I just went through the court filing in Melo park and it is my opinion that the Local elders and Branch have really screwed themselves. I hope this case gets some media attention. It is so funny because I remember hearing about an Elder in Sacramento who refused to go along with the remodel of the Sylvan hall in Citrus Heights. There was a big hullaballo there about the corporate officers. I would bet you money that Anthony Smith was the legal beagle on it also. He is the Branch's lawyer for things on the West Coast.
I know for a fact that the RBC was encouraging remodels for a while. That is part of the new inspection process that identified things that needed to be fixed. It sure seems like a nifty way for the branch to hide their money and then make additional money on the remodel project with the end result of having the deed in the Societies hands.
What is also kinda funny is the branch used to loan money to the congregation for a remodel at a rate of 3% or so. The max loan term was 10 years. Around 2 years ago they sent a letter to the elders telling them that the loans would be set at 0%. I wonder if that was due to tax exempt reasons?
SIAM