The spring meeting of the Wildflower II Board was held in Portland on May 7. Minutes from that meeting are posted here. 
The Association has undertaken two fairly large projects, both being worked in multi-year phases. The first of these is the repair and reinforcement of the rear log supports on the Phase II units. The second multi-year project involves Ladder-fuel reduction activities. 
An engineer has inspected rear log supports on all the Phase II units, specifying which needed immediate attention, and which could safely be scheduled for repair in next-year's budget cycle.
Ladder-fuel reduction involves removal of trees and overhanging branches marked as a fire hazard by SROA. The most critical of these trees were removed last year, with the remainder to be removed this year and next year.
Over the past several years the Association and the Board, especially, have been concerned with budgetary restraint while still being responsible for upkeep and maintenance of the Association's common elements. We schedule the items to be included in our annual budgets, giving highest priority to safety-related issues, followed by maintenance to ensure structural integrity. Improvements which give us a return on investment by lowering on-going maintenance costs are next in line.
Projects that don't fall into one of the three categories above often have been deferred in favor of those higher priorities. The most notable deferred project to date has been a significant redesign of our landscape and plantings - something that we have long discussed, but never found the money to do.
At the annual owners meetings, individual owners have expressed their willingness to landscape around their own units at their own expense. This has not been opposed by the Board. However, since tree roots can encroach on our common irrigation system, causing failures, and because some trees grow to become fire hazards that SROA then requires the Association to remove, the Board requests that if you would like to plant trees around your unit, you first submit to Joanna for review and approval a brief description of your plans, with the species to be planted and your proposed location(s).
Finally, a reminder that when owners want to modify or improve the exterior of their unit, the change must be approved by SROA's design committee, and the owner must obtain a permit from SROA for their project. Typical modifications that Wildflower II owners have undertaken include adding a storage shed to their unit, or adding an air conditioning unit or heat pump. SROA also requires that all air conditioners be screened from view.
Since these additions are actually placed on Wildflower "common" land, owned by the Association as a whole, before issuing the permit for a modification, SROA also wants to know that the Association's Board has approved the addition.
Joanna has on file approved plans for a storage shed addition. She also has on file pictures of air conditioning unit screens that meet with Wildflower Board and SROA design committee approval. If you plan one of these improvements to your unit, please contact Joanna first. She will provide you with approved plans and can help you streamline the design and permitting process, both through the Wildflower Board and through SROA design committee.
