Bridger Creek Subdivision Community Association
Board of Directors
Minutes of Meeting – December 11, 2007
The meeting was called to order at 7:00 PM at 707 Bridger Drive by President Kim Janzen. Also in attendance were the following Board members: Sharyn Anhalt, Ernie Vyse, Dorick Sauvageau, representing a quorum. Lynn Perkins did not attend. Member Paul Gianas was also present.
A reminder to all members that city code requires sidewalks to be cleared of snow within 24 hours of a snowfall. Board members will report back at the January 8, 2008 meeting with any sidewalks that remain covered with snow. The city will be contacted for enforcement.
A motion was made to maintain the annual dues assessment at $75 per lot, motion was approved unanimously. According to the covenants (article VI Section 3 on page 15) the Board shall fix the amount of the assessment 30 days prior to the fiscal year, and prepare a roster of lots. Since the covenants do not clearly specify when statements must be mailed to members, annual dues assessments will be mailed in January in order to provide the Board with more time to prepare additional items to insert in the mailing. This will help reduce mailing costs for the association.
Paul Gianas, a member of the new Covenant and Bylaw Review Committee, was in attendance to present his recommendations on the Bylaws. Our current budgeting year of Jan-Dec along with the annual members meeting in May requires the Board to prepare a budget and dues assessment without any input or voting from members. Paul recommended that the Board adopt a new fiscal year for financial purposes only (the association's tax year will remain on a calendar year) of July-June. This will allow the Board to present an annual budget for the upcoming year to the members for approval at the annual meeting, and allow adoption of the annual dues assessment as provided by the Bylaws (Article V, 3.) The Covenants and Bylaws do not specify the fiscal year for the association, leaving the Board free to set the period for financial reporting. A motion was made to change the Association's financial year to a July-June period, beginning with July 1, 2008. This will require a short year period of January 1, 2008 through June 30, 2008. The dues assessment of $75 per year will be prorated for this period, and a six-month budget will be prepared at the January 8, 2008 meeting of the Board of Directors. This motion was passed unanimously.
Paul also presented issues regarding the voting requirements for changes to the Covenants and Bylaws. As those documents read now, it takes fewer members to approve a change to the Bylaws than a change to the Covenants. There are also many inconsistencies between our Covenants and Bylaws, and in many cases, the Covenants contain procedural requirements (such as adoption of dues assessments) that belong in the Bylaws. Paul also indicated that his research indicated that Board powers should only be given in the Bylaws, but additional Board powers are given in our Covenants.
Paul also looked into common quorum requirements for Associations of our type. In the past, we have had difficulty reaching a quorum at the annual member's meeting and at some Board of Directors meetings. Many Associations use a simple majority to constitute a quorum (we currently have a quorum requirement of 60% at a meeting of members, and 4 out of 5 Directors at a Board Meeting). Paul recommended that the Association consider a 50% level for a quorum at members meetings, and a 3 out of 5 quorum for Board Meetings.
Based on Paul's presentation, the Board will prepare a survey for inclusion in the dues assessment mailing in January. This survey will poll the members on these issues, and provide the Board with information for a possible vote on these items at the Annual Members Meeting in May 2008. Sharyn will draft a survey for discussion at the next Board Meeting.
The next regular meeting of the Board will be Tuesday January 8, 2008, at 7:00 PM, location will be announced prior to the meeting. The meeting adjourned at approximately 8:30 PM.
Submitted by: Sharyn Anhalt, Secretary/Treasurer
