Hardwick Mountain Property Owners Association
Annual Meeting
June 11, 2015
Minutes
Annual Meeting held 06/11/15 at 6:30 P.M. at the Barboursville Community Park Picnic Shelter
Kai Dozier, President, opened the meeting with a welcome as well as a brief outline of the meeting’s agenda.
1.) Treasurer’s Report: Barbara Dulaney, Treasurer, presented the Treasurer’s report that showed a checking account balance as of the May 31 bank statement of $11,486.70 Note: Deposits made since May’s statement and recently received undeposited checks result in a net balance of $14,204.00 as of June 11.
2.) President’s Summary/ Business Items:
a.) Special Recognitions/Board Resignations: Barbara Dulaney (currently Treasurer) and Steve Harper (currently Vice-President), both of whom are resigning from the Board as of June 11, were recognized for their contributions and faithful service to the Hardwick Mountain community. Carl Prober (current Board member) was recognized for his ongoing service acting as snow removal coordinator. Carl continues to be extremely diligent in assessing road conditions during snow events to ensure that Mr. Lawson (the current snowplowing contractor) is contacted at the appropriate time so that the roads are cleared promptly.
b.) Firewise Community Update: Hardwick Mountain is participating in the Virginia Department of Forestry’s Firewise Community program. For the benefit of those who might not have been at 2014’s annual meeting or might otherwise have missed some of the recent HMPOA mailings on this subject, Kai restated the program’s three primary components: fuel mitigation, improved emergency vehicle access, and on-site water storage. (There is grant money available through the Department of Forestry to cover some of the costs associated with bringing these improvements to pass). He then reported on the status of the activities underway, as follows:
i.) Fuel Mitigation: A tree/brush chipping crew has worked for two days chipping up materials that residents have cleaned out of their woods. Another day of chipping is scheduled for later in the month of June.
ii.) Improved Emergency Vehicle Access: Kai and some others have met with Barboursville Volunteer Fire Company personnel to get their input with regard to increasing the size of the turnaround area at the end of Turkey Ridge Road. Making this area larger will greatly facilitate the fire company’s accessibility to the Turkey Ridge area. (There are, however, several large trees that will have to be removed before any work can begin). It was also noted that although there have been no major woods fires on the Mountain in recent memory, there have been several chimney fires and the need for improved emergency vehicle access is more than just a theoretical possibility.
iii.) On-Site Water Storage: Several locations are being considered for one or more 2,500 gallon underground water storage tanks (“water vault”) that would allow the fire company’s pumper trucks to focus upon aggressively attacking any fire that may occur on the mountain, while the company’s tanker trucks would continue to shuttle back and forth from off-site water sources and replenish the vault. From the fire company’s perspective, a centrally located vault would be most efficient. It is preferable that such emergency water storage be located on either a roadside right-of-way or Hardwick Mountain common property rather than on anyone’s private property. A final site has not yet been chosen.
iv.) Firewise Related Items: Kai mentioned that a resurveying operation was recently conducted to accurately establish property boundaries for any activities relative to ii.) and iii.). (Surveying at the mailbox area was done to determine the Pittman property boundary, as there was a concern as to whether vehicles parking just inside the gate were on private property or Rte. 665 right-of-way).
3.) Miscellaneous New Business: All other new business items were related in some manner to the roadways and their use by residents and visitors, both walking and driving. There was considerable discussion, but no formal voting action was taken on any of the following matters:
a.) Montagna Lane Culvert: Kai mentioned that the culvert at Montagna Lane has been replaced, as the original one had been damaged by heavy delivery vehicles turning onto Montagna Lane and was partially clogged. When the culvert was removed it was found to be not just a single length of pipe, but was constructed of two 10 ft. sections attached to each other. The damaged inlet end and misalignment between the two sections all aggravated the tendency for it to clog up. (The new culvert is a 24 ft. long single pipe). Dozier/Spiers and the Barnhills will share the cost of replacing the pavement that was dug up for access to the culvert.
b.) Speeding vehicles: Although this matter has arisen from time to time in the past, it is especially crucial at the present as vehicles have been observed going much too fast near the gate when parents are seeing their children off to school. After much discussion Marc Cole agreed to contact the Orange County School Bus Garage and request that the driver be instructed to position the bus in the middle of the road and always have the red lights on when approaching the turnaround area (even prior to any loading/unloading) to minimize the possibility of vehicles attempting to go by or around the bus. All agreed that vigilance while driving and adherence to the 25 MPH posted limit within the Hardwick Mountain development are absolute necessities to ensure safety.
c.) Cigarette Butts: Steve Hovanic noted that cigarette butts are being discarded along the roadsides. Not only is this unsightly and inconsiderate of others’ property, it is extremely dangerous and has the potential to create a catastrophic fire on the Mountain. Residents are reminded to be alert and vigilant in regard to such hazards. If anyone is seen throwing cigarette butts along the roadside, use good judgment when confronting them regarding their actions.
d.) Unleashed Dogs: Anita Whitney mentioned an incident in which a resident’s small dog lunged at her (larger, but leashed) dog while walking; in the ensuing entanglement, Anita was cut while trying to separate the animals. Steve Harper noted that this is another issue that has been dealt with in the past, but in lieu of any formal leash law, his suggestion was (if at all possible) to have a face-to-face discussion with the animal’s owner to attempt to arrive at an equitable solution. It was also noted that pets walking in the road are subject to being removed by Animal Control if they are reported as being a hazard to vehicles or people. An additional comment was made that if a person is bitten by an animal or pet, a report to the Health Department will result in the animal being removed.
4.) Board Membership Election Results: Susan Jamme announced the results of voting for Board membership for the upcoming year as follows: Kai Dozier, Mark Hogan, Steve Hovanic, Susan Jamme, Carl Prober.
As there was no further business, the meeting was adjourned. A time of dessert refreshments followed.
Respectfully submitted,
Steve Hovanic, Secretary
Click here for a downloadable Word document: HMPOA Annual Meeting: June 11, 2015
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