Governance

When new members are approved to join Ridge Side, they get the right to occupy a particular one of the nine apartment units of the co-op.  Ridge Side Co-op has the living arrangement of a condominium association, rather than the ‘student’ housing co-ops that are such a ubiquitous tradition in Madison.   The cooperative business structure carries considerably less personal financial risk for each member, compared to owning a share in a condo.

Each of the co-op’s nine units has one voting representative on the co-op’s board of directors and this body oversees the myriad aspects involved with the operation of the co-op, including the all-important preparation of an annual budget.  Once the budget has been approved, a formula based on each apartment’s square footage is used to set the monthly ‘carrying charges’ (equivalent to ‘rent’) for the coming year.