ZHA Annual Meeting 2009

ZAPATA HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION

ANNUAL MEETING

AUGUST 1, 2009 

The Zapata Homeowners Association held their annual meeting at 10:00 AM on Saturday, August 1, 2009 at Jim Jones’ property at 214 Big Bear Road.  Prior to the regular business meeting a New Member Orientation was held at 9:00 AM.  Board members present were:  Chairman John White, Co-Chairman Jack Zeman, Treasurer Jerry Grandey, Secretary Joe Funk and member Jim Jones.  Administrator Cindy Chapman was also in attendance.  The following property owners attended:  Blake Harmon, Mike and Kim Bennett, John Clark, Tyra Barnes, Dan Curtis, Erin Smith, Diana Steenburg, Mike Vittoria, Carole Bieshaar, Jodine Ryan Walter Schwalm, Joyce and Bob Ausberger, Jim Ausberger, Marty Russum, Felicia Stonedale, Peter Bekius, Mark and Darlene Smith, Steve and Linda Duffy, Pam George, Joan and Bill Bevington, Charles Ellison, Mary Clement, Betty Westbrook, Robert and Kathy Schultz, Dodie Day, Wayne Ross and Nancy Starling Ross, John Stump and Perla Kopeloff. 

WELCOME, INTRODUCTION OF CURRENT BOARD MEMBERS, AGENDA OVERVIEW

Board Chairman John White opened the meeting and acted as facilitator for the meeting.  John welcomed everyone in attendance and thanked them for coming.  John introduced the current board members:  Co-Chairman Jack Zeman who chairs the Architecture Committee; Treasurer Jerry Grandey who chairs the Communications and Fire Committees; Secretary Joe Funk who chairs the Physical Improvements Committee; Jim Jones who chairs the Water Committee.  John chairs the Fees & Budget and Governance Committees. 

ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF THE HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION

John gave a brief summary of the boards accomplishments over the last year.  The big issue that was addressed and resolved was the foreclosure on property owner Rockwood properties.  Of their eight lots, five were sold to two individuals with the other three being deeded over to the Association to be disposed of per policy at a later date.  Numerous items that had been outlined in the 2009 Board Strategic Plan will be highlighted later in the meeting. 

RECOGNITION OF BOARD MEMBERS AND VOLUNTEERS

At this point in the meeting, John asked volunteers who are serving on committees to stand and be recognized.  He also asked that anyone who had attended a board meeting over the last year to stand and be recognized as well.  He asked those that did not stand up to become involved either by attending board meetings or serving on a committee as the ZHA needs everyone’s involvement. 

NUMBER OF BOARD MEMBERS AND RESPONSIBILITY OF BOARD MEMBERS AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS

John outlined the committees in place on the subdivision.  The committees are critical to the operation of the ZHA.  The members serve at the pleasure of the board and do not operate alone.  They are Architecture, Communications, Fees & Budget, Fire, Governance, Physical Improvements, Water and Welcome Committee which has just been formed.  John outlined the function of each committee and a one year commitment is all that is asked.  Meetings are usually held once a quarter or more frequently if necessary.  This is not a huge time commitment as much of the committee work can be done either by email or a phone call. 

John stated that the Board of Directors is the governing body of the Association.  The Board’s function is to enforce all of the governing documents, manage the affairs of the ZHA, promote the civic and social wellbeing of the ZHA community, work in the best interest of the entire ZHA, responsible to the membership to represent them in policy and procedural matters including working with other governmental agencies and serve as a forum.  Meetings of the Board are held on the third Friday of each month and service is to the entire membership and not to fulfill a personal agenda.  Currently there are five members serving on the Board.  Three of these members terms will expire in 2010 and two will expire in 2011.  There are two positions that have been vacant for the last year.  One position is a one year term and the other position is a three year term.  Each board member is the chair of a committee and a board member does not need to be a full time resident of the subdivision.  Active participation of each board member only makes the Association stronger. 

John Stump stated that he would accept the one year term.  John and his wife Perla are hopeful to build on the subdivision in the near future.  He recently retired from the SLV Development Resource Group and has been a volunteer as a railroad consultant and enjoys fly fishing.  John has also written the five year comprehensive plan for a number of years for the San Luis Valley and has aided in bringing in large sums of grant monies to the Valley. 

George “Marty” Russum stated that he would accept the three year term.  He and his wife moved onto the subdivision ten months from Florida when they purchased Ray and Terry Morley’s residence.  His wife, Debra Rice works at the La Jara Medical Center. 

     Erin Smith moved to elected John Stump for a one year term and George “Marty” Russum for a three year term by acclamation.  Motion was seconded and motion carried unanimously. 

BOARD 2009 STRATEGIC PLAN UPDATE

The 2009 Strategic Plan adopted by the Board in February stating board priorities and initiatives for the calendar year were available for members to review.  Completion dates were added this year to help keep the board on track for completing as many items as possible.  The Board determined items that were important to the subdivision and then these items were assigned to the most appropriate committee for implementation and completion.  About one-half of the items assigned have been completed with the other one-half to be completed this fall. 

The Master Plan for the front entrance was brought up with John explaining that this has not been developed largely because the inclusion of the fire house needs to be included and there are still too many unknowns on this project.  Another suggestion is to have a walkway around the Lower Lake.  Relocating the bulletin boards and the entrance gates is also being examined. 

Weed Control Plan is an assignment to the Physical Improvements committee as some progress has been made.  Kim Bennett has been working with Phyllis Bovin from the Dunes and a plan is being formulated with mapping out existing weeds, time schedule for when to best deal with these weeds, and the appropriate treatment for these weeds.  Kim Bennett informed those present that she has pictures of the weeds that need attention with her today for those who are interested. 

Charles Ellison asked if a brief history on the water situation on the subdivision.  John stated that when the subdivision was established there were four water use designations assigned.  Those being residential, commercial, RV and dormitory of which the dormitory and RV never materialized.  Unit III issue that is now being addressed is to re-zone this area as the Association recognizes this area as residential and Alamosa County recognizes it as commercial and this needs to be resolved as there are many property owners in that area that have useless property.  There is a relatively small amount of water currently designated for commercial use.  One possibility to rectify this situation would be to open the existing water decree and have the available water re-allocated.  The problem with this would be that it would be very costly to the Association and some gains as well as losses in water would probably occur.  It was clarified that any water can be used for fire defense.  When a fire house is built it would require commercial water. 

COMMITTEE UPDATES AND REPORTS

Architecture

     ■Alternative Energy Devices Addition to A/C Guidelines:  Chairman Jack Zeman stated that there have been approximately 12 permits issued over the last year.  Most have been for minor improvements with one being for construction of a residence.  Jack also stated that with the help of John and Tyra Barnes a section on Alternative Energy Devices has been adopted for both the residential and commercial architectural guidelines. 

     ■Commercial Property on the Zapata Subdivision:  Jack informed members present that there would be a hearing before the Alamosa County Planning Commission on August 12, 2009 @ 7:00 PM concerning the ZHA’s application to re-zone Unit III.  This will also be heard before the board of Alamosa County Commissioners on September 9, 2009 @ 8:30 AM. 

A question was asked as to the property that is the proposed site for the future fire house.  This proposed site is on greenbelt and has been approved by Alamosa County Land Use.   

Diana Steenburg asked if there were guidelines included in the Alternative Energy Devices as to height restrictions for wind turbines.  Jack assured her that this had been addressed in the adopted revision. 

At this point in the meeting, Bob Schultz asked to address the membership on the Unit III zoning issue that was mentioned earlier.  Bob stated that the proposed Unit III re-zoning issues hits him and Kathy emotionally, financially and personally.  He gave a history of the commercial zoning issue of Unit III and in particular his home.  His dome had been used as the land sale office when the subdivision was being developed and when he bought it in 1985 it was still considered commercial property.  He has since been conducting business out of this property.  Bob asked for status quo on his property and feels the ZHA has forced a change of zoning without the Schultz’ permission.  He feels that if the new Covenants are passed and recognizes only the north top of Unit III as commercial property he will have no other alternative but to bring a lawsuit against Alamosa County and the Zapata Homeowners Association. 

Jack stated that there was some false information in Bob’s statement.  First of all, Alamosa County had come to the ZHA board and asked for a clarification in the zoning of Unit III and are not pushing this application as the ZHA board but rather as property owners in the Unit III area.  The final decision on this zoning issue will be made by Alamosa County and the reason this application was initiated was because of the survey done by the ZHA a couple of years ago concerning commercial uses on the subdivision and the overwhelming response to limit the type of commercial usage from the ZHA membership. 

Nancy Starling Ross stated that because of the past history of commercial use documented on the Schultz’ property that Alamosa County could very well grant an exception to them in this case so that their property can remain commercially zoned. 

Communications:

     ■New Website:  Chairman Jerry Grandey stated that since last year the website development has come a long way but there are still issues.  Primarily the appearance is good but the function is not.  Jack Zeman has volunteered to work with the web designer to work out some of the remaining problems.  Snail mail will still be used but for faster means of communications, the website will be used. 

     ■Request for Email Addresses:  Again the Board is asking for all property owners who have an email address, please provide them to the Administrator so that when hot topics need to be sent out quickly, email will be used along with the website to keep the membership informed. 

Fees & Budget:

     ■Dues Assessment and Collection:  Chairman John White stated that during the last year, the Board revised the policy dealing with Dues Assessment and Collection.  A collection agency has been hired to aid in the collection of past due accounts and that is working effectively.  A time line of how this policy will function and when an account will be turned over to the collection agency is addressed in this revised Policy #9.02.  If the collection agency is not successful then the delinquent account information will be turned over to the credit bureaus. 

Another policy developed is the disposition of assets which will be followed when the ZHA is ready to sell the remaining three Rockwood properties that were not sold at foreclosure sale. 

Fire:

     Chairman Jerry Grandey stated that his committee had been working on fire protection for the subdivision.  There is now a burn policy in place that states that there will be “no open fires” allowed on the subdivision. 

     ■Greenbelt Surveys/Wood Collection Policy:  Jerry stated that Joe Funk has been working very hard on greenbelt cleanup and also marking the entrances to the greenbelts.  Green sign means greenbelt; red sign means not greenbelt so stay off.  Permission must be granted by the board for wood removal and/or cutting on the greenbelt areas and the property owners must accompany those removing wood. 

     ■Temporary Firehouse and Apparatus:  There is now a fire engine in place at the temporary storage on TNC property.  Signs will soon be erected giving directions to this storage.  Jerry stated that it is now up to individual home owners to contact their insurance carriers to inform them of this information.  Fire mitigation grants are being explored and information keeps changing as to how private property owners can ask for reimbursement. 

     ■Fire Station/Location and Progress:  A site for the future fire house has been decided on with input from Mosca/Hooper Fire Department approving of this location.  The ZHA will own the property and the building and the Alamosa County Fire Protection District will own the apparatus.  Erin Smith asked if there is now a storage facility for a fire engine why a fire house needs to be built.  Jerry explained that this storage is only temporary as TNC may need this building in the future.  Nancy Starling Ross asked if a vote of the membership would be required to build the fire house on a greenbelt area to which Jerry stated he did not know.  Diana Steenburg asked if a cost had been determined for the fire house construction.  Monies will very likely be available through stimulus funds.  The federal government is scheduled to make a decision on applications in August with a matching funds requirement.  Jerry stated that there should be some Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) monies available for some of the matching funds. 

Governance:

     ■Conflict of Interest:  Chairman John White stated that the Governance Committee had made a revision to the Conflict of Interest Policy to broaden the definition of what a conflict of interest is. 

     ■Enforcement/Fines:  A policy and fine fee was developed for violations that occur on the subdivision. 

     ■Dispute Resolution:  A policy was developed on the procedure is should a conflict arise between neighbor to neighbor; neighbor to Association; or Association to neighbor and how a resolution can be reached. 

     ■Covenants:  Much work has been done over the last year to draft a new set of Covenants to govern the subdivision and that process is still ongoing. 

Diana Steenburg asked why the membership had not been notified of the fine schedule for their input before the policy was approved by the board.  John stated that before any policy is adopted, they have to go through three readings and each of these readings is an agenda item.  Diana felt that these fines are significant and the membership should have been notified.  Carole Bieshaar stated that there are many ways to obtain information from the Association and that members need to be more proactive in obtaining information. 

John pointed out that there are several ways of obtaining information about the activity of the ZHA.  Contact the Administrator either by phone, mail or email.  Contact information is available for each board member.  A Newsletter is sent out four times a year and other mailings on important information is also mailed out.  The ZHA maintains a website where all of the current and past activities are listed.  As an Association the ZHA has also adopted a document on the Rights and Responsibilities for Better Communities and in this there is a section on the Rights and Responsibilities both for the community leaders and for the membership.  As a member, each one has a right and a responsibility to keep themselves informed and cannot rely totally of the board to provide every tidbit of information. 

Physical Improvements:

     ■Upper Lake Repair:  Chairman Joe Funk stated that the Upper Lake restoration has been completed and fish have been put in both the Upper and Lower lakes on the subdivision. 

The roads have had quite a bit of grading and rolling and some road base has also been put down where most needed.  His committee began the year by evaluating which roads should be improved and they have tried to stick to this plan.  The front gate has also been painted and new culverts have been installed throughout the subdivision.  When asked about snow plowing, Joe stated that he tries to leave the moisture on the roads unless there is a large snowfall and then he has the roads graded.  The ZHA is not responsible for individual driveways. 

Water:

     ■Commercial Water:  Chairman Jim Jones stated that his committee over the last year has been very proactive.  TNC’s water decree has been settled and the ZHA came out pretty well thanks to the diligence of the Executive Water Committee and their tireless work on this issue.   

     ■Added Pipeline Baffle:  Water has been restored to the Upper Lake.  A baffle/shunt was placed in the pipe feeding into the lake to allow for more water to flow into the lake.  Negotiations are ongoing with TNC and water issues.  Two meetings have been held so far with more open and better communications.  There has been good runoff from the snow pack received in the area last winter and early spring. 

Jim asked all present to thank Joe Funk for all that he does for the subdivision.  Cooley and Sons was awarded the contract for road maintenance and Joe has spent many volunteer hours running the packer to ensure that the subdivision roads are maintained and are in better shape than ever. 

Nancy Starling Ross asked about horse watering on the subdivision.  She was told that a letter addressing this issue has been sent to Water Division III.  This letter is asking for a change of use so that the ZHA can sell water to horse owners on the subdivision.  Verbally Water Division III stated this might be possible but no written documentation has been received as of yet.  Jim stated a book of instructions on water issues is being developed to aid in continuity as members change.  This book will also outline the necessary reports that need to be filed to ensure that the subdivision has water. 

NEW BUSINESS

     ■Vote on Covenants:  A vote will not be taken on the Covenants update as there are only 34.65% present (325 votes) either in person or by proxy at this meeting.  John stated that this process began two years ago when Alamosa County asked for assistance in clearing up some conflicting issues surrounding the subdivision.  Some property currently has no value until these issues are resolved.  The Bylaws took priority until they were passed two years ago and so now the focus is on the Covenants.  John stated that he is a little frustrated with some of the comments heard through the grapevine that people would not vote for the Covenants revisions because they did not trust the Board.  This does not punish the Board as much as it punishes ZHA members.  Legal opinions do not even agree.  There are stacks of maps showing what apply and what does not.  This all needs to be clear up so that there is one set of Covenants and one map that applies.  Alamosa County and Water Division III are waiting on the ZHA to get their governing documents in order which created somewhat of a deadline.  Two open houses were held with good input from those members attending.  Good consensus was reached so the draft document was sent for a legal opinion.  Changes after this opinion was received were made and the current draft was put on the website on July 3, 2009 for members to review and send in their comments.  A forum was created on the website to receive those comments but only two comments were posted.  Over the past ten days or so several members looked at this draft and found several areas that still needed work.  It is impossible to do a side-by-side comparison as so much has changed from the original documents to the current draft that it would be impossible to read.  The draft presented today is the third draft.  The first draft worked on combining the two existing documents.  The second draft was done after the first open house and the third draft presented today is after the second open house and legal opinion was received.  John’s frustration is why these comments were not sent in two months ago instead of two weeks ago and why a deadline can’t be set and met by the Association as a whole. 

Much discussion followed with John highlighting the topics still under debate.  Some of the issues may be better to put into a policy rather than include it in the Covenants.  Lobbying from members needs to occur to get the word out now that the committee has gotten the members attention and then conduct the vote by mail.  It was decided to hold another open house on Saturday, August 29, 2009 at 9:00 AM at the Dunes Conference Room.  Hopefully a final draft will be ready to send out for a vote by the end of October, 2009. 

ADJOURNMENT:  There being no further business to come before the membership the meeting was adjourned. 
 
 

_____________________________________________

Joe Funk, Secretary