FALLS RUN COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION, INC
Minutes of the Meeting of the Board of Directors
11 March 2010
Members Present: Jake Bernard, Dan Owens & Piper, Tom Whalen, Bill Barnes, Toni Brown, Dot Foster, John Thrash.
Members Absent: None
Others Present: Debbie Sutton, Property Manager
I. The Special Meeting of the Board of Directors to review Draft #4 of the Proposed Design Guidelines was called to order at 9:00am in Conference Room 1 of the Community Center by the President, Jake Bernard.
II. Open Forum: The following topic was discussed during this open forum:
a. Why is the Board doing this now? A long discussion occurred during which the following were mentioned:
1/ Requirements contained in the Declaration, especially in Article 8.
2/ The inability of early Boards [2006, 2007] to devote time to review of the Del Webb issued Design Guidelines due to other major matters including the Koger embezzlement and the January 2007 transition to a new management company.
3/ The effort begun in 2008 to update and trasition our governing documents away from Del Webb generic documents. The first document done was the Amended By-Laws which started in spring 2008 and were approved 22 April 2009.
4/ The sustained effort by the Board in 2009 to develop and publish understandable Administrative Resolutions detailing rules and regulations applicable to Falls Run.
5/ The Board decision after the spring 2009 community-wide inspection that the Design Guidelines as they exist now needed a thorough review and update. That review process was detailed n the answer to item #43 on the consolidated list.
III. Review of items on the consolidated list:
a. The Board continued to review items from the consolidated list of 104 comments, questions and suggestions from residents.
b. The following items were considered during this meeting. Item numbers correspond to the item number on the consolidated list:
1/ Inclusion of the Villa Design Guidelines as an appendix to the Proposed Design Guidelines.
The Villa Board President, Carlos Sutton, conveyed to the Board the request to remove Appendix G and detailed the Villa Board’s reasons. The Board agreed to remove Appendix G and any references thereto but agreed to include in the mailing to Villa owners the Villa Rules and Regulations if so requested by the Villa Board.
57/ How will the Mod Com, during inspections, know if a residence has prior approval from the Board for modifications in place on the properties?
The Modifications Committee is interested only in determining if Regulated Work is in conformance with the requirements in Article 9 of the Declaration and the Design Guidelines. The only time the failure to get approval for a conforming modification will be noted is during a resale inspection not during routine periodic inspections.
58/ Who is responsible for clearing the common area sidewalks of snow?
Snow clearance on common area sidewalks is the responsibility of the FRCA contractor except in the Villas where the Villa contractor has this responsibility.
59/ Who is responsible for clearing the sidewalks in front of residences for sale of snow?
The owner of the house except in the Villas as noted above.
60/ Those residents who do not shovel their sidewalks should be penalized and a crew should be hired to clear their sidewalks and cost added to their monthly fee.
This will be taken under consideration by the Board.
61/ Consideration should be given to a one time assessment of $50 per house to move the snow in the common areas.
The cost to physically move snow to a dump site is extremely high. The cost to the FRCA to do that with snow from Bluefield and Ripplemead ONLY [because there was no place to pile it] was over $5,000. The Board has not found a solution to this problem as yet.
62/ Parking should be banned on streets when only one lane is open due to snow.
The Board requests all residents to use common sense in circumstance like this.
63/ What are the rules regarding overnight parking?
Overnight parking on the street in Falls Run is not permitted.
64/ Is parking permitted on the streets during deep snow falls?
Again, the Board request that all residents use common sense in these situations and notes that the vehicle left blocking part of the main entrance during the pre-Christmas storm was towed.
65/ The community center should be open during daylight hours at all times.
The standard operating hours for the Community Center have been established, are published and available to all residents. Emergency changes to operating hours have been and will continue to be made when considered necessary to ensure the safety of resident and employees.
66/ The authority for the Villas rules comes from the Virginia Condominium Act and Villa Declaration not the FRCA. The FRCA does not enforce these rules.
The Board agrees that enforcement of Villa unique Rules and Regulations is a responsibility of the Villa Association.
67/ The Rules are not written properly because they do not cite the relevant governing documents giving authority to establish rules.
The final, revised Design Guidelines will include a statement in the Introduction that they are being published in accordance with authority contained in Articles 4.3[a] and 8.3 of the Declaration.
68/ The rules change frequently and are out of date as shown in the PDG.
The Board agrees that the present Design Guidelines required revision.
69/ Have term limits on Mod Com members.
The Board does not agree. Members of the Modifications Committee are volunteers and it is hard enough to find volunteers without term limits to remove them after they gain experience.
70/ Compiled list of typographical errors:
a/ Page 1, third para, 2nd to last line: there should be a comma after “Issued by”.
b/ Various places: Numbers over 10 should be given in numbers and not letters.
c/ Various places: Numbers under 10 should be given in letters and not numbers.
d/ Page 22 A. d. Shepherd hooks should be Shepherd’s hooks.
e/ Page 31 Index: Bird houses and feeders ---- Page 22, not page 21.
f/ Page 31 Index: Flag poles --- Page 8 and Page 28
The Board will direct correction of this list of typographical errors.
71/ Page 1, fifth para: Neighboring property should be changed to any and all property of other owners and not just “neighboring property”.
The Board concurs with this change.
72/ Page2, number 4: Matching “material” and “method” of maintenance does not account for improvements over a decade in the building industry.
The Board will direct the “shall” be changed to “should preferably” in order to resolve this problem.
73/ Page 2, #5: It would be more correct to say “The established lot drainage shall not be altered when any…”
The Board agrees to the suggested alternate wording and will direct this change be made.
74/ Page 2, #5b [vi]: Could vinyl gutters substitute for aluminum?
The Board will direct that “shall” be changed to “should preferably” to permit vinyl gutters otherwise conforming to the Design Guidelines.
75/ Page 2 #8: Why are Security Doors prohibited?
The Board deferred a decision on this item.
76/ Page3 B 1: Why have a setback? What is the purpose of a setback? What is the difference between the setback and Private area? Why is the rear setback 20 feet for some owners and 12 feet for other owners?
There was extensive discussion of this issue at the 10 March meeting. A final decision by the Board has been deferred while legal issues are researched.
77/ Page4 #3: The consent of only one of the contiguous property owners is necessary, not both owners, if there are two owners.
The Board agreed to change “written consent” to “written comment” to prevent unreasonable vetoes of modifications by neighboring owners and to reserve decision to the Modifications Committee.
78/ Page 4, D1: If owners are responsible for the strip between the curb and sidewalk, then it is incorrect to say that “No owner or resident may mow,,,,, any area not owned by the owner”
As was discussed at length during the 10 March meeting, the Board has deferred a decision on this item.
79/ Page 4, D2: Will owners who removed all trees from their lots have to replace the trees with now ones?
Yes, unless the Modifications Committee has approved permanent removal.
80/ Page 4, D3: Will grasses have to be at least three feet from retaining walls as do trees?
Yes, with the exception of turf grass.
81/ Page 5: Tree topping is not permitted. Will owners have to trim tall tree tops which obstruct garage lights or just let the trees grow taller and more obstructive?
The Board deferred a decision until a later date.
82/ Page 5: Are plantings allowed in the strip between the curb and the sidewalk?
No plantings are allowed in the strip between the curb and sidewalk.
83/ Page 5, Lawns: The minimum number of boulders allowed should be specified without having to get Mod Com approval.
The Board did not concur.
84/ Page 6, Mulch: Is bark shredded mulch allowed? It states “may” be approved.
Bark shredded mulch is permitted if approved by the Modifications Committee.
85/ Page 6, Hardscape Improvement: Can “excessive use” be defined?
“Excessive use” will be determined during the approval process by the Modifications Committee.
86/ Page 7, Fountains: How does this apply to water fountains already approved by the Mod Com for the front yard?
This was previously discussed as item #37 at the 10 March meeting.
87/ Page 7, Decorative Lighting: Why not specify the holidays when it is allowed rather than leave it up to the discretion of the Mod Com?
This was previously discussed at item #33 at the 10 March meeting.
88/ Page 7: Plastic ornaments are not allowed in yards; are they allowed in patios, driveways or walkways?
No. Plastic ornaments are not permitted.
89/ Page 7, f [v]: This rule is unbalanced. One can have four Sheppard’s hooks with many baskets hanging from each hook but may not have more than four artifacts in a 49 foot yard.
Sheppard’s Hooks were previously discussed as item #8 on 10 March. Lawn artifacts were previously discussed as items #10 & 11 on 10 March.
90/ Page 8, Lawn Maintenance: Is it mowing turf or mowing turf grass?
The Board believes that the wording of this requirement is correct as stated.
91/ Page 9, Fences: The 12 foot restriction should apply equally to all owners.
The Board did not agree and made no change.
92/ Page 10, Pet owners and pets: May cats roam free?
No. Cats are not permitted to roam free in Falls Run.
93/ Page 11, Lawn chairs: Will this rule be enforced?
The Board agreed that this requirement needs to be restated to better reflect the intent of Article 9.11 of the Declaration.
94/ Page 11, Deck and patio boxes: Specify the not to exceed size without Mod Com approval.
This item was previously answered as item #20 on 10 March.
95/ Page 11: Trash container rule is just ridiculous.
The Board agreed that this requirement needs to be restated to better reflect the intent of Article 9.16 of the Declaration.
96/ Page 12, For Sale signs: This is another rule that will not be monitored or enforced.
The Board agreed to remove the height limitation and to require removal of “For Sale” signs as soon as possible after closing.
97/ Page 12: Low voltage fixtures shall be located and aimed carefully. At what??? Sentence is not complete.
The Board agreed to delete paragraph I1b of the Proposed Design Guidelines in its entirety.
98/ Page 13: At least some security spotlights installed by Del Webb were not the “motion detector” type.
This was previously discussed as item #39 at the 10 March meeting.
99/ Page 14: All barbecues installed by Del Webb are not four feet away.
This was previously discussed as item #39 at the 10 March meeting.
100/ Page 14, Decks: Do decks have to match the color of the home or merely compliment the color of the home? Do the horizontal beams, the pillar post, stairs and rails of decks have to match the color of the house?
The first part of this item was previously discussed as item #19 at the 10 March meeting. The Board decided that the second part is best answered as requiring these items to compliment the color of the house.
101/ Page 16, Last sentence of first paragraph: “Visible outside the residence” would be more correct if stated as “performed outside the residence”. Work done inside the house may be visible from outside the house.
The Board agreed to this change in wording.
102/ Page 16, Review of submittals: Will the Mod Com not consider information gained from a site visit? The Mod Com decision is not final as the decision may be appealed to the Board and to Richmond.
The Board did not believe that this paragraph required change and noted that residents retain the right to appeal Modifications Committee decisions to the Board.
103/ Page 22: One bird or squirrel house and up to three bird feeders are now allowed anywhere in the private area and not just in the backyard.
The Board concurred with the requested change.
104/ Is there a reason for using consent, approval, written approval or prior written approval?
There are many reasons for the wording of individual paragraphs of the Proposed Design Guidelines. It is not possible to be specific about the reason without kinwing the exact paragraph in question.
IV. Open Forum: The following topics were discussed during this open forum:
a. Security doors were opposed due to appearance concerns.
b. A resident thanked the Board for having devoted the time to listening and responding to resident input throughout the Design Guidelines review process.
c. A resident noted that the Declaration contains numerous inconsistencies and requirements of questionable applicability to Falls Run.
V. At 11:15am, a motion to adjourn was made by Tom Whalen, seconded by Bill Barnes, and approved by a vote of 7-0.
/s/
THOMAS J. WHALEN
FRCA Secretary
FALLS RUN COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION, INC
/s/
By: Jake P. Bernard, President
I attest that the foregoing minutes were accepted and approved by the Board of Directos at a duly called meeting of the Board of Directors on 24 March 2010.
/s/
By: Thomas J. Whalen, Secretary