CHP HOA Meeting Minutes – 11/26/2018

CHP HOA Meeting Minutes – 11//26/2018

Meeting start: 6:34pm

Board Members in Attendance:  J.J. Gentry, Jeremy Catoe, Jan Talkish, Larry Newton

Board Members Absent: O’Neil Gilliam

Attendees:  8 Residents and David Peterson, CEO of Halcyon Services

Meeting Update:  Due to the extended length of some HOA meetings (sometimes 90 to 120 minutes), the Board has decided that a specific agenda needs to be observed at all upcoming meetings, in order to keep within a timely manner.  Therefore, urgent/important business that pertains to the community as a whole will be discussed first, followed by less urgent matters of interest to the community, and then -  if time remains - individual matters brought up by attendees.   If meeting time runs out, attendees with questions or comments may speak with Board members following the meeting.  It is the Board’s hope to keep meeting as close as possible to an hour, for the convenience of all in attendance.  If you have any questions or concerns about this decision, or need to discuss another issue with the Board members, please email the Board via the CHP website at: www.chpsc.org

Meeting with Halcyon:  Last month’s meeting with Halcyon representatives and CEO David Peterson was very productive, with residents attending the drop in time to pick up placards, get gate keys, etc., as well as get one-on-one attention for specific issues.  It was decided during the Halcyon meeting that David would meet with the Board on a monthly basis to better keep up with issues within the CHP community.  David also addressed the following issues and upcoming plans:

-- Halcyon Staff:  Staff members - who have been accused of being indifferent to resident issues -  have been instructed to do everything possible to personally solve resident issues as they are reported, and to send an email to both David and the Board members so that everyone is aware of the issue, and it can be monitored.  If staff members are unable to handle a specific problem, it will go to David and/or the Board.  Continued email updates will maintain accountability to assure the issue is resolved.

-- HOA Dues Payment Problems:  In order to solve the issues surrounding dues payment, Halcyon will be setting up a Resident Portal area to the Halcyon website.  Residents will be mailed instructions to use the Portal, as well as a temporary username and password (to be changed by the resident once in the Portal).  Residents who access the Portal will be able to make direct payments to Halcyon, to see a history of payments (2 years worth), view account notices (such as warning letters, liens, etc.), download application for home improvement, view the annual CHP budget, and more.  Further information will be sent out with the next invoice.

-- Covenant Complaints:  As with all large communities, there are individuals who do not follow the covenants as far as general rules, upkeep of homes, etc.  Beginning in the New Year, Halcyon representatives (not Board members) will conduct inspections within the community to insure that everyone is in compliance.  Halcyon vehicles will be marked, and Halcyon employees will be taking photos of non-compliant residences.  ***All photos will be taken from the vehicle or from the street - Halcyon employees will NOT enter or step on to your property.***  All pictures and information regarding violations will be placed on that resident’s Halcyon Portal account.  Residents in violation will be sent a warning letter, and given a specific amount of time to correct the violation.  Residents who fail to make corrections will be fined.  Halcyon will be looking at major issues, the top ones being:

- Garbage/Recycling roll carts being left on driveways (either near the street or near the residence), carts overflowing with garbage, or other piles of garbage/debris in yards.

- Boats, campers, or other unauthorized vehicles being parked in driveways

- Houses needing pressure washing

- Yards needing excessive work (greatly overgrown, bushes not maintained, etc.)

- Illegally parked cars (on grass.)

David and the Board are currently drafting a letter to be sent to all residents within the next couple of weeks. This letter will further outline the new inspection schedule, as well as have information about the upcoming Resident Portal, upcoming dues, and will also contain new pass codes for the tennis courts for 2019.

As always, if you have questions, comments, suggestions, or concerns, please email the Board via the CHP website at www.chpsc.org, or contact David Peterson directly at his email:  DavidP@halcyonres.com

Facebook Page:   The Board would like to remind residents that the current CHP Facebook page is an UNOFFICIAL page, run by residents, and is not monitored in an official capacity by the Board members.  If you have questions or concerns about an issue within the community, PLEASE contact the board via the website:  www.chpsc.org.

Continued Roadwork:   The City of Columbia continues its repairs of Lost Creek Drive, despite the recent rains that have been wreaking havoc with their schedule.  In the meantime, city crews have been doing a better job filling in and smoothing the worst of the potholes and humps at side streets and exits.  Please remember to drive a bit slower on Lost Creek Drive to avoid damage to your cars.  Also, please keep in mind that traffic on Lost Creek Drive kicks up dust and rocks, which land in resident’s yards, so please be aware of your speed in regard to this, also.  If you have questions or concerns about roadwork, please contact the City of Columbia – the Board/HOA has NO control over the road project, and cannot assist you if you have an issue or damage to your vehicle.  For weekly and urgent updates on the Lost Creek Drive project, please subscribe to the City of Columbia Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/COCPublicWorks/

Landscaping:  O’Neill has been keeping on top of the current Landscaping company, and is pleased with their work, so there is not much to report in that aspect.  The construction of the new trail leading to the fishing pond on Grove Hall Lane is underway, and will provide resident and maintenance access to the pond.  Work will continue over the next few weeks.

Holiday Shopping Event:  The second annual Chestnut Hill Holiday Market will be taking place this Saturday, December 1, from 10:30am – 1:30pm, at the clubhouse.  Come visit your talented and entrepreneurial neighbors, and get a start on your holiday shopping.  All are welcome!

Social Committee:   The Social Committee would like to remind residents of the upcoming Holiday Drop-In on Saturday, December 8, from 10am – 1pm, at the clubhouse.  The event will include brunch, crafts for kids, and pictures with Santa.  All CHP residents are welcome.

***Please RSVP the number of adults and children attending to Linda Catoe at:  LDOG66@aol.com or Facebook a private message with the subject line ‘CHP BRUNCH.’  It is important that you RSVP so the committee can make sure to have enough goodies for all!

Communications Committee:  We recently had an issue with the CHP website server, which caused a few hiccups.  Our webmaster, Cynthia, has been on top of the issue, and reports that all problems have been solved, and the website is running smoothly again.

Pool:   Renovations and repairs to the pool area are still slated to begin over the winter/spring seasons.  A Pool Committee is currently being formed, so if you are interested in joining, please contact JJ Gentry or Jeremy Catoe via the CHP website:  www.chpsc.org.

Neighborhood Section Signs:   If you come home some morning or afternoon and find your neighborhood section sign missing, do not fret – signs will be removed over the next few months for cleaning and repainting.  Also, the Board is looking into getting a new, ‘classier’ neighborhood sign for the Hollingshed entrance.  Residents have often noted that our entrance is hard to see, especially in the dark, so the new sign would be a bit bigger, with better lighting.

Electrical/Lighting:   An electrician has been obtained, and plans are in order to replace/repair lights that are out at the pool complex.  Also, electricians are sorting out the confusing, 25 year-old, outdated electrical systems that connect the clubhouse lights and clubhouse step lights.  Once these systems are charted and updated, The Board plans to have those repairs started soon.  Also, the electricians will be making repairs to neighborhood section and entrance signs, so if your section sign does NOT light up, please let the Board know.

Security Cameras:   Cameras have been purchased for the clubhouse complex, and as soon as Internet connectivity issues have been resolved, they will be installed.

Volunteers Needed:   The storage shed behind the pool complex is a mess, and needs to be organized and cleaned.  If you are interested in volunteering some time and helping JJ Gentry accomplish this task, please contact him via the CHP website:  www.chpsc.org.

Director’s Meeting:   A meeting was held recently between David Peterson of Halcyon and the Board to discuss and make the upcoming budget for 2019.  The Board presented a list of ‘needs’ (must be done) as well as a ‘wish list,’ and a rough draft of the budget was established.  One of the major points of discussion was the Monetary Reserves – money purposely held aside for emergencies.  The CHP Community has, over the years, steadily maintained a fairly large reserve, thanks to new construction and new dues coming into the budget.  However, we have now reached a point where home building has reached a plateau, and no new money is coming in by way of dues.  Because of this – and the age of the neighborhood (25 years-old) – we have needed to occasionally dip into the reserves for the past few years to make necessary repairs (NOTE: no ‘wish list’ items ever come out of the reserves).   When looking at this coming year’s budget and the repairs needed, the budget goes into the negative for the first time in many years.

In order to get the budget back in order, one of two things must happen.  The Board is faced with cutting amenities and/or services, or raising HOA dues….

As a community, we pride ourselves on the available amenities, and have more than a many other communities of a comparable size.  It is our amenities that draw new residents to the neighborhood, and make CHP an exciting place to live.  In past HOA meetings, residents have often stated that the amenities offered in this community were the deciding factor on choosing to purchase in CHP.

Compared to other local communities, CHP’s HOA dues are not exorbitant for the amenities offered.  CHP has not seen a raise in dues since 2015, and prior to that, in the year 2000.  David Peterson states that a 5% increase would solve the budgetary issues – this translates into approximately $25.00 extra per year ($12.50 per billing cycle, or roughly $2.10 per month).  A discussion among the residents in attendance found that residents did not feel this was an outrageous amount.

The Board will be taking both recommendations under advisement, and the Board and David will be finalizing the budget over the next couple of weeks.  The Board will present the 2019 budget at the upcoming budget meeting (below).

If you have questions regarding the upcoming budget, please contact the Board – they will be happy to hear your thoughts and suggestions as well as answer your inquiries.  They may be reached via the CHP  website:  www.chpsc.org

2019 Budget Meeting:  The Annual Budget Meeting will be held on Monday, December 10, at 6:30pm at the clubhouse.  All residents are welcome and encouraged to attend! Copies of the final budget will be available, and the Board will discuss the budget and upcoming plans for the community.  If you have never attended an HOA meeting, this is the one to attend.

*FYI – Due to the early budget meeting and upcoming holidays, there will be no regularly scheduled HOA meeting at the end of the month.

Meeting End:  8:13pm

Minutes reviewed and authorized by:  Larry Newton, CHP Board

Renée Cabaup/Comm. Comm.