A meeting of the Board of Directors of the Williamsburg Settlement Maintenance Association, Inc. was held on Tuesday, November 21, 2017 at 5:30 P.M. at the Williamsburg Settlement clubhouse, 1602 Hoyt, Katy, Texas 77449.
ATTENDANCE
Board Members present were: Katy Hall, Dave Ellis, Jim Calvert, Chris Cox, Ed Shipley, and Lisa Zirot. Chase Wier was absent.
Also in attendance was Cindy Bojé representing Crest Management, and Sheriff Deputy Paul Wilburn.
With a quorum being established, the meeting was called to order at 5:30 P.M.
SECRETARY REPORT – APPROVAL OF MINUTES
The minutes for the October 17, 2017 Board of Directors Meeting were presented and a motion to accept the minutes without change was made by Ed Shipley, seconded by Chris Cox and unanimously carried.
HOMEOWNER CONCERNS
There were several homeowners present at the meeting.
Topics of discussion included the 2018 budget and HOA expenditures, security, bidding process for HOA contracts, trash service cost, allocation of funds to social events, resident Facebook page, inquiry as to whether the MUD would install water meters to the cul-de-sacs, and whether the HOA would consider different fence materials.
An attendee questioned the addition of a Capital Improvements contribution to the 2018 budget. Money added in this category is held as an Operating Reserve until it is needed for a specific expenditure. Katy Hall explained that that this Operating Reserve is the only source of funds we have to cover unexpected and hence unbudgeted expenses in addition to expenditures on any new capital items. She pointed out that no money has been contributed to this reserve for several years so the Board made the decision to begin replenishing this fund to return it to a safer level. This attendee also questioned the bidding process for HOA contracts. Dave Ellis explained that all major contractors were selected by competitive bidding and once selected, if the Board feels that a contractor is providing excellent service and doesn’t increase its price when the contract is up for renewal then we will probably renew it on the same terms without a re-bid. Examples of contacts that have been recently re-bid are our trash and electricity contracts. In both of these cases we obtained significant savings which we locked in for multiple years.
Several homeowners expressed an interest in researching other security options, such as the constables. The Board communicated that it agrees that it would be worthwhile to obtain bids from other sources for security. Two homeowners commented that they have been very happy with the sheriffs’ service in our neighborhood.
An attendee also expressed that he would prefer if trash service were billed monthly, as is the case when handled by the MUD rather than the HOA. Other attendees expressed that they preferred the annual bill. Another homeowner added that we have two different MUD districts in our neighborhood and this arrangement would potentially result in two different services within the subdivision. The Board responded that they are not looking to release the trash service to the MUD at this time.
One homeowner questioned whether the Board should be spending any of our maintenance fees on social events and another asked how the HOA decides which community events should be funded. Katy Hall responded that we have a small set budget most of which is allocated to National Night Out, although MUD 61 donated generously to the event this year. The homeowner offered that she has many ideas for next year and the Board thanked her and said that they would like to work with her when planning the 2018 events.
A resident requested that the Board notify residents of the neighborhood Facebook page, “Williamsburg Settlement Katy Texas Resident Communications.” The Board explained that they are not comfortable promoting the page since they do not run or moderate it nor have any control over its membership or the accuracy of the content which is being posted.
A resident provided information about a past arrangement with an MUD to install water/meters at the cul-de-sac islands at cost as a partnership with the HOA to improve their upkeep. Chis Cox noted this and will incorporate investigation of this option into his review of possible improvements to the cul-de-sac islands.
A homeowner asked whether the Board would consider more modern fence materials. The Board said that new materials could be submitted for approval through the Exterior Modification Request form and would be considered on a case-by-case basis by the Architectural Review Committee. Fence modifications that are not standard do require signed approval from neighbors.
SHERIFF PATROL REPORT
Deputy Wilburn and Chris Cox, our security liaison, reported that there were no unusual problems during October and our community continues to enjoy a very low crime rate. A copy of the monthly sheriff report was included in the meeting packets.
FINANCIAL REVIEW
Dave Ellis presented a detailed report on the October 31, 2017 financials. As of this date, the money in the bank totaled $477,882.49. This figure includes checking, money market accounts and CD’s and are the funds required to cover both operating expenses and the necessary reserve to fund maintenance and replacement of the Association’s capital assets. The delinquency total as of October 31, 2017 was $15,938.40.
Dave Ellis made a motion that when sufficient 2018 maintenance fees have been received that he be given authority to transfer monies from the Operating account to the ICS account at the ICON Bank to take advantage of its higher interest rate. The motion was seconded by Katy Hall and unanimously carried.
OLD BUSINESS
Status of Project Approval at October Meeting
a.
Pool Repairs – Dave Ellis stated that all pool repairs have been completed. This included the pool drain cover replacement, replacement of the broken wall anchor and two acid and chlorine feed motors in the pump room.
b.Car Park Re-Stripping – Dave Ellis reported that Tuttle Construction completed the power washing and re-stripping of the clubhouse and pool parking lot.
Cul-de-Sac Islands Report and Recommendations -
NEW BUSINESS
Ratifications of items voted on by the Board outside of a board meeting
a.Approval of the expenditure of $275 for American Leak Detection to diagnose a leak in the baby pool which had been reported by A-Beautiful Pools.
A motion was made, seconded, and unanimously carried to ratify the item voted on by the Board outside of a Board meeting.
Dave Ellis reviewed a suggested verbiage addition to the EMR Approval Letter. After a discussion, Dave made a motion to approve the letter with two revisions. The motion was seconded by Katy Hall and unanimously carried. It was noted that the letter would not be updated until after the ARC Guidelines were updated and recorded with the County.
Regarding adding corresponding verbiage to the online EMR form, it was agreed that more discussion was needed to minimize the cost for this change. Chris Cox plans to meet with Crest and its IT company, Sparkhound, to review the addition. Until then, this was tabled.
Regarding the amendments to the ARC Guidelines, this was tabled until Ed Shipley and Jim Calvert do a final review and comparison with the Deed Restrictions to ensure there is no conflicting language.
Baby Pool Leak - Dave Ellis presented the results of the American Leak Detection diagnosis of the baby pool leak. This reported that the skimmer is pulling away from the pool wall. To cure the problem the skimmer needs to be replaced and mounted to the pool wall. American Leak Detection submitted a price of $1,850 for this work. After a discussion, the Board requested that two additional proposals be obtained. Cindy Bojé stated she will obtain the additional proposals.
Board Communications - This was tabled until the January board meeting.
ADJOURNMENT TO EXECUTIVE SESSION
With no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned into executive session at 7:30 P.M.
Delinquencies - The Board discussed delinquencies. It was noted that six homeowners remain on the trash suspension list.
The Board reviewed a proposed settlement offer from the Association attorney and it was motioned by Dave Ellis, seconded by Katy Hall, and unanimously carried to submit a counter offer based on the Association attorney’s recommendation.
Deed Restriction Enforcement – Jim Calvert reviewed the Enforcement Action Report with the Board. After reviewing the Board gave approval to send three accounts to the attorney.
Attorney Action Report – There was no action needed to be taken this month.
ADJOURNMENT
The Board will not be meeting in December. The next meeting will be held on January 16, 2017 at the community clubhouse.
With no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 7:37 P.M.
