Present at the meeting: Woody Cunningham, Jeffrey Axelrad, Judi Barth, Charles Bressler, Monique Fridell, Alexandra Kielty, Al Muller (late), Scott Murdoch, Mike Horan, recorder of meeting minutes
Treasurer’s Report
Treasurer had no comments but president Woody Cunningham said utility costs are over budget.
Landscaping Proposal from Ruppert
Described a plan for adding annuals but keeping the hollys and the hanging jasmine. He wants to add new paving blocks for aesthetic reasons. In the back of the building where there is no sunlight, he suggested a Japanese stone garden with no plantings whatsoever.
L & N Communilink Website for the ECA: A Demo
--Online service created with a basic template. Website is maintained by the association.
--Includes calendar, online forms, email, online payment option, classified ads, alerts,resources (board minutes, financial reports, etc.)
--38 L&N associations using this service.
--Start up and monthly fee. $1000 start up fee and $150 per month.
Management report (no president report this meeting)
--Engineering study delayed. Proposals were bid from $13500 to $56000. 2 0f 3 interviews were heard by Judi Barth. Grim lowest bid – have they done such a bldg like ours? Answer is NO. Mandoza Revis – has the experience with buildings like ours. WJE is a structural engineer. They would not look at McQuay units issue. WJE and Metropolitan have teamed up but these are two separate bids. Mandoza Revis offers the most comprehensive service but Mandoza Revis won’t do air balancing system.
MOTION: Selected Mandoza Revis.
--emergency generator experiencing a permit issue. Begin work end of March completiton end of May.
--still working on permits for the refurb.
AC policy
Resident requesting a/c starting end of March and not April 15 because of allergies that require keeping windows closed. Problem with the piping arrangement. Once we go to ac cannot go back to heat.
MOTION: Board voted to go to air conditioning March 30.
Budget
Condo fees will go up by 7.5%. The Board is concerned about building up reserves.
Notes: The Ruppert landscaping proposal is one of three.
Communilink is not the only option for an Association website. A better option could be Association Voice. Visit http://www.associationvoice.com/.
There are six candidates running for the ECA Board of Directors
> Judi Barth
> Molly Frantz
> Jim Jones
> Seth Levine
> H. Liu
> Dr. Alfred Muller
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
February 2010 Minutes of ECA Board Meeting
THE ELIZABETH CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION
4601 North Park Avenue
Chevy Chase, MD 20815
Minutes of Board of Directors Meeting January 21, 2010
Board Present:
Woody Cunningham ....................President
Alexandria Kielty .........................Vice President
Monique Fridell ...........................Treasurer
Judith Barth ................................Assistant Treasurer
Jeffrey Axelrad ............................Secretary
Charles Bressler ...........................Director
Dr. Alfred Muller .........................Director
Others present:
Scott Murdoch ............Community Manager, Legum & Norman
Michael Horan ............Property Manager, Legum & Norman
Call to Order: Mr. Cunningham called the meeting to order at 7:36 pm.
Approval of Minutes:
(R) Ms. Barth moved, and Mr. Bressler seconded, to approve the January 21, 2010, meeting minutes.
The motion passed unanimously, excepting Dr. Muller, who had not yet arrived
President’s Report: Dr. Cunningham thanked the condominium staff for its dedication and service despite equipment failures during the February snowstorms.
Treasurer’s Report: Ms. Fridell reported that she would meet with two resident volunteers on February 23, 2010, who would help with the fixed asset write-off project. Their recommendations will be returned to the board and must be approved by ECA’s auditor. She also reminded residents who use coupons to pay condominium fees that they would be receiving new coupon books in March for the April-June payments.
Manager’s Report: Mr. Murdoch reiterated Dr. Cunningham’s praise of the condominium staff for its performance during the snowstorms, especially those staff members who stayed overnight in the building.
Mr. Murdoch reviewed four bids for the installation of the emergency generator in the building. The low bidder, Power Systems, met with Dr. Cunningham, Mr. Horan, and Mr. Murdoch. Mr. Murdoch recommends this firm for the contract. The total estimated cost of the project, which also includes some elevator work, is $385,000.
Weather has delayed the progress on the review of proposals from energy-efficiency engineering consulting firms. One proposal was received on time, with two more received on February 19, 2010. Mr. Murdoch is waiting on a fourth proposal. Further discussion with the firms is needed before summarizing and presenting proposals to the Board for decision-making.
The building permit application for lobby renovation was delivered to the architects this week along with the necessary application fee.
Mr. Horan reported that AD Heath finished piping work in the lobby on February 12, 2010. In addition, electronic water detectors have arrived, and a notice will be posted for distribution of the detectors. Additional detectors will be offered to residents at $7 each.
More CFL bulbs will be ordered for residents to purchase.
Eighty-nine units signed up for replacement locks; the service has begun and should continue for two weeks.
Mr. Murdoch added that Mr. Horan and Ms. Gardner are drafting a personnel policy handbook that will be available for board review in a few months.
Ms. Gardner has narrowed delinquencies to eleven units, with five of those being significant delinquencies. One case involves four parking spaces.
A demonstration will be arranged for the election ballot tabulation services available through Legum & Norman.
Mr. Murdoch will distribute information the board regarding House Bill 842, which would give homeowners’ associations limited priority over the first mortgage for up to six months of assessments in the foreclosure process. A public hearing will be held March 4.
Legum & Norman is moving accounts from BB&T to Community Association Banc (CAB), a division of Mutual of Omaha Bank. New coupons for April, May, and June will be provided to residents who use payment coupons until new books are distributed for the new fiscal year.
Three complete proposals for planting and landscaping should be available by the board’s next meeting.
Old Business:
Power Services bid $199,599 for the contract to install the emergency generator. Bids for the project ranged up to $276,000.
(R) Ms. Kielty moved, and Ms. Fridell seconded, to grant the contract to install the emergency generator
to Power Systems. The motion passed unanimously by all members present, excepting Dr. Muller, who had not yet arrived.
Ms Barth reported that a formal presentation by the Hartman Design Group for owners and residents will be held on March 9, 2010, at 7:00pm, to review the design plans for the lobby renovation. An invitation will be distributed. The presentation will include the design plan for the lobby level, selected finishes, and a computer rendering of the front desk. Refreshments will be served. The application for the building permit for the renovation will be hand-carried to the county by the architects on Feb.23, 2009, and the approval process is could take up to six weeks. Bid letters for the General Contractor on the project are expected to be sent out around March 1, 2010. Bidders will have two weeks to respond to the request for bids after receiving the letter.
Ms. Kielty reported that the Exercise and Fitness Room Committee is examining options to reorganize and refresh the fitness facility in the building. Any equipment that is due to be replaced will be replaced with attached televisions. Some violations of building codes were identified by Heartline Fitness and can be easily fixed. Management will send a notice once a date is set for a public meeting to discuss potential improvements to the Fitness Room. A summary report of the Exercise and Fitness Room Committee was provided to the Board along with two informal proposals that had been submitted by Fitness Resoures and Heartline Fitness. The Committee had previously met with both vendors to obtain their suggestions and recommendations.
Meet the Candidate Night for the upcoming board election will be held on April 21, 2010.
(R) Mr. Axelrad moved, and Ms. Kielty seconded, that the moderator of the event not be a candidate in
the election. Dr. Cunningham asked that the motion be amended to specify that the moderator not be an active board member. Mr. Axelrad moved and Ms. Kielty seconded the amendment. The Amendment and, thereafter, the motion passed unanimously.
New Business:
The current snow blower is not suitable for the property. Mr. Horan will purchase a commercial-size machine but all options are currently sold out. He suggested a motion be made to obtain a snow blower before next winter.
(R) Dr. Cunningham moved, and Ms. Barth seconded, to approve the eventual purchase of a snow blower costingup to $1,500, at a time Management deems appropriate. The motion passed unanimously, except for Dr. Muller, who had not yet arrived.
Dr. Muller arrived at 8:45 p.m.
The board will hold an open meeting on March 11, 2010, at 6:30 p.m., to discuss the FY 2011 budget and five-year plan. It will be a working meeting for the board; as such no comments from the floor will be permitted. Another follow up meeting will likely be necessary to finalize the five-year plan.
Election Committee Report:
Karren Alenier reported that the Election Committee distributed a memo on February 1, 2010, to request nominations for the election. The memo was accompanied by a candidate questionnaire in order to allow residents to compare candidates based on equal criteria. According to Karren Alenier, the committee cleared all election materials with ECA counsel to ensure that they accorded with MD law and ECA bylaws. Absentee owners may mail signed, sealed envelopes containing proxy votes to the front desk lock box. The committee recommended using Legum & Norman’s electronic voting system in this year’s board election. The Committee made several additional recommendations regarding timing and review of submissions by prospective candidates.
Ms. Fridell and Ms. Kielty were uncomfortable with the board’s reviewing any documents related to the candidates since this could represent a conflict of interest with board members who are also candidates. Instead they requested that candidates’ documentation be sent directly to the Election Committee and that no candidate documentation be sent to any board member.
Election Committee member Sharon Bobb opined that once notice of the annual meeting is distributed, anyone else wishing to self-nominate may do so at the annual meeting.
Several members of the board objected to the use of the candidate questionnaire and to the requirement that proxy votes must include a signature across the envelope seal. A discussion of the Election Committee’s recommendations followed, with Board Members in agreement that a number of the proposals unduly restricted or discouraged individuals from seeking election to the Board.
(R) Mr. Axelrad moved, and Ms. Kielty seconded, That the Board compose and distribute a letter from the board to specify that the candidate questionnaire is optional and that all interested candidates will be considered regardless of the form of the candidate’s written submission of their expression of interest in being a candidate, so long as that expression of interest is submitted by March 15, 2010. The motion passed: All Board members voted in favor of the motion except Charles Bressler, who abstained.
(R) Ms. Barth moved, and Ms. Fridell seconded, that Legum & Norman’s electronic voting system be
utilized at the upcoming board election. The motion passed unanimously.
(A) The board by consensus agreed that proxy votes submitted in the official envelope provided would be considered official. No seal signature is required to prove authenticity.
Floor Captains Report: A floor captain meeting was held on February 3, 2010. The primary issues discussed included mail delivery, cleanliness of trash rooms, and the role of the floor representatives. Those still experiencing difficulty with mail delivery after the blizzard can contact Rosa Taylor, manager of the Arlington Road Post Office, at (301) 941-2681. Erroneously delivered mail cannot be redistributed by the condominium but must be redelivered via the Postal Service. Stephanie Olshan will clarify this procedure with Ms. Taylor.
A sign will be posted in elevators to request that pizza boxes and other food containers be disposed of on level G1 instead of being left in the trash rooms on each floor. This will alleviate the congestion and disorganization in the trash rooms and promote cleanliness.
Several members of the board requested that the names of each floor representative be distributed so that residents know whom to contact on their floor. Ms. Olshan requested an updated list of residents from Mr. Horan, because the condominium directory is out of date and does not include renters.
Ms. Barth commented on an impromptu “hot chocolate party” which was held in the lobby for residents on the day of the second big snow blizzard. She said it was a big success thanks to Dr. Alfred Muller, who originated the idea and donated the goodies as well braved elements to get the supplies for the event.
Fitness Committee Report: On behalf of the Fitness Committee, Alexandra Kielty submitted a written report and, without objection, asked that the report be made a part of the minutes. This report is as follows:
. Fitness Committee Report
Board Meeting - February 22, 2010
Fitness Committee Members: Alexandra Kielty, Robin Schatmann, Steve Schattman, Jim Lawson, Jim Jones, and Monique Fridell
Background: The Fitness Committee was established to address one of the more important amenities that a residential building has to offer. We now recognize that it is very important to upgrade the Elizabeth fitness area in order to retrain or increase the value of our individual units. We know from realtors that the fitness area is critically important in the decision to purchase and we see realtors bringing potential clients threw the exercise area on a regular basis. Our exercise area has a number of very old pieces of equipment that are very much in need of being replaced. With this in mind, the board established a budget of $17,000 for upgrading of equipment during fiscal year 2009.
The Fitness Committee has taken a number of actions and explored options over the past number of months.
• Meetings were held with Fitness Resources, the vendor that had been previously held the maintenance contract with the Elizabeth and provided some of the equipment acquired in past procurements. They provided estimates for replacement of equipment and suggested various items for purchase (see attachment).
• A survey of residents and owners was conducted in the summer of 2009 to identify the usage and interests of residents regarding various pieces of equipment as well as the addition of televisions. The outcome of that survey has been previously shared with residents.
• An Add Service contract was established with Hartmann Design to obtain their recommendations for a more significant refurbishment of the fitness and pool areas scheduled for the FY 2011/2012. We expect a report from them some time in March.
• The Fitness Committee met with Jason Malecki from Heartline Fitness on Saturday, Feb. 20th. Heartline Fitness was established as the maintenance contractor for the Elizabeth in December 2009, a change which was due to lack of response by the prior contractor, Fitness Rsources, when repairs were requested.
Summary of Meeting with Heartline: Jason Malecki had been in our building several times and was familiar with the equipment and logistics of our exercise area. Jason was extremely helpful in identifying equipment that needed to be replaced and identifying equipment that would be reasonable within the space and general needs of a condominium of our size. He also identified a few code violations which can be readily addressed but which had not been identified previously. Generally, the idea is to remove old pieces that are cluttering up the rooms, remove equipment that is no longer used, realign the rooms into cardio and aerobic, and consolidate new equipment in one of the rooms to highlight the direction of upgrading our equipment. Jason also identified a few pieces of equipment that are at or over their useful life and should be replaced when they next breakdown (stair master and recumbent bike). His recommendations and related costs were provided today, Feb 22, and are attached for Board consideration. A presentation will be scheduled in late March or early April for residents to consider the specifics of replacement items and logistics. An announcement will be made in the near future for when this will occur.
Depending upon the presentation and board consideration, it is hoped that a vote on this can be held at the April Board Meeting.
Attachments [Omitted]
Comments from the Floor:
A resident asked what cable provider would supply the televisions which might be added to the fitness room. Ms. Barth responded that Comcast has a contract with the building, which includes the common area television and Internet service.
The same resident asked if a resume was required for those interested in nominating themselves to the board. It was clarified that background information could be delivered in any written format.
A resident asked why the lock project took so long to be put into action. Dr. Cunningham responded that design changes due to renovation were a factor and that an earlier order of locks had to be replaced.
A resident who was completing a term on the board of directors in his previous residence offered his assistance to the board in establishing a stable election process. He suggested that management could set up the process.
A resident was disturbed by the candidate questionnaire and found it discouraging. He suggested that questions for candidates should include a distinction between owners and renters, as well as whether the candidate has been convicted of any crimes.
The same resident requested information about the extra costs for direct debit. He had requested information in July 2009 but received no response from Legum & Norman. Management agreed to provide information to the resident.
A resident reacted to implications that the last board election was compromised and implored the board to improve the election system in order to maintain the integrity of the election results.
A resident requested that the board examine utility costs and consider the amount of energy potentially wasted by existing windows.
The first draft of these minutes was prepared by Recording Secretary Lisa Rowan.
Adjournment: Dr. Cunningham adjourned the meeting at 10:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Jeffrey Axelrad, Board Secretary
4601 North Park Avenue
Chevy Chase, MD 20815
Minutes of Board of Directors Meeting January 21, 2010
Board Present:
Woody Cunningham ....................President
Alexandria Kielty .........................Vice President
Monique Fridell ...........................Treasurer
Judith Barth ................................Assistant Treasurer
Jeffrey Axelrad ............................Secretary
Charles Bressler ...........................Director
Dr. Alfred Muller .........................Director
Others present:
Scott Murdoch ............Community Manager, Legum & Norman
Michael Horan ............Property Manager, Legum & Norman
Call to Order: Mr. Cunningham called the meeting to order at 7:36 pm.
Approval of Minutes:
(R) Ms. Barth moved, and Mr. Bressler seconded, to approve the January 21, 2010, meeting minutes.
The motion passed unanimously, excepting Dr. Muller, who had not yet arrived
President’s Report: Dr. Cunningham thanked the condominium staff for its dedication and service despite equipment failures during the February snowstorms.
Treasurer’s Report: Ms. Fridell reported that she would meet with two resident volunteers on February 23, 2010, who would help with the fixed asset write-off project. Their recommendations will be returned to the board and must be approved by ECA’s auditor. She also reminded residents who use coupons to pay condominium fees that they would be receiving new coupon books in March for the April-June payments.
Manager’s Report: Mr. Murdoch reiterated Dr. Cunningham’s praise of the condominium staff for its performance during the snowstorms, especially those staff members who stayed overnight in the building.
Mr. Murdoch reviewed four bids for the installation of the emergency generator in the building. The low bidder, Power Systems, met with Dr. Cunningham, Mr. Horan, and Mr. Murdoch. Mr. Murdoch recommends this firm for the contract. The total estimated cost of the project, which also includes some elevator work, is $385,000.
Weather has delayed the progress on the review of proposals from energy-efficiency engineering consulting firms. One proposal was received on time, with two more received on February 19, 2010. Mr. Murdoch is waiting on a fourth proposal. Further discussion with the firms is needed before summarizing and presenting proposals to the Board for decision-making.
The building permit application for lobby renovation was delivered to the architects this week along with the necessary application fee.
Mr. Horan reported that AD Heath finished piping work in the lobby on February 12, 2010. In addition, electronic water detectors have arrived, and a notice will be posted for distribution of the detectors. Additional detectors will be offered to residents at $7 each.
More CFL bulbs will be ordered for residents to purchase.
Eighty-nine units signed up for replacement locks; the service has begun and should continue for two weeks.
Mr. Murdoch added that Mr. Horan and Ms. Gardner are drafting a personnel policy handbook that will be available for board review in a few months.
Ms. Gardner has narrowed delinquencies to eleven units, with five of those being significant delinquencies. One case involves four parking spaces.
A demonstration will be arranged for the election ballot tabulation services available through Legum & Norman.
Mr. Murdoch will distribute information the board regarding House Bill 842, which would give homeowners’ associations limited priority over the first mortgage for up to six months of assessments in the foreclosure process. A public hearing will be held March 4.
Legum & Norman is moving accounts from BB&T to Community Association Banc (CAB), a division of Mutual of Omaha Bank. New coupons for April, May, and June will be provided to residents who use payment coupons until new books are distributed for the new fiscal year.
Three complete proposals for planting and landscaping should be available by the board’s next meeting.
Old Business:
Power Services bid $199,599 for the contract to install the emergency generator. Bids for the project ranged up to $276,000.
(R) Ms. Kielty moved, and Ms. Fridell seconded, to grant the contract to install the emergency generator
to Power Systems. The motion passed unanimously by all members present, excepting Dr. Muller, who had not yet arrived.
Ms Barth reported that a formal presentation by the Hartman Design Group for owners and residents will be held on March 9, 2010, at 7:00pm, to review the design plans for the lobby renovation. An invitation will be distributed. The presentation will include the design plan for the lobby level, selected finishes, and a computer rendering of the front desk. Refreshments will be served. The application for the building permit for the renovation will be hand-carried to the county by the architects on Feb.23, 2009, and the approval process is could take up to six weeks. Bid letters for the General Contractor on the project are expected to be sent out around March 1, 2010. Bidders will have two weeks to respond to the request for bids after receiving the letter.
Ms. Kielty reported that the Exercise and Fitness Room Committee is examining options to reorganize and refresh the fitness facility in the building. Any equipment that is due to be replaced will be replaced with attached televisions. Some violations of building codes were identified by Heartline Fitness and can be easily fixed. Management will send a notice once a date is set for a public meeting to discuss potential improvements to the Fitness Room. A summary report of the Exercise and Fitness Room Committee was provided to the Board along with two informal proposals that had been submitted by Fitness Resoures and Heartline Fitness. The Committee had previously met with both vendors to obtain their suggestions and recommendations.
Meet the Candidate Night for the upcoming board election will be held on April 21, 2010.
(R) Mr. Axelrad moved, and Ms. Kielty seconded, that the moderator of the event not be a candidate in
the election. Dr. Cunningham asked that the motion be amended to specify that the moderator not be an active board member. Mr. Axelrad moved and Ms. Kielty seconded the amendment. The Amendment and, thereafter, the motion passed unanimously.
New Business:
The current snow blower is not suitable for the property. Mr. Horan will purchase a commercial-size machine but all options are currently sold out. He suggested a motion be made to obtain a snow blower before next winter.
(R) Dr. Cunningham moved, and Ms. Barth seconded, to approve the eventual purchase of a snow blower costingup to $1,500, at a time Management deems appropriate. The motion passed unanimously, except for Dr. Muller, who had not yet arrived.
Dr. Muller arrived at 8:45 p.m.
The board will hold an open meeting on March 11, 2010, at 6:30 p.m., to discuss the FY 2011 budget and five-year plan. It will be a working meeting for the board; as such no comments from the floor will be permitted. Another follow up meeting will likely be necessary to finalize the five-year plan.
Election Committee Report:
Karren Alenier reported that the Election Committee distributed a memo on February 1, 2010, to request nominations for the election. The memo was accompanied by a candidate questionnaire in order to allow residents to compare candidates based on equal criteria. According to Karren Alenier, the committee cleared all election materials with ECA counsel to ensure that they accorded with MD law and ECA bylaws. Absentee owners may mail signed, sealed envelopes containing proxy votes to the front desk lock box. The committee recommended using Legum & Norman’s electronic voting system in this year’s board election. The Committee made several additional recommendations regarding timing and review of submissions by prospective candidates.
Ms. Fridell and Ms. Kielty were uncomfortable with the board’s reviewing any documents related to the candidates since this could represent a conflict of interest with board members who are also candidates. Instead they requested that candidates’ documentation be sent directly to the Election Committee and that no candidate documentation be sent to any board member.
Election Committee member Sharon Bobb opined that once notice of the annual meeting is distributed, anyone else wishing to self-nominate may do so at the annual meeting.
Several members of the board objected to the use of the candidate questionnaire and to the requirement that proxy votes must include a signature across the envelope seal. A discussion of the Election Committee’s recommendations followed, with Board Members in agreement that a number of the proposals unduly restricted or discouraged individuals from seeking election to the Board.
(R) Mr. Axelrad moved, and Ms. Kielty seconded, That the Board compose and distribute a letter from the board to specify that the candidate questionnaire is optional and that all interested candidates will be considered regardless of the form of the candidate’s written submission of their expression of interest in being a candidate, so long as that expression of interest is submitted by March 15, 2010. The motion passed: All Board members voted in favor of the motion except Charles Bressler, who abstained.
(R) Ms. Barth moved, and Ms. Fridell seconded, that Legum & Norman’s electronic voting system be
utilized at the upcoming board election. The motion passed unanimously.
(A) The board by consensus agreed that proxy votes submitted in the official envelope provided would be considered official. No seal signature is required to prove authenticity.
Floor Captains Report: A floor captain meeting was held on February 3, 2010. The primary issues discussed included mail delivery, cleanliness of trash rooms, and the role of the floor representatives. Those still experiencing difficulty with mail delivery after the blizzard can contact Rosa Taylor, manager of the Arlington Road Post Office, at (301) 941-2681. Erroneously delivered mail cannot be redistributed by the condominium but must be redelivered via the Postal Service. Stephanie Olshan will clarify this procedure with Ms. Taylor.
A sign will be posted in elevators to request that pizza boxes and other food containers be disposed of on level G1 instead of being left in the trash rooms on each floor. This will alleviate the congestion and disorganization in the trash rooms and promote cleanliness.
Several members of the board requested that the names of each floor representative be distributed so that residents know whom to contact on their floor. Ms. Olshan requested an updated list of residents from Mr. Horan, because the condominium directory is out of date and does not include renters.
Ms. Barth commented on an impromptu “hot chocolate party” which was held in the lobby for residents on the day of the second big snow blizzard. She said it was a big success thanks to Dr. Alfred Muller, who originated the idea and donated the goodies as well braved elements to get the supplies for the event.
Fitness Committee Report: On behalf of the Fitness Committee, Alexandra Kielty submitted a written report and, without objection, asked that the report be made a part of the minutes. This report is as follows:
. Fitness Committee Report
Board Meeting - February 22, 2010
Fitness Committee Members: Alexandra Kielty, Robin Schatmann, Steve Schattman, Jim Lawson, Jim Jones, and Monique Fridell
Background: The Fitness Committee was established to address one of the more important amenities that a residential building has to offer. We now recognize that it is very important to upgrade the Elizabeth fitness area in order to retrain or increase the value of our individual units. We know from realtors that the fitness area is critically important in the decision to purchase and we see realtors bringing potential clients threw the exercise area on a regular basis. Our exercise area has a number of very old pieces of equipment that are very much in need of being replaced. With this in mind, the board established a budget of $17,000 for upgrading of equipment during fiscal year 2009.
The Fitness Committee has taken a number of actions and explored options over the past number of months.
• Meetings were held with Fitness Resources, the vendor that had been previously held the maintenance contract with the Elizabeth and provided some of the equipment acquired in past procurements. They provided estimates for replacement of equipment and suggested various items for purchase (see attachment).
• A survey of residents and owners was conducted in the summer of 2009 to identify the usage and interests of residents regarding various pieces of equipment as well as the addition of televisions. The outcome of that survey has been previously shared with residents.
• An Add Service contract was established with Hartmann Design to obtain their recommendations for a more significant refurbishment of the fitness and pool areas scheduled for the FY 2011/2012. We expect a report from them some time in March.
• The Fitness Committee met with Jason Malecki from Heartline Fitness on Saturday, Feb. 20th. Heartline Fitness was established as the maintenance contractor for the Elizabeth in December 2009, a change which was due to lack of response by the prior contractor, Fitness Rsources, when repairs were requested.
Summary of Meeting with Heartline: Jason Malecki had been in our building several times and was familiar with the equipment and logistics of our exercise area. Jason was extremely helpful in identifying equipment that needed to be replaced and identifying equipment that would be reasonable within the space and general needs of a condominium of our size. He also identified a few code violations which can be readily addressed but which had not been identified previously. Generally, the idea is to remove old pieces that are cluttering up the rooms, remove equipment that is no longer used, realign the rooms into cardio and aerobic, and consolidate new equipment in one of the rooms to highlight the direction of upgrading our equipment. Jason also identified a few pieces of equipment that are at or over their useful life and should be replaced when they next breakdown (stair master and recumbent bike). His recommendations and related costs were provided today, Feb 22, and are attached for Board consideration. A presentation will be scheduled in late March or early April for residents to consider the specifics of replacement items and logistics. An announcement will be made in the near future for when this will occur.
Depending upon the presentation and board consideration, it is hoped that a vote on this can be held at the April Board Meeting.
Attachments [Omitted]
Comments from the Floor:
A resident asked what cable provider would supply the televisions which might be added to the fitness room. Ms. Barth responded that Comcast has a contract with the building, which includes the common area television and Internet service.
The same resident asked if a resume was required for those interested in nominating themselves to the board. It was clarified that background information could be delivered in any written format.
A resident asked why the lock project took so long to be put into action. Dr. Cunningham responded that design changes due to renovation were a factor and that an earlier order of locks had to be replaced.
A resident who was completing a term on the board of directors in his previous residence offered his assistance to the board in establishing a stable election process. He suggested that management could set up the process.
A resident was disturbed by the candidate questionnaire and found it discouraging. He suggested that questions for candidates should include a distinction between owners and renters, as well as whether the candidate has been convicted of any crimes.
The same resident requested information about the extra costs for direct debit. He had requested information in July 2009 but received no response from Legum & Norman. Management agreed to provide information to the resident.
A resident reacted to implications that the last board election was compromised and implored the board to improve the election system in order to maintain the integrity of the election results.
A resident requested that the board examine utility costs and consider the amount of energy potentially wasted by existing windows.
The first draft of these minutes was prepared by Recording Secretary Lisa Rowan.
Adjournment: Dr. Cunningham adjourned the meeting at 10:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Jeffrey Axelrad, Board Secretary