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SUMMER 2007
NAMASTE,
For the winter ’07 Unity Woods Newsletter, I wrote about the topic of "change". In that essay, I discussed the inevitability of change and suggested some ways in which the practice of yoga can prepare us for and help us deal with the challenges that change so often brings. At the time, I was in the midst of the swirl of events that I am about to describe. The outcome at that point being still very much in doubt, I decided not to go into the confused and unresolved details of the situation, but chose instead to address the broader and very relevant issue of change.
Since 1985, Unity Woods has offered classes in the Triangle Towers building in downtown Bethesda. From a small space on the third floor, we moved to a studio on the sixteenth floor, which gradually expanded to two studios and a suite of administrative offices. We have, throughout the past twenty-two years, continually adapted our operations to serve our community of students, teachers, and employees in as effective a way as possible, always keeping at the forefront of our consciousness the purpose to which we have dedicated ourselves: improving the quality of life through the promotion of and instruction in the practices and philosophy of yoga as taught in the Iyengar tradition.
As the center has grown, challenges revolving around the best way to deal with the attendant changes have arisen. Adjusting to the demands of these changes has been an ongoing process. Employees and teachers have come and gone (although we have had remarkably little turnover on either front); strategies for getting our message, name, and services out into the community have been created, altered, and abandoned as necessary; policies have been developed and refined; and we have transformed the physical space itself several times.
When our lease expired in the spring of last year, Triangle Towers’ management, Southern Management Corporation, informed us that the large number of students attending classes in Bethesda (about 1200 weekly) was putting a serious strain on the building’s infrastructure - the elevators, bathrooms, halls, and lobby - and they felt the time had come to make a change. They offered several remedies, all involving substantial disruption of our operations. As you can imagine (and as you who are familiar with us and are just learning of this right now may feel), this was quite a shock. While we had continually made alterations to our space and our program over the years, we had definitely settled into a routine that was comfortable and relatively predictable. A certain level of inertia had set in. Now an irresistible external force had come along and was compelling us to make a significant change in course. The administrative staff, teachers, and I discussed several options amongst ourselves, but it seemed that, given the choices presented to us, the best course was to find a space that better suited our needs. Suddenly, we found ourselves confronted with one of the biggest challenges in our twenty-seven year history: relocating our Triangle Towers operations, which, of course, include all the administrative functions of Unity Woods.
Since we had made the decision to move, we began searching for a suitable location. This was not an easy process. Negotiations on several potential sites were initiated and subsequently unraveled. Because our needs are unique compared to those required for simple office space, and because we want to stay in the same general vicinity so as to disrupt our students as little as possible, and because our standards for the kind of facility we want are high, we spent over a year searching for a viable location. In early March, we found a space that seemed as though it would satisfy our demands and began architectural test fit drawings and lease negotiations. We also wrote to Southern Management Corporation to see if there were any way we could resolve the problems that were driving our departure.
The week of April 16 found us wrapping up the final details on a lease for the new location. It was at that point that we received a call from Southern Management requesting a meeting. On the 20th I met with their representative. As a result of that meeting, we have reopened negotiations with Southern Management to stay in our current location.
For a number of reasons large and small, we would much prefer to stay where we are. We want to make sure, however, that any and all problem areas between Southern Management and us are resolved to the satisfaction of all parties. As I write, negotiations are ongoing and unresolved. Because we had already begun to announce our expected move, and because many of you, too, have an interest in what happens, I felt that it would be best at this point to let you know what is going on. Please rest assured that as soon as we know where we are going to be, we will announce it in classes and post it on the website. In the meantime, classes and administrative operations will go on as they normally do.
Change brings struggles and demands, but it also brings energy and opportunity. Whatever happens in this chapter here at Unity Woods, we look at the outcome as an opportunity to improve on many aspects of our operation from the cosmetic to the functional. And we look forward to continuing to offer the quality of yoga instruction and the sense of community that have made Unity Woods the number one yoga center in the area and an important part in the lives of many of you, our students and friends. Thank you for your patience.
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