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HAMMOCK BEACH
ESTATES HOME OWNER’S ASSOCIATION, INC. P.O. Box 350668 Palm Coast,
FL 32135 www.hbehoa.com Thursday, November 8, 2007, Beginning at 3
P.M. Hammock Community Center, Malacompra Road The Board meeting
commenced at 3 PM. The following Board members
were present: President, Paul
Zacharias, Secretary, Peggy
Steele, Treasurer, Fred Black and Operations Manager, Joe Bowen. The following members, all invited by an e
mail message, by notice enclosed with the minutes, and by posting on the
community bulletin board, were present:
John Pavlos, Bob Hamby, Betty Hamby, John Bonner, Harold Clarke, Larry
Amuso, Bob Rohr, Michele Austin and Dennis Clark. Before calling the meeting to order,
Paul showed the members of the board the plan for construction of 2 decks and a
stairway on the back of the Pavlos home on Ocean Dune Circle. The plan had already been reviewed by ARAC
member, Jim Morelowicz, who recommended Board approval. Paul had also provided the plans to Gary
Fairley, an officer in the ABEHOA, to see if he had any concerns that the Board
should consider. After review, Gary
said he had no issues. After reviewing
the plans, the board granted approval for construction. Paul then called upon those present to
voice any concerns about any item not on the agenda and said members would be
recognized to speak when agenda items were discussed. Members could also ask for items to be placed on the agenda. Joe Bowen indicated that he planned to
cover several items in his operations report (item 4) and this was acknowledged.
Paul then called the
meeting to order. 1.Agenda: Paul added Joe’s concern to the agenda and with no other
items to be added to the agenda, the agenda was adopted. 2.Approval of
minutes of October 3, 2007 meeting:
Paul said that we received one oral comment from Harold Clarke about a
question that was not included in the minutes concerning the roads. Paul had asked Harold to submit to the board
the wording that he would like added to the minutes. No written addition was received. Paul asked Harold if there was anything he wanted to add and
Harold said that information concerning the condition of the roads was not
included. Peggy said that she was unable to hear all that was said as the
recorder is not able to pick up every comment that is made because of
background noise. Paul noted that
minutes are not a verbatim transcript. Minutes are supposed to capture any
decisions made and the essence of the
discussion. Paul noted, for example,
that the minutes normally omit any accusatory or derogatory statements about
another individual, particularly if that person is not present to respond. If we published such comments in the
minutes, we could be a party to a legal action should the recipient believe
he/she was slandered or libeled by the member’s comments. Harold indicated that the board could approve
the minutes as written and hearing no other comments the minutes were adopted
as written. 3.Recap of pool
area fence project--obtaining keys: Paul
said that the fence is finished at a total cost of $ 6217.17 and $52 for 2 new
hose containers. Paul will send in the
warrantee to the manufacturer. The
fence has passed inspection by the county.
Several people in attendance commented on how nice the pool fence looks. Joe said that the fence looks great and the
area is much improved. We should
maintain what we have and keep it in the best condition we can. Paul said that he has keys to enter the pool
and will keep them until his term in office is over, then he will give them to
a member of the new board. If you have
not yet gotten your new pool key, contact Paul at 445 8507. The old key will still be used to enter
the restroom. 4. Operations: ·
Workday and
Cook out: Paul said that Frank Carelli said that if we
wanted to have a social gathering the same day as work is done on the walkover
and path. He said that either Nov. 17
or Dec. 1 would be a good time. He
would have a cookout around 1 or 2 PM on that day for the membership as a
whole, including those who worked in the morning. .(Some of the crew who have
helped Lou with the beach path are not HBE members.) Joe has spoken with Lou Ciasulli about walkover repairs and
mulch on the path. Joe said that Dec. 1 would be the best date to pull a crew
together. Joe said that around Nov.17 a weed killer should be sprayed on
the path to allow it to work before mulching.
Joe said he would contact Lou to see what help he would want on Nov 17
to do the spraying. Harold said to talk
to Billy (lawn maintenance) about
spraying as he has a pack to carry on his back and can purchase the weed killer
for less than the board can. Joe will
give Billy a call and decide on the best option for spraying. Lou will mark
the boards that have to be replaced on the walkover and Paul and Joe will look
at what Lou feels should be replaced.
Joe said that the sand under the decking near the stairs leading down to
the beach should be dug out because it is pushing up the boards. Paul said that he will purchase and cut the
lumber once the amount needed is determined.
So, Nov 17 is “prep day” and the morning of Dec. 1 will be
“work day” Paul will ask Frank to
distribute a flyer about the cookout with RSVP information. . ·
Bathroom
Cleaning: Joe Bowen said that last year we had to change
cleaning services for the restrooms at the pool and the new person is doing a
good job at a low cost. Joe asked that
the name of the cleaning service be included in the minutes. The person to contact for this service is
: Sheryl Lamb , 25 Fernon Lane, Palm Coast, FL 32137 Phone: 445 2382 ·
Pool Closed
due to Broken Pump: Joe said that the pool has been closed since
Monday because the pump has
broken. Joe asked our pool maintenance
company for an estimate to install a new pump and was quoted $800 to $1200. Joe said that this quote is in the
reasonable range given his prior research and the fact that some of the wiring
will have to be changed. Joe has
already contacted the lawn maintenance company to clean up some of the area
around the pump housing as some of the wiring is underground. This has been done. Joe will l follow –up with the pool
maintenance company to make sure that the pump is installed promptly so that
there are no water quality problems. Fred said that he has already incorporated
the amount of $1200 into the budget for this to be done. Fred asked if this was the first time the
pump has been replaced. Harold said he thought it had been replaced twice, but
this pump has been there for quite a long time. Fred asked how many years we got out of the pump that now needs
to be replaced. Joe said that to his
knowledge, it has been more than eight
years. ·
Pool
compliance issues raised by the fire marshal:
The fire marshal gave
his verbal approval to our pool with the expectation that we would address some
concerns about the marking of the chemical containers housed in and near the
box containing the pool pump. Joe
said that Vince, our pool maintenance man, has purchased the decals to be put
on the canisters containing the pool chemicals will be labeled correctly and
put under a lock. Joe said the cost of
the decals & chemical containers should be put under pool maintenance and
cost for the pump should be paid separately.
Vince will contact the fire marshal, who raised these issues, when the
work is completed. Paul said that the
fire marshal told him that if this were a new pool, the pump and chemicals
would have to be in a locked, fenced- in area.
Had we known this when putting in the new fence, we could have secured
the area with fencing and a lock.
However, in granting our permit, Flagler County had raised no such
issue. As a protection to current and
new Board members, Joe suggested that
we try to obtain some documentation that we are grandfathered in and do not
have to meet the requirement for additional fencing. (Note: Absent such
documentation, these minutes and the permits and approvals received should
provided such a record.--pz ) ·
Grass growing
in the ponds: Paul said there is grass growing on the ponds
and asked Joe if this was the proper time to try to kill the grass. Joe will contact the company that is taking
care of the ponds to find out if spraying should be done now.. ·
Alligator(s)
in the pond: Paul said that there is a fairly large
alligator in the pond between Solee Rd. and Cottonwood Trail and the alligator
has become a concern to a property owners living adjacent to the water as well
as to pedestrians who walk Cottonwood Trail. . The gator suns itself on their
lawn and on the banks along the roadway and is not scared back into the water
when people are around. The Board
agreed that Paul should contact the
property owner and action will be taken. 5. Status of road repair. Paul called upon Bob Hamby, who has been in contact with county
officials about the condition of the roads in the area and asked Bob to give an
update about road repairs and responsibility for repairs. Bob said that when two county officials came
to inspect the roads they told him that they would not accept the roads into
the County’s inventory in their current condition. Mr. Merenda, Development engineer who inspected the roads said
that Mr. Rosenbaum had entered into an agreement with the county to maintain
the roads for seven years, at the end of which the roads would then again be
inspected and if they met with county criteria they would be accepted as public
roads and maintained by the county. Mr.
Merenda, agreed to further investigate into the details of this agreement and
asked Bob to send him a marked up plat of the sections of the roads that were
in the worst shape so that Mr. Merenda could see about getting them fixed. Harold, John Bonner and Bob went around and
identified the areas that were in need of work and submitted an annotated plat
to Mr. Merenda along with a letter from Bob asking questions about the road
approval process and engineering criteria.
Bob said that a letter received from Mr. Merenda states that the county
staff met on Oct. 16, 2007 concerning the events of Armand Beach Estate roadway
issue and that the county will transmit
a demand for Gedeco Corp to maintain the Armand Beach Estates roadways as
prescribed in the April 1, 2002 board of County Commissioners bond
acceptance. However, Gedeco Corp. has been dissolved and Mr.
Rosenbaum resigned as director of the Corporation in 2006. Bob further said that the County attorney
had sent the letter to Mr. Rosenbaum on Oct.18, 2007. Bob submitted the letters and documents he referenced for the
board’s files. Paul thanked Bob for the work he has done on
the concerns about road repair. Paul said that the objective is to get the
roads repaired. There is $42000 sitting
with the county that was paid by Gedeco to the county to be used for road
repair. This money likely cannot be
returned to Gedeco because Gedeco does not exist. Paul said that in his view,
the letter sent by the county attorney
may be a first step initiated by the county so it can use the money that
was given to the county by Gedeco for road repairs. Paul said he hopes Bob will continue to help the next board to
pursue the issue of road repair and
responsibility with the County. . 6. Status of actions on canal drainage
concerns, Lots 70, 71: Paul said that HCCC is working on the
drainage of the N-S canal that extends from Marineland to Malacompra. Frank Carelli and Paul have volunteered to
serve on the committee along with volunteers from Marineland Acres and Sea
Colony to look at drainage issues in the Hammock. Marineland Acres does not have retention ponds and they have more
flooding issues than we have. We have a
common issue in respect to the canal. The committee has been formed to provide
a unified approach to the county. Paul
had heard that Bob Hamby had an interest in this issue and asked if Bob would
take his place on the committee. Bob willingly
agreed to join Frank in representing our association on the committee. Many thanks, Bob and Frank. Paul said he would notify the HCCC of the
change. Paul said that no
action has been taken on the easement situated on Lots 70 and 71. He spoke with Jean Sherwin and was told that
this would be coming up before the county again, but Paul has not heard any
definite dates. 7. Status of possible change from ownership
to easement for dry pond: Paul said
that this issue is still being worked on and Stan is paying for our legal
expenses, to evaluate the issue of a possible transfer of ownership. Paul asked our
attorney, Robyn Braun, about what our governing documents say about
transferring land which belongs o the association.. Paul wanted to know if a
member vote is required. She responded
saying that the C&Rs are silent regarding this specific issue. Section 3.1articles of incorporation state
that the association have all the powers that a nonprofit corporation have
under Florida law. Chapter 617 Florida statutes governing not for profits
corporation, and 617.0302 Paragraph 11
grants authority to sell its property.
The Corporation does have the authority to sell its pond if its in the
best interest of the association. Neither the law nor the governing documents
require membership approval. As a
separate issue, neither the governing documents nor the Florida statutes appear
to prevent Mr. Rosenbaum from building a house spanning 2 lots. (section
720.306). The owner of the 2 lots will
still have to pay the assessment of each lot.
Paul said that before our annual membership meeting on December 6, Ms.
Braun will provide us with options to be discussed as to whether it is in the
best interest of the association to transfer this land or not. This is not costing HBE any money, it is being paid by Mr.
Rosenbaum. Paul said that he will
present the information to the membership at the annual meeting so that the
members can ask questions and provide views that the new Board can consider as
it evaluates this issue in 2008. Bob Hamby said he
disagrees with the attorney’s opinion on membership approval because the dry pond area is listed in the
C&Rs as part of the association’s property. Therefore, selling the dry pond would in effect be a change to
the C&Rs , which requires an approval vote by the membership. Paul agreed that this is a reasonable
assertion that Ms Braun should address.
He will send her a note asking her to do so as part of her options
discussion. Bob
Rohr asked what kind of consideration are we asking if this transfer takes
place. Paul said that this will be discussed at the annual meeting along with
other issues , pro and con. There are
many aspects of consideration that could be negotiated if a change is made,
including, for example, any expense needed to improve the dry pond and access
easement so that it can be easily and routinely maintained by our lawn moving service. Consideration is an item that will be part of negotiations when
and if this transfer takes place. Harold asked why we
don’t get an independent appraisal of
the value of the property.
Harold said that this association is going to be held responsible to
maintain that pond. Paul said that we
are responsible for it now we may very well be responsible for it later if we
cannot delegate that responsibility to new owners. Fred said that we need to wait for Stan’s proposal before any
decisions can be made. If there is no
proposal, then it doesn’t matter what the land is worth, but an appraisal may
be worth doing down the road. Harold
asked whose lawyer has talked to St Johns Water Management. Paul said our lawyer has contacted SJWM.
Harold asked who is paying for all this.
Paul said that Stan is paying for time spent by our lawyer. Our lawyer is supposed to answer all of our
questions and come up with advise as to what our options are. All question will be directed to our lawyer
and Paul will have more information to present at the annual meeting. 8.Status of
C&R review: Fred said that the
committee has completed its goal for now.
He distributed a document
showing the C&Rs as they are now and the changes proposed by the
committee. This document will be made
available to the membership for review
and comment so that a final draft can be developed and brought to a vote next
year. Paul thanked Fred and his committee for the work that has been done. John Bonner asked when the vote will
happen. Fred said that when all
comments have come in and all discussions have been completed, it will then be
put out to all membership for a final vote for approval. Harold asked if the proposed change would
allow someone with a house encompassing two lots to have four dogs, as the
Board voted to do in 2005. Fred said
that the proposed C&R wording would clearly state the limitation as 2 pets
per household. Harold noted that such a
change might clearly be an issue for those who have been allowed to have more
pets. Fred said that this is the
purpose of the discussion and comment period. 9.Discussion of
need to contact members regarding C&R compliance: Paul said that
Debbie is ill and she did not have any issues that needed to be discussed. Fred asked about the dirt that has been
spread onto the vacant lot on Ocean Dune Circle. Joe said that he thought a silt fence should have been put
up. Paul said that the dirt has been
compacted. Fred asked about SJWM
permits. Joe said he doesn’t know about
permits that were issued. He said that
the elevation has been raised by spreading the dirt onto the vacant lot and the
owner of the lot should be contacted and find out what their intention is and proceed
from there. Let the owner know that the
elevation has been changed and if nothing is going to be built in the near
future, maybe some sod should be put down to hold the dirt in place. Joe said that the Corp of Engineers require
a certain grass be planted around ponds to retain the sod from falling into the
water. 10. Required: Acceptance of any additional
nominees for BOD and Closing of the Nomination Period: Peggy said that we have only 4 volunteers
for 4 openings on the board of directors.
The volunteers are: Michele
Austin, Larry Amuso, who are present today , Larry Anderson and Sara Clarke.
Paul asked if there were any other nominees to be presented. No one responded. We have to allow write in candidates and because of that we have
to send out ballots to all the membership.
If there are no write in ballots, we will not have to have a ballot
count--the 4 volunteers can be voted in by acclimation by those at the meeting. Joe asked about putting some other items
that will require a vote on the agenda for the Dec. annual meeting. Paul said
that at this point we are not ready to put any other issues on the agenda for a
vote. Paul then asked for a motion to
close the nominations. The motion was
made and seconded and nominations were closed.
Paul asked Peggy to prepare the ballots. Peggy said that the ballots are ready as she did not expect any
other volunteers. She showed the board
the ballots, the proxy form and tally form for the vote if there is a
vote. All were accepted and will be mailed
along with the minutes. 11.Treasurers report: Fred distributed to the Board and those attending, a statement of expenditures to date and then discussed the projected balance to be brought forward. All known items have been incorporated such as the $6278 to replace the pool fence, $4193 to replace the lawn and upgrade the recreational area, and Association legal fees of $4604. We still have a couple of uncertain end of year items such as the walkover/path repair, the final cost of the pool pump repair, and our insurance policy cost, that we budgeted at $2500 to allow for a possible increase in premiums. Our current Reserve Account balance as of 3 Nov. 2007 is about $7700. NOTE: The insurance bill has just been received and our insurance premium will be $1780—about the same as last year Fred then presented the proposed budget for 2008. The annual dues assessment for 2008 will increase by $25 to $200. The increased revenue will allow us to cover anticipated operating and reserve uses in 2008 and partially rebuild our end of year account balance toward our $10000 target. Previous Boards have agreed on this target level because it gives us enough of a cushion to cover most unexpected expense items that may occur without seeking a special assessment. After discussion by the board and having heard no comments from the membership, the budget was approved. The approved budget will be sent along with the dues assessment in a separate mailing to all the membership. Dues should be paid in full by January 31, 2008. Paul said that a few members had requested to see the billings for legal services. Paul provided a copy to Bob Hamby to share with other members, asking that they be returned. Paul noted that the last bill received from our attorney has been adjusted downward from $407 to $250 after questions from the board. Paul said that each time a bill was received the board members involved went through a process checking time, records, etc. to confirm meeting and phone call time charges before approving the invoice for payment. We did not pay travel time for the attorney except for the first meeting when she came to HBE to see the area involved in the lawsuit. Her office is in the Hammock less than 10 minutes from HBE . All other meetings were at her office and the board members absorbed the travel costs.. The only other time travel time was paid was for the mediation hearing and that was less than 10 minutes from the attorney’s office. 12.Discussion and approval of proposed agenda for annual meeting: Paul handed out and discussed the proposed agenda . Paul asked that any member requesting an item be placed on the agenda to contact him by Dec. 4. With no comments from board members, the agenda was approved and will be sent to all members along with the meeting minutes and election materials. . With no other business, the meeting was adjourned at 4:45PM Respectfully submitted, Peggy Steele, Sec. HBEHOA Nov2007bodmeetpzps |