership season.
About Provisional membership
One of the driving forces behind designing the model has been the club’s desire to not greatly impact the amenity of existing members on major match days.
Therefore Provisional members will have limited access to the Members Reserve, particularly at those event days when existing Restricted and Full member attendance in the Reserve is forecast to be high. To manage this process, all MCG event days will be placed in one of four categories according to the expected demand from members to attend that event.
Provisional members will have no access to the Members Reserve for matches in the AFL Finals Series, Day 1 of the Boxing Day Test and any other event deemed to be a Category 1 event.
The club can “elevate” a match from Category 2 to Category 1 beforehand if it feels demand for Full and Restricted member attendance warrants exclusion of Provisional members.
Should management decide that access can be provided to a finals match (but not including the grand final), to maximise capacity in the Reserve, a subsidised entry fee will apply to each Provisional member. This rationale would also be applied to special events such as rugby league, soccer and concerts.
Access will be provided for all other AFL home and away matches and other international cricket days unless it is felt that Provisional member attendance will impact on the comfort and amenity level within the Members Reserve. Also, Provisional members will not have voting rights, nor will they be able to propose or second waiting list nominations.
The annual subscription fee for an Adult Metropolitan Provisional member would be $325 for the 2015/16 year, with a sliding scale of fees thereafter for Country, Interstate and Overseas members. This price reflects the access rights attached to Provisional membership when measured against Full and Restricted membership.
Provisional membership entitlements
| Event | Access to Members Reserve |
Dining bookings |
Long Room passes |
Balcony passes |
Visitor tickets |
| Category 1 | None | No | No | No | None |
| Category 2 | Levels 1 & 4 | No | No | No | None |
| Category 3 | Levels 1 & 4 | No | No | No | 2 |
| Category 4 | All levels | Yes | Yes | Yes | 2 |
Note:
• Category 1 – Forecast is more than 18,000 members and guests
• Category 2 – Forecast is between 15,000 and 18,000 members and guests
• Category 3 – Forecast is between 8,000 and 15,000 members and guests
• Category 4 – Forecast is fewer than 8000 members and guests.
Scenario: Introducing 50,000 Provisional members during next eight years
| Nomination Year | Expected Provisional offer* |
Expected Restricted offer* |
| 2000 | 2019 | 2024 |
| 2005 | 2022 | 2030 |
| 2010 | 2028 | 2037 |
| 2015 | 2035 | 2043 |
| 2020 | 2040 | 2048 |
| 2025 | 2044 | 2053 |
| 2030 | 2049 | 2057 |
Scenario: No change to present membership structure or total numbers
| Nomination Year |
Expected
Provisonal offer*
|
Expected
Restricted offer*
|
| 2000 | N/A | 2026 |
| 2005 | N/A | 2035 |
| 2010 | N/A | 2046 |
| 2015 | N/A | 2056 |
| 2020 | N/A | 2064 |
*Forecast based on 65 per cent of Provisional membership offers being accepted by waiting list candidates. This figure mirrors current acceptance rates of Restricted membership.
Benefits for members
A common question asked by members is whether the additional revenue gained from introducing Provisional members can be used to subsidise a freeze or reduction in annual subscription fees.
Under the MCC’s arrangement with the MCG Trust that governs our tenancy, as well as our right to have a Members Reserve and our need to meet grandstand debt repayments, the club is required to increase subscription fees by at least the percentage of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) each year.
A portion of the increased membership revenue will be put back into capital improvements at the MCG or reduction of MCG debt.
We will also look to extend and improve food and beverage facilities and services to ensure minimal impact on member comfort and access to amenities in the Reserve. This will include upgrading Robert Flower Terrace and converting Jim Stynes Room into a members’ dining facility, as well as a commitment to improved service in bars, dining rooms and retail outlets.
We appreciate that many members have family and friends nominated for membership who potentially face long waiting periods before being offered membership.
This rule change gives hope that many families can continue the generational connection of MCC membership.
Unless the rule is changed, members’ children and grandchildren will not be able to join our great club until they are at least 40 or 50 years old. This will only get worse unless we deal with the situation.
