HOMESTEAD IN THE WILLOWS HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION
Regular Board Meeting August 14, 2023 – Unofficial Minutes
CALL TO ORDER: President, James Keating called the meeting to order at 4:35 p.m. Present were Vice President, Chris Evans; Treasurer, Kelly McCormick; Secretary, Ginny Karlberg; Member at Large, Michael Garnsey; Business Manager, Katie Kidwell; Tennis Manager, Jill Ellsworth; ACC Manager, Emily Maxfield; Pool Manager, Jaylene Jones; Pickleball Manager, Jane Robbins; Landscape Manager, Nancy Bauer; and Social Committee Co-Chair, Kelly Kane. Homeowners Julie & Dan Harris, Kate Perry and Jan McClaren attended a portion of the meeting. Tom Byorick of ACES Swim Club attended a portion of the meeting as well.
MINUTES: The minutes of the July 10th regular meeting were approved as read.
RATIFICATION OF BOARD ACTIONS: James moved and Kelly seconded a motion to ratify the board actions of July 11 and August 4, 2023. The motion passed unanimously.
HOMEOWNER COMMENTS: Account 811 approached the Board regarding their concerns that their neighbor’s actions were detracting from the appearance of the community. Account 811 asked the Board to enforce the covenants. The Board recommended Account 811 continue to work with the City of Centennial Code Enforcement Department and will consult the HOA attorney for other possible remedies. Account 406 inquired about the fence caps on the section of new TREX fencing along Easter Ave. Kelly explained that Split Rail installed pyramid shaped caps instead of flat caps. Split Rail would replace the existing pyramid caps with flat caps which will be used going forward. Account 758 complimented the Board on the appearance of the new fencing.
PERIMETER FENCE REPORT: The Board reviewed HOA attorney comments that verified that if the special assessment passed but the line of credit proposal failed, the Board could still proceed with the special assessment and begin replacing the perimeter fence. The Board also talked about the number of votes returned to date and divided up outstanding addresses to contact about the ballot and its due date.
SOCIAL COMMITTEE: Olivia Phillips reported that a community wide Movie Night is scheduled for Sunday, September 3rd. Holiday carriage rides are scheduled for December 19th and 22nd and Santa will visit the neighborhood on December 10th along with a hot cocoa truck to offer refreshments. A book swap box will be erected outside the Business Office in September. Food Trucks are scheduled for August 31st, September 21st and October 19th.
SWIM TEAM: No Report.
MANAGER REPORTS
- POOL: Front Range Recreation reported that the North Pool is closed for the season except for lap swimming which is continuing through Labor Day. The West Pool will be staffed on Weekends only through Labor Day and the South Pool will remain open daily as usual through Labor Day. Pool Managers will be checking the North Pool daily to ensure the gate is shut after lap swimming as it is sometimes found propped open which is a liability now that there are no guards on duty. Doggie Days will be at the West Pool on Saturday, September 9th.
- LANDSCAPE: Manager Nancy Bauer reported on entry island maintenance, pruning of shrubs, and removal of a dead locust tree. She found the dumpster enclosures filled with junk again and had to pay to have them cleared out. Two sink holes on the greenbelt by the North Pool were filled in and the wooden bridge at the South Pool lawn would be treated for wasps.
- PICKLEBALL: Manager Jane Robbins reported that the City of Centennial was coming to observe play in Homestead as part of their research into the noise of pickleball. There will be a brunch social on September 9th at the West Courts. 81 homeowners are now on the TeamReach app that pickleball players are using to coordinate play in Homestead.
- TENNIS: Manager Jill Ellsworth reported that Homestead would offer Junior Team Tennis for participants in the fall. The summer season went very well with 72 Homestead kids participating. One homeowner at the Board meeting commented that the professionals from Advantage You were very attentive and the instruction was better than last year. The 10 & under boys took first place at the State Championships and the 14 & under boys achieved 4th place in their division. Homestead had 10 USTA adult teams with 91 players in the first session and 118 players in the second session. Twilight tennis had 85 to 95 players. Advantage You had 130 kids in weekly practices and filled all adult drills as well. Signs will be posted shortly clarifying the tennis and pickleball rules and playing times.
- ACC/TASK FORCE: Manager Emily Maxfield reported a hearing was scheduled for later in the month.
- BUSINESS: Katie reported on repairs at the South Pool, progress on updating the website, and progress on collecting dues. She passed along compliments from homeowners about the appearance of the Trex fence along Easter Avenue and appreciation for all the Board is doing for the community. Katie and the Board discussed how to proceed with two property owners who are violating the Association covenants.
FINANCIAL REPORT: Operating expenses for July totaled $112,096 and were comprised in part of $4579 in trash & utilities; $17,875 in Administrative expenses; $47,650 in Landscape expenses; $39,818 in Pool expenses, and $1,482 in Tennis expenses. Kelly reported there were no unexpected expenses in July and that she had liquidated the Vectra Bank Money Market accounts that weren’t earning much interest. The funds were transferred to the reserve operating account and were would be moved to First American State Bank where they will earn 4.1%.
OLD BUSINESS: There was no old business.
NEW BUSINESS: ACES Swim Club approached the Board about renting the North Pool for their club swim practices from September 5th through mid October depending on weather. Tom Byorick thanked the Board for the use of the pool over the last three years. The Board and Tom discussed the terms of the usage and cost for ACES to use the pool. Katie will put the decisions into a contract and send to ACES.
Dumpster Day: The Board will hold a second Dumpster Day on September 30th from 8 am to 9:30 or until the dumpsters are full.
Wifi at the pools: a homeowner requested that the wifi used to operate the Openpath entry system at the pools be made available to residents. After some discussion about routers and how many people might use the wifi, the Board instructed Katie to work with Ting when they provide installation.
ADJOURNMENT AND CALENDARING: The meeting adjourned at 6:55 pm. The next regular Board Meeting will be on Monday, September 11th at 6:30 p.m. at the Business Office.
BOARD MEETING TAKEAWAYS
- Dumpster Day will be September 30, 2023 from 8:00 am to 9:30 am or until the Dumpster is full.
- Results of the Fence Ballot will be posted on the HOA website at www.homesteadinthewillows.org.