MINUTES OF THE

BENTANA PARK COUNCIL OF CO-OWNERS

BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING

12052 North Shore Drive

Reston, VA 20190

March 8, 2016

Board Members Present:     Kathy Ray                   Vice President

                                                Peter Weed                 Treasurer

                                                Ali Ghassemian           Director

                                                Kristine Larson           Director 

Board Members Absent:      David Brych               President                        

Others Present:                     Tracy Plazyk               Horizon Community Services

                                                Rick Stumpf                Dixie Electric

                                                David Beckner            Dixie Electric

                                                Karen Case                 Recording Secretary

I.          Call to Order:  Mr. Weed called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

II.        Approval of Agenda:

MOTION:  Mr. Weed moved, Ms Larson seconded, to approve the agenda as amended.  The motion passed unanimously (4-0-0)

III.       Homeowner Forum:

Peter Combes of 1666 congratulated all involved for the resolution of the electrical emergency with speed and minimal inconvenience.  There is a Verizon box that needs to be covered.  It had been reported to Verizon.

IV.       President’s Report: 

Mr. Weed passed on some comments on behalf of Mr. Brych.  The Board needs to come up with a plan for the huge unbudgeted expense of the emergency electrical repairs.  Mr. Brych has suggested curtailing all optional services.  The Board discussed potential optional services including landscaping, installation of the additional benches, and delaying the carport roofs into 2017.  There is enough cash on hand to cover the bill and continue to make payments to the reserve fund, however all of the reserve contributions for more than a year will be absorbed by the bill.  Previous years’ surpluses will help defray some of the cost.  The Board requested details about replacement of the gas line.

V.        Treasurer’s Report:

The money market accounts contain $351,089.  There is enough cash on hand to cover the cost of the emergency electrical repairs without prematurely cashing out any CD’s.  One CD will mature near the end of March and recommendations for reinvestment will be made at that time.  Mr. Weed asked Management to find out when the last electrical failure occurred and what was paid to replace the feeder line at that time.  Details would have been included in the insurance claim submitted 17-20 years ago.  Mr. Weed asked Dixie Electric the following: In a future emergency situation, once temporary power is established to the block units, and taking into consideration the cost of the generators, is there time to do the repairs on a more regular basis rather than on overtime?  Also would it cost less to proactively replace the feeder lines in a controlled environment, on our own schedule?  Mr. Weed inquired about a $12,000 variance in the general maintenance budget.  Ms. Plazyk will follow up.

VI.       Secretary’s Report:

MOTION:  Mr. Weed moved, Ms. Ray seconded, to approve the February 9, 2016 Board meeting minutes as presented.  The motion passed unanimously (4-0-0)

VII.     Management Report:         

Fire Alarm and Sprinkler Inspection:  The Association passed the inspection.  No problems were noted.  New 911 tags will be ordered for the pull-alarms.  The fire department would not provide these.

Janatorial & Maintenance: – Ms. Plazyk walked multiple buildings with Citywide.  She has required Citywide to provide site inspection reports including the days and times they are in each building.  Some residents have reported the carpet wasn’t being vacuumed.  M and WR used to vacuum tose areas as well.  Citywide has also changed the crew on site.  Ms. Plazyk had a truck-load of items removed from the trash rooms and storage areas in various buildings.  KMG is not cleaning up the recycling area.  Citywide should be cleaning that area as an included service in the contract.  Ms. Plazyk has spoken to Citywide about cleaning up the leaves and trash around the community.  The gutter on 1648 was replaced.

Emergency Electrical Repairs: An update is pending on the affected residents that were displaced.  Management is working through those issues.

Landscaping Issues: Ms. Plazyk has been in contact with Blade Runners to finish cleaning up the brush and re-doing the work in from of 1660 where the electrical work was done.

Parking and Towing:   The tow company came through and no vehicles were towed.  Vehicles were brought into compliance or moved out of the parking lot.

VIII.  Action Item Review:

Rook Inspection:   Mr. Weed asked for roof inspection to be added back into the Action Item Report.  Ms. Plazyk has been in contact with ETC, to get the requested information.

Duct Cleaning:  Ms Plazyk is working to get duct cleaning rescheduled.

Draft Letter Regarding Carports/Reserved Parking:   Ms Plazyk will get the draft letter to the Board.

Mailbox Repair:   The mailbox has been repaired.

IX.   Unfinished Business:

SB1390 Update:   Ms Plazyk reached out to legal counsel and forwarded information to the Board.

MOTION:  Mr. Weed moved, Ms. Larson seconded, to retain McClafferty to petition the court to get the quorum reduced to restore voting.  The motion passed unanimously (4-0-0)

X.     New Business:

Dixie Electric – Rick Stumpf Review of Electrical Work :   Mr. Stumpf and Mr. Beckner reviewed the emergency electrical work that was done.  Highlights of the discussion included

·         Ms Ray thanked Dixie Electric for their top notch work, integrity and response to this emergency to restore power.

·         Hydro Excavator was used to reduce the risk of underground utility damage and simultaneously remove the debris.

·         Gas line was hit by backhoe while cutting across the asphalt to find burned area underground. The gas line was not detected because it was all plastic and there was no trace wire on either end.  Washington Gas refused to replace that section of pipe.  Ultimately, Dixie Electric was able to replace it. Mr. Stumpf recommended hand digging to locate and tag the gas line trace wire as a protective measure to prepare for any future digging including and future repairs to the feeder lines.

·         The costs were discussed.  The cost of the generators was $2,346 per day.  If Dixie had worked regular 8-hour days, the repairs would have gone on 16 more days resulting in higher generator costs.  Working overtime resulted in a quicker repair and cost savings of $21,770.  Total cost was roughly $230,000.

·         The Board wants to know what feeder line repair was done in the past.

·         There are potentially four feeder lines that need to be replaced.

·         To determine the condition of the other feeder lines in the ground it would take some testing and shutting off power to buildings for up to an hour

Ms Ray left the meeting at 8.33 p.m.

·         Board needs to come up with a plan to minimize the Association’s financial risk.

·         Discussion was held on whether it would be more economical to re-install, which is also expensive.

Blade Runners – Tree Removal Proposal :   A lot of roots and limbs were cut on a large tree next to the transformer at 1668 during the electrical repairs.  The Board reviewed a proposal to remove the tree; it does not require replacement.

MOTION:  Mr. Weed moved, Ms. Larson seconded, to approve the tree removal proposal from Blade Runners at a cost of $2,185. The motion passed unanimously (3-0-0)

Vacancy on the Board :   Ms Ray is resigning from the Board.

XI.     Executive Session:

The Board moved to Executive session at 9:20 p.m. to discuss delinquencies and legal matters.

The recording secretary was excused.

The above represents a transcript of the official BPCA minutes of March 8, 2016, as approved on 4/12/2016.