Skyline Ridge news - Recap of Annual Meeting 2008

Skyline Ridge Property Owner's Association

Annual meeting January 2008

Minutes

The annual meeting of the Skyline Ridge Property Owner's Association was held in the Becket Town hall on January 26, 2008 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM.

Present (according to the sign in sheet):

Sal and Tonya Barbaro

Sean McGlone

Stanley Borko

Bean and Henry Rowland

Barbara and Martin Winters

Frank and Marge Rizza

Jack Dos Santos.

The following was the agenda presented to the members:

Review of Association Finances

Discussion of road related issues

Construction vehicles
Parking on the roads
New Road Maintenance Contractor
Cancellation of contract with Wilbur's Landscaping for road maintenance

Announcement about new Webmaster/mistress requirements

Election of Officers

Collection of sign-in sheets

The meeting proceeded as follows:

Although there was extensive discussion on most of these issues, with some very good suggestions these minutes do not try to capture all of the discussion, just the salient points of the discussion.

Association Finances

Total Dues collected for 2007: $15,325.00, includes all late fees collected out of $15,675 budgeted

Dues and/or late fees not paid:

Lot 1, Dan Rosenbeurg, $475 dues, $600 late fees. Paid nothing
Lot 4, John Pirog (JP Builders), $475 dues, $600 late fees. Paid nothing
Lot 21, Garfield Homes, dues paid late, still due $475 late fees
Lot 25, Garfield Homes, dues paid late, still due $475 late fees

Total 2007 dues/late fees still due: $3,100.

Total Expenses for 2007:

Road maintenance: $10,850
Legal fees: $630
Bank fees: $75
Insurance: $2,425
Computer support: $368
Total: $14,273 Surplus available: $1,052

Note: Due to surplus, there will be no dues increase in 2008.

Total collected to date for 2008: $14,125, including late fees, out of $15,675 budgeted.

Dues and/or late fees not paid, as of 2/23/08:

Lot 1, Dan Rosenbeurg, $475 dues, Late fees accruing monthly (see below)
Lot 4, John Pirog (JP Builders) Dues paid late, so Late fees accruing monthly
Lot 20, Peggy Thomann, $475 dues, Late fees accruing monthly
Lot 21, Garfield Homes, $475 dues, Late fees accruing monthly
Lot 25, Garfield Homes, $475 dues, Late fees accruing monthly.

NOTE: Liens have been placed on Lot 1, 4, 21 and 25 due to late or non-existant or partial payments only.

Expenses projected for 2008:

Road maintenance: $11,100
Legal fees: $1,000
Bank fees: - (Changed banks to eliminate fees)
Insurance: $2,600
Computer support: $600
Total: $15,300 (Note budget shortfall projected due to owners not paying dues!)

Discussion of road related issues

It was again noted that parking on the common roads of Skyline Ridge should be avoided whenever possible, especially for construction vehicles. It was also noted that construction vehicles cause damage to the common roads of Skyline Ridge and the Association is responsible for maintaining the roads.
The month to month contract with Wilbur's Landscaping has been terminated. There never was a contract with Wilbur's Landscaping, and this contractor was working under a month to month contract. The Association, after multiple inspections and complaints decided that Wilbur's Landscaping was not performing road maintenance to the level the Association desired. Wilbur's Landscaping was notified verbally and in writing that their services were no longer needed.
A contract was awarded to B + B Landscaping and Excavating for all road maintenance at Skyline Ridge, including snow removal, grading, mowing and brush hogging, etc. The contract is for 5 years, with a 30 day notification of termination of need for services for a cost of $925.00 per month, payable at the end of each month at billing. This contract includes three truckloads of driveway mix per year as needed and placed where the Association thinks it is needed most.
Due, in part, to the extent of the damage caused by construction vehicles, any property owners who will be building will pay a $1,000 construction fee to the Association prior to the commencement of any building in the Skyline Ridge property. This does not affect any homes already under construction or already constructed, but will affect those homes under construction or already constructed if those owners build additional buildings on their property, as allowed by the covenants.

Web needs

Skyline Ridge Property Owner's Association is in dire need of a web master/mistress. The responsibilities include updating and keeping current the web site of www. Skylineridgebecket.org. If no owner steps forward, our costs for our website will remain and may in fact grow. If anyone has the talent to maintain a website, please let one of the directors know.

Election of officers

Frank T. Rizza was the only director standing for election and he was nominated and elected for a three year term by a unanimous vote of those present and of those who sent in proxy ballots. Frank will continue as the Association Treasurer.

Other business discussed

Annual meeting date change: To try to make it simpler for our neighbors to attend the annual meeting, the annual meeting will be held in October, rather than in January. The exact date has yet to be established, but October is the month chosen.
Building plans: All building plans must be submitted to the Board of Directors prior to applying for a building permit in the Town of Becket. No building can be built without approval of the Board. This will be changed in the covenants.
Another change in the covenants will be to exclude basements from the 1,800 square foot minimum building size. There was extensive discussion on this topic.
Late fees will now become progressive:

$50 for the first month or part of a month that a payment is late

$50 for the second month

$50 for the third month

$100 for the fourth month

After the start of the fourth month, 12% interest will be charged to all fees due, including late fees

$200 for the fifth month

$300 for the sixth month

$400 for the seventh month

$500 for the eight month

$600 for the ninth month

$700 for the tenth month

$800 for the eleventh month

$900 for the twelfth month. All late fees accrue on the first of the month.

Seizure of property: As there are some owners who seem to believe that they do not have to pay their dues, and/or if they do pay them it is acceptable to pay them late and/or ignore the late fees, the Association will begin legal proceedings to seize the property of anyone who is delinquent in their dues payments. Please note that this is not an easy decision to have made. Yet, due to these individuals there is a projected budget shortfall which may cause an increase in dues.

Due dates for the annual dues:

It has been requested and noted that dues that are payable immediately after the holiday season may be a hardship for some owners. In addition, the dues payable date of December 31^st often means that the bulk of the dues arrive after the fairly large expense of our insurance comes due in November. Therefore, the board has decided that dues will eventually be due on June 30^th. To make this transaction as smooth as possible, the due date for dues will be moved up one month per year until the dues date of June 30^th is accomplished. Therefore dues for the next six years will be due as follows:

2009 dues are payable no later than November 30, 2008
2010 dues are payable no later than October 31, 2009
2011 dues are payable no later than September 30, 2010
2012 dues are payable no later than August 31, 2011
2013 dues are payable no later than July 31, 2012
2014 dues are payable no later than June 30, 2013.

It was also noted that the Association does send out dues notices, but it is the owner's responsibility to pay the dues on time, regardless of when/if they receive an invoice. Any late payments, regardless of claims regarding receipt of invoices will be assessed late fees, and it is the owner's responsibility to notify the association of any changes in address and notify any person to whom a property is sold that they are responsible for notifying Skyline Ridge Property Owner's Association of the new owner's name, address and other contact information.

A motion was made to adjourn the meeting it was seconded, voted upon and the meeting was adjourned.