Bay Tree Board

Agenda

June 10th, 2010

The following are the minutes of the Bay Tree Board meeting held onJune 10th, 2010; at 2:00pm Central Time.

Brief update on the “Ricky Lawsuit” – Chris

  • Chris gave an update on the lawsuit. It has finally come to an end. All parties have signed off on a settlement provided by AIG, and a judge has dismissed the lawsuit “with prejudice”. Bay Tree will soon receive an invoice from AIG to cover our retention fee of $15,000. The funds are available in our Reserve Account. Owners will be notified in our regular June Newsletter. All that’s left is for Bay Tree to sign the papers.

Donna’s Departure and Replacement – All

  • Donna will be leaving the Board on June 28th, when the sale of her share of her condo closes. Joe Mikeska was appointed to the Treasurer position by the Board. Chris and Donna will meet with Joe in the near future to review the financial management processes and important aspects of our Quickbooks system. The Board decided not to try and fill the vacancy, but rather wait until general elections at the September owners meeting.
  • The Board discussed the possibility of contracting with a local Quickbooks consultant to continue planned enhancements in our accounting system. There is a set of items which we would like to complete, including further automation of transactions and improved management in the area of payroll taxes and vacation/sick time accrual. We would also like to have a resource available for on-demand consulting and assistance on an as-needed basis. Donna and Chris are in the process of interviewing potential candidates and developing a proposal.

Brief update on Tax ProtestStatus – Chris

  • Chris gave a brief update on the status. The protest has been filed with 40 of 44 units participating. Nueces Tax Relief will be requesting more background information as necessary. The protest process is not expected to conclude until late July or early August.

CAN Project Proposal – Larry

  • The Board discussed various options. It was decided that we would seek out local contractors to provide advice and budgetary quotes for four basic options; 1) simply painting and sprucing up the Can; 2) possible rehab of the Can, including siding, mansard, and painting; 3) replacement with a metal building; 4) replacement with a wood frame building, possibly a prefab. The Board concluded that a local contractor would be able to evaluate the local building codes and the pros and cons of each option. We also agreed to obtain bids and ideas from a local contractor for resurfacing of the parking area. Larry’s availability is constrained at this time, so John and Chris will assist in identifying local contractors.

Advertising Strategy

  • Chris reviewed a draft of the Bay Tree Advertising Strategy. The Board had a number of good suggestions to add to the strategy. Chris will continue to work with the staff to develop the various items involved and keep the Board informed.
  • There were several specific items that the Board discussed in more detail.
  • New Tri-fold & Post Card – A new “postcard” has been developed and is being distributed with our “Welcome Package”. A new Tri-fold is being developed and the plan is to significantly increase the distribution and placement in local and remote locations. Chris will work with the staff to finalize the locations for stocking these tri-folds on a regular basis.
  • MySA - Summer Fun 2010 advertising opportunity – The Board decided to go ahead with an ad in the upcoming June issue of Summer Fun 2010, a periodical travel insert in the San Antonio Express newspaper. The ad will be ¼ page black and white, and the cost will be $1,353 on-time. The Board also decided to include a 10% discount for all rentals if customers bring the ad in when they check-in. The offer will expire on 9/31/10. Chris will work out the details for the ad placement.
  • Rental Rate Survey – Chris provided a survey developed by the staff. It was decided that a possible rate increase would be presented to owners for approval at the September meeting.

Brief update on Breakwater Repair, Channel Project – Chris & Joe

  • This item was deferred in the interest of time and will be on the next agenda. It is hoped that by then Joe and Chris will have more definitive progress and information on this topic.

Rental Phones Requirement Customer Survey – Chris

  • Chris provided the results of a customer survey taken during January through March. There were 59 customers surveyed, 23 of which required a land line to be available. The Board decided that in light of this survey, along with general safety and liability concerns, that Bay Tree would continue to require phones in each condo which is in the rental pool.

Other Hot Topics?

  • Diane’s proposal for Debbie Sweatman– Chris
  • The Board approved a pay adjustment for Debbie Sweatman. Chris will work out the details with Diane.
  • Mowing schedule – John Klee
  • The Board discussed the need to sustain a regular mowing schedule on Thursday or Friday morning, as required, so the Bay Tree grounds are in the best shape possible for our weekend guests. The Board recognizes that the current painting job on Bldg A is diverting a huge amount of time from this regular duty.
  • Catastrophe planning/footprint – John Klee
  • John discussed the notion that we need a plan or framework for what we would do if we had a catastrophe such as a fire or hurricane which required a complete or significant rebuild of Bay Tree. John will further study this and present his ideas in the near future.
  • The Board discussed the need to include “liability release” language on the Rental Receipts signed by our customers. Chris and Donna will work with the staff to complete this addition to our check-in process.