All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: Topics: Sign on Cheyenne St entrance, blocking lost cars from driving on path, guest room beds
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: Topics: fire pit reservations, budget, tree planting
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: Topics: progress on Declaration & north garden; review community policies/procedures on common house usage, cars on path, smoking, recycling
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: Topics: Participation and orientation
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: Topics: Herbicide spraying (proposal consensed)
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics:
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics:
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: Subjects: Declaration reinvestment fee, owner occupation before renting, orientation fee.
Discussion:
Proposal:
Proposal File: proposals/
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: Subjects: Email usage and etiquette
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: Topics: declaration, landscaping, carbon footprint
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: Topics: CC&R and house rules
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: Topics: CROWN manager, declaration
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: ACM cancelled
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: Topics: Ron Case bid on porch roofs, landscaping labor for this summer
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: Topics: common house usage
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: Topics: Crown, special assessment amounts, CC&R
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: topics: Solar panels on east carport
All-Community
Decisions:
Topics: viewing community financial records, capital reserve, declaration revision
annual
Topics:
Discussion: Topics: mangement election, annual budget for 2013, creation of a maintenance committee
Solstice dinner on December 21, cooked by #22 residents. Time to be coordinated with people planning Solstice event.
The ACM for December 22 is cancelled. The Annual Meeting will be the second meeting Sunday January 26th.
It would greatly simplify bookkeeping fee increases were effective as of each February rather than retroactively to the January payment.
Management report: Utah Housing said they are missing most of the reports and tax returns. Hob is looking for the old reports to make copies for them. Declaration is back with lawyer for formatting. Management approved two last changes, removing the appendix of the 2008 amendment & defaulting to previous year's budget plus 5% if a budget is not approved.
None of the people who wanted to discuss the issues on the agenda are present. Discuss them anyway.
Including the words "a cohousing community" under "Wasatch Commons" will clarify that it is the name of a housing development, not a street, and may incite conversations about what cohousing is.
Is an address sign necessary? Why a sign saying 1408 Cheyenne? The workshop's address is 1408 Cheyenne.
All unit addresses in the community are 1411 Utah St. as is the common house. Someone looking for a unit will be looking for 1411 Utah, not 1408 Cheyenne. Maybe have sign say "Wasatch Commons back entrance." Anyone using our address to find us will approach from Utah St. Anyone approaching from Cheyenne has been given directions, so directions may as well include the street number. Having the 1411 address on a Cheyenne sign would be confusing to people.
We do occasionally have deliveries coming to the Cheyenne side, such as mulch. Delivery people will probably prefer an address, not the name. Emergency responders have maps and gps and know which streets go where.
The three options in the proposal are not mutually exclusive. Each one achieves different goals.
The name painted across the drive was originally done without a proposal, but nobody objected to it when it was done. Could do it again without a proposal on the argument that it is "traditional."
Can we make a decision on this tonight? The agenda wasn't published a week in advance. On the other hand, this proposal is a year old. At the discussion last year, nobody seemed opposed to a sign on Cheyenne.
Decision: All three options okayed. Leave exact configuration to Kay and Marina to determine.
Lost drivers sometimes mistake the entrances to the path for a continuation of the driveway. We are required to allow emergency vehicle access, and on special occasions allow residents to pull a vehicle to their unit. Thus any barrier needs to be easily movable.
Currently have a large traffic cone on the west path entrance. Functional, but hardly decorative.
Any barrier needs to leave plenty of room for Naomi's wheelchair.
Used to have a planter on casters. Needed to be hand-watered. It was planted with annuals that weren't drought tolerant, such as pansies. Something like hens-and-chicks or sedum would do better. Don't necessarily need to have a plant in a planter. Could have a sculpture or a sign.
No decision made. Anyone who doesn't like the way the traffic cone looks needs to replace it with something else. Revisit subject of planter in spring.
(SUV drove by on path during discussion!)
When the bed is made up, it's impossible to know if the sheets are fresh or if the bed was simply straightened. A sign placed on the bed indicating the sheets were fresh (along with info like quiet hours) would work only if everyone was consistent about placing it there, not moving it, not putting it back inappropriately.
Decision: Don't put the sheets back on the bed after washing. Leave them folded up, either setting on the bed or on the shelf. Spread comforter so bed looks nice. Host will know bed is clean if they have made it up themselves.
Thanksgiving dinner at the common house at 2:00 p.m. If you will be attending, sign up in the mail room. Possibly board games afterwards.
North field committee will meet Tuesday 7:00 p.m. Get budget requests to the Management committee for all committees, or potential committees.
Process committee is considering a retreat for possibly February. Offer them ideas.
Tree committee Mike A has planted five trees. Vicky & Mike W have planted three and are watering them. Mike A has acquired several more trees, maples, lindens, an apricot, and will be planting them this week. Two bushes need to be found a spot.
Leslie & Daniel will have a fire at the fire pit Thanksgiving late afternoon/evening.
Possibly reservations for the fire pit could be done through the common house calendar.
We've had more inquiries since the article in The Catalyst, and people are finding us through FaceBook.
Needed: volunteers to unload mulch from truck on Saturday. Check with Marina.
Sign up sheet in mail room for Thanksgiving dinner at common house.
Wednesday potlucks at 12:30 in common house.
A visitor interested in cohoiusing (rental) is planning to come to potluck on Sunday.
Back Garden. Mary will be getting a truckload of mulch to construct paths in the north field, possibly on Saturday the 16th or 23rd if people will be available to unload. She is donating cardboard she has collected to go under the mulch. The paths are marked out with stakes and twine. Garden boundaries are marked with flags. Marina will be spreading leaves and newspaper to start the lasagna gardening.
Tree Planting. Hob & Mike A and possibly Connor will be planting trees on Saturday the 16th. Did Naomi's maple and hawthorn. Will need to be watered through this winter.
Marina is working on a booklet for Welcoming. She would appreciate input on items people feel need to be in it.
Underutilized Spaces: Work lamps and tables have been put out upstairs in c.h. for a crafting area. If the tables are needed for meals they can be brought down, but please return them; use the ones in the east hallway by preference.
Lawyer Michael Miller of Vial-Fotheringham went over the Declaration again and returned it. Management held an off-schedule meeting Sunday to go over his suggestions. Accepted most of them.
Rather than the Declaration saying we can restrict or limit rentals, the lawyer said we should specify any restrictions. After discussion, took out that phrase altogether. Lawyer questioned requirement for owner occupation for a year before renting to a new tenant. Keeping requirement. Specifications on quorums, notice of meetings etc. are in bylaws. Currently will not be changing bylaws. After Declaration is refiled, will amend the bylaws to include details of pay-or-play and other issues.
Made changes decided on and sent back to lawyer.
Request to Management to post last year's budget on the bulletin board.
Activity. Quiz: How is your participation level?
(Person who has requested discussion of common house usage is not present)
Some issues that people have seen regarding common house usage:
* Reserving entire common house for entire day only reserve areas you will be using, during times you will be using them (including set up and clean up). Common house isn't designed for privacy; events requiring privacy should take that into account.
* Not fair to person who has scheduled a party first if then someone schedules a guest and expects the common house to be quiet at an early hour. Before scheduling a noisy event after a guest has been scheduled, check with guest's host.
While no written policy on pets, in practice policy has always been no pets in the common house.
Cars on path. Path is intended for emergency vehicle access. Policy (informal) is that people can pull vehicles in on rare occasions move in, move out, loading car with large items. Don't do it on a regular basis; don't leave the vehicle there for hours.
Smoking. Community has a formally consensed policy. No smoking in common house or on central path (as a practical matter, that includes front porches). People may smoke on the common house back patio and in the parking lots. Use courtesy to neighbors if smoking on unit back patio.
Recycling. Food should be rinsed or at least scraped off. Allied Waste does not accept glass; put glass in the separate glass bin, which needs to be taken to Jordan Park periodically. Send out a periodic review by email, maybe once a year. Isabella will call number on recycling bin and get a new list from Allied on what is recyclable.
Events:
Fire tonight at the fire pit.Steven will be moving into Sharon's Nov 1.
Meeting moved outside onto c.h. patio.
North field garden committee will be doing lasagna gardening on north field. Save leaves. They will bring in a truckload of compost.
Process purchased a copy of the Marshall Rosenberg dvd on nonviolent communication. (Also available on YouTube.)
In December the people who will eventually be moving into the house on Cheyenne will move temporarily into #22. Two young couples. Hans has suggested to them to cook one community meal a month,
Susan is working with Catherine from the Catalyst to get an article on the community's fifteenth anniversary.
As of the 24th Susan & Richard's house is not officially on the market. They are open to offers but not actively marketing.
If anybody is interested in green or semi-ripe tomatoes, please pick from Linda's beds.
Community trick-or-treating 6:30 p.m. Thursday
Make sure common house is locked that night.
What are our standard of participation? What does it mean to participate?
Standards: Attend ACMs, be on a committee work, do two months' work-team, pay-or-play, pay monthly fees.
In practice: about two-fifths of households consistently attend ACMs.
Minimum level of participation: Show up. Next level: Be responsibility. Third level: Be a leader.
There are benefits. Work party making fire pit started out as hard work and became fun. Felt good, accomplished something. Connection, trust.
Find ways to approach participation as something to be enjoyed rather than as an obligation. Per Marshall Roseberg's comment, don't do anything you can't do with the joy of a child feeding ducks.
How do we encourage participation?
Encourage people to take ownership of tasks.
Got some very good advice when moved in: Find five or six people to make friends with and don't worry about trying to make a connection with twenty-six households.
You make yourself vulnerable when you do something for the community. Even if most people approve, there is always someone who doesn't. Helps to grow a thicker skin and don't worry about it. "He who does the work can do it however he damn well pleases." Not always helpful to tell people, we've always done it this other way.
Posting on pay-or-play is a type of public acknowledgment.
It's scary to take on something by yourself. Doing things together expands the possibilities.
Most often when we are talking about "participation" we use it to mean work. Participation in social connections are also important parents of young children getting together, etc.
Since people who aren't participating aren't present at discussions of participation, it's hard to know whether our speculations about why, are anywhere close to the mark.
People talk about "we should do this". Just do it. You don't need to wait for permission to organize a party.
Personal outreach can pull people into activities.
What makes a person feel welcome? What tools do we have for orientation? What tools do we need?
Vicky has been the primary person doing orientation for years. She took over from Donna Abe who did it during planning and construction and the first few years after move-in. She's ready to hand over the responsibility.
Different landlords do different amounts. Some tell their tenants a lot; some almost nothing.
People who already live here shouldn't necessarily be exempt from orientation.
Assigning a new household a buddy would spread around the responsibility of doing orientation.
Orientations can be interfered with by people's schedules mismatching or the person doing the orientation having had a bad day. Videos are personable and consistent. Could have a Wacoho YouTube station with multiple videos on different subjects.
Sometimes the reason a new person can't find out the "proper" way to do something is that there isn't any rule about it. Even after fifteen years many things are still fluid.
Orientation binder has stuff that is out of date. Always a question of who has the "current" version to make a new copy. Having it online would provide a central location. A wiki would allow multiple inputs on any subject.
Social committee: Scott and Leslie. Check with Laraine and Lynda A.
Orientation committee: Amy, Marina, Daniel (tech support).
(Mary) Wheelbarrow has been repaired. Tools need to start migrating back to the garage for the winter so they don't stay out and rust. Lamppost from garden has been taken for welding. Matt Noorda has been cleaning gutters. Need to pick a day for the last mowing and then empty all the gas out of all the equipment. Water needs to be shutoff. Maintenance (Maxine): Putting together a list of annual jobs. She will send it to Mary for additions.
Mary: Parking lot drains haven't been cleaned for two years. It requires removing the metal grate and then scoop out the muck at the bottom. Normally have put the muck in the dumpster, but it really ought to be put in sealed containers. Getting the grates up takes two people with gloves and a prybar.
Mgt (Hans): Will not be buying the riding mower. It is still in the garage. Patti will be putting ads to sell it. Draft of declaration was sent to the lawyer again. Amy will get it mailed to the banks after he was gone over it. Hob is taking over the Crown work that Susan Schow was doing.
Tree committee (Kathy): Put out stakes for potential locations. Emails have gone out discussing types of trees. Will meet Thursday night Oct 10 at 6:00.
Potluck lunch every Wednesday 12:30.
Round robin: What do you like about living here?
Marina facilitating.
Other ways of dealing with weeds than herbicide. (1) Weeds between bricks can be pulled out, especially when damp. However, sand comes out with the roots; the bricks loosen and become uneven. (2) Weeds can be burned. Uses propane, produces smoke, doesn't keep down grass. (3) Can use boiling water, or mild chemicals like vinegar in very hot weather.
Some don't see any point in discussing the safety or toxicity of Round-Up. Not going to change anybody's minds. People who are opposed to it would like their wish to avoid it be honored.
Break-down is temperature dependent. In hot temperatures breaks down within a day. In cool temperatures can linger for days.
Would like notice by notes on every door before spraying, not just on email.
There would be no need to spray at all if people would keep the weeds controlled. Has never happened.
Could increase landscape budget to hire people to weed by hand.
Different attitudes about weeds. Some don't mind them. Some are bothered. Impacts property values.
Standards of aesthetics are the result of the ease of using sprays. Don't need everything manicured.
If people are willing to spend the time weeding, or willing to spend money to hire, then there is no need to use Round-Up.
If we could deal with the weeds, Mary would be delighted never to use Round-Up. She has tried vinegar, ammonia, Burn-Out (clove oil). They don't work.
Love that grandkids can go out in garden and eat anything without worrying about anything worse than dust.
Community purchased corn gluten to be used as a pre-emergent; nobody spreads it.
Possible to spray once or twice early summer then keep under control by hand.
Mary doesn't want to have to supervise a worker; if we are hiring it done she wants it to be a professional company that will do the work without supervision.
Weeds heave the bricks; pulling them out heaves the bricks.
Hard to localize the issue. The path is a whole. People walk the whole length, not just sections and are exposed to herbicide or to the sight of weeds.
The path can be regarded as part of an individual's yard and as such shouldn't be pay-or-play hours for sweeping, weeding, etc.
People opting out could put up money to hire the weeds pulled. Have worker track time (even to minutes) in each stretch.
Make an announcement a week ahead of time. Then people who don't want their section sprayed could clean their area (or the whole path, for that matter).
Does the community, as a community, want to take a certain course of action?
If one person cares passionately, is it fair that they are expected to do more than someone who doesn't care?
Too many times people have promised they will do something and haven't.
One person who doesn't take care of their weeds makes work for everyone else.
Amend proposal to require a week's notice on doors; people can opt out by weeding. Remove garden as a separate issue.
That the community be notified both by email and by notes on doors at least one week in advance about what brand and where chemical herbicides (excepting food-grade vinegar) will be applied. This will allow community members who have concerns to take precautions to avoid being exposed to spray or walking in areas where these chemicals might be.
Consensed. No stand asides
Naomi would appreciate a good turnout for potluck on Oct 6Person named Steven will be subletting Sharon's room while she is gone this winter.Party for Kari's 10th wedding anniversary, Linda R's daughter, Mexican-themed potluck.
Catalyst has offered to do an article on the community's 15th anniversary. Vicky needs new photographs of current residents and the way the community looks now.
Vicky will be getting a large 2014 reservation calendar. Temporarily there is a smaller calendar.
Mary with Underutilized Space Committee put up a hanging in the coat alcove/stairwell, rug-hooked tree.
Editing Declaration to integrate community's input. Next it will go to the lawyer for a last review, then to the banks, then an official vote by the community. Once that is done, we can make the special assessment official for the roof decks & wall repairs.
October 19 Nonviolent Communication workshop. Sign up in mail room.
While Hans has a backhoe rented for his new place, hired John to use it to widen & deepen the swale in the garden. It had filled with dirt to above the level of the drain. Will be replacing handles on one of the wheelbarrows. Replaced the jug for ice water; do NOT use it for hot liquids, it will melt. Matt Noorda will be doing the house & carport gutters.
Handout, flowchart of consensus process.
Introductions:
Clarify process,
Present proposal or issue,
Questions to clarify presentation.
Level 1: Broad open discussion.
Group discussion. Call for consensus.
Level 2: Identify concerns.
List any concerns; group related concerns together.
Level 3: Resolve concerns.
Resolve grouped concerns. Call for consensus.
Restate remaining concerns. Questions to clarify concerns.
Discussion, limited to resolving one concern at a time. Call for consensus.
Possible Outcomes:
Consensus OR stand asides OR send to committee OR declare block.
For greater efficiency, Sharon is trying to get all of her backyard gardens within walking distance. Sharon is interested in leasing the north field for a garden next year, one year with option to renew.
She estimates the water usage would be approximately $630 for the summer, based on her experience with her other gardens. She calculated 12.5c/sq ft for the cost of water in a garden elsewhere in the neighborhood.
For the water and for the use of the land, she is suggesting compensation of $1K, or $500 plus five community meals, or ten community meals.
A water meter would give a more precise measure of the water usage.
The community saves the expense of mowing most of the north field. The households on the north end have used their own water to dampen the field for fire suppression.
Water line would be extended from the community garden. Landscaping for years has been discussing extending water into the wild area and the north field. The standpipe at the northwest corner of the garden has a stub-out intended for expansion of the system.
Mary recommends that the community pay for the materials, ditchwitch rental, & labor. She estimates approximately $500. Putting in the water lines & standpipes in the garden was about $300 ~13 years ago.
Sharon's usual layout has extremely tight aisles, accessed only during plant care and harvesting. so the community would not be able to walk through the garden.
She will grow a cover crop this fall to improve the soil, winter rye and vetch.
Estimate of between $200 and 400 (Amy & Mary respectively) spent on mowing the north field this past summer.
Could adjust boundaries of garden to provide buffer space for play area around climbing dome.
Triple-bottomline accounting looks at profit, people, and planet.
Encouraging more food grown locally improves food security.
Mary does a lot of work on the north field and at best it is a bare dry field. The idea of someone else doing the work yet ending up with a lush garden to look at is wonderful.
North field was originally planned as play area. Grace: The kids use the field occasionally for kickball or night games, not much else.
Current seclusion & openness of north field is important. Place to play with kids right outside back door.
Space should be used to benefit the community. Make it a park to draw community residents together.
Naomi needs to leave and will stand aside.
Agreed to continue meeting until 5:30.
This is privatizing part of the community land. BUG Farms is a commercial enterprise. The community can choose to support it.
Common meals will build community.
Call for consensus: Five stand asides, one block.
5:45 break. Small group meeting of Sharon, Daniel, & Scott. Resume plenary meeting at 7:15 p.m. Report of small meeting.
Make the garden a place to show off on tours.
Suggestion: Get a bunch of stakes or flags and people design paths using those in the ground rather than on graph paper.
Amendment: The design of the garden will incorporate community use. A committee will be formed to come up with a design during the winter. The perimeter of the garden might be enlarged to keep the same growing area yet include walking/sitting areas.
Consensed, no stand asides.
Committee: Scott, Leslie, Daniel, Marina, Sharon, Mike A, Amy, Grace.
:: Distribute information regarding RoundUp before next ACM.
Nonviolent Communication workshop Saturday September 19, 9:00-4:00. Please sign up by September 12. Signup sheet is in the mailroom. Free for residents. Continental breakfast & lunch provided.
Questioning Minds event on second and fourth Sundays September through April. Next one is "Interesting Facts about History."
Sharon's new chicks are arriving Friday. They are Americauna.
Everyone registered to vote should have received a survey' from MoveOn.org to express an opinion regarding Citizens United.
Linda R has a fruit-picking tool on her porch that may be borrowed. If you take it please return it promptly and if a little bit of the fruit you pick ends up in her wagon, she doesn't mind.
Hans has purchased the property north of Bells. There is a large concrete pad in the back yard which they will be getting a backhoe to remove. John Noorda will be driving it (he was a heavy-equipment operator for the power company for many years). It will also be used to work behind #22.
Most important change is the change to the undivided ownership interest. Second most is pay or play.
Addendum to lease make it apply to current renters as well as new renters.
Lots of concerns about reinvestment fee & reintegration fee.
At some future date discuss fees, these or similar or other.
Consensed. Stand asides: Hans, Kathy, Amy think it would be a good thing, but don't have the support in the community for the idea.
Capital improvements. Increasing the amount from $2K to $5K before a 67% vote must approve an assessment, means an assessment of $200 for each unit. Still not a big deal.
Gather up windfalls (fruit that has fallen off trees) and take them to Naomi. She will make apple sauce out of the good parts.
Get well card for John Noorda for anyone who wishes to sign.
Maxine, Melisa, Susan & Erik are working to prepare a document with bullet-point summaries of community rules, by September 1, for discussion at the first September ACM. Anyone interested in working on this, let them know. Probably will be passing around a draft more than holding meetings.
If anyone in the community feels a particular issue needs to be discussed, ask the Process committee to schedule time on the ACM agenda. Process committee is Linda, Marina, and Kathy. It helps to meet with Process before the ACM, to clarify what you think is the issue, what you would like to happen, how much meeting time you think it may take, what format of discussion would be productive. The Process committee would appreciate more people joining the committee.
A workshop on Nonviolent Communication is scheduled for Saturday, October 19, 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. No charge. Please sign up. Instructed by Sonya Decker. Everyone is invited. Continental breakfast & lunch will be provided. Once all in the community who want have signed up, if there is still room in the class, it may open up to people outside wacoho.
Declaration. Need volunteers for two positions: (1) collect signatures from everyone that they are aware of the September 11 deadline to give input on the draft declaration. (2) Put together a list of all the mortgage lenders (banks etc.) for all units. Passing around sheet during meeting for those present to sign this is just an acknowledgment of being aware of the changes and the deadline to offer input, not of agreeing with the changes.
Appreciation exercise. What is working right for you in the community?
- Feel rooted in. Worth putting in time and effort to the community and the relationships.
- Instead of barely knowing anyone in neighborhood, can walk down the path and have be greeted by and have conversations with nearly everyone. Comfortable having intimate conversations with several different people.
- Feel comfortable about asking for help instead of feeling need to deal with emergency oneself.
- Gift on front porch with no name; couldn't immediately guess who it was from because too many possibilities.
- People step in to help teach someone else.
- The grounds are looking good this year.
- Sometimes friction but that's better than no interaction; a lot of other condo communities have nothing.
- Events such as visit by author.
- Really good at growing kids.
- Appreciate effort everyone makes at creating a sense of community. Easy to make friends. Some people put so much of their life and energy into the community.
- Greater attempt than in normal neighborhood to reach out even to people that we don't get along well with.
- Space to grow tomatoes.
Prospective language: "Reinvestment fee. Prospective unit owners purchasing a Unit at Wasatch Commons must pay a reinvestment fee of one-half percent (0.5%) of the purchase price in order to cover the considerable cost of orienting new members of the community."
A major part of the "cost" of orienting new members is labor by other residents.
Amount of fee seems higher than justifiable by costs. What are some of the actual costs?
- Binder of orientation materials
- At Michelle's community in Sacramento, new residents aren't required to do community work for first six months. Given $40 per month per adult, this would be $240 or $480 for a unit with one or two adults.
- Marketing. Community maintains ads in publications and has booths at neighborhood fairs to increase name recognition and familiarity of the concept of cohousing.
- Most sellers don't need a broker, which saves 6%; units sell by word of mouth.
There are situations where the resident is already familiar with the community.
- a renter buys a house.
- an owner buys and moves to a different unit.
- A previous resident moves back in.
Is there a provision for waiving the fee or reducing it in some circumstances? For instance, if a purchaser has lived at Wasatch Commons longer than a year.
People who have lived here have put in work that makes the unit being sold more valuable. A reinvestment fee puts some of this value back into the community.
The more exceptions to the reinvestment fee, the more people who will contest it.
Requirement for Owner Occupation of Newly Purchased Units
Prospective language: "Rentals May Be Regulated. The association may regular, limit, or prohibit rentals of Condominium units. Without prior approval by the Management Committee, newly purchased Units cannot be rented to new tenants until being owner-occupied for at least one year."
Object is to discourage purchase as an investment.
Prospective language: "In order to defray the considerable cost of orientation a Unit owner renting to a new tenant also has to pay an orientation fee equal to two (2) times the amount of the monthly Association Assessment for the Unit with new occupants. This orientation fee is payable 100 days after the new tenant's move-in date. In special cases where such an orientation fee would be inappropriate, management can waive this orientation fee."
Principle is fine; amount feels too high.
These amendments add complexity. Keep it simple. Some communities have much shorter CC&R.
Mike P did look at other communities' CC&Rs when wrote this one originally. It's hard to compare between communities under different state laws. A lot of the language is required by Utah law.
This draft does reduce complexity. Stripped out provisions that were only relevant to development. Removed some duplication.
In the long run, spelling out details regarding fees is simpler.
"Deck" as defined in the Declaration for purposes of charges is a deck with living area under it. For instance, Carol's deck doesn't meet that definition.
Sonya Decker may be willing to come teach a class in nonviolent communication. Probably on a Saturday, maybe six hours. We have raccoons again. Amy saw one in the north field, and Sharon has lost chickens. Several skunk sightings also.
The community's FaceBook page has 115 likes. To add pictures, contact Marina or Vicky to be made an administrator. Vicky has gotten contacts regarding Susan & Richard's house through the page.
Management is approaching a final draft of the Declaration.
Avoiding investors purchasing a unit for rentals could be forestalled by a restriction in the number of rentals; however, that has its own drawbacks. The number of rentals has to be reported periodically to the State. If an owner was forced to move at a time when the rentals were maxed out, they wouldn't be able to rent out their unit. Self-selection has worked for us so far. Pay-or-work provisions might make investors veer off. CC&R says Management must approve leases.
As of Jan 1st, Crown program no longer restricts rent. Steve Graham recommended raising Crown rents then. Would help cover the cost of Susan's Schow's and Hob's salary and other bills that current rents were never increased to cover. Hans left a message with Carla Valentine of UHC asking when the Crown residents will know the price of their unit.
August 13 Tuesday 6:00 p.m. is the next Crown meeting.
In fifteen years we've never been out of compliance, which is the important factor for the IRS. Pretty good for not being professional real estate managers.
Studies repeatedly show that healthy relationships tend to have at least three positive interactions for every negative one.
Tense or angry email exchanges cause people to drop off the list, and then they don't see official community business. Some start avoiding all community interactions.
Even when emails are phrased with great care for people's feelings, readers can react negatively. The reader also has an obligation not to look for offense.
The medium shouldn't be blamed for the message. People who communicate unconstructively by email often also communicate unconstructively in person.
People reveal themselves through email in ways they don't in other communications. You can learn a lot.
Learn to deal with conflict without rudeness.
Tolerance: if it isn't the way I'd have done it, but it isn't damaging the community, does it need to be addressed at all?
Back-and-forth exchanges, where the participants are each trying to enlist support from residents outside the conflict, might be advised to go off-list.
The email list at Michele Frandsen's community has code words at the beginning of email subject lines. Very specific guidelines about what is appropriate. In addition they have three moderators who must release emails before they go out. By default, replies go to the individual, not the entire email list.
Do we want to try having people use code words in email subject lines? Might not be necessary but could be helpful to have a written proposal. A proposal would produce more discussion about the issue.
: Ask Michele for more information about her community's email system.
Linda will work on a proposal implementing code words and moderation. Contact her if you want to help or offer input.
Vicky: Ice cream and movie after ACM.
Mike A: The Persian rug in the sitting room will be going back home to Scott & Marina's. Handmade & valuable; please be careful not to spill anything on it until it leaves.
Movie at library, 6:00 p.m. August 5. Trinity, about atomic bomb development.
Mike A: highly recommends movie Chasing Ice, available on HBO. Cameras watching glaciers.
Tree above Susan's roof has an infected branch dripping onto the lawn. Susan is concerned about the increasingly large dead patch.
Linda requests that Management put out an agenda ahead of its meetings.
Ron Case says supports for solar panels on #22 should have flashing and be bolted to rafters. Tentatively scheduled before 22nd, before Melisa gets back. Case recommends a higher quality shingle with reflective particles. Supposedly keeps roof 20% cooler. He will let us know what they cost.
Exercise: Pair with another person that you don't know well. Sit facing each other, right hand on left shoulder. One person talks about what abilities and gifts they can bring to the community, then trade. Next, tell the other what traits you observe in them that they didn't mention.
Hans & Mike A met today with Michael Miller of Vial Fotheringham regarding potential changes to Declaration. Miller suggested that pay-or-work fee could be called a fine. He said that including characteristics such as decks in condo fee is okay under the law. A "reinvestment" fee can be charged when a unit changes hands. Hans is incorporating suggestions into new draft.
When community has approved changes, everyone with a mortgage will need to send a copy to their bank. Usually bank doesn't respond. After sixty days, a lack of response is regarded as approval.
Please review potential changes in Declaration, posted online. Raise concerns sooner not later.
Banks look askance at writing mortgages when reserve balance is so low.
:: Request to community -- Consider making pre-payments on special assessment, $3K to $5K per unit.
Kathy is attempting huegelkultur on the parking strip. A thick layer of wood (chips in this case) holds water and improves soil. One concern is that city ordinance does not permit berms on parking strip.
Naomi & Amy have worked on getting the drip on the west berm working. Please don't remove any additional weed barrier this year, since it will disrupt the watering system.
The strip north of Cheyenne driveway has not been getting water. Most plants except junipers have died. Underground sprinklers can be turned on by hand.
Twenty realtors came through Tuesday on a tour. Susan's realtor gave them information about cohousing. They will have an open house Saturday.
Leslie is adopting Susan and Richard's garden plot.
Broken sprinkler on Cheyenne St berm. Mike A will investigate. Let him know when there are issues with watering on berm; he is willing to help, but he doesn't monitor those systems.
Susan passed around a book, Low Carbon Diet. She would like to start a study, discussion, & action group on reducing carbon footprints. Look at possible ways for the community to reduce its footprint.
On Tuesday, July 30, 2013 3:51 PM WaCoHo on behalf of Kay Argyle wrote:
"Would this [reinvestment] fee apply to rentals, such as if a tenant moves out and other moves in? Or, would it apply just when the unit's ownership changes hands? Also, was there any disucssion of how much this fee should be?" Lydia
I have a vague memory of starting to respond to Lydia's question, but I find nothing in my sent folder regarding it. Forgive if this is a duplicate.
First off, let me emphasize that any/all changes in the Declaration & Bylaws will be discussed at ACMs and consensed, modified, or thrown out as the community decides. Management proposes, the community disposes.
The rationale for a reinvestment fee is that there are costs to the community when a unit changes hands. Some costs are monetary; many more are in the time and effort spent integrating the new community members. These costs are the same whether the new household is renting or buying. By that rationale, a fee to compensate for those costs should apply equally to new tenants or owners. On the other hand, depending on the law behind reinvestment fees, they may be permitted only for changes of ownership.
The highest figure suggested was three months' condo fee, so that would probably be an upper bound at the beginning of discussion, and a lower figure would eventually be agreed on supposing a reinvestment fee is agreed on at all. To put it in perspective, it would be less than a month's rent, maybe not even half a month's rent.
Wasons are looking for a house sitter July 30-August 15 to water and feed cats.
Paul is looking for a job. Let him know about any leads.
Letter from the county assessor if anything is not correct, mark corrections and send it back. Mike A's listed five bedrooms, apparently including the loft (which doesn't meet the definition of a bedroom).
Ann and Bob are trying to find a temporary lodging for their dog Gus, so he can travel in cooler weather. They have to be in Ecuador July 5.
Ad hoc committee working on condo declaration meeting tomorrow, Monday, at 7:00 p.m.
The lawyer reviewing the declaration is Michael Miller.
Hans feels that pay-or-work is fundamental enough that it needs to be in the Bylaws. On the other hand, he's concerned that too many oddities will raise red flags for banks.
In normal condos, the three levels of governance are the Declaration, the Bylaws, and house rules* passed by Management. Our Declaration requires two-thirds approval of the community to pass house rules; Mr Miller says this is unusual. Hans is wondering about changing this to a more usual "consultation" with the community. (This is the standard term in the real estate industry for community rules.) Our decision-making body is the ACM, which isn't even mentioned in the bylaws.
House rules' isn't defined in our bylaws.
Pay-or-work is currently a house rule (community agreement), and house rules are enforceable. Our record-keeping in recording house rules accessibly isn't great. We need some place, probably online, that any resident can easily check to see the house rules. Kay has collected a lot of these and did work organizing them. The main house rules document doesn't need all the background information from the proposal, as long as there is a link to the proposal and minutes of the meeting in which it was passed.
May need to quit piggy-backing on U of U Econ dept website and get our own. Currently only Hans can edit the site, and he doesn't really have time or inclination.
Consensed: House rules should be assembled, confirmed by community, and made available online.
:: Ad hoc house rule accessibility committee: Kay, Mike A
Linda's daughter Sarah's wedding is two weeks from tomorrow.
Farmer's Market at Pioneer Park has started, 8 a.m.-2 p.m.. Lynne Dickey has a booth, No Plain Janes, near the corner at 4th S 3rd W.
Community talent show Friday June 21st. Need some equipment like microphones and amplifiers. Contact Mike to get scheduled on the program.
Bob and Ann Dowdy are staying in the common house for a few days. Gwen Juvenal and her three daughters (age range 10-14) will be moving into unit #6.
Wasatch Community Garden's Urban Farms and Garden Tour is June 22. Matt Morganti's farm, Kevin & Celia Bell's garden, and our garden are on the tour. Clean up before then.
Landscaping report. Repaired irrigation on west berm. Want to put in small shrubs, edible fruit like currants. Talk to Naomi or Amy.
Weed fabric put over garden bed (Carol's) last year has done a good job of preventing weeds. Bed next to it (Susan & Richard's) needs weeding and either covering or adoption.
Management/Crown report. Hans & Mike P met with Steve Graham regarding the Crown program (Steve doesn't work for UHC now but is still in the industry). The original documents that he has appear to say something different about the purchase price than the original documents that Linda has.
:: Short meeting regarding Crown after the ACM.
Crown compliance report has been filed. Hob is the new Crown manager. Paid position, $20/hr. Bonus at end of program of $5/hr.
Amy is the new office manager for WCCA. Paid position, $20/hr, 10 hr/mo.
Declaration report: Hans has posted the lawyer's report on the web (link in the email diary) so everyone can read it. The lawyer made a number of adjustments. Updates to match state law, things that should be in the declaration instead of the bylaws. Liked some of the committee's changes, made constructive suggestions about others. He highlighted some elements, probably wants to talk to us about them.
:: Schedule meeting of ad hoc declaration committee to review changes, then prepare proposal to present to community.
On Wednesday, June 12, 2013 4:44 PM WaCoHo on behalf of Hans Ehrbar wrote:
Subject: [WaCoHo] Net Metering
Wasatch Commons just received the first electric bill after the Solar Panels were connected.
Between May 8 and June 7, we used 303 kWh on the Carport meter and 614 kWh on the Common House meter, and our solar panels produced 1770 kWh.
Therefore this month's bill consisted of the connection charge and tax only, which was $11.49 for each of the two meters, plus our voluntary Blue Sky charge of $27.30. Our total bill was therefore $50.28.
In addition, we still have a credit of 853 kWh to carry forward towards future months. If this carry-forward is not used by next April, it will be "wiped clean."
(The actual bill was wrong, since they had not combined the two meters. I called them and they said they corrected it now.)
Hans.
Since no one but Naomi has expressed an interest in the ACM for Sunday, I would like to cancel this one.
Let's take Naomi's suggestion. If you are around, please come to dinner for conversation, and consider coming outside at 7:00 pm to help Naomi weed. Our place is looking REALLY nice, and let's shine it up.
Thanks, Linda
Talent Show June 21st 7:00 p.m. in common house. Can use the loan of microphones, amplifiers, a podium, maybe a karaoke machine.
Sitting room fireplace won't turn on.
People over age 60 can audit courses at the University of Utah for $25 a semester. To see what is available, go to Lifelong Learning or Division of Continuing Education (DCE) and look at House Bill 60 classes. Get a student card that lets you use some university facilities, although not UTA.
Owner of Ron Case came to look at roofs to see which should be done first. Roofs above southeast fourplex porches are particularly bad. Common house roof is bad. Most other roofs can wait for a few years. Downspouts draining onto roofs have caused deterioration. Ron Case can install additional gutters or channels to alleviate this. Estimate $28K for common house. $1,300 for each porch roof; four times $1,300 = $5,200. Looked at asphalt seal; will fix.
Lawyer should finish looking at CC&R amendments by the end of this week.
Mgt is asking for volunteers to be landscaping committee this summer (so that Mgt doesn't end up having to do it as the Committee of Last Resort). Will need to hire workers, supervise work, etc. Don't know how involved Mary will choose to be. Patti suggested someone who used to work for Angel, but he hasn't showed up when Laraine has scheduled him. We will probably need to try a number of different people before we find someone reliable. Naomi, Amy, and Gwen will meet to discuss further.
Work party Saturday, Amy can direct people who aren't sure what to work on.
Mike A only takes care of the sprinklers for the lawn. Need someone to take responsibility to look after the sprinklers elsewhere.
:: Check with Mary on status of removing weed barrier on west berm.
Meeting adjourned early. Several people stayed to discuss landscaping. Others went outside to actually do landscaping (weeding west driveway).
On Saturday, May 25, 2013 9:44 AM WaCoHo on behalf of Michelle Frandsen wrote:
- Regarding the Ron Case assessment of the roofs. I remember that we have already rerouted and added new gutters on our roofs to eliminate further damage from the water flowing over them. For example you can look at the rain spout on unit #20 (Lovejoys) and see that the rainspout that used to run across my entrance roof, now actually travels down to the ground. Can someone please confirm this for me. I felt a bit uncomfortable with the Ron Case recommending work that to my knowledge has already been done. I do know that the damage from those rain spouts hasn't been repaired, but a close look at the situation should show that the the cause has been alleviated. Perhaps not all of the roofs were done. Thank you, Michelle
On Saturday, May 25, 2013 10:10 AM WaCoHo on behalf of Sandra McIntyre wrote:
- To echo Michelle's message, there has already been a re-routing of at least one downspout on our building (#16 and #18) as well. This was also to stop the damage on one area of the roof. The damage is still there.Also, I wondered if Ron Case had assessed damage to the roofs done by tree branches. I remember that the reason some branches were removed over our house was that they were causing damage to the shingles.
Sandra
Sarah's wedding is Thursday June 27 4:00 p.m. at Noah's in South Jordan, reception afterward.
Prowler last night 4:00 a.m. trying doors. Richard will arrange meeting ad hoc security. Eric & Natalia are interested.
Kay will be posting a small whiteboard at the foot of the stairs. Note names of guests, host, dates, and vehicle. So people doing lockup know not to turn the thermostat way down, anyone seeing a stranger can look to see if we have a guest, etc.
Talent show Friday June 21(?). 7:00-9:00
Kathy is organizing a meeting regarding chicken caretaking.
Laraine will be posting a revision of the monthly teams.
Hans is getting someone from Ron Case to look at roofs. Question of whether to replace roof on triplex 22/24/26 before solar array is installed on 22.
Mary will be doing some grading to improve drainage behind #13/15/20/22.
Management report. Everyone is encouraged to look at the website where the CC&R is posted with potential changes. URL is at the beginning of the email diary. Give feedback on any concerns.
Management is looking for someone to be in charge of setting up the extraordinary membership meeting. Can be paid position. Become familiar with the provisions in the bylaws on how to do it correctly. Document each step as it is done.
Make suggestions for where new trees should be planted. If you request a tree in a particular place, consider committing to keeping it watered.
Kevin has been staying at the c.h. off and on since January, without asking the community if it was okay to stay that long. He has assured Amy repeatedly he will be leaving, and hasn't. While we are willing to help with transitions, this has gone on too long.
:: A couple of people will talk to Kevin about overstaying in the c.h. Consensed.
Things that work well about the common house: - Good place for children's functions - Dance functions, good dance floor. - Kitchen clean-up - Work parties, clean out fridge - Having guest bedrooms available. - Toilet flushes well. - Mail area. - Laundry room - Toys for kids, kids room - Someplace to set up sewing machine - Play area, lawns - Breakout into small groups. Discuss what we'd like to have happen for common house. - Events where outside groups meet here, exchange between community and neighborhood or wider community. - Block parties, anniversary party, ice cream socials. - Coffee shop, hub, hang-out. - Educational events, creative workshops. - Parties for the sake of having parties. - Safe place for kids through teenage years. - A/c for upstairs guest room so it is more comfortable. - Wifi, - Market or bazaar - Art exhibits - Social action - Classes to share our knowledge with each other, cooking, art - Common meals - Be conscientious about cleanup after events - Monthly team one month listed tasks they hadn't gotten to, so next month team could concentrate on those instead of recleaning the same areas.
Ways to get from where we are to where we want to be: - Clearer expectations, reviewing agreements. - Better scheduling - People need to take leadership to get things they want to happen. - If someone is willing to do work, support them even if it isn't how you would do it. - Better communication
In emails, - Use a clear subject line to signal people whether it is worthwhile to read the email; e.g., "Event". - Put your name & unit # instead of expecting everyone to recognize your email. - Don't send to the whole list a message that is for one or two people.
Things to be fixed: - Shower head on downstairs bathroom - Fix ovens - Cover for sandbox - Guidelines for staying at c.h.; approval for long stays
:: Natalia will look into getting wifi in the common house.
:: Ahmed will give classes in cooking.
:: Carol would like someone to partner with to cook a meal.
:: Mel will post community events on the FaceBook page.
Wasatch Community Gardens is doing a urban garden tour' this year instead of chicken week'. B.U.G. Farms will be on the tour. Sharon may reserve the common house as a stop during the tour.
Thursday visitors in town for autism conference, interested in talking to people living in cohousing, will be here at 10:30 a.m., meal at noon cooked by Sharon.
Heat & hot water gone out in #22. Hans plans to install solar hot water panels on roof, small supplemental water heater, 80-gal storage tank.
Mike P will be looking for a new tenant or buyer for his unit when Bob and Ann move, probably in May.
Natalia is home after surgery on her knee. If people would like to check on her or offer help or visit and have tea, text or call because she can't get to the door.
Talent show rescheduled to June 21st.
Yoga Thursday nights 7:00 p.m., may be rescheduled to avoid conflict with Management.
Charles Isenstein next Thursday. Author of Sacred Economics. 5-9 p.m. potluck and discussion. RSVP with Ben Mates (even if you live here).
Barbara Brian staying in c.h. Sunday thru Friday. Has been interested in cohousing for a while. Knows Jewel Snow. Vicky & Susan hosting her.
Management report. UHC says we haven't done the Crown bookkeeping correctly. New person at UHC, Scott Harmon, is being very strict about following policies.
Mike A sent out a table giving the probable amounts for the special assessment for each unit. If households want to make payments, write on the memo line "prepayment of assessment."
:: Scott will contact Anne.
:: Mike A will tell Rebecca.
Hans would like feedback on the suggested CC&R amendments he has posted on the website, URL in diary.
Please report community work done even after pay-or-play obligation is filled. It inspires others to see what is being done. On a purely practical level, it helps the community know how many hours it requires to get the needed work done.
Linda's daughter Sarah will be getting married June 27.
Sharon is selling shares in the CSA for 2013. This year they will offer shares for soup and veggy juice.
Stegner Center having a symposium April 12-13, "Religion, Faith & the Environment." Deadline for early registration this week.
Naomi would like to get together this weekend, 2:00 Sunday, to plan landscaping work for summer, since we won't have Angel.
"Ecology and Religion," Questioning Minds, Sunday March 24
The west sign temporarily has a mylar backing, reflecting the lights on the sign. Mary & Marina are working on something sturdier.
Good time to dethatch lawns and flower beds.
Saturday meeting, "Mormons and the Environment," 1-3 p.m. at common house. (You don't have to be Mormon to attend)
Hans is working on a website for posting community jobs. Pay-or-play website is down temporarily.
Considering a fence around the orchard, since Sharon's chickens escape from their enclosure.
Kathy is looking after Dusty's chickens now he is gone. She wants help moving the coop from the orchard.
Mike P and Steve are both looking for new tenants for their units, #5 and #6, either lease or lease-to-own.
Wasatch Commons FaceBook page needs traffic, likes', links. Ad hoc committee is Marina, Vicky, & Melisa.
Management hopes to have amounts calculated for the special assessment in about a week. Melisa is working on scanning the community's paper documents for storage on the web.
February bill from Rocky Mountain was at business rate rather than nonprofit rate. Needs to be looked into.
Clarification: Proposed cost is $10,000 from Wasatch Commons plus a $16,500 contribution from Naomi plus $11,100 interest-free loan from Naomi to be repaid by waiver of her monthly assessment for five years or until the loan is paid off or until the unit changes hands.
Panels will provide power for all common areas, carport lights, lamps, common house, and workshop, plus Kathy's car, plus potentially a second electric vehicle.
The reserve currently has about $25K tied up in the Oppenheimer Fund and about $12K that is immediately accessible.
Contractor needs deposit of 75% before work starts and could start work as soon as payment is made, finish in about a month.
Consensed. Mike P stands aside; chose not to explain reasons.
:: Hans will arrange check for community's share of cost, written to Gardiner Engineering. Naomi will double-check that is who payee should be.
:: Vicky will announce on FaceBook.
Vicky- brother from Minn. may stay until end of month. Mike A.- Hand surgery tomorrow am. finger, carpel tunnel; dr. says it should be healed in a few days. Shawna is starting grad school studying to be a chaplain; dissertation about dying/ascension process. Bob and Ann moving to Equador. Mike P will rent for $1250-1300. Steve (owner of #5) is asking a little more than Mike P, to cover his mortgage. It is the same size, but it has jetted tub, deck. Both units are 4 bedroom. Linda R. Put off hand surgery until Fall. Mary bringing Kay home, who just had surgery.;Mary ill.
Matt Fransen is coming with Sophie, and would like to stay in guest room Feb 16, 23 and 23. Vicki will check to see if there is a room. Phone call from prospective person, She has a horse. Info forwarded to Mary to possibly make some kind of sharing arrangement w. llamas. Gaston and Pia have not had meeting with welcoming committee yet. Folk dancing Friday, everyone invited.
Management - HOA fees will be posted. Mike set up a read-only file for people to see Quickbooks file, has sent instructions via email, call him for password.
A resident had trouble financing, approval has to do with financial health of community. Questions from lending bank include "what's in reserve, how many renters." Melisa N. suggested that people know that when they go to refinance Wasatch Commons has to fill out a financial form which gives our financial status. If anyone has outstanding HOA fees, it doesn't look good. And when our reserve is down, it also looks bad. Hans is working on a project to get the legal ok with the declarations so we can move forward with the assessments. Vicky asked an estimated time of when we will get the assessment request. Hans estimates 30 to 60 days. The attorney may know of some laws that we are not aware that we will have to address. We MAY have to get an OK from our lenders, but this is not clear. It helped that about $10,000 was paid it ahead of time by some members. Mke A. asked if it is clear what amount will be needed when we ARE ready to make the assessment. Has said now that we have QuickBooks it should be easy to identify. Amy joins the meeting.
... as proposed via email by Kevin (this is a summary of the discussion, which was very fluid. Topics included attracting people who are willing to work, improving our recognition as a community, and reaching out to our larger community) SOME ISSUES Inviting younger families would help. Younger families who've expressed interest in moving in cannot afford the rent. Some mention of lowered rent in lieu of more participation, perhaps some kind of community funding. Many of the calls coming in are about renting, rather than owning. Owning is a commitment, the changing dynamics of the economy require people to become more flexible in their living arrangements. The percentage of rentals vs. owned units affects the value and ability to get loans. For FHA, the requirement is up to 55% (which we meet); however, WaCoHo does not qualify for FHA loans. Another issue with having a commitment to rent/purchase is the perception that our side of town is unsafe and sketchy. This stigma makes our rates seem high, when compared to surrounding area. Burglaries and car break-ins are more frequent in the Avenues, according to Mike P.'s previous study on the subject. Another consideration is that public transportation is limited on this side of town. Public hearings about UTA's future plans will be taking place soon, and we may wish to get involved, as we (WaCoHo and larger community) are most likely to use this if it were more accessible, efficient, and less expensive. Currently, it does not run on Sundays and holidays. Bus routes must be expanded and buses need to be more efficient. Some talk about a possible green line to airport, possibly using Redwood Road, which might make bus more accessible. Other issues that affect the desirability of WaCoHo include distinct pollution coming from surrounding businesses. Tire place has been caught illegally burning. Also graffiti in surrounding area creates a negative impression. Graffiti hotline will send someone to clean up graffiti within 24 hours of being reported. Call Graffiti Hotline at 801 972 7885.
We are still not very well known, additional publicity could help. Posters could be made and posted at local businesses with like-minded clientele. Brochures? Newly created Facebook page could promote the activities that are taking place here, with invitation to events, lifestyle pics, etc. Amy, Melisa, Marina, Vicky and anyone else who is interested in working on this can participate in regular upkeep of the page. Any interested individuals must "like" the page, then let Marina know. Search for "Wasatch Commons Cohousing Community", find this page via Marina's "Likes", or click on this link
Events that are open to the public could help create good relations with surrounding community. It might also serve as publicity for us. Monthly house concert would make use of our Common House. We could request a nominal donation to go to the musicians. If we do this regularly, we will grow this event.
After these ideas were developed, we had check out and disbanded.
P.S. In order to improve the possibility that we move forward on the ideas generated by the discussion, I've summarized the opportunities for action to make it simpler to see the ways get involved. Some may involve community approval, ad hoc committee (to reduce the work load), etc. Description may be done by more than one person. Use your best judgment as to how to proceed if you are interested in taking up one or more of these challenges. Facebook Manager- Become a Facebook manager. Post events, photos, etc. Invite your friends to "like" the page. POP Hours- It is clear that there is more to do around WaCoHo than is being covered currently, which triggered this discussion in the first place. Publicity materials- poster, brochure, presentation for group Public Outreach- man a booth, talk to public about WaCoHo, locate opportunities for publicity materials and find requirements for participation (such as the Vsitor's Center, Sustainability Event, etc.) Community Improvement- Report vandalism, illegal pollution (anyone could do this at any time). Events Coordination- Develop proposal for regular house concert, coordinate musicians, develop publicity. Transportation Improvement- Keep track of the UTA public hearings, develop credible arguments to present, publicize to get participation from community.
Pia & Gaston are renting #13. Welcome. Pia's email: piaslc at hotmail.com
Kate's storage has reached its capacity for egg cartons. No more for now, please.
If the owner is not present, then the tenant holds the proxy to vote for Management.
Kay and Richard are continuing on Management. Hans, Carol, and Mike A have completed their terms. Electing three official members who must be owners, one renters rep, and one crown rep.
New members of management:
Owners - Hans, Mike A, Mike W
Renters - Pia
Crown Maxine
We are now paying for professional bookkeeping services, which we formerly got very cheaply. That's one big increase. (line 26) Marci gets about $300 a month, $3,600/month, for the bookkeeping. QuickBooks Online is about $480 a year.
Estimated legal fee ~$1,500 for review of CC&R.
Law now requires that the community explicitly decide how much money is going into the reserve (line 50). Not an increase this year, because of special assessment and 15% increase in operating budget. The reserve currently holds about $28,000. Spent about $95,000 for roof/wall repair, of which about $10,000 was for sealing the parking lots (last done 2007). The money from the special assessment will go into the reserve. The expectation is that even with the assessment the reserve will be inadequate; we will know better when the reserve study is completed.
(It was pointed out that repeatedly the repairs are described as "deck repair." Nothing was wrong with the decks. The repairs were to the roofs under the decks and the wall below them.)
Concern with a board member hiring themself. Details for line 26, $1,200 for Mike doing reserve study. He did not get bids for it being done professionally. Prices he has seen online are around $4K.
Q. What does doing the reserve entail? It involves a lot of time researching costs of replacing items.
Q. Aren't there federal requirements about the reserve? There is a requirement that at least a certain percentage of the operating budget be paid into the reserve. There is a new state law requiring that a reserve study be done periodically.
Most of the reserve funds are at the University Credit Union. Some is still in the Oppenheimer Fund; as it becomes possible to move amounts without fees, it is moved to the Credit Union. Interest rates are practically nothing at the Credit Union. Money at the Credit Union is federally insured; money at Oppenheimer is not.
Q. Why is the maintenance budget so variable year to year? Multiple reasons: Not every maintenance task needs to be done every year. In the previous couple of years, Kevin was actively looking for maintenance that needed to be done. Not much was spent this year, but we anticipate that deferred maintenance will need to be done this year. Management was heavily focused on the roof repairs this year (which were not booked as maintenance) and not on general maintenance.
Call for consensus on budget. Two stand asides.
(1) Naomi doesn't feel she understands the numbers well enough to make a decision. Further, this proposal doesn't show the interest on the reserve.
(2) Mary is concerned that the amount of the increase will cause a hardship for some residents, that a member of the board plans to hire himself, and that we still are hiring a lot of work instead of community members doing it.
This proposal is for the operating budget. The reserve is an asset, not an operating expense. Balance sheets show assets.
:: For future Annual Meetings, provide a balance sheet as well as the operating budget.
:: Mike will email a balance sheet to the list.
Management is working to get everyone set up to view QuickBooks online, renters included, soon. Once everyone can see it, hoping some residents will learn QuickBooks. Once books are in better shape, might be able to do bookkeeping in-house.
Budget consensed.
Everyone put their name on a card. Put cards in hat. Everyone draws a card. Write something about that person. Put cards back in hat. Everyone draws a card and reads what it says out loud.
First of all we need a way for people to report when they see something that needs to be fixed. Online would be helpful.
Membership on the maintenance committee should be rotating so its members doesn't burn out.
Not all members need to be handymen. Someone needs to get bids for hiring work, to wait for repair people, and to keep records of work done.
Do preventative maintenance and catch things early.
Make use of the knowledge already here. Make a list of people in the community who have particular expertise.
Set up accounts with repair companies, plumbers, parts suppliers. Rather than a resident paying for a repair and being reimbursed, the company should submit an invoice to be paid from community accounts.
Keep records. Every repair visit gets recorded, every part purchased. Detailed log.
Having one person who does a job repeatedly means they know when it was done last and when it needs doing again, e.g., change furnace filters, smoke alarm batteries.
Who is willing to be on the committee? Maxine, Gaston.
The maintenance committee we had years ago consisted of people who didn't much like sitting in meetings. Some of the people who aren't here tonight may be willing to be on the committee.
April 25, 2020