THE ELIZABETH CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION
4601 North Park Avenue
Chevy Chase, MD 20815
Minutes of the Board of Directors Meeting, June 25, 2013
Board Present:
David Robinson President
Steven Schattman............Vice-President
Jim Vuko.........................Secretary
Ted Ariev .......................Director.
Alfred Muller ... Director
Alfred Muller ... Director
Jim Jones....................... Director...
John McNerney ............ Treasurer
Others Present:
Gregory Roby .............. Senior Vice-President, Legum & Norman
James M. Santos ..............ECA General Manager, Legum & Norman
James M. Santos ..............ECA General Manager, Legum & Norman
Jana Bowcut Recording Secretary, On the Record
On May 28 and 29 2013, and June 12 and 18, 2013, in
accordance with Section 11.109.1 of the Maryland Condominium Act, the Board met
in executive session to conduct personnel and legal issues.
Call
to Order: Dr. Robinson called the
meeting to order at 7:36 p.m.
Approval
of Meeting Minutes:
MOTION Mr. Schattman
moved, Mr. Vuko seconded that the amended minutes of the meeting of the board
of directors on May 28, 2013 be approved. The motion passed with all in favor
(5-0-0).
President’s
Report: Dr. Robinson reported that this
meeting is the last of the fiscal year. He also thanked Mary Catherine Curran
and James Jones for accepting committee responsibility to help Management
coordinate cleaning of the storage rooms.
Treasurer’s
Report: The following report was
provided by Mr. McNerney prior to the meeting:
The amounts included herein are rounded to the nearest
$1,000.
·
As of May 31, the
Association had $3,066,000 in cash and investments, a decrease of $26,000 from
the prior month.
·
The Replacement Reserve Fund
at the end of May was $2,663,000, a decrease of $26,000 from the prior month.
·
Expenditures from the
Reserve Fund in May totaled $31,000. The amount expended from that fund so far
this fiscal year is $465,000.
·
Delinquencies through
the end of May were $80,000, an increase of $4,000 from the prior month. Five
accounts are in collection, including one that is in bankruptcy.
·
Five Certificates of
Deposit (CDs) in the total amount $975,000 matured in early June. $750,000 of
that was reinvested in short-term (three months or less) CDs in anticipation of
the need for those funds later this year for Maintenance, Repair and
Replacement program.
·
Management has solicited
line of credit proposals from four lending sources. They have received two
proposals. The leading candidate has been provided additional information
necessary to prepare loan documents, which should be ready for review by the
Association’s lawyers for presentation to the Board within the next several
weeks.
·
The final audit by
DeLeon and Stang for FY2012 was delivered to the Association on June 21. Copies
are available in the management office.
Copies of the Balance Sheet and Statement of Income and
Expenses as of May 31 will be available at the front desk.
Management
Report: Mr. Santos reported on the
following:
·
Current work order
delinquencies total $907.50, of which $551.00 is at or greater than 60 days.
·
The final audit was just
received, and hard copies are available in the management office. Owners may
also have a PDF version e-mailed to them if requested.
·
The arcade canopy work
is about 90 percent complete; metal coping along the top and lettering are
still needed. The west garage demolition is complete.
·
The Maintenance Repair
& Replacement program is progressing with upcoming work on the roof
anchors, chiller, sewage ejector/sump pumps, roof ventilation and duct
cleaning. Mr. Santos is concerned about interruption of A/C during the day and
a temporary pump may be needed to maintain it. Work on the sewage injection and
sump pumps will begin in July. Roof ventilation and duct cleaning work is
ongoing.
·
A new
electricity-provider contract for January 1, 2014 is being prepared. Suppliers are
providing information to a third party, who will do the analysis and will present
its recommendation in July. The Association’s current contract is a two-year
contract, but a new one could be for one, two, or three years.
·
47 condominium owners have
signed up for the fan coil replacement plan. Management can begin getting
specifications for prices. Dr. Muller asked whether once the initial estimates
are received, additional owners could decide to participate. Mr. Santos
responded “yes” and he will advertise the information when it is available.
·
Dr. Muller inquired why
the stairway signage project has been on hold for a while. Mr. Santos stated
that is an expense that was not budgeted for until 2014.
Committee
Reports:
Website: Mr. Schattman reported that he is currently leading work
on the website, and will have some help from an additional staff member in the office.
As of yesterday, only 16 residents had signed up for the website, and he
encouraged more residents to participate. Those who were registered on the
previous site are not automatically registered on the new one. Mr. Schattman
requested that the office distribute a flier with the website address. Owners
will need their Legum & Norman account number to register and will need to
create a password. Information on upcoming events from committee chairmen
should be given to the office so they can be entered onto the calendar. The
website will be a valuable tool as it will hold documents of the Association,
will be able to process work orders, and communicate with residents.
Library: A donation from Irene Ladwig provided the library with
about 100 books of art and travel. Ms. Ladwig’s niece, Connie Hartsfield, was
thanked in obtaining the donation. The committee requests that residents not
donate any more books since there is no more space for them.
Social Committee: The cookbook compiled from the Food Fest will be ready
within a week and will be distributed to the donors and the workers. The
remaining will be in the Management office and will be available on a
first-come, first-served basis. The committee thanked all those who were
involved.
Old Business:
Mr. Santos provided an update
on options for the wireless microphone system. At the previous board meeting,
after presenting a proposal for an $11-12,000 system, Mr. Santos was asked to
seek more options. Another option that would replace 10 microphones with antennas
on the ceiling, would cost $9,086. If board members shared microphones, and
only five microphones were purchased, the cost would be $6,866. Mr. Ariev asked
about the life expectancy of a new system. Mr. Santos was unsure and will get
some specifications on this.
New Business:
1. Garage ventilation fan replacement: As part of the Maintenance,
Repair and Replacement plan, improvements to the garage ventilation system were
suggested. A bid from the Densel Company was received to replace the current 16
garage fans with 8 energy efficient fans, which will be connected to an
automatic timer to run at varying speeds throughout the day. A Carbon Monoxide
detection system was not included in the proposal, but is still being
considered. The amount budgeted for this work is $108,000.
MOTION Dr. Muller
moved, Mr. Schattman seconded to approve the proposal from the Densel Company
to install 8 new energy efficient garage fans on levels G1-G4 at a cost of $117,094.60. The motion passed
all in favor (5-0-0).
2. City water pump/filtration: Of the three water pumps that are
involved in this system, two of them are original, and the third is 16 years
old. The equipment is in various degrees of corrosion, and some valves cannot
be closed or isolated. Originally, only two pumps were recommended for
replacement now (the third in several years), however, Mr. Santos recommended
replacing the third pump as a replacement was found that would be at a lower
cost than if purchased later, and the contractor can more easily install it
while replacing the other pumps.
Dr. Muller expressed concern
that only $133,000 was budgeted for this work, and adding the additional work
puts the Association about $100,000 over budget, and the report did not state
that a new pump was needed. Mr. Ariev responded that by doing the work now will
help the Association to save money in the long run. Dr. Robinson stated that
throughout the program, there will be other opportunities where it will make
sense to do unplanned work that will be the best value for the Association. Mr.
Schattman agreed that it does not make sense to disconnect everything twice.
Comments from the floor were
invited. One resident expressed that incurring this cost now ignores the budget
and the ten-year plan. Another resident inquired what the expected life of the
third pump is. Mr. Santos responded that it should last another nine or 10
years. A question was also asked whether the Board sees whether this might
affect future condominium fees. Mr. Ariev stated that contingency funds are
built into the program to cover this. Dr. Muller was concerned that this fund
was being used incorrectly and should be reserved for when there is unexpected
cost with the work, not doing additional items earlier than planned.
MOTION Mr. Ariev moved,
Mr. Vuko seconded to approve the proposal from Noyes Air Conditioning, Inc. to
replace the city water pump/filtration system for $235,140.00. The motion
passed with Dr. Robinson, Mr. Schattman and Mr. Ariev in favor, and Dr. Muller
and Mr. Vuko opposed (3-2-0).
3. Garage Concrete Membrane Repairs/Resurfacing: This work is proposed for the turn areas of levels G1 to G3
and the entrance ramps for both entrances. Mr. Santos stated that this scope of
work includes the turn areas were the surface receives the most wear. This work
is necessary to prevent expensive damage to the concrete.
MOTION Dr.
Muller moved, Mr. Ariev seconded to accept the engineer’s (Wiss, Janney Elstner
Associates, Inc.) recommendation of Choice Restoration Services, Inc. for
performing concrete membrane repairs and resurfacing (G-1 to G-3) for the
amount of $21,754.00. The motion passed unanimously (5-0-0).
4. Fire Alarm System Upgrades: This work includes the replacement of the main control panel
and pull stations on floors. Bids received so far are not similar in scope, and
prices are too far apart. Mr. Santos has been working with the contractors and
the engineer to make the bids comparable. This should be done within the next
seven days. Dr. Muller inquired if a signed agreement was received from the
fire department, to which Mr. Santos responded that it has. This agreement
gives the Association five years to upgrade its equipment. $300,000 is budgeted
for Phase 1 and 2.
5. 2014 Capital Improvement Plan: Mr. Santos stated that he has a list of additional improvements
that he would like to recommend in the coming fiscal year. This includes
improvements to the fitness area, computer upgrades and doors needing
replacement. The items on the list cost an estimated $118,000; the list was
provided to the treasurer and finance committee during the FY2014 budget
preparation. Dr. Muller expressed concern that the contingency fund is for
unexpected costs, not additional items. He added that the engineering
consultants did not indicate any of these suggested things and new projects
should not be considered. Dr. Robinson stated there will always be additional
needs that cannot be budgeted for. Mr. Santos added that these capital
improvement items are projects for daily operations and outside the Maintenance
Repair & Replacement projects.
Resident
Comments:
Rita Miller, Unit #607, stated
that the pool water is cloudy. Mr. Santos stated that the cloudiness is due to
an imbalance of chemicals used to treat the water and Winkler Management
assured him that it had been fixed. The resident stated that it has not been
fixed and has been a problem from Friday through today. Mr. Santos stated that
he has told the owner of Winkler Management that performance has been
substandard and this will be put in writing in the July management report.
Alexandra Kielty, Unit #1121,
stated that the door leading to the arcade from the elevator lobby is difficult
to open and is getting worse. Mr. Santos will inspect the door. Ms. Kielty also
asked about the impact the HVAC replacement will have to residents located in
the same tier. Mr. Santos stated that it will not impact those residents above
or below.
Pam Dillon, Unit #718, stated
that the correction to the budget discussed in last month’s meeting has not
been corrected. She is concerned that the Board is not running the Association
in a financially sound way.
A resident requested that a
group be convened to address questions regarding the fan coil replacement
project. Mr. Santos stated that prices should be obtained first, and then an
information session can be planned.
Judi Barth, Unit #209,
suggested that the contractor supplying the fan coil units could bring in a
unit to show to residents and brief them before any decisions are made. Ms.
Barth also asked if the concrete work will fix the flooding that occurs on the
G-2 level of the garage. Mr. Santos stated that the approved work is for the
surface only, and the engineer is working on a solution, which involves the
help of PEPCO. Ms. Barth also requested that the holes in the West garage wall
be fixed.
Residents expressed concern
about items littering a wall on the G-2 level, cars stored by people who do not
own a condo. Mr. Santos stated that notice will be given to violators.
Adjournment: The
President adjourned the meeting at 9:17p.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,
_____________________________________
Jim Vuko, Board Secretary
