Karen Robinson our Board President welcomed the group in attendance and confirmed that we had a quorum by proxy and attendance.

Karen asked the group to review the 2010 Annual Meeting minutes.  Alice McDonough (J15) motioned to accept the minutes as presented, Dick Krauss (U2) seconded, motion carried.

Karen then asked that all owners who can be contacted by email please be sure we have that information so that you can be sent any updates or reports.

Gayle Redd (W15) asked about the difference between the lake restoration assessment and the actual expense.  Karen Robinson (D1) explained that there was a cost overrun due to an active fresh water spring that was located near W building.  We had to have additional engineer input and there were additional costs to make sure this area could be stabilized properly. Additional tie backs were added as well as more drainage. This cost overrun was added to the expense line of the reserve budget and projects from that budget were put on hold in 2010 to cover this additional expense.   The reserve budget 2010 came in under budget due to this decision by your Board of Directors.

Janet Hueners (B2) asked about the insurance line item being under budget by $30,000.  Ray Blount (board member) explained that we hold $30,000 to cover insurance expense that is due for Wind and Hail insurance each January.  Ray asked that Theresa put that into the budget as a payable to better reflect our insurance expenses.

Gayle Redd asked about the duck food expense line.  He does not want the white ducks on property and asked if they could be removed.  Other owners noted that the ducks are an amenity onsite and many guests and other owners want the ducks here.  Mr. Redd mentioned the mess that they leave on the sidewalks and that they come onto his patio. 

Dennis Whitfield (Q9) asked why we put down winter rye grass seed.  He felt it could be an area that we could save funds if we did not have winter grass and that is was harmful to our summer grass.  Other owners who spoke felt it improved the grounds significantly during the winter.  Theresa mentioned that the expense for this grass seed is about $600.00 per year and it lasts from October until April.  Bruce Taylor (E12) explained that rye seed is used on all area golf courses and does not harm St. Augustine (summer) grass.

Management contract services were discussed.  Theresa explained that in 2006 the association was paying $41,000 for management fee and $19,000 for onsite staff.  We now pay $39,000 for management fee and an additional $9,000 for staff to be onsite M-F.  Joan Lewis (T2) stated that the association benefits from American Dream staff experience with the property and from the amount and quality of services they provide.  Janet Hueners also mentioned that during the bidding process when she was on the Board of Directors that American Dream provided the lowest bid for the most service.  Karen Robinson  mentioned that Theresa as an owner and manager keeps a close eye on this property and our budgets.

Provision for uncollectible dues line item was discussed.   Ray Blount explained that this line was added to give the board a clearer picture of actual funds available.   Merrill Templeman (A3) is the board member that coordinates collections with an attorney we have on retainer.  Merrill stated that we turn collections over to this attorney after a unit owner is 3 months in arrears.  The attorney then tries to collect from the owner, places a written lien on the property (association already has an automatic lien) and will proceed with foreclosure when necessary.  Currently we have 3 properties that are at that level. 

Mr. Thurmond (U6) asked if we knew if water consumption had gone up or just the rate.  Theresa said she would research that but did not think there was any significant increase in consumption.  Ed Huber (A12) asked if units with higher consumption could be billed accordingly, Theresa said it could not be determined because units do not have individual meters and our association is not set up to divide expenses in that way.

Mr. Thurmond asked about the bike storage income.  Theresa explained that in 2009 when this program was started owners were billed the annual fee and not assessed again for 2010.  The income reported for 2010 is from new owners entering the bike storage program during 2010.  A billing for all bikes in this storage area were sent out again in January.

Gayle Redd asked that the landscaping include replacement of all of the boxwoods in front of his W building and that many shrubs on the property needed replacement.   Karen noted that this would be reviewed and thought hiring a landscape architect to draw up a master plan for improvements would be very expensive.  Theresa mentioned that many owners feel a very personal connection with the landscaping in front of their units and may not want their shrubs to be replaced.

Karen Robinson asked if there were any comments or questions regarding the 2010 lake restoration project.  No questions, many owners commented it was a great improvement.

Dee Foley (P7) mentioned that before so many people replace the existing style window she would like the association to consider a major upgrade to the look of the buildings.  As an example using French doors instead of the sliding doors or windows with panes instead of the existing type windows.  Joan Lewis mentioned that she is a realtor and has never had a prospective buyer mention that the complex looks dated.   The interior of the units may be but always gets positive feedback on the exterior and complex. Ed Huber asked if there were any other ways to generate revenue.  Karen Robinson said if any owners have ideas to generate revenue to submit them to us.  Denis Whitfield asked if the board could review all line items to see if there could be any savings.  Karen stated that is what the board does do and Merrill added that each utility contract is reviewed, as an example gas, internet, trash and phones are all reviewed regularly.

The income line for other income includes vending machine incomes.  Theresa pointed out the laundry facilities have expenses related to them such as gas, power, water that are not broken down to show actual profit if any from this amenity. Dee Foley said that we need to keep the two separate laundry facilities to accommodate the one bedroom unit owners and felt it would not work out with only one in operation.

Bruce Taylor motioned to accept the financials as presented, Karen Robinson seconded.  There were no additional comments, motion carried. 

Three board positions were open, current board members Karen Robinson (D1), Marie Merriman (W3) and Danny Stanaland (J1) offered to serve on the board again.  Barbara Gunn (J13) also volunteered to serve on our board.    Barbara has served on our board in the past as well.   Owners were asked to select three board members from the slate presented; no nominations were made from the floor.  The vote came in with Karen Robinson, Danny Stanaland and Barbara Gunn for the 2011 and 2012 board.

Karen Robinson brought up the problems we have with units that are not on the pass key system.  Units that are not on the pass key system do not get extermination services and cannot be accessed in the event of an emergency.  Theresa cannot help them with lockouts either.  The board has notified the owners that this is an agreement the unit owners have with the association and all units must comply.  If you have decided you do not want our exterminator you will be required to show proof that you are having your unit sprayed by a qualified exterminator at your expense.  If your unit has a pet the unit does not get sprayed unless you have the pet secured.  These owners must also show proof that this is being sprayed at the owner’s expense on a regular basis.

Another major concern of this board is that so many units do not have functioning cut off valves on their sinks, commodes and hot water heaters.  Many have frozen open and cannot be shut off if there is a water leak. The entire building has to be shut off and drained to stop a flood in these units which causes additional water damage to adjacent unit owners.  This could be determined to be negligence if these shut offs are not operational.   The owners in attendance agreed that the HOA should inspect units for working cut off valves, age of hot water heater and leaking commodes or faucets.  Unit owners will be notified if their water cut offs are not functioning and required to have them replaced.  Hot water heaters that are 10 years or older will also be required to be replaced.  Theresa will get some pricing together for changing out cut off valves and will work with the owners to schedule a good time to turn off the building water to get this work completed.

Gerry Reeves (R5) asked if there could be a fine structure set up for rule violations such as pass key requirement.  Karen said that the board would review that.

Air conditioning drain lines were discussed.  It is the owner’s responsibility to keep their drain lines cleared and should have this checked annually.  Downstairs owners are usually the most affected by water damage caused by these lines being clogged.  Arline Ingram asked that the landscapers clear around these drain lines and eliminate any build up causing the drain to clog.  Theresa said that it is the owner’s responsibility to keep these clear; the association does not want to take on that responsibility for individual units.  The landscaper will be asked to keep an eye on this build up.  Many owners have installed a small french drain to help prevent problems.

Mr. Pope a local insurance agent was asked to answer any questions unit owners may have on the types of insurance coverage they may need for their units.   He stated that each owner would need a policy to cover their personal belongings and should have liability insurance especially if the unit is a rental unit.  H06 policies are the typical policy owners would acquire to cover the gap that exists with the $5000 deductible the HOA policy has in place.  Our Homeowners Association policy would not cover owner’s personal items and would not kick in until that $5000 deductible (owner’s expense) is reached.  If an upstairs owner causes damage to a downstairs/adjacent owner our documents state the downstairs/adjacent owner would bear the burden of repair.  They can then proceed with legal action against upstairs/adjacent owner if they wanted to prove the damage was caused due to negligence.  It is very important that you insure your property for this type of damage!

Karen Robinson asked if there were any other issues owners would like to discuss.  None were presented, Karen adjourned the meeting.  Meeting length was 1 hour 52 minutes.