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DEER CREEK LANDOWNERS, INC.
Minutes of General Meeting     5 12 07

Scopazzi’s Restaurant, Boulder Creek, CA 95006

 

Meeting called to order at: 1 p.m. by President Bruce Argyle.  It was determined that there was a quorum.  Present were Abner, Armbrust, Barrios, Bishop, Cate, Chandik, Field/Wolf, Gutierrez, Johnson, Krause, Marshall, Miller, O’Neal, Radzinsky, Roy/Corbell, Scarlett, V. Smith, Sniffen, Stewart, Tobin, Tucker, Vanderostyne, Raquelle/Bird; proxies for Loftis, Pierce, Koval, Hulin, Jarvis, Fraser, Parnello.
            Treasurer’s Report by Ron Chandik:  (all spreadsheets enclosed).  Spreadsheets were projected onto a screen from laptop so all landowners could view. Ron distributed Statement of Financial Position, bank account statements, and discussed financial position of DCLI; he pointed out beginning balance
and all the deposits and withdrawals, and discussed details of the transactions.  We have collected about $70K and spent about $70K.  So we ended up with the same amount of money in the bank account as we started with, which doesn’t look terribly impressive, except that in all the 40 years he’s been involved with the DCLI, never has $70K ever been collected.  And we have an enormous amount of road services that have been provided with not a lot of money coming in. How is that possible?  Because Tom Bird was able to get a couple of grants from Santa Cruz County Resource Conservation District for $32K, and from State Water Resources for $7,600.  All that money was put onto Ramble Rd.  Referring again to the spreadsheet, Ron pointed out that we have 95 landowners, and 41 people who have paid all their dues, 10 people who have paid for the last fiscal year; so 51 people out of 95 people who are paying.  From all those people we collected about $17K.  We spent $70K, and without those grants we wouldn’t be doing a lot of roadwork.  Another source of income: when people sell their parcels, a title search is done, and when it’s found that the landowner belongs to DCLI, the escrow company contacts DCLI to find out if there are dues owing.  DCLI provides the escrow company with a detailed invoice, and when escrow closes, DCLI receives a check.  And so we collected $13K from the escrow companies.  We bought a Treasury Bill for $1,975, and after 90 days we will have $2K.  So we have approx. $16K in our bank account and a $2K T bill.  The last part of the report shows all the details of the people who have paid.  There are 3 columns showing what is due to DCLI. First column is FY2004/2005 plus all previous years; so he grouped together everything that hasn’t been paid over the years previous to 2004 and what wasn’t paid for 2004/2005. The ‘0’s show the 41 people who have paid everything over the years to the present date.  2nd column 2005/2006 shows all the people who haven’t paid, and 3rd column shows everything that has been billed in that year, and at the bottom of the column it shows that we billed out about $35K.  Column showing all the payments, the dates and amount paid, and total that shows total receipts. So it looks like we collected $31K and we billed out about $35K.  And the reason that the $31K number differs from the $30K shown on the Statement of Financial Position is that some people received Road Dues Credit for various reasons. The road credit shows up as a payment on the Balances Due spreadsheet, but not as a bank account cash deposit of the Statement of Financial Position report. Ron explained that what is wrong with this report is that when we received payments we don’t know to which year they apply.  So what Ron did was take payments and apply them to the appropriate column so that on another report we’ll see each payment applied to each individual year.  Request from a landowner: when we receive our individual statements, can Ron break it down just like this spreadsheet does, because otherwise it’s confusing.  Ron said he doesn’t have the software to be able to do that, so right now this is the best he can do; we don’t have the infinite flexibility for invoicing because of the limited software.  Motion by Ed and second by Robert to accept Treasurer’s Report; passed.
            Secretary’s Report by Emmanuela Raquelle: We now have an Amended Joint Maintenance Agreement that was recorded in January of this year, and congratulations to all of us.  All the local escrow companies that we usually do business with will be provided with a list of APNs of all members to ensure that if there is a sale or re-fi, DCLI will be contacted, in case the title company doesn’t pick up the information from the Recorder’s Office.  Manuela said that if there were no objections, she would also supply the escrow companies with a list of APNs of the 845s, so the same situation can apply.  Concern by an 845 about legality of doing such a thing.  It was determined that even though the 845s cannot have a lien placed on their property, because they are not signators to the JMA, there is nothing legally binding by having an escrow company make DCLI aware when an 845 sells or refinances.  Bruce asked for vote on membership agreeing that a list of 845 APNs can be provided to the escrow companies.  Passed.  Manuela will do that.  Motion by Gordy Stewart to accept Secretary’s Report, second by John Miller; passed.
            Road Manager’s Report: Tom said he wanted to run down the accomplishments for this year and then discuss future plans for budget discussion; pointed out that work was done on Ramble Rd.  Comment from the floor that in all the 35 years that he has been involved with DCLI, the road has never been better than it is now.  Big applause from the group.  Tom pointed out that work has been done on upper Ramble, close to Skyview: outsloping and reshaping the road for better drainage. Tom said a huge hole was filled after a fir tree went down and took out 5 yards of road and it looks like that repair will be there for a while.  Ditching and rocking of Deer Creek Rd. was done.  We’ve been awarded a design and permit grant for the 3rd crossing bridge.  He pointed out the preliminary drawings that were up on the wall and invited members to view them when they have a chance.  We have $27K grant to do all the design and permits and that includes all the geologists’ reports, biologists’ reports, and hydrologists’ reports, and for the stack of studies that were required by the agencies involved.  They are paying for the core samples of the water and samples of the bugs and critters that are down there and a biologist went over the entire section of the road to make sure that we don’t dispatch some of those from the earth.    We have a second grant for the construction of the bridge for $200K.  So far we’ve selected Daniel’s Steel, the same people who put together the second bridge and the Palm Drive bridge and the one on Jack’s Rd.  Some of the geologists were not happy with the foundation that was used on those bridges; the area is a geologically active area so they wanted a full foundation. So that’s why we’re having this done – some of the foundations are 9 feet tall.  Tom pointed out the drawings: a large retaining wall on the east side and another retaining wall on the west side as the road goes up the hill – so it’s quite a project.  So for $200K we’re going to be getting all this.  Tom said we have a couple of issues about timing.  We have to submit final drawings on May 23rd when we have a meeting with the County and the various agencies that have to sign off on this thing.  Hopefully we’ll be done at the end of this month.  We’re shooting for construction to begin in August and be finished some time in September.  Now that we have this Marble Merrelet, a bird that feeds in the daytime in the ocean and nests and rests in tall conifers, redwoods and firs, and because someone saw one here 30 years ago and it is an endangered bird, we’re not allowed to do any work except between mid-September and mid-October, and that puts a horrendous amount of pressure trying to put in a bridge and having to deal with that.  What’s interesting is that some of the same agencies are involved with both the Timber Harvest Plan (THP) and the bridge project, and the same agency that approves the timing of the THP to take place in the middle of summer also says that we can’t build a bridge in the middle of summer because of the Marble Merlot.  So we’re in the process of negotiating to show consistency in this.  So it may be that during one month’s time we may have a frantic period where we’re going to try and put this water diversion dam and we’re trying to get a northern access crossing there approved.  If we do, then we can keep the crossing open for traffic. Our main emphasis to the agencies and to County and to Fish and Game is that we do not want to block access for fire and emergency vehicles.  We have safety issues: we will be hauling in heavy beams and cranes and if somebody gets hurts up there, we won’t be able to get emergency services up there, so that is our plea to these agencies.  Tom has been talking with Palm Cutoff landowners to see if there is a way we can use Little Buck and come down thru Palm Dr. Everybody will have to be responsible citizens and not tear up the road.  Tom said that one great idea that Gordy had to prevent ‘riff raff’ from coming in and out during that time is provide a window sticker: something like ‘I am an official citizen of this area and I have permission to drive in this area.’  Comment from the floor: how do we limit friends who come up there?  Bruce said that we have to limit the number of people who go up there.  Tom said that when the first 2 bridges were being built, we opened Ron’s Rd. just to be good neighbors so that everybody would have access through Bear Creek Canyon road system and there weren’t any hassles.  Tom also said that Gordy is being very cooperative.  We need to be aware that may or may not be some neighbors who may be resistant want this going on. 
            Tom said we recently also received another grant for $3.500 from RCD for doing erosion control and storm proofing, similar to the same kind of work we did on lower Ramble Rd.  This grant requires matching funds – will require $3,500 from DCLI to match RCD grant.  We will need to select the sites that will contribute the most to erosion control.  We find that a lot of the design work done by Pacific Watershed addresses 100 year flood issues, but when we look at the designs, it looks like it is addressing 1000 year flood; it looks like a Cadillac remedy and we know we can do the job cheaper, and we’ll be doing that.
            We have spent a lot of time dealing with garbage and abandoned cars that are being left at the front of the road.  Larry Whitson called us and said that he had concerns about all the junk that is being left there (it is on Larry’s property).  Tom and Gordy and Larry all met at the front of the road to discuss the situation and see what we all can do.  The reason Tom brought this up is to alert all of us: if we see anybody dropping off junk, call the Sheriff. A boat and a hot tub have been dropped off.  Tom knows the owner of the boat and that person will be removing it in a couple of weeks; Tom and others cut up the hot tub and made 3 trips to the dump to dispose of it.  Question from the floor: isn’t it the landowner’s responsibility to dispose of junk on their own property?  Discussion.  It was said that this problem happens all over the place; get the license numbers and get the information to the authorities and the authorities can write a letter to the violators.  It’s about everybody working together. 
            Tom passed around a picture of a mountain lion and said that there had been 4 sightings in the last month; one 1 in Las Cumbres and 3 on Bear Creek Rd.  Reminder to be careful with children.  Tom met last week with CDF to make sure that they have full maps of all our road system so that if someone calls in a fire, CDF will know how to get there.  Bear Creek Canyon provided CDF with maps, and when we had a fire there last year, they were on it immediately; it was one of the windiest days of the year with fire warnings posted and announced.  Some of the wood poachers started a fire up there and it got out of hand and CDF got on it immediately.  We had 75 inches of rain last year – to date we’ve had 25-29 – CDF is extremely nervous about our area.  There are a lot of people coming up in our area to pick up their ‘party packs’ (drugs).  Don’t have open fires, drag your junk to the dump, and be very careful.  This is our neighborhood – once a fire starts here, it’ll spread in a flash.   Gordy reemphasized that when we see a mountain lion, don’t run - make yourself as big and loud as possible. Round of applause for Tom.  Motion by Denis to accept Road Manager’s Report, second by Chris, passed.
            Bruce introduced the issue of past dues.  This is a synopsis of Bruce’s presentation: ‘Now to what has been for a long time a very controversial and confusing issue:  what to do about past unpaid dues.  At the fall meeting, the membership directed the Board to submit a proposal to solve the problem. The board of directors has spent many hours working together to find a method of dealing with this issue to present to the membership that would ultimately result in a successful outcome in collecting dues in arrears. Many members have paid their dues and are up-to-date, and you are the mainstay of our organization – without you, we would have no way to maintain or improve our road system.  And unfortunately, many members have not paid their dues for many years, and have relied on the rest of us to carry their weight.  We have worked with an attorney and found out the following:  If we take those landowners in arrears to Small Claims Court to obtain a judgment against them, a Judge may limit the number of years we can sue for.  There is a statute of limitations that a Judge may impose: we may be able to go back only 3 years, no matter how many years in arrears are on the books.  Or the Judge may rule that the landowners in arrears must pay for all the unpaid years.’
This is the Board’s proposal:
An invoice will be sent out to all landowners who are in arrears.  The invoice will bill for the years 04/05, 05/06, 06/07, but the total amount of arrears will be shown for informational purposes. If payment is made covering the last 3 years (and payment arrangements will be honored), then the years previous to the last 3 are taken off the books.  If after sufficient notice the landowner chooses not to pay, a suit will be filed in small claims court seeking a judgment for the total amount of arrears plus late charges and interest at an annual rate of 0%, plus court costs. In addition to the small claims suit, if the landowner is a member, a lien will be placed on their property for the total amount of arrears plus late charges, interest at an annual rate of 0%, plus court costs.  One idea that the Board presented is to bill only for the past 3 years and if the landowner doesn’t pay, DCLI takes them to Small Claims court, suing for 3 years only.  Another idea is to bill for the past 3 years, and if payment isn’t made, then we take them to Small Claims and sue for the entire amount of past dues, going back as far as is on the books.  Ron explained that the algorithm that was voted upon and has been implemented for the last 2 years has been based on distance and usage; previously, for the FY 2004/2005 and before, assessment had been made using a flat fee.  Ron proposed taking the amount budgeted for FY2004/2005 and break it down to be consistent with the algorithm that we have been using for these 2 years; and in that way, the last 3 years of billing will be based on distance and usage.  Those landowners who have been paying all along have been the mainstay of this organization; without them, we would basically have no organization.  Discussion about the possibility of taking a landowner in arrears to civil court, hiring an attorney to sue for the entire amount.  Ron made the case for offering to take off the books all arrears previous to FY2004/2005 if 04/05, 05/06, and 06/07 are paid in full.  Conversely, if those 3 years were not paid in full (with payment arrangements being considered), DCLI would seek a judgment against the landowner in Small Claims court for the entire amount of arrears.  A concern was raised that if DCLI did not prevail for that entire amount, the entire case would be dismissed.  Tom said the in the 5 experiences that Bear Creek Canyon Road Association has had in Small Claims Court, the Small Claims Judge in all 5 cases ruled that the landowner being sued must pay the entire amount of arrears, not only 3 years. It was stated that the worst that could happen is that we collect 3 years of dues; the best scenario is that we collect everything that is due.  Question from a member:  what happens in the case of a parcel in escrow: when a demand letter is received by DCLI, will DCLI bill for only the past 3 years, or for all the years?  The Board consulted and suggested that only the 3 years be billed.  Proposal by Bruce:  an invoice will be sent out to all landowners billing for 04/05/, 05/06, 06/07.  Denis O’Neal introduced himself as a retired attorney, and stated that he believed it would be helpful if those people in arrears had a ‘threat’ hanging over them – that there should exist the possibility that DCLI could choose to pursue the entire amount in civil court if a Small Claims court only awards 3 years.  A question was raised about how the 845s would be affected by this policy, and Denis stated that they would be treated just the same as the members.  An 845 who had an issue with the amount of money billed by the Board would be treated in the same manner as a member: the Board and the landowner would negotiate, and Bruce said that he hoped by this time, because DCLI was moving in such a good direction, that we would be able to work something out by sitting down and talking.  Gordy said that he didn’t think it was fair that 845s should have to be held to the same policies as members because 845s aren’t allowed to participate in policy-making because they have no voting power. A member stated that the 845s are treated just like a voting member: they have the same obligations based on distance and usage.  Richard said that he has been involved with DCLI for at least 25 years this is such an improvement, this new policy; that in the 10 years that he’s been attending meetings, there would be 3 hours spent getting virtually nothing accomplished, and he thinks that these meetings have been going wonderfully, that the members are getting a tremendous amount of information about what is going on and what the facts are, and if members would pay on a schedule, it would be great.  Bruce invited Gordy to sit down with the Board and go over the numbers.  Question about 845s joining, and it was decided that that was another discussion.  A motion by Denis to accept the Board’s proposal (above) with the exception of adding that there we have the option of suing in civil court.  Second by Mike; passed.
            Introduction to discussion toward developing a Heavy/Vehicle Logging Policy. As a prelude to presenting a Policy to the membership, Tom gave facts and figures about damage to a road based on w8 of a vehicle.  Geoff said that tire pressure has more to do with creating damage than does axle w8.  Victor wants to eliminate the word ‘commercial’ from the policy, because there is no difference whether firewood or anything thing else is sold or given away if heavy vehicles are used; also eliminate the firewood cutting paragraph.  Christine asked if we could be mailed the proposal in order to have more time to study it before voting for it because she had to leave the meeting.  Mac made a motion that we have a vote now on whether we should have a vote today to accept the Policy as presented by Tom.  Second by Chris; passed. 
            Victor disputed some of Tom’s figures, saying that the sources Tom used referred primarily to the affect of w8 on pavement, not dirt road.  Tom said that the affect on dirt roads would be even greater.  Tom reemphasized that the road must be brought back to original or better condition, and the improvements that the Timber Harvest Plan calls for, culverts and infrastructure improvements, will benefit the logging operations as well as the road system. The THP also reimburses the members for amount of damage that may come about in 2 or 3 years as a result of the logging operation.  Victor then addressed the issue of the hours of operation.  He explained that the reason the loggers wanted to begin earlier than 7 a.m. was so as not to interfere with the morning commute traffic.  Jose said that he was the only resident who would be affected by the equipment driving right by his house and he didn’t want to be disturbed by the operations starting before 7 a.m.; he also said that if the loggers did start earlier they would still run into morning commute traffic because residents leave at 5:30 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. Victor also said that the reason they wanted to start earlier was so they could finish the entire job sooner.  Tom said he discussed this issue with CDF and they explained to him that their policy is to allow the early hours, but if there were a complaint, CDF would modify the operation hours. Question from member whether there will be flagmen on the road during the whole operation, and Victor said there will be. Much discussion about the w8 factors (see attached) and Victor asked for it to be reduced from 50 to 30.  Motion by Ron to accept the policy, second by Manuela; passed.
            Bruce called for a break.
Re-adjournment.  Tom presented the budget; much discussion and the membership agreed to add one transfer of base rock to smooth out the front of the road beginning at the mailboxes.  Final budget attached.

Elections held with secret ballots.  Bruce, Ron, John and Jose were reelected as President, Treasurer, Directors #1 and 2 respectively.

Meeting was adjourned at 3:50 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Emmanuela Raquelle, Secretary
May 12, 2007

 

PLEASE NOTE: 

Deer Creek Road Landowners, Inc. is now promoting our yahoo group email list.  This list will allow you to receive detailed and timely information about the association and our community via email.  It will also allow you to broadcast information, requests, or questions to the group.  We want as many people as possible on this list, so that we can use it to effectively communicate as quickly and as accurately as possible.  There are two ways to sign up for this list.

  1. send an email to deercreekroad-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
  2. go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/deercreekroad/ and click on the ‘join this group’ button.

We will be posting minutes of meetings, Heavy Vehicle Policy, Past Dues Policy, dates of Board meetings, the JMA, budget, financial information, and other documents that would be of interest to the membership.  There is also a format for posting messages.  You are welcome to leave a message on the message board for individual Board members.

    • Tom is needing volunteers to participate when a work day is scheduled.  Please post a message on the board if you would like to participate.