Five years ago our Association voted in favor of two special assessments, one in year 2000, one in year 2001. These special assessments jump-started a program of scheduled upgrades of our properties, which we then continued to support with our quarterly dues. The Secretary's notes column on the left has links to pictures of our most recent upgrades.

This long-term planning for maintenance and upgrades of the Association's common elements is called our capital reserve program.

Common elements are such things as roofs, exterior siding and trim, parking areas, pathways, landscaping and lighting. A complete list of the common elements is included in the Association Bylaws. The capital reserve program keeps track of the estimated cost to replace worn-out common elements, along with the estimated remaining life of each element. From these estimates we arrive at the amount that we need to save each year to pay for these periodic repairs.

The capital reserve study is a "living document". Each year the Association Manager, Deanna Knox, reviews the condition of the common elements, fine-tuning our estimates of their remaining lifetime and setting priorities for what repairs are most pressing. She gets bids for the work that is planned for the following year, in place of mere cost estimates. These new values are fed back into the capital reserve study, so that we can adjust how much we need to save for future work.

The primary function of your Association Board is the oversight of two aspects of Association affairs. The first is daily operation of the Association (snow removal, garbage service, lawn care, and other routine maintenance). The second is prioritizing and approving the expenditures of the capital reserve monies for periodic repair and upgrades. While the Association Manager takes primary responsibility for these tasks, she does so under the broad direction of the Association Board.

Board membership is voluntary. Board members receive no compensation for their services. Board members serve no more than three two-year terms, meeting three times each year. Each of us board members trusts that when our service has ended, other owners in our Association will continue to work with Deanna to schedule and approve the ongoing upkeep of all of our properties. We depend upon others to move our Association forward with the same care and concern that we donated to the Association during our tenures.

Now that two of our Board members are reaching their term limits, it is more important than ever that other owners step forward to take their turn as Board members. In the near future, Deanna will be sending nomination forms to each owner. Please consider submitting your name for board membership for the upcoming two-year term.