KYC Governance

The Kingston Yacht Club was founded in 1896 as a means to bring all manner of boaters together here at its original location at the foot of Maitland and Simcoe Streets, in Kingston, Ontario.   From its very beginnings, it has been the aim of the Club to encourage its members to enjoy the Kingston waterfront - initially as an iceboating community and then immediately thereafter, as a place where amateur boaters could gather and pursue both leisure and sport on the city’s harbour front.

After 20 years of informal existence, the Club was officially incorporated under Ontario law as the Kingston Yacht Club, complete with Letters Patent, a Board of Directors and a set of By-Laws.  These By-Laws set out to describe the rights and privileges of membership in KYC as well as the structure of the Club’s organization and the processes by which it is governed. 

From time to time, over the years, its members have decided that changes in the organization and governance of the Club have been warranted, and the KYC By-Laws have been amended to better reflect how they wanted to see the Club organized.  For example, originally, Full (i.e., voting) Membership in the KYC was the classification reserved for those men who actually owned boats and wanted to join the Club.  Over a century ago, this was not an unreasonable stipulation given that the primary “objects of the Corporation are to encourage the building and sailing of yachts, skiffs and canoes, motor boating, rowing, canoeing and all aquatic and other sports among amateurs” (from the letters patent, 7th April 1916).  Associate Members were those men who did not own boats but who, as influential Kingstonians or friends of members, were invited to become part of Kingston’s boating community. 

However, it soon became apparent that other non-boat owners also wanted to be formally associated with the Kingston Yacht Club – most notably, the wives, sisters and daughters of members - some of whom, indeed, did own boats!.  The membership category of Lady Nominee was created in the 1920s to accommodate these ladies.  It also wasn’t long before gender or the ownership of a boat was removed as a stipulation for Full Membership.  Qualification for that classification was broadened to include anyone wanting to enjoy all the rights and privileges of Club membership.   Associate Membership became available to those who wanted to take part in KYC’s social activities, but did not feel the need to have a say in the governance of the Club or in the allocation of its resources.  These rights continue to remain solely within the purview of those with Full Membership.

Every decade or so, amendments are made to improve the KYC By-Laws.  Most often such changes are adopted to reflect the changing expectations of Canadian society as it evolves.  In recent years, considerable effort was once more invested to see the By-Laws amended; this time, to streamline the provisions for membership, to introduce needed flexibility into the configuration of the Board of Directors and, more broadly, to make the By-Laws coherent and consistent throughout. 

Specifically, this latest iteration sought to address issues which, when accepted by the members at the 2009 Annual General Meeting, served to fundamentally alter the way in which KYC is now governed and, in the eyes of many members, significantly change the character of the Club for the better.  Elements of these most recent changes include:

• Statements to clearly specify the rights and privileges for each classification and category of Club membership
• Expansion of the franchise to include Nominee Members of Family and Life Memberships
• Recognition of Members-of-Long-Standing
• Stipulation of the actions to be taken prior to a dissolution of the Club and/or redeployment of its assets – aka: ‘The Poison Pill’
• Strengthening of the KYC By-Laws with clear statements about making amendments to key elements

‘The By-Laws of the Kingston Yacht Club (vers.2009)’ is available on this page as a portable document format (pdf) file, which may be downloaded and viewed using Adobe Reader.   As well, both digital and hardcopies of the KYC By-Laws are available, free of charge, through the KYC Office.

The By-Laws of the Kingston Yacht Club (vers.2009)