Highlights from the 9/14/17 HOA board meeting

The official minutes from the HOA board meeting on 9/14/17 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 all five current board members; Property Manager Matt Brown and Building Manager Karen DeGraw were on hand. Approximately 10 additional Esplanade residents were also present.

Treasurer's report:

• Board Treasurer Pat O’Donnell provided the balances in both the operating fund and the reserve fund, noting some of this month's bills and payments that were made. Pat also reported that significant portions of the HOA's reserve funds have now been transferred into laddered CDARS. Per the board's request, the Finance Committee set up a schedule for reinvestment of the HOA's reserves into higher-yielding CDARS, "laddered" to mature in 3-year cycles. The new investments will ensure a significantly higher rate of return than the previous investments. The board discussed the remaining reserve funds (those not placed in the new CDARS), and made it a priority to determine if any of those reserves are in accounts which exceed FDIC insurance limits.

Old business: None

Committee reports:

• Finance Committee: No report at this time
  

• Safety Committee: 
  Committee Chair Pat Pound reported that the annual fire drill is planned for Saturday, October 14 at 9:00 a.m. There was some discussion regarding the official "gathering point" for residents to meet during a building evacuation. For some years, the official gathering point has been under the 15th Street Bridge, in an effort to provide shelter for residents in case of an evacuation in wet weather. However, it was noted that during an earthquake, under the 15th Street Bridge might be a hazardous gathering point. Gathering on the esplanade was suggested as an alternative. Pat agreed to take the matter back to the Safety Committee for further discussion and review. (Pictures from the 2015 fire drill below.)

• Social Committee:
  
  The Social Committee reported on a long list of plans for social events in the building. For a complete copy of the committee's minutes showing all planned events, click HERE. Some highlights include:
• Esplanade Speaker Series. Former Mayor of Tacoma Bill Baarsma is scheduled to speak on Wednesday, September 20 at 7 p.m. Other future speakers may include representatives from the Port of Tacoma, Hilltop Artists, etc.
• Purchasing of new Christmas trees for lobby decorations during the holidays.
• Other holiday events, including the canned food drive in November and Toys for Tots drive in December. The planned date for the annual building Christmas party is Saturday, December 9. There will be no auction this year, but plenty of food, drink and socializing.

Building Manager's report:

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

• Comcast/Xfinity event Monday
  A representative from Comcast will be back for another event this Monday, 9/18 at 5 p.m. in the Community Room. Residents may take this opportunity to ask questions about different services, make changes to their accounts or just enjoy something to drink.

• Deck resurfacing completed
  Karen reported that the contractor did take more time than originally anticipated, but the work appears to have been good quality.

• Window cleaning
  Karen has fielded several requests for the window cleaners to come twice per year instead of once. She is currently seeking a bid from the window cleaners for cleaning only the exterior of the glass deck railings and the windows that residents cannot reach themselves. The thinking is that the savings might be enough to schedule the window cleaners for two times per year.

• Kayak racks / cleaning of lower garage
  Karen is currently working on scheduling a vacuuming of the lower garage. In conjunction with that, "decluttering" the garage is still a work in progress. Most kayaks have been moved to the new racks, with a few still waiting for additional racks to be installed. At this time there is no more anticipated space for additional kayaks. Building rules specify that only licensed, operable motor vehicles may be stored in parking spaces.

• Fobs
  Installation of fob readers for the front door, elevator foyer, and SE stairwell has been completed. Activating the fob readers in the elevators (during certain nighttime hours) is planned, but the work is not budgeted for this calendar year and will not happen until after January.

• Change to insurance language in CC&Rs
  At the April board meeting, Ryan Stewart of the Partners Group presented information on The Esplanade’s insurance policy. Mr. Stewart recommended a small language change to the building's CC&Rs in order to more specifically state the responsibility of the HOA's insurance policy. That language change requires a vote of all homeowners. A ballot to vote on this matter was mailed, reminders have been sent out, and still some homeowners have not replied. Management requests that all homeowners who have not voted on this matter please submit your ballot, and see Karen if you have lost your ballot.

• Remotes eliminated from the Fitness Room machines
  In order to avoid battery replacement and wear on the TV remotes in the Fitness Room, the cardio machines have been reconfigured so that the TV operates exclusively with each machine's controls. TV is still available on all the machines, but the remotes are no longer in use.

New business:

• Sidewalk repair on Dock Street
  Tree roots have pushed up some of the concrete slabs on the sidewalk outside the building on Dock Street. The hazardous slabs have been painted and taped off. Management is in contact with the city regarding repair, the cost of which must be borne by the Esplanade HOA.

• Reserve study update
  The annual review of the HOA's reserve study has been scheduled. Although no shortfalls are anticipated and the reserve fund is healthy, major upcoming expenditures will likely include pressure washing of the building's exterior and repairs to the concrete in the circular driveway.

• Beautification of lower rooftop
  Many residents have noticed that the colored rocks on the lower rooftop (visible from all west-facing and north-facing units) have become somewhat dirty and unsightly. The board is looking into different possibilities for cleaning the rocks and/or other beautification ideas. The lower rooftop is not accessible to residents, so any beautification would be purely aesthetic, not functional. Just for fun, here are some creative possibilities:

Resident questions and comments:

• A few clarifying questions were asked regarding items above, and that information has been inserted into the notes above where appropriate.
• A question was asked regarding water dripping from the upper parking garage into the lower parking garage; Karen promised to look into the matter.