Amston Lake District
Board of Directors Meeting Minutes
May 6th, 2009 7:00 P.M.
ALA Clubhouse, Wood Acres Rd., Amston, Ct.
A. Roll Call of Officers and Directors
Present:
Dave O’Brien, President
Dave Martin, Director
Dave Arnold, Director
Lynn Mika, Director
Ray DeCormier, Treasurer
Joanne Wool, Clerk
John Connor, Director
Sherri-Ann Martin, Director
Mark Paul, Vice President
Absent:
Eileen Curtin, Tax Collector
Also Present:
Carl Wool, Caretaker
Reggie Miles, Lake Health Coordinator
B. Call to Order
The meeting was called to order at 7:02 p.m. by Dave O’Brien, President
C. Recognition of Guests
Scott Forgue, 277 Deepwood Drive, Hebron
Scott asked if the resident who purchased the 50 acres with an entrance off Ames Road is planning to develop commercially this section of property. A road has been cut in and a lot of clearing has been done to sections of the property. It was felt by the Board that this issue needed further investigation so a motion was made by Dave Arnold to add this item (Northeast end … possible lake development) to tonight’s’ agenda under new business. It was seconded by Mark Paul. All were in favor.
D. Approval of Minutes
A motion was made by Dave Arnold to approve the April 1st, 2009 minutes. The motion was seconded by Mark Paul. All in favor. Minutes were accepted.
E. Receive Clerk’s Report
Joanne Wool stated that the minutes for the Special Meeting on 4/2 were filed and placed on line. Additional minutes were provided by Sherri-Ann Martin. Legal notices were placed in the newspapers for the Annual Meeting on 5/16. Joanne met with Mike Smith and, with Dave O’Brien’s’ approval, updates were made on the web site. Mike Smith has agreed to re-write the issues page which is out of date. A motion was made by Dave Martin to accept the Clerk’s Report and was seconded by Mark Paul. All were in favor.
F. Presentation of Correspondence and Communication
See Exhibit F attachment for listing of monthly correspondence.
G. Receive President’s Report
Dave O’Brien stated a decision had to be made on a vendor to do the septic inspections at NE Cove. A decision was made by the Board to contract Suburban Sanitation to complete this work. A letter with attached documentation was sent to Atty. Blumenthal for his review on the NE Cove/Sewer issue. Because of the volume of mail the state receives, his office stated to Dave that it may take several weeks to review our information. Dave will make a suspense file for this item. Dave spoke to the DEP concerning the additional information they need to issue a dredging permit. He will attend a meeting which will give instructions on how to complete the application and provide the detailed information needed.
H. Receive and Act on Treasurer’s Report
Ray DeCormier gave his report (Exhibit H). Dave Arnold has a question which he and Ray will discuss with Anita Connor during the month. A motion was made to accept the Treasurers’ Report as written by Sherri-Ann Martin and seconded by John Connor. Mark Paul, John Connor,
Joanne Wool, Sherri-Ann Martin, Dave Martin, and Lynn Mika approved. Dave Arnold opposed. Report has been approved.
I. Tax Collectors Report
Tax Collectors report was read by Joanne Wool due to Eileen Curtin’s absence. (Exhibit I). Note, the Grand List for Lebanon will not be ready for distribution before the Annual Meeting on 5/16.
J. Receive Standing and Special Committee’s Reports
1. Dam – Dave Arnold discussed the Duck Pond meeting with Karl Acimovic, and Doug Haskins (DEP), and described the various recommendations. All were extremely costly and the Board decided it would not be appropriate to pursue at this time. Dave Arnold will discuss less expensive alternative to repairs at Duck Pond and get back to the Board on this issue.
2. Storm Drains – No Report
3. Lebanon Wastewater Study – Dave Martin has applied to become a committee member of the Lebanon WPCA and will be interviewed soon. He will let the Board know the outcome at the next meeting.
4. Drinking Water – No report.
5. Boats and Rafts – Lynn Mika stated that 16 slips were now rented for the summer season and 14 have been paid for. One slip is still unrented.
6. Weeds – No Report. Mark Paul indicated no treatment will be needed for the 2009-10 budget period. He suggested that an evaluation of the weed condition in the lake be made in July-August and documented to determine our plans for 2010-11.
7. Communications- No Report
8. Ordinances – Mark Paul indicated that Atty. Cohn has indicated that in order to start using the ordinances which have been established by the Board, there needs to be a specific publication with special wording place in the newspaper. A full text or summery of the ordinances needs to be published along with a disclaimer. Ordinances will not be effective until 30 days after the posting. Mark will check with Atty. Cohn to put together a summary, if possible, and report back to the Board. Dave Arnold made a motion to spend up to $1,000 for the publication of our ordinances in a legal publication in Hebron and Lebanon. John Connor seconded. All in favor: John Connor, Joanne Wool, Mark Paul, Dave Martin, Sherri-Ann Martin, Dave Arnold, Lynn Mika. Abstained: Ray DeCormier. Motion approved.
9. Security – John Connor reported that the security budget has been completed. Carl Wool and Andy Kozlak have set up a summer schedule to do security checks with his and the approval Dave O’Brien. Security tee shirts will be ordered for those Board members who wish to wear them.
K. Lake Management
Carl Wool gave his Caretakers Report including the tasks that were accomplished during the month. (Exhibit K). This included a summary of the Lebanon Roads with the engineer, a newsletter article, and a revised notice flyer for security purposes. Carl was asked by Dave O’Brien to give a report on his suggestions for the Lebanon Road repairs. The Board elected to have the pot holes filled in at an estimated cost of $2,000. All other repairs will be discussed again after the summer season. Ryan Terrace is in need of completion. The Board decision on this issue is to make temporary repairs now to avoid any liability (fill in ruts, rake, check rocks, etc.) and then make a long term repair within the next calendar budget period. Dave Martin made a motion to allow up to a $2,000 expenditure to have pot holes filled on all ALD owned Lebanon Roads. This was seconded by Dave Arnold. All were in favor.
As Lake Health Coordinator, Reggie Miles report stated that he and Laurie Littlehale will no longer assemble the newsletter. It was not clear at the meeting if this included formatting the newsletter as well. Reggie gave a slide presentation on the history of NE Cove. The Board appreciated the information but asked him to provide them with a project plan for the steps that need to be taken after the sanitation inspections are completed. Reggie commented that one of the options was to lower the lake on a short-term basis.
The following minutes were taken by the ALD Clerk, reviewed, and approved by President O’Brien and the ALD Board: Dave O’Brien presented the Board with documentation showing Mr. Miles was given a listing of his approved Lake Health tasks as part of his new position. This list was provided on March 26th. To further clarify Reggie’s new role and the roles of other individuals, a Clarification of ALD Tax District Employee Roles and Responsibilities document was issued on April 17th. This last document required employee’s signatures. Dave O’Brien then explained to the ALD Board that Reggie submitted a time sheet for the month of April which included hours that had not been pre-approved. Reggie was asked to justify the hours worked and the $1,380 billed to the tax district. In addition to these hours, $377.70 in expenses was submitted (only an electric trolling motor for $186.56 was pre-approved by the ALD Board). Little explanation was provided to the ALD Board. Dave O’Brien then explained that the tax district was only legally responsible for paying $890.00. The $890.00 consisted of 30 pre-approved hours at $20.00 per hour and $290.00 in labor costs for the ALD Newsletter. The Board then explored their options and decided to accept the time sheets as presented without any further explanation, and pay the total amount submitted by Reggie. Reggie was then told by Dave O’Brien that any additional hours that were not pre-approved would not be paid and would be considered volunteerism to the tax district. Reggie was asked if he understood. Reggie gave a round-about lengthy answer and finally ended it by saying yes, he agreed.
L. Act on Remaining Items of Agenda….Old Business
1. Lake Goals Built into a Work Plan: Mark Paul requested postponing this of discussion on this issue until the next meeting.
2. Final Budget & Annual Meeting Preparation: The Board will be presenting a flat budget to residents at the Annual Meeting. Joanne Wool asked if the new budget will be placed on the web site before the meeting for the residents to review. Ray DeCormier said this would be done.
M. New Business
1. Draft Motion for Annual Meeting: Dave Arnold will draft a motion to be presented to the residents at the Annual Meeting for a new ordinance to prevent the use of fertilizers containing phosphates. A draft of this motion will be sent to the Board members before the Annual Meeting.
2. North End …Possible Lake Development: Per Scott Forgue’s request, and the Board decision that this issue needs further research, a committee was sent up to investigate the zoning regulations for the towns and contact the resident/owner of the property to verify what their intentions are. The committee members are: Mark Paul and John Connor.
N. Prepare Agenda for Next Meeting
1. Lake Goals Built into a Work Plan
O. Adjournment
Sherri-Ann Martin moved for adjournment and John Connor seconded. The motion was approved unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 10:59 pm.
Respectfully submitted by Joanne Wool, Clerk