HOA Meeting Minutes

CHP HOA Meeting Minutes – 04/27/2020

Due to the recent COVID-19 Social Distancing and Stay-at-Home orders from local and state government officials, tonight’s Monthly HOA Meeting was held at the clubhouse with only HOA Board members and notes recorder Renée Cabaup of the Communications Committee in attendance. 

All attendees practiced proper social distancing.

Meeting start: 6:38 pm

Board Members in Attendance:  J.J. Gentry, David Bergeron, O’Neil Gilliam, and Jan Talkish.

Board Members Absent:  0

Attendees via phone conference:  David Peterson of Halcyon Residential Services, and Dave Elledge of Palmetto Pool Management, LLC.

Halcyon:  David Peterson reports that the concrete work on the boat ramp at the lake has been finished and looks good.   Pressure washing of the tennis courts took place last month and they are looking good as well.

David needs to get in touch with the contractor who worked on the clubhouse chimney, as the mortar over the new flashing needs to be finished.  He will be making that call this coming week.

David is also still in the process of obtaining estimates for a storage structure to be built at the far end of the pool.  This project, as well as others, may need to be postponed due to the possibility of resident financial hardships (paying dues) because of the Covid Crisis.  Should finances become strained, the Board and Halcyon would prefer not to have to touch the established emergency reserves.  If additional money is needed to take care of necessary HOA issues, some wish list items may need to be postponed until next year.Clubhouse Lighting:  Board members will be setting up a meeting with Lance, the electrician, to make final decisions regarding clubhouse lighting along the walkway.  Because this is a safety issue, it is considered a necessity and will be funded immediately.

Clubhouse Pothole:  The Board, as well as David Peterson, will be obtaining quotes from paving companies to repair the pothole at the entrance of the clubhouse parking lot.  Quotes will be gathered not only to fix the existing hole, but also to possibly repair the entire front parking entrance.

Pool:   The Board spoke via phone conference with David Elledge, of Palmetto Pool Management, during tonight’s meeting.  David’s team members have been preparing the pool per usual for opening, however, it is unknown at this time when the pool may actually open, as David is waiting for official guidelines from DHEC, the City of Columbia, and the state government.  Currently, social distancing and stay-at-home mandates are in effect until (at least) May 15^th.

David states that he has two areas of concern in regard to opening the pool:  the first is maintaining social distancing, and the second is sanitizing areas of high contact, which include the gates, bathrooms, water fountains, chairs, tables, etc.

Social distancing is the biggest worry.  There are questions as to whether or not the number of people accessing the pool will be limited, or how to maintain proper distancing, but no decisions have been made about that yet by DHEC (which is currently following the Governor’s lead as far as openings).  David strongly suggests the possibility of our pool having a second attendant, so that one may maintain the gate and signing books and the other may be roaming, and reminding people about social distancing. (Reminder:  all attendants that work at the pool are over the age of 18)

Sanitizing surfaces will need to be an ongoing process before the pool opens each day and during swim hours.  David mentioned the possible use of disinfecting foggers – portable machines which emit a bleach mist - that can sanitize items such as chairs, bathrooms, etc., at the beginning of each day.  The addition of a second attendant will also help with sanitizing maintenance throughout the day.

According to David, there are no Covid worries as far as being in the water because of the chlorine.

After brief discussion, Board members agreed that the addition of a second attendant at the pool during the Covid Crisis would be a good idea.

The Board also decided to set up a meeting with members of the Pool Committee, including Jeremy Catoe (who used to chair the committee), to talk about Covid changes to the rules, procedures, attendance, etc. Following that meeting, the Board will follow up with Dave at Palmetto Pool Management.

Dave will keep the Board informed of any new information he hears regarding pool openings, procedures for social distancing and sanitizing, etc., prior to May 15th (the current social distancing mandate).

The HOA **hopes** to open the pool on May 16^th (it usually opens a week before Memorial Day Weekend), however this is subject to state and local social distancing restrictions. The opening date may change in accordance with additional mandates.

The Board would like residents to know that the Board reserves the right to establish stricter pool guidelines than DHEC, if necessary, to maintain resident health and safety.

Communications Committee:  The new outdoor communication boards have been erected - one can be found at the stop sign at the corner of Lost Creek Drive and Pond Oak Drive, and the other one near the stop sign at Lost Creek Drive at Hollingshed.  Visibility is very good for drivers who are stopped at the traffic signs. Additional letters are being ordered to maintain both boards.

The Communications Committee is now assisting the Board with emails that they receive from residents via the CHP website.  It is hoped that this will improve the response time to resident questions, and also free up Board members and Halcyon to reply to more complicated issues.  All emails answered by members of the Communications Committee are copied to the Board members and Halcyon in order to maintain a complete record of communication.  It is anticipated that with this new procedure, general questions will be answered within 24 hours by members of the Communications Committee, and those questions that require Board member or Halcyon attention will be addressed within 72 hours.

The new, official HOA Facebook page is growing steadily as more community members join.  This information only page contains news, updates, and notifications of importance to residents, including links to information that is placed on the website.  The group posts are closed to commenting, and advertisements are not allowed.  The Official page offers an alternative for residents who wish to receive official HOA news and information without general chatter.

The group is open for residents to join - it is expected that there will be no more than 2-3 postings a week.   The group can be found at:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/ChestnutHillPlantationHOAOfficial/

 

Clubhouse:   Currently, with social distancing mandates, the clubhouse cannot be reserved until after May 15th.   Jan reports that there are already a few reservations booked for the end of May.  Residents wishing to book the clubhouse for future events may do so, but need to be aware that – depending on government Covid mandates - reservations are subject to change.

At this time, Jan reports that she is not collecting money for reservations due to the ever-changing current situation.

 

Trails:  CHP resident Matt Cieri has taken the initiative and volunteered to map out the many CHP HOA trails!  Once a final version is established, it is hoped that it can be posted on trail boards, as well as added to the HOA website.

Only HOA owned and managed property trails will be highlighted on this map.  There are still three areas within the neighborhood where hiking trails can be found, however these are still under control of the original developer (not owned by the HOA), and cannot be added to the HOA map. These areas include: Stable Ridge, the trail off of Lost Creek Drive that follows behind Welwyn Place, and the woodland stream area across from the Welwyn Place trail.  The developer has not had an issue with people hiking on the three aforementioned areas.

The Board has decided to send a letter to the developer asking if he would be willing to donate these pieces of land to the HOA, with the stipulation that the land be added to the conservation easement, and not be developed. In the past, the developer has not wanted to sell, however, the Board feels it doesn’t hurt to ask again as the worst the developer can do is decline.

Meeting End:  7:55pm

Minutes reviewed and authorized by:  David Bergeron, O’Neil Gilliam, HOA Board Members

 

Renée Cabaup / Comm. Comm.