Board of Directors Meeting Minutes

CALL TO ORDER

The meeting was called to order at 7 p.m. at the LLA Coldstream Drive office.

Board members present were: Jim Cates, vice president; Robert Charles, treasurer; Jay Decker, secretary; Jim DiMeglio; Brandon Frazier, president; Stephen Hembree.

BoD Absent: Ken Allen.

Staff in attendance: GM Edwards, AGM Seligson, CRM Gurley.

APPROVAL of November 6, 2006 BoD MINUTES

Minutes of the November 6, 2006 regular board meeting were approved as written.

DEVELOPER’S REPORT

Director DiMeglio said that regarding the light posts in Woodridge, he talked with Beazer and Craftmark about relocating the lamps and both builders agreed to do so if the home owner so wanted. Mr. DiMeglio said that he would draft a letter to homeowners about it and include information about having house numbers installed and visible from the street as per county ordinance. He said that he would give the homeowners a timeframe in which to respond, as well as a timeline for the work to be done. He also noted that if homes have an integral switch there may be a need to install a second lamp post closer to the street as the board has requested. GM Edwards said that he was concerned that leaving the decision to the homeowner would not help address the lighting problem that the board has expressed an interest in resolving. Director DiMeglio said that the board had already passed a resolution saying that these homes were in compliance with ECC guidelines for the village. Director Frazier disagreed and noted that the board and the developer agreed to work on resolving this specific issue. Director Cates said that it would be easy to include in the letter to homeowners that the lamp posts are to be moved in order to be in compliance. Director Hembree asked to have AGM Seligson send a letter to homeowners encouraging them to take advantage of the offer. Director DiMeglio said that because of past experience with replacing trees in that village he needed to be certain to obtain permission to access the property in order to do the lamp post work.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

• Environmental Control Committee — AGM Seligson reported that applications to the ECC had been slow and that no new home applications had been received for awhile.

• Finance Committee — no report.

• Communications Committee— no report.

• Trailblazers Committee— co-chairperson Katrinka Westendorf reported that the committee had worked on the Lake Anita Louise trail at its November work party/committee meeting. She said that the group would be concentrating its budget request on Pinehurst and Lake Anita Louise trails, adding that the group was close to finalizing its budget request for FY’08 and would be sending it to the general manager at the end of the month.

• Social Committee — CRM Gurley reminded the board that a holiday party would not be taking place this year. She said that the committee had reported that to the board early in 2006 when the committee presented its yearly events schedule.

• Election Committee— no report.

• Archives Committee — no report.

• Friends of the Lake Committee— no report

• Community Youth Services Committee— committee chairperson Lisa Rogers reported that the group would pick some dates to do proposed projects. She noted that a scout was interested in building a boat rack. She said that she would advertise the dates ahead of time. She also noted that the average age of the participants was 12 to 13 years of age and that they work hard for approximately one hour and that she needed to keep that in mind in terms of the scope of the project. Mrs. Rogers said that the projects always have good adult supervision involved. She asked the board and staff to keep their eyes open for good projects for the committee.

Director DiMeglio asked Mrs. Rogers if she had a requested from a senior at Linganore High to rebuild a picnic table and some other things at the Indian Cave area. He said that Land Stewards, which owns the parcel, does not have insurance provisions for this kind of activity and wanted to know whether the senior could do this project through the committee in order to be covered by the LLA insurance. Resident Charlotte Dusold said that the senior who wants to do this project is a resident who lives right beside the Indian Cave and that he and his family frequently clean and take care of the area. She said that she would like to see a picnic table in the cave area again.

Mrs. Rogers also asked about a Summerfield resident request to staff for a girl scout troop to do some clean up in the field near the Summerfield townhouse area where a past reforestation project had been implemented. There had been some delay in approving the request and she wanted to know the status. CRM Gurley said that she had been in contact with the Summerfield resident and had some discussions and that she wanted to be able to talk to the Maryland Forestry Service about whether it would be willing to help reestablish this reforestation project, which had been done in 1997 and 1998. Director Frazier asked that a report be made at the next meeting on the status of the request.

VILLAGE REPORTS

• Aspen Village— chairperson Kathy Brown said that an Accipiter resident had complained about seeing construction trucks on the older section of the road and suggested that Land Stewards post signs noting proper approaches to the construction area. Director DiMeglio said that he had talked to a dispatcher at the company about the matter. GM Edwards said that staff was not seeing the volume of truck traffic as before and suggested that everyone just keep an eye on it.

Mrs. Brown read into the record the text of a memo she sent to Mr. DiMeglio regarding the tree plan for Aspen (attached to minutes). Director DiMeglio said that Land Stewards generally looked at providing a larger caliper tree for the lots.

• Aspen North Village— Director DiMeglio said that Land Stewards had recently met with the lot owners regarding the booster pump. It was noted that only 30+ lots needed the pump. He said that more meetings would be needed between the two parties. GM Edwards said that when all is done in Aspen North it will be one of the best laid out villages in the community.

• Audubon Condos— GM Edwards said that staff was meeting with the manager of the condos to discuss the future of the condos.

• Westwinds Village— Director Decker said that village chairperson Jason Flint has resigned. He said that the Westwinds HOA board of directors wanted to have a meeting with the LLA board sometime in December. It was noted that the only meeting in December was on the fourth of the month. The board decided to start the regular meeting at 6 p.m. followed by the meeting with the Westwinds HOA BoD.

GM Edwards said that he recently had met with representatives from Tyler-Donegan, who will be developing the last section (townhomes) of the village. He said that RM Johnson was the project manager. Director Frazier asked that the GM provide the board with an organizational chart of who is involved with the project. GM Edwards said that the representatives indicated that they want everything to go smoothly. President Frazier asked that a summary of the meeting be prepared for the board by the December 4 meeting. GM Edwards explained that the punch list and the related funding are still under Millennium Development Group and that Brian Lippy was still involved in that aspect. Director Decker asked about street light and placement of a street sign for Sanandrew Drive. Director Frazier said there would be no point in meeting on the subject of the covenants because Millennium attorney Arthur Rosenberg has declined to attend.

OLD BUSINESS

Draft Letter of Agreement Re: Dredge Spoil Site— Director Charles said that additional communication had taken place among the directors regarding the original draft of the agreement with Land Steward regarding the spoil site. He said that director Hembree had made some suggestions on the matter, that he supported those suggestions and asked Mr. Hembree to discuss them. Director Hembree said that the matter would be easier for the LLA if it owned the property that was to be dredge spoil site. He noted that it would require due diligence on the part of Land Stewards to do a survey and legal description of the land. Mr. Hembree said that a letter of intent would be needed stating that goal. He said that an easement would be too complicated for the matter and added that Land Stewards’ direction would be needed regarding the deed.

Director DiMeglio said that matter of ownership versus an easement was an issue from the beginning for Land Stewards and that the developer never considered deeding 20 acres to the LLA for this purpose and that this viewpoint had not changed. He asked how far Land Stewards had to go until the association felt it had the developer’s commitment. He explained that if it turned out ultimately that the association did not do a dredging project then there would be no need to deed the land. Director Hembree said that it was harder to speak to issues when the LLA would not know what they would be until it got into the project; he noted that the LLA had deed to the developer parcels A,B and one C parcel with the goal to get the spoil site. Director DiMeglio said that the 2003 Memorandum of Understanding only agreed that Land Stewards would work with the association regarding the spoil site. Director Frazier said that the matter needed negotiation for further discussion. Director Cates said that Land Stewards could do a deed and file a remander so that if the association did not use the land ownership of it would return to Land Stewards. Director DiMeglio said that his concern was that the goal of the letter was to put the situation in a direction that would allow engineer Tom Moynihan to begin to move forward on the preliminary work of the project.

MOTION: Director Cates made a motion to table the discussion until the December 4 meeting, allow directors Charles and Hembree to meet with Land Stewards and then develop an agreement document that the board could discuss at the next meeting. Director DiMeglio seconded the motion. DISCUSSION: Director Frazier said that an agreed upon emphasis needed to be determined and he asked whether LLA ownership of the land was an impossible consideration at this time. VOTE: six of the directors voted in favor of the motion; none of the directors voted against the motion.

CDA Letter of Credit Update— Director Frazier reported that the letter of credit (LOC) had been approved for $1.5 million and that the documents were in the hands of the attorney. Lake Linganore Conservation Society (LLCS) secretary Charlotte Dusold asked the board if it had heard from the county on the subject. Mr. Frazier said that the county was waiting on proof of the association’s LOC.

Resident Sue Corbin said she had three questions and concerns about the CDA. She asked how “short” the project was on money. Director Frazier said that at this point the project was not short on money. LLCS president Larry Dusold said that refinancing of the CDA bonds brought more money to the project. Director Frazier said that there is good justification to obtain the LOC and that the board had the numbers documented. Mrs. Corbin said that she wanted a letter from the board guaranteeing the integrity of the roads and that they would last 30 years. Mr. Dusold said the roads and the shoulders would be built to last with proper maintenance. Director Frazier said that the board could only tell Mrs. Corbin what the engineering statement says about the roads. He said the board, as well as a special CDA committee, inquired about the quality of the road design and was assured that the design was satisfactory. Mrs. Corbin said that when she spoke with the county she was told that the county would never accept into the county road system a reclamation road. Director Frazier said that the intention was not to turn over LLA roads to the county. Mrs. Corbin asked again for a guarantee. Director Frazier said the board could only guarantee that the association will maintain the roads. Resident Kathy Brown told Mrs. Corbin that she was on the special CDA citizens committee and that she was impressed with the board’s work on the matter and that as a resident she was satisfied that the board understood the critical nature of the project and worked hard to get good roads.

Municipality Study— Director Frazier said that the LLA needed to finalize information with IGS at the University of Maryland. He also said that Dave Swanson, a Woodridge resident and a volunteer on the LLA Elections Committee, was interested in working on the municipality study. It was noted that the town of New Market was discussing annexing the Casey and Blentlinger properties and that annexing Eaglehead into New Market might be an option. Director Hembree said that he wanted it noted that the Casey tract was part of the LLA and that a part of that property has LLA covenants on it. Director Frazier said that he would forward the contact information to staff.

NEW BUSINESS

Governing Documents Violation Hearing—

Lot 050231 in Coldstream requested a public hearing with the LLA directors but the resident did not show up for the meeting. AGM Seligson said that he had been talking with the homeowner who had resolved the majority of the outstanding issues: 1. storing a boat on the property; 2. incomplete construction of a shed on the property; 3. fence in disrepair. The total of the fines involved was $500. He said that the family has had some severe medical problems and, as a result, some severe financial problems and asked the board to consider those factors.

MOTION: Director Cates made the motion to find the owner of Lot #050231 in violation of the governing documents as outlined in the hearing information but to suspend the fine for six months provided that the boat is removed from the property within 60 days, that the shed is completed within six months and that there are no additional violations during that time, after which the fine will be dismissed. Director Hembree seconded the motion. VOTE: six directors voted in favor of the motion; none of the directors voted against the motion.

Aspen ECC— GM Edwards said that staff had been meeting with Land Stewards and Craftmark. AGM Seligson noted that the last point to be worked out was the location of the lamp posts. Director Frazier said that staff needed to develop a document for board approval and asked that the matter be placed on the January agenda.

MATTERS FOR BOARD INFORMATION

Woods Court Update— GM Edwards said that the repairs to the road were completed two days after the board approved the funds to address the matter. He said the work would keep the road in good shape for many years to come.

Pinehurst Amenity Update— GM Edwards reported that the matter was still a little slow moving but that he was ready to talk with the Frederick County Planning Commission (FcPc) about the change in the amenity from a pool facility to a multi-purpose park. He said he had needed to do a little more background about the funds that Land Stewards had set aside for that project and was hoping to meet with county by the end of December.

LAL/Farm Pond Project Update— GM Edwards said that a lot had changed since last spring when the board had approved funds for the farm pond repair. He said that the scope of the project had increased to include the pond and the LAL dam outfall pipe. He said the revised plan now includes doing a new outfall pipe for the pond would cost $150,000 and that a new outfall pipe and new riser structure for the dam would cost approximately $350,000, bringing the total of the project to approximately $500,000. GM Edwards said that if the board decided to eliminate the farm pond it could save the money approximately $100,000. LLCS president Larry Dusold said that doing that would reduce the storm water management capability of the area. GM Edwards noted that the state would not allow the LLA to go to the county for the necessary permits until the design and location of the riser was approved. He added that the specifications for that part of the project would be finalized shortly. Director Frazier asked when it would go to a contractor. The GM said that he hoped to submit it to permitting department within 120 days. In addition, the GM said that when this project was completed all Eaglehead dams would be in compliance with state regulations.

Redtail Court— GM Edwards reported that the title research that he had done for the association showed that the roads in the Audubon condo section of Eaglehead were still owned by former developer Frank Ellis. He said that ultimately the condo roads were to come to the LLA. He added that he needed to talk to the condo owners regarding association fees. Director Frazier said that he wanted action on the roads that the association did not own. Director Hembree said that the roads were personally owned by Ellis, that there were liens against the properties ranging from $2500 to $180,000, and that the properties never were transferred to Ellis’ company Linganore Development Group. Director Frazier asked GM Edwards if he had contacted Ellis. The GM said that nothing has happened from those attempts. Director Frazier asked if the LLA maintained the easements on Audubon North. The GM said no. Director DiMeglio questioned whether Ellis could personally own those parcels but the GM said that research shows that is the case. Director Hembree said that the LLA is insured to handle any maintenance it does on roads owned by Ellis. Director Frazier questioned whether the LLA had the authority to do any repair work on Redtail Court. Director Hembree said that he believed the LLA had the authority and the needed insurance. The GM said that he would write to Ellis inquiring about the matter.

State Task Force on Community/HOA Associations— LLA president Frazier said that he had hoped to be able to share with the board the final report of the task force, of which he was appointed by Gov. Robert Erlich, but had not as yet received a copy.

RESIDENT FORUM

• Resident Lisa Rogers told the board that her children and other children in her neighborhood were upset about the board’s recent decision to declare trampolines as seasonal equipment and require that they be taken down by the end of October. She said that her children use the trampoline year round and that her children requested that the board reconsider this decision.

MOTION: Director Decker made a motion that the board reconsider the matter at the December 4 meeting. Director Charles seconded the motion. VOTE: six of the directors voted in favor of the motion; none of the directors voted against the motion.

• Resident Lisa Rogers asked director DiMeglio about the Eaglehead Drive Bridge. Director DiMeglio said that the engineer (Stephens) was still working with the county on the matter. He said that when the bridge is built it will be a public road, and added that Land Stewards would continue to work with the county on the matter but that there was no timetable. Mrs. Rogers asked if that project was holding up the Boyer’s Mill Road project. Director DiMeglio said that he did not believe that was the case. Charlotte Dusold said that the county’s water and sewer project will require digging up Boyer’s Mill Road. Director DiMeglio said that many things were impacting the Boyer’s Mill project. Director Frazier asked CRM Gurley to check records to see if there was any vote related to deeding land to the county for the Boyer’s Mill Rd. project.

• Westwinds resident Sonya Rossig told the board that if New Market approves the annexation of the Casey/Blentlinger tracts that it would go to a citizens referendum. She also noted that Westwinds board of directors had not seen covenants regarding the upcoming condo community in that village and that the directors also wanted to know what would be happening with regard to the roads. GM Edwards said the roads would be privately owned by the LLA. He said there would only be townhouse community fees and the covenants for that section would need Westwinds ECC approval.

ADJOURNMENT

Director Charles made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Director Decker seconded the motion. The meeting was adjourned at 9:30 p.m.