HMC BOARD MEETING MINUTES AUGUST 11,
2001
Call to Order: President N. Huff called meeting to order at
10:00 am.
Roll Call: N. Huff, President, K. Fennell, Treasurer,
J. Podell, Executive Secretary and Asst. Treasurer, B. Turpin, Land Use, F.
Reichlin, Rules & Regulations, D. Allen, Island Manager. Excused:
R. Pinkley & Ken Freeman
Membership
input:
K. Gatliff requested that all incoming correspondence be read to the members.
The Board agreed.
Previous Board
Meeting Minutes: N. Huff addressed
the format for meeting minutes and expressed concern that the minutes should
contain information beyond that of motions made and seconded. Additionally the minutes should contain key
issues currently affecting the island and all assigned action items. The Board agreed with this approach.
K.
Fennell made a motion to accept the July 14th minutes as
written. B. Turpin seconded. Motion carried.
Correspondence: J. Podell read a list of correspondence
received (1 letter, 1 Statement from Atty. J. Strichartz) and read aloud a
letter from one of the members concerning recent acts of cruelty to animals on
the island. Nick Huff requested that
anyone with information about this issue contact the sheriff. The seriousness
of this issue resulted in the involvement of the Humane Society and the Pesado
Law Advocacy Group.
Finance: K. Fennell made a motion to pay the
island bills. J. Podell seconded.
Motion carried. Water pump
replacement bill was received as a result of the failure of water pump #2. Payment of $6000+ will come from Water
Reserve funds.
Senior/Disabled
Ferry Discount Program: K. Fennell
reported that we are now 5 months into the pilot and the total revenue impact
to date is approximately $1380. A
question arose concerning whether the Board has the authority to continue the
pilot or must put it to a membership vote.
Our island attorney was questioned on this and stated that it must go
back for a membership vote, but the By-Laws could be changed at some future
date to permit the Board to make this kind of decision. K. Fennell made a motion to place this
issue on the Ballot in the August Beachcomber.
F. Reichlin seconded. Motion
carried. A question arose about
whether a decision by the membership on this issue will affect the discount
being made available to the ferry crew, or is it a stand-alone benefit for the
crew. Further investigation needs to
occur before a definitive answer can be provided.
Legal Liaison: D. Allen reported that the three pending
lawsuits against HMC have now been settled.
Our Attorney recommends that the Board prepare a summary of the
circumstances that resulted in these lawsuits, discuss the outcomes, and
develop a plan to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
Multiple
Lot Ownership: There was much discussion on this issue. K. Fennell pointed out to the membership
that in May 1999 a report was prepared on this subject summarizing the issue
and the financial impacts. A copy of
this report is available to the members at the HMC office.
Unsightly
lots: There was a discussion of unsightly lots on
the island. It was suggested that the
Board could adopt rules that fine owners of unsightly property and place liens
when fines are not paid. Further
discussion will occur.
Transportation: There has been a request from a member to
allow trailers on the ferry during holiday weekends on a “space-available”
basis. General discussion ensued. The
current policy will not be changed at this time.
A
suggestion was received from a member that the shelter on the mainland for
walk-on passengers be moved to the south side of the ferry dock. Discussion ensued. Because severe south
winds have previously damaged the roof and toppled the shelter, it will remain
on the north side.
Water: As a result of
Well #2 Pump failure, a replacement was purchased and will be tested next
week. Some wiring work remains to be
done.
Administrative: A reminder
will be placed in the Beachcomber stating that only service and delivery
persons may charge ferry fees.
An
offer by a delinquent member was made on the LeFord/McKinsey property in the
amount of $2475.44 to settle the delinquency.
K. Fennell made a motion to accept this offer. F. Reichlin seconded. Motion carried.
The
Balabar property is coming up for tax sale in September. The owner is offering a partial settlement
and monthly payments in settlement of the delinquency and to prevent the
sale. The Board decided to defer this
issue to obtain additional information.
Land Use: Purchase of
the Lewis property has been completed, but the final paperwork has not yet been
received from the County. C. Jones
asked about the status of the boat on the property. D. Allen will look into this.
Rules &
Regulations: The Board has agreed to a hearing on Sept. 9 about a dog
bite incident. F. Reichlin distributed
pertinent background information to the Board
Fire
Department/V-CART/Emergency Preparedness: No formal reports available.
The burn ban remains in affect - no open fires (including beach fires) are
allowed. Congratulations to Claudia and
Bill Jones who recently completed First Responder Certification.
Parks: An Island
work party has been scheduled for Sat. Aug. 25 to work on park improvements and
other projects.
Roads: No new
information. B. Zazzo asked if signage indicating the ferry staging area could
be improved. Discussion ensued about
courtesy issues related to our mainland neighbors (e.g. overflow parking on the
roads).
New Business: A member asked about the possibility of hiring an off-duty
patrolman and squad car to enforce rules at North Beach. D. Allen responded that this is typically
done on a contractual basis with law enforcement agencies. M Turpin stated that this had been done in
the past, without significant improvement.
Since this could have significant financial impact, it will not be
pursued at this time.
Boosters: M Turpin
reported that the Aug. 4 barbecue/auction was the most successful event ever.
Beachcomber: Deadline for
submissions for the Aug. Beachcomber is Aug 13.
B. Turpin made a motion to adjourn the meeting. K. Fennell seconded. Motion Carried
Respectfully
submitted by,
/s/
J.
Podell,
Executive
Secretary