Present: Mick Cartwright, Eli Cohn, Mary Donovan, Bernice Giscombe, Sabin Meyer, Lauralynn O’Halloran, Rob Parke
Visitors:
Absent:
Previous Minutes:
- The Board approved the minutes of the last meeting.
Maintenance:
- Lauralynn reported that lights were out at in the area of the swimming pool and tennis court and this had been reported to Bay Management. Homeowners are encouraged to report any instances of lights being out on the property to Bay Management who would take care of bulb replacements.
- Lauralynn said that all gutters on the property had been cleaned for a cost of $1,200.
- Lauralynn said she would ask Bay Management to ensure that the garage was winterized as it was used to store condominium property that would be damaged if it was not.
- Lauralynn reported that she and Mary had walked the perimeter of the property with Tobias Guggenheimer and Bento (who had done the masonry in the swimming pool) to examine the brick wall. They had said that the wall required attention that could be undertaken in stages. The Board agreed to relook at this in the spring and establish a plan for staging repairs and obtain quotes for all necessary repairs.
- Lauralynn reported that she had had no complaints about the snow removal. Mick said that it did not look like the side walks on Colonial Avenue were being shoveled. Mick said he would follow up with Bay Management as the snow removal company had agreed to undertake this instead of shoveling paths around the tennis court and swimming pool which she thought was unnecessary. There would be no extra cost as a result.
- Lauralynn reported that Natasha had followed up with Garrie Pest Control. They had said that they were on the property monthly, there had been activity on the property and that traps were rebated regularly.
- Lauralynn said that because of a miscommunication between herself, Mary, Bay Management and Rayol Trees, Rayol had done work on the property without providing a quote and obtaining Board approval. Rayol had submitted a bill for 5 days of work. Lauralynn and Bay had discussed this with Rayol who had agreed to reduce the bill to the equivalent of 4 days of work. After discussion the Board agreed to pay for 4 days of work because this work was required and it was likely that we would have approved the work. Lauralynn said she would call Bay Management and ensure that in future no work was done on the property without express Board approval. She also encouraged homeowners to call Bay Management if they observed workmen on the property and ensure that their presence on the property had been approved by the Board.
- The Board agreed to approve legal action to challenge homeowner’s tax bills with the town and county. As in the past, this was undertaken on a contingency basis by the law firm involved.
- Eli said he had received a proposal from “Care of Trees†to treat all the tress on the property. The Board decided that this was unnecessary as the trees were regularly monitored by Carlos and Rayol. Mary said she would talk with Carlos to ensure that any problems were brought to her attention.
Swimming Pool:
- Lauralynn said that repairs to the pool were complete except for reinforcing the roof and rectifying drainage problems around the pond. These would need to be done in the spring. Some building supplies would remain on the property until all this work was complete. Tobias had yet to obtain a quote to undertake the repairs that had been recommended by the engineer to the roof supports (replacing screws and adding horizontal bridging).
- Lauralynn said that when it rained the roof was still leaking onto the newly replaced lintels. Tobias would revist this and recommend solutions.
- Lauralynn said she would follow up with Bay Management about the installation of shut off valves to drains in the swimming pool that were now required by new regulations. Sharon had mentioned these at a previous meeting (cost approximately $2,000).
- Laualynn said she would follow-up with Tobias about possibly painting and patching the deck around the pool.
Financial Accounts:
- After discussion, the Board approved Eli paying a number of outstanding bills
- Eli handed out the finacila statements. The Board discussed upcoming repairs and maintenance on the property and it was agreed that we would need to be vigilant with expenses but that a reduction in common charges currently was not feasible.
- Eli reported that one homeowner had yet to pay the special assessment due at the end of December. The homeowner had requested to be allowed to pay in installments. The Board was uncomfortable with this as the homeowner should arrange his own financing as some members of the Board had. The Board agreed that at a minimum the homeowner should be required to pay interest. The Board asked Rob to calculate a payment schedule including interest and send it to the homeowner.
- Eli said he would send out a reminder that the second installment of the special assessment was due at the end of February. In addition, an extra month’s condominium fee was also payable in February.
Miscellaneous:
- Bernice reported that she and Lauralynn had met with Bradley D. Wank of DelBello Donnellan Weingarten Wise & Wiederkehr, LLP as a follow-up to the discussion at the last Board meeting about the use of the office in the accessory building by Bernice Gottlieb. Bradley said after reviewing the offering plans and the village code he believed that the accessory building could only be used for the purposes approved by the Village Planning Board; “management office and/or recreational spaceâ€. Any other use as a professional office was not permitted by village code. He recommended that the Board check that there is insurance on the office and that homeowners monitor the use of the office for any violation of use, including that all traffic and parking rules of the condominium. The Board asked Bernice and Lauralynn to have Bay Management send a letter to Bernice Gottlieb outlining the advice from Bradley so that it was clear what the accessory building could be used for and also request details of insurance.
- Bernice said she would follow-up with Bradley on reviewing the bylaws to clear up any remaining ambiguities about respective homeowner and condominium responsibilities.
- Lauralynn reported that Bernice Gottlieb had not responded to a letter from Bay Management stating that in future any proposed work must be submitted to the Board for review prior to starting any work and that the water to the second floor would remain available for use in the office provided:
- The scope of work for the renovation project is provided to the Board including any architectural or engineering plans for review.
- All changes and / or additions to existing pipes must be approved by the Board in writing.
- All existing and newly installed pipes must be well insulated. The contractor must provide written documentation verifying that the pipes are insulated to industry and or zoning standards.
- That Bernice assumes full responsibility for any maintenance changes or additions to the pipes and for any damage the additional or changed pipes may cause in the future to any of the office space or any of the common space located in the accessory building.
- All contractors working on site must provide a valid and current certificate of insurance naming Washington Head Quarter’s Homeowner’s Association as additionally insured to Bay Management.
The Board asked Lauralynn to have Bay Management resend the letter.
- Lauralynn said that homeowners had continued to use the dumpsters for disposing of trash other than gardening debris. She would remind Bay Management to have signs placed there to remind homeowners that dumpsters are for gardening debris only and the condominium will be fined by the Sanitation Department if it contains household or other debris.
Next Meeting:Â The next Board meeting was scheduled for Tuesday March 3, 2009.
Respectfully Submitted,
Rob Parke, Secretary