Highlights from the 1/14/16 board meeting

The official minutes from the HOA board meeting on 1/14/16 should be available HERE in the next couple weeks or so. In advance of the official minutes, below are a few highlights from the meeting, attended by three current board members and Building Manager Karen DeGraw. Board member Kelly DeLaat-Maher and Property Manager Matt Brown were not present. Approximately 8 other Esplanade residents were also on hand.

Treasurer's report:

• Board treasurer Dave Rodenbach did not make a report; with Matt Brown absent, the monthly financial report was not provided. Condo owners who would like to see financial reports can view them in Karen DeGraw's office, or see the documents page of "The Esplanade News," HERE.

Committee reports:

• Safety Committee: 
  Committee Chair Pat Pound raised two issues:
• The committee asked if the 2016 budget had accounted for some long-discussed safety updates. Most pressing is the need for secure handles on the exterior of the stairwell doors. The levers currently on the doors are not secure, and have been breached in the past. Push bars on the inside and U-shaped handles on the outside are recommended. The board agreed to prioritize this need and begin the process.
• The committee requested that the building's utility vendors be contacted to find out if the natural gas can be shut off to portions of the building, if the need arises, instead of shutting down the entire building. This is a precautionary measure only, but a valuable piece of information the committee would like to know in advance.

• Social Committee:
  The board discussed asking the Social Committee to provide refreshments at the upcoming general HOA meeting on February 11. There was no member of the committee present, but the board agreed to contact the committee with the request.

• Finance Committee:
  The committee requested permission from the board to investigate higher-return investments for the HOA's reserve funds. The Finance Committee estimates the association could earn as much as $5,000 more per year by reinvesting reserves in higher-yield funds that are still zero-risk. The board granted the request by the committee to investigate possibilities, but also stated that they did not want to micromanage the investments or expose them to any risk. Board Treasurer Dave Rodenbach suggested that in the future, the board may want to draft an "investment policy" to guide the HOA's investments.

Building Manager's report:

Below are a few of the projects that Building Manager Karen DeGraw is currently working on. This is not a comprehensive list of all she does - it is merely a glimpse of projects with which she is currently engaged.

• New door to lower parking garage: 
  The new door has been installed. Karen stated that in the near future, she would like to change the codes on all of the residents' remote controls, as this has not been done in several years, and there has been some turnover in residents. Karen explained that changing the codes on the remote controls is a relatively easy process, and residents could either do it themselves or bring their remote to her for the change. The board agreed with the plan to alter the codes.

• New door to upper parking garage:
  The new door to the upper garage will be delivered within a week. The installation of the door will be February 21; residents will not be able to enter or leave either garage on this day. Residents are reminded, once again, to please let the garage doors open all the way before driving under them.

• New treadmill:
  The new treadmill is now in the fitness room, and parts from the removed treadmill will be used to make repairs on the older models still being used.

• Excess building materials in storage rooms:
  Building materials (granite counters, slate tiles, cabinet doors, etc.) are currently being stored in two lower-garage storage rooms by iStar. By contract, iStar maintains control of these storage rooms until they have sold the last of their 9th floor units (there are currently three units that remain to be sold, with one of those pending). iStar has made an offer to sell the building materials to the HOA for possible resale to individual condo owners. The board agreed to brainstorm possible courses of action and/or replies to the iStar offer.

• Cleaning of dryer vents:
  Karen stated that she is initiating the process of having the building's dryer vents cleaned. All of the dryers are connected to common ventilation shafts, which must be cleaned every three years to prevent a fire hazard. Individual unit owners are responsible for cleaning their dryer ventilation hoses that connect to the common shaft; this should be done periodically to prevent a fire hazard!

• Elevator padding request:
  Karen recently received a resident request to form an "Elevator Padding Committee," whose responsibility it would be to put up and take down the elevator pads before and after a move-in or move-out. The board declined to approve such a committee. 

Old business:

• Follow-up on budgetary concerns from December meeting: 
  At the December meeting, a resident raised concerns about the timing of the 2016 budget, claiming that the board was overdue with the budget. After some investigation and reading of the bylaws, the board has subsequently determined that the procedures and timeline for the 2016 budget, although not ideal, were not improper. The budget was approved by the board on 12/21/15, mailed to HOA members within 30 days of that date, and will be ratified at the February meeting (see below).

New business:

• 2016 general HOA meeting, board elections, and budget ratification:
  There will be a general HOA meeting on Thursday, February 11, for all HOA members. At this meeting the association will vote to ratify the 2016 HOA budget (the budget will ratify automatically unless a majority votes against it). The meeting will also feature the election of two residential board members and one board member representing the building's commercial units.
  
  Any owner who would like to run for a board position is encouraged to contact the board or contact Property Manager Matt Brown as soon as possible. It is necessary that 40 votes are cast, either in person or by proxy, to elect new board members. HOA members are strongly encouraged to attend the February 11 meeting or give a proxy form to a neighbor.

• FHA certification:
  A request has been made by a resident Realtor to have the building certified by the Federal Housing Administration. This would allow future condo buyers to qualify for FHA loans to purchase units. The board generally felt that this would be a positive move, as the building would be more marketable with FHA certification. The board voted to approve $500 for this certification.

• Discontinuation of Condominium Management website:
  The "Esplanade News" Editor reported that password-protected HOA financial documents are now available online on the documents page. The board discussed this new feature, and determined that the website provided by Condominium Management did not seem to provide enough advantages to justify its cost of $400-$600 per year. The board voted to discontinue payment for the Condominium Management website, and exclusively use the "Esplanade News" to disseminate HOA news and information. The board also agreed to pay the nominal yearly fee (approximately $20 per year) to maintain the internet domain name "esplanadetacomanews.com".
  
  Any HOA member who would like the password to access the online financial documents should contact the Editor, or Building Manager Karen DeGraw. The password will also be given out at the HOA meeting on February 11.

Resident questions:

• New residential rules:
  Several clarifying questions were asked regarding the updated rules and regulations. To see these updated rules, go to the documents page.