Notes from the Board of Directors Meeting

Chuck Heitbrink, HOA Board Secretary

The board of directors met Oct. 24 for a regular scheduled business meeting. These are the approved meeting notes from that meeting.

Members present: Steve Seel, Lisa Onyx, Jim Anderson, Dan Buescher, Dirk Close, Nancy Eckstein, Chuck Heitbrink, and Manager Layne Varney

The meeting was called to order at 10 a.m. by President Steve Seel. There were 55 residents in attendance.

The board reviewed the minutes of the Sept. 20, 2022, Executive Session and the Sept. 26, 2022 business meeting. Motion to approve with corrections by Steve and seconded by Dirk. Approved 7/0.

The Treasurer’s Report was presented by Jim with the year-to-date results through Aug. 31 with revenue of $2,071,187 and expenses of $1,780,964. Revenue over budget was adverse due to the restaurant. Total cash on hand at month end of $1,615,118 with the following funds:

Operating Account $488,055

Contingency Fund $335,307

Reserve Fund $775,343

The largest Reserve Expense was the air conditioning units for the clubhouse, and the largest Capital Improvement projects were the restroom floors, shade coverings, and the Horizon Room sound system. The board reviewed the treasurer’s hand-out and had no additional questions.

Layne presented the Manager’s Report.

Administration: Home sales are 9 for September and total 93 for the year.

There is one account greater than a year delinquent and six accounts three months delinquent.

Electronic dues payments are continuing for the upcoming billing period.

Cox Communications has started installing the fiber optic cable line along Championship Drive.

Horizon Room: Julie Rundle has been hired as the restaurant manager, and Espy Gaxiola has been cleared to return to work. Changes are beginning with goals of consistent hours, Sunday Buffet, and quality food and service. The team is being built to meet these goals.

Activities: The Elton John concert was a great success with over 300 in attendance. Bingo, trivia, Sunday Funday football, concerts, and live music continue to generate significant attendance.

Clubhouse: The swimming pool replaster is now complete, and several favorable comments have been received. The Oakmont pool is now in progress, along with the new floor and paint in the Laundry Room. The outdoor stage continues with the railings, shade covers, and landscape improvements in progress. The clubhouse had two roof leaks with the heavy rainstorms and have been repaired.

Landscape Common Area: The rains have caused a weed growth explosion of plants and weeds. The crew has been working on Saturday to keep up with the maintenance of the common areas.

Committee Liaison Reports:

Architectural Control: Dirk reported that 43 permits had been issued for September and 46 so far for the month of October. Four hundred six permits have been issued year to date. The committee is revamping their meeting schedule and will be moving to once a month. Residents were reminded that permits are rolling until the work is complete due to delays from manufacturers and contractors.

Weeds are still a problem, and residents are encouraged to watch their property. All palm trees should be trimmed.

Finance: Jim reported that July YTD financials, including revenue, expenses and balance sheets, have been reviewed. A review of the Draft Budget included revenues and expenses, and the variances were discussed.

The committee reviewed and approved the proposed second draft of the 2023 budget. The budget includes an increase of 10% due to inflation. The Finance Committee approved the budget and will send it to the board of directors for approval.

The committee reviewed potential candidates for a study of the Reserve Account. Further information has been requested from the candidates.

Project Review: Dan reported that the outdoor stage is almost complete. The main pool is replastered, and the small pool will be replastered next. At that time, the Laundry Room repairs will be completed.

Rules: Nancy reported that the committee reviewed the sports courts rules and agreed to present them to the board meeting.

A fine schedule was discussed for weed and palm tree violations. Dan Russel will work with the ACC to determine if changes need to be reflected in the manual.

Dan will write articles for the SunBird News reminding the community of the traffic rules.

Welcoming & Marketing: Chuck reported that Rod Emmerton will serve as chair and Jean Pritchard will serve as vice chair. The committee is planning on having a large social event for all the new homeowners in 2022 in January. This will replace the New Homeowners Dinners and Breakfasts.

HOA/Golf Board: Lisa reported that at their last meeting no discussion on drainage would take place; however, questions could be brought to the monthly board meeting. Parking was discussed during the Kare Bear Events and the upcoming Hoedown on Nov. 12. The golf course will be hosting wedding receptions as an additional source of revenue.

The cell tower is scheduled for installation in December between the first green and the maintenance shed. The City of Chandler has approved the installation, and the Golf Club has passed the environmental study required for the project.

The golf course is having trouble finding a contractor to replace the gate at the maintenance area.

Layne reported that a pump and 300 feet of hose have been ordered, and when the equipment arrives, a plan for the HOA and golf course will be developed to remove the standing water.

The golf course is working with a vendor to sell Grab N Go food items at the Halfway Hut. No long-term agreement has been signed, as it is hoped that the Horizon Room could assume the Grab N Go food service.

Approximately 80 employees attended the Employee Appreciation Luncheon. In the future, the event will be moved to April to reduce scheduling conflicts.

Cox Communications may need to create a construction barrier on Championship Drive so that run-off does not get into the rocks along hole 4.

On holes 1, 2, 3, and part of 4, water is still standing after four days of the rain event. This issue is killing the grass under the water.

The Marketing Committee proposed two new members: Sue DuBlois and Kimberly Lay. The board approved the addition 7/0.

Layne presented the 2023 Budget and discussed many of the issues requiring an increase for 2023. The budget has been approved by the Finance Committee. The proposed increase for next year is less than $10 per month per lot owner.

It was discussed that funds from the Capital improvement Fund will be held back for possible budget overruns for 2023. Motion to approve the budget by Nancy and seconded by Steve. Approved 7/0.

Nancy proposed that the following statement be added to Policy 12 under Election Procedures: “Newly director-at-large members’ terms begin at the December Organizational Meeting following their election.” Additionally, she made a motion to combine Outside Facilities D and F into becoming E, Sports Courts-Tennis/Pickleball. Motion to approve by Steve and seconded by Nancy. Approved 7/0.

Steve agreed to assist in creating a letter to be sent with the billing invoices to explain the dues increase.

Nancy discussed the CC&R Change Procedures. The policy has been reviewed by our attorney, and he made some revisions to the document.

The first part of the policy explains:

How a proposed change can be generated

Requires a vote by the HOA homeowners

How information will be disseminated to the homeowners

That a consent form will be used

Deadlines regarding the return of the consent form

Passage must have 816 affirmative authorized responses

The second part covers the tallying of procedures, which includes the responsibility of the volunteers assisting in the tally process:

Verification of consent form

Preparing for the tally

How two people will record the responses

What constitutes an invalid consent form

Miscellaneous information

How homeowners will be notified of the final tally

How the consent forms and material will be stored

After homeowner and board discussion, it was determined not to vote on the procedures at this time.

Steve led the discussion on the SunBird drainage issue and delivered these remarks:

We can all appreciate the storm that went through SunBird the weekend before last. Three separate downpours from noon on Saturday to 2 a.m. on Sunday. In his four years here at SunBird, he has never seen it rain as hard as it did so quickly. In total, we had better than one inch of rain from that storm. Living adjacent to hole 2, he did see the impact of the runoff along 70% of the east side of the fairway. As of this morning, Monday, Oct. 24, 15 days after the event, water has finally subsided.

We have a great community here in SunBird Golf Resort made up of many fine volunteers, all the way up to your elected officials on the board of directors. He indicated that the job of the board is to support the best interest of all of our homes. Our residents appreciate how beautiful our surroundings are, and we all want to ensure it remains impressive for ourselves, friends, and family when they visit.

During October’s board meeting, Steve stated that the City of Chandler provided us the Drainage Master Plan, which was provided to an outside civil engineer for review. The civil engineer provided a report (the civil engineering firm was paid for by funds from the Community and Golf Improvement Fund). The HOA then provided that report to our HOA’s attorney’s office, who then interpreted that civil engineer report, as well as our governing documents, before coming to their conclusion. The takeaway from the HOA attorney’s office is that the SunBird Golf Resort HOA is responsible for the drainage from the homes and streets that drains to the basins throughout SunBird, both off and onto the golf course.

The HOA board elected officials have collectively made the decision to move forward with the drainage resolution of repairing or replacing dry wells or incorporating catch basins where necessary to eliminate standing water. This resolution will take time to incorporate, but we believe this is in the best interest for SunBird Golf Resort.

Your board continues to make decisions in this regard based on your best interests, both aesthetically and fiduciary. He asked that you continue to come to the monthly board meetings and to get further involved within our community as a committee member. Steve addressed that only two members of our community asked for the opportunity to serve on our board of directors. The SunBird homeowners elected your board of directors to make these tough decisions with expert advice. We are doing this after a good number of homeowners’ input from the Town Hall meeting, monthly meetings, and after consulting with three key experts: the City of Chandler, a civil engineer, and our HOA attorney.

That morning, Steve met with one of the companies we are discussing dry wells and catch basins with, where we continue to learn more about the process, obstacles, and opportunities, and we look to have quotes provided by both within the coming weeks. Steve is encouraged that we are looking to improve the overall community in regard to drainage now that we, the HOA, have been able to determine it is our responsibility. Your board of directors is ready and willing to discuss drainage with any member of our great community.

Following his comments, the board and homeowners were given an opportunity to make comments. The homeowner comments were captured and will be responded to at a later date.

The Comment sheets were reviewed by Layne.

Several homeowners’ comments were made at the meeting and were either answered by the board or will be communicated back to the individual who raised the question at the meeting.

Board members thanked the residents for attending the meeting.

With no further business, President Steve Seel adjourned the meeting at 11:30 a.m.

The next scheduled board business meeting is Monday, Jan. 22, at 10 a.m. in the ballroom. All are welcome to attend.