Members present: Irene & Rich Boehm, Gene Dunning, Chris & Gary Sherrill, Edie & Jim Coyle, Ron Oliver, Rhonda & Mark Kaufmann, Rosanne Hansen, Sharadin Castaldo
Members absent: Sam Schuh, Brian & Diane Taylor, Darlene & Bill Ward, Chris & Ray Oliver, Anita & Muncel Chang, Paula & Mike McGraw, the Edwards', Susan & Garth Laughridge, Donna & Don Pearson, Terry Hansen, Kathleen Dunning.
The meeting was called to order by President Rhonda Kaufmann at 9:10 a.m. Rhonda addressed the first order of business on the meeting agenda.
Minutes: Minutes of the previous annual meeting had been mailed last March. There were no corrections and they were approved.
Treasurer’s Report: Irene distributed a spreadsheet of last year's income and expenditures, explaining that while our bank accounts balance, she was still working on getting the spreadsheet to balance as she was showing a $10.18 overage in assessments. Irene said that this would be rectified by the time the minutes were mailed out and reflected in an amended spreadsheet. (NOTE: the discrepancy was found to be the result of a tax refund being counted twice as well as a .02 miscalculation elsewhere).
Road Issues
Repair vs. Re-pavement: Gene said that our roads were last re-paved about 8 years ago at which time they were about 10 years old and in much worse shape than they are now probably due to all of the construction equipment traveling in and out during the first 10 years. In addition, Rich pointed out that the cost of asphalt right now is extremely high due to it being petroleum based. It was felt that at this time it would probably be most appropriate for the Association to get some estimates on repairing areas of the road that are particularly in need of it. At the same time, members might want to consider the inevitable need for re-pavement in the next several years in terms of preparing for the probability that it will require a special assessment.
Upkeep of Driveways & Ditches: Rhonda reminded everyone that keeping our driveways maintained and cleaning out the ditches that border our properties is each homeowner's individual responsibility in order to help preserve our roads.
Long-term and Overnight Parking: It was brought up that particularly during the recent snow we experienced there were instances of vehicles being parked out on the road as opposed to on owners own properties. This made it difficult and hazardous for those who had to maneuver around them with their own vehicles. Parking needs to be restricted to our own properties--no vehicles should be left parked out on Forest Ranch Way or Snow Mountain Way for any length of time.
Water Issues
Recent Repair: Rhonda made everyone aware of a recent repair done by North State to a leak that was coming up through the street in front of the Ward's house and running down into the ditch. In order to accomplish this it was necessary to dig up a small area of the road.
Future Repair--leak near Taylor home…hydrant?: For quite some time there has been a slow blow-off valve leak in front of the Taylor home. Although North State has indicated that we aren't losing much water through it, it is something that should be repaired. North State suggested that we might want to consider the possibility of having a fire hydrant installed at the time of the repair because it would only be about $100.00 more. In September North State provided us with a quote of $460.74 to repair the leak and install the hydrant. It was moved by Chris, seconded by Sharadin and carried that if the estimate has not increased to more than $600.00 we will instruct North State to install the hydrant in addition to repairing the leak.
Water Master Discussion: The idea of implementing a water master has been brought up at the past couple of meetings and now seems a necessity. Not only do we need someone who can serve as a knowledgeable contact person between the Association and other entities such as North State and the county, but Irene pointed out that the Department of Health Services is requiring that all water districts have an individual designated as their Water Distribution Operator who will eventually be required to go through special training and become certified. In addition, it was noted that without the willingness of a greater number of members to participate voluntarily in accomplishing the on-going water-related tasks that exist (i.e. daily free chlorine testing and monthly meter reading), paying one individual to provide these and other related services seemed a fairer way to go. Rhonda produced a copy of the list of water master duties that Greg Kallio put together last year. It was felt that while all tasks were still pertinent, the monthly drinking water sampling and submission for testing could be eliminated because Monarch had been pre-paid to do this until the end of the year. We could also continue to have Culligan service our chlorinator since they're "pros". Gene said that he would be willing to take on the position of water master. There was some discussion about rate of pay. It was decided that Gene could start at $50.00 a month and that after tracking his actual hours for a couple of months an adjustment could be made if necessary. Chris Sherrill agreed to be Gene's back-up during the month of July while he is out of town. It was moved by Rosanne, seconded by Rich and carried that Gene be appointed our water master.
Loss of Water During Power Outages: It was pointed out that one factor that could prevent whatever water is in the tanks from reaching us during a power outage is frozen pipes. During the first snow-related outage back in January Mark and Rhonda found the pumphouse door open and water barely trickling through the pipes, suggesting that they were frozen. This could possibly be prevented in the future by insulating the pipes and following through on placing a latch and combination lock on the pump house door to ensure that it remains closed. Gene said that he would look into this.
Gene contacted North State to find out what it would take to add a gas powered generator to our water system so that we would all still have water during power outages. This is something that had not only been talked about, but had been approved several years ago. North State's total estimate for this is $3560.00. This would involve setting up a back up generator system in the pump house and at the well site. We would utilize one single generator. A transfer switch would be installed in the pump house and hook up to the existing transfer switch at the well site to the existing pump now in use. North State would install a 12' power cord on the transfer switches to plug into a 10 kilowatt generator. The generator would be a Generac brand with a 12,500 watt surge. The way it would work is if there is a power outage we would plug the generator in to be able to pump the water from the tanks to the houses. In the unlikely event we'd be without power long enough that we found that the tanks were running out of water, the generator could be disconnected and moved down to the well and plugged in there in order to fill up the tanks. Gene was asked how much of the $3560.00 was the cost of the generator to which the response was $2200.00. It was suggested that perhaps we could get the very same generator elsewhere for less (such as if it were purchased by mail order from a state with no sales tax) but still have North State do the installation. Rich mentioned that we might want to consider constructing a small structure to house the generator because of how little room there is in the pump house. While it had been approved previously to purchase and install a generator, it was felt that we needed to re-approve the project because we would be paying for installation as opposed to installing it ourselves. Mark said that he would obtain some quotes on a Generac 10,000 kilowatt generator. It was moved by Rosanne, seconded by Irene and carried for the officers and board of directors to make the final decision regarding where to purchase the generator and that upon purchase we will have North State proceed with the work.
Letter From Bill Ward
Rhonda read a letter sent to the Association by Bill Ward who was unable to attend the meeting, detailing a couple of issues that he requested we address. One of those issues has already been taken care of and was covered earlier in the meeting which was the repair to the water leak under the street in front of the Wards' home. The other issue concerned the oak tree limb which hangs over and poses a threat to the water tanks if it should break off and fall. This issue has been brought up at the last two meetings and several members seemed to recall that Bill had stated at the meeting two years ago that he would take care of having the limb removed because the tree sits on his property. There is no substantiation of this in the 1999 meeting minutes however. It was pointed out that it is in the Association's best interest to have the limb removed because if it should fall, even if the Wards' insurance were to pay for repair to any damage done to the tanks and/or pumphouse, we could be without water for an indefinite period of time. Gene said that he would talk to Dale Ulsh and see if he does this sort of thing and also to Buster Marcum to find out who the Fire Dept. had gotten to do the work there. After several bids are obtained we can meet with the Wards to discuss how we can proceed with removing the limb and handling the cost.
Water Rates
Gene presented members with a detailed spread sheet of our water usage for the past year (see attached). Rhonda had received a copy prior to the meeting in order to work on a revision proposal. She found that by eliminating the summer months (June,July and August) when everyone's usage tends to be somewhat higher, the average is around 6,300 gallons which would suggest that our base of 6,000 gallons is probably pretty reasonable. It was generally felt that leaving the base rate at $45.00 for usage up to 6,000 gallons would be a good idea because while we might be able to afford to lower it a few dollars, anything above and beyond what will cover our normal expenses will be beneficial because of the previously mentioned expenditures we're looking at in the near future. Rhonda proposed a revision to water usage over 6,000 gallons which would be that instead of a rate adjustment every so many thousand gallons, members would be charged .0025 for every gallon used over 6,000, regardless of how many gallons are used. As an example, someone using 10,000 gallons would be charged .0025 for the 4,000 gallon overage which would be $10..00 in addition to the $45.00 base rate. This would only be $3.00 more than the old rates. A total of 20,000 gallons used however would be .0025 for the 14,000 gallon overage which would be $35.00 in addition to the $45.00 base for a total of $80.00 as opposed to the $69.50 that would have been charged previously. The argument is that this is fairer in terms of the cost more closely paralleling the usage, gallon for gallon. In addition, with the expenditures mentioned previously that will be coming up in the near future, this adjustment would help toward building up our accounts again. It was moved by Chris, seconded by Gene and carried that we maintain the base rate of $45.00 for water usage under 6,000 gallons and to adopt Rhonda's proposed revision of charging .0025/gal for every gallon over 6,000. This revision will be reflected in April's bill.
Neighborhood Clean-Up
After a review of how our community clean-ups are conducted, Rhonda pointed out how dismal the turn out was a year ago at the spring clean-up and while the turnout last fall was better, we certainly didn't have a participant from every household. It's discouraging for those who participate regularly to keep doing so when only a handful of people show up time after time. Rhonda questioned if it was time that we consider hiring an outside entity to do the work. The idea of continuing to conduct clean up days and issuing a compensatory bill to all of the non-participants was suggested as a possible way to address the issue in that we could use the money to hire someone to come in and finish the work that the participating residents are unable to. This would avoid yet one more expense incurred by the Association. Rich proposed that we only have one scheduled clean-up day for the community in the spring and possibly bring in a non-profit organization in the fall to do a prioritized clean-up where we've identified something that needs to be done and can give them a specific project. He also mentioned that when we do get together we need to have a better idea of what we want to get accomplished because last October people went in all different directions and we ended up with everybody being tired and not quite everything done. We really need to be focused and clear on specifically what it is we want to accomplish during the three hours. Rhonda wondered if by conducting only one clean-up day a year we might be able to get more people to participate. Rich said that he would like to maybe see us do a barbecue at the end of the clean-up to add a social aspect to the day. It was moved by Rich, seconded by Sharadin and carried that we continue just one community clean-up in May and utilize a non-profit agency for a second prioritized clean-up in October. The officers and board of directors will meet at a later date to determine which agency will be brought in and how they will be paid. The next community clean-up day is Saturday, May 5th and will be followed by a barbecue hosted by the Boehms.
Election of Officers
Rhonda resigned her position as president and Chris Sherrill offered to serve in this capacity for the coming year. It was moved by Gene, seconded by Jim Coyle and carried that Chris be appointed president. Sharadin will retain her position as vice president and Irene hers as secretary/treasurer for the coming year.
Election of Board of Directors
Rhonda offered to fill the vacancy on the board of directors created by the departure of Warren Childs. It was moved by Chris, seconded by Rich and carried that Rhonda be appointed to the board of directors. Gene resigned his position on the board of directors in lieu of his new position as water master. He nominated Jim Coyle to replace him which was seconded by Sharadin and carried. Mark will retain his seat on the board of directors.
Reminders
Unleashed, Wandering Dogs: Rhonda issued a reminder that dogs in the subdivision must be kept on leashes and not allowed to wander.
Next Years Hosts For Annual Meeting
Edie and Jim Coyle offered to host next year's annual meeting. The meeting will be on the first Saturday in March (as always!) which is March 2nd, 2002. The house address for the Coyle residence is 15399 Forest Ranch Way. Meeting time will be 9:00 a.m.
There being no further business, Rhonda adjourned the meeting at 11:55 a.m.
Respectfully Submitted,
Irene E. Boehm
Secretary/Treasurer
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The MVHA officers and board of directors met at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 11, 2001 to discuss the following issues:
Present: Mark Kaufmann, Rhonda Kaufmann, Gene Dunning, Jim Coyle, Irene Boehm, Chris Sherrill
Absent: Sharadin Castaldo
Fall Clean Up
It was decided at the March annual meeting that we would only do a community clean up in the spring and that we would try and recruit a non-profit organization to perform a fall clean up on a donation basis. In March it was left at that the officers and board of directors would meet at a later date to discuss who we might be able to utilize and how they would be paid. Chris contacted Butte College about an organization called “SIFE” who supposedly does this sort of thing, but their services are suspended for the semester. It was suggested that Chris contact Peggy at Service Learning of Butte College which she did and was sent information about how we could be put on their website in order to try and connect with students who might be able to help us. At the time of the meeting this hadn’t been pursued any further by Chris. She also contacted Chico State who referred her to the group “CAVE”, but what CAVE is about has nothing to do with what we are looking for. Irene said that Rich had contacted the organization that Edie Coyle made reference to in March, the “Well Foundation” who do work on a donation basis. The individual whose name and number Rich was given however said that he is only involved in painting projects. He said that he would have someone in the organization who might be involved with landscaping-type projects contact Rich, but Rich never heard back from anybody. Irene contacted the local chapter of the United Way to find out if any of the organizations they represent do this kind of thing. The only suggestion they could make was the Prestige Landscaping component of the Work Training Center. Rich contacted them and they said they’d have to see what we wanted done to be able to determine if they could do it , but that if they did it would cost us approximately $40.00 an hour for a supervisor and a crew of three. Other suggestions were the possibility of offering it as another fund-raiser for the Forest Ranch School 6th graders or posting what we are looking for on the bulletin board at the post office, but these didn’t generate much positive discussion. Ultimately it was concluded that if we couldn’t find anyone then we could just let it go this time because of the fact that the area around the water storage tanks is one of Gene’s responsibilities as water master anyway, and any other areas that might normally be tended to during the Fall clean-up aren’t greatly in need of attention. The removal of debris from the gutters will have to be the responsibility of the homeowners. It was decided that if we are able to recruit a non-profit organization, we will utilize them on the mutual lot next to the Flint’s property since there were too few participants in the spring to get as much work done as was really needed.
Road Repair Estimates
Baldwin construction declined to work with us because they stated that they don’t do jobs as small as ours. Chris had received an estimate from Franklin Construction for a patch and chip seal job for $11,000+. The estimates that Gene received from McWilliams and/or Black Magic(?) for complete patching and a 3/4”(?) coat were $33,000+. It was decided that in light of how great of an expense this was going to be no matter which way we went, it would be best to table the issue until the next annual meeting in March and that in the meantime we could possibly get a few more estimates. Both McWilliams and Black Magic said that the pot holes on the cul-de-sac and at the bottom of the road will not deteriorate much this winter if we are conscientious about driving around them.
Leak/Fire Hydrant
Gene is going to contact North State about proceeding with getting the blow off valve leak repaired on the Taylor’s property and having a fire hydrant installed. As was decided at the shareholder’s meeting in March, if the total cost is under $600.00, we will have North State go ahead and do it.
Oak Tree
Chris obtained an estimate from Evans Tree Service for removal of the oak tree that hangs over the water storage tanks. The estimate is $1253.75. This would be for removal of the entire tree. Gene and Mark said that they would contact people that they know of that do this type of work for additional estimates (both for the removal of the entire tree as well as just the limb that hangs over the tanks). Chris will then discuss all estimates with Bill Ward since the tree is on his property.
Gene’s Report
Gene and Chris discussed the presentation made by Craig Poundstone regarding the services he is offering to local water companies. His fee to us would be $110.00 a month, but that would not include reading water meters, daily chlorine testing or repairing leaks. Based on the fee we pay Culligan Water and Monarch Lab plus Gene’s $50.00 per month, it would not be cost effective to hire Craig since we would still need someone to perform those other tasks. There are two certifications needed to comply with county and state regulations, the T-1 and D-1. Gene has obtained the application form from the county to qualify for the D-1 certificate authorizing him to take care of our water system. Culligan has the T-1 certificate. It will cost $70.00 for Gene to get this certification and he will have to do continuing education to keep it. The initial one will be good for three years and can then be renewed for another three years. It was agreed that Gene can proceed with this. Gene said that he will be insulating the pipes before fall. He indicated that he has established a good rapport with Karen Lockhart, the county representative who inspects our system, and feels comfortable working with her.
