2014 VKCA Annual Meeting Presentation

8/19/2019 2014 VKCA Annual Meeting Presentation

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2014 Annual Meeting


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We hated it, but the overage in the budget was absolutely necessary because wecouldn’t do the work in 3 parts as planned

Unforseen amount of hand digging for roots + completion of one side ended upcompromising the other side

A natural spring kept the rear of 202 – 220 Shenandoah soaked constantly

Roanoke parking lot flooded 222 Shenandoah constantly & required theinstallation of new curbing & under ground water boxes

What we thought was a new development at Roanoke & Harrison turned out tobe an ongoing nightmare

We’ll Start & End with Water


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Constant water running behind residences on Roanoke.

Town says it’s not their water (tested for chlorine and came upnegative.)

Town surveys land and advises re-grading.

Residences are living in a lake and we are thanking god the Frenchdrains are doing their job or all of that water would have flooded therear residents on Shenandoah.

Where is it coming from?


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Our Vice President, Brenda Lee kept pounding the drum until finally thetown discovered their own broken pipes were the cause of continuouslyrunning water.

The issue has been repaired and the French drains are doing their jobwithout being overworked constantly.

Finally!!!


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Reason for New Chains, Gates & Fences


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2014 Worst House in the Development

Broken Windows

Rotted Decking

Interior Bathroom Fixtures Strewn on Property

Out of Compliance Oversized Shed

Restaurant banquette in yard

Live trash piled outside

Illegal Outside Iron Stairway to illegal deck

Illegal curb cut from parking lot including paved personal driveway to backyard

Overgrowth and deterioration of front and rear yards


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No Such Thing as Grandfathering!

Any external architectural item that is not in keeping with the governingdocuments of the Virginia Knolls Community Association is subject to

removal.

The authority of the Covenant conveys with the land. If the out ofcompliance item has been there for 30 days or 30 years, it is still governed by

the Covenant.

No prior Board Member or prior Board of Directors has the authority to give“special dispensation” or “grandfathering” of any item for any reason.


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Crescent Parke Development Upstream (Same Corporation building on

the old Barber Ross site)

Contact made to us by developers attorney regarding zoning and/or re-zoning. We will put them on our meeting agenda at the earliest.

More traffic resulting from Sycolin overpass

Developer might be looking at Gateway Drive for alternateentrance/egress as well as other things.

We’ve initiated a traffic pattern study on Sycolin road at the intersectionof Gateway Drive

Traffic Patterns & New Developments


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We are back in talks with the town since our outdoor gathering in

September.

Tree study has been completed.

All prior plans for the common area have been scrapped

All talks now center on 90% of flood mitigation work happening ontheir side of the creek

They are on-board with conceptual vision we have for ourcommunity

Back to the Water


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Town Commits to Resolve Issues

Singular focus now: …. It MUST be functional AND pretty

• A complete understanding of the requirement that our green space bepreserved

• Our refusal to remove any tree that has not been professionally designatedas not viable (Davey Resource Group)

• Provide several options for a flood mitigation project that has its focus on

the Town’s side of the creek

• Our refusal to have anything installed on our property that degrades theesthetics of the community, may visually reduce home value or uses ourland to compensate for the many years of creek neglect by the Town.


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Three plan options. We liked parts of some and parts of others. We sent

them back to the drawing board to create a 4th plan.

4th Plan employs a 3’ decorative flood wall (20’ Away)

4th Plan provides a 40” drain on the townhome side of the wall.

4th Plan installs LANDSCAPING and will have assigned a landscapespecialist to this project.

4th Plan abides by the “no net loss” tree policy

#1 -What has the Town Brought to the Table?


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4th Plan requires significant excavation at the constriction down stream

4th Plan requires widening and curving Town Branch as it entersTuscarora at Harrison bridge, which will have both sides opened

4th Plan requires the creek be curved into the greenspace of BrandonPark and create a wetland area behind the dealership, with a step pool

arrangement

4th Plan requires a wetland pool just before the stream reaches theHarrison bridge in front of 300 odd block of Shenandoah

#2 -What has the Town Brought to the Table?


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The Loose Plan

Red Line = Flood Wall – VKCA PropertyBlue Line = Extended Reach of Project Down to Constriction in Stream


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90% of Common Grounds Remain


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3’ Decorative Wall Concept Examples


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Low Landscaping

Dwarf Holly Ink Berry


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More Landscape Options

Viburnum Obovatum Winterberry


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Tree & Shrub Options

American Beauty Bush Nuttall Oak


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Shrub & Tree Options

Oak Leaf Hydranga Red Maple


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Tree & Shrub Options

River Birch Virginia Sweetspire


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Sweet Bay Magnolia


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Remember This? They get it now!

Absolutely Not! No, No, No!


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Wetland Section More Like This


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We are eroding

4/15/2011 9/26/2014


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Trees Are Gone Now

5/5/11 12/1/14


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We Can’t Risk This Anymore

Behind 300 Odd Shenandoah Behind 200 Odd Shenandoah


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Virginia Knolls Community Association, Inc.

Minutes of the 2014 Annual Meeting

Rust Library – Ida Lee Park

Main Conference Room

7:00 p.m.

- Call to Order

- Roll Call – Board Members Present

Vice President: Brenda Lee

Secretary/Treasurer: Victoria Yergin

Board Member: Barbara Gulick

Board Member: Diane Reed

Board Member: Sarah Richardson

Board Member: Rafael Escobar

Statement: The President of the Virginia Knolls Community Association will not be present for the

meeting this evening. His mother has taken ill and he is at the hospital at her bedside.

- Annual Budget presented in customary Power Point presentation.

- Proposed Budget presented in customary Power Point presentation.

- President’s section presented.

Motion: To Adopt Proposed Budget – Motion Seconded.

- Q & A ran meeting overtime.

- Formal Floor Nomination as follows:

Leon Nawojchik – Nominated by Ronald McGhee for the Presidency. The nominee was present

and accepted the nomination.

- Voting results can be found at: www.vkca.org. Click the Voting tab on the left side navigation.

Questions Fielded Throughout the Evening


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Resident Question: Why is the Secretary/Treasurer instead of the Vice President handling the

duties of the President in his absence?

Answer: On the evening of the meeting there was some confusion as to the order of events in

2014 that moved the Secretary position to the Treasurer and also moved a Board Member into

the Vice President position.

On September 5, 2014, Frank “Chip” Baber our sitting Vice President consummated the sale of

his property in the Association at which time he tendered his resignation from the post. The

Board voted Brenda Lee from a Board position to the Vice President position.

Also in September, our sitting Secretary Carrie Hovell resigned her post due to scheduling

difficulties, new job responsibilities and severe time constraints. The post of Secretary was

assigned to Victoria Yergin on a pro tem basis and ultimately the post of Secretary/Treasurer

was voted by the board as a permanent position for Mrs. Yergin.

There was no opportunity for Brenda Lee to assume the detail of the Crescent Design District,Tuscarora Creek Flood Mitigation Project, tree studies, hydrology studies, proffers of upstream

development, rezoning petitions of the Crescent Parke development, FEMA amended flood

plain maps, conceptual stream design from Town of Leesburg CIP, State Grant Funding for the

creek and Leesburg Town Council FY2016 CIP budget as it relates to the creek. These, are only

some of the responsibilities of the Presidency, however the presentation consisted primarily of

these working items from the President’s desk.

The entire board is continually involved in discussion of these areas and is certainly privy to

every area. The Secretary/Treasurer is the only other board member sufficiently well versed in

the above matters to be able to present the material and have the ability to field questionsrelative to these issues.

Resident: Concerned over the use of RoundUp spray at the base of parking lot fencing and for

use where weeds take hold in blacktop cracks. The records reflect RoundUp has been used

continuously for the last 7 years with expenditures as follows:

Fiscal 2008 - $42.98

Fiscal 2009 - $ 7.65

Fiscal 2010 - $10.61

Fiscal 2011 - $20.99

Fiscal 2012 – $ 0.00

Fiscal 2013 - $ 31.84

Fiscal 2014 - $23.73


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The expenditures throughout the years indicate the use of RoundUp as a long standing practice

& it is quite inexpensive. The Board will discuss the use of string trimming by hand as a

budgetary item considering the research below.

Same Resident: Concerned regarding weed killer and the resident’s dogs. We have checked

with the manufacturers of Roundup. The answer to the query can be verified on their web link

at: http://www.roundup.com.au/faqs/can-i-use-roundup-products-in-my-garden-if-i-have-cats-or-dogs . “Once dry, RoundUp poses little or no risk to animal health.”

Same Resident: Concerned as to the impact of RoundUp on the ecosystem of the creek. Our

hydrology expert’s response to this concern is: “The active chemical, glyphosate, binds with soil.

This means that glyphosate that comes in contact with the ground will not run off into water

systems and becomes inactive.”

Same Resident: Stating the plowing service did not salt or sand the parking lots last year. The

plowing service is not permitted to use salt on the blacktop because it is not recommended for

blacktop surfaces. Salt is primarily used on the apron entrance to the parking lots because theplow must be lifted to enter the lot and there is concern the apron could become iced and

dangerous. Sand is used in the parking lots on an ad hoc basis. The resident felt very certain

sand was never used and was urged to write the Board of Directors documenting the allegation

so the matter could be brought before the plowing service.

Two Residents: expressed an interest in re-configuring the web site as they felt many people in

the community would utilize the site if additions, modifications and layout were changed. It was

suggested each interested resident generate an email to the Board indicating their vision for the

site and what their contribution, if any could be relied upon in this regard. To date we have

received an email from one resident outlining their particular vision. The configuration of thewebsite has been changed, some new content was added and we will monitor the use of the

site with these enhancements.

Residents: Two residents on the 200 even block of Shenandoah indicated the French drain

system completed in September skipped one residence entirely and has its origin too far into

the common area to effectively mitigate water accumulation in their yards. The drain system

will be re-examined after the snow melts to determine how we can better address the concerns

of these two residents.

Resident: The plowing service has plowed the parking lots at odd hours. The Board is aware

the plowing service was moving snow in the parking lots as late as 10 p.m. on one occasion and

as late as 2 a.m. on another occasion. The VKCA President was awakened by the 2 a.m. plowing

and went outside to speak to the plowing service. Ultimately, the issue of odd hour plowing is

double sided. It would be unrealistic to expect to be plowed on the most pleasant timetable of

residents. The Board will not prohibit plowing at odd hours as we rarely experience the type of


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weather we have received this year. The benefit of clearing the parking lots for safety sake far

outweighs the potential inconvenience of noise.

Resident: The ballast on the light facing the common grounds from the parking lot on the 300

odd side of Shenandoah needs replacing. The continuous sub-zero temperatures, coupled with

several significant snow events have back logged the schedule of the light pole repair service.

We are on their queue and the light will be repaired as soon as possible. Additionally, the timeron the light in the small parking lot on the 300 even block of Shenandoah is malfunctioning. We

will have the repair service look into that matter as well.

Nominations: The person nominated must be present to accept the Nomination. If they are not

able to be physically present a signed notarized statement attesting to their acceptance of all

the responsibilities of the position of nomination must be received by the Secretary in a sealed

envelope with their signature across the flap.

Regarding Online Voting: There was a question regarding savings of postage through online

voting. Covenant & Bylaws require ballots be mailed to members. Online voting would require acomplicated login and verification process. More importantly, it would erode the last remaining

incentive to be physically present at Annual Meetings. Through adherence to the Covenant and

& Bylaws not only is every resident provided the opportunity to vote by mail, they are also

provided the postage by which to do so. Considering mail carriers have the authority to pick up

mail from residences as well as deliver mail, a resident need only place their completed ballot in

the provided envelope and leave it outside for carrier pick up. This procedure provides the

same convenience as online voting in that the member need not even leave their home.

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Motion to adjourn and carried by Board vote.

2014 VKCA Annual Meeting Presentation

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