On June 26,
2012, in accordance with Section 11.109.1 of the Maryland Condominium Act, the
Board met in executive session.
Call to Order: Mr.
Ariev called the meeting to order at 7:33 p.m.
Approval of Meeting Minutes:
MOTION Mr. McNerney moved that the amended minutes of
the meeting of the Board of Directors on June 26, 2012 be approved. Mr.
Schattman seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously (7-0-0).
President’s Report: Mr. Ariev provided an update on the maintenance,
repair and replacement program. Reports have been received from all consultants
and are available to residents at the front desk and management office. The
full report, which is 200 pages long, will be available to the Board tomorrow
morning, and executive summaries, 20 pages long, will be available to all
owners. Consultants will be on-site to make presentations on July 31 and August
14 at 7:30 p.m. David Robinson, Jim Santos and Ted Ariev have met to fill in
some gaps in the report, such as finalizing the budget of the corridor and
communication systems, which are to be considered in the final cost of the
program. This will be presented to the Board, owners and residents.
Mr. Ariev
addressed the issue of smoking, which was raised by a resident at the June
board meeting. According to the by-laws, owners have the right to the use of
their apartments, except in cases where it becomes a nuisance or health issue
for other residents. The Board cannot take away a person’s right to smoke, but
if it becomes a severe nuisance, it can be brought to the Board’s attention. Dr.
Al Muller is knowledgeable about this issue and has agreed to assist the Board
and management in handling smoking-related issues as they arise.
Much progress
has been made with regard to trash removal in the garage. Mr. Santos and staff
have worked hard to clear trash, and will continue to do so.
At the last
meeting, Dr. Muller and others raised the question of the types and number of
social events. Once the chair of the social committee, Judith Barth, returns
from vacation, this will be reviewed by the Board.
Treasurer’s Report: Mr. McNerney provided the following
report:
As stated in tonight’s agenda notes, the
financial reports for the end of our fiscal year, June 30, are not available. ECA
books are kept on an accrual basis, and the calculations for closing the books
at the end of the fiscal year are far more involved than those for closing the
books on a monthly basis.
The financial reports for both the end of
the fiscal year and for the month of July will be presented at the August Board
meeting.
Delinquencies through July 16 total
$56,000. Six accounts are in collection.
Management Report: Mr. Roby reiterated that the June
financials are not available until the books for the ending fiscal year are
closed.
Mr. Santos
provided the following management report:
·
Beginning
Monday, the elevator hoist motor replacement will begin, starting with elevator
#3. This work will present some inconveniences to residents, and could require
the car to be out of operation for 30 days...
·
Three
additional surveillance cameras are needed in the West lobby.
MOTION Mr. Bressler
moved, Mr. Stekler seconded to authorize Electronic Security Services ESSI to
install three additional color cameras for surveillance monitoring of the West
Lobby. The cost of this work and installation is $2,747, labor parts and tax
included. The motion passed unanimously (7-0-0).
·
Loose
ceramic tiles and cracked mortar joints on the exterior walls of the commercial
arcade need to be addressed.
MOTION Mr. Bressler moved, Mr. Robinson
seconded to authorize Manders Decorating to remove loose tiles from exterior
walls of each commercial unit on the arcade level. The work includes securing
tiles and mortar joint replacement at a cost of $3,500. The motion passed
unanimously (7-0-0).
·
The
website is now up and running. Residents should log in as new members, but
prior log-in names and passwords can be used.
·
As
discussed in the June board meeting, Mr. Santos had guidelines on driving into
the garage placed in the ECA newsletter.
·
Mr.
Santos met with fire department personnel and announced that instructions for
residents with limited mobility will be posted on the bulletin board as soon as
these are provided by the fire marshal.
·
A solar
company has been contacted to begin exploring the possibility of installing
solar panels. Their initial opinion is that solar panel application is
feasible.
Committee reports:
Energy
Committee: Lynn Thayer, filling in for Joan Rosenbach, reported that
the committee has decided to use EcoBeco to provide energy saving solutions to
the building. A representative from EcoBeco has been invited to the August 28
meeting. If the Board approves the energy committee’s proposal for this work,
information tables will be set up in the east and west lobby to answer
questions and educate residents. EcoBeco will replace light bulbs with CFLs,
put aerators on faucets and install “smart” power strips at no financial cost
to the Elizabeth. If a significant number of residents participate, it could
give the Elizabeth substantial savings in energy costs.
Floor Reps: Floor representatives have welcomed 16
new residents who have moved in since July 1. Twenty-two residents volunteered to use their language
skills to assist new residents. A total of ten languages are offered, and new language
volunteers are welcome.
Library
Committee: The committee chair thanked residents for their
generous donations. However, there is a severe shortage of space, and future
donations should be in new/good condition, and of general interest. The
committee will explore obtaining more space. Mr. Ariev stated that he will
support finding additional space for the library.
Landscaping
Committee: The committee
recently met and took stock of plants not doing well. The committee will soon
meet with the landscapers to make decisions on annual plants.
Resident Comments:
Molly Frantz, Unit
1007, asked about the timetable for the maintenance, repair and replacement
program. Mr. Ariev stated that there will be a series of special meetings to
address the reports. A meeting will be held on August 14 to discuss the Mendoza
report, and related issues will also be discussed at the August 28 Board
meeting.
Ms. Frantz also
asked about the building’s liability if the pool is open but no lifeguard is on
deck. Mr. Santos responded that the pool should never be open without a lifeguard
present. He stated that the issue of a missing lifeguard has been addressed
with the pool management company, and there will always be a lifeguard at the
pool when it is open.
Ms. Frantz asked
about a previous refund that ECA received on a tax for utilities, and wanted to
know if the Association was still paying. Mr. Roby stated that the Association
has not been taxed after the refund.
Judy Gann, Unit
711, stated that she was unable to log on to the new ECA Website. She emailed
someone at Associa, who told her that she had to send a copy of her condo deed.
Mr. Santos stated that this was not accurate and he will investigate.
Stephanie Olshan,
Unit 1014, expressed concern over pets urinating in the elevator. She asked why
this could not be reviewed on film in order to hold residents responsible. Mr.
Santos stated that he was only aware of one incident of water on the floor,
which was from a bather, not an animal. He stated that residents should report all
incidents to the front desk, noting the time of occurrence, so that tapes can
be reviewed. He will talk to staff to make sure that these incidents are logged
properly. Several other residents voiced complaints about animals urinating in
elevators and in the garage.
Maurice Trebach,
Unit 1407, expressed concern about the size of dogs in the building. Mr. Santos
stated that the by-laws and house rules state that a small orderly dog, a cat,
or a caged bird is allowed.
Another resident
stated that the pet issue was examined by a committee a couple of years ago,
and the notes are available. Weight
limitation was removed years ago.
Adrienne Vanasco,
Unit 1609, asked that an ongoing record be kept of issues in the building. For
example, at the last meeting there were discussions of having action reports available
after fire alarm incidents, and curbing outsiders from parking in the garage.
Al Muller, Unit
411, stated that every animal incident that was reported and checked on camera
footage turned out to be pool water. Dr. Muller thanked the Board for coming up
with executive summaries of the consultant reports. He also praised Mr. Ariev’s
cover letter. Dr. Muller noted that some projects may not need to be addressed,
such as the exterior canopies.
Mr. Bressler
stated that a letter to residents is ready for distribution that explains why a
vote by residents is required to change the voting percentage from 75% to 66%
to change the by-laws.
Jim Jones, Unit
307, stated that to get on the new Website a code is needed, which is on each
resident payment stub for their monthly payments. Residents can then select a
user name and password.
Dr. Snyder, Unit
1120, asked if the new fire alarm system will have a signal to tell residents
if an alarm is real or false. Mr. Ariev stated that this will be part of the
overhaul of communications systems in the building, which will be addressed
over the next few years.
Adjournment:
The President
adjourned the meeting at 8:35 p.m., with the Board to meet immediately after
for an executive session, in concordance with section 11.109.1 of the Maryland
Condominium Act.
The initial
draft of the minutes, upon which these minutes are based, was prepared by Jana
Bowcut of On the Record.
Respectfully
submitted,
Ilo-Mai Harding,
Board Secretary
