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Meeting Minutes
Olentangy Glade Annual Meeting
March 4th 2009
Panera Bread on Route 23
Lisa Montooth
- Thanked everyone for coming
- Introduced the Board and Wayne
- Gave a little background on the years past
- 2007 new board took over
- Not in a good financial place
- Not enough funds to pay bills throughout the year
- As a board we decided to focus on collecting all due (past and present)
- Rickert came into the picture
- In March 2008
- 83 delinquent accounts for a total of $18,000
- At the end of 2008 we had 20 delinquent account for a total of $4,900
- Would like to have everyone caught up
- At the end of 2008 we were in a much better position financially
- Working on building a reserve fund (to take care of issues that may come up, i.e. sprinkler system, fence, lights)
- Neighborhood is coming up on 10 year old
- Wayne went over budget (handout)
- Question: Could we ask about the homeowner who owns the landscaping business for a quote?
- Johnerik will tell the individual to contact Wayne
- Question: Can home be put up for rent/lease?
- Nothing we can do about it. The deed does not restrict renting or leasing a home. Can't be a boarding house.
- Question: Have we thought about raising the dues?
- Not in the near future
- We will not let the finances get to a critical point that it was a couple of years ago.
- We may have to look at raising in the future.
- Making a better community
- Littering in the neighborhood
- Newspapers
- Ads
- Calling the Dispatch, SNP and This Week: letting them know that their carriers are not doing their job of getting the newspapers close to the house.
- Getting to know your neighbors
- Goals
- Past Due Collection
- Reserve Fund Building
- Additional Landscaping
- Nothing has been done for 10 years
- Community Building/Adding Events
- Question: Could we send around a flyer for a community garden day (planting and cleaning the front entrances and collecting trash)
- Question: Could we start up the Newsletter again
- Question: Could we make a calendar of events
- Doing the same activities the same time each year might help.
- New website: Thinking about having a new website
- Question: Starting a handbook with services that our neighbors offer (Johnerik will help)
- Neighbors could buy add space
- Looking into getting services as a group for a lower cost
- Mulch
- Yard Waste Pick Up
- Driveway Sealing
- More stop signs in the neighborhood
- Yield signs
- Speed Limit signs
- Stacy will talk with Officer Clinger about this
- Looking for Block Watch Captains on each street
- Next Block Watch meeting is March 25th 7pm Panera on Polaris Parkway
Board of Trustees Meeting. 8/26/2008
Salvation Army Center
Board Members
Present: Lisa Montooth(President) , Stacy Tepper-Graff(Trustee) , Tori Blazer(VP)
Will Pawlikowski (Secretary/Treasurer), Drew Wells( Trustee)
Ken Holdomb-RPMI
Home Owners
Michelle Bhatia 8629 SHD, John Cilberto 580 OLGB, Sheila Davis, 8584 FB D, Jenifer and Greg Schick 8775 SHD, Lisa Thaxton 8584 SHD, Pat and Cindy Frey 8578 SHD, Jeff and Julie Bright 546 MBL, Chemmelle Gibson 8638 SHD, Max Treboni 8587 FBD, Robert and Keri Phillips 8580 CGD, Linda O?Ryan 45 CRR, Sherry Gnooch 492 TVD, Matthew Trefz 482 CRR, Fabrico Duarte 8581 FBD
Proceedings
I. Call to Order
Introduction of Board members by Lisa Montooth, President?Welcome to all. We have several new members and we have been focused on improving our communication with homeowners. Our agenda items for the evening will be the following. Please feel free to ask questions at any time
a. Update on Collections
b. Enforcement of the Deed Restrictions
II. Update on Collections
Lisa discussed the current state of the collections process. We started the year with over 70 homes (over ? of homes) with past due accounts. Due to efforts by the board over the course of this year we are now down to 34 homes. Several rounds of letters have gone out to homeowners over the course of this year requesting that they bring their accounts current. While this has been successful we are going to be taking legal action against those homeowners with accounts that are still past due. We believe that we have given people adequate notice regarding their accounts and we now have no other choice but to take legal action against those homeowners with past due balances. We will be taking a majority of the homeowners with delinquent accounts to small claims court as this is more cost efficient for the association and provides the association with additional avenues of collecting payment if a judgment has been rendered in our favor such as wage garnishment. Liens also may be used as well but this option is much more expensive for the association and ultimately the homeowner.
Question: How many of the homes in the area are significantly delinquent?
Answer: There are 14 homes that have a balance of over $400.
Question: How well were records kept?
Answer: Past board members did keep not complete records and this was the reason that we asked for proof of payment from several homeowners for past years. RPMI was hired to help us clean our books and ensure that we have good records going forward.
Question: How much is currently due?
Answer: $19,000
Question: What is the collections process for those with past due accounts?
Answer: We will be taking those homeowners to Small claims court.
Lisa began the collections process earlier in the year as the association did not have enough cash on hand to cover its monthly expenses (electric, taxes, water, etc..). This was also the reason for collecting the dues earlier this year than in past years. We are also at risk by not having a reserve account that would help us cover unforeseen expenses. Recently the lights were not working up front and luckily RPMI was able to fix for a fraction of the cost of a new system. If this was not the case we would not have had the funds to cover this type of repair.
III. Deed Restrictions
Lisa began by asking if everyone present had a copy of the deed. We are in the process of putting together a homeowner?s handbook that covers that deed restrictions in plain English. The role of RPMI is to enforce the deed restrictions with our guidance. We are currently seeking for input and opinions from the community as a whole on the level of enforcement that is necessary in order to protect our property values. We recently completed an audit of homes and found a large number of homes with violations. Top violations were the following and a discussion of the violations followed.
? No numbers on mailbox 65 Homes
? Trashcan in view 49 Homes
? Satellite dish in view 38 homes
? Numbers on 1 side of the mailbox only 37 homes
Question: Sherry Gnooch stated that her neighbor did not receive a copy and was unable to download from the website.
Answer: Lisa will follow up by sending her a copy.
Question: What type of fence is required by the deed as we are having trouble finding materials in 4 foot sections.
Answer: 4ft wooden, approved plastic, stone or brick, and several homeowners gave suggestions on where to find materials.
Question: Are we allowed to stain our fences.
Answer: Yes. The deed also states that any home facing Old State must use Gatehouse Grey Stain on fences but we are not going to enforce the use of this color
Question: What does trashcan in view mean.
Answer: It must be shielded from view except when placed on the curb for trash pickup
Several homeowners voiced their concerns with people speeding in the neighborhood and running stop signs. ?It is only a matter of time before someone gets hurt?. Several suggestions were made on how to try and get people to slow down including putting up ?slow children at play? signs, speed bumps, sending out flyers, getting the Columbus Police to patrol the neighborhood, putting in the is your speed signs for a few weeks. All agreed that some sort of police presence is necessary. Lisa will follow up with our neighborhood CPD Liaison to see what our options are.
Comment: The community looks bad due to old newspapers being left in homeowner?s driveways. Are we able to opt out of this paper and how we can get homeowners to take care of and have some pride in the community? It was suggested that we include this topic in the next newsletter.
Comment: Anything that brings down the property value needs to be taken care of and enforced.
Ken from RPMI stated that in 2001 the FCC passed a law that prohibited the restrictions that prohibited a person?s ability to install a satellite dish and our deed was drafted before this law was passed. He suggested that we include some guidelines on installing and shielding the dish were possible in our upcoming ?Guide to the deed restrictions document?
Question: Does the deed state that we must have black mailboxes?
Answer: Yes we must have black mailboxes and matching posts. It does not state the color of the post at this time.
Question: Will people be asked to replace their mailboxes?
Answer: This will depend on the feedback fro the community and we may have to review this on a case by case basis. Ken from RPMI stated that leeway may be given on deed restrictions if the homeowner written a letter explaining and asking for the variance to be approved.
Lisa discussed the surveys that were recently sent out and that we only have received 4 back so far. She asked everyone to please fill out a survey and also to discuss it with their neighbors. The architectural review board was discussed and Lisa mentioned that we are in the process of setting up this committee and looking for people to serve.
The group then discussed rental properties in the area. There was some questions regarding if homes in the area were allowed to be rented and both Drew Wells and KEn stated that homes were allowed to be rented. However, if there are renters that are not keeping up their property then we need to put pressure on the owners to ensure that these homes are maintained. We also discussed what can be done about homes that have gone into foreclosure. Since the banks are overloaded with foreclosures right now we are not going to able to count on them to maintain the property. In the past individuals have take action to maintain the lawns etc of these properties but we may need to identify other options in the future if more homes are not maintained.
Several homeowners then commented on the recent activities the year by the board to try and get the community involved. Everyone liked the newsletter that came out and hope that this could continue in the future. The community garage sale and fun day had a lot of homeowners participate and hopefully we can have more of these events in the future.
Question: What are the next steps that you are going to take with the deed restrictions?
Answer: We have already sent out letters to those homeowners that have broken coach lights, fences, and cars that have not been moved for a long time. We will continue to solicit feedback from the neighborhood and we will be taking surveys until the end of September. After we have had the opportunity to review the feedback from the community we will then decide on how to move forward with enforcement of the deed restrictions and we will be communicating this to all homeowners.
Lisa motioned for the meeting to be adjourned at 8:45p.m.
Date: 5/20/2008
Location: Huntington Bank at Crosswoods
Present: Pat & Cindy Frey, Jason Berner, Will Pawlikowski, Anthony & Tori Blazer, Monica Pierce, Stacy Graff, Mike & Lisa Montooth, William Melendez, Kate Hagemann, Rich & Myssi Lyon and Ken Holcomb
Presiding: Lisa Montooth
Lisa Montooth (President) called the meeting to order at 7:10 PM and began by introducing the Homeowner?s Association Board Officers and Trustees. Monica Pierce announced her resignation as Vice President, as she will be moving. Lisa made note the open position would be discussed later in the meeting. Lisa also introduced Ken Holcomb, who was representing Rickert Property Management.
Lisa discussed the Homeowner?s Association Budget. She explained the budget (that was mailed out to all homeowners) was based on dues being collected from each home for the current year. If all dues are collected, this leaves the Association with $900 left at the end of the year for our reserve. Will Pawlikowski asked if there was a target percentage for our reserve and Ken Holcomb stated an initial goal would be about 10%. A reserve fund is necessary for any unexpected costs the Association may incur (for example, irrigation problems, entrance wall repair). Regarding past due collection, there are $8500 outstanding from previous years dues and $3700 outstanding from this years dues. Lisa expressed her appreciation of the cooperation from the homeowners in providing Rickert with documentation of past dues being paid. July 1, Rickert will begin mailing out ?intent to lien? letters for dues that still have not been paid.
Landscaping was the next topic of the meeting. The Association would like to negotiate a new contract with Yard Master (our current landscaping company) as well as obtain quotes from new companies. Ken Holcomb advised this is not really a good time of year to get quotes from companies as the season is just getting ready to pick up and is a little behind because of the weather ? fall would be a better time for this. Cindy Frey kept a list of companies they received quotes from in prior years and offered to forward this to Lisa so we can provide this to Rickert. In the mean time, we would like to meet with Yardmaster in person to go over our expectations for the entrances. We would like more weeding done and better upkeep of the entrance beds. There is no money in our budget to pay someone to put flowers at the entrances however this might be a great opportunity to plan a community activity.
Lisa stated that Tori Blazer, currently holding the Secretary/Treasurer position, was interested in the open Vice President position. She then asked for the attendees for a show of hands for those in favor and with 12 votes, Tori was voted the new Vice President. Lisa also announced that left the Secretary/Treasurer position open and anyone interested to please let one of the board members know.
Monica Pierce discussed forming a Welcoming Committee that would be responsible for putting together a formal, professional way of welcoming new homeowners to the neighborhood. She suggested going to local area businesses for donations to put together in a welcome basket, along with neighborhood information, to present to new homeowners. Myssi Lyon then suggested combining this with the Activities Committee to get it up and running.
Monica also discussed tracking homes for sale in the neighborhood. It has been noted that some people moving into the neighborhood were unaware our community had an association and dues. The board has started of list of homes for sales to forward to Rickert so they can contact the realtor to make sure they are aware of our Association. Will Pawlikoswki said that 491Thistleview, with ReMax, had gone up for sale in the last couple weeks. Tori Blazer will forward this to Rickert. If anyone in the community notices new For Sale signs, please let one of the officers know the address and realtor.
Myssi Lyon reminded everyone of the Garage Sale the weekend of May 24th and that the Activities Committee would be having a donation table, set up at Myssi?s house, to raise money to fund community functions. The committee had their first meeting in April to discuss ideas for upcoming events, including a tailgate, luau, potluck and Easter egg hunt. Myssi will post the next meeting date on the message board.
With the agenda items covered, Lisa opened the discussion up for any questions or comments. William Melendez asked if anyone was welcome to participate on the committees and activities (if there were people living here that were renting) ? was advised yes, anyone living in the community can participate. Kate Hagemann asked if we had given any thought to having a section on the message board for people to post services/products they are looking for, as well as things people might be able to offer (like plumbing, landscaping, candle parties). There is nothing out there currently, however this is something the Activities Committee had briefly discussed and could potentially run with if people show interest. Lisa had mentioned wanting to purchase A-framed easels? to place at the entrances to the community to post information. With the reserve fund we currently have we are leery to purchase two, $150 signs. There was a suggestion made about magnetic signs or possibly soliciting someone in the neighborhood to make them.
The Homeowners Association portion of the meeting was then adjourned and turned over to Officer Mancini and Jason Berner, who facilitated the first Block Watch Meeting.
**The Block Watch meeting minutes will be posted separately.
Date: 2/12/2008
Location: Panera Bread
Present: Tori and Anthony Blazer, Amy and Max Treboni, TJ Ronnigen and Dale Brugh, Jock and Stacy Graff, Pat and Cindy Frey, Myssi Lyon, Jason Berner, Wayne Rickert, Monica Pierce
Presiding: Lisa Montooth
Lisa Montooth (President) began the meeting by welcoming homeowners. She admitted that there has been a lack of community spirit and that one of our goals as trustees is to begin to foster more of a neighborhood feel than has been present in the past. She also stated that this a critical time in the life of the HOA (Homeowner?s Assoc.) and that because of our inability to meet financial obligations past the first quarter of this year, the trustees have selected a property management company to help us collect delinquencies on dues and manage our funds in the future.
Wayne Rickert of Rickert Property Management then introduced the property management concept and the history of RPMI. To summarize, the job of RPMI is: to educate homeowner?s on what a HOA is all about; to enforce deed restrictions (as recommended by a subcommittee of the trustees); to file our HOA?s tax return; to manage funds and provide financial reports to the homeowners; and to collect past-due HOA dues.
Homeowner Myssi Lyon expressed concerns about the financial reports and the lack of communication in the past. Although homeowners had been told there was a surplus of moneys in the HOA account, this was not so. She also expressed concerns about the lack of follow-up with delinquent accounts (liens have not been filed in the past as promised).
Monica Pierce (VP) replied that this will now be corrected. A financial report will be sent out in the next few weeks and liens will be filed as necessary because RPMI has the means to do so (access to a lawyer).
Jason Berner (homeowner) voiced concern about lack of involvement in the community and expressed a desire to serve as a trustee.
Wayne Rickert outlined the jobs of the trustees: the President manages meetings; the VP carries out the agenda and provides support to the President; the Treasurer oversees the budget and brings contracts to the Trustees to be voted on for approval; the Secretary takes meeting minutes and posts them afterward. These Trustees are ideally elected by a dozen or more homeowners.
Three more Trustees will be elected toward the close of this meeting.
Amy Treboni (homeowner) voiced concerns about the due date for annual dues (which has been moved from June to March.
Lisa Montooth responded by explaining that the HOA must collect dues now in order to cover the minimum expenses for the second quarter of the year. She also voiced a concern over the lack of reserve funds, which are used in the case of any repairs (such as possible repairs to the electricity that operates our street lamps).
Further discussion about involvement ensued. The homeowners and trustees concluded that four committees should be formed within the next few months: an Architectural Review Board; a Sales Committee/Individual (who lets RPMI know when houses go for sale in the neighborhood so that they can inform the realtor of the HOA dues); a Welcoming Committee; and a Social Committee. The trustees will further discuss these committees in their next meeting.
Lisa Montooth explained that the positions of President and VP went to Lisa and Monica upon the resignation/move of Dave Davis. Tori Blazer volunteered to be Treasurer and Secretary. Stacy Graff volunteered to serve as Trustee. Jason Berner volunteered to serve as Trustee. A motion was made, carried, and these three persons were elected to the positions designated above.
Myssi Lyon offered to head the Social Committee.
Jason Berner reminded people that they can call the Columbus Police Dept. (645-4545) when they have noise problems. He also offered to head a Neighborhood Watch Group, for which he sent around a sign-up sheet. Tori and Anthony Blazer, Matt Treboni, Pat and Cindy Frey, and Jock Graff signed up for the Neighborhood Watch Group.
Lisa Montooth also reminded homeowners of the message board, which has no official tie to the HOA but may serve as a place to communicate with neighbors. She thanked Pat Frey for his ongoing work with the HOA website (see above) and for monitoring the message board. Meeting minutes and financial reports will soon be posted to the website.
Homeowners present were thanked for their participation in the meeting and the meeting was adjourned.
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Olentangy Glade Homeowners Association
c/o: Rickert Property Management, Inc.
1695 Old Henderson Rd
Columbus, Ohio 43220
Phone:(614)538-1717
Fax: (614)538-1101
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