The meeting was called to order by President Don Vogel at 6:00 PM.  He noted that a quorum was present and that the meeting was being taped.

Directors present were Gene Allen, Rob Collins, Jim Davidson, Jim Hicks, Lee Powell,  Mark Smith, and Don Vogel.  Jeff Stillman and Angela Vanover were absent.

There were 16 Association members in attendance.

President Vogel reminded those in attendance that the sole purpose of the meeting was to discuss the possibility of the Association placing a charge on chipper services provided to assist in ice storm damage clean up.    He noted that the Board had discussed this issue to some extent at the regular February meeting and had originally delayed this topic until the regular March meeting.

He advised those in attendance that the amount of debris was astronomical, that the Association had already spent around 140 man hours of debris chipping and that a dent had not been made in the quantity of this debris.  He suggested that we might need to hire some temporary employees to help with this, that it might cost as much as $12,000.00 to clean up, and that there was no plan yet, and that the Board was open to discussion.  He read from the Covenants and Restrictions that the role of the Association was to maintain the common grounds.  He said that we had been thinking of either a time, or volume, based charge for chipper services.  He mentioned that we were considering that a minimal pile (5 minutes or less) would not be charged, that 5-20 minutes would be charged $25.00, 20-45 minutes would be $50.00, and that more than 45 minutes would be $75.00. 

Director Jim Davidson noted that Board’s have been criticized for taking services away.  He said that the Chipper had been a major step forward in this regard and that general spring/fall clean up was not a major program but this storm was beyond our current staff.
He was in favor of a charge.

Director Jim Hicks read a statement that included 2 motions:

The Christmas Lake Property Association has previously provided its membership the services of refuse removal free of charge; due to recent weather damage, it has become painfully evident these services can no longer be provided free of charge.

Motion 1:
Christmas Lake Property Association proposes to provide for its property owners organic debris (leaves, branches, and limbs) cleanup on a fee basis.

In each case, Owners wishing to avail themselves of this service must inform the Association office to be included in the clean up campaign.  Owners not wanting to use the Association’s services must remove the refuse by the end of the Association’s canvass.

The fee shall be a minimum of $25.00 for the first 15 minutes and $25.00 additional for each 15 minute increment thereafter.

Motion 2
As stated in the Covenants and Restrictions, there shall be no dumping of garbage, rubbish or other waste on any grounds in the Village.  It is proposed that any person discovered dumping refuse within the Village be fined $100.00 immediately and be required to clean the offended area to its pristine condition.  If within thirty (30) days, the condition is not remediated the Association will clean the areas and bill the party in full for the labor, equipment and material needed to rectify the situation.

The floor was then opened for member comments.  There was lengthy discussion involving:

1. people who cannot afford a charge
2. people who have no means to remove their own chips or a place to take them
3. subcontracting some portion of the work
4. continuance of spring/fall yard clean up service
5. vacant lots need to be cleaned up as well
6. the possibility of an emergency fund
7. how well is our daily chipping well planned
8. why do we stop at certain spots
9. traffic issues
10. could we find volunteers to assist
11. individuals have done work based on the premise that the debris would be removed free of charge
12. Stay the course
13. How many people do we have in maintenance
14. Why does the assessment go up but members are not receiving more
15. How do we stop “cheaters”
16. A precedent has been set
17. We are placing chips in bad spots (waterways)

After further comments by the Directors, it was decided to leave the issue alone and to complete the job as started, though changes for future circumstances may need review soon.

Jim Hicks’ motions died for lack of support.

The meeting adjourned at 8:00.