These minutes have not yet been approved by the HUA Board. Any corrections, additions, or deletions will be made at the next regular HUA Board meeting prior to official approval.
FEBRUARY 23, 2010 MINUTES: Sam Dent made a motion to approve the February 23, 2010 minutes, seconded by Owen Hill. At vote, all aye, motion carried.
PRESIDENT’S REMARKS: Todd Campbell asked the Secretary of the House of Delegates to report on the election. Joan Wilts said it was a pleasure to report that the three elected Directors are Sam Dent, Terry Potash, and Carole Stern. President Campbell welcomed Carole Stern to the HUA Board of Directors. Todd Campbell noted that Jayne Jones, former Speaker of the House and long-time resident, passed away in Texas after a lengthy illness. The Village of Gurnee has raised the water bills by 30% and the municipal tax for home and cell phone service will go from 1% to 6% in the near future. There was visible reaction from the audience and Todd noted that HUA will be inviting the Mayor to speak at one of our meetings once again in the near future. Residents will have an opportunity for questions.
TREASURER’S REMARKS:
Paul Kelly gave the Treasurer’s Report and detail. Owen Hill noted that the
amount of reserve money we have in one bank is not fully covered by the FDIC
insurance $250,000 cap. Sam Dent made a motion, seconded by Terry Potash,
to receive and accept the Treasurer’s Report. At vote, all aye, motion
carried.
MANAGEMENT REPORT: A Management Report was submitted in writing and was available to the audience. Bob Marcus noted the options for repairing the Hidden Hills Recreation Center (HHRC). This issue and others (propane for CBRC, reserve funds) within the report will be considered in Old and New Business. The loan we had applied for with Harris Bank has been denied, Bob is pursuing a loan with Barrington Bank. The Workman’s Comp insurance increase was discussed. Terry Potash noted a memorandum from the Landscape Department Head that documents the training and safety procedures instituted and followed at HeatherRidge. This memo is available to all HUA Board members and residents. Some roads will be repaired this year and Bob Marcus is asked to get the existing potholes repaired as soon as possible. Linda Kirby made a motion to approve the Management Report, seconded by Owen Hill. At vote, all aye, motion carried.
STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS:
Architecture and Maintenance Committee. No formal report or motion required.
Audit Committee: A meeting among the Audit Committee, management, and the Mark Cantey Auditors was held March 18, 2010. Cantey submitted 19 recommendations that could be implemented at HUA and with Golf Visions. The options of full audit and reviews were discussed. A review is less expensive, but is less comprehensive, thus the next full audit must be reconstructed at a higher price, negating the savings of simple reviews. Paul Kelly was able to negotiate a price reduction with Cantey for performing the full audit in the next year.
Finance Committee: Paul Kelly reviewed the Finance Committee Report. Paul has asked Bob Marcus to schedule a meeting with the StoneyBrook Homeowner Board, Nimrod Realty Group, and HUA to resolve the assessments which are in arrears (Wednesday is the best day). A rebate for the off-road fuel tax should realize about $2,200. Bob Marcus will be working the other agenda items noted on the report. Sam Dent made a motion to accept the Finance Committee Report, seconded by Terry Potash. At vote, all aye, motion carried.
Golf and Tennis Committee: The meeting was held on March 18, 2010 with a report and attachments distributed to the Board. Golf rounds have started with the spring weather and all grounds, equipment, and employees are ready for the season. Leagues will begin soon and signup has been successful. Some of the “high-boy” patio furniture is being repaired in-house and some new furniture will be considered in the near future. It is important that the paving repair and seal-coating be completed on the entrance and parking areas. The designated trees are being removed and a split-rail fence is being considered along Clark Drive to deter golfers from leaving the course to chase balls in out-of-bounds areas. The fencing could be constructed in-house replicating some used near the Pro Shop. Linda Kirby made a motion to approve the Golf Committee Report and the GV Financial Reports, seconded by Carole Stern. At vote, all aye, motion carried.
Landscape Committee: A March 10, 2010 meeting was held and a report issued. The snow removal contracts were successful and our own plowing and snow removal should be complete. Some work is being done on areas that are inevitably affected or marked by plowing. Paul Kelly asked if the vendor Care of Trees had been contacted for a bid on removing the trees on the golf course. Owen Hill made a motion to approve the Landscape Committee Report, seconded by Sam Dent. At vote, all aye, motion carried.
Ponds Committee: No formal report or motion required.
Recreational Activities Committee (RAC): No formal report or motion required.
Security Committee: No formal report or motion required. Cris Mekuly will be joining the Security Committee.
Tax, Legislation, Law, Contracts, Insurance and Special Issues (TLLCISI): No report.
Welcoming Committee: No attendees in March. The next regular meeting will be held Tuesday, April 13, 2010.
OLD BUSINESS:
Vote on Proceeding with the Combined Inspection of the HHRC, Genesis Proposal (enclosure). Genesis Engineering has proposed $1,800 to prepare a professional engineering report and to provide oversight for repair of the HHRC. Bids will be solicited for the repair. Owen Hill made a motion to accept the proposal from Genesis for the engineering report and project oversight at the cost of $1,800 (plus reimbursement of expenses) as outlined in section 4 of the proposal, seconded by Owen Hill. The motion was modified to be contingent upon the approval of the HHRC Neighborhood Committee. Seconded by Paul Kelly, at vote, all aye, motion carried.
Golf Visions Fairway/Rough Mower Replacement Bids (enclosure). Golf Visions has not been happy with the bids received to date. They would prefer to purchase a used mower with low hourly usage, the difficulty is that these mowers are sold very quickly and we have missed opportunities. Golf Visions is asking that the HUA board offer permission to act on a mower proposal within a price range they are comfortable with, a price much lower than new equipment. The existing mower can be used this year, but a newer mower must be considered. The purchase is tabled and the HUA Board will determine the cost window that Golf Visions may act on.
Terry Potash raised the issue of the basketball hoop, can a temporary one be placed on the upper tennis courts while a final decision is made? Paul Kelly asked Bob if Maintenance can install a basketball backboard on the northeast section (middle) of the upper tennis courts. In the interim, can a temporary backboard be put up? Bob Marcus is getting bids to repair and resurface the upper courts. Carole Stern mentioned that the StoneyBrook Architecture Chairman has asked that a half-court be installed near the pool, but others did not feel that the hilly landscape was conducive to the idea. The upper tennis court area would be more centralized and available to all residents. It is important to arrange a temporary solution as soon as possible as weather improves.
NEW BUSINESS:
Vote on Propane Gas Proposals for the CBTH and Pool, AmeriGas and Hicks Gas (enclosure). Todd Campbell noted that the Covered Bridge neighborhood does not have access to natural gas service and residential units use electrical service. The CBRC and pool have depended upon propane gas exclusively and it has been very expensive. Maintenance checked with other vendors for pricing and availability. The existing AmeriGas vendor did offer to reduce their rates to match other vendors, but Paul Kelly asked if they should be queried as to a full rebate of the overcharge for the past year before negotiating a contract. If not receptive, a different vendor would be selected. Either option would replace the old propane tank with a new one at no charge. There was much discussion and a rebate from AmeriGas (could be $8,000 +/-) is considerable even though it appears HUA has been overcharged for many years. A contract must be negotiated and monitored, possibly tied to the commodity market pricing to prevent gouging. Todd Campbell asked Bob Marcus to pursue getting the rebate and that a proposal be submitted to TLLCISI as soon as possible so that this matter can be acted upon at the April meeting.
HUA reserve funds currently held in First Midwest Bank far exceed the $250,000 FDIC insurance cap. Other banks offer the MaxSafe program and distribution of up $1,060,000 while being insured. This would be a reassignment of reserve funds and Barrington Bank has that option. It is noted that much of the reserve funding will be obligated to paving. Bob Marcus is asked to get proposals for repaving as many roads as the Six-Year Plan allows for (from last year and this year) while HUA pursues a line-of-credit loan from Barrington Bank (since loan denial by Harris Bank). Bob Marcus is asked to have decisions on line-of-credit loans from Northern Trust and Barrington Banks by the April 27, 2010 HUA Board meeting.
Election of HUA Officers.
Paul Kelly requested that the HUA Board Officers be reseated for the coming year and Sam Dent asked that a new Vice President be elected. There was a tie vote and each officer was selected individually.
Paul Kelly nominated Todd Campbell for President. At vote, all aye.
Sam Dent nominated Owen Hill as Vice President. At vote, all aye.
Terry Potash nominated Paul Kelly as Treasurer. At vote, all aye.
Paul Kelly nominated Sam Dent as Secretary. At vote, all aye.
An orientation meeting will be scheduled by Todd Campbell and Bob Marcus in the near future. President Campbell will make Committee Chairmanship appointments at that time. It is noted that new officers will need to sign the new signature cards required by our banking facilities.
OPEN DISCUSSION FOR HOMEOWNERS:
Kay Maier of the Covered Bridge Condos brought pictures and asked once again when the landscaping work on the front of the 930 Taylor condo building will be completed. Bob Marcus to check and respond to Kay Maier.
Elaine Stein of the Covered Bridge Condos asked why HUA has not changed to energy and cost effective light bulbs. HUA has been changing to the new energy-efficient bulbs for the past three years as bulbs burn out they are replaced. Elaine asked why we are not using banks in the Gurnee area. Local banks are considered, but other banks may also be competitive for better interest and safety of the FDIC insurance.
Cris Mekuly, President of Hidden Hills Townhomes asked how much of the work documented in the property inspections of 2009 had been done. Bob Marcus said that some of the work has been done and that there will be another walk-through with Landscape and Maintenance in the coming months. Cris also asked what is being done about the drainage problems on Dunham Road, the townhome garages, but also in other areas of HeatherRidge. Bob Marcus said that each area is being looked at individually. Some drainage issues may be resolved with the paving/drainage work HUA will be contracting for. Cris is concerned that if the basketball court is moved to the upper tennis courts that it will be an irritation to residents in the townhome area, she asked what the hours would be for play. The hours would be similar to the playground and golf areas of dawn to dusk.
Joan Karkow, Chairperson of the HHRC Neighborhood Committee asked if she could do a phone vote of her committee for the HHRC engineering oversight and proposal work. If so and it is approved, the HUA Board could proceed with the work. Acceptable with the HUA Board.
Jan Arnold of the StoneyBrook/Cambridge Recreation Center (SBCRC) Neighborhood Committee does not understand why the committee has not been asked to participate in the planning and decisions for the basketball court play area. She does not feel that due process has been applied. She further stated that the basketball area had been an amenity when StoneyBrook was first established, even before the Cambridge neighborhood was built. It is noted that StoneyBrook could change their neighborhood rules to allow individual basketball hoops to be installed on individual residences. The original declaration documents will be looked at to see if a basketball hoop or backstop area were considered part of the original amenities.
Linda Kirby made a motion to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Sam Dent; at vote, all aye, motion carried.
Adjournment at 8:50 pm. Next Meeting – Tuesday, April 27, 2010
