GenderPark Condominium Association
5152 Aquila Dr. Canal Winchester, Ohio43110
Phone: 614-834-7991 • Fax: 614-920-4248
THE BOARD’S CORNER NEWSLETTER
Greetings Everyone:
Welcome to the “Board’s Corner”. This is a new form of communication for the Gender Park Association. It is the hope of this Board that we can use the “Board’s Corner” as an additional way to communicate directly with the residents in between the monthly Board Meetings and quarterly Town Hall Meetings.
The “Board’s Corner” will be sent out from time to time as new developments transpire. In an effort not to add to anyone’s junk mail, the Board will attempt to keep the “Board’s Corner” coming only as needed. Don’t forget that you can also receive updates by logging onto our website at
It is our hope that you will all review this newsletter and the enclosed information prior to the Town Hall Meeting that is scheduled for this Sunday, March 29th, at 4:00 p.m. at the Clubhouse.
TREASURER’S CORNER
Hello everyone. This section is coming from your Treasurer, Steve Kumm.
As everyone knows, the roofs are damaged and we are in the process of collecting the insurance proceeds in order for the final repairs to be completed. The insurance proceeds that have been paid to the Association as of this date have been placed into a separate account at Huntington Bank. The Board decided to place these funds in a separate account in order for the repairs to be easily tracked. Also, the Board wanted to make sure that the funds were insured by the FDIC, given the caps that they have in place.
As for the Association’s daily operational accounts, the accounts maintain somewhere between $90,000 and $120,000. These accounts will vary, depending upon the day-to-day operational needs of the Association.
In order to further diversify the Association’s funds, the Board placed some of the Reserve Funds into CDs. Presently, the CDs have a value of approximately $103,000.
We are also aggressively pursuing the collection of all late fees and monies owed to the Association by residents that have failed to maintain their Condo Fees. The Board has been actively working with our Property Manager, Joe Lorenz, as well as our CPA, Rebecca Klepper and our Attorney, Karen Smith, in the collection of the outstanding fees. With everyone working together, we have been successful in collecting an additional $9,000 plus over the past several months.
If there are any questions or concerns about any of our accounts, investments or the budget enclosed herein, please contact me through the Management Office at the Clubhouse. After all, this is our money for the future of our Community.
PRESIDENT’S CORNER
Hello everyone. This section is coming from your President, Tonda Moore. Well, as you can see, a lot has been happening in our Community since our last communication.
(Bomb Threat)
As most of you will recall, our Community suffered another bomb threat several months ago. With the help of the Community and the Police Department, a resident was arrested and charged. At this time, the Court has not yet made a final disposition as to the charges. It is our hope that the case will be completed within the next several months.
In the meantime, it is important to note that the resident has moved out of our Community and there have been no more bomb threats.
(Investments)
As everyone already knows, a portion of the Community’s Reserve Funds were invested in the stock market. With the help of our Treasurer, Steve Kumm, and our Investment Broker, Glenn Holmes, the Board has kept a close eye on the Community’s Reserve Funds. And, for a period of time, our Reserve Funds made money in the stock market.
It’s important to remember that the Board’s original intent of investing the Reserve Funds into the stock market was a direct result of the roof repairs that the Reserve Study set forth. The Reserve Study showed that extensive roof repairs would need to be completed within the next ten (10) years, with each roof repair estimated at approximately $11,000 per roof, if not more. This specific repair would require more money than what the Association currently has in the Reserve Funds and more money than we could grow through conservative investments.
The Board has and continues to work very hard to budget so that Condo Fees don’t have to be raised. With this in mind, and after advice from our Counsel, it was clear that a portion of the Reserve Funds needed to be invested in the stock market in order to fund the roof repairs without raising Condo Fees.
However, as everyone already knows, the stock market has not been fairing so well. In light of the vulnerability of the stock market and after many discussions, the Board made a decision to move the Reserve Funds out of the stock market and back into conservative investments. The Board believed that it was best to preserve the principal portion of our Reserve Funds and to hold them in conservative investments until the stock market could recover.
It will be the responsibility of future Boards to make sure to reinvest the Reserve Funds into the stock market, once it has recovered. For now, the Reserve Funds have been placed into conservative investments, which are federally insured.
(Roofs)
Although the Reserve Study showed that our roofs would need to be replaced within ten (10) years, a little help from an “act of God” may have very well saved our Community a lot of money.
Due to the two (2) wind storms, our Community filed separate claims with the insurance company. Presently, the insurance company is working with our roofing expert, which happens to be an engineer, in determining the final payout as to the roof damages.
The insurance company already approved the temporary tarping of the roofs, which has been completed. The next step is the commencement of the final roof repairs, which we hope will begin within the next several months.
It is important to note that, depending upon the insurance’s determination, our Community may in fact be able to repair as many as eleven (11) roofs with the insurance proceeds. This would save our Community well over $200,000.00. Ultimately, this could help to preserve the Condo Fees remaining were they presently are today for a very long time.
(Budget)
Enclosed you will find a copy of our Community’s Budget. It is important to note that for the first time in the Association’s budgeting history, the Board determined to budget with actual income versus projected income.
In past years, the Board budgeted based upon an income derived from the payment of Condo Fees from 306 units. The Board normally budgeted under the assumption that there would be a 100% recovery and/or payment as to the Condo Fees for all 306 units. However, it has been the experience of this Board that a rate of 100% for all 306 units is not realistic.
Keeping this in mind, the Board elected to take an average of the Condo Income based upon the figures from the last several years. This resulted in an income figure which reflected 100% recovery for 267 units, rather than 306 units.
This actual income figure that the Board used to budget this year helped to keep the Association from budgeting with income that may not actually come in. It is important for you to note that the Board did in fact budget certain expenses at the maximum, leaving additional room for yearly adjustment. This is why the budget appears to be $50,000 over the income. Please note that the $50,000 is in fact covered with the CD at National City Bank. This CD is designated for additional expenditures that may be unforeseen and/or may be needed to cover the additional $50,000 presently budgeted. However, the Board felt that it would be best to draw interest on the $50,000 rather than having it merely sit in an account.
The Board is consistently working with Attorney Karen Smith to increase the rate of recovery when it comes to the collection of Condo Fees. As such, we have been successful in recovering an additional $9030.04 in just the last two months.
Please review the attached Budget and feel free to ask questions during the Town Hall Meeting scheduled for this Sunday.
CONCLUSION:
In conclusion, it is this Board’s hope that this year will continue to be as productive as we had anticipated. Please feel free to make any suggestions or voice any of your concerns by filling out a comment/suggestion form and submitting the same to the Management’s Office. All of the suggestion/comment forms are reviewed by the Board.
Thanks again for all of your support and hard work this year. We are looking forward to seeing everyone this Sunday.
Sincerely Yours,
Steve Kumm, Treasurer
Tonda Moore, President