Looking Back at 2024

Wow! Such an amazing year:

President-elect Donald Trump is Time Magazine’s Man of the Year; Elon Musk is the richest and most influential global citizen; Ukraine is still holding; Russia is bleeding; Israel went from surprised prey to a regional force on the verge of destroying Hamas, eradicating Hezbollah, causing regime change in Syria, threatening Iran, and potentially causing the downfall of Putin.

Meanwhile, at City Club, we have managed our way through many challenges. First, we fully recovered from the pandemic. Then, we completed the five-year project to plan, design, and expand our kitchen and bar as part of Highland's transformation from a one-time abandoned school to a private social, business, and dining club. The search for and hiring of Chef Tim Cook is an integral part of our newly expanded kitchen and all-day food program.

All the above was in furtherance of our grueling eight-year transition of power from me to Dustin, which has now been completed. Unlike Joe Biden, whom historians will likely criticize for giving up power too late, I followed George Washington's model and delegated power early. I take it as a compliment when people tell me the club is better run and more fun under Dustin’s management.

In the new year, we plan to expand our all-day menu, add a layer of professional management, and strive to increase our rate of growth while maintaining our steadfast commitment to quality.

With Dustin managing City Club, I plan to focus on growing the Highland Institute. While I don’t pretend to know exactly what this institute will look like, I strive to merge the best features of an Epicurean Center with Benjamin Franklin's American Philosophical Society.

Don’t be fooled by the term philosophical, though. Our focus will be on action. Case in point is our approach to Boulder’s homeless issue, where in the past four decades, we have been instrumental in hiring and partially housing nearly half a dozen previously unhoused people living along Boulder Creek.

So many opportunities, so little time: think all-day delicious and healthy food, an expanded membership, Sundance Film Festival, Boulder Performing Arts Center, AI, Quantum computing, and Crypto. The challenge thus comes down to procuring and managing our resources.

We can’t do all this alone, so please include your City Club Community and the budding Highland Institute in your 2025 plans.

— Sina.