Lake Linganore
Association, Inc.
July 17, 2006
The meeting was called to order at 7 p.m. at the LLA Coldstream Drive office.
Board members present were: Ken Allen, Jim Cates, Bob Charles, Jay Decker, Jim DiMeglio, Brandon Frazier, Stephen Hembree.
Staff in attendance: GM Edwards, CRM Gurley.
Minutes of the June 5, 2006 regular board meeting were approved as written.
DEVELOPER’S REPORT
Director DiMeglio said that the townhouse project in Audubon was to begin building in the next several weeks. He said that lot clearing would begin within 30 days and paving would begin the end of August. A model home was to soon be completed.
He said that during September Land Stewards would continue with tree planting for Woodridge. He noted that the storm water management pond was to be taken out of service so that reseeding could be done. Mr. DiMeglio said that Land Stewards continued to meet with LLA staff to discuss ECC guidelines for Woodridge and about turning the village over to the association. Director Hembree asked if the county had come up with any solutions as to the who and how of signing off on the filtration systems in Woodridge would be handled. John Clarke of Land Stewards said that his company would get an answer as to whether or not the county would do the inspection.
Mr. DiMeglio also said that Land Stewards did get preliminary approval last week for the Aspen IV, new section, of the village. He estimated that it would be four to six months for final approval to be given. As for the Aspen East project (nine lots), Mr. DiMeglio thanked Aspen residents for attending the county hearing on the project; he also noted that the work with the residents produced a good plan for the project. Cathie Reed asked about the trail in that section of the village. Mr. DiMeglio said that Land Stewards would build the trail as a part of the project.
•Finance Committee — Director Charles said that the LLA Finance Committee discussed changing banks in order to take advantage of the automatic clearing house feature. He said that the committee also intended to take a look at option available to the Aspen North CDA project if there is a gap in financing; he said this was also on the committee’s agenda in relation to the Linganore CDA. He said the gap was expected due to rising cost of asphalt and pipe. Director Frazier said that the banks the association was talking to in relation to the CDA were not very creative in their options and that the LLA intended to discuss the matter soon with a bank that specializes in loans to HOAs.
• Trailblazers Committee— co-chair Cathie Reed said that the committee worked on the lake trail from the dam to Coldstream Beach at the committee’s July work session. Mrs. Reed said that drainage problems on a section of the Woodridge trail was damaging the trail and wanted to know if Land Stewards intended to fix it. GM Edwards said that the drain was no longer taking water due to construction of a new home by an independent builder. He said there was money to make the repair. Mrs. Reed noted that Lake Marian has a silt fence problem. GM Edwards said that the independent builders doing construction on Woodcliff Court were having problems with compliance and that the matter was being addressed.
There was some brief discussion about trail markers in Lake Linganore. It also was noted that many of the Land Stewards’ marketing signs are fading and should be removed.
Two residents complained about the condition of Lake
Linganore after recent heavy rains and the condition of the beaches from the
geese that live there. Director Hembree said that with the budget the LLA it is
difficult to keep the beaches pristine.
• Social Committee— CRM Gurley reminded the board that the committee’s first July event was scheduled for July 22 and that it would feature a live band. She noted that the event was originally scheduled to be hosted at Lake Linganore but because of safety concerns the event location was changed to Coldstream Pool.
• Friends of the Lake Committee— committee member Kathy Brown said that the local newspaper carried a story about a recent FoL volunteer project to plant underwater grasses in Lake Linganore. She suggested that thank you letters be sent to the volunteers from the association.
•Aspen Village— chairperson Kathy Brown told the board that the residents worked with Land Stewards on a plan for the eastern Aspen project and that the village felt very good about the project. Director Hembree asked whether the residents had yet discussed other amenities with Land Stewards. Mrs. Brown said they had not. Mr. Hembree said that in some instances villages had waited too long to start this kind of discussion and lost opportunities. Director DiMeglio said that these matters would be discussed with the village committee.
•Aspen North Village — a member of the CDA Committee reported that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) had denied the committee’s request to expedite its 501c3 status due to the fact that since Hurricane Katrina a large influx of applications for such designations had been submitted to the IRS. She noted that it would take five to six months for a decision to be made.
• Balmoral Village— Committee chairperson Brian Jacobs asked about getting damaged mailboxes repaired. He was told the boxes are owned by the post office and to contact the New Market office about repairs. Mr. Jacobs said that a decision was expected soon about having school buses come into the village to pick up students instead of having the youngsters walk the road from a Meadows bus stop that has some dangerous spots. Mr. Jacobs also had questions about the condition of roads in the village due some new home construction. GM Edwards said the contractor would repair the road once construction is completed. The village chair also asked about having a trash can and picnic table replaced in the Indian Cave area. GM Edwards said the trash can was moved into another spot but could be moved back and that the picnic table had been destroyed by someone. Mr. Jacobs said that a village meeting called about a stop sign issue did not get many responses and that it would be rescheduled for discussion.
•Meadows Village— new village committee chairperson Jerry Dorsey told the board that the committee set meeting nights for the second Tuesday of the month. He said the committee would be working to get input from residents as to their top concerns and begin to address those issues.
•Pinehurst Village — a resident of W. Lakeridge asked whether the LLA could clean out swales and culverts on that road, citing recent heavy rains that “deluged” the road and created run-off problems. GM Edwards said that a year ago the LLA did clean out culverts and swales, which is the responsibility of the property owners, and left door hanger notices as to what had been done and reminding owners that it was their responsibility to do the work. He said he would look into it.
Another resident asked about a stop sign at Rockridge Rd. and Rockridge Court.
A question was raised about the proposed pool for Pinehurst. Director Frazier said that a community discussion on the matter would take place in the future.
Another resident asked about three dead trees on Oakcrest Rd. that looked ready to fall. GM Edwards said he would take note of the situation.
•Westwinds Village— Jason Flint introduced himself as the new village committee chairperson. Minutes from the last Westwinds HOA meeting were included in the board’s 7.17.06 info packet and are to be included in the village’s web page and the office notebook that hold village committee meeting minutes.
OLD BUSINESS
Covenant Changes: Petition Status— CRM Gurley reported that 2100 lot owners needed to send in a petition approving the proposed changes to the covenants in order for the changes to take place. At the May 20 deadline, only 596 petitions had been submitted for the vote count, well under the required number. CRM Gurley said that the board needed to make a decision as to whether they wanted to extend the vote, redo the vote or decline to take any further action.
Motion: Director Charles made a motion to decline to take any further action on the matter of the proposed covenant changes. Director Hembree seconded the motion. Vote: six directors voted in favor of the motion; none of the directors voted against the motion.
Personnel Handbook— Staff had previously submitted the text for a revised personnel handbook but was asked to do an additional review of Section 4.04 regarding Jury Duty to determine if it met state law requirements. GM Edwards said the policy did meet any state requirements. GM Edwards recommended that the directors approve the handbook as written (copy attached to minutes).
Motion: Director Decker made a motion to approve the handbook as written. Director Charles seconded the motion. Vote: six directors voted in favor of the motion; none of the directors voted against the motion.
Lake Dredging Project Update— Dredging Committee chairperson Jim Reed reviewed with the board the actions of the LLA during the past two years to develop a dredging project for Lake Linganore that would remove 75 acre feet (three-feet of silt) from the upper portions (in the vicinity of the Isles of Balmoral) of the lake. He introduced engineer Tom Moynahan who had been hired by the association to do some preliminary engineering work and to develop a plan for the project. Mr. Reed said the LLA now had a concept and a little engineering completed in order to get a cost estimate ($1.5 million to $3 million) for a one-time job. He said that he and Mr. Moynahan had met with Land Stewards last year to discuss a spoil site (Isles of Balmoral/Heritage Ridge area) and while the developer was encouraging, the problem for the spoil site aspect is road access. Mr. Reed agreed to write a draft letter of an agreement between Land Stewards and the LLA and had sent it to Mr. Clarke but noted that nothing has gone beyond this point. He said the LLA and Land Stewards needed to decide if the project was to move forward.
Mr. Moynahan reviewed some of the physical aspects of the project with the new board members. He did note that after the initial dredging that traffic to the spoil site would be light. He said the footprint for the spoil site is 18 acres. Mr. Clarke said that Land Stewards was still committed to the project but did not agree that the spoil site would be 52 acres in size as someone had mention previously. He said that Land Stewards also wanted to maintain ownership of the acreage selected for the spoil site.
Director Frazier said that the LLA had no way to commit the dollars to the project at this time and that he had contacted the city of Frederick and the mayor to discuss whether it would be in the interests of the city to be a part of the financing of this project.
Director Charles said that he was willing to take the lead on the project and act as liaison between the association, developer and Dredging Committee to try to get the project moving forward again. Consensus was that the next step was for Land Stewards and Director Charles to work on a partnership agreement regarding the land/spoil site.
Pinehurst waterfront lot owners reminded the directors that a previous board had approved a plan to purchase a small dredging machine but that nothing had happened. The small dredge project would allow lot owners to put the silt spoils on their own individual lot. Director Frazier said that permitting is where that part of the project had stopped. Pinehurst resident and Dredging Committee member Don Archibald explained that the state Dept. of the Environment did not want all home owners to do the dredging but agreed that a 5,000 sq. ft. section per lot would be acceptable. Mr. Archibald said that he had applied, as had two other lot owners, to the state for permission to do the 5,000 sq. ft. dredging project. He said the lot owners originally thought they would wait for the larger project but since that has not made progress he felt he had to do something or possibly lose the option of being a waterfront lot. Mr. Archibald said that he wanted the board to put the funding back in the budget for the coming year to purchase the small dredge machine. He noted that there are times of the year when dredging could not be done but that an acceptable time period was soon approaching. Director Frazier asked that a decision on purchasing a small dredge machine be tabled to allow time for the ECC to work out a standard for allowing individual lot owners to put silt on their land. Mr. Archibald said that a standard would be difficult to work out because each lot is different so that individual considerations would have to be factored in.
Director Hembree said that the LLA had already approved this request in 2004 and if MDE approved the individual permits the LLA should have the machine in hand. Director Frazier asked the board to table the matter until the next agenda, which would give everyone time to work through the matter. Mr. Archibald agreed the ECC needed to have input on the matter but wanted to know if the board supported the individual dredge project. The consensus was that the board supported the project.
The board agreed to place the matter on the August agenda.
NEW BUSINESS
Proposed New LLA Rules— AGM Seligson recommended that four new items be added to Section 12-Exterior of Property in the LLA Rules & Regulations document: Temporary Seasonal Items, Exterior Lighting, Holiday Displays, Discharge of Fireworks (attached to minutes).
Motion: Director Decker made a motion to approve the new rules and to incorporate them as soon as possible after having the revised document recorded at the county courthouse in the Home Owners Association Depository. Vote: six of the directors voted in favor of the motion; none of the directors voted against the motion.
Request for Easement for Aspen Gas Lines— (easement attached to minutes).
Motion: Director Cates made a motion to approve the easement with separate language from the developer guaranteeing that LLA property will be repaired. Director Allen seconded the motion. Discussion: Kathy Brown of Aspen asked whether driveways damaged in the project would be restored. She was assured the driveways would be. Mr. DiMeglio said a letter of understanding could be developed to assure the association of that fact. John Clarke of Land Stewards said that the project would not be done until the LLA was okay with it. Mrs. Brown suggested that property owners be notified. Vote: five of the board members approved the motion; none of the board members voted against the motion; one board member (DiMeglio) abstained from the vote.
Legal Review with Commentary for Audubon Townhouse Covenants— (document attached to minutes) Director Decker wanted the board to have more time to review the document but it was stressed that the timing was such that a decision had to be made quickly so the legal review could continue and be completed in order to meet other timelines.
Motion: Director Hembree made a motion to approve the document with the final consent left to LLA attorney Shelah Lynn. Director Decker seconded the motion. Vote: six of the directors voted in favor of the motion; none of the directors voted against the motion.
MATTERS FOR BOARD
INFORMATION
Vacant Lot Assessment Vote— the directors noted that this issue would be dealt with sometime in the near future. The matter will require a membership vote to maintain the vacant lot assessment at $300 from $150 (as stipulated in the covenants).
RESIDENT FORUM
• James Wolfe of Audubon Condos presented a petition to the board from Redtail Court residents asking for help regarding the condition of the road. GM Edwards and LLA presidents Frazier said the matter would be looked into.
•Tanya Strassberger of Pinehurst complained to the board about the condition of the beaches due to the wild geese as well as the condition of the lake after the recent heavy rains. She offered a range of suggestions regarding the geese and the feces the birds leave on the beaches. GM Edwards explained that the beaches are cleaned twice a week but that the budget doesn’t allow any more than that. He also explained that heavy rain brings a lot of silt and debris into the lake and that there is nothing the LLA can do about those conditions.
•Dan Burke of Woodridge told the board that the lights in the model home in that village were still on throughout the night. He said that boat racks at the Brosius Dam should be built for the village. He also noted that the tot lot in the village had bees and that the problem needed to be taken care of right away. He asked about the process to get trees replaced that were planted by the developer more than a year ago and that are now dead. Director DiMeglio said that he was the contact for that matter. Mr. Burke said that he was working with the state’s attorney general (AG) regarding covenant violations in the village by the builders. He noted that Beazer was waiting for the LLA directors to decide what it will enforce before the AG makes a decision. Director Hembree ask whether Land Stewards could help to get the merchant builders to correct the problems. John Clarke of Land Stewards said the problem was more complicated than that. Director DiMeglio asked for time to work with the builders and that he would report back to the board.
•Chris and Tracy Allen of Pinehurst recounted to the board a towing incident that involved them at Lake Linganore on June 29, complained about the security officer on duty that evening, and made a request that the towing fine be reimbursed to them.
After questioning the Allen’s about the vehicle ID tag they had on the car and determining that their vehicle did not have the proper ID the directors decided that the towing fine would not be reimbursed.
ADJOURNMENT
Director Cates made a motion to adjourn the meeting.
Director Decker seconded the motion.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:20 p.m.