FBRA MINUTES OF MEETING ON JUNE 30, 2018

Transcription

1 FBRA MINUTES OF MEETING ON JUNE 30, 2018 Meeting convened at 9:03 a.m. 1) MINUTES FROM LAST MEETING: Motion to approve Minutes from May 19, 2018 made by Jim Holley, seconded by Herb Cover. MOTION CARRIED. 2) TREASURER S REPORT: (see attached) 3) MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS ADDED TO AGENDA: A. Dangerous properties - King George has a new Abatement Law designed to deal with properties that can be deemed dangerous to the public. A complaint has been filed with King George County regarding the property on 5th Street next to Jason and Ali Coffey. Property is owned by Shannon Remodeling LLC however, the property is not being maintained nor have they been paying their taxes. The Law allows for house to be torn down. However, the County is in the process of developing policy so the complaint will remain in the pipeline for now. Question: Tommie Klise asked who would pay for the tear down. Answer: Property Owner. B. Golf cart registration and inspections - Tara Patterson handles the Annual Recertification for Golf Carts which includes certifying to the County that FVB wants to remain a Golf Cart Community and there have been no problems or accidents during the past year. Tara is requesting $500 to cover Annual Registration supplies. Motion for $500 made by Al Ventura, seconded by Bonnie Stone. MOTION CARRIED FINANCIAL MOTION C. FBRA Elections - Election time is approaching and Leesa Shrewsbury is the new Chairman. Three Board members will be elected as well as the President and Secretary. Current Board Members up for reelection are Al Ventura, Ginny Grimes and Bryan Metts all have agreed to run again. Mike Bennett and Shirley Buckley have agreed to run for President and Secretary respectively. Any additional residents interested in running for any position should contact Leesa so the final Slate of Officers can be presented at the July meeting. Elections will take place at the August meeting. 4) EROSION AND REPAIRS: FEMA GRANT Contract for Phase I (Design) has been approved and awarded. $300,000 has been set aside by King George to pay invoices on the contract. King George will then be reimbursed by FEMA and Virginia. This is a substantial financial 1

2 commitment by King George County through appropriated funds and staff resources (including matching services). There will be no out of pocket or tax revenue expenses to Fairview Beach for Phase I. The Design Phase will be done by Schnabel Engineering a local firm from Glen Allen, Virginia. Questions from Tom Hudson: Did Schnabel get a copy of the Bayshore Design? Answer: Yes. Where did the control blankets, matting and a living shoreline reference come from in the RFP? Answer: Unknown with Tom Hudson and Mike Bennett to discuss after meeting and Mike will take question to County Engineer, Travis Quesenberry. ACTION ITEM GROIN BETWEEN 6135 AND 6139 POTOMAC AVENUE Permits are in hand but contractor has been delayed. Contractor did view work site last week and determined there are 3 old groins, some only visible at low tide. Plan says remove existing groin. It was determined that existing groin should be removed as it extends out and then to the left which could present future problems for new groin. REPAIR AT 10 th STREET STEPS TO BEACH Contractor reviewed last week as well. Work may get done on weekend due to Contractor availability. Neighbors have been contacted and all agree repair needs to be done regardless of weekend. Retaining wall to be repaired by contractor. REPAIR OF SIDEWALK AT BOAT RAMP Matt Beard has done some repairs to the worst spots at the high end of the sidewalk near Potomac Avenue. Estimate received was $3500 which seems on the high side. However, Jim Holley stated that removal of existing sidewalk and haul away contributes to the estimate. Old Guy Repair Team may be able to repair a small section at a time. Don Pfalzgraf will obtain additional estimates. ACTION ITEM REPAIR OF PIER BOARDS AT BOAT RAMP - Jay Steiner has made all repairs. One missing board was replaced with a board that washed up and 1 2 X 8 board needs replacing. Mike Bennett has the needed replacement board. 1 ST AND 3 RD STREET STEPS REPAIR - will be done by Mike Bennett and Jim Holley perhaps as early as next week. Still trying to find best size and price for boards. Jay Steiner brought up whether a shorter board will provide adequate support and some risers needed to be fixed as well. Much discussion centered around appropriate sizing and pricing. Mike Bennett and Jim Holley to research. ACTION ITEM LIGHT AT BOARD RAMP Al Venture advised that it is FIXED. 2

3 5) FUNDRAISING - EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES - PANCAKE BREAKFAST Mike Bennett asked for comments about Pancake Breakfast great good food delicious excellent quality and quantity of food. Sande Pfalzgraf recognized Sam s Pizza, a new business to the community opening mid July. Garrett and Sherry Lynn (the managers) are already supporting us as a sponsor for the Pancake Breakfast. Sherry Lynn asked for the Community s patience with the dumpster and are excited to be a part of the community. Sande thanked all the volunteers and felt the Pancake Breakfast was well received by the attendees. She did state that attendance and volunteers were impacted due to many residents being out of town. Janet Harrover said more volunteers are always welcomed. We were fortunate to have assistance from residents that put on an annual Pancake Breakfast for their church. We do have leftover items which are being sold or returned. See Sande s recent for amounts and costs. Based on this experience we will not do 2 events on same day. We did get 7 new sponsors this time so keep asking your individual service providers. Next up is Fairview Beach Day. Of the $1500 allocated, $1200 has been spent on the fundraiser portion of Fairview Beach Day. Will most likely need additional money for t-shirts which Leesa is working on. Question from Bonnie Stone: Are we doing the bake sale table during Golf Cart Registration? Answer: Yes, although a firm date is not yet available. T-shirts and Fairview Beach raffle tickets will be sold as well. Reminder that the Golf Tournament is scheduled for October 19th. Question from Sallie Hartman: Any thoughts to doing Pancake Breakfast with Golf Cart Registration? Answer: We have not had a committee meeting to discuss future fundraisers but all suggestions will be considered. One suggestion under consideration is to have it early in the season as a welcoming back event. Mike Bennett feels that the Golf Cart Registration is a well oiled machine and would be difficult to add any additional event other than what is normally done alongside the registration. Mike also complimented Don and Sande Pfalzgraf for their extra work to ensure that no electrical circuits would be blown at the Pancake Breakfast. Statement from Kathy Holley: Sande asks for volunteers well in advance. It would be wonderful if you would let her know. Sande reminded all that our fundraising efforts will continue as we are totally unsure how much money that FBRA may need to come up with for the Construction Phase of the FEMA project. With that in mind Leesa Shrewsbury has come up with a give back to the community event - a drive-in movie on July 7th. It will be a 50 s theme and the movie GREASE. Dress up as your favorite character there will be prizes! Hopefully, it will be well attended and we can do more of these. Popcorn and candy will be sold. There will be a blanket area and golf carts are welcome. Herb Cover will put flyer on web site. MOTION made by Bryan Metts, seconded by Al Ventura for $250 to cover expenses. MOTION CARRIED FINANCIAL MOTION Leesa also announced a new t-shirt design has been done by Donnie Wedding and will be available as a limited edition. Design will be available shortly. Compliments to Leesa for her creativity and Tommie for her writing skills. Both are an asset to the Board. 3

4 6) CHANGES TO BYLAWS ABSENTEE VOTING Mike stated that Board was inclined to allow for absentee voting for Elections and opened the floor for discussion. Comment by Tom Hudson: I am in favor but should attend some number of meetings prior to submitting absentee vote. President s Response Some Board members strongly agree and some do not. Bylaws would have to be amended to define a member in good standing as attending some number of meetings. Comment by Kathy Holley: Minutes are available to be read without attending a meeting; some may work on Saturdays but have paid their dues member should be allowed to vote. Comment by Sallie Hartman: guidelines should be very simple and very clear to reduce confusion and disagreements. Question from Jay Steiner: would a write-in be possible on a absentee ballot? President s response: if you are here at the Election, nominations are accepted from the floor but need to check Roberts Rules if a 2nd is required if 2nd would be required then no. Question from Sande Pfalzgraf: how would the absentee voters be validated? Answer from Bryan Metts: an election official would be appointed to validate eligibility and then record vote to prevent a 2nd vote at meeting. Comment by Leesa Shrewsbury: it was discussed that an absentee ballot would need to be requested not sent automatically. Question from Jettie Cover: would this be limited to Elections or would other hot button issues be open to absentee voting? Answer: Elections Only. Mike Bennett further stated that there are many changes that are being proposed to the Bylaws. An example is Fairview Beach Day which is not considered a fundraiser but the Fundraising Committee has been responsible in recent years. Leesa has agreed to chair the Nominating Committee which is being combined with the Welcoming Committee which makes sense to perhaps expand interest in joining the Association. This is an example of a Bylaw change under consideration. Comment by Jay Steiner: suggestion that President and Vice President be elected in same year so that the transition from Vice President to President made easier. Currently the Vice President must resign as Vice President to accept a nomination for President. Answer from Mike Bennett:I like the fact that Board Member Elections is staggered because it leaves experience on the Board rather than all new members. Jay responded that it would only be for President and Vice President. Mike said it would be discussed by the Board. Leesa requested that if anyone was aware of new residents, new births, weddings, etc., to please let her know so she could welcome them. She also was looking for suggestions to include in the welcome basket. One suggestion from the Board meeting was a list of resident skills. Leesa will include a membership application, golf cart information, doggie station locations as well as information on our FBRA web page. Mike Bennett offered kudos to Herb Cover for the outstanding Web Page. So much information is available as well as links to historical documents and our new store. 4

5 7) WATER CONTAMINATION AND MONITORING FOR 2018; SMOKE TESTING Don Pfalzgraf stated that last year we began a new service using dogs to sniff out human waste in our water test samples. In the 2014 Watershed Plan, DNA testing showed what type of bacteria is in the water. For example, when water was turbulent, bacteria was 41% birds, 27% human, 23% pets and 9% wildlife. When water is calm, the numbers are 15% birds, 27% human, 15% pets and 42% wildlife. The Watershed Committee felt at the time that pets and human source could be identified and action taken to reduce those contaminants. Don feels that the dog sniffing has fulfilled its purpose and we should consider redirecting our money and approach towards DNA testing. Herb Cover is currently doing research on the DNA testing approach and how it would be beneficial to FBRA. Don Pfalzgraf made, and Bonnie Stone seconded, motion to allocate $1,000 for DNA testing. MUCH DISCUSSION FOLLOWED. Question from Tom Hudson: With DNA testing what are you tracing it back to? Answer from Don: The DNA will determine if it is human or not. Mike Bennett further added DNA testing would hopefully get the attention of the Virginia Health Department as the supervisors above Steven Valentine and Tommy Thompson did not accept the dog testing. An additional resource is Devin Hudson (Tom Hudson s grandson) who attends Virginia Tech and has offered some new ideas regarding testing for PH Levels and caffeine. We need scientific help. Comments from Herb Cover: He stated that based on his recent research that some of the results from the 2007 testing by Professor Hagedorn from Virginia Tech may be misleading as well as some more recent dog sniffing results where 1 dog gives an alert while a 2 nd dog does not. Additionally, today s testing has improved with DNA test results. Mike added that of the 6 weeks that have been tested, 4 weeks resulted in swimming advisories that required retesting and 2 of those 4 weeks the retest was still bad. June 4 th testing was 1147, 2392, 3465, and 1081; June 11 th testing was 1960, 2092, 1960 and Anything above 104 results in a Swim Advisory. These results are after making significant progress with getting septic tanks pumped at the Trailer Park. Tom Hudson added that his grandson will take samples on Monday and will come back for additional samples. He thinks that the PH levels might help to identify the sites the contamination is originating. Additionally, he will return to Virginia Tech and seek ideas from his peers and professors. Mike has shared the data with Ruby Brabo (King George Board At-large Supervisor) and has got her attention. All of this can only help. Al Ventura asked Mike to share the City of Alexandria information. Mike stated that the City of Alexandria has received a waiver from the EPA that allows them to dump some raw sewage into the Potomac River because they cannot treat all of their sewage. This also may be true of DC and Blue Plains. However, according to the scientists, the bacteria levels have dissipated before it reaches Fairview Beach. Scientist believe our contamination is coming from inland. Question from Jay Steiner: Is it hoped that the DNA will be the 5

6 silver bullet to get action started? Answer: Mike stated ABSOLUTELY. Mike Bennett will convene another summit with all the state and local officials as in the past. Question from Jim Holley: Who is the responsible agency for this type of land based contamination? Answer: Virginia Department of Health. Comments from Janet Harrover: Jan stated that some things have been accomplished such as broken pipes fixed and septic tanks found and pumped. While these may have contributed to the contamination, there are still other things that need to be identified. These things make it even more frustrating to understand what is happening now. Mike ended by saying, should we have to pay for DNA testing probably not, but it will go a long way to get attention focused on the problem from state and county officials. MOTION CARRIED FINANCIAL MOTION. 8) SIGNS Tommie Klise research on signs suggested that we consider better quality signs (thickness and reflective). Pricing for 25 signs is $400 while 10 signs would cost $200. In addition, Sheriff Dempsey was contacted regarding recommendations for wording on sign. He stated that no trespassing was a better warning and understood by all. Some residents feel that wording is not so friendly. Question from Leesa Shrewsbury: Can we compromise a little on that maybe say No Trespassing Residents Only versus No Trespassing Private Beach? Jim Holley and Bonnie Stone made a motion to allocate $400 to purchase 25 signs that say No Trespassing Private Property. Leesa Shrewsbury and Brian Metts also made a motion to allocate $400 to purchase 25 signs that say No Trespassing Residents Only. Leesa Shrewsbury added that she felt because we have Tim s and Rick s it just seems the Private Property makes it sound like not a friendly community. Brian Metts also commented that you would want to invite people in to the community especially when real estate is up for sale. No Trespassing Private Property MOTION CARRIED FINANCIAL MOTION (Please note that if you want a sign then you will be responsible for post, etc.) 9) STATUS OF SERVICE AUTHORITY GENERAL MANAGER REPLACEMENT a RFP was issued with 2 possible firms and we are in negotiations for pricing which is not going very well at this time. There will be leadership, management, and culture changes costs will not change because we have a large debt service and a small customer base. Question from Jay Steiner: Is management being privatized in the future. Answer: Mike Bennett stated that this is an interim solution until decisions can be made for the future needs. 10) GUIDELINES FOR COMMUNITY S Al Ventura stated when he sends a notice that if you see the subject preceded with FBRA in the Subject line then you know it s official business. There were many requests to place community notifications through the FBRA and this category will be preceded by Community Bulletin Board in the Subject line. 6

7 Recently, there was a request to advertise a business or individual (for profit) related matter which the Board felt was inappropriate. However, charitable and community related items will continue on the Community Bulletin Board. Question from Sande Pfalzgraf: Will you advertise our Community businesses? Answer: Not individually but all businesses can be advertised together such as when Sam s has their Grand Opening they will be welcomed to our community along with mentioning Tim s and Rick s. There is also a community Facebook page that would be a more appropriate place to advertise to the residents. 11) SUPERVISOR JEFF BEUCHE not present. 12) OPEN DISCUSSION Herb Cover asked Mike Bennett to speak to SMOKE TESTING. The Virginia Rural Water Association will conduct smoke testing for sewer and septic in the Trailer Park and sewer lines elsewhere. Smoke is injected and then can be followed to determine if sewer and septic is functioning correctly. Unfortunately, the individual has not been available to date. Mike Bennett will follow up to see when it can be scheduled. ACTION ITEM. Al Ventura asked if Raffle Tickets are available today for distribution. Yes, they can be picked up from the front table. Jay Steiner wins raffle! Meeting Adjourned at 11:12 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Shirley Buckley, Secretary Next Meeting July 28, 2018 at 9:00 a.m. 7