Evergreen Meadows Homeowners Association Annual Meeting Minutes
September 30, 2008, 7:00 p.m.
Conference Baptist Church
- It was observed that 26 members had signed in at the commencement of
the meeting. That meets the quorum requirement of 10% of 229 members
of EMHA.
- Minutes of meetings are posted on EMHA website, address www.emha.us.
- Architectural Review Board (ARB) on behalf of chair, who could not
attend the meeting — thanks to members for submitting plans to ARB. Any
changes to exterior of property should be mailed or e-mailed to ARB for
approval.
- Glenn Vandine reported on membership, as chair of EMHA membership.
Dues collected from 229 homeowners. A number of members paid more than
the dues which was appreciated as it allowed additional board activities
for the membership of EMHA. Comments frequently are included with dues
payments, and are appreciated. We would like to keep the quarterly
frequency of the EMHA newsletter. Our HOA membership is at about 50% of
homes in Evergreen Meadows. Non-paying members do still receive
newsletters and communications. We do have e-mails for about 200
homeowners and they receive additional communications per "e-mail
blasts".
- Treasurer’s Report — The report was distributed hard copy. Balance
as of 8/31/2007 was 18653.78; balance as of 8/31/2008 was 18586.86. A
discrepancy was noted in the treasurer’s report; there was a motion for
the error being corrected and the treasurer’s report will be published
in the next newsletter. Acceptance of the annual budget is contingent
on the correction. There was a question regarding what the insurance
pays for — it pays for liability on common areas, such as the ball
field, on empty properties, as well as liability for board of directors.
- Special Events — The four main events are the Christmas light
contest, picnic, Easter egg hunt, and the neighborhood garage sale.
Clarification that the garage sale is not a revenue generating event.
Homeowners do not pay to be a part of the event, but do have to be
members of the HOA. The other special events are open to all Evergreen
Meadows homeowners.
- Representative from the DOW-Howard Horton, District Wildlife
Manager. Level one peace officer, same as state patrol, have statewide
jurisdiction. Mr. Horton reported that female bears go to sleep first;
all bears should be hibernating by later October, early November. Bears
are opportunistic and will eat what is most accessible. "We don’t have
bear problems, we have people problems." It is illegal to feed all
wildlife, except for bird feeders. Bird feeders are not needed during
the summer, but are good in winter. At this time of year bears are
eating 20 hours per day and 20,000 calories per day. It is critical
that bears do not come to see people as sources of food. If a bear
swats at a person, it has to be killed. If a bear breaks into house, it
has to be killed. Bears cannot be relocated in state anymore. It is
critical to not feed bears or any other wildlife. There is chronic
wasting disease seen in elk in Colorado; it is passed through saliva and
feces. The elk in your yard eating corn you have put out could have
this. Deer are also prey for mountain lions so it is best not to
attract them with food. DOW will issue a warning for feeding wildlife
the first time; a second time a fine of $100 will be levied. Subsequent
citations are more expensive.
- Bear safety was discussed. Stay calm, back away, try not to
fall. Mountain lion safety was discussed. Don’t run away from lion —
it will think you’re prey. Most problem animals are adolescents. Bears
forage for seeds and berries; they are 90% vegetarian. Mountain lions
prefer deer.
- There is bear mace to protect against bears. Loud long noises
are more effective at scaring lions away. Phone for wildlife issues:
303-291-7166, 303-838-2655. Officer Horton brought brochures and you
can go to www.wildlife.state.co.us for information in brochures and
guidelines for fencing. Officer Horton is available to come for special
events also, such as the picnic. Thank you to Officer Horton for all
the information.
- Weed control — typically we have spring spraying for weeds, but we
did not do it this last spring. We are doing fall spraying, which is
reported effective. It was suggested that we put notification in the
newsletter to homeowners letting them know when the time is to spray.
Include details regarding what chemicals should be used on noxious
weeds.
- Election of new board. Ballots were distributed. Candidates were
introduced. Elected board can decide how the offices will be filled,
perhaps combining some functions as there are more offices than
anticipated board members. There was the opportunity of board
candidates to speak. Jeff Courtney introduced himself as a participant
in community activities, grew up in Evergreen Meadows and wants to give
to the community. Andy Potter introduced himself. He has lived in the
Meadows for 15 months and wants to be part of the community. He is a
believer in e-mail and has interest in building the board and
neighborhood activities. Mike Dyer has lived here for 6 years and is a
community volunteer for non-profits. Dave Kelly has lived in the
Meadows for 10 years and wants to get involved. Plan is to transition
the new board via a meeting in October/November with the outgoing board.
People were asked to fill out ballots. Additional volunteers were
solicited, and we received two additional volunteers — Carol Pike and
Gary Justus. Nominations to the board were closed. Thank you to all
the volunteers.
- Covenants — Copies of covenants and flow of enforcement were
available for distribution. Board has responded to complaints regarding
covenant violations and tries to deal with all complaints
expeditiously. Board works on covenants on a complaint basis, and does
not "patrol" neighborhood for violations. Question was posed as to
time-consuming nature of specific property violation. Details regarding
this violation were outlined. There was concern expressed over
precedent being set in terms of non-compliance with covenants.
Requested that the board speak to process undertaken to deal with
violation. The flow chart for the process was distributed. It will be
stressed in the newsletter for homeowners to comply with the covenants.
The board has about a dozen violations that it has dealt with in the
past year, successfully, with violations remedied. Refer to flow chart
handout. Note: notice is sent via certified letter to homeowner (vs.
resident in case of rental property). Timeframe for remedying situation
is specified in letter. Covenants are registered with county as is any
legal document. It was pointed out that the covenants are written in
such a way as to allow flexibility in enforcement. Re-writing of the
covenants requires 2/3 approval of all homeowners in Evergreen Meadows;
it is no small task, but is a possibility.
- Meeting was adjourned at 8:40.
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