Bridger Creek Subdivision Community Association
Board of Directors' Meeting
Monday, June 4, 2012
The meeting was called to order at 6:30 at the Masonic Temple (14 S. Tracy Avenue).
Present: Sharyn Anhalt, Tim Russell, Erik Steckmest, Karin Jennings, and Dorick Sauvageau.
Also attending: Adam Racow (Chair, Park & Trail Committee), Meredith Tate, and Linda Cox.
Approval of Minutes
Erik made a motion to approve the minutes from the May 21, 2012 Board meeting; Dorick seconded. There being no discussion, the minutes were unanimously approved as presented.
Design Review Committee
Sharyn pointed out that the Covenants require three members on this committee and there are currently only two members, Dorick Sauvageau and David Andreassi. The possibility or need for adding a third member was discussed and agreed to be put on hold, with the request that any unusual or atypical issues that may arise be brought to the full Board for discussion and decision.
Dorick raised the issue of an unapproved rail fence that was erected on lot 31 in Phase 3. The homeowners submitted a landscape plan to the Committee, which was approved, but then erected a fence in addition to the approved landscaping. David Andreassi discussed the issue with the lot owner, without compliance. Sharyn will draft a letter from the Board to the lot 31 owner requesting that they comply with the application and approval process for the fence. Also, Dorick noted that the boundary of lot 17 in Phase 2 has been recently staked, possibly for a fence or landscaping. D/R Committee has not contacted that owner. Sharyn will contact the owner of lot 17 to inform them of the D/R process.
Tim raised the issue of absent boulevard trees. Erik volunteered to follow up with identification of which lots are missing trees and will contact those owners.
Finance/Treasurer Report
Sharyn, as bookkeeper, reviewed the status of delinquent assessment payments. There are several lots that are >2 years past due. Current Board policy with delinquent assessments is to assess a finance charge of 12% per annum when any balance is >90 days past due. Discussion ensued regarding filing liens with the County Clerk and Recorder. Meredith made a motion to file a lien against any property if assessments are > 2 years past due. The motion was seconded by Karin. It was discussed that standard lien forms are available at Phillips Bookstore or Staples and there were questions about the amount of the filing fee. The motion was withdrawn. Sharyn mentioned that there is one property with assessments > 3 years past due. It was discussed that we could better understand the process after the first lien is filed. Dorick made a motion to file a lien on against the property having assessments > 3 years past due. It was seconded by Erik. The motion passed unanimously and the bookkeeper was instructed to file the lien.
Erik provided a review of the current (as of June 4, 2012) Balance Sheet and Budget to Actual for the current fiscal year (July 2011-June 2012). As of June 4th, the bank account has a balance of $33,536.06 and we are awaiting the May billing from Grass Choppers for lawn maintenance. $19,000.00 of the bank balance has been reserved for future improvements by the Board. The current Budget vs Actual income and expenses indicate $9,783.64 under budget for operations; of this, $5,000 was budgeted for improvements. Maintenance ran under budget due to a low snow year, requiring less snow removal.
Because the membership approved the budget and $75 annual assessment for 2012-2013 at the Annual Membership Meeting in May, Sharyn mentioned that the Board should formally adopt the same for the upcoming 2012-2013 fiscal year. Dues assessments will be mailed in July. Dorick made a motion to approve the $75 annual assessment and budget for 2012-2013 that was presented and approved by the membership at the Annual Meeting. Erik seconded. Discussion followed, with Tim asking for clarification on the balance sheet. The motion was approved with 4 ayes and Tim abstaining.
Next on the agenda was the Improvement Reserve. Karin made a motion to move $5000 of unspent budget in the Balance Sheet for the current fiscal year (2011-2012) into the Subdivision Improvements reserve for 2012-2013. It was seconded by Dorick. Discussion followed with Tim questioning the need for additional money in this fund. Karin reminded the Board that setting aside $5000 for improvements is consistent with the intention for raising the minimum annual assessment to $75, approved by the membership in 2002. At that time, the membership intended that $25 per year per lot be allocated to current and future improvements. She also mentioned that the reason the fund is currently so large is that the recent Directors have chosen not to act on any projects brought from the Park and Trails Committee. Dorick clarified that the Board has the ability to move funds out of the Subdivision Improvements reserve if needed for another purpose. The motion was approved with 4 ayes and Tim opposed.
Annual Meeting Review
Meredith stated that her main interest in attending this meeting tonight is that she was surprised by the continued tone of the dialogue at the annual meeting and is concerned about the relationship between Golf Course Partners and the homeowner's association. She knows the partners and worked with them as the initial realtor for the development. She feels they are good people.
Sharyn had contacted Jack Schunke after the annual meeting to schedule a meeting between the BCSCA Board and GCP. Jack informed Sharyn that Dorick was now chairman of the board. Dorick was asked to arrange a meeting, but stated that the GCP board was unwilling to meet with the BCSCA Board to discuss cross country skiing, the McIlhattan Trail project, or the Phase 2 trail easement. He stated that there is nothing to discuss. GCP is opposed to the McIlhattan Trail project and realizes they cannot stop it from being built, but will terminate public use of the course for skiing if the trail is pursued. There is also nothing to discuss regarding the trail easement along the north boundary of Phase 2. That has been granted and GCP will not discuss or negotiate any alternate locations for this easement.
Sharyn noted that even though the McIlhattan Trail Project was approved by the membership at the Annual Meeting in May, the Park and Trail Committee will need to consider the pros and cons of pursuing the project and obtain bids for costs before bringing it to the Board for approval to allocate funds from the Improvement Reserve.
The Board received an email from Bill Beebe with comments regarding the annual meeting. Mr Beebe asked that the minutes be corrected to reflect his request for information of Covenant requirements related to Park and Trail expenditures. Mr. Beebe also suggested that the McIlhattan Trail vote did not comply with the Covenants. He advised the Board that he may pursue legal action. Sharyn will draft a Board response, including the Covenant information requested and the Bylaws requirements for voting at the Annual Meeting; the draft response will be circulated for Board approval before sending to Mr. Beebe.
The Board also received an email from Dane Gamble, Head Greenkeeper at the Bridger Creek Golf Course, with a request to distribute a reminder to homeowners about not entering the golf course and weed control issues. After discussion, it was agreed that the information might be better received by the homeowners if it included additional explanation, along with contact information if homeowners have problems with golfers. The Board agreed that it was in our best interest to foster positive communications between the homeowners and the golf course operators. Sharyn will contact Dane to request some edits and to add golf course contact information to his requested reminder information before forwarding it to the membership.
Park and Trail Committee
Adam provided a brief update on recent Park and Trail Committee activities. He and Karin met with Thom White, City Parks Department, to touch base on maintenance and weed issues in the Phase 3 park, which is owned by the City. The City recognizes that they are responsible for maintaining this park, but their classification as a "passive park" and a lack of resources would have it maintained to a lower standard than expected by the adjacent homeowners. Thom agreed to put the Phase 3 park on their weed spraying schedule for the rest of the year, but requested that since the association had already contracted with the Grass Chopper for spraying that we continue to have Grass Chopper spray the first time, if not already done. Any remaining spraying by Grass Chopper for the association has been cancelled. The association will continue to contract with Grass Chopper to mow the park and trail edges, so that it meets the higher standards of the association. The City's mowing would be quite infrequent. The City will also look into the availability of and provide park boundary markers, as there are only a few currently remaining.
Adam informed the Board that the committee plans to organize a couple of field trips followed by a project prioritization meeting. Specific information will be forwarded to the membership by email soon. Field trips will be held June 18 and 20, with the prioritization meeting on June 21st. The intent of these gatherings is to get greater membership input into park and trail improvement or maintenance projects. There was a similar attempt to increase participation and ideas in December 2011 at a meeting at the Library which was attended by approximately 20 people.
New Business
Dorick informed us that he received a call from an owner that backs onto the vacant commercial lots adjacent to Birdie Drive, with a complaint about gopher (Richardson's ground squirrel) problems. He is looking into what can be done, and has contacted the golf course and others for input and to determine the best options.
Meeting was adjourned at 8:55 pm.
The next regularly scheduled Board meeting is Monday, August 6 at 6:30 pm at the Masonic Temple.
