It cost $40,000 -- not the $15,000 originally reported -- to settle a land dispute that resulted from state-mandated repairs to Echo Dam, President Bob Darr announced during the Monday, August 8 Work Session of the Seven Lake Landowners Association [SLLA] Board of Directors.
The Association covered $15,000 of the settlement; the remaining $25,000 was picked up by the SLLA's insurance company.
Darr explained that the $245,000 dam repair -- completed in 2007 -- included installing a blanket covering and rip-rap on the face of the dam; some of that material was placed on a portion of the adjacent lot owned by Northside resident Jean Fulmer.
"There was a failing on a lot of people's part in negotiating a settlement with her," Darr said, adding that it was not his intent to be critical. "It went on and on."
Darr, who was elected to the Board in March, said he became involved as the dispute entered a mediation phase.
"It got to the point where, if what we were going to have to do was take our stuff off of her property, we were looking at a possible cost of $100,000 to the Association," Darr said. "So we decided to settle for the $40,000."
"What was distressing from my point," he added, "was that, with the legal bills she took on, it ended up with her not getting very much, frankly. It would be inappropriate for us to be upset with Mrs. Fulmer."
Darr said that he had heard from some members concerned that the Board wasn't being straightforward in its description of the settlement. He said he had hoped that reporting only the $15,000 actual cost to the Association would avoid planting the seed in anyone's mind that the SLLA has deep pockets and is a target ripe for lawsuits.
Treasurer Conrad Meyer suggested that there is a lesson to be learned from the Fulmer case.
"If we've got an issue in the community," Meyer said, "it behooves us to solve the problem early rather than let it drag on and on and on. The lesson learned is: "How do we solve these kinds of problems more expeditiously in the future?'"
And the Club?
That prompted a sharp-witted resident in the audience to ask whether the Board had made any headway on another long-standing dispute: the status of covenants on Seven Lakes Country Club's golf course property.
The previous SLLA Board and the Club earlier this year renegotiated a 2007 agreement under which the Club could sell its old driving range for residential development, but would ensure that the rest of its property remain as a golf course. The Club in February filed covenants on the golf course property that do not, in fact, protect it from being developed for other uses.
"There have been conversations," Darr replied, "but, in terms of of anything we are planning on doing, no. We have not done anything. That doesn't preclude us starting to revisit that."
Selection of engineering firms for road repaving
Director Bud Shaver said the Association had asked seven engineering firms to submit proposals outlining how they could assist the Board in analyzing the road repairs needed throughout the community and in overseeing the work of the paving contractors brought in to do the work.
"What we want is for these people to tell us what we need to do with each one of these roads," Shaver said.
Four firms responded, but those responses are so technical -- and so different in terms of services offered and price -- that comparing one to another is apparently no easy task.
The Board discussed at length whether to form a small committee of Directors and members to analyze and compare the submissions, or whether to assign the task initially to Shaver.
Both Meyer and Darr argued for bringing residents into the process earlier, but Shaver pressed his concern that the dollar amounts in the bid packages must be kept confidential within the Board.
Ultimately, Darr asked Shaver to do the quote comparisons, and Shaver said he would try to have them ready for the Board's September Work Session.
"Everyone of them has indicated they will do a walk of our roads to tell us what is needed on each road," Darr said. "Way back when we started, we decided that we really wanted one firm that would give us all that information -- and be here watching the work as it is done, so that we have one firm that we can hold responsible."
Boat & Trailer Storage Lot
Also during Monday's Work Session, the Board briefly discussed a plan for revamping the Sequoia Point boat and trailer storage area prepared by Director Bruce Keyser, Jr.
Director Bob Racine complimented the plan, but suggested that a few modifications might be able to fit more boats and trailers in the space, while making it easier for weekend users to negotiate backing and turning in the lot.
Director Shaver suggested that spaces in the lot should be assigned to specific landowners. " The whole area needs to be redesigned," Shaver said.
President Darr said he had a phone call from a resident who reported that the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources [NCDENR] at one time expressed concern about the location of the storage lot, which is positioned in the emergency spillway for the dam. In case of an emergency, NCDENR's thinking goes, the trailers could catch debris and prevent the spillway from functioning as designed.
Shaver suggested that either NCDENR or dam engineer S&ME should be able to provide clarification on that issue.
The conversation then turned to the question of what to do about apparently abandoned boats and trailers in the space -- as well as some unclaimed boats and trailers that were moved to the SLLA maintenance area a few years ago.
"We have boats in there that haven't been touched in years, and years, and years," Darr said. "We also have some over at the debris yard. I think we need a grand plan."
"I would ask you to proceed with that, Bruce," Darr concluded, referring to Director Keyser. Darr noted that he had asked Community Manager Cochran to consult with Talis' legal counsel about the options for disposing of the unclaimed boats and trailers.
Financial Controls & Signature Authority
Treasurer Meyer presented the Board with a nearly-final draft of a document laying out in detail the Association's financial control policies, noting that the document should be in its final form by month's end.
He briefly summarized the policies contained in the document, which he said were not dramatically different than the policies under which the Association is currently operating:
• Check-signing. The Community Manager has no authority to sign checks; all checks are issued by Talis' Raleigh office and require two signatures. Checks for more than $5,000, or checks payable to Talis require the signature of the SLLA President or Treasurer.
• Expenses and reimbursements. Purchases under $500 can be handled with a purchase order issued by SLLA administrative staff; purchases from $500 to $3,000, require Community Manager authorization; and purchases from $3,000 to $5,000 require authorization from the President or Treasurer. Purchases over $5,000 must have Board approval and be let for bids.
• Credit Cards. The use of Association credit cards is under the control of the Community Manager; spending limits are similar to those outlined above, except that no purchases over $3,000 may be made via credit card.
• Contracts. The Community Manager can sign contracts for less than $5,000. Contracts larger than that require Board approval. Any contract over $5,000 must be bid competitively, with at least three bids received. However, the Board can renew a contract with an existing provider without rebidding the work.
Meyer noted that Talis is in charge of implementing the Association's investment policy, which was approved more than a year ago and is posted on the community website.
Judicial Committee
The Board approved during Monday's Work Session a request from Director Racine to place on the agenda for the end-of-month Open Meeting some Judicial Committee personnel changes, including accepting the resignation of Frank Krohn, making alternate Richard Weber a full member of the panel, and naming Harold Halpin a new alternate member.
Racine said he had about fifteen cases that will be moving to the Judicial Committee for decision.
President Darr thanked Racine for the time that he had devoted to getting the Judicial Committee operating more effectively.
"What you are going to see now, and I'm not sure it's welcome news," Darr said, "you are going to see lots of cases going to judicial. We have had chronic abusers that have just slid by in the past. And people are going to be screaming and The Times is going to be getting a lot of mail."
"The process has taken too long," Racine added. He said some offenses would be going straight to the Judicial Committee, with notice to the landowner, which would, in effect, give them two or three weeks to correct the offense before the committee meets.
"We have an expedited system for certain matters," Racine said.
Security Issues
Director Andy Lowe reported that he had located a digital video recorder that, if functional, may be able to be used with a motion-activated camera to record activity at the yard debris site. Testing is underway.
Lowe said he and Darr had met with security representatives of five other gated communities in the area to discuss mutual challenges and solutions. He noted that the Country Club of North Carolina is one of only two private communities in the state that have private law enforcement -- "an actual cop, a gun-carrying cop" -- who is able to write citations for traffic violations.
Landowner Rick Long told the Board that he had three times this Summer left requests with the gate guards asking that his home be inspected by security while he was out of town, but the home had not been inspected. Cochran confirmed that the relevant form should be dropped off with the gate guard, and Darr promised to have the matter investigated and corrected.
Debris Removal
Community Manager Cochran presented the Board with quotes from companies she had asked to bid on hauling away waste from the yard debris disposal site. She noted that the Association's cost for the work had increased significantly at the beginning of the year.
The matter was referred to the Finance Committee for analysis, at the request of Treasurer Meyer.
Member Comments
During member comments, Bob Cook suggested that the appearance of road shoulders on the North Side have deteriorated, adding that he had identified 55 areas in which the shoulder was just bare dirt -- 23 of which he felt were in critical condition.
Noting that the Association has an easement on the shoulders, and has traditionally been responsible for mowing them, Cook suggested the SLLA take on the task of upgrading the appearance of the roadsides. Given the challenges of establishing grass in those locations, he recommended using pinestraw instead.
President Darr said the Board would look into the idea and its potential cost, adding that the Association has access to some pinestraw from common areas and lots in the community.
Other Business
The Board met in closed session at the end of the meeting to discuss the process of evaluating Talis Management and Community Manager Cochran. Darr said the Board would be able to share with the membership more about the process and the results of the evaluations once the details are nailed down.
