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

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

MEMBER FORUM- Sherrill Clark and Gerry Gorak were present to voice their concerns over a curb that had been installed next door to them that had allowed excess water to drain to their garage area.  They had additional concerns that Manager Kroeger had not taken the proper steps to have the problem rectified and that proper approvals had not been obtained upon installation of the curb.  After discussion, it was decided that the Board would send a demand letter to the owner of the uphill home stating that a drain at the end of the curb was required and that a drain pipe would need to extend 60’ down between the homes.

Ron Smith was also on hand to state his concerns over an ongoing drainage problem at his house.  He was advised to write a letter to the Association allowing an engineer to access his property to review his concerns.  Smith also asked about the refund on one of his construction projects that had been held up due to a discrepancy in road repair pricing.  He and Manager Kroeger were requested to meet and come to an agreed conclusion.

MINUTES- The minutes from the regular meeting of 2/12/09 and the special meeting of 2/23/09 were reviewed.  Jeff Stillman moved to accept both sets of minutes as presented.  The motion was seconded by Jim Hicks and passed unanimously with the exception an abstention by Jim Davidson.

TREASURER’S REPORT- Treasurer Jim Davidson noted a mathematical error from the accountant on the budget statement.  Manager Kroeger was to contact the accountant about this.  He further noted that to date, 32% of the budgeted 2009 assessment income was outstanding.  He said that 2006 and 2007 were much better than this, but that 2008 was worse, so there was room for optimism.  He reported that approximately $30,000.00 in added expenses (road salt, the prospect of lifeguards, and storm clean-up) had wiped out some of our project “set aside” for the year.  However, we had gained some ground in office coverage adjustments. 

Manager Kroeger gave the delinquent report noting that we show ’08 delinquent amounts at $72,588.00 while a year ago we reflected less than $30,000.00 in ’07 delinquent amounts.  This is because we did not turn over ’08 delinquencies to the collection agency based on the idea of using alternate collection methods.  Kroeger noted that if we added the amount sent to the collection agency a year ago to the amount reflected in the report, the total delinquency of ’07 and ’08 were just about the same.  He also reported that the percentage of delinquent lots with homes on them had declined to 9% of the total which was the best number he had seen for quite some time.  He informed the Board that he had spoken with the collection agency who stated that they would be willing to return delinquent accounts back to us under most circumstances.

There being no questions, the financial report was unanimously approved on a motion by Jeff Stillman and a second by Gene Allen.

MANAGER’S REPORT- Manager Kroeger began with the report from the Town Council Meeting.

Santa Claus Town Council Meeting
3/9/09
At the meeting the Town Council:

1. Approved the Town portion of 2 sets of minutes
2. Approved a conflict of interest waiver for Drew Knies who bids on small town jobs.
3. Approved the purchase of a new tractor for the Parks Department.  Half of the money is to come from the ’08 budget.
4. Heard that there were some building inspections in February.
5. Discussed fines for the trash ordinance prompted by a complaint received.
6. Was advised that Mike Johannes had resigned from the Police Department.
7. Approved Alan Masterson as a new reserve officer.
8. Heard that the fire chief will be going to Louisiana in late March to review the final plans for the new fire truck
9. Heard that Vectren continues to work on the streetlight plan.  A follow up e-mail has been sent.
10. Heard that employment interviews are being conducted in the wastewater plant.
11. Heard that several hundred feet of sewer line had been inspected and that a bid had been sent out to repair 500’ of this line.
12. The “Shovel Ready” announcement for the industrial park should come on 3/13/09.
13. Approved the first reading of an ordinance to delete a section of an existing ordinance that refers to a federal requirement for 44 hours of straight time before receiving over time pay.
14. Heard that the granting organizations are still trying to “get it together” regarding stimulus package projects.
15. Approved a request to write off nearly $700.00 of vacant lot sewer fees from 4 accounts.
16. Heard that some interest has been shown in the Census 2010 Complete Count Committee.  More response is needed.  Interested parties are encouraged to contact Town Hall.
17. Decided to set up informal meetings between council members and Town employees.
18. Heard that the water board will probably make a rate recommendation to the Town Board soon.
19. The meeting adjourned at 6:10

He further noted that the police report included:

1. 1 traffic citation written in the Village (Manager Kroeger noted that he had seen an increased police presence in the Village the last several days and that he expected this number to be higher at the April meeting)
2. 33 traffic citations in the Town
3. 2 domestic disturbances
4. 9 gun permits

Specific to the Village the police responded to dog complaints, protective order assistance, and a theft investigation.

Manager Kroeger continued with the Manager’s report:

1. The Association has spent approximately $5,000.00 on outside assistance with storm damage clean up.  The last sweep of the Village, from the west end of the Village to the east, for storm damage AND spring clean up chipping will begin the morning of April 6, 2009.  We will make ONE pass on each street at that point.  If your sticks/branches are not out at that time, we will not be back to pick them up.
2. Preparation for PSC’s fiber optic cable installation throughout the Village continues.  Manager Kroeger had met with a representative of the contractor about storage space and the upcoming project.  The Board approved a request to rent a portion of our snowplow garage to the contractor for a few months.  Fiber Optic cable will be run to EVERY house in the Village.  The project will be starting as early as April and will take about 5 months.
3. Steve Webb had asked permission to use the lake for a final project for his physics students.  They are to build boats out of cardboard and sail them across a portion of the lake.  This had been done a few times some years ago.  The Association was asked to have a chase boat in the water in case of emergency.  The date was to be determined, but some time in mid May.  The Board approved the request.
4. Manager Kroeger reminded the Board that the lease on the ZTR mower was up in May.  $7700.00 had been put into the ’09 budget to make a down payment and 9 payments on a new mower with a purchase price of around $14,000.00.  He had received bids on mowers and all were under the $14,000.00, but he had recently looked at used Grasshopper mower, with only 170 hours of use for $7500.00.  He asked for permission to buy the used mower subject to review and approval from the maintenance staff.  He was advised to go ahead and purchase the used mower if it meets our needs.
5. He deferred to Jim Davidson to speak about a new snow plow/dump truck for the maintenance department as well.  One of our snowplows is old, and a clutch on one of the trucks did not survive the ice storm in January.  A larger truck with a dump bed would allow us much more versatility with varying projects.  Davidson noted that there was some money in the “Reserve for Replacement” fund.  It was  further noted that we were watching for used trucks and that Manager Kroeger should have some sort of standing approval for this in case a rapid response is required for a used vehicle.  Kroeger thought he would need $35,000-$40,000.00 for such a vehicle.  The Board suggested that Manager Kroeger shop for such a vehicle and to keep the Board in the loop via e-mail.
6. The beach situation continues to be a question.  Manager Kroeger reported that Cincinnati Insurance might continue coverage of the beach area without lifeguards for an additional premium of around $5,000.00 per year.  This would require that all beach items including diving boards, ropes and the concrete “float” be removed. The “float” could be fenced rather than removed to prevent access.  If our intent was to save money, we would not be far ahead.  Manager Kroeger was advised to hire lifeguards and ask the insurance company if we could reduce our operating hours to 5 days a week.

OLD BUSINESS
County Lots- Manager Kroeger noted that the paperwork for the 34 county lots from the Commissioner’s Sale was just about complete.  It was decided that we would skip formal surveys until a lot was sold and then make the sale contingent upon a satisfactory survey.  There was some discussion as to the reason the Association bought the lots and how we were going to sell them. 

Festival Of  Lights- Manager Kroeger stated that he was bringing up the Festival once again in the interest of determining the level of  Village participation and support for the ’09 Festival.  Director Lee Powell stated that he had had some interest and asked if he could hold a meeting in the Rec Center on April 4th.  Manager Kroeger was to check the schedule to confirm availability and let Lee know.  Kroeger also advised Powell that he had had a visit the previous day from a Christmas in Santa Claus leader who might be interested in this meeting.  He would provide contact information.

Winter Weight Limits- Committee Chair Jim Hicks reported that a meeting had been held seeking professional advice regarding winter weight limits between the Board and Mulzer Crushed Stone and presented the following recap.

Christmas Lake Board of Directors
Rules and Regulation Committee
Roadway Informational Meeting February 25, 2009

The members of the CLV Board of Directors met with Ken Mulzer, Jr., Ken Mulzer, Sr., Chris Tull, P.E., and Jerry Larson.  We are grateful they chose to share their expertise with us.  The main crux of the meeting went way beyond our question of roadway weight limits.

The presentation generated many notions and possibilities which we discussed among ourselves after the meeting was concluded.  Hopefully we can seize the momentum, develop and prosecute a workable plan that will reduce the critical conditions of our roadways.

In conclusion, we were presented with a possible way of repairing our roads in a manner that would give us long term serviceability with low maintenance.  The process is called “whitetopping”.  It consists of applying a thin layer (2” – 4”) of concrete over the existing blacktop.

One caveat to this process is we must provide adequate drainage under and around the existing roadways or the concrete will not hold up either.  We have asked our presenters to give us a rough estimate of the cost to provide this process to our roadways.

Secondly, we discussed roadway weight limits.  Ken explained how the actual truck weight of a smaller truck would negate the benefits we might receive from having a weight limit below the usability of a larger truck due to the number of trips the smaller truck would require to obtain the same net load at the site.  In this discussion we were considering the average current construction of our roads.

Finally, we discussed the need for weight restrictions during the winter season (Jan 1 to April 1).  It was agreed by all that a fairly aggressive weight limit was required.  Jerry Larson mentioned 16,000 pounds gross weight was a good number.  He said that was used in his community.  Jerry is going to send us a copy of their ordinance.

Jim Hicks
Director

Hicks then presented the following as a “stand alone” rule for Board review.

Provisional Vehicular Weight Restriction

To protect and maintain the conditions of the streets within the Village whenever the roadways by reason of deterioration, rain, snow, or other climatic conditions will be seriously damaged or destroyed and annually from January 1st to April 1st a Provisional Vehicular Weight Restriction will be placed in effect.  During such periods Christmas Lake Village shall limit the gross vehicular weight to 16,000 pounds.

Prior to the implementation of the vehicular load restrictions signs will be posted at the Main Gate and the Property Manager shall notify all active builders and other interested parties of load limits status changes. 

Furthermore, in certain cases the Provisional Vehicular Weight Restriction may apply to only individual streets or sections of streets.  In such cases the restricted area will be designated by signs and the Property Manager will assign alternate routes which the oversized vehicles are to travel to and from their destinations while in the Village during the duration of the project.

Special written exception or permits may be granted on a case by case basis by the Property Manager after receipt of a written request and a favorable review of the unusual circumstances of the request.  The permit shall be issued for a specific time frame and specific destination within the village.

Exceptions to this Provisional Vehicular Weight Restriction are granted to the following vehicles.

1. trash pickup vehicles;
2. school busses;
3. any vehicle while engaged in roadway or infrastructure  maintenance or repair under the direction of the Association;
4. any emergency vehicle while responding to an emergency;
5. any public utility vehicle while providing emergency service or repairs; and
6. any vehicle whose owner or operator holds a valid permit issued by the Association. 

Further, Hicks presented the following for inclusion into the Building Rules and Regulations.

Architectural Control and Building Regulations

Section III. On Site Construction Rules and Regulations.

(New Article)

1. The use of heavy trucks and equipment within the Village shall be monitored by CLV, and the Property Manager may prohibit such vehicles from using the Village roadways if in his/her view the vehicle could damage the road surfaces.  The self propelled travel of steel tracked vehicles, i.e. bobcats, track hoes, bulldozers, etc., on Christmas Lake Village roadways is strictly prohibited. 

At the location of equipment usage, it is recommended that equipment pads (steel plate or plywood) be placed over the roadway at points of high pressure contact such as track ways, outrigger footings, or points of tight turn radius.

 In any case, as stated in the Covenants and Restrictions the repair of any roadway damage will be billable to the responsible home owner or home owners.

Hicks then made a motion to accept the two proposals.  Jeff Stillman seconded the motion which will become an “Action Item” at the April meeting.

NEW BUSINESS
Chipper Program- Jeff Stillman presented a proposed new chipper plan.  This is the first review of the plan since its inception a few years ago. 

CHRISTMAS LAKE VILLAGE
BRUSH CHIPPING PROGRAM
Approved
Effective

SERVICES

1. Two yard debris pick-ups per year- a period in the spring and fall will be specified for debris from yard maintenance. Residents will be notified on the marquee, webpage and e-mail list when we will be in each neighborhood.  For efficiency, we intend to make but one pass over the Village

1. Storm damage assistance- In order to receive storm damage assistance, you must request this service at the Association office within 48 hours of the end of the storm.  A National Weather Service Severe Storm warning or tornado warning is required for the event to qualify for storm damage assistance.

1. Christmas Trees- We will designate a drop off site in January where Christmas trees may be dropped off no later than January 31st.  Please do not leave anything but Christmas Trees.

1. Chipper Charges- There will be no charge for the first 15 minutes at your residence for debris clean up.  Each additional 15 minutes or part thereof will be charged $25.00.  Proper stacking makes the process faster.

Some information:

1. As a rule of thumb, if you can drag the limb/tree to the road, by hand, we can chip it.
2. It is easier and faster for us to chip one 15’ long branch than three 5’ long pieces
3. The butt ends must be toward the road.
4. The maximum stack height is 4’.
5. All refuse must be within 4’ of the road’s edge.
6. The maximum size will be 9” in diameter
7. Place your debris in front of your house.
8. Keep refuse away from roadside structures i.e. mailboxes etc
9. Unless you specifically request us to leave the chips at your house, we will take them away.
10. We do not anticipate designating a central drop point (except for Christmas trees). 
11. This service is for yard maintenance and storm damage only.  It is not intended for lot clearing, contractor refuse, or discarded landscaping materials.
12. Road clearing will receive storm damage priority. 
13. We will only chip natural plant matter.

One of the primary uses for the chipper is Right of Way maintenance.  Seeing the chipper in use does not necessarily mean that we are picking up from residences.
Jeff Stillman moved to accept the plan as presented.  Gene Allen seconded the motion which will become an action item at the April meeting
2009 Road Repairs- Infrastructure Committee chair Jim Davidson passed out maps for the Directors to review their areas and to submit their recommendations for ’09 street repair.  He asked that the maps be turned in prior to the next meeting. 
The discussion turned to information from the previously mentioned meeting with Mulzer Crushed Stone regarding the possibility of “white-topping” Village roads.  White topping is paving with concrete over asphalt.  The resulting road can be expected to last, maintenance free, for approximately 20 years of more.  The roads must be dry and the road banks and ditches must drain well.  The rough price of white topping is about $330,000.00/mile, not including required milling and bank work
This price seemed to be out of reach.  There was discussion about the general roadside drainage in some areas of the Village i.e. ponding, and road overflow. 
At the February meeting the idea of applying for a loan of approximately $2 million to do extensive road repair had been suggested.  Manager Kroeger had looked into this possibility and reported that the interest rate would be 7.5% for three years and then adjust according to the T-Bill.  There was a minimum and maximum rate and a maximum percentage change over a 3 year period.  There was also a question of what we would use to secure such a loan.
Manager Kroeger stated that it appeared to him that the seven miles of main road would cost over $2 million just for the white topping and the road would not be useable without milling to match the new road height to the cross streets and driveways in the Village.
After some additional discussion the idea was dropped for lack of support.
Town Road Stimulus- Manager Kroeger read part of a letter he had received from Town Attorney Kevin Patmore noting that the Town might be interested in the possibility of opening Kasper Drive from the north Village property line to highway 162 if it becomes possible to do so with some stimulus money.  However, the Town did not want to pursue this without agreement from the Village to install a gate, take security measures, and upgrade the Village section of the road at that location.  The Village’s part of the project would entail substantial extra expense to a budget that is tight as it is.  Manager Kroeger was to advise Attorney Patmore that the Village would not be able to participate in the project.
Hanning Property- Manager Kroeger advised the Board that approximately 10 acres of land north of the Marina on the big lake is land that is leased from the Hanning family.  The lease was put in place nearly 30 years ago to be used as a silt basin while active dredging operations were underway on the lake.  The current lease is set to expire in May of 2010.  Negotiations for the Association to purchase this ground in 1995 did not go anywhere.  He suggested that it is time to consider our next step in what will happen next.  President Vogel passed this on to the Business Planning Committee to review and make a recommendation to the Board.

COMMITTEE REPORTS
Business Planning- Nothing further
Infrastructure- Nothing further
Nominations- Chair Jeff Stillman noted that the elections for the Directors would be open soon.  Members may want to review his article from the March newsletter.
Rules and Regulations- Nothing further, but chair Jim Hicks made available a copy of the Mulzer power point presentation from the road weight/white top meeting.
Personnel-Chair Jeff Stillman noted that annual employee evaluations were underway and will be complete by April 1st.
By-Laws- Nothing
Parks and Recreation- Nothing further other than the pending April 4th Festival of Lights meeting.
Covenants & Restrictions- The attorney notifies there is some cross referencing of dates to do and the first draft will be ready for committee review.

Angela Vanover suggested that when announcing the upcoming meetings that the announcement makes it clear that Association members are encouraged to attend.
The meeting ended at 8:45 on a motion by Gene Allen and a second by Jeff Stillman.