Minutes

Whittier Community Associates HOA, Inc.

Regular Meeting Minutes

August 23, 2022

 

The Board of Directors of the Whittier Community Association met via Zoom on August 23, 2022, at 7:00 p.m.

 

 

Present:

Paul Zimnik, President

Andrea Weaver, Vice President

Royle Kidwell, Director

Melissa Lentz, Director

Ronnie Lushbaugh, Director

Nancy Sweet, Director

Jackie Parks, Director

 

Absent:

Bernarda Jackson, Treasurer

Laura Ferguson, Secretary

 

 

 

Others Present:

Several Homeowners

Tim Pelletier & Dejan Milenkov, Continental Pools

Nancy Keen, Vanguard Management, Community Representative

Renee Bilinski, Recording Secretary

 

  1. CALL TO ORDER:

Paul Zimnik, President of Whittier Community HOA, called the regular meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. with a quorum present.

 

  1. REGULAR MINUTES: The Board discussed the June 28, 2022 Minutes as presented and had a few edits. The President reminded the Board that the minutes are not meant to be verbatim but a summary of the general discussion per item with the motions and actions captured. The Board discussed limiting timing of any edits as to not occupy too much of the meeting. The President concluded that the Recording Secretary would only record a summary of the discussions.

 

Motion: To accept the June 28, 2022 Minutes as edited.

Sweet/Weaver                                                                                                Vote 7/0/0

           

  1. HOMEOWNER & GUEST FORUM:
  1. Reserve Study Questions: A Homeowner noted they sent questions on the Reserve Study. The Board noted that it would be one of the actionable items during this meeting.

 

  1. Ballot Questions: A few Homeowners asked about the upcoming ballot voting for Board Members. They asked if they could have electronic voting and if the ballot wording could be reordered to be less confusing regarding the proxy. The Board discussed the points the Homeowners brought up in regard to the paper ballots and the concerns regarding control of fraudulent electronic submissions.

 

  1. Executive Sessions: A Board Member noted that during the previous meeting’s executive session they discussed trash concerns in the Wetherburne area and that it was communicated to Homeowners and the intent was misconstrued from wanting to help source solutions for the Homeowners. The Board Member asked the City about solutions, and they said that a 32-gallon trash can be picked up by their trucks if Homeowners wanted to purchase them. Another Board Member noted that anything shared during an executive session is confidential and should not be communicated outside of the meetings. The President noted that anything discussed during the executive sessions is confidential as it is meant to cover the personal finances of Homeowners and each Board Member signed an agreement that they will keep it confidential. The President noted for the record that if any of the Board Members were revealing what is shared during the executive session, that they would be breaking their confidentiality agreement and be voted off of the Board. The President also noted that the executive session is limited in the topics allowed by Maryland law and that the Board needs to keep any topics outside of those parameters for regular meeting discussions.

 

  1. MANAGEMENT REPORT:
  1. Fall Pool Repairs: Continental Pools inspected each of the three (3) pools for any necessary pool repairs needed this fall. They have again provided a breakdown of the strongly recommended, recommended, and the suggested items, including the Chemical Controllers with their associated plan review fee. It is recommended to strip the plaster and install a new white coat surface for Greenleaf, as was completed on Wetherburne last year. Once this has been completed, all of the pools will have been stripped and resurfaced. The filter system at Wetherburne also needs to be replaced and was provided as a separate proposal today. As usual, prices are subject to a 10% discount if work is approved before September 1, 2022. If approved, the cost would be paid from Reserve Funds. The proposals were provided for the Board’s review.

 

Continental Pools thanked the Board for the continued relationship and noted that so far, they have heard that this season has been a good experience. They noted the costs of labor and materials has continued to go up considerably, along with continued difficulty in sourcing materials. They explained the repairs are better to do in the Fall when the cost of materials is not as high as in the Spring, and they can’t guarantee the prices won’t continue to go up.

 

The Board had a few questions about the items on the proposals. Continental Pools explained what the items were and clarified the Board’s labeling of recommended and strongly recommended. As per previous years, the Board determined that the chemical controllers and associated line items are still not yet required by Maryland regulations for semi-public pools and therefore they will wait to use them. Continental Pools provided the benefits and reasons why they recommend installing the chemical controllers. The Board discussed concerns on pricing moving forward and whether they should be conservative on paying for items now or later.

 

Motion: To eliminate the two chemical controllers and associated plan review fee on each pool’s repair proposal.

Weaver/Kidwell                                                                                      Vote 7/0/0

 

Motion: To accept the proposal for the Wetherburne Pool filter repair proposal for $9,750.00 from Continental Pools, to be paid by Reserves.

Weaver/Kidwell                                                                                      Vote 6/1/0

 

Motion: To eliminate the optional pump and motor replacements in both Wetherburne and Cobblestone pool repair proposals.

Kidwell/Weaver                                                                                      Vote 7/0/0

 

Motion: To accept the resurface line item in the Greenleaf pool repair proposal, to be paid by Reserves.

Kidwell/Parks                                                                                         Vote 7/0/0

 

Motion: To accept the remaining items on the Continental Pools pool repair proposals for Wetherburne, Cobblestone, and Greenleaf, with the above exceptions, to be paid by Reserves.

Weaver/Lushbaugh                                                                                Vote 7/0/0

 

  1. Pool Management Contract Renewal: The renewal contracts with Continental Pools were provided for the Board’s review. The labor shortage and minimum wage increases will continue to cause tremendous impacts on costs for lifeguards, supervisory, and staffing positions. The contract is renewing at an 8% increase.

 

Continental Pools was available to answer the Boards questions regarding the change in labor market and that they will not be able to provide a contract for more than a year to ensure that the terms are fair to both the Association and the company with whatever fluctuations occur in the labor market moving forward. They cannot predict how things will continue to change and it would be better to renew the contract for one year at this time. Management noted that they have heard many other locations have had a lot of closures due to no shows with the lifeguards and that they have not had this problem this year. Board Members remarked on how great the lifeguards have done and how the company has managed the pools this season. They also noted that the company went above and beyond to help with moving the old and new furniture at the beginning of the season. The electronic registration system is going really great and internet access is working far better without having to worry about hotspots running out of data.

 

Motion: To accept Continental Pools Pool Management Contract Renewal proposal.

Parks/Lushbaugh                                                                                   Vote 7/0/0

 

  1. Landscape Improvements: Two landscape proposals from Ruppert Landscapes were provided for the Board’s review to address Prentice/Dunmore tot lot concerns as well as dead common area trees on Lakeside Drive. Replacements for two (2) of the dead trees are not recommended due to the surrounding plant material. The removal of the roots and installing 6” of playground safety surfacing at the Prentice/Dunmore tot lot totals at $5,125.00. Removing the 4 dead trees on Lakeside Drive and replacing trees at 2400 with Crepe Myrtle and Dogwood totals at $2,750.00.

 

Motion: To accept Ruppert Landscapes proposals.

Sweet/Weaver                                                                              Vote 7/0/0

 

  1. Reserve Study Update Proposal: The Association had Reserve Advisors complete a Reserve Study for the Association in 2017. Recently the Maryland General Assembly has passed new legislation requiring all condominiums and homeowner associations to undertake regular reserve studies of common area components. Under House Bill 107, a community that has not had a reserve study on or after October 1, 2018 must undertake one no later than October 1, 2023, and the study must be updated every five years thereafter. Management obtained a proposal from Reserve Advisors to complete a Reserve Study Update for a total cost of $4,450.00. The proposal was provided for the Board’s review.

 

As the Board has previously discussed, there are currently twenty-four (24) storm drain catch basins included in the study as they are adjacent to the Association owned parking lots and common areas. The City of Frederick inspected the townhouse areas and determined there are only eight (8) inlets that would be the Association’s responsibility to maintain. This responsibility would be for the structure and the pipe leading into the next downstream structure. This information will be given to the reserve specialist when the study is updated.

 

In addition, there has been some Board discussion to remove the storm drain inlets from the townhouse components and add them to the general components. This would require a Board motion. They were originally included as a townhouse component, as they were deemed to be for the primary benefit of the townhome owners.

 

The Board discussed tabling this to have enough time to discuss. They also discussed the storm management system item and timing with addressing this does not need to be done prior to the study being conducted.

 

Motion: To move forward with engaging Reserve Advisors with their proposal for the Reserve Study, with the provision that the board will be able to provide further discussion on items currently being evaluated.  

Parks/Sweet                                                                                             Vote 7/0/0

 

  1. 2023 Draft Operating Budget: A copy of the 2023 Draft Operating Budget was provided for the Board’s review. Based upon the requirements of State and County laws, the anticipated schedule for the budget review, comment and approval should be as follows:
    1. August Board Meeting: Board members to review Budget and approve draft for publication to the members for comment.
    2. October Board Meeting: Hear comments from homeowners on proposed budget. Final approval of 2023 Operating Budget.
    3. November/December: Mail Budget approval notice and new payment coupons to homeowners.

 

Motion: To approve the 2023 Draft Operating Budget for publication to the members for comment.

Parks/Lushbaugh                                                                                   Vote 7/0/0

 

  1. Electric Charge Station Agreement: As the Board approved at the June meeting, the Electric Vehicle Charging Station Installation, Maintenance, and Indemnification Agreement and the Board Resolution were posted on the Association’s website and distributed to the townhome owners by email. They were provided for the Board’s review and final approval.

 

Motion: To accept the Electric Vehicle Charging Station Installation, Maintenance, and Indemnification Agreement and the Board Resolution as developed by the Association’s Attorney and as posted to the website.

Lushbaugh/Sweet                                                                                   Vote 7/0/0

 

  1. Shutter Guidelines: As the Board requested, Management asked the ACC Committee to submit updated language regarding shutters. Provided for the Board’s review, the ACC Committee created recommended language for the Guidelines regarding shutters.

 

Motion: To accept the ACC language regarding shutters for the Guidelines.

Weaver/Sweet                                                                                          Vote 7/0/0

 

  1. Fall Craft Festival: The 2nd Annual Fall Craft Festival will take place on Saturday, October 15th, 2022. Andrea Weaver has reserved the bounce castle, face painter, and portable toilets. She needs approval form the Board to proceed with these expenses. She is currently working with a few vendors to provide cider and other items for the event. The Board asked about a few of the vendors and what the attraction was last year to them that increased the proposed use this year. A flier will be posted on the website.

 

Motion: To authorize the request of up to $2,000.00 for the Fall Craft Festival event expenses.  

Kidwell/Sweet                                                                                         Vote 5/1/1

 

  1. OLD BUSINESS:
  1. Cattails: The Board discuss adding the topic of the status of the cattail removals to the next meeting as there are other components still in process that need to be addressed. The City has extended the time for the removal process due to the construction in the area, there is no current deadline.

 

  1. Homeowner Forum – Ballots: The Board determined the electronic voting request and proxy wording question from the Homeowner Forum will be discussed in the next meeting due to timing.  

 

  1. Posting the Meeting Agenda: The Board discussed posting the agenda of the meetings to the portal. Management has posted them in the portal. The Board asked if the names could be changed to populate it at the top of the documents and if it could be attached to the email blast.

 

Action: Management will attach the agendas to the email blasts and look into how the documents list can be modified in the portal so they can be posted at the top.

 

  1. NEW BUSINESS: No new business at this time.

 

  1. COMMITTEE REPORTS:
  1. ACC Report: Due to the COVID-19 restrictions, the ACC Committee has been reviewing and approving applications by email. The requested draft shutter guidelines are noted above in the Management Report section.

 

  1. Pool Committee: See above items discussed regarding contract and repairs.

 

  1. Townhouse Committee: Have some questions that they have sent to Management and reviewing the answers.

 

  1. Condo Committee: There is a new state law on violation procedures as of October 1st and they are changing the policy to reflect this change. Wanted to note this would affect all condominiums.

 

  1. Landscape Committee: N/A

 

  1. Social Committee: N/A

 

  1. Stormwater Management Committee: The Committee has been in communication with the City about the inlets and they are continuing to discuss which the Committee has identified are the Association’s responsibility or the City’s responsibility to maintain.  

 

  1. Treasurer’s Report: The Board reviewed the financial reports.

 

  1. ADJOURNMENT: There being no additional business for the Board to conduct, the meeting adjourned at 8:55 p.m.

 

Motion: To adjourn the regular meeting at 8:55 p.m.

Parks/Kidwell                                                                                               Vote: 7/0/0

 

Please note the next scheduled meeting is to be held on Tuesday, October 25, 2022, at 7:00 pm via Zoom.

 

Respectfully,

 

Renee Bilinski

Recording Secretary