Highlights from the 8/11 HOA board meeting

The official minutes from the HOA board meeting on 8/11/16 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 four current board members, with the absence of Kory Keath. Building Manager Karen DeGraw was also present; Property Manager Matt Brown was unavailable. Approximately 10 additional Esplanade residents were also on hand.


Treasurer's report:

• Board Treasurer Pat O’Donnell provided the balances in both the operating fund and the reserve fund. She also noted some significant items in the current financial statements, including:
• Spending for common-area water, sewer, HVAC and cleaning are over-budget from the amounts originally planned in the 2016 budget. These overages are not unanticipated, however, and some of the overages will be mitigated. For example, water for the commercial units is currently being paid out of the common-area budget, but will be reimbursed by commercial unit owners.
• The insurance reimbursements for drivers who struck the garage doors are now reflected in the financial statements.

Committee reports:

• Social Committee:
  Committee chair Sallie Zimmer reported that the social committee has chosen three Saturday mornings to host gatherings in the Community Room. All residents are invited to join "Coffee and Conversation," at 9:30 a.m. on August 27, September 17, and October 15. Residents may bring a breakfast item to share, and may also bring their own coffee mug if they are adverse to disposable cups.

• Safety Committee: 
  Committee chair Pat Pound described several items of note regarding building safety issues:
• The safety committee is working with the social committee to plan a combined barbeque, fire drill, and vendor fair in October. A yearly fire drill for the building is required, and in the past the drill has been held in October (this is different from the building fire inspection, being held today, 8/12). The two committees thought that the yearly fire drill would be a good time to also host a barbeque, as well as invite vendors to set up informational tables in the lobby. Possible vendors might include carpet cleaners, house cleaning services, Terra Organics, Tacoma Public Utilities, the City of Tacoma, etc. The committee is looking at October 15 or 22 as possible dates for this event.
• Pat also noted that the committee is willing to assist in the purchasing and installation of the portable defibrillator for the building, which was approved at the last meeting. The machine will be installed on the first floor near the elevators.

• Finance Committee:
  Committee Chair Tim O’Donnell raised a few items of note regarding HOA finances:
• A sizable amount of the HOA's reserve funds, currently held in CDs, are coming to maturity in the next couple months and will be available for reinvestment. The board asked the committee to recommend an institution where those funds might be reinvested, to earn a higher interest rate than they have been earning. The transfer of the funds will be facilitated by Condominium Management.
• Tim also pointed out that to avoid a late adoption of next year's budget, the board and the committee should begin work on the 2017 budget soon; board members concurred, and agreed to ask Condominium Management to prepare a draft of the 2017 budget ASAP.

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 is working on - it is merely a glimpse of a few projects.

• Outdoor improvements 
  The wood decking leading to the esplanade was cleaned and stained in the last couple weeks. The planter around the 1515 sign has been cleared of dead bamboo, and is being prepared for flowers.

• More issues with hot water pumps
  Another leak in the hot water circulation system was recently found. It has been determined that the pumps on the 2nd and 6th floors, which circulate hot water to the rest of the building, are too strong for the system, causing pipes to wear out prematurely. Karen is looking into bids for replacing the pumps with smaller models.

• Miscellaneous projects
  Karen reported that she is looking for a new contractor to move the trash/recycling bins. She also is still waiting to receive bids on replacing carpet near the elevators on some floors - she is unsure why contractors have been so slow in bidding for the job.

Old business:

• Investment policy
  The board has reviewed, edited, and amended a sample investment policy (provided by the finance committee) to guide the investment of the HOA's reserve funds. Wording in the sample policy was changed to more specifically fit the needs of the Esplanade HOA. The board voted to adopt this policy; a copy of the new investment policy can be seen HERE.

• Changes to Conditions, Covenants and Restrictions (CC&Rs)
  Board President Debra Goodrich revisited the drafting of an amendment to the building's Conditions, Covenants and Restrictions (CC&Rs), and then submitting those changes to the HOA membership for approval. Planned changes include the addition of language regarding the building's insurance coverage; changing outdated language regarding the "declarant," or the building's developer; updating language regarding the bathrooms on the building's north side; etc. HOA members will be given plenty of notice before any such changes are put to a vote.

• Policies/fees for use of Community Room and Club Room
  After months of discussion regarding new policies and fees for use of the Community Room and Club Room, the board voted to adopt the new rules as drafted. The new rules can be seen HERE (pages 12-15).

New business:

• The board discussed the need to work on the 2017 budget soon; Condominium Management will be asked to prepare a draft of the 2017 budget ASAP.

Resident questions:

• A few clarifying questions were asked regarding items above.
• A question was asked regarding the posting of monthly financial statements to this blog; slight changes in lines of communication were suggested to better facilitate that process.
• A question was asked regarding residents who are organizing to lobby for less noise from the trains along Dock Street. The board indicated that they fully support these actions, and wish to be kept informed, however there did not seem to be any official action required by the board at this time.
• A question was asked about the resident bulletin board in the P1 elevator foyer. The board stated that it had no desire to officially monitor the bulletin postings, although residents are asked to be respectful of others' postings, and to remove their own postings in a timely manner.