The Chicagoland Cooperator's 2013 Condo, HOA & Co-op Expo was a huge success as the event attracted thousands of attendees from all across the region for a full day of education and networking.

The day was also a windfall for Donna Hippensteel, a board member at 901 South Plymouth Condominium Association in Chicago, who was the lucky winner of The Chicagoland Cooperator's Grand Prize: a $2,500 contribution to her association's reserve fund, courtesy of The Chicagoland Cooperator and parent company, Yale Robbins Publications, LLC.

Hippensteel was awarded the check for her association’s win, and was excited about being chosen. She says that two options for the money include purchasing new artwork for the community’s party room or purchasing and installing gas grills for the barbecue area. “These are both items that have been talked about in the past but have not been given priority. This prize will allow us to give one of these items, the priority to get it done,” she says.

A Win-Win Proposition

Another lucky board member will be selected for the $2,500 grand prize when the Chicagoland Cooperator’s Condo, HOA & Co-op Expo returns to the Navy Pier Convention Center on October 28, 2014 from 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Now in its fourth year of serving Chicagoland’s condo, HOA and co-op communities, the Expo is the biggest event of its kind, and will once again showcase hundreds of exhibitors from attorneys to landscapers to roofers to managers and financial professionals. The show will also feature timely, informative seminars, as well as free advice booths staffed by industry pros eager to help condo, HOA and co-op board members and unit owners, building owners and managers keep their building communities running smoothly.

To qualify for the reserve fund drawing, you must attend the Expo. Complete rules and entry details, as well as information about exhibitors, seminars, and other attractions, can be found at the Expo website at www.chicagocondoexpo.com. Admission to the Expo is free and registration is recommended.

Prepare to Spend the Day

The Expo is literally a one-stop, custom-built marketplace for vendors, products and ideas. “The express purpose of the Chicago Expo is to help attendees make useful, productive connections, gain valuable information, and network with their peers,” says company president Yale Robbins.

So if you’re a decision-maker for a condo, homeowners association, or co-op community—or even if you just call one home—and you have a pressing legal issue or an important project waiting in the wings, you owe it to yourself and your community to drop by the Expo and experience what it has to offer. It would take months to meet with the same number of vendors and professionals a typical Expo attendee will interact with in one afternoon on the show floor.

A Learning Experience

To help those involved—or even just interested—in the administration of a residential building, condo or homeowners association, the 2014 seminar panels will provide in-depth discussion of the legal, administrative, management, and financial concerns of condo and HOA managers, board members and residents.

Seminars will be presented by Associa, DRF Trusted Property Solutions, The Building Group, Advantage Management and Association Evaluation. There will be more information provided as the Expo comes closer.

All presentations are free for all attendees, and conclude with a Q&A session to allow audience members to get direct feedback from the panelists. The Expo seminars always attract standing-room-only crowds so make sure to arrive early.

Come to the Expo for your chance to win, network with industry pros and learn something new. Register for free admission at www.chicagocondoexpo.com.     

Liam P. Cusack is the associate editor of The Chicagoland Cooperator.