Sunland Division 17 Owners Association
January 9, 2019 2:30 p.m.
The Gathering Place
Call to Order
President Gary Fortmann called the meeting to order at 2:30 p.m.
Verification of Quorum
Present were President Gary Fortmann, Vice President John Lewis, Treasurer Jim Jones, and Member-at-Large Mike Johnson. Secretary Lawrence Charters was ill; minutes were provided by Kathleen Charters.
Approval of Minutes
Minutes of the December 5, 2018 meeting were approved as presented.
Old Business
Ad hoc committee on CC&Rs
The ad hoc committee reviewed the merits of adopting the new RCW (Revised Code of Washington) 64.90 as basis of the Division 17 Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions (CC&Rs), versus staying with RCW 64.38. Jim Jones, chair of the ad hoc committee, reported the committee found compelling reasons to remain with the current foundation for Division 17 CC&Rs except for 2 changes: 1) the revised law explicitly supersedes some provisions related to pre-existing common interest communities, such as Division 17 and SLOA, and 2) the revised law changes requirements for election thresholds for special assessments and for budget thresholds.
John Lewis presented a series of motions in response to report. The first motion moved to accept the recommendations of the committee; this passed without dissent. The second motion directed that SLOA be sent a letter informing them of the ad hoc committee’s review and recommendations; this passed without dissent. The third motion affirmed the Board’s decision to amend the governance documents (CC&Rs and By-Laws) to bring them into compliance with RCW 64.90; this passed without dissent. The final motion directed dissolution of the ad hoc committee; this also passed without dissent.
In response to a question from the floor, Gary Fortmann said amendments to the CC&Rs would require a formal vote of the owners, but it does not need to be unanimous.
Owner survey
Barbara Broomer read a report on the proposed owner survey:
The online owner survey test run went well. There were 17 responses to the survey, sent out to the Board members and committee principals. The results were uniformly positive, and the responses suggest that a survey of the entire association would provide much useful information.
After the survey went out, Mike Johnson and Barbara Broomer made a suggestion that the question on landscaping maintenance be broken into two parts, with a separate question on tree maintenance, and this was done.
Three people suggested asking about volunteer engagement. While this is an important topic, especially for an all-volunteer non-profit, this may be too subtle and too complex an issue for the current survey.
Many thanks to Barbara Broomer, for her work in compiling and refining the survey questions.
Barbara stated that, while she is no longer working on the owner survey, she does recommend doing another, separate survey regarding volunteers.
The current survey can launch at any time, with a recommended two week period for responses. Lawrence is willing to be the contact; the survey will be distributed by email except for 10 people who have not provided email addresses. The Board voted to send out the survey to owners in January with a two week window for responses.
Landscape maintenance contract
After giving the Board an opportunity to review the contract following the previous meeting, the Board agreed to the proposed 2019 contract, and Board President Gary Fortmann sent acceptance on to the contractor, with a start date of January 2019.
New Business
Acquisition of $250,000 bond for Cascade Loop restoration project
John Lewis discussed the December 28 court hearing, including the judge’s direction to our lawyer to prepare information relative to the bond. No more information about the bond is available at this time. The court needs to formalize requirements for the bond before our attorney can take action.
Jim Jones added to the report that the year end fiscal report held back $25K in operating funds to cover the bond. Pre-construction meetings were held with contractor, court-ordered building permits were submitted around December 17, and plans submitted for review and as of last week anticipate to receive permits and approved plans late this week or early next week. The work is slow but making progress.
Officer, Committee and Coordinator Reports
President Update — Gary Fortmann
No report.
Secretary Update — Lawrence Charters
The secretary submitted a emailed report, entered for the record:
The Sunland North Newsletter for January 2019 was delivered to members as a formatted email message, rather than as a PDF attachment, and was also posted on the Sunland North website as a page, rather than an attachment. These technical changes should make it easier to read when received in email, and posting it as a page on the website means it can also be indexed by the site search engine. Many thanks to Kay Hatler for her work on the newsletter.
The Division 17 Rules & Regulations; Bylaws; Policies; and Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions have been posted as pages on the website. This allows them to be indexed by the site search engine, which means you can now look for items by typing them into the site search box, rather than guessing where to look.
Treasurer Update — Jim Jones
Monthly Expense Report: The preliminary December, 2018 Expense report shows our total Operating Expenses for the month were $16,411 which brings our YTD Operating Expenses to $213,759 which is $27,584 higher than Budget due primarily to our 2018/2019 insurance, landscaping, and legal expenses all being higher than planned which is partially offset by lower than planned minor maintenance expenses. During December $27,000 was deposited in Reserves which brings the YTD total deposited in Reserves at $80,827 which is $22,773 less than Budget. Total expenses for the year were $322,170 which is $4,811 higher than Budget. At the December 28 court hearing, the judge ordered Division 17 to provide a $250,000 bond for the 191/201 Cascadia Loop fire restoration project, so we retained $25,000 in Operating Funds to hopefully cover this unexpected expense of acquiring the bond. Normally, this $25,000 would have been deposited in Reserves as Budgeted, so our year-end Operating Fund balance was $45,014 rather than our normal year-end minimum balance of approximately $20,000 where we started the year. Our year-end Reserve Funds balance totaled $318,197.
Fire Trust Fund: As shown in the Fire Trust Fund Summary report, we earned $142.91 in bank interest during December. Our year-end Fire Trust Fund balance was $510,800.
Special Assessment Payments: In mid-December I sent reminder letters to 10 owners who had not made their $140 Special Assessment payment by December 15. I have recently sent late payment letters with a late payment fee to four owners who still have not made their payments.
John Lewis asked if the Board received payment from one owner for roof repair due to an improper power washing; Jim replied that the owner said the contractor would pay for the repair.
Vice President — John Lewis
No report.
Board Member at Large — Mike Johnson
The painting plan for the year is being compiled by John. Moss abatement is moving forward. The contract for landscaping is in place. There are questions about water consumption reports for some buildings; work needs to be done to verify and validate these reports.
Insurance Committee — Donna Carson
Donna reported that it is a difficult insurance renewal after catastrophic loss. She is bringing together information to mitigate increases and account for insurance market. The association will receive a check in payment for statement of loss minus depreciation; the policy will reimburse $190K. The insurance premium in May 2017 reflected an increase; since then, the anomaly of a fire loss and litigation costs will influence premiums in the future.
Architectural Control Committee — Susan Hamman
Cindy Rhodes, reporting for Susan, said that 30 requests were received and 29 approved. One December request to install handrail in backyard was approved. Trees around the RV park are an ongoing concern.
Developed Landscape — Gerry Hatler / Eric Mahnerd
Gerry reported that the dormant season pruning began in December and continues. Gerry complimented Mike Johnson’s work to tighten the terms of the landscaping contract. During the winter, lawn-mowing will be on an as needed basis.
Mike Johnson said new contractors need to get information about who wants plants trimmed and who does not. This changes as owners change and status of owners change; we must provide this information at the start of the contract year. He recommend sending a notice to all owners as a “yes” contractors to do pruning or “no” to decline all contractor pruning.
This subject generated comments from the floor ranging from ideas on how to indicate owner preferences to who has responsibility for owner-planted vegetation.
Exterior Maintenance and Inspection — Doug Hale
Roof tile moss treatment is underway. A couple of leak issues are being addressed. The painting contract is out for bid.
John Lewis, with his experience as exterior maintenance coordinator, developed a kit of essentials for the job, and passed off the kit to Doug.
Open Space — Tom Steffen
No report.
Newsletter — Kay Hatler
No report.
Welcome Committee — Leah Prince
Three visits planned for January, with two homeowners opting to wait until the end of the month. Jim Jones has received no notice of any additional new homeowners.
Website Coordinator — Lawrence Charters
No report.
Sunland Water District Update — Al Frank
Working with Mike to find irrigation systems not metered. Please do not flush prescriptions down the drain, as these destroy the chemistry of the treatment system. In 2018, three million fewer gallons of water were used compared to the previous year; thank you for conserving water
Homeowner Comment Period
Board was thanked for its hard work on burned home. As the construction will be disruptive, will the contractors minimize obstructions as best they can? And how is the restoration work guided?
Gary Fortmann responded that there is a general contractor project manager with on-site superintendent; the Division 17 Board is responsible for manage the contract;
Question: do home water meters and irrigation water meters still need to be separated?
Gary Fortmann responded that the builder didn’t make an accurate plan of the irrigation system, so there is still no final solution on how to meter usage. It takes effort to map it retroactively.
Question: how does the bond work? Will insurance cover this expense? What does the bond do?
Gary Fortmann responded that the $250K bond is covered by insurance but comes from HOA funds; the bond is for plaintiff if construction is found unacceptable and have to tear down. It is more like an insurance premium, to rectify deficiencies if contractor does not address them, not like a bail bond The contractor has 5 year warranty on construction. An independent third party needs to review any claim of a deficiency. The county inspects the work as it is done, and Balfour (the contractor) has construction defect claim insurance. The bond is a duplication of coverage; cannot comment further until hear what court requires.
Comment from floor: several homes in Sunland North have had fire alarms go off at odd times. The fire alarms are in some of the older homes, and if one alarm chirps, replace them all; they have an average life span of 10 years. The fire department will assist with reaching the alarms if the owner doesn’t have a ladder to reach it.
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 3:23 pm.