Annual Meeting
Results
he
Annual Meeting of the Fairlington Commons Council of Co-Owners was held on
Thursday, October 11, 2007 in the cafeteria of the Abingdon Elementary School
located at 3035 South Abingdon Street in Arlington Virginia. The meeting began at 7:30 p.m., with
eighty of the Common’s 229 Units represented by proxy or in person for a
quorum of 36 percent.
Long-time
Board Member Patti Burke, whose seat on the Board was the only one up for
election, was reelected for a three-year term. Following the meeting, the Board of
Directors met to reconstitute the Board in accordance with our By-Laws, which
require such action within 10 days of the Annual Meeting. Board Officers for 2008 will be
President - John Sinks; Vice-President - Patti Burke; Secretary - Bernie
Weaver; Treasurer - Christine Sivigny; and At-Large - Dennis Mariduena.
Highlights of the Annual Meeting included Treasurer
Christine Sivigny’s report on Commons year-to-date spending, President
John Sinks’ comprehensive presentation detailing Commons financial
management and the impacts of emergency expenses (sewer pipe replacements and
underpinning), and an informative and humorous look at day-to-day maintenance
activities by Eric Pamer, Commons Service Coordinator.
Jim
Sharpe served as Teller for the meeting, and did an excellent job tallying
proxies and ballots.
For
those unable to attend the meeting in person, a copy of the minutes can be
found on our page of the Fairlington.org Web Site at: http://www.fairlington.org/2007AnnualMeetingMinutes.pdf
Budget Meeting Scheduled
he
Budget Meeting of the Fairlington Commons Council of Co-Owners will be held
Thursday, December 6th in the Cafeteria of the Abingdon Elementary
School located at 3035 South Abingdon Street, beginning at 7:30 p.m. The primary purpose of the meeting is to
discuss and approve the Commons budget for 2008 and any other topics of
interest to Co-Owners and residents.
In accordance with our By-Laws, notification
of the Budget Meeting will be provided via U.S. Mail to all Co-Owners of record
no later than 10 days prior to the meeting. Included will be a letter from the
Board discussing the budget, a copy of the budget for your review, and a proxy
form.
Maintenance Request or Question?
Contact
Commons
Service Coordinator
Eric
Pamer
703-379-0027
CommonsService@Hotmail.com
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Proxy Forms
Proxy forms are
provided to Co-Owners of record prior to both the Annual and Budget
Meetings. Co-Owners who are not
able to personally attend these meetings are requested to complete and return
their proxy form to the Secretary of the Fairlington Commons Council of
Co-Owners, 3367 South Wakefield Street, Arlington, Virginia 22206 (the mailbox
in front of the pool). Proxy forms
are used to establish a quorum for conduct of the meeting and as your ballot
with regard to elections of officers, the budget, or other matters that may come
before the Council of Co-Owners for a vote.
Remember
- the proxy form is a legal document.
Please fill it out completely and correctly. When submitting a proxy, please name the
person to whom you have given your proxy.
The proxy form will allow you to direct the vote of your proxy, to
abstain, or to leave the vote to your proxy’s discretion. Proxy forms received after the meeting
for which they were intended has adjourned cannot be counted.
Plumbing Emergencies
lumbing emergencies should be
immediately and directly addressed to Billy Anderson. Billy has been the Commons plumber for
many years, and knows the locations of our water lines, shut-off valves, sewer
laterals, storm drains and manhole covers, many of which are not obvious to a
plumber who is not familiar with our facilities. Be prepared to leave a message
when you call – but count on a quick return call.
If Billy determines that a
problem is the responsibility of the Commons, he will bill the Commons. Otherwise you are expected to pay Billy
at the time service is rendered.
Over the years owners have found Billy’s prices reasonable. Billy is also available to perform
routine, non-emergency work for Commons residents on an individual basis.
William
“Billy” Anderson Plumbing
703-836-4716
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ell,
maybe for Sherlock Holmes, but if you’re new to Condominium living,
there’s a lot to learn about what you are permitted to do, or prohibited
from doing, as a Co-Owner or tenant in a Condominium setting.
First
of all, what is a Condominium? In
its simplest definition, the term “condominium” means ownership in
common. In Fairlington Commons,
where you live, it means shared ownership of 54 buildings, 22 acres of land,
the basketball and tennis courts, swimming pool, children’s playground,
and other improvements, with ownership distributed among 229 individual units.
We
said shared ownership, but it is not an equal share. Ownership is based on the type of unit
that you own and the original sales price that was established at the time of
condominium conversion in 1973. For
instance, an Arlington model unit has an ownership percentage of .574. An inside Clarendon model, the most numerous,
has an ownership percentage of .476, and a Fairlington model has an ownership
percentage of .257. Add together
the percentage of ownership for all 229 of our units, and the total equals
100%.
Now
that we have established some of the basics, it’s time to look at what is
individually owned, what is owned in common, and what Co-Owners are permitted
or not permitted to do within the confines of the Master Deed, By-Laws, and
rules.
Individually,
you own the interior of your unit, excluding common structure and service
installations such as water and sewer pipes that serve multiple units. Individual Co-Owners are permitted to
conduct routine repairs and replacements of faucets, lighting, appliances, and
HVAC equipment without the necessity to seek Board permission. Major work, including renovations,
removal or relocation of walls, and replacement of windows and exterior doors,
must be approved by the Board of Directors prior to work beginning. Our By-Laws provide additional information
regarding this subject, and the safest course of action is to ask questions of
the Board prior to making any changes.
Patios
and decks are not individually owned, but rather are considered “Limited
Common Element” in that they are owned in common but are for the
exclusive use of the adjacent unit.
If your unit has a patio, then you are responsible for the general
maintenance and upkeep of the patio and the Commons is responsible for the
maintenance and upkeep of the fence and gate.
If
your unit has a deck, the Commons is responsible for the maintenance of the
deck, except for those few decks that were installed by individual Co-Owners,
where the Co-Owner is responsible for maintenance and upkeep. Co-Owners who wish to construct decks in
limited common element may do so only with written Board permission prior to
work beginning.
Within
the boundaries established in the By-Laws and rules, Co-Owners may place patio
tables, chairs, umbrellas, flowerpots, gardens, etc. in limited common element,
but are expected to maintain those items in an acceptable manner.
Most everything else in the Commons is considered to be
“General Common Element.”
This includes front porches, the hallways and basements of our apartment
style buildings, our grounds, recreation facilities, woods, sidewalks, parking
lots, plantings, and structures.
The Board of Directors manages the General Common Element on behalf of
all Co-Owners.
Our By-Laws are quite specific regarding the management
of the General Common Element; however, the Board will generally not make an
issue of decorative, movable items, such as a flower pots, flags, or door
mats. Storage of trashcans and
recycling bins in the General Common Element is not permitted. Permanent, Co-Owner erected structures
are contrary to the Master Deed and are not permitted.
Signs are a special case. Our By-Laws forbid the placement of
signs, notices, or advertisements in windows. The Board controls signs in the General
Common Element. The Board has
determined that small notices placed on doors regarding the number of children
or pets to be rescued in an emergency are acceptable, as are normal sized real
estate signs and small security signs.
Oversized real estate signs or those on large posts are not acceptable. In accordance with the strong sentiment
of the Council, the Board generally does not permit any other signs.
While this article has attempted to present a
general discussion of the rights and privileges of condominium ownership, it is
simply impossible to cover every possible situation in a few paragraphs. As is often the case, there are nuances
and exceptions that must be weighed on an individual basis. Again, if you are a Co-Owner or tenant
and are contemplating making any changes to your unit (like new windows or doors)
a few minutes of consultation with your Board of Directors could possibly save
you hundreds or thousands of dollars of grief and rework. And please, read the By-Laws that govern
our community. They are available
on the Fairlington.org website at http://www.fairlington.org/Commons
By-LawsNovember2004.pdf
Pool Party Thanks!
ur
annual season-end pool party was held the first Saturday after the Labor Day
Weekend. This year’s party,
with a near record turnout of 80 people, was a fantastic success – in no
small measure due to the efforts of the many volunteers who contributed their
time and effort. Special thanks go
to:
- Arnie and Cathy Malin
for organizing the event, for purchasing the food, soft drinks, and
supplies; for setting up the tables and chairs, for cooking the burgers
and dogs, and for cleaning up afterward
- Former resident Malcolm
Peplow and Lefthand Productions for the audio equipment
- Kingsley Chan and Sam
Parry for the loan of their iPods
·
Andrew Brodhead for assisting with the
distribution of the flyers and helping with cleanup
- And to all of the
people who brought dishes to share.
Vignettes from a Pool Summer Past
They
are Kodak moments; pictures that remain in our memories even if not captured on
camera, events remembered long after everything else is forgotten, including:
·
Over a dozen dogs of all sizes, shapes, and
descriptions splashing, retrieving balls, and chasing each other during our
doggie dip as their owners watched!
·
John Wertime visiting with his adult son,
reminiscing about the 1946 Fairlington of his youth when adventures awaited a
short crawl through the tunnels below what became Highway 395 in fields just
beyond.
- Teenage members of the
Northern Virginia Nerieds Women’s Synchronized Swimming Team and
their coach, Commons resident Malva Mangan, enjoying a relaxing afternoon
at our pool demonstrating their routines.
- Lifeguard alumni
Stephanie Malin with her parents, Commons residents Arnie and Cathy; and
newlywed Jessica Evans with her husband Izac, attending our year-end
party.
- Lifeguard Zory Sholeva
watching, transfixed, as the purple helium balloon she so wanted to take
home escaped her grasp to disappear on a gentle breeze into the sunset
sky.
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Fairlington Commons Board of Directors
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President
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John Sinks
E-mail jsinks@comcast.net
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931-2660
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Vice President
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Patti Burke
E-mail pattisburke@msn.com
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931-2897
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Secretary
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Bernie Weaver
E-mail WeaverBW@comcast.net
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671-7024
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Treasurer
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Christine Sivigny
E-mail CSivigny@hotmail.com
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778-6041
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At Large
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Dennis
Maridueña
E-mail dmariduena@gmail.com
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Unlisted
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