HAMMOCK BEACH
ESTATES HOME OWNER’S ASSOCIATION, INC.
P.O. Box 350668
Palm Coast,
FL 32135
Minutes: Special
Membership Meeting, Thursday, May 3, 2007, Beginning at 7:00PM
Hammock Community
Center, Malacompra Road
The meeting commenced at 7:00PM. The following board members were present: President, Paul Zacharais, Vice President, Debbie Clark, Secretary, Peggy Steele, Treasurer, Fred Black and Operations Manager, Joe Bowen. The following members were present: Dennis Clark, George & Hana Vrany, Larry & Vera Amuso, Bob & Betty Hamby, Phil Tribble, Dorothy Drexler, Susan Fairley, Dave & Marie Miller, Jean Mattson, Charles Vreeland, John Bonner, Sara & Harold Clarke, Bob Rohr, Ron & Harriet Vandervliet, Tom & Edyth Guggino, and Frank Carelli.
Paul asked if we had a quorum (45 members) with those attending plus proxies. There were 33 members present , either by attending or proxy, not reaching the required 45 to meet a quorum, per the bylaws. The bylaws provide that members not present can create a quorum by joining in the action of the meeting by signing and concurring in the minutes. In this special meeting, the only business to be voted upon was the vote on the pool area beautification. As such, those members who voted absentee have joined in the action of the meeting. With 34 absentee ballots, attendance reached 67, meeting the standards for a quorum so the business of the meeting could be conducted. Paul said that if there were objections to this approach, members who voted absentee could later be asked to sign and concur with the minutes
Proof of notice of meeting. Paul asked Peggy Steele, Sec. to give proof of notice of the meeting: Peggy read the letter prepared : “This letter is intended to certify that all members of the Hammock Beach Estates homeowners Association were notified of the special membership meeting in the following ways:
1. In a letter announcement of the special meeting mailed to the membership on April 18, 2007
E mailed the same day to those members who have requested that the Board communicate such notices to them via e mail instead of postal mail.
2. Posting on April 19, 2007, the meeting notice and agenda on the HBEHOA website.
3. Posting on April 18, 2007, the meeting notice and agenda on the Community Bulletin Board” . Paul accepted that letter certifying that proof of notice of the meeting has been met.
Selection of vote counters: Paul asked for 3 volunteers to count the vote. Dorothy Drexler, Larry Amuso and Edythe Guggino volunteered. Paul said the rules are the same as any vote, stating that information (who voted for which proposal) will not be disclosed
Presentation of alternative proposals--question and discussion: Paul said that the purpose of this is to make sure all members have a clear understanding of both proposals before voting.. Debbie Clark, chairperson for proposal #1 will present option 1 and Harold Clarke will present option #2 as no plan was submitted with this proposal. Paul explained the rules and time limit for this discussion. After this presentation is complete, the vote will be taken. With no questions from members, Paul proceeded , giving Debbie the floor for 5 minutes to present her committee’s proposal:
Debbie said that she is giving the presentation as a committee member, not as a board member, as she served on the committee before becoming a Board member. She said that her committee used 3 criteria throughout the many months of planning for improvement of the pool area: 1. Attractiveness; 2. Functionality; and 3. Cost-- staying within the budget. She then summarized why the committee chose the tables and pavers that are being proposed, noting that pictures and explanations, cost, etc. were distributed to all members in the minutes that were sent after the March 8, 2007 board meeting. Debbie spoke about landscaping, saying that all types of shrubs, trees and ground cover have been studied, but no specific landscaping has been included in the proposal. Debbie said that she feels that this plan will create an attractive area and will enhance the value of the homes in HBE.
Paul gave Harold the floor for 6minutes, the time Debbie used, and Harold turned the floor over to Frank Carelli to speak about option #2.
Frank took the floor explaining their choice for using bahai grass instead of alternatives. He said that it is cow pasture grass and does not need a lot of care after planting--cutting and weed control but watering is not necessary. If people are unfamiliar with it, it is the lawn on the property at the corner of Solee Rd. and Willow Dr. Frank said that we are all in agreement that the existing lawn on the pool property is terrible, full of weeds and sand spurs. With proposal #2 there will be about $7000 left after planting bahai grass and installing 3 concrete table with 3 benches each. Such money could be used for other repairs that need to be taken care of around the pool, such as replacing the fence, new pool furniture etc.
Frank went on to say that he can count on one hand the number of people who have used the existing picnic tables other that when there is an event going on. He said that the area will not be used in the summertime as it gets too hot.
Harold said that when the bahai grass is first put down it will need a lot of water but after it gets established it will not need any water, only weeding and cutting as it’s a very strong grass. He said that he and John Bonner will fix the sprinkler system and the watering can be done with the hose until it is established. Frank said that someone mentioned concrete tables would stain easily but that can be treated with Clorox and the table tops could be tiled if necessary.
Paul proceeded to systematically recognize members for questions of either presenter. There were several questions from members regarding different grasses (it was mentioned that some people are allergic to bahai grass), pavers being added in the future, tables, benches, guarantees , leveling of ground, sprinkler system, prices, installation, etc. each being answered by the chairperson for each proposal. It was also clarified that the cost of option 2 was estimated to be up to $6,000 ($1000 for tables and umbrellas and up to $5000 for grass once the exact amount is determined. If the full amount for grass was needed, this would leave about $5,000 in the betterment budget rather than the $7000 mentioned previously.
Paul asked if there were any other questions and with none, asked if any members wanted to comment on either option before the vote was taken. Several members commended the committees for the volunteer work that has been done researching information for the proposals. Other members said that usage may be low because they are ashamed to bring friends to the area in its current condition and they are just glad some improvement is finally being done.
Frank announced that there will be a hot dog roast on the Saturday afternoon of Memorial Day weekend with Memorial Day being the rain date! Flyers will be distributed in the near future
With no more discussion, votes were cast and given to the counters. While the votes were being counted, Paul asked that we proceed with the later agenda item of Questions of the Board and issues for the Board’s Consideration (3 minute time limit per member)
Bob Rohr mentioned that at the last annual meeting he proposed a cap of $2500 on all expenditures without a vote and that his motion in his view had been improperly ruled out of order. He feels that the board should not have an open checkbook Paul noted that at this afternoon’s Board meeting, Fred Black has submitted a by-law provision proposal from his working group, of which Bob is a member, that would limit betterment expenditures to $3000 per year without a member vote. Paul thought that this would address the intent of Bob’s earlier motion, noting that our pool and landscaping contracts both exceed $2,500 and it would be impractical to require a member vote on such matters. As for current expense items such as legal expenses that may exceed budgeted amounts, the Board will make its best judgment that such expenses are necessary to protect the interests of the association and use available reserves—by reducing amounts allocated to particular reserve accounts. For example, we are now involved in an architectural review issue about another swimming pool being built on the east side of Ocean Dune Circle and we need advise on how to handle approval while the lawsuit is pending. Fred said that the board only spends money when needed and the Board has to be able to protect the HBEHOA without a member vote on individual line items. The board’s hands cannot be tied to do what needs to be done. Each year the budget is sent to members for comments and review. Fred said that exceptions come up and have to be dealt with. Bob withdrew his motion and will see how things work out.
Susan asked about the C&Rs and feels that we should look ahead to more legal fees unless the C&Rs are enforced related to the width limitations on Ocean Dune Circle. Paul noted some facts about the architectural review of the Weiss plans:
· The plans for Weiss home came in Jan. 2005., right after the new board came into office and were the first set of new house plans reviewed by the ARC. All previous new house plans were approved by Stan Rosenbaum as the developer.
· The ARC reviewed the new house plans under its existing guidelines and procedures for changes to existing structures. The guidelines provided by the Board stated the C&R provision regarding the 40 foot building width limitation but provided no interpretive guidance or questions regarding appurtenances or other structures. The procedures called for informing the Board only when there was an issue.
· Marie Miller was the only ARC member available to review the new house plans at that time. The county-approved plans, which I understand she reviewed, showed a pool deck extending beyond the width of the house.
· Marie said she remembers that there was no lot size on the plans that she reviewed, only the plans for the house. She did not see any issues with the house and gave her verbal approval.
· In 2006, the ARAC reviewed detailed plans for the pools and enclosure and recommended approval, which the Board gave by following its approval procedures.
Frank asked if the county approved the plans. Paul said that the county does not look for approval from homeowners associations before they give approval on buildings. Harold asked if the Board required a modification when it approved an elevator for another house on Ocean Dune Circle. Paul said that the structure of the building including the elevator would be over the 40 feet and ARAC asked that they bring the structure the house back to 40 feet. This was a clear issue because it would have extended the building width over 40 feet. Sara said that when Stan turned over the association to the homeowners he was still in control as the Developer. The C&Rs need clarifying and will be once the Joyce lawsuit is resolved. .
Dennis Clark said that a lot of issues have been brought up at the Conservation Meeting regarding the whole area about drainage, cleaning of canals, responsibility, etc. We still need an answer from the county as to how they are going to proceed. .
Paul asked about fencing at the pool --should we go with cyclone fencing or an alternative. The consensus is that we should go with white pvc fencing.
With no other questions or comments, Paul asked for the
vote count.
Larry Amuso spoke for the counters: Proposal #1--29
Proposal #2--38
total votes: 67.
The members chose going with bahai grass and concrete
tables.
Paul said Harold and Frank as the committee who submitted the proposal, had agreed to lead implementation. Paul agreed to meet with them at the pool Friday morning to go over details.
With no other business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:45PM
Respectfully submitted
Peggy Steele, Sec. HBEHOA
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