Fairlington Glen Board Meeting

July 11 2006

(Draft #2)

 

Board Members: Bob Patrician (President); John Fuller (VP) Charlie Robbins (B&G) Margaret Windus (Treasurer) Alison Burns Trimble (Secretary)

 

Co-Owners:  Michael Hickey (Ct 10); Margena Garret (Ct 7); Tammy Pruitt (Ct 7); Eleanor Berthiaume (Ct 15); Marge Angelo (Ct 8); Dan Barthell  (Ct 6); Brenda Barthell (Ct 6); Sandy Heaton (Ct 6); Robert Colley (Ct 10); Curt and Holly Schwarz (Ct 9); Susan Peetros (Ct 15); Betty McGonagle (Ct 9); Helen Rodgers (Ct 9); Chris and Leigh Harte (Ct 14); Caren Forsten (Ct 15); Carol Goodloe (Ct 10); Lara Robillard (Ct 14); Hal Vorhies (Ct 3); Bill Boswinkle (Ct 3); Elizabeth Abrams (Ct 15); Sean McColl (Ct 15); Mary Bley (Ct 12); Dorothy Hutchinson (Ct 12); Gail McGrath (Ct 11); Liz Hutcheson (Ct 4); Bill McShea (Ct 11) ; Ken Gerhart (Ct 12); Kevin Conry  (Ct 12); Bob Wilson (Ct 12); Bob Stowe (Ct 9); Jocelyne Corderot (Ct 1); Susan Lyons (Ct 12); and other co-owners.

 

Other Attendees: Theresa Swan (USI Insurance), Katherine McCarthy (Rees, Broome, Diaz) Ricky Solares (On-site manager); Mike O’Connell (Legum & Norman)

 

Residents’ Forum (Began at 7:00pm)

The Residents’ Forum was expanded and members of the community were invited to let us know about problems they encountered during the unusually heavy rains at the end of June.  A number of people spoke to this issue, including Kurt Swartz (Ct. 9), Ken Gerhart (Ct. 12), Dorothy Hutchinson (Ct. 12), Kevin Conry (Ct. 12), Susan Peetros (Ct. 15), Elizabeth Abrams (Ct. 15), Chris Harte (Ct. 14), Robert Colley (Ct. 10), Carol Goodloe (Ct. 10), Gail McGrath (Ct. 11), Marge Angelo (Ct. 8), Mike Hickey (Ct. 15) and new residents at 4204 S. 36th St. in Ct. 7.  Residents reported problems falling into several categories.

 

(1) Water in basements for which the source was unknown.  Heavy rains raised the water table and, under pressure, the water looked for places to go.  At the extremes, this could be the result of problems with foundations which could get worse without waterproofing or it may never happen again baring another similar series of rainstorms.

 

(2) Pooling of water in some locations, particularly in Cts. 9, 10, and 12.  The combination of sloping parking lots, inadequate curbing, and stopped up drains left pools of water that both worsened the high water table problem and in some cases drained into window wells, and then into basements.  Solutions will differ depending on the causes in each area.

 

(3) Problems with gutters and downspouts.  Some gutters were inadequate to carry the heavy rain away, and a number of downspouts were clogged, which led to overflowing of gutters and water running down the face of the building, often into window wells.  Either the gutter or the downspout needs to be cleaned or replaced, or both.  We will work with Ricky and staff to address leaves and debris in gutters and downspouts.

 

(4) Storm drains backing up into sanitary sewer lines.  In these cases, water came back through basement floor outlets and shower drains.   This problem requires attention from the county to insure that their system is draining well.  We will work with the county to assure that all their storm drains are checked and cleared and will check and clear our own storm drains.  This is a different problem from difficulties we have had over the years when sanitary sewer laterals become clogged and back up into the building’s “low unit.”  We have long had a preventive maintenance program for these pipes and have been replacing or relining selected laterals.  However, clear sanitary sewer laterals would not have solved the problem of overflow from storm drains.

 

One critical thing of which Glen co-owners should be aware, as stated by the Glen’s legal advisor, Katherine McCarthy, is that under the Glen’s Master Deed, the co-owner’s responsibility for his/her property extends to the outer plane of the brick wall and the Association’s responsibility is outside of that plane.  This means that if foundations are actually leaking, patching and waterproofing will ultimately be the co-owner’s responsibility.  Despite this legal fact, we can try to develop solutions jointly, and can choose to facilitate the implementation of those solutions as a community.  However, the legal framework places financial responsibility on the individual co-owner.

 

Several co-owners volunteered to work with the Board to try to develop a plan to address these many and varied problems.  This is the essential first step to what we can expect to be a long and expensive process.  (Note:  The first meeting of this group was scheduled for Wednesday, July 26.)  Even before the recent events, we knew that our operating costs would be increasing significantly, both to address our water consumption and our reserve needs.  This experience will only add to the pressures on our reserves.

 

Insurance Claim Information

Theresa Swan with USI Insurance (the company which holds the Glen’s master policy) was introduced. Ms. Swan explained that the decision was made by the Board to collect individual co-owner claims and bundle them together to submit to St Paul Travelers as one claim. Katherine McCarthy, Legal Counsel representing the Glen (Rees, Broome and Diaz) was introduced and spoke to the uniqueness of our Master Deed. In contrast to deeds in some other condominium associations, Glen co-owners own to the outside plane of the building.

 

The meeting regular Board meeting was called to order by Bob Patrician at 8:45pm.

 

Minutes

11.07.06.01 Move to approve minutes from June 6, 2006 meeting. The motion carried 5-0-0.

 

B-Bldg Final Report

The final decision on contractors was carried over until now. Liz Finos refreshed the Board on the status of the bids for painting and carpeting all B-Units.

 

11.07.06.02 Move to approve the carpet bid as submitted by Empire at a cost of $28,020 and the painting bid by JPG (for two coats) at a cost of $22,220. The motion carried 5-0-0.

 

Andrew Barnes will let the contracts soon.  Ricky, with the help of Jim Hewitt, will supervise the work. The idea of, at a future point, removing the basement carpet and simply painting the concrete was raised. 

 

Tot Lot Task Force Update

Sue Lyons reviewed the Tot Lot Task Force plans to enhance the amount of pea gravel needed for safety reasons. Plans are moving forward to purchase the pea gravel through a local vendor, have it delivered, rent a bobcat, and use volunteer labor with the possible addition of paying for local teenage assistance.

 

11.07.06.03 Approve $2000 for gravel; $400 for the rental of a bobcat plus an additional amount if an operator were hired; $1000 out of reserve funding to purchase a table to be placed in the area which is now decked upon removal of the decking and possible elimination of an old tree stump. The motion carried 3-1-1.

 

By-Laws Task Force Update

Hal Vorhies distributed a disc containing the draft revised bylaws of the Glen.  Many thanks go out to Madelyn Johnson for creating a new digital version of this document for us all to work with in the coming months.  Hal asked the Board to make any recommended strikeouts or additions electronically to this document using bold and bracket additions and send them to glenbylaws@earthlink.net

 

Treasurers Report

Margaret Windus referred the Board to the budget process calendar included in the emailed materials. She then turned to the draft Financial Report. John Fuller asked for a change in the language regarding the distribution of information done on-line. Margaret accepted the change and will send out a revised version.

 

B&G Liaison Report

Charlie Robbins reported on the last B&G meeting.  The next meeting will be held Tuesday, July 18.

 

Reserves Options

Margaret Windus handed out a revised reserve spending table based on recent Board decisions and information from recent bids. This included a Dwyer proposal for replacing a 110 foot pipe from a storm drain catch basin to the street located between Courts 2 and 3. Alison Trimble asked attention be paid to the existing street roots as was the case in the sewer line replaced in Ct 12. Ricky will follow-up with Dwyer to be careful of existing tree matter.

 

11.07.06.04 Approve Dwyer proposal to repair line in Ct 2 and 3 at a cost of $12,365. The motion carried 5-0-0.

 

11.07.06.05 Motion to move into closed session to discuss contractual matters. The motion carried 5-0-0.

 

11.07.06.06 Motion to move back into open session. The motion carried 5-0-0.

 

11.07.06.07 Motion to approve Walls bid to replace the roof in Ct 8 at a cost of $94,969. The motion carried 5-0-0.

 

11.07.06.08 Motion to adjourn. The motion carried 5-0-0.

 

The next Board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, August 1, 2006.

 

Respectfully submitted by,

 

Alison Burns Trimble