BOARD MEETING MINUTES
October 14, 2006
CALL TO ORDER
President Al Isaac called the meeting to order at 9:03am. Board members present were President Al Isaac, 2nd Vice President Marvin Frayer, Director Greg Hernden, Director Don Papesh, Director Sharon Bridges and Director Brian Kozlowski. Also present were Manager Gail White, Treasurer Priscilla Moore and Secretary Todd Graham. President Al Isaac opened the meeting with The Pledge of Allegiance. Director Brian Kozlowski followed with prayer.
President Al Isaac added moving into a closed session for legal issue pertaining to Janice Szpara, lots 1046, 1047 under New Business. Director Brian Kozlowski switched the acceptance of 1st Vice President Ken Passage’ resignation with the appointment of a new 1st Vice President so the resignation could be accepted before new officers are discussed. Motion to approve agenda by 2nd Vice President Marvin Frayer, seconded by Director Greg Hernden. Motion carried.
Member Jimmie Neal called a “point of order”. Mr. Neal explained that at the end of the last board meeting there was only a call for the “yeah” votes to adjourn and no call for “nay” votes so the meeting was technically still going on. President Al Isaac asked if there were any nays regarding the adjournment of last months meeting, hearing none, the meeting was adjourned. Motion to approve minutes from the September Board Meeting by Director Sharon Bridges. Seconded by Director Greg Hernden. Motion carried.
TREASURER'S REPORT
For the month of September 2006 Treasurer Priscilla Moore reported income of $24,479.02 and expenses of $41,852.21. Cash on Hand at September 30, 2006 was $180,351.17. Motion made by Director Don Papesh to accept the Treasurers report. Seconded by 2nd Vice President Marvin Frayer. Motion carried.
President Al Isaac reported:
The emergency entrance/exit has been completed.
Thanks to all the volunteer work done on this project the Association saved 1300 dollars.
The front entrance decorations look great and Director Greg Herndon, Mark Connelly and Richard Helm have redone the flagpole.
2nd Vice President Marvin Frayer had to have a stint put in due to chest pains this past week.
Member Bob Pelfery’s son in law suddenly passed away at age 35.
Correspondence and concerns brought up over proposed by-laws changes at last months meeting; The Board of Directors will not vote on them. They have been turned over to the By-Laws Committee for review. Any changes on by-laws will be voted on by the entire membership.
The quarterly budget review meeting was this held this morning at 8:00am before the Board of Directors meeting.
A letter from member Fred Stephenson regarding more privacy in the men’s shower room was read. Manger Gail White was directed by President Al Isaac to go over proposed changes to shower area and get an estimate of costs.
MANAGER'S REPORT AND APPROVAL OF PAYABLES
Manager Gail White reported:
Still waiting for quote on repair of the front gate. This has been narrowed down to two companies.
Lien letters have been updated, everyone property owner in White Birch that is over 1 year behind in assessments received a letter. 121 letters were mailed sent, 16 called and made payment arrangements and 6 paid in full.
Collection agency references check out 100%.
Members that own the basement on wolf lane have hired a builder to build the exterior and some landscaping. After this is completed the home will be put up for sale leaving interior open for completion.
Members Dawn and Dan Holzer have been conducting a gypsy moth count in White Birch.
There are 28 properties currently listed for sale by Reiss Real Estate that are owned by the association. Information on those listings is in each Directors packet.
Motion to pay payables by Director Don Papesh. Seconded by Director Sharon Bridges. Motion carried.
SECURITY REPORT
Bruce Rouston reported. Things have slowed down a lot since members are packing up for winter. Members are asked to remember to let security know when you are leaving so we can watch your property. Director Brian Kozlowski is working with us on new safety rules.
Activities Committee report by Manager Gail White – Community hay ride October 28 at 6:00pm starting at the clubhouse and ending at the campground pavilion with a bonfire and treats. Halloween party is October 29 from 6:00pm to 9:00pm. Members attending are asked to bring a candy donation.
By-Laws Committee report by Jerry White – Committee is going over by-laws that have been pointed out by the Board of Directors. Next meeting is October 21st at 8:00am. The Committee should be making recommendations to the Board of Directors in a couple months.
Campground Committee report by Fred Witchell – We have members still using the campground and there are reservations through end of October. Storage area will be open 24 hours this weekend. Members using storage please check maps posted at campgrounds and clubhouse. Map will be posted online soon. President Al Isaac added that the Board is working on fencing the storage area and Director Don Papesh has a lead on some used fencing.
Communications Committee report by Jan Isaac – Committee met September 16, at 8:00am. The minutes have been posted to web site. Regular meeting is the 3rd Saturday of each month at 10:00am. Deadline is the 15th of the month for information to be added to the Birch Bark. The Birch Bark was mailed on September 22nd with an approximate cost of $420.00. Past advertisers are being contacted regarding placing new ads. Thanks to all the volunteers for helping mail out the Birch Bark. Next meeting is October 21st at 10:00am.
Jan read the following report from Todd Graham regarding updates to our Web Site:
Updates done to the Web Site:
The Insert Real Estate page has been completely redone. In the past when members wanted to upload a real estate ad they would submit the information and then have to wait for the information to be approved before the real estate listing would be able to be viewed on the Web Site. Now, member real estate listings show up immediately. Also in the past, if members wanted a picture listed with their real estate ad they would have to email it to the office and wait for it to be uploaded. Now, members can ad a picture themselves and it will show immediately as well. Real estate listings use to automatically expire after 30 days; they now will remain listed for 180 days unless the member notifies the office that the property has sold.
The Birch Bark archives are back online. Members can now view or download in Microsoft Word format or Adobe pdf format Birch Bark Newsletters going all the way back to August 1998.
The WBL Maps page has also been completely redone. Any visitor to our Web Site can now choose to view or download a complete lot map of the association or choose to view or download any one of four sections of our lot map.
The header segment of each page on our Web Site has been updated to show 12 different pictures of our community scrolling in the upper left-had corner of the screen.
Some links that were inside the Members Only area have been moved so that anyone viewing the site can view the pages. This includes WBLRA Policies, WBLRA Contacts and our Photo Album of events.
The Ask the Board section has been updated to also promote to members the ability to ask our General Manager and any Committee Chair as well as a Director.
Items being worked on for the Web Site:
Working on enhancing the ability of members to place classified ads. Currently members can place an ad that expires after 14 days. The goal is to update this option so members can choose to have their ad listed for one, two or four weeks or even several months if they need to before having it automatically delete. The ability to post a picture with a classified ad will also be added.
Also working on adding the ability for members to search our Web Site for any key words or phrases. This would be useful when a member has a question. Example: A member may want to learn what policies have been adopted regarding fences in WBL. The member could simply type in the word “fence” in the search field and the Web Site would list all documents containing that word including our Covenants and Restrictions, By-Laws and Board meeting minutes.
And a map of our camper storage area will be listed showing what storage sites are rented and by whom and what sites are still available
Conservation Committee – No report was given.
Election Committee report by Todd Graham – Last meeting was September 16th at 9:30am. Our next meeting has been moved to October 28th at 9:30am.
Entrance Committee report by Linda Herndon - We have four ladies signed up to help. Would love more. Fall decorations have been put up; dying birch tree and a couple plum trees have been removed.
The committee is making plans for Christmas decorations and discussing placement of anew bulletin board at the front entrance area.
Environmental Protection Committee report by Chick Witchell – The committee has no correspondence for last month. 1 campsite, 1 accessory building on lot 319 with variance due to swamp
area on property. The committee has been working on updating policy regarding placement of accessory buildings in White Birch and a better explanation will be provided to members so this policy is easier to understand. All EPC Policies are being reviewed to see if language in any needs updating. EPC meetings are held the 2nd Thursday of each month at 6:15pm at the clubhouse.
Future Planning Committee – no report was given.
Seedling and Sapling Committees – no report was given.
President Al Isaac took a moment to thank all the volunteers for serving on our various committees and thanked the committees for their service to White Birch.
Chick Witchell lot 648 – Charles Hastings declined co-chair of the EPC and Dennis Carlson accepted.
Georgia Romine lot 542 - Please let clubhouse attendants know if there is a mess in the bathroom area so it can be cleaned up right away.
Marty Perkins lot 1095 – Expressed concerns that the audit is not on the meeting agenda, what is the hold up? President Al Isaac explained that the Board of Directors have been corresponding with auditor and requested final report.
Ken Passage lot 163 – Concerned that the budget meeting was not posted in advance. Manager Gail White stated it was posted seven days prior to the meeting as is required by our By-laws. Notices were posted at the clubhouse and web site but the front gate bulletin board was missed.
Mike Turner lots 86,87,88 – asked to have the purchase of the basement on Wolf Lane clarified? Manager Gail White restated the section of her Managers Report dealing with this issue. Mr. Turner also expresses concern over allowing the owner to construct a "model home" which is not allowed per our by-laws. The Board would have to grant permission. Manger Gail White stated the owner would go to the EPC for proper approval.
Mary Perkins lot 1095 – Stated that the owner should have to use real estate agent for home on wolf lane, not sell by owner.
Ken Passage lot 163 – Our Covenants and Restrictions require completion of building in 6 months and it sounds like home on Wolf will not be completed in that time. Chick Witchell from the EPC explained that the Covenants and Restrictions are referring to the exterior of a home only.
Judy Gute lots 82,83. – Expressed concern over agenda item to appoint a new 1st Vice President. Recommends waiting until after new person is appointed to the Board of Directors and all seats are filled.
Toni Passage lot 163 – Member Marie Dalka has passed away.
Toni Passage lot 163 – Concerns over budget, security is at 86% of year - are two new security officers volunteers or employees? Were those two positions posted? Manager Gail White stated positions were not posted. Toni stated positions should have been posted.
Judy Gute lots 82,83 - Agrees with Toni Passage, any paid position should be posted. Manager Gail White announced these positions would be posted.
Matt Lucas lot 404 - Have all board members reviewed security camera pictures from front gate and are you happy with the picture quality? Director Greg Hernden feels they could be. Mr. Lucas feels gate lighting should be updated to meet lighting requirements for security cameras.
Pat Graham lot 1302 – Stated that the two open security positions not being posted was not an intentional attempt to play favorites when filling these two positions.
Marty Perkins lot 1095 – Expressed concern on profit and loss, $1,700.00 dollars in communication expenses? Treasurer Priscilla Moore explained that this month had two phone bills, mobile phones and networking charge.
Matt Lucas lot 404 - Any consideration to anti-poaching signs being posted in White Birch? Security Representative Bruce Rouston said security would be posting no hunting signs shortly.
Fred Witchell lot 648 - Keys for emergency exit have been given to fire and rescue authorities.
Tabled motion for EPC from last months Board meeting. Director Brian Kozlowski withdraws his motion. Director Greg Hernden reported that the EPC has put together a package for all EPC members and himself for review and change recommendations that will be covered at the next meeting.
Collection Agency – The Carlton Company. President Al Isaac explained that our auditor had suggested hiring a collection agency. This company has a much lower charge for collection and specializes in associations similar to ours. Recommendations came from other property associations. Member Marty Perkins asked if lien policy would be changed if this were adopted, President Al Isaac stated no. 2nd Vice President Marvin Frayer motions to accept, seconded by Director Brian Kozlowski. Director Greg Hernden stated the Board of Directors owes it to members in good standing to collect and this is an additional step to accomplish collection. President Al Isaac asked manger Gail White what is required as a contract. Manger Gail White stated that would be the next step if Board is interested then she would get information before we enter into contract. Director Sharon Bridges stated we should get the information first on rates, methods, etc. 2nd Vice President Marvin Frayer and Director Brian Kozlowski resend motion. President Al Isaac directs Manager Gail White to gather information for the next meeting.
Acceptance of resignation of 1st Vice President Ken Passage. Director Brian Kozlowski moved to accept, seconded by Director Greg Hernden. President Al Isaac sincerely thanks Ken for his service and insight and professionalism. All in favor. Motion carried. The open seat will be posted in the Birch Bark, Web Site, clubhouse and front gate. Deadline will be 4:00pm on the Friday before the next work group session meeting.
Appointment of Officers: Director Brian Kozlowski moved to appoint 2nd Vice President Marvin Frayer as 1st Vice President and Director Greg Hernden as 2nd Vice President. Seconded by Director Don Papesh. Motion carried. Director Sharon Bridges addressed the comment from floor regarding waiting until seat is filled to assign officers. President Al Isaac explained that leaving these offices open does not provide three signatories. Director Brian Kozlowski stated members elected and not appointed should fill these positions. Motioned carried.
Appointment of Financial Advisory Group. President Al Isaac explained that there are members of White Birch with significant financial knowledge that could benefit our association. This group would provide financial guidance to the Board. This is something that the auditor touched on, but was not a specific recommendation. Director Brian Kozlowski asked chair to list members of this group. President Al Isaac announced that members Arnie VanOverbeek (Member Marty Perkins asked if this was posted, President Al Isaac explained it’s not a paid position and did not need to be posted these are appointed volunteers) Dennis Carlson and Matt Lucas. President Al Isaac formally appoints those three individuals to work with the Board regarding financial issues. Director Brian Kozlowski as a point of clarification reads our By-Laws section regarding appointments by the Board. President Al Isaac clarified this group will not make policy, only recommendations to the Board. Director Brian Kozlowski made motion to confirm, seconded by 1st Vice President Marvin Frayer. Motion carried.
Closed session for legal issue pertaining to Janice Szpara, lots 1046, 1047:
Director Brian Kozlowski moved to go into closed session, seconded by 1st Vice President Marvin Frayer. Motion carried.
Motion to return to open session by Director Don Papesh, seconded by 1st Vice President Marvin Frayer. Motion carried.
President Al Isaac directs Manager Gail White to send a letter to Janice Szpara, lots 1046, 1047 outlining
What the Board of Directors decided regarding her legal matter.
Motion to adjourn by 2nd Vice President Greg Hernden, seconded by 1st Vice President Marvin Frayer. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 11:21am.
Respectfully Submitted
Todd J. Graham
Secretary