Seven Lakes West's Mail Delivery Committee is recommending that the community build a new mail house -- or two, or three -- and that the Westside Board implement a special public input process before finalizing any decision on that recommendation.
Committee member -- and Westside President -- Ron Shepard previewed the recommendation during the Tuesday, August 24 Seven Lakes West Landowners Association [SLWLA] Board Work Session.
The Mail Delivery Committee provided cost estimates for the building of one, two, or three mail houses, but comments from Shepard and Directors John Goodman and John Hoffmann made clear that building a single mail house on somewhere on the 35-acre West Side Park tract is seen as the most economical and expeditious alternative. That option is expected to cost $365,000, and could be handled without a dues increase, Shepard said.
Building two or three mail houses will not only cost more, Goodman noted (an estimated $430,000 for two or $591,000 for three) but would also be challenging because the Association may not yet own enough land, properly covenanted, to accommodate a second or third structure.
The committee recommended that the Board deem the mail house question a matter of "significant interest to the membership," which would trigger a special decision-making process in the SLWLA by-laws that require the Board to formally notify the community of the matter and take public comment on it during at least two separate work sessions.
History of USPS negotiations
Using a PowerPoint presentation (available here) President Shepard reminded Directors and members of the Westside's many years of negotiations with the US Postal Service [USPS] aimed at obtaining home mail delivery.
Those negotiations may stretch back a decade or more, but the Postal Service's first firm "No" to home delivery was received in 2004. Negotiations with USPS officials at all levels, and the involvement of Congressman Howard Coble and then-Senator Elizabeth Dole, produced another "No" -- this one from the Postmaster General's office -- in 2009.
The help of US Senator Richard Burr produced a meeting in March of this year with USPS regional managers, during which Westside representatives made an extensive case for home delivery.
The response, received a few weeks later, was another "No."
“Once delivery is established it is our policy not to alter that service unless it will improve delivery efficiency for the Post Office,” the letter received by the Association read. “It was determined that it would be neither cost effective nor efficient for the Postal Service to change the established mode of delivery.”
Mail Delivery options
Shepard said that final "No" left three options:
• Moving to cluster boxes throughout the community,
• Eliminating mail delivery altogether inside Seven Lakes West, instead asking Westsiders to rent boxes at the West End Post Office, or
• Building new mail houses.
Cluster boxes might have made sense as a part of an overall home delivery scheme, Shepard said, with some neighborhoods -- like Morgan Wood or Carriage Park -- served by clusters. But potential traffic problems, the need for parking, safety concerns, and the NIMBY (not-in-my-back-yard) issues make them an impractical solution in Seven Lakes West today. So the committee ruled out that option.
The West End Post Office can add enough boxes to accommodate the residents of Seven Lakes West -- even at full build-out, Shepard said. And USPS would welcome the revenue, with the smallest box renting for $56 per year.
But that rental fee would be borne by Westsiders forever, and is likely to increase over time. An added problem is the travel time from the West Side to West End -- and the cost of gas, which the committee estimated could add up to $125 per year per household.
Building one or more mail houses is less costly, more convenient, and continues the sense of community forged by chance encounters at the mail house, Shepard said. In addition, new USPS procedures mean that residents will be able to, at long last, use their street addresses, instead of a box number, as their mail delivery address.
The $365,000 cost of building one mail house amounts to $106 per Association member per year for two years, Shepard said, comparing that to the $56 per year, forever, cost of renting a box at the West End Post office.
Shepard said more details on the recommendation would be presented during the Board's September 14 Work Session. A decision is likely in October or November, once the Board has received input from the membership.
Volunteers Recognized
President Shepard began Tuesday night's meeting by recognizing the crew of volunteers, led by Director Hoffmann, who recently repainted the existing mail house and gate house. Based on estimates the Association had obtained on both projects, Shepard said, the volunteers saved the Association literally thousands of dollars.
Shepard then played a video presentation that provided scenes of a recent sailing school for kids, organized by the Community Events Committee.
"Here's another group of volunteers who spent a great deal of time over four days teaching a handful of kids to sail," he said, noting that a family could easily spend $350-$400 per child for a comparable summer camp experience.
Gate house removal questioned
During the public comment segment of the meeting, resident Tom Snead questioned the legitimacy of a requirement in the Association's settlement of a lawsuit against former developer Lakeside Development, Inc. that calls for the current gate house to be removed by 2015. The Association's Entries Master Plan calls for the existing gate house to be demolished and a new one to be built near the current location of the mail house.
Snead argued that the stipulation was in fact an encumbrance on the property, and that the Association, under the Planned Community Act, cannot encumber property without the affirmative vote of eighty percent of the membership. He implied that SLWLA negotiators had inserted the stipulation in the agreement in order to provide an additional rationale for moving the gate house -- which he called strictly a beautification issue.
Snead left the meeting shortly after making his comments and so was not on hand for a rebutting explanation from Legal Director Silberhorn, who argued that "the Board did not encumber the land without a vote of the Members because the agreement to move the Gatehouse in five years was made before we officially acquired the property and the transaction was not in the form of a security interest."
Silberhorn explained that Lakeside had its own reasons for wanting the entrance area reconfigured without the gatehouse, which dovetailed with the Board's desire to move the entrance further into the community as part of the overall plan for the entrance and Lakeway Mall area.
Director Hoffmann added that the issue of "stacking" -- cars getting backed up to the railroad tracks and beyond -- is a significant safety issue at the entrance that will be addressed by moving the gate house further into the community.
Committee Reports
Finance. Treasurer Joe Sikes provided newly-formatted financial reports that could be picked up by those attending the meeting and noted that they would be updated monthly but available at each of the Board's two monthly work sessions.
Sikes said two recent meetings to gather member input on priorities for the Fiscal Year 2011-2012 budget had attracted about twenty landowners, whose comments will be summarized in a report to be published on the Association website.
He noted that he is in the process of analyzing a suggestion that payments on the West Side Park mortgage be accelerated. $100 of the annual dues paid by Westsiders are dedicated to West Side Park and will total $155,000 this year, Sikes explained. The mortgage payments total $105,000 annually. Applying all of the West Side Park dues to the mortgage would allow it to be retired in seven years instead of twenty.
Architectural Review. At the request of Architectural Review Director Adam Wimberly, the Board approved the recombination of a half lot and full lot, 5350 and 5351. Wimberly said the AR Committee will be studying the issue of lot recombinations, analyzing whether they make good long-term economic sense for the Association, since they eliminate in perpetuity the dues that will be collected from one of the lots. Legal Director Silberhorn noted that Westside covenants allow recombinations at the Board's discretion, but not as a right.
Another item the ARC will be considering is a suggestion that visible house numbers be made mandatory and, perhaps, standardized in appearance, Wimberly said. Noting the critical importance of house numbers for emergency workers trying to locate a home, Security Director Hoffmann spoke strongly in favor of making numbers mandatory and said he expected to introduce a motion to that effect, perhaps in the September 14 Work Session.
Wimberly and Hoffmann both also commented on a recent incident on Longleaf Drive when a large dog charged a walker and was hit by a car. "People need to be aware that there are rules and regulations about pets and pet containment," Wimberly said. Hoffmann said: "The walker has a greater right to be on the road than the homeowner has a right to have dog in his yard untethered. An owner has a legal obligation to keep his dog under control even on his own property."
Lake & Dam. Director Herdrich said his Dam Committee met on Monday, August 23, and expects to present a recommendation on the question of reopening Longleaf Drive across the dam to the Board at its Tuesday, September 14 work session.
During public comment, one resident suggested that leaving the road closed could block certain residents from exiting the community during road repairs or storm-related road blockages. He noted that opening the road would likely cut traffic through the front gate by twenty-to-twenty-five percent and recommended using a system of gates to slow traffic over the emergency spillway "dip" on the west end of the dam, to minimize any impact loading in that sensitive area.
Herdrich responded that the real problem with allowing traffic over the dam is not impact loading from vehicles passing through the emergency spillway, but rather the fact that, during repairs, Dr. Marks and the community learned that the core of the dam, on its western side, is apparently made of much weaker stuff than had been thought. As a result, the core in that area will continue to deteriorate, though at a much slower rate, after the recent repairs.
Security. Director Hoffmann said he and Herdrich had met with Seven Lakes Fire Chief Calvin Loy and West End Fire Chief Wayne Kennedy to discuss options for providing emergency vehicles access across the Lake Auman Dam, should the roadway remain closed to other traffic. A side benefit of those meetings was the gathering of information on the jurisdiction of the two fire squads, the services they offer the community, and details about their response procedures. Hoffmann said a member of the Communications Team was on hand to take notes on the meetings, which will be turned into a report to the community.
Communications. At the request of Secretary Karen Milligan, the Board approved a new mission statement for the Communications Team, which reads: "The Communications Team, appointed by the SLWLA Board of Directors, serves to promote communication in the Seven Lakes West community. Specifically, the Team’s purpose is to present information regarding Board policy decisions and actions to Seven Lakes West landowners, to encourage neighbors’ involvement in community organizations and events, and to generate presentations and reports that increase understanding and unity in Seven Lakes West."
Community Events. Director Jane Sessler reminded landowners that the final First Friday concert of the season will kick off the Labor Day Weekend on Friday, September 3, with a performance by the band "Ad Nauseum." Her committee is exploring the idea of hosting some informal dance parties during the winter months, echoing the First Friday format of "bring your own everything."
Fall classes on the schedule include yoga, tai chi, painting, bridge, and shag and line dancing. An Oktoberfest celebration is planned for October 16. "Suggestions from the community about activities or classes are always welcome," Sessler said.
Infrastructure. Director Goodman listed several infrastructure projects scheduled for the next few weeks, including the repair of two culverts on Longleaf Drive and substantial pavement repairs near Beacon Ridge Country Club and the foot of Lakeway Drive. Six fire hydrants are on order to be installed this year, and a design for repairs to the lower Lakeway Mall pond dam is expected from engineer Dr. Dan Marks.
Legal. Director Silberhorn said Jim Johnson and Community Manager Joan Frost had completed a line edit of the rules and regulations and forwarded them to each Director for review before the Board begins the formal approval process. He asked Board members to provide any feedback, comments, or edits prior to the September 14 work session.
Manager. Community Manager Joan Frost reported that the office had sent out thirty-five compliance letters since the last meeting, including some first notices, some second notices, and one third notice. The first notice seeks compliance; the second, sent certified mail, informs the violator that they risk being referred to the Judicial Panel; and the third informs them that they have been referred to the panel.
Frost said the office staff has implemented a new procedure for the reservation of rooms in the community center. An application must be filled out and approved, and any applicable fee paid, before the date will be reserved on the calendar.
Other Business
In other business during the Tuesday, August 24 Work Session of the SLWLA Board:
• Director Goodman acknowledged that some of the Association's incorporation study subcommittees may not have their interim reports complete by September 14, but expressed hope that all would be in by the September 28 work session.
• President Shepard noted that the Greater Seven Lakes Community Council will meet with the Moore County Board of Commissioners on Thursday, August 26. The meeting is open to the public; there will be an opportunity to submit questions in writing.
