The meeting was called to order at 7 p.m. Those in attendance were: Alan Dinkelacker, Grant Sheehan, Todd Young, Andrew Twillman, Bill DiLoreta, Lisa Rogers, Brian Kopec.

Also in attendance were: Stephen Hembree, LLA general manager, Joy Gurley, community resource manager.

The board had four sets of minutes to review.

•Approval of January 19, 2004 Meeting Minutes— Approved as written.

•Approval of January 12, 2004 Special Meeting Minutes-Budget- Approved as written.

•Approval of January 15, 2004 Special Meeting Minutes-Budget- Approved as written.

•Approval of January 24, 2004 Vacant Lot Assessment Referendum Meeting- Approved as written.

DFC Wyant said that the statistics on crime for the community were lower in 2003 than in 2002 and she attributed that to the good work that Deputy Venzin is doing in Eaglehead. LLA president Dinkelacker asked about how the crime statistics for Eaglehead compared to other communities. DFC Venzin said he could have those statistics for the first board meeting in March.

Director DiLoreta asked about the statistic related to commercial alarm responses and wanted to know if those were responses to the Craftmark Homes model in Woodridge. DFC Venzin said the responses were to the model home and noted that the system has a problem.

Woodridge Village Committee co-chairperson Steve Oesterle asked what Woodridge residents could do when any of them spot groups of young people partying near the Brosius and Lake Marian dams. GM Hembree said that the only way to keep people off the dam was to block it but that was not an action that the board wanted to take. He said that the goal is to have a staff person who can continuously check the dam area, as well as the beaches and the more remote areas of the community. DFC Venzin told the audience that if they see disorderly conduct going on to call the sheriff ’s dispatch number and make a report. He reminded the audience that in order for any of those reported to be prosecuted, the person making the report must be willing to be interviewed for the report and show up in court to testify. DFC Venzin said it is difficult to catch trespassers because once they get the sense that the police have been called, they disappear and then come back after police have left the scene. If the trespassers show up later, DFC Venzin encouraged residents to call the dispatch again. Director Dinkelacker asked what time of day Woodridge residents experience the problems. Mr. Oesterle said typically the problem occurs after work hours and sometimes into the evening. Some discussion followed about the board’s guest policy that was adopted in 2003.

Trailblazers Committee— Co-chairperson Katrinka Westendorf said that the committee had developed a new T-shirt for a fundraiser for the coming year. Meadows resident Jean Frank designed the shirt. The shirt will sell for $12 each, two shirts for $22. She asked about advertising the shirt in LakeTalk. She said the committee was planning another Scales ’n Tales event sometime in the spring. She also reported that a family in Meadows was riding ATVs on community roads but that she also noticed ATV tire tracks on the trails around Lake Merle. DFC Venzin said that if she knew the name of the residents with the ATVs he could contact the family and talk to them about the problem and the fact that the vehicles are not permitted in the community.

Social Committee— Director Dinkelacker noted that the committee’s activities would now operate "in-house." He asked community resource manager Joy Gurley if any activity had begun. She noted that letters were sent to 12 residents inviting them to become a part of the social committee steering committee and that responses had been coming back— two people were interested and two declined the invitation for personal reasons. She said she hoped to get the committee solidified within the next couple of weeks.

Election Committee— John Snow read the committee report into the record regarding the voting results of the January 24, 2004 referendum meeting on the vacant lot assessment. The total vote count for the vacant lot assessment referendum was as follows:

Total number of votes- 1,083

Total needed for quorum- 722 (two-thirds of those attending in person or by proxy)

Total votes in favor of the referendum question- 838 (77%)

Total votes against the referendum question- 245 (23%)

Total ballots cast day of referendum- 57

Total number of proxies cast- 1, 026

Proxies and notification of referendum meeting was mailed December 24, 2003. Proxy deadline was January 23, 2004 at 4:30 p.m.

Mr. Snow said the committee would be making a push to get additional committee volunteers and hopes to get representation from each village committee.

Someone asked how many of the votes that were cast were by vacant lot owners. Mr. Snow said 486 of the votes were from vacant lot owners.

Long-Range Planning Committee— Director Di Loreta reported that he and committee co-chairperson Brian Kopec were working up a recommendation for a use for the former E.Fay Jones community center site. He said he had outlined short-term plans in a recent email to the other board members and felt that with the CIP and CDA projects on the verge of happening that the plate was full for that aspect and had no recommendations until such time as both infrastructure projects were completed. President Dinkelacker asked Mr. DiLoreta to present at the first board meeting of March a chart that outlined the short-range plan ideas.

Westwinds— Committee chairperson Carol Thames said that trash collection has been a recent issue for the village. She said about one-half of the village did not get trash pick up.

She asked about the purpose of the snow emergency phone number listed on the LLA office central switchboard voice message. GM Hembree said that residents should use that number to report any snow/road problems that can be handled by LLA staff. He also noted that the office had received no complaints about trash collection in Westwinds. He said he was surprised because in the last snowstorm, the LLA trash contractor worked with the snow removal crew to identify snow road problems. He said he would look into the matter.

Woodridge— Village co-chairperson Steve Oesterle complimented the LLA snow removal crew for the work they did during the past storm. He said the village was working on a proposal for a tot lot on the parcel and would present it to the board in the near future.

MOTION: Director Sheehan made a motion to not increase the assessment rate. Director Young seconded the motion. Director DiLoreta asked what the association would not be able to do if the rate remained the same. Director Rogers wanted to know whether the association could maintain the existing levels of services at the current rate. Director Young said that if the rate remained the same immediately $17,000 worth of expenditures would need to be eliminated from the budget. He said the draft budget reflecting the current rate does not provide for the new staff needed for the CDA and covenant compliance. He also noted that because of the cuts to the State Highway User Revenue (SHUR) funding, the association would have to make up that shortfall from the general operating funds, too.

Director Sheehan said he felt that SHUR fund shortfalls could justifiably be taken from the reserve account fund. He said that he did not agree with the legal interpretation on the matter and said he believed the intent of the LLA covenant framers was that the assessment could not be increased without the approval of the memberhip.

The discussion focused on the use of special assessments and how they can be used and implemented. Director Young noted that association members are most likely will be facing three or four special assessments for legally obligated finances on major projects, even with an increase in the improved lot assessment rate. Director DiLoreta said the board needed to clarify the special assessments and get them set and ready to go when the timing was right. Director Sheehan directed staff to have the LLA attorney look at possibilities of whether the LLA can call for special assessments that transcend the one-year time limit outlined in the covenants and define what would need to be done to create special assessments that would permit something such as a three assessment at $100 per year.

John Snow, former board president, said that the board was faced with a similar situation three years ago, which is what caused that board to increase the rate and set it at .32-cents per $100. He said the association has needs that could not be met by maintaining status quo. He said to not increase the rate was irresponsible because something would suffer and fingers would point to the board. He said the upcoming increase in the state property assessments might create a situation where the board could later drop the rate back.

President Dinkelacker said that for six months the board had been hearing complaints about what residents/members wanted and that the GM had come up with a reasonable plan for things he needed to make the association work better. He said he was against leaving the rate the same.

VOTE: The board voted against the motion 5-2.

MOTION: Director Twillman made a motion to set the rate at .33-cents per $100. Director Rogers seconded the motion.

Director DiLoreta said he agreed with director Dinkelacker about the need for additional revenue. He said the .34-cent rate would allow the association to obtain the staffing and other things it needs and thought the board should consider that rate. Director Dinkelacker thought the .33-cent rate was a good compromise.

Resident Charlotte Dusold said the covenants were clear that the LLA is responsible for caring for the association assets and she thought the status quo was not enough to meet that responsibility of the board. Kathy Williams said the necessity to raise the dues was at hand, that a one-cent increase was not enough and that the board should do it right and go for more than the .33-cent rate.

VOTE: The board voted 4 to 3 in favor of the motion to set the improved lot assessment rate at .33-cents per $100.

Covenant Booklet- no update.

Assessment Method Covenant Revision— Director Young introduced a version of a proposed assessment covenant revision that was included in the board packet. He said he and LLA attorney Shelah Lynn had worked on it three years ago. He said this would be a good starting point for the coming discussion. Director Sheehan reminded that attorney Lynn suggested getting a group of people to work on the issue. Director Dinkelacker said the association needed someone to volunteer to head a committee for the discussion. Westwinds resident Carol Thames agreed to chair the Covenant Revision Committee. Director Dinkelacker asked for the committee to make a report at the annual meeting.

Charging Dues to Commercial Properties— Discussion centered on whether the association should charge an assessment to commercial properties or a maintenance fee. The board decided to let the Covenant Revision Committee come up with a definition for what to do with commercial properties.

Foreclosure on Properties in Formal Lien Status— Director Sheehan said the reason he wanted this on the agenda was because the item has been on the general manager’s report with the status note "board action needed " so he wanted to get it settled. At issue is, if an individual has not yet paid property tax to the county, the LLA loses out. GM Hembree said the LLA has filed liens and not been challenged because the LLA has been filing the notice and lien documents properly and in the time frames necessary to maintain first lien status. He also noted that personal judgments are being used. Director Sheehan recommended that the board eliminate the item from the general manager’s report and allow staff to advise the board when the first foreclosure occurs.

MOTION: Director Kopec made the motion to split the money equally between the 12 village committees only, that the funds be placed into individual committee reserve accounts and that the money be accounted for through a general ledger. Director DiLoreta seconded the motion.

VOTE: The board voted 7-0 in favor of the motion. The amount to be distributed to each village committee is $250. The eligible villages are: Coldstream, Balmoral, Meadows, Pinehurst, North Shore, Aspen, Audubon North, Summerfield, Westwinds, Woodridge, Aspen North, Nightingale.

Land Stewards Response to LLA Letter Re: Tree Removal— Director DiLoreta explained that when Land Stewards conducted the clear cutting of trees in Woodridge it had turned in its plans to everyone it was suppose to, everyone they turned the plans into had approved the plans and the work was done. Director Dinkelacker said that for many years the association operated with the assumption that the declarant had the right to do with its land, as it wanted. He said the association was waiting for the Land Stewards attorneys to respond to a recent letter from LLA attorney Shelah Lynn. Director DiLoreta said that Land Stewards is not certain it agrees with the LLA attorney interpretation of the covenants.

Letter to BoCC re: East County High School Funding— Director Rogers explained the current situation with funding for the proposed local high school. She said it was important to let county and state officials know the importance of the school project to the community and suggested that the LLA send a letter expressing that sentiment. The board agreed to doing the letter and asked director Rogers to draft it.

CAI Conference— GM Hembree said that the board packet had information in it about the annual Community Association Institute meeting in Washington, D.C. He said the conference had several workshops that dealt with subjects that the board would be facing in the coming year(s) and suggested they attend.

Acosta Letter— GM Hembree pointed out that the board packet contained a letter from a vacant lot owner (Acosta) who challenged the board’s reading of the covenants on the vacant lot assessment. He presented the board with a draft of a letter in response to Mr. Acosta for approval, which was reviewed and approved

Director Young made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Director DiLoreta seconded the motion.

The meeting adjourned at 10:33 p.m.