By now, you’ve probably received your letter and signature sheet regarding extension of the protective parts of the Covenants for our community (the Maintenance Covenants are perpetual and don’t expire). As background, apparently our developer, Ren Martin, adapted an old set of Covenants that were used when protective covenants were required to have expiration dates. This has not been a state requirement for several years. As explained in the letter, lapse of the Protective Covenants removes restrictions on activities on lots (the controls still apply to common areas, like the roads). If the Protective Covenants are allowed to expire, we believe that most people would still maintain and use their property in a manner that would preserve their and their neighbor’s property values; however, if they chose to do something else or chose not to maintain their property, the HOA couldn’t do anything about it. A few other HOAs have lost these provisions and the appearance of those communities has deteriorated such that they lag behind in property values.
The Board felt it was in the best interests of the community, and consistent with the legal responsibilities of the Board, to extend the Protective Covenants. The Board is asking for your approval by executing an instrument aproving extension (the signature page). Note that, since it is a legal document, you need to have your signature notarized and we will try to make that as easy as possible. If we achieve the approval by 42 owners, the signature pages will be appended to the instrument extending the covenants and this will be recorded with the county. THIS IS A ONE-TIME OPTION TO EXTEND THE PROTECTIVE COVENANTS. If they are allowed to lapse in January 2022, any replacement covenants could only be reinstated by a unanimous instrument executed by all Owners – which would be essentially impossible.
We will continue to try to be consistent and fair in administering the covenants. Note that the Maintenance Covenants continue in any event, so there will still be an HOA collecting dues for maintenance of all the common facilities. If you have questions, ask any Board member.
Board Activities
The 2021 Board of Directors has been meeting monthly on the second Wednesday of each month. We are finally able to meet face-to-face now that we are all vaccinated. We have been addressing a number of issues that have been on the back burner for some time:
- Landscaping maintenance (both HOA areas and individual lots)
- Road maintenance (esp. pothole prevention)
- Fences that are deteriorating
- More consistent follow-up on violations
- Non-payment of dues
In December, Jim Watterson resigned from the Board as vice-president. Thanks to Jim for his service in several capacities over the past few years. We have chosen not to replace Jim at this time. We will be seeking candidates for the Board election in the fall for those interested. We will be twisting arms if we don’t get enough candidates! There will be two positions up for election.
The Board is integrating HOA Community Solutions (HOACS) into our business processes with their expanded role as necessary. You will see more communications coming from them going forward. The new policies we have implemented will be largely administered by HOACS, for instance.
We are looking hard at the quality of landscape maintenance we are getting from our current landscape contractor. There are several areas that need bark and gravel replenished. Polly Brantner is working to improve the performance. We may be forced to bid the work again if she is unsuccessful. It is hard to hold residents to a landscape maintenance standard when the HOA is fallen down on landscaping.
You can catch up on all the Board activities in the Meeting Minutes section of this website.