Basic HTML Version
THAT IS THE POSITION WE ARE GETTING INTO, and rapidly! The money
we have been forced to put into property, buildings, and equipment,
to provide facilities for conducting the Work, is still there to
our credit. In fact we have improved all properties, and they have
gone up in value. Our financial statement showed adequate net
worth. But it is NECESSARY that we show a reasonable cash balance
at the bank -- otherwise no bank would want our account, and the
whole Work might fail.
Never before have I seen my way clear to make this
adjustment in the financial position of the Work. It would have
stopped the Work. Now we ARE DOING IT. And we are NOT slowing
down the Work of God -- RATHER, THE WORK IS ADVANCING FULL SPEED
AHEAD, SHOWING GREATER GAINS AND REAPING A BIGGER HARVEST THAN EVER
BEFORE! Never before was it possible to do this.
So, I want you to know that I am personally very much
encouraged by this progress. A Work of this magnitude cannot be
operated in the manner any one of us, as an individual, would
manage his personal affairs. The BUSINESS MANAGEMENT of God's Work
must be handled in a business-like manner!
Now I have to tell you about a new development that has
occurred just over this past week-end.
The City of Pasadena is governed by a Board of Directors
(who act like a City Council), and administered by a City Manager,
appointed by and responsible to the Board of Directors. Last week
one of the Directors turned attention to Ambassador College. He
introduced a resolution for a probe into our building program.
As I have reported to our Co-Workers, we have acquired
most of the ground area needed for the construction of the new
buildings which we must have before the college can grow a whit
more. Our architects have, for the past nine months been working
out the design of the Master Plan for the required and necessary
expanded campus. This particular Director knew none of the facts,
except that we had acquired properties not as yet being used for
actual college activities. I could have given him all the facts in
two minutes had he cared to contact me by telephone. But, instead,
he introduced a resolution which made big newspaper headlines,
demanding a probe to find out whether we are being allowed tax
exemption on properties not now being used for school purposes.
The facts are that we have not applied for, nor received,
any tax exemption on such properties--but we do, of course, have
tax exemption on those properties which are being used for school
purposes.
But, further, the City of Pasadena is presently engaged
in a redevelopment project of certain districts. A portion of our
campus falls within, one of these redevelopment zones. There is an
agency, called the CRA (City Redevelopment Agency), in charge of
this project, in conjunction with the City Planning Commission.
The CRA is financed by the Federal government. They chose, about
last February, the firm of architects we had engaged for our own
expansion program. Our architects, having just previously signed