The West Side's Vision and Master plan will have to wait. After gathering feedback from landowners for three weeks on a Long Range Planning proposal to hire Clarion Associates to lead the Seven Lakes West Landowners Association [SLWLA] in a Vision and Master Planning Process, the Board of Directors voted six-to-two against moving forward.
This was the first of two votes that would have been required to approve the project, which had been designated "a matter of significant interest" by the Board. Only Long Range Planning Director Don Freiert and Infrastructure Director Jim Pierman voted in favor of the proposal. Legal Director Jack Stevens had planned to join the meeting via conference call, but was not available and thus did not participate in the vote.
The other six Directors present at the Tuesday evening, July 24 Board Meeting cited cost, community input, and the timing of the project as reasons they could not vote in favor of it.
Pierman argued that the community needs a vision and master plan -- and that there may never be a good time for it, so it should move forward at this point.
However, other Board members did not share Pierman's sense of urgency.
“I don’t like to be rushed,” said President Mick Herdrich, “and I don’t feel we should rush this.”
Herdrich called for more study of the the master planning process, leading to a new proposal that would be presented to the community for input. If a decision is made to move forward at a later date, he said, funding for the project should be included in the annual budgeting process, rather than being taken from reserves. Long Range Planning had proposed using $40,000 in reserve funds to pay for the study.
Herdrich also asked for more community feedback, especially from younger members of the Association.
Safety and Security Director Jim McCarthy agreed with Herdrich's position, saying any decision to move forward with such a project should be left up to the membership.
Other board members questioned the cost — and taking money from reserves to fund the project.
“For $40,000, someone better be telling me something more than a pretty report,” said Architectural Review Director Dan Blue, who expressed concern that the Board had seen little information from Clarion Associates about the outlines of the project.
Other members of the Board noted that the community already has planning in place for major projects over the next two years, including the new mailhouse and the reconfiguration of the front gate.
Any action items coming out of a Clarion-led planning project would not be implemented until at least 2014 -- the same year that NC Highway 211 is scheduled for completion and the men and women’s US Opens will be taking place in Pinehurst.
Member opinion was divided
Freiert told his fellow directors that only 47 of the 1700 voting members of the Association had submitted comments on the project. Of those, twenty were in favor, eighteen were opposed, and ten took no position.
Even those in favor expressed concern about the price, Freiert added. Those opposed said the money could be better spent on roads and other immediate needs.
Some landowners who were neither in favor nor opposed to the project expressed concern that the issue was being considered during the Summer months, when many families are away.
Westsider Dale Erickson, who has voiced his support of the project in the past, said he was in favor of the planning project, as long as it is confined to Seven Lakes West. He disagreed with the suggestion, made by some members, that the focus should be broadened to encompass the greater Seven Lakes community.
“I believe it is necessary and provides a road map, guidance, and justification for the number of things we have to do -- and I think it’s great for the community,” said Erickson. But, if the scope were broadened to include the entire community, he said, “perhaps it could be used as a vehicle for incorporation, which I believe is the wrong thing . . . If it is a scope that encompasses Seven Lakes West, I continue to support it.”
Barbara Gerhardt took the opposite view during member comment. “We have to think bigger than Seven Lakes West,” she said. “This community cannot just isolate itself . . . I think we need to plan for the future, but I don’t think we can sit here in Seven Lakes West and act like we are not part of a bigger community.”
Events Director Rosemary Weber agreed. “We can pave the roads in gold; but, if we don’t have other attractive areas for people that want to move here, such as businesses . . . I think that is an important factor.”
“It’s not just what goes on here in Seven Lakes West," she added. "It is also what happens outside the gate.”
Charlie Merical said the Board should focus on expanding what the West Side already has and do something “practical” with the money. “There are a lot of things in this community that we can do with that $40,000,” said Merical.
Nancy Workman, agreeing with many of the Board members, said that the community’s reserve funds should not be tapped into to cover the cost of this project.
“We should budget it, and plan it, and, when we have the money for it, then we should do it,” explained Workman.
Freiert will take input from the community and the Board back to the Long Range Planning Committee to consider next steps.
Architectural Review Committee Report
ARC Director Dan Blue reminded landowners that all exterior modifications to Westside homes require an ARC application, which serves two purposes:
• First, it alerts the front gate to vendors that will be in the community.
• Second, it allows ARC to ensure that community standards are maintained.
The repair notification form is changing, Blue reported. The ARC is fine-tuning the process for basic repairs on homes, such as deck resurfacing and house painting, which will alleviate the need to go through the entire permit process for basic repairs. The new process should be available within the next two weeks.
The permit application for storm damage will be suspended, reported Blue. Anyone needing to make storm damage repairs should contact the CAS office, and Lucy Hadlock will expedite the form.
Blue recognized Ed Schempp and Ray Sibiga, longtime ARC members who are retiring from the committee. “They have done a great job with us,” said Blue. “They have done a great job for our community. They will be missed.”
Communications Report
Secretary Jane Sessler announced that 773 Associations members have created accounts on the SLWLA website, which has become the primary source for community information. Everyone with a website account can be contacted through the website's email functionality, she explained, so it provides a way to contact membership in case of an emergency.
As the website has grown, other modes of communication have undergone changes, Sessler said. The SLWLA newsletter is more focused on non-time sensitive-information, she explained, and the Area Reps are now the “Neighbor-to-Neighbor” group, welcoming new families to the community.
“In a nutshell, we still have those three components going -- they are all just doing something a little different,” said Sessler.
Over the summer there has been a “surge” of ten new members a week being added to the website, she added.
Lake and Dam Report
Lake and Dam Director Bruce Keyser reported that the Carriage Park Pond -- the one closest to the Beacon Ridge Golf Course -- is being drained to further investigate dam repairs.
Dam Engineer Dr. Dan Marks asked that the water be drained from the pond; remediation should take place in November of this year.
Events Report
The next date in the Johnson Point Summer Concert Series is Friday, August 3 at 7:00 pm, with the Fog Blues Band playing.
On Tuesday, August 14, Sergeant Tom Brady and Officer Steve Clark will host a gun safety class. Those interested should call the CAS office or email Rosemary Weber.
On Saturday, September 15, the Events Committee will host the Margaritaville Night at the WSPCC from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm. The cost is $7 per person. Tickets will be available at the SLWLA office starting August 1. Plans for the event include light appetizers, Margarita mix, and a limbo contest at the event.
The Board appointed Bernadette York to the Events Committee.
Other Business
In other business during the Board’s Tuesday, July 24 meeting:
• Director McCarthy explained that a Moore County EMS vehicle was recently unable to enter the community through the back gate. All Moore County EMS vehicles have now been issued barcodes. “This will never happen again,” said McCarthy.
• Community Manager Jeanette Mendence reported that the Amenities Committee is considering replacing the ovens in the Community Center and adding a dishwasher upstairs.
• Director Freiert said Busby and Company will review the Association's financial statements for the year for $5,000; the cost is included in this year's budget. The report will be returned by the Fall.
• Mendence said a project to update street signs and posts is now complete. Recent repairs include a broken arm on the back gate, a leak in the Community Center roof, and the compressor for the sprinkler system. The Great Room kitchen has been cleaned.
• The Board appointed Dan Lambert to the Long Range Planning Committee.
• Pierman and McCarthy will investigate the possibility of installing additional speed signs in the community.
