RVRMA EXECUTIVE BOARD
Record of Proceedings
Regular Monthly Meeting
Wednesday, May 25, 2011, 5:00pm
The Ranch House Meeting Room
A regular meeting of the Executive Board Members of the River Valley Ranch Master Association, in the county of Garfield, State of Colorado was held on Wednesday, May 25, 2011 at 444 River Valley Ranch Drive, Carbondale, Colorado 81623 with the following people present:
Executive Board of DirectorsPeter Frey, Vice-President
Bill Grant, Treasurer
Dick Heinz, Director-at-Large
Lani Kitching, Director-at-Large
Frank McSwain, Director-at-Large
Ted Stude, Director-at-Large / Management Representatives
Ian Hause, Community Manager
Suzie Matthews, Controller
Pamela Britton, Recorder
Homeowner Attendees
Patti Crockett
Steve Crockett
Pat Drake
Ed Shattuck
Call to Order
RVR Executive Board Vice-President, Peter Frey called the meeting to order at 5:00pm. A quorum was established.
Approval of AgendaFrank McSwain and Bill Grant moved and seconded to approve the agenda. The motion passed unanimously.
Consent AgendaTed Stude and Lani Kitching moved and seconded the adoption of the meeting’s consent agenda. The motion passed unanimously.
Public CommentHomeowner Patti Crockett stated that although she attended the recent Landscaping Committee meeting and expressed three key ideas, they were not included in the minutes. Ian indicated that the comments were appreciated and valuable, and will be added to the record via the minutes of this meeting. (To follow in the Committee Reports Section.)
Announcements· Introduction of new tennis staff members: Evan Wharton and Myles Knipper
Ian expressed that he has been very pleased with Evan and Myles. Even though Myles doesn’t officially start working for RVR until June 1st, he has stepped up and helped and is really doing a great job. We are getting good feedback from the tennis community. And despite the fact that there has been a lot of weather interfering with tennis play, our revenue is close to last year’s.
Frank asked Evan what type of marketing is being done. Evan indicated that there is a new brochure, which has been distributed throughout the valley. Peter asked if the brochures are at sports shops. Evan said, not yet, but he will put them out at the sports shops. Evan and Myles also promoted the program at the valley-wide summer activities faire at Crown Mountain Park that was held recently.
A very successful Tennis Kick-off event with about 80 total participants including adults and youth was held and “School’s Out!” tennis party for young folks will be held next Friday. Evan also said he want to get to know all our tennis players and is offering half-off on a first private lesson.
Committee ReportsDesign Review Committee
Design Review Committee Meeting Minutes of May 19, 2011 were reviewed by the Board; no comments.
Landscape Committee
Landscape Committee Meeting Minutes, including Mt. Daly minutes both of May 12, 2011 were reviewed by the Board; the following comments by homeowner Patti Crockett are hereby noted as an amendment to the minutes:
1. Even ‘deer tolerant’ plants may be eaten by wildlife, therefore, steps should be taken to protect them.
2. We would be investing wisely if we stick to Zone 4 plants, and not Zone 5 which can be killed off with severe weather.
3. We should have a plan to care for and maintain what is put into place. We are making significant expansions of our landscaping and they should be protected and nurtured.
Ian updated the Board on the pending landscaping projects. In an effort to expedite the process of implementing these projects, Ian put the bike plaza segment out to bid separately. The architect’s projected budget for the bike plaza was $10,360. The project was put out to bid to three qualified contractors who offered bids ranging from $7,200 to $9,500. Hunter Concrete Construction, who has done all our deck repair work so far and been very responsive, offered the middle bid of $7,600. Since their bid is under our budget, there is no need to value engineer any of the proposed elements. Ian gave Hunter Concrete Construction notice to proceed with the project. The project, referred to as ‘Phase I’, is targeted to be completed by Friday, June 24th, subject to weather.
Ian indicated that the balance of the landscaping work that was targeted comes in at about $80,000. Ian’s recommendation was that this year we proceed with what he calls “Phase Two”, which is the project that addresses the ‘sense of arrival to the Ranch House’ and to defer the work on the west edge of the property, or the ‘back of the house’ at the service entrance part of the property, to a later date.
Ian asked the Board for their support to proceed with the Phase Two contractor pricing and scheduling with a targeted July 4 - 15th completion date and an overall budget of within $60,000.
Peter raised a procedural question: Since the Board has already authorized money for this project, does the Board need to authorize the specific amount for each stage of the project or can it just be left to the Community Manager to proceed with the schedule and specific budget allocations?
Lani moved and Dick seconded to let the Community Manager just proceed with the scheduling and specific budget allocations for each phase of the landscaping project. The motion passed with no objection.
Dick asked about the plantings near the pool. Ian indicated we have proceeded with that work. The project estimate is $10,000 and Ian indicated that he thinks it can be done for less than that amount.
Old Town Advisory Committee
Old Town Advisory Committee Report and Recommendations of May, 2011 was reviewed by the Board; no comments.
The Settlement Advisory Committee
Report to Settlement Advisory Committee on Painting Program of May, 2011was reviewed by the Board; discussion was held as follows:
Ian provided an update on the Settlement painting project. The first week in May, Ian met with Lani and Bill Brown on the Settlement painting project. They concluded that the next step should be a walk through with Ian, Lani, Bill and perhaps the painting contractor, to determine which properties warranted painting.
Some confusion occurred on the day that Kathryn Rooney conducted a walk-through of the Old Town area with the two painting contractors to determine painting priorities there; she asked if they should also do a walk through in Settlement and was told ‘yes’. This is not what had been communicated to Lani and Bill, and some residents were confused about the process.
Ian, Lani, and Dick have created an action plan in which the next step is to do a walk through with the contractor and members of the Advisory Committee to confirm which properties should be painted. A process is being established so we don’t have to reinvent the wheel next year, relevant to painting. For example, those who are up for painting this year will have a sample board to review and will be able to determine the paint the want for the siding, trim, fascia, etc. and will acknowledge their selections with a signature so there is clear agreement about what painting treatment their house will receive. The target date to complete this project is October 1st.
Ian shared with Kathryn Rooney what he had done regarding the Settlement action plan. Now that Old Town has agreed on what they want, Ian would like to proceed in negotiating a contract with the two painting contractors for Old Town and for the Settlement. Ian asked the Board for approval to proceed with these negotiations as long as their pricing was competitive.
Bill asked Ian to describe the difference between the two types of paint that have been discussed for these painting projects, the one that was used previously and ‘Porter’, a newer product. Ian indicated that they are both acrylic solid products. Both contractors agree that painting products keep improving and that the newer Porter product is better.
Dick expressed that the paint sample board could get really elaborate if there are 30 – 40 different color samples. He asked if we have to buy all the colors that will need to be shown on the sample board. Ian indicated that we can get just a small amount of the necessary colors in order to create the sample board. He is going to create small 3” x 4” color chips. Lani asked if the painting contractor will do that; Ian said, yes, at an hourly rate.
Peter summarized by saying that for both the Settlement and Old Town, we will get a vote from their Advisory Committees indicating their support for their painting plan as outlined. They will bring that to the Board for approval to proceed. Ian indicated that a next step is to negotiate the dollar amounts with the contractors. Peter indicated that it is important to get a clear vote of support from each group.
Lani asked if waiting for an approval vote from the two Advisory Boards and then bringing this to the Executive Board for approval will be foreshortening the painting window. Ian suggested that if the Board approves the following Draft Motion A, subject to appropriate contractor pricing and approval of each Advisory committee, then we should be able to proceed without having to come back to the Board again.
Draft Motion A: Resolved, that the Community Manager, with guidance from the Settlement and Old Town Advisory Committees, is authorizedto negotiate pricing for the 2011 painting season with contractors who have successfully performed for the respective communities over several years. These contractors are John Gonzales for The Settlement and Carlos Ronay, Sr. for Old Town. In the event that the negotiation does not meet the goals of the respective Advisory Committees, the Community Manager will promptly bid the projects.
Draft Motion A was moved and seconded by Bill and Lani. The motion passed unanimously.
Tennis Committee
Tennis Committee Meeting Minutes of May 18, 2011 were reviewed by the Board. Dick complimented the Tennis Committee on their good work. Ian also noted that Tennis Committee members were provided a member phone list with the specific understanding that the list cannot be used for “…solicitation or commercial purposes.” It can only be used for communication with members about the tennis program.
Management UpdatesCommunity Manager’s Report
· Transition –The transition is complete. Kathryn Rooney’s last day was Friday, May 13th. Kathryn will continue to advise on specific matters including the in process Crown Golf irrigation and establishing the program and protocol for the recurring painting in the Settlement and Old Town. She and I will meet once a week to address any outstanding issues or answer any questions.
· Management Team –Staff meetings have been moved to Tuesdays at 2 p.m. The team has accomplished the transition and is moving forward.
· Training – Phone training complete. CSI Point of Sale software complete. Access data base management training is pending. There was an all staff pizza kick off and customer satisfaction training on Thursday, May 19th.
· Website – The Declaration of Conditions, Covenants and Conditions and the Design Guidelines are available on the site without a log-in requirement. Tennis and Swim brochures are on the site. The comprehensive site review has been deferred until later in the season.
SUMMER CAMP
The 2011 Season officially commences on Thursday, May 26th at 5 p.m.
· Tennis – The Tennis Director, Evan Wharton, and his Assistant Pro Myles Knipper commenced programming on May 1st, 2011. All 5 courts are ready and being played. Final 2011 Member programming and pricing is completed, published and on the website. The 2011 Tennis Kick-Off on 5/15 was a success with approximately 40 members in attendance.
· The hard courts are scheduled for crack filling, sealing and touch-up the first week of June subject to weather. The Town Parks and Recreation Department has been advised. The cost is approximately $1500.00 to repair both courts and will take one day. Re-surfacing costs came in at $8-10,000.00. Our 2011 efforts will produce an attractive, safe playing surface and larger maintenance efforts will be deferred until they are required and there is clarity regarding the RVRMA maintenance/open space transfer fee request.
· Aquatics – Seasonal staff training complete. Pool opens May 27th at 11:00 a.m.
· Fitness – We have reduced the Fitness Program in May and further reductions have been announced for June. The schedule is still robust and reflects the downward use trend in May.
· Ranch House – There will be a complimentary Wine Tasting sponsored by Southern Spirits on Thursday, May 26th from 4-6 p.m. Aquatics commence the following day. We are tentatively scheduling Gone Fishin’ on June 9th, 10th and 11th which will include a water resources lecture and reception by resident Ken Neubecker on Thursday night, a Fly-Casting Demonstration and Clinic by resident Paula Fothergill and Alpine Angling/Roaring Fork Angler’s owner Tony Fotopoulos on Friday evening. On Saturday morning we plan a kids fly fishing derby at the Crystal Bridge Pond. The programming goal is to have a special event or function approximately every two weeks which will be backfilled by tennis programming, private parties and community at large schedules.
· Member Packet - Due to printing delays, the Member Packet was made available for pick up on Thursday, May 19th.