December 2, 2025
Thanks to some additional pledges, we are over $20,000 raised!
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December 1, 2025
Since our last update, we have received $900 from 4 donors. We are now at $19,429.05.
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November 20, 2025 – Update from Our Meet & Greet – We’re So Close to Our Goal!
Thank you to all who joined us for our MCIC Meet and Greet on Wednesday, November 19, at the 1912 Center. We had more than 100 people in attendance, and the energy in the room was exactly what this effort needed. The conversations were honest, the questions were thoughtful, and people left with a clearer picture of the real complexities and opportunities involved in establishing a cooperative here in Moscow.
A heartfelt thank you to those of you who anonymously dropped in dollar bills to help support our start-up funds. We tallied $444 in cash last night. And those who wrote checks in total came to $3,750. Once these are deposited, our bank balance will be $17,379.05!
That means we are now just $7,620.95 shy of our $25,000 goal for our start-up costs.
Anyone wishing to contribute can mail a check to: MCIC P.O. Box 8596 Moscow
We are also now officially a member of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce (thanks to another generous donation), and you can find us on their directory here https://moscowchamber.com/members/moscow-community-investment-cooperative-mcic/
Thank you to all of you who are helping build this from the ground up.
With sincere gratitude,
The MCIC Board of Directors
Ben Calabretta, JT Manning, Phil Shinn, Bev Rhoades, Pat Vaughan, and Aly Bean
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NOVEMBER MONTHLY UPDATE
Happy Fall
Thanks to you—and more than 300 community members who’ve pledged their support—the Moscow Community Investment Cooperative (MCIC) is moving steadily from vision to reality. Together, we’re building something extraordinary: a locally owned cooperative investing directly in downtown Moscow properties to keep our spaces accessible, welcoming, and rooted in community values.
Join Us: MCIC Meet & Greet
📅 Wednesday, November 19
🕠 5:30 PM
📍 1912 Center – 3rd Floor
Come connect with the MCIC Board and fellow community investors. We’ll share updates, answer questions, and talk about the next phase of launching our co-op.
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Progress Report
In the last few months, your volunteer Board of Directors has been working hard to turn the co-op’s concept into a fully functioning business. Here’s what’s been accomplished:
Incorporated the cooperative as a legal entity
Drafted bylaws and a stock prospectus
Established committees and opened a bank account
Attended co-op development trainings and sought professional guidance
Begun the process of gaining approval from the Idaho Securities Bureau and potentially the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
That last step—securities approval—is what will allow us to officially sell shares and begin investing. Because MCIC is only the third real estate investment co-op of its kind in the U.S., the legal path is complex and requires expert support.
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Here’s the Challenge
To start selling shares and accept investments, we need to cover start-up costs estimated at around $25,000. These expenses include:
Legal and compliance fees
Bookkeeping and tax support
Website and communications
Insurance, printing, and advertising
We’ve already made strong headway, thanks to early donations and support from:
– Mission West, who covered initial incorporation legal fees
– The Unitarian Universalist Church of the Palouse Impact Grant
– The Moscow Food Co-op, for contributing to early start-up costs
-And a dozen generous local donors who gave over $7,500 following our last newsletter
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How You Can Help Now
We’re asking our pledgers to consider making a one-time, non-tax-deductible donation to help us reach the $25,000 goal.
If each pledger contributed just $50–$100, we would fully fund our start-up needs and be ready to move forward with state and federal approvals.
📬 Send checks to:
Moscow Community Investment Cooperative
P.O. Box 8596
Moscow, ID 83843
(Please note: donations do not reduce your pledge amount. You can also let us know if you’d like to be named in a public thank-you—donation amounts will remain private.)
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Your support has already brought MCIC further than anyone thought possible when this idea began last year. With this next step, we’ll be ready to officially launch investment opportunities and start preserving the spaces that make downtown Moscow special.
Thank you for being part of this pathbreaking work. We can’t wait to see you on Wednesday, November 19.
With gratitude,
The MCIC Board of Directors
moscowcommunityinvestmentcooperative@gmail.com
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SEPTEMBER MONTHLY UPDATE:
Our board of directors has been established, and Articles of Incorporation have been filed. We are pleased to announce we have a bank account with Latah Credit Union! We are grateful for your participation in our Moscow Community Investment Cooperative (MCIC). We hope you will share our good work with your family and friends if you haven’t already – they may pledge here.
Building the framework: We recently completed workshops on our Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws, which establish MCIC’s classes of stock and set the rules for purchase, transfer, and redemption. This framework is what makes a cooperative like ours possible.
Growing our financial literacy: This month, we’re turning our attention to financial literacy—terms like common stock, preferred stock, credit allocations, and patronage dividends. We are participating in a Finance Workshop hosted by MCIC supporter Mission West to ensure our board members have a strong understanding of how MCIC will be capitalized.
Next step: Legal Partnership: We are preparing to engage a legal firm to draft the complete offering and member application paperwork. This interactive process will help us weigh options, advantages, and risks as we determine how many shares to issue, dividend limits, and more.
Our Goal: We are aiming to have our stock offering ready by the end of the year. If adjustments are needed, we will make them carefully to ensure MCIC remains financially strong and well prepared.
How You Can Help
MCIC is officially incorporated, and we have opened a bank account! There are essential financial and legal capacities to put in place leading up to a stock offering. Please consider making a modest donation to MCIC to help with this effort. This will also help us save our future owner and investor capital for the purchase of real estate. A donation now is not part of your pledged amount for the purchase of common stock or investor shares. It is an additional contribution that will be used for startup expenses.
You can make a check out now to MCIC and send it to PO Box 8596, Moscow. ID 83843
Together, we are building something transformative for Moscow: local capital, local ownership, and local impact. Thank you for being part of this journey. Again, please share this with your family, friends, and neighbors, and encourage them to pledge if they haven’t already.
— The MCIC Board of Directors
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AUGUST MONTHLY UPDATE
Thank you for pledging to become an Owner of the Moscow Community Investment Cooperative!
In our most recent newsletter, we introduced MCIC’s first Board of Directors – we’ve been busy in the weeks since, mapping out our startup plan and building core capacities to successfully launch our capital campaign. We will continue to send a monthly email newsletter to keep you up to date on our progress. You’re welcome to share this and future newsletters with your family, friends, and neighbors and please encourage them to pledge if they haven’t already.
Where We Are Now
The Board of Directors has chosen the first slate of officers for MCIC. They are:
- President- Ben Calabretta
- Vice President- JT Manning
- Secretary- Phil Shinn
- Treasurer- Bev Rhoades
- Communications/Outreach Director- Aly Bean
And we’re ready to file our articles of incorporation! The Board is meeting this week with our legal advisors to finalize organizational documents and to prepare to adopt bylaws that will provide the basis for our democratic governance model. As soon as we’re incorporated, we’ll open an account with Latah Federal Credit Union in Moscow – this will allow us to start depositing donations and grant funds to cover essential costs like insurance, bookkeeping software, website hosting, and legal fees.
What’s Coming Next
With these primary pieces in place, we can develop a stock offering and begin selling shares. Since we first introduced MCIC in March, over 300 local residents have pledged to invest more than $480,000 to support our first property purchase, proving that our vision for community ownership has broad buy-in. The Board will continue to be frugal during our startup stages so that we can maximize the impact of every dollar invested in our co-op.
How You Can Help
Last month, the Board established standing committees – each is co-chaired by two Directors who bring relevant knowledge and experience to tackle foundational objectives in their areas of focus:
- Finance Committee – Bev Rhoades and Phil Shinn
- Business Development Committee – JT Manning and Patrick Vaughan
- Outreach & Engagement Committee – Aly Bean and Ben Calabretta
Our chairs will soon start recruiting for their committees by reaching out to those who have expressed interest in getting involved and we’ll be working together to develop a launch-phase budget to guide our capital campaign. If you’re in a position to contribute your time, talent, or resources to advance the initial steps of structuring, financing, and growing our co-op, send an email to let us know!
With gratitude,
The MCIC Board