An unusual request to recombine four Westside lots sparked considerable debate during the Tuesday, May 6 meeting of the Seven Lakes West Landowners Association [SLWLA] Board of Directors.

Jack Lattin, a member of the Architectural Review Committee [ARC], told the Board that lot recombinations, by reducing the total number of lots in the community, effectively increase the costs borne by all other landowners.

The meeting agenda included two recombination requests. First up was the recombination of lots 6152 and 6151, which the board approved with little comment.

Former Director John Hoffmann asked whether the applicant was aware that the recombination is irrevocable. SLWLA rules state that recombinations cannot be undone, apparently relying on a provision of the Westside covenants that reserves the right to subdivide lots only to the developer — and only for lots that have not yet been sold by the developer.

"It was discussed," replied ARC Director Dan Blue.

Construction of new homes is picking up in Seven Lakes West, Director Dan Blue reported, during the Tuesday, May 6 meeting of the Seven Lakes West Landowners Association [SLWLA] Board of Directors.

Blue, who has responsibility for the Architectural Review Committee [ARC] said nine projects are currently underway and several more either await approval or almost ready to be submitted.

"Within thirty to sixty days," Blue said, "we will have fifteen or sixteen new homes going up."

Blue said that number includes both custom homes and developer projects, but all are prestigious designs in keeping with the architectural standards of the community, "not cookie cutter."

McDermott Resigns, Goodman Appointed Secretary

President Bruce Keyser reported that newly-appointed SLWLA Secretary Jim McDermott had resigned from the Board effective April 17, due to an unexpected significant increase in the time required by his consulting business.

Director Mandy Goodman will take over McDermott's post as Secretary and Communications Director, leaving a vacancy for a Lake & Dam Director. The board is seeking volunteers interested in filling that slot and serving out the two years left in McDermott's unexpired term of office. Interested members should contact the Nominating Committee.

Treasurer — Overdue Dues Growing

Treasurer Mercedes Herdrich told her fellow directors that she had good news and bad news to report.

The good news is that revenues through the month of March are tracking ahead of budget, while expenses are under budget, resulting in a positive variance of $91,000.

The bad news is that the association has just under $80,000 in overdue accounts, up from $74,800 in January.

"I hope to focus on management of this number in the next couple of months," Herdrich said. She noted that a $20 late payment fee begins this month, which should encourage some folks to pay up.

"It's not fair to those who pay their dues on time," she added.

Nature Trail Now Open

SLWLA Manager Jeanette Mendence reported that the nature trail at West Side Park is now open and thanked John Hoffmann and Dan Lambert for their work on that amenity.

She also thanked Greg Downer for his work getting pickle ball lines added to the tennis courts.

Boat stickers are available for pickup at the SLWLA office.

The Westside Pool opens May 24, a Newcomer's Reception is scheduled for May 27, and the first Johnson Point concert of the season, featuring the Fog Blues Band, will be held on June 6.

Board Receives Plenty of Public Input

President Keyser began the meeting by answering a question he said he is often asked: "Why is the board not more open to community input at board meetings?"

Keyser stressed that the monthly meetings are business meetings of the board, but noted that each meeting includes an opportunity for public input at the end of the meeting.

Board members "communicate with each other, with CAS, with our committees, and with our membership on a regular basis through social media, the website, and social activities," he said. The extensive committee structure ensures that issues and proposals have been thoroughly vetted before they appear on the agenda of a board meeting.

Keyser encouraged those who would like to play a more active role in governing the community to volunteer for a club or committee, or to run for a seat on the board.

Better Sticker Your Boat

Keyser reported that boat registrations are lagging behind last year. After May 1, those who haven't registered or affixed their stickers to boats in the water or boats and trailer in the storage yard are subject to a fine. Lake patrol volunteers will be checking for new stickers.

Boat patrol will begin weekend patrols on May 16 and continue them through Labor Day, Keyser said. Lake Buoys are in bad shape, he said. The Lake Committee will be exploring options for replacing them.

Other Business

In other business during the Tuesday, May 6 meeting of the SLWLA Board of Directors, they:

• Approved on second reading a modification to ARC standard 7.04.4 removing the requirement that the six feet of property behind a bulkhead be landscaped with something other than grass while expanding the existing prohibition of fertilizer use in that space to include pesticides, as well.

• Approved on first reading amendments to section 3.10 of the rules and regulations to add a second standard for the type of asphalt that should be used on Westside streets. The changes will take place only after the board approves them again on second reading.

• Appointed John Hoffmann and George Jenner to the Safety & Security Committee.

• Approved the first reading of a modification to Rule 5.8.6 making it clear that dogs off the owner's premises must be on a leash.

Construction of new homes is picking up in Seven Lakes West, Director Dan Blue reported, during the Tuesday, May 6 meeting of the Seven Lakes West Landowners Association [SLWLA] Board of Directors.

Blue, who has responsibility for the Architectural Review Committee [ARC] said nine projects are currently underway and several more either await approval or almost ready to be submitted.

"Within thirty to sixty days," Blue said, "we will have fifteen or sixteen new homes going up."

Blue said that number includes both custom homes and developer projects, but all are prestigious designs in keeping with the architectural standards of the community, "not cookie cutter."

McDermott Resigns, Goodman Appointed Secretary

President Bruce Keyser reported that newly-appointed SLWLA Secretary Jim McDermott had resigned from the Board effective April 17, due to an unexpected significant increase in the time required by his consulting business.

Director Mandy Goodman will take over McDermott's post as Secretary and Communications Director, leaving a vacancy for a Lake & Dam Director. The board is seeking volunteers interested in filling that slot and serving out the two years left in McDermott's unexpired term of office. Interested members should contact the Nominating Committee.

Commissioner Otis Ritter appears to have successfully fought off a challenge from Seven Lakes West resident Louis Gregory in the District 3 County Commissioner race, according to unofficial election night tallies posted by the State Board of Elections.

With all twenty-six of the County's precincts reporting, Ritter captured 51.9 percent of ballots cast, pulling in 220 more votes than Gregory, a former police chief for Whispering Pines.

There was considerably more daylight between the contenders in the District 1 Commissioners race, where Carthage Town Commissioner and former Clerk of Court Catherine Graham captured 74 percent of the ballots cast and nearly 4,100 more votes than Oscar Romine of Cameron.

A similar gap separated incumbent Clerk of Court Susan Hicks, who won over challenger Doyle Markham with just under 70 percent of the vote.

Sheriff Neil Godfrey bested challenger Steve Leader Adams by nearly 5,100 votes, capturing nearly 79 percent.

Turnout for the primary was low, at just under twenty percent, which is typical of primaries in midterm elections.

All these results are unofficial and preliminary until the official county canvass on Tuesday, May 13.

The Moore County Board of Education is seeking an addition $2.3 million in funding from the county for Fiscal Year 2015. School Board Chair Kathy Farren, along with Moore County Schools [MCS] Superintendent Aaron Spence and Chief Finance Officer Mike Griffin, presented the budget request during the Monday, May 5 meeting of the Moore County Board of Commissioners.

"Thank you for working with us," Farren said. "You work hard to keep us where we need to be."

Farren and Griffin have been working behind the scenes with Commissioners Nick Picerno and Randy Saunders, as well as the county budget team, to develop a funding formula that would add predictability to local school funding by allocating a fixed percentage of county tax revenues to the schools each year.

"That way, as the county grows and our tax revenues grow, they will benefit," Saunders told The Times after the meeting.

But remaining questions about state funding will likely delay the implementation of that formula until FY2016, Saunders said.

It is not clear whether MCS is receiving the full amount of funding the system is due from the state, he explained. MCS and the commissioners are working with state legislators and school officials to answer that question. But, until it is answered, it is impossible to determine the exact percentage of county tax revenues that should be allocated to the schools.

Recently, Saunders discovered that Cumberland County uses a similar funding formula for its schools.

The funding formula would also allocate a fixed percentage of the county's capital reserve fund to school facilities.

Saunders told The Times that the commissioners have already reached an agreement in principle with Sandhills Community College [SCC] that, when ratified in the county budget, will allocate five percent of tax revenue to funding the college — and a similar percentage of the county's capital reserve fund to the SCC's capital needs.